Ep.#15 - "That Which Other Men Cannot Do" (The Frontiers Saga) (53 page)

“One…”

“Triplets and singles, aye.”

“Jumping.”

The jump flash washed over the Celestia’s bridge. When it cleared a moment later, a damaged but still operational Jung battleship nearly filled their main view screen, as it slid from top to bottom.

“Jump complete.”

“Firing all forward tubes,” Luis reported.

Cameron watched as twelve mark three, and four mark five plasma torpedoes raced away from her ship and slammed into the hull of the battleship. The enemy vessel broke apart, explosions from within triggered by the massive amounts of thermal energy imparted by the impact of highly concentrated plasma against her hull. Her helmsman kept the Celestia’s nose on the target by continually pitching down as they passed over the target at a distance of only a single kilometer. Because of this, her tactical officer was able to continue pummeling the Jung battleship with plasma torpedoes.

The battleship was now upside down on the Celestia’s view screen, and getting smaller as they coasted away from the target, flying stern-first. Two more rounds of plasma torpedoes served as the enemy vessel’s final executioner, and the five-kilometer-long battleship broke in two. The sections drifted apart as more explosions rocked her insides. The forward half split yet again, and the stern section exploded.

“Target destroyed,” Ensign Kono reported from the sensor station.

“Next target?” Cameron asked.

“Two frigates and a heavy cruiser at Nor-Patri’s fourth gravity point,” Luis suggested. “Frigates are nearer, and the cruiser is about ten clicks beyond them.”

“The cruiser’s power readings are fluctuating, Captain,” Ensign Kono added. “They may be having shield problems.”

“Very well,” Cameron replied. “Mister Sperry, plot an intercept jump to those targets.”

“Aye, sir,” the navigator replied.

“Comms, any updates from our other ships?”

“No, sir.”

“Ensign Kono?”

“The Aurora and the Jar-Benakh should be on the far side of Nor-Patri. I have no fixes on either the Kent or the Tanna. We should get a better picture as soon as we jump to Nor-Patri’s fourth gravity point.”

“Very, well,” Cameron replied as she studied the new targets on the tactical display. “Lieutenant, we’ll jump in between the frigates and hit them with our broadside cannons as we pass. That should also give us a good firing line on the cruiser with our forward tubes.”

“Aye, sir,” Luis replied.

“On course and speed, ready to jump,” Ensign Sperry reported.

“Take us in,” Cameron instructed.

“Jumping in three…”

Cameron glanced at the tactical map again. The Jung homeworld was directly between them and the asteroid ring base. She had been on the opposite side of that planet from the rest of the Alliance forces for the entire ten minutes that the Celestia had been in the system, and she really wanted to know the status of that ring base.

She would have to wait.

The jump flash washed over the Celestia’s bridge.

The Celestia passed directly between the two Jung frigates, about two kilometers away from each. She fired her broadside cannons repeatedly, sending groups of eight balls of plasma toward the targets. As she did so, she also fired all eight of her forward torpedo tubes, sending waves of sixteen plasma torpedoes each, racing toward the Jung heavy cruiser still ten kilometers ahead of them.

The two frigates came apart as the first round of plasma shots, fired from the Celestia’s broadside cannons, overwhelmed their shields and caused them to collapse. The second round tore the ships apart, leaving only debris behind.

“Both frigates are destroyed,” Ensign Kono reported.

“Cease fire on all forward tubes,” Cameron directed. “Helm, change course to pass over the cruiser, then pitch us down. I want to be ready to jump the remaining distance and finish her off if the first two rounds of mark fives…”

“Impacts!” Ensign Kono reported. “I was right! Her shields had to be damaged already. She’s coming apart!”

“Captain!” Ensign Souza called from the comm station. “Message from the Aurora. Ring base is intact. Heavily shielded. Laser weapon on top pole. Kent is down. No survivors. Attack center point of ring base nearest Nor-Patri.”

A solemn look came over Cameron’s face. They had lost a ship…a crew. “Mister Hunt, put us on course for that ring base.”

“We are
not
getting through,” the Jar-Benakh’s tactical officer reported in frustration. “That damned shield of theirs is too strong!”

“Have we made
any
headway?” Captain Roselle asked.

“The shield section over that laser weapon is down to ninety percent, sir,” Ensign Marka replied.

“Then we just have to keep pounding her,” the captain insisted.

“The laser weapon is targeting us again, Captain,” Ensign Marka added. “The weapon is charging.”

“Damn it! Escape jump!”

“Escape jump, aye!” the navigator replied.

“Comms, message to all ships!” Captain Roselle barked. “Screw the ring base! Attack that damned laser first! Once we kill that thing, we can take down that ring!”

“I’m detecting several ships coming out of the ring base, sir,” Ensign Marka reported. “Cruisers, frigates, and gunships.”

“Bring us about again,” the captain ordered. “We’ll do another pass standing on our heads, firing our forward tubes as we pass over the weapon. Kes, put as many of our forward guns as you can on the shield section covering that laser. Sugar… Flash… Use the rest of our guns on anything coming out of that ring base.”

“Message from the Celestia,” the comms officer announced. “They’ve received the Aurora’s update and are going to attack the center point of the ring.”

“Raise them and tell them to go after the laser weapon instead,” Roselle ordered.

“Too late,” Ensign Marka interrupted. “The Celestia just jumped into Nor-Patri’s first gravity point!”

“Firing all forward torpedoes,” Luis reported from the Celestia’s tactical station. “Firing forward plasma cannon turrets.”

“Captain! Multiple ships coming out of the ring base!” Ensign Kono reported with urgency. “Cruisers, frigates, and gunships.”

“Hit as many of them as we can with the rest of our guns,” Cameron ordered.

“Message from the Jar-Benakh,” Ensign Souza announced. “They want us to attack the shield section protecting the laser weapon from above. Jar-Benakh is making lateral passes. Aurora is making forty-five-degree dives from Nor-Patri’s side. They want us to come from the opposite side, on even minutes only.”

“Helm, pitch up forty-five and prepare to jump five light minutes out,” Cameron instructed. “We’ll then pitch up more and to port, so we can jump over to an apex point.”

“I see where you’re going, sir,” Ensign Hunt replied.

“I knew you would,” Cameron said. “Lieutenant. We’ll dive in on our port side, sliding by Zhu-Anok at twenty clicks. We pitch in, put a few rounds of triplets from all forward tubes, then hold attitude and slap them with the port broadsides before we jump.”

“Understood,” Luis replied.

“First turn complete,” the helmsman reported.

“Jumping five light minutes,” Ensign Sperry announced as the jump flash washed over the Celestia’s bridge. “Jump complete.”

“Executing next turn,” the helmsman announced.

“Aurora just jumped for her attack run,” Ensign Kono reported. “She’s picking up some fire from the ships that just came out of the ring base.” The ensign turned to look at her captain. “If they launch any more ships, it’s going to get awfully crowded around Zhu-Anok, sir.”

“Turn complete.”

“Executing next jump.”

“Just keep your eyes on those ship tracks,” Cameron told the ensign. “If you think our jump line is about to get blocked, speak up.”

“Yes, sir,” Ensign Kono replied.

“Executing final turn,” Ensign Hunt announced from the helm.

Cameron studied the tactical display as it updated the status of all known targets in the Jung’s home system. Where there had once been mostly red triangles, there were now red Xs with growing circles around them to indicate the dead ships’ expanding debris fields. By all indications, the attack was already an overwhelming success. The joint JKKV and jump missile strikes on the six battle groups alone had scored nearly forty-eight kills, with the combination strikes on the groups of Jung ships in closer to Nor-Patri resulting in at least thirty more enemy ships being destroyed. But it still wasn’t enough. They had to destroy that ring base, or, at the very least, do considerable damage. Otherwise, the message that they were trying to send the Jung would not be as strong as they desperately needed it to be. The leaflets had provided a simple message: ‘The Alliance and the Jung can live in peace together, or we can all die together.’ They had to prove to the Jung that it was not a bluff.

“Turn complete,” Ensign Hunt reported.

“Attack jump plotted and ready,” Ensign Sperry added.

“Roll us on our port side, and yaw us twenty degrees in, Mister Hunt,” Cameron instructed.

“Roll to port, and yaw twenty to port,” the helmsman acknowledged.

Cameron waited, watching the ship’s attitude display before her on the pedestal between her navigator and her helmsman. Once the attitude change was complete, she gave the order. “Execute attack jump.”

“Jumping in three…”

“All forward tubes are charged and ready,” Luis reported.

“Two…”

“All forward turrets are ready.”

“One…”

Cameron glanced at the mission clock, verifying that they were still in an even minute.

“Jumping.”

The jump flash washed over them. The Zhu-Anok asteroid appeared on the main view screen, sliding from right to left as they passed over it.

“Firing all forward tubes,” Luis reported. “Firing forward turrets.”

Cameron watched as waves of plasma torpedoes poured out of her ship and headed for the upper pole of Zhu-Anok.

“The laser weapon is charging,” Ensign Kono reported.

“Is it targeting us?” Cameron asked.

“No, sir. It’s pointed twenty degrees off our departure course. I think it’s trying to anticipate the Aurora’s next attack line.”

“Losing our angle on the bow,” Luis reported, “switching to quads and port broadsides.”

“Pitching back to course,” Ensign Hunt reported.

“Captain!” Ensign Kono shouted in warning. “Two cruisers! Dead ahead! They just came out of the ring base! They’re trying to block our path!”

“Evasive!” Cameron ordered. “Get us a clear jump line!”

“The laser weapon is moving!” Ensign Kono warned. “Toward us!”

“Get us out of here, Mister Sperry,” Cameron urged.

“Taking evasive,” Ensign Hunt confirmed.

Cameron looked to the tactical display as the ship started to change course to get a clear jump line. There were two cruisers, one behind the other, moving from left to right in an attempt to stay in front of them as they turned. There was insufficient space to pass between them. To make matters worse, yet
another
ship was coming out of the ring base behind them.

“The laser has a lock on us!” Ensign Kono warned.

“Pitch up!” Cameron ordered.

“They’re firing!”

“Snap jump!” Cameron ordered.

“Our jump line isn’t…”

“NOW!”

On the main view screen, Cameron could see the pale blue light as it quickly poured out of the emitters and spread across the hull. Within a second, it solidified and began to flash. Then there was a sudden red flash of light that encompassed the entire screen. Jump emitters started exploding all over their forward hull, as well as shield emitters.

“We’re hit!” Ensign Kono reported.

“Cascade shield failure!” Luis warned.

“Jump drive is offline!” the system’s officer added.

The main view screen flickered twice and then went black.

“Do we still have maneuvering and propulsion?” Cameron asked urgently.

“Yes, sir!” Ensign Hunt replied.

“Full power to the mains!” Cameron ordered.

“Full power, aye!” the ensign replied.

“Those ships are still in our path!” Ensign Kono warned.

“Ram them if you have to!” Cameron replied. “Just get us below the asteroid’s equator and out of that laser’s firing line! We can’t take another hit like that!”

“Captain!” Mister Navashee called from the Aurora’s sensor station. “The Celestia’s been hit!”

“How bad?” Nathan asked, rising from his command chair.

“She’s lost all shields! She’s got dead emitters all over the place! She may have lost her jump drive as well! She’s in a full power run for Zhu-Anok’s equator!”

“They’re trying to get out of that laser’s firing line,” Jessica realized.

“They’ve got three cruisers making a run to block their path and force them to turn before they get clear,” Mister Navashee continued. “It looks like they may collide.”

“Helm, turn into the lead cruiser and jump us in,” Nathan ordered. “Jess, be ready to fire everything at that cruiser.”

“Turning to intercept,” Mister Chiles confirmed.

“I’m on it,” Jessica assured him.

“Jump ready,” Mister Riley reported.

“Snap jump,” Nathan ordered.

“Snap jumping,” the navigator responded as the jump flash washed over them.

The Jung cruiser suddenly appeared directly ahead of them, with the Celestia to the far right of the spherical screen, practically to Nathan’s side, firing desperately at every ship around her.

“Fire!” Nathan commanded.

“Firing all forward tubes!” Jessica replied.

“The laser has a lock on the Celestia,” Mister Navashee warned. “It’s firing!”

Nathan turned his head to the right, and watched in horror as the laser cut into the top of the Celestia’s stern section, just forward of her antimatter reactors. The laser energy tore through her unprotected hull, setting off secondary explosions that tore her in half, sending her forward section into a slow tumbling motion as both sections continued to drift across the asteroid’s landscape on their way to the ring station at the asteroid’s equator.

“The laser is still tracking the Celestia!” Mister Navashee warned.

“First cruiser destroyed!” Jessica announced. “Give me five to port for the second target!”

“The laser is charging again,” Mister Navashee added.

“Five degrees to port, aye,” Mister Chiles confirmed.

Nathan felt a sick feeling in his stomach as he stared out the right side of the main view screen at his friend’s mortally wounded ship.