Solbidyum Wars Saga 9: At What Price (24 page)

“Admiral, everything is in place and we’re awaiting your orders,” said Marranalis.

“Very well.  Order the gates to be opened and let’s get this show on the road,” I said.  Actually, what I said was, “Order the gates to be opened and let's push the carts down the road,” which was a colloquialism in Federation language that meant the same thing as its Old Earth counterpart.

Moments later, we found ourselves in another part of the galaxy.  The holographic display in the War Room showed the asteroid cluster and I could see our ships appearing in the four coordinates where they were supposed to be.  What I wasn’t seeing was the hive of Brotherhood ships.”

“What happened?!  Did the Brotherhood get word of our arrival and flee?” I asked.

“Pardon me, sir,” said one of the specialists manning a console.  Blips lit up all over the display almost instantly.  “The sensors identifying the Brotherhood ships were inadvertently turned off.  Sir, it looks like they’ve detected our arrival.  Fighters are headed in our direction.”

“Marranalis, order the attack to commence as planned,” I said.  “See if you can locate Ming’s, old starship.  When you find it, the
GLOMAR ROSA
will lead the attack against it.”

“Sir, I’m not picking up any large starships on our scanners,” said Marranalis.

“Keep looking.  I just hope he hasn’t moved to some other location.”

“Sir, it looks like the asteroid-ships are maneuvering deeper into the asteroid cluster where they’re disappearing,” reported the trooper at the console.

“Damn, they must have a stellar gate nested in there.  Head for that location at maximum speed and focus the PLABE on the location where they’re departing.  If we’re lucky, we may be able to knock out that gate.  If we do, we’ll be able to mop up the ships left behind and maybe gain some future advantage.  How many asteroid-ships are you detecting?” I asked tentatively.

“Two hundred and eleven at this moment, but they’re disappearing fast.  Our PLABE is hitting some that are trying to make it through the gate though.”

It was nearly twenty minutes later when he announced, “Sir, the asteroid-ships appear to have stopped disappearing.  I believe we may have disabled their gate.”

“I hope so, but it’s just as possible that Ming closed it from the other side to prevent us from getting through ourselves to pursue him.  If that’s the case, he may just as well be prepared to reopen this gate or other gates to send his asteroid-ships back into the battle,” I said.  “Warn our ships to be on alert for a potential counterattack from any direction.”

With this inner gate closed the asteroid-ships were trapped, so it was easy pickings for the
GLOMAR ROSA
’s PLABE.  Meanwhile, the rest of the Federation armada was taking out fighters and any other Brotherhood ships still in the vicinity.

“How many Brotherhood ships have we taken out so far?” I asked.

“Ninety-seven, sir,” Marranalis reported.

“Good!  How many escaped through the gates before it closed?”

“More than seventy, but we don't know the exact number, sir.”

“Excellent, let's finish off what’s left.  How are our fleets doing?  What are our losses?”

“We’ve lost more than two hundred fighters so far and two carriers, but otherwise we’re holding strong.”

“How many of their fighters have we taken out?” I asked.

“Nearly seven hundred, sir.”

“Good, let’s clean them all up.  I’m hoping we’ve done some serious damage to Ming’s forces here today.”

“I’m sure he won’t be happy about it,” replied Marranalis.

“I just wonder where he is.  He’s the head on this damned snake and if we can cut the head off, the rest of the snake will die.  I’m sure of that.  Ming doesn’t trust anyone to retain a level of power that’s anywhere even close to his.  Since Roritat was eliminated, more and more of the top-ranking Brotherhood have continued to vanish, leaving only Ming to call the shots.  We get him and it’s all over.”

“So where do you think he might be?” asked Marranalis, as if he thought I had any idea.

“I don’t know.  Honestly, I haven’t any clues at all,” I replied with a heavy sigh.  In spite of the successful attack, I couldn’t shake the growing heaviness in my chest – whether it be doubt or instinct – that told me we were far from grasping the scope of Ming’s malevolent scheme and understanding what was already unfolding before us.

The clean-up battles lasted the rest of the day, but none involved counterattacks or re-entry of Ming’s forces through other Cantolla Gates.  I had anticipated that the operation would have required much more time, but then I didn’t predict that so many asteroid-ships would escape through a Cantolla Gate in the middle of the asteroid field.

“Do you think Ming has other fabrication sites producing asteroid-ships like this place?” asked Marranalis as we neared the end of the last battle.

“I’m sure he does.  What might help us find them are the characteristics that make this asteroid field uniquely suitable for creating these ships.  The odds are any site he uses will be similar to this one.  If we can compile the details of this field and feed them into the galactic mapping system, it may be able to predict where Ming sought to build others.  Contact A’Lappe with the relevant data as soon as it’s compiled and see if he can identify any similar sites.”

“Sir, not a single frigate, corvette or starship was found here.  Do you think Ming has given up on conventional warships in favor of strictly asteroid-ships and fighters?”

“I doubt it.  However, it’s faster and cheaper for him to build asteroid-ships and they hold up better under fire than a standard frigate or starship.  Beyond that, Ming staffs them with a minimal crew and gives no concern for their comforts when it comes to finishing the interior of the ships.  Fighters are quick and maneuverable and carry a lot of firepower, plus they too are inexpensive and require only the pilot for operation.  Maintaining this type of armament, Ming is able to spread his resources across a massive fleet quickly and cheaply, creating a considerable space force that can effectively combat our more expensive ships.”

“Maybe we should be looking at using asteroid-ships,” said Marranalis.

“I thought about it, but they’re simply too small to accommodate our troopers comfortably or safely.  They work for Ming because he doesn’t care about his personnel.  As far as he’s concerned, every mission they make is a suicide mission.  I doubt those ships are even equipped with food replicators or a med-unit.  The soldiers staffing the asteroid-ships are no doubt subjugated by way of slave collars or addiction-driven cravings.  Every one of those ships is a death trap.”

“Even so, we wouldn’t need to make them the same way he does,” Marranalis offered.  “We could still incorporate all the features in them that we have in our ships.”

“Perhaps, but I don’t think we would be able to make them as efficient as our carriers.”

“Yes, I see what you mean.  I have to admit that our carriers are pretty much optimal for delivering an attack as well as maintaining defenses.  So what do you think Ming has done with his other ships?”

“I don’t know and it’s a good question.  I’m certain he hasn’t abandoned them, which can only mean he is holding them back for some special purpose.”

“Sir,” one of the female officers at a communication console interrupted.  “We’re getting a message that one of our Cantolla Gate stations is under attack.”

“Which station?” I demanded.

“CGS-3, sir.”

“Marranalis, get their latest coordinates and order Captain Hanges get us there as quickly as possible.  Then get word to the
MAXETTE
to join us there.  Also, find out who is in command of that station and get them on the vid for me.”

“Yes, sir.”

A few minutes later he announced, “Admiral, I have Captain U’Dingan coming up on the vid now.”

“Admiral Tibby, sir,” said U’Dingan as soon as his image appeared.  I was taken back by his youthful appearance.  He didn’t appear to be out of his twenties yet.

“What’s your situation there, Captain?” I asked.

“Dozens of enemy fighters and three asteroid-ships appeared not far from us moments ago and began firing on the station.  Our defensive forces have so far been able to hold them off, though they seem to have gotten some sort of small torpedo-like weapon through our RMFF shields.  One of the lower-level station areas has been damaged.  Fortunately, this was a cargo transfer hub area and there were relatively few personnel there.  We have taken some casualties.  The exact number is still unknown, but at this time we believe it to be less than fifty.”

“Do your best to fight them off,” I said.  “Ships are on the way to assist you.  The Brotherhood clearly has a gate set up near you and no doubt they’ve sent back word by now that’ve located you, so there may be more enemies showing up to bolster their attack on the station.”

“Yes, sir.  We’ll keep them at bay until you arrive.”

“Marranalis, divert about a quarter of the ships here to the CGS-3 location to assist in defending the station.  I wish now we that had fighter launch tubes on those stations.  Oh, and put all the other Cantolla Gate Stations on alert, if you haven’t already.”

After Marranalis issued the orders he asked me, “Admiral, how do you think the Brotherhood found CGS-3?  It’s only been a few days since it was relocated and the coordinates are highly classified.”

“I don’t know, but I plan to find out,” I said.  “What’s our ETA to CGS-3?”

“We’ll need to transition through three stellar gates, which will require about five hours.  After that there’s another hour of flying time.”

“What ships are available that can get there quicker?”

“The
MATTEN
is only one stellar gate away and can be there in about an hour.”

“The
MATTEN
is a new carrier, isn’t it?  Who’s the captain?”

“Yes, sir.  It was commissioned three months ago.  The commanding officer is Captain Edimare.  This is his first big command.  Prior to this, he captained the frigate
YALASSEE
and fought at the battle of Glomar Rosa.

“Send orders for him to proceed to the CGS-3 site and assist in the battle.  Let me know as soon as he has arrived there.  I’ll transfer to his ship until the
GLOMAR ROSA
gets there.”

“Sir, do you think Ming planned all these events to occur simultaneously like this?” Marranalis asked.

“It certainly looks that way.  I just wonder how many more he has planned.”

We didn’t need to wait long for the answer.

“Admiral,” the communications officer interrupted.  “Emergency messages are coming in from Laxex that their Cantolla Gate hubs have been attacked by body-bombers, as well as a number of the planet’s government offices.  As we speak, sir, there are also reports of bombings in progress at several schools and hospitals.  There are additional reports of Brotherhood ships that have suddenly appeared in orbit and bombarded the planet with small asteroids before disappearing again.  There is no immediate estimate on the number of casualties or amount of damage done by this attack.

“By the stars, Ming is going out of his way to be as hateful as possible,” I cursed.  “Bring up all the attack sites in the hologram; let’s see if we can make any sense of this.”

“Do you wish the site of our attack at his asteroid-ship production site included as well?”  asked Marranalis.

“Yes.  Let’s look at the big picture.”

Big it was, but it told us little more than that the Brotherhood had stellar gates spread out over a large area.  There seemed to be no pattern to their attack sites and no reason for the ones they’d chosen other than to create terror and chaos in the Federation.  I noticed everyone in the War Room watching me intently like they expected me to pull a miracle out of my ass, but it wasn’t happening on this occasion.

Finally, I gave up.  “Contact Admiral Wabussie and send him all the latest data we have.  Let’s hope that he and his teams can come up with something we can use.”

“Admiral, you have an incoming call from Leader Pheosa,” said Marranalis, breaking my thoughts.

“Let me take this at my desk,” I said as I walked directly through the hologram toward my office.

Once seated behind closed doors, Leader Pheosa’s image appeared on my vid-screen.

“Greetings Leader Pheosa, how can I be of service?” I began.

“Greetings, Admiral.  You can start by telling me what is going on.  By the stars, I’m being inundated with calls from senators all over the Federation about asteroid bombardments and terrorist body-bombers and I’ve been told that CGS-3 has been shut down and no one is able to transfer through it.  What’s happening?”

“All of that is happening,” I said.  “We’re trying to deal with events as fast as we hear of them, but at the moment the Brotherhood remains one step ahead of us with hit and run strikes.  By the time we reach one attack location, they’re gone.  At the moment, I’m on my way to the location of CGS-3.  We received a report moments ago that they’re under attack by a small fleet of Brotherhood ships and we fear more may be on the way.  Additional defenses are headed there now.  So far, the station has not been breached, though one lower pod area used for freight transfers was damaged. The initial casualty report indicated zero civilians and up to fifty crew have perished, but otherwise the station is still secure and holding its own.