The Lost Fleet: Beyond the Frontier: Leviathan (26 page)

Like the dark battle cruisers before them, the battleships formed into a thin, rectangular formation, moving more slowly than the battle cruisers but with a terrible, ponderous assurance. The battleships also came around and accelerated onto vectors aimed at an intercept of Geary’s fleet.

“Tougher, but still nothing we can’t handle,” Desjani said. “They can’t have much more hidden in those docks.”

“I wonder why they didn’t bring them all out together,” Geary said. “Why send out two smaller forces instead of one bigger force?”

“It’s not what you would do,” she agreed. “Their battle cruisers’ vector is still aimed straight at the middle of our formation, which Black Jack definitely would not do under these conditions.”

“What would I be doing?” Geary murmured, trying to put himself in the place of a dark ship commander. “If those dark ships were all I had to defend their installations, I’d try to divert and distract the attacking force, but that would just buy some time even if it worked.” He reached one hand to point to his display. “We’ve got two assets we have to defend.
Mistral
, and the Dancers.”

“I think the Dancers can take care of themselves,” Desjani objected. “Their ships can outmaneuver even the dark battle cruisers. And if those four dark battle cruisers try to get to
Mistral
, we’ll blow them apart before they get within range.”

He nodded, thinking. “So why would I be setting up this situation if I was commanding those dark ships? We must be missing some part of the puzzle.”

“There can’t be much more inside the docks,” she repeated. “It’s possible they’ve got something hidden behind one of the stars if they knew we were coming and had time to get into position.”

“Senator Unruh warned me that the dark ships might still be getting information about what we were doing,” Geary said. “And we couldn’t hide our preparations to leave Varandal.”

“But how would the dark ships have known we were coming here?”

“Maybe a leak in Senator Unruh’s camp. Maybe just through thinking what I would do. I realized I had to hit their base. Since they are programmed to think like me, they would realize that I had to hit their base.”

Desjani looked troubled. “Admiral, that makes enough sense that it worries me. They know from Bhavan that they can’t easily force us into an engagement. They would want to choose a new battlefield where they could more easily trap us.”

Like a battlefield without any jump points. One where the only way out was through the hypernet gate—“Oh, no.”

“What?”

“The Alliance was studying how the Syndics were able to block access to their hypernet gates. They were trying to figure out how the Syndics did that so we could counter it. But if some of the Alliance’s researchers figured out what the Syndics were doing—”

“And the people supporting the dark ships found out?” Desjani stared at the depiction of the hypernet gate. “The people who think Black Jack is what stands between them and taking over? Admiral, you are making way too much sense.”

More alerts. “Warships coming out from behind Star Alpha,” Lieutenant Yuon said. “It’s a big force. Ten battle cruisers and a lot of escorts. Our systems are still identifying numbers—” He broke off as the alerts redoubled. “Warships detected near Star Beta. Two formations, each holding six battleships and numerous escort vessels.”

“That’s all of the dark ships,” Desjani said, calmer and composed now that the trap had sprung on them. “Every battle cruiser and battleship that they’ve got left. It’s us or them this time. No other options.”

“Then we’ll have to make sure it is them, not us.” Brave words. Geary looked at the dark ship formations converging on the path of his own force, added up their firepower and their maneuverability superior to those of his own ships, and gazed at the depiction of the hypernet gate that very likely offered no means of escape. He could not help wondering if he had finally made the final, critical error that he had been fearing since being thrust into command of the Alliance fleet at Prime.

“IS
there any way we can confirm whether or not that hypernet gate is blocked?” Geary asked Desjani.

She called up the hypernet key controls. “I’ve never tried to ping a gate from this far away, but I don’t know why it wouldn’t work. We’ll have to wait until the ping gets there and the reply gets back to us, though. At this point, that will take more than eight hours.”

“Do it. I need to be certain whether that option is foreclosed.”

“Yes, sir.” She touched some commands. “I’m asking the gate to identify any available destination gate. If it is completely blocked, the answer will come back as none. Have you considered the strange coincidence of this situation, Admiral?” she asked, keeping her voice very low.

“What strange coincidence is that, Captain?” Geary replied in the same tones.

“The enigmas gave us the hypernet. The Syndics taught us how to block the gates. It’s like those two enemies conspired to get us into this situation.”

“To the benefit of the people behind the dark ships,” Geary said,
“who would doubtless be scandalized at any suggestion that they had anything in common with the Syndics. All right. Regardless of whether or not that gate is blocked, we need to destroy the orbital docks and warehouses. That way, no matter what happens here, the dark ships will eventually no longer be a threat if the government can keep them from acquiring any alternate source of fuel cells. And we need to take the Unity Alternate government facility and find out what is there.”

“Taking the facility will require exposing
Mistral
and hanging the Marines out in a tough situation,” Desjani objected. “Why not wait on that?”

“Because somewhere on that facility there may be the means to lift the block on the hypernet gate if, as we suspect, there is a block.”

“Thinking of that is why you’re the Admiral and I’m not,” Desjani said.

Geary took in the information on his display, where all five dark ship formations were now converging on the projected path of the First Fleet and the accompanying Dancer forty-ship armada. All of the dark ship formations were ahead of the Alliance and Dancer ships. Closest were the four dark battle cruisers which had first appeared and were still rushing toward the Alliance forces. Behind them were the four dark battleships that had also come out of the docks. Both of those formations were just off the port bows of the Alliance warships, and if neither of them maneuvered differently, would remain in that relative position, growing steadily closer until contact.

Just off to starboard of the Alliance bows were the ten dark battle cruisers and the smaller dark warships accompanying them. Those dark battle cruisers were also steadying up for a direct intercept, but one that would take place considerably after the two dark ship formations coming from the docks. Finally, almost directly ahead were the eight dark battleships and the cruisers and destroyers with them, coming on steadily at a rate that would cause them to intercept the Alliance formation a few light-minutes before Geary’s force reached the dark ship docks and warehouses.

“They’re setting this up as if they’re going to hit us with each formation in succession,” Geary said. “I don’t think they’ll actually do that. It would let us whittle them down as each smaller dark ship formation encountered our entire force. But they’re probably hoping I’ll think that’s what they are planning, if ‘hoping’ is the right word to use for an AI’s calculations.”

“You’ve tried that trick more than once yourself against opponents,” Desjani pointed out.

“Yes, but it’s a little insulting for an AI that’s supposed to think like me to think I would fall for one of my own tricks. That first battle cruiser formation could dodge a direct encounter, then harass us until other dark ships get here. And if the dark battleships coming from the docks slow a little, they’ll reach us about the same time as the big battle cruiser formation that was hiding behind Star Alpha. We need something to keep that first dark battle cruiser group busy.” He nodded to himself, then called General Charban. “General, could you and your lieutenants put together a poetic invitation for the Dancer ships to engage that first formation of dark battle cruisers? It would help us a lot if those battle cruisers had the Dancers hitting them while we dealt with the other dark ship formations.”

“We will write them a battle hymn,” Charban said.

“Have the Dancers sent anything since all of the dark ships appeared?”

“Not a word, Admiral. They are definitely waiting on us.” Charban looked thoughtful. “I have the impression now that they regard us as the senior partner when they are in regions of space controlled by us. It may be a territorial thing. I’m not certain. But since we stopped using their version of ‘baby talk,’ the Dancers have been acting less like someone manipulating us and more like someone who is partnering with us.”

“Thank you, General.” Geary paused, then entered another call.

Victoria Rione’s image gazed back, her expression serene but her eyes dark. “It’s a little early for last-minute instructions, Admiral.”

“I may be too busy with other matters at the last minute,” Geary
said. “There’s something else that you need to find on that facility. There is a real possibility that the hypernet gate here has been blocked in the same manner that the Syndics blocked theirs. We won’t have confirmation of that for several hours yet, but the tactics of the dark ships make me suspect that has happened. If the gate is blocked, and if there is anything on that facility that would allow us to unblock that gate, we need it.”

“If it is there, I will find it,” she replied. “If you can get us to the facility.”

“
Mistral
will get you there,” Geary said. “And I’ll make sure that
Mistral
can get there.”

After he ended that call, Desjani indicated her display. “So, we stay the course?”

“For now,” Geary said. “We still have over an hour and a half before that first dark battle cruiser formation closes on us. I have no intention of holding this vector long enough for all of those dark ships to hit us at their leisure, though.”

She leaned close, ensuring the privacy fields around their seats were active. “Have you noticed that when the dark ships are maneuvering, we’re seeing more judicious use of fuel cells? They’re not going to maximum burn on everything like they did at Bhavan.”

“I noticed,” Geary said. “They never repeat a mistake. This is like Bhavan, but a lot worse.”

“Jack, we’re going to have a hell of a time getting out of this.”

She almost never called him that when they were on her ship.

“I know. But if nothing else, we’ll get those support facilities. Even if we don’t make it out of this star system, the days of the dark ships are going to be numbered.”

“We who are about to die salute you!” she murmured.

“Tanya—”

“It’s all right. I should have died a dozen years ago, and I should have died a dozen times in the years since then. Lead on. Even if we
lose this one, we’ll win in the long run, and it’ll be a fight they’ll be talking about for centuries.”

—

AN
hour later, Geary brought the fleet to full battle readiness again. Just about everyone on every ship was already at their battle stations, since they all knew about the oncoming enemy and had watched the dark ships’ approach for the last hour. As a result, every ship reported ready in record time.

He had spent the last hour trying to think rather than worry. He could outsmart the dark ships. He had done that more than once, with Tanya’s help in many cases because the dark ship AIs had been programmed to think like Black Jack and were confused when confronted by the Black Jack/Tanya Desjani team effort.

But the dark ships had known he had to go for their base. Because he had known that it was his only chance to beat them. Maybe someone had tipped the dark ships off with specific information, but in their place, Geary would have tried to lay just such a trap as this.

But he wouldn’t have given his opponent even a chance to get at the support facilities. The dark ships were still weak on logistics, still thinking in terms of tactics, not in terms of long campaigns. That gave him an opening.

He just didn’t know what to do after destroying those docks and warehouses.

“Twenty minutes to contact,” Lieutenant Castries said. “The dark battle cruiser formation is braking their velocity. Given the angle they will encounter us, projected combined velocity at the moment of intercept will be point two one light speed.”

“A little fast, but close enough for our fire-control systems to get good hits. Still holding the vector?” Desjani asked Geary.

“Still holding,” Geary said. “Just in case they do decide to charge us straight on.”

“If they do,
Dauntless
and
Mistral
will be their priority targets.”

“And with the screen of battle cruisers and battleships they’ll have to get through, none of them will survive to get a shot at us,” Geary said. He tapped his comm controls. “All units in First Fleet, I expect that this first formation of dark ships will make vector changes to avoid contact. If they do, the Dancers will handle them. If they do not, if they attack our formation, let’s make sure none of them survive the first pass.”

It felt odd, going into an engagement determined not to make any last-moment maneuver. Throwing off the enemy’s fire was always important. But he felt certain that these dark battle cruisers would not throw themselves away on a hopeless attack.

Because he would not have done that.

“Five minutes,” Lieutenant Castries said.

“The Dancers still haven’t moved,” Desjani noted.

“They will,” Geary said. “The dark ships are going to go after them.”

“You think so?” Desjani studied the situation. “Yes. If they come a little up and to port, they’ll go right through the Dancer formation instead of ours.”

“And you can bet the Dancers have seen that, too.” He knew he sounded confident. He hoped he was right.

The last minutes seemed to pass very slowly.

The moment of contact came and went too fast for human senses to register.

“No engagement!” Lieutenant Yuon announced.

Geary realized that he had been holding his breath and let it out slowly.

“Oh, nice!” he heard Desjani say.

Focusing on his display again, Geary saw that the Dancer formation had dissolved in the minute before contact, the forty bright ships sweeping down and over to catch one flank of the dark ship formation as it tore past. While none of the Dancer ships were the size of human battleships or battle cruisers, and none carried as much armament,
forty of them could do a fair amount of damage, especially against smaller Alliance warships.

A dark heavy cruiser was reeling out of formation, unable to control its movement. One of the light cruisers was gone, nothing but debris remaining. A second had broken into sections, which were disintegrating as they tumbled through space. And one of the dark destroyers was gone as well.

“They’ll think twice before trying that again!” Desjani said gleefully.

“Damage to some of the Dancer ships, but none are disabled,” Lieutenant Yuon reported.

The dark battle cruisers were whipping around, the Dancers swarming and rising to meet their turn like huge, shining bubbles flying upward, all pretense of a rigid formation vanished in favor of something that resembled the movements of a school of fish.

“It’s too bad the Dancers don’t have more firepower. The dark ships didn’t take into account the maneuverability and skills of the Dancers,” Geary said. “The dark ships won’t make that mistake again, but the Dancers should keep that one group of battle cruisers busy.”

Which left four more groups of dark ships.

The battleships that had come out of the docks had started out an hour behind the dark battle cruisers and accelerated more slowly, so they were now more than two hours from contact. The three groups of dark ships that had come out from behind the two stars were pushing their own velocity up, aiming to reach Geary’s formation at the same time as the first group of battleships.

“We could detach enough ships to help the Dancers finish off that first group of battle cruisers,” Desjani suggested.

“That’s what they want,” Geary said. “To get us focused on fighting those battle cruisers, then the groups here after them, until our option to do anything else disappears. We’re going to hold together, we’re going to blow through any opposition that we can’t avoid, and we’re
going to wipe out those docks and warehouses. Then we’ll engage the dark ships. By that time, we’ll also know whether or not the hypernet gate is blocked to us.”

He called up his division and squadron commanders, repeating what he had told Desjani. The news that the gate might be blocked was met with as much anger directed at the dark ships as fear for the consequences. Captain Badaya, though, saw a positive side to the situation. “They can’t get away from us this time!”

“We’ve got them trapped,” Captain Duellos agreed, smiling slightly.

Captain Jane Geary smiled broadly. “Nothing to lose. Let’s hit them just like Black Jack would.”

“We’re going to do just that,” Geary said, accepting the role of Black Jack as needed now. “We’re going to hit them and keep hitting them. If the fleet has to break into small formations centered on the battle cruiser and battleship divisions, I trust you all to operate independently, and I know you will all carry out your duties in a manner that does honor to your ancestors.”

He ended the call, concentrating once more on the situation. The first group of dark battle cruisers, scarred by the Dancer attack but still powerful and fast, was behind and above the Alliance ships, accelerating again. But they were beginning to roll to one side to evade the Dancers’ second pass. That was taking the dark ships off a vector to intercept Geary’s formation again. “General Charban, please inform the Dancers that they are doing all I could ask for, and to please continue keeping those dark battle cruisers occupied.”

“We may be inventing a new art form,” Charban replied. “Improvisational battle haiku. I will inform them. Admiral, I’m looking at this situation. Is it as bad as it appears?”