The Slaver Wars: Galactic Conflict (36 page)

Leaning back,
he closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh of resignation. How could you attack
something so close to the black hole? A ship’s jump drive wouldn’t even
function so close to such a massive gravity source. Opening his eyes, he leaned
forward. The AIs could evidently jump in. He knew their jump drives allowed
them to jump in close to planets, ignoring the limiting factor that gravity had
on Federation ships. For that matter, Alton ships had the same ability.

He looked once
again at one of the massive structures displayed in the photo the Altons had furnished.
He noticed what looked like numerous small objects around the structure.
Curious as to what they could be, he called up the same photo on the computer
on his desk and zoomed in on the small objects. His breathing nearly stopped as
he gazed at an AI sphere. There were hundreds of them around the structure, and
there were hundreds of structures. Hedon felt a sudden chill run down his back.
He'd known there were a lot of AI ships at the galaxy’s center; it was just
chilling to see that knowledge confirmed.

-

Weeks passed
and Hedon was back in the Command Center. The next jump would bring them back
to Careth and safety, assuming you could be safe from three thousand pursuing
enemy ships. The long-range scouts had observed the massed Hocklyns and Borzon
fleets leaving Kenward Seven. They'd also reported that there were thirty AI
ships in the enemy fleet formations as well. Hedon estimated they had a little
over five weeks before the enemy arrived. It all depended on how far the AIs
had updated the Hocklyn ships FTL drives and what the Borzon ships were capable
of.

“Almost back
to Careth,” Colonel Trist commented as he turned away from the tactical display
and looked over at the admiral. “Are we going to allow the crews some leave time?
They could sure use it.”

“Yes,” Hedon
answered with a nod. “We know we have some time before the next attack, anywhere
from four to six weeks. When we get to Careth, I plan to give all the crews two
full weeks of leave. Many of our ships need to have some repairs done anyway. I
want our people at top efficiency when the Hocklyns and their new friends get
to Careth.”

“What about
you, Hedon?” Colonel Trist asked in a quieter voice. He'd known the admiral
from the very beginning and very seldom called Hedon by his first name. “You
need some rest also.”

“Maybe a few
days,” conceded Hedon, looking over at Janice at Communications. “There’s a lot
of planning I need to do and work that has to be taken care of if we want to survive
the coming attack.”

“Take the days
off, Hedon,” Trist said simply, glancing over at Captain Duncan. “Take Janice with
you.” Colonel Trist turned and returned to his duties.

He was well
aware of the discreet relationship between Hedon and Janice; it was one he approved
of. He knew from all the years of serving with the admiral that he had very
seldom let a woman get close to him. It was good to see the Fleet Admiral to
finally let his guard down with someone.

Hedon looked
at his executive officer’s back, knowing that Trist had given him some good
advice. Perhaps Trist was right; a few days of rest and maybe he would be able
to view this with a new perspective. He looked over at Janice. He knew if
Taylor or Lendle were around, they'd be telling him to do it. There was no way
to know what the future might hold. Because of their positions as fleet officers,
it would be wise not to be intimate, but they could still spend some time
together. The decision made he would speak to Janice as soon as they got off
duty. He hoped she would say yes.

Admiral Streth
gazed out over the calm ocean waters of the seaside resort where he and Janice
were staying. After two weeks of frantic work helping Grayseth, Admiral Telleck,
and others design a defense strategy for the Carethian system he'd finally
allowed himself a few days off. Admiral Telleck was still aboard his flagship
coordinating the defense effort.

“This is
nice,” Janice spoke as she leaned back in her lounge chair and stretched. She
was wearing a black two piece that only accented her figure even more. She
smiled to herself as she noticed Hedon’s eyes focus on her body. It made her feel
warm inside knowing he was attracted to her that way. Now, if she could only
get him to do something about it!

“A few days
away from the war,” said Hedon, smiling. He knew Janice was hoping for
something more intimate, and Hedon was highly tempted, but it was wiser for
them to wait. How could he expect others to obey fleet regulations if he didn't?

“It’s so
relaxing here,” Janice spoke as she reached for the suntan lotion and handed it
to Hedon.

Sitting up, he
began to slowly rub the lotion over her skin. He had a strong suspicion that
Janice was doing everything she could to encourage more physical contact. Her
soft skin felt wonderful under his hands. He knew if it wasn’t for the war, she
would easily have her way with him. It was all he could do to resist her
charms. She was becoming someone very special in is life and he wanted to share
that experience with her.

“I’m glad
you’re enjoying it,” Hedon replied as he found himself spending more time than
necessary applying the suntan lotion. “I’m happy we’re doing this. At least it
gives us some time together away from the ship.”

“But not the marines,”
Janice added with a laugh. At a discreet distance, two female marines stood,
keeping a protective eye on the two. Even here at the resort, a minimum of
security was required for the Fleet Admiral.

“It goes with
the job,” Hedon sighed. He finished applying the suntan lotion and reaching
over, picked up the fruit drink on the small table.

“At least
they’re keeping their distance,” Janice replied as she lay back down on the
lounger. She slid the straps of her bathing suit off her shoulders and tucked
them into the top piece so she could get a better tan. She noticed Hedon
watching her. “The Carethians have really done a great job building these
resorts.”

“I understand
from speaking to Grayseth that they are in the process of building several
additional resorts for our allies,” Hedon added as he lay back down and looked
out across the ocean.

It reminded
him a lot of the calm, peaceful lake at the cabin. There were even a few
seabirds lazily circling in the air. He hoped fervently that someday he could
rebuild that cabin and retire there. If he did, he hoped that Janice would be a
part of his retirement. However, a lot had to happen before that dream could
become a reality.

Janice watched
Hedon out of the corners of her eyes. She knew this time off was good for him
even if they didn’t become intimate. She let out a small, disappointed sigh,
knowing that if she had to wait longer she would.

-

Admiral
Telleck was in the large space station working with Grayseth, Daelthon, and
Colonel Malang to increase the defenses around Careth. They were currently
studying a large holographic display, which showed all of the current weapons
systems.

“We have all
twelve of the Alton battle stations online as well as the five hundred particle
beam satellites,” Grayseth commented in his powerful voice as his large brown
eyes stared at the display. “We’ve also deployed seventy-two of the type two
battle stations with updated screens and full loads of Devastator Three
missiles.”

“All of the
laser satellites and missile platforms have also been put in place,” added Daelthon,
folding his large, powerful arms across his chest. “Nearly sixty percent of the
original ones were destroyed in the last attack.”

“The planet is
very well defended,” conceded Admiral Telleck as he walked around the display
studying it from different angels. “I'm pleased to see the space station has
completed installing the twenty particle beam cannons the Federation sent.”

“As well as
the new power beam batteries,” Colonel Malang added. “We've also installed one
of the new fusion reactors, which will greatly increase the strength of the station’s
energy shield. We’ve had engineering teams working around the clock to get
everything finished.”

“How soon before
Admiral Strong and Admiral Sheen arrive?” asked Grayseth, looking inquiringly
at Admiral Telleck. “They should have already been here.” He missed Jeremy and
his crew and was anxious to see them. Even Rear Admiral Susan Marks was greatly
missed. She'd helped train many of the original fighter and bomber crews.

“Their fleets
have taken up station in a nearby star system,” Telleck responded evenly, his
eyes focusing on Grayseth. “Their fleets will be used to hit the enemy from the
rear once the battle begins.”

“Pinning them
between our two forces,” Grayseth said with approval. “It will be a good hunt
and many of the evil ones will die.” It meant it would be a bit longer before
he could see Jeremy, but he understood the reasoning.

“It will be a
good hunt indeed,” Admiral Telleck responded. “How many fighters and bombers
with Carethian pilots will you be able to deploy?”

“We will have
over one thousand fighters and nearly twelve hundred bombers when the time
comes,” Grayseth boasted, pleased with the numbers. The Federation had
furnished large numbers of both, and one of the large fleet repair ships was
equipped to produce additional fighters and bombers and had been doing so since
it arrived. “Many of the squadrons will be based on our new shipyard.”

Admiral
Telleck looked at the large green icon, which represented the shipyard. Already,
four construction and repair bays were operational. Multitudes of Ceres' spider
robots were swarming over the shipyard, adding to it hourly. In addition, four
of the large fleet repair ships were also assisting in its construction. It was
also being heavily armed with defensive satellites and a number of type two
battle stations in orbit around it.

“Will it be
enough?” Colonel Malang asked in a concerned voice. She knew what they were up
against. They'd put up a good fight, but could anything they do stop three
thousand warships plus the AIs? “We’re going to be heavily outnumbered even
with our allies’ ships.”

“I guess we'll
find out,” Admiral Telleck spoke. He hoped Hedon had some brilliant plan up his
sleeve. They were certainly going to need it.

-

Jeremy was
pacing impatiently in his quarters. For weeks, they'd been stuck in this
nameless star system, waiting. What for, Jeremy wasn’t exactly sure. It made no
sense for them to attack the Hocklyns and Borzons from the rear. They just didn’t
have enough ships to make that big of a difference. To him it made more sense
if their fleets were used in conjunction with the planetary defenses of Careth.

“Sit down,
Jeremy,” Kelsey admonished with a long sigh. She'd been watching Jeremy pace
back and forth for quite some time. “There’s nothing you can do; we have our
orders.”

“Strange
orders,” uttered Jeremy, stopping and turning to face Kelsey. “They make no
sense.”

“That we know
of,” Kelsey reminded him. “Admiral Sheen knows what she’s doing. If these
orders were wrong, do you really think she would allow our fleets just to set
here?”

“No,” Jeremy
admitted. He knew Admiral Sheen knew enough about tactics that if this strategy
was unsound she wouldn't go along with it.

“Come sit
down,” Kelsey said, patting the spot next to her on the sofa.

Jeremy sat
down obediently and leaned back, closing his eyes. He wanted so badly to take
the Avenger and go to Careth. Grayseth was depending on him returning and he'd
promised the large bear he would. He wondered if this was how Admiral Streth
had felt when his return with the relief fleets had been delayed.

Kelsey placed
her hand on Jeremy’s chest and leaned her head against his shoulder.
“Everything will work out,” she said gently. “I just know it will.”

Jeremy put his
hand over Kelsey’s and squeezed it gently. He tried to allow himself to relax. Surely
Kelsey was right; he just wished he knew what was going on.

Ariel had been
watching the two in silence. She turned off the monitors to Jeremy’s quarters
and began studying the recent communications between Admiral Sheen and the
Federation. There was no doubt something big was up. These weren’t normal fleet
reports or just casual conversations. All of them were highly encrypted and
flying back and forth almost hourly. Knowing she shouldn’t, she activated a
special program she'd put together just for this type of situation. In less
than ten minutes, she'd broken the encryption and was reading the messages. She
knew if Jeremy found out, he would be highly upset with her.

If her
hologram had been activated, its eyes would have widened in shock. No wonder Admiral
Sheen was being so secretive about what was going on! Jeremy would be thunderstruck
if he knew what was being planned. The next big question was should she tell
him? She knew the answer had to be no. She'd known Admiral Sheen for a very
long time and didn't want to violate her trust. No one must ever know she'd
read the messages. But it did give her some ideas. She had some tactical plans
to work up. At least she could do something constructive and when the time
came, she would be ready.

-

Fleet
Commodore Resmunt looked at the tactical display with deep satisfaction. At
last, he had the forces he needed to destroy the Humans. Three thousand
warships and the thirty AI ships he had originally had grown to sixty. Evidently,
even the AIs believed the new fleet was unstoppable.

“High Leader
Nartel is demanding to know how soon we will begin jumping again?” First Leader
Ganth said as he walked over from Communications.

“Shortly,”
Resmunt responded.

It would take
them another week to reach the system of Careth, but he was going to pause long
enough to allow all of his ships to retune their drives back to top efficiency.
They would linger in this system for a full day and then begin making their
final jumps toward their target. For once, not even the AIs were complaining.