The burden of command, p.17
The Burden of Command, page 17
part #14 of Empire Rising Series
“Got it!” Lydia exclaimed. Moments later, a contact began to flash on the holo display.
Jake frowned when he saw it. The contact wasn’t heading towards any of the shift passages. Instead, it was heading towards the system’s only planet with an asteroid ring. As soon as he realized what it meant, Jake’s eyes widened, and he sat forward in his command chair. “Another rendezvous,” he said out loud. It made the most sense. There wasn’t anything of interest in the system, nor in orbit above the planet the alien ship was headed towards. That, or they’re on to us, another thought hit him. If the alien vessel thought it was being followed, hiding in a thick planetary ring, and watching to see if another ship appeared wouldn’t be a bad idea. “Take us forward, one percent thrust,” Jake ordered. “Let’s not take any risks. Maybe they’re trying to see if they’re being followed.”
“Yes Lieutenant,” the navigation officer replied.
It took the alien vessel two hours to reach the planet it was headed towards. In that time, Python covered a fraction of the distance the alien vessel did. As the alien contact approached the planetary ring and began to slow, Jake expected it to begin to reduce its emissions. There was no point trying to hide if it was still going to keep its engines and reactors operating at full power. Yet Python’s passive sensors had no problem continuing to track the vessel.
“They’re not hiding,” Lydia commented. “You were right the first time. It is a rendezvous.”
“Agreed,” Jake replied. “Take us up to five percent thrust. I want to get closer. Set course for the system’s gas giant. We can slot into orbit there and see what unfolds.”
“Who do you think they’re meeting?” Lydia asked in a lower voice after Python completed her course change.
“A very good question,” Jake said. He shrugged his shoulders as he looked at the alien vessel. “We have no idea who they are. It’s as likely as not that whoever they’re meeting is unknown to us as well.”
“Which will make it all the more concerning,” Lydia said. “If the Karacknids have hired one species to transport weapons to another, then how many have they working with them?”
Jake nodded. “And right on our southeastern border, where we have almost no defenses.” For the last twenty years, the Empire had been building up fortifications along its northern border. If one or two powerful enemies suddenly appeared to the south, many systems could be in trouble. Suddenly, Jake felt even more weight on his shoulders. Whoever the alien vessel had come to meet was not likely to be friendly towards Humanity. Not if they were working for the Karacknids. With Python’s fuel situation, he could end up having to fight them as well. As he felt his anxiety growing, Jake sat back in his command chair. It was probably going to take hours or even days for whoever the aliens had come to meet to arrive. The wait would end up forcing him to go over and over the problem in his mind. He wouldn’t be able to avoid it. Not for the first time, he wished Captain Domingo or even some of the more senior naval officers he had met were here instead of him. Admiral Becket would certainly know what to do. He, on the other hand, couldn’t help but feel terribly conflicted. Firing on an unknown alien vessel could be viewed as piracy at best, and a war crime at worst. Even if the aliens proved to be unfriendly, Jake was almost certain attacking and destroying the Karacknid weapons would put an end to his career. He knew enough about how politics worked to know that the Imperial Navy’s senior Admirals would have to publicly condemn him, whether they secretly agreed with whatever he did or not.
“Second energy reading!” Lydia shouted excitedly. “Their contact is already here. They’re coming out of the planetary ring.”
“What are the sensors telling us about the new ship?” Jake demanded.
Lydia shook her head. “The energy readings aren’t being recognized by the ship’s computer.” She turned around to Jake. “Though our computer doesn’t have anything like the database of alien ships an Imperial warship would have.”
“Let’s see a visual,” Jake requested. On the holo display zoomed in, Jake’s internal struggle ceased. He couldn’t keep the shock from his face.
“What is it?” Lydia said. Others had turned around to look at Jake as well.
Jake raised a hand and ran it through his hair. Everything was clicking into place. “Flex-aor,” he said slowly as his mind wrestled with the revelation. “That’s a Flex-aor ship. The Karacknids are giving weapons to the Flex-aor!”
“But that’s impossible,” another officer said.
Moments ago, Jake would have thought the same. He had spent the first four years of his naval career serving in the Flex-aor demilitarized zone. He knew the history well. Just months before the beginning of the Karacknid War, Admirals Somerville and Ya’sia had located the Flex-aor homeworlds. The Flex-aor had attacked both human and Varanni Alliance worlds. In response, Somerville and Ya’sia destroyed several Flex-aor fleets. A follow-up attack by a Varanni fleet had finished the Flex-aor off. Since then, an Allied fleet had been stationed in their space, keeping watch over the Flex-aor worlds. Any attempt to rebuild their orbital stations and return to space was quickly snuffed out. As best as Allied scientists and archaeologists could determine, the Flex-aor had been responsible for exterminating six sentient species before they had attacked Humanity and the Varanni Alliance. At least, that was as many worlds as had been discovered and examined. No one knew if there were more worlds out there that had been turned into mass graves. Everyone agreed, they could never be allowed to build spaceships again. And yet, Jake was certain he was staring at one.
“Are you sure?” Lydia asked.
Jake nodded. “I served in the demilitarized zone. I know what they look like. And if there is one, that means there are more. There has to be a Queen that escaped the Varanni Alliance fleet twenty-five years ago.”
“A Queen?” Another officer asked.
Jake quickly explained. “It’s how they organize their society. They have one High Queen who rules them. Yet each planet and warfleet is controlled by one of her daughters. She is a Queen in her own right who rules over all her male offspring. The fleet thought they had located and quarantined or killed them all.”
“If one escaped, that means they’ve been in hiding all this time,” Lydia said, her eyes were wide. “Hiding and preparing. If they’ve been receiving weapons from the Karacknids…”
Lydia didn’t have to finish her thought; the concern was obvious to everyone on Python’s bridge. When the Flex-aor had first attacked, their numbers had been overwhelming. Only a combined fleet from every Human nation was able to stop them, and even then, it had largely been down to the technological advantage Humanity had held. Every one suspected the Karacknids had given weapons to the Flex-aor. Yet by design, they had been weapons that were centuries out of date. No doubt that would have made them easy to conquer if the Karacknids had managed to destroy Humanity. But if they have modern Karacknid weaponry now, Jake thought, that would make the Flex-aor an entirely different threat. And a threat that likes to nuke Human worlds, he thought as the full ramifications of what he was looking at hit him. “We can’t let them have those weapons,” Jake said out loud, determination filling his voice. “This may not be the first weapons transfer there has been, but we can’t take the risk. We cannot let the Flex-aor get their hands on modern weapons. It could spell disaster!”
“We are in complete agreement Lieutenant,” Lydia said as she and several other bridge officers nodded. “We are with you, whatever you want to do.”
Jake didn’t hesitate. “Alter course, put us onto an intercept heading. Bring us up to eighteen percent thrust. If we reveal ourselves now, they may run. We need to get closer before we attack. If we can, we’re not going to let either ship escape.” Whoever the other alien species was, if they were working for the Karacknids, helping them arm the Flex-aor, Jake felt no sympathy for them. Whatever it meant for his career, he had to destroy the weapons their ship was carrying.
“What do you know about that Flex-aor ship?” Lydia asked.
Jake focused his attention more fully on the new ship. Only then did he realize he had ordered Python forward without even knowing what they were facing. It could have been a battleship for all he knew! Cursing himself for his brashness, Jake forced himself to slow down and to think. He couldn’t just go charging gung-ho, that was likely to get himself and his crew killed. Carefully, he studied the visual in front of him. “It’s not a warship,” he said in reply to Lydia’s question. Immediately he felt the tension around him slacken slightly, his own included. “Though Flex-aor freighters were known to be armed,” he cautioned. Tapping a few buttons on his command chair, Jake zoomed the holo image in further and rotated it slightly. “Look there,” he said as he pointed. “That has to be a missile port. Flex-aor fire long-range, two-stage missiles. The first stage releases several smaller agile missiles like our mark VIIs. We should outrange them if they haven’t improved their tech over the last twenty years.” Jake knew that was a big if. The fact that the Karacknids were giving them weapons tech suggested the Flex-aor were still behind the Empire’s tech level. Yet Python wasn’t exactly state of the art. She wasn’t much more powerful than a frigate from the Karacknid War. If the Flex-aor had surpassed that era, they were going to be in trouble. And that doesn’t even take into account the alien vessel, Jake thought as he switched the image to show it. Carefully, he studied it for any sign of weapons, but as in the weeks previous, there was no way to tell if it was armed at all. We have to assume it is, he said to himself. Which means we could be outnumbered and out-gunned. A straight-up fight is going to be risky. We need a backup plan.
Reaching back with his mind, Jake tried to recall all the small engagements he had studied at the naval academy and during his four years of active service. Several options came to him quickly. Just as quickly, he dismissed them. Most involved weapons systems he didn’t have access to, or fancy maneuvers he wasn’t sure Python could pull off. Then, one more sprang to his mind. It was from the early career of one of Earth’s greatest Admirals. Lightfoot had died in the Karacknid War. No doubt that was in part why he was studied so closely at the Academy. The other was because he had been a tactical genius. “I have an idea,” Jake said as he looked over to Lydia. When everyone on the bridge turned their attention to him, he reminded them of how the British and Chinese War had begun. Within a minute, his orders were relayed throughout the rest of the ship, and preparations were under way.
Forty-five minutes later and everything was ready. Python’s weapons had all gone through a final systems check. The pirate ship was closing in on the two alien vessels and their targets had just begun to ferry cargo over to the Flex-aor ship. When Lydia looked up from her station, Jake knew she was looking for permission to begin. I hope I don’t let you down, Jake thought towards his father and all his instructors who had brought him to this moment. He nodded to Lydia. “Go to full military power.”
The combination of Python’s reactors and engines pumping out gigajoules of energy announced their presence in the system. It took the aliens just a few seconds to respond. No doubt they were shocked. Within moments though, the shuttles that had been moving back and forth between both ships turned and fled back to their hangars. Power readings from both ships spiked as well as they increased the output of their reactors. “Send the message,” Jake ordered.
“Transmitting now,” an officer responded. Jake doubted either ship would obey his order to cut their engines and remain in position. For appearance’s sake, he felt he had to send a message anyway. “No response,” the officer updated thirty seconds later.
“We will enter missile range in five minutes,” Lydia reported. “It looks like the last shuttles are docking now.”
Jake nodded. “Now we will see.” If both ships wanted to flee, they would split apart to maximize the chances that at least one of them would get away. If they stuck together, it meant they were going to fight. As much as Jake didn’t want them to engage him simultaneously, he willed them to remain together. If they did split, he wasn’t sure Python could catch both of them. As the seconds ticked by and neither ship turned their noses away from each other, his confidence grew.
“They’re moving,” Lydia shouted. Jake saw it when she did. “Both are turning towards us. Their engines are kicking in too.”
“They’re going to fight,” Jake confirmed. “All right, this is what we’ve planned for. Fire as soon as we get into range. Target the Flex-aor freighter first.” The Flex-aor ship was Jake’s main priority. If he could take it out, then even if the other alien ship escaped, at least the Karacknid cargo wouldn’t fall into Flex-aor hands.
“I’m getting additional energy spikes from the unknown alien ship,” Python’s sensor officer said, her voice full of concern. “I don’t think it’s from their drive system.”
Jake’s heart rate spiked. It had to be the alien’s weapon system. “We’ve got movement on the ship as well,” Lydia reported. The holo image zoomed in to show the alien vessel. Several compartments had opened to reveal what were clearly some kind of cannons. “I don’t think they are missile ports,” Lydia added.
“An energy weapon, or some kind of projectile weapon,” Jake concluded. “Unless they have figured out a way to exceed the speed of light, they’ll be firing at an extremely long range. Begin evasive maneuvers. And reprogram our missiles, they will have to go evasive much earlier as well.” Though it would decrease the range of his missiles, Jake didn’t want to take any chances.
“Detecting strange energy particles!” Python’s sensor officer announced. “They just passed us on our starboard side. Sixteen passed us in quick succession.”
“And the alien vessel’s weapon systems are spiking again,” Lydia said. “With that count, they can fire every twenty seconds.”
“All right, that puts a serious dampener on our plan,” Jake said. “Switch targets, focus our fire on the alien vessel.” He needed to destroy it, and quickly.
As soon as Python got into range, Lydia launched four missiles at the alien ship. Once hurled from their tubes, the missiles began to carry out evasive maneuvers. It was good that they did. Ten seconds into their flight, sixteen energy beams flashed through the space they were in. One missile was hit and destroyed. Jake’s hands tightened into fists. “Keep up our evasive maneuvers,” he ordered.
“Missile launch!” Python’s sensor officer reported. “One Flex-aor missile incoming.”
Over the next fourteen minutes, Python fired two more salvos and the Flex-aor ship another one. Despite their best efforts, the unknown alien vessel wasn’t able to strike any more of his missiles with their heavy energy weapons. Though when Python’s first salvo got closer, both alien ships opened up with smaller point defensive energy weapons. Their rate of fire made Jake sit forward in his command chair. His missiles were in trouble. Sure enough, another one was blown apart. Seconds later, a third followed it. For a moment, Jake that the fourth would strike home. But then, three energy beams struck it just seconds before it would have struck the alien vessel. As soon as the missiles were gone, the alien ship resumed firing its heavier energy beams at Python.
At the same time, the Flex-aor missile broke apart. Accelerating out of the wreckage were four smaller missiles. Jake swallowed hard. Four was bad, it could have been worse, larger Flex-aor missiles were known to release up to ten small missiles. Yet four was still a lot for Python to have to handle. “Engage them at long-range,” Jake snapped. “Force them to carry out evasive maneuvers early.” Doing so would cause the missiles’ formation to become disjointed. It was the best chance he could give his gunners. “Bring us up to one hundred and two percent military thrust,” he ordered next.
Twelve seconds later, Python’s point defensive weapons began to fire. First, plasma cannons opened up, then laser beams and finally, AM missiles. As Jake watched the Flex-aor missiles try to dodge them, he began to wish he had a more modern warship. Resolute’s flack cannons, arc emitters and long-range AM missiles would have shredded the Flex-aor missiles already.
A cheer went up when the first Flex-aor missile was destroyed. Then, a second when another quickly followed it. Silence quickly descended on the bridge when the other two continued on. Jake felt fear grip his spine. He opened his mouth as he prepared to order more strenuous evasive maneuvers. Yet he didn’t have to. Through skill or luck, the last two missiles were both destroyed in quick succession. Jake, along with everyone else on Python’s bridge, breathed a sigh of relief. Now it’s our turn again, Jake thought to himself as his next salvo charged in towards the alien vessel. If only we had bomb pumped laser warheads, he wished, or even antimatter warheads! With just standard nuclear warheads, his missiles had to get close enough to engulf the alien ship with their explosions. The combined point defensive fire from both enemy ships made that difficult. Still, Jake found himself leaning forward in his command chair again as he willed on his missiles.
When hundreds of enemy energy beams missed the missiles, Jake’s hopes soared. They were quickly cut down again. Two missiles detonated right after one another. Then a third followed them. To everyone on Python’s bridge amazement, the fourth dodged everything thrown at it. It raced right in towards the alien ship. Only a sudden evasive maneuver saved the alien ship from a direct hit. The missile’s warhead, detecting that it wouldn’t get any closer, detonated. A wave of thermonuclear energy crashed into the ship. Jake punched his fist in the air as he let out a yell of triumph. Yet his elation didn’t last long. The alien vessel flew through the explosion and continued on. Visual images showed several of its armor sections had been burnt off and it looked like two of its offensive cannons were gone. Yet it was still very much in the fight.
“They’re moving closer together,” Lydia reported. “I think we startled them.”
“Let’s do it again,” Jake said as he summoned as much confidence as he could. “A direct hit, and we’ll take one of them out of the fight. Alter heading to seven three three point six.” As more salvos were launched by Python and the Flex-aor ship, Jake did his best to keep the enemy ships at extreme missile range. The unknown alien vessel’s energy cannons would become more effective the closer the alien ship got. Knowing that, they were trying to close with him. Jake was still hoping he could win a prolonged missile duel.
Jake frowned when he saw it. The contact wasn’t heading towards any of the shift passages. Instead, it was heading towards the system’s only planet with an asteroid ring. As soon as he realized what it meant, Jake’s eyes widened, and he sat forward in his command chair. “Another rendezvous,” he said out loud. It made the most sense. There wasn’t anything of interest in the system, nor in orbit above the planet the alien ship was headed towards. That, or they’re on to us, another thought hit him. If the alien vessel thought it was being followed, hiding in a thick planetary ring, and watching to see if another ship appeared wouldn’t be a bad idea. “Take us forward, one percent thrust,” Jake ordered. “Let’s not take any risks. Maybe they’re trying to see if they’re being followed.”
“Yes Lieutenant,” the navigation officer replied.
It took the alien vessel two hours to reach the planet it was headed towards. In that time, Python covered a fraction of the distance the alien vessel did. As the alien contact approached the planetary ring and began to slow, Jake expected it to begin to reduce its emissions. There was no point trying to hide if it was still going to keep its engines and reactors operating at full power. Yet Python’s passive sensors had no problem continuing to track the vessel.
“They’re not hiding,” Lydia commented. “You were right the first time. It is a rendezvous.”
“Agreed,” Jake replied. “Take us up to five percent thrust. I want to get closer. Set course for the system’s gas giant. We can slot into orbit there and see what unfolds.”
“Who do you think they’re meeting?” Lydia asked in a lower voice after Python completed her course change.
“A very good question,” Jake said. He shrugged his shoulders as he looked at the alien vessel. “We have no idea who they are. It’s as likely as not that whoever they’re meeting is unknown to us as well.”
“Which will make it all the more concerning,” Lydia said. “If the Karacknids have hired one species to transport weapons to another, then how many have they working with them?”
Jake nodded. “And right on our southeastern border, where we have almost no defenses.” For the last twenty years, the Empire had been building up fortifications along its northern border. If one or two powerful enemies suddenly appeared to the south, many systems could be in trouble. Suddenly, Jake felt even more weight on his shoulders. Whoever the alien vessel had come to meet was not likely to be friendly towards Humanity. Not if they were working for the Karacknids. With Python’s fuel situation, he could end up having to fight them as well. As he felt his anxiety growing, Jake sat back in his command chair. It was probably going to take hours or even days for whoever the aliens had come to meet to arrive. The wait would end up forcing him to go over and over the problem in his mind. He wouldn’t be able to avoid it. Not for the first time, he wished Captain Domingo or even some of the more senior naval officers he had met were here instead of him. Admiral Becket would certainly know what to do. He, on the other hand, couldn’t help but feel terribly conflicted. Firing on an unknown alien vessel could be viewed as piracy at best, and a war crime at worst. Even if the aliens proved to be unfriendly, Jake was almost certain attacking and destroying the Karacknid weapons would put an end to his career. He knew enough about how politics worked to know that the Imperial Navy’s senior Admirals would have to publicly condemn him, whether they secretly agreed with whatever he did or not.
“Second energy reading!” Lydia shouted excitedly. “Their contact is already here. They’re coming out of the planetary ring.”
“What are the sensors telling us about the new ship?” Jake demanded.
Lydia shook her head. “The energy readings aren’t being recognized by the ship’s computer.” She turned around to Jake. “Though our computer doesn’t have anything like the database of alien ships an Imperial warship would have.”
“Let’s see a visual,” Jake requested. On the holo display zoomed in, Jake’s internal struggle ceased. He couldn’t keep the shock from his face.
“What is it?” Lydia said. Others had turned around to look at Jake as well.
Jake raised a hand and ran it through his hair. Everything was clicking into place. “Flex-aor,” he said slowly as his mind wrestled with the revelation. “That’s a Flex-aor ship. The Karacknids are giving weapons to the Flex-aor!”
“But that’s impossible,” another officer said.
Moments ago, Jake would have thought the same. He had spent the first four years of his naval career serving in the Flex-aor demilitarized zone. He knew the history well. Just months before the beginning of the Karacknid War, Admirals Somerville and Ya’sia had located the Flex-aor homeworlds. The Flex-aor had attacked both human and Varanni Alliance worlds. In response, Somerville and Ya’sia destroyed several Flex-aor fleets. A follow-up attack by a Varanni fleet had finished the Flex-aor off. Since then, an Allied fleet had been stationed in their space, keeping watch over the Flex-aor worlds. Any attempt to rebuild their orbital stations and return to space was quickly snuffed out. As best as Allied scientists and archaeologists could determine, the Flex-aor had been responsible for exterminating six sentient species before they had attacked Humanity and the Varanni Alliance. At least, that was as many worlds as had been discovered and examined. No one knew if there were more worlds out there that had been turned into mass graves. Everyone agreed, they could never be allowed to build spaceships again. And yet, Jake was certain he was staring at one.
“Are you sure?” Lydia asked.
Jake nodded. “I served in the demilitarized zone. I know what they look like. And if there is one, that means there are more. There has to be a Queen that escaped the Varanni Alliance fleet twenty-five years ago.”
“A Queen?” Another officer asked.
Jake quickly explained. “It’s how they organize their society. They have one High Queen who rules them. Yet each planet and warfleet is controlled by one of her daughters. She is a Queen in her own right who rules over all her male offspring. The fleet thought they had located and quarantined or killed them all.”
“If one escaped, that means they’ve been in hiding all this time,” Lydia said, her eyes were wide. “Hiding and preparing. If they’ve been receiving weapons from the Karacknids…”
Lydia didn’t have to finish her thought; the concern was obvious to everyone on Python’s bridge. When the Flex-aor had first attacked, their numbers had been overwhelming. Only a combined fleet from every Human nation was able to stop them, and even then, it had largely been down to the technological advantage Humanity had held. Every one suspected the Karacknids had given weapons to the Flex-aor. Yet by design, they had been weapons that were centuries out of date. No doubt that would have made them easy to conquer if the Karacknids had managed to destroy Humanity. But if they have modern Karacknid weaponry now, Jake thought, that would make the Flex-aor an entirely different threat. And a threat that likes to nuke Human worlds, he thought as the full ramifications of what he was looking at hit him. “We can’t let them have those weapons,” Jake said out loud, determination filling his voice. “This may not be the first weapons transfer there has been, but we can’t take the risk. We cannot let the Flex-aor get their hands on modern weapons. It could spell disaster!”
“We are in complete agreement Lieutenant,” Lydia said as she and several other bridge officers nodded. “We are with you, whatever you want to do.”
Jake didn’t hesitate. “Alter course, put us onto an intercept heading. Bring us up to eighteen percent thrust. If we reveal ourselves now, they may run. We need to get closer before we attack. If we can, we’re not going to let either ship escape.” Whoever the other alien species was, if they were working for the Karacknids, helping them arm the Flex-aor, Jake felt no sympathy for them. Whatever it meant for his career, he had to destroy the weapons their ship was carrying.
“What do you know about that Flex-aor ship?” Lydia asked.
Jake focused his attention more fully on the new ship. Only then did he realize he had ordered Python forward without even knowing what they were facing. It could have been a battleship for all he knew! Cursing himself for his brashness, Jake forced himself to slow down and to think. He couldn’t just go charging gung-ho, that was likely to get himself and his crew killed. Carefully, he studied the visual in front of him. “It’s not a warship,” he said in reply to Lydia’s question. Immediately he felt the tension around him slacken slightly, his own included. “Though Flex-aor freighters were known to be armed,” he cautioned. Tapping a few buttons on his command chair, Jake zoomed the holo image in further and rotated it slightly. “Look there,” he said as he pointed. “That has to be a missile port. Flex-aor fire long-range, two-stage missiles. The first stage releases several smaller agile missiles like our mark VIIs. We should outrange them if they haven’t improved their tech over the last twenty years.” Jake knew that was a big if. The fact that the Karacknids were giving them weapons tech suggested the Flex-aor were still behind the Empire’s tech level. Yet Python wasn’t exactly state of the art. She wasn’t much more powerful than a frigate from the Karacknid War. If the Flex-aor had surpassed that era, they were going to be in trouble. And that doesn’t even take into account the alien vessel, Jake thought as he switched the image to show it. Carefully, he studied it for any sign of weapons, but as in the weeks previous, there was no way to tell if it was armed at all. We have to assume it is, he said to himself. Which means we could be outnumbered and out-gunned. A straight-up fight is going to be risky. We need a backup plan.
Reaching back with his mind, Jake tried to recall all the small engagements he had studied at the naval academy and during his four years of active service. Several options came to him quickly. Just as quickly, he dismissed them. Most involved weapons systems he didn’t have access to, or fancy maneuvers he wasn’t sure Python could pull off. Then, one more sprang to his mind. It was from the early career of one of Earth’s greatest Admirals. Lightfoot had died in the Karacknid War. No doubt that was in part why he was studied so closely at the Academy. The other was because he had been a tactical genius. “I have an idea,” Jake said as he looked over to Lydia. When everyone on the bridge turned their attention to him, he reminded them of how the British and Chinese War had begun. Within a minute, his orders were relayed throughout the rest of the ship, and preparations were under way.
Forty-five minutes later and everything was ready. Python’s weapons had all gone through a final systems check. The pirate ship was closing in on the two alien vessels and their targets had just begun to ferry cargo over to the Flex-aor ship. When Lydia looked up from her station, Jake knew she was looking for permission to begin. I hope I don’t let you down, Jake thought towards his father and all his instructors who had brought him to this moment. He nodded to Lydia. “Go to full military power.”
The combination of Python’s reactors and engines pumping out gigajoules of energy announced their presence in the system. It took the aliens just a few seconds to respond. No doubt they were shocked. Within moments though, the shuttles that had been moving back and forth between both ships turned and fled back to their hangars. Power readings from both ships spiked as well as they increased the output of their reactors. “Send the message,” Jake ordered.
“Transmitting now,” an officer responded. Jake doubted either ship would obey his order to cut their engines and remain in position. For appearance’s sake, he felt he had to send a message anyway. “No response,” the officer updated thirty seconds later.
“We will enter missile range in five minutes,” Lydia reported. “It looks like the last shuttles are docking now.”
Jake nodded. “Now we will see.” If both ships wanted to flee, they would split apart to maximize the chances that at least one of them would get away. If they stuck together, it meant they were going to fight. As much as Jake didn’t want them to engage him simultaneously, he willed them to remain together. If they did split, he wasn’t sure Python could catch both of them. As the seconds ticked by and neither ship turned their noses away from each other, his confidence grew.
“They’re moving,” Lydia shouted. Jake saw it when she did. “Both are turning towards us. Their engines are kicking in too.”
“They’re going to fight,” Jake confirmed. “All right, this is what we’ve planned for. Fire as soon as we get into range. Target the Flex-aor freighter first.” The Flex-aor ship was Jake’s main priority. If he could take it out, then even if the other alien ship escaped, at least the Karacknid cargo wouldn’t fall into Flex-aor hands.
“I’m getting additional energy spikes from the unknown alien ship,” Python’s sensor officer said, her voice full of concern. “I don’t think it’s from their drive system.”
Jake’s heart rate spiked. It had to be the alien’s weapon system. “We’ve got movement on the ship as well,” Lydia reported. The holo image zoomed in to show the alien vessel. Several compartments had opened to reveal what were clearly some kind of cannons. “I don’t think they are missile ports,” Lydia added.
“An energy weapon, or some kind of projectile weapon,” Jake concluded. “Unless they have figured out a way to exceed the speed of light, they’ll be firing at an extremely long range. Begin evasive maneuvers. And reprogram our missiles, they will have to go evasive much earlier as well.” Though it would decrease the range of his missiles, Jake didn’t want to take any chances.
“Detecting strange energy particles!” Python’s sensor officer announced. “They just passed us on our starboard side. Sixteen passed us in quick succession.”
“And the alien vessel’s weapon systems are spiking again,” Lydia said. “With that count, they can fire every twenty seconds.”
“All right, that puts a serious dampener on our plan,” Jake said. “Switch targets, focus our fire on the alien vessel.” He needed to destroy it, and quickly.
As soon as Python got into range, Lydia launched four missiles at the alien ship. Once hurled from their tubes, the missiles began to carry out evasive maneuvers. It was good that they did. Ten seconds into their flight, sixteen energy beams flashed through the space they were in. One missile was hit and destroyed. Jake’s hands tightened into fists. “Keep up our evasive maneuvers,” he ordered.
“Missile launch!” Python’s sensor officer reported. “One Flex-aor missile incoming.”
Over the next fourteen minutes, Python fired two more salvos and the Flex-aor ship another one. Despite their best efforts, the unknown alien vessel wasn’t able to strike any more of his missiles with their heavy energy weapons. Though when Python’s first salvo got closer, both alien ships opened up with smaller point defensive energy weapons. Their rate of fire made Jake sit forward in his command chair. His missiles were in trouble. Sure enough, another one was blown apart. Seconds later, a third followed it. For a moment, Jake that the fourth would strike home. But then, three energy beams struck it just seconds before it would have struck the alien vessel. As soon as the missiles were gone, the alien ship resumed firing its heavier energy beams at Python.
At the same time, the Flex-aor missile broke apart. Accelerating out of the wreckage were four smaller missiles. Jake swallowed hard. Four was bad, it could have been worse, larger Flex-aor missiles were known to release up to ten small missiles. Yet four was still a lot for Python to have to handle. “Engage them at long-range,” Jake snapped. “Force them to carry out evasive maneuvers early.” Doing so would cause the missiles’ formation to become disjointed. It was the best chance he could give his gunners. “Bring us up to one hundred and two percent military thrust,” he ordered next.
Twelve seconds later, Python’s point defensive weapons began to fire. First, plasma cannons opened up, then laser beams and finally, AM missiles. As Jake watched the Flex-aor missiles try to dodge them, he began to wish he had a more modern warship. Resolute’s flack cannons, arc emitters and long-range AM missiles would have shredded the Flex-aor missiles already.
A cheer went up when the first Flex-aor missile was destroyed. Then, a second when another quickly followed it. Silence quickly descended on the bridge when the other two continued on. Jake felt fear grip his spine. He opened his mouth as he prepared to order more strenuous evasive maneuvers. Yet he didn’t have to. Through skill or luck, the last two missiles were both destroyed in quick succession. Jake, along with everyone else on Python’s bridge, breathed a sigh of relief. Now it’s our turn again, Jake thought to himself as his next salvo charged in towards the alien vessel. If only we had bomb pumped laser warheads, he wished, or even antimatter warheads! With just standard nuclear warheads, his missiles had to get close enough to engulf the alien ship with their explosions. The combined point defensive fire from both enemy ships made that difficult. Still, Jake found himself leaning forward in his command chair again as he willed on his missiles.
When hundreds of enemy energy beams missed the missiles, Jake’s hopes soared. They were quickly cut down again. Two missiles detonated right after one another. Then a third followed them. To everyone on Python’s bridge amazement, the fourth dodged everything thrown at it. It raced right in towards the alien ship. Only a sudden evasive maneuver saved the alien ship from a direct hit. The missile’s warhead, detecting that it wouldn’t get any closer, detonated. A wave of thermonuclear energy crashed into the ship. Jake punched his fist in the air as he let out a yell of triumph. Yet his elation didn’t last long. The alien vessel flew through the explosion and continued on. Visual images showed several of its armor sections had been burnt off and it looked like two of its offensive cannons were gone. Yet it was still very much in the fight.
“They’re moving closer together,” Lydia reported. “I think we startled them.”
“Let’s do it again,” Jake said as he summoned as much confidence as he could. “A direct hit, and we’ll take one of them out of the fight. Alter heading to seven three three point six.” As more salvos were launched by Python and the Flex-aor ship, Jake did his best to keep the enemy ships at extreme missile range. The unknown alien vessel’s energy cannons would become more effective the closer the alien ship got. Knowing that, they were trying to close with him. Jake was still hoping he could win a prolonged missile duel.
