The Ninth Circle (65 page)

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Authors: R. M. Meluch

BOOK: The Ninth Circle
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“Orbiting Zoe, sir.”
Calli snapped to the com tech. “Give me Numa.”
Red Dorset fed the Roman link to the captain’s console.
Calli sent, “
Gladiator
, this is
Merrimack
. Your Striker has hooked a vessel that is the property of a LEN member nation. Deliver the Xerxes into our custody.”
Caesar Numa answered Calli’s hail in person. His refusal was tranquil. “Under international law we are the arresting agent, and we are taking the pirates of The Ninth Circle into our custody.”
“You can take your pirates, Numa. Hand over the ship.”
“We made the arrest. We can execute criminals more efficiently than you.”
“The
ship
, Numa. You can have your criminals. The
ship
is property of a League member nation. I demand you turn over the
ship
.”
“You are not flying an Italian flag, Captain Carmel. I will not discuss disposition of the Xerxes with anyone other than a valid claimant.”
Calli slammed off the com. Yelled at it, “You frumious toad!”
“I’d’ve paid money to see you say that to his face, Captain,” said Commander Ryan.
“I may yet,” she said. “I can’t let him get the Xerxes. If he reels that Xerxes in, he’ll keep it.”
“He already has it.”
“No, he doesn’t. Not while there are pirates inside it. What is
Gladiator
doing now?”
“
Status unchanged. Orbiting Zoe.
Gladiator
is not heading out to meet the Striker at the edge of the system. The LEN pirate hunter
Windward Isles
is moving out.”
“What direction are the Striker and the Xerxes traveling?”
Tactical responded, “The Striker is dragging the Xerxes by an energy hook in the direction of Zoe. That would be toward
Gladiator
. But they’re a couple of billion miles out yet, and they are
not
moving very fast. The Xerxes is resisting. I’m reading a lot of energy output from the Xerxes.”
The Xerxes was digging in its virtual heels.
“That’s going to be a long tow,” said Commander Ryan. “If the Striker is hauling the pirates to
Gladiator,
he won’t make it until sometime after Judgment Day.”
“Captain!” Tactical cried.
“Say something, Mister Vincent,” said Calli.
But already she saw it on the monitors. The Striker’s slow progress was slowing down more. Drastically.
The pirate ship had fought the towing Striker to a near standstill.
Then their direction reversed. The larger Xerxes dragged the smaller Striker by its own energy hook in the direction the Xerxes wanted to go.
The Striker struggled, not letting go.
“What’s happening here?” Calli demanded. “Who has whom?”
“It’s the Striker’s hook, sir. But the Xerxes is setting the course at the moment,” said Tactical. Then noted, “
Gladiator
has launched Accipiters.”
Accipiters were fast Roman attack ships. That would indicate some concern on Numa’s part, even if the battlefort
Gladiator
did not break from its orbit around Zoe.
“Is this real?”
Commander Ryan said, “The Xerxes can’t realistically go anywhere with that ball and chain on it. The pirates are just delaying the inevitable.”
The pirate ship flashed its visual image—the last thing men saw before they died. The Xerxes appeared engulfed in a bright hologram of an enormous leopard, a silent roar issuing from its red-dripping mouth. The skull and crossbones flag stood posted on her bow alongside the molten circled IX travesty of a Roman standard. The bloody scrawl across the leopard-spotted hull read in Italian: Abandon All Hope.
He’s changing the color of inevitability
, Calli realized.
The leopard didn’t intend to go far.
She could see which direction the locked pair of ships was going.
“He’s hitting the Ark.”
“
Suicide
?” said the XO.
“Why not?”
The pirates were going to die. They could still choose how.
The com tech reported, “Captain, I’ve got the LEN here. Screaming.”
Apparently one of the several international ships denied landing rights on Zoe was sending a live feed of events at the edge of the star system back to Earth.
“League HQ wants to know why we aren’t stopping the Xerxes from flying into the Ark.”
Calli asked the com tech, “Is the LEN’s concern for the Xerxes or for the Ark?”
“Not sure, sir.”
Calli took up the caller. “Sir, on LEN orders, I don’t have anyone near the Ark.
Merrimack
is two hours out from the star system, best speed.”
Purple words issued from the com.
Calli shut him off and hailed her rear guard. She had left two Spit boats with two squadrons of Swifts behind in the Zoen star system. “Colonel Steele! Scramble Swifts! You have trade at the edge of the star system. Hit the Xerxes!”
 
The way Swifts docked with a Space Patrol Torpedo boat, the Swift’s cockpit opened up onto the deck from below, so the docking bay looked like a plot of fourteen open graves.
Colonel Steele jumped down into the cockpit of his crate. He automatically grabbed down for his displacement collar.
Colonel Steele barked lots of alien words. “Where’s my fugging collar!”
It was supposed to be in his cockpit, stowed next to his seat for immediate grabbing. He let everyone know it wasn’t here. Going to bust some erk down to dog washer when he got back to
Merrimack
. It was the erks’ job to have these crates prepped before they left the
Mack
and ready to go in the blink of an eye——which was too much bloody time as it was.
“COLLAR!” he roared again.
Rhino’s voice: “Heads!”
Heard something making a rattling slide across the deck toward him. Steele caught the displacement collar as it dropped down from overhead.
He snapped the collar on and hauled his canopy forward over him.
Back to task. Could bludgeon erks later.
TR Steele had no sympathy for the ugly aliens he was rushing to save. But Steele was hot to kill pirates. Roman pirates all the better.
His Bull Mastiffs loved to shoot the guns. And they hated to lose a battle.
If this operation saved an arkload of plague rats, well, that’s the decision from upstairs. TR Steele’s Marines never never never threw a fight.
 
The Xerxes was gaining speed, still moving in the direction of the Ark, dragging the Striker with it.
Calli hailed
Gladiator
. “Numa, stop them.”
“Our Striker is making a lawful arrest, Captain Carmel.”
“You’re losing! Both those ships are going to crash into the alien Ark!”
“So much concern for creatures you call latrines,” Numa chided.
“There’s a difference between refusing the clokes access to Zoe and allowing someone to kill their Ark,” said Calli. “That Ark is their world. They built it, they’re living on it, and they have a right to it.”
“Well for them,” said Numa.
“Goddammit, Numa, it’s genocide!”
“Why are you swearing at me, Captain Carmel? That is
Our
Striker attempting to arrest
your
pirate ship before it can destroy the alien Ark. What are you doing about it?”
“Make your Striker let go! Those pirates don’t want to destroy the Ark! You know they don’t. They just don’t want to be taken alive! They want you to let go! You have the power to end this. Order your Striker to let go!”
“Grandiose of you to imagine Caesar is in your chain of command,” Numa said and cut the connection.
Calli slapped the com off. She composed herself and spoke to her exec. “This is a show. I know how this will end. At the last instant the Striker will miraculously find the power to reverse direction and carry the Xerxes away, the Ark will be spared, and the LEN will
thank
Numa for stealing their Xerxes.”
I think that’s how Numa intends it to go
.
She was not going to let it go that way.
Tactical reported, “Squadrons in range, Captain.”
Calli issued orders, “Wing Leader. Wing Leader. Wing Leader. This is
Merrimack
. Hit the Xerxes. Hit the hook.”
Steele responded: “Aye, aye,
Merrimack
. All ships. All ships. Open fire. Hit the Xerxes. Hit the hook.”
 
Beam fire from multiple Swifts glanced off the energy hook surrounding the Xerxes. So many hits, so nothingness of damage, Kerry Blue just wanted to step outside and kick the target. She couldn’t possibly have less effect.
Cain said it: “Wing Leader, we can’t get a clean shot at the Xerxes! The Striker’s hook is just making a double field around the target!”
The patterner’s Striker had an unbreakable hold on the Xerxes, but the Xerxes was winning the tug-of-war, picking up speed. The joined pair were getting awfully close to the gargantuan Ark awfully fast.
For the Swifts chasing the pair, that Ark was taking on the dimensions of a mountain range.
Kerry Blue fired on the pirate ship. Hit it. Hit it a whole bunch of times. Did nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Heard the captain’s voice on the com, “Steele! Hit the Striker! And if Numa’s Accipiters get in your way, hit them too!”
Heard Thomas’ voice, with joy: “Aye, aye, sir!”
 
Captain Calli on
Merrimack
watched distant battle play out on monitors, the Xerxes dragging the Striker ever closer to the Ark, faster and faster.
I am playing chicken with my Marines’ lives. The Swifts cannot survive a close-in blast
.
Calli thought out loud, “The Striker will let go of the Xerxes before it’s too late. It has to.”
Commander Ryan said, “The Striker will only let go if Caesar orders him to let go. Otherwise he’ll hold on to the death.”
Marcander Vincent, seated at the tactical station, reported, “Assuming the Ark takes an antimatter hit from either the Striker or the Xerxes, then by best estimate our Swifts will be within lethal distance in seven seconds. Five, four.”
The Swifts flew inside the Ark’s outriggers. The outriggers spread out for miles. But that was far too close to any matter-antimatter detonation for a Swift to maintain its inertial screens.
“Three, two, one. All Swifts are now within the range of zero survivability.”
Commander Ryan said, “Don’t let them in there, Captain. Get them out.”
“This is a charade,” said Calli. “Numa won’t allow the Striker to take the suicide plunge.”
The Marines fired barrages of beams at the pair. “Hit!”
No effect.
“Hit!”
No effect.
“GrettaaaaaaaaH! WILL you just DIE?”
The Xerxes was speeding in now, the Striker clinging.
“When that thing explodes, the Swifts’ fields
will not
hold.”
“Caesar wouldn’t sacrifice a patterner just to take out a pirate ship,” said Calli.
Commander Ryan said, “Didn’t you once tell me Numa hates patterners.”
Calli blinked wide.
He does
.
Calli pounded on the com, “Steele! Squadrons! Wear off! Abort! Abort! Abort!”
 
The captain’s voice hammered in Kerry’s helmet. As close to screaming as Kerry Blue ever heard Carmel sound when she wasn’t on fire. Got everyone’s attention.
Kerry muttered, reversing hard. “I’d’a had him.”
The Striker kept its death grip on its captive. The Xerxes towed its captor, accelerating—

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