AMP Private War (9 page)

I turned on a heading for the Wasky sector, towards the first star system the ships would encounter. It was a four day journey with our engines at full. Wasky was the next furthest sector beyond Felgar. I was eager to see what we would find; at our speed we would arrive a day earlier than the Frost.

The star system had a red giant sun. There were two previously frozen planets that had thawed due to the expanding reach of the sun’s heat. A mining colony had been established on one of the planets with a space dock hovering above it in orbit. A massive freighter, larger than any freighter that I had ever seen, was parked at the dock. Smaller ore haulers were busy moving whatever it was that was being mined up to the massive ship.

I spoke, "Frig. Can you get a scan of what that is they are mining? If it's something important I say we slice up that freighter and do whatever damage we can to the mine down below. Heck, even if it doesn't seem important we can do that."

Frig punched in the scan parameters as he spoke. "Sir, I think we should observe for a while. We might be able to pick up a few trajectories if other ships enter the system. That freighter appears to be less than half full Sir. It could very well be months before it is ready to leave."

I leaned back in my chair. "Good points my man. And I just had a thought. If that cargo is indeed valuable, I would bet the Colonel and the Ghouls would love to steal it and fly it back to Bullwort. When the Frost arrives tomorrow we can send her back to arrange it. I'm sure those Marines are eager to get back out here and get at it. Although, taking down a freighter might not be much of a challenge for them."

Frig turned towards me. "Sir, tomorrow there will be a cruiser and two frigates. Perhaps those targets would be somewhat more of a challenge to the Colonel and his men. And they may want to consider boarding and capturing that cruiser Sir. It might be a good addition to our small but growing fleet."

I turned to look at Frig. "You Sir are brilliant! I don't know why I had not thought of this before. Those Milgari ship docks that are constructing those big cannons and the ships to carry them... they need supplies. We should be attacking those supply lines! That is something that we are much better suited to do than all-out war."

I looked out the front screen at the red star before us. "You know Frig, I'm not sure why, but we do make a great team my friend. The things we each say and think are far enough off from each other that it somehow yields great ideas. We’ll leave a probe with a message to squirt over to the Frost, let's head back and do some planning. I think the Colonel is going to be a very happy Marine!"

The deep scan of the freighter came in just as we turned to leave. "Sir, hold up. The scan Sir, that freighter, she is loaded with Tantric Sir."

Frig frantically punched the keys on his keyboard. "Enough ore Sir, to cover several thousand Milgari ships. And looking at the size of that mine down there, I would say it has been in operation for several years. Sir, this may be one of the major supplies of Tantric for them. If we steal that freighter when it is full... we could potentially keep 2,000 ships from ever being produced. I think your supply line strategy could be very effective Sir, especially if we can hit all or substantially all of their Tantric production. This could be a turning point for the Grid, at a minimum it would buy us more time."

We dropped a probe and headed back towards Bullwort. I was excited to give the Colonel our news, news that we would be cutting deep into the Milgari supply lines. It was a chance to cut the legs out from under an assault of the Grid before it happened. It offered a chance for the Grid to finally make a stand.

When we landed on Bullwort I went directly to the Colonel. "Harper, have I got a job for you!"

I explained the freighter, the cruiser and frigates that we had seen. I asked about the progress of the Slaughter and was told that they had already taken her out for her initial trials.

The Colonel spoke, "We have about a week of work to finish everything off and she will be ready for combat. The majority of what’s left is environmental; kitchens, food storage and we still have one deck remaining to clean the funk out of. After that she is ready."

"Oh, and we need to hire cooks. I have a couple in mind that I served with, at least one of them would jump at the chance to once again serve chow up to these knuckleheads. I’ll need a trip back to the Grid to make it happen."

I slapped him on the shoulder. "Make it happen Colonel, and if there are any other crewmen you think you need then take the initiative to get them on-board. You have a full understanding of the need to maintain our secrecy, so with anyone you contact I’m sure you will use discretion."

The Colonel smiled and slapped my shoulder as he turned. I went up on one leg, fighting to maintain my balance; it was a jarring that my neck was not in need of. The Colonel strode off, spitting Omega root as he went. He had a job coming up for his Ghouls and he wanted to inform them of it.

That afternoon the Colonel left for the Grid. The other Defender pilots had received the message about a raid on the Milgari freighter. They would continue their scans until such time as we would all meet up at a rendezvous point. A system with several uninhabited planets had been located a dozen light years distance from the Milgari mine. From there we would plan the final pieces of our raid.

Two weeks passed before the Colonel returned with 175 new crewmen. He had recruited Marines, cooks, mechanics, maintainers and even a guy to run the laundry. All were retirees and all were eager for the adventure. The oldest crewman was now an 81 year old cook named Willers. His former antics in the chow line had earned him a spot on the Colonel’s crew. He had something to say to each Marine before shoveling a load of slop onto their plate. It was usually sarcastic and berating, but the men loved it.

The following day the Slaughter left her makeshift dock with a full complement of supplies and a crew that was eager to put her to use. The new crewmen became skilled at their assigned tasks during the ride out to the rendezvous point. A conventional gun range had been added so the new recruits could become familiar with the new weapons and tactics. The Colonel ran drills 24 / 7 and his crew thrived under the intense training regimen. They were true professionals with a desire to make use of their skills.

The Colonel spoke, "Listen up! Tomorrow we hit that cruiser and those frigates. That freighter is three-quarters full and we have made the decision to take her. We are in the hijack business boys and girls. We are no more than common thieves and thugs! But we are stealing items of war that would otherwise be used against us, so keep that in mind while you are on those ships kicking their tri-head asses. We want those ships whole; let’s keep the collateral to a minimum!"

The room erupted in commotion as the Marines slapped shoulders, grinned, hooted and spit Omega root. They had a mission, a mission that would possibly take them aboard a Milgari cruiser, a ship that could hold as many as a thousand Milgari Marines. Men would undoubtedly die, but a Milgari cruiser was a prize worth fighting for.

The docking bay of the Slaughter was large enough to hold all the Defenders. The Colonel had invited us all to lunch, a lunch that included a pass through the chow line with Sergeant Willers. I was eager to hear whatever comment he had in store for me.

Milly was in line in front of me. "Well, look at the little daffodil… You come back and see Willers after lunch. I’ll make a real woman out of you. Ahehehehe!"

I stepped up with my plate. Willers looked directly at me with an odd expression. "What the… son, did your mama smack you in the face with a shovel when you was born? I never seen such a flat face. Reminds me of the backside of one of those tri-heads! Ahehehehe!"

Willers plopped a load of beans and Borack on my plate. "Watch out, those beans’ll make you toot. Toot! Toot! Ahehehehe!"

Willers continued with the abuse as each new victim stepped up for their turn at his post, each moved on with a smile.

After lunch we met with the Colonel to map out our strategy. One of the frigates had continued on towards a new location, a location that we would follow once our current mission was complete. After a number of conversations we settled on our plan of attack. The Defenders would take out the frigate and ensure that the freighter did not attempt to run while the Slaughter and her crew stormed the cruiser.

We would hit the cruiser with enough negative ion pulses to take her offline followed by two ion bombs to keep her there. Every ten minutes a new set of bombs would be deployed and set off. A cruiser had 22 levels and the fight was expected to last for a minimum of four hours. It was possible that it could take days.

The frigate would be neutralized with negative ion pulses followed by a number of drill holes with toxic gas. When the cruiser operation was complete the Marines would then board and liberate the frigate if time allowed. If the frigate presented a problem when it came time it would instead be pushed towards the red giant star that lit the small planetary system where it would continue on its trajectory until such time as it would burn up. If the Marines were able to successfully rid the frigate of the Milgari on-board, it would be loaded into the cargo bay of the freighter for a ride back towards Bullwort.

The remaining ship was the freighter. It was nearly 500 kilometers in length and 12 kilometers wide. The massive ore bays would be simple to secure, but the thousands of kilometers of hallways that ran from fore to aft would take time to clear. After taking the Bridge the Marines would be tasked with clearing her out during the ride back home. Due to its immense size it was believed that the freighter could have several hundred crewmen dispersed throughout. The Marines would be going on a hunt.

Zero hour soon arrived. Our assault force of the Slaughter and eight Defenders invaded the red giant system. I flew the Swift close to the cruiser and fired off five negative pulses. Her propulsion and weapons quickly went down. The Fist dropped two ion bombs, one fore and one aft, and within seconds the Milgari cruiser was powerless.

The Bull and the Frost took the frigates engines offline while the others launched small drilling platforms that would attach themselves to the ship’s hull, drill into it and then pump in the toxic gas. Sixteen such devices were used against the Milgari frigate.

After taking the cruiser offline I swung the Swift around towards the freighter. As we approached I was surprised by the opening of the doors of cargo bay one. Seconds later a platform emerged with ten ion battle cannons. I took evasive maneuvers, but not before incurring three strikes from her guns.

I pulled hard on the stick. "Whoa! That was not expected! We need to get that shut down before it can be used against the Slaughter. Frost, Bull, Fist. I need a hand with this freighter! Take out those cannons!"

Milly maneuvered the Frost to approach the freighter from a blind spot on the fore-bridge. She popped up just enough to fire off a blast taking out one of the cannons before ducking down and going below the great ship.

"That’s how you do it boys! Come in low, roll up for the shot and then drop down beneath her!"

We were quickly in a pattern and the ion cannons on the freighter were silenced. I turned my attentions back towards the Slaughter and her boarding party.

The Colonel spoke, "Listen up! We are starting from the bottom and working our way up. Platoon one you will cover here to here and platoon two the rest. Secure the halls and sweep all rooms from top to bottom. We will then fight our way up those stairwells. And keep in mind people… they will use every dirty trick in the book to protect their ship. We would do the same!"

The Slaughter pulled in close to the cruiser and the storm tubes were shoved across the void. Seconds later the sound of plasma charges could be heard as the cruiser’s hull was breached. One hundred-forty-four Marines stormed through the openings with their AK-47 assault rifle duplicates blazing. Deck 22 was cleared within minutes.

The Colonel barked an order, "Lock down those stairs and elevators! Keep an eye out for stragglers. Don’t want leftovers taking us down from behind. The 144 Gray Ghouls moved up to Deck 21. Deck 21 housed the ships primary environmental recycling system. Several Milgari crewmen carrying pipe wrenches stormed the hallways and were quickly cut down with 7.62 mm rounds followed up with a .45 caliber slug to the head.

The two platoons swept every room on their respective end of the ship before meeting up at a central stairwell. Several more Milgari crewmen were discovered and dispatched before they could inflict injury. The Milgari would not cower or hide, even when faced with certain death. They would instead charge directly into fire with a violent rage. It was an unsettling trait to some.

The Colonel continued to lead. "Howard. Finemen. Use those mirrors to check the halls before poking your heads up! Donaldson, prep two of those grenades for that hall, if things get heated count to three before throwing them up through there. If they charge those stairs I don’t want to get caught in a melee. Let’s make use of the weapons advantage we have as much as we can!"

Howard held his mirror up for a view of the hall to the left. "Hall’s hot Colonel. I make out at least 15."

Finemen reported back. "Got six over here Sir."

The Colonel gestured for those close to the stairwell to fall back. "Donaldson! Three seconds… no less. I want those nades to pop before they have a chance to pick ‘em up and throw ‘em back."

Donaldson replied, "Yes, Sir!"

Two pins were pulled, a count was taken and the grenades were released, one traveling along the upper hall in each direction.

Booom! Booom!

The Colonel charged up the stairwell with his shotgun at the ready.

Boom! Ch-ch boom! Ch-ch boom! Ch-ch! Ak-ak-ak-ak-ak-ak!

The hallway in each direction was quickly cleared. The Marines moved up in twos, crowding the walls as they went.

Four rounds were sent through the walls next to the first doorways before a marine rolled out and fired into each. Three more Milgari were killed. A fourth Milgari dropped through a ceiling panel with a knife in hand, jabbing it straight down through the shoulder of a Marine. The Milgaris brains were quickly splattered on the wall and its carcass pushed off to the side. The injured Marine was passed back down the hall to a waiting medic. He was lost to the fight, but he would survive.

As the Colonel and the Gray Ghouls continued their assault the rest of us worked to keep the frigate and freighter in place. Periodic low level negative ion pulses knocked the alien systems offline as soon as they came up. The fact that the frigate continued to attempt a restart was a sure sign that at least some of the Milgari had survived.

Bucci then came over the comm. "Chief, I don’t get why we aren’t using the ion web to hold these two ships. That is the one thing that it is good for."

I furrowed my forehead as I looked at Frig. "Why aren’t we using the web?"

Frig shrugged. "I’m not sure anyone suggested it Sir."

Bucci then interjected. ‘I suggested it five times to the Colonel! But I think he was in the midst of planning his assaults. I’m guessing it just slipped through the crack."

I made the decision to make use of the ion inhibitor field. I was disappointed that with all the brainpower we had we had missed making use of such a simple and useful tool.

I got on the comm, "Davis, Milly and Barg. How would you like to go on your own little raid? I'm thinking we hit the Bridge of that freighter and see if we can take it over. If we set off a couple ion bombs around her we should be able to take control of her. Frig, and our engineers can easily fly our Defenders if needed."

Milly was the first to respond. "I don't know if that is such a great idea Chief. We have been training, but there are only three of us. And you... I don't think we can afford to lose you. You put this outfit together and I kind of view you as the glue that keeps us together. I have to say it concerns me Sir."

Barg responded next. "I am all in for this. Ever since I got my hands on one of those AKs I haven't been able to sleep without dreaming of doing this very thing. Count me in!"

Davis was his usual calm self. "I see merits both ways. The longer we sit here while the Colonel and his men sweep that cruiser, the higher chance there is of having visitors. A couple of unforeseen cruisers could put us in a bad situation. If we go aboard and those extra ships are detected we will still have time to get back to our Defenders before they arrive. I can't say I fancy sitting around doing nothing. I'm in if you want Sir."

The Bull, the Spike and the Sword quickly made a triangle and initiated an ion inhibitor field. Two minutes later they maneuvered until the frigate and freighter were held in place with any large weapons they could muster made inert. We then took it upon ourselves to launch an assault on the freighter. The Colonel would be livid, but I could no longer sit by and do nothing while others were placing themselves at risk.

Davis, Milly and Barg transferred to the Swift and Frig dropped us on the deck of the freighter just below the Bridge. A door was found and then blown open with a set of plasma charges. The outward rush of atmosphere told us that any Milgari inside would be busy scrambling for suits or rebreathers. Our own private war was about to begin.

I spoke, "Davis and I will take right, you two left. And we have time so let's take it slow. I don’t want the Colonel screaming in my ear for getting someone killed!"

As we rounded the first corner a Milgari crewman charged at us with an iron bar in hand and his oxygen rebreather in his mouth.

Ak-ak-ak-ak!