Ep.#5 - "Rise of the Corinari" (23 page)

“Karuzara Command confirms contact ID,” Ensign Yosef announced from the sensor station. “Takaran Frigate.”

“She’s decelerating hard,” Jessica announced.

“Course?”

“One moment,” Jessica said. “She’s headed for Corinair, sir.”

“Set general quarters,” Nathan ordered, “and prepare to get under way.” Nathan looked over at Master Chief Montrose standing in the corner of the bridge and nodded.

Naralena keyed up the ship-wide alert system. A moment later, the lighting in the corridors flashed red and the alert klaxon sounded, followed by a prerecorded voice announcing, “
General quarters! General quarters! All hands, man your battle stations! Prepare to get under way!
”

Less than a minute later, all the workstations on the bridge were manned and ready, and there were two armed guards at each of the hatchways. Nathan paced back and forth behind Jessica at the tactical station, glancing at her display that showed the current status of all the ship’s departments. He knew that all over his ship, men and women were scurrying to get to their battle stations, and their department heads were waiting for all their people to become ready before they reported their department as ready for combat. Once every indicator on her display changed from red to green, he knew his ship was fully manned, buttoned down and ready for action.

“All battle stations report manned and ready, Captain,” Jessica reported. “All four reactors are online and are running at fifty percent.”

“Very good,” Nathan answered, checking his watch. “Chief of the Boat, log the time.”

“Minute thirty, Captain,” the chief answered.

Nathan paid no attention to the chief’s disappointment. “Comms, notify Karuzara Command; the Aurora is departing.”

“Aye, sir,” Naralena answered from the comm-station.

“Helm, release all mooring clamps and thrust away from the dock.”

“Aye, Captain,” Josh answered. “Releasing mooring clamps and thrusting away.” Josh released the clamps, and tilted his maneuvering joystick slightly to the right. The images of the cavern outside began sliding slowly to port as the Aurora slid to starboard, away from the docking platform inside the hollowed-out asteroid that held the Karuzari base. A moment later, he applied opposite thrust to stop the ship’s sideways slide and started their ascent. “Clear of all moorings. Thrusting up,” he announced.

“Any change on the frigate’s track?” Nathan asked, watching the view of the cavern wall shift downward as the Aurora climbed.

“No, sir,” Jessica reported. “Karuzari command reports no changes. Target is still decelerating and on course for Corinair.”

“Thrusting forward,” Josh announced.

Nathan watched somewhat nervously as the cavern walls on the view screen appeared to be moving toward them as they slid downward. He knew Josh was a natural pilot, but he couldn’t help but look upward at the portion of the view screen above and slightly forward of his command chair. He could see the gaping entrance to the exit corridor that led from the central chamber out to the surface. The asteroid itself was three-quarters hollow, but her remaining crust was still half a kilometer thick.

“Mister Sheehan,” Nathan called, “as soon as we come out into open space, I want to head for the far side of Cleo. We’ll keep that gas giant between us and that frigate until she passes by.”

“Yes, sir,” Loki answered from the navigation console to the right of Josh’s station at the helm.

“If we time it right, we’ll never show up on her sensors,” Nathan commented.

“Entering exit corridor,” Josh announced confidently. “Engaging auto-flight.” A moment later, Josh removed his hand from the maneuvering joystick as the Aurora’s complex auto-flight computers began following the script Josh had written more than a week ago. The script told the Aurora how to maneuver the ship out the long curving corridor that snaked along a natural fissure in the crust of the asteroid. Although Josh would have preferred to fly the corridor manually, he had long since learned that the helm of the Aurora was no place to play flyboy. Their battle with the Yamaro had taught him that lesson, and it was not one he would soon forget.

“Three minutes to open space,” Loki reported. “Course for the far side of Cleo is plotted and locked.”

“Very good,” Nathan confirmed.

“Doctor Sorenson, I trust you’ll keep a short emergency jump plot ready at all times?”

“Of course, Captain,” Abby answered in a matter-of-fact tone.

Nathan said nothing, just nodded approval as his eyes met the Danish physicist’s brief glance.

“Let’s keep our emissions and heat signature as low as possible, people,” Nathan reminded everyone. “We’ll be in the open for a few minutes when we first come out.” Nathan turned his attention to the helm. “Mister Hayes, give us a good little burn just before we come out of the corridor, then use thrusters only until we’re in Cleo’s shadow.”

“Yes, sir,” Josh answered.

“Not too much though,” Nathan warned. “We don’t want to melt the tunnel behind us.”

“Yes, sir,” Josh assured him, “I’ll keep it cool.”

“Two minutes to open space,” Loki reported.

“Comms, ask Karuzara to keep feeding us their tracking telemetry via laser-link. We’ll be blind once we put the gas giant between us and that frigate.”

“Yes, sir,” Naralena answered.

Nathan didn’t notice that Master Chief Montrose was taking notes and grumbling to himself about something.

“Roll us ninety degrees to port, Mister Hayes,” Nathan ordered. “We don’t want to show them our heat exchangers as we come out into the open.”

“Aye, sir, disengaging auto-flight. Rolling ninety degrees to port.”

The image on the main view screen began to rotate to starboard as the Aurora rolled to port.

“Laser-link is online and tracking,” Naralena reported. “Karuzara command confirms they will maintain the link for as long as possible.”

“Very well,” Nathan answered calmly. Up until recently, Naralena’s duties had been pretty much restricted to basic internal communications and any external communications that required translation. Nathan was happy to see she had taken so easily to the more advanced tasks of managing all of the Aurora’s sophisticated communications and telemetry systems.

“Roll complete,” Josh reported.

“One minute to open space,” Loki added.

“Disposition of contact?” Nathan asked Jessica at the tactical station behind him.

“Unchanged, sir. Contact is still on course for Corinair. Current speed is three-quarters light and decelerating.”

“Stand by for main engine burn at one percent thrust,” Loki reported. “In three……two……one……ignition.”

At one percent, there was no perceptible rumble or vibration on the bridge. It took at least ten percent before they could feel anything translating through the Aurora’s primary frame.

“Ten seconds to open space,” Loki reported.

Nathan watched the blackness of space rush toward them on the view screen as they accelerated out of the asteroid’s exit corridor.

“Five seconds,” Loki reported. “Four……three……main engines off……one…”

The opening quickly grew until it encompassed the entire quarter-sphere viewing screen and disappeared behind them.

“Entering open space,” Loki announced.

“Helm, come onto your new course, slow and easy,” Nathan instructed.

“Aye, sir, changing course. Heading for orbital intercept with Cleo.”

“Transit time, Mister Sheehan?” Nathan asked. He already knew the answer, as they had made this trip before. He just wanted to make sure his new navigator was keeping on top of the details, just as Cameron had always done.

“Twenty-two minutes at our current speed, sir,” Loki reported. “Eight minutes until we’re in Cleo’s shadow.”

“Very well,” Nathan said. Loki was keeping on top of the details, just as a good navigator should.

“No change in the contact’s course or rate of deceleration,” Jessica reported, anticipating her captain’s next question.

“No change in emissions from the target,” Kaylah added.

“Comms?” Nathan asked, pausing to see if Naralena would also anticipate his need for information.

“Laser array is locked on Karuzara’s telemetry signal and tracking,” she announced. “All feeds are strong and constant.”

Chief Montrose grumbled to himself again.

“Very well.” Nathan rotated in his chair to face Jessica at the tactical station behind him. “How long before that frigate reaches Corinair?”

“Assuming their rate of deceleration remains constant, eighty-seven minutes,” Jessica answered.

“Put the plots up on the main screen for me,” Nathan ordered.

“Aye, sir.”

Nathan spun back around to face forward as the tracking plots showed up in a separate rectangle superimposed over the exterior forward view now showing on the screen. “Show me where the contact will be when we come around from behind Cleo and have line-of-sight on them again.”

The icons on the forward view screen representing the Aurora and the enemy contact shifted to their new respective positions.

“Showing estimated positions fifty-two minutes from now,” Jessica reported.

Nathan stood up, staring at the screen a moment before turning his head toward Ensign Yosef to his left. “Are their shields up?”

“From their emissions profile, I’d say no, sir,” Ensign Yosef answered.

“Abby, can you plot a jump from that point to about a kilometer astern of that contact?”

“Yes, sir,” Abby answered confidently.

“The planet’s gravity well won’t cause any problems?”

“No, sir, not since Deliza and I installed the computer cores from those shuttles into the jump drive’s plotting system. With all that extra processing power, we can compensate for such things quite easily now.”

“A thousand meters is a bit close, sir,” Jessica warned.

“Not really,” Nathan disagreed. “Look at his velocity at that point. It’ll be just a little slower than our orbital velocity, since the gas giant is so much bigger than Corinair, and he won’t be down to Corinair’s orbital velocity yet. Our closure rate will be really low, so we’ll have plenty of time to alter course enough to get a clear jump line before he can change his attitude and bring his guns on us.”

“We’re not going to do much damage with a few rail guns,” Jessica commented. “It would be better if we had torpedoes… preferably nukes.”

“If we show him our topside we could get all our rail guns on him. That would do some damage.”

Jessica thought about it. “It might at that,” she admitted. “At that angle, sir, I suggest we target his main propulsion ports. We’re not going to get a shot at much else and we might get lucky and take out his main drive before he gets his shields up.”

“Agreed,” Nathan said.

“One minute until we enter Cleo’s shadow, sir,” Loki reported.

“All right then,” Nathan announced. “Abby, get that jump plot ready…”

“Contact!” Ensign Yosef announced. “Dead ahead, transferring track to tactical.”

“Got it!” Jessica announced. “Another frigate, coming out from the back side of Cleo… She’s firing!”

“Multiple contacts!” Ensign Yosef called out. “Three, four contacts, high-speed. They look like missiles, Captain! Transferring tracks to tactical.”

“Helm, pitch down ninety, bring the mains up to full power. We’ve got to force those missiles to turn and burn out their fuel faster.”

“Aye, Captain. Pitching down,” Josh answered.

“Jess, all rail guns, point-defense mode.”

“All we have are dumb slugs, Captain,” Jessica reminded him.

“Damn. Then target the missiles as best you can. Put an equal number of guns on each inbound missile.”

“Mains coming up to full power,” Josh reported.

“Abby, get me an escape plot,” Nathan ordered.

“Captain, the tracks aren’t accurate!” Ensign Yosef warned.

“What?” Nathan asked.

Again, the chief of the boat grumbled and took notes.

“They’re delayed. It takes nearly ten seconds for the track to reach Karuzara behind us, and then a few more seconds for them to relay the data forward to us. The targets are maybe fifteen seconds closer than they appear.”

“Drop the feed and go active,” Nathan ordered Ensign Yosef. “Time to impact?” Nathan asked Jessica.

“Twenty-two seconds, adjusted,” she reported. “One missile down, three to go.”

“Mains are at full power, sir,” Josh reported.

“Abby?” Nathan called.

“Thirty seconds to a plot, Captain.”

“Missiles are turning, sir,” Jessica reported. “They’re trying to stay with us as we change course.”

“Tracks are live through active sensors, Captain,” Ensign Yosef reported.

“Two down!” Jessica reported, trying to control her excitement. “Two to go! Twenty seconds to impact!”

“Keep firing,” Nathan urged. It was an unnecessary statement, as there was no way Jessica would stop firing until all four missiles were destroyed.

“Three down! One to go! Ten seconds!”

“Cease fire! Helm, snap roll one-eighty! Brace for impact!”

“Rolling one-eighty!” Josh answered, yanking his joystick hard to the left.

“All rail guns are cold! Five seconds!” Jessica reported.

“All hands, brace for impact!” Naralena called over the ship-wide call system, sounding the impact siren immediately afterward.

“Roll complete!” Josh reported.

“Two seconds……one……impact!”

The bridge vibrated and rumbled as the last remaining missile struck their reinforced underside.

“Damage report!” Nathan ordered.

“Stand by,” Jessica answered.

“Ready to jump, Captain,” Abby announced.

“Do it!” Nathan ordered.

“Jumping!”

The view screen dimmed as the blue-white flash of the jump drive filled the screen and lit the inside of the bridge for the split second it took for the jump to complete.

“Jump complete!” Abby reported.

“Position?” Nathan asked.

“Five light minutes down course,” Abby reported.

“We’re about four light minutes past Cleo,” Ensign Yosef reported.

“Minor hull damage, Captain,” Jessica reported. “If you hadn’t rolled to show them our belly, it would’ve been worse. We’re lucky they didn’t use nukes,” she added.