Left Behind (Ghosts Of War Book 4) (3 page)

Once the required simulation ended, Commander Scatena slowly rose from his seat, his jaw set tight with tension. There was simply no chance at all to avoid the destruction of the Russian ship, even in the best circumstances. The EMP derived from the nuclear explosions was esteemed to be thrice the power required to fry all the electronic equipment aboard the “Zel’dovich”. Those Russians simply did not understand what a total war was and how much the European crew had suffered to carry on the hunt for the last Chinese outpost.

Scatena wasn’t concerned about diplomacy, nor was worried about a reaction from the Russian fleet. He knew for sure that his ship wasn’t able to survive a direct confrontation with the “Chang’e”, thus ending any possible controversy between European Union and Russia. His mission was to annihilate the enemy, no matter the cost. What worried him was the waste of innocent lives for this purpose. His duty against the oath taken decades before to protect civilians from harm. It was time to decide what to do, once initiated the final battle against the Chinese he must be focused only in the fight. His second officer was silently waiting for orders.

The commander walked the entire length of the main deck, absently looking at the screen of his crew. The echoes of his steps resembled the distant chime of a bell, played for a funeral ceremony.

«Launch order. Missiles number eleven to fifteen, aimed at habitats orbiting Pluto and Charon.»

Two of the crew members acknowledged the order, keying launch sequences.

«Nuclear warheads of said missiles armed. On record, that’s my personal authorization.»

Four orange lights came to life in the weapons panel, everything was ready.

«Fire.»

Scatena sat back in his seat, his face void of expression. No more decisions to cast, no more doubts. Time to concentrate every fiber of his being on his last task. Destroy the “Chang’e”, once for all.

***

« Dmitry, we have a launch from the “Roma”. It’s one, two, three… it’s four. Four missiles out for good.»

«I’m tracking, just a second. All four missiles are moving out from the route of “Chang’e”. They’re moving fast, I can’t still predict anything about their destinations.»

«Still nothing from “Chang’e”, they aren’t even trying to intercept those missiles. Try to extrapolate the direction of the four habitats and give me an ETA for the two orbiting Charon.»

«It will take a while. Gimme a break.»

Three minutes after Anuchin was ready, his young face pale with fear.

«Preliminary data show that we will have two direct impacts. ETA differs for less than three seconds, give or take. For the sake of it, Pluto habitats will go down first.»

«How much time left?»

«A bit more than fifty-eight minutes. We will complete deceleration near the first habitat just four minutes and fifteen seconds before.»

Mikhail checked navigation data on his console, pretending to be calm.

«Well, we will have front row places to the show. Dmitry, I will not change course.»

«I know that. We’re in for a big bang.»          

On the deck of “Zel’dovich” there was a strange kind of silence. Both crew mates were busy at their desk, pretending to ignore that their time was almost over. Anuchin was consulting the ship’s database, looking for more data about the “Roma”. It was just appropriate to know who’s about to wipe out your ship. After a while he quit reading.

« Mikhail, there’s something wrong about the European ship.»

«Aside from their decision to kill anybody around here?»

«Yes, take a look. These are the figures for the logistics of the “Roma”, the European Fleet Command goes public about it when the treaty of Lagos was signed.»

«So? What’s the problem with it?»

«I mean, it has eleven men aboard. Plus all the stuff about general maintenance and, of course, weapons and missiles. The Euros are not so good to hide such a thing to our services, nor they could be so good to evade Americans spies as well.»

«Son, that ship is real. And so are its missiles.»

«The ship is real, no doubts about it. Even if I could ever be dubious about that, we have our sensors that tell us the truth. I’m questioning the existence of the crew.»

Babushkin scratched his beard and poured himself some tea before going on with the conversation.

«So you’re telling me that we have a crew of European ghosts that are looking for vengeance upon a gang of long-dead cyborgs? Because you have already figured that the crew of “Chang’e” cannot be alive with that level of radiation, haven’t you?»

«In a word, yes.»

«What about the people aboard that habitats? Are they ghosts, too?»

«No. I don’t think so. I mean, the habitats aren’t in bad shape and by the look they’re still in life-support conditions. The answers we get from them are quite different from each other. But I can’t prove any of that.»

«This is hilarious. We’re gonna die because a bunch of dead veterans are going for each other throats. Not to mention that we will have another war as soon as our command will understand what’s going on here.»

Mikhail looked again at the main screen, focusing on the four missiles in their progress. Then started to punch commands on his keyboard.

«Boy, our efforts to communicate with the people orbiting Charon will be delayed for a while. I’m going to enrage a ghost for real.»

«What the Hell are you doing?»

«I’m trying to shook Scatena by his long-dead tail. Shut up and let me work!»

***

It took a while for Commander Scatena to notice the amber light of an incoming transmission. All his energy was focused on the tactical option for the incoming battle. He didn’t really want to take note of those obnoxious civilians but decades of Navy service guided his hands on the console.

«EUSS “Roma”, commander on line.»

«Commander? Commander my ass! You’re dead as a stone!»

«Babushkin, I suppose. I already told you twice to go away.»

«I don’t take orders from a ghost! You and your freckin’ crew are dead like those goddamned Chinese machines!»

«My dear captain, this is not a factor in this fight. Dead or not, I will carry on my orders.»

The communication went off.  

Anuchin quit working at his console, his young face void of expression while looking at the main screen.

«It's over. Take a look there, the first couple of missiles is almost on target.»

Two blue arrows were approaching the red dots that symbolized the Chinese habitats orbiting Pluto, two set of yellow digits gave the estimate distances – numbers that were going down fast.

«Those bastards deserves everything it will happen to them, no doubts about it.»

Mikhail voice was a low growl, he was still punching keys.

«What are you doing?»

«Two different things, both important for our last minutes. First, I've set up the filters for our sensors, second, I'm transmitting every message from the human-occupied habitats to our dead friend.»

«Do you really think he will consider the messages?»

«I don't know. But it's worth a try.»

A minute later both missiles found their targets. Traveling at more than fifty thousand kilometers for hour, both of them hit the habitats near the center section, allowing the titanium-coated cone breaking into the main structures of the habitats. A second later, two five hundred kilotons explosions canceled from the existence the Chinese structures.

On the main screen of the “Zel’dovich”, two white spots marked the two explosions, followed by a progression of orange spheres, the more and more large by the seconds.

«Well, it's done.»

Babuskhin raised his tea cup to the screen in a mocking salute.

«Ghosts or not, nothing more than high speed particles and radioactive dust. A pity we don't have vodka to celebrate.»

«Are we safe from contamination? And what about the shock wave?»

«We are too far to get any of it. Relax, the next wave of missiles will find us in good health.»

***

Aboard the “Roma”, commander Scatena considered for a while the twin explosions. The sensor matrix reading was clear. No last ditch defenses, no escape pods from the habitats. Whatever was orbiting Pluto, it ceased to exist. There was still a little time before facing the “Chang'e”, so he turned his attention to the communication systems. More from the Russians, those guys simply couldn't stop.

***

Two white-hot little suns were illuminating the western hemisphere of Pluto, with some of the debris cloud directed to the surface of the planet. Out of sight, riding the gamma-ray burst like a sea wave, more was traveling fast in every direction. It was the dispersing energy of the Chinese cyborg crew, bits of code and thoughts from long-dead entities that once got over the limit between man and machines.

***

The proximity alarms of the Russian ship came to life, screaming at full power. Dmitry frantically checked the diagnostics, scanning to find the reason.

«Nothing over the danger status, what we get here are only readings about gamma rays. What do you have on your screens?»

«Nothing as well. We can spot anything bigger than a golf ball, I can't figure what...»

The captain shut up and sat back on his chair.

«What? What's the problem?»

«It's them. Sit down, brace yourself and try not to get crazy.»

All of a sudden a thousand voices came out from the loudspeakers, every screen shut down and the temperature dropped down. Then the noise ended.

«What the Hell was that?»

Dmitry was shocked, his breath ragged for tension.

«Hell indeed, son. Dead souls traveling to their annihilation.»  

«It's over Dmitry, get back to the comms. Ask to the people aboard habitats if they're still in control.»

«What do you mean with that?»

«Boy, use your brain. If we get scared for the passage of that hoard of damned souls, what could it be for them? They've been oppressed by those cyborgs for the best part of their lives.»

«Got it. There are a lot of interferences, it should from the nuclear blast. We can easily overcome that, just let me… here, we get them.»

Moments after a digital synthesizer gave them the result of the incoming Morse code.

«...happened? We get a massive passage of ghosts, the worst we have ever seen. Are you still coming here? Repeat, what happened?»

Mikhail got back at his console, just in time to check the final approaching of the missiles aimed at the two habitats.

«Look here, we're minutes to meet our fate. Even if one or both missiles aren't equipped with nuclear warheads, we're toast. Even the debris cloud from the impacts could be enough to damage our ship.»

«What if we intercept one of the missiles? We could save one of the habitats.»

«Too late for that, this is a slow ship. I've already performed the simulations. We're cannon fodder and I can't figure a way to get somebody out alive from this mess.»

***

Aboard of the “Roma” another radio message found the attention of the commander Scatena. Straight from the Chinese flagship.

«This is “Chang'e”. We offer a single chance to surrender. Your commander will be executed for his actions but the crew will be saved. Acknowledge this message and shut down your main engines.»

The voice was colder than space itself, every syllable full of menace.

Scatena stood still for a moment, his gaze fixed on his crew. Then he set open the communication channel and let the Chinese hear the response of his people.

They laughed.

An empty and metallic sound, void of life and full of hate. Scatena laughed with them, in a chorus of derision and anguish.

«This is “Roma”. In the name of all your victims, for the memory of all the lives wasted in the war, there will be no quarter. Alive, dead or whatever is in between, you will be destroyed. The humans aboard the habitats orbiting Charon get rid of your comrades, we just canceled your friends around Pluto. You're all that remains of an abomination. Enjoy your last minutes. Scatena out.»

***

Anuchin listened to all the conversation between the enemy ships, his young face pale with fear.

«It's just crazy. All this people has been dead for what? Decades? And they still are going for each other's throats. This is madness.»

«No son, it is not. This is what the last war left to us. Nothing but pain and hate. I can understand Scatena and all the other poor bastards aboard the “Roma”. And I can even try to understand what drives the Chinese hive mind. They don't know anything but the war.»

The missiles had traveled in parallel routes, arching gracefully their routes to compensate the light pull of the gravity well of Charon. At the start of final approach, they parted ways for the first time and both activated their warheads. At five hundred kilotons each, their load was more than enough to cancel any sign of the Chinese presence around the Pluto main satellite.

***

On the main deck of the “Roma” a new sound echoed. Three notes in progression, each a half tone higher than the previous.

«All hands, final configuration. Let's gain some extra speed.»

The voice of Scatena was more human, colored by the expectation of the battle. His crew was more active now, each member keying commands on their consoles.

«Storage modules deployed, Sir.»

«Rear missiles bay deployed, Sir.»

«External fuel tanks deployed, Sir.»

«Safety pods, one to four, deployed.»

Like a snake emerging from its old skin the ship was speeding up from a little cloud of modules, gaining more and more with the mass loss.

«Crew quarters detached, Sir.»

The commander paced the main deck with long strides, approaching his own battle station.

«Sick bay detached, Sir.»

There was a last block to get loose. Long range sensors and communications station. An extreme measure for a warship, intended only for desperate measures. It was up to Scatena to decide if gaining those last few hundred kilos.

***

«Mikhail, we have an incoming transmission from the Euros.»

«Get it, the bastard want to have a last laugh.»

Static. A lot of clicks, then the voice.

«“Zel’dovich”, this is the last message from EUSS “Roma”. Please record it and have it placed to the European Fleet Command.»

«What do you mean, you sick monster? We're gonna die here, all of us. There will be no ship to carry out your last babbling.»

«It is my duty, my last duty, to use the power I have to destroy the enemies of my country. Our central expert system have analyzed the transmissions between your ship and the habitat orbiting Charon. There's a distinct choice that you're communicating with a human and the information you get from him are consistent with what we know about them.»

«Are you gonna save us?»

«Yes. I'm transmitting the self-destruction order to our missiles.»

For a while Scatena quit speaking, the joy of the Russians was overwhelming.

«They will not die today, nor will you. And there will be no further war between Russia and European Union, at least not for my actions here. But your decision to help them is a mistake, you should realize that.»

«What? There are about one thousand people on that habitats.»

«There are about one thousand things. You don't know what you will find there. I've seen what POW became at the hands of the Chinese collective. What you will find there will plague your dreams until death. Horror is the right word to describe it.»

«Scatena, come on. They are POW, not monsters. We can help them, their countries will help them to get back to a normal life.»

The European commander laughed again, a dry sound creepier than a dark night. Then shut down the communication.