Retribution (32 page)

“Comms are good and we are still masking the true COP from Arcwright. Passive sensors report all good. Active sensors are good. No unusual detections. All fleet assets other than the ‘COP originals’ are on passive sensors.” Rihan nodded as she recalled that it was part of the plan to only have the ships, that the Rohan expected, using their active sensors. All the new arrivals would remain on passive till commanded otherwise. Rudi hoped to maximise the surprise effect this way.

“Pending Schedule is up on the screen. Main thing to note is the scheduled arrivals of the Enterprise group at 1420 and three shuttles, the last being from Earth at 1500 just before your handover. That will be Cmdr Julie Maklin. I don’t think you’ve met yet. She’s a recently retired officer called back up for the emergency. I’ve served with her. She’s good. I think that’s about it. Any questions?” asked Harry.

“No I think you’ve covered everything Sir. Thank you.”

“OK. If things get hairy, don’t hesitate to call me back in.”

“I won’t Sir, don’t worry.”

Chapter 38. Aukland over Polaris 1015, 25 June

Rudi was in his chair in the command centre pondering once more about his decision not to post a significant force on the far side of Sibu. It was the logical entry point if the rogan were cautious. Once again he reminded himself that so far their track record indicated anything but cautious behaviour.

He recalled his meeting with Felis Draag and how he had been obviously very careful in what he said to his enemy. All he would say was that Fleet commanders exercised full discretion in how they manoeuvred their forces except when operating as part of a combined fleet. ‘There was no hard and fast doctrine on points of entry’ Felis had said. ‘It all depends on the circumstances.’

Rudi knew that this told him nothing, well nothing he could base his own decision on. What he did know was that over Beta Phi they warped in directly over the planet and he anticipated they would do so again here. ‘Why would they do otherwise?’ he asked himself for what was probably the third time that morning.

Rudi was concerned because an entry behind Sibu or for that matter Mentos would allow the enemy time to redeploy their formation and approach routes. In effect if the enemy came in superior or almost equal numbers then they would regain a measure of the initiative.

“Light ship warping in sector 8 Delta” reported the defensive systems specialist out loud enough to wake the dead. This jolted Rudi out from his pontifications.

“It’s OK it’s the Alliance frigate Excelsior” the specialist added. That took the tension away from everyone in the command centre.

“They are not scheduled for arrival” said the watch officer. “Hail them” he commanded. After a few minutes, the watch officer turned to Rudi and reported “Their craft is damaged from an engagement over Alpha Phi and they warped here to escape. Their Commander has requested assistance. He also wants to know what’s going on with so many ships here.”

“Yes we can provide assistance. How badly damaged is his craft? Can it fight?”

A few moments later “Negative Sir their impulse drives are damaged.”

“Get them on the deck as soon as possible. Have their commander report to Polaris HQ. They can brief him as they see fit.”

“Roger.”

Rudi would leave the finer points of diplomacy to Yomoto. He did not want the distraction.

Chapter 39. Nova Vista 1100, 25 June

Phil didn’t want the distractions of diplomacy at this stage either. He had Art meet the Excelsior’s commander and give him a very elementary briefing and say that a fuller briefing would be provided before he departed.

The Excelsior’s commander, Cmdr Ervin Benko wasn’t impressed and began to ask more probing questions about why they expected an attack.

“You’ll have to forgive me” said Art “but I have other more urgent things to attend to. I’ll be in touch tomorrow.”

Ervin mumbled something about being allies and was left stewing. Art didn’t feel good about it but this was not his call.

Ervin was known by his Alliance Fleet superiors for his determination and that was what he was right now, determined. On returning to his ship at the Nova Vista spaceport he wrote up a report and sent it direct from his ship with an old Alliance encryption that he believed had not been cracked by the Federation. The report highlighted the large number of Federation ships and the fact that Polaris HQ were expecting a rogan attack at any minute.

Unaware of any issues with the Arcwright transmitter he did not disengage the default setting which would use the transmitter to boost the signal.

Chapter 40. Outer Polaris 1330, 25 June

The parasitic AI aboard the Arcwright sat began processing the message from the Excelsior. It was from a known Alliance ship, not thought to be in this space so that immediately raised a flag for further processing. The second stage processing, however failed to decipher the encryption. It was not one within its database. So the entire message, as is, was rebroadcast for further processing. By default it was sent to the rogan station at Chelora and to the IRS Mailon, flagship of the combined fleet.

Chapter 41. Aukland over Polaris 1425, 25 June

Rudi looked impatiently at the timer. It had been at zero for a good five minutes and still no warp in from the Enterprise. He had been sweating on this all day. First he had been concerned about how long he would have to hold until they arrived. He was certainly grateful that the enemy had not yet arrived but now he was worried if the Enterprise would be late too.

The command centre with a good dozen people at their stations was as quiet as a cemetery. Everyone was waiting. And they waited. 1435 came and went without any sign of them. 1445 likewise.

Rudi knew that the time was an estimate they had made based on the message Yomoto had received through unofficial channels. His fingers began tapping nervously on his arm rest. In a pause between thoughts he realised he was doing it and he stopped it. He recalled how Marnie used to nudge him when she found him doing it and he smiled.

He began composing a diary entry to Marnie. It was always a nice thing to do and it helped pass the time and avoid anxiety. At 1500 he saved his entry and noted the arrival of the Earth shuttle. He knew that his Polaris HQ staff would be meeting the shuttle to get the first hard facts about the real situation on Earth. He trusted them to advise him of anything important. ‘Still no sign of the Enterprise.’

He received a brief report from his Intel staff confirming the latest political and military news from Earth about 1610. ‘Still no sign of the Enterprise.’

He was tapping again when at 1615 his defensive specialist announced “Three lights warping in … friendlies.” He deliberately waited to confirm IDs. “It’s the Enterprise Sir, the whole dammed group” he confirmed triumphantly. A collective sigh of relief could be heard in the command centre.

Rudi raised his right hand from his elbow, and shook his clenched fist. “Yes!” he said out loud.

Chapter 42. Nova Vista 1630, 25 June

The excitement generated by the arrival of the Enterprise had died down in the B16 Ops Centre. The holo was now adjusted to reflect the fact. Rihan was dog tired. She had a head ache. The six hours of poor sleep she had had wasn’t enough neither in quantity or quality.

“Commander Kabel” she heard from behind and Rihan turned around to see a much older but much fresher woman of the same rank, namely Cmdr Julie Maklin. Julie was a short dynamo of a person. She looked very fit and with a tanned face that spoke wonders for an early retirement.

“Julie?” asked Rihan.

“That’s right” said Julie in a bright manner. “Your replacement for the evening tour. Nice to meet you. Now what’s happening?”

“Well not much all day till a few minutes ago when the Enterprise Group arrived. They are….” said Rihan and she went on to give her the handover briefing. She finished up with “Captain Heller will relieve you at midnight.”

“Good ol’ Harry” said Julie. “Leave it with me and get some rest Rihan.”

“That obvious?”

“Afraid so” and Julie gave her a smile.

Chapter 43. IRS Mailon to Polaris 1930, 25 June

Commodore Assani Chundah looked perplexed as he read the message purportedly sent from the Alliance frigate Excelsior. Most of the words were garbled and tagged for further decoding but what was clear was that the Excelsior was in Polaris space and reporting something about the Federation Fleet. With only six hours to arrival, he needed to know more of the detail.

He looked up at the lieutenant who had alerted him to this report. He could see in her eyes the same concern that he now felt. He glanced across to Meeka and debated whether to inform him of this development. He knew that his Admiral was already worrying about the forthcoming encounter. This report would only add to his concerns and it raised more unanswerable questions. No he would wait a little and pray the rest of the message could be decoded.

Pointing to the garbled text he said “I want this decoded as a matter of priority. Come back to me when it’s done or in two hours if not. Understood?”

“Yes Sir” said the lieutenant.

At 2130 the lieutenant returned. This time the only additional information she proffered was that it said something about Federation ships and that Polaris HQ was expecting something. Assani rubbed his brow. This was even more frustrating.

“Keep at it. I need to know the details. They could be critical. Report back as soon as you crack this.”

“Of course Sir” said the lieutenant.

Assani waited until 2230. There was still no further progress. He knew he now needed to tell Meeka. Time was running out if changes to formation or tasking were to be made.

“Admiral” said Meeka and he explained the partially decoded details.

Meeka pouted his lips forward as was his want when he was challenged for a decision. But then he relaxed the facial contortion and turned to Assani and asked “what do you advise?”

“Hard to say Sir. The most likely explanation I can think of is that this Alliance ship has warped to Polaris seeking repair. The last part I think may be a reference to the fact that they are waiting on parts to be delivered. Of course it could be more significant than that. The sender may have been reporting the unexpected presence of Federation ships. It is too difficult to say. So I would not recommend any changes until we decode more. I will let you know straight away.”

“But time is running out… mmm... Is there any change in the enemy COP?”

“No Sir.”

“What not even the inclusion of this Alliance vessel?”

“No Sir. Perhaps being Alliance they are recorded separately.”

“Was that the case over Beta Phi?”

“There never was a time over Beta Phi where we had both Federation and Alliance ships.”

“I still find this troubling don’t you?”

“Not everyone is as organised as us.”

“Fair point but I wonder…” After a moment he added “Let me think on this. In the meantime have them continue the decoding.”

Chapter 44. Aukland over Polaris 2300, 25 June

Rudi was finding it difficult to sleep. ‘What a frustrating day’ he said to himself. He had originally thought that by now the battle would be either won or lost and it hadn’t even started. He stared up at the ceiling in his cabin, the feint blue sensor light glowed as it always had.

He was grateful for the arrival of the Enterprise and for the time he had to deploy his massed fleet but still he wondered when it would come to head.

‘Stop’ he said to himself. ‘Oh Marnie. I really need you now.’

Chapter 45. Nova Vista 0000, 26 June

By the time Harry Heller arrived at the B16 Ops Centre he knew the Rogan had not showed up. He could tell by the lack of noise and movement. Indeed it was confirmed when Julie greeted him with both hands held out from the elbow, palms up.

“Maybe they got scared” he said.

“How are you Harry…I mean Sir” said Julie, still reasonably bright despite the seven and half hours duty she had just put in.

“Still getting used to sharing a room with a bunch of guys” he replied. “I hear the Enterprise put in an appearance.”

“Sure did. Come over here and I’ll show you something you don’t see every day.” She was indicating the holo full of icons.

“Or every night for that matter” added Harry.

“Or every night” confirmed Julie. “OK I’m losing my beauty sleep. Here’s the rundown…”

Chapter 46. IRS Mailon to Polaris 0010, 25 June

“Any progress with the decoding” asks Meeka.

“No Sir” responds Assina.

“Well then the die is cast. We go as we are.”

Part 5
Thunderclap

Like a giant thunderclap danger is heralded

With shock and awe and bloody spectre

Firepower unleashed even if not warranted

From missile, beam and pulse projector

Surprise takes its hold on those caught out

Their frantic counters initiated too late

Desperate avoidance ends in rout

Safety and ambition wiped from the slate

Chapter 1. Aukland over Polaris 0032, 26 June

“Wake the Admiral now” screamed the watch officer as the defensive specialist yelled out the arrival of a huge force of rogan ships entering sector 3 Alpha. “Omega One all ships Omega One” hailed the watch officer on the Fleetwide channel.

Omega One was code for the contingency plan to be enacted if the enemy jumped straight in close to Polaris. Across the Polaris space each ship’s watch officer enacted their preassigned tasks.

In the case of the Argonaut it would deactivate the rogan parasite on Arcwright so it would then broadcast the true COP to all Fleet assets both within the system and to other Federation systems including Earth. But the Argonaut was four light hours away and the odds were that the battle would have been decided by then.