Star Viking (Extinction Wars Book 3) (11 page)

N7 nodded for her to open channels. A moment later on the main screen, a bedecked Saurian peered at our android.

Saurians were two-legged, walking lizards, looking like giant versions of the gecko from the old-time insurance commercials. The creature moved springier than a human would. Usually, a Saurian stood four or four and half feet tall. They called themselves the Family and made better workers than they did fighters. I think the Jelk liked them because Saurians were easy keepers and bred like flies.

“You are not authorized to enter the Demar system,” the Saurian hissed. He wore a uniform with fancy braid hanging down from the sleeves.

“I claim salvage rights to the ship I’m towing,” N7 said. “Under article nine of the Jelk scavenger code, I must be paid thirty percent of the vessel’s worth.”

The Saurian eyed N7, finally saying, “You’re an android.”

“That has no bearing on article nine,” N7 told him.

“No,” the Saurian hissed. “It appears your logic circuits are in full working order.”

“Yes,” N7 said in a mechanical fashion.

As I watched the exchange, I could practically see the greed working in the Saurian’s mind. He no doubt thought to cheat the foolish android of its treasure.

Ella tapped her board, splitting the main screen. It continued to show the Saurian and now the starcity in the distance. The habitat was a great cylinder, many kilometers in length and width. By rotating, it created pseudo-gravity for its occupants. Three small pinpricks moved away from the platform.

I pointed at them.

Ella tapped her panel one more time.

The three dots leaped in magnification. They were corvettes, star system patrol craft. The
Aristotle
could have beaten them in a straight fight, but we would have taken damage doing it. If the starcity had heavy beams, the enemy might even have destroyed our cruiser. No. We had to do it like this.

“You will bring your cargo to the number seven docking bay,” the Saurian said at last.

“I understand,” N7 said. “I expect you to have my thirty percent finder’s fee ready once I dock.”

“You will receive a reward, android,” the Saurian said. “Never fear on that score. But if we see you deviate in the slightest, the corvettes will annihilate your freighter and take the Lokhar cruiser for our own.”

“I claim independent locator status,” N7 said. “That is guaranteed by the Jelk scavenging regulations.”

“We serve the Jelk Corporation,” the Saurian said. “You do not need to keep quoting your articles.”

“This is my lucky find,” N7 said. “I will buy many upgrades with my new wealth.”

“You are a wise android,” the Saurian said. “I will instruct the judicator to ready your fee.”

A moment later, the Saurian blinked off the screen.

“He means to bilk you of your fee,” Ella told N7.

“Saurians are quite transparent,” N7 said. “It is another reason the Jelk prefer them over most others. The Family has never staged a successful rebellion against the Jelk anywhere.”

“This would seem like the time to try it,” I said.

“No,” N7 said. “Not if the main Saurian fleets are deep in the interior systems. As long as they are there, the fleets are hostages for the frontier regions’ good behavior—at least concerning Jelk protocols.” N7 studied me. “I understand you dislike the other races’ view of humanity. It is even worse toward us, the androids. At least they treat humans as something living. To the others, we are simply machines.”

I didn’t know what to tell N7, so I said nothing.

For the next few hours, we moved toward the starcity. At the same time, the three corvettes drew closer to us.

“They’re scanning our vessels,” Ella said.

“Let them,” I told her.

Rollo’s board beeped. “They have radar lock-on,” he informed us.

“They’ve figured out our ploy,” Dmitri said. “We’re dead men.”

I have to admit that I didn’t like how my heart rate increased. Radar lock-on had that effect. “What do you think, N7? Is Dmitri right?”

“It is possible,” the android said.

“Their laser cannons are hot,” Rollo said, looking up from his board. “What should we do, Commander?”

“Complain,” I said. “Ella, hail the starcity. N7, I want you to seriously complain about this.”

“What good will that do us if we’re dead?” Dmitri asked.

“Maybe they’re just testing our reactions,” I said.

Dmitri stood there blinking in disbelief.

Soon, N7 complained to the same Saurian he’d talked with earlier.

“You are a spy,” the Saurian said.

“That is incorrect,” N7 said. “I am an honest trader.”

“I will send inspectors onto your vessels,” the Saurian said.

“Of course,” N7 said. “I welcome them. Let them come. I have nothing to hide.”

The Saurian eyed him, finally signaling someone off-screen. “You are a legitimate scavenger, android. Proceed to the docking bay.”

“First, I want to know why you targeted my freighter,” N7 asked.

“As I said, it is our procedure.”

“No,” N7 said. “I have changed my mind about bringing the Lokhar cruiser to you. I will take it elsewhere.”

“It’s far too late for that, android,” the Saurian said. “The corvettes will escort you to the docking bay. If you deviate from your course, they will disable your freighter and take the prize ship for the Family.”

“That is against article nine,” N7 complained.

“You have much to learn, android. Now, do as I say if you value a continued existence.”

“I will comply,” N7 said. “But I plan to lodge a protest against these actions to the governing authority.”

The Saurian hissed before blinking off once more.

***

Nineteen hours later, the
Maynard Keynes
braked hard. The strain told on the ancient engines. Not only did the heavy thrust slow our mass, but that of the
Aristotle
as well.

The starcity loomed before us, a gleaming cylinder spinning in the stellar void. The three corvettes paced us, the farthest a mere five hundred kilometers away. They were sleek vessels with stubby wings. At times, corvettes flew within planetary atmospheres. Their laser cannons were no longer hot, primed for firing, but they could become lethal in minutes.

“It is time to match velocities with the starcity,” N7 said.

“Yeah,” I said. “Ella, you’re remaining here to run communications. Rollo, Dmitri, let’s get ready.”

We exited the bridge, hurrying to our soldiers in the main bay.

I still used the Mongol system for the assault troopers instead of the legionary start we’d had with the Jelk Corporation. The greatest conqueror in Earth history had been Genghis Khan. His Mongols had swept over an incredible area, riding across degrees of longitude and latitude instead of just hundreds of miles.

I’d decided to steal from the great khan’s bag of tricks. One thing he’d done was forge an iron law called the Yassa. We assault troopers had our own Yassa. One of its keys was never to leave one of our own behind on the field of battle. Another was to make the smallest combat group a band of brothers. That was an
arban
, ten brothers and sisters in arms. They lived and fought together, and looked out for each other. Ten arbans formed a company called a
zagun
of one hundred troopers. Ten zaguns formed a
mingan
of one thousand. Dmitri led one mingan and Rollo the other. I had overall command.

We went to our staging areas. Like the other assault troopers, I went to the heat unit holding my bio-suit. The green light was on as it should be. I opened the lid and pulled out a hefty black blob that was warm to my skin. I pushed it onto the decking where it quivered in anticipation. Taking off my shoes and clothes, I stepped naked onto the blob. Around me, others did the same thing. The substance oozed onto my legs, coating my flesh. It was a warm, comfortable sensation.

As I’ve said before, this was second skin, symbiotic alien armor, genetically engineered for human use. Alive after a fashion, it could heal itself at times. The outer surface would harden, and it allowed the wearer to operate in a vacuum, in outer space. The skin also amplified human strength. It was also capable of secreting a battle drug into our bodies when necessary.

The familiar symbiotic skin rushed up my thighs, over my belly button and didn’t stop until it reached my chin. I put on my helmet and grabbed a gun, checking the battery pack. It had a bar symbol on it, with the green all the way to the + sign on top. The laser rifle had a full charge. We had taken to calling it a Bahnkouv assault rifle. Dmitri had told us about an experimental Russian laser, the design headed by a Dr. Bahnkouv. I liked the name because it was human.

This was the largest bay, holding two thousand assault troopers.

The headphones in my helmet crackled into life. “Commander,” Ella said.

“I’m here,” I said into my microphone.

“There’s a problem,” she said. “The Saurian just ordered us to remain several hundred kilometers from the main starcity docking bay door.”

“And?” I asked.

“The corvettes are closing in,” she said. “Worse, their laser cannons have just gone hot. The Saurian told me he’s sending over an inspection team after all. Something must have given us away.”

“I knew it,” Dmitri cried. “They’re never going to let us enter the starcity. We’re doomed.”

My spine tightened. I didn’t like the feeling.

“What are we going to do?” Dmitri asked me.

Yeah. That was the question.

My plan rested on nifty little one-Lokhar flyers. We’d faced them in the Altair star system what seemed like a lifetime ago. The one-man sleds were fast, sported a laser cannon in front and were meant for one Lokhar legionnaire laying down to pilot it.

Enough of my people had practiced with them on Deimos, one of the tiny moons of Mars, and off Ceres in our Asteroid Belt.

There were three corvettes out there, a giant cylinder and likely hordes of Saurians waiting on it. Each of those creatures could pick up a wrench at the very least. Too many of them would have energy weapons. We had two thousand Star Vikings—assault troopers with pure hearts of gold—and not to put too fine a point on it, we had me.

The way I saw it, we had no choice in this. We had to go balls-out.

I studied a schematic in my HUD. The last corvette was too far away from us—staying five hundred kilometers out. The other two were several minutes distant from our big Jelk freighter. No one was aboard the
Aristotle
. For this little game, it didn’t count. I was hoping no one messed with it, either. We’d need the cruiser to get home.

“Okay,” I said, over a wide-speaker. “Here’s how we’re going to do it. Dmitri, half your mingan will head for the nearer corvette. We’ll call that enemy ‘A.’ Rollo, half your mingan will go for corvette ‘B.’”

“What about corvette ‘C?’” Rollo asked.

“Don’t worry about it for now,” I said. “Rollo, I’m going to lead your B team against the corvette. I want you to lead the rest of your troopers to the starcity. Dmitri, you’re going to hit the A corvette. Your second team will follow Rollo.”

“That’s too complex, Creed,” Rollo said. “Send me with my entire mingan at the starcity.”

“Right,” I said. “I don’t know what I was thinking. Command and control will be critical. Dmitri, your mingan will hit the corvettes. I’ll command one strike, you will lead the other.”

“Roger,” Dmitri said.

After we settled that, I told them the rest of the idea, detailing their goals.

In fifteen minutes, as assault troopers dashed to their one-man flyers, we were ready to begin. I told Ella. She informed me N7 had brought us to a relative halt. We had the same circular velocity as the spinning starcity. That would be important.

“Here goes,” I said. “Good luck to everyone. Ella, open the main bay door.”

We lay or stood on the giant deck. Before us, massive bay doors began to open. One quarter of the two thousand Star Vikings would be part of the flyer teams. Three troopers apiece would use a Lokhar sled. It was a tight fight, being the most people we could pack onto one. The rest of the mingans would use thruster packs. They would be slower, but they would eventually get to their destinations.

I was counting on the fact that each of us would make small targets. As strange as it seems, the starcity probably lacked the weapons to repel Vikings. They had lasers, missiles and heavy guns to destroy ships, missiles and possibly big enemy shells.

Stars shined outside the bay doors. The O Class Star blazed with blue-white light. Then I saw the starcity, a gleaming cylinder with docking bays here at the one end.

“Do you see corvette B?” I asked the driver of my one-man flyer.

“I do,” the woman radioed.

“Head straight for it,” I told her.

She turned the throttle. Thrust ignited from the back, and the narrow sled zoomed off the decking, heading for the dark object less than twenty kilometers away.

What did the Saurians see? Maybe it was like bees boiling out of a hive. Maybe they didn’t notice yet.

They did the obvious, reacting against us by lighting up their lasers. Hot beams smashed against the huge Jelk freighter. If they had lit off a few small nukes instead, it would have finished us off.

I didn’t think they would do that for several reasons. For one thing, they were too close to the starcity. Nukes this near would damage it. For another, that would take initiative on the lizards’ part. I’d fought Saurians before. The day after the Earth died, they’d landed in Antarctica to capture people. I’d turned the tables on them by attacking with ferocity from the get-go. That was my plan here today.

I gripped the flyer as Bess, my pilot, pointed us at corvette B. The small combat vessel had two main laser cannons. We had a smaller shooter, but I didn’t give the command to fire yet. I had a different idea.

A glance back showed me hundreds of glowing dots. Those were thruster-packs pushing their troopers at the starcity. Every flyer we possessed aimed at a corvette. If the Saurian pilots woke up in time, they would take off, putting greater distance between the corvettes and us.

What I was counting on was plain, old-fashioned surprise. I had the initiative this time. Besides, we acted like pirates. That’s what Vikings had been in the end. We stormed their ships like buccaneers with swords between our teeth.

The enemy lasers began melting the freighter’s outer hull. Now, Saurian missiles zoomed at the Jelk hauler. They meant to take us down fast. What the corvettes didn’t do was leave. If they would wait just a few more minutes, we’d have them.

My stomach tightened. Then I felt the edges of anger draining the fear away. I knew what was happening. The bio-suit squirted combat drugs into my bloodstream. It wanted me to go berserk. Jelk technicians had made the symbiotic skins for humans. We’d modified them, but those modifications didn’t always remain during battle.

“Now,” I radioed. “Beam at grid coordinates ten-ten-eight.”

Our sled shifted, no doubt so Bess could aim at the targeted specifics. All around me, small laser beams fired at the enemy corvette. The Saurian vessel had grown in size. Each flyer-laser now struck at exactly the same hull spot on the corvette. We needed a breach, and we needed it now.

Luckily for us, corvettes didn’t have heavy hulls or much armored plating. They were meant as patrol vehicles, needing speed more than anything else.

An explosion behind me threw intense white light outward. I glanced back. The
Maynard Keynes
expanded as light and debris blew outward. Had a Saurian laser hit the main fusion engine? This could be bad.

It would be terrible news for the people orbiting Earth. Six hundred thousand humans had called the
Maynard Keynes
home for the past few years. Now, they would have to stay on the remaining freighters in Earth orbit, increasing crowding. This freighter was never going anywhere again.

With a shake of my head, I ignored that aspect. I found myself snarling, with my teeth clenched. The corvette loomed before us. I could see Saurians peering out of the main viewing port.

Our many small lasers struck the hull at the same spot, turning it cheery-red.

“Deploy!” I shouted.

Bess’ head twitched. It let me know I’d spoken too loudly.

I pushed off the flyer. So did Bess and the other assault trooper. All around me, others did likewise on their sleds. I didn’t know what happened elsewhere. Here, though, the plan worked.

Flyer after flyer rammed against the corvette’s heated hull. Most of the combat sleds crumpled into junk. The last few blasted a hole into the corvette.

I gripped the controls of my thruster-pack. Jamming my thumb on a button, I zoomed for the opening.

All I needed was a few more seconds to reach the breach. I still couldn’t believe the Saurian commander hadn’t flown elsewhere.

I guess surprise had the same effect on aliens that it had on people. Given time, they could decide on the right course of action. Having to think fast in the middle of a battle was something else entirely.

Roaring at the top of my lungs, I flashed through the opening. Then, I braced myself. Without my steroid-68 enhanced muscles, I never would have tried this. Without the bio-suit to absorb much of the impact, I wouldn’t have dreamed of smashing my way aboard another vessel. Too many troopers would break bones. Of that, I had no doubt. The bio-suits could harden there, though, and help them to walk during the fight. It would also pump drugs into the trooper to make him savage enough not to worry about the pain.

I struck a bulkhead, and for several seconds at least, I went unconscious. My eyes flew open. I lay in a heap with others sprawled around me. A few raced out a hatch to attack the Saurian crew. I shouted and gnashed my teeth. My head throbbed as I sat up, and I didn’t know if I had any broken bones.

Climbing to my feet, I found that my eyes didn’t work quite right. Well, maybe they would get better as I went along. I staggered through the hatch, groaning, tasting blood in my mouth.

I had a Bahnkouv in my hands. Three minutes later, I killed my first Saurian, beaming the suited creature in the chest, burning a hole there. That seemed to wipe away my pains, and I shouted with glee.

What can I say? This was a fight to the death. I stormed corvette B with the others. Like a blood-maddened weasel, I slaughtered lizards as if they were chickens in a hen house. They didn’t have a chance against us in this kind of savagery. Thus, twenty minutes after our breach through the hull, we gained control of the patrol vessel.

***

As I said earlier, this was a ruthless situation. Mercy didn’t have any part in the process. Would a lioness show a fawn mercy on the Serengeti Plains of Africa? I would like to say I did this the nice way. I’d be a black-hearted liar, though.

Dmitri and I conquered our corvettes. We both did it fast, leaving the interior bulkheads splattered with Saurian blood. I’ll give the lizards this. They never tried to surrender. It didn’t matter, though. We were at the top of our game and they were amateurs in face-to-face encounters.

The last corvette rushed us as it spewed missiles and pumped its lasers. It would have been better off making a run for it. The last patrol vessel disabled Dmitri’s corvette, shredding the outer hull with lasers. That killed five assault troopers, half the number lost in the engagement. We had already deployed our corvette’s guns, obliterating the approaching missiles. If the enemy warheads had been nuclear, it would have been a different story. Corvettes didn’t carry that kind of firepower, though.

As the enemy zoomed closer, the Saurian captain switched targets, blasting my captured boat. He must have had a marksman over there. The lasers took out our guns. We had no more counterbattery fire. His missiles would have free rein against us, and that would likely kill too many assault troopers here.

What the last Saurian captain must not have counted on was the seemingly immobilized
Aristotle
. Shortly after the first assault, troopers exited the freighter, N7 and Ella, along with a handful of others, had relocated to the Lokhar cruiser. They started the cold engines, working fast to get it mobile. Now, the cruiser’s main laser cannons fired red-hot beams. They were battle-grade weapons, not dinky patrol rays. Under the devastating assault, the last corvette shuddered, belching colored lights. Then it exploded, raining hull, bulkheads, engine parts, water and bloody flesh in a growing radius.

By that time, the belated Saurians in the starcity’s tactical center began to act. They launched three missiles. One of them struck my corvette, disintegrating half the vessel. Another smashed against Dmitri’s hulk without igniting. The last missile died to the cruiser’s counterbattery fire. After that, Rollo put a stop to the tactical center’s efforts. His thruster-pack assault troopers gained control of the launch sites, disabling the tubes.

From the cruiser, N7 radioed the giant cylinder. The Saurians refused to answer. I guess they wanted us to knock before they talked. That’s fine, because we could oblige them.

With its tractor beam, the
Aristotle
grabbed the least wrecked corvette. The cruiser accelerated, dragging the corvette with it. At the last moment, N7 roared past the great cylinder, turning off the tractor beam. The hulk of the corvette smashed against the starcity’s hull, breaking through. Air spewed from the gaping hole, a hurricane force that must have meant plenty of Saurian dead inside.

The next time N7 radioed, a bedecked and glum-looking Saurian answered.

“You must surrender to me,” N7 said.

Rollo had already broken into the main starcity. Dmitri and I—together with our teams—jetted to join the action. We’d lost another thirty troopers when the missiles hit, but most of us had already evacuated the corvettes.

“I can ram the starcity again,” N7 informed the Saurian.

“This is an outrage,” the lizard said. “You are a berserk android. We will decommission you and destroy your entire series.”

“Very well,” N7 said. “With your words, you have sealed your fate.”

“No, wait,’ the Saurian said. “I…must consider the rest of the Family. On further thought, we will surrender on terms.”

I shut off my HUD display. Terms would be fine. The thing was to get in and get out with as little loss of human life as possible.

***

We hit the jackpot with the Demar Starcity. The difference between gross defeat and splendid victory could be a very close-run thing. This time, we had come out on the right side. Instead of hundreds of dead troopers and capture for the rest of us, we had the pick of a major production center. Just as important, we grabbed several small haulers in port.

The haulers were newer and sleeker than the old freighter we’d lost. For the next fifteen hours, our troopers loaded the haulers with missile defense systems: improved Iron Domes as the Israelis used to use before the coming of the aliens. We found planetary laser cannons, air-cycles, newer laser coils, advanced targeting computers, floating gas giant scoopers and the latest combat rifles and packs.