The Last Praetorian (51 page)

Looking around at the pale, frightened faces of the young
officers surrounding him, Harkov growled.  “For god sake, get a grip on
yourselves men!  Marcus is dead!  The Emperor is not flying that ship, it’s
Radec
!”

“He’s on a direct intercept course sir!  Continuing to
accelerate, at this rate, time to intercept is five minutes and decreasing.”

Harkov narrowed his eyes, in anticipation.  Perhaps he would
have his opportunity to deal with Radec, once and for all, personally…  “Hail
the ship!” he ordered.

*****

As the
Eternal Light
rapidly accelerated towards the
remnants of the Imperial Fleet, Jon double-checked that the shuttle was still
broadcasting the detonation code for the mines.  The one major risk for the
plan was unexploded mines released from the destroyed freighters...

After the freighters exploded any control that they had over
the mines was immediately lost.  Therefore there was a real risk that
unexploded mines could impact the
Eternal Light
or any of the other
Vanguard or Confederation ships in the area.  Hence David had proposed the idea
of a self-destruct code, upon receiving the code any mines in the vicinity
would detonate.  The idea was quickly approved and the mines reprogrammed.  Now
all Vanguard ships were broadcasting the signal at low power, the theory being
that this created an invisible shield around the ships, protecting them… in
theory.

However, there had been no time to program the code into
Miranda’s
Wraith
or
the Confederation ships.  Hence Jon’s
explicit orders for the Confederation ships, and why Miranda’s ship was tucked
in tightly behind the
Eternal Light
.

Unfortunately the plan had also assumed that Harkov would
commit the entire Imperial Fleet to the attack.  Checking the sensor’s display,
Jon unhappily identified two heavy cruisers and a light destroyer still in
formation around the
Imperial Star
.  Fortunately all were large
warships, possessing heavy guns, designed for engaging and destroying similar
sized warships.  None of the ships were specifically suited to the engagement
of fast moving fighters or bombers.  That was the purpose of the fleet frigates
and fighters, both of which now had been decimated.  One bomber, with the heavy
torpedoes that it carried had a chance, a small chance none the less, to make
it through to the massive capital ship and fire its deadly payload.

Of course Vanguard did not have any bombers, and as for
torpedoes, well Vanguard possessed only a single one, currently nestled safely,
deep in the womb of the
Eternal Light
.  Then again Jon assumed they
would only need one, after all, there was not going to be a second chance. As
the
Eternal Light
breached the fifty-kilometre barrier from the
Imperial
Star,
Jon pushed the engines harder; they had to go faster, faster…

Jon was taken aback for a moment by the chime of an incoming
communication from the
Imperial Star
, so intent was he on the shuttle’s
rapid approach towards the fleet.  Deciding what the hell, after all one or
both of them was almost certain to die within the next few minutes.

“So I see that once again, it finally comes down to this,
you and I, Commander,” Harkov’s gloating voice filled the cockpit of the
shuttle.

“Doesn’t seem like that from where I am sitting,” Jon
retorted.  “You seem to be the one on a Star Carrier, surrounded by cruisers
and destroyers.  However, if you want to face me personally, feel free,
get
in a shuttle
!”

“I am quite comfortable where I am Commander, I just wanted
to wish you a goodbye.  I would like to be able to say that is has been nice
knowing you, but frankly it hasn’t.  I told you that you were a nonentity when
you were last on this ship.  An irritating pest, that just constantly refuses
to die, and what have you achieved?  Your precious Emperor dead.  Your fellow
Praetorians gone.  Your glorious Empire now just a footnote in history.  So
please enlighten me, while you still have a few breaths remaining.  Just what
have you achieved?”

“I plan on fulfilling an oath that I made after the
Praetorians gave their lives to allow Sofia and me to escape; to preserve the
Empire. What you could never understand was that the Empire was not a thing, an
object for you to smash and destroy, in a childish temper tantrum.  It was an
ideal, and if just one person lives, holding that ideal true, then the Empire
lives on through them.”

“Then your Empire dies with you!”

“No, the Empire will continue long after I am dead, it’s
ideals of peace and justice will continue, but I’m going to do what I swore an
oath in front of all that I would do.  I am going to defend the Empire from
those that would seek to destroy it…Even if that costs me my life.  I’ll look
forward to seeing you in hell, Harkov!”  With that Jon closed the communication
channel.

*****

Growling in frustration - once again Radec had the final
word! He turned to his Captain and grinding his teeth ordered.  “Captain, you
know what happened to your predecessor for failing to destroy that ship.  I
expect you to succeed where he failed. 
Kill Him. Now!
”

“All missiles have long since been reprogrammed Admiral,
that same trick will not work twice.”

“Then fire!”  Harkov hissed.

“All ships, commence firing!” the Captain ordered

*****

As the
Eternal Light
breached the thirty-kilometre
barrier the first missile lock warnings sounded.  Moments later the missile
lock’s shrill warning, changed to a shriek, as the first missiles left their
launch railings from the Imperial Fleet.

“Would it have been too much to ask for them not to have
fixed that problem?”  Jon asked rhetorically, activating the shuttles own
active countermeasures.

Within a few moments, additional missiles had been launched
from the cruisers and destroyers.  In total the ships sensors reported almost
thirty incoming missiles!  While the cruisers and destroyers guns were
ineffective against the small, fast moving target of the shuttle, the missiles
were just as deadly.  Unfortunately Jon had no plan, no surprise, no white
rabbit to pull out of his hat this time.  The minute that Harkov had failed to
commit the entire fleet Jon had known that the plan was doomed to failure, but
what other option was there? 

Suddenly, the light from outside the cockpit was blocked as
a dark shadow loomed over the
Eternal Light
.  So intent was Jon in
reaching weapons range of the
Imperial Star
that he had completely
forgotten about Miranda trailing behind in her
Wraith.

“What the
hell
are you doing?”  Jon demanded,
unconsciously emulating Harkov’s very words only minutes before.

“Helping you!” came the terse reply.

“You are only going to get us
both
killed!”

“Who was it said, ‘better to die with honour than live the
rest of your life as a coward’?”

Jon narrowed his eyes angrily.  “Somebody has been telling
stories that they should not be!  Anyway I was far younger back then, I had no
common sense whatever!”

Miranda laughed heartily over the communication channel. 
“In that case you have not changed one little bit!”

Jon was distracted momentarily by her laughter, trying to
remember who it reminded him of…  Suddenly he remembered Elsie’s last words,
before she had turned her ship back around to face the incoming Imperial
fighters.  Jon thought that Elsie probably would have liked Miranda, in some
ways they were very similar.  It was only then that it occurred to Jon how
similar the situation was, once again he was speeding towards the Imperial
fleet, towards the
Imperial Star
and Harkov.  Jon wondered if people who
said that life came full circle were possibly correct.  But looking at the
empty copilot seat next to him reminded him that this time things were very
different.  This time there was no Princess seated next to him, no duty to get
her to safety.  No, this time escape was the very last thing on his mind…

Jon’s thoughts were interrupted by the bright light of a
missile igniting, underneath the wing of Miranda’s
Wraith
and rapidly
accelerating ahead of the two ships, another missile followed another missile,
until the entire missile complement of her ship was expended.  With the
missiles gone, Miranda began to manoeuvre her fighter away from the shuttle, to
give her own guns clear fields of fire against the incoming missiles.

Checking his sensors for the incoming missiles Jon was
surprised to note that they had now formed two distinct groups, puzzled by this
strange behaviour, until he realised that one group was heading slightly
off-course.  It was only then that he realised that the missiles had split
their targets, when launched Jon and Miranda had been so close that the
missiles had mistaken them for one target, now that they were closer and the
two ships had manoeuvred apart, the missiles had locked on, one or the other
ships.  Already Miranda had diverted 50% of the incoming missiles!  Unfortunately
that did not bode well for her, as by doing so she had placed her ship and
herself in extreme peril!

A string of bright explosions ahead, demonstrated that at
least some of the missiles launched by Miranda had reached their target. 
Checking the sensors, Jon was faintly surprised to note that a further ten
missiles had been destroyed, this of course still left twenty incoming
missiles, split fairly evenly between the two ships.  Still too many, too many
by far…

Having been accelerating constantly since departing the
station, the
‘Light
was traveling at almost three kilometres per second,
the incoming missiles travelling almost twice that speed.  Hence the combined
intercept time was measured in seconds, and before Jon realised it, the ships
computer had already locked the shuttles rail-guns on the closest missile and
the ship shuddered as the shells were ejected at a rate of almost a hundred
rounds per minute.  With the first incoming missile quickly vaporised, the guns
were turned onto the second missile, then the third.  Meanwhile Jon kept a
anxious eye on the ship’s ammunition level, that was being depleted at an
alarming rate, unsure what would happen first - that the guns would run out of
ammunition, or all the incoming missiles would be destroyed.  The answer soon
became apparent when the ships guns fell silent, their magazines spent…

A quick glance at the sensors, was enough to confirm the
truth, the guns did not get them all, for three missiles remained, on-course
for the ‘
Light
.  With an impact time of less than a few seconds, there
was no time for regret, no time to reflect on a wasted youth, no time even to
curse Harkov one final time.  Instead the
‘Light
was totally consumed by
the bright light of the exploding missiles…

…As the ‘
Light
glided through the exploding missiles,
intact, unharmed.  To say that Jon was stunned would be an understatement.  What
had happened, had they all malfunctioned?  Impossible…

An exuberant laugh, and the sight of Miranda’s
Wraith
once again forming up on his wing, gun-barrel’s still spinning, solved the
puzzle.  “I told you this ship excelled in the offensive department,” Miranda
quipped.  “You should think about upgrading.”

“The
‘Light
and I have been together a very long
time, we’re both too old to upgrade.  Miranda?”

“Yes?”

“Thanks for staying.”

The channel was silent for a moment, as the two ships sped
onwards together, barely a metre apart.  Finally Miranda replied, “You’re
welcome.”  The silence over the channel lengthened until Miranda shattered it
with the question that she had been dreading.  “So you’re really going to do
this?  You’re really going to take on Harkov, by yourself?”

“Yes,” Jon replied softly.  “But not for the reasons that
you think.  I will be the first to confess that nothing would give me greater
pleasure than sending that bastard on a one-way ticket back to hell.  But that
is not the main reason.  We don’t have the forces to take on the
‘Star
directly.  It could destroy every ship we possess, Vanguard and Confederation
before we even got within weapons range.  It would tear
Terra Nova
apart, bulkhead-by-bulkhead and there is nothing we could do about it.  If I
don’t stop Harkov now, here, then he is going to destroy everything, everyone
that we care about, if for no other reason than to spite me.  I cannot let that
happen, I will not, not while I still draw breath.”

Miranda nodded her head sadly, having known that it would
finally come down to this.  Brushing away the tears from her eyes, she gasped. 
“Jon I…I…I’ll miss you…” At the same time cursing her own weakness, that she
could not even confess her true feelings, not even now, when presented with her
last chance.

“I’m proud to have known you Miranda Sun.  You would have
made a fine Praetorian - proud, courageous… fearless.  Now I’m going to give
you one last order, and I want you to follow it. Not because I am your boss, or
your superior, but as your… friend. 
Turn back now, please.
”

Miranda took a deep breath and gave the ‘
Light
one
final look; her original opinion had been correct, she was a fine ship.  With
that she turned her own ship around, leaving the
‘Light
to make its
final journey… alone.

Pleased that Miranda had changed course, away from the guns
of the approaching
Imperial Star
, Jon looked down to his own solitary
missile.  While his ship might not have the guns, or missiles or fighters of
the huge capital ship ahead, deep within the belly of the shuttle was a weapon
that was far more deadly.

“You’ve had your shot Harkov!” Jon muttered aloud in the
cockpit, referring to the barrage of missiles that they had just flown
through.  “Now it’s my turn.”  With that he tried arming the sole missile
carried by the ship; however the weapon stubbornly refused to activate. 
Instead the following simple warning was displayed on the console.