Wings of Steele - Flight of Freedom (Book2) (9 page)

“
Truthfully, I don't think they believed in the project,” replied Kelarez, “and they didn't think the unit had enough reach to go far enough to be at risk...”

“
Brilliant...” Steele ran his fingers through his hair, “OK, so what are the limitations that you know of?”

“
The jump unit requires a tremendous amount of power, which might be indicative of them not firing upon your fighters; they needed all the power for the jump. Also, shields must be down, just like when we pass through a regular gate. Finally, the ship must be moving at a speed sufficient for passing through the jump bubble that the GOD drive creates.”

“
Any vulnerabilities?” Asked Paul Smiley.

“
The ship can maintain the jump transit corridor for as long as it can maintain the power level sufficiently to keep it from collapsing, which would result in being dumped out into uncharted null-space short of its destination.”

“
So it's possible they're low on power when they reach their destination,” interjected Jack, “leaving them vulnerable.”

“
Quite possible. And as you know, it takes some time for the generators to recharge all the ship's cells... she's a big, fat, waddling target then.”

Jack grinned, “Our favorite type of target...” the pilots laughed. “So these two,” he motioned to the frozen video frame on the screen, “appeared to be coming from the Klinghoffer gate, but you didn't see them in the transit corridor. Why?”

“Because they created their own separate corridor, the gate is basically an anchor point for their exit. If they came from any system other than Klinghoffer it would be a different path...”

“
Bridge to Captain Steele...”

Jack keyed his earpiece mic, “Steele, go ahead.”

“Captain, we have the VP of VirTech Mining on an incoming communique, he wants to know what happened to the Oceania... Do you want to speak with him?”

“
No...” Steele rubbed his forehead and sighed, “Tell him it was a serious danger to gate traffic and to the gate itself. Pirate destroyers had entered the sector and we were required to destroy it to prevent damage to the gate or allowing it to fall into the wrong hands.”

“
Understood.”

Jack looked at the Admiral, “Think he'll buy that?”

Kelarez smiled crookedly, “This isn't the first time we've had problems with VirTech, they're under UFW investigation for their irresponsible mining practices. So I don't think he's going to want to push too much anyways. I wouldn't worry about it.”

“
Irresponsible mining...?”

“
They have a very bad habit of wandering into regions that they don't belong in and they have a tendency to not clean up after themselves... creates a lot of friction with other cultures. In fact, it would be helpful if we knew where the Oceania had been before she ended up like she did.” The Admiral stood up, “I don't suppose we'll ever know. VirTech sure isn't going to volunteer that information. Well, we'd better get back to our duties, I can see I have a rather crucial report to get off to UFW Directorate,” he paused at the doorway leading out to the flight deck, “I'll leave it to you gents to work on some tactics that might help us deal with these jump drive ships...”

Walking out into the flight bay, the group had to pause in the safe zone at the base of the tower as a Lancia passed slowly by the men, taxiing its way to the port launch tube, the pilot snapping a quick salute to the command officers. Reflections of the bay's overhead lights danced across its canopy glass, a low hum coming from its anti-grav landing feet. Two returning Cyclones passed over the fantail of the ship, through the open stern doors and stasis field, creating an electronic hissing sound. “Busy place...”

“Yes sir,” replied Jack, “gotta watch yourself out here or you're bound to get run over...” A flight lineman gave them a signal to cross the lanes. “Looks like you're all set Admiral, your shuttles are ready to go.” The group exchanged handshakes instead of salutes and the two cruiser command officers trotted across the deck toward their shuttles.

Paul Smiley tapped Jack on the elbow, “did you see what we found attached to our hull?”

Steele looked at him quizzically, “Nooo... what are we talking about?”

Smiley grinned, “Follow me,” he strode off toward the starboard side of the bay with Jack, Brian Carter and Mike Warren following closely behind. “We noticed it when we returned after those two destroyers gave us the slip, it was holding onto the starboard side of the hull just above our third and fourth defensive turret...” They trotted across the lane behind a taxiing Lancia heading to the starboard launch tube.

The first revetment was full of tools and rigs used for maintaining the fighters and other craft on the ship, but there was something additional sitting in the middle of it, about the size of a luxury car covered in a gray tarp, a heavy power cable snaking out from underneath. “Mike, grab the other corner...” they pulled the tarp off to reveal what looked like a cross between a giant mechanical dog and an ant.

“
Blackmount forgot one of their repair bots...” said Jack stepping forward for a closer look. The open framework of the skeletal design allowed easy access to all its components for maintenance and repair. It wasn't pretty, but then again, it didn't need to be.

Mike nodded, “Yep, it's called a Rhino. Chief thinks the power cells ran down and they couldn't communicate with it or call it back. He figures they just lost track of it.”

“The Chief said he can reprogram it after it's recharged,” added Brian, “and we'll be able to use it for repair work inside or outside.”

Jack walked around the unit, “Kinda creepy looking...” He examined the head, three optical cameras clustered in the center of the forehead, “And it has a heliarc laser...
how nice
.”

“
Well yeah, for welding,” replied Paul.

Jack shook his head, “Or cutting... you don't want to know what kind of damage this thing can do... it's damn scary...” his mind was playing back the carnage on the Oceania when the alarm klaxons sounded throughout the Freedom, making him start.

“Red Alert, all hands to battle stations! All hands to battle stations!”
Standard lighting prevailed for flight deck visibility, but red lights throughout the flight deck strobed their crimson alert.

At a full sprint, the four pilots were headed across the traffic lanes to the base of the tower and their flight gear, Jack activating his comm mic, “Steele to bridge, what's going on?”

“Pirate cruiser, Captain. He appeared just beyond visual range, must have a jump system because we're hours from any gate...”

“
How many birds do we have out?”

“
Two out, two launching now...”

Wrestling with his suit Jack continued, “You'll have several more in a minute, is he in range?”

“Just barely Jack...”

“
Open fire Walt, target his engines... Ask the Archer and Bowman to move up and flank him on either side...” Running out of the tower and pounding across the deck, a line chief directed the pilots to fighters that were fueled and ready. Pulling on his gloves, Jack turned and headed for a loaded Zulu gunship coming up on the lift from the deck below, “I've got the Zulu... get me a crew!”

Brian turned to follow Jack, “Right behind you skipper, we just need one more...”

■ ■ ■

Reverberating through the hull, the
zwump, zwump
of the Freedom's main guns could be heard coming from both sides of the ship. With an enlarged view on the bridge's main screen Commander Walt Edgars and the bridge crew could see the hits on the unshielded cruiser's hull. The floor vibrated as two fighters launched, points of light appearing at the bottom of the screen, arcing away in formation.

Raulya called out updates, “We have six fighters in route, Zulu is away... we're registering hits on the stern of the cruiser...”

Walt confirmed the updates on his command screens “Looks like the Archer and Bowman are moving up...”

“
Yes sir, they're firing now...” she turned in her seat, “the enemy cruiser is launching fighters...”

Walt called up his targeting screen “Dammit, target their launch tubes...”

“Aye aye,” her fingers danced across her control panel giving the orders to the main turret operators, “Commander, their shields are coming up - but it doesn't look like they have full power yet.”

“
Understood.” Next to his targeting screen Walt pulled up the Freedom's armaments screen, displaying all turrets, their capacity, ranges and defensive shield status. “Almost forgot we had these little buggers, let's see what one of these does...” he chose an MK*73 and activated its launch tube, locking it onto the pirate's port stern quarter, “Torpedo away,” he said, tapping the launch button on the flat keyboard.

■ ■ ■

Lieutenant Commander Derrik Brighton swung his Cyclone in an arc to the left to intercept the launching fighters, his wing man sticking closely off his starboard wingtip. “White One and Two, breaking to intercept...”

Commander Paul Smiley and Lieutenant Mike Warren had caught up with Lieutenant JG, Duncan Taylor and his wing man. Smiley keyed his mic “Copy, White Leader. Good hunting... Dunc, you and your wing form up on us...”

Lieutenant JG Duncan Taylor acknowledged and swung into formation with his wing man in tow, activating his weapons systems, the pirate cruiser growing in his HUD,
heads up display
.

Jack pushed the Zulu's throttle to the far stop and left it there, adjusting the targeting systems and activating all its weapons systems. “They've launched fighters, you guys all set back there?”

“Roger.”

“
All set skipper...”

Jack adjusted the position of the moveable HUD and the secondary HUD, “hey kid, what's your name..?”

“Santine, Ensign Santine, sir” replied the tail gunner.

“
OK this is easy Santine; you have one job, whatever it is, just keep it off our ass.” The pirate cruiser was visible on the view screen and taking a severe beating. Steele keyed his mic, “All flights, heads up guys, there's an MK*73 coming through...” it passed the Zulu's left side about five miles away, a fireball driving it across the dark void. Steele glanced at it briefly as he unlocked one of the two torpedoes the Zulu carried on its belly, a MK*52, a smaller version of the MK*73 fired by the Freedom. Lining up his shot as the silhouette of the cruiser grew in front of him, Jack could see Paul Smiley's flight of four splitting after their first attack, passing above and below the target, arcing away.

Paul Smiley keyed his mic, “Port shields are down Zulu, she's all yours, take her out...”

An enormous eye-searing blast erupted at the stern of the pirate cruiser as the MK*73 connected with her damaged and unshielded armor, tearing through her hull and detonating inside, blowing her port engine into particles and separating the entire stern of the ship from the rest of her hull, a sphere of debris swelling outward.

■ ■ ■

Raulya spun in her seat, “Commander, two pirate destroyers approaching from behind, moving fast. They'll be in range in about sixty seconds!”

“
Bloody bastard... he called for help,” Walt Edgars took one last look at the crippled pirate cruiser, “Helm bring us about, Ms. Raulya, recall our birds and update the Archer and Bowman...” He clicked his mic, “Bridge to tower, launch four!” Pulling up the Freedom's armaments screen again, he checked the progress on the reloading of the torpedo tube as the scenery on the bridge's view screen swung away from the cruiser.

“
Incoming fire,” called Ragnaar. Intense bright green slashes passed by the Freedom on either side of her hull, a volley from the second destroyer landing a hit on the Freedom's starboard stern quarter, splashing weakly. “No effect, shields holding.”

■ ■ ■

Flipping the safety cover back over the launch button for the Zulu's torpedo, Steele yanked the throttle back and laid the flight stick over on its side, kicking the pedals to jet the nose around, the cruiser swinging wildly out of view. He reached over and relocked the torpedo as he pushed the throttle back to the far stop, thumbing and holding the boost button, the engines roaring. “Zulu One, on our way Freedom...”

Rotating the upper turret to face the rear, Brian could see the twin thousand foot long streamers of fire behind them, the crippled and motionless cruiser shrinking, surrounded by a slowly growing sphere of debris, atmosphere bleeding out into the darkness of space. “Skipper, you might want to ease up on the boost button, you're gonna burn out her forcing cones, she's not a fighter...”

■ ■ ■

Bathed in red light, the bridge of the pirate cruiser was clouded with smoke, CO² levels climbing, the communications officer was still at her station, “Commander, the DD36 and the DD104 aren't going to be able to reach us - we're on our own...” she turned in her seat, “they're going to try and buy us some time...”