Counterstrike (Black Fleet Trilogy, Book 3) (7 page)

“What’s the response time if we need offensive systems?”

“Eight seconds.”

“I could get used to this,” Jackson muttered. “Look! Both the trailing ships in that formation are braking and turning in.”

“One is still pursuing the cruiser, though,” Blake said.

“But it’s not closing anymore,” Jackson said. “It’s just going to maintain position to keep us honest, but we’re now the focus—”

The chirping from a panel on Blake’s side interrupted him.

“Colonel, Captain,” a likeness of Setsi appeared on most of the monitors. “What is it you’re still doing in this system? Our data shows your ship has had power completely restored.”

“We’re pulling the Phage off your ship so you can extend and escape,” Jackson answered. “That last one will likely hang back near you, but we’ll try to at least keep these other three occupied.”

“I see,” Setsi said. “Is there any particular action you’d like us to take?”

“Given your lack of offensive or defensive systems, I’d advise you to continue your retreat,” Jackson said. “Try not to give any overt indications that your main flight systems are coming back online until you’re ready to hop completely out of here.”

“A sound strategy,” Setsi said, its face as impassive as ever. “I shall leave you to your task.”

“Not very chatty,” Jackson observed as the monitors switched back to their previous display modes.

“Never is,” Blake said. “So what’s your next move? We can’t just sit here drifting forever running the sensors at full power.”

“I want to lure in the closest one to us a bit more,” Jackson said. “He’s already taken the bait and is now accelerating towards us enough to know that he’s committed. Now we just have to hope your primary weapons are still as effective as the last time I saw them.”

“You think these particular Phage are adapted to our ships?” Blake asked.

“It’s a fair assumption,” Jackson said. “They’re obviously part of the larger, incredibly well-coordinated attack on the Vruahn, so I would think they’d have been adapted to the known threats. Stand by … the other two have stopped braking and are coming onto a direct intercept course.”

They continued to watch as the three ships approaching formed up into a loose phalanx, their reactionless drives making it possible for them to come at them in a relatively shallow arc, paying little respect to neither the gas giant they were passing nor the primary star. Jackson noted a distinct difference in how these Phage were operating even with the little amount of observation he’d been afforded. Rather than behaving like a pack or a swarm they were flying in distinct formations, coordinating against targets … they were fighting like humans. While he wasn’t sure exactly what it meant, he knew it couldn’t possibly be a coincidence.

The two trailing Phage ships in the formation continued to widen out from the lead ship that was bearing down on the seemingly helpless Vruahn warship. Jackson watched for a moment longer, unable to tell if they were trying to goad him into a rash move or if their tactics were really so simplistic that they’d given no thought about trying to disguise their flanking maneuver.

“Okay,” Jackson said after a few more moments of silent observation. “Give me a crash course on your weaponry: types, ranges, and any limiting factors like charge times or guidance.”

“Main weapon is a pulse laser battery, primary and redundant projectors with a maximum output of four hundred kilojoules,” Blake said. “There’s also two racks of guided fusion warhead missiles, eight missiles per rack, per side. Defensive systems include full coverage point-defense batteries and an EM diffusion screen that can take the sting out of their plasma bursts, but won’t completely deflect them.”

“Impressive,” Jackson nodded. “Computer, give me a display of concentric rings with this ship as the epicenter. Label and adjust each ring to correspond with nominal and maximum effective range for all weapons.”

“You are unauthorized—”

“Override!” Blake shouted. “Captain Wolfe is to be accepted as command personnel with his authority to be superseded only by myself for the duration of the engagement.”

“Acknowledged,” the computer said after a long pause and began populating one of Jackson’s displays to comply with his request.

“Very good,” he said. “Now, superimpose the sensor data from local space onto this. Include all threats and scale accordingly to make sure I can still make out the details of the ranging rings.”

“Acknowledged.”

“Colonel, if you would, bring the primary flight systems online and stabilize our drift,” Jackson said. “Leave the weapons on standby for now.”

“Yes, sir,” Blake said, his hands dancing over the holographic displays. “What reaction are you hoping to get?”

“If they see that we’re regaining propulsion and attitude control they may decide on a reckless charge before the weapons come up as well,” Jackson said.

The response from the Phage wasn’t exactly what Jackson was hoping for, but it was something he could work with. Instead of abandoning their methodical approach and coming at them in a blind rush they became even more cautious. The flanking ships turned in so they were paralleling the lead ship even as it began braking slightly, slowing enough so that it could closely observe the Vruahn ship while not risking flying into weapons range at speed.

Again, Jackson was intrigued, and horrified, at how these Phage seemed able to reason out basic tactics beyond the usual swarm and destroy he’d observed from all but a single Alpha since the war began. He made a mental note to ask Blake for all the sensor logs of the encounter for Fleet Research and Science Division. Maybe the Phage employed a more careful strategy with a technologically advanced foe like the Vruahn, while a less capable species like humans were just bludgeoned with the less-capable units. Bruised ego aside, it was certainly something to consider.

“Now what, Captain?” Blake asked, clearly becoming agitated that Jackson was letting three massive Phage ships continue to close with complete impunity.

“Now, Colonel, we spring our trap,” Jackson grinned at his companion. “Put our nose on the lead Phage. Activate all offensive and defensive systems and accelerate to flank speed at your discretion.”

“Coming about,” Blake dialed in the new course. “Guns coming up … here we go!” There was no sensation of acceleration inside the advanced warship, but Jackson was so accustomed to interpreting his universe through the passionless numbers on a navigation display that he felt an electric thrill as he watched the ship scream towards their target at over six hundred g’s.

“Computer, I want a firing solution for an automatic full salvo from our main guns the moment the target crosses our maximum range threshold,” Jackson said.

“At that range there is no guarantee the target will be disabled or destroyed,” the computer said.

“I asked for a firing solution, not a lecture,” Jackson said. “Make it happen.”

“Acknowledged,” the computer responded. “Firing solution calculated and verified. Please confirm order to auto-fire main battery.” Jackson looked over to Blake and made an ‘after you’ gesture with his hand.

“Confirmed,” Blake said. “You are clear to automatically fire the main battery as per Captain Wolfe’s instructions.”

“Acknowledged.”

Jackson watched the acceleration taper off as the ship quickly approached its maximum real-space velocity and was already travelling an order of magnitude faster than any thrust powered Terran vessel could achieve. He tamped down the resentment and jealousy of the Vruahn’s technical prowess and concentrated on the matter at hand. Their closure rate was now over .65c and was actually decreasing despite their acceleration, since the Phage were now braking hard in the face of Jackson’s charge. He ruefully acknowledged that due to the difficulties of precisely timing the shot of a laser, a speed of light weapon, at relativistic speeds the two humans had no choice but to turn the operation over to the computer.

“Full salvo standing by … firing,” the computer said.

“Fire at will,” Jackson ordered. “Maintain continuous fire on the target.”

“Acknowledged.”

They didn’t have long to wait and Jackson thrilled at a battle unfolding in the span of hours instead of days. He had to temper himself as the compressed time scale certainly upped the adrenaline factor, but it also took away the extended periods of time he was accustomed to when devising strategy and reacting to his opponent.

The powerful laser battery continued to fire even as the first salvo ripped into the prow of the target. Unable to evade the blasts or absorb that much energy, the Phage ship mushroomed out and gave the next few blasts unimpeded access to its internals. The organic hull material stretched and cracked as the laser energy superheated the internal workings of the ship, sublimating them to a fast-expanding gas and exerting inexorable pressure against the hull, stretching it to its limit.

“Cease fire!” Jackson barked as the Phage ship began to spin out of control, thousands of cracks in the hull acting as tiny gas jets and pushing the now-lifeless hulk into an erratic tumble. “Colonel, angle us away from the debris and keep us on a trajectory towards the outer system.”

“The other two ships are turning in and pursuing,” Blake pointed out. Jackson checked again on the sensor data coming in on their other two targets.

“Ignore them for now,” Jackson said. “Look at their acceleration profile. They’re coming about to pursue, but I don’t think they actually are trying to catch us. Set course for a direct intercept of the Phage ship pursuing Setsi’s cruiser.”

“Course set and engaged,” Blake said. “We’re now at maximum velocity. Time to intercept … four hours and eight minutes.” Jackson saw that the target was nearly half a system away and could only shake his head again. He amended his earlier thoughts slightly as he realized that if the Vruahn would simply give them ships like this stripped of their weaponry that Starfleet could still mount an effective defense along the Frontier.

“We’re going to leave those two behind us, Captain?”

“For now,” Jackson said. “I know leaving an enemy in your wake flies in the face of most warfighting doctrines, but we have one objective here: keep the Phage from taking out that last cruiser. We could amuse ourselves with those other two ships, but we’d risk losing Setsi and thus failing in our mission despite destroying three-quarters of their force.”

“So what’s the strategy for this next encounter?” Blake asked. “We’ll be coming at them head on again.”

“And we’re not going to have a good angle on the enemy ship without firing past the cruiser at a range I’m not entirely comfortable with,” Jackson frowned. “If we shallow out our angle we risk having too short of a firing window before we’d need to reverse course and try to catch them. I’m open to suggestions.”

“Computer, message the cruiser and request that they alter course to angle out further towards the outer system,” Blake said. Jackson nodded his silent approval of the officer reasserting control over his ship and the engagement.

“This could work,” Jackson said. “Hopefully they can get a little more speed and then we’ll be in position to slide past them with plenty of room for a shot.” Apparently the Phage realized what would happen as well once the cruiser began to alter course. At first it tried to follow the ship to keep continue using it as a shield, but it was trailing too far behind and Blake’s ship was coming underneath too fast.

“Computer, begin calculating a trajectory for optimal firing range—”

“Don’t bother,” Jackson interrupted. “Look.” The Phage ship had decided that a suicidal blaze of glory wasn’t a viable option and had altered course to head even further out of the system, obviously looking to put some distance between it and the incoming warship.

“The two ships we left behind are following suit,” Blake said, confusing Jackson with the expression. He understood what the colonel meant when he saw that both other Phage ships, instead of continuing their half-hearted pursuit, had split and were also flying hard for the system boundary in opposite directions. There was a subtle intelligence in even a move as simple as that. With only one combat capable ship in the system the fact the three had split up meant that they could only pursue one target. While not a stroke of tactical genius, it yet again flew in the face of the observed Phage tendency to bunch up while traversing through space. Then again … retreat wasn’t normally an option they used either, especially when they had a three to one numerical advantage.

“Let’s form up on that cruiser and make sure they’re okay.” Jackson left out that he wanted to make sure Setsi honored his side of their agreement before bugging out of the system.

“You and Colonel Blake have my gratitude, Captain,” Setsi said. Jackson was staring at the human-like face on a monitor that had coalesced before him in his quarters. The warship was in a trailing formation behind the cruiser at a range of two hundred thousand kilometers.

“I take it the Phage ship never fired on you?” he asked.

“A few low-intensity bursts that our anti-navigation hazard screens were able to diffuse. There was no loss of life in the attack and thankfully our power generators are not staffed, so there were no deaths or injuries in those attacks either,” Setsi said. “The reason I’ve asked to speak with you again, Captain, is that our leadership is quite shaken by the brazen assault carried out on our power generation facilities. It has caused immediate and profound economic damage as the three stations hit were vital to much of our heavy production.”

“That is quite an opening salvo,” Jackson nodded.

“You think this will not be an isolated attack?”

“With the Phage? I’d have to assume it’s not,” Jackson said. “However, the behavior of this group is quite different than the one we’ve been fighting. Even their choice of a simultaneous attack on three strategically important targets shows a more advanced command and control apparatus than we’re used to dealing with.”

“Yes,” Setsi said. “Well, there are some logical reasons for that. But the point of this communication is to inform you that our position on the Phage situation has shifted.”

“How so?”

“We will provide you a more comprehensive form of support in your fight.” Setsi didn’t elaborate.

“In exchange for what?” Jackson asked. “I can understand you’re shaken and probably quite angry after this attack, but that hardly seems a reason to come about and provide support us.”

“In exchange for you doing what you’re planning … for doing what we will not.” Setsi’s face morphed into an unreadable, alien expression for a moment. “We want you to … eliminate … the Phage.”

Jackson was stunned into silence for a moment. This was a profound shift in the very core principles the Vruahn professed to hold so dear. They tossed out their morality over an attack that only hurt their economy? Maybe they weren’t so different from humans after all.

“What’s in it for us?” Jackson narrowed his eyes. “Let’s not dance around this: we’re going to do this for our own reasons, for the protection of humanity, but any victory will come at great cost. We’re sure to lose tens of thousands of men and women before this is all over, not to mention the devastation to our fleet and infrastructure.”

“The difficulties of your task and the sacrifices your people will make are not unnoticed,” Setsi said. “In addition to our martial support we will also provide assistance in rebuilding and advancing your people in the wake of the Phage attacks.”

“Very well,” Jackson nodded. “One more thing … when this is done, and the Phage are eliminated, will you release Blake and his crew from service so they may return to Earth?”

“We will release them from service,” Setsi agreed. “There will no longer be any task for them, but there is something you should know before you welcome them back among your people.”

****

“Everything okay, Captain?”

“Yes, Colonel,” Jackson slid back into the copilot’s seat. “Why do you ask?”

“You were staring at me pretty hard there for a moment.” Blake turned back to his displays.

“My apologies,” Jackson said. “Are we about ready to depart?”

“The last of the technical data has been downloaded from the cruiser and we’ve been given coordinates to rendezvous with the freighter that will be coming out of Vruahn space so we can escort it the rest of the way to New Sierra,” Blake said. “So yeah, we’re as ready as we’re going to get.”

“Then let’s get to it,” Jackson leaned back. “We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us.”

“We do,” Blake nodded, “but it’s almost over. I’m not sure how you convinced Setsi to let us completely take out the Phage, but for the first time in longer than I can remember I feel like there’s some hope.”

“Hang on to that, Colonel,” Jackson said, his eyes closed. “I have a feeling hope will be in short supply before this is all over.”

“For someone who’s come out on top in half a dozen no-win situations you sure are a pessimist,” Blake groused as he brought the drive fully online and began to slide out of formation.

“I prefer the term ‘realist.’” Jackson didn’t open his eyes.

****

The flight back to Terran space was just as uneventful as the trip out had been, and before Jackson knew it they were sliding into formation beside a hulking Vruahn freighter. He was struck at how ugly the vessel was compared to the graceful lines of the warship he was sitting on and the cruisers he’d seen before the Phage destroyed one of them.

“They must have had this gear just lying around,” he remarked as he watched the ship through the optical sensors. “I can’t believe they could manufacture it that quickly and get it out here.”

“Believe it,” Blake said. “This ship was built in about forty-eight hours. The Vruahn fabrication process is entirely automated and utilizes nano technology and energy-to-matter conversion and it makes building even the most complex structures look like child’s play.”

“I wonder if we can have some of that tech tossed in on this deal,” Jackson mused.

Blake didn’t answer as he talked to the freighter with the help of his ship’s computer translating everything. Jackson tried to keep up with the conversation for a bit, but the cultural specific content and unfamiliar terminology left him lost and quickly bored with the whole thing. He went back to reading his tile that he’d managed to convince the computer to load with some of the overview files provided by Setsi.

Despite the Vruahn being far more technologically advanced than humans, there was no magic bullet or ultra-powerful standoff weapon that would allow Jackson to kill the Phage with the press of a button. Though they’d been given a huge advantage with the help Setsi was sending their way, the fight would be won the old-fashioned way: down in the trenches slugging it out until either their enemy faltered or they did. It wasn’t something he was looking forward to.

“We’re ready to make the final hop into the DeLonges System,” Blake said. “We’ll arrive first, make contact with Admiral Marcum, and then the freighter will hop in two hours behind us.”

“That works,” Jackson nodded. “Hopefully things are more or less in the same state of fucked up as they were when we left.”

“See … I knew there was an optimist in there somewhere,” Blake smiled and engaged the ship’s FTL drive.