Riss Series 3: The Riss Survival (32 page)

"Whoever named you dybbuk had the right of it. You look into our minds and see what can be, while we see what we lost. You see our future but know you cannot tell us. We must find it or it will be yours not ours," Elder Sa'Velte said, seeming to speak for the group.

"And you want our help?"

"Yes. We cannot just fly a squadron of cruisers into one of the quarantined systems and destroy the Aliens occupying it. They won't be racing around the system with weapons systems hot. They will be lying passive, and since they are manned by robots, they require very little power."

"So you need a … decoy?" Da'Maass said, eyes looking off somewhere and deep in thought.

 "Yes."

"A merchant? That would be suicide." Elder Ka'Baako said, eye blazing with anger.

"I agree, but in a cruiser with the right Captain, dangerous but possible." As I finished, Da'Maass's eyes went wide and a smile split his bushy full beard.

"The Asp!"

"Yes, fully operational—ECM, lasers, and missiles. And tailed by the Mnemosyne and Eirene," I said.

Da'Maass spun towards the elders. "Don't you see? The clan flying a cruiser and participating with the Riss and by extension the SAS. Another step towards the future the dybbuk sees."

"Why not a SAS crew? Elder Ka'Baako asked.

"Honestly, because the odds of the average SAS Captain surviving except by accident are very low. Add to that, a SAS crew operating a clan cruiser and the odds become close to zero. War is dangerous and people die, but I don't believe in wasting lives. Each is precious. I believe Captain Da'Maass is a superb tactician, who is capable of drawing the Aliens out into the open, and has a chance of surviving with Captain Pavao and my support." Da'Maass was clearly excited with the challenge, but he needed the elders' permission, since it involved others—a crew. "I'll leave so you can deliberate my proposal," I smiled at Da'Maass. "I promise there will be no repercussions if you feel the risk is too much. And there is considerable risk and more than likely people will die. The Aliens' ships are small but nasty. I can only promise that Pavao and I will do our best to protect the Asp."

* * *

Ni'Shay called the next day to tell me that the elders had decided to allow Da'Maass and a crew of volunteers to participate with the Riss. I called for a meeting, inviting Wattson, Zann, Pavao, Seng, McTosh, and Da'Maass. We met for three hours discussing what had to be done to bring the
Asp
to operational readiness, and the security necessary at each stage. After assessing the final schedule, Da'Maass estimated three weeks, which included six days of trials and exercises. Ironically, if the Asp hadn't been used to test the Mnemosyne, it would have taken three times longer.

Da'Maass was responsible for the manufacturing components on Freeland, collecting a crew, and seeing to the repairs to the Asp. Sami Sa'Velte took over Da'Maass's project responsibilities. Colonels McTosh and Seng shared responsibility for the security of the Asp while the repairs were being made.

* * *

 The shakedown cruise went well—after the fleet was notified the Asp was conducting exercises for the upcoming mission—and only a few corrections were necessary.

The exercises with Da'Maass proved what I expected. He was a brilliant tactician and kept the Eirene on her toes. Two days before we were set to leave, I called a meeting with Wattson, Stenberg, Zann, Pavao, and my human reports.

"By now you all know your responsibilities, but this is a last chance to get clarification and to air any last minute concerns." I looked to Wattson, Stenberg, and Zann but got no response. "The Mnemosyne and the Eirene will enter Fools Landing one hour before the Asp. Commanders Byer and Clarkson will dispatch five Ghosts each. They will guard the entrance to the Wave, on the assumption that the Aliens have a scout ship present and that it will leave for reinforcements during or after the engagement. That ship must not reach the Wave or the Aliens will know far too much about us and be ready next time.

"Colonels Seng and McTosh will provide ten Scorpions each to ensure the integrity of the Asp. Since we don't know what force the Aliens will have at Fools Landing, Captain Da'Maass will have to use his discretion in how to locate them. Pavao and I will try to keep in touch with the Asp once the action starts, but it will be difficult to establish two-way communications, as we will be in stealth mode much of the time. Any questions?"

"No, you've kept us in the loop at each stage of the project. It’s a reasonable plan and hopefully we can get the Aliens to cooperate." Wattson gave a snort. "Good hunting."

"I've had concerns right from the beginning about throwing two of our most advanced cruisers and experienced captains into an unknown encounter with the Aliens. But we need to test the Riss cruisers. I wish we knew what you would face, but war is unpredictable. Fair winds, smooth seas, and good hunting," Stenberg said.

"I know you must captain one of the Riss cruisers, but I worry who will take your place. Have you given it any thought?" Zann asked.

"No need," I answered for the benefit of the others. Of course, they assumed I meant I was coming back.

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

The Medusa

"Attention, all personnel. Battle Stations, silent running." SIDs vibrated and lights turned red throughout the ship. "We will be exiting the Wave in thirty minutes. We will remain in stealth mode until further notice." The minutes ticked by slowly but without stress.

A warm feeling of being in a loved one's arms.

The transition from the Wave into normal space was over in seconds and the monitors came back online.

"Commander Byer, release your Ghosts to take up their positions."

"Yes, ma'am."

The VTM blossomed to life and a small dot tagged R2 appeared.

An image of a Gorillai watching a wisen chewing on prairie grass.

I laughed, causing Jaelle to turn towards me.

Asp
exited the Wave. Tagged C1.> A small blip appeared on the VTM with the tag C1.

Three engines would be enough to remain stealth and to follow the
Asp
, which was proceeding at half speed, without dropping too far behind.

"This is the Captain. Ship status is now Standby." I couldn't see any reason for everyone being on duty. We were a long way from Fools Landing, and we were in stealth mode. The
Asp
would be the one to come under attack, and we would have to give Da'Maass time to flush out the Aliens. If not, it could get ugly.

A day dragged by as we slowly approached Fools Landing. The Asp was close to three light-seconds, less than three minutes at full speed, ahead of us and within twenty light-seconds from Fools Landing, when a large blip appeared on the VTM.

<
Leader
, unidentified ship tagged A1. Several times larger than
Golden Eagle
. Three light-seconds from the
Asp
.> The VTM lit with a larger blip tagged A1. I sat stunned. We had wondered if the cruisers we had encountered at Zigzag were their version of our Lights or their standard cruiser. Obviously, that was a mini-cruiser. If so, was this their Heavy, Heavy cruiser or a mini-Heavy?

"Unidentified cruiser. You are in a solar system under the control of the Council of the Gods. You are directed to proceed to Fools Landing where you will evacuate your ship. Failure to comply will result in your destruction."

I found it interesting the Aliens were again giving warning and allowing people time to clear the ship before firing.

Asp
reversing direction.>

"Nadya, Da'Maass is crazy. His missiles can't reach A1. The fool should have continued on to Fools Landing," Pavao voice through our tight-beam connection.

"Crazy, yes. But that will get the response we want. Everything in the area will be after him."

The VTM showed the three cruisers on an intercept vector for the Asp. That explained it size. It was a mother ship, probably equipped with a repair station and supplies.

"Nance, continue closer to A1. I'll support the Asp."

As Nance had said, the Asp's eight missiles ran out of fuel well short of A1 and never came close to hitting the massive ship.

I waited. Firing now would alert the three cruisers chasing the Asp and A1 to the existence of another warship in the area. It meant Da'Maass was going to take a beating, but it couldn't be helped. I couldn't be sure what other Aliens' ships were in the area.

Asp
. Impact sixty seconds.>

Hopefully, the Mnemosyne's missiles would be confused with the Asp, especially since we were still in stealth mode.

Our missiles were thirty-three percent faster than the
Asp
, but we were also a light-second further way from the AA cruisers.

Close to a minute later.

 Between the Asp and the Mnemosyne, we had scored seven hits. The Asp had launched all eight at AA3 and scored one. We had scored well because the Demons had no warning heat or radar signal and came from an unexpected direction. But it did indicate the Aliens' ships had an excellent laser defense system. The Dragonflies improved the Demons accuracy dramatically, so even if one of the four missed the target, the defense system still destroyed one and possibly two if all were on target.

Asp
.
Asp
scored one AA3.>

I wanted to hide the launch of missiles at AA1.

The
Asp
couldn't take too many more hits. AA1 would be releasing fighters soon, and the Asp wasn't equipped to counter fighters.

"Byer, launch the Ghosts. Dragonflies will broadcast their positions." Unfortunately, the Dusters will obscure our contact with the Eirene, but Nance seemed to have the situation under control and will probably be launching Dusters of her own.

Flying over and under the Duster cloud, the Dragonflies could see AA3 and AA4 and determine an incoming vector.

Asp
. Multiple hits AA1. Destroyed.>

The Dragonflies could track the fighters into to the Duster's cloud, but the Ghosts would be outnumbered four to one, otherwise we could change position and make it difficult to locate the Mnemosyne. But the Ghosts needed the support the lasers would provide.