The Dying Light (34 page)

7

COEI
Daybreak

‘955.01.23 EN

1840

The outrigger fleet came in fast. After twenty hours of hard acceleration and deceleration on the back of the spines, then riding on momentum alone for the last hour to hide the emissions of their tiny drives, they burst into the sky around Galine Four like the absent stars. Seventy-six all-suits in total, more than half of them empty and teleoperated either by their original owners or the Box, while the spines remained hidden far away; behind the outriggers, six lumbering prowling mines—big tanklike masses of metal designed to overtake sluggish asteroids and slowly tear them to pieces; and hidden among them, carefully camouflaged as another prowling mine, the
Ana Vereine
—using its shields to protect as many of the outriggers as possible until they were within firing range.

Roche occupied the copilot’s chair of
Daybreak,
fully suited and ready to disembark at a moment’s notice. Her suit had come from the holds of the
Ana Vereine
and was a substantial improvement on the old one: cool air circulated across every part of her body; silent servo-assists gave her increased strength and agility; hidden weapons awaited her slightest mental prompt to attack. Information flowed across eyes-up displays and through her implants; she could see from a dozen different viewpoints simultaneously, and could eavesdrop as needed on the outriggers’ exchanges. She was like an angry insect queen surrounded by her warriors, swooping in for the kill.

Beside her, Haid sat similarly dressed. Mavalhin and Disisto wore the COE suits that had come with the courier vessel, but they weren’t armed. Roche had promised Mavalhin a hand weapon when they boarded Galine Four, but she still hadn’t decided whether to keep that promise or not.

Behind them waited four empty combat suits from the
Ana Vereine.
These would accompany them onto Galine Four, to be directed by the Box if that proved to be possible. There was no guarantee that they would be able to communicate with the fleet outside. It was worth taking the chance, though, Roche thought. If the drones
did
work, they would effectively double their numbers.

It seemed to take the Galine Four defenders a moment to believe what they were seeing. By the time the first shots were fired, the outriggers were almost in range. As soon as they were, the formation dissolved and return fire began to come in.

“How’s your status?” she asked the
Ana Vereine.

“Just waiting on your signal, Morgan.” Roche could hear the elation in the ex-captain’s voice. After days of running and hiding, the prospect of action had Uri barely able to contain his excitement.

Roche studied the views before her. The station gunners were concentrating on the prowling mines—not surprising considering their mass. If just one of them rammed, the battle would effectively be over. Roche had no intention of doing this, but the station gunners weren’t to know that.

“Your shields are holding?”

“They’re doing okay,” reported Kajic. “I’m displaying signs of damage in order to preserve the illusion.”

“Could you also feign disablement?”

“Shouldn’t be difficult.”

“Then do so after the next particularly heavy battery. Don’t head for the station, though; tumble so you’d miss. That way they should leave you alone. As soon as the shields are back to full strength, join the battle properly.”

“Understood.”

Roche steadied herself as the courier rolled beneath her. They were well back from the frontline, but close enough to catch the occasional stray shot. The makeshift E-shields and disrupters the Box had installed were bearing up well, much to her relief. They were going to need them once she decided to make her move.

The outriggers were close enough to take potshots at the A-P cannons scattered over the station’s exterior surfaces. Their voices sang through her in a fugue similar to the Plenary she had witnessed, but without its innate sense of order. In among the battle calls was the Auditor herself, her calming voice keeping everything under relative control.

^25-26
Watch out! Watch out!

³¹
Covered. Keep an eye on that second gunner!

___
Groups 4-9 and 17-26 pull back and down.

___
Flank support required.

^17-22
We have a positive on feeder placement in sectors blue and yellow.

^9-13
How long until hull integrity is compromised?

^17-22
Five minutes. Can you hold out that long?

^9-13
We’11 have to, I guess.

___
Shields are falling in orange sector:

___
All available fire to concentrate here.

___
The cannon are vulnerable.

⁴⁵
Damn!

³³
You okay?

⁴⁵
Singed. This is just like stripping JA-32!

³³
And we know what happened there, don’t we?

___
Concentrate, people.

___
We have company.

Singleships spilled out of docking bays from all over the station, scattering the outriggers on a wave of returned fire.

___
Hold formation!

___
Don’t turn your back unless you want to be shot in it!

Roche called.

From the nooks and crannies of the prowling mines came every independent craft Roche had been able to lay her hands on. Mass-throwers, impact probes, and remote instruments of every description converged on the station.

“Byrne! Tell your people to be careful. It’s going to get messy in there!”

___
Retract all antennae!

___
Incoming debris!

The space around the station became thick with energy and matter. A wild variety of thrusters—some as small as a fingernail—flashed and burned; accurate shots sent fragments and dust flying in all directions; laser beams were absorbed or deflected in crazy patterns. Through it all moved the singleships and outriggers, with
Daybreak
close by. And behind them all came the prowling mines, still lumbering on and laboring under the concentrated fire from the station’s artillery.

The
Ana Vereine
took a volley of shots to its flank and went into a slow roll. Roche nodded in satisfaction. It would be ready to attack in a few minutes.

“Take us closer,” she instructed Haid.

³⁴
Be careful!

³⁸
I am. It’s just...

³⁴
Laird? Goddamn! I need reinforcements!

^5-7
Hold on. We’re coming!

___
Let the drones and teleop teams go in first.

___
And watch out for pincer attacks.

___
I want live fighters: you aren’t any good to me dead!

“Look at them,” said Haid, watching a similar view to Roche’s on a bridge monitor. The singleships swooped and parried, pairs targeting lone outriggers and dispatching them first, then trying to break up larger groups. “They’re Kesh pilots,” he said. “I’ve seen them fight like that before.”

“Efficient, aren’t they?” Disisto commented emotionlessly from behind them.

“They’d never fight like that against their own kind,” said Haid.

²⁷
Hull breach in orange sector!

³⁸
Concentrate your fire. Hurt them! Hurt them!

___
Group 31-34. stay back.

___
That tower’s about to blow!

⁸
Lud? Are you still with us?

¹⁴
Barely... Pressure’s dropping.

⁸
Withdraw! We can handle it from here.

“Byrne,” said Roche. “Tell the wounded or damaged to fall back. We’re about to move in.”

___
Expect reinforcement soon.

___
Fall back on my command.

___
Injured and compromised first.

___
I want everyone else to remain for the second wave.

“You hear that, Uri?”

“Yes, Morgan.” Kajic’s voice came from the bridge speakers. “We will break cover in twenty seconds.”

“Okay, good. We’re relying on you to watch our back. And keep an eye on Yarrow, if you can.” As Roche had expected, the Wide Berth survivor hadn’t taken the option to hide in the hold of the
Ana Vereine.
“Ameidio, full thrust as soon as the
Ana Vereine
is exposed. We go in under its covering fire.”

“You got it.” Almost imperceptibly, the pilot stiffened at the controls of the courier.

“I guess this is it,” Mavalhin muttered nervously.

“It sure is, Myer,” Roche said, “And you’re going to do exactly as I tell you,
when
I tell you.” She kept her attention on the image of the disguised
Ana Vereine
as she spoke. Suddenly the appearance of the crippled prowling mine shimmered, then vanished altogether. In its place was now the Marauder, its many prongs lit up against the black sky by its own blazing weapons.

“Hold on everyone!” Haid pushed the courier forward and into the melee. Singleships dodged and weaved to avoid the energy weapons bombarding them from all directions. Two fell instantly; seconds later, another. The station’s cannon turned to bear on the swooping ship and
Daybreak
aimed into the gap.

The freight transfer point was located near the
R
painted on the side of the station, halfway between the nominal top and the docking equator. Haid looped once around the station, then veered in closer. The wreckage became noticeably thicker. Heavy clangs announced impacts with pieces large enough to penetrate the shields; near misses dissipated with bright flashes of energy.

A recessed gantry appeared before them.

“That’s it,” Mavalhin said.

Outrigger fire had scarred much of the area around the gantry, aiming for surveillance equipment and anti-intrusion emplacements. The area looked secure. There was just enough room in the docking space to hide the courier.

“Take us in, Ameidio,” said Roche. “Byrne, we’re there!”

___
All except teleop groups—

___
withdraw!

Haid brought the courier close enough for grapnels to hook onto. Roche glanced up at the sky. As some of the outriggers fell back, the
Ana Vereine
stepped up the attack on the singleships. At the same time, the prowling mines had approached to what must have been uncomfortably close proximity for those aboard Galine Four. With so many threats harrying the station, she hoped to be able to dock the ship relatively unnoticed.

Roche grunted her understanding. She braced herself as the courier clanged home, then stood up. Haid secured the console, then also rose. The four drone suits stirred.

“Let’s go,” Roche said to Disisto and Mavalhin. “I want your voice transmissions kept to a minimum.”

They filed back to the airlock as pumps evacuated the entire ship. The inner door was already open when they reached it. Part of her hoped they would encounter some form of resistance; another part of her prayed they wouldn’t.

The outer door hissed open at their approach. Roche went first, hands extended, weapons and sensors in her gloves scanning the gantry. It was clear. She removed a rifle from its back holster and stood aside.

The others followed. One of the drones placed cutting equipment against the corroded seals Mavalhin had mentioned and began blasting. The metal parted like melting cheese. Radiation warnings pinged in Roche’s chest, but they weren’t urgent enough to require her to step away.

Above them, the sky continued to boil.

One of the suits—she had already lost track of which were drones and which weren’t—stepped toward her and touched her shoulder.

READING ME? asked Haid.

she sent back. She activated the laser on her left glove and burned a black line on the seamless chest of his suit. Stepping back, she did the same to herself.

The remains of the gantry door swung silently aside.

Stepping past the drones and over the still-glowing edge of the gantry door, Haid led the way into the station. The others followed, with Roche and two of the drones taking up the rear.

The freight transfer deck was spacious but empty. Nevertheless, Roche kept alert for any sign that they had been spotted.

said the Box.

She couldn’t tell if it was meant as a joke or not.

Roche frowned; they hadn’t planned it that way.

She wasn’t reassured. The Box sounded as if it was enjoying itself. At times like these, she had learned to be worried.

At least that way she could check on what they were up to without having to ask the Box.

She checked a moment later to make sure it had been done: through the sensors of the drone immediately behind her, she saw herself wave an arm.

Turning to the others, Roche motioned them forward. The maps she’d acquired on her first visit to the station indicated the exit she wanted. As they approached, the door slid open. They moved off along the passageway, pressure doors opening and closing smoothly as they passed. At the second intersection they came to, two of the drones turned right. Haid automatically went to follow.