Beyond The Frontier Read online

  Dawes sounded like he came from one of those worlds.

  “What do you think, Sergeant?” Yuri asked. “It almost sounds as if you are speaking from your own heart, and not on behalf of the would-be dissenters.”

  “I think . . . I think you ask too many questions for a flyboy,” Dawes said grinning. “I think I’ll have to lobby to replace you with Chen.”

  Yuri looked at Chen. “You’re trained to fly starships?”

  Chen nodded. “Class two helm officer, class one atmosphere flight rated.”

  Class one in atmosphere was the highest level, and he matched Yuri there.

  “No thanks, I’m class one rated at the helm, we don’t want sub-par pilots flying Phoenix.”

  “Frightened they won’t need you anymore, Flaps?” Ubu asked.

  Flaps laughed. “No marine pilot could ever replace me. The day you replace me is the day Lee gets a sense of humor.”

  He was being serious, but they all laughed nonetheless.

  Chapter 17 – No Love Lost

  “Tell me what you need, and it will be done” – Lord Commander Quintus Scipio

  United Star Systems Fleet Headquarters

  Sol

  Shepherd pounded his fist on the desk. The Terran Union wouldn’t lift a finger. No matter how he tried to convince them of the threat posed by the ORA—they wouldn’t budge.

  The damn wormhole is right in their front yard!

  They saw for themselves the unprovoked attack on Constellation and Endeavor, yet they held some belief they could negotiate—that it was some elaborate misunderstanding.

  Declaring a war for no reason was certainly a colossal misunderstanding of epic proportions. He’d wanted to strangle the ORA diplomat. If he could have reached through the screen, he would have.

  Not for the same reasons, but it reminded him how he sometimes wanted to strangle Rayne. The communications blackout beyond the wormhole was unnerving. No way to know if Rayne would need help on the other side.

  They faced a threat from beyond the frontier a possible invasion and the other enclaves didn’t care. There was one person left who might help.

  Quintus Scipio had no love lost for Shepherd.

  The Lord Commander had dispatched his brother Platus to the Border Worlds to help identify the Imperial conspirators. They’d learned Shepherd had operatives trying to stop the conspirators on the United Systems side of it. But Shepherd never told him who those operatives were and by the time they found out, Platus was dead. And Quintus believed if he’d known sooner, Platus’s death could have been avoided.

  The holo-viewer flickered. The Lord Commander looked dapper as usual in his ceremonial chest plate and gauntlets.

  He was on Earth for another round of talks. It was great the talks went well, but Shepherd couldn’t stand them.

  He knew Quintus was no full time diplomat, but rather based on what Rayne told him, a cunning fox of a warrior. Yet, how the Imperial could stomach politicians, he didn’t know. It just showed the Lord Commander possessed a fair amount of intestinal fortitude.

  “Supreme Commander,” Quintus said.

  “Lord Commander.”

  “You said it was of dire importance and a mutual friend of ours might need my help.”

  “That he might.”

  “Decimus told me he’d awoken. Rude fellow. Not so much as a comm I got from him.”

  “I did hustle him off in a hurry.”

  “No matter. State your query.”

  “You already know about the ORA.”

  “I do, Decimus has appraised me accordingly.”

  “If there’s trouble out there, the task force won’t be enough. Not based on what Constellation observed beyond the wormhole.”

  “That much we agree on.”

  “Might I ask for your assistance?”

  “Our closest fleet is two weeks away.”

  “Ah . . . that it is. However, there are those ships you’re hiding ten light-years rim-ward. We know the Emperor doesn’t travel light. How fortunate for us he’s here on Earth for these final round of talks.”

  “You wouldn’t be a pain if you weren’t aware of those ships. Tell me what you need, and it will be done.”

  Shepherd knew the ships were no threat to the USS. Not while Lord Commander Quintus Scipio commanded them. They were there as a show of force, don’t mess with the Emperor.

  Since Shepherd being a full military man himself understood the need to protect his own, he held no ill towards Quintus for trying to conceal them nearby.

  The only unfortunate result was he now owed the Lord Commander of the Imperial Navy another huge favor.

  Shepherd already owed Quintus a debt that could never be repaid.

  Chapter 18 – No Quarter

  “I prefer to get out of here alive, even if we don’t have any sub-light engines left” – Aaron Rayne

  Bridge

  Phoenix

  The figure on the holo-viewer nodded. “I wish you good fortune, Commander Rayne.” The comm closed.

  On approaching the wormhole, they’d been hailed by Pilum. No doubt, Sub-Commander Arias Decimus was keeping his Lord Commander appraised of any new developments. Decimus might be an Imperial officer, but in many ways, he reminded Aaron of Vee. Just as Vee was loyal to Aaron, Decimus was to Quintus Scipio. Without Decimus watching his back aboard the Imperial flagship during the battle of Atlas Prime, Quintus would now be lord in whatever afterlife he believed in.

  The holo-viewer flickered, now showing the swirling energies ahead of the ship. Raw natural power. An explosion fixed in time, and in all its magnificence. Only at maximum resolution could Aaron see the hypnotic swirl of the energies surrounding the event horizon.

  He scanned the bridge. They were all transfixed by the holo-viewer.

  Sergeant Dawes stood stoically to the rear of the bridge with his arms folded across his chest. The two corporals stood by his side.

  Aaron stood and moved to the front. “This is it everyone. We know that several weeks ago Constellation went through and returned intact. We’ve already learned all we can from our side of the wormhole. The Outer Rim Alliance has already made their intentions clear. If it’s one thing I am certain of—right off the hilt—they’re a legitimate target if they’re waiting on the other side. We won’t hold back. They gave no quarter to Endeavor. We’ll ask none and we’ll give none in return.”

  He moved to the command chair.

  “Lieutenant Lee, energize all weapon systems, polarize the armor. Lieutenant Zane, stand by with the kinetic barrier and gravity wave dispersion. Ensign, prep for micro-jump maneuvers or full warp, depending on the situation on the other side.” Aaron turned to the marines. “Sergeant, you and your men have had basic damage control instruction. You know what you have to do. Feel free of course to remain on the bridge until that time comes, also . . . strap in.”

  The crew set to work. The marines took a seat at stations to the rear of the bridge.

  “Railgun magazines are loaded,” Lee said. “All systems at full power. All weapon batteries remain retracted until further orders.”

  “Stealth protocols and defensive barrier ready,” Zane said.

  Flaps followed on.

  “We’ve got full drive power on standby, and micro-jump primed,” he said.

  Aaron nodded. He glanced over at tactical. Rachael was operating the secondary tactical station to Lee’s left. If she was nervous, she betrayed no signs. Over at ops Ayres assisted Zane.

  Aaron settled in the command chair and ran his hands along the arms. He clasped the battle harness across his chest. A holo-display of the tactical situation floated in front him, which he could manipulate it accordingly.

  Flaps was looking at him expectantly.

  “Ensign, take us in,” Aaron ordered. “And onward to great glory,” he added.

  Aaron whispered it, not intending anyone to hear, but as Flaps turned away, the ensign held a sly grin.

  ***

  Aaron’s t
eeth chattered as the deck and bulkheads rattled. The effect increased throughout the approach to the event horizon.

  On entering, a strange sensation distorted the passage of time and it seemed almost instant. Space and time was still. There was no motion. No sound.

  Everything seemed to freeze.

  Phoenix surged from the mouth of the wormhole and burst through the other side. It was serene.

  Peaceful. The transition took sixty seconds

  Warning alarms slapped his eardrums and yanked him from the blissful moment.

  “Multiple contacts!” Lee called.

  Miroslav glanced sideways “Interdiction field detected!” The next report came from Ayres at ops cutting off Miroslav.

  “—bearing three-two-one mark zero-six-zero, range, 120 thousand kilometers!”

  “Thirty-six of them. Missiles in the black!” Lee cut back in.

  Thirty-six hostile contacts populated the tactical board. Speeds, vectors, projections.

  The ship ahead was the immediate threat—120 thousand klicks.

  “Take us down relative to tango-1, Ensign,” Aaron said. “Evasive maneuvers at your discretion for now, work us toward the edge of the interdiction field. Lieutenant, take out those missiles. Forget those ships for now. Target the interdiction drones. Havoc heavy missiles, fire at will. XO, stand by.”

  A lone sheep that’s what they were. A lone sheep which had suddenly appeared among a pack of starving wolves.

  And the wolves dove in to secure the first bite.

  The Outer Rim Alliance ships blockaded the wormhole around an area of space roughly three million square-kilometers, aided by an interdiction field preventing warp maneuvers out to that distance. There were some obvious gaps in the blockade.

  No doubt, clusters of those dreaded antimatter stealth mines. They hadn’t found a way to detect them yet.

  The attackers engaged ruthlessly. Explosions ripped the void. Phoenix streamed point defense fields of fire outward in all directions. The ship’s missile launcher batteries unleashed a fury of havoc heavy missiles at maximum firing rate.

  After the initial chaos, Phoenix had joined the battle with her full might. Railgun salvoes blasted relentless from her guns, in solemn defiance of her attackers.

  She leapt forward under powerful acceleration and vectored under the nearest ORA ship’s bow, a mere ten thousand kilometers. That ship was the first casualty of the fight, as a deathly accurate salvo of tungsten slammed into it and ripped through and through its superstructure, followed by several missiles.

  Phoenix veered hard over to starboard. Flaps executed a series of maneuvers designed to keep the ORA ships guessing as long as possible.

  Lee had his hands full monitoring the point defense screen, shooting down interdiction drones and firing at other targets of opportunity. Rachael assisted him in prioritizing the targets.

  A close detonation from a shaped charge rattled the ship from bow to stern.

  “Lee . . .” Aaron pressed. They had to destroy those interdiction drones and warp the hell away from this circle of doom.

  “Working on it, Commander!” came Lee’s strained reply.

  An obvious pattern was developing. The ORA ships were trying to push them in a certain direction. It could be a ruse. But it was also an opportunity.

  They’d held as well as they could have given the circumstances. Flaps was holding his own. “Doing good, Ensign,” Aaron said. “Keep them guessing. Don’t try to close with any of them. Work us around in a pattern along a port vector, watch those ships flanking starboard.” Aaron didn’t take his eyes from the tactical read out.

  Flaps worked his console with frantic motivation. “Aye, Commander, I see them.”

  Jumping into this epic mess was unfortunate but necessary. The priority was surviving the initial entry with everyone clustered so close. Now they had some breathing room.

  But this fight was already the equivalent of a bar room brawl.

  By now, Phoenix had taken several direct and close hits. The polarized armor didn’t lose efficiency over time like a force field. However, to reinforce the field after each strike, drained power from the mains.

  And with all systems operating at full battle power, the power reserves would gradually diminish. And the power required to keep all ship systems functioning would outstrip the demands placed on the reactors.

  The deck lurched sideways, and the bulkheads seemed oriented the wrong way for just a moment as the gravity system recalibrated to keep things grounded. A nasty salvo had made it past the ship’s point defense screen.

  Ayres reported. “We can’t take much more hits like that.”

  Aaron opened his mouth, but closed it. Not very useful. Focus.

  He saw it. The opening he needed. “Ensign! Make your course, two-six-five mark zero-two-zero. Align us as quickly as you can without bleeding too much speed, and ahead full. Lee, adjust point defense, cover the stern only. XO, deploy the kinetic barrier, cover our escape vector.”

  Gravitic charges erupted from small emplacements along the hull. It would push aside incoming ordnance. Missiles could realign, but other unguided projectiles would be pushed away and perhaps into one of the hostile ships.

  “Aye, two-six-five, mark zero-two-zero,” Flaps responded.

  Phoenix now vectored towards a wall of missiles heading her way, fired from the ships directly ahead.

  Aaron decided he was going through those ships. That formation wasn’t closing to engage like the rest. They hadn’t yet maneuvered and simply volleyed more missiles. He suspected they might be missile cruisers.

  Having a smaller circumference to protect, it now meant the kinetic barrier fired less gravitic charges, since it would only be targeting incoming ordnance ahead of the ship. And Lee could focus point defense on the approaching rear missiles. Starboard and port were vulnerable, but that was the tradeoff. Without risk, there was no reward.

  As if on cue, another missile struck the starboard section.

  A new alarm blared. The starboard armor was compromised. It was only as strong as its raw material now, without the enhanced hardening from the electric field formerly coursing through it.

  “Commander!” That was the only word Ayres could breathe before disaster.

  An explosion blew Phoenix of her vector. It breached the starboard hull plating and obliterated several point defense batteries along the superstructure.

  Zane’s voice was shaking. “A mine . . . antimatter mine. Never detected it.”

  “Ayres work with Zane. Sweep the area,” Aaron said. “Input what telemetry we’ve got so far on those mines, have the computer analyze our vector for more of them. I know it’s a long shot, Zane, but do what you can.”

  Zane shook his head. “Nothing so far.” He slammed his palm on the console. “If they’re there, we still can’t detect them.”

  Another powerful, shaped charge from a hostile missile detonated a few hundred kilometers from the compromised starboard section.

  “Flanking ships closing from starboard! Starboard rails reloading,” Lee said.

  Another violent rumble.

  Aaron grimaced. “Ensign, hold your course!”

  “Half the starboard armor plating is gone,” Zane said. “We’ve got no point defense coverage there.”

  Another missile slammed directly into what was left of the starboard armor.

  Garrett’s voice filled the bridge. “Bridge, we’ve lost several power matrices in the starboard section, re-routing power. But main power available is down to 67% we can’t shunt everything through the other matrices, without risking overload.”

  Zane yelled. “They’re going to destroy us! Shouldn’t we surrender, Commander?”

  Aaron zipped his head around and fixed the scientist with a piercing glare. “As you were, Zane! Focus on your station. Ensign, emergency acceleration, full burn. Engineering, override the safeties. Redline it. I don’t care if the sub-lights blow. Acknowledged, Garrett?”

  “I’
ve got you, Commander. Disengaging safeties. But I should point out I don’t have spare sub-light engines aboard!”

  “Not to worry, Garrett. I prefer to get out of here alive, even if we don’t have any sub-light engines left.”

  The ships ahead continued spewing missiles. Definitely missile cruisers—with large missile reserves.

  “XO, disengage the kinetic barrier, power down and transfer the energy into the reserves.”

  “Kinetic barrier powering down . . . now.”

  Aaron eyed several more missiles looming towards the exposed starboard section. Damn this chair. He had to move.

  He unclasped his harness and moved to the helm. “Everyone brace,” he said, as he placed his hand on Yuri’s shoulder. “Ensign, bring the bow to starboard zero-nine-zero, maintain z-elevation. We need to keep our starboard away from those flanking ships.”

  Still accelerating on a vector toward the missiles cruisers, Phoenix turned to starboard, and the exposed starboard side now faced the pursuers. The forward point defense batteries now oriented to the missiles formerly approaching the starboard quarter and shot them down.

  Aaron moved back to his command console on his chair arm.

  “Lee, see that cluster of missiles heading directly for us? I’m inputting every variable I can think of, check over the calculations, make adjustments, run it through the computer. Send it back.”

  A minute later Lee responded. “Aye, done. It should work, Commander. There’s so many, and our friends behind are all grouped together nice and tight.” He flicked the calculations back to Aaron’s command console with a swipe of his hand.

  Nice and tight in space meant about twenty thousand kilometers apart. The Alliance ships were pursuing at full speed as well. They’d long since increased speed beyond combat maneuvering speeds.

  No one was maneuvering or trying to evade now. At these speeds, a full turn would require two hours just to realign on any drastic new vector.