The Action of 5/33/423309 Fb

© 2019 by Walter Reimer


Thumbnail art by  rabbi-tom


The Kith was still in dock at Station NZh-2233, undergoing repair and replenishment, when the message came from Fleet Command. A listening post ship had been destroyed, but not before sending data indicating a massive wake moving through hyperspace from the Terran side of the border.

Directly toward Downtime Station.

“Command staff briefing in ten fractions,” Gartabin k’Jen announced over the ship’s intercom, and Varan hurriedly got finished drying herself off from her shower and got into her uniform. She stamped her feet into her boots and ran a brush over her exposed fur before leaving her cabin, making it to her seat with a fraction to spare.

“Analysis of the wake suggests an attack in fleet strength,” the captain said as he sat down, “and all patrol cruisers are now part of the Third Fleet as part of their scouting force.”

“So we’re crossing the border?” Subcaptain v’Tal asked.

“Yes, Tabin, we are. Updated charts showing the hyperspace terrain are being transmitted now. We’ll be part of a battleship division assigned to contact and engage the ships approaching the border.” He looked around at the shlani in the room. “Questions?”

Varan gestured for attention. “We’ve just gotten the aiming lenses on the starboard batteries realigned, sir. Missile stores have been fully replenished.”

“Good. Naturally, we engage ships equal to or smaller than ourselves, and attack cooperatively for anything larger. Gravitic mines have been sown in depth to canalize their attack, while giving us the opportunity to trap them. Further questions?”

“What about this station?” one asked.

“If it’s still here when we get back, the skrivat will be on my account,” k’Jen replied, eliciting a chuckle from the group. “Dismissed. I want us in clear space and in our assigned position as quickly as possible.”

Soon afterward the patrol cruiser undocked from the station and raced to catch up with the rest of the fleet as it moved into Terran space.

In the ship’s secondary command area, Varan kept an eye on her repeater screens and the holographic display showing their position relative to the other ships of the fleet. Everyone was in armor or environment suits in case the life support failed. “Screening ships detected outphasing,” the Sensor Officer said from the main control room. “Gravity spike!”

“Evasive,” and the Kith slipped past the gravitic mine as it detonated. “Attack pattern S-9; outphase and engage.” The plot flickered to show normal space, and ship’s IDs appeared as the Kashlanin ship began a lethal dance with its adversary, weaving and dodging around each other and firing as soon as they had a firm lock on the target.

The ship shuddered and spun, angling away from a detonating anti-shield missile’s EM pulse before it could seriously affect their defenses. “Target analysis,” the Weapons Officer said. “They’re using our attack pattern Zh-4.”

K’Jen chuckled. “I knew they’d copy the recording we allowed d’Estcourt to take with her. Pattern N-6.” The Kith’s own pattern of missiles reached their targets, tearing holes in the Terran ship’s shields and allowing the patrol cruiser’s primaries to claw at the enemy’s unprotected hull.

“Terran ship, moderate damage. Fifteen percent power falloff.”

“Pursue.” Varan could almost see the Captain’s scowl. “Strike to kill.” The Rakhani-kestin kept the ship hot on the Terran ship’s tail, matching its evasive maneuvers and pouring focused energy into the unshielded sections.

“Power spike, multiple transients,” Sensors said, and Weapons pitched the ship upward so that its strongest shields were exposed to the Terran ship as it exploded. “Two Terran ships on intercept course, one patrol cruiser, one heavy cruiser. Baraxjir and Klarchagth moving to support us, along with a cruiser.”

“Pattern Dh-1,” k’Jen said. “Target the larger ship. Ask Hearth to assist us – “ He broke off, grinding his teeth as the larger enemy ship launched a cloud of missiles. “Break off evasive. Circle back to our support. Antimissile defenses at the ready?”

“Ulnt, tī.” Weapons gestured understanding as he piloted the ship in a tight corkscrew that caused a few stress alarms to sound, and Varan checked the status of the vessel’s armament. Two secondary batteries had sustained damage, and damage control parties were repairing them. Several gravitic mines were launched, detonating as soon as they were out of range of the Kith and disrupting a portion of the Terran missiles.

As the Imperial cruiser engaged its Terran counterpart, the three smaller craft assaulted and destroyed their lone attacker. “Klarchagth reports Terran cruiser destroyed. They are disengaging for repairs.”

“How bad?”

“Weapons down, shields at fifteen percent. Twenty percent casualties, including Captain Hiren.”

K’Jen sat back in his chair. “Very sad,” was all he said. Mourning would have to wait. “We shall assist the AZB 11034. Status on the Terran cruiser, Sensors.”

“Ventral shields down; it’s tumbling. Weapons are being degraded, power falloff detected.”

“Muta’. Bring us in, Weapons; target the gap in their shields – “

The ship quaked, and a few shlani retched as the gravity fluctuated.

“Another Terran cruiser,” Weapons reported. “Outphased.” Another quake. “Primary batteries.”

“Evasive pattern Q-7,” the Captain said. Farther within the ship at her station, Varan felt queasy as the damage reports came to her repeater screens. The Terran cruiser was clearly after easy prey, disdaining the need to help its fellow in favor of destroying a smaller ship. K’Jen snarled, “Cowards,” even as the ship shuddered again.

“Command-Second,” Varan said to Subcaptain v’Tal, “damage reports are increasing. Aft and port shields are close to critical. Casualty reports are increasing.”

The vir gestured. “Understood. Captain, recommend redistributing power.”

“Acknowledged.” There was a bell as the shipwide address system came on. “All personnel, secure your suits. Life support is being shut off.” Less than a fraction later Varan felt lighter as the artificial gravity dropped to zero. There was still air, of course; she could hear things outside her helmet, but without power to recirculate it, the atmosphere would quickly grow stale. “Redirect power to shields and weapons. Attack pattern Zh-9.”

The Kith rolled along its major axis and pitched negatively, tumbling end-over-end like a thrown baton before coming to face the Terran cruiser. It charted a weaving path around its own mines and Terran missiles as its primaries fired on the larger ship.

“The Terran ship is taking damage,” Sensors reported. “Two cruisers outphasing; they’re Imperial. Engaging.”

“Incoming signal, Captain.”

“My repeater.” K’Jen glanced to the left and down as the monitor showed a kam’s face. “K’Jen here.”

“N’Van,” the commander of the larger ship said. “You’ve taken damage. Will you disengage?”

“Zhazhmal mō i’?”

The kam’s lips drooped in a smile. “No, I would not. Take up this position relative to us.”

“Understood.” Weapons had already moved the Kith to the new relative position as the Terran cruiser, recognizing that it was outnumbered, started to turn. “Coward. Weapons, are we in a position to overtake?”

The Rakhani-kestin looked at the plot, imagining possible pursuit curves; finally he stuck a finger in the holograph. “This course.”

“Get us there.” Power poured into the Kith’s drive core. “Ready our remaining mines. As soon as we pass across its nose, launch. Then evasive pattern K-33.”

“Yes, sir.” Varan could have sworn she’d heard the Weaponeer gulp. The course was a risky maneuver, requiring the Kith to pass directly in front of the enemy at speed, dorsal side facing the cruiser’s primary weapons. Power was redirected to the dorsal shields from the other defensive arrays, and the ship moved to pursue the Terran.

Sensors said, “Power spike. The enemy’s charging its hyperfield. Baraxjir is matching our course from the opposing vector.”

K’Jen actually snorted a laugh. “Make sure we don’t collide, Weapons.”

“Yes, sir.” The ship shook. “Taking damage from its secondary weapons –“ The next impact nearly made his tail lose its grip “- primary strike against port flank. Hull compromised, sections 4 through 10 sealed off.”

“Casualties?”

“No confirmation yet.”

“Very well. Continue attack.” Another hit, and this time the Weapons Officer did lose his grip, leaving him floating within the spherical plot until his tail found another handhold. “Casualties stand at forty-one dead, ninety injured. Twenty were lost when the hull was breached.” He glanced at the captain. “In attack position.”

“Execute and evade.”

The Kith’s maneuvering systems strained to fight the craft’s inertia as it changed course radically, the hull ringing as its dorsal shields took the brunt of the Terran ship’s attack. As the cruiser’s remaining mines were launched, Weapons put the ship into a defensive tumble at full speed and started to put distance between it and the larger opponent. “Signal to our cruisers what we’ve just done,” k’Jen said. “We don’t want them pursuing these koripi.”

“Sending, sir. Gartabin n’Van sends his compliments.”

“Tell him I’ll have dinner with him. Disengage and effect repairs. Where’s the Baraxjir?”

“Light damage. They’re breaking off.”

“Good. Set the mines to detonate as soon as the Terran ship inphases.”

Still running from the battlespace, the Terran cruiser’s hyperfield came to full power, making its outline in normal space fade and flicker out.

Followed by a bright ball of raw energy as the hyperfield – and the ship – collided with the mines’ artificial gravity wells.

Varan squirmed in her armor against the restraints on her seat. She couldn’t really credit it, and would have to check when the battle was over.

Did she really just orgasm? The idea bothered her, and she turned her attention to the plot.

On a much wider aspect than the tiny corner of space they’d been fighting in, the battle had gone well. The Terrans had used the same attack pattern that Meredith had taken with her when she’d had to leave the Kith, apparently thinking that the Empire wouldn’t update its tactics between then and now. The oversight had cost them dearly, with the Confederate Fleet losing nearly two-thirds of its force. By contrast, the Kashlani had lost twenty-nine ships, including one of the flagship’s escorts.

The light blue alert lights switched back to normal illumination as the rest of the mauled Terran fleet disengaged and withdrew into hyperspace, fleeing the area. Imperial patrol ships were phasing into hyperspace to track them and to scout ahead of the fleet as the admiral ordered the ships to advance.

The Kith and other damaged ships lagged behind, with reinforcements moving past them and support ships coming alongside to render assistance.

Life support came back on, and after a decent interval Varan opened her helmet and resumed coordinating the damage-control teams. The hull and defensive systems were priorities, and the ship’s supplies of mines and missiles needed to be refilled.

Several cycles later she gave her tasks to a subordinate and went back to her quarters to eat and rest.

As soon as she opened the armor fully, her nostrils wrinkled.

Yes, she had come during the battle.