Battle for Proxima (30 page)

“I’m getting information from General Rivers. He’s diverting two battalions of Army ground forces to the city. They are due to land east of the hub in the next twenty minutes. They will secure the city and relieve us.”

“What the hell?” said Spartan angrily.

“Spartan. Our job is done. We are the spearhead. We shatter the enemy and then move to the next target. The Army have armour and artillery on the way. An advance company of pathfinders is already on the ground and making its way here. They need space to bring in the heavy landers.”

“What about us?”

“For now, we stay here and defend the transport hub and the centre of the city. Don’t forget we are expecting enemy forces to arrive at any moment. I want you to take a handpicked unit and escort the engineers to the east and help clear an LZ for the big birds.”

“Don’t we need everybody here?”

“Spartan, a dozen Vanguards will not tip the scale that much. Get the engineers to the designated zone and help the pathfinders clear a space. Hold the landing zone so the big birds can land the heavy armour and infantry. If you’re quick you can have ground troops and tanks in position in less than thirty minutes. They are already on the way, so move it!”

Spartan saluted, his body language made it quite clear he was less than impressed by the order. He moved to the middle of the hub where Teresa and the other Vanguards were helping the city militia prepare foxholes and emplacements for the captured enemy weapons. The three Biomech prisoners stood patiently, they each looked unsure what to do, as did the three Vanguards guarding them.

“The Captain needs us to get the engineers to this area to establish an LZ. We don’t have long, the Army heavies are already on the way.”

“Maybe we should have established an LZ first?” said Marcus.

“Yeah, maybe you should have done it yourself. It doesn’t matter, right now I need both of you and three more marines.”

Marcus moved away to recruit those he felt best suited for the job. Teresa stayed slightly closer to Spartan. She was about to speak when he noticed several news feeds coming in from their commanders, the one that caught his attention was about newly arrived ship.

“What is it?” asked Teresa, noticing something was wrong.

“The Yorkdale, she’s here. They rammed a rebel War Barge.”

“They? You mean Gun?”

Spartan shook his head in annoyance.

“Yeah, news is spreading through the Fleet. Apparently, the War Barge is renegade and the Jötnar have started a major boarding action.”

“I told you Gun was crazy,” she laughed.

“Was?” muttered Spartan, as Marcus returned with three dusty and slightly battered looking Vanguards. The CES equipped engineers were already there waiting. Spartan looked out to the east and the distant smoke plumes. He glanced upwards but so far there was no sign of the impending Army forces.

“Right, let’s go!”

Spartan moved ahead first with the engineers directly behind and the other five Vanguards spread out around the group. As they moved away from the hub, the remaining Vanguards helped lift great chunks of masonry, quickly turning the site into an improvised fortress.

“How long until they attack?” asked Teresa.

Spartan looked at his tactical display and noted the large number of red icons converging from the west. A much smaller group seemed stuck in the north of the city, probably held up by the constant air attacks from the Navy fighters.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Why use the Jötnar? They were after all the only synthetic life form based military unit to ever serve in the Confederate military. Though lacking in the discipline and experience of the regular Marine and Army units, they did have very important advantages. Almost impervious to harm, they were tough and ruthless. They made excellent soldiers, perhaps the best natural warriors in the Confederacy. Coupled with unswerving loyalty to their masters, they almost matched the capability of the elite Vanguard Marines but without the requirement for expensive equipment and training. It was never a matter of could they do the job? It was simply a case of whether they would be allowed to do it.

 
The 1st Jötnar Battalion

“Admiral, video signal from Prometheus. It’s Commander Anderson,” said Lieutenant Nilsson.

Admiral Jarvis looked down to the smaller view screen. It was positioned so that only she could see the content. She was surprised to hear that her old friend wanted to speak with her. She had left him in charge of the defences of the colony and its secretive underground factories and research labs. The image changed to a one-way video transmission from Commander Anderson. She was immediately transported back to the time, just months before, when he had been her XO on the Crusader.

“Admiral. Half of the reserve fleet, including the Army transport and most of the escorts, have just returned to orbit around Prometheus. They were ambushed after leaving the storms and several of the ships were destroyed. Most of them are showing damage from high power weapons. Our scientists here believe they are using a direct energy weapons, possibly a particle beam. If so, the weapon will agitate and explode the target in line of sight. There is a chance the Vengeance has been captured. The Yorkdale is in pursuit.”

He paused for a moment and then leaned in closer to the camera.

“I had information on one of the ships to be delivered to you by hand. Sergeant Bishop was due to give it to you, as well as a handpicked unit of Jötnar. The ship is one of those missing following the ambush. I have no idea of its whereabouts,” he said shaking his head.

“Reports from the ships that escaped the attack, say there is a fleet of approximately thirty ships out there and they include a number of heavy cruisers. This fleet might be heading our way or on the way to hit your forces, there is no way of knowing. I will send more data as it arrives. We already have a dozens escorts out scouting the storms and around the colony to keep an eye out for them.”

An image popped up to the side of the video feed with three rough schematics and several shots from the gun cameras. It showed a cruiser, much like the Leviathan though perhaps a little smaller. Commander Anderson continued.

“If these forces do enter your location, we could really do with capturing one of their ships. I appreciate that probably won’t be easy, but Kowalski informs me this level of technology is easily thirty years ahead of where we are. It could be critical to the war effort,” he said with a wry smile.

Admiral Jarvis smiled inwardly at the comment. The Commander knew full well how hard it was to get close enough to even consider a boarding action, let alone carrying one out to its successful conclusion. It was normal for a ship that was about to be boarded to accelerate away or even to self-destruct. Anderson turned to look at something and then back at the camera.

“I have to help prepare the defences. If they do arrive, we have enough ships, defences and minefields to drag it out for weeks, maybe months. Good luck, Admiral, I’ll be in touch. Anderson out.”

The image turned black and Admiral Jarvis sat, stunned for a moment. She wasn’t sure which part had hit her hardest. The fact her reinforcements were not coming or that there was a force of thirty or more ships lurking somewhere. A fleet of that size could cause her serious problems on her new campaign. She considered responding but knew in her heart that a few minutes either way would make little difference to what was about to happen. Right now she had Euryale, the Leviathan and a rogue War Barge to deal with.

She looked around at the CiC, like her the rest of the crew were still strapped into their seats. The vessel had been accelerating since the pursuit of the Leviathan had begun. It was slow, but they were finally starting to gain on the enemy ship. Lieutenant Nilsson calling over to the Captain caught her attention.

“Video signal from the Leviathan,” she said.

“Put it on the main screen,” replied Captain Tobler.

The face of an old looking man in a dark gown appeared on the display. A small number of men in the robes of the Zealots moved around him. Something the crew of the Crusader hadn’t seen for some months.

“Typhon!” hissed Admiral Jarvis from the back of the CiC.

“Euryale is sovereign territory, as is all of Proxima Centauri. You tried to sabotage our efforts on Prime and failed, then Kerberos. Your regime is a catalogue of brutality and failure. The remnants of your dictatorship have no influence here. The days of the Confederacy are over. Your pitiful forces will be ground to dust if you stay here. Order your forces to leave the colony or we will be forced to unleash fire upon the surface to cleanse it of your unholy taint.”

“He’s bluffing, jam him!” snarled the Admiral, her disdain for the leader of the enemy forces being obvious.

“Sir, he’s not heading for the transports. He’s moving directly above the city.”

A hush spread through the CiC as the gravity of what was about to happen became evident. The loss of ships was insignificant to the destruction of a colony and its civilian population.

“What? Can his weapons penetrate the atmosphere?” Captain Tobler asked desperately.

“I don’t know. We have to stop her and fast! I will not lose another colony!”

Admiral Jarvis brought up her tactical display and selected an open channel to all Confed vessels in the Fleet. Though the Captain was in command of the battlecruiser, the Admiral commanded the entire Fleet and the operation in Euryale.

“All ships within range of the Leviathan. She is about to release a weapon on the colony. Use any and all means to stop her. There are hundreds of thousands of lives depending on us!”

“Sir, the Vengeance, her engines have cut. It looks like she is losing power. She is still moving towards the planet.”

“Looks like the Jötnar have a use after all,” she said quietly, smiling to herself.

“Fifty kilometres from the Leviathan, firing reverse thrusters. We are in range, Captain,” said the XO.

“You don’t need my orders, you know what to do,” he replied.

The XO picked up the intercom microphone, before he could speak the tactical officer interrupted him.

“Sir, the Cruz and Santa Maria are putting up heavy defensive fire, their railguns are hitting the Leviathan hard.”

The XO looked at him and shook his head.

“It’s not enough. We’ve raked her twice at close range. She’s got thick skin, this bastard!”

He grabbed the intercom. “This is the XO. Commence firing, don’t stop till she burns!”

The continuous rumble and reverberation of the gun batteries firing resumed. It could be felt through all major bulkheads in the ship. They were at optimum firing distance, but he knew a few good hits wouldn’t finish the fight. Based on how long the battle against the Battleship CCS Victorious had taken, it could be an hour before they were able to cripple the vessel completely.

“Direct hit!” called out the tactical officer. “Port engine damaged, continuing fire.”

Captain Tobler nodded in satisfaction and watched as parts of the Leviathan tore off from the massive vessel. More flashes indicated impacts from the railguns as they smashed the stern, causing substantial damage. Two squadrons of Lightning fighters turned away after releasing their Skua missiles, but each one was easily shot down buy the myriad of turrets along the ship’s hull.

“She’s firing up her starboard thrusters...wait, she’s coming around.”

The XO grabbed the intercom. “All stations, brace for impact!” he shouted.

“She’s charging up her primary weapons. Wait, I’m picking up more ships.”

“What?” demanded Admiral Jarvis.

On the main screen the image of the turning heavy cruiser slid to the side to make space for a mass of dots that quickly grew in size.

“They’ll be here in three minutes, their transmissions and IFF systems are blocked.”

“Blocked by their own ships or being jammed by these bastards?” said the XO bitterly.

“Use everything we have, crash the fighters into her weapons if we have to, she must be stopped!” cried out the Admiral.

* * *

Spartan, Teresa and Marcus fanned out as they moved between two low buildings. Unlike the rest of the city, this section seemed to have avoided the explosions and gunfire that had gutted most of the rest of the surface. Behind them moved the engineers, themselves being carefully watched by three more Vanguards. In the distance behind them, the arc of tracers from the ground gave away the closing enemy troops as they moved in on the city. It wouldn’t be long before they were at the walls.

“How much further?” asked Marcus.

“Not long, past the next building, through the yard and over the wall. The pathfinders are already in position,” replied Spartan.

They kept on, the heavy thud of the armoured legs mixing in with the pneumatic whine of pistons. They covered the ground fast and quickly moved into the yard. One six-wheeled truck lay partially assembled to one side. Spartan glanced to his right when he spotted to bipedal machines. For a second he was about to fire, when he realised they were just forklifts, nothing he needed to concern himself with.

“Spartan, look!” called Teresa.

Spartan looked over, further to his right. About a hundred metres out to the side a dozen men in carapace armour were jogging past the buildings. The path the men were taking ran exactly parallel with the Vanguards.

“That can’t be a coincidence, they must be trying to stop us reaching the landing zone. Teresa, you escort them. Marcus come with me!” he growled.

The two Vanguards slightly altered their course and crossed the space between the two groups and moved on the enemy. On his rear video feed, Spartan watched Teresa and the other marines stomp away and towards the objective. He kept moving as fast as the massive armoured legs would let him.

“Spartan, watch...” shouted Marcus, before a rocket slammed into his chest and knocked him to the ground. Spartan threw himself to the side and into the wall of a small structure. The mass and weight of his suit smashed through the outer wall, leaving broken stone and masonry all around him. Cannon rounds clattered about him and he was forced to roll to the side to avoid being hit.