Battleship Destroyer (88 page)

Looking up Jack
could see the marine squads being pulled out around that side of the ship and the breakthrough and back to the other side of the ship leaving the Apes behind. That was not what he had in mind even though the Red Apes seemed to be doing a damn good job guarding the trunks on this side of the ship without human help. "Ok that is not going to work at all.

Jack's comm beeped
as he was reaching for his forearm comm. "Captain, I am pulling back my troops to this side of the ship as we drop down to our next strong point deck. It will be easier to defend a few deck junctions on this side of the ship than an entire deck across the whole ship. Only your Apes are refusing to redeploy without your orders.  You need to start pulling back and bring them with you to this side of the ship." 

"
No Commander. You need to hold for now. We have set up trap to buy us time and it is working. We have to hold in place until the refugees are finished loading. Start setting traps on the decks below to buy us time when we do head for the boat. With your reinforcements from this side of the ship you should have no problem hanging on until it is time. Captain out."

Jack looked around his side of the ship lo
oking for good places for traps below the deck the Red Apes were defending and noticed a large compartment down on the boat lock deck that looked like the boat bay on the other side. Only this one looked like it had a big boat in it. Comparing both locks he realized that the boat on this side of the ship was a hell of a lot bigger. Turning to one of the Red Apes Jack smiled. "Do you know anything about another boat bay on this side of the ship?"

The Ape turned from the firing slit. "Yes Officer Captain Turner Sir.
It is another maintenance bay for our assault boats."

"Good. On the next assault I want you to let the enemy start getting closer to this passageway. Then in a couple of more assaults you can fall back to the next junction and let them get well established at this hatch before blowing it. Then again start letting them get a little farther down the passageway before taking them out on each subsequent assault. Then pick another passageway around the trunk compartment and tell them to do the same thing. Do you understand that?"

"Yes Captain. Why Captain?"

"They have to think they are making progress to keep drawing troops into our trap.
I am going to check out that boat in the other lock. Do you have any pilots amongst you or at least someone that is familiar with your Assaultboats?"

"We have no
pilots’ sir. That is for Officers only but we do have troops trained in the weapons on assault boats. Do you want a Weapons Trooper to accompany you sir?"

"Yes that would be good. Thank you.
" Jack started to leave then turned back to the big Red Ape. "Ah. Do you have a name?"

The Ape said something Jack could not understand but sounded like Gutner Dank"

"Ok Gutner Dank, call me then with an update on the enemy progress every few minutes." Jack turned and headed for the lock not far away.

The Ensign Catching up to him asked.
"Why the hell do we need another lock to defend?"

"We are going to be deluged with enemy Apes shortly
and I am hoping that it may allow us to sneak out the back door when the time comes if that assault boat of the Ape's is any good. Besides it will probably have everything a ship needs to navigate and communicate in enemy space. The next best thing to taking this ship's bridge."

It only took a few minutes of close examination to see that the enemy boat was in good shape but that he had no idea how to pilot it. The controls were so foreign. Even with the help of the Weapons Ape
translating the console readouts and controls, Jack realized that it would take a while to figure them out, not to mention getting the engines lit off. Time he did not have. Jogging back to the other side of the ship he found the boat bay still full of aliens loading pallets to the ceiling of the boat not leaving any room for people to ride along.

The Translator Pan rushed up to Jack with what Jack
decided was what his species called a smile. "We are making great progress in loading supplies and equipment Officer Captain Turner. I heard of your great glorious battle victory."

"Damn it. I was expecting you to have most of your people off the ship by now
Pan."

"Yes Captain. We are using your great victory to allow us to load as much cargo as possible."

"Yes I can see that. There is no room left on this shuttle for anyone but everyone leaves on the next shuttle. Got that? We cannot hold much longer. We have to get off the ship before we get slammed by all the reinforcements headed down ship."

"Yes Captain Turner."

Jack shook his head in amazement as the packed shuttle left the bay and cargo continued to pile up at this end. "What can you tell me about that other boat bay and the enemy assault shuttle in it?"

"It has just finished being overhauled Captain and was
scheduled for a test flight before handing it back to the God Officers."

"Captain Turner." The Lizard Ape Gutner Dank said in Jack's Ears.  "Something is wrong Captain. The Enemy
Apes are not being aggressive even though we have pulled back several corridors. In spite of the hundreds we have slaughtered, they should be sending more at an increasing rate and we are only getting a steady trickle that are not making any coordinated attacks."

Jack looked up
and frowned. "Ensign what can you see on the enemy decks above us? I hope it is not what I am seeing?"  Jack said with some alarm.

"Yes Jack. They are massing on this side of the ship while
ignoring the other except to keep them busy."

"Damn!"  Jack slapped his comm. "Commander; you are about to get slammed with a couple thousand Apes. I am sending you reinforcements now." Tapping the comm again. "Gutner Dank.  Have all Red Apes Seal that trunk up
now and prepare to with draw when ordered." Slapping the comm again. "Sgt. you are going to have to take your troops to reinforce the marines leaving that side to the Reds. We will be taking this last boat out." Jack watched another boat back into the bay.

S
topping by the medical tent. He was surprised to see aliens helping along with the wounded Red Apes. "Get your wounded on that boat now Doctor, we are getting out of here."

Jack left the boat bay and started climbing, r
eaching the Marine Command post. Jack walked up to the Commander as he turned around and spotted Jack. "Damn Captain, you told us just in time. But we can’t hold for long."

"You don't have to. We
are leaving on this next shuttle. When you are ready the Red apes will withdraw and reinforce you."

The
Sargent's platoon of marines and armed ships crewmen showed up a few minutes later and the Commander spread them out on the deck below the battle deck around the trunks to cover the retreating marines when they gave up the deck above. The deck above had simply became over run with enemy lizard apes wielding swards and axes along with a growing number of blasters.

Running back
down and into the bay to make final checks for their retreat Jack jerked to a stop. "What the hell is going on here?" The shuttle was packed half full of pallets again with the grated deck down and packed full of aliens. Wondering if they could even get the hatch closed Jack exploded. "I have about 200 marines and Red Apes not to mention the Greenfoots still standing around. How the hell are we supposed to get off the ship?"

"On the next b
oat Captain." The Translator Pan said walking up to Jack. We will leave with you Captain."

Hitting his comm. "Number One how long until the next boat gets here?"

"Sorry Captain but we have run out of room to put everything. We are having to shuttle things around to make room. It will be another half hour before we can get another boat unloaded by the looks of it. I thought everyone left was going to be on this boat sir."

Jack closed h
is eyes shaking his head. "Ya I thought that too but no one told the Greenfoots loading it." Shaking his head frowning.  "Do the best you can Number One and we will just have to hold on. Out"

"Damn it
! We simply do not have the damn time on this ship not to mention waiting for the enemy fleet to catch us. We have to all go now on this boat damn it."  Jack looked at the ramp as it start to raise on the shuttle. "Hell we don't have time to unload that mess." Jack thought for a few seconds debating on how to stop the hatch and then clear out the shuttle's lower deck in only a few minutes and decided it was impossible.  "Damn it. Oh, yes we do have another boat don't we?" Turning to Pan. “You said the God boat was scheduled for a test flight before handing it over? Does that mean you have pilots or someone that can fly the Assault boat?"

"Yes of
course we do Captain. God Officers would never fly a maintenance test flight."

"Good
, get me the crew for it now!" Jack hit his comm. "Pilot, drop that ramp for a few seconds. I have a boat crew to unload and then you are cleared for launching."

The Translator tapped on her
tablet and the people on the upper deck in the shuttle started to move and shift and aliens started dropping off the pallets and grated deck and running down the ramp as Greenfoots resumed throwing boxes in to fill the extra room.

Jack tapped his comm. "
Gutner Dank you can start dropping down to hold the other boat bay now in a slow coordinated withdrawal, setting traps as you go to delay the enemy while we get the other God Boat ready to launch." Looking around at the defensive works they had built around the bay for a last stand to get the last shuttle out safely Jack sighed. "We are just going to have to wing it damn it."

Walking over to the
redoubt that was being used for the medical station Jack walked in around the blast barriers. Spotting the Doctor working on a wounded marine at the other end. Jack walked down the row of wounded marines and red apes. "Doctor, how come these wounded have not gone back to the ship already?"

Looking up from his patient he shook his head. "There is no one over there to take care of them. All my aides and corpsmen are here. When I go they go." Then turned back to spraying foam into the chest wound of the marine.

"Well you need to move them and yourself over to the other lock and the boat waiting there now. We are leaving."

Without looking around at Jack the doctor shook his head. "It is going to take another 15 minutes to get everyone ready to move. That is as soon as I get the rest of my people back down her from the front line."

"Well get them on pallets and the Greenfoots will move them for you and be quick about it.  We don’t' have much time left before we are overrun." Turning Jack left the long narrow redoubt and headed for the other lock.

With some 30
alien boat crewmen and what looked like a hundred Greenfoots, they headed for the other boat bay as the last shuttle slipped out of the bay. "Commander, we are headed for the other boat bay. You can start abandoning this side of the ship."

"What happened to the shuttle?"

"It was full. We are going to use an enemy assault boat in the other boat lock to leave this little cruise ship."

"What the hell!"

"My sentiments exactly Commander but we have no choice. We will need a few minutes to get it going but I am told they just finished overhauling it and were getting ready to take it out on a test flight. So we should have no problems. The Doctor says he will have the wounded ready in 15 minutes."

Jack walked into the
boat bay with the enemy assault shuttle taking up most of it. He looked around the enemy boat for the second time as the alien crew ran into it and the Greenfoots started loading it with pallets. "No damn it. We need to leave room for everyone this time.  Leave the cargo out of it. No more cargo." Jack said as he tried to convey to them with his hands to not load anymore cargo as he stopped one of them

"But there is so much cargo room. M
uch more than your boats." The Greenfoot alien Jack had spoken to said as Jack tried to stop him.

"
Busy mind is sharp mind. We calculate plenty of room for cargo and all humans, apes and us Greenfoot. We are very careful. Got all aliens and cargo into other boat. Did not know it was last boat. Was not told or would have left room for all. We leave room for all on this boat plus cargo. Do not worry." The hundred Greenfoots around Jack continued to load cargo.

"Ok, just what is so important about all the cargo? Why not just leave it?"

"Food needed for all aliens until more can be grown or synthesized as well as wealth to support us in your economy.  Advanced equipment and materials you are not likely to possess in your under developed society. We will live on helping you advance economically and to fight the God Ships and Lizard Apes. Need to take as much as possible if we are to survive with you humans."

"Unbelievable." Turning Jack headed for the bridge of the boat where he had b
een only a short time before after giving up trying to understand the controls. The alien crew was busy all around the boat getting the boat ready to leave. On the bridge the aliens manned all the control consoles except for one central chair behind the pilot. Sitting down in it Jack watched them at the consoles feeling like he knew what each console was for by its placement and the crewman’s familiar actions but could still not understand what control was for what.