First Command (31 page)

      
His was a simple plan:
 
sweep the enemy from his path, destroy any enemy bases, reload, and prepare to hold at the enemy entrance to the star cluster.
 
If he came across little resistance, he might advance further and see what he could accomplish.
 
After all, the Human side of the star cluster may be a backwater for them too.
 
He dreamed of avenging the defeat at G’Dranu.

* * * * *

      
Steven Maynard, uneasy with what had been reported to him from the sweep, ordered his operations section to have the torpedo squadrons maintain a 24 hour patrol of the star cluster approaches.
 
If he couldn’t find this mystery ship, he could at least make it more difficult for it to sneak back in.

      
He called a meeting of his torpedo ship squadron commanders.
 
It was time to reinforce the need for clear and concise reporting upon contact.
 
He also thought about that shipment of space mines the Excelsior had captured.
 
He ordered his operations staff to start having them placed in an all around defense surrounding Barataria.
 
He wanted the path mined in both directions, in case the mystery ship came around behind them.

      
A torpedo ship could carry and deploy mines as easily as torpedoes.
 
He ordered all the Charybdis models loaded with mines for the first three patrols.
 
That should build them a good defensive shield quickly, and then they would fill in the gaps with later patrols.

      
Maynard felt better, now that he had a plan in effect.

* * * * *

      
Thorson spent Fourth Day with Julia Debran.
 
There was little he could do until his ship was completed and launched.
 
As usual, she dragged him into her bed and worked hard to wear him out.
 
Afterwards, he pulled her over on top of him and told her that he wanted her for more than just sex.
 
He didn’t say it, because it was foreign to him, but he undoubtedly loved her.

      
He told her that if she wanted, he would take her and her daughters with him when he had his ship.
 
He could see to it that she never had to see her husband again.

      
She appreciated the thought, but knew that Steven Maynard would never let her go and lose out on the chance of 100 million credits.
 
She kissed Thorson and told him he was crazy.
 
She rubbed against him until this insane thought left his mind and other feelings took over.

      
When Thorson fell deeply asleep, Julia slid out of bed, walked across the room, and looked down at her two daughters sunning by the pool.
 
She wished it was possible for them to leave with Thorson and free herself and her daughters, but Maynard and her husband would never let this happen.
 
She walked back to her bed and looked down at the exhausted Thorson.
 
She wouldn’t admit it to him, barely to herself, but she loved him, too.

* * * * *

      
Kelly called a meeting with his command group, Alistair Bennett, and Chief Johnson, while the Vigilant travelled to a rendezvous with the 3rd ALG.
 
The goal of this meeting was to see if they could find a gravity tunnel, other than the sensor-seeded path they went down today, that would be large enough to bring the 3rd ALG secretly on top of the pirate base.
 
Not all the ships of the 3rd ALG were built with the structural strength and integrity of the Vigilant.
 
They would have to find a wide gravity tunnel of 2-G or less to bring the group through.

      
After two hours of twisting and turning the holographic representation this way and that, they had found no path large enough or with low enough gravity to bring them through.
 
They would have to go through on the main path they traversed today.

      
Next he put his brain trust to finding a way to eliminate or blind the early warning sensors along the path.
 
Chief Blankenship suggested seeing if they could infect the system with a virus.
 
Kelly reminded her that they turned in the wartime virus kit after the New Alexandria campaign was completed.
 
She suggested she might be able to make one.
 
Kelly asked her what she might need to start constructing just such a virus.
 
She leaned over to confer with Chief Johnson and said, “We might have all I need on the sensor data files from today.”

      
“How long do you think you’ll need, Chief?”

      
“Oh, about a day, I believe.”

      
Kelly excused her and Chief Johnson to get started.
 
He told her to keep him informed of status.

      
At that, he released LTJG Cortez to turn in and get some rest.
 
Kelly asked Alistair to stay behind.

      
“Alistair, did you notice that the EW sensors were all they had?
 
They had no other early warning sensors, surveillance sensors, or fire control sensors on the planet, either.
 
With the exception of those torpedo ships and a few cutters, they were virtually defenseless.”

      
Alistair responded, “Captain, they may have figured that the star cluster would provide them with all the protection they would ever need.
 
Another hypothesis is that we came for them before they were ready.
 
Did you notice the barracks on the north of the town?”

      
“Yes, I did.”

      
“Did you notice the cruciform building in the center of each barracks complex?”

      
“Um, no.
 
Why?”

      
“That was a very specific building and is only native to one kind of unit.
 
Those were transportable chapels belonging to Ascetic units of battalion size or larger.
 
You have at least a brigade of Ascetics down there.
 
Three thousand or more religious zealot mercenaries are probably providing security and ground defense for that planet.”

      
Kelly had heard of the Ascetics, or the Templar Corps, as they referred to themselves.
 
They were fierce fighters with a reputation for tenacity and innovation in battle.
 
They used to only fight on the side of good, but occasionally found their units on both sides of the battlefield.

      
“Alistair, will you prepare a briefing paper for me to hand Admiral Minacci and his staff when I attend the commander’s call once the 3rd ALG arrives?”

      
“Certainly.
 
I’ll include a complete order of battle laydown, too.”

* * * * *

      
Another rendezvous was taking place in the Rigel-Aldebaran sector.
 
Friedrich Debran’s hired fleet was assembling over Rigel Prime’s pole.
 
Captain Alden counted ships as they pulled up to his ship.
 
He seemed to be missing a gun corvette and two missile boats.
 
He called up Captain McDougall, the other corvette captain, and asked where the missing corvette was.
 
Corvettes carried three forward-firing heavy guns and up to 40 medium missiles on internal rotary launchers.

      
“Ben,” replied Captain Mac, “Captain Dobbs accidently argued with a Fleet frigate and thus won’t be fulfilling any more contracts.
 
Sorry, I couldn’t find a replacement on such short notice.”

      
Alden called the senior missile boat captain to find out why he was short two missile boats.
 
Missile boats carried thirty heavy missiles in internal and external mounts.
 
They were a heavy punch in a small package.
 
It was one ship that many hostile commanders underestimated.

      
Captain Argo reminded Captain Alden that missile boats were no longer in production and he had to cannibalize two of them to keep the other eight operational.

      
Captain Delong came up on the communicator and offered that, as long as Ben was concerned with shortages, he was missing thirty assault troops from one of his armed cargo ships, but he had more ammunition loaded in their place.
 
Ben just shook his head.

      
The last ship to arrive was Captain Cho in her fighter carrier.
 
Ben breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the sun glint off her hull.
 
Her four fighters were the linchpins to his plan to either rescue the Debran women or decimate the planet.
 
His plan was to infiltrate a few special operatives onto the planet on her fighters and have them sniff out the Debrans’ location.
 
They were specialists in blending into the environment.

      
When all ships were in laser transmission range, he set up a laser ring and video conferenced with the captains.
 
He laid out his plan and could sense general agreement.
 
He entertained suggestions from the gathered captains, then accepted some and rejected a few.
 
In the end, it made for a stronger plan and ensured the captains bought into the plan because their ideas were incorporated.

      
Ben closed out the videoconference by telling them all to disperse but to be at the mouth of the star cluster at a given time tomorrow.
 
Ben took his gun corvette, Cecelia, to a geostationary parking position over Rigel Prime and rested his crew in preparation for tomorrow’s events.

Chapter Twelve

      
Admiral Paolo Minacci sat in the astrographer’s bubble on the top of the Assault Support Carrier, Golden Eagle, as it sped through space at top speed.
 
His command was arrayed all around him.
 
It was a powerful but compact force for enforcing the Galactic Republic’s will throughout space.
 
His flagship carried two fighter squadrons equipped with twelve F-48s each.
 
These were the up-engined models with the extendable atmospheric wings.
 
They could carry nine missiles or bombs in external and internal mounts.
 
They were equally good in the fighter role and ground support role.
 
He also had two attack squadrons equipped with twelve AS-76s each.
 
These ships were his heavy hauler attack ships and each could carry the bomb and missile load of two F-48s.
 
His support squadron had an early warning ship, four search and rescue ships, and two electronic warfare ships.

      
Arrayed in an arrowhead formation behind him were his three Landing Assault Carriers, each with a dozen AS-500 landing craft capable of carrying 100 marines each with their heavy weapons and providing suppressive fire from six hypervelocity plasma cannons.
 
Each carrier could land a brigade of Marines in one lift.

      
Off to port and starboard were his two plasma frigates.
 
These were bombardment ships capable of destroying planetary defenses and facilities from the edges of space with pinpoint accuracy.
 
They could take out a single enemy shooting from inside a house without even rattling a teacup in the next-door neighbor’s kitchen.
 
They also carried defensive missile pods to provide anti-fighter and anti-missile defense of the fleet.
 
Following directly astern were his two replenishment ships carrying all weapon reloads, food, repair parts, and assorted supplies for the group.

      
Admiral Minacci was proud of his command.
 
He was grateful that this combat opportunity came so soon after he assumed command.
 
He had served on the Fleet Staff during the New Alexandria Campaign, and was afraid he may have missed any chance for combat experience.
 
These pirates were going to be his ticket to higher rank and awards.

* * * * *

      
Thorson thought about Julia during the ride back to his home.
 
Now that he was a captain, he qualified for a large house, almost a villa, on the southern ridgeline.
 
Of course, he would have to pay off the house and his ship with plunder and prize vessels.

      
He was pretty sure he loved Julia.
 
She was all he thought about lately.
 
He hated the time he spent away from her.
 
If it wasn’t love, it was probably something that would disqualify him as captain.