Galactic Empire Wars: Rebellion (The Galactic Empire Wars Book 3) (28 page)

“All ships are
in position,” reported Commander Makita. “Fleet Commander Achlyn says his
forces are ready to engage the Kleese.”

“We’ll hit
them with our new missiles, first,” Kelly said as he weighed his options.

“All ships are
at Condition One and marines are at their security posts,” added Makita from
his command console. “We’re as ready as we’re going to get.”

“Twenty
minutes until weapons range,” Lieutenant Fullerton reported her hazel eyes
focusing on the admiral.

“I want the
first strike,” spoke Kelly, looking over at Lieutenant Marsten at Tactical.
“All ships will fire a full spread of the new missiles upon my order. Then
we’ll advance and engage the Kleese.”

-

Colonel Wade
Nelson was standing next to Beth, waiting tensely for orders. They were both
encased in Type Three battlesuits and two companies of marines were waiting
with them. Marines had been dispersed to various sections of the massive
station to await the Kleese attack.

“We’re within
ten minutes of all primary docking collars on this side of the station,”
commented Wade, looking over at Beth. He wished he could see her face, but the
heavy protective helmet of the battlesuit hid everything, even her eyes.

Beth nodded.
She knew due to the size of the Kleese battlecruisers they would have to use
the collars to dock to the station and then board. A platoon of marines was
stationed at each docking station waiting to see what happened. If the Kleese
succeeded in boarding, then she and Wade would take their marines to help repel
the Kleese. Or at least that was the plan. Major Winfrey was doing the same on
the other side of the station with several companies. Other marines were
defending the flight bays and additional high-risk areas of the massive station.

“At least Ryan
will miss this,” Beth said, knowing that was a relief to Wade. The Defender was
still in transit to Lanolth.

“Did you
manage to speak to your mother?” Wade asked. He knew Beth had tried to send a
message before communications were shut down.

“No,” she
answered, pensively. “I didn’t make it in time. By now she’s in the deep
shelter close to the retirement center.”

“I’m sure
she’ll be fine,” Wade said, reassuringly. He knew his parents would also be
safe in one of the heavily reinforced bunkers. Even if the habitats in Vesta
were penetrated and lost their atmospheres, the bunkers would remain safe.

“Maybe the
fleet will keep them away from Centerpoint,” Beth said.

“This station
is heavily armed,” Wade reminded her. “Even if the Kleese get past the fleet,
the station’s weapons might prove an insurmountable obstacle.”

“I hope so,”
Beth responded. She clenched her fist, thinking she was getting too old for
this. When this was over, maybe it was time for her to speak to Wade about
having children. It would be easy enough to get reassigned permanently to
Centerpoint or even Vesta.

Wade took a
deep breath, feeling the growing anxiety of going into battle. Beth was a good
marine and excellent in combat, but sometimes bad things happened even to the
best.

-

Harmock gazed
in anticipation at the main tactical display. Both his fleet and War Overlord
Tetus’ fleet were coordinating their attacks to hit the Humans at the same
precise moment. This battle would be quick and very destructive to the waiting
Human forces. It would serve as an abject lesson to the nonaligned worlds not
to oppose the Kleese.

“The Humans
and Deltons have less than five hundred ships to oppose us and many of those
are assault ships,” reported Minor Overlord Gareth as he studied the tactical
screen.

“We will take
some losses, but our fleet will prevail,” predicted Harmock. “It’s disturbing
the Humans have so many ships. The trading station should never have been
allowed to remain in their hands.”

“That will be
remedied shortly,” Gareth responded. “Our warriors are ready to board the
station and bring it back under our control. We will annihilate all the vermin
currently on board.”

“As it should
be,” Harmock replied in a cold voice. “They will die for the transgressions
they have committed against our race.”

“Extreme
weapons range,” reported Salten from the weapons console. “Target locks
confirmed.”

-

“Fire!”
ordered Fleet Admiral Kelly, seeing the green target lights glowing on the
tactical console.

He leaned
forward, gripping the armrests on his command chair. What would happen when the
new multi warhead antimatter missiles struck the Kleese shields? Six
forty-megaton explosions should have a devastating effect, particularly when
delivered within microseconds of one another. They had been fortunate in
acquiring the new antimatter technology in time to allow the R&D people to
equip many of the multi warhead missiles with the more powerful antimatter
charges.

“Firing,”
replied Lieutenant Edmonson as fourteen sublight missiles darted away from the
Armageddon.

In all, nearly
one thousand of the new missiles exited the missile tubes of the Human and
Delton warships to strike the Kleese shields. The attack was unexpected as the
new technology made the missiles difficult to shoot down. Even so, the Kleese
defensive computers located and destroyed three hundred and seven with intense
energy weapons fire before the rest impacted Kleese energy shields.

Fleet Admiral
Kelly saw the viewscreens in the Command Center suddenly glow with a severe
brightness before the filters automatically kicked in, reducing the light.

“Impact,”
reported Lieutenant Fullerton.

When the
screens cleared, Admiral Kelly was stunned to see the effects of the missile
strike on the Kleese ships. Everywhere he looked, he saw debris and burning
warships.

“We hurt
them!” yelled Makita, jubilantly. “They never expected that. The new missiles
blew right through their shields!”

“Kleese ships
are returning fire,” reported Fullerton as his sensors lit up with inbound
weapons fire. “Missiles, pulse fusion beams, and energy weapons!”

-

“Close the
range!” ordered Harmock stunned at the damage the Humans and Deltons had
inflicted on his fleet. For several moments, the entire Kleese fleet had been
lit up by the fury of the exploding warheads. “Their sublight missiles can’t
lock on if we get within minimal combat range.”

“Ours won’t,
either,” stated Gareth as he looked at the carnage the Humans and Deltons had
wreaked on the Kleese fleet. “Those warheads were in the forty-megaton range.”
Looking at the viewscreens, he could see several Kleese battlecruisers with
large sections blasted out of their hulls and others, which had been reduced to
nothing more than scattering debris and glowing gases. They could not afford to
fight a missile duel with the Humans.

“We have an
advantage in energy weapons and pulse fusion beams,” Harmock informed his
second in command. “This battle will now become ship-to-ship and we’ll crush
the Human and Delton fleets.” This would be a new kind of combat. Instead of
firing their weapons from hundreds of kilometers away, they would close to
within twenty or thirty kilometers.

The Warrior’s
Fire trembled as a Human pulse fusion beams struck the ship’s energy screen. It
was shortly followed by warning alarms as a particle beam flashed through the
screen, blasting into a section of the flagship’s hull.

Around the
Warrior’s fire, other ships were heavily damaged or had been destroyed by
multiple missile hits, but the Kleese still had enough warships to handle the
combined Human and Delton fleets and they fully intended to do just that.

The Kleese
fleet accelerated ahead, including the damaged ones, to quickly close the range
with the Human and Delton fleets. A few more of the deadly missiles impacted,
blowing another dozen Kleese battlecruisers into oblivion, and then the Zaltule
battlecruisers were in and amongst the defending warships, making missiles
useless.

Pulse fusion
beams, particle beams, and energy weapons became the predominate weapons as
space became lit up with their deadly fire. Energy screens glowed brightly from
impacts causing cascades of uncontrolled energy to flash across space.

-

“Damn, I
wasn’t expecting that,” groaned Fleet Admiral Kelly as the Armageddon shook
violently from the impact of several Kleese pulse fusion beams. “Order all
ships to gradually pull back toward Centerpoint. We may need the station’s
heavy weapons to win this. How many Zaltule ships did we get with the
missiles?”

“Eighty-seven
in the first wave and another eighteen with the second,” Commander Makita
reported as he studied the data on a computer screen. “Another forty-two ships
are heavily damaged.”

“Concentrate
on the damaged ships and let’s finish them off,” Kelly ordered.

“Battlecruiser
Trident is down,” spoke Lieutenant Fullerton as she saw the friendly green icon
disappear from her sensors. “Light Cruisers Sundance, Victor, Pallas, Gemanoid,
Starla, and Kestrel are down.”

“We’re losing
assault ships too rapidly to keep track of,” added Commander Makita, turning
pale as the losses quickly grew. “Only a few ships are still firing missiles,
we’re having too much trouble locking on at this close range.”

Fleet Admiral
Kelly looked at the viewscreens and could see dying Human and Delton ships, but
the Kleese were suffering losses as well. “Order the assault ships covering
Centerpoint to move to the Moon and cover Luna City,” Kelly ordered as his
fleet slowly pulled back. There were thirty additional assault ships based at Luna City as part of its defense force, and along with the ion cannons that should give the
habitats adequate protection unless the Kleese mounted a major attack.

-

Fleet
Commander Achlyn grimaced as another Delton battlecruiser died under the
powerful pulse fusion beams the Kleese were employing. He'd lost eight of his
battlecruisers since the battle began, but his ships' powerful bow energy
weapons were making the Zaltule pay a heavy price in exchange.

“The
battlecruiser Ascendant is reporting heavy damage,” Baylith reported with
concern in his voice. He knew that every ship they lost was irreplaceable.

“Have them
pull back to Centerpoint,” ordered Achlyn as he watched the tactical display
intently. “Order the Crescent and Balton to advance and engage the Kleese ship
at coordinates C-22 by X-15. We will coordinate our own attack with them to
take it out.”

Achlyn felt
his flagship tremble from Kleese energy and pulse fusion beams striking the
ship’s energy shield. On one of the viewscreens, he saw a number of heavy
energy beams strike a Zaltule battlecruiser, causing its energy screen to erupt
in a cascade of light before two of the beams penetrated, blasting deep,
glowing holes in the ship’s armor. Almost instantly, a multitude of beams tore
through the weakened screen, drilling deep into the Zaltule ship. A massive
explosion lit up the screen as the Kleese ship blew apart.

“For Delton,”
muttered Baylith as he watched the scattering and burning debris on the screen.

-

Admiral Layton
gazed in fury at a viewscreen as one of her light cruisers disintegrated. Her
biggest advantage were the new missiles, and the unbelievably close range this
battle was being fought had neutralized that weapon
.
After
considering her options, she knew there was only one way to bring the missiles
back into play.

“London, New York, and Freedom,” she said over her com, which connected her to the other
three heavy battlecruisers. “Standby to accelerate to full power on X axis
seventy degrees for twenty seconds then do a complete turnover and fire a full
spread of missiles.” By doing this maneuver, it would take them briefly out of
the melee and far enough away to lock onto the Kleese warships.

Admiral Layton
waited a few moments and then spoke into her com. “Implement maneuver!”

Instantly, all
four heavy battlecruisers accelerated away on their subspace drives from the
battle. For twenty seconds, they hurtled past the Kleese ships before turning
one hundred eighty degrees on their center axis and firing full spreads of
their multi warhead missiles. Ten Kleese ships were struck and blew apart as
forty-megaton antimatter explosions tore through their hulls. The Kleese,
seeing the danger, instantly sent twenty of their warships after the heavy
battlecruisers.

“They’ll be
ready for that next time,” Admiral Layton said grimly. “Head back to the fleet
and let’s show them our new plasma weapon.”

-

The Phoenix was dropping down near the outer atmosphere of Mars, the rest of Second, Third, and
Fourth Fleet were close by. They'd managed to get off two full spreads of the
new missiles before the Kleese warships closed the range and nearly over ran
the defending fleets. Even so, they had managed to take out forty-eight of the
attacking ships and damage another twenty.

“The
battlecruiser Starlight is under heavy attack,” reported Ensign Sullivan from
his sensor console.

“Order the
light cruisers Queensbury and Drake to assist,” Sanders ordered as the Phoenix shuddered violently and warning alarms began sounding.

“General
Sanchez reports the Kleese ships are nearly within range of his ion cannons,”
Lieutenant Brassels reported from Communications.

The Phoenix shook violently and the lights in the Command Center flickered. Sanders looked
questionably at Commander Carey Vickers.

“We’ve lost
Secondary Engineering,” she reported, grimly. “Energy shield is down to sixty
percent and we have several fires burning out of control. A damn Zaltule pulse
fusion beam penetrated our shield!”

“We have four
Zaltule battlecruisers bearing down on us,” warned Sullivan as he watched the
four nearing red threat icons worriedly.