Operation Hellfire (21 page)

"Hey, Matilda."

She looked back at him, her eyes seeming to burrow into his mind.

"Yes?"

"Can we win this?"

Matilda shook her head.

"They outnumber us three to one. With every hour we stay, the odds of our defeat increase exponentially."

"Yeah, we know that," said Rex.

He seemed back to his grumpy self, and Nate found that almost relaxing.

"But how long until we will lose the fight?"

Matilda's face remained neutral. Nate was sure he could see fear in her eyes.

"Forty minutes before the last civilian ships can leave."

If it had been anybody else, Nate might have laughed this off. But not Matilda, she was the closest thing to a living computer. If that was what she said, then that was the way it was. Matilda would have included calculations from the first minutes, and then on to every arrival.

We're going to lose?

* * *

"The Alliance expects every man and woman in the fleet to do their duty. You must be quick, decisive, and aggressive. Listen to your officers, and remember your training. Take advantage of the enemy's mistakes, and punish them hard. Good hunting, and remember, every minute we hold here saves live."

The voice echoed through the deck as the pilots and crew listened to the final words of the Admiral. They had already gone through their position in the fleet, and the phases of the fight a dozen times. But as the minutes ticked down, the reality became clear to them all. Ensign Hawkins signalled for the Squadron to move to him, and one by one, without a single grumble, they did just that. The mood as the pilots moved into an informal circle was unlike anything Nate had ever experienced. They'd gone into missions before, but they were down to eight effective pilots, and the mission left none of them in doubt as to its outcome. Success would mean nothing more than escape. Failure would mean death. All of them were there apart from Billy and Cassandra, both of whom were in the Fighter Control Suite, along with those in Thunder Squadron who were unable to pilot spacecraft. Ensign Hawkins spoke first, once all eight of them were ready.

"Okay, this is it. Eight of us, two gunships and four fighters to join the CAP around ANS Warlord, are we ready?"

Two of the pilots answered in a low-pitched tone, much to his disappointment.

"Come on!" said Hawkins, "This is the greatest battle of our generation. An entire Alliance armada up against these militia and their lackeys from the Empire."

Rex shook his head.

"Hawkins. We know the mission, and we know it's gonna be tough out there. We know, believe me."

Ensign Travis Foss nodded as he listened.

"Rex is right. This ain't no simulation, Hawkins. We've taken a beating already, and now we're down to just eight of us. We need to survive this one, not go out in a blaze of glory."

Hawkins was rewarded by silence, and it lasted several more seconds before Matilda intervened.

"Exactly. A gun blazing assault will end all of us in minutes."

All eyes turned towards her. Though not technically the oldest, at twenty-one, she still came across as something close to the grown-up amongst them.

"If we stay calm and work as a team, we can get through this. Statistically, if we play for time and space, we can drag out a fight in our favour. As long as the capital ships can protect themselves from the bulk of the gunfire."

Nate smiled as he listened. Until today it had always been them and us for the members of the Squadron. Now with a deadly threat coming towards them, and after having taken painful losses, they were finally one unit. A squadron of veterans, perhaps even equals.

"We need to repeat the New Carlos simulation," said Nate.

The Foss brothers gave him a bewildered glance.

"New Carlos?" Hawkins asked.

"Yeah, he's right," said Rex, "Pairs are not going to work, not this time. The only chance we've got is by using the gunships to do the work. It will give us the edge. We've only got six craft in the air, plus the drone."

Hawkins shook his head and lifted his hands up in surprise.

"What do you mean, Rex?"

Matilda used her hands to try and explain.

"We put the gunships in the middle and form up two fighters as permanent escort. We then stay in formation and use the increased combat power to hunt down and overwhelm small groups of enemy fighters."

"Right," said Artur, "Like the combat landing we did on Kerberos. In the rain, right?"

"Exactly," said Nate, "But this time it won't be a simulation, it will be for real."

Hawkins pointed off to where the lone drone gunship sat like an angry bug.

"And what about that one?"

This time Nate gave them a smirk.

"We use it for bait. When they go for it, we punish them."

"Yeah!" Artur said.

Several of the others muttered in agreement, and Ensign Hawkins nodded to himself, satisfied with what they were about to do.

"Right then. Hands together."

Each of the eight pilots pushed out their hands so that they all touched in a circle.

"Knighthawks!" Hawkins called out; the rest followed up with their chorus.

"Let's do this!"

They separated as each of them ran to their spacecraft. The Foss brothers took one of the gunships, Matilda and Ensign Fletcher the second. The other four moved to the ladders that led up into the cockpits of their Kerberos Pattern Lightning IIA Fighter Bombers. Small pools of vapour accumulated underneath them as the final amounts of coolant were pumped aboard. Like most Alliance spacecraft, multiple reservoirs of the liquid were used to help cool integral systems to keep the heat signature to a minimum.

"Sir, she's all ready for you. We've made the control adjustments you requested."

Nate nodded politely.

"Thank you."

He started to climb the ladder, then stopped and looked back at the crewman. With his right hand, he extended it and shook hands.

"I appreciate the work you've put into her. They are all exceptional spacecraft. I won't let you down."

Once he reached the top of the ladder the man called up to him.

"Just try and bring this one back in one piece, Sir."

His face widened into a grin, and Nat clambered inside, chuckling to himself. The canopy was already moving down as he pulled his straps on around his body, and then waited as they self adjusted to the optimum setting. He closed his eyes for a second and tried to imagine his current position in the ship, and then in the fleet. It was something he often did before a simulation, a way to ensure he had full situational awareness before entering the maelstrom of violence that a space battle could be. So many times, he'd launched in the Star Crusader game and run directly into the guns of an approaching ship.

Stay calm. You can do this. All of you can.

"Okay, people, you know the drill," said Ensign Hawkins, "Run your checks and get ready."

Nate opened his eyes and checked to his left and right. All six spacecraft for the Squadron were now in position and waiting for their launch orders. To his left Matilda, and on his right, Rex. All of their fighters had been given a new lick of paint in the last few hours, as well as bold Knighthawk symbols where they'd been worn off or damaged in combat. The familiar voice of Commander Higgins returned to his ears, and Nate found himself wishing it was back to the way they'd first started, with him and his friends inside the carrier and controlling the drones from the same room. This might be reality for a pilot, but it was also one of the loneliest things Nate had ever done.

"Knighthawks, prepare to launch. The enemy fleet is on the move, ETA, twenty-five minutes. Fifty-five warships and they are preparing to launch fighters."

Nate licked his lips nervously as one by one they ran through their checks. It didn't take long before the locks were off, and his fighter had been pushed out through the inner airlock and to the final launch position. Now only a single door kept him from outer space, and in a few more seconds it was open, and he could see the vastness of space. This flank was facing away from the enemy forces and directly at the great Rift. Though it was fifty thousand kilometres from the ships, it still looked like swirling eyes, a whirlpool of energy that flickered and flashed as each civilian ship travelled through. He watched his scanners mark the departure of a single civilian heavy transport, and for the briefest moment wished he was aboard it.

Not today, we've got work to do.

"Launching in ten."

Nate swallowed, took a long breath, and then smiled.

Here we go again.

"Launch!"

* * *

15 Minutes Later

The first ten minutes of the space battle at the Fiorr Veej Rift were the most terrifying minutes in Nate's life. Before the ships were even close enough to see, they had already fired a dozen salvos. The entire region between the two fleets was a maelstrom of carnage. Projectiles moved back and forth as they exchanged fire at almost a thousand kilometres. The great streaks of gunfire flashed from both sides while the fighters did their best to stay well out of the way. All the Alliance ships were now surrounded by the dreaded flak corridor; imaginary areas of space that were now filled with exploding projectiles and shrapnel.

"Knighthawks, Corsairs, form up on Warlord’s starboard bow. You've got incoming," said Commander Higgins, "Enemy fighters are coming our way."

"Affirmative," replied Ensign Hawkins, "On the way."

The two formations rolled to the right and activated their burners. Hawkins led the first formation, and Nate the second. Next to the hulking warships they seemed so puny and insignificant, yet Nate and his friends knew the damage they could inflict as a unit. As they moved away, a massive volley of kinetic projectiles slammed against ANS Warlord's hull. For a second, the side of the ship vanished in a cloud of fire and shards of metal. As the flames subsided, Nate grinned at what he could see.

Those defence turrets are kicking serious butt!

His smile vanished as a second volley struck the same area. This time a handful of the high-speed slugs penetrated the outer hull and left black holes along the flank of the ship. It took less than three minutes to reach the designated point.

"All units in formation," said Ensign Hawkins.

Where are they?

Nate looked ahead at the cloud of enemy ships. They were now seven hundred kilometres away, and the computer had marked out multiple ships with red icons. Nate was tempted to open fire, but from this distance only his missiles had a chance, and a small one at that.

"Hold fire, Knighthawks. Wait for my word."

The shapes moved closer and closer, but Nate's eyes were on one ship, and one ship only.

"What are they doing?" Ensign Fletcher asked.

Nate's eyes narrowed, but from the forward display it was hard to tell. A quick glance at the tactical display almost made him choke.

"I...I can't believe it."

Nate had assumed this enemy Admiral would form up his superior numbers in formation, and then use overwhelming fire to batter the Alliance forces. Instead, they had formed up in a wedge formation, with the civilian vessels at the front and the heavy ships behind them. On the map it looked like a spearhead, and it was aimed directly at the Rift.

"Why don't they close the Rift?" asked Ensign Fletcher.

"Cut the chatter, Knighthawk Seven. The Spacebridge is permanent, like all internal Byotai Spacebridges."

The Ensign’s voice faded to be replaced by the grim sound of Admiral Churchill. His low-pitched booming voice filled Nate with both confidence and dread.

"This is the Admiral. All ships concentrate on their forward warships. Burn them!"

New waypoints and targets appeared on Nate's overlay. Commander Higgins’ voice returned.

"Hit their ships hard, then turn on their fighters. Good hunting."

Ensign Hawkins gave the order, and as one they accelerated away from the fleet. Corsair Squadron did the same, as well as the multiple squadrons launched from the other ships in the fleet. Nate looked to his right and observed the other fighters heading in the same direction. He began to smile, only to see a Lightning fighter vanish in a fireball. That snapped his attention back to what lay in front. Hundreds of white and yellow dots formed in front of the fighters and then screamed past them, like a waterfall of death.

"Follow me!" Ensign Hawkins yelled.

Nate activated his burners and felt the familiar kick in his stomach as they lurched ahead.

So it begins.

50,000Kms from Fiorr Veej Rift

A pair of Hawkmoth fighters exploded just in front of Nate as he crashed through their wreckage. His comrades followed right behind, still firing as they went. The entire area around the fighters filled with flames and flashes, and then they burst out into clear space.

"Yeah!" Rex yelled.

Nate blinked, but when his eyes opened he was amazed to find a line of dots heading right at him. The computer scanners had failed to detect the threat, but he could tell what they were. He'd played fleet defence missions enough to know when warheads were heading right at him.

"Break!"

Nate yanked on the stick and rolled his fighter, pulling the trigger just as a volley of hypersonic torpedoes screamed past. They were close, and had they been proximity-detonated missiles he might have been killed there and then. Luckily for him, they were ship killers and heading directly at ANS Relentless. As he moved back to his previous course, he looked back to make sure the guns of the fleet were doing their job. It was almost impossible to see them now with so many guns firing. Puffs and flashes rippled around the ships as though they were putting on a lavish firework ceremony.

"Stay with me," said Lieutenant Commander Holder.

The spacecraft from both Knighthawk and Corsair Squadrons formed up into four small units, a mixture of different marks of Lightning fighters, along with the two extra gunships. The Lieutenant Commander took the lead position, with her fighters rolling into position with incredible poise and prowess.

Nice
, Nate thought.

"Lock on the nearest three heavy transports. Target these locations. Prepare Sea Skuas."

Nate didn't both checking what they were, and simply acknowledged the order and locked on the designated positions with his weapons.

"On my mark...Fire!"

Each fighter released a pair of the missiles and then immediately rolled away from their firing positions. These heavy anti-ship missiles continued to accelerate as they hurtled towards the bow of the ships. Long-range guns from the fleet had already hammered the front vessels.

"Great work. Watch your tails. We've got fighters. Break and engage."

When they reached the half-way point, the missiles split up, some moving above the ship, others below, and the rest head out to the side. That was the point at which the enemy fighters finally closed the distance. Nate tugged twice on his controls to avoid them as a great mass of Hawkmoth and Mahingan fighters rushed through their formation. Incredibly, neither side was hit, but it did momentarily break their formation.

This is insanity.

A quick glance ahead showed him a line of Alliance ships, all shrouded in flashes. Streaks leapt out from their many gun systems, and if it weren't for the overlay system, he would have had no idea what was happening.

"Knighthawk Two, evade, now!"

Nate didn't hesitate and instantly moved his controls. He rolled out of the path of a drifting engine and rejoined his small formation. Off in the distance he spotted Corsair Squadron in pursuit of a unit of newly arrived Komodo heavy bombers.

"Good work, Knighthawks. Keep hitting their fighters and give the heavies the space to use their big guns," said Commander Higgins.

Nate smiled at hearing this. Their craft were much better suited to the close quarter melee with other fighters than they were against capital ships. He looked again at the fighters from Corsair Squadron and suddenly felt a strong desire to fight alongside then. The icons for the missiles changed course, and Nate watched for a brief moment as they arced back towards the ship and moved in against its sides.

Beautiful.

"Missile contact," said Lieutenant Commander Holder.

Nate glanced briefly at his tactical overlay and watched as dozens of them made it past the minimal turret defences and exploded in a series of terrible blasts. By the time the sixth missile hit, the first ship tore into three sections, with flashes leaping about the wreckage. The two at its flanks took more impacts but kept on coming, even though they were now burning on multiple decks. Another icon popped up in his line of sight, and this one surprised him. It was a lone gunship, and as Nate closed the distance, he spotted four of the medium fighters moving in to attack it.

"Stay in formation, Knighthawk Seven."

"Right behind you," said Matilda.

Nate glanced back and quickly found the brutish shape of the Bullnose gunship right there. And to its left the Lightning piloted by Rex.

So who is that?

Nate looked back at the lone gunship and immediately knew.

Billy!

"Okay, follow me in. Billy is flying as bait. We'll use him to pick them off."

The three spacecraft rolled to the left and accelerated towards the distant gunship. The enemy fighters were right behind it, and unfortunately for them, Nate and his comrades were just four kilometres away and right in their blind spot.

"Use guns, and make the shots count," said Nate.

The three spacecraft closed the distance until the shot was almost impossible to miss.

"Fire!"

The guns of the two Lightnings were powerful enough, but when the 60mm chin-mounted railguns on the gunship opened up, it was devastating. The first burst struck one of the Mahingans in the fuselage and cut it in half. It spun out of control and cut into the second; what remained of the rest quickly dealt with by turret fire from the other fighters. Only one of the damaged craft managed to pull away, but without thinking, Rex boosted his engines to pursue.

"Back in formation!" Nate snapped.

The engines of the fighter pulsed once more, but he then reduced speed and fell back into position. A pair of Hawkmoth fighters appeared from behind a large section of a damaged ship and streaked past, directly in front. They passed by the area recently vacated by Rex, leaving them exposed to the full arsenal of the fighters. Two turned to attack Rex, but the rest of the group was already there. Billy had accelerated just in front of them and took a long burst of gunfire that crashed through his right flank. A turret ripped off, but the gunship kept on flying, much to Nate's amazement.

"Now!"

As before, they opened fire with their guns, hitting the Hawkmoths as they passed. One lifted up to escape, but Matilda was on the fighter like a flash. Though it managed to avoid her main gun, it was too late to avoid the burst from her forward mounted turrets. With so little time to react, they were cut apart, and the wreckage from their craft joined the many others now littering the space before the Spacebridge.

"You were right, Knighthawk Two," said Rex, "Thanks for the heads up."

Nate smiled at hearing him speak. It was quite an admission on his part.

"Affirmative, Knighthawk Three."

The formation split apart to avoid the wreckage, regrouping in a wide circling position as they looked for new targets. Other fighter squadrons from the fleet were engaged in all directions, and Nate could have watched them for hours had it not been for his own modest part in the mission. The supercarrier was still heading towards ANS Warlord, but with much of her protective screen of ships gone, she had slowed her advance and sent in a wave of ships to soak up the fire first. The great ship waited behind its suicidal militia ships like a general coordinating a battle from the rear echelon; only trading shots with ships and fighters if they strayed too close. A signal flashed on Nate's overlay from Corsair Squadron.

Lieutenant Commander Holder.

"The enemy carrier is falling back behind its escorts. Admiral Churchill needs heavy weapons brought into the fray and fast. The carrier appears to be readying her flight decks, presumably to launch a fighter strike. My fighters have detected large numbers being readied to launch, including twenty plus Komodo bombers."

Nate swallowed uncomfortably at that news. He remembered the last time they'd gone up against Komodos, and it hadn't been much fun.

"Corsairs and Jackals will attack now."

Nate licked his lips with relish.

"Sir, we will support you."

"Negative, Knighthawks. Get back to Relentless. Rearm, and then get back here, fast! This battle is a long way from over."

Nate pulled his fighter around, and the rest of the unit formed up with him.

"You heard the Lieutenant Commander. Get back and rearm fast. We've got a fight to win."

They accelerated away from the enemy ships and towards the line of beleaguered Alliance warships. Nate could see the bow of Relentless was already open and landing fighters almost continually, as she rearmed and launched them in a matter of minutes. As Nate lined up to land, he wondered when was the last time she had been in such a fight. Once given permission to land, he moved through the bow and shook his head.

Who cares? Just grab the ammo and get back out there!

* * *

Nate waited in silence as the elevator continued moving to its position on the port hangar deck. The craft rocked gently as it made its way through the shaft in the heart of the ship. With no pomp or ceremony, he emerged onto the deck, and it took a few moments before the fighter was stationary. The clamps moved into position to hold it firmly onto the deck, and then the canopy hissed open. Nate kept his helmet on, but deactivated the faceplate so that he could breathe in the warm air. A friendly face appeared at the top of a ladder, as one of the deck crew came to check him.

"Good to have you back, Sir. What do you need?"

"Thanks, refuelling and rearming. Just anti-ship ordnance."

The man looked back and called out to his deck crew. Robotic loaders and machines were already connected to his fighter and busily lifting weapons to his pylons. It was more like the process carried out by a motorcar racing team, and even Nate was amazed at the speed and skill on show.

Now that is impressive.

"What about your wing, Sir?"

Nate leaned to the side and glanced back at the angular winglets. One had lost a section from the tip.

"She'll live."

The man nodded and moved back down from view.

"Eight minutes and you'll be back in the air, Sir."

* * *

They had been back in action for twenty minutes already and taken several close hits. Rex had been hit in one of his engines, and Nate had even lost another winglet to a nearby missile blast. The battle had degenerated into a mess as ships faced off against each other in small skirmishes. Meanwhile, large bands of roving fighters swirled about in bloody dogfights.

An Alliance destroyer vanished in a circular white flash. When the explosion cleared, he was stunned to see the ship had gone, to be replaced by a burning hulk.

"Mayday, mayday!" called out a terrified voice, "ANS Boston is down. We've sustained multiple atomic strikes. Powerplant is down, engines destroyed. Crew are evacuating. Need..."

Another pair of blasts shattered the stern as an atomic warhead ripped off a section the size of a frigate. Smaller pulses of energy showed where lifeboats blasted away from the ship, but another explosion ended the chance of many of them being able to escape. Nate glanced at the clock in his cockpit. The mission seemed endless.

"My...damaged..take command," said Ensign Hawkins.

Nate looked to his right. The other half of the Knighthawks was forming up alongside his own group. He almost burst out in happiness at seeing they were all there, even though Hawkins' fighter was burnt all down the one side. A section of his port fuselage was missing, and electrical cables and circuits lay exposed to the violence of the battle.

"Affirmative," said Nate, "I'm taking over the position of Knighthawk Leader. All form up. We need to assist the ANS Boston."

"Negative," said Commander Higgins, "You will follow the Lieutenant Commander's lead."

Nate began to argue but was silenced by the stern voice of Captain Cornwallis who overruled both of them.

"Your orders are clear, Knighthawk Squadron. I am sending all available fighters in this quadrant of the battle to the enemy carrier."

His voice was taken over by Commander Higgins.

"You heard the Captain. Knighthawks will join in a four-squadron assault on the carrier. Here are your targets."

Waypoints popped up for each target, one allocated to the entirety of the Knighthawks. They had been given the centre of the ship where the fighters were launching.

"ANS Harbinger will lead the attack on the ship, supported by three frigates. Your job is to keep the fighters busy before she gets there, and then regroup to assist in the attack."

He sent in additional target data to each of them.

"Hit her fast, and before she can launch all her fighters," said Commander Higgins, "You'll have backup on the way."

"Sir," replied Nate.

He passed on the orders to his wingmen, and then as one they hit their burners.