Galactic Freighter: Scourge of the Deep Space Pirates (Contact) (29 page)

The Admiral's comm interrupted Danko's comments. "Captain, we'll handle this."

"Good, but we'll put our cannons to work as well," Danko said. He wasn't challenging the Navy, but those who knew him understood he wouldn't permit someone to shoot at ships under his command and not expect retaliation. And the twenty-six ships he'd brought to Seltsam were his responsibility.

As it was, his ships were no more than targets. He ordered the unarmed ships into low orbit to make the best of what cover the Navy could provide and hoped it was enough and then set a course for his armed ships to leave orbit, gaining the needed space to maneuver.

The Admiral knew the Fryman ships were armed but that they couldn't match the firepower that his destroyers and cruisers brought to a fight.

"Have you identified the shooters?" Danko questioned still on the inter-ship comm.

"No known registry," the Admiral replied. "Probably part of the rebellion." He added, "The rebels had a good thing going here and want Seltsam back."

If the rebels won the day, it would be only a matter of time before Seltsam surrendered. The surface weaponry would be useless against a blockade. The enemy would starve Seltsam into surrender. It would take the better part of a year to assemble enough of Iona’s fleet make a difference.

Danko didn't wait for the Navy and accelerated away from the planet.

He positioned his ships to give the best defense available: limited, he agreed but it would have to do.

He studied the screen as the Ionian Navy and attackers jockeyed for superior positions.

It quickly became obvious the Ionian Admiral was the better tactician and winning the first part of the battle.

"The fleet should be in attack position within the hour," the comm squawked.

Danko acknowledged and promised that his four ships would cover the fleet's port flank.

The hour passed and Danko stepped to the helm. He watched the Ionian Navy fleet close on the unknown ships. "Two enemy ships have changed their heading," radar said. "Lowering their orbit."

"Looks like they're after our freighters." Danko studied the plot and ordered a course change. "Thirty degrees ascension, acceleration, ten thousand kps until we reach these coordinates." He touched the plot screen. "Then bring our nose about one hundred ten degrees declination, same heading. Weapons, arm with two stage missiles and stand by to fire on my order."

He'd be on a sliding vector that would make an old-fashioned crossing the "T" maneuver.

Danko remained at the plot console. By concentrating his four ships firepower, the Molly Celeste had the equivalence of a destroyer's broadside. Not many ships could survive that kind of attack. Those attacking him lacked the reinforced hulls that could give them survivability.

Danko watched the plot. On the open comm with the Ionian fleet, he said, "I can take them, Admiral."

"Captain Danko," there was a definite pause; "any chance you can capture one of them. I want to know who's behind this."

"That'll be a change," Danko responded with a laugh. "Most of our experience is repelling boarding's. We should have learned something having captured fifty ships." Only the Molly Celeste would make this shot.

Danko gave the course change to intercept the two enemy ships that had left the formation, a court martial offense in a regular Navy. These people were obviously not that well trained and lacked discipline. It would cost them dearly.

"Attitude change, they see us," radar said.

"Helm, hold your heading."

Both enemy ships slewed, suggesting that a course change was coming but Danko thought the maneuver a feint.

Asked by the astrogator if Molly should change course to meet the threat, Danko told him to maintain the current heading.

"Weapons, loaded with two-stage missiles, two tubes," the weapons station reported.

"Helm, increase our speed, one half military."

"Sir, on that heading they'll have a clear broadside on us," the astrogator said.

"We'll see. Hold your course and speed." Danko suspected these guys wanted to run not fight.

"Weapons, one missile at each ship."

The missiles, programmed to launch their second stage warheads two seconds after first stage burnout, would intercept the enemy before it could react. He was betting the enemy carried no defensive missiles that could intercept the Molly Celeste's barrage.

As part of Danko's deception, the missiles’ first stages were set to explode, suggesting premature detonation.

"Make damned sure that you have the missiles pointed at the enemy ships." Danko didn't want any lose warheads flying around with so many friendlies in the area.

"Second stage set to explode on impact," weapons said. "They've heeled over. Looks like an emergency stop.

"Damn," said radar and looked up at Danko. "The second stage will go right up their tailpipes. They don't have a clue we're going to shoot the shit out of them."

As planned and predicted by radar, a small missile sped up the exhausts of each ship, destroying their engines.

"Obviously, they had never seen that little maneuver before," Danko said, and added, "Probably the first fight they've been in."

The comm squawked. "Captain Danko, if we should ever be on opposite sides, I'll never know which end of my ship to protect," the Ionian Admiral said. "Magnificent maneuver. I have two pinnaces with fifty Marines on each ready to board the ships."

"Thank you, Admiral. We do claim salvage rights."

That brought a laugh. "Of course."

Danko's attention remained fixed on the plot board during the comm with the Navy officer. "How's the fight going, Admiral?" It was a courtesy question, he could read the plot, and it was obvious that the renegades were running for safer space.

"It seems they expected your freighters to be alone. Didn't know we were here. Bad intelligence. The enemy has scattered—spaced. All but the two we will soon board. I'll post pickets in case they try again."

Danko assembled the freighters on the Molly Celeste and set course for Iona.

"I can detail two ships to accompany you, Captain," the Admiral offered.

With only his four armed ships to protect twenty-six, two warships would be a welcomed comfort.

"If you don't need them here to protect Seltsam, Admiral," Danko responded.

"It's a scheduled spacing. We rotate ships regularly. Their replacements are less than one T-day out-system."

Danko thanked the Admiral and waited as one destroyer and a cruiser joined up with his ships.

Along with his four armed Fryman ships, they set a perimeter screen around the freighter fleet and spaced on a vector for Iona.

***

Ten days away from Seltsam, radar picked up a number of trailing ships.

"Don't give up easily, do they?" someone commented.

"They're cowards," another voice responded. "Without the Navy, they think we'll be easy to take."

Danko commed the protecting screen of ships. They agreed on a coordinated response until Danko realized there might be a better option. "Captain,” he said, “let's rethink this. I believe if we reverse course and went straight down their throat it would completely disrupt their attack. Right down the middle of them with everything we've got. I think it will wreak havoc on them. They'll scatter like Delovian chickens."

"Not a preferred tactic, Captain," the cruiser Captain said. "I can't sanction that."

"I understand, by your manual." Danko made sure his tone remained positive. "As High Fleet Admiral Hizerman said, Lord Fryman's thinking is usually
outside the box
and he was my teacher. Never had any other.

"Captain, take another look at your plot. In the current formation, when they shoot there's a high risk of killing their own ships. They are in close formation, a parade formation. That's all these guys have ever done… parade around impressing each other. I believe it will work, and will give us what we want, need. Standard tactics won’t work—they outnumber us five to one. Not a good thing. We can't afford to trade shots."

After a long delay, apparently following a discussion with his staff, the Navy Captain agreed—reluctantly. Apparently, not wanting to see who could outlast the other in a shot swap had its effect on his decision.

Danko gave the necessary instructions to each ship. The Molly Celeste would lead the attack, followed by the cruiser, then destroyer and two of the remaining three armed freighters joining the line. One armed freighter would stay with the unarmed ships one million kilometers above the fight.

Following Danko's lead, the fleet assembled. On their initial heading, it would appear to the enemy that the Ionian fleet would attack using an old-fashioned crossing the "T" formation.

Too late, they realized that was a preparatory maneuver as the Ionian's altered their vector.

Danko retracted the antennae and probe, closed the blast shield that covered the ramming on Molly's nose making any head-on shot a wasted one. This was the same reasoning he'd given the Ionian Navy Captain for his leading the assault.

Accelerating at military speed, the two warring fleets closed.

As Danko had predicted, the enemy hadn't anticipated a sustained frontal assault instead expecting Danko to break formation and allow the enemy to pick unprotected targets.

With his ships in a staggered array, each had a clear shooting path into the enemy. Danko opened fire. The reaction was totally predictable as the enemy ships changed from attack to survival mode. Maneuvering away from the oncoming assault, each enemy ship acted on their own initiative with confusion and disorder the result.

Racing through the enemy, using his aft thrusters to bring his forward weapons to bear, Danko killed everything in his path. The head-on attack didn't expose the most vulnerable area on most ships, but as they maneuvered, the enemy had a clear shot at Danko’s fleet’s softer flanks.

Danko concentrated on one ship at a time, as he sped through the enemy. All five ships rained continuous destruction on every enemy they targeted. Danko's concern for his weapons overheating ended as the Molly Celeste cleared the formation.

Once through the maelstrom, Danko ordered an emergency reverse with orders to attack targets of opportunity. The enemy ships died, one by one—their formation; destroyed utterly. Of the twelve ships, four were floating junk, six appeared space worthy but no longer contestants, two had escaped unscathed, and spaced. The enemy fought like what they were, unexperienced.

"Damage report," Danko said.

The assault hadn't come without some pain. Of his six attacking ships, three had taken hits, one had lost ten crewmen. Even the Molly Celeste would need repairs.

Saving lives became the order of the day. Seltsam spaced technical and medical help along with space tugs to capture and repair those ships no longer capable of making way under their own power.

***

Danko stepped off the shuttle onto the cruisers hanger deck with full sideboard honors. Something granted few civilians.

Escorted by three Marines, two leading and one behind, Danko, and the cruiser Captain stopped at the wardroom.

Congratulations flowed back and forth. Some crewman commented on the unorthodox maneuver. Danko let them know he had the best teacher in the universe, Buck Fryman.

Festivities ended and Danko reassembled his ships and resumed course for home. He declined salvage rights on the captured enemy ships. Insisting on his priority might come across as unseemly as the outcome could have been quite different had the two Ionian naval ships not participated.

Chapter Twenty-Nine:
Barnard's Star

"
O
ne hell of a mess we're in." Grover Waters faced Jarred Mahoney.

Water's second term as president of Barnard's Star hadn't gone as he had hoped. "That bastard Fryman made asses of us all. Now an Ionian fleet has us bottled up, all because I listened to you. And now this." He waved the vid pad. "Every damned ship we sent to Seltsam destroyed. I warned you, Mahoney."

Undismayed, Jarred Mahoney, leader of the rebellion against Sebastian, malcontent according to some, make-believe Emperor said others, ruthless according everyone, didn't want to argue with the man. Mainly because what Waters said was all too true. And the President might still be of use if Mahoney was to salvage anything from the fate they both now faced.

Admittedly, his problems were immensely more serious. Killing the prince almost assuredly meant the gallows waited.

"It isn't over," Mahoney said. "Not by a long shot. I still have a fleet available. More than the Ionian squadron can handle." The Ionian ships he referred to now blockaded Barnard's Star.

"Like they did at Seltsam? Like they did letting half a dozen men take your ship with a crew of one hundred twenty and walk off unscathed," retaliated Waters. "You've been wrong on every count, Mahoney. Everything these incompetents of yours have attempted has ended in failure. And now this." He waved the vid pad again. "You've given me no reason to think your inept people will do anything but repeat their past performance. And Iona has over a thousand more ships where those on orbit came from.

"You've gotten me into a war with Iona after all your assurances. Give it up Mahoney. I'm not ready to have my planet die for you."

"Like hell I will. Had you sent sufficient ships to support Katakan we would not be having this discussion. I need to get off the planet and you'll provide my cover. I'll be at my condo when you've completed the necessary arrangements." Mahoney stormed from the office, climbed into his aircar for his residence.

Mahoney had no illusions about President Waters and considered his alternatives, which were few. A prolonged blockade meant riots. Barnard’s Star had less than one month's provisions of perishable foods. The people and parliament would be on Waters' neck to give Jarred Mahoney to the Ionian Navy. He would not rely on the President to help him get off planet. Instead, he’d make his own escape.

***

Jarred Mahoney walked into his condominium acting nonchalant, something he didn't feel. Elegant by any standards, opulent by most, the best and most expensive materials architects could find had gone into the condominium’s design. Gold, cobalt, and ruby chips embedded in the ceiling bathed by hidden lights created a kaleidoscope that changed as the viewer moved across the black marble floor.