Sol Shall Rise (The Pike Chronicles Book 1) (8 page)

“Jump system is at 100%. We are jump ready,” said Ensign Yao.

“Initiate,” said Jon.

The computer started the now familiar countdown. Jon’s body settled into a flexible readiness. They were the ones doing the hunting now. A comfortable role for Jon. The Hermes jumped and the lightheaded sensation returned.

“Jump complete,” said the computer.

“Report.”

“We have successfully jumped into the Valen system. Fifty light years from our previous location. One hundred light years from the Sol system. Jump system at 76%. We are jump ready,” said Yao.

“Reading all clear. No contacts,” said Ensign Petrovic.

“Navigation, load coordinates for second jump.”

“Coordinates loaded.”

“Initiate.”

The computer counted down and the Hermes jumped to its new coordinates.

“Jump complete.”

“Report.”

“We have successfully jumped into the Draidan system. Fifty light years from our previous location. One hundred and fifty light years from the Sol system. Jump system is at 51%. We are jump ready,” said Yao.

“Reading all clear. No contacts,” said Petrovic.

Tallos turned to Jon, “Captain, we are now entering unexplored regions of space. This presents a unique opportunity to gather what may be invaluable intelligence.”

Jon straightened his back and took a couple of deep breaths before responding. “Hunting down the Juttari vessel is our first priority,” he said in a dismissive tone. Why did this damn Diakan keep interfering with his command? He looked at the stars on the viewscreen and realized that Tallos might have a point. This region hadn’t been explored. At least there was no record of it. As the first human ship in this region he had a responsibility to Sol to at least have a look around. “Nonetheless, we can spend a few minutes conducting some deep scans. Commander, initiate long range scans of this region. We jump in five minutes.”

“Yes, Sir,” said Wolfe.

Thank you, Captain,” said Tallos.

Jon nodded.

“Captain, I wanted to commend you on your success in battle against the Juttari vessel. You displayed an impressive command of battle tactics,” said Tallos.

The compliment caught Jon off guard. Why was Tallos trying to kiss his butt all of a sudden? He couldn’t remember receiving a compliment from a Diakan before, and almost didn’t know how to respond. The whole thing felt awkward. He rolled his head across his shoulders, trying to relieve some of the tension building up there, and decided to acknowledge the compliment. “Thank you, Special Envoy.”

“You are quite welcome, Captain. And, if I might add, your plan for pursuing the Juttari is tactically sound.”

Now things were getting weird. He assumed that was a compliment as well. It must be difficult for the Diakan. Saying thank you to a Diakan sure was difficult for him.

When the five minutes passed the hunt resumed. The Hermes conducted their third successful jump. They were now deep in unexplored space. No ship, Diakan or Juttari, had traveled into this region of space before, primarily because there were no nearby jump gates to facilitate such a trip.

The Diakan and Juttari empires spanned thousands of light years, but this expansion had only been made possible by the jump gates. Exploring regions where there were no jump gates was considered unnecessary.

Since the jump gates stretched from one end of the galaxy to the other, why would anyone bother venturing into regions where no jump gates existed? It was this fact alone that saved the lost colonies. By shutting down their jump gate they ensured their salvation, and isolation.

The Hermes was now two hundred light years away from the Sol system. While Earth ships had faster than light speed (FTL) capabilities, it would still take more than a lifetime to reach this region of space from Earth. Jon doubted whether anyone even considered attempting the trip. The logistics alone of such a journey would be a nightmare. But now, with the jump drive, great swaths of unexplored space had become reachable. And the isolation of the colonies would soon come to an end.

The Hermes had jumped into a system dominated by a red giant star. Even from a safe distance it dominated the viewscreen. Ten planets orbited the behemoth, none of them showing any evidence of life. Long range scans were conducted again and while they showed some promising data, nothing indicated any signs of civilization.

And so the Hermes jumped for the fourth time, this time landing near a binary star system. Two blinding suns orbiting each other, swirling in a blue, fiery dance. The first star, the vampire, sucked energy from the second, and a stream of blazing blue clasped the two in a deadly embrace. This would be their last jump until the jump drive recharged. Jon knew that this would likely be the place where the Juttari would need to recharge their jump drive as well.

“Are there any asteroid fields nearby?” Jon asked.

“Reading a large asteroid field approximately eighty million kilometers away,” said Navigation.

“Good, identify a decent cluster where the Hermes can stay hidden and send the coordinates to the helm. Helm, take us into the asteroid field. One quarter light.”

“Setting course for asteroid field. One quarter light,” Said Richards.

The density of the field made it a good hiding spot. The Juttari wouldn’t notice them unless they entered it themselves. The Hermes would wait amongst the rocks like a lion in the tall Savannah grass stalking its prey. Jon knew from the previous engagement that the Hermes was the superior ship in battle. She was faster, more agile, and had more firepower. Ambush had been the Juttari’s only advantage, and now the Hermes would use that same advantage against them.

The Hermes entered the asteroid field and the stars practically disappeared from the viewscreen, the view now dominated by a rocky cluster that reminded Jon of the ball pit his daughters liked to play in. The rocks ranged in size from pebbles to small moons larger than the Hermes. Tiny stones bounced incessantly off the ship’s hull, creating a ghostly drumming sound throughout the ship. These didn’t pose much of a threat, yet the sound still unsettled the crew. The larger asteroids, however, were another matter.

Ensign Richards showed no signs of stress, looking almost like a rock himself as he maneuvered the Hermes to avoid the giant boulders. His hands remained steady, and his eyes stayed focused on his controls. Even his legs didn’t move, or even twitch. Could anything rattle this kid?

“Don’t break my ship, Ensign,” said Jon.

“No Sir,” said Richards.

There was no physical reaction to the comment that Jon could see. No twitch, no tick, no involuntary flexing. Nothing. On the viewscreen the ship seemed like it was gliding through the asteroid field. Swaying from side to side like a leaf falling from a tree it effortlessly swung around each obstacle. Every movement fluid, the Hermes seemed to dance and play with the rocks surrounding her.

Well within the field now, the Hermes settled into position. They would wait here until they could engage the Juttari. A feeling of serenity washed over Jon. He had never realized how beautiful an asteroid field could be. There was none of the fiery violence of a star, or the desolate emptiness of space. Instead, you were surrounded by quiet floating spheres. Imperfect and captivating in their starkness. For the first time in weeks he felt himself relax. He sank into his chair and tilted his head back slightly, allowing the contour of his headrest to free his neck. The stress of the last few days slowly dissipated and his chest loosened. He took a few deep but gentle breaths, and quietly let his diaphragm expand and contract, each exhale unloading fragments of the tension that had been compounding inside him. Secretly he hoped it would be a while before the Juttari arrived.

“Reading weapon signatures!” said Petrovic.

“Location?” said Wolfe.

“All around us.” Petrovic’s face went white. “They’re on the asteroids.”

On the larger asteroids surrounding the Hermes, turrets emerged from deep inside the rocky surface. Coming online they swiveled and locked onto the floating ship.

“Weapons hot!”

The turrets opened fire. Violent explosions hammered the ship and the bridge crew struggled to maintain their balance.

“Sound general quarters,” said Jon. “Helm, get us the hell out of here! Tactical, feed weapon signature data to helm for evasive action.”

On the viewscreen the serene landscape from a few moments earlier now erupted into a hellish gauntlet of cannon fire. Red tracer lines zigzagged across the sky like a celestial spider web. Streams of plasma fire sprayed out from the large asteroids hammering the Hermes and pulverizing any rocks getting in the way.

Unable to return the way they came, Richards plowed deeper into the asteroid field looking for a way out of the rocky labyrinth. His head jerked from side to side trying to keep track of the multiple information feeds lighting up his console. His hands moved like pistons making split second course corrections to compensate for the constant wave of new threats. Jon noticed a few beads of sweat appear on his temple, convincing him that the kid was human after all.

Cannon fire continued to pound the ship, the explosions combining with the rapping of rocks against the hull, fraying the nerves of all on board. With each turn a new turret emerged, opening fire on the Hermes as she passed.

“Set rail guns to offensive mode. Auto target all weapon signatures within range. Fire energy weapons at will. Target weapon systems as they appear,” said Jon.

The Hermes rail gun turrets sprayed a barrage of depleted uranium against the firing cannons. Blue energy beams joined in, destroying the deadly turrets one by one. On the bridge crew members involuntarily put hands in front of their faces, fooled by the viewscreen into thinking they were going to crash into giant rock after giant rock.

A particularly violent impact rocked the bridge causing one of the consoles to shatter firing sparks into the face of a young Ensign. Jerking backwards, she fell off her chair onto her back and screamed. Her hands shot up to her face, fingers clawing at her eyes trying in vain to stop them from burning. Her body twisted and writhed, her legs kicking out at invisible attackers.

Commander Wolfe raced to the Ensign’s side, calling for medical help as she moved. Reaching the Ensign she crouched down beside her and wrapped her arms around the terrified woman’s shoulders, trying to help soothe her. It appeared to work and her screams turned into sobs. Her body convulsed with each breath, but she let Wolfe pull her up into a sitting position and leaned into Wolfe’s shoulder. Hands still fixed on her eyes, she sat there until the medics arrived on the bridge. Wolfe waved them over and they began treating the Ensign. Satisfied with the medics taking control, Wolfe got up and went back to her station.

Jon was still impressed with Ensign Richards. He continued to display the skill that won him so many competitions on Earth, making the Hermes bob, weave, and often miss oncoming asteroids by what seemed like mere centimeters. His hands now moved with lightning precision, but his shoulders were hunched and tight and his chin was tucked in, pressing hard against his clavicle. Jon was pretty sure nobody had fired on him when he was racing back home. Still, the kid handled the pressure well.

“Hull breach, deck Gamma,” the computer announced.

“Seal off deck Gamma,” said Commander Wolfe.

“Fires on decks Beta, Kappa, and Theta. Fire suppression systems activated,” said the computer.

They continued to adapt to their situation. On the viewscreen a turret fired off a couple of shots and was immediately destroyed. The Hermes turned and faced more enemy fire which was immediately suppressed. They were still being shot at from multiple directions, but they now began to mitigate the damage. The ship’s AI had quickly analyzed the installations and started predicting their placement. This advantage allowed the Hermes to quickly destroy new turrets, sometimes before they could open fire.

Nonetheless, she still took a serious pounding while trying to escape. The density that made the field a great hiding place now turned it into a maze of horrors, with each turn revealing a new threat. Ensign Richards continued to show his flying prowess, evading threat after threat and impressing Jon with how well he handled the pressure. Jon swore he would buy the kid a drink if he got them out of the field alive.

And much to everyone’s surprise, Richards did get them out of the field alive, albeit with heavy damage. The Hermes had a hole in its side from the hull breach, and fires still raged in several sections of the ship. The armor plating on the hull had been hammered hard and had surely been weakened as a result.

“Damage report,” said Jon.

“Five casualties,” said Wolfe. “All a result of the hull breaches on deck Gamma. The deck has been successfully sealed off. There are a number of injuries, but nothing serious. Mostly contusions and the odd broken bone. Multiple fires have broken out throughout the ship, but suppression systems appear to have them under control. There is some minor damage in engineering, but neither the reactors nor the jump system have been damaged. Weapons systems have not been hit and are operating at one hundred percent.”

“Have engineering pull together a – “

“Contact,” shouted Petrovic. “Two unidentified ships closing fast.”