The
Sunfire
Book Two of The Redemption Trilogy
By
Mike Smith
Copyright
© 2013 Mike Smith
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S.
Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced,
distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a
database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the
author.
All rights reserved.
The characters and events portrayed in this book are
fictitious. Any similarity to persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not
intended by the author.
Cover image copyright ©
2013
AiTuDou
For Paul and
Christina, my two beautiful children.
The stars by which my
ship sails by.
“I must go down to the seas again
to the lonely sea and sky
and all I ask is a tall ship
and a star to steer her by.”
Sea Fever
By John Masefield
Special thanks to my
editor, Anya, and my proofreader Mirella, for all your help and support. I
could never have finished this without you.
Table of
Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Epilogue
Three Years Previously
The “Sunfire” – Confederation Navy Heavy Cruiser, Beta
Hydri System
The distant star of Beta Hydri was barely visible. Only an
occasional flicker of light penetrated the depths of space this far out on the
very edge of the star system. It was just another pinprick of light, lost among
the other millions of stars that illuminated this spiral arm of the galaxy.
Deep in interstellar space the solar wind, that exotic mixture of charged
particles emitted by the star, was pitifully weak. Apart from a few particles,
the sole remnants of the mighty dust cloud that millennia before had formed
this System, nothing stirred.
Suddenly, as if a breath of wind had picked up, those specks
of dust went spinning away, as the high-energy particles of a forming wormhole
began to leak into space from that higher dimension where distance and time had
little meaning. Where once had been quiet and solitude, a swirling maelstrom of
energy and matter now started to form, tiny at first but growing rapidly, until
it was a gaping void, large enough for the massive starship to easily slip
through.
With its large forward particle cannons, heavy rail guns,
pulse cannons, missile batteries and heavy armour, nobody would mistake the
warship for anything else.
The Sunfire
was the newest and most powerful
heavy cruiser in the short history of the Confederation Navy. It only existed
because the hull had already been completed before the collapse of the
once-great Empire and scrapping the whole project would be more expensive than
that of finishing the ship.
*****
The door to the bridge slid quietly open once the ship had
completed the transition into normal space. Dressed in the immaculate white
uniform of the Imperial Navy, Commander Jonathan Radec observed the scene
before him with distant grey eyes, watching the officers diligently going about
their duties and monitoring the consoles with quiet professionalism. It had
been many years since he had last stepped foot onto the bridge of such a warship.
It once again brought home the stark differences between him and the crew. For
in sharp contrast to Jon in the white of the Imperial Navy, the crew was
dressed in the dark black and red uniforms of the new Confederation Navy.
The Imperial Navy had been disbanded some years earlier, the
first official act of the newly formed Confederation Senate, and why would they
not have? The mighty Empire that had lasted over five generations had been
brought to its knees by the actions of one rogue Imperial Fleet officer. The
newly formed Senate had no intention of letting history repeat itself, so had
ordered the fleet disbanded and in its place the new Confederation Navy was
formed.
Looking at these young men and women attending to their
stations, the first generation of Confederation officers, Jon had his own
doubts. However, what the crew lacked in experience they made up for in spirit.
Having worked with them for almost six months, having talked with them, eaten
with them and fought with them, Jon did not doubt their courage.
“Attention on the bridge,” one of the junior officers called
out, having finally noticed his presence. The rest of the crew immediately
turned to face him, straightening their posture, awaiting his orders. Jon’s
position within the chain-of-command on the ship was vague. Not being part of
the Confederation Navy he held no rank and was officially attached to the
Sunfire
only as an observer. Nevertheless, for the young men and women on board, the
vast majority of whom had only recently graduated from the naval academy, they
looked upon the Commander with something akin to awe and worship.
The Commander’s reputation preceded him. The youngest
Commander ever in the history of the Imperial Navy and one of only a handful to
have been awarded the prestigious Aurelius Star Cluster. Not to mention his
previous role as Commander of the Praetorian Guard, personal aide to the
Emperor and his only daughter, Sofia Aurelius. Jon tore himself away from that
trail of thought, as the pain of recently parting with Sofia was still deeply
upsetting.
“At ease,” Jon responded, observing as the crew once again
turned back to their consoles. From his position Jon could easily observe they
had not relaxed completely, knowing the gaze of the infamous Commander Radec
still lingered on them.
“What’s our position?” Jon directed the question at Captain Stephen
Ferguson, the Commanding Officer of the
Sunfire
.
“Following your suggestion we’ve exited faster-than-light on
the outskirts of the Beta Hydri System, just within the Heliopause. All sensors
are on passive. We are not detecting any energy signatures coming from within
the System. However, if there is anybody out there it’s unlikely that they will
have detected our arrival.” The Captain concluded his brief summary by offering
his chair to the Commander.
“You're the Captain now, Steve, that’s your place on the
bridge,” Jon replied, shaking his head. “I am just here to observe and
occasionally advise.”
“So what do you
advise
that we do now
?”
Ferguson asked with a smirk, once again taking his seat.
The
Sunfire
and crew had spent the past six months in
this sector trying to track down a group of separatist rebels. Not the usual
work for a Confederation Navy heavy cruiser and most certainly not requiring
the presence of an ex-Imperial Navy Commander. However, rumours emanating from
this sector were alarming enough for Navy Intelligence to requisition the ship
and crew to the area. Admiral Sterling, one of the few Imperial Navy Admirals
who had survived the Senate purge, had personally requested Jon’s presence on
the ship. Navy Intelligence had tentatively identified that this particular
group of rebels had been busy devising a new weapon system, one perhaps
dangerous enough to threaten entire star systems. Tracking down the source of these
rumours for the past several months had finally brought the ship and her crew
to this remote, isolated System.
Staring straight ahead, observing the screen, Jon knew the
view was only an illusion. The
Sunfire
was a state-of-the-art warship
and the bridge was located many hundreds of meters within the heart of the
ship. However what they saw was reassuring and reminded the crew of the
vastness of space they had covered.
“If we take the
Sunfire
deeper into the system it
will most likely alert the rebels, assuming that our intelligence is correct
and they have made this System the base of their operations,” Jon reasoned
aloud. “The last thing we want to do is to scare them off, otherwise we will
need to start the search from scratch. Hence I suggest that I take the
Eternal
Light
and scout ahead. The ‘
Light
is far smaller and would therefore
be harder to detect. Even if the shuttle is detected it’s no warship and I
could bluff my way out of any situation, another privateer trying to avoid
paying duty.”
“It could be risky Commander,” Ferguson refuted. “If the
rebels don’t buy it then we will be too far away to offer any assistance.”
“It’s worth the risk. While I have enjoyed your hospitality,
I don’t think any of us would be looking forward to a further six months tour
of duty in this sector hunting them down again.”
Pausing before replying, Ferguson cast his gaze around at
the young officers on the bridge. While they were all far too professional to
comment, he knew none of them wanted to extend this tour of duty any longer
than necessary. Many of them had families back on Eden Prime they were eager to
get back to. Therefore, with a strong sense of foreboding, Ferguson nodded,
agreeing with the plan. “We will continue on this heading on low power, it’s
unlikely the rebels have sensors that could detect such low energy emissions,
so we will be a little closer if you require our assistance.”
Neither man needed to mention what type of help the ship
could offer if called upon. The
Sunfire
was the finest vessel within the
Confederation Fleet and could comfortably face off against any other craft,
with the exception of the
Imperial Star
—
mighty
flagship of the old Imperial Navy—but nothing had been seen or heard of that
ship in over two years.
“Very well,” Jon replied. “Wait for my signal.” With that he
pivoted and left the bridge, the doors once again quietly sliding closed behind
him.
The tension on the bridge dropped noticeably following the
departure of the Commander, the combined release of breath being almost audible.
“I have just one word,
Yum-eee,”
said Janet Ryan, the
ship’s Executive Officer, her eyes still lingering on the now closed doors
through which the Commander had just departed. “Captain, how about putting in a
request to the Admiral that the Confederation Navy revert back to the white
Imperial Navy uniform. The Commander is a walking sin, wrapped in that uniform.
What I would give to unwrap it!”
“Down XO,” Ferguson replied, his lips upturned in a smile.
“Anyway I hear that the Commander, uniform and every other part of him, is
totally owned by Princess Aurelius.”
“Damn, what I would give to swap places with her,” Janet
murmured, licking her lips. “The
Eternal Light
has just departed the
flight deck,” she added, turning her attention back to the job at hand.
“Thanks XO, please notify me if we receive any further
communications from the shuttle. Also let’s keep a close eye on the passive
sensors. I want to know immediately if we detect anything, or anyone.”
Ferguson’s eyes tracked the departing shuttle on the view screen, until it had
completely disappeared from sight.
The ship’s Tactical Officer interrupted Ferguson’s thoughts.
“Captain, what do you think the Commander is going to do if he discovers the
rebels?”
“Considering the Commander’s reputation?”
“Yes sir, some of the rumours that I have heard
—
”
Ferguson nodded his head in understanding. He had heard
several of them himself. “Intelligence seems fairly certain that the rebels
have established their base of operations in this System. Hence, if they are here,
it seems fairly likely the Commander will find them, and then
—
”
Ferguson thought for a moment, grinning, before continuing, “The Commander is
an honourable officer and hence I expect he would at least ask for their
surrender first.”
“And if they refuse?” The Tactical Officer inquired.
“Then I expect the Commander will probably board the rebel
facility, kill most of their troops, forcing the remaining crew to surrender.
He will restrain these, locate the weapon, neutralise it, then return to the
Sunfire
to inform us that the mission is complete and we can all go home,” he replied
with a straight face.
Sniggers could be heard from the other officers throughout
the bridge who were listening into the conversation. Many nodded their head in
agreement. It was exactly the sort of thing that their enigmatic Commander
would do.
*****
It was some hours later and the
Sunfire
was still
progressing slowly deeper into the System when the Sensors Operator called out,
“Energy spike detected!”
Ferguson hurried over to his side, peering over his shoulder
at the sensor readouts. “What have you got?” He asked, able to make neither
head nor tail of the readings.
“Energy spike Captain, I would stake my life that it was not
there a minute ago. Approximately one-hundred and twenty kilometres ahead, a
few degrees to starboard.”
“What do you think it is?”
“Best guess?” Ferguson nodded. “I think it’s another ship
doing the same as us, Captain. Either running cold, passive sensors only, or
running under minimal power. This energy surge looks like a reactor spike
caused by a main engine start.”
“Can you track them?”
“Sure Captain, now that their power levels are above our
detection threshold.”
“XO, sound general quarters. Bring our weapon systems
on-line.”
“What happens if it’s a civilian ship?” The XO inquired
reasonably, while the noise of the general quarters alert resounded throughout
the ship.
“This far out? Running silent? What would they be doing,
sightseeing? Best-case scenario is the same as the Commander’s cover story,
they are either privateers trying to avoid customs, or pirates. However, this
could be the ship Navy Intelligence alerted us to. Either way I’ll offer them a
chance to surrender, just in case. Hail the ship.”
“Channel open, Captain,” the XO confirmed.
“Unidentified ship, this is Captain Ferguson of the
Confederation Navy heavy cruiser
Sunfire
. I am ordering you to
power-down your ship’s engines and prepare for boarding and inspection. Please
respond.”
After a few moments, the XO shook her head. No response.
“Captain I am detecting a main engine start. The ship is
starting to pull away from us and, based on the energy signature, I am
estimating a destroyer or light cruiser class vessel,” the Operations Officer
called out across the bridge.
“Flank speed,” Ferguson ordered the helm. “Bring us within
weapons range of that ship. Communications, can you contact the Commander?”
“Negative sir, the shuttle seems to be on the dark side of
one of the inner planets, we cannot bounce a signal to him.”
“Very well,” Ferguson muttered determinedly. “We do this
ourselves. Tactical, let me know when we are within range of our weapons.
Communications, let’s try one final warning.”
At the nod from the young woman at communications, Ferguson
tried one last time. “Unidentified ship, this is your last warning. Power down
your engines and prepare to be boarded, otherwise I will authorise lethal
force.”