A Pale Dawn Read online

  “Did she have anything important?”

  “No, just that the Keesius hasn’t been seen at Capital Planet, so she expects our people were successful in stopping it. There’s nothing else to report, and that isn’t anything Colonel Enkh couldn’t already have figured out on her own.”

  “Well, I doubt Peepo changed her schedule. She must have suspected we were bugging her office.” Major Good shook his head. “Damn. We’re going to have to figure out where it’s moved to; it’s getting increasingly hard to operate, and we need the edge to know what’s going on.”

  “They already found our asset at the cleaning company.”

  “Yeah, and threw the whole cleaning company to the dogs.” They had heard the Besquith interrogation of the members of the cleaning company had been…thorough. Their operative had killed herself rather than submit to it, but now they were without eyes and ears inside the headquarters.

  “There is one good thing this morning,” Corporal Enkh noted.

  “What’s that?”

  “Major Charlie Sinclair of Sinclair’s Scorpions just turned up in Scotland with twenty-five mercs. They’ve gone into hiding but are available for operations. Apparently, while they were gone, Peepo managed to kill all of their families. To say they are primed for some payback is an understatement.”

  “Tell them to stay hidden. When the time is right, I have an idea for how best to use them.”

  * * *

  Tunnel Mouth, Underdeep, Paradise

  “Here they come!” the sergeant exclaimed as his squad ran back to the mouth of the cave entrance. Ferguson’s troops had found a dozen anti-aircraft missiles and had fired them at the incoming dropships. They’d only hit one of the transports, but that was one less platoon they’d have to face.

  The first wave of dropships landed in the desert outside the range of the defenders’ other weapons and began to disgorge their forces.

  “Lumar,” Walker said. “No surprise there.”

  “Why’s that?” Ferguson asked.

  “They’re big, tough, and dumb,” Walker replied as the four-armed humanoids formed up into their units. “They can absorb a lot of punishment, so they make great frontline troops to throw into the opening wave of an assault. Point them at the defenders and watch them go,” he added with a shrug. “Looks like they brought about four hundred troops.”

  “Think it will make any difference?”

  “Nope.”

  The pack of sand worms hit the Lumar just before they were in range of the tunnel, erupting from beneath them. Having survived a sand worm attack, Walker felt badly for the Lumar. He suspected the creatures had been created at about the same time as the Canavar, as they were near-perfect killing machines. Their hides reflected nearly every weapon, and they hunted as a pack, wiping out any force that tried to stand against them.

  “That’s a big pack,” the sergeant said as twelve worms burst from the sand. Each grabbed a Lumar on its initial attack, biting them in half, as they rose to a height of nearly 50 feet. The worms then fell back to the surface, landing on as large a group of Lumar as they could target. Before the first round was fired, more than a company—or 50 troopers—had been killed.

  Rather than running, the Lumar tried to attack them, and the situation went from bad to worse. While one group fired at a worm and watched their rounds bounce off, another worm would hit them from behind, claiming more victims. Over half the Lumar force was killed or eaten before the remainder turned and retreated to the dropships. Satisfied with the victims they already had, the worms let them go, concentrating on enjoying their meal.

  “Looks like they got two of the worms,” the sergeant noted.

  “Yep,” Walker said, nodding. “Like I said, the Lumar are tough.”

  “Will they be back?” Ferguson asked.

  “I suspect they’ll send in a different group to take the landing pads,” Walker replied, motioning toward the small port facility that rested on the plateau above them, “now that they see why there’s nothing built in the desert.”

  “Why didn’t they do that first?” the sergeant asked.

  “Probably because they figured we’d have the landing pads mined and booby-trapped.”

  “We do, though,” the sergeant replied, cocking his head to the side.

  “Yep,” Walker replied. “And for whoever comes down in the second group, it’s going to suck to be them, too.”

  * * * * *

  Chapter Four

  Tunnels, Underdeep, Paradise

  It had taken two days for the assault forces to make it to the cave. After the first wave had been eaten by the sand worms, the second force had landed at the mini-starport. Walker waited until the entire force had landed before turning on the defenses.

  Despite a thorough preparatory bombardment, about half the explosives remained, and the devastation they caused wiped out a large percentage of the second wave, comprised totally of Besquith. Walker also dropped the causeway leading down from the starport to the entrance to the tunnels while there was a large number of additional troopers on it. McGee hadn’t wanted to destroy their only access to the facility, but Walker had insisted…and killed another hundred Besquith. The remaining mutts had gone back to their ship to lick their wounds.

  “Incoming!” the local sergeant yelled as he followed his squad away from the tunnel mouth.

  “What have you got?” Walker asked.

  “MinSha,” the sergeant replied, out of breath. “There’s a whole bunch of them flying down from the starport.”

  “Well, at least they won’t have heavy weapons,” Walker replied, “at least for a while. They’ll have to bring them down piece by piece and reassemble them.” So far, the Merc Guild forces hadn’t shown a desire to land in the desert since the aborted Lumar attack.

  The mayor had broadcast the video up to the enemy fleet until one of the ships had slagged the town’s antennae, but apparently the message had been received—don’t land in the desert.

  Which was exactly what Walker wanted. The fewer heavy weapons the assaulting forces had, the easier it was going to be to defend against them.

  “Got it,” the technician said, stepping away from the Camille H5 automated sentry guns. “The target of choice is set for MinSha.”

  “Pull back!” Walker ordered, and the defending forces ran down the tunnel past two bends to the next set of fortifications. As he rounded the first corner, he could hear the minigun barrels already spinning, and within seconds the three guns began firing with the sound of tearing sheets. Zeeeeeet! Zeeeeeet! Zeeeeeet!

  “Now what?” asked Ferguson.

  “Now they try to get past the guns. They’ll try throwing grenades, or their equivalent, which is why we put up the big electromagnets. When the guns aren’t firing, the magnets activate, and any sort of metallic grenade will be pulled off target. Eventually, they’ll figure out a way to get explosives on target, either by throwing in devices that aren’t metallic or by sacrificing someone to throw it in while the guns are firing.”

  “What if they can’t?”

  “The guns will run out of bullets or the enemy will run out of willpower.”

  “Which do you think will happen first?”

  “Peepo is driving these troops; we’ll definitely run out of bullets first. Then the MinSha will be in the tunnels.”

  “They will? What will we do then?”

  “Don’t worry,” Walker said with a smile. “We’ve put this extra time to good use. They won’t get far.”

  * * *

  CIC, Maki Cruiser Spreading Shade, Paradise System

  “There has been a setback,” the communications officer said, looking up from his console.

  “What is it now?” Admiral Jarkyl asked, frustration heavy in his voice. “I thought the MinSha had entered the tunnels and were in pursuit of the Humans.”

  “Well, they were in the tunnels…and I guess, technically, they still are. They made it past the automatic guns at the mouth of the tunnel, bu
t when they reached the next fortified section, the roof collapsed, burying about a platoon’s worth of soldiers. Colonel Winsayl is requesting we send down a contingent of Lumar to help dig out the tunnel, as her troops aren’t built for heavy lifting.”

  “Do it,” ordered Jarkyl. “Send down one of the Lumar companies that wasn’t in the first wave to assist.”

  “Yes, sir,” the comms officer replied.

  “Whatever happened to the squad that was looking for the colony’s air vents to drop poison in them?”

  “The Humans turned their vents on in reverse and blew the poison back on the squad. Apparently, it is quite caustic and lethal. We lost most of the squad.”

  Admiral Jarkyl’s tails twitched in frustration. “These Humans are very frustrating—very frustrating, indeed!”

  * * *

  CIC, EMS Shadowfax, Chislaa System

  “Established in the Chislaa system,” the sensor operator said. “I don’t show any ships here at the emergence area, but there are indications of ships in orbit over Chislaa.”

  Commander Elizabeth Stacy nodded. “Very well. SitCon, let’s get the fleet formed up and headed toward the planet. Let me know what we’ve got as soon as you’re able.”

  “Aye, aye,” the SitCon replied.

  The Tri-V illuminated with a picture of the planet, and Sansar took a small step back in surprise. “That has to be the greenest planet I’ve ever seen.”

  “Never been here before?” Stacy asked.

  “No,” Sansar said, in awe. The surface was approximately half ocean, but the part that was land—mostly around the equator—was almost completely covered with dark green vegetation. She shook her head. “That definitely doesn’t look like back home.” When Stacy raised an eyebrow, she added, “Uzbekistan is about eighty percent sandy, scrubby desert. Definitely not that.” She waved to the Tri-V.

  “I hear the natives—well the colonists, since there aren’t really any natives—call the planet Canopy, as most of it is under a tree analogue that looks like triple canopy jungle. It’s too cold for the massive trees up at the poles, but they grow pretty well in both tropical and temperate environments.”

  “I’ve got the breakdown on the ships orbiting the planet,” the sensor operator announced. “Looks like about ten ships in orbit, of which several are transports. I have drive plumes illuminating on most of them; looks like they’re running for the stargate.”

  “Understood,” Stacy replied. “Give me a channel to Lieutenant Commander Porter on Whirlaway.”

  The communications officer nodded. “Open, ma’am.”

  “Lieutenant Commander Porter, Commander Stacy. Looks like they’re running for the gate. Please take Whirlaway, War Admiral, Langur, Tizona, Orcrist, and Grape and see if you can beat them there. Take their surrender if you can; destroy them if you must.”

  “We’re on our way!” Porter replied. “Whirlaway, out!”

  “Will they be able to beat the Merc Guild ships to the stargate?” Sansar asked.

  “Depends on how badly the Merc Guild doesn’t want to be caught,” Stacy replied, “and how many Gs they’re willing to take to make it happen. Of course, getting there is only half the problem.” She smiled. “Comms, get me a channel to the gate master.”

  The communications officer nodded after a moment. “Go ahead, ma’am.”

  “Gate Master, this is Commander Stacy, commanding the Earth Mercenary Ship Shadowfax, from Winged Hussars.”

  A Sumatozou that appeared on the Tri-V. “This is Trostopopal, Gate Master of the Cartography Guild.”

  “Greetings, Trostopopal. Might I enquire when the next gate opening is?”

  “The gate has already opened today. The next scheduled opening won’t be until tomorrow. Unless, that is, you…really…need one today.” Sansar could see the greed in the giant creature’s eyes and how it twirled its bifurcated trunk as it contemplated how much it might be able to skim from the fees an unscheduled gate opening would allow him to charge.

  “Thank you, Honored Trostopopal, but an unscheduled opening won’t be necessary today.”

  “Oh.” The Sumatozou’s voice chilled as he realized his avaricious desires wouldn’t be fulfilled. “Then what is the nature of this call?”

  “While I don’t need an unscheduled gate opening, I have a feeling there will shortly be other ships who will approach you about one.”

  “Yes, that is correct,” the gate master replied. “The Merc Guild forces are demanding an unscheduled opening on another channel as we speak.”

  “I know how…underfunded the stargates are, sometimes,” Stacy said. “Sometimes, they just can’t be made to operate a second time in one day, especially in out-of-the-way systems like this one.”

  “That is true; this is a remote system, and the equipment isn’t always the best.”

  “I would like to help with that,” Stacy said, smiling. “If the gate weren’t able to operate a second time today, because of some unfortunate…malfunction, I would be happy to contribute, say, 25,000 credits to help pay for the repairs so we can leave when we need to.”

  The gate master looked to both sides, then back to the camera. “As it happens, I think one of the power relays that recharges the stargate just failed. I expect the cost to repair it, though, will be 50,000 credits.”

  “This is an out-of-the-way system,” Stacy said, nodding. “I’m sure it’s hard to get parts here.” She nodded to the comms officer, who pushed a button. “You should be receiving our contribution to your maintenance fund momentarily.”

  A tone sounded in the gate master’s office and the alien looked off-screen, then turned back with its version of a smile. “I’m sorry,” he said, “but I must terminate this call. It appears we just had a failure in one of our power relays that I must attend to. Good day.” The Tri-V went dark as the call ended.

  Stacy turned to Sansar with a smile. “I have a feeling our ships will keep the Merc Guild forces from escaping. I doubt it will take more than a shot or two to get their attention. And, should they decide to put up a fight, it will only take a few more shots to end it.”

  Sansar chuckled. “I’m sure it will.” She gave a small nod. “Well, it appears everything here is in order, so, by your leave, I’ll take a shuttle back over to the Draco. If the Merc Guild had three transports here, there are liable to be a lot of Merc Guild troops on the planet.”

  “Going to do something about that?”

  Sansar smiled. “Yes, I am,” she replied. “I doubt Peepo’s here, but this will help my folks get warmed up for when we do find her.”

  * * *

  CIC, EMS Pegasus, Asyola System Emergence Point

  “We have arrived in the Asyola system,” reported Pleek, Pegasus’ new chief helmsman.

  “Drones out,” Alexis ordered. “Let’s see what we’ve got.”

  “Launching,” Drone Control replied, the voice Ghost used in her routine job aboard Pegasus.

  “All Hussars ships accounted for,” Flipper reported. “As well as six mercenary cruisers.”

  “Roger, that,” Alexis replied. “Abby, see that the fleet is formed up for assault. Launch the gunboats to remain as escort for the merc cruisers until we clear the system.”

  “Yes, Captain,” the new SitCon replied. She was already using her pinplants to assess the positions and speeds of the other ships and issue corrections.

  Even though Alexis expected the fight to be tough, merc cruisers full of ground forces were too questionable to be used in a fight like this; they tended to be under-armed for their size. To make up for this she had included a dozen heavily armed gunboats from Golara. Half the size of a frigate, they didn’t possess a hyperdrive, so they rode clamped to the side of the battleship Byczyna. Because they didn’t need hyperdrives, their internal spaces were optimized for firepower. Ton for ton, they were tougher than the average frigate. Currently, they were operated by skeleton crews, and inexperienced ones at that. She was scraping the bottom of the barrel for personn
el.

  The Winged Hussars had never possessed battleships until now. The unbelievably huge form of Byczyna began to accelerate ahead of Pegasus. The dozen gunboats unclamped and thrust back toward the waiting merc cruisers, while a ring of six Hussar cruisers formed around the battleship like satellites. The 100,000-ton bulk of the Crown-class cruisers and the slightly smaller Maki Branch-class cruisers looked like elongated marbles in comparison to the 1.5 million tons of the Thrush-class battleship.

  Alexis didn’t know if she felt comforted by the huge ship, or discomforted. The Winged Hussars hadn’t had time to develop detailed battle plans which incorporated the new battleships. In addition, the battleship’s crews were new additions to her unit. They had a strong incentive to do well: the ship. If the Hussars prevailed in this war, the Bakulu crew would be given the ship as payment.

  “We have four escort frigates and a destroyer in our threat box,” Abby Smith announced after a few seconds.

  “Offer them a chance to yield,” Alexis instructed. The Winged Hussars’ three escort frigates began taking fire. “Never mind,” she said.

  “Captain Chigasoolu on Byczyna is requesting permission to deal with them,” Hoot reported.

  “Offer my respects to Captain Chigasoolu and tell him he may fire when ready.”

  A series of brilliant flashes announced the battleship opening fire. The ship was more like a mobile fortress than any of the other warships the Hussars possessed. Her primary armament included 20 one-terawatt particle accelerators and six five-terawatt ones. In addition, she had 100 missile launchers for standoff and 240 thirty-megawatt close-in defensive lasers. The three enemy frigates were vaporized with one hit each from a one-terawatt particle accelerator, and the destroyer by one of the five-terawatt versions. One second they were there, the next they were gone.