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  “I’m going to move us in for a closer look,” Jack said. “Adjusting heading. Setting intercept course.”

  Sam stood up in frustration. “They are probably on the trail of the fleet too. Let’s just hold our heading, Jack. We can meet up with them when we all catch up with the fleet.”

  “We have been out here alone for so long, Sam. It would be good to team up with another crew. And we could share out some of the sticky blue. Less for us to eat.”

  Sam nodded glumly and leaned heavily on the back of the co-pilot chair.

  Jack adjusted the ship’s heading and set the drive to accelerate toward the frigate.

  Sam focused the active scanners as they approached. Every second brought them closer and made the resolutions clearer and sharper.

  The scanners detected another energy spike from the frigate.

  “Again?” Jack said. “Maybe they have an issue with their drive system? Set the scanner to capture an image if they show another energy spike.”

  Sam set the scanners and sat back. Jack had a feeling he wouldn’t have to wait long for the image to come back. He also got the odd impression that he knew what he was heading into.

  The scanners beeped and reported the spike. The image appeared on the holostage and showed a large, bright flash off the frigate’s upper hull.

  With a simple look, Jack and Sam told each other that they both suspected the cause of the flash. A sudden seriousness settled on the flight deck.

  “We should be close enough to get a live feed from the frigate location,” Jack said. “Put it up on the holostage, Sam.”

  Sam transferred the active scanner data to the holostage. Although the image was fuzzy, it was a live image from the frigate’s location. The boat was traveling at speed. Then another bright flash appeared over the frigate’s upper hull. And then another.

  “Weapons fire,” Jack said. He pushed the corvette to its limits.

  “They’re not returning fire,” Sam said. “Recommend we set condition one, Jack. Battle stations. Copy?”

  Jack brought the corvette’s laser assembly online and spun up the generator.

  “Copy that, Sam. Ready the hail cannon.”

  “Hail cannon active. Cannon number three is not responding to targeting commands. I can service it manually,” Sam said.

  “I thought I’d fixed that tracking sensor,” Jack said as his hands moved across the control panel, bringing the corvette to battle readiness. He could see the rear starboard cannon showing a fault in the targeting systems. “Forget it. Deactivate cannon three and route power to the laser assembly.” Jack watched the distance finder count down as they moved closer to the frigate.

  “We will be in communications range in a moment,” Jack said. “Stand by to open a channel.”

  Jack focused the drone network on the origin of the previous energy discharge. Adjusting for speed, he focused on the spot where the weapons fire was coming from. And the moment the scanner was on target, Jack took an image and put it on the holostage.

  A number of small craft were in pursuit. They were dark craft, the shape of a flattened sphere and seemingly elongated to the rear. Weapons fire reflected off their rounded edges. One craft was in the process of firing its forward energy weapon, the front of the craft glowing as a bolt of energy was launched at its target.

  “What are they?” Sam said. “They’re definitely not Fleet ships.”

  “No, they are not,” Jack said. “Moving into combat range. Retrieve the drones, Sam.”

  Jack switched to close-range active scans and brought the frigate up on the holostage. Another bolt of white energy exploded over the upper hull. The flight deck reported that the corvette was approaching attack position.

  “All drones recovered,” Sam said. He looked at the image of the frigate under fire from the unknown attackers.

  “We’re moving into position,” Jack said. “Stand by combat stations, Sam. Get ready for action.”

  5

  The explosion that ripped through the command deck of the frigate threw Commander Bale into Lieutenant Ripa, and the pair slammed into the console behind them. Bale clambered to his hands and knees and crawled to his chair. If his boat was going down, he would go down in his command chair.

  He had only been in command of Frigate M-9 for a few months and had somehow managed to stay out of combat during the final weeks of the Chitin War. Ironic, he thought, that after a successful evacuation, he should come under attack in deep space.

  “Hail cannons all operational,” Stone’s voice came over Bale’s communicator. “But the drive is taking all the power. There’s not enough power to deliver volley fire. I’ve set the cannons to independent fire controls. They’ll fire on any Mech ship that comes in its targeting range.”

  Bale leaned back in his chair. He looked down at Ellen Ripa lying face-down on the deck. The trickle of blood running down the side of her head had formed a small glistening pool beneath her. He noticed a drop rise from the pool and drift upward, a small stream of blood drifting across the command deck to a point on the upper panels. Bale watched as the blood was sucked between two panels, telling him that somewhere behind the paneling was a hull breach.

  “Transfer any available power to the—” Bale began before another blast from the Mechs slammed into the damaged frigate. A blast from a console sent a piece of debris flying. It struck Bale a glancing blow on the head. A wave of nausea hit before darkness finally came.

  “Come in, Frigate M-9,” Jack tried to contact the command deck again. “No response, Sam. Their drive system is erratic. No activity on their laser assembly. Detecting intermittent hail cannon fire. And they are still taking a pounding.”

  “Our hail cannon are loaded, charged and ready to fire. Waiting for your order, Jack.” Sam stood in the center of the gun deck, within reaching distance of all the corvette’s guns.

  Jack turned and looked down at Sam. The weapons crew for a corvette was supposed to be five strong—one for each hail cannon and one for the laser. A flight crew of two and a chief of the boat completed the standard crew complement. Jack’s little corvette had a flight crew of one and a gun crew of a one. Neither were Fleet personnel. They were both Fleet Marines simply doing the best they could.

  Sam stood ready, the short tendrils of composite hanging from the cap over the remains of his right arm seeming to move like fat black tentacles. Those composite threads were once his connection to his hated cybernetic prosthetic. Sam had given enough. Jack had given enough. But now the pair were about to go into someone else’s fight, a fight that appeared already lost. A fight they didn’t need to enter.

  “Coming into weapons’ range,” Sam said.

  Jack looked at the attackers, the four remaining flattened spheres, their forward energy weapons firing in synchronized bursts. They moved in closer to the stricken frigate, each firing a blast of seething white energy. The blasts came in regular beats, every one slamming into the upper hull of Frigate M-9.

  The corvette’s communicator burst into life.

  “Attention incoming corvette. This is the chief of Frigate M-9. The Mechs are weakest at the focus of their main weapon. Hit them there if you can. I am losing atmosphere. Life support failing. Hull stability field, gone. Power will be offline in moments. I’ll keep firing until then. Chief Stone out.”

  Jack looked back at Sam, who was waiting casually in the middle of the gun deck.

  “Did you hear that?” Jack said.

  Sam nodded nonchalantly.

  Jack admired Sam’s calmness under pressure as he turned back to the flight console.

  “Set cannon to fire on the enemy,” Jack said. He called up a holoimage of the Mech attack ships and highlighted the point at the front of the craft where the energy pulse originated. “Target this area.” Jack sent the holoimage to the targeting systems and distributed it to the hail cannon.

  Sam moved along the gun deck. “Targeting coordinates received,” he called out.

  “Hold on
to something, Sam,” Jack said. “Combat speed. Full power to the maneuvering thrusters. All secondary systems to minimal power. This is going to get rough, old friend.”

  Grabbing hold of a handrail with his single hand, Sam steadied himself as best he could. “We only know it rough, Jack. Ready when you are.”

  “Entering weapons range. Let’s try and draw some of the attackers’ fire before they destroy that frigate. Weapons ready. Engaging the enemy now.”

  The corvette swooped in from above on the frigate’s starboard side. The port-side battery fired a salvo of kinetic hail. The attacking craft on the starboard side of their formation exploded instantly. Jack hit the retro thrusters and flipped the corvette over on its nose. The port battery fired again and scored another direct hit on the central attack ship.

  The port-side battery went into recovery mode, cooling and re-calibrating for the next shot. The process would take several crucial seconds. To maintain the attack intensity, Jack would have to fire the starboard cannon.

  With the corvette in reverse orientation, Jack hit the main drive and halted the ship, its nose only meters from the frigate’s port side. He fired the thrusters to rotate the corvette about the long axis, flipping the boat in an instant and presenting the starboard side to the remaining two Mechs.

  “Number one cannon firing now,” Sam said as the single functional starboard cannon fired.

  Jack watched as another Mech attack ship was destroyed.

  Then the return fire hit.

  Energy blasts from the remaining Mech slammed into the corvette. Jack saw the flash of an explosion from the gun deck light up the flight deck.

  “Sam!” Jack called out.

  “I’m okay. We just lost the number one cannon coolant pump. It’s firing again.”

  Jack saw the red emergency light appear on the flight console as the starboard cannon fired and instantly overheated.

  “Shutting down starboard battery,” Jack said. He rolled the corvette again and brought the port-side battery back into action. The drive systems pushed the ship forward, flying across the axis of the frigate. Jack could see gases pouring out of a gash on the upper hull.

  “Port side firing,” Sam called up.

  Jack saw the final Mech take a hit. The targeting system was off by a fraction and the Mech was struck to the side of the main weapon. The craft tumbled and then turned on the spot before racing away, leaping instantly to high speed and disappearing in a flash. Jack watched the disappearing ship on his holostage. He looked at the data readings pour in, every recordable piece of information about the craft streaming into the data core. And after only a few seconds, it was out of sensor range.

  Maneuvering the corvette over the upper hull of the frigate, Jack opened a channel to the command deck. “Attention, Frigate M-9. This is Major Jack Forge, Fleet Marines. Please respond.”

  Jack waited only a few seconds before taking control. The crew aboard the frigate was unresponsive and the boat was unpowered.

  “I’m extending our hull stability field around the frigate. Should stop it from disintegrating when the docking clamps latch on. Initiating soft dock,” Jack called out as he worked. “Interfacing with frigate’s computer now. Sam, can you get in that tactical suit and go and check their hull? Activate a couple of drones to help you. See if you can’t patch that breach before they lose all their air. I’ll board the frigate and secure all systems.”

  Jack extended the corvette’s soft dock tunnel toward the frigate’s docking hatch. The frigate’s computer gave the corvette full access, and Jack established the dock. He jumped out of his chair and slid down the handrails to the gun deck. Sam was dragging the tactical suit out of its closet. He tossed a med-kit to Jack as he approached.

  “There’s likely injuries over there,” Sam said and slipped his leg into the suit.

  “You need help putting that on?” Jack asked, watching Sam struggling with the familiar old Marine tactical suit.

  Sam glowered at Jack. “I’ve only lost one of my arms, Jack. I can put this thing on in my sleep.”

  Jack patted Sam on the shoulder. “Get that breach patched. I’m boarding the frigate now.”

  Jack walked to the docking hatch access ladder halfway along the gun deck. He climbed down toward the hatch not knowing what to expect, but that was nothing new. He had become accustomed to being on the back foot.

  He pulled open the hatch and dropped through the tunnel to the upper hull of the corvette. He tapped his wrist-mounted control panel and sent the access codes to the frigate’s hatch control. It popped open. Jack pulled it, the low pressure inside making the hatch difficult to open. It finally came away with a hissing rush of air.

  Jack climbed down into darkness.

  6

  The upper deck of the frigate was easily the size of the gun deck on the corvette. It was dark, empty, and quiet. Jack switched on the flashlight panel on the front of his jacket, which gave him enough light to see the stairway to the frigate’s main deck below.

  The only sound anywhere aboard the frigate was coming from the command deck situated at the forward section of the main deck. The beeps of the consoles reported failed systems throughout the craft. The flickering of warning lights drew Jack along through the dark.

  The command deck was scattered with debris from smashed consoles and ruptured power nodes. Jack saw the silhouette of a figure slumped in the command chair and rushed over. He saw the insignia of a Fleet commander on the lapel, the name ‘Bale’ on the jacket.

  Jack attached a med-pack to the commander’s neck. The data readouts showed the commander was unconscious, injured but stable. Jack set the med-pack to administer emergency first aid.

  “Let’s find a stretcher and get you to your med-bay, Commander,” Jack said quietly.

  Bale opened his eyes suddenly and grabbed Jack by the arm. The injured man had a powerful grip. Jack stepped back, startled by the commander’s sudden recovery.

  “Commander Bale?” Jack asked.

  Bale closed his eyes and nodded.

  “I’m Jack Forge. Where is your crew, Commander?”

  “Only three of us.” Bale spoke slowly and with difficulty. “We’ve been under attack for days. Help me up, Major. I need to check my boat.”

  Jack helped Bale to his feet. They moved to the operations console in front of the central holostage. Jack wiped a scatter of debris off the console and powered it up.

  “Main power has failed. We are dead in the void.” Bale’s legs crumpled under him and he held himself up against the console.

  “It’s okay, Commander,” Jack said, steadying Bale. “We’ve docked. We are patching a breach on the upper hull. We will begin power transfer as soon as possible. But first, I need to check on the rest of your crew.”

  Bale grabbed Jack by the collar. “Take me to the med-bay now,” he hissed in Jack’s ear.

  Jack nodded uncertainly. “Okay, Commander,” he said, then helped Commander Bale off the command deck.

  Walking along the main deck to the stairway down, Jack could see that the frigate was in a terrible condition. The boat was much larger than Jack’s corvette, was much better equipped, and better armed. But if, as the commander said, there was only a crew of three, it would be impossible to fully man every system.

  The med-bay was powered with its own power supply, and the light that spilled out from it was welcome. The air inside was stale and cold. Jack laid Bale on one of the bunks at the side of the bay.

  “Hold on here, Commander,” Jack said. “I’ll be back soon.”

  Bale gripped Jack’s sleeve. “Med-pack. Administer a med-pack, now.”

  “I already have,” Jack said. He was beginning to become concerned that the commander had little to no thought or concern for his crew.

  “Another,” Bale said. He pointed to a cabinet at the side of the med-bay. His head fell back onto the thinly-padded bunk. The med-pack still functioning on his neck read that Bale was unconscious again.

  “
Not now, Commander,” Jack said gently. He removed the commander’s hand from his sleeve and laid it on the bunk. A system console at the side of the med-bay was active. Jack stepped over and accessed the frigate’s main computer.

  “Locate crew,” Jack said.

  The interface showed the locations of two persons. There was one still on the command deck and another at the rear of the main deck just outside the drive room. The closest was the person on the command deck. Jack grabbed a med-pack from the cabinet Bale had indicated and rushed off into the dark.

  While the frigate was much larger than the corvette, it was still a relatively small craft. Even in the dark, Jack quickly found his way back to the command deck. He had spent plenty of time aboard destroyer-class vessels. Those were huge. The frigate-class vessel was only three decks. It was heavily armed for a small craft and was designed to serve as a support vessel and gun platform. The frigates were built to be tough enough to accompany destroyers into battle. They needed to be powerful boats.

  The corvette on the other hand, although not very much smaller than the frigate, was designed for armed reconnaissance. The corvette was built for speed and maneuverability, where the frigate was built to crash into a fight alongside its bigger destroyer-class brother and deliver additional, powerful assault capabilities.

  The frigate ably augmented the huge firepower of the destroyers, but it was designed to do that with a crew of twelve. An officer with a rank of commander led the crew and operated together with a two-person flight crew. An eight-person gun crew made up the bulk and manned the two laser turrets and the two banks of three hail cannons. A chief of the boat managed systems and drive capabilities and completed the crew.

  Jack realized how difficult it must have been for a crew of three to manage the frigate while under attack. It was a miracle that they had survived the assault at all.

  Jack searched the command deck and found a body, face-down on the deck in front of a side console. He turned the body and was looking into the dirty face of a young woman. Blood soaked her hair and had dried on her face. Jack attached the med-pack to her neck, and the readings came back as critical. He set the package to administer what aid it could. The package told Jack that the patient needed immediate transfer to a Fleet medical facility.