Part 2 here! R&R
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CHAPTER 8: BATTLE FOR THE NORTH ATLANTIC PART 2
EFS PRAGUE, NORTHERN ATLANTIC 12:51 25/04/2020
"Wow"
Muller was stunned. It was the first time he saw in action STONEHENGE, the much-vaunted super weapon built by the government able to destroy entire airborne fleets and to rain death on earth as much as could a satellite of the SLAMS, and propaganda was right on the capabilities of the cannon.
Up to ten seconds ago radars onboard signaled the approach of a hundred american aircraft from the American continent who, if they had reached the heart of the air battle, that the stretch of ocean between the two fleets, could turned the situation in their favor. Then suddenly the screens had displayed a firing order from the cannon and a countdown of twenty seconds.
Through the periscope the captain had been able to observe several aircraft descend in the last ten seconds and then, like a bolt from the blue, five blue trails cut the sky and their tips exploded in five blue spheres, which blurred the sky for a moment during the explosion. After the brightness of the flash intensity dropped dozens of planes were falling dead into the ocean, their systems dead from the EMP blast. Although he had not activated protocol 17 the European fleet was not affected by the explosion as well as the American, who had stopped shooting for a moment, to look at the effects of the large blue spheres.
The European fighters were climbing above the minimal altitude to avoid the EMP, and were regaining air supremacy, no longer threatened by the Americans.
"Captain!"
His communications officer was calling him.
"What is it Marchand?"
"I have a new order from the admiral: it orders submarines to regroup and make a foray into the American fleet until the radar baits still work. We are in a group with the EFS Rome and Copenhagen. Our target will be the right flank of the American fleet "
"Wolf Pack" commented his XO.
"Vaccani, plot a course. Delgado, coordinate with him. Leave the sonar in passive and do the triangulations needed to identify enemy ships"
"Yes, sir"
"Marchand, open a strategic channel with the Rome and the Copenhagen. Engines, activate hydrogen cells, mask the radiation of the reactor. I want to be completely invisible to their submarines as we approach. Weapons, prepare torpedoes in the bow tubes and mines in the aft's. Can we launch missiles? "
"No, sir. It seems that the enemy is disturbing short range locks. And these seems to be the frequencies of their new RAZOR system"
"Take up a sample and send it to the command. Do not try to have a missile lock, I do not want us to get discovered like the last time"
"Yes, sir! Sir, we have an open channel with the captains of the submarines Rome and Copenhagen"
"I'll take it in the briefing room. Battle stations"
Captain Muller left the control room, now illuminated more by the blue holographic screens than from the red combat light. He had not yet managed to get used to this craze of computers on every military ship that he had seen. When his grandfather told him of the times of the war, he was always fascinated by the accurate descriptions of all hands, the lights and buttons of which his grandfather remembered. If he had to tell some of his descendants his experiences of war, he would just say that the room was full of screens that gave off so much light that he wondered how his crew was able to bear it.
His thoughts were interrupted at his entry into the briefing room, a small compartment with a table, ten chairs and a screen. The room was rarely used by the officers, who preferred to meet in the control room or in the cafeteria, but it was very popular among the navy rifleman during their briefings. The captain positioned himself in front of the screen which lit up and divided into two parts, each with a captain.
"Well gentlemen, we have a few minutes to work out a plan of attack"
USS BUNKER HILL NORTHERN ATLANTIC, 25/04/2020 13:07
"Damage report!" Wallace shouted, as he clung to a handle to not be thrown to the ground by the shock wave
"A missile hit our bow, strong shock waves. No serious damage, the leak is small and has hit much above the waterline" replied the weapons officer.
"Wounded?"
"It's not known yet, but a medical team is rushing on the spot"
"If people continue to die, who will sail the damn ship?"
"The MK 45 can still shoot right?"
"Affirmative. The damage has not affected the ammunition bay or the charging trolley. Ready to fire and waiting for targets"
"Prepare the Mk 41 also, launch a salvo against the European frigate in front of us. Are the electronics still working?"
"Yes, sir, we have no troubles since eight minutes ago"
"Is RAZOR still active?"
"Affirmative, jammers in action. We'll give them a hard time in locking on us"
Even if it was not true, since the Europeans had an electronics so advanced as to be envied even by a spaceship: with their systems they could track targets up to fifteen kilometers away, had systems that power down at the exact moment when the EMP wave touched the vessel and then automatically reactivate. Also their targeting systems were very advanced.
But they too had a few tricks up their sleeve.
Although the blue flash had destroyed most of their planes, ships were able to activate the RAZOR system, which prevented close range lock on and made it difficult also on medium and long range and the aircraft carriers and their escorts were provided with electromagnetic shields: in essence, ship systems would emit jamming signals, just like the land ones, able to confuse the enemy electronics so as to deflect the missiles to CIWS death zones or even overload them and destroying them in the air or shutting their systems and let them fall into the ocean unarmed, while the cannons wouldn't be a threat without a lock. The jamming will persist until it's source won't eliminated, and to do this they would have to sink the aircraft carriers and their escorts.
"Firing solution on the European frigate Jena are ready sir. Awaiting orders"
"Tear them into pieces, Lieutenant!"
"Aye aye sir. Fire"
The bridge was shaken by the recoil of the Mk 45 and the launch a salvo from the aft launcher, headed to the ill-fated European frigate.
The Europeans were proving fierce opponents, for being a young nation. Wallace had to admit it, they could put up a nice battle plan. It was also true that some of the greatest military minds were born here, so one should not expect less from the current strategists. According to reports of a few minutes ago, almost a hundred aircraft had been destroyed along a front of 12 kilometers. It was the first time he saw something like that. A bolt from the blue, carrying EMP death and destruction.
He had heard on the radio the pilots who were trying desperately to regain control of their aircraft, which fell into the ocean like stones. But he wasn't able to do anything to save those poor pilots.
But he would do everything possible to avenge them.
"Commander!" The sonar officer's voice made him leave his thoughts. The commander looked away from the screen in the middle of the CIC and turned to his lieutenant.
"What's going on Mike?" He said. He still had to get used to the formalities to be captain, but the crew was responding positively to his attitude.
"It seems that the sonar jammings have ceased"
"Radar?"
"Even here, sir. We can see European ships"
That was a good thing. Now they could play almost at par.
"Great, stay alert"
"Sir!" It was Beckett "The Kennedy has been hit by torpedoes!"
"Torpedoes? What the hell are doing our Hunter Killer?"
"Sonar! Check if there are submarines!"
EFS PRAGUE, NORTHERN ATLANTIC 13:24 25/05/2020
"Target: transport ship. Distance: five hundred meters" Delgado sent the coordinates of the ship full of marines, placed in the rear of the fleet safe from heavy fighting that were taking place later, to the weapons officer that would calculate the launch trajectory for the torpedoes .
"Torpedoes ready?"
"Torpedoes ready captain!"
"Launch"
"Launch" The echoed the XO
"Torpedoes on the target in 5 ... 4 ... 3 ... 2 ... 1 ... now"
"Target hit! It's sinking"
"Mark: the Prague has destroyed another ship. Vaccani, get us out of here, but take a longer route, bring us a few kilometers away. I do not want surprises"
"Yes, sir, returning to the fleet, bearing change, turning to 130. Removal of three kilometers in progress, ready for turning"
"Not bad for today" Whispered his XO "A frigate and a transport ship. Our battle record is improving"
"Soon we'll have ourselves a reputation as the submarines of the last war, Stanislaw"
"Sir!" It was Marchand "I just got a message from the Rome, says the Stockholm sank the USS John F. Kennedy"
"Impossible"
"Yet it is true, sir. I am monitoring communications between submarines, it seems that it really happened"
"Did we lost someone?"
"Yes" His tone had gone darker "The Riga and Sofia were sunk to allow the Stockholm to complete it's mission"
SOL SYSTEM, EARTH SPACE, SLAMS US SPACE CONTROL FACILITY LIMA-2 13:36 (ICELAND TIME) 25/04/2020
There was only one word to describe the space: space.
Immense, empty yet full. What once for the man was an impossible dream was now a common place for scientific space stations, orbital weapons systems and their control centers.
The station Lima-2 was responsible for the battle zone of Iceland, along with Lima-1. Loaded with twelve tungsten bars long twenty feet and wide one, it was the exact opposite of the European HELLS which used a THEL direct energy laser to hit its target.
The station was controlled by the air force, and Technical Sergeant Baker was currently busy watching the satellite feed of the battle for Iceland, along with his companion, airman first class Kent. They would rather watch baseball or basketball by satellite channels, but the command had decided that the battle was more important than the orbital satellite connections, so they cut all non-military channels until the end of the battle.
It was a very intense battle: a European frigate, identified as EFS Jena, had just been hit and sunk by a burst coming from the cruiser Bunker Hill, which had been damaged by another European cruiser. Baker had stopped to take account of the names for some time, while Kent was thrilled to see those ships exchanging white trails with explosions at the end.
The screen went black and a white writing appeared on it.
"Firing orders"
The station commander, Captain O'Hara appeared from the tailgate.
"I'm sorry to interrupt people, but we have a launch order"
"We're getting it now ma'am. Kent, put the coordinates into the computer. Load three bars"
"Yes, Sergeant"
O'Hara approached Baker. The sergeant felt a tremor that struck him every time he saw the captain. He has been in space for two months now, and she was one of only three women in the station, in addition to sergeants Logan and Fletcher. He stood staring at her for a moment.
"Sergeant?"
"Oops"
"Excuse me, ma'am, but for a second I thought that the left panel was flashing dangerously"
"Oh, for a moment I thought you were staring at the ribbons on my chest" she replied, not very convinced.
Kent barely suppressed a laugh for the fool that the sergeant had just done. Baker threw a glance challenging him to laugh to try to breathe in space without a supply of oxygen.
"I would never permit to do such a thing, captain. I am ready to follow orders," he said, while on the screen appeared the order to fire.
"Key"
They pulled out the keys and put them in the panel at the left of the sergeant.
"3" O'Hara began to count " 2... 1 ... launch"
The coverage of the red button disappeared and the captain pressed it.
No one noticed the launch: no recoil, no flame, no noise. They understood that they had launched when the bars were in front of the windows of the fire control station.
"May God forgive me. I threw something that will kill hundreds of men over there"
"Are you all right, Sergeant?" Churched Kent. The captain looked at him puzzled.
"Yes, Kent. Don't worry. I'm fine, ma'am"
She put a hand on his shoulder and tapped twice. She had understood.
Maybe she felt the same thing, after all.
NORTHERN ATLANTIC, 25/04/2020 13:36
Six bars of tungsten pierced the atmosphere, even inflamed by the heat due to the transition from space to atmosphere, directed to the European fleet.
The aircraft carrier Josef Radetski was hit on the flight deck. The heat from the impact partially fused the bridge and the two Rafale parked on it. The shot pierced the ship from side to side and sank in the ocean, it's run now stop by the bridges that had to cross and the wall of water that awaited it at the end.
While the aircraft carrier cracked in half, two bars hit two European ships, evaporating the hull on impact and creating shock waves strong enough to raise waves such as to reverse a ship nearby. Of the last three bars, two hit the ocean, evaporating the water and raising waves that swept ships nearby, and some of them were turned upside down by the force of the waves. The last bar lacked the Grande Casse slightly, hitting the destroyer Loire but investing the cruiser with waves that threatened to capsize the ship.
EFS GRANDE CASSE, NORTHERN ATLANTIC 13:27 04/25/2020
"My God"
"Down the stabilizers!" Shouted Gardere.
"Stabilizers down, strong shock waves!"
"Hold something!"
The crew clung as hard as possible at their stations or something solid enough to keep them standing. The hull began to shake quickly from right to left, with enough force to knock down the sailors.
Gardere stood up clinging to the edge of the holographic map a and putting strength on his arms to get up. His head whistled and when he touched his left temple he felt ache. He must have taken a tremendous blow.
"Damage report!"
"The external glasses have exploded! Several injured on the bridges. The helicopter crashed into the water, the outside decks are swept by the waves. The 4th propeller is gone, the left side is studded with debris, torpedo tubes damaged .. . I can't believe in that "
"What?"
"The left side is deforming due to the heat of the explosion"
"Navigation" Gardere had operated the intercom between the CIC and the bridge "Turn around"
"Sir?"
"The ship is badly damaged and unless you want to die this is the right time to leave!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Captain, I have a message from Admiral Galli"
"What does it say?"
"All ships damaged have to withdraw to Iceland. The ships still able to fight, fighters and submarines must mount a rearguard action while they withdraw. The air force also has been able to launch anti-ship aircraft from Iceland, where it seems that the weather is improving "
"Give the new coordinates to the navigation. I'll go up on the observation deck to assess the damage"
FEMF HQ, AMSTERDAM, HOLLAND, EF 13:40 04/25/2020
"Kowalski"
"Admiral, Giannopoulus here"
"Admiral, I heard that the battle is going well"
"I would not say that,sir"
Kowalski straightened on the chair "Why?"
"The enemy has used a WMD on our fleet: they used their SLAMS systems to hit our ships to give an edge to their fleet"
"Casualties?"
"We lost 50% of the ships. 20% is severely damaged and the remaining thirty is still able to fight. The Radetski was sunk by the first salvo. No Survivors"
"I can't believe that we've lost an aircraft carrier!" Now Kowalski was standing, angry "Were ECMs working or what?"
"Sir, certainly ECM jammers wouldn't prevent the attack on the fleet"
"Of course! We had overshadowed the entire area after 12.45 AM to let Galli perform his plan!"
"To enable the success of the plan we had to disable radar and sonar baits. They were interfering with our targeting systems"
"I don't care! What the hell Admiral! I had approved a plan, not another"
"No plan survives contact with the enemy, sir"
"Do not quote me Eisenhower. I trusted you, Eusebius, I trusted you! Send me all the information in your possession, Pérreau will not be satisfied. Take the first flight to Paris and pass down the command to Galli"
"But, sir ..."
"No buts. I am authorizing a WMD attack to cover the retreat. Tell Galli to leave a rear guard and retreat to the island. This is all, Admiral"
Kowalski hung up before his interlocutor could respond and quickly dialed another number.
"Please Identify"
"Admiral Boris Kowalski, from 56,492 to 10,394-BK, CINCMF"
"ID confirmed. To who do you want to talk, Admiral?"
"General Hohol, please"
"Admiral Kowlaski, Hohol here, what can I do for you?"
"We have a situation in Iceland and we would like to use your toys if possible"
"Tell us what you need to be hit and how, Admiral"
SOL SYSTEM, ABOVE EARTH 13:53 04/25/2020
The HELLS platform known as Delta-6 was committed to cover the satellites in its sector from possible missile attacks when the remote control from the ground inserted new directives for the satellite of billions of euro. The left hydrogen booster lit for a moment, tipping the platform for the optimum firing angle for it's new mission.
Once it reached the angle, the right booster lit to counter the inertia resulting from those on the left, effectively stabilizing the satellite. The onboard computer performed the calculations needed to shoot, and when it finished, a red button was pressed by the operator on the planet.
A beam of blue light departed from the HELLS.
Not directed toward the planet, but towards a target in orbit.
Those of Lima-1 and 2 became aware of the laser beam only when it was too late. In an instant, the control station and the weapons one were vaporized by the high temperatures of the beam.
NORTHERN ATLANTIC 13:54 25/04/2020
"One carrier lost and several ships too... I can't believe that this is what remains of the second and third fleets" Whispered 7, sadness in his voice.
"Colonel, it's time to go .."
Yellow 12 did not answer, but bowed his plane left, imitated by his five wingmen. Under him there was what was left of the European fleet: Most in flames, few are able to fight and the remaining retreating.
They had lost, there was nothing they could do. They had done their best and did everything possible to win, but it was not enough. The Americans had played dirty, and neither they could counteract this game.
"To all units, AWACS Draconis here, orders from admirals Galli and Giannopoulus: disengage and withdraw to Iceland. All units able to fight assemble a rearguard or hide the escape of the others. Yellow squadron, you have permission to disengage from the battlefield and head to Iceland for rearming and refueling "
"Yellow 12, roger AWACS. We have done everything possible right?"
"Not even you can intercept a tungsten bar at four times the speed of sound, Colonel. You've done everything that was in your power. Leave the rest of the rearguard"
"Roger. Yellow Squadron, restore formation"
"Colonel? We'll take our revenge. Sooner or later"
"I hope so, 5. Otherwise the war will end very soon"
"Colonel, a radio message for you"
"From whom?"
"Unknown sender"
"Patch it through"
"Colonel!"
"Holden? How the hell did he survived?"
"Did you think that STONEHENGE could destroy me? Oh, it takes more. Although today I almost won, the debt is not closed. Not at all. We both know how it will end: you or me. The next time you may not be so lucky . Wildcard 1 cout "
"Bastard! How did he survived?" churched 5.
"Colonel, how do you know such a person?"
"It was a long time ago. At that time, our countries were allies, and he and I flew together. But then towards the end of the conflict something changed, and since then we were no longer the same"
"Roger"
"At least that's what I keep telling me"
UNKNOWN LOCATION 19:00 25/04/2020
"It seems to have started," said the man in the black suit.
"It is on schedule?" Asked the one sitting.
"Smooth as silk. I would say that phase one has been successfully completed" replied a woman dressed in blue.
"Then we will begin phase two. Tell Grun to say that to our man in the Kremlin. And put back in the field Viktoria"
"Yes, boss. How do we deal with the Europeans and the Americans?"
"Contact Kowalski, suggested to a solution to the problem that has placed to us. Tell him to discuss it with his colleagues and to meet in Paris with ours. You will be with them"
"Yes, sir. With permission, I will go now"
"Go Noir. Keep us informed"
The man dressed in black walked out the door.
"Azul, contact McDaniel, tell him to put pressure on President Kennedy and for the DEFENDER and European plans"
"Very well" The woman dressed in blue left the room.
"They're gone. You can come out"
Another woman, dressed in purple walked out of the secret door on the western side of the room.
"By when Ganjin will be operational, Viola?"
"Two more months to gather the necessary resources and establish an effective network"
"Hmmm ... what about the green brigades?"
"The cannon fodder is always ready. Where do we send them?"
"Start of operations against small local cartels in South America, Africa and Asia. You know the procedure"
"Yes, Grey"
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Who are this mysterious figures? How can they control the war? Are they the real threat? Stay tuned to find out