Chapter Eight.
USS Paul Emerson
Hangar Bay One
After switching off her 308's display panel, Major Emerson climbed down from her bird and was greeted by thunderous applause and cheers. The crowd before consisted of crewmembers, hangar bay personnel, and last but definitely not least, her squadron members. All of whom made it back from the mission.
"Hail to the Double Ace of Lucia," Someone shouted.
"Hail to the Double Ace of Lucia," everybody else shouted in unison. The shout suddenly turned into a chant. Nancy just stood there basking in the glory of her achievement. That chanting went on for few more minutes until Colonel Clyde told everyone to pipe down and the crowd parted down the middle so he could approach the new Double Ace. Nancy snapped a quick salute and Clyde returned the gesture and gesture followed up with a handshake.
"Congratulations, Major Emerson. How does it feel to be the first Double Ace the United States Air Force has had in decades."
"It feels incredible sir," Nancy replied.
"I'm sure it does. I told Homeworld Command about your accomplishment and General O'Neill gave me permission to award you the Aerospace Achievement Medial. The ceremony will take place in this bay at seventeen-hundred hours."
"Thank you very much, sir."
"To be completely honest with you Major, General O'Neill's way of giving me permission sounded more like an insistence.
"What were his exact words, sir?"
"Major Emerson better return home with an Aerospace Achievement Medal shinning around her neck," Clyde replied. And I won't be surprised if he invites you to a meal."
"I will be honored if he does, sir. So with Lucia a radioactive wreck and the Lucian council in custody aboard the Hammond, what are doing now?"
"We and the Phoenix are heading back to Earth but the Hammond and the Phoenix have one more errand. Colonel Carter wasn't cleared to give any specifics but I think it has something to do with the prisoners."
"Hmm," Nancy commented.
USS Hammond
Vehicle Bay
High Commander Clayvin finally regained consciousness and the first thing he noticed was that he laying face flat on a cold hard floor. He rose up and tried to move his hands and feet but he could feel bindings holding them in place. He looked to his left and right and saw his fellow council members restrained in the same way he was, then he looked straight ahead a sight that filled him with dread. Before Clayvin and his councilmembers were twelve Marines. Ten were on foot staring them down through the sights of their M4-A1s and the other two were manning fifty caliber machineguns atop two LOTVs. Clayvin noticed one of them was a woman and she had her fifty cal pointed right at him.
"Who's in charge here?" Clayvin demanded but the Marines said nothing. I am High Commander Clayvin of the Lucian Alliance and the head of its central council. On the behalf of my people, I am demanding to speak to your commander at once." The Marines remained dead silent and still as statues.
"Forget it, Clayvin. We're just prisoners to them," Irene said. Clayvin just hung his head in defeat.
Where was the Alliance going to go from here he thought. Lucia was destroyed, their military power decimated, all of the councilmembers except the ones in his company were picked off by raids conducted by the Tau'ri since this war began.
And what about the clan leaders, were there any left that were still loyal to the Alliance?
His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of doors opening and he looked up just in time to see another woman who appeared to be the commander of whatever this place was walking through the line of Marines and straight towards him. She stopped just short of him leaving only a foot of space between them.
"High Commander Clayvin, I am Colonel Samantha Carter of the USS George Hammond. You and your people are currently being held as prisoners of war aboard my ship."
"Where are you taking us?" Clayvin demanded.
"We are taking you all to a neutral planet where you will be presented with the terms of your surrender. Word of Lucia's destruction has spread throughout the galaxy and the few clan leaders who maintained their loyalty to you are already at the sight awaiting your arrival."
"To hell with your terms of surrender, Tau'ri. The Lucian Alliance will never yield to your kind."
"Silence, Irene. Can't you see the position we're in right now?"
"I strongly advise you to listen to your husband, Commander Irene. The next time you speak out of turn will result in painful consequences."
"I speak whenever I want, Tau'ri scum."
Having had enough of Irene's backtalk, Carter gave a nod to the Marine who was aiming at her and squeezed the trigger on the under-barrel attachment of his gun, and out came a blue beam of electricity that slammed right into Irene's chest and made her scream in pain. The attachment on Corporal Sinise's gun was called a shock launcher. Unlike the stun launcher which knocked its targets unconscious, the shock launcher subjected its targets like Irene to painful electrocution for fifteen seconds. It worked just like a taser. A taser that didn't require the user to change cartridges after firing.
The beam dissipated and Irene fell to the floor trying to catch her breath.
"Let the shock Commander Irene just received to her system serve as a warning to the rest of you. Further insubordination will be met with harsher measures. You are all here because you decided to take a direct shot at our planet. Were it not for that, we probably would've remained content with limiting our war to launching strikes on your Kassa fields, slave markets, mines, factories, garrisons, and ships. But you pushed us too far with your bombing attempt. So I strongly suggest you all behave yourselves and enjoy the ride to the surrender meeting."
After finishing her speech, Carter walked back through the line of Marines and out of the room.
M4A-662
Four days later, Clayvin's group along with the three clan leaders of the loyalist factions, Movar, Drenger, and Osberg were seated at a long table in the middle of an open plain of a neutral planet reading over the terms of surrender presented by the Tau'ri who were present in force. The remaining members of the Lucian Alliance leadership were surrounded by a battalion-sized Honey Badger unit consisting of four-hundred Marines backed by several light and heavy off-world tactical vehicles, three squadrons of twenty-four F-308s circling overhead, and the Hammond, Odyssey, and Churchill watching from orbit, No doubt ready to rain down fire if the terms were rejected.
In order for this war to end, the Lucian Alliance had to agree to the following terms
No more drug distribution, weapon sales, or slave markets.
Keep fleet strength limited to three Ha'Taks. Ownership of attack craft like Gliders and Al'kesh is not permitted. After the destruction of Lucia, the Odyssey, and the Churchill which were standing by to provide backup if Taskforce Hammond needed it went off on another hunting trip and picked off several more Lucian Ha'taks which reduced their fleet strength to just three ships.
Respect the demarcation line separating open and Tau'ri controlled space in the Milky Way Galaxy.
Do not come across said line. The line in question went all the way up to the orbital perimeter of the planet they would soon be calling home. They wouldn't be allowed to take their ships beyond the planet even they wanted to.
If they tried, the Tau'ri already had assets in place to blow them to pieces if they moved so much as an inch out of orbit.
Lastly, once they were put on this new planet, the stargate would be removed. Permanently cutting off the Lucian's from the rest of the galaxy.
There was nothing on this list his people found acceptable, but given the amount of Tau'ri firepower on the ground, in the air, and in orbit. Clayvin knew he and his people had no choice.
"On the behalf of the Lucian Alliance, I hereby announce our acceptance of these terms." Clayvin picked up the pen and signed the document then handed it over to the representative from the IOA who then went over to the battalion commander, Lieutenant Colonel Harrison.
"The Lucian Alliance has accepted our terms."
"I will tell Colonel Carter at once," Harrison replied then activated his radio.
Upon getting word from Harrison, Cater contacted General O'Neill and told him the good news.
"Sir, the Lucian Alliance has signed our terms of surrender."
"At long last, our war with them is finally over. Tell the guys on the ground to escort Clayvin and his sorry lot to their new forever home."
"Yes, sir."
With the treaty signed, the Lucian council members and the clan leaders were escorted to the nearby stargate by forty Marines and sent through once it was activated.
With business on this end done and over with, Colonel Harrison dialed the gate again to take the men and women of his battalion back to their base on P4X-335 and the vehicles were beamed back to the ships.
V10X-444
Clayvin's group arrived through the gate and the first they saw was a map fixed to a three.
"What is the meaning of this?" Irene asked. It didn't take long for Calyvin to figure it out.
"This map is pointing us to our new settlement. It's only three miles from here and all we have to do is continue straight ahead.
"How can you be sure this isn't a Tau'ri trap?"
"Don't be a fool, Irene. If the Tau'ri wanted to kill us, we would've been dead back at the treaty signing."
"I agree, High Commander," Osberg said.
"I do not wish to stand here any longer. Let's move everyone," Calyvin ordered.
From a concealed position in the treeline flanking the gate from the right, a US Army sniper was watching the Lucian Alliance members through the scope of his M-24.
"Grizzly One to Bear Cave, the contacts are heading towards the settlement. I repeat, the contacts are heading towards the settlement."
"Copy that. Remain on station until the gate has been removed."
Roger.
Unbeknownst to the Lucians, the Tau'ri had set up a base on this planet for the sole purpose of monitoring them. In fact, there were multiple army teams watching their trek to the settlement every step of the way.
With the area around the gate cleared, eight soldiers popped up from their concealed positions moved to form a defensive perimeter around it as one of them pinned a beacon on the gate and the dialing device.
Once that was done, a signal was sent to a V-309 waiting in orbit then the gate and its dialing computer were beamed away.
With the cargo onboard the transport shuttle headed back across the demarcation line towards the waiting starboard side hangar bay of the USS Helios. It beamed the gate and dialing device over to the ship's cargo hold halfway through the return trip.
Operating alongside it to enforce the treaty with Lucian Alliance was its sister 304, the USS Artemis. Both were commissioned the day after the nuking of Lucia and were given the task of making sure the Lucians stayed on their side of the line as their first mission. There was also a group of six Nexus beam satellites staring down the three Lucian Ha'taks sitting in orbit. So far, they hadn't moved an inch.
In addition to being the first 304s to be commissioned simultaneously, the Helios and the Artemis were also the first Tau'ri ships to be equipped with the Hydra Extended Range Area Defense Beam Turrets. Both ships were equipped with eight of them and each one could engage up to six enemy aerospace craft like Gliders and Darts at once. Hence the name, Hydra. There were plans in the works to equip off-world bases with the system too.
Twenty-four later, the treaty was still holding.
Fin.
That's a wrap, people. I will now be shifting focus to my next Ace Combat fanfic. I hope you all enjoyed the story.