Chapter 6; Atrocities committed and hunts started
Khagaan was walking back to her carrier when one of her soldiers came to talk to her: "Ma'am there is a matter that requires your attention. Khagaan nodded, and turned to follow him. She was led to a wide open field of concrete, probably a parking space for Coalition vehicles. Within this space there was a large number of people, perhaps around five hundred or so, on their knees and hands behind the backs of their heads, arranged into a neat square. Some were in military uniforms, most were in various civilian clothing. The clothes of some were torn and in tatters, while some looked as if they had been assigned their kit just that day. Some were clearly wounded, others did not have a scratch on them. All of them had faces in various states of miserable. Surrounding this group there was a row of Gaalsien infantrymen, set in even intervals with assault rifles in their hands, forming a hollow square to enclose the other one.
"These are the prisoners that surrendered to us during the battle. Current head count is five hundred fourteen individuals. We wanted your instructions on what to do with them." said the soldier that had brought her here.
"Are there any officers among them?" Khagaan asked.
"No, not as far as we can tell, we would have already singled them out. A few are rank and file soldiers, most are just various base personnel." answered the soldier.
"Civilians then?" she queried.
"Non-combatants, Ma'am" the soldier corrected dryly. "They were still working in an enemy military base with full knowledge of what they were doing."
"Are you a command officer?" a new voice addressed her. A woman in a yellow and black uniform and short, dirt brown hair had stood up and boldly advanced several steps towards the line of guards, sparing only a single nervous glance at the half dozen assault rifles that levelled at her. "You must listen to me," the woman said assertively "we are prisoners of war, we have a right to…ah!" she was interrupted when the Gaalsien infantryman nearest to her struck her across her face with the butt of his assault rifle, causing her to fall to the ground with a grunt. She raised herself back into a sitting position, rubbing her cheek where a bruise was already forming, and glaring at the soldier that had struck her. If looks could kill the soldier would have been torn to ribbons in that instant.
"You will speak when spoken to, heretic." the soldier said simply, his tone goading the woman to stand up and attempt to speak again.
"That's enough soldier." Khagaan said, interrupting the scene. She knelt so that her eyes me those of the fallen prisoner, and she removed her helmet so the prisoner could see her face. "What is your name, if I may ask?" Khagaan asked.
"Irene, of kiith Naabal, maintenance officer, what do you care?" the prisoner answered with anger and defiance in her voice, but also a fragment of cautious curiosity.
"Because, Irene of kiith Naabal, your actions just now were quite brave, more than many would attempt, and that deserves recognition, regardless of whatever else might happen. You deserve to have your name known to us. Despite this, I'm afraid you are mistaken. You claim to have rights as prisoners of war. You have none. Once, in a world that once was, that might have been different, but you cast that world aside. You have turned away from Sajuuk, and thus you are no longer under the protection of his laws. Now you only have the rights that I choose to give you."
"You fucking floats and your fucking religion!" Irene cursed angrily, and spat on the ground before Khagaan's feet.
"Floats? Is that what you call us?" Khagaan asked, amused. "Interesting. I will admit it has a certain ring to it, and with our vehicles I can see where the name comes from. Of course, we also have a name for you Northerners. We call you Faagani; the bound and blind, followers of the false gods of science and logic." Khagaan glanced at the Gaalsien soldier still standing near the two of them. "Of course there is also the term heretic, but that is just too generic, no?"
Irene did not answer, just looked at her with confusion in her face, struggling to understand Khagaan's reactions. Khagaan simply stood up and turned to address the soldier that had brought her here in the first place.
"So, soldier, how many would be needed to secure these people, in your estimation?" She asked of him in a low tone, so as to not be overheard by anyone else.
"To establish a proper guard rotation and routine checks, and to make sure the situation does not backfire at any time? I reckon that about twice their numbers would do. Three times if you want us to do that and secure this place against outside attacks in a reasonable manner." the soldier answered.
"You require that many against a bunch of unarmed prisoners?" Khagaan asked, incredulous.
"Not just the prisoners, Ma'am" the soldier answered. "There is every chance that there are hostile forces still out there, unaccounted for. If those forces get to our prisoners, free them and arm them… these people could be become a serious security hazard. They know this base better than we do and they're still spirited enough to put up a serious fight. The only way to counter that is to make sure we have more people available at any given time, regardless of what else might be out there."
"We don't have that kind of numbers, soldier." Khagaan said, a terrible suspicion beginning to creep into her mind.
"I am aware of that, Ma'am. You asked what I need and I answered, but the truth is we don't have what I would need." the soldier replied.
"Then why would you…?" Khagaan began to ask. Then the answer dawned on her. "You just wanted my permission didn't you?"
"The decision seems rightly yours, you are in command after all." The soldier said.
Khagaan gave a bitter laugh: "You're not asking me to make a decision, you're asking me to take the blame. You want me to take away your guilt by making it mine, so you can go on claiming you are a mindless bot that was just following orders."
The soldier did not answer, but his body language spoke of an embarrassed admission to her accusations. Khagaan glanced at the prisoners, then her wounded carrier in the distance, then back at the prisoners. "I guess it is simple then." she finally sighed. "Terminate." she commanded her soldiers with a voice that spoke of a heart hardened to an unpleasant task. Her soldiers responded at once, turning their weapons to point at the prisoners. The prisoners were standing up, screaming in fear or shouting alarmed protests, cut short by a staccato of assault rifle fire on full automatic. As soon she had given her command she had resumed her journey back to her carrier, walking with a significant briskness in her step. She refused to look back and see what she had wrought with her command, but she could not suppress a wince when the first shots rang out.
"Did I have to do that? Was it right? Was it his will, or have I sinned?" were the thoughts foremost in her mind as she walked, despite her attempts to drive those thoughts away with cold, calculating logic. She pushed her thoughts aside as best she could, trying to focus on the tasks yet ahead of her.
Sometime later she was sitting in the main conference room of her carrier, where she had called her main command crew to review their current situation and discuss their next plan of action, while the command center was manned by rotation crew members. The room was circular in shape, dominated by the large round table at its center. The table also doubled as a holographic display system that was able to project various three dimensional images of different sort. Most prominently it was used to project various maps needed during strategic and tactical planning. A large red carpet covered the entire floor from end to end. Around the table were a series of simple chairs at regular intervals, made of steel and red cloth. The room was largely unadorned, save for the Gaalsien flag hanging from one section of the wall and a miniature representation of the Ashoka on a side table. On that side table were arranged a glass jug of water and several glasses, as well as various other refreshments and small eats, a necessary component of long meetings and planning sessions.
Currently it was Scotha that was speaking, outlining the damage the Ashoka had taken in the last battle. It was starting to sound that the damage was far more serious than had been immediately apparent. "At this time the repairs to our hull are proceeding nicely, most of the damage to the secondary armor plating and ship compartments have now been repaired, and I anticipate the primary armor plating shall be repaired before we face active combat again." He explained.
"There has been, however, significant damage to several important systems, some of which is rather serious" he continued. "Our ships EMP system has been disabled, though our crewmen are working on those systems and we expect the weapon can be repaired, given enough time. I don't think we should rely on the system being operational for the next few battles at least.
"Understood." Khagaan said "Is there any other damage?"
Scotha sighed: "Unfortunately that was the least of the damage to major systems we sustained. The attack also affected our main production yard just as we were in the process of creating a new honor guard cruiser. As a result our local data relating to the cruiser has been irrevocably corrupted. We cannot produce new honor guard cruisers until we can receive replacement data."
"With the situation at hand, it is unlikely that we'll get that kind of chance, so I guess we will have to do without them." Khagaan commented.
"There is also the problem regarding our long range missile systems." R'kath added.
"I seem to remember that the system appeared to be somehow damaged in the attack, how bad is it?" Khagaan asked of Scotha.
"Dockyard refit only." Scotha said after a long pause.
"Well, shit." Khagaan cursed, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Surely this isn't beyond our ability to fix? The phased array can do almost anything, can it not?" Harkath asked.
"We could probably create the parts we need, but without a dockyard framework around us there is no way we could move the larger components into place." Scotha explained. "And some of the more advanced components consists of materials that are almost impossible to find or manufacture in the field, even with the assistance of the phased assembler array."
"So, to summarize, they fucked us up." Khagaan stated.
"Royally." Arraesh confirmed dryly.
"Well, there might be a chance for us to improvise ourselves a dockyard if we are lucky." Khagaan said. "If not, then there is nothing to do but hope that we won't need a missile barrage anytime soon. But this brings us to the next topic of this meeting, the command carrier Kapisi. Arraesh?"
With a nod Arraesh began to speak, pressing a button on the table to light up a map of the region: "As you are already aware, the Coalition command carrier Kapisi has managed to evade the Renza's fleet before the attack on Epsilon base took place and flee to the open desert. At this time it is our belief that this was an emergency departure done with a minimal level of readiness. Given that this departure occurred roughly three months before the estimated departure time suggested by our intelligence, it is our belief that the Kapisi will need to complete certain preparations before it is ready to enter the equatorial desert. To accomplish this they will be needing a suitable facility, propably one that is sufficiently large to receive a Coalition lander. Thanks to the information captured from enemy bases defeated today, we know that currently there is only one such location left south of the Frontier wall. It is a decommissioning yard for retired fleet units known as the Boneyard, located around two hundred kilometers from Epsilon base, here. This will be the immediate next objective for our task force."
After a pause to let the Information sink in, Arraesh resumed his briefing:
"This situation presents an unique opportunity to destroy the Kapisi while the carrier is still vulnerable. It is our best chance, one that we must capitalize on. Our mission will be to either destroy the Kapisi or force it out of the Boneyard before the refit is complete. There is however a reasonable possibility that the Kapisi will be able to fight off our offensive long enough to continue on with its mission. Thanks to the information we have been able to acquire today, we can make some predictions what the probable route of the expedition will be, and we have designed our upcoming strategy accordingly."
Arraesh turned to Khagaan giving her the cue to begin her part of the briefing:
"The site of the Khar Toba is located here, deep within the Dhaigren region. To reach Dhaigren, it is necessary to bypass the Garaaki highlands mountain region here. There are two possible routes the Kapisi may use. One is the area of relatively low rock formations known as the Shining Flats in the north, the other the narrow canyon known as the Whispering Gallery. Since the northerner vehicles likely have difficulties tolerating extreme temperatures, they will likely try to minimize the time they have to spend in the equatorial regions. This would make the northern passage the more likely option for them. My orders will be as follows: The Ashoka and Renza will make for the Boneyard at best possible speed, leaving behind a contingent of forces to secure the assets we have acquired thus far. Even in our relatively depleted state, having two of our carriers and their fleets against their one should guarantee us a victory. Meanwhile the Ashinta will move to block the northern passage. If the Kapisi manages to escape us, then there is a chance they will flee straight into a trap and we will be able to catch them between three carrier fleets. The Arrakesh and Vashti will remain here to secure this region and assist our other forces as necessary. We will be needing an advance force to engage the Kapisi if we wish to intercept them before they can set out, so the Renza is to deploy its sand skimmer units; they are the only unit type of our carriers that can hope to reach the site in time."
Khagaan turned to address her communications officer: "Kennae, I want you to transmit these orders as soon as this meeting concludes."
"Understood." Kennae said in acknowledgement.
"The skimmer units alone will not be enough though, not with a major unit like the carrier and a base as heavily defended as this." Khagaan said after a moment of pondering. "We're going to need something bigger, something with more punch. Are the other forces we might make use of?"
"Well, there are a number of heavy railgun units moving through the area fairly close to the Boneyard. We could link them up with the skimmers." Arraesh said. "There is a problem however: those units are currently on route from our staging areas to reinforce our military units assaulting the Frontier Wall. If we reprioritize these units, it's likely that our forces attacking the wall will suffer additional casualties."
"Damn" Khagaan cursed. "You are sure that these are the only additional forces available?" she then asked of Arraesh.
"Unfortunately, yes." he confirmed.
Khagaan was quiet for a long time, considering. "Very well." she said finally. "Kennae, you are to contact those forces and inform them of their new orders. Coordinate with Arraesh and set a rendezvous where the assault force can converge for the attack. And contact the commanders who were supposed to receive these reinforcements, inform them of these developments and deliver them my most sincere apologies for interfering with their duties."
"Do we know who commands the Kapisi, who are we up against?" Khagaan asked, turning to Arraesh.
"With the capture of Epsilon base, the Renza has been able to acquire both the crew manifest and technical specifications of the Kapisi. I've got it right here." Arraesh said, lifting a datapad. "So, let's see… it looks like the commanding officer is Captain Roman S'jet.
"Roman?" Khagaan asked, surprised.
"I you know him, Ma'am?" Harkath asked.
"In a manner of speaking." Khagaan replied. "Our carriers have clashed a few times. In fact I seem to remember that the man you replaced was killed by units under his command. He is a good officer. He is smart enough to use bold stunts to change the rules of an unfavorable game, but also wise enough to know that ultimately steady, methodical tactics beat clever tricks and fancy new tech toys every time. A worthy foe by all accounts. The northerners picked well. So who else is on the command crew?"
"There is intelligence officer Nathan S'jet, science officer Rachel S'jet, apparently supposed to be some kind of tech genius that one, and operations officer Clea Soban. Then there is a whole list of other officers and crewmen but they're not important right now." Arraesh answered.
"So there is a bunch of S'jet scientists fighting us?" Harkath said with a snort. That raised a chuckle from the other members around the table.
"Well, not exactly." Khagaan said, still sounding amused. "In this modern time not every S'jet is a scientist, just like not every Gaalsien is a Truthspeaker. They have their share of military types. Besides, there are likely other smaller kiith serving on the Kapisi. They surely fill some of the non-scientist roles.
"Plus this is a science expedition as much as a military one, so I guess S'jet being involved would be a given." Jiire commented from her seat.
"True enough." Khagaan said with a nod. "Jiire, how soon can we reach the Boneyard?"
"If we move quickly and don't get surprises on the way? I'd say around tomorrow morning." Jiire replied with a shrug.
Khagaan turned to Scotha next: "Guardian-engineer, seeing as the place we're going to conveniently has a dry-dock, I was thinking that maybe we could use the facilities in the Boneyard to refit the Ashoka. Do you think you could make it work?"
Scotha considered, grasping his chin thoughtfully. "Maybe, if we can spare the time and they have the materials we need, and the structure survives the battle without getting blown to bits or the northerners sabotaging the place. We'd get more work done with the facility in any case, so it's worth a try. It will need some creative thinking to make things work for us, what with the different carrier designs and all, but it is not the first time I have messed up with unfamiliar tech, I can handle this."
"Alright; Scotha as soon as we set out I want you to shun as much power as we can handle to our engines. Arraesh, make sure that we have a moving perimeter of scouts around our carrier as we advance. I don't want to get ambushed out here. Until we arrive its business as usual. We have a lot of work to do so we best get to it. Command crew dismissed."
With the meeting concluded the people around the table stood up and began filing their way out through the door. "Guardian-engineer Scotha." Khagaan called out, and her chief engineer stopped in his tracks.
"The repentance you are to offer on your profane use of our creator's name, I expect this matter to be concluded before the day is done." Khagaan said in a calm voice which nonetheless carried a slight menacing tone.
"You still remember that incident?" Scotha asked, astonished.
"Of course." Khagaan said as if it was the most self-evident thing in the world. "Such a thing should not be forgotten, by either of us. I trust that your surprise at me remembering is not an indicator that you intended to neglect your responsibilities to Sajuuk?" she added with an icy tone.
"No, no, of-of course not." Scotha answered with a shaky tone, trying unsuccessfully to feign indignation at her suggestion.
"Very good. Just so you are aware I will be checking with speaker Deravis later to ensure that this matter has been attended to. That will be all. Thank you for your informative report today." Khagaan spoke in a formal tone.
Scotha nodded, saluted and quickly made his way out through the meeting room door shooting a nervous glance over his shoulder as he did.