CH40 (119)
It was now 7 years later:
The second military destroyer had completed construction and both of them were together at the edge of the Tellus system.
Long range sensors had spotted a small fleet of ships just exiting FTL and were slowly making their way into the Tellus system.
The first cruiser was still a year away from completing construction and the third destroyer was 4 years into a 7 year build at Tellus.
Ariel was 4 years into their build of their first cruiser and was 1 year into the build of their first destroyer.
Athos had only just finished their first destroyer class of ship and was out on its shakedown cruise and was too far away to assist with the unknowns.
An additional 2 cruise ships had been completed at Tellus. While Callisto had just completed a military transport capable of moving heavy munitions as well as a small space for troops.
There were presently plans on the drawing board for a new class of ship. In keeping with Earth tradition of sizing, it was being referred to as a Battleship. The design parameters of this new ship were enormous.
It was going to have a central 1,200 ton MAC gun down the middle with two 600 ton MAC guns on either side. There were presently 12 placements for the dual barrel auto-cannon 5-inch deck gun as well as 126 dual barrel Gatling guns.
There was also a flight bay on either side. One side held 12 fighters, while the other side had drop pods for 12 first generation Battletech Marine fighting machines for ground combat. In addition there were tubes for 198 torpedoes. The thing was massive in the extreme.
The Earth military personnel were fighting for it; however the Tellus group were afraid of putting too many eggs in one basket so to speak. Tellus also did not like that the build time was twice that of a cruiser. (best estimate) Plus it just screamed shoot me first in a battlefield.
They could easily build 2 more cruisers PLUS 2 more destroyers with that amount of material in the same amount of time. It offered better flexibility.
"Put the unknowns on the main screen." The Captain orders. This is followed by the typical mist like screen that comes to life.
"Analysis?" The captain wants to know what the scans show.
"We have four unknowns. Three are roughly equal to us in tonnage. The other is closer in tonnage to our cruiser. The three are covering the fourth and are out in front acting as a screen. Their closing speed is about 1/8 of our flank speed." Is the answer he is given.
"Communications, anything?"
"Negative captain. All normal frequencies and subspace are quiet except for background noise."
"Send the standard hail, all frequencies except for subspace. No need to give away too much this early." The captain orders out.
"Package sent. …. I'm getting something on an upper band. It is not directed at us. It seems to be coming from the cruiser and is directed to an area behind them. … Probably their form of long range communications. … It will take years to reach the closest system sir."
"VAMPIRE, VAMPIRE, VAMPIRE! …. I have multiple objects inbound. Impact in 3 minutes mark, …. Mark."
"Sound general quarters, load and charge up the MAC gun, and get me the Moon Shadow." The captain orders.
Moon Shadow's Captain comes up on a separate screen. "Looks like the welcome committee is headed our way."
"You take the one on the far left, I'll take the far right. Recommend we launch torpedoes. I'll take on the torpedoes so you can put most of your power into recharging your MAC gun." The captain suggests.
"Acceptable, try not to miss." Taking damage and losing lives was not what they wanted.
"Weapons, fire the MAC gun when we reach a 100% charge. Spin up torpedoes 1 thru 12 and launch in series of threes." The captain orders.
"MAC at 89% and rising. …. Firing the first set of three. …. MAC at 95% and rising."
"Two minutes to impact."
"Fire the MAC gun on target designated alpha 3." The captain couldn't wait.
They could all feel the ship shudder with a ripple or wave like effect.
"Helm turn us 90 degrees and bring all guns to bear on the torpedoes and commence firing when in range." The captain orders.
"Now firing second wave of 3. The Moon Shadow is keeping pace with us. …. Targets Alpha one and Alpha 3 have been hit by rounds from our MAC guns."
"I'm reading sensor data that the cruiser is launching what appear to be fighters. …. Reading 30, 35, 40, 45, … 52 fighters launched."
"Now firing third wave of 3. The Moon Shadow is following."
"Our maneuvering is complete."
"I'm reading secondary explosions on targets Alpha 1 and Alpha 3."
"Both main auto-cannon guns are now firing on torpedoes."
"Now firing fourth wave of 3."
"Six of 22 enemy torpedoes intercepted. Gatling guns are now firing."
"The Moon Shadow has fired her MAC gun on target Alpha 2."
"Enemy fighters have solidified into 5 groups. …. First group is 2 minutes out."
"Detonate the first wave of 3 in the middle of the furthest group of fighters and detonate the others walking them towards us." The captain orders.
"First detonation in 3, 2, 1, firing."
"Nineteen of 22 enemy torpedoes intercepted, we're going to be hit."
The captain presses a button. "All hands brace for impact. Fire crews stand ready."
Five seconds later the bridge crew grab a hold of something to stay in their seats.
"Computer shows 3 hits. We have a fire in upper crew quarters. … Gatling guns 4 thru 7 destroyed. Gatling guns 3 and 8 are damaged and out of action."
"VAMPIRE, VAMPIRE, VAMPIRE, scans show a second wave of 22 torpedoes fired by enemy target Alpha 3"
"Spin us on our axis 180 degrees so our port side guns are facing the enemy, and get me an update on damage control." The captain orders.
"Target Alpha 3 has been hit by MAC round, …. target Alpha 3 has exploded."
"Wave 2 of torpedoes has detonated. … Wave 3 of torpedoes has detonated."
"Three minutes until impact of enemy torpedoes."
"Moon Shadow reports that their port MAC elevator is down. One minute to 90% charge."
"Damage report." The captain orders.
"No information yet."
"Wave 4 of torpedoes detonated. … Two enemy fighters remaining. They are one minute from impact."
"Top and bottom auto cannons are firing."
"Spin up torpedoes 13 thru 19 and fire when ready on the remaining enemy capital ship, target Alpha 4." The captain orders.
"Crew quarters section C and D are open to space. MAC gun coils 11 and 12 are damaged and off-line. Fires in crew quarters B and E are out. MAC gun is only 80% possible at maximum charge due to damaged coils."
"One minute to impact of enemy torpedoes. Gatling guns are firing."
"Moon Shadows has fired their MAC gun on target Alpha 4."
"The remaining 2 enemy fighters are destroyed."
"Twenty of 22 enemy torpedoes destroyed. Estimate one or both will impact."
The captain hits his button again. "All hands brace for impact. All fire crews stand ready for port side fires."
"Enemy target Alpha 4 has been hit with MAC round."
Once again the bridge crew grabs a hold of something to stay in their seats.
"Single impact on port side. … Gatling gun 11 is destroyed and 12 is damaged and off-line. … Crew quarters section C is now open to space on both sides. There are fires in crew quarters B and E again."
"Our 6 torpedoes will impact in one minute."
"Detonate torpedoes 5 and 6 by remote 100 yards out. Allow the other to detonate by proximity." The captain orders.
"Moon Shadows has fired their MAC gun at only 50% charge. … They are now firing 6 torpedoes."
"Spin up torpedoes 21 thru 27 and fire immediately." The captain orders.
"VAMPIRE, VAMPIRE, VAMPIRE. … Reading another launch of 22 enemy torpedoes from target Alpha 4. Impact is estimated at 3 minutes."
"The Moon Shadows is maneuvering for its starboard side to face thetorpedoes and is lining up with us, just below us."
"Enemy target Alpha 4 has been hit again by the MAC gun. …. I'm reading secondary explosions."
"Two minutes to impact of enemy torpedoes. Ours and Moon Shadows main auto cannons are firing."
"Moon Shadows torpedoes have exploded all by proximity."
"Our Gatling guns and Moon Shadows Gatling guns are firing."
"Detonating torpedoes 5 and 6, 100 yards out. …. Torpedoes 1 thru 4 have detonated by proximity."
"All enemy torpedoes destroyed."
"Enemy target Alpha 4 has exploded. …. targets Alpha 1 and 3 have exploded. They must have been hit by debris from Alpha 4."
"No enemy targets on scan, we are clear."
"The Moon Shadow is signaling."
The captain brings him up on screen. "How bad?" Is the first question.
"I'm going to need to transfer some personnel. We lost upper crew quarters C and D. B and E are damaged by fire and likely uninhabitable. A few Gatling guns are gone or off-line. MAC coils are damaged. Probably some of the upper torpedo tubes are likely damaged as well.
Luckily they were empty. Could have been worse. It looks like their torpedoes are simple explosives or we wouldn't be talking now." He knew if they were X-rays like theirs, they would all be dead. Cooked alive.
"They seem to rely on torpedoes and fighters. I'm assuming these guys are the ones the Oracle warned us about." Actually he was hoping they were. Otherwise it meant they had two enemies to deal with.
"I'd like to launch our shuttles and see if we can find something to bring back with us."
"Everything exploded, what we find is likely to be parts."
"Our pilots are going to need to be suited up. Maybe we can find a complete body. See if we can see who we are dealing with."
"I like it. I'll get my pilots ready and signal when they are ready to launch. … Any losses or injuries?"
"No word yet, I'll let you know. … The fires are under control."
"I'll inform Tellus since you have your hands full. Moon Shadow out."
Two hours later both ships launch their shuttle to search the area.
They have 12 injuries and no deaths, yet. One man was in emergency surgery.
"See anything?" One shuttle pilot asks, sitting in his suit, since if they find something to bring aboard they would end up open to vacuum.
"All I see is a bunch of parts. …. What's that?" And he points and slowly fly's over close.
"He or she is missing an arm looks like, but the rest of it looks intact."
"Clean-up on aisle 2." And the co-pilot gets up and opens the back ramp and they back the shuttle up while the co-pilot guides him into the bay. Then secures it in place.
"Next."
"You see what I see?"
"It's a space suit! What are the chances there is someone in it?"
"Clean-up on aisle 3. Keep your weapon handy, just in case." Once again he backs the shuttle up so the suit can be guided in.
"It's empty."
"That's fine, it gives us an example of their technology." He liked it.
They pulled in a few misc. parts and then headed home.
The other shuttle latched onto and towed back an intact fighter. Finding out later that its pilot had been cooked inside his cockpit.
"How do we get this thing back to Tellus?" The captain asks. They didn't have a flight bay to store it in. And their clamps only worked for their shuttles.
"Callisto has finished a military transport ship or maybe it'll fit in one of those old cargo ships we used to use." His first officer offers as a fix.
"Call both of them in. Maybe we can find more stuff to take with us with more storage space. These guys shoot first and don't ask questions later."
"They sent a message to an area behind them just after we sent our message." He points out.
"So, they know we are out here then. Wonder how long we have before the next group?" Million dollar question.
"Four ships sounds more like a scouting group than a combat group."
"I wonder what their other ships look like. We were damaged by just four. We need a plan for our own scouts. Waiting for them to come to us is like fighting in South Vietnam." His exec offers.
Getting a blank look back. "It was a war against another country that was only fought in the country we were trying to defend."
"Don't let them into our system before we engage the enemy." The captain got the meaning.
"Correct. We need to find them and take the fight to them. If we're not careful they will get close enough to launch on Tellus or one of our colonies." The exec points out.
"Any guesses on how to achieve this?" The captain didn't have any contacts in ship design or construction.
"I've got one in mind. Marine Captain Leon Schurrle. He's married to one of the Castle daughters." The exec knows just who to talk with.
"Castle? As in Castle gardens?" The captain knew that place. All the best restaurants on Tellus got there produce from them.
"That would be Alexis Castle. He's married to her sister who is a detective on Ariel." The exec corrects him.
"The detective Castle's." The captain was nodding his head. He had heard of those two. "Why this Captain Schurrle?"
"He's part of the design team for the Marine Cruiser. He's attached to the second generation Mech. Units. As you know the first generation was 16 tons. These come in at 60 tons each, and are just as fast. Or so I hear." The exec was actually dying to see one of these giants.
"He's designing these Mech. Units so he has access to the ship designers." The captain sees the connection.
"If we can get the Castle's on our side, the council is likely to listen to us." The exec had a plan.
"Call him up, let's get started. The sooner the better. Get one of these crews building stupid cruise ships onto this project instead." The captain give him his approval and orders him to proceed.
"Aye sir." One phone call coming up, as the exec grins.
He liked that Tellus personnel were listening to the Earth personnel. They didn't accept everything, however they also came up with things they had never even considered. Like these Mech. Units. Plus their ship design teams were excellent.
Plus they had experience in building ships.
He had to wait until he was off duty before he could make the call. Their ship was damaged and there was a lot of work to do.
"Captain Leon Schurrle, as I live and breathe."
"Well look at you. … I hear you made Executive Officer on one of the destroyers. Congrats. How do you like ship life?" Leon was actually glad to see him.
"Busy at the moment. We just had our first encounter with the enemy. Just don't tell anyone that." He shouldn't even be telling Leon, but he wanted his help, so it was best to straight up with him.
"You're alive. How bad?" Leon looked concerned now.
"One dead, 12 injured and my ship has two big holes in it." He confided.
"Please tell me the other guy looks worse than you do." Leon was being serious but also taking a jab at him. It was obvious his friend hadn't taken a shower yet.
The Exec just grins, hearing the innuendo in that question. "Four ships destroyed. We're waiting for some transport to show up. We've got a lot of intact enemy fighters floating around waiting for us to pick up." Those X-ray torpedoes had cooked them inside their own ships.
"Some enemy tech for us to look at. NICE! … So why call me? Are you on a planet or near a planet they are on?" Leon didn't see why he was calling him.
Down to business. "You have access to a ship design team, plus you're married to a Castle. … My captain and I have a ship design concept we want to go over with your design team."
Leon instantly looked a little worried. He was being used because of who he knew and was married to. Still, …. "I'm listening." Leon would hear him out before he said NO.
"We're on the edge of the Tellus system for this little altercation. I don't like the idea of fighting in our own front yard." That got Leon's attention.
"Find them, take the fight to them." Leon got the meaning.
"We were thinking of a scout ship. Something that could explore systems and signal back what they find. Maybe something a little bigger than one of your old gun boats, just not destroyer size."
"Not likely going to be very well armed at that size." Leon was worried about what if they get caught? Might as well put the crew in front of a firing squad.
"Not if they can't see them. … You know those reflective tarps." He was leading Leon into seeing their design plan.
"Yeah, Kate said she came across one, one time. Those things are power hogs." Leon points out.
"Yeah." He knew that was a weak spot. "We were thinking that if we could put those tarps on panels that could be retracted into the ship, and then deployed when needed. …." Did Leon see where he was going with this?
Leon scrunched his face. "Hang on, let me get someone on the phone with us." And Leon disappears for a few minutes.
After Leon gives the introductions, the new guy is walked thru what they are talking about.
"That many panels will require a great deal of power. Plus they will not be able to fire their weapons thru the panels without damaging them." He was part of the cruiser design team. "I suppose it would be possible to angle a couple of panels to allow torpedoes to be fired, and then put the panels back in place. However it would be a risk."
"We were thinking the ship wouldn't even be armed at all. The crew would live or die based on the effectiveness of the panels." Would anyone or even this guy go for that?
They are all silent for a moment. "With no weapons to power, that would free up some power. … Still the ship you are talking about would be little more than an engineering section or two, …. Or three, with some crew quarters and a bridge.
The panels couldn't cover the engine thrust section, plus there is the FTL disk. Recreation deck, kitchen and dining, water storage, medical. …. No need for weapon storage. … Challenging!" He wasn't quite sure what to make of their idea.
"The aft panels could retract long enough to make course corrections for engine burns." The exec was thinking they make an initial burn and then coast until another burn is required.
The designer takes a deep breath and lets it out. "The sensors would need to be on the panel edges or the ship would be blind behind their own panels." He goes silent. "I suppose, … it could be done. I don't know of a design team that is free at the moment however."
"Leon that's where we were thinking you come in." How would Leon take this?
"I design Marine ground units, not space ships." Leon didn't see how he could help more than he already has.
"No, … but you are married to a Castle. The Castle clan may have better access to the council than any of us do." Please don't take this the wrong way, is plastered all over his face. "We need to take the fight to them. If we do all of this close to home, who's to say they don't get close enough to drop something on Tellus or a colony planet?"
Leon was ready to be mad at his friend until he added that last bit of insight.
"I'll talk to Ell. …. But I'm not making any promises. She may not like having her family being used." Leon warns him. Leon also knew he was going to have to pull out every romantic thing he could think of when he did talk to Elena, or she was going to shoot him. And since she was permanently armed, …..! And could kick his ass with one arm tied behind her back.