Alpha One: The Kronan (8 page)

“So what’s happened to the probes then?”

Admiral Koenig was in conference with his ‘inner cabinet’ and he was growing impatient with the distinct lack of coherent intelligence that his fleet was providing him. Currently he was arguing with Admiral Clarke, who was used to his Commander in Chief’s outbursts and was trying to take a conciliatory tone.

“None of them have come back. But that does not prove anything...it’s pretty volatile in there.”

“Or hostile at the other end. Have we tried sending a manned vessel through?”

“No. Not yet anyway. Admiral Haines is playing it carefully.”

“Not good enough! We cannot afford to wait any longer. We need to know whether the Kryl are gathering at the other side before we commit to the biggest single fleet movement in Alpha’s history.”

“I’ll see if I can get them to push this along ASAP.”

“Make sure you do. Okay. Let’s move onto other things. As you know, Roslyn called me yesterday evening. He has asked Alpha to assume immediate responsibility for Earth’s shield defense system and SED. Remarkable I know, but this is only temporary. What with someone rubbing Roslyn up the wrong way and the media attacking him ‘like a dog with a bone’, this was probably an easier decision than might have been.”

“Because if it goes wrong. It will be down to us.”

Admiral Kohn was quiet for most of the meeting, but the sudden increase in responsibility that was likely to fall on his shoulders woke him up. He knew what was coming, both the shields and SED, would now fall under his remit.

“No it won’t Kohn. Let us be quite clear, especially in our statement to the media that we are taking on two rather sick animals here. The shield situation is hopeless and we need to resource immediately. I am giving this to you as you might expect.”

“Okay...and SED?”

“No. SED will stay with me for the time being. I want to gain a full understanding of exactly where the problems lie. If its resources then we are in trouble, with so little time...I presume you have the up-to-date shield info already?”

“Yes and No. The information I have received contradicts what our inside sources are saying. The official reports are definitely understating the problem. The weakest shield section is apparently at sixty-five percent. Whereas, our reports were showing these sections at below thirty-five. Either way, these are way off the mark and the problem seems to be widespread. Forty-eight of the one hundred and ten sections are apparently below fifty percent strength.”

“You need to get in there and start to throw your weight around.”

Koenig then turned to Admiral Clarke. “We need to quickly identify our experts in the field and get them back to Earth ASAP. I’ll leave that with you.”

“That’s fine, I have already made a list and the majority are already en-route back to Alpha One. I will update Admiral Kohn with the latest Intel this afternoon.”

“Good. Now let us turn to fleet numbers. Am I correct in assuming that we can muster over two hundred ships of the line? “

Admiral Clarke responded again. Information was his forte and he was glad for once to present slightly better news than his CIC would be expecting.

“Over two hundred and fifty, with nearly a hundred in the reserve fleet. We seem to be on top of this, what with support from the Sentinels and the Sect and anything else we can glean from The Allied Planet Federation, we should be able to gather a pretty significant defensive fleet.”

“I am not so sure that either the Sentinels or the Sect have actually agreed anything and the APF will send us nothing. The additional fleet numbers are encouraging. How many vessels remain in dock for repairs?”

“About seventy-five—at varying stages. I presume that we intend to buffer the reserve fleet and send them to the Styros Cluster?”

“Yes. They will form the backbone of the contingency fleet. How long before all of the remaining ships in dock are ready?”

“About five weeks for all to be clear. The contingency fleet. Surely it would be better to amass a greater number in the first instance, rather than bring them into combat after the main event?”

“You know perfectly well that the contingency is there for continuity of our species and not as a means to continue any fight we have with the Kryl. They would stay hidden in the Styros Cluster, potentially for many months and would only be brought into play, once the perceived threat from the Kryl fleet has diminished. I foresee that potentially one hundred and fifty ships of the line would form the contingency, with maybe two hundred and seventy-five, plus new build vessels in the main fleet.”

“That is fewer than we had in the first Kryl battle.”

“Then, we need to build our replacements faster.”

“Capacity on new build is being restricted by repairs to current stock. Once the ship building yards are clear, they can increase capacity. That is up to around ten C class ships per month.”

“Which may all come a little late. No, we have to assume that we will have operationally between two hundred and fifty and two hundred and seventy-five ships of the line and build our defensive and offensive capability on those numbers. Gentlemen, I think, that is enough for now. Any other points to raise before we close?”

Admiral Clarke stood and approached the window, before turning towards his colleagues.

“I wanted to briefly discuss SED. I know that you want to keep hold of this for the moment, but I am hearing about some interesting new developments from our laboratories at the Cyber Defense Corporation.”

“Combat Droids? They are too unreliable and not exactly relevant to where we are now.”

“Actually they could be. There are still some 250,000 droids in storage and with their new operating system, the reliability issues have been quashed.”

“I thought all the droids were destroyed.”

“Apparently only about ten percent were actually decommissioned. The remainders are in air-dried storage at SED Exeter, in the UK—minus their defunct operating systems.”

“So, what makes the new operating system any better? How can we be sure they won’t turn on us as soon as they are powered up?”

“We would need proof, certainly. My point is that if they do work, they would be immune from any indirect control from the Kryl. They could be a formidable defense.”

“That’s a good point. Okay, find out some more and we will discuss in detail later this week. In the meantime, I suggest we close. We have a lot to consider and if our fears become reality, precious little time to do it.”

So, the fleet is ready
. In the Kryl galaxy, they had amassed along the Fifth Corridor, within site of the fissure, but undetectable. The Humans’ probes would be ineffective.

Morvalt’s ship was invisible. With full cloaking, he was able to push his ship right through the middle of Alpha’s Fleet and came to rest within sight of the wormhole.
Now we will wait.

* * * *

Lieutenant Samos stood and looked through the window of his cell. He saw that the Kryl ship in which he was incarcerated was surrounded by hundreds of Alpha vessels. Surely, Alpha could see them? It was clear that they were in the Tri-star System and that they were expecting the Kryl fleet to appear through the blue haze, which emanated from the growing fissure between the wormholes.

If they could not see the Kryl ship, then he hoped it would stay that way. It would not be good, if two hundred plasma cannons and a plethora of Teutonic missiles suddenly rained down on them. That could be very bad. Yet this presented an opportunity. If he could somehow get out of his cell, kitted up, and off the ship, he could drift toward the Alpha fleet and safety. Risky, difficult, but the first prospect of freedom, he had seen for weeks. He suddenly had renewed hope. It was not much, but it was something to cling on to.

* * * *

Morvalt was growing impatient.
We have waited far too long. It is time for the Queen to command her fleet to enter the wormhole. We have assembled a huge fleet and we will quickly extinguish Alpha’s pathetic response. This galaxy is our new feeding ground and when the fleet arrives, we are here to stay.

Jake was able to attend classes, just two days after he exited the stasis chamber. Remarkably, after such a serious accident, he had made a full recovery, albeit that after a long period of inactivity, his muscles had degraded and he was in the midst of a suite of physiotherapy sessions to assist his recovery process.

He joined Carla outside her apartment block and, after a cursory glance to check all was clear, they embraced and kissed, before commencing their walk towards Steve’s apartment and the academy.

“How does it feel this morning?”

“My knee is a bit tight, when I walk, but I can’t really complain. I was able to exercise last night, but I gave it a miss this morning.”

“Probably best. When’s your next physio?”

“Five o’clock p.m. Oh, oh. Here comes Steve and he looks a little vexed!”

As Steve neared, they stopped walking and Steve approached Carla, turning his back to Jake.

“I thought you were meeting me this morning at twenty past?”

Carla looked surprised. “Err, when did we arrange that?”

“Last night, when I left. I know it was late but you can’t have forgotten.”

“Steve, I was not with you last night! What are you on about?”

Now it was Steve’s turn to look confused. “Did you spend the night with Jake then?”

Oh, God. Here we go again
, thought Jake. “Don’t be ridiculous Steve. Carla was at home studying, as was I. Where were you? It sounds like you were on something, or maybe you still are, because you’re not making any sense!”

Steve turned towards Steve, with a rage on his face

“Are you calling me a liar?”

Now Steve was facing Jake and had moved forward to within inches, confrontationally.

Carla tried to push herself between Jake and Steve, but was brushed aside by Steve.

“What the hell...”

Jake’s words were lost as Steve launched an uppercut straight into the side of his jaw. A perfect punch, leaving Jake, flat out on the floor. Stunned, he pulled himself back up, but the fight was cut short, before Jake could respond, by two security droids, who were monitoring the situation. One stood, protecting Jake and Carla, while the other approached Steve.

“You appear to be under the influence of alcohol or banned substances. Please lift you left arm and adjust your sleeve for a blood test.”

The droids stood over two meters tall and no one human would ever try to take one on. Steve resisted briefly, before the first droid, clasped his arm and drew up his sleeve. The second droid produced a testing device, which he hovered over Steve’s forearm, before gesturing for Steve to move his arm away and await the outcome.

“The test is positive for Pschandronone. This is a class two banned substance and you are guilty of being under influence of this substance. Please come with me.”

The security droids previously unseen vehicle had drawn up alongside and Steve was man- handled into the caged rear. The first droid having determined that Jake was fine joined his colleague in the security vehicle and seconds later they were gone, with Steve inside.

“Oh, my God. Are you okay?” asked Carla “What the hell will he do next?”

“That has got to be it for him. Pschandronone is pretty serious stuff.”

“Yes, it makes you hallucinate and aggressive. How in the hell did he get hold of it?”

“Beats me...and how long has he been on it?”

“I think I might know where it came from.”

“Why would you know?”

“The refectory, last week. I saw Steve talking to Townsend, behind the bar. Apparently he has been done for supply before.”

“Yes, but Steve doesn’t do drugs. Does he? God, you think you know someone.”

“When the tutor gets this, that will be it for him. What can we do?”

“I guess we need to speak to Steve ASAP.”

“Not you . You are still catching up and I don’t think it would be right, given that he assaulted you. I’m glad the droids arrived when they did; otherwise, you would both be up before the magistrate. You get to class. I will try and sort this mess out.”

* * * *

“
Pschandronone is a hyper stimulant, hallucinatory, emotion enhancer. It is highly addictive and is usually a drug that users progress to, rather than for occasional or first time use. Expensive and very dangerous; availability is usually restricted to back-street establishments. It is not seen as a recreational drug.”

Carla was in the security precinct and was reading a display panel while waiting for Steve to be processed. He was charged, but Carla managed to get it set aside, on assuring the charging officer, that this was a one-off, of Steve’s good character and that his career was at stake.

Steve walked toward her, with his head lowered.
He seems to have sobered up. Good, because he has some explaining to do.

“I have probably just salvaged your graduation.”

“Yes, probably. I am still in trouble though aren’t I?”

“So why were you taking drugs?”

Steve laughed and then shrugged his shoulder. “It was only a one off. You would not come out, so I had to go out on my own.”

“At least you recognize that we were not together last night now. Where did you get the drugs from?”

“I am not talking about that here.”

“Okay, so we walk. You still need to sober up more. We both have to explain why we missed this morning’s class yet.”

“That’s hardly an issue. This is our last week.”

“And you are
still
behind! We are out of earshot now. Where did you get the Pschandronone from?”

“From a source...in the Refectory.”

“Andy Townsend?”

“How did you know?”

“Because I have seen you speaking to him before, because of his track record and because I have had my suspicions.”

“Shit, Carla, does this mean that we are over?”

“I hope that’s still the drugs talking. You know perfectly well we are over!”

“I thought we still had a chance to get back together? Am I too late now that Jake is back on the scene? Is he your new man now?”

“Fuck off Steve.”
She had enough. She was fed up with protecting him.

“Okay, yes you are right. Jake and I are together and we are in love. No, there is no prospect of you and I ever getting back together. I did this today to get you off the hook, so you graduate. Not for any other reason.”

“Thought so and you wonder why I turned to drugs...think I might go home and take some more.”

“Do that and I’ll report you to your tutor. You are off the hook and you are going to graduate.”

Steve saw he was beaten. They walked the rest of the way to the academy in silence. Steve was fuming. He was not finished with Jake yet.

* * * *

Wednesday morning, saw Jake and Steve come together in class for the first time since Steve was released from the security precinct. The two Ensons managed to avoid each other prior to the start of class. When the class was split into two—those who were grounded and those not, avoidance was more difficult, especially after they were paired together for the final simulator session of the course.

“Gentlemen. While those who are able or are not constrained from flying Jump Ship sorties are up there flying the same old repetitive sorties, you guys actually get to do something a bit more meaningful. The benefit of the simulator is that you can authentically reproduce almost any scenario and that means that we can place you in uncomfortable surroundings, akin to those that you may well experience in combat. If you like...we are the lucky ones.”

The Chief Simulator Trainer was in his element. He had a class of twelve trainees who reported unfit to fly, or were grounded for a raft of different reasons. He pointed towards his holoscreen and outlined the scenario for today’s simulation.

“You will be flying Hunter R4’s. Please don’t suggest to me, that using Hunters is not realistic. It is highly plausible that many of you will be transferred to SED after graduation with the renewed Kryl threat. Since Hunters are still in general use, by SED, this could actually be you in say ten weeks time. Although I suspect some of you hotshots will manage to stay well clear.”

There was a murmur of disdain from his small but captive audience. None of them wanted to fly with SED, but events in the Tri-star System were moving very quickly and there was no question that they would need pilots and new Jump Ship graduates would be targeted for these less glamorous postings. He continued.

“As there are only twelve of you, we can run six simulations simultaneously and take a full two hour sortie. Your task is simple, enough. You will need to get your Hunter back to Alpha Two, from the Saturn rings, where your vessel has engaged the Kryl and you have lost all but your ion drive. You have just thirty-five percent power reserves. You will have a full complement of Teutonic’s, but your plasma power banks will be in reserve. Your PBA’s, NAVCOM and environmental controls will all be off line...although you will be able to bring these back on line—if you use the time wisely. You are being pursued by Kryl fighters, whose sole intent is to destroy you or get close enough to fry your brain stems. That’s it. Pilots and co-pilots were preselected and should stay in situ for the entire simulation. Good luck and we will discuss how you did after the sortie.”

Jake smiled. This was typical. He was stuck in a Hunter simulation vessel for the next two hours, with a crazed and vengeful pilot. This would be great fun.
Not!

* * * *

“Okay. Let’s cut the crap. We are here to simulate how to get the hell out of this pile of shit while trying to keep a bloody Hunter flying on ion drive only. I am in command, so just let’s get on with it. I have no wish to be in this hunk of junk with the man who stole my girlfriend. For the record, I still intend to take this matter up with you properly offline.”

“What’s stopping you from doing it here Steve? You and I both know that we can keep these Kryl at bay, using ion bursts and the correct intermix calculations. We should talk and try to clear the air.”

“Who are you trying to kid? You stole my woman, you asshole and you did it right under my nose. How long had you been screwing before Carla finally decided to dump me?”

“We didn’t get together until sometime after she split up with you. I was with Maria, remember.”

“You are supposed to be my best mate. What makes you think you can just come along and steal Carla from me. We were meant to be together, we were going to get married.”

“And live happily ever after! Steve, she just ran out of love for you. I was not even on the scene and I certainly did not pursue her. She came after me and it was long after you two had split up for Christ sake!”

Two Kryl vessels drew to within range. Jake as copilot was seeking the best option for a standoff. He had already tried to boost the plasma cannon reserves, but turned his attention to the NAVCOM, which was fried. He needed to realign the power lines to the backup navigation computer. Tricky, because it involved uncoupling the hunters control fascia, just when his pilot needed it the most. The navigation computer though was hypercritical. If they could get it back online, they could lock the ship on course and both then concentrate on boosting power reserves. The Kryl ships were firing at them now.

“Engage what cannon reserves we have. We need to take at least one out, before we worry overly about the NAVCOM.”

“Negative. We need the navigation online. Allow them to get a little closer and I’ll try a Teutonic implosion between them.”

“No Jake! As pilot, I am in command. Use the plasma cannons to take out the forward Kryl.”

“We are supposed to work together on this Steve!”

Jake sighed and admitted defeat, realizing that the pilot had temporarily diverted missile controls to his station. Jake had no choice, but to use plasma bursts to take out the Kryl ships. He used the manual rear view screen to bring the lead Kryl ship into range and let out three two-second bursts of plasma fire. The first two missed, the last was bang on target and the Kryl ship rocked from the impact and lost ground, narrowly missing the second Kryl fighter as its pilot slowed to recover his balance.

“A Teutonic now, would help!” shouted Jake.

Steve was in accord and launched two missiles directly into the path of the second Kryl vessel. The two Kryl ships exploded.

“We are still being pursued by four more, but they are some distance back. I’ll revert to the NAVCOM, if that’s all right with you. Can you look at a power boost for the plasma cannons?”

Before Steve could answer. The screens in front of him and his visor went dead and the Hunter was pitched into complete darkness.

“What the hell? This does not look like part of the simulation.”

A voice from outside the simulator confirmed Steve’s suspicions.

“Sorry you guys in there. The simulator has gone done. Problem with the power source. You’re stuck in there for the time being, but we should have you out shortly.”

“Bloody typical. Another simulator failure and this time I am stuck in here with my worst enemy!”