Battleship Destroyer (85 page)

"
Damn it Number One, put a fire under both the engine and cargo deck crews. We should not have that much more to ship. We are pulling out now. Just do the best you can with the cargo. Just get the damn boats back here so we can get off this hulk and the engines going so we can leave when we do get back to the ship. Captain out." Turning to Pan. "Get 600 in that shuttle now. We may only have time for one more boat." Tapping his comm. "Pilot, start stuffing them into the compartments between the hulls. You can including the bridge. We are running out of time and boats."

Five minutes later the shuttle took off and was replaced by another one immediately
to Jack's surprise. What really shocked Jack was that the end hatch opened to reveal open space and the stars beyond while the lock was still pressurized.  The boat eased out through a shimmering curtain and the other boat slid back in. Shaking his head as the stern hatch of the boat opened to show it was half full already from the upper deck landing zone that had just been closed down. Before Jack could turn around, stacked cargo was already flowing into it.

Looking up Jack noticed a lot of energy streaks flying all over the decks above. Hitting his comm to the marines.  "Commander, how is it going up there?"

"Not too bad. Mostly probes right now. Most of the Apes are only armed with swords. What I would like to know is where they are getting their weapons?  I thought the ship blasted what we did not take." The Commander said exasperated.

"The Apes I saw on the upper hot decks
guarding what was probably the ships bridge probably had their weapons already, however many there were. Try to keep what weapons you can from being recycled when the enemy falls but with 10,000 apes coming out of cold storage even enough bodies with swords will over whelm us eventually.  Give me a yell when it starts getting busy. No heroics up there Commander, we are leaving and I want to take everyone out alive. Captain out."

Turning to the side of the boat
Jack headed for what looked like a large tank on treads with pipes and arms laying along both sides and the top, headed for the back of the boat that he did not think they had room for or reason to take and noticed a laser assault gun walking away from the boat. "What! Who the hell is stupid enough to even be carrying one of those anymore and not a blaster?" Jack realized that the laser was attached to a Commanders uniform and looking closer he was shocked to recognize the Engineering Chief he had fired from the engine rooms and should have been repairing the damn ships oxygen, air cleaning and conditioning system. With this many bodies being added to the ship it had suddenly become the second most critical system on the ship next to the engines.

"Damn it.  He
finally made it off the ship the fool. I am willing to bet he did not come to help." Jack started jogging after the Commander shaking his head debating what he was going to do to the louse when he caught him.  The Commander walked around the back side of the tank with treads as Jack jogged after him. Going around behind the tank only a few seconds after the Commander, Jack came face to face with a crowd of aliens carrying boxes and packs rushing for the back of the boat. Some of the boxes and packs were bigger than the aliens carrying them as they rushed past. The Commander was nowhere in sight amongst the rapidly moving throng.

"Damn him to hell." Jack slapped his comm. "All crewmen on the enemy ship.
This is Captain Turner. The Engineering Chief has deserted his post and the ship and must not fall into enemy hands with all the secrets he possesses. He is armed. Do not try to apprehend. Shoot and kill him on sight. That is an order. Captain out." Kicking himself for not shooting him while he had the chance.  Jack was swept along with the rushing aliens as the tank on treads stopped at the bottom of the ramp as the boat was flooded with the aliens.

Climbing
up onto the tanks cab across the top front corner, Jack started to open the hatch to talk to the driver but it did not open. Knocking on the hatch the alien driver turned to face Jack through the window and smiled. Suddenly the hatch opened knocking Jack backwards off the cab and down into the arms of a woman Greenfoot only 10 foot tall that looked all too human except for her green skin color, wearing a jump suit that was unzipped down the front to her belly button. The Green foot had dropped the big box she was carrying just in time to catch Jack as he fell.

Looking down at Jack cradled in her arms pressed against her
breasts as she came to a stop a couple steps past and in front of the truck as she stepped aside to let the mass of aliens behind her pass. "Yes Captain Turner. How may I help you?"

"What
? You can speak English?"

"Simple language. Got a memory disk from Translator an hour ago and played it for all
Greenfoot to listen to while loading cargo."

"Ah…?" Looking around surprised his eyes stopped on the tank they were standing in front of. "What and why do we need a tank on treads for?"

The 10 foot tall Greenfoot still held Jack complete with armored suit and weapons in her arms like a little doll as she smiled at him. "We use that to make repairs to the ship's decks and hull. Your ship needs much repair work. Captain. Especially if it is going to be home to all of us."

Jack turned his head back around to look at her getting a face full of
soft naked boob jutting out from her jump suit. "Ok. Ah. You can let me down now please. I just can't see how you can get it in with all the people that are flooding onto the boat as well. There just is not room enough for it and them."

"Captain, we are not going right now. We are just loading the boat." Turning around so Jack could see down the long cargo hold of the boat. Jack could see the flood of aliens dumping their boxes and packs into every nook and cranny in the hold clear to the overhead. They had started from the very front of the hold filling over the cargo
that had already been loaded from the ship’s deck above and were almost to the back as Jack just shook his head in amazement.

"Ok, you can let me down." Turning she waited as she looked back alongside the treaded tank
. "Ah you are a lot smaller than the other Greenfoots. I thought they sent all the children to my ship already." As the mass of aliens stopped she stepped out from in front of the big machine and sat Jack down to the side of the boat out of the way as the treaded tank lumbered up into the back of the boat where the mass of aliens suddenly rushed in to fill the voids around it.

"I am not a child. I am just small for my age. A
lmost a Dwarf but not, in your language." She looked down at Jack, smiled then turned and strode off back into the ship. The back ramp hatch closed and the boat slide out through the shimmering curtain turning to the side as another boat backed into replace it as pelleted cargo started piling up around the end of the lock.

"Captain!"  Jack's comm sounded. "We are starting to get busy up here. The Apes have
finally gotten smart and only Apes with swords are charging while blasters cover them from protected positions. We are not going to last much longer up here before they make a break through someplace along the deck and we will be forced to withdraw. I have no reserves."

"Very well C
ommander. Do your best." Jack started walking back along the boat looking for Pam as he thought. Finally finding Pan again. "Do any of your people know how to fight?"

Pan looked at Jack getting a strange look on her face. "No Captain Turner. We are forbidden to fight even amongst ourselves. To show any aggression at all is an immediate death sentence. Only the Apes are allowed to fight."

Jack looked at her for a few seconds as he grimaced at not liking what he was thinking. But finally he took a deep breath.  "Ask the Lizard Apes to come here Pam." With a couple of scratches on her little screen the Apes dropped what they were carrying and ran over to stand in front of Pan and Jack. It took several minutes for the rest of the Apes to arrive out of the various passageways and compartments around the lock. With Pans announcement that all the Apes were there, he took another deep breath. "We are about to be overrun by your old ship mates before we can get everyone off this ship. I need volunteers to help fight and buy everyone time to get off this ship." Notice the vacant looks from the Apes. "Ah this is not a suicide mission. We all are going to leave. We just need more time to load everyone."

As Pan
talked, they looked on dead faced as if they could not understand. Finally one spoke a few words and Pan turned back to Jack. "What is Volunteer?"

"You do not have to fight. You can continue to help load the shuttle and leave with the rest when they go. Or you can fight and kill
other God Apes, the enemy of humans until everyone has left the ship then we will follow. We will give you weapons and fight beside you on this deck if you do not have your armored suits any longer." They continued to look on dead pan faced until pan had finished. Then as one they all turned and ran down the length of the lock and into a side compartment. Jack turned to Pan. "What is that about? Are they going to help fight or what?"

"I do not know Captain Turner. I have not spent much time with the Lizard Apes."

Hitting his comm again. "Sgt. We are going to have to go help delay things. Meet me in the central compartment where we entered the deck. We aren’t that many but we should be able to act as some kind of reserve."

"Be right their sir."

Jack watched as marines disengaged themselves from directing traffic and checking the cargo for weapons and bombs to head for the interior of the ship. Turning, Jack started jogging in that direction with Pan close behind. Entering the central compartment next to the core Jack found the marines with a couple dozen armed ship's crewmen that at least looked like they had practiced with the weapons a few times. The Sgt. divided them up into fire teams with a marine in charge of each group. One of them yelled. "Apes!" And turned bringing his weapon up.

"No! Don'
t fire!" Jack yelled as a fireball streaked across the compartment hitting above the group of Apes marching into the compartment. The marine of that group knocked the weapon up before the man could fire again as the Apes seemed to ignore the shot as they continued into the compartment in full battle dress and weapons. The column of Apes stretched across the compartment as they stopped. And turned as one to face Jack and the humans. They raised their arms above their heads and shouted something and came to attention.

Jack looked at the column. "Ok
, who is in charge?"

Pan talked to them but no
one moved but all said something together as one voice.

Turning to Jack Pan said. "You are in charge Captain."

"Shit this is just fracking great." Going over to one of the fire teams he patted the marine on the shoulder. "Follow me." And then to the Sgt. "Spread the teams out across this side of the compartment."

Jack walked half way across the distance separating the Apes from the humans and told the marine to stand fast. Walked a few steps to the side then poin
ted at the end of the column he held up his hands with his fingers out stretched up and out. Using one hand he counted the fingers on the other hand, pointing at each and then did the same for his other hand and then swept his hands of outstretched fingers to point to the marine and his little squad. When nothing happened he tried again, pointing at the end of the column he held out all ten of his fingers and then wiggled them at the deck and walked them over to the marine. The Column of Apes seemed to smile at Jacks antics as Pan walked up. "Do you want 10 of them to join this group of humans Captain Turner?"

Jack shook his head in exasperation. "No I want them to dance. No wait." Turning to the Sgt. "Get over hear Sargent. I wan
t you and Pan to teach them combat sign language. Just the basics and make it fast. Before we lose the main gun deck. They need our help up there."

The Sgt. and Pan proceeded to teach
. The marine doing his best with his squad to demonstrate the hand signal commands when words were not enough. Jack turned away tapping the comm. "Commander I am gathering over a hundred reinforcement for you but don't be shocked. Most of them are ex-Lizard Apes that are on our side now. We should be joining you in just a few minutes."

"Great Captain. But how are we supposed to tell the difference
between them?"

"Oh that is right. Back in a minute."

Turning back to Pan as the marine and his squad acted out a command from the Sgt.  "I need some kind of paint or flag we can use to mark the Apes so we can tell them from the enemy. Something bright and florescent if possible." Jack watched what looked like a frown on Pans face as she scratched on the pad again before turning back to the Sgt.

The Ensign came running in. "How dare you go off to fight without telling me damn it."

Jack turned to face her. "You don't even have a weapon…" He stopped talking as she held up an assault gun. "Ok. But what close range ship combat experience do you have?"

"Enough to kill you in Pirate games all the time." Smiling up at Jack. "I am the Leopard Knight that has been busting you butt
in personal combat for years."

"You are
that bitch. I hate you or her, oh well, shit." Looking at her with new respect. "Ok damn it. You know battle sign?"