Star Crusades Nexus: Book 06 - Call to Arms (9 page)

Director Johnson smiled.

“Captain,” he started, for a second unsure as to the correct position of Olik in the military structure. He looked at his secpad and checked the security access for those assembled in front of him.

“You are the senior officers responsible for the defense of this fortress. Access to this Biomech and any intelligence learned from it are expressly for command level officers only.”

Olik in particular seemed unimpressed at this.

“Then why show us?”

Johnson was surprised at the speed and authority in his voice.

“A good point. We have shown you to ensure you understand the significance of this place. Prometheus is not just a foundry and research site. It is now the single most important location outside of the Orion nebula. While we hold this leader, we have a bargaining chip worth more than an entire planet to the Biomechs. That is all for now.”

The more junior officers were politely escorted from the ship, with just Teresa, Admiral Churchill, and Director Johnson remaining. They waited until everybody else was off the vessel before Johnson spoke.

“Information from this enemy operative is limited. We want the enemy to know their commander is here, but nothing more.”

Teresa looked at him, carefully examining his face and the lines running down to his mouth. She’d known him a long time, but this almost callous attitude to people and resources had taken her very much by surprise.

“You just explained this to a group of officers, many of which are my own. And you expect this information to be leaked somehow?”

The Admiral tried his best to look conciliatory.

“Teresa, with the best will in the world, when information is shared so freely, it will work its way into the open. It might take a day, maybe a week, but I can guarantee that in less than a month the enemy will come knocking. And we will be waiting for them.”

Johnson pointed to the machine.

“What we’ve learnt in the last few months would shock you to your very soul, Teresa.”

She looked at him with a whimsical expression on her face. She looked up at the machine and shook her head with amusement.

“Really Johnson? You think you can shock me?”

Johnson’s expression remained the same.

“Frankly, yes I do.”

“Well, come on then, what is it?”

He paused, and for a moment it looked like he might say nothing. He looked past Teresa and checked once more that the others had gone. Then he winked with a single eye.

“They have no idea we have their commander on this planet. Anderson is laying a trap for them at the AJ Naval Station. He’s got the place rigged with charges and over a hundred ships hidden in orbit.”

Teresa was confused.

“I don’t understand. In the briefing, you said we were converting Prometheus into a fortress. Is that not true?”

Johnson leaned in closely and spoke even quieter.

“We will be, just not yet.”

He squeezed her arm for some unknown reason and then stepped back.

“We’ve lost dozens of ships in a matter of weeks, and it’s getting worse. We cannot support the Helions and defend our own territory with these kinds of losses.”

The Admiral looked at Johnson and nodded in agreement.

“It’s true. Over the next two weeks, we’re pulling back from Orion and fortifying at the AJ Naval Station. It’s going to be a few weeks, but we are already assembling assets to ensure the Prometheus-T’Karan Rift is secure on both sides. Helios is a lost cause; they will have to defend it themselves if the fight with the enemy fails.”

Teresa looked up to the machine and tried to fight back the fear she could feel in her bones. Jack was in the Helios system, and no matter what these men said; she knew he was in serious danger. Deep down she knew they were lying. It was a show to misinform the machine, or at the very least designed to instill a sense of urgency to the situation. Their story had a ring of truth to it though, and that was what concerned her most. She’d always heard that the best lies were those based upon truths. Teresa closed her eyes for a moment and then looked up to where the sunken black helm of the machines head was.

“And what about him? Shouldn’t he be brought back to Terra Nova, for safekeeping?”

Johnson looked up at the machine and then to Teresa.

“Why do you think we brought him to the best research and manufacturing stations in the Alliance?”

Teresa thought about it for a few seconds. She knew everything the two men were saying was being put on as a show; she just didn’t know whom the intended audience was. A slight crackle of light around the head of the Biomech machine caught her eye’s attention, and then she saw it, the glimmer of movement in its frame.

The Biomech, they’re feeding it false information.

“We need troops and we need war machines. Can you think of a better way to rebuild our ranks?”

Teresa looked at him and again to the machine. The truly frightening part though wasn’t that he was making things up. The one thing that scared her more than anything else was that he might actually be telling the truth.

No, he can’t be serious. He’s suggesting we build Biomech warriors to fight for us.

The AI Core was perhaps the most advanced and most elusive piece of intelligent computing in the history of humanity. For the first time, a piece of technology had been found that could absorb the intellect, memories, and intelligence of a human and use it to perform critical analysis of data. The destruction of the AI Core on Terra Nova in 338CC was one of the great achievements and losses in science. Ever since that destruction, the greatest minds of the Alliance have tried and failed to meld the mind of a man with a machine. It would appear the only solution would be a technological exchange with the Biomechs themselves.

Computer Science 101, 7
^th
Edition

Teresa had spent the last hour modifying and expanding the defensive plan of Prometheus that had been in use now for several years. Her new home was the station Marine headquarters, positioned directly alongside the newly constructed barracks. Unlike other facilities, everything about Prometheus was cut directly into warm rock. No matter where a person went in the facility, there was always the sound of mining and cutting equipment, as workers and machines alike continued to burrow their way inside the resource rich planet. Her four captains, now including Olik, stood alongside her and around the wide table in the centre of the room. Above it was a projected three-dimensional model that sat just a few centimeters from the surface.

“The defensive systems on the surface are solid enough,” said Captain Rivers.

“True,” answered Olik, “but who is going to start an assault from the surface? Have you seen outside?”

Captain Tycho shifted on his artificial legs and groaned, though quiet enough only to be heard by Olik.

“The Biomechs are able to land mechanized troops on the surface. They can take the heat, and their machine warriors can operate in a vacuum. Hell, our own marines could manage it for a while.”

Teresa nodded in agreement.

“That’s all true. Even so, the surface defenses are strong. The surface is well protected where it counts, and all entrances are protected by layer gun systems.”

Captain Thompson pointed to the orbiting red shapes.

“Don’t forget the orbital defense station either. They are small but can fire into space as well as down on the surface. If they rush things, we can use the satellite to rain fire down upon their heads.”

Teresa felt a little happier with that thought. Then she recalled the footage she had watched of the assault against Fort Macquarie. The base of operations on Eos had held two full battalions as well as multiple Marine aviation units and large NHA contingents.

They were well prepared as well, a strong garrison with an entire Heavy Assault Group in orbit. They had the best we have to offer, and yet what happened? A scouting party of Biomechs overran the place, and we evacuated at the very last minute.

She then looked to her captains and again at the map.

“Prometheus is different to any other battlefield. We could afford to lose control of an entire planet but not this one. Without Prometheus, the Alliance will be split in two.”

Olik looked confused.

“Wait, I thought we were pulling back from the new conquests through the Rift?”

“That’s true,” added Captain Rivers, “If we pull back, Prometheus will just be a border fortress, and we can pull the plug on the Rift whenever we want.”

Yes, and even if that fails, we have the T’Kari weapon for collapsing Rifts.

Teresa wanted to tell them what she knew, that the Alliance had no interest in giving up its Orion territories, and that the feigned withdrawal was all a plan to draw out the Biomechs and destroy the rot from within. But Teresa knew the fragility of secret keeping. If she couldn’t keep the secret, how could she expect her captains to?

* * *

Teresa pulled on her jacket and checked herself in the mirror one more time. She’d tried hard, but her face still looked tired. It wasn’t just the physical demands of her new role in the Marine Corps. It was the strain of not knowing what was happening with her family. She was just thankful her new posting had full access to encrypted internal communications once again. There were two messages, both containing video communication, and they had finally decoded and were ready to view. Alone in her quarters, and with the lights on low dim, she reached for her secpad and activated the stream. An image of Jack in his Marine Corps uniform appeared on her main computer screen, and she felt immediately at rest.

“Mother,” he started.

She took one step back and then dropped to her bunk. The bed was stiff and far from comfortable. Her eyes were glued to her son’s face as she listened to his general account of his trip toward Helios. The words interested her much less than his gaunt face. His voice sounded firm, but she could tell something was wrong. He’d lost weight for sure, but his eyes.

What happened to him?

Parts had been redacted, and she found it a little confusing when the feed seemed to jump past sections. The video was almost twelve minutes long, but by the time she’d reached the end, she found herself in tears. Jack had been involved in some of the heaviest fighting on Eos, and the reports from that battle showed massive casualties and losses. She knew Jack had been in the middle of it, and also what the fighting on Helios had done to him. Teresa placed her hand across her mouth as the video ended.

He’s suffering with PTSD, and there’s nothing I can do about it, not yet.

Teresa closed her eyes and waited for her pulse to slow down before starting the next stream from her other two children, Matius and Ingo. As with Jack, they had taken her name, not least because Spartan still refused to give her any indication as to what his name might have been in the past.

Spartan, he does like to keep things to himself.

The twins began speaking and unlike Jack, they were buoyant and excited. They were junior officers in the Navy, and as far as she was aware, they had managed to avoid getting involved in any combat so far. The first words from Ingo felt like a stabbing knife to her chest.

“We’ve got our orders. We’re going to the front!”

The specific details were blocked even from her, but she needed nothing more. There was only one front in this war, and it was always facing the Biomechs and their puppets. She had seen the fleet dispositions throughout Alliance space, and over half were either near Helios, or being sent in to support that operation via T’Karan. She made it halfway through before the feed paused on its own and changed to show a priority signal from the Admiral.

“Colonel, I need to see you, right away.”

“What is it, Admiral?”

The man looked to his right and then repeated himself.

Teresa noticed a few pale green displays in the background but nothing gave away quite what he wanted to say. Teresa had her suspicions. She just hoped it was related to Prometheus alone. The last thing she wanted right now was more news concerning her family because no matter what the message was, it always seemed to be bad news.

“Understood, I’m on the way.”

Teresa had expected to be called to see the Admiral at some point, but not this soon. With him taking over the security of the Biomech, he had been given great authority and responsibility on the base. It took almost eleven minutes for her to reach his office without breaking into a run. The guards motioned her inside, not giving her time to pause outside. As she stepped through the doors, they quietly slid shut behind her.

Strange!

There were many things she had expected to see in this place, but four Jötnar waiting at the back of the room was not one of them. The room was rectangular in shape and with a completely transparent wall that looked down onto the station’s central hub. Teresa recalled the design of the facility, and it did little to rest her mind.

“Colonel, thank you for coming here so quickly.”

He indicated for her to approach the wide transparent wall that they might look out. She moved toward him and looked down, even though her mind was on the Jötnar. The ground below them was wide and open, with small narrow gauge transports following tracks that moved about the base.

“It’s not so different to when Spartan and General Rivers were here.”

Admiral Churchill looked in the same direction but waited before speaking.

"I've seen your revised defensive plans for the station. They are interesting to say the least. You think stationing the reserves so close to the entry points is wise?"

Teresa looked back at him and then pointed her forefinger toward those marching back and forth in the base. At first glance, the facility appeared impregnable. There were no walls on Prometheus, as every single room, passageway, and shaft was cut from the rock itself.

"This underground base can be breached in multiple ways. I know; I've done it before. Once you're inside, it is easy to hold ground. The enemy is expert at all manner of assaults, but their greatest strength is the ability to conduct operations long past our ability to fight them. Once they have a foothold on this planet, they will spend hours, days, or years clearing each room until they get what they are looking for. They really are a machine enemy."

The Admiral seemed to understand her assessment but didn't seem convinced.

"Hence your plan?"

"Yes. My strategy is a simple one. We keep them from ever getting enough troops inside to make a difference. So we keep the most experienced units in small mobile reserve and maintain a strong layered presence on the perimeter."

He handed her a secpad with a list of combat units. She examined them, but there was nothing of any real surprise to her. It took nothing more than a cursory look before she turned her attention back to him.

"Yes, I've already assigned them their posts and schedules. My captains are taking their own units to join them at key points under the command of my second, Major Terson. It is a strong garrison. The enemy would need a major assault to even consider breaking into this place."

The Admiral looked at her carefully as if he could understand something more by just looking directly into her face. He finally stopped and motioned for her to sit down. Teresa did so but not before giving the four silent sentries a good look at too. They were not too different to any other Jötnar she had met, but the heavily modified PDS Alpha armor was a surprise to her. She had never expected such a precise and expensive piece of equipment would ever be granted to them. They were usually kept as assault troops and wore armor more appropriate to their task. This made them look more like regular marines.

Apart from being nearly twice the size!

Their faces were hidden behind their blackened raised visors on their armored helm, yet she was sure one of them had turned its head slightly to look at her.

Do I know this one?

“Teresa, I know this is a difficult position for you. I’m sure you understand that the briefing on board the ship wasn’t just for our benefit?”

Teresa nodded but said nothing. That was what he wanted to hear.

“Good. Because that machine has given us critical information, information that Anderson wanted me to share with only three other people.”

Teresa’s first thought wasn’t what the information might be, but who the three people were?

“Teresa, I know you’ve been helping as much as you can, in no small part to help our understanding of the Rift networks, and to find out where Spartan had gone."

She nodded.

"Yes, as part of the agreement for me returning to the Corps, I was promised resources would be put into place to do just that. With APS, well, I’m sure you know what happened. My resources are somewhat depleted."

"Indeed," replied the Admiral before she could continue. "Admiral Anderson and General Rivers have both pushed for considerable time and resources to be put into use to locate your husband. Even so, it would seem you've been liquidating your assets on Epsilon Eridani and other places to fund your own private investigation?”

Teresa looked surprised, but he lifted his hand to stop her speaking. He then placed the back of his hand on his mouth, took a breath, and carried on.

“Teresa, this might be a little hard for you, but we've had information on him for some months now."

He saw the muscles change in her body and decided to continue rather than wait to hear what she might say.