False Dawn, Part Two
The words of the captain rang in Gregorys ears. The built-up fear and anxiety of the last few minutes tossed his stomach like a cardboard rowboat on the South China Sea during a typhoon. He lurched forward and flicked off the communications. A European Union Destroyer Class Starship. Here, in an uninhabited system between Polaris and Earth on the galactic space ways. He must be higher on the Unions blacklist than he had thought.
Gregory ceased his idle thinking when the blaster turrets of the big ship began tracking the Angler. Pilot, evasive maneuvers! Now! Jetlo flung the ship into a short arc, and looped back to the asteroid field. The turrets opened up, sending huge red bolts speeding thorough space at the Angler. The first two missed, sailing soundlessly past the stern and shattering a smaller asteroid with their concussive force. Fragments issued from it in a shower of rock. Many bounced against the Anglers hull, then spun off into deep space.
Two more volleys missed the ship, and then the port side turrets got a clear shot at the destroyer. Smaller bolts answered the next attack, crashing into and weakening the destroyers hull. The intercom came online. This is sensors. We detect three missile launches from the destroyer.
Jetlo answered it. What are the specs?
All are infrared, two conventional, one nuclear.
Jetlo cursed. The Angler banked starboard, and entered the asteroid field. Gregory saw the missiles from the bows camera, trailing red fire and giving a menacing impression with barbed fins and sharks teeth painted on the nose cones. A bow gunner took his aim, and fired. The missiles juked, and the bolts missed. The Zimbabwe weapons officer, who was called Kental, screamed into the intercom. Ensign! Cease fire! If we hit the nuclear by accident, the shrapnel from the blast'll kill us all. The shots stopped, thankfully. Jetlo sat, waiting, only keeping the ship in a straight line. Sensors, which one is the nuclear?
Its in the middle of the line. Only eight point three seconds to impact.
Jetlo spoke, rushed. Guns, nail the ones at the ends when I give the word.
Four seconds.
Jetlo pulled a lever as far as it would go, and the Angler shot down at a tremendous clip. Gregorys margarita shot up its contents, which hovered in the air looking like a transparent ball. Gregory barely realized he was not touching the chair either. Then, as suddenly as the weightlessness had come, it stopped. The margarita splashed down into the glass, splattering Gregory with liquid, and Gregory smashed down into his chair.
Now! Jetlo screamed.
Red lances came from the ship at the two safe missiles. The starboard battery connected, and its target disappeared in a cloud of fire. The port gunners were less lucky, and their shots had no effect on the asteroids they hit. Cheers erupted form the starboard side, but were silenced when both remaining missiles arced back around for another pass.
The conventional warhead turned faster, and was already on a direct path with the Angler when the nuclear warhead still turned. It went straight for the port wing, and the men saw their deaths in it, and would have felt it, too, had not the starboard side been vigilant. Their turrets again traced the missile with red beams, and again exploded it into a hail of death. But this time, it had been too close. The heat from the blast touched the metal, scarring and super-heating it, but was unable to penetrate the radiation shielding underneath.
And the nuclear weapon came on, nose to nose with the Angler. Jetlo swallowed, and turned off the main engines. The wing thrusters went into overdrive, spinning the ship like a childs gyroscope. Gregorys margarita flew away, lost when it crashed into the metallic carapace of K4. He almost lost his lunch also, but the inertial compensators kicked in, reducing the effect of the tremendous g-forces the crew was subjected to.
The missile spun too, attracted to the scalding hot metal of the port wing. To Gregory, it seemed as though the missile and ship were completely motionless, and it was the asteroid field that stumbled like a drunken sop. Eight seconds to impact, Sensors stated. Scratch that, one second. And the missile blew past the Anglers wing, missing by a fraction of millimeters. The ship stabilized and headed out of the asteroid field. The nuclear weapon was still slow in turning, and its difficulties were compounded by its entering an particularly dense portion of the field.
Gregory said with astonishment, Pilot, what are you doing?
Taking us close to the destroyer.
What? Gregory did not believe his ears.
Its the only chance we have.
K4 spoke, a silky voice coming from the silver-plated exoskeleton. Captain, his plan, if it is what I think it is, checks out. Evidently, the android hadnt minded the liquor in the face he had received.
Gregory consented. Kental shouted, Rear guns! Shoot the nuclear missile when Jetlo gives the word! The pilot and weapons master exchanged wry glances. Gregory blanched. Fore guns and turrets! All fire on the destroyer!
Commander, came the voice of a fore-gunner, Should we bring the laser systems online?
Negative. Not enough power available.
With a feeling of confidence at last, Gregory smiled. He had almost forgot about the laser installed in the nose cone, as he had never had a reason to use it. He figured this battle would be as good a time as any.
Glancing at the destroyer, Gregory saw that it had left the atmosphere of ST 502, and was now renewing its barrage on the Angler. Return fire from the gunners had already begun, and battle began again. Four large turrets, carrying eight of the largest guns ever placed on a warship, rotated to track the Angler. The Anglers wing guns lashed out, smashing holes in the gunners seat of two of the large guns and exposing their crew to cold space. The other guns hit the surface of the destroyer proper, leaving dents in its hull.
Blaster fire came from the destroyers guns, scoring some hits on the Angler, but not nearly as many hits as misses, and none in vital areas, thanks to the skills of Jetlo. The same said into the intercom, Sensors, give me time to the destroyer and to the missile.
22 seconds to ship, 16 to the warhead.
Jetlo prayed to whatever lost gods were listening, and dodged the incoming fire.
Optimum range for the armor-piercing artillery pieces on the Anglers was reached, and Kental screamed for the blasters to work alongside their less advanced cousins. Blasters, with their super-heated metal rods, softened the hull enough for metal slugs to pound through in several piece. The destroyer didnt seem to notice. The nuclear missile reached visual range, and only 4 seconds remained until impact.
Fire now.
Rear guns opened up, sailing to the missile. Gregory saw it in slow motion, as if time itself had slowed down, but he knew it was happening almost faster than his eye could see. Red fire tore into gray metal, exposing its innards for all to see. And nothing else.
The missile, now dead and useless, dropped to the destroyers surface and smashed against its hull to no effect. How, Gregory said, How did you know that would happen?
K4 spoke as Jetlo leveled the ship off to skim across the surface. Humans are afraid of death. The Angler juked more bolts and skimmed across the hull, searching for the missile battery. They will do anything to delay the inevitable.
As the gunners targeted the missile emplacement and turned the launchers to slag with a few well-placed shots, Jetlo spoke whilst trying to over power the hoots and cheers of the crew. They deactivated the warhead as soon as it posed a threat to them. Another dodge, and the Angler was back to circling far too close to the destroyers bulk. They didnt want to die.
More fire from blasters scorched the Anglers hull, and Jetlo proved that he didnt either. A nuclear explosion is a bad way to go. Plus, theyre confident of their ability to finish us without the missile.
Theyll have to, Gregory said as he stared at the melted launcher mechanisms. While he was speaking, the E.U. ship has begun to pitch its nose down, bringing up its aft, which the Angler now glided over. The sheet of metal rose before them like the formation of a new mountain. Jetlo rose the ships nose to compensate, and the turret men fired away at the destroyers guns. But the craft pitched down faster than the Angler could raise its altitude, so Jetlo was forced to disengage.
Pilot, Gregory said, Take to the asteroid field; we might be able to escape through it.
Again, Greg? If we must. Their craft darted towards the field once more, and Gregory checked the time before Durintak would move a safe distance away from the system. Thirty five minutes. Gregory cursed.
The destroyer fired on the retreating Angler, giving the crew many a close call with its huge batteries. Kental responded with a small volley of guided rockets from the launchers that turned back to assault the destroyer. He didnt bother noting the damage, if any.
But then the small craft entered the field, and the luck changed. Those near misses that had once been only a hindrance now posed a threat, as blaster bolt after blaster bolt smashed into the asteroids, scattering debris and shrapnel reminiscent of a troop of children going at a pináta. Jetlo barely jerked the ship up in time to avoid crashing into a hemisphere that had just been shot off, and a small chunk tore into a section of the port wing, sending a piece sailing into space. K4 calmly stated that it had been a non-essential piece, with no crew inside.
It wont be the case for long, Gregory said. He patched the computer specialist from Engineering into the intercom. Computers, can we run the virus youve been working on yet?
We can, came the stereotypical scientist voice which belonged to Dr. Kravern, a native of the region known as Russia. Its not perfected, but it can work.
Excellent. Ill open the communications link now. Gregory flipped the system back online, and hailed the destroyer. The creation popped back up on the view screen. Its brown eyes, black hair, and multi-racial skin appeared as impeccable as before. Captain and coward, what may I do for you?
Gregory swallowed his pride. Id like to surrender.
The man-thing laughed. Not fit to last another half hour with me? While you have been doing adequately, and been somewhat of a challenge, Im afraid Ill accept your offer. Pull along my craft, disable all systems, and await boarding. Good day.
Gregory glanced at his LCD, and saw that the transfer of the virus was only half done. Wait!
What?
Gregory thought fast, his gears spinning. What about the prisoners? What will you do to them?
The creation took his time in pondering, and said, Well, the same as any other prisoner. Taken to detainment center and tried for crimes. Farewell. With relief, Gregory saw that the virus upload was complete. He then shut off the communications yet again.
Pilot, take us for another pass on the destroyer. Make it innocent.
(This message has been edited by Celchu (edited 06-14-2002).)
