Fury of the Bold Page 3

  "Roger," Marny replied.

  "Don't leave without me." He grabbed her arms and pulled her down for a final kiss before he ran from the room.

  "Have you seen Nick?" Marny asked Ada, who'd joined her amidships where one of several airlocks was joined to Petersburg Station with a broad catwalk.

  "Excuse me, ma'am and Sergeant Major." A crew member Marny rushed past the two women pushing a grav-car while managing a hasty salute. Though not technically protocol, they moved out of the harried man's way, recognizing that his hurry was most likely related to the short hours before setting sail.

  "Earlier today," Ada said, still wearing the purple waist coat and knee-high leather boots over her grav-suit. She'd traded in the shirt and breeches for a ruffled white collar around her neck and a wide belt around her waist. "He was moving a million meters per second."

  The two women entered through the airlock and into the recently painted corridor. The transformation of the ship was as remarkable outside as inside. Between Nick's renobots and the armor repair stations they'd brought from Sol, no part of Hornblower had been left untouched.

  "I heard Hornblower is technically a cruiser," Ada said as they joined Lieutenant Adrian Hawthorn and Sergeant Raul Martinez at the junction of two passageways.

  "That's correct, ma'am," Hawthorn said, leading them aft toward the engines. "She always had the bones of a cruiser, but her armor was too light. Those Chinese armor fabricators were something else. I overheard that Merrie woman talking about how much nano-crystalized steel she ended up producing for the new plating. I'm just glad we refit those engines. You couldn't have added that much mass to the old configuration."

  "You hoped to produce six times the power," Marny said. "Were you successful?"

  "Oh yes, ma'am," he answered, abruptly shouting, "Attenshun!"

  They entered the engineering bay, which soared twenty meters above and below the broad catwalk they'd walked out onto. Ten crew, most of whom Marny could name without the aid of her AI, turned and snapped to attention.

  Over the last months, Marny had spent plenty of time in the engineering bay, but it hadn’t been until recently that all the systems had been reassembled and pushed back into their respective cabinets.

  "I believe what we're looking at here is the very definition of ship-shape," Marny said, nodding in recognition to the crew who'd been slaving over the systems. "Tell me, Lieutenant Hawthorn, are our systems ready to meet the Kroerak in the field of battle?"

  "Hells yes, Sergeant Major," Hawthorn answered enthusiastically. "Hooyah!"

  "Hooyah!" echoed the men and women, still at attention.

  "This old girl have some nuts, Lieutenant?" Ada asked, her brown eyes sparkling mischievously.

  "Dying to find out. Sounds like an angry mother when …" Stopping mid-sentence he caught his faux pas and blushed. "Pardon the expression, ma'am," he said as he dipped his head and looked sheepishly at Marny.

  "Highest praise I can think of, Lieutenant. No apology needed," Marny chortled. "You have one hundred minutes before this angry mother gets let off her leash. I recommend you make sure we're good and ready in the meanwhile."

  "Aye, aye, ma'am!" he said, snapping to attention.

  "At ease," Marny responded. "I'd like you all to know that I'm proud of the work you've put into this ship. Your countless hours of effort and dedication could well be the difference between the success and failure of our mission. Most of you were captured once by the Pogona pirate Belvakuski and enslaved within the hold of this very ship. As despicable as that pirate was, she pales in comparison to the Kroerak. I implore each of you to look within and make sure you've given your best, because humanity's best will surely overcome any obstacle in our path. Hooyah?"

  "Hooyah!" the engineering crew replied with excitement.

  "Dismissed!"

  "Thank you, Captain Bertrand." Hawthorn raised an eyebrow as he said Captain.

  Marny nodded as she turned to Sergeant Martinez. "Raul, how about we take a look at our weapons?"

  "With pleasure, Sergeant Major," he answered, clearly seeing the title as superior to that of Captain.

  "As you know, Sergeant Major, Hornblower is primarily equipped with three types of weapons," Martinez said, his voice shaking a little as he spoke. "It is the pleasure of the fire control team to bring expertise to both the maintenance of and proper execution of these weapons. While I have not previously been placed in charge of such a large operation, I am confident the men and women within my command are competent to achieve for you the victory you require."

  "Thank you, Gunnery Sergeant," Marny said. "While we walk, why don't you share with us the function of the different weapon systems." She knew that while he might be nervous to talk, his expertise, especially in maintenance, was respected by all.

  "Of course. Our primary weapons are the 400mm cannons. Equipped for static payloads as well as blaster fire, these twin-barreled cannons make up much of our offensive capability. With help from Earth, we've a new load that we believe has the capacity to pierce Kroerak armor plating." He paused to climb a second set of ladders that led to the fire control room.

  "What's your confidence with piercing Kroerak armor?" Ada asked, chasing up behind him, allowing Marny to float up using her grav-suit.

  "I will not lie to you," he said. "Experiments on Earth suggest the penetration is only partial on a first round. But they say a second round to the same location has devastating impact."

  "That's not exactly awe-inspiring," Ada said. "How in the Jupiter do we get lined up for a second shot and then hit it dead on?"

  "I have come to understand you are a pilot of extraordinary skill," Martinez replied. "I say this to you. If you bring us to position, my team's aim will be true. This I promise."

  Ada paused and turned to face Martinez, who'd stepped behind her as they both awaited Marny's arrival. Sticking out her hand, she thrust it at the surprised sergeant.

  Recovering, he accepted her handshake.

  "If that's what you need, then that's what you'll get."

  "What'd I miss?" Marny asked, slightly out of breath.

  "Not a thing," Ada said, "Raul and I were just getting a good read on each other. Although, I'm of the impression drinks with my gunnery crew might be in order."

  "That would be most well received," he answered, swinging open the door to the fire control room where six crew stood at attention in front of weapons consoles.

  "At ease," Marny said after returning their salute.

  "Where's the rest of your team?" Ada asked.

  "They're tending to the turrets which require manual loading for the four-hundreds," Martinez replied. "While the missiles and smaller turrets are automatically fed, it is our responsibility to make sure of their good function during battle."

  "Is your team ready to set sail?" Marny asked.

  "We are, Sergeant Major," Martinez replied.

  "Do you know why I prefer the title Sergeant Major, Sergeant Martinez?" Marny asked.

  "Because you work for a living, Sergeant Major!"

  "Because you can take the Devil Dog out of the Marines," Marny said.

  "But you can't take the Marine out of the Devil Dog," Martinez filled in the remainder. "Oorah, Sergeant Major!"

  "Oorah!" Marny replied. "Now, I want you to assume there's a bogey ready to take our heads off once we're fifty kilometers from Petersburg Station."

  "Aye, aye, Sergeant Major!"

  "Well, that was inspiring. Seriously, I got chills," Ada said as the two women strode down the passageway toward the elevator that would take them up to the superstructure where the bridge was located.

  "You cannot believe how bad I have to pee," Marny said.

  Ada guffawed. "And just like that, the image is shattered."

  Chapter 3

  Hunkering Down

  Tabby and I spent the day digging through rubble leading to the Piscivoru warehouse entry beneath their bunker. The more-or-less permanently grounded Gaylon Brighton was
mostly indefensible. Its top turret was still operational, but lacked a clear view of the entire sky due to the location of its second crash landing on Picis. If Kroerak showed up, they’d have no difficulty identifying our lack of coverage and bring us to our knees.

  For now, the plan was simple. We would clear a path into the warehouse and take over the ship's two replicators, med-tank, and long-range communication equipment. We could adjust our plan, but we needed to assess the warehouse in order to determine if the strategy made sense.

  Buried under ten meters of collapsed building, the digging was slow. Even with the gravity assist from my suit, a grav-cart I'd dug out of a storage compartment, and one of Nick's stevedore bots, moving the many kilo tonnes of debris was extraordinarily difficult. I'd grown up an asteroid miner and felt a certain amount of resentment at the work. It wasn't that I didn't appreciate working hard, it was more that I was used to using heavy equipment that could clear in only a few minutes what Tabby and I slaved over for six hours.

  "Oh baby, but I'm gonna be sore," Tabby said, easily lifting a sixty-kilogram boulder and carrying it up the poorly constructed path.

  "Hah, I've already burned through two med patches," I admitted. The nanobots within the med patches saw little difference between muscles bruised from activity and those damaged by combat or some other event. Slapping one on when you needed prolonged physical activity was an old trick.

  "I think I see the top of the door," Tabby said, leaping over me and landing next to the portion of the building that had weathered half a millennium. With renewed intensity that I couldn’t manage even with patches, she hurled smaller rocks from the hole. "Definitely a door. This is some serious quality material, too. Feels like steel, but there's not a bit of rust. You think nano-crystalized steel would last five hundred stans?"

  "Certainly would in vacuum, not sure about atmosphere," I answered, prying at a well-stuck piece of cement that had steel bar running through it. Pulling the cutting torch head from my belt, I clipped the hundred-kilogram chunk free, careful not to allow it to roll onto my leg. Turns out gravity sucks when moving rock and I’d had several hard-earned lessons during the day's efforts. With the chunk free, I directed the stevedore bot to carry it off.

  Grateful for a momentary break, I flew to where Tabby dug furiously. She'd indeed uncovered the top of a doorframe.

  "Bring that cart over," she grunted, trying to loosen a larger piece.

  I dropped down beside her and jammed my long prybar next to the piece she was trying to free. I thought I was past the fact that she was substantially stronger than me, but the piece she was working on was bigger than anything I could consider moving.

  With the large rock removed, I started to believe we might be in the warehouse before the star finally set. Turns out, there was no reason for optimism. Without the large rock’s stabilizing effect, the sides of the hole collapsed, filling in the progress we’d made. Tabby shook her head in disgust but said nothing as the two of us set about clearing material again.

  Two hours later, I was startled by Sendrei's sudden appearance. His headlamp illuminated our private little hell. "I thought you were going to get the warehouse door free," Sendrei said, carefully working his way over the edge of the hole.

  Tabby lobbed a fist-sized chunk of rock at him. "You've a mean streak, Buhari."

  "What's up?" I asked. We'd cleared all the way to the bottom of a ten-meter wide, handle-less door, for which we'd yet to find a mechanism for opening. Not far from the door, we'd found an intact wall that ran along one side of a ramp leading up to ground level.

  "The elders are awake," he said. "It sounds like they're headed back to the Iskstar grotto."

  "To stay?" Tabby asked, alarmed.

  "That's what Ferisk is pushing for," Sendrei said. "Noelisk says they're going to offer options to their people."

  "Ferisk's plan might be the best in the short run," I said. "We still haven't figured out how to defend this place."

  A banging sound came from the opposite side of the door we'd been clearing and we all quieted, staring in the direction of the sound.

  "Engirisk, are you in the warehouse?" I asked, my AI establishing a comm channel to the technologically-minded Piscivoru elder.

  "I am not," he answered. "I am in conference with Noelisk and others."

  "Copy," I answered, closing the comm.

  Another loud screech and more banging from behind the partially-cleared door had the three of us moving quickly away. Taking no chances, Tabby dropped her pry bar and flew up to where we'd set our blaster rifles.

  The screeching continued as a small gap appeared at the bottom of the door. The space widened and a blast of air blew out, pushing a cloud of dust ahead of it. Mercifully, the screeching quieted. The three of us watched in awe as the five-meter-wide and three-meter-tall door slowly pulled back from the opening and swiveled upward, hinged at the very top.

  Many tons of rocks we hadn't cleared yet tumbled over the threshold and spilled onto the warehouse floor. Sinking to my knees, I crept forward, crawling beneath the slow-moving door. My Iskstar-enhanced sight picked up three figures standing near a console mounted to the wall to my right. A moment later, Tabby's lamps illuminated Tskir, the aged Piscivoru who'd brought us here from the planet Jarwain where she'd lived her entire life in exile. Next to Tskir stood Sklisk and Jaelisk, their Iskstar staves proudly strapped to their backs.

  "That's handy," I said, straightening. "How'd you find the controls for the door?"

  Tskir stepped forward. "I have access to the knowledge of most systems of Dskirnss, just as I do the other fifty-two capital cities of Picis. These bunkers were created in our time of need at great expense. They were created to outlast our exile and have nobly stood against time."

  "I'll agree to that," I said.

  "Might have opened them a bit earlier," Tabby complained.

  "We'd better clear the rock," Sendrei said, pointing at the material still spilling onto the warehouse floor. "If the Kroerak come back, they'll have no difficulty getting through this door if we can't close it."

  "This place is huge," Tabby said, ignoring Sendrei and grabbing my arm. I followed the beam of her headlamp as it illuminated row upon row of shelving.

  "Can you turn on the lights?" I asked. Even with my enhanced ability to see in the dark, it was difficult to understand the scale of what we were looking at.

  "I will do so," Tskir said, brushing a thick layer of dust from the panel next to where she'd been standing.

  The sound of motors spinning up was accompanied by the clacking of energizing power circuits. A moment later, lights snapped on, following a grid pattern across the ceiling. Only with magnification was I was able to see the opposite wall. My AI calculated a distance of twelve-hundred-fifty meters in one direction and four hundred meters in the other.

  As the lights came on, it became clear that the Piscivoru civilization was not accurately represented by the simple subterranean lizard-people we'd come to know. Along one entire wall, wheeled, gravity-assisted machines were lined up, one after the other. Some of the machines had an obvious purpose such as construction, while the function of others was not discernible. A stack of cargo haulers caught my eye, identifiable by the cab at the front and a bed for storage behind. And while every machine was all too small for human use by at least a factor of two, they seemed in reasonably good shape.

  Movement caught my eye as I found Jonathan cruising down one of the long aisles toward us. "Very good! You've successfully breached the entrance to the first warehouse level," he said, slowing to a stop next to us. "I'd hoped Tskir's task would be successful. We have been working with Engirisk to locate the planetary weapon's silo. As you are fond of saying, Liam, we have good news and bad."

  "There's more than one warehouse level?" Tabby asked. "Someone undersold this place. There’s room for a hundred thousand Piscivoru down here."

  "They would lack for food. Unlike the relatively pristine condition of the machinery, the fo
od stores have mostly spoiled," Jonathan said. "The machinery we have inspected appears to be either operational or easily fixed."

  "You said bad news. I'm guessing that wasn't it. What's the bad news, Jonathan?" I asked, not wanting Tabby to get him too distracted.

  "Ah yes, we have a location for the weapon," he said.

  "Again, not the bad news," Tabby said, impatiently.

  "That is correct. We're afraid there are varying degrees of bad news," he said. "Perhaps the most significant is that the weapon was placed at the bottom of a silo. This provided significant shielding from attack. Remember that these weapons were designed before the Piscivoru discovered the Iskstar and proved to be little more than an annoyance, as they did not penetrate Kroerak ship armor. As the short war progressed, the Kroerak applied resources designed to silence these ineffective weapons in each city. They utilized a similar technique as was used against the Piscivoru upon the mountain only a few days ago."

  "It was bombed?" I asked.

  "Yes, although there is good news within this," he said. "As you know, Kroerak technology is quite rudimentary. As such, their technology is similar to that of Earth in the period known as World War II. While it is true that humanity discovered atomic weaponry in this war, most bombardment was executed with explosive material that did not poison the ground with high levels of radioactivity."

  "Our suits could deal with it either way," I said. Radiation was just a fact of life as a spacer, so I wasn't sure what he was getting excited about.

  "The same does not hold true for the Piscivoru," he said. "And they will need to take control of the weapon's operation."

  I nodded, Jonathan was always thinking several steps ahead, a trait they shared with Nick and for which I was appreciative.

  "First things first," I said, not wanting to get too distracted. "Sendrei, what kind of progress did you make on moving the turret?"

  "That's why I'm here. We've constructed a semi-permanent mount and Engirisk brought power cables up from the bunker," he said. "I’d like to use the stevedore bot to bring the turret over so we can get it hooked up."