Earth Fall: Empires at War, page 20
-
Lisa was in her quarters with Brenda and Kia. They were discussing the dangers of scanning the Trellixians’ home system.
“I understand it’s necessary,” Brenda said unhappily. “but the Trellixians are bound to be expecting us.”
“Maybe,” said Kia. “After detecting us in the last system they might believe we’re headed back home.”
Lisa stood up and placed her hands on her hips. “This worries me,” she said. “Is there anything we can do to make scanning the Trellixians’ home system safer?”
The three looked at each other as their minds raced. All three wanted to make it safely back to Earth.
“We’ll obviously use the probes again,” said Brenda with her eyes narrowed. “Probably a large number of them.”
Lisa sat back down. “The Trellixians will be expecting our fleet to be hiding in the cometary zone. Maybe we should do something different.”
Kia glanced over at Lisa. “Do you have something in mind?”
“Maybe,” Lisa said slowly. “We need to do something the Trellixians won’t be expecting.” She had a tactic that might work; she just needed to talk Captain Dolan into it. It was risky but it was the last thing the Trellixians would expect. “We need to go down to one of the labs and build some equipment for my plan to work.”
“What is it?” asked Brenda, leaning forward. “What do you want to do?”
Taking a deep breath, Lisa began explaining her plan. As she talked Brenda and Kia’s eyes grew wide. Finally, Lisa finished explaining her idea.
“It might just work,” Kia said, nodding her head. “We’ll need Derek to help with the computer programming and Brett for the engineering part.”
Lisa stood back up and headed for the door. “Let’s run by the Officer’s Mess for a light snack and then we’ll head for the lab. I don’t want to work on an empty stomach.”
“I’ll contact Brett and Derek,” Kia said. “They can join us to eat and then off to the lab.” Kia stopped and looked at Lisa. “This idea of yours is brilliant; I just hope it works.”
“So do I,” replied Lisa. If it didn’t work they could all lose their lives. If it did all of them just might make it home safely.
Chapter Fifteen
Captain Mark Dolan stared in disbelief at Lisa. She had just finished explaining her plan to scan the Trellixian home system. “You have got to be kidding me. You want me to jump the Fury into the heart of the most heavily populated Trellixian system? There could be over a thousand ships in that system!”
“They won’t even know we’re there,” replied Lisa confidently. “With the new software and hardware we’ve designed the Trellixians will think the Fury is one of their own colony ships. It will be hours before they realize what we are. During that time we can scan the system.”
Mark shook his head. “Explain how this will work.”
Lisa looked over at Derek. Much of it was his programming.
“We have built some equipment which will give off the electronic signature of a Trellixian colony ship. Any Trellixian vessel that scans us will see the image of one of their own vessels on their sensors. The only way they will be able to tell we’re not real is if they obtain a visual image.”
“How far away do we need to stay from other ships?” asked Katana. “This technology you’ve designed sounds very intriguing.”
“Several thousand kilometers at least,” Lisa answered. “Preferably ten thousand if possible.”
Mark took a deep breath. “So we drop out of hyperspace in the center of their system and launch all of our probes. We then stay in place while the probes spread out and survey the system?”
Lisa nodded. “Even if the Trellixians detect the probes they will believe our fleet is out in the comet belt somewhere. That’s where they will search first. We can scan the entire system with the probes, collect the data, and then jump back into hyperspace with the Trellixians never knowing we were there.”
“What about the probes?” Those things were expensive. He hated to lose them all.
“We won’t need them after scanning the Trellixians’ home system. When we’re done we order them to self-destruct.”
Mark leaned back in his command chair, folding his arms over his chest. His eyes narrowed as he considered what the lieutenants were suggesting. “How certain are you this technology will work? What if we jump into the center of the Trellixian home system and still register as a Voltrex battleship on their sensors?”
“We do a test,” said Brett. “We drop out of hyperspace in an uninhabited star system and test the system. Our other ships can scan us with their sensors and then report on what they’ve found.”
Mark nodded. “That sounds reasonable. How soon can you have your equipment ready to install?”
“It’s already built,” Lisa replied. “We just need to hook it up to a control console in the Command Center. We’ve already wired power to it in Lab Two and all we need to add is the control circuits. We have several engineers who helped with its design and they will stay in the lab the entire time the equipment is on.”
“Okay,” replied Mark, willing to take the chance. “Let’s do it. Katana, locate a system on our present course where we can drop out of hyperspace. I want us to come out on the edge of the system. This close to their home world I suspect most of the systems with planets will have some type of mining operations present.”
Katana nodded. “I’ll need Lieutenant Masterson to help in locating a system.”
“See to it,” Mark ordered. “I want to know if this will work as soon as possible.” Mark watched as the six left his office. He was glad he had the five lieutenants on board. If this new tech of theirs worked they had just earned their keep and the thanks of everyone in the fleet. It might also save some lives.
-
Lisa was back in the lab with Brenda directing the engineers on the final wiring of the camouflage device into the ship’s systems. Derek and Kia were in the Command Center setting up a control console to operate the device.
“Are you certain this will work?” asked one of the engineers. He had helped assemble the device though he didn’t really understand how it worked. Some of the science used was very advanced.
Lisa smiled. “It will work. We’ve ran some computer simulations and everything should work just fine. We just need to run a major test projecting the electronic signature of a Trellixian colony ship where the Fury is located. Any ship which scans us from a distance will believe we’re one of their colony vessels.”
“I hope this works,” said Brenda as she turned on the computer that controlled the device. The computer ran through some checks and then the equipment began humming.
“Everything checks out,” reported one of the engineers. “It should function just fine.”
Lisa contacted Derek and Kia to see if they were ready.
“We’re set up here,” confirmed Derek. “We should be able to control everything from this console.”
Lisa took a deep breath. They had all five worked very hard to get this electronic device ready. The help of the engineers in actually building some of the components had been essential. “Okay, tell the captain we’re ready to run the test. Brenda and I will stay in Lab Two to monitor the equipment and the computer.”
“Captain Dolan says we’ll be dropping out of hyperspace in another hour,” Derek replied. “We’re going to come out of hyperspace in the vicinity of a small red dwarf. There seems to be quite a few of them in this area of space.”
Lisa looked over at Brenda. “Guess we’re ready for the test; can you think of anything we’ve missed?”
Brenda shook her head. “No, we’ll know better when the other ships scan us and see what shows up on their sensors.”
“We’re ready down here,” Lisa told Derek. “We need the other ships to move off to ten thousand kilometers for the first test and then gradually close the distance until they break through our electronic signature.”
“I’ll inform the captain,” Derek replied.
-
An hour later the small fleet dropped out of hyperspace on the edge of the red dwarf star system. Initial scans revealed several Trellixian mining operations in the system with only a few cargo ships present. The carrier Horizon and the two battlecruisers, the Liberty and the Cambridge, all moved off to ten thousand kilometers from the Fury.
“We’re ready,” Derek told Lisa over the comm.
Lisa quickly double-checked the computer next to the new equipment. The computer showed everything was working within the set parameters. A slight humming noise came from the camouflage device. “Everything looks fine here,” Lisa replied. “Go ahead and activate the electronic signature.” Lisa leaned back, hoping this would work. They had used information they had from previous scans of Trellixian colony ships to create the electronic signature which should show the Fury as a Trellixian vessel.
-
In the Command Center, Captain Dolan waited anxiously for the test to begin. If it worked they had a good chance of sneaking into the Trellixian home system undetected.
“Electronic signature is activated,” Derek informed the captain as he touched several icons on his computer screen. He looked over at Marissa. “Contact our ships and have them scan us.”
Marissa did as ordered and then after a few moments turned toward Derek and the captain. “The Cambridge and the Liberty both report their scans indicate a Trellixian colony ship, however the Horizon reports their scans are showing a zone of electronic interference.
Captain Dolan looked over at Derek. “What’s causing that?”
Derek looked confused and then began nodding to himself. “I think we can correct that. I need to contact Lisa and make a few changes to the program.”
-
Lisa and Brenda listened to Derek explain what he wanted done. It only took them a few minutes to add the few lines of code Derek wanted added to the program.
“We’re done,” Lisa reported as they rebooted the computer.
-
On board the Horizon, Captain Wilson watched the tactical display as the diffused blob changed to the electronic signature of a Trellixian colony ship. He nodded to himself in satisfaction. “Inform the Fury they now look like a colony ship. We’re preparing to move closer to see if the signature changes.”
-
On the Fury, Mark waited expectantly as the other three ships began to close with his flagship. All three ships were in constant communication with the Fury informing them about what the electronic signature from their sensor scans were showing.
At the two thousand kilometer mark all three ships were still registering a Trellixian colony ship. At fifteen hundred kilometers, the signature became intermittent and at twelve hundred kilometers, the sensor showed the Fury in her true form.
“Fifteen hundred kilometers seems to be where the electronic signature begins to break down,” Derek said. “As a safety precaution I would recommend staying at least two thousand kilometers from any Trellixian vessel or installation.”
Mark was pleased with the test. “Will the new device be able to stay operating for the length of time we’ll need to thoroughly scan the Trellixians’ home system?”
Derek nodded. “It should be able to. Lisa and Brenda will stay in Lab Two to make sure there are no problems. We also have a team of engineers standing by as well.”
Mark took a deep breath. “Very well, we’ll leave the rest of our ships here and only use the Fury for this mission. We’ll wait here for six more hours and then make the hyperspace jump into the Trellixians’ home system. During that time everyone needs to get something to eat and a little rest. Once we’re in the Trellixians’ system I’ll need everyone at the top of their game. We can’t afford a slip up.”
-
Lisa, Brenda, Kia, Derek, and Brett were all in the Officer’s Mess. They had all gone to their quarters for a few hours of sleep and then met for a light meal.
“Do you think this will really work?” asked Kia. “There’s bound to be heavy ship traffic in the Trellixians’ home system.
Brett looked over at Kia. “It’d better work or none of us will see home again.”
Brenda shook her head. “If we’re spotted we can always jump out of the system. I’m sure Captain Dolan will keep us safe.”
Derek took a bite out of his ham sandwich and then looked at the others. “Look on the bright side of things. Once we’ve finished scanning the Trellixians’ home system we’ll be on our way home.”
“Home,” said Kia, her eyes brightening. “I’ll be glad when we get back.”
Lisa had to agree. She really missed seeing and talking to Professor Wilkens. The morning breakfasts they occasionally had were fond memories of her time in Complex One. Of course, there was Brett as well. Once they returned home they could start going out again. It was difficult seeing him every day and talking to him but not being able to express her feelings.
“We better get to our posts,” Brett said standing up. “Captain Dolan will be expecting us.”
“Let’s just hope nothing goes wrong,” Derek said.
Lisa stood up and smiled at Brett who grinned back. Lisa felt a warm feeling inside knowing the two were still as close as ever.
-
Captain Dolan was in the Command Center as the crew prepared for the hyperspace jump into the Trellixians’ home system. There was considerable tension in the air as the Fury would be making the jump by herself, leaving the rest of the fleet in the red dwarf system. Captain Wilson would be in charge of the three ships being left behind. They had orders that if the Fury was not back in forty-eight hours they were to immediately make the jump into hyperspace and begin heading back to Earth. The three remaining ships were far enough from the Trellixian mining operations that there was little chance of detection.
-
Battle Commander Balforr grinned maliciously as he received a report from the Jarvid System. One of the mining operations there had detected unknown ships in the outer regions of the system. Normally the ships would not have been noticed but since the report of probes in the Norest System, Balforr had contacted all the systems around Trellixia and ordered them to keep their sensors constantly scanning for any unknown contacts. There were quite a few mining operations in uninhabited systems and now that scanning was about to pay off.
“Prepare the fleet to enter hyperspace and go to the Jarvid System,” ordered Balforr. “One of our mining colonies has detected unknown contacts in the system.”
Second Officer Albion’s eyes widened. “Do you believe it’s the Humans?”
“I’m certain of it,” Balforr replied. “They most likely stopped there to take scans of systems near Trellixia. If we hurry we can catch them in the system before they can escape.”
“How do we stop them from escaping into hyperspace?” asked Albion. “They will jump out as soon as our ships are detected.”
“Simple,” Balforr replied. “We jump right in on top of them and disable their hyperspace drives. Once they can’t escape we can destroy their ships.”
“Do we take the reserve ships or just the newer battlecruisers?”
“Just the newer battlecruisers. I don’t want the other ships to get in the way.” Battle Commander Balforr was satisfied as the Conquest prepared to enter hyperspace. It would be a short trip to the Jarvid System. Once there his vengeance against the Humans would begin.
-
Captain Wilson was in his quarters when the Condition One alarms began sounding and moments later the Horizon shook violently.
“Captain, report to the Command Center,” Second Officer Riley said over the ship’s internal comm system. “We have Trellixian battlecruisers dropping out of hyperspace around us.”
Wilson hit the comm unit on his desk with the palm of his hand. “Jump us out immediately,” he ordered. “All ships are to enter hyperspace and not engage the enemy.”
The ship shook violently again, nearly throwing Wilson to the floor.
“Hyperdrive is out,” Riley informed the captain. “We’ve taken numerous fifty-megaton warhead strikes to the engine area. Enough energy has bled through the defensive screen to incapacitate the drive. Engineering says twenty minutes for repairs.”
“Damn!” said Wilson, feeling frustrated. “Tell the other ships to leave and begin returning fire immediately. I’ll be in the Command Center shortly and Riley: keep us alive!”
-
Battle Commander Balforr had the Humans exactly where he wanted them. His fleet had dropped out of hyperspace all around the three Human ships. As soon as the fleet’s weapons targeted the Human vessels they had opened fire with energy beam fire as well as fifty-megaton missiles. Initially all the energy beams were directed at the rear of the ships in an attempt to damage their hyperspace engines. The attack must have been successful as all three ships were still here.
In a sudden massive explosion, one of the Human battlecruisers blew apart as its shield was overloaded and multiple fusion missiles slammed into its hull. The screens in the Command Center instantly dimmed from the influx of bright light and radiation.
“Ship destroyed,” confirmed Maldane. “The shields on the remaining two are weakening.”
“Continue to fire,” ordered Balforr, leaning forward with expectation in his command chair. He had the Humans exactly where he wanted them. There would be no escape from his trap.
-
“Captain, we’ve lost the Cambridge,” reported Second Officer Riley as Captain Wilson entered the Command Center. “The Liberty is reporting heavy damage and their energy screen is down to 20 percent.”
“Hyperspace drives?”
“Offline,” replied Riley.
Captain Wilson drew in a deep breath as he took his seat in the command chair. His ship was lost and he knew it. “What about our fighter-bombers? Are they armed?”
“Yes,” replied Riley, looking confused. “But their missiles only have a twenty-kiloton warhead. They’re not powerful enough to bring down the shields of a Trellixian battlecruiser. Not only that but our sensors are showing these battlecruisers are different from ones we’ve fought in the past. Their missiles are more powerful, their energy weapons are stronger, and their energy screen is better.”
