Rapparee: The Regeneration (The Journey of the Freighter Lola Book 5) Page 7

  Meanwhile, Larry set his flight control AI to take him to the fringe of the system. He would lay back and take a nap while the ship did the piloting and monitored the sensors. It would wake him an hour before entering the system. He’d be well rested having conserved power and O2. I found it unbelievable that anyone could close their eyes and take a nap right before they were going into battle. Larry spent years training to do just that. It was a common military procedure that allowed the ship to save consumables, like fuel and oxygen. Compared to their mother ships, these fighters were tiny. They needed all the fuel and life support supplies they could carry. By having the pilot sleep as much as possible, their respiration was lower, and the ship’s AI could pilot a more efficient course. Larry will wake from his nap having used only one-third the fighter’s life support supplies.

  Tony Nicosta was working with Kenny. Together, they'd scanned a fidgety Butch for a power suit. It would be a modified level 1 power suit. They both thought Butch was strong enough without the strength enhancement it provided. They wanted to protect the little Troll from a depressurization due to combat. With the ship’s onboard 3D manufacturing equipment, the suit was custom sized and built for the little guy over the last eighteen hours. It came with a helmet, custom fit to his head. It didn’t have all the bells and whistles that a normal helmet provided but did have limited communication capability.

  Kenny got Butch into the suit with a little help from Tony. Butch’s experience with the previous oversized space suit they had found him in left him anxious about putting on any clothing. The helmet was especially difficult to get him to accept, but once he found he could still hear Kenny, he settled down and took it all in stride.

  Once suited up, Kenny brought Butch by the bridge. When Butch spotted Julie at her console, he jumped up into her lap and gave her a big hug. This helped break the tension on the bridge and let everyone take a breath. Butch spent the next hour in Julie’s lap watching as she monitored the sensors and navigated.

  The Kupp brothers excused themselves to go check on their charges. The remaining VIPs stayed in their seats, eyes glued to the windows and holo-screens. At this point, there was still an hour before Larry would awaken, so I got up and excused myself. I wanted to use the toilet and grab a cup of coffee before anything happened. I ran into Chris in the passageway. He was coming to join me for coffee. While I hit the head, he went into my little galley and got us each a cup of coffee. He found Nicky C already there making a pot of his special brew.

  I found them sitting at the table. They’d poured me a cup and it was waiting in front of my chair. They each had their tablets out. Chris had engineering systems displayed, and Nicky was looking over his manpower assignments.

  “Are we ready?” I asked while sitting down.

  Chris looked up, “As ready as we’ll ever be.”

  Nicky nodded and said, “I still hate sending Larry out there alone. If he makes contact it will take at least thirty minutes for us to arrive to bail him out.”

  I agreed with him. It had me worried too. “On paper, Larry’s fighter is more than enough to handle any bandit ship, two bandit ships with a good pilot. Larry is the best, and he says with the new active camo he can take on three and be the victor. Still, he hasn’t tried that before, and I’m worried.”

  Chris and Nicky both nodded. How about you pick up a little speed and close that gap to about fifteen minutes? Can you do that?” Chris asked.

  “Sure, no problem. I’ll check our scanners and give Lola a kick.” I said as I stood to leave.

  Fifteen minutes is a lifetime in a space battle.

  Chapter 11

  The O2 level and the interior lights gradually increased in Larry’s ship. A soft bell chimed to wake him. He stirred and opened his eyes before the AI increased the volume. Sensing Larry was awake, the AI returned the O2 to normal levels and canceled the chimes. Larry shook the cobwebs out and sat up straight in his seat. A quick scan of the fighter’s readouts showed everything was functioning in the green.

  Larry was still an hour from the outermost part of Chico7’s system. He double checked the sensors and found nothing yet. He hadn’t expected anything, but he was playing it safe. The ship was ready and so was he.

  Larry’s plan was to activate his camo and enter the system using his passive sensors to search for any lurking spacecraft. He was confident there were several in the system, the idea was to find them first. While Larry had the capability to take on three ships, it would be better if he got the drop on the bandits first. If he could spot them first, he could target the bandits for Lola’s big guns. He didn’t want to expose his ship until he had to.

  He was cruising about thirty minutes ahead of Lola and was about five minutes from entering the outer boundary of the system when his sensors picked up a bandit. Larry toggled two switches which activated his camo. He locked a target piper on the ship and delegated it Bandit 1. The ship’s AI would continue to track Bandit 1 and send this information to Lola while Larry concentrated on locating other ships.

  With his engines throttled back to idle, he coasted into the system. As there was no drag to slow him, he continued at top speed without any propulsion to give him away. Unless another ship knew where to look for him, it was impossible to spot him. The bandits didn’t have the benefit of this active camo technology. Julie Horan and our ships top chef had developed the idea several months ago and the military had jumped on the technology. We gave it to them provided we were the first ships to get it installed.

  Larry’s sensors began to pick up another ship, but the signal was too weak to lock on yet. An asteroid belt that lay between Chico 7 and the outer limits of the system. The many drifting rocks in the belt helped to mask the unknown ship from his sensors. While still focusing on the suspect ship, Larry drifted his fighter along with many of the hunks of rock to mask his approach. By changing his approach angle he got a firm sensor lock on the second bandit, now known as Bandit 2.

  These two ships were far out in the system from Chico 7. Larry was sure there was at least one bandit ship in high orbit around the planet. That would make for three bandits ships. That was what everyone expected, but something told Larry that guess was low. The two he already had targeted were too far out in the system. He expected more bandits in closer. That would make at least four ships, if not more, he would have to take on in battle. It would be alone if Lola and crew didn’t arrive soon.

  The little fighter’s artificial intelligence computer sent a tightly focused signal back to Lola. It contained targeting information on the two known bandits. Once Lola arrived in the system they’d know where all the players were. The plan was the space freighter and little fighter would each attack the previously targeted bandits before they knew what happened. So far, Larry thought, everything was going according to plan.

  The fighter’s sensors continued to scan the system. Hampered by a large amount of orbiting rock and asteroids, he’d locked onto two bandit ships but was unable to find anymore. The fighter continued side-slipping through the asteroid belt. Hiding behind large rocks and peeking out to take sensor readings. It was during one of these peeks around a larger asteroid that Larry got the shock of his life. As his fighter slipped out from behind cover not more than a mile in front of him was a spacecraft sitting in ambush.

  It was here that the little fighter’s active camo and Larry’s stealthy technique paid dividends. They had come out behind the third bandit. It had been hiding behind this asteroid waiting for Lola to appear. Believing itself to be well hidden, the Bandit ship was facing away from Larry’s fighter and tucked up tight against the asteroid. Its sensor array was looking forward towards the direction Lola should be arriving. Larry’s side-slipping and active camo had allowed the fighter to come in from behind the bandits.

  Signaling Lola with this target’s information would have allowed the bandits to sense the fighter behind them. Further use of thrusters by the fighter would give him away. With practiced ease, Larry placed the f
ighters target piper on the port engine nacelle of the bandit ship, now known as Bandit 3. He selected a guided missile and fired. Due to the ship's proximity to the asteroid, the missile’s detonation caused a section of rock to break off and a large cloud of dust billowed out into the space once occupied by the bandit ship.

  Onboard Bandit 3, the ship’s crew believed they’d struck the asteroid. They were unaware Larry had fired at them. Bandit 3 began breaking into smaller sections. This is a survival method utilized by many ships to allow the crew to survive interstellar collisions or explosions. The main crew segment spun off into space after jettisoning the starboard engine nacelle and its overheating reactor core.

  Larry used the explosion to cover his retreat from the area. The blast covered his thruster’s signature and he eased out of the area, undetected.

  Lola was fast approaching the system and had received Larry’s targeting information. They were now picking up distress calls from Bandit 3. It was clear from what they heard that Bandit 3 believed they’d struck the asteroid. They were completely unaware they'd had been fired upon. Larry’s cover and luck held.

  Bandits 1 and 2 spotted Larry’s space-craft on their sensors but believed it to be a section of asteroid blasted free in the collision. Bandit 2 moved to offer aid to the stricken Bandit while Larry drifted away.

  Drifting in space, Larry allowed his AI to scan all directions. After several minutes, he picked up a message from a ship that had to be in orbit around Chico 7. It asked the other bandit ships if they were in contact with Lola. A foolish and amateur mistake no military pilot would have made. Bandit 4 was now targeted.

  Larry decided it wise to simply drift among the asteroid belt scanning for any further bandits. He'd wait for Lola to appear in the system while he was tracking the bandits. He might find another ship hidden among the planets. His AI continued to update Lola on targeting information. Once Lola was in range it would be a simple matter for her large photon cannons to eliminate the threat from Bandits 1 and 2 while Larry went after Bandit 4.

  Larry eased into position to one side of another asteroid bigger than the freighter Lola. Any sensors scanning the area would pick up no more than the original rock. This position allowed Larry a straight shot at Bandit 4. When he was ready, he’d first accelerate towards Bandit 4. After closing the gap, he would fire a missile that would track down the bandit and destroy it. Being a fire and forget type weapon Larry would be free to shoot and then hunt for another.

  At Lola’s speed, it wasn’t long before she entered the system and was spotted by the first two bandit ships. Larry spotted the Bandits adjusting to their aim towards the incoming freighter. The fighter’s AI continued tracking and relaying the information to Lola’s weapons center. Without missing a beat Lola’s photon cannons fired.

  Photon cannons don’t send out a visible beam, so there’s no indication they’ve fired until the photons strike their target. A missile can be seen tracking its prey. Tracer rounds used in ancient weapons looked like a colored streak leaping out to strike their targets. Photon cannons showed nothing at all. Either the target exploded, or the photons continued off into space. Lola’s photon cannons struck their targets and Bandit 1 exploded. The beam struck the propulsion reactor. A short-lived fireball blossomed into space and then extinguished. Fragments, no larger than a human spun off in all directions. Bandit 1 no longer existed.

  Bandit 2 was also struck by Lola’s weapons. A smaller reaction occurred. The cannon severed the Bandit ship into two distinct pieces. The rear section housed the reactor core and engines. The forward section contained the crew and life support systems. This forward section went spinning off on its own. Lola saw it venting gasses and fluids. Closer examination showed several human bodies adrift alongside the ruined remains. Larry knew that Jack would check for survivors. He was sure there would be none. The space battle was that violent and deadly.

  As planned, Larry moved his throttle forward towards his intended target. He accelerated closing the gap between his quarry and his missile launch point. Bandit 4 hadn't moved. He wondered if they were aware of the battle that had taken place.

  Larry reached his predetermined point and launched his missile. His ship lost its active camo for a moment as the missile left its attachment points on the fighter. At that moment Larry realized he had been suckered into a trap. The fighters warning sensor alarms all went off at once. He had been spotted, targeted, and several missiles had fired at him from a hidden ship. This new ship, Bandit 5, had laid in waiting and fired only when Larry had attacked.

  Larry realized now that he'd been spotted earlier when he’d eliminated Bandit 3. He immediately began evasive maneuvers. His fighter could zig and zag better than most missiles and any larger ship. His hard jinking tossed Larry about in his cockpit seat. Secured in place, he could still feel the G-forces as his fighter maneuvered to escape the lethal missiles. The first two shot past and exploded in the distance. The third missile exploded below his port side. It was far enough away that it wasn’t a lethal blow. The blast did cripple his port side engine and cause the computer systems to go offline. It would take at least two minutes for the computer to reboot and life support and systems control to come back online. Larry was adrift in the fighter. His life support now relied on his power suit systems. His long-range communications were down until the systems came back up. There was no way to contact the Freighter Lola.

  With power down and no active camo, Larry’s little fighter tumbled through space venting atmosphere. Bandit 5 spotted the fighter and locked on with their remaining missiles. Larry was doomed to die in the vacuum of space. This was lost on Larry, as he was unconscious in his cockpit. The blast had slammed him violently, even with his protective helmet.

  The Bandit ship moved in even closer. Their captain wanted to make sure he got the kill. What remained of the Organization would pay a bounty on all Genus ships. He wanted to make sure he collected. This delay cost the Bandit. The instant before the Bandit Captain ordered the missiles fired the Freighter Lola fired three Photon Cannons. The beams traveling at light speed struck and burned through the fuselage of Bandit 5. Their reactor core overloaded and exploded in a silent blinding white blossom.

  Debris from the Bandit ship was flung in all directions and would continue that path unless it strikes something also in space. There was no friction to slow it down. The same could be said for Larry in the stricken fighter. With him unconscious, he would continue to violently tumble without end. The only thing that would stop him was the planet he was tumbling towards.

  It shared the same solar system as Chico 7 and that was all. Smaller and with a methane atmosphere, it would never support life like ours. Much colder than Chico 7 and with less gravity, it was the opposite of the idyllic planet our people were on. This planet would soon pull Larry’s fighter into its upper atmosphere. Thereafter, Larry and his craft would burn up as it tumbled into the denser clouds of methane. Inside the cockpit, Larry was flung side to side, held in place only by his seat restraints.

  Chapter 12

  Aboard the Freighter Lola, the crew still manned their battle stations. On the bridge, silence ruled. I broke the silence. “Come on people, where is he? What do the sensors show?” Julie bent over her screen, scanned every little fragment looking for Larry. Al Hogan, in the pilot’s seat, poured over his scanner screen. The rest of the bridge crew sat glued to their instruments, looking for any clue that would help them find Larry Stacey and his fighter.

  It was Iwona Grolski, our sensor and communications expert who found a trace. “I’ve found him, I think.” She relayed her sensor data to the main screens on everyone’s console as well as the big screen above us. At first, all we could see was a dark spot against a somewhat less dark background. By magnifying the image, we could make out a flickering metallic object.

  “Al, make towards that point with all the speed you can,” I ordered. Al moved the throttle forward and even though our artificial gravity should have dampened the
effect, you could feel a tug.

  “Get Tony into his shuttle with the grappling arm. I want him ready to get out there and grab Larry if he needs it.” I shouted out. Nicky C immediately relayed the message to Tony in the hanger bay. Tony had known we would need him, and was running across the hangar floor to the already warmed up shuttle with Leroy Bowmen and another battle medic.

  Sixty seconds after I gave the order Tony radioed the bridge that he had taxied out onto the forward flight deck and awaited my orders. With this shuttle and grappling arm, Tony could grasp the fighter and bring it back to Lola and into the hangar bay.

  The truth was, we were still a long way from Larry and his damaged spacecraft. I was sure that we’d found him and that sensors had accurately identified the small ship. The challenge now was to arrive before Larry’s ship burned up in the small unnamed planet’s poisonous atmosphere. The race was on.