Chapter 29: Taking Charge

Colonel Dean Gotti was shaking his head as he looked over the strategy proposed by Commander McGregor. "From what I've read about encounters with Sa'arm units on the ground, we won't win even if we win. They'll set off some kind of planet-killing device."

"After they have become established," McGregor admitted, "they'll take steps to prevent a disease from infecting other gestalts by attempting to cleanse the planet before being overrun. But we don't know how they react to persistent resistance from the day they land. They may opt for bombardment, but their pattern is to bring more and more resources to bear whenever resistance is encountered. If we can keep them from nesting and reproducing, then they may not be in a position to annihilate a planet. But they might muck it up with nukes."

Gotti nodded and commented, "I've no objection to your training schedule and objectives, but I don't have near enough men to mount an invasion or even try to repel one. I trust that more manpower is going to become available before we get into live-fire exercises?"

"I believe we can be assured of that." McGregor said with confidence. "You may have to put up with some companies of marines the first few times," McGregor added with a smile. "But we should have our pick of recruits when the thousand-pod ships begin making regular drops out here. We might get some support from other colonies once the word gets out about what we intend to do."

Gotti remained quiet while McGregor gathered his thoughts and added, "We know that the Sa'arm use surface structures, but they tend to burrow into the crust of a planet, and not just for mining, but also to secure living quarters and military equipment from attack. We haven't yet located where they live. Their residences appear to be even more secure than their combat materièl."

Gotti turned back to review the list of training exercises, "That's why you want such an emphasis on close quarter training. We'll need to fight them where they live if we're going to dislodge them from a planet."

McGregor nodded, "Exactly. We need to find a way to meet them on our terms in their territory."

Admiral Grayson was taking an active interest in the training objectives McGregor had proposed. His own combat experience was fleet air operations. Having flown the homely A-6 Intruder in combat before being promoted out of the cockpit he was a believer in air power and close air support.

"I realize that Commander McGregor is focusing on close combat underground where air power will be of little benefit, but I want contingencies for the marines to secure the surface. The buggers may not remain underground to fight fair with the militia.

"I realize that the militia forces can be retrieved without control of the surface, but that would mean their mission has failed. They can't win without eliminating all opposition."

Colonel Bryant nodded, "We've been training with Veracruz to establish a beachhead with Panthers supported by Warthogs."

Grayson nodded, "I've seen your reports: classic tactics, very effective. What I'd like to see you develop are ambush tactics that will draw out the maximum number of units that the Warthogs can turn into asparagus purée."

Bryant chuckled. "Colorfully put, Admiral. I'll get right on it."

"We need to find someone who can guarantee that we have air supremacy," Grayson mumbled, mostly to himself. Bryant just nodded his agreement not sure that Grayson meant for him to hear his remark.

Grayson stood and walked Bryant to the door. "Having an evacuation plan is prudent, Colonel. But you're going to have to look me in the eye and tell me that your marines have no hope of success before using it."

"Aye-aye, sir"

When Bryant was gone Grayson's aide looked up from his desk. "That was cruel, Admiral. A marine will never admit defeat."

"I know. It was a bit like twisting the knife, wasn't it."

Major Amanda Cooper and Major David Stoner were on the bridge of the newly completed Kilo transport ship Othello. Stoner had everything except the jump engines powered up. Cooper was just an observer even though she was an incredibly interested party. Stoner was in command of the vessel until he turned it over to Cooper.

Stoner asked the tugs to bring the ship clear of the manufacturing facility. Once he had more than a kilometer of space between it and anything around, Stoner asked for minimum thrust from the engines. There was a slight groan as slack was taken out of bulkheads and braces, but there was no sense of acceleration or motion by the occupants. The inertial dampeners were doing their job very well.

Stoner did some basic maneuvering at minimum thrust while the shipyard crew monitored stresses. When everyone was happy, the process was repeated at one-quarter speed and half speed, which was all they were going to attempt for this initial trial. There wasn't enough fuel onboard for sustained operations or high-speed sprints. The main fuel tanks were filled with water for stress and leak testing. Only the day tanks on the engines had fuel.

As they were returning to the shipyard slip the AI told them, "There were some environmental issues on some non-critical decks and leaks in three transfer lines caused by water instead of methane being in the lines during the half-speed turns. Modified couplings will correct the problem, although it would not have been an issue if methane had been in the lines instead of water."

"It looks very encouraging. A Darjee crew would never put a ship through the stressful tests you performed in this trial. They're much too conservative and wouldn't understand the need for evasive maneuvers," Cooper told Stoner with a smile. "I have every confidence that I'll be able to take her out next week.

"I'm going to ask Commander Kehoe to work with the ship's AI to deploy some of the atmospheric drones and check all of the transporters. Will that interfere with anything that you have planned for the next couple of days?"

"We're going to be testing the primary, secondary, and tertiary power distribution and control networks," Stoner replied. "I'll make sure that the AI coordinates with him. I don't want him to be transporting Marines and have the transporter power cut midstream."

"No, I would imagine that could be very bad," Cooper agreed as the two headed for the transporter that would take them to Barcino.

Major Cooper arrived at home in time to have dinner with her concubines Reggie and Patricia. The two concubines had been practicing some of the things they had learned the night they had stayed aboard Sir Galahad in Commander Williams' quarters, but had stopped in time to clean up before Cooper got home.

Reggie asked, "Do you really think you'll be able to ship out next week on a brand new colony ship?"

Amanda shrugged, "I'm quite pleased with the crew's performance in the simulators. Much will depend upon how closely the simulator matches reality. Othello is a massive ship. It's much larger than anything I've ever seen, much less been responsible for. Othello has 20 transporter rooms along with the associated dining halls, briefing rooms, and medical bays for processing ten times as many immigrants as an Aurora-class transport.

"We took her out under her own power today, but it was just to a higher orbit and back. There are a few things that need to be fixed before I take her to Earth and back. They're mostly minor issues."

Reggie asked expectantly, "Will you be taking us with you when you ship out this time?"

Amanda shook her head, "No, I won't. As much as I'd like to have you along I need to focus on the job this trip. It's Othello's maiden voyage and there's a lot for me to deal with.

"The plan is for Othello to grab the stragglers of the 504^th at Demeter. We'll take their pods with us to Earth and back here to Azahar. The 84 pods required by the remaining Marines will hardly be enough to notice.

"This first load is for Azahar even though several well-heeled individuals are livid about being skipped in the rotation. The fact that no one had planned on Othello to even exist at this point in time is of little consolation to those whose projects are behind schedule due to a lack of manpower and ships."

Patricia asked, "How did you like handling such a large ship?"

"I didn't exactly handle her," Amanda replied with a shrug. "I was on the bridge, but Major Stoner was in command. I'm just an observer until the buyoff."

"So, when do you get to play with your new toy?" Reggie asked playfully.

"In about a week if we stay on schedule." A laughing Amanda said as she gave Reggie a playful slap on the arm. "I'll be gone for a little over three months, depending upon how long I get stuck in Earth orbit waiting for a full load. Smaller ships will have priority. The handful of operational Kilo ships are being used as space stations by remaining in orbit and not rotating out until another Kilo arrives to relieve them. Be ready to give me your best workout when I return."

Commander Stan Lee arrived with the crew that was assigned to William Penn barely a week before the ship was ready to deliver. The new ship was just emerging from the replicator and being taken to the fueling dock when Asimov arrived with a mix of transferring Marines, Fleet Auxiliary crews, green colonists, and the residential pod belonging to Commander Denise Williams.

Commander Williams was as pleased to see her family as they were to see her. They didn't wait for the disposition of the pod, but took the transporter as soon as the ship was within range. Williams sent a thank-you note to Admiral Grayson to show her appreciation to him for keeping his word.

Commander Lee checked with Major Stoner before arranging for this habitat pod to be moved to the colony. "Major Stoner, I'm Commander Stan Lee." Lee introduced himself. When Stoner indicated a chair next to his desk Lee continued, "I've been assigned to take command of William Penn. From the specifications it seems to be an overweight colony transport with some adaptable fixtures for bulky external loads. It also has eight lighters and eight Galileo shuttles. What can I expect as far as handling characteristics?"

"Straight to business then, okay," Stoner said with a relaxed smile. "I don't really know. As you've noted, her dimensions are just a bit wider than an Aurora-class transport to give her room for more and larger hangars, but she's considerably heavier than an Aurora. She has a triple arrangement of thrusters, but typical compensators. The extra thrust can only be employed when the ship has exceeded the gross mass of an Aurora. She should handle very much like an Aurora."

Lee nodded his understanding and agreement. "It looked like I could get into trouble if I tried to use full power with empty cargo mounts."

Stoner laughed at the understatement, "You and everyone aboard will be big-time dead if the center thruster isn't disabled by the AI until after the primary thrusters are at full power without stressing the inertial dampeners. She's really no faster than an Aurora even though she could be. The extra power is to be able to keep up with an Aurora at her maximum gross weight."

"What about the extra equipment?" Lee asked. "My crew and I only have experience with Aurora-class transports. I only have two crewmen qualified as small-craft pilots and too small of a staff to make more available. Is my crew expected to operate all of the shuttles and lighters?"

"I don't think so. We need to speak with Commanders Williams or Nguyen about that." Stoner glanced at the clock. "You must have come straight here as soon as the transporter on the Asimov was available. Did you want to keep your family and your crew's families together in our fair city, or give yourselves a bit of space from each other when in port?"

"I'd like my bridge crew to be nearby, but the others might appreciate a bit of space from us when they're off duty." Lee responded. "Why do you ask?"

"Pleasure before business," Stoner said with a smile. He stood and came around his desk. With a wave of his hand he indicated that Lee should join him. At his office door he spoke to his clerk. "Thomas, can you break away for a bit and escort Commander Lee to the welcome center and ask Miss Sasha to locate his bridge crew in Major Cooper's courtyard and the rest of his crew on level three in a courtyard that can accommodate all of them?"

"No problem, sir," Corporal Thomas replied. "Right this way, Commander."

Stoner had looked over the records of Lee and his crew as soon as Lee requested an appointment. He was certain that Major Cooper would enjoy her new neighbors when all of them were in port at the same time.

Even though there was plenty of fuel at Azahar, Major Cooper took Othello out with Stoner as an observer and used the jump engines to move across Azaharat to Ammit and then back after filling the massive ship's fuel cells. There were a thousand unoccupied pods on the ship for ballast as well as for the colonists they were going to retrieve on their maiden mission. Running with full fuel tanks and no pods could be hazardous even for such a large and heavy vessel.

While at Ammit, Cooper spoke with the captain of Valdez, and she was pleased to hear that automated vessels controlled from the orbiting tank farm were starting to collect and process the atmospheric gasses. Valdez would be free to make interstellar trips as soon as the next automated unit was deployed.

Cooper was elated and in a mood to celebrate when she returned to her quarters after such a successful shakedown. She would have one more night on Azahar before loading the supplies and stores required to accommodate 1,000 volunteers and their families. She had been planet-bound far too long.

She greeted her new neighbors who were grilling beef, mutton, and poultry over hot coals in the courtyard's huge stone barbecue pit. The pit was far from a hole in the ground, but it maintained its low-tech origins except for the silent hood of stainless steel that sucked in the abundant smoke and fumes generated by the process and sent them to the colony's recycler.

Commander Lee waved at Cooper with a fork in his hand, "Major Cooper, I presume. Would you and your family care to join us? Dinner will be ready in about ten minutes."

Cooper was taken totally off guard and was predisposed to decline the offer, but the fragrance of the fire and the food that it was cooking assaulted her senses. When a lovely pair of ladies emerged from one of the new residences carrying bowls of steamed vegetables Cooper had a change of heart. "Give me five minutes to get out of this uniform and wash up."

She disappeared through her doorway and called out. "Is anyone else hungry? We've been invited outside to a picnic by our new neighbors."

Reggie and Patricia appeared from the media room. Patricia commented, "I didn't even know we had new neighbors. Who are they?"

Amanda tossed her blouse to Reggie and was struggling out of her slacks as she tried to walk. "Let's get into some casual clothes and find out, shall we?"

Reggie put away the discarded clothing and laid out the items Amanda asked for as she quickly freshened up and applied her casual war paint. Reggie attended her knowing that he could get ready much quicker than either Patricia or Amanda.

The three of them cautiously approached the rowdy crowd gathering around the impromptu buffet. Commander Lee stepped forward to ensure they didn't lose their nerve and disappear back into their pod. "That was a lot faster than most ladies take. Introduce me to your companions, please. No kids?"

"Not yet," Amanda said with confidence. "This is Patti. She'll be having our first in, what, about seven months?"

"Closer to six months, I think," Reggie corrected her.

"And the man with the excellent memory is Reggie," Amanda introduced her male concubine. "You know, it's typically the established residents who welcome the new residents. We had no idea we were getting new neighbors. What can we do to help?"

Stan waved off her offer. It took awhile for him to introduce his crew and their families, but he managed before the food got cold. Stan took Amanda aside after things settled down. "I understand you'll be taking that big mother of a ship in orbit on her maiden voyage. Have you spent much time on colony ships?"

Amanda nodded. "I've logged a few years. Most of the last year has been without the benefit of Darjee assistance."

Stan snorted, "Yeah, I know what you mean. This new ship will be the first one I've commanded without them standing over my shoulder. I'm a bit nervous ... mostly because it's a new type of ship that may not handle the same as the simulators predict."