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Accelerate to seven Gs and plot the Jump."
Navigation looked up in horror. The Alderson Points that began and ended
tramlines between stars were by no means large; standard procedure called for
them to be entered at less than a tenth of a G, since finding them was by no
means an exact science. Diettinger's order could just as easily carry them so
far past the Point that they would be weeks realigning for the Jump. Still,
Navigation did the best he could.
"We'll never catch them, Captain Adderly." Adderly watched the combat holo;
fully half the Sauron combined Fleet had left Tanith orbit, and was bearing
down on Adderly's force. "I don't care if we do, Jimmy. The Fomoria and
Damaris are heading for the Alderson Point. At their speed, they'll likely
miss it.
We, however, will not."
"Sir? We're leaving?"
Adderly's look would have dropped snow on Tanith. "You haven't heard me order
a general retreat, have you? Now get back to your post, mister."
"Status on mines at the point?"
Second Rank checked her screen a second time before answering. "Unchanged,
First Rank."
"Unchanged? The First Fleet didn't renew the seeding left by the Second?"
"First Rank, the Second evidently left no new minefield."
Diettinger was losing his temper; as rare an event as one could hope for. "Get
me the monitor at the
Alderson Point."
Second Rank shook her head in offended awe. "There is no monitor, First Rank;
the Alderson Point has been left unguarded."
"Navigation, status on the Jump plot?"
"Complete, First Rank; comment."
"Speak."
"At seven Gs acceleration, we and the Damaris have less than a fifteen percent
chance of accurately entering the Alderson Point when activating our Jump
Drives."
"Thank you, Navigation."
"Enemy ships, First Rank," Second cut in, stumbling over the words. "First
Rank, I have massive readings of enemy ships at the Alderson point;
there are ..." Her voice faded. Diettinger turned his acceleration
couch enough to see far too many figures marching up her console screen.
"Estimate, Second Rank?"
"Approximately two hundred fifty to three hundred enemy ships, First Rank."
"Signal Morgenthau aboard the Sauron."
The return was agonizingly slow in coming. "What is it, Diettinger?"
"An enemy reinforcement fleet has - "
"We know that, First Rank. We will deal with the threat. All the
required information is being
coordinated now."
"Morgenthau, there are almost three hundred Imperials coming in, and you
didn't even mine the Jump
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Point!"
Incredibly, Morgenthau smiled. "Our combined Fleet is statistically
capable of inflicting break-off losses on twice that number, First Rank.
Mining the Alderson Point would only have left the Imperials more prepared."
"Statistics? You inbred fool, don't you understand? Didn't the
destruction of Leviathan teach you anything? There won't be any break-off!
It took sacrificing the prize shipCanadato win the last one, and it will be
the last one. The Imperials will press the attack beyond all rational military
considerations, they will destroy themselves to destroy the Combined Fleet.
And you've just divided your forces!" Diettinger's rage had him leaning out of
his acceleration couch against seven gravities; cords stood out on his neck,
and the wound beneath his bandages had opened. Blood soaked the dressing,
streaking down his jaw in the artificial gravity to splash audibly against the
floor.
Morgenthau's face went blank. "You have your orders, First Rank. Evade the
enemy fleet and return to Sauron with the Damaris. Sauron out."
Diettinger didn't ask Second Rank for an update on the enemy fleet; the look
on her face told him all he needed to know.
"Alderson Point in two minutes, First Rank." Navigation usually gave the
warning time in seconds, but at seven Gs, minutes seemed more prudent.
"Evasive action, First Rank?"
"None. We'll be at the Point before they recover from the Jump Lag. Status on
Damaris."
"Matching velocity and heading with us."
"Jump coordinates coinciding?"
"Affirmative."
Diettinger sat back. One minute and forty-five seconds to go. "Weapons.
Set wide pattern mine release at thirty seconds to Jump. Disable seek and
maneuver programs on mines and set fuses for simple proximity. Signal Damaris
to match deployment." It was all he could do.
The Fomoria streaked between the Imperial Fleet ships still recovering from
Jump. Her lethal shadow, Damaris, narrowly missed colliding with an
Imperial dreadnaught, but passed through without other incident.
Helpless as the enemy was, the Saurons could do nothing; they were simply
going too fast.
With any luck, we'll miss the Jump Point and have to rejoin the battle,
Diettinger thought.
He had not reckoned with the quality of his navigation officer and engineering
crew.
Navigation counted down the last seconds to the Alderson Point,
pausing at ten seconds with:
"Engage Alderson Drives," and finishing at "zero" with "Jump."
The Fomoria winked out of existence; the Damaris followed.
Diettinger's report on the battle of Tanith would hardly have been credited by
the High Command were it not for the corroborating testimony of Vessel First
Rank Emory of the Damaris and those few survivors who later limped back to the
Homeworld.
Finally facing the loss of the First and Second Fleets, the High Command
recalled all forces to defend
Sauron against "probable imminent attack." Diettinger and Emory were both
promoted to Fleet First
Ranks, despite the fact that their "fleets" at the moment were composed almost
solely of supra-orbital fighters.
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