Located in the southern portion of Crimson Expanse’s main continent was a region called Rampart by the Comensal colonists. There was work in progress before the war to make the region ready for inhabitants. One structure already completed was a hydroelectric dam, nestled in the low mountains of the Rampart Range. It was to provide power to what would eventually become the region’s capital, Copper Medic. Only a few scattered buildings were evident in Copper Medic, chief among them was a plasticrete plant. Surrounding it were piles and rows of rock, gravel and weather treated metal bars. From above it looked like an incomplete maze, surrounding the plant out to a distance of two kilometers. Streets were leveled and already had a plasticrete foundation as well as sewer work and power runs for an initial population of 20,000. Over 500 foundations for buildings have been completed, ready to be built upon. Now native ferns have taken hold of the far more numerous empty lots, giving the yet-to-be city the look of a test farm writ large.
      Up on a hill six kilometers from the plasticrete plant was a Mongoose armored vehicle named Loaded Vice by its crew. Sitting head and shoulders out of the turret’s cupola hatch was 2nd-Class Sergeant Furdex. His gaze wasn’t on the structure but on the horizon. Puffy cumulus clouds drifted on the wind with scattered cirrus above like streaks of white paint on a blue canvas. In the distance he could make out the Rampart Range. Just out of sight was the dam, and reason why the Mongoose platoon, along with two Bear tanks and two companies of infantry in Kangaroo transports, were at Copper Medic.
     The dam had been set to automatic operation by the Comensal just after the Hokum landed their troops. All the microwave power transmission towers were destroyed and two inspections revealed no booby-traps or hidden power taps. Yet the investigations apparently weren’t thorough enough. Set to produce just 2% power the dam had inexplicably went from 2.5% to 10% power at irregular intervals ranging from 5 minutes to over an hour. As the dam didn’t need that much power it was deduced that the colonists had powerlines ran deep in the rock leading away from the hydroelectric station. Ground sensors, deployed for Eagle Eye drones, were dropped all around the dam up to a distance of 20 kilometers. In conjunction with a satellite survey an underground map was slowly built up. Now, months later, the specialists at the Puzzle Palace had deduced several possible termination points of those power runs.
     “Hey, Sarge,” said 3rd-Class Sergeant Pendex, the driver, over the comm system. “Those intel guys have been keeping an eye on Copper Medic for months. If there was any bonehead activity we would know. Those deer herds that have taken residence would have made some fine vittles, given how the boneheads like to hunt.”
     Furdex fixed his gaze on the plasticrete plant, putting a pair of high-power binoculars up to his eyes. “True, and the boneheads have to figure such activity around places like Copper Medic will be monitored. All the deer that have been killed was done so by local predators such as sprint cats. But recall the briefing. Given all the work already done in the city there’s every reason to believe there’s a command bunker or even a weapons factory hidden underground.”
     “So that’s why we’re sending in the Weasels?” This was 1st-Class Vara Licus, the sensors and comm tech. A Weasel was a 2-man, 4-wheel tactical utility vehicle. Three platoons were deployed along with the Mongooses. “Why couldn’t they just deploy crawlerbots from the Eagle Eyes?”
     “They could have, but Piton Corsun wanted them armed just in case.”
     “Yeah, Weasels make for great shot magnets,” said 1st-Class Vara Spuran, the gunner. “Twelve of them might just be enough temptation for the boneheads to attack.”
     Furdex adjusted his binoculars and followed the path of one Weasel as it made its way towards the plasticrete plant. Dust was kicked up by the vehicle as it took a meandering route, sensors and eyesballs taking in and evaluating what was seen. “They’re more expendable than us, Spuran, and we’re more expendable than the Bear tanks. The Weasels can carry a lot more crawlerbots than an Eagle Eye. If there are any bolt holes for boneheads to use those bots will find them.”
     “Weasel 41 has reached the plant,” Licus said over the comm system. “Eagle Eye data stream on your main plot, Sarge.”
     “Thank you.” Furdex lowered his seat back down into the turret. On his main screen he watch as the Weasel made a complete transit around the plasticrete plant, detaching crawlerbots from its sides until none were left. Some of the bots made their way into the plant itself, looking for infrared hotspots and chemical hints in the air that will indicate the presence of Comensal.
     Licus suppressed a yawn. “So what the idea for this operation?”
     “We’re going to deny them power.” Fudex kept an eye on a panel that displayed a comprehensive list of what the crawlerbots detected so far. “At the hydroelectric plant an engineering platoon is hooking up capacitors to the power outputs of each generator and disabling all the safeties manually just before activating them. For 12 seconds the powerlines will be overloaded. Whatever efforts they made to hide themselves the boneheads here can’t very well deal with dozens of circuit breakers going off at once. Our crawlerbots will detect that and give us an idea of just how extensive a set-up they have. It’ll make finding their bolt holes easier too in the long run.”
     Pendex was incredulous. “Long run? Are we going put these guys under siege?”
     “With no power they very well can’t use AC or heaters. And we all know boneheads don’t like the heat and humidity. The weather wizards say that it’ll be downright uncomfortable for the next few weeks. With batteries they have the choice of either making more weapons or suppress the urge to turn on their fans and AC.”
     Spuran looked away from his gunners sights. “Hey, Sarge, I can’t help but think the way the boneheads placed those plasticrete blocks and panels remind me of the urban exercise field back home. There’s no clean sight lines.”
     “Plenty of spots to hide behind, but not from our Eagle Eyes, Spuran.”
     “Not if those piles have cavities in them and push-away blocks. Plasticrete is a fine insulator. Remember that last exercise back home? Why didn’t they send an engineering brigade and level all those piles?”
     “They had no reason to suspect such a thing, I suppose, and it would’ve been a waste of….” Furdex stopped when the video feed displayed Weasel 41 being lifted up three meters into the air by an explosion. It came down on its side in a bone-jarring impact before coming back down its wheels, two of which were shredded into uselessness.
    “Able Amber! Able Amber!” came the call from Piton Corsun, commanding from his Weasel the Hard Boiled. “All Weasels and Mongooses to prep their mine clearance rockets and position themselves upon receipt of my fire control plan. Bears, prepare to fire anti-laser aerosol rockets.”
     “Loaded Vice confirms,” said Furdex while Spuran went to work on the master fire control panel.
     “Datalink reestablished with Weasel 41.” Licus updated Furdex’s master screen. “Both crewmembers are alive but injured. Their turret and 7mm railgun are still functional and on automatic.”
     “Fire control plan received, Sarge,” Spuran broke in. “Transferring fire control authority for the rockets to Hard Boiled.”
     “We got our placement.” Pendex’s voice was eager. “Moving now on the Piton’s order.” Loaded Vice lurched in response to Pendex’s lead foot on the accelerator, breaking through the thin reactive camo plaspaper that surrounded it and sped up to 60 kph. Broken ferns were kicked up by the vehicle’s passage and was replaced by dirt as it reached the basic plasticrete road. Piton Corson’s placement had the Loaded Viceon a direct line to 41, now just 4 kilometers distant.
     The moment after the vehicle stopped in its proper orientation the crew expected Corsun to fire the rockets. Instead they heard the voice of Corsun over the comm system. “Furdex, you’re going to rescue the crew of 41. What forces I have on hand will assist but yours will be the only vehicle going into Copper Medic proper.”
     “Mines won’t be the only thing waiting for us, Piton Corsun,” Furdex said calmly. “Infantry could be hiding under those plasticrete blocks, and I doubt even our Eagle Eyes can get them all before they unload a bopper-gun round into our side or a suicide sapper hugs the front armor.”
     “It gets better, Sergeant. Those circuit breaker pops brought down the thermal shielding the boneheads were using. There’s a collection of underground chambers and tubes connected to that oversized sewer system. Big connections. Divisional has informed us that we can expect a break in any part of that sewer line to allow the egress of IAVs.”
     Furdex suppressed a swallow. In the past two months the Comensal colonists added a new wrinkle to their arsenal: improvised armored vehicles. Unlike technicals, which were pickups with guns in the back, IAVs were built on the chassis of trucks and caterpillar treads and mounted oversized versions of pipe rifles and hard points for bopper-guns – ancient yet effective shaped charged warheads attached to solid-fuel rockets. One such vehicle was just 1.7 meters tall from roof to tread and mounted a 60mm gun in the bow that fired a round every 1.5 seconds. It was also armed with a turreted tri-barrel 30mm gun that fired at a rate that overwhelmed the limited number of point defenses strips, reactive armor blocks and turret-mounted 7mm rail guns on a Mongoose. Two Mongooses were destroyed in the first encounter of what was now called the Assassin IAV. Another vehicle, called the Archer, used the same hull as the Assassin but minus the main gun. It had a two vertical launch missile cells that held high-velocity anti-drone missiles and well as two triple-tubed dual-purpose rockets on the sides of the 30mm gun turret. Two of those shot down 20 Eagle Eye drones and well as destroying four Weasels. Worse, when the wrecks of the enemy vehicles were examined it was found the said vehicles were constructed recently. At least one workshop was producing these IAVs, and given Copper Medic’s access to a power supply…
     “They’re compromised, Sergeant. Every toy in the box will be thrown at you. If you fail no other crew will be sent in. Divisional will have this place pulverized by a kinetic strike to reduce our losses.”
     “Since we’re going in, can I made an addendum to the fire plan?”
     “Yes, but be quick.” Corsun had to wait only a minute before getting Furdex’s response. A critical eye found nothing wrong with the additions and adjusted his plan accordingly. “You’ll go in on my signal. Rockets will be fired in 10 seconds. Five Gods bless, Loaded Vice.”
     “Acknowledged, Hard Boiled.” Furdex checked his helmet strap and made it a little tighter. “Pendex, the anti-laser aerosol coverage is going to be thick, and we don’t have time to drive by braille.”
     “I know the route.” Pendex’s forward pair of hands were firm on the butterfly steering grips. “I know the route.”

---

The Solid State system was still in a state of flux when it came to ownership. Axis forces had entered from the BRB-1 warp point and had scouted around. They found the Solid State/Fallowed Field warp point guarded by six bases and two ships. System Admiral Hensen, commanding Star Force 2, 2nd Advance Fleet, was given several tasks to do with the force given to him. To facilitate a more rapid advance there were no battleships or dreadnaughts in SF2. Speed, especially strategic speed, was necessary to reclaim Axis systems in the Nu’Chut sector. Along with cutting off Hokum lines of communication and supplies in the myriad of interconnected systems it was Hensen’s task to break into the Fallowed Field system to liberate the Axis colonies therein and take control of the Fallowed Field/Tire Iron warp point. Freighters filled with prefabricated base components were on hand to fortify that warp point.
     It was a problem fit for the Economy of Force class Hensen took back in the academy. He had no idea how many of the six Hokum bases were fighter platforms, so he elected to conduct a bombardment with six capital missile-armed battlecruisers. One at a time a base would be singled out and destroyed. If a cruiser had its armor breached it would be pulled out of the line and sent to a repair ship. With 42 squadrons of Hatchet fighters embarked on the assigned carriers to provide protection there was every reasonable expectation of success.
     As the task group closed in over the next several days the scout assigned to keep the bases under surveillance noticed several things. First was that a tug emerged from the warp point and pulled all six bases atop of it. Since the Solid State end of the point was closed it would’ve made sense to consolidate one’s forces, but all six were together to begin with, thus preserving their anonymity. There was tractor beam work as well as the Hokum appeared to rearrange their mine and buoy parks, or simply picking up what was now considered excess defenses and moving them to the Fallowed Field side. Both CA-hulled ships transited to Fallowed Field. As Redwire was reclaimed the only way the bases were kept in supply was from Fallowed Field, yet aside from the tug and the pair of retiring ships there was only sporadic courier drone traffic observed. With the time given to them the Hokum may have a force waiting in Fallowed Field. Considering the Hokum’s other commitments in the Nu’Chut sector, however, it couldn’t be much of a force.
     From the auxiliary control room on a Firestorm BCA Hensen had the six missile ships close to within 10 light-seconds range of the warp point and engage ECM and EM.  Some time earlier three pinnaces were launched from three bases, so Hensen chose one of these bases as the first to be attacked. Two volleys went unanswered, scoring 16 hits with laser-warhead SBMs. One of the pinnaces transited to Fallowed Field, putting Hensen on alert for when that happened three of the bases fired their first volley.  While only three of the SBMs hit one of the Firestorms the laser damage done was twice that of Hensen’s own. 29 laser hits on the base still yield no armor breaches while the bases’ second salvo broke the armor of the selected Firestorm and wrecked both holds and the shuttlebay.
     Hensen had the missile ships move out of range and for a good reason. During the fourth salvo six Hokum ships emerged from the warp point – all them small carriers. They launched 18 squadrons of fighters, and combined with 30 squadrons from the three other bases he was at a disadvantage. He had the carriers sitting 3 light-seconds behind him, three fleet and six light, launch their Hatchets. All ships went to full speed with the six assigned escort DDs departing from the carriers and attaching themselves to the missile ships. It was a stern chase and when the range closed to 1.25 LS the Hatchets attacked. With active jammers on two of the escort destroyers the more numerous Spear fighters lost 184 of their number while 88 out of 252 Hatchets were splashed. FRAMs and gunpacks were used on both sides but the Hokum jettisoned their remaining ordnance and turned tail for the bases.
     Sensing an opportunity Hensen has his remaining Hatchets, each still armed with a FRAM and gun pack, to close on the warp point and destroy the missile bases. With said bases destroyed or crippled it would make completing the siege operation that much quicker. The Spears wouldn’t have time to rearm by the time the Hatchets arrived; indeed, the six carriers returned from Fallowed Field and took 36 Spears back with them, leaving just 68 rearming on the bases. All of this encouraged Hensen even further.
     The Hokum were not through. Seeing the Axis commit their ravaged Hatchet squadrons to attack the bases the Hokum commander sent another pinnace to Fallowed Field. The enemy was facing a deadline due to his commitment to attack, so when the Hatchets were 2.25 LS out they saw six ships emerge from the warp point. Four of them were light carriers and two were light cruisers. All were of Terpla’n construction. The quartet of Larikems launched 12 squadrons of Shark fighters and transited back to Fallowed Field. As for the two cruisers they were anti-fighter escorts, activating their jammers to ruin whatever fire control coordination the Hatchets had left. Twelve armed pinnaces were launched from the bases as well, but the Axis pilots were committed to their orders. Of the 164 Hatchets that went in only 49 raced away, dropping their gun packs to achieve that extra kernel of speed. In their wake they left two destroyed missile bases and the third with superficial shield damage.
     Hensen kept 48 Hatchets and two light carriers with him, sending the rest of the carriers along with the damaged Firestorm to the support group waiting at the Solid State/BRB-1 warp point. He had his five missile cruisers move in once again to engage the sole missile base at a range of 10 LS. Just out of range were six destroyers and six destroyer escorts. The Terpla’n escort cruisers had transited out but the 72 Shark fighters remained. Along with the 68 Spears on the bases Hensen was almost outnumbered 3-to-1 in fighters. But as it was shown many times before the side with datalink jammers invariably came out on top. So it was the missile cruisers began their bombardment. At no time did the fighters intervene, though before it succumbed the base almost denuded two cruisers of their armor. Again Hensen sent both damaged ships to the support group. From his perspective it appeared totally plausible to capture the three fighter bases with boarding parties. He mulled the idea of recalling three Stalwart cruisers from Ampere and using their force beams to batter down the shields of one base while missile fire would occupy the point defense systems of the other two when the shuttles made their run.
     In this instance prudence prevailed. Hensen withdrew, leaving the scout to keep tabs on the bases. He couldn’t perform SAR operations to retrieve those pilots that happened to eject due to being in such close proximity to the fighter bases as even a partially loaded fighter could catch up and destroy any shuttle and cutter. His missile cruisers were loaded exclusively with laser-tipped SBMs and he had nowhere near enough salvos remaining to destroy one fighter base even at optimal firing range. In less than a month the mobile yards in his support group would uncrate and prep enough fighters to fill his empty fighter bays and there were additional reinforcements enroute in any event. The appearance of Commonwealth ships was a new factor to consider, but if the enemy had a more substantial mobile force in Fallowed Field then he would have used it in this battle. Six weeks from now, barring the unexpected, the way into Fallowed Field will be opened.
     As for the Hokum defenders they knew that the Axis would’ve had a decisive victory had they been stronger. Moreover this Axis commander didn’t act recklessly to decide the battle here and now. Fallowed Field wasn’t going anywhere, much less the trio of fighter bases. With at least a month to regroup the Hokum could easily replenish their flightgroups as the main elements of the Expeditionary Fleet’s support group was in Fallowed Field.  Nine warships undergoing refit there, like the six small carriers, will be available in a month’s time as well.  Additionally the assault elements of the Expeditionary Fleet, sans carriers, were enroute and arrive in three weeks. The Terpla’n convoy in the system, containing troopships and transports, had landed their passengers on FF-A-3 in a region far removed from the Axis colonial population of 16,000. Two of the big troopships were undergoing refit over that planet to enhance their combat capabilities. It may have the appearance of wasting resources but anything to enhance the defenses was considered worthwhile.
     A SAR operation was conducted, resulted in the recovery of 51 pilots (including 2 from the Axis). The scout was kept at bay by three squadrons of Spears that escorted the pinnaces and shuttles. From that point on two squadrons were kept in space at all times, harassing the scout and forcing it out of definitive scanner range of the warp point. In the days that followed a comprehensive sweep by the other fighters destroyed six scanner buoys that ranged as far as two light-minutes from the warp point. That the Axis didn’t attempt to deploy additional scanner buoys, either by ship or shuttle, proved they didn’t feel the need to do so or that they were required elsewhere. Giving to what was happening elsewhere the Hokum gave credence to the latter. With firm resolve the long watch began again.

---

The additions to the Axis spaceport on Elotoshani Prime were complete. Over the next few days construction equipment and piles of materials were picked up and taken to other sites at the Comensal colonial enclave. Watching all of this was Trodanscu Vat. He had seen the work in progress for the past several months and had gotten an even better view for the past few weeks thanks to his new ghibli suit. A fast growing species of native bush has found fertile purchase in the ground stirred up by the Comensal construction around the spaceport. Along with a native grass that grew to a height of one meter (the seeds of which were spread by Trodanscu and fellow confederates) allowed the former wildlife ranger to move in much closer.
     Having studied wildlife in a similar fashion for decades the old Eloto was prepared to spend days on end in a forward position and with minimal movement. He only consumed nuetriant-laced water and had a relief system built into his suit. The disturbed soil attracted insects which in turn brought in birds, making the Comensal ground sensors give plenty of false positive readings. The same thing happens at night when small rodents come out to forage for worms and greens. So when it came time to leave Trodanscu could effect his exit with confidence that he wouldn’t be detected.
     Trodanscu was currently behind a bush that had a field of view of the western side of the spaceport. There was activity there that by all rights shouldn’t be happening, all things considered. It was venting port for waste heat and had been there since the spaceport was originally built. The old Eloto smiled as he recognized a senior Comensal foreman, looking constipated as usual and venting his spleen to a junior worker. If it wasn’t pilings that had collapsed after a rainstorm or plasticrete poured incorrectly then the foreman would’ve blamed his gas on just watching someone else eat. Two workmen came out of the three meter wide vent, carrying a two-meter tall heavy duty hatch. From what he could see Trodanscu noticed that the hatch had an open service panel where the usual data pad was located. About five minutes of tinkering the foreman, after cursing the hatch for not obeying his will, had the workmen go to a nearby truck and fetch a new hatch.
     Trodanscu’s interest was heightened when saw that the new hatch had no data pad on it, just an old-fashion handle. To be sure an equally old-fashion lock would be placed on that hatch if only for procedure’s sake. With data from the resistance he knew of several ways to infiltrate the spaceport for his one-way mission. Now it appeared that one route was made easier all due to an impatient…
     The sound of footfalls made the old Eloto even more frozen on the spot as he lowered the binoculars ever so carefully. From behind, perhaps no more than four meters, were two Comensal. They were talking that since the construction was over it was time to redo the landscaping around the spaceport. A belt two kilometers wide was to be flattened and planted with a grass species that didn’t grow taller than 8 centimeters. No doubt a security measure to go along with the unmarked minefields, camouflaged bunkers and pop-up weapon mounts. But it didn’t stop there, for one of the boneheads said it would add a visual appeal to the complex if vast patches of flowers were planted as well. This self-opinioned florist went on to regal his companion on how the governor of the colony was a flower aficionado as well, for the gardens at the governor’s mansion were practically works of art.
     Listening to boneheads talk about flowers wasn’t the most surreal thing Trodanscu experienced, but what followed next certainly was. More footfalls were made, and this time the Eloto sensed that one bonehead was right behind him. His mind ached on the implications of going for his knife and killing both Comensal right there or then, trusting his arthritic joints would behave themselves this one time. Even if successful the chances of escape were practically nil for it was broad daylight and the overwhelming number of security personnel, not to mention surveillance drones, on hand. After a moment there was the sound of a zipper followed by the sensation of rain falling on the back of his ghibli suit, but it wasn’t rain. The Comensal was answering the call of nature and relieving himself right there and then. Of the indignities the boneheads had inflicted on the Elotoshani over the years, from casual insults to vandalism of cultural heritage to institutional murder this was perhaps the most visceral example of the desecration and contempt the Comensal had of everyone else in the universe. It was only Trodanscu’s commitment to the cause that kept his rage, as well as his body, paralyzed.
     Once done the Comensal joined his companion and started talking again, walking away towards an access road leading to the spaceport. The Eloto listened until they were out of earshot, and waited for nightfall. He was glad it was a night of a new moon so as to make his withdraw all the more unseen.

---

While Hensen dealt with the Hokum bases in Solid State another operation was underway at the Ampere system. At the warp point that lead to what the Hokum called system Com-14 the defenses in the form of minefield shells and weapon buoy parks were in place. A task group waited for the pinnace probes to reveal what was waiting for them in Com-14. The first pinnace went in and came back. It reported that there were no ships or bases in the immediate vicinity as well as buoys. Such findings proved nothing for a regular pinnace couldn’t detect mines unless it was already among them and buoys couldn’t be seen no further than one-quarter of a light second. So, the commander of the task group sent in a Dispersion escort. Two pinnaces came along just in case there were buoys further out.
     After transit the Dispersion found a mine shell in the immediate vicinity of the warp point. Tactical scanners also found a ring of buoy parks 1.25 LS out and a solitary type-1 base 8 LS out. There was a total of 90 buoys, 3 per park, and the base armed and fired 18 of them. 10 hit, scouring off the lion’s share of the armor. Having seen what it came to see the ship transited out, leaving the pinnaces to begin the process of destroying the remaining buoys.
     One pinnace stayed on the warp point while the other ventured out, escaping destruction in the first mine shell. Then it encountered a far thinner, but still dangerous, shell. A third and a fourth shell were entered and passed though without incident. Finally reaching one buoy park at point blank range the pinnace dodged a fifth mine. It blasted two of the three buoys and when it came to the third the pinnace was having the hardest of luck. Each miss increased the odds of the pinnace of being nailed by a mine but on the eight try it finally succeeded. Seeing that the ring of buoy parks would be equally protected the pinnace moved to 1.5 LS distance and engage the next park in line. There, too, was another shell of mines. Like the previous four it contained just one pattern in this particular patch, but fifty individual mines meant fifty opportunities to kill. Only one buoy was killed before a mine immolated the pinnace in a nuclear fireball. The other pinnace transited out to report this news.
     Weighing his options the commander elected not to use his minesweepers at this point to absorb the remaining buoys. He sent instead eleven pinnaces. One at a time the crews ventured into the minefields, trusting in Providence to see them through this hazardous mission. Two pinnaces were destroyed even before they had to use their point defense mounts while another managed to destroy 10 buoys before it finally had its ticket punched. When the last pinnace transited back to Ampere it reported that only 38 buoys were left. Another Dispersion was sent in and, as expected, those remaining buoys fired their bomb-pumped lasers at it, totally destroying it. The commander was later chastised by Hensen for the frivolous use of the pinnaces to take out the buoys, especially after knowing the extent of the minefields, thin as they were. Sending in a small ship with a minimal crew made far more sense in material expended for results gained.
     The Hokum only had that one base, which had self-destructed after the buoys fired with the crew fleeing to Com-14’s only other warp point. Scouts followed as a matter of course and whatever com and scanner buoys the Hokum had in the system were left to be found by the follow-up Pickets. Once the warp point to Com-7 was secured those buoys would fail due to a lack of maintenance if not found and destroyed beforehand. The shuttle rendezvoused with a small ship which in turn transited out. Minelayers came forward and fortified the warp point. Once done the Axis sent in the next probe and began the process anew.


Chapter 6.25

From overhead the maze of piled up rows of rock, plasticrete blocks, gravel and metal bars that surrounded the plasticrete plant in Copper Medic could be mistaken for an abstract piece of artwork. That illusion was broken as the mine-clearance rockets from Hokum Bear tanks and Mongoose armored vehicles roared from their launching rails. At a predetermined point those rockets trailed ribbons comprised of an explosive compound that detonated two meters about the plasticrete-covered roads, producing an overpressure that triggered the pressure sensitive detonators of those mines buried underneath. The explosions left the roads cratered, but that didn’t matter to Pendex, driver of the Mongoose called Loaded Vice. Long hours of drill on such ruined roads made traversing them second nature – one less thing to distract him from the task at hand.
     Furdex, Vice’s commander, kept an eye on a monitor while another took in the feed from the Mongoose Hard Boiled. So far there was no response from the Comensal, reinforcing Furdux’s suspicion that whatever response was in store was going to wait after the Weasel crew was recovered. A final delivery of precision-guided mine clearance ordnance, fired from orbiting Eagle Eye drones, exploded around the Weasel, detonating a few more mines. There was no indication of enemy action, which just made Furdux all that anxious. Just as Loaded Vice entered the central area Furdux spoke into his mic. “Pendex,” he barked, “T-Stop next to them!”
     “Confirmed!” Pendex had both front hands on the steering grips as his back left hand gripped the emergency hand brake. He pulled it and turned to the left, sweating as there was a better than half a chance of the vehicle flipping over onto its side. The maneuver was rarely practiced in the peacetime Hokum army for exactly that reason, and far as Pendex knew this was the first time it was tried in this war. Brakes and tires squealed hideously, but the vehicle performed as expected, coming to a stop parallel to the Weasel with a scant meter to spare.
     “Licus, open the belly hatch and get them in here!”
     “Damn straight!” The sensors and comm tech undid her seat webbing and got on the hull floor, manually lifting the hatch. Both Weasel crewmembers had gotten out of their stricken vehicle and crawled under the Vice. They had to be pulled up into the cramped interior for their legs were broken in the mine blast.
     On his monitor Furdex saw several drones knocked out by proximity-fused bopper gun rounds. They were fired by Comensal that had hidden themselves in the low hills outside of Copper Medic. Those drones not hit had zoomed in, relaying images of the attackers picking up more bopper guns and taking aim on fresh targets. Low orbit satellites provided the necessary backup for visuals, but were unable to provide fire support so long as any Hokum were within Copper Medic proper. However, that didn’t apply to outside to the yet-to-be-built city. Kinetic projectiles, fired from orbit, impacted the firing sites. What Comensal that were there were now dead or were incapacitated.
     A fresh buzzer informed Furdex of a new problem. As expected there were multiple breaches in the roads around the plasticrete plant and even some from the ends of gravel piles. Comensal vehicles began to surface, the first being Archers. Their 30mm gun turrets and vertical launch cells belched rounds and missiles against the drones still over Copper Medic. Immediate after them came Technicals – pickups and other work utility vehicles with platforms on their backs equipped with pipe guns, rockets, or multiple bopper guns on rotating mounts. Two were destroyed by missiles fired from drones that escaped the initial anti-air salvos. But further air support was about to become problematic.
     There were multiple small explosions throughout Copper Medic. Now uncovered almost one hundred smudge pots began belching black smoke. The Comensal ensured that coverage was complete, regardless of wind direction, and the smoke was hot and was laced with metallic particles, confounding infrared sensors, lasers and radio signals. However, that coverage required minutes, and Furdex barked his orders. Loaded Vice lurched forward, eliciting yelps of pain from the two wounded Weasel crewmembers.
     Pendex drove down a lane flanked by pasticrete blocks and beams. It wasn’t the same route that the Vice took going into Copper Medic in case the Comensal were ready for that possibility. Instead a final salvo of mine-clearance rockets from the supporting Bears, Mongooses and Weasels exploded over several routes, though coverage would be incomplete in any event. Two Technicals were caught in the blasts and exploded as their bopper gun and pipe gun rounds ignited. One Technical lurched over a berm of metal beams right in front of the Vice only to be perforated by 30mm rail gun rounds from one of the distant supporting Mongooses. The improvised vehicle swerved and turned onto its side, letting Spuran the gunner to plant a 50mm mortar round into its open bed, wrecking the bopper guns it had on a pedestal mount and killing the operator.
     “Seismics!” Licus barked. “Mutliple underground sources ahead of us! Ground breaching imminent!”
     Furdex watched as his monitor bloomed with five fresh contact markers. What the few drones left and sat-imaging could infer was that two more technicals, an Assassin or Archer, and two mobiles had emerged. A mobile was a tracked armored vehicle, either a personnel carrier or engineering vehicle. If the former then it would have a pop-up laser turret, or if the latter it would be improvised weapons. Pendex had the same feed Furdex got and turned down another route to minimize contact with the new vehicles. One technical was obliterated as a 90mm explosive shell fired from a Bear made contact, but for the rest the obscuring smoke made accurate distant shooting impossible.
     Only the turret of the Loaded Vice was visible above the lanes, as was the turret of closest mobile. It fired its infrared-tuned laser at the Vice, destroying the two-cell missile pack on the left side. Instead of rotating the turret and exposing the 30mm gun to possible damage Spuran replied with the 7mm railgun. The mobile’s turret was perforated and rendered useless. That vehicle sped up, and in Pendex’s mind he saw it as attempt to get ahead and block the Vice or perhaps even ram it. He turned and went down another lane and in doing so went to a place that wasn’t treated to anti-mine clearance. For that a mine exploded under the Vice, damaging the left-center tire.
     Taunting fate an Assassin IFV went up a plasticrete pile and took a bead on the Hokum vehicle. Its first shot glanced off Vice’s turret. A second shot missed the 30mm gun and blew the wrecked left side missile pack clean off. For that Spuran fired a three second burst set at maximum power. Many of the rounds ricocheted off the Assassin’s sloped front, but one hit the gun barrel itself just as the Comensal gunner fired his third round. The resulting explosion rendered the barrel into a shattered nub. Two more rounds penned the lower plate, killing or injuring the driver for the vehicle lurched forward and sloped down to the ground, letting Spuran fire off a two-second burst. With its roof penetrated multiple times there was something that reacted very badly inside for an explosion occurred followed by a gout of flame issuing from the 30mm tribarrel turret.
     The two enemy technicals had also went on top of the piles to get a shot at the Vice while said vehicle engaged the Assassin. One technical had a 15mm quadbarrel pipe gun, firing hundreds of shells into Vice’s right side. The 7mm gun reacted instantly, firing a stream of shells into the flightpath. Even with point-defense strips enough of those shells got through, destroying or causing the reactive armor boxes to detonate, leaving the whole right side vulnerable to bopper gun rounds.
     Seeing that the other technical had line of sight Pendex swerved down another lane to cover the exposed right. This however brought the Vice head to head with the other mobile, some 50 meters in front. With Spuran engaged with the technicals the 7mm and 30mm guns couldn’t be brought to bear in time. From reflex born from training Pendex engaged the controls for the front mounted 50mm mortar with his back pair of hands. The laser on the mobile fired, scouring and melting the explosive armor blocks on the bow and knocking out both armored headlights and a point-defense strip. In turn the mortar rounds that hit were the few anti-vehicle type carried on the Vice. Shaped-charged explosives sent molten copper into the mobile’s interior, finding and exploding the capacitor for the laser. The mobile came to an abrupt halt as smoke poured from the top. What satisfaction Pendex felt was instantly dismissed as another mine damaged both front tires, with the left front one getting the worst of it.
     Both technicals were destroyed by ‘spray and pray’ fire from the distant supporting Mongooses. That left the mobile with the wrecked turret, somewhere in the increasingly dense smoke. “Pendex, get us back on the cleared path!”, Furdex barked as he tried to make sense what his platoon leader was saying over the radio link. “Hard Boiled is saying Bear 2 is relocating based on new seismic readings. Licus, what you have?”
     “Crawlerbots are picking up a new source, Sarge. It’s different from the others but the computer can’t exactly nail it down.”
     “Oh, damn, it’s him again!” Spuran yelped even as he kept his face in the viewfinder. “The mobile with the wrecked turret is coming up behind us! Traversing!”
     Switching the view on his monitor Furdex saw the muddy image of the tracked APC racing up from behind as the Vice made its turn. He recalled a time back in his youth when a truck lost control on an icy street going downhill, smashing several cars in the process. It was same sick sense of fascination of watching unavoidable tragedy that came up at that moment. “More speed, Pendex!”
     “Tell that to the tires, Sarge! There’s not that much left to grab ground.”
     Spuran had the turret turned to the back and the 30mm railgun depressed as far as it could. A stream of shells ripped through the top half of the mobile but clearly didn’t hit the driver or powerplant for the vehicle rammed right into the back of the Vice and exploded. The Hokum vehicle bucked forward and upward, coming back down hard and not doing any favors for its damaged tires. Just then a trio of Comensal appeared in front of the Vice, wielding bopper guns and drawing a bead on the damaged vehicle. Pendex still has back right hand on the control for the 50mm mortar. The computer had already cycled in an anti-personnel round and Pendex fired, nailing the trio and thanking the five gods for their favor.
     “Sarge, the computer has identified the sound! It’s a ground-effect tank!” Licus updated Furdex’s monitor. “A breach just opened up in the lane to our right!”
      “Crap! Pendex, back us up and take the first left!”
     “Tires are barely grabbing ground, Sarge! It’ll be close!”
      The Axis tank had reached the surface, partially shrouded in smoke but its gun barrel (instead of the usual laser emitter) was all too clear for Spuran. Vice’s turret, still visible above the row of plasticrete blocks, had just begun to turn when the tank fired. Whether by luck or by design the shell tore off half the barrel of the 30mm railgun, the shock also warping the mounting in the turret itself. For Spuran it was like having one’s favorite arm chopped off, but he switched to the missile pack on the turret’s right side. With an optical lock he let loose with one missile only to see it shredded by the tank’s point defense strips.
    “Five Hells! Behind us!” Pendex yelled. He had switched to rear view on a monitor as the other sensors on the back of the Vice had been knocked out. It was the mobile he thought he killed with the mortar rounds. With smoke still pouring from the roof the mobile with a clearly alive driver had raced down the lanes and was now blocking the path.
     Furdex sweated hard. With radio and laser link communications still being erratic he had no way of knowing if Hard Boiled or any other vehicle had a bead on the tank. “Ram and push him out of the way!” That may have been the sound of desperation, given the state of Loaded Vice’s tires and suspension, but it was the only option given the circumstances. With a foot made of lead Pendex pressed the accelerator to the firewall. The Vice move backwards and collided with the mobile. The shock of the impact was too much for the Comensal driver for the mobile’s treads were stilled. Despite the damage there was progress, the mobile being pushed back for the brakes weren’t applied, but it wasn’t going to be enough.
     Spuran lined up his shot for his remaining missile, going for an optical lock on the gun barrel of the Comensal tank. He hoped he hadn’t offended the five gods recently as the only chance was to damage the 140mm gun so that it wouldn’t fire at them. It was even more urgent for the turret had rotated to face the one on the Vice, and any hit would kill Spuran and Furdex…
     There was a bright flash on the left side of the tank’s turret. An instant later there was an explosion that lifted that turret five meters into the air, coming back down hard enough to break the armored skirts of the tank’s lift effect chamber. It was a round fired from Bear 2, and the 90mm shell had ricocheted into the hull, hitting an ammo bin. Pendex still had his foot on the accelerator, and once the mobile was pushed clear the Loaded Vice went down another lane, leaving behind the tank still burning and cooking off its stored shells. For good measure Spuran fired the 7mm railgun into the hulk of the mobile for a full six seconds.
     “Hard Boiled to Loaded Vice,” came the voice of platoon leader Piton Corsun over Furdex’s headset. “Since you’re moving I’ll take that as a sign you’re still alive. Follow the route I’m sending and head to the evac site. A shuttle will take you back to Camp Lazlo.”
     “Loaded Vice to Hard Boiled, acknowledged.”
     Pendex coaxed the cripple vehicle down the lanes while Spuran kept ready at the controls for the 7mm. There were a few more attempts by clumps of Comensal to engage the Vice but the smoke from the smudge pots hindered them just as badly as it did for Spuran. Licus engaged a sonic defense, broadcasting from mini speakers along the Vice’s hull a sound at a particular frequency that irritated Comensal hearing to such an extent that they became poor shots. Once clear of the area Pendex was on hard surface roads and went as fast as the vehicle allowed him. The Bears had been firing HE rounds behind the Vice to further discourage the defenders from following.
     Six kilometers away a shuttle made a hot landing, deploying its loading ramp just as Pendex made it to the landing site. The shuttle lifted just as the security clamps engaged the Vice, the ramp retracted and hatch secured as the craft headed for the upper atmosphere. Medics pulled the two Weasel crewmembers followed by the crew. Pendex was surprised to find all of his fingers of his four hands were stiff and curved to match the controls they had be gripped too. Spuran had to put on sunglasses for his eyes blinked excessively in even the dim lighting of shuttle cabin. All were dehydrated and shook from cold for the extended firing of the rail guns had overwhelmed the environmental system of the vehicle. They wrapped themselves in blankets even as they went through every bottle of water offered to them.
    An hour later the shuttle landed at Camp Lazlo. Furdex refused to have the waiting motor pool gang tow the Loaded Vice to the repair bay. Instead the crew got back in and drove it themselves at a slow pace. Furdex and Spuran had raised their seats so that their heads were poking above their respective hatches in the turret. Pendex has his driver’s hatch open and seat raised so that he could see the road ahead without using video screens. Licus sat on the hull behind Pendex’s hatch, acting as a second set of eyes. Having heard what happened via the grape vine soldiers had lined up along the route. There was no hooting or cheering from these onlookers. Instead they touched the battle-scared hull of the Loaded Vice as it went by. It was a gesture rooted in ancient Hokum military history when cavalry mounts were patted by infantry after a victory.
    Loaded Vice pulled into its assigned spot in the repair bay, greeted by the chief mechanic assigned to it. The grizzled veteran walked around the vehicle, placing chocks around each tire, and gauged the damage confronting him. Then he looked up at Furdex. “Sargent,” he said, “I hope you’ve at least exchanged insurance information.”


Chapter 6.50

In the auxiliary control room of the missile battlecruiser that served as his flagship System Admiral Hensen viewed a flat projected map of warp lines, radiating out of the icon of the Solid State system, reflecting on the changes wrought by the Terpla’n abominations a month earlier. The fleet sent to destroy the Hamthen homeworld failed to breach the warp point defenses and in turn was destroyed by the abominations’ overwhelming counterattack. Worse yet, the abomination fleet in Silvershoe staged a successful assault into the Metalstorm system two days after that, and subsequently went on lay siege to the Metalstorm/Output warp point. Two convoys were destroyed in Metalstorm, along with the communication buoy chain. Now that it had been a month the massive Abom fleet from Hamthem was undoubtedly in Metalstorm by now, having the choice of either going on to evict Axis force between Citadel and Circuit Run or taking the shorter route through Forger’s Gate to assault Bedrock proper.
      Upon learning of the loss of Metalstorm a month ago Hensen recalled the raiding force that he had dispatched under Star Admiral Norsen. Thankfully Norsen had only advanced as far as Com-11. Taking the only route available to him, Norsen should arrive back in Solid State in two weeks. Only one raiding element was left behind in Com-11 with enough supplies to last 18 months. In the meantime Hensen elected to stay on the defensive In Solid State. The warp point leading to Redwire was heavily mined and ringed with buoys along with three fighter and three missiles bases, 3 of new type 3 fighter bases and 3 of the new type 4 missile platforms, recently reassembled from the support flotilla. Likewise, the Ampere/Com-14 and Ampere/Redwire warp points were similarly defended.
      Hensen enlarged the display and centered it on the Solid State/Fallowed Field warp point icon. He glared at the readout of the Abom Hokum defenses with the intensity of an engineer about to blow up a river ice jam. Just three fighter bases, along with mines and buoys ringed the warp point, and whatever number of ships were on the far side, barred his way. If it was up to him, Hensen would’ve used the raiding force last month to destroy the Hokum defenses and enter Fallow Field system proper and liberate the three colonized planets and assorted moons. The AFC, however, had its own plan, making the reacquiring of Hamthen systems the priority instead of starving out the abom fleets in Citadel (and beyond) and Bulwark. As for the oversized raiding force, it was meant to tie down Hokum forces and deny them choices, especially after the AFC failed to retake the Cain system months earlier.
      Further brooding on the subject just convinced Hensen that taking out the abom Hokum should’ve been the priority instead of reconquering Hamthen space. Hell, even with weak forces the Hokum had made inroads into Comensal space that in all rights shouldn’t happen in the first place. Resisting the urge to move now, even with the new spinal force beam units, Hensen wanted to make a decisive attack in strength. More importantly, a successful break-in to Fallowed Field and liberation of said system would keep his forces in supply for quite some time. It would’ve added pressure on the Hokum fleet guarding the Tire Iron/Bedrock warp point. However, this meant the Blood Pride system, three transit out, would be left on its own, its population and infrastructure unable to support Hensen’s forces in a meaningful way. At the very least they can continue to mine and buoy their warp point for the foreseeable future.
      With eyes now fixed on a wall-mounted chronometer Hensen consoled himself that he had to wait just two more weeks. Two weeks.

---

It was one week after the Terpla’ns and their allies had crushed the Axis fleet sent to reconquer Hamthen space. On Hokum Prime Emperor Valsur received Conovus, the Imperator of the Navy, and Renlus, Minister of the Interior, at his mansion. It was in Valsur’s office, preferring in this instance to hold the meeting in a private setting instead of the Palace of Government or on the massive orbital station. Folding both pairs of hands on the ancient desk in front of him, Valsur looked to Renlus. “So, does the Diplomatic Corps and the Bureau of Signals concur?” The Bureau of Signals was the Hokum’s state intelligence department, combining all forms of intelligence gathering from both civilian and military sources under one roof. Previously, it was concerned with organized crime within the Imperium. But contact with the Republic and then the Axis broaden its scope of responsibilities.
      Renlus nodded.  “They do, Sire. The Republic has launched a massive counter offensive from the Hamthen system after dealing a decisive defeat to the Axis. Our naval attaché has seen and boarded several captured Axis ships in Republic possession. Additionally, Signals has determined from the message traffic via the tenuous, roundabout link from Republic occupied Axis space to our own occupied systems that a fleet has successively broke into the Metalstorm system via Silvershoe.”
      Conovus stepped in. “With that done, Sire, whatever Axis forces are in Solid State, Com-11 and Blood Pride will be cut off. Given the transit time involved the Republic forces from Hamthen will be entering Metalstorm in three weeks. Their first priority will be to blockade the Metalstorm/Output warp point. No doubt the fleet from Silvershoe has already done this.”
      “How will this affect the disposition of the now isolated Axis forces?” Valsur said with neutrality towards the Imperator of the Navy.
      Conovus wasn’t deceived by Valsur’s tone and replied with unflinching conviction. “The raiding force that has entered Com-11 can either continue its advance into what are essentially worthless systems. Cain, Whel, Doorstop, Com-3, 4, 5, 8, 9, and Stonewash have been steadily mined throughout the war. Given the speed involved there have been no battleships and dreadnaughts observed, either via direct reconnaissance or based on drive field strengths, thanks in no small part from our use of fighter scanner packs from the CVE element we sent to Com-11. The more distance they cover will only put them that much further away from the only reasonable objective the Axis have in that part of the sector. With that said, I’m disposed to think the raiding force will fall back to Solid State.”
      “Which is linked to Fallowed Field,” Valsur added. “Renlus, is it the opinion of Signals that should this raiding force, combined with all other known Axis forces, mount a successful assault into Fallowed Field?”
       “It is, Sire. That they haven’t finished off the three fighter bases at the Solid State/Fallowed Field warp point tells us that the bulk of supply, as well as ships, is with this raiding force. With our own fleets focused in three separate points of contact we can’t weaken them in case the Axis decides to mount another offensive in the near future.”
      “Oh, what is the reasoning behind that assertion?”
      The non-committal tone from Valsur didn’t fool Renlus either. “Sire, given their actions to date, along with their own historical record, the AFC will want to secure a measurable victory to salve the pain of defeat at Hamthen. Even isolated with no assurance of reestablishing contact with the rest of their forces for months, if not years, those units at Solid State will attempt to enter Fallowed Field and taken on those supplies the colonist have been stockpiling, despite our best efforts of locating them from orbit and using precise kinetic strikes. It is estimated that, at a minimum, each of the three planets will have enough to keep the combined known forces operational for two months.”
      “I concur, Sire,” said Conovus. “Even with the assistance of those Republic ships that retreated from Bedrock, and the minefields, a successful break-in is likely. I dare not remove any more ships from Tire Iron, Cain and Bandstand. However, there is an option. Currently all assault ships and pinnace tenders are in the Cain system for the purpose of refitting. I propose we take all of those ships not currently undergoing refit and move them into the Ampere system and take station at the Ampere/Com-14 warp point.”
      “Along with mine patterns and weapon buoys we have stockpiled at Cain,” Valsur said with Conovus nodding confirmation. “What’s to prevent them from simply taking another route? Namely the Com-11, 6, 12, 16 and Redwire route?”
      “Time, Sire. Even at the cruising speed of a battlecruiser it will take them a minimum of two months, and even then they’ll have to face the minefields we can have in place at the Redwire/Com-16 warp point. The minefields and buoy parks guarding the Redwire/Cain warp point can be easily dealt with. Also, this will give us the opportunity to use the warp-capable missile pods in their first combat. With the Axis forces in the sector now isolated, knowledge of their use will stay in that sector for the foreseeable future.”
      Valsur opened all four hands and planted his palms on the desktop. “Obviously a time constraint is involved, and a willingness on the Axis part to conduct a warp point assault on Ampere.”
      “Sire, it can be made in such a way as to encourage them to act the way we want. I have brought with me an operations plan for your consideration. As for the time constraint, our window of opportunity is only five days, and will require all the tugs in Cain to tow the assault battleships and dreadnaughts at the required cruising speed.”
      With eyes slightly narrowed Valsur gave Conovus an intense gaze, the receiver not changing his expression one bit. “Still, it will require pinnace probes to gauge the strength of the enemy beforehand, based on the actual live fire tests and countless computer simulations we’ve done. I can already surmise, without looking at that plan of yours, that a warp assault of our own will be needed to coax the Axis into their usual sense of grandeur.”
      “I acknowledge your foresight, Emperor.”
      Valsur relaxed, affixing a small smile on his face. “Then you have my blessing to use the missile pods in combat. You may want to factor in using all the current generation of pods for this, and slate some of them for use in Solid State. If those Axis units make an opportunistic attack on the fighter bases then we can use those pods to weaken them to an extent that will allow a counter-attack of our own.”
      “Yes, Sire. R&D has stated that the second generation pods will be ready for production in a month, and we might as well clear out the old inventory.”
       Valsur nodded his acknowledgement. “Now, Renlus…”
      “Yes, Sire?”
      “It is time to inform the representative of the Republic ships in Fallowed Field about what happened in Hamthen. Tell them that in a month’s time they could very well be on their way home.”

---

 
Star Admiral Norsen was annoyed but unsurprised to find his way into Ampere blocked. The abom Hokum had entered Ampere via Redwire, staging assaults that took out the Redwire/Cain defenses and then the six bases and minefields at the Ampere/Redwire warp point. At the Ampere/Com-14 warp point they destroyed the six bases there with a massed fighter, armed pinnace and capital missile bombardment. Norsen was just a scant one day out from the warp point in Com-14 when that happened, despite pouring on the oil and having his force move at flank speed once word of the first assault reached him.
      He puzzled on why the Abom halted instead of coming into Com-14 after clearing a lane in the Ampere minefields and destroying all the weapon buoys. They had sent in one destroyer-sized carrier, and Norsen’s formation was being shadowed by fighters that always managed to stay out of range yet seem close enough to be taking deliberate scans of his ship numbers and types. Eventually that small carrier had to retreat back into Ampere.
       Thankfully Norsen still had a handful of BC-sized minelayers filled to capacity. Once at the warp point they began dispatching their shuttles and taking shuttles from other ships that had them to lay down mines and buoys. No doubt the aboms were doing the same thing now, having the time to sweep the remaining mines and place their own. He began dispatching pinnace probes at random intervals to gage enemy strength. Likewise the aboms were doing the same to determine where and how many ships were encircling the warp point. In standard fashion Norsen kept his carriers, their escorts, and capital missile cruisers at a range of 5 light seconds out, just out of primary beam and hetlaser range yet close enough to fire accurate missile salvos from internal launchers and external racks. The BC and CA-hulled support ships were one light-minute out, drives down to render them undetectable. All other warships were 4 light seconds out, just within capital force beam and hetlaser range, external racks armed with anti-drive missiles to cripple enemy drives and permitting their total destruction. The minefield encircled the warp point at a range of one-quarter of a light second, comprised of 600 patterns along with 120 one-shot laser buoys. Norsen wasn’t about to apply more, preferring to save the rest for use in Solid State. 72 fighters and 15 escort shuttles formed the cap, orbiting at a range of one light second.
      Scarcely six hours after arriving at the warp point the Hokum sent in their first assault wave, comprised of three Axis battleship hulls, two Axis dreadnaught hulls, and one slightly undersized dreadnaught of a class not seen before. It was clear that their pinnace probes, if not their first, had determined the defense disposition for the three battleships had orientated themselves on the slowly orbiting Axis warships. Transit-addled capital force beams settled on a Hero class BC, scoring three hits while externally mounted mine clearance charges flung themselves into a selected patch of the minefield, clearing four patterns. Only three of the ten fighter squadrons on the CAP were able to arm weapons and engage, attacking the battleships. Shields collapsed and armor was shredded by antimatter ordnance. With those ships able to arm and fire weapons in the first exchange one Hokum BB was destroyed outright, for it was still standing policy that all captured hulls were to be destroyed on sight.
       Having been spared in the initial exchange, aside from some ADM hits, the two Axis dreadnaught hulls revealed themselves to be converted, albeit early versions, of Soar class carriers. 8 squadrons were catapulted into space followed by 5 more from the slight smaller dreadnaught. They engaged the other 8 cap squadrons and escort shuttles while the second wave emerged, comprised of three Indomitable DNs, two Imperial Valor DN(V)s, a Rodeo Clown minesweeper, and, from what Norsen first thought, 720 armed pinnaces, sans 108 lost due to interpenetration. As a group these newcomers moved from the warp point on a course that took them away from the Axis defenses, taking more losses from the minefield patch they went through. Norsen thought that was very odd, for despite being transit-addled the armed pinnaces could’ve easily devastated the CAP squadrons.
       Another Hokum BB was destroyed and one of the converted Soars was heavily damaged, along with additional ADM hits as more Axis ships became active. With the third wave, this time comprised of three more Imperial Valors and a trio of the undersized dreadnaught assault carriers, the supposed armed pinnaces came about and moved toward the Axis defenders. Crashed launched Hatchet squadrons from a minute earlier, 10 strong, were upon these pinnaces with six more launched 30 seconds ago heading for the defending ships.
      However, once upon them the Hatchet fighters found they weren’t pinnaces, for not one targeting scanner was focused on them. Instead these strange objects had orientated themselves and belched three missiles each, sending over 1600 antimatter-armed SBMs towards the Axis ships. The targets were the battlecruisers and carriers, and with each point defense system saturated, and no EDMs available, the carnage was extensive. Of the twelve beam-armed and six capital missile BCs only three were destroyed outright with the rest being hopelessly crippled. The three Wave Rider BC minesweepers barely retained armor. Being datalinked to these ships in a one-to-one manner, the trio of Falcon Crest assault carriers had very light internal damage. As for the two CVS, three CV and three CVLs they were completed destroyed, their light cruiser escorts unable to stem the tide. This left a mere 6 CAs and 12 DDs, along with 22 still-armed Hatchet squadrons and the pitiful remnants of the CAP.
      It was a foregone conclusion. Now with jamming support the Hokum carved up the Hatchet squadrons thought it came at the price of losing the third BB and one of the Soars as the two buoy control ships armed and released their charges. As for the Axis warships they turned and fled, some still reaching action stations and thus were in range as three Implacable DNs and three Broadside BCAs came in the fourth wave. They focused on those DDs they were still only going at cruising speed, crushing them with antimatter capital missiles, and only switching over to second-generation laser warhead SBMs once the range was too much for the CMs.
       After the Hatchets were dealt with, and taking further damage from fighter ramming attacks, the Hokum force rearmed all fighters and sent them after the retreating ships. They were soon joined by Pest DDs and Tagger FGs as a lane was cleared in the minefield. Those crippled Axis ships at the warp point that were unable to self-destruct also attempted to ram, but the needle beams on the Whel assault carriers lanced their engines and magazines for good measure. As for the support ships, despite having 45 escort shuttles and just 6 squadrons of outdated F0 Hatchets, they too in turn were either destroyed outright or had their engines and magazines lanced by needle beams.
      For the losses incurred it was concrete proof of the efficacy of the missile pod system. Not one armed pinnace had to be used in this instance, though with heavily defended warp points they will be used to supplement the firepower of the pods. The operation also marked the last use of F0 Spear fighters in combat for the Hokum, the final squadrons being based on the two Soar carriers used in the battle. From that point on all carriers would use the F2 generation of fighter. Twelve ships were also captured. Eventually a Hokum mobile yard will arrive to effect repairs and conversion to the extent that full conversion for Hokum use could be conducted at a space station. It was an undisputed victory.

---

Hensen, back at Solid State, was concerned as the Hokum blew past the light defenses in Redwire. He became agitated as Ampere was entered via Redwire and then downright nervous as the Ampere/Com-14 defenses were smashed. It was with this state of affairs in mind that Hensen decided to make the most of the situation and improve his odds for when the raiding force returns. At the very least he can destroy the three fighter bases.
      In the preceding four weeks Hensen’s fighter strength was restored and further augmented as the scheduled reinforcements arrived. Now he had 48 Hatchet squadrons, plus the addition of three squadrons of spinal force beam-armed BCs and CAs, along with three more Firebow capital missile cruisers and some light cruisers. So assembled his entire force moved for its holding position and sat 10.5 light-seconds from the Solid State/Fallowed Field warp point for a full three days. Strangely, the three Hokum fighter bases didn’t respond to this deliberate act; not even one fighter squadron was launched. They did send periodic courier drones through the warp point, but no drones came from the far side. Thus, on the start of the fourth day Hensen acted.
      Like an elastic band released from being stretched to the limit Hensen’s ships, save for the carriers and their dedicated escorts, moved at full speed for one minute, coming to a stop 7.5 light seconds from the bases. Capital missiles armed with first generation lasing warheads spat from the launchers of the six Firebows while the six Sharpshooter BCs and three Bullseye CAs began their bombardment with spinal force beams. The plan was to expend just enough missiles to breach the armor of the three bases in turn while spinal force beams finished the job. Fighters were to be launched only if the Hokum did so, and if nothing changes, they were still going to be outnumbered. There were three pinnaces at the warp point with one transiting to Fallowed Field as the Firebows opened fire, leaving Hensen to wonder what if any forces were going to be summoned.
      Two of the fighter bases flushed their XO racks together, launching SBMs equipped with the more powerful lasing warheads. One Firebow lost its armor and sustained light internal damage. When one of the bases lost its shields it launched fighters but held them over the warp point, leaving Hensen to hold his own for the moment. It was not until the first base was critically damaged that the Hokum responded with a mass transit of armed pinnaces from Fallowed Field. From the energy readings they appeared to be some new type, and all were on a beeline for his ships. Of the 240 that transited 36 interpenetrated. The other two bases launched their fighters, bringing the total to 30 Spear squadrons. With this level of threat Hensen had his ships come about and had his 48 Hatchet squadrons and 60 escort shuttles launch.
      Hensen believed he had time on his side. Moving at full speed the pinnaces would only overhaul his ships very slowly, giving his fighters, escort shuttles and point defense all that time to whittle down their numbers. Fresh sensor contacts told him that six small carriers, the ones from the previous battle, had transited the warp point. Odd, though, for the 30 squadrons already deployed they hadn’t followed the armed pinnaces. It was then at a range of just under 5 light seconds from his ships that he got an answer.
      The armed pinnaces were actually missile pods, the last of the first generation model that the Hokum had in inventory, and they performed flawlessly. They locked onto their 12 battlecruiser targets as programmed, set to fire just as they crossed the 5 light second threshold. Better yet, they were in the rear aspect of their targets. Unable to defend themselves directly, each ship had to rely on the degraded interception capability of their datalink partners, but with so many missiles it didn’t matter. Angry antimatter fireballs surrounded the 12 ships, and when they died down all of them had perished, along with Hensen. The six small carriers launched 18 more Spear squadrons just as six more ships transited. They were Fusillade missile cruisers, diverted to this operation enroute to Tire Iron on order of Admiral Janus. Joining them were 3 refitted Deflector 2 escort cruisers and 3 Type 2 destroyers. For good measure an automated weapons control ship transited to arm the mines and weapon buoys.
      The Axis force was now down to just 3 CVs, 6 CVLs, 2 CVS, 2 BC(V), 3 CA, 2 CAE, 3 CL, 6 DD, and 6 DDE. Fully expecting a suicide attack the Hokum were surprised that the enemy kept running, altering course towards the warp point leading to the BRB-1 system. The Hokum sent a single carrier, launching Spear fighters with sensor packs that kept a discreet distance and following the formation all the way. At the warp point they met up with the Axis support group, containing 20 freighter hulls with machine shops and a bevy of cargo ships. Together they transited, leaving the trailing carrier keeping station one light minute out, keeping a pair of scanner pack-equipped fighters orbiting the warp point at 5 LS range at all times until buoys were set up.
     Mobile shipyards were brought forth to repair and refit the trio of fighter bases with the plan to have them, as well as the mines and weapon buoys, brought forward to guard the BRB-1 warp point. Over 100 personnel were lost in the badly crippled fighter base, and 10 squadrons of F1 Spear fighters had to be abandoned, being chucked into the void as the pilots landed on the small carriers before their life support ran out. In the meantime, there was the matter of the six bases at the Solid State/Redwire warp point. The three type-4s were capital missile platforms, sitting at 7.5 LS and the other three were type-3s, parked at 10.5 LS and were fighter platforms.  A single destroyer equipped with commercial engines stayed with the type-4s. The Hokum would’ve been content to let these units wither on the vine, but Redwire was the shortest route to Cain, and BRB-1 now had an Axis task group roaming who knows where in the depths of that solitary red giant’s domain. However, they did an option.

Five months after the battle saw the Axis defenders at the Redwire warp point facing one more month of supplies before the lack of same cause a cascade of malfunctioning, unrepairable equipment. The Hokum hadn’t sent in another close probe in over four months. The fighters they had were fast, sending in 90 in all directions and making a mockery of the Hatchet fighters’ attempts to engage. It couldn’t be helped for they were all of the F0 generation, drawn from system defenses forces to equip the prefabricated bases. While it may have saved the expense of equipping the quite fragile fighter bases with newer models, and the F0s were meant to destroy ships coming through a warp point in any event, the Axis defenders were wondering if the Abominations were just yanking their chain.
      In that one and only probe the F0 Hatchets carried just one gun pod and a close attack missile. With their superior speed the Hokum waited until the Hatchets had to fall back to their bases to recharge their life support systems. Trailing close behind the 90 Spear fighters got no closer than 9 LS from the bases before each dropped an external pod of some kind and retired at an even faster speed, leaving even the defending escort shuttles in the dust. The chief base commander had a suspicion that the Spears had some sort of scanner pack, but without them coming closer it was impossible to prove. In any event it was a moot point. Totally cut off, the Axis crews could only trust that the forces in Bedrock would make their move and come to their relief.
      It was now two days shy before the start of the sixth month. An hour before lunch saw the standard warp point patrol, consisting of 7 Hatchet squadrons and 6 Stiletto escort shuttles, orbiting the invisible flaw in space at a range of one light-second. The Hatchets squadrons came from one base in this rotation with the Stilettos based on the Outpost class automated weapons control ship. In an instant 60 contacts emerged from the warp point with 9 of them interpenetrated and exploding with such violence that there was no doubt they carried antimatter. A further five were immolated in the minefield, leaving 46 making a beeline for bases.
      From the information transmitted by Hensen’s surviving ships five months previous the defenders knew these objects weren’t armed pinnaces, but they weren’t an exact match for their speed was that a fully loaded F0. Only the six patrolling Stilettos were able to achieve action stations in time to pursue the contacts, and only they had the weaponry in engagement range. 90 seconds after their entry the contacts were 1.5 LS from the missile bases and 4.5 LS from the fighter bases. 18 Hatchets and 6 more Stilettos, crashed launched and fully armed, were just half a light second from the contacts. 60 more Hatchets and 6 Stilettos were 2 LS behind them, leaving the third fighter base still scrambling to launch fighters and shuttles. The pursing Stilettos had bagged 4 while the six newcomers got 4 as well. It was at this point the contacts proved they were missile pods, and they showed that slightly faster speed wasn’t their only attribute.
       Priorities set, the 38 pods fired as three groups, one per fighter base, and each pod has six SBMs with antimatter warheads. Even with three EDMs each (the bases had no ECM suites and point defense), there were more than enough missiles. All exploded like gasoline-soaked fireworks for they still had antimatter-armed close attack missiles in their magazines. The first field use of second-generation missile pods performed as advertised, making the Hokum’s task that much easier.
      There days prior a small Hokum force had moved into detection range and took station 4.5 light minutes out. This was just at the range where even an unloaded F0 would run out of life support, and the 24 Stilettos wouldn’t have stood a chance anyway had they cared to venture forth. The force was composed of two fleet carriers, recently out of refit and loaded with new F2 Spears, one Greater Host pinnace tender, two Interior cruisers and a Barrel Man minesweeper. The waited until they got word via the roundabout comm chain from Redwire to Solid State that the pods had been launched. By the time they were 15 LS from the missile bases the surviving F0 Hatchets had long since run out of life support and only the 18 Stilettos offered any measurable menace.
      The Greater Host launched 27 Garrocha armed pinnaces and were escorted by 72 F2 Spears. The Stilettos stayed on top of the bases, waiting for the order to attack. The Garrochas approached the bases until, at a range of 1.5 LS, they fired their external ordnance. They fired in groups of three, surprising the defenders and were further confounded as the stand-off missiles they carried has lasing warheads. The damage was appreciable since so many missiles were fired, but the crews were green, and lasing warheads were inherently less accurate than nuclear and antimatter ones. It was now the 18 Stilettos moved out. The Garrochas had turned to retire to their tender while the Spears engaged. Only three Stilettos managed to fire before they were blotted out like so many stains from a countertop. No Garrochas or Spears were lost.
      After that it was just a matter of time. With all craft armed with the new lasing warheads the three bases were destroyed. As for the Outpost it was chased down by six Garrochas and dispatched. The Spears eliminated the weapon buoys, leaving the two Interiors to fire mine clearance charges. When the selected patch of mine patterns was sufficiently weakened the Barrel Man finished the job, only taking four shield hits as it cleared a path. There was no need to take out the remaining mines for without maintenance they would fail on their own accord. And so the great Axis hope of causing mayhem behind Hokum lines had ended, another disaster in a chain that would ultimately lead back to the doorstep of the Bedrock system.

Admiral Jocelin, commanding the ISN’s Frontier Fleet in the Cain system, regarded his new orders with a mixture of vindication and grimness. Vindication in that his deductions were right regarding Frontier Fleet going back on the offensive. With the Comensal decisively defeated in their effort to reconquer Hamthen, and the recapture by the Terpla’ns of the Metalstorm system, the Presidio big-wigs decided to put their irons in the fire. Reports from the Hokum liaison in the Commonwealth’s Combined Fleet stated that Silvershoe was entered and, given the distance between warp points, it won’t be long before Connectors was reclaimed. Following was Forger’s Gate and Circuit Run, the latter connected to Laser Burn and in turn lead to Cain. More importantly, Circuit Run also connected to Borehole and Bedrock, Axis systems with major population centers and industrial potential. That fact alone made Jocelin feel grim.

     That the Axis hadn’t mounted another warp assault from Laser Burn, and not attempting an assault to reclaim Tire Iron from Admiral Janus in the interim, was taken as proof that their main effort was to reclaim Hamthen. Still, given the size of the raiding group they sent into what was referred to as the Com Systems, and the fortifications they erected in Solid State and Ampere, showed the extent of their industrial capacity. For all that Jocelin knew there was a formidable shell of fortifications in Laser Burn (at least there was a lack of asteroids suitable for use as forts) backed up by a mobile force.
     However, and again taken the liaison’s reports at face value, the steamroller that is Commonwealth’s Combined Fleet would make the Axis commanders in Borehole and especially Bedrock very reluctant to leave their respective systems. The fortifications in Ampere were dealt with, and the Presidio elected to let the Axis bases at the Solid State/Redwire warp point to wither on the vine for a few months before destroying them. In the interim the circuitous route to keep Hokum forces in Solid State supplied and reinforced had to be maintained.
     It was still uncertain if the entire raiding group was destroyed as the enemy had ample time to disperse small formations into Com-21, Com-22 and even Com-13 before the CVE element arrived. Due to that Jocelin had elected to reinforce the minefields of those warp points along the Stonewash-Com8-Com2-Com1 route as well as Com1-Com2-Com8-Com9 route. Some of those systems were already mined and had attending automated weapon control bases. Others needed Empresario control ships, ships that Jocelin need for his offensive.
     The main inconvenience was that convoys between Cain and Whel now required an escort. Normally those captured Axis ships converted to Hokum use were restored just enough to travel to Whel for a full refit. Now it was necessary to restore their passive and active defenses as well as some weapons. At least the sensor and communication buoy chains were still intact or soon will be in those Com systems the Axis many try to enter.
     As for the offensive Jocelin elected to wait another two weeks as those assault ships undergoing refit in Cain will be available by then. Armed pinnace squadrons were back to full strength, and even some of the newer model with datalink were among them. Roughly two-thirds of all fighter squadrons were now of the F2 model and the stockpile of the improved fighter missile was growing with each new shipment. Even if he was allowed and they were available Jocelin didn’t want to use missile pods in this instance. The pods were to be kept a secret for as long as possible, only used in those instances where, like the Battle of Com-14, the enemy couldn’t report on their existence. That would all change if the Axis or Commonwealth used pods of their own if developed. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts Jocelin called in his Operations officer to plan the Laser Burn pinnace probes.

---

Three warp transits from Cain is the Forger’s Gate system. Governor Antran, currently at the spaceport on the outskirts of Hammer, capital city of the planet Forger’s Gate, was concerned. From the control tower’s flight operations center he watched from huge rain-splattered bay windows as pinnaces (regular, cargo, and liner) were fed crate after crate of manufactured goods ranging from machine parts, electronics to antimatter-armed close attack missiles. Next to him was Lenat, the liaison from the system defense commander. He had just finished informing the Governor of the current military status for the system. Lenat requested and was brought back to active duty, despite being only three years younger than Antran, and was in equipment procurement during his service. This meant Lenat knew what Antran was feeling.
     “I appreciate the greater need that Bedrock has for our goods in light of current events,” the Governor said, watching as a brace of capital missiles being loaded onto a pinnace like so many sticks of butter into a refrigerator, “but why are they using pinnaces instead of the regular freighter service? Ninety percent of this system’s pinnaces have been allocated to the cargo runs plus whatever Bedrock threw in.”
      “It’s my understanding the freighters were needed to handle the increase of materials from Gymnasium to Bedrock,” Lenat said. “The use of pinnaces was seen as practical as the flight time from here to Bedrock is within their life support limitations.”
     "That’s because their running with just their flight crews, except for the pinnace liners, Lenat. I see that they even taking the bulk of newly minted asteroid mining engineers, technicians and even new recruits for the Navy and Army.” Antran harrumphed. “At least they saw fit to leave a small tug here in Forger’s Gate, but I wouldn’t put it pass them to recall it. All current asteroid forts are at Connectors warp point. Now, if they hadn’t decreased the defense spending in this system then the two asteroid fighter bases now under construction could’ve been full-sized instead of truncated.”
     Lenat joined the Governor and watched the loading on the flightline. “In light of the misfortune our fleet experienced even greater effort and sacrifices are needed for overall victory. However, thanks to your lobbying the fighter forts are equipped with the latest Hatchet model instead of the older hand-me-downs from Gymnasium.”
     “Thank Providence for small favors. How long before we can expect the Aboms to arrive at the Connector’s warp point?”
     “Two weeks, Governor. Less if they’re sending their faster elements ahead of the main body. Enough time for three more cargo flights, possibly four.”
     Antran nodded. “The two fighter forts will be near enough completion by then to be of some use in the defense, such as it is. The small space station we have is merely a formality.” He buttoned up his jacket. “It’s time. I’m going to address the flight crews before they take off. Care to tag along?”
     “Thank you, Governor. They’ll appreciate the inspirational words.”

---

Nisecu Lake carefully made his way through the vineyard, mindful not to leave a discernible trail upon the gravel path. He was informed by his resistance contact that he was to go to this vineyard. There was a message dead-drop location here, so he thought it was going to be a new assignment. Instead he found a yard attendant at the exact spot where the dead-drop was, at the base of vine support post, mending a wire that held a vine to said post. “Nice spot of weather we’re having,” Nisecu said, his gut burning from the thought that this was no coincidence and his hand just an impulse away from ripping the knife he carried from its hidden pouch.
      The attendant, old and worn, looked at Nisecu with all four eyes. “Yes, and if it continues for another week then the grapes will make for a very fine vintage.”
     Nisecu decided to use a challenge phrase. If this attendant failed to give the proper response… “Some say a sphere is a cube that was designed by a committee.”
     “In my opinion is sphere is comprised of reticulating splines,” said the attendant.
     Nisecu relaxed a little, but his hand was ready. Two resistance members were picked up by the Anti-Abomination Security Patrol (ASP) in as many weeks, and Nisecu couldn’t help but wonder if ASP agents were in the vineyard at this very moment. Then he considered that if there were agents here, he would’ve been captured already.  “It has to be important to have a face-to-face meeting under these circumstances,” he replied.
     “You’re perceptive, something you’ll need if you and this world survive the war,” said the elder Eleto. “The Axis has suffered a major lose in their war against the alien Commonwealth. A decision has been made to further hamper the Axis while they’re still off-balance. We have located an auxiliary computer terminal at the occupation army’s ‘firing range’ in the Greenback Hills. This terminal hasn’t been updated, and it’s connected to the primary comm network. Your task is to take a datachip to that terminal and have it upload its contents to the network.”
     A sour look came over Nisecu. The ‘firing range’ is where the Axis occupation army tested their weapons in life-fire exercises, often using capture resistance members as targets. “Since I will be waltzing into the deathzone, what will the contents of this datachip do?”
     The attendant smiled with both mouths. “Ah, fair enough you should know what you’re getting into. It’s collection of various infiltration programs that will graph themselves to all messages going out system. They’re keyed to the various R&D locations in the Axis, and once in their mainframes the programs will alter and corrupt data to the extent that all research programs will be hobbled. It is hoped that the damage will be great enough that they will have to resort to brand-new mainframes and start their projects from scratch.”
     Nisecu pondered for a moment. “So, this is the same thing we did before, but on a larger, more deliberate scale?”
     “Yes, but even the boneheads will learn their lesson from this,” the attendant said with a smile on his left mouth. “There will be consequences here on Eleto. They will eventually find that the infiltration programs used elements from Axis ones, specifically from the agricultural department that only has select few Eleto have access to.”
     “You,” Nisecu said in a low voice.
     “Correct, and a culling of all those Eleto in similar positions in perceived inconsequential departments.” From a pocket on his work vest the attendant produced two dataclips. He handed the blue-colored one to Nisecu. “That is the infiltration chip. You’re to proceed with the mission as soon as practical. It also contains information on the Greenback Hills location.” Then he handed over a green-colored chip. “This one is an up-to-date list of all those Eleto that have actively worked against the lives of their race. Not the ones forced to work for the Axis, either out of coercion or threats against their families. No, it’s the ones that have used their quisling positions to enrich themselves by having their rivals thrown into prisons and death camps, actively enforcing degrading laws at the behest of their Axis masters just so they live in relative comfort while the rest suffer. If by some miracle our world emerges from the war free from the Axis, then these quislings must be dealt justice. The committee has asked you to lead the hunt of these traitors after the war, so they don’t disappear into anonymity or cheat justice by committing suicide.”
     “That’s a considerable amount of faith invested on a favorable outcome,” Nisecu said. “If it was a question on a test, I would’ve left the answer blank.”
     “Your past service has served you in good stead,” the attendant replied. “The future will belong to the younger generations, and my generation is all but spent. You best be going. ASP agents like to make surprise visits just before and during harvest time to get my grapes. I hope this time the grapes will leave a bitter taste in their mouths.”

---

 

The two weeks came and went, and Jocelin was ready. It took the loss of five Garrocha armed pinnaces to scout out the defenses of the Laser Burn warp point. Fortuitously the Garrochas could use the fighter long-range scanner packs, and the sixth Garrocha found an eyeful. There were 450 mine patterns immediately surrounding the warp point, kept company by 300 buoys, 90 F0 Hatchets and 10 Escort Shuttles. Further out at 1.25 light-seconds were three groups of BS4s, each group comprised of three bases. At 6 LS range were three additional groups of three BS4s each. Finally, at 8 LS range sat three more groups of bases, this time each group contained two BS3 and a BS2. All the bases groups were arranged in a subjective north, southeast and southwest orientation. There were no ships within 15 LS range, and if there were any there were beyond that range and were sitting with drive fields down.
     It was odd to see no mobile forces reinforcing the warp point. The only reason there weren’t, as Jocelin surmised, was that they were recalled further back into Axis space. Perhaps to reinforce Borehole, Forger’s Gate or Bedrock itself? It didn’t matter. Jocelin took it as a sign that the Five Gods shown their favor on this the start of the Harvest Festival, a ten-day high point in Hokum religious observance. He had all the combat-capable warp point assault ships and fleet pinnace tenders in the ISN at his command, and after an hour of refining the assault plan the first wave went in.
      For the Axis defenders they resented being left to fend for themselves. After the great construction effort, one that saw 27 mobile assembly ships and a fleet of freighters filled to the bursting point with prefabricated base components, the equivalent of a task group was assigned as the mobile defense force. Even after the failed assault into Cain months ago that task group stayed, until word came of the Abom Terpla’ns return to the system of Connectors. With the apparent abruptness one would attribute to a person’s haste leaving a burning house the task group was recalled to Bedrock, thus consigning the bases at Laser Burn to their fate. Still the bases crews were determined to do their duty. There were four additional shells of mines, far thinner than the first one, meant to inflict additional attrition losses on any pinnace group. Each of the inner shell bases had a datalink jammer, and a shearing plane to defeat tractor lock-ons. They were ready.
     In restrospect the Axis had to acknowledge that if ISN went on the offensive in either Tire Iron or Cain then maximum effort was a given. Also, Jocelin was no piker. 600 armed pinnaces transited into Laser Burn, each sub-group of 200 on a vector that took them to one of the inner shell of bases. Interpenetration and the minefields took their toll, and still that couldn’t alter the outcome. Each Garrocha was armed with two laser packs and a pair of anti-matter armed close attack missile. Despite being transit-addled the Garrochas fired their lasers and one close attack missile each. The nine inner shell bases, those that activated their weapons in time, fired their main armaments at the transiting assault carriers while point defense engaged the pinnaces. In return none of those bases saw the transit of the second assault wave.
     The combat area patrol rushed the warp point and activated squadrons pounded the carriers, resulting in two destroyed as both beam and missile bases finished what the Hatchets and Stilettos started. The surviving four carriers launched their broods as the second wave carriers made transit. Having destroyed the beam bases the Garrochas went after the missile bases. Crashed launched Hatchet squadrons went to intercept them at the explicit orders of the defense commander, for every Garrocha shot down was one more the Abom Hokum had to replace before attempting another assault. Rushing gaggles of Hatchet squadrons at the warp point would only result in them being overwhelmed by growing numbers of Spears.
     A third carrier from the first wave was destroyed before it could transit back to Cain. In retaliation the Spears fighters from the first wave carriers destroyed all the remaining CAP Hatchets that still had ordnance as well the accompany Stilettos. As for the third wave it was made of four Turtles and two refurbished Critical Mass ships. The active missile bases didn’t divert their fire, focusing on the second wave carriers. 100 laser buoys were armed and fired, doing further damage as well as destroying the Turtles and Critical Mass ships.
     The initial crash-launched Hatchets had almost reached the Garrochas, almost. In all three instances they were a scant half-a-light second away; only the Stilettos that crashed-launched with them could engage and only then with their point defense. No so for the Garrochas. Using laser packs and point defense the Garrochas destroyed every Stiletto and mangled each Hatchet squadron to the extent that each one lost at least one fighter.
     The fourth wave came a surprise as it was just five regular pinnaces and one Garrocha with a fighter scanner pack. Jocelin wasn’t about to feed more ships into the battle while the missile bases were still active, especially since no mobile units were present. These pinnaces stayed on the warp point and commenced to ‘delouse’ the buoy parks; the next five waves were identical to this one. Meanwhile the Garrochas moved on, staying outside out point defense range of the missile bases and performed a defensive maneuver. Each subgroup turned so that each pinnace faced another, covering the other’s blind spot. The other Axis fighter bases had crash-launched their remaining squadrons and were upon the three pinnace groups, and so were the first and second wave Spear squadrons. In three separate furballs the Hatchet pilots didn’t break from their orders, going after the Garrochas exclusively despite having their outdated fighters cut down like wheat by more modern ones.
      It went downhill rapidly for the Axis defenders. The Garrochas formed back up and gathered 1.5 LS from the missile bases with the Spears joining them. Once done all three subgroups moved to attack. Each Spear was of the F2 model, having an internal laser, external laser pack and gun pack, and a nuke-armed close attack missile. The bases fought as best they could, even using their spinal force beams, but they were lazed and nuked to death. Once completed both Garrochas and Spears moved back to the warp point. The Garrochas stayed clear of the minefields while the Spears helped in destroying the remaining weapon buoys. Those handful of Hatchet squadrons that fired on the first wave carriers had rearmed when the first new wave of ships appeared, a brace of Implacable and Broadside capital missile ships. They fired alternating loads of laser-tipped and antimatter armed SBMs, first destroying the BS2s and then the BS3s. The last Hatchet squadrons had launched in any event, gathering in one group before charging. By then additional ships had emerged, including some with datalink jammers. So, after taking one volley of AFHAWK fire at 2 LS range the Hatchets expended themselves in a point-blank attack, failing to knock down the shields of the targeted dreadnaught. For the loss of 338 pinnaces, 11 fighters, three assault carriers and six small ships the ISN had broken into Laser Burn.
     A path through the minefield was cleared and Jocelin came in with the rest of Frontier Fleet. He held station as scouts swept outward, picking up and destroying comm buoy chains. A mining group was sent to the Circuit Run warp point to secure it. A reinforced greyhound group went also. Once there a Garrocha with a scanner pack transited into Circuit Run. After ten minutes it was assumed that the pinnace was destroyed but it came back and reported. There were no minefields, ships, and bases within 15 light-seconds on the Circuit Run side. The sole scanner buoy within definitive range of the warp point was destroyed. Acting on one of Jocelin’s approved operation plans the greyhound group went in, but only after a brace of Bird Nest scout ships and their recon fighters had scoured a 12 light-minute radius of the warp point, destroying scanner and com buoys. The greyhound group was tasked to scout and destroy any enemy shipping when practical. The stage had been set.

---

In addition to removing the mobile force from Laser Burn the AFC also picked up the mines and weapon buoys guarding the Circuit Run/Laser Burn warp point, sending equal amounts to Forger’s Gate, Bedrock and Borehole for their defense. Even the network of scanner buoys was altered, leaving only one scanner buoy in the immediate area of each warp point with a secondary tier of three in a one light-minute radius along with an associated com buoy. As a result, once the Hokum destroyed this ring of buoys the AFC was blind to what came in afterwards.
      Events got even worse. The last flight of pinnaces in Forger’s Gate was halfway to the Circuit Run warp point when the CSF attacked from Connectors. This was all the incentive for the pinnaces to continue on, and once in Circuit Run they were escorted by eight Stilettos towards the Bedrock warp point. Just one hour into their trek came word of the destruction of the initial scanner buoy at the Laser Burn warp point. Some hope was afforded to the notion that additional escorts would come from Bedrock in response to this Abom incursion.
     The aforementioned Stilettos came from the only two Picket scouts in the system. One of them was six light minutes out from the Laser Burn warp point, and mostly likely would’ve been undetected had the captain kept his nerve. But when his long-range sensors picked up the greyhound group, closing to a point where the quantity of ships was determined, he felt compelled to close in and investigate. Upon detecting the scout’s drive field two F2 Spears were launched, one with a scanner pack and the other with two stand-off missiles. They quickly closed, wary for any Stilettos that might launch. Once in definitive scanner range it was clear that it was a Picket and had no shielding. The Spears attacked, both missiles hitting the small ship, crushing what turned out be empty shuttle bays. It launched its message drone, but it was sniped by the Spears’ internal lasers. Finishing off the ship the fighters returned, and the greyhound commander elected to go to full speed towards the Bedrock warp point. The Bird Nest scouts did the same, sending out their recon fighters ahead like eager hunters.
     It was when the pinnace convoy was one-third of the way to the Bedrock warp point that they were first detected by a recon fighter. Eyeing his gauges, the pilot elected to drop his life support pack to get that extra bit of speed to close in. The convoy, without access to scanner buoy data or having long range sensors of their own were totally oblivious as a F2 Spear fighter came within 7 light-seconds. For a full two minutes the pilot kept pace, moving at a sedate 6.7% c, and did his recordings. An older pilot that had seen shuttle service back in the Hokum home system, he couldn’t help but conclude that this was the best-looking small craft formation he had ever seen. In the center of the globular formation were six pinnace liners, huge yet graceful and clearly had civilian markings. Surrounding them were eighteen of the slightly smaller cargo pinnaces, clad this time in colorful company logos. Finally came the twelve regular pinnaces, being a mix of civilian and military marked. Eight of the large attack shuttles formed the only escort. The fighter sped back to its corvette, transmitting as soon as it was in range.
     The greyhound commander considered his options. He could just go ahead and intercept with his full force, but that ran the risk of revealing that information to the enemy. As time was a factor and there still could be scanner buoys along the route the commander decided on sending a long-range fighter strike. Along with a life support pack all 36 F2(L) Spears carried an ECM pack for enhanced survivability in lieu of additional laser and gun packs. Slowing down slightly to give the Spears more of a lead, the greyhound group launched its fighters on an intercept course that would put them at 40% of the distance between the Bedrock and Forger’s Gate warp points. Three fighters from a Bird Nest corvette went along, carrying scanner packs to provide long-range eyes.
     As for the convoy it kept to its determined pace, every minute bringing them that much closer to Bedrock. The escort commander wished that the comm and sensor buoy network wasn’t culled to its current extent. For as much as it was carrying the convoy did rate for reinforcement. Then again, expecting the forces-that-be in Bedrock to spare even one carrier squadron or a flotilla of escort shuttles was like invoking Providence to stop a falling boulder in mid-air. Whatever Abom forces there were in Circuit Run wouldn’t fail to pick the Bedrock warp point with distant scout ships. Perhaps the convoy was just considered a ‘bonus’ if it made it to Bedrock at all? The escort commander didn’t dwell on that thought for long, lest it manifest itself on his face and made his crew feel unease.
     The 39 Spear fighters bore on, dropping their now-expended life support packs at the one-hour mark and gaining a bit more speed in the process. On schedule the pinnace convoy appeared on the long-range sensors of the scout fighters, still on course and maintaining cruising speed. Closer in the pilots also remarked on the precision formation the pinnaces flew in, considering it a shame that they had to destroy it. Once inside the 5 light-second detection range the pilots saw how the formation split into two groups and assumed a tight defensive circle, each group able to cover the blind spot of the other. They even engaged engine modulation. All the Spear pilots saw was a target-rich environment.
     For having civilian crews their performance was impeccable, but their defenses were equally lacking. At one LS range from the nearest pinnace group the Spears used some engine modulation so that even the four Stilettos that could engage didn’t because they had no fire control solution. Then the Spears increased the modulation and activated their ECM packs, closing to point blank range of the nearest group. None of the pinnaces were able to achieve a fire control solution, but the Stilettos were able to engage, shooting down three Spears. Because they were the most dangerous due to their improved point defense these eight Stilettos were targeted by remaining Spears, shooting down five. The three recon Spears circled outside of point defense range of the Stilettos, keeping a record of the battle.
     What followed became known as the Harvest Festival Massacre. Listening in to the distant time-delay comm chatter the greyhound group commander heard the pilots use slang and exchange profanities on ‘making room to get into the damn furball.’ It took two Spear squadrons to knock down the three remaining Stilettos at the cost of two more fighters. Five cargo pinnaces were taken down along with the last Stilettos, their contents mostly inert except for the fifth for it carried antimatter capital missiles. Its explosion served as an ever so brief sun surrounded by mad, combative comets.
     After those five pinnaces died the formation broke, all units moving at full speed in multiple directions. Despite this, four more pinnaces were bagged. The 31 Spears adjusted their modulation and speed, keeping their distance at 0.5 LS. This meant the pinnaces were unable to achieve a lock-on while the Spears, despite the range and the use of fighter lasers, were able to engage, over and over again. Only three other cargo pinnaces proved that they carried antimatter ordnance, exploding like overcooked potatoes during a Harvest Festival dinner. As for the six pinnace liners they all carried antimatter ordnance in their small holds, and unlike the other pinnaces the scanner-equipped recon fighters determined they were carrying a partial load of passengers. It was safe to say that more than one pinnace flight crew cursed the AFC and Governor Antran for their ‘off you go, make us proud’ sentiments in their final moments.
      The recon fighters swept through the various clouds of debris, determining the contents of the craft the Spears shot down. They did this for twenty minutes, for they also looked to see if any of the pilots of the five lost Spears were able to eject. Due to operational requirements no shuttle could be sent to search, and in any event no pilot transponder signals were picked up. Once done the fighters made a beeline for the greyhound group which had now edged back up to full speed to meet them. With fighters recovered the group slowed down to standard cruising speed on a course for the Bedrock warp point. After the funeral services the pilots drank and ate a rather large Harvest Festival dinner in their honor.
     As for the second Picket scout it was waiting 24 light-minutes from the Bedrock warp point. It was there to recharge the life support of its own Stilettos as well as those of its counterpart near the Laser Burn warp point. The rendezvous time came and went, the little ship staying on a full twelve hours before it followed the operations plan and headed for the Bedrock warp point. It then picked up a sensor contact 72 light-minutes behind it, moving at four times its own speed. Dutifully the scout ship transmitted its readings to the comm buoy at the warp point. At the current rate of closure, the contact will be in weapons range before the scout could transit with light-minutes to spare. With each graduation of sensor definition the contact turned out to be a singular one, then one with military engine strength of that of a corvette, and finally made out as a corvette. The Abom craft kept getting closer and closer until, at 1 LS range, it fired a CAM and external standard missile. Both hit, leaving only the engine room and magazine intact. Not for long, for the only Axis ship left in Circuit Run self-destructed, having received no reply to its messages.
     The AFC didn’t even bother to send in one reinforced scouting squadron into Circuit Run. Defense of Bedrock was above all other considerations. Forger’s Gate and Borehole were on their own for the foreseeable future.

08/30/15
updated 04/06/20