The Forgotten Empire: War for the Empire by Raymond Weil (ereader ebook .txt) 📕

think you have answered your own question. Only two really important targets exist in the Empire. Our core worlds and the Hagen Star Cluster. Those have to be the targets, and that’s why we haven’t heard or seen anything of the Confederation fleets, yet we know they must be out there.”

“A surprise and concentrated attack.” Fleet Admiral Marloo sat down hard in his command chair. He took a deep breath. How could he have missed the obvious? For months they had been preparing for a general attack against hundreds of Imperial worlds. Why would the Confederation do that, when all they had to do was take out the two most powerful Human entities? Meaning, the core worlds and the Hagen Star Cluster.

“Get me Admiral Cleemorl immediately!” he ordered. He had some messages to send and some fleet units he needed to redeploy. They had really messed up, and he hoped it didn’t end up costing them.

-

Rear Admiral Carrie smiled when she saw the arrival of Rear Admiral Krest’s fleet. Four more dreadnoughts and thirty-three additional battlecruisers. That greatly increased the firepower of her fleet and helped to ensure the safety of the twenty battlecarriers she was protecting.

“Many of Rear Admiral Krest’s ships suffered damage at Hastings,” reported Major Sullivan, the executive officer. “They’re still doing repairs, and Rear Admiral Krest reports she expects to have all her ships fully combat ready in another eight to ten hours.”

“I hope we have that much time,” commented Rear Admiral Carrie. “The Confederation could show up in the cluster at any time.”

“There’s been no sign of them,” replied Sullivan.

“I know, but they have to be out there somewhere. Assign some additional engineers to Rear Admiral Krest’s ships. I want them as fully repaired as possible, particularly her flagship.”

-

On board the battlecarrier Orion, Captain Anderson spoke with Major Barkley. “Have you thought about the tactics you’ll use when we engage the Confederation?”

Mathew nodded. “We know the Druins are bringing some of their AI-controlled attack drones. We have no idea how many or where they’ll commit them. I’m setting up the squadrons to take the drones on in two-to-one combat. That should ensure none reach our major warships. As far as attacking Confederation fleets, we will use medium-range missile fire. Of course that means more missiles will be intercepted, but we will lose far fewer interceptors. We’ll only go in close when we see a substantial number of damaged Confederation warships, so we can take out those without putting the squadrons at grave risk.”

“Have you studied the videos of the attack drones, when they were used in the Solar System?” Anderson had looked at them and knew they could be a serious threat.

Mathew nodded. “In detail. The drones seem to follow a strict series of attack methods, all controlled by the AIs. From what I’ve determined, they’re extremely dangerous, though I don’t know how they will perform in a dogfight.”

Captain Anderson was curious as well. “I just received a message from Fleet Admiral Marloo. He expects the Confederation to attack the Hagen Star Cluster, as well as the core worlds. He believes the Confederation is skipping all the systems in between and hoping to end the war by taking out our main seats of military power. He believes the battle in the cluster will be intense and very violent. This will be a battle neither side can afford to lose.”

“We’ll be ready,” promised Mathew. “We’re flying training missions regularly off all the battlecarriers. I want our flight crews to be as sharp as possible. For many, this will be their first time in combat, and that’ll be a lot different than what they experienced in the simulators.”

“Don’t forget. Over five thousand attack interceptors are based on Gideon, where the heaviest part of the fighting is expected to take place.”

Mathew nodded. He was already making plans on how to use those additional fighters.

-

Later Mathew was in one of the flight bays of the Orion, watching as squadrons took off to practice combat drills. His mind turned to Krista and the future that might be waiting for him. He knew she was greatly upset that he had volunteered for this mission. But how could he stay home when so many he had trained were putting their lives on the line?

As he watched, Black Dart squadron was in the process of launching. This was the most talented and experienced squadron on board the Orion. Many of the flight crews Mathew knew personally. Some of them had even come down to the training facility on Golan Four and had spent considerable time helping train the first crews for the attack interceptors.

Mathew was in the control and observation room, overlooking the flight bay. As the last of the Black Dart attack interceptors launched, he wished he were on board one. He did get to fly some at the training base, but it wasn’t the same.

“Go,” suggested Captain Denise Barrat. “No reason for you not to take an interceptor out. Go join the Black Darts.”

Mathew hesitated. An extra Black Dart interceptor just sat here. It was one of the backups the squadron had in case one of the regular interceptors was not ready for launch.

“It will be good for you,” added Captain Barrat. “I’ve got everything under control here.”

Mathew didn’t need any more coaxing. He quickly found a navigator and a weapons officer who were willing to go with him. A few minutes later he was putting on his flight outfit and feeling the excitement growing inside.

-

The interceptor darted out of the flight bay and joined the orbiting squadron of interceptors.

“This is Major Barkley,” Mathew announced over the squadron comm channel. “All interceptors partner up, and we’ll do some dogfighting. The last surviving pair of fighters will have a special meal prepared for them by the ship’s cooks. Anything you want to eat and