Dust Bunny (Rust Bucket Universe) Read online

  However, the fragmentation in government extended deep into the Seraphan Navy as well. Each major religion had at least a squadron of warships or more. Almost every religion had at least one warship. Some would fight alone while others would band together with warships sponsored by compatible religions to form a loose squadron. Even then, it was up to Cain to get all the squadrons assembled into a formation that didn't offend anyone, if that was at all possible. At times it seemed like it wasn't.

  Worse yet, not every warship was compatible in parts, armament, speed, or much of anything else to those sponsored by other religions. Cain had almost as many different types of warships as he had religions represented. It was a formula for failure, he knew. It had been a primary factor in their two previous defeats. He only hoped that he could keep them together until after the battle started. By then, the battle would probably become a melee, he figured. Once that took place, it wouldn't matter much. Hopefully, his side's numeric superiority would be the telling factor. If it wasn't, Admiral Cain knew that his career would be over, whether he survived or not. It would probably be one failure too many for his handlers to stomach.

  "Sir, the Council just notified us that the Union is attempting to seal off the Ape-oids again," an aide said.

  "They've broken out?" asked Cain.

  "Apparently, sir. Is that good for us?" the aide answered.

  "It might be. At least it keeps the Union a bit busier. Then they'll be less likely to interfere in our plans. Signal the fleet to move out. I'll get the rest of the ships in place while we travel."

  ***

  As Kyle expected, Serapha wasn't far behind in receiving the news of the Ape-oid breakout. Within hours of the breakout, sensors detected and reported large numbers of warships leaving Serapha from where he knew they had been gathering in space. Kyle didn't have to wonder where they were going. He knew. Kyle felt certain they were reacting to the news in order to take advantage of it.

  Within another hour, Kyle knew that Opal was aware of the Seraphan fleet movement, when Union sensors detected the Opalian fleet assembling. Every warship that Opal possessed was activated. Kyle looked at the sensor reports and could tell that Opal was clearly outnumbered. He wondered if they were any better than the Seraphan fleet. If they were, then the greater numbers of Seraphan warships might not matter. If they weren't, then Opal was in for some bad times. Kyle knew that he couldn't interfere as long as they stayed out of Union territory.

  So far, Kyle could only tell that the Opalian fleet was better in assembly, though it was smaller so it should have been easier and quicker for them. Still, they managed to have their formation ready in a fraction of the time it required for the same number of Seraphan ships. Even the late arriving ships from more distant parts of Opal appeared to know exactly where to go when those arrived.

  Kyle sat back and relaxed. There was little he could do about the oncoming war between Serapha and Opal. That was their business since the Union had a clear policy of letting others handle their own affairs so long as they didn't intend any harm to the Union. Only if they interfered with Union activities would he even bother to get involved. Then Kyle would do his best to use the minimum amount of force in making the Union's position clear to the trespasser or aggressor.

  ***

  "Admiral Cain, Opal has assembled their fleet. We have lost the element of surprise, sir."

  "Do you think I am an idiot, sailor? I think that as an admiral I can figure that out for myself. Return to your post now, or do you intend to run the fleet for me as well?" Admiral Cain replied.

  Admiral Cain continued to worry about how some members of the Navy responded to him at times. His flagship was one of the few with members from different religions on it as representatives so that the rest of the Navy would have to recognize Cain as in charge. It was bad enough, he thought, with the over-abundance of officers on board second guessing him, without having one of the enlisted men trying to tell him what was up or down. In the recesses of his mind, Cain worked out a plan that might give his force back some of the element of surprise. He only hoped that he could rein in some of the more rambunctious ships' captains into following his plan completely and to the letter. It would take only one foul up to not only lose the element of surprise a second time, but place the whole fleet in jeopardy. He could only pray that none of the captains would become too impatient after travelling for a day to reach Opal.

  What a perfect name, Cain thought, for a planet on which black-hearted individuals lived who denied God in their lives. With a victory over Opal, Serapha could double its area of control and gradually spread out until it rivalled the Union which permitted a decadence within its own borders that was almost as bad as Opal. Then, perhaps, Serapha could influence the Union to abandon some of its practices for the good of its citizens. After all, how could its own people know what was best for themselves? It took the wisdom and leadership of men of God with their centuries of written knowledge and experience to do the job properly. As it was right now, not all the people in the Union listened to their religious leaders as they should. Admiral Cain continued to think of both his plan and the line of indoctrination so carefully ingrained into him while growing up.

  ***

  Kyle monitored the progress of both fleets during the day. Before they even got close to each other, he predicted that Opal would likely win. Opal's fleet had picket ships placed out far enough to alert the fleet. The rest of their fleet was busy practicing maneuvers. From what he saw on the hologram imager, Opal's fleet knew how to maneuver. Its fleet commander knew how to exercise control. Some of their maneuvers were quite advanced and all were executed almost flawlessly.

  On Serapha's side, Kyle saw only disorganization as some units seemed to rush about as if they wanted to be in the lead. Whatever leadership they were under wasn't controlling them with steady reins. That was sure to cost them when they engaged in battle. Not only that, but the Seraphan forces weren't practicing as they travelled. Surely by now, Kyle thought, the Seraphan forces must know that Opal was aware that they were coming. It wouldn't have harmed their efforts to practice some along the way if they were really serious about going to war.

  Kyle visualized the scenario of the war almost as if he would be present to view it. Of course, he would be able to see part on it on long-range sensors, but he wouldn't really have too many indications about who was who once they got close to each other. He foresaw the Opalian fleet sticking together and forcing a wedge through the Seraphan fleet, dividing it into two. While the Seraphan leader attempted to get his fleet back together, the Opalian fleet would wheel about on one portion and chew it apart. By the time the Seraphan leader got the gap eliminated, there would be a new gap. With its fire concentrated on a few ships at a time, the Opalian fleet would destroy completely any ships it attacked while evading fire and remaining inside the Seraphan formation as much as possible to limit just how many enemy warships could return fire. The only question left in Kyle's mind concerned how long it would take before the Seraphan forces realized that they were already beaten. The sooner they realized it, the more of their fleet they could save. If the Seraphans didn't realize it soon enough, none of their fleet would survive. The Opalian fleet would have a field day pursuing the Seraphan warships and destroying them at their leisure. At least half the Seraphan force would have to survive and run like hell for Serapha if they were to have a chance of saving any of their fleet. Those that made it back to Serapha would likely be like wounded animals backed into corners. The Opalian leader would probably have enough sense not to chase them that far.

  Only one thing worried Kyle. If the Seraphan fleet commander was killed early in the fighting, there might not be anyone capable of distinguishing whether they were losing or not. Not only that, but if a religious fanatic took over, the Seraphan fleet might just fight to the last ship, leaving Serapha completely open to attack. If such a thing happened, Kyle might have to interfere by persuading the Opalian leader to make only a symbolic at
tack and then negotiate peace terms. Kyle didn't want to use his forces to save the Seraphans from their own mischief, but public pressure might become involved. Kyle still had to account to his government and its citizens, many of whom were deeply religious.

  ***

  Rear Admiral Oden monitored the reports from all the sectors with activity in them. Already, the invasion fleet was moving in behind the last of the asteroids. The repaired Malakin ships were well on their way by another route. Commodore Sorenson's squadron was on its way to Bragh. It appeared that they wouldn't have to reach it to find the Ape-oid fleet.

  The Opalian forces were ready for action, Dave saw from looking at the hologram image of that sector of space. The Seraphan forces under Fleet Admiral Cain were poorly prepared. Even the lesson that Cain got from Dave wasn't going to be of much use. Dave could see that Cain probably thought that was for one ship against two, not situations where there were more ships. Perhaps Cain thought of Dave as having been only an illustrious ship commander in the Ape-oids' War, rather than also a battle tactician. Evidently Cain hadn't learned much from going up against a Union squadron already.

  Dave hoped that Cain would survive, if only because the man was nice and not a total dunce. But Cain was clearly outclassed, though that was more the fault of the system Cain worked for than Cain's own fault. Dave knew that just as surely as he knew that the make up of Cain's fleet doomed Cain years ago. That was an argument Dave didn't dare use with Congress when he told them he wouldn't start a civil war by trying to rein in the outer planets. It clearly wouldn't have been understood by most of Congress in the right context.

  ***

  Fleet Admiral Cain's force approached the Opalian fleet at a tangent without any display of aggression. It required considerable persuasion on his part to convince every ship's captain not to rush off and attack the enemy fleet when the two came in sight of everyone. Now Cain crossed his fingers as his force continued upon its course while ignoring the Opalian fleet by not firing or changing course or speed. The maneuver had to be totally believable to the fleet commander of the Opalian fleet. The Opalian commander had to be fooled into accepting that Serapha was merely engaged in war games and had chosen to demonstrate its power in front of their prime adversary. With any luck the Opalian fleet might even return to its normal state of defense just before Cain's fleet wheeled and charged.

  ***

  Very clever, Cain, thought Dave, as he viewed the two fleets almost come together on the hologram display. Then the Seraphan fleet, still distinguishable on the sensors, continued to pass by. There were no sensor reports of fighting. Still, Dave knew that Cain was doomed to failure, even if Opal began to withdraw. They were too efficient and well-trained. They'd be back into an effective formation within moments of the change in course or first shots.

  ***

  Kyle breathed a sigh of relief for a moment before he thought of Serapha pulling a trick. It would explain why they hadn't practiced any maneuvers on their way toward Opal, he thought at first. Then he thought of Serapha knowing that it had lost the advantage of surprise and he came up with the right answer. How best to regain that surprise? Easy. Make the enemy believe you aren't there to attack him and then do it anyway. Kyle took a guess at when and where the Seraphans would change course and intently studied the hologram image as the fleet neared that point.

  ***

  Admiral Cain quit holding his fingers crossed as his force reached the assault mark and raggedly turned to charge at the Opalian fleet. He had hoped that the defenders would return to Opal and give his force some additional advantage. The Opalians hadn't. They had remained steadfastly in place alert to his fleet's presence, appearing to follow its progress. The fleet from Opal didn't fire, either, at the course change of the Seraphan fleet. It waited until some over eager individual in the Seraphan fleet took a shot from long range without thinking. Then it sprang into action.

  ***

  Admiral Kruler watched as the battle unfolded as he predicted it would. Opal's fleet accelerated and cut right into the Seraphan fleet's line, breaking its already tattered formation in two. Kyle thought he wouldn't be able to keep track of the battle using only sensors, but it wasn't nearly as difficult as he first felt. The Opalian fleet was the one that stayed together in a hard defensive shell of a formation. However, as the battle progressed, he couldn't tell that heavily damaged Opalian ships were slipping inside the formation to make quick repairs while undamaged ships took their places. Only those that were completely gutted fell behind to become mixed in with the numerous destroyed Seraphan warships.

  ***

  Admiral Cain used both the hull viewing port and sensor panels to keep track of the battle. He issued orders, quite often the same one several times in a row to get his point across. "Tell those Baptists to get back with the fleet! Tell them now! Oh, no! Send a message to the Episcopalians to quit moving ahead unless they want to be cut off from the fleet. Tell the Baptists to close up that gap, now!"

  "Sir, incoming message from the Saint Elvis. They want to know if they should broadcast the King singing inspirational battle music for the fleet."

  Cain shouted, "No! Tell the Church of Saint Elvis no! This isn't the time for music! We need to hear commands, not their King!"

  "Aye, sir!"

  "Why did anyone ever grant him sainthood? Church of Saint Elvis, indeed," Cain mumbled. Helplessly, Cain watched as ships flared when hit just right to ignite the air inside them, gutting them completely and often rupturing them. All the while, he tried to keep track of how badly the enemy was being hurt. What he saw of the enemy fleet convinced him that Opal had its act together and that this wasn't the time to stay and fight, let alone play anything other than funeral music.

  ***

  Kyle studied his ship's sensors diligently. He wished they could tell more of the story. It was difficult to tell for sure, but the Opalian fleet appeared a few ships light. However, the number of drifting ships that weren't in anyone's formation told him that the Seraphans were getting close to the critical point for a decision. If they didn't make it soon, they would lose every warship they went in there with to the efficient Opalians.

  ***

  Rear Admiral Oden glanced once at the sensor screens as the battle began. He didn't bother watching anymore of it. If it hadn't been a battle with life and death involved, he might have considered it a "laugher" as sporting contests were often referred to that contained badly mismatched opponents. Instead, he knew that fools were killing people for no valid reason.

  ***

  Fleet Admiral Cain issued the order, "Recall all ships! Proceed to coordinates Jesus Lord Mary Paul! Anyone who fails to do so is not going to be rescued! Order all ships to fall back immediately!"

  Some of the officers on the bridge glared at him with hatred in their eyes for ordering a retreat.

  Cain returned their glares back at them for a moment to reinforce his authority. "You want to die? Then we'll stay, but they're beating us! We're losing six ships to their one! You don't have to be much of a mathematician to figure that one out! When we're out of ships, half of their fleet will still be here, whole and intact! Serapha will then be defenseless! Now recall the fleet, damn it!"

  Reluctantly, the officers sent the messages to their respective fleet elements and ordered them to fall back and break off the attack. Not all the ships abided by the orders. Those fell even quicker to the Opalian fleet as Fleet Admiral Cain somehow managed to withdraw slightly more than half his force.

  ***

  Kyle watched as the two fleets parted and the Opalian fleet refused to pursue. He didn't blame them for that, even though they were leaving mostly intact a dangerous threat to their people's security. However, he could tell that they were now wisely practicing prudent politics by not engaging in pursuit. Opal obviously didn't want to infuriate public opinion in the Union against them. They had righteously defended their world as any society had the right to do. For now, public opinion in the Union would be on
their side, though just barely.

  ***

  Fleet Admiral Cain argued desperately against the officers on board his flagship. Many of them wanted to turn and attack again. "You want to become martyrs?" Cain asked.

  "Martyrdom is an honor!" one exclaimed.

  "We have a duty to wipe out Opal," one officer stated.

  "How? I ask you, how? I told you before that we're losing six ships to their one. Almost all of our ships have received serious hits. Some of theirs haven't even been so much as scratched! We lost the element of surprise. We didn't regain it. Our formation fell apart and we have only a little more than half our strength left. They have almost as many ships as we do now! You want to attack? Why? Why in God's name, why?" Cain exclaimed.

  "We still outnumber them, Admiral!" an officer said.

  "We outnumbered them even worse when the battle started! What makes you think that this time we'll be any better?" Cain roared.

  "We've got God on our side!" one officer exclaimed.

  Cain did his best to calm down and speak to that issue, knowing how touchy that argument was. "Yes, we surely have God on our side, but he's not going to make a miracle for us today. He's not going to do so because we don't have our act together. God only helps those who help themselves. We didn't help ourselves very well today. Face it, we botched it. I doubt if God intends to reward our incompetence by changing the outcome of the battle."

  "But sir . . ."

  "No! The fleet will return to Serapha before the enemy decides to finish us and then attack our undefended world. We have lost this battle, but not the war. Our day to rejoice shall come, but not until we can show that we truly deserve it. Captain! Order the fleet to assemble and follow us back to Serapha," Cain responded with an air of finality. His voice remained strong despite his inner feelings of despair.