Christopher Nuttall - The Trafalgar Gambit

“Aye, sir,” Lightbridge said.

The carrier shook, yet again.

“Damage to rear sectors,” Anderson reported, though the intercom. “We’ve lost rear sensors and point defence. Long-range communications are down.”

Ted cursed. The communications didn’t matter — there was no one to talk to — but losing the sensors and weapons was disastrous. Once the aliens realised what they’d done, they’d target their missiles through the blind zone and rip the carrier to shreds.

“Take us right towards them,” he ordered. If the alien superdreadnaught had one disadvantage, it was that she was almost as cumbersome as Ark Royal . “Reroute all spare power to the drives, even life support. I want everything you can give me.”

“Aye, sir,” Anderson said.

Ted sucked in a breath. “Gentlemen, it’s been a honour,” he said. “Ramming speed.”

“Aye, sir,” Lightbridge said.

James shuddered, then vomited into a plastic bag as HMS Formidable crashed through the tramline and entered the New Russia system. He wasn’t the only one in the CIC to lose his lunch, despite having made two more high-speed transits over the last four days. Angrily, he spat into the bag, then dumped it into the recycler and fixed his gaze on the display. It was far too clear that there was already a battle being fought within the system.

He gritted his teeth against the ache in his chest, then straightened up. His uncle and everyone else had advised him not to join the relief force, let alone take command, but he’d insisted. The doctors had stabilised his condition, yet they’d also warned him there would be pain. They’d been right.

But he was damned if he was leaving the Admiral to fight alone for any longer than necessary.

“Launch probes,” he ordered, as the passive sensors fought to make sense out of what they were picking up. “And transmit a general signal. Inform Admiral Smith that we are on our way.”

“Aye, sir,” Lieutenant Benton said.

James nodded. It had taken two days of arguing, pleading and outright blackmail to convince the other interstellar powers to join the relief mission. HMS Formidable had been joined by the Russian Kirov and the American George Bush , as well as a dozen smaller ships. Putting together the mission had been a political nightmare. The Russian commander had strict orders to cooperate, but as he hadn’t been told anything about the bioweapon it was clear he thought he was supposed to be obstructionist. And the Americans hadn’t been much better.

If we manage to survive this war , James thought, we’ll build up the navy to the point we won’t ever need to think about coalition operations again .

He stared in horror as the display rapidly filled with data. The flotilla was almost gone, save for Ark Royal and a single frigate. It was clear the carrier had taken one hell of a battering… and was heading towards the massive alien ship, preparing to ram. James couldn’t imagine anything standing up to a direct impact from the carrier, no matter how much armour the aliens had bolted onto their ship. But it would almost certainly destroy the Old Lady too…

“Take us towards them, maximum speed,” he ordered. “Communications, raise Admiral Smith!”

“No response, sir,” Benton said. “I’m not even picking up her IFF. She may have lost communications completely…”

“Then extend the signal,” James snapped. On the display, the final frigate’s icon winked out of existence. “Contact the starfighters, get them to pass on the message…”

But he already knew it was too late.

For a long moment, the battle seemed to come to a halt as the two massive starships advanced towards each other, neither one able or willing to change course. Henry stared in disbelief as the Old Lady inched forward, aiming directly at the alien superdreadnaught. The alien pilots seemed equally stunned, equally unsure what to do. Henry fought for words, for orders, for… something , but nothing came to mind. The collision had become inevitable.

“No,” he said, as the alien superdreadnaught opened fire. Plasma bolts rained down on Ark Royal … and glanced harmlessly off her armour. They’d already crippled her point defence and sensor blisters; no matter how badly they hammered the hull, they simply didn’t have the firepower to break through and destroy the ship before it was too late. “No…”

He swore as a new communication icon popped up in front of him. HMS Formidable , it stated. For a moment, he thought it was an alien trick; HMS Formidable had died at New Russia. But then he remembered the new carriers, the ones that had been on the verge of entering service, and glanced at his rear sensors. Three new carriers had come through the tramline, a wave of starfighters sweeping out in front of them. But he already knew it was too late.

“Fall back on Formidable ,” he ordered. His pilots were alarmingly close to running out of life support. “And remember this day.”

Ted clutched his command chair as the aliens finally brought their heavy plasma weapons to bear on Ark Royal . Damage started to mount up rapidly, but the carrier’s armour could handle most of the blasts, deflecting them from her innards. Not, in the end, that it mattered.

You did well , he told himself, silently. His career had stalled after he’d turned to drink — and even the love he’d developed for the Old Lady hadn’t kept him out of the bottle. It was only the prospect of actually fighting a war that had caused him to abandon his alcohol, flushing it down the toilet rather than taking the risk of storing it. And you wouldn’t have been suited for a desk job anyway .

He smiled at the thought, then glanced around the bridge. Consoles were darkening as power failed or internal reporting systems collapsed, but it hardly mattered any longer. They were doomed the moment they struck the alien craft. He searched for the words to tell his crew just how proud he was of them, yet nothing came to mind. But he thought they knew.

Goodbye , he thought, silently. I love you all .

Moments later, the two ships came together and exploded.

His life support unit was flashing red, but Henry ignored his own orders and watched helplessly, forcing himself to bear witness, as Ark Royal slammed into the alien ship. For a moment, he thought the carrier would shatter the alien ship but survive herself… and then the first giant explosion billowed through her hull. Moments later, both craft had been smashed by the blasts. Giant pieces of debris blasted out of the fireball and drifted through space.

Henry closed his eyes, silently bidding the ancient carrier farewell. She had been his home — his first true home, where he could be himself. He’d met his friends and lover there…

… And now she was gone.

But she had not died in vain, he told himself. She’d created a legend… and she’d ensured there would be peace. What better legacy could she ask for?

“Well,” Uncle Winchester said, “I dare say your old commander would be proud.”

“I don’t think he would have cared for a state funeral,” James said, sourly. Admiral Smith had requested burial in space, according to his will. “But I suppose the politicians must have their chance to pay homage to him.”

“Welcome to politics,” Uncle Winchester said. He leaned forward. “But I dare say he would have approved.”

James had his doubts. The Russians had been blackmailed once — and it had ensured that they had largely escaped consequences for the attempt to use the bioweapon. Officially, rogue agents had carried out the attack on Ark Royal , only to be stopped at the last hurdle. The truth would remain buried — forever, if the Russians had their way. It was infuriating to think that the Russians had largely escaped punishment for their actions. The only consolation was the awareness that they wouldn’t be paid any compensation by the other powers.