The Landfall Campaign (The Nameless War) (11 page)

Nine hours after the alert started, the moment Eulenburg had been quietly dreading came. For nine hours the light speed emissions from Baden had been travelling through the space between Landfall and the lost base. A lot of officers and ratings who technically didn’t have any immediate reason to be there had gathered in Four C. Chevalier had returned from the surface looking work stained and tired, and now stood beside Eulenburg in the middle of Four C. The holo of the space surrounding Landfall was now almost completely blank. The last of the interstellar ships were only an hour from jump out, while in-system ships, which served the system’s asteroid miners, were still arriving and being abandoned in high orbit as their crews fled for the surface. The evacuation was starting to grind into some kind of gear. Every three-quarter of an hour a transport plane landed and disgorged its passengers before taking off again within twenty minutes. Tomorrow the first of the bulk transport airships that had been repurposed as personnel lifters would arrive from the outlying settlements.

Eulenburg was watching the picture from a high-powered telescope that was now directed at Baden. A single small cruiser, likely part of the security perimeter, could be seen with Baden’s asteroid visible beyond. Then abruptly another ship appeared in a flash close to the first. The Battle Fleet ship tried to respond but the surprise was complete. There was a collective groan in Four C as the new arrival launched a salvo of missiles.

“
This is Harbinger. I am under attack by a Nameless ship!
”
The voice transmission took everyone by surprise. It was a woman’s voice and from the fear in it everyone knew that nine hours before the speaker had known she was about to die.
“
Repeat, this is Harbinger. I am under attack by a Nameless
…”

On the screen the cruiser disappeared in a flash as its reactors breached. The alien ship that had just killed it, turned and accelerated toward Baden.

The bulk of Baden’s asteroid screened them from the worst of the slaughter but it did nothing to block the radio chatter. Much of it was garbled as dozens of voices shouted across the same radio bands. They heard Admiral Camile, trapped away from his flagship, attempt to organise the defence. And fail. The number of separate transmissions dropped as ships died. Twenty-five minutes after the start of the battle someone on Baden thought the unthinkable.

“…
on Baden
…
base lost
…
ships are to scatter
…
ke your way to Earth at
…
t speed.
”

From behind Baden Battle Fleet ships appeared as they ran for their lives. Several were cut down as they tried to escape. Others made it. Another thirty minutes and it was all over, only the triumphant Nameless remained and silence returned to Four C.

Some of those present looked to Eulenburg, expecting him to speak. But sickened by what he’d seen, he had nothing to offer. It was left to Chevalier to climb onto a chair. The Brigadier did his best and his speech contained all the right elements: that they were ready, that they could count on one another, that unlike the Third Fleet they would not be taken by surprise. Yet it still fell flat. Everyone had just seen their first and best line of defence swept away and in all likelihood they were next.

___________________________

27
th
July 2066

The days in the shelters were long, the nights restless. There was no soundproofing on the cave walls so every noise echoed and reverberated. Heaters had been brought in but somehow they only helped you appreciate how cold it was down here deep in the ground. Alice wasn’t really sure any more how long they’d been there. She probably could have worked it out. Her twenty-four hour watch was slipping behind Landfall
’
s twenty-eight and a half hour rotation by a consistent amount, but the calculation got longer each day and increasingly didn
’
t seem worth the bother. The artificial lights gave some kind of idea what part of the day it was on the surface and that was enough. At first they simply sat around waiting for the all clear and their return to the daylight. If the marines stationed at the main entrance knew anything they didn
’
t share it with any of those who pestered them. The cave started to feel less like a shelter and more like a prison. A few people began to get angry and when the marine guards changed shifts their replacements were dressed in responsive armour rather than normal fatigues.

Perhaps the same was happening in the other caves for on the second, or perhaps third day, a senior fleet officer came in. Baden was gone he said and then proceeded to name a number of starships that were known to be destroyed.
Harbinger
, the ship Alice and her group were to have embarked on, was the first name on the list.

The announcement raised more questions than it answered but it did answer the big one. This was real. The people who had been pestering fleet personnel to know when they’d be let out now quietened down. Attitudes to the news varied from person to person. Some couldn’t believe what they had heard and seemed to work hard at convincing themselves it was all some kind of a mistake. Others, when blankets and folding beds were handed out, staked a personal space and apparently settled in for the long haul. Moving among them were fleet officers and NCOs, drawing up lists of who was in the shelter.

Finally, five Earth days after entering the shelter, an officer came for Alice and the rest of the civilians formerly of
Harbinger
.

“
Right, you lot are heading for the surface,
”
he said briskly.
“
There you will report to the Marine command post and make yourselves available to a Major Hillaby.
”

“
To what purpose, Lieutenant?
”
Professor Bhaile asked, indignant at the Lieutenant’s tone.
“
We’re not marines.
”

The Lieutenant glanced up from his computer pad at the professor’s fairly portly figure.

“
No, you
’
re not Mister
…”

“
Professor, thank you.
”

“
Professor
Bhaile, the marines might have a can do attitude, but they don’t attempt the impossible. We know you’re not marines but they need people for non-combat duties. Heaving and hauling mostly.
”

“
B-but-but that’s not what we’re here for!
”
Bhaile spluttered.
“
We are civilian experts in first contact procedure and alien language! We’re not general labourers!
”
Alice and several others joined the indignant clamour.

“
You all signed contract 266B, fixed term employment of civilian contractor on Battle Fleet ship, space-borne installation or off world ground base.
”
The officer raised his voice to be heard over their objections.
“
Point fifteen of the contract states that in the event of war, such individuals may, at the discretion of the officer commanding, be appointed to any non-combat task they can reasonably be expected to complete. This will constitute the norm until such time as hostilities end or that person can be repatriated to Earth, regardless of the length of time outstanding on the contract. Repatriation to Earth is entirely secondary to fleet operational priorities. An individual who refuses to obey lawful orders may, at the discretion of the officer commanding, be confined until end of hostilities or their repatriation to Earth.
”
The Lieutenant didn’t read it all from his computer and instead recited it from memory in the singsong voice of someone who’d already made the same announcement many times. They’d all gone silent in the face of this assault of terms and conditions. For her part Alice was becoming aware of a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. She could remember reading point fifteen before she signed the contract. She’d hesitated but then decided it would never come into effect and put her name on the dotted line. Given the opportunity by their silence, the Lieutenant added a footnote.

“
Admiral Eulenburg has already stated he will place in the guardhouse any individual who has signed a 266B and refuses to obey instructions. I also feel I should inform you that the guardhouse in Douglas Base is located on the surface and is not hardened against weapon strikes. You are in essence being drafted. Now, the only question is, are you going to obey instructions?
”

It was a sullen group of draftees that two hours later stood in front of Major Hillaby. En route to the surface they had been issued with jackets, boots and, more ominously, helmets. They had been joined by a number of other groups of equally upset looking civilians. There were now somewhere between thirty and forty people, all clustered in front of the boxes and weatherproof sheeting that served as the Major’s office. Looking around at the people surrounding her, Alice could see some defiance, some anger, but mostly fear in their faces.

“
Sergeant!
”
the Major bellowed, making everyone jump.

“
Sir?
”
the NCO replied, pushing through the crowd.

“
Sergeant, I was promised a hundred,
”
he snapped waving his hand vaguely towards them all.
“
This does not look like a hundred people.
”

“
Yes sir,
”
the sergeant replied in a calm voice.
“
Them downstairs are having trouble finding the right people. People were thrown willy-nilly into shelters. These are the ones they’ve found so far.
”

“
Wonderful. Just wonderful!
”

“
They are starting to ask for volunteers from general population, sir. They reckon they will have another fifty up here in about an hour,
”
the sergeant continued in the same calm voice.

The Major glared at him for a moment, his fingers drumming furiously on his desk.
“
Alright Cecil,
”
he replied eventually with a sigh.
“
Split them in half and send them east and west. North and South will have to wait their turn.
”

“
Yes sir.
”
the sergeant turned and started to roughly shove people into two clusters. Alice standing on the extreme left of her group was shoved one way, as the rest of them were pushed the other.

“
But
…”
she objected stepping forward.

“
Damn it woman!
”
the Major shouted at her.
“
Would you stay where you
’
re put! You’re only being put into today’s work party, not separated for life!
”

On the other side of widening gap between the two subgroups, Leah gave an encouraging smile before being bundled into a truck.

As she sat on the truck
’
s hard bench, Alice was struck by a terrible sense of loneliness. Ever since she’d first been contracted to the fleet, she
’
d spent almost every moment, awake or asleep, in or around the same group of people. They’d gone through the same basic training course together, and on board
Harbinger
the civilians had kept mostly to themselves. She didn’t know them all equally. Leah she’d known from university and Professor Bhaile was generally benign and banal. Others, like Steward Gore the diplomat, she hardly knew at all, plus there was Malcolm the geologist, a man convinced of his own greatness, that she tried to avoid. But they were all familiar faces. Their leave on Landfall had been the first time in months that she hadn’t been within a few metres of at least half of them. As they all returned for their flight back to
Harbinger
, she’d been glad to see them. Now she was on her own, surrounded by strangers.

They got to the edge of the plateau and turned off road before coming to a halt. Jumping out of the truck, the first thing Alice saw was a machine digging out a deep narrow hole.

“
We’re digging graves?
”
she blurted before she could stop herself. The closest marine heard her.

“
Not just yet luv,
”
he replied.
“
Trench digging - graves for the living. Hey Rob, give Happy here a spade.
”

“
Right’o Corp,
”
another marine replied. He hesitated as he passed her a shovel.
“
Hello Doc,
”
he said to her after a moment.
“
Glad to see you hadn’t got to Baden when it all went runny.
”