Unity

Chapter 10

Lieutenant Briggs was gracious enough to allow our six-person planning group to miss out on the small arms training we had scheduled to plan our next mission. "We don't have a lot of time, so let's get going," I said after we had all gathered next to my bunk. "What do we know?"

"There are two enemy fleets," Jen began, "and it is supposedly a free for all."

"Each round our opponents are going to be tougher," Andy added. "We have to be better prepared and rely less on luck and raw talent to see us through."

"We are going to be fighting next to Jupiter," Rachel added. "There is going to be a lot of hiding places."

"Not to mention intense interference and gravitational eddies from the planet and it's moons," Bruce interjected. "It's going to get messy."

"What is our fleet composition this round?" I asked after a moment of silence.

"We have three battleships, three cruisers, and twenty-seven fighters," Jen answered. "Looks like an easy split into three groups."

"It's a bit heavier on the fighter support this round," Rachel said. "That may work to our advantage in scouting out the enemy."

"I can see two scenarios for an easy win," I stated, pulling out my tablet to start drawing. "The best-case scenario is we come into the fight after the other two flees have engaged. I find that situation highly unlikely, but I would like some plans for it just in case we get lucky. The only other scenario I can see us winning is if all three fleets somehow manage to engage simultaneously. It would be messy and there would be significant losses. If we engage one of the other two fleets before the third joins it, I have a feeling we will lose. Let's hear some ideas on how we can force the situation to benefit us." We kicked around ideas until we received notification from Lieutenant Briggs that it was time to return to our scheduled trainings.

Our current situation found me to be more on edge than usual. Looking at those around me, I could tell they felt less prepared that usual. Our planning didn't yield a single plan, but rather multiple plans depending on what we found after we started. It would have been nice to have a single plan that we knew could easily be followed. We sat in the simulators running through our preflight checklist, waiting for the mission to begin. As the screens powered on, they showed a spectacular view of Jupiter. Fighting near a gravity well that large would be a challenge. It was a challenge that I looked forward to.

"Any signs of either enemy yet?" I asked Ryan, the cadet stationed at the navigation terminal.

"Nothing yet," he answered.

"Nothing from the rest of the fleet," my comms officer answered.

"Order the fleet to drop close to the rings. They should provide some cover if we find ourselves overwhelmed," I commanded. "Order fighters to begin sweeping pattern."

The fighters split into nine groups of three and began looking for any sign of the two enemy fleets. Two of the groups dropped below the rings to scan the underside, while the others scattered. Once they had confirmed the enemy's position, they were to make best speed back to the fleet.

"Open a line to our cruiser." I ordered.

"Mitch here," I heard a moment later.

"Mitch, once we have cleared the space under the rings, take your cruiser below deck. Stay within radio range. You are our secret weapon, so keep energy signatures low, and don't get caught." Just then we received notice that the area below the rings was declared clear. "Mitch, you're a go. Once you are in position standby for further orders."

Mitch's cruiser broke formation and slipped through the ring like a phantom. The fighters returned without sighting any enemy presence. "Open fleet wide comm," I ordered. "All ships let's move forward and stay in formation. They usually don't make us wait too long before seeing the enemy, but they might be making us sweat it out."