Legends

Chapter 12: A Schoonsanity of an Idea!

It was called SAABDeS or Secret Anti-Aircraft/Battleship Defense System. At least that's what Thebaud insisted it be called because Bluenose's coin of PACADA or "Pure American-Canadian Abyssal Destroying Awesomeness" just didn't work! The genius of the system was its simplicity. Once it was understood that modern defense systems didn't work the military set out to create an old fashioned design that could combine with modern weaponry. The best designers stumbled at the task. It required something that wasn't available up until a few months ago. Kanmusu. A little dose of SMSB worked wonders and the system was ready for testing within a week of New Jersey's return. It was NOT ready for combat! But with the cruisers pounding the base from the lake and the wherabouts of the carrier unknown, the rulebook had been thrown out the window. This was the best chance they had of repelling this attack. At least until the reinforcements underway from Norfolk could arrive.

The SAABDes had a serious of gun batteries hidden under the wooden foliage and matching tarps. A main battery of a 7 inch dual mount with a pair of 40 mm quad mounts on either side providing 270 degrees of fire. The rear was protected by a 24 inch armor plate that extended over the gunman's head ensuring full coverage. 6 of the planned 12 batteries were fully operational, one for each of Tegran's squadron. But this would not be easy.

Tegran climbed into her turret and put on her headset. "Turret 4 on line." The others reported in as well. Bluenose had overall command in the number 1 turret located about a mile further east along the shoreline and overlooking the junction with the Tom's River. "Everyone's in position, firing up main generator." She reported.

In order for the turrets to operate they required a lot of power. That power was given through a hydro-electric generator on the bottom of the river. It used the Tom's current to collect the power via a small turbine and send it on to the turrets. There was one issue however. You couldn't pick and chose what turned on. Everything was activated including a very conspicuous radar. Bluenose seemed to know what her companions were thinking. "I'll give it one sweep then shut it down." She said. "That should be enough to keep them from pinpointing us. But enough for us to get a lock on them." They would have one shot. The thick foliage would prevent them from firing a second accurate shot without turning the radar back on. It was a fine balancing act. One they could not afford to get wrong.

Thebaud who had direct access to the radar as she was closest to the tower, did a countdown. "Bluenose, initiate start up sequence... now!" Halfway between the river and the western shore of the lake the previously dormant radar tower, disguised as a lighthouse, came to life. Armor plates retracted, revealing the delicate equipment. It began to turn, providing them all with real time information of the topography around them and more importantly what ships were in the vicinity and where! It was so sophisticated that one sweep was all it took. Thebaud killed the switch and as quickly as it appeared the radar was gone, back into the false lighthouse.

"FIRE!!" The six manned mounts spoke as one, the rail gun technology incorporated into each mount allowed the 7 inch shells to streak across the water at nearly 7 times the speed of sound. The simple design worked! And the Abyssals immediately felt its sting. Two cruisers went up in flames as the armor piercing rounds went straight into their deepest holds and detonated. One Abyssal broke its back and sank almost instantly. The other wished she was dead as fire quickly spread through all her decks. A special feature of these shells as even if they didn't pierce the hull they could still cause fatal damage due to the napalm stored in the aft section. It had been Bluenose's idea, implemented last Friday. Only a few of these shells had these and all came from Tegran's mount. There had been no time to load all the mounts with these new shells. The seven inchers fell silent after one volley but the anti-aircraft guns continued to belch fire, guided by a secondary radar system based on the brilliance of the Iowa's. Tegran, Chatelin, and Portland aimed theirs at the Abyssals, the small but powerful depleted uranium rounds chewing up the cruiser's decks and distracting them from their duties. Bluenose, Thebaud, and Davis concentrated their fire on the retreating aircraft as they flew back to the carrier. Those that made it through were swiftly dealt with by Olympia and Normandie. Only a handful escaped the gauntlet.

Tegran was beginning to think that the battle was turning in her favor as the leading Ne-class began to pull her remaining ships out of there, leaving the burning Ho behind for the gunmounts to finish it off. That's when the Ne made a 180, her fleet continuing on downriver to presumably create a distraction on Normandy for their flagship to escape. The Ne's position indicated to Tegran that they'd been spotted. Or at least Bluenose had. She was the closest and the most exposed to the cruiser on the river. Thebaud immediately got on the radio to warn her companion. "Bluenose, get out of there!" She roared. There was a double click as Bluenose tried to obey as swiftly as she could. But it was clear she would not escape in time. Thebaud reactivated the radar and routed it through her mount alone. It was a move of pure desperation but it worked. The Ne redirected her guns to the easier target and fired.

Of the four 8 inch guns that fired, only 1 of the shells hit any where near the mark. The remaining 3 struck either the foliage, one destroyed the beach and another went high and landed inside Whiting which Tegran was sure would earn her some angry phone calls. The last shell was right on target, its angle striking the armor plate from above at its weakest point. The armor on top was only 8 inches thick. Since the turrets were in the jungle the thought was that plunging shellfire would not be a concern. It was now. Inside, Thebaud knew what was coming and instinctively she ducked out of her chair, huddling under the console.

The Ne was smart enough to load AP rounds and given how close she was, there was no doubting it. The round went straight through. The explosion was directed through the path of least resistance, straight out the other side of the turret. The side armor bulged, then gave way allowing the gases to escape. In her turret a mile away, Tegran felt her ears ring and her teeth vibrate. She couldn't imagine what it felt like to be closer.

"THEBAUD!!!" Bluenose's agonized scream sounded over the radio. "THEBAUD PLEASE RESPOND!!" Tegran ground her teeth together as did everyone on the team as they waited for a reply. The only one they got was a secondary explosion as the remaining rounds in the magazine went off leaving a flaming ruin that was most certainly Thebaud's funeral pyre.