Star People

Chapter 38

The Long Fall

Feb 14^th, 13 AE, Day four of Operation Star Point…

0630 hours, 350 miles from the Juno Beach landing…

Lieutenant Irgi Vensto shook his head as he watched the column of Atlans tanks and a few Scrappers rumble past his position. He was sitting on a high branch in a nearby grove of trees. As a dedicated sniper of the Zedan Special Forces, he already had 125 confirmed kills to his name from previous conflicts. However, during this war with Free Land and its allies, he hadn’t been able to score a single hit. Even with him using his specialized, armor-piercing ammunition, he couldn’t penetrate the glass windshields of the Scrapper mechs.

What he didn’t know was that the ‘glass’ windshields were actually made of transparent, crystallized hyper-durlenium. There was no way Vensto’s 7.7mm, armor-piercing rounds could scratch the surface, even at point-blank range. Every time he tried, the bullets would either bounce off or shatter into fragments.

As of now, he was waiting in his hiding spot, hoping that one of the commanders of the older-looking Atlans tanks would stick his head out. However, they weren’t cooperating and remained buttoned up inside their vehicles. Then to his surprise, the column stopped as one of the Scrappers turned towards his position and raised an arm. Irgi then heard a voice on a loudspeaker. To his surprise, it was a female voice.

“Whoever is hiding in those trees and pointing a rifle at us, I suggest you drop your weapon, climb down and surrender!”

The Scrapper then aimed its arm toward the right and fired off a blast from its shot-burst cannon. The blast completely blew off the tops of the trees just a few meters away from Irgi’s position. The shockwave nearly knocked him off his perch. The Zedan sniper soiled himself, as he saw the carnage that had almost befallen him.

“That’s the only warning shot you’ll get!” The pilot of the Scrapper announced as she shifted the mech’s arm to the left and aimed directly at Irgi’s spot in the trees. “The next shot will turn that tree into splinters and you into a bloody mist!”

A few seconds later, there was a small thud on the ground as Irgi dropped his rifle. A few more seconds later, Irgi walked out of the grove with his hands held up high in surrender.

Inside her Scrapper, Commander Dale Nixan nodded as she signaled to a nearby Atlans tank crew to take the enemy sniper prisoner. Thanks to the advanced sensors of the Scrappers, it was no challenge to scan for possible booby traps, ambushes and snipers. As a result, casualties among the allied ground forces were kept to a minimum.

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0800 hours…

Emperor Zendara nodded in satisfaction as the Barada bomber began to taxi toward the takeoff runway. It only had a single bomb, but it would soon cause the Free Land forces to tremble in fear and be willing to negotiate. He had ignored their demands for unconditional surrender; thinking that the Ender Bomb would more than enough to convince them that such a demand was ludicrous.

Thanks to its revolutionary design and its composition of rare materials, the Barada bomber would easily slip past their radar and devastate their forces. He had already chosen a target, the beach landings at Omaha. Once they had destroyed a huge number of the Free Land forces, the Kingdoms of Atlans and Naran would surely crumble and withdraw.

At that moment, the Barada started gaining speed as it slowly lifted off the runway.

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0915 hours, a secret location In the Zedan capital…

“So the Grand Leader has already launched the Barada with the Ender Bomb?” General Himro asked.

Major Vero nodded while giving off a depressed sigh. “There’s no turning back now. The target is the greatest concentration of Free Land forces, what the enemy has termed as Omaha Beach.”

“That’s insane! Does he not realize the number of POWs in that area? Not only will the Ender Bomb wipe out the enemy, but also a good number of our own men! Not to mention that the entire area will be rendered uninhabitable for centuries!”

“He declared that sacrifices were necessary. He’s… under the delusion that this demonstration of the Ender Bomb’s power will be enough to force Free Lend to enter negotiations… perhaps even get them to offer us new territories.”

“I do not see that happening.” The general said with a somber tone. “Considering the power of Free Land, this will only cause the war to be escalated.”

“Can we not tell the Barada pilot to turn back?”

“Unfortunately, the pilot has been ordered to be under strict radio silence. He will not respond to any incoming transmissions until after his mission is completed.”

“If only we had gotten Operation Kilgari started sooner!” The major lamented.

The plan to perform a coup d’tat, named Operation Kilgari after General Rommet’s ship, the Kilgari, had just been approved by all the remaining members of Zedan’s upper military staff and government. However, the launch of the Barada and the Ender Bomb may make the attempt to overthrow Zendara meaningless. If the bomb did make Free Land back off then trying to overthrow the Grand Leader would be seen as treason, (which It was), and all those involved and their families, would be executed. However, if the bomb did not make Free Land back off and escalates the war, (which is very likely), then there was a definite possibility that Zedan would be annihilated.

It was now all up to fate.

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1115 hours, Omaha Beach…

“Captain? I’m picking up something approaching towards us at high-speed and high altitude.” The Missouri’s navigator announced.

“What is it?” Mark asked as he and his wife were looking over the tactical map on the main holo-viewer. Just about all three fronts were now halfway across the midland areas of the Zedan continent with the Free Land forces leading the charge.

Ensign Taichen nodded as she brought up the readings on a separate holo-panel. “I’m not too certain. It seems to be some kind of aircraft, but its radar signature is highly-reduced.”

“I have been in contact with our Atlans and Naran allies, and they say they detect nothing on their radar and magic detectors.” Lieutenant Visera announced.

“Considering how primitive the Atlans radar is in comparison to ours, I’m not surprised.” Mark commented. “And since the Zedan don’t use psions; the Naran magic detectors are virtually useless. So what exactly are we detecting?”

There was a long stretch of silence as the bridge crew pondered for a bit. Then the third-in-command came up with a theory.

“Lieutenant… boost the gain on the sensor emitter array and try some phase-shift modulations. I have a theory.”

“Aye, Sir.”

The image on the second holo-panel gradually became clearer as the Catian navigator worked the sensor array controls. Harken nodded as he recognized the general shape of the craft.

“Hmmm, as I suspected. A flying wing… and it’s jet-propelled.”

“A flying wing?” Reelan asked.

“I remember reading about them.” Mark nodded in agreement. “Back during the 1930s and 40s on Earth, aviation pioneers like the Horten brothers of Germany and Jack Northrop of the United States experimented with tail-less aircraft. In addition to having greater lift and range, the flying wing also produced a low radar signature. It was among the first examples of stealth technology. They came up with the B-2 stealth bomber of the late 1980s. If it wasn’t for the fact that our radar and sensors are more advanced, we might not have picked up that aircraft.”

“So do you think it’s another one of Zedan’s secret weapons?” Mark’s wife asked.

“It’s a possibility. Both Naran and Atlans do not have this kind of aircraft technology in their arsenals. And before anyone asks, the answer is yes, we are going to destroy it before our allies get a hold of it.”

“So what do you think is the reason that plane is heading toward us?” Harken asked.

“Considering that it is approaching at a very high altitude and is not transmitting any communication signals, I’d speculate that it intends to attack us.” He turned to the navigator. “Ensign Taichen, begin a tachyon field sweep in the area of the intruder. Let’s get a better look at our visitor.”

“Aye, Sir.”

Again, the Catian manipulated the sensor arrays. The display on the secondary holo-panel became crystal clear as the Captain and his First and Second Officers got a good look at the Barada bomber.

“Interesting. It looks like a larger version of a Byatta Heavy Fighter.” Reelan commented.

“I don’t see any offensive weapons.” The Catian third-in-command remarked. “That bulge on its belly could be a bomb bay.”

“Considering its shape and its low radar signature, I’d say it’s definitely a bomber.” Mark stated. “A stealth bomber… and I think I can guess what kind of payload it’s carrying.”

“You don’t suppose…?” The First Officer asked.

“You read the reports from the infiltration team. The ruler of the Zedan is more than willing to use such weapons, even if it’s on his own native soil.”

“So you think that bomber is on its way to drop an atomic weapon on us?”

“That would be the most likely scenario. Right now, the Zedan are being pushed back on all sides. They’re being cornered and I think this may be a plan out of desperation. By now, they have to know that their conventional weapons are practically useless against us.”

“So they’d resort to a weapon of mass destruction?! They’ll be killing many of their own soldiers! We have a considerable number of POWs at Omaha Beach.”

“I’d say that the best course of action is to shoot down that bomber before it can get close enough to drop its payload.” Harken suggested.

“Yes, that would be the best move… if it really was carrying an atomic weapon.” Mark then addressed the Catian navigator. “Lieutenant, scan for any radioactive or nuclear material aboard that bomber.”

“Aye, Sir.” The female feline worked the sensor controls and replied a moment later. “Sensors indicate that there is no weapons-grade plutonium, uranium or any other radioactive material aboard that aircraft. However there is a considerable amount of Element Atomic Number 82 and trace amounts of Triderium Isotope 7.”

“Element Atomic Number 82 and Triderium Isotope 7, eh?” Mark smirked as he realized what that bomber’s payload consisted of.

“Element Atomic Number 82?” Harken repeated with some puzzlement. “Is that what I think it is?”

“It seems that the infiltration team we sent to Zedan had done its work well.” Reelan said as she also realized what the bomber was going to drop on Omaha.

Mark pondered for a bit longer before making a decision. “Lieutenant, signal to all nearby forces in the area. Tell them not to shoot down that enemy aircraft. Let it through.”

“Sir?” The communications officer asked in confusion.

“Don’t worry. We will take all necessary precautions and use our barrier technology just in case. They can easily withstand up to 100 megatons with no strain. Make certain they all merge and extend their barriers to their maximum ranges. Have all radiation and emergency teams on standby. I’m about ninety-nine percent certain they won’t be needed, but I’m taking no chances. Acknowledged, Lieutenant?”

“Aye, Sir.” Visera turned back to her console in order to relay Mark’s instructions to the other Star Alliance vessels and ground forces.

“You’re going to let them drop the bomb?” His wife asked.

“We’re going to give the Zedan a demonstration of how useless their weapons and tactics are. If we shoot that bomber before it drops its payload, they’ll just send another without realizing that their atomic stockpiles have been neutralized. The Council has decided that it’s time to finish this war, and having them seeing their ultimate weapon fail may hasten its conclusion.”

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1230 hours, 10 km above Omaha Beach…

Captain Irsto Cardon nodded as he sighted his target area through his bombsight. He was a bit surprised that he had managed to get this far into enemy territory, but decided that it was due to Zedan superior technology that allowed him to bypass the enemy radar. Now he was about to strike a blow against the hated enemy and prove to all that Zedan has no equal!

His bomber was the epitome of Zedan aviation and he was now over the largest concentration of Free Land forces, which included several battleships, cruisers and ground troops. When his crosshairs lined up, he took a deep breath and pressed the switch to open the bomb bay doors. At that moment, he triggered the arming switch to the Ender Bomb and let it fall towards its target. He immediately  began pulling away as he didn’t want to be within the blast radius when the bomb detonated.

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On the Missouri…

“Captain, the bomber has just released its payload and is now pulling away.” Harken announced.

“Are all forces deploying their defense barriers?” Mark asked as he watched the image of the bomb plummeting toward the ground by the main holo-viewer. The Ender Bomb was a virtual copy of the Little Boy uranium bomb that had been dropped on Hiroshima on Aug 6, 1945. It had square tailfin stabilizers and its warhead was round and bulbous.

“Affirmative. “ Reelan replied. “All defense barriers are up and fully operational. All radiation containment and emergency crews are on standby.”

“Ensign Taichen, what is the reading and ETA of that bomb?”

The Catian navigator nodded as she gave him the readouts. “Bomb is showing as armed, but its payload is still reading zero on the radiation scale. At its rate of fall, it will impact the ground in 7 seconds… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… impact!”

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BOOMPH!

The bomb slammed hard into the ground and a good portion of it sunk into the soil. It had kicked up a sizeable amount of dust but the expected gigantic explosion and mushroom cloud did not appear. Of course, what would one expect when the nuclear payload had been completely transmuted into Element Atomic Number 82 aka Lead?

The Barada bomber pilot was in a state of shock as he had witnessed the ultimate weapon drop like a stone and hit the ground like a lead weight. He had been expecting to be fighting the resulting shockwave and buffeting air currents. He had been expecting a huge spike in the atmospheric radiation levels. He had no way of knowing that he had literally dropped a huge lead weight.

At that point, Captain Cardon broke radio silence and contacted his home base.

“This is Captain Cardon of Barada #25! The operation is a failure! I repeat, the operation is a failure. The Ender Bomb did not detonate! I repeat, the Ender Bomb did not detonate! Returning to base!”

Unfortunately for the Zedan Captain, he wouldn’t make it back to base. Two starfighters, a Star Hawk and a Byatta had been monitoring the communication frequencies. Once they had picked up Cardon’s report of the failed atomic bombing, they were ordered to shoot the Barada bomber down.

Colonel Michael Dayston nodded to his Kyteeri counterpart Valaria. The two were currently dating and Michael was planning on proposing to Valaria when the mission was over. The Star Hawk pilot easily made his fighter get into position and let loose with a short burst with his kinetic accelerator guns. The rounds easily shredded through the port wing of the bomber near one of its engines. He then let his girlfriend finish the bomber off with a blast from her positron cannons, taking out the other engine.

Captain Cordon winced as the shots hit home. With both engines trailing smoke and failing, he had no choice but to engage the ejector seat. His canopy blew off, exposing him to the cold air as small rockets beneath his chair propelled him out of his doomed aircraft. The seat fell away as his parachute deployed, allowing him to float slowly down towards the ground. His bomber broke apart into several flaming pieces as the Star Hawk and Byatta streaked past. He could only helplessly float down, where he would immediately be captured and spend the rest of the war as a POW.

A war that wouldn’t last much longer after the failure of the Ender Bomb.

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1350 hours, a secret office near the Zedan Capital…

“Did you hear the report from the Barada bomber?” Major Vero asked.

“I heard. The Ender Bomb failed. “ General Himro said with great concern in his voice. “The upper staff of Research & Development suspects that it was some kind of sabotage. They’ve begun inspecting our stockpiles of Zedanium and they’re finding them to be either transmuted into their inert forms or is in the process of doing so. They’re practically worthless now.”

“So does that mean that Free Land already knew about our ultimate weapons?”

“I find it impossible to believe, but there’s no other explanation. How else would they know to neutralize the Zedanium?”

“So does this mean…?”

“Yes. With our greatest weapon rendered as useless, there’s no hope for us to stand against Free Land and its might. Our Grand Leader will still not consider surrender and will order all of our remaining forces to fight to the last man. Operation Kilgari may be our only hope to save Zedan.”

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1540 hours…

In his private chambers in his underground bunker, Emperor Zendara tore the report into shreds. To think that Zedan’s most powerful weapon had failed and that their stockpiles of Zedanium had been sabotaged. He had gone a tirade and ranted that his generals were ignorant, stupid fools to have allowed this to happen! It wasn’t his fault that Zedan was losing ground against Free Land. Now with the Ender Bomb being rendered useless, it would only be a matter of time before Free Land and its allies reached the capital city.

Zendara wasn’t going to let that happen! He’d sooner see the entire continent of Zedan a barren wasteland than to see it defeated by some foreign nation! The Zedan’s long history was that of them being the conquerors, not as the conquered. And he would not see his nation suffer such a disgrace.

Unknown to his own military and government, as well as the Free Land infiltration team, the stockpiles of Zedanium that were used to create Ender Bombs had not been their only supply. When the Ender Bomb had been created, Zendara had secretly commissioned a team of engineers to create a system of Micro-Ender Bombs beneath the capital city and near the geological focal points of the continent. This was to be a Scorched Earth Plan should the Zedan nation ever encountered an invading foe that it could not defeat.

Zendara had never thought that his country would be pushed into such a situation. However, if Zedan could not win this war, then he was going to make certain to take down as many of the enemy as he could. At the moment before the capital fell into enemy hands, he was going to destroy them all!

To be continued…

Author’s Notes

The first new chapter of the New Year. Sorry, but I was caught up in family business during the holidays.