ALTERNATE TALES OF THE STAR FORCE
STAR BLAZERS---FROM BOREDOM TO UTTER DISBELIEF
Being the first part of THE NEW COMET--- BY: Frederick P. Kopetz
(Thanks to Derek A.C. Wakefield for technical assistance lent in the creation of this installment---Freddo)
ACT FIVE: TURPITZ'S ATTACK
I. TURPITZ REPORTS
Main Operations Room
The Eritz Gatlantis
Saturday, June 8, 2205
0610 Hours: Earth Time
"Well, what do you have to report?" asked Princess Invidia in a haughty tone as she looked down at the deck screen on the new Gatlantis that currently held an image of General Turpitz, commander of her carrier forces near Earth.
"Success,
Princess," said Turpitz. "Our attack upon Earth's energy transmission
system worked well. I've created planet-wide panic. Would you like to see these
images?"
Invidia nodded. "Show me!"
Across the screen, transmitted from several reconnaissance Scorpion boats, there came images of a dim, cloudy and blacked-out morning that hauntingly resembled those seen in one evening of September of 2201 when Zordar had begun his attack upon Earth. A splendid beginning, thought Invidia as she watched the images of chaos, fear, and car crashes that the Scorpions were transmitting. Just like when Father began his attack. This time, it should go well...
"How are the other preparations going?" asked Invidia. "What about the Argo...that old wreck...why did they have to rename her?"
"I'm unsure, Princess," said Turpitz. "At any rate, we have discovered she is in dock at Pluto, repairing her damage from the previous battle. Colonel Schaza is currently readying a second attack."
"Excellent," said Invidia. "Report back to me when Schaza has the victory."
"I'm sure she will be pleased to report a victory," said Turpitz with a smile. "And I'm sure Earth will remain dark and gloomy for a while, as well."
"Yes! A perfect day to mark the funeral rites of the Star Force!" laughed Invidia. "I hope to hear from you soon."
"You shall." At that, Turpitz faded from the screen.
"Well, Dyre," said Invidia. "The first stage of my plan is almost completed. When the Earth is rid of Star Force and my father is avenged, we shall go on to defeat Desslok. Do you know where he is?"
"Our intelligence forces state that he is on a mission in the Small Magellenic Cloud at the moment, eighty lightyears from a new Gamilon base in a system known as Vactura Major. We briefly held a base there after the demise of the Gamilon Empire in the fourth year of Zordar's reign, right before we captured Rotella. I have dispatched General Skaran to the area. I'm sure he will be delighted to lead the attack on Desslok's fleet."
"Yes. He never liked that Gamilon when Desslok stayed with us on Father's first fortress. "
"I believe they wished to duel at one point, Princess?"
"They did. Unfortunately, Father put a stop to it. It would have been an interesting duel."
"Yes, it would?"
"I wonder how the Earthlings are faring now," purred Invidia, "in the near-dark of their gloomy sunrise?"
"They're probably petrified," laughed Dyre.
At the Space Fighters' Training School, Brew was sneaking out a fire exit with Wakefield.
"You're sure this isn't gonna get our butts punished?" asked Brewski.
"If it does, it does," said Wakefield. "I'm not gonna sit around in there scratchin' my crotch and waiting for the officers to give the all-clear. I wanna do a little recon and find out what's going on now..."
"You'll be sorry," said Brew.
"Shut up," whispered Wakefield as he jimmied the door's safety catch with a bit of wire so the fire alarm wouldn't go off. Then, he popped the latch itself at the doorjamb with a plastic card from the gedunk canteen. "Got it. Hatch open."
"This thing better not go off," muttered Brew as he slipped into the dim morning light with Wakefield. Both cadets had pulled on sweat pants, t-shirts, and sneakers for their unauthorized excursion. Following Wakefield's lead, Brew slipped past a bush and they went around to the edge of one of the quadrangles.
"Shhhh," said Wakefield.
"What?"
"I hear something. Hush."
Soon, Brew also heard the same sound that Wakefield heard. It was a grumbling, whooshing noise overhead that sounded like a cross between an old diesel engine and a turbojet.
"What?" said Brew as he looked up....and then, and only then, did he see the alien ship that was making the noise.
"I'll be damned," said Wakefield as he looked up. "A Cometine Scorpion. Recon model! Wish I had a weapon now. Won't be the first time I've been in battle...you know the story, Brew..."
"Yeah. But the plane...Comet Empire...again?" muttered Brew.
"That makes sense. In 2201, they had a blackout. Now, in 2205, we have..."
"A blackout they probably caused," said Brew. "Shooot!"
"We've gotta report this."
"But they'll know we snuck out," said Brew. "We'll get area punishment hours for sure...I don't feel like marching around with a rifle all day..."
"Yeah...we'll get that...but we'll be doing the right thing," said Wakefield.
"Okay...we'll do it," said Brew. "One thing."
"Yeah?"
"You made me do it..."
"Hell, you came out here of your own free will. Brew, you do the crime..."
"You gotta pay the time," said Brew with a sigh. "Got you."
II. PLUTO...AGAIN
Captain's Cabin
Space Battleship Argo
Saturday, June 8, 2205
0630 Hours: Earth Time
"It feels good," said Nova Wildstar as she stretched up onto her toes near the large console in the cabin she and Derek again shared after she zipped up her yellow Star Force uniform in the back. "Even with that burn on my thigh..."
"What feels good?" asked Derek as he sat with his nose in his computerized logbook.
"Getting into my old uniform again!" said Nova with a laugh. "How do I look?"
Commodore Wildstar grinned a little. "Looks like you've been eating too good on the Danube, Commander."
"What?"
"You've put on about a kilo," teased Wildstar.
"No I haven't!" said Nova. "And you didn't say anything even with what I had on last night..."
"Didn't notice then," said Derek.
"And you're noticing a so-called gain of weight now," huffed Nova. "I mean...look at this tight thing. It shows everything...it shows me about as well as what I had on under my negligee last night."
Derek grinned at her.
"If you say one more word," said Nova. "I'll dump this tomato juice in your hair..."
"Can I say something?"
Nova walked over with the juice; then she held it over her husband's head. "Make one more crack..."
"You looked good in what you had on last night," said Derek.
"Thanks," said Nova with a blush. "Even...uh...?"
"Even in nothing," said Derek with a sweet smile.
"Thank you," said Nova. "Now, you'll get this juice, and...then..."
"Then what?"
"Then, Derek, maybe I'll give you a nice, good-morning kiss with your tomato juice..."
"Thanks...I think I'm gonna need it with all the repair work we've got to do today..."
Nova bent down
towards her husband.
But then, both of them were startled a moment later when someone began to bang on the hatch outside.
"What?" said Nova as she set down the juice on a counter band then stepped back and abruptly stood up straight.
"Don't they know enough to use the intercom?" said Wildstar as he thumbed a switch. The mike came up, but nothing came out of the speaker. "Dead? Nova, answer that?"
Nova nodded and she opened the hatch. "Domon?" she said.
Domon saluted and said, "Ma'am, tell the Captain that the Commander wants to talk to him below on the first bridge. He doesn't know why he can't reach him here."
"Shipboard comm system's out," said Wildstar. "Tell the Commander I'll be below in a moment. Nova, you go ahead and I'll join you on the bridge."
"Yessir," said Nova with a salute, all business now.
On the bridge,
Commodore Wildstar looked up at the main screen at the Commander of the Earth
Defense Forces with disbelief.
"Another blackout?" said Wildstar.
"Right. And we've received confirmation that it was caused by the Comet Empire. How soon can the Argo leave dock to assist in the investigation?"
"Sir, we were hoping to be done with the repairs in six hours; but if I assign more hands to the work, I can have the ship repaired in two hours and off-planet a half-hour after that."
"That means that the Argo can take off at 0900?"
"Yessir."
"Good. At 0900, you'll leave Pluto and then assist us in searching the solar system near the Jupiter region. That's where we think the enemy might be. I have First Fleet on its way there now, and I have the Arizona checking some signals she detected near the site of Brumus."
"We'll be ready for them, sir," said Wildstar. He and General Singleton exchanged salutes, and then the screen went dark.
Wildstar shrugged off his coat. "Everyone; we've got work to do. Sandor, how are the repairs going up here?"
"We need to
check and recheck the network connections to the rest of the ship," he
replied. "Nova?"
She nodded and got a clipboard.
A moment later, Domon noticed that Wildstar was on his knees on the deck opening up access panels by Domon's station.
"Sir, what are you doing?" asked Domon.
"Checking those connections. Nova, could you help me get to those network cards? Some of them are a little hard to pull out..."
"No problem, Derek...."
At that, Derek and Nova, assisted by Domon, got to work on checking out the weapons systems....
III. ...ELSEWHERE
Earth
Space Fighters' Training School
Commandant's Office
Saturday, June 8, 2205
0743 Hours: Earth Time
"Deke, I told you we'd get into trouble," said Brew as he and Wakefield stood at attention in the Commandant's outer office after they had been caught outside just as the power came back on.
"I told them what we saw," said Wakefield. "Maybe we'll get a commendation?"
"Maybe we're gonna get expelled, Sticks."
"Gentlemen,"
said the Commandant as he opened the door and came in. Both midshipmen snapped
to attention and then saluted. Rear Admiral DeLong, the Commandant of the
Academy, returned the salute and then began to read a report that a
lower-ranking officer had left on his secretary's desk when he had ushered
Cadets Wakefield and Marrable into the room.
"It looks like you spotted something important out there," said the Commandant.
"Sir," said Wakefield. "It looked like a Reconnaissance Scorpion, Class Two-B. It had its scanner on, and was photographing the Academy grounds while they were blacked out. Then it flew off."
"How do you know it was photographing the grounds?"
"It had its belly scanner on; the one in the lower nose portion."
"How fast was it going?"
"A bit over a hundred and twenty knots, I estimate," said Marrable. "She was about 400 meters off the deck. Pretty low."
"I see. Good observation. Could you sketch the boat for us, men?"
"I could, sir," said Wakefield.
"So could I, sir," said Marrable.
The Commandant handed them pads and pens. "Do a rough sketch now. This may be important for Command. As for...your actions during the incident. They can't be wholly excused, of course. You do know that you two were ordered to remain indoors beforehand?"
"Yessir," said Deke and Brew together.
"All right. We can handle this easily. For the infraction; fifteen hours' worth of punishment tours for you two. As for your observations, it might lead to a commendation. However, you do know that discipline is to be maintained at all times?"
"We do, sir," said Wakefield, who was nodding to himself inside about the area time. Bad, but not as bad as I expected.
"I may need to see you two again," said the Commandant. "That would be, of course, in a meeting with other officers. Are you done with the sketches?"
"Sir," said Marrable as he handed over his sketch. Wakefield did the same a moment later.
"Sufficient," nodded DeLong. "You two are dismissed. Be sure to see Lieutenant Collins to set up your punishment tours."
"Yessir," said the cadets. They stood, saluted, and left. After they left the office, Admiral DeLong looked at the sketches. Then, nodding to himself, he began to make a phone call...
IV. ANOTHER ATTACK
Pluto
Space Battleship Argo
First Bridge
Saturday, June 8, 2205
0833 Hours: Earth Time
"How are the engine repairs going?" asked Sandor on the First Bridge of the Argo just as Eager and Nova slammed an access panel shut at the radar.
"We're reconnecting the main power links now," said Yamazaki from below. "We think we can take the ship off dockyard power and start the auxiliary engines in five minutes. We can give Kitano power for takeoff soon after that."
"Great," said Wildstar. "I'm getting a weird feeling about this, though."
"Why, sir?" said Domon from the Combat station.
"If I were you, I'd trust his hunches," said Kitano. "They usually come true."
"How's the radar goin', Nova?" asked Eager.
"I'm rebooting it now," said Nova from her post.
"How's the main
guns?" asked Wildstar as he walked over to Ensign Nishina's post. Nishina
was the new gunnery officer, who had replaced Paul Rosstowski, who was now on
the Arizona as Captain Venture's Combat Group Leader.
"Ready to go," said Nishina as he smiled and gave a thumbs-up. "All I need is power."
"Great," said Wildstar. "Now, let's..."
Nova had just finished turning on the radar. Her eyes nearly popped out of her head when the screen came on and she noticed that it was suddenly covered with blips. "WHAT?" she said. "We're surrounded!"
"What was that?" asked Commodore Wildstar.
They got their answer a moment later when missiles began to hit outside.
"There's...thirty...forty...no...fifty
planes around us!" said Nova. "And they just appeared from out of
nowhere! I don't understand this!"
"Main screen on!" snapped Wildstar.
"Switch on!" replied Nova. The screen came up; it showed an image of about fifty Cometine Scorpions approaching the dockyard. Then, it abruptly went dark.
"What's wrong with it?" yelled Domon.
"The power just went out!" cried Nova. "Sandor, we're blind!"
"Deaf, too," said Homer as his panel went dark. "Comm systems are out!"
Then, outside, there came hit after hit around the Argo and her dock as many, many enemy missiles hit home. In the base, many officers, men, and women died at their posts as the surprise attack decimated building after building on the base.
Not far away, the Thames fired back, but three hits turned her into a smoking wreck in her dock. Then, a moment later, Nova's instruments came back up, followed by Eager's, although Homer's comm systems and the other instruments on the port side of the bridge remained dark, along with the lighting in the overhead.
It was virtually a
second Pearl Harbor Day here on Pluto, but it wasn't 1941, it was 2205. And,
the effects of this attack were even worse as heavy fire from two Cometine
battleships blasted in and blew the base Headquarters building apart.
In her dock, the Argo was now smoking, and if the fire one of those enemy battleships hit home, she would be finished before she could even take off to sortie. That wasn't the sort of fate Wildstar wanted for his command. "Hardy!" snapped Wildstar. "Launch from the upper fighter bays!"
"Can't," he replied as the ghastly light of the Danube blowing apart in her dock with all hands lost flashed outside in the windows.
"Why not?"
"Wildstah, we got no power! I can't fly a Tiger through a closed blast hatch!"
"Yamazaki, we need power!" said Wildstar. "Engine room! Respond!"
"We've got some major short circuits down here. They knew right where to hit us!" said Yamazaki.
"I'm going down to help," said Sandor. Wildstar nodded his assent.
"How'd they get those planes on top of us like that?" asked Wildstar.
"I dunno," said Eager. "And there's five more, look!"
"They're using SMITE technology," said Nova in a very grim voice a moment later.
"What?" asked Domon.
"They're using the Gamilon Instant Matter Transmitter technology," said Nova. "I'd recognize it anywhere. The Comet Empire must have retrofitted their ships with it! Brace for second wave of missiles!"
Another wave hit all
around the Argo's dock, causing quite a few fires and quite a bit of
damage in the space battleship. Damage control would be very difficult without
full power to power the foam pumping systems.
If we don't move, thought Wildstar to himself as he sat back down at the Captain's post after taking off his peacoat, we're a sitting duck!
As he sat in thought, with a short-circuiting light illuminating him from above, he sat as if in prayer, and thought, God, if I ever needed Captain Avatar's wisdom, now's the time. Captain, are you there? Send me some inspiration, please. What would you do at a time like this?
Captain, he thought again. What would you do?
Then, a sudden inspiration came to Wildstar's mind. He sat up, and prepared to snap out an order....
TO BE CONTINUED....
To Return to the Introduction to The New Comet, click here