Chapter 200: Chapter 200

We were all at our positions when the Demeter dropped out of jump, and as usual I began a routine sensor sweep of the immediate vicinity while Rebecca verified our position and heading. And when everything checked out we continued on our approach to Deveron-8.

Not much had changed since my last visit to that world, with one big exception. And I found myself staring at it on the sensor readouts.

The cruiser VDS Tullrohane was easily ten times the size of the Hammersmith, and she looked a hundred times more impressive. She was practically brand new, all gleaming white hull plates and pristine gun ports. I knew a ship that size would have a crew of at least two hundred, plus a few dozen marines to handle boarding or surface actions. Although I realized this ship would be carrying my girlfriend's royal guard instead of Imperium marines.

According to my sensors the Tullrohane had positioned herself in a high orbit that kept her stationary above the planet's capital city. That made sense given it let her keep a close eye on any incoming ships, while also monitoring the planet's port area. And it meant she was able to stay in direct contact with the Deveronian government.

I also noticed a pair of smaller contacts on my sensor screen. Those turned out to be a couple light fighters, flying a standard patrol mission around the cruiser.

"Merchant Vessel Demeter," a young man's voice suddenly came through the comm, "Welcome back to the Deveron system! This is Tullrohane approach control. Do you require a vector down to the port, or will you be docking with us?"

The boss gestured that she'd handle the call, then reached for her mic. "VDS Tullrohane, this is the Demeter. Is that Ensign Rowan? I'm looking to meet with Lady Magniveen, so if she's with you then we'll be heading your way. Otherwise I expect we'll be continuing on down to the capital."

The young man sounded very pleased as he replied, "Your highness, I'm honoured you remembered me! As far as I know Lady Magniveen is still in the capital. Sending you a landing vector now."

"Thank you ensign," Rebecca smiled.

As soon as the channel was closed Jenny commented, "We've received the vector, I've routed it to your helm console."

"And thank you Jenny," the boss said with another smile. Then as she changed course to follow it down she suggested, "Amanda why don't you see if you can get your sister on the comm? Let her know we're en route, I'm sure she'll be happy to see you."

My tail started wagging as I set the comm to our encrypted local frequency, "MV Artemis this is MV Demeter calling. Nyssa, are you around? We've just started our descent, we should be in the capital in about fifteen minutes."

I ended up waiting a full minute for a response before shaking my head, "I guess she's not with the ship. If I know Nyssa she's probably off partying."

"It's just shortly after sunrise in the capital," Jenny pointed out. "That seems rather late, or early, to be out partying. Perhaps your sister is asleep?"

That made me smile, "This is Nyssa we're talking about. Partying all night long isn't that -"

"Amanda!" my sister's voice suddenly came through the speaker. There was a tinny quality to her tone, which told me she was using her handheld commlink rather than the comm suite in the Artemis.

All that was forgotten a moment later though as she continued in a panic, "Amanda we need help! Me and Jace are at Ganvis and there's bandits attacking right now!"

My gut lurched and my blood suddenly felt like ice-water. I hit the transmit again and asked, "What's your status? How many bandits?"

When Nyssa responded I could actually hear automatic gunfire in the background, "We're at the mayor's house! I don't know how many there are! A lot! Just please come quickly!"

By that point my ears were folded back while my tail tucked under my chair. I didn't even have to say a word. Rebecca pushed the Demeter's engines to full thrust as she changed course, bringing the ship into a power dive towards the far side of the planet.

"Tell her ETA ten minutes," my girlfriend stated. Then she tapped the intercom switch and announced, "Everybody hold on tight. Ganvis is under attack and we're going in hot. Jenna get down to the main hold and get three of those smart rifles ready for action. Spare mags, grenades, whatever else you think might help against bandits."

Jenny spoke up as soon as the captain was done, "We're being hailed by the Tullrohane. They would like to know why we've diverted from our assigned vector."

Rebecca stated, "Let me talk to them."

"We're on our way Nyssa! Ten minutes! Please be careful!" I told my sister. Then I switched back to the standard port control frequency and let the captain know, "You're on."

"Ensign Rowan," the boss stated, "There's a bandit attack happening right now at Ganvis Station. I want air support and boots on the ground as fast as you can manage it."

The ensign sounded like he'd just been hit with a shot of adrenaline as he replied, "Yes your highness! Passing your orders on to Captain Magoda immediately!"

We were already hitting the atmosphere by that point, and the Demeter started to shudder and rattle a lot more than usual due to the speed of our descent. It was probably approaching midnight at Ganvis, and we were going around the night side so the world was almost pitch black below us.

Rebecca glanced at me and suggested, "Why don't you go get ready? Jenny can manage the sensors and comms. I'll meet you and Jenna by the main airlock as soon as we're on the ground."

Jenny assured me, "I'm monitoring Nyssa's frequency, I'll patch her through the intercom so you can stay in touch with her."

"Thanks," I gave her a weak smile as I got up and hurried aft to my cabin.

The way the ship was shaking I almost lost my footing a couple times, but I managed to strap on my belt and sidearm, along with some spare magazines and my portable commlink. Then I headed for the starboard ladderway and made my way down to the main hold.

Sure enough Jenna was already there, doing her best to stay upright despite the bouncing and shaking. She had three of those smart weapons laid out ontop of an old crate, along with a box of magazines loaded with the matching smart ammunition. And finally there was a box of grenades, since the boss mentioned that too. Jenna also had my medkit ready to go, hanging from the control panel next to the main airlock.

Before I even had a chance to say anything our AI's voice came through the intercom with an update.

"I have Ganvis on sensors now," Jenny announced. "There's two troop carrier grav-sleds on the ground just north of the town, and I'm registering small arms fire throughout the settlement. I'm also tracking four more sleds circling the town, they appear to be providing air support for the bandits. The MV Artemis is there as well, she's powered down and sealed up in the landing area to the south."

"The Tullrohane has dispatched two troop carriers and four heavy fighters," Jenny added. "ETA fifteen minutes. The Demeter will be at Ganvis in five."

I glanced up at the intercom speakers and called out, "Can you track Nyssa? Do you know if she's still ok?"

The AI responded calmly, "I have a lock on your sister's commlink. She is at the mayor's residence, with three other individuals. Presumably those will be Jace along with Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler."

"I'm bringing us in from the north," Rebecca added, "We'll get one low pass over Ganvis, and Jenny's going to see what she can do to with those new point defence lasers. Then we're setting down on the south side of town next to the Artemis. I'll be with you in the hold and ready to go as soon as we're on the ground."

The next few minutes were like torture, waiting for the ship to reach Ganvis. And it only got worse when Jenny piped my sister's desperate voice through the intercom speakers.

"Amanda!" Nyssa's voice was even more panicked, while the fighting sounded even closer. "Please hurry! They're trying to get in here, I think they're after the mayor!"

Ella sounded like she was nearby as her grumpy voice came over the link, "Well they ain't gonna get me! Now gimme that damn rifle and -"

The transmission suddenly cut out with a loud noise.

"Rebecca!" I shouted at the intercom, "How much longer?!"

My girlfriend answered, "Forty-five seconds! Everybody brace, this isn't going to be subtle!"

Jenna and I found something to hang on to, while our AI counted down the last ten seconds. The landing, such as it was, reminded me a lot of when the Demeter came down on only one engine. This wasn't quite as bad, but it still knocked both Jenna and I off our feet.

"Rebecca is on her way down there now," Jenny announced calmly over the intercom. "The bandits' air support has been cut in half, but there are still two sleds outfitted as gunships patrolling the north side of the settlement. They are keeping themselves well clear of our point defence lasers' firing arc."

"Sarah and Cammie please report to the cockpit," the AI added.

Jenna and I were loading and cycling our smart weapons when Rebecca slid down the ladderway into the hold. As soon as her boots were on the deck she came over and took the third rifle, then started stuffing her pockets with spare magazines along with a couple grenades.

I glanced at the boss then hesitated, as I saw some uncertainty on her face instead of her usual determination. That left me feeling torn between needing to save my little sister and wanting to look after my girlfriend.

After a half second of indecision I told her, "You don't have to do this Rebecca. Jenna and I can handle it."

"We work best as a team," she replied softly. Then as she cycled the action on her smart rifle she stated, "You have to look after your sister, I have to look after you. And irritating as she may be, I also need to make sure Ella's ok. So let's go."

I nodded once as Jenna hit the controls to open up the ship. While the airlock began sliding open I verified my weapon was on high velocity mode three-round bursts, and set for soft-target ammunition. Then just before we set out I grabbed a first-aid kit and stuffed that into one of my jacket pockets. If I was acting strictly as a medic then my full kit would have been the better choice, but it was too bulky and awkward to carry into combat.

The three of us squeezed out the airlock and jumped off the ramp before it was fully lowered, then headed north towards the line of empty shipping containers as the ship sealed up again behind us. None of us had to say anything, we'd done this sort of thing often enough during our long stay at Ganvis.

Jenna and I took the lead as we moved quickly and quietly through the darkness. The android was covering the right arc while I kept watch on the left, and Rebecca followed behind us as back-up and protecting our rear. The night was punctuated by several flashes of automatic gunfire, which seemed to be coming from all around the settlement. Then the three of us came to a sudden halt in between two buildings just as the ground shook from a loud explosion somewhere off to the west.

"One of the sleds has a mounted artillery piece," Jenna quietly relayed a message from her sister, "And the bastards just hit Cammie's workshop."

"The other sled is mounted with a machine gun," the android added. "It's over the north-east part of the settlement."

Rebecca responded grimly, "If Jenny gets a clear shot on either of them -"

"She'll take it," Jenna stated firmly. She glanced at me and added, "Nyssa's commlink is still at the mayor's home, but there's only two people there now. The other two have left, perhaps to try and draw attention away from the residence. Jenny's tracking them, they're due north of us, on the other side of the main road."

I nodded then motioned for the three of us to continue north between the two buildings. Sure enough it was just a moment later before we spotted movement in between a couple structures on the opposite side of the main road. We stopped and ducked down with weapons ready just in case.

"Becky? That you?" Ella called out from over there. "Bout time you showed up, missy! Where in the hell's all them fancy-pants soldiers you said was gonna keep us safe?!"

Rebecca opened her mouth to respond but I spoke over her, "Where's my sister? Is Nyssa ok?" Orıginal content can be found at novel✦fire.net

Jace called back, "She's back at the house with my dad! I came out here to draw the attackers away, and mom insisted on helping out."

By that point they'd moved close enough to the street that we could see them. Jace had that cut-down rifle in his hands, while the mayor was holding a full-sized assault rifle in her good hand and balancing it with her bad arm. Despite her age and physical limitations, the look on her face told me she had no issues about using it.

"Mrs. Wheeler? What you doing over there?" another familiar voice called out from somewhere off to our right.

The mayor shouted back, "What the hell does it look like I'm doing Finn? What's going on with the rest of your boys?"

"What's going on is we're fucked!" the militia man responded angrily. "I don't -"

That's as far as he got before someone across the road and a few buildings away opened fire. Jenna and I saw the muzzle flashes, and it was obvious they were shooting at Finn. We both reacted at the same time, and I could see the two raiders' bodies clear as day thanks to the thermal setting on my weapon's combat sight.

There were no tell-tale muzzle flashes from our advanced firearms, but there was no masking the noise as the two of us opened fire at once. The raiders in our sights didn't stand a chance, but the sound of gunfire got more attention on us. And on the mayor and Jace.

Suddenly we were caught in a four-way shootout, with bullets flying back and forth across Ganvis' main road. Jenny and I ended up shooting in opposite directions as we used the prefab concrete building corners for cover, I was on the left side looking right, while she was on the right watching to the left. And Rebecca was at the back keeping watch incase anyone tried circling around behind us.

Once again I was able to call on past experience to try and keep myself calm as I picked off another raider the moment he came into view. On the other hand I wasn't exactly prepared for the sight of the town's elderly mayor laying down a swath of fully-automatic fire from that big assault rifle of hers. She handled it ok though, right up until her son grabbed her and yanked her back into cover as the whole street suddenly lit up.

That grav-sled off to the east had just opened up with its mounted gun, and for the next two or three seconds the entire road through the middle of town was alight with thousands of tracer rounds.

"Shit!" I gasped as both Jenna and I had to duck back to escape all the chunks of cement and dirt and bullet fragments that filled the air.

Rebecca was barely audible over the cacophony as she swore, "That's not a machine gun that's a fucking cannon!"

As soon as the deadly hail of bullets stopped I moved forward again, and as I did so I flipped my weapon's selector to hard-target ammunition. Without hesitating I leaned a little further out from between the buildings with my gun raised, and sure enough that grav sled was right there at the end of the street. I centred my combat sight on the driver's side of the vehicle then let loose a couple three-round bursts in quick succession.

Their mounted gun opened up again, but this time the deadly torrent of cannon-fire went high and wide as the sled pitched back and veered into an uncontrolled roll.

"Damn it Amanda!" Rebecca cursed as she pulled me back into cover, "That was a hell of a risk!"

At the same time Ella shouted, "Hell yeah! Damn good shooting there, girlie!"

The mayor followed that up with another long burst from her assault rifle in the direction of the crashing gun-sled, although I wasn't sure she actually hit anything. Then Jace stepped into view again as he fired a couple shots at targets off to my left.

Even with that sled down there was still more sounds of shooting coming from both sides all along the street, but I needed to get to my sister. I risked moving out of cover for a second or two, just long enough to look up and down the main road to see if it was safe to cross over to the north side. The answer to that came in the form of a few more bursts of gunfire, but luckily I was able to duck back into cover without getting hit. The sound of bullets smashing into the concrete next to me left my heart racing though.

Jace saw what happened and shouted at me, "Stay put! It's way too risky to cross!"

"I have to get to Nyssa!" I called back. And before my girlfriend could protest I added, "I need to make sure she's ok!"

The mayor shouted, "Don't get your panties in a bunch girlie! Your kid sister's fine, Preston won't let nothing -"

Just then it seemed like the whole world lit up in a blinding white flash.