Fourth Vector Ch. 11

At this point in the battle, they were directly parallel with the Occitanian vessel, but Luke noticed that the enemy warship had sped up, quickly rushing for the safety of a nearby fog belt that was heavy and thick in size. If they were able to disappear in that fog, Luke might never find them, even if they were only a quarter of a mile away. It became imperative that they get off another round before they disappeared into the fog bank.

"Bill, how long?" called out Luke.

"Another thirty seconds, Luke."

They only had about another minute or possibly two before it disappeared into the fog bank. What was worse was that the smoke from all the damage was starting to obscure parts of the ship as well. While it still marked where it was, it became harder to tell where the ship's exact location was.

"Ready now, Luke!" said Bill after an agonizingly long thirty seconds.

"Fire now, Bill!"

The shots from this volley completely missed as the distance between the ships started to increase once again. Watching the deck of the Occitanian vessel, Luke could see their men rush about trying to extinguish the flames that raged from their last major salvo. Soon enough, the heavy smoke that billowed from the stern of the ship started to lessen, only to soon be completely put out.

The enemy ship got off one more volley before the angle of their turn into the fog bank made firing from their forward turrets all but impossible. Even after Luke gave the order to turn the ship to engage one more time, the Occie warship soon disappeared behind the thick mist.

Just as it was disappearing, Luke heard a mighty roar from another nearby vessel as theStardust emerged from off its flank, its huge ten-inch guns trying to stop the Occitanian ship. Unfortunately, its guns largely missed the mark too, although not for lack of trying.

"Lt Commander Ravencross, are you able to further engage the enemy warship?" came the radio command from Admiral Reynolds.

Luke grabbed the radio. "I don't think so, sir. That fog bank is pretty thick, and visibility is terrible. We'll follow it inside, but I doubt we'll be able to see much."

"Please chase as far as you can. We'll be right on your flank," said Admiral Reynolds. "If the visibility is as expected, go ahead and disengage and wait for further orders."

"Aye, sir," said Luke before turning to the rest of his officers. "Anna, take us into that fog bank. Bill, make sure the guns are ready just in case."

It was another ten minutes before theValiant was able to turn around and enter the same bank that the Occitanian ship just slipped through. Just as expected, they could barely make out anything once inside. Luke could barely make out the bow of his own ship in such a thick fog. As soon as he realized how bad it was, he radioed back to Reynolds.

"Visibility is too low, Admiral Reynolds. I'm afraid we could possibly ram them in these conditions."

"Disengage from the enemy then, Ravencross," came the reply from Reynolds. "How is your ship? Any casualties?"

"None, sir, and only light damage. TheValiant put up a hell of a good showing."

"You can say that again, Ravencross. We saw the smoke billowing from that enemy ship. Well done to you and your crew. You caused significant damage."

"What are we to do now, sir?"

"I think you've just found the rearguard of the Occitanian task force, Ravencross. We'll continue in that direction once the weather permits. What course did you last see the ship going?"

"Due west, Admiral," said Luke. "Due west." Straight toward the Vector.

The Occitanian force was on a course to find Jack.

-------

As darkness descended on the plateau, Jack gathered Greg, Abigail, Vera, and one of the captains of the marine company for a council of war. It had been several hours since the attack by the Andalucians and even now, Jack could look out from the plateau and see the signs of fire from the two clans that had attacked him earlier. Both of them were not far from their original positions, necessitating a more robust watch for the evening in case they thought of attacking again.

"Do you think they would consider an attack at night?" asked Vera warily. "Are we going to be on our guard all evening?"

Greg shook his head. "I rather doubt that, Vera. It would be awfully hard for them to shoot those bows in the darkness and know what they were hitting. They'd have to get close enough to us to use their melee weapons and that would be suicidal against our rifles. I think they'll wait until the morning."

"That doesn't mean we should let our guard down though," said Jack. "Even with our advantage in firepower, they still thought to press forward a reckless attack against us in the daytime. We shouldn't assume they'll act logically."

"Great," mumbled Vera. "Just when I was hoping to get some sleep tonight."

"What about our reinforcements?" asked Abigail. "The other platoons? Do we know where they are?"

Greg nodded. "Captain Bucknell radioed me not too long ago. They have landed on the coast and they are marching inland. The only thing we don't know is if they'll find their path blocked by theMuthada."

"And if they do? What then?"

Greg shrugged. "They'll find their way through one way or another."

"Or we'll attack down to open a path to them," added Jack. "We may even have an opportunity to attack theMuthada separately. It just depends on how fast Captain Bucknell gets here."

"It didn't take us long to get to this part of the country," said Abigail. "Probably tomorrow then?"

"I'd say late afternoon as long as they aren't held up," said Greg. "Possibly earlier if they are able to march quickly."

"What's our end goal for all of this then?" asked a quiet Captain Reynolds, the marine commander of the company of platoons currently with them. "Even if we can destroy theMuthada, we still have theNumratha in front of us. And they seem much more numerous."

"I had hoped to do this without shedding blood," said Jack quietly. "But we may need to keep attacking, especially if they have a blood alliance. If Kat is being held by their clan chief, then it's obvious what we need to do. We need to find him and kill him. Killing him should let us rescue Kat and end the blood alliance so we can get out of this country in one piece."

"Any idea of how we can do that in our current position?" asked Vera. "Are we to keep shooting until we kill them all?"

Jack flinched at her suggestion. "I hope it doesn't come to that. Ideally, we'll just need to keep our options open. If there's a way we can rescue Kat without having to resort to battle to do it, I'll take that option. Once she's back with us, there's no reason for us to stay in this country. I couldn't care less if these clan chiefs want to attack us by the time we get back out to sea. I just want us to get who we came for and then get going."

"And then we can get back on our way," said Abigail. "Onward to Picardy, right?"

"Right," said Jack before looking out past the plateau and nodding toward the closest camp of Andalucians. "Just need to get past all of those bastards first."

"Let them come in the morning," said Greg. "Or overnight. Either way, we'll show them why Javan marines are some of the fiercest warriors in the entire world."

"What about our wounded though? We have five men still alive and barely enough facilities to take care of them," said Captain Reynolds. "What we really need to do is get them back to the infirmary on theDestiny."

Jack started to nod. "There may be more of them by tomorrow. What we need to do is connect with the reinforcements and get theMuthada out of our path. Once the road is clear all the way back to the coast, we can more easily move our wounded men back to the ship."

"So are we to stay put then?" asked Abigail. "Wait for the reinforcements to join us and then we can continue on?"

"For now, that's the plan," said Jack. "We'll look again at the situation in the morning, depending on what the Andalucians plan to do. If they press forward an attack, we'll have no choice. However, if they decide to back off, we'll have another council to decide where to go from here."

"So many variables," said Abigail. "I hate not knowing what our next move is."

"That's simple, Abigail," said Greg with a small smirk. "We kill anyone in our way and rescue Kat, then get the hell out of here."

She pursed her lips. "You know what I mean. We may find the entire situation changed in a few short hours."

Jack started to nod as he reached out to grab her hand. Squeezing gently, he said to her quietly, "I know. We'll figure something out soon enough. I promise."

She nodded her head and the group went quiet for a certain time until a commotion near the front of the plateau started to attract notice. Jack peeked his head up to see one of the marines starting a quick jog over to their area.

The marine stopped in front of him and Greg. "We have an Andalucian envoy up at the front lines, requesting permission to speak with our commander."

"An envoy?" asked Jack. "How did he show up?"

"He approached our lines with his hands up and was completely unarmed. Crazy bastard did it in the darkness too, so we almost shot him. Once we saw he didn't have any weapons, we let him get close enough to start talking," said the marine. "That's when he asked to speak with you. He says he has a message from the clan chief of theNumratha, Yusef."

"All right, let's see what he wants then," said Jack. "Come with me all of you. I want everyone to hear what he has to say so that we can discuss it afterwards."

The group moved forward with the marine back to the front lines. On the approach, Jack could see an Andalucian man under gunpoint right outside their perimeter. His hands were still raised, and he was clothed in the typical heavy material of the country, even though now his face was completely exposed since it was after dark. The features on his face were without expression, and Jack had to wonder if perhaps this might be a trick.

"State your name and purpose," said Jack as soon as he was close enough to the envoy.

"I will only speak with Jack Easterbrook," said the man. "It is to him that this message is intended for."

Jack spread out his arms. "You found him. Now answer my question."

The man bowed his head slightly and lowered his arms. "My name is Amnon, and I'm a special envoy sent to your people from our mighty clan chief, Yusef, leader of theNumratha. I come bearing tidings of bad news for your people."

Jack shot a glance at Greg before looking back at the man. "And this bad news of yours is what?"

Amnon joined his arms together and then spread them out. "You are surrounded, Jack Easterbrook. Your incursion into our country hasn't gone unnoticed. This afternoon, you felt but a taste of Andalucian fury as the fierce warriors of theNumratha clan, joined by their steadfast allies, theMuthada, sought to give you a lesson in power politics on this island."

"I think it was we that showed you the lesson," said Jack. "Judging by the body count."

Amnon shrugged. "We can afford to lose men. There are plenty more where they come from. How many men do you have, Jack Easterbrook? Two hundred? Less? How long do you think you can withstand the might of Andalucia?"

"Hardly the might of the entire island," said Jack. "Even if you do surround us, you are but two clans. Attack us again if you wish and we'll show you another lesson in firepower."

Amnon began to laugh. "But we are not only two clans. As we speak, two more clans march this way to join the fight, spurred on by blood alliances and vengeance for our homeland, which is under attack by your foreign soldiers. By tomorrow evening, you will be surrounded by seven clans in total."

Jack remained quiet as his mind processed the total numbers. They could withstand another attack by two clans but what of four? How about seven? Could they do it without further reinforcements? The situation was starting to look dire. What had started as a simple rescue mission was now turning into a full-blown war.

"You have but one option, Jack Easterbrook," continued Amnon. "Surrender your forces to us. In doing so, you can keep your lives. You will become slaves for the Andalucian peoples."

"Hardly an option there," said Jack. "Who would choose servitude to the likes of you?"

"Servitude is still better than death," said Amnon with a simple shrug. "You may have lost your personal liberty but at least you'll have your lives. Our way of life is not so bad. In time, you may even adjust to being a slave. If you live, that is."

"I think we'll take our chances here," said Jack. "Tell your clan chief that he faces a force with stiff resolve that won't so easily surrender a fight for no purpose."

"If you won't surrender, then you will all be killed. There will be no mercy for anyone taken alive. We will riddle your bodies with arrows until you die screaming for leniency. For you, it will either be slavery or death."

Jack raised his chin with pride. "I think we know what decision we'll all pick."

"It is your choice then. Don't expect us to offer you clemency again," said Amnon. He raised his hands once more and then turned around, walking in the direction he came from. As soon as he had disappeared into the night, Greg turned to look at Jack.

"Well, he was a real treat. But I guess that answers that question though," said the marine.

Jack glanced over at him. "What question is that?"

"It looks like we'll have to kill them all."

-------

Sleep didn't come easy that night for the Javans on the plateau. Despite a robust guard being kept not only at the two entrances to the mountain but also along the sheer face of the edge, Jack had a hard time staying asleep. The words of the envoy kept bouncing around in his mind. They had just barely kept from being overwhelmed by the two clans earlier that day. If they would soon face seven, what were their chances of not only rescuing Kat but getting out of the country in one piece? More importantly, what would they face in the morning? Was the envoy being truthful about the numbers or was he just trying to frighten them from pursuing their course even further?

Jack finally pushed off from the ground at dawn, having slept little. Near him was Abigail, close enough to offer comfort but far enough away to not be blatant about their relationship with the other men. She was already awake as well and he could tell by the look on her face that his worries were shared.

"You too?" she asked as she saw him yawn and stretch.

"Barely slept a wink," said Jack quietly.

"Same here. I already miss my comfy bed on theDestiny."

Jack wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "I'll get you back to your ship. I promise you."

She started to nod. "I know you will. You've never let me down before." With those last words, she reached up to kiss him gently.

Jack took a step back and looked around at the other men. "What if someone else saw that?"

Abigail shrugged her shoulders as a small smile filled her lips. "So what?"

"What about not wanting the men to know about us?"

"We're stuck in a hostile country and surrounded by enemy soldiers. Keeping our relationship secret is the last thing on my mind right now," she said with total honesty.

He nodded and stepped back closer to her. "I've really been missing our privacy since we came ashore."

"You and me both." Abigail gave him a subtle wink. "Maybe once we do get out of here,if we do, let's lock ourselves in your quarters for a whole day."

Jack started to chuckle. "We'll do that. And we will get out of here."

She nodded and squeezed his hand, and that was the last thing said about it for the time being.

However, his promise wasn't looking so great when Greg found him a short while later wearing a worried expression. "The reinforcement platoons under Captain Bucknell have been stopped in their tracks by theMuthada. There was a short exchange of fire but right now both groups are standing off in front of each other and not moving."

"Any casualties on our side?" asked Jack.

Greg shook his head. "One marine took a grazing wound but that's it. They're asking for orders on whether to press forward an attack."

"Can they double back around theMuthada and get to us without arousing their suspicion?"

"That was the first thing I asked," said Greg. "The terrain away from the coast is treacherous. Captain Bucknell is afraid that if they start going along another path, it will add a number of days to the time it'll take to reach us. Besides, he said it looks like hundreds of warriors are directly in front of them."

"Hundreds? TheMuthada couldn't have that much more. We killed almost half of them yesterday!"

Greg pointed out over the ledge. "It looks like that envoy wasn't joking, Jack. There's two more camps this morning."

"Shit," Jack swore before looking back out across the plateau. It was still early enough that the sun hadn't fully risen, and from his position, he could see the light of hundreds of fires, evidence of the camps of four clans now spread out around them in every direction.

"Four clans will be here by morning," repeated Jack. "And seven by evening."

"We need to figure out something fast," said Greg. "If they attack us with that full might, they may overwhelm us even with the rifles. We've seen yesterday they are ready to throw away lives just to prove a point. If we start facing thousands of warriors, we won't last long."

Jack nodded and turned to look back to the direction of the coast. If those reinforcements were blocked off from reaching them, they would have to get creative on finding a way to link up. A way that would prevent them from being picked off in detail by the enemy. He just needed to figure out how to do it before the enemy attacked with everything they had.

As if sensing the dilemma that the Javans faced, the sounds of Andalucian war drums started to beat all around them. It was the same sound they heard in Methusa only this time it was much louder. Jack looked around at the four major groupings of clans and found their men starting to line up for battle.

"Jack," said Greg before pointing toward the nearest group. "They're coming."

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A few miles away in the slave pens of theNumratha clan, Kat heard the beating of the war drums and watched as the Andalucian warriors quickly assembled for their next attack. Hearing the echo of the drums all across the mountains from their current position confirmed her suspicion—there were other clans gathering for this attack. But to attack whom?

Things had been in flux in theNumratha camp for days, unexplainable things that had Kat questioning the current behavior of the clan. Andalucian camps rarely picked up and moved at short notice and this kind of warfare seemed to hint at a larger conflict. Something was making the clans act in this bizarre fashion. Or someone.

She let her mind wander as her thoughts went back to Jack, wondering where he was and if he was safe. Not an hour went by when she didn't think of him, wondering if he was nearing Picardy at this point. She hoped he'd made it through the passage safely, and didn't suffer the same kind of treatment they had at the hands of the Swabian warship and the Andalucian slave trawler. Yet, Jack's force had the ability to strike back if attacked while theSwordfish had nothing to offer in the form of protection.

It pained her to think about all those people dying in the attack and most of all, Vera. Tears filled her eyes again as she remembered Vera's bright eyes and trusting face, never to be seen again when theSwordfish inevitably slipped beneath the waves. That was enough for her to swear vengeance alone. Not only on the Andalucians but on the Swabians as well for causing this ordeal with her present circumstances.