In the few hours we traveled from the outskirts of the system to Groombridge-2, there was no reaction to our ultimatum, and by the minute, it was becoming increasingly clear that the quargs were not going to surrender without a fight. Well, a fleet is created to fight, except it was not the situation weve been in for years, so it was necessary to cool off some hot heads used to winning at any cost.
Set up a conference call with the ships command posts, ordered I when there was about 20 minutes left before the firing line.
Done.
Commanders of ships and units, Sirs, I looked around long rows of holographic images of people, lizards and one quarg on the projection screen, I want to remind you once again of our goal and the means to achieve it. You all know we came here to retrieve the Groombridge star system. Many of you fought alongside me near star Ran and in the Kappa Ceti system. Someone remembers me from the battle of Barnard-3 or even the previous battle of Groombridge. Now, Officers, Sirs, I must ask you to understand that I do not wish to see anything like that in this battle.
I saw wonder on the peoples faces, but I think that the quarg and lizards also experienced similar emotions, just I couldnt recognize them.
I smiled a little and continued, In all the battles I have named, we were forced to fight being in the minority, or, like near Kappa Ceti, with an enemy far ahead of us in terms of military technology. Then the fate of the entire war and the lives of billions of people and lizards depended on the outcome of the battle, and at that moment, we were obliged to fight, regardless of any losses. The situation is different now. There are no our fellow citizens on the planets orbiting Groombridge.
If we turn around and leave right now, no humans, no lizards, no free quargs will be harmed, and no military disaster will occur, which means we have to pay the price were willing to pay to win. For any loss of personnel, the commanders who have allowed this loss will be held strictly accountable. The General Staff and the Admiralty made such a large force available for this operation for a reason. Decades of war have cost us so much that it is time to stop losing the best of our races in battle. We have to win with minimal losses, or better yet no losses at all. I consider this to be a priority. You could use up all allowance of ammunition, lose all the boarding drones and the unmanned landing robots, cripple or even lose the ships, but I dont want to see any casualties among the personnel. Any commander who will have allowed his subordinates to die in the coming battle must be prepared to be subjected to an investigation with extreme prejudice. I understand this is a war, and its almost impossible to reduce casualties to zero, but in this case the responsibility for them will be dozens of times greater than it was before. Is that clear to everyone?
I awaited confirmation from the officers and continued, Now, lets talk about the enemy. Its never been our job to spare the lives of the enemy, but theres a first for everything. You are all familiar with the general plan of the operation, but again. In the first stage of battle, I only allow the use of special ammunition. All the ships in the fleet are equipped with them in sufficient numbers, but we have never used them in battle, so there may be some slips and different surprises. In case of emergency, I forbid the use of conventional ammunition without my order. Any questions?
There were no questions. In principle, the ship commanders already knew most of what I just told them, but I still felt it necessary to put the right emphasis just before the fight.
Torpedo weapon opening line in one minute, told Admiral Fulton, The enemy is deploying an anti-torpedo network.
«Invisibles» 1 through 25, ready for three-wave torpedo launches. Target of attack orbital fortresses. Commanding officers, receive target assignment. Fleet, start deceleration, do not enter the effective range of enemy weapons. Supply transports, reduce distance to fleet fighting formation and prepare to reload the «Invisibles» with special warheads torpedoes. In case of enemy counterattack, a general retreat with distance holding. Titans, be ready to cover the departure of the main fleet forces with their guns.
The point of opening fire with torpedoes.
Fire!
* * *
In planning this operation, Nelson, Knyazev and I have been racking our brains, trying to figure out how to simultaneously solve seemingly mutually exclusive problems to defeat a strong and dangerous opponent who is unlikely to surrender without a fight, while preserving the lives of his soldiers and civilians. We were banging our heads against this wall until I called Jeff, who had risen to the rank of Colonel of Engineering and held the generals position of head of my former department, to a meeting at the General Staff. Professor Stein came with him. The two of them worked together really well, despite Steins constant teasing about Jeffs relationship with Lieutenant Yakovleva, who was literally playing the talented engineer like a violin, but she still knew when to stop.
Well, young man, what do you want to bewilder us with this time? asked Stein, cynically taking advantage of our long-standing acquaintance and his civilian status, which allowed him to ignore subordination.
Ivan Gerkhardovich, let me be honest, we are stumped, I joylessly smiled at the Professor. We have an excellent weapon, perfectly capable of destroying enemy ships and ground forces, but its almost useless in a situation where we need to capture the enemy alive, and thats the challenge were facing now. And we dont have time to invent something completely new and start manufacturing it.
Well, we almost never have time, the Professor laughed, Jeff and I are used to it.
Fleet Admiral, Sir, as I understand it, these are not new weapons systems that we simply cannot develop in time, but shells and warheads to existing cannons, missiles and torpedoes? Jeff decided to bring a practical perspective to the discussion.
It would be ideal, Knyazev agreed with this conclusion.
Then we need to know if its critical for you to seize enemy equipment and weapons in relatively serviceable condition, or is it just about saving the lives of the enemy?
We are not interested in the quarg equipment, Nelson replied categorically, After the battles in the star systems of Ran and Kappa Ceti, we have more than enough of that.
What about the equipment of the toads? asked the Professor.
Neither. We already have their cruiser, even though its pretty damaged, but its not doing much good. Well get the new technology from the Empire faster, and itll be much more effective than trying to understand the less advanced equipment of the toads.
Then the task becomes much easier, Jeff smiled, almost rubbing his hands with pleasure, and there were lights in his eyes that were familiar to me. The engineer liked to solve such problems, and, most importantly, was brilliant at doing it. I dont think well have to redo that much.
Do you already have the concept of a new weapon, Colonel? Knyazev who knew Jeff worse than I did was surprised.
For now, this is just an idea, Chief of General Staff, Sir, replied Jeff, it was clear on his face that at the same time as he was talking, he was already actively considering the thought that had just emerged, and as I said, it wont be a weapon, itll be ammunition. The point is simple: we must abandon the classic design of a shell or torpedo, which is aimed at penetrating the armour and destroying the internal structure of the target being attacked or at striking the personnel. We should focus only on the destruction of weapons and propulsion systems and, if possible, control and communications.