Cyberpunk: Spartan Walker

Holy shit! General Whitcomb jumped to his feet and cursed.

This is so unfortunate, General. I want compensation, Gillis said on the screen.

Of course it's unfortunate, General Whitcomb said. Had I known it was possible for us to jump to Earth using that ship I would have done so an hour ago. Cortana, where is she going?

Not Earth, Cortana said. Dr. Halsey's route points to a galaxy that is not in my database.

What about the crystal? Did she leave with the crystal?

.She gave the crystal to Locklear, General. He behaved a little strangely. I'm not sure.

The General studied the screen in front of him carefully: Gillis's face, the empty galaxy, the still video of Dr. Halsey and Tommy in the docking bay. I ordered Corporal Locklear to come to the bridge ten minutes ago, Lieutenant Dominic, and ask Cortana to determine his location. Then I ordered you to personally accompany the hell paratrooper here.

The lieutenant swallowed. Yes, sir. He walked toward the elevator, and Cortana said to him: He's on deck B, Lieutenant, in the medical supply storage room. He ignored my call on the comm channel. The elevator closed. .

An enemy signal. Kotanna exclaimed, Using the local sun as a reference, bearing 030. One—corrected, two Covenant cruisers. They didn't move, maybe they didn't notice us.

It rained all night, Case said, clenching his fists nervously. With all the radio communications, ships, and leaking radiation, there's no way we wouldn't be discovered by them, Cortana. I'm sure they are. Plan how to kill us.”

Gillis turned to someone off-screen, then back to him and said, General Whitcomb, in light of this new situation, I intend to evacuate my men from the Gettysburg to avoid danger.

No problem, Lord Governor. You can do whatever you want. Screen No. 3 closed with a snap, and the stars reappeared. And I have to do what I have to do. General Whitcomb said, Case, it's all up to you, take us out of Eridanus.

Yes, sir, Case said. Cortana, abort testing reactors and engines.

Sir? There is a risk.

I want them working now. Don't tell me what the risks are. Just do it.

Yes, sir, she said.

Lieutenant Hall, prepare to sail and remain vigilant. We will use all our strength to outmaneuver those two cruisers.

Yes, sir. The lieutenant saw that the test had been aborted and the Justice's reactor was restarted. The radiation indicator suddenly surged to the red line, and then fell back slightly. Technically speaking, this is safe.

The Gettysburg's engines shuddered to life. The Master Chief felt that the tremors across the deck were coming from half a kilometer away.

The reactor is operational, sir, the lieutenant reported.

The general watched as Gillis's one-man craft and its crew of technicians left the Gettysburg and swarmed into the darkness of space, returning to the safety of their asteroid. Does it look like a bunch of rats leaving a sinking ship? he asked loudly.

The Chief wasn't sure if that question was being asked of him, but he decided to answer it anyway. They're just a bunch of people trying to stay alive, sir.

The general nodded.

The Covenant cruiser is accelerating, Cortana reported, on a vector away from the system. It is leaping into slip space.

Lieutenant, start the ship. Now! Increase the speed to half of the maximum speed.

Yes, sir, he typed, moving forward at half speed. The radiation alarm on the Justice's reactor glowed brightly, but soon stabilized and faded.

The behemoth, two ships linked together, groaned as their newly repaired superstructure overcame the inertia.

Heat our plasma turrets, Cortana.

Yes, Chang her lavender translucent holographic image faded into the color of ice helmet, new enemy contact signals appeared at the edge of the galaxy. Three. No - a few more jumped out from the slip space; counting. Eighteen - now thirty Covenant ships of different types. Positions 030, 091, and 180, sir, they have surrounded us!

The star map disappeared in the blink of an eye, replaced by a map of the Eridanus galaxy, marked with small triangles representing Covenant ships, which were now clustered around the perimeter. The galaxy map turned to one side, showing the six new spaceships distributed at the bottom and top of the galaxy.

General Whitcomb stared at the galaxy map and shook his head. You know the story of the Alamo, Master Chief?

Yes, sir. A famous siege in which a handful of defenders held off an overwhelmingly superior enemy force.

The general smiled. The Defenders of Texas, Master Chief—that makes a big difference. Colonel William Barrett Travis, with one hundred and fifty-five men, held off more than two dozen Mexican invaders. They fought with A small castle was used as a stronghold, and the battle was as fierce as a wildcat. Later, Travis received some reinforcements - thirty-two people. The general's smile gradually disappeared, You also know that there are fifteen civilians in the castle, right? He He turned his attention to the galaxy map again, Well, at the end of the battle, Travis and his men were all dead, but the enemy paid the price with six hundred lives.

It's like the Battle of Thermopylae, the Master Chief commented.

But there were survivors at the Alamo, and they kept the civilians alive. He turned to face the Chief. Do you think anyone will survive this battle? Do you think there is a way to win?

The Master Chief desperately wants to find a way to win. Thirty Covenant ships attacked their damaged combination ship, and they also needed to defend Governor Gillis' men. Could he board a Covenant ship? Let Cortana infiltrate their systems and issue fake orders? They will see him approaching. Maybe there was a blind spot from where he could approach? But how could he evade the other ships in their fleet? And by the time he had thought through such a plan, the Gettysburg might have been burned to ashes.

My question needs no answer, Master Chief, the general said.

Yes, sir, the Master Chief replied. Considering our situation and the determination of the enemy, then, no, I see no way to win or survive.

I see it that way too. General Whitcomb straightened his back.