The eerie silence that gripped the long, black street was unnerving. Sheridan's mind began to play tricks on him. Every shadow, every odd shape became an enemy soldier. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves. If they were going to make it to their lines alive, he had to stop being so jittery.

With less than ten meters to go to the destroyed tank, Cole told everyone to wait while he checked it out.

The sound of boots crunching gla.s.s underfoot made Cole freeze in place. Like a statue, he didn't move a muscle as he listened to a couple of Chosen soldiers poking around in an empty shop. He couldn't understand a word but figured that they were looking for food. After about a minute, the men abandoned their search and left the building, heading back towards their own lines. Cole left out his breath. He removed his finger from the trigger of his rifle and cautiously looked to see if there were any more Chosen moving around in the dark. When he was sure that they were alone, he walked back and told the rest of the group to follow him. Using a nearby burnt out vehicle for cover, they made their way un.o.bserved to the back of the tank. Cole went first crawling in his belly underneath of the tank. Sheridan ordered Roberts and Danika, holding onto the dog, to go next. As soon as they vanished under the tank, Sheridan told Garcia to follow them while he pulled up the rear.

With one quick look around to make sure that no one was following them, Sheridan dove under the belly of the metal beast and began to crawl. Because of the size of the large armored vehicle, there was plenty of s.p.a.ce underneath to move. In less than a minute, Sheridan was at the far side. He got up on his feet and sprinted to join his comrades. He had barely stepped inside a building on the Marines' side of the street when a pistol was jammed into his face.

"Hands up, you Kurg b.a.s.t.a.r.d!" snarled a soldier.

Sheridan heard the anger and the fear in the man's voice. He carefully raised his hands, hoping not to antagonize the frightened Marine. A pair of hands roughly grabbed him from behind, ripped his rifle from his shoulder and then pushed him down a long empty corridor. A couple of seconds later, he was manhandled into a room.

Cole stood there shaking his head in disbelief. "I guess these idiots think that the enemy has drafted little girls and dogs into the war effort."

"Are we ok?" asked Danika as she took Roberts by the hand.

"We sure are," he replied. "These people are just being careful, that's all."

A stream of invectives filled the air outside of the room.

Cole grinned. "Gunny Wilson's still alive."

The door opened and a chastised Marine waved at them to follow him. They walked through several destroyed buildings until they came to a set of stairs that led own into a bas.e.m.e.nt. Inside, Sheridan saw Captain Rolleston huddled over a map.

Rolleston turned to face the newcomers. He had a bloodied bandage over his left eye. "Mister Sheridan, I take it that this is all that remains of your platoon."

"Yes, sir, I believe so. Some could still be alive trapped under the ruins, but I doubt it." For the next five minutes, Sheridan briefed his commander on what had happened to them and how they had made their way back to friendly lines.

Rolleston said, "It's truly amazing that you made it back here alive. With your people, we now have a grand total of twenty-one Marines in the company."

"Jesus," muttered Cole.

Gunnery Sergeant Wilson said, "We're being topped up tonight with whatever they can scrounge up. We're going to receive a couple of platoons of artillerymen to act as infantry."

"Something is better than nothing," noted Cole.

"Get some food into you. After that get some rest," said Rolleston. "You'll probably being going back into action later tonight."

"Yes, sir," replied Sheridan. Before he left, he found out that there was a refugee control center nearby. Roberts and Garcia volunteered to escort Danika to the center while Sheridan and Cole scrounged up some food and ammunition. After grabbing all they could carry, Sheridan and Cole found a quiet room in a building that hadn't been too badly damaged in the fighting and took a seat.

Cole took off his helmet and scratched the top of his head. He let out a weary sigh and grabbed two rations packs. Before he could ask Sheridan what he wanted to eat, he heard the young officer snoring loudly. Cole turned his head and saw that Sheridan had fallen into a deep sleep the instant he sat down.

Chuckling to himself, Cole dug out his thermal blanket and laid it over Sheridan to keep him warm and then picked a ration to eat. He cracked his neck, sat back and listened to the sound of battle in the distance. With a resigned sigh, he envied Sheridan's ability to fall asleep. He knew he wouldn't relax until Garcia and Roberts were back. Such was the life of a platoon sergeant, he mused.

Chapter 20.

The night had never seemed so long and dark to Tarina. Her heart ached with an emptiness she knew could never be replaced. With her legs curled up to her chest and her arms wrapped around a pillow, she lay there. She had been told that the ship Sheridan had been traveling in had been declared overdue and was presumed destroyed in action. Alone in her room, all of the lights were off. In her hand was a picture of them taken during a visit to Paris during a break at the academy. It was one of her most beloved and cherished memories.

The door to her room opened slightly letting the light from the hallway shine inside. "Tarina, it's me, Wendy."

"Please leave me alone," said Tarina.

"I know, but I can't. Colonel Wright has called for all of us to a.s.semble on the flight deck ASAP."

Tarina sat up and wiped the tears from her face. "I'll be out in a minute."

Wendy closed the door, plunging the room back into darkness. Tarina did not want to, but she had no choice. She flicked on a light, walked into the bathroom and washed her face. She straightened out her uniform and joined Wendy in the hallway. "What's going on?" Tarina asked.

"No idea, but we had best hurry."

A minute later, they joined their fellow pilots. A wild and animated discussion was brewing. Someone said that the Kurgs had attacked another star system while anther spoke of saboteurs detonating bombs at Fleet Headquarters on Earth.

Major Fareed walked in and told everyone to take a seat on the bleachers behind them. A couple of seconds later, Wright entered the hangar floor. Everyone rocketed to attention. Wright stood in front of his people and locked his ice-blue eyes on them. "Folks, one thing you should never do in the military is sugarcoat bad news. It only leads to misunderstandings that can complicate thing down the line. So here it is. The war to date has gone spectacularly bad. All along the Disputed Zone, we have suffered defeat after defeat. Several systems have already fallen to the enemy."

He paused to gauge the news on the faces of his pilots. If it bothered them, they didn't let it show. "Fleet intel has intercepted messages coming from the Derran system which seem to indicate that the Kurgs are struggling to pacify Derra-5, a planet, which fleet had expected to fall by now. In fact, if the messages are to be believed, it is a real burr under their saddle and fleet wishes it to remain so for as long as possible."

"Sir, what of the rumors of Kurgan agents operating in the fleet?" asked a short, broad-chested lieutenant. "Can we trust communiques coming from the Kurgan forces on Derra-5?"

"Absolutely not," replied Wright. "That is why we have been tasked to take a look at Derra-5 in order to confirm or deny this information."

An excited murmur ran through the squadron.

"People, I know that not all of you are ready for this a.s.signment, so here is how it is going to go down. I will take two Avengers with me. The remainder of you will remain behind to complete your training under Major Fareed."

A c.o.c.ky, captain with short blonde hair and a skintight flight suit stood up. "Sir, who are you planning to take with you?"

"Not you Bradley, you're not ready yet."

Deflated, the blonde-haired pilot sat down.

"I will fly one of the Avengers with Lloyd as my navigator. Tarina with Wendy as her navigator will fly the second ship. Folks, this is not open to discussion, so don't try and corner me after this meeting is over and try to get me to change my mind. I expect the flight crews to rendezvous back here in thirty minutes. We have a fast transport ship to catch that will jump from here to the furthest edge of the Derran system."

Wright dismissed the pilots. "Tarina, please walk with him for a minute. When they were out of earshot of the other pilots, he turned to face her. "I'm sorry, I just heard about your loss."

"Thank you, sir," responded fighting back the tears.

"Think of this as your chance for payback. If it's true and Derra-5 is still holding out, fleet undoubtedly will kick into high gear. I bet they will plan to give the Kurgs a severe drubbing there if they can. However, they can't do a thing until they know what is going on there. That is why I picked you. You're the best instinctual pilot I have, that and fact that I thought you'd like the opportunity to stick it to the enemy."

Tarina smiled. "Yes, sir, I'd like that. I'd like that a lot."

"Good. Pack your things and meet me here. The flight to the Derran star system will take three days at full speed. After that, we're on our own. If you haven't already, fill out a will."

Wright carried on leaving Tarina alone in the now empty hangar thinking about what he had just said. Her heart was a mix of emotions. It still ached for Sheridan; however, a burning desire for revenge was brewing deep inside her. Whatever happened next, she wanted payback and she intended to collect for the death of the only man he had ever loved.

Chapter 21.

It had been two days since Sheridan had gone back into the line. His new platoon of re-tasked artillerymen had been put through street fighting drills by Staff Sergeant Cole by day and night until they understood what was expected of them. Sheridan would have preferred infantrymen, but they were in short supply. Best estimates put the division at about fifty percent strength with most of the casualties coming from the three infantry regiments who had so far withstood the worst of the fighting. As Sheridan studied the tactical situation on a map in the company command post, he saw that the Kurgan forces had almost taken half of the city. All along the river, there were pockets of resistance that were holding out against the onslaught. It was to one of these locations that Sheridan and his understrength platoon were going to move to in a few hours. They were going to relieve a platoon that was guarding one side of the only bridge still standing over the fifty meter wide river that cut through the middle of the capital. The remainder of the company was going to guard the other side. A couple of squads of combat engineers were coming with him to prepare the bridge for demolition.

"Mister Sheridan, are your people ready to go into battle?" Captain Rolleston asked.

Sheridan turned and said, "They're as ready as we could make them in forty-eight hours, sir."

"How are you organized?"

"I have two large squads, a weapons detachment, and a small headquarters. Without experienced NCOs, I was reluctant to break the platoon down any further."

"That'll do. How are you set for ammo?"

"Sergeant Cole has managed to obtain a ton for us. Ammo isn't the problem, medical support is. The only medic I have is one of my own people. Sir, are there none to spare from division?"

Rolleston shook his head. "Unfortunately, we're all in the same boat. The medical battalion has been swamped with casualties. There won't be any help coming our way for a long time. You'll have to make do with what you have."

Sheridan did not like the answer, but he understood that they were truly on their own. He made his way back to his platoon. Cole was just finishing his final inspection of the new soldiers before they made their way to the bridge.

"What's the word from the CO?" Cole asked.

"The word is we're on our own. What we've got is all we're going to get."

Cole shrugged. "Could be worse, they could have sent us some of the divisional staff officers as replacements."

Sheridan chuckled. "Ok, I'm going to take the NCOs and the heavy weapons team with me for the handover. I'll see you and the rest of the platoon at the bridge in an hour."

"Don't get lost on your way there, sir," teased Cole.

Almost to the minute, Cole showed up. The platoon quickly occupied two large houses on either side of a road leading to the bridge. He was pleased to see that the soldiers that had been there before them had done a good job of preparing the buildings for defense. Fields of fire had been cleared and all of the rooms had been fortified. It would not stop a Kurgan tank's fire, but against small arms, the houses were almost impregnable.

The crump of artillery sh.e.l.ls landing a few blocks away alerted Sheridan that the enemy advance had begun again. His job was to hold his side of the bridge until ordered to withdraw. Behind them in the dark, the combat engineers busily prepared the bridge to blow.

Cole walked into the small house Sheridan had chosen for his command post and reported that everything was set. Garcia, Roberts and a young artilleryman were responsible for working the only heavy weapon they could find, an automatic grenade launcher that was sited to cover the road.

"Sir, I don't get why the Kurgs are smashing the city to pieces," said Cole. "I thought you said that they wanted to take it intact so they can use the city's infrastructure."

"I know it's very odd. Perhaps they didn't expect this much resistance and have changed their mission objectives," replied Sheridan.

Roberts said, "I heard from a guy who works up at division that the Kurgs are using the planet as a testing ground to see if their Chosen warriors are loyal to the empire."

"You should know better than to listen to rumors. Especially those coming from the div staff," retorted Cole.

The sound of gunfire reverberating down the streets put an end to the conversation. Sheridan moved to a firing port, brought up his night vision binoculars and looked towards the sound of the fighting. He could not see any movement. The street was deserted, yet barely two blocks away, Marines and Chosen soldiers were once more locked in a battle to the death. House by house and street by street, the two sides fought over the destroyed remains of the capital.

"Unless something drastic happens, I don't think we're going to get hit tonight," said Sheridan. He turned his head and looked over at Cole. "Sergeant, let's have the platoon go to fifty percent manning for the night."

"Sounds like a plan, sir," replied Cole. He looked at Roberts. "Pa.s.s the word." With Tammy running by his side, Roberts dashed over to the nearest squad.

Now all they had to do was sit and wait and that was almost as bad as being in combat as far as Sheridan was concerned. The more they sat about, the more time they had to think about their predicament and theirs was bleak.

Chapter 22.

Tarina sat behind her controls, going through a few last minute checks before she made her jump. Behind her, Wendy was checking and re-checking the calculations provided to them by the Avenger's...o...b..ard navigation computer. She would not be happy until she had verified the numbers herself.

A voice spoke into their helmets. It was Colonel Wright. "Ok, folks this is a simple mission. We are going to jump on either side of Derra-5, switch on our sensor arrays and record everything we can before the ships automatically jump back here five seconds later. If we hang around any longer than that the enemy will acquire us and fire a couple of missiles at us."

"Got it, sir," responded Tarina.

"Ok then, let's do this."

The launch bay depressurized. A second later, the doors below the two craft opened. Using their thrusters, the two pilots flew their ships out into s.p.a.ce. When they were one hundred meters below the transport, Wright began the countdown.

With each pa.s.sing second, Tarina grew nervous. Her hands tightened around the ship's joystick. The instant Wright said zero Tarina engaged the jump engine. In a flash, both craft accelerated beyond the speed of light.

Three minutes later, Tarina's ship emerged on the far side of Derra-5. She could see dozens of Kurgan ships in orbit. Her craft's sensors, augmented for the flight, got to work recording everything.

Wendy began the countdown for the return flight. In just five short seconds, Tarina and Wendy had just conducted their first combat mission and proven the viability of deep s.p.a.ce reconnaissance. Before any Kurgan ship could lock onto them, they were gone.

The belly of the transport ship suddenly appeared above them. Tarina smiled and then flew up inside the launch hangar, as did Colonel Wright. The instant the doors closed beneath them, the transport engaged its Jump Engine, taking them far away from the Derran system.

The bay pressurized and the artificial gravity was reengaged. A swarm of technicians ran over to help the crews out of their ships and to replace the expended power packs in their engines.

As soon she was out, Tarina walked over to Wright's ship. "Sir, that was one really short ride."

"Quick in and quick out, there's nothing wrong with that," replied Wright, handing off his helmet to a technician.

"I saw several dozen Kurgan warships and transports in orbit."

"As did I."

"Sir, where are we heading to now?"

"We're going to rendezvous with a frigate and transfer all of our data to her. She'll then jump back to the fleet with our findings."

"And us, sir?"