Solbidyum Wars 3: Pirates of Goo'waddle Canals (43 page)

Marranalis’ voice came over the ship’s com link.  He must have contacted the
RASSON BEDAN
and gotten my frequency.  “Tibby, we’re getting word that the Ruwallie Rasson dispatched by Padaran to capture the Brotherhood corvettes have managed to capture two just minutes ago.  They’re aboard the third and battling to gain control now and hope to have it secured very soon.  If the first two operations are any indication, I think they will succeed and the remaining Brotherhood ships should begin retreating very soon.  They’re in a losing situation here…so you can come back now, Tibby.”

I didn’t answer, as I was right up on the pack of ships now.  There were 14 that I could count.  I was about to make my first attack, when Kala’s voice came across my com.  “Tibby, what are you doing?!”

I took careful aim and targeted five ships with laser torpedoes and let loose a volley.

“I’m doing what I need to do,” I answered heatedly, as the first five ships exploded.  I was busy targeting another four, but they broke off before I could get a good lock.  I fired anyway.  With luck, I managed to hit another two
.  Seven down and seven to go,
I thought.

“Tibby, this is insane.  You can’t take on that many ships alone and survive; you’re not in one of your cloaked and shielded ships now!”

“So what does it matter?!” I replied, as one of the ships arced around and began firing at me.

“Tibby, your life is more important than this!  Please!”

“My life is crap,” I said, breathing through my teeth, as I pulled a tight turn and took a lot of G’s trying to shake the two fighters that were now on my tail and, at the same time, turn to get one of the fleeing ships ahead of me in my sights.  “All that has happened since I found that blasted
TRITYTE
in the swamp is that a lot of people have died.  If I had not found that ship, everyone would be alive and happy.

“Captain Maxette,” I said, as I got a shot off, hitting another fighter, “Lunnie and Reidecor,” as I banked hard to avoid fire from a pursuing fighter.  The shot glanced off a wing, leaving a burn scar but no real damage.  “All those people spaced on the
DUSTEN
…
the thousands that died because of my blunder in bombing that subsea base on Megelleon — thousands, Kala,
thousands
!  Not just Tanden — and maybe Jenira, too!” I spat out. 

Two of the fleeing ships in front of me broke off and were now coming at me, as the two behind me were trying to get a lock on my position.

“Tibby, PLEASE, I’m begging you, break away!  There are fifty fighters racing in from the
NEW ORLEANS
to take out those ships and more are en route from the
MIZBAGONA
.  Let them handle it — they have cloaking and shielding!  You have nothing to protect you, Tibby!  Jenira is going to be fine — don’t do this, Tibby!”

By now, I was flying straight at the oncoming ships.  They would be on top of me in seconds.  The ships behind me were breaking off so as not to be hit from incoming fire.  I took a wild gamble and fired a spread of laser torpedoes at the incoming ships before going into a sharp dive.  I saw the flash
and explosions above me, as I tried to make a sharp turn back up.  I was skimming the ground before I managed to climb again.  At least one ship was now firing from behind me again and I could see the shots passing by and impacting the ground.  I banked quickly to my left and then shot straight up. 

By my count, I had taken out nine ships, leaving five.  I glanced at my screen but only saw four.  Then, off on the edge of the monitor, I saw one fleeing ship.  I had no doubt who that would be — and I turned to pursue Shydak to the end of the universe if I needed to.  Another shot caught my ship, but again, the damage was superficial. 

Then I heard, “First Citizen, if you could be so kind as to make a sharp turn to your right, we’ll clean this trash off your tail.” 

I had to smile through my seething anger.  I recognized the voice as belonging to one of my men from the
NEW ORLEANS
.  I banked sharply to my right and then set course for Shydak’s fleeing ship.  Behind me, two flashes lit the sky as Brotherhood ships disintegrated.

I looked at my screen and suddenly, to my shock, I saw dozens of ships joining up with Shydak — or, at least, I thought they were joining him.  But then I saw that his ship was going on, while the others were heading toward us in an attack formation.

“Tibby, please come back…” I could hear Kala weeping.  “Don’t do this; there is no reason to risk yourself!”

“There’s every reason!” I said.  “I started all this by finding that damn solbidyum and I’m going to stop it or die trying!”

The ships coming toward me were now less than 30 seconds away.

“Tibby, I need you!  Our children need you…. Stop, please, and come back!”

“Kala, we have no children, and you do not need me.  No one needs me!  What the universe needs is to be rid of me — all I am is a merchant of death and misery!”

By now, I was close enough to the enemy ships that I was able to start targeting.  At the same time, I could see incoming fire from the enemy ships.

“Tibby,” Kala sobbed, “I love you… I need you… you are about to be a father.  I tried to tell you the night of the attack at Tondor’s estate, Tibby… I’m pregnant!”

The news hit me like ice water in the face about the same time the torpedo struck my ship.  Smoke filled the cockpit as I spiraled down toward the surface.  Around me I saw flashes of light and explosions as Brotherhood ships were taken out by fighters from the
NEW ORLEANS
— and all I could think was
Boy, did I fuck this one up – I’m going to be a father and I won’t even get to see my kid! 

The ground was rushing up to meet me.  I heard Kala’s voice cry out over the com system.  “TIBBY!  NOOOO!”

I had just enough time to say, “I love you, Kala,” before my ship crashed into the planet.

THE END

of

BOOK 3 – PIRATES OF GOO’WADDLE CANALS

COMING SOON

SOLBIDYUM WARS SAGA – BOOK 4 – TOO LATE FOR EARTH

Tibby awakens to find himself back on the
NEW ORLEANS
in the medical section.  He’s been told that he suffered extensive injuries in his crash on the planet Goo’Waddle and that his recovery will be slow.  He lost one eye in the crash and, while a new one can be cloned, it would take time for the new eye tissue to grow before it can be implanted.  Kalana is at his side, but she is still angry with him for his senseless reaction to the death of Tanden.  Tibby suffers emotionally from all that has happened and is torn between his grief over the events at Goo’Waddle and his elation over the news that he and Kala are going to have a child.

Tibby is barely back on his feet, when word arrives that his home planet, Earth, has been hit by a large asteroid.  Tibby rushes to Earth in the
NEW ORLEANS
in hopes of providing assistance, only to discover that all life above microbial level has been destroyed on the planet.  Tibby is crushed.  As he is about to return to Federation space, the
NEW ORLEANS
receives a signal from an International Earth Colony on Mars.  The colony is struggling, as their supplies are diminishing and are no longer able to sustain themselves.  The
NEW ORLEANS
rescues the colony, only to discover that there is also a Chinese colony located on the Earth’s moon.  Tibby also learns that a huge war between the Chinese and many of the western nations had been taking place before the asteroid impact.  The
NEW ORLEANS
responds to the moon to rescue the few remaining Chinese scientists that have survived under the rule of a ruthless and maniacal general, who has declared himself Emperor of the Moon.  Once the Chinese have been rescued, it is learned from the colonists that the asteroid impact was not an accident; the asteroid had been deliberately guided to strike the Earth and that those responsible have been returning periodically to prepare the planet for their own colonization.  Before the
NEW ORLEANS
leaves Earth’s space, they are able to witness one of the enemy ships entering Earth’s orbit.  Tibby and his crew are shocked to see that it is identical to the Tottalax ships that have been assisting the Brotherhood in their assaults on the Federation.

About the Author

Dale Musser was born in 1944 in a small rural community of Pennsylvania.  From 1967 until 2012 he was employed as a structural and piping designer in the industries of marine and offshore resources, cogeneration power and hard rock mining.  His work at three shipyards and assignments with several engineering and naval architectural firms during his careers in Virginia, Texas, and Maine, took him to such places as London, U.K., Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., Scotland and Mexico.  During this time, he was responsible for the design of reactor compartments for nuclear aircraft carriers and submarines for the U.S. Navy and the structural designs of numerous offshore semi-submersible oil rigs, tanker ships, supply boats, and other vessels and equipment used in the offshore industry.  After the death of his wife in 1999, Mr. Musser changed careers and went to work in Arizona and Utah in the hard rock mining industry.  He retired in Fall of 2012 and currently resides in Mesa, Arizona; however, his plans for the near future involve a move to New Mexico.

Dale enjoys rock hunting and lapidary work, gourmet cooking, writing, poetry, art, music, religions
 and philosophy in small doses, astronomy and the sciences in general, hiking, camping, the outdoors and the gifts that nature provides.  Mr. Musser is a member of Mensa and remains an avid reader, having lost count of all the books he has read after 3,000.

The greatest joy in his life is his daughter, Heather.  Affectionately they call each other “BUBBY.”

Contact Information:

Those wishing to write to Mr. Musser may do so at
[email protected]
.  Although he attempts to answer all correspondence, heavy emails may prevent him from responding to everyone.