My Patience Pays Off
20 Feb 2018Jimi_Jazz
I was sent to this planet on a covert mission.
One that would be regarded as a terrorist attack by the local authorities, sure, but a necessary one. This plant was a critical cog in the war machine of my employer's enemy, and with the mounting conflicts between the two, reducing war capability would only save lives. All I had to do was get in, destroy their main power generator, steal some data and upload a teeny little virus. In and out, and nobody HAD to get hurt.
Public records suggested the base had a medium sized population and would likely have decent defenses set up. I would have to get on quickly and quietly in order to reduce the amount of open combat I had to face.
I dropped out of super cruise roughly 10 km away from my target destination. As I approached in a glide, I saw the lights of the industrial plant stand out against the early evening horizon. We were roughly 3000ls away from the systems Class M star, it was rapidly getting dark. 5 kilometers from the base, behind a small hill and sloping into a shallow crater, I landed the Python. I wanted to avoid as much detection as possible, the long drive would be a slim price to pay for the element of surprise.
The terrain was relatively flat for such low gravity, making the drive quick. I had to avoid collisions with rocks, but didn't have to worry much about getting launched into orbit by driving off of a hill. My SRV's navigation capacity was too weak to directly target the base at this distance, but the wave scanner was able to detect the massive array of signals and metal that made up the plant. I was able to navigate easily, and within ten minutes rounded a small mound that brought the base into view.
I instantly saw what I did not want to see. Light defensive skimmers darted around every potential entry point to the facility. At least 8 were visible from my angle. They were usually stowed in a hangar and deployed if an alarm were raised. That they were already out, scanning the grounds for sign of trespass suggested they had been tipped off - or were for whatever reason already on alert.
Worse, a heavily armed, B Class Anaconda circled above in a tight patrol. Dammit. The skimmers, turrets and mortars were going to present enough of a headache, but a STARSHIP? My plasma repeaters wouldn't be able to pierce through the shields, let alone its likely armored hull.
"Nurmina, come in" I said, establishing a covert laser line back to the mothership, "head to low obit and keep the FSD primed to return to my location. We have a patrolling 'conda, and I don't want it to pick you up as it circles."
"Aye Commander" she responded and immediately closed the connection. She knew how to remain undetected, an essential skill I require of all my (very few) crew members.
With a sigh I powered down any unnecessary systems and got ready to do the one thing I could - wait.
Using another covert laser link, I connected to the HyperNet via the bases own servers. Browsing memes in full detail AR via my left occular implant, I monitored the circling Anaconda with my free vision for damn near half an hour. I was beginning to worry that the ship was stationed on a permanent patrol.
"Frame Shift charge detected" the computer's robotic voice alerted me. In that same moment, the ion engines of the Anaconda flared, breaking it's circular patrol in an increasingly vertical tangent. Within seconds and with a flash, the deadly ship was gone - hurtling at faster than light speeds away from my target to the next leg of their patrol.
I chuckled as I powered up my weapon systems. By the time they are back I will be far, far away from this planet - and a couple million credits richer.