she asked sternly. “Very well. I can promise you nothing but blood, toil and tears. But I also promise you that I will not stop until I have made the Dominions cringe in terror whenever they hear the name Victoria. And I promise that one day, by
Emily stared at her for a long moment, then nodded. For now, it would have to be enough.
Chapter 72
Emily’s Personal Journal
Today I killed my best friend.
Chapter 73
On the Dominion
In the end, they simply ran out of ammunition.
They had used their four grenades to fend off the armored troops, killing one and driving the second back. There had been a blessed lull for about half an hour, then the corridor filled with Dominion troops. The Dominions shot gas canisters into the bridge, and then walked in behind ballistic shields.
One by one the Marines ran out of ammunition. Some resorted to throwing their empty rifles at the Dominion soldiers, some swung them like clubs. The Dominions shot them down and turned on the rest. “Surrender!” their officer ordered, “Or we’ll kill you.”
Cookie looked at the eleven surviving members of her one hundred and twenty man attack force. They were huddled together behind the last bank of consoles, pressed against the far wall of the bridge. Then she looked at her watch: two hours and seven minutes since she had spoken with Emily. Two hours and seven minutes paid for in blood.
There was nothing more to do. There was nothing more she could do. She looked at the blood-stained, exhausted faces of her Marines.
“We can surrender,” she told them, giving them permission to save themselves. They looked at her, faces grimed with dirt and blood, teeth bared, eyes glaring.
“Bugger that!” Wisnioswski snarled.
Meyer somehow cracked a smile. “There’s only thirty of them, Sarge, we should ask
Cookie nodded. “Okay then,” she said, her heart bursting with the pride she had for these men. “Always together.”
“Never alone,” they replied.
A voice called them from the corridor. “This is Major Bruno Farber of the Dominion Security Directorate! Your battle is over and you have lost. Lay down your weapons and come out!”
“I am Sergeant Maria Sanchez of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines,” Cookie hollered back. “Go to hell!”
Not very original, she thought ruefully, but short and to the point.
A moment later the flash-bang grenades came flying in and Cookie’s world blossomed with light and pain.
The Ducks swarmed over them, butt-stroking them with rifle butts, then tying their hands behind their backs and putting black hoods over their heads. Cookie had to concentrate just to breath. Then they were dragged into a line and forced them to kneel on the floor. The hoods were ripped off. In front of them stood a husky, bald-headed man with the insignia ‘DSD’ on his black uniform. In one hand he carried a sonic pistol.
“My name is Major Bruno Farber of the Dominion Security Directorate. You have been tried for war crimes against the Dominion of Unified Citizenry and found guilty. I sentence you to death.” He turned and walked to the end of the line of prisoners. Meyer looked at him without comprehension.
“Always together, Albert!” Cookie called out. “May the Gods of Our Mothers embrace you and lift you up.” One of the Dominion guards roughly clubbed her to the ground.
Major Farber stuck his pistol against Meyer’s forehead and pulled the trigger. Meyer’s head snapped back in a spray of blood.
Farber stepped to the next Marine.
“Always together!” Wisnioswski shouted. A rifle butt knocked him backwards.
Farber pulled the trigger. He stepped to the next Marine.
“You filthy bastard!” Cookie screamed. “We’re POWs. They’ll hang you for this!”
He pulled the trigger and stepped to the next Marine. Four more died in quick succession. Next in line was Otto Wisnioswski. He put the gun to Wisnioswski’s head.
“Enough,” said a voice.
Emily looked up from the floor. A tall, thin man in the uniform of a Dominion admiral stood there, flanked by four security guards holding short, stubby sonic pistols.
“These people murdered Admiral Mello!” Major Farber snarled.
“Which makes them my prisoners as the ranking admiral of the Dominion Fleet,” the man said mildly.
“No! I have jurisdiction here. I am in charge of security for the
The man’s eyes narrowed. “You will stand at attention and address me by my rank, Major, or I will see to it that you go out the airlock with these bodies,” he said, a touch of steel in his voice.
Farber reluctantly stood straight, glaring first at the prisoners, then at the admiral. “Admiral Kaeser, these people are spies and saboteurs. Under the rules of war, they are to be summarily executed.”
Admiral Kaeser eyed him disdainfully. “I see that the DSD now requires their officers to be stupid as well as bloodthirsty, Major. In your haste to shoot the prisoners, did it occur to you to ask how they managed to get aboard the
Farber looked bewildered.
“Ah, I thought not. You see, Major, since there are no shuttle craft moored to your hull, and since they did not blow a hole in your hull to enter, I thought that you might be mildly curious as to how THEY MANAGED TO GET BY YOUR SECURITY AND BOARD THIS VESSEL!”
Major Farber stepped back, ashen faced. “I assure you, Admiral-”
“You have been killing valuable witnesses, Major, and that makes me wonder why. You are either a fool and an imbecile, or you are trying to cover for your own pathetic negligence. Which is it, Major, are you an imbecile or have you been negligent in your duties?”
“Admiral-”
“Shut up, Major Farber. I leave these prisoners in your care. I will question them myself. They are not to be harmed, do you understand me? If they are harmed, it will go badly for you. Do you understand, Major?”
Farber nodded. His face was purple with suppressed rage.
“Good,” said Admiral Kaeser. “I have a war to fight.” He looked around the CIC of the
The admiral and his security team turned and left. Major Farber reached down and grabbed Cookie by the hair, jerking her to him.
“Oh,” he whispered hatefully. “You have much to answer for, and it’s a
