"That's what I'd do if I were prepping a target for a landing," Lieutenant Colonel Erica Beck said. She was in overall command of Taskforce Wolfpack's Marine detachment, a sizable force spread across all five ships. She'd come highly recommended by Marine Assistant Commandant Jeza Ortiz, a longtime friend of Jackson's and an original member of the Blue Jacket Mafia. Ortiz had been a major when he'd served as Jackson's detachment commander on the old Raptor-class destroyer. His endorsement was all he'd needed to bring Beck aboard. Jackson had asked her to the bridge to advise him once it became obvious the base was under attack from within.

"Those cargo ships Captain Risher is chasing could be carrying troop dropships," Ellsworth said.

"Or they have additional forces sitting outside the system," Jackson said. "It's one of their favorite tactics. Coms! Message the Broadsword and tell them I want to be alerted the instant the enemy force launches any com drones."

"Yes, sir."

On the main display, Jackson saw Risher was committed to an aggressive intercept vector. He'd foregone using the seventh planet for a gravity assist to keep his power signature down and instead opted for a brute force, full-power charge at the enemy.

Jackson could see the advantages to both, although given the circumstances he would have preferred a more cautious course. They were completely exposed in this star system in ships that didn't even legally exist, with no solid intel on what the enemy might have in mind other than raiding a top secret facility.

"Sir, CIC has been tracking anomalous gravimetric signatures for the last two days. They'd been catalogued for analysis but didn't match up to any known threat in the—"

"To the point, OPS," Ellsworth said.

"Yes, sir," Ensign Pruitt said. He was the second watch OPS officer filling in, and the presence of all the rank seemed to fluster him a bit. "The anomalies are being detected with more regularity. Still nothing that would indicate hidden ships, but definitely not a natural phenomenon known in this system."

"Tell CIC I want an analysis fast-tracked on this," Jackson said. "The Alliance has been very good at fielding secret weapons we know nothing about. This could be a sensor anomaly from our own drive, but I want them to prove that one way or the other."

"Two more explosions on the surface," Colonel Beck said. On the main display, the computer showed an enhanced orbital view from the Saber's powerful optics, helpfully labeling the sections of the base per the data on Jackson's personal server. The two new explosions were labeled as the last remaining orbital defense gun placement and an axillary power station. The second target didn't make a lot of sense, so Jackson assumed either the enemy had better data than he did on the base or they made a mistake and blew up something they thought was critical.

"Colonel, is there any way at all we can talk to someone on that base?" Jackson asked. "We have a starship with the most advanced com suite in the Fleet and there is a full battalion of Marines down there who might be listening." Beck just shrugged helplessly.