Monday 22 September 2014

Battle On Golden Bay

See here.

In Poul Anderson's Ensign Flandry, Flandry is in the principal Kursovikian seaport, Ujanka, on Golden Bay, when a small Merseian submarine surfaces and starts to shell the town with incendiary chemicals. Taken by surprise, the Sisterhood centrum has to be reminded by radio to ring Quarters so that crews will take their ships out on the bay. Even despite the Merseian sub, they will be safer scattered than docked.

Lieutenant Kaiser in the Navy Engineers' dome above the bay informs Flandry that, because the greenskin airfleet is hovering directly above, Terran fliers are scrambled to cover Highport, nowhere else, while Admiral Enriques tries to contact the Merseian Fodaich. Transports able to spray firefighting chemicals will arrive in half an hour if they are not shot down by the gatortails. Meanwhile, fish-drawn Siravo catapult boats approach Ujanka.

Flandry and armed Tigeries crowd into his flier, depart and return with the sun behind them. He lands on the sub where there are three helmeted Merseians at either gun and three or four with blasters and machine pistols in the opened conning tower. The Tigeries disembark firing at the Merseians in the conning tower who return fire while other Merseians run from behind the tower. Flandry, flying above the tower, turns sideways and fires down, clearing the tower of Merseians. His flier, hit, crashes onto the tower, blocking its hatch. Tigeries have taken the forward gun and used it against the Merseians below Flandry but reinforcements approach from the after hatch. Flandry uses his blaster set on wide beam until there is silence. While the Tigeries go astern to shoot anyone who emerges, Flandry calls the Navy to come and get them.

Abrams had advance notice of the attack but could not compromise his source and goes down on his knees before God when Flandry saves Ujanka.

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