Forty minutes later, they watched in awed silence as the beautiful, cloud-streaked blue orb of the earth rose over the barren, cratered landscape sixty miles below. Then Vasey cleared his throat and keyed his radio mike. “Sky Masters Control, this is Lunar Wolf One. Our mission is complete. I say again, our mission is complete. Requesting assistance, over.”
For what seemed an eternity, they heard only static-filled silence. All of them were only too aware that the Xeus could not carry them home. Their only hope was a rescue here in lunar orbit before their oxygen and supplies ran out.
But then Hunter Noble’s voice crackled over the radio. “Copy that, Lunar Wolf One. This is the Sky Masters Orion. I’ve just completed a good translunar injection burn. I’ll rendezvous with you in just a few days.”
Epilogue
Aboard the Orion, Homeward Bound
A Few Days Later
The cramped Orion crew vehicle’s lights were dimmed. Except for the faint hum of air-recirculation fans and water pumps, everything was quiet. Wearing a clean flight suit sent out with the repurposed NASA spacecraft, Brad McLanahan lay back in his reclined crew couch, feeling pleasantly lazy. Nadia lay cozily entwined in his arms. Behind them, Boomer and Vasey were asleep in their own seats. This was a crew rest period, so even the radios were silent.
Through the windows above their heads, they could see the earth growing steadily ahead of them. The moon, now far behind, would be tiny in comparison. Neither felt sorry they could no longer see it.
“We will have to go back soon, you know,” Nadia said softly, from inside the circle of his arms. “Us, or those like us. Those who are warriors at heart.”
Brad looked down at her in surprise. “Back? To the moon?”
She nodded seriously. “We have destroyed one base built by our enemies. But they can build another . . . unless we stop them.”
He ran a weary hand over his face. “You mean we’ll need an armed outpost in orbit around the moon.”
“Yes,” Nadia agreed. “And more people, armed with combat robots, on the lunar surface—to protect the helium-3 mining operation your president wants to build against attack and sabotage.”
Brad sighed. “That’s going to jack up the costs one hell of a lot. For what was supposed to be a purely civilian enterprise, I mean.”
She smiled sadly. “Yes, it will. But while preparing for war may be expensive, the cost pales in comparison with the price of defeat and dishonor. And that is a price I will never be willing pay.”
He tightened his grip around her, looking down along her slender body to the place where her legs used to be, aware of the price she had already paid. He nodded somberly. “Me neither.” Gently, he stroked her beautiful dark hair. “Which means we only have one road in front of us: Zwycięstwo albo śmierć. Victory or death.”
With that, Brad and Nadia both fell quiet again, watching their home come closer in all its majesty.
Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant, Near Shanghai, the People’s Republic of China
That Same Time
Marshal Mikhail Leonov climbed down out of the Harbin Z-20 helicopter that had ferried him here from Shanghai’s main international airport. Unhurriedly, he walked over to the lone figure waiting for him near the edge of a concrete embankment overlooking the brown, silt-laden waters of Hangzhou Bay. The massive containment domes of two of Qinshan’s seven operating nuclear power plants dominated the southern skyline.
General Chen Haifeng greeted him with an impassive nod. “President Li regrets his inability to welcome you in person.”
Inwardly, Leonov shrugged. Their defeat at Korolev Base had come as a terrible shock. In the circumstances, it wasn’t surprising that China’s leader had no interest in losing further face by associating himself directly with Leonov, the Russian architect of a failed strategy. The only small mercy was that knowledge of this catastrophe was still confined to a tight inner circle in their two countries. For the moment at least, no one in Washington, D.C., Moscow, or Beijing was admitting there had even been armed clashes on the lunar surface. Neither side saw any benefit yet in making their undeclared war outside Earth orbit public.
He decided on bluntness. “Does this mean our alliance is at an end?”
“On the contrary,” Chen told him. “The president is determined to intensify our efforts. True, we have lost the opening round, but that was a mere skirmish. The fact remains that we cannot allow the Americans to dominate space.” The Chinese general shrugged. “Our tactics were inadequate, not our strategic vision. Victory in this new kind of warfare goes to those with speed and hitting power, not to those crouched behind fixed fortifications.”
Leonov kept a rein on his expression. Though it pained him to admit it, Chen’s analysis was accurate. Twice now, his chosen means to establish superiority in space—the powerful Mars One orbital station and Korolev lunar base—had been overwhelmed by attacks carried out by small, highly mobile American units. “And you have a way to build spacecraft with the necessary speed and combat power?” he asked dryly.
Chen smiled thinly. “Both our nations have talented scientists and engineers with the skills and knowledge for such a task,” he replied. “So long as we provide them with the means to turn their visions into reality.” He turned and nodded at the Qinshan nuclear power plant containment domes looming over them. “As a first step, we must dramatically increase our stockpiles of helium-3, the vital element in the fusion generators we will need.”
Leonov raised an eyebrow at that. It was technically possible to generate helium-3 in both light-water and heavy-water nuclear power plants, but the process was both incredibly expensive and inefficient. “The costs alone . . .”
“Are immaterial,” Chen said gravely. “President Li is very clear on this, Marshal. My country is willing to pay any price to defeat the United States . . . and to establish itself as a preeminent power in outer space.” His gaze hardened. “Now, is Russia willing to do the same?”
Swallowing his misgivings, Leonov nodded. “Da. We will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with you in this battle.”
Inside, though, he could not shake the sudden, unnerving feeling that the tiger he had planned to ride now had plans of its own. . . .
Acknowledgments
Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy, and Dragon are products of SpaceX. The Blue Moon lunar lander is a product of Blue Origin. Bigelow inflatable habitat modules are a product of Bigelow Aerospace. The Delta IV Heavy is a product of United Launch Alliance. The Xeus lunar lander is a concept pioneered by Masten Space Systems and United Launch Alliance.
As always, thanks to Patrick Larkin for his skill and hard work.
Glossary: Weapons and Acronyms
1MC—U.S. Navy shipboard internal communications system
ALQ-293—SPEAR electronic combat system
Angara-A5—Russian medium-lift rocket
AN/SPY-1—phased-array radar system aboard guided missile vessels
BDU-33—practice bombs
Chenaya Osa—Black Wasp, a Russian anti-satellite weapon
CIC—Combat Information Center
CID—Cybernetic Infantry Device, a manned combat robot
Chang’e-10, -11, -12, and -13—manned lunar lander spacecraft built by the People’s Republic of China, similar in basis design to the Apollo Lunar Module
CLAD—Cybernetic Lunar Activity Device, a variation of a CID used for construction work on the moon
COMS—Cybernetic Orbital Maneuvering Systems, a variation of a CID made for orbital construction work
DF-26—Dong Feng-26, a Chinese long-range anti-ship missile
DTF—Digital Terrain Following, a system for flying at very low altitudes and high airspeed without using radar
Eagle Station—a captured Russian military space station in Earth orbit
EEAS—Electronic Elastomeric Activity Suit, a space suit that uses compressible fabric instead of oxygen for pressurization
Energia-5VR—a Russian heavy rocket
EVA
—Extra Vehicular Activity, a space walk
FONOP—Freedom of Navigation Operation
Harbin Z-20—PRC medium-lift helicopter
HJ-12—Hóng Jiàn-12, modern, man-portable Chinese anti-tank guided missile
HUD—Head-Up Display
ICBM—Intercontinental Ballistic Missile
IFF—Identification Friend or Foe, coded aircraft identification sysem
IRBM—Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile
JY-9—a Chinese missile guidance radar
Ka-52 Alligator—Russian helicopter gunship
KC-767—an American aerial refueling aircraft
KLVM—Kiberneticheskaya Lunnaya Voyennaya Mashina, Cybernetic Lunar War Machine, a manned Russian combat robot
LEAF—Life Enhancing Assistive Facility, a wearable life-support system
lidar—an imaging system using lasers
LM—Lunar Module
Long March-8, -9—Chinese heavy rockets
LPDRS—Laser Pulse Detonation Rocket System, a hybrid turbojet-scramjet-rocket propulsion engine
Mă Luó—a large automated cargo lander spacecraft built by the People’s Republic of China, a derivative of Blue Origin’s Blue Moon cargo lander
Mars One—a Russian combat space station
MFD—multifunction display
Mi-8MTV-5—Russian medium transport helicopter
MiG-31—Russian supersonic jet fighter
MQ-55 Coyote—combat unmanned aircraft
MQ-77 Ghost Wolf—advanced combat unmanned aircraft
Okno—Russian space surveillance system
Oort Cloud—a shell of trillions of ice comets surrounding the solar system
PRC—People’s Republic of China
Queqiao—Magpie Bridge, Chinese communications sattelite
regolith—loose soil or debris covering bedrock
Roscosmos—Russian space agency
RTG—radioisotope thermoelectric generator, a small nuclear power generator
S-29 Shadow—American single-stage-to-orbit spaceplane
SAM—surface-to-air missile
SBIRS—Space Based Infrared Surveillance, American missile launch detection satellite system
SH-60 Sea Hawk—American carrier-based helicopter
Shenyang J-15—advanced Chinese jet fighter
SM-2—American naval antiaircraft missile system
SPEAR—Self-Protection Electronic Agile Reaction, American advanced electronic warfare system
taikonaut—Chinese astronaut
toroids—a circular object with a hole in the center
Type 052C—Chinese guided missile destroyer
Type 366—Chinese surveillance radar
UAV—unmanned aerial vehicle, a drone
XCV-62 Ranger, XCV-70 Rustler—American stealthy short takeoff/vertical landing tactical transport aircraft
Xeus lander—a prototype lunar lander designed conceived by Masten Space Systems and the United Launch Alliance. Subsequently purchased and modified by Sky Masters Aerospace Inc.
YJ-62—Chinese anti-ship cruise missile
About the Author
DALE BROWN is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous books, from Flight of the Old Dog (1987) to, most recently, The Kremlin Strike (2019). A former U.S. Air Force captain, he can often be found flying his own plane in the skies of the United States. He lives near Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
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Also by Dale Brown
The Kremlin Strike
The Moscow Offensive
Price of Duty
Iron Wolf
Starfire
Tiger’s Claw
A Time for Patriots
Executive Intent
Rogue Forces
Shadow Command
Strike Force
Edge of Battle
Act of War
Plan of Attack
Air Battle Force
Wings of Fire
Warrior Class
Battle Born
The Tin Man
Fatal Terrain
Shadow of Steel
Storming Heaven
Chains of Command
Night of the Hawk
Sky Masters
Hammerheads
Day of the Cheetah
Silver Tower
Flight of the Old Dog
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
eagle station. Copyright © 2020 by Creative Arts and Sciences LLC. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
first edition
Cover design by Richard L. Aquan
Cover photograph: Moscow © Aleksei Kazachok/Shutterstock (ocean); © BigMouse/Shutterstock (radar)
Cover illustration: plane © www.kollected.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Brown, Dale, 1956- author.
Title: Eagle Station : a novel / Dale Brown.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019040584 | ISBN 9780062843081 (hardcover) | ISBN 9780062843098 | ISBN 9780062843104 | ISBN 9780062843074 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: McLanahan, Patrick (Fictitious character)—Fiction. | GSAFD: Suspense fiction.
Classification: LCC PS3552.R68543 E25 2020 | DDC 813/.54—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019040584
Digital Edition MAY 2020 ISBN: 978-0-06-284307-4
Version 04302020
Print ISBN: 978-0-06-284308-1
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