The jolt was tremendous. Loose items were thrown all over in central post; several of the occupants were also flung, colliding with each other or unforgiving consoles. While the lights did flicker several times, they stayed on.
“Damage report, all compartments,” Jain thundered. Reaching down, he helped Kirichenko get up off the deck. The Russian had a nasty bruise forming on his left cheek.
“Nicely done, Captain,” grunted Kirichenko as he regained his footing.
Jain ignored the man and hit the intercom button. “Sonar, any sign of that bastard?”
“Central post, no, sir, we’re going too fast. I can’t hear a thing,” replied a shaken Patil.
The report was exactly what Jain expected. He’d successfully evaded the ambush, but if he stayed at full speed, he’d be blind. If he slowed down, however, he’d become more vulnerable to another attack. Either way, the hidden adversary would have the advantage — at least temporarily. “Number One,” he beckoned, motioning for his first officer to join him at the navigation plot. But Jain wasn’t going to wait; he had to keep the enemy off balance. Since he didn’t have contact, all he could do right now was throw off the fire control solution with frequent course and speed changes.
“Helmsman, right fifteen, course one three zero. Half ahead, one hundred forty revs.”
Rakash limped over and reported, “Captain, minimal damage in compartments one, three, and six. Nothing critical, we retain full combat capability. The medical officer reports mostly minor injuries, although one crew member may have suffered a concussion.”
“Very well, Number One.” Jain then smiled wearily. “That was close.”
“A little too close for my liking, Captain. What do we do now?”
Jain sighed. “We certainly can’t proceed with the attack on Yangshan. I’d like to get out to deeper water so we can either lose this chap or gain some room to maneuver.” Pointing to the chart, he outlined their escape routes. “If we head in an easterly direction, we should be able to reach the eighty meter curve fairly quickly. Mark depth under the keel.”
Rakash looked at the fathometer. “There’s nine meters beneath us, Captain. That puts us in water forty-eight meters deep.”
“Very good. Number One, deploy the towed array as soon as we slow to twenty-five knots.”
“But, Captain, it’s not recommended to deploy the towed array at speeds over twenty knots.”
Jain stiffened, irritated by Rakash’s reminder. The speed limitation was a peacetime specification made by the Russian manufacturer — it didn’t apply to the current situation. “I realize that, Number One, but we don’t have the luxury of mindlessly following the manual right now. Get the array deployed, I have to know where this fellow is if we are going to fight him. Also, load the new mobile decoy in tube eight and bring it to action state immediately.”
“Captain, Sierra eight seven has steadied up, estimated course one three five, but its speed continues to decrease. Current speed is twenty-two knots,” stated Thigpen. The report sounded definitive, but Jerry heard the slight indecision in his voice.
“Understood, XO. Is it good enough to shoot on?” It had been only a few minutes since both submarines had last maneuvered and the target motion analysis solution had only just started firming up.
“Sir, I’d like another minute of data. I feel okay about the range, but I’d like to refine the course and speed a little more.”
“Very well, XO, one more minute.” Jerry looked at the current solution on his display. Chakra was to his south at eight thousand two hundred yards, slowly opening. Pivoting to Samant, he asked, “Captain, why is he slowing down? I would have kept on running.”
“I think he believes he needs to fight. Perhaps his mission orders don’t allow him to just walk away from a target, so he has to engage, either to sink us, or make us retreat. But he can’t fight without a sensor, and in this very shallow water the Skat-3 main hull sonar will be limited.”
“You think Jain is trying to deploy his towed array?” wondered Petrov. “He’s going a little fast for that; he could snap the cable.”
“True, but he really doesn’t have much of a choice now, does he?” Samant responded.
“How long does it take to deploy the array?” asked Jerry.
“Just a few minutes. It depends on the ship’s speed,” Petrov answered.
“XO! We’re running out of time. I need that solution now!”
“Central post, new towed array contact bearing red one three zero,” Patil announced over the speaker.
Jain lunged for the intercom box and punched the button. “Sonar, you’re sure of the single bearing?” He was puzzled by the report, as towed array bearings always came in pairs, requiring another course change to resolve the ambiguity.
“Yes, sir. The other bearing points toward the mud, the ten-meter curve. The contact has to be to the north. It looks like an American Virginia-class attack submarine.”
The sonar chief’s report caused the color to drain from both Jain’s and Rakash’s faces. For a brief moment, they looked at each other with hushed anxiety. Finally, the first officer broke the awkward silence. “Could it be the American we fought during the war?”
“The North Dakota?” Jain replied cautiously. He remembered the letter that Samant had received from the American right after the Sino — Littoral Alliance War asking for a draw. His old captain was initially furious, but then, after he had calmed down, took the letter as a sign of respect. Regardless, the man had bested Samant twice, and this sent shivers down Jain’s spine. Given the complete surprise of the ambush, and the tactical skills needed to pull that off, Jain could come to no other conclusion. “I’m afraid our nemesis has returned. We won’t be able to run away from this fellow, Number One.”
“You’re not seriously thinking of engaging a frontline fourth-generation American attack submarine, are you?” whined Kirichenko. “That’s sheer madness!”
“Shut up!” fired Jain. “I don’t recall asking for your opinion, Mister Kirichenko! One more word out of you and I’ll have you confined to your quarters!” Pivoting back to his first officer, Jain belted out a rapid series of orders.
“Number One, deploy countermeasures! Bring tubes four and five to action state. Launch decoy, course zero five zero! Helmsman, left twenty-five, steer north! Half ahead, one hundred five revs!”
“Possible target zig, Sierra eight seven,” said the sonar supervisor. And then almost immediately: “Countermeasures! Bearing one nine three!”
“Damn it!” snarled Jerry. “Snapshot, Sierra eight seven, tube four!”
“Solution ready,” Thigpen called out.
“Weapon ready,” followed the weapons officer.
“Ship ready,” Lymburn exclaimed.
“Shoot!” barked the fire control technician as he hit the button, followed by, “Normal launch. Torpedo course one eight five, speed five five knots!”
“Pilot, left full rudder. Steady course zero six zero,” Jerry commanded.
“Skipper, we’ll lose…” warned Thigpen.
“Understood!” Jerry shot back forcefully. He was well aware that a turn at this speed would almost certainly break the wire with the torpedo.
Sure enough, seconds later Thigpen reported, “Loss of wire continuity.”
“Close the outer door on tube four. Make tube three ready in all respects,” instructed Jerry.
“Captain!” yelled Halleck. “There are two contacts emerging from the countermeasures. One bears two zero seven, the other one nine seven. They look identical!”