“Wow, you were REALLY letting me have fun before, weren’t you?”
“Not really, but I didn’t let myself fully ‘link in.’ Now, I’m completely focused.”
With that, his fighter reversed and he was firing at Sarah. She managed to avoid most of the hits but took some serious virtual damage nonetheless. That’s more like it, she thought. The longer they fought, the more balanced the fight became. But it was clear that Chase still held a clear advantage.
“What about missiles?” asked Sarah after a while. “There were a few moments I thought about using them, but nothing happened. I suppose it’s a safety measure?”
“That and the fact they haven’t been installed just yet. We’re still having issues integrating our torpedoes with the F-140 systems, but it shouldn’t be a problem for much longer. I hope...”
“What about putting our missiles on the craft? Can they operate in space?”
“I suppose it’s possible…They seem to have crude targeting capabilities, but maybe we could fix that faster than trying to adapt our own torpedo technology. Apparently, simply releasing a heat source is enough to make them follow another target.”
“We call them flares or countermeasures since the missiles are seeking heat. They’re vital to Earth flying warfare.”
“So I understand. But our torpedoes have several types of sensors to lock onto an enemy. They should provide a better yield of impact during space combat.”
“Okay, bring in the toys when they’re ready. I can’t wait to see what they can do.”
“I guess we should stop dogfighting and go over some of the less interesting but important parts of flying these craft.”
“A little anti-climactic, but I had so much fun so I’m not going to argue.”
Chase then went on to explain the navigation sensors, inertial dampeners, power distribution, and engine modes at length. The more he talked, the more Sarah was impressed by how far ahead the technology really was. Sometimes, it was almost an informational overload, but it was incredible to be the first human to learn all about it. Not to mention the fact that she could literally see the combat benefits while being instructed on how to use the various systems of this ship. The ship which, regardless of being technically inferior to Alliance ships in terms of firepower, was simply mind blowing. When Chase seemed to arrive near the end of his instructions, she asked the obvious question.
“How long will it take to convert an armada of these ships?”
Chase sighed. “That’s actually going to be an issue. We lack the required materials to make massive numbers. We could probably do about thirty ships with what we have, maybe even less.”
Sarah stared out at the vastness of space. “Is that going to be enough?”
“I’m not sure. We need to be careful with our reserves of quadrinium since it’s not a material that’s found on Earth and our attempts to replicate it by altering other minerals on your planet have been unsuccessful.”
“Where can we get more?”
“We’ve sent long range probes in search of systems where we can replenish our stock, but we’re still waiting for a positive result.”
“I see.” She paused. “And how long do you think it will take for the enemy to return?”
That was the question of the day, wasn’t it?
“I have no idea. It could be in a few days, or it could happen today. Either way, it’s going to be a serious problem.”
Sarah bit her bottom lip. “We’re not going to be ready, are we?”
“If the next attack is bigger than the last… No, we won’t.”
There was an uncomfortable silence for a few minutes until Sarah broke it.
“Should we head back home? I suppose you’ll want to analyze the data from this test flight right away.”
“Yeah and make the necessary adjustments.”
“Adjustments? I didn’t feel that it needs any adjustments.”
“I’m sure it would feel that way to you, but I will undoubtedly find things to improve once I’ve analyzed the data.”
“Neat. A perfectionist.”
Before Chase could respond, a red halo started to flash on both their HUDs.
“What is this, Chase?”
“Checking…hang on.”
He looked at the information on his HUD. No doubt about it, a ship of some kind had just entered sensor range of the fighters.
“Heads up, we have company! It’s just entered sensor range; let’s engage stealth mode. Maybe they haven’t seen us yet.”
“Roger that. Stealth activated.”
“I’m getting multiple signatures now; this might be a scouting party.”
“What should we do, Chase?”
“Let’s assess their forces and try to identify their ships. In a few more seconds I should get signature verification. Hang on.” He studied his controls. “I read one corvette plus escort…Signatures seem to match the vessels that attacked Earth a few weeks ago. They just changed their course and are vectoring towards us.”
“I thought we were invisible in stealth mode?”
“Our scanners must have triggered their sensors somehow. Engaging jamming mode. Receiving more data now… The ships signatures are confirmed as Zarlacks; probably a scouting party trying to find out what happened to their fleet.”
“Should we engage?”
“I don’t see that we have a choice. If we do it fast enough, maybe we can prevent them from sending a distress call. But no matter what we do, this means we’re going to have company sooner rather than later. Right now, it’s just a matter of not letting them evaluate and report the bulk of our forces to their masters. Get ready to disengage stealth.”
“Wait up, Chase, I have an idea.”
“I’m listening.”
“Let’s micro jump and engage them from behind; they won’t be expecting that.”
“I like the way you think. On three?”
“Two, one, JUMP!”
Both F-140s jumped almost simultaneously and arrived a few miles behind their enemies. Without a moment’s pause, they immediately veered and engaged the scouting party. They managed to dispatch a fighter each before the rest of them could realize what was going on. Then the corvette turrets started raining fire upon them both. In perfect synchronicity, they initiated evasive maneuvers, effectively avoiding most of the hits.
“Think of my ship, Sarah. It will show you my status. I’m doing the same. Let’s dispatch what’s left of the fighters first, and then deal with the corvette.”
“Understood. Got your ship’s vitals on my HUD now.”
They both concentrated on the same enemy craft and it wasn’t long before it exploded out of the sky. There were now only two fighters left and the corvette started veering away while still showering laser fire towards them.
“Is it retreating?” inquired Sarah.
“No, it’s just trying to get out of range so it can send a distress call. We can’t allow that to happen.”
“I’m on it. Finish up the fighters. I’ll dispatch the corvette.”
“Without missiles, we’ll need both our firepower to dent its shields.”
“Wait—can the probes I used for testing move?”
“Brilliant idea!” Chase replied. “Okay, follow the corvette and make sure your jamming field is at full strength.”
A moment later, another enemy fighter exploded and Chase began lining up a firing solution on the last of them. Panicked, it fired all its missile at once. It took some pretty fancy flying to avoid them all…all but one. Chase slowed down and steadied his flying, making sure the last one was following him. Then he switched his weapons to rapid fire, less powerful in terms of damage, but more efficient against shields. He quickly scored hundreds of hits on the ship, which, by now, was in full retreat. When its rear shields were almost depleted, it turned to face Chase’s F-140 again. They were on a collision course, both firing madly while rotating to avoid as many hits as possible. Chase redistributed the power dist
ribution to boost his frontal shield. Then, when they were about to impact one another, they both veered off course and the missile pursuing Chase locked onto the enemy craft and blew it out of the sky.
“Having fun?” Sarah asked.
“Just testing a theory. What’s your status?”
“I’m still engaging the corvette, but my lasers barely make a dent. What do we do now?”
“I’ve reprogrammed some of the probes to intercept you; they should reach you in twenty seconds. In the meantime, let me help you a little.”
Chase entered firing range with the corvette and added his firepower to Sarah’s. It made a slight difference, but it would still take forever to get those shields down. And the longer they waited, the greater the chance they had of getting their jamming field damaged. Chase looked upon his HUD and started typing commands on his pad with blinding speed. A few seconds later, he hit the comm again.
“Okay I’m ready. This is what we’re going do… I’ve put the probes onto a collision course. I’ll concentrate all my fire on a single point on the Corvette’s shields and, when the probes arrive, you’ll need to shoot them and use them as mines.”
“That should be fun.”
“Yeah, I just wish I had missiles as well.”
“I see the probes. Get ready.”
Chase quickly rewrote the macro for hyper firing to speed it up even more, and then started firing hundreds of hits towards a single spot on the corvette’s shields. When the first probe was in range, Sarah shot at it. Its explosion took the corvette’s shields down by more than half. The second hit lowered them even more, and soon, they both fired full strength at the hull, scoring heavy damage with every hit. When a third probe arrived and it was time for the kill, both Chase and Sarah lit it up together and the corvette broke in two before exploding into jagged pieces and clouds of flames.
“Yipikaye, motherfucker!”
Chase frowned at the comm. “Yipi…what?”
“Oh nothing.” Sarah tossed her hair back. “It’s from a favorite movie of mine.”
Chase shook his head and smiled. “Alright, we should head home, analyze the flight data, and decide what our next course of action should be. Because I have zero doubt that we’re going to have more company soon.”
“So much for building F-140s to defend Earth.”
“We already have twenty more of them in the pipeline. We’re going to need to equip them with missiles or torpedoes though.”
“Amen to that!”
Chapter XIV
The flagship Dragon’s Claw was the jewel of the Obisidian fleet, a personal gift the Zarlack had given the Emperor as a sign of their alliance with them. Most of the crew was Zarlack and while they seemed to react just fine answering his orders, the Emperor never really knew if he could trust them fully. A Zarlack officer entered the throne room. He advanced towards the Emperor and knelt quickly in front of him. Leaning on a wall behind the throne was a hooded man. He stood with a casual nonchalance, completely at ease despite his charged surroundings. It was most unusual. As far as the officer knew, all the major players had been accounted for. But try as he might, the officer couldn’t identify this new man; he was staying in the shadows with his arms crossed against his torso.
“What is it, Commander?” asked the Emperor.
“We’ve dispatched scout vessels to the last known coordinates of the fleet currently looking for the Alliance in the unknown regions. No ships were detected, but our long range scans have detected debris from a battle and multiple Alliance signals. Shortly after arriving, the scout ships were destroyed.”
“So that’s where they’re hiding.”
“How come we only hear of this now?” asked the shadowed figure.
The officer stared at him in disbelief, then turned his sights back to the Emperor.
“Answer the question!” ordered the Emperor.
The Zarlack hurried to comply. “Yes, master! We found a transmitting beacon. They must have reprogrammed it to send an ‘all good’ signal; that’s why we didn’t investigate any sooner. As per standard procedure, we had to wait for three failed transmissions before sending a reconnaissance party.”
“In times of peace perhaps, but this should have been brought to my attention sooner!”
“I apologize, master; I’ve only learned of it now myself.”
“You’d better be more careful next time, or it will be your hide.”
“I...I understand, master. Thank you for your leniency.”
The hooded man made a noise that sounded like a disapproving growl, but didn’t move.
“Commander, assemble whatever fleet we can in the next few hours, then jump towards the coordinates. We will crush the Alliance resistance once and for all.”
“Thy will be done, master.”
“Dismissed.”
The commander rose and left the throne room, not daring to look back. Once the door closed, the hooded human spoke again.
“You’re too lenient with your troops.”
“Maybe you are too harsh with yours?”
“You’re still alive, aren’t you?”
The Emperor bared his teeth and looked like he was about to say something, but he decided not to escalate the conversation.
“What message would it send to the universe if people knew the Emperor was dead?”
“I don’t really care. What does matter, however, is that we get to this fleet, find the Alliance, and finish them off.”
“Which is what we’re doing. I’ll report back to you once they are dealt with.”
“No!”
“What do you mean, no?” the Emperor asked.
“Not only will I be coming with you, but I will command the fleet personally.”
“Like hell! These are my ships and my troops. I am in command.”
“Caution, my old friend, or should I remind you that even emperors can be replaced.”
“You misunderstand me, I meant…why would you bother?”
The hooded man almost smiled. “While I have no doubt you are a better fleet commander than those you sent before…” He grabbed a bag from his feet, took something out, and sent it rolling towards the throne. It bounced on the floor and came to a stop just in front of the Emperor. He stared down into the terrified, lifeless eyes of General Zan. “They had a rather sizeable fleet but they still got defeated, which implies a superior strategy rather than bigger numbers. We did, after all, almost annihilate the Alliance in a few hours. As for this fool, he had that coming, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Perhaps. They probably lost half their own fleet in the battle though, so they’ll be easy pickings now.”
“Still, I sense something else.”
The Emperor didn’t answer and silence rang out between them. He stopped looking at the general. He knew full well that complaining about why he was dispatched without his authorization would put him in more jeopardy than he was already in.
“What do I tell my officers?” he finally asked.
“Whatever you want. As long as they understand that I will be leading them once we reach the target system.”
“I don’t understand.” The Emperor frowned. “You always stayed hidden, in the shadows. Heck, you’ve given me command of this flagship, the biggest and strongest ship ever built. Now you suddenly want to be in charge?”
“First of all, your understanding is not required, never forget that. If the Obsidian Empire defeated the Alliance, it is because of me, my associates and the bulk of our forces that I graciously lent towards achieving that goal. Second, I will be giving orders from the throne room. You’ll be on the bridge, observing, or in your quarters, getting blown by one of your many wives. If it’s the former, try to learn a thing or two, will you?”
A deep rage burned down to the Emperor’s very core. He didn’t like to be treated like an underling. But for now, he had no other choice but to obey.
“Very well.”
“I’m going to check something else now. Lik
e I said, I have a weird feeling about all of this…”
With that, the hooded man disappeared back into the shadows.
Chapter XV
Chase landed on the Destiny and went directly to the bridge. When he stepped out of the lift, he went straight towards the captain’s chair where Saroudis was receiving a report from an officer.
“How did the test flight go?” the captain asked.
“The flight was a success, but we had company.”
The captain froze. “What kind of company?”
“Zarlack.”
Saroudis took a deep breath and let out a long, exhaling sigh. “I had wished for more time to prepare before our next engagement.”
“Yeah, so did I. We have to start thinking about strategies and how to repel the next assault.”
“Yes we do, and we must prioritize our workforce into building ships and defense systems.”
“Agreed, Captain. I’ll look into the F-140 flight data to see what else we can optimize, and find a quick way to equip them with missiles. They’re fine against fighters, but taking down higher class vessels with their current firepower is not a viable option.”
“What ships did you encounter?”
“A corvette with an escort. We dispatched the escort easily, but had to pool all our resources and tricks to get rid of the heavily shielded corvette.”
“Understood. But make sure adding missiles to the F-140s doesn’t take too much time; we can always use these craft for dispatching other fighter vessels and get rid of the bigger ships with heavier weapons with the fleet.”
“I agree. Maybe a simple modification of Earth missile technology could be done without spending too much resources and time.”
“Let’s hope so. What else do you have to report, Lieutenant Commander?”
“Well for one, Sarah’s fighting skills are very good. She’s one hell of a pilot.”
“Sarah, is it?”
Earth Last Sanctuary (Universe in Flames Book 1) Page 15