Larry’s mouth is agape as he stares at the incredible sight. “Hey, open all the view ports, will you?”
Brett’s mouth drops open in shock. “No way!” He moves his hand to a bank of switches on his panel. “I should shut this one instead, to protect us!”
Larry tilts his head, his doubtful expression obvious. “You really think our puny plating is gonna make any difference? Besides, if I’m gonna go, I wanna see it coming, not be cooped up blindly waiting, and wondering.”
Brett looks at Dave, whose eyes are glued to the epic battle. Glancing at Tom, he can see that the poor man is barely able to breathe. Making a decision, he sighs. “You’re right, this tin can is either gonna get hit, or not.”
Each alien craft that approaches Pythos is met by a devastating barrage of laser fire from numerous smaller attackers. Some of the arriving ships are too slow to respond to the maelstrom of incoming fire from the now hundreds upon hundreds of attacking craft. They suffer devastating damage to their armor plating. An endless wave of smaller craft continues from behind the planet.
Dave has been watching the progress of the first ship they saw. It is obviously in serious trouble as laser beams penetrate the thick armor, causing havoc on what looks like outer hull plates. Some of these lasers pass through the internal superstructure and even breach the hull. An explosive cloud of gas vents into space upon penetration.
“Will you look at that!” Dave exclaims in surprise. The quartet of men stare in shock as the attack continues unabated.
Dave imagines that inside the mighty spacecraft, alarms are sounding and compartments are closing off. Those trapped inside venting sections are being consigned to their deaths. Each new hull breach appears as a sudden and violent eruption, as gas, along with whatever else was in the section, gets ejected into space.
The lumbering spacecraft are hit with volley after volley, causing hull breach after hull breach as the smaller attackers freely wreak havoc. Finally, after what feels like an eternity, coordinated shots are fired back.
“YEAH!” Brett cheers, if only because the battle seems so one sided.
The others look at Brett uneasily. Dave considers sharing his thoughts; really, they have no idea who they should be cheering for. I wonder who the good guys are? He shudders at a fresh thought. What if neither side is the good guys? Dave’s attention is brought back to the battle as projectiles suddenly launch from the armor-clad behemoths, along with their own energy beams. Lights dance brightly in both directions now. The long, city-sized spacecraft are now fully engaged in a pitched battle against a numerically superior foe that has achieved full surprise. It is clear that this ambush by the smaller, shielded vessels, has been a resounding success. All the while, wave after wave of smaller ships continue to appear from behind Pythos.
Yet another massive ship arrives, to be met with such an onslaught of coordinated laser attacks its entire fore section is carved completely away in seconds. Bodies of hapless crew members tumble out, along with debris from compartments now open to space. Inertia keeps this section, many hundreds of feet long, tumbling forward.
Dave is not the only one feeling dumbstruck. They can only watch in dismay as this carved off forward section enters Pythos’ upper atmosphere, where it starts to burn up. Before anyone can say anything, a blinding flash of light causes the men to shield their eyes. The light is so bright that it briefly outshines the distant sun. Debris is suddenly flung violently out in all directions as the damaged ship explodes before their very eyes. The life of the massive spacecraft ends along with the lives of any remaining crew. Nearby vessels are all impacted, the debris does not discriminate between friend and foe. Shields on the smaller craft sparkle and glow with each impact. Armor plating on the larger victims is scored and dented by this new and unexpected assault. A handful of smaller vessels fail to escape the monumental explosion adding their own smaller death plumes to the maelstrom.
Larry gasps loudly as the flight path of Artemis One takes them directly into the midst of the expanding debris field. A huge piece of the destroyed spacecraft rotates nearby, allowing the four of them to see numerous internal decks.
Dave turns his head to watch in morbid curiosity as crew from the destroyed ship tumble into space before them. The aliens look much like themselves, having two arms and two legs, but beyond that he can discern teasingly little.
“Wonder how many were on that ship?” Dave asks, more to himself than anyone else, as he does not really expect an answer.
The crew goes silent as Artemis One enters the region of space heavily filled with remnants of the freshly destroyed spacecraft. Dave, along with the others, watches in amazement as their tiny space capsule plods along, miraculously unaffected. Tom starts to breathe a little easier as his stress levels diminish.
Looking back to the battle, Dave can see that the larger ships, though still badly outgunned, are starting to rally themselves and begin to effectively strike back. The smaller vessels of the ambushers are protected with powerful shields, which merely glow as individual impacts strike and do little to no damage. However, multiple projectiles strike one of these small ships causing it to explode seconds after its shields fail, further adding to the carnage.
“Go get ‘em!” Brett shouts out, pumping a fist into the air as he does so. “Gotta cheer for someone.” He adds matter-of-factly.
A group of the smaller ambushers are caught by multiple impacts, and explode as their shields fail. Suddenly, the sky lights up brightly as another massive spacecraft explodes, succumbing to the relentless onslaught. Enormous chunks of debris fling outward in all directions once again. Mini explosions continue unabated from within the remnants of this once mighty spacecraft.
Brett puts a hand up as if to shield himself while closing his eyes. Dave flinches and gulps as an enormous piece of wreckage suddenly blocks their path. Artemis One diligently continues on its pre-plotted course, seemingly oblivious to the obstacle before them.
Dave turns to Brett in resignation. “Well, you may as well shut off that proximity alarm, for all the good it’s doing us!” Their end is obviously coming soon, as a collision is imminent.
Brett gulps; he had forgotten about the alarm; its little bleeping having been ignored by all. Space is now becoming so littered with wreckage that weapons fire has as much chance of finding a target, as it does of being intercepted by debris. The smaller craft dance and weave through this ever-mounting debris field in impressive displays of piloting. It is one of these smaller ships that inadvertently saves Artemis One.
Dave watches as the huge fragment before them gets ever-closer; he can even make out an internal stairwell. Suddenly, a tiny spacecraft zooms past them, firing away at some unseen target with its laser. Perhaps the pilot was distracted, the fast, tiny ship collides squarely with the chunk of debris before them. It explodes in a spectacular fashion, sending fragments in all directions.
“Did you see that? I thought I saw a pilot!” Dave exclaims in surprise.
Slowly, the damaged section carves into two pieces which begin to drift apart. The computers aboard Artemis One, sticking to their pre-planned flight path, take them between these two mountains of rotating wreckage.
Dave’s mouth moves as he silently counts the ships internal decks. Eighteen, nineteen, twenty. He stops, his mouth agape. “How many of the bigger ships are out there now?”
Brett surprises them all with his quick reply, “Seven, not counting those destroyed.”
Dave continues to watch the battle; he is totally absorbed by the unbelievable spectacle. The smaller craft’s shields glow from minor impacts as they continue to seek clear shots at their larger targets. The enormous vessels seem to simply be relying on their thick armor to deflect the debris. They absorb insane levels of punishment, while at the same time dish out their own retribution. The ambush is perhaps too successful, as yet another armor-plated behemoth suddenly explodes. The blinding flash causes so much disruption that the battle halts for a moment as vessel
s on both sides divert their attention to surviving this new, enormous volley of fragments. Several diminutive death plumes briefly shine as the smaller craft that fail to escape, are engulfed.
Unexpectedly an entire group of massive spacecraft arrive upon the scene of this apocalyptic battle. Dodging and weaving laser attacks as best they can, two of these new comers almost collide. Dave gasps as he clearly sees the gap between these two ships disappear. The smaller, shielded craft, continue to freely wreak havoc as they find themselves with many new and easy targets.
Tom’s breathing comes in shallow rasps as fear threatens to overwhelm him.
Brett lets out a shrill whistle. “Twenty ships now.”
The battle is joined moments later by a pair of even larger spacecraft.
Dave points at them and shouts out uncontrollably, “Harthos be!” He struggles to comprehend the sheer size of these newcomers. One of them seems to be hanging directly in front of his porthole, while the other one is directly above them. Dave cranes his neck back and forth; this pair of behemoths is easily three times the size of the other ships as they stretch on into the distance.
Tom holds his breath as the new arrivals unleash a deadly barrage of projectiles and energy weapons. Lights and objects skim close by Artemis One, causing everyone to wonder once again if this is the end for them.
Dave is sure these late comers will fare better than their smaller cousins. With armor melted away or gas venting from deep penetrations, they have been getting mauled by the tiny attackers.
These two new monsters glide by Artemis One, allowing the four men to relax a little as the fight moves away from them. Brett observes that the tide of battle is slowly turning. Now, the race is on to see who will be triumphant. The larger spacecraft slowly twist and turn as the laser beams of their smaller antagonists strike again and again. Dave notes that these maneuvers seem designed to spread the devastating barrage of laser fire over as much an area of their thick protective armor as possible. Many scarred lines and furrows are left in the wake of these attempts to avoid damage. The smaller craft perform impressive acrobatics as they continue to press the fight while dodging return fire along with the ever-increasing amounts of floating debris. The minutes tick by as the smaller craft that fail these acrobatics are destroyed. The remnants of vessels on both sides is being added to minute by minute in this pitched battle for survival.
One more truly immense spacecraft arrives, smack in the midst of this epic battle.
Tom recoils at the sight, “Harthos be!” he exclaims loudly between shallow breaths.
The behemoth’s numerous weapons fire, instantly sending projectiles and lasers outward, blanketing the space around it. Fortunately, for the crew of Artemis One, the heart of the battle has moved away from them. Dave’s jaw drops as he can see that this new arrival dwarfs even its own fleet members. It is easily twice as long as the two larger spacecraft, which themselves dwarf the other massive spaceships. Making no attempt whatsoever to dodge the debris, this monstrous technological marvel plows forward. It accelerates and takes the battle to the smaller ships. As its many weapons platforms fire, nonstop, its thick armor brushes aside the remnants of previously destroyed vessels. Appearing so suddenly in the midst of battle, a small spaceship is unable to maneuver in time and collides with it. The smaller antagonist’s shields glow briefly in a futile attempt to protect itself before it, too, explodes against the impenetrable armor on the enormous spacecraft’s forward section.
Dave squints into the distance and spots a dented smudge, all that remains of the unlucky ship and its pilot. The colossal newcomer dispatches the shielded ships, one after another, with great efficiency. Still the smaller ships come on, in almost suicidal droves. The laser attacks against this mammoth newcomer seem almost futile, for as deep as the rents and gouges go, the armor seems to be never ending. A large number of small craft suddenly break off their individual attacks and scatter in all directions.
Dave swings his head around as he watches the amazing display of piloting. These nimble ships dodge debris and each other to converge moments later above, and much closer to, this massive newcomer. Simultaneously, they fire their lasers, all focusing on one armored area of the forward hull. The immense spacecraft directs weapons fire at these attackers as it slowly starts to roll and turn. Numerous lasers dig a massive rough furrow deep into the behemoth’s forequarters. Armor melts, then solidifies again, in the coldness of space. The monstrous spacecraft turns and rolls even more. The converging laser beams create a deep rent into the armor belt. As each smaller ship dodges and weaves, lasers miss their mark, creating additional smaller, individual scars. What began as a large group of attackers, shrinks in number as they come ever onward, attempting to dodge attacks while firing continuously. The attacking wave is soon reduced to a few ships which rush past the sides of this immense spacecraft. The rent in the side of this monstrous craft is so deep that one of the attackers flies inside the damaged area for a few seconds before emerging unscathed.
Dave is astonished at the sight. “Unbelievable!” He intones as gas vents into space from the side of what seemed to be an invincible ship.
Many of the other smaller craft now abandon their own attacks to assist their colleagues. It is almost as if they can smell a victory against this truly monstrous spacecraft.
Brett sounds dejected as he states the obvious. “They’re gonna finish her off.”
Dave is dumbfounded. “That last ship is bigger than anything I have ever seen in my life. I can’t imagine that it can be destroyed.”
Meanwhile one of the ambushed spacecraft, with many parts of its protective armor literally melted away, turns from the planet. Gas vents from numerous holes in its hull. The ship limps slowly away, its thrusters pulsing as they work intermittently. The wounded spacecraft is soon joined by more of its damaged brethren. Surprisingly, the attackers break off pursuit, to focus on the largest ship in the fleet.
This monstrous vessel, while under relentless attack, also maneuvers to face away from the planet. The entire rear sections of these massive ships start to glow brightly, then they are gone. Each ship leaves a streak of colors which mark where they were, and trail off into the distance.
“Oh no,” says a disheartened Brett, “Look!”
He points off to into the distance where one ship remains. Its rear engines glow then fade, they have clearly been damaged during the battle. The smaller ships converge on the helpless ship as they close in for the kill. The crippled ship suddenly blows up. The explosion is stupendous, dwarfing all others in its intensity. The blast expands outward catching many of the smaller ships in its unimagined fury.
Dave gulps as the wave front from this explosion ripples toward them. “HOLD ON!” He shouts in pure panic.
As the blast expands outward, its energies diminish. Nevertheless, the impact to Artemis One is staggering. A myriad of alarms sound as the crew are jostled badly. The impact throws the tiny capsule off course.
Brett hurriedly flicks a bunch of switches as sweat builds on his forehead. “Going to manual control,” he states with urgency.
The tiny viewport directly over Dave suddenly cracks. Dave spins his head and stares at the damaged window in silent dread. Brett notices Dave’s focus and flicks another bank of switches, closing all the portholes.
Just as a thin armor sheet clicks into place, the window fails. Pieces slowly fall away, but the seal holds. Tom has once again been holding his breath, he lets it out in a swoosh. Brett battles the ship’s desire to dive them into the atmosphere, and burns up precious fuel reserves.
With the viewports now all closed, the four men have no idea what is happening outside anymore. They sit there in awe of the apocalyptic space battle they not only witnessed, but somehow survived.
The fleeing spacecraft have no way of knowing that the smaller attackers now only number under a couple of hundred. The escaping spacecraft have little time to consider their lost comrades, as many of the ships are very badly
damaged. As they escape from the disastrous battle one more of their fleet succumbs, as something inside it fails catastrophically. The rest of the fleet continues onward as the crippled ship breaks apart, leaving a trail of particles and debris that stretches on for almost half a light year.
Back on Artemis One, Brett shudders as he glances at the fuel readings. Every tank is reading zero. The last of the ship’s momentum puts them into a high orbit, where hopefully they will stay. With all other options exhausted, he engages the solar panels and reopens one view port.
They all spot the huge space carrier in the distance. It is also the size of a major city and cigar shaped with smooth even curves. The small nimble ships converging on this ship disappear inside. Dave imagines that the space captain, though having suffered heavy losses, must still feel that he has won the battle. Within minutes of loading the last of the smaller ships, this spacecraft also vanishes on a streak of colored light.
Larry flicks a series of switches again, then speaks calmly into his microphone. “Ground control, Artemis One here, are you receiving?”
No one dares comment on his tenacity anymore. Unexpectedly, the speakers crackle into life. Brett’s jaw drops then closes again making a mild snapping sound as it does.
“Yeah, we’re here, sorta. What the Harthos did you find out there?” The voice from Pythos sounds rather apprehensive.
In time, the massive debris field over Pythos coalesces into a ring of fine dust. The Artemis Ring, as it will be called, stays with the planet for many years, as do the stories of this epic battle. No one ever finds out what happened to the survivors, though many stories and theories are created, then summarily dismissed.
Initiation Series: Series One Compilation (Terran Chronicles) Page 2