Frontline

by Z H Brown

  The Rose Thorn raced forward to serve as the rallying point for the Imperial fleet. Conversely, the Golden Blade, flagship of Scimitar, retreated deeper into the fold of Imperium ships. A hundred vessels moved to protectively envelop their leader as the enemy continued its relentless advance.

  For an instant, the Star Eater was in between both fleets, forcing it to choose which group of ships it most wanted to destroy. As it came closer and closer, it made up its mind:

  The beast turned to attack the Imperial fleet, and the Rose Thorn, still positioned in front of its comrades, opened fire on the massive monster. Energy weapons and missiles lanced out from the ship, striking the target at numerous points. Some of the attacks managed to connect with the wounds that had been inflicted on it in the first salvo, causing the creature to thrash with pain. Unfortunately, none of the attacks so much as slowed the horror, which had nearly reached its prey.

  The Rose Thorn executed a shallow dive, allowing it to move out of the Star Eater’s path while still keeping a clear target for it to attack. The creature was apparently uninterested in a single vessel, as it silently flew by to attack the bulk of the ships.

  A new barrage raced out to meet the creature; energy beams, rockets and solid projectiles all trying to inflict enough damage to halt the beast or force it back. More attacks collided with the fiend, most of them shrugged off by its thick scales; the ones that hit a vulnerable spot only seemed to drive the monster into a deeper frenzy.

  Another stream of golden fire erupted from the jaws of the invader, stretching farther than any other burst before it. The organic plasma overwhelmed shields, melted armor and ignited ordnance and fuel. A dozen ships vanished under the withering flame, causing the other Imperial ships to scatter once more and prevent too many casualties from each attack.

  Finally, the Star Eater was among the bulk of the ships. One of its huge, clawed hands snatched up a frigate, its powerful muscles squeezing the craft whose shield tried vainly to hold up under the incredible pressure. Unfortunately, the grip was too strong, and the vessel exploded in the creature’s grasp.

  Like a vicious serpent, its long neck snapped out and caught another, larger ship in its jaws. Its long, yellowish fangs punctured the ship’s defenses like wet paper, causing its prey to detonate in its mouth. Sadly, even a warship blowing up in its jaws seemed to leave the creature unfazed.

  The Imperium, their fleet still consolidating into a new formation, decided to send aid to the besieged Imperials. A dozen ships of varying sizes and types broke off from their fellows and opened fire, trying to draw the Star Eater’s attention to a new target and give the Xenlongians a chance to regroup. Golden energy struck the monster’s wings and skull but, like the majority of attacks levied against it, none of them did more than irritate the beast.

  One Imperial ship came too close to the Star Eater’s tail, and the sharp spines flicked almost too fast to be seen. The tail collided with the ship, knocking it away but leaving it intact - until it had the misfortune to intersect with another ship trying desperately to get out of its way. The two vessels struck each other, destroying both and finishing what the reptilian appendage had started.

  The Rose Thorn had come about and had linked up with the Imperium ships. Thirteen vessels moved almost too point-blank range, unloading every weapon they had. Yellow and purple beams hit the Star Eater in an almost constant stream.

  For all the good their attack did, they may as well have lobbing rocks out of their air locks. The creature continued its rampage, lashing out blindly at whatever was unfortunate enough to catch its eye.

  Even the Star Eater’s wings proved to be dangerous weapons. Two ships, their shields weakened by a grazing blast of fire, tried to join the attackers focusing on the beast’s back. Before they could move into an optimal firing position, the wings of the monster flexed and swept backward, hitting both ships and destroying them as surely as if they’d been hit by the main weapon of a dreadnought.

  At last, Scimitar fleet had finished its redeployment. A hundred vessels were arrayed in a semi-hollow vertical hemisphere with the Golden Blade at the center. As the ships began powering their weapons, a warning was sent out to every ship surrounding the Star Eater. Imperial ships broke off their attacks, trying to put distance between themselves and the creature. Even as the ships retreated, the creature still attacked them with all its might. It caught another craft in its jaws while its mighty claws spelled the end for a different vessel.

  Finally, the Imperium had a clear target; as one, the myriad of warships unleashed a barrage of golden plasma at the creature. The attack resembled the one Ansaria had narrowly survived from the Golden Emperor’s flagship, only with countless threads of yellow-hued energy discernible amongst the destructive display of energy.

  The attack struck the Star Eater full-on, once again obscuring the monster in a shroud of searing-bright light. A couple of ships, damaged in the fight and trying desperately to avoid the attack, were hit by beams that sailed past the target, evaporating them as surely as if the creature itself had unleashed its own golden weapon.

  Once again, the entire fleet of defenders waited to see if this unimaginable onslaught of destruction had obliterated the nightmare, but as the light dimmed and the smoke cleared, their hopes were once again dashed.

  The Star Eater had survived the barrage, but was floating almost immobile in the void. Its long neck was thrown back, its claws were clenched tight and its long, serpentine body trembled and shook slightly. The sight of their nearly-inert foe caused new hope began to flood through the fleets, that perhaps the creature had at least been mortally wounded. The beast dispelled that hope a moment later. Its neck snapped forward, its jaws opened wide, and a stream of fire a hundred-thousand miles long blasted from its mouth. The impossibly long river of flame flew through the silent emptiness of space, before finding its target.

  The fire hit the top of the hemisphere that the Imperium had arrayed itself in. Ships of every size and shape vanished in the inferno; those outside of the immediate torrent of flame were overwhelmed by the heat, causing more ships to pop like super-heated glass. These explosions created a chain of destruction, one ship detonating and mortally wounding those around it, causing them to explode as well.

  But the Star Eater’s attack did not let up. It slowly moved its head downward, dragging the fire toward the heart of the fleet. More ships were vaporized by the golden plasma, inundated by the sheer heat and caught by the detritus of their exploding comrades.

  Finally, the blast reached the heart of the collection. The Golden Blade, trapped by its own forces, succumbed to the attack that had killed so many of its followers and allies and was swallowed by the stream of fire. Still, the creature continued, not stopping until it had cut the hemispherical assembly clean in two.

  When it was over, barely a score of Imperium ships remained. A few scattered wrecks still sparked and smoldered, but there was nothing to be done to help them, meaning they were as good as dead. Other ships had long furrows of black burned along them, only barely avoiding the fate of countless comrades.

  The Star Eater threw its head back again, not to prepare another attack but to let out a roar that none heard.

  The remaining ships immediately began retreating, both sides beating a hasty path for the supposed safety of the other side of the nearby planet. The monster attacked any ship foolish or unlucky enough to come to close, and three more ships fell to the attacker.

  The Star Eater watched the puny creatures race away, its only parting attack a small burst of fire from its nostrils that posed no threat at all. Satisfied that the insects had been driven off, it turned its eyes back to its coming feast. It spread its wings wide once more and began gliding toward the star in the distance before it.

  The first defense had failed.

  Chapter XXIX

  Eye of the Storm

  ~The creature has cleared the first defensive line, but has suffered at least minor wounds. Total combined ca
sualties from Attack Group Meteor projected to be eighty percent; Attack Group Typhoon preparing to engage.~

  -- Administrator Epsilon, updating Queen Zira in Shield Fleet.

  The destruction wrought by the Star Eater had been seen by both fleets, leaving it crystal-clear to every warrior that a battle unlike anything any of them had faced before had begun. A number of the combatants were bemoaning their fate, convinced they were throwing their lives away, but the vast majority of the soldiers of both the Empire and the Imperium stiffened their resolve; they were determined that the creature’s rampage would be ended in this system.

  As Meteor and Scimitar had done before, the combined fleets of Typhoon and Sandstorm had arrayed themselves in a crescent shape for an optimal overlapping field of fire. However, this particular attack fleet was a third of the size the previous defensive force had been. The bulk of the fleet was composed of carrier ships, each one capable of launching hundreds of fighters, drones, and combat mechs.

  Tread had seen the warp-field open to reveal the nightmare inside, and in that instant had been thankful that his artificial intelligence gave him a better resistance to the terror that his organic compatriots were certainly experiencing. After a long moment of taking in his otherworldly opponent, he had switched off his local consciousness and switched over to the twelve individual robotic drones he would be controlling. His diagnostics revealed that the craft were fully fueled, armed and had a strong connection with his signal. Knowing he had a while before he would join the battle, he'd sent an encouraging message to Critter.

  His squad mate was securely sealed within the small cockpit of his battle-mech. Since the monster had arrived, the Woodling had become uncharacteristically still, his attention completely focused on the death and devastation the beast had left in its wake. He was also paying close attention to the creature’s wounds, trying to decide which one would be the most vulnerable to attack.

  So focused on the broadcast of the beast on his screen, he physically jumped at the sudden appearance of a message flashing before his eyes. When he saw that it was from Tread offering a few words of encouragement, he chuckled at his own reaction, and sent a reply telling Tread what distress his message had caused.

  If Tread had been in his body, he would have laughed along with his friend. Now with the Star Eater racing toward the next defensive line, the camera view switched from the Rose Thorn to the Midnight Tsunami. The extragalactic creature was zooming toward Typhoon and Sandstorm, its wings stretched out wide, its eyes blazing with rage. Small bursts of golden fire erupted from its mouth, but nothing as long-reaching as before.

  As with the previous fleets, the combined ships waited for the Star Eater to enter their firing range. However, these ships were prepared to move out of the way of the carrier ships so they could launch their own payloads. If everyone involved didn’t keep a cool collective head (if they had one) and a steady hand (or claw, pincer, tentacle, cilia or telekinetic manipulator), they could wind up smashing their own ships into each other.

  As the target raced closer and closer, the laser arrays were fully charged, the plasma cannons superheated, the missile pods opened and the railguns magnetized. The helm operators were also prepared, hoping that their counterparts on the various ships remembered which way to go once the fireworks were over.

  If it was possible, the Star Eater seemed to increase its speed, as though eager to engage in another battle before its meal. Its powerful eyes picked out the ships once again lined before it - more specks looking to be obliterated.

  At last, the creature entered into the maximum firing range. Another rainbow of energy beams, lasers and plasma blasts illuminated the darkness of space. The cascade of destruction converged on the monstrosity, briefly obscuring it with a blinding flash. Before the light had dimmed, the missiles and rockets struck, the explosives burning painfully on the beast’s wounds, driving it into a new level of fury. At last, the solid metallic projectiles struck, stunning the horror for at least a few precious moments.

  None of the ships that had fired on the Star Eater were able to stay and admire their handiwork. The instant the last of their barrage had been loosed, the ships immediately began dissolving the battle-line, moving quickly so the tens of thousands of fighters could move unimpeded toward their target.

  The Mountain Storm, surrounded on all sides by smaller classes of ships, opened its huge hangars. Tread saw from twelve different viewpoints the doors opening and the starscape of space beyond them. The lights above the doors went from ‘stand down’ red to ‘stand-by’ yellow. Tread began powering up the attack drones so that the instant the light turned green, he would rocket out into the vacuum and towards his enemy.

  As the hangars opened before him, Critter turned off his feed of the battle and began powering up his mech. Once the machine was up and running, the tiny corporal took tight hold of his controls and fixed his gaze on the status lights, which any moment would signal the beginning of his attack.

  The carriers moved closer toward the Star Eater, still somewhat stunned from the latest salvo. Finally, the last of the attack craft pulled away, and the assembled fleet of carriers had a clear launch window. The order was given. The lights went to green, and the fighters were launched.

  Tread’s twelve-way viewpoint suddenly became much more chaotic as his remote-controlled drones rushed out into space. He arrayed them in the attack pattern he had been practicing for weeks and unlocked all his weapons.

  All around him were fighters of different and varying design: the most prevalent were the standard Imperial Dragon Fang and its more heavily-armored brother, the Dragon Claw. A diamond-shaped Gemstone fighter rushed ahead of Tread’s fighter group, its sharp-edged body sturdy but also swift with no less than eight forward facing laser barrels. Wolf Head fighters moved in attack groups like packs of their namesakes, the noses of their craft emblazoned with frightening lupine visages which belayed the deadliness of their twin laser cannons.

  Hundreds of the fighters dispatched against the Star Eater were pre-programmed drones, none of them with the guiding influence of someone like Tread. Sanc Robotic Attack Drones led the charge, while swift and lightly armored Trinity Drones swarmed around them; jellyfish-like Stinger drones flew through space, waiting to deploy their flexible, energy-firing tendrils.

  Following in the wake of the fighters were the battle-mechs, bipedal fighting machines both nimble and powerful. Some of the mechs carried additional weapons; others were equipped with only their integrated arsenals. While Critter was not technically in charge of any of his fellow mech pilots, his status as one of the heroes of Oasis squad led a number of pilots to follow him in an attack formation. Critter had faith that they would be able to take the initiative in the battle without him.

  Racing towards the same target beside the myriad of Imperial fighters were the far more uniform Imperium craft. The waves of fighters were comprised of a mix of three different ships: the light and fast Venomous fighters with their rapid fire weapons, the fearsome Manticor with missile-launchers and a sustained energy projector, and the heavy-armored and slow moving Ingot, which could dish as much punishment as it could take.

  The swarm of fighters drew closer to the Star Eater, which was beginning to recover from its stupor. When the first painful stings of their attacks hit, the creature was instantly back to full awareness. All around it pests buzzed about, their tiny weapons irritating and only painful when they struck one of its wounds.

  The Star Eater began lashing out at its attackers, swinging its claws about in an effort to swat the annoyances. However, most of the craft were simply too fast to hit, only the occasional slow-reacting or slow-moving ships getting caught. Its frustration began to grow as it became clear that the attackers would not be easily dispatched or dissuaded.

  The 47th Starfighter Corps., the “Black Pack,” comprised of a dozen Packmember pilots in their stark-black Wolf Head fighters, flew in a coordinated attack on the creature’s flank. Dodging the massive
wings of the beast as it thrashed about in the void trying to smash the swarm buzzing about it, the fighters zeroed in on their target: the bony base connecting a wing to the monster’s body. Coming at it from multiple directions, the Black Pack unleashed a withering array of crimson plasma bolts and missiles. The blasts left searing scorch marks on the limb, causing the Star Eater to swing its arm about in pain and anger, but the experienced pilots managed to avoid the blind attack…except for two that were caught by the beast’s backhand – their first casualties since the second active phase of the Imperium War.

  Tread’s various drones zipped all around the creature, attacking a dozen different points at once. On more than one occasion, he had almost collided with another craft, the area around the beast so thick with fighters that Tread was spending as much time minding his surroundings as making attack runs.

  Critter was circling around the monster, trying to find the perfect attack window. The beast flailed all about, trying desperately to swipe all its tiny attackers; if Critter got too close at the wrong moment, he would vanish in one of the explosions that appeared with every swing of the brute’s limbs.

  A pair of Dragon Claws, both piloted by telepaths, flew belly-to-belly so closely that their undersides almost scraped each other. The two rushed past the creature’s huge claws, heading towards their target. As soon as they got in close enough, they opened fire, spraying the beast’s neck wound with searing hot plasma blasts. They finished their attack run by launching a pair of missiles each at the same spot before masterfully splitting apart and rocketing away in opposite directions. The weapons, while far smaller than some used against it previously, detonated painfully on the monster’s injury.