Shadow of the Blue Ring

by Jerome Kelly

  The logs on the wrecked ships had indicated two factions and now they had proof, there was definitely more than one race occupying the region. But which one was this? The attackers or someone else entirely. James could feel the tension among the crew rising but he wasn’t deterred, he wanted a closer look.

  “Captain, I strongly advise against getting any closer,” Daniels was quick to warn James off, as if members of his command crew could read exactly what he was planning to do next. James said nothing though, he just stood staring at the silver shape in the distance. All this time there there had been far more happening in the galaxy than anyone within the alliance had been aware of.

  “Magnify the image,” James eventually broke his own silence, “I want to see it up close.”

  Ivanov brought up the image on the ship’s main view-screen. The ship was huge, probably almost as much as three kilometres long. It was larger than any ship in alliance space, even the council ship itself. From the look of it’s weapons, it would certainly have been capable of inflicting the kind of damage they had seen on the Tolian warship back at the first set of co-ordinates. Without any kind of warning, the ship began to move.

  “Ok, I think now would be a good time to move,” Morelli said worriedly, “if they’re hostile, we don’t want to be waiting around when they reach us.”

  “Wait!” James called out, “hail them first, see if they’re willing to respond.”

  The ship was coming right at them and they didn’t seem to show any signs that they were interested in communicating. It was a long shot.

  “No response sir,” Elena said hurriedly, “I don’t think they want to talk.”

  “Ok, looks like it’s time to get going, Daniels, would you care to get us out of here?”

  “I thought you would never ask,” said Daniels, wasting no time in getting the ship moving.

  Maybe he should have listened to Saavoy and Ansare, the ship was closing them down quickly. If it got within weapons range, it was game over for all of them.

  “They’re moving into attack position!” Ivanov warned them. Their screens were showing the mysterious ship blasting it’s way through the asteroids, it’s weapons clearing them a path through towards the Evening Star.

  “We need to pick up the pace, Daniels, can you move this thing any faster?”

  “Not while we’re still among the asteroids,” Daniels warned, “we’ll be pulverised.”

  He was putting as much effort into keeping his distance from the unknown ship as he could, weaving in and around the larger asteroids in an attempt to block their line of sight but he couldn’t shake them, flying any faster within the field would be suicide. The ship suddenly opened fire, massive blue blasts of energy erupting from it’s guns, the first wave making contact with the asteroids, Daniels managing to dodge in time. The second time they were not so fortunate, one of the beams passed between the rocks and hit the rear section of the ship, rocking them violently.

  “Shields are holding,” Ivanov quickly informed them, “but their weapons are powerful, we don’t want to take any more hits like that.”

  “Return fire!” James ordered, “hit them with everything we have.”

  The Evening Star’s rear guns began to fire, their power far beyond those on a standard human cruiser but it was not enough, the aggressor’s shields were strong, absorbing everything that came their way. Two more shots hit them, rocking them even more violently than before. They were running out of time, the aggressor was closing and their shields were falling.

  “Shields at forty percent!” Ivanov exclaimed, “we need to get out of here!”

  “Can we get to warp yet?” James asked hurriedly.

  “Not from here,” Daniels replied, “we have to clear the asteroid field first or we’ll be crushed.”

  “Then it’s time for a new plan,” James said stoically. He scanned the surrounding area, there was nowhere they could hide and no way they could outrun this mysterious attacker. He had mere seconds to think but an idea did pop into his head… there was one thing they could try but it was a long shot… “Daniels, take us behind that large asteroid just as they move to fire. As we pass by it, fire three torpedoes from the rear launcher and strike it in a concentrated pattern.”

  Whether or not they were aware of what he was trying to do did not matter, they went along with it. Daniels darted the ship behind the asteroid in question just as the attackers fired another wave of shots. They struck the asteroid rather than the Evening Star, giving them a split second of respite. As ordered, Ivanov hit the asteroid with the torpedoes, the force of the blasts knocking it from it’s position and sent it sprawling into the path of the enemy ship. The enemy ship, being too large to properly dodge at that speed, crashed straight into the massive rock as it passed into it’s path sending a shower smaller rocks into the space behind them. There was an anxious few seconds as the crew could not quite make out what had become of the attacker behind the mass of broken asteroids now obscuring their line of sight.

  “Did we get them?”

  “I can’t see them,” said Ivanov, “maybe the force of the crash stopped them in their tracks? Or maybe it… oh wait, it’s still there.”

  Crashing through the mass of broken rocks, there was the enemy ship once more and it was still coming straight in their direction.

  “I don’t believe it!” James exclaimed, “that impact would have crushed any ship in the alliance fleets, that thing barely took a scratch!”

  Even though it was still coming towards them and it looked undamaged, it had fallen behind after the crash and they had an extra few seconds with which to work with. The Evening Star was right on the edge of the asteroid field now and any moment now, they would be clear to make the jump to warp.

  “We’re clearing the field,” Daniels said at last, “give me a few seconds, I’ll get us out of here.”

  The enemy ship was closing, they would have a clear shot any second. Just as Daniels put the co-ordinates in, another beam hit the ship but their shields failed, the ship jolted hard, triggering all the warning alarms on the bridge.

  “We’ve got a hull breach on deck nine!” Elena called out, “emergency force fields holding.”

  “Come on, get us out of here!” James called, “hurry!”

  Daniels hit the warp lever and the blue waves of hyperspace began to form. With the enemy almost on top of them, they made the jump to warp and left the enemy behind, just as it was about to open fire once more. They had managed to get away… but only just. Silence fell upon the bridge, no one could quite believe what had just happened. They had only just survived the attack, a few more seconds and they could have ended up just like those back on the Tolian warship.

  “Damage report,” James said after what seemed like an age, “what’s our condition?”

  “Their weapons carved through our shields almost effortlessly, sir,” said Ivanov, “we’ve got a hull breach on deck nine but all emergency measures are in place and all systems are fully functional. We got lucky.”

  “Damn right we did!” Saavoy said angrily, “I told you to pull back, James. I told you we were heading for trouble and we damn well found it. We’re all damn lucky to be alive.”

  “We got away, that’s all that matters,” said Ansare, “it was a close call but we know for certain who was behind the attacks now.”

  “We can’t keep rushing in blindly when we have no idea what’s waiting for us around every corner,” Saavoy insisted, “we came out here knowing we would be up against something dangerous but even this is beyond what we were expecting. Whatever that thing was, we can’t face it alone.”

  “If we go back to Artennes and the council now, they will surely elect to send in a battle fleet,” said James, “that thing would tear through our ships like a knife through hot butter and we don’t even know how many of them there could be out here. We need to get a go
od idea of what we’re facing before we go back. We’ll look for a weakness, find out where they’re striking from and find out what they want. Remember what Darien once said to us? “You need to understand your enemy before you can defeat them.” We have to know our enemy before we can put a stop to their attacks.”

  “So what do you suggest?” Kosare asked, “we just wait out here on our own, hoping to find some way to fight them?”

  “I just want to make sure we know the true extent of our enemy,” said James, “we’ve seen them, we’ve faced them, we’ve survived, that makes us the only crew in the alliance to have done so. We need to look for a weakness in their defence to make sure that the next encounter is not so one sided.”

  “I concur,” said Ansare, “as much as I don’t like this, you’re right, we need to find a way to fight them. If one of these things was in the Muiran sector near my home planet, I want to know how to stop them. It could take out half our fleet if we don’t know how to fight it effectively. Anyone not agree?”

  “I think I speak for everyone when I say that we’re all going to see this through,” said Saavoy, “I didn’t agree with going in there but I suppose we are better off having seen the enemy with our own eyes.”

  “I agree, we need to stop them,” said Morelli, “I don’t know how much each of us can do individually but I can be damn sure I’ll try my hardest to help, I’m pretty sure everyone else will too.”

  “Yeah, we’ll all do our best,” Kosare sighed, “I guess someone has to and we’ve been through all of this before, we can do it again.”

  James was sure that Isha and Melina would both be in on it too, neither of them were known for backing down or walking away from an impossible situation, wherever they happened to be at the time. James was a little concerned by their continued absence although he could understand to some extent.

  “So where do we start?” Julio asked, “I doubt we’re in much shape for a rematch right now.”

  “No, we’ll keep our distance,” said James, “we wont engage them except as a last resort. We need to get an understanding of the area and get an understanding of the enemy that attacked us. Ivanov, did we get any tactical readouts on that ship before things kicked off back there?”

  “We got a few partial readouts but our sensors were pretty badly scrambled,” said Ivanov, “we can try and piece them together and see what we can get but I can’t promise anything comprehensive.”

  “Better than nothing,” said James, “study it and see what you can find, I’m sure they will have a weakness somewhere. I’m sure there is something each of us can do to help so lets all get on it.”

  He was sure Morelli would be useful down in engineering assisting with the repairs while Saavoy and Ansare’s tactical expertise would be useful for developing some kind of strategy against this enemy. James meanwhile, needed to check on Isha, she had still not shown herself since coming back from the wrecked Churian ships and he was starting to worry about her. Leaving the bridge and letting his crew get to work, James made for the captain’s cabin. As he reached his quarters, the door opened, Melina exiting the room and almost bumping into him as she did so.

  “Kaydenne? How is she?”

  “Oh, she’s fine,” said Melina, “she’s just sleeping, she’s been out for about two hours. It sounds like we’ve missed all the excitement though, what the hell happened out there?”

  “Long story,” said James, “go to the bridge, the others will fill you in. I’m going to check on Isha first, I’ll be back up shortly.”

  “Just go easy on her, she’s really not feeling good,” Melina warned, “don’t push her to get back to her duties too soon, Ok?”

  “I wont, don’t worry,” James assured her before letting her leave for the bridge. She was a little evasive but as long as Isha was Ok, James was happy. He entered his quarters to find her fast asleep, actually looking quite peaceful, the dramatic events of the mission likely having completely passed her by. Removing his shoes, he sat himself on the bed next to her.

  “What time is it?” Isha mumbled in her sleep, “how long have I been sleeping?”

  “Just a few hours,” James said softly, “we’re in the clear now so you just keep resting.”

  Isha grabbed his hand but otherwise, she stayed where she was laying, she was out like a light again within seconds. James lay himself down next to her, his hand in hers. He had some time to say with her for now, they were at warp for a couple more hours and nothing could hurt them as long as they were on the move. James was more worried about what would happen once they came to a stop. Eventually, someone was going to have to face down these attackers. They could hold off, learn about them, learn the area, make all the preparations they needed but eventually things would lead into a direct conflict. They needed to be ready for when that day finally came.

  Chapter Eight

  An Unknown War

  It had been seven hours since the sudden attack on the Evening Star by an unknown aggressor. James had been sure to put a considerable number of light years between themselves and the edge of the nebula where their enemy had struck and they had dropped out of warp into a particularly remote and unassuming system somewhere in the dark reaches of the sector. James was particularly troubled at the ease at which their enemy had overpowered the Evening Star. Despite the incredibly advanced technology with which this unique warship was built, it was still not a match for what they had found themselves up against. Unless they could find some weakness within the ship that attacked them, there would be little they could do to defend themselves if they came up against them a second time. The one positive that had come from their encounter was that they now at least, to some extent, knew what they were up against and what the enemy was capable of. Even if they they were outmatched, the mystery had finally been unravelled.

  With several of his crew studying the readouts and scans of the enemy ship to piece together a plan, James made his way down to deck nine to check on the progress of Morelli, Connolly and the engineering teams’ progress with the repairs.

  “What’s our condition?” James asked, “how bad is the damage?”

  “It looks like we got really lucky,” said Connolly, “none of our vital systems were hit and all of our engines are functioning at one hundred percent. We’re using all the leftover resources from the construction of the ship and we’re patching up the breach now.”

  “How long until we’re back up to speed?”

  “I estimate seventy-nine hours until we’ve fully restored the damage,” said Connolly, “the repairs wont affect our functionality though, it’s superficial compared to the damage we could have potentially suffered.”

  “Thats excellent news,” said James, “keep me informed of your progress, I need the ship in top shape if our attackers decide they want another round.”

  “Come on, when have I ever let you down?” Connolly laughed, “I’ll have this place as good as new in no time.”

  “Good point, I’ll hold you to it,” said James, “you and Loca keep up the good work down here.”

  With the news on the repair front positive, James made his way back up to the command deck to the war room. Saavoy, Ansare, Melina and Julio had been working alongside Ivanov and plenty of other members of the crew to put together the scrambled scans from the scene of the attack. Their progress had not been going well when James had last checked in on them, he was hoping for something positive since then.

  “Please tell me we have something,” James said as he entered the war room, “have we made any progress at all?”

  “I think so,” said Ivanov, “we’ve just finished putting the scans together, I’ll try to bring up the readout now.”

  Everyone gathered around as Ivanov began to bring up a holographic image of the enemy ship on the central projector. He had done a good job of recreating the ship, they had most of the detail and most of the ship’s constru
ction.

  “We couldn’t get a penetrating scan so it’s fairly basic,” said Ivanov, “we only have a simple readout of the outer structure, I can’t give you any specific information of their internal systems or of the actual extent of their technology.”

  “It’s more than we had before,” said James, “Ok then guys, what can we tell from the readout? Any weaknesses?”

  “The construction is fairly solid,” Saavoy observed, “this ship was clearly designed for frontal and broadside engagements so the armour along the sides is considerable and their forward firepower is also pretty formidable. If you look closely at the front though, there are a few gaps in the armour where the forward guns are placed.”

  “It’s not exactly a particularly viable plan of attack,” said James, “we go at them from the front, we’d be destroyed in seconds. We need to find a viable weak spot.”

  “Its difficult to pinpoint any real weaknesses in the armour or shields with these incomplete scans” said Ansare, “there are some minor gaps in the structure along the dorsal side and I think the structure is a little thinner on the underside but it’s still not much.”

  “These gaps are too small for me to hit manually,” said Ivanov, “I can give it my best shot but I may not be able to hit them, not even with the aiming assistance of the ship VI. Picking off tiny weak spots through armour as thick as this is near impossible without an extremely advanced aiming assistance program.”

  “Something has to work against them,” James said, “what about the new shock cannons this ship is equipped with. What could they do against this kind of defence?”

  “Well they are designed to disrupt and break through shields so they could work,” said Ivanov, “they’re still quite experimental though, we haven’t given them a proper test yet. It’s not really an ideal time for us to be working with untested technology.”