Storm' Fury: The Shenkar War

by Seth Libby

  Once again Petiot adopted a fighting stance, this one more of a defensive stance, his face showing no emotion. Cryta nodded slightly to Petiot, an acknowledgement of his skill and that he would not underestimate him again.

  Cryta once again moved in close, coming in high but quickly dropping when Petiot brought his sword up to block. As he dropped he pivoted on one foot and kicked out with his other foot, driving his foot into Petiot’s midsection. Petiot flew backward landing onto his back, but instead of remaining on his back he used the momentum to continue his backward movement to continue to roll bring his legs up and over himself in a backward somersault. The completed maneuver leaving him in a half crouched position, his face betraying the pain he felt from the kick. When Cryta did not press his attack he slowly stood, bringing the sword up so the hilt was positioned vertically over his heart, a form of salute to Cryta.

  The pair once again began to circle each other but this time it was Petiot who attacked first. His sword was a blur as it arced in but Cryta was able to block the attack and in turn lashed out with his own sword which Petiot blocked. This continued without pause for a solid fifteen minutes, neither combatant relenting from their assault. The two clearly showed fatigue as sweat dripped down their faces, soaking their shirts. In the end, it was fatigue that determined the winner of the contest with one of Petiot’s attacks coming a bit too quickly for Cryta to defend. Petiot’s sword made contact with Cryta’s size, sending a small jolt of energy into him.

  With the contest over many of the audience clapped their appreciation of the contest.

  “Excellent contest, Lieutenant Petiot, I commend you on your skill,” Cryta said, as he deactivated his blade and pressed it to his heart in salute. “You as well, you almost had me a couple times there,” Petiot acknowledged as he returned the same salute with his deactivated sword. Petiot left the mat and headed towards the crowd, only pausing long enough to retrieve his jacket. Many of the audience clapped him on the back and congratulated him on the win as he entered the crowd. The attention was clearly something new for the young Frenchman but he seemed to enjoy it as he wore a large, although tired, smile upon his face. “He is a very skilled opponent,” Cryta stated to Liam as he stepped up next to him.

  “Yes, he is, but you had also already partaken in three previous contests. If you had been fresh the result might not have been the same.” Cryta seemed to think this over before he spoke.

  “Perhaps, but he is still very skilled.”

  Liam thought this over, weighing what he knew of Petiot and his skill.

  “How do you rank among the elites?”

  Cryta seemed to think this over for a few moments before responding.

  “I am not the top ranked warrior with the sword but I would say I am better than most.”

  “Then it is safe to say the battle was close to equal in ranks then. Petiot is skilled better than most with the plasma sword. I would be interested to see who is the best among you and how he ranks against our top ranked. Either way we have a good idea of how we rank if we need to go up against the elite,” Liam stated as his attention once again focused on the men and woman training before him.

  “It is said that the Shelecore is the best among us but I have often wondered if this is just propaganda spread to raise him in the eyes of the people. I have heard that Overlord Threta is the best but he is part of the Crimson fleet which is stationed out on the fringe guarding against the brood.”

  At the sound of the latter part Liam’s head whipped around to look at Cryta.

  “That is the second time I have heard mention of the brood, who are they?”

  “Your question should be more like what they are,” Cryta said, his face taking on a grim expression. “They are a nightmare I hope I never encounter in my lifetime.”

  “Have you never seen them?” Liam inquired. “I heard the Meshtrell mention them once before but I was unable to inquire further before they disappeared.”

  At this last part it was Cryta’s turn to look up quickly, his face showing concern.

  “What do you mean the Meshtrell disappeared? They are no longer on Earth?”

  “Yes, they left shortly after our last battle with your fleet. Shizta had mentioned the Crimson fleet and the brood then, of which the Meshtrell overheard. That very night they stole one of our warships and left…to where we have no idea.”

  Cryta seemed to weigh this over for several moments before he spoke again.

  “I think we should find Shizta and talk this over.”

  January 23rd, 2014 2:02pm EST

  EDF Kraken, En-route to Shenkar space

  The door to Shizta’s quarters slid open to reveal Shizta standing there holding a drink in his hand that looked a lot like some sort of cola. Surprise registered upon his face at seeing Liam and Cryta standing outside. Beckoning them to come in, Shizta stepped aside.

  “I apologize if I have forgotten but were we scheduled to meet at this time?” Shizta inquired to Liam.

  “No, Cryta and I were talking and a particular subject arose that he felt you should be involved in,” Liam explained as he looked around the room.

  Shizta had agreed to the neural inhibitor implant which granted him access to the new quarters and certain freedoms. The quarters were exactly the same as Cryta’s which allowed Shizta to see to all his needs without having to venture out among the crew, something he still found himself uncomfortable unless in the presence of Liam. Liam noted Shizta, like Cryta, had discovered the entertainment network; a movie currently paused upon the screen. The movie was a remade version of The Count of Monte Cristo, starring Jim Cavieze, was almost three quarters of the way completed.

  “I see you are watching the movie I told you about, what do you think so far?” Liam inquired.

  Shizta looked to the screen before turning back to Liam.

  “I actually find it very interesting; this man imprisoned all those years by his best friend out of jealously. I look forward to seeing how he enacts his final revenge but I get the feeling you did not come to discuss the movie.”

  Liam smiled but it was Cryta who responded.

  “We are here to discuss the Brood.”

  Shizta’s demeanor immediately changed as the smile from his face slipped and concern quickly became apparent.

  “They have not been spotted, have they?”

  “No but the Meshtrell have left Earth when you mentioned them back when you were first captured. I felt it is something we better discuss with the commander,” Cryta explained.

  Shizta nodded and waved a hand to a table nearby. The three took their seats before anyone spoke.

  “So who are the Brood? And why all the concern about them?” Liam inquired.

  Shizta’s face showed a grim expression as he spoke.

  “They are a darkness I hope you never encounter. We encountered a scout ship of theirs several decades ago and the result was several thousand dead cloned warriors but let’s start at the beginning. Are you aware that the Meshtrell created the Shenkar as a military force to protect them against attacks from any potential enemies?”

  “It has been speculated by our scientists that was the reason once we had discovered the Meshtrell were the reason for your creation.”

  “They were correct in their assumption then. The Meshtrell are not warriors and while their technology is rated for combat they are not adept at using the equipment. While we have very little information on who the Meshtrell were afraid of we did find a couple records mentioning the Brood. They do not go into any details but mention a darkness that had once threatened the very existence of all life throughout the known galaxy. It is said they cannot be reasoned with and incredibly hard to eliminate. This same record indicates once roughly eight hundred years ago the Meshtrell and their allies encountered the Brood. The Brood almost wiped out the Meshtrell and their allies: in fact, only the Meshtrell survived the encounter. We do not have a record of who their allies were, only references of dead races that once thrived alo
ngside the Meshtrell. There is also no record of how the Brood was defeated, only that they were. We also had general coordinates of where the Brood had come from, out along the fringe of deep space.

  Several decades ago a scout ship roughly the size of one of your heavy cruisers appeared on the outer edges of our space. The Battlecruiser that made first contact was destroyed when they attempted to make contact. Only by sheer luck did we happen to have several other Battlecruisers nearby conducting war games that were able to intercept and engage the scout ship. The battle is said to have been fierce but they were able to disable the scout ship and attempted to board the ship. Historical records show that the Brood must have activated a self-destruct sequence because the ship exploded, obliterating everything within the blast radius. Only one battlecruiser made it back with information of the encounter. Since then, we have also stationed the Crimson fleet out on the fringes of space, where the scout ship had arrived from. The Crimson fleet is the best of the best, no cloned warriors make up any part of it,” Shizta explained.

  Liam sat back at hearing this information, many questions spun throughout his head but he only voiced one to Shizta and Cryta.

  “Why do you think the Meshtrell stole one of our warships only at the mere mention of the Brood?”

  “I do not believe the Meshtrell believed the Brood would return. Whatever they did they must have felt they had destroyed them or permanently stopped them from returning. This all occurred before they had created the Shenkar therefore we would have no real knowledge of the Brood nor understand their threat unless we had encountered them. When Shizta mentioned them by name the Meshtrell must have concluded we had encountered them and decided to go look for themselves,” Cryta explained.

  Liam thought this over for several moments, wondering if this was something he should bring to the captain. Finally deciding it was something that could wait he wanted to address something else he had thought of.

  “You mentioned the Crimson fleet contain no cloned warriors, does this mean it is comprised entirely of elites?”

  Both Shizta and Cryta nodded in confirmation as Cryta spoke.

  “Technically, yes, although a lot never had proper training to be consider an elite.”

  “How big is the size of this fleet?”

  “Roughly fifty warships comprised mostly of battlecruisers and heavy cruisers, although they have another twenty or so supplemental ships. The latter ships are used for maintaining the fleet and their crews,”

  Shizta explained.

  “How often does the Crimson fleet get resupplied?”

  “They don’t, part of the fleet includes a large hydroponics facility as well as livestock. They provided their crews with all the food they need as well as any other supplies. There used to be regular transmissions between the fleet and homeworld but that stopped several years ago. Also I must tell you that I did not factor this fleet into my equation of numbers of warships the Shelecore could bring against you as their orders are not to leave the area they area guarding. Rumor has it there was a falling out between the Shelecore and Overlord Threta,” Cryta explained.

  At hearing this Liam’s interest was piqued, could this be something they could use to their advantage?

  “Do you know the reason for the falling out?”

  “It is no big secret but many years ago Threta’s popularity was quickly growing. Growing so high that many felt he would make a better Shelecore. He was then reassigned as fleet commander of the Crimson fleet under the guise of that the existing fleet overlord had been lacking in his duties, although it was plain this was false as the overlord was Gyliene, the very same overlord to lead the second attack against Earth.”

  “Do you think Threta would join us in overthrowing the Shelecore?”

  “I do not believe so; Overlord Threta is extremely loyal to the federation. This is the very reason he did not argue against the orders for his reassignment, even though he knew the true reason. Maybe if he knew the current state of the federation but the Shelecore controls all contact with the Crimson fleet and we have no way of contacting him.” Shizta explained grimly.

  “Could we not simply bring the Kraken to the Crimson fleet?” Liam asked hopefully.

  “This is not possible as the exact coordinates of the fleet is only known to the Shelecore and the upper echelon. The vastness of the fringe makes it impossible to find them either,” Shizta explained.

  Liam sat back in his chair as he thought over these new turn of events. The Brood and the Crimson fleet, both potential problems if they were to arrive before they could remove the Shelecore from power. Both of these subjects would need to be address with Captain Dunklin and Admiral Kelvin.

  January 25th, 2014 7:18pm EST

  EDF Kraken, just outside Shenkar controlled space

  The familiar tug faded from within crew members as the massive warship finished her final fold sequence that had brought her just outside of Shenkar controlled space. Silence permeated throughout the ship as everyone held their breath awaiting the news if their arrival had been noticed by anyone…especially the Shenkar. If they encountered a Shenkar patrol this early and were able to signal the other Shenkar forces then all their plans would be ruined. Captain Dunklin sat forward in his command chair as Frank Kelvin paced back and forth. The silence seemed to drag on before the word finally came.

  “Sensor scan complete, no enemy signatures found. We are clear for the moment,” stated the operations officer.

  The tension on the bridge immediately eased as you could hear the sounds of breathes that were being held being let out.

  “Signal the all clear, stand down from action stations and recall the fighters. Ensign Corta, verify coordinates, we want to make sure we are far enough off the beacon that we do not alert any Shenkar patrols or warships that happen by,” commanded Captain Dunklin.

  Ensign Corta spent a few minutes analyzing the data streaming before him on his monitor before he turned to the captain.

  “Coordinates confirmed, we are at the pre-designated coordinates.”

  Relief finally shown upon the captains face as he sat back and turned his attention to Frank Kelvin.

  “Coordinates confirmed Admiral. Do you wish to scout the outer territories or shall we hold off?”

  Frank Kelvin looked as if he wanted to give the order for a moment before he shook his head slightly.

  “Captain Dunklin, this is your mission, I am only here as an ambassador. You do what you feel is right. I have complete faith in you.”

  Captain Dunklin looked as if he wanted to say more but then nodded towards Kelvin, an affirmative and an understanding that he had been chosen for the job and he needed to act the part.

  “Open a line to the Poseidon,” he commanded of his communications specialist.

  “Line open sir.”

  Reaching up, Captain Dunklin keyed his comm set before he spoke.

  “Commander Brennan, this is Captain Dunklin, scans are clear. You are clear for Operation: Silent Hunter, good luck, commander, and Godspeed.”

  January 25th, 2014 7:14pm EST

  EDF Poseidon, just outside Shenkar controlled space

  The tug associated with the fold sequence had all but dissipated as Liam sat waiting in the command chair but a knot still lingered, the knot a result of his nerves being on edge. He was not new to command, having risen to the position of commander of the air group aboard the Kraken but this was something different. This was to be Liam’s first command of a warship, their mission, to infiltrate Shenkar space. The warship was the EDF Poseidon, one of three frigates of the new Poseidon class warships that accompanied the Kraken. Once they had infiltrated Shenkar space their primary mission was to map out the safest route to Lykaa. Secondary mission parameters allowed for any opportunities to eliminate any Shenkar warships, although they were to take no unnecessary chances and were to only to partake in such opportunities if it did not reveal their presence.

  He surveyed his crew before him as they worked to
ready the warship for her first mission. The crew was primarily comprised of Templar knights, mostly from Necro and Royal Razors squadron, handpicked by Captain Dunklin and Liam. However, there was also the additional support from Liam’s specially trained group of the Praetorian Guard.

  The bridge was relatively silent as everyone went about their jobs until Leah spoke up from the communications station.

  “Commander, I have Captain Dunklin on the line for you.”

  “Put him on the overheard,”

  Leah quickly typed a few keys on her console and nodded to Liam.

  “Captain Dunklin, this is Commander Liam, are we in the clear?”

  “Commander Brennan, this is Captain Dunklin, scans are clear. You are clear for Operation Silent Hunter, good luck, commander and Godspeed.”

  “Thank you captain,” Liam said before terminating the communication and addressing the helmsman for this mission, Evan Maxis.

  “Disengage docking clamps.”

  Evan’s hands quickly moved across a console to his right before the sound of clamps disengaging rang through the hull.

  “Docking clamps disengaged, Commander.”

  “Activate maneuvering thrusters, take us to regulation distance from the Kraken and ready the FTL drives.”

  The low hum of the thrusters reverberated throughout the hull as the frigate shifted away from the massive bulk of the Kraken.

  Evan slowly piloted the frigate away from the Kraken for several minutes before Evan gave the all clear.

  “Minimum safe distance acquired FTL drives online and primed.”

  “Input the coordinates and standby,” Liam stated before turning to the operations station, “Lieutenant Barrows is the dampening system up and ready?”

  “Dampening system up and all systems show in the green, we are good to go,” explained Steve Barrows.

  The dampening system in question was in fact a new technology developed by Steve. Integrated with the Poseidon, it would dampen down the electronic signature of the frigate, effectively imbuing the warship with stealth technology. Steve developed this technology from the technology found on the stealth mines that the Shenkar had placed in system 238. While it was originally designed to only encompass something the size of a mine, Steve assured him that he had expanded the field to encompass something the size of the frigate. As an additional feature the entire frigate was painted black making the warship appear as a void in space to the visual eye. Both of these additions would make the Poseidon very hard to spot by any passing Shenkar patrols.