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Chapter Six
Dry Dock Two
Sullat System
13:25 New Daiamid AHL 5.06.21

Commodore Edson watched from the control tower as a new Perdition destroyer was being built. The automated construction machines had finished the ship’s drives, and were working towards the bridge of the destroyer. There was a holographic projection of the ship in the tower, with a solid coloring for the completed portion and wire frame representing the part yet to be built.

The new Missile Destroyer was yet unnamed, but Commander Jensen had proposed the name Valiant, for the efforts of Protector squadron during their last battle. With no other ideas, besides an anonymous prank note taped to Commodore Edson’s room’s door suggesting the name Constipation, Commodore Edson was inclined to name it Valiant. Other ships scheduled to be built for Lightning Fleet included a Deacon, two Firelances, two Vengeances, and two Mercies. The remaining resources from the captured Imperialist ships were being stored on the fleet’s three carriers for later use.

HNS Liberator
Sullat System
15:14 New Daiamid 05.06.21

Commodore Edson was in his room on the Liberator, watching news broadcasts from the Hiigaran News Association (HNA). The current section of the news was on galactic affairs. Not surprisingly, much of it was directed at Hiigaran-Imperialist relations.

“With the advent of the ‘new Emperor’, many Hiigarans are becoming more supportive of the war effort. A recent poll conducted indicates that ninety-seven percent of the population agrees to further military recruitment, funding, and construction. This is up thirteen percent from just a week ago.”

“The recent declaration of war upon the Hiigaran-Republican Alliance is just the latest in a long, downward spiral of relations with the Taiidani Imperialist Factions. While the Galactic Council is not able to intervene in a civil conflict, much scrutiny surrounds the Council’s decision not to support the Hiigaran Defense Sphere in the latest act of aggression. Many historical pro-Hiigaran Council members voiced surprise that the Council decided not to assist in, the words of one councilor, ‘the campaign of good against evil’.”

“The HDS has managed to hold its own against the onslaught of Imperialist attacks, with a Hiigaran task force crushing a numerically superior Imperialist fleet in a decisive battle at Vorshan’s Rift. This was not the first battle at that location, which was the site of a major Rebel defeat during the Homeworld War. Casualties were high on both sides, with the Hiigaran task force sustaining more than a hundred casualties. But the victory assures the short-term safety of several systems.”

With a grim smile on his face, Commodore Edson turned the projector off and prepared to attend a conference with several officers scheduled to happen at 15:30.

HNS Liberator
Somewhere in Hyperspace
11:29 New Daiamid AHL 05.12.21

The rest of shore leave had gone uneventfully for the crewmembers of Lightning Fleet. The new ships had been built for Lightning fleet, and were being crewed by activating crewmen from cryo storage inside the Halo, Guardian, and Fortress.

A change that had happened on the last day of shore leave was the swapping of Wraith Squadron’s Super Acolytes for modified Blade Mk VIs, with a more powerful afterburner system and the ability to mount a third missile on the belly of the craft. Commander Jensen had approached Commodore Edson and told him that the Wraith’s morale was suffering due to the lack of kills being generated. Super Acolytes were primarily anti-capital ship fighters, and were fairly useless against other fighters. Consequently, all of Wraith Squadron had only achieved a total of four strike craft kills during the past four battles.

The Imperial onslaught during the past few days had become even more devastating, and now six of the thirty-one systems under Hiigaran control at the beginning of the war were under Imperialist control. The Republicans were faring even worse, with almost twenty-five percent of their territory lost. Currently, the Imperialists were massing for an assault on Chorax, a major asteroid belt mining facility, with the information helpfully provided by a recently captured agent. Lightning Fleet had been sent out to reinforce the garrison there.

Commodore Edson reflected on the past month. Lightning Fleet had been formed as a search party, and had become a task force, sent out to HDS trouble spots to defend against Imperialist attacks. Lightning Fleet had an amazing record, for a high number of kills and number of battles fought in such a short amount of time. Well, he thought, we’ve been doing pretty well.

A Recon
Chorax Asteroid Field
17:19 New Daiamid AHL 05.15.21

Captain Lauren Kaho kept her steady attention on avoiding asteroids, with occasional glances at the sensors board. Flying in a dense asteroid field was hazardous duty, but Hiigaran pilots were trained for just this type of situation. It had come into being after a disastrous battle when a whole carrier strike wing had been annihilated by a mere two squadrons of Turanic Bandit fighters in an asteroid field, with over eighty percent of the casualties being attributed to collisions.

Deployed from the Guardian, Revealer Squadron was sent to the far reaches of the asteroid field to provide early warning of any Imperialist attack. They would also be the first to counter it, but if it was a full-scale invasion, they were merely small speed bumps to provide an extra minute or so for Lightning Fleet and the base’s own defensive flotilla to organize a defense.

A loud beeping noise in Lieutenant Kaho’s headphones made her glance at her sensors board. It showed two hyperspace signatures thirteen kilometers away from her current position, with the locations plotted out in a three dimensional diagram, along with her squadron’s current course and the locations and paths of forty asteroids within a twenty kilometer sphere.

“Revealer squad, this is lead. I’ve got two hyperspace signatures thirteen clicks away from our position. Lets go see what the hell they are,” said Lieutenant Kaho. With those words, Revealer Squadron looped towards the location of the hyperspace signatures.

Within eight seconds, it was obvious that they were Imperialist Support Frigates, with strike craft piggybacked across hyperspace to act as a scouting force. Lieutenant Kaho saw that there were twenty Interceptors, four Light Corvettes, and four Repair Corvettes.

“Three, inform Chorax and call for backup. Squad, break by pairs. Two Flight, hit the corvettes. One Flight and Three Flight, get the fighters,” said Lieutenant Kaho.

The squadron skillfully broke into pairs of leader and wingman. The Imperialist strike craft were caught off guard, and did not notice the approaching fighters until too late. Two of those pairs dived for the corvettes at full speed, unleashing their energy cannons on one unlucky corvette. Several rounds impacted the fuselage, with a shot slamming into the miniature reactor, causing a meltdown. The corvette exploded in a brilliant fireball, hurling shrapnel and crew into space. The others headed for the Interceptors, with two of the Interceptors being turned into shrapnel and debris before the squadron began evasive maneuvers and returned fire.

The three remaining Light Corvettes began to track the members of Two Flight, and several shots turned Revealer Seven into a fireball when they penetrated her engines, causing them to explode. The remaining three members of Two Flight broke away, performed climbing and diving loops, and came screaming back towards the corvettes. While their basic flight plane was a straight line and easy to follow, much more difficult to follow were the complex evasive maneuvers they performed on their approach. Once again they concentrated their fire on one corvette, with it being disabled when three energy cannon rounds slammed into the cockpit, instantly killing the crew.

By this time, the Imperialist Interceptors had managed to destroy three Recons from the other flights. But in return, the Recons had managed to destroy four Interceptors.

Lieutenant Kaho was currently glued to the tail of an Imperialist Interceptor. The pilot was good, constantly juking around, but when the pilot decided to pull a loop, Lieutenant Kaho slowed down to cut a tighter one. The Interceptor passed right in front of her energy cannon. She fired a burst that slammed into the side of the fuselage, tearing out a chunk of the Interceptor. The Interceptor was knocked into a spin, and when the pilot recovered Lieutenant Kaho finished it off by firing a salvo into the drives.

At that time, Wraith Squadron arrived. By this time Revealer squadron had taken two more casualties, but with both pilots able to eject before their craft exploded. The Imperialists were down to thirteen Interceptors and two Light Corvettes. The Wraiths broke into flights, and two of the flights fired all of their missiles at the Support Frigates. The missiles impacted at various points on the hull, with multiple penetrations. Both of the Support Frigates’ had their drives disabled. The remaining flight pursued the remaining Imperialist fighters, unleashing their energy cannons and missiles with deadly efficiency. Within twenty seconds of Wraith Squadron’s opening shot, the number of Imperialist Interceptors had fallen from thirteen to three. The remaining two Light Corvettes were also destroyed. By this time the commander of the Imperialist scouting party had realized that he had no hope of retreat, and surrendered.

Chorax Command Center
Chorax Asteroid Field Base
18:37 New Daiamid AHL 5.15.21

Commander Jensen walked out of a briefing room along with Lieutenant Kaho, Commodore Edson, and the Chorax Asteroid Base’s commanding officer, Rear Admiral Isaac Urascan. One of the many veterans of the Homeworld War, Admiral Urascan was a commander known for his use of the Salvage Corvette. During the period between the Homeworld War and the Beast War, the Turanic Raiders had boarded his Revelation destroyer. He had rallied his men, and with the marine’s stationed aboard his vessel in the lead, slaughtered the marauding Turanic soldiers.

Commander Jensen and Lieutenant Kaho went to the docking tube that branched off to the Halo, Guardian, and Fortress. Commander Jensen had managed to achieve two more kills during the last battle. It added to his already long list of currently fifty-four, a lot for a man that had only participated in only twenty-eight battles throughout his entire career.

Chorax Command Center
Chorax Asteroid Field Base
09:34 New Daiamid AHL 05.16.21

“Sir, we detect hyperspace signatures. They are Imperial. I count a carrier, numerous other capital ships, and many troop transports. Wait, that can’t be, they disappeared,” said the sensor’s officer.

“What? They must be using cloaks. Damn! We don’t even have a complete proximity net. Activate all proximity sensors we have, and have the Recons fill the gaps as much as possible.”

A few minutes later, the Recons and Proximity Sensors had all been deployed. A sense of relief fell over the base, but everybody knew that it would be fairly easy for Imperialist ships to get through. That was exactly what happened.

“Sir, we have a reported hull breach on levels seven, eight, and nine in Sector Delta! There are reports of gunfire. Look on the main screen,” said a security officer.

Indeed, from one of the security cameras mounted in the hallway, was a scene of utter confusion. Imperial troopers had stormed into the base via high speed, covert operations shuttles, and had gunned down the marines at one end of the hallway, but the marines at the other end responded with their automatic rifles. Several troopers had gone down already, and one brave marine stepped into the hallway, spraying bullets on full automatic. Several troopers were hit, and he retreated behind the corner. The wall behind the marines was cratered from the impact of hypervelocity bullets.

“Sir, more hull breaches. Levels twelve and fifteen, Sector Golf!”

“Enemy troops have taken level nine, Sector Delta.”

“Sound red alert. Have every man on this base armed, from marines to cooks. Rifles, pistols, rocket launchers, grenades, pots, pans, rotten fruit, anything and everything. Send our marines out to the points where the Imp troopers are. The rest of the base personnel are to go to the docking area and evacuate. We will self destruct the base as soon as the last man is aboard their evacuation vessel,” said Admiral Urascan.

“Sir, should we really-“ began Commodore Edson.

“Goddamn it Edson! I will not let this base fall into Imperial hands. Those bastards will not be able to waltz in and use this base for their own needs. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes sir.”

“Get to work, people.”

Level Seven Sector Charlie
Chorax Asteroid Field Base
10:09 New Daiamid AHL 05.16.21

“This is Lieutenant Lorhas! We have lots of Imp troopers here. A shuttle just arrived and dropped off something like two more platoons of men. We’re not going to be able to hold on much longer. How long until the sector is evacuated?”

“For Kharak’s sake hold on for five more minutes. Then you can come on back to the dock area.”

“Sir, we might not last five minutes at this rate! FUCK, here they come! Set up to repel, fire!”

Since the first Imperialist trooper had stepped invaded the station, hundreds of marines stationed there had rushed to the entry points, but the sheer number of Imperialist troopers had overwhelmed the small garrison. With barely two hundred marines arrayed against more than eight hundred troopers, the Hiigarans were only able to buy time.

The Imperialist troopers had started to charge and crawl across the battlefield. With a few men remaining behind the barricade at the Imperialist end of the hallway giving cover fire, thirty troopers were advancing on the Hiigarans’ positions. The marines resorted to holding their automatic rifles over their heads, blindly firing at the advancing Imperialists. Troopers that were running towards the barricade were hit in the gut, chest, and head area. The troopers hit in the head were killed instantly, bullets slicing through their helmets, their bodies collapsing forward with their momentum. The troopers hit in the chest and guts were not so lucky. They fell forward, clutching their wounds, and twitching on the ground in a pool of their own blood before they died. Soon, the air was thick with smoke and the smell of the dead. Bodies littered the ground, some of them still barely alive, most dead. The survivors retreated.

Level 4 Sector Golf
Chorax Asteroid Field Base
10:15 New Daiamid AHL 05.16.21

The five-minute mark had come and gone, and the base was still not fully evacuated. Most of the vessels were already gone, but the Liberator and Halo were still in the dock area. The dock area was protected by an automated defense system, not dissimilar to the automated weapons in the Karos Graveyard. Several cloaked Imperialist shuttles had attempted to breech the dock, only to be detected by the proximity net protecting the dock and destroyed by energy cannons and missiles. Unfortunately, the proximity net did not extend to the rest of the base.

The evacuation had gone surprisingly well. Strike craft from Lightning Fleet were on the prowl, shooting down Imperialist shuttles where they found them. The Imperialists lacked the ships to successfully engage Lightning Fleet and the defensive fleet. Thus, the transports were able to leave without loss. The final transport was loading up the remaining personnel, including the marines that held the Imperialists off.

“Alright, the last ship is sixty-three percent loaded. Just one more minute,” said Commodore Edson.

“Edson, how are you going to get back aboard your ship?” asked Admiral Urascan.

“The Liberator is waiting right outside of the dock. When we get out, you dock the transport, and I’ll go onboard. Then we both jump out.”

“Sir, our sentries report Imperial troopers advancing on the dock area!” said a marine captain.

“Have them pull back to the gate,” ordered Admiral Urascan.

“Yes sir.”

The marine sentry teams arrived at the gate of the loading area, and then activated the auto defense system for the hallway for that they had been guarding. Already, the sound of gunfire and dying men echoed through the corridor. An explosion was heard, and the gunfire was silenced. Seconds later, more concealed automated cannons fired. More screams were heard, and another explosion rocked the area.

Suddenly, Imperialist troopers stormed into the loading area. They gunned down several marines. The others returned fire. Commodore Edson pulled out his service pistol and shot at one Imperialist, hitting him in the leg. The trooper collapsed on to one knee, and a marine finished him with a shot that creased the throat. The trooper futilely clutched his throat, trying to stop the blood streaming out between his fingers. He made a few gurgling noises, and fell face flat onto the floor. Other troopers and marines suffered similar fates.

The marines gradually pulled back, reduced in number by half, bringing their dead and wounded with them. Admiral Urascan and Commodore Edson joined them. A young marine private in front and to the left of them was hit in the gut. The marine turned around with his remaining energy, and faced the two officers.

“Sirs…it doesn’t look like…I’ll be…needing these…anymore.” The marine gave his automatic rifle and service pistol to the two officers. “Take them…kill some Imps…please.” The marine collapsed and died.

Commodore Edson took the rifle and Admiral Urascan grasped the pistol. Commodore Edson kneeled down beside the fallen marine and fired at the Imperialists. Commodore Edson turned around with a yell from Admiral Urascan and caught a fifty round clip for his rifle out of the air. He set the rifle to full automatic and scythed fire across the narrow room, managing to hit several troopers. Commodore Edson ran out of bullets and reloaded, proceeding to spray fire at the enemy troopers. A stray bullet sliced through his tunic’s shoulder, but only did trivial damage to the skin.

The last person other than the marines, Commodore Edson, and Admiral Urascan had boarded the transport. The two officers retreated towards the docking tube. Then, Admiral Urascan was hit in the chest. He gasped, and fell to the floor, clutching his wound.

“Go! Get the hell out of here!” said Admiral Urascan.

“No way sir, can’t leave you here!” replied Commodore Edson.

“Goddamn it! Get out. That’s an order. Give me the rifle.”

“Yes sir.”

“Give me a remote for the self destruct mechanism for the base. I’m going to kill every Imp fucker on this base.”

“Yes sir.”

Commodore Edson managed to catch the remote out of the air from a petty officer inside the transport. The marines had already retreated into the doorway and were yelling for him to go. Commodore Edson placed the remote in Admiral Urascan’s hand, and ran back to join the marines with a last look at the brave man he had met a mere two days ago. He ran into the docking tube, slammed the inner hatch shut, and then closed the outer hatch. The transport blasted free of the base, leaving behind a scene of carnage and death.

Admiral Urascan lay against the docking tube hatch, still firing at the Imperialist troopers. He had set the countdown for the self-destruct for ninety seconds. Like Commodore Edson, Admiral Urascan had set the rifle to full automatic. The Imperialist troopers inside the room had already been killed, and another team had arrived. While firing at the troopers, he was screaming every curse and bit of foul language that he knew.

“Come on, you motherfuckers! You want some of this, you assholes? Bring your Sajuuk cursed asses into here, you sons of bitches! Your Gaalsien kissed asses are mine! See you in-”

Then, the countdown timer reached zero, and charges placed inside of the base when it was built exploded.

>> Chapter 7>>