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Chapter Three
HNS Liberator
Somewhere in Hyperspace
19:42 New Daiamid AHL 4.10.01

Commodore Edson sat alone at the bar, drinking his seventh shot of liquor of the day. Reflective of the day’s events, he was triumphant and defeated at the same time. While he was proud of his crew and the crews of the other vessels in Lightning Fleet for surviving a well-planned ambush, it also caused him to think. And that train of thought led him to a very bad answer: the Beast subverted the convoy and several Republican ships, and also sent the survivors fleeing. But more importantly, it was how they had done it. On most occasions, a Beast force of the size of the one that subverted the convoy could have been defeated with a force the size of Admiral Selquet’s task force. Even though the Beast had the advantage of surprise, Admiral Selquet’s force should have faired much better.

“So,” he thought aloud, “either the Beast suddenly got a lot better, or the Admiral’s men had spent too much time drinking the day before.”

“Which is exactly what you’re doing,” said Captain Saborn, who had just walked in. “Which one is this, your sixth one of the day?”

“Actually, it’s my seventh. And I’m not getting myself drunk, I’m thinking about the possibilities of the Beast getting smarter,” Commodore Edson replied.

“No you’re not. Look, Wes, I know that you feel bad about what we found out today, but getting yourself drunk and making yourself incompetent for command is not the way to get rid of the problem.”

“Ha! Then what do you suggest, that I go shoot myself?”

“No, Wes. Go get some sleep. I know it won’t make you feel better, but at least you won’t be hurting yourself.”

“You’re right.” Commodore Edson stood up, and was surprised at how difficult the move was. “You take over command for the time that I’m going to be asleep. How long before we exit hyperspace?”

“Twenty-one hours and thirty-two minutes. Go to sleep Wes. You’ve got time to knock off the imminent hangover.”

“You know, I feel lucky to have somebody like you to bring me back to reality when I’m uproariously drunk.”

“What an XO for?”

Commodore Edson smiled and staggered out of the bar. He found his way to his room by pure instinct. His weary frame toppled onto the bed, and he was asleep in seconds.

HNS Liberator
Somewhere in Hyperspace
07:20 New Daiamid AHL 4.11.21

Commodore Edson awoke at the persistent noise of his bedside alarm. He stumbled out of his bed, and managed to force himself to the small head inside his room. There he looked into the mirror, rubbed his chin, and decided that he desperately needed a shave that was supposed to have happened a day ago.

After shaving, struggling out of the dirtied, rumpled uniform that had not been changed for more than a day, showering, and getting into a new uniform, Commodore Edson went to the galley. There an old but cheerful cook greeted him.

“Good morning, sir! What will it be, the usual?” the cook asked.

“No, I’m going to try something different today,” replied Commodore Edson. Glancing up at the menu and the possible choices, he answered. “Okay, I’ll have steak and eggs with some Klithor Desert Thunder Sauce. Not too much, though. And an extra large cup of coffee, please.”

“Coming right up sir. Your coffee will be ready in a second. The steak and eggs will take about two minutes. Here’s your coffee, sir,” the cook said as he handed Commodore Edson his hot coffee, in an oversized cup. Commodore Edson took it, went to a one-person table, and sat down. At the table he took a whiff of the coffee, added some condensed milk, and took a sip. He sat there watching the morning’s broadcast from the Hiigaran News Association (the HNA) and occasionally sipping his coffee. Two minutes later, as the cook had promised, Commodore Edson’s breakfast was brought to him. Commodore Edson thanked him and immediately dug in.

Halfway through his meal, the holovid screen suddenly changed. The morning broadcast on stock trading was replaced with a reporter standing in front of a building that was badly damaged by what appeared to be heavy weapons damage. Rescue crews were busy searching through the rubble.

“This is just in. The HNA has just received word that a terrorist group has bombed the New Daiamid at 07:03 New Daiamid time. So far it has been confirmed that six guards and nine members of the New Daiamid were killed in the explosion, as well as two civilians, three marines, and six terrorists in the shootout after the bombing. Two of the terrorists have been captured alive and are reportedly under interrogation. Wait, what the hell is that ship?” The camera focused on a large drop ship with the markings of the Hiigaran Police Service that was making a landing next to the ruined building. But this ship was definitely not a police vessel, as it obviously had military grade weapons mounted on the hull. As it landed, armed soldiers rushed out and began firing on the marines. But the marines were well-trained elites, and immediately mowed down the imposters. The ship immediately turned around and blasted off for space, but a flight of Scorpion atmospheric fighters surrounded the vessel, and ordered it via radio to land. The pilot was not bent on suicide as other terrorists before him had, and decided to spare himself.

Commodore Edson watched this with great interest. A scream was heard, and the image suddenly fell five feet. Then the news feed cut out as a stray blaster bolt destroyed the holocamera.

HNS Liberator
Outskirts of Marraga System
17:15 New Daiamid AHL 4.11.21

Commodore Edson sat in his command chair once again. Outside of the view port was a dark, hazy yellow space on one side and a black, starry view on the other. One of the stars was brighter than the others, and everyone on the bridge noticed it. Commodore Edson barked out orders.

“Helm, set course for the hyperspace entry points that were supposed to be used by Admiral Selquet’s force. Comm, tell all carriers that when we are three hours out at the Liberator’s flank speed, the Halo will send in send in twenty probes in Spread Pattern Charlie. At one and one half hours out, have all carriers launch our fighters, unless the Beast are closer than that,” he said. Commodore Edson heard replies, and moments later the view outside of the Liberator changed. A slight shudder went through the Liberator as her drives propelled her to flank speed, and the star brighter than the others began to grow.

HNS Halo
Passing Marraga Six’s orbit
14:28 New Daiamid AHL 4.12.01

Spaceman First Class Jameson Choor waited for conspicuous data from the probes sent out to Admiral Selquet’s task force’s hyperspace exit coordinates. He stared at his stream, instantly interpreting every blip that appeared on the sensor’s manager that appeared as the probe flew by. What he desperately wanted now was an Advanced Sensors Array, which could display all non-cloaked ships within a sixty thousand kilometer radius on the Sensors Manager. Of course, he thought, that’s still way short of what I’m reading right now.

Spaceman Choor noticed something on his display. He zoomed in on it, and it materialized itself into a recognizable shape: a Taiidan Qwaar-Jet. It was heavily damaged, and was broadcasting a Republican transponder signal and a distress signal. Spaceman Choor saw other ships, which consisted of a Skaal-Fa, a Saarkin-Cho, and a recently built looking Sajuuk Cor. As the probe flew on he noticed that the Republican ships were being pursued. A Beast Heavy Cruiser, one Beast carrier, nine Beast Ion Array Frigates, and an assortment of subverted strike craft were giving chase. Spaceman Choor decided to sound the alarm.

“Sir, you might want to take a look at this,” he said.

“What is it?” the Lieutenant in charge of the Sensors section of the bridge asked.

“I saw a small Republican force, probably the remains of the one we’re supposed to rescue, being chased by a very large Beast group. Last I counted was one cruiser, a carrier, and nine IAFs.”

“That’s trouble. Captain, this is Sensors. We’ve located the Republicans, as well as a large Beast force chasing them. They’re headed this way.”

HNS Liberator
Passing Marraga Six’s orbit
14:30 New Daiamid AHL 4.12.21

“Commodore, we’ve received word from the Halo that the Republican’s have been located. They’re being chased by a large group of Beast ships,” said the communications officer.

“Tell them to transmit their data to us,” Commodore Edson replied.

“Yes sir. Transmitting now.”

“Put it up on the sensors display.”

A map of the Marraga System appeared on the screen in front of Commodore Edson. He did some calculations in his head, and issued new orders.

“Put that up on the main screen,” Commodore Edson said. After the image appeared, he continued, “Helm, jump us to the point 100 klicks in front of the Republicans. We go in the rest of the way in real space. I want our ships going hot and ready. As soon as we finish the conversion to real space, we launch all strike craft. Also, when we pop out of hyperspace, immediately start recharging our hyperspace drives and prepare for the Naar Directive. Have all ships approach the Republicans at flank speed. Forget the capital ship formations, we’ll attack in echelon.”

Commodore Edson heard replies from his crew, and waited. A minute later, they were in the gulf of hyperspace.

LS Flagship Revenge
Korgen System
14:33 New Daiamid AHL 4.12.21

“Are the Exiles at the Marraga System?”

“Yes, my lord. According to our surveillance data, they have just entered hyperspace a minute ago. It appears that they are heading towards the survivors.”

“Very well. I want you to take Revenge and your fleet to surround them. Tell them to jump in, and destroy them. Remember the plan. Do not deviate from it.”

“Yes, my lord.”

HNS Liberator
Marraga System
14:35 New Daiamid AHL 4.12.01

Commodore Edson watched as the blue vista of hyperspace changed into the darkness of real space. He felt the slight shudder of the Liberator’s drives moving the ship towards the yet unseen Republicans. He saw the swarm of fighters and corvettes streaming in front of his battle fleet. Suddenly, a vision came to his head.

“Navigation, plot a course out of here that takes us to the nearest friendly system. But keep it flexible, in case we have to compensate for gravwells, for example. As soon as you’re done, transmit that course to every other ship, and the Republicans when we make contact with them.”

The navigator gave him a quizzical look, but said, “Yes sir.”

Twenty minutes later, the Liberator arrived at the Republicans. There was no battle yet, but the strike craft and capital ships already at the scene had formed a defensive perimeter around the surviving ships. Repair Corvettes and Support Frigates were working on the surviving Republican heavy cruiser. Commodore Edson saw that the Saarkin-Cho and Skaal-Fa Destroyer had already been repaired. Another Sajuuk Cor and a Kudaark had been built since the Commodore Edson had seen the recorded data.

After fifteen more minutes of uneasy peace, an uproar occurred in the sensor’s section of the bridge. Almost immediately, the sensor’s manager, First Lieutenant Frank Lohn brought Commodore Edson the bad news.

“Sir, we detect hyperspace signatures in a thirty klick radius sphere around our entire fleet. It’s a huge fleet. I count eighteen frigates, five destroyer class vessels, three cruisers, two carriers, and a command class vessel of unknown type. There are more hyperspace signatures arriving around the Beast fleet, composed of six frigates, five more destroyer class vessels, two cruisers, and two more carriers. Its as if they expected us to be here.”

Indeed, as Commodore Edson looked out of the bridge window, the distant blue square of a command class vessel was visible. While the others hyperspace gates were unseen, Commodore Edson knew that they were out there.

“Who does it belong to?” asked Captain Saborn.

“Ship markings and transponder broadcasts identify them as Imperial, ma’am!”

“There’s no chance that we can hyperspace before they get here. I want the Republicans to form up as one counter force, and all the rest of our super capital ships as the other. Tell the Barge to take out the heaviest concentration of big ships; I want as many imps out of the fight as possible. Have our other frigates and strike craft cover the carriers in case anything gets through,” Having heard replies, Commodore Edson, and everyone else, prepared themselves for battle.

HNS Ballista
Marraga System
14:36 New Daiamid AHL 4.12.21

“Is the Siege Cannon charged up?” asked Captain Reid Quen.

“Yes sir. Its at one hundred percent charge.”

“Fire!”

At the bow of the vessel, the giant muzzle of the siege cannon glowed red, then yellow, and then white. Then, a yellow-white ball of energy exited the muzzle, and sped towards the command ship and the three cruisers flanking her.

HNS Liberator
Marraga System
14:36 New Daiamid AHL 4.12.21

Commodore Edson watched the HNS Ballista fire its siege cannon. The round fired approached the large, unknown enemy vessel at an appallingly low speed. The vessel it approached was unlike any that Commodore Edson had seen in his entire naval career. Commodore Edson tried to identify what the vessel was, and a memory from the academy course about the Homeworld War alarmed him. The vessel had a Guardian’s Crest on the hull, the same one that decorated the hull of the Emperor’s personal guard vessels that had been protecting the Imperial Flagship destroyed by the combined Rebel and Kushan fleets during the Battle of Hiigara. The design had supposedly been retired by the Imperials, as a sign of respect to their dead Emperor. This ship was far larger than the images of cruisers that Commodore Edson had seen in the Hiigaran Naval Academy, and appeared far deadlier. It was shaped like a scaled down version of the Imperial Flagship with a large bulge in the middle. The vessel mounted numerous turrets, which Commodore Edson assumed were a combination of energy and ion cannons; it sported a multiple construction pad on the bottom of the ship for capital ships, which was flanked by two launch/construction bays for strike craft.

He returned his attention to the siege cannon round. It neared the enemy vessels, which attempted in vain to maneuver away. The ball of volatile plasma exploded. The flash produced by the blast was immense. A blinding light filled the nearby space. When the flash faded, the command class vessel had a large hole blown into its front starboard side. Flames vented from the hole, but soon faded as they exhausted the available atmosphere. Debris and the burned remains of bodies were sucked out of the hole by the vacuum of space as a glittering river of wreckage. Then, a large secondary explosion split the vessel into two pieces at the site of the impact, which left the majority of the vessel on the left side and a relatively small chunk the size of two frigates drifted away on the right.

The Imperial cruisers were luckier. They were farther away from the explosion, and took less damage. Still, shrapnel from the command class vessel and the blast had taken its toll on their once pristine armor, which was now burned and buckled. In several places on each cruiser there were holes punched through armor, revealing darkened corridors on the insides of the ship. Then the first wave arrived.

A group of six Imperial Ion Frigates and six Assault Frigates entered Lightning Fleet’s firing range. The Justice led all of the Republican combat vessels in a counter attack, firing at the two lead Ion Frigates. A volley from the two Republican Missile Destroyers and three Assault Frigates smashed into the front half of the first Ion Frigate, buckling hull plates and internal bulkheads, while the four Republican Ion Frigates and the Dragon targeted the second one. Their ion beams raked across the bridge and into the ion cannon systems, causing an overload. A secondary explosion tore the frigate in half, sending the two pieces spinning.

The frigates’ return fire pounded away at one of the Missile Destroyers. Three Ion Frigates’ ion beams burned into upper port missile launcher, while four Assault Frigates’ fire hit the upper starboard missile tube. The remaining frigates targeted the Missile Destroyer’s upper hull. Both launchers were disabled, and the upper hull had numerous craters blasted into it. Missiles that were currently being built detonated, blasting the remains of both launchers free of the destroyer and causing significant damage to the main body. Flames and atmosphere vented from the front end of the ship.

While the Republican ships were conducting their private duel with the frigate force, the five Destroyers in the Imperialist fleet approached from the other side in a tight v formation. The Liberator, Justice, and two Hiigaran Destroyers intercepted them. The Imperial ships fired the first shots, with three of the Destroyers hitting the Liberator and the other two firing at the Justice. Their combined firepower hammered at the armor plates on the two vessels, burning through them and causing significant internal damage. The Liberator lost one of its heavy turrets, while two of the missile launchers on the Justice were knocked out of action.

“Hull breaches on levels fourteen through sixteen, starboard wing. Sealing them off. Minor fluctuations in electrical and life support systems,” said the damage control officer.

“Get crews and repair bots working on it,” said Captain Saborn.

“Tell Justice to get between the two Destroyers on the starboard side of their formation. Helm, take us between the center Destroyer and middle starboard one. Fire missiles as we go. Instruct our starboard turret gunners and top ion turret to fire at the starboard target, and have our port turret gunners and bottom ion turret hit the destroyer to their port. Relay those orders to Justice. I want our destroyers to take the two portside ones we won’t touch.”

The Liberator and Justice plowed into the Imperial formation, firing missiles as they knifed their way between the Destroyers. Turning their energy and ion cannon turrets, they blasted at the sides of their respective targets. The ion turrets turned while firing, slashing their powerful blue beams across the sides of the Destroyers. The energy cannons punched holes through the thinner side armor of the ships, causing heavy damage to the insides. The Destroyer sandwiched between the Liberator and Justice looked as if it had imploded, with numerous holes and gashes in its side, with many of them venting flames. The two destroyers in Lightning Fleet then fired at their two Imperialist counterparts, who had turned in an attempt to fire at the Liberator and Justice. Their fire, while less powerful than the Liberator’s and Justice’s, still caused major damage. Energy cannons and missiles blew out holes in the hull, while ion cannons burned straight through sections of armor. Then, the remains of a burned and mangled Taiidani senior officer hit the Liberator’s bridge’s main window. It was stuck their, held in place by the yellow frozen intestines hanging out of its bloody, gutted abdomen.

“SHIT!” exclaimed one of the bridge officers. Others cursed as well.

“It’s good to know we’re hurting the bastards. So stop whining. Ok, take us ninety degrees port; ascend at a fifteen-degree angle. Keep our bow pointed at the Imps. Flank speed. All gunners, fire on the next destroyer that comes into view. Relay those orders to Justice, except have her face ninety degrees starboard. We’ll deal with that pile of crap later,” said Commodore Edson.

The Liberator turned and moved upwards, her bow depressing ever so slightly to compensate for the upward motion. The Justice’s target fired off a salvo that hammered into the Liberator’s drives. Two red ion beams burned through the armor, and melted away at the containment walls. Alarms sounded throughout the ship as the damage control officer began screaming orders through the PA system.

Liberator’s turreted cannons and ion cannons fired at her target Destroyer as the she turned. Her fire slammed into the two energy cannon turrets and the hull around them. The turrets exploded. The Destroyer had angled upwards to track the Liberator, and fired her two ion cannons into the Liberator’s main communications array, melting antennas and causing major damage to the auxiliary bridge.

“Sir, our primary communications are down. Bringing the secondary array online,” said the communications officer.

The damage control officer addressed Commodore Edson. “We’ve taken moderate damage to the drives, sir. Plasma ducts are a bit shaky as well. Recommend that you drive her easy, sir.”

“Very well. Ventral missiles, load up the heavies and smash the Destroyer’s face in,” said Commodore Edson.

The Liberator’s ventral missile battery volley fired heavy anti-capital ship missiles from all ten of its missile tubes at the Destroyer’s bow. Developed as a large version of the powerful Acolyte missile shortly after the Beast War, the anti-capital ship missiles featured a much heavier plasma warhead than traditional missiles, but lacked the speed to engage fighters. They were also much more expensive to manufacture; thus, they were only used sparingly. The missiles flashed across space in what seemed like an eternity but was actually just a few seconds. Multiple missiles slammed into the ion cannons, rendering the Destroyer weaponless. Others exploited holes blasted into the armor, exploding deep inside the Destroyer. Two missiles impacted the bridge, in sequence, with first destroying the blast shields and the second punching through the transparent polymer composite armor material, exploding and killing the bridge crew. The Destroyer, denied its command, ceased to maneuver and moved in a straight-line course out of the engagement zone.

“Sir, we’re not getting anything from the auxiliary bridge. They must have been knocked out by that last salvo we took,” said Captain Saborn.

“Damn. What’s our status?” asked Commodore Edson.

“The dorsal starboard turret is gone. Minor malfunctions on the other two starboard turrets. Hull breaches on levels fourteen and sixteen have been eight percent repaired. We’re sending a team down to the auxiliary bridge. Repairs underway on the drives and should be completed in forty minutes or so if we don’t take another beating,” said the damage control officer. Commodore Edson nodded and looked at the small tactical display on his chair.

Justice’s target was a similar burning ruin, but the two other Destroyers were still exchanging fire with the Hiigaran ships. The Liberator moved towards the first Destroyer and pummeled it with all of her weapons. Liberator’s fire plowed into the middle of the ship, creating a large pit at the site of the impacts. That Destroyer turned its turrets and fired an energy cannon salvo that hammered at Liberator’s starboard wing, further punishing the structure. The Justice then moved in from behind the Liberator and fired off its weapons at the same site that the Liberator targeted, punching a hole through the other side of the Destroyer. Liberator’s ion cannons severed the few connections that remained on the underside, and the ship tore itself into two pieces. The other Imperialist Destroyer, seeing the futility of continued combat and unable to retreat, broadcast its surrender.

But the four Hiigaran vessels had taken a beating as well. The Justice was in the worst condition by far. Her repulse generator had been cored, and a small section had been blown off of her lower port hull. The lower ion cannon turret had been destroyed, along with three of her six missile launchers. The Victory had sustained moderate damage to her starboard ion cannon and its wing, while the Undertaker had deep, jagged hole on its front starboard side, the victim of a concentrated volley from two Imperial Destroyers it had been fighting. The bridge crew on the Liberator breathed a sigh of relief.

“What’s the status of the fleet?” asked Commodore Edson.

“The Republicans got beat up pretty badly, but they killed all of the frigs that got sent at them. Admiral Selquet reports that his force is in no condition to fight. He sounded pretty shaken up. Our backup force is engaging a wing or so of strike craft and some of the remaining frigates,” said the communications officer.

“What about the Imps?”

“The secondary force and the Beast look as if they wiped each other out. Wait, it seems that the Imp forces that our backup is engaging are retreating,” said the sensor’s officer.

“We’ve got a transmission from the Halo,” said the communications officer.

“Put it up,” said Commodore Edson.

“The enemy forces are breaking off. Shall we pursue?” asked Captain Niesun.

“No, let them go. We’re in no condition to take them on.”

“Yes sir.”

“How many did you lose?”

“Strike wing commanders report that they suffered moderate vehicle losses, but no major pilot fatalities. The Jouster was destroyed, but most of the crew managed to get off before the core exploded. The Inferno was badly damaged, with the ship nearly split in half and the drives half melted. The others are all moderately damaged. Casualties are estimated at roughly thirty dead and another sixty wounded.”

“Damn. Stand the fleet down to orange alert. Scrap the Inferno; we can’t affect repairs in time. I want the damaged ships to be repaired, but essentials only. We need to get out of here as soon as possible, before they come back with friends. Dock all strike craft and charge hyperdrives. Inform the fleet.”

Somewhere in Hyperspace
HNS Liberator
15:28 New Daiamid AHL 4.13.21

Lightning Fleet had jumped out to an area of empty space, and spent approximately twenty hours conducting repairs. The Liberator’s drives and hull breaches were repaired, and a new turret had been constructed. While not as precise or thorough as a dry dock, the replacements and repairs made by the support vessel and repair crews had been adequate. The other remaining ships in Lightning Fleet were in a similar condition. Lightning Fleet had taken heavy losses, with the loss of both Republican Missile Destroyers, three Republican Ion Frigates, one Republican Assault Frigate, and the Jouster.

Commodore Edson sat in his conference room, along with Captain Saborn and the holographic images of Captain Niesun, Captain Jaquel, and Admiral Selquet. The admiral appeared years older and far more weathered than when Commodore Edson last saw him. Just one glance at the damage his fleet had sustained and it was clear that his ego had been shattered.

“So, Admiral, who are these new Taiidan? I noticed that their command ship class vessel had an Guardian’s Crest on it,” Commodore Edson said.

“Yes, of course. During a battle at the Korgen System the day before the battle at Cal-Senbu they hailed me, telling me to surrender. Wes, knowing me, can tell you why I didn’t. They sent us a partial list of the ships in their combined fleet, to intimidate us, I suppose. Whoever is behind this is either a deluded fool or is very smart. I’d bet that they’re really smart. Anyway, it was enormous. They are Imperialist Taiidan, but with one significant difference. They appear to have an actual clone of the late Emperor Riesstiu IV. When I said that they were delusional when they claimed to have him, they produced a recorded message. Our recorders had been damaged during the battle, but it looked exactly like the holos from textbooks of the old Emperor in his youth. My guess is that if they have a new Emperor, they must have new ships and such as well.”

“We were told that you and your convoy were subverted by the Beast, though,” said Captain Saborn.

“The convoy was, but my task force managed to jump out before the Second wave of cruise missiles arrived. It was an advanced form of the Beast. Our infection vaccines barely slowed it down.”

“Well, right now they’re the least of our trouble. Basically, the Imps have this top-secret clone of the dead Emperor who has a large enough fleet to potentially take over the Republicans and us, plus they have this new and improved ship for their new and improved emperor,” said Commodore Edson.

“Yes,” said Admiral Selquet.

“Captain Saborn, inform Hiigaran High Command as soon as we exit hyperspace outside the Losaal Nebula base. Admiral, I suppose you will be doing the same for Pegasus Base?”

“Of course.”

>> Chapter 4>>