Despite his awe of the perspective power, something was wrong. He expected to feel a presence from the other bracelets, but the ether of space was as calm as a fish pond and no ripples of energy were to be felt. This did not dishearten him, they may not be here now but as soon as he began firing upon the planet, they were sure to emerge with his prey.
Zen addressed his Emperor. "My Lord, we have detected only one significant energy source from the far side of the planet. It appears to be the Cruiser that we have been tracking."
"Send the Destroyers after it. The rest of the Fleet will remain here and commence saturation bombing of the planet."
"Yes my Lord." Zen turned away and barked the order to the officers below.
The six Destroyers majestically moved from formation and negotiated the planet to attack their prey on the opposite side. Moments before the Fleet began its lethal fray, a brief flicker of electrostatic energy discharged over the Earth's surface, then dissipated without any vestige. The bombardment initiated upon the serene planet causing space to alight with countless projectiles and energy beams. The assault was so mighty that light from the adjacent Sun was overshadowed by the Fleet's display of firepower, bathing all of the planet in light. Shortly before the violent rain struck the planet, it erupted upon an invisible shield totally diffusing the onslaught.
Zardon shouted to his subordinates. "Cease fire, cease fire! What devils work is this?"
Zen turned to his Lord. "It is a Megaproton Energy Field. Our weapons are useless."
Zardon stood from the Helm and roared with anger. As his lungs expelled the last of his breath, the bridge shook from a mighty quake.
*******************
Ryan pressed the intercom button on his console to hail the Chief Engineer. "Chief, Activate the D.D.E.M."
Carl's voice replied from the consol. "Yes Admiral."
The view before the bridge deformed into a scene of total blackness as the time-space plane opened up and swallowed the Endeavour whole. This time, there was no effect on Ryan's senses, thanks to a new force field developed by Professor Bane. The harsh environment of the black hole was entirely restricted to the exterior of the new field. The only evidence of the hellish domain they had entered was the total lack of sound waves within the ship. The sole noise that Ryan could hear was the sound of his own heart beat as it thundered inside his body with every pulse of life giving blood. A small white dot appeared central to the shadowy scene from the Bridge and grew rapidly until the Endeavour was engulfed within it. Immediately the ether of the Bridge returned to normal as well as the view from the Bridge window.
From the Helm, Ryan could see the Warrian Fleet poised for battle while a number of Destroyers negotiated the Earth for an attack upon the Valiant. "Mac." Ryan said to the unseen presence. "Activate the Megaproton Energy Field."
"Yes Admiral." After a brief pause, Mac spoke again. "Megaproton Energy Field is now activated."
Moments later the Fleet open fired on the Earth and the vast destructive force was easily repelled by the powerful field.
"Officer Stanton, charge the main battlements and open fire on the main defences of the Battleship and the Flagship." Ryan ordered.
"Yes admiral." Stanton promptly relayed the orders to his subordinates.
The fifteen kilometre wide domes that were positioned on the top and belly of the Endeavour, split open like a giant ring of teeth and slowly merged with the hull. Now exposed were the two main battlements, each near fifteen kilometres across and possessing four barrels that could discharge a bombardment of a magnitude yet seen by human eyes. Slowly they rotated towards their targets and with a thunderous clamour, they opened fire.
*******************
"What in the hell was that?" Shouted Zardon as the tremor ceased.
Zen braced himself against the second tremor as he examined the data on the console before him. "It’s another ship."
"Bring it up on screen." A view of the Endeavour's bow was displayed with streaks of energy projecting from the main battlements in succession. "What is it?"
"I don't know my Lord, it's too large to be a Federation Flag Ship."
"Where did it come from?"
"It just came out of nowhere." Zen answered in confusion.
"Evasive Warlord Zen, EVASIVE!" Zardon had reached the summit of hostility as he slammed his fist upon his chair's control panel. "Come around to bearing one eight seven and take it head on."
*******************
With every shot from the main battlements, the Endeavour shuddered from the recoil as the blast echoed throughout the ship's superstructure. Mighty pulses of energy discharged to unsuspecting ships, erupting into enormous balls of fire as they struck their protective shields. The Battle Fleet desperately performed evasive manoeuvres to avoid the Endeavour's attack and quickly return the bombardment. The Battleship Zenith, whose less powerful shields were first to suffer under the lethal sting of the Endeavour's guns. With an immense explosion, its upper main battlement shattered into a thousand fragments along with a portion of the main hull.
Between the regular tremors from the Fleet's return fire, Ryan shouted to his First Officer. "Concentrate all fire upon the Zenith. We may be able to crack her in two before our shields fail."
The barrage towards the Zenith promptly doubled while releasing the Kron from the cannonade. The Kron changed course and headed directly for the Endeavour on a collision course.
The intercom on the Helm came to life with Carl's anxious voice. "Admiral, our shields are at fifty percent power and dropping fast. We can't take much more of this."
"Chief, we need just a few more seconds. Is the D.D.E.M. recharged yet?"
"Yes Admiral."
"Prepare for the next D jump on my mark."
The Zenith's attempt to seek cover behind the moon was futile and shortly her shields completely failed under the intense onslaught. A shot of energy from the Endeavour ripped away the Battleship's right engine structure and the next cut into the ship's heart, cleaving her hull in two. The divided sections erupted into fire and shrouded the Bridge view with light and shrapnel. An adjacent cruiser was consumed by the Zenith's destruction and it too detonated, supplementing the brutal devastation.
The Kron's gunfire intensified as she closed in on the Endeavour and the quakes upon the bridge became more violent. Ryan punched the intercom button. "Carl, D jump now!" The scene before them changed again to total blackness.
*******************
"Where did it go?"
"I don't know my Lord, it just vanished without a trace." Zen replied.
"Did it jump into hyperspace?"
"Negative, there is no vapour trail."
Zardon stood from the Helm and stared in bewilderment at the empty scene before him. "By what trickery is this, a ship that vanishes without a trace?"
"It could be a new form of cloaking device?" Zen suggested.
Zardon turned to his Warlord. "Impossible, we would detect a disturbance in the ether. No, it’s something else."
The navigation officer interrupted the momentary silence. "Warlord Zen, the ship has reappeared on the far side of the planet."
"Quick." Zardon said. "Send the Cruisers after it." He ran his fingers over his wrist where a bracelet remained invisible. "So it’s a game of hide and seek they wish to play? Well we can play too."
*******************
Captain Grant clenched his fist again on the invisible trigger as he commanded his Weapons officer. "Fire!" The Bridge of the Valiant continually shook from the bombardment of the seven destroyers surrounding her as she desperately fought for life. From the concentration of the Valiant's gunfire, one of the Destroyers finally collapsed under the intense fray and detonated in a huge fireball.
The Weapon's officer had beads of sweat trickling down his forehead as he watched the Valiant's protective shields quickly decrease in strength. "Captain, the shields are down to ten percent. A few more seconds and were done for."
"We stay here until further orders."
"But Captain?"
"You heard me Gunner, we stay here." Grant Commanded.
Red light filled the bridge as alarm sirens complimented the continuing clamour of the assault. "Shields have fallen Captain." Announced the weapons officer. The Bridge shuddered violently to one side and tossed the Captain and crew to the floor. Fire and smoke bellowed from a number of panels as support beams were torn from their mounts and fell to the floor.
Captain Grant gazed up at the space scape out the window as he whispered. "Williams, if you can't save us then please save the Earth."
Two great explosions of light momentarily blinded Grant as he witnessed the destruction of two Destroyers, then another and another. The dejected expression upon Grant's face was pushed aside by a smile. The central overhead monitor came alive and displayed a view of his Admiral upon the Endeavour's Helm. The screen faded in and out and was covered in lines of static as the monitor continued its shaky existence. "Valiant, this is Endeavour. Do you read us, over?"
Grant returned to his post and pressed a button upon the console of the damaged Helm. "This is Captain Grant. We read you Endeavour, over."
"Good to see you're still with us. We are coming alongside to cover you, do you still have impulse power?"
Grant turn to the Navigator who was removing a felled beam from his consol. "Do we still have impulse power?"
As the Navigator removed the beam, he wiped away the debris and examined the data before him. After a brief pause he announced his findings. "All main drive systems are down, but if we redirect the reserve power to the impulse drive system, we can muster up about ten percent power."
"Get on it." Grant returned to the image on the screen. "Barely Admiral."
"You can't do much more here Captain. Manoeuvre to an orbit beneath the Megaproton Energy Field. You can enter through the access door in sector one fifteen, just don't forget to close it behind you."
"Yes Admiral. Thank you for saving our tail."
"Don't mention it. Just get your ugly hide out of here. We'll cover you until you're beneath the shield."
The small Destroyers were no match for the superior firepower of the Endeavour and her main guns made short work of the Warrian ships. Seconds later, another explosion before Ryan's eyes signalled the annihilation of the last destroyer. As the Valiant silently entered the access door, Ryan's attention was captured by Charlie. "Six Warrian Cruisers are negotiating the planet Admiral and will be in attack trajectory in ten seconds."
Ryan activated the intercom again. "Engine room, how are the shields?"
"They've taken a right hammering Admiral. Give me a few more minutes and I'll have them in some sort of order." Carl replied.
"We don't have a few more minutes Chief."
"I'm doing my best Admiral. There are only so many miracles I can work in a day."
"Is the D.D.E.M. charged?"
"Yes Admiral, it's the only thing down here that hasn't been shot to hell."
"Then prepare to D jump again to the previous coordinates."
"Yes Admiral."
"Three seconds to attack trajectory... two... one."
"D jump now!" Ryan commanded.
Once more the Endeavour travelled on its enigmatic journey through the ruthless world of the black hole.
As the scene before his eyes returned to the space scape scene with Earth as a backdrop, Ryan was startled by the disappearance of one, eighty kilometre long Flagship. "Where is it?"
"Admiral." Charlie called. "It’s gone. There is no vapour trail anywhere." Charlie scratched his head as his mind ran over all the possibilities. "Maybe they have their own D.D.E.M.?"
"Impossible. The Warrians are resourceful, but not that resourceful."
A small ache developed within Ryan's chest, then rapidly grew to a sharp pain and finally became throbbing, intense agony. His body twisted and buckled from the piercing torment and he collapsed to the floor writhing and cringing. The Bracelets immediately came to life and lit up like two beacons upon his wrists. Instead of a brilliant, pure white light, they illuminated the bridge in blood red and pulsed with every beat of Ryan's heart. A hideous, gargoyle like face with long pointed ears and nose appeared over Ryan and mocked his stricken figure with a sinister laugh. The elite crew of the Helm staggered back from the vile apparition in horror, then stared helpless and confused at the crisis. Charlie went to Ryan's aid but Ryan barked an order at him. "Stay back!"
As the thing spoke, its long lips struggled to articulate the words of the human language. "You dare to defy me little man? Your tiny mind hasn't the strength to combat my intellect." The violent agony moved from his chest to his head causing Ryan to cry out and clutch his suffering brain. He felt as if a giant clamp had gripped his head and began to squeeze. "With a single thought, I can crush your brain like a ripe melon." Said the monstrous face.
Through the tortured ether that surrounded the gargoyle and the cowering form below, a grotesque voice dominated the sound in Zardon's and Ryan's ears. "Valour has chosen poorly, my Liege. Its ability to wield the Rings of Karn is poor. It is no match for you."
Zardon peered around at the Bridge crew. "You call this pathetic rabble an army? They are no more than a minor inconvenience. Look at your so called intrepid leader..." He said to the confused crowd that surrounded Ryan. "...Look at him bow down before my wrath. As punishment for your insolence, you shall witness the destruction of this worthless planet you call Earth."
Crushing Ryan's mind was a vice of hate, loathing and contempt that squashed out all will and normal thought patterns. With all his mental strength he couldn't release his brain from Zardon's cerebral clamp. His temples throbbed under the strain as his heart pumped blood into the centre of the conflict.
"The Dragon loathes what he fears." Valour counselled. "Fight him with that fear. Seek the truth within you, my Liege. Seek the truth!"
He reached down to the very core of his soul to find something that could fight such a paramount assault. Deep within him he latched upon the most powerful of emotions to fight against this evil attack, the emotion that drove man to limits beyond any normal endurance. The emotion that felled kingdoms and hardened souls against the mightiest malevolence. The emotion called love.
Ryan latched onto it like a pillar of strength and used it to rise above the torment. He used the love of his father and his home, the love for the people of earth and those who's devotion and loyalty created Intersect; last of all, the pure love he had for Katie. Zardon's grip began to yield and fold under this steadfast retaliation and the vice like grip on Ryan's sanity snapped in two under the strain. With a shout, he drove the paranormal force right back to its source. "Noooo!"
The image that gloated over Ryan, disappeared and Ryan slowly rose from the floor with two white continuous beacons upon his arms.
About him, the Bridge crew stared in fear at the paramount beacon of power before them. What was befalling before their eyes was not thirty first century technology, but magic.
With new vitality he shouted to the heavens. "There will be no more killed by your vile hands!" Ryan's deep stare fell upon the First Officer as he projected his thoughts to Stanton's mind. "Instruct the main battlements to fire upon bearing three five two, heading zero six point five."
The words hit Stanton's brain at the volume of a live rock concert and caused him to stagger back. Without question, he obeyed the forceful command.
Ryan sensed the twisted thoughts that passed through Zardon's complex mind as the Warrian gathered the fuel to destroy the planet. A massive beam of hate passed from the Rings of Venal down to the innocent world below. Ryan cast from his mind an equally potent charge to the Megaproton Energy field and reinforced the protective cover. The mammoth assault dispersed over the Earth's surface causing the field to ripple and warp as the projected hate viciously violated it. Despite the phenomenal attack, the shield held fast until the evil from Zardon's mind had dissipated completely. The main guns
of the Endeavour voiced their song of devastation upon the specified coordinates creating thunderous echoes through her superstructure. The barrage met an invisible barrier that briefly defied the Endeavour's attack, lighting up the scene before them with a magnificent fiery display. The barrier quaked then faltered under the intense barrage and in reaction, the Kron appeared from its phantom world. The following blast from the Endeavour struck the centre of the superstructure and ripped apart its surface, then dissipated into submission leaving the flagship unscathed.
Charlie gasped in awe. "My God, he's stopped the explosion."
The Endeavour quaked again from a separate assault as three Cruisers manoeuvred into attack trajectory. The main guns of the Kron joined the retaliation forming a titanic barrage.
Ryan maintained his attack on Zardon's intellect to restrict him from using his bracelets against the Earth or the Endeavour. In doing so, the mind clash with Zardon put a terrible strain on his body and brain, steadily draining his strength. The bridge floor continually spun in a clockwise direction while his head and stomach ached profusely.
"The time has come for you to confront Hellion's evil, my Liege. Go and meet your destiny."
The words echoed within Ryan's head as he continued the cerebral fight against Zardon. He grabbed the helm like a child after its first steps to steady himself as he activated the intercom. He struggled with the utterance of his next command. "Chief,...where are my...shields?"
Intersect Page 23
