From the Black (Free Fleet Book 4)

by Michael Chatfield

He has focused on Star-destroyers, moving away from star-warriors. He still has those but they are for strict capturing and planetary fighting measures. He has trained his Kalu fighters to not only pilot, but also fight hand to hand.

  We left sensor platforms in every system that we looked in on. Though with our newly connected FTL relays I think that I'm going to dispatch some of my Jump fighter's to link the platforms onto the early warning systems.

  Right now we are in the peaceful Kalu system. There is no space industry, but according to our sensors, the structures on the planet support possibly billions of Kalu, their buildings are also not the caves and low dwellings of the normal Kalu, it looks as if they have built true, if odd looking, sky scrapers and towers.

  There are Nine Star Destroyers and thirty-three Star-warriors watching the planet. They have turned to engage us, thankfully none have tried to run for the jump limit. They all seem intent on engaging us in battle. Since we're now linked it will mean that you can pass on these recordings to the Research and Development team and the other commanders,” Min Hae said, Gogs' fingers started tapping away at his console, directly linking the information from the other ships to Cheerleader. Though probably not the information of Min Hae's own ship.

  Min Hae saw Bregend talking to his second in command.

  “We're an hour from engagement,” Bregend said, his face and body tensing up in preparation for the oncoming engagement.

  “Understood,” Cheerleader said, an understanding light entering his eyes.

  “Keep the feed live, but clear the main screen please,” Min Hae said to Chrys. He tapped a pre-set comms channel, getting his second in command, Baldabuh.

  “How are we looking?” Min Hae asked, Bregend had sent out his second request for readiness for battle.

  “All weapons and systems are operational,” Baldabuh said in that stony voice of his.

  Min Hae knew his second in command was with Cheerleader's fleet, watching the destruction of the last Syndicate holdout. At least he would now be able to see it through the Union's old network.

  “Very well,” Min Hae said, reporting readiness back to Bregend. The two Battle-Carriers and one carrier had launched their fighters, the Star-destroyers were holding their forces still. They probably thought that it was best to launch them when they were at higher speeds, right amongst the enemy.

  Bregend hadn't tried to hide his presence as he entered the system, he wanted the Kalu to see him. As soon as they had, they had begun their acceleration. Soon the Kalu would need to decelerate, they were straining their ships and bodies to the limit at this point.

  Time seemed to crawl down until there was ten minutes before the fleets crossed one another.

  “Launch missiles,” Bregend's order was broadcasted to the Free Fleet, they were formed up in an angled horseshoe, the leading edge below the triangular Kalu formation, the rear edge spread up and back from the forward Kalu ships.

  The lower rank and mid-rank launched a half-barrage of missiles. They swarmed out towards the Kalu. The Kalu's seemed to flush all of their missiles, hundreds filled the space between fleets. Inter-linked Free Fleet PDS system's tracers created lines of destruction as millions of rounds tracked down missiles.

  The Kalu's lasers raked shields, they had no fire plan. With enough lasers on one target they could have taken a shield down, hell with enough time they could have taken the shields down. Bregend's Commanders were not going to give them the chance as they rotated their ships, spreading the damage over a larger area.

  The Free Fleet missiles reached their set second stage. The casing dropped away as independent missiles lurched free. A swarm comparable to the Kalu's missiles, but with smaller warheads rushed towards their targets. Kalu fighters started rushing out into space but it was too late. The Kalu leader had been too confident in his own ships. There must have been a rough three hundred fighters that had cleared their star-destroyers as the missiles struck. Their smaller profile made them harder hit, plus not all of them needed to ram a ship to inflict massive damage.

  The laser modified missiles seemed to disintegrate, not in an explosion, but invisible power. Their nuclear power was converted and focused, driving damned incredible amounts of power into their targets. They smashed through Kalu armor for the few seconds of power the missiles were capable of. Tens of these invisible beams struck Kalu ships. Then the true missiles hit.

  These weren't experimental, Felix, Silly and LaRe had gone over recordings and information from across the fleet. They had talked to tactical commanders, ship commanders and gunners. Then they had talked to helms people and navigators.

  Missiles hit the engines and one side. Fourteen ships were taken out by the explosive forces that ripped them apart.

  A further six were ripped apart as supports failed from the excessive forces they had been submitted to. They tumbled and careened off in pieces, atmosphere, fighters and Kalu thrown free of their ships.

  The Kalu's extreme speed was one hell of a weakness if one could exploit it. At the Kalu's limit they could exert three gravities on themselves. Their ship was under much more stress. If enough force was applied to say the sides, then that tilt, could rip the ship apart as beams not used to handling that kind of direct force, were put under strain.

  The Kalu missile barrage had been whittled down by the massed and effective PDS fire. Still there was just under a hundred missiles bearing down on the fleet when they struck. Shields were hammered and then depleted. Reactive armor exploded, sending high velocity shards and debris at incoming missiles, pre-emptively detonating them, and directing their force away from the Free Fleet ships. One Destroyer caught a missile in the teeth, armor buckled and systems went down. Still the Destroyer held its position. Thirty seven people had died in that minor explosion, seventeen were wounded.

  Still better than most of our engagements. Min Hae thought, trying to quantify the loss, knowing that he would hate himself for that statement later. For now he had to divert his attention as A corvette moved out of position, it didn't have the armor of the destroyer and seemed to have been hit in its forward guns, that made it effectively useless and with a crew as small as a corvette's, they were combat ineffective dealing with their dead and injured.

  Min Hae's eyes were stuck to the main screen as the five hundred Kalu fighters, in three swarms that ranged across the Free Fleet formation, entered into the MEF fighter's range.

  The Kalu fighter's lasers had caught a few MEF's but the casualties had been minimal.

  Rail cannons left tracer trails as they smashed into the Kalu formations. Missiles were fired as fast as it took for them to rotate out of the MEF's internal storage, there was no shortage of targets. The Kalu fighters seemed to meet a wall of destruction. They were thrown into disarray by the massed firepower of coordinated enemy fighter wings.

  Then the fighters were through one another, wing commanders pulled their formations back together with the practised speed and efficiency that the MEF's had become famed for.

  No longer a rag tag bunch of ex-slaves are we. Min Hae thought with more than a little triumph in his voice.

  The wing of Jump fighter's now made their appearance, made to shock and confuse the Kalu, hopefully buying their fellow fighter pilots the time to close with the Kalu formation.

  Their dual plasma cannons fired charged shots into the Kalu ships, missiles poured out, pounding the ships, the Destroyers were their main targets. Two of the remaining five destroyers went dead. The Jump fighter's fired their cannons, firing normal rounds instead of the super-charged plasma rounds they had opened up with.

  “Ready spinal cannons,” Bregend said. The Spinal cannons were the biggest cannons on a Free Fleet ship, they ranged from small planetary cannons, to full on planetary cannons that Rosho and Parnmal sprouted like hedgehogs. Some that saw the way that Min Hae looked at his screen would undoubtedly draw more than one connection to the spymaster's nickname as the Merchertevak.

  The Jump fighter's jumped out, their vi
ctim's hulls streaming fire, offering those that had expected their ships to protect them from space. Now being offered by that ship, to the endless maw of the black.

  The fighter's hit quick and fast, they raked ships with fire, with missiles and then they were through the formation.

  Of the Forty Two ships that had rose to attack the Free Fleet, Seventeen remained. Now a hundred and fifty fighters came to grips with the Free Fleet's PDS and concentrated barrage of missiles.

  The Kalu fighter's lasers raked shields and armor. Their numbers dropped as they came along the sides of the Free Fleet ships. Rail cannons shook as rounds spat from them. A handful of Kalu fighters were left when they cleared the Free Fleet ships.

  The Spinal cannons were already firing before they did. They sent massive rounds crashing through the Kalu ships. Broadsides came into range, cannons fired as fast as they could, the fire power piled into the Kalu forces was incredible.

  The Kalu didn't just take it. Their own lasers had been hitting the Free Fleet at range. Their missiles, fighters and near constant fire had taken down shields. A Battle-carrier sent out alerts, ships using their new propulsion system to close on the battle carrier and provide support as the Battle-carrier deployed its own bombs, using them to break without having to turn around.

  Kalu ships were ripped apart by the sheer force of the spinal cannons as they entered the Free Fleet horse shoe. Broadsides expanded on the spinal cannons initial damage. Power plants gave way, rounds, caused horrific damage as they turned the ship's armor into shrapnel. Engines and life support died.

  The Free Fleet ships didn't stop, there was an anger within them. They weren't just fighting this battle, it was clear that they were getting their own back for how the Kalu had smashed the Free Fleet in their first engagement. It was from the videos they'd seen of Rosho just hours ago.

  The Kalu scared these men and women.

  “Cease fire,” Bregend's voice rolled out over the Fleet-wide comms channel as rail cannons went silent.

  The Kalu drifted in their dead hulls.

  “Gogs, send a recording of the battle to every ship in the Free Fleet,”

  “Commander,” he said, confirming his orders but there was also a note of question in his voice.

  “The Kalu are like any enemy, they can be destroyed. Something that our people need to be reminded of,” Min Hae said.

  Gogs made a noise of agreement, understanding where Min Hae was going with this. He had been the one to process the information before it got to his commander's screens.

  “Min Hae, I think it's time we had that Kalu of yours have a look around. My sensors are confirming that there doesn't seem to be any weapons on the planet's surface. I'm going to wait a bit before I order our people into orbit however,” Bregend drawled, making it clear that he hated the idea of being a stationary target. At least with the new drive upgrades, courtesy of Felix copying the Kalu, getting moving again wouldn't be that hard. That concept was still hard to digest when speed means surviving, or closing with the enemy, not having it was nearly negligent to most commanders.

  “I will see to it commander,” Min Hae said, his channel to Baldabuh still open. “Baldabuh..,”

  “Bring the prisoner, I heard,” Baldabuh said, anticipating his commander's request and question.

  “I was just hoping you weren't reading my mind,” Min Hae said appreciatively, Baldabuh made a noise somewhere between a grunt and a snort.

  “Trust me when I say, I would never wish to be in that head of yours,” he said jokingly. Min Hae couldn't stop a peal of laughter escaping his laughter.

  “Very well, see you in a bit then,” Min Hae said, Baldabuh let out some non-committal noise as he cut the channel.

  “Well then I think I will leave it to you, it looks like Rosho's cannons are going down,” Cheerleader's voice came over the main comms, her tone brisk and business-like.

  Min Hae looked over to Gogs, indicating to the screen with a sideways nod. Cheerleader appeared on the main screen moments later.

  “Good luck to you and yours Cheerleader,” Min Hae said, holding her eyes.

  “Ah, we don't need luck with the amount of damned crazy we have running around this fleet!” She said, a grin appeared, if only slightly forced.

  “Hopefully we can stop any reinforcements getting to you,” Bregend said.

  “Much appreciated,” Cheerleader didn't have to force the relieved look on her face.

  “Talk soon,” Bregend said, throwing a two-finger salute out, Cheerleader and Min Hae reciprocated, the channel going dead. Min Hae looked out on to the prison planet of the Kalu that had desired to live in peace instead of waging a war that had killed billions and only left each side weaker than they had been entering the war.

  The tell-tale noises of Ashota's chair coming closer made Min Hae look at the Kalu as he entered. Edvasho had been a figure head. Ashota had given him power through his love for his battle-brother. That love had been twisted by other's that made Edvasho think the best thing was to free Ashota from his frail body, going back on traditions and killing him.

  Ashota might have thought that way when he went off to fight in the great Kalu-Union war. Now he knew that while he had lost the abilities of his natural body, he had gained something much more powerful, the power of his mind. Min Hae had spent years studying creatures now. He saw that strength in Ashota's eyes. Underestimating him was the worst thing the Kalu did.

  Min Hae still didn't trust Ashota, but he did see that if they could work together, then Ashota was going to be one hell of an ally.

  “Show him the planet,” Min Hae said, Chrys changed the screen, Ashota leaned forward in his seat, studying everything. Baldabuh stood to the side of Ashota, holding a rail pistol, one could never be too safe.

  “I would assume that you would like to talk to them?” Ashota asked, his chair turning so he could look to Min Hae.

  “There are no signatures of communications systems able of passing through the atmosphere,” Min Hae pointed out.

  “Right now there isn't, if we send a transmission on all frequencies with the right codes then they will know it is okay to start up their communications systems,” Ashota said.

  Min Hae weighed the possibilities.

  “Gogs, see to it,” he said finally, typing out a quick message to Bregend, informing him of what Ashota was going to do.

  Ashota talked into a microphone, relaying code words, Min Hae trusted that Gogs would run an analysis on it to see if he could break it. He also trusted that Ashota would probably never use the same code again.

  Nothing happened for a while.

  “We're getting an incoming transmission, activity on the planet has changed,” Gogs said, forwarding images from the planet. To have enough activity to gather the attention of Gogs, this far from the planet did not instill confidence.

  “Council leader Ashota, this is leader Kalvin, preparations are underway. Thank you brother,” The Kalu said with feeling, Min Hae's stomach dropped as he pressed a control to connect him to Bregend.

  “Prepare for attack, I'm not sure what is going on but I don't have a good feeling,” Min Hae said.

  “Understood,” Bregend said, cutting the channel as he began barking orders to his command staff.

  Baldabuh, had a restraining hand on Ashota as Min Hae's eyes fell on him.

  “What did you tell him?”

  “I told him that the time has come for the Independent Kalu to cut out the disease which has become our race,” Ashota said, his disgust clear when talking about his race.

  “Commander, look,” Gogs said, his voice filled with confusion quickly turning to understanding.

  The Skyscrapers which seemed to dominate the planet, were moving. More than that, they were flying.

  “The Kalu had never seen a skyscraper before, but you had, Edvasho had. Though Edvasho had no want to see the peaceful planet of Kalu, he couldn't see that your sky scrapers were actually ships,” Min Hae said, his eyes not leaving Ashota'
s.

  “Very well, you are more than you seem,” Ashota said.

  “What is your prerogative Council leader?” Min Hae asked.

  “To look out for my people, and wipe out the scourge of violence and destruction that the rest of my race have dedicated themselves to,” Ashota said simply.

  “What machinations do you have towards us?” Min Hae asked as Baldabuh and another crew-member secured Ashota's chair to the wall and made it inoperable to him.

  “I hope that we can become allies, but precautions have to be made for the survival of the independents,” Ashota's eyes blazed with, purpose and belief.

  It was then that Min Hae realized that Ashota was completely devoted to his people.

  “So you call yourselves Independents?” Min Hae asked.

  “Yes,” Ashota said slowly, as if he was trying to figure out what angle Min Hae was using. Min Hae simply nodded, letting Ashota stew as he watched towers and sky-scrapers lifting off of the planet.

  The first ship-towers had made it to space. They were cigar shaped, their lower sections being hidden in the ground. Sections of the tower moved, while these ships were an unknown danger, Min Hae thought them rather, beautiful. They were like the modern towers of earth, they looked to be made of glass and chrome. They twinkled as their intricate designs were bathed in un-filtered sun-light.

  They were at clear odds with the Kalu Star-warriors and Destroyers, where as those machines had been made with almost painful similarities. These ships had been made with affection, with care. They weren't just ships, they were homes.

  Min Hae's eyes went wide as he looked at Ashota with new clarity.

  “An exodus,” Min Hae half-whispered, there was no missing Ashota's flinch. Min Hae laughed, admiring the ships in a whole new light.

  “Fighting the Kalu right now is a damned impossibility. So you did the next best thing, you built ships to carry you far away, to somewhere that you could look to building lives, and a fleet to beat them,” Ashota's face became dark, his eyes like faraway stars in the cold of space.

  Min Hae stabbed Bregend's channel open.