Defender of the Empire: Cadet #1

by Catherine Beery

  “Another ship has shown up…” Westley grinned. “It’s one of ours. An LFH class. ”

  “The Hail Mary?” I asked breathlessly.

  When the ship’s com beeped again, Jason didn’t even ask if he should answer it. The screen flipped from a hardened mercenary to Captain Wingstar’s much more welcomed features. A smile touched his lips and humor glittered in his gray eyes. “Heard you lot might need some assistance?”

  Four relieved grins greeted him. “You could say that, sir.” Westley answered with a salute. “Thanks for coming when you did.”

  The captain’s gray eyes found Jason. “Besides the enemy ships, it looks like you mostly succeeded in your mission.”

  A bridge crewman said something and all humor, expression really, vanished from the captain’s face. A look of utter determination ruled his features. “RAISE!” the rest of his command was cut off.

  “What happened!?” Westley snapped.

  “I don’t know!” Jason said with wide eyes. His fingers scurried over the controls on his console. My eyes, meanwhile saw something that made my mouth go dry.

  “Damn.” Marius swore darkly. Considering he was looking where I was, I figured he saw what I did. “I thought they were just interested in watching.” The other two paused in what they were doing and we all watched in horrified silence as two enormous balls of light flashed from the Zar’daken warship to the Hail Mary. They were timed to be just one after the other. I flinched when the blasts smashed into the Legion Fleet ship.

  “Their shields held.” Westley said softly in relief.

  “That was close though.” Marius said with a slow shake of his head. “I’m not sure they could take another hit like that.”

  “I still can’t hail them.” Jason said, his tone anxious. His finger repeatedly hitting a button on his console as if the next time would change the fact that the Hail Mary wasn’t responding.

  ***

  “Shields are down to twenty percent! We won’t survive another hit like that!” The helmsman shouted, unknowingly repeating Marius’s assessment, over the alarm klaxon.

  “Turn that klaxon off!” Braeden ordered. It wasn’t helping anyone. He doubted anyone was still asleep after the shudder that had vibrated through his ship. “Return fire. Chars and lasers. Let them feel a little heat. Then micro jump two points starboard.” He ordered.

  “Aye captain!” Evens and lieutenant Milo called from the helm and weapon stations respectively.

  Braeden turned his second. “Race, get the LFGs out there. The more heat we give them the better.”

  “Aye, sir.” Race turned and quickly relayed the order to the waiting pilots. Moments later Char missiles and laser filled the space between the Hail Mary and the Zar’daken ship like wasps from a struck nest.

  The Zar’dakens returned the favor, but the Hail Mary made her delicate little jump and the blasts missed them, by a margin. But they still missed. LFGs, or Gladius class ships, poured from the hanger bays along the Hail Mary’s sides. A hundred ships resembling an old earth stealth plane zoomed around in coordinated chaos. Their sides blazed with plasma that would cut through anything they flew near enough to slice. Equipped with lances that punched temporary holes in shields, the little ships were slashing menaces. And being only a little bigger than an LFA they were fast.

  Of course, a battle wouldn’t be a battle if the enemy didn’t have nasty surprises too. Braeden mused as a swarm of drones spiraled out of the enemy ship like a thousand darts. The flights of LFGs engaged the drones, their plasma blades having no problem dicing the little buggers. Only problem was the little buggers had numbers on their side. And each had a nasty sting.

  “Rael! Let me know the second those cadets are onboard.” Braeden ordered the lieutenant at communications.

  “Aye, captain.”

  Braeden turned to Race again. “Once the cadets are on board get the LFGs out of the way.”

  “And that is when we cue the cavalry?” Race asked wryly. Braeden nodded.

  “Captain! We have a problem.” Rael said in an uncharacteristic monotone. She met his gaze and said “the cadet’s ship is still locked with the Telmick vessel and I can’t get through to them. The Telmicks have put some kind of jamming signal in place.”

  “Find a signal that works!” Braeden ordered. “Try individual lines if you have to.” He said. Because if they didn’t get those cadets back soon, they couldn’t ‘cue the cavalry’ as Race had said. It would be too risky, especially if the SCF included the Telmick vassal in its wake.

  A moment later the Hail Mary groaned and Braeden was out of his chair. And that damn klaxon resumed.

  ***

  “What is taking so long?” Francesca muttered as sat in her command chair aboard the Terrenza. She understood that waiting had its place in schemes, especially ones that employed surprise tactics. But that didn’t mean she had to enjoy the wait. Especially when she knew the captain she was dealing with had a different interpretation of when a good time to call for aid was. He and his crew were much the same in that they tended to wait until they could no longer wait, always believing that any sooner would put too many people at risk. It was noble and all, but it drove her nuts. She had the ship with the battle turning weapon after all. And what was the point of having a weapon like that if the ones you are coming to back up have gotten themselves killed not wanting to risk you?

  This wasn’t to say that Braeden was a horrible captain. He wasn’t. He was, as she had once told Rylynn, one of the best the Legion Fleet had. He had the respect and admiration of his crew and peers… and those above him in rank also. He knew the risks of what he did and he would protect his crew, if they would let him. They knew the risks of being in the Legion Fleet and they had made it their mission to stand between others and harm. It was what drove them to do what most thought impossible. But Francesca knew they were still mortal. She had to do what she could to keep the lot from killing themselves.

  “Kem, give them another minute then hail them.” She told her communication officer.

  “Aye, ma’am.” Kem enunciated crisply before turning back to his station. He rolled back a sleeve to count the seconds, his finger on the button to send the hail right on the dot. It was why she had told him the amount of time to wait because for her, the minute was already up. Eleven second minutes. She really did hate cooling her heels.

  “Ava, make sure everyone is ready, things may be a little hot where we are going.” She told her second.

  The silver haired woman grinned in anticipation. Her navy blue eyes sparkling. “Yes, ma’am.” Ava replied in the crystalline voice that marked her D’av Marion origins. Ava was from a race of predators, so of course she was looking forward to a good fight.

  ***

  He really was going to petition that klaxons be eradicated. To hell with the fact that they were an alarm system. They were just loud and didn’t need to keep sounding like this till manually turned off. They made him want to pass out just so he could escape it. Wouldn’t that just irritate their creator who had made them to wake people up.

  BEING KNOCKED ON YOUR ASS SEEMS TO MAKE YOU ALL KINDS OF PLEASANT. Raj snickered.

  Shut up, Raj. Braeden said opening his eyes. The bridge swam before his eyes for a moment. Flashes of light, both of the red klaxon and the more ominous sparking of broken circuits, stung his eyes. He stared at his chair wondering how it got to be so far away. Right, unexpected flight. He remembered siting up gingerly. His body seemed to be in working order, just grumbling about that tumble he took. His temple ached and he touched it lightly. Wincing he looked at his fingers. The white electric light showed him that yes, he did have blood on his fingers. Lovely.

  “All alive say ‘aye’.” He called out rubbing his bloody fingers on his pant leg.

  “And if unconscious say nothing aloud. If dead, have your ghost moan.” A dry voice grumbled from somewhere nearby. Well Race is still with us. Braeden thought as others groaned and started to sit up. He tallied the en
tire way to his chair. His bridge crew, at least, were still with him. They were all struggling back to their stations. Evens, mercifully, turned off the klaxon.

  “Thanks Evens. What’s our status?” Braeden asked.

  “I don’t know what they hit us with, but shields are down. Hull breaches on decks A, D, and E. Those sections have been auto-sealed. Engines, sub-light and hyper, are offline.” The helmsman said tiredly. He had the beginnings of a nice goose-egg forming on his head.

  “Life support?”

  “Miraculously untouched, sir.” Evens replied.

  “At least we have some good news. What about weapons?” Braeden directed toward Milo.

  The lieutenant shook his head. “Sorry, sir. They’re down.”

  Braeden sat back in his chair and his second shook his head. “Lovely, we’re sitting ducks with no teeth.”

  “Ducks don’t have teeth, Race.” Braeden said turning to his com officer. “Rael, tell me that we can quack.”

  Before she could answer a hail came in. “At least we can hear, sir.” She said. She hit an answer button and apparently they could quack too. Admiral L’Seral’s visage took over the view screen. Her clear blue eyes took in the state of the bridge. A steel gray brow rose as that gaze settled on Braeden.

  “You look like shit.” She said.

  Braeden snorted. “Today is not one of my better days.” He admitted. “There is a Zar’daken warship here making things interesting. I don’t know what they hit us with but our defenses attack systems are offline.” He reported.

  The admiral frowned. “We’ll be there soon.”

  “Don’t fire the SCF.”

  “What? Why not?”

  “The cadet’s LFA is still locked to the Telmick’s ship. And the Telmicks have jammed their com.”

  “And let me guess, they are in the middle of everything.” The admiral said dryly.

  “Of course.” Braeden said.

  The admiral sighed. “Of course. We are still coming. You need someone to look after your asses.” And she wasn’t kidding. The Terrenza popped into space near him already firing lasers and more char missiles. LFG’s were already pouring out of her shuttle bay. There were not as many as the Hail Mary had brought, but every ship counted.

  “I want repairs done on defenses and weapons. Get the LFA’s out there too.” Braeden ordered. He then called down to the transporter room. “Landon, are you alright down there?” He asked.

  “Aye captain. A little banged up, but I’ve suffered worse at family reunions.” lieutenant Mark Landon replied.

  “Can you get a lock on the cadets?”

  “Don’t know, lets us see, shall we?” The man was quiet for a time and Braeden waited. His gray eyes fixed on the battle taking place in front of him. There was a kind beauty in the scene. The hydrogen dust swirling in motes and starting to glow thanks to the energy imparted from stray laser blasts. The lasers and missiles flashing. The Zar’daken darts and the LFG’s weaving about in mesmerizing patterns. And near them, the large terrestrial planet burned under its thick atmosphere. The clouds would boil where a volcano erupted. “Sorry captain,” Landon began. “There is something jamming the transporter.”

  Braeden closed his eyes for a moment. “Damn. Thanks for trying, Landon.” He shared a look with his second when there was a flash of light out of the view screen. “What the hell was that?” He asked as his eyes narrowed on the Telmick ship. It looked a little worse than it did a few moments ago.

  “The Zar’daken’s hit the Telmick ship, sir.” Milo reported. “I don’t know if it was a stray shot or if they meant it.” A second laser bolt struck the mercenary ship. Whatever shields the mercenaries had were apparently not working right because the next anyone knew was the shields flashed as they gave up.

  “I think the Zar’dakens are cleaning house.” Race muttered next to Braeden.

  A moment later it appeared that he was right. Another laser blast struck the defenseless ship. There was a pause as the Telmick ship was pinned by the laser. It then exploded. And anything attached to it would have been caught in the blast.

  Braeden’s eyes went wild. “Tell me you have them.” He said over the com link to Admiral L’Seral.

  Her voice, when it came over the stunned bridge crew, sounded just as shocked as they were. “No. We were hit and it was just enough to knock out the transporter…”

  Oh God, please no! He thought helplessly. He couldn’t breathe. Didn’t want to because it would mean he was still alive and she was dead. She couldn’t be dead… not after everything he had done to protect her…

  But she was.

  Chapter 28 – Phoenix

  It was a relief to see the Hail Mary fire a return volley at the Zar’daken ship after that terrible moment where she seemed so still. She jumped a short distance away just in time before the Zar’dakens could hit her again. LFG’s flew out of many bay doors and the Hail Mary resumed firing. Lasers and Char missiles crossed paths with whatever the Zar’dakens were firing in return.

  A Char was a missile with a special payload: Char Jelly. A peculiar jelly-like substance mined from Colony Lenti. It had the peculiar property that when exposed to a vacuum would stick to anything that had a form of some kind and eat at it like acid. I have no idea what kind of accident or stroke of craziness that led to someone finding this out, but they did. And one of those things that the jelly sticks to are shields, since they have a form in space. The Fleet uses the chars to wear down shields. The jelly constantly eats at the shields that it is stuck to. Holes begin to form in the target ship’s defenses. And if enough is used, it fries the shield generator of the target ship. The jelly than falls on to the hall of the vessel and begins to degrade its hall. It really was a nasty piece of work, but sure made things easier for the empire to protect itself.

  Holes were soon appearing in the Zar’daken ship’s shields. Which made it easier for the LFG’s to get up close and personal with their cutting edges. I shook my head at the light show.

  “Have we had any luck yet getting out of here?” I asked.

  Westley shook his head, but it was Jason who replied. “I think the Telmicks have jammed the com when they locked us out of the hatch.”

  “Basically, we are lucky the ship is responding to us at all.” Westley remarked. Jason shrugged in response.

  “Can we somehow turn that signal to our advantage?” I asked.

  “Perhaps, if I could single it out.” Jason answered.

  “I’ll look too.” Marius said. As the two of them worked Zar’daken darts poured from the warship. An intense dog fight occurred between the LFGs and the darts. The darts had numbers on their side, but the LFGs were having no trouble cutting through many of them. But the darts did have a suicidal tendency as well as a mini blast cannon each that were proving to be effective. The Hail Mary was struck again. I felt panic. What had I been thinking to have anyone come after us? The first Legion Fleet ship I had ever seen and been on seemed to be dead in the water. No shields, no engines and no weapons. The LFGs moved into a defensive formation closer to the Hail Mary. Their goal seemed to be keeping the impossibly large tide of darts from swamping the weakened vessel.

  And it made me wonder… Unable to tolerate being still a moment longer I pulled up the LFA’s database at my console. I looked up the Zar’daken darts. They were small little things and were piloted by the mother ship only. They were too small for a pilot. I smiled as I glanced back out of the view screen. I had the beginnings of a plan, but would we be able to use it in time to save anyone?

  A moment later another Legion Fleet starship entered this oft ignored brown dwarf solar system. I grinned. It was a pilum class starship. Somewhat smaller than the Hail Mary, this ship was faster and had the nastiest weapon the empire has ever employed; the SCF. The SCF or Solar Core Flash was a highly focused blast of energy directly from the core of a mainstream star. And this particular ship was the first ever to use an SCF cannon. The Terrenza had joined the party.

&n
bsp; Upon her sudden arrival, more LFGs joined the fray. I tilted my head. It really was crazy out there. Stray lasers were lancing through the clouds of hydrogen gas around them causing glowing eddies to form. And as far as I could tell, the Telmick ship hadn’t been hit once.

  “Have our friends included themselves in the fight ever?” I asked.

  Westley glanced at me as the other two paused in their work. “You know? I don’t think so.” He replied.

  Marius checked something on his console. He shook his head. “They haven’t, which is strange, unless they are hopping that both sides would forget about them if they don’t draw attention to themselves. Though that hasn’t stopped them from having a couple shots graze them a couple times by both sides.”

  Suddenly the LFA shuddered. “Were we hit?!” I asked clutching the arm rests of my chair.

  “No, that was the mercenaries next to us.”

  “They got hit. I think it severely weakened their shields.” Marius added.

  “Who fired on them?” Jason asked. “Was it our side?”

  “No, it was the Zar’dakens.”

  My eyes widened. “The Zar’dakens figure their chances are slim right now, especially now that a SCF is pointed their way. They are cutting their losses and keeping the Legion Fleet from succeeding at the same time.” I observed. I had seen the gangs on Colony Lenti practice similar behavior.

  “You mean to say that they want to destroy the Telmick ship?” Jason asked incredulously.

  “Aye. What happens to us if we are still attached and that happens?”

  His eyes got wide.

  “We go with them.” Westley said darkly.