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CHAPTER FIVE

HOME BASE LINK UP

The sun rose up declaring the start of a new day. In a room of the house, a clump was laying on a bed with a bundle of covers over it. The sunlight crept across the floor, climbed up the side of the bed, and made its way to the clump that lay in the middle of the bed. A black hand belonging to Shora moved across the queen size bed, feeling for something. The orca propped herself up when her hand felt the absence of another object and looked to see if she had missed it only to find that what she was looking for was no longer there. Shora sat up and stretched out before searching for her partner. She walked to the door and opened it, stepping out into the quiet house in the early morning hours. She walked down the stairs and into the family room. She looked out the large window at the morning sun as it rose in the sky. The house had a calm scene and it made Shora feel at peace and calm. She walked into the dinning area and heard the sound of something coming from the basement. As she walked towards the basement door, the sounds grew louder. She walked down the steps to the basement landing and saw a door she never noticed before. She opened the door and went through. The odd sounds were coming from the tunnel and she set off to investigate what was the cause of the noise. She walked through the tunnel going lower and lower. She finally came to a large opening, which opened up to a huge chamber. Shora stood still, gazing at the size of the space.

The chamber had to be at least three stories tall and three miles wide. It was square and there were numerous passageways leading from the main chamber. Steel beams stretched from the leveled out floor to the ceiling. Construction lights were set up in the middle of the chamber and debris were scattered all over.

Shora was about to enter the chamber when a siren went off followed by someone shouting, "STAND CLEAR! FIRE IN THE HOLE!"

There was a loud explosion and the left wall of the chamber collapsed followed by a cloud of dust. There was the sound of electric motors starting up and a rush of air as the fan began sucking the dust out. When the dust had cleared, Shora saw Darin standing near the hole in the wall and directing a truck carrying steel beams to the hole. When the truck had parked, men she had never seen before came over to help lift one off the truck and onto the floor near the hole. At the same time, another group of men carrying some odd tool entered the hole and began evened out the walls. Shora stood there and watched the activities of the construction crew as they toiled with the support beams.

Then a front-end-loader wheeled over and began clearing away the chunks of rock that had been blown away. Then an odd-looking machine with two men standing on it wheeled over to one of the support beams in the main chamber and stopped. One man pushed a button and the platform they were standing on rose up to the ceiling where they brought out welding torches and welded the ceiling stud to the wall stud.

Shora turned her attention back to Darin who was talking to some of the men around him. They were all hunched over a blue drawing of something and Darin was pointing things out to the construction crews. He then rolled the drawing up and put it in a case. He was about to go over to the men at the hole in the wall when a man in a white hard hat tapped him on the shoulder and pointed at her. Darin looked in the direction he was pointing in and saw her. Shora guessed by Darin's body language that he was surprised to see her. Darin turned to the man who pointed her out to him and told him something. The man nodded and ran off somewhere. Darin jogged over to Shora and dusted himself off.

"Fancy seeing you here," said Darin.

"What are you doing down here?" Shora asked.

"Oh, we're putting in the new hangar as part of the AUD's defense plan." Darin replied.

"Defense plan? AUD? What are you talking about?" Shora asked.

"Long story, listen, I'll tell you the whole thing over lunch," said Darin.

"Okay, but I want the whole thing, nothing left out." Shora said.

"Right, if you're going to stick around you're going to have to wear these," said Darin.

He brought out a hard hat and gave it to her along with a pair of safety glasses. Shora accepted them and put them on. Darin laughed a little and beckoned her to follow. Darin decided to give her a tour of the hangar in the making. He first led her over to a passageway leading into a wall directly below an opening two storied up. Darin had to shout over the noise in the hangar.

"THIS HERE IS WHERE CONTROL TOWER ONE WILL BE! IN IT WILL BE WHERE ALL THE COMPUTERS CONTAINING CHARTERED PLANETS, GALAXIES, AND OTHER DESTINATIONS WILL BE KEPT! THE OTHER CONTROL TOWER WILL BE USED TO DIRECT TRAFFIC IN THE HANGAR AND WILL BE AN EARLY WARNING CENTER FOR ANY POSSIBLE INVASION OF EARTH IN THE FUTURE!"

Darin then led Shora into a passageway with other openings along the walls of the passageway. The opening led into smaller spaces big enough for a bed and anything else. Darin was able to talk to Shora much easier than in the hangar.

"This is the quarters hall. This is where the commendations for flight crews, fighter pilots and other military personnel will sleep during wartime. Each room can hold up to two men, there are forty rooms in this hall, and there are eighty halls total reserved for combat personnel in the hangar. If you include the halls reserved for maintenance personnel, the total is two hundred halls."

They left the passageway and back into the hangar again. The noise had died down a bit but it was still loud. He led her to a finished off section of the hangar where a crew was finishing installing light fixtures.

The section was about the size of a high school gym oriented lengthwise. The floor was made of armored, the walls were covered with armored plating, and the same went for the ceiling. One wall section at the farthest end had an eighty-four foot wide doorframe on it. The frame had two forty-two foot doors in the frame. A one-foot strip of paint ran across the two set of doors. The strip was painted yellow and black and it alternated as it went across; yellow, black, yellow, black, and so on. The lights reflected off the armored floor and walls.

Shora entered the section and spun around slowly, taking in the sight of the large space. She had never seen anything like it in the world.

"This is the runway. When the hangar is completed, the main area will be like a staging area where aircraft will be prepped and then move to the runway to be launched," said Darin.

"This is amazing," said Shora.

"Yes it is," said Darin.

At that moment, a man walked up to them. He was a tall man, about 7' 3" and had a heavy build. He was wearing jeans, a plaid shirt and a white hard hat.

"Darin, we're ready to open the storage hangar," he said.

"Very well. Shora, you'll have to go back upstairs for a while. It's going to get a little messy down here," said Darin.

"Okay." Shora said.

She turned and walked towards the tunnel. She was only half way through when there was a loud explosion and the sound of rocks falling. Shora climbed up the stairs and emerged to find Sethi-Arh standing by the stove cooking breakfast. She walked over to him and smelled the eggs cooking. It was then that Sethi-Arh noticed her. He smiled and allowed her to come closer.

"What have you been doing?" Sethi-Arh asked.

"Oh, just watching Darin build a hangar in the basement," Shora replied.

"Yeah, he's always been building things. He told me that he wants to connect AUD hangars together so that resources can be moved faster and without anyone knowing," said Sethi-Arh.

Shora turned to the left and leaned her rump on the counter. She arched her back and stretched. She scratched her stomach and moaned.

"Like there would be any need to do that," said Shora.

"Oh I wouldn't say that," said Sethi-Arh.

"And why not?" Shora asked.

Sethi-Arh stopped what he was doing and tilted his head back.

_"Should I tell her? Nah, she would freak out if I did. Then again, she wants to know. I'll tell her anyway."_Sethi-Arh thought.

Sethi-Arh leaned close and spoke to Shora in a quiet voice.

"Listen, I'm not supposed to tell you but, in the last few days AUD has been monitoring the Vlatorrans and signs are pointing to war. The reason why is not very clear but the threat is there and more real than ever."

"Oh, okay," said Shora.

"Please promise me you won't tell Darin I told you that," said Sethi-Arh.

"You have my word." Shora replied.

Sethi-Arh looked at the digital clock. It was almost 10:34 AM, and Robert and Seline had not made an appearance.

"I wonder why Robert and Seline haven't woken up yet." Sethi-Arh said.

"Yeah, that is odd," Shora agreed.

In a room on the second floor, two objects lay on a bed covered with bed sheets covering them. A sleek black dragoness was clutching a young man close to her. His whiskers were in clumps all over his face and his hair was a mess. He was enjoying being in the embrace of the dragoness behind him. Her arms held him secure to her and kept him warm. He lover her and she lover him and the two were rarely seen apart. The dragoness was awake however, did not feel like getting up, at least not yet. Her partner, however, was still out cold. The dragoness looked at the human next to her and smiled. She hugged him gently and thought back a few days ago when she had almost lost him to the sea and the forces of nature. She vowed never to let him out of her sight ever again for any reason.

She looked at the clock on the nightstand and blinked twice. It was almost 11:00 AM and they had not eaten any breakfast yet. She sat up to stretched out. She then walked over to the door and put on her blue robe. She then went over to the bed, sat down next to her partner, and placed a hand on him. She shook him gently awake.

"Come on Robert, time to wake up," she said.

"Not now, not until... (snore)" Robert replied.

"You think you're funny, eh?" said the dragoness.

She removed the covers and started tickling him. Robert squirmed and laughed as she attacked him.

"Okay, okay, stop Seline, I'm awake," Robert pleaded.

"You could have saved yourself the trouble and just got up when I told you to," said Seline.

She stood up from the bed as Robert groans and rolls off the bed. He stands to stretch out and runs a hand through his hair. He then joins Seline as they exit the room and head downstairs for a late breakfast.

Sethi-Arh and Shora look up as Seline and Robert make their way downstairs and over to the kitchen.

"Good morning, nice to see you two up and about," said Sethi-Arh.

"Nice to see you to Sethi-Arh," said Seline. "Hay, where is Darin?"

"Oh he's downstairs working on a project." Shora replied.

"A project eh?" said Robert.

Robert bolted for the basement door, zipped down the stairs, and came across the entrance to the hangar. He ran down the tunnel and emerged in the main chamber. He looked around and saw Darin talking to some men about something on a drawing. Robert looked around at the unfinished hangar.

Some progress had been made after Shora's visit. The main hangar walls had been finished and armored floors were being installed. The ceiling had been finished with armor platting and lighting. The platting on the walls were not yet finished but were half way there. The first control tower had been completed and wired. The quarter hallways were completed and furnished.

Robert walked out onto the armored floor and over to Darin who was looking over a drawing. Robert walked over casually to him, peered at the drawing, and recognized it as the hangar blueprints.

The hangar was designed with an "H" shape. The two straight sides served as landing strips and runways. The central section of the hangar served both as a storage area for crafts and as a preparation area. The hangar also had several other hangars that were for munitions, food, and other supplies.

Robert was amazed at the complexity of the project. He then forgot that he was looking over Darin's shoulder as he tried to turn the drawing only to discover a solid object blocking his hand's path. He was brought back to his senses when Darin looked at who touched him.

"Robert what are you doing looking over my shoulder?" Darin asked.

Robert shook his head in an attempt to shake himself awake before he replied.

"I was just...just,"

"You were just looking over my shoulder at the drawings some that you could be sneaky and try to use the knowledge to your advantage somehow right?" said Darin.

"Yeah, something like that." Robert replied sounding unsure of himself.

"Robert, you know as well as I do that the Vlatorrans are bent on taking earth and using it for their own gain. However, why they would want to take earth and not another planet is beyond me. However, we must be ready for when they decide to strike," said Darin.

"Darin, we're ready to link up with the AUD hub hangar now," said a man who had walked up while Darin had been talking.

"Good. Proceed and finish with your construction work and we'll call it a day." Darin replied.

The man left and shouted something and there was an explosion as a section of wall was blown open. It was followed by the sound of men grinding out the stones that remained in the wall. After a few hours of work, the entire hangar was completed and the workers backed up and went home. Darin then opened a door to allow a train to come through and drop off some army vehicles. The first to roll off the train was a Vzor 77 Dana mobile artillery howitzer.

The Dana was 11,156 mm long, 3,000 mm wide and 2,850 mm high. It had a combat weight of 64,484 lbs. The Dana was powered by a Tatra T-939 air-cooled V12 diesel engine that pumped out 345 HP and could climb at a 60% gradient. The Dana had a top speed of 128 mph. It was armed with a 152 mm howitzer and a 12.7 mm machine gun. The whole thing sat on eight wheels. A turret housed the howitzer and the machine gun. The crew cabs' sides were slanted at different angles to deflect small arms fire. In short, the thing was a beast. Darin would later on reserve it for the front lines. A Russian BMP1 followed the Dana.

The BMP was 6,740 mm long, 2,940 mm wide and 2,150 mm high. It had a combat weight of 29,762 lbs and could hold a crew from three to eight. The BMP was powered by a UTD six cylinder in line diesel that pumped out 300 HP and could climb at a maximum gradient of 60%. The BMP had a top speed of 104 mph on land and 11 mph in water. It was armed with a 73 mm main gun and a 7.62 mm machine gun.

The train then left the hangar back to the AUD hub hangar where all of the supplies were distributed. Robert had left the hangar while the two vehicles were being unloaded. Darin looked at his watch and realized that it was almost noon. He quickly ran up the tunnel and up the stairs to the main floor of the house. He found Shora sitting at the table waiting for him. He sat down next to her and let out a sigh.

"So, what is the hangar for?" Shora asked.

"It's for when the Vlatorrans decide to show their ugly faces again." Darin replied.

"Who are the Vlatorrans?" Shora asked.

"They are an evil race of creatures. They invaded earth awhile ago; it was a complete take over." Darin replied. "And according to spies, they're planning another invasion."

At that moment, the phone rang. Darin got up to answer it.

"Hello."

"Darin, its Jake, listen there is an AUD committee meeting to discuss military action against the Vlatorrans if they should strike."

"Jake listen," said Darin. "It's not a question of if, but when. They are still hot around the collar that their leader gave earth back to us."

"Sure, so are you coming to the conference?" Jake asked.

"Of course I'm coming. When and where is it?" Darin asked.

"Next week on Friday October 13th at 7:00 PM in Louvil Virginia." Jake replied. "Oh, one more thing, will you be taking your truck to the conference?"

"Yes, why?" Darin asked.

"New organization rule, everyone must submit their vehicle's description and license plate number." Jake replied.

"Okay, I'm driving a Ford F-550 super duty with license plate number X53 789." Darin replied.

"Okay thank you, your vehicle has been uploaded into the wan...I mean the warrant system." Jake said.

"Okay I'll see you there," said Darin.

He hung the phone up and turned to see Shora with a questioning look on her face. Darin was quick to dispel any thought that she was about to lose him again.

"There's going to be an AUD meeting in Virginia. Members only, sorry love," said Darin.

"Oh well, I guess I'll just have to wait to enjoy our special time," said Shora.

"Right, I'll be sure to come straight home after the conference." Darin said.

The days flew by and before Darin knew, it was Friday. He and Robert were prepared to leave for Louvil Virginia that morning when Shora and Seline approached them in the garage.

"Darin, Robert, we have something to give you two," said Shora.

The boys turned to face an embrace from their lovers, one that threatened to kill them. Their lovers released them and kissed them deeply.

"Good-bye Darin, come home soon," said Shora.

"Robert, take care of yourself, I mean it," said Seline.

The boys climbed into the truck and drove off. Robert was looking out the window and sighed as the scenery went by. Darin put in his traveling CD to listen to as they headed down the highway.

It was going to be an eight-hour trip to the conference. They stopped to eat along the way and for gas too. They talked some and tried to do everything possible to keep themselves occupied until they finally arrived in Louvil Virginia. By then it was dark out as they traveled down the road. Nothing really happened until Darin looked in his rear view mirror and saw flashers.

"Great, what now?" he said.

Darin pulled over and rolled down his window. He took a second longer look at the cop car that had pulled them over and saw the driver get out. He then noticed that the car was not modern and that the driver was not human.

Being the sensible one, Darin calmly asked what the problem was.

"What seems to be the problem officer?"

"You are wanted for ticking off the Vlatorrans," the cop replied.

"Excuse me; I must have some wax in my ears because for a second I thought that I heard you say that I'm wanted for ticking off the Vlatorrans," Darin said in shock.

"That's right sir. Now if you'll come with me I'll take you down to see your other friends in the illegal conference," the cop said.

This clicked in Darin's brain and registered it as a big problem. The Vlatorrans were already here and had blown the biggest conference in AUD history and had the majority of the organization locked up. Darin was not about to let that happen to him. He began his reply.

"Sure thing, one moment please."

The cop backed away and Darin rolled up his window.

"Buckle your seat belt Robert, 'cause there is no stopping now," said Darin.

He flipped a switch and the tune of the engine changed from the sound of a diesel to that of a formula racer. Darin slammed on the accelerator and took off, leaving the cop behind.

The cop merely reached for a microphone on his shoulder and pressed it.

"Base this is Charley, they're on the run," he said.

"Copy that Charley. Calling all cars, calling all cars, be on the look out for a Ford F-550 license plate X53 789," came a voice over the radio.

Darin floored it as they rushed back home, attracting other cop cars along the way. They were really wanted now; wanted for something stupid. They pealed around corners at blinding speeds of 100 mph with the cops hot on their trail. Darin had a few tricks up his sleeves. He had modified his truck with an Allison's transmission, the world's strongest transmission; enabling him to do things that would otherwise destroy other cars.

They were about to enter the freeway when suddenly the truck spun out. Darin slammed on the breaks, corrected their direction, and came to a stop. The cops quickly swarmed them.

"Stop where you are, the Vlatorrans have a warrant for your arrest." Charley said through a bullhorn.

"Oh please, like I'm going to stop for something as stupid as ticking someone off for something," said Darin.

He gunned the engine and floored it again, speeding past the cops again. Charley gritted his teeth in anger. He got back into his cruiser and chased after them. He pushed is cruiser to the max as he pursued the runaways.

Darin swerved in and out of traffic, honking his horn. Cars moved out of the truck's path as they sped by in a hurry. Darin then put on night vision goggles and switched off his lights, blending into the night. Charley then lost sight of the truck and quit the chase.

"Base, this is Charley; I've called off the chase. I've lost them."

"Copy that Charley."

Darin switched his light on again and took off his night vision goggles. He flipped the switch off that super charged the engine and slowed down to the posted speeds. He made a mental note to switch the license plate on the truck. They traveled the highway back to Florida and sighed with relief at the sight of their home. They parked the truck in the garage, went inside, and locked the door. Darin and Robert were both panting as they leaned against the door. Shora, Jasmine, Seline, Sethi-Arh, and Fiara were looking at the boys with concern. Shora stood up from the couch and walked over to them.

"Darin what's wrong?" Shora asked.

"The conference has been ambushed. The major parts of the AUD have been captured. The phone call was a trap." Darin replied.

"What do we do now?" Shora asked.

"We get on the train in the hangar and head to my main base in Michigan." Darin replied.

Darin stood up and walked over to the rest of the gang in the family room. He took a few breaths before he issued the plan of action.

"Okay, I need everyone in the hangar A.S.A.P. Gather some things together and be on the loading platform in thirty minutes." Darin ordered.

Sethi-Arh walked over to him and whispered into his ear.

"The Vlatorrans are here aren't they?"

"They have always been here, I regret that I allowed one of them to enter the organization," said Darin.

"Its time we fixed that," said Sethi-Arh.

After they had gathered in the hangar, Darin led them to the train tunnel. They walked down a set of stairs and onto a large flat platform. A freight engine was on the rails waiting for them.

The engine was a supply train that could also double as a passenger train. The gang piled into the second engine while Darin and Robert went into the first. They started up the engines and set the rail up for the route to Michigan. Darin pushed the throttle forward and the engine lurched forward. The couplers pulled tight and the train moved forward, slowly at first and gradually gaining speed. Darin had the headlights on full as they rolled down the line.

Meanwhile, at the AUD hub hangar, workers were reeling from the shock that the conference had been ambushed and that the Vlatorrans were already deploying their forces by sea.

An order came in; they were to deploy the naval ships to the AUD bases along the coast and fast using the channels built to allow the swift deployment of this resource.

Forty-five channels were built one mile wide and half a mile deep. The channels branched out to the many AUD bases along the coast. Each base had a receiving pen for the incoming vessels. The pen was actually a large port built under the hangar deck. The exit tunnels were hidden to allow the ships to be deployed undetected. The hub hangar deployed six different class ships. The first class of ships being deployed was the LHD (Land Helicopter Deck) Wasp class amphibious assault ships.

The LHD-8 had a length of 844 feet, displaced 41,772 tons, and had a top speed of 20+ knots. Their crew consisted of 104 officers and 1,004 other ranks. They was armed with two RAM (Rolling Airframe Missile) launchers, two NATO Sea Sparrow launchers, three Phalanx CIWSs (Close-In Weapons System), four 0.5-caliber machine guns, and three Mk. 38 25 mm machine guns and could also carry a fighting force of 1,894 men. In the stern of the ship was a port where amphibious craft could dock. A total of forty of these ships were being deployed which included the USS Sea Sparrow, and the USS Tempest.

The second class of ships to be deployed was the Whidbey Bay Class landing ship dock.

The Whidbey Bay class was 609 feet long and displaced 15,939 tons, with a top speed of 20+ knots. Their crews consisted of 22 officers and 391 of other ranks. They were armed with two Phalanx CIWSs, two Mk. 38 machine guns, and six 0.5-caliber machine guns. The Whidbey Bay class could also carry a fighting force of 504 men. A total of thirty of these ships were being sent to the coast, which included the USS Stalker, the USS Andrei, and the USS Skewer.

The third class of ships being deployed was the Ticonderoga class.

The Ticonderoga class cruisers were 567 feet long and displaced 9,600 tons with a top speed of 30+ knots. There crews consisted of 24 officers and 340 of other ranks. They were armed with either a Mk. 26 or 41 vertical launching system, six Mk. 46 torpedoes in two triple mounts, two Mk. 45 five-inch guns, and two Phalanx CIWSs. A total of thirty-six cruisers were being deployed, including the USS Sharnhorse, and the USS Baldish.

The forth class of ships being deployed was the Arleigh Burke class guided missile destroyer.

The Arleigh Burke class destroyers were 504 and a half long and displaced 9,200 tons with a top speed of 30+ knots. Their crews consisted of 23 officers and 300 of other ranks. They were armed with standard SAMs, eight Harpoon SAMs (Surface-to-air missile) mounted on two quad launchers, vertically-launched ASROC (VLA) AS missiles, Tomahawk cruise missiles, six Mk. 46 torpedoes in two triple mounts, one Mk. 46 five-inch gun and two Phalanx CIWSs. A total of forty destroyers were being sent to the front lines which included the USS Hub and the USS Striker.

The fifth class of surface ships being sent to the front lines was the AOE 6 supply class fast support ships.

The AOE 6 supply class was 754 feet long and displaced 48,800 tons, with a top speed of 25 knots. They were crewed by 40 officers and 576 of other ranks. They were armed with two Phalanx CIWSs and Nato Sea Sparrow SAMs.

The sixth and last class of surface warships being sent to battle the Vlatorrans was the Nimitz class aircraft carriers.

The Nimitz class carriers were 1,040 feet long and displaced 97,000 tons, with a top speed of 30+ knots. The flight deck was 252 feed wide and 1,092 feet long. Their crews consisted of 3,200 that stayed on ship and 2,480 pilots. The carriers were armed with three NATO Sea Sparrow SAM launchers and four Phalanx CIWSs. The carriers could also hold 85 aircraft. Three carriers were being sent to the front.

The channels flowed with ships heading to the war zone, each ship fully manned and ready for combat. Bases Iron Man, Iron Horse, and Iron Clad were the first to receive their taskforce. As the ships pulled into their harbors, they contacted the bases' operator and told them to contact the hub hangar to confirm that they had received the taskforce and all vessels accounted for.

Meanwhile, Darin had just arrived at his hangar in Michigan shortly after 8:00 PM. He headed up to the flight deck and found it full of activity. A man in an orange jumpsuit approached him.

"Are you the operator of this base?"

"Yes I am. My name is Darin McClellan, what is going on here?" Darin asked.

"Your Michigan base as been selected to be the HQ of the defense operation," the man replied. "Your Michigan base's codename is Boss and your Florida base's code name is Iron Horse. There will be an encryption conference in half an hour when all the naval taskforces have arrived at their assigned bases."

The man walked away as Darin stood there taking in the day's events. Shora walked up behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Everything okay?" she asked with concern.

"Yeah, everything's just fine." Darin replied.

Robert emerged from the tunnel that led to the train line. Darin told him that they were to go up to the conference room and fire up the encryption conference system. Once they had the system running, they waited for the other bases to activate their system too.

Never before in AUD history had a conference been called that required them to use the encryption system. The organization had taken special attention to ensure that the systems were the most advanced and worked properly. The system used a code to communicate with in the network that linked all the AUD bases around the world together. This allowed information to be shared faster. The system had a conference mode, which required every base to have a conference room. In the conference room was an oval table with twelve chairs around it, six to each side. There also was a screen on the wall with a camera microphone combination above the screen.

Darin and Robert talked for sometime before the first base checked in. The screen flickered and then lit up, displaying a young boy's face on it.

The boy was probably about thirteen years old with blond hair and blue eyes. His face was clear and his expression was that of intense concentration.

"Iron Clad here, do you copy Boss?"

"We hear you Iron Clad, how is your team doing?" Darin asked.

"They're doing fine, the ships arrived a few minutes ago and we are in the process of mooring them," the boy replied.

Then another face appeared, this time it was a girl.

"Iron Man here, can you hear me Boss?"

"We hear you Iron Man," said Darin.

Darin connected with Iron Horse and called attention to all officers to gather in the conference room.

"Is everyone here?" Darin asked.

"We're all here," said Iron Clad.

"Okay then, as you all know, the Vlatorrans have invaded yet again. Their goal is still the same as before, however, their method of achieving it has changed," Darin said. "They are attacking us by sea and air, and when I mean air, I mean with their space fighters. Right now, they are probably maneuvering their fleet here to swamp our bases before we can send our fighters up to meet them. Unlike in the last war, the Vlatorrans are using naval vessels from other countries to attack our bases along the coast. We've got our hands full now and we need a plan to help end this once and for all. Dose anyone have a suggestion?"

"I do," said the girl.

"Go ahead, Iron Man." Darin said.

"Well, I think we should meet their naval force with a wave of attack subs and try to pick off as many ships as possible."

"That's a good start for the naval battle, dose anyone have a suggestion for the air campaign?" Darin asked.

"Iron Clad here, I think we should use a taskforce and send them against the invasion fleet. The taskforce would include X-Wings, Y-Wings, and other fighters."

"That is an idea Iron Clad. Is anyone against the plan?" Darin asked.

No one spoke a word.

"Okay then, its settled. There will be two major combat zones: air and sea. We will also use a ground force to hold off any enemy forces trying to gain ground. This concludes the conference, go and prepare your teams and be ready to be deployed," said Darin.

The screen went black as Robert switched it off. The room was now silent as they organized in their minds their plan of action. Darin leaned back in the chair as he prepared to stand and walk out of the room being followed by Robert. They went down to the flight deck and summoned the flight crews to the briefing room.

The hangar's briefing room was a decent sized room. In it were chairs in seven rows with ten chairs in each row. In front of the rows on the wall was a chalkboard with a spreadsheet like table on it. The headings on the table were group, time, objective, and aircraft.

The flight crews filed into the room and sat down. Darin walked up the isle to the front of the room and turned to face the men. He stood straight as an arrow and with a straight face. He called attention and the room fell silent.

"Gentlemen, the hour of battle is upon us," said Darin. "The Vlatorrans have begun their invasion and are doing it on three fronts. The first is by sea, second by air, and third by land. They are not to be given quarter with and they will give no quarter. Their goal is to wipe out as much resistance as possible. They will take only female prisoners, the reason why I will leave to you to ponder on."

He turned to face the wall and reached up to grab a string. He pulled down on it to revile a digital screen. The screen flickered and then stopped with a blue display. Then a message in red letters sprang up on the screen saying: "Alert, alert invasion in progress!" Darin then pressed a button on the wall behind the screen and said something. The screen then went blank then a ready message appeared. Darin turned to face his now puzzled audience.

"Gentlemen, you will be the first line of defense against the Vlatorrans' invasion fleet," Darin began. "We have gathered intelligence on the enemy's fleet and were able to obtain the blueprints of some of the ships that are within that fleet."

Darin picked up a remote from behind the screen and walked off to the side of the room to turn off the lights. The men looked at the screen intently as the first set of blueprints came up. They listened to Darin as he began to tell them about what they were seeing.

The blueprints depicted a long object in the shape of a slender triangle. Lines were drawn from some spots on the diagram and at the other end of the line were labels telling what the part was.

"These are the blueprints of the star destroyer Executer. As you can see she is well armed and a very dangerous vessel, capable of launching fighters and other threats against us."

The screen went black for a few seconds then displayed the next set.

The set looked exactly as the first in shape. The only thing different was that the diagram was not a long as the first.

"This is an Imperial Star Destroyer. You may notice that it is not as long as the Executer. That is because the Executer is a command ship. The star destroyers are the equivalent, if you were to compare how their fleet and the US Navy's fleet are broken down, of a basic destroyer. It provides support for the larger ships and can be used as a first strike weapon. The weak points are on the top of the superstructure that looks like a "T". On the ends are shield generators. The generators are unprotected and vulnerable. However, they are well defended with a battery of defense guns. Missiles are advisable when attacking these points."

Again, the screen flickered to show the next set.

The next set showed a fighter that looked like the symbol for biohazard.

"This is called a TIE Defender. This is the most dangerous fighter you will face. Every one of you will have to watch each other and help out if one of you is attacked by one of these killers."

The screen went dark and the lights came back on. Darin walked up to the front of the room again and looked at the men sitting in their seats, shaking with fear and sweating some.

"That concludes this briefing. You are to report to your stations and be ready to launch in fifteen minutes. Dismissed," said Darin.

The men stood up and walked out of the room, some chatting with one another. Darin put the screen away in the ceiling and followed the train of men heading out the door.

Meanwhile, a large mass of ships had just passed the gas giant Jupiter and were about to enter the asteroid belt. On board the command, ship of the fleet a lizard was looking out the bridge window at the belt in front of them.

The lizard stood about 7' 9" with a muscular build. His scales were an aqua green color with brownish green on the tops of his toes and on both top and bottom of his tale. They also covered his stomach, the middle front portion of his neck and outlined the detail of his head. He was clad in spandex leggings and wore upper body armor. He watched as the asteroids passed by the ship as they sailed through the belt and emerged on the other side. They were soon passing the planet Mars and began to slow down some. The lizard turned and walked across a walkway that over looked consoles that controlled certain functions of the ship. Other lizards that look almost exactly like him were at various consoles, looking at the screens, and doing other things. The lizard looked at his shipmates as they worked. Then he was approached by a crewmember who saluted him. The lizard returned the salute.

"Kreg, we are in range to launch the fighters, sir," he said.

"Very well, launch them," Kreg replied.

The other lizard turned and walked away. He approached another lizard and told him something and then he too walked off and disappeared behind a bulkhead.

Meanwhile, in the ship's fighter hangar, fighter crews were climbing into their fighters to prepare to attack earth. The fighters were launched from docking clamps that were hung from the ceiling of the hangar. The hangar was a mass of activity, fighters launching and pilots manning the cockpits. They all circled under the command ship until the last fighter joined the swarm before they set a course for earth.