FSE

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CHAPTER SEVEN

THE RESCUE MISSION

Robert found out that the reason he had been called back was that he had been accepted as the new chief in charge of the air command. Robert was overjoyed at the news and thought that nothing could bring him down. That is, until he received word that Darin had been taken captive and was going to be executed.

"He has been captured. How could this have happened?" he asked.

"It appears to have been an agent of the Vlatorrans that removed him from earth," an advisor said.

"Alright, as the new air commander, I want everyone in the briefing room now!" Robert ordered.

The advisor saluted and went off to the control tower to make a general announcement to inform all aircrews to report to the briefing room immediately.

Robert was already in the briefing room readying the plan to break Darin out of his prison and with time to spare. He was looking over the design plans to a typical Star Destroyer. While looking at the plans for the prison deck, he discovered that the cells were in two rows about five hundred feet apart with fifty cells in each row. The jail cells were lined side by side and had heavy armored doors. The jail section was situated in the very center of the destroyer, making it very difficult to get at without running the risk of them being captured. Or did they? Robert began to think about the possibility of sending a team of a few men to purposely get captured and put into the jails and then use concealed tools to cut their way out and free Darin and then escape.

The briefing room filled quickly. The men all wanted to see what Robert had to say about how they were going to rescue Darin.

"As you all know," Robert began. "Darin has been captured by the Vlatorrans and is going to be executed. We cannot allow that to happen. The plan is to send a team, with concealed cutting tools, to be capture by their prison ship. Once the men have been placed in jail cells, they will use their cutting tools to cut away the locks and escape from their cells before searching for Darin and rescuing him. Once Darin has been freed, the team will make their way back to the docking bay and back on board the ship and escape. Any questions?"

One man raised his hand and said: "Yes, who came up with this crazy rescue plan?"

"I did, have a problem with that?" Robert asked.

"No sir," the man replied.

"Good. Now the team members of the rescue party are up on the board. If your name is there, you are to report to the Tantive IV in fifteen minutes," said Robert.

The men exited the room and split off, half going to the equipment rooms, the rest going to the training ranges for small arms training. The rescue team was already boarding the Tantive IV.

The Tantive IV was the same ship Darin had used to explore the planet Aramis. The ship was fast, capable of outrunning an Imperial Executor Star Destroyer. The ship is armed with two double turbo laser cannons and four turbo laser cannons. The Tantive IV had eight escape pods located hear the main bridge.

Robert boarded the ship and went to the main bridge. He took his place in the captain's chair and put on a headset.

"Okay, is everyone ready?" Robert asked.

"All systems are go," an officer replied.

"Let's get moving; we don't know if Darin is going to be executed today or tomorrow," said Robert.

The command deck crew started the engines and taxied to the launching tunnel. They did their system checks and when everything checked out okay, they floored it down the runway and out the launch doors. They then shot up into the air at a blinding speed. They were in space in a matter of seconds. Once there, they set a course towards the Star Destroyer that was holding Darin. Robert checked the scanner for Darin's distress watch signal and ordered the crew to head toward the source. They traveled toward a destroyer that was behind the moon. Robert began telling the crew their next move.

"Alright, now we've got to get their attention. We need to appear that we do not want to get caught. So we're going to fly in front of them and act like we don't see them for a few moments then try to run. They will fire at us and if they disable the ship, everyone is to be in the halls and wait for them to board us."

The crew followed Robert's orders and approached the moon. However, the crew thought that they were too high and dove lower. As the Star Destroyer emerged from behind the moon, they then realized that they were too low and took evasive maneuvers.

Meanwhile, onboard the Star Destroyer, Kreg was looking out the bridge window when an officer approached him.

"Sir, there's an AUD ship just beneath us. Should we engage?"

"Fire at will, make them pay," Kreg replied.

"Yes sir."

The officer turned and walked towards a communicator. He contacted fire control and gave them clearance to engage the other ship. Guns from the Star Destroyer fired at the Blockade Runner. The ship maneuvered around the incoming fire and made the destroyer chase them. Then the Blockade Runner began to return fire, doing nothing but striking the shields. Kreg laughed at them as they desperately tried to escape.

Kreg turned to leave the command deck and head for the prison area to pay Darin another painful visit. Kreg walked down several halls and then took a lift down to the prison deck. He walked down the hall of the jail cells and smiled as the prisoners in every cell trembled with fear as he walked by. He stopped at cell #135, Darin's cell, and went inside. There he found Darin lying on the floor face down and motionless. Kreg listened to Darin breathing and decided to let him lay for a while longer before he tortured him to near death. He leaned against the back wall, leaving the cell door open. He watched the human laid still, eyes closed in an effort to play dead. Kreg smiled and remembered the time when he was chasing Darin and Robert through the Vlatorran station and finally catching them after bringing down a building around them. He gave Darin credit for trying, but no matter how much he tried, he always got beat.

Kreg walked over and roughly picked Darin up off the floor, his broken legs swinging, which caused Darin to scream in pain. Kreg closed his eyes and listened to his cries of agony. It was the sweetest sound he had ever heard. Kreg sat Darin down on a bench and leaned him against the wall. Darin then opened his eyes and looked at him. Kreg grinned an evil grin and cracked his knuckles.

"We are going to have so much fun today. Too bad it involves you being beaten to a pulp."

Darin's eyes widened with fear as Kreg cocked his fist for the first punch of the day. He launched it at Darin's right cheek and caused the boy to fall over. Kreg picked him up and socked his left cheek before he clamped down on his shoulder and bit him, drawing blood. Darin passed out and fell on to the bench, limp as a rag doll. Kreg stood up and smiled at his handy work, before leaving Darin's cell.

Meanwhile, the Tantive VI was starting to pull away from the Star Destroyer until a shot struck the ship's near the engines.

The master alarm went off, the reactor had shut down and the engines died. Robert ordered the laser turrets to stopped firing. He then ordered the crew to gather in the halls and wait for the enemy boarding party. They allowed the Star Destroyer to get closer, and the crew held their breath as the Star Destroyer activated its tractor beam and pulled their ship into the docking bay.

"Well this is it. Everyone have their equipment ready?" Robert asked.

The men gave him thumbs up.

"Good, now remember the plan, don't fight back."

There came the sound of something metallic bumping against the ship of the ship. A claw was attaching itself to the ship, holding it in place. Then a connecting walkway stretched out from the side of the docking bay to the boarding hatch of the Tantive VI . When they heard something tap at the door, a crewmember went to open the door. The Vlatorran boarding party stormed the ship, pointing guns at the heads of the men. Robert put his hands behind his head and got on his knees. A Vlatorran soldier came over and cuffed him. He then hauled him out and handed him to another guard who took Robert down to the prison deck. Kreg was about to leave when he saw that Robert had been caught. He stopped the guard and ordered that he give Robert to him. The guard did as he was told and handed him over. Kreg grabbed Robert by the back of the neck and hauled him off to an empty cell and threw him in. Robert hit the wall and fell to the floor. Kreg then closed the door and turned to find that an entire crew had been captured.

"Well, this is certainly a very good day for us," said Kreg.

He pointed the guards to different cells to throw their prisoners in. Once everyone was locked up, Kreg let out an evil laugh and walked out of the prison area.

Robert chuckled to himself; their tools had never been discovered and the same went for their hidden com-links. Robert put a finger to his ear and spoke.

"Is everyone in position?"

"We're ready when you are," a man replied.

"Start cutting," said Robert.

They all slung out their tools and began to check the door for alarm systems. A small sensor lined up with a magnet in the doorframe. Robert was about to cut around this when he heard the sound of something coming from a vent next to him.

"Darin is that you?" Robert asked.

"Yes," Darin said weakly.

Robert took out a pill in a bottle and began to cut open the vent and slid the pill over to Darin.

"Take that pill; it will accelerate the healing process and help any broken bones to heal properly." Robert said.

Darin opened the bottle and swallowed the pill. He then laid back and let the pill do its work. Soon after taking the pill, he began to feel his legs start to heal themselves. The bite mark Kreg left on him began to disappear.

"We're going to get you out of here," said Robert.

"How are you going to manage to sneak around the guards?" Darin asked.

"I've already thought of that." Robert replied.

He pressed his ear again and spoke.

"Fighter squad, are you in position?"

"Yes Robert, waiting your command."

"Attack!"

"Roger that Robert, attacking the Star Destroyer."

A flight of X-Wing fighters began their attack on the Star Destroyer. However, there approach was spotted and a flight of TIEs came out to meet them.

"Here we go boys, lets knock their clocks off," said an X-Wing pilot.

They began to peal off and shoot past the TIEs and went right for the Star Destroyer.

Meanwhile, Robert had just cut through the door and was starting on Darin's. Robert toiled with the cutting torch and maneuvered it around the lock and the alarm system. Finally Darin was free of his prison and had fully recovered from his wounds. The rest of the team had escaped from their cells and the second phase of the escape was put into action. They crouched towards the door to the hall outside the prison area and checked to see if it was clear. They continued out of the prison area and over to the lifts. Robert pressed a button and a lift came down. They boarded the lift and rode it to the upper deck. When the lift came to a stop, the team crouched and silently walked out of the lift. Robert put a finger to his ear again.

"Alpha base, this is Lone Wolf, what's our location?"

"You are right on target, Lone Wolf. Gold Mine is waiting for your arrival," a voice replied.

Robert gave a hand signal and the team followed him, keeping their weapons ready. They hugged the walls tightly and peered around corners. They finally made it to the docking bay and quietly moved towards the walkway to the Tantive VI. They were within fifty feet of their goal when a guard spotted them.

"INTRUDERS!" he shouted.

Alarms began to go off and the team made a dash for the ship. They ran up the walkway and through the open boarding hatch. They ran through the halls of the ship then pealed into the escape pod bay. They then dove into the pods and launched. The Vlatorran guards were too late to stop them.

"Kreg is not going to like this," said a guard.

"They what!?" Kreg exclaimed.

"They escaped sir. Apparently there were escape pods on the ship when we captured them, and they got away," the guard replied.

Kreg was furious that Darin was able to escape and decided to launch a full-scale attack on the fighter bases.

"Ready the fighters, we're going to pay our escape artist a little visit."

The escape pods landed on target in a drop zone near Iron Horse base. Darin and Robert jumped out of their escape pod and dashed for an entrance hatch. They slid down the ladder and into the hangar, where a cheering crowd greeted them.

"Yeah, that's right, no one can take our leader from us," someone shouted.

Darin turned towards Robert and told him to go up to the conference room to discus their plan of action when the Vlatorrans arrived. Robert broke away from the group and Darin followed. Once inside, Darin locked the door and turned to Robert.

"That was some rescue mission," said Darin.

"It wasn't easy but we managed to get you out." Robert replied.

"Well that's now behind us. We needed to focus on the counterstrike plan for when our other friends decide to come." Darin said with an angered tone.

"Is something bothering you?" Robert asked.

"I can't believe I was so stupid allowing Kreg into the organization. I thought that after the first war he had changed into a trusting person, and for a while it appeared he had, until now." Darin replied.

"So what is he going to send our way?" Robert asked.

"He'll send an air strike and...."

Darin was interrupted by the sound of alarms going off. The Vlatorrans were coming. However, their targets were the fighter bases in the Rocky Mountains. A warning was sent to the bases, telling them that they had incoming fighters and to get theirs into the air quickly.

At camp Sparrow, the air-raid sirens were blaring. Men were scrambling to their fighters and taking off. The same activity was happening at camps Spear, Confront, and First Strike. However, when the warning reached camp Valiant, it was too late. The TIEs were already there and were doing their worst to the fighters on the ground.

"Mayday, this is base two, we are under attack!" A voice cried out over the emergency radio.

As the TIEs continued to strafe the fighters, another threat was already landing on the surface. A ground unit of enemy walkers was on their way to make short work of the AUD ground forces at the camp.

"Fighter command this is Camp Valiant, we're in deep trouble. The Vlatorrans have taken over the base and are attacking the western bases with our own fighters. Commander, they're coming! I know that soldier, I'm calling for..." the call had been cut off as a Vlatorran fighter raid shot up the communications building, killing all inside.

Things kept deteriorating. As the battle progressed at hub station# 14, the main western hub hangar was discovered. The Vlatorran ground forces ransacked the hangar and took a dozen prisoners. In Riley Oregon, a Vlatorran raiding party disguised as a supply transport attacked base Trail Head. Many in the base tried to call for help but were shot before they could reach the radio room. The raiding party then had the rest of the base's staff line up against a wall while a firing squad raked them down with their infantry weapons. After the raiding party left, a recovery team went in to see the damage.

The team of twelve went through the blown door of the base and into the now pitch black hangar. A man by the name of Jones, better known by his comrades as 'Mr. Diamond', led the team through the hangar. They switched on their shoulder and weapon lights to illuminate their surrounding. However, as their eyes adjusted to the light, they wished they were somewhere else but there.

All around them were the still smoldering wreckage of fighters, tanks, bombers, and other equipment. The lights hanging from the ceiling were sparking.

The team continued to search for survivors. They searched the base's crew quarters and found them empty. They then moved on to what remained of the mess hall and were confronted with the sight of thirty of their own lying dead on the floor. They had been shot by blaster fire from the Vlatorran infantry. They left the mess hall and were walking along the west wall when they found the spot where those not killed in the mess hall had met their final moments.

Jones decided to call off the search and led the team out of the base. They returned to their small post about twenty yards from the hangar doors. The post was well hidden covered with grass and blended into the landscape.

Jones went to the post's report center and began writing his report on the damage to Trail Head. He sent in to HQ and then cried.

The report arrived at Darin's hangar shortly after five that evening. In the report it stated that all hands had been slaughtered by Vlatorran infantry weapons. When Darin sent the report to AUD command center, it sent shock waves through the high command of the organization. The Vlatorrans were taking a more direct approach to eradicate them from the picture.

However, the Vlatorrans missed one base in Oregon, base David, an underground and secondary base to Trail Head. David was still functional and had begun to send out distress calls to the outlying bases.

"Help, we need help. The Vlatorrans have destroyed our main base and are on their way to capture the western half of the U.S."

Bases in the mountain region and the Great Plains went on alert. They all began to gear up for the battles ahead. Fighters were placed inside their armored hangars and the air defenses went active.

Meanwhile, Kreg decided to join the attack on earth. He boarded his shuttle and headed down to the surface where a platoon of his division was waiting.

He stepped out of the shuttle and the platoon saluted him. Kreg returned the salute. He pulled out his blaster, which was in a holster strapped to his right leg, and then shouted, "TODAY WE CRUSH THOSE WHO STAND IN OUR WAY!" He walked over to an officer and tapped him on the shoulder. The young officer turned and saluted him. Kreg returned the salute and proceeded to ask him some questions.

"Is the camp ready for the men?"

"Yes, the men's quarters have been set up as well as other necessities that are needed," the officer replied.

"Very good. Is the location of the camp secret?" Kreg asked.

"Yes, the AUD don't even know we're here."

"Very well, have the men get some rest. We'll strike the fighter bases in the morning."

Meanwhile, at the AUD bases, the night watch was going on duty. Some of the aircrews were already in their quarters and sleeping peacefully. Robert and Seline had turned in for the night. Shora, too, had decided to enjoy some rest and went to her quarters, which she shared with Darin. In the hangar, Darin and Sethi-Arh talked about their first encounter with the Vlatorran invasion force.

"I am still confused on what their goal in taking over earth was. Other than using the population for slave labor, there really is much there to bring a mass army for," Darin said.

Sethi-Arh nodded as they walked at a slow pace through the now silent hangar.

"Sethi-Arh, how did you manage to join the Vlatorran police force?" Darin asked.

"That's something even I can't figure out. One moment I'm staring down the barrel of a blaster. The next I'm at the academy training to be an officer." Sethi-Arh replied.

"Well I'm going to turn in, see you in the morning Sethi-Arh," said Darin.

"Good night, Darin." Sethi-Arh replied.

Darin left the hangar and walked down the quarters hall to the room he and Shora were sharing. He stepped in quietly and closed the door. He took a moment to see if Shora was asleep, listening carefully for the sound of slumber. When he heard it, he proceeded to strip down and slip into his night clothes. He then walked quietly over to the bed and slipped under the covers. He soon fell asleep and was out for the rest of the night.

Sethi-Arh finished locking down the hangar. He was in the control tower, turning on the security system. When he finished arming the system, he walked out of the room and closed the door. He then walked down the stairs to the flight deck and was about to enter the quarters hall when he heard the sound of someone crying. Sethi-Arh listened carefully. No they were not just crying, they were pouring out their sorrows like a raging river. Sethi-Arh followed the sound and realized that it was coming from the mess hall. Sethi-Arh entered the dim-lit hall and looked around.

The light from the vending machines along the walls lighted the mess hall. A single ceiling light was on and illuminated the hall some, but not enough to push back some of the shadows.

Sethi-Arh scanned the hall for the source of the sad noise and found Fiara sitting at a table next to a Coke-Cola machine with her head on the table and her arms crossed in front of her. Sethi-Arh walked quietly over to her. Fiara was crying very hard over something. She was doing her best to keep the noise down but her sorrow was making it extremely difficult. As Sethi-Arh drew closer, he found a picture on the table in front of her. Sethi-Arh looked closely at the figure in the photo. It was a picture of a boy, about nineteen years old. He had dark brown hair and blue eyes. The boy was photographed smiling. In the lower right hand corner of the picture, he saw some writing. The writing read, "To my angel, Fiara. Love, Tom." Sethi-Arh sat down quietly and softly spoke to Fiara.

"What's wrong Fiara?"

Fiara picked her head up; her tears glistened in the light from the vending machine. She tried to stop her crying to reply and after several attempts, she finally spoke.

"My love Tom was killed when the Vlatorrans stormed Trail Head," Fiara replied, still sobbing.

Sethi-Arh put a hand on Fiara's shoulder. Fiara then buried her face into Sethi-Arh's bare chest and cried some more. Sethi-Arh held Fiara gently and rocked her from side to side. He thought about how Tom must have died when something derailed his original thought. Sethi-Arh recalled Darin telling him that the Trail Head base was a special build. Unlike the other bases, Trail Head had a twin sister, base David, built a few feet below the main, connected by a hidden stair shaft. He remembered the salvage report which came that very same day stating that the main hangar was destroyed, but it did not mention anything about the sister hangar. There was a sudden rush of hope in Sethi-Arh, hope that somehow, Tom might still be alive.

"Fiara, I have to tell you something." Sethi-Arh said.

Fiara pulled her face out and looked at him, her eyes still watery from crying.

"I remember Darin telling me that base Trail Head was a special build. Trail Head had a second hangar below it. The salvage report only mentioned the main hangar and not the second. So there still might be a chance."

Fiara stopped crying at that moment. She took a moment to analyze what Sethi-Arh had just said. Reality set in and she looked at him with the most earnest look in her eyes.

"I've got to go to the communications room." Fiara said.

Fiara was about to leave when Sethi-Arh stopped her. Fiara tried to break free, but Sethi-Arh's grip was too strong.

"You won't be able to make contact; I've already locked the room. Besides, the rules state clearly that there is to be no communication between bases during this time."

"Well then what am I supposed to do?" Fiara asked.

"Go to bed and pray that he is safe. I'll make sure to find out for you if Tom is alive first thing tomorrow," Sethi-Arh replied.

"Thank you Sethi-Arh," said Fiara.

Sethi-Arh walked with Fiara out of the mess hall, telling her about Darin's escape from the Vlatorran prison ship and how he was almost killed at the hands of Kreg. Fiara was shocked to hear how Darin had been treated during his short stay, the brutality of the beatings and the pain he must have gone through.

Sethi-Arh and Fiara said good night to each other and went to their separate rooms. Sethi-Arh lay on his bed under the covers, his arms crossed on the pillow. His head rested on his crossed arms as he began his relaxation routine. He took slow and deep breaths as he emptied his mind of the day's worries and distractions. He imagined himself on a sandy beach lying under a palm tree. The sky was a light blue color. He could hear the sound of the water washing up on the shore. He could feel the sun putting a spotlight on him. The wind blew gently across his body. All was at peace. Sethi-Arh held that image until he finally fell asleep.

The next morning, Kreg woke early. He stretched and walked out of his tent and out into the morning air. The camp was silent and calm. The soldiers' tents were set up in rows as far as the eye could see. Kreg could see the sun starting to rise on the horizon and decided to take a walk through the camp. He quietly strolled through the rows of tents to where their land assault vehicles were parked. Kreg looked at his TIE Crawler and began to imagine the devastation it could do to the AUD.

The TIE Crawler looked like a TIE fighter with treads. These TIE Crawlers could cause major problems for the AUD if they were to use the mass supply tunnels between bases.

Kreg then turned to walk back to his tent when he looked at his combat watch and realized that it was time to prepare for the offensive attacks that they were to carry out. He slung out his blaster and fired several shots into the air. The sleeping men scrambled out of their tents and looked at Kreg.

"Get up and get ready. Today we take the fight to the enemy!" Kreg shouted.

The men put on their combat gear and loaded their weapons. Kreg got into his TIE Crawler and led the platoon to their first target.

Meanwhile, the Vlatorrans began to deploy a naval force to help take the western coast and use their landing craft to deploy ground forces to storm the major cities. However, the Vlatorrans failed to notice an AUD task force on patrol. The taskforce had seven LHD Wasp carriers; five Whidbey Bay landing ship dock, five Ticonderoga class cruisers, two Virginia class attack subs, and seven Arleigh Burke class destroyers. A Nimitz carrier, the USS Sharon, was in the center of the group. The taskforce was patrolling an area forty miles out at sea and had not seen any other ship besides the ones in the taskforce.

The seas were calm and the sky was clear. There was neither a hint of conflict nor any sign of opposing force. The crews aboard the ships were on alert and stood ready to fight when the time came. Around 7:00 AM that morning, the time came. Guards on the Arleigh Burke class destroyer, USS San Francisco spotted a large fleet heading their way. The guards identified one of the ships to be a Kuznetsov class type 1143.5 heavy aircraft carrying cruiser.

The guards looked at the odd cruiser. The ship looked like an aircraft carrier, but it was classified as a cruiser. The reason for this was the nasty surprise it had. Onboard the cruiser were twelve missile launchers, inline with the angled landing strip. Each launcher held one missile. The ship carried fighter aircraft and posed a major threat to the coast.

The guards alerted the captain and the alarms began to go off. Men scrambled to their battle stations. The taskforce's carrier was alerted on the incoming ship's capabilities. The attack subs, the USS Sniper and the USS Stalker, were informed to stand by in case enemy subs were to attempt to sink the carrier. The other ships in the taskforce were told to go to battle stations and all watertight doors on the lower decks closed.

On the flight deck of the USS Sharon, fighters scrambled. The deck was a scene of mass activity, men directing planes to parts of the deck and pilots running to their aircraft. Two F-14 Tomcat fighters were taxiing to the front of the flight deck. The fighters stopped and a hook on the front landing gear lowered and connected with the launch catapult. Then a large section of the deck behind the fighters tilted up at an angle. A deck crewmember was in the middle of two tracks that ran from the end of the deck to where the fighters currently were. He was giving both pilots hand signals to perform their preflight checks. The pilots tested their fighter's flaps, rudders and airfoils. When everything checked out okay, the pilots gave the crewmember the thumbs up.

Meanwhile in a compartment on the side of the launch area, two men looked out of several small windows at the two fighters. They were waiting for the man on the flight deck to give them the okay to launch the fighters. One man had his finger over the launch button and waited. A few moments later, the one on the flight deck raised his arms in the air. The pilots of the fighters placed a hand on the throttle and waited for the signal.

The deck crewmember then dropped his arms and the pilots jammed the throttle forward. At the same time, the men in the launch control activated the catapults and the fighters went flying down the deck and into the air. Two more fighters took their place and were launched into the air. The four fighters then began their attack run on the enemy cruiser.

On the deck of the cruiser, Russian fighters were lining up on deck to be launched to intercept the AUD fighters.

The Russian fighters were launched in waves of four. They quickly flew into formation and charged at their opponents.

The AUD fighters radioed back to the Sharon to send more fighters to help. Their request was answered with generosity. A total of sixteen fighters were sent up to assist them. Of those sixteen fighters, ten of them were F-16 Hornets armed with air-to-air missiles. They also were carrying armor piercing bombs.

The two opposing forces met in an explosive encounter. The AUD pilots broke off and scattered. The Russian pilots scattered too and selected their targets. A Tomcat was trailing a Russian fighter. The pilot was unaware that in a few moments, he was about to be blown out of the sky. The pilot of the Tomcat locked onto the other fighter and squeezed the trigger. The air-to-air missile fired its booster and then the missile rack released it as the missile flew towards its target. The Russian pilot was shocked at the sound of an incoming missile alarm and pulled a hard right turn. However, it was too late; the missile connected with the fighter, blowing out its engines. The fighter plummeted 15,000 feet to the ocean below. The pilot ejected from the doomed plane and floated down. The Tomcat rolled and pealed off to engage another fighter.

Meanwhile, a Russian MIG-21 was chasing a Hornet. The pilot of the Hornet pushed his fighter to the limit, making sharp turns and the g-force pushing him into his seat. The MIG followed his every move and fired at the Hornet with his gun. The pilot of the Hornet called for help but no one was able to come to his aid.

"I've got a full grocery list already," one said.

The MIG locked onto the Hornet and launched its missile at it. The missile struck the Hornet in the tail and sent it tumbling out of the sky.

Meanwhile, the USS San Francisco was engaged in a fierce battle with a Russian Kirov class type 144.2 Peter the Great heavy missile cruiser. The two were too close to use missiles. Instead, they used their main deck guns. The San Francisco managed to get a few shots into the other cruiser before the enemy cruiser swung its massive guns around and take aim.

The Russian cruiser opened fire and landed several shots into the forward superstructure, ripping massive holes through it.

From the bridge of the cruiser, the Vlatorran captain was highly amused at the sight of the punishment the AUD destroyer was receiving. He watched as each shell left a new hole to look through. He watched as the men inside were ripped apart, leaving death all around. He turned and called the attention of the crew.

"Its time we send these unwanted foes to the bottom," he said.

The crew needed no more encouragement. On the deck, the torpedo tubes were loaded and launched at the destroyer. The target ship lurched to one side then began to capsize. The men inside were trapped in the sinking ship as it continued to slip beneath the waves.

"Hole crap, they just sunk a destroyer with all hands onboard," said the captain of the Sharon.

A sailor came running to the captain with some very troubling news.

"Captain! We have torpedoes coming our way!"

"What? Get everyone to the..."

The captain was cut off when the torpedoes struck the carrier. Water began to pour into the innards of the ship. The crews that were working down there drowned in a mater minutes. The rest of the crew managed to get to the lifeboats. The pilots scrambled their fighters and began to evacuate the carrier of all aircraft. The catapults were forced to work overtime to launch all 85 aircraft into the air, two at a time.

In the command deck, the reactors were deactivated by means of a control panel. The crew could not believe that their carrier was going under for good. The carrier now had a slight list to port, not enough to affect the fighter launch but not a comforting feeling neither. Fifteen minutes after the torpedoes had done their job, the last of the fighters left the carrier deck. All that remained were the ship's crew. Choppers from the other ships in the taskforce came to help rescue the crew. The deck was a chaotic scene of men scrambling to stay on the deck long enough to be rescued. Water was now coming over the stern of the ship as it tilted more to port, causing men to slip and fall into the sea. Some unfortunate ones smashed against the island and died.

An hour later, the carrier was gone. Of the 3,200 of the ship's company, only 2,500 survived. With heavy hearts, the survivors looked on as they were airlifted to the nearest ship. The Russian destroyer had since disengaged and pulled back to the invasion fleet.

Up above, the dogfight had ended with all AUD fighters being shot down. All of the pilots survived and had been rescued. The MIGs returned to their ship to fight another day. The Vlatorran invasion fleet turned around and left the battlefield. The final score of the day was: Vlatorrans two ships plus 1,023 AUD sailors killed. AUD: one MIG fighter. The battle was a disaster for the AUD.

Meanwhile, back at Darin's hangar, Sethi-Arh was waiting patiently for an open channel to contact base David when Fiara came in.

"Is he alive?" she asked.

"I haven't been able to contact them. The channels were jammed with reports of the results from the battle on the west coast. It seems that we've lost the battle and the Vlatorrans had turned away," Sethi-Arh replied.

Sethi-Arh looked at the channel light as it changed from red to green. The communication channels were open again. He wasted no time in contacting base David.

"Base David, do you copy?"

"This is base David, I read you loud and clear," came the reply.

"Is there a person there by the name of Tom?" Sethi-Arh asked.

"You must mean Fiara's boyfriend, sure he's right here, why?" the person asked.

"Fiara is worried sick about him. Could you please put him on," said Sethi-Arh.

"Sure, one moment please,"

Sethi-Arh gave his seat to Fiara who quickly sat down. When Sethi-Arh left the communications room, he heard Fiara chat away to Tom on the other end. He smiled and picked up a fax containing the AUD casualties from the naval battle. The numbers were terrible. Sethi-Arh then gives Darin the report. As Darin read the report, his face turned pale. He was shock at the confirmed number killed at the end of the battle. Later that day, Darin called his base's entire staff into the hangar for a briefing on the results of the battle. The reaction to the report was saddening, men cried as they tried to cope with the shock of so many lives lost in one battle. In the back of the crowd, some Irish men began signing an Irish civil war tune.

Captain Taggart took the field with his men as hard as steel

And we drove the bloody rebels to the sea

Before the guns were stilled there were many hundreds killed

There's many an Irish girl sad tonight

When the smoke had cleared it was just as we had feared

Captain Taggart lay wounded on the ground

With his head upon my knee there he met eternity

I proudly closed his eyes and then I cried

And its whisky in the mornin', whisky in the night

Another Irish soldier-lad, has fought his final fight

We'll toast him till we're drunk Boys and dowse the candle light

Tell them Captain Taggart is coming home to night

Well, we took his body home and the drums and pipes did drone

And pulled a fine black casket through the streets

We told his grievin' wife that he loved her more than life

And gave to his young son his father's sword

Now the people they all dream of an Ireland free and green

Where nowhere can be heard the battle-cry

The fighting's gone too long and it just drags on and on

I'd like to know some peace before I die

And its whisky in the mornin', whisky in the night

Another Irish soldier-lad, has fought his final fight

We'll toast him till we're drunk Boys and dowse the candle light

Tell them Captain Taggart is coming home to night

And its whisky in the mornin', whisky in the night

Another Irish soldier-lad, has fought his final fight

We'll toast him till we're drunk Boys and dowse the candle light

Tell them Captain Taggart is coming home to night

The music stirred others to join in and in a matter of moments; the entire hangar was filled with the Irish song as the staff sang to the tune.

The mourning continued through the evening mess call until lights out. Darin was in the conference room laying out tomorrow's mission briefing when the screen flickered to life. Darin hid the diagrams and looked up. On the screen was Kreg, how he managed to hack into the system and connect to the conference room was beyond him. Kreg smiled his evil smile. Of course being as evil as he was, killing thousands of humans would make him smile any day. Darin looked at with hate in his eyes. How he wanted to pay him back for the pain he put him through.

"I see you don't even know how to design an effective security system," Kreg said mockingly.

"What do you want you creep?" Darin asked.

"I wish to offer you peace, a truce between us. If you accept, I will have my forces stand down and spare you," Kreg replied.

"And if I don't?" Darin asked.

"You die," Kreg replied. "You and every one else involved with your little organization."

"What are the terms?" Darin asked.

"If you accept, the human race will be given a pardon, however, they will be enslaved to us to do our bidding," Kreg replied.

"No deal. The last thing that will happen is us being used by another person who dose not belong here!" Darin exclaimed.

"Darin, Darin, Darin. You were never the smart one, unlike Angel Nobody. Now there is a person with ideas, big ideas. Ideas that will one day enable us to rule all of space and time!" Kreg said as he laughed an evil laugh.

"Good bye Darin. I would like it say, it's been nice knowing you."

The screen went black and all was quiet. Darin kept reminding himself his reason for rejecting the offer as he walked to his and Shora's room, "Beware of Greeks bearing gifts."