Chapter 6 - First Battle of the New War
#5 of Dusk to Dawn
Chapter 6 - First Battle of the New War
"We're just about within weapons range, Si..." the First pilot began, but he was suddenly cut off by a huge ball of plasma that erupted against the shields of the ship covering the bridge, making them shimmer a bright blue.
"Report," Blake and Skye shouted, instantly jumping into action; pausing to look at each other for a second before continuing.
"We've just been hit by a Draconian frigate, several more dropping out of slip space." The pilot shouted.
"Switch to battle stations!" Blake shouted, as a siren rang throughout the ship the normal lighting turned an acidic blue.
Skye couldn't help but notice the remarkable similarity between Blake's ship and his ex-ship the Hiro.
"This is what happened to us," Skye warned, "something's not right with the Draconians, they were never this well planned or thought out when it came to fighting; it was just like a smash and grab."
"Yeah you're right, I think someone's helping them out behind the scenes," Blake agreed, "I think its time we took down the curtain and found out who it was."
"You guys get down to the landing bay on deck 12 okay, it's already been setup for you guys." Blake commanded.
"Aye," they replied, and were off.
When they arrived, they were kind of shocked to see not only a well equipped locker room, full of every kind of weapon, armor repair tools and gear for missions that the best money couldn't even buy. The walls had been painted a cool beige on one side and a blue-ish black on the other, pot lights illuminated what appeared to be an area designated as living quarters. The one thing that they appreciated the most was a small sleek transport ship, a streak. Streaks are extremely fast, have the best cloaking mechanisms of the entire Earth fleet, and packed a serious punch, if used right this small ship could disable a small frigate single handed.
"All right boys, suit up," Skye commanded over the team com.
"Aye," they replied knowing that these messages were all being recorded and played in the bridge for a specific purpose.
The three boys got into their battle armor and slipped their helmets on with a satisfying hiss, and they checked their weapons systems and cross hairs.
"It's amazing, they gears systems are the exact same, even five years later!" Skye laughed, "A lot better but the user interface has the same feel to it."
"Yeah, it really does," Spencer replied.
"All right guys, get ready to go, your main weapons have been loaded into your packs already and have your names on them," Blake's voice broke the com's silence.
"Thanks Blake, will do," Alex responded.
They three got their packs on and boarded the Streak, turning on the main systems and getting them to green. When the large platform they were on began to rise up through the ceiling of the deck and onto what looked like a huge runway, with massive bulk head doors adjacent to their ship.
"So Blake, what do we call your ship anyways?" Spencer asked.
"It's called Prospect of Intent," Blake replied.
"Prospect, this is stealth ship Prowler, team black pilot Skye, requesting permission to launch," Skye asked keying the ship's com.
"Permission granted Prowler, give'em hell!" Intent's major replied.
The Intent's massive bulkhead doors opened up, the force field around the room keeping the area from venting atmosphere, as the ship prepared to launch.
"Launch countdown initiated," a calm feminine computer voice sounded over the massive speakers around the ship and within the prowler, "Clear the launch deck."
"Charging stealth capacitors," Spencer replied, as a small static charge surrounded the Prowler.
"Venting external atmosphere," Alex reported, typing in several commands on his console.
The air around the Prowler started to thin, as the oxygen rich environment was re-absorbed into the Intent's lower compartments.
"Activating main thrusters, preparing to fire," Skye replied, touching several keys in the screen.
"Magnetic Acceleration launch in: 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... The voice replied, "Launch!"
The massive electro-coil magnets around of the Prowler, charged to full capacity, creating a extremely powerful magnetic field, allowing the ship to hover between the coils.
"Firing thrusters!" Skye announced, as he pressed all five of the thruster levers to max.
The coils around the ship not only launched the ship forward and into the vacuum of space but, the thrusters took them to an extremely fast sub-light speed. As soon as the ship exited the Intent's launch bay, Spencer activated the cloaking field, rendering the Prowler completely invisible, to both sensors and visual scans as well.
"Intent this is Prowler, we're approaching our target on the main capital ship's loading bay, and preparing to take the ship by force." Skye called over the com channel.
"10,4 Prowler, your green to go," the Prospects AI replied.
There was a brief pause, as the Prowler made its way to the closest landing bay to the bridge of the capital ship.
"Engaging the enemy," the Prospect's AI warned over the com waves, as their entire fleet of inter-space strike force (ISF) ships launched.
The calm of space was suddenly shattered as several small suns appeared on the sides of the Prospect of Intent's aft end dawned.
The Draconian flag and capital ships returned fire, their own plasma bolts arcing gracefully through space before slamming into the Intent's shields and disappearing, or missing all together. However, the Prospect's AI was a much better shot, she matched blow for blow, not missing a shot as they destroyed ship after Draconian ship.
"Hacking landing bay's security force field," Alex reported, "I'm in, land us on the deck 4 side Skye."
"Aye, great job Alex," Skye replied, docking the Prowler in the landing bay. "We're in, let's go."
The three of them silently exited the Prowler, leaving the cloak on and activating the automated external/internal defenses left for the bridge.
As they exited the bay three armed guards walked past the open door, their massive bodies blocking out the light; their clear draconian forms showing. They're not exactly dragons, more so like mutts, their once human genetic code mixed in with the Komodo dragon's. Besides, there were only three perfect dragons ever created, and they were standing behind their pray, eyeing up the Draconian patrol.
Silently and effectively Alex, Skye and Spencer darted from the bay at top speed, rushing towards the Draconians. In perfect synch they jumped into the air, and by the time the guards turned around, it was too late; the three boys landed on they're now exposed chests and quickly stabbed a plasma blade deep into their heart. The beats barely got a cry from their lungs as they collapsed to the floor; and were swiftly hidden by the boys.
The three kept moving, swiftly across several decks until they reached the boarder between the main ship and the bridge. From the intel they had on this ship, the main guards would be stationed around the bridge and would put up the most fight.
As they approached the bridge they were a little shocked as the intel had suggested that there were guards, but not the almost two-dozen that were standing before them.
"You guys know what were going to do right?" Skye turned to the other two.
"Yeah the usual, walk in calm, beat down anyone in our way and take over this ship," Alex replied.
"I do know you guys well," Spencer replied, "I was thinking the exact same thing."
Together the three lined up side by side and casually walked into the spherical room that the guards were lining. They immediately drew out small guns and a few of them took out plasma lances, which glowed a bright red.
"Go!" Skye shouted, as the three broke formation, drawing their own acid blue blades and lunged at the guards with guns; taking down three almost instantly.
The other guards were a little taken a back as their brethren were slaughtered, but they still fought shooting bursts of plasma from their guns, trying not to hit their allies.
Alex took a grazing plasma burst to the shoulder, but his armor's shields took the brunt of it, allowing only a burn to the outer plating of his armor. Skye took one as well, but the quickly dispatched the entire gun wielding guards and were left with only the masters of the lances.
They quickly jumped into action dueling it out against Skye and the others; however even they were no real match for the born soldiers.
Alex and Spencer were dueling it out four on two while Skye took on three, the others all trying to get jabs in on the exposed sides of them.
A few minutes the three stood alone and un-challenged, the room around the coated in the vibrant greenish red blood oozing from their enemies armor.
"I'll hack the door," Alex replied pulling out a small tablet from his bag, and typing feverishly on it.
"All right, but hurry and as soon as were in lock it back down again!" Spencer suggested; as a cluster of guards rushed into the room.
More plasma bursts blasted across the room at the boys, which they dodged and returned fire.
Several blasts they just let hit their shields knowing that the small guns they were wielding wouldn't do that much damage.
"Yeah, then we'll just vent the ship's atmosphere," Skye completed the plan just as Alex attained access to the bridge.
The three boys darted through the doors, which slammed closed again, only allowing a few clusters of plasma to spurt through before it fully closed.
Alex was the first to stand, and looking around the room he gasped over the team com.
As the others stood up they realized why he paused, there were literally thirty guards standing around them, each holding a plasma blade.
"Shit," Spencer winced as a small plasma burst caught him off guard and splashed across his visor.
The guards screamed loudly as they took off across the room at the boys.
Alex and Spencer charged left and right, letting Skye dart down the middle, cutting a few guards on the way.
One guard caught his wrist as he swung the blade and cut him across the front of his suites chest, the shields down and charging leaving an audible alarm ringing through the bridge.
"Ah!" Alex screamed as a couple of lucky shots took out his shields and the third went through his armor.
"That's it guys morph!" Skye shouted.
There was a sudden explosion as three small infernos surrounded Alex, Spencer and Skye, leaving behind ten badly burnt guards and three dragons in their place.
Alex shot a blast of black flames from his mouth at the nearest guard; which was still taken aback by the sighting of the dragons burning him severally and with a small slash of Alex's tail, crushed him to the deck.
One guard, and then another jumped onto Skye's back, swinging their blades wildly, however the scales of the dragons were much tougher than that of their armor; meaning that only a few good hard stabs pierced them.
The dragons quickly spun around in synch, tossing several guards to the ground, as they quickly mauled the ones standing around them.
Teeth, talons, tails all slashed their way across the bridge until there was only one person left standing; the Captain.
Skye quickly morphed back into his human form, standing facing the sole Draconian, "This is for the Hiro!" he shouted raising his p90 and fired one plasma tipped round directly into the Captain's skull dead between the eyes.
The others quickly shifted back to their human bodies and set to work on taking over the ship. Minutes later, they keyed the com to the Prospect and Becka's face appeared on the screen, "You ready guys?" she replied.
"What are you doing there?" Skye stammered.
"I've been with you guys all along, your neural interface remember. I just uploaded myself from the Earth clusters deep space satellite grid, found you guys and loaded myself back in." she smiled, "Now let's finish this mission."
Becka quickly took over the rest of the systems to the ship and vented the atmosphere, and sent her own message to the Prospect of Intent stating that their mission was a success.
"Great job guys!" Blake's voice echoed around the bridge.
"How are things going on your end?" Skye asked.
"A little rough at the moment," Blake's voice cracked through the com, a wash of static cutting him off as a plasma charge caused his shields to shimmer.
"Becka, get this ship battle ready now!" Skye commanded.
"Alex, you have navigations and internal controls, write a macro to control all this from the main console over there," he delegated. "Spencer, you have fire control, and I'll take the point defense lasers, shields, and half of the fire control."
"Aye!" they both replied, writing quick macros to help them with their assigned tasks.
"Becka, you're on targeting, and propulsion, keep our shields at their strongest!" Skye shouted over to the holo pad,
"Aye, and Skye, it's good to have you back," she smiled as her slim frame disappeared back into the control panel.
"Prospect of Regret, this is Shroud of Shadows, capital ship, requesting permission to join the battle." Skye opened a com channel.
"Permission granted, welcome to the fight guys," Blake's response was cut short again by another wash of static caused by the plasma fire.
"Skye, sensors show the Prospect's shields are at 50% and holding, but they can't take everything that the Draconian's are dishing out." Alex reported.
"All right then Alex, charge weapons systems, shields at maximum and all rail guns locked on new targets, Spencer once you have a lock fire don't wait for permission." Skye ordered.
"Aye, weapons charged," Spencer replied.
"Fire all batteries!" Skye shouted as Becka's screen showed the twelve plasma chambers discharging their energy into the nearby ships.
"Skye, were received an encrypted message from a Draconian ship, they want to know why were firing on an allied ship." Spencer replied.
"Take out that ship next Becka, all charges to full, fire at once." Skye continued.
"Aye, sir all weapons locked firing now!" Becka's cool voice rang throughout the bridge.
"Enemy ship destroyed, and they're charging weapons on us now," Becka reported.
"Understood," Skye watched as another massive ball of white plasma arced across space from the bow of the Shroud and impacted on the next target's shields. The plasma seemed to splatter across the shields burning them, making the energy barrier between the blast and the ship shimmer a bright red before their shield failed.
Skye fired the point defense lasers at that ship, neatly severing the bridge from the rest of the ship, the entire mass erupting into a mass of plasma escaping from batteries and capacitors as it ignited the atmosphere within the ship; causing it to burst into flames before the vacuum of space pulled the flames away into nothing.
"Skye, several of the Draconian fleet have broken off of the main cluster, they're flanking us!" Spencer warned.
"Becka, target those ships with everything we've got, don't let any of them get to our sweet spot," Skye ordered.
"Aye, sir!" Becka replied as the main screen of the Shroud lit up showing the flanking ships and several red targets lock on to them. "Firing," Becka informed as several streaks of silver plasma arced across space impacting on their shields as the point defense lasers took out their missiles and disoriented their plasma cannons.
"Firing rail guns," Spencer added, showing a hail of what looked golden blobs darting from the main guns on the ship pelting the sides of the ship, some piercing the hull and the others destroying various arrays that allowed the ships maneuver through space rendering them useless.
"I've got a Grade-A91 Mother ship that's just slipped into system, there's defiantly a Draconian fleet master aboard, they're already in a flanking position," Alex warned, "I've got an incoming transmission from them."
"Put it through," Skye requested, maintaining a complete calm overture.
"Translating it now... here it is," Alex mumbled as he typed away on his key pad.
"This is the Draconian Delta-A52 fleet master Shawna requesting to speak with your captain," the main screen of the shroud changed to the face of a girl who seemed to only be about 23.
"She doesn't look all that Draconian," Spencer mumbled.
Skye looked at him almost as if he had read his mind, then he replied; "This is Skye, of the Earth ship Shroud of Shadows, what do you want?" Skye spoke loudly but completely calm, as if he already knew what they were going to way and was already prepared for it.
"We are in a flanking position over your ship, we have our weapons charged to maximum and are preparing to fire. From this angle there is no way that you would be able to survive a direct assault, especially when our other brothers in the ships in front of you turn their cross hairs to your small ship." Shawna almost began giggling at the end of her message.