NationStates Jolt Archive

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The BIS Falcon was behind schedule. This was not, Captain Variettos Tîll reflected bitterly, in any way his fault. The Falcon’s crew was supposed to be on leave for another four days still. Through some bit of bureaucratic bungling, the ship that was supposed to take over patrol duty from the Panther had yet to arrive when the Panther reached the Kelchin system, so Captain Tîll and the Falcon were hastily assigned the job. Gathering a crew that wasn’t expecting to return to duty for several days took a certain amount of time even for the most organized officer, and a ship could hardly operate at its usual efficiency when quite a few of the crew members were drunk.

That had been yesterday, and aside from a few bleary eyes here and there, the Falcon was back to its usual standards. They would have to move quickly, though, to make up for lost time. Captain Tîll found it troublesome to rush a patrol, but if the Falcon was late reporting in at the Dolzu station, he would be the one who took the blame, regardless of the cause of the delay. Depending on who assessed the report, that could put a mark on his record that would damage his career for the rest of his life.

I suppose I can just be glad this is such a quiet area. Variettos mused. With as few neighbors as we have on this side of the Empire, there aren’t often smugglers around here, and if there was a rebellion near the sector, we’d all have heard about it. There are times I almost wish someone would try raiding us, just so we could see some action for a change, but at least we can be fairly confident that we won’t have missed anything.

“Captain, we’re picking up something odd on the long range scanners.”

Tîll cursed silently and leaned forward. “What have you got? Send it to my screen.”

“An energy and mass signature of some sort. I’ve never seen anything like it in our records.” As he spoke, scanner technician Karrigan Milohr tapped at his control panel. “It’s quite a ways ahead, and looks to be just inside our patrol route. Must be pretty strong, to pick it up from this range.”

Gazing at his screen, Captain Tîll made a few adjustments. He had been patrolling this sector since years before Milohr was born, and he’d never seen anything like this, either. To make matters worse, if the Falcon was on schedule, they might well have picked up the intrusion before it reached the border.

“Khas, take us to maximum cruising speed. We need to find out what’s causing this, and fast! Rezzigür, prepare the pulse transmitter. We may need to report our findings on short notice, if there’s trouble.”

Its main drive thrumming, the Imperial cruiser shot through the void.

~~~~~A short time later~~~~~

As the Falcon approached this mysterious intrusion, the long range scanners gradually refined their readings. The additional information was not reassuring, and soon the pulse transmitter sent its message to Sector Command in the Stozak system.

-The BIS Falcon has located an unidentified incursion along Patrol Segment 4 of the Imperial border. Long range scanners indicate a large number of mass points. Mass and energy readings are both extremely high, greater than I have ever seen in a controlled phenomenon. This appears to be a powerful fleet, sent by an entity that is not present in our records. Before making contact, I request instructions regarding how I should proceed. Also, I advise the preparation of a battleship fleet, in case our visitors are not prepared to be reasonable. Attached is the Falcon’s current location, and our readings of the intrusion.
Variettos Tîll, Captain, BIS Falcon-

-Warning acknowledged. An battleship fleet is being placed on standby. You are instructed to challenge the intruders to halt and identify. Do not engage. If the intruders open fire, you are instructed to retreat at once. Maintain contact to monitor their location, if possible. Gather as much information about the strangers as you judge feasible.
Vice Admiral Salên Neshugôr, Sector Command-

~~~~~A short time later~~~~~

Preparing a message for transmission, the Falcon moved in toward communication range of the unknown intruders. The crew was at battle stations, ready for action.

"Lord-Admiral, an enemy ship is approaching our position."

Lord-Admiral Hawkespur looked up from a screen jutting out of his command throne. His command ship, a battleship (http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/6/6d/OberonClassBattleship.JPG)designated Emperor's Light, had been chosen by Segmentum Command to lead to the Angenterian invasion forces in the area. The Holy Imperium had been sideswiped by this Empire for way too long now. It's people had been insulted by their leaders, calling them ignorant and foolish. The Angenterian Emperor, carrier of the Holy Bloodline, had been publicly insulted by the Empire's ambassador (who was executed promptly afterward). Their religion was called heretical nonsense by their high-and-mighty nobles.

They had gone too far that time. Now, they would pay the price for their insults.

The Lord-Admiral, having been promoted to the position thanks to his heroic command during the Battle of Aquahelpian, was now at the head of a true Imperial Battlefleet. Consisting of a whopping 10 Imperial Battleships (http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/6/6d/OberonClassBattleship.JPG), 27 Imperial Destroyers (http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/9/9e/VenganceClassGrandCruiser.JPG), 20 Battlecruisers (http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/mediawiki/images/8/85/ArmageddonClassBattleCruiser.JPG), and 30 assorted frigates and cruisers. Not to mention, 5 troopships were being held in reserve, filled to the brim with the soldiers of the Angenterian Imperial Guard, ready to take the fight to the Empires planets.

Woe betide any who would wish to oppose such combined strength.

"Classification?"

"It looks like a light cruiser at most, sir. Probably sent to investigate the warp disturbance of our fleet exiting warp-space."

"If they find out what we're doing, we're going to have their entire fleet bearing down on us from the start." The Admiral replied. "Raise void-shields, power up weapons, and prepare to launch fighters. Let's see what they do first before anything happens..."

With that, the Imperial battlefleet quietly readied itself for battle.

OOC: Sorry, forgot to mention: the initial intrusion is Balrogga. Hold that for a bit, OK?

Nice start, though!

(OOC: No problem, and thanks.)

CIS Cul

The dreadnought was making an anual sweep of unidentified systems. It's mission, as usual, was one of evangelism. It was the sworn duty of those who served the Empress to spread Her name to the galaxy. A task like this, to some, would seem tedious and a wanton use of a military vessel. But the commander of the Cul was no simple military leader. He was Ramuel, Head of the Trinity and Lord Protector of the Realm. From the command center, he looked over numerous displays that showed the nearby systems. His interest piqued when he noticed several vessels in one system. He scrolled through different commands, enlarging and bringing up different readings from the system.

"Second, what ships are these?" he asked.

"None that I know of, Milord," Second answered. The clone's young face frowned as he went through the computer's database, "Their design matches no known configuration."

"Bring us within minutes travel of the system and prepare the fold drive," Ramuel ordered. "We shall wait and see who our new acquaintances are."

"Yes, Milord," Second said as he went about to carry out the orders.

"Second...?" Ramuel began.

"Sir, stealth-mode has been activated."

"Very well," Ramuel said. From him, that was high praise.

ooc: i'm assuming the forces i am seeing are balrogga's and your own. just thought i'd intro. my forces.

In the cold depths of space, an unmanned Neo-Roman Lumen drone hurtled along its preprogrammed path at almost .8 light, its solar collectors gathering energy for its next tesseract jump towards a system the Praetorium had marked for surveying. The Lumen was dormant at this stage, save for a few passive sensors; its navigation computers would activate to calculate its next jump once its energy cells held enough juice for tessering.

It had not yet reached this point when the passive sensors went wild; mass-energy readings spiked, and within milliseconds the full range of the Lumen's considerable sensor arrays awoke to drink in more data on the reading. A tiny pulse of a vernier jet adjusted the drone's trajectory to take it closer the anomaly, while its communication system pinged its control center with a short report.

OOC: I don't intend to take military action in this sector, but the Neo-Romans have to find out about this war somehow. ;) Oh, and the drone is running all passive sensors for the moment and moving on its own momentum, so its energy profile should be negligible.

The collection of ships was not many, only a few hundred but less than a thousand. Distant scans would show a majority of the ships were less than 200 meters in length, the remaining hundred or so varying from a thousand meters to a dozen or so ranging several thousand in length. The formation seemed to be centered on two objects. The first was a large wedge about a dozen kilometers in length and the largest was a massive craft about 45 kilometers from side to side. Anything that large would not be considered a proper ship.

The Fist (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/beldragos/BlackstoneFortresssuperlargemoon-1.jpg)was easiest classified as a Battlefortress. Its design was ancient but it was also very modern, a paradox in existence. The thing was created out of black metal and appeared to resemble some ancient Eldar records of another fortress.* This was the Fist of Darkness, the only thing that could be called the “Capital” of the Fallen Empire of Balrogga.

Nearby was the Heart of Darkness (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/beldragos/heartofdarkness.jpg). The Executor lost by the GE over Asfaltum several years ago was reclaimed . The ship had been redesigned to account for the back third being blown off in the battle and the whole thing converted to Thur’Tahg. This was the center of Research and Development for the Fallen Empire. It was unknown what weapons were on that vessel but one thing for sure, they would be experimental and frightening.

The thing that attracted the most attention was not the number of ships or even the size. It was the sensor readings.

Each ship detected as having the mass shadow of a small star. Their energy signatures would also match this. Every vessel from the 60 meter Infernal Frigate to the 45,000 meter Fist of Darkness would all share this characteristic. What made this worse is the fact these readings were appearing and disappearing seemingly at random as several vessels would fade away as they Uplifted into T-Space, also known as the 7th dimension or as they Emerged back into Real Space. Even from a distance, the power readings would make some technicians wonder if their equipment was broken and the gravity wells would most likely confuse sensors as they bounced around.

The system was nearly finished. The extraction of particles from the star had begun some time ago when the fleet had arrived. The Fist was in close orbit of the red giant, energy beams reaching inward to the core. Pulses of energy occasionally followed the beam upward as additional particles were discovered and mined. The Strangelets and Neutronium particles were channeled into individual magnetic containment storage. The two would act as weapons when they were needed.

Seneschal, the process is nearly complete. The percentage of the star is becoming too low to sustain the operation.

I will inform the Warlord. Suspend operations and begin to prepare for movement.

Yes Sir

The robed individual faded from the command center and within moments it was outside the meditation chamber of Nhur-Galladu. A soft knock roused the Ta’Nar leader as he reached out with his senses contemplating many things.

Enter

The door slid open silently and waiting visitor entered. The Seneschal approached the Warlord and bowed, following ancient customs and protocols.

Sire, the operation is considered complete. We have removed enough material to make further operations inefficient.

I understand. How was the yield?

We have captured 31.3 Kr’Bits of Neutronium and .27 Kr’Bits of Strangelets.

Excellent, prepare the fleet to move to the next star.

The closest is a yellow; the ratio will be rather low for such a young star.

Send out recon units. Find another that would warrant our moving.

As you wish.


I sense you wish to discuss something else.

Yes, long range sensors have picked up several contacts. So far nothing rates above a Class 4.

Keep an eye on them, you never know when the locals get uppity and refuse to recognize their betters.

Yes Sir, I will dispatch Infiltrators to keep an eye upon their formations. The meatbags will not be allowed to interfere with operations.

The Seneschal backed away from the Warlord and rose. He left the chamber and then vanished, reappearing back in the command center. The Admiral turned to his superior waiting for a command.

D’Thon, send out recon parties to the nearest stars to get reading on their contents. Also send Infiltrators to check on the local formations. Keep all ships in T-Space for initial scans. Report back to me when we have readings upon them and can perform a proper assessment of them. Investigate any anomalous readings; there are too many Honor-less cowards employing cloaks and if any show up on the dimensional scanners then investigate.

Yes Sir, Right away.

Several of the contacts disappeared off the scans as the ships were ordered to go to nearby systems. Several minutes later the individual ships would appear in orbit around the stars in question to perform the proper scans, a long and technical process that needed extreme expertise to perform.

In T-Space, Infiltrator Cruisers (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/beldragos/Infiltrator1.jpg)approached the detected locations of the sensor contacts and began to passive scan them, using their own signals to make a full dossier upon the vessels in question.




* No, it is NOT a Blackstone Fortress. It does however look like one and can be mistaken for one except it is made out of the same stuff my other ships are, Thur’Tahg. Thur’Tahg is a living black metal that can be formed into different shapes by a possessing intellect, the Kythons. I spent more than three weeks making the Doga model so it is original artwork I am using. As people encounter ships I will post links to their images

Cul

The dreadnought was in quiet slumber as it passively scanned the nearby system. Scans brought back images of immense vessels and a large force. Ramuel hadn't left his observation post since the ship had begun its scans, and neither had his Second. They poured over the information carefully and methodically, making sure nothing was missed.

"Send a data canister," Ramuel ordered.

"Yes, Milord," Second replied.

From the hull of the ship, a small indentation opened, and a meter-long tube was jettisoned. Within a second it had folded, heading for home.

Culsans

The home planet of the Culsu Empire was a blue gem in the center of a galactic spiral. The central city was home to the Imperial Palace, home of the Immortal Empress. A great stone door leading into the Audience Chamber was sealed shut; the Empress was accepting offerings at the time. Standing outside the door, Camuel and Uruel stood waiting. Camuel's red hair matched his fiery temper at the moment, while Uruel's bemused smile reflected his blue-tinted hair.

"How long is she going to make us wait?!" Camuel demanded.

"Patience, brother," Uruel said calmly, "Our Mother has Her ways."

As he said that, the door opened and a young girl in a white smock approached them. She walked barefoot, with a circlet of silver on her brow, marking her as an Acolyte.

"Holy Mother will see you now," she entreated as she led them in.

There were a hundred steps to the center, where the throne sat. As it rose from the floor, there were twenty more steps leading to the actual throne. A mewling sound at the top made them both pause as the Empress descended. They knelt and She touched their cheeks, holding a small purring animal in Her other hand.

"It's been too long, Precious Ones," She told them, Her childish voice echoing off of the jade walls. She sighed a bit, "It's Ramuel again, isn't it?"

"Yes, Mother," Uruel answered.

"He's found something new," Camuel said as he offered the display device.

"Oh, look at that," She chuckled, "Isn't like our Ramuel to find something like this..."

"I like these," She replied, "Tell him to keep me informed."

"Yes, Holiness," Camuel and Uruel bowed as she exited the chamber.

At slightly over 1.2 km from tip to tail, the Falcon was larger than most of the intruders, but far less massive. Buru Imperial cruisers are designed primarily for speed and firepower, and the Empire had yet to discover a means of propulsion that worked as efficiently for a heavy ship as a light one… but even the largest Imperial vessels didn’t rival the mass shadows of the mysterious intruders.

These mass shadows were distinctly worrisome to the Falcon’s crew.

“What in the Emperor’s name are those things?”

Variettos gazed calmly at the speaker. “That’s what we’re supposed to find out. With any luck, they won’t be shooting at us. They may even leave without protest, when informed that they are intruding. But even if they open fire on sight, we should be able to get clear before they hit us.”

“But their numbers aren’t even constant! Look at the readings – what could possibly do that?”

“For all we know, it’s some sort of decoy system. I’m not a theoretical physicist; I don’t know what the possibilities are. But there’s no point in assuming the worst. If these people are invading, it won’t do us any good to not find out what they can do.
“Take us into real space at 45 lm. That’ll be close enough for observation, and we can reach a proper distance for communications quickly enough if we so choose. Let’s find out what these people want, shall we?”

The Falcon, becoming clearly visible as it returned to real space, had a somewhat unusual form. The upper portion was curved and streamlined; the angular lower portion extended 200 meters further in the front, forming a flat deck. Mounted in the front were a pair of 500 meter energy cannons, built into a complex framework that allowed each to rotate up to 10°, vertically and horizontally. Between these was the first of three heavy turrets, each holding 200 meter cannons. The sides of the cruiser bore a scattering of smaller weapons, and its entire surface was dotted with four-barreled point defense turrets. A pair of torpedo tubes below its heavy cannons rounded out the Falcon’s visible arsenal. It was obviously a vessel that had greatly varying capabilities in different directions.

The moment the ship entered real space, it sent out its transmission on all standard communication frequencies.

-Attention, unknown fleet: you are within the borders of Obangsokrux Buru. I am Captain Till of the Buru Imperial Navy. Identify yourselves immediately, and state your intentions!-

OOC: The nearest star of note to Balrogga’s scouts will be Drazas, an old red giant similar to the one that was just harvested. However, there’s a mining operation on a planetoid in distant orbit, and it’s guarded by a small fleet – five visible ships, including a pair of 2 km Imperial battleships, and some missile boats hidden in subterranean hangers on the planetoid. Roughly 25 light years closer to Kelchin and a bit further from the border is a star that’s somewhat smaller and younger, but unobserved.

-Attention, unknown fleet: you are within the borders of Obangsokrux Buru. I am Captain Till of the Buru Imperial Navy. Identify yourselves immediately, and state your intentions!-

Cul

Jehoal sat at his station on the bridge with a bored expression. The lanky fourteen-year old was almost done with his missionary work. It was compulsory, marking his ascension into adulthood. But this business of listening to communications from foreign ships was boring, their alienness nonewithstanding. The only thing that kept his attention was the wrath that Ramuel could incur on those he found slacking on the job. His ears perked as he heard the transmission.

"Commander, communication from territorial officiant," he said into his headset. In an instant, Ramuel was standing over him. Jehoal still thought it was scary how he could do that. Second joined them soon afterward.

"Show me," Ramuel said bluntly. Jehoal keyed up the communique and played it back. Ramuel and Second conferrred with one another before Ramuel grunted with approval and walked away.

"Second, send another communications drone," Ramuel ordered.

"Yes, Milord."

Culsu

Camuel was busy, so it fell on Uruel to inform Her of what had happened. Not that Uruel minded; he was the Brother who spent the least amount of time away from Home, unwilling to be parted from their Mother for too long. He eventually found Her playing in the Inner Sanctum, letting Her pet dart in and out of the flower beds.

"Hello, Beloved," She said without looking up. Her eyes turned from the pet to his face, "What does my Dear Uruel have to say?"

"Empress (http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn152/Chewie532/Princess.jpg)," he bowed, "Ramuel sends another report. A message from an official of the foreign power," Uruel explained. He pulled out a display pad and replayed the message for Her.

"Oh, how lovely," She giggled as the pet leapt into her arms. "Tell Ramuel he can proceed by his own course, but to exercise discretion."

"Yes, Holiness," Uruel bowed.

Cul

Second nodded as Ramuel gave him his new orders. As Executive Officer of the ship, Second had discretion in who to choose for the mission at hand. From his personal pad, he scrolled through the Apostlery onboard the ship. He grinned, remembering the Communications Officer. Of course...

An hour later...

He was nervous. Jehoal had been on a few Evangelizing missions, but mostly on people they knew far more about. His only comfort was that Dina, his counterpart, would be joinng him on the mission. Her job would be to fly the small, bladed shuttle while he tried to communicate.

Once inside, he prayed to the Empress, hoping She was watching over him right now. Dina went through the pre-flight and announced that they were ready for launch. Bay doors underneath the shuttle opened as blue caution lights flashed.

"May the Empress be with you," Second said as they launched into the night. There was a brilliant flash as the Cul folded, heading to an unobserved star system 25 lightyears away, falling back to keep their imposition as unhostile as possible.

The shuttle fired its engines and headed towards the ship. It was less than half the size of the Cul, but Jehoal still didn't want it to get angry.

ooc: hope i'm not jumping too much into this.

(OOC: Wait, I'm confused. Balrogga comes in, then what just happened? Where do I come in and get to blow things up (most importantly) ?)

Sire, one of the locals has issued a claim on us.

What? Let me hear their message.

After a few moments, the message from The Falcon was displayed for Nhur-Galladu.

Attention, unknown fleet: you are within the borders of Obangsokrux Buru. I am Captain Till of the Buru Imperial Navy. Identify yourselves immediately, and state your intentions!

Nhur-Galladu chuckled and nodded to his advisor.

That is funny, they demand we identify ourselves. Cattle have no right to demand anything from those who are destined to eat them. They are comedians indeed.

Yes Sire, what shall we do with these thoughtless fools?

I believe we will do the most humane thing we can and put them out of their own misery. Send in a single frigate and remove them from existence.

Right away Sire.

Oh, hold comm silence. They don’t deserve any reaction other than the swift knife at this point. Continue using the Links for all communications.

Of course Sire.

Moments later a single 60 meter Infernal Frigate (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/beldragos/kythonfrigate.jpg)faded into Real Space from where it was and opened up. Eighteen objects were ejected from various points around the small ship and the frigate seemed to waver as it shifted locations again, appearing several kilometers away. The mass signature suddenly appearing right next to the ship was figured into their strategy, using the sensor glitch that normally appeared as the ship’s computers would be trying to figure out what happened to fire and slip away. With luck they would not know what hit them again and again and again.

The Grav Torps drifted a moment before they came to life. Inside, the fusion reactors channeled energy to a single point about 5 meters in front of them. The increased energy surge that followed ruptured the space-time continuum and an energy based singularity formed creating a three meter event horizon. The violet sphere pulled the emitter closer which in turn moved the sphere. The result was a torpedo body being pulled by an artificial black hole. All eighteen targeted The Falcon and dove towards their target projecting a massively hungry force in front while hiding within its shadow so incoming fire would simply be eaten. The Torps were programmed to fly through a ship and then turn around to make pass after pass until there was nothing left. With that size of a ship, it might take the whole 30 minutes of fuel unless it went through something important. Long before that the atmosphere of the ship would have been vented through the newly formed three meter air vents in the ship.

A short distance away, The Executioner waited and scanned while its children did their dirty work. A single ship rarely appeared to the Ta’Nar. If they were smart there would be others standing by and the Shipmind wanted to be sure they did not interfere with the feeding.



In another part of the system, a Cruiser was investigating one of the recent anomalies. It detected a dimensional shadow where an object would not detect, as if something was cloaked. The object was small but it definitely held a signature. While T-Space, the Cruiser continued to examine the unknown probe trying to figure out exactly what it was.

Still another Cruiser was en route to track down some erroneous scan patters coming from outside the system (The Cul). It arrived shortly after detecting a flash of energy as the unknown ship folded away. The Cruiser held position for a while continuing to scan for intruders.





Drazas:


A lone Interceptor Destroyer (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/beldragos/interceptor.jpg), The Exalted, faded into Real Space in close orbit of the old red giant as it sputtered and sent flares out into space. The ship was not closely scanning the rest of the system other than standard scans so nothing snuck up on them. Most of the scanners was centered upon the star itself as it began the long process of checking out the ratio of Neutronium and the presence of Strangelets.

Captain, we have begun the Scans. It appears the preliminary estimates show the old star would be rich in Heavies but we have only just begun our process.

Continue and let me know when you have something to report. I am going to meditate until we know more.

With that, the captain withdrew into himself and reached out his awareness to encompass the ship in its entirety. He could feel his crew going about their duties as well as the awareness of Shipmind, the Kython group consciousness composing the ship. Using its sensors, the captain watched the star in its glorious magnificence. This close to the star, it was as if he was bathing in the electromagnetic eruptions as well as the massive radiation. He could feel the energy striking his hull and be absorbed, energizing the Thur’Tahg making up the structure. The material quivered as if anticipating some upcoming battle as the star sang in its electromagnetic frequencies to its stellar neighbors. Red Giants were yellow stars that had its furnace smothered by iron which does not support fusion. As the pressure increases, the iron is compressed to a point it loses its structure and becomes Neutronium. Only a little but will exist within the core, the heart of the star where the pressures are the greatest. Sometimes the pressure is so great a couple particles of Quark matter, or strange matter will form but it is rare outside a neutron star. None the less, it might be buried in the heart of the spectacle before him. He could only guess while Shipmind was carefully scanning. He turned his attention to the few scanners pointed away from the star to see what lay out in the rest of the system.

Still another Cruiser was en route to track down some erroneous scan patters coming from outside the system (The Cul). It arrived shortly after detecting a flash of energy as the unknown ship folded away. The Cruiser held position for a while continuing to scan for intruders.

"Commander, an intermediate vessel has appeared. It seems to be tracking for us," Second reported.

"No doubt, they have detected our fold," Ramuel pondered, gazing at the tactical displays.

"This species is even more elusive than the others," Second relayed. "Of course, that does not bode well."

"Unless they act on our presence, we should remain cloaked," Ramuel ordered. "Our communications may be intercepted...we'll have to get in touch with the Home Planet another way," he sulked. In a flurry of his command cape, he exited the bridge, Second taking command in his absence.


As Ramuel pondered strategic matters, Jehoal and Dina were fighting for their lives. The small shuttle had folded into the middle of an attack on the other vessel. Abandoning their evangelizing mission, Dina piloted the small craft every which way, dodging fire.

"Falcon," Jehoal radioed in desperation, "This is the Imperial shuttle Tiberian on a diplomatic mission, can you assist us?!"

ooc: angenteria, it seems our empires are very similar...thoughts of using that as a plot device? TG me.

Though Captain Till had hoped that matters would be resolved peacefully, the Falcon had entered real space ready for trouble – with its crew at battle stations and its tactical computer on a combat footing. This meant that, when it detected objects initially classified as possible incoming missiles, the computer didn’t waste time trying to figure out where they came from, or if they might be a sensor malfunction, before opening fire with the point defense turrets. Of course, the initial shots were simply swallowed by singularities, but as the Falcon compiled more data on the approaching weapons and checked it against the onboard database, it quickly adjusted its technique. The Buru had encountered singularity propulsion before; with the technology they possessed, they could get better speed from more conventional-seeming drives, but they were familiar with the idea.

With several turrets targeting each of the 18 Grav Torps, the Falcon aimed its defensive fire slightly beyond the weapons’ event horizons, letting the intense force fields bend the paths of the energy bolts inwards. With the proper angle and distance, this might arc point defense around the singularities to strike the torpedoes behind them. If they missed, each bolt would destabilize after travelling a short distance, degrading into an unfocused explosion. The time that the bolt remained stable could be adjusted, although only with limited precision. With luck, some of these explosions would occur near the torpedoes. They could do considerable damage at close range, although much less efficiently than a direct impact from a stable bolt. The incoming torpedoes would also encounter the Falcon’s defensive force field.* A singularity could no more drain away this acceleration than the gravitational field of a planet. A cruiser’s force field generator was much less powerful than that carried by a battleship, and might not be able to stop the torpedoes completely, but it could at least slow them down, and give the point defenses more time to destroy them.

This tactic was adopted before Captain Till’s visual center had time to process his screen’s announcement that a large mass signature had appeared briefly next to his ship. This time, he cursed aloud.

He did not, however, waste a lot of time with confusion or regret.

“Reverse course, full accel! All guns, fire at will! Rez – full sensor record on the pulse. If we don’t make it out, command will need every scrap of information we have.”
Even as he spoke, Varrietos tapped one of three small buttons on his command console. It triggered a dedicated pulse transmitter that all Imperial cruiser kept at standby when on active duty, sending of a simple message: “Under attack at the following coordinates.”, along with the ship’s name and location. A moment later, he pushed the second button, sending a sensor snapshot after it. Whatever the outcome of the attack, the Falcon would not simply vanish into the void.

The Falcon was in the process of flipping end over end, while firing at the nearby attacker with any of the larger turrets that could be aimed in the proper direction, when the shuttle called out for help.

Everything happens at once! Till thought. Can’t abandon a diplomat. He sent out a quick answering transmission.

-“I can’t make any guarantees, Tiberian, but we’ll do our best. Get to the rear of our vessel ASAP – we need to get out of here.”-

“Open landing bay one;” he added to his crew, “we’re picking up the shuttle.”

*Buru force fields, on the default setting, cause a weak outwards acceleration that rapidly intensifies as an object gets closer to the ship. At its strongest, the effect can be similar to running into a wall. The area closer to the ship than this maximum is clear of acceleration.

~~~~Meanwhile, in the Drazas system~~~~
The sudden appearance of such an enormous mass shadow near Drazas did not go unnoticed, of course. Indeed, it set off alarms throughout the mining station. Aboard the battleship Avalanche, Commodore Tesry Keel was awakened three hours early by the blaring sound. Quickly throwing on her uniform, she stormed off to the ship’s control center.

“This had better be damned important.”

“Commodore! Look at these readings!”

Captain Delzo Harakos kept his voice almost calm, but his concern was obvious to those who knew him as he directed Keel’s attention to a large view screen.

“Quite a reading. I suppose that is worth waking me up.” As the last traces of sleep vanished, Keel was regaining her customary calm and her (often rather odd) sense of humor. “Any match in the database?”

“Not a thing.”

“Well, if they had any official business here, they’d have contacted us. Either they lied to the border patrol, or they shot their way through. Either way, Command needs to know about this, and they need to be removed.”

Keel turned to the communications center. “I want all ships in position to protect the mine from our guests, two ls west of Karzas**. Destroyers in front; the Tempest in the rear. Missile boats are to launch ASAP with a standard load of torpedoes.”

Turning back to Harakos, she added, “If they don’t take a hint and scram when we mobilize, I think a warning shot will be in order.”

“Should we advance toward the star, Commodore?”

“No. This could be a decoy, to lure us away from the station before a raid. Now, we’ll need a pulse to Command…”

Soon, all the mine’s guardians were assembling: two kilometer long destroyers, two 2 km battleships, five 400 meter torpedo boats, and a blocky, 1.4 km ship that bristled with odd looking gun barrels – the most massive of the defenders by a considerable margin.

**The planetoid where the mining operation is located.

Thank the Empress Jehoal said to himself. A minute later, he felt his statement was premature as Dina brought the shuttle in in a ballistic dive. She flared at the last second, hitting reverse thrusters and cutting power as it landed lightly on the hangar deck.

"Well," Dina said to him, "You're gonna talk to them, right?"

"M-me...?"

"You're the ambassador," she reminded him, "I'm just the pilot...my job's over."

"And mine's just beginning," Jehoal thought glumly.

The fight had distant spectators. They were watched by every ship in the Ta’Nar fleet. Multiple Shipminds analyzed and strategies every movement The Falcon made, formulating an equation. This equation would predict the actions of these invaders and be used to create an artificial simulacra of the invaders to advise the Ta’Nar how to defeat them. The testing had begun with the alien ship and a simple game of tag.

Status of the Grav Torps?

They are operating at maximum distance. Any further and the Foci would collapse.

Have they figured it out yet?

Negative, they are firing at the singularities feeding them.

Continue the experiment. Let’s see how long it takes for them to remember gravitational sling-shotting.

Yes Sir. Torps are set for safe shutdown. Fail-safes are in place.

Good, they will think it is safe to destroy the Torps when we lure in their other ships. Is the Executioner ready to play dead?

The Shipmind reports all is ready.

Remind them to make it look believable. Make them think their weapons are somehow effective against our vessels. They will come in gunning and then we will turn on the power and decimate them. They deserve it for insinuating we owe them an explanation to be in our own space.

Yes Warlord, all Shipminds have been informed.

Now all we have to do is sit back and watch the entertainment.



Across the system near the star, the majority of the fleet watched as The Executioner began to move around The Falcon, laying more Grav Torps seemingly at random. The violet tipped singularities streaked toward the ship to be miraculously destroyed by the point defense of the massive ship at the last moment. Violet flashes signified the end of torpedoes as each volley kept the point defense busy. The 60 meter ship circled the prey like a hunter, launching volley after volley at the intruder.

The curious thing was the fleet appeared as if they did not notice the actions of the lone ship, almost like they were oblivious to the distant standoff.

OOC: You did notice the part of my post where the Falcon stopped firing directly into the singularities almost immediately, right? To properly assess the impression the Falcon's crew and computer will be getting, it'd help to know if the change in tactics had any detectable impact. Also, any reaction to the ship movements in the Drazas system?

OOC:

I did notice. That is why they are getting "blown up". I am sorry if I was not clear in the dialogue I created.


The destroyer is not going to notice your ships until you get way closer. I am assuming your mining colony is like Sol with the asteroid belt being a way away from the star. Also, most of their sensors are concentrated on the star itself so you will be able to get close if you wanted to. I am at work and did not have time to finish my post.