Incoming Press Report, Zero Light-Years Away (Escuardo System Network Relay, Union Controlled).
[ERROR—ERROR—ERROR—ERROR—ERROR—ERROR—ERROR—COMM RESTART—FAILED—IDENTIFIED EW JAMMING—NO TRANSMISSION].
- SYS NETWORK SERVICE
+++
+++ Jonathan Jones +++
Escuardo System
ISS Jukebox
“Reingage standard navigation protocols. We’re leaving the battlespace.” Harold dryly said as all of us began diverting power from our shields, weapons, and other subsystems back into our burn drives.
We were pushing forward, straight through the broken wrecks of the enemy ships. For myself, it was almost as if time had slowed down. Victory…victory was close. But there were still many complications. Complications that I scarcely had any answer on how we would plug it all.
We are so close…yet, they’re still going to chase us. We were close to the jump point. Yet they were just as close behind us. Even now that we had broken through, I truly wondered if we wouldn’t have to fight them again anyway in hyperspace.
Someone would have to be left behind. I realized. Someone would have to temporarily fry the jump point. A disruption pulse from a ship’s Counter-Burn System, more often than not, combined with a well-timed activation by the FTL Drive while close to a jump point would destabilize it enough to close it temporarily. Counter-Burn Systems would be often used by militaries to disable the burn drives of fleets traveling through real space at full speed by screwing their sensitive gravitational control systems with a powerful EM pulse—an EM pulse that could destabilize a jump point momentarily when an FTL Drive expands a jump point hole both in real space and hyperspace.
The question was, should we then use this tactic? And should we use it, who would be left behind? The entire thing was especially dangerous for those left behind, as jump point destabilizations… destabilize space-time violently, in a brief manner, both in hyperspace and real space. Of course, the one in hyperspace would be burning away to piss off, but whoever would be left in real space would have to stay close to the jump point to perform it.
Goddamnit…this is a pain. But if I have to…
I didn’t want to consider it now, not especially since all of them were starting to turn optimistic in our fleet comms. But I was already technically considering it. The Jukebox only held me, one singular guy. What would they really lose if I stayed behind and performed it as they escaped? Exactly…nothing. They would lose nothing.
Just a criminal who deserves to be dead anyway.
“Okay…everyone, I have something—”
“This is Captain Kincaid of the ISS Der Vaug. Hats off to all of you folks for your mercy, but I believe that this is as far as I and my crew will push. Have a good journey.”
The fleet comms turned silent. It seemed that someone else already had the same idea as me. “Can you please repeat that, Captain Kincaid?” Juliett’s voice seemed shocked. “What are you exactly suggesting?”
“My crew already deliberated about it. No matter where we go, we’re dead people. We’d rather stand up here and do a good deed for once. We’ll destabilize the jump point once you all escape.”
“Wait, wait, wait, Captain Kincaid, I can do it. The Jukebox is only crewed by me. In terms of my material and manpower analysis, this would be a better allocation of our resources—”
“This isn’t about mathematics or resource allocations, Captain Jones.” He seemed to be dead set on his proposal. I couldn’t…even I wouldn’t be able to stomach it! Sure, we fought these people, but they were already trying their best to turn around from their crimes of being a bunch of pirates. And so far, they had proven themselves to be valiant at fighting with us with full loyalty. “The crew of the Der Vaug wants to go down with our remaining honor intact. All of you are good people. We are not. We’ll prevent them from catching up to all of you. Plus, perhaps I can still talk to my old master…”
“Captain Kincaid, you and I know that he will blow your brains out the moment he gets his men in that ship of yours!” I shouted. “You’re suggesting a suicide mission for yourself!”
“And you did the same. But that would be more unacceptable. Captain Jones, Ms. Juliett, and Captain Percival…get those civilians to their original destination. That was what we hoped for when we mutinied.”
Juliett now seemed enraged. “Jonathan, you can’t be seriously suggesting we accept his proposition. I can still fight! Heck, leave me behind. I know how to do this. I can sneak off my ship afterward.”
“We refuse, Ms. Juliett. Your ship holds those civilians. You will leave.”
“Leave them to it, Juliett,” I said. “I know why they want it. Let them do what they want.”
“Jonathan? What the hell—”
“They’re pirates, Juliett. You may not understand the minds of these people, but I think I have an idea as to why they would want to do this. Let them have it. Captain Kincaid…may you and your crew find salvation after this.”
“You have my gratitude, Captain Jones. We’ll do our best to let you all escape.”
Their remaining Puncher-Class and their two Bungaloo-Classes were now tailing us on both of our flanks, their burn drives now reaching the maximum limits of their tactical combat speeds, and their guns barely had enough power to keep firing at us. Even they seemed to be re-engaging their standard navigation protocols, limiting the power of their weaponry and shields, as outside of combat and other specialized operations, most of the ship’s produced energy would be funneled into the ship’s power-hungry burn drive, which was why ships would be orders of magnitude slower whenever inside of a tactical engagement.
Technically, our breakthrough meant that we had left the battlefield, and their main capital ships would have an almost zero chance of catching up with us. Still, it seemed that Lord Preussen would not let us get off without further harassment.
“Incoming Sensor Readings!” The Rearguard’s comms officer shouted as our dreaded nightmare finally arrived. Of course, Lord Preussen was now sending his reserves straight to us. “Five identified hostile ships powering up weapons, they’re on an interception course!”
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Incoming Ships!
ISS Der Kanonier (Bungaloo-Class Frigate)
ISS Der Ausguck (Bungaloo-Class Frigate)
ISS Beschützen (Gallant-Class Destroyer)
ISS Der Cutter (Vanguard Class Light Cruiser)
ISS Der Brauer (Vanguard Class Light Cruiser)
“They’re just swarming us at this point!” Shouted Harold. “I knew pirates were supposed to be a massive threat, but I didn’t expect that just one of their independent groups would have this many ships!”
As far as I could say, Harold and his new friends certainly screwed with the wrong bigshot. I shook my head in frustration.
“Screw this! All of you, reimpose combat protocols. They’re going to cut us in an interception maneuver. There’s no way we’re going to push through with our shields and weapons down!” I ordered, and immediately, all of us rerouted our power generation back to our weapons and shields.
As expected, the enemy ships slowed down again, and so did we. With our engagement ranges now closing in, at around five thousand kilometers between us and Lord Preussen’s now deployed reserves, we immediately began firing our long-range weapons at each other, all while the three enemy destroyers and frigates that originally tailed us in our flanks began burning away under our heavy response salvos.
“I’m starting to wonder how these pirates even manage to acquire this many ships,” Juliett said. “It seems that their entire strategy is spamming barely spaceworthy hulls at us.”
“That’s because a state actor funded us. Specifically to target the Lucynthian State.” Captain Kincaid said. “Sorry, I don’t know who. Lord Preussen is very secretive.”
“I guess that explains things,” I said, looking back at the battlespace. Lord Preussen’s main battle line behind us was also now hot on our tails, closing in at twelve thousand kilometers, and they were rapidly gaining speed on us. I really wanted to pull my hair out at this point, but no matter. The jump point was close. We just had to push a little more. A little more and we would be out of this…quagmire.
We just had to prevent them from stopping us. Once we burned at high speeds in hyperspace, Lord Preussen would completely lose us. I began pushing the Jukebox forward, positioning my ship into the very tip of our formation, which already resembled that of a spear.
Unfortunately, since we were burning to the direction of the jump point, Juliett’s Heavy Tandem Coilguns were unavailable, as her bow wasn’t aimed at the enemy. Instead, the Der Vaug, Rearguard, Electra, Luminance, Shine, and the Amperes were the ones doing the lion’s share of throwing munitions at their asses, as they had turreted weapon mounts. Just then, three hidden compartments in the Radiant opened up both on her port side and starboard side, revealing dozens of blistering missile pods.
“Juliett…what are you doing?” I asked, and her reply was even colder.
“Anti-pest operations,” she said, and the Radiant almost lit up as she launched a gigantic barrage of missiles, all of their thrusters lit up purple as they zoomed straight at Lord Preussen’s reserves. I wondered what the hell could have created such an effect, but they were fast and terrifying, and I could swear that all of them seemed faster than coilgun slugs, crossing the five thousand-kilometer distance between us and them within a few seconds.
“Unfortunately, these special missiles of mine are quite limited. I’d have to replenish these later.” She added before all of them detonated in the distance.”Now that’s a good fireworks show.”
ISS Der Kanonier disabled!
ISS Beschützen destroyed!
And the rest seemed to have been downed, their shields either turned off, or their reactors overwhelmed and overheated. I gave up. Juliett was just tossing all of her capabilities out in the open. I didn’t know what else the Radiant could do, but I would be lying if I said that she wasn’t terrifying me. Perhaps, she really was supposed to do that “saving the sector” job as her creators intended. While it left a salty taste on my tongue, I couldn’t deny what I saw.
She’s a weapon.
“Alright, push forward. Pin them down. We’re going to bum rush straight to the jump point. Those ships are suppressed.” I ordered as everyone let off their final salvoes of coilgun and railgun slugs at their faces. The enemy ships barely had a chance, as each shot clipped through their exposed hulls. Immediately, we reimposed our standard navigation protocols, and we began speeding forward straight to the jump point.
By the time we were practically in front of it, Captain Kincaid finally spoke.
“Alright, this is it. You folks engage your FTL Drives. We’ll prepare for our part.”
I looked at the battle map. Once again, more sensor contacts appeared, as another three of Lord Preussen’s reserves arrived in the vicinity of our battlespace, now on our right flank, burning at us angrily.
Incoming Ships!
ISS Der Sattel (Puncher-Class Destroyer)
ISS Kannone (Puncher-Class Destroyer)
ISS Der Sturm (Puncher-Class Destroyer)
“There’s no way you would escape if you fight them. They will swarm you. And they will follow you to hyperspace. There is no other choice. We have to do this.”
“I know,” I replied to Captain Kincaid. The weight of their self-sacrifice today was something I would definitely mark in all of my life. Say anything about these pirate folks, but they would be going down as good men and women today. “I know.”
“If I’m in the military, I would be saluting you, Captain Kincaid,” Harold said, and I agreed wholeheartedly. “My crew shares the same opinion.”
“And so do we. Farewell, Captain Jones, Captain Percival, and to you, Ms. Juliett. Safe travels to all of you. Don’t look back.”
The comm-link was cut off, as the Der Vaug turned around, its thrusters reorienting their ship’s bow straight to face the direction of the enemy Forlorn-Class, still burning straight toward us. On the other hand, I gave the final orders to the rest of our motley fleet, as we faced the jump point.
“I’ll be doing the honors,” Juliett said, as the Radiant’s FTL Drives expanded the tear through real space. One after another, our ships popped straight through it, until it was just my ship and the Radiant left. I wasted no time, and followed the Rearguard’s wake, as the Jukebox reemerged into hyperspace.
Once the Radiant passed through, the open jump point closed, before we immediately engaged our burn drives to get the hell out of the way as quickly as possible. The fleet comm was silent, as no one had any words left after the Der Vaug’s valiant sacrifice.
Two minutes later…we detected gravitational ripples from the direction of the jump point while we were on our merry way of running as fast as possible. All we could be thankful for was that we lost no one. We may have failed at saving Captain Roll’s and Captain McHover’s crew, but we rescued the civilians and both Captain Roll and Captain McHover.
Yet…it felt empty. They may be pirates that we fought first before they came to our side, but they weren’t with us in our grand escape. And considering what they did for us…in a way, we certainly failed.
I wanted to look back…but I’d rather not betray the will of Captain Kincaid and his crew.
May they find their redemption back there.
+++
Engagement Results: Allied Withdrawal!
Rewards: 100 (2x Frigate-Sized Ships) + 500 (5x Destroyer-Sized Ships) + 150 (1x Cruiser-Sized Ship) x 1.25 (1.75 [Bonus XP Modifier] - .50 [Stalemate XP Malus]) = 938 XP Points!
Level Up!
Level: 3
Experience: 2,353 XP (+938 Last Chapter).