Chapter three

Cecelia looked up from the panel to the view screen and stood up straight and tall. Her eyes narrowed with a cold smirk. Her long dark brown hair was pulled back in a tight pony tail then braided down into three different thick braids that reached the bass of her back. She was also dressed in a skin tight red armored uniform with a symbol on her left shoulder indicating she was the Commander of the ship.

She had found him. Her ship was seconds away from pulling his ship out of hyperdrive. "Hail him," she said, turning away and approaching her chair. "Let's see if he'll talk," she muttered as she faced the view screen again as she took her seat. She sat in it as if she was some queen of a nation and everyone around her was nothing more than dirty peasants.

Hansen had strapped his helmet in place activating the HUD when Lanca spoke up. "Sir they are hailing us."

"That's odd, put them through, but put Shawn through a text channel now!" The AI obeyed quickly, popping a small screen onto his HUD. The woman was young. Even rich looking to a man's eye. He swallowed before speaking.

His voice came as it did on the waystation, a cheery ancient with a light demeanor. "This is the Intrepid. We are humble workers moving to a job. What can we do for you commander?"

"You can stop with the falsehood Captain," said Cecelia darkly. "I know exactly who you are and you have something I want. Now," she paused looking at her fingernails in a casual manner, "we can do this the easy way or the hard way," she cooed looking back at the screen as she nobly placed her hand back down on the arm of her chair.

Hansen dropped the impression turning serious once again. "I see then Commander. The academy has not stopped turning out gorgeous vipers. But truly I don't think you have an advantage seeing I'm not crippled, but enough small talk what do you want?"

He started typing buttons as he spoke. 'Shawn I need battle power now. There is a Demon Class ship in front of us. This might become a fire fight. Get Réna if you need to but get my damn plasma cannons operational! End.'

Shawn's reply was swift. 'Hold your trousers. I just need five minutes with the capacitors. Just keep the demon talking until then.'

Cecelia's eyes narrowed at his flattery. "We can fix that," she muttered mostly to herself and taking an inward note of the threat. He wasn't going to go down without a fight. As she spoke, she herself gave a message of her own to her second via the panel at her side. She kept her eyes on Hansen, however. She written that she wanted shields at 100% and to ready all weapons.

"I think you know exactly what I want Hansen," she said as she typed discreetly. "There's no need to play games. I know you have something that is very important to the Empire on your ship."

Hansen felt himself slump in his chair. This confirmed that Ramira was another try at the conqueror project. He checked the instruments to see their distance. Still sixty thousand kilometers away. He could still run.

"Lanca run a scan for more ships," he said over another channel. "How long commander have you been a graduate?" He asked it suddenly showing no keen interest in what she had said.

He's stalling, she muttered to herself with a smirk. He doesn't remember me, she added as she looked down briefly at her panel before looking back up at him. "Three years," she informed playing along with his stall as she informed her pilot to prepare for a micro-jump toward Hansen's ship. He wasn't going to get away from her. Especially with his precious cargo that they wanted.

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Hansen's interest peeked a little. "Very well Commander. I think we can get to the point. It seems you want something I may have. Do you have a photo of the item?"

She smiled darkly. She looked down at her panel again and typed at a few keys without saying anything. A few moments later, a picture of Ramira appeared in the upper left hand corner of Hansen's HUD. Cecelia looked back up at him smugly.

"Very well I will search my cargo but I doubt my crew will find anything." A message blipped on the console after he finished.

'Cannons ready. With all respects sir fire at will.' Hansen smiled before starting a slow charge to the capacitors . He knew they wouldn't catch it right away. Still smiling he sent Shawn another message.

'Cargo hold; get the case out of it. Prepare to jettison.' "I have the item I will send it to you commander. Just give me two minutes."

Cecelia raised an eyebrow unable to hid her surprise. She was intrigued he let the child go so easy knowing his past. "You have one minute, Hansen," she cooed then again discreetly alerted her pilot to jump in twenty seconds.

"Sir, they are preparing jump engines. Micro jump in ten seconds," reported Lanca.

Hansen smiled and put his capacitors to full draw. This was bound to happen. He casually flicked his shields on feeling a tremor as their generators hummed to life. The ship had a lot of toys. But it was all just crammed inside a small body. Much like a coiled spring. His shields were formidable for a ship its size but the compromise was no armor physically.

"Lanca, lock a course for the Nemian asteroid belt. Jump after the fireworks."

Cecelia folded her arms as she sat waiting. Her face disappeared, losing the signal momentarily as her ship jumped and appeared right next to his starboard side with a lock on his targeting systems. "Lower your shields Hansen's and prepare to be boarded," came Cecelia's voice over coms. "You've been very corporative. Let's keep it that way shall we?"

Hansen smiled. "Perhaps you should read my file again." He pressed the trigger for his cannons letting blue lighting arc from his ship to hers. Far from a full charge but enough he knew to rock her ship and cause some mayhem.

"Sir!" An ensign called out "Shields severely damaged. He had a slow charge to his cannons to avoid detection. Multiple systems are rebooting from the close proximity discharge."

"Damn it," she hissed. "Fire at his ship, using the maneuver Alfa-three-zero-seven-Delta. Damage only," she ordered, "I need that cargo intact! And get those damned shields back up! I don't want him getting away!"

"Yes sir! Firing lasers now!" The forward laser banks fired furiously against the lancer class.

From his cockpit Hansen could see the force they were inflicting. Small tremors shook him as the solid beams of light first hit him.

**

"We are hit with high yield lasers sir," Lanca reported passively. "At current output shields will deplete in three minutes.

Hansen gave a grunt in response. "Target their engine deck. One half charge should do it." His heads up display painted a target reticule over a small part of the ship. He waited while Lanca fired his starboard thrusters to position him. At a dull ping he fired, the arc of blue energy lanced into the ships armour melting it away. After a brief pause he started to see the after effects of the sheer heat. The section he'd shot buckled and parts of the hull tore free. Hansen smiled before flicking Réna safety off.

**

"Sir!" cried the Ensign, "Shields compromised! Engines are crippled. Damage control has been sent to engineering. No severe breach reported. We are not leaking oxygen." The ensign paused for breath when another crew member spoke up.

The navigator. "Sir, Hansen's ship is turning away. Jump drives activating. He is running!"

"Fire at that damn cannon," hissed Cecelia. "Don't let him get away," she ordered. "Cripple him! Shoot his engines!"

*****

With her shields down and seeing that she couldn't go anywhere, Réna used this to her advantage. Seeing the ship preparing to fire again, she aimed for their weapons. With no shields to protect them, it was simple to inflict damage and she fired at the large ship's weapons before they jumped.

******

The lancer class ship was gone a few moments later. The Ensign leaned against his chair in defeat. They had been bested. That much was clear.

******

Hansen breathed heavily once they were away. He glanced at his shields with twenty percent remaining. "That was too close for comfort sir," spoke up Lanca.

******

Cecelia tightened her fingernails against the tough fabric of her uniform as she watched the Lancer disappear. "Get us up and running as soon as possible," she ordered. "I'll be in my ready room and when we are once again ready for a chase, send a message to the two closest war ships to our location. Hansen's not getting away from me that easily. Not again," she muttered to herself as she left the bridge heading toward her ready room to make a report.