“You are to hold position. Do not let them pass. We are here with you no matter what happens. It is our duty to protect the Dottir, to protect Tiantang, and to protect our families at all costs.” Ruo walked slowly across the bridge and read the official orders to the men and women who were looking for her guidance. It was an unconventional way to communicate orders but she felt that it was appropriate and possibly motivating to them. “Though their fleet is enormous and could easily bypass a fight with us, they seem to want to negotiate a surrender first. We will not surrender our planet. We simply cannot. All of Dottir stands united in this. It may be the first thing in which we have all fully agreed on.” A chuckle escaped the lips of several of her sailors and she returned a grin.
“Lieutenant Commander Ruo.” Zhao called out as she finished her performance of the orders from the Xi’an. “Admiral Chen would like to speak with you privately in your quarters.”
“Thank you Zhao, please make sure we hold our position alongside the Xi’an. Any missiles, if that’s what these things use, will be our responsibility to shoot down. Do not let anything past us.”
“Yes Ma’am, our shield drones are deployed and the shipboard point defense system is running in the background unless gunnery takes over.”
“Very good, dismissed.” Ruo said, holding eye contact just a moment longer and nodding appreciatively at the young officer. She walked into her quarters, ensured that the door locked behind her, and gave her blouse a straightening tug before opening up the comm request from Admiral Chen.
“Lieutenant Commander, I’ve had my techs running scans on the alien ships since they came into range. They seem pretty certain that these things don’t have any kind of energy shielding or point defense cannons. They’ve been taking impacts from small and medium sized rocks and have been maneuvering to avoiding collisions with larger ones.”
“Why wouldn’t they have defensive systems to stop damage to their ships during travel at least?” Ruo thought out loud.
“We’re not sure, we think maybe it’s because their armor is very advanced and space rocks aren’t a threat to them. Either that, or they’re bluffing about their tech.” Chen answered.
“Even if they are bluffing, they traveled here from outside of our solar system and that is something that we haven’t yet been able to do.”
“Yes, that is true. Also their ships seem to be many different makes and models. Almost every ship has a different signature, from the engines all the way to the color of the paint in the ones that we can see.” Chen said, shaking his head. “I don’t think this is an organized alien navy. They’re not even in a formation, at least as far as we understand the concept.”
“That is very strange. Has anyone from Naval command contacted Fleet Lord Skald?” Ruo asked.
“No, the politicians back home are running around in a panic. I wouldn’t be surprised if the building was on fire right now.” Admiral Chen laughed at his own joke. It was comforting to see the flag officer was feeling relaxed enough to indulge a joke.
“Admiral Chen, if this goes sideways, it has been a pleasure to serve under you.” Ruo said, and the wind visibly left his sails at the thought.
“Mei, I cannot think of a more noble death than standing firm in the face of an invasion of your home. You are all heroes and you have my utmost respect. It is already a pleasure to serve with you.” Chen said, a tear welling up in the corner of his eye.
“Good luck Admiral. We wont let anything past us, you just worry about shooting.” Ruo said with a nod and closed the connection before the tears could show in her own eyes.
Ruo took a moment to gather herself and then glanced at the clock. It was nearly 22 hours since the message from Fleet Lord Skald had been broadcast through the fleet. She stepped out of her quarters and ordered Zhao to take a break and then return so that both of them would be on the bridge during the crucial countdown to the Fleet Lord’s deadline.
“Can I get you a coffee?” Zhao asked her as he stood from the command chair.
“Of course.” She said with a smile and took her place. As she eased back into the comfortable embrace of the command chair and brought up the tactical screen, her body went rigid.
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The viewing screen changed to a fleetwide broadcast from Skald but this time he was not wearing his helmet and there was an extraordinarily pale and sickly looking human being kneeling at his side.
"Humans. You have made your decision. I am pleased that you chose to stand and fight." He said. The gray skin around his pointed teeth pulled back into a disturbing smile before he lunged at the human and ripped a gaping hole in his throat. Bright red arterial blood sprayed into the sky like a fountain as the video feed cut back to the normal view in front of the Bao.
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“BATTLE STATIONS!” Ruo called out, sending the ship into a flurry of well practiced chaos. The lights on the bridge dimmed slightly, compartments were sealed, environment suits were donned, and prayers were said by those who prayed. Zhao ran back into the bridge, empty handed, before sealing the door behind him. He wore a wide eyed expression as he asked for a report.
“The Sharlah are changing course away from us. I think they’re lining up for a broadside. This data is several minutes old, they may have already fired. Move the drones out away from the ship and use the beams on anything that gets through. We are a shield for the admiral, don’t forget.” Ruo called out not just to Zhao, but to all stations and was met with various acknowledgments.
“Missiles incoming. They’re 4 minutes out.” It’s a small volley, maybe just a probe to see how we react.”
“Hold position, trust our drones.”
“Aye ma’am” The sensor operator said with tension in his voice.
“Ruo, I’m trying to reach Skald but he, or it, isn’t answering now. Fire at will.” Came the voice of Admiral Chen from her command station. The battle stations klaxon and shouting aboard the Xi'an could be heard in the background.
Over 200 streaks of light appeared on her tactical screen. Return fire. The Sharlah would hopefully regret their assumption that a probing strike was a wise first move. Surely they could detect the shield drones surrounding most ships and extrapolate their purpose. It was amusing, for a fleeting moment, to picture the missiles passing each other in space on their way to do harm to each other’s original vessels. This was Dottir's first space battle, and it was happening in orbit of the planet itself. Ruo had hoped that it would never happen, but if it did, that it be in some far off system and not for the very survival of her species. There was nowhere to run and no peace would be had. All she could do was fight until her very last.
“Shield drones engaging, it’s working ma’am. Missiles are detonating at a safe distance. There may not even be any survivors to hit with point defense. OH GOD” The sensor operator covered his mouth and stared in shock at tactical and then at the viewing screen as a bright flash engulfed one of the New Vistan cruisers followed by a vessel from Svoda and then a New Vistan battleship.
“Fleet, those missiles weren’t even detected by our sensors, they came out of nowhere!” It was an New Vistan's voice first, then translated by the ship’s AI and played from Ruo’s station.
“That’s a hit and another, Sharlah ships are dropping like flies Commander. More missiles incoming, this time they’re not shooting at us. It looks like they’re mostly focusing on the Vistan wall.
"They’re returning fire, it’s a damn cloud.” Someone called out. A junior sensor tech.
“Acknowledged, choose a target that is already damaged and send what we have. Maintain drone coverage as our first priority always.”
The ship vibrated as gunnery aimed several minutes ahead of a flagging Sharlah battleship and launched half of it’s 75 missiles from the starboard side pods. The battleship was venting atmosphere and pieces of hull were spinning away from a gash caused by the first salvo from Admiral Chen’s massive barrage. Ruo wondered what kind of atmosphere they breathed, if Dottir was their target because they needed somewhere to live or if they planned on raping the world of it’s resources and moving on.
Several more human ships died in spectacular fashion as the Sharlah moved to open up their lines and envelop the combined fleet from the front and sides as well as from below. The volume of fire from both sides picked up and the shield drones around the Tiantang capital ships struggled to keep up. Bright flashes on the viewing screen pulled Ruo’s attention from the tactical display and the Bao rang like a gong. Zhao was thrown to the ground, having not strapped himself into his seat as protocol demanded.
“We’re hit! Those flashes were missiles popping up right in front of us. What kind of weapon can do that?” The sensor operator yelled out.
“Damage report!” Ruo ordered verbally into the comms on her display.
The report materialized on her screen along with a flashing icon that she had never seen before. It was a red button, much like you would see in a children’s cartoon, and it demanded her attention. The damage from the missile strikes was relatively minor due to her upgraded point defense systems actually picking up the warheads at the last moment and striking them only one hundred meters away from the hull but the explosions still hammered the Bao, causing dents, holes, and injuries among the crew in those sections. Ruo said a silent prayer for them and pressed the red button that demanded her attention. A message appeared.
Commander Ruo, this is Charlie, an AI from a nearby vessel. There is no time to explain. This is the weapon that hit you. It is a jump missile, it warps space and time to appear just before it strikes. Target the highlighted ships, they are the only ones who can use them.
“Target the highlighted ships to destroy the undetectable missiles” She sent the message over the fleet-wide comms and watched as a concentrated barrage soared past the front line capital ships and raced toward the rear of the Sharlah formation. As they waited for the results, incoming fire detonated more and more of Dottir's precious defenders. Ships broke apart and twirled in the space where they had once stood as they vented atmosphere and thousands of lives into the blackness.
“Commander, the targeted barrage will land in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1”
“They're right on top of us, they were cloaked!” Someone shouted.
“What? Where?” Ruo asked as her eyes shot to the viewing screen in horror. The Sharlah ship had a smooth rounded back and eight legs, probably for landing on a pad. As she looked on, paralyzed, the beast belched out dozens of smaller fighter craft that streaked toward the Tiantang formation. Some were agile and maneuvered to evade incoming close range beam attacks while others were slower but still managed to survive with the distractions being caused. Ruo understood immediately and sounded a klaxon that she had only used in training. The overhead lights flashed blue.
“Prepare to be boarded!”