1
“You can take your orders and shove them up your shit-filled cunt, Earther bitch. Even if you shoot us down, I have 30 killers aboard my ship just waiting for your goons to set foot on our deck. So one last time fuck off and crawl back to the miserable shithole planet you belong” The men’s tattooed face was twisted with hatred as Commander Daniel Lafontaine watched him on the integrated display of his combat seat. The hostile skipper had not run out of colorful insults directed to the Solarian ship hunting him down in general and particularly it’s commanding officer, Captain Min-Jeong Fechter. Daniel wondered if the man was aware that the tattoos he wore on his face looked suspiciously similar the body art of the Maori people, and as such part of the ancient cultural heritage of Earth, which the man apparently detested so much.
“Mister Lin how long until we are in effective weapons range ?” came the Captains calm inquiry.
“72 seconds Sir, I have a targeting solution on their engines.” the young Ensign dutifully reported.
“Weapons hold. Mr. Einhorn open channel to the Rebel ship.” The Captain wore her jet black hair in a strict bun and the grey and black uniform of the Solarian Fleet adapted perfectly to the steeled body of the half-Asian. Daniel reluctantly pushed aside fond memories of her wet and moaning warrior shape atop of him.
“Bulk carrier Fredonia. This is your final warning. Power down your engines and prepare to be boarded for inspection. As you have continuously threatened this ship and it’s crew with violence let me remind you that the entirety of Beta Virginis is under martial law. Threats or attacks against confederate officials will be punishable as a crime and as confirmed by supreme court decision 12. January 2357 the suspension of the death penalty does not include sectors under laws of war. If you do not comply I will open fire to immobilize your vessel in 45 seconds.” She paused for a moment, “Mister Einhorn, block all incoming messages from the Rebel ship unless they cut their engines. Mr. Lin you are clear to open fire in 60 seconds if they don’t comply.”
As the countdown ticked down inside his retina display Daniel felt the tickle of goosebumps on his forearms like he was used to before going into combat. It didn’t matter that this one would be massively lopsided in their favor. The seemingly antiquated rebel rust bucket did not stand any chance against SFS Lalande, one of he most modern cruisers in the Solarian Fleet.
Still, one lucky hit against all odds could always abruptly end the life of one unfortunate first officer. “All decks at full combat readiness, Sir,” he reported after double checking the incoming status reports from all stations.
“Launch detected from the Fredonia, initiating Countermeasures.” the composed voice of Lieutenant Commander Saskia Gabrieli from the point defense station broke the silence 15 seconds before the countdown ran out.
Daniel imagined to feel a vibration of the deck below his feet as the Lalandes front mounted mass driver canons opened fire and the side mounted launchers started spitting out a volley of four missiles. It was highly unlikely that he could actually feel it as Lalandes CIC was buried deep inside the ship and separated from the external weapons systems by several layers of hardened titanium.
“Weapons hold.” M.J. focused on her tactical display and patiently waited for the incoming report to assess the damage on the enemy ship. She sat in her typical pose, slightly bent forward, her thumps and pointer fingers pressed together, the latter almost touching the tip of the snub nose Daniel loved so much.
The engagement between Lalande and Fredonia was over within minutes. The rebel ship managed to fire three volleys of twin torpedoes at the Solarian cruiser which Gabrieli and her team intercepted with ease. Then the 4 laser armed missiles from Lalande detonated at their engine section and knocked out their thrust. Later they found out that debris from those explosions had also hit their unshielded command section, killing the Rebel skipper together with half of his command staff.
As he listened to the incoming damage report from their target Daniel opened a channel to Lieutenant Major Augustin, ranking officer of the confederate armies void assault unit aboard Lalande. “Hello Major, looks like the Fleet has done her part and we will need your expertise soon. Get your assault team ready and report to the hangar for deployment.”
“Understood Commander, on our way.” A grey and brown bearded face, enclosed in a mechanized combat suit, appeared briefly as the man acknowledged his orders.
Daniel opened another channel and the image of a young, short haired woman with the distinguishable figure of someone growing up in low gravity environment, dressed in in a flight suit appeared on his display. “Hi Stefanie, Augustin is on his way down. Get your Transporter ready for launch.”
The most unruly pilot he had known throughout his military career actually gave him a mock salute “The Lady Luck was born ready, I’ll show these rebel dickheads some superior flying soon enough.”
Captain Fechter had just finished giving commands for the intercept maneuver which Daniel had anticipated. If they wanted to match Lalandes speed with the rebel ship and make a rendezvous in the void it would take them about 75 minutes at their current speed and vector. A small assault ship, like Stefanie’s Lady Luck, could intercept their target and conduct a docking maneuver in approximately 15 minutes, when launched at the right moment. Much could happen in an hour and he knew M.J. was rarely a woman who wasted time.
“Commander Lafontaine, please order the army to prepare a boarding operation for the rebel ship. I want them to take prisoners, but use of lethal force is authorized if necessary.”
“Yes, Sir! Augustins team is on it’s way now and Assault 1 is preparing for transfer.”
“Very Nice!” M.J. waited for some calculations from their astrometry. “Sub-Lieutenant Bukowski is cleared for launch in 7 minutes.”
Stefanie made the transfer and docking maneuver in less than 11 minutes and delivered the boarding party to the Fredonia. Back on the Lalande they proceeded with their own speed and course adjustments, but since this routine task did not demand much oversight on his part, Daniel could log into the secured channel and listen how the takeover of the Fredonia was progressing.
Most crewmen surrendered immediately to Augustin’s soldiers but 3 rebels chose to make a stand in a difficult to access storage compartment in the forward section of what was apparently an old imperial destroyer, refitted into a cargo ship and then retrofitted again as yet another ramshackle blockade runner the rebels had been using for some years now. After a short firefight, the Lt. Major reported that one of his men was wounded. Apparently the enemies rifles were modern enough that they could penetrate state of the art confederate combat suits.
Augustin ordered a retreat and contained the rebels in their storage compartment. The team he had sent to the bridge found most of the equipment destroyed, but the squad targeting the auxiliary bridge and aft damage control had access to the ships functions shortly afterwards.
They sealed the resisting compartment off, cut their oxygen supply and that was that. Mission accomplished.
Stephanie made two more transfers of personnel with the Lady Luck. First she brought back the wounded soldier, Private Harris, and a batch of prisoners plus their escort and returned to the Fredonia with a prize crew to take over the enemy ship. She made a second run with a load of voiders and the rest of the rebels, a total of 22 captives had been taken, and ferried over a squad of codecrackers and data analysts who immediately began to dig into the enemies terminals to mine for any valuable data.
After that Captain Fechter let the assault ship stay docked and waited for the Lalande to finish her rendezvous maneuver with the Fredonia. The 523 meters long heavy cruiser of the Solarian Fleet slid tranquilly alongside her opponent, blocking the rays of light emitted from the systems class F star, Zavijava.
“Commander Lafontaine, set condition two throughout the ship.” Daniel relayed the captains orders to all subordinate stations and the combat readiness for all hands was lifted. Condition two meant, that no immediate combat was to be expected and the ship was returned to her normal 3 shift cycle. All crewmen of the active shift were required to be at high alert, weapons stayed hot, loading crews were at the ready and the antimatter reactors were kept running at 100% output.
“Any word on our injured voider comrade Commander?”
Daniel checked the latest status report from sick bay. “Doctor Tawfeek has her in surgery at the moment. Looks like they will have to take off her leg, but she will live.”
“Mr. Einhorn open channel to all hands.” M.J. waited briefly for the officers confirmation and then her well modulated voice could be heard all across the ship. “This is your Captain. Congratulations on this successful operation. I know that for many of you this has been the first combat engagement and I am glad to see that all the training and drill of the last months we put you through has finally payed off. As you have witnessed, our intelligence reports have been correct and the ship was indeed one of the rebels spreading terror and destruction across the outer colonies. Our operation here has played its part in restoring the rule of law and you can be proud of yourselves fighting in this worthy endeavor. I know, I am.”
She made a short pause. “But the most important thing for me is, that we did not lose anyone during this engagement today. Remember that not all combat you will face during your service will be that easy. We are still in hostile territory and we are now harboring 22 prisoners. Stay vigilant and ready, continue doing your duty like you did today and we will all return home together to tell the tales of our victories.”
“Commander Lafontaine, please join me in the ready room, we need to review the crew’s performance during combat and see where we have room for improvements.”
“Certainly, Sir.” Daniel turned towards Gabrieli, “Lt. Commander Gabrieli, you have the bridge.”
“I have the bridge,” Saskia echoed in her slight Italian accent.