"Sir, Admiral Farak is hailing." The comm officer reported.
"Divert it to my office, I'll take it there." The captain's gaze was glued to the veiwscreen, where he could see thousands of Coalition ships in formation, standying by for the order to warp to E.D.N III.
Terminus stood up from the command chair and made his way to the doorway on the side of the bridge. It Automatically opened as it sensed his approached and hissed shut when he entered. He walked over to his desk, sat down, and hit the button to accept the hail.
"Admiral." He said respectfully.
"Captain." Admiral Farak rumbled. Farak, like the Constantine's tactical officer, was a Tilion. A very old Tilion. From what Terminus knew, the Admiral was soon to have his 591st birthday.
"What can I help you with, sir?" Terminus asked.
"I want you to lead the fleet into battle." The Admiral said gruffly.
"WHAT?!" Terminus yelped, suprised. Normally, no Tilion would give up the honor of leading a Starfleet into battle unless it was absolutely necessary. The Captain quickly pointed this out.
The Tilion made a light growling sound, their way of laughing. "True. But I am an old Tilion, I no longer have a predator's quick thinking. And the fleet will need that. Do you accept?"
"Of course, sir!" Terminus said. He knew better than to pass up this opportunity.
"Good." The Admiral let out another light growl. "You would have made your father proud, friend."
Before the Human could respond, the old Tilion shouted "For Honor and Glory!", an ancient Tilion salute, and cut the channel.
With that, Terminus left his office and returned to the bridge. Taking a seat back in the command chair he ordered, "Comm, notify the fleet to warp on my signal." The officer worked a few button before replying. "Fleet notified, sir."
"Set course for the E.D.N system, maximum warp."
"Divert it to my office, I'll take it there." The captain's gaze was glued to the veiwscreen, where he could see thousands of Coalition ships in formation, standying by for the order to warp to E.D.N III.
Terminus stood up from the command chair and made his way to the doorway on the side of the bridge. It Automatically opened as it sensed his approached and hissed shut when he entered. He walked over to his desk, sat down, and hit the button to accept the hail.
"Admiral." He said respectfully.
"Captain." Admiral Farak rumbled. Farak, like the Constantine's tactical officer, was a Tilion. A very old Tilion. From what Terminus knew, the Admiral was soon to have his 591st birthday.
"What can I help you with, sir?" Terminus asked.
"I want you to lead the fleet into battle." The Admiral said gruffly.
"WHAT?!" Terminus yelped, suprised. Normally, no Tilion would give up the honor of leading a Starfleet into battle unless it was absolutely necessary. The Captain quickly pointed this out.
The Tilion made a light growling sound, their way of laughing. "True. But I am an old Tilion, I no longer have a predator's quick thinking. And the fleet will need that. Do you accept?"
"Of course, sir!" Terminus said. He knew better than to pass up this opportunity.
"Good." The Admiral let out another light growl. "You would have made your father proud, friend."
Before the Human could respond, the old Tilion shouted "For Honor and Glory!", an ancient Tilion salute, and cut the channel.
With that, Terminus left his office and returned to the bridge. Taking a seat back in the command chair he ordered, "Comm, notify the fleet to warp on my signal." The officer worked a few button before replying. "Fleet notified, sir."
"Set course for the E.D.N system, maximum warp."
"Enemy boarders are attempting to seize more of our vessels, our defensive systems are dealing with most of their boarding ships, but they've managed to take two frigates and a destroyer. Martyrdom Protocols active." The comms officer reported.
Ereen sighed, these humans were more trouble than anticipated, "Scramble all the strike craft we have. They are to destroy any NEVEC vessel they find."
"Understood sir." The comms officer said, relaying his orders.
From the three Ultracarriers, the Titan and the small number of lesser carriers that made up the combined Third Fleet and Guardian's Sword Squadron there came boiling clouds of fighter and bomber drones, all equipped with AI piloting software, able to think faster than human pilots and able to make manoeuvres and accelerate to speeds that would make jelly out of any organic. In total there were more than 3,500 of these small craft.
Meanwhile vessels which the ex-NEVEC were attacking began trying to ram themselves into the defence satellite or even into the surface of E.D.N III. Those that could not even do that were attempting to simply detonate their reactor cores and destroy important subsystems like life support, weapons and shields. Anything to deny the ex-NEVEC the use of the vessel if it was captured before it could self-destruct. As soon as the captured ships began firing on their former owners, the Xin'Ta'Faxi unleashed a withering barrage of fire upon the captured ships, each shot aimed to take advantage of vulnerabilities of the captured ships.
After all, who better to destroy a starship than the people who built it, who had the schematics easily on hand and who knew exactly where to hit to cripple them? But this was little comfort to Erren. These humans were starting to destroy far more ships than he deemed acceptable.
"Titan reports that generators have reached 80% power, it will be ready for atmospheric ignition in ten minutes." The comms officer reported.
"Good. Let's see these NEVEC survive their atmosphere catching fire." Erren said.
"Sir, HRA fleet has arrived in-system, we're being hailed."
"The HRA? Hm... on screen." Erren commanded as he stood up to face the HRA commander, "Honoured allies, what can we do for you today? at present my fleet is engaged with the NEVEC defences of E.D.N III, we should break through soon. High Inquisitor Ren Asher has, on behalf of the Emperor and the Archniath, ordered the planet to be Purged in order to destroy the Akrid. The Purgatio Luminarium Type III Titan Dreadnought Divine Radiance is preparing to open fire on the planet as we speak."
Ereen sighed, these humans were more trouble than anticipated, "Scramble all the strike craft we have. They are to destroy any NEVEC vessel they find."
"Understood sir." The comms officer said, relaying his orders.
From the three Ultracarriers, the Titan and the small number of lesser carriers that made up the combined Third Fleet and Guardian's Sword Squadron there came boiling clouds of fighter and bomber drones, all equipped with AI piloting software, able to think faster than human pilots and able to make manoeuvres and accelerate to speeds that would make jelly out of any organic. In total there were more than 3,500 of these small craft.
Meanwhile vessels which the ex-NEVEC were attacking began trying to ram themselves into the defence satellite or even into the surface of E.D.N III. Those that could not even do that were attempting to simply detonate their reactor cores and destroy important subsystems like life support, weapons and shields. Anything to deny the ex-NEVEC the use of the vessel if it was captured before it could self-destruct. As soon as the captured ships began firing on their former owners, the Xin'Ta'Faxi unleashed a withering barrage of fire upon the captured ships, each shot aimed to take advantage of vulnerabilities of the captured ships.
After all, who better to destroy a starship than the people who built it, who had the schematics easily on hand and who knew exactly where to hit to cripple them? But this was little comfort to Erren. These humans were starting to destroy far more ships than he deemed acceptable.
"Titan reports that generators have reached 80% power, it will be ready for atmospheric ignition in ten minutes." The comms officer reported.
"Good. Let's see these NEVEC survive their atmosphere catching fire." Erren said.
"Sir, HRA fleet has arrived in-system, we're being hailed."
"The HRA? Hm... on screen." Erren commanded as he stood up to face the HRA commander, "Honoured allies, what can we do for you today? at present my fleet is engaged with the NEVEC defences of E.D.N III, we should break through soon. High Inquisitor Ren Asher has, on behalf of the Emperor and the Archniath, ordered the planet to be Purged in order to destroy the Akrid. The Purgatio Luminarium Type III Titan Dreadnought Divine Radiance is preparing to open fire on the planet as we speak."
"STOP THE PURGE! Now!" Vladimir almost shouted, clearly desperate not to let them wipe out the planet. He knew the secrets. And he knew certain things about the planet no one else really knew. He couldn't let such a prime location be completely destroyed by any allied or enemy activity. "We need that planet alive for the invasion force! I need that planet untouched!"
Vladimir looked over at his men in the bridge and gave them orders to lock on to the enemy heavy positions with the orbital bombardment guns. Small craft were prepped to launch and deliver precision strikes at the enemy surface, and drop men and even escort their heavy assault boats with their load of troops.
Transport ships, Battle Barges, Carriers, Super Heavy Carriers, and even the Forge World were prepping their drop pods and drop ships to aim at the ground targets and bases. The Forge World herself was readying up to land on the ground and provide support and gain supplies.
****
Vladimir looked over at his men in the bridge and gave them orders to lock on to the enemy heavy positions with the orbital bombardment guns. Small craft were prepped to launch and deliver precision strikes at the enemy surface, and drop men and even escort their heavy assault boats with their load of troops.
Transport ships, Battle Barges, Carriers, Super Heavy Carriers, and even the Forge World were prepping their drop pods and drop ships to aim at the ground targets and bases. The Forge World herself was readying up to land on the ground and provide support and gain supplies.
****
Starfleet Centauri dropped out of warp at the edge of the E.D.N. System.
"Report."
"Sensors detect Xin'ta'Faxi and HRA ships in orbit. The Xin'Ta'Faxi are firing on E.D.N III. I'm also detecting a large vessel, it seems to be charging some sort of superweapon."
"Superweapon?" Terminus questioned.
"Yes, sir. I calculate that it is capable of extreme environmental devastation. It will render E.D.N III uninhabitable."
"That's overkill. The planet only has a handful of NEVEC installations." Terminus muttered.
"Sir." The Tilion growled. "I suggest we intervene. The Xin'Ta'Faxi's weapon is nearly at maximum power."
The captain nodded. "Send an order for the fleet to form into Battle Formation Sigma-Alpha-6." The comm officer hurriedly complied.
"Open a channel to the Xin'Fa'Taxi fleet."
"Channel open." The officer reported.
"This is Captain Augustus Terminus of the United Coalition Ship Constantine. Cease firing upon E.D.N. III or my fleet will engage yours."
"Report."
"Sensors detect Xin'ta'Faxi and HRA ships in orbit. The Xin'Ta'Faxi are firing on E.D.N III. I'm also detecting a large vessel, it seems to be charging some sort of superweapon."
"Superweapon?" Terminus questioned.
"Yes, sir. I calculate that it is capable of extreme environmental devastation. It will render E.D.N III uninhabitable."
"That's overkill. The planet only has a handful of NEVEC installations." Terminus muttered.
"Sir." The Tilion growled. "I suggest we intervene. The Xin'Ta'Faxi's weapon is nearly at maximum power."
The captain nodded. "Send an order for the fleet to form into Battle Formation Sigma-Alpha-6." The comm officer hurriedly complied.
"Open a channel to the Xin'Fa'Taxi fleet."
"Channel open." The officer reported.
"This is Captain Augustus Terminus of the United Coalition Ship Constantine. Cease firing upon E.D.N. III or my fleet will engage yours."
"Quite well, I see you haven't been assassinated yet, it's nice to see my potential customers didn't find someone else to do those jobs." Hunter had a joking tone, but he was only making light of the situation, he had actually had hits placed on him before but who would be that stupid? Hunter coughed and rubbed his neck as he kicked the ground showing a bit of embarrassment. "So would that have been your ship I just blew up?"
"That was" Chris said putting his hand to his chin, Had Chris and his vessel had been five minutes later, Robbins would be dead right now. He turned too Robbins "Sir, May I please be excused? I need to do something quite important"
"Sir, the Divine Radiance reports 95% charge on her cannons, they are ready to open fire on E.D.N III on your command." The comms officer reported.
"Good, begin Purging seq-"
"Sir, Coalition forces have arrived in-system. We are being hailed." The comms officer reported.
The transmission from the Coalition fleet was put on screen, right next to that of the HRA. Once both parties had demanded that he stop the Purge Erren frowned, "Stop? You want me to spare E.D.N III? They have unleash Akrid on my ships, they unleashed a hell of a lot of Akrid on the Neutral Zone. You expect me to sit here, ready to destroy the viper's nest, and then let them go?" Erren glanced at the Inquisitor, "If the HRA could supply an adequate reason to prevent the Purge? Is this world of such strategic importance?"
"Important or not E.D.N III will be Purged." Asher said firmly, "it is The Guardian's will. Will you deny the will of the Most High, Admiral Saetine?"
"I... no... of course not, but if preserving this planet grants us an adv-" Erren began.
"You claim that mere military consideration supersedes the will of the Most High? You stray dangerously close to blasphemy Admiral... is it, perhaps, that you do not see the importance of bowing to the Most High? Do you believe that your will is not subsumed to that of The Guardian?" The Inquisitor asked dangerously.
Erren's skin darkened considerably, the Xin'Ta'Faxi equivalent of going deathly pale, "N-no High Inquisitor. Of course not."
"It sounds as if you are speaking... of Heresy." The Inquisitor continued, "Perhaps E.D.N III is not the only blasphemy that must be Purged in this system."
"Admiral, the Divine Radiance is asking confirmation of Purge initiation. They will open fire on your orders." The comms officer said.
"If you do not begin the Purge, I shall." The High Inquisitor said, "I shall relieve you of duty."
"I only have your word that these orders come from the Archniath, and that they come from the Most High through him." Erren said, "The situation has changed, military matters are in the hands of the Imperial Navy, not the Inquisition. If E.D.N III is of vital strategic importance to our campaign then I cannot allow it to be Purged. Send word back to Talath if you wish, ask them to send confirmation of the divine nature of your commands and I shall Purge the planet. Until I have confirmation, the attack on E.D.N III remains an Imperial matter. The Church and the Inquisition have no jurisdiction."
"Admiral Saetine I am relieving you of your command for Blasphemy and suspected Heresy. E.D.N III shall be Purged." The Inquisitor snarled.
"You know as well as I do that a single accusation is not enough to condemn me for heresy, nor is it grounds for me to be relieved of command right in the middle of a war-zone." Erren said, "You cannot countermand my orders." He glanced towards the comms station, "Comms, signal the Divine Radiance. They are to remain ready to Purge the planet, but are not to open fire until I give them the order. They are to disregard any order from High Inquisitor Ren Asher."
"Good, begin Purging seq-"
"Sir, Coalition forces have arrived in-system. We are being hailed." The comms officer reported.
The transmission from the Coalition fleet was put on screen, right next to that of the HRA. Once both parties had demanded that he stop the Purge Erren frowned, "Stop? You want me to spare E.D.N III? They have unleash Akrid on my ships, they unleashed a hell of a lot of Akrid on the Neutral Zone. You expect me to sit here, ready to destroy the viper's nest, and then let them go?" Erren glanced at the Inquisitor, "If the HRA could supply an adequate reason to prevent the Purge? Is this world of such strategic importance?"
"Important or not E.D.N III will be Purged." Asher said firmly, "it is The Guardian's will. Will you deny the will of the Most High, Admiral Saetine?"
"I... no... of course not, but if preserving this planet grants us an adv-" Erren began.
"You claim that mere military consideration supersedes the will of the Most High? You stray dangerously close to blasphemy Admiral... is it, perhaps, that you do not see the importance of bowing to the Most High? Do you believe that your will is not subsumed to that of The Guardian?" The Inquisitor asked dangerously.
Erren's skin darkened considerably, the Xin'Ta'Faxi equivalent of going deathly pale, "N-no High Inquisitor. Of course not."
"It sounds as if you are speaking... of Heresy." The Inquisitor continued, "Perhaps E.D.N III is not the only blasphemy that must be Purged in this system."
"Admiral, the Divine Radiance is asking confirmation of Purge initiation. They will open fire on your orders." The comms officer said.
"If you do not begin the Purge, I shall." The High Inquisitor said, "I shall relieve you of duty."
"I only have your word that these orders come from the Archniath, and that they come from the Most High through him." Erren said, "The situation has changed, military matters are in the hands of the Imperial Navy, not the Inquisition. If E.D.N III is of vital strategic importance to our campaign then I cannot allow it to be Purged. Send word back to Talath if you wish, ask them to send confirmation of the divine nature of your commands and I shall Purge the planet. Until I have confirmation, the attack on E.D.N III remains an Imperial matter. The Church and the Inquisition have no jurisdiction."
"Admiral Saetine I am relieving you of your command for Blasphemy and suspected Heresy. E.D.N III shall be Purged." The Inquisitor snarled.
"You know as well as I do that a single accusation is not enough to condemn me for heresy, nor is it grounds for me to be relieved of command right in the middle of a war-zone." Erren said, "You cannot countermand my orders." He glanced towards the comms station, "Comms, signal the Divine Radiance. They are to remain ready to Purge the planet, but are not to open fire until I give them the order. They are to disregard any order from High Inquisitor Ren Asher."
Vladimir could see the situation was tensing, and started readying up his best SA Elite Troopers (SA was the military police for them) if they needed to assist the admiral. He didn't want a High Inquisitor to run the whole goddamn show. It wasn't a pretty sight. He'd had Inquisitors, even Ascrith, a name feared for what he had done, breathing down his back. He didn't let their religious idiocy prevent him from doing his duty.
"This world, if you read your records closely, is not only the closest world to your borders, but also closer to the NEVEC Homeworld than any of your nearest docks or ship builders." Vladimir said, sending him a diagram and some records of the NEVEC. He had his Forge World stand by to land and start the mining of minerals and materials. "Also, it is of some religious value to us. It contains artifacts from a squadron that we held dear to us. Captain Robbins's squadron. He is of great religious importance to us. And of course, the last reason:
"We have a Forge World with us. EDN III holds so much energy beneath her crust, and so much material, that it is impossible not to want to drop the Forge World onto her. If you recall, the Forge World is big enough to produce even your largest capital ships.
"You will have your purge, High Inquisitor. We will send down our troops to wipe out the Heretics, but this planet is NOT to be rendered uninhabitable. Building a good sized fortress on here will give you not only a buffer zone, but also some place to launch your ships and men."
******
"Yes, it was... I'm putting that one down as an accident, Hunter." Robbins said, still holding his gun at the man who was standing. He chuckled for a little bit at the man's joke, but only for a little bit. He didn't even notice the good captain walking away. "So, what was your latest job from Arik?"
*****
"Captain? Where are you going?" Duke asked, looking over his shoulder at the captain. The SS may have strange things that they do, and they may be very suspicious, but they still had their standards. And when a man who was non SS was suspicious? Well. That went over the top.
"This world, if you read your records closely, is not only the closest world to your borders, but also closer to the NEVEC Homeworld than any of your nearest docks or ship builders." Vladimir said, sending him a diagram and some records of the NEVEC. He had his Forge World stand by to land and start the mining of minerals and materials. "Also, it is of some religious value to us. It contains artifacts from a squadron that we held dear to us. Captain Robbins's squadron. He is of great religious importance to us. And of course, the last reason:
"We have a Forge World with us. EDN III holds so much energy beneath her crust, and so much material, that it is impossible not to want to drop the Forge World onto her. If you recall, the Forge World is big enough to produce even your largest capital ships.
"You will have your purge, High Inquisitor. We will send down our troops to wipe out the Heretics, but this planet is NOT to be rendered uninhabitable. Building a good sized fortress on here will give you not only a buffer zone, but also some place to launch your ships and men."
******
"Yes, it was... I'm putting that one down as an accident, Hunter." Robbins said, still holding his gun at the man who was standing. He chuckled for a little bit at the man's joke, but only for a little bit. He didn't even notice the good captain walking away. "So, what was your latest job from Arik?"
*****
"Captain? Where are you going?" Duke asked, looking over his shoulder at the captain. The SS may have strange things that they do, and they may be very suspicious, but they still had their standards. And when a man who was non SS was suspicious? Well. That went over the top.
Chris turned too face Duke "Down too the Science bay, There is something down there I need too lock down. I Don't want anyone who is not part of the HRA too have it" He than put his hand too his chin "Feel free too follow" He said, turning around too walk to the science bay
"The resources of E.D.N III will remain unaffected. The atmosphere will be destroyed, yes, but the subterranean energy reserves and mineral deposits will not be damaged. With a full Purge you will not have to go to the lengths of subduing or destroying the indigenous population and the losses and expenses of such an operation." The High Inquisitor said, "As for your religious artefacts... well, they may very well survive the atmospheric ignition and if not... what do I care for the heathen relics of a false religion? This Purge has nothing to do with the heathen humans of E.D.N III. This Purge is to destroy the Akrid creatures."
Erren shook his head, "It will be more expensive and time consuming to construct a forward base on an uninhabitable wasteland. We would have to reconstitute the atmosphere. If we destroy the Akrid here, we won't have a population upon which to experiment. With the E.D.N III Akrid we could figure out countermeasures and defences against the NEVEC Akrid." Erren turned to his comms officer, "Order the Divine Radiance to open fire on the defence satellite... let's not let her weaponry go to waste. I'm sure that stubborn irritant will finally be destroyed if we unleash the full power of the Devastating Light cannons on it."
"Admiral... you are making a grave mistake. The Archniath himself will hear of your lack of faith. I will have you excommunicated for this." The Inquisitor said darkly, "I will see you destroyed before I have you executed."
"Inquisitor, the Archniath is new to his throne. Do you really believe that His Holiness will risk the Emperor's wrath so early in his reign? Tar Es Merun might have been able to get away with it, but Merun is dead. Vuhn has been in power scarcely a year." Erren said, "Your fervour is commendable, but take care not to become overzealous in your search for heresy, less you yourself fall prey to it."
The Inquisitor's large eyes bulged, "You dare!?"
"You have been attempting to spread the influence of the Inquisition and the Church into imperial affairs. In direct contravention of the Word... could it be that you think that the Church should rule alone? Against the Word of The guardian that the State and Church should be equal, but separate? That, High Inquisitor, is heresy."
Asher seemed outraged, his skin mottling with rage, a datapad nearby levitated off of a desk and snapped in half as the Xin'Ta'Faxi lost control of his telekinetic abilities, "You play a dangerous game, Admiral Saetine. I will allow the heathens of E.D.N III to live, for now. But do not think this anything more than a pyrrhic victory. Word of your insubordination will go to Talath." The Inquisitor glanced at the humans on the screen and sneered, "Humans... newcomers and blasphemers one and all. Take care they do not corrupt you, Admiral Saetine, they are servants of demons... they travel the very bowels of hell in order to traverse the stars."
Erren shook his head, "It will be more expensive and time consuming to construct a forward base on an uninhabitable wasteland. We would have to reconstitute the atmosphere. If we destroy the Akrid here, we won't have a population upon which to experiment. With the E.D.N III Akrid we could figure out countermeasures and defences against the NEVEC Akrid." Erren turned to his comms officer, "Order the Divine Radiance to open fire on the defence satellite... let's not let her weaponry go to waste. I'm sure that stubborn irritant will finally be destroyed if we unleash the full power of the Devastating Light cannons on it."
"Admiral... you are making a grave mistake. The Archniath himself will hear of your lack of faith. I will have you excommunicated for this." The Inquisitor said darkly, "I will see you destroyed before I have you executed."
"Inquisitor, the Archniath is new to his throne. Do you really believe that His Holiness will risk the Emperor's wrath so early in his reign? Tar Es Merun might have been able to get away with it, but Merun is dead. Vuhn has been in power scarcely a year." Erren said, "Your fervour is commendable, but take care not to become overzealous in your search for heresy, less you yourself fall prey to it."
The Inquisitor's large eyes bulged, "You dare!?"
"You have been attempting to spread the influence of the Inquisition and the Church into imperial affairs. In direct contravention of the Word... could it be that you think that the Church should rule alone? Against the Word of The guardian that the State and Church should be equal, but separate? That, High Inquisitor, is heresy."
Asher seemed outraged, his skin mottling with rage, a datapad nearby levitated off of a desk and snapped in half as the Xin'Ta'Faxi lost control of his telekinetic abilities, "You play a dangerous game, Admiral Saetine. I will allow the heathens of E.D.N III to live, for now. But do not think this anything more than a pyrrhic victory. Word of your insubordination will go to Talath." The Inquisitor glanced at the humans on the screen and sneered, "Humans... newcomers and blasphemers one and all. Take care they do not corrupt you, Admiral Saetine, they are servants of demons... they travel the very bowels of hell in order to traverse the stars."
"Sir, the Xin'Ta'Faxi ship is at full charge."
"Manuever the fleet between the planet and the Xin'Ta'Faxi. Go to Condition Red." Terminus ordered.
The bridge was doused in a red light as klaxons began wailing throughout the ship.
"Alert: Condition Red. All hands to battlestations." sounded through the ship's intercom.
"Have the Xin'Ta'Faxi begun the firing sequence."
The insectoid peered at the sensor readout. "No sir, it's just realigning itself toward the heavily damaged artifical satellite in orbit."
"Alright." Terminus said. "Notify the troop carrier to found and occupy any remaining NEVEC facilities on the planet. Tell Battlegroup Dretiri to begin helping the civilians of the ex-NEVEC nation-states."
The orders were quickly sent through the fleet and dozens od ships entered the atmosphere to begin their mission. The Coalition planned to wipeout any remaining NEVEC on E.D.N III with the help of any ex-NEVEC. They would then use the planet as a forward operating base as the fleet prepared to search the rest of the E.D.N system and all surrounding star systems for NEVEC Bases.
"Manuever the fleet between the planet and the Xin'Ta'Faxi. Go to Condition Red." Terminus ordered.
The bridge was doused in a red light as klaxons began wailing throughout the ship.
"Alert: Condition Red. All hands to battlestations." sounded through the ship's intercom.
"Have the Xin'Ta'Faxi begun the firing sequence."
The insectoid peered at the sensor readout. "No sir, it's just realigning itself toward the heavily damaged artifical satellite in orbit."
"Alright." Terminus said. "Notify the troop carrier to found and occupy any remaining NEVEC facilities on the planet. Tell Battlegroup Dretiri to begin helping the civilians of the ex-NEVEC nation-states."
The orders were quickly sent through the fleet and dozens od ships entered the atmosphere to begin their mission. The Coalition planned to wipeout any remaining NEVEC on E.D.N III with the help of any ex-NEVEC. They would then use the planet as a forward operating base as the fleet prepared to search the rest of the E.D.N system and all surrounding star systems for NEVEC Bases.
"You know I can't answer that Robbins." At this point Hunter was preparing in case anything went even more wrong. He was identifying threats and marking weapons on his HUD. He received a system update telling him his energy manipulation program was back up. That was excellent news. He couldn't kill all of these trained soldiers, but if things went terribly wrong he would be able to defend himself until he escaped. "I'd like to purchase an escape pod if that's alright with you."
"Open a channel to both the HRA and Coalition fleets." Erren ordered, once the connection was established he said, "I apologise for the... ah... tense situation. High Inquisitor Ren Asher is a tad overzealous in his duties. For the moment, the biosphere of E.D.N III is spared and we shall not utilise the Divine Radiance's full power on the world... we will however continue bombardment of NEVEC installations on the surface. I advise that you do not land troops until we have finished the present sequence. With the planetary defences softened it should be easier for your troops to take the planet. End transmission."
"Sir, Divine Radiance reports that she is repositioned. She must either fire the Devastating Light cannons or allow the energies to dissipate or risk damage to the weapons." The comms office reported.
"Understood, they have permission to fire upon the satellite. Reposition the rest of the fleet to complete present bombardment sequence. Once completed the fleet is to back off from E.D.N III to allow for our allies to land their troops." Erren said.
"Aye sir, relaying orders." The comms officer said.
The vast behemoth that was the Type III Purgatio Luminarium Titan Divine Radiance unleashed her wrath upon the satellite. Twin beams of energy lanced out from the great vessel from two great cannons on either side of the ship, illuminating the sleek curves and sweeping lines of the Titan. They struck the satellite dead-on, the beams able to boil away armour and overload shields, beams able to burn away the atmosphere of a planet and shatter the crust at the impact point when used at its highest energy levels. At the very least the beams weren't quite that powerful - the Xin'Ta'Faxi had planned on burning E.D.N III, not cracking it open.
"Sir, Divine Radiance reports that she is repositioned. She must either fire the Devastating Light cannons or allow the energies to dissipate or risk damage to the weapons." The comms office reported.
"Understood, they have permission to fire upon the satellite. Reposition the rest of the fleet to complete present bombardment sequence. Once completed the fleet is to back off from E.D.N III to allow for our allies to land their troops." Erren said.
"Aye sir, relaying orders." The comms officer said.
The vast behemoth that was the Type III Purgatio Luminarium Titan Divine Radiance unleashed her wrath upon the satellite. Twin beams of energy lanced out from the great vessel from two great cannons on either side of the ship, illuminating the sleek curves and sweeping lines of the Titan. They struck the satellite dead-on, the beams able to boil away armour and overload shields, beams able to burn away the atmosphere of a planet and shatter the crust at the impact point when used at its highest energy levels. At the very least the beams weren't quite that powerful - the Xin'Ta'Faxi had planned on burning E.D.N III, not cracking it open.
Joe sat down, staring at the now static screen. "I don't believe it. We just lost our only communication with the outside universe."
----
Weapons stopped as their communications died. The forces were confused, and returned to the main base. Or what was left of it.
----
Joe walked outside, his metal leg sinking into the snow. Death. He saw homes destroyed, dead bodies everywhere. He started to walk. He stopped as he saw someone with a mangled leg, fast freezing over. He saw someone raise a hatchet, bringing it down to sever to wound. He walked, his artificial leg causing him to limp past the destruction. He walked into the dome. He was met with confusion. "The satellite is gone."
"And so is our families."
----
Weapons stopped as their communications died. The forces were confused, and returned to the main base. Or what was left of it.
----
Joe walked outside, his metal leg sinking into the snow. Death. He saw homes destroyed, dead bodies everywhere. He started to walk. He stopped as he saw someone with a mangled leg, fast freezing over. He saw someone raise a hatchet, bringing it down to sever to wound. He walked, his artificial leg causing him to limp past the destruction. He walked into the dome. He was met with confusion. "The satellite is gone."
"And so is our families."
"You've made the right choice, Admiral. I'll see to it that you receive recognition back at your home, and I'll give you most of the credit should we capture this place." Vladimir said, nodding. Then he ordered all men away. It was going to be a good scene, and one very few would forget. Just like orbital bombardment, this was a very spectacular event. "Our men will be fine. We've started a similar, but more centralized, bombing of our own."
Thousands of drop pods, more than a hundred assault boats, and many many drop ships shot towards the planet's surface at impossible speeds, ripping through the atmosphere with ease. The drop pods left huge trails of fire in their wake, and when they slammed down at precise and strategic locations, their doors dropped down and the 23mm Assault Cannon turrets inside open fired, covering the Marines advances.
Four Heavy Dive Bombers, carrying a payload of 1 10,000 pound tractor beam bomb, and 5 1,000 pound tractor beam bombs, with an escort of 20 fighters, flew towards the enemy rail guns, determined to blow them to hell.
The assault boats slammed their hulls into a dozen or so bases, all the largest and closest to the fleet, breaking down the walls. Their doors slammed down, revealing over 100 Marines and 1,000 Imperial Guardsmen. Some of the Assault Boats held Spetznaz and Spetznaz marines, which excelled in close combat fighting.
And the Drop Ships deployed behind lines, letting out over 10,000 Guardsmen or Spetznaz each drop ship. Some of them even carried Titans, huge 200 foot tall mechs with either an 88mm minigun, or a double barreled Plasma cannon.
The largest force, though, was a huge Mothership Assault boat, two Drop Ships, and fifty Drop Pods, all heading towards the main Base. Vladimir ordered everyone, even the allies, to stay away from there. Assaulting it was 50,000 Guardsmen, 20,0000 Spetznaz, and 1,000 Marines.
*****
"Well, too bad. Because you know I can't let you leave." Robbins said, and looked over at the Captain. He needed some hacking equipment, so he could hack into Hunter's computers and gain access to certain files which would, he believed, lead him to his next point. "Someone track his direction. I'm finding out where he last left, since Warp and Hyperspace only goes in a straight line. If you're smart."
*****
"I'd rather not. Bring up some hacking equipment for Robbins. He'll need it." Duke said, and trained his pistol on Hunter. He knew that this guy was smart on how he worked. Hell, he'd read up on his file. He was that thorough.
Thousands of drop pods, more than a hundred assault boats, and many many drop ships shot towards the planet's surface at impossible speeds, ripping through the atmosphere with ease. The drop pods left huge trails of fire in their wake, and when they slammed down at precise and strategic locations, their doors dropped down and the 23mm Assault Cannon turrets inside open fired, covering the Marines advances.
Four Heavy Dive Bombers, carrying a payload of 1 10,000 pound tractor beam bomb, and 5 1,000 pound tractor beam bombs, with an escort of 20 fighters, flew towards the enemy rail guns, determined to blow them to hell.
The assault boats slammed their hulls into a dozen or so bases, all the largest and closest to the fleet, breaking down the walls. Their doors slammed down, revealing over 100 Marines and 1,000 Imperial Guardsmen. Some of the Assault Boats held Spetznaz and Spetznaz marines, which excelled in close combat fighting.
And the Drop Ships deployed behind lines, letting out over 10,000 Guardsmen or Spetznaz each drop ship. Some of them even carried Titans, huge 200 foot tall mechs with either an 88mm minigun, or a double barreled Plasma cannon.
The largest force, though, was a huge Mothership Assault boat, two Drop Ships, and fifty Drop Pods, all heading towards the main Base. Vladimir ordered everyone, even the allies, to stay away from there. Assaulting it was 50,000 Guardsmen, 20,0000 Spetznaz, and 1,000 Marines.
*****
"Well, too bad. Because you know I can't let you leave." Robbins said, and looked over at the Captain. He needed some hacking equipment, so he could hack into Hunter's computers and gain access to certain files which would, he believed, lead him to his next point. "Someone track his direction. I'm finding out where he last left, since Warp and Hyperspace only goes in a straight line. If you're smart."
*****
"I'd rather not. Bring up some hacking equipment for Robbins. He'll need it." Duke said, and trained his pistol on Hunter. He knew that this guy was smart on how he worked. Hell, he'd read up on his file. He was that thorough.
Hunter let out a laugh that his suit mutilated. "You can't track something that jumped without the ship itself, and as you may have noticed I don't have my ship anymore." The next laugh sounded a little more insane and evil. "Do you honestly think I am THAT stupid and vulnerable?" Then his voice snapped. "I'm not!" His fists clenched and a small energy dagger formed in each. "How many men are you willing to sacrifice for a pet project of yours?" His voice echoed around the hall, he was aiming his comments more to the ears of his men now. "Why purposely have your men killed when you know I can have my suit delete the files at a moment's notice and their deaths, their friend's deaths would all be for nothing!?"
"If that is what you think your men's lives are worth, a whole heap of nothing, then go ahead, order them to attack me. Order them to die and kill for nothing and explain to those that don't die taking me down why their friends lay bleeding on the floor when I could have taken a shuttle and been gone!"
"If that is what you think your men's lives are worth, a whole heap of nothing, then go ahead, order them to attack me. Order them to die and kill for nothing and explain to those that don't die taking me down why their friends lay bleeding on the floor when I could have taken a shuttle and been gone!"
Chris looked at hunter with a "Your out of your goddamned mind" look, He heard his comment about his ship being destroyed so was there a point of getting the hacking gear? But he knew ne needed too find someway to get to the science bay, He needed to lock down his project, He worked on that since he took basic science! and He did not to give this Hunter fellow any chance to get the chip in his pocket, However, If anyone were to scan the chip, They would find it had tons of data. Far too much to be a simple data chip. All this made Chris have a very very worried look.
"Bombardment sequence ended admiral. Allied forces are landing on the planet." The sensor officer reported, "Enemy forces appear to be in disarray, their planet-wide communications appear to have been cut off once the satellite was destroyed."
Erren shook his head, "You mean to tell me those fools routed their entire planetary communications network through a defence satellite? The first logical target of an invading force? With no back-up transmitters on the surface?" He sighed, "Apparently NEVEC did not intend to seriously defend this world. At least it should make moping up the resistance easier."
"The fleet is taking up defensive orbit around E.D.N III. We are ready to provide support to the ground contingents." The navigation officer reported, "We can have a ship in bombardment range of enemy forces within minutes."
"Good, the strike craft are to begin orbital insertion to provide close air support to our allies, signal the Plnae Taver troops transports. They are to begin subjugation of enemy population centres." Erren ordered.
The troops transports were sleek and streamlined like all Xin'Ta'Faxi craft, holding thousands of combat drones each and their Xin'Ta'Faxi controllers. The Xin'Ta'Faxi fielded very few of their own people in war, due to their physical frailty. Instead they often employed mercenaries and soldiers drawn from subjugated alien worlds. By far the most numerous, however, were drones and robots of which hundreds could be controlled by a single Xin'Ta'Faxi wearing protective armour. Unlike their occupants, the armour was robust and armoured, much larger and broader than the occupant. The only Xin'Ta'Faxi warriors that did not wear some form of this combat armour were the elite Sarretel Brotherhood. These individuals were rare but powerful, able to unleash telekinetic devastation and destruction upon the enemies of the Imperium. Very rarely did they allow enemies to come close enough to be a physical threat, but when this occurred they would use their great curved blades and telekinetic abilities to tear apart any who dared confront them directly.
Ten Sarretel had come to E.D.N III, each in command of a tenth of the Xin'Ta'Faxi ground forces deployed.
Erren shook his head, "You mean to tell me those fools routed their entire planetary communications network through a defence satellite? The first logical target of an invading force? With no back-up transmitters on the surface?" He sighed, "Apparently NEVEC did not intend to seriously defend this world. At least it should make moping up the resistance easier."
"The fleet is taking up defensive orbit around E.D.N III. We are ready to provide support to the ground contingents." The navigation officer reported, "We can have a ship in bombardment range of enemy forces within minutes."
"Good, the strike craft are to begin orbital insertion to provide close air support to our allies, signal the Plnae Taver troops transports. They are to begin subjugation of enemy population centres." Erren ordered.
The troops transports were sleek and streamlined like all Xin'Ta'Faxi craft, holding thousands of combat drones each and their Xin'Ta'Faxi controllers. The Xin'Ta'Faxi fielded very few of their own people in war, due to their physical frailty. Instead they often employed mercenaries and soldiers drawn from subjugated alien worlds. By far the most numerous, however, were drones and robots of which hundreds could be controlled by a single Xin'Ta'Faxi wearing protective armour. Unlike their occupants, the armour was robust and armoured, much larger and broader than the occupant. The only Xin'Ta'Faxi warriors that did not wear some form of this combat armour were the elite Sarretel Brotherhood. These individuals were rare but powerful, able to unleash telekinetic devastation and destruction upon the enemies of the Imperium. Very rarely did they allow enemies to come close enough to be a physical threat, but when this occurred they would use their great curved blades and telekinetic abilities to tear apart any who dared confront them directly.
Ten Sarretel had come to E.D.N III, each in command of a tenth of the Xin'Ta'Faxi ground forces deployed.
(Considering most of them were dumped there with little to no technology, they didn't have much choice in communications.)
The forces were gathered at a central point. Ex-NEVEC had already cleared out several NEVEC bases. They used their knowledge of NEVEC tactics against them. The forces were quiet, waiting for what would happen next.
The forces were gathered at a central point. Ex-NEVEC had already cleared out several NEVEC bases. They used their knowledge of NEVEC tactics against them. The forces were quiet, waiting for what would happen next.
(Not that the Xin'Ta'Faxi know that. To the Imperial viewpoint E.D.N III is a minor human colony barely worth their time, the only reason they're attacking in the first place is the Akrid and it's strategic importance in penetrating further into NEVEC space. The Imperial archives are pretty sparse when it comes to NEVEC. They don't really deal much with foreign megacorps. Godless materialistic heathens that they are.)
The Sarretel were leading the Imperium's forces in a quick and efficient lock-down of any remaining inhabited civilian and industrial centres. The drones scouted out the buildings for hidden ambushers and dealt with any hostile they found whilst the Xin'Ta'Faxi advanced into the city itself. The lone Sarretel commander of each contingent was conspicuous in his lack of heavy mechanised armour and the graceful blade he bore in one hand, a rifle strapped across his back.
It was lucky that the Xin'Ta'Faxi's psychic talents were limited to telekinesis rather than telepathy - and that they bore just abilities in the deepest hatred and contempt - or the Sarretel would have simply been able to sense hidden enemies without wasting drones that could be ambushed and destroyed. The xin'Ta'Faxi relied heavily on their drones and armour, without that the vast majority of these soldiers would be helpless.
The Sarretel were leading the Imperium's forces in a quick and efficient lock-down of any remaining inhabited civilian and industrial centres. The drones scouted out the buildings for hidden ambushers and dealt with any hostile they found whilst the Xin'Ta'Faxi advanced into the city itself. The lone Sarretel commander of each contingent was conspicuous in his lack of heavy mechanised armour and the graceful blade he bore in one hand, a rifle strapped across his back.
It was lucky that the Xin'Ta'Faxi's psychic talents were limited to telekinesis rather than telepathy - and that they bore just abilities in the deepest hatred and contempt - or the Sarretel would have simply been able to sense hidden enemies without wasting drones that could be ambushed and destroyed. The xin'Ta'Faxi relied heavily on their drones and armour, without that the vast majority of these soldiers would be helpless.
You are on: Forums » Sci-Fi Roleplay » 2112 (Ask to join/Invite)
Moderators: Mina, Keke, Cass, Auberon, Claine, Ilmarinen, Ben, Darth_Angelus