The heavy cruiser moved away from Earth. The crew was composed of the best from all over the Services and they knew it. Their mission was to escort a survey vessel with a dozen scientists on board to investigate reports of a new wormhole which had opened up close to Mars.
The wormhole junctions were the prime means that enabled human travelers to go faster than light and let them hop to distant areas of the galaxy in an instant.
To date only five had been opened. But all of them had led to clusters of habitable worlds, which Earth's leaders had been quick to colonize. This would be the sixth and, from the signs, the largest wormhole ever opened by the Imperial Survey Company.
Captain James O'Connell, Captain of the HMS Imperial Terra, stilled his hands as they began to smooth his uniform yet again. This was a momentous occasion, and yet with it came the danger, or opportunity depending upon how one looked at it, of encountering an alien race.
Fortunately the odds of that had decreased greatly as each new wormhole was opened without incident. In all cases there was never any signs or remains of sentient life. Which still didn't do anything for the Captain's peace of mind.
"Approaching wormhole zone now sir," said Commander Hastings, Tactical, "We'll be in range to begin the opening in five minutes."
"Very good Mr. Hastings," Said O'Connell, "Mr. Webster, open a channel to the Einstein if you please."
"Aye aye sir," said Lieutenant-Commander Daniel Webster, "Live mike sir."
O'Connell nodded his thanks and said, "HMS Einstein this is Captain O'Connell, we're approaching the warp limit now. How are the readings?"
"They're already at the top of the scale Captain," said the academic voice at the end of the radio channel, "When we open this one up, I think it'll be to a place far across the galaxy."
"Well you concentrate on that. I'm just along to make sure nothing tries to kill you."
The voice chuckled, "I don't think there will be any danger of that Captain, but all the same I'm glad you're along for the ride."
The two ships began approaching what seemed like a reddish blue distortion hanging over Mars. That alone was a clear sign that this wormhole was different. Never before had a wormhole appeared so close to a planet. Well, in a few hours they'd find out exactly what this wormhole would do for the Imperium.
Two hours later both ships hung directly above the half open wormhole. The science team had almost completed their preparations, and now was waiting for O'Connell to give the go-ahead.
"Okay," he said, looking around at his bridge crews eager faces, "Just remember our job is to make sure that if there's anything on the other side of the wormhole that even looks hostile, we take it down. That said, let's try not to start an interstellar war today alright?"
There were chuckles as he turned to Webster, "Okay Commander tell them they can go."
"Aye aye sir." Webster sent the green light to the science team and then leaned back slightly in his chair.
For a moment nothing happened. Then a brilliant blue light lanced out from the survey ship and struck the center of the wormhole. With a terrifying suddenness the wormhole was ripped open and the two fragile human ships were sucked inside and shot down its length.
O'Connell had experienced wormhole travel before and so had the majority of his crew. The experience always left him with an upset stomach though, just his body's way of telling him that it didn't like what was going on.
"Sir, we're re-entering normal space in five seconds."
O'Connell nodded at his astrogater, Lieutenant Edwards, and settled into his command chair as his ship and the Einstein popped out of space.
"Scan the system, I want it checked out immediately."
"Aye aye sir."
"Tactical screen is up and running, sir we're picking up emissions from the planet in the system."
"What kind?"
"Ah…I'm not sure sir. Definitely some kind of engine but I don't know what's powering it."
"Okay," O'Connell took a breath, "Initiate First Contact procedures, get a probe back through the wormhole right now."
"Aye aye sir."
"Sir we've got emission signatures! There's a ship approaching the planet!"
"Begin hailing it, try and contact the planet as well." O'Connell waited several minutes, then:
"Incoming call from the other ship sir."
"My screen, Commander."
"Aye aye sir."
The voice which came crackling out of his mike was unlike anything he'd heard before, "Unknown vessel this is a restricted area, cut your engines immediately."
O'Connell leaned forward, "This is His Majesty's Ship Imperial Terra, Captain O'Connell in command. Whoever this is we'll not be cutting our engines until you've told us who you are."
The voice came back almost immediately, "What the hell are you talking about? Where are you from?"
"Ah…sir that ship's accelerating towards us. I think its weapons are coming online." Hastings bent over his console, "Affirmative, weapons are hot. Permission to bring up our missiles?"
"Permission granted." O'Connell turned back to the steadily approaching unknown, "Be advised unknown vessel if you continue to approach we will open fire."
"Imperial Terra, or whoever you are, this is Imperial Star Destroyer Devastation. Power down your weaponry now, or we'll have to conclude you're on the side of the Rebels."
"Rebels? What the hell are you talking about?"
"Power down your weapons!"
"Sir?" Hastings looked up, "Shall I fire?"
"Give them a warning shot."
"Aye aye sir."
The single missile that Imperial Terra fired was a tiny fraction of the firepower that the ship could unleash, but it had a very different effect on the command crew of the Star Destroyer.
"Sir they've fired something towards us, looks like some kind of projectile."
"Will it hit the ship?"
"No its going to go right past us on the port side."
"Very well, how much longer until we get in range?"
"Five minutes sir."
The missile detonated a half million kilometres from the Star Destroyer. Unfortunately for them, Imperial Terra was done playing nice.
"Commander Hastings…engage the enemy."
"Aye aye sir." Hastings typed in the launch sequence and watched as fifteen launchers spat fire at the other ship.
Three of the missiles fired were EW drones and jammers. They quickly wiped away any coherent picture the Star Destroyer had of the space around them, since the Destroyer or the Empire, had never encountered the kind of technology employed by Terrans.
Of the other twelve missiles, four of them were intercepted by lucky shots from the frantically firing laser guns of the Destroyer. The other eight however, came racing in…and nothing stopped them until they rammed right into the hull.
The Destroyer's shield held for a few seconds and then dissolved as a second flight of missiles slammed into it. The massive ship broke apart in a roiling fireball of destruction which could be seen from the planets surface as the nuclear fire billowed out of the fragments of hull which had once been the most powerful vessels in the galaxy.
The bridge on Imperial Terra was deathly silent as they observed what had just happened. No ship had ever lost a fight so quickly, the point defence and counter missiles prevented those quick and easy deaths. But whatever this ship had used for defence had clearly not been designed towards fending off missiles.
"Well," said O'Connell, breaking the silence, "That was certainly…unexpected."
"Sir, the Einstein is on the horn. They want to know what you intend to do now." said Hastings.
"We'll move in closer to the planet and see if we can establish contact with whoever is on the planet. Now that they've lost one of their ships to their foolishness, we'll see if they're inclined to be reasonable."
"And if they're not sir?" asked Hastings.
"Then we'll just have to convince them that it would be a serious mistake for them to continue to think that way." replied O'Connell grimly.