Hello, readers! Thought I'd try this out. Most of the PJO main characters will be in it at some point.
LOCATION (CITY): Atlantis LOCATION (PLANET): Lantia EMPIRE: Poseidonid Empire
The city of Atlantis spread for many hundreds miles in every direction from the six-acre island it was founded on. Built of an ultra-lightweight metal, the gleaming silver metropolis floated on the water. Shining skyscrapers extended for miles into the air, their tops hidden in the clouds. Sleek cargo ships and tiny personal transports darted between the buildings, a three-dimensional traffic system with exits, highways, thoroughfares, alleys, and side streets.
At the base of the grandest building, actually a hundred feet underwater, was the Emperor's throne room. A heated argument resounded from within, making the guards uneasy. The Emperor was immortal, yes, but weapons could still kill him. He never aged, though, and would never die of it. To the blue and green armored soldiers outside, the greatest threat to him was his own son, being quite angry at the moment. They grasped their ceremonial, but still functional, laser rifles tightly, ready to dash in to their master's aid.
"Father, we must intervene. If the Dark Armada manages to take Ophiotaurus Station, they will have the power to-"
"No, Perseus! For the last time, Kronos is dead, the Titans are dead, the Dark Armada long since decimated! This is no doubt a plot by the other rulers to remove mine and your Uncle's fleets from the equation, to draw us into a trap. They will seize power for themselves after that."
"That makes no sense! The Federated Olympian Empires have stood united for thousands of years-"
"No need to tell me that, boy! I've been there from the beginning," Emperor Poseidon interrupted harshly. "The fleet will not respond to the Athenian Empire's call for assistance. I have spoken with my brother, and he sees it the same way."
Perseus Jackson, mortal son of the Emperor and Admiral of his fleets, sucked in a breath, realizing that this argument could not be won. He would have to act on his own, and that would certainly be difficult if the thirty-five year old Admiral managed to get himself forcibly confined to his room.
So he softened. "You are correct, father, as usual."
The egotistical Emperor was not the least bit suspicious, pridefully judging his logic to have won over his son. "Indeed. Return to your command, Admiral Jackson, and think twice before questioning me again."
The infuriated man did his best to muffle his angry stomping as he stormed out of the throne room, receiving suspicious glances from the guards. He was tired of this crap- the two most powerful empires purposely staying out of every battle and allowing others to fight and die to defend Olympia, the home of Olympus. That was the whole point of the Federation; to work together to protect the 'god's' seat of power. Without their seats on Olympus, they could not be immortal, and could not so effectively maintain their empires.
Poseidon and Zeus knew that there was no way that anyone could punish them for not helping, so what was the point in doing so? Perseus knew what the point was. It was simply the right, honorable thing to do. Only a man willing to fight for his freedom truly loves it- others just profit by it.
A few minutes walking through the maze of a place and he had caught up with the detachment of Marine that had escorted him here, along with his half-sister, the strikingly beautiful Captain Meredith Thalassa. Her jet-black hair, sea green eyes, and well-tanned skin matched the color of her brother's exactly. At age twenty-five, she was the most promising frigate captain in the fleet, and still had many years before the inanely brave, quick thinking, almost reckless frigate captain mentality slipped away.
"How'd it go, Percy?" she asked, falling into step with him as the Marines marched closely behind. Percy was walking towards the transporter at a brisk pace.
"Not good, Mer. Not good," he muttered.
"I told you that you should have let me come with you."
Percy's jaw set, and a determined look took over his handsome features.
"Oh gods, no. I know that look," Meredith moaned. "Do you think enough of the fleet will go along with it?"
"Yes," Percy said simply. "I've lead them to enough victories by now-"
"Not to mention your career as a frigate captain," inputted a listening Marine. Which was true. He was the top frigate captain before his sister entered the scene. Many in the fleet said that even at thirty-five and promoted, the Admiral still had enough energy and spirit to be one again if he wanted to."
"-that they probably will trust my decision."
Meredith sighed and looked at her brother in the eye, something he always found disconcerting. It always felt like looking in a mirror and seeing a female version of himself. "I'm going to trust you on this one, PJ."
They walked into the transporter room. There was a single console with a man standing at it, and four tripod-mounted metal cylinders on the floor arranged in a 10 foot by ten foot square. Meredith and the two marines from her ship stepped into it. "Maybe you should drop a line to Admiral Grace. I'm sure she'd be right there with you," Mer said, winking.
Percy laughed. "That rebel? I'm sure she's already managed to get herself confined until this whole thing blows over. I heard that Emperor Zeus is making a habit of 'preemptive confinement.'"
"Good point," Meredith agreed. She turned to the man at the console. "Ready for transport. PES Riptide." The man nodded, and the four tripod mounted cylinders opened, a strange blue light glowing between the two hemispheres. Then the light flashed, and the three people disappeared, headed for the Riptide. It was the ship that had brought so much fame to Percy's career; he had handed her over to his sister one he was promoted to Admiral.
Percy and the remaining marines stepped into the square. "Transport directly to PES Atlantia's bridge."
The lights glowed again, and in moments the group was standing on the sprawling command deck of the three kilometer Battleship. Its name, halfway between the city 'Atlantis' and the planet 'Lantia' was one that was well renowned. Many said it was the most powerful warship around.
The bridge was certainly not short of grandeur. It was surrounded on three sides by sloped windows made of a rare transparent version of the super-strong Impervitanium alloy used in hull construction. The entire ship- inside and out- was pained dark navy blue and dark grey, the colors of Poseidon Fleet uniform shirt and pants respectively. A hundred men and women bustled about the ship's nerve center, checking systems and monitoring displays. Bright lights flashed, blinked, as interactive 3D holograms were projected to make working the ship easier.
At the head of the bridge, though were the parts that mattered. The massive three dimensional tactical display of the star system was there, surrounded by the head officers- Captain Olivia Vera, the athletic, brown-haired flag officer, stood tall, hands clasped behind her back, coolly surveying her command deck. Commander Jack Berkner, the elderly, graying first officer, short of stature but high of spirit, was bouncing around, trying to rein in some of the more energetic younger officers. Lieutenant Commander Justinian Barrows, the wiry tactical/weapons officer, was silently scanning through weapons and shield reports, while Lieutenant Commander David Rayburn, the blonde-haired blue-eyed chief engineer who should probably have been a hundred decks down, monitoring the fusion generator, was looking on, complaining about power consumption. Lieutenant Dennis Matthews on communications, Lieutenant Julia Morley at the helm with her navigator Lieutenant Ernesto Slayton, and Lieutenant Jeff Ogden at the sensor station rounded off the naval command staff.
Nearby stood a pair of officers wearing slightly different uniforms. Colonel John Reynolds, at forty-two years old was the dual-role battleship's wing commander, and probably the oldest fighter jock in the fleet. Colonel Natasha Greco, about the same age, was probably the tallest Marine in the fleet, which was certainly saying something.
Admiral Jackson strode over to the cadre of officers.
"What's the world?" Captain Vera asked immediately.
"The word is no," Percy said. Captain Vera turned a little sad. Percy chuckled. "Not to worry, Livy. We're going anyways."
She and the colonels smiled, having served under Percy for quite some time. "Figures," they all muttered simultaneously.
"Commander Rayburn, get back to engineering," Percy shouted at his chief engineer, who quickly excused himself. Percy walked over to a set of five large cushioned chairs, with control panels on the arm rests, which faced the 3D display. The display showed the planet, Lantea, compared to which even the Atlantia seemed tiny in the space around it. Hundreds of other labeled dots represented the other ships of the fleet- strike fighter carriers for support; armored battlecarriers to drop strike fighters in close; battleships and cruisers to deal and absorb punishing fire; fast, maneuverable frigates to execute solo or group strikes or scouting missions; and missile cruisers to provide long range support fire.
Admiral Jackson sat in the middle chair , and Captain Vera took the seat on his right, Commander Berkner on his left. Colonels Reynolds and Greco took the slightly less comfortable outer seats; their jobs didn't require a whole lot of sitting on the bridge.
"Lieutenant Matthews, I want all orbital communications jammed, except for an outgoing frequency to the fleet," Percy ordered.
"Done," Matthews reported.
Percy hit the comm. button on his arm rest. "Fleet," he said slowly, "this is Admiral Jackson. I'm sure you will all be glad to hear that we are moving to assist in the battle at Ophiotaurus Station." The bridge crew cheered, something Percy assumed was happening throughout the fleet now. "However, this action has not been allowed by the Emperor. He forbade it, actually." Percy paused to let this sink in. "If there is blame to be pointed, punishments to be dealt at the end of this, it will all fall to me. You can all tell the Emperor that I told you that this fleet action was allowed. Still, if you do not wish to come with me, you may remain behind. If not, take station around my flagship and prepare to make a Phase Jump on my mark. Jackson out."
"We're all with you, sir," assured Colonel Reynolds. The other officers nodded in agreement.
"Very well then. Lieutenant Slayton, plot a course. Morley, take us out," Percy ordered.
"Phase course plotted," Slayton reported.
"Courses plotted and laid in," confirmed Morley.
"I'd say about 96 percent of the fleet is forming up with us, sir," Lieutenant Ogden reported from the sensor station.
Percy nodded and cued the intercom. "All hands, prepare for phase jump."
Lieutenant Julia Morley had the countdown going. "Jumping in five…four…three…two…one…"
In a flash of whitish blue light, the ship lanced forward at insanely high speeds, slipping ever so slightly out of phase to facilitate travel at higher-than-relativistic speeds. The whitish blue energy of the phase tunnel continued to flow around the ship, beginning at the nose and flowing back in a thin cone like the trail of a comet.
"Shields and weapons on standby. We're going in hot."
LOCATION (SHIP): AES Aegis LOCATION (SYSTEM): OS-001 (Ophiotaurus Station) EMPIRE: Neutral Ground
Naturally, the Athenians were commanding the battle. Empress Athena herself stood on the bridge of her flagship, the Aegis, with her daughter, the Admiral, by her side. The two blonde-haired grey-eyed women were beautiful in an imposing sort of way, and commanded quite a presence on the ship.
The battle was not going well, though. The Arean Empire's crimson fleet was way out of position, fighting too close to the enemy. Apollo's gold painted ships were scattered, making their long-range fire ineffective. The silver ships of the Empire of the Hunt, Artemis's empire, were darting about, taking out enemy battleships and carriers but not being too effective at damaging the enemy fleet as a whole. Hermes's quick little white patrol ships were pretty much useless. Hephaestus's durable soot-black battleships were starting to absorb more fire than they could take
They were outnumbered and outgunned. One thing was clear; the Dark Armada was back.
The bridge was in chaos. Men and women shouted and yelled. Conduits and pipes exploded and leaked. The air was full of the musty stench of electrical fires and spilled chemicals. Smaller ships could be seen in flames out the viewport.
"Starboard shields at ten percent and dropping!" screamed a frantic tactical officer. "Starboard firepower falling below forty percent."
"Starboard roll! Bring our port weapons to bear!" the Admiral ordered, doing her best to keep her cool.
"It's no good! Maneuvering thrusters aren't responding!" shouted the helmsman.
"Shit! Starboard shields have failed."
"Multiple hull breaches!"
"Major power relay stations on decks five, seventeen, and thirty-six have blown!"
"We have to call the retreat, mother," the Admiral said.
"Indeed, Annabeth. Recall the fighters. We cannot win this fight," Athena responded.
"Negative, sirs!" reported the sensor operator. "I've got multiple contacts emerging from phase space directly behind us!"
Annabeth Chase whipped around. "How many?"
The man glanced at his display. His eyes widened in shock. "Hundreds, sir. Hundreds."
"Were dead," Annabeth moaned.
She watched as over three hundred warships emerged from phase space almost directly behind the Aegis as it attempted to maneuver to escape. Her eyes narrowed when she saw them. She seemed to recognize the color scheme.
"We've got a general transmission coming through on the FOE emergency frequency," reported the comm. officer, as another salvo of weapons fire shook the Aegis.
"Let's hear it," Athena said.
"…repeat, this is Admiral Jackson aboard the Poseidonid Empire Ship Atlantia…"
"-and this is Admiral Grace aboard the Zeus Empire Ship Thunderhead."
"Thalia! How the hell did you get here? Zeus let you?"
"No, and I was about to ask you the same question about Poseidon."
Annabeth raised an eyebrow at her mother. The Admirals had ridden to the rescue against the orders of their Emperors? Not that she didn't appreciate it, but it was certainly strange. Unheard of, even.
"Save it, you two," Athena said into the comm.
"Thank goodness, Percy! You showed up just in time," Artemis's voice came over the frequency. Annabeth raised an eyebrow again. Artemis addressing a man by his first name? She must have misheard…
"What about me?"
"And you too, Thalia."
"I said save it," growled Athena into the comm. device. "We have a battle to win!"
"Oh…right. Reform your fleet behind mine, Empress. Any ships you have in good condition should take formation on my left. Thalia, you've got the right. I need you to turn their flank so we can rout them," Admiral Jackson commanded.
"And who put you in command?" Athena demanded.
"Uh…."
"I did," said Thalia.
"Seconded!" Artemis announced.
"Artemis, how do you know this little bastar-"
"All ships in formation now! My fleet is coming into fire range. Thalia, flank speed on my mark," Jackson announced. Admiral Chase couldn't help but admire how efficiently he took control of the situation. She could see his fleet performing vaguely patterned maneuvers, trying to confuse the enemy as they advanced. The Poseidonids were obviously well trained. Neither Annabeth nor her mother could figure out what the actual attack formation was going to be.
"Regroup the fleet behind him," Athena ordered grudgingly. "Any ships that have well functioning weapons, shields, and engines should form up on his left."
"Done sir."
The Armada tried in vain to counter the advancing Poseidonid fleet's maneuvers. At the last minute, the center pulled back as the Poseidonid left and right lanced forward to make contact with the enemy line.
The Dark Armada was not ready for this; they had put their heavy hitters in the center and the soft targets on the flanks. Blue lasers lanced from thousands of turrets throughout Admiral Jackson's fleet and assault carriers dropped hundreds of bomber strike fighters right on top of the Armada's most vulnerable ships. Frigates and cruisers maneuvered nimbly around the Armada's missile salvos, responding with a rippling fire of their own nukes. Poseidonid battleships stood their ground, soaking up huge amounts of fire as they covered fighter launches and facilitated breaks in the enemy line for the cruisers to exploit.
Definitely well trained, well organized.
Then the massive Atlanita gunned her engines, just as the Armada was maneuvering to counter the flank attacks. The battleship, flanked by heavy cruisers, slammed into the scattering Armada's center. Annabeth smiled. Now all she had to do was sit back and watch the light show.
But Admiral Jackson had more up his sleeve. Minimum casualties, maximum effect, she figured was his policy. "Admiral Grace, finish them off!" came his voice over the comm.
"With pleasure," she growled, seeming to take actual delight in blowing people into the vacuum of space.
The Zeus Empire fleet, painted in subdued yellow and grey, went to flank speed, crushing through what was left of the Armada's left flank. They quicky hit the Armada in the rear-center, splitting the enemy in two. Annabeth smiled as the Thunderhead and Atlantia met halfway and passed each other, tossing casual twenty-one nuke salutes as if there was no battle raging around them. By now she had deduced that the two Admirals knew each other quite well.
As soon as the Thunderhead and Atlanita met, the Dark Armada fell to pieces. Few battleships were left flying for the rest of the fleet to regroup around. The ones that were still around were so harried by strike craft and frigates that no Dark cruiser dared go near them.
Out of the corner of her eye, Annabeth caught a feint group of engine glows. That instant, she knew that it wasn't over.
She pointed them out to Athena. The sensor operator took a closer look.
"Boarding craft!" he exclaimed. "Their heading right for the station!"
Athena cued the comm. "Aegis to Atlantia. Admiral Jackson, are you there."
"Right here, m'lady," he responded.
"We've got boarding craft making right for Ophiotaurus Station," she informed him.
"Really? Lieutenant Ogden, can you… yeah…oh, gods! You're right!"
Athena smirked. "I'm always right."
"I'm going to beam over there with my Marines. If you've got any…" Wait, did he say I'm going to beam over there.
"We'll send them," assured Athena.
"Wait," Admiral Chase interrupted. "What do you mean 'I'm going to beam over there.'"
But the comm. line went dead. Athena turned to her daughter and shrugged. "Perhaps he's a fool"
"Somehow I doubt that," Annabeth responded, glancing at the decimated Dark Armada.
"Well, he is a son of Poseidon," Athena growled. "Colonel, are you go?" she asked, tapping her communicator.
"We are go."
"Transport now."
A few seconds later. "We've arrived."
"Who's in command down there," Athena asked.
"Uh… it's hard to tell…" the Colonel of the Marines responded.
Annabeth raised an eyebrow and keyed her comm. "What do you mean, 'it's hard to tell.'"
"Well, Admirals Jackson and Grace are sort of running the show together… Artemis is just watching, so I'm pretty sure she's not in command," the Colonel responded.
Athena keyed her comm. again. "Aegis to Artemis. Who the hell is in command down there? And why are the Admirals leading a small arms fight."
Artemis's voice came over the comm. "Just let Percy and Thalia do their thing. It seems unorthodox, but it works very well…saved my sorry rear end on more than one occasion, I will tell you that."
Athena sighed dejectedly. "I sure hope those two know what their doing."
LOCATION (SHIP): PES Atlantia LOCATION (SYSTEM): OS-001 (Ophiotaurus Station) EMPIRE: Neutral Ground
"Aegis to Atlantia. Admiral Jackson, are you there."
Percy sat up in his chair and cued the comm. "Right here, m'lady," he responded.
"We've got boarding craft making right for Ophiotaurus Station," she informed him.
"Really?" Percy turned to his sensor operator. "Lieutenant Ogden, can you… yeah…oh, gods! You're right!"
"I'm always right," came Athena's voice. Percy refrained from muttering you're worse than Artemis.
"I'm going to beam over there with my Marines. If you've got any…" Percy said.
"We'll send them," assured Athena. Percy shut off the comm.
"Colonel Greco?" Admiral Jackson said, standing and walking towards the bridge exit.
Natasha stood up and stretched lazily. "On it, sir."
Captain Vera turned around in her chair. "I'd cite protocol, sir…"
Percy laughed as he left the bridge. "Protocol went out the airlock the moment we started this mission."
"Protocol went out the airlock the moment you took command," Olivia Vera muttered. "You're going to get yourself killed one of these days," she yelled. "Imagine how Thalia will feel."
Percy just laughed as he left. He knew that everyone loved to make fun of his and Thalia's friendship and pretend it was romantic, but he and everyone else knew perfectly well that it was not.
He soon arrived at the transporter chamber, where the ten by ten square was being expanded to fit three hundred marines. "Room for two more?" Percy asked, as he and Natasha Greco approached.
"I think we can squeeze you in," Major Lorne said, scooting back.
Percy and Colonel Greco crammed in, being handed three-foot laser rifles as they did. Percy made sure his trusty sword was at his belt and nodded to the transporter operator. "Beam us to the station."
Alright. Yes, no? Should I just stick to Rule the Waves (its not being canceled, mind you. I'm just splitting my time. With summer on the way, I'll have a lot more of that to spare, anyways)? Anything that needs more explaining? Anything too confusing? Reviews make the world go 'round, you know? Just kidding. But seriously, review. And until next time (which may actually be pretty soon), adios!