Short Story #2
Space Battle
By: RanmaChan
A massive ship floated silently in the cold void of space, the darkness masking its presence. Over three kilometers in length, its enormous bulk alone would scare away pirates and raiders. Arched columns, silent statues, ornate gilding, monastery like structures, and massive weapons made it a symbol of human art, the art of warfare. Its extensive weapon systems could shear a ship smaller then it in two, its engines could not only thrust it through the void of space, but also through the incredible energies of the Immaterium. It was a blend of art and technology, masterfully created, for the purpose of bringing death to its enemies.
Its color was a deep gray, the ferrocrete and plasteel left unpainted. Its age was uncountable, and hundreds of battle wounds adorned it's sides. Long jagged gashes created by impacting macro-cannons, black sear marks where enemy lance batteries had stuck it, and hull breeches sealed with reinforced ceramite.
Slowly the behemoth turned, its massive armored prow facing towards a tear in the fabric of reality. Long serrated blades emerged from the multicolored mists and lightning, followed by the hull of a ship. The ship almost appeared to be made from the stuff of shadow, with only an eerie red glow to make it noticeable in the void. The intruding vessel was heavily armored, with sword like structures built outwards from its prow. Unlike the ornate gray behemoth which used an armored prow to shrug off fire and ram through smaller ships, the dark invader would tear into another vessels hull, releasing hell into the stricken ship.
The massive gray ship was large and heavily armed, but the intruding black ship was small and swift, it also had the advantage of surprise. The intruder slowly closed the hundreds of kilometers of distance, as the defender continued to turn. As the gray ship was about to turn its defensive prow to the enemy, the bladed ship fired its torpedoes. Massive pods shot out into the inky darkness, if there had been atmosphere for them to make a sound, they would be screaming evilly in delight, knowing the carnage they would bring.
Over thirty torpedoes were fired in total, out of over one hundred or more decoys. Defensive lasers flashed, destroying the torpedoes in bright flashes of soundless light, the heat cooling instantly. Only two real torpedoes made it through the defensive screen, with the decoys breaking against the ships void shields. The two torpedoes burst through the void shields, and hit with massive force, boring through the ship and into its vulnerable insides. Blast doors closed quickly to stop the venting of atmosphere, and to hopefully minimize the damage of the blast. Explosives detonated inside the vessel, blasting through the upper and lower decks. Bodies flew out into space as well as a multitude of debris, all freezing solid in the cold depths.
The bladed ship pushed its engines far over the safety levels, hoping to ram into the floundering giant, but it was not to be. The gray ship stopped turning to meet the enemy, and instead moved forwards on its course. The invader would narrowly miss the weakened sides it hoped to ram, and instead would be in the path of the defenders massive broadside lance batteries.
The bladed ship tried to change its course, but it was to late. Numerous flashes of light lit up the scene for a fraction of a second, detonating against the red void shields of the black ship. The shields died in an explosive blast as the powerful lasers detonated against the side of the ship. Ammo caches were struck, as well as the extremely pressed plasma engines. The invading ship detonated soundlessly in the darkness, its debris floating away into emptiness. The defenders of mankind moved away to repair their wounds and stand guard against the nightmares of the warp once more.