Phantom Ship
A fanfiction story by
Patrick Nguyen Huu
Chapter One: Storms
Winds howled as its natural flow was disturbed. Metal shrieked in protest under the strain as the vessel cut through the storm, the steel prow of the vessel cutting through the winds, its hull permeated with numerous holes and burn marks. The ship's gray color blended in with the stormy clouds of the area known as the "Grand Stream", and soon it would be totally hidden from the eyes of ordinary people. The only part of the armor plating that was not painted a dull gray was the its name emblazoned on the side of the ship: CU CHULAINN.
"Damage report!" a strong voice echoed across the bridge of the ship. "Portside turrets have taken severe damage, cannons four and six are down. Claudia pressure fell, but is constant at 78%. Portside armor plates have sustained heavy damage," a calm reply came. The captain of the CHULAINN allowed himself a slight smile. The thrill of battle had soon become a deadly routine for all of them. "Bring us into sector 2531 and begin to affect repairs. Prioritize the armor plates. Status of the intruders?"
The second-in-command scanned over the reports. "All intruders have been eliminated. Wipeout of enemy taskforce complete."
"Good. Maintain one third speed, engage inaudible drive." The captain, a lean man in his mid-thirties maybe, leaned back in his chair. There was much left to do.
Deep in the heart of the Grand Stream, the CHULAINN approached a wall of solid rock in a gray, blurred mountain range. As the CHULAINN neared the cliff, a section of it slid aside and revealed a narrow passage leading deep into the mountain. As soon as the CHULAINN passed it, the camouflage slid back into place. The CHULAINN navigated the sharp turns of the passage, finally ending up in a spacious cavern. Her main bow spotlights came on, illuminating a large superstructure of a drydock in front of the ship. Closing in further, the ship slid into the docking array, fitting perfectly in between the support beams of the structure.
Docking clamps slid into place, securing the vessel to the rock. The crew began disembarging and secondary crew started to move in, hauling crates of ammunition and supplies aboard. Others started inspecting the hull, marking damaged hull plates for later repair.
There was a knock on the door to the office. "Enter," the CHULAINN's captain called out. The second-in-command stepped through the metal door. A woman of average height with short cropped silvery blonde hair and green eyes, she was about as old as the captain, and they almost looked like siblings. She placed an envelope on his desk. "We just received word that the Guild is looking for Exile. Anatoure seems to have a key piece to the puzzle, and according to our informants, she is being transported to the SILVANNA right now."
"Any news from Walker?"
"No, none yet. But the SILVANNA has repeatedly been seen at his dock, so he should have real information pretty soon." The man nodded. "Provided the Guild doesn't blow the SILVANNA out of the sky first." The second-in-command shrugged. "True."
"Good. Let me know when Walker confirms the SILVANNA has the...person, you said? It's a person?" "Yes. Arvis Hamilton. She's about eight years old." The captain leaned back in his chair. "Hamilton...isn't that one of the Guild Houses?" "Yes. Or rather, was. Remember the Purge?"
"I do. Okay. Thank you, Caroline. Try and speed up the repairs, we need to be able to fight before the SILVANNA leaves Anatoure with Arvis." "Are you planning to attack the SILVANNA?" The captain laughed. "Fight Alex Rou? No, we won't be doing that. Just make sure that we're ready when we need to be."
"I will."
"Thank you. Dismissed."
Walking along a bridge connecting two carrying beams of the docking array inside the cavern, the CHULAINN's captain placed a hand on her hull. "They're on their way to Exile...soon you'll have fulfilled your duty," he whispered. "She took quite a beating this time, eh?" Whirling around, he found another man – a mechanic, actually – standing behind him. "Yeah, we got into quite a scrape." The second man laughed. "I'd say. It looks like you took on an entire fleet head-on. We'll need to replace the entire portside armor, and two of the Claudia cells. We also need to replace some gun emplacements along the upper hull. Some of them have been turned into a sieve...literally."
"How long will the repairs take?"
The mechanic shrugged. "Oh, about two months." The captain arched an eyebrow. "But I think we might be able to cut it down to four, maybe three weeks." Nodding, he glanced back at the ship. "Good. Thanks." He continued to stroll along the bridge when he heard someone running up behind him. "Captain! I have a report for you from one of our recon units!"
He stopped immediately and turned around. "What is it?" The messenger skidded to a stop right in front of him, panting. "Recon units in...sector...4424 have confirmed...the SILVANNA is here." The captain arched his eyebrows again. What was the SILVANNA doing here, of all the places?
"Could the units confirm one hundred per cent it was the SILVANNA?" The messenger nodded. "Yes, sir. They saw the ship and got as close as they could without being detected." "What is the SILVANNA doing in the Grand Stream? Alex Rou, what are you up to now..."
"I don't know, but the recon units say they were recovering a Vanship," the messenger handed over a commission tube to him. "The official report is inside, Captain." Accepting the tube, the other man nodded. "Thank you. You can go back to your duty station." "Yes, sir."
Taking the report and reading through it, he started to wonder even more. Why recover a Vanship in the middle of the Grand Stream? And how did the Vanship get there in the first place? He glanced at the coordinates. No...it was too far inside the Grand Stream for a Vanship to have reached under its own power – the winds would have torn it apart before it reached a quarter of the way. So the SILVANNA launched a Vanship...why?
The captain of the CU CHULAINN stood on the elevated platform in the center of the bridge of the ship, watching the workers scuttling about, performing repairs on the now dry-docked CU CHULAINN. "Tom?" He turned around. "Yes?" The woman behind him, Caroline, handed him an envelope. "This just came in via a high-priority courier from Walker's dock. A Vanship Consortium courier has been dispatched to ferry a ten-star cargo to the SILVANNA."
"That's a pretty high danger rating. When was this?"
"Maybe a day ago."
"All right. I just hope the courier makes it to the SILVANNA. If Walker found out, then the Guild probably did, too." He read through the note on the paper inside the envelope: "Norkia Vanship dispatched with 10-star cargo to SILVANNA. It probably is what you are looking for. SILVANNA last known to be in sector 5262 in Anatoure airspace. Regards, Walker."
"Thanks." He turned and activated the intercom, drawing the attention of all workers. "We just received word that the target is on its way. The Guild is probably going to attack it, but now is our time. If the Guild gains control of the Exile, they will be able to wipe us out. And I do not intend to let the key to Exile fall into their hands."
"Are you sure about this, Tom? The repairs are far from complete, and we're not fully armed yet." Caroline asked, a concerned look on her face. "Look sis, this is our chance. If Arvis makes it to the SILVANNA, we can be sure to find Exile, but more than that, they're going to use it to blow a trail right to the Guild stronghold in the Grand Stream. And under no circumstances must Exile fall into the hands of the Guild."
"All right, then, bro. Let's get this show in the road."
"Take us out of the dock. Release docking clamps, and move, one quarter speed forward." "Release clamps, one quarter forward," the second-in-command echoed the CHULAINN's captain's words. As the CHULAINN navigated the passage in the cliff once again, she glanced at the captain. He seemed calm...as calm as one could be when going into battle with a damaged vessel. But he seemed to show no anxiety at all as the CHULAINN was buffeted by the strong winds of the Grand Stream, her incomplete armor partially nullifying the aerodynamics that let the vessel navigate the area so easily.
"Set an intercept course for sector 5262, maximum speed." She relayed the order, and went around the stations to check on the bridge crew. As she passed the command podium, she heard him whisper, "Come on, Alex. Be there."
An operator at the listening post called out, "I have an engine noise! It's slight, but it's there...it almost sounds like a Vanship. They're flying circles around something...I think they just docked." Tom was on his feet immediately. "Set a course for that heading! Engage inaudible drive and scan for more vessels, especially larger ones."
"Is it the SILVANNA?" Caroline was standing beside him again. "I think so. And if that's the SILVANNA, the Vanship is the courier." Turning to face the rest of the bridge, he bellowed, "Prepare for intercept. Scan for hostiles in the area! If they're here, I want to know before they do."
Caroline bent down. "Are you sure that the Guild is going to attack? I mean, it's a serious breach of Guild regulations, isn't it?" Tom clenched his teetch as he replied, "They didn't care much about the regulations when they destroyed Mayasa, did they?" She could see the compassion drain out of his face as his eyes hardened as he recalled the incident.
Alert klaxons blared throughout the ship. Moments later, the guns were up and swiveling, looking for targets of opportunity. Tomaas Riatavin, the CU CHULAINN's master, smiled grimly. His crew knew what they were doing. "Battlestations," he bellowed. He knew he didn't have to give the order, but it was a familiar gesture he had hung on to.
"Incoming Guild vessels. Four squadrons of star-shaped ships. They are approaching at full speed," the second-in-command reported. "Do we engage?"
"Where are they headed?"
"From what it looks like, they seem to be headed towards the SILVANNA and the courier." Riatavin nodded. "Yes. Intercept upon contact. Full speed ahead, maintain inaudible drive. Break through the clouds right there. Try to keep them away from the SILVANNA and the courier. Cannons, use spread armor-piercing shells. Angle 15 degrees. Elevation 12000 feet. Fire when ready." Seconds later, the CHULAINN's powerful main cannon turrets opened fire, unleashing a barrage of high-caliber rounds against the oncoming fleet. "Confirmed hits. Four stars down," the observation post noted. "Targets are still incoming."
"Let them come."
The star-shaped ships broke formation as the barrage of fire blasted through their ranks. Aligning themselves again, they reoriented and scanned for the next target – the one that had them under fire. As they passed a cloud, one of the pilots noticed a darker cloud before them. Before he could react, the CHULAINN broke through the cloud, coming in straight towards the fighters. Too close for even the swift Guild fighters to avoid, the battleship rammed into the Guild formation, smashing several of the fighters before unleashing another barrage of shells.
Some of the Guild fighters broke off their attack and dipped into the clouds, realizing this was not their true mission objective. The remainder began swarming around the CHULAINN, raining machinegun fire upon the ship. Most of it glanced off the heavy armor, but those targeting the damaged portside armor plates managed to puncture the hull.
"Port armor has been penetrated! The armor won't be able to withstand much more! And some of the Guild fighters have broken formation to engage the SILVANNA." The observation post reported. "How many?"
"About half the units. They're headed straight for the origin of the Vanship noise." Tom placed his hands on the railing. "Are they within range of the SILVANNA yet?" "No. They'll probably be within their visual range in one minute, twenty seconds." Before Tom could reply, a jolt went through the ship. "Port armor has been breached! We're being boarded! Three confirmed intruders in sections ten and eleven," Caroline relayed.
"Take them out."
"Acknowledged." Several of the armed crew on the bridge scurried off, and Tom returned his attention to the attacking Guild fighters. "The Guild units have increased engine output! They are at full cruising speed!" The listening post reported. "They are going for a full-speed assault. If the SILVANNA can hold out twenty minutes, they should be safe. Status of the intruders?"
"Three have been neutralized. Five more have attached to the hull and are attempting to break through." "There's a Guild unit coming straight on at us!" Tom looked outside the large viewport that made up the front of the bridge. "Close the blast doors." Two large armor plates slid over the glass, shielding it from the fire of the oncoming star-shaped ship. There was a resounding clang as the armor buckled in. "He's trying to get through!" Caroline retrieved a pistol from her holster.
The glass shattered, and the armor began showing cracks that quickly spread. Wind hissed as the armor gave way and the inside of the bridge lost air pressure. "Everyone, get down!" Tom shouted as a point of a Guild fighter breached through the armor. The ship dragged itself through the thick armor plating onto the bridge. One of the lenses on its belly swivelled, looking for targets of opportunity. It focused on the two people standing on the elevated command platform.
Tom watched grimly as the Guild fighter focused on them. As soon as he was sure to have its attention, he drew a pair of elongated tubes from the inside of his coat and pressed the firing studs, launching two projectiles at the Guild fighter. The first shot shattered the camera, the second shell buried itself deep in the fighter's gun assembly. He could hear the roar of Caroline's gun as she opened up, and pressed the secondary trigger on one of the rods. The shell hit deep into the core of the fighter and exploded, blowing the fighter against the inside of the viewport armor.
He reloaded and glanced around. "Anyone hurt?" As the bridge crew slowly got back to their feet and resumed their posts, he heard a collective, "No." "How many Guild units left?"
"From the engine noise, six," the listening post told him. "Intruders?" "Neutralized." "Good. Open up on the remaining fighters. All cannons, fire at will, then set a course for the SILVANNA." "Acknowledged."
The cannons on the main deck of the CHULAINN turned, aiming for the remaining Guild ships, and opened fire, launchig clouds of armor piercing shrapnel at the enemy. The last Guild fighters went down from that barrage. "All hostiles destroyed."
"What about the SILVANNA?"
"They are damaged, but they are still there. The Guild ships have broken off their attack. Should we rendezvous?" Tom shook his head. "Negative. Break off course. This will give the Guild something to think about. Begin to affect repairs. We will be following the SILVANNA."