Writer's notes: UPDATED 17 DEC 06. The pithy blurb is a chess opening, The Queen's Gambit Accepted. It's one of my favoites, so I thought I'd toss it in.
This section focuses on Carth with a bit of light shed on what made Revan the stretegic genius talked about in the game. I also want to show Admiral Dodonna as a strong, yet human leader, one who must make hard decisions in times of conflict. The attack models modern aerospace warfare and, hopefully expresses the pace and tension present in such a battle. I use a bit of technical jargon to give the flavor of aerospace combat, but hopefully it's explained well.
The Queen's Gambit – Part I
White: x x x x x Black:
P-Q4 x x x x x xP-Q4
P-QB4 x x x x x PxP
P-K4 x x x x x x P-K4
N-B3
Republic Warship Majestic – Bridge – Day Two – 0051Z
Admiral Dodonna's face was ashen as she sat in the command chair of the Majestic. She had watched the tactical display of the torpedo bomber assault as 120 blue circles swarmed over the Sith Fleet and, one by one, they vanished until the datalink went down. Bastila's Battle Meditation had helped the attack achieve significant damage, but the bulk of the Sith Fleet remained.
"Five squadrons…" she whispered. "I've sent five squadrons to their doom."
The Ops Officer spoke, getting her attention. "Admiral, our next wave will hit the Sith in twenty-five minutes. I have a message from the Impervious, Intrepid, and Endeavour, indicating that they are recovering starfighters for rearming and refueling."
The display showed the last known position of the Sith and they were now in range of the Republic fighters. Admiral Dodonna studied the display thoughtfully, debating launching her attack squadrons.
I have to live with everything that happens here. How can I send more of my crews to their deaths?
Suddenly, an alarm sounded.
The Sensor Officer spun around. "Proximity alert. It's a Sith scout. Fighter Squadron Twelve is on it…. The scout is destroyed."
"Did it get a signal out?" the admiral asked urgently.
"Unknown."
Admiral Dodonna bit her lip. She couldn't take the chance that the Sith had reported their position. "Ops, turn the fleet to a heading of Zero-Eight-Five, Mark One-One-Zero. Give the order to launch the attack squadrons with fighter escort."
Aboard the Intrepid, Carth received the signal to launch and he hit the klaxon button to alert the crews. Men and women came running toward the hangar bay, scrambling to prepare the starfighters for this important attack.
Seemingly calm, Carth walked toward his starfighter, having just come from the Life Support Section. There, he was given his oxygen mask and other survival gear, including his helmet, known as the brain bucket.
The ground crew swarmed around his craft, which was swathed in steam and covered in hoses. The stubby craft had wicked-looking, forward-swept wings with laser cannon mounted on the tips. Four sensor-homing and four infrared-homing missiles were being loaded under the fuselage by the sweaty crew.
As Carth approached, a grizzled man in orange coveralls looked over.
"Onasi! You piece of crap," the man bellowed in a gravely voice.
The captain looked over at the man with a scowl as Aerin rushed over to see what was happening. The two men stared at each other for a tense moment before they broke into laughter. Carth then grasped the man's hand firmly as if they were old friends.
"Chief, you busted up space dog."
Aerin looked perplexed at the strange display of camaraderie. "Who is he?" she asked.
Carth laughed at her confusion. "This is Senior Chief Becktor. He was my ground crew chief on the Vanguard, the ship I was on just before the Endar Spire."
Chief Becktor scratched the stubble on his cheek as he puffed a fat cigarra. "Onasi, I personally took over your crew and your bird is in top shape. I painted your nose art just like on the Vanguard, now you go get those Sith bastards."
Carth walked over and ran his hand along the metal skin of the starfighter. There was a look of love in his eyes and they gleamed like diamonds. Ten large stars and two smaller ones adorned the side of the cockpit, memorializing his One Hundred and Twovictories over enemy starfighters. At the nose of the starfighter was a painting of a woman over the words, 'Morgana's Revenge'.
Carth nodded with satisfaction and slapped the Chief on the shoulder. "It's good to have you on my team again. Hey, we need to fix the Lieutenant up. Go paint her something quick…we need to think of a callsign too."
Aerin wrinkled her nose. Callsigns were nicknames chosen by others and were often unflattering. Aerin's flight school callsign was Gummy Bear due to her physical flexibility. However, it was far better than some others like Nards for the guy, who got smashed between the legs riding his swoop bike, or Stench for the guy, who was sprayed by a skunk.
Carth made a sly smile and she knew he had something up his sleeve. "I was going to call you Prissy Princess, but I'm feeling kind. Your callsign is Raven."
A few minutes later, Chief Becktor had the painting of a raven in flight with a worm in its mouth up on Aerin's starfighter. The worm had the face of Darth Malak.
Sith Flagship Leviathan – Day Two - 0112ZThe Dark Lord of the Sith hammered his fist into a metal bulkhead, putting a faint dent into it. He wore confusion and rage like a mask with twisted features from which yellow eyes shone like lightsabers. "Where are all of those Republic craft coming from?"
A second wave of Republic torpedo bombers had just begun their attack run, forcing the Sith to conduct evasive maneuvers, delaying their next strike on Thyferra.
The Leviathan lurched to starboard and burning Sith ships could be seen through the Bridge window. Admiral Karath stumbled and nearly fell. "Damn you, Forn. I'll see you roast for this." The traitorous admiral still held grudging respect for his former subordinate. He knew she could fight like a cornered Kath Hound. As the enemy flitted about, he searched his mind for clues as to what she was planning next.
Then, the Communications Officer turned. "I'm receiving a message from a scout. It's twenty minutes old, but it reports sighting the Republic Fleet…Position…Three-Four-Zero at fifteen thousand kilometers. They were shielded by the star."
Admiral Karath bared his teeth. He now knew why they failed to detect the enemy earlier. Now, they could wipe out the Republic, but not while they were under attack. "We must destroy these torpedo bombers quickly! Prepare a strike."
From the fore of the Bridge, Darth Malak stared off into space. In his dark mind, he saw something…sensed something. A familiar presence was making itself known. "Bastila…Bastila is here, using her Battle Meditation against us." As the eddies of the Dark Side of the Force flowed through him, his earlier panic fled. The power was like an old friend, calming him, focusing him on his evil plan.
He peered out of the transparisteel window to see another flight of Republic torpedo craft lining up for an attack run on the Leviathan. They came on in nice neat waves, singling him out for retribution.
Torpedo Squadron 8 – Day Two - 0114ZCanderous Ordo sat in the rear of the ponderous torpedo bomber, a Suubroc Industries Galaxy Wing. During the Mandalorian Wars, this model of bomber was cutting edge, having devastated the minions of Mandalore. However, the march of time left it often outclassed against the Sith.
How ironic is this…a Mandalorian warrior fighting as a gunner in the Republic Fleet. If only Jagi and Ergeron could see me now. They'd never let me live it down.
His bomber, callsign Cuda 31, flew in tight formation approaching the Initial Point for the torpedo run. The three-man craft carried three proton torpedoes, packing enough yield to cripple any Sith vessel. The man in front of Canderous, the Weapons Officer, flicked a switch on his instrument panel. "Torpedoes armed."
The pilot nodded as the lead bomber turned 20 degrees to port. Ahead, they could see flashes and sparkles where three other squadrons were already engaged in a furious battle.
Canderous moved a control stick in his right hand, rotating the rear turret from side to side, making a whirring noise as it moved. He also adjusted the targeting optics, optimizing them for his sight. He keyed the mike. "Doesn't it make you uncomfortable to fly with a Mandalorian?" he asked boldly.
The pilot answere, "I don't care if you were an Ewok as long as you kill Sith."
Canderous nodded with a chuckle. "I can do that." The mercenary felt an odd sense of pride being out here at the forefront of battle once more and he realized that he didn't care who he fought for as long as it was a worthy cause with worthy comrades.
A few turbolaser shots flashed passed the squadron as they drew nearer. On cue, four bombers peeled off to attack the Sith escort ships and clear a way for the rest of the squadron. They ran in on a Sith destroyer, hammering it with torpedoes, but losing two in the process. Canderous glanced over at the burning hulk and smiled.
Cuda 31 began to buffet as the turbolaser fire became more intense. A bomber next to them disintegrated in a ball of flame, but they quickly closed ranks, filling in the gap.
Suddenly, their Sensor Warning Receiver went off in a high-pitched wail.
"We're locked up by Sith fighters!" yelled the pilot.
Another torpedo bomber erupted in flames and Canderous looked around to see if there were any more incoming missiles. A faint glow could be seen at Five O'clock. His monitor showed that their bomber was locked onto and that a missile was inbound. The mercenary activated a series of switches and bundles of foil shot out of the ventral surface of the bomber. Several pods along the fuselage also began to radiate jamming signals to confuse the enemy.
The pilot began defensive manoeuvres by turning the bomber to starboard and accelerating, hoping to use angular and velocity changes to defeat the missile's tracking system.
Quickly, the glow in the distance grew brighter as the missile closed and Canderous continued to dump chaff. He could see the Sith fighters now, moving quickly toward them. With a touch of his hand, the aft turret came alive, searching for a target to kill.
The incoming missile shot toward them, but slammed into a chaff bundle. The explosion rattled Canderous' teeth as he locked a targeting cue over one of the Sith. As the enemy fighter danced about, the mercenary pressed the trigger. Laser bolts flashed out of the turret and sizzled along the skin of the Sith fighter. Metal bits flew from the fighter's wing as small flames erupted from its fuselage. The Sith fighter began a slow tumble before its wing separated and it spun out of control.
The pilot of Cuda 31 pushed his engines to the limit and the bomber surged forward, vectoring at a Sith carrier. "Torpedoes locked," declared the Weapons Officer.
The Sith fighters fell back a pace, trying to avoid Canderous' deadly guns. He continued peppering them with laser fire, but they were out of reach.
From the lead fighter, Canderous saw another missile launch. The SWR was not responding so Canderous immediately knew that the missile was infrared homing. He pressed a button along his control stick and hot flares ejected from the bomber. Behind the missile, the Sith fighters bore down upon them again like angry hornets. As the flares passed behind the bomber, they lit up the dark sky like tiny suns. However, the missile rocketed past the flares, continuing on its deadly course – the flares had failed.
"You need to reduce engine power now!" yelled Canderous. "Our heat signature is too high."
The pilot throttled back and the glow of the bomber's engines diminished. With that, the missile slammed into a new flare, throwing sparks and debris through space. As they coasted, the Sith fighters rapidly overtook the bomber and a close quarters fight began.
Flashes twinkled along the nose of the Sith fighter as it fired its deadly laser cannon at them. Canderous felt the bomber shake and he heard numerous thumping noises around him. He swung the turret starboard and unleashed a burst. Sparks of light appeared on the cockpit of a Sith fighter before it erupted in flames.
Ahead of them, a Sith carrier grew rapidly. The monstrosity of its form dwarfed the tiny bomber. Twinkles of laser fire appeared around its hull, unleashing deadly energy to stop this determined attack. "Torpedo away!" yelled the Weapons Officer and three proton devices streaked toward the massive ship.
Each of the torpedoes struck the carrier near the bridge, penetrating deep into the ship's superstructure. A moment later, gouts of flame, burning wreckage, and bodies were ejected into space.
"Die!" yelled Canderous as the bomber pulled up and over the dying carrier, known as the Red Dragon. As flames enveloped them, they pushed through the secondary explosions, but the Sith interceptor stayed with them, determined to extract revenge.
The Sith's guns twinkled again and laser bolts raked across the canopy of the bomber. Canderous was engulfed in light and heat followed by the decompression of the cockpit. He heard screams through his headset and his back was on fire. Air and loose objects were violently ejected into space in a whirlwind of death. As his vision wavered, the monotonous drone of the cockpit voice could be heard.
"Decompression…. Electrical failure…. Engine fire, left…."
As explosions tore at Canderous' craft, Sith Commander Tai veered away from the stricken bomber. "Put a fork in him, he's done," Tai said without emotion as he scanned for more prey. Every Republic craft he killed was one step closer to the new order that was Revan's promise.
The Leviathan
Elsewhere, Darth Malak watched as the Red Dragon burned furiously, as furiously as the fire in his soul. He clenched his fist in impotent rage, knowing that Bastila was fuelling the enemy strike, out of reach of his wrath. Seeing the Republic force close on him, he began to lose heart – Revan's tower of strength was losing his nerve. He turned to Saul Karath, his eyes wild and unfocused. "Admiral, I am going to move the Leviathan out of attack range. You are to take command of the fleet from the carrier, Glory Of Korriban. Direct the attack on the Republic and destroy them."
Everyone on the Bridge knew the words were hollow. Dutifully, the admiral bowed, but said nothing. He clicked his heels and turned sharply around.
With a giant lump in his throat, Saul made his way to the hangar and boarded a shuttle. Revan would never have left her command to someone else. Watching her in battle was like watching the conductor of a symphony. We'd be on Coruscant now if she had survived.
He looked back at the Leviathan one last time, seeing the silver ship engaged in a desperate struggle. Twinkles of light covered its hull while other Sith ships burned like pyres. Saul imagined Forn gloating in her command seat, but then he remembered that she was not one to gloat – she was all business.
Then, his mind turned to another lost friend. "Carth, I know you're out there, old man. I know your leading your squadron like the man I taught you to be." Despite their being enemies, Saul felt a strange pride at thinking Carth would be fighting hard, killing Sith. A bittersweet smile crossed his lip as he thought of what might have been – Carth Onasi, commanding a Sith vessel and standing by his side.
"Why Carth, why did you defy me? I had to kill Morgana…don't you see? I couldn't let you get away with that insult. You understand, old man, I know you do," he said, believing the lie. "When it is all over, I'll be merciful. All you have to do is bow," he added, knowing it would never happen.
Republic Warship Intrepid – Hangar Bay – Day Two – 0122ZAs the Republic torpedo bombers were striking the Sith Fleet, Carth closed the canopy on his starfighter. He flipped the switches around the cockpit, turning on radios and NAVAIDS. He gave Senior Chief Becktor a thumbs up and his ion turbine engines began cranking, powered by the Auxiliary Power Unit. An electronic fan at the intake drew in and compressed ions, creating enormous pressure, forcing them into a combustion chamber, where fuel injectors sprayed the ions with combustible material. There, the ions would detonate, expanding the gaseous mix to spin turbine blades. Exhaust gases were then vented to the rear of the starfighter, providing thrust.
Aerin went through the same startup sequence and gave a thumbs up. Carth keyed his push to talk. "Intrepid control, this is Lancer One-One Flight, in position and holding; ready for launch."
The controller responded, "Lancer One-One Flight, cleared for launch. Vector One-Niner-Five. Expect to rendezvous with Shaka Flight."
"Roger, cleared for launch." Carth gave Becktor a smart salute and then was flung into space. G forces washed over him and he grunted under the enormous pressure.
As he and Aerin cleared the launch tube, the squadron rallied up into formation and vectored One-Nine-Five. They did a quick Alpha Check to test their navigation systems and set their fuel monitors to Joker – Five, Bingo – Three, to tell them when they were getting low on fuel and when they absolutely needed to RTB or return to base.
The flight soon met up with several other squadrons and they accelerated off in search of the Sith.
Perimeter of the Sith Fleet – Day Two - 0145ZOn the far reaches of the enemy fleet, Carth gave the signal for the squadrons to deploy for battle. "I have the Sith Fleet on sensors. Lancers, we're conducting a fighter sweep. Our job is to keep the Sith interceptors off of the bombers. Let's form a wall and get sensors on targets." Carth adjusted his sensors for a Range While Scan mode and began to pick up sensor returns.
From a safe location, the SWACS platform began to get a clearer picture of the battle. The torpedo bombers had been nearly obliterated, but the Sith Fleet was now in disarray. This picture was datalinked to the Lancers and Carth studied it intently before proceeding.
The captain scanned his instruments and noticed a symbol on his Defensive Systems Display. It was a ship's sensor; they had been spotted.
A SWACS controller broke the silence over Onasi's radio. "Lancer Flight, this is Screwtop. Picture, four group box. Leader, bullseye One-Eight-Zero, fifty kilometers, hot, fast."
In his mind, Carth pictured four groups of starfighters in a box formation, 50 kilometers 'south' of the predesignated point and heading for them at high speed.
Carth slewed his sensor in the right area and saw what he expected. His sensor panel lit up with the symbols of enemy starfighters. "Contact, four groups, south bull forty five. Declare," he said, cueing the controllers to confirm that they were Sith.
"Screwtop declares hostile."
"Roger, bandits," answered Carth as he set the master arm switch with a flick of his finger. The contacts out there were definitely Sith and his missiles and guns were now hot and ready for action.
He switched frequencies to speak to his flight. "I want to hit them in two waves. We launch, fall back and launch again. Then, we press to the merge and kill them with Fox Two's and guns."
Aerin nodded, imagining the plan to fire sensor homing missiles, turn and reset the formation to fire again. This would break up the Sith formation and make it vulnerable to further attack. The flight would then engage the Sith in dogfights to finish them off.
The flight radioed in their understanding. "Two…." "Three…." "Four…."
The symbols on Carth's sensor display drew even closer to his squadron. Red numbers on his HUD clocked downward as the range to the enemy decreased.
"This is Screwtop, lead groups splitting…pincer."
The Sith formation had split as the two lead groups diverged, allowing the trailers to charge in. They now looked like a giant pincer about to come down on the Republic squadron. This would complicate Carth's ability to target them. As the range clocked down below 40 kilometers, he locked his sensor onto one of the groups rushing in. "Lancer One-One, locked on the center group."
"One-Two, locked on the western group," answered Aerin.
"Three, locked, eastern group…" "Four…"Carth nodded. Everyone was targeting an enemy group. "Lancers, locked and sorted. Fight's on…fight's on."
With his right hand, he pressed a red button on his control stick. Two missiles shot ahead. "Fox Three…. Lancers, come about, one eighty," he said, indicating that he had launched an active sensor homing missile and ordered his flight to turn around and fall back.
On his sensor display, he could see his two missiles moving toward the enemy flight. The Sith group of four fighters split like a starburst as they attempted to evade his attack. Four sensor returns appeared, vectoring in different directions. In an instant, both of his missiles caught up with the Sith and two of the sensor blips faded.
"Lancer One, two kills. Snapping back to the fight." Carth yanked back on his controls and spun his fighter back toward the enemy. Despite the inertial compensators, the g forces on his body were tremendous. He grunted, squeezing his abdomen as his g suit inflated, keeping the blood in his head.
"Lancer Two, Fox Three kill. Snapping back to the fight."
Carth grinned under his oxygen mask; his flight had scored a number of kills prior to the merge. His display showed that the Sith formation was breaking apart and losing cohesiveness. As the Captain brought his sensor back on target, he locked onto another Sith craft.
"Shoot…shoot…." instructed the computer."Lancer One, Fox One, bandit, One-Seven-Zero, twenty kilometers," he called, firing a semi-active missile. This time, he would have to guide the missile in with his own sensor; this would make him more vulnerable.
"Lancer Two, Fox One…"Carth checked his wingmen quickly. "Two, tighten up."
Aerin pulled in closer, barely a meter from Carth's wing. The Captain watched as their missiles bore down upon the rapidly closing Sith craft. Then, his SWR wailed.
On his defensive display, a large spike appeared at 12 O'clock. "I'm locked onto, Twelve O'clock, medium. Initiate a twenty degree starboard turn on my head nod…now."
Together, Carth and Aerin banked and brought their noses 20 degrees to the right. This would allow them to maintain sensor contact, while still being able to manoeuvre defensively.
Perspiration dribbled down Carth's face as he watched the enemy missiles close on them. His gut tightened and he knew any mistake would be fatal as he rode the razor's edge of disaster. On his HUD the symbols for three more Sith interceptors faded as the Republic missiles timed out on their targets.
"Two, Fox One kill, Two-Zero-Zero. Multiple spikes, Ten O'clock, medium," Aerin stated, indicating she was locked up by numerous Sith – a swarm was arriving.
Carth breathed a short sigh of relief, with the Sith craft eliminated, their missiles would go ballistic and miss without guidance. However, the fight was far from over.
"This is Screwtop, threat, Nine O'clock, ten kilometers…."
Sith starfighters had managed to get in close and were gunning for some payback.