Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Starcraft or the characters, but
the story is mine. I was not paid or not receiving any money from
Blizzard.
Chapter 2
Zeratul was standing on the bridge of his Carrier, the Vengeance. Only one day had past since he and his brethren had returned to Castor to only be heading out with a Protoss attack force to the Antigian sector. He was worried that if the Zerg mustered up enough Broods, they could easily launch an attack on Castor.
He was reading scans that were being fed to him by the computers the Terrans had installed. He was still a little sketchy on reading the information for such a primitive device, but he still tried.
There was a cry to his left. Something was wrong.
"Zeratul, Zerg dead ahead! Just beyond that asteroid belt lies hundreds of them!" cried Zelsasha from his scanning post.
Zeratul turned to the intercom to signal the rest of the fleet. "Attention my brothers and sisters, we have a mild infestation that needs cleansing. Send all Interceptors and Scouts to engage. Corsairs stay to defend the Carriers," he said calmly but efficiently.
Zelsasha turned to look up at Zeratul. His look was of disappointment.
"Young Templar, why don't you join the Gamma wing. I'm sure those scouts could use your, talents," he said looking down on him.
Zelsasha couldn't hold back the joy that had overwhelmed him. "Thank you, Zeratul. I will make you proud," he said leaving his post.
Zeratul stopped him before he went off to reach the hangers. "I don't want you to make me proud. I want you to look out for your wing man and look out for yourself. No heroics Templar. If you do what I am telling you, you will have your own squad to command in the near future."
"Zeratul, I can promise nothing until the situation presents itself. I cannot tell you what I may do out there until I am really out there. I am sorry," he said turning and walking out of the bridge.
"Well Zeratul, he will be a valiant fighter one day. Until that day comes, shall I watch over him?" Artanis said approaching Zeratul from the rear.
Zeratul turned to face Artanis. He sighed slightly. "He will be fine. I pity the fool that engages him. His piloting skills rival that of yours Artanis," Zeratul said sternly.
Artanis raised his brow slightly. "Already? Hmm. He is a quick learner. If you would excuse me Zeratul, I must prepare my scout for battle now," he said nodding to him slightly. He walked past Zeratul and started for the hanger.
Zeratul walked back to the bridge to see a wave of fighters, no. A wave of his people prepare to engage the long hated enemy. "Adun watch over them." he whispered to himself.
"Okay Gamma 5, your new with us, stick to procedure Alpha. Stay close and single out targets. Scouts can outrun most Zerg flyers, but watch out for blood suckers. They come in low and fast," Gamma 1 had said in the intercom.
Zelsasha had a cat like grace as he operated the controls with skilled hands. He armed his anti-particle missiles and powered up his photon cannons.
"Incoming low! By the Gods, they are everywhere!" Gamma 3 shouted.
"This is Taurus 1, all fighters, break and attack. Do not let them through to the Carriers," Artanis said joining the ranks.
That is when the conflict begun.
The first wave of Zerg flyers were mainly Scourges and Mutalisks. The Mutalisks flew with a blinding hate for the enemy they were engaging spitting up the Glave Wurms trying to destroy the intruders. The Scourges picking their targets carefully and rammed into them. The chemicals inside their bodies mixing and exploding.
"Gamma 5, four Mutalisks on your six gaining fast," Gamma 1 warned.
Zelsasha turned to look behind him, confirming the four Mutalisks giving chase. He grabbed the stick and the throttle and powered down his thrust, pulling up as he did so.
"Gamma 5, stick to the procedure! That is an order!" Gamma 1 screamed.
Zelsasha saw the four still pursuing him. He the gave full throttle and quickly banked left. He continued to turn till he was staring the Mutalisks down. Zelsasha fired to missiles then flew right in-between them. The two missiles each finding their targets. Two of the four Mutalisks exploded in large chunks of flesh. The other two turned and were still pursuing Zelsasha.
"Damn. All fighters in Gamma wing break and attack," Gamma 1 instructed. "Always the new guys wanting to die so quickly."
"Zeratul, more Zerg are engaging. Should we send our Corsairs to engage?" one of the Protoss commanders said over the intercom. It was Almarkus from the Protoss Tradition. That was the largest Carrier they had.
"No, not yet. We cannot afford to be defenseless. Give them some time to get the situation under control," Zeratul said in reply. He hoped that they could get it under control.
"Zeratul! Enemy Battle Cruisers warping in!" the communication officer said. "They are hailing us as the Dominion!"
"Damn. Call all fighters back to protect the Carriers. Do not send Corsairs without proper back up. They will be shredded by the laser batteries on those Cruisers. Deploy observers as well. We do not need any surprises from cloaked units," Zeratul ordered.
"Yamato gun fired!" the scanning officer screamed.
The Carrier began to shake and tremble under the force of the blast. Sparks and small fires erupted in some of the stations. The lights flicked and fell black. The emergency power came online a second after ward.
"Call back those fighters now!" Zeratul ordered.
"This is Theta wing, they are deploying fighters! Shall we engage?" one of the Corsair pilots said.
"Adun forgive me. Engage. Stay close enough to their Cruisers so that they cannot fire at us. We can't take another hit like that.
"Zeratul, this is Zelsasha, I have an idea. Deploy Arbiters and send them to the jump node. We are not that far away from there. Then have them recall our forces and let the Terran and the Zerg fight it out," Zelsasha said quickly.
Zeratul was amazed for a brief moment. Maybe he had seriously under estimated his capabilities. "Very well. Make it happen. Deploy Arbiters to the Antiga jump node."
"Zelsasha, keep moving. Devourers are all over you," Artanis said monitoring the pilot.
Zelsasha turned to confirm it, but was hit by a large acid like substance. "I know." he replied quickly. Suddenly he was hit again, this time more direct. His shields flickered once more as he was hit again. His shields began to fail.
"Hang on Zelsasha," Artanis said locking on to the Zerg chasing him. He saw two Devourers still on him. The Mutalisks had given up just moments before. He locked on to both of them and fired two missiles. One of the missiles made a direct hit on one of the Devourers killing it instantly. The other missile was about to make contact when a Scourge rammed the missile.
"Damn," Artanis said taking aim again. He didn't see the other Scourge till it was too late. "By the Gods!" he screamed trying to pull up. The Scourge made contact taking out the shields completely and damaging the Scout.
"Taurus 1, are you all right?" Aries 3 asked with heavy concern.
"Do you see that fighter heading directly towards the asteroids with the Devoured on him?" he asked instead of answering.
"Yes I do. I'm on it," he said giving max. throttle. He was about to engage when a pair of Scourges rammed into his ship. It exploded before the pilot had a chance to know what happened.
Artanis then himself gave max. throttle and started to the Devourer. He tried getting a missile lock but noticed his targeting computer was damaged beyond repair. "I thought this would be a challenge he whispered to himself.
He got within range and began firing his photon cannons. He small blasts sending tiny bits of carapace into space.
The Zerg in an act of rage turned to face him and spit a large dose of corrosive acid toward him. Artanis barely able to pull up just missed it. The creature now enraged followed Artanis.
Zelsasha had his chance. The targeting computer locked onto the Zerg flyer. "Send my regards to your Overmind," he said pressing the trigger. The creature exploded as the missiles hit. It was obviously dead.
"Nice shot Zelsasha. Time for us to get back to the Carriers," Artanis said forming up with Zelsasha.
"We are not waiting forever. All fighters get back to Carriers, we are recalling," Zeratul said. Some of the Carriers had disappeared. All the fighters that were left were either docking with the Carriers or were close enough that they too could be recalled.
The last of the Protoss were recalled and the Zerg began to hammer at the Terrans. The Protoss waited for a few brief moments knowing that another outcome was possible but they had managed to avoid it. More Zerg filled the void and some of the Cruisers began to erupt into balls of giant fire.
"Thank you Adun. Thank you. All ships prepare to warp out back to Castor." Zeratul said blankly. He was sure that a few fighters were still out there of theirs. It pained him to have to abandon them but they had no choice now.
The Greater Conflict had just begun.
Chapter 2
Zeratul was standing on the bridge of his Carrier, the Vengeance. Only one day had past since he and his brethren had returned to Castor to only be heading out with a Protoss attack force to the Antigian sector. He was worried that if the Zerg mustered up enough Broods, they could easily launch an attack on Castor.
He was reading scans that were being fed to him by the computers the Terrans had installed. He was still a little sketchy on reading the information for such a primitive device, but he still tried.
There was a cry to his left. Something was wrong.
"Zeratul, Zerg dead ahead! Just beyond that asteroid belt lies hundreds of them!" cried Zelsasha from his scanning post.
Zeratul turned to the intercom to signal the rest of the fleet. "Attention my brothers and sisters, we have a mild infestation that needs cleansing. Send all Interceptors and Scouts to engage. Corsairs stay to defend the Carriers," he said calmly but efficiently.
Zelsasha turned to look up at Zeratul. His look was of disappointment.
"Young Templar, why don't you join the Gamma wing. I'm sure those scouts could use your, talents," he said looking down on him.
Zelsasha couldn't hold back the joy that had overwhelmed him. "Thank you, Zeratul. I will make you proud," he said leaving his post.
Zeratul stopped him before he went off to reach the hangers. "I don't want you to make me proud. I want you to look out for your wing man and look out for yourself. No heroics Templar. If you do what I am telling you, you will have your own squad to command in the near future."
"Zeratul, I can promise nothing until the situation presents itself. I cannot tell you what I may do out there until I am really out there. I am sorry," he said turning and walking out of the bridge.
"Well Zeratul, he will be a valiant fighter one day. Until that day comes, shall I watch over him?" Artanis said approaching Zeratul from the rear.
Zeratul turned to face Artanis. He sighed slightly. "He will be fine. I pity the fool that engages him. His piloting skills rival that of yours Artanis," Zeratul said sternly.
Artanis raised his brow slightly. "Already? Hmm. He is a quick learner. If you would excuse me Zeratul, I must prepare my scout for battle now," he said nodding to him slightly. He walked past Zeratul and started for the hanger.
Zeratul walked back to the bridge to see a wave of fighters, no. A wave of his people prepare to engage the long hated enemy. "Adun watch over them." he whispered to himself.
"Okay Gamma 5, your new with us, stick to procedure Alpha. Stay close and single out targets. Scouts can outrun most Zerg flyers, but watch out for blood suckers. They come in low and fast," Gamma 1 had said in the intercom.
Zelsasha had a cat like grace as he operated the controls with skilled hands. He armed his anti-particle missiles and powered up his photon cannons.
"Incoming low! By the Gods, they are everywhere!" Gamma 3 shouted.
"This is Taurus 1, all fighters, break and attack. Do not let them through to the Carriers," Artanis said joining the ranks.
That is when the conflict begun.
The first wave of Zerg flyers were mainly Scourges and Mutalisks. The Mutalisks flew with a blinding hate for the enemy they were engaging spitting up the Glave Wurms trying to destroy the intruders. The Scourges picking their targets carefully and rammed into them. The chemicals inside their bodies mixing and exploding.
"Gamma 5, four Mutalisks on your six gaining fast," Gamma 1 warned.
Zelsasha turned to look behind him, confirming the four Mutalisks giving chase. He grabbed the stick and the throttle and powered down his thrust, pulling up as he did so.
"Gamma 5, stick to the procedure! That is an order!" Gamma 1 screamed.
Zelsasha saw the four still pursuing him. He the gave full throttle and quickly banked left. He continued to turn till he was staring the Mutalisks down. Zelsasha fired to missiles then flew right in-between them. The two missiles each finding their targets. Two of the four Mutalisks exploded in large chunks of flesh. The other two turned and were still pursuing Zelsasha.
"Damn. All fighters in Gamma wing break and attack," Gamma 1 instructed. "Always the new guys wanting to die so quickly."
"Zeratul, more Zerg are engaging. Should we send our Corsairs to engage?" one of the Protoss commanders said over the intercom. It was Almarkus from the Protoss Tradition. That was the largest Carrier they had.
"No, not yet. We cannot afford to be defenseless. Give them some time to get the situation under control," Zeratul said in reply. He hoped that they could get it under control.
"Zeratul! Enemy Battle Cruisers warping in!" the communication officer said. "They are hailing us as the Dominion!"
"Damn. Call all fighters back to protect the Carriers. Do not send Corsairs without proper back up. They will be shredded by the laser batteries on those Cruisers. Deploy observers as well. We do not need any surprises from cloaked units," Zeratul ordered.
"Yamato gun fired!" the scanning officer screamed.
The Carrier began to shake and tremble under the force of the blast. Sparks and small fires erupted in some of the stations. The lights flicked and fell black. The emergency power came online a second after ward.
"Call back those fighters now!" Zeratul ordered.
"This is Theta wing, they are deploying fighters! Shall we engage?" one of the Corsair pilots said.
"Adun forgive me. Engage. Stay close enough to their Cruisers so that they cannot fire at us. We can't take another hit like that.
"Zeratul, this is Zelsasha, I have an idea. Deploy Arbiters and send them to the jump node. We are not that far away from there. Then have them recall our forces and let the Terran and the Zerg fight it out," Zelsasha said quickly.
Zeratul was amazed for a brief moment. Maybe he had seriously under estimated his capabilities. "Very well. Make it happen. Deploy Arbiters to the Antiga jump node."
"Zelsasha, keep moving. Devourers are all over you," Artanis said monitoring the pilot.
Zelsasha turned to confirm it, but was hit by a large acid like substance. "I know." he replied quickly. Suddenly he was hit again, this time more direct. His shields flickered once more as he was hit again. His shields began to fail.
"Hang on Zelsasha," Artanis said locking on to the Zerg chasing him. He saw two Devourers still on him. The Mutalisks had given up just moments before. He locked on to both of them and fired two missiles. One of the missiles made a direct hit on one of the Devourers killing it instantly. The other missile was about to make contact when a Scourge rammed the missile.
"Damn," Artanis said taking aim again. He didn't see the other Scourge till it was too late. "By the Gods!" he screamed trying to pull up. The Scourge made contact taking out the shields completely and damaging the Scout.
"Taurus 1, are you all right?" Aries 3 asked with heavy concern.
"Do you see that fighter heading directly towards the asteroids with the Devoured on him?" he asked instead of answering.
"Yes I do. I'm on it," he said giving max. throttle. He was about to engage when a pair of Scourges rammed into his ship. It exploded before the pilot had a chance to know what happened.
Artanis then himself gave max. throttle and started to the Devourer. He tried getting a missile lock but noticed his targeting computer was damaged beyond repair. "I thought this would be a challenge he whispered to himself.
He got within range and began firing his photon cannons. He small blasts sending tiny bits of carapace into space.
The Zerg in an act of rage turned to face him and spit a large dose of corrosive acid toward him. Artanis barely able to pull up just missed it. The creature now enraged followed Artanis.
Zelsasha had his chance. The targeting computer locked onto the Zerg flyer. "Send my regards to your Overmind," he said pressing the trigger. The creature exploded as the missiles hit. It was obviously dead.
"Nice shot Zelsasha. Time for us to get back to the Carriers," Artanis said forming up with Zelsasha.
"We are not waiting forever. All fighters get back to Carriers, we are recalling," Zeratul said. Some of the Carriers had disappeared. All the fighters that were left were either docking with the Carriers or were close enough that they too could be recalled.
The last of the Protoss were recalled and the Zerg began to hammer at the Terrans. The Protoss waited for a few brief moments knowing that another outcome was possible but they had managed to avoid it. More Zerg filled the void and some of the Cruisers began to erupt into balls of giant fire.
"Thank you Adun. Thank you. All ships prepare to warp out back to Castor." Zeratul said blankly. He was sure that a few fighters were still out there of theirs. It pained him to have to abandon them but they had no choice now.
The Greater Conflict had just begun.