Chapter 7


All the alarms went off in not only Lasky's instincts, but also throughout his entire ship. The ship shook when there was another wing of TIE Fighters strafing the Infinity's shields in an attempt to throw them offline. Lasky tried to get in contact with the Imperial fleet, but they refused to answer their hails. An intelligence officer was constantly rambling about how "We never should have trusted the Empire in the first place" and all sorts of stuff like that, and eventually Lasky had him removed from the bridge. Another blast shook the ship as the XO looked over the systems.

"Sir, that blast was from that SSD! Shields dropped to 50%!" he called out.

There was a fire in Lasky's eyes. "Deploy all fighter wings and Stridents. We're returning fire."

In a matter of seconds, wing after wing of starfighters were launched into space to intercept and destroy the Imperial TIEs while the Strident-class frigates focused their fire on the nearest Star Destroyer, ultimately crippling their weapons systems and hyperdrive. Before they could finish off that ship, another Star Destroyer maneuvered to provide cover while they repaired their hyperdrive.

There was a wall of turbolaser fire from the battle fleet, but Lasky knew that wasn't all their firepower. The Empire was holding back, and that was a mistake on their part. All the Imperial-II Star Destroyers held their fire when the Strident-class heavy frigates maneuvered to dock with Infinity. The Executor-class Super Star Destroyer continued firing all its forward batteries, effectively dropping the Infinity's shields; But that was a move anticipated by Lasky, who ordered power be rerouted to the MAC cannons.

Roland managed to hack into the Empire fleet's comms systems, so they can hear everything they say. They had poor security when it came to an AI. As soon as the MAC cannons began spinning up, there was a lot of chatter from the SSD.

"Captain, the enemy ship is firing at us!" an Imperial officer said, not realizing there's been a comms hack, but the sound of his voice made it known to everybody that he thought it was funny.

"Seriously? What can they hope to accomplish against a ship this size?"

Lasky grinned, "Roland, open a hacked channel."

"With, pleasure." With a nod, Roland cued Lasky to began speaking.

"This is Captain Thomas Lasky of the UNSC Infinity. You have declared war on the UNSC and we order you to stand down... while you still can."

"What is the meaning of this? How did you get in contact with us?" the Imperial captain asked.

"We have our ways, but that's not important right now. I suggest you leave before anything bad happens," Lasky said, receiving a scoff from the Imperial.

"My ship is much bigger than yours," he said, "What can you hope to accomplish?"

"Let me give you a demonstration," Lasky said, nodding to the officer in charge of firing the MAC guns. Pressing a button, Lasky muted his mic. "Target the citadel, fire at will."

The lights flickered and the ship shook as the MAC guns fired, the two beams from the projectiles ultimately tearing through the Empire's shields and straight through their hull, effectively damaging major engine, weapon, and life support systems. The force of the MAC projectiles piercing the hull also shattered the projectiles, causing more damage to internal systems. They must have hit their reactor core, because a huge explosion just about tore the massive 19 kilometer ship in two; Their citadel in pieces, their Command Bridge detached from the primary structure as the massive wedge-shaped warship smashed into two more Star Destroyers, destroying them completely.

Lasky stared, dumbfounded at the sight. "What did we just shoot?"

"I believe when our MAC rounds hit the target, they broke apart effectively causing more damage to the internal systems. If my theory is correct, then one of the shards must have hit their reactor core," Roland reported, having the schematics for the MAC rounds and the Imperial Super Star Destroyer in front of him.

"That was unintentional, but it seemed to work..." Lasky said as he watched the remains of the Imperial fleet struggle to regain their formation. "We should leave while we have the chance. Did we get all that for the records?"

Roland nodded, "All from the beginning."

"Good. Spin up the Slipstream drive. We've taken enough of a beating," Lasky said as he glanced over to the damage control. There were red lines along the starboard side, from stern to aft. Some dorsal armaments were offline from direct hit from multiple bombing runs, many TIE fighters and bombers were shot down, and many of the enemy strike groups collided with either Infinity or some friendly strike groups. A slipspace rupture appeared and the Infinity jumped into the slipstream, just as the disorganized Imperial fleet began to reorganize themselves.

Lasky ordered Roland to activate a shipwide transmission, and after receiving a nod from the AI, he began to speak. "All hands, we are clear. Stand down. I need repair crews on all levels, starboard side, and dorsal armaments. Nav, what's our position?"

"If we drop out of slipspace now, we should be around..." the nav officer double checked the star charts and the jump coordinates, "What people here call the 'Wild Space'. Basically the middle of nowhere."

"Get us out of slipspace," Lasky ordered.

Moments later, the Infinity was back in normal space and there was nothing anywhere near them. The closest civilization was about 4 parsecs away from them according to the charts.

Lasky watched the scanners for anything and 10 minutes after leaving slipspace, everything was still quiet. He turned to the comms officer.

"Comm, send a scrambled transmission to the Rebellion."

"Our communications array has been damaged, Captain."

Lasky cursed as he looked back out into the void. Then we go to them. Roland, is there any chance the Empire placed a tracker on the ship?"

Roland looked over to Lasky, "Negative, sir. No foreign devices detected. Any TIE parts that collided with us were disintegrated when we entered slipspace."

"Was that 7th Fleet?" he asked then.

Roland checked the records. "Negative, that was not 7th fleet."

"Then it's no wonder we are alive. I've seen recordings of Thrawn's battles; He's won battles where the odds were definitely against him," Lasky said.

"Then it's a good thing we specialize in overwhelming odds," Roland said with a smirk.

"I suppose you're right... Comm, is there a way to send a message to Central Command for military support?"

"I can try, sir. It would take a couple months for the message to reach them at best."

"Do it. Ask them to send whatever they're willing," Lasky ordered.

"I'll make sure to add a situation report if you want me to, sir."

Lasky nodded, "Go right ahead. Nav, set a course for Yavin 4." He nodded to Roland and he returned the nod.

"All hands, prep for slipspace!" Roland said through the internal comm systems.


Everything used to be quiet inside the Rebel Command Center on Yavin, until rumors appeared about a super star destroyer being torn apart by a single ship blast, which was unheard of. Rebel officers and soldiers were running everywhere, engineers were making sure the fighters and other ships were fully refueled, the entire Rebel leadership was also a bit uneasy. Things only got more tense when they picked up an anomaly in orbit, then a massive ship. After they realized it was the UNSC Infinity, they relaxed a bit. Before they could even establish contact with the Infinity, however, there were Broadswords and Pelicans landing on their grounds. UNSC Marines and ODSTs were marching out of their ships and walked up to the approaching Rebel security teams. The security teams knelt behind crates and aimed their weapons at the advancing Marines; Both sides having orders not to fire until fired upon.

One of the Marines turned around and called, "All clear, Captain. All contacts friendly."

"I know, Master Sergeant," Lasky said as he walked out of one of the Pelicans. He looked over to the confused rebel security teams and held up his hands in surrender. "I need to speak with Rebel leadership."

The rebel soldiers cautiously stood up, their weapons still trained on the UNSC forces. Fortunately, there was a familiar voice calling out to them.

"All hands stand down!" Sabine Wren ordered. She was standing not too far away, wearing her armor as usual. Ezra was standing next to her, just as focused, wearing his usual orange outfit. (Seasons 3-4 Outfit)

Sabine and Ezra ran up to Lasky, "Captain Lasky, what are you doing here?"

"We'll explain everything in the Command Center. We have to borrow your communications," he replied, hurriedly.

"Woah, calm down there, Captain," Ezra said. "Hera is in the command center. You really gave us a bit of a scare."

"I apologize for the sudden appearance," he paused a moment. "I suppose you all have already heard?"

"You mean the Super Star Destroyer being torn apart with one blast? Yeah, we've heard," Sabine said. She studied Lasky's face, "That was Infinity, wasn't it?"

Lasky nodded grimly, "We didn't intend to destroy it, just disable. Unfortunately for them, one of the pieces of our MAC projectiles pierced their reactor core and it detonated."

"Do you have more ships of that class?" Ezra asked, but Sabine elbowed him in the ribs.

"Not now, Ezra," she growled.

Lasky held up a hand, "No it's alright. To answer your question, we had a sistership under construction. I don't think it's completed as of yet, but anything's possible."

"Ezra," Sabine began, "We should take them to the command center. I'm sure Hera is wondering what all of this is about."

Ezra nodded, "Right. I believe you know the way?"

Lasky nodded and Ezra and Sabine led them to the command center where Hera was waiting for them.

"Captain Lasky, I suppose there's a good reason why you're here... with your soldiers."

"Indeed. I assume you are aware that there was a super star destroyer, Executor-class to be exact, that was blown apart?" he asked.

"I am. Was that your doing?"

"It was. We were just minding our own business when we discovered an Imperial vessel trailing us. Not long after we discovered it, an Imperial fleet appeared and began attacking us for no reason. We did nothing to provoke them and we had their permission to roam the galaxy, as long as we do not interfere with Imperial operations," Lasky explained.

"Well it definitely sounds like something the Empire will do," Ezra said.

"That's exactly what the Empire does," Sabine said, catching Ezra's eye. Despite the fact the entire UNSC Infinity battle fleet is active, along with many of her soldiers being grounded, she had a smile on her face when she saw his eyes. She almost seemed entranced, and Lasky took notice.

He elbowed Hera, "What's up with those two? They're usually well focused."

"One, we're at home and no mission, so they're relaxed a bit more. Two... well, she finally did it," Hera whispered.

Lasky had a confused look on his face, "Did what now?"

"Ezra has had a crush on Sabine since he joined my crew, and fairly recently Sabine found herself in the same situation. The only way for her to keep Ezra here with her, was to confess her feelings," Hera explained quietly.

"What do you mean by, 'Staying'?" he asked.

"He was going to join your ODST unit... or at least, wanted to after that incident with the Covenant," Hera said.

"Unfortunately for his wishes, he would not have been able to. The training takes years and not many people get in. As for the Spartan branch, there's no chance. He would have had to been a lot younger to begin that course, but even then there's no guarantee he would survive the augmentation. The doctor to created the Spartans, well... she's nuts. Brilliant, but nuts."

Ezra looked over to the two adults, who were talking quietly. But even then he knew what they were talking about and he looked back over to Sabine.

"We should focus..." he said, blushing lightly.

Sabine blinked and shook her head, "Yeah... Yeah, sorry."

Ezra smiled, "It's alright. No need to apologize."

"So we can finally get back to the briefing?" a Marine asked.

"Patience, Stacker," Lasky said. "We're getting to it."

"So, Lasky," Sabine began. "What kind of firepower does the Infinity really have?"

"I'm afraid that's classified information. Also the less you know about Infinity the better. We wouldn't want the Empire to find any weaknesses in my ship, especially since it's the only one of its kind, as far as I know."

"Captain, our message for home is on it's way. Should get there by the end of next month if not this one," a Marine said.

"Good to hear."

"Wait, message?" Hera asked.

"We're calling home for some backup. With any luck that anomaly has been stabilized and contained by the Covenant after we passed through it," Lasky said.

"I thought the Covenant we the enemy," Sabine remarked.

"Back home they aren't, but there are some groups of former Covenant mercenaries, and as for the ones in this galaxy, they have been banished from the Covenant Empire," Lasky explained. "The data we received from the anomaly hints that it would be a random drop, but still within or around this galaxy."

"How long did you say that message was going to take to reach your galaxy again?" Ezra asked.

"Best chances are end of next month. Until then, we're going on the defensive against the Empire. We do not want any more trouble than they've already caused us."

"What are you waiting for?" Hera asked.

Lasky stared at everybody. "If everything's alright with my Central Command, you can expect a UNSC battle fleet. What ships are part of it, I wouldn't know until they get here."

"But then all of you could be stranded here," Hera protested.

"If there's a way in, then there's bound to be a way out. Can't have one without the other," Lasky said.

Everybody around Sabine noticed she was thinking about Lasky's situation, trying to put all the pieces together. "So... basically, the UNSC is now at war with the Empire?"

"I'm certain of it, and it's a bad idea to fight us. We've been through so much back home, seen things even the Empire would fear. Many of our battles were against impossible odds and we still prevailed. All thanks to the Master Chief, of course," Lasky said.

"How much is a Spartan worth compared to a normal soldier?" Hera asked.

"My guess, one Spartan as skilled as the Chief and his team is worth an army's worth of soldiers," Lasky replied. "He's taken down an entire Covenant force by himself more than once. Countless underestimated him, countless have died for it. Including the Didact."

"Didact?" Ezra asked.

"Long, complicated story that's also highly classified. But I can tell you this: The Didact is a being even the Chief has had a lot of trouble with and that's saying something. A Covenant army couldn't come close to Chief's combat abilities, but even his were insignificant compared to the Didact."

"Doesn't sound like a guy we would want to meet," Sabine said.

"Fortunately, all thanks to Blue Team, he's dead," Lasky said.

"Alright, can we get back on track?" Hera asked.

"Of course," Lasky nodded.

"You said I wouldn't have been able to become ODST. Why couldn't I?" Ezra asked.

"First, you would have to come home with us and I know you wouldn't want to leave your family here," Lasky began to explain, "Secondly, the training is gruesome. I'm not doubting your abilities, but I don't think you'd fit in very well. Third, you know next to nothing about us and our culture. It would take a lifetime to learn all of it; Our history, science, medicine, everything."

Ezra looked down, a little disappointed, but he also knew Lasky had a very good point leaving little to no room for contradictions or arguments. Lasky knew he had to compromise a little, give the guy a chance to know what it's like at least.

"Tell you what, I will let you fight with us and give you only a fraction of their training."

Ezra's eyes lit up, "I would be honored." He looked down at Sabine and he knew what she wanted. "What about Sabine?"

"I suppose we could give her some experience, too."

Sabine and Ezra smiled, but that smile was soon interrupted with the perimeter scanners going nuts.

"General! We have an unknown ship that just... it just..."

Hera glanced over to Lasky, who began to contact Infinity. She then turned back to the officer. "Calm down, what happened?"

"One second, everything was clear. The next there was some wormhole and then a ship!"

Ezra paled slightly, as did Sabine. As a matter of fact, everybody in the room slightly paled; Everyone, that is, except for the UNSC forces.

"Lasky to Infinity. Don't worry about us, just intercept that ship!" he called into a communicator. "We can not let it run a bioscan on this planet!"

Roland responded and began launching the frigates and fighter wings, their coordinates set for the CAS-class assault carrier, weapons fully charged, speed ahead flank. For now the Covenant ship was outside their scanning range, and it was the Infinity's job to set up a blockade around the edge of their scanners range. Failure is not an option.


Sorry for the delay. This was supposed to be up by last night, but I couldn't really think because I continued writing so late. I hope everything was good for this chapter, but if there were some mistakes I made, please feel free to let me know.

Also, as requested by Tython055, I am planning on starting a DBZ/SWR crossover (Dragon Ball Z/Star Wars Rebels). In all honesty, I look forward to writing it. I should start writing it after Unknown Love is completed; When it will be finished, I don't know. It depends on how future chapters go.

Thank you for you patience and support. May the Force be with you, always.