A/N: This chapter, by and far, will have the most changes of the ones I revised. Several events were altered in the previous chapter, even if just slightly. Some things remain the same, and others were altered. I believe that you guys may like some, if not all of the changes. Read and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Vandread, but all the characters I've created are mine.
Vandread: A Renewed War
Chapter Twelve: Divine Retribution
Location: Command Center, Hidden Pirate Base, Tarak/Mejale Asteroid Field
"That's a pretty desperate picture the Fleet Admiral painted," Valore commented after Rebecca's conversation with Alaria Zuka was over. "Do you really think we'll be able to pull it off?"
"Not sure," Rebecca replied frankly. "But it doesn't look like we have a choice in the matter."
"Calling for a complete evacuation of both planets, while directly under a numerically superior enemy assault," Valore stated. "You know how much panic that will start, especially on Mejale?"
"I am aware of that," Rebecca replied. "Especially when we, and they, are short on ships, due to this mistake of a war?"
"It won't be easy to convince the higher-ups," Valore commented cynically. "Especially the Tarak ones."
"Well, at least both fleets can return their focus on the real threat, now that the Prime Minister is out of the picture," Rebecca said while glancing over a report.
"Question is, are we really going to go through with this plan without the Boss's approval?" Valore stated, concerned for her fellow comrades on the Nirvana.
"We're going to have to, with or without the Captain's approval," Rebecca replied grimly. "We can't get a hold of them, and we have no idea if or when they'll show up. Survival is our primary concern at the moment. We cannot let the Earthlings win."
"Commander!" the sensor operator shouted. "Both fleets have just engaged the Harvesters!"
"Understood," Rebecca replied. "Damn, we're out of time, we need to open commlines to both leaders, now. Valore, take command of the Paraiso, and see to the preparations."
"Roger," she said curtly, and went about her orders.
Location: Tarak/Mejale Battle Line
"Our Prime Minister has failed us," came the authoritative voice over the Tarak Military broadband frequency. Every Tarak Military vessel and machine that had working comm systems could hear this broadcast. "He has dragged us into a futile, pointless war that cost us many good men. He failed to notice that Mejale was not our true enemy, but that of the Earth fleet that is currently engaging our forces. As a result of his shortsightedness, he has been removed from command. All forces are to disengage from combat against the women and fight this oncoming threat."
"At our current strength, we have little to no chance of turning this enemy back or destroying it, but we will do so anyways. Both nations are now working together to evacuate as many civilians as possible. We are to delay, and deny the Earth force a chance at destroying our people, our comrades, our future! If we do not try, then we all are damned into oblivion, cursed in the fact that we let our misguided hatred doom us all. We do this not for ourselves, but for Tarak!"
After listening to the speech, General Ozeki Kyunmel could only nod in agreement. Having been an experienced veteran of many battles as part of the Empire, he knew when a no-win situation presented itself. This was just such a situation. Overwhelming enemy numbers, both defending fleets badly damaged, commanders, soldiers, pilots, and crewmen on both sides exhausted, both physically and mentally. Yes, this was going to be a hopeless battle, if not for the renewed determination and an admirable goal that had been revealed. About damn time the higher ups got some sense, he thought to himself. "Gale Squadron, you heard the man! Engage the incoming fleet, for Tarak!"
"For Tarak!" came the reply from his squadron.
Location: Temporary Perimeter around Deimos/Nirvana
Sweat trickled down her forehead and into her eyes, and Mayura shook her head slightly, but it did little to help the situation she was in. They were currently engaged with a contingent of Earther forces that had come to capitalize on their situation. She didn't know the reason, but the Nirvana couldn't contribute to this fight due to their ship somehow losing power. She quickly dodged the charge of one of the cube-like drones, turning and shooting it with her machine's battle rifle as it passed. It disintegrated under the fire, only to be replaced by another one, which quickly took a few shots at her.
"Damn buggers," she muttered as she maneuvered her machine away from direct hits, only being grazed by the shots. By the time she locked onto it, it moved out of her view.
"All pilots, keep with formation," Lt. Commander Damon Hunter ordered. "If they scatter us, we'll get picked off one by one."
"Easier said than done," she muttered, careful that her mic didn't pick it up. She quickly responded to another cube drone's attack, shooting it before it could get off a second shot. This was going to be a long day…
Location: Shuttlecraft HSS-67, 5 Hours Later
With a sudden jolt, she woke up, and nearly regretted it. Pain lanced throughout her left arm and shoulder, immediately drawing a pain-filled gasp from her lips. She glanced down, and notice \blood stain the bandages on her left shoulder. She winced slightly, and noticed that the her pilot's vest had been removed, as well as the top part of her suit pulled down. If not for the bandages covering her chest, she'd be topless. She also noticed that her head ornament wasn't on her. She frantically glanced around, letting out a sigh of relief when she saw it lying on a fold-out table near the bunk she was in.
"Good, you're awake," a male voice said. She immediately recognized it as belonging to Aidan, who had just stepped into the room.
She could hardly remember what had happened just before she was knocked unconscious. She remembered getting shot, hitting the ground and passing out moments later. She brought her right hand up to her head. From what she was feeling, she knew she had a slight headache. "How long was I out?""Roughly five hours," he replied, then offered her a bottle of water. "Here."
She took it silently, opened it and took a few sips.
"You're lucky that round hit you where it did," Aidan commented. "Your vest caught the bullet, so it didn't go all the way into your shoulder. If you don't move around too much, should heal without a problem."
She unconsciously reached to lightly touch her left shoulder, wincing slightly. Then she remembered what happened before. She remembered collapsing due to an intense pain, a pain that was caused by the red Paksis. "Where are we?"
"No idea," Aidan replied flatly. "Seconds after we escaped the ship, an explosion engulfed the hangar, damaging the shuttle's engines. The engines gave out several hours ago. I've done what repairs I can manage, but were are currently drifting in space."
The full weight of their predicament hit her. They were adrift, unable to get to the Nirvana. "What about communications? Were you able to contact the Nirvana?"
"The explosion also damaged the long-range comms," Aidan said. "I can only manage short-range comms at the moment. I did activate the distress beacon, though I don't know how long it will be before someone receives it."
A long, awkward silence dragged out between the two, before Aidan spoke up. "I'll let you get your rest."
"No, I was out for too long, I'll help with repairs," she said as she started to get out of the bunk.
"You sure?" he asked, mindful enough to be facing away from her while she was getting dressed.
"Yes," she replied as she put her pilot suit on, wincing when she pulled it on over her injured shoulder and arm. As soon as she finished, she grabbed her head ornament and headed out after him.
Location: Unmarked Tarak Freighter, 5 Hours Earlier
"Repel the intruders!" the Tarak sergeant commanded his men, all to no avail. The intruders that entered the ship were good, special forces good. They had shown no mercy to any crewman, even those that surrendered. What little resistance was left was guarding the bridge in a last ditch effort to destroy any information in the ship's databanks before the intruders captured the ship.
"Seal those doors!" he commanded one of the remaining guards, which he promptly carried out.
Moments later, a loud bang rang throughout the bridge, then a second. The sergeant was pretty confident that they wouldn't get in. Those doors were reinforced to withstand explosives. Several moments passed, before a deafening boom resounded throughout the room. A huge dent was made in the doors, where he guessed a breaching charge had been used. But it didn't even open a whole in the door. He knew they'd probably try again, so they had to hurry.
"Hurry it up!" he yelled to the bridge crew, who were busy erasing every bit of information about what they were carrying. They couldn't let it fall into anyone else's hands.
Another loud bang, then another, as if something was hammering against the door. The doors were starting to give way to whatever was assaulting them. Eventually, it made an opening between the doors. Suddenly, a fist slammed through the opening, forcing it open on one side. The sergeant couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"Open fire!" he shouted, and the remaining guards opened fire on the opening. They unloaded quite a bit of ammunition into the hole. Whatever it was retreated back from the furious assault. Nothing could've survived that much gunfire, he thought.
Several tense moments passed before a large black figure burst through the opening, grabbing the nearest guard's head in a large, metal fist. With no effort, it crushed the man's skull, blood and brain matter seeping through its clawed fingers. It was large, about one and a half times as tall as an average man.
Taking advantage of the shock it had created, it raised it right arm, which had a multi-barreled machinegun mounted to it. A whirring sound was heard, followed a second later by a hail of bullets. Several guards and crewman were caught in the hellish fire, shredding their bodies beyond recognition.
It turned its head to face him, and he could see the glowing red eyes, as well as the death's head rictus painted on it's faceplate. It was as if death was staring him in the face, and mocking him. He didn't even have time to raise his gun before he was ripped in half a burst of gunfire from it's right arm.
"Room clear," an amplified voice boomed, and a group of black-clad soldiers entered the bridge seconds later.
"Commander," one of them said over his helmet comm. "Bridge secured. Team 2 has secured the package in cargo bay one, two minutes till transfer over to the Thanatos."
"Very good," Becker replied over the comm, "Proceed with the destruction of the vessel once that is done."
"Understood," the soldier replied.
Location: Infirmary, Nirvana, Present Time
Opening her eyes, her vision was a blur for several seconds until she blinked a few times. With her vision clear, she noticed that she was in the ship's infirmary. It took her a few moments to realize why she was here, before it came back to her. The headache, the pain, them…
"I see you're awake, Dita," a male voice said, startling her. She sat up and looked over to see Duero walk into the room. "You were out for a while, five hours to be exact. You apparently suffered from a reaction when the Paksis was somehow attacked by the Red Paksis. It affected Hibiki, Jura, and I assume Meia as well, due to the connection you all share with the Paksis."
A sudden realization hit her. "Is he alright?" she asked, concerned for Hibiki's wellbeing.
"Yes," he replied, knowing who she was talking about. "He recovered an hour after the attack. The second he heard you were in here, he rushed to your side and hadn't left it until the Captain called him fifteen minutes ago."
"That's good," she said, letting out a sigh of relief. He was here the whole time, waiting for me to wake up? She then realized that she was blushing, and quickly tried to hide it.
Well, there you have it, a revised chapter twelve. Let me know what you think of the changes.