DR: Okay people, this is the chapter you've all been waiting for! Thinderchild Vs Alliance 'Black Ops' cruiser, one on one!
Zeke: Yay! (*graps bowl of popcorn*)
O'Neill: Exxcceelllent!
ZBC Judge Robot: (*Hops in... somehow*) Scanning area...
DR: This ain't a oid battle...
Dark Judge Robot: (*hops in and knocks over Judge*) NO! This battle...
DR: Get out, both of you!
(*A rusty tow hook whips in and wraps around both Judges. With offscreen laughter the cable is tightened, and both judges are dragged out*)
DR: Thanks Mater!
Chapter 23: Darkness & Light
The Alliance NightbringerCruisers smooth advance through space belied the furious pace it was straining to keep up. While top speed was not an issue in space, acceleration and momentum were much more important than in an atmosphere. It was pure Newtonian.
Slowly though, the Nightbringerwas closing the gap. Serenity was moving faster than it should, but the Alliance crew knew that if needed they could overrun the transport. Their real target – the 'Colonial' vessel – was hidden from them at this range, but they were confident of locking on when they got closer.
So supremely confident were they of their ships abilities –and such confidence was well justified – the thought that the Colonials would hang back and ambush them never even entered their minds.
Thunderchild hung dead still in space, a significantly large asteroid just off Beta Bay. Serenity's path had taken them close to an asteroid field orbiting the gas giant, and Achilles had decided to confront their shadow here. By now the story of the settlements destruction had spread throughout the crew, and each and every one of them considered the Alliance responsible.
Within her armoured hull, the crew sat and waited, tension hanging in the air. They all knew that their ship could wipe the floor with any regular Alliance cruiser, but the ship that was following them was certainly not one of those. It's partially stealthy nature hinted that this was some sort of special-ops ship, one that might be far more advanced and powerful than the regular cruisers.
The Vipers sat in their launch cradles, pilots sitting within, but their engines off. Achilles had decided to try and hold them back for a little longer. He would launch them when needed, but not before. He wanted this battle to be fought in the old style, warship to warship. Early in the Colonials history of space warfare, the smallest combat craft had been gunships. True fighters hadn't been developed until much later. Back then, size mattered most. Bigger ships could have thicker hulls, could absorb more damage, and could mount both larger and more weapons than their brethren.
The appearance of the Cylon fighter-bomber craft had thrown the Colonial design teams into a panic, as they were capable of hurting large ships – something nearly every other fighter craft around could not do – while still being reasonable dogfighters. It had been the direct cause for the name that was tagged to them... Raiders.
Over the yahrens, as the Colonials had closed the technological gap, tactics had swung towards the use of standoff strikes using Vipers, while the warships focused on anti-fighter defences. But in the last hundred yahrens it had began to swing again, leading to the development of the Tigers... and ultimately his own ship.
Achilles glared out of the forward view port, waiting for that murderous Alliance ship. All the while his mind was furiously planning the engagement, forming and rejecting tactics, attack angles and priorities. Part of his difficulty was the simple fact of not knowing exactly what he was going to be facing. Even against the Cylons he would have had some idea. But this was new territory.
There was also the rather large fact of that every time he thought about the Alliance, his blood ran hot with anger.
He just knew that the ship that was following them was the one that had destroyed that settlement, and the other one before that. Those people had no way to defend themselves, no warning at all. It was cold blooded murder. Achilles would have expected it of the Cylons, but for other humans to do so...
Despite his anger over the injustice, he knew that he could not just destroy the vessel. No, to fully bring the crew – and the Alliance Government – to justice, he had to take the ship, and then bring the crew to a war crimes court. Only then would justice be done.
It was the first phase that would be tricky, crippling the ship without destroying it or killing the crew, but Achilles knew that once he had sent troops over, the ship would fall quickly. The marines were ready to go and, as Sire Masters might have said, 'Kick ass and take names'. They were just as eager to make the Alliance pay.
The tension was mounting, but it jumped to a new level when the sensor officer called out.
"Sir, we've got a reading, bearing three-one-niner mark nineteen."
"Right on our last track..." Achilles muttered. "Any details?" He asked aloud.
"Too far sir. Sensors are having a hard time locking down at this range." The officer answered.
"Very well." Achilles rotated his chair to face his XO. "Captain, bring all stations to full alert."
"Aye sir."
As the XO moved off, the sensor officer spoke once more.
"Target is firming up sir. We're getting trace fusion based thrust emissions. Localised energy signature... Coming into Form Scan range."
"Run it." Achilles ordered. "I want to know what we're up against."
"Aye sir." It took a few long seconds for the form scan to work at such a range.
"Form scan coming in... unidentified ship, eighty percent similarity with known Alliance design cruiser."
Achilles didn't say anything, he just stared at the display.
The craft revealed by the form scan looked like that arrowhead cruiser that had led the fleet that opposed them, and they had to destroy when it tried to ram them.
This ship however had features that gave Achilles pause. The best word he could come with to describe was mutated.
The prow section, smooth curves on the previous ship, here was formed of stepped, rounded plates, like it was some kind of segmented creature. A disturbingly organic looking growth projected from under the prow, with four thin tendril like spines in a ring. From the outer edge of the rear 'shell', just outside of where the heavy missile banks had been on the previous ship, here this craft had a number of long, sweeping spines that reached out into space. In various places on the hull there were other growths that conformed to the hull, rising up before sinking back into the hull. Some sections of hull seemed to have been replaced or covered with organic looking parts.
Wherever there was the organic looking material, the form scan grew weaker, fuzzier. Clearly whatever material was used to mutate the hull had sensor absorbing properties.
Achilles shivered, thinking back to what Sire Kane had told him in confidence, just before he had left Zi to come here. This ship appeared to confirm his fears.
As the ship came on, a few more details came to light. Sensors were still having trouble locking in exactly were the ship was. Not enough to prevent them finding and killing her, but enough to make the precision strikes they had used on other ships before much harder. The power readings were much higher than the last ship. There were no signs of fighter or missile bays, though that prow extension looked suspiciously like an added weapon.
Then the ship came within range of the life sensors. "Picking up life signs... high number of human life signs, plus a diffuse, unknown reading."
Achilles nodded, his suspicions' confirmed. That ship was partly alive. How much alive it was remained to be seen. "Any further details Lieutenant?"
The officer was silent for a moment. "Number is equal to the previous ship of similar type... but the distribution is wrong. If our scans were right, and this ships interior is the same as the last, then there is a large concentration of people in the cargo holds. The diffuse readings are interfering with the scans, but it looks like those in the holds are in some kind of distress."
Achilles eyes narrowed. He had a feeling he knew what was going on. But now it was time. "Prime all weapon systems. Helm, ahead one eighth."
Slowly Thunderchild nosed out from behind the asteroid. The crew of the Nightbringer were startled at first, since they were almost on top of it. But then they accepted the challenge, and turned to meet the ship head on. The small, pathetic transport could wait; here was the real target.
"Alliance ship is changing course... coming onto direct bearing... picking up targeting scans. She's looking for a fight."
Achilles nodded. "Hail them." He waited for a moment before speaking again. "Alliance vessel, power down and surrender. You only have one chance, don't waste it."
They Alliance response was to open fire.
"Incoming plasma bolt! Sensors read higher density and temperature than previous versions!"
"Positive shields, both sets! Plot the origin of hostile weapons fire!"
The heavy shutters on the ship slammed shut, sealing away the vulnerable view ports. Space around the Thunderchild shimmered for a few seconds as the energy shields flickered into life before settling down.
The plasma bolts struck just after the shields had settled. The venomous green blobs slammed into them and spread across the surface, conforming to the shields shape. Some of the lower energy plasma leaked through, but the gap between the shields and the hull was too great for the leakage to be a threat.
A blood red beam lashed out, slashing across Thunderchild's prow. The shields turned a muggy red as the beam swiped across.
"Identify that weapon!"
"Readings suggest a crude form of cutting laser sir. Similar to our first beam laser weapons, only more powerful."
Achilles snorted in annoyance. "Fire control, fire at will."
"Aye sir... "
From across Thunderchild's prow a flurry of red darts lashed out towards the Nightbringer. However, unlike with the other Alliance ships, several missed, most only by a few metres. The Nightbringer had engaged a high powered jamming field, trying to level the playing field. Strikes played across the forwards hull of the Alliance ship, the bolts blasting pockmarks in the organic hull.
"Hostile has activated a jamming field sir. It's making targeting difficult. The Hostiles organic type hull appears to be absorbing some of our weapons power too."
Achilles cursed quietly, then spoke firmly. "Continue firing! I want that ship!"
The two ships exchanged fired once more, the plasma blasts splashing across the Thunderchild's shields while the beam once again was slashed across, leaving a bloody line across the surface. In response, turbolaser bolts stabbed back, blasting chunks of black material off the Nightbringer. Some of the bolts hit areas where the organic coating was thinnest, and there the bolts tore the outer hull open. One of the large spines that projected from the cruisers midsection was hit near the base, the concentrated laser bolt shearing through. The spine spun off into space withering as it went, leaking a fine mist of a thick, black liquid.
The Nightbringers gun lashed out again, must quicker than before. The laser stabbed out first, but instead of slashing across the lager ship, it held position, pouring all its energy into one spot. The shields weakened under the assault.
As the laser cut off the plasma blasts arrived. One spent itself on the shields, but the second slipped through a weaker spot and reached the hull, albeit losing almost half its mass and speed in the process. The plasma was smeared along the side of the Thunderchild's prow, the superheated material charring a long, black mark into the hull.
The two ships were almost on top of each other. Gingerly they adjusted course to prevent a collision, Thunderchild diving, the Nightbringer pulling up and yawing a little to starboard. As the two skated past each other, the space between them was criss-crossed with fire as they hammered away.
Thunderchild had volume of fire, as every laser turret that could be brought to bear fired, with the exception of the Megalasers. Achilles had ordered that they be held back, as the power output was too great for general use. The Nightbringers keel was savaged as it passed overhead, whole sections of the keel flensed away under the assault of the bright red bolts. The Nightbringer left a long trail of debris behind it as they completed the pass.
The Alliance ship had only a few weapons, but they began to fire rapidly as the bio-armour soaked in the energy of the Colonials weapons and channelled it into the weapons. But the crude organic armour could not withstand the assault for long, and quickly the fire slacked off, before dying completely as the weapons were destroyed. Before they were taken out, they rained plasma down onto the broad back of the Colonial battlecruiser, at their height producing almost solid waves. The shields held it back at first, but some bolts slipped through and charred armour. However the armour on Thunderchild was thick, and the bolts fired were small. A couple of laser turrets were taken out of action, but the hull withstood the assault with ease.
As he watched the monitor showing the other ship, Achilles nodded slowly, pleased with the visible damage. Then he frowned, leaning closer to the screen.
"Helm, full power to engines! Hard to port!"
Behind Thunderchild the Nightbringer completed its spin, allowing itself to drift backwards while bringing its main weaponry to bear on the larger ships engines. The plasma bolts had just been fired when the Colonial ship leapt forwards. Surprised by the sudden, incredible acceleration, the Alliance gunners took a second to react. The laser regained the target, but the shields held. The plasma bolts sailed past the stern, not even skimming the shields.
And now Thunderchild was turning, bringing her broadside to bear. All along her nine hundred metre length laser bolts stabbed out, probing the battered Alliance ship. The bio-armour was flayed away, before a dozen bolts converged on the prow laser and blasted it into nothing. The backlash of power cracked open the hull that ran over the keel behind the laser, and one of the ships reactors spiked. Automatic systems cut in and shut it down before the reaction ran away.
The two ships drifted apart, too far for either side's weapons to reach... except one. One of the megalaser turrets turned and fired. The paired blue-white bolts smashed into the Nightbringers portside plasma projector. Careful notation of the spread of the bolts had allowed the gunners to pinpoint the projectors to the same place as the other ship had had missile bays. The blast tore the side of the Nightbringer open... and ruptured the plasma conduits that led from the reactors to the projector. Drive plasma spewed out in an endless stream, incinerating anything in the way. The unexpected thrust pushed the ship to the side, and drained the main engines of thrust too.
It couldn't last. Quickly the second reactor was drained of too much plasma, and the fusion reaction spluttered and died. The lights within the damaged sections of hull flickered and died as the ship began to drift.
Achilles watched the screen closely. "Report."
"Hostile craft has lost all main power. We're reading emergency power only."
Achilles nodded slowly, the tension easing from his body a little. "Stand down weapons. Tell the marines they have a go."
X-X-X-X-X-X
The two Colonial shuttles moved up to latch onto the drifting Alliance ship. Once the hulls were mated, the airlocks were quickly over-ridden.
The Alliance crew had rushed to prepare a trap, but they did not account for the marines tactics. While Earth had never had space ship boarding actions, they had had plenty of water ship actions, plus an uncountable number of science-fiction theories and stories to draw on. The Marines expected the Alliance to have prepared something, and so planned to counter that.
Several flash-charges were the first things to go through the now open airlocks. Colonial development of flashbangs, they created stunning displays of light and sound. As the Alliance crews tried to recover, the organoids attached to the platoons dived into their midst. With a hulking metal beast right the middle of their defensive plan, it was understandable that the human marines entered the ship unnoticed. Until they started stunning the crewmen, not worrying if they accidentally hit the organoids: it had quickly been found that they were immune to the Colonials weapons 'stun' setting.
Once both platoons had a foothold, the individual squads spread out, heading for the suspected locations of critical points. As crew were encountered they were stunned, stripped of any weapons or comms then tied up, their locations noted for later retrieval.
A few of the Alliances assault troopers rushed the squads of marines, but disciplined fire burned each one down. While full auto fire drained the rifles power packs much more quickly, letting one of those troopers get in the midst of them was much worse. All the marines remembered the failed takeover attempt.
The crew tried to respond, but the marines were relentless, pushing forward hard and fast. The nature of the Nightbringer turned against it now, as it had fewer crew than the standard Judgement class on which it had been based. The marines moved deeper into the ship.
The deeper they went, the more unnerving things got. The interior was dark, dimly lit. The rounded curves of Alliance ship design were even more pronounced. At points nearly every marine felt that they were not boarding a ship as crawling inside a living creature.
Most unsettling however was when they found blown panels. The odour of charred flesh hung in the air, and the exposed systems and circuits had a mixture of wires, microchips and organic elements, all mixed together to the point were it was hard to tell were the organic ended and the manufactured began. It was a Giger nightmare.
The arrogance of the select Alliance officers now worked against them, as they did not initiate a data core wipe until it was too late – the Colonial marines had taken the core chamber and isolated it from the bridge. The captain began to set the self-destruct, but even before he finished the first set of codes the bridge door was blown open, and a stream of stun bolts scythed across the bridge. The two officers who had not been hit fired back wildly, but the marines held back, out of the line of fire. When the two stopped to reload, a second volley of bolts caught them both.
The ships captain, struggling against the stun effect, tried to complete the code, but the marines stormed the bridge shot him again. Despite being hit with two stun blasts, he tried to trigger the destruct, and so the marine sergeant changed the setting on his laser before firing once more.
Quickly yet methodically the marines took the ship. The crew fought back fanatically, not one surrendering. A few tried to ambush the marines, only to be smoked out by more flash-charges. They were taking no chances, and were ruthless in their execution of their assault. Within twenty minutes a message was relayed by the shuttles that the ship was theirs.
X-X-X-X-X-X
Achilles sat back in his quarters, reading the initial after action reports. The damage to his ship was light, mostly charred armour. The few weapons that had been taken out would easily be fixed and brought back online in a few days. Some crew injuries, but no fatalities. Once more, those energy shields had proved themselves to be worth all the hassle, effort and materials needed to install them.
The reports on the Alliance ship however were far more disturbing. Having captured the data cores intact, his engineers had quickly figured out how to download the data into a more compact and secure Colonial storage system. Already the Warbook was being updated with the Alliance ship registry, including the information that the Alliance had kept from its people.
The Nightbringer class certainly earned its name, and this one in particular. They had seized the captains and ships log, and both proved what he had suspected. This ship had been following them, wiping out any colony where they had had contact with the locals. Persephone escaped simply because he'd held Thunderchild back, away from the planet.
Guilt clawed at Achilles gut, but it paled against his anger at the Alliance, which was reinforced by the evidence before him. It had been the Alliance which had destroyed those people, not him or his ship.
That thought led him onto the captives they had freed from the Nightbringers hold. All of them were women, ranging from barely twelve years old to just over twenty. All had been kidnapped, drugged and secured in the hold like they were cattle. The marines who had found them had been shocked to the core. Since them all of those poor women had been brought aboard his ship, in one of the larger recovery wards. Some had awoken already, and nearly all had been hysterical. From the little gathered so far, they had all been snatched during the night from their homes in the two towns that had been destroyed. They knew nothing more than that, having been kept in drug induced nightmares constantly, unable to wake up. They couldn't even say how long they had been held.
The cruiser itself was a monster, a standard 'Judgement' class ship 'enhanced' with bio-technology. While nothing near what Kane had talked about, it was certainly a step along that path. To Achilles, and many of his crew, this was an abomination, a perversion of technology and nature. The zoids were acceptable, as they were purely machines, right down to the nano-systems that allowed them to 'heal'. The closest they got to a biological system was their cores. Even the organoids were more machine than organic, but it was a subtle blending, a perfect fusion.
But this ship... it wasn't a fusion of the disciplines, it was a mutation. Copper wires ran into organic nerves, machine pumps that fed blood vessel like tubes... it turned his stomach.
Laying the reports back down, he reached out and thumbed his console. "Bridge, this is Colonel Achilles. Put me through to the XO."
After a few seconds, the XO came on "Colonel."
"Captain, rig the towing cables."
"The towing cables sir?" Achilles could understand his surprise. It had been rare for another ship to tow another for some time.
"Yes captain. We're taking that cruiser with us to Hera. As proof of the depths of depravity that the Alliance Government is willing to go too."
"Aye sir."
Sheppard: Someone's pissed off...
DR: Yep. Wouldn't you be too?
Sheppard: ...Yeah, I would.