4

Geneva

"Now we know what we face."

It was a simple enough statement and of course entirely true. In the days since the battle of Cyrus Earth had been trying to build a picture, the lack of communication and scattered reports had obscured what had actually happened. The hyperspace sensor net, tied into the beacon system, had seen the fleet go in and had detected a small number of ships leave shortly after, but there had been no communication with the system itself. It wasn't until the Space Race and the small group of survivors from the periphery of the battle had made it back to Beta Durani that a full report had been compiled.

"I want straight answers." President Levy spoke flatly, emptily, the tone of a person who had just been told they had a terminal illness. "No euphemisms, no sugar coating. What are we going to do?"

"Simply Madam President, we are even more outmatched militarily than expected." General Dayan spoke, his own voice far less assured than normal. "Admiral Ferguson and General Denisov have recommended our forces deny battle to the Minbari fleet until we can develop a countermeasure. We should only engage in the most favourable or most desperate of circumstances."

"Our defences and tactics were completely inadequate." Director Chapel added. "Engaging the Minbari fleet head on is not survivable, not in our current condition."

"Did Admiral Thornhill do any damage to the Minbari at all?"

"None." Dayan shook his head. "We believe the Minbari schedule is uninterrupted, they will break out any day now. We believe they will make Beta Durani their main objective with Jericho colony a secondary target."

The President rubbed her brow, forcing the painful information to settle in her mind.

"Can we evacuate?"

"We've already started, but we don't have the time or capacity to evacuate the entire Colony, especially Durani." Secretary Santiago informed. "We're getting the women and children out, we're also asking for volunteers to join the planetary militia."

"Beta colony is heavily defended, it has a powerful defence grid and plenty of stations." Dayan said. "It was built to hold off a fleet, but after what we've seen of the Minbari, I don't think it'll slow them down."

"Have the Minbari answered our transmissions?"

"No Madam President." David Sheridan reported. "And after the scale of their victory at Cyrus I don't think they've got much incentive to do so."

"Then we only have one choice, we must fight." Levy resolved reluctantly. "How? How can we hit back?"

"General Denisov is already putting together wolf packs to raid Minbari supply lines." Dayan informed. "If we can't beat their ships maybe we can render them ineffective by cutting off their fuel supply. Captain William Hague of the Endymion will be taking the first raid out when he assembles a team. He's a bright officer, we're confident in his success."

"We do know from our analysis of the battles so far that our ships are not entirely ineffective." Chapel raised. "When we manage to land a hit we do inflict damage. It appears Minbari armour is tough stuff but we do have the firepower to bring them down. It's just a case of making the shots connect."

"A Nova class Dreadnought does appear to have superior firepower to a Minbari capital ship, it just can't survive long enough to shoot back effectively." Dayan exhaled. "The stealth issue."

"I understand our ships could not get a solid lock on the Minbari to shoot back?" Levy asked.

"Correct Madam President, all of our sensors were spoofed, our traditional homing weapons were burnt out or shot down and attempts to employ countermeasures were either unsuccessful or took too long." The General informed. "Once they entered range our ships lasted literally seconds, not long enough for them to effectively analyse relevant information."

"What about the Dilgar sensors?"

"Hard as this may be to believe, that is our only bit of good news in all this." Chapel commented. "They worked exactly as advertised. We were able to identify, track and if we'd have had weapons lock on to Minbari vessels. Whatever they used to beat our sensors, they didn't beat the Dilgar."

"I find that difficult to understand." Santiago frowned. "All our information says League sensors were just as useless, we improved our own technology based on recovered vessels during the war. The Dilgar did the same thing, their base technology is League tech, so how did they manage this?"

"They say it was recovered technology from a dead world, ancient tech." Chapel explained. "They didn't go into details."

"Not impossible." Dayan remarked. "Our own interceptor technology has similar origins."

"They've offered us a hundred sets available immediately." Sheridan picked up. "All ready to install."

"I can accept they work, but are they safe to use?" Levy asked. "This could still be a trap."

"My expert says yes." Chapel answered. "He's already designed a safety switch, a small box that we will set up between the sensor array and our main ship systems, if it detects anything abnormal it'll automatically pull the plug."

"We also believe we can duplicate the technology and mass produce our own versions." Dayan added. "According to Chief engineer Wallis at the Skunkworks it's a new type of synthetic crystal, very complicated structure but something our existing infrastructure can recreate."

"Pretty handy." Santiago expressed with reserve.

"He says its very user friendly. The science behind it is incredibly complicated, but actually recreating them and using them couldn't be easier."

"Which probably explains how the Dilgar jumped ahead so fast." Chapel pointed out. "I'd put a years pay on the Dilgar recovering more than sensors from wherever they raided. The sort of thing IPX keeps praying for."

"The Dilgar are smart, if they are giving us this technology it's because their own versions are superior." Dayan reasoned. "However it does appear to work, it does appear safe, and given how easy it is to link with existing systems we can have the first batch active in a couple of weeks."

"I don't see that we have much choice." Levy sighed. "Will this turn the tables?"

"it's not going to level the playing field, we're still badly out gunned and we still know very little of the Minbari." Dayan shook his head. "But it will let us fight back, it'll let us hit their ships and hurt them. I reluctantly advise accepting Dilgar assistance."

"Do it."

The decision was made, the path set. There was nothing now but to hope it was a smart move and that it would do more good than harm. Levy moved on.

"What news from our allies?"

"Good news, Stro'kath is preparing two thousand ships." Sheridan smiled. "It will be a welcome boost, Drazi ships are lightly built but very fast. They can close on the Minbari from different angles, hopefully distract them until our big guns get into range."

"I think he's looking forward to a good fight." Chapel grinned. "Admiral Ferguson is keen to integrate them into our plans, he's already been in contact."

"They were a good team fighting the Dilgar." Dayan agreed. "Bit like the old days."

"We also have an agreement with the Narn to buy Centauri weapons technology recovered during their uprising." Santiago informed. "It isn't cheap, but it will significantly boost our firepower. Definitely worth the money."

"On a more concerning note we've had a few ships vanish on the Mars Jupiter run." Dayan warned. "The patrol we sent also vanished."

"Minbari?"

"It's possible, I've increased the strength of our patrols with any ship we can find. Some brand new, some a bit older."

"if they've penetrated to the Sol system that's a concern." Sheridan frowned. "They could blitz all the way through and there's not much we can do to stop them."

"It's a definite risk, even if we encode the beacons they can still be detected. By process of elimination they'll find the right one eventually." Chapel considered grimly.

"See what you can do gentlemen." Levy ordered. "In the meantime we have to install these new sensors and find a way to use them effectively."

Beta Durani

Space Station Beta Prime

"In a press conference just an hour ago President Levy confirmed initial reports that the attempt to retake the Cyrus colony had met with disaster. ISN had previously learned from several refugee ships fleeing the scene that a Minbari fleet of unknown size had secured the area and were conducting landings. This too was confirmed."

Along with the rest of the station's operations staff Captain Helena Black watched the report grimly, the usually perky news reporter much more professional as she delivered bad news.

"In a large scale battle the President confirmed that almost the entire Fourth Fleet had been destroyed. Enemy casualties are not known at this point but the Minbari remain in control of Cyrus and its colony. The President has authorised the recalling to service of selected veterans of the Dilgar war and has given Earth Force a blank cheque to reactivate reserve warships put into mothballs after the last war, and to begin a massive building programme.

In related news while the markets have been down heavily in light of announcements regarding the war, today's news of massive military procurements have helped boost the defence industry and ship building leading to a moderate recovery."

"Screen, off." Black commanded, the display going dark. "Well great."

The command deck remained quiet for a while, the dozen blue uniformed crew lingering on their thoughts. Cyrus was only one jump away, and if the Minbari owned it that meant there was nothing to stop them walking straight through the gate and hitting Beta colony.

"The whole fleet?" Commander Lin Kawoo asked in bewilderment, shaking her sleek dark hair. "We've never lost a whole fleet before, not even at Balos."

"This is our worst defeat since the founding." Black agreed. "And according to the ships that made it back we barely scratched the enemy fleet in return. Massacre."

She exhaled, mentally assessing their chances of holding out in a fight. It wasn't optimistic.

"If the Minbari show up, what are our chances?" the Commander asked, virtually reading her thoughts.

"I can sum it up in one word." Black half smiled. "But it wouldn't be very lady like of me to repeat it."

Beta Prime was very well armed, as were the four Orion bases guarding other sectors of the planet, but from what she had heard it wasn't going to help. Beta Durani was now the front line in a major war and a blindingly obvious strategic target. Black had been assigned command four years ago, it wasn't exactly what she had wanted but it was a high profile assignment guaranteed to set her up for promotion. She would have preferred a warship, or if possible one of the new Explorer class ships, but she endured the politics and business negotiations, indeed she had even grown to like it.

It had been peaceful, apart from the police raids, the smuggling and the occasional heated row over survey rights. Nobody was dumb enough to actually attack Beta Colony, despite the rich pickings no Raider was anywhere near that suicidal. The local fighter squadrons and patrol ships kept themselves busy running down smugglers and on one notable occasion had to break up a fight with a dozen armed freighters working for rival companies, but that was it.

Now, suddenly they were staring at an alien warfleet that had just wiped the floor with the biggest concentration of ships in the region and was undoubtedly looking their way. Apparently all their bad luck had lumped itself together and was heading in with a vengeance.

The Minbari would not find them unprepared. Given its position as the gateway to the rim Beta colony had attracted quite a few of the more adventurous Earth Force officers, men and women who had missed out on an Explorer division posting but still wanted to get close to the edge. Consequently she had some of the best pilots in the Alliance at her command in some of the best maintained and tuned Starfuries available. Her security forces and Marines were also hardened veterans, patrolling the mean streets and hitting smugglers bases had made them a tough and flexible force well suited to fighting a brutal close quarters war with the Minbari.

"it's no secret we're going to be next." She announced. "Keep all fighters ready to drop at short notice and ensure our patrols are up to strength."

"Yes Ma'am."

"Also let our ground forces know we probably won't be able to hold orbit. Recommend they disperse from their main bases and get ready for a Guerrilla war."

"The Governor and Council have agreed to declare martial law if the Minbari are detected on approach." Commander Kawoo informed. "They'll submit to military authority, which I suppose means you."

"At least I can skip that whole running for office thing." Black remarked in cold amusement. "I want to talk to the Mafia, they might not like us but if the Minbari are going to invade and start slaughtering their customers they might want to help us. I'll take any armed people I can at this point."

"I forwarded your request for immediate reinforcements to Earth Force Command." Kawoo continued. "They say they have no forces to spare, we will have to manage with what we have."

"They were massing at Proxima, Orion and Earth itself last I heard." Black gritted her teeth. "Not a great sign."

"Does that mean we're expected to fend for ourselves?"

"Pretty much Commander." Black sighed. "Hell, with the Fourth fleet gone I don't think there's another fleet close enough to help anyway. What do we have?"

"Eighteenth cruiser squadron, three Hyperions and four corvettes." Kawoo answered. "That's it, they were on patrol near the rim and headed back here as fast as they could when the shooting started. They are currently in hyperspace watching the jump route."

"That would make them the closest vessels to the Minbari?"

"Yes Ma'am." The Korean XO confirmed. "We also had a scout cruiser, the Sphinx. She's in hyperspace too watching the lanes."

"Where in hyperspace?"

"Near Cygnus, holding station just off the main network."

"Very risky, Cygnus is a mess." Black winced. "The black hole churns up hyperspace like crazy, it's a very narrow path through the maelstrom."

"I believe that is why they are there. If the Minbari are coming here they'll have to pass the Maelstrom on that narrow path. Makes them easy to spot."

"Who's in command of the Sphinx?"

"Jack Maynard Ma'am."

"Well let's hope he knows what he is doing."

Hyperspace

Near the Cygnus Maelstrom

The ship jolted hard as the gravity wave battered it, the interior echoing with a tremendous bang that did little to soothe the nerves of the crew.

"What was that?" Captain Maynard glanced around. "Did anything break?"

"We have some buckling ports side, F-frame." One of his crew reported. "We still have beacon lock."

That was an obvious relief. Hyperspace here was so violent that losing the beacons for just a second or two would result in catastrophe. Unlike conventional space the realm of hyperspace was a folded rippling miasma of energy and gravity, great peaks and troughs threatened the unwary traveller while whirlpools and maelstroms distorted the red shifted universe that engulfed them. It was a place of danger and risks where even a brief loss of concentration could lead to disaster. Many had likened it to walking a winding mountain pat with sheer cliffs on both sides. At night. In fog. While drunk.

Sensors were virtually useless, far too easily distorted and fooled to rely on, the only way to travel was to follow fixed beacons marking out the save routes in hyperspace, the areas of relative calm where ships could navigate. The beacons existed in normal space beaming a tachyon signal into the tumult that provided a solid waypoint, if that signal was lost a ship would drift off the path in a very short time, the treacherous gravity waves dragging a ship aways that even if the beacon reactivated it would be out of the very limited sensor range. Standard procedure was to try and stop dead and wait for the signal to return, but in truth that was a forlorn hope. There was no such thing as standing still in the constantly moving morass of hyperspace, there were very few points of reference in hyperspace beside the beacons, only sources of intense gravity had an effect and usually for the worse. To become lost in hyperspace was an instant death sentence, it was impossible to even jump back as the volatile regions outside jump routes scattered the tachyons needed to make a vortex.

"Just watch those thrusters." Maynard reminded. "We're already damn close to the Maelstrom."

The Cygnus Maelstrom was a rare fixed point in hyperspace, the result of the intense gravity of the Cygnus singularity exerting an influence beyond dimensions. It was a massive swirling whirlpool of gravity and exotic energy dangerously close to the Durani jump route, an otherwise stable and swift path by hyperspace standards. The route was well marked and had a lot more beacons than average for safety but ships had still gone missing here. If a ship ran into trouble in most places it had ten or twenty seconds to get back on beacon. Here it had no margin for error, one mistake, one error in navigation while passing the Maelstrom, and it was all over.

This naturally made Maynard nervous. His ship wasn't on the main route, it was just off to the side of the main path hidden in what would be considered the 'long grass' of hyperspace. You could still travel through it but the gravity distortions were very noticeable and a ship had to expend a lot of fuel to hold course. He still had a beacon lock but he was operating at the edge of what was considered safe, one solid wave of energy and he could be nudged just far enough away to lose the signal. That would be a bad thing.

Not far away the Eighteenth cruiser squadron was performing a similar manoeuvre, the more powerful warship engines holding position better than his elderly scout ship. The Sphinx was an Oracle class, a modified version of Earth's first ever jump capable ship launched almost a century ago. It was of course a poor design to send into open war but had found a niche as an electronic warfare ship and as a scout using an enhanced sensor array to aid in combat. Several had gone into Cyrus to try and break the Minbari jamming but with no apparent effect.

That sensor array was now Maynard's curse. His ship had been reassigned from exploration to piquet duty, to sit in hyperspace and look for the Minbari offensive. On the chart of suicidal ideas this ranked a 9.8, up alongside self immolation and shotgun lobotomies.

"Captain, I might have something."

Those were not words he needed to hear.

"Can you be more specific?"

"Unusual gravitic emissions, very focused. Could be a propulsion system."

"Like the Minbari use." Maynard whistled. "Where?"

"Far side of the Maelstrom, were bouncing a signal off the beacons, it's very fuzzy."

"Get a probe out there."

"On it." The officer set to work. "Launching probe."

A small tube opened on the hull, releasing the robotic device. They had been specially designed to navigate the harsh environment of hyperspace, using the parent ship as a reference point to seek out new routes and expand the beacon network into unexplored territory. In this instance the probe just used the existing network, cruising past the Maelstrom towards the contact.

"Nothing yet." The sensor officer reported. "Sensor range is very short near the Maelstrom, visual clouded."

Virtually the whole bridge was on the edge of their seats, watching their displays, trying to make out something in the red and black.

"Should almost on top of them…"

The screen suddenly showed the clouds part to reveal the immense prow of a Minbari warcruiser, the blue hull stained blood red by the dull gloom of the dimension. A second later it fired, destroying the probe.

"Ah hell." Maynard cursed. "Get a message to Beta Prime, tell them we have incoming. Then warn the cruisers and get ready to head back to Durani, I think they'll need our help."

Captain Black took the message with resignation.

"How long?"

"Four hours, maybe a little less." Captain Maynard relayed. "It'll take them a while to pass the Maelstrom but after that it's a clean run."

"Understood Captain. I'll ask you to hold position a while longer, try to get me some hard numbers on the Minbari fleet, then get out of there."

"I'll do what I can Captain, Maynard out."

She leaned back in her chair.

"Well that answers that."

"What should we do Captain?" Kawoo asked apprehensively, her youthful features fighting shock.

"Order the ground forces to disperse, bring the defence grid to hot standby, and make sure our fighter pilots get a damn good meal." She ordered.

"Last Supper?"

"Something like that." Black nodded slowly. "How many civilian ships are still in the system?"

"Over seven hundred."

"Get as many out as you can. We'll try buy them as much time as possible."

"Yes Captain."

"Better tell the Governor we're expecting company, have him move civilians into the shelters. Pray it does some good."

Minbari Battlecruiser Eternal Duty

Flagship, Star Riders clan.

Approaching Beta Durani.

"The probe was undoubtedly human in origin."

"Then they know we are on our way." Alyt Vetenn intoned, looking around at the storm of hyperspace. "So much the better. We have no need to sneak up on them, there is little reason to be cautious."

That at least was true. Vetenn had been sparring with another of his clan when news of the attack on the Council arrived. It had shaken him in a way he had not thought possible, the sheer affront of firing on the revered Grey Council, the treachery of meeting a diplomatic mission with gunfire. It had enraged him and all those around him, but when it was then learned Dukhat had been killed by this sneak attack, words were inadequate to his emotions.

Dukhat was a Minbari like no other. He had the wisdom of a great priest, famously debating the legacy of Valen for an entire month stopping only for sleep and food with the entire leadership of the Religious caste and ultimately winning the argument. He had showed great architectural ability and technical prowess, designing a new temple with such sublime brilliance and respect for tradition the Worker caste immediately bowed their heads and set to work on his design without modification. He had then also challenged the legendary Durhan to single combat, the greatest duellist in generations, before fighting him to a standstill if not exactly winning. His courage and determination earned Durhan's respect, and as Durhan bowed before Dukhat so followed the entire warrior caste.

No leader since Valen had ever managed that, to meet each caste on their own terms and prove he could stand with the best of them, to show he had the wisdom of the religious class, the practicality of the worker caste and the courage of the warrior caste. Dukhat was made the leader of the Nine, chief of the Grey Council and found himself universally supported. Obedience was expected of course, but people did not follow Dukhat out of mere duty, but out of choice. He was the greatest Minbari in a thousand years, rising to power as Valen had predicted, ready to lead his people into the great darkness as was prophesied. He was their great hope of defeating the Shadows, and now that hope was lost.

What happened next required no thought. The people went wild with grief, mourning their leader and for many mourning themselves, for without Dukhat who would stand against the Shadows in his place? It wasn't just the end of a man, but the end of all beings. Most believed this was the first shot in the great war itself.

Vetenn and his people had no idea who the humans were or what strength they had. Like most Minbari he had no interest in the affairs of other races and the information his elders provided did not extend beyond images of the ships that had fired on the Council and a route to their suspected base. The Warrior caste went to war expecting an apocalypse, ready to wage war against the great darkness as their ancestors had, to fight and die in defence of the light.

They were shocked when the first battles ended so quickly. The humans had killed Dukhat, Vetenn expected them to be a ferociously powerful enemy but it was not so. It was barely worth the effort of showing up. He was genuinely surprised, as the second most senior leader of the Star Rider clan Vetenn had the honour of leading this wave of the attack and was expecting heavy casualties, so far he had killed over six hundred human ships for the loss of a handful of fighters.

Still, the power of his enemies was irrelevant, their crime stood. The Council had ordered the extermination of the species and that was now Vetenn's task. The Minbari had waged two wars since Valen's era, in both cases they had completely destroyed the warriors of those races and then left. This time they would wipe out everyone. This was the word of the Council.

"Frigates forward." Vetenn ordered. "This area is unstable, move through slowly and ensure there are no traps. If they know we are coming they could have mined this region."

"Yes Alyt."

He smiled slightly, a Windsword would have just ordered a fleet advance with no precautions. He had no idea why they had command of the Black Star, it was a honour he hoped to earn himself after this war.

"Proceed."

"They're on their way." Maynard reported, his communications crackling as they fought to get through the environment.

"Understood Captain." Black responded from Beta Prime. "I don't think you can do much more, head for Orion or Proxima with whatever information you have."

"Sir." His sensor officer raised her voice. "I have movement, our cruisers are moving."

"What was that Captain?" Black strained to hear.

"The Eighteenth are on the move, they're heading to engage."

"Recall them."

"Maynard to Captain Stavros, Beta control is ordering you back to Proxima."

There was a pause before the officer answered, his voice utterly calm.

"Jack, you saw what their ships can do in an even fight. Beta doesn't stand a chance. We're going to hit them as they cross the Maelstrom."

"There are at least eighty ships out there!"

"And they all have to travel single file through this narrow path." Stavros replied. "And in hyperspace they won't see us coming."

"Captain…"

"This is our best chance to slow them down, maybe even turn them back!" Stavros spoke passionately. "This is what must be done. You understand Captain."

Maynard reluctantly nodded. "I understand Kris. Good hunting."

"Go tell the Spartans." Stavros replied proudly. "Safe journey Jack."

The mists and energy distortions of hyperspace hid them to the last moment, the particular violence of this region allowing the EA cruisers to approach almost unhindered. One second there was nothing but angry red skies, then without any warning the haze was torn away by the blunt bow of a Hyperion cruising at maximum speed on a collision course for the closest Minbari cruiser.

The blue hulled ship immediately turned aside and fired, destroying a Corvette instantly before the cruisers could shoot back. The range was less than three kilometres, the trio of cruisers passing on both sides of the surprised Sharlin and training their guns. They still didn't have a lock, but flank on at this range the Sharlin was a massive target.

The exchange of fire was brutal, a rapid salvo of blue pulses hammering the Minbari cruiser, fracturing its hull in gouts of flame. Each impact was magnified by the energy caressing the warships, every shot reacting more violently as the fickle nature of hyperspace exerted itself. The Sharlin managed to reply with its secondary guns, the fusion cannons also benefiting from the magnification effect. Two Hyperions were torn to shreds but not before they had inflicted enough damage for their third sister to finish the job.

The point ship fell away, burning fiercely and wracked by secondary explosions, drifting off beacon and consumed by the red and black mist. The four surviving EA ships left her there, firing at the pair of frigates that should have been acting as escort. Virtually every shot missed, a bank of gravitic energy lurking between the two enemies curvivng and bending the weapon fire unpredictably, saving the EA ships from destruction.

"Human ships, dead ahead!"

Vetenn focused on the warning, the holographic curtain displaying the targets. He snarled a little, they had taken him by surprise.

"Concentrate fire. How did they get past the vanguard?"

"The Silver Dagger is not responding Alyt, escorts report they are unable to fire effectively across the gravity incline."

"Valen's fury." He swore. "This is why we don't fight in hyperspace. Order them to close the range! Fighter escort forward!"

The Minbari frigates altered course, a risky move in the narrow safe path of the Maelstrom. Already the battered EA force was past them and closing on the main body of the Minbari force, several more light ships trying and failing to hit them. Neither side was scoring hits even at ten kilometres, which suited the EA ships just fine.

Fighters raced forward, their guns ripping deep into the human armour, taking out gun turrets and thrusters. One Corvette began to slip behind, swarmed by fighters scenting blood. It fought hard but could not endure the thousand cuts inflicted by the fighters, fading into the murk on fire and out of control. It did however draw off the bulk of the fighters, their pilots taking the easy kill instead of engaging the bigger threat, a serious error in judgement and training. The Cruiser and her two last escorts raced on, blasting a great hole in the drive fin of a frigate which began to fall behind, frantically trying to hold position on the beacon.

"Earth cruiser moving into range."

"Concentrate escorts a head. Close to one kilometre and burn it down."

"She's launching missiles, fusion warheads!"

"All stop!" Vetenn ordered. "Maximum defensive fire!"

The fleet paused, the half dozen ships at the front opening fire with all they had. The ranges were dangerously short and their sensors greatly hindered but the Minbari point defences proved their worth. However while they were firing at the missiles they weren't shooting at the Cruiser.

"She's on a collision course!"

"Maximum firepower!"

"It won't stop her!"

From nowhere one the Tinashi class ships crossed ahead of Vetenn, its hull filling the great chamber with gleaming blue and purple. Seeing the threat to the flagship it took the only action it could, ramming the bow of the human ship from an angle and pushing it aside. Both vessels rolled away in flames, vanishing into the Maelstrom. Behind it the two corvettes were destroyed as a mere after thought.

"That was the Unwavering Cause." The bridge reported.

"Alyt Remnon." Vetenn exhaled. "He knew even in death the wreck of the human ship would hit us, it had to be physically diverted. His sacrifice will be remembered and honoured."

"Yes Alyt Vetenn."

"Resume course, and this time make sure the point ship is properly escorted."

"The Eighteenth is gone." Maynard sighed. "But it looks like they took down a battlecruiser, maybe one or two escorts."

"Our first real kills of this war." Black acknowledged. "Captain Stavros and his people will be remembered."

"The Minbari are back on course, I have a few nukes on board, I might be able to get close enough to use them, make them at least evade and lose the beacon."

"Negative Jack, head back to…" Black stopped mid sentence, something clicking in her head.

"Beta Prime? Are you still there?"

"Jack, are they crossing the Maelstrom?"

"As we speak."

"Get out of there Jack, jump to normal space, do it right now!" Black demanded with a strong tone of urgency in her voice.

"We're almost on top of the Cygnus Singularity." Maynard protested. "Our jump drives are so inaccurate we might end up inside it!"

"Take the risk Jack, just get out of hyperspace right now!"

"Copy that." He replied, his gut tightening. "Navigation, emergency jump."

"Aye sir, jumping into Cygnus."

"Brace yourselves." Maynard warned. "And pray. That's an order."

Captain Black waited a few more seconds, from her position she couldn't really tell if the jump had been successful. She hoped it was.

"Commander, take the safety locks off the beacon network."

"The beacons?" Kawoo raised her eyebrows.

"You heard me Commander, select every beacon between here and Cyrus including the Maelstrom." Black ordered, forcing her breath to remain steady. Select them, and shut them down."

"What?" Kawoo exclaimed. "Captain!"

"Just do it Commander!"

"No one has ever deactivated a section of the beacon network, we might not be able to restore it!"

"I am well aware of the risks! We have no ships out there, we have nothing to lose! Now kill the damn beacons!"

The Commander was not entirely correct, selective deactivation of the beacon network had been done before. Black was aware of a Drazi story about a race that had done it centuries ago to hide themselves from Drazi attacks. It appeared that when they tried to restore their connection to the galaxy wide beacon network hyperspace had shifted making their old readings invalid. They had never been seen again.

She watched the map of local space, the beacons looking like street lights snaking from one sector to another. On her orders they began flickering out, the route between Cyrus and Beta Durani going dark. Some beacons were human, others were part of the original ancient hyperspace network, but it didn't matter. All of them went dark.

Vetenn heard the alarms and at once looked for more human ships, trying to scry some divination out of the mists. He knew this was a vulnerable stage in the journey but he was prepared for anything, at least he imagined he was.

"Alyt! We just lost the beacon signal!"

"Reacquire the last good beacon."

"It's gone too! Every beacon in range just went down! All ships report the same!"

"Valen's name!" Vetenn had no plan for this, it hadn't even crossed his mind. "Immediate jump! Get us out…!

The Eternal Duty dropped suddenly like a rock, the srtificial gravity doing virtually nothing to stop the effect. Vetenn bounced aross the floor and into a distant wall, breaking half his ribs in the process.

"We're in the Maelstom!" A voice from the bridge yelled. "Jump engines offline!"

The entire ship was creaking, the massively strong hull compressing under the crush of gravity.

"Emergency power! Put everything in the engines!" Vetenn yelled through the pain.

"It isn't working! Hull integrity compromised!"

The ship hit another gravity incline, shearing off its fins and cracking the hull like an egg. Vetenn had the pleasure of being catapulted into the roof of the chamber at over a thousand miles an hour as his flagship disintegrated, no trace of it ever to be found again.

Most of the Minbari fleet suffered the same fate, dragged into the Maelstrom by the shifting tides and eddies. Those that saw the danger tried to react but it was pointless. The forward elements of the fleet were lost in seconds, caught in the whirlpools and accelerated far beyond their design limits. Some broke up, others were slammed into gravitational inclines like a glass bottle into a brick wall. The raw power of the Maelstrom was simply unimaginable and completely unsurvivable.

The ships closer to the rear tried to jump, several of them actually managing to form a vortex before they were dragged away. Some were snatched into the Maelstrom before they could enter the vortex, the opening simply shutting down as the parent vessel was carried millions of miles away in seconds. Only a tiny handful actually made it out of hyperspace.

"There's another." Maynard watched a vortex open on top of the Cygnus black hole, the gateway distorting under the gravity pull. The ship exited and was instantly crushed, glittering fragments merging with the accretion disc. "Make that six in total."

Maynard's ship had been far enough away to jump safely into the Cygnus system, just on the edge of the black hole's area of effect. The Minbari on the other hand were much closer, their vortexes opening so close they were dragged to face the Singularity depositing the warships right in its maw.

"Get a signal back to Beta Prime, tell them the Minbari fleet is lost." Maynard reported. "Then request reactivation of the network. It's a nice view but I don't fancy staying here."

"I suppose that's going to make the Minbari stop and rethink their plans."

"Yeah." Maynard nodded. "And at least we got some payback for the Fourth Fleet. If they hated us before they're going to really hate us after this one."