Varmos could hardly believe what he was seeing. A huge empty space, like a sphearical moat, surrounding a single large asteroid nearly a kilometre in diameter. It looked more like something a person might see in the cinema, and yet it was real.
"Be a heck of a parking lot for pirates," Clutchguard muttered amidst the quiet in the conference room.
"Already a few pirate ships identified there." Stoker referenced his data pad. "That big one there is the Iron Fang, a ship known to belong to the Flint Feather's pirate group. We saw a lot of their markings among the ships we destroyed when we got here."
Strabland rubbed his chin, thinking. "So are we facing multiple pirate gangs? And are they under one leader or just working together? And what's their relationship with the Collective?"
"Nobody knows," Varmos sighed. "But it's obvious they've been working together. I think we should assume the Collective has been granting letters of marque for all these pirate groups."
"And now they're hiding in their hole hoping we won't see them." Rancher's contemptuous tone matched their feelings.
Wiping out so many pirates in their last battle had brought a sense of profound satisfaction to Audacity and her complement, but Varmos was starting to worry that they were becoming a bit too fixated on the pirates as opposed to their main objective. He knew all too well how much fixation and pride could cost people, and whatever they did, attacking the base would not be bloodless.
"So what's our next move going to be?" Colonel Starko asked. "We might have a decent guess of how many pirates there are but we don't know what the Collective has stored up in there. We might think we're attacking a beehive and wind up with a nest of hornets."
"I think we should assume that's exactly what we're dealing with," Varmos agreed. "We know they have that anti-ship craft and at least enough forces to keep the pirates under control. Whatever any piece of paper says, you can't trust pirates. So, any rough guesses?"
The first person to respond was the new face at the table. Lieutenant Sansea had joined them at Rancher's insistence, since she had been the one to find the base and could provide her own direct observations beyond what the footage showed.
"If they're this far away I doubt they would use front-line resources here, and they wouldn't need it to keep pirates under control. I would guess they'd have Zaku Is and maybe some Gattle fighters. Their commander might have something more advanced like a Zaku II. In terms of numbers, we have to consider that they would have to control not the pirates we're seeing now, but them and the ones we've already killed."
"Along with however many others might be lurking out there," Stoker added.
"Yes, Sir. We're looking at a squadron of mobile suits at least, plus fighters, but I wouldn't estimate them carrying more than a few of those new anti-ship craft. The asteroid's barely a kilometre in diameter and they need room for all that equipment keeping the asteroids at bay."
"Yes," Varmos mused. "Speaking of, do we have any idea how they're actually doing that? Does it have anything to do with all those hemispheres along the surface?"
His gaze fell on his chief engineer. Glazkin's mantle turned maroon then pulsed a dark blue colour, betraying his irritation. "I hadn't a damn clue what those things were at first," he admitted. "But I showed the footage to some of the mobile suit techs and some of them think it might be what's called a minovsky craft system."
Puzzled expressions adorned the faces of nearly everyone at the table and Glazkin flashed green. "Yeah, I hadn't heard of it either. Apparently it was a theory old Doc Minovsky came up with at some point to conquer gravity, only it doesn't quite work like that. I won't bore you with the science but effectively, a minovsky craft system supports a craft on a latticework of particles that acts like a cushion of air you'd see on a hovercraft, but without the plenum chamber needed to keep the air in. It's energy and mass intensive, and you couldn't use it to fly very high. As far as anyone knows, nobody's actually tried to make one."
"Until now," Rancher said, staring at the footage on the monitor. "They've adapted the system to keep all those rocks at bay. The pirates must be clinging to the surface to avoid getting pushed into the rocks themselves."
"That's our best guess," Glazkin agreed. "I hate to say anything good about the old bastard but credit where it's due, it's brilliant, and we might never have found the place."
"But how will it affect us if we try to attack?" Strabler asked. "If it can push against ships and asteroids, won't it do the same for mobile suits and other craft?"
"I don't know," Galzkin admitted. "Best guess is that it would be like fighting against the wind."
"That would make things difficult for us," Lieutenant Sealer said. "Flying that far into the asteroid field means using a lot of propellant. Fighting a battle in conditions like that might not leave us with enough to get back."
"Not necessarily." Lt. Sansea turned a light shade of violet and looked at Varmos. "May I, Captain?"
He flashed green and Seansea began manipulating the controls at her station, changing the image on the monitor screen to a rough map of the asteroid field that had been updated with data from the mobile suit's sweeps. Though they were probably out of date already, it showed the locations of the enemy's base and the wall of rock surrounding it, Sansea was highlighting a noticeable gap in that wall.
"This is a gap we found in the rocks around the base, and it's deliberate. We detected more of these minovsky craft devices on those asteroids, keeping each other apart and maintaining the gap. There's a noticeable channel through the asteroids until the density decreases further away. This is likely how the pirates have been getting in and out and how the base has been getting its supplies. If we use this, we should be able to avoid expending too much propellant or trying to find a way in, but it does mean putting us in a place we'll be easily spotted."
"We'd lose the element of surprise," Clutchguard said, understanding. "Too bad that gap isn't big enough for the ship. With our guns we could blow that rock apart from a safe distance."
Varmos shuddered at the thought of trying to fly Audacity into the asteroid field, though he agreed with his Tactical Officer's sentiment. Fighting at a distance and forcing the enemy to come to them was highly preferable and it would eliminate one of Varmos' reservations about an attack.
"If we hit the base," he said. "We have to hit it hard with everything we've got. That means leaving the ship vulnerable in the meantime."
Strabland looked at him warily. "An alpha strike? That would probably leave us vulnerable for at least a few hours, and then the Balls would have to be serviced and the pilots would be tired."
"I know, but this base is too well defended for us to do anything less if we want to take it out."
He looked around the table at everyone else. They all knew he was right. A large part of Varmos didn't want to take the risk. Maybe they could raid the facility with the mobile suits – a quick strike and retreat, but he knew that wasn't the right move, his old senses assuring him that it had to be an all or nothing strike to take out that base. If they just left it there they accomplished nothing. He might get his people home today only for them to die tomorrow from the very weapon being developed at that facility. Besides, if the pirates continued operating from there, they'd continue plaguing merchant traffic unimpeded. The question was, could they actually do it?
He looked at the three pilots at the table. Sealer had a little apprehension but seemed willing, while Rancher and Seansea looked more than ready to take it on. There was not even the thought of failure in their minds.
That will come back to bite them one day, he thought soberly. But hopefully that would not be today.
"Alright," he said at last. "We attack. Audacity will find a nearby rock to hide behind until everyone returns, but if we're risking this much we're going for maximum reward."
He looked at Colonel Starko. "Colonel, I want you to take however many people you need for the assault shuttles and try to get us a look into that base. The shuttles might be needed for pilot recovery too."
Starko flashed green, determination hardening his features.
"Alright, Boss, when do you think we can launch the mission?"
Strabland did some quick mental calculations. "For the pilots to be rested and everything prepared, maybe another eight hours."
Varmos winced slightly. That was more than he would have liked. They were already into their third day and the attack was going to put them into a fourth. It couldn't be helped though, they couldn't back out now.
"Alright, but no longer. If the enemy managed to call for reinforcements they might show up soon. I don't want to be here when that happens."
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"Move it!" Sealer barked as the pilots of the 52nd scrambled out of the locker room. "Captain wants no delays and anyone who doesn't get their butts in their seats is going to hear about it."
Rauld grabbed his helmet and looked around for his flight. Biter was already heading out, as usual, but Mouse and Tank were stuck trying to help Sunni get into her suit, battling her usual lack of enthusiasm.
Rauld could practically feel Sealer's contemptuous gaze on him. He definitely did not want to spoil the mission because he couldn't instill a little urgency in his subordinates.
He grabbed Sunni's helmet himself and shoved it down on the petty officer's head.
"Get her dressed on the way. We haven't got time."
Mouse looked surprised at his aggression while Tank casually accepted it. She was fed up with Sunni too.
Sunni herself gave him a look that wasn't quite a glare but he didn't care. It wasn't as if she had the energy or motivation to be vindictive anyway. Besides, they were embarking on what might be the first ever offensive Ball mission and he wasn't about to be the one to ruin it. If he could do well here, he might gain enough notoriety to stand out. Ideally, it would get him noticed enough to transfer him to a mobile suit unit, whenever those started showing up. Being among the first wave of mobile suit pilots was definitely something worthy of a Millihelm.
By the time they got to the airlock, Sunni was fully dressed in her pilot suit. Biter was already in the hangar, heading for his machine. He was eager to take the fight to the enemy for once, and the promise of taking down a secret Octarian base had him chomping at the bit. Rauld was going to have to keep a close eye on him. If there was one time he had to start being an officer it was now. Maybe they were in a suitable mood that they might actually listen to his orders.
Rauld stood by as Mouse got Sunni settled into her machine. She really was the only one who seemed capable of getting Sunni to do anything. Mouse had been mocked for being totally unsuitable for the role of a flight's senior NCO, lacking the mettle and disposition for the role, but she'd done her best and, honestly, Rauld doubted a typical petty officer would have done any better with someone like Sunni.
His conversation with Mouse during their previous battle also came to mind, and he realized she had to be scared about this mission and was probably hiding it behind her duty. He had to respect that.
As Mouse retreated from Sunni's Ball, Rauld gently touched her shoulder, startling her, and her head snapped around to stare into his eyes.
"Just wanted to say I appreciate what you've done. No way I could have handled all of them without you."
Mouse's pupils shrank and her expression changed, revealing a shy smile. "You're welcome, Sir."
He patted her shoulder again then headed to his own machine, feeling like he'd just done something a proper officer would have done. Now she would be more confident in the battle to come.
Rauld had never been eager for a fight before but it was a truly amazing feeling. He felt like no matter what, he would get through it and they would win. It wasn't a feeling he was accustomed to, even before the war, but it was one he intended to savour as much as he could.
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Varmos watched as the entire complement of his lonely carrier cruised gently away. Stoker floated beside him, doing the same.
"It's a bold move, Sir," he said, and Varmos sensed his approval. "The war's going the way it is because too many officers in the CSF are afraid to take risks."
Varmos smiled bitterly. "It's only bold of we succeed, Tren, otherwise it's foolhardy. Besides, I'm not worried about the base so much as what might be coming to help it. I'm confident we can take the base out, but we'll take casualties, which will make it that much harder to deal with any threats we meet on the way home. I just hope the risk is worth it."
A moment of silence passed between them before Stoker asked, "could we wait them out?"
Varmos rubbed his hands and thought. "It's an idea. In my younger, more foolhardy days, that's exactly what I would have done. I would have stayed and waited for the reinforcements then tried to pick them apart with hit and run attacks as they split up trying to find us, drawing them further away from the mouth of the current until we could get past them." In truth, a lot of him wished he could go back to being that young inkyar, full of zeal and fighting spirit, but that was long gone from him now.
He flashed red and took a short sip from his tea packet. "But I'm a little more mindful now. I'm not interested in suffering all the damage the ship would take hiding out in the asteroid field for that long, and the information we have on the enemy's weapon and this minovsky craft device is important to the war effort. We need to deliver it as soon as possible. Besides, we don't have enough spares for the mobile suits to operate much longer. This is a gamble. I just hope it pays off."
"It will, Sir," Stoker told him firmly. "We'll win this."
Varmos fervently hoped he was right.
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Orest hurried to the command centre of the base. Most of it was unoccupied as everyone was evacuating, but the base commander, communications, and sensor operators were still at their posts.
"What's happening?"
The base commander looked at him tensely. "The pirates have detected Federation forces coming down the channel. Looks like they've sent everything."
Orest cursed. They were nearly finished evacuating. They'd needed less than half an hour more.
"How much time do you need?"
The commander bit her lip. "The charges are all set, cargo is loaded, but I still have personnel manning their stations."
Orest clenched his beak and weighed his options. If he kept the people at their stations, the base's defences would be able to contribute to the battle, but the personnel themselves might not be able to escape. He decided it wasn't worth it, not for a base they were giving up anyway.
"Evacuate everyone," he said firmly. "Hopefully, we'll be able to coordinate with the pirates enough to give you an opening to get out safely. Wait for our signal and then get out as soon as you can and blow the charges. It's not worth waiting."
The commander saluted and began giving out orders. Orest hurried to the hangar, Faith and Chastity close behind him.
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"They're practically waltzing in," Rosi's sensor operator seethed. "They really aren't taking us seriously."
"They won't live long enough to do otherwise," Rosi said, putting as much steel in her voice as she could manage without making it sound too artificial. So far, things were going just as she'd hoped. "How long?"
"Maybe fifteen minutes if they keep their current pace. Pretty damn slow for an attack."
"It works for us," Rosi said. "They might be escorting something. Try to see if you can find it. I'm going to make some last minute checks."
Rosi left the bridge and, without looking hurried, returned to her quarters.
Chella was already in her vac suit and was helping Livia carefully squeeze into hers. It was several sizes too big for her but it was all Rosi could find for her to fit in without squeezing her belly too tight.
"Here, let me help." Rosi grabbed Livia's other arm and pulled the material of the suit away from her to help it fit over her belly as she squeezed down into it, then Rosi fastened the zipper.
"How is it?"
Livia grunted. "Snug but not too tight."
"Good." She placed Livia's helmet on then told both her charges to follow her. They obeyed without question.
With everyone at their action stations nobody saw them enter the ship's reserve shuttle bay.
The shuttle was a dingy old thing, and probably hadn't been serviced in a while, but Rosi had looked it over and it appeared sound enough for an emergency. She only hoped it wouldn't be needed.
"You both stay in here until I come and get you," she told them firmly, settling them into the passenger compartment. "If the worst happens we'll need this ship to escape."
Livia looked at her, worriedly. "Are things really that bad?"
"It's just a precaution," Rosi whispered gently, holding her by the shoulders. "Everything will be fine. It'll work out. Trust me."
Livia nodded timidly and Rosi let her go, pointing towards the restrained seats. Chella gently grabbed Livia's arm and led her to the seats to get buckled in. Rosi left them to it, shutting the hatch of the shuttle and then to the shuttle bay itself.
She brought her hand down to the pistol at her hip, making sure it was secured in place. She would need it later.
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"Why haven't they attacked us yet?" Stopper asked. "They have to see us coming by now."
Sahna was wondering the same thing. The small channel they were flying through offered plenty of opportunity for ambush, and their formation was tight enough that even a sloppily executed one would have an effect. The slow curve of the channel also made it impossible for them to see what might be coming at them directly from the base.
Red Team was flying in close formation at the front of the attack. Behind them, Blue Team and an outer ring of Balls from the 52nd guarded the two assault shuttles filled with Colonel Starko's marines. Just behind them were the rest of the 52nd, acting as a rear guard.
"I don't know," Rancher admitted. "Maybe they're waiting for us to get closer or maybe they want us within the effectiveness of those minovsky craft gizmos of theirs."
"I don't like it." Shackler's voice came out almost in a growl. "Just feels like we're playing the enemy's game."
"Anyone else having unpleasant flashbacks?" Shackler asked.
They all were. Their last mission in East Orica had been a lure set by the Octarians to bring them out and attack them with overwhelming force to eliminate the 13th at a stroke. They'd all but succeeded, wiping out all mobile suits on the field save three which were so heavily damaged they couldn't fight anymore, and the mobile suits of Team 04, which had been back at base, still being repaired from their previous operation.
Sahna remembered her desperate fight with Bloody Eight, her deadly run through the jungle on foot, being chased by enemy infantry, and the long march through the night while desperate fighting happened around them. The 13th had nearly been wiped out that night.
Rancher clearly didn't want to repeat that and began giving orders. "Red Team, break off and take the direct route to the base. Lieutenant Sealer, detail two flights to go with Red Team. Let's see if we can't set the enemy off balance a little."
"Yes, Ma'am. Gooser, Dogger, that you two."
Acknowledgements followed and Sahna followed Marie as she turned away from the direction of the channel and into the dense asteroids surrounding them.
"Stay loose but keep together," Marie ordered. "Red Team, make sure not to outrun the Balls."
Given the density of debris around them, Sahna wasn't sure they could outrun the Balls if they wanted to.
"Do we have a new plan?" Hypori asked as they reached the wall of rock surrounding the enemy base.
"The Balls rush in and attack the pirate ships while we cover them. Their guns should do the job just fine and it'll be a better use of their limited ammo."
They made their way around one of the larger asteroids, and spotted the enemy base. A cluster of contacts on one side drew Sahna's attention.
"Transports," Dirk said. "Evacuating?"
"Looks like," Marie agreed. "I see a few Zaku Is and some fighters. If we can keep them busy the Balls can –."
"Contact! Behind!"
The shriek came from one of the Ball pilots. Sahna looked at her sensors just in time to see a blob of unknown craft rising from below the curve of the asteroid.
Sahna spun around but was forced to dodge a flurry of rockets hurled in her direction. Hypori took a direct hit on the right breast and Dirk barely avoided damage by putting a much smaller asteroid between him and the rockets, though he still got pelted with debris.
The Balls spun around and tried to fire back, but only two of them found their mark. The pirates attacked with full aggression, charging into their midst while the rockets kept the mobile suits busy. Concentrated machine gun fire shredded two of the Balls while the rest scattered.
"Back them up!" Marie ordered. "Tog, cover our back. Watch those mobile suits!"
Sahna picked out a cluster of pirate pods ganging up on one of the twin-gun Balls and charged in.
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"What the hell just happened?" Rosi demanded.
"I don't know," her communications officer said tartly. "I think some of the Feddies ran into one of our ambush groups. The Collective's sending in fighters to help 'em out, but now their main group is almost through to the base."
Rosi grit her beak. She knew it would be a slaughter but this was going to take it perhaps a bit too far. She needed to hurt the Feddies badly enough they didn't come after her.
"Keep us hidden," she said. "Maybe with them separated we'll be able to pick 'em apart.
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"Dogger Flight, group up! Don't fly off separately or they'll pick us off!"
Rauld desperately tried to keep his cool as the situation spiralled out of control around him.
They had been ambushed from behind. Two Balls in Gooser Flight had been taken out immediately. Mouse had lost her gun, and the rest of their Balls had scattered to evade the onslaught.
"Enemy fighters!"
Rauld spared a glance at his sensor display. The computer recognized the signatures of old Octarian Gattle fighters. Old as they were though, they would be perfectly suited to taking on Balls.
Rauld ducked another burst of tracer fire. The pirate pods were armed with smaller guns, better suited for this kind of battle. Rauld fired and missed with his first shot, both craft bobbing and ducking each other until Rauld finally managed a glancing hit that took a chunk from the upper left quarter of the opposing pod and filled the interior with shrapnel. The pod spun lazily for a moment before it collided with a rock and exploded.
"Mouse, how are you doing?"
Mouse floated closer to him. "Alright, I think. My gun's still out of action and I can't find any of the mobile suits."
Rauld glanced around again and finally spotted Biter just as he took out a pirate pod with a direct hit from his cannon. Tank and Sunni were making their way towards them, trying to use some of the asteroids as cover.
"Tank, above you!" Mouse cried.
Rauld's stomach dropped as he saw two pirate pods descend on Tank and Sunni from above. Tank snap rolled her pod upwards and managed a near perfect shot on one of the pirates, but in return, took a face full of low calibre bullets that tore up the front of her ball.
The remaining pod tried to finish the job but Sunni warded it off with a quick burst of her twin guns.
Rauld and Mouse hurried over to them and even Biter did the same, bringing the flight back together at last.
"Tank," Rauld called. "Dogger-Four, respond!" But there was no reply. Was her comm knocked out or was she actually dead?
"Fighters, incoming!"
Mouse didn't have enough time to give them a direction. They appeared so suddenly.
Rauld dodged to the right by pure reflex, a stream of tracers slashing through space where he'd just been. Biter fired on one of the fighters but missed.
Sunni managed to shoot one of them down with her cannons, but one of the other fighters came at her from the side and a line of bullets slashed across the back of her machine, rupturing one of the fuel cartridges and sending her into a tumble, right towards one of the asteroids.
"Cover me!" Rauld called and he gave chase, activating the controls for his Ball's arms. He hardly had time to think, and there wasn't any time to slow Sunni's spin. Her own thrusters didn't even seem to be functioning. He had to chance it.
He reached out with his claws, forcing himself to ignore the rapid approach of the asteroid, and tried to grasp the bar on the top. The claw bounced off the Ball's hull once then it hooked into the bar.
Rauld went for maximum positive pitch to try and counter Sunni's spin, closing the claw around the bar, then hit full reverse thrust.
Sunni's Ball banged into the asteroid but not nearly hard enough to wreck it. The two machines rebounded off each other before Rauld cut his thrusters and breathed.
"Sunni, report status."
He heard a murmur over her comm but not much else. She might have been injured, or maybe she was recovering from the spin and impact. He would give her a second.
"Here they come again!" Biter's voice was angry but also more frightened than Rauld had ever heard it.
He looked through his starboard view screen. The pod Sunni had warded off was back and it had brought friends. One of them was aiming right for him.
Rauld tried to release Sunni's Ball but the bar had warped, trapping the claw between it in the hull as it struggled to get free. It was then he realized he was about to die, not gloriously as a Millihelm should do, but in obscurity, in a battle nobody would write about years from now except as a foot note.
The pirate pod fired a rocket into their midst and it was coming right at him. Rauld stared at it as if it were a torpedo. And it was too late to dodge it.
There was a flash of motion. Another Ball had interposed itself between him and the oncoming rocket. "Mouse!" He heard Biter cry out, then there was a bright flash, forcing Rauld to shield his eyes, followed by the banging of debris against the hull of his machine, jostling him in his seat. When he glanced again, Mouse was gone.
Biter let out a hideous scream and fired at one of the pirate pods as they prepared for a gun attack, only for him to miss. Rauld had a feeling the pirates weren't about to make the same mistake.
Fire rained from above, catching three of the pirate pods and turning them into burning wrecks before a Zaku put itself between them and the Dogger Flight.
The Zaku swung its big armoured first like a hammer, slamming the pod that had killed Mouse against the asteroid, crushing it like a paper lantern.
Rauld gulped air, never before having been grateful to see a mobile suit.
The Zaku turned and swivelled its glowing eye towards them. "Are you okay?" It was Hypori's voice.
"F-fine," Rauld stammered. His whole body was shaking and he could feel ink soiling the inside of his flight suit.
"You don't look fine. Some of you are damaged." She flew a short distance to Tank's shredded Ball and brought it over to them. "You guys lay low. We have to help the others."
With that, Hypori flew off, leaving Rauld and the remnants of Dogger flight to overcome their shock.
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Orest cursed the pirate's lack of discipline. They'd attacked too soon. They hadn't been ready and had gone in piecemeal, preventing the Federation from being overwhelmed. Their fighters had taken heavy casualties against the enemy mobile suits and their own Zakus were occupied trying to attack the enemy shuttle craft being escorted by the Federation's own mobile suits. Their shields were withstanding whatever attacks they managed to throw at them, at least for the time being.
The one piece of good news was that the Federation's mobile suits were completely occupied, with the shielded ones pinned in place trying to protect their shuttles, and the captured Zakus on the defensive.
The base commander's voice broke over the comms. "Sir, we're ready anytime."
Orest forced his anxieties to the back of his mind for the moment and forced himself to regain his calm. "Very good, Commander. We're going to blaze a trail for you. Just head straight through as originally planned. You have to be quick before they notice you."
"Understood, Sir," the commander replied cautiously. Her apprehension was understandable. Flying a group of unarmed transports through the middle of the enemy would sound suicidal to anyone. But the enemy had hamstrung themselves by bringing their own shuttles in. Doubtlessly they wanted to try and infiltrate the base to gather intelligence.
Well at least we won't have to worry about that.
"All defence forces, prepare for breakout. Raider-Three and I will make the first break through the enemy forces. Everyone else will occupy the enemy until the transports get clear. Focus on the enemy shuttles and we'll pin them in place."
He was barely off the comms when he felt his kaaslan glaring at him. He didn't have to ask why.
"Why do you always put yourself in danger like this?" Chastity admonished him. She sounded hurt.
"Because I am a captain in the Octarian Collective Armed Forces. Because this is my duty. You know this."
"We know it," Faith pouted. "But even if it makes us proud, we sometimes wish you wouldn't."
Orest sighed. "You're both starting to sound like my mother. This isn't up for discussion. Are you ready?"
"We're ready," they replied.
Orest wondered sometimes if they only argued with him because they were expected to for some reason. Probably his mother's influence. She always worried so much.
He pushed such thoughts aside and focused, gripping his Zakrello's controls and forcing himself to breath slowly and remain calm. "Charge up the main cannon. Here we go."
He and Raider-Three (the only other prototype mobile armour they had left) surged out from behind the asteroid, ahead of the line of transports.
His forward view screen filled with the image of the enemy formation ahead of him, tight and disciplined, unwavering despite the constant pressure being forced against them. It wasn't at all the popular image of inkling soldiers. Orest could respect these opponents that much at least, but their discipline wouldn't last.
"Main gun ready," Chastity announced.
"Fire when ready."
"Firing!"
Angry red energy erupted from the machine's gaping mouth, right into the middle of the enemy formation. They saw them coming and anticipated. The formation split in half, but one of the enemy's combat pods was caught in the blast and popped. Raider-Three managed to hit one of the mobile suits, blowing off it's legs and wrecking its shield.
The Zakus and fighters pressed their attack, pining the enemy in place and taking out several more of the attack pods while the transports raced through the gap.
"Raider-Three, let's loop around for another pass. We have to keep them from pursuing. Fire missiles on my mark."
"Yes, Sir!"
Orest looped around and aimed at the nearest group of enemy units. There were three mobile suits and just as many combat pods, none of which were paying attention to him as the Zakus and fighters kept them occupied while they passed.
"Three, two, one, mark!"
He and Raider-Three fired a full spread of missiles into the group of units. By now the Federation's shuttles had gotten far enough away that they were able to group back together and the angle of attack was further behind them, but that just made them an easier target for the missiles.
The Federation mobile suits fired their head-mounted guns, intercepting the missiles, but the distraction allowed Orest to get close.
He charged one of the mobile suits and triggered the heat claws at the end of the Zakrello's stubby arms, and struck out.
The mobile suit blocked the strike with its shield but the shield quickly buckled, too weakened to withstand the attack, and it broke as Orest shot past. As he accelerated away, he noticed the warnings on his heads up display and saw that his machine was now missing an arm. When had that happened?
"The transports are away," Faith reported.
Orest nodded to himself, seeing the damage to his defence forces in the wake of their retreat. He knew he had to leave now or he might not leave at all.
The pirates were still fighting alongside some other elements of his forces, including some of the other Zakus. They'd done enough, and the pirates… well, it wasn't as if they were ever friends.
"All Octarian forces, retreat and get to the rendezvous point. I say, again, retreat!"
Orest angled for the channel and fired on the minovsky craft array with the main cannon, destroying it. A second later, Raider-Three did the same with the one on the other side. The channel would thus start to close behind them.
It's just a setback he told himself. It's just setback. I haven't failed.
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Sahna grimaced as she switched to her last magazine. She couldn't believe how much ammunition she had gone through, despite trying to be judicious with her shots. There had just been that many targets.
"The Octarians are retreating," Hypori reported.
Sahna glanced to her left and saw that indeed the Octarian forces were running away. The fighters and remaining mobile suits followed after the two odd craft as they made their escape, destroying the hemispheres holding open the channel on their way out.
"Let them go," Marie said. "Focus on the pirates."
But there weren't many pirates left. The members of Red Team were chasing after straggling combat pods, and all the pirate ships had been reduced to wreckage. There wasn't much left for them to do if not chase after the enemy. Were they really just going to let them go?
A flash in Sahna's peripheral vision snatched her attention away. Flames and debris erupted from the large openings in one side of the asteroid. The hemispheres dotted across the exterior were rent open like tin cans, spewing charged particles and debris that briefly blanked out Sahna's view screens with static until they gradually cleared.
The base was gone, destroyed. The asteroid remained, now with a slow and subtle spin it hadn't had before.
"Everyone alright?" Marie asked.
"Clear here," Sahna replied and waited as the others reported the same.
Major Rancher came over the comms a moment later, the connection somewhat garbled by static.
"This is Blue Actual. All friendly units group up around the shuttles. Red Team, assist with rescue and recovery efforts."
"Yes, Ma'am," Marie acknowledged. "Red Team, you heard her. Let's try and help as many of the Ball pilots as we can and see if there are any survivors among the Octarians."
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Rosi despaired at what she was seeing. The Octarian forces were retreating already. They had the Federation on the edge of breaking and they were retreating!
No, she told herself, they aren't on the verge of breaking, their just licking some of their wounds.
Once the shuttles were in a position of relative safety, the mobile suits escorting them would be free to move about more, including to kill them.
"We're leaving," she told her two remaining bridge crew.
They looked at her, wary but not protesting. They understood. Naturally, they had been placed on Iron Fang's bridge because they were too cowardly to do anything else.
"Set the ship on a collision course with those Feddie shuttles. We're taking the shuttle off."
The pilot nodded and put the parameters into the autopilot. The ship's engines rumbled and they quickly abandoned the bridge, Rosi making sure the two crew were ahead of her before following them.
If they could get away unseen, they just might make it. It would be an unpleasant journey in the cramped shuttle, but they could make it to Terran space easily if they took the current, and she'd made sure they had plenty of food aboard. If the ship's charge distracted the Feddies long enough, they would never know they were there.
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The call for all friendly forces to assemble near the enemy base (or what was left of it anyway) was welcome for Rauld and the remaining members of Gooser and Dogger flight. Rauld was still in a state of shock as he carefully pushed Sunni's machine toward the base.
Petty Officer Tambler, the only survivor in Grinner's Gooser flight other than Grinner himself, was pushing Tank's Ball. Now that things were settling down, they might be able to get into her ball and check on her. Even if it didn't look good, he hoped she was still alive.
A large signature suddenly registered on Rauld's sensors, behind them. A huge, blocky grey shape appeared from between two large asteroids. It looked like a civilian ship, but then Rauld noticed its weaponry.
"Pirate ship!" He yelled.
"Go!" Grinner said. "We'll cover you."
Grinner and Biter charged at the ship, firing their cannons, but they had virtually no ammunition left and there wouldn't be much they could do to a ship that size.
Rauld keyed the comm and broadcast to all the Federation units in the area. "Alert, there's a pirate ship heading for the shuttles!"
Rauld and Tambler tried to move out of the way. With their additional burdens they couldn't outrun the ship.
Gunfire finally came out of the ship's gun turrets, trying to shoot down Grinner and Biter, but they were too slippery for them.
Another source of movement flickered across Rauld's sensor display. He glanced to his right and saw what looked like a small shuttle sneaking behind some of the asteroids, heading for the channel. Why? Was the ship a distraction?
Red Team's Zakus arrived swiftly and mercilessly. They blasted large holes in the ship with gunfire and hacked large pieces out of the hull with their melee weapons before the ship finally began to turn away, angling towards one of the large asteroids along the perimeter before crashing into it and exploding.
"You alright?"
Hypori's voice jarred Rauld back to the present. "Uh, y-yeah but… uh, a shuttle, I saw a shuttle sneaking towards the channel! I think it came from that ship."
He heard a voice say, "Scar, go after it! Capture them if you can!"
"Yes, Ma'am."
One of the Zakus raced off, giving chase. Rauld followed it with his eyes until it vanished around the curve of the former asteroid base.
"Come on," Hypori said, "We need to get you guys somewhere safer."
Rauld swung himself and Sunni back towards the shuttles. The fires from the base had gone out and they were moving into the hole left behind.
He halted near one of the shuttles that was disgorging its Marine compliment then opened his hatch.
Rauld moved to the front of Sunni's machine. Her own hatch had opened and she peered out at him. She looked somewhat bewildered.
"You okay?" He asked.
After a slight delay, she nodded. Perhaps she was still getting over her own shock, but she didn't look injured.
Tambler came to a stop next to them and Rauld floated up to Tank's Ball, grabbing onto one of the grab handles still attached to the exterior, avoiding the jagged pieces of metal sticking out from the countless tears and rips in the hull from the bullets.
Rauld searched and found the exterior release for the hatch. It popped open but resisted efforts to swing outward. Tambler appeared along with Sunni and a marine corporal to help force open the hatch. It vibrated in their hands and Rauld imagined it would be shrieking had they been in an atmosphere.
They finally got the hatch opened and Rauld gaped when he saw Tank.
Her pilot suit was shredded, her helmet starred and cracked. She wasn't moving but her biomonitors indicated she was still alive.
Air was hissing out holes in the pilot suit, the self sealing material too thinly spread to deal with all of them.
"Get her out and we'll plug up the holes!" The marine said urgently.
Rauld and Tambler unbuckled her and struggled to get her out through the hatch. Tank's issue of being bigger than was ideal for the cramped cockpit of a Ball was aggravated with her being unconscious and the tears in her suit catching almost everything as they dragged her out.
Once she was outside, she was swarmed as everyone began hurriedly patching her suit as fast as they could, trying not to leave a single leak. By the time they were done, the suit's internal pressure began to go up again, but now disconnected from her Ball's life support system, her oxygen levels were critically low.
"We'll take her into the shuttle," the corporal said. "We've got an airlock and medics. We can take care of her."
Rauld nodded and let her go. The marines grabbed her gently and floated her over to the assault shuttle.
He spotted Biter, floating next to his machine, quiet and somehow diminished. He found himself looking for Mouse, expecting her to be there, to say some encouraging or soothing to alleviate their worries about Tank, but she wasn't there, and she never would be again.
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Sahna picked the shuttle up on her sensors almost as soon as she entered the channel. It was well ahead and moving quick, but it wasn't nearly fast enough to outrun a mobile suit.
Sahna began broadcasting on open comms. "Unidentified shuttle, shut down your engines and surrender immediately! If you comply I can promise you fair treatment under the Rights of all Peoples."
For a moment, the shuttle just kept running, but then the engines gradually settled down, then went out completely.
Huh, I can't believe that actually worked. Then again, it was either surrender or die and it wasn't as if pirates had any great cause worth dying for.
Warily, Sahna drew closer to the shuttle, slowing down and examining it closely.
It was old, weathered, and many of its exterior hull plates were missing. Not the sort of thing she'd want to fly through an asteroid field.
As she closed to within 250m, her computer began to scream at her. A Zaku I popped out from the other side of the shuttle! Sahna swore and slid to the side as shells ripped through space right next to her.
Her Zaku cried out with a fresh warning as a missile launched from the shuttle's flank. She ignited her boosters to try and evade it but it was too late.
The missile slammed into her chest armour. Sahna shut her eyes as her cockpit filled with sparks, shrapnel pinged off her helmet and she felt her right side become loose. Her harness had broken!
There was a crash and Sahna was violently thrown forward against her harness, half pulling her out of her seat before she realized a stray asteroid had slammed into her. She fought to get herself secured before she was suddenly slammed back into her seat, hard. Something in her right shoulder gave and broke. Pain lanced up through her entire right side and she screamed just before everything seemed to turn white.
Sahna found herself on the ground, where there shouldn't be ground. Around her, there not metal, but concrete and grass. A warm sun shone above, and it wasn't her arm that hurt, but her knee.
Next to her, a bicycle rested on its side, one of its wheels still spinning. An inkyora picked up the bicycle and set it right-side up again.
"Get up, Sahna."
Sahna sniffled, choking back a flow of tears that refused to abate. "But Mama, it hurts!"
"I know it hurts, Sahna, but that doesn't matter yet. Get on the bike. You can't let this thing beat you."
Sahna tried to get up but the ragged gash in her knee only bled and hurt more and she sat back down.
"I can't."
"Yes you can! You promised you would learn to ride without training wheels before I shipped out, didn't you? You promised."
Sahna choked and hiccuped, looked at the burned skin on her palms then up at her mother.
Her mother's red eyes looked down at her sternly. "If you don't get back on the bike now it's going to be that much harder for you to get on later. You don't want to be afraid of something as silly as a bicycle, do you?"
Sahna bit her lip, and blinked eyes blurry with tears. She sniffled and tried again to stand up. It still hurt, it hurt a lot, but she forced herself to ignore the pain and staggered over to the bicycle, unable to bear the thought of disappointing her mother. Gingerly she grasped the handle bars and straddled the seat, now keeping it upright herself.
Her mother's hand rested on her head and she kissed her cheek. "That's my girl. Now come on, I'll push you. Pedal."
Sahna lifted her injured leg and with a little grunt of pain her five-year-old self tried to set off as her mother gently pushed her.
"Come on Sahna, pedal! Move Sahna, move!"
Reality snapped back and Sahna stared wide-eyed at the viewscreen as the hostile Zaku raised its heat hawk, about to bring it down right on top of her.
Sahna grabbed the controls and jerked to the side while twisting the torso, just barely dodging the blow as it carved a deep rent in the asteroid next to her.
Grunting through the fiery pain in her right shoulder and arm she raised her own heat hawk and lashed out, swiping her opponent across the chest. The Zaku floated away, lifelessly, its glowing eye winking out. She'd managed a clean cut through to the cockpit. What a lucky stroke.
Sahna grunted and looked at her right arm. Her right shoulder had broken and was bent forward like a piece of metal. The unnatural appearance of it nearly made her vomit but she held it in. She still had a job to do.
"I can't believe I fell for the same thing Mom did," she hissed to herself. But at least she had survived to learn the lesson, and she wasn't about to let another Mackdall get away. She had vowed not to let her team down, she wouldn't fail here. She couldn't let herself, a member of the elite White Devils, be taken out by a mere shuttle!
Gritting her beak and fighting through the pain, she retrieved her gun, found the shuttle again, and gave chase.
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"Are you crazy!" Rosi shouted at the pilot through the shuttle's intercom. "You can't take out a mobile suit with one missile like that."
"Shut up!" The pilot shrieked. He had an edge of hysteria in his voice, and the jerky movements of the shuttle indicated he was becoming frantic. "Just shut up! You don't know what I'm wanted for!"
"I don't really care. Now that monster's coming back for us! You really think they'll be merciful now?"
The shuttle suddenly lurched as the pilot sent the shuttle into a brief spin. "Shut up!" The pilot screamed again. "I'm not going to prison; I'd rather die."
"You can't give us orders anymore, Rosi," the comms officer snarled. "It's everyone for themselves!"
Rosi's hand fell from the intercom, dread, certainty, and regret filling the pit of her gut. She had finally lost control, more abruptly than she had anticipated, but it had happened, but at the worst possible time.
She looked across the cabin at Levia, realized she had failed her and they were probably about to die. She should have just shot the two crew members as soon as they'd gotten to the shuttle, then it wouldn't have mattered if the gunshot had alerted the crew to something. Apparently, her own loyalties to those under her command, what little of it had remained, had bitten her in the funnel at last.
Her pistol was still at her hip, but she couldn't risk compromising the thin hull if she missed, and it wasn't as if she could easily get through the door to the cockpit anyway.
Levia sat in her seat next to Chella, holding the inkling's hand tightly, the other over the bulge in her vac suit where her belly protruded. He eyes fixated on Rosi's, pleading, helpless, desperate, just like she had that first time she'd been forced into Gragger's bed with some of his other partners. Now, Livia was pleading with her again. Would she, again, let her down?
No, Rosi thought determinedly. There might be one trick that could save them.
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Sahna was close again. She was wary of any more Octarian stragglers catching her but she was determined to take out this shuttle and not let it get away. It wasn't about revenge or her pride, it was about accomplishing her mission. So she told herself.
The comms crackled, her computer notifying her that an emergency band broadcast was being sent through.
"Help," the voice said. "To any nearby Federation forces. There's been a mutiny onboard our shuttle and the pilots have gone rogue. We're trapped. Please, help us!"
The inklish of the speaker was good, very fluent, but she could hear the Octarian accent even over the radio.
Perhaps it was because she'd seen it in so many movies and TV shows before, or maybe it was out of spite. Whatever the reason, Sahna actually replied to the messenger.
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"Nice try, Octarian. You can't fool me twice."
Rosi cursed. Apparently the emergency band on her vac suit's radio could actually reach out even through the shuttle's hul and the mobile suit's minovsky effectl, unfortunately, it seemed she had reached the only pilot in the entire Federation with more than three brain cells.
"Listen," she growled, dropping any pretense. "I don't care what you do to me, but there's an eggnant girl in here and another inkling who–."
The shuttle suddenly began a series of violent manoeuvres. The pilot must have realized what they were doing and was trying to shut them up.
There was a sharp ping of metal and Livia's seat suddenly left the floor and tumbled upwards. The back of the seat slammed into the ceiling and she began to bang against the other walls as the shuttle continued to manoeuvre violently.
Rosi swore and unfastened her harness, despite the danger. Chella did the same. As the shuttle threw them about, they managed to grab into Levia's chair and catch it. There was another violent movement and they tumbled back to the floor before acceleration shoved them back towards the back of the cabin again.
Rosi grunted. "You okay, Levia?"
Levia clung to her, she was sniffling and crying. She was frightened, not just for herself, but for her baby. Rosi held her by her shoulders, giving her an approximation of a hug as she tried to get her back into a secure seat.
Rosi realized she had no choice. She would have to try and shoot through the lock on the door to the cockpit and shoot the idiots inside before they got them all killed. It wasn't likely to work, and it might just send them flying into a rock, but she had to try.
She reached for her pistol's familiar grip, only for her hand to grasp empty air. Where was her pistol?
Rosi frantically looked around and soon found her pistol, grasped in Chella's two trembling hands, pointed right at her. In the inkling's eyes burned determination, brittle but fierce.
"The radio," she said in a quivering voice. "Now."
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As she was lining up her shot, Sahna was slightly surprised when she heard a new voice come over the radio, and this one spoke inklish without the accent.
"To whoever is chasing us from the Federation, my name is Chella Anvilli. I'm sixteen years old and a citizen of the Federation from North Calachora. Please, help us. My friend really is eggnant and we really are being held against our will by pirates. I'm holding one prisoner but the pilots are desperate. Please, save us."
Sahna found herself hesitating, even as the shuttle was lined up perfectly in her crosshairs. Something in her guts told her to take this more seriously. Something about it sounded too outlandish to be a trick, the plea too genuine, and the thought of shooting an eggnant female sickened her.
"You're a sixteen-year-old inkling?"
"Yes," Chella replied firmly.
Sahna thought of a little test. "What's your favourite Squid Sister's song?"
"Wave Goodbye."
Sahna had no idea if that was legitimate or not, she didn't know any of the songs, she just wanted to know if there would be any hesitation to cause doubt.
"And your friend?"
There was a pause. "Uh… Krahveech-ko… coley?"
"What?"
"I dunno. Must be the Octese name for one of their songs."
Now Sahna was certain. No pirate trying to fool them would mention an Octese title for a squid sisters song, not to an angry Federation pilot.
Grunting, Sahna replied, "hold on."
She went to full thrust. She was still flying a mobile suit with a broken harness and a busted shoulder, so she would have to do this carefully, not that the situation really allowed her to be too careful.
The shuttle tried to move away from her, but it's engines had been going full bore for a while now and they had to be low on propellant, too low to get to wherever they wanted to go.
"Careful," Chella warned. "They have a missile on the other side!"
That was when the shuttle rolled, but Sahna was ready anyway. She was already moving to the side when the missile fired, dodging it with ease, and while the shuttle had been holding its course to fire the missile, Sahna had gotten close.
The shuttle tried to jerk away, but Sahna was more agile and grabbed its flank with her Zaku's hand. Stowing her gun, she grabbed her heat hawk, and brought it slashing down onto the cockpit. Whatever was left of the pilots flew out when the cockpit explosively decompressed, helping to arrest some of the momentum of the shuttle, but now it was without guidance.
Sahna replaced her heat hawk and flipped around to face the shuttle, grabbing it in both hands and using full power on the thrusters to stop its momentum and manoeuvre them around the asteroids. The action forced her back into her seat, causing another lightning bolt of pain through her arm and shoulder, but she bared with it and managed to get them stopped.
"Are you alright?" Sahna asked, trying to pretend pain was only an illusion.
"Yeah," Chella replied softly. "Thanks."
"Just keep things under control in there," she said. "We'll get you somewhere safe."
As they made their way back, fresh contacts appeared on her sensor monitor but this time they were friendlies: Callie and Dirk.
"Scar, are you okay?" Callie asked.
Sahna hissed the pain in through her teeth. "I could use a little help here."
Author's Notes:
At almost 10K words, this is a long chapter but hopefully, the action kept things from getting too bogged down for you all.
A lot of people died this chapter and things probably would have been easier if they hadn't had to protect the assault shuttles but that is something that happens when you go for maximum risk/reward sometimes and you don't expect your enemy to try to evacuate through your own forces.
What do you think of what Sahna did throughout the battle, about how she handled the shuttle? What do you think will happen to Rosi and the other two aboard the shuttle? What will happen to them?