Grey War Saga 1: Twilight of Innocence (8 page)

The front line
of mobile armors and Spits were currently engaging the attack vessels sent
forward by the Greys. Whenever Trai Gor slashed his way through an attack ship
it seemed ten would take its place. The first line of the orbital defense
system activated when the Shandi fell back. All of the automated pulse cannons
on the moon added in as wave after wave of pulse fire slammed into the Grey
ships. After Trai Gor sent out the signal another wave of nuclear missiles
fired and carved a hole through the center of the Grey formation. Before the
swarm of attack ships could fill the void all nuclear equipped ships fired
their weapons and cut down a thousand Grey carriers. Even with a powerful blow
to the enemy the Shandi were still outnumbered more than ten to one.

“My lord, the
enemy is so numerous that we can’t…” Vik Jir said.

“I know,” Trai
Gor said. “This is a test of our resolve. It’s time the first and second fleets
use our special weapon.”

“Yes sir,” the
admiral said. “All vessels in the first and second fleets are to activate the
Dragon Scale system.”

The two thousand
heavy class ships of those two fleets all moved closer together. As the special
defense system came on the shields from all the ships pulsed as they moved to
form a single, nearly impregnable shield. All of their Fangs and Spits moved
inside the protective barrier as the fleets advanced into the enemy formation.
When the mass of Shandi ships were completely surrounded the shell around them
pulsed as the defensive barrier fired powerful energy beams in all directions
save for their rear.

“The system is
working sir,” the admiral said.

“Of course it
is,” Trai Gor said. “Make sure to ready the other fleets for their turns. Our goal
is to clear a path to their planet killers before they fire.”

* *
*

Seles and Mira
prepared to go in the Artemis and Siren while Jesela did her usual round of
checks.

“Things seem so
unreal right now,” Seles said.

“Time will wear
that down,” Jesela said. “What you’re seeing today won’t affect you now, but in
the times when you’re alone a few years from now you’ll know it.”

“Are you
speaking from experience?” Mira asked.

“I am,” Jesela
said.

“It’s only
because of good luck any of us are still alive,” Seles said. “Though Mira’s
cheating because of her father.”

“I’ll admit to
that,” Mira said. She glanced at the two mobile suits. “I still wonder why he
wanted us to pilot these.”

“The Maidens are
to each have a chariot,” Jesela said. “Those were his orders after we met
Grigon. Each is equipped with special system that can only be activated by an
awakened Kalaidian.”

“So berserking
isn’t enough?” Seles asked.

“No,” Jesela
said. “You saw Brian in the Mjolnir. He was able to use the dimensional blade
thing.” She looked over her scans again. “By the way, you’re both clear to
fly.”

“You’ve done
your part, now it’s time for us to do ours,” Seles said.

“I’ve got a song
or two in mind that should clear the way,” Mira said.

The two boarded
their mobile suits while Jesela watched. They went to standby because the bases
hadn’t yet reached their target. Jesela then left the two and headed for the
bridge. When she got there Brian, Myden, and Grigon were ready with the four
droids. She quickly took her station when the base gravity jumped again. Brian
looked up after reading the battle plan he was working on.

“What are our
chances?” Jesela asked.

“It should end
in victory,” Brian said. “But at what cost I can’t answer.”

“We’ll do our
best then,” Grigon said.

“That’s all we
can do,” Jesela said.

Brian finished
the plan and sent it out to all the pilots in their mobile suits. He looked at
the monitor and saw the flash of another gravity jump. One more and the eight
bases would be at Shandi Prime.

“I hope they
were able to hold the Greys back,” Brian said.

* *
*

Valis was in the
Minerva when Kivi appeared on the screen from the Gemini.

“It’s good to
finally see you again,” Kivi said.

“I haven’t been
myself lately, have I?” Valis asked.

“No, you’ve been
much too hesitant to be the Valis I know,” Kivi said. “I know it’s difficult
because the scale is larger, but this isn’t different from any other war.”

“I think Brian’s
idealism is rubbing off on me,” Valis admitted.

“He’s that way
because of what he’s gone through,” Kivi said. “Having your mind connected to
some machine god can’t be healthy. I’m surprised he hasn’t gone crazy already.”

“He is crazy,
that’s the issue,” Valis said with a smile.

“Agreed,” Kivi
said. “Someday all of us will join him.”

“I wonder what
it’ll be like to awaken,” Valis said.

“I do as well,
but I’m not sure,” Kivi said. “Berserking is odd enough.”

“True,” Valis
said. She received the signal that their forces were now in position. After
looking it over she noticed Kivi shaking her head. “What’s wrong?”

“I can’t believe
this is happening,” Kivi said.

“Let’s go Kivi,
it’s time we bring the fight to them,” Valis said.

* *
*

The Shandi line
fell back again when the fifth and sixth fleets reached their limit and
returned to the main force. The Greys had pushed them back to first orbital
defense line while moving forward. Trai Gor cursed under his breath at the
situation. The admirals behind him were hastily reorganizing the fleets to
maintain a semblance of order. More than half of the Grey fleet had been destroyed,
but the same could be said for the Shandi forces. While the Shandi were
shifting things around the two planet killers charged up. Before they were
fully charged the two massive ships fired a pair of beams. One slammed into the
moon of the Shandi homeworld and wiped out most of the weaponry stationed on
it. The other missed the atmosphere of the homeworld and instead slammed into
the orbital ring. The shockwave of destruction quickly spread across the whole
of the structure before it collapsed and slammed into the planet below.
Millions of Shandi died as the fragments fell into the equatorial areas. The
sky in the middle of the planet was filled with fire while the ground soldiers
desperately tried destroying the falling fragments. The soldiers in orbit watched
with horror knowing there was nothing they could do about it. With the command
center in the orbital ring gone Trai Gor quickly changed the command structure
within the fleet.

“Admiral Jark
Le, you’re now in charge,” Trai Gor said.

“My lord,” the admiral
said.

“I know, but we
must fight on,” Trai Gor said.

“I understand,”
Jark Le said.

Behind the two
planet killers the eight bases of Heaven’s Light appeared. As they deployed
their forces Trai Gor opened his com again.

“To all the
remaining soldiers, our allies have come!” Trai Gor said. “Now is the time to
drive this threat from our world forever. Long live Shandi! Long live the
Confederation!”

“Long live
Shandi! Long live the Confederation!” his soldiers shouted.

* *
*

All of the ships
and mobile weapons from the eight bases deployed in attack formation. The
Columbia base moved to the front with its main six ships doing likewise. The
Maidens flew from their ships to the front of the mobile suit line. The Mjolnir
stayed with the Avoni to act as the mobile suit commander. Brian and the other
commanders on the ships sent out their orders as they quickly approached the
rear planet killer. He noticed Veda looking to him from the base.

“I want you to
make the call,” Veda said.

“Charge with
everything we have,” Brian said.

“A charge it
is,” Veda said. While Reban worked to organize the others on the base Veda hit
the com. “To all bases of Heaven’s Light, activate the Hades system
immediately. We will head straight for the closest planet killer and destroy it.
Once this has been done we’ll do the same for the second.”

The leaders of
the bases began berserking to activate the Hades system. Each of the asteroids
glowed with particles as their gravity drives spun at greater than normal
speeds. Five of the six ships in front of the Columbia base did the same a
moment later. When the Shandi charged the Grey ships the forces of Heaven’s
Light did the same from the opposite direction.

When the Shandi
forces charged the front line of the Greys the smaller attack ships used their
telepathic energy to take the form of the Fang mobile armors. Trai Gor hit the
com.

“They can copy
our ships, but not their special systems,” he said to his soldiers. “To all the
remaining ships, use the Dragon Scale system. All Fangs and Spits are to move
within the field.”

“Yes sir,” his
soldiers said.

The remaining
five thousand Gant class ships moved together to form the protective bubble.
The Grey forces swarmed them and pressed in from all sides.

“To all squadron
leaders, you have clearance to fire,” Trai Gor said.

“Yes sir,” his
subordinates responded.

Each of the Fang
leaders loaded and aimed a nuclear missile before firing into the Grey
formation. As light flashed all around the Shandi bubble the Grey forces nearby
were devastated. Most of the smaller attack ships were destroyed in the attack.
In front of the Shandi, the carriers began moving closer together and used
their telepathic powers to form a glowing energy shield capable of blocking
everything coming at it. The Shandi were stopped dead in their tracks by the
barrier.

“Hold your
position,” Valis said over the com. “The Greys can’t destroy you if you
concentrate of defense.”

“We’ll do as you
say Captain Valis,” Trai Gor said.

* *
*

When the bases
of Heaven’s Light closed in a number of the carriers moved in front of them and
resonated to create a shield like the ones in front of the Shandi. The eight
bases were glowing bright as their output increased dramatically. At the same
time their ships and mobile weapons fired on any smaller Grey ships coming near
them. Brian’s eye glowed brightly while the Freedom flew at the front. The
others on the bridge worked hard as pulse fire from the Greys increased.

“Are you sure
about this?” Grigon asked. “We’ve never had a chance to test this system.”

“Better we try
and die then not at all,” Brian said. “Don’t worry Grigon, I trust the work you
and the others have put into this.” He looked at Veda on the monitor. Her eyes
were glowing as well. “You can hear my thoughts, can’t you?”

“It’s very
strange,” Veda said.

“Although we
only need two bases to resonate having all eight should do something extra,”
Brian said with a smile. “Be ready for my order.”

“We are,” Veda
said.

Brian touched
the com. “Valis, we need you and the others to clear a path. We’ll take care of
the rest after that.”

“As you wish
Brian,” Valis said.

The eight bases
and their ships charged into the Grey line with their weapons firing.
Explosions filled the area as the glowing fleet slowly forced its way through
the energy barrier.

* *
*

The Maidens made
their way quietly to the assigned location. From the movements of the Grey
ships it was obvious they weren’t primary targets anymore. Ship after ship
slammed into the bases and their shields in the attempt to stop them. Seles
fought off the urge to berserk and fired at the smaller crafts nearby as they
the form of Fangs.

“I can’t believe
they can do that,” Kivi said.

“We saw it
happen during the sojourn,” Celi said.

“It seems to
increase their effectiveness,” Mira said.

“They’re still
the same old target, just a bit more powerful,” Seles said.

“Keep your wits
about you,” Valis said. She looked back at the bases. “Though I have to admit
it’s hard to believe we can do anything in this battle.”

When a number of
attack ships came closer a pair of Novaguards popped off each of their mobile
suits and automatically fired their pulse cannons at the enemy. Each quickly
matched their guard fighters and destroyed the wave of enemies.

“I’m glad we’re
getting some use out of these,” Kivi said as the Novas returned to standby
mode.

“Better to use
then waste,” Seles said.

Her and Kivi
switched their cannons to spread mode and blasted a mass of Grey ships moving
to surround the five.

“It’s good to
have a few cannons near me,” Celi said.

“Why don’t you
carry a rifle or something?” Mira asked.

“It’s because
the Aegis’s system wasn’t made for that,” Valis said.

“Defense is my
game,” Celi added. “The theory is I can’t waste any energy on offense. That’s
what the Artemis and Gemini are for.” When the Greys put some pressure on them
she increased the shields to compensate. “See what I mean?”

Behind them, the
Mjolnir and thousands of mobile suits and mobile armors formed a line to keep
the five linked with the main force. Seles smiled when she saw the Mjolnir cut
its way through a carrier with its sword and cannon. The mobile suit quickly
moved to join the others before it was swallowed up in the mass of Grey ships.
That’s
it Meldi.
Seles thought while firing at the enemy. The Maidens and the
mobile weapons behind them had cleared a path to the first planet killer when
they detected an energy surge coming from the massive ship.

“That’s our
queue,” Valis said. “Seles, everyone will follow your lead to the target
point.”

“I’m on it,”
Seles said.

The Artemis took
the lead with its arrow system charging. Next to it the Gemini split into two
and slashed its way through any incoming enemy vessels. Behind them the Aegis,
Minerva, and Siren flew. Any enemy coming near the five was either disabled or
destroyed by its own reflected attack from of the Aegis’s shield. The mobile
weapons led by the Mjolnir kept with them to prevent them from getting cut off.
When they reached the edge of the planet killer’s shields the advance stopped
while the Artemis shifted its reflector plates into power position. Seles fired
five successive arrows. All of the others within range joined the barrage to
open a hole to the surface of the planet killer. As soon as the shields
weakened everyone retreated to clear the way for the bases to fire. The five snapped
out of their berserk and return to normal to save some energy for the second
wave. After thousands of mobile suits flew out of the way the eight bases and
the five main ships fired their Hades cannons. Beams of light hundreds of
ketres
long slammed into the planet killer one after another. As its shields were
drained its ability to attack went as well. After a few minutes of the barrage
the massive ship was filled with explosions. When it looked like it was limping
away the bases of Heaven’s Light fired a series of nuclear missiles. The planet
killer went dead moments afterwards. The eight bases stopped glowing and were
forced to return to normal while the second planet killer moved away with the
remaining five thousand carriers. Both the Shandi and Heaven’s Light fleets
took the opportunity to regroup.

“Looks like it
worked,” Seles said.

“It’s a bit
early to pat ourselves on the back,” Kivi said.

“You sound like
a cranky old lady,” Mira said.

“She’s right you
know,” Celi said.

Valis laughed.
“I have to agree with them.”

Kivi sighed.
“Sorry to be a song killer.”

“So what’s the
plan now?” Seles asked.

“We unloaded
everything we had with that attack,” Mira said. “Hopefully we have enough for a
second wind.”

“I wanted us to
save a little for the next phase,” Valis said. “With the help of the Shandi we
should be able to corner the other planet killer and destroy it. The plan all
hinges on whether or not our allies have anything left.”

* *
*

When the battle
went quiet and the two sides regrouped Trai Gor took the opportunity to contact
his forces on the homeworld.

“To all
available ships, use this opportunity to get as many of our citizens off planet
as you can,” he ordered.

“Yes sir,” his
subordinates responded.

He switched the
com to talk with the Siberia base. Shiken Ka appeared on the other side of the
video.

“It’s good to
see you’re alive,” Shiken said.

“You as well,”
Trai Gor said. “But our time may be near.”

“What makes you
say that?” Shiken asked.

“Our special
shield is down,” Trai Gor said. “And with the destruction of the orbital ring
power systems are failing across the globe we call home.”

“I see,” Shiken
said.

“Shiken Ka, in
case I don’t make it I have a final request,” Trai Gor said.

“I’m listening,”
Shiken said.

“When I’m gone
you and Miv Daek will be the last of the Seven Swords,” Trai Gor said. “All of
the others have fallen in this battle. Should the worst happen I leave the
future of our people with you.”

“I accept the
burden with grace,” Shiken said.

“Thank you old
friend,” Trai Gor said.

* *
*

Valis opened her
eyes after communing with the Minerva. She quickly changed the plan she was
working on and hit the com.

“Everyone, this
is Captain Valis speaking,” she said. “Our enemy has changed their strategy and
we must act quickly. The planet killer intends to lower its shields on purpose
to charge the main cannon. All forces are to assume formation E-12.”

“Yes captain,”
all of the pilots and captains responded.

Valis narrowed
the channel to the other Maidens. “Seles, we need your arrows to fire true.”

“I’ll do my
best,” Seles said.

“Kivi, guard her,”
Valis said.

“I’m on it,”
Kivi said.

“Mira, Celi,
you’re with me,” she said.

“Yes Valis,” the
two said in unison.

She switched the
com to the Mjolnir. “Meldi, I need you to join us this time.”

“But I can’t…,”
Meldi trailed off.

“I trust you
Meldi,” Valis said.

“I’ll do what I
can captain,” Meldi said.

Before the
Maidens charged in they waited for the Mjolnir to join them. Valis kept her eye
on the dragon looking mobile suit.
You were given that weapon by him for a
reason. Why he chose you over Seles I can’t say, but I know there’s a reason.
Show me what you’re capable of, show all of us.
She thought as the berserk
took over her and the Maidens. A moment later Meldi’s eyes glowed when she
joined in their attack. The six mobile suits plowed through the Grey forces as
they made their way to the planet killer.