Warlord's Invasion (Starfight Book 1) (3 page)

Vier sighed and rested her head back on her headrest. She tried to tune out the busy voices all around her. There were dozens of officers and ratings within the command center. She tried not to think about all the data being displayed on each holographic monitor. She concentrated on what she knew already.

Nadion disruptors had no effect on their missiles. The next step was to test how well her point defense gravitron layer and lasers would do against those same missiles. Gravitron technology was different from phased nanopulse in that they used gravity instead of dimensional physics to inflict damage. Gravitron technology had been in use for as long as humans could attain the speed of light. Gravity propulsion was the basic method of sublight propulsion.

Vier bit her lips. It could be said that gravity propulsion was the first step in every space society’s development. So what did that say about how effective her gravity cannons would be against a society that had
already
made phased nanopulse weaponry obsolete?

The thought made her cringe.

There was no other choice but to test how well her gravitron cannons would do. As for lasers, she had no idea... Of course, if neither of these worked, there’d be nothing to stop those missiles from impacting her shields and armor. And God knew how effective those defenses would do against that...

She gazed over at the central battlemap. The data showed that throughout the human fleet, all twenty-six human warships, including the orbital space station, were just now opening up their PD gravitron cannon layers. That meant that thousands of tiny gravity emitting slots angled towards the incoming alien torpedoes. Additionally, hundreds of PD laser platforms also spat out from the human warships. These platforms could move at fast sublight speeds all by themselves. They also targeted the incoming alien missiles.

Then, she eyed those alien missiles on the battlemap. Undazzled by the new human weaponry, they continued shifting in erratic patterns, still causing chaos to her sensor systems. And their speed was increasing to 0.8c, as if they were aiming for the kill.

“My God, those are kinetic kill speeds,” Captain Shenks mouthed as he hovered over a monitoring station.

Vier glanced at her friend. It saddened Vier to see him in such a state of surprise. Usually, Shenks could get the best of anything. Vier felt the same type of emotion herself, complete bewilderment. If her disruptors couldn’t take out those missiles, what could? She hoped for the best. “ETA?”

“Fifteen minutes, ma’am,” the sensor ensign replied.

Shenks turned to face her. “Admiral, let’s start evasive patterns on our warships, maybe we can lose them to space if we move our ships fast enough. Those missiles can’t possibly have the acceleration to change their fast trajectory that agilely.”

“Agreed.” Vier nodded. “
But there’s no hope for us.”

“Yes.” Shenks nodded with her. “We’ll have to take the blow on at full force.”

Five minutes later, Vier stared at the battlemap as the two thousand alien missiles entered the laser range of the human PD laser platforms. The lasers had a longer range than the gravitron cannons, so the lasers would be the first to be tested.

“Lasers firing, ma’am!”

There was nothing to see on the battlemap. Light beams could not be displayed on the main map. She could only imagine and hope that they hit the alien missiles and took some out.

Then minutes later, the command center of the orbital space station was in utter silence. Crewmen everywhere looked dazed. Confusion spread throughout the ranks. There was definitely something wrong. No doubt about that. A sickening feeling spread inside Vier’s guts. What had happened out there? “How many did we take out?”

“Uh...” Sensor Officer Fredericks answered, “Sensors read...twelve less missiles... Ma’am.”

“Our lasers only took out twelve?” Vier asked, exasperated.
What the god-devil were these missiles? What type of technology did these aliens have?

“Sensors confirmed twenty laser hits registered. But only twelve of them damaged the missiles enough to force them off course. The other eight are still on course, ma’am.”

“They’re unlike anything we’ve seen before,” Shenks added.

Vier gulped. She couldn’t believe it. That was it for the PD laser platforms. The PD laser platforms were useless now, they were out of range of the alien missiles. The next layer of defense were her warship’s PD gravity beams. She only hoped they’d take out more. “ETA to impact?”

“Five minutes, ma’am.”

All things considered, she couldn’t even fantasize what types of warheads those alien missiles actually had on them. But even if they didn’t have warheads, the kinetic speeds on those missiles were enough to severely damage her ships and her space station—if they could get a direct hit. There was a slight chance that her warships could evade those extremely fast missiles. Not so much for her space station, nor the one thousand crewmembers on it.

The sickening feeling in her stomach now radiated throughout her body. Her palms were sweat coated as she gulped. Things didn’t look good. Not good at all.

Two minutes passed. The alien missiles entered range of her warships’ gravity beams. She watched as her warships fired their gravity cannons. Unlike laser beams, these darts of gravity could be observed using tachyon sensors. As a result, she could see hundreds of thousands of gravity altering ‘particles’ speed towards the alien missiles on the main battlemap. She knew for a fact that anything within one hundred meters of any of these particles experienced gravity up to 100,000 Gs’. Against normal matter, they bent and distorted most objects until they were crushed by the sudden acceleration.

However, they didn’t affect these alien missiles. For some reason, the alien missiles didn’t get hit. They didn’t waver. It was as if these gravity altering particles, despite being a deadly force against conventional warships, only
passed
through the alien torpedoes. Most of the alien missiles continued as if nothing had happened.

“Damage?” Vier asked.

“Six...Sixty, ma’am. We’re still firing.”

Sixty enemy missiles gone? That was—Nothing. There were still 1900 alien missiles left. In a conventional battle, the PD gravity cannons could take out at least half of the enemy missiles, as long as the enemy missiles were human made. This was nothing like it. She couldn’t understand what type of technology could make these missiles porous enough to actually be able to speed through the gravity particles without taking damage. Any type of matter, whether it was energy or solid duranium, would be warped by passing through 100 meters of those particles. She couldn’t understand it. It bedazzled her. It sent her mind into a tailspin.

She eyed the defense station. There was only one last layer of defense left...Well, two. The gravity shields of the warships and the space station she was on, and also the armor on her ships. And she didn’t have much hope for that...

Battlespace…

In the hazardous zone of battlespace, the remaining Ga torpedoes passed through the last effective human PD layer and headed on at full speed—nearly 0.9c —towards the warships and the space station. All human combatants powered on their gravity shields already, emitting a layer of defense around each vessel that warped time and space. Additionally, the human warships began jinking in every direction to shake off the alien targeting systems or at least prevent those torpedoes from making a direct hit. No one on board the human warships knew if their jinking was fast enough to evade the acceleration and aiming on those torpedoes.

Probably not.

The alien torpedoes smashed into the human warships at relativistic speeds.

The shields on the warships splattered with gravity over one million Gs. Time and space bent around the warships in a cacophony of destruction. At the same time, the neutronic charges on those Ga torpedoes detonated, adding to their kinetic fury. The power of those torpedoes penetrated the layers of gravity shielding, down into the hull of the warships themselves. Warship hulls bent and shattered. Thousands of able bodied humans died in an instant.

Orbital Station Meerlat-01

Command Room…

The shaking did not stop. The vibrations shattered her favorite teacup. But that was the least of her worries. A throbbing headache filled her brain, and the only salvation was the fact that she could still think, that her thoughts were of substance, meaning she was still alive. “S-Status?” Vier gripped her command chair. She didn’t know if her voice could be heard through the groaning in the command center of the space station.

The screams didn’t stop.

“Help me!” someone called from far away.

Everywhere in the room, holographic displays flickered.

“Status?” Vier yelled.

“Hull integrity…” a barely conscious lieutenant called back. “Intact! Significant damage to outer hull. Grav shields gone! Nobody in the outer hull is alive—Ma’am.”

Shit! Vier flinched. At least it made sense. At least the damage was real, even if the alien missiles were ghosts to her countermeasures. “Life signs?” she yelled. She was glad that every crewmember on board a human starship wore a life tracker system that sent signals about their body to a central computer.

“About... five hundred alive and green with only minor injuries. Two hundred in critical condition. Three hundred... dead!”

“Is the command and control computer still running?”

“Just a second...Yes, ma’am. We can still read our units on the battlefield, ma’am.”

“Good,” Vier whispered. About the only good news so far. “Tell the reserve five thousand missiles to head forward, now!”

“Yes, Admiral!”

“Ma’am! Admiral!” someone yelled from behind her.

Vier turned around and then her face blanked. She stared.

Laid before her were the body parts of Captain Shenks, bloodied and splattered across the ground. A gigantic piece of equipment was on his torso.

“He’s still breathing, ma’am!” the ensign called out. “Help me get this off him!”

“Will do!” Vier got up. Every part of her body hurt like hell. She limped to where Captain Shenks lay.
Shenks...
She stared down at her friend’s body. She couldn’t believe it. He’d always been there for her. When she’d been captured by Black Geary’s pirates, he had defied orders by the admiralty and rescued her.
Shenks...
he had done everything he could do to push her career further.
Shenks...
He had to get through this! Just like she’d gotten through all her troubles with his help!

She tried to lift the equipment off his body—to no avail. “Help!” she cried.

A third crewman came. Ensign Saeda. He was big...bigger than most. With his help, the trio lifted the gigantic heavy piece of metal off.

Vier stared down at her friend.

Shenks groaned. His torso had been shattered. Blood ran everywhere on his uniform. A pool of blood collected around him.

“Help me carry him! Get the medics in here!” Vier yelled at the top of her lungs.

“Admiral!” Sensor Lieutenant Fredericks said. “The enemy fleet has reached our disruptor platform’s range. We’re firing!”

Supreme Battlecruiser Usha'Tera

Bridge of Light…

Hal-Dorat watched in amusement as the puny human defenses readied their primitive nadion pulse technology at his warships.
Useless!
He eyed his sensor displays as all fifty of his Ga ships entered the human’s nadion disruptor range. The disruptor beams sped towards his big feline warships. They crashed into his shields, and...nothing! They splattered against matter that was light-years above anything these species had ever encountered. His warships’ shields, for the most part, held.

Hal-Dorat Al-rim laughed, his big toothy grin curling his feline-lips. He had seen it all before, and it amused him that once again, another species struggled against death and yet, they would join so many others perished.

Then, he thought better about it. There was no humor in laughing as thousands of beings died...only a sense of duty. Duty to his sovereign. He felt...satisfaction, instead.

Maybe one day, the Great Commander would see him befit for a different type of battle, against a different type of Pra? One that could fight back?

This...was like fighting newborn kittens.

He watched as the first of these kittens’ missile waves came closer and closer to his ships’ shields.

There were thousands of these missiles from these Pra, but he worried little. With the technology that this primitive race had shown so far, he very much doubted these missiles could do anything against his shields, let alone his armor. They might prickle him, but his fleet was a mighty beast, the best that the Great Commander had. And him? He was the Great Commander’s most trusted lieutenant.

This entire engagement was a show of force, demonstrating that nothing these Pra had could withstand the Great Commander. If any of these Pra could escape this battle, he was sure they’d report what had happened here to their specie’s leaders. Surely, when such news reached those ears, the entire species would surrender rather than be obliterated?