Imminent Destruction

The Imminent Destruction moved slowly, approaching the Buldethian fleet from the right. Its four guns poised to fire. The name of the cruiser was written in bold red letters across the hull. A Buldethian spiral cruiser kept its flat edge towards the Imminent Destruction’s front. It joined a cannon sphere and a Zepher-432, which moved to intercept the Imminent Destruction from the flank while the spiral cruiser engaged it from the front.

They were as close as a hundred kilometers when the Zepher-432 managed a direct hit with its beam cannon. The Imminent Destruction disappeared completely and a volley of space mines flew at the three cruisers. The remains of a rigged radar beacon revealed the hoax once it was too late, it would have been harmless if left alone. The little mines had ridged rubber nodules over their surface. They spun and danced around the slowly retreating cruisers until one bumped against a hull.

The resulting explosion set off a chain reaction that spread the three cruisers into early oblivion. Their wreckage littered the far right side of the Buldethian formation. The real Imminent Destruction with the gaping crater melted into the left side circled the battle area while avoiding enemy cruisers otherwise trained on the Dorian. It cloaked itself from enemy radar. It positioned itself only a hundred kilometers behind the Neimun before slowly closing the distance.

The Imminent Destruction carefully zigzagged within six kilometers of the Neimun’s thrust capacitor to avoid letting the Neimun’s escort, a squadron of red wasps and about fifty dark angel fighters, get a visual. The Neimun had veered even farther behind the main fleets, and the Imminent Destruction was exceptionally hard to see, as it was using a distortion field to offset its visibility; unfortunately, the power drainage from both cloaking and distortion meant it could be done for only few minutes maximum.

The communications screen activated, it was commander Soel.

“Captain, I have to disclose to you some of our intent for this mission. We’re storming the Neimun in an effort to divide and confuse the enemy command structure. Once we enter the hull we will wrest control of the ship from her crew. Do not fire upon the Neimun. We want to capture her in working condition. The approach from the Imminent Destruction poses the most risk to my forces. Ace Herr and yourself will be providing cover. Do your best to keep the enemy away from my men. Good luck, mercenary. You’ll need it.”

“Get your suits ready,’ Fade said, “The hatch opens in five minutes.”

Bert looked at the radar, red wasp escort ships were on the screen, but too far for a visual. A refitted Karvar with Buldethian markings passed them.

“Must be a punishment patrol,” Bert scoffed.

“What’s our gun status?”

“Everything’s good, cept for the upper left beam cannon, number four. Our lasers are at full power, they’ll be able to hold off up to fifty fighters. All the regular mines are in order. Kitten helped Horace rework three old torpedoes, if you aim them at the Neimun’s communications panels we should be able to cut her off from the rest of the enemy for a good twenty minutes.”

Something in the security screen caught Bert’s eye, “Fade, what’s Karen doing on the deck? Isn’t she sposed to be confined to quarters?”

“Hold that view,” Fade snapped.

Karen was there, watching the Neimun. Its cold gray circular thrust capacitors filled the windows. A black scope extended from her eye. She spoke into a microphone extending from its center.

“What’s that box she’s holding?” Fade asked, taking a closer look at the screen. Bert recognized it instantly.

“It’s a Radvox 300, portable video recorder. Instant play capacity, each one has its own wavelength. Ya gotta be pretty darn rich to own one of those babies.”

“Can they be traced?”

“No way, each one comes with its own advanced encrypted wavelength. Any attempt to receive transmission by uh... not the right person causes the wavelength to disrupt. Even Kitten couldn’t intercept a Radvox transmission.”

“I hope you’re right, though there’s nothing we can do about it now.”

“Hey, Kitten just walked in there too.”

“I could care less.”

“They’re talkin’ about sometin.’ Wanna listen?”

“I could care less!”

The communication screen flashed with feed of Lieutenant Soel and Ace Herr. The seat of the Imminent Destruction’s sole working Rigor 5a fighter was behind Ace, who chewed his lower lip. Lieutenant Soel stared into the screen.

“Can you disable the Neimun’s communications without damaging the ship? I would like to avoid reinforcements.”

“I’ve been planning to do so all along. It’ll only buy us an hour at most. I can only hold the cloaking device for another minute. I suggest you jump out of there.”

Ace spoke next as his fingers pulled at the steering rod.

“Good, we’re ready then, I’ll call if I need anything.”

The whoosh of fighter bay depressurization registered.

“Let’s move!” Soel yelled before his picture disappeared again.

-----

The IEV’s held their ten millimeter laser guns astride their robotic arms as they formed three platoons around Lieutenant Soel’s unit. The ion trail of the fusion powered thrusters pushed the tight circular formation towards its objective. A complete lack of resistance allowed the Lieutenant’s company to fall toward their objective in an unbroken vector without utilizing directional control. Dark clouds of debris suddenly spread across the Neimun’s back and midsection; the Imminent Destruction had opened fire with modified torpedoes. Gray smoke rose from the front sector of the Neimun before spreading into invisibility.

Three dark angels and two modified Karvars rushed to engage the cruiser. The Neimun’s small caliber guns opened fire. Ace injected himself into the enemy formation and two dark angels were immobilized by his missiles. The Buldethian Karvars cut through the IEV formations and fired their laser guns. Corporal Jobelsoni changed direction, took aim with his laser rifle, and blasted one through the center several times. Private Nicholson hit the second from behind while falling toward the Neimun, destroying its thrust systems. The remaining dark angel exploded into a puff of debris from the Imminent Destruction’s cannon fire.

A full color image of Fade flashed in the upper right hand corner of Soel’s visual screen.

“All known communications systems on the Neimun have been temporarily disabled,” Fade said, “You have about twenty minutes until they get back on line and they are coordinating fully, so make it snappy. I don’t want to deal with half the Buldethian Fleet.”

Soel signaled his men forward. Second Lieutenant Mito Forgisom was the first to land on the Neimun’s hull. Lieutenant Soel landed behind him followed by the other formations. They spread out, looking for cover among the ducts and outer systems of the Neimun’s rear compartments. Four thruster fins bulged out along the backside; the defenses were nil here, and the valleys provided cover.

Mito’s heat screen gained a consistent blue off of the Neimun’s surface; the vessel’s heat signatures were well shielded. The regular visual was also uninspiring, a consistently black metal surface, providing no relief for the eye. It was a bleak, lifeless metal terrain of endless insulation, with a dead geography of small canyons and plateaus. Even the light projected by the IEVs seemed to be absorbed in the darkness.

“I can’t make out evidence of a hatch location sir. No light or radio frequencies,” one soldier reported.

“Move out,” Soel commanded, “We don’t have time to waste.”