Gabatrix: The Violet Wave

"Against five warships? They won't stand a chance against the fleet of thirteen. I don't care how old those lent warships are. They can still repel those sharks to the other side of the galaxy."

Javier was once again shaking his head. That funny feeling he had earlier was starting to kick in. He sided with Anaya, but Gray was the man in charge. Something didn't feel right.

"I recommend that we pull back some of our forces then and help protect the planet," Anaya explained. "We don't need to send most of the forces away."

"I already have the UHN Polo and UHN Livingstone guarding Fort Golconda, Admiral. You are worrying too much."

"Wait a minute," Javier said quietly as he kept listening. "They left two warships to defend Aphadus? The rest of the defense fleet is heading away from the planet."

"I must protest this, Fleet Admiral," Anaya said.

"Admiral," Gray replied to her. "They have two dreadnoughts in their fleet. I want to make sure the Shal'rein can't destroy any of our ships. I already have two ships defending the planet."

"Petty Officer," Anaya called out. Javier could hear some faint desperation in her voice. "I want you to start checking for any signs of cloaked vessels."

Javier nodded his head. He knew that the Shal'rein clan, just like the other Itrean clans, used cloaked vessels.

"You would be wasting your time," Gray replied. "Our equipment can barely detect them. They only have so much firepower anyway. The moment they would start shooting, we would target them and destroy them."

There was a long moment of silence. Anaya seemed to have made her peace. Javier once again felt this chill in the back of his neck. He felt the Fleet Admiral was careless. Gray was a man that was more used to being laid back and relaxed. Anaya at least had some sense to her. Perhaps Gray was correct. If the Shal'rein had a fleet behind the star, then the defense fleet could be falling into a trap.

"What is the purpose of the Shal'rein fleet?" Javier asked to himself. "Why would they only send five warships? Sieges require way more warships. Gray is a fool."

He shook his head as he went back and forth with his own arguments. He felt that Anaya might be correct, but what were the Shal'rein clan ships doing?

Between the orbit of Aphadus's star and planet Aphadus, the defense fleet continued with its full burn towards the Shal'rein fleet. The Shal'rein warships forward thrusters began to fire. Slowly, the ships began to move in reverse. The railgun turrets began to readjust its aim. It was no longer facing the planet, but it was aimed at the incoming fleet. The warships didn't open fire, however. They simply kept moving from their position. The defense fleet from Aphadus was slowly gaining ground on them, but it would still take several minutes to reach optimal weapons range. The UHN ships were leaving a beautiful trail of heated plasma in its wake. Warship after warship, it looked like a glory parade of the UHN as they went full acceleration towards its target.

Red alarms were blaring from Aphadus's military base. The sounds of the electronic beeping and thumping drum to it was a clear indication of what was about to happen.

Javier continued to listen to comm chatter from his desk. His adrenaline began to kick in. He knew what was about to happen. A few minutes had passed. Hypervelocity slugs fired from space would continue to fly into a direction unless gravity pulled on it or if it met contact with something else. On a planet, there was no defense against it. A planet had no way of getting out of the direction of it. Railguns were the perfect weapon to shell the ground.

"Sir, incoming volley will hit us in one minute," the petty officer called out.

"Be ready for the rain," Gray called out.

"How is the status of our armor?" Anaya called out.

"All the doors are sealed," the petty officer replied. "The city is passing out all shelling alarms as well."

There seemed to be a pause. Javier knew that in less than a minute, the railgun rounds were about to smack the surface. Technically, the chances of getting struck by it were very low, but it didn't stop him from being nervous. The staff seemed anxious, as well. There was nothing to really do anything about it. Even hiding underground, which the base had, was not enough to stop a round that was heading at you at several kilometers a second.

"Everyone," Javier called out to his staff. "Brace for shelling."

The four crew members of his office nodded their heads in reply. He could see as petty officer Emily went and raised her feet to her chair. She curled up into a ball. She seemed to be making a prayer, but she said it so quietly that Javier couldn't hear it.

Javier went and leaned back to his desk. He gripped his chair hard as he listened to the communication channel that was going through the command room.

"Incoming volley in five......four.......three.......two.......one." Javier closed his eyes.

The sky above the base and the city had a brief spectacle of light. The tungsten slugs gave a slight pulse of reflected light from the dim star. The first rounds fired from the dreadnought were the first to come down. The first shell came in so hard and so fast that it could barely be seen. Only the faint trail of dust was any indication of the fast-moving shells. The first round being about the size of a car, slammed hard into the dirt by the military base. Gravel, rocks, and mud were shot all over the place as the shell embedded so deep underground that crews would have to take days ever to find it.

The second shell followed as the round slammed hard into the edge of the military base. The armor might as well been a pencil stabbing into a thin sheet of tin foil. The shell crashed into a room and caused shrapnel to fly in all directions. A small explosion followed as the shockwave of the impact drove hot metal everywhere.

The next two rounds completely missed the base hitting the dirt and creating additional explosions of mud and metal everywhere. A sizeable series of craters were created as the dust settled.

It was just one dreadnought, however. The rest was soon to follow. It came down like a rainstorm of blazing projectiles. It was metal rain that came down so hard and so fast that if you blinked, you would have missed it. The damage, though, was the clear sign of what had happened.

Four projectiles from one of the battleships slammed into the city block of one of the dome cities. It pierced into the dome structure, went through a home, and buried deep into the rock. Debris, hot metal, and shrapnel flew into all directions. Another set of railgun slugs from another battleship missed and hit the grass and dirt near the dome of the city, creating a large dirt crater. The other dreadnought's railgun rounds slashed into the same big dome building. This time it hit the edge of two homes. The velocity and impact ripped half of the home apart as metal and shrapnel were sent into all directions.

The last set of railgun rounds hit the military base again. Three of the shells missed and hit the dirt and grass by the building, but the last one slammed almost a quarter into the dome structure. It pierced clean through and hit two offices.

Javier could feel the impact. It shook his spot slightly as a breach alarm kicked in.

"We have two impacts in the base," the petty officer on the comms responded. "Checking the damage reports......"

"Is everyone alright?" Javier stood up from his seat and looked at his small division.

"Yes, sir," Emily replied. The others nodded.

"That was the volley. They didn't pick up any additional weapons fire from the fleet on Aphadus."

"Thank god.....," Emily said as she got out of her fetal position. She felt like she could retake a breath.

Javier went and sat back down on the chair. Even he had to admit he could breathe a little bit more. He kept listening as he knew some people were not so lucky.

"Registering a hit in storage office three," the unknown petty officer replied. "Confirmed two dead. We have one wounded. The second hit struck near section 3c. Security Station office 3h has been hit......registering three dead from the impact. Two are being rushed to medical with severe injuries. The other office next to it was vacant. No fires reported. Emergency teams are being dispatched to tend to the wounded."

"Alright....." Fleet Admiral Gray. "Any status from the city?"

"Not yet, sir. Sensors register several hits so far. Casualty reports are not available yet."

"Ok......I need a status on the defense fleet."

Javier could hear the Fleet Admiral being slightly wavered by the event, but his voice had stabilized. The ensign knew that it might be far worse in the city. He did suppose that it could have been far worse, though. How many rounds were fired from the fleet? There had to have been at least twenty rounds unleashed onto the planet. It must have been a far distant shot for the Shal'rein. It seemed that many of the shots missed or were close to hitting their targets. If the enemy fleet had been closer, the accuracy would have been far better and more destructive.

"Sir, the defense fleet is about 1/2 the way to the star right now," the petty officer told Gray. "They are giving off reports that the Shal'rein fleet is starting to reverse course. They are within missile firing range. They are engaging the Shal'rein fleet."

Outside and in space, the Aphadus defense fleet was still moving as fast as they could humanly move. The Shal'rein fleet was still continuing to move in reverse. The forward thrusters were turning from red hot to the color of blue as the flames intensified. The parade of UHN warships began to launch a small volley of missiles. The UHN Angre was the first as its eight bow tubes opened up and unleashed a huge volley of anti-ship missiles towards the lead Shal'rein dreadnought. The Ikra Class Battleships were next as the dorsal vertical launch array unleashed salvos of deadly anti-ship missiles. The flung upward spun in space, and then its engines activated. The missiles began heading straight towards the Shal'rein fleet.

There was one glaring problem in the situation. The missiles were heading straight towards the other side of the star. They would have to maneuver around it or hit the star.

Back on the ground, Javier continued to monitor the communication chatter.

"Sir," Admiral Anaya explained to Fleet Admiral Gray. "The enemy fleet is drawing us away from Aphadus. They are trying to head to the other side of the star. Our missiles risk getting cooked by the star itself."

"I have already heard of it, Admiral Anaya. You have said your peace. The Shal'rein has attacked us. We have to chase them away from this system. If they don't, the sharks will keep poking their heads from the star and keep shelling us."

Javier could understand both sides of the argument. He still felt that there was something wrong, however. The Itrean clans had hundreds of thousands of warships. Why did they only have five shelling Aphadus? So much more damage could be done of they brought additional warships.

"Then again....." Javier whispered to himself as he stroked his beard. "Maybe the Shal'rein were just being stupid." Unfortunately, the thinking did little to appease the sensation he was having. He continued to listen to the communications traffic.

"Fleet Admiral," the same unknown petty officer explained. "The Shal'rein are continuing to reverse course. The missiles are attempting to alter their trajectory, but they are getting very close to the star. Most of the missiles will be incinerated before they even reach the Shal'rein clan fleet."

"That is alright," Gray replied. "Tell our fleet to continue pursuing. They might have the star to help them out, but they can't outrun our fleet at this rate. I want those sharks on a silver platter."

"Sir," Anaya explained. "If our defense fleet gets too close to the star, they will have interference to contend with. They will have a hard time receiving our messages and sending them to us."

"That's why it is called a star, Admiral," Gray almost snapped at her. "I know that."

Javier was shaking his head. He knew that Anaya was simply doing her job. Her cautious side was all too obvious.

"Fleet Admiral," Javier whispered to himself. "Just call in reinforcements. Try to be safe. The Shal'rein clan is doing something, and they appear to be succeeding at it. Everyone is going to look at us as fools when that enemy fleet accomplishes its goal. Millions of lives are at stake."

He knew that was what was going on in Anaya's head as well. Even if he couldn't see her face, he admired the admiral. She always seemed to be cautious but was she being over cautious? Perhaps......

Deep in space, the volley of missiles continued on its course. The volley started to alter course, trying to go around the star. The missiles were getting so close that the heat was beginning to cook the alloy. The given missiles from the T'rintar clan were doing better, but the missiles from the human-constructed warships were not designed to be fired directly towards the star. Dim star or not, the heat was getting too intense. A few of the missiles simply melted and exploded in space. The others still continued their course, trying to reach the Shal'rein fleet.

The Shal'rein fleet, on the other hand, emitted a series of small flashes. The missile launchers from the warships connected to the fin arrays fired a series of small missiles. The missiles were quick and agile as they flew from the launchers and turned toward the volley incoming missiles. The Shal'rein were continuing their reverse course. It was getting to the point the enemy fleet could no longer see Aphadus anymore. The UHN fleet was still staying on its path. The battle was becoming a chase.

Back on the ground on Aphadus, Javier continued to listen to the communication chatter. It was like a long wait. He looked at the clock and was amazed to see that over thirty-five minutes had passed since the whole battle began. Space battles were nothing but slow movements. It was nothing like the science fiction that was often portrayed on shows. Much like the surface warfare of vessels of former Earth, battles were conducted over extreme ranges. It was fortunate enough that everything in the system was so close together that.....

"Hmmm.....," Javier said whispered to himself. He put his tablet on the table and looked at the time that had passed. "Thirty-five minutes. The fleet was heading towards the Shal'rein and had been traveling for that long. The convenience of the proximity of the star......the distance and range. Our defense fleet was being left behind."

"Sir," the petty officer said over the comm. channel. "The Shal'rein are out of our visual range. They have gone behind the star. Our defense fleet still has them in their sights and is continuing course. Some of the missiles from their volley are being incinerated by the star. The Shal'rein have launched anti-missile munitions to destroy the incoming volley."

"Tell our fleet to ready another volley," Fleet Admiral Gray replied. "The Shal'rein have nowhere to run and no......"

"Fleet Admiral!" another voice replied on the comm channel. This was a female voice, and this time it was so startling that it even surprised Javier as he listened in. "Our sensors are picking up something."

"Is it a cloaked vessel?" Admiral Anaya asked.

"Negative Admiral. I am picking up something coming from the upper atmosphere of the dark side equator of Aphadus."

"What do you mean you are picking something up?" Gray asked her.

"There was something that popped up, and then it vanished. Standby.......I am picking it up again."

Javier was glued to the desk. He was nodding his head. If the Shal'rein were about to spring something, then it was going to happen now.

"I need more of an answer than that petty officer!" Gray almost snapped at her. His voice echoed his anger.

"It.....the computer is trying to put it together," the petty officer struggled to answer. "There is a 60% probability that a gate is opening up in the upper atmosphere of the Aphadus."

"Do we have any listening post on the dark side of Aphadus?" Gray asked.

"No," Anaya replied. "We have a listening post on the gas giant moon in the system, but it is on the other side and not facing us."

"Dammit," the Fleet Admiral replied. "Continue monitoring it."

"Fleet Admiral......" Anaya called out to Gray. "I recommend that we pull the fleet back."

There seemed to be a pause. The tension could be cut with a knife. If Javier could see Gray's face, he could imagine exactly what he expected. Gray was being pulled in two directions.

"Fleet Admiral," the other petty officer told Gray. "The Shal'rein missiles have successfully destroyed most of the volley of missiles. The UHN fleet report that the missiles are now being shot down by the autoguns on the warships." There was a short pause. "The defense fleet report the volley has been destroyed. Another volley is about to be launched."

Again there was a long brief pause. It seemed that Gray was in deep thought.

"Sir," the female petty officer called out. "I am getting a clearer detection of what is happening. A gate had been opened. If the sensors are correct, they are reporting three sizeable objects that are heading out of it."

"What the hell is going on?!" Gray called out. He was clearly frustrated.

"The Shal'rein are luring our fleet away!" Anaya replied to him. "They waited till they were at a safe distance, and now they are committing to the next step."

"With what? Three objects......are they fucking warships or what?"

"I don't know, sir!" the petty officer replied. "It is so close that our sensors are having a hard time picking it up. It is at a blind spot. We are barely receiving it."

"I am compelled to agree with her Fleet Admiral," Anaya said. "They are using our blind spot to put their ships into our orbit. Petty officer, focus your scans in that region. Satellite GH-13 should be circling around that spot in a minute. I want you to identify what came out of that gate before it closed. You have three objects that came through."

"Trying Admiral......"

Javier closed his eyes. The feeling of being powerless was overwhelming.

"Attention personnel of the base," another voice announced from the overhead speaker. "We are currently in the process of trying to assist the wounded in the base. Any qualified personnel in damage control are needed. Division officers take the lead and assign any personnel to assist. Personnel are to report to Damage control locker 47 to receive assignments."

"Ensign..." two voices could be heard from the room. Javier stood up and saw the two brothers standing together, looking at him.

"Aaedesh and Jagan..." Javier replied.

"Sir, we are qualified, and we volunteer to go help the injured."

"Do it. Thank you guys," Javier replied with a smile.

He watched as both brothers left the room. He was proud of their actions. He always applauded the brothers and the work they put forth. Even in an emergency like this, they didn't even need to be told what to do. They simply stood forth and did it. He knew who was going to get good evaluations of this upcoming term.

He looked back at his seat and continued to look at the speaker and tablet lying on his desk. He sighed as he sat back down and continued to listen to the quagmire that was going on in the command room of the base. As soon as he sat down, he could hear the comm chatter resume.

"Admiral......," the female petty officer finally answered. "The satellite is tracking three warships. Two battleships.......and one assault carrier. They are Shal'rein warships."

"What the fuck?" Gray reacted.

"What direction are they heading?" Anaya asked.

"They are heading out of the atmosphere and into orbit. They are doing a full burn straight to us!"