Gabatrix: The Violet Wave

"Can you identify the types of battleships?"

"Yes. They are Yu'il class. The assault carrier is a Hiko class."

"Fleet Admiral," Admiral Anaya called out. "We have been outmaneuvered. We only have the two Magellan battleships and our planetary defense weapons."

"Our defenses will handle it!" Gray snapped at her.

"No, they won't!" Anaya countered. "The Yu'il are the newer battleships used by the Shal'rein. They are fully capable of knocking out the defenses here. The assault carrier is going to land troops on the planet."

"Wha......How?" Gray stammered. "They don't have enough troops to capture Aphadus!"

"I can't explain either Fleet Admiral. I am checking out the sensors right now. They will meet up with the defenses in four minutes."

There was a short pause. "Order our fleet back now!" Gray finally caved in, but even Javier knew it was too late.

"Sir," the petty officer replied. "It will take about twenty-five minutes for the defense fleet to come back into weapons range to stop the other Shal'rein warships."

"Tell them to get their asses back to Aphadus right now! Tell Fort Golconda to open a gate to Mars now! Get reinforcements here now!"

The desperation in Gray's voice was evident. Javier shook his head and felt fear burn into his soul. Pandemonium was beginning to break out. The Shal'rein had indeed performed the perfect move as the defense fleet was taken away from Aphadus. A surgical strike team was on its way to the capital city, the fortress gate array, and the military base of the northern pole of the planet. Each minute was precious. It appeared that whatever the Shal'rein clan was going to do, they were going to succeed at it.              

In orbit above the capital world of New San Antonio, new alarms were blaring. The buzzing electro air raid sirens filled the endless dim-lit red sky. The military base had flashing lights that hid the hole of where the railgun rounds had struck. A little bit of smoke was emptying out from both where the rounds had hit.

New San Antonio was in a panic. Nobody was out in the streets, and the small amount of damage was quickly sealed up. There was an ominous presence. The people, military or civilian, knew that battle was being brought closer and closer to their doorstep.

The military bases defenses readied itself. Surrounding the massive dome of the base was a series of circular platforms that encompassed the entire structure. They were doors that connected underground. They suddenly popped open, and in tandem, large turrets began to lift out of the structures. The turrets started to unfold, and large barrels formed. In all, there were at least ten heavy railgun batteries that pointed up to the sky, ready to fire up to the incoming ships.

Another set of opening doors revealed a set of launchers. They were silo doors that reacted first. Six silos began to unleash a volley of missiles. Smoke billowed from the doors and out into the surrounding environment as the warheads shot straight up into the air. The missile volley altered course slightly as it began to head towards the dark side of the planet.

In space, the two Magellan Class Battleships stood ready. A small dot could be seen from the surface as they could watch the missiles being launched from the surface. The short trail of flames was easy to see from space. Aphadus was under direct attack. Two enemy battleships and an assault ship had slipped past the defense fleet and were on its way to them.

The Magellan Class Battleships were the standard warships of the UHN. They looked like long gray cylindrical vessels and had a large rotating centripetal ring that housed the crew of the ship. It was connected next to the engine and power module near the rear. In the center, dorsal and ventral sides were a medium railgun turret. On the center port and starboard sides was the shuttle bay. Near the bow was the forward thruster assembly, a ring of laser, anti-missile batteries, and flak guns mixed into a series of turrets. The bow has had eight forward missile/torpedo tubes.

The UHN Polo and Livingstone's missile tubes opened up. They faced the direction of the incoming Shal'rein warships. Suddenly, the launch doors lit up as both warships' tubes emitted a small flash of light. Eight anti-ship missiles flew from them, sixteen in total from both ships, as they shot out. The volley of missiles began to alter course as blue flames lit up space around the volley. Flying at blazing speeds, the volley would join up the salvo launched from the ground as they were heading straight towards the incoming Shal'rein fleet.

Fort Golconda was readying its own defenses. The tethered Ankh in space had its own set of defense anti-missile batteries in place. The top ring gate array began to emit a series of flashes. The array was powering up. In the center of the array, a tiny vortex was forming. It was tiny as the eddy was trying to rotate in place. The particles of blue light were gradual but getting more significant.

These lights could be seen in the far distance of the dark side of the planet. It was closing straight to the Fort Golconda and the two UHN warships. The Shal'rein was closing in rapidly.

The Yu'il Class Battleship looked similar to the Qitilix Class Battleships that were at the star of Aphadus. There were some slight differences in appearances, though. For one, the warships were a little bit longer in length. The engine array was shaped differently. The warship still retained the two dual railgun batteries, but the barrels were slightly longer. The center portion beside the railguns was the anti-missile launcher arrays that connected to the fins. The Yu'il also had a ventral fin anti-missile launcher array on the underside of the ship. The bowhead of the ship was more pronounced, and the quad anti-missile autoguns stood out better.

The assault carrier was a different matter entirely. It looked like a large shuttle that was connected to an engine/power module. The module was connected to one very large centripetal ring that spun in place. The ship connected to it was quite big. It had a series of eight rotatable engine thrusters (four on the port side and four on the starboard side) that connected to the underside of the hull. The top bow had a sizeable protruding nose. It attached to the top center frame that appeared to have a broad flat side to it. There was a series of doors that connected to the large flat section of the carrier. Near the top rear of the ship was a sizeable dual-mounted railgun turret. The underside bow of the vessel looked like a large door of some sort. Small guns also lined the ship's frame with a similar fin-like missile array that was parked near the nose of the ship.

The dark purple colored hulls were hard to see from the dimly lit portion of the planet. The volley of missiles was slowly heading towards their targets at blazing speeds.

The Shal'rein were quick to respond to the incoming missiles as the warships were closing in. A series of small missiles were launched from the fin-like array launchers. They emitted a slight blue glow from their thrusters as they headed towards the incoming volleys of missiles.

Back on the ground, Javier knew what was going to happen next. He kept listening to the communications chatter from his desk as he continued to overhear the CO and XO direct the events that were transpiring.

"Fleet Admiral," the petty officer called out. "Fort Golconda is at 15% of gate formation with Mars. Mars has reinforcements ready to come through."

"We still have four minutes to wait for reinforcements to come through," Admiral Anaya replied.

"Those sharks are out of their minds," Fleet Admiral Gray reacted. "What are they hoping to achieve?"

"Sir," the same petty officer called out. "I am receiving word from the UHN defense fleet. They are trying to turn around and head back. They report that the five Shal'rein warships that are heading to the other side of the star are coming to a stop. They are launching gate probes.....it looks like they are preparing to jump out."

"There is your answer, Fleet Admiral," Anaya scolded the CO. "That was their mission. They were trying to lure our defense fleet away from the planet, and they achieved it."

"What the fuck are the Shal'rein planning on doing?" Gray angrily replied. "They can't capture this planet. Sooner or later, reinforcements will come pouring out and repel them! Even if they launch an assault on the ground, we will beat them. It's only three fucking warships!"

"Petty officer," Anaya called out. "Warn the Martian fleet of everything that has happened. Warn the fleet that the Shal'rein may attempt to shoot at the opening."

"What?" Gray replied. "Admiral Anaya, let me remind you that I am in charge of this base! Stop issuing orders without my consent."

"Fleet Admiral....sir!" Anaya called out. Her voice was that of annoyance and anger. It was the first time Javier could truly hear it from her voice. He knew that she was tired of the Fleet Admiral's arrogance. "The Shal'rein are going to assault this base. I don't know why they are doing it, but they are going to be putting troops on the ground. If you can't take command of this base properly, I will have you thrown out of this command room."

"How dare you insult a higher ranking officer?! This is treason! I will have you....."

"Fleet Admiral Gray," Anaya confidently interrupted him. "I have more experience than you have. You have placed the lives of millions in danger due to your negligence. Our defense fleet has been moved away from its position due to your actions. It is, in my opinion, that you should be removed from command. A hearing will be conducted to see who is in the right and the wrong, assuming we, of course, survive. Fleet Admiral....."

There was a long pause. Javier's mouth was agape. Anaya was pushed to the wall, and she fought back hard. He needed to remind himself never to piss her off. He applauded her performance, but it was sadly too late. The damage was done, and the Shal'rein were coming.

"I will see to it that you are removed, Admiral Anaya!" Fleet Admiral Gray replied. "Petty officer! Take her into custody."

There was another long pause. Finally, the response was perfect. "No, sir. Admiral Anaya has issued her orders."

Again there was another long pause. "Ugh....," were Gray's last words. A sound could be heard as the doors slid open. It was obvious that he left the command room.

"We don't have enough time to let everyone know that I am assuming command," Anaya told the room. "Status on the Shal'rein fleet?"

"Maam," the petty officer replied. "The Shal'rein are shooting down the volley of warheads we launched. Another salvo is being deployed from the base. UHN Polo and Livingston are about to launch another salvo."

"No good...." She said with some reluctance. "We don't have enough to repel their warships. Tell the Martian reinforcements that the Shal'rein are about to launch an assault on the ground. Tell them that Shal'rein may try to shoot down the Fort's gate array! Ready all defenses! Launch our aircraft! Get every able-bodied person with a gun and be ready to repel the sharks!"

Javier's blood began to pump hard. He knew a battle was coming his way. He was one of those people that were qualified to handle firearms.....                           

"Attention all stations!" an overhead announcement called out all through the base. It pulled Javier's ear away from the desk speakers. "Shal'rein warships have penetrated our defenses! An assault carrier is heading this way. All civilians stay at your designated shelters. All military personnel qualified to carry for weapons are required to report to the armories. A possible assault force is on its way."

Javier stood up as he swallowed hard. He knew a little bit about the Shal'rein. He met one that worked for the T'rintar clan. An entire assault force of nothing but them......the defenses didn't stand a chance.

He had no choice, though. He stood up from his seat and prepared for the possible event to take place. He walked behind his alcove and faced the two remaining staff in the room. Petty Officer Emily had a scared look on her face. Petty Officer Campbell, on the other hand, sighed.

"Petty Officer Emily," Javier explained. "I know you are not qualified for weapons. Both of you two are to safeguard the logistics office. Emily, you are in charge."

"You are leaving, sir?" Emily asked with concern.

"I am qualified. I am a marksman as well. I have to go."

"Good luck, sir," Campbell said to him. He was usually the quiet one, and it took Javier by surprise.

"Yes....." Emily added with some reluctance. "Don't.....please.....stay safe."

Javier knew that Emily was a strong character. Yes, she was nervous, but she was resilient enough to handle the horrors of war if fully pressed. Besides, he was trying to hide his fear as well.

Up in orbit, the missiles fired from the Shal'rein warships closed in on the incoming volley of missiles. One by one, the missiles were impacting the UHN warheads as they exploded harmlessly in space. A few of the missiles made it through, but the ships were closing in fast. The quad barreled autogun turrets on the Shal'rein warships turned and rotated towards the few incoming missiles. Suddenly, the guns opened fire, unleashing a massive barrage of rapid-fire rounds at the fast-approaching warheads. The remaining missiles were torn to shreds.

The Shal'rein shrugged off the UHN missiles like they were nothing. They were getting closer and closer as they were exiting the dark side of the planet and fast approaching Fort Golconda and the two UHN warships.

The lead Shal'rein battleship turned its dorsal railgun turret slightly to the side as it pointed it directly at the gate fortress. As it pivoted into position, the gun immediately opened fire. The shower of blue and purple particles flew from the barrel as a hypervelocity round was expelled at blazing speeds. The turret then fired another shot at the station.

On the ground, the missile silos unleashed another volley of missiles. Flung straight up into the air, the missiles' thrusters activated as it left a smoke trail from the base. The railgun turrets were positioning itself, trying to target the ships in orbit.

The Shal'rein vessels were getting close enough that they could make out the UHN warships near the gate fortress. The UHN Polo fired another salvo of missiles as the Livingston was about to unleash its payload.

The vortex on the gate array was still forming. It was much bigger than it was earlier. The formation was nearing completion.

Within another ten seconds, the rounds fired from the Shal'rein slammed into the gate ring of the fortress. The first round shattered the left portion of the ring, blowing metal pieces and shrapnel into space. Hot metal was flung in the direction the round was going. The second round hit just above it as the gate array emitted a series of power fluctuations. The opening vortex suddenly shattered and collapsed. The Shal'rein had successfully knocked out the gate array.

The Livingston fired its second salvo of missiles at the closing Shal'rein warships. Over twenty anti-ship warheads were once again closing in on the enemy fleet.

The Shal'rein warships fired a series of metal cylinders from their missile launchers. They began to give off a flash of light as the missile turrets then turned at the fast incoming volley of warheads. A couple of intercept missiles were launched as the autoguns immediately began to open fire once again, targeting the UHN barrage from below the planet and the UHN ships.

Some of the UHN warheads began to home in on the gray cylinders that were launched away from the Shal'rein warships. It was evident that the cylinders were decoy countermeasures. One by one, the second volley was getting torn to pieces and proving to be utterly useless. The few anti-missiles fired from the Shal'rein, their autoguns, and the decoys had all taken its toll. Without more ships, the three incoming warships could not be stopped. The defense fleet was too far away to respond.

Finally, the ships were close enough. The Shal'rein had made it their goal to zero in on the two UHN warships. The Magellan Class Battleships turned itself to ensure that both their dorsal and ventral railguns would point at the enemy warships. The two Shal'rein warships had used their vectoring thrusters to push themselves away from each other. The broad assault carrier took up center formation as the battleships turned all of its twin railgun turrets towards the UHN warships.

Suddenly, the UHN warships emitted a series of flashes from the railgun turrets. Four shots were fired in total as the hypervelocity rounds were unleashed at the incoming fleet. The Shal'rein responded in kind as all three ships unleashed its deadly salvo of tungsten slugs. Ten shots were fired almost in tandem.

It didn't take long. Both sides were getting so close to each other, that there was the remote possibility of a ship collision. Amazingly, the Shal'rein rounds actually hit the UHN warships first. The barrage was devastating. Both sides could not get out of the way of each others' shots. Six rounds slammed into the UHN Polo so hard that the shells pierced the armor of the central and rear sections of the ship. Six heavy-duty tungsten slugs went from one side of the hull out to the other side. It was like somebody threw metal nails through the tin foil as red hot holes were burned into the sides. The shots were precise as the warship suddenly went adrift. All power suddenly went out on the ship. A small amount of atmosphere was vented into space.

The UHN Livingston had a similar fate as well but was worse. Four rounds went into the forward section of the ship. The shots were again hitting with sheer precision. The fast-moving rounds slammed into the forward bow and ripped into the warship. The innards were gutted in as the shells kept going and going. Finally, the rounds had found its target. The slugs had slammed into the shuttle bay and then the power module of the ship. The ship's fusion reactors had taken a direct hit as all power collapsed. The lights of the warships had fallen silent as they remained adrift in the darkness of space. Both vessels had been disabled.

However, the Polo and Livingston did manage to get a partial hurrah in its wake. The four hypervelocity rounds had met the Shal'rein fleet. The Polo had targeted one of the battleships. One round missed completely, but the other one struck the top forward central section of the battleship. It hit and fractured the top deck of the ship, exposing the compartment into space. The atmosphere from that section of the vessel vented into space as the dorsal fin like missile launcher array was torn entirely off the ship.

The Livingston had targeted the Assault Carrier, but it was slightly further away at the moment it fired. The vectoring thrusters of the carrier pushed it slightly to port saving the vessel from getting a direct forward hit from the railgun rounds. It was only slightly, though, but not enough to completely miss the vessel. The shells, instead, slammed into the sizeable centripetal ring of the carrier. Both rounds went from the forward section out to the other side, blowing a hole in both directions. Atmosphere was vented out into space. A portion of the ring had fallen apart, and it looked similar to the damaged ring array of Fort Golconda as metal shrapnel was flung into space.

The orbital defenses of Aphadus had been knocked out. This left the Shal'rein warships now looking down at the prime target......everything that was below it.

*******

Inside the assault carrier at the forward nose bridge, we can barely see the outline as an Itrean woman that is looking down at Aphadus. It was quiet in the room and almost too dark to see. A small series of lights emitted here and there from her console. The Shal'rein crew was confident and busy at their stations. The mysterious voice came from a woman who was strapped into her large command chair.