Project - Prometheus Ch. 26

The screen was filled with the battle that the Commodore had spoken of, with multiple ships engaged in combat. Williams and the bridge crew saw over one ship belonging to the defense fleet drifting through space, like garbage. They also witnessed just as many, if not more, from the attacking fleet. The attackers had the numbers and were currently driving the fleet back, which made Williams' blood run cold.

"Helm, signal all ships to battle stations and chart a course to Veldhern, maximum speed! We have some pirate scum to eradicate!"

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The Third Defense fleet made it to Veldhern station without taking any more losses. Though they had already lost a fair bit, with many of their friends and ship's mates now dead, floating with the wreckage of the ships they'd been serving on. The moment they'd gotten close enough, Veldhern station had activated their prototype shield system. The Bulwark Shield system protected not only the station, but the fleet assembled there.

The Bulwark shield system was a one-of-a-kind piece of technology, which had been developed by the UCW's top engineers. It not only gave the station a solid defense against hard ordinance, but was far more resilient to laser fire than most of the systems available. Because of Veldhern's value to the UCW, fitting its station with such advanced tech made sense.

The Third Defense Fleet was conducting what repairs they could while staying behind the shield system. Over a third of the fleet had been destroyed, and the battleships had taken a serious beating. They had gone in a flat out slugfest with the other battleships and had even downed one of them. The wreck was still listing badly, and there was still power, but it was intermittent at best.

Sadly, the other two battleships had placed themselves in superior firing positions, raking the Stalwart. The heart of the third fleet had barely escaped annihilation by the skin of its teeth, and repairs were underway. The Darkstrider had jumped into the engagement, as did Theta Squad to help cover the savaged ship. They delayed the pirates, but now the situation was bad.

Much of the fleet was in shambles, with the secondary battleship, the Devout, taking a lot of heavy fire. Its weapons batteries were badly damaged, rendering it useless in a fight. Its engines still functioned, and the crew were making repairs to what damage it had sustained.

Saubath had directed it as a final retreat option, as the pirates were closing in on the station. The station was readying itself for Omega evacuation protocol. Said protocol would direct all civilians to the battleship, which would then use what cover it could to cover its retreat to hyperspace.

The shield surrounding the station would hold, but only for so long. Already, the first salvos from the pirate fleet began bombarding the station. The Bulwark held, but even such advanced systems would fail, eventually. Many of the ships hiding behind the field had regenerated their shields, but it wouldn't be enough. Not with the concentrated firepower the pirate fleet was bringing to bear.

"XO, sitrep," Saubath rasped, dreading the damage report.

"The Devout has suffered heavy damage and can contribute little to the fight ahead. Captain Stahrnev has done what he can, but the best they can do is run the Omega evacuation protocol," Saubath's XO replied.

"Our escorts are severely damaged, with the cruisers Startide and Moonshore destroyed, with all hands lost. Same to be said with the destroyers Algafarr, Tarhnak, Ragnarsson and Lagertha. The full accounting of all additional support ships is still being tallied," the XO told her commander.

"By the Ancestors! Are the station's cannons still online?" the Commodore asked.

"Aye sir! Ninety-six percent of the cannons are still fully functional and ready for action! Station gunners are standing by for your orders," the XO told him, happy to deliver some pleasant news.

"Excellent! Alert all ships to stay within firing range of the station's defenses! It's a longshot, but if the station's cannons can help our defensive posture, we might come out of this alive!" Saubath muttered, sounding optimistic.

"If I may say sir, that frigate, the... Darkstrider? It's helped turn the tide of this battle somewhat!" she enthused, and Saubath couldn't help but agree.

The speed and agility of such a ship was unheard of, as was the piloting skill of it. It was even more so with whoever piloted that fighter that was attached to it, along with those drones. The pilots of the UCW were well trained, but the skill level of these pilots was easily that of a veteran. Saubath was thankful that they had joined the fight when they did, or they'd be in a far worse position now.

The one thing that had been most surprising was the gun that was attached to the ship. Saubath had no idea what it was, but the way it had eviscerated that destroyer was something you had to see to believe! The Commodore sincerely hoped that the owner of the ship would be amenable to parting with such technology. If they didn't, then there were... other ways to ensure their co-operation.

"Status of the Bulwark shield system?" Saubath asked, growing more than a little concerned at the approaching ships.

"Sixty-three percent sir and falling. At the current rate of fire, we'll have nine minutes, but once those battleships get in range, that will drop to six," his XO told him.

"Is the fleet recovered enough to launch a counterattack?" he pressed.

"Negative sir. Most ships will require at least twelve minutes before they're ready for a firefight," his tactical officer reported. Saubath growled in frustration, knowing that death was a distinct possibility, but he was ready to face it.

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Briggs smiled gleefully as the situation unfolded in front of him. The battle had gone much as he'd predicted, as he'd planned and mapped out each possible outcome. The fleet had responded as he expected they would, sheltering close to the station when they had to retreat. Several things had caught their fleet unprepared, but they'd pressed on, using their numbers to overwhelm the defending ships.

The biggest wrench in their plan had been the Darkstrider. They figured it was just a dinky little frigate of no consequence. What had surprised them was just how resilient it was to attacks. Several direct hits from destroyer grade cannons should have dropped its shields, but they held, which was unbelievable! What they didn't expect was the amount of firepower it was packing, especially that cannon it possessed!

Briggs had heard of such weapons, but in legends of humanity's Golden Age, an age long lost to them. However they'd done it, they replicated an ancient weapon of humankind. Once he took that ship for himself, he'd have his engineers dismantle the weapon and rebuild it for his flagship. With such weapons equipped on his ship, they'd be unstoppable!

He focused on the now, which was ending this fleet, and taking over Veldhern station. Once they had the station under their control, there was no way anyone would come at them, not with all the valuable hostages they would possess. With such control would come control of the system, which would give them some much-needed breathing room. This would not only cripple the UCW's response, but it would bolster the pirate's coffers, making them all insanely rich!

Briggs' thoughts drifted back to the Darkstrider, not just for the potential technology it carried, but also its crew. If he remembered right, Inari preferred the company of women over men. That carried the likelihood that her crew was comprised of women as well. There might be a man or two among them, but they could be disposed of, once everything they knew was squeezed out of them.

"Captain Briggs?" one of his men called out, jolting him out of his daydream.

"What is it?" the rotund man snapped, his gaze narrowing on the radar tech who had spoken.

"We've got incoming!"

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The Second Veldhern Defense fleet dropped out of hyperspace directly behind the pirate fleet. They had placed every ship on red alert, and all hands were standing by at battle stations. They raised their shields and primed weapons, readying their ships to engage.

"All ships adapt to attack pattern Nova! Weapons free and fire at will! I repeat, fire at will!" Commodore Williams commanded over the intercom.

Seconds later, space was awash in a riot of colored energy as the weapons batteries from every ship opened fire on the pirate vessels. The Second Defense fleet had dropped out of hyperspace right on the pirate's aft, catching them by surprise. Some ships tried to come about to defend themselves, but they were blown apart in seconds, overwhelmed by the barrage of laser fire that hammered them.

"Commodore Williams, your timing could not have been more perfect!" the voice of Arcan Saubath replied, his voice coming in loud and clear.

"Glad to be of assistance, Commodore! Just happy that I didn't miss the party!" Williams grinned as she watched the pirates turn their ships to escape.

"All ships, the pirates are trying to make a run for it! Break formation and destroy them all!" she barked.

"Extreme prejudice, ma'am?" her tactical officer queried, already knowing the answer.

"Extreme prejudice!"

Happy to hear their commander's order, every ship put as much power to weapons as they could spare. The pirate fleet was fleeing while they still could, but not all of them would make it. Williams and her fleet were known as the Pirate Slayers, and for good reason. Pirates who tried facing them were never spared, as they gave no quarter and showed no mercy.

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"Retreat! Retreat! All ships, full power to engines! Helm, get us the fuck out of here!" Briggs bellowed.

He watched in horror as one of his cruisers went up in a colossal explosion, its power core and hyperdrive detonating simultaneously. Taking on the third fleet was one thing, but fighting the second fleet on top of that? It was suicide! He jumped out of his chair and walked over to where the navigator was furiously typing in new hyperspace co-ordinates.

"How long before we can make the jump?!?" he yelled, fearing for his life.

"Less than two minutes, sir! We just need to clear this debris before we can safely jump!" the man told him.

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Just as the pirates had turned tail, trying to leave the system, Saubath ordered all ships to assist in the attack. Each ship was more than happy to do so, as each one of them wanted to make the pirates pay for the lives they had taken. The Darkstrider and Banshee was at the forefront of the counter-attack. As the Banshee and her escorts attacked a group of fighters, the Darkstrider blasted through another destroyer using the Hades Cannon.

"Holy fuck!" one helmsman exclaimed as he watched the sheer power of the weapon eviscerate the destroyer. He chanced a look back and saw that his captain was looking at him, almost amused.

"Apologies, commodore," the helmsman replied.

"No apology necessary, Mister Dahltree. Witnessing such weapons in action is... unsettling. We all handle such things in our own way," Williams told her subordinate.

If she was being truthful, she would have said much the same thing! Albeit her language would have been far more... colorful than the helmsman's. Ana could not believe that such a weapon was mounted on a frigate of all things! She could only imagine the level of devastation if such a weapon was sized and mounted on her battleship, the Dauntless. She was thankful though that the pilot of that ship was on their side.

"Mae, can you tell me who the pilot of that ship is?" Ana asked her XO.

"I don't know ma'am, but I will find out momentarily," she said as she turned to her console. She typed away for about a minute before coming back with an answer. "It's a merchant ship, called the Darkstrider ma'am. Owned and piloted by one Inari Sunara."

"I know that name, but I'm not sure from where," Ana stated, the memory right on the tip of her tongue.

"She was the poster girl for the Federation some years ago. Reached the rank of Lieutenant Commander and was the wing commander of the 307^th Banshee fighter wing," Mae supplied, filling in the blanks.

"The 307^th?!? They're the best of the best in the Federation!" Williams gasped.

The 307^th were living legends among fighter pilots, across many species. Because of their constant clashes with the Confederacy, the Federation had to develop a way to counter many of the heavy capital ships that the Confeds owned. Fighters seemed like an inefficient way to deal with such large ships. But, because they were so light and agile, many targeting systems would often miss these fighters.

Because of their high levels of agility and teamwork that their instructors drilled into them, Federation pilots often descended on capital ships like swarms of angry bees. Sure, several would bite the dust, but the shields and armor wouldn't hold against multiple strikes for very long. It was more of a concerted swarm tactic that had seen even powerful battlecruisers reduced to heaps of slag in a matter of minutes. If Inari had risen to become the 307^th's wing commander, then she was one hell of a pilot!

"Closing the distance! We almost have them!" the helmsman told his captain, and she smiled with a sense of grim satisfaction. Seconds later, the remnants of the pirate fleet jumped into hyperspace.

"Damn it!" Williams growled as she watched one of the pirate's battleships vanish right in front of her.

"Status and battle report! I want to know just how badly we wrecked these assholes," Williams told her tactical officer, maintaining her composure.

"I've been doing so while we were in combat, ma'am. It will take me a little longer to corroborate the full tally, but I should have it to you soon," the woman told her.

"How soon?"

"Thirty minutes, ma'am," Maia O'Donnell, her executive officer, replied.

"Take an extra five minutes and ensure that everything on the report is correct. I want you to double check everything before I forward it to High Command. Have the report sent to my cabin," she told her XO.

"Aye, aye, ma'am!" the woman saluted as she turned about and got to work. Ana then stood, smoothed out her uniform and walked over to her cabin, which was right off the bridge. The door slid open and then shut behind her as she crossed the threshold into the room.

"Lock and activate 'Do Not Disturb' mode for thirty-five minutes," she called out to the computer. Seconds later, she heard her door lock and turned to the man who was waiting for her in the room.

"Aren't you supposed to be in engineering?" she scolded him.

"Everything was in nominal levels and I hustled to get up here before anyone noticed I was gone," Graham Williams grinned.

"How long before they need you back down there?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Forty minutes, tops. How long before that report comes through?" Graham queried.

"Thirty-five. Mae is compiling it now, so we have ourselves some time," she giggled, before she was pasted against the door.

She felt Graham's lips seeking out hers and she met him with equal enthusiasm, needing her husband in that moment. She felt his hands roaming around her body and she smirked, knowing that he was just as riled as she was. Firefights against pirates always made her insanely horny and she needed release, badly. Graham was always accommodating to his wife's needs and today, he knew she'd be a hellcat in bed.

"What is it?" she questioned, seeing the hesitation on his face.

"You have too many clothes on!"

Giggling, her hands found their way under his uniform just as his did. They peeled each other out of their uniforms quickly, as they had a limited amount of time to enjoy each other. Ana sighed when she felt her man's chiseled body in her hands, getting insanely turned on by him. Though Graham wasn't ripped by any means, he took a lot of time in the care of his body, which kept his wiry frame trim and fit.

Ana's body was voluptuous and full figured, making her more like Marilyn Monroe in size and shape. She still didn't understand what drew Graham to her in the first place, but she didn't care at that moment. The fact that he was still turned on after all this time of marriage was more than enough for her. Ana's hands moved southwards to her husband's dick, and she purred in delight.

"Happy to see me, are you?" she snickered.

"Always!" he growled before enveloping her mouth with his own.

Ana moaned into the kiss, parting her lips and letting her tongue out to play with Graham's. She always did enjoy a good tonsil knocking, as it left her more than ready to be taken. Their tongues danced back and forth, driving their desire and lust for each other skyrocketing.

Having divested herself of her uniform, Ana was standing in a matching red lace set of underwear. She'd bought the set specifically to tease her husband, and she could see that it was money well spent! The man was drooling and staring at her like a mad lunatic, the lust in his eyes evident. She smirked at his inactivity, thinking the whole thing funny.

"What?" he asked.

"If you could see your face right now!" she giggled.

"I'm more interested in seeing your face, contorted in bliss," Graham stated.

Ana squealed as Graham swept her off her feet, before throwing her on the bed to land on her back. In less than a second, he was on her, working her lingerie off her body. Her heavy breasts sprang free of their confines, spilling across her frame. Graham wasted no time in getting his hands on them, licking, teasing and sucking her large mammaries.

She moaned as Graham's tongue danced on flesh, teasing and juicing her nerves. The man made his way further down her body, sliding Ana's moist panties off her legs. The cold air hit her for a moment, before his heated mouth enveloped her folds. Ana jittered as her husband's tongue dipped into her folds, sending electric shocks through her system.

Crying out in pleasure as Graham ate her out, Ana was forever grateful that there was such a thing as privacy mode for her quarters. It would not do to have the bridge crew hear her moaning like a wanton whore that needed to be taken. She peeped and squealed as Graham kept hitting nerve clusters in her nethers, making her want the man even more.

She didn't know how long he'd been licking her quim, but she wanted to return the favor to her husband. Ana sat up and dragged him to her, kissing his slick lips as she rolled him over to his back. Graham was surprised by the move, but he grinned nevertheless, as he often enjoyed when she would take command of the situation. She slid his tented boxer briefs off his legs, taking hold of his thick, eight-inch cock.

Seconds after she had pulled it out of its cotton prison, Ana swallowed it whole, deepthroating Graham. This move always blew his mind, as he'd never had a proper deepthroat blowjob, until he met Ana. He swore that he lived like a king with this woman as his wife, as she did things that every other woman he'd been with, was too timid to try out.

Watching Ana lick and suck on his cock was always something that got him riled beyond all belief. Though her passion at the moment was setting him up to unload his balls into her waiting mouth. Graham grunted and groaned as he neared his release, wanting it, but at the same time, wanting to satisfy his wife. Sensing her husband's distress, Ana backed off, popping her husband's dick out of her mouth like a lollipop.