Three Square Meals Ch. 100

"You've brought down the Terran Federation..." Maybridge said in a deathly whisper, her quiet words cutting him to the quick. "That's your legacy, Buckingham. You'll be known as the fool who destroyed humanity!"

Buckingham stifled a strangled sob and look around frantically for an ally, anyone who would tell him it wasn't so. He found no friends there. Every face shared that same look of horror and damnation.

***

John leaned forward and watched anxiously as the Invictus raced towards the Alpha Centauri system. Olympus was in the centre of a pitched battle, with a substantial Kintark fleet laying siege to the shipyard.

"Ten seconds," Alyssa murmured, staring intently at her console.

He gripped the armrests of his chair and heard the metal groan in protest. "How close can you get us?"

"Close enough to shove a Singularity round right up their ass," she muttered, making rapid corrections as she calculated the effect of all those gravity wells on their hyper-warp trajectory.

John leaned forward to place his hand on Faye's purple thigh. "You ready, honey?"

"Don't worry, you can count on me!" the sprite replied, her cute features set in a stern frown.

He looked at Irillith and she winked at him, her eyes already glowing with an unearthly violet light. "Of course I'm ready!" she said with a smirk.

The Invictus barrelled into the system and the battlecruiser immediately began to shake, the vibrations intensifying with every long second.

"Hail that command ship!" John shouted, his voice reverberating as he was jostled in his seat.

Rachel nodded, making the connection. A moment later Alyssa stabbed her thumb down, deactivating the Tachyon Drive and dropping them out of hyper-warp. John blinked as the Tactical Map was flooded with sensor data, the sprawling mass of the twenty-kilometre long shipyard appearing like a six-limbed starfish in the centre of the map. Holding position directly above it, a battle-scarred formation of green and gold Kintark warships were bombarding the Terran station, igniting a rash of plasma fires with their sizzling plasma bolts.

"Target acquired!" Calara called out.

"Establishing data connections," Meta-Faye intoned, her voice oddly distracted.

"I'm in..." Irillith murmured, head tilted to one side.

At the same time, the holo-screen flickered and the face of a triumphant Kintark High Prelate appeared in the centre of the Bridge. His resplendent gold and green armour marked him as a member of the Praetorian Guard. "You're too late, Lion!" he gloated, a fanatical gleam in his eyes. "You can't sssave-"

"Shut the fuck up," John snarled, cutting him off. "You have three seconds to stand down or we'll kill you all."

Tekarin gaped at him in shock, having never been spoken to in such a way before, even by Grand Prelate Melkadian. He recovered quickly and smirked as he hissed, "There'sss nothing you can do to ssstop usss, Lion! Olympusss isss doomed, we'll dessstroy-"

"Time's up, you're dead," John snapped, before turning his attention to the girls. "Finish this!"

Calara squeezed the trigger a second time, unleashing the roiling ball of barely-controlled power that had gathered at the bow of the Invictus. A virulent beam of bright white energy carved straight through one fully-shielded Kintark battleship, the Nova Lances literally slicing the capital ship in half. Alyssa yawed the prow, making the throbbing beam arc to starboard and burning a hundred-metre-wide chasm through a second battleship. As the beam guttered out and died, the blonde powered up the Invictus' engines and lined up the battlecruiser's bow with the next capital ship the Latina had targeted.

The Zikan'tok's shields were already knocked out, leaving it horribly exposed to the Invictus' Singularity Drivers, a vulnerability Calara had no qualms about exploiting. She started performing open-heart surgery on the Kintark battleship, the Singularity Drivers her scalpel, its Power Core the heart. She pounded the Zikan'tok midway through the aft, massive explosions tearing huge holes ever deeper into its hull until the fourth slug blasted the Power Core. It took her just four seconds to systematically obliterate that battleship, the capital ship exploding in a colossal blastwave that battered the rest of the Kintark fleet.

Meanwhile, both the Valkyrie and Raptor had launched, releasing themselves from the confines of the battlecruiser. When Faye opened up with the Invictus' full complement of Photon Lasers, Sakura and Jade joined that brilliant burst of energy, stripping shields from every last remaining Kintark vessel.

Tekarin's jaw dropped open in horrified incredulity, watching in stunned silence as Alyssa rolled the Invictus and Calara unloaded the new Heavy Quantum guns for the first time. The battleship Elnarash'tok was shelling the Olympus' drydock with plasma bolts, the crew eagerly setting as much of the shipyard ablaze as possible. The unsuspecting battleship shook violently as it was hit by a rippling sixteen-barrel broadside, the screaming shells boring through its upper flank as armour plating and superstructure were torn asunder. The repeated impacts were like a drill, digging deep into the Kintark ship and neatly vaporising the Bridge, instantly silencing the scores of Plasma Cannons.

That was when the first of the captured Kintark cruisers hyper-warp jumped into the bedraggled Praetorian Guard formations. The hijacked cruiser slammed into a Kintark one, instantly annihilating both vessels in a gigantic explosion that lit up the Tactical Map. Then one after another, more of the captured ships began leaping into hyper-warp, charging headlong into their suicide mission. It looked like the Praetorian forces had been plunged into the fiery depths of hell, such was the scale of the blossoming crimson explosions that enveloped their formation.

High Prelate Tekarin looked on in horror, as he watched the captured Kintark vessels slamming into his fleet. To use what had once been noble ships from the Kintark Empire in that way... just hurling them at his forces like disposable trash, was almost too appalling for him to bear. The terrified screams of his fleet's cruiser captains rang out around him, their death cries sounding all the louder in the horrified silence that had enveloped the Bridge of the Jaleen'tohok.

Ten seconds after the Invictus had first opened fire, the Kintark had lost every last cruiser in their fleet, the shockwaves from the hyper-warp rams ripping apart those which weren't instantly destroyed by the collisions. That was when Dacres' fleet rejoined the battle, his ten battleships and twenty cruisers pouring fire into the surviving Kintark battleships. Faye brought the Nexus fleet online and the eleven AI cruisers and the battleship Loki added their firepower to the hellacious crossfire.

Four battleships died in the Invictus' initial onslaught, with Calara exterminating two more with Singularity Drivers, and filleting a further two with Heavy Quantum Gun broadsides. All that was left were six battleships, which had sustained varying amounts of damage from the spirited defenders manning Olympus' guns.

Calara hit the closest two with a salvo from the five Heavy Cannons, cracking open their armour and leaving the unarmoured interior dreadfully vulnerable. That was when the Invictus and its escorts closed to medium range and opened up with their Pulse Cannon batteries. The Maliri weapons that had originally been intended as potent anti-strikecraft guns had been upgraded beyond all reason, now hitting harder than a standard Terran Beam Laser. The two closest battleships looked like they were taking a shower in acid rain as Faye melted through what was left of their armour, sparking off raging fires as the azure laser bolts penetrated deep into the superstructure.

The Photon Lasers were ready to fire again and the incandescent flash from thirty pulsed beams signalled the end of the Praetorian force in an orgy of destruction. Four of the six remaining battleships were cored through, the bright blue beams scything into the capital ships from bow to stern, vaporising everything in their path.

What had once been an impressive Praetorian formation of thirty-two cruisers and sixteen battleships had been brutally eviscerated, reduced to just two battleships, both of which were now ablaze. In the carrier group lurking at the back of the formation, the Kintark crews knew without doubt that the shadow of death now loomed over them, only seconds away from claiming the last of its hapless victims.

"S-ssstop..." Tekarin stuttered, barely able to find his voice he was that badly shaken.

"Sorry, what was that?" John asked, eyeing him coldly.

"Ssstop, pleassse!" the High Prelate begged. "We sssurrender!"

John paused for emphasis as if considering the request, then nodded brusquely. "Fine. Shut down all your weapons and deactivate your shield generators. Prepare yourselves to be boarded so that you can hand over control of your vessels."

Tekarin slumped in his seat, the fight beaten out of him. "Thank you..."

After a glance from John, Rachel cut off the comms channel and set up a second call. Rear Admiral Richard Dacres was the first to appear, with Charles displayed on the holo-screen a moment later, both wearing expressions that were a peculiar mix of utter shock and tremendous relief.

"Thank God you got here when you did!" Dacres exclaimed, a broad smile on his face.

Charles nodded, the stress and worry seeming to just melt off him. "I've never been more glad to see you, John!"

"Good to see you too, Charles," John replied, smiling at his old comrade in arms.

"The Invictus... I've never seen anything like it," Charles faltered, eyes widening once more. "You just tore those ships apart... they didn't stand a chance!"

"She's had a few more upgrades under the hood," John said before glancing at the Tactical Map. "What's the shipyard's status? It looks bad from up here."

"We've got fire teams working to keep the plasma fires from getting out of control," Charles replied, darting a glance across the Command Centre at Olympus' damage status. "The Kintark did a lot of superficial damage but you stopped them before they could cripple the station."

"It looks like you've got everything under control," John said, his eyes drifting to the Kintark carrier group. "Can I leave the two of you to handle the prisoners? I need to get to the Sol System..."

"Don't you want my fleet to accompany you to Terra?" Dacres asked, brow furrowing with worry. "I've been listening to the Terra Defence force's comms traffic... they're taking a hell of a beating."

"I can program the Nexus fleet to stand guard!" Faye volunteered. "If the surviving Kintark forces try and move, or power up their shields or guns, my ships will open fire!"

John thought about that for a second, then said, "Alright, that sounds ideal. Charles, you need to commandeer that battlecarrier first, that's the only real threat."

"Setting course for Terra," Dacres informed them both, his fleet turning to point at the closest Nav Beacon.

"Okay, go!" Charles said, cracking a smile. "I'll send in the marines to capture the Jaleen'tohok."

With a quick salute, John said, "You got it, Admiral. Speak to you soon."

He turned to nod towards Rachel to end the call, when Charles blurted out, "John! ... Thank you, from all of us at Olympus."

"Just doing my job, Charles," John replied and shared a look with his old friend before they ended the call.

Alyssa glanced at him, a wry smile on her face. "Your job is to rescue the Terran Federation from all their fuck ups?"

John sighed as he nodded. "Seems to be. Alright, let's head to Terra."

"Jade and Sakura are safely aboard!" Faye informed them, a cheerful grin on her face.

The blonde cranked up their engines to maximum power, the six Trankaran engines hurling the Invictus forward as they rushed towards the edge of the Alpha Centauri system.

***

The Kintark Grand Prelate watched the tide of battle rapidly turn against the Terran forces, as his armada took full advantage of their technical superiority. He was about to make some snide comment to Norwood about the quality of the Terran Federation fleets when he received an urgent comms message from High Prelate Tekarin.

Melkadian gave the Praetorian commander a toothy grin of anticipation. "Ssso, Tekarin... isss your misssion accomplissshed? Have you dealt with Olympusss?"

Tekarin was already looking haggard, but he deflated even further. "We have failed you, Grand Prelate..."

That admission was almost as shocking as it was to see the once proud Kintark leader with his spirit broken. "Failed?! You had over thirty cruisssersss and a dozen battlessshipsss when we last ssspoke, and that wasss mere minutes ago! There'sss no way you could have lossst that many ssshipsss in that ssspace of time!"

The High Prelate slowly shook his head, abject fear in his eyes. "You don't underssstand! The Lion arrived... he jussst tore usss apart!" His voice lowered into a quavering whisper, "And he'sss coming after you next..."

***

Ailanthia pointed at the edge of the holographic map. "My Lord, the Maliri have just jumped into the system."

"So he finally brings his thralls out to play, but turns up late to the party," her master tsked, turning away from the delightful scenes of destruction as the Kintark savaged the Terran fleets. He gestured at the map and the view expanded, showing the Maliri warfleet in their golden-hued glory. Brow furrowing in confusion he muttered, "Those aren't thrall vessels! Why hasn't he started constructing his Honour Guard Fleet?!"

Stepping closer to the map, Ailanthia highlighted one of the battleships and expanded it still further. "That's not a Dominator-class battleship!" She studied the flimsy-looking Maliri vessel, feeling just as bewildered as her master. "Blake took control of the Maliri last month; he should have constructed a Soul Forge weeks ago..."

Her master began to pace back and forth. "He's still flying around the galaxy in that hideous abomination of his... He should have the hull laid down for his flagship, and scores of thrall vessels should be up and running by now. What is he playing at?"

There was a terse silence between them for a minute as they both stared incredulously at the Maliri ships.

Ailanthia could see how troubled her master was, so she walked over to him and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Maybe Blake just doesn't know what he's supposed to be doing?" she suggested quietly.

Her Master gaped at her in surprise, then doubled over with laughter. "Oh Ailanthia, you're a genius!" He chuckled away, shaking his head in disbelief. "Here I was thinking he was some kind of witless imbecile, but I think you're right..."

She beamed at him as she basked in his praise, her sparkling smile widening as her master put his arm around her shoulder.

"Let's enjoy the show and watch these cretins slaughter each other for a while, then I think it might be time for a celebration!" he exclaimed, looking happier than she'd seen him in weeks.

"That would be wonderful, My Lord," Ailanthia gushed, hugging him tight.

He brushed his fingers through his Matriarch's hair, smiling as she cooed in delight. Turning his focus back to the map, he murmured, "Ah, John, you really are an enigma... What am I going to do with you?"

***

A hoarse scream echoed around the Bridge of the Zeus, cutting off abruptly as Admiral Adam Turner's holographic image flickered and winked out. Caldwell stared at the battle group interface in shock, watching helplessly as the battleship Eurus was ripped apart in a series of explosions. Turner's command ship had been ravaged by plasma fire, the infernal heat cooking the Heavy Cannon shells in one of the forward magazines and blowing the capital ship to smithereens.

Caldwell had always prided himself in his ability to adapt and overcome the odds in a difficult tactical battle, but this fight was far beyond being described as 'difficult'. The Kintark had the technological advantage of powerfully resilient shields, which had essentially neutered what used to be one of the Terran Federation's most effective assets - their munitions-based weapons. Those guns were lethal against exposed hulls, but when the Kintark shields stubbornly refused to go down, his fleets were unable to even the odds.

The Kintark had also rolled out state-of-the-art heatsinks in all the ships they'd brought to this battle, while barely a third of the Terran ships had been upgraded to parity. That meant the Kintark were hitting a lot harder, their Plasma Cannons murdering the Terran forces almost with impunity. That wasn't to say that they hadn't taken casualties, but when it took at least three Terran warships to bring down a single Kintark vessel and the numbers on both sides were even, then the battle was proving to be a catastrophe for the Terran fleets.

He grimaced as he corrected himself... the two sides had started the battle with equal numbers, but after thirty minutes of grossly uneven combat, things had gone downhill rapidly. He'd lost Admirals Poznanski, Mishra, Turner, Manolis, and Dimitrov, their battle groups either completely wiped out, or so badly mauled as to be rendered incapable of continuing the fight. Caldwell couldn't believe the scale of this horrific disaster... and he felt powerless to prevent it degenerating into a wholesale slaughter. He felt trapped and feverish, a hundred different orders dying on his lips just as his men were dying around him.

"Admiral!"

Caldwell blinked as he was physically shaken out of his daze by his Executive Officer.

"Edwin!" Commander Milton hissed in his ear. "You can't fall apart on us now!"

Shaking his head to clear the fog from his mind, Caldwell inhaled deeply and tried to pull himself together. He met his XO's desperate gaze and nodded. "I'm okay..." he replied, trying to ignore how shaky his voice sounded.

Sitting up straight, he stared at the battle group interface and wracked his brain, trying to think up some miraculous Hail Mary pass that would save the day. But he'd already committed all his reserves... His forces were heavily outnumbered now and they were still fighting at a significant technological disadvantage.

"Admiral, the Maliri fleet just jumped into the Sol System!" Commander Garfield called out, pointing at the Tactical Map.

Caldwell's eyes flickered over to the holographic depiction of the golden Maliri ships. Their graceful and elegant hulls were circled in red, labelling them as a hostile force, as per the Fleet Admiral's orders. Before he could even react, he heard Fleet Admiral Buckingham shouting at him over the comms interface.

Buckingham's eyes were disturbingly wild as he ranted, "Caldwell! I want you to pull Malone and Ramos off the battle line! You need to intercept the Maliri before they hit our flanks!"

Gaping at his commanding officer in astonishment, Caldwell couldn't believe the man was so detached from reality. Admiral Aeri Malone's forces were barely holding their own against the Kintark onslaught and were so heavily committed that withdrawing them was an impossibility. Admiral Guilherme Ramos' battle group was largely intact, but he'd been forced to retreat, his battleship crippled by a plasma missile salvo that had knocked out Fire Control for his forward batteries.

Not only that, but Buckingham was planning to send those two beleaguered battle groups against a fresh fleet, the golden ships not having a scratch on them. If those alien vessels had only been Ashanath saucers, the order would have still been highly questionable, but attacking the Maliri?! Everyone knew they were the most technologically advanced species in the known galaxy.

Under the circumstances, there was only one thing Caldwell could do.