[IC] Eternal Galaxy: Shards of Starlight - Part I

Venturia
Sol Inceneron
Planet Werban's atmosphere

Nhiome was glad to be flying again, the short trip on land had been exhausting. He was not used to such "strong" gravity that other humans were used to. He had spent most of his life after the first ship in near Zero-G. His ships had just enough artificial gravity for him to keep track of up and down. Even though he tried to exercise regularly to fix this, he still found it exhausting to be on a planet, he only managed to maintain enough finesse to board most other ships and his own he could handle, he even built his bases on isolated moons that had lower gravity, on average he estimated he was used to only approximately 1N of gravity, only about a tenth of earth's if he remembered correctly. The hauling of the goods had been tiring, at least transferring things around on his ship and other ships were made less tedious by the weaker gravity.

He was about to set the ship on autopilot when the radar beeped again. But it was the short-range radar and the direction was from outside the planet, this was strange, how did anything sneak past the long-range radar. He took a closer look at saw 4 distinct fighters, they must have been the one he had detected near the warp gate. He cursed, how could he have forgotten? For him to be able to detect them, they must have been able to detect him and get a lock on him. They also probably adjusted their shields so they could slip past the radar. He needed to work on the stealth capabilities of his ships, he had thought relying on his own planning would be enough, and so far it had, but this occasion showed him how wrong he was. They blocked his way, and besides, with the lock on him, he wouldn't be able to escape, unless he used "that" bullet. It was valuable and one of his most advanced creations, but since it was against multiple fighters, it might have some added side effects.

He ran to the corridor in the middle of his ship and manually and much more quickly than the machine could have, chose and loaded the special shells in the middle gun. He returned to the cockpit and aimed the gun at the squadron, he had already entered the outer atmosphere and they turned to face him. Just then he noticed that they looked different from the strike fighters. He stopped short of shooting the bullet and instead turned side-on to the fighters. Another difference between his ship and those other fighters, their guns usually pointed forward, while his was orientated front and back, to make use of his entire armory, or send a "broadside" he had to turn like this. But then he usually raced through the other ships, blasting to the left and right, so the set-up made sense to him. He then sent a message with his special transmitter towards them.

" What do you want? Did you follow me here from the warp gate? Don't make a move, I could easily fly circles around you and with a press of a button, I could disable many of your systems. " He neglected to mention that his bullet would also affect his own systems too, rather than leave a loophole that an enemy may discover and exploit, he chose to make it so that it would affect everything. But this times to danger outweighed the risks, 4 ships were hard to stand up against, considering they were mavericks which he suspected from the design of the ships, especially when they were expecting him, his primary weapon was surprise, but he did have a few secondary weapons.

Venturia
Sol Inceneron
Planet Werban's atmosphere

"HmhmhmhahahaHAHAHA~ Oh you are just adorable!" Ember responded as she leaned back. "My dear, take a good look again between your ship and ours. You're in atmosphere, darling, not in space. You might be quick, but you're not in your element. Thrusters can only do so much~" She then smiled wryly. "Plus if you were thinking about using electronic warfare... you might have wanted to not tell us then."
"Ember...if it's a electronic net..."
"I know..." She went through her mind. "An electronic net in atmosphere can mean certain death for a fighter...We'll have to be quicker than him if he decides to decline..." She then switched back to Nhiome. "Besides, we're not here to hurt you, darling. We're here to make you an offer. Surely you've heard of the Black Roses?" Ember adjusted herself again. "You have skills...You're young and have some experience, you could become a legend with us. What do you say?"

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Venturia
Between Egale and Celestora System
Freighter

Anankerisa merely watched the images with a blank stare and continued to mouth words like "Free us from this place" and "Save us from this place." The pendant she wore seemed to have a slight golden glow even though the crystal was red.

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Venturia
Helios System
Planet: Duon
In the Sky

Nero chuckled at Mima's response. "Likewise. Anyway, no big deal. They'll send a fighter escort and we'll be fine...we'll be totally fine."
The final statement seemed to carry a certain uncertainty to it. He looked about everyone on board. "Nothing to worry about. Nothing at all."

Venturia
Between Egale and Celestora System
Freighter

Now that the girl was atleast calm, Mara started checking on her ("So far it must be an emotional trauma, probably from the mess that ocurred on the planet back there") she thought and then noticed the low glow on the pendant

"Say.. what is that pendant you got there? is it yours?" the bioroid asked calmly and pointing to the pendant of the little one

"We'll have a visual of the situation as soon as we clear that cloud bank."
"Bout time we get to see some real action!"
"Like we haven't seen anything during some of our missions."
"Pfft, this is the major league now!"
"Seriously, why are you so excited?"
The hunters were chattering as they all flew towards the clouds that blocked their view of what was to come. Aion had taken point with the transport in the center of the formation. He was listening to the conversation, but his mind was focused.

When they finally made it through the clouds, the sight that greeted them was something none of them were expecting.
Joe was the first to speak. "No way...that's...that's a Beta Class Battle Cruiser! It's...!" The scene was that of pure chaos. A swarm of fighters, a Beta Class falling to earth, and a mass of cannon fire lighting up the evening sky. "Impossible..."
Aion opened scans on the cruiser and a report was displayed on his overhead display. "It's a Delta Division cruiser alright...Fighting to its last breath it seems. It's taken on heavy damage...no shields, systems almost gone altogether...she's crippled."
"A Beta...a freakin' Beta...taken down?!?" Joe was in disbelief.
"It's not down yet. There's some Zetas and Omegas keeping her in the fight. Alright, we need to get this transport to a safe point and then we can join the fray. Hunters! Move!" In a sudden burst, Eclipse Blade accelerated to sub-hypersonic speeds. The armor plates shifted to accommodate the sheer speed that the fighter was traveling. He was aiming to clear a path. "Joe, on my wing! Gold Squad, take the left, we'll take the right. Violet squadron upper and lower areas. Everyone else, stay tight on the transport! Let's open a hole!"



Venturia
Conlustrare System
Beta Division Flagship

Suria, an Irian and commander of the Beta Division, was standing at the helm of her ship. The fleet of Beta division kept formation as they traveled through Conlustrare. "So far things have been quiet here." She mused to herself. Her fox tail flicked slightly. "I wonder how that old man, Sullivan, is doin?" She looked down to her communications officer. "Still no response from Delta Division?"
"Yes, ma'am. Nothing yet."
"Alright...Hopefully the old fool is still alive. Ha! Wouldn't that be ironic? Commander Sullivan goes down in some random skirmish...pffft." She mused to herself.

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Venturia
Between Egale and Celestora System
Freighter

Anankerisa quickly grabbed the pendent and held it tight. She glanced at Mara with what seemed to be anger, but so brief it was barely noticeable as she quickly returned to her saddened stare.

Venturia
Helios System
Planet: Duon

---

Mima looked at him straight in the face. "You're lying. It's very easy to tell."

Venturia
Between Egale and Celestora System
Freighter


"Alright then, guess it is very important for you, I won´t touch it" the bioroid said putting her hand away from the pendant

("Well.. she atleast can react with natural emotions, so the trance must be wearing down, I won´t bother her then.") she thought ignoring now the pendant

Venturia
Between Egale and Celestora System
Freighter

Anankerisa let go of her pendant and then smiled. "Let's play a game." Her smile broadened.
Then the pendant glowed a soft red, and the light seemed to drip from it...like blood.

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Venturia
Helios System
Planet: Duon

"No...no...It's just I'm alittle worried, that's all. Nothing major...ha ha ha..." Nero Turned to the soldier. "Ok communications are down with the cruisers...but fighters should still have something. If we can get through to a squadron we're all set..."
"So we need the channel."
"...you wouldn't happen to have that info...would you?"
"As Defense Coordinator, I would have thought YOU would have that..."
"Tsk! I Don't have that...they wouldn't give me it anyway..." He turned and put a hand to his forehead. "Ok, Nero, Think...what to do...what to do..."

Venturia
Helios System
Planet: Duon

---

"Why not go around the fight, and come in from the side that these friends of yours are on? If that's not possible, have you thought to just simply wait?" Mima suggested.

Venturia
Between Egale and Celestora System
Freighter

The sudden happiness made the bioroid worry, even more because the pendant´s color changing

Yet she wanted the girl to be calm atleast so she followed the thought "Allright then, what would you like to play little one?" she asked to the girl

Venturia
Helios System
Planet: Duon

"If only it were that simple." The soldier spoke up again. "As soon as we got into the air, we became a possible target. Now we have to get back to the cruisers ASAP or risk getting intercepted. If hostiles are in the area then we're sitting ducks."
"And going around isn't an option. Typically the NGO cuts off transports coming from the planet. The only way out of this mess...is to go straight through the heart of it." Nero seemed to gain a new resolve. "Fighter escort or not, we have to plunge straight through the skirmish. It's better that than risk getting singled out. Now do we have any fighter pilots among us?"
Silence answered him. "...Wonderful..."

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Venturia
Celestora System
Freighter

"Let's play..." Anankerisa started but then the intercom system interrupted her as a voice declared they had entered the Celestora system. "Let's play a game of fate~ hehehehehe"
Suddenly she vanished, but her laugh seemed to echo throughout the ship. It seemed to be coming from everywhere at once. "HEHEHEHE~ PLAY MY GAME OF FATE~!"