Battlestar Invictus

Chapter XI. Ark Imperial

Slowly and gracefully the three ships joined formation with the massive supercarrier. Though the Invictus with its three kilometers length was an impressive sight for anyone to see. She was simply a speck, however, compared to the majestic might of the Twenty Kilometer long vessel. The differences didn't end there. The Invictus was mostly smooth and, aside from a few main turrets and the lines of Point-defence Guns, had a flat and sleek appearance. Ark Imperial was littered with 'small' turrets. Small being at least tens of meters high and wide which boasted multiple barrels per turret, the ventral section mounting dozens of skyscraper-sized antennae for fire direction of the vast array of weapon batteries.

The entire broadsides were covered with launch bays, each as tall as city blocks, twelve double columns along each side. The launch bays were flanked by four lance turrets which were hundreds of meters long, about as many meters wide and equally high. Each turret boasting six barrels, which themselves were of no small size. The turrets turning to survey the great void surrounding them with their imperious gaze.

Unlike most imperial vessels the ship didn't boast a sharp-looking, and well decorated, armored prow. Instead it had a more blunt, sleek-looking nose devoid of decorations, aside from fleet colours. Just short of the bow, an entire complex of armoured superstructure, gold-lined and covered in antennae and sensor-discs, adorned the front-third of the ship. The middle section housed several dozen nuclear missile silo's firmly entombed in the central spine of the ship. And where the fore section was impressive with its cathedral superstructure, the aft section made the former seem like a mere village church. The main bridge was a huge complex of majestically ornamented cathedrals with richly decorated and finely crafted side-churches serving as auxiliary segments.

To see the ship with your own eyes was awe inspiring to say the least. Price had seen the vessel on the sensor and vid-screens within his own CIC. But now he was looking at it with his own eyes through the canopy of his Raptor shuttle was another matter. The realisation of scale and grandeur was finally sinking in, though he still barely could grasp it. He was on his way to report to High-Admiral Byzantane as ordered. He would have taken his own Viper, but given the circumstances it didn't seem like a good idea. So a Raptor shuttle it was, be it escorted by two Vipers, which peeled off when his craft set in for landing.

Slowly the relatively small craft floated through the gaping maw of the port-side hangar deck, which seemed to go on forever, and finally touched down with a gentle bump. Moments later the deck began to move the shuttle inside the bowels of the Carrier, into the pressurized upper crew-decks.

Two minutes later the Pilot got the green-light and opened the outer hatch of the craft. The four marines Price took with him, as a precaution and honour guard, exited first and took attention on either side of the hatch. Price followed soon after. When he looked up he was faced by two double rows of arms-men flanking his walkway. Whether this was an Honour-guard or a means of intimidation, Price couldn't decide. Probably both.

Slowly and with upright stance Price stepped off his vessel and walked to meet a heavily decorated man standing before him in the middle of both arms-men rows.

Though he had put on his best Dress Grays, he was pale and bare in comparison to the other officer. The Imperial High Admiral having row after row of medals and ribbons displayed on an ornate golden breast-plate, his Pale White uniform trousers lined with golden thread.

Price stopped two steps in front of him and saluted sharply as a fleet officer should.

"Commander Price of the Battlestar Invictus reporting as ordered."

The next few seconds both men looked each other squarely in the eye, assessing the other man.

Finally the other returned the salute with two fists crossing his chest, in the traditional Imperial Aquila salute.