Vanquisher: The Remnant

Chapter 15

"Our main attack group has entered the system. They are waiting for Colmor to come out," Nova stated. Both Khrelan and Vartelm nodded understandingly. Their expressions remained stone-cold, grim as ever. They knew everything was now on the line. "If things get dicey we're close enough to drop into the system within seconds."

They had opted to go with the strategy of sending in their attack fleet first, and keep their main asset, the graciously donated Mjolnir capital ship, out of harm's way until it was needed. Everyone knew Colmor's strategy, he had placed his ships on the far side of the planet to avoid getting caught too off guard. Khrelan's fleet was going to wait and lure Colmor out.

A few suspenseful minutes had passed uneventfully until the silence had been broken by the first report. Colmor's fleet was slowly emerging from behind New Cilveracii. The holo display they watched confirmed this. They were coming out cautiously. Another minute or so had scraped by as Colmor inched within combat range. He didn't seem very up to the fight. He didn't fire, he just sent some of his frigates forward ahead of his ship. Khrelan's fleet took this opportunity to take the first shot, unleashing their fire upon the nearest targets, the well-shielded frigates. Colmor had sent up the ships that had the best shields, presumably to have them absorb all the fire until the Tempest could come within range of the fleet.

"Smart bastard," Vartelm remarked under his breath, realizing this strategy soon after seeing it in action. He still watched the screen. The Remnant's frigates had begun firing back. They weren't just up there to be bullet sponges. The relentless onslaught kept on until the Tempest had loomed close enough to do some damage. The magnetic sling on the front of the ship glowed a bright blue for an instant, then a streak of the same color followed quickly after. The round plunged into a carrier, shredding it. It bloomed into a beautiful ball of fire and then faded.

"That thing is powerful," Khrelan noted in astonishment. His face wore a visage of the same awe.

"Yeah that thing almost snuffed me out in the Takaanian system. We dropped into the system and it immediately decided we were hostile. Luckily we got out of there fast," Vartelm said, feeling an inkling of the same fear he did when he first saw the ship.

The frigates that were taking all of the hits had peeled off before the sling had fired. They had now tucked themselves up close to the Tempest. One off the starboard side crumbled under the immense amount of damage it was still taking and exploded.

"Should our carriers deploy fighters? We've only taken down one of their ships so far and if we're going to get over there we need to take down their escorts," a deck officer asked. Khrelan read his name tag. His last name was Aramytan. Huh, Khrelan thought, that's coincidental.

"Yes," Vartelm replied. "Good idea. Send us in as well. We'll need to get in there at some point, might as well be now."

Aramytan nodded, "Aye, sir."

The blackness of space tore into a portal like hole. They accelerated, flying into the portal seamlessly and came out on the other side seconds later. They came out closer to their fleet than expected, but that was good. It meant they had the true element of surprise. The Mjolnir opened fire immediately upon arriving, sending a fusillade of fire into the opposing fleet. The Tempest's slings glowed a faint blue, meaning they were charging.

"Prepare yourselves. That sling is aimed at us and it's going to shoot any minute now," Vartelm noted. Sure enough, after a minute or so of all out warfare, the slings flashed, followed by a massive round ripping across space at the Mjolnir. It hit the ship's shields, putting a decent dent in the overall shield power, but it didn't penetrate.