Rules of Engagement

UEC 2nd, 9th, 12th, 8th and 6th fleet

Tearus system: Space

Secondary objective: complete

56AE/3rd age of conquest

The hours ticked by as the scenes showing the twenty rapidly updated, counting down the time. Far ahead of the armada the first of the earther super missiles collapsed under concentrated fire from the fighter screen.

This however only served to splinter the massive thousand ton missile and send its fragments shotgunning into the fleet. Instantly two of the super destroyers under the dragon supreme commander disintegrated as a large chunk of ice and sawdust slammed into one of the ships at relativistic speeds.

As the ships reactor was struck it cooked off the built up magical energy sending a shockwave radiating out in all directions. The ring of energy washed over the nearest ship before dissipating boiling its unprotected hull and causing it to go up in its own explosion.

Around the fleet shields flaired to life as the remaining super missiles entered their midst. Two of the missiles struck larger super destroyers under Celestia's banner causing them to erupt into small suns as the kinetic energy was transferred.

A further two struck as many buffalo crafted carriers, and one struck one of Kryskss destroyers. The remaining three however sailed harmlessly past the collection of UEC ships doomed to journey out of the star system and onto the black of interstellar space.

Seconds later reports began streaming in that the central ship in the oncoming flotilla was charging its main weapon. In response gold, amber, cobalt, green, and crimson shields flared to life across the fleet.

On their screens they watched as the “Tombstone” began to expose several large heat distribution devices to space. For many of the Supreme, ship Commanders and sub-commanders this was their first time engaging the COG in space combat. This was in fact for all but two supreme commanders their first engagement with the cogs rumored Siege Breaker class of ships. So it was no surprise that many of them were perplexed as a message came across all channels.

‘Black flag, black flag.’

This lack of experience was quickly shown as the experienced ship commanders began maneuvering their ships and an evasive pattern to show off the targeting of the massive ships computer. They watched as the center ship in the five ship formation began to arc with electricity along its hull before its prow began to blue shift. Finally in a rather anticlimactic finish the front of the ship seemed to warp before returning to normal as the heat sinks sank back into its hull.

Their confusion however was short lived as a fraction of a second later seven ships in a line disappeared from their screens. Having been transformed from massive displays of UEC power into violent bursts of expanding gas and radiation.

The fleet did not have time to recover however as seconds later hundreds of missiles began to pore from the five oncoming ships. Followed closely by the distinct synthesized sound of hail against their shields. Several of the ships commanders eyes wide as they saw that the human ships were firing on them with their hull mounted rail gun turrets.

Across the fleet several of the smaller ship classes such as cruisers and destroyers disappeared as their shields were overwhelmed and their hulls were struck by human anti ship missiles.

One gryphon destroyer in second fleet however seemed to be a main target of several of the missiles as it had foolishly moved to the head of the pack. Its shields were violently ripped apart by concentrated railgun fire before seven missiles closed in and exploded around it. Seven clouds of superheated plasma burned their way through the hull reducing the Kings Vengeance to a burned out hulk.

As UEC ships can not typically engage at the same range as a human vessel The Inexperienced commanders began to act spreading out their battle groups and returning fire with their own long range missiles.

Hundreds of UEC missiles exploded from their launch tubes or burst from turrets and sailed toward the earther vessels. Furthermore the fighters that had begun attempting to intercept the agile COG missiles banked hard and began their attack runs on the human five massive human ships.

This played directly into the humans plan as the UEC fleet watched as the earthers flipped their massive ships around presenting their massive engine nozzles to them. Plumes of plasma flared violently as the human ships began rapidly decelerating well before their target.

Smiling two of the supreme commanders ordered several their ships to break formation and close on the human vessels. The sixth, second, and eighth fleets observed this and pulled their ships back into attack formations ordering their batteries primed and condenser lenses focused and charged.

This proved to be a sound tactic as scanners began picking up several more smaller earther drive plumes blossoming out from behind the huge human vessels. Their scans showed at least fifteen smaller human vessels that matched UEC silhouettes of COG frigates and destroyers, as well as several smaller vessels that their displayed marked as COG corvettes.

Each of the ships emerged from the drive shadows of their much larger cousins. Before beginning a hard burn that sent them sailing passed their charges. It was then that the UEC ships began to detect almost seventy small fighter sized drive plumes among the oncoming ships.

The earther ships dashed forward closing the gap with the UEC ships all the while under the protective railgun and missile barrage of the four cruisers and siege breaker behind them. The UEC who had been raised and expected to engage in an honorable duel in the dark was not expecting the battle to devolve into a back alley brawl.

One of the COG destroyers was quickly sliced apart by energy rakes as it passed between a cluster of six UEC vessels. Three of the COG ships marked as UAF fighter frigates spun in an acrobatic barrel roll dipping down to strafe the shields of a much larger super destroyer with their laser cannons and missiles. They managed to lower the shields of the changeling ship Behemoth before two of them were destroyed and the final was forced to turn away only to break apart as its belly is struck by a crimson ball of plasma.

Across the battlespace several human vessels would gang up on singular UEC ships hounding the larger fleet like a pack of desperate and starved wolves. Huge dogfights between the desperate and outnumbered human fighters and UEC fighter wings raged in clouds around almost every large ship that filled the battle space with flack and point defence fire.

Soon however damage to the large ship with the words SRA: Belligerent became to great. Its engine cut out leaving it dead in space as it entered the UEC fleets weapons range. Having pulled back in preparation the ships of the sixth fleet fired their weapons toward the decelerating capital ships. The first of which broke apart with all hands lost under the concentrated fire of twelve condenser lenses.

Then the human’s capital ships were in the middle of the huge UEC fleet. Their PDCs swiveled around sending screams of flechettes in every direction. All the while despite their surfaces being sliced or bombarded by missiles, energy rakes, condenser blasts or beams dozens of mechs ran across their surfaces like ants firing their weapons wildly into the air adding to their ships point defence.

“WOLUTA BELTALOWDA!” A voice screamed over the open channel as a severely damaged Earther corvette emptied its missile's, point defence cannons and twin rail guns into the belly of a super destroyer. Dropping its already critically weekend shields before slamming into its belly at full burn.

The ship vanished as an explosion caused by its impact split the larger ship in half, sending a wave of condensed magical energy in every direction. The cloud washed over its destroyer and cruiser escorts vaporizing their hulls and causing secondary explosions that resulted in their own destruction.

As the battle raged critically damaged earther vessels began to ram equestrian ships transforming their ships into missiles in final acts of defiance and desperation. All in the hope that the massive ship that was limping it's way away from the Conclave flotilla could escape.

“Take ush in, sixth fleet maintain attack formations.” The supreme commander of the sixth fleet ordered.

Three overly large and bulky UEC ships chose that moment to push into the heart of the fleet to fill a hole caused by the four remaining human capital ships. Followed closely by twelve Luna, Celestia and Twilight class destroyers and super-destroyers. Three of these ships matched two of the ships in raw tonnage and they began exchanging fire.

The Particular Justice, Unyielding Hierophant and Casus Belli fired their ancient drivecores and closed in for the kill. First sixteen, then thirty-four, sixty, and finally eighty kleese missiles leapt from their launch tubes and sailed toward the human space control cruisers.

Fire switched focus all at once across the Babylon and Normandy to track the oncoming missile swarm. A dozen point defence guns and thirty mechs tracked the missiles managing to destroy several before the first of them began slipping through their net to slam into the hull.

Seconds later the Babylon exploded as a dozen missiles struck its over clocked drive core. This was followed closely by the Normandy but not before the ship spun on its axis flailing its drive past the proverbial redline.

The drive cone being nothing more than a jet of plasma used to propel the ship sliced clean through the Unyielding Hierophant. Slicing a horrendous gash that spewed body's, air and escaping gasses into space before the Normandy too exploded like its sister ship before it.

The Unyielding Hierophant however like its human adversary did not die easily. Instead it reinforcing the shields on the damaged side of the ship before rotating 180 to show the human vessels its undamaged side.

Streams of missiles began flowing from the remaining two human capital ships as they exited the UEC formation no longer focused on any target in particular as they began emptying their magazines. Dozens of nukes and plasma torpedoes sailed in every direction set to seek out and destroy targets of opportunity.

“Supreme commander I am detecting strange energy reading from the crippled human vessel.” A sensor technician spoke up.

“Enlarge.” Krykss eyes narrowed as he saw what looked like a cloud of crimson fireflies begin to encircle the massive human vessel.

“What is this now?” He asks surprised, have the humans developed some new kind of drone to use along with that impressive ship?

The cloud began to condense in a ring around the ship before exploding outward in a swirling sphere radiating away from the ship. The UEC and COG watched as wave passed through the system faster than any of them thought possible before washing over the UEC ships.

There was a defining sound that blasted through the speakers of every ship in the system as the wave passed over them. The sound was like a mixture of an air raid siren and the whale of a raptor. And continued until the wave had passed the last ship and dissipated expanding out passed the system. Several minutes passed with no one moving before with a start the battle began in earnest once more.

“What was…” one of the supreme commanders inquired before across the fleet sirens began going off as blazing white indicators began appearing on the battle screens.

“What am I looking at ensign?” the supreme commander of the twelfth fleet asked worried that the human had deployed some kind of weapon. “Neutrino bursts ma’am we are working to figure out… Dear celestia.”

[No POV]

Tearus system: space

18:36 hrs local system time

11 days after Tearus

2169AD/106AC

“Siege warning! Siege Warning! Zero-three Lankys seed ships detected!”

Out of the inky blackness of space three massive two mile long, one mile wide matt black organic teardrop shaped vessels emerged. The only thing to give them away being the drive plooms of the two remaining Human capital ships in the escort fleet.

Each of the alien ships dwarfed the human vessels they skulked behind before they began accelerating. The sole remaining Orca battlecruiser indomitable was dashed against the one of the seed ships hulls leaving nothing but a large scorch mark on the smooth black surface.

The Tombstone however was spared as when it neared one of the massive ships the alien vessel seemed to juke to the side avoiding the siege breaker and continuing inward.

Across the hulls of the three new arrivals numerous holes began to eyeris open. Knowing what was to come several dozen UEC vessels thrust power to their shields as a wave of yard long penetrators were fired at the large fleet like a shotgun.

“Designate lankys as Bugs one through three and follow.” Barron ordered virtually flying to his seat and strapping in. A sentiment that across the ship and the ships docked to her that was quickly mirrored.

“General we have a radiation burst off of our port bow at 086.972.612.”

“send it to my screen.” Barron watched the sensor data streaming in from outside of his ship. His eyes widened as space seemed to warp and wripple before a swirling bluish vortex appeared in a flash of white light. A lanky claw ship soared out of it at incredible speed, the vortex closing seconds after its arrival as the ship came to rest just six hundred kilometers and seven degrees down from the Galactica’s port bow.

The massive black and red ship dwarfed his own as it seemed to almost ignore Galactica as it hung in space. “Sir Bug four is matching our acceleration. And fourty of the UEC super destroyers are breaking formation on hard burn ingress. I'll give them twenty minutes before they enter extreme weapons range.”

“Woah, general, I have lost helme control and astro navigation is going nuts.” Ships AI said his avatar flashing into existence on the holo plot.

“What are…” Barron began before an urgent connection request drew his attention. Accepting it he was surprised to see the screen filled with a frantically yelling head science officer.

“General, captured flayed, the disks, and drive are all going nuts down here.” Takumi said as chaos erupted all around her. “We don't know what happend one minute we are running tests and the next… I don't know they just discharged. Tyler our computers are filling with so much data we are having to purge entire… oh my god. General we need more power down here the drive is going to overload!” Behind her the thing that looked like an old subwoofer began to glow and lengthen.

“Ryo, I want our practical beams online…” Barron began turning his command chair to face the avatar of Galacticas AI admin Ryoko.

“I'm already working on it, I have tasked several damage control crews and several teams of bots to the task. But sir I must say with the power draw the way it is we might only get one or two shots off. I recommend a defensive action instead.” the AI spoke waving its hands as if to

“I agree General we can't fight them docked like this but don't have fire control for any of our either of our practical beams or railguns all we have are PDCs…. Unless.” Adama began before flashing through displays on his screen.

“What is it colonel?” Barron asked as he watched the tactical plot. Several seconds passed before a second image appeared on the plot beside Ryokos avatar.

“It might work colonel, and free up power.” The new avatar spoke up. His ID marked it as NAC:Manitoba R-797 Roland and his chosen avatar was that of a world war two fighter pilot. “What are… yes that should work, general sending the plan to your screen now.”

“Execute…”

Ten million kilometers away twelve more flashes of white light burst into existence behind and around the Tombstone. And from these flashes emerged a swarm of Lanky flayed fighters. Their drives burning an evil red that matched the red indicator lights along the COG ships hull.

As one the UEC fleet reorganized firing off their lenses toward the three rapidly approaching lanky ships. The Bug one took twenty swirling blasts of condensed magical energy before giving up the ghost. Huge sections of its hull began breaking away before it broke up.

This however gave the Tombstone the window it needed to blast its drive past the red line. The siege breaker was rapidly brought to a relative stop as several of the ship's crew stroked out from the sudden breaking. The crew floated weightless for several seconds before being slammed back into their crash couches causing many broken bones and several deaths as the ship leaped forward like a horse out of the gate.

The bulky human vessel lumberd forward firing its main gauss cannon in tenth charge fully automatic burning out several coils and overloading its secondary reactor. Radiation leaked from the Tombstone as it fired one round every thirty seconds vaporizing several of the smaller UEC vessels as they sliced apart Bug three.

Several of the tungsten and uranium slugs that had punched clean through their targets suddenly found themselves ricocheting off of the hull of bug three. Now normally this wouldn't have been a problem as this had been reported to have happened several times during the few times Lanky and COG ships would suddenly find themselves fighting against the UEC. But the crew of the Tombstone had neglected to change the targeting perimeter of the missiles they had launched several minutes prior.

“Gee what do we have here?” One nuclear tipped missiles networked computer said to another as it cruzed the battlefield.

“Well it looks to me like that lanky has been oh so gracious as to expose itself to us.” a second missile responded cheerfully.

“Well that was certainly kind of them. I wonder what's inside?” A third missile said to the first and second maneuvering to fly in formation with the other two.

“Maybe there is a barracks we could see if we just get closer. I would love to do an inspection and see if their quarters are up to snuff.” The second missile said to the third.

“You know what friend I think that would be an excellent idea. The lankys seem like the kind of race that would leave a foot locker unlocked and I believe it is our duty to correct their mistake.” the first missile said.

“You know what.” The third missile began. “There’s nothing I hate more than an unlocked foot locker.” the third missile responded and with that the three missiles spun hard at over ninety Gs and slammed through the gaping gash in the side of Bug three.

This neglect paired with the overeagerness of three twenty megaton nuclear missiles caused the entire superstructure of bug three to break apart in a flash of light.

At once the superstructure of Bug two facing the Tombstone rippled as holes began to eyeris open as if to say “Oh well fuck you then worthless human” . A virtual wall of penetrators hurled themselves into the hull of the human ship wending its hull and making it spin wildly as it it had been drop kicked by an angry god. The ship spiraled out of control before the force of its spin, weakened hull and still firing drive core caused the ship to literally tear itself apart.

With their treturus charge dead the flayed fighters swarmed forward engaging both the remaining COG and UEC fighters. Both sides of which gaped in open mouth horror as tens of dozens of lanky fighters swarmed around them. Several of which began transmitting rather disturbingly calm or cheerful messages whenever they made a kill.

One rather tenacious flayed swooped in and transformed into its infantry mode just as it came into range of a COG corvette. Like something out of a network show the bastardized valkyrie fighter produced what looked like a spiked ball from one of its arm mounted protuberances before punching a claw through the airlock of said Corvette. And like some kind of action hero it tossed the ball through the airlock before transforming and burning away. The Corvette blew apart from the inside as the mine exploded inside of its hull.

Incidences of white on blue stopped all together after that however as a squadron of ten flayed escorted two fighter-frigates and a single damaged NAC destroyer as they emptied their missile racks into the flank of three UEC ships. The first ship’s shields failed as EMR missiles slammed into it as its energy rake swept across the nearest UAF ship which split in half sending it's two pieces spiraling into its side.

The final fighter frigate’s damaged engines flaired as its laser cannons sent out gigawatts of invisible energy before ramming a destroyer. This dropped its shields opening the window for the ten flayed and single destroyer to swoop down and discourage their cargo.

UEC 2nd, 9th, 12th, 8th and 6th fleet

Tearus system: Space

Secondary objective: complete

56AE/3rd age of conquest

Twenty Wendigo leaped from the large flayed as they skimmed the hull. Each of them trailing umbilicals like paratroopers before slamming down with a thunderous clang that could only be heard inside of the ship. Behind and above them six human boarding craft burned their decelerating thrusters hard before slamming into the hull of the Embers Wrath.

All the while the sole remaining seed ship continued to lumber it's way through the fleet like. As it passed through huge sections of its fifteen meter thick hull plating were sliced away. Exposing the decks to space to spew their contents around the area.

Now space is a big place and the chances of actually striking something on accident are quite low. Unfortunately for one of Commander Polar’s ships it had the astronomically horrible luck to not only strike something. But to have the thing it struck be quite understandably livid about being jettisoned from its it's nice safe ship.

Around the fleet as they mopped up the remaining human vessels and fighters they watched as a fully grown Lanky crashed into the hull like a comet. The eighty foot creature loomed over the hull like an angry mountain before slapping its huge hand across the hull.

The huge claw shaped hand sank deep into one of the many protruding blisters on the ships spewing air and bodys into space. Two changeling nymph fighters buzzed by spewing green bolts of energy into its shoulder making black blood spray from its hide. It seemed to roar in anger before swatting one of the fighters out of space with a flick of its hand.

It’s clawed hands and feet sank deep into the ship as it found purchase and began crawling along the hull like a giant bone colored faceless bat. Numerous fighters began firing on the creature now before it finally had had enough and forced its way through the hangar bay door and into the ship.

There were screams of terror so profound that they all felt like they could feel those spacers fear in their souls. As the eighty foot creature rampaged through the comparatively small corridors the ship suddenly exploded as six balls of crimson plasma struck its hull.

“Maintain formation.” Krsykss ordered from the bridge of Particular Justice. Around his flagship the remaining eleven capital ships of battle fleet six send staggering barrages of plasma and magic into gap in bug three’s hull. “Paladin's shield, Conquers Call, Casus Belli. Decelerate and come around at 376.982 mark 762, 912.978 mark 821, and 465.816 mark 913.”

The three ships did as they were ordered breaking hard and sweeping around the flank of the small cluster of surrounded human vessels. A hail of point defence and railgun fire swarmed to meet them but the relative proximity of the three ships allowed their shields to overlap to take the hits.

A human destroyer flipped in an attempt to decelerate but was struck by the prow of the Particular Justice. The Kleese ships superior size and momentum dashed the human ship into its nose, splitting it in half at the spine as it struck the shield. “This is shameful…” Krykss commented as he observed the holo display.

All around him the ships of twelfth,and eighth fleet were in disarray despite vastly outnumbering the human vessels. Which now began desperate sending waves of dozens of their dropships to board UEC ships and force them to stop and fight in protracted firefights. He could respect that in the earthers.

They knew they were out numbers and out gunned so now backed against a wall they resorted to what they knew best, ground warfare but in space. From his sensor readings he could see firefights raging through the windows of no less than ten of the forty smaller ships that had not pushed ahead to pursue the “Galactica”.

The folls in ninth, and second fleets thought that their poultry twenty super destroyers and sixty destroyer, cruiser, frigate, and corvette escorts were enough to stand against the combined firepower of that human vessel and the claw ship. The door to his command bridge slid open and the silver and black armored zaltule turned to see a rather irate Rarity standing in the door.

“What are you doing on my bridge inferior?” He asked hotly using folding two of his arms behind his back and using the other two to issue commands to his forces. “You… you killed me!” She screamed incredulously.

He did not respond as he read over reports streaming in from the Embers Wrath. One of the first ships to be boarded and the only super destroyer at that. ‘Sloppy’ he thought to himself as he watched fascinated with two of his eyes as security feeds began streaming in.

Squads of COG soldiers had speared into the hull of that ship while the Lankys made their way into the ship through the hanger bay. ‘Could they be the lankys equivalent of marines?’ He asked as he watched one of the aliens tear a human spacer in two.

The creature then looked up and began firing what looked like spikes from some kind of cannon that looked to be part of its forearm. It then opens it beak like mouth and screamed prompting a swarm of smaller human shaped lankys to run past it to fall upon a squad of UEC marines. ‘Sirens I believe the humans call them… a fitting name.’

Mean while a squad of NAC marines judging by their green armor pushed up another corridor before becoming bogged down at the entrance to an atrium. Krykss watched tilting his head as one of the gears dove into the open a myrialos based on the undersuit and lack of proper playing on the forearms where the pincers extended.

The crustacean rolled once slamming into the opposite wall on one knee. Before swinging a mars tube up and onto its shoulder, the eighty millimeter rocket launched out of the tube and into a scaffold three deck up. The remaining marines pushed forward then before turning as one as a wendigo bashed it's way into the chamber.

The creature swatted aside UEC completely ignoring the humans and their traitorous allies to gore a dragon with its claws. The rust colored blood spewed from the dragon's mouth as its innards fell to the ground before the lanky opened its beak like maw and bit into its neck. While the cog marines rushed forward taking advantage of the gap the lanky had caused.

“I am supreme commander of the seventh fleet and you will hand command of this ve…” whatever the elegantly dressed unicorn was about to say was cut off as a thick citanus claw covered gauntlet wrapped itself around her neck, hefting her off of her hooves.

“Be silent ignorant sow. Your incompetence has caused the permanent death of many capable soldiers this day. Soldiers that could have better served the conclave in battle at a later date. Now the warriors of my battle fleet must remedy the mess left behind by you and your ilk.” His voice growled out from between gnashing mandibles before releasing the useless unicorn to fall to the deck.

[No POV]

Tearus system: space

76,297,491: the birth time

56AE/3rd age of conquest

2169AD/106AC

When the first of the UEC ship entered weapons range the Galactica opened up. Across the hulls of the ships docked to its surface sixty duel railguns swiveled sending a wall of fire into the gryphon ship.

Its shields failed almost immediately under the barrage before the ships hull was perforated and condenser drive detonated. In the confusion this caused the launch tubes fixed to the side pods on the Galactica slid open, while the vast external airlocks slid open.

The seventy-nine UEC ships and their withered fighter escorts watched as swarms of fresh COG fighters hurled themselves into space. Along the hull of the Galactica they watched as like with the five foolish human ships earlier mechs began crawling over its hull while its point defence guns came online.

Enraged by the belief that the humans still had the gaul to fight two of the super destroyers broke formation burning hard for the human vessel. Beams of magical energy lanced out from their condenser lenses reaching to strike the impotent human down.

However the beams stopped far before they reached their target as a shimmering semi transparent dome of whitish red busrt into existence and stopped the beams cold. Magical energy seemed to disperse along the shield before dissipating as the beams lost charge. The shield promptly vanished turning invisible as the last traces of energy ceased a stark contrast to the constantly visible UEC shields.

The two ships did not get a chance to fire again however as the claw ship that had been sitting idle flaired to life. Along its hull holes eyeressed open spewing a swarm of two hundred flayed fighters into space. The two of the claws four six hundred meter long claws swiveled before sending their own lancees of crimson energy straight through the two enemy patterns.

The six mile claw reached out firing its four huge thrusters and accelerating far faster than anything its size has any right to interceding its bulk between the Galactica and the oncoming ships. Energy condensed at the peak of one of its hulls many ridges before firing a burst of that energy into the Galactica.

On board the human vessel the coin shaped object began pulsing sending resonating waves out into the ship. The lanky began firing more crackling beams of ruby energy from its claws. Four beams scythed into the UEC ships cutting a swath through their numbers as holes eyris open before sending out a hail of bone white penetrators and swarms of glowing red embers.

The penetrators slammed into the shields of the UEC ships many of whom had begun overlapping their shields at this point as the cloud of fighters met in the no man's land between the ships. Huge discharges of magical energy reached out in response striking the lanky ship boiling away massive sections of hull plating that spat fire and gas into space.

Charlotte dipped her fighter around transferred into valkyrie mode shooting down two UEC missiles. Watching as a flayed flew parallel to a nymph fighter boosting forward with enough acceleration to turn her into a fine jelly if she had tried such a man over. Transforming into its infantry mode the creature reached a hand out and slammed its clawed hand into the cockpit of the equestrian fighter craft.

The two alien fighters both disappeared in the collision and subsequent explosion. Leaving the French pilot just enough time to think about just how strange this situation was before switching back to fighter configuration and rocketing back into the fight.

Across the furball eagle spiraled his shrike behind a group of gryphon fighters. With a smirk he thumbed his firing stud prompting the rotary cannon to spew forth a stream of grenades that tore the strangely avian fighters to shreds. “I've got eyes on that cruisers bridge. Let's move knights.”

Around him twelve other shrikes moved into an attack formation. Their belly doors opened as they networked their firing controls before skimming the hull of the ship a group of three pegasus fighters got on their heels. “Watch the deck!” knight three spoke up as she barrel rolled her fighter around the projector track for an energy rake.

“I've got tone, firing three.” three of the fighters broke formation as just as many penetrator and trident missiles fired from their racks to slam into the bridge window. Thes missiles were quickly followed up by what looked like a swarm of glowing embers that slammed through the ship before exiting the other side.

“We've got heat on our six. Scramjets knights gotta go, gotta go!” Around the space thr embers fired by the bug 4 flew in vast swarms weaving in and out of enemy formations and into or through UEC ships.

The aging shrike fighters jinked around firing maneuvering thrusters to avoid the storm of incoming bolts of energy. Then the three pegasus fighters suddenly burst into flames as their hulls melted into slag. Glancing at his instrument panel eagle saw five avenger fighters blow passed their position with their laser cannons retracting.

As they passed the shrikes of the Black Knights Snow waged his avengers wings in greeting before as a group the Razgriz flipped one eighty firing missiles that cork screwed into several more UEC fighters. And soon a wing of six gungnir fighters joined the mixed bag of shrikes and avengers.

“La deuxième vague de combattants entrants revient au réseau de pdc du Galactica.” The French pilot marked as “Icequeen” spoke. A group of three flayed joined the cluster as the COG fighters flipped around returning to Galactica's defence net.

“Twenty down…” a childlike voice singsonged as the first of the UECs second wave hit. Instantly the three aces of Manitoba's fighter wing came under fire. Three oddly familiar fighters blew passed them and each of them broke and engaged.

“Watch it soran, that earthers on your tail!” Rainbow dash called out as she broke her modified human fighter hard to the left. The Gforces and lack of inertial dampers slammed her back into her seat as she dodged a stream of grenades from the human ice colored fighter on her tail.

It just had to be her luck to get stuck with this beast of a fighter on her. Gritting her teeth she twirled her fighter around sending two bolts of pink energy followed by two missiles toward her attacker. The pegasus mare marveled as the earther cartwheeled between the two bolts trailing flares and chaff before transforming and thrusting an arm toward the first of the missiles.

A stream of pearl tracers reached out detonating the first before a cone of what looked like shrapnel detonated the other as it got to close. “Horse apples.” Rainbow goosed her engine as she saw a wing extend from the mechs back firing off a string of missiles from a pod. “Woah woah pull back, pull back! All flocks remass for second assault.” Spitfire shouted as the three of them cleared the bulk of the claw ship.

“COME ON GET SOME!” A human's voice called out over the net as the UEC fighters all rounded the lanky vessel to see dozens of niclas like strands of traces fire streaming from the Galactica.

Every PDC and railgun with a free firing arc along the hulls of the docked Donnager, Fred Johnson, Astrid, Manitoba, and Matayo. Tens of thousands of rounds spewed forth striking down UEC torpedoes and utterly decimating whatever smaller ship came to close.

The hull of each of these ships teamed with mechs ranging from squads of loley African sifu firing their auto cannons. To the mightiest North American Atlas-3s who fired their wrist mounted 10 to 20mm rotary weapons who in conjunction with their duel AI/network linked icarus mounts became rather efficient point defence platforms in and of themselves.

As a single UEC destroyer made it through the lanky gauntlet several freight elevators opened along the hull of the Galactica. Two massive seventy ton Sino-Russian Grendel artillery batteries rose into the pail red light of the system's star.

The hunched machines angled their cannon arms toward the destroyer before firing four 120mm shells from each hand. The tank shells sailed into the void to splatter against their target's shield. In response the two mechs locked their ten ton feet to the hull of the ship as their main guns began tracking their target.

The crew of the first machine marked as Chrysanthemum swiveled its 800mm BFG-50s the four enormous barrels locked onto their target and fire erupted forth. The force of the recoil causing the entire machine down onto its hydraulic shocks. The four anti-suborbit nuclear tipped shells slammed into the destroyers shields with enough force to make them visibly warp.

As seconds later the crew of the second grendel Novigrad had their own machines main gun locked onto the target. The huge twin rails of two terrestrial gauss cannons arched with electricity before just as many hardened anti-ship penetrators exploded from the tubes. They like those fired from their compatriots from Chrysanthemum slammed into the shields of the destroyer.

But the already weakened shields buckled and failed allowing the slugs to sail their target and explode. Its shields now down the stricken destroyer was quickly torn to pieces by Galactica's complement of bootlegged railguns and PDCs.

“Watch it snow viper you've got fighters inbound.” Ryoko spoke into Fallon's womb. “Got it, Lance form up.”

Armor, AMP, Habu, Camouflage, and Big Dog stomped into position as a flight of two nymphs sored over the shield towards them. Unlike the UEC who appeared contempt with letting rounds hit them the COG did not rely solely on their shield.

And as the changeling fighters passed the point of no return the four atlas mechs tore into them. Sending flechettes and grenades into their hulls and making them crash ballistic into the sometimes invisible shield of galactica. With a wordless command the four machines pivoted as more fighters closed in. The two Atlas-3s deploying their ballistic shields while the two remaining mechs fired from behind their better armed and armored compatriots.

“This is the stupidest fucking plan I've ever heard!” The freshly minted gunnery sergeant shouted over his company channel. “I'm inclined to agree with you on that one Fallon. This is a space ship. Emphasis on ship not a Goddamn space station.” A rather surely veteran called back to his lance mate.

“Come on twentys! This builds character!” Wraith called out kicking off of the hull partially to ram his close combat spike through the cockpit of an incoming fighter. “Yeah it also waists ammo. We have spent more time shooting at things than actually hitting them.” A Siafu pilot said from somewhere on the hull.

“Hey Armor you should say that thing…” Amp some up firing both of his rotary guns into the belly of a fleeing fighter.

“Come on gunny say it. Just once.” Trombley pleaded, the smile evident in his voice as he sent a burst of flachettes into another fighter. “You know you want to Armor.” Icequeen spoke up adding her two cents into the channel. “...Fine.” the Gunnery sergeant relented before blaring out across the open channel. “C’MON YOU APES... DO YOU WANNA LIVE FOREVER!”

Several minutes passed as Barron watched the UEC ships that had stayed behind destroy the remaining seed ship were now joining the others in combating Bug four. The claw ship's hull was cratered, scared and supported numerous gashes and scorch marks across its bulk.

One of the mighty pincer like arms now spun uselessly in space a hazard to any ship stupid enough to get in it's way. And of the over one hundred and fifty flayed fighters it had sent out only roughly fifty remained and those were now encircling his ship aiding in its defence.

“How long until Bug four is gone.” Barron asked watching as it sent another beam of crackling energy into the flank of a super destroyer.

“Unknown sir, but from my estimation I would give it many another ten minutes. Before it becomes combat ineffective.” One of the sensor techs said hands dancing across his screen.

“General I have managed to bring the primary engines back online.” Ryoko said her avatar appearing on the holo table. “I believe… General something is wrong. I can't… woah astrological coordinates are feeding into the navigational systems, and there is a buildup of energy on deck twenty.”

“That's where the lab is… Takumi talk to me what is happening down there?” Barron demanded using a channel override and forcibly bringing up the science officer.

“I don't know captian, first the printers begin pumping out those coin things. And now the device is drawing so much power I cant regulate the draw… that can't be right? General the device has begun radiating hawking radiation cant..” an alarm began to sound in the science bay drowning out whatever the science officer was about to say.

“Everybody out! Sir you have to get us out of here, I don't know what will happen if the ship takes damage while this thing is charging!” Takumi shouted before cutting off the channel.

“Got it. Helm full burn. Ops, Recall the fighters and mechs I don't want them out there while were…” his sentence was cut off as a count down appeared on his and every screen across the ship.

60…59...58...57…

The countdown continued as the recall orders were given. The dogfights and defence on and around the ship became a mad dash to get back inside. The massive hangerdors on the front of the galacticas side pods opened as at the same time the engines at their rear roared to life.

45…44...43...42...

Entire squadrons of fighters decelerated burning hard as they flew into the massive hangar bays along the ship's hull. Finding whatever space they could as they went skids down and slammed into the deck. In the distance the Claw ship broke apart exploding and sending a wave of crimson energy out in every direction. While the final few lances of mechs fell back on mass to open hangers or deployment bays.

30...29...28...27…

In space the remaining flayed banked sharply to into hangerbays of the human vessels they had been supporting. Squeezing through the closing hanger doors and crashing down onto the flight deck swarming with deck crew and emergency personnel.

19...18...17...16...15...14...13...12...11...

“This is our chance. All ships fire at will… blow them out of the stars!” Krykss yelled slamming a fist down into an already broken console for emphasis. The UEC fleet watched their eyes glued to their displays as balls of plasma, bursts/beams of magic, and swarms of missiles arched or lanced their way towards defenseless human vessel.

10...9...8…

The final seconds ticked by on the screen as Barron and every COG soldier aboard watched the countdown hit five seconds. Friends and lovers aboard the ship held one another close while others resigned themselves to their fate as death raced for their ship.

5...4...3...2...

The counter hit one second and began a millisecond countdown as the UEC ships watched as space seemed to wripple around the human ship. Before a flash of light appeared at the rear of the earther vessel before racing to its bow.

0:00

In a flash of light the UEC fleet watched as the Earther vessel Galactica disappeared leaving a shimmering distortion in space just as the ordinance was about to hit it's shield. Causing the beams, balls of plasma and missile to careen harmlessly off into empty space.