I'm new by the way
Important MessageYou are browsing the archived Lancers Reactor forums. You cannot register or login. |
Victory At All Costs, The Story of A Liberty Naval Officer *
Read, add and comment on excellent written stories by fans, set within the Freelancer universe
Sat Nov 20, 2004 8:25 pm
Hey guys, I have the new chapter ready!
Enjoy!
Chapter Six- Dead Men's Tales
Rear Admiral Black was riveted to the viewport in front of him. In space, all around him, were the wrecks of what had once been a proud Liberty battlegroup.
"Admiral?"
"Yes, captain."
"Should we notify the Navy?"
"Yes, get someone out here right away."
Black was still incredulous about all this. Who could have done this? Only a full fleet could have caused such destruction, but they would have taken losses as well. Nothing made since anymore.
"Admiral?"
"Yes."
"The Navy is sending another task force to investigate. We can continue on our mission when they arrive."
"Understood."
Then, Black saw something in the gloom ahead. He ordered the pilot to move the ship towards it. Slowly, he saw more and more of the object. Then, he could make out the shape just enough... It was a Liberty battleship! As his ship moved closer and closer, Black could still not make out any damage on the hull.
He pulled up the scanner system on his pad. He executed a long-range scan on the hulk of the Liberty ship. He looked at the results. Not a scratch! This side of the ship, at least, was in good shape. Since the scanner was unable to penetrate the thick armor of the ship, he had no idea what was on the other side, or on the inside, for that matter.
He told the pilot to go around the ship, so he could get a closer look.
They reached the other side, and Black was awestruck at what he saw. This entire side of the ship, bow to stern, was filled with big, gaping holes. It was as if the ship had taken full broadsides from half a dozen other battleships! Black pulled up the schematic of the ship on his pad. The holes in the armor enabled his sensors to pierce through to the interior. He noticed that much was damaged, but large portions were untouched. Including the docking bay. That meant potential survivors, and he had to find them, if they were still alive.
He put in a call to the docking bay. He had a transport, the same one he had used to pick up Hapgood, readied for immediate launch. Then, he summoned the ship's contingent of Liberty Marine Troopers, or LMTs, to the docking bay. There were about twenty of them, and they were experts at fighting inside large ships. He told Fox to take command of the ship, and then stood up. Hapgood came running over.
"What's going on, Admiral? I have a meeting to be at, and I hope this will not take too long, whatever it is."
"Calm down, it won't be long. Besides, if this is what I think it is, then it is far more important to Liberty than your mission."
Hapgood was about to argue, but he decided against it.
"Well, where are you going," he asked.
"I am going onto that ship."
"What am I supposed to do?"
"You will wait."
Black briskly walked to the lift that would take him back down to the main level of the ship, hit the button, and the doors shut.
While he waited for the lift to take him down, Black pulled his pistol out of its holster. It was a Liberty Magnum, standard issue for all Liberty officers. He slid it back into the holster. He would need his wits about him, and his trigger finger ready, here more so than any other time. He had no idea what he would find on that derelict ship.
The doors opened again, and Black exited the lift and move into the hall. He walked down to the docking bay doors, and entered. A group of the marines were sitting close by, checking their weapons. They had long, powerful rifles, equipped with scopes, and body armor with helmets. As he neared them, one of the men noticed him, and sprung to attention.
"Officer on the deck!" he cried, and saluted. His squad, as well as everyone in the bay, instantly sprung to attention as well.
Black returned the salute.
"At ease," he said.
Everyone returned to their duties. Several pilots were mulling about. They looked disappointed that they had not been called on to escort the Admiral and his party to the ship.
"Commander Gordon, come here, please!" Black called across the bay.
A young man jumped up from a corner, where he had been talking to his pilots, and jogged over to Black.
"Yes, sir?"
"I would like Delta wing to escort my party onto that ship, and keep a close eye out for any trouble. Afterwards, I would like you to dock with the ship, and keep control of the bay until we return."
"Are you expecting any problems, sir?"
"No, but I just want to be safe."
"Good, good. I will ready my men."
"Thank you, Commander."
The Commander ran off to get his men. Black walked over to Lieutenant Peters, the leader of the Jefferson's marines. Peters was talking with a group of squad leaders. Black interrupted him.
"Lieutenant, are your men ready?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good, get them loaded into the transport."
"Aye, aye, sir."
Peters called his men together, and, as a unit, they boarded the transport. Commander Gordon came back up to Black.
"Sir, my men are ready to go."
"Get them to their ships, Commander."
Black watched as Gordon led the three other pilots in Delta wing to their Defenders. Then, he joined the marines aboard the transport.
Minutes later, the transport, along with Delta wing, was out in space. Black was sitting behind the pilot, with the LMTs in the rear cargo hold of the ship. Black could see the derelict, plain as day, in front of them. The ship accelerated.
"Head for the docking bay," Black said to the pilot
The pilot acknowledged, and the ship veered towards the lower portion of the ship. They moved closer, and the pilot gave a dock request. Surprisingly, the doors opened. Black had expected the docking computer to be destroyed, and in that case, they simply would have blasted their way in. That was not necessary, however. The ship entered the bay, passed through the airlock, and entered the internal bay. The pilot gently set the ship down, and Black went back into the cargo hold. The marines sat on makeshift benches along the walls. When he walked in, the Lieutenant signaled for the men to stand up. They silently followed Black to the transport?s exit door. Before Black hit the button to open it, Peters called out, "Be ready for hostile contact!"
Black hit the button, and the door hissed open. Before exiting, Black called back, and told the pilot to be ready to extract them at a moment's notice. Black charged out of the transport, pistol drawn, and the marines followed, guns leveled, ready for anything.
The bay was as silent as a tomb. The strangest thing, however, was that all of the fighters and transports were still in the bay. None of the ships had left to engage the enemy! In any fight, the first thing a captain did was to launch fighters to engage the enemy ships. It was yet another thing that was out of place in this mission.
The group silently made their way across the bay to the main set of doors that led to the main part of the ship.
So, the team wandered through the ship for about fifteen minutes, stopping every now and then to let Black check their position on his datapad. Then, they hit a dead end.
"Damnit! We are never going to get to the bridge. All the ways are blocked!" Black said as he looked at his datapad. "Well, if we can't get to the bridge, I think I might be able to get us to the next best thing. There is a lift that leads to the command post. We might be able to find survivors there; it seems to have only taken light damage."
They backtracked their way to the lift, and boarded it. Black entered his ID code, and it successfully overrode the lift's security system that was put in place to protect the commander of the ship. The doors closed, and the lift began moving upwards. It was very cramped; they were putting twenty men in a lift that was designed for a maximum of ten. The lift stopped, and the doors opened. Black drew his pistol, and glanced around.
Only the red emergency lights were on in this portion of the ship, while most of the lights had been lit in the bay and the hall. Bodies were on the floor. Black could see fairly well, because of all the viewports in the command post. Many of the bodies were those of officers, and Black and the marines went around to each of them, checking to see if they were still alive. Black saw one body that had a crisp, whit uniform on. It was lying directly in front of the command chair. A pool of blood covered the body. A piece of bulkhead had collapsed right on top of the chair, which explained what had killed the man. Black walked over to he body. He flipped it over, and saw the rank insignia on the shoulders. A Vice Admiral. He checked for a pulse, and was shocked when he detected one. This man was still alive!
Edited by - ww2jacob on 11/20/2004 8:31:53 PM
Enjoy!
Chapter Six- Dead Men's Tales
Rear Admiral Black was riveted to the viewport in front of him. In space, all around him, were the wrecks of what had once been a proud Liberty battlegroup.
"Admiral?"
"Yes, captain."
"Should we notify the Navy?"
"Yes, get someone out here right away."
Black was still incredulous about all this. Who could have done this? Only a full fleet could have caused such destruction, but they would have taken losses as well. Nothing made since anymore.
"Admiral?"
"Yes."
"The Navy is sending another task force to investigate. We can continue on our mission when they arrive."
"Understood."
Then, Black saw something in the gloom ahead. He ordered the pilot to move the ship towards it. Slowly, he saw more and more of the object. Then, he could make out the shape just enough... It was a Liberty battleship! As his ship moved closer and closer, Black could still not make out any damage on the hull.
He pulled up the scanner system on his pad. He executed a long-range scan on the hulk of the Liberty ship. He looked at the results. Not a scratch! This side of the ship, at least, was in good shape. Since the scanner was unable to penetrate the thick armor of the ship, he had no idea what was on the other side, or on the inside, for that matter.
He told the pilot to go around the ship, so he could get a closer look.
They reached the other side, and Black was awestruck at what he saw. This entire side of the ship, bow to stern, was filled with big, gaping holes. It was as if the ship had taken full broadsides from half a dozen other battleships! Black pulled up the schematic of the ship on his pad. The holes in the armor enabled his sensors to pierce through to the interior. He noticed that much was damaged, but large portions were untouched. Including the docking bay. That meant potential survivors, and he had to find them, if they were still alive.
He put in a call to the docking bay. He had a transport, the same one he had used to pick up Hapgood, readied for immediate launch. Then, he summoned the ship's contingent of Liberty Marine Troopers, or LMTs, to the docking bay. There were about twenty of them, and they were experts at fighting inside large ships. He told Fox to take command of the ship, and then stood up. Hapgood came running over.
"What's going on, Admiral? I have a meeting to be at, and I hope this will not take too long, whatever it is."
"Calm down, it won't be long. Besides, if this is what I think it is, then it is far more important to Liberty than your mission."
Hapgood was about to argue, but he decided against it.
"Well, where are you going," he asked.
"I am going onto that ship."
"What am I supposed to do?"
"You will wait."
Black briskly walked to the lift that would take him back down to the main level of the ship, hit the button, and the doors shut.
While he waited for the lift to take him down, Black pulled his pistol out of its holster. It was a Liberty Magnum, standard issue for all Liberty officers. He slid it back into the holster. He would need his wits about him, and his trigger finger ready, here more so than any other time. He had no idea what he would find on that derelict ship.
The doors opened again, and Black exited the lift and move into the hall. He walked down to the docking bay doors, and entered. A group of the marines were sitting close by, checking their weapons. They had long, powerful rifles, equipped with scopes, and body armor with helmets. As he neared them, one of the men noticed him, and sprung to attention.
"Officer on the deck!" he cried, and saluted. His squad, as well as everyone in the bay, instantly sprung to attention as well.
Black returned the salute.
"At ease," he said.
Everyone returned to their duties. Several pilots were mulling about. They looked disappointed that they had not been called on to escort the Admiral and his party to the ship.
"Commander Gordon, come here, please!" Black called across the bay.
A young man jumped up from a corner, where he had been talking to his pilots, and jogged over to Black.
"Yes, sir?"
"I would like Delta wing to escort my party onto that ship, and keep a close eye out for any trouble. Afterwards, I would like you to dock with the ship, and keep control of the bay until we return."
"Are you expecting any problems, sir?"
"No, but I just want to be safe."
"Good, good. I will ready my men."
"Thank you, Commander."
The Commander ran off to get his men. Black walked over to Lieutenant Peters, the leader of the Jefferson's marines. Peters was talking with a group of squad leaders. Black interrupted him.
"Lieutenant, are your men ready?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good, get them loaded into the transport."
"Aye, aye, sir."
Peters called his men together, and, as a unit, they boarded the transport. Commander Gordon came back up to Black.
"Sir, my men are ready to go."
"Get them to their ships, Commander."
Black watched as Gordon led the three other pilots in Delta wing to their Defenders. Then, he joined the marines aboard the transport.
Minutes later, the transport, along with Delta wing, was out in space. Black was sitting behind the pilot, with the LMTs in the rear cargo hold of the ship. Black could see the derelict, plain as day, in front of them. The ship accelerated.
"Head for the docking bay," Black said to the pilot
The pilot acknowledged, and the ship veered towards the lower portion of the ship. They moved closer, and the pilot gave a dock request. Surprisingly, the doors opened. Black had expected the docking computer to be destroyed, and in that case, they simply would have blasted their way in. That was not necessary, however. The ship entered the bay, passed through the airlock, and entered the internal bay. The pilot gently set the ship down, and Black went back into the cargo hold. The marines sat on makeshift benches along the walls. When he walked in, the Lieutenant signaled for the men to stand up. They silently followed Black to the transport?s exit door. Before Black hit the button to open it, Peters called out, "Be ready for hostile contact!"
Black hit the button, and the door hissed open. Before exiting, Black called back, and told the pilot to be ready to extract them at a moment's notice. Black charged out of the transport, pistol drawn, and the marines followed, guns leveled, ready for anything.
The bay was as silent as a tomb. The strangest thing, however, was that all of the fighters and transports were still in the bay. None of the ships had left to engage the enemy! In any fight, the first thing a captain did was to launch fighters to engage the enemy ships. It was yet another thing that was out of place in this mission.
The group silently made their way across the bay to the main set of doors that led to the main part of the ship.
So, the team wandered through the ship for about fifteen minutes, stopping every now and then to let Black check their position on his datapad. Then, they hit a dead end.
"Damnit! We are never going to get to the bridge. All the ways are blocked!" Black said as he looked at his datapad. "Well, if we can't get to the bridge, I think I might be able to get us to the next best thing. There is a lift that leads to the command post. We might be able to find survivors there; it seems to have only taken light damage."
They backtracked their way to the lift, and boarded it. Black entered his ID code, and it successfully overrode the lift's security system that was put in place to protect the commander of the ship. The doors closed, and the lift began moving upwards. It was very cramped; they were putting twenty men in a lift that was designed for a maximum of ten. The lift stopped, and the doors opened. Black drew his pistol, and glanced around.
Only the red emergency lights were on in this portion of the ship, while most of the lights had been lit in the bay and the hall. Bodies were on the floor. Black could see fairly well, because of all the viewports in the command post. Many of the bodies were those of officers, and Black and the marines went around to each of them, checking to see if they were still alive. Black saw one body that had a crisp, whit uniform on. It was lying directly in front of the command chair. A pool of blood covered the body. A piece of bulkhead had collapsed right on top of the chair, which explained what had killed the man. Black walked over to he body. He flipped it over, and saw the rank insignia on the shoulders. A Vice Admiral. He checked for a pulse, and was shocked when he detected one. This man was still alive!
Edited by - ww2jacob on 11/20/2004 8:31:53 PM
Sat Dec 04, 2004 2:55 pm
Here's Chapter 8, my favorite so far.
Enjoy!
Chapter Seven- Solutions and Problems
“We’ve got a live one over here!” Black called to the marines. They ran over, and gathered around.
“That’s Vice Admiral Richardson!” cried one of the marines.
Black shook the man. Slowly, the Admiral began to regain consciousness.
“What… Where… Who are you, son?” the man said, groggily.
“My name is Rear Admiral William Black, and we are here to rescue you, sir.”
The Vice Admiral looked around, and noticed the marines.
“You boys might want to leave, before they come back. How many ships do you have?”
“We have one battleship, four cruisers, and seven heavy fighter wings, but exactly who are you talking about, sir?”
“Well, I don’t really know. They were models of the… Bretonian design, but… they were far more than we ever knew they had. Unless the… Bretonians… had something we didn’t.”
He was dying quickly, Black knew that he had to get this crucial information out of him quickly, before they lost it forever.
“What did the Bretonians have? How did they beat you?”
“There were dozens of… battleships… more than I had ever seen… hundreds of fighters… too many… we couldn’t… too many.”
With each pause, he had to gasp for air, and small amounts of blood were visible in his mouth.
“How did they amass such a fleet? Where did it come from?”
“How am I supposed to know… son? Let the… intelligence guys figure that… out. Just… just… tell them.”
“Tell them what?”
“Tell them…”
The blood was running freely from his mouth, and his breaths were becoming harder and harder to catch.
“What, what?”
“Tell them that… I did… I did… my duty. I fought ‘em off… like a true… like a true Liberty officer.”
With those last words, Vice Admiral Richardson died.
Black motioned to the marines around him, “Let’s have a moment of silence for this brave man.”
The men took of their hats and helmets, and prayed over the Admiral’s body.
When they finished, Black rummaged through the bridge, gathering up all the documents he could find, and taking the ID tags of the dead.
He was about to leave the command post, when he got a call from Fox on his personal comm.
“Admiral, sir?” Fox said.
“What is it?”
“We just picked something up on our long distance scopes. You might want to have a look at it.”
“Send it to my datapad.”
“Roger, sending now.”
An image appeared on the screen of Black’s datapad. It was a fuzzy scan, but it showed him exactly what he needed to know. He saw the unmistakable shape of the bow of a Bretonian battleship poking around an asteroid. He knew what was going to happen next.
“Men, let’s get off this ship! Now!” he called to the marines.
They all ran to the lift, which they took down to the docking bay level. They began jogging towards the bay. Black called Commander Gordon, and told him to ready his pilots for a quick launch.
Seconds later, Fox called Black on the comm.
“Admiral, we have picked up several new contacts. Seems to be more ships of the same type as the first.”
“Prepare to hold them off until my party returns. Then, we will run for it.”
“Roger.”
Black picked up speed. He was a Navy officer, not accustomed to running much at all, but his marines were much better, and were able to easily keep up.
They reached the docking bay door. It hissed open.
“Go, go, go! Get off this ship now!” Black called to the pilots. Engines began warming up.
“Admiral,” Fox said on the comm, “the enemy ships are launching ships to attack us. The battleships are targeting the ship you are on!”
“Just keep them busy for a second!” Black called, as he ran up the transport’s ramp.
He entered the cockpit.
“Get us out of here!” Black yelled to the pilots.
The docking bay doors slid open. But, there were Bretonian transports entering the bay! They moved towards Black’s ships that were just about to lift off.
“Admiral, there are…” said Fox.
“I know!” Black yelled. “Fire on those ships, Delta Wing!”
“Roger.”
The Defenders’ Justice cannons ripped into the transports, but they weren’t able to destroy any before a few had set down. Three transports had set down near the Liberty ships, and the rest remained aloft, blocking Black’s only way of exit. Bretonian troops poured out of the transports, moving towards Black’s ship.
“Marines, prepare for action!”
Just then, the Bretonian troops got to the Liberty transport. They ripped the rear hatch open, and began firing. The marines responded with fire of their own, and the back of Black’s ship became a battleground. It would only be a few moments until the Bretonian troops overwhelmed the marines and entered the cockpit. Even worse, Black could not take off and launch into space until the rear hatch was closed, and the Bretonian troops were all over down by the hatch controls.
Black peered around the corner, into the rear compartment. Laser fire was everywhere, but his marines were holding their own, despite their lack of cover. He drew his pistol and fired several shots into the mass of blue and red clothed Bretonian troops. He saw one go down, but another one took his place.
“Delta 3 is down!” came a cry over the comm. The transports were fighting back.
“Sir, the battleships are firing!”
“The Glory is listing!”
“Get these fighters off me!”
Black could here that the battle outside wasn’t going well either.
“Sir, we have a hole!” Gordon said.
Black looked out the front viewscreen. Only one transport remained to block them.
Then, the ship shook tremendously. The Bretonian battleships had hit them. No time left.
“Go, get out of here!” Black cried to the transport pilots and to Gordon.
The ship accelerated. But the hatch was still open! They would all die once they cleared the airlock. Well, at least the Bretonians could get reinforcements.
He glanced back into the rear. Only a handful of enemy forces remained, but most of his marines were dead as well. Gripping his pistol, Black ran back into the rear. Firing madly as he ran, he sprinted for the door controls. His marines assisted him with a volley of their own. The Bretonians were overwhelmed. Black reached the controls, and slammed his hand down on the close button. The doors hissed shut, just as they exited the airlock.
Black glanced around as he caught his breath. Blood pooled on the floor. Only seven marines were left. The Lieutenant was not among them. Black reached down and picked up one of the dead marine’s rifles. Just in case they had another battle. Black walked back into the cockpit. He looked out on a massive battle among the debris of an earlier battle. The Bretonian battleships fired again. The lances of pure, destructive energy hit the derelict battleship and blew it into pieces. Whatever Bretonian forces were left aboard were dead now. The Bretonian fleet was huge. A dozen battleships, and swarms of fighter attacked the relatively small Liberty fleet. The transport went as fast as it possibly could towards the Jefferson. Bretonian fighters deviated from their courses to attack his transport and the three fighters that were protecting it. Space came alive with the dazzling and deadly flashes of energy surrounding his transport. The pilots were swerving back and forth to try and present a difficult target, but it wasn’t making much of a difference. The ship was taking hits.
“Fox, clear us to dock, NOW!” Black shouted over the comm.
“Ok, the docking bay doors are opening now.”
The flaming transport streaked towards the Jefferson. Black didn’t think that they would be able to stop in time to get in the bay.
“Cover us, Gordon!” Black called into the comm.
“Roger.”
On the rear view cam, Black saw the three Defenders turn around and open fire on the swarm of Bretonian ships chasing them. The pilots hit the reverse thrust hard, and Black flew forward into the instrument panel. He fell back into his seat, secured the rifle, and strapped in. The reverse thrusters slowed the ship, but it wasn’t helping enough. They were going to overshoot. The entire ship strained with the battle between the momentum and the thrusters. The ship slowly began to lose speed. As they passed under the Jefferson, the pilots pulled hard on the flight yokes, and the ship slipped through the docking bay port. Black braced for impact. Still going at a high speed, the flaming ship streaked into the docking bay, hit another transport, and slammed into a wall at over 200 kilometers per hour.
Edited by - ww2jacob on 12/4/2004 2:59:16 PM
Enjoy!
Chapter Seven- Solutions and Problems
“We’ve got a live one over here!” Black called to the marines. They ran over, and gathered around.
“That’s Vice Admiral Richardson!” cried one of the marines.
Black shook the man. Slowly, the Admiral began to regain consciousness.
“What… Where… Who are you, son?” the man said, groggily.
“My name is Rear Admiral William Black, and we are here to rescue you, sir.”
The Vice Admiral looked around, and noticed the marines.
“You boys might want to leave, before they come back. How many ships do you have?”
“We have one battleship, four cruisers, and seven heavy fighter wings, but exactly who are you talking about, sir?”
“Well, I don’t really know. They were models of the… Bretonian design, but… they were far more than we ever knew they had. Unless the… Bretonians… had something we didn’t.”
He was dying quickly, Black knew that he had to get this crucial information out of him quickly, before they lost it forever.
“What did the Bretonians have? How did they beat you?”
“There were dozens of… battleships… more than I had ever seen… hundreds of fighters… too many… we couldn’t… too many.”
With each pause, he had to gasp for air, and small amounts of blood were visible in his mouth.
“How did they amass such a fleet? Where did it come from?”
“How am I supposed to know… son? Let the… intelligence guys figure that… out. Just… just… tell them.”
“Tell them what?”
“Tell them…”
The blood was running freely from his mouth, and his breaths were becoming harder and harder to catch.
“What, what?”
“Tell them that… I did… I did… my duty. I fought ‘em off… like a true… like a true Liberty officer.”
With those last words, Vice Admiral Richardson died.
Black motioned to the marines around him, “Let’s have a moment of silence for this brave man.”
The men took of their hats and helmets, and prayed over the Admiral’s body.
When they finished, Black rummaged through the bridge, gathering up all the documents he could find, and taking the ID tags of the dead.
He was about to leave the command post, when he got a call from Fox on his personal comm.
“Admiral, sir?” Fox said.
“What is it?”
“We just picked something up on our long distance scopes. You might want to have a look at it.”
“Send it to my datapad.”
“Roger, sending now.”
An image appeared on the screen of Black’s datapad. It was a fuzzy scan, but it showed him exactly what he needed to know. He saw the unmistakable shape of the bow of a Bretonian battleship poking around an asteroid. He knew what was going to happen next.
“Men, let’s get off this ship! Now!” he called to the marines.
They all ran to the lift, which they took down to the docking bay level. They began jogging towards the bay. Black called Commander Gordon, and told him to ready his pilots for a quick launch.
Seconds later, Fox called Black on the comm.
“Admiral, we have picked up several new contacts. Seems to be more ships of the same type as the first.”
“Prepare to hold them off until my party returns. Then, we will run for it.”
“Roger.”
Black picked up speed. He was a Navy officer, not accustomed to running much at all, but his marines were much better, and were able to easily keep up.
They reached the docking bay door. It hissed open.
“Go, go, go! Get off this ship now!” Black called to the pilots. Engines began warming up.
“Admiral,” Fox said on the comm, “the enemy ships are launching ships to attack us. The battleships are targeting the ship you are on!”
“Just keep them busy for a second!” Black called, as he ran up the transport’s ramp.
He entered the cockpit.
“Get us out of here!” Black yelled to the pilots.
The docking bay doors slid open. But, there were Bretonian transports entering the bay! They moved towards Black’s ships that were just about to lift off.
“Admiral, there are…” said Fox.
“I know!” Black yelled. “Fire on those ships, Delta Wing!”
“Roger.”
The Defenders’ Justice cannons ripped into the transports, but they weren’t able to destroy any before a few had set down. Three transports had set down near the Liberty ships, and the rest remained aloft, blocking Black’s only way of exit. Bretonian troops poured out of the transports, moving towards Black’s ship.
“Marines, prepare for action!”
Just then, the Bretonian troops got to the Liberty transport. They ripped the rear hatch open, and began firing. The marines responded with fire of their own, and the back of Black’s ship became a battleground. It would only be a few moments until the Bretonian troops overwhelmed the marines and entered the cockpit. Even worse, Black could not take off and launch into space until the rear hatch was closed, and the Bretonian troops were all over down by the hatch controls.
Black peered around the corner, into the rear compartment. Laser fire was everywhere, but his marines were holding their own, despite their lack of cover. He drew his pistol and fired several shots into the mass of blue and red clothed Bretonian troops. He saw one go down, but another one took his place.
“Delta 3 is down!” came a cry over the comm. The transports were fighting back.
“Sir, the battleships are firing!”
“The Glory is listing!”
“Get these fighters off me!”
Black could here that the battle outside wasn’t going well either.
“Sir, we have a hole!” Gordon said.
Black looked out the front viewscreen. Only one transport remained to block them.
Then, the ship shook tremendously. The Bretonian battleships had hit them. No time left.
“Go, get out of here!” Black cried to the transport pilots and to Gordon.
The ship accelerated. But the hatch was still open! They would all die once they cleared the airlock. Well, at least the Bretonians could get reinforcements.
He glanced back into the rear. Only a handful of enemy forces remained, but most of his marines were dead as well. Gripping his pistol, Black ran back into the rear. Firing madly as he ran, he sprinted for the door controls. His marines assisted him with a volley of their own. The Bretonians were overwhelmed. Black reached the controls, and slammed his hand down on the close button. The doors hissed shut, just as they exited the airlock.
Black glanced around as he caught his breath. Blood pooled on the floor. Only seven marines were left. The Lieutenant was not among them. Black reached down and picked up one of the dead marine’s rifles. Just in case they had another battle. Black walked back into the cockpit. He looked out on a massive battle among the debris of an earlier battle. The Bretonian battleships fired again. The lances of pure, destructive energy hit the derelict battleship and blew it into pieces. Whatever Bretonian forces were left aboard were dead now. The Bretonian fleet was huge. A dozen battleships, and swarms of fighter attacked the relatively small Liberty fleet. The transport went as fast as it possibly could towards the Jefferson. Bretonian fighters deviated from their courses to attack his transport and the three fighters that were protecting it. Space came alive with the dazzling and deadly flashes of energy surrounding his transport. The pilots were swerving back and forth to try and present a difficult target, but it wasn’t making much of a difference. The ship was taking hits.
“Fox, clear us to dock, NOW!” Black shouted over the comm.
“Ok, the docking bay doors are opening now.”
The flaming transport streaked towards the Jefferson. Black didn’t think that they would be able to stop in time to get in the bay.
“Cover us, Gordon!” Black called into the comm.
“Roger.”
On the rear view cam, Black saw the three Defenders turn around and open fire on the swarm of Bretonian ships chasing them. The pilots hit the reverse thrust hard, and Black flew forward into the instrument panel. He fell back into his seat, secured the rifle, and strapped in. The reverse thrusters slowed the ship, but it wasn’t helping enough. They were going to overshoot. The entire ship strained with the battle between the momentum and the thrusters. The ship slowly began to lose speed. As they passed under the Jefferson, the pilots pulled hard on the flight yokes, and the ship slipped through the docking bay port. Black braced for impact. Still going at a high speed, the flaming ship streaked into the docking bay, hit another transport, and slammed into a wall at over 200 kilometers per hour.
Edited by - ww2jacob on 12/4/2004 2:59:16 PM
Sat Dec 04, 2004 6:24 pm
Good Shtuff, please stop the cliffhangers.
Hmm
Rhineland and Lberty VS Bretonia and Kusari
One Resource Rich The OtherREsource Rich
VS One Resource Poor and another Resource Rich
"I like liberty rogues, they make a funny little popping sound when they die"
10 points to whoever guess what I messed with for that
Hmm
Rhineland and Lberty VS Bretonia and Kusari
One Resource Rich The OtherREsource Rich
VS One Resource Poor and another Resource Rich
"I like liberty rogues, they make a funny little popping sound when they die"
10 points to whoever guess what I messed with for that
Return to Freelancer Fan Fiction