From the Wilds They Comeith

[Lash]

Lash walked out of the room to meet three Chiss men standing outside in the corridor. The three looked from side to side to make sure they and Lash were the only ones within earshot. A man handed Lash a small round device than said a name. Lash nodded and dismissed the men the considered his next move. The device, a silver circular device had a single red light in its center. The light pulsed slowly with no other buttons, lights, knobs or panels to be opened. Lash knew what the device was and what it meant. One of the guests had been a spy. A plant sent by the CSA or the Empire or some other organization which wished to know where this secret meeting would be.

The directions given to the guests included a set of coordinates which only lead them to a smaller vessel which gave them another set of coordinates to a final ship that sent them coordinates to the meeting. None had been given the exact coordinates and measures were taken at each waypoint to block any and all transmission out of the area. Now it seems whoever had sent the spy knew where they currently were, this was expected. Lash knew this would be a possibility yet he hoped the individuals he had invited would see sense and come of their own accord without any malice or under the persuasion of any outside force. The reaction he expected to know would depend on exactly who had sent the spy.

Lash turned and walked back into the room where the guests were beginning to rise from their seats and talk to one another. He looked around the room for one particular person then walked over to meet the man. "Excuse me, Are you mister Gralston.?" asked Lash of the gentleman talking to a woman dressed in a red tunic and breeches. The man turned to see the nearly two-meter tall Chiss standing before him. He noticeable withdrew a half step in surprise then calmed and replied.

"ah, why yes. I am Gralston. Forgive the shock I was not respecting a personnel introduction Commander Stela'shlit'nuruodo. It is a true pleasure to meet you formally. I have heard so mu...." Lash cut the many off mid-sentence and reach out to chock the man. he then took a dagger from his belt. The exotic-looking blade had been tucked into a pocket no one could have seen. It had been sewn into the hem of his uniform and had a small single thread that broke free easily once the blade had been withdrawn. Lash shoved the blade into the man's midsections then let him go. He stood silently as the crowd around him began to notice what he had done. At the edge of the room, security officers stepped forward drew their charric rifles, and awaited an order that did not come. Lash held up a hand dismissing the security and reached into his pocket where he had placed the small circular object.

"This man has endangered your lives. My security forces found this tracking transmitter barrier inside this man's ship. He had placed it inside his ship's reactor shielding thinking it would hide it from our scanners. I know not who he works for, nor if any among you are his ally, but I will not abide treachery. Lash stood silently as the man collapsed and fell to the deck. He took the small tracking device and dropped it on the man's body. Three guards each walked up to two other men who had escorted Gralston and grabbed their arms politely. A few of the guests began to panic but were soon calmed as the guards lowered their weapons and stepped back to the walls. Lash raised his hands to calm the rest of the crowd before they panicked.

"Honored guests, I regret this had to be done, but this man betrayed us all. By now whoever this man worked for now knows where this meeting is occurring and most likely knows each of you are here. I ask that you all egress the Termagant and evacuate the space in this area. I do not know this mand reasoning nor his allies identity but whoever they are I have no doubt they had deployed a force to surprise us here. Please calmly return to your vessels and depart the area.

A moment later a loud sound blared through the ship. Warning klaxons sounded throughout the Termagants hull as they did on the escorts positioned around it. Lash looked around at the people in the room knowing the crowd was about to break and run in panic. He pressed a small device on his lapel and spoke softly. "Lock it down"

Around him, the doors to the room shut and the guards stepped away from the walls this time without drawing their weapons. "Please stay calm. It seems our new guests have arrived sooner than I had hoped. I must insist you all calm down and et my people escort you to your ships. I will do what I can to make sure you all get away safely. But please excuse me I am needed on the bridge." Lash said as he turned and nodded to one of his security officers. The man nodded back in understanding then began talking to the guests assembled in the room. The doors then opened and members of the Chiss security team began leading the guests back to the hangers. Lash looked towards Salem and spoke, "I will handle this, get to Emah and get clear. I will meet you at the rondeaux point in ten days." Lash turned and walked out of the room and down the hall towards the lift. As he entered the lift the hull shook as the new guests made their presence known in the form of turbo laser fire.

Lash stood wordless as the lift reached the command and control room. The section had been installed deep in the interior of the vessel and wrapped in impervium plating. It was the most hardened place on the ship and the nerve center for the entire fleet. Lash walked into the room and to the command table centered in the center. "Status captain?" asked Lash as he looked at the three-dimensional hologram before him. The image made it clear who had sent the spy. The three CSA victory star destroyers sat in the center of the formation plainly displaying their CSA logos. Flanking them however was something Lash had not expected, at least not so soon. Two Imperial-class star destroyers sat laying down barrage after barrage on the Termagants massive hull.

Lash began to think about his situation. The appearance of the larger star destroyers this early on means he had done his job, maybe too well. An escort to the right flank of the Termagant took a direct hit from the heavy firepower of the Imperial-class ships and exploded as its shield collapsed under the relentless volley of ion cannons. Lash had to buy time for the delegates and guests to get out and away. He had to buy time for Salem and Emah to get out of the system. He had to buy time for his contingency plan to take effect. More than anything he needed to show the fleeing CSA businessmen just what He was truly capable of.

"Captain, did you get the order out?" The Chiss man nodded and spoke. "of course Commander, As soon as we found the device I sent the signal." Lash nodded his head silently then continued to look at the hologram. "Awaiting your order Commander," said the captain standing to his left. Lash waited for a second as he watched the formation of the combined CSA and Imperial-class destroyer group begin maneuvering.

"Weapons free captain Focus fire on the their Victory-class vessels, Keep us between their force and the escape vector for Emah," ordered Lash. The man turned and gave the crew orders without a word to Lash. His men knew their jobs. His crews knew their jobs, and his people knew just what was at stake. Lash closed his eyes and thought about the situation before him. He knew the time would come when he would be resented with a real fight. He had considered them deploying the larger destroyer but felt doing so this soon would be impractical. Lash assumed the CSA would eventually get serious and knew of the larger ships' existence. What he did not know was why they had pulled them off their guard duty positions above Bonadan. He had much to discuss with his spy network as soon as this battle was concluded. Much indeed.

[Salem Norongachi]

Khans words were only half registered by Norongachi. In his ear the discrete com pulsed three times. A signal that it was time to run, the details could be gleaned after he had started moving.

"Interesting isn't wrong." Sal said in response and turned his head at the announcement from Lash. They weren't foolish enough to expect the CSA to have a thumb up their ass forever but the timing was entirely too coincidental. He watched the Chiss cut down the infiltrator and filed away the information that his partner in this endeavor wasn't above getting his hands bloody if the situation called for it.

"You heard the man, time to get the frak outta dodge." Norongachi spoke to the Anzati before the Commander addressed him directly.

"She won't be happy about running from a fight," he said with a frown, all too aware that Emah could hear his conversation. "But I'll trust your judgment. Good hunting, Commander." with that he returned his attention to Khan. There was a gut feeling that stole over him after speaking to the man that he wasn't about to ignore. The way he held himself spoke of blood, rivers of it, in a past best not enquired about and Salem wasn't in the habit of turning away those who saw the merit in his course of action.

"C'mon," he said finally and started walking backwards toward the door. "I'll give you a lift home, one you won't soon forget." he flashed a smile and then turned mid-backstep and set a brisk pace toward the hangar bay.

"Emah, we have company joining us. Lock down all essential areas." Sal spoke into his com.

"I don't appreciate being treated like a Gallofree Transport running at the first sign of trouble." came the cold voice in his ear.

"Plenty of carnage in our future.." was his muttered response and thought "Too much.."

[Ranah Jansen]

Kahn could feel the elevation of the tension in the air. The tension of a anticipated battle. Kahn had been there before, several times, he looked to each of his bodyguards he gave a nod to each of them. They would follow his lead, he would have to repay whoever it was that was interrupting this gathering especially since he found Sal very interesting. He had taken a shuttle to this ship so he had no way off, but was grateful when Sal offered him a ride.

“Thank you” He said as he followed him, his entourage in tow.

“One you soon won’t forget” Kahn smiled at that, he had seen alot in his life, having the experience he had gave one a unique perspective on events but Kahn was not one to judge, things always had a tendency to play out in unique ways.

“Of that I am certain” He said as he followed the man towards the hanger bay

[Lash]

The guests were lead to their craft and given a safe course away from the battle. Lash was certain this little unexpected hiccup in the plan would cost them some supporters in the group. Many would now have to support the CSA propper for fear of having their assets and corporations seized by the organization. The few who might support them would be on the fringes of the CSA and far away from the main powerhouse that was the Imperial Backed CSA. That was inevitable, Lash knew as much. He had expected most of the group to turn them down. He knew little to no assistance would come from the group and knew having this meeting would produce little fruit in their fight against the CSA. He had planned as much, He had not expected the CSA to show up at this point in the plan but he had planned for it nonetheless. He secretly had hoped for it but no one could know this.

The massive form of the Termagant sat amid its escorts tracking her guns on the smaller Victory-class vessel awaiting the order. AS one the upgraded battle cruiser let loose a barrage which dimmed the transperasteel darkening it to block the sheer brightness of the massive amount of turbolasers now barraging the CSA front line. The massive vessel sat brooding like a monster as it struck out t its prey. Before it even the Imperial-class vessels were dwarfed, its four-kilometer hull now illuminated by the light show it was putting on. In the distance, the three Victory-class vessels awash with energy as their shielding rippled like water under the continuous salvos of the Termagants guns.

Last of the gust shuttles away sir, Only Mister Normongachi has yet to depart. His transport will be clear momentarily sir." said an officer to Lash's left. Lash did not respond and continued to watch the CSA ships in the distance. A second of the smaller frigates took a direct hit and forces the ship to move into the shadow of Termagant.

"Captain, begin operation shadow bolt," ordered Lash turning to look at his subordinate. The man nodded then gave orders to the tactical and communications officers. several seconds later the twelve corvettes which had been acting at picket forces for Termagant stopped firing on the fighters which had begun to disgorge themselves from the CSA ships and disappeared. A second later the vessels appeared on the outer flanks of the CSA formation changed position then disappeared again. Another second passed and the twelve small vessels appeared behind the rightmost Imperial-class star destroyer. As one they let loose their weapons at the aft engine section of the large vessel. Turbolasers and missiles struck out at the massive ships in their rear blind spot pouring damage onto the vessels shielding.

Lash watched the maneuver take place on the three-dimensional hologram above then back at the image of the CSA fleet on the forward viewscreen. Step one had been carried out now it was a waiting game until Emah and the rest of the guests and non-essential personnel were away into the safety of hyperspace.

"Captain, the moment Emah is away move on to stage two'" said Lash turning his attention to another of the displays. "Any time now" said Lash to no one. A third frigate, to his port, succumb to the fire of the destroyer force with a blinding flash that caused the light-sensitive viewports and sensor lenses to dim. He closed his eyes and thought about those crews. Many good men and women among them, too many.

[Salem Norongachi]

Lucrehulk Battlecruiser ‘Rising Star’
Corporate Sector First Fleet
Deltooine

“Captain Culver reports Taskforce Theta has engaged the enemy.”

Admiral Helter drew his eye away from the viewscreen on the command deck and the faces of the Prex, ExO, and Direx Board members to nod to his coms-officer.

“It has begun gentlemen, Theta will delay the enemy. Giving our forces a chance to rally to us. They have little choice but to come through Deltooine if striking the very heart of the Sector is their objective-” unless of course they doubled back, in which case they’d meet another delaying force at Gaurick, buying the main battlegroup time to reposition. The only other option was a very long detour toward Mytus and if they did that it would give him days to prepare for the offensive, Helter thought between breaths. “And it's here we’ll put down this incursion.”

“I don’t understand why this wasn’t dealt with immediately before our operations were so severely disrupted Admiral.” the voice of a Direx Board member, from what company Helter couldn't recall, pipped up with the condescending tone of one who has never fought in a war.

“There has been a large increase in pirate raids all across our space. At your request we diverted assets to chase down the culprits and secure trade. Our fleets were spread quite thin, sir.”

What he wanted to say was that he had informed them of his suspicions, the raids had been fierce and when the picture began to form, all too strategic in their targets. They had also been short lived, as soon as the pirates had drawn attention they had disappeared into hyperspace. Often they had taken nothing of value, but they made a lot of wealthy people nervous and that was enough to disrupt their ability to respond to the threat.

“What of our losses thus far?”

They didn’t mean people, people were a cheap renewable resource, no they meant ships, equipment, all the assets that came with a monetary cost.

“You should have the updated report, sir.” he waited, his posture solidly at attention while the eyes turned to datapads and looked over the numbers.

“You have the ships and personnel of Captain Culvers command and that of Task Force Theta listed…”

“Yes sir.”

“Isn’t that a touch premature? Surely you don’t mean to tell us that you willingly sacrificed vital assets.”

“I do sir.” there wasn’t a choice, after the annexation all military ship production had slowed to the point where simple pirates could win in the end purely by attrition. Where the CSA Armada had once been strong enough to stay the hand of other governments in the Galaxy, now it withered on the vine. Defunded and derelict.

“I-I don’t quite know how to respond to that Admiral! I’m beginning to questi-”

“-That enough.” The Prex stepped in with a measured tone and brought the discussion to an end. “Will this be the deciding engagement, Admiral?”

“Yes sir, we’re bringing the bulk of our force to the front. Lucrehulk Battlecruisers, Control Ships, VicStars, every gun we can get here in time will be turned on Mr Norongachi’s fleets.”

“Fleets? I was under the impression this was a small force attacking opportunistically?”

“I don’t believe so sir,” Helter furrowed his aged brow as he brought all the intelligence reports, what there was of it, to the fore of his mind. “They have done a very good job of screening our engagements but we’ve managed to piece together enough to know that they have at least two battlegroups. Cruisers, Heavy Cruisers, Frigates, Escorts. We have been unable to ascertain exact numbers-”

The com-officer caught his eye and nodded to his terminal.

“A moment, please. We have received an updated report from Captain Culver.” he read it, and then read it again, and felt a tightness spread across his chest before he composed himself. “The report states that their command vessels are a Praetor-class Battlecruiser and an Imperial-I class Star Destroyer. We also have more accurate numbers of support and combat vessels we can expect to engage.”

“And the Captain?”

“This will be his final report, sir.”

“I see…” the Prex, at least, had the decency to look somber for a moment before he pushed on. “Can we win?”

If they had asked him that pre-annexation, it would have been a laughable question. They had the best hardware rolling out of the shipyards, thousands of tons of death being constructed every hour of every day. If things had continued like that, Culver wouldn’t have gone into a hopeless fight so under gunned.

“Without a doubt, sir.” his voice didn’t betray him, he was a seasoned officer after all. He had many doubts, the very nature of war hinged on circumstance. Would enough ships arrive in time, was that the bulk of their forces engaging Task Force Theta, how well would his officers respond to the shifting dynamics on the battlefield. All of these questions and considerations plagued him. They would win, he would make sure of it, but there were doubts and the biggest was what it would cost.

* * *

Victory Star Destroyer ‘Tides of Progress’
Task Force Theta
Strike Point One

“Ten seconds to reversion.” the navigation officer announced and the clock began, the tension that had taken root on the bridge of the Tides of Progress became a stranglehold on the atmosphere as the seconds ticked down.

Captain Ultar Culver sat patiently in his command chair. He had two other VicStars following in his wake, as well as a pair of Neutron Star Bulk Cruisers, Four Etti Light Transports, Two Titan Patrol Frigates and a pair of Corellian Gunships. Then there were their guests, on detached service from their Imperial friends; An Immobilizer Interdictor Cruiser and a Vindicator class Heavy Cruiser. How the Admiral had convinced the board to sequester the ships from the Empire and what it had cost him was a mystery but nothing came cheap in the Corporate Sector.

“Here we go.” Culver spoke under his breath and stood at the same instant the task force punched through to real-space. The enemy loomed in the distance and quickly, professionally, stations began to report in.

“Order the Captain of the Oppressors Might to fire up his gravity wells,” he began to walk, not to pace, across the deck plating, his eyes fixed upon the visual data of the battlefield displayed in a holo-projection in the middle of the bridge. Occasionally he’d pass a station and the officer there would feel a touch upon their shoulder, then he was gone, onto the next station. It was a ritual, a tick, that they had grown used to in the three years serving under the young Captain and they barely registered it now. “Have the Endeavour and Shylock take up defensive positions around the Oppressors Might, order all wings to launch and screen for enemy fighters and ordinance. Or escorts are to provide support.” he stopped, back where he had started, in front of his command chair.

“We hold them here, then we get out. It’s as simple as that.” he barked as he sat down and began compiling a brief report for high command. It was done even before the first salvo of fire was exchanged across the void and he looked over it once, then twice, and finally added; “It has been a pleasure serving with you, Admiral.” and sent it before the enemy could scramble their long range coms.

The Praetor-class Battlecruiser loomed, a leviathan monstrosity, its support ships already advancing and positioning while behind it, blazing on their sensors, was an Imperial Star Destroyer. They couldn’t win, victory was impossible given their mission brief, but they could hold for as long as possible.

* * *

The hallway of the Termagant shuddered, whether from vibrations caused by the ships massive batteries firing or a strike by the enemy, Norongachi couldn’t say. He barely lost a step, carried on with the Anzati and his entourage coming behind him. The corridors were clear, not a soul that did not need to be there could be seen, it was an efficiency only found upon a military vessel and their progress was made all the quicker for it.

The turbolift sunk them into the bowels of the warship and disgorged them onto the hangar bay deck. Already the attendees of the meeting were boarding their ships and departing at speed. The Helix class Light Interceptor stood alone on the deck plating, and her boarding ramp lowered at a discreet command from Norongachi.

“Norongachi to Hand of Fate, What's going on out there?” he spoke as he bounded up the ramp into the spacious interior of the Wave Dancer.

“Corporate friends, with Imperial backing. They have a GWG up and running.” came the response, this time through the Wave Dancers internal com-system for all to hear.

“Do what you have to do, I’ll get us aboard.” he finished, flicked the com-channel off and then dipped into the pilot's chair.

“We’re running into the fire, not very auspicious for our first meeting Mr Khan but a damn sight less boring than how these things usually go. Belly turrets over there.” he nodded toward a recessed ladder that went down toward the Plasburst Lasercannons. “Our target is,” he brought up a display of the battlefield outside on the control panel and focused on the advancing dagger silhouette of the Hand of Fate. “Her. Shoot a bit, try not to get shot, dock and have a drink. Easy peasy.” Norongachi said with a lopsided smirk and stuck a fresh cigarra in his mouth with one hand while the other danced through pre-flight.

“You gentlemen can strap in wherever. You won’t be much good against a turbolaser.”

[Ranah Jansen]

The ship shook with each blaster and explosion, Kahn followed Sal towards his ship, he was able to keep pace with him, they both boarded the Wave Rider , the bodyguards strapping themselves in, He knew Sal was going to pilot it was his ship afterall. Kahn descended a small ladder that landed him in the turret.

“This will be fun” he thought to himself as he was flipping switches and pressing buttons bringing the cannon online, the increasing hum coming from his station was indication of that.

The Wave Dancer left the hanger bay and was greeted by Vulture Droid Fighters . Kahn couldn’t help but feel amused this was Clone Wars Tech, he wondered which revision these were, as he could possibly exploit a weakness from them. He aimed and pressed the button on the throttle. The blaster cannon came to life as it shot at the nearest fighter, and exploding into a cloud of metal and dust. The ship was flying aggressively through the thick of it. Kahn pointing and shooting and hitting each target. It would be evident that this was not the first time the Anzat had been a gunner.

The Wave Dancer was all over the place dodging shots taken, to someone who was green Kahn was sure they would have been sick by now. Kahn was a seasoned veteran. He turned the cannon towards a Y wing bomber. He unleashed the cannon’s fury and hit the mark, the nose of the Y Wing burst into flames, just as the Wave Dancer did another dive he brought the cannon towards one of the Corellian Gunships and unleashed a volley , aimed all along the length of the ship damaging only the top cannon of it. Another volley unleashed while it was not destroyed he had damaged it enough that it must have been disabled in his attacks. It did not stop the wiley moving Wave Dancer to make another pass, this time Kahn targeted the engines, causing the ship to explode.

Kahn pumped his fist at the kill.

His elation was short lived as a pair of Tri-Fighters got behind the Wave Dancer unleashing its weapons on the craft. The Wave Dancer shook but did no damage. He swiveled the cannon in their direction and made short work of them as the pair erupted into a fireball.

The Bodyguards had strapped in one looked as if he was going to be sick. Kahn would need to rethink his entourage when they were able to breathe for a moment.

[Lash]

"Good, they have sent in the majority of their available naval forces," voice Lash in a low voice. He looked out at the force before him. Now the group lay outspread so that he would have to split his fire to engage the lion's share of their force. "Captain bring the missile tubes online. Load them with Connor missiles" Lash counted the number of driod craft in the distance. A good percentage of the enemy's attack craft seemed to be droid craft. Lash had expected this and was more than prepared for the high number of droids. As of yet Lash had not seen a droid control ship but knew it was just a matter of time before the CSA brought theirs to bear. It and its Lucrehulk sisters would no doubt be on the way. As would the few Invincable-class dreadnaughts Lash knew the CSA had at their disposal. None equaled the Termagant on their own, but Lash knew sustained engagements with more than two of those large vessels at the same time would not be a wise course of action.

"Tactical, plot solutions on the fighters and droid attack craft. Set our barrage wide, fifteen hundred meter distance and fire once you have a solution," ordered Lash as he turned to look at a display on his right side that had a clear view of the force defending the Interdictor. "Have they engaged the gravity well?" asked Lash of the officer now staring at him with confusion. The Chiss officer looked at the data on the screen before him then back at LAsh "Yes sir gravity well is up," said the officer. Lash nodded and grinned "Good" said the Chiss commander. He had known, well at least suspected the vessel would be present. He had heard from his spies one had been dispatched from an imperial fortress world towards the wild space. They had even sent a vindicator to defend it from fighters. Some thought and planning had gone into the ambush. Lash had wondered when the intelligent members of the CSA would react. Someone on their side had planned the attack well and Lash almost respected the CSA for their ambush. However, almost was as close as the emotion would get to spreading through Lash. He had pictured this battle many times. Although the enemy force makeup was not exactly what he had envisioned the idea of the overall force was the same. Lash looked over at a tactical station as the officer turned to inform him they had solutions on the attack craft.

"Fire," Lash ordered, a moment later the missile tubes of the termagant let loose a barrage of projectiles that moved out and away from the massive battlecruiser. The missiles spread out in the arch directly in the Termagant's path then ignited releasing their kilometer-wide Conor Nets. The electrically charged nets reached out in all directions and spread to their full diameter engulfing the attack craft which had been moving into engaging the vessel. Lash watched wordlessly as the nets wrapped themselves around fighters and bombers. their charge working much like an ion cannon delivering massive amounts of ionic electrical energy shorting out shielding and droid brain alike

Lash looked at a Chrono above the main view screen which was rapidly counting down to zero. it hit zero as the six battle lines of the Chiss collective fleet were pulled out of hyperspace by the interdictor cruisers gravity well. The remaining forces of the two battle squadrons had arrived now flanking the CSA and Imperial ships. as one they opened fire releasing their salvos on the doomed CSA forces no caught in their crossfire.

[Salem Norongachi]

Emah swam through the black, a metal predator. She flowed through the darts of energy, secure in the knowledge that her defenses could weather any storm. She reached out, will and sensors as one, and picked her targets, focused and fired. The banks of anti-starfighter lasers searing out across the stars with pinpoint accuracy to swallow her prey.

Faster. It wasn't so much a thought now, she'd been in union with the Hand of Fate for so long now that the processes involved had become as ingrained as breathing for an organic, the massive ion engines of the Star Destroyer glowed bright and she felt the surge of momentum drive her forward. Sensor data flowed through her, a 360 degree visual of the battlefield. Her ultimate target lay surrounded by the enemy, the Interdictor.

Technical specifications of the enemy capital ships ran across her processes, amended for the possibility of retrofit or discrepancy in the data and calculated that what she was considering wasn't so much suicide but certainly ill advised. The variables involved were wild, ever changing and one miscalculation too many could very well spell her end.

On the other hand, it would be quite the spectacle.

"More speed." she commanded.

* * *

Norongachi was focusing hard, he didn't have the vast banks of processors to work with that Emah did. Instincts forged over a decade of flying had to prioritize what needed his forebrains attention and what could be safely, most of the time, discarded. So he put the ship through her paces, trusting the Anzati to clear them a path where needed and letting the maneuverability of the Wave Dancer do the rest, until the tri-fighters found them of course.

Khan had managed to slap the first two but they were going deeper and deeper into the battlefield, chasing the Hand of Fate, and now they were in the proverbial no mans land. The point in any fleet battle where fighters clashed as they charged toward the enemy. The steering yoke never sat still, sending the ship into spiraling spins, jerking turn feints and slashing g-force dives that drove him back into the cushioning of his seat before he snapped them in the opposite direction and felt the bite of the safety harness.

"Where the hell is sh-" then, like a bolt from the heavens, it clicked. "That crazy bitch is going to ram them!"

[Ranah Jansen]

Kahn had kept the Wave Rider’s Blaster cannon busy by paving a path, it was however becoming increasingly difficult. Explosions erupting all around them, but the way the ship was moving through the field spoke highly of Salem’s piloting skill and the integrity of the ship. Kahn had adapted quickly to the tactics employed by their enemy. Kahn was in the flow of battle until an indicator flashed red at his station.

He looked down and recognized the issue, quickly he flipped switches and turned knobs pressing buttons. He gave it a couple of precious seconds as he pressed the activation button , to Kahn’s relief the station powered up again. He knew that at times these cannons could overheat and needed a reset. Kahn had proved adept.

"That crazy bitch is going to ram them!" Kahn could hear from the cockpit, he was not sure what he was referring to then he looked again upon the starfield and saw it but only briefly as he had to swivel the cannon to take out another fighter he could not breathe as he once again swerved to take out another fighter, the explosion rocked the Wave Rider but no damage had been done.

“ I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up, servos are threatening to lock up and the batteries are almost spent” he called up to the cockpit.