Chapter 23: Chapter 22

Star People

Chapter 22

Ocean Gunfight

Jan 12^th, 13 AE…

“Captain, the enemy battle group numbers two hundred and ninety-five. They will be within visual range in five minutes.” Ensign Hizent announced as she read the display on her monitor.

“According to the communications chatter that I’m picking up, the main Zedan flagship of the battle group is the pocket battleship, Radila.” The communications officer stated. She was a female Nemonian, Lieutenant Sashi.

“What is the position of the Radila?” Captain Sareia asked.

“It’s located near the rear of the formation.” Hizent stated as she pulled up the tactical display on the main holo-viewer.

The female Captain of the Michigan studied the tactical display for a minute, before making a decision. “Send word to all cruisers. They are to aim primarily for the enemy destroyers, cruisers and larger ships. They are to sink them all. However, we will engage the enemy flagship ourselves.”

“Aye Captain!” Sashi responded.

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On the Radila, Admiral Varhet was feeling the pressure. After his encounter with the Missouri, many of the upper brass and even the Grand Leader himself called Varhet a madman and a coward for retreating. They simply didn’t believe that he had encountered a flying battleship that had some kind of magical shield that deflected all their shots.

This would be his only chance at redemption. He was under orders to either invade the Merdov continent or perish in the attempt. After losing contact with his fighters and bombers, as well as five submarines, he was having another ominous feeling about the upcoming encounter with Free Land’s forces. Then one of the lookouts announced that the enemy fleet was within visual range.

Prior to the coming battle, Varhet had decided to launch all remaining fighters and bombers. Currently, the two light carriers Garavan and Vistok were devoid of any aircraft and stayed far behind. The planes sped toward the Free Land ships with every intention to sink or damage them as much as possible.

However, they suffered the same fate as the previous pilots as the cruisers opened up with their point-defense guns and shot them all down in seconds. The deadly accuracy and ease in which they did so stunned Admiral Varhet and all the other crews of the Zedan battle group. Then the Free Land ships pointed their weapons at them.

“All ships! Open fire!” Varhet shouted.

The turrets of the main guns of the Radila, as well as those of the destroyers, cruisers and other battleships, all swiveled about and began firing. At a distance of less than 20 miles, several shots splashed harmlessly around the Free Land fleet. However, at least a dozen 11, 14 and 15-inch shells did land on target… only to detonate against invisible barriers and cause no damage.

Admiral Varhet began to have flashbacks with the Missouri…

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On the Michigan…

“All cruisers, return fire!”

As soon as Captain Sareia gave the order, the ten cruisers took aim and let loose with their double-mounted pulsar guns. These were smaller, 9-inch versions of the Missouri’s armament, but were still considered highly-destructive. The kinetic shells they fired hit their targets with pinpoint accuracy and tore through naval armor plating as if it was tinfoil.

With that first salvo, ten Zedan destroyers were blown completely out of the water. The destroyer Vanar took two kinetic shells in the front and back, which blew off its bow and stern. The Cragora was cut in half as a shell sliced through the bridge and detonated the main magazine. One shell was all that was needed to blow the Ratara to smithereens. The Ordeli rolled onto its side as it took a hit just above the waterline.

The Zedan ships desperately began to maneuver and kept on firing, though every shot either missed or would explode harmlessly against the barriers of the Free Land ships. The Star Alliance ships however, maintained their positions and continued firing. No matter how fast or how far the Zedan ships moved, the Free Land ships would easily reach them with their guns with near-perfect accuracy.

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“What kind of monsters are we facing?!” The Zedan Admiral shouted as he watched from his bridge.

Destroyers, cruisers and even battleships were being torn apart and ravaged by the unrelenting and devastating firepower of eleven Free Land vessels.

Wait a minute! Zehat looked through his binoculars at the Michigan. He had just realized that the Free Land lead ship had yet to fire a single shot. Furthermore, only the other Zedan ships were being targeted and destroyed. The Radila had been left untouched.

When more than eighty percent of the Zedan battle group had been sunk or disabled, the Michigan finally began swiveling its main turrets toward the Radila.

“DAMN YOU! ALL GUNS! FIRE AT THE LARGE ENEMY SHIP!”

The guns of the Radila, as well as all those that were still able to fight on began firing at the Michigan. Again, they were denied by those damned defensive barriers. It just wasn’t fair!

Then Captain Sareia gave the order.

“Fire Anti-Proton Guns.”

Four beams of blue-white energy lanced forward from the Michigan and streaked across the water. Admiral Zehat shouted out one final battle cry before the Radila was annihilated in a huge explosion. When the light faded away, there was practically nothing left but tiny scraps of debris floating in the water.

After seeing their leader get vaporized into nothingness, the remaining ships saw no other option. They immediately stopped firing, turned off their engines, and began raising their signals of surrender. Luckily for them, the Star Alliance still recognized the significance of a white flag, and ceased firing. Out of three hundred ships, only twelve remained that were still seaworthy. The rest were either destroyed, sinking or were too damaged to be salvaged.

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On the bridge of the Michigan, Brittany Sareia was satisfied that her point had been made to the Zedan forces. There was just no hope in challenging Free Land with such a huge technology gap. The only sensible option was to yield.

As soon as the Zedan ships stopped firing and surrendered, the Star Alliance captain began ordering all of her forces to begin taking POWs.

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On the bridge of the Iowa…

“I’d like to offer my congratulations to Captain Vikes and Captain Sareia for a job well done.” Admiral Kajor said after receiving the reports from the two battle groups they had sent to intercept the Zedan forces.

“Yes, they did very well.” General Kurdo agreed, and then turned back towards the tactical display. “Now all we have to do is deal with the nine hundred and twenty-five ships that are speeding toward us.”

“Do you think that enemy commander has realized that his strategy had failed?”

“Judging by the speed of the main force, I’d say he doesn’t. Either that or he’s too prideful to admit defeat.”

“There’s another possibility. It could be because he’s not allowed the option to retreat or surrender. We’ve received reports that the Zedan Grand Leader is the epitome of a tyrant and he punishes his generals when they fail.”

“In any case, we cannot allow a single ship to make it past us.”

“Agreed.”

The tactical display then began changing as several elements of the enemy main force began to break away.

“It looks like the enemy commander has decided on his first moves.” The Catian general remarked. “He’s going for a full-scale air and underwater attack, simultaneously.”

“The tactical display counts over 2,000 aircraft this time, along with 50 submarines. And I can also see the bulk of his fleet moving right behind the aircraft and subs.” The Velor admiral said.

“It’s basically one massive navel blitzkrieg. He’s going all in on this assault.”

“Is the Yorktown ready for action?”

Kurdo nodded. “Tell Admiral Tarhesse to launch all of her Star Hawks and Byattas. Let them clear the skies of all enemy fighters, and then have them attack the Zedan fleet.”

“And what about the Zedan subs?”

“We’ll blow those tin fish out of the water.”

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The Yorktown…

“Scramble! Scramble! All Star Hawk and Byatta pilots! Red alert! Red alert! This is not a drill! Repeat, this is not a drill!”

As soon as the sirens went off and the announcer gave the order, every fighter pilot rushed to the main hanger to board their starfighters. Commander Miriyo blew a kiss to her husband before she entered the cockpit of her Byatta. Below her, flight crews were readying the proton anti-ship missiles that she would use against the Zedan fleet.

In less than a minute, Miriyo and her squadron were launched into the skies. A few seconds later, her husband’s squadron joined hers. One hundred and fifty Star Hawks and two hundred and fifty Byattas streaked overhead and disappeared over the horizon. In addition to the anti-aircraft missiles, each Star Hawk carried two extra missile pods mounted under their wings. Once the enemy air cover was destroyed, the Star Hawks would also take part in destroying the enemy ships.

In seconds, the enemy fighters and bombers were in range of the Star Hawks’ weapons. On board his own starfighter, James locked onto his distant targets and prepared to give the world to fire. Each Star Hawk carried up to eight, Skybolt missiles. They had enough to wipe out more than half the enemy fighters and bombers with missiles alone.

“OPEN FIRE!”

Every Star Hawk launched two missiles apiece. A wave of three hundred missiles shot forward and disappeared from sight. Then they launched a second wave, followed by a third. Nine hundred deadly guided projectiles headed toward the unsuspecting Zedan aircraft.

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Major Flar Zerko flew in the lead fighter of the Zedan strike force. With such as huge amount of aircraft and 50 submarines attacking at once, there was no way that tiny Free Land fleet could withstand the assault. And if by some miracle a few Free Land vessels were to survive the onslaught, the armada of Zedan surface ships following the strike force would blow them out of the water.

There was no way this plan could fail!

KA-BOOM!

These were Zerko’s final thoughts before his plane was enveloped in a huge fireball and reduced to flaming debris.

Almost immediately, the entire strike force was sent into chaotic disarray as fighters and bombers were suddenly exploding without reason or warning. In seconds, three hundred planes were annihilated. Then a few seconds later, another wave of explosions occurred, as more Zedan aircraft were erased from the skies. Finally, a third series of explosions rocked the strike force, reducing their number by nearly half.

As panic began to spread among the pilots, beams of light shot out from just beyond visual range. Bolts of energy tore through the Zedan planes like hot knives cutting through butter. The radio chatter among the Zedan fighters and bombers emphasized the terror they were feeling.

“What’s going on?!”

“I’m hit!”

“What are those beams of light?!”

“There’s something coming right at us! What kind of speed is that?!”

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In his Starfighter, Captain James Wittens nodded as he assessed the damage done by the missiles strikes and the follow-up particle beam barrage. There were about less than 700 enemy planes left. It wouldn’t take much to mop up the remaining fighters and bombers before moving on to the Zedan fleet. Since they were no threat to either the Star Hawks or Byattas, Wittens felt that there was no need to hold back his wife’s fighters.

“Star Hawk Prime to Byatta Prime.”

“Byatta Prime here. Go ahead Hawk Prime.”

“All Byattas are to assist in destroying the remainder of enemy craft. We’re just going to plow through the lot of them and head toward our second objective. Acknowledged?”

“Acknowledged Hawk Prime.” Miriyo then addressed the other heavy fighters. “Byatta Prime to Byatta wings! Assist the Star Hawks and engage the enemy!”

As they neared what was left of the Zedan strike force, both Star Hawks and Byattas opened up with a massive and murderous barrage of particle beams and positron cannon bolts. They did not even bother to fly out of formation as their starfighters were too fast for the Zedan pilots to match. Furthermore, their targeting computers were so accurate, that every time they fired, a Zedan plane would be obliterated. By the time they passed by the Zedan aircraft, only a paltry 30 enemy planes were left.

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And they were not going to be spared either. Two Star Hawks and two Byattas peeled off to take down the remaining enemy planes. The Free Land pilots were husband-wife pairs; Lieutenant Steve Ridker with his spouse Kellia, and Lieutenant Kojiro Tanakato and his mate Nicela.  In under a minute, all four starfighters sent the last of the Zedan aircraft crashing down toward the ocean. The quartet then engaged their boosters to rejoin the other Star Alliance craft on their assault against the Zedan fleet.

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On the Kilgari Genral Rommet felt a foreboding sense of dread as he watched every Zedan aircraft blip on the radar disappear. His feeling of dread intensified as those enemy aircraft blips neared his fleet. He immediately ordered all ships to ready their anti-aircraft guns and for the carriers to launch their remaining aircraft.

However, just as the order was given, several destroyers and cruisers suddenly exploded near the outer perimeter. Ship commanders and their crews began shouting out in panic over the radio waves.

“What’s happening?!”

“Where’s the enemy?!”

“What are those things?!”

“Too fast!”

“We can’t shoot those things down!”

At a very alarming rate, Zedan vessels were being destroyed by the score as proton anti-ship missiles slammed into them. Destroyers, cruisers, carriers and even battleships were being blown to pieces. Their armor proved to be no protection and their guns were not able to stop a single missile from hitting its target. When more than six hundred ships were reduced to flaming, sinking wreckages, Rommet’s radar operator shouted out that enemy aircraft were about to come within visual range.

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High above in the skies, James Wittens nodded as he signaled for the squadrons of Star Hawks to being their strafing and missile runs. His wife Miriyo also signaled for the Byattas to begin their own attack runs.

Star Hawks and Byattas began ravaging the survivors of the initial missile barrage. They proved to be too fast for the Zedan anti-aircraft guns to track. There simply was nothing they could do as more ships were being torn apart by particle beams, positron cannon fire and short-range missiles. A trio of Star Hawks released a flight of missiles at a group of cruisers, blasting huge holes in their hulls. A quartet of Byattas ignited the main magazines of two carriers, causing them to perish in enormous pillars of flame. On a single pass, two Star Hawks and four Byattas turned eight destroyers into funeral pyres. Another five cruisers were blown apart when several Sky Hawks launched their versions of the proton anti-ship missile. A battleship split in two as its magazine was detonated. Other ships were torn apart without mercy as the Star Alliance fighters sent the bulk of the Zedan fleet to the bottom of the ocean.

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On the bridge of Kilgari, General Rommet could only watch in shock and horror as those strange-looking aircraft ravaged his fleet. There was no glory in this battle. It wasn’t even a battle. His ships were being slaughtered en masse. Not a single enemy fighter was being shot down. The entire Zedan invasion fleet was going to be annihilated before even sighting the Merdov coast.

Then after what seemed to be an eternity, the wholesale death and destruction stopped as the Free Land aircraft suddenly ceased firing and simply left the area. Rommet could only assume that the enemy fighters and bombers had run out of ordinance and ammunition. It certainly couldn’t be that they ran out of targets, since there were still around a hundred ships still afloat.

What the Zedan commander didn’t know was that the Free Land fighters had been ordered to withdraw. They had more than enough power and ordinance to wipe the entire fleet on their own. General Kurdo wanted to drive home the point that the Zedan military was no match for the Star Alliance. The fighters had done their job in softening up the enemy forces and reducing their numbers. Now it was Rommet’s turn to face a numerically superior opponent.

That was when the Kildari’s radar operator announced that an enemy fleet was approaching them.

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On the Missouri, Captain Mark Delan nodded as he led the Star Alliance fleet toward what was left of the Merdov invasion force. The Star Hawks and Byattas had pretty much decimated Rommet’s overall strength, to the point in which retreat or surrender were the only sensible options. What remained of the enemy was about as much as a threat as those fifty submarines they had destroyed.

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Flashback…

“They can’t be serious.” Reelan commented as the tactical display showed all fifty Zedan subs launching a massive barrage of torpedoes.

“Apparently they are.” Her husband responded before giving orders to his helmsman and communications officer. “We’ll take a page out of Captain Sareia’s playbook. Ascend to 20 meters, Ensign. All ships in the line of fire are to do the same, Lieutenant.”

“Aye, Sir!”

“Aye, Sir!”

To the amazement and disbelief of the submariner commanders as they looked through their periscopes, the Missouri and all the ships that had been targeted, simply rose out of the water, and hovered above the ocean’s surface. The wave of torpedoes harmlessly passed by, underneath their targets. After they traveled a few kilometers, the explosive projectiles were then remotely detonated.

“Are we still tracking the enemy subs?” Mark asked.

“Aye, Sir!” Ensign Taichen stated. “They just started taking evasive maneuvers to hide their locations.”

“All ships that were targeted are to launch aqua-missiles. Sink all enemy subs.”

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On the bow of the Missouri, a pair of panels opened up and two cylindrical objects were shot into the water. The other ships that were hovering did the same. Less than a minute later, there were multiple underwater explosions as the underwater vessels were crushed. Not a single one survived.

With barely any effort, the Free Land fleet had eliminated the Zedan submarine threat. At that point, the Missouri and one hundred and seventy-four ships took off and headed toward what was left of the Zedan invasion armada. On their way there, they passed by the Star Hawks and Byattas on their return trip towards the Yorktown.

On the Iowa, both General Kurdo and Admiral Kajor watched from the main observation deck.

“Do you think it is wise for us not to join them?” The Velor asked.

“As you said before, the Missouri by itself would be more than enough.” The Catian replied. “You do remember Operation Stardust?”

“Ah yes. Captain Delan certainly showed no mercy to his opponents. I pity that Zedan commander.”

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End of Flashback…

On the Kilgari, General Rommet and everyone stared in shock as one hundred and seventy-five ships came into view, from high up in the sky. After being ravaged by the Star Hawks and Byattas, many of the crews had been demanding for Rommet to withdraw. After losing more than 90% of their initial battle strength, they simply could not continue with this mission, which was now considered as suicidal.

And now they were facing off against ships that could fly! Had the entire world gone mad?!

Not a single Zedan sailor or officer said a word as the newcomers stopped and hovered for a few seconds, before slowly descending toward the water some 20 miles away. Looking through his binoculars, Rommet’s gaze was fixed on the lead ship, the Missouri.

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On the Missouri’s bridge, Captain Delan was all business. He assessed the overall strength of the Zedan forces on the tactical display and came to the conclusion that Rommet didn’t have anything that could damage a Vanguard-class destroyer, let alone the Missouri. However, he decided to give his opponent this one chance to yield.

“Lieutenant, lock onto the communications frequency of the enemy fleet.”

“Aye, Sir!”

Once Lieutenant Taichen had established communications between the two sides, Captain Delan stood up and addressed the Zedan forces.

“This is Captain Mark Delan of the star battleship Missouri. To the commander of the Zedan forces… you and your fleet are hereby ordered to return to your point of origin. This will be your first, last and ONLY warning!”

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On the Kilgari, General Erstal Rommet could only fume after hearing Mark’s demand for him to pull back. However, with most of his forces destroyed and now facing against slightly-more numerous opponents, his options were few. The most sensible choice would be to retreat, but that would only lead to death as the Grand Leader would surely order him and his family to be executed for returning in defeat. The other commanders and crews knew that as well. However, everyone else knew that they had no chance against Free Land and their strange weapons.

Execution or annihilation?

Annihilation it is!

“ALL SHIPS, OPEN FIRE!”

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“Incoming enemy fire!” Taichen announced.

Like all the other times the Zedan had fired upon them, the Missouri’s defense barrier easily stopped the barrage of explosive and armor-piercing shells from touching the ship. The same thing happened on all the other ships in the Free Land fleet. Their defensive barriers were virtually impervious to World War 2 conventional weaponry.

“So he’s decided to go down fighting.” The First Officer commented.

“An admirable trait. However, I wouldn’t call this a fight.” Mark stated as the enemy continued to hammer away at the defense barrier in a futile attempt to destroy the Missouri. After a full minute of allowing the enemy fleet to waste its ammunition, he signaled for Visera to open a channel to the other Free Land ships.

“All ships, you are clear to engage. Target the enemy fleet, but take care not to fire at the Kilgari. The Missouri will engage the Zedan flagship.”

At that point, the Star Alliance cruisers and destroyers began to return fire. Seeing that using their anti-proton beams would be overkill, the ships of Free Land opted to use kinetic shells. And unlike their opponents, their fire-control systems were far more accurate.

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Rommet could only watch with a frown as Zedan ships began taking enemy fire. A destroyer nearby was cut in half by a single shell. A cruiser was blown apart as if it was made of driftwood. Men began abandoning ship at an alarming rate. Everywhere he looked; his fleet was being savaged and ripped to shreds. Soon, the air around was filled with smoke as the Free Land fleet continued to pound away without mercy.

What galled him the most was that the Kilgari had yet to be hit. It was if the enemy considered him to be not worth the effort to destroy. He knew that this was the end and he wanted to go out in a blaze of glory. Then he saw a certain ship move out from its position from the enemy formation. It was the Missouri.

At this point, Rommet decided to throw caution to the wind and ordered his helmsman to drive the Kilgari forward to meet with Mark’s ship. He also signaled to the ships to cease fire. There was no need for the entire armada to perish with him.

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“Captain, we have just received word from the enemy commander.” Lieutenant Visera announced. “He’s asking for a ceasefire and he’s ordering his ships to stand down.“

Mark paused for a moment as he glanced at the tactical display. As Rommet had stated, the Zedan ships stopped firing. With a nod, Captain Delan also signaled for the Free Land ships to stop attacking. Soon the entire ocean was devoid of sounds of battle as each side waited for the other to make the next move.

Then Lieutenant Visera received a new message.

“Captain, the commander of the Zedan fleet, General Erstal Rommet is issuing a challenge to the Missouri. He wants to face us in a battleship duel with the Kilgari.”

“A duel?” Mark asked in surprise.

“Yes, Sir. He says that he wishes to end this battle with honor.”

Captain Delan turned to his First Officer with a questioning gaze, to which she shrugged her shoulders.

“It’s very likely that he knows that he doesn’t have a chance of defeating us. It looks like he wants to go out in a blaze of glory.” She then addressed her fellow Kyteeri. “Are there any terms to this duel?”

“Not many, Commander. Both ships are free to use their weapons and capabilities to their fullest. The Zedan forces present will surrender unconditionally regardless of who wins this duel. General Rommet only asks for them to be treated fairly as prisoners of war.”

“That’s the sign of a good officer who puts the welfare of those under his command first.” Reelan’s husband remarked before nodding to Visera. “Send our reply that we accept his challenge.”

“Captain?” The second-in-command asked in surprise.

“The Council believes it will be good propaganda for the Missouri to face off against the Zedan Empire’s strongest battleship. And I can see no better way than in a one-on-one duel. The Zedan commander wants to go out in a blaze of glory. Let’s grant his wish.”

To be continued…

 

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