Voyage of Fortuna's Shadow

[LongshanksSierra]

At nearly a kilometer long and sporting over twenty decks of suites and staterooms, the passenger liner Astral Nautilus was the premier luxury ship in the galaxy. She boasted dozens of casinos, bars, clubs, and theaters for her passengers to while away the month long cruise from the galactic core the the edge of the mid rim. A hospitality staff of over five hundred offered every availible amenity, while a moderate security detachment kept the peace and offered a warm blanket of safety. A subspace radio also provided near constant communication and assistance with near-by Imperial Navy vessels between waypoints on the wealthiest and most influential planets in the galaxy. It was for these reasons that the elite among galactic society used the Nautilus for transit among the stars.

Currently the Nautilus was hanging just outside a fixed attraction of an unique stellar phenomenon known as the Static Nebula, a descriptive if not imaginative name. The Static was a normal gaseous nebula, but with periodic plasma discharges that created a picturesque "lightning-in-the-clouds" effect. A rare and beautiful display, the cruise ship never spent an extended amount of time visiting the Static, for while scenic the plasma discharges had the unfortunate side effect of disrupting normal sensor and communication abilities.

The only reliable way of communicating through the Static was through direct-beam laser transmissions. It was out-dated technology, only still found in a handful of backwater planets on the outer rim. Cost of maintaining a system of relay satellites for constant contact throughout the nebula's range of interference was too high for Imperial budgets for such a low traffic area. Strangely, there was currently a web of low-level sensor buoys with direct-beam laser suites installed in one arm of the nebula. Active comm lines were transmitting information along the relays into a branch of the nebula rife with plasma discharge. At the end of that comm line, a set of blue eyes watched intently.

In that particular arm of the nebula lay a shadow with-in a shadow. A flat arrowhead shape that gently curved vertically as it swept backwards, before flushing out in a round pyramidal engine cowling. A haphazrd array of gray and black slashes across the hull made the profile hard to distinguish. Fortuna's Shadow reached over eight-hundred meters bow to stern, and bristled with weapons blisters. Most were short-range plasmic batteries designed to target small ships moving fast close-in. Over a dozen blisters contained large, long-range plasma cannons for combat with other large warships. There were eight missle tubes for kinetic warheads and torpedoes. The prize of the arsenal were the two turbo-laser cannons capable of extended range firing which could slice through the hull of most any combat craft. The turbo-lasers were unmatched weapons, rare even among Imperial capital vessels. Although their low firing time, high energy usage, and length recharge limited their use in all but extended combat, the turbo-lasers could cripple a vessel with only a few well-placed shots.

The bridge of the Shadow lay halfway back on the dorsal ridge, a slight bump on the hull. Inside it was dimly lit and quiet, but the crew moved with a buzz of energy. Displays and cosoles blinked with muted tones as crewers moved about pre-combat checks and inspections. In the center of the two-deck space, the tactical display washed indigo holograms in a diorama of the nebula. Perched behind the hologram was the command chair, flanked by computers and communication equipment. A figure in a black overcoat sat statuesque, eyes watching the holographic display as a thin line of smoke trailed from a long cigar in his knuckles. A small icon representing the location of the Astral Nautilus blinked once, then was surrounded by a bright ring as a chime sounded. A half-smile broke from the corner of Captain Solomon's mouth as he leaned forward slightly.

"Now," he said simply.

The Shadow's engines sprang to life, and the dagger shaped ship began knifing through space. Simultaneously the ship's turbo-laser battery fired, sending a ribbon of energy across space and into the engines of the Nautilus. A flash of light along the hull annouced explosions inside the liner's engine wells. The damaged ship floundered in space and began to drift aimlessly.

Solomon reached over and flicked a control on his armrest. "Phase One successful. Begin Phase Two," he annouced. Kael moved off his chair and out the bridge doors, his long strides taking him down to the hangar deck. In five minutes fighters would begin launching from the Shadow's hangars. At ten minutes, the pirate vessel would be broadside the Nautilus and assault shuttles would launch to breech the passenger ship. They raiders would have two objectives as they enetered the luxury cruiser. The first, and more important, was to locate and secure a single item. Their spies onboard the Nautilus already had the room location of their target, and with any luck resistance would be light. The second, and more visible, objective was residing in the VIP suites. The raiders would concentrate and securing her person, and hopefully most would belive she was the true objective. In order to help secure that belief, Kael would accompany the second raid team as they boarded the passenger liner. Besides, she was rumored to be exceedingly beautiful, and Solomon was interested to see if the rumors were indeed true.

As Captain Solomon arrived on deck in the hangar, he spied the two assault parties making their final equipment checks. "Listen up you apes," Kael shouted approaching. "Everything we've worked for in the past few months will be decided in the next half hour. Let's bring the princess back alive and unharmed. Above all we must find the map, it's the key to our future plans.

"The most impressive fortune ever assembled among the stars awaits us," Solomon continued. "The fortune and glory of this hunt lie just beyond those assault lines. Treasure and fame for each of us, enough to last for a thousand years. It yours. Reach out and take it."

 

[GypsyGirl84]

Senior Tech 'Tabby' Lehman

A figure in dirty overalls came sliding out of the service tube in a remote section of Fortuna's Shadow. The existence of the numerous maintenance tubes that crisscrossed the ship was a periphreal fact to most of the crew of Fortuna's Shadow; to Senior Tech Tabby Lehman, it was the saving grace of her career on the ship. She had a natural knack of sliding in and out of the tubes and finding problems that took other techs hours of hunting down. Plus, it let her stay away from the rest of the crew. There was an automated maintenance log at the entrance of the tube, which Tabby entered in the results of her last tunnel 'expedition' (Pre-action maintenance check; all systems clear). The passageway which Tabby found herself in was one of the many that were usually empty, since it was primarily used only for the engineering crew. With a sigh of relief (at the absence of any other crewmember), Tabby waited for the current operation of the Fortuna's Shadow to be over with, so she could re-enter her beloved tubes.

 

[chris2c4u]

It had been a particularly enjoyable dissection, Carson mused; he had replayed it many times through the Virtual Memory Enhancer. It was partly the exhilaration of the chase that made it so - the map, after all, was worth chasing.

Carson, like many others, had heard the rumours of the map and the treasure it led to - they were the stuff of legends, in out of the way corners of the galaxy where humans such as himself traded goods and stories, perversions and fluids with their own kind and stranger creatures. It was a legend to Carson, a fascinating one, until he had stumbled upon the message. Then it became real enough to increase the heartbeat of any creature with such an organ.

It was odd to find the clue in something as prosaic as an old fashioned paper book being traded by a dealer in collectables far away from earth but there is was, on the title page - a simple code that translated to the real name of the map and its original location. From there he just kept putting the clues together as he hopped from system to system in the Lancet, a small, fast ship with excellent AI systems, cloaking devices and weapon baffles. He couldn't outshoot anything but he and his crew could hide better than most.

From merchants and traders, from officials who were easily bribed to shady dealers in knowledge or stories, truth or fable, he pieced it together. He discovered that the map was on the move and whoever was carrying it from where it had lain hidden for who knew how long might well know how to read it and from there it was a simple step to the treasure itself.

Carson decided it was to be his and he tracked down the mercenary who had passed on the package not knowing it was the map. The thrill of that moment made Carson's thin form quiver with delight, his dark, deep set eyes, like coals against his parchment like skin, burned with pleasure.

He did the Mindslice on the mercenary. He smiled again at the memory of the dissection, as the alien's mind fell to pieces and with consummate skill, as he lay, a wreck on the surgeon's table, Carson stole from his dying moments the place where he handed over the package - and who to.

Carson smiled; whoever had planned this had done so with care. The passenger ship, the Astral Nautilus was hardly a place to suspect such dealings but there it was, that was the current resting place of the map. And here (he recalled the image on the screen), thanks to the Mindslice, was the image that had been stored in the alien's brain of his contact who had boarded that ship. From there it was easy to get one of his crew, an expert assassin on board. She would soon have the map in her hands and then, all he had to do was wait until the end of the voyage before it would be his.

He played over the dying moments of the mercenary again. Lovely, he thought. Perfectly lovely. He stepped into the recreational area of his ship and switched on his favourite fantasy. It was only a matter of time before the map was in his hands.

 

[Ankara]

"The most impressive fortune ever assembled among the stars awaits us," Solomon continued. "The fortune and glory of this hunt lie just beyond those assault lines. Treasure and fame for each of us, enough to last for a thousand years. It yours. Reach out and take it."

Samantha Fox boarded the fighter jet and headed down to the cockpit. The Captain certainly had a nack for theatrics. But it did make the crew fight harder. They'll fight harder and work harder if its for them, rather than if they are doing it for someone else.

She jumped into the pilots seat and began to power up. She was a part of the first assault on the Nautilus. Even though it was a luxury passenger ship, she expected a large force protecting it. It was far too tasty a target not to have some protection. Or maybe she was just being hopeful. It had taken forever for their infomant to get back. Samantha was itching for a fight and was glad to be back in control of her ship.

Samantha laughed a little to herself as she went through the checks. The crew was probably glad that she finally was going out as well. She had been bitchy and frustrated at being stuck on board the Shadow, and had taken it out on some of the crew. The Captain had told her that if she was in one more brawl he would dump her off on the nearest planet. He had threatened that before, and she was still on the ship. He probably was just doing it for show. Samantha had been on the Shadow long enough to know that inaction got to the Captain as well, so he probably understood what she had been feeling.

All the checks clear, and she was ready to go. Now all she had to do was wait for the Captain's ok.

 

[Deus Noctus]

Duncan Angelos

"Listen up you apes," The Captain shouted approaching. "Everything we've worked for in the past few months will be decided in the next half hour. Let's bring the princess back alive and unharmed. Above all we must find the map, it's the key to our future plans."

"The most impressive fortune ever assembled among the stars awaits us," Captain Solomon continued. "The fortune and glory of this hunt lie just beyond those assault lines. Treasure and fame for each of us, enough to last for a thousand years. It yours. Reach out and take it."

Duncan heard what was said but didn't take his mind off his current task of checking his equipment. Pistols, tazers, breeching charges, and a bag of extras. His muscular stature had made him the unofficial pack mule for the first boarding party. Duncan shouldered the bag and double checked the shotgun hanging from a sling off his right shoulder.

He glanced over to Jacob Baker, the leader of his boarding party. Their target was the map. Duncan wanted to be excited about the treasure but he kept thinking of what the new shotgun would do to a person. Just like me, he thought, only able to think of the fight. He glanced around again while waiting for the order to load the assault shuttles. He knew some of the faces, and could put names to others, but he just did not know any of them.

His mind began to drift, try to think of any one person that he had really known. He shook his head, his blonde hair moving with it. Think of the fight, that's all there is right now. Flexing his gloved hands he could feel the scar tissure pulling tight. He could feel his rage just below the surface, waiting. Always waiting.

 

[LongshanksSierra]

"Comm checks complete Cap," the assault shuttle pilot responded, handing over the subspace radio's headpiece.

"Thank you," Kael replied as it placed the earpiece and adjusted the mic. This shuttle had been dubbed Blood Money, and partnered with the War Trophy across the hangar, they were the primary conduit the Shadow's raiders had for boarding operations. Sleek, armed with three plasmic turrets a piece, and equipped with assault hatches; they were capable of packing a punch on any civilian spacecraft.

Solomon checked the mission clock and opened up the comm channel to the bridge. "Any change in status?" he asked.

"Negative sir," the comm officer's voice replied, "All stations report operation proceeding inside expected parameters."

"Very good. We're still a go. I'm transmitting authorization for fighter launch now." For all the trappings of a pirate ship and her crew, Kael could somehow never quite break his military training. It always managed to keep things running smoothly. Of course the pay was better. And the dress a little more stylish.

Kael switched to the mission frequency. "Fox," he called to his wing commander. "Mission is set to go. Your wing is clear to launch. Make sure the skies are clear around us, and provide close escort for the shuttles on the approching and landing. We're still not expecting any Imperial entanglements, but keep your eyes open. I'll see you in half and hour." He cut the mic and tossed the headset back to the shuttle's pilot. "Assault launch in five minutes," he warned the crew.

Solomon moved back into the troop hold where his raiders were making their final checks. All weapons were low-powered slug throwers, no energy or plasmics were used on boarding parties. A single plasmic discharge might rupture a ship's hull and depressurize an entire section, killing all those exposed there. More than a few of the raiders also carried short- and long-blades. Melee weapons effective in handling unarmed opponents that the passenger liner would provide.

Kael amde a show of checking that his own sidearm was loaded and strapped securely to his leg. Even the captain wasn't above the need of checking his equipment before a fight.

"Cap'n," the shuttle's pilot called from the cockpit. "Bridge is reporting we're moving into position broadside the Nautilus. We should recieve launch order any minute now."

"Inform the bridge I'll be switching over to personal comm station," Solomon said as he clipped his personal radio to his belt, an earpiece to his ear, and it's mic to his overcoat's collar. "What's the situation?" he demanded of the bridge as he flicked the device on.

"A lot of chatter on the subspace radio from the Naulius. They know we're here and they're calling for help. We're unsure how much of their signal is going to get past the nebula."

"Keep me informed. Clear the shuttles for launch as soon as the Shadow is in position."

 

[Biker-Bo]

Mason Lane Checked the fighter bay's systems on the board for a third time, the lights blinking green, all sytems trending normal. Eighteen fighters stood ready to launch in case the Imperial Navy showed up at the party. twelve more patrolled outside the vessel, reporting negative contact. Unless the Navy Showed up, raiding this space-borne Casino was going to be routine. The security on the ship was tight, but the guards on these drifting hotels were mostly just overpaid bouncers who spent their time dragging intoxicated gamblers to their staterooms after the dealers had finished draining them of every last credit they could. Their biggest concern was Cheaters, and they fought them with a zeal that impressed even Lane. Like as not, aside from a few misguided displays of Bravado from the newer ones, most of the security staff was going to be concerned with staying in one piece and minimizing the damage to the vessel. With Solomon's attack on their engines, The Nautilus was not going to put up much resistance. As the Boarders neared the Casino cages, where the real money was kept, in currencies , rare metals, precious gems and exotic substances, the ship's automatic defenses would kick in, but Solomon's crew knew how to deal with that. Most of the security personnel weren't paid enough to get past the thought that it was someone else's money they were guarding.

"Fuck it. I'm bored." Lane stood and stretched, listening to the chatter in his earpiece of the boarding party as they made final preparations to board the vessel. Once he heard Solomon wsa on portable comms, he knew he could relax a bit. He crooked a finger at the nearest Launch Control tech, and motioned him over to the control panel. "You remember how I taught you, snapperhead?" The tech, a timid little qu'ralian clicked and buzzed something that Lane didn't understand, but took to mean something relatively affirmative. He didn't bother to run it through his translator. He jabbed a finger into his chest. "Be ready to start recovery operations in twenty minutes as the shuttles and boarding parties begin returning from that drifting Casino. If the fighters engage, that means the Imperial Navy is about, and things are going to get busy. Open all the bay doors, but make sure the containment fields are up so we don't void all the air out of the maintenance bays. I got things to do." With that he took a sip from his hip flask, and strode out into the maintenance bay toward his salvage and recovery shuttle, aptly dubbed the Scrapper.

Casinos mean bars, and bars mean burbon, and this oversized barge has got to have good stuff. He powered up the systems, and launched the shuttle toward the crippled Nautilus. The best burbon would be in the lounge adjacent to the most exclusive gaming suites, he reckoned. He'd attatch the Scrapper's Grappling gear to the hull of the Nautilus's top-deck casino right over one of the huge viewing portals, and then use a system he designed and built himself to attatch a tube to the side, cut a hole through the hull and drop in. The tube resembled a giant parasitic lamprey, with a built in laser cutter, sealing collar, and airlock. Like any good pirate, he checked his sidearms and comms before he began to crawl through the tube. The boarding party was calmly reporting the completion of their sub-tasks, as the secured teh sections of the ship to which they were assigned. Strictly routine, not a shot fired so far. This casino was empty, as all the rivh and famous had fled to their staterooms or escape shuttles when the Nautilus was hit. Lane grinned as he envisioned adding a few cases of booze to his already impressive personal stash. "Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum." he breathed, dropping into the Casino and looking for the bar.

 

[wrytersyren]

Seated at the Captain's table in the ship's grand ballroom, Danae sat quietly, seemingly en raptured with the lively dance performance before her. This was the first journey, that had no direct relation to state affairs, her father had allowed her to take on her own. Of course being a daughter of the imperial family, there was never a time she was not on state business. Nor was she ever truly alone, not if one took into account the numerous bodyguards and aides, imperial protocol demanded she have at her side at all times.

Lifting a delicate hand to her mouth, she struggled to contain the yawn that rose from within. The day had been tiring, consisting of a formal welcome and endless meetings with the ship's crew. The on-stage performance would last for another hour at least, Danae silently wished one of the dancers would pull a muscle and collapse in a heap, if only to allow the even to come to a close, she longed for the comfort of her bed. Alas she knew she would not be so lucky, she settled further onto her chair wishing it would swallow her whole as she contined to feign interest in the show.

A sudden movement to her left, caught her attention. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a nervous crew member hastily approach the Captain. Something was clearly wrong, this was easy to see from the man's panicked gestures as he addressed the ship's Captain in hushed urgent tones.

 

[Ankara]

"Fox," he called to his wing commander. "Mission is set to go. Your wing is clear to launch. Make sure the skies are clear around us, and provide close escort for the shuttles on the approching and landing. We're still not expecting any Imperial entanglements, but keep your eyes open. I'll see you in half and hour."

"Aye Captain," Samantha fired up the engines, She checked to make sure the other ships were ready to go, all were clear. She left the hanger into the cold heart of space, where the Nautilus waited. "There you are beauty" she said out loud. She looked around and just as the Captain had said, the skies were clear. 'Damn,' she thought to herself. 'Oh well, the day is still young.' She sent half of the pack to surround the Nautilus and stayed with the others to escort the boarding shuttles. "Alright Captain, all is clear, and waiting your command."

 

[LongshanksSierra]

No sooner had the Shadow settled into a tight position alongside the Nautilus, than the assault shuttles burned out of the hangar and latched onto the passengers liner's hull. Strong magnetic clamps held the shuttles in place as plasmic torches burned through the ship's hull. Explosive bolts blew the openings inward and the pirate raiders followed soon after.

The pirates cut their way through a token resistance offered by ship's security. Most of the ship's valuables were secured in a large, centrally located vault. Heavy defensessurrounded that as a means to ensure the passenger liner was not viewed as a juicy target. However, the passenger rooms were less protected, the bulkheads easier to navigate.

The two raiding parties headed off in different directions once onboard. The party following Kael moved to the upper levels of the liner, the luxury suites. Kael checked their progress against a portable holomap of the liner. They were thirty seconds ahead of schedule. Resistance had been light so far, and Kael hoped that meant that secuirty was reinforcing a strong point ahead of their progress.

 

[PieTaster]

"Highest priority emergency subspace distress call from Sector Gamma, sir."

The Captain ever alert, did snap his attention to his communications officer. "Details?"

"Starliner Astral Nautilus, registry LLRX-121599432 dash 379er under acute pirate attack. Multiple fighter craft. Plasma cannon fire. Multiple hull breaches. Forceable boardings. Request immediate assistance."

"The Nautilus," the captain contemplated. "Sector Gamma would be the Static Nebula."

The communications officer called some data to his terminal. "The nebula would be consistent with the Nautilus' flight path, yes," he confirmed.

Captain Raal stood up straight, adjusted his creaseless black uniform, and inhaled deeply. His eyes narrowed at the thought.

"Kael," he rasped lowly with contempt.

"Shall we respond, sir?"

"We cannot very well respond while parked in stardock for another twelve hours of refit."

Another display lit up on the com console.

"Sir, a direct subspace communiqué for you on Z channel," the com man informed. Z channel was the Imperial Naval confidential frequency. He looked up at the Captain and added, "From New Haifa."

"I'll take it in my room."

/\/\/\

The grisled visage flashed upon the com in Raal's desk.

"Greetings Admiral Mordigoth."

"Good day, Captain," the Admiral acknowledged without a trace of warmth. "My purpose is to give you, your ship and your crew direct and urgent orders to navigate to Sector Gamma, intercept the Astral Nautilus and liberate her from pirate attack."

"Just as a point of order, sir, you are aware of our current refit status at stardock Beta-23 are you not?" the captain queried. "We are currently armed and fueled to roughly half capacity."

"I am fully aware of your status, and such variables have already been taken into account," informed the Admiral. "You are the closest Imperial Naval Vessel to the Nebula. You should have sufficient fuel." Mordigoth's thin hair, pitted jowls and stern gaze glared through the terminal. "There is a VIP on board that starliner. The Imperial Princess Danae. Rescue her at all costs. Is that clear?"

"Perfectly," Raal resigned.

"You will carry out your orders forthwith."

/\/\/\

The supply lines disconnected and the magneto-tethers disengaged. The ship drifted gently away from the wall and towards the center of the stardock tube. The pulse-drive ignited to push the ship beyond the confines of the stardock before the jump could be made. Then after a few moments of power buildup, the warp engines engaged to light speed and the Imperial Naval Destroyer, Scorpio immediately leapt from view in a gleaming streak of white light for Sector Gamma.

 

[Ankara]

Samantha escorted the boarding party over to the Nautilus. Then hung back to keep an eye out for any attacks. This was definitely going smoother than planned. She had atleast expected some kind of resistance from the Nautilus.

She switched on the Comm to reach the other pilots. "Keep your eyes open, I don't want any surprises while the Captain is on board." Various replies came in reporting that everything was clear.

She rolled her eyes, next time I'm going with the boarding crew.

 

[Biker-Bo]

Lane spotted a furtive movement to his left- a lone gambler struggling to gather his chips before running from the area. Lane chose to ignore him, and made his way to the storeroom that serviced the bar. the Nautilus had an almost legendary stash of rare earth liquors, and after a quick laser-cut through the door, lane wasn't disappointed. he dropped a handful fo anti-grav disks normally used to move heavy fighter components, and tossed a table upside down on them. The disks activated when the table's weight pressed down on them, and they created a field that canceled the artificial gravity of the Nautilus.

He immediately found a half case of Rittenhouse that had been bottled in 1984. The seals were intact, and Lane immediately recognized a single shot of this whiskey, hudreds of years old, was worth more than a year's salary. He gently lowered the case onto the table, and perused the rest of the shelves. to this he added a full case of Maker's Mark, and two more of Woodford Reserve. a near full case of Elijah Craig rounded out his find, and he stuffed a couple of bottles of spiced rum that Lzog was for some reason crazy about. "Smurf Juice." he grinned. Lzog was his only benefactor in Solomon's wardroom, and it paid to keep her happy.

In a few minutes, he had cleaned out the storeroom of anything of value, including some other booze that he knew his techs and mechanics would enjoy. cheap stuff, by comparison, but it kept the wolves at bay, and prevented them from raiding his precious stock of Bourbon. Even Captain Solomon would be pleased, with some of the french brandy he had stashed aboard the salvage trawler.

He had disconnected from the Nautilus, and was less than a hundred yards from his bay door when the Scorpio dropped out of hyperspace just off his port stern. "Dammit!" he breathed, as he ripped the comm unit out of his ear when it crackled to life, blaring warnings and terse offensive and defensive orders from the weapons crews that brought her under fire within seconds. "Noisy fucks, they are!"

An imperial Navy Destroyer meant fighters. That meant his fighters would soon be launching to greet them. Minutes after that, they would be limping back into the fighter bays, and his mechanics and techs would be busy as hell repairing the various forms of blaster damage, re-arming them, and sending them back out into space to fight again. Lane scooted the tarawler back into the bay, and docked it quickly as alarms began blaring incessantly for all hands to report to their stations.

Lane drained the last of his hip flask, tossed it onto the console, and made his way to the fighter repair bays. It was going to be a busy night.

 

[Deus Noctus]

Duncan's hands tensed around the grips on the shotguns. The boarding party had left two men behind to guard the shuttle, that left him as the rear guard for the slowly advancing team. They moved with military precision, in a straight line stacked against the wall. Corners where deadly for people unfamiliar with the layout of the luxury liner. Resistance had so far been minimal, and always at the front of the team. Damn it, I want some action. I hate the sneaking around shit. Bring on the fight, he thought to himself.

The team came to a sudden halt. A pressure bulkhead had been sealed infront of them, making entry into the target passenger compartment impossible.

"Options," came shouted from the front.

"Blast it," was the response from someone. Duncan couldn't watch the rest of the team, he was stuck guarding the other three passageways of a four way intersection.

"Too thick, it was desgined to withstand a lot more then what we brought. This is the only entrance into the compartment we want without going all the way around the ship to the other side, which is most likely the same way as this. Other ideas?"

Duncan looked over his shoulder. "What's on the other side of these walls? Service tunnels?" There was a brief pause before an affirmative reply. "We have four charges, let's go through the walls, they should be thinner this far on the interior of the ship."

The first breeching charge felt like it rocked the entire Nautilus. The second echoed through the service tunnel, slowly fading away into the bowels of the ship. Duncan rushed through the lingering smoke and jagged metal edges first, muzzles searching for a target. Nothing. I joined this outfit to fight, not take candy from babies.

 

[Ankara]

Samantha jumped as she saw the Destroyer come out of hyperspace. "Looks like someone else decided to join the party." She flipped on the Comm, "Try to draw their fire away from the other ships."

Immediately, the smaller fighters came out of their hanger. Samantha powered up her weapons and swooped in. Some of the other fighters from the Shadow were closer, and began to fight with the first wave of fighters from Scorpio. When the second wave came out Samantha shot down the first one from the hanger before two of the fighters from behind, turned on her. She lead them around the Scorpio before one of the other fighters came in, damaged one, and killed the other.

The fighting was intense. Obviously they were determined to save the Nautilus. One of the Scorpio's fighters even went so far as crashing into one of the Shadow's fighters. Samantha thanked the Gods that the other pilots hadn't thought of the same idea, didn't make for much of a fair fight.

"Everyone, hold them off till the Captains done." Samantha began shooting up the sides of the Scorpio. A fighter came in and nudged her with his wing, obviously trying a suicide run but then chickening out.

"Come on, if your going to do it, you might as well do it right." As she slammed the body of her fighter into his wing sending him spinning before she shot at him, taking out his fuel source.

She began firing on the Scorpio when suddenly, she was shot from behind. The blast shook through her ship. She looked around and saw which fighter was closest. "Cameron, I need you to take out the Scorpio's hyperdrive. They've taken out one of my guns, I'll tail you. When the Captain gets back we'll need to make a run for it and I don't want these guys tagging along."

 

[wrytersyren]

Danae rose slowly from her seat, as the Captain spoke to the head of her guards.

"Captain, is something the matter?" Danae asked softly.

He turned to her then, an apologetic smile on his face. "Forgive me your Higness, but there is... a problem."

Within moments the entire imperial entourage was exiting the grand ballroom, making its way down the hallways. There was no confirmation as to the location of the threat, or the nature of the threat. It didnt matter, she was royalty and any threat no matter how small was of consequence to the empire.

The tension amongst her guards was thick. Danae's steps were brisk yet gracefully. Instead of heading for her state room, they were making their way to a lesser suite, one that had been accquired in case of any emergency. Suddenly the force of an expolsion rocked through the craft, the hull groaning painfully. The jolt sent Danae stumbling into the arms of an aide.

"We must move quickly." came the voice of yet another guard. Little did they know what lay in wait for them just around the corner.