Star People

Chapter 61

Luck

Oct 14^th, 15 AE…

In orbit…

“All systems report that they are fully online.” A technician stated as she sat at her console.

“All power flows are reading nominal.”

“I detect no deviations in the DRC relays.”

“Dimensional warp-field capacitors are stable.”

“All systems are giving the green light.” A young Kyteeri engineer announced as she turned to the head of the project. “We’re ready to commence the test.”

Chief Engineer Riken, a Velor, nodded as he gestured to the technicians manning the central console. “Very well. Begin the operation. Let’s see if we can bring the whole thing through this time.”

The technicians began working hard at their stations as the station’s trans-warp capacitors were brought online to full charge. On top of the station, the energy emission dish glowed with an intense light. In seconds, a very large field began to form in the vacuum of space. It grew to about the size of a small town as its boundaries started to solidify and stabilize. Once the exit portal was completely formed, Riken nodded and gave the order.

“All right, commence with sending the target vehicle through the portal. Distance will be 1,000 kilometers.”

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On the planet’s surface…

On the surface of the planet, the Free Land engineers began sending the test vehicle through the huge portal that had opened up in front of them. The ground emitters kept the entrance portal stable as they synced up with the transmission satellite orbiting above them. The main problem wasn’t in creating the pathway for the object to traverse. It was maintaining the exit portal long enough for the object to pass through.

As the target vehicle entered the portal and vanished, the engineers on the ground looked on their consoles’ readings with concern.

“I’m getting some energy fluctuations!” One engineer announced.

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On the transmission satellite…

“Damn it!” Riken hissed as he saw the exit portal begin to flicker and lose coherency. “It just needs to hold together long enough!”

Almost instantly, the front end of the target vehicle emerged from the exit portal. For several agonizing milliseconds, the field shimmered like a blinking strobe light. Then the middle section made it past the exit. At that point, the group of engineers and technicians began shouting out various alarms and warnings. Warning lights began to flash as sirens blared. The entire station began to tremble as small explosions rocked throughout its structure. Sparks and jets of smoke were emitted from damaged power lines and cracked housings.

“Red Alert! Red Alert!”

“Chief! The main capacitors are starting to redline!”

“We’ve lost several data-link relays!”

“About a dozen of the warp-field conduits are rupturing!”

“Emergency systems are now extinguishing fires that have sprung up in section 12, 26, and 92!”

The Velor growled while showing some very sharp teeth. His hands clenched into tight fists as he and the others watched, as the tail end of the target vehicle came into view. As soon as the vehicle had cleared the portal, Riken shouted out.

“Shut down the Hyper Gate now!”

As the command center continued to spark and release puffs of smoke from damaged panels and consoles, the engineers and technicians worked furiously to power down the Transmat Station’s long-range TPS. A few more seconds passed, though it seemed like an eternity to all those aboard. Finally, the emergency sirens and lights stopped as the station stabilized its systems and entered standby mode.

Riken let off a long, relieved sigh as he glanced at main holo-monitor.  

“We finally managed to get one to go through.”

Riken’s Kyteeri assistant Malara nodded. “Now all we have to do is repeat the process three times.”

“Alert all crews to begin repairs. I want this station back to full operational status as soon as possible. And make certain that all of the Hyper Gate’s components have been reinforced and upgraded by 200%.”

“Two hundred percent, Sir?”

“I’m going to follow the advice of an ancient gunsmith from Earth’s history. Make it strong enough, and then double it.” (1)

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Oct 17^th, 15 AE…

The Council of Prime Directors…

“The new Hyper Gate has been certified as functionally operational, but Chief Engineer Riken states that he’s not very confident in its reliability.” Director Nasaak declared as he and his fellow Directors sat at the conference table.

 “What’s the status of the Transmat Station?” Ben asked.

“The station itself has been restored to normal operational status, but they’re in the middle of installing larger capacitors and power reactors.” Nerto remarked. “Since they’ll be transporting three Pseudo-Planet Ravagers, they want to make certain they have enough power to do the job.”

“How long before the modifications are complete?”  Anida inquired.

“The earliest they can give me is within the next 8 hours. As of now, the Hyper Gate is only functioning at 75% capacity.”

“Let’s just hope that those Fake Planet Ravagers don’t make an appearance right now.” Viska remarked.

At that point, the Omega-Level alarm went off as the Conference Table’s holo-projector activated and began showing images of three subspace portals opening up in three different locations.

“Oh, me and my big mouth.” The Nemonean Director sighed.

“We have no choice.” Sierg declared. “Ready or not, we’re going to give the Hyper-Gate its first use in combat.”

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The Vados continent…

“ALL UNITS, PREPARE FOR BATTLE!”

Colonel Versen Rite shouted out his orders from his command vehicle, as the enemy Battle-Mechanoids advanced towards his position. The newly-developed Magic-Mech Battalions would make their first appearance in combat. After months of extensive study of the captured Metal Soldier and creating the assembly lines needed for mass-production, the Kingdom of Naran had succeeded in becoming the third nation to be armed with piloted, robot weapons.

The standard Magic-Mech stood about fifty-feet tall; slightly shorter than the Hunter Battle-Mech of Free Land. It was plated in high-quality, mithril-orihalcum armor, thought its overall tensile strength was still less than hyper-durlenium. The general shape was basic humanoid, but each hand had two massive fingers with one opposing thumb. The head was ovoid, and had no facial features other than a single, optical visor.

The main weapons of the Magic-Mechs were long-range, Mystic Projectile Rifles and mythril-orihalcum short swords. Each machine was powered by twin, large Psion Storage Batteries or PSBs, and driven by a generic Eldritch Enhancer. The movement and performance of the new machines was subpar in comparison to their Free Land counterparts, but they were adequate enough to suit Naran’s needs.

As the hordes of Battle-Mechanoids came closer, the Magic-Mechs began forming ranks as they held up their rifles. In his command vehicle, Versen watched his mystic viewer and began counting down.

“All units, prepare to fire in 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… FIRE!”

Mystic circles briefly appeared before the muzzles of their weapons as each Magic-Mech pilot took aim and let loose with their shots. Each rifle fired off a heavy and dense projectile, propelled to great speeds by a burst of magic. The shells were the rifle variant of the newly-developed Anti-Psion Armor-Piercing rounds or APAP. Unfortunately for the Naran Mech pilots, their weapons lacked the rapid-fire capability of the Star Alliance. The rifles also lacked the range and overall firepower.

Some rounds did manage to hit their targets, but most either fell short or missed completely. The Magic-Mechs were too slow in their reloading processes as the Battle Mechanoids began to clash in close-quarters. Just about all the Naran fighters had to drop their rifles and reach for their short swords. Some did not react fast enough as several Battle-Mechanoids brought them down and tore at their armor. Others managed to cut down their opponents as they activated the magic spells that allowed the edge of their swords to vibrate at a high frequency. This was the Kingdom’s attempt to create a weapon equal to the Beam Sabers of the Battle-Mechs.

Some distance away, the Pseudo-Planet Ravager continued on its journey towards a more heavily populated area.

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The Merdov Continent…

“Push those bastards back!” Commander Orgut shouted as the Diaraga battalion he was leading advanced on a swarm of Mechanoids and Battle-Mechanoids. Their main cannons let loose with frequent blasts, firing off volleys of APAP rounds. Unlike the Kingdom of Naran, their weapons were more potent and suited to fire off the newly-developed ammunition.

Flying above them, the Dwarf Nations’ Air Force, consisting of dozens of squadrons of Ariatols, were either engaging against airborne Mechanoids, or they were making strafing runs against the Pseudo-Planet Ravager and its ground forces. Bolstering their forces were several squads of mass-produced Gigarans, equipped with military hardware and armor-plating.

Unlike the Naran Mech forces, the Dwarf Nations were more competent and had been diligently training since their induction into the Star Alliance. They were schooled in the tactics of fire-and-maneuver and how to use their weaponry efficiently. There were new branches of the Star Alliance military which now included dwarf fighter pilots, naval and ground troops. Some pilots were now being trained in remodeled versions of the Star Hawk starfighter, which were renamed as the Star Falcons. Others had joined all-Scrapper Mech units. Two dwarves became part of the 67^th Mech Squad where Commander Kraits welcomed the new recruits with open arms.

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The Bisra Continent…

“Open fire!” Lenns Hodder shouted as he led a group of Scrappers toward a very large concentration of Battle-Mechanoids and Mechnoids. High above them, dozens of Sabre jets screamed across the skies as they duked it out with flying Mechnoids. Some were making attack runs on the third Pseudo-Planet Ravager as it headed toward a major city.

Lenns nodded as he watched from the safety of the cockpit of his Scrapper, as a squadron of the new Battlebreaker tanks pounded away with their 90mm guns. The people of Atlans had made several modifications to the original M48 Patton tanks that Free Land had given to them. These included more robust armor plating, improved suspension and an autoloader system that reduced the number of crew members to three; a commander, a driver and a gunner.

The most amazing modification of all was the fact that the new tanks possessed limited transformation ability. After seeing the transforming Valiant fighter of Free Land, Atlans engineers were inspired and managed to learn the fundamentals of advanced hydraulics and rudimentary robotics. They were nowhere near the level of Free Land or the Dwarf Nations, but now the Battlebreaker could shift to an alternate mode for different terrain and combat scenarios.

The lead tank commander gave the order to his driver to begin the transformation. The driver pulled a lever and started turning a nearby crank. The commander and gunner also began pulling levers and working cranks to manually move sections of the tank to new positions. The back end of the tank shifted downward as the turret started rising upwards. The tracks moved outwards on cams, powered by electrical batteries. Soon the entire tank looked more like a field artillery piece as its turret had a higher elevation.

The turret then pointed upwards and started firing at higher angles, shooting at flying enemies. In this new format, the Battlebreaker had a higher silhouette, but was now capable of anti-air missions as well as double as a large field howitzer. The others protected the commander from enemy fire as his tank kept on shooting down airborne Mechanoids.

When Free Land first learned about this major modification, many suspected that Atlans might have broken their promise not to try and reverse-engineer the Scrappers. The engineers of Atlans swore that they did no such thing and that the Battlebreakers transforming ability was their own idea and they had developed the technology themselves. In truth, they had gotten a hold of the robotic technology of the Metal Soldier and used its principles to build the Battlebreaker. As for where they got the blueprints, they had a certain clandestine group called GUST to thank.

However, like nuclear energy, Free Land could only take Atlans at its word and lacked the evidence needed to prove otherwise. At this point, where they got the technology to create their first Mechs was not as important as using them to drive off the Fake Planet Ravagers off their world.

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In far-planet orbit, the bridge of the star battleship Missouri…

“Naran, Atlans and the Dwarf Nations seem to be holding their own.” Lieutenant Commander Harken noted as he, Reelan and Mark watched the main holo-viewer’s tactical display of the conflicts going on down on the planet’s surface.

“The Empire of Sath seems to be coming to reinforce the Dwarf Nations.” Mark’s wife and second-in-command noted as images of Sath tanks and aircraft started to enter the battlefield on Merdov.

“And our own forces?” The captain of the Missouri asked.

“We’ve dispatched the Yorktown and Lexington, along with their defense fleets, to reinforce Naran and Atlans respectively.” The Catian third-in-command stated. “The Missouri, Iowa, and most of the Planetary Assault Fleet are on standby.”

“And the Transmat station?”

“It’s functioning at around 80%.” Reelan responded. “Chief Engineer Riken states that’s the best his crews can do in such a short time period.”

“We’re going to have to make things work with just that much.” Her husband stated.

“Not that I want to add more things onto an already full plate, but…”

“Go ahead, Commander.”

“Riken states that he’s not at all confident that the station can produce three separate Hyper Gates, at least under current circumstances.”

“How many can they make?” Harken inquired.

“At best… only one.” The Kyteeri stated.

“One?! But we have three Planet Ravagers to deal with!”

“I know, but Engineer Riken states that the station doesn’t have enough power cells and stabilization field emitters to create three complete Hyper Gates. Remember, we need the entire Planet Ravager to pass through. They were in the middle of modifying and upgrading the systems to handle the stress, but then those Fake Cryterian weapons appeared. They simply didn’t have the time.”

“So we can only have one completed Hyper Gate?” Reelan’s lifemate inquired as he began pondering all available options.

“Even having one is stretching it. Riken stated that’s it will be a one-time, all-or-nothing attempt. They would consider themselves lucky if they don’t end up blowing up the station.”

“If we can’t get all three of those abominations off the planet, then what’s the use of having only one Hyper Gate?” Harken pointed out in frustration. “Damn it! It’s a pity we can’t just shove them all through the same Gate!”

At that point, Mark’s expression brightened a bit as he snapped his fingers.

“What is it, Captain?” Reelan asked.

Mark smirked a bit as he turned to his communications officer. “Lieutenant Visera! Open a channel with the Transmat station. The Lieutenant Commander and I have just come up with one crazy idea.”

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Five minutes later…

“So what do you think about our idea?” Mark asked as he spoke with Chief Engineer Riken on the main holo-viewer.

“I have to agree with you. That is one insane strategy… but, I kind of like it.” The Velor engineer smiled a bit. “Where did you the idea?”

“You can thank Lieutenant Commander Harken for the inspiration.” The Captain nodded to his third-in-command.

“All I said was that it was a pity that we couldn’t shove all three Ravagers through the same Gate.” Harken stated.

“Exactly. And I thought, why not?” Delan turned back to addressing Riken. “Commander Reelan stated that you only had enough power and emitters to produce one complete Hyper Gate, correct?”

“That is correct.” Riken affirmed.

“That means you can only produce one pathway from the entrance to the exit portals.”

“Correct. However, we have three former Naran superweapons in three different locations.”

“Right! However, that doesn’t mean we have to create three separate pathways! Why not just create three entrances, have them all connect to that one pathway, and then force them all out of the same exit?”

There was a long stretch of silence as Riken considered the idea. After a minute of silence, he said in a careful and quiet tone, “It… just… might work. I mean… it’s… theoretically possible.  Instead wasting all that energy trying to create three unstable Hyper Gates, we can use it to create one Hyper Gate, re-route the three entrances to the same pathway, and then boost the exit portal to allow for all three monstrosities to pass through. However, we have to get the timing just right… down to the pico-second. This is going to require a lot of preparation… and a lot of luck.”

“Sometimes, all you have to go on is luck. I’ve also gotten the go-ahead with the Council. Let’s do this crazy thing!”

To be continued…

Author’s Notes

I’d like to apologize to my readers for my lengthy absence. After coming back from overseas, I had some family matters that just couldn’t wait. As of now, I’m back to writing and I hope to have the arc finished in a couple more chapters. See you then!

 

• (1) Quote by famed gunsmith John Moses Browning