Chapter 5 - To Tame The Beast
The imperialist carrier TIN Venus' Flytrap flickered back into existence in the real world, exiting from the quantum waveform unscathed, one of the new "Goddess" class carriers, many times larger then a Saarkin-Cho, excepting the addition of 2 belly launch bays, a feature copied from the Imperator. The craft looked like a Imperator-Saarkin hybrid, possessing the bow construct of the Imperator, but putting the bow flight bay underneath the slender bow shape. It more or less resembled a Saarkin Cho grafted between two Imperators and then lengthened., except for the addition of several 8-tube self reloading missile launcher, 4 large ion cannons, and 10 upgraded mass driver turrets, along with 6 energy cannons. The carrier could also build destroyers, missile destroyers, and resource controllersβ¦the designers were confident the vessel could produce heavy cruisers, but advised that it would never be feasible. With only this one in existence, great care had been taken to ensure that these three would last for the next decades or so. Nicknamed "mini-mother ships", designated officially as "super-carriers", they'd do. Plans had been made to accommodate 1 into each of the Imperial Navies 3, extremely large "war fleets", such a ambitious plan would be feasible in a decade or more.
That last fact, to him, was amazing. Heavy Cruisers. then it would be as good as having a mother ship around, for much less the cost, and several times the mobility.
He had spent the last hour sitting in his new, bigger quarters, reading up on the statistics of this new machine. He hadn't noticed the time dilation, or the quantum waveform disorientation.
Exiting hyperspace the super-carrier scanned the system around it. The Bentusi had been defeated, so had Kiith Manaan's task force. The Somtaaw had just retreated. A massive life-sign, dead ahead...the beast.
The carrier had also one extra card against the beast. It wasn't much but it'd do.
Out of nowhere a infected Bandit crashed into the carrier, a electrical charge coursing through the vessel, focused around the bandits crash site. Nothing. No infection. A temporary solution that worked...running an electrical charge through the hull, but no guarantees that it would work against the infection beam.
Above Qu'jet the light above his head changed to a red one, and flickered three times.
All hands stand by, he thought.
Getting up he changed into a pilot's jumpsuit, and grabbed a sidearm. No particular reason, except for psychological. He left the room and headed for the bow flight bay. He'd get a first hand view of anything, and he would be much closer to his post.
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The sensor officer watched his monitor, out of nowhere a sensor shadow appeared, then vanished. And another appeared, and another, and another, and another. Soon the alert klaxons went off, sending personnel scurrying about to battle stations. The captain suddenly emerged from his room and headed to his chair, set in the center of the bridge. Signaling to the comm officer he opened a channel on all frequencies.
"This is Admiral Rocaarn Selet of the TIN carrier Flytrap. We know you know who we are Beast."
The lone carrier moved to about 1,000 meters from the Bentusi debris field, and waited for a reply.
"Imperrrriaals...sstop your madness...or become one of us, like your friendss..."
The admiral did not flinch. He already knew the beast was sentient.
A low-ranking messenger exits the lift and moves towards the admiral, whispering into his ear, before heading back and vanishing, one of many new "scrubs" transferred to this mission, the purpose being to train them in the environment of skilled professionals.
"What is it that you want?"
"Yesssss...want...parent...want...data, also want...partttttsss..."
The super-carrier then launches a probe, flying through the beast fleet, flying by the command ship, getting in a couple dozen shots and sensor readings of the craft, before self destructing.
Suddenly, like a beast enraged, the heavy cruisers began powering up weapons, a energy pulse flying several meters past the bridge. Wasting no time, the carrier then hyperspaces out before the beast can react...one super-carrier could not hope to win. The super-carrier was also a extremely important part of the fleet. The Beast must not learn of it or its schematics.
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Briefing Room
Around a thin, oval-shaped table, made of fine mahogany wood, convenes the staff, which commands every division of labor inside the giant craft. Now suggestions and logical analysis goes back and forth.
Command: "We know now the Beast is sentient. The beast also has reverse engineered and deployed whole fleets based on Turanic, Somtaaw, and Taiidan technology."
The Intelligence Officer, a pale man with graying hair, once looking out the window to the stars, suddenly brings his chair about.
Intel: "My superiors have told me, that Intelligence has broken and deciphered several encoded transmissions from the Kuun-Lan to Somtaaw Kiith'sa headquarters on Hiigara. Transmissions from outer rim stations of the Somtaaw, Soban, Nabaal and S'jet kiiths reveal of multiple beast attacks. Dozens of war fleets have vanished without a trace. The Manaan carrier deployed to assist the Bentusi at Coruc-Tel, the Caal-Shto, was detected leaving a nebula, with the Kuun-Lan. The beast appears to be executing coordinated assaults against us, testing our defenses. They already have attacked a Imperialist convoy. We captured some samples of the beast, and have them on site at a research station."
Command: "Why didn't you tell us, before we charged right into the hands of the beast? Do you know what kind of risk you nearly put us into?"
Suddenly Qu'jet leaned back on his chair, deathly silent all through the meeting. He hadn't had anything to say, for now this was dealing with tactics, and had nothing to do with the strike wings, so he remained silent.
He represented the strike wings, anything from the nimble Fiirkans to the heavy corvettes or goliath-killing attack bombers. Nothing here needed his attention, he merely tuned out everything...they wouldn't call on him.