I hope we don't have to wait too long for the next update.
Star Wars Fanfic: The True Rebellion
Moderator: LadyTevar
Fun!
I hope we don't have to wait too long for the next update.
I hope we don't have to wait too long for the next update.
For example, suppose I wrote a book that within 30 years of the moon landing millions of people could be duped by bad science and endless hectoring into believing that it didn't happen... nah, can't do that, too unbelievable for a fantasy novel, right?--Terry Pratchett, The new Discworld Companion
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consequences
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Ya know, sometimes you just have to say 'screw it. Its not like I can't edit later:
Chapter 10
"So, we located another base? Without any readily apparent help from our dear puppet master friend?" Moff Eaton inquired.
"Yes sir, as per our instructions, the fleet conducted a deep scan of every significant mass in each system they surveyed. The base was fiendishly well-hidden sir, in a naturally occuring electronicaly cluttered system. However, the Crystal Grav Traps were able to isolate the Gravimetric Density Differential, and by polarising the Subspace-Scan Beacons, we facilitated the manifestation of a Quantum-Wave Diagram-" Billy broke off, noticing the look in the Moff's eye, "Um, we noticed the density was off, so we 3-D mapped the area sir."
"And a full planetary shield was activated, cutting us off as soon as our scans hit them." Admiral Hall reported, "So now we get to have fun determining if its a critical base and a trap, a decoy and a trap, or just a trap. In the meantime, I've authorised the release of a quarter of our recon assets to look for similar sites, and cut loose enough lighter units for a full surveillance shell around the system."
"Of course, given what they've done to our heavy forces, there's no way we can prosecute a successful planetary siege and capture. Open a direct channel connecting me to this planet." Eaton ordered. He sat staring at the star map for the minute it took for the connection to be established, before stating, "This is the Galactic Empire. Surrender immediately"
A slightly mechanical voice came over the speaker, "I'm afraid I'm not authorised to surrender, but if you would care to surrender to me, I'm sure something could be arranged. Oh, where are my manners, this is Automated factory Alpha One, pleased to be under siege by you."
"You do realise that you guarantee your destruction by refusing to cooperate, and that your precious leader won't lift a finger to save a computer?"
"Just keep believing that. Do you have anything interesting to say, or should I get back to adding more digits to Pi?"
Eaton disconnected the transmission without another word. He then turned to his staff "There's no way they are doing major work on capital ships on a planetary surface. This whole mess has to be a trap, designed to draw off our resources, but why?"
Billy looked up from the calculations he was performing on his Padd "Well sir, if we assume that emplacement was made as soon as the threat appeared, a little more than two years ago, and that just a single heavy duty Construction droid, and a simple autofactory were dropped off, then by now we could easily be looking at an entire ground warfare Battlegroups worth of material per planet. The figures get much worse if we assume that they started earlier, or with more equipment, or both. And they are only going to become more pronounced if we can't locate and eliminate all of them soon."
"And because of what he's done, we can't act against his bases even if we find them. I'm really starting to hate this guy." Moff Eaton turned back to studying the reports.
*****************
Three months later, you'd almost think no time had passed, as the trio went over the latest reports over a bucket of Mynock tenders. Moff Eaton put down the report, shaking his head in disbelief, "So every single one of these computers claims to be 'Automated Factory Alpha One'? How many does this make it now?"
"Forty-three" Admiral Hall replied, "judging by the relative ease with which we found thirty-six of them, we are tentatively classifying them as mostly decoy operations, that we were intended to find first, and then make erroneous assumptions about the sites that were being chosen. This seems to be borne out by the relatively smaller density discrepancies at those sites."
"And how do these things respond when you point out that we know there's more than one of them?"
"They debate the point milord."
"Debate?"
"Yes Milord, vigorously. They seem to feel that we can not with any certainty guarantee the existence of any other factory computers that they themselves are unable to detect. We've shown them proof of this, and they claim that we falsified it. We've offered to open communications beteween the various sites, and they have claimed that we constructed our own computers and are endeavoring to deceive them. When we press the point, they claim that our existence can not conclusively be proven not to be the result of a sensor malfunction, and that any information provided by a sensor glitch is inherently of no value. When we point out that it is impossible to prove a negative, they claim that our concession is accepted. We are unable to determine whether this is simply a security measure to protect against contamination, or a cruel and malicious joke, but I personally would bet money on it being a joke, that fits with the limited transcripts we have from these rebel's transmissions"
"And strategically?"
" We are still at least six months from being able to even reach the force level we had prior to the buggering the fleet received. It turns out that all of the shipyards had to have their computer cores replaced, as the only way to guarantee 100% effective and consistent hardwiring in the fleet was to have all of the shipyards hard-wired to build the ships that way in the first place. In fact, that's the leading theory the Ubiqtorate has right now for how the whole thing was achieved by the rebels. Even after we build up to our prior levels, it would still take a minimum of three more months before we could even consider offensive operations against the enemies current numbers, and probably more like six. As it is, we are still taking hideous shipping losses becuase we just don't have the capital hulls to stop the limited numbers of destroyer grade ships that the enemy is currently fielding."
"I've said it before, and Klono knows I'll say it again, Sith-Kriffing-Spit" With that Moff Eaton turned back to the interminable loss reports yet again.
***************
The Death Star was deployed in all of its glory and might, nearly a year afterwards. Its origin was a mystery, as no shipyard large enough to even aid in the construction of such a mammoth achievement had been utilised, and there had been literally no appreciable effect upon the galactic economy, before the Empire went on a mild upsurge of recruiting to gather the billions upon billions of needed crew. It was commonly supposed that the Emperor had merely lost a number of deepdocks in the budgetary mess, and had those build up additional facilities until the Death Star's womb, whatever and wherever that may have been, was ready. Howver, try as they might, none of the interested organisations could track down any leads to unravel this mystery, or any trace of a moon sized facility that had previously gone unnoticed in the galaxy.
The Death Star was turned loose to eliminate the Rebel Alliance, more as a live fire exercise than anything else, before being sent against more mysterious and dangerous foes. It performed flawlessly in the initial stages, obliterating Alderaan, and sending a clear message to those who thought they could hide behind an official stance of pacifism. It was thus an incredible shock to everyone involved when possibly the luckiest fool in the entirety of the galaxy made an impossible shot, removing the Death Star from the equation. However, the solution to the problem was simple.
*****************
"We are moving against the enemy, now?" Moff Eaton asked incredulously "When our forces are possibly at their lowest morale yet, and our most potent weapon has been eliminated by people we ddn't remotely consider a threat? Milord Vader, with all respect, why?"
"That is not your concern. As the Emperor has seen fit to find alternative duties for me, it has been decided that your Flag Admiral Hall shall be in direct charge of this operation. He is to report at once, alone, to the fleet staging area to take charge." with a curt gesture, the Dark Lord of the Sith cut the transmission.
"Well, that's it, your boned" Billy supplied concisely, if not exactly helpfully.
"Thanks a lot, you disrespectful little jumped up grease monkey" Hall said fondly. "Milord, its been a very nerve-wracking honor to serve with you. By your leave?"
Moff Eaton nodded, and watched him go out the door. "Billy?"
"Yes Boss?"
"I need you to cut orders for everything we can spare to meet at a safe distance from the rendezvous, and keep anyone from finding out about them while they shadow Hall's fleet indefinitely."
"Right Away Boss!" Billy exclaimed enthusiastically, as he pulled out his padd and went to work.
****
tbc....
Apologies for the horrendous delay. More Apologies for the lack of action too(I'll make up for it next time). Additional Apologies for the complete lack of Rebellion POV during this chapter. In fact, General Apologies all around.
Chapter 10
"So, we located another base? Without any readily apparent help from our dear puppet master friend?" Moff Eaton inquired.
"Yes sir, as per our instructions, the fleet conducted a deep scan of every significant mass in each system they surveyed. The base was fiendishly well-hidden sir, in a naturally occuring electronicaly cluttered system. However, the Crystal Grav Traps were able to isolate the Gravimetric Density Differential, and by polarising the Subspace-Scan Beacons, we facilitated the manifestation of a Quantum-Wave Diagram-" Billy broke off, noticing the look in the Moff's eye, "Um, we noticed the density was off, so we 3-D mapped the area sir."
"And a full planetary shield was activated, cutting us off as soon as our scans hit them." Admiral Hall reported, "So now we get to have fun determining if its a critical base and a trap, a decoy and a trap, or just a trap. In the meantime, I've authorised the release of a quarter of our recon assets to look for similar sites, and cut loose enough lighter units for a full surveillance shell around the system."
"Of course, given what they've done to our heavy forces, there's no way we can prosecute a successful planetary siege and capture. Open a direct channel connecting me to this planet." Eaton ordered. He sat staring at the star map for the minute it took for the connection to be established, before stating, "This is the Galactic Empire. Surrender immediately"
A slightly mechanical voice came over the speaker, "I'm afraid I'm not authorised to surrender, but if you would care to surrender to me, I'm sure something could be arranged. Oh, where are my manners, this is Automated factory Alpha One, pleased to be under siege by you."
"You do realise that you guarantee your destruction by refusing to cooperate, and that your precious leader won't lift a finger to save a computer?"
"Just keep believing that. Do you have anything interesting to say, or should I get back to adding more digits to Pi?"
Eaton disconnected the transmission without another word. He then turned to his staff "There's no way they are doing major work on capital ships on a planetary surface. This whole mess has to be a trap, designed to draw off our resources, but why?"
Billy looked up from the calculations he was performing on his Padd "Well sir, if we assume that emplacement was made as soon as the threat appeared, a little more than two years ago, and that just a single heavy duty Construction droid, and a simple autofactory were dropped off, then by now we could easily be looking at an entire ground warfare Battlegroups worth of material per planet. The figures get much worse if we assume that they started earlier, or with more equipment, or both. And they are only going to become more pronounced if we can't locate and eliminate all of them soon."
"And because of what he's done, we can't act against his bases even if we find them. I'm really starting to hate this guy." Moff Eaton turned back to studying the reports.
*****************
Three months later, you'd almost think no time had passed, as the trio went over the latest reports over a bucket of Mynock tenders. Moff Eaton put down the report, shaking his head in disbelief, "So every single one of these computers claims to be 'Automated Factory Alpha One'? How many does this make it now?"
"Forty-three" Admiral Hall replied, "judging by the relative ease with which we found thirty-six of them, we are tentatively classifying them as mostly decoy operations, that we were intended to find first, and then make erroneous assumptions about the sites that were being chosen. This seems to be borne out by the relatively smaller density discrepancies at those sites."
"And how do these things respond when you point out that we know there's more than one of them?"
"They debate the point milord."
"Debate?"
"Yes Milord, vigorously. They seem to feel that we can not with any certainty guarantee the existence of any other factory computers that they themselves are unable to detect. We've shown them proof of this, and they claim that we falsified it. We've offered to open communications beteween the various sites, and they have claimed that we constructed our own computers and are endeavoring to deceive them. When we press the point, they claim that our existence can not conclusively be proven not to be the result of a sensor malfunction, and that any information provided by a sensor glitch is inherently of no value. When we point out that it is impossible to prove a negative, they claim that our concession is accepted. We are unable to determine whether this is simply a security measure to protect against contamination, or a cruel and malicious joke, but I personally would bet money on it being a joke, that fits with the limited transcripts we have from these rebel's transmissions"
"And strategically?"
" We are still at least six months from being able to even reach the force level we had prior to the buggering the fleet received. It turns out that all of the shipyards had to have their computer cores replaced, as the only way to guarantee 100% effective and consistent hardwiring in the fleet was to have all of the shipyards hard-wired to build the ships that way in the first place. In fact, that's the leading theory the Ubiqtorate has right now for how the whole thing was achieved by the rebels. Even after we build up to our prior levels, it would still take a minimum of three more months before we could even consider offensive operations against the enemies current numbers, and probably more like six. As it is, we are still taking hideous shipping losses becuase we just don't have the capital hulls to stop the limited numbers of destroyer grade ships that the enemy is currently fielding."
"I've said it before, and Klono knows I'll say it again, Sith-Kriffing-Spit" With that Moff Eaton turned back to the interminable loss reports yet again.
***************
The Death Star was deployed in all of its glory and might, nearly a year afterwards. Its origin was a mystery, as no shipyard large enough to even aid in the construction of such a mammoth achievement had been utilised, and there had been literally no appreciable effect upon the galactic economy, before the Empire went on a mild upsurge of recruiting to gather the billions upon billions of needed crew. It was commonly supposed that the Emperor had merely lost a number of deepdocks in the budgetary mess, and had those build up additional facilities until the Death Star's womb, whatever and wherever that may have been, was ready. Howver, try as they might, none of the interested organisations could track down any leads to unravel this mystery, or any trace of a moon sized facility that had previously gone unnoticed in the galaxy.
The Death Star was turned loose to eliminate the Rebel Alliance, more as a live fire exercise than anything else, before being sent against more mysterious and dangerous foes. It performed flawlessly in the initial stages, obliterating Alderaan, and sending a clear message to those who thought they could hide behind an official stance of pacifism. It was thus an incredible shock to everyone involved when possibly the luckiest fool in the entirety of the galaxy made an impossible shot, removing the Death Star from the equation. However, the solution to the problem was simple.
*****************
"We are moving against the enemy, now?" Moff Eaton asked incredulously "When our forces are possibly at their lowest morale yet, and our most potent weapon has been eliminated by people we ddn't remotely consider a threat? Milord Vader, with all respect, why?"
"That is not your concern. As the Emperor has seen fit to find alternative duties for me, it has been decided that your Flag Admiral Hall shall be in direct charge of this operation. He is to report at once, alone, to the fleet staging area to take charge." with a curt gesture, the Dark Lord of the Sith cut the transmission.
"Well, that's it, your boned" Billy supplied concisely, if not exactly helpfully.
"Thanks a lot, you disrespectful little jumped up grease monkey" Hall said fondly. "Milord, its been a very nerve-wracking honor to serve with you. By your leave?"
Moff Eaton nodded, and watched him go out the door. "Billy?"
"Yes Boss?"
"I need you to cut orders for everything we can spare to meet at a safe distance from the rendezvous, and keep anyone from finding out about them while they shadow Hall's fleet indefinitely."
"Right Away Boss!" Billy exclaimed enthusiastically, as he pulled out his padd and went to work.
****
tbc....
Apologies for the horrendous delay. More Apologies for the lack of action too(I'll make up for it next time). Additional Apologies for the complete lack of Rebellion POV during this chapter. In fact, General Apologies all around.
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Crazedwraith
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consequences
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Chapter 11: "We got Death Star, We got Death Star"
Imperial Shuttle Tiberium approached fleet rendezvous, constantly interrogated by security, both automated probes and manned ships. "So why all of the mystery" Hall asked the pilot, who was the only other person on the shuttle."
"I'm sure everything wil be clear momentarily sir, I'm really not supposed to talk about it sir." the pilot replied nervously.
"You do understand who I've been working for, and how easy it would be for me to contact him and have a horrible fate prepared for you."
"Yes sir, but I'm under orders sir, and if I disobey them I'll be executed regardless sir" the pilot replied, nearly hysterical.
"Hmpph" Hall grunted, as the shuttle cleared the final security cordon, and darted in amongst the massed fleet. More than slightly light in the heavy metal department, he thought, as they passed the thousands of assembled ships. "So, fleet HQ is based on that moon that the fleet is centered on? Wait a second.", as he brought up the copilots sensor read-outs and froze in shock.
"Yes Flag Admiral, that is what we were hiding. As far as the galaxy is to be concerned, the Death Star that the Rebels are claiming destruction for was an ill-conceived decoy operation, that destroyed Alderaan in an effort to blame us, and was tracked down and eliminated by the Imperial Fleet." the pilot replied coldly, all trace of nervousness gone.
"Who are you?"
"No one at all, Admiral. Consider me a little voice from above, granting you information at my whim."
"The Ubiqtorate."
"Now really Admiral, why believe in such fanciful nonsense? As far as anyone can prove, I am simply your aide."
"Sure. So what are you going to deign to tell me while there's no one else to listen?"
"It's quite simple, the Emperor believes in redundancy, and if you can completely hide the true origins of one Planet-killer, why not more?"
"So, I am to take this station and fleet, with men who have never worked with me before, and face the most fiendish, unpredictable mind that I've ever encountered. With you here to remove me if I falter in any way."
"Please, Admiral, a man of your record would clearly choose the honorable way out if he learned that he was incapable of effectively serving his liege. That plays so much better with the masses you know." the 'pilot' smiled slightly. as the shuttle landed aboard the station. "I'll be sure to inform you of what the Emperor wants you to know", with that his manner changed completely back to that of a harried subordinate, with the barest hint of a malicious glint deep within his eyes, "Please sir, I'll be pleased to provide any help that I can."
Admiral Hall smiled thinly, "Of course commander, lets see what I've been granted by the Emperor's favor. Oh, and do get my bags, there's a good chap." He grinned as his 'aide' narrowed his eyes slightly, even as he promptly moved to obey.
*********************
"Admiral, we've lost all contact with Alpha Seven! We received a garbled transmission that may have been an Omega signal, then nothing." Iruled reported after receiving the initial packet from communications
"It's too soon." Maverick whispered to himself, saying out loud: "Fleet and base status?"
"90% of the fleet is prepped and ready to go. We can push that to 95% if we're given a week. They've isolated twenty-three Alpha sites, and a hundred fifteen of the Beta decoys, but they don't seem to have found any of the Gamma reserves. About sixty percent of our planetary construction should be able to make rendezvous without compromising themselves, or their point of origin."
Maverick considered the star map for a minute. "Have all available forces meet at the prep point for Alpha Thirty-three. Everything that can be cleared for action in two weeks at that location.
************
So far the operation had been going smoothly. In fact, entirely too smoothly. The Death Star's course had been carefully plotted out to bring it to one of the target sites every eight hours in order to deliver a maximum firepower superlaser shot, to ensure the obliteration of any conceivable defensive shield.
So, now, 14 days after the beginning of the campaign, and 44 destroyed worlds later, morale rapidly bounced between elation at the ease of the job, and nervous dread at the trap that everyone was half-convinced was being prepared. The change of pattern at the 45th target was almost a relief.
The Death Star's primary control center was quietly abuzz, as the full holographic diplay of the system dominated the room. From the crimson target world, a series of unknown contacts was issuing forth. Detailed long range scans, and profligate expenditure of reconnaissance droids soon gave a clear picture of the force coming at them.
"Automated attack craft and light frigates" Captain Ricwan, the Senior Analysis Officer reported. "In the vicinity of fifty thousand small craft and exactly 417 capital ships, forming up for an attack run."
"Interdictors online, maintain the screen and reserve forces" Admiral Hall ordered.
The attackers swarmed forward, truly a staggering force, if you ignored the unending array of ships they were attacking. Compared to their foes, they might as well have been mynocks attacking an unending horde of rancors. They leapt into hyperspace, only to come crashing back out several million kilometers short of their targets. Undaunted, they charged onwards, pouring forth missiles and turbolaser bolts.
The vortex of fire that engulfed them was literally impossible for a human mind to comprehend unaided. In any holodrama, this would have been the time for a bare few ships, captained by heroes, to crash through the wall of energy and immolate themselves to remove a few of their hated foes. And so might the clash be told to others later, in bars and barracks rooms, because there was no romance or glory in the exectuion that occured.
A number of unlucky fighter pilots made close, but brief acquaintance with a bolt of energy, and a few small ships suffered impacts from shattered, melted debris. But the losses weren't even enough to warrant rplacement from the staggering reserves the Empire's forces commanded, and the ships moved aside as the Death Star slid into extreme firing range of the planet.
At this moment, an uncoded widebeam signal was broadcast to the attackers: "From Hell's heart I stab at thee". Tension rose further, as scanner operators frantically searched for their impending doom, but nothing presented itself, even as the superlaser beam sped outwards, annihilating the planet instantly.
The fleet slowly began to come about, moving towartds its jump-off point to go to the next target, when the unkown contact alarms began to sound.
tbc....
Imperial Shuttle Tiberium approached fleet rendezvous, constantly interrogated by security, both automated probes and manned ships. "So why all of the mystery" Hall asked the pilot, who was the only other person on the shuttle."
"I'm sure everything wil be clear momentarily sir, I'm really not supposed to talk about it sir." the pilot replied nervously.
"You do understand who I've been working for, and how easy it would be for me to contact him and have a horrible fate prepared for you."
"Yes sir, but I'm under orders sir, and if I disobey them I'll be executed regardless sir" the pilot replied, nearly hysterical.
"Hmpph" Hall grunted, as the shuttle cleared the final security cordon, and darted in amongst the massed fleet. More than slightly light in the heavy metal department, he thought, as they passed the thousands of assembled ships. "So, fleet HQ is based on that moon that the fleet is centered on? Wait a second.", as he brought up the copilots sensor read-outs and froze in shock.
"Yes Flag Admiral, that is what we were hiding. As far as the galaxy is to be concerned, the Death Star that the Rebels are claiming destruction for was an ill-conceived decoy operation, that destroyed Alderaan in an effort to blame us, and was tracked down and eliminated by the Imperial Fleet." the pilot replied coldly, all trace of nervousness gone.
"Who are you?"
"No one at all, Admiral. Consider me a little voice from above, granting you information at my whim."
"The Ubiqtorate."
"Now really Admiral, why believe in such fanciful nonsense? As far as anyone can prove, I am simply your aide."
"Sure. So what are you going to deign to tell me while there's no one else to listen?"
"It's quite simple, the Emperor believes in redundancy, and if you can completely hide the true origins of one Planet-killer, why not more?"
"So, I am to take this station and fleet, with men who have never worked with me before, and face the most fiendish, unpredictable mind that I've ever encountered. With you here to remove me if I falter in any way."
"Please, Admiral, a man of your record would clearly choose the honorable way out if he learned that he was incapable of effectively serving his liege. That plays so much better with the masses you know." the 'pilot' smiled slightly. as the shuttle landed aboard the station. "I'll be sure to inform you of what the Emperor wants you to know", with that his manner changed completely back to that of a harried subordinate, with the barest hint of a malicious glint deep within his eyes, "Please sir, I'll be pleased to provide any help that I can."
Admiral Hall smiled thinly, "Of course commander, lets see what I've been granted by the Emperor's favor. Oh, and do get my bags, there's a good chap." He grinned as his 'aide' narrowed his eyes slightly, even as he promptly moved to obey.
*********************
"Admiral, we've lost all contact with Alpha Seven! We received a garbled transmission that may have been an Omega signal, then nothing." Iruled reported after receiving the initial packet from communications
"It's too soon." Maverick whispered to himself, saying out loud: "Fleet and base status?"
"90% of the fleet is prepped and ready to go. We can push that to 95% if we're given a week. They've isolated twenty-three Alpha sites, and a hundred fifteen of the Beta decoys, but they don't seem to have found any of the Gamma reserves. About sixty percent of our planetary construction should be able to make rendezvous without compromising themselves, or their point of origin."
Maverick considered the star map for a minute. "Have all available forces meet at the prep point for Alpha Thirty-three. Everything that can be cleared for action in two weeks at that location.
************
So far the operation had been going smoothly. In fact, entirely too smoothly. The Death Star's course had been carefully plotted out to bring it to one of the target sites every eight hours in order to deliver a maximum firepower superlaser shot, to ensure the obliteration of any conceivable defensive shield.
So, now, 14 days after the beginning of the campaign, and 44 destroyed worlds later, morale rapidly bounced between elation at the ease of the job, and nervous dread at the trap that everyone was half-convinced was being prepared. The change of pattern at the 45th target was almost a relief.
The Death Star's primary control center was quietly abuzz, as the full holographic diplay of the system dominated the room. From the crimson target world, a series of unknown contacts was issuing forth. Detailed long range scans, and profligate expenditure of reconnaissance droids soon gave a clear picture of the force coming at them.
"Automated attack craft and light frigates" Captain Ricwan, the Senior Analysis Officer reported. "In the vicinity of fifty thousand small craft and exactly 417 capital ships, forming up for an attack run."
"Interdictors online, maintain the screen and reserve forces" Admiral Hall ordered.
The attackers swarmed forward, truly a staggering force, if you ignored the unending array of ships they were attacking. Compared to their foes, they might as well have been mynocks attacking an unending horde of rancors. They leapt into hyperspace, only to come crashing back out several million kilometers short of their targets. Undaunted, they charged onwards, pouring forth missiles and turbolaser bolts.
The vortex of fire that engulfed them was literally impossible for a human mind to comprehend unaided. In any holodrama, this would have been the time for a bare few ships, captained by heroes, to crash through the wall of energy and immolate themselves to remove a few of their hated foes. And so might the clash be told to others later, in bars and barracks rooms, because there was no romance or glory in the exectuion that occured.
A number of unlucky fighter pilots made close, but brief acquaintance with a bolt of energy, and a few small ships suffered impacts from shattered, melted debris. But the losses weren't even enough to warrant rplacement from the staggering reserves the Empire's forces commanded, and the ships moved aside as the Death Star slid into extreme firing range of the planet.
At this moment, an uncoded widebeam signal was broadcast to the attackers: "From Hell's heart I stab at thee". Tension rose further, as scanner operators frantically searched for their impending doom, but nothing presented itself, even as the superlaser beam sped outwards, annihilating the planet instantly.
The fleet slowly began to come about, moving towartds its jump-off point to go to the next target, when the unkown contact alarms began to sound.
tbc....
-
Crazedwraith
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consequences
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