StarDestroyer.Net BBS

This is a short story in at least four parts about some pilots of TIE-fighters. All characters are original characters, so no member of the main cast of SW is in this story. So if you're expecting Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader or Jabba the Hutt in this little piece of fan-faction you're going to be disappointed.

Otherwise I hope you enjoy this little story of mine.

You can find my other stories under the following links:

Pride's Prize (another short-story): http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic.php?t=83489

and

The Tale of Darth Vader's Son (an until now unfinished monster):
http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic.php?t=91577



TIE-Fighter: Resources of the Empire

Part One



TIE-fighter: Resources of the Empire


In the catalogs and starmaps of the GalacticEmpire's capital on Coruscant the brown dwarf had no name. Just a number, since there were so many stars like this one. M-IR-450,019,023 (M-Spectraltype-InnerRim-450,019,023). To some of the local population of the sector the brown dwarf was known as Durinol. The only thing remarkable about Durinol was its age. When the forces of gravity had pulled together to form the insignificant system - billions of years ago - there was enough matter to ignite the fusion of hydrogen, but not enough to give the new-born star planetary companions. A few hundred asteroids were the only entourage fate had given Durinol on its endless journey through the universe. Not that it mattered. Not for the ancient star and certainly not for its companions.

They lacked the awareness necessary to care.

Something that wasn't true of the four objects, that were on a course into the system.

They were small, very small. Smaller than planets, smaller than moons, smaller than most asteroids and comets. Only several meters long, wide and high they were fragile looking, artificial constructs: spherical cockpits attached by thin pylons to hexagonal-shaped heat-radiator-panels, with two tiny thrusters for a ionized particle-stream at their back. It was this thruster-system, that had given them their name:

Twin-Ion-Engine-fighter. TIE-fighter. The main starfighter of the GalacticEmpire.

At the moment those thrusters weren't active. The four fighters were moving with a constant speed of thirty-thousand kilometers every second - ten percent lightspeed - and since there was nothing in the vacuum of space to slow them down they would keep their speed without the need for additional thrust. This way they would reach the asteroid belt in fourty minutes.

The asteroid-belt and whatever was hiding inside of it.

---

Kolt "Scanner" Ceavers checked his sensors and scopes. Again. His instruments were working in perfect condition. Time to wake up his flight-mates.

"Alright Red-Flock, we'll do this slow and smooth. Start decelerating at 500 Gs. When we're down to 3,600 kilometers per second we increase to 4,200."

"Great. That prolongs our flight-time by an hour." came the complaint from his wing-man or, in that case, wing-woman.

"You've got a problem with our approach, Farmgirl?" Ceavers asked. The other pilot was right about the additional time, but their slow approach would make it more difficult for potential enemies to discover the approaching TIEs.

"Yes Sir, I wanted this excercise to be over before I'm running out of oxygen, Sir." answered Hella "Farmgirl" Jalpa.

Behind the impenetratable lenses of his helmet Kolt Ceaver's eyes turned into slits. Hella's voice had been humorous, but sometimes his co-pilot tended to be a little sloppy.

"You haven't forgotten your reserve-tank, Hella?" A standard tank contained enough breathable gases for twenty-four hours and this mission would be over long before that time was up, but to go out without a reserve-tank ... .

"No, Scanner, I didn't forget the reserve." Hella replied.

"Farmgirl wants this mission to be over, because her space-suit itches. Or rather she is itching. Our good Farmgirl was talking with a collegue from Blue-Flock, when she was supposed to take a shower." explained Tser Shintsky, the third member of Red-Flock.

"BOMBER!" Hella shouted.

"I knew I smelled something." Karamu Stafar, the fourth pilot of the quartet joined the conversation. "But I would have never guessed it to be Farmgirl."

"Wait till we're back, Bomber. I'll get you for that." Farmgirl threatened.

"For what? I wasn't wasting time on the typical female behavior of talking." Bomber explained.

"Talking is not typical female behavior." Hella argued.

"Yes it is. Scientifically proven. Your female body-structure is evidence of it."

"Now you've made me curios. How is my female body-structure evidence of being talkative?"

"Because a females butt is larger than her head. Do you know why?"

"I don't want to, but you're going to tell me anyway. So why is a females butt larger than her head?" Hella asked, sensing a trap.

"To save her from falling out of the window while gossiping." Bomber concluded laughing. Stafar joined him and even Ceavers couldn't surpress a chuckle.

"I hope you assholes know, that you're a bunch of mysogin Gamorreans." Hella thundered.

"Hella, I'm hurt." proclaimed Bomber. "We're the Imperial Navy. The Imperial Navy is anything but mysogin."

"Actually we're part of the local sector-group." Hella corrected. "The real Navy is so far above the likes of you, that you'll never see a real battleship. Not even a Star Cruiser when I think about it."

"Now you really hurt him." Kolt complained, who knew about Tser Shintsky's not so secret dream about a rise through the ranks of the galaxy-wide operating part of the Imperial Starfleet.

"I'm not hurt. Not really." stated Bomber. "No ill feelings Farmgirl, huuh?"

"Of course not, Bomber." assured Hella. "Of course me and my butt will still have to get at you, comrade." she said.

"Whenever you wish, Farmgirl." Tser Shintsky answered.

Here is the next part:

TIE-Fighter: Resources of the Empire - Chapter II


After one and a half hour of constant deceleration the four TIEs had slowed down to a speed of three-thousand kilometers per second. In front of them the small, inner asteroid-belt of the system became visible.

Establishing communications with his comrades Kolt Ceavers gave the final orders. It wouldn't have been necessary, because he and his three wingmates were a well-functioning team, where everybody knew his or her job, but the Imperial Starfleet preferred to do things in a certain way and their flight-recorders were running.

"Stafar you're with me. Bomber, prepare your ordanance. Watch out for my target-telemetry. Farmgirl, you cover him this time. Lets see, if we can scare a few pirates out of their hiding-holes. Red-Flock, split up."

The quartet of TIEs seperated. Hella and Tser stayed behind, while Kolt and Karamu advanced into the asteroid-belt. No longer trying to disguise their approach Kolt used the systems of his fighters to aggressively scan for anything, that wasn't natural. And the active signals of a TIE/fc's (TIE/fc = TIE/firecontrol: Standard TIE-fighter modified with additional sensors and scanners and communications-equipment to transmit targeting-data to other fighters (especially bombers) and capital ships. To make space for the sensors one of the two laser-cannons is removed) sensor-suite were impossible to ignore. Less than ten seconds had passed and Kolt's efforts were already rewarded.

Suddenly the scopes of the modified TIE picked up energy-readings from one of the larger asteroids as well as metal-alloys and shapes too regular to be natural. From one moment to the other Scanner's combat-computer was busy identifying possible targets, ranking them by priority and transmitting the information to the rest of the Imperials.

"I have two Corvettes and at least fifteen fighters. Mostly Cloakshapes and Headhunters. Looks like we woke them up." A beeping alarm caused Scanner to pull his fighter to the side, seconds later sulfur-colored beams of laser-energy crossed the TIE-pilots former flight-path. "And two artillery-pieces on a hill. Bomber, you're ready?"

"Yes." Shintsky replied.

A handful of pirate-fighters rose above the horizon, their movements still slow and uncoordinated, but they already started to turn towards the in-coming TIEs and the danger they presented.

"Doesn't look like the drunkards we usually find in such holes." Karamu Stafar commented.

Kolt Ceavers had to agree with his wingman. For a bunch of mixed together, undisciplined pirates those pilots had reacted surprisingly quick. But not quick enough.

"Lets shake up their formation and make a run over their base."

Kolt Ceaver's foot pressed down on the acceleration-pedal and his thumbs touched the trigger of his sole laser-cannon. Next to him Karamu was doing the same. Together they hurried towards the formation of the enemy, flying close to the ground to stay below the cannons on the hill.

The pirates had parked their fighters as close to each other as possible. Once to reduce the area where hostile sensors could discover them, but probably also because the closeness created a false sense of security. It wasn't easy to sit inside a tight cockpit, seperated from vacuum only by a thin layer of transparisteel and far away from your friends. Alone the ability to see them next to you helped to stay sane. Unfortunately for the pirates, what had been intended to keep them safe and undiscovered proved now to be the doom for some of them. Their fighters took off like they had been parked, making it almost impossible NOT to hit.

Getting a targeting-lock Kolt pressed the trigger again, sending green bolts in rapid succession into the hostile formation.

"WHOOHAAAA." hollowed Karamu, while they pulled their fighters up, over the edge of the crater, through the formation of the pirates and over their base, pumping untargeted laser-fire into the pirates ground-installations. "Two hits, four down."

Behind his face-plate Kolt grinned at the enthusiasm of his wingman. They had both scored a hit, but what was even better was the fact, that their fire had caused some of the pirates to panic. In their desperate attempts to evade the imperial laser-fire one of them hadn't been looking, where he was flying and had rammed one of his comrades. It spoke volumes about the robustness of the two fighters, that they didn't explode at that first impact, but now they were dropping to the ground, where at least one of them exploded.

Two large, white flashes in their back told Kolt, that Bomber had delivered his ordnance and that he and his comrades no longer had to worry about the surface-to-air-cannons. Two concussion-missiles from Bomber's TIE/gt (TIE/gt = TIE/groundtargeter: Standard TIE-fighter modified to carry bombs, missiles and torpedos. Can carry six proton-torpedos or twelve concussion-missiles. Predecessor to the actual TIE-bomber. Can fight other ships and fighters despite its name implying otherwise. Has only one laser-cannon.) had made sure of that.

But the two TIE-pilots couldn't be bothered to take notice. At the centre of the crater next to a few containers, that obviously served as provisional base the remaining enemy-fighters and their capital ships were getting ready to take off.

"Bomber, you've got the data on that Marauder?" Kolt shouted. He and Karamu had already passed the base and Kolt wasn't sure, if their unaimed laserfire had caused more damage than scratching the non-existing paint of the two larger vessels. If the two corvettes managed to take of and join the fight the TIEs of Red-Flock were in trouble. Another large explosion closely followed by another flash of white told Kolt, that another two missiles had found a target.

"A clear kill on the Marauder, Scanner. You must have hit their shield-generator during your attack-run."

"More likely they were still trying to get their shield up. Such things take time, when you start cold." Kolt answered, denying credit for the destruction of the corvette until he had checked his flight-log.

"Changes nothing about the outcome." Tser Shintsky's voice was grim.

Small wonder, since he had probably just killed several dozen people. It didn't matter, that they had been pirates, the Imperial pilots had cought them with their defenses down. But that was part of the job and Kolt Ceavers doubted, that the pirates would have given him and his comrades the courtesy of a forewarning if their positions had been reversed or mourned their death for even a second. From a purely practical point of view it was a good thing, that the Marauder was out of the picture. The corvette built by the same company that build their TIE-fighters had hangar-space for a squadron of fighters and considering the fact, that Cloakshapes and Headhunters were hyperspace-capable Kolt wouldn't have been surprised, if the Marauder had carried additional hostiles.

"That leaves just the CR90 and ... how many fighters are left?" Kolt and Karamu were already pulling their fighters around to return to the battle-zone.

"Farmgirl shot one down and the explosion of the Marauder cought three still on the ground. That leaves seven."

"Alright, don't make a direct 180-degree-turn. I want you and Hella to split and fly a circle to attack them from the sides. Me and Karamu make another direct attack-run, that should force them to concentrate on us. And please stay clear of that Corvette."

"I hope you can follow your own advice, Scanner. You have only one laser-cannon."

"Then I must make every shot count."

Hmmm, as they say in my region of the world "Net g'meckert isch g'lobt gnug" (="not complained is praise enough").

Oh well, here is the next part:



TIE-fighter: Resources of the Empire


The entire exchange between Kolt and the leading wingman of the "Bomb-team" had only taken seconds. In that time Kolt and Karamu had turned around and were accelerating back towards the pirates, meeting Tser and Hella on the way, who were just leaving the improvised and now damaged base behind. In front of them the Corellian Corvette hoovered low above the ground, its shields still de-activated, while the seven remaining pirate-fighters had taken a position high above their capital ship. All eight vessels were firing after Hella and Tser, allowing Kolt and his wingman, who were flying low to use the surface of the asteroid as cover to approach them.

"Why are the shields of that corvette still down?" Karamu wondered.

Kolt was asking himself the same thing, because according to his sensors the hundred-fifty meter long ship was undamaged. "One of us must have scored a hit to a critical system or colateral-damage from Bomber's missiles, but don't get careless. That ship is still armored and armed enough to make life difficult for us. Now here is what we do: We're getting as close as possible and then pull up. Right through their fighter-formation. If he hasn't to worry about the fighters Bomber can use all his missiles against the corvette."

"They stopped firing at "Bomb-team". Watch out for enemy-fire."

Kolt didn't need the extra-warning. The pirates had been smart enough to keep their forces together. To have the Corvette, which carried most of its weapons on its dorsal side close to the ground hadn't been stupid either. What WAS stupid of the pirates was their willingness to fight. They had lost their base and half of their capital ships. Their remaining capital ship didn't have shields. TIEs usually weren't hyperspace-capable, so somewhere out there had a mothership to be lurking around. There was nothing to gain for the pirates, if they stayed and fought so the smart thing would have been to cut their losses and run.

Briefly Kolt wondered, when that thought would occur to them, if it would occur at all. On the other hand, that wasn't his problem and he had other things to worry about. From their position high above the surface of the asteroid the Cloakshapes and Headhunters could target any low incoming fighters like himself and his wingman from above and that close to the ground the two wouldn't be able to survive for long. Sooner or later they would have to pull their fighters up and that would bring them into the line of fire of the Corvette's weapons. What the pirates hadn't accounted for was the acceleration and manoverability the TIEs could employ and because of that Kolt and Karamu had covered the distance, where the pirates could fire at them in a lot less time than expected.

Suddenly the grey-white hull of the Corellian Corvette appeared before them, pulling their fighters up the Imperial pilots evaded a collision by only a few meters, pressing the triggers of their laser-cannons they tore through the formation of Cloakshapes and Headhunters from below like a Krayt-dragon into a herd of Banthas.

Or thats what should have happened. Instead the formation of pirate-fighters split apart and allowed the TIEs to pass through them without scoring a single hit.

"Blast." Karamu cursed. "What was that?"

"They must have anticipated our move." Kolt answered, his voice suddenly tense. If the pirates had been anticipating their attack-pattern ... . A look at his scanners confirmed his suspicion. Far behind him the shields of the Corellian Corvette were suddenly up and a bunch of Headhunters were on his tail. "Bomber, Farmgirl, abort. Can you hear me? I said abort." Only static answered him. Static and the electronic buzz of a jamming-field.

"Too late." Karamu stated at the sight of two missiles exploding in the shields of the hundred-fifty meter long vessel without doing much damage. Then they had to worry about the four Z-95-Headhunters, that were quickly catching up with them. Crimson blasts of energy were dancing around the two TIEs, some of them impacting against their navigational shields and shaking them through. "We have to get away from this asteroid. That close to the ground we can't exploit our acceleration-advantage."

"But the irregular surface provides us with cover and enforces constant shifts in our flight-path. Once we are below the horizon we can safely turn around. And I don't want to get too far away from Tser and Hella."

Karamu didn't answer him. It wasn't necessary. The chances for their comrades to be still alive weren't good. The pirates they were trying to escape now were a lot better than the usual scum Kolt and his comrades had forced out of their hiding-holes over the last few months. Their initial success had been based on the element of surprise, but once the shock had worn off the pirates had started to fight back a lot better than the Imperials had expected.

"As I expected." Kolt cursed himself. "I should have given the order to abort the mission as soon as I knew about the size of this group, but I thought we could take them. And who in his right mind would sent only four TIEs on such a mission? But I agreed, confident, full-of-myself oaf that I am." The leader of Red Flock gritted his teeth at the thought that a combination of institutional arrogance and his own over-confidance would be the reason for the death of himself and his comrades. The impact of a crimson beam of energy into his portside heat-radiator seemed to confirm his dark thoughts. "But not without taking a few of those scumbags with us." he thought grimly.

"You see that gap in front of us?" he asked his wingman.

"The one in the crater-wall?" Karamu asked.

"Yes." Kolt confirmed.

"Scanner, you're crazy. We don't know if ... ."

"All I know is, that we're running out of options. Besides we haven't made a nice trench-run for ages."

Karamu's silence was the only answer. Kolt knew that they were taking a calculated risk. The irrgular course of the gap in front of them would cover them from the fire of their persecutors, but it would also force them to decelerate. Once they left the gap they would be low on speed and easier to hit.

The two TIEs rushed into the canyon, crimson laser-blasts following them and lightening up the shadows cast by the walls.

"Seems they're not very happy with us." Karamu shouted. Already the distance was increasing, with the Headhunters falling more and more behind.

"They lack our purity of purpose." Kolt answered.

The reaction of the pirates had erased his former insecurities. Gone was the doubt and guilt about being arrogant from a few moments before. This was their element, flying fighters for the just cause. The fighters of the pirates were more robust than Kolt and Karamu's TIEs and they had shields, so their persecutors should have been able to catch up with them, but they hadn't. While the fragile Imperial fighters were rushing through the canyon, the pilots following them were a lot more careful.

"Small wonder, since the pirates flying the Z-95s are fighting for money and nothing else." Kolt thought with contempt. "And because of that we will beat them."

As if to confirm his thoughts a large explosion appeared behind them, when one of the Headhunters failed to turn in time around a corner and crashed into the canyon-wall.

"One gone, two left." stated Karamu. "Weren't there four of them?"

"There were." confirmed Kolt. "Did you see him destroyed?"

"Negative. Any idea, where he went?"

"Probably taking the easy way and waiting for us on the other side."

"So what do we do?"

"Kill him, once we got rid of those two." Kolt suggested.

Behind them the two remaining Headhunters were catching up and assaulting them with laserfire, what caused the two Imperials to increase the twisting and manouvering of their fighters more. All around them laser-blasts were impacting against the walls and ground of the canyon, melting the fabric of the asteroid, throwing splinters of solid and liquified rock like shrapnel through the vacuum. The liquified and vaporized soil didn't escape the stronger gravity of the asteroid for long, however, and within minutes it was cooling down, too, forming bizarre shapes as the sole remaining witnesses of the battle going on.

Kolt had his hands full piloting his TIE through the canyon, with his fighter being a little less fine-tuned than Karamu's, because of the amount of sensor-equipment it carried. Again his fighter was shaken through by near-hits and he forced the engine around the next corner. In front of them a large, pillar-like structure became visible and an idea appeared inside his head.

"I think it is time to put an obstacle in our friends path." he said into his com.

"That pillar?" Karamu asked.

"Yes." Kolt answered, calibrating his targeting-computer and looking out for the Z-95s coming up behind them. "For this to work we have to coordinate our efforts."

"I'm on it, just give the sign."

In front of them the pillar grew larger and larger.

"Almost there." Kolt whispered. Behind them the pirates were coming closer, firing at them again, coming dangerously close to hitting them.

"Kolt, its not going to work." Karamu shouted.

"Don't panic." Kolt stated coldly, although the sweat was running down his forehead with their enemies approaching. "We're almost there."

A hail of crimson laser-energy passed the two TIEs, enemy-fire, that was coming closer and closer towards the thin shells of their spherical cockpits.

"We've got to get out of here."

"Wait." the flight-leader of Red-flock ordered. "Just wait. Wait, wait ... OPEN FIRE."

The two Imperial pilots had almost passed the pillar-like structure. Green bolts from three different cannons impacted into the base of the needle, while red bolts illuminated the vacuum around the two TIEs. Then Kolt and Karamu were through, while the tall, slender rock - devoid of its grounding and pushed over by the last shots - dropped down and into the path of the two remaining headhunters. The pilot of the leading Z-95 took a chance and pushed his acceleration-pedal to the limit. Surging forward his speed increased and he passed BELOW the crumbling structure before it hit the ground. The other pirate lacked the nerve of his wingmate, trying to play it safe he hit the brackets and consequently crashed his fighter into the rock suddenly blockading his path.

"Then there was only one." Kolt thought satisfied. "Or two, if we count the one certainly waiting on the other end of the canyon." Aloud he said. "Lets get out of here. Pull up."

"Thought you never ... . BLAST, he is still there ... " Karamu cursed, when angry-red bolts started to impact into his navigational deflectors again and shook his fighter through "... and ... . WATCH OUT, pirate on eleven." Kolt, who had focused on the fighter following them, looked in the direction his wingman had pointed him and there he was.

Descending like an avenging demon, the red light of Durinol at its back the fourth headhunter came down on them. Hitting the bracket Kolt decelerated long enough to turn his fighter enough to cross the flight-path of the fourth Z-95 within moments, dispassionatly exploiting the mistake the other pilot had made. To attack somebody with the sun in ones back had to be one of the oldest tricks in the book and the pirate trying to execute it probably thought himself to be a very smart individual. In reality he wasn't very smart at all, since for his trick to work the sunlight had to be strong enough to blind his opponent or to at least cause his optic filters to darken and Durinol - as the brown dwarf it was - didn't provide that kind of light.

Trapped in a moment of tunnel-vision Kolt Ceavers ignored Karamu's shouts of "He's still behind me" and solely concentrated on the other Z-95. Seconds stretched to minutes, when he pressed the trigger of the single cannon available to him moments before his opponent did the same. The green blasts of laser-fire seemed to crawl through the endless night, subconsciously Kolt heard Karamu's cry of "I'm hit" over the helmet-com, he saw the shots impact into the Z-95, ripping it apart in an explosion and then the moment of tunnel-vision, this single-minded concentration on the perfect kill, was over and Kolt became again aware of his surroundings.

Looking around he spotted Karamu's fighter and the Z-95 persecuting him at the horizon of the asteroid. Smoke and sparks formed an artificial tail for the TIE and Karamu had lost much of his velocity.

"Karamu." Kolt shouted. "I'm coming." Pulling his fighter around his foot came down on the acceleration-pedal as if he wanted to press it through the floor of his cockpit.

Coming closer and closer to his prey the Z-95 moved in for the kill.

"Kolt, I can't evade him."

The pirate lined up his fighter behind the TIE, still holding his fire and letting his victim sweat, knowing full well, that he had enough time and wanting the Imperial to suffer for the death of his friends. Kolt realized, that the distance was to great.

"Get out. Eject, I'm too far away." he shouted into his com.

He heard Karamu confirm his ejection-order. The Z-95 started to fire. Karamu's TIE shed his radiator-panels, followed by the wing-pylons, then the top-hatch of his cockpit-ball. The next thing would be the ejection-seat with Karamu in it, but then the remains of the TIE-fighter drifted over the horizon of the asteroid and out of Kolt's sight and still the pirate fired.

"Karamu!" Kolt shouted. "Karamu!"