UGT: 7th Ruan 280 a.G.A. / 2:26 p.m.

  ASF Aurora, on the edge of the Karesh-Ti’Varn system(yellow dwarf), Inner-Noran sector, Ruidan Raider Association, Milky Way

  I was back on the Bridge of the ASF Aurora, settled into the Captain’s chair. The familiar hum of the ship resonated in the background, steady and constant, like the heartbeat of a giant beast. Fen stood beside me, or rather, his holographic projection did, not realistic-looking from up-close but the Admiral shouldn't be able to notice the difference. His expression was neutral, though the glint in his eyes hinted at amusement he wasn’t voicing yet. Together, we stared at the central holoscreen. The image of Admiral Thorrison stared back. Stern, weathered, and unmistakably furious.

  “Well,” he began, his voice like frost biting into bare skin, “how nice of you to finally grace us with your presence, Captain Lunaris. Care to explain what, exactly, that little stunt of yours was supposed to mean?” His tone made it very clear he wasn’t in the mood for diplomacy.

  I let out a slow breath and leaned back in the chair, pinching the bridge of my nose before dragging my fingers across my temples. I obviously already knew what Fen had told him. Not how I would have gone about it, but there was no undoing it now. I had to lean into it. “Insurrection-Protocols, Admiral,” I said evenly, my voice carrying across the Bridge with a calm I didn’t quite feel. “The name alone should be enough to tell you what kind of situation we were facing. Or do you need me to recite the full clause for dramatic effect?”

  I glanced sideways at Fen, who offered me a subtle smirk. Admiral Thorrison didn’t flinch. He didn’t blink. His silence stretched just long enough to make it feel like the temperature in the Bridge just dropped by a few degrees. Then, his voice cut in, clean, deliberate, with no room for misunderstanding. “Captain Lunaris, do you take me for a fool?” he asked in pretended calm.

  Next to me, Fen didn’t move. He stood at my side as always, arms loosely crossed behind his back, face calm. A familiar presence. And, more importantly, a practiced one. We both knew exactly what we were doing. I kept my tone steady. “I wouldn’t insult you like that, Admiral.” After a small pause I added, "Well, we both know I would. Just not in the current situation."

  “Then explain it,” Admiral Thorrison said, deliberately ignoring the second part of my answer. “You went entirely dark for an hour! No reaction at all! Then Fen comes back and suddenly everything works again!? This isn’t unconventional command or some small problems. It’s rogue acting, something that we cannot afford right now!”

  “The FSF Aurora acted under Insurrection Protocols,” I repeated. “I am not under your command, Admiral. You lack the authority and the might to order me around and you know it. The threat level justified a compromise.”

  Thorrison’s brow furrowed. “Convenient. And what exactly did this ‘compromise’ entail?”

  Fen stepped forward slightly, hands behind his back. “Multiple internal systems were being accessed in violation of command hierarchy. Vital core sequences showed attempts at rerouting mainline control to secondary personnel. That qualifies as high-grade mutiny by our standards.” I didn’t look at him. I didn’t need to. His voice was calm. Nothing to give away that every word was fabricated.

  Admiral Thorrison’s gaze flicked from me to Fen and back. He was my CO and right hand. Loyal without a fault to me. He obviously wasn't buying it. “I want logs,” he said flatly. “Raw logs. Not some fabricated bullshit you would send me. Let some of my engineers on board. They will check your claims.”

  I scoffed. “In your dreams. There is no way I would give you access to the FSF Aurora. You'll try to sneak espionage devices in and as many technological secrets out as you could manage. The insurrection is over. The FSF Aurora returned to the battle in time. You saw the results for yourself. This entire conversation is useless, we only give the Association time to reorganize. Instead, we should act!”

  Admiral Thorrison ignored my words. “The results you're talking about,” he said, voice low, “are that you took my battlefield and turned it into a theatre for whatever show you're running. And if your story about an internal mutiny is even half real, then your ship is compromised and shouldn't be anywhere near a fleet formation.”

  I didn’t answer. There was nothing to say that wouldn’t make things worse. Fen tilted his head. “You’ve known that we had slight problems with our crew and course of action. Actually, you should be thankful for our Captain's stance. She alone stopped us from getting rid of your entire fleet as we met you. And now, let's just say there are not many left who would oppose our Captain's orders. And these are to work with the SHF.”

  That made Admiral Thorrison pause. He studied Fen more closely now. "You are a staunch supporter of your Captain. I can appreciate that. But that she saw herself forced to send her CO on a mission into an enemy system where he would be at such a risk just shows a massive lack of trust she has in her remaining crew. I really hope the situation is as stable as you claim, but I very much doubt that."

  Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

  “You know what?” I said, leaning forward. “I understand why you doubt our intentions, I do the same with yours after all. Still, we're the only reason this fleet continues to exist and why we even had a chance to go on the offensive. You don't have to understand or even accept our internal order. But you don't get to argue with said situation, just as you shouldn't argue with us about the results of our actions.”

  Admiral Thorrison didn’t respond immediately. He looked at me like I was a splinter in the heel of his polished boot. Then, finally, he spoke again, measured, but cold. “Fine. As long as your success continues, I shall not question your internal authority again. But I expect you to keep your ship under control from now on. If we have a failure like that on part of the FSF Aurora again, we can power down our shields and surrender right now.”

  “We understand,” Fen said calmly.

  “I’m not finished,” Admiral Thorrison snapped, then added, quieter, “One more thing.” He leaned in. “I do not believe you that this was an internal crisis. I can feel it. This was something else you're hiding. I don’t know what game you’re playing, but do not give my fleet any more reason to doubt you. And if you’ve dragged my fleet into something bigger than you have shared, our support for you will stop, regardless of the consequences. Still, I acknowledge that we had a deal in place. Once our plan for taking over the system stands, inform us and we will act. That is more important right now."

  The holoscreen cut out and silence reclaimed the Bridge. I let out a long breath, letting my hands fall from the armrests of the Captain's chair. Fen's holographic copy vanished again.

  [ He doesn’t know. But he’s close. ]

  “Too close,” I muttered. “We’ll need to keep a tighter leash on our actions. He might suspect fragments, but the truth’s just too implausible to chase without proof. No one jumps to our reality without being led there by us.” I turned my eyes toward the forward display. Fen, already reading the shift in my thoughts, brought up a new holoscreen before I could speak. Red motion trails lit up across a system-wide grid. Association ship movements. They had started to react to our entry into the system and the destruction of the ships guarding the southern hyperlane. “This is going to get worse.”

  [Then let’s be the ones ready first.]

  “You’re right. After all, we’re already committed. Phase One was a success, at least. What’s the Association doing now?” I asked. The holoscreen zoomed in on the Western Hyperlane Defense Zone.

  [ Phase two: Collapsing the western hyperlane defenses and opening up a potential retreat from the system for the fleet. We would still have to fight through an entire additional system controlled by the Association, but it would definitely be weaker defended then the Karesh-Ti’Varn system. ]

  Fen continued by outlining the current defenders of the western hyperlane, one Battlecruiser, two Cruisers, three Destroyers and three Frigates.

  [ Planned action: ASF Aurora holds fire. We deploy the SHF fleet for coordinated raids, use feints to draw their Cruisers off station, then insert a stealth?drone wing behind their line to simulate incoming warp signatures. That’ll push their fleet into a false retreat vector. ]

  I studied the data. “And once they break lines, that'll leave us with options. We can either destroy the fleeing units, move directly on Garnuk?Tel with them being out of the equation for a moment, or retreat based on how the Association reacts to our advance.”

  [ ETA for takeover of the western hyper line: under six hours, with proper action taken. ]

  “Good,” I nodded. “We'll let them bleed west while we prepare Phase Three.” With that, the display shifted to Garnuk-Tel.

  [Phase three: Crippling the Garnuk?Tel Reserve. With the Surnax-III reserve fleet having essentially been disbanded, this is the only remaining rapid response fleet in the system. Right now they are stationary, but this will most likely change once we act. The Association seems to be willing to mostly wait until we make our next move. ]

  This rapid response fleet wasn't much better than the defense of the western hyperlane, consisting of one Battlecruiser, one Cruiser, two Destroyers and ten Cutters, having been entirely stripped of Frigates and Corvettes.

  [ Planned action: ASF Aurora engages directly. ECM beams should be strong enough to disable the small Cutters from a distance, taking them out of the equation. Then, we continue onward. ]

  I tapped the table. “Priority will be to leave as many ships as possible intact. We can fall back on them to expand our fleet, I believe.” The screen switched again, this time to dual?vector arrows converging on Karesh?Ti’Varn.

  [ Phase four: Pincer attack Karesh?Ti from two vectors. Our goal will be to shatter their capital ships and central command, leaving their fleet disorganized. We will split away from the SHF fleet and attack from two vectors. Once their organization is shattered, we will leave the SHF fleet to mop up while placing us into central orbit. From there we use ECM Beams to break down most of their planetary defenses aided by antimatter-loaded coilgun shots. Once the planet is defenseless we'll deliver our ultimatum, surrender now or face precise command?relay bombardment. ]

  He highlighted Karesh?Ti's defenses consisting of one Battlecruiser, three Cruisers, seven Destroyers, ten Frigates, eight Corvettes, ten Cutters, fourteen Patrol Boats, heavy orbital artillery, and a planetary defense grid. I let that settle. “This will probably be the hardest battle. And what about the Eastern Corridor?”

  [Phase five and probably optional: Eastern Corridor Disruption. They’re heavily reinforced but expecting an attack that will never come. It will lead to much hesitation on their side, at least in the beginning. Should we have the time we may try to saturate them from a distance and use the ASF Aurora for surprise attacks and picking off ships while the remaining fleet stays behind. But it might not be strictly necessary if we can get them to panic and move ahead into the Republic of Aerondel. It'll call them into the war on our side and it wouldn't be our problem what happens with that fleet anymore. ]

  I leaned back, fingers steepled. “No loose ends, Fen. Let’s synchronize with Admiral Thorrison for the SHF fleet. We'll execute Phase Two on my mark.”

  [ All assets ready. Awaiting your command, Captain. ]

  “Then we begin to move in ten minutes. Let’s make this system fold to our might.”