Saber-5 shifted her feet left-right on the pedals, veering sharply and upward when Frank gave the signal he had enough data collected to run the triangulation algorithm. A similar one he’d run on Yurb. He pleaded for a handful of seconds to spit the results out and share it through the linked network of The Alliance’s communication system. The outcome meant they'd be able to register which of the hellspawn were venemous and acidic and which were...not.
With the force of both Twin Suns and Saber executing their prowess, backed by the larger ships with amplified firepower, the upside-down world they’d entered was feeling the relentlessness of The Alliance.
The ruby drenched skies were thick with netherworld spawn. Within a matter of minutes, the battlefield was a diffuse red glow, spotted with puffs of smoke, corpses blazing in fireballs, whirling venom showers, spinning flesh debris, electron storms.
<Two incoming at twenty degrees ––> someone advised.
Saber-Three was quick to respond.
<I see them. Cut left, I’ll take one.>
The pair of Sabers splintered from the group, twisting and weaving. It ended in a conflagration of blood and bone; the creatures that had sought to ingest or damage the X-Wings incapacitated. It was a grim and dazzling spectacle. The rest of the starfighters, equipped with the knowledge of the acidic venom, steered clear of the explosions. Heroic, sometimes suicidal maneuvers marked the day.
<They just keep coming!> Saber-three exclaimed. She sounded exasperated.
<These monsters are protecting something –– we must be getting closer.>
"Whatever we're gonna do to escape after killing this fething thing should be a fun little exercise. Like threading a needle. Surrounded by mines."
A plan. An escape. She hadn’t thought of that –– it had all been building up to getting in. Getting out was...she supposed it was something they took for granted. Alas, instead of replying she was distracted by the flickering of her targeting system. The reader’s pixelation rendered waves and curls that matched the vapours outside and she squinted at the screen in disbelief.
<Frank, what’s happening to our comms right now?>
Look up.
Light gaze snapped outward, a surprised gasp slipping out the moment she recognized the source of the interference. No scopes were necessary here. The massive, formless shape ahead was visible with the naked eye. It was horrible. Foreboding. Evil. Layers and roles interpenetrating like shadows casting shadows. It throbbed with inhuman power, tidal, deep, and painful.
<We’ve got to hit that. Find a weakness.>
It’s much larger than us. Frank stated plainly, his tone mildly irritated.
You’re going to need bigger guns.
<That’s what the armada’s for. I’m going in. Cover me and accelerate to attack speed!>
With wings split like dragonfly gossamers, poised for increased maneuvering and power, the squadron of X-Wings cut forward without reserve at the bid of their captain. <
Right behind you, Blue. Saber four, Saber six, pull in ––– close formation. Equipping crystal-based cannons.>
Loske swapped over to the comms shared with Twin Suns
<Commander (
Olen Halcorr
), can you cover us? Keep those creatures at bay and away from the fleet. We’ll need to preserve their weapons once we find a weakness on this thing.>
Sabers pierced into the blackened fog, lighting the darkness from within while seeking a vulnerable point. Their targeting systems were compromised at this range –– which ended up being a stone’s throw from the heart of the system. She settled her right hand on the stick and smiled.
That looks like a good bet.
<No kidding. Let’s try it out. Saber Three - this is your redemption arc.>
On cue, the woman on Loske’s wing zipped forward and surpassed the kiffar; releasing salvo against the glowing, crystal-looking nucleus. There was no missing her target.
It looked like it flinched, and Loske patched that report back to central command. Weakness detected. If they could focus all their fire on...
The report attempted to make its way through the interference, the comms ultimately compromised. Frank boosted the fragments of the signal as best he could, forwarding it through the network piece by piece until it would reach the respective admirals to relay orders.
An invisible agency struck out and impacted the side of her X-Wing in protest to the shot Saber-Three had rendered. It caught her by total surprise. Loske's fighter rolled hard to starboard. The stick she gripped bashed her hand against the side of the cockpit, sending a shockwave of tingling pain up her arm. Before she could register a movement to object, the stick tore itself free and smacked her solidly in the chest. With the stick pinning her back in her chair, she could only look up as the heart of the creature increased it's pulsing in protest to the earlier attack. Winded.
In this moment of temporary clarity, although it was a struggle to breathe, Loske felt an irritation at the edge of her consciousness. Tracing it back to the meld shared between herself, Maynard, and
Ryv
she eliminated quickly Maynard being the root of the discomfort.
Ryv. Something bad was happening to Ryv. The melt was rarely impractical, and she felt a tightness behind her breastbone that was not attributed to the earlier impact.
As if she could make eye contact with her partner, she sent a panicked glance searching out his X-Wing amidst all the chaos; the silhouettes of the fighters obstructed by the miasmic fog.
Her hand was burning while she moved it back to take control of the stick, a bruise already starting to form and yellow beneath her gloves.
>Something's wrong with Ryv.< Electing for the benefits of telepathy over the non-guarantee of the network of comms, she impressed on Maynard's mind, searching for validation and..maybe even an excuse to go seek out what was out of sorts.
Bernard of Arca
was the first, with his reckless headlong dive at the chaos entity. He paid the price for his idiocy and was hurled away.
Auteme
A
Aeris
Oceiros Sunstrider
Leon Gallo
