Macross Fan Fiction ❯ Legend of Megaroad -- Book One ❯ Chapter 9: Micronian Messiah ( Chapter 9 )

Chapter 9: The Micronian-messiah

--March 30, 2016--

--17:15--

Admiral Bennet was one of the last great veterans of Space War I. He had gained the attention of the UN Spacey top brass for his performance in the opening battles of Space War I, when ARMD-1 managed to successfully eliminate three Zentradi destroyers with reflex missiles. Though ARMD-1 was itself hulled in that same battle, his limited experience with Zentradi weapons and tactics served as an asset to the UN military council until the return of the SDF-Macross almost a year later. Now, Admiral Bennet was being asked to call his experience... and his blind luck... into service once again for the ultra top-secret mission to find and establish contact with the SDF-2. For this he stretched his authority just a bit, pilfering ARMD-18 and ARMD-19 fresh out of dry dock for an impromptu "shakedown cruise" along with and escort of Zentradi picket ships and a single destroyer. Under the current circumstances, it was all Earth could spare for what they all agreed was probably just a house call to everyone's favorite colony ship, but Chief Gloval knew better than most people that Admiral Bennet would probably go out of his way to run into trouble out there. That being true, Chief Gloval had been keeping an Ace up his sleeve: ARMD-22 the first of a new class of warship known as the UNS Maizuru.

On the day of the mission's launch, Admiral Bennet surveyed the bridge of his flagship like an Emperor on his throne. He inspected every corner of the bridge and every consol, even the hairs on the back of his XO's head before finally deciding to move out. "Set fold coordinates to star system LD-426. We'll pick up the trail from there."

"Yes sir." His executive officer programmed the coordinates then added, "These old ARMD platforms aren't very good at fold navigation sir. I'm afraid it'll take us a while to catch up to them if they're following their mission routes."

"We're in no hurry, son. Let's just get underway before the next ice age." There was a dull humming from elsewhere in the ship as the fold boosters powered up. The ARMD class space carriers had been designed for fold capability, even though none of them were ever fitted with fold systems until well after the end of the war. With a flash of light and a wave of irregular gravity, ARMD-16 and its flotilla of search vessels vanished into hyperspace.

Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the planet, ARMD-22 Maizuru sortied from the UN dry-dock with a full compliment of VF-4 Lighting-IIIs. The ship tested its engines and maneuvering jets for an hour or so, and then prepared for its own fold maneuvers under the command of Macross veteran Captain Claudia LaSalle. With total confidence in her ship and crew, she took the bridge of her first command with a brief but rattling sendoff from Chief Gloval. They all knew the mission all too well, but it seemed a bit more solid when it came strait from the man's mouth.

"Claudia, please understand that I do not expect you to take any hostile action against enemies, or make any move to support Admiral Bennet under any circumstances. As far as his fleet is concerned, you are on a regular shakedown cruise and you are here strictly to observe. Is that clear?"

"Perfectly clear sir, but don't expect me to like it. You know good and well that that damn fool Bennet is going to pick a fight with the first bucket of bolts he runs into out there."

"I know that, but under the circumstances there's nothing I can do about it. All I really ask is for you to be there to pick up his lifepod when he gets himself into trouble."

"Yes sir. We'll get right to it." She paused for a moment and the went on, "What were the last reports from Misa? That is to say... well what kind of opposition can we expect?"

"If Exodor's right... and when is he not... you shouldn't run into too much trouble out there. But anyone you DO come across will surely be a thousand times worse than the Zentradi. I know it's a shitty mission Claudia, but please try and stay out of trouble no matter what the cost."

"Understood, Chief. We'll get right on it."

Claudia's comm officer closed the channel, and a few minutes later the UNS Maizuru folded out of the Solar System. This new ship was much faster in hyperspace than a normal ARMD platform, and would therefore arrive at LD-426 almost half a day ahead of Bennet's fleet. Claudia decided it would give her more than enough time to do some investigating of her own, and she began to wonder what her old friend Misa was up to not to have called home in so long.

--March 30, 2016--

--17:50--

Gallaron: the forgotten colony of the proto-culture, now a strategic target for the resurgent Supervision Army. It had been harassed by the minions of the proto-deviln for many years, and the defending Zentradi fleet, thought numerous and determined, was nearing the breaking point. The Zentradi engineers had tried to use their still limited knowledge of machinery and technology to keep their ships operational, but the knowledge contained within the proto-culture automatons of the Supervision Army enabled them to repair their damaged ships and equipment very quickly after every battle. In fact, the forces of the Supervision Army have been raiding the defenders of Gallaron for six years, striking deep into the heart of their formations and doing as much damage as possible before ever really taking or inflicting any significant damage. But with each little raid, the defending fleet grew a bit more vulnerable and weak, while the Supervision Army always came back as strong as ever. Though the Zentradi were sometimes able to destroy one or two ships of the attacking fleet, it always came at the cost of at least twice as many of their own, and it was easy to tell by now that defeat was inevitable.

And then the judgment came to pass. On the evening of March 30 of the Earth year 2016, an attack fleet of the Supervision Army de-folded into Gallaron orbit, and all 300 ships of their fleet encircled the embattled Zentradi defenders and bombarded them from all sides. The Zentradi counter attack was formidable, but less than totally effective against the superior technology and accuracy of the enemy guns. Fifty ships fell in the first twenty minutes of the battle, and one more fell almost every minute after that. The Zentradi had much success with suicide runs on the enemy command ships and gunboats, but every ship destroyed in this manner came at the cost of four of their own, and they all knew from the start that it was a battle they could not win.

They had lost almost half of their original strength by the time the Megaroad fleet de-folded into the system on the far side of the planet's largest moon. The ship's VE-1 squadrons kept close tabs on the battle for several minutes, making sure not to be noticed until the fleet was ready to move. After what seemed like a more than a decade of waiting, Corina finally reported. "Sir, we've confirmed it. It's the Supervision Army's main fleet. They outnumber the Zentradi forces by 60%, and the defenders are in bad shape... they're getting tarred out there pretty bad sir."

Misa nodded. "Captain Gouraz, prepare your reflex warheads for bombardment. We'll hit them form behind and catch them in a pincer."

Gouraz nodded, but seemed nervous about the operation. "My pilots have had very little combat experience with your Valkyrie fighters. Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"You've had six years to train them, and I have faith that your warriors are quick learners. If all goes well, this battle will be short anyway."

"Then we will launch. May the victory be yours, Captain Ichijo." Gouraz closed the channel.

Corina switched over to inter-ship communications where Hikaru was ready to sortie with the fighter units. "This is Skull Zero to Delta Control, all squadrons are ready for launch."

Misa sat down heavily in her chair as Corina gave out the orders. "Skull Zero, you are cleared to sortie. Your target package is two-zero-niner."

"Package 209 confirmed. C'mon gang, let's kick em!" All at once, the sky was full of fighters. The Valkyrie units from the Megaroad and the Bacta-Quedrali swarmed towards the Supervision fleet like angry bees, flanked on all sides by General Karga's warships and his few operational battle pods. They closed in unseen from behind the attackers until they were in range, and all 1500 fighters confirmed a solid radar lock. "This is it gang. Master arm all ordinance and lock onto pre-assigned spread patterns." There was a slight shift in the formation around him as some of the planes adjusted their attitude to give their shots a straighter run. Finally it was time. Without further hesitation, Hikaru took a deep breath and squashed the trigger on his flight stick. "Skull Zero to all units, rounds out!" Answering Hikaru's signal, every fighter in the formation launched their missiles at once, followed shortly by the larger missiles mounted on all of the ships of the Megaroad fleet. Hikaru watched the plot of the missiles closing to their targets on his radar screen, and he had a brief flashback to his days in Space War I until he glanced over to his left and spotter another VF-4 Lighting on his wing. "Harper, you ever seen a full reflex missile spread?"

"Only on video sir." The officer replied, his voice shaky from the tension. "I watched one of Commander Fokker's old gun camera recordings."

"Then watch this carefully. There is nothing in the entire universe quite like it."

Harper nodded across the distance between their fighters and turned his gaze forward. In the moments before the missiles hit their targets, he could make out the outlines of the Supervision fleet's rear line warships, some of them firing on the Zentradi forces to the front, and some taking in damaged mecha for repair or reload. But when the moment came, he had to squint through the brilliance of the explosions. The sky ahead of them filled with a galaxy of giant stars as the missiles detonated around the fleet, filling the space around and between the Supervision vessels with their devastating energy. Bulkheads turned to liquid and then vapor, machines and fighters were scattered into dust, and dozens of reflex furnaces lost control of reduced their respective vessels to ashes. Even before the light of the nuclear fireballs faded away, most of their ships were already scattering in all directions in what could only be described as total pandemonium.

Seeing this, Lieutenant Harper's entire squadron howled and yelped like cowboys at a victory party. "Hell yeah!" Harper shouted out. "Direct hits! Missiles had their maximum effect!" After a brief pause he added, "What a sight to behold!"

Hikaru had no time to revel in the success of their first attack. Only a third of the enemy formation, almost 100 warships total, had been disabled or destroyed in the attack and the others were now deploying their fighters to counter them. "Okay folks we're not done here. Enemy counter attack approaching, so form up by squads and keep each other covered." He looked at his monitors again and licked his lips. Many of the enemy forces were standard fighter pods, but there were a number of powered armors and Glaug battle pods among the enemy and he knew from experience that they would be the most trouble. "Here they come. All units deploy forward formation and engage!"

All of the fighters switched to Gerwalk mode and cut their relative velocities down to a more manageable speed. Hikaru treated himself to the first catch of the day by firing three missiles at a charging Glaug. Amazingly, the pod didn't even bother to avoid his fire but flew headlong into it as it fired on him. Harper dropped two powered armors one after another in this manner, and after looking around him for a moment he noticed that all of the enemy craft were moving much the same way. "Hey boss, these guys are sluggish as hell!"

Hikaru dropped another Glaug with his gunpod and nodded. "You're right. They're reacting in almost slow motion…" Hikaru was blinded by a sudden burst of beam fire from directly in front and banked sharply to his left as two Glaugs charged after him. They blasted away with his beam guns in an intense barrage that seemed almost impossible to dodge until two Valkyries came up behind them and destroyed both pods with the beam cannons on their FAST packs. "They may be slow, but they're a HELL of a lot more aggressive than the Zentradi!"

The Megaroad fleet closed into firing range of the Supervision fleet only a few minutes after the missiles impacted and all 70 ships targeted the command vessels in the center of the formation and opened fire. A number of smaller enemy ships caught on to them in time to screen their command ship from the smaller batteries of the fleet, but Captain Broli did not need a clear line of fire to use his main weapon. "Range to target?"

"20 thousand kilometers." Reported Ensign Ryder. "There are three enemy ships directly in the firing path."

"That makes no difference. Set your target to the command vessel and prepare to fire."

"Yes sir."

Broli leaned against the front window of the bridge, nerves so frayed he could almost feel his skin slithering from his body. There were flashes of battle all around his ship, together with the occasional lurch in the deck when an explosion rocked the hull, which served only to remind him of the thousands of ways for an officer to die on a space ship. He had spent almost his entire life fighting the Supervision Army from the cockpit of a Regult battle pod, and now on the bridge of a battleship he felt completely out of his league. Even so, he did his best not to show his uncertainty to the crew.

There was a low hum from the forward hull as the capacitors started gathering energy for the blast, and then Lieutenant Mike Gallow called out from his station. "Message from Captain Ichijo. She's saying we're clear to fire."

"Excellent! All fighters clear!" Broli waited for a moment for the Valkyrie units to clear the firing path, and then smiled as the Supervision battle craft started charging his ship. "That's it boys, come right in… FIRE!"

Ensign Ryder threw the switch, and the main cannon let loose a devastating wave of energy that incinerated the attacking craft and tore through all three Supervision picket ships as if they were made of tin foil. After an instant the blast hit its main target, smashing their command ship into atoms and plunging their fleet even further into chaos and confusion. The resulting fireball that formed in the midst of them sent many of their vessels tumbling out of control, and with the loss of their command ship many of them began re-fold operations to another location to regroup. Those few who lingered for a bit too long suddenly found themselves surrounded on both sides by enemies, and taking fire from too many directions at once to mount any effective counter action. And then Captain Gouraz and General Karga fired off a blast from the main cannons of their battleships, sending yet another 30 ships on a one way ticket to oblivion. It was then that the defenders of Gallaron made a mad charge against the enemy fleet, and for the surviving aggressors that was the last straw.

The remaining ships now re-folded out of the system before the Zentradi could close their grip around them, leaving the Gallaron fleet face to face with a new force in their system. They all recognized General Karga's fleet near the flanks of the formation, but the other 20 ships were from the Bodolza Main Fleet and the Megaroad itself made them uneasy and mystified them at the same time. Korazan almost sensed the uneasy feeling among the Zentradi fleet, but he had served with Karga long enough that the man could tell what he was about to suggest even before he said it. "Defenders of Gallaron, I bring you good news. During what was to be my last patrol as a soldier, I have discovered a salvation for our people. These micronians possess the secrets of proto-culture, and unlike our enemies in the Supervision Army, they are more than willing to share that knowledge with us, as you have no doubt guessed by the improved condition of my fleet. All they ask in return is our protection, and a place to live in peace and safety. I ask you now, only to weigh your options in this matter. Help our new micronian allies, just as they have already helped us, or face the Supervision Army alone once again."

In hindsight, General Karga's speech was redundant. The Zentradi commanders were already well beyond desperate for any kind of relief, micronian or otherwise. One could argue that they might even have surrendered a UN Spacey dictatorship if they thought it would help their chances, but the arrangement they ended up with was favorable under almost any circumstances. And so, as the 300 remaining ships of the Gallaron fleet moved to surround the Megaroad, as part of its ever growing fleet of escorts, most of them seeing fit to regard the newcomers as friends of the Zentradi Army. Together, the 370 ships of what was now the Gallaron defense fleet changed orbits as one body and closed in around their twin factory satellites near the lowest lagrange point.

March 30 would one day be commemorated as a national holiday. For the Zentradi it was the day the Micronians delivered them from annihilation by their ancient enemy. For the Humans, it was the day the Megaroad finally found a planet they could call home. For the rest of the people of the Arturo sector, indeed for the rest of the Galaxy decades later, it would see the birth of the Legend of Megaroad.