[attack_condor]

2408.2

Mentocka system
Onboard CDS Sniper...

With the completion of the supply depot Sniper was ordered to complete the exploration of the Mentocka system. Leeds also explored a little, but not far, since she had to return to guard the colonists the same month. Sniper was able to explore all of the rest of the system, and found two stable warp points. There were two Cue Cappa planets in the system with the Abbidon planets, but none of the planets were homeworlds. Each of the three empires had two colonies in the system, and there was one gas giant left, and three ice worlds. Dawn, now with the ability to colonize ice planets, could possibly establish colonies on all of them, and legitimize its claim that Mentocka belonged to the Dawn...

Ushphada system
...onboard CDS Chaney...

She was the first of the new Chaney class frigate. Unlike her sister class, England, her weapon was not conventional. She carried a different kind of death. Her job was to not destroy ships, but to take them. To do so, she had a boarding party compliment as well, but her boarders carried no weapons, save a small tool kit with a cutting torch to clear debris. She would find her first trial in Ushphada space, floating lifelessly where the fighters left it.

Chaney arrived in the sector with the Cue Cappa frigate, and confirmed her condition with a scan. Then, she closed to within 40km. The captain gave the order to fire.

In the bowels of the ship, protected from the rest of the craft with shielding and sealed doors was the weapon bay. Nobody was inside, however. The weapon crew loaded and fired the weapon from the other side of the sealed room. Computer displays showed the status of each weapon. There were only three weapons “loaded” today, one for the attack on the frigate, and two because protocol held that the Chaney might stumble into a battle and not have time to load them on the spot.

Chaney’s weapon – a missile body, in essence – was “loaded” by injecting a toxic cocktail made of radioactive isotopes, bacteria, and viruses. In fact, every known pathogen the medical labs in the Empire knew of was on board this new ship. The Chaney class was – in a very real sense – a ship of death.

Today’s mission was to fire the weapon at the Cue Cappa frigate and then board the ship. The “boarders” were medical technicians, who would certify the fast acting agents were inert, and the ship could be crewed by the Empire. The plan worked perfectly, as the weapons fired, penetrated, and the boarders certified the ship fit for habitation within an hour after infection. This particular ship, however would have to wait for the repair ship, Melbourne, to repair the damage left by the fighters before it would be space worthy. Chaney would wait with her, but once Melbourne began to repair the frigate, Chaney would head into Zezzis and give the enemies of Dawn a new threat to defend against...

Pantrissa system
...onboard CDS Jaguar...

The new Aztec class minelayer, Jaguar was immediately sent to pick up a load of mines and lay a minefield at the Pantrissa-Sheliak warp point. Dover and Longbow were already on station guarding the point. Next month Jaguar would arrive and begin to close the door with Sheliak.

Haphik system
...onboard CDS Freightliner...

The ship was huge, even larger than the new Harvester being built at the same yard. Freightliner left the yard and went to Haphik II, where a load of ground troops was taken on board. The transport then made its way to Velocitas, and eventually to the Zezzis war zone.

Zezzis system
Zezzis V control center...

The operators on display noticed the proximity alert, and switched to a view of the Zezzis-Lezzari warp point. It began to shimmer, and seven Phong ships made it into the Zezzis system. As each materialized, it triggered a timer circuit in a mine, which would patiently wait for 13 millionths of a second to receive a code that would prevent detonation. Not receiving the code, the mines began to explode all around the frigates. Damage to the fleet was substantial, as four of the six frigates were now without armor, weapons or supplies. One frigate sustained moderate armor damage, but still had point-defense capability. One missile frigate was unharmed. Also severely damaged was a cargo transport. Whatever it was carrying was now gone, as all cargo bays were destroyed. It also had no armor or supplies.

As the fleet limped into the system away from the warp point, Aztec laid a new field of twenty-four mines for the next intrusion. Aztec then returned to Zezzis V, and the controllers decided that Thames and West End, augmented by Montreal would attack the Phong. Meanwhile, a message from the Sergetti to a colony ship in system was intercepted. The ship was to colonize a planet in the Lezzari system. Toronto was ordered to intercept and disable the ship. The Sergetti had refused to accept the terms offered by Dawn, so their ships now would be attacked.

Fighters had dispatched the lone Sergetti frigate that was damaged, and Toronto chased down and attacked the colony ship. She was able to destroy the crew compartment, and her boarding parties met no resistance. Again, like the Cue Cappa frigate in Ushphada, there was massive damage to the ship, and Alice Springs was also in the sector, trying to get the big ship able to sustain a crew to get it back to the safety of a Dawn colony. Toronto returned to Zezzis IV while fighters from Zezzis VII moved out to screen Alice Springs and her charge. Then there was the question of what to do with the Sergetti colonists on board.

At the same time, West End, Thames and Montreal also engaged in battle, destroying five of the seven Phong cripples from the minefield. Montreal was also able to board and capture the freighter. Thames and West End returned to Zezzis V while Montreal guarded the helpless freighter as they waited for repair.

Alice Springs was going to be a very busy ship for quite a while as the strategy of the Dawn had shifted. Since the mineral shortage precluded building warships, Dawn would acquire them another way.

They would be taken.