Viper
by Jerec Cross
The X-Wing spun in large loops as heavy laser fire streaked past. The two pursuing Viper fighters were not making this easy. The control panel on Jerec?s X-Wing sparked as incoming fire overloaded the defense systems.
R-4, I need more power to the aft shields!
The astromech droid chimed it?s acknowledgement and went to work.
His ship couldn?t take much more of this. Jerec continued to evade the Vipers and wasn?t about to call it quits. Not after what Black Sun had done.
The planet Cirgil in the Elrinar system was fast becoming a jewel for the Triumvirate Coalition. The gas giant was teeming with valuable raw material and over the course of a few short years had a thriving economy and was home to millions of sentients who lived among the clouds. When the Black Sun?s Darkstar Battleship Anguish appeared over the planet they did not hesitate to begin plundering all they could and killing anyone who got in the way. Thousands were killed. The Coalition Navy?s 2nd Fleet was the fastest to respond aboard the newly completed Mon Calamari MC-80b TMS Darkwater.
Commander Jerec Cross looked out his cockpit and could see the battle raging over Cirgil as it?s oceans of tan and yellow gases swirled. Flashes of laser fire were lighting up all around as the massive capital ships fired on each other. Jerec banked hard to starboard as the Vipers kept pace with him, blistering him with shots.
I?ll never make it back to the Darkwater in one piece. he thought.
He knew he only had one chance. Jerec jerked the controls and took the X-Wing down towards the Black Sun ship, as the battered fighter fought against him. He read the information R-4 was sending. Shields down to 3 percent, life support offline and engines were almost gone. Jerec could see the port docking bay on the side of the ship, it?s soft blue glow a beacon. He had to land inside. As he headed in, a Viper shot out of the bay and angled toward him. The two pursuing Vipers must have alerted him to his X-Wing?s presence. Laser fire erupted towards Jerec. He rolled the X-Wing to evade and dove closer and closer. Then Jerec fired all four of his lasers at point blank range. The Viper exploded in a fiery blast as the X-Wing flew through the plasma flames. The victory would be short lived, however, as the oncoming fighter distracted Jerec from his pursuers as their fire found their target. The back of his X-Wing was blasted to pieces as the shields failed. Fire burst around him in the cockpit as he snapped down the seal on his flight suit and pressurized it.
Sorry R-4. he said as he punched the eject control. Jerec vowed to return for the trusty droid when he made it back to the Darkwater.
If I make it back. he thought.
He saw the droid propelled away from the ship as the canopy was blown off and the flight seat shot away from the ship seconds before it exploded completely. The two Vipers broke off to engage other targets.
Jerec released the seat straps and pushed himself away from the chair. He was now floating parallel to the Anguish about 1000 meters above it. At this distance he could see the heavy armor covering the hull. The large battery of lasers mounted on the dreaded ship fired back at the Darkwater and the other Coalition X-Wings. The void enveloped him as he drifted further. Soon no one would be able to reach him in time before his air ran out. He only had one chance, one desperate gamble. He had to reach the docking bay of the Anguish. Jerec would have to sacrifice most of what was left of his precious air to propel himself towards the gigantic ship.
Jerec rolled to position himself. He had to line it up so he did not come in too fast and bounce off the hull. The suit control on his right forearm glowed green against the total darkness of space. He swallowed hard as he touched the panel and entered in the command for purge. His neck snapped back as he picked up speed and shot towards the ship. The surface was coming up fast. Jerec released the control and as the air stopped venting he felt the decrease in acceleration. He was getting closer and closer, the angle looked right. He rotated around so he was moving feet first and stretched his hands out as the hull came within reach. Jerec could feel the rough surface of the ship through his flight suit. He was still not slowing down as he drug both hands along the ship. He had to find a handhold or any change in motion would send back to the void, he remembered that part of his zero-g training well.
As he looked down towards his feet and the direction he was moving he saw the vast expanse of the hull spread out like a desolate landscape against the darkness of space. The dizzying view quickened Jerec?s breath. He could feel his angle change as he pawed at the ship, then finally his hand caught on something and jerked to a halt. He had caught a gap between the armor. He pulled himself down so he was flat against the ship. Sweat was running down his face. He looked at the suit controls. 2 percent glowed in green next to the air supply indicator. That was only minutes. He had to move fast.
Jerec begun pulling himself along the ship hand over hand reaching for any gap or protrusion the armor layering caused. His arms began to burn with the exertion and the sweat was stinging his eyes. He was nearing the edge of the port side when he felt small vibrations in the hull.
Must be fire from the Darkwater. he thought.
It was only as the vibrations intensified did he realize they were coming from one direction. He looked towards the front of the ship and saw in the distance explosions. As he looked up he saw the source. An A-Wing was in the middle of a bombing run and he was right in its line of fire.
He was now pulling himself with both arms, struggling to stay flat against the ship and he moved. He could feel his air becoming thinner and it was getting harder to keep up the pace. Each time he grabbed the ship he could feel the shaking as the A-Wing got closer. If only his communicator was still working he could call off the run.
The edge of the ship was in reach and he would have to pull himself over and on the side of the ship to avoid the blast. The entire ship was rocking and he could feel the pressure from the blasts as he came to the edge. The violent vibrations of the last explosion made it almost impossible swing his feet over the side so he could push off down the length of the ship. Jerec looked up and saw the proton bomb as it was released. He gasped as he pushed hard and shot feet-first down the side of the craft just as flames from the blast washed over the side of the ship. He caught on the long antenna of a sensor relay and he struggled to hang on during the violent quaking. He hung on for a moment, each breath getting harder to draw in. The heat inside his suit was sweltering. He was so thirsty. He could see one of the docking bays, several hundred meters away. He hoped he could push through the plasma membrane that allowed ships in and out but still kept the ship pressurized. For better or worse, he knew he would find out.
As Jerec pulled himself along he heard the warning chime on his suit. The panel was red. One percent. That was all the air that was left. His limbs felt like rockivory as he pulled along. His lungs were burning. Every breath was torture. The suit was having problems reclaiming his sweat which was pouring inside the suit with no airflow. He finally reached the top of the docking bay but he would still have to pull himself down the side before he tried to push his way in. Top to bottom the bay was 30 meters and once Jerec was inside he would be within the ship?s gravity field and would fall to his death if he went in too high.
Of course, he might not get the chance. His air was gone. All that was left was between him and the suit. Meter after meter he moved. He could still feel the concussion of the Coalition?s attack. His vision was beginning to blur and he knew he would blackout soon and that would end the story of Jerec Cross. He had to get inside now. He turned over with his back on the ship. He reached his hands over his head and felt the edge of the docking bay. From this angle Jerec saw the Darkwater in the distance, it?s elegant rounded contours where actually quite beautiful. All around him the ships looked small, like flies and the laser fire danced against the distant stars. It was quite a tranquil scene, he thought. He could feel his thoughts drift off and he wanted to drift off himself and close his eyes and sleep. At that moment, he saw a crimson Viper veer towards him. The danger seized him and shook him from his haze. He?d been spotted. Green bolts flew towards the ship as the Viper fired. He could feel the heat as they scorched the hull and the flare of burning metal blinded him. Jerec pushed his feet hard against the ship and held on tight has he swung over towards the membrane, as the laser fire pounded the ship. As he entered the membrane he made one last effort and pushed off hard with his arms as he could feel it already begin to slow him down.
The sudden return of gravity sent Jerec spinning to the docking bay floor. He was only 5 meters up but hit hard on his side. He clawed at his helmet seal ripping it loose and his helmet fell away, clattering of the metallic floor. Air, cool and crisp, washed over him and his tortured lungs gasped deep breaths. His oxygen-starved brain could perceive activity in front of him but everything lacked clear shape, the sounds distant and indistinct. A mammoth explosion rocked the ship and brought the world back into focus. Fires had broken out all over the docking bay. Loose power cables and hoses hung exposed from destroyed portions along the walls. Each internal blast that shook the Anguish rained debris from the ceiling. The A-Wing had done its job. This ship was about to tear itself apart. Black Sun pilots were scrambling in the chaos to make it to one of the few remaining Vipers left as large plumes of flame burst in from the rest of the ship.
The closest Viper was about 40 meters away and a Black Sun pilot had already broken off from a group who was fighting savagely amongst themselves for the few remaining fighters, and was almost to the cockpit ladder when he spotted Jerec and drew his weapon. Several of the others, who hadn?t made it more than a few meters into the docking bay before fighting each other, took notice and turned their weapons in Jerec?s direction, also.
Blaster fire blistered the air around Jerec as he leapt to his right and rolled out of the way. While doing so, he reached into his weapon store near his lower back and pulled out two thermal detonators and pitched them in one fluid motion at the group near the entrance. The detonators exploded on contact near their feet and sent their charred bodies in all directions. The pilot at the Viper was opening the cockpit as he fired upon him. Jerec?s blaster was in his hand in the next motion and he was firing as he ran low, to avoid the oncoming blasts, towards the fighter, the whole ship bucking constantly now as he moved. He felt a hot burst of sensation on his left shoulder and caught a whiff of an acrid sent, like burning rubber. He dove to the side and fired three times, two of his shots finding their mark as the pilot fell to ground with a dull thud.
He reached up to his shoulder to find a large charred hole through his flight suit. It would be useless to retrieve his helmet now. Just as he was heading towards the Viper, a colossal blast tore through the Anguish and began to pitch the entire ship towards the port side. The stabilizers must have gone. The force of the tremor knocked the Viper free of its docking clamps with a terrible grinding sound and then it began to slide. Right towards open space! The catastrophic damage had clearly disabled the blast doors from closing which prevented cargo and personnel from sliding out into space. The whole ship was at an incline that was slowly increasing as Jerec ran towards the retreating fighter. He reached out and could just brush the rung of the ladder that lead to the open cockpit. The docking bay was a maelstrom, heat and deafening noise assaulted him as he struggled to run. As he looked past the Viper he could see the approaching glowing portal with cold space beyond. The fighter was gaining speed as it slid, sparks flying from the shearing metal. Jerec watched as his only way off the doomed ship slipped past the barrier and tumbled slowly out into space. His survival depended on the unthinkable. Jerec ran to the edge of the bay, his footsteps pounding on the trembling floor, then jumped with all the strength he had while he blew out hard all the air in his lungs and passed through the barrier into cold space.
Ten seconds. Jerec heard his instructor?s voice from his TC Academy classes. You humans have ten seconds after you hit hard vacuum to save your skin. For ten seconds you?ll still have your wits. After that you will experience loss of vision and impaired judgment. You?ll be unconscious a few seconds after that. You will experience freezing temperatures, the drop in pressure will cause the water in your body to turn to vapor and your muscles and soft tissues will begin to swell. You also better exhale hard or your lungs will rupture first in the explosive decompression. Now, you?re going to be cold, damn cold and it?s going to hurt like blazes but just remember ten seconds.
Ten seconds. The cold was terrible, like falling in a frozen lake. Nine seconds. Jerec floated towards the Viper in the soundless void. His last push had worked as he was gaining on it, arms outstretched as the fighter had begun to slowly spin away from him. Eight seconds. He felt the horrible pressure all throughout his body, capillaries bursting, so close now. Seven seconds. He was beginning to feel dizzy and could see frost on his hands in front of him. Six seconds. His hand caught the lower starboard wing. He began to rotate with the Viper, the spinning of the stars disorienting. Five seconds. All alone in the dark. His slow rotation saw the dawning of the devastated Black Sun ship on his horizon. Ruptures had broken out on all decks, bright cascading gouts of flame burst from deep within. Four seconds. Getting hard to move, to think. Jerec fumbled for the edge of the cockpit and swung his leg over the side. Three seconds. The Black Sun did not deviate much from standard fighter design with the Viper, especially in the cockpit layout. Jerec flipped on main power and watched as the control panel began to illuminate as the start-up sequence began. Two seconds. Vision blurry now. Hands shaking so much. He slammed the canopy control, what he hoped was the canopy control. One second. He could see Cirgil now, the planet looked so tranquil and majestic against the backdrop of the battle. Jerec wrapped his arms around the safety harness and hoped, as he passed out, that the ship would pressurize once it was sealed. Still, one could do worse as far as the last thing you would ever see goes.
Jerec awoke with a start and a deep gasp, the low hissing of the
environmental systems drowned out by the screeching coming from the controls.
Even through the worst headache of his life, the situation crystallized in front of him.
He was still drifting lazily a few hundred meters away from a capital ship who?s
power generator was going critical according to the Viper?s sensors. Jerec grabbed
the controls, pain still washing over him in waves, and stabilized the ship. He could see the Anguish, smaller pieces already beginning to break away, total destruction eminent. Jerec powered on the sublight engines pulled the controls back, spinning 180 degrees, as he accelerated hard. The force pressed him back into the seat as he felt the concussion wave of the explosion catch him and shake the Viper violently. He gripped hard as he fought to control the ship. Finally, the tremors subsided and he saw the Darkwater.
This is Commander Jerec Cross, aboard a Black Sun Viper. Transmitting
clearance codes now. Requesting permission to dock, TMS Darkwater.
Jerec heard the Admiral?s voice. Permission granted Commander. I?m sure
you have an interesting story about your new toy! Jerec smiled. The story about
the first Viper to leave the Black Sun?s possession, however exciting it may be, would
have to wait until after some much needed shore leave. Right after his R-4 unit was
picked up, of course!
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