Pirate Lords
21 Sep 2018Garesu
“Mayday, we are under attack. This is Starstone transport Articus, I repeat mayday we are un…” The distress signal went silent as a raspy voice cut across the bandwidth. Three Vultures and an Anaconda sat surrounding a Type Nine Heavy, its three wing escort floated in parts around it. Some broken hull bouncing off the pirate ships red and black spiked hulls.“Should have just given us that tasty cargo of meat sculptures and booze I see on my scan.” The pirate like his ship kept to stereotypes with long green unwashed hair combed over where the rest of his head was shaved smooth. Taking a long drag of Onion Head from a personalised skull inhaler he breathed out whilst issuing the command. “Take ‘em.”
On the Type Nine Heavy, the captain was watching his contacts list closely. Four names moved closer and closer. His attention was so fixated he barely noticed the debris floating around his command deck. He only blinked as flecks of blood dripped across the outside of his remlock from the limp body of his crewmate. “Hurry,” he whispered smearing the red away.
A volley of missiles streaked across the short space between the pirate Anaconda and prey. The impact struck the hulking transport, tearing at the wing and sending its powerless husk into a spin with cargo floating in its wake.
A second round would finish them but the pirate could no longer see the trader. A golden angel appeared with a literal ‘pop’ twisting and shimmering as the sun reflected off the iridescent paint. The missile lock tone had stopped, the target no longer found. Scrambling the pirate retargeted the new ship and the Vultures after a moment's surprise followed. “Target that ship, take out its power plant!”
The pirates banked and pulled around to get a good shot on the now scanned Imperial Cutter. Red beam laser lanced from the Anaconda’s huge hardpoint striking with a mix of plasma, and kinetic weapons. The impacted shield glowed green from the bombardment but the vessel didn't move from where it had dropped in.
Within the Cutter, Garesu sat in his white imperial chair lazily flicking the secondary fire flap up and down as green shimmered across his canopy. The com's buzzed as a forced transmission came through crackling. “Nice ship, shame to scratch it. Drop any cargo you are carrying and we might let y…” The pirate's voice was cut off by one of his own crew yelling about more targets.
Two more low popping noises and a third a few seconds after signalled the end. A Vulture exploded as two huge overcharged plasma rounds reduced it to a smouldering wreck. The other two Vultures peeled off and Garesu finally pulled the trigger, all turrets rotating onto the Anaconda and relentlessly began bombarding it with pulse laser rounds.
Two Alliance Chieftain chased the remaining Vultures as a Federal Corvette rounded on the Anaconda after its first kill. The Federal ship opened up its turrets, beams of blue laser joined the Cutter’s and in moments the Pirates pride and joy was down to the hull and powerless.
Last two Vultures exploded losing their dogfights. Now the four ships rounded on the Anaconda, a mirror to the earlier predicament. “Wait we can come to an arrangement!” The desperate plea of the pirate had begun. Garesu toggled the com's to reply.
“Piracy will not be tolerated in Starstone systems. Oh and I really want to get paid.” The Cutter began slicing the pirate apart with multi-cannons, shortly joined by the rest of the Starstone ships. Mercilessly overwhelmed the Anaconda joined its wing as twisted scrap.
Limpets were deployed attaching to the Type Nine and welding it back together. “This is Starstone system security. We will have you space worthy shortly. Please reboot your systems and jump to the nearest station for repairs.” Garesu hung up the com’s as his S.S.E Wealdend was joined by the Corvette S.S.E Fifi and the two chieftains S.S.E Efflorescence and Lady Bug.
Forming up with the Type Nine the five ships vanished each with their own frameshift pop leaving just the tumbling mess of metal drifting in the black of space.