The UNS Arctic was weas ready.
Or at least as ready as Ensign Swan could manage.
He could appreciate that Taisen's plan was the only way to successfully infiltrate the system without having to engage the patrols and avoid combat but the whole situation set his teeth on edge.
The voice of Commander Taisen broke his train of thought. "UNS Beluga?" He called.
"We're locked and loaded," Usyk replied. "Let me know when it's game time."
Admiral Usyk had been earthbound and deskbound for so long that he was itching for some action.
There was a subtle shift onboard the Arctic and deck vibrations started as they began to move forward. Ensign Swan peered up through the bridge canopy confirming that the UNS Beluga was also in motion and staying in perfect sync but way too close for comfort.
Taisen's plan required that the Arctic fly alongside the Beluga, staying close enough to hide in its sensor shadow in order to conceal its presence until they reached the point where that would slip away and duck inside one of the asteroid clusters. The Arctic would go dark and hopefully undetected while letting the Beluga lead away any pursuit.
The plan was ingenious in its simplicity.
At least in theory.
In practice, it was so reckless and dangerous that he couldn't help but clench.
Taisen opted not to use tie in cables to connect the ships despite vociferous support from Ensign Swan. He pointed out that a small error in either ships trajectory would create a visible ripple that any alert sensor operator worth their salt should spot. Ensign Swan scowled because he was supposed to know that.
Tractor beams were never brought up due to the fact that they generated a massive and easily detectable energy signature.
Taisen chose the kind of close-flying that require delicate precision. The kind that only stunt pilots with decades of experience should try.
He decided to manually fly the ship himself and not leave it up to the crew. Ensign Swan hoped that something bad would happen just so that he could say 'I told you so'.
"Tow hostiles inbound," Alita said.
"Is it time to intercept, Commander?" Colonel Lyn asked.
Taisen didn't answer. He calmly worked the controls on the ships navigation station.
"Give me three per cent more thrust," Taisen finally ordered without looking away from the controls.
"Adjusting thrust by positive three per cent."
Swan tensed as he awaited the inevitable collision. To his disbelief and surprise, both ships tilted upward at the exact same time and angle. It was almost beautiful to watch if his life weren't in danger. Taisen on the Arctic and Usyk on the Beluga seemed to have a level of understanding between them that was almost telepathic.
"Standby for a turn to port," Taisen continued.
There was a slight sensation as the Arctic turned. It was a large turn and stood the risk of jeopardising the entire manoeuvre but once again the two ships stayed in perfect formation. Ensign Swan peered out the viewscreen, feeling cold sweat bead up and roll down his head before settling beneath his collar. This whole illusion could pop like a bubble at any time or they could collide with the Beluga and be killed.
He decided that Taisen was crazy.
Moments went by, courses shifted, vectors and trajectories were recalculated and factored. Colonel Lyn watched the tactical display as the two ships continued toward the Cell system. She listened to the sensor officer's frantic commentary on the strange ships in pursuit. A third hostile had joined the fun now and it angled in from a direction that could expose their ruse nearly sixty seconds before they were scheduled to break off.
Alita kept an eye on the Arctic's weapons and defence systems in the event that this turned into shootout and then suddenly they were there.
"Stanby. We're about to break off," Taisen said.
"Acknowledged, Arctic," Usyk said. "Hostile one and two are four and a half minutes away from intercept. Hostile three is thirty seconds away from making visual contact. We'll continue for three minutes before entering hyperspace. That's all the time we can give you."
"Acknowledged," Taisen said. "I only need two minutes. And Beluga…."
"Yes, Arctic?" Usyk said.
"Thanks."
Taisen could hear the old mans smile over the transmission. "Kick ass, Arctic. Beluga out."
That was the last transmission they received before breaking off. Taisen let go of the controls and returned to his command station.
"Helm, prepare to veer off," Taisen ordered.
Using compressed gas angled to the starboard side of the UNS Arctic, the ship moved away from the shadow of the Beluga on a trajectory that would take it across the edge of the nearest asteroid cluster. Ensign Swan intently focused all his attention on the tactical displays because if they had been spotted by any of the hostiles, the time has come for the entire charade to be over. They would be in serious trouble because the engines had been mostly disabled and it would take a fair amount of time to get them restarted. At the moment, they were vulnerable.
He reacted instinctively as the Beluga now pulled ahead of them, put on a sudden burst of speed and an acute shift in angle. Usyk was trying a last ditched manoeuvre to reach the planet in the distance before the hostiles entered combat range.
It looked like he was trying to keep the attention on him for a few more seconds so that they would pull off their primary objective.
The slowly wobbling asteroid which was their goal loomed ahead of them.
With another blast of compressed air, the UNS Arctic came to a complete stop way too close to the asteroid. The hull scraped it but held steady. Another carefully timed pulse helped the ship match the spin of the asteroid. The hostiles were still wholly committed to chasing down the Beluga.
"Full stealth mode," Taisen ordered.
The bridge lights all around them winked red and then black. "We appear to have arrived y detected," Taisen calmly declared.
There were subdued cheers from the crew. They deserved to be happy after such a dangerous and nerve racking manoeuvre.
Ensign Swan took a deep breath, making a final sweep to make sure non-essential systems were locked down. "So it would appear," he said trying to hide his relief. "How long do we wait befo—"
He was cut short by a large explosion as the hostiles caught the Beluga and destroyed it with proton torpedoes.
The entire bridge watched in despair as the Beluga and Usyk were turned to brilliant fireworks.