The destruction of the Romme weighed heavy on the bridge of the Lietinna as the bridge crew sat in silence as the Lietinna weaved around the asteroids of the belt with the occasional proton cannon fire either hitting them or barely missing them.
Archer looked silently at Lt. Commander Naimes' similarly somber face on his monitor. Neither of them was saying anything, but there was plenty in the silence as they both stared at each other. Eventually, Lt. Commander Naimes broke the silence with a sigh as she spoke:
"Daniel….Lt. Commander Esmer was not the best commander, but he genuinely was not a bad person. I don't think he belonged here, and he most definitely didn't deserve to die here either, but there he is, dead."
Archer focused his eyes as he fought back whatever feelings were bubbling up within him. Death is death and there was no doubt in his mind that he was going to see it often, but the idea that it would be so close and so sudden was not an easy thing to stomach. He truly did not think much of the late Lt. Commander Esmer and just thought of him as a bumbling and somewhat idiotic officer, but he did not for a second wish him harm.
But here was Archer, sitting on a ship very similar to his and a similar crew and the same ship that killed him on their tail. Archer felt his stomach tighten in fear and remorse. Perhaps, he should have just been a farmer, living on an adjacent farm to the one he grew up on, with a wife, and a litter of kids, waking up at the crack of dawn to program drones and fix machines. To sow and harvest and till, every day except Sunday until he croaked.
Such was a life, however. He couldn't spend any more time wallowing in a fantasy as he felt the Lietinna shake violently with a direct impact from type 3's main cannons.
"Report" Archer barked as he looked at the information coming into this console.
"Sir, direct impact on the starboard quarter. Hull intact, shields at 70%. Rerouting charge to the impacted area."
"Helm, tighten up on the maneuvers, you're 7% deviated from my routes, we can't afford to spend too much time without cover. Lt. Commander Naimes, we don't have time to mourn, the Romme bought us a chance to disengage, and we need to capitalize."
Archer immediately set a new route to his console and leaned back as the Lietinna barreled forward toward the edge of the asteroid belt.
The tension on the bridge of the Lietinna was palpable as Archer's orders echoed through the air. The crew swiftly responded, their training kicking in despite the chaos around them. Lt. Commander Naimes simply nodded in acknowledgment before disconnecting.
As the ship surged forward, dodging debris and enemy fire, Archer couldn't shake the feeling of responsibility weighing heavily on his shoulders. He was the captain now; thrust into a position of leadership he hadn't anticipated. But there was no time for doubt or hesitation.
"Status on our pursuers?" Archer inquired, his voice firm despite the turmoil within him.
"Sir, they're still on our tail, but we've managed to create some distance and their flanking maneuvers are disrupted," came the response from tactical.
Archer grimaced. They couldn't outrun the enemy forever, especially not with the Lietinna sustaining damage. They needed a plan, and fast.
"Klimt, I need options," Archer said, turning to his left. "How do we shake them off?"
Klimt furrowed her brow as she continued working on her console scanning the tactical readouts.
"We could attempt a micro-jump," she suggested, her voice tense with urgency. "It's risky, but if we can calculate the trajectory just right, we might be able to throw them off our scent long enough to regroup and buy time."
Archer considered the proposal. A micro-jump was indeed a gamble and was extremely taxing on the ship and SF Modulator, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
"Prepare the calculations and set course for Luminis in the Aurora system " he ordered, his jaw set with determination.
The crew sprang into action, their movements coordinated and precise. Archer watched as the countdown to the jump flashed on the main display, his heart pounding in anticipation.
"Engage," he said as soon as the bow of the Lietinna moved past the border of the belt, his voice steady despite the adrenaline coursing through his veins.
With a flash of light, the Lietinna hummed slightly before it vanished from its position in the asteroid belt, hurtling through the fabric of space toward its destination. For a moment, all was silent, the tension on the bridge almost tangible.
Then, as the ship reappeared at its new coordinates, a collective sigh of relief swept through the crew. They had evaded their pursuers, at least for the time being.
But Archer knew that their respite would be short-lived. The battle was far from over, and the fate of the Lietinna—and all who sailed aboard her—hung in the balance.
" Comms, recommence emergency broadcast on all hail and emergency channels."
"Yes sir."
"Anything on Scanners, what is the status of the Tame and our pursuers?"
"Sir, The Tame's signatures are 0.1 Lumens away, no sign of our pursuers."
Archer started contemplating. Their pursuers will probably commence a micro-jump soon, and the distance between them and the Tame is slightly far, approximately 5 minutes apart at full speed. Essentially, the type 3's micro-jump could put it anywhere within 0.1 Lumens of either the Lietinna or the Tame and they need to put as much space between them and their pursuers.
"Prepare for HLT and maintain course towards Luminis."
""Yes sir""
Archer looked out of the forward display monitor and sighed as he couldn't calm himself down. The adrenaline and dread of this whole encounter were making his stomach turn like it has never done before.
He couldn't help but wonder where it all went wrong. Perhaps it was back on Faylon when he got his assignment, or when he got this mission. However, regardless, he was vividly aware that this life was not sustainable.
However, his thoughts were interrupted by a report from his comms officer:
"Sir, incoming message from the LNS Stopher of the 5th Fleet ."
Archer's eyes flickered as he leaned forward towards his console. Soon after, the image on a square-faced man with a strong jaw flickered on.
"This is Commander Ein Michelas of the 5th Fleet's 3rd combat wing. We received your distress signal and are in route. What is the situation.?"
Archer composed himself for a second before speaking in a steady but concise manner:
"Sir, I am Lieutenant Archer Chase of the 7th Fleet's 14th combat wing. We were on a mission to track the LNS Matril when we were ambushed by unknown assailants. The LNS Romme was already engaged and the LNS Tame was approaching fast. We designed from the assailants, but we were engaged shortly after by a Type 3, similarly unidentified. We took cover in the asteroid belt, but we couldn't shake them off. The LNS Romme is lost in action and the Tame and us are heavily damaged."
Commander Michelas listened silently with a scrunched brow as he contemplated what Archer was relaying to him. As soon as Archer was done speaking, he took a deep breath before speaking:
"Understood Lieutenant. Please maintain your course and we'll rendezvous with you in 5 minutes."
Archer felt a weight fall off of his shoulder as he heaved a sigh of relief as he spoke:
"Yes sir. Thank you"
The image immediately disconnected as Archer leaned back on his chair. He saw a path out of an untenable situation. But before he could relax, his comms officer intoned once again:
"Sir, another incoming hail from the LNS Charger."
Archer's face immediately fell at the mention of the Charger. It was not lost on him that all hails to his Wing Command fell on deaf ears when he needed them, not to mention his suspicion that they were tossed into this whole situation by their command.
Archer composed himself before turning to his monitor with a cold look on his face.