Star Wars: From the Clone Wars to Starfaring Heroes

Chapter 15 - The Roar of War (Please continue reading)

The Tess Galaxy, the orbit of Tess.

Basel sector.

Rein said thoughtfully, "You know, this isn't the first time I've ambushed the Republic fleet like this."

Little Tower responded, "I don't remember that happening."

Stell activated the reverse thrust engines and began to decelerate, saying, "You weren't there at the time; it was during the Battle of Sarapin. You can check the ship's database later."

Raine snorted: "Well, actually, that was the last major battle of that campaign. Jedi General Echo Shenjun led a Republic battle group to launch a counterattack, recaptured Sarapin, and then tracked us to the Krant system, where General Tann had laid an ambush."

Stell spoke with a hint of reminiscence: "General Tann knew the Jedi would pursue, so she set a trap. She dispersed her fleet throughout the galaxy, and when the enemy ships entered low orbit, we ambushed them."

As the lights flashed red, an alarm sounded.

The Republic has discovered them.

Raine continued, "No enemy ships escaped. The Jedi were on the planet's surface at the time, so I'm not entirely sure what exactly happened... but it seems General Tann also prepared a ground ambush. If the Jedi weren't defeated by her, they must have been hit by the plasma cannon."

After saying that, he slowly exhaled, "Alright, let's not talk about this anymore, let's lock onto the Gualala number."

The gunner responded "Received," and then tapped on the control panel: "Transmitting energy to the front turbo laser cannon."

Raine ordered, "Maximum power, aim at her engines. I want to break her shield in one shot. Prepare the forward ion cannons. Once her shield is broken, I want to immobilize her. Do you hear me, 'Reputation'?"

Zinis replied, "Received."

The "Generosity-class" frigates possess one of the largest naval turbo-laser cannons in the galaxy, with firepower sufficient to easily penetrate battleships like cracking an egg, or directly pierce planetary atmospheres for orbital bombardment.

However, considering that the armor of this type of frigate is quite thin, it can only rely on this main gun to hold its own against any capital ship.

Of course, this is on the premise that we can fire first.

Because this type of frigate only has one twin-barreled gun assembly, and the entire gun assembly is too large, it can only be directly mounted on the hull.

Although the gun mount has some room for maneuver in terms of elevation angle, the most important way to achieve effective aiming is still to rotate the hull itself.

In addition, firing at maximum power would draw a large amount of energy from the reactor, to the point that the shield generator and even the main engine would not function properly.

Ultimately, the "Generosity-class" warships, like all other separatist warships, are the product of cost-cutting and deliberate trade-offs.

Only under these circumstances can it be reasonably determined that an attack on the stern of the Victory-class frigate—one of the largest blind spots in naval weaponry history—would not be immediately met with an attack due to the lack of shields.

As more and more energy continued to be directed to the turbine laser gun mount, the effects on other parts of the spacecraft quickly became apparent.

The console display dimmed, and the lighting system began to flicker noticeably.

Because their engine efficiency was almost halved, their deceleration rate also decreased significantly.

As the situation unfolded, Rein continued to issue orders: "Cut off the power supply to the life support systems and artificial gravity in all compartments except the bridge. We need engines, we need sensor arrays."

The engineering robot checked the readings and replied, "This will release some energy output. Should we redirect this energy back to the engine?"

Rein pondered for a moment and said, "Transfer the excess energy to the ion cannon."

"receive."

Raine stared at the sensor repeater, noticing the Guarara hurriedly moving its shields to the stern.

The reason for targeting the Kuala Lumpur first is simple: this ship is likely an escort carrier for the enemy fleet.

The "Cheerleader-class" ships are troop transports, while the "Tranquility" is the flagship of the 41st Fleet.

Raine must cripple this main aircraft carrier before it can launch its light attack aircraft.

If they take off, it will be all over.

The Guararat had just turned halfway around when the artillery fire readings started beeping.

"Fire!"

Renn made a decision immediately.

boom.

Two loud bangs echoed inside the ship, like tuning forks being struck.

The tactical hologram lit up, first two appeared, then four huge energy sources shot out like comets.

The first two beams split off the shield of the Guararat, breaking into dozens of secondary beams that bounced off—but dissipated before hitting anything.

The Renown had a much better angle of attack on the Guararat, and its lasers struck and penetrated the Guararat's ray shield head-on.

Their ion cannons were also busy, immediately launching an attack on the unfortunate Star Destroyer, striking the Guarara electronically.

An electric arc flickered in its engine bay, burning out its ion drive, hyperspace drive, and master inertial compensator.

Its sub-light-speed thrusters gradually stopped operating, turning it completely black and lifeless.

With a single blow, the ship became a dead fish.

Once all this energy has been released, the spacecraft's internal systems gradually resume operation.

The console lit up with that annoying green light again, and the lighting system started flashing brightly once more.

After observing for a moment, Xiaota said, "'Tranquility' is opening the back hatch."

Wendoli's flagship was making a sharp turn, preparing to fire, as the red-marked hangar doors slowly opened, revealing a deadly squadron of starfighters inside.

Behind it, the only troop transport ship was moving, carefully positioning the Tranquility between them and the Tranquility.

Raine raised an eyebrow and asked, "Where is the other 'Cheerleader-class'?"

Stell replied, "In the lower atmosphere."

Just then, the tablet vibrated. Rein glanced at it, then at Little Tower, who stared back at him expressionlessly. Rein suppressed his anger and remained calm and rational: "'Renown,' send out all the 'Vulture' fighters. The commander needs air support. Little Tower, send out our fighters and C-9799 transport planes."

"receive."

Warning: A large object is approaching at a dangerous speed.

Normally, this notification only appears when an interstellar object, such as a large meteorite, approaches and the passive shield is unable to block it.

Raine immediately checked his surroundings and then looked at his timer.

The Resistance was rapidly approaching, reaching a speed of 18000 kilometers per second before it flipped over and activated its sub-light-speed thrusters for a final moment of deceleration and emergency braking.

Estimated arrival time: 17 standard minutes.

Raine decisively issued the order: "Close the blast doors, move the shields to the back of the ship, concentrate them around the bridge, the clone pilots only know how to attack from above."

"receive."

Bang!

Bang!

Duralumin steel panels covered the transparent steel portholes, making the cockpit dark.

The lights were deliberately dimmed, and a custom-made holographic projector was turned on, projecting the pitch-black outside scene onto the shielded porthole with near realism.

The image only shows blue and red.

Holographic projectors acquire data directly from sensor repeaters, overlaying vector, three-dimensional orientation, and sensor data onto the display screen.

Add to that the Resistance's own internal data, such as energy levels and operational status, and it's like a hybrid of a real-time strategy game and a first-person shooter's head-up display.

Ryan no longer needs to check several readings at the same time.

He only needs to glance at the enemy ships on the projection to know the strength of their shields or which cannons are being reloaded.

Originally, the explosion-proof hatch was an emergency system used to close the bridge in case the portholes were damaged, but Rein felt that this purpose was more useful now.

After all, windows are a hindrance in space combat.

He still didn't understand why the people in this galaxy liked windows so much.

Wouldn't it be better to leave sightseeing to cruise ships?
But the way he said it did sound somewhat insincere.

As their Vulture fighters swarmed out of the hangar, escorting the C-9799 transport plane toward the planet, numerous markers appeared around them.

Nearly a hundred fighter jets flew around the transport plane, clustered together, close to the flank of the Guarara, cleverly using the crippled cruiser as cover.

Sensor engineers issued an alert: "Fighter jet detected!"

Hundreds of light attack aircraft poured out of the Serenity, sped out of the hangar passageways, and then swerved sharply with their ethereal rudders, circling back.

Their scanners quickly identified the model and input the information into the tactical hologram.

It is a V-19 "Torrent" fighter jet.

Renn breathed a sigh of relief.

These are fighter jets, not bombers.

HMS Renown reacted quickly, rushing into the wedge-shaped area between HMS Guararat and HMS Tranquility, listing to port and using its armor to defend against light attack aircraft.

If the V-19 fighter jet wants to attack the transport plane, it must get past it first.

The close-in weapon system of the HMS Renown opened fire, sparks flying across the display screen as it unleashed a barrage of dense anti-aircraft fire.

Pilots of the Republic were shot down in droves.

The Tranquility and the Reputation quickly engaged in a fierce exchange of fire, their turrets roaring as both ships unleashed superheated tibanna gas at each other.

However, in a prolonged engagement, the Tranquility would gain the upper hand, as the separatist frigates were simply too vulnerable.

The timer in Rennes showed 9 standard minutes remaining.

The gunner robot said, "The front turbine laser cannon is 30% charged."

Upon hearing this, Rein ordered, "Lock onto the bridge of the Guarara and open fire."

The entire ship tilted upwards, as if taking a deep breath before letting out a roar.

A flash of red light flashed.

The energy readings on the sensor repeater spiked.

The main command tower of the Kuala Lumpur disappeared in a huge explosion.

"Ah!"

Ryan smiled with satisfaction and, without any hesitation, continued to shout, "Full speed to the right! We'll go around and support the 'Renown' from the other side!"

The tactical hologram flickered, and the network of system readings surrounding the "Reputation" marker turned a glaring red.

Rennes's ease vanished in an instant.

The enemy fighter formation suddenly turned and launched a series of shock missiles at the frigate's hull, detonating its energy cells, and then swooped down along the hull to pursue the transport plane.

The explosion shook the warship.

All Ryan could see were numerous warning symbols around the "Reputation" icon before the shared data transmission stopped.

This can only mean one thing:

Its command bridge has completely lost power.

(End of this chapter)