Star Wars: From the Clone Wars to Starfaring Heroes

Chapter 265-267 - The Intruder's First Battle
Colfil Galaxy.

The Gordian Corridor is a vast and desolate region of space, situated between the Hydia Route and the Near-Permian Route.

It acts like a natural barrier, hindering ships from freely moving between these two important hyperspace routes.

This region is filled with the remnants of stars, empty space, and intricate nebulae, forming a naturally formed space labyrinth.

This place is located north of the planet Fanta, and its core is the Yavin system. The Rebel Alliance will establish their secret base here in the future.

However, Raine's target was not Yavin, but the Hydia route located on the other side of the Gordian Corridor.

This means they must cross the Colfield Passage.

This is an extremely narrow route connecting Kolfiel and Akuda, and it is currently the only known path that can pass through the treacherous nebula known as "Royle".

Perhaps in the future the Givens will be able to calculate other ways to traverse this perilous cosmic landscape, but for now, time is not on their side.

The Royal Nebula unfolded before their eyes, the vast expanse of gas and dust painting the void with vibrant colors.

The view from either Kolfiel or Akuda must be incredibly magnificent.

“Report, the Dodsia intelligence is correct.” Augu’s voice was deep and cold, as if it could penetrate bones. “An abnormal gravity well has been detected ahead. After assessment, it is believed that the Colfil system is protected by a hyperspace blocking network.”

“It seems it wasn’t one of our people who did it,” Renn said in a low voice, glancing at the sensor data.

Aug quickly replied, "The Confederate Armed Forces have not registered any military installations in the Colfil system."

After thinking for a moment, Raine deduced, "It could only have been built by the Republic."

"The hypothesis is highly likely to be true."

"Initiate a remote scan to conduct a full search of this galaxy, starting from the vicinity of the stars."

Renn gave the order decisively.

"In progress".

Augu quickly got to work, directing the crew of the battlecruiser HMS Intruder.

The giant ship's scanning array was operating at full capacity, its light flashing as it carefully probed the star system ahead.

Moore Danto, the designer of the ship's weapon systems, and his team of pressure-suit-wearing technical associates practically leaped for joy, eagerly recording and analyzing every single piece of data.

For them, this was not just a mission, but also the first real-world test of their meticulously crafted sensor array.

Ryan felt like they were a group of children who had received a new toy, except that these "children" would carefully record every reading.

After all, this was the first combat deployment of the "Intruder" ship. Before that, even the ship's sea trials were conducted in a highly secretive manner.

Raine didn't think much of it; he even took a nap until, about ten hours later, Augu's voice rang out again:
"Target detected, distance 6 million kilometers, bearing 029, marker 008. Target is suspected to be in orbit around the sun."

Six million kilometers.

That's equivalent to the distance from Pluto to Mars.

Rein slowly stood up: "Switch to high-precision scanning, lock onto the target... Are the shells ready?"

"Main guns one and two are fully loaded!" the weapons officer quickly responded. "Anti-ship mode is ready, aiming procedure initiated!"

A heavy thud came from the deck as the first shell was fired into the breech.

This is a massive rock-swallowing, brake-energy projectile, about the size of a small apartment, equipped with an attitude control engine.

Due to its enormous size and weight, the Intruder could only carry eight such shells, four for each main gun.

Shells are a high-density material often used to manufacture explosion-proof structures; nearly half the weight of the entire ship may come from these shells.

"Enemy fleet signal confirmed." The sensor director then reported, "Identified as four Level 3 combat space stations, thirty-one capital ships, and the core device of the hyperspace jammer is located in star orbit."

"Aim for the core." Renn's gaze sharpened as he gave the order, his voice trembling slightly with excitement. "Augus, can we destroy enough blockers to achieve a hyperspace jump?"

"can."

Renn took a deep breath and steadied his heartbeat.

Augu's answer was decisive and calm, consistent with his role as a super tactical robot.

Renn trusted his judgment; otherwise, he wouldn't have allowed a two-meter-tall mechanical giant to stand on the bridge.

“Very good.” With the rangefinder calibrated, Raine breathed a sigh of relief. “Notify the Dordesian Iliette to begin calculating the jump route to Akuda.”

"The instructions have been conveyed."

"Fire control plan sent!" the fire control officer shouted, his voice tense.

"Plan received! Awaiting firing approval!" "Execution approved, all personnel enter interception mode." Augu put his metal arms behind his back. "Authorize main gun number one to fire."

"Roger that! Concentrate power to main gun number one, fire at full power!" Lorona Company's dispatched officer, Nivmark Dimura, loudly relayed the order. "Main gun number two, standby, just in case!"

The bridge lighting dimmed according to the program, the starlight outside the transparent dome gradually disappeared, and the targeting system firmly locked onto the target six million kilometers away.

The Intruder's No. 1 main gun was enormous, with a barrel length almost half the length of the ship's hull.

Internal energy began to surge, and the four tritium fusion reactors directed powerful energy to the gun barrel, with overlapping gravitational pulses accumulating energy in the barrel.

"Target locked!" the sensor officer announced.

The low hum of the operating system became the only background noise on the bridge.

A slight tremor came from the bridge deck, as if the entire ship was gathering strength for launch.

The observation window in front of Raine seemed to be magnified, the bow structure slightly contracted, and the spacetime around the main gun seemed to be distorted.

The stars shone even brighter, and the planets' outlines appeared larger.

An invisible force was pulling him along; though faint, it could not be ignored.

He looked back and realized that the distance between himself and the back wall seemed to have been lengthened.

"Interception route planning complete!"

"Firing parameters have been entered!"

"Data synchronization complete!"

"Awaiting final instructions!"

"Fire!" Renn shouted the words almost unconsciously, as if he were being pushed along by a series of procedures.

The order had barely been given when the Intruder opened fire.

The entire bridge shook violently, and a torrent of scorching energy erupted from the superstructure, turning the space in front of it blood red.

The tremors spread throughout the ship, as if some giant beast was roaring.

The destructive spear of light vanished into the darkness in the blink of an eye, leaving only a fading red trail.

Ryan felt a brief moment of weightlessness, as if the immense recoil had displaced the entire ship.

The shockwave spread across the deck, and the static electricity in the air made people's skin tingle.

“Send an engineer to the main gun number one.” Rein quickly regained his composure. “I need to know how long it will take to prepare for the second launch.”

“Understood.” Augu responded immediately. “Engineering Department, dispatch a repair team to inspect the No. 1 main gun and require a damage report to be submitted within 24 standard hours.”

"Roger that!"

“Helmsman,” Ryan continued, “move the fleet to the nearest asteroid’s shadow. We need to find a place to hide and wait and see what happens.”

Snipers cannot remain where they were firing.

As the Intruder turned to port and headed toward the nearest asteroid belt for cover, the bow was still radiating heat, and the atmosphere on the bridge remained tense.

For eight long hours, the crew stared intently at the monitors and holographic displays, tracking the trajectory of the faster-than-light projectile.

Until the target dot disappeared from the screen, replaced by a slowly spreading burst of energy, like a miniature supernova silently exploding on the star map.

“Hit confirmed.” Nifmark Dimura squinted. “The blocking network has been destroyed. Hyperspace jump is possible.”

"Received," Augu replied. "Weapons Department, shut down the power to the No. 2 main gun."

“‘Scepter,’ this is ‘Intruder,’” Raine called to the frigate carrying the Doddish Iriet. “Synchronize navigation computer, prepare to enter hyperspace.”

“‘Intruder,’ this is ‘Scepter,’” Officer Given responded. “Order confirmed, synchronizing fleet hyperspace drive.”

"Wait!" Moore Danto suddenly rushed forward to protest, "We need more time to collect data in this system! My team still needs to analyze it..."

“This is a military operation, Danto, not your lab test,” Ryan interrupted him, stating decisively, “The weapons test was successful, the target has been destroyed… We will not stay here and wait for a possible enemy counterattack.”

"Report! The No. 1 main gun urgently needs maintenance!"

At this point, Augu added coldly.

“And what else is there to analyze?” Nivmark Dimura said slowly, pointing to the still-spreading energy aftershocks on the hologram. “Nothing is left but ruins.”

(End of this chapter)