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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ankh-Morpork Guard" data-source="post: 3056042" data-attributes="member: 10079">Chapter 398: Diving InA wave of Kanyak was not something normally seen. Alraxian space was safe enough that one could normally travel alone with little difficulty. And so, even to Marix, the sight of a thirty of the ships of various sizes darting straight towards the planet in front of them was like nothing ever seen. But that wasn’t actually holding her attention for the moment. Her eyes, and all her other sense, were focused the nothern edge of the planet where two Mrrakesh battle cruisers were approaching them. The metal sheen of the ships was easily visible thanks to the system’s nearby blue star, and it was obvious how alien the ships were compared to the living Kanyaks. Not to mention four times their size.    “We need to move faster,” Marix said, her hands on the control yoke despite the fact that Loki was taking a direct course straight for the planet.    [Thirty seconds before the Mrrakesh are close enough to fire.] Loki announced, a hint of nervousness in his voice. Kanyak had thick hulls and some even had very unique shields that were unlike anything in the rest of the galaxy due to being integrated with an actual lifeform, but Mrrakesh weapons were extremely powerful. In the few instances of a fight between the two ships, the Kanyaks rarely survived. Their sole advantage was in speed.    Eyes darting down to the sensor board, Marix focused on the Network and sent a simple message to the other pilots and their ships. [Everything to the drive systems. Head straight for the camps that have set up on the surface.]    ‘Camps’ was not the right word. In fact, what was really down there was another of the cruisers that a small series of encampments had been built up around. The other planet in the system that the Mrrakesh had taken was likely occupied in the same way.     As they darted for the planet below, the group of ships pulled in closer together, forming a much tighter group in the process. It was not necessarily the best of plans to avoid any fire from the Mrrakesh, but it was a habit of Kanyak when they traveled in groups to stay close to one another. There was only so much that could be done to counteract that instinct.    And then there was a flash off to the side. Marix’s eyes shot up to see a bright green beam fly straight from the cruisers towards them...but it hit nothing. Instead, it passed a good distance in front of them.    [A warning shot.] Loki announced.    Marix shook her head, “Mrrakesh don’t fire warning shots.”    Yet another thing that just plain didn’t add up. By now it was starting to make her angry, but Marix held that down and kept her focus.    She glanced over to the side again to see the small shining spots where the cruisers were as the planet grew to encompass the entire viewport, “Why isn’t the second ship coming up behind us?”    Again, something else that didn’t fit. Surround and destroy. They Kanyaks were close enough to the planet that it would be very difficult to escape at all if they were cut off from behind, and the Mrrakesh had to know that...yet both of the cruisers were simply coming towards them.    [They’re firing again.]    Loki spoke up before Marix caught the flash. The green beam lanced towards them, and suddenly there was a violent shock of pain that wracked through the Force. The Network immediately explained, as one of the outer ships had taken a hit to its wing. The pilot and others aboard were alive, but the Kanyak had been knocked unconscious from the violence of the impact. This meant the pilot was doing his best to control a half-dead ship.    One down.    It wasn’t long before there was another flash, but this one came from the surface directly below them. Another green lance shot up, just barely streaking over Loki and hitting one of the rear ships directly on its nose. There was another violent shock through the Force, and then a sudden nothingness.    Two down.    With the Kanyaks entering the atmosphere and charging straight down towards the surface, the fire from the three cruisers was intensifying. Beam after beam of green energy shot out towards the formation of Kanyaks from their left flank and directly ahead. Again and again, a Kanyak was hit...only two survived direct hits.    With only twenty Kanyaks left, the cruiser on the ground was visible. By now, the two in orbit could not fire without risking hitting their ally, and the formation of Kanyaks had come so close to the surface that the remaining ship on the ground could not fire accurately at all.    The Network did all the work of coordinating the remaining ships movements, and so no call was needed when they reached a very low point to the surface. All of a sudden, the formation broke up and pulled up, dispersing in various directions around the still-firing cruiser beneath them. They were headed for the ground now, surrounding the grounded ship and finding safe, guarded places on the surface to set down.    Loki was one of the first to set down on the planet, wedged beneath a small rock outcropping just north of the large Mrrakesh cruiser. As he was setting down, Marix was already out of the cockpit and headed for the hatch. She wore the light armour that she had always carried with her as a Tam’Day’U, with a short, metal blade at her hip and her lightsaber hidden in a small pocket on her leg.    The hatch opened to a hot, dry air that Marix ignored and immediately stepped out into, her eyes darting along the immediate area as her ears, nose, and Force senses checked for any sign of an ambush. There was none, so she started up around the hill that led out and to where the cruiser was landed. On the way there, she caught sight of a group of five other Tam’Day’U who had landed nearby. All were similarly equipped and moving like she was, low to the ground but extremely fast. There were a few Knights among the landing groups, and they were distinguishable only by the weapons they carried...short blades much like the Tam’Day’U, but crafted of a hardened crystal from Alraxia that was not nearly as dangerous to them as metal was.    And so, from all sides, the Tam’Day’U and the Knight approached. The twenty ships that had made it to the ground meant there were sixty three Alraxians on the ground. The ship they were all approaching easily held three times that many Mrrakesh, who, individually, were easily a match for even the strongest Tam’Day’U. And they had no element of surprise here. This, at least, was planned for.    Marix and ten others would be heading to find the leader that would most definitely be on the ground. Alive or dead, dealing with him was currently the best option in driving the Mrrakesh away. And with the ship on the ground, it was likely he was near the bridge watching and coordinating the efforts to stop this attack. It meant finding him would not be nearly as hard as getting to him.    But that would, hopefully, be made easier by the remainder of the ground force who carried explosives and other devices designed to act as a major distraction. They simply had to hold the majority of the Mrrakesh away from the bridge until the leader was dealt with. Easier said than done, but it was something all of them, Knights, Tam’Day’U, and Empress, were determined to make happen.    They had no other choice.    If this didn’t work...what was to stop the Mrrakesh from taking other planets?    So, as quickly and carefully as they could, the Alraxians approached the grounded cruiser that was being fortified and prepared for an attack every second it took them to arrive.</blockquote>

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