Unconventional Methods

It was always a nerve-wracking moment whenever one fired up a brand-new ship. Although it was highly illogical, many people across the galaxy dreaded new ships because of the minuscule possibility of an NFT drive being misaligned or the antimatter reactor having an unknown micro-defect.

If an NFT drive was improperly misaligned, there was an all too real possibility of a ship suffering what was known as a catastrophic anchor failure (CAF), which would result in a ship getting stuck in N-space permanently, never being able to descend back into realspace...

And if a ship's antimatter reactor possessed a structural imperfection larger than a single millimeter, the probability of an uncontrolled matter-antimatter detonation occurring within a ten-day period was 24%. The worst part was that once the chain reaction happened, there was nothing one could do to stop it. It'd happen in a flash, and then the ship would be vaporized an instant...

Antimatter reactor output at 99%...

QF-shield strength at 99%...

Ion thrusters operational...

Axis stabilizers operational...

Communications array operational...

Life support systems operational...

Mass driver cannon operational and LOCKED...

Railguns 1 through 4 operational and LOCKED...

Autocannons 1 through 12 operational and LOCKED...

NFT Drive operational...

A list of pre-flight checks ran down the digital visor inside of Yurai's helmet as the ship's Slave-AI confirmed that Joyeuse-1 was ready to launch. It had taken seventeen arduous years, but she finally achieved the first step of the path she decided to embark upon long ago.

Yurai had not just obtained the rank of Commander, but she had achieved the rank of Lead Commander of a whole squadron. As far as rank progression was concerned, the position of Lead Commander was the highest a new officer could obtain straight out of academy training.

She was on the fast track towards a prospective admiralty. However, it would at least be more than a decade before Imperial High Command would even begin to consider her for such a significant promotion.

A deep rumble traveled across the entirety of the ship from the reactor core, indicating that it had been started up successfully.

It was like the murmuring growl of a dragon that had been awoken from its slumber, thought Aetna. Even with the additional internal dampeners installed, the ship was still having trouble managing the ludicrous output of the model-86 reactor core. Such was the price of installing a reactor core meant to power a 250-meter Interceptor on the 105-meter prototype "Seeker" warship.

"Oooh, that's one hell of an engine. Damn thing has no business being installed on a ship this small," said Aetna as he observed the ship's rising energy readings on one of his holo-panels with an impressed yet mortified expression.

"We've reached the critical energy threshold. Reactor output is at ninety-nine percent. Engineering detected no hiccups in any critical systems. We have an all-green status, Commander," said Gafon.

"Pre-flight checks have been completed. All ion thrusters and axis stabilizers are confirmed operational. Fuel reserves at 100%. The ship is ready to launch on your word, Commander," said Naoe. Though she had a steely expression on her face, she was actually quite nervous about piloting the ship. She had performed well enough during the simulation exercises, but she wasn't in a simulation anymore.

This was real life, and she was in control of a real warship on a course for a real battle to the death. The training wheels had come off. Failure on her part would mean death for everyone. Suffice to say, the pressure she felt was tremendous, but then again, everyone on the command bridge probably felt the same way...

"I permit you to launch, Lieutenant Neberafon. Begin the undocking procedure and set a course for the designated rendezvous point around Taldo-4's moon, Jaleco, once we're in the clear. Lieutenant Savar, inform bridge control that we are about to depart and request for them to drop QF-shielding in hangar bay five-two," said Yurai.

Naoe and Savar nodded in acknowledgment and quickly went through the necessary steps to get the ship out of the hangar bay. A less than a minute later, permission was given from the Silver Talon's command bridge, and the anchor locks on Joyeuse-1 were released. The artificial gravity field in the hangar bay disappeared, giving Joyeuse-1 the freedom to finally begin moving.

Ahead of the ship, a massive circular gateway opened up, revealing the empty void of space. The only thing protecting Joyeuse-1 from the dangers that lay outside was the Silver Talon's powerful QF-shield that blocked the ship from just about everything, barring elementary particles, such as quarks, photons, and certain parts of the EM spectrum.

Had the Silver Talon's QF-shield not been lowered in the hangar bay, Joyeuse-1 would have actually crashed into it and been pushed back had it left at low speeds. At faster speeds, Joyeuse-1 would have rammed into the QF-shield and exploded into a thousand pieces, resulting in the deaths of everyone aboard Joyeuse-1 and severe damage to the frigate.

It all happened unceremoniously. No one watched them leave, wished them good luck, or even noticed that they had gone.

The only thing the command crew of Joyeuse-1 received from the Silver Talon's bridge command were the coordinates of their appointed training skirmish and the relay codes required to identify themselves...

In Commander Larfuc's personal office, three people drank together as they watched Joyeuse Squadron slowly depart. Larfuc, Leifon, and Yunfeer had different expressions on their faces. Larfuc had a smile on his face, Leifon had a worried expression, and Yunfeer appeared to be quite dissatisfied, judging from the scowl on his face.

"It's too soon for this," said Yunfeer with a low growl, "I needed at least another month and a half with them. They're still too green for actual combat, goddammit. Don't get me wrong, they're good, but they're not good enough for what those bastards have pitted them against. Ahh… Couldn't you have stalled them for a little longer, Leifon?"

Leifon sighed and said, "No. I tried to buy you more time, but after those old fossils figured out who the Lead Commander of Joyeuse Squadron, they proposed to move the test date forward by a month. And once my mother-in-law learned about the situation, most of the old fossils in Imperial High Command switched sides against me. They're adamant in getting Yurai assigned in some safe and completely meaningless position in the Inner Systems."

Larfuc laughed when he heard Leifon's situation and said, "That old hag has way too much time to spare… Still, we can't have her meddling in my precious little niece's future just because she's bored at home. Let me talk to her once we head back to the capital and see if I can work my charms on her. In any case, how do you think those kids will fare? I think they'll be fine."

Yunfeer snorted in contempt, but he didn't seem all too concerned. He stared at his glass of whiskey in contemplation and said, "You saw what they loaded in their cargo bays, right? While it's true that they were restricted from loading live ammunition, I didn't expect them to load all of 'that' in response. I've no doubt it was that little brat who thought of using that ridiculous stuff in an actual battle."

"Even so, you didn't stop them," said Larfuc with a smug smile on his face. "I personally think it's sort of romantic in an old-school type of way. I mean, sure, it's beyond reckless, but I can't help but like the boy's sense of style. Regardless, we're in for one hell of a show. Are the observation probes in place already?"

"They're in place and armed. All that's left for us to do is to get within broadcasting range and let everything play out. Whether they pass or fail will be completely up to them from here on out. I'm sure that everything will be fine," said Leifon hesitantly.

Larfuc and Yunfeer shared a secret glance as if communicating something amongst themselves that they didn't want the admiral to know about. And that private conversation was about…

Whether the admiral would actually be able to not interfere in his precious daughter's graduation exam if she got hurt.

Only time would tell. But they weren't holding their breath too strongly, to be perfectly honest…

Around Taldo-4's only moon, Jaleco, the last ship in Joyeuse Squadron had arrived. With all ships present, Yurai had opened a communications channel with all commanders to discuss their next step as a group.

To be clear, Joyeuse Squadron had already been given its orders — to head to the Yavun System located 11 light-years away from their current position and be within the orbit of a gas giant called 897-Haifo in eight days. And while any good officer would have immediately set a course based on their orders, Joyeuse Squadron's senior staff had a different plan in mind…

As soon as they were outside out of broadcast range on the other side of Jaleco, away from the prying eyes of the 1st Fleet, Yurai turned toward Aetna and said, "Are you really sure it'll be alright to do this? Don't you think we should at least warn your family secretly of our impending arrival before we visit their Domain? And it's not exactly polite… let alone legal to enter into a colonized system without identifying ourselves first to local Domain authorities."

Aetna shrugged his shoulders and said, "What we're going to do isn't legal in the slightest, so why follow the formalities? Also, my workshop isn't exactly an 'official starbase' with paperwork, you know. I had it built in secret with some 'off-the-books help' if you catch my drift. So if the feds find out about it, I'm gonna go straight to super-max prison, and so will all of you too because the stuff I've got there is, well… extremely illegal. Emphasis on the word 'extreme.'"

Everyone in the command bridge stared at Aetna as if trying to gauge whether he was joking or not. Or if he was exaggerating about the nature of his inventions, but when they remembered that he once temporarily hijacked an Imperial flagship in a botched escape attempt, they realized that he was probably not lying in the slightest.

"…And he wonders why everyone calls him the Mad Count. He really must be batshit insane to openly reveal something like that without any reservations…" whispered Gafon to Naoe, who wasn't paying any attention to him.

Aetna paid no mind to Gafon's nonsense and said, "So? What are we waiting for? Give us the word and set a course for the Kolinto Domain. I've already plotted the fastest course, so we'll get there in roughly three days, giving us a little bit less than five days to complete the necessary modifications to our ships."

She really didn't want to do this, but she wasn't with any other choice. If Joyeuse Squadron was going to fight in a real battle, they would need their weapon systems unlocked. They would also need real ammunition, and Aetna had promised that he would be able to provide both things if they went to his home Domain.

Apparently, Aetna had a hidden starbase somewhere in the outer edges of one of the star systems in the Kolinto Domain that he used for… questionable activities. An illegal manufacturing workshop for all of his pet projects.

According to him, he had the necessary equipment to remove the mechanical locks on the weapon systems of their ships and enough ammunition to blast a hole through a planetoid and then some. That, and a couple of other 'toys' he planned to install onto their ships for the upcoming fight.

Yurai internally sighed before she said, "The word has been given. Activate the NFT drive and set a group course for the Kolinto Domain as planned."

Gafon nodded and said, "Aye, Commander. Firing up NFT drive. Coordinates accepted. Destination locked: Kolinto Domain, 4.1 light-years away. ETA 39 hours."

Deep within the core of Joyeuse-1, the heart of the dragon began to truly stir as the antimatter reactor began to output a truly staggering amount of energy — more than eight terawatts of energy — that was being fed to the N-Field Travel drive that allowed a ship to transcend the realm of three spatial dimensions and cross incredible distances by traveling through a higher-dimensional space.

That being said, it was one thing to hear about the statistics concerning N-Field travel and actually experiencing the real feeling of transcending the third dimension in person.

A beautiful, pale blue shimmer began to envelop each ship in Joyeuse Squadron as their NFT drives began to warm up. Inside the ships, the crew began to feel a strange sensation déjà vu. It was a mysterious and somewhat harmless phenomenon that always occurred during the start-up sequence of any NFT drive.

It was a little bit different for everyone, but the general feeling was the same. Everyone within the bounds of an NFT drive felt an overwhelming perception that what they were experiencing had already happened before. Common belief was that the upward dimensional shift caused this phenomenon.

Time and space were curving backward on themselves as a bubble of higher dimensional energy began to envelop Joyeuse Squadron until the entire squadron of ships were pulled out of normal realspace, akin to an air bubble escaping the confines of a cup of water — in this case, three-dimensional space.

Once the N-Field energy reached a critical threshold, it quite literally pulled the ships out of realspace, and they instantly disappeared in a flash of light.

They were gone, transcended into N-Space where the rules of physics, time, and common sense did not exist…