The bridge of the CSS Victory was silent as it flew through the endless void of space. The usual buzz of the ship's command center had been replaced with a hushed tranquility that hung in the air. And in the center of it all was Commander Elias Thorton, whose emerald green eyes were fixed on the view of space directly outside the main window. However, for the first time in quite a while, his mind was far from the stars.
'The Rift Marauders.' Their name echoed inside the man's head as he thought about the group that had been causing so much trouble over the last few weeks.
At first, they had been considered as nothing more than a nuisance by the Federation government. Most people only thought of them as just another group of pirates who were looking to make a quick buck by raiding ships and remote outposts. But now, it was clear that they were something different. An unrelenting force that threatened the very fabric of life in space. The crew's latest skirmish on the Moon had been their wake-up call, a painful reminder that these people weren't just a group of disorganized hooligans.
Elias had always commended himself on his ability to keep his emotions in check during a crisis, including his talent for making decisions with cold precision whenever it was needed. However, this...this felt different. The green-eyed man had never seen combat like that before, not even during the chaos of the Battle of Phobos. The Rift Marauders were relentless in their attacks. And their fast and disorienting style of combat was truly something to behold.
After the dust had settled and once the Victory was back in a safer part of space, the crew had been left to grapple with the aftermath of what happened. Along with how they were going to proceed with the knowledge that they now possessed.
'We need to make sure that we're ready for whatever they throw at us next time.' Elias thought to himself as he reviewed the combat data from their most recent encounter. The Rift Marauders weren't just faceless terrorists operating on the fringes of space anymore. They were a true threat, one that was angry, bitter, and willing to die for their cause.
Even now, as the Victory cruised through the vast stretches of space, the man tried to figure out how they were going to deal with this kind of enemy. It was almost a guarantee that they were going to be facing off against the Rift Mauraders again in the future, and they needed to have a plan in place for when that happened. But more importantly, Elias needed to do something about his crew.
Simply put, their morale had taken a hit. And although no one dared to say it out loud, Elias could see it in the way that the others moved. The excitement of serving on one of the crown jewels of the Colonial Navy had been replaced by the grim realization that they were no longer just defenders of peace. As of now, they were at the front lines of an ideological war against an enemy that was willing to do anything in order to achieve its goal.
The Rift Marauders claimed to represent the oppressed lower-class people of Earth. The ones who lived in squalor and struggled under the weight of a crumbling world. And to be honest, Elias couldn't deny there was some truth to their cause. It was a known fact that a lot of Earth's manufacturing jobs had been moved to space the moment big corporations found out that it was much cheaper to produce their goods outside of Earth's gravity in automated facilities. And the fact that the colonies had such loose regulations on commerce made it a more attractive option for a lot of industries.
Even so, no matter how justified their cause was, if these lunatics were willing to sacrifice innocent lives to push their agenda, then they needed to be put down. There was no future that could be built on that level of violence and chaos. And Elias damn sure wasn't about to let those terrorists ruin life for those in space just because a few of them couldn't find jobs anymore.
"Commander, we just received new orders from the Vanguard." Lieutenant Herrera's voice broke through Elias's thoughts, snapping him back to the present. Elias then turned towards his second in command.
"What is it?"
"A distress signal from close by. It's coming from a manufacturing outpost, a star station that handles the production of pharmaceuticals." The man with shaggy black hair quickly explained. "The Rift Marauders have been spotted in the area. The Vanguard believes that if we don't intervene, they'll seize it. Or worse...."
Elias took a deep breath. Looks like it was time for another battle. Another chance for the Victory to stand strong and prove why they were the protectors of space.
"These people are bold, I'll give them that."
"That's putting it mildly." Herrera replied. "And they fight like they have nothing to lose."
"I know." Elias said, his voice was calm and measured. "But we'll hold the line. It's our duty after all."
As the ship set course for the star station, Elias gathered the senior members of the crew for an emergency briefing in the ship's command center. The tension was high as they began to formulate a strategy for how they were going to play this. One that was hopefully going to help them avoid another mess like the last time.
"We need to be careful." Sergeant Kael Ramsey spoke up. The tone of the Victory's top marine was one of obvious frustration. "If we engage them head-on, we'll be playing right into their hands. We should be gathering intel, not just rushing into battle."
"I disagree." Herrera immediately interjected. "We can't afford to play this slow. We simply don't have the time, and that star station makes drugs that a lot of people who operate in workshacks use regularly. We need to crush these clowns as quickly as possible before they can call for reinforcements."
The room fell into silence as Elias processed the arguments from both sides. Herrera was driven by a need for decisive action, while Ramsey was rooted in intelligent caution. He understood both perspectives very well, and they both had their merits. However, the truth was that neither approach felt completely right. The young Commander couldn't ignore Ramsey's point about the unknowns of the Rift Marauders. But at the same time, he also couldn't risk losing such a valuable location to an enemy who had no intention of stopping.
Eventually, the man was able to come to a decision. One that Elias hoped was the correct one.
"Both approaches have merit." The man said, breaking the silence among the ship's crew members. "But Herrera is right, we don't have the luxury of time right now. We'll proceed with a direct assault on the enemy using the Victory's stealth technology to attack them from long range and draw their forces away from the star station. But with Sergeant Ramsey's recommendations in mind, we'll coordinate with the Vanguard to set up an intel team after the battle. Any information we can gather on their organization will help us in the long run. We'll also be putting in a request for reinforcements once this situation is resolved. Even if we have one of the most advanced ships in the fleet, I want to avoid doing any more solo operations."
The meeting ended with mixed reactions from the crew, it was the kind of conclusion that always left a sour taste in the young Commander's mouth. It was clear that everyone wanted to avoid another disaster like the last time. But, there was only so much that they could do on such short notice.
-(o)-
Half an hour later, Elias found himself alone in his quarters as he took the opportunity to decompress and relax before the impending battle. Right now, the man was sitting at his desk while looking at his tablet as he waited for a secure communication channel to open. And after a few moments of waiting, a familiar face appeared on the screen.
"Hey there, handsome!" Marida Thorton, Elias's wife, greeted him with a warm smile.
"Hello to you too." The man replied with a smile of his own. "How's the baby?"
"Growing strong! Fortunately, I'll only have to deal with carrying all this extra weight around for two more months." The woman replied while gently resting her hand on her abdomen. "But something tells me that's not why you called. You looked worried. What's going on?"
Elias hesitated, his thoughts drifting to the Rift Marauders and the escalating war they were facing. He really didn't want to burden the woman with his doubts, stress was bad for pregnant women after all.
"I just wanted to check in on you. We're in the middle of a pretty tough mission right now, and I thought seeing your face would make me feel better."
"Does this have anything to do with that terrorist group that I heard about on the news? The...Rift Riders or whatever?"
"Yes." Elias nodded. "But I can't say much more than that."
Marida looked at Elias for a few seconds before giving the man an understanding shrug. It was pretty normal for him to leave out the details of active operations since speaking about them over the phone presented a security risk.
"Well...whatever it is, I'm sure that you and your crew can handle it. You can tell me all about it when you get back home."
"I look forward to it."
The two chatted for a few minutes before Elias had to go back to the ship's bridge. But, the man made sure to tell his wife that they would be talking again soon before ending the call. It was still crazy to the man how he was going to be a father soon. But that knowledge only gave him even more motivation to see this chaos through to the end.
And even though the future looked grim, Elias Thorton was going to protect his home with everything he had.