The Strug had been doing their best, but everything takes time, and when you are short of duranium, everything tends to take more time than you thought. Nearly a year had passed since the Four Minute War and the Strug duranium-shortage was just as acute as it was before the war. In addition, while they had completed a fair amount of research devoted towards improving their missile capabilities, the Strug still had a good bit to do before they could go to proto-type. All of this meant that their effective offensive strength had not increased at all since the war.
The bulk of the Navy?s Tharsis Montes cruisers had been deployed to Five to protect the citizens working the mines on that world, but the proposed Planetary Defender class Monitors were facing delays related to retooling the yards for their construction. In frustration, the Supreme Leader finally ordered the home world?s construction facilities to shut down for a short time so that duranium could be stockpiled. Once sufficient amounts of duranium had been stockpiled all construction capacity was to be diverted to constructing at least three of the new PDC?s as quickly as possible.
Meanwhile, the freighters and colony ships of the civilian fleet continued to shuttle between Strug Home and Five, taking mines and factories to increase the colony?s output of essential resources for the home world?s minerals.
8/21/910 -18,000,000 kilometers from Strug Home
1st Civilian Freight Group (13xFreighter)
Ghore was proud to be the youngest watch officer in the Group, and every time she stood watch on her freighter?s bridge the responsibility inherent in the position inspired her to be even more vigilant. The fact that the other officers considered the watch position to be a boring necessity during the passages between Five and Strug Home wasn?t lost on her, but she didn?t care. She loved what she was doing and she intended to keep doing it the best she could.
Her musings were interrupted when the bridge computer flashed a warning to her that it was receiving a high priority message. Ghore shivered when she realized that the message was a Red Priority from Strug Defense Command. Without hesitating she alerted the commanding Officer and set the computer to decoding the message. By the time the message was ready the CO had scuttled onto the bridge.
?This had better be good, girl! I haven?t had a good sleep since we left Strug Home, and I won?t until we get back. Now if?? The CO trailed off when he saw the priority level of the incoming message. Without reading the message, which wasn?t decoded yet, he hit the general alert button.
?The only reason they?d send something like this would be if they were fighting with the clawless Colonists again, damn it!? As soon as the message was decoded he brought it up on the main monitor.
Ghore gasped and, without realizing it, dropped into a fighting stance, her claws raised. The message was simple.
?ALERT ? Eight objects detected leaving The Sister on an out-bound course at 5,000 kps. Planetary missiles unable to intercept. Navy cruisers Albatross and Bat will not be able to intercept. Recommend evasive action soonest.?
The CO busied himself for a second modifying the display. A bright red icon appeared at the upper edge, in between the Strug ships and Home.
Ghore turned to the CO, confused. ?But, we can?t evade whatever that is! It?s moving at twice our speed! Evade! What are they talking about??
?Calmness, Watch Officer. There is nothing they can do. The Colonist ships are already out of range of the planetary missile bases. We?re on our own.? The CO turned to the first officer, who had just arrived. ?Our only chance is to split up and run for Home at our best speed. If we all head in a different direction, they might not catch us all. You arrange it with the others, while I set our course. Ghore, you handle helm.?
Everyone rushed to their stations and began working. A minute later the thirteen freighters all turned away from each other, each one hoping that the enemy would go after the others.
The Colonist group split up as well, with seven of the ships pursuing individual freighters and the eighth staying roughly in the middle of the group. Forty six minutes later the presumed Colonist warships had closed to just over 100,000 kilometers from their chosen Strug freighters, at which point they turned and maintained their distance. Fifteen seconds later a single missile streaked in and slammed into six of the seven freighters that were in range. None of the freighters were destroyed, but all sustained damage. Fifteen seconds after the first missile hit, another seven missiles streaked in towards the hapless freighters. This time three missed, but the other four slammed into their targets, including the freighter that had been missed in the first salvo. All of the freighters suffered terrible damage, but they limped on regardless, striving to make it home.
The third salvo didn?t arrive until 140 seconds after the second. After that the attack proceeded with a grinding regularity. The freighters were big and could absorb a lot of damage, but the attacking Colonist ships were free to stand off and pump missile after missile into the unarmed and unprotected ships. On average it took four to five missiles to destroy each freighter, and one freighter took an incredible seven hits before it finally disintegrated, but the result was the same in every case. The last freighter died far short of Strug Home.
Ghore managed to make it to a survival pod, but that did nothing but prolong her fear. The eight Colonist ships hovered over the area for fifteen days, until the life support packs on the pods ran out. Ghore died gasping for air, cursing the Colonists until she died. Thanks to the excellent communications capabilities of the pods her death and the deaths of the hundreds of other survivors of the attack were broadcast across Strug Home to every burrow.
The aftermath of the destruction of the freight group caused the Strug to re-examine their building and engagement strategies. The loss of the thirteen freighters wasn?t disastrous, as the vitally important resources mined on Five could be, and were, sent back home with mass drivers, but their loss was a serious blow. Without the freighters the colonies on Five and Twelve couldn?t be enlarged, and the freighters were, at this point in time, irreplaceable. The yards that had produced them were being re-tasked to build Tharsis Montes class cruisers, and it would be a long time before new yards would come on line, especially considering the duranium shortage.
With the ability to further expand their economy eliminated, there was nothing standing in the way of the conversion of the entire Strug economy to war-production. Under the spur of the continually broadcast recordings of the deaths of Ghore and her ship-mates, the public wholeheartedly agreed with this course of action.
The Strug Military was able to give only a limited analysis of the capabilities of the Colonist?s new fast-moving attack ships. They appeared to have a top speed of five thousand kps and mounted at least two missile launchers with a reload time of 140-150 seconds. Each ship carried at least ten missiles, if not more. Analysis by the Navy showed that the cruisers currently at Five should be able to handle an attack by the seven attack ships, but if the Colonists built more they would become a significant threat.
