Welcome to Galactic Axia
Missing Without
A Trace
An uncaring commander, a dangerous situation, a relentless enemy, a pilot assumed lost in action, and a planet barely out of the dark ages all add up to create an adventure of galactic intrigue.
The great mothership rocked in response to the salvo of Red-tail torpedoes exploding against her side. Pressure plates buckled inward while the unprepared crew raced for their battlestations. A second salvo of torpedoes from the Red-tail raiders tore away whole sections of the hull, hurtling both men and machinery out into open space.
Reeling from the unexpected attack, the giant ship was unable to respond with any more than a few random shots at the attacking vessels. Enemy ships swarmed around her while her own defensive fleet, stored inside in preparation of their planned departure from the sector later that morning, struggled to respond to the attack. While secondary explosions inside the crippled mothership further hindered an effective defense, the relentless attack by the invaders from the planet Hadeous continued. There would be no respite in their effort to pound the disabled Axia vessel into oblivion.
Patrolers and picket ships trapped inside the landing bays near the impact points of the torpedoes exploded and burned. In the other bays, frantic pilots tried to board their ships and power up for emergency take-off while mothership personnel activated emergency procedures to open the sealed landing bay doors. Heat rays from the attacking enemy burned through several of the landing bay doors and ended the futile escape effort for many.
Delmar was jolted awake by the force of the explosions as the first salvo of enemy torpedoes detonated against the hull on the opposite side of the mothership. Still wearing a utility uniform, Delmar jumped into his pressure suit and bolted for the control cabin of the Cabbage Patch. He was slowed by the ship rocking from explosions deep within its inner reaches. Diving into his control chair, he desperately powered up his ship for emergency exit from the landing bay. Around him he heard the explosions and screams as an enemy heat ray shot in through the slowly opening bay door, burning men and equipment indiscriminately.
A shudder ran through the mothership just as Delmar lifted the Cabbage Patch off of the slanting deck and advanced toward the slowly opening landing bay door. Just as he got near it, another patroler parked behind him lifted and rapidly accelerated toward the too-narrow opening. In spite of their repulsion fields, Delmar heard metal scream as the other ship careened into the hull of the Cabbage Patch. Delmar wrenched the controls around to avoid the bulkhead to his right. The other patroler ricocheted off of the Cabbage Patch and slammed into the opposite bulkhead, exploding on impact.
The explosion forced the Cabbage Patch back against the right bulkhead where several sensor nodes and antenna relays were sheared off because of the ship's forward momentum. Sparks showered around the patroller from the severed connections as Delmar tried to keep his ship on an even keel. He saw a piece of his forward outer hull torn off and sent spinning out into space ahead of him.
A third patroler slammed into the burning wreckage behind him and also exploded, completely blocking the bay door in the process. The force of the second explosion forced the Cabbage Patch out into hostile space while Delmar struggled to control his damaged ship.
When the Cabbage Patch emerged from the burning mothership, energy rays from a pair or Red-tail raiders bracketed the struggling vessel. The heat from the ensuing attack caused the life support system of the Cabbage Patch to overload and fail. Emergency systems kicked in, bathing a sweating Delmar in a reddish glow. A second enemy ray seared the navigational beacon and antenna array at the rear of the ship, sending an electrical shock surging through the wiring and into the controls where Delmar was still trying to regain control.
Despite his protective suits insulation, the electrical surge coursed through Delmar's hands and threw him out of the control chair and back hard against the bulkhead behind him. Further explosions around him sent the Cabbage Patch spinning out of control into enemy space. Fighting to remain conscious, the last thing Delmar saw as darkness claimed him was the giant mothership exploding in the distance, its final light the intensity of a small star going nova.
