"Man, what a day...." Elias said as he sat on the edge of his bunk while his mind replayed the events of the last few hours over and over again. Even though they were officially out of danger, sleep was elusive. And his hands were still trembling as he gripped the edge of the mattress. A sign that his nerves hadn't fully settled after the perilous encounter the ship's crew had just experienced.
-(o)-
Everything had started off relatively normally. The Shadowstrike was running a routine escort mission for a military cargo freighter known as the Solstice Star that was passing through their assigned sector. It was a simple task, one that would take them to the far edge of L-2 colony cluster, which was known to be a pretty safe area of space. It was the exact kind of mission where one could just kick their feet up and relax. One that was almost as routine as a simple patrol of the area around a colony.
Elias had spent most of the journey glued to his console and keeping an eye out for any rogue pieces of space debris that may have crossed their path. After all, it was his job to shoot down anything that might have gotten in their way. It was all going so well up until the moment the first warning alarm sounded. Something that almost made Elias jump in his seat when it happened.
At first, it didn't seem like much. It was a single ship, barely big enough to register as a blip on the radar. The young officer assumed it was another civilian cruiser in the vicinity. However, that assumption quickly dissolved when the ship refused to identify itself.
"Pirates...." The young man muttered under his breath. The mere thought instantly filled him with a surge of adrenaline.
Although it had only been a small skirmish, everything about it felt larger than life. Or at least that's how it felt to Elias at the time. The sharp sounds of the alert klaxons, the brutal intensity of the moment, and especially the brief but fierce exchanges of fire. All of those factors together made the young man feel as if the entire universe suddenly shrank around him.
The enemy ship was a tricky one. It was an old, battle-scarred corvette that emerged seemingly from out of nowhere. But its distinctive white and red color scheme made it very clear what the crew of the Shadowstrike was now dealing with. After all, there had been reports about ships that matched that description piling up over the last few months.
As Commander Brix barked out his orders, Elias couldn't help but be impressed with the calmness and leveled demeanor of the seasoned veterans who made up the rest of the ship's crew.
"Thorton, target their rear engines! We don't need to destroy them, just disable them and keep them from moving around!"
Every order was clear and concise, and Elias followed them almost instinctively. With each passing moment, his heart hammered inside of his chest. He hadn't been scared exactly, but Elias would be lying if he said that he hadn't become acutely aware of his own mortality in the middle of all the chaos. The fact that his entire existence could come to a swift and violent end was not lost on the young Ensign in the slightest.
As the Shadowstrike's weapons systems hummed to life under his fingers, Elias unleashed a volley of missiles at the pirate ship's engines. The impact had been satisfying, an almost perfect hit that caused the pirate vessel to shudder under the assault. Elias had managed to score several solid hits on his target. And within a few minutes, one of the pirate ship's rear engines erupted into a flurry of sparks and flames.
Still, even with the damage to their vessel, the pirates had been relentless. The fools charged them again, their weapons firing in all directions in a desperate attempt to break the escort. It was a typical tactic for crews who hadn't been trained in proper combat techniques before. One that may have been simple, but certainly effective if properly executed.
Then, amidst all the drama, came the moment that almost made Elias freeze. The pirate vessel's shots began to land on the Solstice Star. A ship that was nowhere near equipped to deal with this level of combat. Over the Shadowstrike's intercom, Elias was able to hear the brief, sharp crackle of the impacts through the open communication line. As well as the cries of the ship's crew as the Soltice Star's captain tried to rapidly change course to avoid taking any more damage.
In that moment, Elias remembered seeing Commander Brix's face tighten into a mixture of both rage and passion.
"Not on my watch!" The Commander then shouted with an intensity that almost startled the young man.
Commander Brix then began barking out orders and redirected the Shadowstrike's fire. Directing Elias to unleash everything they had to keep the pirates from doing any more damage to the other ship. And as he did so, the green-eyed youth could see the enemy ship's shielding begin to shimmer under the sudden bombardment. The metal plating glowed brightly as they absorbed most of the incoming fire. And after a solid two minutes of fire, the pirate ship finally disengaged. Using its remaining engines to flee the scene before it lost its ability to fly completely.
"At least we had more firepower than them." Elias remarked. Petty Officer Jor somehow had it in him to laugh and nodded his head in agreement.
In the end, the Solstice Star remained unharmed and in one piece. It may have been an easy victory for the crew of the Shadowstrike, but it was one that left a deep mark on Elias.
-(o)-
Now, as the young man sat in his quarters, the memory of the battle felt...different. The pure rawness of it all still lingered in his head as he tried to lie back down on his bed. The initial sense of triumph had faded and was now replaced with a knot in his stomach that he couldn't quite shake.
This was his reality, the reality of combat. The reality of violence in the depths of space. Deep down, Elias knew that he would have to get used to it; this was the life he chose after all. That violence was the price of being able to live his dream. The price of being able to explore the stars and see the world in ways that very few will ever get the chance to.
Not on my watch.
Commander Brix's words echoed in Elias's mind once again. It was a line that grounded him and kept him steady in the moment. He had done his duty, and the cargo ship and its crew were safe. That's really all that mattered at the end of the day. And that knowledge alone was enough to bring the young Ensign a feeling of satisfaction, even if it was tempered by the odd weight that now rested upon his chest.
Even still, the pirates' sudden retreat didn't erase the growing unease that he felt in his gut.
Rumors had been circulating among the fleet for the past few weeks. The kind of rumors that made your skin crawl and your pulse race. Apparently, a group of pirates was trying to establish a rogue colony near Phobos, one of Mars' two moons. A colony that was far away from the prying eyes of the inner parts of the solar system. The kind of place where all manner of unscrupulous individuals could do their business without having to answer to a higher authority.
The frequent raids and attacks were just a symptom of a much larger problem. A problem that was steadily growing by the day. These pirates were building something. And they were desperate to acquire whatever resources they could to make it happen.
Elias could feel it in his gut, this wasn't going to be the end of it. The Shadowstrike had repelled a single pirate ship today, but this was only the beginning. The pirates weren't going to stop after one failed attack. And the Shadowstrike, along with the rest of the Colonial Navy, was going to be called upon once again to deal with this threat.
The thought didn't really scare Elias all that much. At least, not in the way it probably should have. The man knew that combat was inevitable when assigned to a fleet designed to protect the law and order of space. Even so, part of him was nervous about having to experience this kind of vomit-inducing drama again in the near future.
He had now seen the reality of what his job entailed. He had felt it, lived it, and knew that it was never going to be as simple as he had previously imagined. Combat was more than just pressing a few buttons and firing off some torpedoes. It was also the responsibility that came with it. It was the reality that the lives of his very crew depended on how well he did his job. And it was the knowledge that one wrong move, one simple mistake, could cost more than just his own life.
Yet, even with the fear lingering in the back of his mind, Elias felt a strong sense of determination welling up inside of him. Whatever came next, he would face it. He was living his dream, and nothing was going to stop him from being able to explore the stars. And if some filthy pirates were going to get in the way of his dream, then he would just have to deal with them accordingly.
The young man then stood up from his bunk and walked over to his window, taking a moment to stare into the darkness of space that had fascinated him ever since he was a child. The faint glimmer of a few distant stars twinkled in front of him. Reminders of why he was even here in the first place.
With a deep breath, Elias adjusted his uniform and mentally prepared himself for whatever the future would bring him. He wasn't just some kid staring out into space through the window of the colonies anymore, he was now a part of something bigger. And Elias was determined to prove himself.
The stars beckoned. And the young man was ready to answer their call