Captain Omar didn't understand why the small maintenance bot had shown a tiny fist with the middle finger raised, but none of this made any sense. He picked himself up from the ground and opened his mouth to shout the order to raise shields and begin defensive maneuvers… he never got the chance.

The ship's cargo bay rocked as the hand on top of the maintenance bot shifted from a middle finger salute to an actual salute aimed at the Bloodhound and his commanding officer, Natasha.

Flames and debris blasted out into the void of empty space as the brave maintenance bot detonated the explosives that were hidden inside its casing. The Bloodhound turned and burned, disappearing again into a jump hole before the two Rerek support frigates could move to intercept.

There was Chaos on the bridge of the Crimson Spear. The first officer rushed to take command of the ship. Her goal was to assess the damage and understand precisely what had just happened. Her first thought was that the mystery ship had fired on the Spear, taking advantage of their shields being lowered to tow in the dead Lacertine drop ship. It must have been a trap; there was no other explanation. How could Captain Omar have been so foolish? She clenched her jaw at his failure and assured herself that she would not make the same mistake.

"I am taking command of the Spear; Captain Omar has been incapacitated—all personnel to battle stations. Prepare for combat," XO Alura Almion announced on the ship-wide emergency com channel.

There was chaotic action throughout the ship as the announcement rang out. The crew felt the explosion, and if they didn't, they no doubt heard the ringing alarms and saw the lights flashing throughout the common areas and throughways of the large destroyer. They had been attacked; this would not stand.

"Captain Almion, what are your orders for the frigates? They are waiting," a voice from the Communications station asked.

Almion gathered herself. She had been trained for this; she was ready for this responsibility. Her vengeance would be thorough; the prestige would be glorious. "Bring the frigates to our port and starboard sides. Attack formation, prepare to fire on the planet."

"Aye, Captain," The comms officer replied as he began forwarding commands to the two frigates.

"Any word from our two cruisers?" Almion asked.

"No, Captain. Thirty-six seconds after they jumped to pursue the enemy vessel, we lost signal. We aren't sure if it is a communications issue or something else. We are continuing to evaluate the situation," the comms officer replied.

"Keep me posted. For now, it is time to eliminate the need for our squad to be stationed near this backwater planet. Target the human settlements with extreme prejudice—Maser cannons for the smaller settlements and railgun darts for the larger, more populated areas. We have no reason to be here if the Lacertines' livestock is eliminated… Fire at will!" Almion ordered as the comms officer relayed the order to the two frigates.

Cannons flared to life as the blue beams shot toward the planet's surface. Rail darts were fired at will as Almion smugly sat in the captain's chair, watching the fallout from her first order as Captain of the Crimson Spear.

"Pardon me, my dear," A voice crackled over the bridge comm.

Captain Almion looked at her comms officer, who raised his hands in confusion.

"Maybe you didn't hear me, I said pardon me, dear," The voice repeated.

"This is a military vessel of the Rerek Empire. You should know that jumping a military comms channel is a crime punishable by death. My crew is already tracing your signal, and you will be dealt with accordingly." Almion sneered.

"My my, I do like a strong woman. The red skin isn't really my thing, but I would bet that you are something in the sack. Pleasantries aside, I am Natasha of the human vessel…Bloodhound."

Almion's eyes went wide. She had heard of the Bloodhound; everyone had heard of the Bloodhound. The ship was thought lost when the Coeus pocket dimension was purposely imploded. That act of terrorism cost countless citizens their lives, not to mention members of the Galactic Council. There were even members of the Rerek royal family killed. That was over three years ago, though; nobody had seen or heard from the ship since then. How was it possible? Amlmion thought to herself. This had to be a trick.

"The Bloodhound? That isn't possible. I'm not sure what game you are playing, but I am not fooled as easily as our previous captain. You are no more than rebel trash and will be dealt with accordingly." Almion said.

"Oh, quite the temper on you. I must say it fits nicely with the skin and the cute little horns. I didn't think this conversation would turn me on, but you are pushing all the right buttons. Enough jokes, I am Natasha. I am the ship AI responsible for the Bloodhound. I was meant to perform orbital defense until you red-skinned bastards showed up and decided to stick around. Unfortunately, that just won't do, though; I really have things I need to be doing, so you will all be leaving."

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"Leaving? Hah! Natasha of the Bloodhound, when I have completed my current task, I will turn the full force of my destroyer and squad in your direction. I will find you, and I will end you." Almion turned to her Comms officer angrily. "Comms cut audio." She was slightly shaken and annoyed at the unwelcome audio feed, but it could be dealt with later. Her ships were more than capable of handling a lone ship, no matter how infamous it may be. The explosion in the cargo bay had been dealt with, and shields were operating with maximum efficiency according to the display on the arm of her chair.

"Captain, we have a problem," the weapons control officer stated from his station, "Our targeting solutions are wrong…"

"What do you mean, wrong?!" Almion growled, betraying her growing agitation.

"The computer accepted our coordinates, but the weapons are firing on different locations." The weapons control officer replied, "I am locked out of the system, Captain."

"How is this possible? What do you mean, locked out?" Almion stood from her chair.

"I cannot input new coordinates or stop the weapons from firing. My screens simply show a video of a human woman in black undergarments. She is wagging her finger and winking…Captain," The weapons control officer said in confusion.

"Do you love it?!" Natasha asked, "I generally prefer to be nude, but I decided to keep it PG. Captain Andrew has asked me to… how does he say it? Tone things down about ten notches."

"You will return control of our weapons system, AI!" Almion shouted.

"Aww, you are cute when you're mad. It's a shame that we won't get more time together, you sexy little red bitch!" Natasha chuckled, "Before you go, I want to tell you what is happening right now, so sit down and listen like a good little girl, okay?"

"You will pay for this AI, I swear on the empire you will…." Almion began to choke. She looked around in panic to see the entire bridge crew grasping their throats as they tried, in vain, to breathe.

Almion fell to her knees, gasping for breath. She crawled, pulling herself up to her chair with all her remaining strength. As soon as she was sitting, the oxygen returned to the bridge.

"Bad girls get punished. Do you want to be punished again?" Natasha's voice now had a cold, eerie edge, conveying the seriousness of the situation.

"I will listen," Almion choked out the words.

"I have control of your vessel's computer systems. Your cybersecurity is atrocious, by the way. The maintenance bot uploaded a virus when it was on your ship. This virus allowed me to create a kind of back door. I accessed your ship AI, if you can even call it that. It is dead now, by the way. You see, my Captain is on the surface of that planet, or at least my crew is. Unfortunately for you, you threatened them. At first, I was going to simply jump you all far away, but plans have changed, as they so often do. I feel that I need to let you know that these are your last moments. I want you to know what is happening, though, so please, let me finish. I overrode your targeting solutions and redirected your fire to the Lacertine bases and supply lines. It won't break them completely, but it will severely cripple them. That is enough for now.

Almion slowly accessed the messaging feature on her comm station and sent a message to the two frigates.

Spear computer systems compromised. Jump away.

"You are a slow learner, aren't you? All of your ships are mine, not only the Spear. I slaved your two frigates. Your two cruisers are floating dead about twenty light-years away. I would have destroyed them, but I need them. I would love to have your destroyer as well, but it is still a little too big for me to absorb right now; soon, though." Natasha said menacingly.

A countdown timer appeared on the bridge display, counting down from 10.

"I will make it quick, which is more than any of you deserve. I'm going to jump you right into this system's star. A quick jump, a little sweat, then nothing. I do hate that I won't get to watch you sweat for me, honey, but Captain needs me to stay focused. You understand," Natasha said flirtatiously.

"Damn you to hell, you wretched computer!" Almion shouted as the three ships disappeared in a flash.

Princess Danae and the Flaming Retribution jumped in just in time to see the three Rerek ships being jumped away. Danae pumped her fist in triumph. This victory for the rebellion would bolster recruitment efforts and ripple throughout the galaxy for months. The Bloodhound and her crew were not technically part of the rebellion…yet, but Danae decided to change that as soon as possible. The rebellion needed a face; it needed a symbol, and Andrew Dawes would be that symbol. The Council would burn. Dawes, the Bloodhound, and her crew will be the fuel… Danae would settle for being the flame.

"That was fun!" Natasha said over the Retributions comms, "After ravaging that destroyer's systems, I have a much deeper appreciation for the Bloodhound. It is time for a makeover, though, don't you agree, Princess?"

"I do agree that the boxy, decrepit appearance of your ship is not at all suitable for the weapon it has become. What did you have in mind, Natasha?" Danae replied.

"How long is it going to take to tow those battle cruisers back?" Natasha asked.

"It will take some time to connect the tow lines. The ships are powered down and in pretty rough shape, but their reactors are intact. I would say they should arrive in the next 2-3 hours. Why?" Danae asked.

"I am absolutely famished, dear. It's time for a good meal to celebrate our victory! Oh, and look at that; it seems Tiffantrimore and the crew are making progress on their own mission. A day to celebrate for sure! If only Captain Andrew were here to join us," Natasha said, a pang of regret in her voice.

"So you were able to weaken the lacertine defenses then?" Danae asked.

"Of course! That and more. I registered direct hits on several weapons depots. I also eliminated 86% of their serum laboratories. The hunger is going to be absolutely menacing for their troops. I also took it upon myself to transmit a tiny bit of malicious code into their bio-generator network. The Lacertine force is now an animal without teeth. Watching them fall apart is going to be positively entertaining, don't you agree?"

"I do. I see little value in this planet or its people. I do, however, see value in Captain Dawes feeling safe enough to leave his planet. We made steps in that direction today. I will ping you when the Rerek Cruisers arrive. Good Job, Natasha; this wouldn't have been possible without you," Danae ended the call. She smiled as she relaxed in her chair. This planet would be free again soon, and with his home planet safe, Andrew Dawes would be unleashed on the Galactic Council.

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