Chapter 58

　　"Baron Caledon." A man appeared on the display screen of Kal`s Starship. Handsome, blue-eyed and extravagantly dressed, the Pirate leader`s appearance was maddeningly familiar to Kal.

　　The line of his jaw, sharp nose, and high cheekbones spoke of Noble heritage, but Kal hadn`t heard of any Noble bloodline descending into piracy. Unless this was all part of the conspiracy that Tan had warned him of.

　　"Johnathan," Samuel growled out beside Kal, his tone laced with repressed anger and hatred. Kal turned to look at the ordinarily stoic Imperial Herald. His face was twisted and red, and he looked like he wished he could leap through the display screen and throttle the Pirate.

　　"Ah! The Imperial Herald himself, what a pleasant surprise to see you here. I go by Jack` now, by the way. Tell me, did my uncle send you?" Jack replied, his tone mocking, and he had the expression of one dealing with a child.

　　At the word Uncle,` Kal whipped his head around to stare at Jack again. There it was, in his face, his voice, the way he held himself. It was like looking at a much younger version of the Emperor himself. Kal sucked in a whistling breath as shock filled his body.

　　"Calm yourself, Baron. You can`t believe a single word this fraud speaks. He`s no relation to the Lord Emperor." Samuel tried to reassure Kal, but he couldn`t bring himself to believe the Herald either. The proof was right in front of him. He could see the similarities with his own eyes!

　　Grinning with amusement at the Herald`s words, Jack ignored him, turning his attention to Kal.

　　"I must admit, Kal,` I`m quite impressed by you. You may have a bit of my uncle`s prescience yourself, recognizing the trap I had waiting for you and attempting to avoid it. But I`m afraid it`s useless. You are a weak, insignificant speck trying to push against an unstoppable force." Jack stated.

　　"From where I`m sitting, things seem to be evenly matched. I suggest you retreat before my reinforcements arrive." Kal retorted. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Rise` on display, ripping and tearing through its opponents. The black void was filled with the fury of its onslaught, and nothing could stand against it.

　　"Yes, you would think that. A single Assault Class Mech is quite impressive. But you shouldn`t rely on others to fight your battles for you, Kal.` Sometimes you will find that they disappoint you." Jack advised before cutting the communication link.

　　Staring at the blank screen momentarily, Kal rounded on Samuel, his expression furious.

　　"No more games. Who was that?" Kal hissed out, the room falling silent as everyone felt stifled by his rage. Samuel seemed as if he would defy the question until he deflated slightly.

　　"`Lying` Jack is what he titles himself now. He leads a group of private mercenaries and military contractors for different corporate interests. If he is here, then a corporation is likely interested in something you have." Samuel replied.

　　"Aesir. Aesir Corporation manufactures all their Mechs." Talha added, pointing out the origins of their opponent`s machines. Even their Starships appeared to be of the same source, although the Enignes inside would come directly from the Imperial Shipyards.

　　"And his connection to the Emperor?" Kal asked. It was clear as day that there was a relationship between them.

　　"Irrelevant." Samuel responded, making it clear that he would not answer any more questions about the pirate`s origins. With a frustrated huff, Kal ran his hand through his hair before returning to the battle.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

　　"What`s your assessment?" Kal asked Talha, relying on the young woman`s experience to make up for his own tactical shortcomings.

　　"We may be outnumbered, but with Rise,` it`s becoming a stalemate. We`re losing fewer Mechs than the enemy, but they have more to spare." Talha responded.

　　"Then we hold out until reinforcements arrive," Kal ordered.

　　"Receiving another communication from the Pirate Leader." A remember advised, the notification appeared on their console.

　　"Show it on the main display," Kal ordered. Jack returned on the holo, this time wearing a Pilot Bodysuit in bright gold but lacking the helmet. The man had a cocky grin on his face as he saw Kal.

　　"I told you, Baron, you shouldn`t rely on others to fight your battles. Sometimes, it`s better to take things into your own hands." Jack stated before cutting the connection. Kal frowned at the dark screen, an uneasy feeling forming in the pit of his stomach.

　　"Milord, we have activity from the lead enemy Starship. Something is emerging from their storage hold." The same crewmember called out, bringing the image to the main display.

　　From the plain and unadorned Starship, a shadow slowly crawled out of the yawning darkness of the vessel`s interior.

　　As the unknown object touched the light of the distant sun, it was revealed on the holo display.

　　The Mech that emerged was bright crimson, with gold highlights marking the connections between its individual armour plates. A hand gripped the ship`s side to launch itself forward. Sharp claws dug easily into the metal surface of the Starship.

　　The humanoid Mech had thrusters on the back of both legs and its torso, while wide fins expanded from its shoulders. Its head resembled a knight`s helmet, with a single, glowing green eye in the center and a single spiked fin rising from its forward and sweeping backwards.

　　It wielded a shield in its left hand with a Sniper Variant Lasgun and additional missile launcher attachments connected to its hip, within easy reach. On the front of the shield, the Imperial Eagle, surrounded by twelve stars, glittered brightly in gold.

　　Launching itself from the hold, it hovered for a moment, surrounded by a thick, shimmering forcefield before shooting across the battlefield, its motions a blur as it zigged and zagged around the other Mechs, closing on its target.

　　"What is that thing?" Talha asked, the Ship`s sensors locked on the image of the Mech. Samuel frowned at the sight of the Imperial Sigil branded on its shield.

　　"Assault Class Odin.` Aesir has been studying old Imperial Guard Mechs and reverse-engineered some of our technology." Samuel stated.

　　Corporations were constantly seeking an edge over each other, and the Guard had the best weapon systems in the galaxy. They were also proprietary and illegal for outsiders to analyze. It seemed that Aesir was pulling out all the stops in this operation.

　　Tamara was finishing another Fenrir` when her sensors picked up the approaching Odin.` Turning, she focused her PPC on the target, accurately judging its position and velocity before firing.

　　The streak of crimson energy shot towards the other Assault Mech, tracking it perfectly.

　　Not changing course, Jack smiled from the cockpit as the energy struck the Odin` dead center. With a thought, he expanded the shields surrounding it, absorbing the attack and storing it within its frame. Energy lines coursed through the Odin,` cycling from the shield, through its body and into its reactor.

　　Seeing the PPC strike true, Tamara lowered her weapon, assuming she had vaporized her opponent when a streak of light shot out from the point of contact. Trailing white hot vapours from behind it, the Odin` reached a level of acceleration that would kill an average human but was manageable for Jack`s genetically enhanced body.

　　"Wha-" Tamara began to speak before the Odin slammed into her Rise. Her shield resisted momentarily before cracking as Jack punctured it with Odin`s clawed hand. He gripped her weapon and ripped it out of her hands before kicking Rise away.

　　Rise spun through space out of control, its disoriented Pilot unable to right itself. Tamara screamed at the impact. The force of the blow nearly knocked her unconscious, despite the protective gel of the cockpit.

　　The Odin raised its seized PPC, funnelling some of the energy from its reactor into the weapon. Jack carefully aimed, his face split in an amused grin as he watched the Rise rotate and twist uncontrollably.

　　Focusing on its cockpit, he twitched the PPC slightly at the last moment, readjusting the weapon to strike marginally to the right of Rise`s center torso.

　　Talha screamed from the Starship Command Center as the crimson energy shot toward her grandmother`s Rise. The destructive power of the cannon carved through the Assault Mech`s right side, cutting off one of its wings and a hefty chunk of its right shoulder armour.

　　Laughing, Jack twisted the barrel of the PPC and tossed the now-useless weapon aside. With a thought, he shot forward again, intent and playing with the inexperienced Pilot of the Rise.`