//------------------------------//
// Breaking Orbit 
// Story: Strange Bedfellows 
// by BRBrony9 
//------------------------------//

'Bring us about!' Lord-Admiral commanded. The Indefatigable answered the helm, its mighty bow swinging to starboard, sweeping through space.

'Signal the Barnham's Pride and the Astra Gloria,' Marcos spoke once more. 'Tell them to bring their lances to bear on the debris field.'

'My Lord, the Polaris Maxima is leaving orbit!' the tactical officer called. Marcos frowned. The Polaris Maxima, according to Chrysalis, was under Changeling control. Marcos had heard the vox call, heard it be answered with nothing but the hissing and shrieking of innumerable Changeling drones, and he knew that she was correct. That was where the attack on the Emperor's Judgement had originated, sending drones over on board the landing barges in disguise as maintenance teams, while hiding thousands upon thousands of Changelings on board in the form of insects and bugs to minimise the space they took up in the cramped barge compartments. He had been about to issue the orders for the cruiser's destruction before the appearance of Chrysalis had distracted him, and now the ship was trying to break orbit and flee.

'Signal the Barnham's Pride and the escorts! Have them engage and pursue the Polaris Maxima. That ship is under Changeling control. They are to pursue and destroy. The Astra Gloria is to remain in position and target the debris field with her lances.'

'Yes, My Lord!' The vox officer rapidly relayed the signals and orders to the ships of the fleet. They were few in number now, and with the flagship gone, their combat power had been greatly reduced. The fact that the Polaris Maxima could no longer be counted among their number was a further blow, and a shock to many of the bridge crew of the Indefatigable when they had learned of it. The loss of the two ships, including the mighty battleship that was the linchpin of the entire fleet, put paid to the Crusade once and for all. They were barely holding their own, and despite Celestia's destruction of the Chaos fleet, the Imperial ships could hardly exert control over the planet any longer even without any enemy vessels being present. They were not even a fleet at all any more, but more of a rag-tag escort force for the transport ships, a mission which, at least, they were still proving to be successful at.

The two cruisers that remained in Imperial hands moved to obey their commander's orders. The Barnham's Pride fired her engines, swinging about. The Polaris Maxima was thousands of miles distant, and had a head start on its pursuers, but the escort squadrons were much faster. The Astra Gloria, meanwhile, turned her broadside toward the debris field that had been the flagship of the fleet. There were two disparate threats that the Imperial ships had to deal with; one was a flight risk, with the potential to carry out Chrysalis's plan of spreading Changelings across the galaxy. The other was a foe of unknown, but vast, power, and a currently unknown intention, now that her commandeered battleship had been destroyed. Would she surrender? Would she flee and board the Polaris Maxima? Would she try and return to the planet? Or would she stand and fight?

The dorsal lance batteries of the Polaris Maxima rotated and flashed their fury back at their pursuers, the bright beams cutting across the void. Most missed their targets, a hallmark of the inexperienced Changeling gun crews, perhaps. They may have inherited the knowledge of their human victims as to the operation of Imperial equipment, but that did not necessarily mean they inherited all of their talent and experience in doing the same thing. They knew the basic mechanics of aiming, charging and firing the lance turrets, but they were no experts in the task.

The shots they did manage to land struck the forward shields of the pursuing vessels. The Barnham's Pride returned fire with its own lance batteries, as the escort destroyers and frigates raced ahead to try and intercept the fleeing cruiser, hoping to get into torpedo range. Marcos's orders were clear; the Polaris Maxima had to suffer the same fate as the flagship of the fleet. The loss of the Emperor's Judgement had been a great shock to the crews, but not totally unexpected. The fact that the ship had been boarded by Changelings was known throughout the fleet, which meant that there was always a chance, however small, that it would have to be abandoned or destroyed as a result if things got too far out of hand. But so far as the rest of the fleet had known, the Polaris Maxima was still one of them, still a friendly vessel, still under Imperial control. To learn that it had been a Changeling vessel for Emperor-knows how long came as a great blow to morale, and a boost to the Changeling's plans of spreading confusion through the ranks. If the Polaris Maxima was a Changeling ship, who was to say that there were not others among the fleet that were also in the possession of the enemy?

The Indefatigable swung around, its lance turrets tracking the target. Chrysalis, somehow, impossibly, unscathed by the monstrous explosion which had annihilated the battleship and left nothing but a field of debris, had to be dealt with. Neither Celestia nor the bridge crew of the Indefatigable knew if she could fight in space effectively, if she could harm the ship with her magic, or if she could teleport through the void shields, but nobody was in the mood to take any chances. Two ships had been lost to the Changelings already; any more would be unacceptable and a complete disaster for the remains of the fleet, to say nothing of the cost in human lives that would result if another vessel had to be destroyed.

'Lances on target, Captain!'

'Starboard batteries report ready, Captain!'

Marsten looked at the Lord-Admiral, who nodded, and he turned to his bridge crew with a simple command.

'Fire!'

Flashes of light and fury erupted from the starboard side of the Indefatigable, while the dorsal spine blazed with lance fire, all targeted on the singular point in space. The targeting mechanisms and cogitators of the battlecruiser, like those of any other ship, were not designed to aim for such a small target. Chrysalis was roughly the size of a single tall man, similar to Celestia, slightly taller than most humans and notably longer as she was quadrupedal, but almost invisible against the blackness, if not for her glowing shield. Even that was not enough to target upon, as she was some thousands of miles from the Indefatigable and only visible on highly zoomed-in vid-pict feeds. The smallest things that a capital ship could realistically target were individual attack craft and torpedoes, but even they could only be effectively engaged by the close-in weapons and point defence systems that studded the exterior hull. The larger macrocannon and lance batteries could strike a general area, but they could not be relied upon to lock onto anything smaller than a pirate skiff or cargo shuttle with any degree of effectiveness whatsoever. The targeting systems had instead been slaved to the Auspex scanners which were detecting the unknown particle; Chrysalis, her horn, to be most specific, was the source of the emissions, and locking onto that source would lock the guns onto her.

And so the bombardment began, pummeling a single tiny point in space with sustained weapons fire. The guns of the Astra Gloria added their weight to proceedings, firing from the other side of the debris field. Heavy plasma bolts, feet-long macrocannon shells, powerful lance blasts and barrages of missiles pounded the remains of the Emperor's Judgement with a heavy and deadly concentration of firepower, enough to rend and tear the shields and hulls of even the galaxy's mightiest warships.

It continued for ninety seconds, as per Marcos's orders, and then it ceased, the guns falling silent. Anxious eyes scanned the viewscreens and the Auspex readouts. The Lord-Admiral, Captain Marsten, and Princess Celestia waited for news, for confirmation.

'My Lord, I am still picking up the anomalous readings!' the Auspex officer shouted.

'Continue barrage, another ninety seconds!' Marcos ordered. 'Have the Nova Cannon readied for firing.'

'Yes, My Lord!' came the reply. The Nova Cannon was the Indefatigable's greatest weapon, the most powerful device fitted to any Imperial warship. The cannon accelerated a heavy projectile to a huge fraction of the speed of light, imparting it with truly vast amounts of kinetic energy. Firing one at the surface of a planet would have the same effect as a medium-sized asteroid impact, causing vast destruction across a wide area. Firing it at a single creature was the equivalent of squashing a spider by dropping a mountain on it.

The Indefatigable's bow swung around again until it was lined up on target. The debris field lay dead ahead. All the while the lances had been blazing away again, as the Lord Admiral had ordered, along with the guns of the Astra Gloria, pounding the target area with as much firepower as they could muster. Now, the Nova Cannon was being brought into play, with the hoped-for objective of ending things once and for all. Celestia could only watch on. She did not know exactly what a Nova Cannon was, but given that it was only now being brought to bear, she imagined it was an extremely powerful weapon that the Lord-Admiral had reason to suspect would be able to finish Chrysalis off where his other weapons had failed.

'Nova Cannon on target and ready to fire, My Lord,' the tactical officer called, drawing a nod from Marcos.

'Fire.'

The impellers spooled up, magnetic and gravometric coils that ran almost the entire length of the battlecruiser's belly accelerating the heavy shell at a steadily increasing pace. By the time it reached the muzzle, it was traveling close to the speed of light, and it crossed the distance between the ship and the target in a fraction of a second. Having passed the safe arming distance, the shell was activated, and milliseconds later, it detonated.

A tremendous fireball filled the void, illuminating the debris field for a mere moment before the flames were snuffed out by the vacuum of space. A strike powerful enough to destroy a ship like that from which it had been fired had been delivered to the target area, a vast explosion many dozens of miles in diameter resulting from the smart time-delay fuse, designed to set the warhead off once it reached the correct distance from the Indefatigable. Aboard the launch vessel, more tense moments passed as the bridge crew and their pony guest awaited confirmation.

'My Lord!' the Auspex officer called. 'I am no longer picking up the unknown particle in the debris field.'

'Confirm with the Astra Gloria!' Marsten replied, as Marcos nodded, nodding slowly. A few moments passed and the vox officer sang out across the bridge.

'The Astra Gloria reports negative readings also, My Lord. The only source they are detecting is aboard this ship.'

'That will be you, then, Princess,' Marcos spoke softly. 'Now, we must catch that ship before it is too late. If they get to warp...'

'It will not matter,' Celestia replied. 'If Chrysalis is dead, then the Changelings aboard that ship will not be able to achieve their aim. Without a Queen, they will be leaderless. The Queen is the nexus of their hive mind,she directs them,gives them orders and purpose. They will not be able to expand across the next solar system, let alone the entire galaxy.'

'Nevertheless, that ship is Imperial property. If it is in enemy hands, then it must be destroyed,' Marcos pointed out.

'Would you not rather recapture it?' Celestia asked. 'I cannot help but notice that your fleet is something of a shadow of its former self.'

Marcos grimaced, but nodded at her perceptive comment. 'I would like nothing more than to retake the ship, Your Highness, but to do so would sap our resources even further. Many men would be lost in the process, with little ultimate justification. It is the same reason why I had to order the destruction of the Emperor's judgement.'

'I understand, Admiral,' Celestia replied. 'With or without their Queen, it would be unwise to allow the Changelings to leave this system.'

'I agree,' Marcos nodded. 'They must not be allowed to spread. They have proven themselves to be an enemy of the Imperium and shall be exterminated.”

'Do you wish me to assist you in its destruction?' Celestia offered. Her prowess with controlling the sun and using it to annihilate enemy ships had been proven several times, and she once again showed she was willing to continue to offer her assistance if it was needed, despite her own responsibilities elsewhere.

'I do not believe your assistance will be necessary, Your Highness, but thank you,' Marcos replied. 'I know you must be eager to return to Canterlot. Fear not, Princess. We shall destroy the vessel, just as we destroyed the Queen.'




The Barnham's Pride was a long-serving cruiser, a true veteran of the Segmentum fleet. Like its commanding officer, Captain Burress, the ship had seen much action in all corners of space, from the Segmentum centre on routine patrol, to the far reaches of the edge of the galaxy, where it found itself now, only one step from interstellar space. It also found itself in one of the more peculiar missions of its long and distinguished career; chasing down an Imperial ship that was attempting to flee to Imperial space, but crewed and controlled by a hostile and previously unknown alien species, who had infiltrated the vessel unbeknownst to the rest of the fleet, taken command, either killed or imprisoned the human crew, and were now trying to flee the planet and spread their filth across the rest of the Imperium.

That could simply not be allowed. The Imperium had enough enemies as it was, beset on all sides by threats. This irritation needed to be nipped in the bud as soon as possible. The Polaris Maxima was heading for the outer system, hoping to reach a safe distance from the planet so they could engage their Immaterium interface drives and jump to warp. The pursuing vessels had a fairly brief window in which to destroy it.

The escorts were pushing ahead, their drives thrumming. They were much faster than the fleeing cruiser, able to overhaul it, but, unless they could land killer blows with their torpedoes, they would be incapable of destroying it. The Barnham's Pride and its lances were the best bet of bringing the Changeling ship to heel. The torpedoes could punch through the shields of the target to strike the hull directly, but they were vulnerable to point defences. The lances could bring down the shields, but it might take time, and time was not on their side. The Polaris Maxima had only to reach a safe distance from the planet and the star to be able to go to warp without fear of potential damage from the gravitational forces of both massive bodies.

Torpedoes fired from the destroyer squadrons formed a swarm as they raced across the void, moving faster than their foe, their heavy plasma and nuclear warheads arming themselves once they were clear of the safe radius from their launch vessels. The rear aspect of the Polaris Maxima had only a few point defences, being mostly dominated by its huge engine exhaust vents and baffles, and several torpedoes were able to get through the shield and smash into the stern of the cruiser. Explosions tore through the hull, knocking out several of the engines, but the Polaris Maxima was still able to move. It was also able to fight, and its lances returned fire, targeting the faster escorts as the Barnham's Pride was still many miles farther astern. One destroyer took heavy damage, knocking out its shields and ripping open several decks, unable to withstand the power of the capital-killer lance beams.

The Barnham's Pride let off another volley of lance shots, striking the aft shields of the fleeing cruiser. They wavered, but they held. Fire from the escorts' macrocannons pattered off of the shield and inflicted further damage to it, but it still held firm. Another spread of torpedoes left the tubes, streaking across toward the target. The point-defence lascannons and missile batteries opened up, destroying most of the incoming projectiles, but again several broke through the last line of defence and struck the stern. More damage was caused to the engines, explosions ripping through the corridors and compartments. Many of the surviving human crew were being kept there by the Changelings, prisoners on their own vessel, and now falling victim to their own comrades in their attempt to stop the ship from leaving the system. Hundreds died with each torpedo impact, immolated in the plasma fires or sucked out into the void, flailing helplessly halfway between the planet and the sun before twitching one final time and becoming lifeless corpses, destined to sail the cosmos for all eternity.

Drones tumbled out with them, however, the intended targets of the Imperial assault meeting the same end as their Queen. More torpedoes smashed into the ship, causing further damage. The engines failed, as did the stern shields, and within moments the Polaris Maxima was dead in space. Now, every weapon her pursuers possessed could be brought to bear effectively. Lances played across her hull, missiles and macrocannon shells peppered the aft sections. Explosions and fires burst into being at numerous points, plasma venting from damaged compartments and shattered feed lines. Inertia carried the ship forward, but it was no longer accelerating, and the Barnham's Pride was now able to close the distance to her.

As the pursuing cruiser drew closer, its main broadside batteries came into range. Captain Burress ordered the ship to swing about and bring its port side to bear on the enemy, not exactly a balletic movement but surprisingly graceful given the size of the ship. The ranks of heavy macrocannons and railguns lined up on target, and each gun fired as the Polaris Maxima entered its firing arc. The stern of the ship was a relatively small target viewed from behind, but the Changelings could no longer manoeuvre their vessel. Desultory defensive fire was spat back at the Barnham's Pride,  having little effect on its flank void shields. The escorts swirled around the stranded Changeling ship as it continued to drift forward, taking heavy fire, struck by more torpedoes that ripped through its outer skin to detonate inside inner chambers. Lances flashed silently, aiming for the stern section where the main reactors were located. 

The Changelings could do nothing about it. Their ship was disabled, many of their weapons were being picked off by Imperial fire. The surviving lance turrets spat their defiance, striking the bow shields of the Barnham's Pride and stripping away the protective barrier around one of the frigates entirely. They pounced, with every available weapon now turned upon the exposed escort. The fragile vessel could not stand up to the onslaught, and it exploded under the barrage of lances and macrocannons.

The Imperials responded with furious anger at seeing one of their own ships destroyed by this most peculiar enemy, in this most peculiar circumstance. Their heavy attacks continued, smashing the Polaris Maxima and pounding its exterior into fragments. The lances cut through the hull plating like butter, shredding entire strings of compartments. The last of the Changeling lance turrets were knocked out, their barrels sitting idle and useless. The defenceless cruiser continued to be pummelled by mass firepower, more torpedoes blasting into it, until one found the reactors. Though armoured and able to withstand lance strikes, the heavy plasma warhead of the torpedo was enough to crack them open like an egg, and the Changeling controlled ship died in a brilliant double flash, the twin reactors detonating like giant bombs, carrying a great cloud of debris forward on an endless trajectory through space as the light from the blast faded away. Captain Burress reported back over the vox.

'Barnham's Pride calling Indefatigable. Mission accomplished, My Lord.'




The ragged remnants of the decimated Crusade fleet returned to planetary orbit to conduct a thorough search of the debris field which had once been their proud flagship, as Princess Celestia returned to the planet below. Twilight and Luna were anxiously awaiting her arrival, and both were glad to see her back safe and sound in Canterlot after her sojourn to space. They were even more glad to hear what she had to say; both Changeling controlled ships had been destroyed, along with all their occupants. That, at least, was one less threat they would have to worry about in the future.

Twilight, once again, felt a sense of unease mixed in with her relief at the return of Celestia and the defeat of Chrysalis. Her mentor, her Princess, had carried out the destruction of the flagship herself; so she had said, freely admitting it, no less. The deaths of the Changelings did not upset her; she held no affection or consideration for them after what they had done to Equestria in the past. But there were humans on that ship as well, unknown thousands of them, perhaps more. They must have all perished as well, at Celestia's hoof, no less.

There had been no talk of an evacuation of the ship; Celestia had not mentioned it, and nor had anypony else. The ship must have had a vast crew, and how many of them were still alive when the ship was destroyed, Twilight could only guess at. Perhaps they were all already dead, if every single deck had been in possession of the Changeling boarders. Or perhaps thousands of them had been awaiting rescue, for their own kind to counter-board the ship and retake it, freeing them. Instead of salvation, they met their deaths.

But it had not been Celestia's decision. She said that Lord-Admiral Marcos had issued the order himself. He was the commander of the Imperial fleet, of their entire force here on and around this planet. It was his call to make, and he had made it. But for whatever reason, he had chosen Celestia to carry it out, and she had willingly accepted the task, destroying the Imperial flagship from within when it became clear that nothing else could be done. To recapture the ship would have been too costly, the Lord-Admiral had decided. They would lose too many more men taking it back, and he could not justify it. So instead, it had to be destroyed. That was a fair and understandable choice to make; but why did it have to fall to Celestia? Why could the rest of the human fleet not have destroyed the ship instead?

Again, Twilight did not know. She wanted to ask the Princess and find out. There was so much she wanted to ask, but though Celestia had returned to Canterlot, that did not mean that she was no longer busy. Almost immediately upon her arrival she was off again, in conversation with Princess Luna about some important matter or other. Twilight knew that Celestia was not ignoring her, but simply had other tasks to attend to, but she still felt like she had to talk with her mentor.

She waited for a moment when the Princess was free. She had many things to ask, and she approached her.

'Princess Celestia, do you have a minute to talk?' she asked.

'Twilight. Yes, of course,' Celestia replied. 'What is on your mind?'

'So much, Princess...' Twilight sighed. 'There's so much on my mind, so much I need to ask you.'

'It may have to wait...' Celestia glanced over Twilight's shoulder. A guardspony was hurrying down the throne room toward her, with the human liaison team in tow.

'Your Highness!' he called. 'Message from Imperial ground command!' Celestia took the vox handset with her magic once Atter and Mons arrived.

'This is Princess Celestia.'

'Princess, this is Commissar Birbeck,' came the voice over the box. 'Be advised, you have bandits inbound on your position. Ground and air forces from the south. Copy?'

'I copy, Commissar,' Celestia replied. 'How many?'

'If I wasted time counting them all, then they'd be on top of you,' Birbeck grunted. 'They bypassed our line...don't ask me how, because I don't know. Just get ready for a fight.'

'Understood, Commissar,' Celestia answered grimly. 'We will be ready.'