The orders given by the Tindrel commander were quite basic. Simply advance forward and attack at close range. Rothian vessels tended to prefer keeping range on their intended targets, as it allowed them to best utilize the heavily armored frontal crest present on most capital ships. Being in close quarters allowed hostiles to more easily position themselves to bypass it. Their ships were not [i]specifically[/i] vulnerable at other angles, but it meant they could not as effectively use one of their main defensive advantages. Still, one could not deny the effectiveness of this initial strike. 

Naturally, the hostile capital ships in the Tindrel’s path powered engines to maximum acceleration to avoid the massive asteroid’s path. The carrier had been positioned in the back, protected by its battleships, so it was able to get clear first. The battleships would have been able to follow suit in time, were it not for one last-moment adjustment from the Tindrel capital ship. For most ships, engaging a warp drive was not something one could do easily in combat. It required remaining stationary for any significant jump, as well as imparting a significant power drain on the ship. For the planetoid ship, however, there was more than enough space to build in dedicated power systems for their FTL drive, and it did not need to remain stationary to perform a relatively short jump. The planetoid performed a short jump, just a few miles in one direction, but it was enough to put the battleships right in its path. With the planetoid’s unstoppable momentum, it was far too late for them to respond. The asteroid smashed straight into the rear battleship, broadside. While it was a simple approach to combat, almost primitive in nature, the planetoid most certainly had the mass to make it work. The crushing force burst the battleship’s shields and smashed it into unrecognizable pieces. The second battleship had been closer to escaping, but it was not quite enough. Its stern was struck by the planetoid, shearing its rear half from the ship and sending the remainder into an uncontrolled spiral. 

For the purposes of the simulation, the enemy was not programmed to have any forewarning of allied tactics or capabilities. They were unknown to the enemy, just as the enemy was unknown to them. However, the AI mediating the scenario was to ensure that the enemy could learn and adapt efficiently. Admiral Matir, in particular, had insisted that their foe be intelligent and capable. The Tindrel had carried out a shocking and effective first strike; only two capital ships remained in the immediate area, and they were heavily outmatched by the allied forces focused upon them. However, this battle was far from over. They were still outnumbered overall by the enemy in the asteroid field, and they were adjusting quickly to the Tindrel’s approach. Hostile ships were remaining at long range and spreading out even farther from each other, as well as moving closer to asteroids to use them for cover, making ramming more difficult. The dense asteroid field could make it difficult for the enemy to get overlapping fields of fire to be able to focus on smaller capital ships, but the planetoid was so large that nearly every ship could get a firing line on at least [i]some[/i] part of it, no matter where they were.

The enemy carrier managed to move behind a nearby asteroid, but two of the Rothian cruisers bore down upon it to try to eliminate the nearest threats as quickly as possible. They could track its position through sensors even without line of sight, so they did not bother to try to move around the asteroid. While there was a fair amount of it, the carrier’s cover was only rock. The power of the cruisers’ weapons allowed them to shoot straight [i]through[/i] the small asteroid, rapidly draining their target’s shields regardless of cover. There was a single other battleship in close range firing on everything nearby, but it likely would not take long for the rest of the battle group to overwhelm it. The real test would be how the Tindrel could react to being outnumbered and surrounded, as they were now.

[hr]

“Starting wide-spectrum signal scan.” Marae remarked as she gave the command, though at the moment, it was mostly Nirann who was guiding the process. He did not have a body present in the lab, as he was currently linked into the ship itself so he could better operate the sensor suite. He could remove the intermediate step of a user interface and operate their ship’s hardware as if by thought. 

Marae turned away from her console and back towards the others. “This could take a while. It’s doubtful that the signal we find, [i]if[/i] we find one, is going to be identical to the Navigator’s. We’re probably going to get a lot of false positives, especially with an intelligent population on the planet, so we’re going to have to keep adjusting the parameters as we go. Nirann can help single out likely signals, though.”