Departing; chapter 5/7

‘Check check!’

‘Yeah what?’ Nashh grumbled.

‘Dominix on scan sir’.

‘Yeah I know’, continue’.

‘Check ...’

‘I can read the fucking scanner, shut up! There ain't no probes out, relax’.

‘Yessir...’

Rage missiles spuwed forth from the Tengus launchers, much faster and with greater accuracy than any other missile boat could ever possibly achieve.

Suddenly alarm bells flared up.

‘Warp to safe 1’, Nashh commanded calmly.

Aura's cold response spelled certain doom, and he knew it;
'You are unable to warp as external factors are interfering with your warpdrive'.

A Proteus had de-cloaked a mere 100 meters starboard.

‘Hail the captain of the Proteus, offer to pay any ransom’.

‘No response sir’.

A Dominix and an Armageddon exited a warp tunnel not far out. This was not looking good.
The Proteus emptied the capacitor faster than boosters could refill.
Within seconds the 3.5 billion vessel burst into a large plume of smoke. Wreckage and shrapnel propelled outwards into the blackness.

Nashh remained calm and instructed for his pod to escape, repeatedly.

With the overview turning red once more, he streched out, touching the inside of his pod with the palms of his hands...

...wishing he didn't have a billion worth of implants in his head.

He screamed a silent scream.

-=o0o=-

Within 24 hours of the incident Morrigan was on her way back from Amarr. A complete new Tengu fitting in the corporate hangar array of her Orca.

One jump out from the wormhole-entrance her scout warned of a Buzzard camping on the inside of the hole.

‘Nashh? Your call’.

Nashh kadavr stood on the bridge of the Amarr large tower, looking out into the cold darkness.
‘Proceed’.

‘Yessir’.

A moment of silence past…

‘Fuck, He's got a ninja-point, I am scrambled’. Dirty sounded calm and composed; ‘attempting to re-approach the hole’.

‘Incoming; Drake,Cane, Hound, Rapier..’

‘I am not going to make it’.

The signal crackled then went silent.

Nashh leaned up against the large glass panes with his forehead. ‘Why?’ He muttered to himself.

‘Sir?’

It was Aether Astaios, Morrigans assistant.

‘Yes Aether? This is not the best time’.

‘Sorry sir, it's just that I have repeated payment request for our new pilot’. ‘They want payment within 24 hours or Moo is transferred to a different buyer’.

‘Thank you Aether’.

‘I would like to be alone for a minute...’