Chapter 156

Thrawn had taken a shuttle and landed in the hanger bay of the Invictus. From there he proceeded to the bridge where Prince Luke and Prince Jais were alongside the Admiral.

Once Thrawn walked in the crew was already standing up awaiting his arrival. As he walked in one of the officers announced his arrival "Admiral on Deck". Everybody on the bridge snapped to attention.

Thrawn put his hand up signaling everybody to return to their duties as he walked up to the two princes and bowed his head "It is an honor to meet members of the Royal family" Said Thrawn.

"It's an honor to meet you as well Admiral Thrawn, we have heard quite the stories about your feats," said Luke.

"You honor me, your highness" Thrawn replied respectfully.

"But for right now, let's focus on the task at hand, so Admiral Thrawn you are now in command, what's the plan," said Luke.

Admiral Thrawn nodded as they were wasting time when the enemy was right in front of them "As of now this information is unclassified" Stated Admiral Thrawn. "The enemy in front of us is the Yuuzhan Vong. They are a race from another Galaxy here to colonize our Galaxy and establish it as their new home" Explained Admiral Thrawn.

Luke and Jais were a little shocked at the information. They were told a little bit about the Yuuzhan Vong, but they didn't expect them to be like this. Originally, they thought that they were just some lost race or perhaps even a race from another Galaxy.

"These beings are not explorers," Thrawn continued. "They do not seek coexistence, but domination."

Hearing this new Jais had a small smile appear on his face as he could now face some real enemies which they had never faced before. Luke on the other hand was more worried about the lives that would be lost because of the war. They both had been thrust into an intergalactic conflict of unprecedented scale.

"Our orders are to attack their fleet an ascertain their strength to see how our weapons match against their ships." Explained Admiral Thrawn as he walked to the command console on the ship.

"All ships, prepare to attack the enemy on my mark" Ordered Admiral Thrawn as thousands of fighters began to deploy from the hangers of the fleet. They formed small formations next to their respective ships while waiting for the order to attack.

Moments later when Admiral Thrawn deemed the fleet prepared, the attack was launched "All ships, open fire". As the order resounded across the bridge, entire fleet surged into action. The turbolaser batteries had aimed at the Yuuzhan Vong fleet and fired on its intended target.

As the first volley erupted from the fleet, with bright blue streaks piercing the black void of space, Thrawn issued his next command. "Fighters, engage at will. Target their fighters with your secondary targets being their capital ships."

Thousands of fighters engaged their thrusters and headed straight for the enemy fleet. The fighters moved in formation dodging the incoming fire from the enemy ships. Luke watched with awe, praying silently for those brave pilots risking their lives to defend the galaxy from foreign invaders.

Thrawn studied a holographic tactical display, his red eyes tracking every formation and shift in the enemy ranks. He could see patterns already - their strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies. While their technology was different, their tactics were not entirely alien to him.

From a distance, it seemed that the Yuuzhan Vong formation was holding steady against their assault. But Thrawn saw something else; minute changes in course, acceleration and deployments of their own fighters hinting at stress-points in their defenses.

"Target that massive enemy ship," he commanded suddenly, pointing at one particular enemy vessel on his tactical screen. "Concentrate our firepower there."

A volley of turbolasers from nearby Dreadnoughts had targeted the enemy ship. Thrawn watched it enduring hit after hit until finally, the ship had stopped firing. Unlike the usually massive explosion which would occur, when a ship's core was compromised, the doomed Yuuzhan Vong vessel simply began to slowly drift.

"Cease fire on that target," Thrawn immediately ordered. "Fighters, break off. Focus on the smaller vessels."

This was not just a battle of firepower, but a test of tactics. Thrawn was measuring their responses, studying their chain of command and determining just how resilient these invaders were.

The Yuuzhan Vong responded to the shift in tactics, their own fighters swarming to intercept their counterparts. Their large ships began adjusting their formations, attempting to shield the incapacitated ships. The battle raged on with the space between the two fleets lighting up with explosions, laser bolts and streaks of propellant trails.

Luke and Jais watched as Thrawn orchestrated his forces with cold precision, each order he gave appearing to be part of a grander strategy. "No doubt the Yuuzhan Vong are confused," Thrawn mused, seemingly to himself. "They expected us to continue to hammer at their crippled ship, but we've shifted targets, keeping them off balance."

As the fight continued, Thrawn's strategy started to become more apparent. By alternating his attacks between the large capital ships and the smaller frigates, he was forcing the enemy into a defensive posture. Their movements became cautious, their decision-making process slower. Thrawn was turning their own protective instincts against them.

However, the battle wasn't without its casualties, as more than a dozen Terran ships had already been destroyed by the Yuuzhan Vong fleet, while similarly the Yuuzhan Vong faced the same problem. The battle had begun to turn into stalemate as the Yuuzhan Vong with their massive ships made of biotechnology had managed to put a fight against the Terran fleet.

Across the Galaxy many worlds had faced the same situation as Yuuzhan Vong ships had started to appear all over the Galaxy. Terran fleets rushed to their defenses and the war had started to get intense from just the first battles against the new enemy.