A/N: This little blurb is the result of reading some work by Darth Marrs (look him up - he's an incredible author). I don't think I'm misrepresenting DM when I say that in his stories he makes the very good case that the turbo lasers on a typical Star Destroyer are world breakingly powerful. This made me wonder how a Star Destroyer may deal with an Endbringer attack. What's below is the result of those thoughts.
(The first text in italics is taken verbatim from Worm Extermination 8.5)
—0000xxxx0000-
Two blocks away, Leviathan crashed down into the water.
Another lurch of my throat and chest, painful. My mouth opened, water filled my mouth, and my throat locked up to prevent the inhalation of water. I spat the water out, forced it out of my mouth, for all the good it would do.
I'd left the fat cape to die like this when the wave was coming. Was this karma?
Something splashed near me. A footstep.
A strong hand grasped the front of my costume and heaved me out of the water, levering me up onto some debris. I sputtered and pulled great heaving breaths of air. My arm and upper body screamed in pain while my legs were terribly silent.
My savior was a man, unmasked. He had sandy hair and a thick but close cropped beard. He wore a strange costume, a brown tunic like shirt with long sleeves belted at his waist by a wide black belt, black pants and knee high brown boots. His belt had several strange devices attached that could only be tinkertech, including a long cylindrical tube that I guessed was a weapon of some kind. He was soaked to the bone like everything else in the driving rain. His eyes were a piercing blue. He wore no armband.
I made to struggle. I needed to move or do something. My armband was long gone, my arm was useless and I couldn't feel my legs. The man must have sensed my distress because he spoke.
"Easy young one," his voice surprisingly calm for a man standing two blocks from an Endbringer, "I fear your fight this day has ended."
I could hardly believe my ears. Who was this fool? Leviathan was near - I could still feel the bugs on him as he had crashed to the ground - we were out in the open and I was unable to move without help.
"Run," I croaked. I was hopeful this stranger would carry me with him but instead of fleeing he looked toward Leviathan and touched a device attached to his ear.
"Captain Lillor do you have a lock on the anomaly?" He paused, obviously listening to a response I was unable to hear.
I could see his eyes tighten in concentration as he listened. After several additional seconds he spoke again.
"Turbo lasers I would think. Set for minimal yield and I will report on effectiveness," he paused again to listen, "Yes, yes I'm clear enough captain, just make sure your gunners have a clean lock, and make sure you keep an eye on the orbiting anomaly as well. If it moves in a hostile manner toward the ship or the planet you are free to engage."
Turbo lasers? Anomaly? What the hell kind of tinker was this guy. He turned to me.
"I'll need you to look away from the creature now young miss. My ship's cannons are very, very bright and I wouldn't want you to damage your eyes."
He turned himself back toward the Endbringer and gestured with a hand. As he did so every cape within a hundred yards of Leviathan was torn away from Leviathan at high speed. I had just enough time to parse his statement and marvel at his apparent telekinesis when searing red streaks shot down from the heavens and smashed Leviathan into the water covered pavement producing a cloud of superheated steam. The ground rumbled and sound waves crashed into me causing intense pain to flair in my injuries. I managed to get my good arm up to cover my eyes. I think I was screaming.
When the spots in my vision cleared I could see the strange man still standing, looking intently at the spot where Leviathan had been just moments ago. The area was filled with steam that was quickly clearing. All I could think was that was minimal yield?
Several tense moments passed. I couldn't move now. I could feel my body getting colder from the brutal numbing water. All I could do was will that Leviathan be destroyed. It would change everything. So when the steam cleared enough that I could see the monster again my heart fell. It was still moving. Severely damaged but still moving. The creature seemed confused.
Pieces of Leviathan were missing. Other parts were so scorched and torn that I couldn't understand how it was still able to move at all, every bug near it has been vaporized. My strange rescuer just looked on in disgust, again he spoke.
"Another salvo if you please Captain."
Seconds later more of the extraordinary bolts rained down on the Leviathan. This time I was able to shield my eyes in time. More rolling thunder in the ground, more steam, and more pain. I think I managed to not scream this time.
When the smoke and steam cleared all that was left was a skeletal, shredded carcass, unmoving.
I must have been staring dumbfounded for some time because I was startled by the man's voice.
"Well done Commander," he paused considering an unheard response, "Yes keep scanning for it and remain at battle stations. Please have the expeditionary forces standing by."
Expeditionary forces? Did this cape have a spaceship up there? Nobody had attempted manned space travel since Sphere. One in two satellites fell victim to the Simurgh… what the hell! I needed a plan, some way to escape this man's hold so I began gathering what meager bugs were still alive. The pounding rain had instantly let up with the demise of the Endbringer so I could at least gather some fliers. He must have again sensed my panic because he turned his eyes back to me.
"As I said, peace. I am not your enemy." The stranger said, as if that wasn't the first thing out of any enemies mouth. I could see capes approaching, landing near the corpse of the Leviathan, probably in shock. I wanted to see for myself, to walk over and spit on the grave of the monster but my body wouldn't respond and my vision started to tunnel.
Suddenly I could feel a hand on my face, my actual face. When had I removed my mask? The man's blue eyes filled my vision and the pain floated away. I could see that he was speaking but I could hear nothing over the roaring in my ears. A feeling flooded my body, filling me up. It was warm and comforting and I had vague recollections of feeling this way in the past but then losing something along the way.
The last thing I saw before everything went black were the kind, concerned blue eyes of the stranger looking into my soul.