by John Walker
“Nina, confirm pilot losses.”
“I’ve confirmed it,” Nina replied. “We got hit pretty hard.”
The capital ships opened fire, starting the real engagement. The Morrigan took a full barrage from two different vessels even as their side launched a volley. The exchange turned into a real slugfest, massive ships going toe to toe with one another. Dorian started calling out shield damage but finally stopped, putting the numbers on the screen.
Silhouettes of their side occupied the left side. Each one showed green—though one, BS Four, quickly turned yellow. This indicated the shields had gone down on at least one side of the vessel. Noah checked, noting the captain pulled them around to provide a different angle for the enemy to blast at.
The ervas remained mostly stationary, just hitting with everything they had. By contrast, the Confed vessels kept moving. More flashing lights filled the bridge, these from the conflict the destroyers engaged in. Their silhouettes occupied the right side of the screen. Two more showed completely black… destroyed in the engagement.
Gold Empire scouts gave a serious go at them, helping to overwhelm the ervas forces. They moved swiftly about, harassing their opponents while driving them away from the rest of the action. The movement kept things lively, allowing the Confed destroyers a little breathing room.
They whittled the enemy gunboats down, leaving only two left. The ervas destroyers plowed into them at that point, too late to save their companions but in time to give the allied forces a real run. Their assault was dirty and brutal. They rammed some of the Gold Empire scouts, their pointed noses and shields protecting them during the assault.
That brutal assault knocked down four more of the Gold Empire ships, leaving them with only three on the field.
The Morrigan had their own problems. Blasts from the enemy ships kept coming, hammering their shields. Erica didn’t have the freedom to perform the kind of maneuvering they’d become accustomed to, not with their allies all moving about as well. They needed to remain coordinated, keeping their motions controlled and predictable by their allies.
“Front shields at forty percent,” Mac stated. “Engineering cannot keep up with secondary effects of the attacks. Recommend passing enemy or withdrawing to regroup and recharge.”
Noah dared to hope the fight might be won in a single charge, but it seemed that wouldn’t be possible. Depending on whether or not the enemy gave chase, they may well need to regroup momentarily before hitting them again. He scowled at the screen in thought, checking the status of the other ships.
Every single battleship showed yellow…at least some shield damage and potentially more though they would’ve turned red if any suffered hull damage. At least we’ve got that going for us. He sent the signal to the other ships. “Withdraw. Buy yourselves some space and give your shields a chance to recharge.”
“We didn’t even get one of them,” Nina said. “That… seems crazy.”
“Big battles,” Noah said, “they sometimes go like this. Fits and starts. Big attacks, slow results.” He leaned back in his seat as the engines engaged, compelling them backward. He’d hoped the ervas might’ve been content to let them fall back but that wasn’t the case.
Their battleships gave chase, remaining within firing distance. The volleys continued, each side laying into one another. Tactical information presented a scenario that was only slightly in favor of a Confed victory. Those enemy ships showed considerable shield damage as well, but they continued hitting hard, unfazed by the assaults.
“More power to engines,” Noah said. “Get us out of there, Erica.”
“Sir,” Erica shook her head, “there’s no way maneuvering thrusters will get us away from them. I’d have to show them our tail if we want any real speed.”
“Front shields down to twenty-five percent,” Dorian shouted this information. His voice broke when he did. “We’re dumping more power into the defenses but they’re slow to rise, sir. We need…”
“Charge the enemy,” Mac said. “Pass them by. Give the order to all battleships to do the same. Spread the angle of our course so we can all spin around to hit them in the rear. That should grant us the element of surprise and we might just reclaim the initiative at that point.”
The plan had merit but it also represented tremendous risk. Flying by the enemy as he suggested meant subjecting themselves not only to the main guns of the battleships but their turrets as well, which in their current state may have been enough to cause some damage. But…it was better than a running gun battle at a disadvantage.
“New course,” Noah said. He plotted the waypoints for the others, putting them far enough apart to ensure none of them ran into each other when they performed the suggested maneuver. “Full power, Erica.”
As the rear thrusters fired up, he checked the destroyers. They were on the winning side though the destroyers took more casualties. One seemed to be gone completely, the other disabled. A general SOS went out from them, but they had to know they weren’t getting any help soon.
On the opposite side, the ervas took a real beating. Of their twenty-five destroyers, seven had been annihilated. Five more seemed to be disabled. That left thirteen which had disengaged from their opponents and were hustling back toward the planet itself, probably to intercept the fighters that were about to start in on the satellites.
I need to get them some help.
Noah commanded the remaining destroyers and scouts to get after them. If they harassed the fleeing vessels, they may well take them out before they caused the fighters any drama. Those smaller ships don’t need that. They’ve got enough on their plates without taking potshots from those pricks.
“Put the tactical view behind me,” Noah said. “I want to see them coming.” The screen shifted, displaying the enemy ships directly ahead of them. Green blasts winked into existence throughout the wall of their opponents, dropping continuous fire in their direction. As they charged into that, the Morrigan shook dramatically.
Every hit brought them closer to losing their shields, to take some serious damage. The fight’s far from over. We’ve got to make it before they get through. Noah held his breath, narrowing his eyes. They were within a thousand kilometers…closer…their weapons continued firing as well, giving the enemy as good as they delivered.
Noah glanced over his shoulder, noting one of the enemy battleships showed red. That filled him with some relief but unfortunately, two of his own vessels were in a similar state. It only means they’ve lost their shields. They don’t necessarily have hull damage. But that might’ve been academic.
“Dorian, I need a damage report from BS two and three.”
They passed over the enemy. Turrets laid into them at that point, tiny assaults that nevertheless did the trick. Those weren’t powerful enough to bring about a trembling reaction, but they taxed the shields nonetheless. As they reached the other side, Noah’s eyes widened. Three destroyers seemed to be waiting for them, ships that broke from the fighter pursuit.
“What’re they doing there?” Noah asked. “How’d they sneak up?”
“I can’t say,” Dorian said, “but it has something to do with the way the satellites are playing with our sensor equipment.”
“Lay into them, Erica! Hit those guys with everything you’ve got!” Noah knew that messing with the destroyers would give the battleships a chance to turn but he didn’t have a choice. While smaller, those vessels were more than capable of doing some serious damage, especially to the rear.
Noah took a look at the tactical screen again. The battleships were turning around. The destroyers wouldn’t withstand much in the way of an assault. They couldn’t possibly have the defenses to hold up against the main cannons. But their job was to distract, to buy time and they were doing a fabulous job of it.
Meaning we’re about to be hit from the flank, even if we start turning fast.
“Need a hand?” Wilmarth’s voice piped over the comm. “Sorry we’re late.”
“Th
e Gold Empire ships are here!” Dorian shouted. “They’re in position!”
Thank God. Noah let out a sigh. “We need you to immediately flank these battleships! Get in the fight right away!”
“Our fighters are deployed,” Wilmarth replied. “They’re en route to support your other vessels. We’ll be along shortly. Give us… two minutes.”
“We can withstand that.” I hope. Noah watched as the destroyer they focused on burst into a ball of green-white flames. The others were chewed on by the battleships. BS One and Four managed to get turned around. They would not be flanked by the enemy…and might even be able to keep them busy. “Deploy whatever you’ve got, guys. We need time.”
But the ervas fleet would get their shot in.
Spinning seemed like a poor idea. They’d passed the ships to hit them from behind. Their shields remained damaged. No, they needed another tactic altogether. Something to account for the surprise attack by the smaller ships. Noah considered his option for a moment… then made up his mind.
“Erica, drop us down five thousand kilometers while moving forward. We’ll loop around.” Noah got on the comm. “If you’re not spinning charge forward. Go up or down, whatever makes sense based on what can target you. Go fully mobile. I’ll paint some waypoints to keep us from tripping on each other.”
“What’re we doing now?” Nina asked. “Sorry, I was talking to the pilots.”
“Pretending we’re in a fighter,” Noah said. “Hold on tight. This part of the trip won’t be pleasant.” But it may well save our lives. He gripped the chair tightly, prepared for the inevitable crushing force of the swift movement.
***
Sasha ordered the immediate push on the enemy battleships, but he wished they would’ve had an opportunity to evaluate the situation first. The operation already appeared to have descended into chaos. Fighter engagements off near the planet’s surface alone looked wild but then there were the capital ships duking it out.
I guess I should just be happy there aren’t as many defenders as intelligence thought there’d be.
The opposition seemed reasonable given the fact the ervas didn’t likely believe the humans knew the location of their homeworld. Sasha took a moment to observe the conditions of the planet from scans Daisy took the moment they arrived. It had an Earth-like quality in regards to gravity, oxygen, and biomes.
That stands to reason given their appearance. It also means that if we ever get along, our people can thrive together.
He wondered if that was even a possibility, given the Confed idea to send their war dogs down to the surface. Bombarding the place from orbit even seemed like too much to Sasha but he heard the stories about the machines. They were brutal, often to the point of going above and beyond atrocious to complete their objectives.
And they’re unleashing them in the middle of a civilized area… with normal people down there.
At least, that was the assumption. The ervas population included regular citizens, non-combatants that likely just wanted to go to work and return to their loved ones. According to the briefings, the conflict started because of the military and their zealous attitude about how humanity used ether.
Sounds like an excuse to me. A feeble one at that. They just want to fight.
“Sir,” Marston spoke up, “check out the Confed ships. They’re… well, those are some erratic maneuvers.”
Sasha watched the battleships launch themselves up and down as they cleared the enemy battleships. As they did so, their thrusters engaged, compelling them forward and away. Meanwhile, the Gold Empire capital ships closed on the ervas rear. If the Confed commander could get his people turned around, they’d both have excellent firing arcs.
“How long before we’re in range to fire?” Sasha asked.
“We could fire…” Marston held his finger up, “now. We’re at extreme range, but I think I’ve got them.”
“Fire at will.” Sasha turned to his console. Scans of the various ships in the system showed there. He could check the status of defenses, hulls, and trajectory. Many of the ships had taken a beating on both sides. Debris fields indicated several had already been lost. Probably on all sides, too.
“Fighters are approaching the target area,” Daisy said, “they’ll be contributing to the fight at any moment.”
“Great.” Sasha nodded. “Maybe that’ll turn the tide for us.” One can hope. He checked the situation with smaller vessels. At least a dozen had deployed from the surface, but they hadn’t arrived yet. He counted on many more jumping in. It all came down to how many they brought with them in their own invasion of territory.
The cannons discharged. Even at their distance, Marston snagged his target directly in the thrusters. Sasha’s terminal showed the shields drop down below thirty percent back there. Another good hit might take them down entirely. He sent that information to his peers, the other ships on fast approach.
Those destroyers have to get in there, Sasha thought. They can do some real damage to the ones already hurt.
“Sasha,” Wilmarth’s voice came through the line, “we’re focusing fire on the one you hit. It’s got a good distance to their peers. Maintain your attack on it. Don’t slow down, got it?”
“No problem,” Sasha said. “We’re on it.” The Broken Light had the generator power and technology to keep a steady assault up where the others needed more time to recharge. Those vessels may have hit harder but it equaled out in the end. “You heard the man, Marston. Don’t stop until that thing’s dust or it starts to turn.”
“Do you think they’ll attack us?” Daisy asked. “Or keep after the Confed vessels?”
“If they’re anything like us,” Sasha said, “they’ll perform a threat analysis and decide. Right now, I’d put us as the bigger danger to them. But that’s really only because we’ve got their tails in sight. Of course, if they turn to face us, they’ll give the Confeds a good target as well.”
“What should they do?”
“Run,” Sasha replied. “Get back to the satellites. Fend off the fighters and use those defenses against us. However, that has a risk too. If they fight near the surface, something may breakthrough atmosphere, crash into a city… so they’re in a tough spot. One I think is untenable but… I guess we’ll find out shortly.”
I have no idea what sort of tricks they have up their sleeves and this is their territory. God knows if they’ve considered invasion before now.
All of the Gold Empire vessels unloaded at the same time. Their attacks struck the target, beams ripping down the shields before chewing through the thrusters themselves. That did the trick, sending the vessel listing to the left and downward. Green globes of fire poured out of various points in the rear, a surefire indication of a major hull breach.
That one’s done. Even if it didn’t explode, they were out of the fight. Sasha checked the scanner to determine their next target.
The Confed vessels came back around, firing at an angle. Their beams sliced into the bottom portions of their targets, solid enough blows to do some shield damage. Hitting the larger force from both sides made it obvious that if they didn’t move quickly, the ervas fleet would be annihilated in a few moments.
This is where they’ll do something desperate, Sasha thought. “Marston, hold position here. Don’t get any closer.” He gave the same advice to his peers though the destroyers needed to close. They had the maneuverability to get out of the way if something insane happened… like a self-destruct move or ramming.
They can’t risk it. With only three battleships remaining, the ervas didn’t have the heavy firepower to throw one away on a suicide run. If they only had one or two ships to contend with, maybe it would’ve been an option. It doesn’t matter, they’re desperate which often leads to poor decisions.
As the enemy capital ships started to move, Wilmarth gave the order to press them hard. That required all the Gold Empire ships to advance, to keep after them with maximum aggression. It was a dangerous game in Sasha’s opinion,
but scans didn’t show any other enemy ships in the area. Which meant it might not matter.
The Broken Light lurched as they engaged full throttle. Sasha grabbed his seat to steady himself. “What the hell was that?”
“Front thrusters engaged at the same time,” Marston replied. “Seems to be a minor short up there. Probably came about when they got that thing off the ship and moved it down to the lab.” He sighed. “Engineering’s working on it, but the others are going to pull ahead of us for sure.”
“Okay.” Sasha contacted Wilmarth. “We’ve got a problem. We’ll be taking up the rear, I’m afraid, but it’ll be fixed as soon as possible.”
“Understood,” Wilmarth replied. “We’ll close ranks and take care of it. Thanks, Sasha. Good luck.”
At least he understands the dilemma. Sasha checked on the other ships in their force. The destroyers nearly reached their destination, but the fighters had their work cut out for them in the meantime. They were in a serious brawl with the enemy, a big enough fight that he didn’t know how they were holding their own. They’re badasses, that’s how.
Meanwhile, the Confed ships were moving about, essentially forcing the ervas ships to move a lot in order to keep them in range of their heavier weapons. Two of the remaining battleships faced the Gold Empire while the other took potshots at their other opponents. But it was a losing battle…one that would be over soon.
“Sir,” Daisy said, “we’ve got a strange reading from the satellites. The fighters are just about there but this power surge…it’s something else. I don’t know what to make of it.”
“Get that question out to the other tech officers,” Sasha replied, “make it fast.”
And here’s their trick. But how do we defend against something we don’t know anything about? Sasha tapped the comm to the research lab where their ervas guest remained with Harcourt. “I don’t recall your name, but we have a problem. The satellites are building up a massive power surge. What are they doing?”
