This guy’s arrogant enough to buy this false sense of security. The next attack caused the ship to shake this time with a solid enough blow to give them a good knocking. The good news came from the fact Ronin gave as good as they got. As they once again passed by the vessel, Titus held fast to his seat.
“On my mark,” Jane announced. “Three… two… one… turning.” The engines whined deep within the Triton as the maneuvering thrusters fired at full burn. They spun, moving swift enough that even their highly advanced artificial gravity strained to keep up. A heavy amount of g-force shoved Titus into his seat. “Firing retro thrusters!”
The ship slowed, an action that made the g-force all the more intense. Ronin cried out, a strangled sound that drew a wide eyed look from Titus. The man leaned back in his chair, hands pressed to his face as they finished the maneuver. He was not firing.
“Jane!” Titus shouted, “open fire!”
“Aye, sir!” Jane complied, tapping the secondary weapon controls. The enemy’s rear came up in front of them. They slammed them with a serious barrage, one that lasted for a solid five seconds before the enemy battleship veered away. As it pulled out of range, the Triton moved to maintain their firing solution, picking up speed.
“Ronin!” Titus called. “Are you okay?” The pilot didn’t respond. “Rhys, get Medical on the line. Get some people up here to help him. Violet, how’d we do?”
“Enemy ship took some damage from that one. Their shields have dropped below fifty percent. They are moving away at a rapid pace, back toward the planet.”
What do you hope to accomplish with that? Titus rubbed his chin. They were still struggling to catch up, to get on their rear again. “Hit them with our turrets. Give them whatever you can.”
“Sir,” Rhys leaned in, “are these people sore losers?”
“I… don’t know.” Titus shrugged. “Why do you ask?”
“Because if they’re heading to the planet, what if they intend to bombard the area where our soldiers are operating? Our people? It’s the kind of move the desperate might pull to distract us from hitting them. We might be too busy trying to save people to finish them off.”
“Then what?” Titus asked.
“They could focus on getting back in the fight. With our shields hovering around eighty-five percent, they’re at the disadvantage. They need us to focus our attention elsewhere for a moment. Get a breath before they dive in for what I’m sure they’d hope is a coup de grace. My opinion is they weren’t expecting us to hit so hard.”
“I agree.” Titus sighed. “Get the soldiers on the line. Tell them they are in a major time crunch. They have to get those people out of there right away. Risk comm traffic if necessary.”
“Got it.”
“Maximum speed,” Titus said. “Crawl up their tailpipe if you have to but I want another firing solution with the main cannons.”
Time to finish you off, Renz. Show you what blind adherence to your warrior culture buys you.
***
Kivda arrived on the bridge in time to be thrown against the wall. He bounced off before dropping on the deck, whacking his head on the grate. Shouts around him sounded distant as he shook off the daze. A strong hand hoisted him to his feet. He found himself looking into Renz’s face.
“Are you hurt?” Renz shouted.
Kivda shook his head. He couldn’t quite speak yet.
“Take a seat.” Renz stepped away. “These creatures are far more dangerous than I anticipated. The maneuver they just pulled off was much like the Prytins we’ve faced. Nimble ships with pilots unconcerned for safety.”
Kivda joined him as the ship shook again though this time far less violently. He secured himself, pressing his hand against the throbbing pain on his head. Pulling away, he frowned at the dark-navy stain of blood on his palm.
Scalp wounds always bleed, he reminded himself. I’m not seriously injured.
“Did you speak with them?” Kivda asked.
“Yes, we demanded their surrender. They refused.” Renz raised his voice, “Drop lower! Get out of their gun range. Those turrets are only there to keep our shields from rapidly recharging!”
The crew knows what to do, Kivda thought, but if he’s shouting like that, then this situation has thrown them for a loop. Which meant everyone underestimated their opponents. My own men may make the same mistake. Damn it! He reached out to the shuttle to warn them. Static filled the speaker.
“Inda!” Kivda shouted, “what’s wrong with the comm units? Why can’t I reach the surface?”
“Damage to the line,” Inda replied, “we’re working on it presently. It won’t take long, sir.”
“Hurry!” Kivda slapped the arm of his chair. He lowered his voice to speak with Renz even as the ship dropped suddenly, too fast for the artificial gravity to keep up. His stomach jumped into his throat. “This is… incredible. If you and the people on this ship made the mistake of underestimating these creatures, then my soldiers might do the same.”
“Yes, they sent a shuttle.” Renz waved his hand. “I suppose we’ll find out how good your people are. Pray that they are amazing because if they are not, they’d better not survive. I won’t tolerate failure.”
The ship took a blow that caused quite the rattle, still not as bad as when he arrived on the bridge, but enough that he winced from it.
“You’d better pray we succeed,” Kivda said. “At this point, we’re taking quite the beating.”
“Not for long.” Renz gestured at the screen. “Lock weapons on the surface.
