shared with their wingmen.
As the giant flat topped enemy carrier came into view, they readied their weapons. Those gigantic H.O. T rocket launchers were larger than the fighters themselves, its vast shape loomed before them, dominating everything around it. The small force was down to just six fighters and eight bombers, barely above half strength, but the target was now in sight. And they were resolved to complete their mission; no matter the cost.
The formation increased speed, jinking past yet more devastated shipping, and floating debris fragments. At last they closed with the enemy carrier, it looked as though it was reloading its launchers after expending a salvo earlier in the battle.
The enemy carrier realized its peril too late, as the remaining Peregrine fighters dived upon the colossal ship at full speed, their wingtip mounted short range laser cannon shots raking the deck of the huge vessel. The puny weapon fire barely cut through the thick armour of the Krenaran ship, two of the fighters couldn’t break out of their dive fast enough and slammed headlong into the ship, crashing through its hull and sending fires blazing out into space.
As the carrier reeled, the remaining god-hammer bombers seized their chance. Each launched their deadly cobra anti-ship missiles at the Krenaran vessels command super-structure, multiple warheads surged towards their target, their specially modified shape slammed through its thick outer hull armour and then detonated in terrifically bright explosions, sending huge gouts of flame blossoming across the entire command centre of the enemy carrier.
The few surviving fighters and bombers veered away and re-formed ready for the return journey back to the Hermes. Behind them the devastation caused by the missile strike was plain to see, explosions continued to burst apart the command hull of the beleaguered carrier, before the entire structure tore itself apart in a bright fireball, sending a miniature shockwave and debris scattering in all directions, the damage was finally too much for the stricken Krenaran vessel and in an almighty explosion the devastated remains of the ship tore itself apart, a gigantic blinding fireball erupted flinging wreckage in all directions, some of which colliding with nearby ships. A shockwave burst forth which threatened to engulf everything around it as well as the fleeing fighters and bombers.
Two nearby stealth ships were caught by this massive conflagration and they too were torn asunder by the impact of the giant shockwave and their own carrier’s huge hull fragments smashing into them.
The Krenarans reeled; one of their prized carriers had been destroyed by the terrans. The entire fleet seemed to hesitate for a few seconds, suddenly unsure of themselves.
The newly upgraded Danitza class battleships Defiant and Vengeance seized upon the brief opportunity and opened fire with their punishing long range high power laser batteries, decimating half a dozen stealth ships unlucky enough to be caught in the withering firestorm.
The Krenarans fought back after their devastating loss, as a multitude of torpedoes smashed into another Danitza, tearing apart its sloped fontal section and ripping its docking arm and delicate plasma drive emitters to pieces. Flames burst out from the multiple breaches, and the massive lumbering battleship looked stricken with the damage it had taken.
The flow of battle ebbed to and fro for what seemed like an eternity to Michael, explosions lit up areas of space everywhere, the ruined and drifting hulls of destroyed vessels now littered the area and were a deadly hazard. Several times Eldathar had to bank the ship sharply to avoid incoming debris or the drifting hull of an E.D. F, Solarian or Krenaran vessel as the casualties mounted on both sides.
The fractured hull of a Jefferson class heavy destroyer listed as the Liberty swooped below it, another Danitza class battleship burned brightly in the distance, its hull pock marked with the blackened craters of torpedo impacts and the deep gouge marks of particle cannon hits.
Two stealth ships shot past just above the Liberty, their speed far too fast for the floating myriad of battlefield detritus all around them, the captured former stealth ship pursued them. The enemy ships weaved to and fro, through the debris of devastated shipping.
“ Ready fusion cannon,” Michael ordered as the Krenaran ships continued to weave and zigzag their way through the debris field.
“ We have target lock,” Lieutenant Jones announced.
“ Fire!” Michael shouted; fist clenched.
The intensely bright incandescent blue beam lanced out past the destroyed form of an Alexander class medium cruiser, bathing its crumpled hull in a bright electric blue light. The beam tore into the Krenaran ships engines, blasting them apart instantly. The ship careered into a giant piece of hull plating, and then crumpled in a kind of concertina effect before exploding brightly.
The second ship continued to dodge and weave, trying desperately to shake off the far deadlier Liberty, but to no avail, as three high energy torpedoes slammed into the rear of the enemy vessel, it plunged headlong into the blackened ruin of a Washington class heavy cruiser; turning the charred ruin into a flaming inferno once again.
The Liberty continued on its course as up ahead hid the monstrous form of another of the Krenaran command carriers.
Eldathar banked the ship so that it flew between the blackened wrecks of two Jefferson class heavy destroyers which drifted nearby one another. The Liberty levelled out once it had passed the hulks and continued towards its target.
“ Is the fusion cannon fully charged?” Michael asked.
“ Ninety four percent,” Lieutenant Jones replied.
The massive Krenaran carrier recognised the comparatively tiny former Krenaran ship rapidly baring down on its position, its engines were completely different to any typical Krenaran ship, and its weapon systems had been changed, the moment of confusion allowed the Liberty to close with its prey. Recognising the Liberty for what it was, a captured ship, it unleashed three of its deadly H.O. T rockets straight towards it. The deadly accurate missiles raced towards the Liberty with terrifying speed.
“ Torpedoes, fire!” Michael shouted in desperation as he saw the bright light of the enemy missile engines streaking towards them. With the little time they had, the Liberty only managed to launch two of its own torpedoes, both the incoming missiles and the ships own torpedoes slammed into one another and exploded in a gigantic, blinding explosion that lit up the space all around them; the shockwave blasting nearby debris in all directions.
Briefly the viewer turned an intensely bright white, Michael and the command crew had to shield their eyes from the blinding light of the explosion.
The Liberty shuddered violently, as the shockwave slammed into it. People were thrown from their consoles; Michael desperately hung onto his seat. As the viewer began to clear, the shape of the third rocket was briefly visible as it hurtled its way towards them.
Completely unable to avoid this third missile in time, the warhead struck home with devastating impact, instantly detonating, and blasting apart one of the high energy torpedo launchers, the sheer force of the explosion sent the Liberty spinning out of control.
Onboard, the scene was one of utter devastation, Eldathar was flung completely from his seat, consoles and sensitive electronics exploded violently; support girders collapsed and fires broke out. Kinraid was thrown into the air and smashed into another console; he lay on the deck unconscious.
The impact was so powerful that the Liberty was flung into a wildly uncontrolled barrel roll. Michael crawled his way over to the navigators chair and tried desperately to regain control of the ship.
The unstable flickering image of the enemy carrier filled the viewscreen as the out of control Liberty sped towards it. Michael heaved on the arms of the pilot’s chair with all the might he could muster, if he couldn’t steer the ship away from the hull of the enemy carrier in time, they were all dead. His face was grimy as the sweat from the heat mixed with soot from the small fires which had begun to take hold in some parts of the bridge.
He screamed, as he put every last ounce of strength he had into the controls, “come on, you son of a bitch!” he shouted.
The Liberty; barely meters away from slamming into the carrier’s deck, responded and Michael had control again. He mashed the button for the fusion cannon, and as the ship made an almost impossibly steep climb, the fusion beam shot out at point blank range tearing a deep fiery ravine down the length of the carrier.
The devastating beam cut a swathe along the centre of the Krenaran ship and up across its command structure, almost shearing it clean in two, it tore itself apart under the force of the cannon impact.
The Liberty had missed careering into the Krenaran ships hull by barely a meter. Nearby Solarian ships,
