Gabe tried not to feel vulnerable as they left the fleet’s perimeter behind.
After all, it wasn’t like he was alone. The three other rigs of Angel Squadron were with him, as well as four SAR rigs led by Nakani. There was plenty of company, even if Nakani’s mercenaries had absolutely no weapons. It wasn’t like he was flying into the dark all alone.
Yet he couldn’t help but feel the unseen eyes of the enemy on him. They still hadn’t quite figured out how the enemy had found them before last time, or the time before that. The ambush out at the debris field was the one that worried him the most. There shouldn’t have been any way for those rigs to have intercepted his CTRs out of nowhere like that, but they had. Would they do it again?
There was a sudden shove from behind that momentarily accelerated his CTR, and Gabe grunted. He turned to find Nakani’s SAR waving at him cheerily. “Hey Angel Boy. Just practicing.”
The sheer innocence in her voice would have set off his suspicions, even if he hadn’t already been inclined to distrust her. “Yeah. Sure.” He shook his head and returned his attention to the space around them again. “Try to keep your eyes out for the enemy. We’ve got a long flight ahead of us.”
Nakani laughed. “Oh, just enjoy the journey, Angel Boy. Even if they do come after us, we’ll be ready.” She did a quick spin, spreading her arms out as if she were gliding through atmosphere. “Besides, would you rather die laughing or frowning all the time? Live it up a little.”
Ben’s voice came over the network a moment later. “Lead, you’re sure we need these jokers?”
“Pretty sure, Two.” Gabe glanced back at the mercenaries again. Despite Nakani’s antics, the SAR pilots were alert. Every single one was scanning the surrounding space, and they kept a tight formation, not letting any gap form between them and the CTRs. “If the strangers need help, or if we need to pull off one of those slingshot maneuvers again, our rigs aren’t going to be able to pull it off alone.”
“Still, we could’ve at least asked the Directorate guys, right? Not all of their pilots went down in the last fight, did they?”
The question made Gabe pause. He thought it over for a moment. He knew that there were plenty of Directorate rigs tucked away in storage on the prison ships, but Susan hadn’t given any thought to having them join the fleet’s defenses. Was that because of her trouble with Captain Wong, or was it something about the former Directorate pilots she knew not to trust? “Maybe, Two, but they’re what we have now. Let’s focus on where we are before we get jumped again.”
There was a snort of laughter from Angel-Three. “Well, at least you didn’t say ‘if’ we get jumped again. You think they’re coming?”
“Better to plan for them showing up than not.” He checked the surroundings again. Still no sign of anything, no signals except the repeating one far out ahead. “I’d rather be watching for them and be disappointed.”
“I hear you.” Angel-Four shifted his rifle a little, still scanning the area. “Those things got way too close last time. I don’t want to get this close to a new home and die just short of it.”
Angel-Three laughed again. “Oh please. You’ll get there just fine. Even if one of these thugs has to drag you there.”
One of the SAR pilots growled over the comm net. “Might do it in pieces if you keep that shit up.”
“Knock it off, Hope-Ten.” For a moment, Nakani’s voice had been stern and authoritative. It was a side that Gabe hadn’t seen before. Then it shifted, and she was back to normal. “Sorry about that Wayfarers, we know how sensitive your poor ears are. I hope you’ll forgive a bunch of crude folks like us.”
The sarcasm forced a bark of laughter out of Gabe, even as he gave the surroundings another scan. “Just do your job, Hope-Three. We’ll keep them from carving you up, and you keep us from having to drag anything or get picked off at range. Then we’ll all get home safe.”
“Typical hot shot pilot, assigning everyone else the hard jobs so he can dogfight.” Nakani’s voice remained light, but he could detect a hint of jealousy there. Perhaps she had some idea of taking a more direct part in any fighting herself, but he didn’t see how. The SAR tetherdrives were powerful, but they weren’t exactly weapons-grade.
He shook those thoughts aside and turned his attention forward again. The signal was still active, and he’d reach its position in less than an hour now. He’d be ready when they did—no matter what was waiting for them.
Susan walked onto the bridge, feeling the tension filling the air. It was impossible not to notice; those watchstanders that weren’t glued to a monitor or display were speaking in low, hushed tones, as if they were afraid of covering up some report.
Commander Mesic glanced toward her and nodded. He left his own seat to join her as she sat in the command chair. “Admiral, the rigs are nearly to the signal. There have been no incidents so far.”
She nodded. “Paladin Squadron is already scrambled?”
“Yes, sir. They are currently patrolling the fleet. RSRs are augmenting their patrols. No signs of the enemy yet.”
Susan nodded again and watched as Gabriel’s position came up on the monitors. Eight rigs, blinking in the void, far enough from the fleet that they were effectively on their own if something happened. She sighed. On the one hand, a part of her kept insisting that there had to be a way to avoid it. Unfortunately, on the other, it was probably inevitable.
Then she turned away from the screens and lowered her voice. “Any reports from the engineering teams?”
Mesic glanced around, as if worried about eavesdroppers. He needn’t have worried. The only watchstanders close enough were in a heated conversation about what, exactly, Gabriel was going to encounter this time. Apparently, there was something of a betting pool; if she was hearing correctly, at least one lieutenant had bet on a third set of unknown aliens. “Yes, sir. They’ve managed to locate the…part of the machine that we were concerned about. The Keeper is now helping them to remove it.”
She nodded. It had taken a bit of convincing for the Keeper to let Commander Mesic in on the information, but once he had, the commander had been able to point the teams in the exactly correct direction. His knowledge of the ship’s history had told him exactly where Arland Schreiber had kept his personal research quarters. Digging through the circuitry and networking connections nearby had apparently born fruit. “Will the system be functional without it?”
The commander shook his head slowly. “The Keeper did not feel confident about the end result. He did have a suggestion, but wanted to discuss it with you personally when you have the chance.” He paused, as if searching for the proper wording. “If we need it to remain functional, perhaps we could return—”
“No.” Susan shook her head. “It was risky to start with. I will not risk putting it back now, especially now that he knows we know his secrets.” One of the watchstanders glanced over and frowned. “Perhaps we can discuss this later, commander.”
“Yes, sir.” Mesic stepped away, headed back towards his own seat, and Susan focused back on the dots that represented Gabriel. Only a few more minutes, and he’d be right on top of the transmitter.
She only hoped it was a friend, and not a foe, that would be waiting for him there.
They had nearly made it to the signal when it abruptly cut off.
Gabe brought his plasma rifle up instantly. He chopped back on his speed as well, aware of the others doing the same. The SARs drifted into the pocket formed by the CTRs, all of them facing outward and watching. “Anyone see anything?”
“Nothing here, Lead.”
“Got nothing but stars here.”
“Empty as a Wayfarer bar, Angel Boy.”
“Can it, Nakani.” Gabe grimaced and boosted his way forward a little. “All right. It’s either the enemy or it’s the strangers. Only one way to find out which.”
“Angel-Two to Lead, are you sure about this? Last time, it didn’t turn out so well.”
“I know, Two. Still have to try.” He paused. “SARs, just be ready to shove me out of the way if you see something, okay? I think the Admiral wants me to come home intact.”
“As ordered, Angel Boy. Don’t want the Directorate queen mad at me, after all.”
He ignored the jibe from Nakani and boosted a little further forward again. The rest of the group was relatively further back, just enough to make him the most inviting target. Gabe could feel that itching sensation again, right in the middle of his back. It felt like his CTR was trying to prepare him to take a particle lance right through the cockpit.
All the same, Gabe shoved those fears aside and cleared his throat. His CTR opened a channel on a new frequency, and he spoke. “This is Gabriel Miller of the Wayfarers. We’ve come to speak with Eagro. Are you there?”
For a moment, there was no answer. He braced himself for a burst of fire to come from nowhere. Gabe spent what felt like an eternity trying to look in every direction at once.
Then the answer came back, seeming to roll out of the void to his left.
“…Breces Rotis…Eag…faer…”
“Eagro, I hear you!” Gabe spun and directed his sensors to the space where the transmission had come from. “We got your signal. Do you need assistance?”
“Angel-Lead, are you getting a transmission? Anyone else getting that?”
“Negative, Two. I’m not—”
Gabe shut them out from his concentration. There had to be some hint of the motion he’d seen from the strangers. They were stealthy, true, but they weren’t invisible. If he could just—
Then he saw them.
There were five of them, all of the same make and model that he was used to seeing Eagro fly. Slender to the point of delicacy, they moved with an easy, natural kind of grace that made Gabe wonder how skilled their pilots were. He’d seen exactly how fast they were too; an RSR would have had a race on their hands if they put their tetherdrives to the test.
Four of them had their cannon up and pointed in the direction of the CTRs; they appeared to have dismissed the SARs behind them completely. The fifth had its cannon held at rest, though it seemed just as ready to pull it up and into firing position within a heartbeat. All five showed signs of battle damage, with broken armor plating and exposed machinery. Obviously, it wasn’t just the Wayfarers that had been on hard times.
Gabe tried to keep his voice level as his heart pounded. “Eagro. Is that you?”
“Sae Eagro, du les Breces Rotis.” The lead rig’s head tilted, that same strange, warbling voice coming through clearly. “Mu dae goza virtae, Captain Miller.”
Though his heart was soaring now, Gabe forced himself to stay calm. The mission was too important to risk just out of excitement. “These are more of my friends. They came with me to see if you needed help.”
“Taedivia nae haes apprindado caemo heblar. Cae treste.” Eagro’s rig pivoted slightly. “Taedivia, les puerzas dae Atanaas esten kerka. Duvimos saer cuidoso.”
“You getting any of that, Lead?” Ben’s uneasiness came through loud and clear. Gabe tried to ignore how the other strangers’ rigs tracked the CTRs as they drifted a bit closer. “Sounds like nothing but gibberish to me.”
Gabe shook his head. He felt a brief burst of frustration. “There’s not a lot I can understand, no. I do think that the Atanaas word might refer to whoever keeps attacking us.”
Eagro’s head tilted to the other side. “Haes pelad cuentre Atanaas, Miller? Tel bes, keramos amigan orva bes.”
In desperation, Gabe latched onto the word. “There it is again. Where’s Atanaas? Are they here? Have you been tracking Atanaas?”
“Oh, for crying out…” Suddenly, Nakani’s rig jetted forward. Eagro had its cannon up and tracking her before she’d pushed forward up alongside Gabe’s own rig. “You Wayfarers just love to hear yourselves talk, don’t you? Practically never shut up.”
Eagro seemed to look from her rig to Gabe, and then back. “Ken ares tuv?”
“My name’s Elizabeth Nakani, and I’m your resident idiot whisperer.” Nakani paused, and there was a sudden screech of hatred across the transmission. Gabe had a moment of horrified recognition; it was the static-filled jamming from the Wild Colony rigs. All of the rigs present seemed to cringe away from her until she cut it short, a bare heartbeat later. She tilted her head to one side, almost like Eagro had. “Atanaas?”
The stranger stared at her for a moment. Then it nodded. “Atanaas.”
Nakani activated one of the spotlights attached to her rig. Again, the strangers seemed to shy away from it for a moment, but they didn’t seem that concerned. The cone of light illuminated scars on Eagro’s armor. She pointed with one hand. “Atanaas?”
Eagro paused a moment before nodding again. “Sae, Atanaas.”
“Good, good. Now we are getting somewhere.” Nakani shifted her spotlight to Gabe’s own rig, highlighting the damage he’d taken during the fight. “Atanaas hit us too.”
The strangers seemed to relax slowly, with the cannons coming around so that they no longer pointed at the CTRs and SARs. Gabe felt a tension flow out of him, too. They were understanding each other now, at least a little. He grinned. “Maybe you aren’t so irritating after all, Nakani.”
“Keep it up, Angel Boy, and I’ll find some way to put a plasma bolt through you.” She muttered something else that didn’t come through as clearly. Then she pointed to where the transmission had originated from. “Atanaas?”
Eagro glanced in that direction and nodded. “Atanaas naes pelad ayi. Tadivia esten ayi.”
“Huh. Guess it could have been a trap, after all.” She sounded almost disappointed.
“But we still found them.” Gabe decided to try to insert himself back into the conversation. As well as it was going, he didn’t want to picture a future where only Nakani could manage a conversation with their only possible allies. He turned slightly and pointed back the way they had come. “Eagro, no Atanaas. Safe.”
Stolen novel; please report.
The stranger was studying him again. Gabe sighed, and Nakani laughed. “Looks like they need a demonstration, Angel Boy.”
Before he could respond, suddenly he found his rig tumbling around in the grip of Nakani’s tetherdrives. The stars whirled around in a frenzy, and his mind flashed back to when he had been sent spinning into the void by battle damage. “Eagro, no safe.”
Abruptly, the spin came to a stop. Gabe found his CTR drifting calmly backwards, still towed around by Nakani’s gravitic tethers. “Safe.”
Before Gabe could turn and glare at Nakani, he caught sight of the strangers’ rigs shaking oddly. If they had been merely humans wearing suits, he would have said that their shoulders were jerking as if they were…laughing? He had trouble picturing a BCI for a rig that would replicate human emotions, though. These strangers must have been blended far more seamlessly with their machines.
After a moment, Eagro’s voice came back. It sounded a little strained, as if it was trying to hold something back. “Tae intend, Nakani. Safe. No Atanaas.”
“See, that was easy!”
Gabe ignored her. “Follow?” He jetted a little in that direction, hoping that the strangers would understand without another pantomime show.
Eagro shook its head, however. “No. Safe. No Atanaas.” It pointed in another direction, off to the side of their current course.
Pausing, Gabe considered their next move. He couldn’t afford for the strangers to escape into hiding again, not when he had finally gotten them to contact him again. Then he knocked on his rig’s chest with one hand. “Us. Us.” When Eagro nodded, he pointed in the same direction that the stranger had. “Us follow?”
The strangers glanced at one another. Gabe thought he picked up the buzz of an outside transmission; they clearly debating something among themselves. Then Eagro looked back at the Wayfarers. “Sae. Follow. Safe.”
As one, the strangers began to glide forward. Gabe glanced at his flightmates, and then followed. His rigs were still transmitting their location and sensor data back to the Concord, so as soon as they made contact with the strangers’ fleet, they could guide the rest of the Wayfarers there. At that point, they could either cooperate against whatever these attackers were, or retreat to wherever the strangers called home. Either way, his people might have the chance to lay down their weapons for a while and rest.
His relief at that possibility lasted only a few heartbeats. Then the particle streams slashed in out of the dark, and any chance of that future vanished with their appearance.
“Combat signs near Angel-Lead’s last known position!”
Susan tried not to let the rage touch her expression as she read the signals coming in to her terminal. She could tell the traces of particle cannon and the bursts of plasma energy, but it was impossible to tell exactly what was happening. OMNI might not have even helped, though she couldn’t shake off the feeling that at the very least she would have a better idea of what she was looking at. “Has Captain Miller reported anything?”
“Negative, Admiral. Nothing on their channel but static.”
She sat back slowly and glanced at Commander Mesic. The former Directorate officer looked grim; he was aware of the fallback options that she had arranged with Gabriel before he had left. They had not been able to predict whether the enemy would intercept and jam their signals again, and she hadn’t wanted to see him vanish for a second time, especially with OMNI down.
So instead of waiting for a distress signal, she had decided that Gabe would send back regular updates. If those updates ceased, then she would consider him in distress and advance. The fleet would not reach his position for a while, but at the very least, she could get the ships moving. Paladin Squadron would likely reach the target area sooner, probably soon enough to chase off the aggressors yet again.
As she reached for the controls to send the orders, however, Susan paused. The enemy was nothing if not subtle. Their attacks were a combination of ambushes and misdirection that had kept the Wayfarers off balance since their earliest confrontations. Another attack on Gabriel’s flight seemed like it was a continuation of the pattern, but something was off.
She focused on Gabriel’s signal. His still active signal, completely unjammed. Why wouldn’t they have hidden it if they meant to eliminate him? Given the numbers of rigs and ships they had to have, it couldn’t have been a difficult task. Yet that signal still burned bright, still strong despite the distance.
The situation abruptly became clear. Gabriel was not just a target of opportunity. He was bait. If the enemy had an accurate read on the fleet’s position—and she couldn’t assume that they didn’t, given their tactics last time—then they already knew what course the fleet would take if she brought it in to save Angel Squadron. They probably were not ready yet, not for a full engagement, but if they could isolate a portion of her forces…
Her eyes traced the course that Paladin Squadron would have followed. If she had that kind of accurate intelligence, she would have escort ships ready to pounce along that course. Mere rigs could not hope to face off against escort craft, not without taking heavy casualties. With those forces reduced and distracted, another missile barrage on the main fleet could easily cause even more casualties—all while the bulk of the enemies remained in hiding.
Susan studied the battlespace, trying to keep her increasing impatience from distracting her. If the enemy was lying in wait, then there would be a chance to take them off guard. How could she manage it if every movement of her fleet was being monitored? Was it even possible to maneuver against them, or would she just have to keep everything together to avoid getting picked to pieces?
She rejected that idea immediately. There had to be a way to use the situation to her advantage, while also saving Gabriel and his pilots. She just had to find it. If only she weren’t blinded!
Her head came up sharply. Could it work?
“Commander Mesic, priority signal to the fleet.” The watchstanders cut off, and she could feel their eyes settle on her. “All civilian ships are to deactivate their external sensors, general communications networks, and main tetherdrives. Their secondary systems are to establish tether connections with the Concord, and they are to route all messages through us to talk to other ships. Bring them in close; I want them in as tight as possible.”
Mesic appeared to be taken aback. “Admiral, sir, if they follow those orders—”
“They follow them, or we will treat them as if they are hostiles. There are no other options.” She let those words hang for a moment. “RSR squadrons are to tie their sensors directly into our network. They, the frigates, and the escorts are to form a patrol pattern around us. Deliverance, Liberation, and Emancipation are to break formation and proceed to Captain Gabriel’s location at full speed. Paladin Squadron can accompany them as soon as they are scrambled. Bring all AWOR squadrons and the Grapes of Wrath Squadron to alert status immediately.”
Several of the watchstanders blanched. Not only would her orders limit the amount the maneuverability of the fleet as a whole, without the Wayfarer cruisers the formation would be highly vulnerable to another assault by the Wild Colonies. The skeleton crews aboard the Ajax, Antiphus, and Odysseus were nowhere near experienced enough to be able to make up for the difference in firepower, and her escort craft would be easy meat if another flotilla of light cruisers made an appearance.
At the same time, her orders felt right, in a way that quickened her heartbeat. The enemy wouldn’t have anticipated her limiting the civilians this way; their spies would not have the same opportunity for sabotage or betrayal. Even better, if they sent waves of missiles, the majority of them could be handled by the escorts and CTRs. Any escort craft on the other side would find cruisers a hard match to beat, and the AWORs might be able to strike hard if the enemy committed something heavier.
The only downside was that it would cost time. Cruisers could only accelerate so fast, especially with the previous battle damage to contend with. If Gabriel could not hold out for long enough…
Susan shook off the thought as the fleet began to move to her orders. He could see to himself. She only needed to make sure his people were safe for him to return home to—after which they would have a very stern discussion about what exact risks he would be taking in the future, and how much it took to rescue him when it went bad. Again.
Absurdly, she was almost looking forward to it.
Particle beams came slicing in out of the black, and Gabe sent his CTR into another howling turn. His rifle spat bursts of plasma back in reply, and another pair of spider-rigs shot past, one of them taking a glancing hit. It didn’t explode, but maybe it would discourage them from making another firing run.
He didn’t quite know how they had managed to stay alive this long. The initial ambush had done enough damage on its own; two of Eagro’s flightmates had been cut to pieces, and Hope-Four hadn’t lasted much longer than that. Even those that had survived had taken a few glancing blows, but it was clear the enemy had more rigs out there. Why hadn’t they swarmed in and finished it?
Then again, perhaps the answer lay in Eagro’s pilots. They were agile, terrifying machines, blasting away at contacts that Gabe could barely identify. After the initial ambush, none of the particle beams had even come close to grazing them, and they had accounted for at least three of the attackers outright. Gabe and his flightmates had caught and destroyed another two, but the rest had been near misses and minor hits.
Nakani, for her part, had done well enough keeping her remaining two mercenaries alive. She shoved Angel-Four out of the way with her drive as a pair of dark projectiles sped by. Then she twisted to avoid a particle beam of her own. “Hope-Three to Lead, any idea on how to get out of here?”
“Working on it, Hope-Three.” Gabe caught another target coming in at Eagro from the side. It swerved away as he pumped shots at it, as if taunting him. “Angel-Lead to Command. Do you read us?”
Static and howling was the only answer, a fact that made him grimace. Now that Nakani had told him, he thought he could hear traces of human screams in that once-meaningless noise. It did not make him any happier to hear it. He could still see the Concord on his screens, but clearly their transmissions were being jammed. What was the enemy up to now?
It was clear he could either find out the hard way or start making changes. He pulled back slightly, watching for the next set of attackers. “Hope Flight, get ready. Once they make their next run, I want you to shove me after them. No letting them get away this time.”
“Confirmed, Lead. Your funeral Angel Boy.”
He waited, trying to anticipate where the next beams would come from. For an instant, it almost seemed like the enemy had given up.
Then he caught sight of a pair of beams slashing in at Angel-Two. Ben twisted his rig up and around, barely missing being carved to pieces. Gabe boosted his own CTR into the space between the beams, nearly colliding with the spider-like enemies as they shot past. “Nakani, now!”
The simulated wind suddenly shrieked in his ears as the combined tetherdrives of all three remaining SARs slammed into him. Gabe whirled, trying to bring his rifle to bear, and felt unbearable amounts of acceleration press in on him. Grey nibbled at the edges of his awareness for a moment, and then everything snapped clear again.
It was a perfect sight to see. Both enemy rigs were in front of him, lazily coming around in a flat circle. They clearly had every confidence in both their acceleration advantage and their jamming technology; neither appeared to be aware of him coming in behind them. Before either of them could react, he dropped his crosshairs onto the torso of the one on the right and pulled the trigger.
Four plasma bursts pounded the enemy rig, smashing through armor and blasting circuitry. He saw the third shot snap off one of its limbs and switched targets even while it was still spinning in broken agony.
The other rig had started to pull up and around, a knee-jerk reaction that could have put the spider-rig on his tail. Fortunately, Gabe had already anticipated the move. He decelerated hard and dropped his crosshairs on the spider-rig’s torso. Gabe put three solid shots through the middle of its back before it exploded in a fountain of fire and shrapnel.
“Angel-Lead to flight, two down! A few more of those and we’ll be able to—”
His next words cut off as something dark and lethal swam out of the void towards him.
It was one of the axehead-shaped escort craft, far bigger than any rig. Gabe instinctively brought his rifle up and began to spray it with plasma, but he knew it wouldn’t do any good. An escort craft was the answer to most rigs; with defensive screens, heavy armor, and even heavier weapons, they could go through entire flights of combat rigs without taking much damage in response.
His shots smashed against the escort’s screens, and he grunted as he saw the plasma shunted aside. He triggered every single one of his remaining missiles, sending them screaming in at the enemy ship. “Lead to flight, they have an escort craft! Repeat, enemy heavies in contact! Pull back, pull back!”
The missiles slammed into the escort’s shields, but the explosions might as well have been fireworks for all the effect they had. He saw the turrets begin to swivel in his direction, and hurled himself to the left, hoping that he could generate enough of a change to keep them from landing a hit.
A wave of plasma fire stabbed out at him, heavy enough to punch through cruiser armor. It swept wide to the right, but it quickly tracked his course as the turret pivoted. Just one hit, and his rig would be completely annihilated. Praying to the Lord that his time would not be up quite yet, he continued to fire on the escort. Maybe he would get lucky. Maybe the thing’s screens weren’t as heavy as he thought they would be. Maybe the avalanche of destruction that was slowly closing in on him would stop short.
Instead, a second turret came to bear, and another wave of plasma fire cut in at him from the left. He threw himself down with a panicked shout, still firing for all he was worth. At the same time, he accelerated straight for the escort, hoping to close the distance. If he could get in under their guns, he might be able to make it harder for the guns to track him. It was a desperate hope, and one that narrowed as the shots closed in on him from both sides.
Just as one of the shots scorched the armor on his left shoulder, a pair of explosions rocked the escort. He caught a glimpse of Eagro’s two flightmates streaking in from above, firing their cannon down as the escort’s defensive screens abruptly collapsed. The topside turrets pivoted away to track them as Gabe continued to strafe the escort from the front, not doing much aside from searing armor plating.
Then Eagro dove in and fired another projectile of some kind. Gabe’s sensors could pick up a tremendous level of energy boiling inside it, far more than his simple missiles carried. Without defensive screens, the escort was probably in serious trouble.
His smile lasted until a third turret, located on the escort’s underside, pivoted and opened fire.
The universe appeared to turn a searing white. When he blinked away the interference, he found his rig spinning through the void again. He started to try to correct the spin, even as fear and nausea stabbed through him. It was some small measure of relief when he caught sight of the escort, its shattered front end a blaze of light and fury that continued to boil through space. At least one of its turrets was still firing, and he caught sight of one of Eagro’s friends exploding under the assault.
He grimaced and tried to regain his bearings. It was as he looked around that he found Eagro’s rig drifting nearby. Clearly, the stranger had taken the worst of the escort’s barrage before the missile had hit. His once graceful rig was now missing both an arm and a leg, and Gabe couldn’t sense any active gravitic tethers from it. Was the stranger dead?
Pain began to filter in as the BCI took stock of his own situation. His own left arm was completely gone, taken clean off at the shoulder, but aside from that, he was remarkably intact. The plasma rifle was even still in his right hand, though it would be hard to fire in that position. Even as he felt a burst of gratitude for his situation, his tetherdrive sputtered back to life, helping to slow his spiral. He tried clearing his throat. “Angel-Lead, still active. Anyone else out there?”
Silence answered him, and a hoarseness to the transmission told him that something was wrong with his communications equipment. He grunted in dissatisfaction. “Eagro, are you hurt? Angel-Two, are you reading me?”
There was a hiss of something, and then another explosion. Gabe looked up and saw the escort still blazing away with its remaining cannon. He thought he saw more flickers of light spearing in at it, followed by more explosions along its hull. The remaining gun fell silent, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
“Not again! Seriously, what is it with you, Angel Boy?”
Gabe felt a curious mix of relief and annoyance as he turned and saw Nakani’s SAR maneuvering towards him. He tried to focus on the situation. “I think Eagro might be down, but if we could drag him back, then—”
“I don’t know if we are going to be able to drag much more than just you, Angel Boy.” Nakani’s voice was serious. “I’m pretty sure the rest of those alien rigs got themselves killed, and I don’t know if your flightmates are much better. The last time I saw Hope-Ten, he had one of those spider-rigs after him. Hope-Eleven bought it just before that.”
He shook his head in frustration. “We can’t just leave him. I—”
Gabe cut off as he saw something gliding in out of the black. The particle beam was already slicing towards Nakani’s back when he brought the plasma rifle to bear and fired. His shot caught it dead on the cannon arm, detonating the weapon with a burst of flame. He gave it a grim smile and tightened on the trigger again.
The rifle coughed and died. An unhelpful popup in the corner of his eye informed him that the weapon was inoperable.
Wounded and screeching, the spider-rig came streaking in towards him. Gabe shook his rifle, hoping to jar it back into functionality before the thing collided with him.
Then it stopped, hovering in space. Only a faint vibration told Gabe that it was still trying to accelerate with full power.
“Got you, little bug.” Nakani’s voice had grown low and lethal. There was no trace of her earlier flippant attitude. “Let’s see what kind of stress that frame can take.”
Before Gabe could stop her, the mercenary fed power to her SAR’s oversized tetherdrives in a burst of energy. The enemy rig suddenly burst forward into motion as she lost her grip on it. On most of it; its head and two of its arms abruptly ripped free, trailing sparks. It continued forward in a crippled spin before its tetherdrive abruptly cut out and some sort of self-destruct charge shattered its torso.
“Guess they aren’t too sturdy after all.” Nakani shrugged and tossed the pieces aside. She glanced back at him again. “No more shots in that thing?”
“Not at the moment, no.” Gabe tried to shake off the shock and focus on the situation. The reality that Nakani was both more heavily armed and lethally capable than he had expected was not a welcome one at the moment. “We might be on our own for a bit.”
“Fine by me. Just don’t die too quick.” The mercenary pivoted slightly and then grabbed the wreckage of Eagro’s rig with a sigh. “Would be a shame to just leave it, I suppose. Might make a good decoy.”
Gabe was about to respond when suddenly the most beautiful sound in the universe came over his communication network. “Command to Angel-Lead. Command to Angel-Lead. Are you there?”
He broke out into a smile. “Angel-Lead to Command, I’m here.” The interference that had settled over his transmissions abruptly began to clear; he got an excellent view of the escort exploding a heartbeat later. “Angel-Lead to flight, form up. We’re getting out of here.”
His sensors suddenly cleared, and he saw the fading remnants of a firefight in the distance. It had been a big one, from the number of fading explosions. What had he missed while he’d been out here? “Command? What happened?”
“We’ll catch you up when you return, Angel-Lead. For now, recover your flight and come home. The zone may still have hostiles in it.”
Gabe nodded to himself. He glanced to where Nakani was dragging Eagro’s rig behind her and then looked a bit further around. He could see Hope-Ten and Angel-Three both winging their way back to him. Angel-Two was still firing at something he couldn’t see, but it exploded a moment later, and then his wingmate was on his way back as well. There was no sign of any of Eagro’s friends, or of Angel-Four.
It had been a steep price to pay, but at least they had made progress. At least, as he glanced back at Eagro one more time, he hoped they had. The Lord had to make their sacrifices count somehow. He had to.