Malan’s hands remained steady upon the control arms, even as Eclipse ships swept towards them in small groups. Some arrowed directly towards them, to engage from the front, whilst others veered away to approach from different angles, aiming to encircle the two small ships and end the fight as quickly as possible.
His eyes wandered beyond the approaching enemies briefly, towards the commandeered space station Standarr’s small wing of the Eclipse had taken for their own. Once a research station monitoring atmospheric irregularities upon the inhospitable planet of Cul, the station was comprised of a spherical hub at its centre with several arms protruding from the core.
Scientific instruments had been replaced with makeshift weapon emplacements and shield generators, making it an all but impossible breach for anybody without some serious firepower to their name. Firepower, Malan thought with a grimace, that they simply did not have.
Of course, that was only really a problem if Malan ever actually managed to get close enough to try, and he suspected the several dozen small fighters soaring their way would have more than a few things to say about that. He glanced across his viewing display, observing as the various groups moved to trap them, noting the levels of each of the craft and how they compared. All were above his level of four, of course, but even being able to see something like levels in a situation like this where nobody else could was a ridiculous advantage.
“The group on the left attempting to hit us from below on that side is a vulnerability. We break their line there,” he muttered to Elena, with what he hoped was a touch of steel.
“Understood. You lead the charge, I’ll cover the flanks and mop up after you. Don’t let up. As soon as you’re through, the rest will be right on our tail.”
The comms clicked off and Malan’s world narrowed to the targets he’d picked out, and the sensation of his ship’s systems ticking over, awaiting the thought that would send them roaring to life. Every pulse of the engines or surge of electrical energy that ran through the ship also ran through him, and if he focused closely enough, he knew he’d be able to drill his awareness down to the smallest piece of circuitry that coursed with power.
His fingers twitched on the arms of the panel, and suddenly they darted forward, engines exploding into life as he mentally ordered Tanwen to lock the ship’s targeting systems onto the three ships that had veered out to their left. Fingers twitched over the control arms as though steering, but the reality was that controlling the Starbound had quickly become as intuitive as moving his own body.
He allowed Tanwen to take the reins of the weapons systems themselves; he knew each pulse weapon affixed to his wings could be controlled and aimed independently of the ship’s direction, as could the pair of new weapons that had appeared the moment his groundsuit had reintegrated with the main body of the ship. His Celestial Warden specialisation had, as promised in its description, altered the load-out available to him when piloting, with each of its skills able to be activated at a thought.
They had tested this briefly before jumping as they had finalised Malan’s plan, and it was one of the cornerstones of them actually being able to pull this rescue off and survive. He could use all three of his Celestial Warden skills from his ship, with surprising effectiveness.
It was why, as Tanwen and the Eclipse vessels soared into range of each other’s weapons, Malan allowed Tanwen to take command of the weapons independent of himself, despite their effectiveness being dimmed when he wasn’t directing a task. Instead, he hurled them forward at full speed, barrelling to avoid the three pulse missiles fired by the central craft, and opting to soak up the small arms fire with his shields.
The impact of the Eclipse’s opening volley rocked the bridge, but only knocked a few per cent off of his shields, and Malan grinned savagely as he accelerated even faster. Steady pulses of light tore forth from his own ship, aimed at the right-most of the trio, a Lv 8 Eclipse Interceptor whose shields gave way under Tanwen’s concentrated fire. It wheeled away as the plasma fire from his gauntlet skill rifle into its engines, leaving it helpless.
If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
Malan ignored it, as well as the left most that was now attempting to wheel around to get a proper line of fire on Malan. Instead, he focused his entire concentration on the larger, central ship. This one was the best equipped of the three, and his systems equated that to being equivalent to a Lv 15 Frigate In a straight dogfight, there would be a serious risk of Malan being beaten by the more powerful ship.
He had no intention of giving the pirate a straight fight.
He cranked his speed as high as it would go, activating his drone and allowing it and Tanwen to pepper its shields as though he was making a close strafing run. Seeing its clear advantage in both shields and weaponry, the cruiser made to pull away and allow Malan to pass so it could come around behind him.
Sensible. Predictable.
Malan activated the only skill he’d not used on Mykeser’s surface [Engineer’s Gauntlets: Melee, Lv 1] and a burst of amber light flickered across his shields, the majority gathering across the front of Tanwen’s hull, the thin edge of a plasma wedge designed to cleave. Malan pulled up Tanwen’s nose, intercepting the larger cruiser’s flight path and accelerated.
Perhaps if they had not been travelling at full tilt, or if the cruisers shields had not been pre-whittled away just enough by his guns, the manoeuvre would not have worked. But this was why Malan had made the choices he had. Tanwen’s plasma cleaved through the cruisers shields like paper, and he was nearly knocked from his feet as he barrelled into the underside of the cruiser, the plasma edge from his skill tearing through its hull and bursting out of the other side in a shower of twisted metallic debris.
Warning: Shields at 67%
Eclipse Frigate [Lv. 15] Destroyed
Enemy of a higher level killed. Bonus Celestial Energy Harvested.
Alert:
[Engineer Gauntlet, Melee Lv. 1 → Lv. 3]
Alert:
[Engineer Gauntlet, Sentry Drone Lv. 2 → Lv. 3]
Alert:
[Celestial Warden, Lv. 1 → Lv. 2]
Stat Point Awarded, Lv 2 Celestial Wardens receive a +10% boost to Energetics and Cognizance.
Alert:
Pilot Lv. 4 → Lv. 5
Stat Point(s) Available
Skill Point(s) Available
Pilot has unlocked the ability to choose a class.
Malan’s heart leaped at the pulse of celestial energy that jolted through him as his skills grew, and he had to force himself to stay concentrated on the battle he’d only just entered. He blinked away several of the notifications and threw one stat point apiece into synergetics and energetics. As Tanwen’s still shimmering hull soared away from the broken cruiser, the third ship cut in behind him, only to find Elena and the Sparrow immediately on their tail.
Elena’s vessel was slower and less agile than the other craft, and against the swift flying Abyssal creatures they’d fought fleeing the Miotov, its refurbed mining laser had had limited effectiveness. Against a ship, however, its concentrated beam shredded its shields in moments, piercing the hull like—well, like a mining laser through just about bloody anything.
The cruiser span away, its right flank separated wholly from the body for something in its engines burst, and it shattered into scrap.
Alert:
Your party has destroyed an Eclipse Corvette, Lv 12.
Bonus Celestial energy awarded.
Alert:
Pilot Lv. 5 → Lv. 6
Stat Point(s) Available
Skill Point(s) Available
Class Choices Available.
Sinking another point into synergetics, Malan turned Tanwen about. The final ship, still damaged from his opening burst hung in open space, engines vainly stuttering to bring its body around and aim what would be its final attack Malan’s way. He scanned his display, seeing the rest of the Eclipse ships speeding their way, and activated his Interfacing skill.
Cracking the ship’s security protocols was laughably easy, and in moments, Malan had control over the ship's systems. He cut power to the weapons systems immediately, and scanned the Eclipse comms channels, linking his own communications with theirs. Just as he was preparing to activate his ranged gauntlets to finish it off, he had a particularly devious idea.
“Elena, start to pull back. Keep the stranded cruiser between us and the rest. I want to draw as many of them past their downed pal as possible.”
“Understood. I’m trusting you’re aware blowing their engines is unlikely to cause much in the way of damage to any of the others?”
“Of course. I have access to their systems. Blowing their engines might not do much, but how about overloading their jump drive at the opportune moment?”
He could almost hear the widening of Elena’s eyes in the resultant pause. “Out-fucking-standing.”