Countdown by John Walker (feel good fiction books txt) 📗

Their opponents were smaller, more maneuverable but it became clear the Confed ships had the firepower advantage. Three of the ervas gunships went down in short order but those that remained proved to have incredible firing discipline, really going after one threat at a time. They used the tactic to good effect, chewing through a destroyer in a matter of seconds.

Christ… those things aren’t to be underestimated.

Noah leaned to the conn, “Gold Empire scouts, I need you to reinforce the destroyers. Coordinate appropriately.” The tactical board showed their dots alter course, moving in to assist.

One of the ervas battleships fired a full barrage into their flank. When the beam winked out, three ships were gone… totally obliterated from the strike. Their shields did nothing against the attack, their armor proved useless. And they weren’t particularly close either. It had been an extreme-range assault.

“I need all battleships to intercept theirs immediately,” Noah said. “Full speed. Support the smaller ships. They can’t stand against that kind of firepower.”

“This looks rough,” Nina said. “I recommend we divert course. Break the larger vessels up into two groups and hit the enemy flanks. We don’t want them to move too much. Should give us the advantage.”

“BS Three and four,” Noah called out, “move to the following coordinates and fire when ready.” He painted a waypoint for them to follow. “BS One and two, you’ve got the opposite side… follow those coordinates. BS Five, you’re with us as we head straight up the middle.” He nodded to her. “Good call. I like it.”

“Thank you, sir.” Nina returned to the comms, speaking to the pilots again.

A tremendous explosion off to the right caught Noah’s attention, one bright enough to light them up from the viewport behind them. He turned to his own terminal, noting one of the enemy destroyers had been taken down by their fighters. He felt good about it for a moment… until he noted how many of their ships remained in the field.

“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