Countdown by John Walker (most life changing books TXT) 📕

already appeared to have descended into chaos. Fighter engagements off near the planet’s surface alone looked wild but then there were the capital ships duking it out.

I guess I should just be happy there aren’t as many defenders as intelligence thought there’d be.

The opposition seemed reasonable given the fact the ervas didn’t likely believe the humans knew the location of their homeworld. Sasha took a moment to observe the conditions of the planet from scans Daisy took the moment they arrived. It had an Earth-like quality in regards to gravity, oxygen, and biomes.

That stands to reason given their appearance. It also means that if we ever get along, our people can thrive together.

He wondered if that was even a possibility, given the Confed idea to send their war dogs down to the surface. Bombarding the place from orbit even seemed like too much to Sasha but he heard the stories about the machines. They were brutal, often to the point of going above and beyond atrocious to complete their objectives.

And they’re unleashing them in the middle of a civilized area… with normal people down there.

At least, that was the assumption. The ervas population included regular citizens, non-combatants that likely just wanted to go to work and return to their loved ones. According to the briefings, the conflict started because of the military and their zealous attitude about how humanity used ether.

Sounds like an excuse to me. A feeble one at that. They just want to fight.

“Sir,” Marston spoke up, “check out the Confed ships. They’re… well, those are some erratic maneuvers.”

Sasha watched the battleships launch themselves up and down as they cleared the enemy battleships. As they did so, their thrusters engaged, compelling them forward and away. Meanwhile, the Gold Empire capital ships closed on the ervas rear. If the Confed commander could get his people turned around, they’d both have excellent firing arcs.

“How long before we’re in range to fire?” Sasha asked.

“We could fire…” Marston held his finger up, “now. We’re at extreme range, but I think I’ve got them.”

“Fire at will.” Sasha turned to his console. Scans of the various ships in the system showed there. He could check the status of defenses, hulls, and trajectory. Many of the ships had taken a beating on both sides. Debris fields indicated several had already been lost. Probably on all sides, too.

“Fighters are approaching the target area,” Daisy said, “they’ll be contributing to the fight at any moment.”

“Great.” Sasha nodded. “Maybe that’ll turn the tide for us.” One can hope. He checked the situation with smaller vessels. At least a dozen had deployed from the surface, but they hadn’t arrived yet. He counted on many more jumping in. It all came down to how many they brought with them in their own invasion of territory.

The cannons discharged. Even at their distance, Marston snagged his target directly in the thrusters. Sasha’s terminal showed the shields drop down below thirty percent back there. Another good hit might take them down entirely. He sent that information to his peers, the other ships on fast approach.

Those destroyers have to get in there, Sasha thought. They can do some real damage to the ones already hurt.

“Sasha,” Wilmarth’s voice came through the line, “we’re focusing fire on the one you hit. It’s got a good distance to their peers. Maintain your attack on it. Don’t slow down, got it?”

“No problem,” Sasha said. “We’re on it.” The Broken Light had the generator power and technology to keep a steady assault up where the others needed more time to recharge. Those vessels may have hit harder but it equaled out in the end. “You heard the man, Marston. Don’t stop until that thing’s dust or it starts to turn.”

“Do you think they’ll attack us?” Daisy asked. “Or keep after the Confed vessels?”

“If they’re anything like us,” Sasha said, “they’ll perform a threat analysis and decide. Right now, I’d put us as the bigger danger to them. But that’s really only because we’ve got their tails in sight. Of course, if they turn to face us, they’ll give the Confeds a good target as well.”

“What should they do?”

“Run,” Sasha replied. “Get back to the satellites. Fend off the fighters and use those defenses against us. However, that has a risk too. If they fight near the surface, something may breakthrough atmosphere, crash into a city… so they’re in a tough spot. One I think is untenable but… I guess we’ll find out shortly.”

I have no idea what sort of tricks they have up their sleeves and this is their territory. God knows if they’ve considered invasion before now.

All of the Gold Empire vessels unloaded at the same time. Their attacks struck the target, beams ripping down the shields before chewing through the thrusters themselves. That did the trick, sending the vessel listing to the left and downward. Green globes of fire poured out of various points in the rear, a surefire indication of a major hull breach.

That one’s done. Even if it didn’t explode, they were out of the fight. Sasha checked the scanner to determine their next target.

The Confed vessels came back around, firing at an angle. Their beams sliced into the bottom portions of their targets, solid enough blows to do some shield damage. Hitting the larger force from both sides made it obvious that if they didn’t move quickly, the ervas fleet would be annihilated in a few moments.

This is where they’ll do something desperate, Sasha thought. “Marston, hold position here. Don’t get any closer.” He gave the same advice to his peers though the destroyers needed to close. They had the maneuverability to get out of the way if something insane happened… like a self-destruct move or ramming.

They can’t risk it. With only three battleships remaining, the ervas didn’t have the heavy firepower to throw one away