able to overlap their fire for greater effectiveness.
The cone launched and moved quickly as far away as possible from the returning Duun fighters. Though she had confidence in their new formation, Keryn didn’t want to tempt fate by facing a Squadron of Terran fighters before they were clear of the Cruisers. Skirting the sides of the dogfight, Keryn was able to observe the feverish pursuit by the Terran fighters. She doubted they truly understood the Alliance technique of bringing the Duun fighters back to the Cruisers. In the eyes of the pursuing Terrans, all they saw was a full retreat by the one threat still remaining to their own Destroyers. However, Keryn knew better. Pulling the Duun fighters back to the Cruisers not only protected the Cruisers from any more of the mysterious attacks that Keryn had watched the Terrans use on the Vindicator , but also allowed the Cruisers to add their own firepower when defending against the gnat-like Terran fighters.
Keryn’s group was nearly clear of the swarm of ships and into the open void between both forces before a group of Terran fighters spotted the odd formation and turned around, moving on an intercept path that would bring the two groups face to face. The only thing that surprised Keryn was the length of time it took them to spot her force. Still, the Terrans had grown overly confident in their pursuit of what they assumed was a retreating enemy. They didn’t send a large group to intercept and destroy Keryn’s Cair strike force. They saw a group of lightly armed transports and sent only the minimal force they thought they needed to eliminate the new threat. The Terrans greatly underestimated Keryn’s resolve and tactical ingenuity, a mistake she would gladly shove back down their throats.
“We’ve got company,” Keryn warned to her insertion crew still strapped into their seats in the rear of the Cair Ilmun . By now, Keryn could only imagine the frustration they must be feeling. “Hold on for a couple more minutes and I’ll get you to a Destroyer.”
As the Terran fighters entered range, both sides opened fire. The Cair formation rolled independently of one another, dodging a lot of the incoming fire. Still, Keryn felt the Cair Ilmun jerk as a spray of machine gun fire struck one of the wings. Luckily for her, the wings were not a necessary part of space flight operations, only truly being used for stabilization once the Cair ship entered an atmosphere. Though it would have to be repaired, the injury to the ship wouldn’t keep her from the fight. In retaliation, the Cair cone returned fire. The overlapping machine gun fire filled the space in front of their formation with a nearly impenetrable wall of gunfire. Too late, the Terrans saw the effectiveness of their opponents and tried to evade, but there was no space within range that wasn’t being filled with the roaring machine gun bullets. Metal peeled away from the hulls of the fighters as they exposed bellies, wings, and cockpits to the deadly barrage. Wings tore free. Sparks lit the dark space around the ships. Fires filled and consumed the cockpits. By the time Keryn and her team quit firing, only debris filled the area before them. Though Keryn had lost nearly a third of her Cair ships to the fighters, they had opened a gaping hole through the Terran defenses, leaving the Destroyers to fend for themselves.
“We’re on a short timeline,” Keryn called over the radio. “It won’t take the Terrans long to realize that we’re attacking one of their flagships. Watch for fighters coming in from behind and tell your insertion teams good luck. On my mark, break formation. Three, two, one, mark.”
On her command, the cone broke apart with Cair ships heading off in nearly every
The cone launched and moved quickly as far away as possible from the returning Duun fighters. Though she had confidence in their new formation, Keryn didn’t want to tempt fate by facing a Squadron of Terran fighters before they were clear of the Cruisers. Skirting the sides of the dogfight, Keryn was able to observe the feverish pursuit by the Terran fighters. She doubted they truly understood the Alliance technique of bringing the Duun fighters back to the Cruisers. In the eyes of the pursuing Terrans, all they saw was a full retreat by the one threat still remaining to their own Destroyers. However, Keryn knew better. Pulling the Duun fighters back to the Cruisers not only protected the Cruisers from any more of the mysterious attacks that Keryn had watched the Terrans use on the Vindicator , but also allowed the Cruisers to add their own firepower when defending against the gnat-like Terran fighters.
Keryn’s group was nearly clear of the swarm of ships and into the open void between both forces before a group of Terran fighters spotted the odd formation and turned around, moving on an intercept path that would bring the two groups face to face. The only thing that surprised Keryn was the length of time it took them to spot her force. Still, the Terrans had grown overly confident in their pursuit of what they assumed was a retreating enemy. They didn’t send a large group to intercept and destroy Keryn’s Cair strike force. They saw a group of lightly armed transports and sent only the minimal force they thought they needed to eliminate the new threat. The Terrans greatly underestimated Keryn’s resolve and tactical ingenuity, a mistake she would gladly shove back down their throats.
“We’ve got company,” Keryn warned to her insertion crew still strapped into their seats in the rear of the Cair Ilmun . By now, Keryn could only imagine the frustration they must be feeling. “Hold on for a couple more minutes and I’ll get you to a Destroyer.”
As the Terran fighters entered range, both sides opened fire. The Cair formation rolled independently of one another, dodging a lot of the incoming fire. Still, Keryn felt the Cair Ilmun jerk as a spray of machine gun fire struck one of the wings. Luckily for her, the wings were not a necessary part of space flight operations, only truly being used for stabilization once the Cair ship entered an atmosphere. Though it would have to be repaired, the injury to the ship wouldn’t keep her from the fight. In retaliation, the Cair cone returned fire. The overlapping machine gun fire filled the space in front of their formation with a nearly impenetrable wall of gunfire. Too late, the Terrans saw the effectiveness of their opponents and tried to evade, but there was no space within range that wasn’t being filled with the roaring machine gun bullets. Metal peeled away from the hulls of the fighters as they exposed bellies, wings, and cockpits to the deadly barrage. Wings tore free. Sparks lit the dark space around the ships. Fires filled and consumed the cockpits. By the time Keryn and her team quit firing, only debris filled the area before them. Though Keryn had lost nearly a third of her Cair ships to the fighters, they had opened a gaping hole through the Terran defenses, leaving the Destroyers to fend for themselves.
“We’re on a short timeline,” Keryn called over the radio. “It won’t take the Terrans long to realize that we’re attacking one of their flagships. Watch for fighters coming in from behind and tell your insertion teams good luck. On my mark, break formation. Three, two, one, mark.”
On her command, the cone broke apart with Cair ships heading off in nearly every
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