turned hard towards the Guardian Light’s starboard side, pulling into position with a final burst of thruster fire. He looked around at the small formation of six warships, scanning for the heavy fighters screening their flanks. There weren’t very many of them.
Hal appeared on the comm. panel. “We are approaching transit location.” Another screen came to life, showing him the battle. The British naval squadron and Fort London were surrounded, taking damage from all vectors, by nearly three times their number of Shang ships. Fort London seemed fully operational and its impressive point defense was the only thing keeping the squadron alive as far as he could see.
“How long ago is this?” Jack asked, trying to get a feeling for how things might have changed since their last update.
“This is a live signal,” Hal answered with a smile.
Jack blinked. “What? How?” It was impossible to send a message between normal and hyperspace. They had to be physically transported by a ship or drone. There was no way to have a live signal.
Hal shrugged. “It’s complicated.” He chuckled. “I’ll show you later if you wish, but for now you can rest assured that this is live. Now prepare to transit in three…two…one.”
Jack closed his eyes against the flash, opened them and saw the battle laid out before him. Explosions wreathed Fort London and its mighty multi-layered deflection grid flickered in and out a section at a time. The destroyers and cruisers around it spewed weapons fire in all directions, supporting the main cannons on the fort.
The Shang surrounded them, firing broadside after broadside of missiles and lasers towards the fort. British point defense networks shot the missiles down by the scores and the deflection grids twisted the lasers away while the fort’s gravitic cannons played across the Shang ships. Four British destroyers drifted away from the fight, lights flickering and massive wounds in their flanks. The fort had obviously not been able to stop all of the missiles.
“Fire,” Hal ordered and a hundred gravitic cannons from the fighters escorting the capital ships opened up, twisting gravity between the two fleets. Across the Shang flank, deflection grids with most of their energy devoted to holding off the fort’s weapons crumpled when five or more beams focused on one target. They ripped armor and weapons alike into space, leaving deep scars in the Shang ships. It was the sixteen heavy cannons mounted outside the Peloran warships’ hulls that did most of the damage though, punching through every deflection grid they hit with thousands of gravities of gravitic sheer. Sixteen Shang ships belched atmosphere and debris and fell out of formation. No single ship exploded, but an entire flank of the Shang englobing force faltered. They shifted power to their deflection grids to protect their wounded flanks from the Peloran and most of the next salvo of grav beams twisted away, spraying in all directions until they faded away.
Missiles and lasers exploded from the Shang ships, charging the Peloran Battle Squadron, and the point defense lasers reached out to shoot them down. Most of the lasers missed the wildly maneuvering warships and fighters, and the few that hit twisted off into space. Explosions from incoming missiles wreathed the Peloran squadron, each succeeding wave closer to the deflection grid until the rolling front of explosions filled Jack’s view.
“Transit in three,” Hal transmitted. Jack saw the deflection grids of the squadron flickering under the assault.
“Two.” Jack swallowed as their fighter’s grav cannons finished powering up for another shot.
“One.”
The cannons fired one more time as Jack closed his eyes and the world flashed around him. He opened his eyes to see hyperspace in all its colors around him again. He licked his lips and checked the sensors to make certain everybody made it.
Hal appeared on the comm. panel. “We are approaching transit location.” Another screen came to life, showing him the battle. The British naval squadron and Fort London were surrounded, taking damage from all vectors, by nearly three times their number of Shang ships. Fort London seemed fully operational and its impressive point defense was the only thing keeping the squadron alive as far as he could see.
“How long ago is this?” Jack asked, trying to get a feeling for how things might have changed since their last update.
“This is a live signal,” Hal answered with a smile.
Jack blinked. “What? How?” It was impossible to send a message between normal and hyperspace. They had to be physically transported by a ship or drone. There was no way to have a live signal.
Hal shrugged. “It’s complicated.” He chuckled. “I’ll show you later if you wish, but for now you can rest assured that this is live. Now prepare to transit in three…two…one.”
Jack closed his eyes against the flash, opened them and saw the battle laid out before him. Explosions wreathed Fort London and its mighty multi-layered deflection grid flickered in and out a section at a time. The destroyers and cruisers around it spewed weapons fire in all directions, supporting the main cannons on the fort.
The Shang surrounded them, firing broadside after broadside of missiles and lasers towards the fort. British point defense networks shot the missiles down by the scores and the deflection grids twisted the lasers away while the fort’s gravitic cannons played across the Shang ships. Four British destroyers drifted away from the fight, lights flickering and massive wounds in their flanks. The fort had obviously not been able to stop all of the missiles.
“Fire,” Hal ordered and a hundred gravitic cannons from the fighters escorting the capital ships opened up, twisting gravity between the two fleets. Across the Shang flank, deflection grids with most of their energy devoted to holding off the fort’s weapons crumpled when five or more beams focused on one target. They ripped armor and weapons alike into space, leaving deep scars in the Shang ships. It was the sixteen heavy cannons mounted outside the Peloran warships’ hulls that did most of the damage though, punching through every deflection grid they hit with thousands of gravities of gravitic sheer. Sixteen Shang ships belched atmosphere and debris and fell out of formation. No single ship exploded, but an entire flank of the Shang englobing force faltered. They shifted power to their deflection grids to protect their wounded flanks from the Peloran and most of the next salvo of grav beams twisted away, spraying in all directions until they faded away.
Missiles and lasers exploded from the Shang ships, charging the Peloran Battle Squadron, and the point defense lasers reached out to shoot them down. Most of the lasers missed the wildly maneuvering warships and fighters, and the few that hit twisted off into space. Explosions from incoming missiles wreathed the Peloran squadron, each succeeding wave closer to the deflection grid until the rolling front of explosions filled Jack’s view.
“Transit in three,” Hal transmitted. Jack saw the deflection grids of the squadron flickering under the assault.
“Two.” Jack swallowed as their fighter’s grav cannons finished powering up for another shot.
“One.”
The cannons fired one more time as Jack closed his eyes and the world flashed around him. He opened his eyes to see hyperspace in all its colors around him again. He licked his lips and checked the sensors to make certain everybody made it.
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