Circular targeting reticules appeared all over the visible target area in the viewscreen, each reticule blinked red confirming weapon lock-on. “FIRING CANNONS and TORPEDOES!” A command from the helm sent Odyssey soaring forward and drifting to port over the carrier’s port side. Aaen watched as a violent pulsating flood of red, white and blue particle weapons and projectiles shot at the reticules, finding their targets and exploding brilliantly into fiery balls of metallic debris along the carrier’s dorsal hull, then port, and then around the target’s ventral hull.
“Get us outta here!” Aaen commanded.
“Adjusting defensive matrix frequency!” Odyssey passed through the carrier’s shields as though they weren’t up. Several sharp maneuvers put Odyssey on a course away from the carrier, then coming around for another pass. Aaen silently made a fist, eyeing the carrier’s coming back into the viewscreen—this time the carrier was changing course. . .coming about. The hull from stem to stern was engulfed in growing fireballs and explosions. For a moment, Aaen reasoned the carrier was about to explode in their faces, and jerked as though to give his next order—but stopped as the explosions dissipated and the metallic debris scattered in every direction.
“Confirmed direct hits from all weapons. They shouldn’t still be independently flying right now. . .”
“But they are,” Aaen said darkly and directly. Oh—shoot! The carrier was almost headed straight for them—another bad gut feeling.
“The other alien ship is still entering the area!” Jones declared.
“Change course to intercept!” Aaen commanded.
“Signal Aurora!” Smith added. “We need cover, now!”
The deck shuddered violently. A flurry of bright, loud sparks shot from over the center of the bridge. The crew struggled to stay upright and then recover to process the data flooding virtually every bridge computer screen.
Another series of violent shuddering rocked Odyssey. “REPORT!” Aaen demanded over his shoulder, struggling to tumble onto the deck from his chair.
“The carrier’s trying to lock onto us! They began trying to triangulate our location after we opened fire!”
SHOOT! Aaen shouted in the back of his mind.
“They’re gaining on us!”
“PILOT! Come hard about! Sandberg! Standby to throw everything we’ve got at them!”
“I don’t think everything we’ve got’s gonna be enough!” Sandberg replied doubtfully.
“WEAPONS RELEASE ON MY ORDER!”
The viewscreen lit up with sporadic pulses of directed particle weapon fire. “We’re closing really-dang-fast!” Jones declared in terror.
“GOOD LOCK!” Sandberg declared.
“—FIRE!”
A steady stream of weapons fire pounded the carrier head-on—after the explosions cleared. . .Aaen’s gut sank at the sight of a barely-phased target.
“Negative shield penetration!” Sandburg declared, then shouted something nearly profane.
“NOTHING?” Aaen asked in shock.
“NO-SIR! NOT ONE SHOT!” Sandberg gasped in panic.
“—The other alien ship is increasing speed! They’ve probably detected all of the shooting!”
CRAP! “AURORA!” Aaen shouted in panic, eyeing the countless weapon ports lighting up, opening and activating on the bow of the massive black beast bearing down on Odyssey.
An alarm filled the bridge, “WE’RE BLOWN!” Jones declared in shock. “THEY’VE GOT A LOCK!”
“THEIR WEAPONS OUTPUT IS OFF THE SCALE!” Sandberg shouted.
The carrier’s bow was nearly blinding—wide-eyed, Aaen rushed to his seat and shouted, “EVASIVE MANEUVERS!”
The main computer droned a weapon lock-on Odyssey.
“NEW SENSOR CONTACT AT TEN-O’-CLOCK!—HO-LY-COW!” Jones shouted at the top of her lungs as a blinding flood of pulsing light shot from the left of the viewscreen to the right Aaen barely managed to shield his eyes as he struggled to watch between his fingers as the carrier exploded in two in the most violent explosion he had ever seen. Two massive flaming black metallic chunks of hull became gradually distant from each other. The hull cross-sections burned as another ship came into view from the port—the hull was also darkly colored; the only way Aaen knew it was there was because the sheer size of the ship blocked every start that was there two seconds ago. Debris from the split hull continued to shower in every direction. The blinding light coming from the viewscreen dimmed.
“That other alien ship took some of the debris from the initial explosion,” Jones declared, “That black marketer’s making a run for it!”
Aaen took a deep breath and wiped the sweat off his forehead as he faced forward in his chair, “Match its speed! Pursuit course!”
*****
Steve H. told Jordan Foutin, "You are the next Tom Clancy. You really are a gifted writer."
DANIEL STORM, a Jordan Foutin eBook, is available for $8.99 at any of these fine online retailers:
smashwords.com (Remember to like and share!)
apple iBooks (This link is best viewed on iPhone or iPad)
Make sure to buy your copy today, and like and share!
Make sure to like the official StormTeam Simulations Facebook page for the latest, including when DANIEL STORM will be available on Amazon.com for Kindle eBook and softcover! Coming soon!
No comments:
Post a Comment