Rewind 717: The Adventures of Time Traveler Anti-Terrorist Agent Cole Seeker
Page 23
“I’m hit!” shouted Alpha Three. “Ejecting!”
Chase’s squadron was only a handful of seconds away from the engagement now, and he activated his comm system.
“Alright people, stay alert. This is just the beginning of what might very well be a very long, hard day. We are to render assistance to Alpha Team, clear their six, and obliterate this first wave before the next one arrives. So make every shot count.”
Multiple comm clicks acknowledged that order. A couple of seconds later, red laser shots started to pass between the fighters as they entered the combat zone. Two lasers made a direct hit to Chase’s forward shield, bringing their efficiency down to ninety percent. Chase frantically painted targets through his target acquisition panel, and ordered a voice command to the navicomputer AI.
“Execute offensive pattern Xi-niner.”
“Confirmed,” replied the male, synthesized vocal processor.
Chase shook his head, missing the sultry tones of his simulator. “Where’s that sexy little minx when I need her?” he muttered under his breath.
The ship started firing low energy but high frequency laser bursts at all the painted targets. Each blow would only weaken an enemy’s shields by a few percent at the time, but that was exactly what Chase wanted. He switched his main manual firing weapon to heat-seeking missiles while the computer continued the automated firing. Then, one by one, he started to lock onto the enemy ships, all four of them. Once the last lock was confirmed, he pressed the trigger and all four missiles fired simultaneously. The enemy craft started evasive maneuvers, but there was no escaping Chase’s lock. The missiles arrived roughly at the same time. The first explosion sent an enemy craft into a wild spin, venting parts and oxygen into space, as the three remaining missiles hit with a surprisingly synchronized detonation that blew up all three enemy craft into bits of fiery space junk.
Chase then went after the first target, which had managed to stabilize its spin but was obviously having trouble with its thrusters, probably because the missile blew up one of its oxygen tanks. It was little to no challenge to finish up such a badly wounded enemy, but this was not a simulation, and challenge was no longer the name of the game. Time was of the essence, and Chase blew the fighter out of the sky without hesitation.
“Thanks, Beta Leader,” Daniel called. “Hope you won’t need those missiles later on though.”
It was a fair point. Chase had effectively depleted half his missile complement in the first minute of the engagement but, under the circumstances, it made more sense to blow up the enemies quickly to avoid being caught in multiple crossfire.
“Copy that, Alpha Leader, nothing to worry about.”
Chase vectored toward the nearest enemy craft and locked lasers. He switched them to full power and pulled the trigger the second he had a firing solution. The first shots caused heavy damage to the enemy vessel, which quickly reacted with evasive actions. Obviously panicked, the craft rammed into its wingman, sending it into a spin that turned into a fireball as it was caught in some friendly crossfire. The second craft had lost its aft shields upon impact. Chase had no intention of letting this advantage fade away by giving the pilot time to transfer power to compensate. He hit his afterburner and rained down deadly laser fire. The ship exploded, and Chase flew through what was left of it, acquiring his next target as soon as he was through.
He quickly checked his radar. Five more ships had been dispatched by the rest of the squadron, putting them at a numerical advantage. The scanners also showed that Alpha Team had engaged another squadron as soon as the numbers had evened up. Chase dispatched one of the last ships with agile laser fire and watched while the remaining enemies were successfully destroyed, one by one.
“This is the SAD Destiny. The first wave of attack seems to be contained, but we’re getting unusual neutron radiation on the sensors; we don’t know what to make of it. It seems to be coming from everywhere.”
The last remaining enemy fighters retreated back towards the battleships, staying outside the firing range of the first assault. But just as they made it back, the sky all around them erupted into what looked like a million, blinding lights.
End of sample – to read more: Earth – Last Sanctuary
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