A Mercenary: (CORPORATION WARS Book 6) by Stephen Arseneault

Author:Stephen Arseneault [Arseneault, Stephen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: scifi series, mens adventure, Space Opera, adventure space, scifi adventure, intergalactic war, Hard Science Fiction, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Science Fiction, space travel, Action Thriller, series, scifi action adventure, galactic empire, alien abduction, military scifi, space battles, aliens, military, star wars, scifi, alien worlds, super human, alien
Published: 2020-03-05T22:00:00+00:00

— Chapter 19 —

* * *

I raced in with a formation of one thousand and twenty-four drones surrounding me. I broke from the pack following sixteen drones as we sped toward a destroyer. As before, the first targets were the destroyer's gun turrets. One by one my group took out the cannons as we worked our way up one side and down the other.

We lost eleven drones before the last cannon went silent. From there we ripped into her drive and after crippling her, we tore a hole in her side, shredding the exposed decks. Five and a half minutes had passed when we turned for the next Togmal ship. Another dozen drones joined our formation.

I cut, fired, swerved, and fired again as we approached. But this attack didn't go as well as the last. We lost four drones almost immediately. Four more were gone within the first minute. We had only finished off the firepower of one side when my group was knocked down to three drones and my personal fighter. I signaled a retreat and joined with another group.

Unfortunately, the unfinished destroyer followed, turning its still-active side toward us. Before we could do major damage to the target cruiser, our numbers were again culled to the point of having to turn back. The same battle was being fought fifty times over with our numbers suffering the most.

Our controllers on the Freedom did their best to keep us supplied with new drones. At first, the tactic seemed to be working in our favor, but the casualty numbers didn't bear that out. Only twenty minutes into the fight, we had lost a third of our fleet. At the hour mark, we were down by a third again.

It was then that I noticed most of the corporate ships were not even engaged. They were waiting for our drones to be finished off before committing. I was livid as an all-out fight would keep the Togmal spread and would allow our drones to do the most damage. Instead, we were becoming an almost wasted resource. I wanted to open a comm and curse out their admiral, but I didn't have time. I had again managed to get myself caught between two formidable warships.

My drone group was quickly cut back from twelve, to eight, and then four before a new group of a dozen joined us. As we lost one new drone after another, I realized I was the cause. They had come in to protect my fighter, leaving themselves vulnerable.

I opened a comm to my controller as a new group came in. "I need out of this situation. Send enough to get me free from this trap. They are chopping us up out here."

Another twenty-four joined the skirmish, escorting me from between the two cruisers who had me pinned. Sixteen of the twenty-four were lost on the effort of getting me out. I headed back to the Freedom, realizing I was far more of a burden to our effort than a benefit.

I flew into the airlock and was soon sitting on the bay deck.

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