AMP The Core by Stephen Arseneault

Author:Stephen Arseneault [Arseneault, Stephen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Publisher: Stephen Arseneault
Published: 2014-08-10T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

I exited my eleventh ship as it self-destructed behind me. As I moved towards my first Colossun battleship, it turned and rapidly moved away. The ships attempting to enter the funnel and the surrounding staging areas did the same. The Durians had changed tactics to a full-on assault of the Gonta Carions.

I raised Commander Grita on the comm. "Sir, how are you holding up? Is there any assistance we can offer?"

The Commander replied, "We are managing, but I don’t know how long we can hold out. The Durians are targeting only the Bulgar ships. If this continues, I fear they may turn and flee. They have been close allies; however, no commander is going to sit idle while his men and ships are being slaughtered."

I ordered the Swift back to my position. "Commander, if you can think of any way we might assist, please contact Colonel Harper and let him know."

When the Swift arrived, I floated aboard and moved up to the pilot’s chair. With the skin again active, I set the program to attack the Durian ships surrounding the Gonta stations. Special parameters were entered to adjust the Swift’s trajectory so that any debris would be thrown in a direction away from nearby Gonta ships or Carions.

After a long arc, my first pass took out fifteen ships. Their clustering near the Gonta fleet made them better-aligned targets. As I looped around for a second run, the Bulgar fleet began to turn away from the battle, just as the Gonta Commander had feared. The Durians immediately turned their efforts towards the Gonta fleet.

The Colonel came over the comm. "Grange! We need you to come back and pick up a few passengers. York’s team wants to stay involved in the fight. They will be waiting for you in the quad."

I replied, "Be right there, Colonel. I think we can double our kill count while also doing the ship hopping. The Gonta are taking a beating, and I don’t know how long they will last."

As I landed and the rear hatch opened, York and the others came aboard.

York sat in the copilot’s chair. "OK, Mr. Grange. Let’s go do some damage. The Colonel says we have forty-eight thousand ships to contend with. And more have been trickling in every hour. With all the fighting, we’ve only managed to cut their numbers by 5 percent."

I nodded as we lifted off. "Yeah, seems like an endless supply. I just hope the Gonta can hold out long enough for us to make an impact. If we lose them, that whole fleet will be involved in a planetary assault."

York spoke. "Sir, I believe we need to target those command ships. They are all linked together, and the Colonel thinks they will be key to a ground assault."

I replied, "That’s what I have been trying to do. If we take out their coordination, they will become much less effective."

The Colonel came over the comm. "Grange, it looks like the Gonta have decided to commit troops to the fight.

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