USS Lightning Rod by Mann Theo

Author:Mann, Theo
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781961511682
Publisher: Novus Mundi Publishing
Published: 2024-01-16T00:00:00+00:00

EIGHTEEN

A familiar voice cracked in English’s ear. “Squadron Command to Fighter Wing Leader 17—stand by to launch.”

“Damn, it’s good to hear your voice, Lieutenant,” English replied.

Lieutenant Eismann laughed. “Stay in contact this time, Gunny.”

“Yes, Sir. I’ll do my best.”

“Long-range scans show Europa, the Io Center, and the whole Jovian system clear for you. You’ve got a straight run all the way to the Heinrich satellite.”

Janacek groaned from his launch pad. “Sweet Jesus, Sir! Don’t say the words ‘Heinrich satellite’ again. I can’t take it!”

“I was just about to tell Gunny English not to go near the satellite, son,” Lieutenant Eismann replied. “Once the Lightning Rod gets away from Europa, she’s on her way to the Mars repair shop to rendezvous with the other friendlies.”

“Friendlies,” Ritchie chimed in. “I’m liking that word more and more.”

“Where are the enemy ships?” English asked. “Don’t tell me they pulled back to Earth.”

“It looks like it. Maybe they encountered more resistance on the planet than they expected. All the bad guys have withdrawn, but we can’t expect it to stay that way.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” English muttered to himself.

“Wing 10 standing by,” Frasier chimed in from across the flight deck.

“How are your new boys, Charlie?” English asked.

“They’re great. I couldn’t ask for better. They’re all hot to trot and very well trained.”

“Wings 10 and 17—you are clear to launch,” Eismann cut in.

“Fighter Wing 17—launch!” English ordered and his pilots rocketed away. They swooped off the flight deck, over the Europa Environmental Zone, and punched through the atmospheric EM field into orbit.

A second later, they skimmed past the Io Center and English looked around. “The lieutenant was right,” Racer remarked. “The whole area is deserted.”

“Stay frosty,” English ordered. “I don’t like this. It can’t be this easy.”

“Don’t tell me you actually want to make it harder.” Charlie Frasier took a tour around the Io Center, but there was nothing to see. “Be grateful we don’t have to fight our way out.”

“The enemy wouldn’t just leave. They risked a lot to capture the system. They wouldn’t just turn tail and abandon it.”

“What about what the lieutenant said?” Ritchie asked. “Maybe things went south on Earth and the rebels needed those ships back there.”

“It sounds too good to be true,” English replied. “I’m going over to Saturn to make sure.”

“Don’t break formation!” Lieutenant Eismann cut in. “The Lightning Rod is launching. We need all fighters in position to cover the…”

A crash drowned out what Eismann said next. English had been about to turn toward Titan when a fountain of plasma smashed into Stoval’s bird.

The blow knocked Stoval into English and then shots enveloped the whole squadron. A bunch of fighter craft swarmed out from behind Titan and pounded Wings 10 and 17.

Manheim shrieked and the whole area erupted in mayhem. English struggled to pull his head back into the game. Stoval scrambled to get his craft moving. He sat still while the enemy surrounded him.

English ripped his guns around to drive them off. He gunned it into the mob and skidded to a halt next to Stoval.

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