Ghost Wing by Kevin McLaughlin

Author:Kevin McLaughlin [McLaughlin, Kevin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Role of the Hero Publishing Company
Published: 2018-10-12T23:00:00+00:00

16

Admiral Thomas Stein could see the Intrepid from his office window. It floated there in space as a constant reminder of the battle ahead. The ship was almost ready. Crews raced around the clock to finish her construction. The Albucierre drive was already installed, but secondary weapon systems were taking more time to route into the power grid than they’d anticipated. Thomas threw the report down on his desk in disgust. If only they’d had a little bit more time!

The Hermes was still out there fighting the good fight, but as expected they were having little effect. As of the last reports he had - there was a four-hour delay in transmissions - the squadron had attempted a second engagement with the enemy and been rebuffed by a hidden minefield. An entire area of space seeded with mines too small to be seen on radar! That would be a risk for anyone flying through that sector of space for years before all of the mines finally collided with a chunk of debris or fell into Neptune.

Still, the one actual firefight hadn’t gone too badly. They knew the alien tech was good, but not worlds better than their own. It was going to be like fighting early rifles while using flintlocks, perhaps. But at least they wouldn’t have to take their flintlocks up against hover-tanks.

Losing almost half their Wasp squadron meant the Hermes was barely combat operational now, though. He was half tempted to order her home, or at least to stand down from attacks and remain in the area as their eyes and ears. The odds of them doing more than slow the alien construction down a little were slim, and they would pay heavily for causing even a small delay. But a few hours might mean the difference between the Intrepid arriving in time to stop the gate or not. As much as he hated to risk throwing those lives away for no gain, the fact was they were the only asset he had to play with. They had to continue the mission as best they could.

A knock on his door brought Thomas back to the present. He took the seat behind his desk before answering. “Come.”

Captain Fairhaven opened the door and stepped inside. “I’ve spotted something I think you’ll be interested in, sir.”

“Oh?” Thomas asked. From the look on her face, it was grave news. He didn’t need any more… No, this was his job. He’d stepped up when Earth needed him. Now he had to play out the role he’d taken on. To the end, whatever that might be.

Fairhaven dropped a manila folder on his desk. Thomas reached over and opened it. Inside was a single page of paper with a list of names. He scanned the list, not sure what he was looking for. They looked like the cast of characters from a movie. “Harald? Grimalf? Gurgle? Sam? Oh - these are..?”

She picked up when his voice trailed off. “The names of Commander Knauf’s recruits from Valhalla Online, yes sir.

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