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A space armada slowly takes shape a hundred million kilometers above the elliptical plane of a star; the target planet does not have the military to stop the massive invasion force that is about to be unleashed on their world. Instead, a handful of soldiers slowly maneuver in disguised, pressurized, polymer bags towards their targets. After attaching to the ships, they cut a hole in the bulkhead and sneak towards the fragile Slipspace core that makes hyper-spatial travel possible. Knowing death is the only outcome, they disable the fleet, aborting the invasion before it has begun and changing the course of history. They have no name, no history, and no life beyond their service to the state. They are covert operatives.

In 2525, the first Covenant forces appeared in the outer colonies. Armed with advanced technologies of a long-dead age, the warlike invaders unleashed a devastating blitzkrieg, glassing world after world until a total Covenant victory seemed certain. Unable to match the enemy's superior techs, the UNSC militaries increasingly turned to their combat fleets for relief, only to find the skies filled with deadly Covenant DropShips, and WarShips -massive vessels never before seen in the Terran sphere. Now the UNSC has begun to rebuild its own armadas and stand ready to challenge the Covenant invaders in the infinite battlefield of space.



0430 hours, November 27th, 2558 Aboard UNSC vessel The Wrath of Achilles on docking approach to captured Covenant manufacturing base Shroud of Light


      In this war many soldier has seen things no sane person should endure. And with their home nearly destroyed 6 years earlier the UNSC had made sure that their best and brightest wouldn't die in vain nor would they be left to the merciless attack of the Covenant Hegemony.
      "It took them 40 years for those bastards to realize that sending troops to die unnecessarily was a stupid notion!" Captain Vlad Ward screamed at Colonel Ackerson. "You mean to tell me, that we had other technologies at our disposal that our boys in the field could've used! What in the name of Sam Hill were you idiots in Section three up too?"
      "You seem to forget your place Captain!" Ackerson hissed back. "Although I'm not too pleased about Halsey's freaks, if it wasn't for them we would not have the breather that we now enjoy." It was no secret Ackerson had a disdain for the group even after they had saved his hide many a times. That disdain was more then just rivalry. It was based on an emotion only he knew.
      "The special Weapons department have made new stride in the intervening years. Although we are not winning this war, we are not losing it either. The jump inhibitor that our tech boys downs in the R&D Dept on New Avalon created, thanks to the information that AI Cortana brought to us has been instrumental to our survival." He cited.

      Since the fall of Reach, and the attack on our home system we are more cautious about committing our forces in one centralized area. Our naval bases on New Avalon, Outreach, Nova Scotia, Moria, and Tarsonis are slowly being built up to those standards set by Reach before the fall. We have been lucky thus far because all Covenant incursions have been mild thanks to the placements of the inhibitors. The UNSC spared no expense in the effort of rebuilding its shattered homeworld and rebuilding its forces with technology acquired from the defeated forces of the Covenant attack fleet. With nearly seventy-two percent of its military power restored and new "pet" projects being developed by various branches of the UNSC, it seemed that the Human Race had one more chance at finally ridding itself of the specter of the Covenant and their masters...

      Captain Ward got up and proceeded to the porthole window in his ready room. Like most people in the Human Empire he had almost given up hope about ever seeing peace. 40 years have gone by since he has been in this forsaken war and 22 years of which he has been fighting in it. He looked out the window and watched as the 4th Reclamation Fleet buzzed around the newly acquired Covenant base. Thanks to their new technologies, at least they weren't fighting a losing battle. The base was a marvel of aesthetics. Its main pod was nearly 700 miles long and 550 miles high overall. It had 3 auxiliary pods linked up to the main body by reinforced stalks.

1600 hours, June 12th 2558 Tharkad System 4th Reclamation Fleet in high orbit over Tharkis IV


      On June 12th at the suggestion of Admiral Hood, the UNSC made a surprise attack against the Covenant controlled manufacturing base, Shroud of Light, with the intent of seizing it from them and using it to buildup the Earth's defenses against further attacks from more zealous Covenant forces. The well-coordinated attack proceeded smoothly. The 4th Reclamation Fleet gathered over Tarsonis and executed the jump into covenant held territories. 36 Olympus Class Corvettes, 26 Exeter Class Escorts, 8 Hyperion Class Cruisers, 3 Galaxy Class Super Carriers, 12 newly commissioned Warlock Class Heavy Destroyers specifically built to go toe-to-toe with a Covenant heavy attack cruiser, and capable of seizing any planet or colony with a minimal of casualties, 7 Gettysburg III Class Heavy Destroyers, 2 Lancer Class DropTroop carriers, and to top it off, the new pride of the fleet The Wrath of Achilles, one of the deadliest battleship in the UNSC Armada. Based on the information gathered by ONI Section 3 and the newly developed Lohengrin Norns, their tasks was to go in, disable the "home fleet," secure the package and jump it back to secure UNSC hands. It was a three-month Slipspace ride to the system where the base was located. It orbited a gas giant and mined from it whatever was necessary for its daily functions. It was a dangerous gamble. For at anytime an enemy fleet could jump in system for refuel and maintenance and tip the scale of the battle against them. The Fleet advanced to the Tharkad System and stayed outside of the Covenant's sensor range, the extra protection provided by the Brown Dwarf's electromagnetic discharges were also appreciated for its affect on sensor readings. They were anxious but not fools. Captain Ward dispatched 6 stealth Predators to gather information and make sure that the home fleet wouldn't have a chance to react. The fighter wing led by Capt. Jhonathan T Marsh left the confines of the Wrath of Achilles and advanced towards there objective. It was a simple enough opt. Go in, survey the immediate vicinity and bug out at the slightest presence of Covenant patrols. 112,127,000 clicks outside of the fleet's protection they picked up the base with what seemed like a light recon patrol. Not one to let an opportunity slip pass him, Capt. JT Marsh ordered his wing to prepare for a bombing run.


      "Computer, Dgea's Fulsome Breath," as the music played, Captain Ward reviewed the data stream on his holopad and was running a number of scenarios in his mind. Ward had anticipated that the covenant fleet would be in single line formations, and his plan was to form the UNSC fleet into 5 squadrons, leading the spinward one himself.
      "Looks like its going to be a dazzling evening today Captain, don't you think?" The ship hologram piped in.Ward only shifted in his seat as he tried to go over the 'what ifs'.
      "Humph… Ignore me all you want I'll just have to annoy you until I get your attention," continued Luna. The figure of the hologram materialized in front of the man with its arms cross and a frown on its digital face. "Why is it that you enjoy dark and gloomy reports rather then talking to 'lil ol' me!" She jested in a old archaic country accent.
      "Can't you see I'm busy? Or are you to smart to notice that fact?" Replied Ward. "Have you finished blanketing the area with white-noise that way they can't signal for assistance? As soon as Captain Marsh calls in we will have a battle on our hands and I want you to be ready. Are you linked up with the other AIs, I want this to go as smoothly as possible." Before the AI could reply to his successive questionings the klaxon blared and the fleet was sent on high alert.
      "You were right to have sent the Captain on this 'delicate' mission. I will never understand the military reasoning for using a sledgehammer when a surgical scalpel was needed."


      As his Predator's high-pitched alarms warned of weapons lock, Capt. Marsh held his ground under the first wave of plasma fire. More followed, he fired his retro jet, which pushed his fighter away from the incoming plasma barrage. "Green six you have a Seraph on your six… If you don't shake 'em loose, I'm gonna deduct the repair cost from your hide," barked Capt. Marsh. They had had the advantage and the element of surprise on their side, but who knew that the Covenant used lowtech-scanning tactics such as filtering out the immediate area for different type of emissions as a security feature. The plan had gone to hell in a hand basket. They were swarmed by nearly 50 Seraphs and more were on their way. Green Leader sighted a pair of Seraphs on intercept course towards Green five's fighter and immediately let loose a hail of shells from the C-24 Impaler Gauss Cannon which fires 22mm metal "spikes" at hypersonic speeds. As he tore through two of his prey, green two fired a salvo of High Maneuverability Micro Missiles at incoming Seraph fighters 200 clicks from his forward position.
      "Open wide and say ah, you chitin head bastard," Lt. Mastersan yelled over the line.
      "Incoming ships on intercept vector," Lt. Jorgensen relayed over the team freq.
      "Looks like they're coming out to play. Heat up the HPG's and relay the information to Captain Ward. Tell him the party started and the strippers are out." Ordered Capt. Marsh. Weapons fire seared across the blackness of space as the Covenant reacted like an angry hornet's nest. Green five and three were the closest to the facility and they dropped their payload and bugged out like the good Capt. ordered. The HPG bombs – Hyper Pulse Generator bombs, in essence super EMP bombs that could knock out the Covenant's shielding and possibly disable some of the home fleet – streaked toward the base at incredible speed. They weren't concerned about battle damage to the base, let the tech boys back at home worry about that. The remainder of the wing fired their salvos as the Captain ordered them to 'full burn back to the barn.' Thanks to their new fighters the Seraphs could only keep up with them visually and that in itself was a feat that the Captain felt was incredible.


      When they finally reached the fleet an hour later it was already on full alert and on the move towards the base. He could feel a knot in the pit of his stomach, he did disregard orders but that wasn't it. He could feel the eyes of the Captain piercing his soul with hellish daggers. They landed their crafts and the Capt. proceeded to what might be considered a dead man's penance. The deck was buzzing with excitement as tech teams were prepping Shrouds, Reapers and Longswords for the battle that was about to escalate. "Who do you think you are using my fighters like your personal bathtub? You better not as screwed me out of a long needed down time you bastard," screamed the Master Mechanic. She was a tall and well polish girl from the Alpha Enderlin System. Golden brown eyes and a pretty enough face to keep the most discriminating man happy. Due to battle attrition, even though she's only been in the military for just about 12 years, Master Tech Diana Barnett held one of the highest technical positions in the UNSC.
      "If I find one scratch…" she continued "…not only will you be buffing it out, but you'll buffing all of these fighters with your toothbrush." With that she shifted her attention towards a technician who had accidentally dropped several ammunitions crate on the floor.
      The CAG smiled, although she was a little young, he could see himself going "places" with her. He continued on towards the elevator for what he was about to hear. He got on as the rest of his wing joined him.
      "I can't wait to go back out there!" Lt. j.g. Robert "Wing" Mastersan said.
      "Before you do, learn to fly you nit" 2nd Lieutenant Mika "Maizuru" Jorgensen said sarcastically.

      Although the klaxon had died down the fleet was still on high alert and proceeding towards their prize. The short skirmish that the CAG had initiated earlier had disable a good size of the 'home fleet' and would enable the 4th Fleet the much desirable time to do their job and bring home the greatly needed manufacturing boost provided by the alien star base. The fleet arrived in 5 separate groups, entering the Exclusion Zone – the area 105,750 au from the center of the Covenant fleet. "This is Captain Ward to all Fleet Ships, full battle alert and charges all MAC weapons. Safeties off. Pick your targets carefully and do not damage the production facilities of the base." They continued with weapons 'hot' towards their enemy as a small detachment, led by Captain Scheers, of 7 Olympus, 2 Warlocks, 3Hyperions, and the 2 Lancers performed a intra-system jump behind the base. The Covenant reacted with incredible dynamism. Captain Ward viewed the battle from the main screen of the 'Achilles battlebridge.
      At 1415 hours the UNSC Battle Fleet was 3.45 Astronomical Units from the blinded starbase.

      "Sir, my scans show that nearly 20 percent of the covenant home fleet has been disabled and high probability they will regain full operational status within the hour. Also due to the sensor shadows, I am unable to paint an accurate picture of the enemy forces we will be facing." Luna informed the Captain. The ship shuddered and swayed lightly as it Ferro Fibrous armor took a direct it. The new ships of the line are no longer built with just Titanium-A alloys. Instead two separate layers of armor provide the Warships with protection against energy and projectile weapons. Aligned-crystal steel is usually used for the outer layer of ships armor. The aligned-crystal steel has excellent heat-conducting properties, and so it provides excellent protection against lasers and particle-beam weapons. An inner layer of boron nitride impregnated with diamond monofilament stops high-explosive armor piercing (HEAP) rounds and fast neutrons and plasma bleeds. This second layer of armor also prevents any armor fragments from damaging a warships internal system. The battle cruiser action started with an opening salvo of MAC and Plasma rounds between the opposing forces; the UNSC forces pursued the Covenant, which turned south towards their own battle fleet. It only was the first few minutes of the battle and the fleet was being pounded by concentrated Covenant plasma fire.
      "Picking up intense Covenant COM traffic through all known Covenant bands Captain."
      "Are they trying to reach their friends Luna," ask Ward. "Good let them cling to false hope. Helm, bring us to heading 1-9-0 mark 2-3-2. I want to make sure that all naval weapons are brought to bear on them."
      "Sir, we are being painted for plasma missiles… I estimate 45 seconds before the whole area is hot." Ensign Kim reported to the Captain.


      The Black Sea Fleet consisting of 6 Exeters, 2 Warlocks, 3 Gettysburgs, and 10 Olympus were performing a flanking maneuver to cut any possible avenues of retreat for the Covenant. Commander Nordi, aboard the first Warlock the Illustrious Truth, ordered all fighters to prepare to engage the Covenant forces.
      "Ensign Kip, I want you to coordinated all alpha flight priorities to Thor. The extra speed will be extremely helpful in the next few hours."
Ensign Kip, at the ops station, acquiesced to the Commander's order and tied all BarCAP flights to Thor. The battle was going as well as it was expected. Although ONI had woefully underestimated the Covenant forces station there, they were prepared for any eventualities.
      "Force wide, 'This is Commander Nordi all fighters prepare to intercept incoming Seraphs and Seraphim class fighters. All Cap ships open fire.' Ops load all missile tubes. I want a firing solution by the time the first MAC rounds are fired," Commander Nordi ordered.
"Aye, Captain." Lt. Christians Answered.


      Ship Master Elbiung 'Fromacee launched all his Seraph fighters and added fuel to the already volatile situation. "Destroy the infidels and may the gods favor pass to us from them." With that he ordered his weapons officer to fire the plasma torpedoes. All the Ship Master had to do was crush the enemy before him. He knew his duty and so did all that served under his command. He watched the battle unfolding before him on the elevated platform flanked by 'flying monitors.' All around him could feel the excitement in his eyes. Two commando squads were ordered to the bridge area in case anything was to happen. As previous engagement showed, with these primitive animals anything was in the realm of possibility.

      The Covenant fleet of 3 battleships, 8 carriers, 11 cruisers, and 23 destroyers, was under the command of Fleet Master Oren 'Balasee. His intentions were to crush the human assault and seize whatever information he could from the hulks of whatsoever remained of their fleet. His complicated plan was dependent on perfect timing.


      Fleet Master Oren 'Balasee looked out towards the human fleet with quite a noticeable look of revulsion on his face. He stood at the center of his battleship's Ascension control room and read the data projections that floated in front of him. Some of them showed the raging battle in front of him, a few on the battle status of the disabled fleet and one projection displayed a schematic titled UNKNOWN ATTACK SHIP SILHOUETTE.
      Of all the battles he has been in, Oren felt this would most likely be the most dangerous and most likely his last. He fought the sickening feeling of revulsion. That these premature 'brutes' merited any form of acknowledgement and legitimacy. They had the gall to come to his system and try and take what are the prophets. "Get me all shipmasters!" he growled at his communication officer Sho 'Intee.
      "Channel open Fleet Master," she responded.
As he gazed into the 'abyss' he could not help but remember his early years in the gods chosen army where no one opposed the will of the gods and the power of the chosen – the prophets. "Ship Masters, you have one order, and that is to repel all system invaders and kill all stragglers. May the gift of the gods await us in paradise." With that said he motioned to Intee to cut transmission. He looked at the monitors one more time and noticed that the Pillar of Fate and The Way of Truth spearheaded the attack on a group of Human Warships.


      "Fire" was all Ship Master Re 'Ytmee yelled as he approached one the human ships. His ops officer monitored the battle as he feverishly typed commands into the console.
      "Ship Master! Enemy projectiles on intercept course," the ops officer alerted the shipmaster.
      "Change course and strengthen the shields." The ship hull screeched as it was penetrated by the ballistic missile. "Bring us to bear towards the lead attack ship," 'Ytmee ordered, "Fire plasma torpedoes and prepare the boarding parties. I want them to feel my wrath."


      Captain Maximillian Fletcher clenched his teeth as a barrage of plasma torpedoes pummeled his cruiser. "Ship status!" he yelled over the klaxon of the ship alarm. A small holographic figure appears next to his command chair armrest
      "Sir, the lead ship Pillar of Fate took 2 MAC shells in its starboard engines. Its venting plasma and it seems that it is preparing a ramming action. They seem to be gathering speeding and gunning to take us down," Rios the ship AI warned Captain Fletcher. The Supercarrier Yorktown slowly changed course to give the naval grade weapons a broader vintage on the incoming enemy fleet.
      "Launch all fighter wings and fire all weapons as soon as we get a target acquisition. I went them to know exactly what shock is," he barked at his weapons officer. Plasma missiles buried themselves on the reactive armor of the ship. Three more covenant torpedoes hit their mark and carved open the innards of the ship to the coldness of space.
      "Breaches from deck C thru F across sections thirteen to twenty-four, Sir," Ensign Gloval alerted the captain. "Massive decompression along all those decks sir. Emergency bulkheads won't last for long sir."
      "Captain," Rios said, "we wont be able to stay in the game, if we keep taking this much punishment.
      "I know …" he responded curtly. "Lieutenant York, arm all Archer missiles in tubes A1 thru D7. Get me a firing solution for the MACs and fire those missiles in ten second intervals per salvo."
      "Aye sir, firing solution in thirty seconds."

      As the ship prepared its confrontation the crew feverishly worked to contain the chemical fires that started in and around the damaged decks.
      "This Chief Warrant Officer Keefer bridge."
      "What is it Chief!" Came Lieutenant Azumy's voice.
      "We are venting atmosphere fires have erupted in and around the engineering section. Estimate 45 min…" Explosion over the intercom was all the Lieutenant heard.
      "Chief! Chief! Chief! Do you read me?" Static and explosions were the only reply over the intercom.

      CWO Keefer was knocked away from the wall console just in time to see a support beam from the over head gantry smash the area where had been standing a split second before.
      "Damn it!" He screamed "if this continues I won't have a job anymore. Everybody out of here, you have forty seconds to shake a leg an d check out of the area." He pointed to a group of techs and said "Green and Blue Teams come with me. Gold and Yellow team access the damage and reroute everything to sector Alpha Zulu Two Zero." They all nodded and departed to their assigned duties. The new Hostile and Space Exo Suits proved invaluable to him and his men as they had to travel between sections of the hull that were either breeched or completely enflamed. The Gorilla SCVs, of which he had 8 available, was split between the 19 men group.

      "Where's my firing solution Lieutenant." Captain Fletcher barked at his junior officer.
      "I have it sir but I can't get the MAC cannon to lock onto the enemy ship. Sensor and tracking has been completely disabled. We do not have enough power to reroute to the emitters from the bridge, Captain." Lieutenant York reply with a bit of hesitation.
      "Then what are you waiting for? Dispatch a tech crew and have it fixed manually or you're the one who's going outside with a Light TAG. Do I make myself clear?"
      "Crystal," was Lieutenant York's reply.
      "Captain," Rios interjected, I can link with any of the task forces Cap ships and link our target acquisition software to theirs." No sooner then she said it, three MAC rounds fired in quick succession and could be heard throughout the ship's degrading hull. The ship spun on its axis and started to drift off target.
      "Rios, stabilize the ship and re-initialize the missile locks." The Captain ordered.
      "Missile lock confirmed the AI retorted.
      "Fire" was the only response as a streak of Archer missiles sped toward the enemy formation.

      The flight deck was bustling with activity. Commander St. Jamais was told to make sure that none of the Covenant Seraphs or Seraphims was to pass his fighter screen and if they had 'any targets of opportunity, take them down.' His squadron, "The Hellions," was among the top leading squadron in the UNSC / Covenant war. Earlier there was an explosive decompression that sent a few good men and women to the cold embrace of the Heavens. He couldn't think about that now. He had a mission to fulfill and knew by the end of this battle many of his comrades will either be dead or dying. The Commander raced towards his Shroud and spoke over the PA.
      "All remaining flights, launch after refuel and rearm, destroy those bastard and make sure they have nothing to go home to." With that he jumped into his Shroud and switched to the Team freq. "This Hellion One to all wings! Confirming go time! Ready to launch." Seven green acknowledgment lights flicked on his HUD. It was going to be a tight exit. He could see tracers, missiles and torpedoes outside his exit window.


      Captain Michael Gavin kept one eye on the forward monitor while he and Chan went over departmental reports in the ready room. When the first flashes of weapons fire and the first glint of ship hulls became visible on extreme magnification, the captain of the Bordeaux and his second-in-command went back on the bridge. Captain Ward was already hailing them while Gavin took his seat and Chan relieved the gunnery officer of the watch.
      "Yes, sir," Gavin said, answering the hail.
      "You have your deployment orders already, Captain, so I'll just wish you good shooting. The carriers up ahead have already taken heavy damage, so you may have fighters seeking cover while they try to reach the Cambridge; Captain McFadden is already trying to take them on. I want as many of them saved as possible, but for God's sake don't take any unnecessary risks!"
      "Aye-aye, sir. Bordeaux out." He swung toward the comm. station, not taking his eyes off the forward screen. "Arthur, hail the Victoria and tell the Captain we're coming into position. Chan, go to battle ready; report on weapons and defensive shields."
      "All hands batten down, prepare for battle," Chan said to the shipwide. He looked at his displays. "Archer pods and MAC cannons armed and ready, Captain. All gunnery stations status green; absorption shields, report status green."
      Pam Gutierrez, his chief gunnery officer, came onto the bridge and took her station; Lieutenant Commander Xiu Chan moved to stand behind the helm officer.
      "Helm, report on bogeys."
      "The nearest bogeys are eighty thousand kilometers down-range. Two frigate-class and one destroyer-class vessels, bearing three-five-two degrees and zero-one-seven degrees, both negative one-zero degrees from the plane of travel. The UNSC vessel..." The helmsman examined the transponder code carefully. "The UNSC starship Dante is engaged with them. She appears to be heavily damaged."
      "Comm., hail the Dante. Bordeaux to the rescue," Capt Gavin said, noting the positions of the Xerxes and Odessa on his flanks. "Chan, pick us a target."
      "Aye, sir," Chan answered, studying the pilot's console. The comm. officer nodded to Gavin.
      "Dante, this is the Bordeaux. We read you as heavily damaged; prepare to get under way."
There was a burst of static, coincident with a barrage from one of the frigates. "—copy." A voice emerged from the noise. "We're at about thirty percent, Bordeaux, and I'm not sure ..." . ".. .have enough energy to maneuver and still keep—"
      The comm. channel dissolved completely into noise. The comm. officer worked the console, but shook his head.
Then there was no time for careful analysis. Combat between space vessels was nothing like a movie, all noise and disruption; internal gravity prevented crew from being thrown from their seats by a violent enemy broadside. Ships fired from gun-mounts and torpedo tubes located all over the hull, targeting from all directions.
On attack, the objective was to overload the enemy capacity to absorb incoming fire, a slow process that would eventually lead to shutdown—or even catastrophic failure—of defensive shields. On the other hand, every ship defensive field had a complex structure like a crystal,—if struck just right— penetrated by a single shot, piercing the defensive field all the way to the enemy ship's hull. The enormous force and heat of an incoming shot could be devastating against bare metal. This was a lesson learned way before they had adapted the enemy's own technology to supplement their own.
      "She's coming about, Captain," Chan said
      "Good. Maybe she'll let go of Dante for a minute." The UNSC ship's defensive shields were radiating well into the white, indicating that they were close to overload. "Looks like he's taken a breach aft on the port side."
      "Copy on the breach, sir," Chan answered.
      "Damn. Gunnery lay down a pattern. Let's get his attention."
      "Ready to fire, sir," Pam's voice came back.
      "Fire at will."
      Six super hot spheres of energy surged from MAC tubes in the Bordeaux's, belly and streaked across the intervening space to their target. Gavin imagined that he felt them go all six struck the field of the enemy destroyer, between its aft section and roughly amidships.
      "Brace for return fire."
But while the destroyer had aligned itself better to receive the incoming fire, it had not changed its target, and continued to pour energy into the nearby Dante. Captain Gavin ordered another barrage, and it, too, found its mark, while the Dante's shields began to register brighter and brighter.
      "Dante's taken damage. Enemy destroyer as been rendered dead in space, Captain," Chan reported. "I estimate that she's got five minutes, on the outside, unless we knock out one of the other two opponents. Even then..."
      "Helm ahead one-quarter. Comm, hail the Dante. Tell them to get the hell out." He heard the hail go out, not sure if it would be received, as he watched the destroyer-class Covenant vessel grow in the forward screen. They were coming into direct-fire range now.
      "Fire Archer missiles at will."
      The Bordeaux's forward autocannon batteries were striking accurately; the enemy was starting to glow. The Dante was clearly trying to withdraw, but its ion drive had been damaged by the hull hit, and didn't seem to be responding.
      The Bordeaux's target, though clearly starting to feel the effects of the barrage, had not sent a single erg of energy against its attacker: it continued to fire on the Dante, which was blossoming patches of deep plumes of fire.
      "She's going to blow," Chan said, his voice level.
      "Comm, hail the Dante, tell them to abandon. Bordeaux will provide covering fire for escape craft. Helm, close with the Dante—"
      "No time," Chan interrupted...
And suddenly, the forward screen polarized to white, and then shut down altogether for a few seconds.
      "Beginning evasive maneuvers," helm said, "on your order, Captain."
      "Do it," Gavin said immediately. The viewscreen came back on, showing the two frigates beginning to navigate around the expanding ball of blue-hot gas that, moments before, had been the starship Dante. Now it was just debris, a casualty of the battle.
      The Bordeaux applied reverse thrust to reduce her velocity as she closed with the battle scene, but it strained her inertial dampers somewhat; also, once lost, velocity can only be regained through the expenditure of energy, and much of her power was being devoted to other systems. Thus, while the remains of the Dante dispersed, the Bordeaux simply veered around her, and after Gavin noted the close position of the Odessa, he nodded in approval as his ship bore down on the two enemies.
Frigate-class Covenant starships were by no means the bottom of the line, and had been fighting with almost no propulsion velocity: they were drifting, maintaining position with attitude controls alone. The Dante, a generation newer than the Bordeaux, would have been a match for both ships if it had been uninjured.
      "Those bastards," he said quietly, to himself. As the Bordeaux closed in, debris from the rapidly cooling explosion fell across the ship's path, gave up its kinetic energy, and drifted along, as if it had nowhere else to go.

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