[Black Fleet Crisis(3)

“Coming up on the break, ” said Skids, glancing at the mission clock and then at the broken surface of the alpha moon, rushing toward them.

“I’m on top of it, ” said Tuketu.

“You’d better be, ” was the nervous reply. “My mama’s counting on me doing more with my life than making a hole in the ground someplace where they already got enough holes in the ground. “

“Break in ten, ” said Tuketu. “Signaling the others. Break in five. ” A collision alarm began to sound in the cockpit. The moon’s surface seemed terribly close.

“Break! “

The entire spaceship shuddered as the emergency deceleration thrusters roared and the nose of the K-wing swung up toward the horizon. Tuketu and Skids were slammed back into their flight couches as the moon rotated dizzily under them. Breathing came hard throughout the long moments of the pullout.

When the ship stopped shaking and it was possible to breathe again, Tuketu’s ship was skimming the surface of the alpha moon with only two other bombers nestled in behind. The K-wings had scattered in six groups, each taking a different compass heading to the target. With luck, they would meet again over the aperture of the electromagnetic gun.

“Pardon me, but has anyone seen my wits? ” Skids said in a squeaky voice. “I had them right here just a moment ago-” Tuketu laughed.

“That was fun, wasn’t it? “

“Fun? ” Skids shook his head. “Fun like having a rancor sit on your lap is fun. Sir, I am afraid I must relieve you of command, effective immediately, on the grounds that you are clearly insane. Please surrender the controls and come along quietly. “

Smiling, Tuketu reached overhead and adjusted the trim thrusters. “We were a little late getting to the first ground check. I’m taking us up a couple of points. Check back there and make sure the others stay with us. “

“Copy, Tuke, ” Skids said, twisting his head first to the left, then to the right. “By the jewel of Haarkan, you put that much ordnance on a K, and you get one mean-looking, chip-on-a-shoulder, fixing-for-trouble star kitty. “

“Let’s hope we don’t need all of it, ” Tuketu said soberly, almost to himself.

According to reports Fleet Intelligence had provided to the Fifth’s planners, Bessimir’s hypervelocity gun fired at a rate of 120 slugs per minute, though rarely for more than ten seconds at a time. To avoid deflecting the superaccelerated projectiles, the particle shield protecting the gun was synchronized with the firing controller. The shield would open for each outbound slug when the gun was fired, while the ray shielding would remain in place throughout, protecting the emplacement from any long-range counterfire.

Open, close, open, close, like the winking eye of a shutter, like a tempting carnival game. Time the opening correctly and win the prize.

That was why two of the three K-wings in each flight were configured as penetrators, carrying no energy weapons at all-just ordinary slug cannon and an extraordinary number of flechette missiles.

If even one round, one explosive splinter, could slip through and find its target-.

But to have even that slim chance, they had to get very close-and something had to coax the gunners into firing.

That something was the New Republic Star DestroyerResolve . Specially outfitted with multiple shields into which were poured the full power of her engines, she came out of hyperspace nearly dead center in the gun’s field of fire. The K-wings were approaching the perimeter of the shield zone, hiding in the clutter, hugging every contour of the surface as they closed in.

A’baht watched nervously, his shoulder spines rippling.

A few moments longer, and the approaching bombers would be spotted, the threat analyzed. “Fire, ” he whispered. “Come on-take the bait. “

Esege Tuketu, watching his penetrators race toward the red line on his battle display, tensed himself for the high-G abort maneuver he expected them to have to execute.

A heartbeat stretched out to a lifetime.

On impulse, Tuketu thumbed his comm switch and broke comm silence.

“Red Leader to Red Two, Red Three, stay on the tower, stay on it! “

“What are you doing? ” Skids demanded.

Tuketu shook his head. “We have to get the game in before it rains. “

Red Three suddenly broke right, away from its target, trying to escape the invisible wall that lay ahead. But Red Two flew past the wave-off point and opened fire. Streams of silver missiles flashed from under its wings toward the stubby shield tower in their sights.

“Sorry, Tuke, too late, going around, ” Red Three called.

At the same moment, the big gun roared, belching a staccato stream of slugs toward theResolve .