Read Online Forge of War (Jack of Harts) by Medron Pryde - Free Book Online
Authors: Medron Pryde
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answer?” He flicked the stick over, altering their course just a little bit to starboard. Betty maneuvered them around that base course, thrusters flaring with each shift, while the laser turret spun and fired.
“Response on the way,” Betty returned. “Damn. Deflection grid held.”
“Do it,” Jack ordered and set his teeth.
The Avenger spun around on its axis, turning towards its attacker, as another almost random flare of thrusters sent her up and over a salvo of missiles. The laser turret pulsed the deflection grid, bending away from the target with each shot. The grav cannons missed the Shang fighter that was desperately maneuvering to avoid being killed, but swept across its deflection grid, collapsing it instantly. The four barrels of the laser turret went to rapid fire, shredding the fighter in seconds as the Avenger spun back to face her general course.
Jack swallowed as a frigate came back into view, her laser turrets and missile bays spraying all over the Cowboy formation. He glanced at the displays to see that a quarter of the Shang fighters, one credited to his wingman, were down with no Cowboy casualties. A flash of light heralded a successful missile strike on Johanson’s fighter. Jack gritted his teeth as the Colonel’s Avenger spun out of control, deflection grid sputtering in and out.
“Cover him!” Jack ordered and Betty brought their Avenger around to fire the grav cannons at a fighter trying to take advantage of the Colonel’s situation. Lasers followed up and the Shang fighter ceased to exist.
The frigate focused fire though and Johanson’s fighter ripped apart under the assault. His wingman banked away, lasers playing across more Shang fighters, but the frigate’s fire turned to destroy it too.
“Damn,” Jack whispered, scanning the plot quickly. The two senior officers, the only two Cowboys who had been pilots when The War started, were gone, just like that. The Peloran squadron was making headway against its attackers, and the Peloran fighter formation was reforming now that the Cowboys had pulled some of the Shang off their case.
But if they didn’t do something about the damned frigates, they were all going to be in a world of hurt. He took in a deep breath, readying himself to give the order. He wasn’t the highest ranked of those remaining, but somebody had to give the order to do it.
“Wait one second,” Betty said, smiling at him.
Jack let the breath out slowly, gazing at Betty’s hologram.
“Cowboy Three to all Cowboys,” Woodchuck’s voice transmitted into his cockpit as the frigate flashed on his displays, showing the whole datalink had locked it. “Let’s kill it.”
“Oorah,” Jack answered the man that was barely his superior without hesitation in chorus with the other Cowboys. He smiled at Betty. “I didn’t think he’d step up.”
“Neither did he until he had to,” she returned, her avatar looking towards the frigate in the distance. “Don’t worry, Jack. Your time will come. I have faith in you.”
The Cowboys swung around, locking onto the frigate, and twenty grav cannons fired on the frigate. It was a much smaller target than the cruisers they’d fired on before, designed for fighter suppression. True warships could destroy it with relative ease, while it lacked the heavy weapons to threaten larger warships. That was probably why the Peloran warships had mostly ignored it and its sisters in favor of ships that were actually penetrating their deflection grids. Unfortunately for the frigate, the Avengers mounted gravitic cannons designed to take down larger warship deflection grids. A grid designed to deflect the lighter weapons fighters typically carried collapsed under the Avengers’ fire and the frigate belched atmosphere and fire. The laser turrets played across it and the frigate began to drift out of the conflict, power systems sputtering out.
The displays flashed and Jack
“Response on the way,” Betty returned. “Damn. Deflection grid held.”
“Do it,” Jack ordered and set his teeth.
The Avenger spun around on its axis, turning towards its attacker, as another almost random flare of thrusters sent her up and over a salvo of missiles. The laser turret pulsed the deflection grid, bending away from the target with each shot. The grav cannons missed the Shang fighter that was desperately maneuvering to avoid being killed, but swept across its deflection grid, collapsing it instantly. The four barrels of the laser turret went to rapid fire, shredding the fighter in seconds as the Avenger spun back to face her general course.
Jack swallowed as a frigate came back into view, her laser turrets and missile bays spraying all over the Cowboy formation. He glanced at the displays to see that a quarter of the Shang fighters, one credited to his wingman, were down with no Cowboy casualties. A flash of light heralded a successful missile strike on Johanson’s fighter. Jack gritted his teeth as the Colonel’s Avenger spun out of control, deflection grid sputtering in and out.
“Cover him!” Jack ordered and Betty brought their Avenger around to fire the grav cannons at a fighter trying to take advantage of the Colonel’s situation. Lasers followed up and the Shang fighter ceased to exist.
The frigate focused fire though and Johanson’s fighter ripped apart under the assault. His wingman banked away, lasers playing across more Shang fighters, but the frigate’s fire turned to destroy it too.
“Damn,” Jack whispered, scanning the plot quickly. The two senior officers, the only two Cowboys who had been pilots when The War started, were gone, just like that. The Peloran squadron was making headway against its attackers, and the Peloran fighter formation was reforming now that the Cowboys had pulled some of the Shang off their case.
But if they didn’t do something about the damned frigates, they were all going to be in a world of hurt. He took in a deep breath, readying himself to give the order. He wasn’t the highest ranked of those remaining, but somebody had to give the order to do it.
“Wait one second,” Betty said, smiling at him.
Jack let the breath out slowly, gazing at Betty’s hologram.
“Cowboy Three to all Cowboys,” Woodchuck’s voice transmitted into his cockpit as the frigate flashed on his displays, showing the whole datalink had locked it. “Let’s kill it.”
“Oorah,” Jack answered the man that was barely his superior without hesitation in chorus with the other Cowboys. He smiled at Betty. “I didn’t think he’d step up.”
“Neither did he until he had to,” she returned, her avatar looking towards the frigate in the distance. “Don’t worry, Jack. Your time will come. I have faith in you.”
The Cowboys swung around, locking onto the frigate, and twenty grav cannons fired on the frigate. It was a much smaller target than the cruisers they’d fired on before, designed for fighter suppression. True warships could destroy it with relative ease, while it lacked the heavy weapons to threaten larger warships. That was probably why the Peloran warships had mostly ignored it and its sisters in favor of ships that were actually penetrating their deflection grids. Unfortunately for the frigate, the Avengers mounted gravitic cannons designed to take down larger warship deflection grids. A grid designed to deflect the lighter weapons fighters typically carried collapsed under the Avengers’ fire and the frigate belched atmosphere and fire. The laser turrets played across it and the frigate began to drift out of the conflict, power systems sputtering out.
The displays flashed and Jack
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