Read Online Valley of Fires: A Conquered Earth Novel (The Conquered Earth Series) by J. Barton Mitchell - Free Book Online
Authors: J. Barton Mitchell
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screaming forward.
It was what Holt expected. Raptor gunships, racing ahead of the ground forces toward the approaching Landships. If those gunships wanted, they could be on the main grouping, the unarmed and defenseless ones, in minutes.
Olive knew the same thing. “Unfurl!” she yelled, running for the helm while everyone else scrambled to their positions. “Unfurl!”
The red spear point slammed back onto Masyn’s Lancet with another ping. Either it had been taken for the signal flare, or the other Captains had figured out the same thing. The crews of every Landship around them were scrambling to unfurl their sails too.
“Checklist?” Olive’s first mate shouted as he started climbing the central mast.
“No time! Full Chinook. Now! ”
The wind roared above Holt’s head as it was focused and intensified by the artifact, bellowing out the ship’s massive sails. The Wind Rift rocked, and Holt held on, trying to—
Explosions flared up in the distance.
With wide eyes, Holt saw the swarm of gunships streak over and rain down yellow plasma onto the ships in the distance. Their Barriers blazed to life, but flames erupted everywhere.
He could hear the sounds of Raptor engines. Could see several dozen of them bank hard right and separate from the others. He knew what it meant.
“They’re coming this way!” someone shouted.
Holt’s eyes searched for and found the Wind Star, far away, rocking wildly as a blast erupted near it, but, like the others, it kept moving, dashing toward the Spiders … and, right next to it, the first of the armed Landships exploded in a ball of fire that arced into the sky.
Then the gunships roared over the Wind Rift, and the ground all around them was bursting apart too.
* * *
DANE BARELY MANAGED TO leap from the deck of the Wind Thrust before it exploded in a massive fireball. Three of his Arc hadn’t been fast enough. The Barriers on the ship had taken their share of punishment from the air assault, but had eventually failed.
The Raptors had made short work of it after that.
Another Landship blew apart, spraying fiery splinters all through the air. He saw some of the Arc there, leaping to safety, but not all.
“Damn it!” he cursed as he hit the ground, dashing forward as more plasma bolts rained down, dodging through them. The Freebooter’s Barriers hadn’t been enough, and it was tempting to blame what was happening on her, but it was plain to see where the real blame lay.
On him.
He’d pushed for this frontal assault. He’d heard Mira’s claims about air support, and he’d ignored them. He should have thought strategically. Gideon had always preached strength, but he had also drilled in the idea that strength could never be relied on alone.
Dane had been a fool, and people, friends of his, were dying because of it.
He had to salvage this, he told himself. He wasn’t going to lose the first battle of the war. “Spread out!” he yelled, and his Arc and the others around him obeyed instantly. Right now they were clumped up, easy targets. More explosions flared. “ Agility! ” Dane touched the rings on his index and middle fingers together, calling the power, and felt the world slow around him, the comforting sensation of near weightlessness as everything colored in a hue of yellow.
He and the rest of the Helix dashed forward. More leapt from their ships and followed, weaving in and out of the plasma fire.
Ahead, Dane finally saw the enemy with clarity. The Spider walkers, painted a brilliant shade of crimson, their giant legs moving them forward in lines that stretched from one edge of the horizon to another. The sight was sobering. How could anyone expect to survive against that ? But he didn’t have to survive, did he? He just had to last long enough to let the others escape … to let her escape.
From behind, he heard dozens of loud percussive pings. Above his head, streaks of color, red, blue, and green, arced forward through the air.
It was what Holt expected. Raptor gunships, racing ahead of the ground forces toward the approaching Landships. If those gunships wanted, they could be on the main grouping, the unarmed and defenseless ones, in minutes.
Olive knew the same thing. “Unfurl!” she yelled, running for the helm while everyone else scrambled to their positions. “Unfurl!”
The red spear point slammed back onto Masyn’s Lancet with another ping. Either it had been taken for the signal flare, or the other Captains had figured out the same thing. The crews of every Landship around them were scrambling to unfurl their sails too.
“Checklist?” Olive’s first mate shouted as he started climbing the central mast.
“No time! Full Chinook. Now! ”
The wind roared above Holt’s head as it was focused and intensified by the artifact, bellowing out the ship’s massive sails. The Wind Rift rocked, and Holt held on, trying to—
Explosions flared up in the distance.
With wide eyes, Holt saw the swarm of gunships streak over and rain down yellow plasma onto the ships in the distance. Their Barriers blazed to life, but flames erupted everywhere.
He could hear the sounds of Raptor engines. Could see several dozen of them bank hard right and separate from the others. He knew what it meant.
“They’re coming this way!” someone shouted.
Holt’s eyes searched for and found the Wind Star, far away, rocking wildly as a blast erupted near it, but, like the others, it kept moving, dashing toward the Spiders … and, right next to it, the first of the armed Landships exploded in a ball of fire that arced into the sky.
Then the gunships roared over the Wind Rift, and the ground all around them was bursting apart too.
* * *
DANE BARELY MANAGED TO leap from the deck of the Wind Thrust before it exploded in a massive fireball. Three of his Arc hadn’t been fast enough. The Barriers on the ship had taken their share of punishment from the air assault, but had eventually failed.
The Raptors had made short work of it after that.
Another Landship blew apart, spraying fiery splinters all through the air. He saw some of the Arc there, leaping to safety, but not all.
“Damn it!” he cursed as he hit the ground, dashing forward as more plasma bolts rained down, dodging through them. The Freebooter’s Barriers hadn’t been enough, and it was tempting to blame what was happening on her, but it was plain to see where the real blame lay.
On him.
He’d pushed for this frontal assault. He’d heard Mira’s claims about air support, and he’d ignored them. He should have thought strategically. Gideon had always preached strength, but he had also drilled in the idea that strength could never be relied on alone.
Dane had been a fool, and people, friends of his, were dying because of it.
He had to salvage this, he told himself. He wasn’t going to lose the first battle of the war. “Spread out!” he yelled, and his Arc and the others around him obeyed instantly. Right now they were clumped up, easy targets. More explosions flared. “ Agility! ” Dane touched the rings on his index and middle fingers together, calling the power, and felt the world slow around him, the comforting sensation of near weightlessness as everything colored in a hue of yellow.
He and the rest of the Helix dashed forward. More leapt from their ships and followed, weaving in and out of the plasma fire.
Ahead, Dane finally saw the enemy with clarity. The Spider walkers, painted a brilliant shade of crimson, their giant legs moving them forward in lines that stretched from one edge of the horizon to another. The sight was sobering. How could anyone expect to survive against that ? But he didn’t have to survive, did he? He just had to last long enough to let the others escape … to let her escape.
From behind, he heard dozens of loud percussive pings. Above his head, streaks of color, red, blue, and green, arced forward through the air.
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