deadly little ships, and they were all heading straight for them.
Gee redirected his attention from the vids to the system controls that monitored the mothership's hull integrity and life-support units. He was pleased to see that the initial pass had not caused significant damage, but he knew that could not last for long. A quick check of their time showed exactly how long those systems needed to last—eighteen more minutes.
"Gee, what's goin' on?"
* * *
"Minith fighters." Gee's simple declaration came through the command carrier's speakers and Grant shook his head. He had hoped to make it to the surface of Waa without encountering the Minith space fighters, but their luck had given out.
"Damn. How's the ship?"
"Good for now. But it won't last," the engineer reported calmly. "There are too many of them, and they have extremely efficient weapons."
As if lending credence to his claim, the ship was rocked by a second, though less vicious, blast.
"On the positive side, they don't appear to be very accurate," Gee added when the trembling halted.
"Well, that's something to celebrate, I suppose." Grant did not transmit the sarcastic remark to the engineer. Instead, he sent a message across the all-units comm channel. "Everyone seal your vehicles and get comfortable. This is going to get bumpy the rest of the way."
If the mothership lost structural integrity in this portion of the vessel, the oxygen would be sucked from the bay quickly. Those within carriers vehicles should be okay, but the soldiers outside of carriers would die quickly. He was considering having as many of the unprotected crowd into nearby vehicles when Titan's voice entered the carrier.
"Grant!"
"Kind of busy here, Titan," Grant growled, and the ship shook with another blast. Then another. The Minith fighters seemed to have improved in their accuracy.
"Just listen! You need to hear this. Patahbay says we need to get ready for the Waa."
"The Waa? We're under attack! We'll be lucky to make it to the surface in one piece."
"No, you don't understand! The Waa are about to—"
The shudder of an explosion, the loudest yet, cut off the other man's words.
"Dammit!" Grant's right fist slammed the side of the carrier in anger and frustration.
* * *
Rala gasped and her large ears twitched in surprise.
Without warning, a green beam of light lanced upward from the ship-building facility. She stared up in wonder, following the course of the beam as it pierced the sky.
When her gaze returned to the distant shipyard, the surprise she felt at seeing the unexpected light amped up yet another notch.
The hundred-plus Waa workers that had been scurrying about only moments before were now missing.
Her shock at the Waa's sudden absence was soon forgotten. Scores of carriers were landing and discharging their cargoes of well-armed Minith soldiers. The skies in the distance grew dark as hundreds of similar carriers approached the shipyard.
She doubted that she would get a chance to question any of the humans on board the incoming ship.
A pity.
* * *
Gee could do nothing but watch and wait as the ship was chewed up by each passing run of the Minith fighters.
The portion of the ship's hull that had been repaired by the Telgorans was breached. Fortunately, no one remained in that portion of the vessel. and the internal partitions designed to protect the rest of the craft worked as designed. But it was just a matter of time before one of the Minith attacks found an engine or the section of hull protecting the command center or the loading bay.
At this rate of destruction, they could not survive the remaining sixteen minutes it would take to reach the surface.
Gee was wondering how it would feel to die when the hum of the ship's engines went dead.
The resulting silence was powerful. It was also brief, as the most powerful
Gee redirected his attention from the vids to the system controls that monitored the mothership's hull integrity and life-support units. He was pleased to see that the initial pass had not caused significant damage, but he knew that could not last for long. A quick check of their time showed exactly how long those systems needed to last—eighteen more minutes.
"Gee, what's goin' on?"
* * *
"Minith fighters." Gee's simple declaration came through the command carrier's speakers and Grant shook his head. He had hoped to make it to the surface of Waa without encountering the Minith space fighters, but their luck had given out.
"Damn. How's the ship?"
"Good for now. But it won't last," the engineer reported calmly. "There are too many of them, and they have extremely efficient weapons."
As if lending credence to his claim, the ship was rocked by a second, though less vicious, blast.
"On the positive side, they don't appear to be very accurate," Gee added when the trembling halted.
"Well, that's something to celebrate, I suppose." Grant did not transmit the sarcastic remark to the engineer. Instead, he sent a message across the all-units comm channel. "Everyone seal your vehicles and get comfortable. This is going to get bumpy the rest of the way."
If the mothership lost structural integrity in this portion of the vessel, the oxygen would be sucked from the bay quickly. Those within carriers vehicles should be okay, but the soldiers outside of carriers would die quickly. He was considering having as many of the unprotected crowd into nearby vehicles when Titan's voice entered the carrier.
"Grant!"
"Kind of busy here, Titan," Grant growled, and the ship shook with another blast. Then another. The Minith fighters seemed to have improved in their accuracy.
"Just listen! You need to hear this. Patahbay says we need to get ready for the Waa."
"The Waa? We're under attack! We'll be lucky to make it to the surface in one piece."
"No, you don't understand! The Waa are about to—"
The shudder of an explosion, the loudest yet, cut off the other man's words.
"Dammit!" Grant's right fist slammed the side of the carrier in anger and frustration.
* * *
Rala gasped and her large ears twitched in surprise.
Without warning, a green beam of light lanced upward from the ship-building facility. She stared up in wonder, following the course of the beam as it pierced the sky.
When her gaze returned to the distant shipyard, the surprise she felt at seeing the unexpected light amped up yet another notch.
The hundred-plus Waa workers that had been scurrying about only moments before were now missing.
Her shock at the Waa's sudden absence was soon forgotten. Scores of carriers were landing and discharging their cargoes of well-armed Minith soldiers. The skies in the distance grew dark as hundreds of similar carriers approached the shipyard.
She doubted that she would get a chance to question any of the humans on board the incoming ship.
A pity.
* * *
Gee could do nothing but watch and wait as the ship was chewed up by each passing run of the Minith fighters.
The portion of the ship's hull that had been repaired by the Telgorans was breached. Fortunately, no one remained in that portion of the vessel. and the internal partitions designed to protect the rest of the craft worked as designed. But it was just a matter of time before one of the Minith attacks found an engine or the section of hull protecting the command center or the loading bay.
At this rate of destruction, they could not survive the remaining sixteen minutes it would take to reach the surface.
Gee was wondering how it would feel to die when the hum of the ship's engines went dead.
The resulting silence was powerful. It was also brief, as the most powerful
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