The Terran Gambit (Episode #1: The Pax Humana Saga) by Endi Webb Page A

command until I hear otherwise. First priority, protect Eglin base. When base is secure, proceed to our previous assignment.”
    He wasn’t even sure if the squad’s second in command was alive, but he wasn’t going to wait to find out. People were dying out there. Good people. He gunned the engine, lifted the ship a meter off the ground, and shot through the hole in the back of the hangar, slamming into a fleeing enemy soldier for good measure, and he couldn’t help but feel a ghoulish sense of pleasure as the unlucky man’s body flew up and hit the front viewport before sliding away with the growing wind resistance.
    “Po, assess the tactical situation and divvy out orders. I’ll concentrate on not getting us killed,” he said. He smiled as she snapped into action, jabbing at her console and scanning the ground below.
    Her voice seemed transformed from earlier. Now confident, steady, and decisive, she barked out orders. “Vipers three and four, lay down suppressing fire for the Hornet and Jackal hangars. Vipers ten and twelve, take out those carriers about to land at the Wolf hangar and blast the ground troops already there. Vipers nine and eight, secure Red hangar and Dryad hangars. Everyone else, relieve the pressure on the frigate crews trying to board their ships. Shotgun and I’ll take the fighters.”
    He looked at her with raised eyebrows. “We’ll take the fighters? All of them? There’s got to be at least five up there.”
    “Can’t handle the heat, stay out of the fire, Shotgun.” He couldn’t tell from her face if she was joking or not, but a strafing burst of fire hitting the rear of the fighter focused his attention back on his flying.
    “Crash, on us. I need some backup, in spite of Po’s confidence in me.”
    Crash’s voice crackled over the comm. “You’ve got Po over there? Where the hell is Givens?”
    He saw her eyes narrow. “Down,” he said. “Kit too. Looks like Po has to settle for me.” He paused, cocking his head at her. “You’re Grizzly, aren’t you?” he said, referring to her callsign. He’d heard it before over the comm, but had never associated the callsign with her name or her face. Viper squad didn’t spend terribly large amounts of time socializing as a group, and he only somewhat remembered her face from a few briefings.
    “Yeah.” She didn’t blink as her fingers dashed across the terminal and her thumb squeezed the trigger. An unfortunate enemy fighter exploded in a fiery streak and crashed into the central courtyard of the base.
    Jake whistled. “Nice shooting, Grizzly.” He pulled up hard on the controls and they shot straight into the air, then arced and feinted towards one enemy fighter before changing course and darting towards another one. Po easily picked them off too. Jake had never flown with a gunner that could match his speed and adapt to his unpredictable flying. And he kind of hated her for it, like he would be betraying his late friend by appreciating her skill—the image of Kit slumped against the wall forced its way into his mind, and he shook his head to be rid of it.
    Crash shouted over the comm. “Nice one, Shotgun. I’m dizzy just watching you. But get a load of this.” Out of the corner of his eye he saw Viper two come to a dead stop, then plummet straight down before flipping, shooting away in the opposite direction she had been facing, and coming up hard on the tail of a hapless enemy bogey, which met a fiery end.
    “Oh yeah?” Jake smiled. He loved his back and forth with Crash, though he and Kit he almost never chalked up as many kills as the man. But somehow, he now felt a new confidence that permitted him to pull out all the stops, trying unorthodox maneuvers he was sure his old friend never would have tolerated. Po kept up without batting an eyelash. She was made of a tough cloth, apparently. He eyed her thin, black eyes and black hair tied back in a no-nonsense bun. Her flight uniform was perfectly pressed, except for