The ship had its blast shields closed and was ready for battle. On the huge screen that substituted the bridge’s blocked window Robin watched the planet coming closer at a rapid pace. Burning hot flames licked at the ship’s edges when they entered the atmosphere but their excited pilot didn’t slow down at all.
After just a few minutes he could see Data Falls, the capital of Bloom I. The small city was completely different from anything he knew from Rucasur. No huge buildings tried to touch the sky and no PTVs and CTVs filled the city’s airspace. It was as if the whole town had been built in a time before the great era of technology and spacetravel. The style of the buildings was practical and cheap, big concrete blocks strung together with narrow, empty streets in between. Robin wasn’t sure if the lack of people was because everyone stayed at home due to the battle nearby or if it was just that Data Falls had few citizens in the first place.
He had only a brief moment to make out the smaller details when they got closer before Happy steered them towards the mountainous region in the south. Huge mountains grew from the ground and reached all the way up into the sky. They were so tall that the clouds couldn’t pass above anymore, plunging the foothills into thick nebulae.
When they got closer, Robin soon saw bright flashes flickering in the foggy region.
- Red flashes, probably energy projectiles
Proto confirmed his guess and also made a quick announcement. “Be ready, we’re entering the combat zone.”
“Ang’Tue, scanning! I want a map of the region’s topography.” Robin called but the Eltaran was already a step ahead. One of the bridge’s big screens showed a detailed map of the area around them and he even managed to put an overlay on the window-screen for Happy to highlight the ground and natural obstacles that were otherwise hidden to the naked eye by the fog.
“Can we get markers for the troops below? Preferably colored to differentiate between friend and foe.” Alena asked.
“Not yet, I need more data first.” Proto said, “Ang’Tue don’t stop scanning, use a wider range of frequencies, too. I’ll work on the visualization, just concentrate on getting the most out of the module.”
“Roger!”
“There!” Robin shouted when he found an area that looked like the entry to a valley within the mountains. The flashes from the battle below came from nearby as well.
“I’m going in! Alena!”
“Ready.” The woman confirmed and gave Niu a stern nod.
The Relentless Stride dived down and broke through the clouds moments later, clearing the view of the fight on the ground.
“Burn in Plasma!” Robin gasped when he saw the battlefield. There were at least ten huge tanks that moved in a wide half-circle towards the valley’s entry which was protected by fortified stations, effectively making use of the topology and creating a chokepoint that was easier to defend than a wide front.
The tanks were UAS standard that Robin knew from the news and movies. They were the size of a small spaceship, at least ten meters long, and hovered above the ground. The tanks had mounted different turrets, like big energy cannons or ballistic gatlings, he even saw one with a rack of rockets. Between the tanks were numerous mobile units, robots of different kinds. Each made for combat with smaller targets and a good addition to complement the heavy tanks.
The defenders, the Eltaran, had three small fortified bunker-like structures which were under heavy fire right now. As he watched, Robin saw one of them blow up in a big explosion, while another one managed to take out one of the tanks with a shot that had to be short-range artillery. Behind the bunkers were two towers that fired lasting lasers every now and then, each time taking out a mobile unit. Around the towers shields were flashing under the enemy’s attacks.
Wrecks of destroyed tanks and robots lay around everywhere and Robin saw that the bunkers weren’t the first line of defense but at least the second or third. Behind the enemy’s front were the remains of numerous broken structures that probably had once been bunkers as well.
“Okay, the situation looks grim.” He muttered as Happy brought them closer rapidly.
Suddenly the image flickered once and all the tanks and mobile units had red makers floating atop, while the bunkers had blue ones and behind them, back in the valley, a few vehicles he hadn’t noticed earlier were marked in green.
“The battlefield is much more organized than I expected, that makes the identifying and tagging much simpler.” Proto said and Robin was glad that the AI put in the extra effort to simulate the colors with the Neuro Chip for him.
Robin’s mind went into overdrive as he analyzed the situation. They had to minimize the risk of retaliation as quickly as possible.
“The missile turret first, then concentrate fire on those with heavy cannons!” No sooner had he finished speaking did the markers change. Proto quickly highlighted the relevant tanks while fading out others.
“Thanks!” Alena said and was about to open fire when Happy chimed in.
“Go for the cannons, I take the primary target.”
Before Robin could even ask, Niu switched to VTOL-mode and the legs from the Relentless Stride turned downwards. In one fluid motion, the ship drifted past the first few tanks – then gravity pulled the massive walker down to the ground.
With a loud crash the ship entered the battlefield directly on top of the tank with the missile rack like a hungry beast that jumped at its prey. While the armored vehicle was big, the walker was bigger – much bigger. It simply stomped the tank flat into the ground, making a few rockets explode below its massive leg. The ship slightly shook, but wasn’t disturbed otherwise.
Even while the ship was still dropping out of the sky, Alena opened fire at one of the highlighted targets. The tank had a shield that flared up for a moment before it winked out under the barrage. Before Niu could even make the Relentless Stride take its first step, the tank went up in a big explosion.
Alena didn’t stop firing as she switched targets and while Niu made her way to another tank, Proto took control of the PDS and also attacked one of the secondary targets.
Robin nodded appreciatively as he watched his crew obliterating the enemy’s forces. Though he knew that they had the element of surprise. While Proto and Alena were still quickly wearing down their targets, there was movement in the enemy’s line. The tank Niu was heading for retreated and while she was still able to stomp a number of mobile units, she wasn’t fast enough for the hovering vehicle.
The first projectiles hit the Stride and Robin winced at the loud cracks of the ballistic bullets. He was pretty sure that their armor would be able to defend against most if not all the attacks, but it was still unnerving to sit there and watch them attacking you.
Two more explosions rocketed through the battlefield when Alena and Proto each destroyed another target. By now they had gotten the attention of nearly all the enemies and the defending Eltaran had a moment to take a breather.
Since they weren’t in the cold space, heat was ramping up much faster and while Alena had to wait for the energy repeaters to cool down a bit, Robin saw that the three green markers started to move.
“Five tanks remaining!” Robin shouted, “Keep them busy, the Eltaran’s assault unit is moving out. They need to get through to be able to attack the camp in the back.”
Only a few mobile units opened fire at the three armored vehicles that rushed out of the valley and quickly vanished in the surrounding forest. This squad was actually a distraction that was about to attack the enemy’s camp directly to draw out the defenders while a second squad, which had sneaked out of the valley long before, would raid the camp from behind and wreck havoc among the UAVs.
As more and more energy projectiles hit their ship, Robin began to nervously shift in his seat.
- Armor negating all ballistic projectiles
- Passive shielding negating all energy projectiles
- Heating until threshold is reached: 89%
He wasn’t sure if they were in any danger even if the Stride’s hull was hot enough to be targeted by missiles, but he didn’t want to find out.
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
While Happy walked around the field and tried to stomp another tank, Alena opened fire again and worked on the next target.
It didn’t take long for her to finish it off, reducing the number of heavy attack units down to four. The remaining UAVs tried to retreat back into the direction of the camp but Happy immediately reacted and activated a short boost to the VTOLs, making the walker jump forward in a wide arc. It wasn’t a precise movement, but Happy cut the retreating tanks off again and again, keeping them near the valley.
By now not only had the pressure on the Eltaran lessened significantly but the number of energy projectiles hitting their own ship also slowly decreased, allowing the hull to cool down and keep their heat signature hidden from guided missiles.
- Hull temperature no longer raising
- Temperature stabilizing
- Heating until threshold is reached: 65%
- You have comm request from Mul’Jin
“Good job everyone.” Robin praised his friends, “You all have done an amazing job. Just four tanks remaining. Alena, continue to hunt them down. Happy, make sure that none is slipping away, they would be a significant threat to the Eltaran’s attack team. Ang’Tue, keep an eye open and immediately alert me if any more enemies approach. Proto is in command while I have a quick talk with the Eltaran.”
“Aye aye, Captain!” Niu cheered, having a great time piloting the Relentless Stride.
When the face of the Eltaran appeared on his screen a moment later, Robin shifted his attention away from the battle.
“Councilwoman Mul’Jin.” he said and dipped his head to greet the colony’s leader, “The battle on our side is going well and we’re working on defeating the last enemies as we speak.”
“Captain Tulward,” she returned the greeting with a bow, “we’ve seen your success. Thank you very much for covering our assault team and protecting our last line of defense. However, I’m contacting you with an urgent matter. Our forces have engaged the camp from two sides and are about to overwhelm their resistance. While we have the upper hand right now, regional scans detected a wing of fighters approaching from orbit.”
“Shit, how many are there?”
“If the scans are correct, there are six fighters in the formation. They’ll arrive in about three minutes. We have fought them before and while the valley is well protected, our assault teams are completely in the open. They shouldn’t be able to muster much more attack power than the tanks you just obliterated with your… ship. We can handle the remaining tanks on the ground, can you move to intercept the fighters and keep them off our backs?”
“Councilwoman, please give me a second.” Robin held up a hand and muted the comm before he looked up, “Proto, how is the risk assessment?”
“The fighters must be the remaining forces they scraped from their carriers. They shouldn’t pose a threat to us and we should be safe as long as we keep the fighting close to the ground and away from the Corvette.”
“Roger. Happy, get us back in the air!” Robin shouted and turned back to the comm, “We’re on our way. Inform your assault team that they will have four tanks coming in any moment now.”
Another small explosion went off nearby and Alena rejoiced. “Got ya’! Correct that to three tanks!”
***
Robin had just closed the comm when a deep rumbling shook the ship. Happy had activated the VTOL’s thrusters in the four thick legs and moments later the Stride began to rise back into the air amidst a thick cloud of dust.
He used the short breather before the next fight to check the ship’s status in his Interface. Everything seemed good, no damage indicators, heating was stable and resource levels were in the green as well.
“Proto, is there any strain on the ship that I do not see in my Interface?” He asked to be sure.
“None, the Relentless Stride is doing a good job at keeping us safe.”
“I have pings for the fighters!” Ang’Tue shouted and the map of the battlefield quickly shifted to the strategic map that they had used for space combat before.
With their ship as the center, and rings marking 1km, 5km, 10km, 25km and 50km distance, he quickly spotted the six approaching fighters that just passed the outer ring.
“Proto, give me an intercept course.” Niu requested and soon a transparent line was visualized as an overlay in the window-screen, guiding them towards the incoming ships.
“This ship’s capabilities are astounding.” Krez muttered from his deactivated station, speaking up for the first time.
“Jup, we really hit the jackpot with this.” Robin agreed and a sliver of pride rose in him. It was his G-Anomaly that enabled them to use the ship and his know-how as technocrafter that allowed him to repair it after all.
‘The Relentless Stride is our ticket to real journeys through the universe. Let’s make the best out of it!’
Not taking his eyes off the strategic map, Robin finally saw the fighter pass the 10km marker.
“Prepare for battle!” he shouted, “One last push and the tides should turn for the Eltaran.”
“Keeping PDS on hold, we actually might need it for defense this time.” Proto reported.
“Understood.” Alena gave a clipped answer, she was already deep in concentration and focused her eyes on the quickly approaching fighters.
Robin only saw six blurs pass by for an instant before Happy sharply yanked the ship around to give chase.
“They are still too fast for any combat, their speed is falling rapidly though.” Alena reported and moments later she opened fire.
In front of them flew a squad of sleek silver-blue military fighters, quickly approaching the camp in the distance. When Niu managed to keep up with them and Alena started to shoot, the formation broke apart and four ships made wide turns to fall into their flanks. The remaining two ships dived down closer to the ground, hoping to lose the much bigger Stride in the mountainous region.
This turned out to be a severe miscalculation as Happy expertly steered the huge ship through the mountains. With its four powerful and flexible thrusters the Stride was much more agile than other ships of its size.
“Damage negated, heat accumulating.” Proto reported when the four fighters opened fire and projectiles started to hit them from every angle.
“Ignore them and concentrate on taking out the two fighters in front of us!” Robin decided and shortly afterwards one of them turned into a bright fireball and tumbled to the ground.
- Passive shielding negating all energy projectiles
- Heating until threshold is reached: 95%
“They are heating us up quickly.” He shouted, “Alena, hurry up and get the second one. Happy, prepare to disengage to give us a moment to cool off.”
Niu didn’t answer, her eyes were glued to the screen and her hands moved in a flurry as she maneuvered between tall mountains, deep chasms and steep walls. Robin shifted nervously in his seat and sucked in sharp breaths more than once when they flew particularly close to obstacles, even though he knew that she was using her G-Anomaly to bring them safely though.
Only when they came dangerously close to the camp did Alena finally manage to take out the fighter they were chasing and Niu immediately pulled them up into the sky while spinning like a corkscrew.
- Beware of incoming missiles!
- Threshold reached
- Heating is at 132% and rising
Just as Robin was wondering if the four fighters that had them under constant fire till now would pursue them or break away and target the camp themselves, the attackers all stopped firing and turned around, flying back the way they came.
“Huh, what is that about?” Ang’Tue wondered, “They’re retreating and I don’t detect any reinforcements with the scanners.”
“What are they planning? Shall I follow them?” Niu asked.
“No, we can use a short break and let the hull cool down.” Robin shook his head, also puzzled about their behavior.
“Maybe they realized that they won’t be able to damage us and are fleeing?” Ang’Tue suggested.
“They must have known that already.” Robin muttered, “So they just came here to attack the camp? But why even break formation then? If they had stayed together, they would have easily reached the camp and gotten a chance for a fly-by attack on the Eltaran’s forces. So why sacrifice two ships? Why the theatrics?”
- Beware of incoming missiles!
- Threshold reached
- Heating is at 129% and falling
Seeing the blinking warning in his Interface, he suddenly had a bad premonition.
“Because it was theatrics!” Robin yelped, “Happy get us away from here! Back to the cloudy area, we need to cool down now!”
“Rob?” Niu asked warily while she brought the ship higher into the sky and turned to the mountains.
“They just wanted to heat us up enough to get a signature they can target.”
“But we shot down their missiles before and here in the atmosphere they are even slower. No chance that they would manage to score a hit.”
Robin knew that as well, which was why he hadn’t been too bothered by the rising heat at first. Sure he tried to keep it low, but he also hadn’t felt particularly pressured.
‘We’re missing something…’ he pondered, ‘If not missiles, what else needs targeting that would be able to reach us here, down on the planet’s surface?’
“Oh shit!” Robin said and stood up in shock.
Before he could inform the others, the ship’s alarm went off and Proto threw a loud warning.
“WARNING! Orbital strike detected! Prepare for Impact!”