The pirate fleet kept firing. Grognard drank his rum as the estimate damage reports came in. The Alpha Market lost a gun, some crew quarters and apparently a swimming pool. Not exactly crippling damage.
The merchants were still firing at The Reroll. The Atlanta was a long way off but they were attempting long distance attacks as well. The barrage of fire was a bit worrying but the shields held for now.
Grognard was so busy watching the shields report that he barely noticed when a laser shot from The Slapstick slammed into the thruster array on The Alpha Market. The engines on the Grand Freighter winked out.
“Captain, The Alpha Market just surrendered!” Isis reported.
“Thank the Lords of Space for pirate clowns!” Grognard said. “What about the other merchant?”
“They are ignoring our demands to surrender,” Isis reported.
“Send a trophy crew to The Alpha Market,” Grognard ordered. He watched as the pirates finally completed their turning arc and resumed pursuit of the merchants. The Atlanta had closed a lot of space and would be on them soon.
The shooting continued. The ranges were far but everyone was still trying. The pirates shifted their focus to the tanker since it was closest but the occasional shot that managed to hit bounced off its shield. The Atlanta was moving at high speed and quickly zipped past the fleeing merchants.
Grognard refilled his rum mug at the keg. He thought about having a keg installed in his command chair.
“Open fire on The Atlanta. Blast her from the sky!” Grognard said.
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| Image of the battle provided by Googley Spy Satellite #92 |
Missiles flew from The Reroll. Grognard chugged his rum as the Atlanta tried to evade. It almost succeeded but both missiles hit their mark. A shield flickered out and the missile launchers on the destroyer vanished into a cloud of debris.
Grognard choked on his rum. “Are they still alive?”
“Barely!” Isis reported. “Guns have missed and The Slapstick just blew up The Atlanta’s rec room. Still, they have no missiles and we destroyed their shields.”
“We really need to talk to those clowns about their aim,” Grognard said.
He watched as The Atlanta powered up their jump engines and vanished. Grognard threw his mug at the screen and rum splattered everywhere.
“We’ll kill you next time you fleeing bastards!” he swore.
The crew cheered his oath. Or maybe they cheered to hide their giggles at his little tantrum. Either way, Grognard was annoyed.
“Kill me some merchants,” he commanded. “Someone get me another mug!”
Grognard sat back in his chair. Someone handed him another mug full of rum.
The pursuit took place on the tactical screen. The merchants were slow but they had a head start from the pirate’s turning earlier. The merchants kept firing but the pirates held theirs. Grognard was tired of missing. He wanted to let the merchants freak out a little.
It only took a minute to catch up but the tensions kept building. Grognard felt his heart beat rise as they closed in. He wanted blood.
“Open fire on the tanker,” he commanded. The Grand Freighter would be a tougher nut to crack.
The Reroll and The Slapstick fired their guns. The Wray was remarkably durable. Damage was inflicted to the tanker’s hull but it kept steady.
“Fire missiles,” Grognard said.
Missiles from both pirate ships slammed into The Wray. Grognard felt a warm tingle at the sight of the carnage.
“They lost their guns!” Isis reported. “Uh, they also sent us an image of a pile of feces. I doubt they are surrendering.”
Grognard shook his head. And here he thought humans loved money. The Zhuh-Zhuh’s were stubborn monkeys.
“Uhh, Captain?” Isis said.
He did not like that tone. “What is it?” he asked.
“More Star Navy forces are arriving from Galactic West. Three squads of fighters.”
To be continued
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