“Subsidiary hierarch,” Nanil said slowly, a strange sense of peace settling over her. “Ready the squadron for another attack run on the hive vessel.”
He looked at her. They were under attack, zig-zagging across hundreds of thousands of kilometers choked with wreckage and fire, fighting off the incessant swarms of falconets determined to kill them. “Doyenne,” he said carefully. “There’s no one else to assist us.” He was correct. Every other vessel was either engaged itself or too badly damaged to help. Their other two attack runs had failed even at full strength and additional support.
“I know,” she said heavily.
“If we line up for an attack on the hive,” he pointed out calmly, no challenge in his words. “The vessels in pursuit will be clear to engage our aft vector.” There was no telling how many of their ships would die on the way in. Assured and Disciplined Response, certainly. Probably Measured Rejection of Obstruction as well. Then they’d have to face the hive’s guns. None of them would live long enough to fire on the hive.
“Its shields are showing signs of severe strain,” she replied. Even a monster like that had limits. “If we can get a sustained burst on it, we might be able to breach its defences. No one else has our core release systems. If even only one of us gets through, we can kill it. But if we don’t, if we let it restore its shields, it’s over. It will pick us off and the MQAD doesn’t have enough units to beat it back down before it escapes.” They wouldn’t even survive to get into range. “If we don’t stop it,” She smiled, remembering her discussion with Red One about missions with the highest fulfillment of duty. “No one else can.”
She’d said she’d wondered what Jaolk-Xiana had felt in the Furnace. Maybe it was something like this. A sense of tranquility, even acceptance. She wasn’t afraid. A fear of death meant you thought you could still avoid it. She knew this would be her end, but she wouldn’t run from it. Her only hope was that one of her ships would succeed. Like Jaolk, she’d give everything for the Hegemony, no matter the cost. “Communications,” she ordered. “Relay the plan to our intendant hierarchs, and give me a fleetwide channel. Do what you can about the interference.”
Her comm officer bobbed her head. “Channel ready, doyenne. It’s as clean as I can make it.”
“Hierarch Nanil-Wanlei to... remaining vessels of Assemblage 182,” the silver-coated young woman said. “The enemy’s shields are nearing collapse. I am going to begin an attack run on the hive vessel. Whatever you can spare to distract its screening craft or damage it further would be appreciated. Guard the Throne and may the Hegemony endure.” She closed the channel, not even knowing who’d heard her and even if they did, she was just another one of the voices vying for their attention as their vessels died around them.
And then, a voice. Not confirmation from her remaining hierarchs or any of the fleet’s remaining personnel, but from Implacable Agent of Retribution. The carronade vessel was crossing out from behind Meer Colhara, its prow sliding into darkness as it passed across the terminator. “Nanil,” Red One spoke. “Wait.”
“I have to,” Nanil replied. “We’re the only ones that can stop that thing before it breaks past lunar orbit.”
“You’ll die.”
“As long as one of us gets-”
The synth interrupted her rationale. “None of you are going to get through,” Red One said. “I’ve been analyzing the hive’s response. It knows what you are and it’s expecting this suicide run. It will cut your squadron to pieces before you get into firing range.”
“We have to try. We’re running out of time, Red One. I have to do this.”
There was a sound from the comm. Nanil wasn’t sure what it was, if it was distortion from the Meer-Ulson’s jamming or something the alien synth made. “You won’t make it through,” Red One told her, “but I can. I can cover your approach.”
Nanil blinked. “No,” she said immediately. “No, the hive vessel has core release cannon. We’re small and maneuverable; they can’t track us with those systems.” The hive had upgraded its weapons, but its sensors were still war era technology. They couldn’t lock onto something as fast as border sentinel.
“Your core release systems are omnidirectional. Its aren’t. It can only fire them in its front arc.”
Nanil blinked, realization hitting her like a headbutt. Red One was right. The hive’s core release cannon were all aimed forward. Maybe- “No,” she repeated, cutting her train of thought off. “It’s at least ten times your size and has plenty of secondary armaments.”
“They don’t matter,” the synth asserted.
“What? Of course they-”
“Those guns are different from the weapons the Meer-Ulson used during the war, aren’t they? Narrow-focus, high penetration. They’re designed to breach shields. Your ships have impressive shields, but minimal armour. The Meer-Ulson built this hive to fight your navy,” a beat, “they didn’t design it to fight me.”