HostileIntent Read Online Free Page B

vastness of space. Next time he was going to have to
be more careful about which wires he pulled while sabotaging a ship.
    Another blast rocked the vessel, forcing him to grab hold of
his station in order to prevent being thrown to the floor.
    Communicator static pierced the eerie post-attack silence
but this time it wasn’t the captain. “Long-range communications array has been
taken out, Captain.”
    “Divert power from communications to reinforce the shields,
McNeal. Sans, prime both torpedo bays and set the cannons to max. Let’s hit ‘em
hard.”
    The distinct whine of weapons charging filled the cabin and
began to settle his post-jump nerves.
    “Fire when ready, Sans.”
    His finger paused above the switch that would start the
firing sequence. He nodded and said a silent prayer to any god that might be
listening. Then he fired. “It’s gonna get bright out there. Might wanna dim
your view screen, Captain.”
    There was a hollow thud under him as the weapons were
discharged simultaneously. Hit ‘em hard. She’d given the order and he’d thrown
everything he could at them. He’d even thrown some starburst beacons into the
attack. They wouldn’t hurt the other vessels but the flare beacons would leave
anyone looking at a view screen temporarily blinded. And since the bursts were
usually used to signal a crippled ship, there was no way for their attackers to
expect them.
    But the other ships had launched another attack of their
own. The Hawk rocked and shuddered around him as it was hit hard
somewhere in the aft section.
    “Jump drive was hit, Captain.” The mechanic’s voice sounded
strained over the communications device. “One more hit like that and we’ll be
stranded here.”
    With no way to call for backup, it’d be a death sentence.
    “Copy that,” the captain said, her voice still sounding as
calm as it had with the preflight checks. “All hands brace for jump. We’re getting
outta here.”
    There wasn’t time for him to mentally ready himself for the
jump but he was able to grab on to his console to steady himself before time
froze around him. That probably saved him from a bloody nose, as he caught
himself just before smacking his face into his station when they broke through
to normal space.
    “This is your captain.”
    Adam nearly smiled at the formality of the opening
communications statement. He hadn’t been on board for even a full shift and
judging from the communications slang and her preference for practicality over
procedure, he guessed she didn’t do formality very often.
    “We are currently one hour from the planet Ontesys. Once
there, we will dock and begin repairs. But before we land I need a completed
conflict debriefing report from each of you.”
    Her voice was tight, as if it was taking every ounce of her
control to get the words out. He didn’t blame her. He’d be pissed if someone
took a couple of shots at his ship too. But as it was, he only felt relief. More
time had been added to the clock.
    Pulling the appropriate forms up on his console, he began to
fill them out as he considered tactical advantages to their place of refuge. He
had expected her to head back toward the inner realms during the attack but
Ontesys was so far out that the government’s influence was superficial at best.
The planet had once been a thriving vacation spot but with the ever-increasing
cost of fuel for the jump drives, few tourists could afford to venture this far
out. And without the tourists, the planet had quickly become the shady hub of
gambling and prostitution that it was today.
    Though, when he thought it through, it did sound like her
kind of place.
    He snorted to himself as he dutifully filled out his report.
It was repetitive bureaucracy bullshit made worse by the knowledge that by the
time the powers-that-be read it, they’d know he was a mole working for the
Coalition—if they ever actually read it at all. The only upside to the
paperwork he could find was that it did make