Even as the sensors began to get returns and make sense of them, one of the freshly painted green contacts of TF
1.2 abruptly disappeared from Simms miniature sensor screen and from the far larger battle plot in the middle of the
bridge. A second later yet more contacts appeared, marked in blood red hostile colors and showing at less then 10,000
km. Knife fighting range in space.
"All ships, fire as prioritized" Simms yelled. His helmet carried his order to the other ships. Their turrets and
launchers zeroed in on just three ships. The enemy missile cruisers weren't going to get away so easily this time.
Three salvos of five enemy missiles arrowed in at the Kingdom ships and were, somehow, all killed before they hit
anything.
"Enemy ships are retreating at 1955 KPS, Sir", Lt Jameson said.
"Further away they are the better!", said Simms." We will beat them to death with missiles. Jameson, what happened
to the Atticus?"
"She appears to have been destroyed, sir. Only a few lifepod signals have been detected. The enemy have lost a 9000
ton ship that may be a jump ship, a missile cruiser and have yet another cruiser with appears to be severe drive
damage. The Portlands did well. Our missiles will impact in five seconds.", Jameson reported in a singsong voice.
The bridge was silent as the missile storm descended on three enemy ships. Of the 21 missiles, only 14 hit. It was
enough. One of the escort ships and damaged missile cruiser blew apart. That left only 3 of the escort ships, a
freshly damaged cruiser, and one of the 9000 ton ships that intelligence thought was a jump ship. The jump ship was
moving at a paltry 1711 KPS and was far slower then the other enemy ships. The Escorts had apparently been given
orders to run for it as they had quickly accelerated to 2357 KPS and would leave the other ships in the dust.
Fifteen seconds later, the Spruance missile cruiser, KHS Houston, took multiple hits from what were clearly rail gun
rounds that flattened her meager shields and scratched the heck out of her paint. Had the enemy not been in retreat
the rail gun strike may have hurt the Houston badly.
Five seconds after that the Houston launched a salvo of five missiles at the remaining enemy missile cruiser.
AS the fight of missiles closed 2 were shot down by PD from the enemy jump ship and the other hit the cruiser. A
flight of 2 Sparrow Mk V's moving at twice the speed of a Mk IV, homed in on an escort. One missed and one hit.
Five seconds after that, a flight of three Sparrow Mk IV's arrive at the enemy jump ship. Only one hits, however, and
while it has more then enough power to take out its targets shields and inflict internal damage, the hit seems to
have little effect. Six more missiles are still in flight. 2 are left from a salvo of five that has taken murderous
PD fire and two flights of 2 fired from the Rapiers. The Mk V's are flashing along at 16,000 kps and seem to be
giving the alien PD fits.
Within seconds, the enemy jump ship is slammed by a Mk Iv missile and the other misses. Evidently an engine was hit
as she slows to 1466 kps. The plotting tank shows the enemy cruiser firing a salvo of 3 missiles. Simms isn't
worried. Three missiles would not penetrate his PD envelope. His defenses would need better then thirty or so enemy
missiles to reach anything approaching an effective saturation level. As it was his PD would get an average of two
shots at each missile. He smiles a grim smile and continues to watch the bridge plot and his ships status screens.
Ah, three of the Portlands had finished cycling their 25 cm lasers. They fire at the remaining enemy missile cruiser
and... All nine shots showed as likely hits. The computer proved this by abruptly removing the enemy cruiser from the
plot. One of the enemy escorts also showed hits from two of the four missile targeted at it. The escort abruptly
slowed to 1571 KPS. Not quite half of its recorded top speed of 2357 KPS.
The seconds ticked by slowly until the remaining Portland finished recharging its 25 cm lasers. She fired and hit one of the damaged escorts and dropped its speed to 1571 kps.
Seconds later a flight of four Mk III's home in on the jump ship. Two score direct hits. Meanwhile the enemy PD kill 4 missiles and wipe out a salvo headed for the escort just damaged by a Portland. Another salvo of five missiles homes in on the jump ship and kill it in a rolling boil of explosions
15 seconds later a Spruance launches another salvo at an escort. One of the escorts takes two mk V hits and slows down to 785 kps then takes a laser hit that causes it to explode. Both remaining escorts take two 25 cm laser hits each and they slow down to 1571 kps and zero kps for the other. definitely an indication of extreme damage. The two escorts are doomed as they have nine missiles split between them and the sensors reported loss of fire control sensors from both of them. The end came seconds later as four missiles hit one and all five of the other salvo hit the other. The bridge thundered with cheering in such close quarters. Simms grinned and ordered the one of the Rapiers back through the jump point. Only about three minutes had elapsed. In that time he had lost one ship and killed seven of the enemies. Now all that was left was the clean up. the Rapiers would be assigned the task of picking up alien and human life pods, after he transfered additional security elements to them.