Mako (The Mako Saga: Book 1) (59 page)

Programming the coordinates to the Auran homeworld into the Mako’s Nav-Com, Lee couldn’t escape the uneasy feeling that boiled at the pit of his stomach. Leaning his head to rest on the back of his seat, he billowed a deep sigh of contemplation and stared out at the distant specks of flame littering the space around the planet ahead.

“I know,” Mac said after a solid 30 seconds of silence.

“Know what?” Lee asked.

“Despite the fact that every intelligent brain cell in your head is telling you to go home, you can’t shake the feeling that you’re somehow ducking out in the middle of a fight,” she surmised. “I get it, we all do. But this old beater has minimal weapons, and you’re one fighter running on less than 40% of a fuel load. I mean, how much good do you honestly expect us to be in something like this? Besides,” Mac huffed, “don’t you think we’ve tempted fate enough in the last 24 hours?”

“Yeah, I get it.” he grumbled, throwing a final switch to lock in his flight plan. “It just sucks, ya know? I mean, we’re supposed to be—”

“
Shiner, Shiner, Shiner, this is Katana!
”

Lee winced as Ryan’s words came like rapid fire over the comm.

“
We’re getting killed over here in three! Where the hell are you guys?
”

“We’re trying to get to you Katana, but we’re cut off,” a frazzled pilot explained, and Lee’s gaze jerked back to his display to see the embattled Hit Squad all but overrun by Phantoms.

“I am completely out of heavy ordinance,” said the pilot, “and railgun reserves are down to 18%. I’ve got Kinzer on my wing, but she’s not much better off than I am—the rest of the 43
^rd
is dead.”

Lee’s eyes squinted shut, his grip tightening around the stick as his thoughts swirled with the possible fates of Ryan, Noll, Reiser, Reynolds, Wyatt and everyone else who’d stood by them up to now… and for what?

Aboard the cargo ship, Mac’s intense stare locked on the set of afterburners in front of her which, for the moment, held steady.

“Seven-Two, we’re trapped over here in sector three and taking heavy fire,” she heard Ryan call on the open channel. “Four-Three is in no position to render support. Can you assist?”

No response.

“Leeeeeeee,” Mac warned, imagining his hand hovering over the throttle. “Lee, wait... just...
damn it!
”

“I’m sorry, Mac, but I just can’t,” he said as the Mako sped away. “Please, just get back to Aura with the others and wait for me. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Slamming an infuriated fist against the cockpit dash, Mac ran her fingers through her messy hair and fumed. Lee had never been one to listen to reason, particularly once he’d made up his mind about some major moral dilemma, but this defied all logic. The fact that they’d even survived this far was nothing short of wildly miraculous, and now, with the chance to finally go home sitting right there in front of them, here he went again? Hadn’t he been heroic enough for one day?

Her jaw clenched in irritation, Mac massaged her forehead and pounded an angry finger on the comm button.

“Praetorian, this is Northern Star, requesting pylon authorization and immediate EMS assistance; over?”

“Whoa, what are you doing?” Link blurted, drawing an almost scornful look from his navigator.

“Northern Star, this is Praetorian,” a female voice responded. “You are ordered to proceed back to—”

“Yeah whatever,” Mac snapped. “Just shut up and get me Wyatt.”

****

Tearing through the outskirts of the battle zone, making short work of two Phantoms along the way, Lee tipped the Mako’s wings to slice through the debris and roared into the heart of the fighting. Giving a quick check of his inventory, he was relieved to see that his railgun reserves were still solid at 78%, but he’d used up four of his nine missiles during the skirmish with the Myrick Destroyer, leaving him with one Devastator, two Diamondbacks, and a pair of Eagles. He’d need to be sparing with what he had left.

“Katana, this is Daredevil. I’ve got a fix on your position, and I’m comin’ to you.”

“Summerston!” Ryan blabbed in astonishment. “What the hell are you doing out here?”

“I was in the neighborhood,” Lee replied, weaving through a maze of exploding fighters and Alystierian tracer rounds. “Figured I’d lend a hand.”

“You passed on a free ticket home to get mixed up in this mess?” Ryan snorted. “You realize you’re quite possibly the stupidest individual alive, right?”

“Sorry, sir, but you must’ve had me confused with Mac. She’s the smart one of the bunch.”

That brought a chuckle from the captain. “Well, it’s not like I’m gonna say no to the help, so I guess thanks are in order.”

“No problem,” Lee said, spotting the five Threshers in the distance as Ryan blew through a pair of Phantoms to slide in behind a third pursuing Tino.

“I can’t shake this guy, sir!” the young pilot panicked, though no sooner had Ryan honed in on his attacker than a second Phantom dropped in behind the captain, placing both men directly in the line of fire.

“Katana, you’ve got a lone hostile droppin’ in on your six!” Lee warned, finding the cross hairs in his scopes as the Mako rocketed over the bow of a wrecked cruiser. “I’m comin’ in high and hot from your 12 o’clock, and I’ve got an angle for the shot, but I’m gonna need you to clear out of the way. On my mark, I want you to break hard right; copy?”

“It’s all you, Daredevil. Call the ball.”

“Copy that, Katana. Tino, maintain your current heading, and whatever you do,” he grunted, “don’t pull up!”

“Understood,” said Tino.

Tensing in his seat, his finger dancing at the trigger, Lee readied himself. “In three… two… one…
break
!”

Ryan’s Thresher lunged hard right as Lee’s Mako screamed over Tino’s nose, unloading a thick barrage of railgun fire onto his attacker, stunning it just as the second Phantom trailing the captain slammed head-on into its tail, collecting both fighters in a blinding flash of orange.

“Nice shot, Daredevil,” Ryan said, impressed. “Way to moxie up.”

“Thanks, I had a good teacher.”

“Hey Lee?” Tino gasped as Layla and the rest of the 51
^st
reformed around them. “Thanks. I owe you one.”

Lee formed a tight smile beneath his mask. “Forget about it, Tino. Buy my squad a round of tequila after this and we’ll call it square.”

An annoyed grumble responded.

“Alright, folks, look alive,” said Ryan. “We’ve got three more enemy squadrons inbound and coming straight at us.”

“No rest for the wicked,” Lee thought, and swallowing hard, he swung into position along his CO’s starboard wing.

****

Having escaped a number of near-misses en route to its rendezvous with the Praetorian, the cargo ship extended its landing struts to set down on the flight deck amid a sea of scrambling pilots, engineers, and mechanics—all fully embroiled in a fever-pitched frenzy to get fresh birds into the air, and wounded ones down in one piece.

Breaking from the commotion, Wyatt looked up to see Mac emerge from the ship, hurdle the boarding ramp, and launch into a sprint across the hangar toward the one functional Mako he’d managed to get prepped and ready on the center catapult.

“She’s got no hyperdrive and hull plating’s only at 79%, but she’s fully armed and ready to fly,” he called out, tossing her a helmet, which she caught in mid-stride.

Just then, Madisyn Reynolds burst through the entrance—med kit in hand—and her face went flush at the sight of Danny covered in blood.

“What do you have for us Chief?” Danny asked, descending down the ramp where Reynolds halted him in his tracks to examine the wound.

“I’ve got three Threshers fueled up and standing by, one of—”

Danny recoiled with a hiss at the sting of her cloth, his nose filling with alcohol.

“Relax,” Reynolds scolded, tightening her grip on his forearm. “It’s gotta be cleaned.”

Aggravated, Danny leered back at her.

“As I was saying,” Wyatt went on. “I’ve got three Threshers fueled up and standing by, one of which is a rebuild that I just finished. I haven’t had a chance to give her the full run-through yet, so be careful. The others are all—”

“I’m sorry!” Reynolds protested. “If I’m not mistaken, you’ve been shot. Therefore, the only place you’re going is back to the infirmary with me. End of discussion!”

“Not happening,” Danny said curtly, turning back to Wyatt. “Alright, Mac’s got the Mako, I’ll take Thresher two. Hamish and Link, you’re on deck in Threshers three and four.”

“Thanks, Crockett, but I’ve got a better idea,” Link said, locking eyes on the ship in the corner. “I need Hamish, though.”

Hamish beamed at the notion. “Aye, ya do.”

“Fine, go,” Danny agreed, sending the duo scampering off across the bay. “Alright, Chief, what’s the status of—”

“
Excuse me!
” Reynolds demanded, her bright blue eyes blazing now. “I don’t think you’re hearing me. As the ranking medical officer here, I can assure you that this is not up for debate!”

“
As someone who doesn’t even belong to your world, I can assure you that I don’t give a shit!
” Danny snapped, whirling around to glare at her. “Now let me tell you how this is gonna go. I’m climbing into that cockpit. Now whether I go around you or through you to do that is entirely your call. But it’s happening, so
deal with it
!”

In the span of a second, Madisyn Reynolds’ face seemed to run the entire spectrum of emotions, starting first with a look of complete and utter shock, then shifting to red-hot defiance, before finally—and surprisingly—concluding in somberness.

“You’re so insanely lucky that this didn’t get infected,” she murmured, averting her eyes and pressing a final piece of gauze to his shoulder to tape him up.

It was right then and there that Danny saw it—beyond a shadow of a doubt, for the very first time. She wasn’t put off for having been ignored, or even dressed down, for that matter. She was upset because, in her own strange and frigid way, she was worried for him.

“Listen, I’m sorry I tore your head off,” he apologized, feeling no shortage of guilt while easing his shirt collar back over the dressing. “I’m grateful for your help, believe me I am. But they’re gonna need every eye and gun out there they can get, which includes me. Besides,” he paused—his expression turning earnest. “I don’t know… I guess in some weird, twisted way, it’s sort of a selfish thing on my part.”

Reynolds raised an eyebrow.

“Truth is… I’d never be able to live with myself if something happened to any one of them while I was laid up safe and sound in some hospital bed.” Danny shook his head, suddenly feeling awkward for having opened himself up this way. He didn’t do that with many people, much less her. And yet there was something inside of him that, for whatever reason, not just wanted… but
needed
her to understand. “They’re all I have, Madisyn.”

Reynolds said nothing in response, her face betraying no surprise at his use of her first name. She just stared at him with a look that seemed to suggest that, while she may not have agreed with the decision, she at least got his motives for making it—or so he hoped.

“Just… be careful,” she relented, “and try not to put any pressure on that wound, alright? I’ve stopped the bleeding for now, but it won’t take much to open it right back up again.”

“Thanks, Doc,” Danny said, turning for his Thresher.

“Hey Danny?” she called, freezing him at his ladder.

“Yeah?”

Reynolds rolled her eyes and heaved a sigh. “Please, just… make sure you get your butt back here safe, so I can actually treat that with more than a field dressing, okay?”

Danny gave a warm smile. “Yes, ma’am.”

****

Reeling from a huge near-miss to his starboard wing, Lee fought to regroup and fall back in line with the makeshift squadron of Threshers around him, comprised of the remaining members of the 27
^th
, 83
^rd
and 59
^th
squads. Several kilometers away, Ryan and the 51
^st
had joined up with members of various other squadrons to defend an Auran cruiser that stood on the verge of collapse at the hands of a pair of Alystierian Destroyers. Around them, several Auran battleships attempted to compensate for their fleet’s lack of overall numbers by deploying a sort of “hit and shift” strategy whereby they’d hold position behind the main line, allowing them the ability to shift at will along its perimeter to reinforce faltering portions where needed.

“These guys are like locusts, Captain!” Lee shouted, rolling his fighter away from a fresh wave of inbound Phantoms that swarmed down on him like a swarm of insects. “How can there possibly be this many of them out here?”

“See that big ship at the heart of their line?” Ryan asked, indicating a large blip on Lee’s display that was noticeably bigger than the others. “That’s a Crimson-class carrier vessel. There are only two of those in the entire Alystierian fleet, but it’s capable of carrying three times the number of fighters as our Horizon-class ships like the Praetorian. Combine that with the others and that equates to a whole lotta Phantoms.”

“Let’s take it out, then,” Lee suggested.

“Four squadrons have already tried,” replied Ryan. “One of them actually made it through for a shot too, but we’re just not packing anything potent enough to do any real damage. Even Devastators barely make a scratch.”

Hearing the screams of the frightened pilots around him, Lee needed no further explanation from his CO to know how this was going. They might’ve held their own in the early going of this fight, but as of now, the Aurans were squarely on the defensive, and even if they managed to disengage for a retreat, the ASC fleet would stand in shambles after today.

Ryan’s voice blistered over the comm. “
Look out, Daredevil! You’ve got—
”

A deafening explosion pounded against his port thruster, sending Lee’s Mako tailspinning out of control, knocking the wind from his chest as his body slammed hard against his belts. Fighting to regain both his breath and stick control, he watched in terror through the glass as the attacking Phantom—now dead ahead—moved swiftly in for the kill.