TFS Navajo: The Terran Fleet Command Saga – Book 3 Read Online Free PDF Page A

first, starting with Charlie 2. It remains to be seen whether the two newer cruisers, Charlie 3 and 4, will reenter the fight, so do not fire on either of them until I designate them as hostiles. If that happens, we will target Charlie 4 first, then Charlie 3 before finally going after the Baldev herself. Based on Commander Takkar’s interaction with Admiral Naftur, I think there may still be a chance that the Hadeon will leave the area entirely. Either way, I want all three of those cruisers out of the fight as quickly as possible. So if you see me designate one as a hostile, don’t hesitate to hit them hard and fast.”
    “And what about the ‘grav beam’ that Admiral Naftur mentioned?” Reynolds asked.
    “I’m not sure there is much we can do to address it since we have no idea what the weapon even does,” Prescott replied. “We could speculate that it induces some kind of sheer forces when it comes into contact with a ship’s hull, but that’s just a guess. We also have no idea of the weapon’s range or its effectiveness against our shields. So, for now at least, I’m going to say that we should keep it in mind, but we can’t plan for something we know nothing about.”
    “Captain,” Lieutenant Commander Schmidt announced from the Tactical 1 console, “all three cruisers just changed course, sir. Charlie 2 and 3 appear to be taking up flanking positions, and Charlie 4 has turned back in this direction and is accelerating.”
    “Have they concluded their rescue operation?”
    “Looks like it, sir. They had several shuttles ferrying survivors and equipment back and forth. All of them have now returned to either Charlie 2 or Charlie 3.”
    “Understood. Go ahead and slave the AIs from six of our Hunters to Captain Zhukov and Commander Waffer’s fighters. Let me know immediately if anything else changes.”
    “Aye, sir.”
    Outside, two groups of six RPSVs disappeared in small flashes of grayish-white light, immediately reappearing in extended formation with each flight of twelve F-373 fighters. On the right side of Theseus’ view screen, the tactical plot momentarily displayed all twelve Hunters as if they were operating in autonomous attack mode. Seconds later, the text block accompanying their icons merged with that of the Reapers as the two lead pilots’ neural interfaces seamlessly took command of the additional spacecraft.
    “Alright, Badger 1 and Badger 2 Flights,” Prescott continued, “you two have the Hunters . Once you are in position, I’m going to hail the Baldev and let Captain Yagani know that I am willing to accept either his cooperation or his surrender.”
    “That wasn’t at all what I was expecting you to say,” Reynolds said with a nervous smile.
    “Good. Hopefully Captain Yagani will have the same reaction. If he’s hoping for reinforcements, there’s no question that he will be less confident prior to their arrival — particularly after we just bested four of their cruisers. If they do open fire first, expect Theseus to C-Jump away and reposition for an attack on Charlie 2. If you find yourselves under heavy fire, I suggest you do the same. We may well be outgunned here, but if we use a combination of tactical C-Jumps and our shields to their full advantage, we should be able to wear them down and gain the upper hand. Does anyone have any questions?”
    “I do not think so, Captain,” Zhukov responded. “Please give us a couple of minutes to reposition. If you like, our AIs can relay the most critical of our tactical comm calls during the battle. This will allow you to hear when we arrive at designated locations, fire weapons, etcetera.”
    “Perfect, please set that up for us. Good hunting, Badger flights. Prescott out.”
    Suddenly feeling a little claustrophobic at being strapped in his command chair, Prescott released his restraints and stood. “Ambassador Turlaka, this young man will see you back to the medical bay,” he said, turning to gesture towards the