The Full Circle Six Read Online Free PDF

inside of his spinning cannon control booth.
    â€œScanners report multiple hits and misses. Enemy racecraft shields as follows: Forty two percent, one hundred percent … Only two shields on this one.” Jaws explained.
    â€œRight cannon, get down to the loading chamber begin load of right cannon stand by for load of left … Left cannon, fire all rounds, take those shields down.” Drake ordered nastily.
    â€œIncoming, reverse fire, closing in on upper left section of shield.” Jaws almost sounded worried.
    â€œThank you, C.E … Preparing for evasive maneuver, cut engine to eighty percent right thruster and watch me work.” Drake had a malicious grin on his face.
    â€œLeft cannons, all direct hits … Enemy shield reports as follows: Zero percent, twenty four percent … Evasive maneuvers accurate, enemy fire evaded.” Jaws actually looked stunned, if he had only worked with Drake before, he wouldn’t be. “Enemy engines have come to a complete halt, we have an incoming contact.”
    â€œDeny contact, and return full power to engines … They pose no more threat, so we will just pass them by.” Drake leaned back in his all of sudden more comfortable navigation chair, knowing that in under a day he had just moved out of last place. He began to wonder if the number twenty-six racecraft had worked out a way to take out another, giving him two positions in the first day. The fact that no contact had been made, led Drake to believe that there had been no confrontation for his teammate, as of yet. “Croxy, after loading those cannons, go on break and you too, Kraus … I want you two ready first thing after coffee.”
    â€œThat was a tough one, boss, huh?” Sammy joked. “By the way, our shields are ninety nine to a hundred.” Drake smiled back and stuck his chin out demonstrating his take no prisoner style.
    â€œMore coordinates from the number twenty six, four more to be accurate.” Jaws patched them over to Drake as he had done previously. Drake noticed that the coordinates were in very strategic places. They would make Drake have to use a little more time going around them, but other racecrafts would probably navigate right in their path if they didn’t know. A position is slightly more important than completing the race faster, a fact Drake despised, but respected.
    More breaks were dispersed throughout the night, and in the morning Drake decided he deserved a private, congratulatory coffee as well. He made his way to the consuming quarters, ordered some coffee and bread from the delivery dispenser tubes, and came to rest at the module nearest the door. After a few bites of bread, Drake decided to have some meat to go along with it. He drank and ate in silence, listening to the purr of the thrusters at full speed.
    He let his mind wander to his favorite races in the past. Races that he ran at full speed for the duration, and others that required skillful change of speed and weapons tactics. In one particular race, Drake had started in the first position, dropped back into second to last, and then proceeded to dismantle every racecraft between himself and the finish line. This frightened the last place racecraft so much, that instead of trying to pass Drake for the win, they cut power from their engines and settled for second place. He would not stop at any cost to ensure victory, and he hoped his entire crew understood at least that much of him. Drake finished off another cup of coffee, his bread, and his meat, and then returned to the comfort of his navigation chair.
    After the first week, the crew had settled in nicely to Drake’s standard. The number twenty-six racecraft had employed several more mines, and even reported decommissioning the number eighteen racecraft. Drake now had the information that two of the twenty entrants were of no more concern. The mine total was at fourteen, and they only registered one more in