“Stay here,” he ordered, as the other pilots scrambled out of the shower, water running off their bodies.  “If the alert sounds, go to your fighters at once.”

The hatch opened as he reached it, revealing Gamma Squadron’s pilots.  They looked even more haggard than the other pilots, unsurprisingly.  And they stank too, just like the others before they’d showered.  None of them really cared to remain in the cockpits for so long.

“Have your showers, then get a nap,” Kurt ordered.  “And then join the remaining pilots here.”

He walked down to his office, closed the door firmly and brought up the squadron rosters.  It seemed absurd to be doing the paperwork now, when the aliens were tracking them, but it helped keep his mind off other things.  He could record a message for Molly and the children, yet it was unlikely they would ever hear it.  Or he could call Rose ...

Angrily, he shook his head.  The aliens were in hot pursuit.  They couldn't afford to be caught with their pants down, not now.

***

Ted didn't feel much better after several hours in the sleep machine – Fitzwilliam had evidently decided to let him sleep longer than he’d planned - but one glance at the display was enough to reassure him that the alien battlecruiser was still keeping its distance from the carrier.  Unfortunately, it had also launched a spread of drones of its own, ensuring that Ark Royal couldn't hide without being detected.

“We have a lock on several targets in orbit around the alien world,” Farley informed him, when he stepped back onto the bridge.  A shave and a shower had made him feel much better about himself.  “I don't think there is a major risk to the planet itself.”

Ted nodded, studying the reports from the drones.  There were dozens of large structures in orbit, most of them clearly industrial nodes.  But there were relatively few defences, as far as he could see.  Was it possible, he asked himself, that some of the nodes were actually drones or ECM beacons?  If human technology could fool the aliens long enough to let Ark Royal launch an ambush, why couldn't the aliens do the same?

“It’s impossible to be certain at this distance,” Farley admitted, when Ted asked.  “”But they would have had to set up the trap well before we arrived in the system.”

“True,” Ted agreed.  “Are you ready to open fire?”

“The mass drivers are armed and ready,” Farley said.  “We can fire on your command.”