Charles braced himself as the alien craft came closer, its hull shining faintly with scars from the EMP strike.  They must have suffered local power overloads and explosions, he guessed, which had damaged the superconductor hull.  It was funny, he thought, just how a strength could so easily become a weakness, under the right circumstances.  But there was no longer any time to think ...

An alarm sounded.  “They have us,” the pilot snapped.  “Launching flares, now!”

Charles braced himself as the shuttle jerked, then accelerated towards the alien hull.  The aliens might have mistaken them for missiles, or they might have realised what the humans actually had in mind, but it was too late.  Between the shuttle’s erratic courses and the disruptive flares – actually, tiny drones intended to create false sensor readings – the aliens would have real difficulty tracking them properly.

A red icon flared on the display briefly, then faded.  Charles felt a wrench as Shuttle Three vanished from the display, picked off by the alien blast.  Fifteen Marines vaporised in a split second, he told himself, then pushed the grief and rage out of his mind.  There was no time to mourn the dead now.  Afterwards, if they survived, they would hold a proper funeral for the lost men.

The alien hull loomed up in front of them, then glowed white as the shuttle’s drives flared, burning through the alien metal.  Charles allowed himself a tight smile, imagining the carnage inside the alien ship.  Ark Royal’s armour would have melted under a fusion light, he knew; the alien hull, whatever it was, didn't seem to be anything like as resistant.  The Marines braced themselves, ran one final check on their armour, and then scrambled to their feet as the shuttle came to rest.  Outside, the alien ship was waiting ...

And how much, he asked himself suddenly, will the ship be worth in prize money?

“Deploy probes,” he ordered.  It had been a long time since he’d plunged into the unknown – even terrorist or insurgent bases were scoped out carefully before the Marines moved in - but he was looking forward to the challenge.  “And then follow me.”

***

“Four of the shuttles made it, sir,” Farley reported.

Ted grimaced.  Two shuttles were gone, then; one lost to point defence, one lost to unknown causes.  They’d have to replay the sensor records piece by piece to find out what had actually happened, he knew, which would take hours.  He wouldn't know until after the battle.

“Good,” he said.  He looked over at the helmsman.  “Pull us back.”

“Aye, sir,” Lightbridge said.  Ark Royal felt uncomfortably sluggish as she moved, slowly, away from the alien craft.  On the display, the starfighters pulled back too.  There was nothing further they could do to help the Marines.  “Two minutes to minimum safe range.”

If they’re right about the weapon’s range, Ted thought.