He forced the thought aside as he watched his starfighters advancing towards the enemy, fighters taking the lead while the bombers followed afterwards, waiting for their chance to launch their missiles at the enemy ships.  The aliens had a definite unfair advantage, he decided; their starfighters could switch roles effortlessly, while the human craft were easy to separate out, isolating the ones that posed a definite threat to the enemy ships.  He had no doubt that the aliens intended to take advantage of their technology as much as possible.  It was what he would have done.

“Picking up some odd distortion as the drones advance forward,” Farley said.  The tactical officer was staring down at his console, puzzled.  “We might be able to provide rough locations for the alien fighters.”

“We need something more precise,” Ted said.  They could detonate a string of nukes ... but if they weren't careful, they’d risk damaging their own starfighters too.  “Can you get a lock on them we can use to ...”

He broke off as new red icons blinked into existence.  Despite himself, he couldn't help a flicker of admiration for the alien technology ... and the pilots of the alien starfighters.  Flying so close to their target was ballsy, all right, even if they knew they were effectively invisible.  But now they could be seen ... he watched as Gamma wing altered course, swinging up to confront the alien craft, while Delta wing remained behind to shield the carrier’s hull.  So far, their planning seemed to have paid off.

“Clear to engage,” he ordered, as the alien starfighters accelerated forward.  Their power curves were definitely less capable than human starfighters ... and there was a curious elegance about them that seemed oddly impractical.  Or maybe they genuinely could operate within a planetary atmosphere.  “I say again, clear to engage.”

“They’re coming right towards us now,” Commander Fitzwilliam said, through the intercom.  “They must have realised that the other carriers are decoys.”

“Looks that way,” Ted agreed.  “Deactivate the drones.  We can recover them after the battle.”

He scowled as the alien craft came closer, showing no hint of surprise when the dummy carriers vanished from the screens.  Yes, they’d definitely seen through the deception ... he tried, quickly, to work out when they’d seen through it, but it was impossible to say for sure.  He pushed the thought aside, gritting his teeth.  The whole theory about his ship’s armour was about to be put to the test.