“All gunnery teams…prepare your targeting data. There’s no room here for carelessness. We need to hit that ship with everything we’ve got.” He switched the com to the shipwide channel. “All personnel, this is the captain. We’re about to engage the enemy. We patrolled for a long time together, on another border where we expected to do battle. We’re far from there now, facing a new and unexpected enemy, but none of that matters. We will meet them head on. I have never been prouder of a team before, and I have every confidence in each of your abilities. Fight with me, my spacers…my friends. And let us send the enemy to the blasted hells of Cagaria!”

The bridge crew erupted into applause and shouts of affirmation. If there was one thing his grandfather had taught him, it was that morale won battles. If his people stood to their posts an instant longer, focused more effectively through the fear and pain…they could pull victory from the gaping maw of defeat. And he needed everything he could get right now.

“Captain, I’m picking up energy spikes from…”

Dauntless lurched hard.

“Hit amidships, sir.” Travis had her head buried in her scope, tracking the data as soon as it came in. “A laser of some sort, sir. Higher powered than our secondaries for sure, but if that’s what they’ve got as primary weapons…”

“Before you get excited, Commander, remember we don’t have any primaries now. So, whatever they have is just one more advantage to them, at least for the moment.”

Fritzie…

Barron leaned back in his chair. He’d be able to return fire in just over a minute. But that could be a long time…

He was counting off the seconds, his eyes angled down toward the countdown clock. He knew the battle could be lost, even if his people were able to return fire. Dauntless was already wounded, and the Alliance ship didn’t have a scratch. But he’d rather go down fighting than die helplessly, like some kind of prey.

Suddenly the ship shook uncontrollably, far harder than it had from any of the other hits. The bridge spun around, and Barron felt the gravity vector changing wildly. One instant he felt as though he was suspended off the ground, only his harness keeping him from falling into the ceiling. Then the ship felt like it was sideways. His body slammed one way and then the next, and each time the straps dug into him hard, exacerbating his injuries.

He gasped for breath, trying to hide the wince as he filled his tortured chest with air. There was no point in allowing anyone to see him in pain. Not now. He could have been bleeding from a dozen bullet wounds, and he wouldn’t have left the bridge.