Chapter 15 – Battle Phase

“Confirm synchronization with allied ships.”

“Synchronization confirmed.”

“Initiate the FTL Drive charging sequence.”

“FTL Drive charging initiated. Charging complete. Drive activation in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1… FTL Drive start-up!”

The FTL Drive activated; accompanied by a booming, thunderous sound. This time, the Drive was initiated in sync with the surrounding allied ships, so we basically didn’t need to handle anything on our end. All we needed to watch out for was making sure that we and our friendlies don’t veer off-course.

And it seems that Elma was sent to the ambush point opposite from us instead. Let’s pray that she stays safe.

“Now then, we’re about to enter battle…”

“…Yes!”

“In this engagement, I’ll have Mimi handle both radar observation and the comms.”

“Understood!”

“What’s the job of a radar observer?”

“Keep track of the movements of both friendlies and enemy ships displayed on the radar and alert the pilot whenever danger presents itself.”

“That’s right. How about the comms officer?”

“Yes. Intercepting enemy communications, collecting info and responding to communications sent by allies to this ship.”

“Looks like you’re good to go. When I was piloting this ship alone, I was responsible for doing all of that stuff. So my aim is for Mimi to take over some of the work in order to reduce my burden a bit. The more things you can handle, the easier it will be for me. I know it’ll take some more time for you to get the hang of all this stuff, but please do your best okay?”

“Yes! Please leave it to me Hiro-sama!” Mimi cheerfully responded.

“Yeah. I’m counting on you.”

I made a final check of the ship’s weapon systems while we were still in the middle of the FTL Drive sequence.

Our main weapons were four heavy pulse laser cannons mounted on manipulator arms. There were two large calibre live ordnance cannons directly mounted on the ship as well. We also had two “trump cards” loaded with two shots each – for a total of four shots. The ammo for these things was hella expensive, so I didn’t want to resort to using them if possible. But they’re “trump cards” after all. If push comes to shove, we should fire them without hesitation. Indefinitely holding off on using these things is just stupid.

“How beautiful…” Mimi uttered while looking at the scenery outside the ship – the light of the stars streaking past like countless meteors in the far distance, the nebulae which brightly glowed in orange and green hues, and the sparkling trails of light scattered by our ship in its wake. The sight of them was so breathtakingly beautiful that even I, who was familiar with them from my time in the game, was captivated.

“That’s right. It’s a great privilege for us to be able to move freely in this beautiful ocean of stars.”

“Yes.”

We finally arrived at the designated coordinates after a few minutes.

“Deactivate the FTL Drive. Brace for possible shock and vibration.”

“Yes.”

We exited the FTL Drive sequence and switched to normal navigation. A thunderous din rang out once again and Krishna finally returned to normal space. The allied mercenary ships scattered in groups of four or five and headed out to each of their assigned posts. We also followed suit.

“We’ve reached the target point.”

“It’s really quiet.”

“Well, space is basically a quiet and lonely place after all. But I don’t feel so lonely now because I have you with me, Mimi.”

“…Eeeh. W- Well, I’m not lonely either then.”

We reduced the output of the main generator to the bare minimum and entered a state of comm silence while having a light-hearted exchange.

“Are you feeling cold?”

“No, I’m okay.”

Since the power supply to the life support system was also dialled down to the minimum, the temperature inside the cockpit dropped quite a bit. I didn’t really mind because I wore thick clothes, but Mimi looked a little too lightly dressed.

“These clothes are made from a thin but warm material.”

“Really? I kinda had some misgivings, but it really was a good clothing store huh?”

“Yes.”

It’s a truly great pleasure to see a cute girl wearing cute clothes everyday. For the past few days, Mimi has been dazzling my eyes by wearing various types of cyberpunk-flavored cos-play outfits. She looked particularly wonderful as a big-breasted cyberpunk maid… While I was thinking about such inane stuff, countless light streaks penetrated the area in front of us. Immediately afterwards, we intercepted communications which seemed to be from the rattled pirates.

[Wha- What’s going on? What the heck is that?!]

[Michael just got done in! Enemy attack–]

[Uwaaaah!?]

[It’s the damn Star System Military!]

[They hit our main base and our large ships! Fires have broken out everywhere!]

[Close the third to seventh bulkheads now!]

[B- But there’s still people inside!?]

[You fucking idiot! We’ll all get killed if you don’t close them right now! Do it!]

[U- Understood!]

It was absolute chaos. Meanwhile, the bombardment from the System Military’s Star-class Battleships and Heavy Cruisers continued to destroy the base facilities and large-sized starships of the pirates. It’s just not possible to do that kind of stuff with my Krishna. The overall firepower and range of military battleship weaponry far outstrips the medium-sized ships used by us mercs. The outputs of their defensive weapons aren’t anything to sneeze at either… If one carelessly went against them right from the front, they’d be ripped into shreds before they can even get the military battleship into weapon range. Well, going toe-to-toe with them by your lonesome head-on is ill-advised to begin with.

[No! It’s no use! Let’s get outta here!]

[Retreat! Retreat! Retreat! Dammit! All our accumulated treasure’s as good as gone!]

Oh, looks like they’re finally escaping. There were a few daring pirate ships which charged at the military battleships with abandon, but they all turned into space dust in the end. Well, this is the expected outcome if you go against a military battleship head-on. That’s just how it is for any non-military ship.

[Drop comm silence. Operation start.]

[GO! GO! GO!]

[Don’t let a single one of them get away!]

[Hyahaaa! Just look at those big, fat preys! You’re mine bitches!]

Once the order to commence the operation was given, the Krishna’s generator output was raised to battle level in one go and we began accelerating.

“Mimi, we’re entering the battle! Brace yourself for the impacts and Gs.”

“U- Understood!”

I felt my entire body get strongly pressed against the pilot seat from the sudden acceleration. A feeling of tension welled up from deep within me. My hands began sweating lightly. I proceeded to deploy the manipulator arms and the large calibre live projectile cannons. The battle’s finally begun.

[An unknown ship’s closing in fast! What the heck is that?! There are arms growing out of that thing!]

[It’s an unknown model! Keep your guard up boys!]

[Take it head-on! Shoot it down!]

[We greatly outnumber it. Surround that ship and fire at will. Tear down its energy shields and shoot it to pieces!]

There were a total of four enemy pirate ships in front – two transport ships and two fighters. They’re going after me head-on – right from the front. All their weapons were deployed.

“Looks like they want a frontal shoot-out huh. Let’s oblige.”

I aimed the pulse laser cannons at one of the fighter crafts in front and the large calibre live ordnance cannons at another. The enemies seem to plan on concentrating their firepower, but my Krishna’s laser cannons have longer range compared to all their weapons.

[What the– !? Our shield–]

The energy shield of the fighter craft immediately went down after being pelted by simultaneous fire from my laser cannons. A second barrage punched through its now-unprotected hull and put the fighter out of commission.

[You gotta be kidding me!?]

[This guy’s way dangerous! Let’s get outta here, you lot! Escape–]

The other fighter craft my live ordnance cannons had a lock on tried to get away, but it was too late. I fired two canister shots on its vulnerable guts in succession.

A great number of destructive projectiles rained down on its shield and brought it down in an instant. Its hull was then mercilessly punched through with countless holes. Another serving of Swiss cheese is served. The two fighter ships were swiftly shot down in mere moments.

[Gyaaaah!? That’s a goddamn monster!]

[No! Re- Retreat– ]

The remaining two transport ships tried to escape as well, but these types were generally a lot slower compared to fighter ships. On the other hand, my favourite unit, Krishna, was a full-fledged fighter ship sporting high speed specs. Escaping from me was impossible.

[Hurry the fuck up!!!]

[I can’t shake em!]

[No, no, no! I can’t possibly die in a place like this!]

“Nah, you’ll die here man. You’re a pirate, and we were ordered to eliminate every single one of you. No mercy for you guys.”

I pointed the stern towards the escaping transport ships and brought them down with laser cannon fire. They tried to escape by going in different directions, but there was no way I’d let them go. If they manage to get away, chances are, they’d target and attack innocent folks again. Once one falls into a life of piracy, it’s difficult to wash oneself clean again after all.

As I proceeded to head for the next target point, I turned back to see how Mimi was doing. She was shivering uncontrollably on top of her seat. Her gaze was glued to the radar screen, but I’m not sure if her attention was truly focused on it or not. Well, I guess it’s too much to expect a stellar performance from her on her first sortie, so it can’t be helped.

I turned away from her and looked the next target shown on the screen. What greeted my eyes was a scene of bright laser projectiles cutting through space, smoke trails from the live rounds fired off from the other ships, the flaming tails of missiles and the blooming explosions of destroyed ships. The myriad colors brightly lit up this corner of space in a chaotic cacophony of light.

These sights were strangely beautiful, but exceedingly deadly for humans. Even a shot from the lowest calibre laser cannon would vaporize a human without a trace, and they’d be turned to minced meat if hit with live rounds. Missiles would obliterate them just the same. Once a ship’s shot down, you’ll be thrown out into outer space and wouldn’t escape death either.

But what about escape pods, right? Although the cockpit block could function as an escape pod, it’d usually end up as a priority target in live battle after all. Plus, it’s hard to survive getting caught up in the explosion made worse by the detonation of your ship’s ammo reserves. In the end, one’s survival heavily depended on luck.

“Mimi, we’re heading to the next battlefield.”

“…Eh? Ah! Y- Yes, understood!”

Mimi responded in a trembling voice after she heard me call out to her. Looks like it’ll take some more time for her to get used to this sort of work.

[Chi, there’s too many of em!]

[Surround it! Besso, cut him out from the front!]

[Here ya go!]

[You fuckers!]

Five pirate ships were ganging up on one allied mercenary ship. The merc was managing to hold on due to the difference in ship specs, but it’ll get cornered before long if left alone. Its energy shield would gradually be shaved down and its armor would be penetrated by enemy fire. But that’s if I don’t interfere. Seems the call sign of the merc ship is “Quiet”.

“This is Captain Hiro. My callsign’s Krishna. I’m moving in to assist, Quiet.”

[Ou! Thanks for the help man!]

[Chi! Another one’s here. Lang! Cummer! Hold him down!]

[Gotcha!]

[Leave it to me boss!]

Of the five ships that were chasing down Quiet, two disengaged and headed straight for me. One seems to be a fighter ship while one’s a missile cruiser modified from a regular transport ship. Missile support ships are really troublesome. Missiles are difficult to avoid and are quite destructive. Quiet did a really good job surviving being ganged up on by five ships which included a missile support ship.

[Seeker!]

[Roger that boss!]

The support cruiser fired a barrage of missiles which headed straight for me. A seeker’s probably a type of heat seeking missile. Though their range is relatively short, they’re not radar-guided so they won’t trigger a lock-on alarm and were a type most effective when used for surprise attacks. But I don’t know what the deal is with those guys firing them off right from the front. They even shouted out the exact missile type. They have no idea how to make use of their weaponry effectively, don’t they?

There’s roughly two ways to deal with this type of missile. Either shake it off with superior manueverability or confuse its sensors by launching out a decoy emitting high heat. But I’d rather take a third option.

The ship vibrates from the recoil resulting from the launch of live rounds. Soon after, countless projectiles swarmed at the seeker missiles and successfully detonated all of them before they could even reach my ship. We punched through the resulting explosion at maximum acceleration, brushing past a pirate transport ship, straight towards the missile cruiser guarding it at the back.

[Geeh!? This guy just slipped right through– ]

“One.”

I blasted the missile cruiser with canister shots at point blank range and shot it down. A relatively large explosion soon followed, probably due to all the missiles detonating at the same time.

[What the– !?]

“Two.”

I quickly turned the ship around using the auxiliary thrusters and fired at the pirate transport ship with the laser cannons. Large calibre pulse laser cannon fire can easily deplete a ship’s energy shields. The small, sub-standard reactors of the pirate ships can’t withstand the simultaneous fire of four pulse laser cannons at all.

As expected, the shield fails in mere moments and laser fire penetrated the defenceless hull, resulting in a scarlet explosion. After putting them out of their misery, I checked the radar to see how the Quiet was doing. Seems he just shot down one of the remaining three ships and was now chasing down another. He was really skilled.

“I’m going to bring down that other ship.”

[Yeah. Sorry bout this man. And thanks.]

[Wha– Godammit! Things aren’t supposed to be like this…!]

[W- Whadda we do Raizo!?]

[Shut up you idiots! We obviously need to give it to em then get the fuck away!]

The captain of the lead ship scathingly replied to his other remaining comrade, who asked him what to do in a pathetic-sounding voice. In my humble opinion guys, you have next to no chance of surviving, so just obediently hand your asses over and get shot down to save us all from the trouble. I downed the pirate ship giving its all to escape moments after, and the Quiet successfully shot down the lead ship as well. We cleaned both of them up in a relatively short time.

[Thanks for the help Krishna. It was pretty hard having five ships on my tail.]

“Nah, don’t worry about it. I got me some prey as a result anyway. Later man.”

[Yeah. Be careful.]

The Quiet then retreated from the frontlines – probably for emergency repairs and shield replenishment. I collected the scattered loot from the downed pirate ships and proceeded to move to the next point to hunt some more.