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Two Covenant destroyers were a threat, but it was accepted that three-to-one odds in the UNSC's favor against Covenant forces was an even match. Four to one? They rarely had such odds in this war.
So why did this feel all wrong?
"Initiate Slipspace transition," Commander Lash ordered.
Around the Dusk space flashed blue and white and the stars vanished.
Eight UNSC ships dropped from Slipstream space into black interstellar vacuum and there was a fireworks show of blue Cherenkov radiation and spiraling subatomic particle decays.
Commander Lash used this to his advantage.
"Set new course to port, perpendicular to fleet attack vector," he ordered Lieutenant Durruno.
"Aye, sir." Under the red glow of the bridge's battle lighting, his officers looked more alive now… and more scared.
The stealthed Dusk moved away from the destroyers, carrier, and cruiser of Admiral Patterson's battle group.
Lash wasn't running away—a sentiment he found himself repeating ever since he had witnessed the events at the Halo ring.
He had volunteered the Dusk to go back and scout the planet on a second recon mission. But the Admiral had told him there was no time. He was going to "catch those Covenant bastards
with their pants down" and strike while they were near the planet's gravity well.
With the odds in his favor it was a sound tactic. Still, it bothered Lash that the Admiral committed so many lives without a complete picture.
"Move us into an elliptical orbit around the dark side of Onyx," Lash ordered. "Set apogee to fifty thousand kilometers. Ahead one-third power."
"New course set, sir." Lieutenant Durruno turned to face him. Looking pained, she opened her mouth to speak, hesitated, and then quickly said, "I beg your pardon, Commander. I thought we had orders to remain clear of the combat."
"We will," Lash said, "but we're going to finish that planetary scan." He moved to the NAV station and set one hand on Bethany's shoulder. "Just take us in nice and easy."
Her eyes locked forward on her screens. "Yes, sir."
To Lieutenant Yang he said, "Monitor the engine thermals and push us past one-third power… right up to the dark-line limit."
Yang swallowed, and then replied, "Aye aye. Commander."
Lash danced a fine line. He wanted speed and invisibility.
"Action on-screen!" Lieutenant Commander Waters announced.
On the central viewer flashes appeared in the dark. Admiral Patterson had launched his alpha strike.
"Magnification forty," Lash ordered.
The two Covenant destroyers snapped on center screen. Scattered Archer missiles detonated harmlessly on their shields. The ships turned out of orbital alignments to face their enemy, and in doing so, closed ranks.
Three white spheres popped behind the vessels—expanded and enveloped the now-clustered enemy destroyers. Jets of supercharged ions funneled downward into the planet's magneto-sphere.
"Perfect placement of the nukes," Yang murmured, glancing between the viewscreen and his instruments. "Maximum destruction and radiation trapped by the planet so the fleet can move in."