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torpedoes each—target the base of the cap forward.”
    Each of the two corvettes fired a pair of gravitonic torpedoes armed with antimatter warheads. As the torpedoes accelerated toward their target at 1000Gs the corvettes pivoted, facing back toward the alien mother ship, and went to maximum acceleration.
    “Looks like there are a couple of more bogies on this side of the mother ship,” reported Intensity, the second element leader. “We scratched one on the first pass but Peggy Sue will have to deal with the others.”
    “Roger that, Intensity, we smoked two of ours. Form up on me and we will make a pass from this side. Like last time, take out the interceptors first and then fire on the mother ship's hull.”
    * * * * *
    “Captain, the aliens seem to have tossed a bunch of garbage material our direction,” commented the young Lieutenant JG at the navigation station.
    “Looks like the corvettes blew through with no problems, so our shields should handle it,” added Lt. Medina from the engineering station.
    “Mr. Vincent, take us by the target. Maximize the number of slugs we put into the engine section. Torpedoes, target the remaining alien small craft.”
    “Aye aye, Captain.” Billy Ray's fingers danced across the controls, informing the ship's computer of what was to happen. A number of explosions flashed by.
    “Some form of mine, non-nuclear,” reported Lt. Medina. “Secondary batteries detonated them well away from the hull. Didn't even impact the shields.”
    In a dizzying blur the 8,000 ton ship flew past the massive alien vessel, pirouetting to keep its nose, and its main battery, pointed at the target. In a matter of a few seconds the main rail-guns fired six times, three slightly staggered pairs of 10kg metallic slugs. The velocity imparted by the rail guns, combined with the ship's closing velocity gave each slug a kinetic energy equivalent to almost a half kiloton of TNT. Each pair would strike within a few meters of each other, the staggering creating a one-two strike in effectively the same location on the aliens shields or hull, maximizing penetration.
    A series of explosions could be seen along the tail section of the alien vessel. From within secondary explosions followed, then the last kilometer of the ship splintered and blew apart with a bright flare of light—residual antimatter detonating in the craft's engines. Carried by its own momentum, the Peggy Sue swung more than 600 km beyond the alien before matching velocity and then moving slowly back toward its target.
    * * * * *
    Capable of triple the acceleration of the Peggy Sue, the flight of corvettes only over shot the alien by about 125 km. In fact, they were close enough to the target vessel to require evasive maneuvers to escape the exploding wreckage from that ship's engines.
    “I'm on the remaining bogies, Deloraine,” called Intensity, clearly hoping to even out the kill count between the two elements. The Peggy Sue's torpedomen had mopped up the three alien interceptors missed by the corvettes' initial pass.
    “Roger, Intensity. We will strafe the mother ship's hull forward,” replied Lt. Melaku. “Do not, repeat, do not fire into the remaining aft section of the mother ship. That area is supposed to contain antimatter storage.” The last thing we want is to blow ourselves to kingdom come by detonating the alien's fuel bunkers.  
    “Roger, Deloraine. Understood.”
     
    Farside Base, The Moon
    Nearly eight billion kilometers from the battle being waged by Earth's space navy a meeting was being held in what passed for the central headquarters of humanity's post apocalypse government. Present were TK Parker, former Texas oil billionaire and primary backer of the project that created both the Peggy Sue and the lunar base; Dr. Rajiv Gupta, head scientist and Earth's greatest expert in gravitonics and other T'aafhal technologies; Dr. Ludmilla Tropsha, former cosmonaut, biologist, chief medical officer and ranking member of