We all turned, moving toward Jorgen and Kimmalyn, though Nedder and Arturo beat me to the ship that was chasing them, making quick work of it before I could even get off a shot.
I was going to have to step up my game if I wanted to keep up with them. I didn’t appreciate being treated like a novice. I can handle two ships, I said to Jorgen. Just because I don’t have combat experience doesn’t mean I don’t know what I’m doing.
I didn’t mean to insult you, Jorgen responded. I would have done the same for any one of us.
Really? They all felt like they needed to buddy up just to take down a couple of ships? Yes, I knew what we were doing was a lot more dangerous than the games, but for supposedly hardened warriors…it seemed so…spineless.
Nedder and Arturo shot out in front of Jorgen and Kimmalyn and then slowed, taking point again. Jorgen didn’t say a word about it. Rather, he let them ride out in front of him like he wanted them there.
The others must have been doing a good job chasing off the other ships. We were nearing the tree now, passing by the thickest branch of Hollow and into the thin bubble of clear atmosphere. A few small towers wound around the edge of the branch.
The transport ship wasn’t going to get away. Even if we hadn’t had the ability to hyperjump, it wasn’t designed to move at fighter speeds in atmosphere. It seemed to have realized that, because it had stopped moving away from the tree and was now headed toward it, quickly disappearing from view.
“Alanik,” Jorgen said. “The ship we’re after disappeared into the tree. Is there a hangar down there you’re aware of?”
“No,” I said. “The base with the hangar is in the upper branches. But they call it Hollow for a reason.”
“Okay,” Jorgen said. “Let’s follow that ship. Alanik, since you know the terrain, take point.”
It was a good plan, though I wished taking point didn’t put me out in front when I was struggling with my ship’s controls. Thankfully I had the maneuvering down, so I didn’t look like an idiot as I led them around the thick trunk of Hollow and down toward the chasm in the crook of the tree branches.
“FM,” Jorgen said over the radio. “Sitrep?”
“We’ve got them running,” FM said. “They’re headed in your direction though.”
“Took ’em long enough to catch on,” Nedder said.
“They had to know why we were here, didn’t they?” Arturo asked.
“They did,” I said. I remembered what Rinakin said. Just because they understood our tactics didn’t mean they wouldn’t work.
I flew my ship through the gaping mouth of Hollow and into the depths of its trunk. It was dark in here, though daylight did shine in patches through knotholes in the sides of the trunk, some of which were as much as a kilometer wide. Spindly buildings stretched up the inside, carved and constructed against the interior of the tree. Lumber mining facilities, cutting out the dead wood to be shipped to other parts of the planet. The chasm went deep down into the trunk, partially formed by the natural rotting of the dead tree and then expedited by mining.
We spotted the transport ship heading toward the mining facilities at the bottom of the chasm. “We’ve got limited time before those ships arrive,” Jorgen said. “Alanik, plan for forcing the ship to land?”
“You can’t shoot it down,” I said. “And they’re not going to land willingly. Do you have light nets?”
“We have light-lances,” Jorgen said. “We can use them to grab the ship, but we wouldn’t be able to drag a ship that big without taking out its boosters first.”
“Will it be cornered down there?” Arturo asked.
“No,” I said. “There are exits near the lumberyard for exports.”
“It’s bigger than a fighter, isn’t it?” Kimmalyn asked. “Could we take out the boosters without hurting the prisoners?”
“I doubt it,” I said. “The boosters are right below the hold. My people are practically on top of them.”
“Let’s get closer,” Jorgen said. “Quirk can take a look, see what she thinks.”
We approached the transport ship. UrDail transport ships weren’t equipped with weapons, but this Superiority ship had a shield and some basic destructors.
And they said we were too aggressive.
“Boosters are no-go, Jerkface,” Kimmalyn said. “No way I can hit those without damaging the hull. Cockpit is possible though. I’m guessing the pilots aren’t our friends?”