AMP Private War Read Free

get surrounded. Harley! How are you holding up?"
    Several seconds passed before a response was heard. "Sorry Sir, we... are taking a beating. Tail plating now registers zero chief. One more hit and we're a..."
    A Milgari bolt ripped through the exposed tail of the Torrent and into its interior. Harley and his engineer died quickly. But there was a new ripple in our plans of escaping. The Torrent had been disabled, but most of her technologies remained. I made a quick decision. One that was not popular with the others.
    I made another command decision. "Guys, we can't leave that ship out here for them, even if it has been largely gutted. Roll on my count and give Harley and Gerful the sendoff they deserve. I want nothing but cinders left of the Torrent in three... two... one!"
    I pushed the stick hard and rolled out of a cannon shot by an oncoming cruiser. Frig targeted and took the shot, taking out its main gun. Seconds later I had the Torrent in my sights. "Switch to negative on those guns! Maybe we get lucky with a couple opposing hits and she rips apart!"
    "This is Hammer, I just took five shots to my underbelly. I can manage one round on the Torrent, but I then have to go!"
    Boom! Boom!
    "Two more hits on the cargo door chief. Losing my protection real fast!"
    The Swift then rolled in behind the Hammer after taking out the guns of the pursuing cruisers. "I got your back Hammer. Take that shot!"
    Four bolts hit the Torrent's hull at the same time. The plating fractured and the ship exploded in a hot ball of plasma as the negative charge amped up the destructive power. The Torrent was gone, but we had a Milgari fleet that was kicking our cans from here to Halui.
    I barked out another order. "Follow my lead! We are going to kick up some of that dirt down there and push around this rock to the other side. Keep shifting because we are in for a nasty beating until we can break free!"
    I dropped down to 20 meters off the surface and pushed the throttle full. It was a dangerous move considering our speed. We had a dozen cruisers on our tail that were mercilessly firing at us.
    I continued, "Head for the groove in those peaks and then put it skyward. We are going right up through them like there is no tomorrow! Pinch your cheeks together boys! This is all or nothing!"
    I pulled back on the stick as the Swift continued to accelerate. The blue bolts from the Milgari guns came in from all directions.
    Boom! Boom! Boom!
    "Grrrrrr. Frig, I'm heading for that battleship on the left. Try to take out those guns before they rip us apart!"
    "This is the Dagger Sir. We are down to bare metal. I got smoke filling the hold as we speak."
    Boom! Boom!
    "Awe crap... been nice serving with you Sir!" The Dagger turned hard into the near battleship and flew directly into the ship's recombiners. The battleship's engines went silent and seconds later, streams of bright blue ions could be seen carving up her hull. We flew close to the self-destructing ship and the momentary cover that it offered. It was the break we needed.
    The Dagger was gone, incinerated in an instant when the Milgari recombiner had been breached. Jon Baumer and his engineer had given their lives to open a hole for our escape. The six remaining Defenders pushed through the expanding debris cloud out into the open space beyond. The Fist was the last to follow, taking two final hits as we sped away.
    Our engines were now our allies. We were quickly out of the Milgari's range and into free space. I set a course for home. "We did the best we could out there. I want you to dwell on the fact that six crews made it out. Harley, Jon, Gerfel and Trippit don't want us crying over them. So, just keep your heads up and keep alert. We have a long ride home."

Chapter 2

    Our attempt to take out production of the massive Milgari cannons was a huge failure, costing the lives of four of our team members, four of our friends. When we touched down on Bullwort there were no celebrations over our