Chapter Nine

Lain flipped the controls of his Burn Striker into engage mode, then hit the gas propelling the craft into near blackout speed. His target dove, nearly dodging the onslaught of fire from the Burn Striker. Lain whipped the craft around, nearly blacking out from the g forces. Only his suit kept him awake.

His mission was simple: destroy the Corinth outpost, leaving no one alive. Word was that the Corinths had been responsible for the recent Psiker invasion. True or not, his goal was the same.

His targeting computer locked on, and Lain released another volley of blaster bolts, this time clipping the wing of the Corinth hunter. Lain smiled grimly as he again threw his craft into full speed. Alarms suddenly began to blare in his cockpit, alerting him to the large warp signature that had just been picked up on scanners.

A Corinth Warstar ripped its way into reality. Large shield projectors loomed over the monstrous ship. Igniting, they surrounded the Warstar in a nearly impenetrable shield. A pack of hunter craft cascaded out of the Warstars sides.

Lain and the rest of his squad whipped around to face the new threat. He gunned his craft forward, opening up with a barrage of fire at the hunter pack. They scattered to avoid the laser bolts shot from the Burn Stirkers.

Over his coms, Lain heard his wing leader signal to engage the outpost. There was no returning from this mission, but they could at least complete it. Lain punched through the Corinth defenses.

He opened fire on the Corinth outpost. Then smiled as it went up in flames, exploding, engulfed in a giant ball of fire. He slowed his craft. Mission success he thought as seven hunters surrounded him, ripping apart his craft with their fire power.