Free Enemy in the Dark by Jay Allan

scope, Captain.” Her voice was calm once more. Blackhawk allowed himself a quick smile.
    Nothing fazes her.
    â€œLucas?” Blackhawk shot his eyes over toward the pilot’s station.
    â€œI’m pushing as hard as I dare, Skip. This atmosphere is too damned thick.” Castilla’s air was heavier than Celtiboria’s, with an atmospheric pressure 30 percent higher. It made lifting off quickly a hazardous proposition at best. The Claw was a solid vessel, but she was still subject to the laws of physics. Friction causes heat. If the hull temperature got hot enough, even the iridium-alloy armor would melt.
    We’ve been in tough scrapes before, and if it hasn’t melted yet . . .
    â€œWell, push it harder. I’d rather bet on the Claw ’s hull holding out than fight the entire Castillan Defense Force.” He leaped out of his chair abruptly, grabbing onto one of the support columns as he moved toward Ace’s station. “Get down to the turrets, Shira. Just in case. I’ll man the scope.”
    â€œYes, sir.” She jumped up and moved quickly toward the ladder, her step never once faltering. A planetary takeoff was a rough affair, but she raced across the wildly pitching floor with the grace of a dancer and hopped onto the ladder.
    â€œAnd take one of the Twins with you,” he called out to her. “Tarq.” The Twins were alike in so many ways it wasn’t hard to think of them as anything but two copies of the same person. But despite their similarities in appearance, voice, temperament, and personality, Tarq was inexplicably a better shot than his brother.
    â€œGot it, Captain.” She vanished below the floor.
    Blackhawk staggered the rest of the way across the bridge, grabbing hold of Ace’s chair and pulling himself around. He sat and bent over the scope immediately. “We’ve got twenty-plus enemy craft launching, Lucas. And that’s only from this hemisphere.”
    â€œI’m punching it hard, Skip, but I’m a big fan of having a hull between us and the atmosphere.”
    You and me both. But I’m not a fan of catching a missile in the nonmelted hull.
    Blackhawk could feel the ship bucking as the thrusters pushed it faster into the Castillan sky. He knew Lucas was taking it right to the limit. The Claw would be fine once she cleared the atmosphere. The big question was if she would clear it. TheCastillans didn’t have anything that could catch her in space, at least not in a straight-out chase. Blackhawk sighed, watching the enemy ships moving slowly on the scope. At least the thick air was a factor that limited them both equally. That gave the Claw a chance to escape.
    I hope.
    â€œPlot us the best course to avoid enemy contacts. Let’s see if we can get out of here without a battle. It’d be nice to have someplace we could come back to for a change.” He didn’t have any real desire to return to Castilla, but the list of places where the Claw and its crew had worn out their welcome was getting long.
    â€œAlready working on it, Skip. Give me thirty seconds.”
    Blackhawk dialed up Shira’s turret. “You in place yet?”
    â€œYeah, Cap. Just strapping in and powering up the guns.” He could hear her scrambling into position and slamming the hatch behind her. The turrets were tight spaces, and nobody really fit in them, at least not well. He had no idea how Tarq managed to squeeze his massive frame in there, but somehow he did, and never once complained.
    Ace, on the other hand, complained every. Single. Time.
    I wish I had him complaining right now.
    Blackhawk flipped the comm unit, bringing the second turret on the line. He knew Tarq would still be working his way through the narrow hatch. He could hear the giant’s uncomfortable grunts through the comm. “Listen to me, both of you: I want you ready, but don’t fire unless I give the order. No matter what.