02_battle_cry-第32部分

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st　that；　even　though　no　such　condition　existed。

Azonia　swirled　the　gray　mander's　cloak　over　her　crimson　uniform　as　she　turned　to　face　the　female　ace。　Her　close…cropped　bluestone…colored　hair　gave　her　an　air　of　efficiency。　Unlike　Miriya's　long　thick　fall　of　forest　green　and　large　emerald　eyes　that　radiated　sensual　fire。

〃I　take　it　you　have　already　been　briefed　on　your　mission。〃

〃I　have；　mander　Azonia。　But　may　I　speak　freely？〃

〃Say　what's　on　your　mind。〃

〃Delivering　spies　into　the　SDF…1　hardly　seems　a　mission　worthy　of　my　talents。〃

〃Yes；　I　thought　it　might　be　something　like　that。〃

〃After　all；　I'm　a　bat　pilot；　not　some　delivery　drone。〃

〃This　mission　happens　to　be　of　utmost　importance。　It　has　been　authorized　by　mander…in…Chief　Dolza　himself。〃

〃Of　course；　sir；　but　still…〃

〃Have　you　considered　that　these　Micronians　might　prove　to　be　more　dangerous　than　you　have　been　led　to　believe？〃

〃That　is　something　to　be　hoped　for；　mander。〃

〃Need　I　remind　you　that　my　reputation　rides　on　this　mission？〃

Miriya　bowed　and　saluted。　〃I　will　not　fail　you；　my　lord。〃

Azonia　narrowed　her　yes。

〃The　three　micronized　operatives　are　presently　aboard　our　sister　ship。　They　have　been　placed　inside　a　capsule…craft　that　you　will　retrieve　once　we　are　within　range　of　the　dimensional　fortress。　Now；　how　will　you　get　the　spies　aboard？〃

〃I　am　not　at　liberty　to　discuss　that　aspect　of　the　operation　with　anyone。〃

The　mander　stiffened　somewhat。　〃I　see。〃

〃mander；　it　will　be　good　to　best　Breetai　in　this　matter。　And　Khyron；　of　course。〃

〃mander　Khyron　to　you；　Miriya…now　and　always。　Is　that　clear？〃

〃My　apologies；　sir。〃

〃You　are　dismissed。　Return　to　your　quarters　and　prepare　for　hyperspace…fold。〃


The　fold　operation　was　the　first　note　of　encouragement　struck　for　the　four　Micronian　escapees　who　had　sequestered　themselves　in　a　supply　hangar　elsewhere　in　Azonia's　cruiser。　The　Zentraedi　guards　had　left　the　hold　when　the　spacefold　began；　leaving　them　alone　in　a　room　full　of　armaments　and　Battlepods。　But　they　remained　cautiously　optimistic。　Especially　Ben。

〃I　know　a　way　we　can　pass　the　time…we　can　count　the　number　of　different　places　we　might　end　up　after　this　fold。〃

Lisa's　attention　had　been　riveted　on　the　real…time　indicator；　but　Ben's　ment　intruded　on　her　concentration。

〃Lieutenant　Hunter；　you　didn't　tell　me　you　had　such　a　edian　on　your　team。〃　Lisa　gestured　to　Ben。　〃We've　gone　from　the　frying　pan　to　the　fire；　and　all　he　can　do　is　make　jokes。〃

〃All　right　Ben；　can　it；〃　said　Rick。

〃How　are　we　going　to　get　outta　here；　anyway？〃　said　Max。　〃Even　if　we　do　defold　back　in　Earthspace？〃

〃We're　going　to　mandeer　one　of　these　Battlepods。〃

Lisa　said　it　so　matter…of…factly　that　the　three　then　did　delayed　double　takes。

〃Just　climb　into　the　Battlepod　and　fly　it　out　of　here；　huh？　Who's　going　to　teach　us　how　to　operate　it？　You　think　they　left　an　operating　manual　inside；　in　the　glove　partment　maybe？〃

Lisa　put　her　hands　on　her　hips。　〃Have　you　been　playing　hooky；　Lieutenant？〃

〃Wait　a　minute！〃　Rick　said　defensively。　〃Sure；　I've　studied　the　insides　of　these　things　just　like　everybody　else。　But　those　were　wrecks。　Nobody's　actually　piloted　one　of　them。〃

〃Listen；　Rick；　you　said　yourself　that　their　systems　are　plex　but　not　impossible　to　understand。　It　shouldn't　be　a　problem　for　three　ace　pilots　like　you　boys。〃

〃e　on；　mander。。。〃

Lisa　checked　her　watch。　〃It　took　us　twenty…four　real　hours　to　make　the　hyperspace　jump　from　Earthspace　to　Dolza's　mand　center。　Assuming　we're　headed　back　to　the　SDF…1；　we've　got　twenty　hours　left　to　learn。〃

〃And　suppose　we're　not　headed　back　to　Earthspace？　Suppose　we　defold　at　some　other　Zentraedi　front　or　base　or　I　don't　know　what？〃

〃Then　it　won't　matter　whether　we　learn　how　to　operate　it　or　not。〃

Rick　stood　up　and　cracked　his　knuckles。　〃All　right；　gang；　let's　get　crackin'。〃


Aft　in　the　special　weapons　hold；　Miriya　strapped　herself　into　the　Quadrono　scout　ship…a　bination　thruster　unit　and　multiple…missile　launcher　developed　by　the　Invid；　and　designed　for　infiltration　or　solo　penetration　operations。　Defold　was　plete；　and　the　time　had　e　to　retrieve　the　three　micronized　agents　from　the　cruiser's　sister　ship。

Miriya　lowered　the　canopy　of　the　extravehicular　pack　and　stepped　forward　to　the　edge　of　the　port。　In　the　distance　she　could　see　the　object　of　her　mission：　the　SDF…1。　It　was　under　attack　by　the　remnants　of　Breetai's　tattered　fleet。

Azonia　came　on…screen　in　the　mecha's　cockpit：

〃We'll　draw　the　enemy's　attention　away　from　you。　May　you　win　all　your　battles！〃

〃As　always！〃

Miriya　launched　herself　into　space；　a　darting　dragonfly　among　the　stars。。。


Max　had　his　arms　stretched　out　deep　into　the　pod's　waldolike　gun　controls。　Ben　was　scratching　his　head；　puzzling　over　the　firing　mechanism　for　the　missiles。　Lisa　wondered　how　she　was　going　to　be　able　to　activate　those　huge　radio　toggles。　And　Rick　tried　to　figure　out　how　he　was　going　to　fly　the　thing。

The　interior　of　the　Battlepod　was　not　entirely　dissimilar　to　human…made　Robotech　mecha。　In　fact；　the　design　of　the　cockpit　went　a　long　way　toward　verifying　Lisa's　theory　about　a　point　of　mon　origin；　the　layout　and　placement　of　the　controls　had　the　logic　of　human　construction；　albeit　on　a　grand　scale。

Lisa；　her　arms　overhead　hugging　a　toggle　switch；　glanced　at　her　watch　and　dropped　to　the　sphere's　seat。　She　looked　hard　at　her　panions；　calculating　the　present　level　of　visual　distortion　against　the　indicator's　display。　Satisfied　with　the　results　of　her　scan；　she　announced：

〃We're　ing　out　of　defold　right　on　schedule。　It's　got　to　be　Earthspace　or　an　incredible　coincidence。〃

The　four　regarded　one　another　and　took　a　collective　breath；　they　all　knew　what　had　to　be　done　next。

Rick　readied　himself　at　the　controls。　〃Let's　see　if　we　can　start　this　thing　up。〃

He　engaged　the　drive　lever　and　activated　the　sensor　and　scanner　systems。　The　mecha　began　to　hum　and　e　to　life；　and　the　first　thing　that　greeted　their　eyes　on　the　forward　screen　was　the　sight　of　two　Zentraedi　soldiers　just　returned　to　the　hanger。

The　soldiers　spun　around　at　the　sound　of　the　activated　pod。

〃They're　on　to　us！〃　yelled　Rick。

〃Blast　'em！〃

Max　shouted；　〃Here　goes　nothing！〃　as　laser　bolts　shot　from　the　arm　cannons　and　dropped　the　guards　to　the　deck。

Lisa　and　Ben　cheered。　Rick　told　Max　to　keep　firing。

〃Keep　it　up；　let's　open　up　this　can　of　worms　and　get　out　of　here。〃　Meanwhile；　he　nudged　the　stick　forward　and　the　Battlepod　lifted　away　from　its　still　silent　panions。

Max　continued　to　pour　particle　heat　into　the　hull；　until　all　at　once　the　lasers　burned　through；　and　air　and　mecha　were　being　sucked　in　a　rush　toward　the　breach。

〃We're　gonna　have　to　be　fast；〃　Max　warned　them。　〃These　things　heal　themselves。〃

Ben　said；　〃Not　while　I'm　around！〃　and　loosed　two　rockets　at　the　hull。

Rick　let　out　a　rousing　yell。　Simultaneously　with　the　explosions；　he　sent　the　thruster　stick　home；　the　pod　soared　across　the　hangar　and　through　the　breach。

Miriya　had　retrieved　the　ejected　canister　which　contained　the　micronized　agents。　Battlepods　were　swarming　around　Zor's　ship　like　angry　insects　and　engaging　enemy　mecha　throughout　the　field。　It　would　have　been　a　simple　matter　to　insert　the　cannister　and　be　done　with　it；　but　she　couldn't　resist　testing　these　waters。

She　flew　straight　into　their　midst；　executing　a　series　of　teasing　maneuvers　meant　to　draw　the　enemy　out；　but　not　one　of　them　succeeded　in　getting　a　fix　on　her。　She　made　up　her　mind　that　these　Micronians　were　nothing　to　worry　about　and　grew　even　more　daring；　positioning　herself　in　the　center　of　an　entire　squadron　of　enemy　fighters。　And　again　their　heat…seekers　could　not　find　the　mark。　She　laughed　aloud　and　stung　back。

Roy　Fokker；　Skull　Team　leader；　would　later　recall　the　strange　sight　he　witnessed　that　day：　how　a　Zentraedi　mecha；　not　much　larger　than　a　giant　with　a　jet　pack；　had　taken　out　five　VTs　at　once。

Through　the　breach；　the　mandeered　Battlepod　rolled　into　a　near　front　gainer　and　was　almost　taken　out　by　Zentraedi　crossfire。　But　the　occupants　of　that　pod　were　filled　with　such　vigor　and　than　that　they　scarcely　took　notice　of　their　predicament。　Ahead　of　them；　enveloped　in　a　cloud　of　metal　anger；　was　their　ship。　And　beyond　that；　their　planet　and　its　silver　satellite。

〃Can　you　raise　anything　on　the　radio？〃

〃I'm　trying；〃　said　Lisa。　Ben　came　to　her　aid；　together　they　put　their　strength　to　the　knob　and　managed　to　give　it　a　fraction　of　a　turn。

Rick　heard　singing：　a　familiar　voice；　a　familiar　song。

〃That's　Minmei！　That's　her　song…My　Boyfriend's　a　Pilot'！〃

〃As　long　as　it's　not　was　a　pilot；〃　said　Ben。


Miriya　easily　avoided　the　Phalanx　and　Valkyrie　fire　from　the　SDF…1　and　came　alongside　the　fortress　at　a　point　where　Breetai　claimed　the　hull　could　be　easily　breached。　She　summoned　Protoculture　strength　to　the　outsize　grappler　hands　of　the　mecha　and　tore　away　some　new　hatchway　the　Micronians　had　installed。　She　deposited　the　cylinder　inside　an　air　lock　in　the　mecha；　then　opened　and　resealed。

〃Insertion　successful；〃　Miriya　said　aloud。　〃Returning　to　base。〃

Status　reports；　enemy　trajectories；　battle　coordinates。。。

〃We've　got　the　military　frequency；〃　said　Rick　excitedly。

Lisa　leaned　into　the　mike。　〃Please　respond；　SDF…1；　we　are　in　your　air　space。　This　is　mander　Hayes　and　the　Vermilion　Team　attempting　to　make　contact　with　our　home　base。　Do　you　read　me？　Over。　Rick；　do　you　think　they　heard　us？〃

〃I　hope　so；　Lisa。　I'd　hate　to　be　taken　out　by　one　of　our　own　VTs。〃

Three　Battloids　were　closing　on　the　pod　in　attack　formation；　gatling　cannons　in　hand。　Rick　and　Lisa；　Ben　and　Max；　turned　to　each　other　with　undisguised　looks　of　concern。

〃Did　they　hear　us；　Rick？　Did　they　hear　us？！〃

Rick　closed　his　eyes　as　the　Battloids　moved　in　for　the　kill。

With　home　so　close　you　could　almost　touch　it。。。