SECTION 37
“Patch me in on Fleetcomm,” Ulnar orders the communications technician. He glances around the bridge once before turning his attention back to the planning tank beside his flag console. Waiting for the crewman to comply, he tries to size up the situation.
The ship’s computers, interpreting as much as they can through a haze of disruptive static, have estimated enemy strength via ultrapulse scans; they report between thirty and thirty-five enemy ships. That’s a far cry from the hundred cruisers from Endymion. Nor is there any sign of the giant planetoid object here. The Ka’slaq have divided their fleet and sent only a fraction of their total force against Baal—a significant fraction, but a fraction nonetheless. That gives the Legion a chance to fight on more even odds for a change.
“On Fleetcom, sir,” the technician says.
Keying in his microphone, Ulnar weighs his decision carefully before speaking to the captains in the squadron. “This is Flag to all ships. Prepare for battle. The squadron will adopt a defensive posture; let’s make them come to us. Stand by for formation and battle orders.”
By standing on the defensive, they can disrupt the enemy formations more easily. They form a perfect, curved wall sweeping down on Baal in formation, seemingly oblivious to anything but the planet.
He pauses for a long moment, still contemplating the tank. Finally, he reaches for the microphone again.
If Ulnar orders the squadron to form a defensive globe, go to section 78.
If Ulnar orders the ships to adopt a defensive cylinder formation, go to section 83.
If the admiral orders the squadron’s destroyers to form a screen ahead of the battlecruisers, go to section 90.
If Ulnar orders the squadron to allow the orbital fortress around Baal to take the first wave of enemy attacks, go to section 93.
If they should deploy into Phalanx and attack, turn to section 88.
If the squadron is ordered to scatter and fight dispersed, go to section 95.