Fighter

The supply mothership Dauntless was capable of providing supplies and

maintenance to almost all types of combat ships; from small-class ships

to large-class battleships or cruisers. It's regarded as a strategic ship due

to its ability to perform these important roles.

It's also a considerable defensive asset. Its huge number of defensive

turrets were able to deal with approaching enemy ships with

overwhelming firepower, and its complement of fighters made the

Dauntless even more formidable.

Space fighters were quite small. They're usually half the size of a typical

small-class starship, if not smaller. Even so, their overall firepower still

rivaled that of a small-class combat starship, and their mobility was

many times better.

However, because of their size, it was impossible for them to mount a

powerful energy shield emitter, and their armor was also rather thin, so

small-class combat starships were a lot more durable. Even with these

drawbacks, fighters were still roughly comparable to small-class combat

ships combat ability-wise.

The Dauntless was capable of deploying a large number of such fighters.

I'm not sure about the exact number though.

"How many fighters got deployed?"

"Umm... A total of 180 units."

"That sure is a lot. You think they deployed their entire fighter

compliment?"

"They should have kept some to defend the ship, so... maybe they only

deployed half?"

We launched out of the Dauntless earlier, and we were now watching the

fighters launch from the Dauntless one after another. It seemed that the

Dauntless was equipped with six fighter catapults, or rather, six launch

tubes, and the sight of six space fighters being simultaneously shot out

from them was an impressive spectacle. It only took less than a minute

for the 180 fighters to launch. It was a ridiculous deployment capability.

"Mercenaries only use small-class combat ships, right? Why don't they

use space fighters, My Lord?"

"Basically, it's a problem of habitability and the lack of the ability to

travel between star systems. There's also the problem of not having

enough space to store loot. A fighter's survival rate is also relatively

lower, and you can't load as much live ammunition such as multi-cannon

rounds and seeker missiles onto them compared to combat ships. It

would probably work if you employed them in tandem with a

mothership like the Black Lotus, but mercenaries still find small-class

combat ships easier and more convenient to use."

"A fighter is mostly limited to a combat role. And since it's pretty small,

its sensors are pretty weak as well."

[They're a little lacking for use in mercenary work.]

Elma participated in the conversation through the comms.

When working as a mercenary, you'd have to travel constantly between

different star systems, and the interior of your ship basically becomes

your home. Even if you hunt down pirates, you won't be able to earn

enough money for all your needs by relying on the bounty rewards

alone, so you'd have to collect loot. In some cases, you might get

embroiled in an extended battle, so your ship has to be capable of

operating and fighting for extended periods. Of course, making it out

alive was still the utmost priority, so you need to place emphasis on

defense and survivability above all else.

A space fighter was a combat unit meant to be deployed directly into

active combat zones.

It lacked the ability to track down and chase after pirates around a star

system. Just like Mimi said, fighters were basically employed only in

combat roles.

"I see..."

After listening to my and Mimi's explanations, Kugi displayed a

pondering gesture. What's up? Was she thinking of piloting a fighter in

the future or something? It's certainly possible for us to employ a fighter

since there's enough space in the small hangar of the Black Lotus. But as

I was mulling over the feasibility of this idea, we received a transmission

from the Dauntless informing us of the start of the operation. It was a

text notification and not a voiced transmission. The transmission

included the operation start time and the coordinate data of the star

system.

"It looks like the operation's starting."

[Aye, aye, sir. Don't get shot down.]

"That's my line."

Elma disconnected from the comms. Now then, we better get going as

well.

"Mimi, I'll leave the navigation settings to you."

"Yes. I'll also set the arrival time."

Mimi inputted data into the automatic navigation system in order to so

we'll warp out at the target coordinates exactly when the operation

commences.

Because warping out of FTL navigation always gives off a strong energy

signature, it was basically impossible to perform a surprise attack

without getting detected. Therefore, in the case of large-scale surprise

attacks, or rather, assaults like this current operation, the method used

is to input the coordinates and warp-out time in advance and warp out

all at once near the enemy base's location then immediately commence

the attack.

The tactic of warping out outside of the enemy base's sensor range and

then slowly and stealthily closing in on it can also be employed, but it

was decided that today's operation will be a short decisive battle

utilizing superior firepower and numbers, so this tactic didn't match.

"Shall we?"

""Yes!""

After hearing Mimi and Kugi's energetic replies, I activated the

automatic navigation system. Now then, let's do this thing.

The lights of the surrounding stars were flowing backward like brilliant

arrows. Then, the flow suddenly stopped at the same time as the boom

of the warp-out echoed within the ship.

[Dammit! A lot of enemies just warped out from behind us!?]

[Don't head to the inner sector! You're gonna get crushed!]

[So what are we supposed to do then huh!? Continue flying around

inside the asteroid belt?! We won't be able to escape at this rate!]

"It looks like it's going pretty well for now."

"Right."

The Restalias and the rest of the ships of the Independent Anti-pirate

Mobile Fleet had already begun the bombardment along with Black

Lotus. The pirates that managed to survive the initial bombardment

began to head deeper into the asteroid belt. It's going just as planned.

"Commencing data link... We can practically see everything with this."

"The recon units of the Dauntless sure are thorough."

Krishna's radar indicated the position of each pirate ship moving around

the asteroid belt.

When the recon spaceplanes from the Dauntless scouted this area, they

also deployed an intelligence-gathering artificial satellite equipped with

advanced radar functions. The satellite was activated at the same time as

the battle began, and as a result, every move the pirate ships made was

now completely visible to us and our allies.

"My Lord, preparations for the activation of the sub-systems are now

complete."

"OK. Let's get started."

I activated the weapon systems and piloted Krishna deeper into the

asteroid belt.

The Dauntless fighter squadron had already entered the asteroid belt's

depths and had begun to fight it out with the pirates. Were we a bit late

to the party?

"Where should we aim for?"

"Right in the middle. Let's do this."

I wasn't that clear about just how powerful the fighter squadron of the

Dauntless was, but judging from the radar reactions, it looked like the

pirates were being steadily shot down. If we hunted from the sidelines,

we wouldn't be able to get satisfactory results. That's why it would be

better to plunge straight into the middle of the melee and wreak havoc.

I fired up the thrusters, and Krishna accelerated. I quickly navigated

between the asteroids floating freely in space.

"..."

Kugi suddenly went all quiet. Was she okay? I glanced toward her for a

second and found her ears flattened on top of her head as she turned

increasingly blue in the face. It also took Mimi some time to get used to

high-speed maneuvers inside asteroid belts.

"Enemy contact imminent."

"Gotcha."

Krishna rushed out behind an asteroid three times its size and engaged

four pirate starships navigating at low speed. I aimed at one of them and

fired all four heavy-caliber laser cannons.

[Huh!? What!?]

The shield of the pirate starship got saturated in an instant, and the part

near the center of the ship's hull exploded. I wasn't able to down it in

one blow huh? The pirates in this place really were a bit better equipped

compared to their counterparts active in other systems.

[It's an enemy! A mercenary ship!]

[Dammit! Crush it!]

Their reaction was surprisingly quick. Three ships excluding the one

that took damage fought back using their laser turrets and multicannons.

"Whoops."

Using the momentum of my initial charge, I slipped through the gap

between the asteroids the pirates were using for cover and jumped

behind another large asteroid to avoid the attacks. Hm? The shield got

grazed a bit, but it looks like this works.

"Kugi, prepare to activate a shield cell."

"O-Okay!"

Krishna jumped out from behind the asteroid and headed straight for

the pirate starships. I quickly fired the four heavy-caliber laser cannons

and the two shot-cannons. Of course, getting hit was inevitable because I

performed a straightforward charge, but it was preferable to quickly

crush the opponent even at the cost of Krishna's shield taking damage.

[This bastard's firepower is... Uwaaaaah!?]

[Gii–!]

After eating two barrages from the four heavy-caliber laser cannons, one

ship exploded, and another one had its cockpit block crushed from

taking shot-cannon fire at point blank range.

[Wait, we surr–]

[S-Stop!!! My ship can't move alrea–]

The last of the three still-mobile ships stopped in its tracks after

witnessing the other two get destroyed in succession. I mercilessly

destroyed it along with the ship that was rendered immobile by my

initial attack. My bad. I really don't have any mercy for pirates like you

guys, and I was competing for kills with the Dauntless fighter squadron

as well. I don't have any time to deal with you guys if you do surrender.

"Let's go for the next one."

"Yes!"

Since the final ship ceased its attack earlier, there was no need to use up

a shield cell. I glanced at Kugi once more to check her condition, and her

ears and complexion remained the same as earlier. It looks like it will

still take more time for her to get used to all this.