Path to Becoming the Greatest Space Mercenary - Chapter 350

Chapter 350: Chapter 350 Both Sides Maneuvering for Advantageous Positions
There was a still and quiet moment of shock and terror in the aftermath of the giant beam of light that had struck down the Alliance Police frigate.

It was obvious that the corrupt Alliance Police officers had wanted to stop them, but only now did Avery and his team understand the lengths at which the commander in charge was willing to go.

If not for the Dauntless sensors, which were the best out of any of the ships that made up Avery’s group, everyone that had been engaged with the frigate would have been destroyed along with it.

“Jasmine, did you know that Alliance Police heavy cruisers came equipped with a weapon like that?” Avery asked, a stunned look still on his face.

Her response took a few seconds as the destruction of the frigate had deeply affected her.

Certainly, the captain and possibly some of his closest officers had been colluding with pirates, but most of the people onboard would have just been average members of the Alliance Police that believed they were doing their job the law and safety of the Alliance.

“N-no I didn’t know that it would have something like that. It’s not standard issue for heavy cruisers. Only a few hundred were made with spinal mounted weapons over twenty years ago to serve as a deterrent against growing hostilities from the Reswen Theocracy. But after things calmed down a little while back, one must have ended up being stationed in this system.”

Avery clicked his tongue at this bad luck.

From what Jasmine had told him, this model of heavy cruiser was hardly widespread throughout the Dramid Alliance.

Its design was meant to be a major threat to other vessels around the same size or larger by using its impressive spinal mounted weapon that boasted incredible power.

Usually no one would imagine it being used against a group of smaller ships, but in this case, it did pose a real problem.

‘We were supposed to be able to stay out of their range, but with that thing. they can hit us even when we’re incredibly far from them. The only saving grace is how long it takes to charge up.’

The unexpected weapon had caught Avery and his team off guard. Fortunately, no one on his side had gotten hit by it and the blast had eliminated one of the frigates getting in their way.

It was sad to see so many Alliance Police officers that had been caught up in their superiors’ misdeeds being killed, but there was nothing that Avery could do other than quickly and quietly mourn their deaths.

Once the initial surprise had worn off, everyone continued on the escape route out of the asteroid field.

While the frigates that had initially intercepted them were no longer a problem, more ships were closing in on them.

“Avery, I don’t think that we’re going to be able to get out of this without another fight.” Jasmine said, a clear anger in voice.

She was monitoring the movement of the Alliance Police vessels, and from her calculations it was apparent that they were going to be forced into combat with another group of their enemies.

The other frigates and the two corvettes that had been closing in on them had altered their course to cut them off.

Had the entire group of cruisers and destroyers continued to blast their way through the asteroid field then there would not have been any issue with their escape.

However, the three destroyers that had broken off and circled around would be in a position to cut them off by the time they reached the edge of the asteroid field.

If they diverted their course now to try and exit on the other side, they would either run into the cruisers and other destroyers, or the frigates and corvettes.

‘Taking down those frigates too long, and the friendly fire from the heavy cruiser slowed us down even more. What’s our best option now?’

Seeing that they were in for fight no matter what option they took, Avery pushed his mind through the possible scenarios.

Each had their own merits, but in the end, he decided that pushing ahead and dealing with the three destroyers was their best bet.

The absolute worst-case scenario for them would be having to confront the heavy and light cruisers.

This made it clear that they could not turn around, and even trying to push through the other frigates and the two corvettes weaving through the asteroid field would likely slow them down too much and allow their enemies’ heavy hitters to catch up to them.

Honestly, the corrupt commander had maneuvered her forces well to trap Avery’s team. It really was a shame that these experienced Alliance Police officers were using their expertise for their own illicit gain rather than protecting the people that they should have been.

“I didn’t want to have to do this, but we’re splitting into three groups.” Avery said to everyone that followed him.

Staying together gave them strength in numbers, but most of the ships that had previously been part of Burke’s company that had been integrated into Avery’s team were not at the level where they could take on Alliance Police vessels.

Regrettably, they were liabilities this time and needed to be protected rather than sent on the attack.

Had Avery broken up everyone into smaller groups earlier, most of them could have slipped by without having to worry about this second engagement, but that would have meant sacrifices. Something he was not willing to accept yet.

“Squads two and three do not engage no matter what. Your goal is just to keep a destroyer’s attention on you while squad one takes out our target.”

Avery’s plan relied on fighting the three destroyers one at a time.

He would lead his team’s best fighters against one, while the other squads composed of those that were less capable would move towards the edge of the asteroid field and force the other two destroyers to keep their position or allow them to escape.

There were certainly problems that could arise and there was no telling what the corrupt Alliance Police officers might do as they became more desperate.

Nevertheless, this was the best idea Avery could come up with that would see everyone on his side getting out of this alive.