Should this type of action occur — should the leadership of the Imperial Forces chose to or be forced to deploy the battle cruiser Altecca II, to swing its guns and torpedoes to bare on the planet surface into the mountain fortress areas… uuummm, wow!! The Altecca II would bring to the fray, “ its own brand of hell”. The political ramifications of this type of perceived heavy handiness and other intrusion issues, would create numerous ungodly complications in the Congress of the 22nd CT.

Anna up to this point, was positioned very, very, high in the planet upper atmosphere. She immediately slipped out of orbit, ignited low atmosphere propulsion motors, snatching the output into the 102.9 % rate level, she scraped the sky. Anna 7, scorched down through the stratospheres screaming to a air molecule burning halt, just hundreds of yards above the mountain. The Vigor smiled with its nasty firearms, hovering menacingly toward the the face the mountain, on the down bubble. The mountain fortress defenses fully announced themselves. Whole portions of the stony surface shifted, opened up only slightly revealing barrel upon barrel, of highly sophisticated artillery devices and multi -giga watt plasma bolt wizardry. Alive with shielding visible and invisible, fully mechanical slides appeared out of nowhere, as gargantuan robotic fighting platforms bandied about firing munitions packages down below on the hill tops of Big T and Little T, destroying site positions held by the Dragons. It took only 5.34 seconds for Vigor, with full screens to arrive, just slightly above parallel, to the firepower and deadly ordinance spewing forth from the mountain,

Suddenly, on her comm the voice of Master Gunnery Sgt. Noals filled her ears, except there was a lot of base in his voice requesting Anna’s support fire. The Master Gunnery Sgt. Noals kept asking calmly, as if he were asking someone to please pass the salt and pepper at dinner. “ WHERE”S MY COVER? WHERE”S MY COVER? WHERE”S MY COVER?” The question reverberated in Anna’s elf-like ears. Anna opened a direct line to Master Gunnery Sgt. Noals, declaring with docile emancipation, “ I HAVE YOUR COVER. RIGHT HERE.”

Directing aerial maneuvers from his own Blue Firebolt interceptor called, “ Three Fangs” , Dnalrob dove downward to aid his squadron in battle. The amount of enemy firepower erupting from the mountain, illuminated the dusk laden sky for miles. Each burst of tracer fire lit the ground casting scary shadows on the surface of the woods and road below. The prodigious blasts of suppressive fire from the fortress, lit up the whole entire mountain range. It was so bright that the Vigor’s sun screens shields automatically closed down immediately, shielding Anna 7’s eyes. Two V-220’s dropped from the sky. One of them burst into a thousand pieces. One Blue Firebolt was completely vaporized. The size of the ordinance vomiting ed out of the peak, covered an astounding 60 degree area. Its goal was to destroy anything and everything in the path of that mighty swath. At that very moment, Anna bore through this same carnage wreaking fire power, as her front shields held at 110 %, easily. She still requested more shielding from the rest of Vigor, to reinforce the front and side segments of the ship, bringing the shielding operational capacity at those areas up other 15%.

“ Vigor, fire all!! Vigor, fire all!!” demanded a resolute Anna 7. The ten Bactzac motors placidly settled Vigor in a hovering, parallel berth. Facing the bottom of the source of the projectiles, emitting its vilification on her friends in arms. Anna made all those villainous origins of the enemy weapons fire… directly in front of her weapons…..go away …. forever!

Initiating as wide a swath of her own imposing nastiness, effectively discharged from Vigor’s guns, Anna 7 commenced to scour the alpine range. With the multi-target systems, providing sequenced firing solutions, the self-acting cannons fired plasma arc lines of O6 Factor projectiles through the mountain. The free radical reactions of the O6 Factor seared into the expansive armaments, computers and reasoners installed internally, in the facilities. The O6 Factor munitions not only obliterated the equipment assets of the enemy but as Vigor sent additional searing barrages including the delivery of 4 mega claw torpedoes, massive layers of the peak evaporated.

These charges blew out a huge cavern in the military installation housed inside the interior of the peak, which could now be seen barely through the dust laden air as destroyed materials fell across the massive hole. Anna 7 soth an opening to take the advantage. She took the initiative and exploited it. Anna 7 slowly inched forward. Being mindful of falling debris, Anna piloted Vigor into the new and improved wide opening into the mountain. She did not want the mountain to fall on her or or comrades but she was determined to destroy this installation.

This is her job. She will end this aggression and crush those opposed to 22nd CT policies. Anna 7 was sanctioned to take immediate action and pursue a viable peace.

Blasting her way in further, the Raxa double bore rifles front and rear slammed erosion tipped death into everything and anyone in the way. Vigor spin like a ballerina on an axis, doing a slow pirouette to the music of chaos, with an unwholesome gleeful smile, as her carnage defecated upon the enemy infrastructure. From moment to moment, Anna pointed the bow of the ship both upward and downward at low angles, spreading Vigor’s joy here and there for all to sample.

With more determined invigoration, Anna asked the Bactzac motors to nose up the Vigor into a 70 degree angle, while easing the ship forward slowly and side to side. Anna tunneled through the top of the installation, as her rotating cannons stealthy left their personal signature of ruin. The mountain range itself shuddered and crackled , as edifice materials and construction bounced on the hull of Vigor. Anna rechecked the integrity of the shield strength. She smiled. Satisfied with the readings, she reasserted her efforts to the task at hand. The automatic switch for her outside running lights came on. “ Must be getting dark in here,” commented Anna, seeking a final direction to go, while debris fell all around. Her forward efforts of sustained fire afforded her the opportunity she craved. Sliding ever upward and just a smidgen to the right, she ascertained the floors above housed the crumbling foundation of the main guns. These gigantic weapons will have to go.

Moving ever forward, with a disconcerting command Anna said, “ Vigor.Vigor. Fire all Fire all !!” And she did. One volley of each type of ordinance within Vigor majestically erupted, twice….. in all directions. The next thing Anna 7 saw, was the darkness of the night sky, with stars sparkling before her in the eastern continental sky of the planet Sumohael. Anna soared out the savagely decimated fortress, leaving its skeletal remains for all to see.

At first there was only silence on her comm now. Anna 7 turned one hundred and eighty degrees about and flew out backwards, while she looked back at the destruction of the peak she had just orchestrated. Placing more power to the rear shield areas, as the rear weaponry continued to fire at select targets within range, which included the last of the boogies attacking Dnalrob’s squadron. Anna 7 slowly backed out with the bow of Vigor pointing below toward the immense sedimentary heap, which was a juggernaut of defense minutes ago. Repeating an old war adage, over and over again in her head. She now incorporated that wisdom into this battle from warriors long ago, “ It is better to be able to back out of a battle scenario, faster than you got into it. “

Feeling better every second , Anna instructed Vigor to slide back and forth in a 100 degree elipitical path, as it moved , erupting selective fire on targets which Vigor still deemed negative. Anna heard Motre say with great elation, as he saw Vigor emerging in one piece, backward……from the mouth of what could only be described as a maw of destruction, which scarred the face of the mountain range, “ I told you. I told you, “ beating his fist proudly on his chest three times. “ I told you. I would see you in 25 minutes!! “

Are Vigor’s internal intel systems considered self-aware?
Are there more enemy forces in the mountain fortress?

Read Chapter Twenty-Two