Not far ahead, the LMS Serenity was taking fire from one of those massive battlecruisers. He would have tried to help, but he and Melissa had problems of their own at the moment. Instead, he flew right past, plummeting nose-first toward the planet.
“What are you planning?” Melissa called out.
“Something brilliant.”
He pulled up when he felt the first trace of resistance from the atmosphere, and then the red halo of super-heated air surrounded his shuttle. He used the gravitational drive to slow his descent considerably.
Particle weapons splashed him from above, bouncing off the shields, and then the swirling mists of the upper mesosphere gave way to an endless expanse of blue sky. He saw sunlight reflected on the tops of clouds.
“They"re still coming!” Melissa wailed.
Pulling back on
