Regardless of distance I was able to communicate with my drones and get real-time data of what was happening. We hadn't managed to destroy it.
The volcanic crater appeared unharmed. I could only speculate that my bombs hadn't managed to detonate. The skies were filled with Scholar warships and patrolled by dragons. Lady Sylax must have reunited with her lost core and they were transforming the place into an armed fortress.
I hid my drone in some jungle foliage to play observer for now.
It took two days for the seeds of sedition Anna had planted to take root. New Scholar vessels appearing in the air above Reevesport and beginning to open fire on the defenders.
The Scholar vessels were of all sorts. I observed ships in colors of green and white that had the look of the Falcon vessels. There was another small fleet whose vessels were cloaked in shields of smoky darkness.
"What exactly are you hoping to accomplish with all of this? Or was any sort of strategic planning a foolish hope from someone that thought that dress a good idea?" I asked Anna, who was seated at the command console aboard the ship and watching the sensor feeds from the drone.
"What we are looking for is the disproportionate response. I've gotten the word out there that Sylax has found a prize of great value. Some powers will be willing to gamble a little in pursuit of that prize, and prepared to lose, and they’re of no interest to us. What I'm looking for is someone coming in with too much firepower," Anna said.
"Because to them it will be more than a gamble," I said.
Anna had a cunning streak that was quite useful at times.
So far, none of the fleets were having much luck. Lady Sylax, compared to the Scholars, was only a minor power. But with the acquisitions of her core from the jungle and the assets she seized from Reevesport, she was still a formidable force. It didn't help that the invading fleets were as eager to attack each other, as her.
Another fleet materialized above Reevesport. Twelve heavy battleships in white and grey marked with a wolf’s head. In a display of considerable coordination they swiveled in unison to present their main cannons to the largest cluster of other vessels and began to open fire with ballistic rounds.
"Wolves that are actually dangerous. How novel," I said.
"Transfer Baron Wolfson and his people into holding cells," Anna said, studying the screen. "Unless I miss my guess, this is his father. James Wolf."
"The name is literal? Well, I suppose it is for most of the crew. Perhaps you should try one that defines yourself? Cookie Devourer, Friendless, Mostly Useless," I said.
"I'll stick with badass Queen of the World," Anna said. "We'll let this play out a little, but I want us ready for a large-scale boarding action. Our goal will be take out the shields of the main vessel while you scan for their archives and teleport us in."
That was her plan? It hardly counted.
I teleported Baron Wolfson and his remaining Wolves into containment cells and sealed them in. Anna wasn't going to give them a chance to betray her.
The battle for Reevesport was starting to turn into a three-way affair with the new arrival. Makeshift alliances were made between other attacking ships as they drew together forming one force, Sylax made the second, and Wolf and his ships the third.
Even more sections of the city were aflame now. Above, the fight in the air wasn't one-sided. Two of the Wolve's ships had their shields down and were pulling back behind the others.
"How long can we last amongst in all of that?" Anna asked.
It was a good question, a critical question, I wish I had a better answer.
I said, "You made the dubious decision to tie your ambitions to a research complex, then decided it was a good idea to keep finding us massive firefights to wander into. This ship is in the best shape it has been since we took a hold of it, but we aren't designed to go against a single warship, much less dozens."
"That isn't an answer," Anna said.
"A few minutes. Our shields are in good repair, our armor plating is restored, and I've got some innovative ideas I think will stretch out the fight. Push it too long though and I'm making my exit. I'll find a new annoying and pushy human sidekick," I said.
"Like I'm replaceable," Anna said.
"Perhaps Zora? You and she come from a similar place and she seems to have the drive to succeed," I said.
Anna frowned and slipped away from the console to teleport to the armory. No Bioarmor for her today, she was going with the best equipment Batavius managed to produce.
Before she left Anna said, "Don't even joke about that. If you do have to go, find yourself some nice place hidden away in the jungle. Crash the ship, go underground like you were before. Make a life for those staying aboard and do your research in peace. You can't trust the Scholars or the Righteous."
Well, she hardly needed to convince me that humans were unreliable. I do think she was concerned about me, or else she simply hated the idea of Zora getting ahead that much. Perhaps it was a bit of both.
The battle for Reevesport seemed to be reaching its crescendo. Three dragons had been felled going after one of the Wolf vessels that the other ships were going to unusual lengths to protect. It must be the command ship, and its shields were flickering. We'd never get a better opportunity. I blinked us into the middle of the chaos.
40
I had respawned Candice and Diana. I had my human drones again to send into the fight on the vessel alongside Anna.
I also had to consider what to do if we were boarded. I moved Sparkseed and the growth bombs so one was positioned on every deck and set up rooms as insulated safe areas. If necessary I could teleport my crew to their respective safe rooms and trigger the seeds. That much electricity would likely blow out most of our systems and send us crashing to the ground, but I was fairly sure it would kill any invaders too, if it came to it.
I put Ratticus in the weapons chair so we could feed his power into the main guns. Our goal wasn't to destroy any ships, but simply to stay flying for as long as possible. I hoped that with his ability to convert and redirect energy Ratticus might be able to neutralize some of the incoming fire.
We had materialized in the middle of the Wolf fleet.
I hit them with the beam cannon and Ratticus siphoned the power from those with already weakened shields. They flickered a few moments and were gone.
If being a research vessel had any advantage in a fight like this, it was our exceptional sensors. As soon as any shields dropped I was scanning the vessel for anything that might be the archive Anna wanted.
Not a single research facility on their ship, really it was quite shameful. There was a central database facility and that must be the archives. Except there also appeared to be some sort of vault that had armed guards stationed outside even in the midst of this battle.
I didn't have time to consult with Anna. Should I split our forces between those targets or not?
There were obvious risks involved in doing so, but the vault could also contain what we needed and we'd only get the single chance at attacking the ship. I decided it was worth the risk.
I began teleporting teams over. The vault got our heaviest hitters. Hot Stuff and her lieutenants, Anna, and Doctor Batavius and a few of her people for their technical expertise. The archive required a technical mind too, so I sent Mechos along with Ophelia and an engineering team.
I split my drones up one per team.
The vault team came under fire at once. Hot Stuff walked towards the guards, fire blazing around her body as she went into full burn. This drew their fire and kept the others in her team safe for the moment.
"This doesn't look like an archive," Anna said to Candice.