Chapter 48 Merchants and Pirates.

Both of them rushed to the command center, to see what was going on, as the notification should have informed them about one ship but told them about multiple ships instead.

The moment they arrived, they saw something unexpected.

Sensors showed them not one but three merchant vessels that were running away from six pirate ships, and all the ships were already damaged.

-Why now of all times?

Andrew said and took the command chair, activating the shields and weapons.

-All shields are at full, diverting power in case we need to recharge them.

Aelita got to the engineering station and began her work.

Fortunately, the battle was taking place away from any of the substations, but the merchants were retreating in his direction, so it was almost certain that he would have to fight.

-We have 60% of the ammunition for the cannons, and we are at 95 % on the railgun ammunition.

Aelita reported.

They did use quite a bit of ammo in their last engagement with the pirates and they hoped to replenish the stock once the merchant arrived also adding more cannons to the station's defenses.

-This will have to do.

Andrew said, hoping that the merchant ships would be able to win if he took the pressure off them.

-We are being hailed.

Aelita said looking on the communications console which was right next to hers.

-Put it on the speaker.

Andrew said, with a calm and steady voice, she recognized from the previous battle.

-Hello, station master Sparrow, can you assist us with our pirate problem?

A familiar voice sounded from the speakers.

-Hello Terelen, I think so but you need to bring them closer and give me a clear line of fire on the enemy vessels.

Andrew answered.

-We are being hailed again, this time it's the other station masters.

Aelita said, just as he finished speaking.

-Can you put them on a different channel and talk to them?

Andrew asked, not wanting to deal with them right now.

-Of course.

The girl said and got to work.

A moment later she was bombarded with questions about what the hell was going on.

-Station master, we are bringing the enemy to you.

What range would be optimal for you to open fire?

Terelen asked as the merchant ships changed course straight to his station.

-I can use the railgun at around 300,000 kilometers, and be sure to hit my target, but the cannon's effective range is around 60,000 kilometers.

-Understood, please prepare to open fire, we will drag them into the firing range as soon as possible.

The elf said.

Andrew was already prepared and even had a target in mind, but it was still too far and could detect and evade his round.

-Andrew, the others want to know, if they can help in any way.

Aelita said just as the elf finished speaking.

-They can't, other than Lan, but even she is a bit too far.

He responded.

-Tell all of them to power up their weapons and shields, but not to open fire unless they

 are in danger or have a perfect shot.

She relayed his instructions, which were not taken enthusiastically, by the ladies.

-Is he trying to exclude us from this fight?

The fleet commander asked, irritated by the human's instructions.

-No, check your targeting system.

The diplomat said.

The moment she did, it became obvious why Andrew forbade them from firing.

At their distance, they would most likely hit everyone, which would not help.

-Fine, but what about Lanarine?

-I also can't open fire, the merchant ships are in the way.

Lan said through the comms.

She didn't mention that she didn't even want to shoot if she could help it.

-Looks like we need to sit this one out.

The doctor chimed in, stating the obvious.

Just as they were talking, Andrew fired the railgun at a distance of 350,000 kilometers.

The pirates noticed the incoming projectile, but it was too late for them to do anything other than take it.

The round slammed into their weakened shields and pierced through them, tearing a hole in their hull.

The ship immediately started losing atmosphere but was otherwise functional.

At least for another three seconds, without its shields, the merchant ship took it out with one salvo.

The other pirates also noticed the incoming fire from the station and the loss of one of their ships.

But before they could decide what to do about it, another railgun round hit a pirate vessel, taking down its shields and piercing the starboard engine, causing the ship to ram one of its own and the two ships exploded after the collision.

Now it was three on three, and the merchants also had support from the station.

Taking that into consideration, the pirates, decided to retreat, it wasn't worth it to die and gain nothing.

However, before they could even change course, the third round from the station came and hit one of the ships, into its cannon ammunition storage, causing a secondary explosion and leaving the damaged ship dead in space.

The other two ships wanted to escape, but the merchants used their advantage and concentrated their fire on one ship, destroying it, and Andrews, railgun seriously damaged the last one, before the merchants took it out of its misery.

None of the pirates even thought about firing on the station, so their shields remained fully charged, but if they didn't have the railgun, the situation could look quite different.

-Station master, thank you for the assistance again.

Terelen said, over the comms, when the pirates were dealt with.

-The pleasure is all mine as long as I can salvage everything in these ships.

Andrew grinned.

-Of course, you can, in the end, you were the one to destroy them, we only claim the last two as our kills.

The elf said, also smiling.

-Do you need resources, for repairs?

Andrew asked, knowing that he had more than enough resources to spare.

-That would be great.

Terelen, said, with gratitude.

-Then dock and send me the list of required materials, I also have another deal for you, if you are interested.

Andrew said.

-I'm more than just interested, the last deal was so successful that I can't wait to see what you got for me this time.

Also, I brought the rest of the items, you bought the last time.

The elf grinned.

-You won't be disappointed.

Andrew said and closed the channel.

Aelita, thank the ladies for not shooting at us…

The rest of his words were cut off when the whole station shook.

-What was that?

He asked.

-We were hit in one of the life support modules, there is a breach in it, but we are not losing atmosphere.

The girl replied, immediately.

Andrew immediately connected the dots.

-Stay here and close all the entrances, don't come out until I tell you to.

He said and ran for the armory, cursing himself for leaving all the weapons inside.

The moment he got there he started gearing up, as fast as he could.

Thankfully he kept the weapons and the combat harness, fully loaded, just in case, which allowed him to save some time now.

In less than two minutes, he was fully geared up and ready to repel boarders.

-Aelita, contact the merchants and tell them not to dock right now.

He said to his communicator.

-I already did.

 Also, we have three intruders, one of which was taken care of by the guardian drone.

The other two split up, one is coming your way, and the other one is coming here.

She said, calmly.

There was no reason to panic, as the command center had four guardian drones at each entrance and half a dozen inside, so she was being protected better than Andrew.

-How far away is the intruder from the command center?

Andrew asked, while moving slowly, through the modules.

-If the drones, won't take him out he will arrive in about three minutes, and the one going your way will be in front of you in less than a minute.

She informed him while putting on her space suit.

This was something he insisted she did if they were ever boarded.

That way, she could escape from the command center and move outside of the station.

Andrew focused, on finding the first enemy, but he didn't have to look for long as the massive alien just showed up across the power module, he was just about to enter.

The human didn't wait for an invitation, he raised the rifle to his shoulder and opened fire.

He had his Kalashnikov set to the single shot and fired five times.

Four bullets found their mark while the fifth one missed, making a hole in the module, which triggered, the automatic lockdown of the damaged module.

The wounded alien tried to escape, but it was too late and he got trapped, while Andrew never entered the module, taking cover behind the airlock.

The alien quickly found out why a million ways to die in space always sucked and his death was anything but pleasant.

Andrew almost vomited, seeing the horrifying scene before his eyes, but he then remembered that there was another intruder and forced himself to move.

This time however he switched to his side arm, not wanting to destroy another module of his station.

-Aelita, what's the status on the intrudes, coming your way?

He asked.

-He will arrive in one minute, then he will have to face the drones.

She informed him.

-I'm on my way.

He said and started to run in the direction of the command center.

-The intruder took out all the drones, he is at the door, but I don't know what he is doing.

Aelita reported, just as Andrew arrived at the other entrance.

-Open the door for me.

He said.

A moment later the door opened.

-Get behind the door and stay there, until it's over.

He said, moving the girl behind him.

Andrew suspected that the pirate wanted to open the door from the other side, so he most likely, didn't hold his weapon in his hands.

Taking a chance, he hid behind the command chair and used it to open the door.

This surprised the alien, who was smaller than his dead friend, and before the alien could even react, Andrew fired his pistol, this time all the bullets were on target.

The human emptied a full clip into the intruder and after reloading, he came over to the alien, and put another bullet into its head, just to be sure.

-Close the door again and don't open them unless I tell you to.

He once again said to Aelita and went to get the third assailant who was out cold thanks to the guardian droid that was lying next to him.

Andrew quickly took out the handcuffs and made sure that the prisoner would not be a problem, by cuffing his two pairs of hands behind his back, not even caring about the sound of snapping joints and bones as he did that.

The pain woke the pirate up, and he started screaming and tossing around, until he felt something hard, press against the back of his head. 

-If you don't stop moving, you're going to join your two friends in the afterlife.

Andrew said, with a voice that sounded alien to him, it was cold and emotionless, just like the space outside.

The pirate immediately stopped trashing and remained motionless, despite the pain in his arms.