Maybe, an escort

"Ready missiles. Two per demon."

The haptic suit vibrated as the missile launchers emerged from Cerviel's shoulders.

"Ready," Cerviel said.

Ten tubes, each packing a deadly payload, waited for my order. I didn't give it. Instead, I waited. My gaze locked on Valoel. His figure grew larger until he zipped past me.

"Fire."

Ten streaks of light burst from my shoulders. Each raced toward the red stars. Two blasts from the pulse cannons raced past us as I turned around and followed Valoel. I would have waited for the explosions if I had time.

"Impact," said Cerviel.

The counter decreased by four and then by two more.

"How far are they behind us?" I asked.

"First contact in three minutes."

"Too close for comfort. Ready another salvo."

My back itched as Cerviel loaded the missiles into the launchers. "Loaded."

I saw my signal half a minute later. "Now!" I braced myself as Cerviel spun around and fired the next volley. They were joined by two more blasts from the pulse cannons.

"Let's go to Valoel."

"Impact," Cerviel's response was quicker than last time. The counter decreased by five. I had hoped for more. "Load remaining missiles."

"Warning - five missiles remain."

"I know. Command, are you there?"

"Receiving!" Command's voice filled the cockpit. "What's going on?"

"Nova's alive but passed out. Valoel's flying to Asbestos on automated instructions."

"And the demons?"

"I took out eleven, but there's a lot--" My body jerked to the side as Cerviel dodged a fireball. "Dammit. They're on top of me. Please tell me your missile launcher is ready."

"We're loading the final warheads as we speak." Command said as Cerviel dodged two more blasts. "We'll be ready soon."

"Incoming." Cerviel's adjustment saved us from the demon flying past us. While my brain was a step behind, my instincts knew what to do. I knew the hilt of Cerviel's sword would be in her hand, so I struck. The added thrust of the booster added some extra force, so the demon separated in two as I flew past. The counter decreased by one.

"Cerviel, give me timelines."

"Thirty-nine minutes until Valoel reaches Asbestos. Forty-one for us. Warning - two enemies are approaching behind us."

The thing about zero-gravity combat is that one tends to forget there is no resistance. Humankind is used to moving where gravity will do some work for you. This resistance disappears once you're above whatever planet or planetoid you call home. A simple act such as braking becomes infinitely more difficult when there isn't a thing to brake against. You'd need an external force to push you back. Luckily, Cerviel had those.

"Prepare to fire counter boosters... now!" I clenched my teeth as my dinner threatened to leave my stomach. It's been a while since I engaged in zero-gravity combat. I wasn't as used to all the forces at play. That didn't deter me from my goal. "Spin!"

The two demons never expected their prey to stop nor its blade to slice them apart. Their momentum ensured four demonic halves flew past me when Cerviel completed her spin.

"Three additional targets entered the range," Cerviel said.

"I see them." Three triangles lit inside my visor. A push from Cerviel's counter boosters and a swing of her sword carved fatal grooves through two demons. The third lost its head from the follow-up strike.

The counter decreased by three.

"Two targets are approaching Valoel," said Cerviel.

"What? How'd they slip past?"

"Unknown."

"Dammit. Command? Can you help?"

"The missile launcher is ready, but we risk damaging Valoel when we're that close." Command said. "The same goes for the pulse cannons. Buying you some time is the best that we can do."

Two white streaks flew past us. The counter decreased by one.

"Cerviel, give me some extra power."

"Engaging afterburner." I braced myself against the extra thrust of Cerviel's booster. "How close are they to Valoel?"

"They have engaged with long-range attacks. One attack hit Valoel on his back."

"Are they in missile range?"

"Yes."

"Then fire. Single missile each."

Two missiles raced out and struck their target. The counter didn't decrease.

"Two more."

"One missile left," Cerviel said as she complied. One of the demons rapidly dropped back on impact. The other kept pace.

"Then we'll do it manually." I tightened the grip around Cerviel's sword.

While the demon wasn't dead, the blast from the attacks knocked it away from Valoel. It tried to reorientate itself when Cerviel's sword pierced its chest. A punch from Cerviel's free hand decreased the counter by one.

"How far are the others out?" I asked.

"A cluster of demons have been detected three minutes out."

"What does that mean?'

"Thirty-seven demons will attack you simultaneously."

"That's not good," I said. "Command? How many demons are within the missile launcher's range?"

"We are locked onto a hundred and ten demons. We have seventy-five missiles ready."

"Target the closest ones and fire!"

"Firing!"

Several specs of light came to life on Asbestos.

"Missiles away." Command reported. "Reloading second volley."

"Cerviel, use the afterburner. Catch up to Valoel."

"This action will deplete the afterburner energy reserves for a short while."

"Go for it." I said.

"Engaging." The dual blasts from the pulse cannons flashed past twice as I stabilized my trajectory beside Valoel.

"Cerviel? How far out are we from Asbestos?"

"We will reach Asbestos in twenty minutes. Warning - demonic forces are closing in. One minute until contact."

"It's going to be close," I said as the pulse cannons decreased the counter. It helped, but my main hope lay with the incoming missiles. "Valoel? Any change from Nova?"

"Pilot Nova is still unconscious," Valoel said.

"And you? How are your power levels."

"My power core is running at seven percent capacity. I will need to recharge soon. The previous attack damaged the casing around my boosters. Any further damage risks destroying the subsystem."

"We'll do our best to prevent that."

"Warning - incoming attack." A fireball flew past me as Cerviel swerved to the right. "Three enemies in our imminent vicinity."

"Tell me when it's in range." I saw the red figure when I looked over my shoulder. Another one followed closely behind. The third was out of sight.

"Yes, pilot Vega," Cerviel said as she dodged two fireballs. One headed toward Valoel. A blast from his afterburner pushed him to safety. "Target entering range in three seconds."

Two...

One...

The demon's head split apart as I swung Cerviel's sword. Lifeless, its corpse rapidly disappeared into space as both mechs pulled away.

"Warning--" I cried in surprise when something slammed into my foot and yanked Cerviel off course. Several red lights flashed inside the cockpit. They seemed more upset with the sudden change in trajectory than any real damage to my plating.

"Where are they?" I asked.

"One is heading for us, the other for Valoel."

"We don't have time for this." The demon ducked when I swung Cerviel's sword before retaliating. Pain flared through my chest as three red lines appeared through Cerviel's projection.

"Minimal damage."

"Good." The demon had flown past and was now well outside my range. "Go back to Valoel. We can't leave him undefended."

"Firing boosters. Warning - the enemy is readying his second attack."

"Dodge when he gets close, but don't change course."

Valoel kept his pace ahead of me. I'm sure he knew what was lurking behind him.

"Valoel! Are you there?"

"Yes, pilot Vega. I require assistance."

"Brake when Cerviel tells you to," I said. "Cerviel, watch out for ranged attacks."

"Yes, pilot Vega." I glanced at the corner of my visor when my head started to itch. The neural load levels were hovering around eighty percent. Still good for now. "Cerviel, what is the status of the afterburner?"

"Fifty percent recharged."

"Good." The demon flew past us when Cerviel dodged sideways. My arm flinched as if to strike, but Cerviel prevented me. The sudden momentum would likely have twisted us into a roll. I didn't want that.

"Unit Valoel, brake now," Cerviel said. A red orb left the third demon's hand by the time Cerviel had spoken.

"Cerviel, afterburner!" I felt myself compress when the afterburner kicked in.

The demon shot past Valoel when he braked. It left the demon wide open and allowed me to slam into him. Cerviel's sword pieced its chest as my momentum nearly folded the demon in half. Yet the counter didn't decrease.

"Cerviel! Activate left gauntlet blade!"

"Extended." The demon wiggled as I slammed the blade into his body. It took five strikes for the counter to decrease. I had barely landed my final blow before something crashed into my back. Red lights filled the cockpit as multiple lines appeared over Cerviel's projection.

"Danger!" Cerviel reported.

"C'mon..." I tried to retaliate, but Cerviel's arms were held in place. "Fire booster!" The scratching turned into a pained squirming. Whatever force held me in place released its grip. Free from my attacker, I held the sword sideways as Cerviel spun around. "Will your kind... " The first strike carved a groove through its chest. "Please..." The second turned the groove into an X. "Piss off..."

"Language." Valoel said.

"Sorry..." I blew out a breath. "Wait, why are you still here?"

"You told me to brake."

"Not permanently." I pointed at Asbestos with Cerviel's sword. "Go! Command? Are you there?"

"Language, Vega."

I sighed.

"Where are the missiles?" Command asked.

"They just passed me." I turned toward the receding lights before explosions filled the radar.

"Fifty-seven confirmed kills," Command said. The counter dropped by the same number. "We're busy loading the rest. You should have a small window."

"Thanks." I blew out a breath. "And the Duke? Please tell me you've slowed it down a bit."

"No. The pulse cannons have been attacking since they came into range. No luck. It looks like the lower-level demons are throwing themselves in the way of the blasts to protect it."

"Damn. Cerviel, set off after Valoel."

"Firing boosters."

"How far are we from Asbestos?" I asked.

"We should arrive within fifteen minutes." The planetoid had grown significantly larger than before. I could start identifying the individual domes.

"Warning - high-level signature closing in."

"How long before contact?"

"Fifteen minutes."

"Vega!" Command exploded over the earpiece. "We have a problem!"

"I know. Cerviel just told me."

"No, not that. We missed something. The Duke was hiding another signature. A class five, and it's heading your way. Right now!"