The hour didn't pass.
Forty-three minutes in, Commander Vorth got bored. The amplification array crackled back to life, and his booming voice rolled across the valley.
"SEVENTEEN MINUTES REMAINING. I'M TIRED OF WAITING. BRING ME THE HEAD OF WHOEVER IS IN COMMAND, AND I WILL SPARE THE REST."
A pause followed.
Then his voice became quieter, almost conversational for a man whose voice could shake mountains.
"Actually, no. Don't bring me the head. I want to see their face when they realize what they're up against."
His tone hardened.
"Fire the forward batteries."
The lead ship shuddered.
Along its port side, six cannon batteries rotated in unison, their massive barrels glowing with concentrated plasma energy. Each barrel was the size of a car, and the energy building inside them was Rank 3, packed so tightly that it seemed to scream against the restraints.
The cannons fired.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
