Among the besieged revolutionary army, an air of despair was now spreading without cease.
"Report — another of our small fleets, 30 T2-grade interstellar warships, has been wholly destroyed."
"Report — one of our T3 Porcupine-class Medium Interstellar Destroyers, ship K887, has been destroyed."
One piece of grim news came hard upon another.
A middle-aged man crowned with deer-antlers sat in the captain's chair, his face all sorrow.
He was the being of greatest prestige within the revolutionary army — the one men called the Deer King.
He was the chief of the Snow-Deer beast-folk clan.
"Black Fox, how goes the breakout?" the Deer King commander looked toward the video window before him; on the other end was a dark-skinned fox matron.
"All three breakout attempts have failed. The enemy knows our dispositions here well; they've sealed off several of our breakout-and-escape routes. It seems that Horned-Wolf fellow has sold out every scrap of our intelligence." the Black Fox matron said in a low voice.
"That damned Horned-Wolf fellow! A traitor to the wolf-kin!" A hysterical voice came — this too a wolf-form beast-folk, its fur white, but one eye covered with a patch, plain traces of burn-scarring upon it.
If one spoke of the most numerous lineage within the revolutionary army, that was naturally these who styled themselves wolf-kin.
This wolf-kin took in every branch-line of wolves; all wolves who'd joined the revolutionary army — horned wolf, black wolf, white wolf, no matter which — came under the wolf-kin.
And that Horned-Wolf clan which had betrayed the revolutionary army was, in theory, likewise a branch of this wolf-kin.
And so at the Horned Wolf's betrayal, this one-eyed White Wolf, the wolf-kin's present leader, was furious indeed.
It amounted, quite simply, to a slap in his own face.
"Now's not the time to speak of these things. As things stand, to preserve our fleet is impossible. The one thing we can still do is preserve the seed-fire of our revolutionary army. So my counsel is: gather together the elites of our various clans, make one last attempt, and send them out!" the Deer King commander said in a low, grave voice.
"I agree." the Black Fox matron said.
The wolf-kin leader nodded: "No objection."
"Report! A portion of the Warhammer legion fleet besieging us has suddenly pulled back. It seems an interstellar fleet has appeared in the outer zone — possibly an interstellar fleet of our revolutionary army!" a crew member reported a piece of news in urgency.
The three revolutionary-army leaders at once checked the particulars.
"Could it be old Bull and the others have come back?" the wolf-kin leader murmured.
"Even if old Bull and the others have come back, there's nothing to be done about the situation before us. The enemy's sent out too many interstellar warships this time; and on top of that we've had a traitor in our midst." the Black Fox matron said helplessly.
The Deer King commander pondered a moment, then said decisively: "This may be the chance we've been waiting for. Begin at once to organize the breakout fleet; if a chance comes, cover the breakout fleet's escape without a moment's delay — come what may, we must preserve our seed-fire!"
"Very well!"
"I agree!"
With all three revolutionary-army leaders in agreement, everyone began to make ready.
The Black Fox matron heaved a long sigh, and looked toward a young Black-Fox girl beside her: "Xin'er. Hurry and make ready; board a shuttle-craft and get into the breakout fleet."
The young Black-Fox girl's eyes brimmed with tears; she looked at her mother, unyielding: "I won't go! I want to be with all of you — I don't want to leave you, Mother!"
The Black Fox matron grasped the young Black-Fox girl's hand: "Remember our duty. You are the hope of our Black-Fox clan. We cannot let the Black-Fox clan be cut off, all of us, here!"
The young Black-Fox girl wept beyond all consoling.
"You two — take the Miss and go!" The Black Fox matron turned her head away, and gave the order to two Black-Fox women.
The two Black-Fox women, supporting the young Black-Fox girl, left the bridge, turning back to look at every third step.
The Black Fox matron bit lightly at her rosy lip; when no one was watching, she quietly wiped away the traces of tears at her eyes.
And went on with her work.
She was the one who bore the burden of wits within the revolutionary army; the movements of the whole revolutionary-army interstellar fleet were, every one, laid out in plans and schemes drawn up by her.
For this was a talent inborn in the Black-Fox clan; among the beast-folk races, their intelligence ranked at the very fore.
"I hope those out there can win us a little more of a chance." The Black Fox matron looked into the deep-space telescope, at the blurred, dimly detected image of the outer star-zone.
…
The Golden Eagle commander was chiefly charged with the combat task of the second line; leading his center fleet, he drove straight at the discovered revolutionary-army interstellar fleet, while the other two Warhammer fleets closed in as pincers from either wing.
That suddenly appeared revolutionary-army fleet lay within a small meteor-belt.
Were it not for the alertness of their crews and the advancement of their starship radar, they might not even have been discovered.
Now, having drawn near, one could see, among the meteors great and small of that belt, revolutionary-army interstellar warships scattered here and there.
The Golden Eagle commander looked with a cold smile at these revolutionary-army interstellar warships — for all the world like a hawk that had spotted a little white rabbit.
"The hunt begins," the Golden Eagle commander said with a cold smile.
The Golden Eagle commander was especially fond of this feeling of hunting others down — above all the feeling of driving a foe to despair.
He believed the revolutionary-army fleet opposite must, at this moment, be already in a panic, at their wits' end.
How he'd love to see the scene of their despair.
In fact, the Golden Eagle commander had guessed half right.
The command echelon of these revolutionary-army interstellar warships was, at this moment, indeed exceedingly tense; some, too, were much afraid.
But they were not fleeing headlong in blind panic.
"Gulp… they're really coming straight at us! 30,000 interstellar warships in all, in three columns. It looks as though they mean to pincer us!" the Pig-Head commander gulped, and said tensely.
The Bull-Head commander fixed his eyes on the closing distance between the two sides: "Closer and closer! Closer and closer! Another five minutes, and they'll enter firing range!"
At this moment these revolutionary-army leaders held their breath, their palms all sweat.
"Entering firing range!" the Ram-Head commander cried.
But the Warhammer fleet opposite, as if meaning to toy with them, did not launch an attack at once; instead they went on pressing closer.
At the same time, the Warhammer fleets on the two wings had already formed a half-moon, on the point of completing their encirclement of this small meteor-belt.
"Why haven't they attacked yet! Get me Charlotte this instant!" the Pig-Head commander felt now as though his heart were strained to the very limit of tension.
"General Charlotte can't be reached for the moment — but her side has instructed us to go on carrying out the original combat plan!" a crew member reported.
The Pig-Head commander was frantic with worry.
Just then, the Warhammer fleet's interstellar warships had already launched their attack — though it was sparse, scattered ship-cannon fire beginning to fall on their interstellar warships.
"Just what in the world is Charlotte waiting for! We should never have come back here. To believe her nonsense. She's dragging us down into hell!" the Pig-Head commander clutched his own head.
The Bull-Head commander and the Ram-Head commander clenched their fists.
Still, they chose to believe that White Tiger woman-general of the revolutionary army.
"T2 Lion King-class Heavy Interstellar Missile Ships — launch interstellar missiles!"
Charlotte's order was, at this moment, relayed to the interstellar missile ships of the Dragon-Tiger Legion fleet.
Interstellar missile ship after interstellar missile ship, hidden behind the meteors, sailed out; the interstellar-missile launch units opened.
Missile upon interstellar missile launched forth, one pressing hard upon the next!