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<Cut back to the military control room in the mountain.>
"Ma'am? The target is too high for the F-22's, though they've regained control of their craft. And Site 43 reports that all but one of the missiles have been destroyed, and the remaining one has lost lock. They've had to detonate that missile." called the comms officer from behind his displays.
"The target appears to be slowing down. It looks like it will attempt to dock with Fred. It certainly doesn't look like it is trying to destroy Fred; more likely it will try and capture it." Said the space liaison officer.
"Okay. It's down to the Marines – order them to move to retake or destroy Fred." And with that she turns to the liaison officer.
"They're ready and moving into position. They won't get there until shortly after the target. They'll do their utmost." replied the space marines officer.
"Raise Fred, and warn them. Have they any defensive capabilities?"
"None Ma'am," responded the liaison officer. "The best they can do is very limited manoeuvres. It may be best for them to evacuate – any space battle is messy and generally fatal. If we do this now, we can bring them down over the mainland." He consults a display. "Almost certainly out of sight; no-one should know about it."
"Can the manoeuvres achieve anything useful?"
"No, not really. We can control them remotely from the ground, anyway."
"Very well. Order the evacuation of Fred. Get the crew to safety. And manoeuvre however the marine commander sees fit."
"At once." Replied the liaison officer. "Ma'am? We can bring Fred's crew down almost directly to us. Given how close the target is, they may have some useful information. We can also get their cap…"
"Whatever you think best." Interrupted the commander, "just get on and do it," she added very slowly, clearly indicating that such details were not relevant to her.
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