given an ultimatum but are showing no indication of compliance.
Therefore, we are going to blast hell out of them." The echoes from his
voice rolled back from speakers all over the base. "The people at home
do not think we can do it. I know we can. I have not asked their
permission. It is not needed. My orders are explicit and fully cover the
situation. My orders to you are equally explicit. Go out there and teach
the bloody bastards a lesson." He turned back to the men in I.C.
"Scramble flights one, two, three, and four. Others to follow at
intervals of five minutes until all are in space. Flight plan King
Baker. Initial Time, one four five oh. Execute."

The talkers took up the chant.

"Flight one. Flight one. Scramble. Scramble. Execute."

"Flight two ..."

Etc.

In the tank, green points of light moved out. The first four came into
position and stopped in the four quadrants of the circle of which the
center was the point at which the enemy would be at Initial Time. The
following flights moved out to other points on the circle.

Time seemed to stop. In I.C., the Flight Directors gave the orders that
moved their flights into position and briefed them on future tactics in
quiet voices. The electronic computers and other devices moved silently.
The clock made no noise as its hands moved towards the final moment.

The Commander moved some dials under his hands. He pushed a button and a
red light showed on the lead dreadnought of the enemy column.

"This is the initial target." The designation was relayed to the
flights.

The second hand of the clock was making its final sweep. All voices
quieted. The Commander raised his fist. As the clock's hand came to the
top, his fist slashed down.

"Execute!" The battle was on.

* * * * *

Flight Commander Dennis, Flight One, heard the final word as he sat in
the small bubble on top of the dense package of machinery that was a
P-ship. Swiftly, his hands closed switches. The course had already been
chosen and fed into the automatic computers under him. He merely gave
the signal to execute. In response, the ship seemed to pick itself up
and hurl itself down the radius of the circle to the waiting enemy
fleet.

He could not see them, but he knew that, behind him, lay the other nine
ships of the flight, in column, spaced so close that an error in
calculation of but a few millionths of a second would have caused
disaster. But the automatic