“What about missiles?” Okatar snapped.
“The Terran shield will probably stop some of them, but not all. Their shield could not possibly be as strong as the screen we have around our camp. Of course, our warriors will be able to penetrate the shield with ease. Not even the Terrans have been able to devise an energy screen so solid that a man cannot step through it.”
Okatar nodded. “How much longer before the signal?”
The noble glanced at the watch set into his jeweled wristband, “The signal should be given—now.”
A hundred beams of light lanced out of the hills down toward the still-shadowy valley floor and splashed into blinding brilliance against the Terran energy shield. Missiles roared through the morning mists and exploded in flashes of flame. Through the noise of the explosion rose a mighty shout as Komani warriors charged down from the hilltops, riding their one-man flyers straight toward the Terrans.
Okatar stood riveted before the viewscreens, his nobles clustered about him. They watched the Terran armored vehicles shift positions as they awaited the onslaught of the Komani. Here and there, missiles penetrated the Mobile Force’s energy shield and blasted into the ground. One of them hit a cruiser, and Okatar could not restrain an exultant laugh. The force beams, though, were stopped completely by the shield-
“What are they up to?” Okatar wondered aloud as he watched the screens.
The smallest Terran vehicles—scoutcars and troop carriers —seemed headed for the rear, while the big dreadnaughts nd battle cruisers were moving up to face the Komani attack.