[4thdimension]

Geordy La Forge watched the two Hirogen warships on the main view screen, they reminded him of sharks, and they were circling. The engeneer within him was working over time spitting out possibilities on how the Hirogen had detected them. They had not shown signs of knowing their exact location, but surely they knew that a large vessel was in orbit. La Forge set his jaw and set down in his command chair.
"Red alert. Captain Shelby to the bridge. T'val, distance to the nearest vessel?"
"One thousand, two hundred and seventy three kilometers. They have maintained this distance for the last two minutes Captain. I do not believe they are capable of narrowing the search any further." La Forge let out a breath.
"Let''s hope so, I don't want to have to engage them while our people are still on the surface." La Forge relaxed a little. Even with the Hirogen ships circling so close, this may turn out as planned. The Stinger was equipped with a cloak itself, and as soon as it reentered the shuttle bay they could leave in high warp under cloak.
"Captain....six more Hirogen vessels have entered the system. They match the two that are circling." T'val's calm voice seemed to mock the situation. La Forge shifted his weight in his chair, trying to think fast. With eight ships they could simply plow into the Prometheus, or shoot blindly. Leaving the planet was out of the question, yet the alternative was looking less and less appealing.
"Maintain our position helm. T'val, what's their ETA?"
"Three minutes Captain." Something very subtle in his voice told Geordy that he was not finished. "The Hirogen vessels appear to be releasing a gas cloud sir." La Forge jumped up from his chair, his hands tightening into fists. This was unheard of, and La Forge knew at once what they were up to. It was obvious, and ingenious.
Shelby came in from the turbolift and took her seat by Geordys side. At first she didn't register what she was seeing, then, as the blue gas cloud passed completely in front of the view screen and first plasma bolts hit the ablative armor protecting the Prometheus, it all came clear. As Laforge gave the order for evasive action, the gas was pushed around the ship. The Hirogens sensors didn't need to see the ship itself, they could fire for the empty space in the nebula between the two ships. It was like shooting fish in a barrel, and the Prometheus shuttered every few seconds.
"Shields at 44%" T'val cried to be over heard over the klaxon.
"Stand by phaser banks, arm transphasic torpedos!" La Forge called out from his command chair. Shelby rocked at his side as the hull was struck again, and again. The two Hirogen warships circled faster and faster, firing mercilessly. "De cloak, fire all phaser banks, full spread. break us free!" The cloak fell, channeling energy into the weapon systems. The Prometheus spat red phaser energy into the shields of the Hirogen vessels. The Federation vessels twelve phaser banks had no trouble reaching out to both vessels, and for a moment the attackers broke off, as if surprised at the ferocity of the weapons.
"That's right, this isn't Voyager your dealing with." La Forge said loud enough for his crew to hear. In the moments that the attacks abated the view screen cleared, and the stars could be seen again. The Prometheus was free. "Bring us around for another pass. I want a lock on their engines, transphasic torpedoes, surgical shot." La Forge cried to T'val at tactical. "Helm, prepare for evasive maneuvers. Keep us out of that cloud."
"yes sir." Bates at the helm acknowledged. His fingers flew across the panel with ease. He had been one of only four star fleet officers who had been trained to pilot the original Prometheus years earlier. La Forge knew he couldn't ask for a better man at the helm.
Both Hirogen vessels broke out of their circular course around the artificial nebula and increased their orbit, heading straight for the Prometheus.
"Captain...I am unable to aquire a lock. I am receiving identical interfearance as we have received from the atmoshphere." T'val reported. "Manual targeting, phasers only." La Forge dared not fire the transphasic torpedoes blindly. The weapons from the future would rip through the Hirogen's shields without effort, but with only twenty of them in his launchers, six more Hirogen ships on the way, and no word yet from his Marines on the surface, La Forge had to hold back on playing his ace.
Bates ran his fingers over the holographic controls and veered away from the ships as they passed, T'val got off two shots from the phaser arrays. The ships loomed huge in the view screen, La Forge getting a real idea of just how large they were.
"Hirogen reinforcements are in weapons range." T'val called from tactical. "Shields are at 76%." The shields had regenerated quickly in the time they had bought, but it wouldn't be enough, not up against so many ships. La Forge looked at Shelby, and she stood, exiting the bridge.
"Lance Officers prepare for Multi Vector Attack Mode." La Forges voice was sent throughout the ship. Lance officers, those who's job it was to command the three separate vessels that the Prometheus would soon become were beamed from all over the ship to their command posts.
"Multi Vector attack mode in 9....8...7...6....5....4...3....2....1..." There was a strong jolt, and then Geordi felt the inertial dampeners adjust to the lower mass of the vessel. Now it was three against eight.
"Manual targeting, phasers only. Take out those shields!" La Forge cried to his small fleet. Acknowledgments came in from the other two ships, and they formed up, in a tight circle, twelve phaser beams struck out in a tight band, hitting a single Hirogen vessels shields, causing them to flash blue, flicker, and die.
The untouched Hirogen ship fell back, joined the charging six ships and as a group they fell back. As the Prometheus passed the Hirogen ship it's automated sensors locked on for the first time, and a quantum torpedo ripped from La Forge's section, destroying the ships engines in an orange inferno that lasted for a blink of the eye. A cheer erupted on the bridge.
"Stay on it people, we're still outnumbered here." As if in answer, the Hirogen fleet fired as one, and orange plasma plowed into the Federation vessel's separated hull.
The crew did not go flying from their posts under the brunt of the impact, thanks to feet of ablative armor, but La Forge could tell that their own shields had failed. T'val confirmed it. Geordy swore to himself. This was no good, their Borg inspired regenerative shields had fallen in one blast.
"All five vessels targeted us Captain. Ablative armor is at 98% and holding. Captain Shelby and lieutenant Ronan still have use of their shields." T'val made the report and then held onto his post as the ship rocked again, this time much harder. With no shield to buffet the impact, the ablative armor sent waves of inertia into the ships girders. There was a moment when the inertial dampeners struggled to keep up, where Geordy gritted his teeth against the spinning of the ship. The view screen flickered and died, the lights dimmed to emergency status.
"Status!" La Forge yelled over the din of the emergency klaxon, but he already knew what had happened.