Manxome Foe — John Ringo; Travis S. Taylor

IT'S THE ONLY STARSHIP WE'VE GOT . ..

In the midst of recovering from their successful if casualty-prone first mission, the crew of the Alliance Space Ship Vorpal Blade are suddenly scrambled back into action. All other priorities take second place as word arrives on Earth of a gate colony which has fallen to an unidentified alien assault. As the only space ship available to the Human-Adar Alliance, the Vorpal Blade's new mission is to find out what happened to the colony, rescue any survivors and learn the identity of the attackers -- without breaking the ship.

The odd-ball crew of the Vorpal Blade is an unlikely savior, but none dare say they quail at engaging the Manxome Foe.