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Tasha

“They’re gaining on us!”

I jam forward the thruster stick, feeling the ship rumble as the engines power our ship forward at maximum boost. As the hull rattles, we’re rocked by another barrage of las-fire.

Despite the increase in velocity, I still can’t shake our pursuers – and our shields are waning.

“Divert thirty percent power from shields to engines!”

I scream the order through gritted teeth, grasping the controls with white knuckles as I struggle to maintain course. All the while, I’m just waiting for the next volley of laser blasts.

With a quick glance to the tracking screen, I follow the icons that represent those three Toad assault ships, hot on our tail. According to the heads-up display, they’re closing the distance between us slowly, but surely – and each time I have to deploy evasive maneuvers to escape another barrage of las-fire, they take advantage and get even closer.

At this point, our shields are going to be gone soon enough already. We’ll just have to hope we can outrun the bastards.

“Divert power from the shields? Are you crazy? We’ll be shredded by the next barrage!”

There’s naked fear in the voice of my novice technician. He’s trying to weasel out of complying with my orders; foolishly praying that our shields will hold.

But I’d rather get blown out of space than risk being captured by those Toads, and unless we can pull ahead of them, that’s the inevitable outcome. All that relying on our shields will do is make sure those warty bastards have a less-damaged prize to claim at the end of this chase.

“I told you to divert thirty percent power to engines,” I growl back, “so just fuckingdoit!”

I’m trying to keep my voice relatively calm and certain, despite the fear that’s churning in my belly.

On my heads up display, I see the power bar of the engines rise upward, while the one indicting our shield strength plummets downward.

Thank the Gods I kept my cool. If I’d sworn or lost my temper with him, my entire crew might lose faith in me in an instant. I’d lose all the respect I’ve built up – wiping out my record of three years of flawless command aboard my Wayward Scythe.

I tighten my grip on the controls. With the extra engine power, I’ve now got more room to play with…

…at great cost.

If the Toads hit us with the next round of las-fire, our shields will buckle instantly. We’ll lose all six souls under my command as those laser beams punch through our hull as if it was tissue paper.

“You’ve got this, baby.”

The reassuring voice of Sawoot murmurs in my ear. She’s standing right behind me at the helm, her hands massaging my shoulders. That’s the best place for my first officer and weapons specialist right now, because we long since diverted all the power from her station to the engines. Now, she’s filling an even more important role – that of moral support.

Her voice allows that relentless thread of courage inside me to burn brightly.

“You fuckingknowI’ve got this.” I force myself to grin, and my voice sounds much more courageous than I feel inside – but that’s the trick, isn’t it? Emotions don’t drive actions; actions drive emotions.

If I act brave, Iwillbe brave – not betrayed by the cold terror I feel inside.

As our velocity increases, I yank the controls hard to the right, predicting the next round of las-fire. If I guess wrong, we’re dead.

The three Toad assault ships fire in unison. Las-beams arc out – sending searing flashes of light through the vacuum of space.

If I’d remained on the same course, those laser beams would have carved through our ship like a knife through a cut of freshly-roasted womp – but the Toads weren’t expecting me to gamble on the extra boost of speed, and the beams arc past us instead. If I hadn’t diverted the shields, we would have been ripped to shreds.

From behind me, Chris woops out.

“Nice one, cap!”

He’s the head of my “mining crew” when we do legal jobs, and the head of my strike crew when we’re making our money in less reputable ways. He can cut through an asteroid or a cargo door with equal accuracy. He’s a jerk, but he’smyjerk; and I’m buoyed by his praise.