Page 26 of Black Star

Chapter Six

He should have bloody well known Diamond wouldn’t want anything more to do with him after his Blood Burning was over. Hell, he couldn’t blame her. He’d gone more than a little nuts. Any woman would think twice before accepting his life as her own.

Later. He’d worry about it later. Right now, he needed all his concentration on the Black Star and everything around her. The ship had left him alone during his crisis, but she was like a jealous lover. She couldn’t stay gone for long, and she hated it when other women had his attention.

That’s not entirely true, Viktor , the ship’s slightly superior sounding female voice said inside his head with a sniff. I could care less what you do in your free time. It’s when you’re cavorting with others during my time that I have problems .

“I’d give almost anything if you’d speak only when spoken to.” He was irritated at himself and projecting it to the sentient mind of the ship.

And how would you work through all this frustration and self-loathing if I did? You need that girl, Viktor. As surely as you need Ranier. And air to breathe .

“You don’t think I know that?” Viktor got on the lift that would take him to Command in a matter of seconds. “Now, shut up and let me work. What’s going on?”

The Hand ships as well as the allies they picked up among the Vok’nair are approaching us .

“What are our odds?”

Not good, in my estimation. We need Sword Breaker. We cannot withstand them as one ship alone .

The door shooshed open, and the conversation was terminated.

“Did Black Star brief you on the situation?” Captain Damon Singh glanced Viktor’s way when he entered the command center.

“She said we can’t get out of this without help.” When he got to his station, Viktor glanced at the monitors, though he was already getting most of the information he needed from the now open link between him and the ship. He tentatively reached for the information he wanted -- the location and number of ships -- and got more than he bargained for. He gasped as his head was flooded with information. Had it not been for his cybernetic implants, he would have probably been overloaded.

Damon swiveled his chair around. “Viktor?”

“I’m fine, Captain.” His head spun, and he had to shake it to clear it.

“If you aren’t up to this, say so now. I don’t want to have to toss you out an air lock.” Viktor knew Damon was only half joking.

“No. I’m fine.” He shook his head again before looking at his screens, trying to verify what the ship had dumped into his brain. “ Black Star just loves information dumps, and I have trouble keeping up sometimes.”

Ah! The first way to win both their hearts is not being afraid to admit you’re less than perfect . Viktor hadn’t even realized what he’d done until the bloody ship pointed it out. He hated looking inferior to anyone or anything.

Ranier snorted from his pilot’s station. “There’s a first time for everything,” he muttered. In another life, Viktor would have had the man’s head on a platter. Now, he merely gave him a stern look that was totally wasted. Ranier wasn’t intimidated at all, though the rest of the bridge staff visibly cringed.

“How far away is the Sword Breaker ?” Damon punched at his personal computer.

“Not far,” Viktor responded, deciding to ignore Ranier for the time being. “One sector away. He should intercept us in the next five minutes.”

Damon scratched his chin a couple of times before giving the command Viktor had anticipated. “Raise deflectors. Laser status?”

“Fully charged, Captain. Pulse torpedoes awaiting your order for armament.” Viktor punched a few buttons, still processing the data stream flowing through his head.

“I’m reading twenty-three war class ships and another twelve carrier class. All heavily armed and armored. Carrier complement unknown, but I estimate each can carry at least twenty one-manned fighters.”

“Damn,” Ranier muttered while his fingers tapped his console. Viktor felt the subtle movement as the ship readjusted. Black Star protested the new settings, but Viktor could see the position Ranier was putting them in and understood the reasoning. Surprisingly, the ship didn’t put up a fuss, and let Ranier move her to a more dominant position. Well, as dominant as one ship could be against thirty-five enemy ships. “This isn’t going to be pretty. Can we fight our way out even with the help of the Sword Breaker ?”

“Unknown.” Viktor used every processor available in his cybernetically enhanced brain to make sense of what the ship was telling him, and he still didn’t believe what he was seeing. He could even feel the tension in the Black Star . The ship was trying to deny the data as well. “Captain, unless I’m greatly mistaken, I think they mean to destroy this ship, not capture her.”

Damon didn’t hesitate a moment. “Battle stations. Notify Sword Breaker not to enter the area. Stand down. Mark it Priority Alpha. Get us out of here, Ranier.” Viktor barely got off the message before the fight began.

Laser pulses surrounded them and slammed into the Black Star ’s shields. The positively charged particles danced over the shield resonance and created a lovely aurora that belied the danger they faced.

“Primary shields holding,” Viktor barked. “No damage reported. Awaiting your command to open fire.”

“All stations, fire at will.” Damon gave the command calmly enough, but the sweat trickling down his temple betrayed his agitation. Had Viktor not known the man so well, he’d have thought the captain unaffected by the threat.

Laser fire streaked across the distance into space. Some connected with targets, some didn’t. The whole mess of a firefight in space was surreal. It was sometimes hard to tell what had been hit and what hadn’t because there were no huge explosions due to the vacuum and lack of oxygen. Thankfully, Black Star ’s sensors kept score. Viktor knew exactly which ships posed a threat and which ones had been damaged beyond being a danger.

“Concentrate some fire to the port flank.” Viktor took up his role as second in command again as if he’d never been deep in a blood madness. His head was beginning to buzz again, and he knew he’d have to get away from the violence and adrenaline rush soon or he’d sink back into the mire. For now, however, Viktor had to concentrate all his energy on the battle. The odds were almost impossible, especially without backup. “Those two ships are the most immediate threat, and the strongest of any save the damaged one to starboard.”

The ship rocked with the impact of heavy fire against the shields. The damaging lasers and torpedoes were unable to penetrate the defenses, but the concussion knocked them about horribly, creating its own danger.

“We’re going to be shaken to pieces if we don’t get out of here soon.” Damon’s grip on the armrest of his command chair was white knuckled, but otherwise he remained seemingly unaffected. “Ranier?”

The younger man frantically stabbed the computer console at his fingertips. The data stream Viktor got from Black Star told him Ranier was trying to plot a course, but the sheer number of enemy ships prevented anything but sublight propulsion.

Damon gave Viktor a sidelong glance. That was when Viktor realized he’d started to growl. Immediately, Viktor stopped the threatening sound and gritted his teeth tightly together. The adrenaline rush was starting to get to him.

Ranier wove between damaged ships, using them as a barrier between the Black Star and the rest of her enemies, but neither the Vok’nair nor the Hand seemed to care. They shot through any ship that got in their way. The Hand might have thought they’d bought an alliance with the mighty empire, but they were paying the price for their mistake.

Ranier swore under his breath. Viktor knew the young man was doing his best to get them clear so they could jump.

“Look!” One of the men at weapons -- Taren -- pointed at the viewscreen in excitement. The unmistakable flash of a ship coming out of hyperspace dominated the upper right corner. “It’s the Sword Breaker !”

“Damn it!” Damon swore. “Did you send our message for them not to approach?”

“Yes, sir.”

Damon stabbed the ship-to-ship comm. “Mikiel! What the fuck are you doing?”

“We can’t leave all of you to fight so many. If we’re to go down, we’ll damned well do it together,” Commander Mikiel Anjoom answered seriously from the comm unit.

The Sword Breaker engaged three Hand ships an instant later. He had thought the real challenge would come from the Vok’nair ships. However, each Hand ship proved to be almost as great a battle. With so many enemies against them, Viktor knew they had to get rid of the ships easiest to defeat in order to even up the odds, and they had to do it quickly. Also, they had a finite number of torpedoes, and lasers weren’t as effective. Running out of ammo wasn’t an option.

“Three carrier ships destroyed,” Viktor reported. “Three war ships are gone, too.”

Damon’s smile was positively vicious. “Now, let’s get the rest of them.”

The two ships engaged the fleet from opposite ends of the field, each using the special talents they were designed with. Sword Breaker ’s speed and agility proved to be a handful for their enemies as he spun a deadly dance through them, leaving a trail of destruction. Black Star did much the same, but her armament and firepower were much greater, and her larger size made for an easier target. Viktor noted she often ended up between the Sword Breaker and danger as if protecting him with her greater strength. If he concentrated, he felt the love and worry Black Star felt for her counterpart. It was too much emotion. He couldn’t handle it in his current state.

“What’s the count, Viktor?” Damon issued commands calmly, as he always did. Now, Viktor wondered how he managed it. Stripped of his control, his instincts were pushing him hard. He wanted to run around the room screaming to relieve some of the tension. A kill would sate him even better. He shook his head and tried to focus on counting ships instead. How many were destroyed, how many disabled, how many still fought them.

“Eighteen destroyed. Five unable to pursue. That leaves us twelve between the two of us.” Viktor’s heart beat wildly, and sweat broke out all over his body. Too soon. This was too soon. He needed to get away from everyone, but if he left now, it would destroy the concentration of the entire command center. Chaos in the command center was deadly in battle. He had to hang on until the battle was done.

Again, the Black Star rocked and bucked as her shields took hit after hit. Sword Breaker tried to fight through to her aid, but the Vok’nair ships held him off. Viktor got the distinct feeling Black Star was trying to get through to him, but he couldn’t hear her. His ears roared, and his pulse beat loudly in his head.

Viktor reached out with his telepathic senses for the first time since leaving Draggoon. Other than communicating with the Black Star , he never used them unless he was on his home world because any time he had to use the skills he possessed as a vampire, the nature of what he was -- a predator -- made the temptation too great. The scent of blood drew him like a two-dimensional being to a cosmic string. His link with the ship -- and the constant use of the extrasensory skills given to his race -- was probably what had pushed him over the edge into the Blood Burning.

Diamond. He had to find Diamond. Her presence alone could help him hold onto what little sanity he had left. Ranier gave him a worried glance, but he was too busy to do much. Viktor nodded at the younger man, hoping to reassure him. Ranier needed his mind on the ship because Viktor was in no shape to help him.

“Look out!”

Viktor wasn’t sure who yelled, but his attention snapped back to his control panel. “Collision course, Damon.” He managed to get the words out, but his ears were ringing louder. Diamond!

She can’t hear you, but I can, Viktor .

Black Star ’s voice was more tender than he could ever remember hearing it. How she broke through his haze of need for violence in the most non-obtrusive way he’d probably never know.

I’m losing control.

Just hold on a little while longer. I’ll bring her to you.

Ranier --

Will be fine , the ship interrupted . Don’t worry about him. Focus on Diamond.

If the ships collide at this pitch, everyone in the command center could be killed. I’ve got to get Ranier out of here. Everyone needs to abandon the command center. Viktor’s heart pounded in his chest.

No. Something’s not right . Black Star ’s whisper inside his head was distant, like she was focusing on something other than him. Concentrate, Viktor. Look at their formations .

“Where’s Sword Breaker ?” Viktor hadn’t meant to speak aloud, but once the question was voiced, he got a sick feeling something was very wrong. He scanned his screens and tried to process what he was seeing.

Help me! I can’t see what they’re doing! Viktor screamed in his mind. He couldn’t focus enough to analyze their attack pattern. It looked like the Vok’nair and Hand ships were working together now, but his fog-filled brain couldn’t wrap around the flight patterns. It all seemed too complex and random, but he knew it was a battle plan.

“Ranier,” Viktor managed to squeak, “can you see the patterns they’re using? Can you see what they’re trying to accomplish? Are we the primary goal?”

“Stand by.” Ranier broke away from his nav console and swiveled to an adjacent console that was a mirror of Viktor’s own. Damon glanced at Viktor, but otherwise kept his focus on the battle. “No.” Ranier moved his fingers from one console to the other and the Black Star had to compensate for his split attention. “Not us.” He turned to face Damon. “ Sword Breaker . They’re coming at us, but the angle is slightly off. They’ll miss us by meters, but they’ll be going at the perfect speed to force Sword Breaker to dock with them. They’re going to board him.”

“Mikiel!” Damon stabbed the ship-to-ship comm. “Get your ship out of here! Now!” Damon jumped to his feet as he spoke. For a commander so in control to now show so much fear, he had to suspect something far worse than a collision. Something in his voice told Viktor Damon knew exactly what was going on.

“Don’t worry, my friend.” Mikiel sounded supremely confident in his people and his ship. “They can ram us all they want. They won’t even pierce our primary shields, and the secondary shields would hold them if they did.”

“They’re not going to ram you. They’re looking for a weak area in your shield for boarding.” Damon was actually trembling. “They’re after Nadira, I’d bet my life on it!”

There was no response from Mikiel, but Damon sprinted for the door. “Taren, with me! Rainer, keep my ship safe from them --” He stabbed his finger at the viewscreen. “-- and him.” He pointed at Viktor.

Viktor bared his teeth and hissed.