Page 28

Chapter

Twenty-Eight

Morgan

T he ship jolted violently as another blast from the pursuing Kronock vessels hit our shields. I clutched the edge of my seat, knuckles white, as Ariana banked hard to avoid the next volley of fire.

"Two on our tail," Deklyn called out, his fingers flying over the tactical controls.

Ariana didn't even flinch. "I see them."

The ship lurched again, this time into a spiraling dive that had my stomach somewhere near my throat. I swallowed hard, forcing back the nausea. Tivek's hand found mine again in the chaos, his grip steady and warm.

"Deploy countermeasures," Ariana ordered, not taking her eyes off the viewscreen as she pulled us into a sharp turn that jerked everyone to the side.

Deklyn punched a sequence of buttons. "Deploying decoys. Three, two, one?—"

"You need to cut the power before you release the third one," Sasha called from behind them, leaning forward in her restraints. "The energy signature will be more believable if?—"

"I know how to deploy decoys," Deklyn snapped, though there was no real heat in his voice.

Ariana rolled her eyes. "Stop backseat flying my ship, Sash. I didn't get chosen to be the first flight instructor at the Drexian Academy just to have you tell me how to evade Kronock fighters."

"Your ship is going to be space debris if you don't listen to reason," Sasha shot back. "That formation is classic Kronock pincer attack. They're herding us."

I watched as Ariana's hands tightened on the controls, but instead of arguing, she adjusted course. "Deklyn, redirect power to the aft shields."

He was already doing it, his movements fluid and precise. "Done. And for the record, she's right about the pincer attack."

A small, begrudging smile curved Ariana's lips. "Don't encourage her."

Deklyn laughed, a rich sound that seemed wildly inappropriate given our current situation. "I'd never dream of it."

The look Sasha gave his back could have frozen the sun. There was definitely something between those two, although I wasn’t sure if they were more likely to brawl or make out.

Another blast rocked the ship as a Kronock ship appeared in front of us, and the interior lights flickered.

"Shields at sixty percent," Deklyn announced. "We need to break formation or?—"

A brilliant flash of light erupted outside the viewscreen, momentarily blinding us all. When my vision cleared, the Kronock vessel that had been in front was nothing but floating debris.

Deklyn stared at the tactical display in confusion. "That wasn't us."

"What the hell…?” Ariana started, then let out a whoop of joy that startled everyone. "It's the rescue ship! Drexian vessel coming up on our six!”

Relief washed over me, so powerful it left me light-headed.

"They got our distress signal," Vyk said, his voice tight.

We all knew what that meant. We were all snared in the Kronock trap.

Ariana was already adjusting course to coordinate with the new arrival. "Establishing tactical link now. Deklyn, sync weapons systems."

"Already on it," he replied, his focus absolute as his fingers slid across the console. "Targeting solutions shared. They're taking point on the lead ship."

Ariana weaved through the enemy fire with impossible precision while the other Drexian ship provided covering fire.

"It’s Volten flying,” Ariana called back, her voice filled with fierce pride. “I’m sure of it.”

Another violent bank sent us all lurching to the side. Tivek and I slammed into each other, his arm automatically going around my shoulders to steady me. The casual intimacy of it, even in the midst of chaos, sent a different kind of adrenaline surging through my veins.

"Sorry," he murmured, his breath warm against my ear.

"Don't be," I whispered back, and was rewarded with a squeeze.

A deafening boom echoed through the ship as something struck us directly. The lights went out for a terrifying few seconds before the backup systems engaged.

"We've taken a hit to the starboard engine," Deklyn said.. "Coolant leak and hull damage.”

"I can compensate," Ariana said through gritted teeth, fighting the controls as the ship shuddered and bucked beneath her hands. "Deklyn, I need more power to the port thrusters."

"You'll overload the couplings," he warned.

"Do it anyway!"

His hands moved without further protest. The ship gave a sickening lurch, then steadied as we broke atmosphere, the black void of space opening up before us. The rescue vessel was right beside us, taking hits that had been meant for our damaged ship.

"They're covering our retreat," Deklyn said grimly.

Ariana nodded. "And doing a damn fine job of it. Hold on, everyone. It seems like there’s some sort of energy field around the planet now. This is going to get bumpy."

That was an understatement. The next few minutes were a blur of alarms, shouted commands, and stomach-churning maneuvers as we fought our way clear of the energy field that struggled to hold us back.

By the time we reached relatively open space, I was certain I'd left my stomach somewhere far behind.

The ship jerked and spluttered as Ariana finally eased back on the controls. "We're clear," she announced, though the tension hadn't left her voice. “And all Kronock ships are destroyed or stuck beneath the energy field—for now.”

The communications console lit up, and Ariana hit the switch to put it on speaker.

"Nice flying, Wing." Volten's voice filled the cockpit, and I could hear the smile in it even through the static. "Though you cut it a little close there at the end."

"Thanks, flyboy," Ariana said, her voice cracking. "You didn't do so bad yourself."

Then came a cacophony of familiar voices, all talking over each other.

"Ariana! Are you okay?" "Did you find Sasha?" "Is everyone alright?" "Morgan? Torq? Can you hear us?"

I nearly burst into tears at the sound of Jess, Britta, and Fiona all trying to speak at once. Across from me, Vyk's normally stoic expression softened at the sound of Fiona's voice, and Torq sagged against the bulkhead in obvious relief when Jess called his name.

"We're all here," Ariana assured them. "Sasha too. Mission accomplished."

"Well done." A new voice cut through the chatter, deep and commanding. "All of you."

Tivek's mouth actually dropped open, his composure slipping for the first time since we’d rejoined the others. "Admiral Zoran?”

We all exchanged startled glances. The Academy Master himself had joined the rescue mission? That was unprecedented.

Before anyone could respond, a terrible sound of metal grinding against metal tore through our ship, followed by the high-pitched wail of emergency systems. The deck plates beneath us vibrated ominously.

"What's happening?" I asked.

Ariana's hands flew across the controls, her face grim as she assessed the damage readouts. When she spoke, her voice was tight.

"The starboard engine is completely gone. Coolant systems failing. Hull integrity compromised in three sections." She looked back at us, her expression bleak. "I'm sorry, but we're not going to make it back to the academy."

My heart stopped. Not going to make it? As in, we were going to die out here in the cold emptiness of space?

And then the ship's lights failed completely, leaving us in darkness and silence.