“A different approach?” Mitsuki asked, leaning back in her seat to take a few deep breaths.
“Check your HUDs,” Silky said.
Kyralla expanded the three-dimensional locator window in her HUD to check what was going on.
She groaned.
The starfighters had zoomed ahead to outflank them, the two original battlecruisers were in pursuit, and a third battlecruiser had pulled out from behind the planet’s second moon to speed ahead of them. They were being surrounded.
“We’re never going to the make the breakpoint,” Kyralla said.
A message demanding their surrender scrolled through their HUDs. Kyralla assumed it was the first, but Rosie told her it was the fifth such message.
“We’re so screwed,” Mitsuki said in disgust.
Kyralla could sense the fear lurking behind the wakyran’s words. She obviously couldn’t stand the idea of being unable to escape, and it wasn’t because of the consequences she would face. It was the very idea of being trapped that terrified her.
Bishop pounded his fists into the arms of his seat. “Why can’t we catch a freaking break?”
“Your timing’s remarkable, Mr. Bishop,” Silky said. “Pay attention to your locator.”
“Whoah!” Bishop said. “Three warships just entered the Ekaran system. Really big ones.”
“Thousand Worlder battleships,” Silky said.
“How’s this catching a break?” Oona asked.
“Note their position,” Silky replied.
The enemy warships had entered the system on the opposite side of the planet from them, while the Ranger was already leaving the planet’s gravity well. The Federation warships might snare them, but the Thousand Worlders would never have a chance.
And the Federation ships were no longer interested in Oona. They had a planet and sovereign territory to defend. Besides, they would no doubt rather have Oona running free than have her fall into the clutches of Empress Qan.
The Terran Federation battlecruisers and starfighters peeled off and turned toward the invading Thousand World battleships.
Oona stood and pumped her fists. “We did it!”
Bishop hopped out of his seat and did a dance that could only be described as embarrassing. Mitsuki gaped at him, then shook her head and muttered a string of celebratory curses. Kyralla laughed uncontrollably for a few moments, then started to cry, then suddenly grasped her stomach and hunched over, trying not to vomit.
“Are you okay, madam?” Rosie asked.
“I…I’m great, actually.”
“Are you sure, madam? Because you appear to be sick.”
“Can you be sick with relief?”
“It’s the aftereffects of all the stress of the last few hours,” Silky said.
Once she knew what she was doing, Kyralla was going to put an end to his interjections.
Over the comm, Silky said, “You lot, nutty and random as you may be, did a damn fine job today. I can’t believe I’m going to say it, but I am impressed. Even with you, Mits.”
“It was all thanks to you though, right?” she asked with a snort.
“Of course! Everything good that happens is thanks to my brilliance.”
Chapter Fifty-One
Siv Gendin
Siv awoke on the bed in the captain’s cabin, a room he hadn’t seen since he was ten years old, nearly a century ago. The Vrazel Mask, a fake Ancient artifact he’d purchased for his dad sat in a glass case on the nightstand beside him. He hadn’t known it when he purchased it off an auction site, but that mask had brought his parents together.
“Silkster…status update…”
“We evaded capture, snagged a bit of luck, and now we’re nearing the break point, sir. We’ve got a good crew here, for a bunch of rookies.”
“So everyone’s okay?”
“They all made it through, sir.”
He sat up with a groan. “I’m going to want all the details…later.”
Octavian clattered into the room squawking at him and gesturing for him to lie back down.
“I have to agree with the bug, sir. Your vitals are still weak.”
“I can rest later. I want to see the jump.” Siv stood, fell back onto the bed, then got back up. “Octavian, help me to the Bridge. That’s an order.”
The willful cog screeched a complaint then relented and half carried Siv out into the corridor.
“You saved my life, Octavian. Thank you.”
The cog issued a series of beeps followed by several faltering bloops.
“He says you’re not cured, sir. The disease has set in. He can only manage your symptoms, and for only a few months, tops. He also says he wishes he could have saved Gav.”
“He would be very happy to know that you saved me, Octavian.”
The cog blooped then trilled a long response.
“He wants to know if you’re going to activate his vocalizer, sir. Understand, I will not translate for him unless absolutely necessary, according to my definition of necessary.”
“I’ll think about it.”
With assistance, Siv stumbled onto the deck. The others looked exhausted, yet relieved. Which was understandable. They had survived and were escaping.
They greeted him warmly and asked how he was.
“I’m okay…for now. And yes, I will get some rest. But I needed to see the jump.” He approached the command chair. “Oona, may I?”
She took off the command interface circlet and hopped up. “Of course, Siv. It’s your ship.”
He dropped into the command chair with a smile. “It’s been so long since I was last here. In this chair, sitting on my dad’s lap while he explained how everything worked.”
Oona leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you for saving us.”
“You’re welcome.”
Kyralla smiled at him. “We owe you.”
“You don’t owe me anything.” He lifted the amulet out from his armor. “Besides, I think this was my destiny.”
Mitsuki pointed at Bishop. “You, however, do owe me, little gizmet. Don’t think for a minute you’re getting out of your debt, either.”
Bishop blushed and stammered an unintelligible reply, and Siv laughed, knowing Bishop had no idea what he actually owed her.
“Silkster, would you like to do the honors?”
“I would, sir, but I can’t. You have to manually activate the stardrive. I’m loading the instructions into your HUD.”
Siv punched in a four-digit access code, pressed a button on the control panel’s left side, then pushed a handle forward on the right side.
The hyperphasic bubble flared around the ship, and the stars began to shift.
Mitsuki howled like a crazed wolf, and Bishop clapped with glee and danced around. Kyralla and Oona laughed.
Siv leaned back into the seat with a satisfied sigh and rubbed a thumb across the amulet. “I always wanted to be more than a thief, something meaningful.”
“Now’s your chance, sir. Though, you’re still a criminal.”
“On a rouge starship.”
“Sir, I have to admit, that does have a nice ring to it.”
To learn more about how Gav acquired Silky and recalled the Ancient ship from hyperspace, check out Forbidden System, Book One of the Fall of the Benevolence series.
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Afterword
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dahayden.com
Also by David Alastair Hayden
Fall of the Benevolence
Forbidden System
Storm Phase
The Storm Dragon’s Heart
The Maker’s Brush
Lair of the Deadly Twelve
The Forbidden Library
The Blood King’s Apprentice
The First Kaiaru
The Arthur Paladin Chronicles
The Shadowed Manse
The Warlock’s Gambit
Pawan Kor
Wrath of the White Tigress
Chains of a Dark Goddess
Who Walks in Flame
Rogue Starship: The Benevolency Universe (Outworld Ranger Book 1) Page 33
