The Hunted

by Andrew Wichland

  Moaning, she looked up at him as she slowly climbed to her feet. “For now.”

  “I’ll take what I can get,” he replied, rolling his eyes as he holstered the weapon.

  Them the hatch opened and LJ came through. “Am I missing something?” he asked, looking at all of them.

  “Just giving another lesson,” Robin answered. “Now, shouldn’t we decide an approach?” He jerked his head toward the table before Willa.

  “It was a good show while it lasted,” she said, calling up a star map that hovered over the table.

  “What are you doing?” Freya asked, moving closer to the floating stars.

  “With all the activity Hector said was going on in the Bedie System,” Robin started, “we’re going to figure out how to get there without their knowledge.” He focused on the system in question, eyeing the giant gas planet with four moons, each bearing life.

  “This means the regular routes are out,” LJ said, lowering his gaze with a sigh and running his hand through his hair.

  “And we didn’t think to install a cloaking device before we left,” Willa said, “not that there would have been one in Tortuga. If there had been, it’s not like they could have spared it.”

  “Which means we only have one option,” Robin said nervously. “Charybdis’ Maw.”

  Both Willa and LJ shifted nervously.

  “What’s that?” Freya asked, looking at them.

  “To some, it’s been the most dangerous section of space for over a thousand systems,” Little John answered.

  Freya frowned.

  “It’s a nebula,” Robin clarified, “formed by ten young stars in its center. Many have tried to navigate through it…but only a few have been lucky enough to make it out alive.” He paused and then continued after a moment. “Most were lost. Nobody knows what happened to them—probably crushed by interlocking gravity wells or compromised by all the radiation ionizing the gas there.”

  “And,” Willa continued where he stopped, “it certainly doesn’t help that one of the ships that made it through said a ring of ice was formed near one. Also, navigation computers don’t work in there, and it’s going to take us a week to cross it.” She threw her arms up in frustration.

  “Well, that doesn’t seem so bad,” Freya said, and they all looked at her like she was crazy. “What?” she asked with a shrug.

  “I think you’re missing one little thing,” LJ said before pressing a few buttons. The map zoomed in on their present speeding location.

  “That’s us for the next few hours,” Robin said before pressing some buttons himself.

  At once, the map expanded, and Freya’s eyes widened in horror. She stared, open-mouthed, at what looked like a sheer circular wall of a shifting, multicolored cloud that made planets seem like nothing more than specks of dust.

  “That’s Charybdis’ Maw,” Robin said, “and it’s our only way to reach our brother—if it doesn’t kill us first, that is.”

  Chapter 11

  Charybdis’ Maw

  With a crack of thunder from the engines, they came out of Hyperspace right on the border of the nebula.

  Through the viewing screen, Robin eyed the shifting colors of the burning gases. To him, they seemed like an immense wall that stretched for lightyears, blocking all signs of the stars above and below them.

  “It’s beautiful,” Freya murmured, and they all glanced at her.

  “If anyone wants to turn back”—Robin looked back to the nebula—“now’s the time.”

  For a second, there was silence.

  “Not a chance,” Willa said, sounding braver than she looked. “I eat nebulae for breakfast.”

  “I ain’t afraid of no nebula,” Little John said, nodding. “You’re not getting rid of me that easy.”

  Nodding in return, Robin looked at his sister, who still gazed up at the nebula. Her eyes slowly lowered to meet his and then LJ’s and Willa’s.

  “It’s up to you,” Robin said, and she looked at him again. “Either we all agree to go or we don’t go at all.”

  She blinked, and again her gaze went up to the nebula before them. Freya slowly looked back at them again. “If there was any other way, I’d take it,” she finally said. “Let’s do it.”

  Robin brought his hands together. “Alright, people, let’s move it! We’ve got work to do!” They sprang into action. “Little John, Willa!” he snapped, and his friends looked at him as he took his post. “We’re all going to have to keep an eye on the radiation levels, so one eye on the sensors at all times.

  “Willa”—he turned to her—“also keep an eye on the shield gauges. If they go in a section of the nebula with high radiation, we’re finished.” She nodded. “LJ, you keep an eye on those engines. We can’t stop moving, no matter what, or we could be in a hurt box.” LJ nodded, his chair sliding into position. “And most important,” he finished, “we’ve got to make sure the sensors keep running. If they go, we’re all dead.”

  “I’m starting to wish we had brought Tuck along,” LJ muttered as he was strapped in.

  “We can handle basic engine problems,” Robin reassured him. “We don’t have to rebuild the engine.”

  “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” Willa murmured, “or he’d kill us.”

  “What about me?” asked Freya. “What do I do?”

  “Your job is the most important,” Robin said, taking the pilot’s seat and sliding forward. “Keep an eye on us and make sure we don’t have any problems medically—and make sure we don’t overdo it.”

  She nodded.

  Robin shot LJ a look taking a deep breath. “Okay,” he said, resting one hand on the throttle between them. “Taking her to one-third power.” He accelerated the ship. “Let’s take her in!”

  A second later, they were enveloped by the nebula.

  Chapter 12

  Coming to Terms

  A couple days later, in the pilot’s seat of the Odysseus, Robin eyed the rainbow colors of the nebula through the view port and made adjustments on the control panel. In the copilot’s seat, Little John kept an eye on the sensor readouts.

  “At least your father didn’t hide your brother in a place that was easier to get to,” LJ said as he focused in on one readout.

  “I would have been more surprised if he hadn’t,” Robin agreed. He adjusted their course and added, “If it’s hard for us to get to my brother, imagine how hard it will be for the Black Dragon.” Then he asked, “How are the radiation levels?”

  “All in the green,” LJ answered. “From these readings, I’d say we’re in the safest part of the nebula.” Silence fell. After a few moments, Little John looked at his friend and then back at the closed double doors behind them. “So…” he said, slowly turning back to the view portal, “how are things with Freya?”

  Adjusting the throttle, Robin glanced at him. “As well as can be, considering we’ve spent more time together in the past few days than we have since we were born.”

  Nodding, LJ looked back at the portal. “Is she still giving you the cold shoulder?”

  He shrugged. “We barely know each other—and I’m not sure she’s forgiven me quite yet.”

  “Well, there’s one sure way of fixing that.”

  Robin looked at his friend, who grinned slightly. “I know, if she were my sister, I would make every excuse I could to be near her.”

  Before he could reply, the door hissed open. It was Freya.

  “Something wrong?” Robin asked her. She bit her lip and nervously wrung her hands. “Whatever it is, you can tell me,” he assured her.

  For a little while, she just looked from him to LJ. Finally, she shrugged and said, “I’m bored.”

  Robin stared and then laughed. “For the first time in years, you can do whatever you want and you’re bored?”

  Her face hardened. “Look, if you don’t—”

  “Wait,” he said, glancing at LJ. “How about a lesson?”

  She moaned. “Please, no. I’m still reco
vering from the last one.”

  “I was actually thinking of your first flying lesson.” Robin waved her closer to the console.

  She stood rooted to the spot. “Really?” she asked, as if to convince herself, before she moved to his side.

  “Really,” he said, relieved to see her smile. “These are the yokes.” He patted the joystick handles in front of him. “They direct the ship up, down, left, and right.” As he explained, he went through the motions; she paid close attention. “This is the throttle,” he continued, and he laid a hand on the large lever between him and LJ. “Move it back to go forward and forward to go back. The farther you move it, the faster you go; middle puts you at a full stop.” He gestured to the pedals at his feet. “Strafe peddle, left and right,” he finished and pressed the button on his seat, which slid back. “Take her for a spin.”

  “Really?” Freya looked stunned.

  Waving at the seat, he nodded. She grinned from ear to ear and climbed into the pilot’s seat. As it slid forward, LJ and Robin shared a smile.

  “What happens if I turn just one of the sticks?” she asked.

  “You roll the ship,” Robin answered. “Let’s wait on that, okay?”

  Before his sister could really get started, a deep, rumbling groan reverberated through the ship.

  “What was that?” Freya asked, her mouth falling open.

  As he turned to eye the door, a chill ran down Robin’s spine. “I don’t know,” he said quietly.

  The groaning sounded again. As the ship vibrated under his feet, he clenched one hand into a fist and felt his armor expand.

  Chapter 13

  Guiding Angels

  The groaning grew louder and louder. Again, the hatch hissed, and Willa barreled in from where she had been taking a nap.

  “What’s going on?” she asked, her armor expanding up her arm.

  Again, Robin shook his head.

  They all frowned then as a ghostly humming sound met their ears; it reminded Robin of the songs of giant marine mammals on Earth. Before they could speculate about what it was, something shot across the view screen.

  “What was that?” Freya asked.

  Frowning, mouth slightly open, Robin stepped closer. With one hand resting on the top of the pilot seat, he sat in it, trying to see what she had seen.

  The humming sound met his ear again, and another figure seemed to meld out of the nebula and into their line of sight. Its body shimmered with the colors of the nebula, and with four wings flapping in sync, it glided alongside the ship. Robin’s gaze met one of its forward-facing, stalked eyes. Opening its mouth, it issued more of the haunting melody.

  Robin’s shoulders slumped, and he sighed in relief as his armor retracted from his forearm.

  “What are they?” Freya asked, looking worried.

  “Star angels,” he said, and she looked up at him as more star angels appeared and seemed to dance around them. “They follow ships into deep space, feeding off the exhaust from the engines.”

  “Do they live in nebulae?” Freya asked, now watching them in wonder.

  “No, not really,” Willa answered. “The gravity can be hazardous to them, and some of the radiation can be poisonous.”

  “But they blend into the nebula so well,” Freya said, looking back at them and their ever-shifting colors.

  “That’s more their way of saying hi,” Little John explained, “and that’s probably how they all got trapped here.”

  They looked out at the pod again, which circled and danced around them.

  After a few minutes, Robin turned to Freya. “I’ve heard many consider them good luck—and they’ve been known to guide lost ships to port.”

  At his words, she stared up at him. “Do you think they’ll do the same for us?”

  “Well, there’s one way to find out,” he replied and jerked his head at the screen with a grin. “Give them a run,” he encouraged. “If they follow us, then we’ve got ourselves a guide.”

  Freya looked up at him. “Are you sure?”

  Nodding, he sat in a chair next to Willa. “We’ll keep an eye on the sensor readouts,” he reassured her, “but when we say don’t go somewhere or stop, you do it. Got it?” Grinning, Freya nodded. “Willa,” Robin looked at her, “keep an eye on the shields; Little John, the engines; and I’ll take the sensors.” They all nodded.

  “Okay, here we go,” Freya said, and threw the throttle back.

  At once, the Odysseus shot forward, and she banked into a gas cloud. As they came out on the other side, they were surrounded by columns of gassy clouds with lightning-like energy shooting from one to the other. Above them, they could see more flashes of the same energy.

  Keeping an eye on the viewscreen, Robin watched as Freya weaved left and right around the columns. The star angels were keeping up easily.

  “Come on, open her up!” Robin yelled, a grin on his face, as he made some adjustments. “Don’t lose them, but make these angels work for this meal!”

  “You asked for it!” Freya barked and threw the throttle all the way back.

  With a roar, they shot forward and the weaving grew tighter. The angels pulled ahead of them, their skin shifting rapidly with bright colors.

  Suddenly, the Odysseus spun onto its side and dipped back into the cloud. For a couple seconds, they sped through the clouds, the colors swirling around them, and then they burst back up and out. At once, the star angels regrouped around them.

  “Not bad for her first time,” Willa said, adjusting the shields as Freya put the ship into a spin, the angels spinning with them.

  “Flying must run in the family,” Robin added when his sister stopped the spin on the ship’s side and strafed until the side scraped the ceiling of the open area they were in.

  Dipping back down, they left a rippling ring of energy in their wake, and again Freya weaved through the pillars. Every now and then, they scraped against one, causing it to collapse in both directions.

  Robin then spied two pillars before them, closely grouped together, and they were racing right at them.

  “Are you sure you don’t want to take control?” Willa asked in an undertone.

  Robin shook his head. “I think she’s got it.” He shared a look with LJ, who nodded in understanding.

  At the last second, Freya rolled the ship onto its side and, still spinning, they soared right between the pillars, skimming both as they collapsed behind them.

  With a cheer, Freya thrust one hand into the air. Suddenly, the star angels broke away before them.

  Frowning, Robin checked the sensors again. “Okay, Freya, that’s enough,” he said when he saw the spiked radiation levels. “Follow them out.”

  She quickly turned the Odysseus, and they were clear of the radiation as they leveled out with ten angels still moving around them.

  “At least we now have guides out of here,” Robin said as he watched them. He met Willa’s and Little John’s eyes.

  “You know what? I’m hungry,” Little John said, sliding his chair back. “What about you, Willa?” he asked. Before she could answer, he had her by her upper arm and pulled her from the cockpit.

  After watching the doors hiss closed behind them, Robin looked back at where Freya still sat. Sighing, he climbed to his feet and moved behind her. “Not bad for your first time.”

  She looked up at him. “Thanks.”

  Robin took a breath, like he was about to take a deep plunge. “So, are you going to listen to me without throwing punches?”

  “Well, considering I’m at the controls and one wrong move means we could all suffer a horrible, fiery death…”

  Rolling his eyes, Robin murmured, “A little morbid, but I’ll take it.” He glanced out the screen again. “Look, you have every right to be angry with me. You and Tekmet have never really been apart, and I know how you feel about Kylie, but I need you here with me.”

  “Why?” she asked. “Just so you can keep throwing me all over the place?”

  “Partially
,” he admitted, and she shot him a look. “You are learning fast, though, which is a very good thing. That roundhouse kick alone proves that.”

  “Thanks,” she said, “I think.”

  “I do need you here with me,” he continued, and she glanced at him again. “If it wasn’t for the fleet, I would have left you behind, if that’s what you wanted. But when I heard of the Black Dragons… He’s our brother, and I can’t take chances with his life.”

  Lowering her gaze, she nodded in understanding. “I guess I should have listened to you.” Freya looked back at the screen to the twisting and turning star angels. “It’s…it’s just hard…”

  “Gathering feelings for someone you’ve never met,” he finished for her. She nodded. “I guess we’re just going to have to take a chance,” he said with a shrug. “The same one I took when I went after you.”

  Sighing, she sat back, running a hand through her hair. “I guess you have a point.” When he cleared his throat, she looked at him again, and he jerked his head at the yokes. “Oh,” she said, taking them again. “Hands on the controls at all times.”

  “No, you can take them off.” He reached over and pressed a button. “Just make sure to engage the autopilot,” he finished She chuckled, relaxing against the seat.

  “There were other reasons,” Robin continued their conversation. “You and Tekmet are the only magic users I know. I needed him to stay with the others, and I needed people I can trust…”

  “And though you think you know the pirates of Tortuga, you don’t know them,” she finished for him, and he nodded. “I guess we magic users have been tarnished by a certain dark-scaled lizard breath.”

  “That brings me to the other reason I need you here.” She looked at him again. “I need you…to teach me, LJ, and Willa,” he finally said as she blinked, a frown on her face, “how to use magic.”

  “Have any of you shown signs of having the gift?” she asked.

  “No,” he admitted, “but we’ve also never tried.”

  For a second, she just stared at him before she slowly nodded. “Okay. I’ll see what you have to work with.” Robin nodded. “It’ll be fun ordering you around for once. I take it that’s the other reason you had Tekmet stay behind.”