by L. E. Thomas
“They’re too fast!”
“I can’t maneuver in here!”
“Woo! Got one!”
Losing Bear’s position in the scramble, Austin fell behind an Interceptor trailing another Trident. The bandit didn’t even see him. He established a lock. By the time the enemy tried to evade, it was too late. Firing a missile, Austin moved to find another target.
The HUD squealed: Three bandits falling behind him searching for a missile lock. Austin tossed all available power into his rear shields. Pulling in close to a massive cruise liner with a green dome, he moved within a dozen MUs of the ship’s surface. The missile lock warning faded as the Interceptors switched to guns, igniting the surface of the dormant vessel with stray laser bolts.
As he crisscrossed the surface, avoiding towers that protruded from the antique ship, two bolts crashed into his rear shields. Fear surged into his mind. Afraid to take his eyes off the space directly in front of his Trident, he didn’t risk a glance at the sensors or the Interceptors behind him. Instead, he focused on making himself a difficult target while avoiding the debris field.
The ship’s bow loomed in front of him. Diving, he shot his Trident down in a tight reverse loop around the lower hull of the ship. Finally glancing back, he saw two Interceptors still on his tail.
“Rock, Talon.”
“Go ahead.”
Nubern paused. “Pull away from the ship in three … two … one! Now!”
Austin did as instructed, moving away from the ship that provided his cover and piloting his Trident into the field of lifeless ships. Rolling, he squeezed the fighter through two exploding craft hit by roaming missiles. He glanced at his sensors, saw only a Trident on his six.
“Nice job, Talon!”
Nubern exhaled in the microphone. “I owed you one, son.”
With his mentor on his wing, Austin soared toward a collection of Interceptors flying the opposite direction. The salvage yard filled with brilliant explosions and burning spacecraft. Debris flashed off his shields so often the power drained. Squinting and ignoring the light blasting in his eyes, he brought his crosshairs on four Interceptors firing on two hapless Tridents. One Legion fighter exploded. Hit by punishing laser fire, the second Trident’s wing shattered. The burning craft turned end over end until it smashed into the remains of a freighter.
Gritting his teeth, Austin led his crosshairs on the group leader and dumb-fired two missiles. The first missed, soaring to the left of the Interceptor. The second struck the fighter in the cockpit, obliterating the craft in an instant. The bandits split, shooting off in two directions. Austin exhaled, turning his guns on the bandits to the left and releasing a relentless fire. Without discussing their actions, working together like a well-oiled machine, Nubern took down the enemies on the right.
Austin vaporized the two Interceptors and checked his sensors. Nubern was clear.
“How we doing, Talon?” he asked, bringing his fighter around to head toward the battle as it moved toward the moon.
“Copacetic, Rock. Fuel status?”
Austin glanced down at his fuel gauge as he ascended over the bulk of another timeworn battleship stripped of its weapons. “I don’t have long now.”
A Trident to his right spun away from the battle, the fighter ablaze in its fiery death throes. A vivid flash of light burst, filling the salvage yard. Austin’s sensors scrambled and emitted static.
A system disruptor had been fired.
“I think it’s time we start finding our exit,” Nubern said in a grim voice. “Hound, Talon. SITREP?”
Searching the turbulent field of battle, Austin found two Interceptors trailing a Corvo.
“Talon,” Wilkos said, his voice straining, “we’ve lost one Karda from a missile shot by a gunboat. Another’s been hit. We’re still heading for the Formidable.”
Nubern gasped. “Can you make it?”
“It’s going to be close, but we have no other choice. Keep up what you’re doing. Give us the time and we’ll provide close support. Bring your people slowly back toward the moon, using the salvage yard for cover.”
“I copy,” Nubern said. “Get going! We’ll be right behind you!”
The dogfight in the salvage yard entered into a fury Austin had never experienced before. Sweat dripped down his face as he destroyed three more Interceptors. Without sensors, the fighters clashed like they fought hand-to-hand. Austin flew so close to the enemy he swore he saw the pilot’s helmet in the canopy. The chatter on the gamma wave increased in panic and terror.
“There’s too many of them!”
“Where are they coming from!”
“He’s right on you!”
“Where? I—” Screeching static …
“I’m hit! Get this guy off me!”
A direct hit splattered his shields, and the power dissipated to nothing. Checking his power distribution, he saw that he only had enough energy for a few shots if he wanted to keep the engines running.
“Talon, Rock. I’m hit, sir. I can’t stay here.”
“Go!” Nubern yelled back. “Head for the Lure!”
Austin bit down on his lip, wanting to stay with the major. But the situation on his fighter told him all he needed to know. “You be right behind us.”
“You got it, Rock!”
Rocketing away from the fiercest location of the battle, Austin made for the barren moon. He took a glance over his shoulder and stared toward the Zahlian ARC in the far distance—
Three more capital ships had arrived.
“Talon, Rock. We need to bug out.”
“Say again?” Nubern asked.
Austin turned around toward the moon. “We all need to bug out. Now! I have eyes on three enemy capital ships lingering at the edge of the salvage yard. These are odds we cannot fight, sir!”
When Nubern didn’t answer right away, Austin took a deep breath and looked at his power levels. He couldn’t stay out here any longer.
“I copy,” Nubern said with a sigh of resignation. “Tarnex, Tizona, and Lobera squadrons, bug out and head home. Watch your six!”
Austin transferred all his power to the engines and moved into low orbit of the barren moon in the center of the Naroovian Salvage Yard. The gray, crater-filled surface shot beneath him as he flew for the opposite side of the moon.
“Rock, Bear. Right behind you, buddy.”
Closing his eyes, Austin exhaled as relief surged through his body. “Thank the Lord, man. You get lost back there or something?”
“Oh, no,” he said, a seriousness in his voice Austin had never heard, “I only wish I … had gotten lost.”
“Are you okay?”
Bear grumbled. “Let’s just get home. Bird’s flying dry.”
“Copy that,” Austin said, his brow furrowed.
As the Tridents rounded the curve of the moon, Austin saw the Lure surrounded by eight Tridents flying escort. The freighter appeared battered and burnt, but limped toward the familiar dagger shape of the Formidable in the distance.
“Tower to all incoming fighters,” Commander Mitchem Horace said over the gamma wave, “emergency landings are approved. Ship’s curvature drive is warming up. We’ll leave when everyone’s onboard.”
Despite knowing it was a violation of protocol, Austin pressed the button to transmit. “Thanks for coming back, sir. What changed your mind?”
“Cut the chatter, Rock,” Horace said. After he paused, he added, “The Legion doesn’t leave its people behind. Not ever. Not on my watch.”
Austin smiled, bringing his Trident into a landing pattern with the Formidable’s squadron.
“Tower, Talon,” Nubern said, his voice rising. “Tridents coming in hot. We’ve got company.”
“Copy, Talon,” Horace said. “Fly to point zero-eight-two in the coordinates currently transmitting to your ships.”
“Can’t, sir. Disruptor fried our navigation on this side of the moon.”
Horace sighed. “Fly across the surface. Hit the deck
. Close as you can.”
“Yes, sir,” Nubern shot back, concern in his tone.
“How many of you are there?”
“Looks like there’s nine of us inbound on your position.”
“I copy. Once the last of you’ve cleared the moon, come right for us and don’t slow. You got that? Don’t slow!”
“I read you, Tower.”
Hovering over the Formidable as the Lure and other fighters landed in the bay, Austin turned his Trident so he could see Nubern’s group coming around the moon. Three fighters appeared, streaking across the moon’s surface, then five.
Austin swallowed, amazed at the Star Runners’ willingness to fly so low to the moon’s surface.
Seven fighters appeared, lowering to follow the others’ path.
Looking back to the moon’s orbit, Austin watched as the pursuing Interceptors and gunboats appeared. First he saw two pairs, then a cluster of Zahlian fighters swarming like angry insects.
“Firing a salvo of Class Two stunners in a spread pattern,” Horace said, his words coming slow and deliberate. “Ready … Now!”
The Formidable rocked as a series of flashes shot from its starboard side like a lightning storm. It looked like a fireworks show, the light bright and piercing. Eight projectiles soared toward the incoming Zahl forces until Austin couldn’t see them anymore. Twelve seconds later, waves of blue light exploded, sending cobalt rings through the space and engulfing the enemy fighters, ripping away power and turning them into lifeless ships like those in the salvage yard.
“All Tridents!” Horace yelled, excitement in his voice. “Get on board now! Emergency landings approved! Land immediately!”
Turning around, Austin lowered his Trident into the hangar bay. He found a place near the Lure and brought his fighter to the deck. Bear landed his Trident next to Austin’s.
Glancing to his side, Austin gave Bear a thumbs up. His friend weakly returned the gesture. Leaning his head back, Austin watched as Nubern’s Tridents landed in no discernible order and filled the hangar bay. When the final fighter passed through the opening, the bay doors rumbled closed.
But his eyes continued to come back to the Lure, the freighter he hoped carried Ryker.
“Brace for the curve,” Horace said. “Curvature drive ready in three, two, one … go!”
Austin felt his stomach drop. The lights in the bay dimmed and flashed. Just as soon as it began, the curvature drive completed its work.
“Curve completed,” Horace said with a sigh. “All crew can stand down from battle stations. All medical personnel to the hangar bay immediately.”
With a flick of a switch, Austin’s canopy opened and he unscrewed his helmet. The cold recycled air touched his sweat soaked scalp. He rolled his neck around, felt his joints pop.
In front of his fighter, the freighter’s landing ramp lowered. Weak and skeletal forms shuffled onto the hangar, shielding their eyes from the bright lights with twig-like arms. Members of the Serpents helped the prisoners to the deck, their sweaty faces covered in black energy burns.
Austin swallowed.
Captain Reece Towers stepped down the ramp, a look of terror on his face. In his arms, wrapped into a tight fetal position, was a woman wearing what looked to be a charred red flight suit.
“No,” Austin said aloud as he stood in his cockpit. “No!”
Towers carried Ryker Zyan.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Austin Stone’s feet didn’t touch the last rungs on the ladder leaning against the side of his Trident. Sprinting across the deck, he pushed maintenance crew and officers to the side, barreling his way toward Towers, who carried Ryker down the landing ramp.
Reaching Towers’ feet, Austin fell to his knees and placed his hands over Ryker’s arm. Rivulets of blood poured from her ears and nose. One crimson trickle fell from her eye, running down her cheek like a bloody tear.
“No, no, no!” he yelled. “Baby, no!”
He kissed her on the forehead, but she didn’t respond. Gone were the dark eyes blinking back at him, the tender smile whenever they touched. Resting his trembling hand on her stomach, he buried his face into her shoulder and wept.
“Why? Oh, God!” He looked up at Towers. “What happened?”
“Step back, Lieutenant,” Towers said, his voice low. “Let the medical team look at her.”
Austin’s jaw dropped. “She’s alive?”
“Technically.” He gestured with a shake of his head for Austin to move. “Let them work.”
Shaking his head, Austin stood and grabbed her hand. “I’m not leaving her.”
The medical team pushed a floating stretcher up the ramp. They took hold of Ryker and moved her still body to the stretcher. “Sir, we need to—”
“No!”
“Step back, son,” Major Jonathan Nubern said as he ran across the deck. “You have to—”
Austin thrust a finger in his direction. “I don’t have to do anything.” Turning around, he leaned over the stretcher. “I’m not leaving her. Never again. I’m here, Ryker. You hear me? I’m here. Remember, I told you I’ll give you everything I got? Ryker?”
He nudged her arm. Ryker remained still.
“Ryker? I’m here, baby. I’m here.”
When she didn’t respond, strong hands pulled Austin back. He pulled toward her, but their strength restrained him as the stretcher moved across the deck of the Formidable.
“Easy, buddy,” Bear whispered in his ear. “Easy.”
Tears streaming down his face, Austin stood and turned to Bear, saw his friend’s swollen eyes.
“I tried to … fake it all this time, Bear,” he whispered as his face crumpled, “but it doesn’t work.”
“What, man?” Bear asked, his voice cracking.
“My life.” He embraced his friend and squeezed. “It doesn’t work without her.”
Austin parted from Bear, his chin quivering. Watching the stretcher disappear into the corridor leading to Sickbay, he remembered his father being wheeled away from his home. It was the last time he ever saw Dad at the house, the final time he would see him anywhere other than the funeral home. When the casket closed later in the week, it echoed in the church with such finality—the last time his eyes would ever view his father.
“Please, God,” he whispered, “don’t take her, too.”
Austin’s fingers traced the rough texture of the chair’s armrest for the hundredth time. The bright white light buzzed over his head in the hall outside of Sickbay. Ignoring his aching back, he tried to situate himself into a comfortable position. He’d found it impossible to get any rest in the eight hours since they’d brought Ryker here. Many visitors came by to check on the status of all the wounded Star Runners, but the medical team had not come out to provide an update.
Looking to his right, he saw Nubern, Skylar, and Bear sprawled on the couch. Silent and unwavering, his friends hadn’t left him as the Formidable curved back to the Tizona in preparation for dropping off the crew for leave and reassignment. The carrier itself would travel to the docks for refitting before it would patrol Legion space once again.
Leaning on Bear’s shoulder, Skylar breathed deeply. As her eyeballs darted beneath their lids, her fingers flexed as she lay dreaming. Nubern stared at the ceiling, his face red with darkening patches under his eyes.
Reaching over, Austin tapped his mentor’s hand and leaned back in the uncomfortable chair.
Footsteps echoed down the hall. “Mind if I join you?”
Austin turned. “Commander Horace.”
“Please,” he said when Austin began to stand, “remain seated. I’m only here to check on the status of the Star Runners.”
Sighing, Austin said, “Haven’t heard a word, sir.”
Horace looked at him, his eyebrows arching. “You must be exhausted.”
“I’ll live, sir,” he said, offering the Commander a tight smile. “Hell of a thing you did bringing the old girl across the border.”
The lines
in Horace’s face deepened, and he released a slow, quiet chuckle. “Yeah. I’m sure I’ll have to answer plenty of questions in the next couple days. We paid a high price to get these people home, but all my Star Runners were flying unmarked Tridents and I hope the moon kept us out of sight to avoid any visible proof we were there.”
They sat in silence. Austin listened to the buzzing light. Nubern’s eyelids lowered, and finally closed.
“What really made you come back, sir?” he asked after Nubern’s breaths grew deeper.
Horace shrugged. “I thought of you and the others. I thought of the Legion. Those people across the border look at humanity as a … quantity, a resource to be tapped for the good of the overall collective.”
His face lost expression, and he glared toward Austin.
“The Legion doesn’t leave its people behind, Lieutenant,” he said through clenched teeth. “That’s what makes us different than those people. Some say it makes us weaker. I’m not one of those people.”
Austin nodded and folded his arms over his chest.
Another hour passed before Nurse Tomas stepped into the corridor. Blood splatters covered her gray uniform. She took off her gloves and removed her mask.
“Report,” Horace said.
“Yes, Commander. All Star Runners, both ours and the prisoners brought on board, have received a thorough evaluation and have stabilized. Same goes for the Serpents.”
Austin stood, clasping his hands behind him. “All of them.”
Tomas looked at him and blinked. “We’ve done the best we could, Lieutenant. We’re dealing with something we’ve never seen.”
“But they will survive?”
She nodded. “For now. It’ll be day-to-day.”
Grunting, Nubern stretched and stepped forward. “Are you able to tell us what happened to them?”
Tomas shifted her weight. “Doctor Tolar is still working on the three Star Runners who had received implants. The others were in various stages of torture and abuse, some physical but mostly mental. Two of the newcomers had a device recently implanted into their skulls, but one had received a similar device in the past.”
Austin swallowed. “That’s Captain Zyan. Is she alive?”