Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
There was movement in the air when there shouldn’t have been. Rykal led Arin into the main dock, searching for any means of escape. The First Division was looping around, ordering the old human pilot to maneuver the Arawen back to Docking Bay One.
But they couldn’t enter or exit, because there was nobody to operate the airlocks.
As they strode across the vast floor of the docking bay, Rykal saw the reason for the draft. A stream of air was being sucked into the airlock and out into space, because it was partly open.
There was a narrow gap between the inner doors, just wide enough for a person to squeeze through.
That explained the low oxygen in these parts. He was glad Arin had her respirator. He would put his body through all kinds of pain and torture as long as she was safe.
He might have to steal some of her air soon, though. His body could go without oxygen for some time, but starve it long enough, and his nanites would fall into a low-energy state and retract.
Another dull boom echoed in his ears, and the freighter shifted again, causing the floor to slope at a forty-five-degree angle. As Arin lost her footing and slid down, Rykal drew his dagger and slammed it into the floor, using it as a handhold as he grabbed her around her waist.
She latched onto him as the lights flickered and went out, her eyes blind and trusting in the darkness. “You know what I just saw before the lights went out?”
“What is it, Arin?”
“A fucking escape pod. I can’t see now, but look down, straight down, and you’ll see a dull grey structure against the wall. It has a large red triangle on the door.”
Rykal saw it. It was surprisingly large for an escape pod, designed to fit perhaps fifteen to twenty humans.
In contrast, Kordolian ships were fitted with numerous small escape pods, designed to fit one or two people only.
In an attack or disaster scenario, having multiple pods maximized the entire crew’s chances of survival.
“You know how to work that thing?”
“Of course.”
“Is it trustworthy?”
“Federation regulations require it to be checked and maintained once every six months. We can only hope they’ve kept it to standard.”
“There is oxygen inside?”
“There’d better be.”
“Then hold on, my love.” In a series of fluid movements, Rykal wrapped himself around Arin, rolled onto his side, pulled his dagger out of the floor, and held onto her tightly as they slid down the smooth, sloping floor.
He crashed into the escape pod feet-first, protecting Arin from the impact. Rykal bent his legs and sustained the force of the blow as Arin flicked on her guide-light and punched a clear panel beside the door. It shattered, revealing a yellow lever which she pulled.
The doors slid open with a hiss, and Arin pulled Rykal inside. He opened his mouth and took a deep breath as stale air entered his lungs, and his heart started to beat normally again.
A light flickered on. There were multiple seats inside, arranged in pairs; Rykal counted sixteen in total. Arin slammed the door shut, pulling a large yellow lever to lock it. She then entered a series of commands into a data panel on the wall.
Her movements were fluid and practiced, as if she’d done this kind of thing a hundred times before. “Two minutes,” she declared, but Rykal had no idea what ‘minutes’ were.
Arin scrambled towards a pair of seats, pulling Rykal with her. Even though the entire pod was tilted at a sharp angle, she moved nimbly and swiftly, strapping herself into a seat and motioning for Rykal to do the same.
Rykal activated his comm. “We’re shooting out of here,” he informed his comrades, who were waiting nearby on the Arawen. “Found an escape pod. Don’t bother coming to get me. Just put some kuliks between yourselves and that floating piece of shit. It’s unstable.”
“First Kalan, now Rykal,” he thought he heard someone - it sounded like Kail - mutter disapprovingly in the background. “Contact us when you’re clear,” the warrior snapped.
The comm ended abruptly as a low hum reverberated through the pod. It was powering up.
Arin’s fingers closed over his as a great metallic groan shook the freighter, followed by another explosion. Their world tilted sideways as the escape pod accelerated, shooting them out into the frigid vastness of space.