25. Battle Stations
25
Battle Stations
" C aptain!" Grixxa's voice shouted at me over the din on the bridge. "We've got company. Looks like the Crimson Claw. They're powering up weapons!"
Kraxing hells! The Crimson Claw was a notorious pirate vessel and led by my main rival, Vex'kar, known for its brutality. Last I heard they were in the Centaurus galaxy which was light years away. What were they doing in this sector?
"Battle stations!" My tentacles writhing with tension as I ran straight to Nova as I roared commands to my crew. "Krezz, get to engineering. Lyra, I need you on navigation. Everyone else, prepare for combat!"
As my crew scrambled to their posts, I turned to Grixxa. "Lock down the crew quarters. If they somehow find Nova…" I couldn't finish the thought.
Grixxa nodded and typed out a series of commands. "It is done, Captain. She'll be safe."
I prayed to the seven moons she was right. As the prayer left my lips, the other ship came into view. The Crimson Claw lived up to its name, its blood-red hull bristling with weapon arrays. As I watched, a hail of energy bolts erupted from its forward cannons, slamming into our shields with bone-jarring force.
"Return fire!" I bellowed, sliding into my command chair, using my tentacles to hold myself fast as my fingers adjusted my controls. "Grixxa, target their weapons systems. Lyra, evasive maneuvers!"
The Nebula Stryker banked hard, narrowly avoiding another barrage. Our own weapons lashed out, purple beams of energy slicing through space to score hits along the Crimson Claw's hull. Unfortunately, they were not as strong as the Claw's weapons and they knew it.
"Direct hit on their port cannon!" Grixxa reported, her tentacles dancing over the weapons console. "But our shields are down to 60%!"
I gritted my teeth, my mind racing through tactical options. The Crimson Claw was larger, better armed. We couldn't win in a straight fight. We needed an edge...
Suddenly, the enemy ship's energy signature fluctuated and a loud clang sounded across the ship. "They're preparing to board!" Lyra called out, her usually calm voice tinged with alarm.
A chill ran down my spine. If they boarded us and discovered Nova...
As if sensing my thoughts, a small voice penetrated my ear. "What's happening?" Nova whispered, her voice trembling.
I wanted to scream out in frustration. "I thought I told you to stay in your cabin?" I growled menacingly. "Grixxa! Get her back to her cabin and lock her…"
My words were cut off as a blinding flash filled the bridge. When my vision cleared, I found myself face-to-face with Captain Vex'kar himself, flanked by his brutal crew.
Vex'kar was a nightmarish sight to behold. Standing nearly three meters tall, his body was a mass of writhing tentacles and chitinous armor. Eight arms, each ending in viciously hooked claws, sprouted from his torso. But it was his face that haunted the dreams of spacers across the galaxy - a grotesque mask of mandibles and glowing red eyes.
Those eyes now fixed on me, gleaming with malevolent glee. "Well, well," Vex'kar chittered, his voice like grinding metal. "If it isn't the great Captain Zharrox. How kind of you to deliver your ship to us."
I shoved Nova behind me, cursing myself for not locking her in to begin with. I should have known she wouldn't follow orders. Now I didn't know how I was going to get her out of harm's way.
"I don't remember inviting you to this party, Vex'kar," I snarled, feeling my toxin sacs swell with battle-rage. "Leave now, and I might let you keep that ugly head of yours."
Vex'kar's mandibles clicked in amusement. "My invitation must have been lost in the galaxy post. We've been out of town for a while." All of his eyes shifted, focusing on something behind me. "But what's this? You're keeping secrets, Zharrox."
With horrifying speed, one of Vex'kar's minions shot past me, wrapping a thin, hairy arm around Nova's waist. She cried out in surprise and fear as she was yanked forward.
"My, my," Vex'kar purred, running a long, black claw along Nova's cheek. "What an unusual specimen. I don't believe I've ever seen anything quite like it."
Nova's eyes rounded in fear and her chest heaved under the pirate's perusal.
White-hot rage flooded my system. "Let. Her. Go." Each word was a guttural growl, my tentacles writhing with the urge to rip Vex'kar apart.
But the other captain merely laughed. "I think not. She'll fetch a fine price on the Omega markets. Perhaps I'll keep her for myself..."
That was it. With a roar of fury, I launched myself at Vex'kar. My tentacles lashed out, seeking vulnerable points in his armored hide. At the same time, I spat a glob of paralytic toxin at his face praying none sprayed onto Nova.
Vex'kar was fast, but not fast enough. The toxin splattered across his eyes, causing him to screech in pain and loosen his grip on my little alien. She stumbled back, and I saw Grixxa pull her to safety from the corner of my eye.
All around us, chaos erupted. My crew fought with desperate valor against Vex'kar's boarding party. Lyra's cloud-like form crackled with lightning, sending enemy pirates flying. Jorixx had formed his crystalline body into a mass of razor-sharp shards, slicing through armor and flesh alike.
But I had eyes only for Vex'kar. We grappled furiously, a tangle of tentacles and claws. His armor deflected most of my strikes, while his superior strength threatened to overwhelm me.
A lucky swipe of his claw caught me across the chest, drawing a line of burning pain. I reeled back, my vision blurring. Vex'kar pressed his advantage, two of his strong arms wrapping around my throat.
"I'm going to enjoy this," he hissed, tightening his grip.
As spots danced before my eyes, I heard Nova cry out. "Zharrox! The orb!"
Through my darkening vision, I saw her pointing at something. The Celestial Pocket! Of course!
With the last of my strength, I reached out and grabbed the glowing orb by its heavy pedestal. As Vex'kar's grip tightened further, I smashed the delicate sphere against his face.
"Hit the deck!" I screamed at my crew as I dropped to the metal floor with a loud reverberation.
The effect of the orb was immediate and catastrophic. Reality seemed to warp and twist around Vex'kar as the miniature universe contained within the orb was released. He screamed, a sound of utter cosmic terror, as his body began to distort in mind-bending ways.
I recoiled, gasping for air, grabbing hold of anything I could to anchor me as Vex'kar and his crew were pulled into the swirling vortex of space-time. In a flash of impossible geometries and colors that hurt to look at, they vanished.
For a moment, silence reigned on the bridge. Then, with a groan of effort, I pulled myself to my feet. "Report," I croaked.
"Ship enemies…neutralized, Captain," Grixxa responded, her voice shaky with adrenaline. "The Crimson Claw is undocking."
I nodded, wincing at the pain from the slash across my chest. "Set a course away from here, maximum speed. I don't want to be around when-"
My words died in my throat as I realized Nova was no longer on the bridge. "Where is she?" I demanded, panic rising in my chest. "Where's Nova?"
Grixxa's eyes widened in alarm. "She was here just a moment ago, I swear!"
A cold dread settled in my gut. In the chaos of the fight, one of Vex'kar's crew must have slipped away with her. Which meant...
"They took her," I growled, my vision tinging red with rage.