Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
“Safe trip,” Nissa said. “See you soon.”
Aurina sat back in her pilot’s chair, her concentration split between the control screen under her hands, and the viewscreen above. Behind her, the Sky Nomad and the convoy were getting smaller and smaller. Ahead, the sprinkle of white stars beckoned.
“Thanks, Nissa. Tell Justyn I’ll be up for a game of crossfire when I get back.”
Nissa snorted. “He’ll want to win some of those pretty shinies you have. And he’s damned good.”
“I can take him. I’ll be home in a few hours.”
“Roger that. And Ry said to remind you to watch out for that meteor storm.”
Aurina heard the lazy amusement in Nissa’s voice. “Tell him I will, and I packed clean underwear, as well.” Aurina might complain about the overprotectiveness of her brothers from time to time, but she’d lived without them for so long that now she was grateful she had them.
She plucked a pale-blue stone from her pocket, and rubbed it between her fingers. It was a piece of Perman star crystal, and one of her favorites. It wasn’t worth as much as her gem collection, but the color and the smoothness pleased her. She found it soothing to work it between her fingers.
She focused her attention on the scan data flashing up on her screen.
She had four possible habitable planets on the long-range scanners.
The convoy needed somewhere to rest and recharge, and it was her job to find it.
They needed breathable air, water, and a place to stretch their legs. Food was a definite bonus.
She imagined a nice, lazy stroll through a grassy field, or maybe some trees.
Her stomach tightened. She really wanted that.
They’d long ago realized that too much time cooped up in starships sent people a little crazy.
People started making bad decisions and fighting among themselves.
Dare liked to stop the convoy at regular intervals.
Near the galaxy’s edge, they had planets and stations they knew that catered to convoys.
But out here—she eyed a multi-hued nebula in the distance—it was uncharted territory.
They didn’t know the planets, or what species they might come across.
Okay, so which of the four planets to visit first?
She repeated a little nursery rhyme from her homeworld and stabbed a finger at her screen.
It landed on the image of a large, blue-gray planet her comp had dubbed B1.
B1, it was.
Before long, she passed a small planet with a good-sized rocky moon.
Her scanner bleeped. She leaned forward.
The planet was uninteresting and not habitable, but the moon had some fascinating geology.
She studied the results. It looked like deposits of nember—a rare and valuable ore that could be made into a dark, heat-resistant metal.
Then she frowned. There were also some strange radiation readings. She tapped her screen. Very strange.
An alarm beeped, and her heart kicked in her chest. Dammit, the radiation was frying her shields. She tapped the controls, sending more power to the forward shields.
The alarm stopped.
She released a breath. Close call. She had them on occasion. That was part of being a scout.
Over the next few hours, she passed another planetary system with no promising life.
One planet was covered entirely by water, and her readings picked up some very large aquatic animals under the surface.
She itched to do a quick fly through the water and take a peek, but she was getting close to B1, and she needed to check out the planet.
If it didn’t have what they needed, she planned to head to the not-too-distant A1, then the final two planets, before she headed back to refuel and report.
Soon, the blue-gray orb of B1 appeared in the distance.
It looked pretty from here, but scans showed it was a fairly rocky world, with small amounts of water.
There appeared to be some rocky, mountainous areas with little vegetation, as well as some gentler meadow areas with small lakes and some low vegetation.
Suddenly, lights started blinking on her console. An alarm turned into an insistent beep.
“Damage to internal systems,” the modulated computer voice intoned. “Multiple system failures.”
What the hell? Aurina stiffened in her seat and tapped the screen. She pulled up a schematic of the Ariel’s systems.
When she saw red lights blinking on just about every system, her stomach did a slow roll. “Computer, what’s causing the damage?”
“Radiation damage to key components.”
Shit. Some of the radiation had made it through the shields. It must have been slowly eating away at her systems all this time.
Her mind raced. Turn around to the convoy or head for B1?
She looked up and saw the planet was getting close. She’d never make it back to the Sky Nomad.
B1 was her best chance.
She adjusted course, then frantically set to work, trying to fix her failing systems. “Come on, sweetheart.” Nothing worked. She kicked the bottom of the console and winced.
Get to the planet. Set off her emergency beacon and let Dare and the others know where she was. “Sky Nomad, this is the Ariel. I have a problem?—”
“Communication systems are not functioning.” The computer again.
“Dammit!” She slammed a fist against the console.
“Environmental systems are down to fifty percent. Engine power has been compromised.”
Great. She swallowed, trying to stay calm. At fifty percent enviro, she could still breathe. And even if she had to limp along at a slow speed, she could still make it to the planet. Landing might be a bit rough, but she’d make it.
A chime. “Shields are now offline.”
Aurina froze. No shields was not good. She eyed the distance to the planet again. Still, it wasn’t far and while her ship might get a bit battered on landing, it should be fine.
Suddenly, something whizzed past the viewscreen. Her muscles tensed, and she leaned forward. Another object whizzed by, headed for the planet.
Dread curdled in her gut.
Two more objects streamed past.
Oh, God. The meteor shower.
With her systems down, she hadn’t detected it, and now, with her shields down, she was in real danger.
She touched her controls, her hands moving in a frantic dance. “Come on, baby. Just a little bit more speed. Let’s get out of here.”
But the Ariel didn’t respond.
Aurina sat back in her seat and checked that her harness was tight. The planet loomed ahead, filling the viewscreen.
More meteors whizzed past, turning into a dangerous rainstorm of rock. She could barely breathe from the tension.
There was a loud crash and alarms shrieked in a chaotic chorus.
“Impact,” the computer said. “A foreign object has impacted the ship.”
“Wow, I would never have guessed,” she muttered. There was another crash and her fingers dug into her armrest.
“Environmental systems are failing, and engines have been damaged.”
The Ariel hit the atmosphere, flames flaring up over the ship. Aurina heard metal tear and groan. The ship was tossed sideways, and she was thrown against her harness.
She was going to die.
She dragged air into her tight lungs. She’d always thought death would be peaceful. A calm acceptance of what was coming, and being thankful for the life she’d had.
But dammit, she didn’t want to die.
She wanted to live.
She wanted…more.
More alarms beeped, and she closed her eyes and tried to stay conscious. The reentry flames and shuddering of the ship died away. But now the ship was spinning, making her stomach reel.
She caught a glimpse of a blue sky, sharp-peaked mountains, and brown land. Then the ground was rushing up to meet her.
There was a huge jolt, and she was tossed around, her harness digging into her shoulders. Metal screeched, items vibrated, and glass shattered.
Another huge jolt and something slammed into her head.
She blinked once, her vision blurring. Pain tore through her.
Then there was nothing.
The clang of sword against sword rang out through the early-evening air.
Kavon Mal Dor urged his hargon beast forward, felt the animal’s powerful muscles tense as it sprang into movement. Kavon thrust all his strength behind his weapon, slashing his sword against the raider.
The raider, dressed in scarred, worn armor, lifted his own sword, but it snapped under the size and strength of Kavon’s blade. With a scream, the man fell off his hargon beast, tumbling beneath sharp hooves.
Kavon slowed his beast and turned.
He’d already cut a swath through the raiding party, and behind him, his warriors were making short work of the remaining raiders. His jaw tightened. Raiders were the lowest of the low—men with no honor, who stole and pillaged.
They’d made the wrong decision in choosing to raid a village under Kavon’s protection.
His nanami surged through his blood, giving him added strength and making his reflexes faster. The nanami were a part of every Markarian, a special life form that helped them survive the harsh conditions of their land.
He took down a final raider, and soon they all lay unmoving. He urged his beast, Tarm, forward with a nudge of his knees. He saw two of his warriors calming the two women who’d been kidnapped, while the others rounded up any valuables that had been stolen.
A tall warrior strode over to Kavon. “Everything’s accounted for, Warlord.”
“Thank you, Darroch. The women?”
“Unharmed. Just frightened.”
Kavon nodded. “Good. Return them to their families.” He glanced at the darkening sky, and the first of the stars appearing. “And let’s get back to the estate. We’re too close to the Wilds here. We don’t want to tempt the darken beasts to venture out of their home grounds.”
Darroch nodded. “That’s for sure.” The warrior turned, bellowing at the others to load up and move out.
Kavon felt hot and tired. He’d spent most of the day training with his men, then he’d received the call that the raiders had hit the outer edge of his land. What he wanted now was to wash, eat, and find a good mug of ale.