“Twelve minutes to touchdown,” I announced. “Assuming we don’t get struck by lightning.”
“What happens if we get struck by lightning?” Cleo asked.
“We find out if Dr. Rivers is right about those electromagnetic field interactions,” I replied.
Zara made a sound that was definitely a laugh this time, though it had a hysterical edge to it. “I really hope I’m wrong about this one.”
“So do I.” Because the alternative was going to be a very short conversation about equipment storage.
The storm reached for us with fingers of pure energy, and I dove the ship toward Destra’s surface like our lives depended on it.
Which, unfortunately, they did.
CHAPTER 2
ZARA
The ship bucked like a wild animal, and I gripped my seat restraints so hard, my hands were numb. Through the viewport, I could see flashes of electrical discharge turning the sky into something that looked like it came straight from a nightmare.
“Hold on,” Captain Korvath called from the pilot’s seat. His voice was steady, and that made me feel a little bit better about our situation. Surely if we were facing an imminent fiery death, he’d sound a little more stressed about all this. He seemed to be taking this just fine. Every time he adjusted something on his control panel, it was deliberate and calm, like he was having a conversation with the ship itself.
I’d never seen anyone pilot through conditions like this. The electromagnetic readings that I could see by peering at the navigator’s screen were so far beyond normal parameters that they should have been impossible. The storm wasn’t just weather anymore—it was a living, breathing monster that wanted to tear us apart.
“How are you doing that?” I asked, raising my voice to be heard over the groaning of the ship’s hull.
“Doing what?” Torven didn’t look back, but I caught the slight tilt of his head that meant he was listening.
“Flying through this. By now, the electromagnetic interference should be scrambling every system on this ship.”
“Itisscrambling every system on this ship,” he said grimly. “I’m flying by feel now.”
By feel.Starspreserve us, we were trusting our lives to the instincts of a grumpy Destran who’d lost his last crew—how, I didn’t know. The terrifying part was that I was starting to believe he might actually have this in hand. There was something about the way he moved, the way he anticipated the ship’s responses, that made me think he could pull this off and land this thing.
At least, I hoped he could.
The ship lurched violently to the left, and I heard something crash in the cargo hold behind us. Probably my equipment cases. The irony wasn’t lost on me—I’d flat out ignored the captain’s orders and brought all my equipment, including backups, because I was terrified of not being prepared. Now it was all going to be destroyed anyway.
“Captain,” Henic called from his station, and the fear in his voice made my stomach drop. “Navigation is completely dark. I’ve got no instruments, no guidance systems. We’re flying blind.”
“Life support is failing,” another crew member reported. “Backup power is holding, but barely.”
I reached over to the seat next to me and took Cleo’s handas the blood drained from my head. “I’m sorry,” I said as she squeezed my hand.
“For what?” Her jaw was locked and her expression grim, but she slanted me a confused look.
“This is my fault,” I said in a thready rasp. “I should have seen this coming. I should have predicted that the magnetic field interactions would create this kind of cascade effect. Butnooo, I was so focused on my comprehensive analysis plans that I missed the most important detail of all.”
“Zara,” Cleo said, then swallowed hard. “Not your fault.” She couldn’t even use complete sentences. That was how I knew Cleo was scared. She didn’t show it, but shesoundedit.
“It is,” I insisted. “If I’d taken into account the variable—”
“I love you, Zar,” Cleo cut in, and squeezed my hand hard. “But shut up.”
I did, biting my lip and pressing away the feelings of self-disappointment. Ialwayscovered all the bases. Ialwayshad all the data and was prepared for everything. But not this.
“Dr. Rivers,” Captain Korvath said quietly. Something in his voice made me turn to look at him. “What is your professional opinion about this weather pattern?”
“The storm is feeding on itself now,” I replied. “It’s going to keep getting worse until…”
