Not Kira's problem. Right now, she had her hands full avoiding being flung around the ship like an oversized rag doll.
"You're smart; I'm sure you'll figure it out," Kira snapped, watching as Elena moved step by slow step toward the bridge, the distinctive clink of her boots locking and unlocking as the ship shimmied and shook under her.
Mag boots. Of course. Why didn't Kira think of that?
Oh yes, because she didn't have any inkling her ship would do an impression of a demonic possession.
So good to know her niece had this all planned out ahead of time. Kira would be impressed if she wasn't so furious.
"Glad to see you managed to stay on board," Elena said cheerfully. She swayed and took two steps sideways as the ship flipped onto its side.
Kira took advantage of the brief respite, using brute force and luck to make her way to the next handhold, one closer to the hallway—and the bridge.
Elena steadied herself before resuming her slow, steady progress.
"It'd be nice if you turned the defenses off," Kira snarled.
"Sorry, Auntie. No can do. At least not right now." Elena reached the first T in the hallway. "You're welcome to join me on the bridge—or you can find your way off. Up to you."
Kira's response was stolen as the ship abruptly flopped onto its back, tearing the hand hold out of Kira's grip. She careened toward the ship's ceiling, flipping so her feet landed first.
The ship's thrusters fired as it prepared for its next maneuver. Jin had always called this series “a flea on a dog's back”. Kira was beginning to see why.
Anticipating its next move, Kira leapt sideways, landing on the ship's starboard wall and running along it before leaping again when the ship started its next maneuver. Lucky for her, she guessed right.
"Jin, I don't care what you have to do but get me control of this ship," Kira ordered.
Silenced answered Kira.
She'd worry if she couldn't still sense him through their link. A barely audible grumbling was coming from his side. She got a feeling he was concentrating. For now, she'd leave him to his task and hope he figured out quickly how to access the ship's brain before they all ended up as a burning tangle of wreckage.
Dumping Graydon and Harlow out of the ship like they were discarded trash was bad enough—and would definitely have consequences down the line—but what she really worried about was what the planetary defense systems had in store for them. There was a reason Elena and Odin hadn't tried to leave before now. Ta Sa'Riel was home to the emperor and the overlords of several Houses. There was no telling what sort of nasty surprises the Tuann had in store for unwelcome visitors.
Kira very much feared if she didn't take control of the ship soon that they wouldn’t have the time to regret the poor decisions that had led to their demise.
Kira pushed harder, an invisible clock in her head counting down the precious seconds.
Two more leaps allowed her to clear the cargo hold. It was easier once Kira reached the hall. She raced along the side of its walls, shifting her balance every time the ship tried to surprise her.
By the time she reached the bridge, the ride had mostly smoothed out. Elena was already strapped into the copilot's seat, her hands on the ship's manual flight controls.
"Good, you're here." Elena didn't look away from what she was doing. "Just in time too. We're being targeted by an unknown weapons system. Would you care to take over?"
Red flashed over the data screens and a recording of Jin's voice came through the speakers. "Uh oh. Looks like you've pissed someone off again. You should probably do something about that."
Kira plopped herself into the captain's seat, barely taking time to strap in before she assumed command of the controls. "This right here is why I would have preferred you didn't hijack my ship."
"Yell at me later. Save me now."
Kira bared her teeth as she jerked hard on the controls, sending the ship into a sharp barrel roll. The horizon outside the windows spun before Kira righted them again. Seconds later, she pulled hard on the control stick to send them into a hard right.
Whatever had locked onto them wasn't budging.
"Persistent little thing," Kira observed.
Elena clutched the armrests as Kira rolled the ship again. "Perhaps you could save your admiration for when we're not fighting for our lives."
Kira didn't answer, too busy trying to keep them alive.
