The captain turns, looking at us standing there. “You think you can fix this?”
“I was able to see the issue simply from one of your information boards. If you give me full access, I should be able to bypass the connector and shut down the warp drive.”
“Then let it be noted that I gave Falon, an unknown from the Void … full access to Destiny. Let us pray that you are as good as you say you are, pirate.”
Instead of him letting go of me and heading to all the flashing lights in front of us, Falon pulls me along behind him. He sits me in an empty chair and hooks the harness straps around my body so that I’m secure. His large hands grasp my face, and I swear I see resignation in his eyes, but before I can say a word, he leans down, kisses my forehead, then turns his back to me.
I hear gasps as they all witness his fingers merging into the mainframe, and then hundreds of screens pop up on the viewers at once. It takes me a minute to realize I can see which schematics and the locations he has integrated. Falon is workinghis way through thousands of wires and connections, going through them one at a time, re-routing, and bypassing systems as he goes. He is about halfway through the main schematic, where I can see a small light moving when the ship stops its frantic shaking and the red lights and alarms shut off. I don’t know if anyone else is noticing, but his large frame is now trembling slightly, and it seems to be getting worse the longer he’s hooked to that board.
Rafe comes closer, “Falon, you are burning yourself out; you need to pull back and give yourself a break.”
“Almost there,” … his voice comes out of the speakers in the room. Then the screens go black and he looks up. “The connector is live; it is the switch that is not working properly. In order for me to override it, I am going to have to fry the circuit. When I do this, the warp drive will stop abruptly, and the power that was pushing this ship through space will back-feed. Destiny, I need you to put up a cyber safety wall to protect the ship’s inner workings, especially navigation and life support systems. Once I am in the warp drive’s case, I will not be able to block this power surge and it will destroy anything it touches.”
Rafe is beside him, his fingers flying across the keyboard, “Falon, can you send the power toward the thrusters? If I power them down, the energy could be absorbed and transferred out the back of the ship.”
“I will do my best, but I would rather you all be prepared. This ship may instantly be floating dead in space, and that could prove more dangerous than hitting that asteroid head-on.”
EvO starts shouting out orders. “Destiny, send out an alert for everyone to brace themselves. ViN, you need to gather our mates and head for the shuttles. If Destiny loses power, we will be atthe mercy of the solar system, and you all will be safer inside the shuttles. If I had time to evacuate the entire ship, I would. The rest of you, I want you in your seats and harnessed in.”
ViN is already out of his seat, running, and it’s easy to see that EvO and Rafe are torn. They both have mates on board, but they and the crew are choosing to stay behind.
“Captain, I have one request.”
“Go ahead, Falon.”
“Please allow my mate to join yours.”
I had been looking at the captain, and my eyes snap back to Falon, who is looking at me with a sad expression on his face.
“No! I’m staying right here.”
“As you wish, little morsel. Frack, how I wish things were different. Possibly … it is better this way. You are not linked to me physically yet … and the sins I will never escape … maybe this was the will of the gods all along. At least I got to hold you for a short while.”
He doesn’t give me a chance to say anything before I see him turn away, and the screens brighten back up. Minutes later, it feels like the ship stalls, then there’s a huge flash, and sparks fly from where Falon’s fingers are on the computer board. A scream leaves my lips when I see the skin on his arms practically boiling and foam coming out of his mouth. Alarms sound, and for a moment, we are all weightless, then it’s like the ship hits the brakes, and I’m thrown forward against the restraints.
Falon falls to the floor, and I’m fighting the straps holding me in this damn chair. I finally wiggle free, only to fall to the floor in my rush, banging my hip hard, but this doesn’t stop me fromcrawling to his side. I can hear Rafe and the captain yelling for LeX and the others, but it’s like I am in a fog. Pulling his large head into my lap, I rock him back and forth as my fingers wipe the foam and drool off his chin.
“Falon, no …No! This is not the way to impress a girl. Now get up and say psych or something, you’re tougher than this. You crazy, stubborn ass man, what were you thinking? If you think sacrificing yourself is going to earn you a second date … well, it might, but you need to open those pretty eyes of yours so that we can argue about it.” Tears run down my face, and I’m torn as to why I’m so upset if I really didn’t want or like him. Gentle hands gather under my arms, and I fight against them as I try to hold on to him.
“Edie honey, let go. LeX and Rafe need to get him onto the stretcher. His heart is barely beating.”
“NOOOO! He sacrificed himself for me … us, and that’s not acceptable. Please, Rylie …”
“We will do everything we can to save him Edie, you know that. Now come on, you can go with us.”
“I didn’t realize what he meant when he said maybe this was his God’s plan all along. He knew, and he didn’t even hesitate.” A sob rises in my throat as I watch them lift his limp body.
“When it comes to yourself or the life of your mate, there is no question, little human. He did … and would always pick you.” Rafe’s words hit me hard.
I walk numbly behind a hover stretcher, something I’ve never seen before, while Rylie and LeX both hook up monitors and leads to the pieces of his skin that are not practically falling off.I can’t imagine the pain Falon is in on the inside, given how bad he looks on the outside.
Once we get to the med bay, I stand to the side as they position him under a panel of some kind, and a laser-like beam runs over his body. Red lights and warnings go off everywhere. “We’re losing him, LeX!”
Immediately, Lex is above him, forcing his mouth open, inserting a tube down his throat while Rafe and Rylie perform CPR. I crumple to the floor, my mind refusing to believe this is really happening. Not an hour ago, we were having a food fight, and for once, I was allowing myself to believe that just maybe he was more than my mind was willing to admit, and now this. How could I … any of us just sit there and let him sacrifice himself like that? Falon asked for nothing but my guaranteed safety. My life was not worth his.
It seems like hours, but I know it’s only been moments when I see the lights start to turn green and Rafe steps back. “You guys got this? I need to get back to the helm. The last time I looked, two of the thrusters had overheated, but the third was still fully functional. I have no idea how he did it, but he saved a lot of lives this rising.”
“He is stabilizing Rafe. Thank you for your assistance,” LeX replies without taking his eyes off Falon. Rafe smiles down at me sadly when he sees me on the floor. Before I can say a word, he scoops me up in his arms, sets me in a chair, and pushes it up against the foot of the bed Falon is lying in.
