“Just gaining my bearings.” She took a moment to wipe the sweat off her palms and onto her flight suit. She couldn’t afford to lose her grip.
Brook stared down at the danger below them. Between the fusion generators enclosure was a series of slats that could shift to funnel the energy during propulsion. Right now they were all locked in the upright position, meaning that below them was a minefield of sharp steel edges that would slice them to bits if they fell.
So don’t fall.She took a deep breath and leapt up to grab the bar. She held on tightly, starting to move hand-over-hand towards the opposite ledge.
A commotion rose behind her, and she couldn’t help but risk a glance backward.
Ontarii had made the jump from the enclosure onto the small ledge. He wobbled slightly and she held her breath.
If he falls, how are you going to explain it to his soldiers? It would create an intergalactic incident.
With surprising grace, before he’d even properly balanced, Ontarii leapt off the shelf and grabbed the bar over his head. He hung a few paces behind her and immediately started moving toward her with a speed she couldn’t match.
Brook concentrated on moving forward, one hand over the other. The trek took longer than she could have expected, and as she dangled, she regretted not training harder before the mission. Being in close quarters in space didn’t provide much exercise, and despite running on the treadmill in her cramped quarters, she wished she were in better shape.
She could feel her palms start to sweat, becoming more slippery on the cool metal bars.Just a few more feet.
Suddenly she lost her grip and started to fall. Brook closed her eyes, not wanting to see the sharp metal edges below before they cut her to pieces.
Then a hand was holding her as she swayed above certain death, Ontarii having kept her from falling.
“I’ve got you,” he grunted, then with one hand he proceeded to move himself along the bar and over to the ledge. “Just hold on and don’t look down, okay?”
“Okay.” She tried like hell to keep the terror out of her voice. Her position and pride were everything to her.
When they were close enough, Brook managed to swing herself over and land on the ledge. She scooted down to make room for the major.
He leapt off the bar, making it look easy, like he was an Olympic gymnast ready to claim his gold medal.
She looked up into his midnight eyes. “Thank you.”
He nodded. “No problem. Now, get moving.”
