The taller guard surveyed her face and the screen, before glancing at the hovercart.
“You may proceed.” He saluted. “May the Stars Guide You, Captain Lian.”
Putting away her ID, she smiled. “Thank you. Have a good night.”
She pushed the hovercart through the hangar doors and instantly turned toward her own fighter. The skeleton-staffed ground crew were too busy working on the damaged ships in the engineering bay to notice anyone near the fighters.
All she needed to do was stay between ships and behind obstacles to make it to her fighter undetected.
Slowly, Jaiya crept along the hangar, and to her amazement, she made it to her ship undiscovered. Instincts kicked in and she opened up the small personal storage bay, quickly throwing the travel cases inside. She sealed it and inspected her fighter, making sure everything looked functional. While she wasn’t a part of the ground crew, pilots were supposed to be familiar with the basic conditions of the ship they flew and be able to identify potential issues. Satisfied, Jaiya climbed the ladder to her fighter’s cockpit and jumped in. The feeling of her seat calmed her. This was where she belonged, inhership, not in some defenseless, slow transport. If anything went wrong, it would be easier for her to maneuver and escape while piloting her fighter.
She lowered her hood and grabbed her helmet off the steering wheel, combing back her newly shortened hair before putting it on. It felt a little loose, but she would make do. She couldn’t afford the time or the risk involved with trying to find a smaller helmet.
Pulling her ID out of her pocket, she placed it into the ship’s slot, starting it up. The sounds of the fighter’s ladder folding itself into the ship faded as the fighter’s dome sealed. The instruments and displays turned on, welcoming her.
Jaiya checked the energy cells, making sure they were full. Her weapons were recharged and restocked. All systems were green—ready to go.
Pulling out her mission holodisk, she placed it onto the holodisk reader and turned it on, transferring all the coordinates and codes needed for this mission to her main display.
Movement caught her eyes. The few grounds crew members were rushing over to the fighter section to see why her fighter was alive.
She needed to leave before they could stop her by closing the hangar’s doors. She wouldn’t allow anyone to stand in the way of this mission.
“Captain Lian. May I ask what you are doing?” A young male voice asked over her helmet’s communications. “We have you listed for departure at 0600 in our flagship transport.”
She worked in a frenzy, enabling her fighter’s take-off procedure.
“There has recently been a slight change in the mission. Junior Diplomat Lian will be a passenger in my fighter, and we are to leave at once,” Jaiya announced boldly, in a tone she used when addressing her wing and other subordinates. The fighter began to move as she steered it onto the launching pad. “Any delays will cost me my mission. Over and out.”
She blocked all communication channels, which was in both of their best interests. He could not take the blame for her departure if he wasn’t able to communicate with her. The less she said now, the fewer things she would have to worry about when she did return.
Jaiya wasn’t foolish. She was committing treason.
But if she ended the war, she could return a hero.
Jaiya started the launch countdown.
Surveying the hangar, she found no one was trying to stop her—but they were all watching in shock. It would be suicide to stand in her way. If they closed the doors while she was launching, the impact could damage the whole hangar. Whether or not they believed her, they would have to let her go.
Three . . .
Two . . .
One . . .
Her body was pinned against the back of her seat as she zoomed away from the moon base. Once she was surrounded by nothing but stars, Jaiya took some calming breaths as she plotted her course to her destination: the Daextru’s starbase in the Azophi star system.
