Reboot
Reboot
Kian blinked.
And choked on water.
His internal sensors kicked in. He’d crashed into the ocean near the land mass ST-17. He was not far from shore but far enough that his ship was going down.
His ship.
And the Ambassador.
His programming started screaming at him.
Protect the Ambassador
Protect the Ambassador
Kian unhooked his systems from the ship, though some had already disconnected, and he released his cabin.
The ship groaned.
He was entirely underwater, and as soon as the pressure equalized in his cabin, he’d be able to ease open the hatch.
The water poured in.
He waited.
It felt like an eternity that the water rained into his cabin, but it was no more than a few minutes. It was long enough for him to recall what happened.
He’d been shot out of the sky.
The Ambassador was wrapped in the ship’s wings.
And the Terrans were out to destroy them.
Though whether they were after their own people or the Rhimodian escort, he wasn’t sure. If they had been after the Rhimodians, then the Terrans needed to work on their aim.
A lot.
His chest ached from the lack of oxygen, and the fight or flight systems generated override commands.
Only a few more moments, he told himself.Do not initiate the fight or flight mode.
Pressure equalized.
Kian pushed open the hatch and swam for air. He dodged around debris and chunks of his ship scattered in the water.
He broke the surface, took a few deep breaths, and twisted around, orienting himself. His fighter was sinking.
Most of it was already falling to the floor of the ocean, though a cluster of wings floated not far away.
Including the escape pod the Ambassador was in.
He swam for the pod and spotted a hand stick out of the mangled metal mess.
Too far away to grab it, but at least he knew the Ambassador was alive. He didn’t have time to waste.
