"I hope I am worth the history books' memory," she whispered.
Caoimhe pressed a few more controls, trying to stabilize the pod's trajectory.
"Keep it slow and steady.You're through the worst of it," Bahran said, his voice comforting in her ear.At least something was.
"I'm not sure I have much control at this point," Caoimhe said as she glanced out.The edges of the ship were burning in flames, and she hoped that they were not from the escape pod itself.Sweat rolled down her cheek and along the back of her neck.
3.
2.
1.
The escape pod jerked, and she slammed her head in the back of the chair.She rattled off several curses that would undoubtedly make her look horrible in public.Not that she cared at the moment, but still.She exhaled a breath and looked around.The atmosphere was dark and sooty.Floating in the sky were bits of red like the ash and flame had come up to meet her ship.
Strangely beautiful, she thought as she stared at the sparkles of fire in the sky.She brushed her brow, wiping away the sweat on the sleeve of her dress.Damn thing.She was going to rip it off when she got on the ground.She hoped that Veta had packed some spare clothing in the survival bags.
It was such a random thought as she started to determine how much time she had before hitting the ground.And that's precisely what she was going to do.Hit the ground.
One of the lack of experiences she had was much piloting--as a princess, she never flew herself anywhere.Someone always did it for her.The fact that she knew anything about piloting was surprising.She'd only been taught a few things by those who felt sorry for the princess, who was so wrapped up in her formal education, that she never got taught the basics.
A ship flew by her.
That she recognized.They flew over the palace on the Terran main world all the time for a defense.The Terran fighter was an older one, but it was a good design.Distinct shape.But it had one flaw, and she realized it as it attempted to shoot her down.
Its accuracy stunk.
She started twisting her ship left and right to be a more difficult target for the fighter.She had to do something.Her shields were down to nothing.
And where did that Rhimodian go?Bahran?Wasn't he supposed to be out there, making sure she was okay?Had he--
A silver ship flew over the top of her, wings that transformed, folding and twisting like watching a living beast fly.She stared, mesmerized by the power of the ship as it flew over and around her.
"I have you, Ambassador," Bahran said, and his voice made her smile.
True, just a moment ago, she was angry, but that was a moment ago.Now he was here, protecting her again.Another Rhimodian ship followed him, and it moved just like Bahran's.
She found herself mesmerized.
She watched the Rhimodian ships long and lean with scale-like metal plating that gave them a distinct look of a fantasy monster flying through the air.The grace of a snake, but the speed of a bird.It was a strange mix.It was both mesmerizing and educational.She understood why so many battles with the Rhimodians challenged the Terran Military and why they were always looking for new strategies.The Rhimodians seemed to adapt immediately to any attack pattern.
She understood watching Bahran and another Rhimodian ship descended and attack the Terran fighter why they were so hard to defeat.They just transformed, the wings moving in and out and in different configurations, almost like liquid moving.It was remarkable.
And it didn't take them long to destroy the Terran vessel.
The sky was clear.And Caoimhe sighed.Well, as clear as it could be on a planet covered in volcanoes and ash.The smoke floated around like it was its own life force, and it seemed to almost coax her down to the ground.She could already smell the sulfur and ash through the ship.
"Well, I feel a little safer now," she muttered."Now to find a place to land this."
The pod started to shudder and move backward.
She gasped."Bahran!"
"I have you," Bahran said."Tractor beam."
She could have slapped herself for getting so surprised when it was just a tractor beam.She killed the main engine, so it would stop fighting with his.His fighter pulled her pod close in, and the wings sort of started to warp, so they protected her pod.
Unfortunately, this meant she couldn't see much of anything but the gray sky.And was it getting darker?"Where are we going?"
