Domik
The battle raged around them as Domik readied the big guns and fired. A flash of green light lit the interior of the bridge, Domik blinking to clear his vision.
“That was close!” T’arq shouted, getting a grunt of acknowledgement from Zac.
Domik could operate all the ship’s weapons from his station on the bridge, the craft’s system feeding him a continuous stream of information on each of the big guns, as well as the smaller ones operated by Zac and Laila. These used plasma charges, which were shot at Xakul ships with devastating results. Domik checked the screen in front of him, his hands moving fast as he filtered through the streams of information, focusing on the mines that Laila had been dropping in the ship’s wake. A Xakul ship blundered straight into one and immediately exploded, a fireball engulfing what remained of it.
Domik glanced to where CJ sat at the station next to his, wasting precious seconds to check that she was all right. She was focusing on her own screen, deep in concentration, and Domik breathed a small sigh of relief. She had panicked earlier, and he had been worried about her. But she seemed to be OK. For the moment.
The Xakul had arrived as predicted, bringing numbers far greater than expected, and the Taurean fleet was doing everything they could to hold them back, but the sheer number of Xakul fighters meant that when one fell, another replaced it. The same could not be said for the Taurean fleet, and now gaps were appearing in the defenses.
Gaps that were not being filled.
With the Purist attack, Domik had doubts the backup would arrive in time. And now the speedy Xakul fighters had broken through the ranks and were terrorizing the slower Taurean battle craft.
The only advantage the Taureans had was their new cloaking technology, thanks to Krystal’s modifications. And Domik had never been more thankful. T’arq and Krystal worked in unison; she charted a path through the increasingly complex battleground, while he flew the shuttle in ways that Domik couldn’t understand. He was an absolute artist at the helm, but they were severely outnumbered, and it was only a matter of time before the Xakul got the better of them.
Their enemy was as intelligent as they were deadly, and they had figured out how to triangulate the shots fired to track down a Taurean shuttle. The Taureans had adapted, dodging as soon as they had fired, but they were slower to move and more than a few had been lost.
A shuttle next to them was hit, their cloak dropping as soon as they lost power, and the two halves of the broken shift drifted apart.
Domik was thrown against his seat as T’arq dodged the debris, a second wayward shot from a Xakul fighter striking them and sending a shudder through their craft.
“Auto targeting is down!” Domik shouted. The blast must have damaged the controls for the big gun. He switched to manual targeting and pulled on the goggles that gave him a 3D view of the gun’s position where it was mounted on the underside of the shuttle. He swung the barrel around and focused on the Xakul fighter that was approaching from beneath them and fired. The shuttle lurched as the big gun recoiled, and Domik reloaded.
CJ monitored the other ships, kept an ear on the comms, and alerted Domik to any potential targets for his large guns. She had saved them uncountable times already, her quick eyes and ears finding ships that were hidden to him behind debris.
Her voice reached him over the sounds of battle. “Domik! Xakul at—” The rest of what she said was lost as an explosion rocked the shuttle, sending them spinning.
Domik watched in horror as a Xakul ship bore down on them, the deadly plasma firing from its own guns barely missing them. He sighted on the enemy ship and fired; the shuttle lurching again and T’arq sending them into a rapid dive away and under their pursuer.
“The cloak isn’t working!” Krystal’s announcement had Domik swearing under his breath. They were as good as dead now.
His premonition seemingly came true a moment later as another blast sent them spinning, the lights of the bridge flickering before going out. An emergency klaxon sounded, the wail grating on Domik’s nerves.
“Engines are down. We’re not going anywhere.” T’arq turned to Zac. “If we stay here, we’re dead.” The pilot’s sentiment echoing Domik’s own.
The commander nodded as smoke filled the bridge. “Agreed. To the escape pods. Now.”
T’arq unstrapped from the pilot’s seat and leaned down to scoop Krystal from hers before carrying her out of the bridge. Domik turned to CJ, whose face was white and her eyes huge as she looked at him in horror.
“Escape pods?” she whispered; her voice barely audible over the crunching of metal as the ship disintegrated around them.
“You’ve done the training. You’ll be fine.” He knew time was wasting. Every second they delayed could mean life or death, but she needed to be calm.
A hand on his shoulder had Domik turning to see Zac nodding toward the door. “Out. Now. Both of you.”
CJ fumbled with the harness of her seat, her hands shaking as she tried to undo the buckle. Domik watched before brushing her hands gently aside and releasing her, pushing the harness from her shoulders and lifting her bodily from the seat.
“Hey! I can walk.” She pushed against his chest, and he released her, relieved that she was showing her usual feisty nature.
Domik gestured for her to go first through the door, taking one last look around the bridge before following her into the smoke-filled hallway. As he walked, the shuttle shook, and he braced his hands on the hallway’s walls as he staggered from side to side. An electrical fire broke out in the galley as they passed, sparks flying out from damaged appliances.
There were escape pods built into the top and base of the shuttle. Each held a single passenger with enough oxygen, water, and food to last a day or maybe two if a person opted to put themselves into stasis. There were eight escape pods on the shuttle, five below decks and three above, two more than the six who currently crewed the ship.
The access to both sets of pods was by ladders near the cargo bay to the rear of the ship. And it was here that they assembled.
Domik stood to one side, turning so he could monitor CJ, who was leaning against the wall, staring off into the distance. He moved next to her, and she wrapped her arms around herself as if seeking comfort.
