“I had to apprehend a rebel. He’s back there, outside the officers’ quarters. Tried to ram his way in—”
He pushed the barrel into her mouth. “Shut. Up.”
Maya froze. She looked out of the corner of her eye, met Elena’s gaze.
The officer caught it. “Hey, what are you—”
Elena jabbed her arm forward, spearing a flame through his throat. He crumpled without a scream. The others reacted—too slow. Maya lunged, grabbing one officer while Ajira and Nurra took another, Tanmay the third.
Ajira wrested a gun, but Tanmay’s officer fired, the pulse ripping through the ceiling. Someone shouted from inside the bridge.
“Shit,” Maya said.
Elena growled and grabbed the gun, and together, she and Tanmay finally wrenched it away when an officer ran out.
“Rusting hells, what is going on—”
Elena pressed the gun into the new officer’s head, pushing him forward. “Not another step, or I’ll melt his brains.”
The officer halted as the others followed her lead.
“Back,” she said. “Go on.”
He retreated, and they marched into the bridge, hostages held before them.
The officer on watch looked up from the three-dimensional holo of the killdom and froze.
“Healer, why do you have a gun on my quartermaster?” he said.
“Step away from the panel,” Elena said.
He did not move. So she shot. He jumped back with a yelp as the pulse ripped through the panel’s edge where his hand had been.
“I said: Step. Away.”
Glowering, he slowly retreated. They corralled him and the others into the corner, Tanmay keeping watch as Elena and Maya rushed to the panel.
“Ajira, Nurra, contact Akino,” Maya barked. “See if he got to the armory. Elena, how far and fast can your inferno spread? Elena? Elena!”
Elena turned from the sensors. She pointed to the two red dots. “What are those?” The question was directed to the officer on watch. When he did not respond, she strode over and yanked him up, pressing a flaming hand close to his face.
“How long have we been trailing them? Who are they?” she demanded.
He said nothing. Elena pressed closer, and he jerked his head, trying to pull away from the snapping flames on her wrist.
“I’m not going to repeat myself twice.”
“They’re Yumi ships,” he said finally. Sweat beaded down his forehead. “They just sailed out of the pit.”
The ship suddenly juddered. Elena glanced back to see the force field around the killdom disappear.
“Cloak is down,” Maya said. “No distress signals were sent to our friends on theRelentless Destiny. I’ll send word—”
Elena sensed movement. She turned—too late. The officer on watch grabbed her gun and shot, the pulse ripping past her and into Maya’s hand.
She howled. Blood spurted from her missing finger as the pod clanged to the floor, melted and warped.
Elena tackled the officer, and he landed a knee in her stomach. She gasped. Black circles danced in her vision, but she clung on, grabbing the butt of his gun.
