It felt like it took too long for it to taper off.
“A heavy atmosphere?” she asked.
“It shouldn’t be this heavy,” Tim said.
And suddenly they were in the clear.
Or not.
Ahead, it was bright and light, but off to their left, the entity region was dark and foreboding—but also lit with bright flashes of light.
Riina triggered the main sensors and directed them toward the darkness.
It took time for the readings to begin to register, but when they did, she frowned.
“It’s firing on the surface,” Rinna said. “Those are surface impacts.” She brought up some other readings. “Yes, impacts in addition to the seismic activity. Or are they? It almost appears as if something is being extracted from the surface.”
Out of the corner of her eye, Riina noted Tim’s frown.
“Is there a pattern? It’s going to be difficult to fly in there,” he said.
“Should we try?” she asked the question because she must. They had to get in there.
Now Tim looked surprised. “Of course.”
Riina bit back a smile. His response didn’t surprise her. Tim, like all his crewmates, didn’t see roadblocks, just obstacles to get over, around, or through.
It was, she realized somewhat ruefully, one of the things she liked about him. Liked? Yes, liked, she told herself firmly. And tried not to look at the strong arms so sure and commanding on the controls.
Unfortunately, not looking at his arms somehow brought her gaze to his profile. Firm jaw. Stern gaze. And his lips…
She yanked her attention back to her screen.
“The impacts are increasing, but I think I see a pattern.” She pulled up another data set. “I think they are focused on areas where the seismic activity is the strongest.” She went through the data more slowly. “Yes, I think there is a pattern. If I’m right, there is a flight path. A possible flight path. It’s still a risk.”
“Why is it a risk?” Lt. Dish asked.
But it was Trac who answered her. “If a new area of seismic goes active while we’re over it…”
“Oh.”
Riina sensed she shifted in her seat.
“Shall I keep focused on the seismic then?”
Riina couldn’t help her look of surprise in Tim’s direction. He shrugged.
“All right.”
“I will monitor the entities’ firing patterns,” Trac said. “They seem to be able to fire from multiple locations, but sensors aren’t able to discern weapons arrays yet.”
“Or any discernibly discrete ships,” Riina muttered. It remained, to the sensors, a miasma with a widely dispersed energy signature.
As she studied the data, she initiated a database search for anything comparable. She not only had access to the Garradian data, both past and present, but also the Najer’s databanks. At least what they’d shared.
Had they shared all they knew? There was no real way to know, but she wanted to believe they had. And not just because she considered Tim a…friend.
Their comm crackled and then she heard Nevv’s voice.
