Chapter 22: Esthi
The portal that brought the Titans to Ellipsis from Hyperion is a massive ring of metal and engines that automatically maintains its position. The only system wired in to be accessed remotely is navigation. No one can hack it or move it without disassembling it or towing it.
Sometimes, old ways are the best for securing things. Unfortunately, my navigation tech skills on portals are non-existent. All I know is theory and history taught to me by my instructors.
I’ve tethered myself to the edge of the portal’s frame, where the circuitry access is for the damaged navigation bar. All twelve have to work, or the portal won’t ignite.
Chaos’s Trio of Terror and the other Titans have repaired the burnt wiring around the ring. It’s almost as if something exploded in it while it was open.
I crawl through the dimly lit guts of the ancient portal and feel a sudden rush of awe that humans could build such beautiful things. Solcrue might’ve known how, but they made our people do the work, teaching us new secrets and giving us the power to learn, excel, and ultimately refine our own creations.
The panels that are damaged look scorched but mostly intact.
“Did you find that spacetack gun?” Rhee asks over my coms. She’s stuck in the engine room of the BlazeStar, waiting for Scant to finish his repair of the last hyperdrive engine. Diesel won’t let her leave the ship, but she seems content to stay where she is.
“Yeah, thanks.” I work through the circuitry, trying to memorize the pieces as I go when I get to a small drive motor. “Hey, Rhee. I’ve found the navigation motor for bar twelve. I just need clarification, so I replace this last wiring harnesscorrectly on the torque converter. The flex plate that engages the actual navigation gearing is larger in diameter than the impeller, right?”
“A-firm.” She makes a strangled noise. “Hurry, Esthi!”
I place the wires and tack them as fast as I can. The gun flashes and smokes. But, in space, it dissipates fast. “What are you hearing?”
“It’s not what I’m hearing. There’s a visual in here on a screen. Finish, and get out of there!”
I tack the last wire, close the casing, and pack my tools away. Crawling out of the access, I flip on the power to bar twelve and watch it light up like the other eleven. Then I see what I wager Rhee was speaking about. A mother of motherships in black and decked in evil green lights lurks into Ellipsis’ orbit from the outer rim.
The portal ignites a bright blue.
The mothership’s sides open, and hundreds of fighters gush out in deadly waves.
Amp>>Local: Launch!
BlazeStar’s hangars open, and a hundred or more vessels dart out of the sides. They spread into a ring that rotates, rises, and falls, depositing small items out into space.
Celeste>>Local: Minefield set.
Lights blink on in a grid surrounding the BlazeStar.
Keanna>>Local: Mines online.
A massive missile arcs toward the ship.
The BlazeStar’s reverse engines brighten, trying to move her out of the way, but the missile is fast.
Clover>>Local: Clear hull rooms, now!
I watch in horror as the missile lights up two mines, but still makes it through the field,Mother’sshield, and bashes into the side of the BlazeStar. The hole puffs a gray cloud of parts and life support, Titans and humans. And the bleeding doesn’t stop.
Clover>>Local: Bulkheads not closing, level Sixteen, Charlie through Indigo. Emergency Rescue Program – BleedStop. Starboard Collector Five is down! I can’t catch our Brothers! Many females lost to space!
Clover’s panicked voice makes me forget where I am. My tether snaps tight, reminding me I’m still harnessed to the portal, and I’m letting myself drift away from it.
Chaos 2>>CO 952:Esthi!
CO 952>>Chaos 2: I know! I know! I got distracted!
I pull myself back to the portal as the Titans gather up and begin jumping off of the portal toward the mothership.
Chaos 2>>CO 952: You have to use your engines. Mother is in trouble. We’re on our own.
