Page 25 of Blightfall

“No, flightleader,” Suki said quietly. “The other diplomats did not survive.”

“Just hang on,” I told her. “Any word on the taynix?”

“Both alive,” Suki said. “We are huddling together.”

“Huddling together,” Naga said sadly.

“Hang on,” I repeated. Stars, we all had to just hang on. On my monitors, I saw the enemy drones gather on my tail, and my own flight form up behind me, keeping pace.

“Naga,” I said, “we need that hyperjump.”

“Hyperjump,” Naga said. She quivered with anticipation.

“Angel!” I said. “Any news from Bob? Can he contact the delvers to initiate hyperjump?”

“We’re still in range of the inhibitor,” Alanik said. “Until we—There! We’ve cleared the inhibitor. Bob is putting in for a hyperjump now.”

Stars. At least that was still possible.

“We can’t jump off planet,” Alanik said. “I can’t sense anything outside the inhibitor field.”

At the moment, I’d accept anywhere but here. “Tell Bob and Naga to target the jump as close to the human city as possible,” I said. I’d ask Naga to do it, but this did not seem like the moment to rely on her ability to understand me without a mind-to-mind connection. Though if Naga got clearance to hyperjump at this moment, we would leave everyone but Orator behind. “As soon as the clearance comes through, everyone connect with a light-lance and I will give the order to go.” Our best hope was to hide and hope that no nearby cytonic could sense our specific arrival point.

“Copy,” Alanik said.

“City!” Naga said. If she didn’t understand my words, Alanik would make sure she understood my intent.

“Near,” I said. “Hide.”

“Hide near,” Naga replied, and I hoped that between Alanik and me, we’d communicated effectively.

“Amphi, on your right!” Nedd shouted as destructor fire streamed toward me. I threw my ship into a Barrett sequence. Stars, it didn’t matter where we went now. All we could do was stay together, stay ahead of the enemy, stay alive.

“More ships incoming,” Nedd said.

I couldn’t see them on my monitors, so I zoomed out and there they were. More ships. Ever more ships. How big a force could one small, isolated, untested, scudding forgotten contingent of the Superiority really need?

“Orders?” Alanik asked.

“Time,” I said. “Fly evasives, protect Suki, and buy ourselves time.”

“Copy!” Sadie said, and she and Gilaf began a dance of evasive maneuvers, taking potshots at the enemy ships to keep them engaged. Alanik followed on my tail, just behind Orator’s fin, ready to protect us if we got into trouble.

I leveled out, not getting any closer to the surface of the planet. We didn’t really know what was down there. The Superiority records indicated these people weren’t spacefaring, but clearly not everything here was as it seemed, and I couldn’t guarantee they didn’t have some kind of antiaircraft weaponry that might blow us out of the sky. We cut through the atmosphere, now thick around us, the wind resistance dragging on what was left of Orator.

“Suki, how are you doing?” I asked.

“I am ready for rescue anytime, flightleader!”

Stars, weren’t we all.

An enemy ship accelerated on my right, launching fire at Alanik, but Sadie cut in front of it, taking a hit or two to her shield, but kiting it away again.

“Bob says we are a go to jump!” Alanik said.

“Go!” Naga chimed in. “Jump!”

“Not yet,” I said to her. “Everyone connect!” I shouted over the radio.