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“I will not let you get us both killed over that woman,” he snarled, striking out at me over and over.
There was nothing I could do to dodge his attacks in such close quarters, but I knew that if I allowed him to keep going, the pain would overwhelm me. I had to do something.
Releasing my grip on the yoke, I snapped my arm back, striking Herod in the face. I heard the sickening crack of his nose breaking under the impact of my elbow, and the gurgled scream of rage that escaped him, but that only renewed his efforts to wrest control from me. I stepped sideways and faced him, aiming another strike of my palm at his temple and watching his eyes flutter weakly.
At the moment, I was simultaneously triumphant and disgusted with myself. This was my brother, and I was prepared to drop him into unconsciousness if he would not comply. And for what? A woman who had already told me she would be better off without me? I was questioning my sanity. Perhaps I was not fit to lead any longer.
Our ship rocked to one side, and I lost my balance. I shouldn’t have let go of the controls. Now we were falling back into the Orb’s atmosphere, and I had to fight to keep from plummeting straight toward the ground. Just behind my shoulder, Herod was struggling to stay awake, pulling in labored breaths through his bloodied nose and mouth.
With few options at my disposal, I used one arm to shove Herod out of the seat, letting him drop to the floor with an ungodly thud. I winced at the sound but hopped into his seat and focused all my energy on pulling our ship up to slow our descent. Even if I could keep us from falling out of the sky, we were going to sail over Tayla’s camp in minutes if I couldn’t get the ship under my control enough to make a targeted approach.
Every second mattered, and as the dust settled down below, I could see the mass of soldiers gathering around Tayla’s shuttle. I imagined her huddled inside, scared and helpless, and there was nothing I could do.
The ship bucked again, and I fought back, but I watched them closing in on her. I lost her. There was no hope.
