in a prescription for a month on Betalla.”
Seaghdh’s eyebrows climbed and he grinned. “Betalla? Boy’s got good taste.”
“Betalla, where pleasure is an art,” Sindrivik said, his voice wistful. His gray eyes dancing with mirth. Or nerves? “From the conversation in the cargo bay, it sounds like you could learn a few things . . .”
“Mr. Sindrivik!” Ari cut him off, pleased by the iron ring of command in her tone. At least she hadn’t lost that. Apparently, during her incarceration and recovery, junior crewmen still hadn’t learned to trade successful jests with their officers. “We are currently on a collision course with a star. I invite you to contemplate whether you prefer being burned to a crisp or crushed by gravity. Both are possibilities unless I unlock the engine. You are relieved.”
The young man stared at her, his expression remote and chilly.
“You heard the captain,” Seaghdh said, his tone silky and dangerous. “Navigation. And Mr. Sindrivik, mind your manners.”
“Aye.” Sindrivik sounded grudging, but he shifted seats.
She strapped into piloting, aware from the quiver running through the ship that the gravity of Occaltus’s sun had them in its grip. They’d begun final approach. She checked her screens, unlocked the engines, and nudged the nose of the ship higher. “I need a line to Raj.”
“I haven’t started cutting cords, yet,” Seaghdh replied.
“Terrific. You’ll want to strap in. Solar storms in this system have one hell of a reach.”
“Sage advice.” He punched a button. “Secure all personnel. Doctor, your services are required on com.”
“Faraheed, here.”
“Initiating entry, Raj,” Ari said. “Shunting external readings to your location. I’m not happy with those particle levels. What do you think?”
“Particle density is too low. Take us deeper.”
“Acknowledged.”
The Sen Ekir bucked. Sindrivik swore and worked his panels feverishly. “You can’t do this. Your atmospherics aren’t even online. No way we’ll get out of the gravity well. Give me the ship,” he said. “Give me the ship!”
“I did not come up here to die, Mr. Sindrivik,” she replied.
“No! Just to kill us.”
CHAPTER 5
ARI didn’t bother answering. She saw what she wanted, an enormous storm system rearing up out of the solar furnace. The Sen Ekir shuddered, metal creaking. Then she glanced at the data Sindrivik was working on his panel, swiftly and adroitly patching relays around her station to lock her out of piloting. Swearing, she shut him down.
“What the . . . Captain!” he yelped. “I’m locked out!”
“Captain Seaghdh! Relieve your man. I need your steady hand at navigation,” Ari commanded.
Seaghdh heaved his young crewman out of the nav chair and shoved him down at geo-scan, the station Jayleia usually used to survey and map research sites. He growled something in the man’s ear. Busy with trying to keep the ship generally upright and fighting the high-level solar wind with all her strength, she couldn’t hear a word. Seaghdh dropped into the nav seat, pulling the restraint straps over his chest.
“Slingshot?” he asked, his expression tight with concentration.
She unlocked his station. “That’s the plan. I want to ride the rim of the cyclonic winds. Find them for me. Hull stress data, here. Shield loss calculations are critical.”
He nodded. “Heat gain and hull friction. I’ve got it. You’ve done this before?”
The ship jounced, rattling her teeth. “In a Prowler.”
“A Prowler ?”
“Particle levels rising on the hull,” Raj said. “Levels are adequate. Permission to cut radiation shields granted. Repeat, granted. Give me a count on your mark, Ari.”
“Negative, negative,” Seaghdh replied when solar wind shear grabbed the ship and flung it off course. The engine whined in protest. “Wait until we’re riding the beast.”
“Agreed,” Ari said.
Seaghdh teased the nav numbers into order, shunting them
Seaghdh’s eyebrows climbed and he grinned. “Betalla? Boy’s got good taste.”
“Betalla, where pleasure is an art,” Sindrivik said, his voice wistful. His gray eyes dancing with mirth. Or nerves? “From the conversation in the cargo bay, it sounds like you could learn a few things . . .”
“Mr. Sindrivik!” Ari cut him off, pleased by the iron ring of command in her tone. At least she hadn’t lost that. Apparently, during her incarceration and recovery, junior crewmen still hadn’t learned to trade successful jests with their officers. “We are currently on a collision course with a star. I invite you to contemplate whether you prefer being burned to a crisp or crushed by gravity. Both are possibilities unless I unlock the engine. You are relieved.”
The young man stared at her, his expression remote and chilly.
“You heard the captain,” Seaghdh said, his tone silky and dangerous. “Navigation. And Mr. Sindrivik, mind your manners.”
“Aye.” Sindrivik sounded grudging, but he shifted seats.
She strapped into piloting, aware from the quiver running through the ship that the gravity of Occaltus’s sun had them in its grip. They’d begun final approach. She checked her screens, unlocked the engines, and nudged the nose of the ship higher. “I need a line to Raj.”
“I haven’t started cutting cords, yet,” Seaghdh replied.
“Terrific. You’ll want to strap in. Solar storms in this system have one hell of a reach.”
“Sage advice.” He punched a button. “Secure all personnel. Doctor, your services are required on com.”
“Faraheed, here.”
“Initiating entry, Raj,” Ari said. “Shunting external readings to your location. I’m not happy with those particle levels. What do you think?”
“Particle density is too low. Take us deeper.”
“Acknowledged.”
The Sen Ekir bucked. Sindrivik swore and worked his panels feverishly. “You can’t do this. Your atmospherics aren’t even online. No way we’ll get out of the gravity well. Give me the ship,” he said. “Give me the ship!”
“I did not come up here to die, Mr. Sindrivik,” she replied.
“No! Just to kill us.”
CHAPTER 5
ARI didn’t bother answering. She saw what she wanted, an enormous storm system rearing up out of the solar furnace. The Sen Ekir shuddered, metal creaking. Then she glanced at the data Sindrivik was working on his panel, swiftly and adroitly patching relays around her station to lock her out of piloting. Swearing, she shut him down.
“What the . . . Captain!” he yelped. “I’m locked out!”
“Captain Seaghdh! Relieve your man. I need your steady hand at navigation,” Ari commanded.
Seaghdh heaved his young crewman out of the nav chair and shoved him down at geo-scan, the station Jayleia usually used to survey and map research sites. He growled something in the man’s ear. Busy with trying to keep the ship generally upright and fighting the high-level solar wind with all her strength, she couldn’t hear a word. Seaghdh dropped into the nav seat, pulling the restraint straps over his chest.
“Slingshot?” he asked, his expression tight with concentration.
She unlocked his station. “That’s the plan. I want to ride the rim of the cyclonic winds. Find them for me. Hull stress data, here. Shield loss calculations are critical.”
He nodded. “Heat gain and hull friction. I’ve got it. You’ve done this before?”
The ship jounced, rattling her teeth. “In a Prowler.”
“A Prowler ?”
“Particle levels rising on the hull,” Raj said. “Levels are adequate. Permission to cut radiation shields granted. Repeat, granted. Give me a count on your mark, Ari.”
“Negative, negative,” Seaghdh replied when solar wind shear grabbed the ship and flung it off course. The engine whined in protest. “Wait until we’re riding the beast.”
“Agreed,” Ari said.
Seaghdh teased the nav numbers into order, shunting them
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