“As good as they’ll be,” she said. “I will not throw the switch until we’re in, because it will not last long.”
Hopefully it would last long enough. We had to lose the pursuit, and then drive hard for Givnia. And we needed a plan for once we got there.
Which we did not have yet.
One thing at a time.Stardrifterrocked when a blast narrowly missed her. With the state of her shields, a direct hit could be catastrophic.
And this lot didn’t seem interested in taking prisoners.
She shook, but this time it was Xandros and Rhodes firing back. I concentrated on keeping the ship on an unpredictable course, and winced at the number of phaser bolts that shot past us.
Then there was an explosion from our port side.
“Good shot, bro,” Xandros called.
“One coming your way,” Rhodes stated.
The ship shuddered, and Xandros cheered.
“These imbeciles are typical Nirzks. More determined than skilled,” Rhodes growled.
I glanced at the navcube, which had finally decided that the pursuers were less than friendly. The one closest was now a red dot, while three more yellow ones closed in on us.
“Three more coming in,” I told them, and gave the coordinates.
“Get us to that nebula,” Rhodes snapped.
“Just thought I’d go shopping,” I muttered.
I didn’t realize I’d spoken aloud until Xandros snorted a laugh. Right before he started firing at our other pursuer.
But the nebula was just ahead, now. I pushed hard on the throttles as I barrelrolled theStardrifter.Phaser bolts lit up the space around us.
“Shaftz, Xandros, what are you waiting for?” Rhodes complained.
Another explosion off our starboard side.
“What is it the humans say?” Xandros stated. “Bullseye!”
“Or nailed it. Knocked it out of the park. Crushed it. Smashed it,” I offered, keeping one eye on the approaching yellow dots.
“What park?” Rhodes asked.
“It’s just a phrase,” I said as theStardrifterentered the nebula.
The gases and debris swirled around the ship, lit with spectacular color by the nearby sun. The navcube immediately went to static mode as it lost signal from the sensors. “Bring the shield online,” I told Yani.
“Got it,” she said.
“Did you nail it out of the park?” Xandros asked.
“You either nailed it, or knocked it out of the park,” Rhodes corrected. He clearly had been paying attention. He’d also left the gun port, as he was now slipping into the navigation seat.
“Hey. You left me all alone out here,” protested Xandros.
“We need to navigate this nebula,” Rhodes said. “Stay there in case those others get close.”
I heard muttering in Drakonian, but couldn’t understand all of what the big Drake was saying. Something about wanting someone all to himself, I thought.
