Page 79 of Rogue Starfighter

“You are too small for this,” I said.

“You are too big for everything. Move your right foot.”

I obeyed. We reached the docking collar as the Wraith’s air warning became continuous. The air warning flashed again.

“Dramatic to the end,” Priya muttered.

The ship shook. Alex’s voice came through her suit comm. “Priya, three Scythes broke past Kass. Ninety seconds.”

“I need two minutes.”

“You have one.”

"Shit." Priya pulled me through the docking collar into the second scout. She sealed the hatch, released the magnetic lines, and lowered me into the copilot seat. “Harness.”

Using my one functioning arm, I locked the harness in place as she stripped off her helmet and threw herself into the pilot’s seat. She released the Wraith and fired the engines. The scout accelerated so hard the harness crushed air from my lungs. Behind us, the Wraith drifted back into the debris field. My ship. Tavik’s ship. The craft that had carried me through six years of war and finally brought Priya to me. I watched her disappear.

“Goodbye, beautiful,” I said.

Priya heard me. “She saved our lives. She was a good ship.”

“The best.”

Threat alarms lit the new cockpit.

“Can you monitor sensors?” Priya asked.

“Yes.”

“Can you do it without passing out?”

“Probably.” I activated the tactical display with my right hand. Three Scythes entered the debris field behind us. Farther out, the Velerion wing fought to keep the area around the Gate clear.

“First contact high and closing,” I said. “Second moving to your left. Third is holding back.”

“Smart one?”

“Always watch the one who waits.”

Priya rolled beneath the first burst of fire. The scout was undamaged, fast, and responsive. She flew it like she had spent years in the cockpit.

“The jamming cone is thirty degrees starboard,” I said. “Move now.”

She moved before I finished. The enemy’s sensor locks vanished.

Kass’s ship crossed behind our stern and fired two missiles. One Scythe vanished. The second broke away. The smart enemy continued following at a distance, firing into our path. Priya dove beneath the shots and turned for the Gate.

“I like your friends,” I said.

“They came for you.”

“They came for you.”

“Same thing now.”

Her words struck deeper than any weapon. The Gate opened ahead. Alex and Jamie tore through the center of the enemy fighters who were desperately trying to block our escape. Lily and Darius held the left edge in their Titans while Kass cleared our right. Mia’s jamming turned the enemy formation into chaos. They had cleared a path for us. Priya saw it.

She pushed the scout to full power. Two Scythe interceptors crossed in front of us.