Star Runners: Mission Wraith (#3) (44 page)

“Knight Leader, Knight Four,” she said.
 

“Copy.”

“You see the ARC?” she asked, staring at the distant ARC. “It’s trying to go around us.”

Braddock hissed. “You’re right. Veer off and do what you can.”

Ryker broke off from the engagement. She checked over her shoulder twice, saw nothing in pursuit. Setting up her Trident at a perpendicular angle to the
Dauntless
and its trajectory to the
Wraith
, she stabilized her power distribution by shifting a bit more power to the engines.
 

The
Wraith
banked away from the ARC, heading for deep space as Austin prepped the Lutimite Drive. He suddenly disappeared, activating the shroud. In another minute, he’d be out of here and safe.
 

As if the ARC heard her thoughts, a flurry of missiles launched from the bow of the Zahlian ship. With her sensors down, she couldn’t verify the type of missiles the
Dauntless
had fired. She didn’t need to, however.
 

The ARC had given up trying to capture Austin. They were trying to kill him. The six missiles in bound to his position had to heat seekers—the
Wraith’s
only theoretical weakness.
 

“Knight Leader, Knight Four, we have a problem. Six heat seekers bearing down on the prize.”

“Do what you can, Knight Four!” Braddock yelled. “You’re the only one in position.”

Lowering her gaze, she flew towards the six missiles. She flexed her right hand, making fists and feeling her joints pop. The only way to catch a missile was to transfer all power to the engines and ignore her shields. Whatever energy remained in her lasers were all she’d have if she planned to catch the missiles. If that’s what she had to do to save Austin, well, that’s what she was going to do.
 

Her speed increased as the missiles closed on Austin. She flew on an intercept course, heading directly for the missiles from the side. Resting her crosshairs ahead of the lead missiles, she eased her finger back on the trigger. Laser bolts flashed, exploding the two lead missiles with her first shots. Two down, four to go.
 

She had a half dozen more shots in her energy banks, maybe more.
 

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw flashes of light coming from the ARC. Massive laser shots from the ARC’s heavy weaponry ignited the space around her Trident. She winced, expecting a hit that didn’t come.
 

She fired. The bolt shot over the next missile.
 

Take your time.
 

Holding her breath, she fired again. Two bolts soared toward the lead missile. One missed, flying directly in front of the missile. The second struck the nose, exploding the projectile and sending debris whirling away from the others.
 

She wiped the sweat from her eyes. Three more missiles.
 

The crosshairs rested just ahead of the next missile. Incoming fire struck her Trident’s shields just over her wing, sending her into a spin to the right. She fired, but the laser bolt missed high. Trying to right her course and stop the spin, Ryker eased left on the stick. She glanced at her sensors, saw her shield energy had dropped to thirty percent with the last hit. The laser energy was—

She froze, her heart stopping.
 

The HUD showed her laser energy banks holding in the yellow at four percent—one shot, maybe two.
 

She looked up, watched the lead missile changing course. It must have a bead on Austin, who had activated the shroud and remained invisible. The remaining three missiles followed their course.
 

No, she thought. No!

Lining up the crosshairs over the lead missile, she squeezed the trigger. Bolts unleashed scarlet light into the black of space. They soared together. If she could have willed them to strike more than one missile, she would have done so. She leaned forward, watching the bolts sparkle through space. The first bolt struck the lead missile in the warhead, destroying it instantly. The second bolt flashed through the explosion.
 

The two remaining missiles continued their course toward Austin. There was nothing left on board her Trident that could stop them except for …

Using the remaining power in her engines, she adjusted her course to intersect with the current path of the missiles. She buried the throttle, coaxing as much power from the engines as she could.
 

Come on, she thought, pressing her lips together. Move it!
 

The Trident passed in front of the pursuing missile. The fighter flipped forward as the missile struck the rear shields, spinning the craft around on its axis. Her helmet smacked the side of her cockpit. Her HUD flashed red, the shields gone. A shower of sparks erupted from her dashboard, igniting a small fire at her feet. For a brief moment, she saw the final missile coming for the nose of her Trident. She squeezed the trigger, hoping enough power remained in the energy banks for one last shot.
 

Nothing happened.
 

The missile closed, flashing in front of her canopy like a white streak of paint.
 

Maybe she could try activating the—

The explosion reflected on his canopy, the flash of light followed by the orange fireball filling the space behind him. The high-pitched wail of the heat seeking missiles had ceased. Lieutenant Austin Stone shook his head.
 

That wasn’t Ryker, he thought.
It couldn’t have been.
 

The Lutimite Drive circles counted down from three, two …

“No!” he yelled, searching behind him for the Trident he knew Ryker piloted. It was gone, vaporized into a cloud of debris. His hands trembled, his eyes searching the scene of destruction. He looked over both shoulders, panic invading his body. “No.”
 

He pulled back on the Lutimite Drive lever, halting the countdown. Turning the
Wraith
around, he surveyed the area. With his sensors disabled because of the disruptor, he peered through the cloud of missile and spacecraft debris. The remains of a Trident spun away from the area. The detached wings spiraled into deep space. The Trident’s nose tumbled toward the moon he had just left.

It had been Ryker’s Trident. He was sure it was her voice he heard over the gamma wave. She had sacrificed herself for him, throwing her Trident in the path of the missiles. He had no idea how many hit her. He shook his head. Ryker must have fired off an escape pod—she had to have! He glanced at the sensors and saw the scrambled screen of green static.
 

“No!” he yelled, the image of Ryker’s face flashing in his mind. He punched the side of his cockpit. “No! Not her! Not now!”
 

He floated in space for a moment, powering down the Lutimite Drive. Lifting his visor, he touched his face with his gloved hand. Even though every reasonable thought in his mind knew it would be impossible to locate an escape pod without operational sensors if it were out there, he peered into space.
 

“Where are you, Ryker?” he whispered. The reality fell over him, filling him with dread. His chin trembled. He sniveled, inhaled sharply and swallowed his emotions. He gripped the stick so hard he thought it might snap. He fought back the lump forming in his throat.

Ryker. Why? Why did you do that?
 

In the distance, the
Dauntless
changed course. It broke off the pursuit, heading away from the battle. The Interceptors detached from the dogfight with the Tridents, some dropping countermeasures and twirling away from their engagements. Others in pursuit of the Tridents broke off their attack, looping away from the fight. Forcing thoughts of Ryker from his mind, Austin watched the events unfold in front of him as he floated far from the battle in the midst of still crackling space debris.
 

Why would the Interceptors be leaving? It didn’t make any sense why they would withdraw from the middle of the battle. Even though he shrouded the
Wraith
, the
Dauntless
surely would have detected him making the FTL transition. The energy would have been picked up on a simple sensor sweep. But the disruptor might have blocked the readings, so did they think he had fled the scene? Had Regent Tulin given up the search for the
Wraith
? Or did he believe he had lost too many men in the battle?
 

No, he didn’t seem like the type of leader who would care about losing men.
 

Then why was the
Dauntless
collecting its Interceptors and fleeing the scene?

Austin frowned, wiping his face. A Trident stabilizer, blackened and charred from the explosion, tumbled into view, bouncing off his shields as he passed. He stared at it soaring over his canopy, finding it hard to believe the piece of metal had once been part of a Trident … Ryker’s Trident. He clenched his teeth, squinting at the stabilizer as his vision blurred. He thought of the explosion, the sudden flash of light. Could he have done more? Should he have intervened like he did down on the moon when he saved Towers and his
Serpents
? The missile impact happened before he could react, and Austin had been focused on his navigation computer when Ryker’s ship exploded.
 

Wait a minute, he thought. The explosion. There had been two explosions, both striking her Trident. Two different explosions.

With his sensors down, he didn’t know how many missiles the
Dauntless
had fired on him. Ryker had destroyed several missiles. He knew that much. But an exploded spacecraft produced space debris. Since the system-wide disruptor had been fired and nobody had fully functioning sensors, was it possible the
Dauntless
had assumed one of the explosions had been the fleeing
Wraith
? Is that why the ARC was recalling its Interceptors and fleeing?
 

“Knight Leader, Lone Wolf,” Austin said, ignoring the sinking feeling creeping into his soul and slapping his visor down over his face, “do you copy?”

“What are you still doing here?” Major Ty Braddock asked, his voice full of venom. “Get out while you can! That is an order!”

Austin thought for a moment, the plan forming in his mind. If Tulin escapes, he would continue his efforts to spark a full-fledged war between the Zahl Empire and Legion. As long as Tulin lived, the threat to peace would continue. Tulin hadn’t been on Earth during the Battle of Atlantis, so there was nothing any Star Runner could have done that day. The Tyral Pirate threat had been eradicated, but they were just Tulin’s pawns. He would find more if he escaped. But now, he was right in front of Austin on board the
Dauntless
. And Austin was in the cockpit of the most advanced fighter in the galaxy—a fighter Tulin thought he had just destroyed.
 

“Knight Leader, we need to attack,” Austin said.

“Attack?” Braddock asked, his temper rising. “The ARC? We are battered here, Lone Wolf. Our mission is to get you out, and that’s what we’re going to do. Look out there—the ARC’s leaving!”

“I know. Think about it, sir. If he leaves, this will just go on and on.” Austin leaned forward in the cockpit. “We have a chance to cut the head off the snake and preserve peace. All those Star Runners who have died leading up to this moment, all those who have died today, we owe this to them, sir.”

Braddock paused. “What did you have in mind?”

“Lone Wolf,” Skylar cut through the gamma wave. “What do you think you’re doing? This is suicide!”

“Can it, Knight Eight!” Braddock barked. “Proceed, Lone Wolf. Make it fast.”

Austin smiled. “They think I’m dead, sir. I’m going to use that to our advantage, but we need to hurry. Form up at point six-oh-five at twenty-thousand MUs from the target.”

Braddock grumbled. “Knights, form up at those coordinates.”

Austin watched the five remaining Tridents moving into attack formation. The two Corvo missile boats stayed at the rear.
 

“Knight Leader,” Austin said, “we need the Archers.”