The Disappeared: A Space Opera Adventure Series (The New Dawn Book 1) by Valerie J Mikles

Author:Valerie J Mikles [Mikles, Valerie J]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Valerie J. Mikles
Published: 2017-09-07T22:00:00+00:00

22

“Captain to the bridge,” Corey shouted into the Vring as every panel in front of her came to life. She didn’t even know the lights still worked on half of them until they came on. As soon as she shut one down, another started up. They’d been coasting on course, and suddenly the port thruster had engaged. It lasted only a second before cutting off. The engine, atmosphere, water, electricity, and five other systems were threatening imminent failure. There had to be some karmic balance at work—finding evidence of her bounty, realizing her connection to the Captain, the temptation of betrayal, and now this.

“Steady our course,” Danny ordered, gripping the handholds to keep from being tossed like a rock in a tumbler as he made his way to the captain’s chair.

“Working on it,” she said through gritted teeth, fighting the yoke for control. Every time she thought she had it, there was another burst of thrust. “The port thruster keeps engaging. Compensating.”

“Escape pod released,” Nolwazi announced.

“I felt that!” Corey cried.

“It’s not a thruster. Saskia, we’re venting oxygen,” Danny said, his hands flying over the controls, handling the alarms so Corey was free to focus on flying. The starboard thrusters were responding sluggishly, the port not at all, and she couldn’t keep Aquia in view. The ship spun and accelerated. Her heart skipped a beat when Danny mentioned the oxygen tank. He kept unnervingly calm, considering their air supply was dwindling by the second.

“It’s O2-P6. I can’t seal it from here,” Saskia said over the radio.

“Command override A37,” Danny replied calmly.

A few seconds later, the force of the vent died, and Corey nearly sent them spinning in the opposite direction as she overcompensated.

“I need thrusters,” Corey said, trying to keep her voice as calm as her captain’s and failing. As the ship spiraled, Terrana swung into view, so she tried the port thrusters again, hoping to even out their course. No response. Adjusting the pitch with the dorsal engine, she rolled the ship and let the starboard thrusters do the work, nudging them about until they were directed toward Aquia. This was just like a simulation, only with more spinning and less warning.

“Saskia, damage report,” Danny said.

“I’ll have to go outside to be sure, but it seems we have a breech just over the port wing,” came the static-filled reply, nearly subsumed by the thrum of the engine.

“Nolwazi said we lost an escape pod,” Danny said.

“The hatch reads open. It looks like the pod is still attached,” Saskia replied. “Something probably hit us and nicked the fuel valve. I don’t know if that’s the same something that ruptured the oxygen tank, but the whole can is a loss.”

“The starboard thruster?” Corey prompted. Both of them were cool and unaffected. Corey knew this ship had some miles on it, but when Ivan had said it was a rust bucket, falling apart at the seams, she hadn’t expected this. She was locked in a death trap!

“I’ve sealed the port fuel line from here, but we’ll keep getting bursts from the thruster until the pipeline is clear.

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