Void Drifter 4 by J.N. Chaney & Jason Anspach

Author:J.N. Chaney & Jason Anspach [Chaney, J.N. & Anspach, Jason]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Variant Publications
Published: 2024-10-06T00:00:00+00:00

18

Fera made it to the crew station and immediately threw the Phaelon into a max climb, burning the thrusters hard to put us on an escape trajectory from Mars. We bypassed Earth’s moon in a matter of minutes.

I rolled idly along the deck at the coaxing of the inertial compensator.

“We’re in the clear,” Fera said with an audible sigh of relief. “I’m putting Luna between us and Mars, in case the Skwin-Jin get any ideas about sending ships after us specifically.”

Quin made a pfft sound. “That’s hardly likely, Fera. The space squids are scared to death that more of the humans are going to attack their incomplete infrastructure. Not to mention the damage that explosive did to their nerve clusters. They’re still dangerous and capable of defending themselves, but the likelihood of them engaging in offensive action at this juncture… they’ll need a few days to perform restorative surgery on those nerve clusters, at a minimum. No, they’re reeling from this. We have time for the proverbial other shoe to drop.”

“We’ll need it,” I sighed, removing my helmet and letting it roll across the deck.

I was covered in sweat. I moved my hair out of my face and lay there, just breathing.

We made it. We failed the mission, but we’re alive.

After fighting through the manufacturing depot, that was its own sort of victory.

After a long few minutes of catching my breath, I stowed the Drayth armor in the locker in the crew ready room of the Phaelon, pulled on some casual clothes, and returned to the crew station. The primary bridge display showed a comfortable backdrop of open space, with Earth large and dominant in the center.

Quin paused his pacing to acknowledge me. “Will.”

“Yeah,” I said, collapsing into the pilot’s chair with a heavy sigh.

“Congratulations on making it back in one piece. And with no casualties, despite our resident Drayth’s best efforts to get everyone killed and make a total mockery of your species’ capability to handle their own galactic business.”

“That did not go the way I wanted it to,” I said, agreeing with him. “I need to talk to Lockett before we return to Earth.”

Quin narrowed his eyes. “You think he messed up on purpose? That he sabotaged the mission? Because the thought crossed my highly evolved mind.”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. I hope not.”

“Certainly seems like it, doesn’t it?” Fera rotated her chair to face me. “In any case, it could have been worse. We didn’t take any casualties on our end.”

“A Vorvak caught a spike in the neck,” I pointed out. It was technically a casualty.

Quin shook his head. “That’s the sort of injury a Vorvak gives itself eating breakfast. Be thankful it used biogel instead of its natural cauterizing agent.”

I frowned. “Natural agent?”

Fera made a preemptive face of disgust, obviously already knowing what Quin was talking about.

The AI laughed. “Vorvak urine is highly caustic. It can be used to⁠—”

I held up my hands. “I get it. Enough said. Although, that is… kind of hardcore.”

“And disgusting,” Fera added.

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