Page 152 of The First Spark
He nodded.
For Aunt Calida and Marcus, for Lexie and Ariah, for her family on Etov, for her people, slaughtered and oppressed—for all the innocents trampled under the Federation’s power, their fleet would fall today.
Tremors racked Kalie’s body as she roared, “Fire!”
Hundreds of cannons unleashed upon the shadowy Federation fleet, and the floor rumbled beneath Kalie’s boots. Orange plumes burst along the flanks of the Aquisian ships. Shrapnel exploded from a Federation corvette, and her knuckles turned white on the railing. Deadly arcs of light painted the darkness, like a red storm on a black canvas. She couldn’t blink if she tried; her eyes were stuck to Carik’s fleet. No forgiveness. No mercy.
Then the Dalian ships opened fire.
Their lasers pummeled the forcefield rippling before the viewport, and Kalie reeled back, her mouth flapping wordlessly.
Julian. She could barely think, barely breathe.
It was her coronation all over again.
Voices surged behind her as officers barked orders and demands, but blood thumped in her ears, drowning them out. The temperature seemed to rise twenty degrees. As she wiped sweat from her face and turned, the bridge was in chaos. Runners bolted from one station to another. Mira and Zane were roaring at a tech. Two bridge officers shouted at Nadar.
Kalie’s stomach shriveled, but now was not the time to panic. “We stick to the plan!”
The techs kept working at their stations, but the officers faced her. She steeled her spine and drew herself up to full height. Her heart raced, but she managed to keep her voice steady.
“Target Dalian offensive capabilities only. Destroy their cannonsand their thrusters, but leave their oxygen tanks and life support systems intact.”
“Your Majesty,” protested the weapons officer, “they’re aiming to destroy?—”
“But they’re my people,” Kalie snapped, narrowing her eyes. “Use all force against the Federation, but aim to neutralize the Dalians, not destroy them. Are you still with me, Senator Nadar?”
Nadar rubbed his scaled forehead. “Yes, Princessa. Officers, follow the contingency protocol. The objective is to disable their offensive equipment and minimize the loss of Dalian lives. Understood?”
The officers nodded and barked orders at their techs.
Pressing her lips together, Kalie gave him a curt nod of gratitude. “Officer Lantis, patch me through to theHalle.”
“Your Majesty?”
She stared at the looming Alexandrian flagship, as if she could see through its thick metal hull and shatter-proof viewports, into the bridge where Julian undoubtedly stood—as if her gaze could cross the abyss between them, and meet the brown eyes she’d once drowned in.
“Open a transmission. I need to talk to them.”
Orders echoed down the length of the catwalk, and a camera drone circled around to face her. Clutching her wrists behind her back, Kalie stared into its shiny black lens. Sweat streaked down her face, leaving salty droplets on her lips.
“They didn’t accept the transmission!”
Kalie’s chest tightened. After everything they’d shared, after a decade of friendship and love… Julian would not fight for her.
Breathe.
She sucked in a hitching breath that smelled of metal and iron. “We stick to the plan,” she repeated, setting her jaw. She would do everything to avoid harming Julian and his crew, but they could not be allowed to continue fighting.
“Approval to deploy warplanes, Princessa?”
Kalie didn’t turn away from the viewport. “Target cannons and thrusters only.”
An army of warplanes shot from the hulls of Nadar’s destroyers.Blasts discharged from their cannons, racing towards the armada blockading Dali.
Kalie tapped her fingers against her wrist.
Julian had made his decision.
