Page 43 of Lhora
“Jorm.”
“Thanks for the loan, Jorm.” She gave him a quick smile.
The Vadris strode across the planks to get a better view. “Yanka, anything on the radar?”
“Nothing within range, Vadris.”
“Deppil?”
“Oh, yeah. I’m picking up a crob-ton of messages. And all of them sound mad.”
“Let me guess. Do any of them say how angry the Sarpi is at this moment because he’s lost the chance to have his big, showy execution?” Lon quipped.
The crewman snickered. “A few.”
“What else are you hearing?” Lhora inquired. “Are they sending any ships after us?”
Deppil’s hands raced over the board. “Yes. The, uhh, theArnisand theUripi.That’s as much as I’ve been able to make out. The airwaves are really plugged up right now. Everyone seems to be yelling at everyone else. There’s a lot of confusion.”
“You think?” Yanka cracked. “When was the last time an entire crew managed to escape the Sarpi’s dungeon and steal a frigate?”
“If we didn’t have the death penalty handed to us before, we certainly do now,” Pullid remarked.
“Vadris!” Yanka waved for the man’s attention. “Vessel approaching at six-one-one degrees.”
“Can you put it up on the screens?”
The bubble encasing the forecastle brightened. At the far outer edge, a small blue light blinked as it steadily drew closer to the yellow dot in the center that indicated theBeccan.
“It’s coming from the north,” Fobi stated the obvious.
“That…wouldn’t make sense,” Lhora added, and turned to Lon. “If any Coltrosstian ships were heading toward us, wouldn’t they be coming from the east? Or from an easterly direction?”
“Maybe it’s a warship guarding Coltrosstian airspace,” Pullid suggested.
“Yanka, any sign of the two ships launched to come after us?”
The man checked his screens. “No visible sign of them yet.”
“Lhora, could it be Beinight?”
She shrugged. “It’s possible.”
“Vadris! Receiving an incoming message!” Deppil’s face paled. “It’s from the Tra’Mell.”
“Tra’Mell?” Lhora repeated. “What are they doing on our northern borders?”
Lon leaped down the short flight of steps and hurried over to the comm. “Guess we’re about to find out. Deppil, open the channel.”
The man did as he was ordered, then silently nodded to let the Vadris know they were synced.
“This is theBeccanhailing unknown Tra’Mellian vessel! Please identify!”
Soft static filled the bridge. Lon tried again.
“I am Vadris Lon of the Coltrosstian frigateBeccan!You are encroaching upon Coltrosstian airspace! Identify yourself, or we will be forced to protect our borders!” Lon gestured to Fobi, silently signaling the man to send out the order to ready the cannons.
“Coltrosstian frigateBeccan,this is theBua Ca.Why are you threatening my ship?” The voice was grainy and stilted as the translator did its job.
