Page 42 of Collision!
His rattled brain took another moment to orient to the rapid rotation before he could tap the auto-stabilizer.His suit reported a partial malfunction in the booster with one thruster offline.Along with his shoulder, probably.
Gritting his teeth, he slowed the roll and yaw.He needed to grab the tether as he swung past it.Not with his numb hand though.
“Mariah, I’ve lost—”
The icy glint of a meteoroid flared in the light of the ship’s mask a heartbeat before it slammed into him.
Chapter 13
It wasn’t a dream.
It was a nightmare.
Mariah was running down a darkened hallway, fleeing shadows.
No… Runningtowardthe shadow.She had to reach it before—
Her head jerked up, and she winced.Massaging the stiffness in her neck, she leaned forward to check the monitor over Suvan’s bed.All the readings were…nominal.
She’d never said that word before today and she didn’t like it.She didn’t want nominal; she wanted the unwavering focus of his cracked quartz eyes, his lack of pretenseandhis pretending not to be funny.She wanted the magical mystery of his touch, soft and spiky and everything.
She wanted him to wake up so she could tell him all that.
Gently, she touched his cheek.The tiny, satiny scales felt too cool, so she raised the ambient temperature a few degrees.
“Wake up,” she whispered.
Instead, a quiet chime at the stateroom door announced Felicity.After quickly wiping her eyes, Mariah let the cruise director through.
Felicity deposited a carton on the kitchenette counter before settling in the chair on the other side of the bed.“How’s he doing?”
“No change.”Mariah slumped back in her seat.“Fahrol said the med bay was able to do the tests and treatments he would’ve suggested.I’m glad we have a physician aboard, but now we need to wait.”She pressed the heel of one hand between her eyes to slow the seep of tears.“We’re flying around galaxies in a spaceship, but they still haven’t found a way to heal a concussion?”
It had been worse than that.She’d never forget the sound he’d made when the chunk of asteroid hit him.
Or her own scream.Or the gurgle of dark plum blood that had seeped from his battered suit as Griiek’s frantic wielding of the mechanical arm reeled in his floating body.
But he wasn’t dead.
Although he wasn’t waking up either.
“Be patient,” Felicity said.“Our chief engineer is tough and stubborn.And he’d never leave his engines.”
But hehadleft, because he had to, for all of them.
Sucking in a slow breath, Mariah settled her fingertips on his bandaged shoulder.“Is the ghostform holding?He’d want to know.”
“It’s exactly what we needed,” Felicity said.“That pursuing ship backed off immediately—too fast for Delphine to get more than a cursory scan—when Ellix accelerated out of the asteroids straight at them.Chief, you’ll love the replay.”She chuckled, although the sound was strained.“They obviously had no idea what kind of monstrous space demon we were, and they weren’t sticking around long enough to find out.Thanks to you.”
She gave Mariah a watery smile.“Oh, and also, Chief, you should know, Ellix and a couple of the passengers with engineering-adjacent backgrounds including Anoushka are reviewing your notes on increasing our speed based on the resonark’s harmonic resonance when it first hijacked us.Um, if there’s anything else you want us to know so we don’t break your engines zooming around the Zarnax Zone, please wake up.”
When the cruise director pushed to her feet, her feelings button wavered between muted pastels.“So we’re back on course for that null cloud, but we really do need you with us, Chief.”
Then she gave Mariah a steadier look.“I left some things for you on the counter, but whatever else you need, message me.Fahrol will be by later too.”
Mariah nodded, her throat tight.“I don’t think Suvan voted.To continue or not.I think he didn’t care beyond being with his engines.And now…this.”
Felicity shook her head.“I think he cares very much.Ask him when he wakes up.”
