Free Starbounders by Adam Jay Epstein Page A

countdown had reached two minutes. The planet was way too close to the window. And Skold was head deep in the machinery of the ship.
    â€œThe IPDL is making it harder to hot-wire these things,” he said. “All it used to take was a pair of pliers.”
    Skold reached for the voltage slingshot resting in Wilcox’s limp hand and aimed it at the inside of the dreadnought’s equipment panel.
    â€œAre you crazy?” Kaylee asked. “You’re going to kill us all!”
    â€œWe’re already dead,” Skold replied.
    He fired off a blast, frying the panel. The cartograph disappeared, along with all the other readings on the flight-deck window. But Skold’s plan worked, because the ship shifted directions, its engines pushing it out of the gravitational pull of Pele 9.
    â€œYou did it!” Ryic said. “We aren’t going to crash.”
    â€œNot into that planet,” Skold said. “But I can’t make any guarantees about that one.” He pointed to a dusty, yellow-tinged planet with storm clouds moving across its surface.
    Apparently, the electric surge had rebooted the starbox.
    The flight-deck window became functional again, showing a warning that read, MIE WITH SIROCCO IMMINENT. MIE COUNTDOWN, 00:01:05 .
    â€œEverybody, brace for impact,” Skold shouted.
    The dreadnought rocketed into the highest band of Sirocco’s atmosphere, juddering the interior like a wooden roller coaster.
    â€œCome close,” Ryic said to Zachary and Kaylee.
    They gathered beside him and he stretched out his arms and torso to create a protective barrier around them. The last thing Zachary could see before Ryic covered his view completely was the ship plunging into a golden cloud. Zachary’s teeth were shaking so violently that he feared they’d rattle right out of his head. His face was just inches away from Kaylee’s. He could hear her heavy breath in his ear and then felt her fingers wrap around his, clutching them tightly.
    â€œDon’t worry,” Zachary tried to reassure her. “We’re going to be okay.”
    Suddenly the turbulence went away and the sensation of gravity returned. Everything was quiet for a moment, as if maybe they had made it out unscathed. And then came the impact.
    Zachary and Kaylee, still within Ryic’s protective shell, were thrown forward, slamming hard into something. The force of the collision broke Ryic’s hold. Zachary’s arm was stabbed by the sharpened edge of a broken object as he tumbled to the ground. Opening his eyes to get his bearings, he saw a crimson stain soaking through the sleeve of his jumpsuit. The sight of his own blood immediately sent a flush of pain shooting through his arm.
    The entire flight-deck window was buried in the sand. Ryic and Kaylee were on the floor nearby, seemingly unhurt. Kur’tuo was clinging to the wall, having dug his arm blades into the metal surface.
    Skold was lying on the ground, with a piece of the metal equipment panel piercing his side like a spear. Zachary rose to his knees and was about to stand when Kur’tuo dropped from the wall and stepped between Zachary and Skold. He gave Zachary a look as if to remind him how easy he would be to kill if he decided to get bold.
    Skold pulled the shard of debris from his body, leaving a large hole that went straight into his center. Still kneeling, Zachary could see plastic and metal beyond the layer of phony flesh. And beyond that, inside a glass case, was something living. All Zachary could make out was a webbed foot and a tail. The crosshairs of his lensicon zeroed in on the creature, but before he could blink twice, Skold grabbed the jacket off Wilcox’s chair and slipped it on, covering the hole.
    â€œYou three,” he said to Zachary, Kaylee, and Ryic. “Up.”
    They slowly got to their feet. Zachary immediately felt off-balance. He realized that the ship was nearly vertical. The only way to get out of