Free Starseers: Fallen Empire, Book 3 by Lindsay Buroker

surplus auction perched on the end of the dock. Apparently, the inhabitants did not use only their minds to defend themselves if someone got through the mists. There were also some small combat ships that Alisa wasn’t familiar with, having hulls the bluish-white of the sea of ice far below. All in all, it was not a huge force, but she could imagine it being sufficient when combined with their mental powers. She wondered how many of the ships that had disappeared over the centuries had actually been shot down.
    “Dock there,” Abelardus said, pointing to the landing facility.
    As they drew closer, Alisa noticed sophisticated automated artillery weapons along the walls. For people who wandered around the system in robes and sandals, they had some fancy tech here.
    She glanced at her comm as she piloted them toward the pier Abelardus indicated, expecting someone to more officially give her permission to land—or not. But maybe the Starseers were chatting back and forth in each other’s heads, and the ones inside already knew all about the Nomad’s arrival.
    With Abelardus and Leonidas watching on, Alisa was glad she piloted them onto the pier smoothly. Gravity had challenges that open space did not, and her freighter was anything but aerodynamic and maneuverable. They settled in with a soft thump, open air visible on the cameras to either side. She had no idea what held the floating temple in place. She hadn’t seen any thrusters or typical signs of hover technology under the structure.
    “Let’s go,” Abelardus said, striding away from Leonidas and toward the cargo hold and the exit. “Bring your artifact, Dominguez,” she heard him say from the walkway. “My people will want to see it.”
    “He may rethink bringing it here,” Leonidas said quietly.
    “Because it’s theirs, and they may want it back?”
    “If I’m right about its origins, it’s been centuries since it was in their hands, but possibly, yes.”
    Alisa unfastened her harness and stood, though she took a few minutes to lock down her controls so nobody else could fly the ship. Maybe it didn’t matter when these people could think the power on and off, but there was no reason to make it easy for someone to steal the Nomad —or tinker with her.
    “I’m going to grab a few more weapons from my quarters,” Leonidas said. “Wait for me before following the Starseer.”
    “More?” Alisa eyed the rifle slung over his shoulder, the blazer pistols at his hips, and she knew he had a lot more weapons built into his combat armor. He had removed his helmet since returning from the White Dragon ship, but he still wore everything else.
    “More,” he said firmly, and strode toward his cabin.
    Alisa finished locking down the ship, taking a moment to touch the stuffed spider hanging over the co-pilot’s seat. Her mother had always touched it for luck before takeoff and landing. Alisa had found that silly and superstitious, but she touched it now and thought about how Jelena had never seen it. Once, Alisa had resented the freighter and never expected to see it again. Somehow, the last couple of months had changed her perspective, and she hoped that she got a chance to share it with Jelena. The ship and the spider. Assuming a Starseer in training wasn’t too sophisticated for stuffed toys. Her musings turned uncomfortable as she imagined Jelena speaking into her mind, and maybe even reading her thoughts, the way Abelardus had.
    “Alisa?” Leonidas asked from the corridor, his voice muffled slightly by the helmet that he once again wore. Whatever he expected from the temple, it wasn’t someone greeting him with open arms.
    Alisa strode out to join him. She had Starseers to question. This was not the time to delay.
    “Nice grenade launcher,” she said, noting the largest of the weapons he had added to his panoply. “If they don’t tell me where they took my daughter, maybe you can blow up one of their pretty spired towers.”
    Leonidas’s eyebrows