bottom, so it’s likely our best opportunity.”
“And then what?” Drever asked. “That door’s gonna be sealed tight as fuck.”
“We can activate the Knex Drive,” Ret suggested. “As long as we kill it before we enter hyperspace, it should give us enough speed to smash through. Our ship will be fucked, but we can worry about an escape afterward. Maybe one of the fleets can pick us up.”
Drever shook his head. “You think that fucking ship’s not going to have armor plating for the cargo hold?”
“I spent some time working on ships,” Sadhis said. “The weakest point of the door is the center. The larger the vessel, the bigger the area they have to cover with the hinges on the doors. Trust me, with a ship as big as the Baryon, we hit the center at a hundred and fifty percent speed, we’ll make it inside. Ret is right, there’s an eighty percent chance we won’t make it back out, but it would work.”
Seraph nodded. “Alright, if that’s the best shot we’ve got, we have to do it.”
“There’s one more issue,” Sadhis said. He turned to Diam and Lylo. “Where is Lahen? Has he left the Chamber to join the rest of the seythra?”
Lylo sighed. “We don’t know. He disappeared this morning on Vidron. Diam caught a glimpse of him, even called after him, but he left.”
Diam nodded. “He got off Vidron as quickly as he could. He wasn’t gunning anyone down. But he was in a hurry to go somewhere.”
“He could be leading seythra here right now to kill you both,” Seraph said. “I think you need to get out of here. You can’t come with us, though. It’s far too dangerous trying to board the Baryon with soldiers, let alone with the Confederate Chamber.”
Ret leaned forward. “Do you have any idea why this is happening? What the seythra are trying to do? The Chamber must know something.”
“Unfortunately, we know nothing more than you do,” Lylo said. “The seythra were a very private race. They were here long before most of us; we always respected their privacy. That may have been our ultimate mistake, looking back.”
Diam turned to Seraph. “To answer you, Seraph, there’s not much hope for us one way or another. We go with you, we’re in imminent danger, but the same holds true if we stay here. It’s best if we split up. These last few days have been hell. There’s very little left we have control over, except for a few scattered military forces. Most of the major government officials are lying on Vidron, massacred. I will come with you and your crew to assist the best I can, though I place all command between you and Lieutenant Loxai.”
“You’re going to get killed, old man,” Drever said. He turned to the group. “You’re making a mistake.”
“I’ll probably die if I choose to remain,” Diam said. “I trust Lylo to run things from here. I know she can handle it. And I may be old, but I can still operate a gun. If I kill even one seythra, then I’ve done my part in helping you and all of our people.”
Drever chuckled. “This is why I’m the only sane one left. All of you sticking your goddamn necks out, knowing they’re going to get cut off. Someone remind me again why, for fuck’s sake, we’re not utilizing this place? We have shields. There’s rations here. Guns. The doorway will make it easy to kill anyone who tries to get in. We could survive here until either the food or ammo runs out. That fuckin’ stairwell, and the switching door? They would limit our opposition to no foreseeable end. This is the place equipped to protect the most important people in the galaxy and we’re leaving?”
Diam came face to face with Drever.
“You truly do not know what it means to be othal. We are a people of peace, diplomacy, tranquility. But when our hand is forced, we act. We care for others. We lend a hand to our fallen brother; we do not leave him in the darkness. If even an ounce of you is othal, you must understand this. Everything we know, everyone we
“And then what?” Drever asked. “That door’s gonna be sealed tight as fuck.”
“We can activate the Knex Drive,” Ret suggested. “As long as we kill it before we enter hyperspace, it should give us enough speed to smash through. Our ship will be fucked, but we can worry about an escape afterward. Maybe one of the fleets can pick us up.”
Drever shook his head. “You think that fucking ship’s not going to have armor plating for the cargo hold?”
“I spent some time working on ships,” Sadhis said. “The weakest point of the door is the center. The larger the vessel, the bigger the area they have to cover with the hinges on the doors. Trust me, with a ship as big as the Baryon, we hit the center at a hundred and fifty percent speed, we’ll make it inside. Ret is right, there’s an eighty percent chance we won’t make it back out, but it would work.”
Seraph nodded. “Alright, if that’s the best shot we’ve got, we have to do it.”
“There’s one more issue,” Sadhis said. He turned to Diam and Lylo. “Where is Lahen? Has he left the Chamber to join the rest of the seythra?”
Lylo sighed. “We don’t know. He disappeared this morning on Vidron. Diam caught a glimpse of him, even called after him, but he left.”
Diam nodded. “He got off Vidron as quickly as he could. He wasn’t gunning anyone down. But he was in a hurry to go somewhere.”
“He could be leading seythra here right now to kill you both,” Seraph said. “I think you need to get out of here. You can’t come with us, though. It’s far too dangerous trying to board the Baryon with soldiers, let alone with the Confederate Chamber.”
Ret leaned forward. “Do you have any idea why this is happening? What the seythra are trying to do? The Chamber must know something.”
“Unfortunately, we know nothing more than you do,” Lylo said. “The seythra were a very private race. They were here long before most of us; we always respected their privacy. That may have been our ultimate mistake, looking back.”
Diam turned to Seraph. “To answer you, Seraph, there’s not much hope for us one way or another. We go with you, we’re in imminent danger, but the same holds true if we stay here. It’s best if we split up. These last few days have been hell. There’s very little left we have control over, except for a few scattered military forces. Most of the major government officials are lying on Vidron, massacred. I will come with you and your crew to assist the best I can, though I place all command between you and Lieutenant Loxai.”
“You’re going to get killed, old man,” Drever said. He turned to the group. “You’re making a mistake.”
“I’ll probably die if I choose to remain,” Diam said. “I trust Lylo to run things from here. I know she can handle it. And I may be old, but I can still operate a gun. If I kill even one seythra, then I’ve done my part in helping you and all of our people.”
Drever chuckled. “This is why I’m the only sane one left. All of you sticking your goddamn necks out, knowing they’re going to get cut off. Someone remind me again why, for fuck’s sake, we’re not utilizing this place? We have shields. There’s rations here. Guns. The doorway will make it easy to kill anyone who tries to get in. We could survive here until either the food or ammo runs out. That fuckin’ stairwell, and the switching door? They would limit our opposition to no foreseeable end. This is the place equipped to protect the most important people in the galaxy and we’re leaving?”
Diam came face to face with Drever.
“You truly do not know what it means to be othal. We are a people of peace, diplomacy, tranquility. But when our hand is forced, we act. We care for others. We lend a hand to our fallen brother; we do not leave him in the darkness. If even an ounce of you is othal, you must understand this. Everything we know, everyone we
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