Jeffrey Carver - Eternity's End

We just lost our torpedo launchers, called a voice on the bridge.

And there was the Kyber Hunter , turning from Impris to loop back toward Phoenix .

Legroeder could not contain himself. Without even thinking about it, he amplified his voice and bellowed out into the Flux, HYUTU, YOU STUPID MURDERING BASTA-A-A-RD!

Jakus Bark’s blood was hot with fever, the fever of battle. The augments thrummed exhortation through his skull. The drumming that boomed through the net heightened his fever, and that of his fellow riggers. Most powerful of all, his own exultation bubbled up like a geyser of champagne, unstoppable. How long had he waited for this? How long to watch his ship belch fire and death? How long to watch KM/C triumph?

Jakus owed everything to Kilo-Mike/Carlotta. It was KM/C who had brought him from DeNoble, KM/C who beefed up his implants to make him a valued member of their forces… no longer a half-baked captive impressed into service, but a member of the force, who talked to the right people, and moved with the shakers and thinkers. KM/C had trusted him and put him to work undercover on Faber Eri; and when things had gone wrong there through no fault of his own, moved him right on to his next assignment. They’d put him where he belonged, in the net of a Kyber marauder. And now he had a chance to show his worth.

That Ivan interloper was hurt—it was obvious from the way she was maneuvering. Once the captain gave the word, they would put the final stake through its heart—but first they needed to complete this pass on the second ship that had come out. Find out who the hell it was.

A heartbeat later, Hyutu’s voice sounded through the net like a klaxon, and a curse: The ship is the snark. It’s Impris .

A murmur of dismay filled the net, led by Jakus. Their lure had been pulled out by Ivan!

We’ll find out how they did it later, Hyutu growled. Leave it here for now. Rigger Bark, bring us around to finish off that Ivan!

Jakus signaled his fellow riggers to come around for another attack dive. He heard a cry, echoing across the Flux—a shout of rage and defiance from the enemy. He grinned broadly at the outrage—and then, with astonishment, recognized the voice. It couldn’t be! Legroeder? Jakus gasped. Legroeder—here?

Stunned, he called to Hyutu, Captain! Captain, you aren’t going to believe this…

Right about now, Legroeder thought, they could have used some Free Kyber riggers in the net, to help them contend with these insane KM/C pirates. The net was straining with every maneuver. The Ivan riggers knew the ship better from a tactical standpoint, and knew the enemy, too. But there was no time to switch riggers. Palagren had Phoenix in the shape of a dashing, speeding fish, and they were fighting to make the ship live up to its image. But with the damage to their net slowing them down, Hunter had drawn inexorably closer, until their only means of evasion was to keep changing directions, twisting through clouds in hopes of shaking the enemy off.

Captain—any chance of getting a shot off soon? Legroeder called anxiously.

Launchers are still down, Glenswarg answered tightly. You’ve got to keep us out of their reach—or if you can’t do that, get us close enough for the neutrasers.

Legroeder acknowledged; they were spinning and turning, reaching the limits of what their net could do, but also forcing Hunter to maneuver tightly to follow. Ker’sell spotted an opening—and at his shout, they turned, and with several fast directional changes, shot perilously close to the enemy—exchanging neutraser fire as they flew past. Phoenix trembled, taking several hits; but it kept going. As the KM/C ship came around, Legroeder looked for damage, but saw little sign that their efforts against Hunter were having any effect.

He heard something—what was that?—his name echoing across the Flux: Rigger Legroeder… so good to see you again …

For a moment, Legroeder was speechless. It was Hyutu… calling out across the Flux to gloat. Legroeder bit his tongue to keep silent. Keep silent. But he couldn’t. Hyutu, you bloodsucking traitor!

Hyutu’s answer was a laugh—but Legroeder had no time to answer, because Palagren and Ker’sell had just dumped them into a spinning dive, away from Hunter , and Legroeder helped them by instinct alone. Glenswarg was snapping orders—among them, telling Legroeder to shut the hell up. But another new voice filled the net from the remoteness of the Flux, and again it was a voice that Legroeder recognized. Jakus Bark!

—really fallen into it this time, Legroeder. What did you think you were doing? There’s no way you’re going to get out of this one! Bark’s voice was utterly scornful.

You bastard! I thought you were dead! Legroeder whispered.

Did you think we were going to lie down and die? Bark said, and then burst into a roar of laughter. Well, guess who’s going to do the dying!

At that moment, the KM/C ship seemed to find a favorable new current, because it came overhead in a loop far too fast for Phoenix to follow and bore down directly down on the Ivan ship, like a hawk swooping on its prey. Legroeder and the others strained to maneuver out of its path, but they couldn’t fight the natural movements of the Flux, and this time the winds were against them. All they could do was fire their neutrasers futilely, and wait for the volley of torpedoes.

(Impris, get clear!) Legroeder called, his inner voice desperate, filled with despair at the thought of being killed by his traitorous old shipmates—and at the thought that they had brought Impris out only to be killed, too.

Bark’s laughter echoed. So long, Legroeder, baby-y-y…

Before Legroeder could think of a word to say, he felt a sudden shudder through the Flux and heard, K-B-BOOM-M-M!

And he heard Agamem cry from the bridge, Flux torpedoes—but they’re not coming at us!

K-B-BOOM-M-M!

There was a second explosion, and Legroeder kicked the stern of Phoenix around for a better look. He was astonished to see the KM/C raider targeted by a cluster of bursting flux torpedoes. Where the hell had they come from? Surely not from Impris . Then where?

The next voice was Jakus’s again—howling in a splutter of confusion and rage. The KM/C ship was taking a beating. But from whom? It was turning with evident difficulty—attempting, for the first time, its own evasive maneuvers. Hyutu’s voice screamed, WHO IS THAT ATTACKING US? COME OUT AND IDENTIFY YOURSELVES! Streams of neutraser fire radiated from Hyutu’s ship, seemingly aimed at random.

The only response was the glow of a converging swarm of new, incoming torpedoes.

Jakus blinked as he heard the warning cry from the other side of the net. The flickering glare of the torpedoes was almost hypnotic; there were so many of them, from several directions, but all converging on the same point.

On Hunter.

How could this be?

Captain Hyutu, what now? he whispered. His implants were savagely stoking his blood lust, but they couldn’t change reality. Hunter was pinned, trapped; nowhere to turn. His fury had nowhere to turn, either, except inward, on himself and his captain. You stupid bastard captain …

EVASIVE ACTION, YOU MORONS! EVASIVE ACTION! Hyutu screamed. COUNTERMEASURES AWAY! NEUTRASERS SHOOT! SHOO-O-O-OT—!

The captain’s voice shook with rage, and the riggers wrenched the ship into wild gyrations trying to shake the torpedoes. But it was hopeless; Jakus Bark knew it was hopeless even as his augments drove him onward, trying to save the ship.