We were hired to protect those miners from Scorp and pirates. We’d never anticipated a full Toad fleet descending on us. Even worse? It was because of my avarice and arrogance that they’re here at all. If I hadn’t claimed those stolen Orbs, the Toads would have had no reason to bother the mining colonies. Now, I’ve signed the death warrant of every man working on them.
“We have a comms-signal, Captain.”
“On screen.”
Tasha’s projection appears in front of us on the bridge. She’s pale-faced, but she’s alive.
Tasha is a fighter. She managed to escape me – and that’s no easy feat. I couldn’t hold her – and some deep, angry part of me tells me to hold on tighter next time.
If there is a next time.
I’m ashamed of that instinct, though. It’s what drove her away in the first place. The primal, old Aurelian ways are embedded deeply in my soul, but I can see now that they’re flawed. The part of me that screams to claim her body and soul is why I nearly lost them. My instinct to bind her so close to me she can never escape again is why she’d fled.
The holographic projection shows Tasha behind the controls of the stolen Reaver. She’s a natural at the helm. I can tell a skilled pilot in a second, and she’s better than most of the Aurelians under my command, many of whom have hundreds of years more experience than she does.
Clarity comes to me as I understand that trying to hold onto a woman like Tasha is like trying to hold grains of sand in my fist. The tighter I squeeze, the more escapes. I realize now the only way to keep Tasha is to let her choose to stay.
To be worthy of that choice.
Vinicus pulls himself back to his feet. “Thank the Gods! You’re alive.”
“I’m alive.” Her feed is cutting in and out. Tasha is at the very edge of the Toad blocking signal, and we risk losing her any second.
But now, we know they’re coming. The Toads think they’re going to catch us by surprise. They plan on ambushing us and taking us out before we have a chance to defend ourselves.
I lick my lips, forcing back my eagerness. A Toad Mothership. That means there’ll be tens of thousands of Toad on board. I’ll finally have my chance to rid the universe of an entire fleet of the disgusting creatures...
…if I can beat them.
If? Where did that thought come from? I’ve never lost before!
But I’ve never had so much at stake before, either.
“Aelon, they had some sort of blocking device,” Tasha pleads. “You need to evacuate before they get here!”
Evacuate? I’ve never backed down from a fight in my life.
I announce: “Do you think I fear a Toad Mothership?”
Tasha’s projection looks down in defeat. I can feel the sadness flowing through our Bond. It’s like she wants me to be a coward and run.
I’ll admit, this battle will be a difficult one. Even with all my years of experience, I’ve never taken on a Toad Mothership before…
“Aelon – their ship is three times the size of The Instigator. They have a fleet of assault ships that outnumbers you ten to one. The Toads aren’t here to ambush you. It doesn’t matter how good your tactics are. They’re going to destroy you.”
Unease creeps over me.
Tasha speaks the truth. A Toad Mothership is protected by enough assault ships to rip The Instigator apart even without the massive batteries of las-cannons of the behemoth itself.
Tasha looks up at me, her eyes clear.
“They’ll kill you, Aelon. They’ll kill you and your battle-brothers, and every Aurelian on The Instigator. They’ll shoot down every Reaver, and slaughter every soldier you have. Then, they’ll massacre the humans you swore to protect just to cover the traces of their crime.”
Iunia steps towards me. He puts his hand on my shoulder. His eyes are a light brown, and it’s strange to see them different after so many years of looking into the slate-grey irises of my battle brother.
“Aelon,” he rasps. His voice is harsh. Thinking Tasha was dead cut him to the core. “Aelon, she speaks the truth.”
I’m not used to being questioned.
The bridge of my ship has a concave view of the outside world. I can see the giant, green planet of Tarrion spinning below, and the coldness of the Scorp-infested moon above it. I’d already called back my fleet of Reavers to The Instigator the moment I felt Tasha disappear from my mind. That’s something. At least the Toads think we’ll be spread out.
My mind races. “We need to move. The moon is the key to this battle. I’ll conceal The Instigator behind it – so they think we received advanced warning and retreated.” My lips curl. “Then, we’ll have one chance to cripple that Mothership before they even realize my play.”
Tasha slams her fist against the controls – hard.
Hard enough to hurt her – and I feel that pain through the Bond. I’d rather take it a hundred times than have her feel that frustration and self-inflicted agony.
“Aelon! That’s madness! If they register The Instigator, you’ll be backed up against that moon – they’ll have you cornered!”
“But if they don’t,” I growl, “we’ll have one chance to fire everything we have – that’s enough to cripple even a Toad Mothership.”
I feel the heat of Tasha’s outrage through our Bond.
“You’ll have one chance to beat them, Aelon! Once your cover is blown, you’ll be dead in the water. There has to be a better way.”
Tasha’s Reaver appears on my ship’s scans. She’s close enough now that I can protect her.
The tendril of doubt grows in my mind. What if I can’t protect her? I know my last-minute plan could triumph, even against this seemingly overwhelming force, but what if luck goes against me?
Can I afford even a one percent chance of being wrong? Twenty percent? Fifty? What are my real odds in
