“Where did it go! Kaden!” Raith called out as the small ship lurched violently to the side. Pain flared in his right shoulder as the force of the maneuver threatened to break the death grip he had on the rickety railing before him.

“Kaden! Get me lined up on that thing so I can blow it out of the sky!” Nakyla growled from the weapons station.

“I’m trying! The controls are not-something’s not right after that last hit! Commander!”

“There! At 3 o’clock! It’s moving fast-I think it’s trying to come in behind us!” Bud cut in from next to Kaden. The panic in the large Kalatian’s yellow-green eyes relayed the message loud and clear-they were in trouble.

“Strike 3! Do you have eyes on this drone! We need a little assistance down here!” Raith barked into his headset. His stomach suddenly felt as if it were about to launch up into his throat. He could no longer hold his own rising panic at bay as his large ears fell flat. “Kaden!”

“Sorry, Commander! I don’t know what’s up with this ship, but it’s not giving me much to work with! If I was you, I’d strap yourself in. This may get a bit bumpy!”

No sooner had the words left the cocky pilot’s mouth did their small ship drop abruptly toward the rusty surface below. The wind rushed from his lungs as he slammed into the railing.

“Alpha 1, Alpha 1! You’ve got a drone coming in directly behind you!”

Raith struggled to catch his breath as he swung himself around the railing and slid to the nearest chair. Catching its back, he pulled himself into it and strapped in.

“I know! Take it out before it takes us out! We’ve taken some damage…!” His reply was cut short when Kaden abruptly leveled off before banking sharply to the right. Up ahead, he watched with wide eyes as brilliant light streaked down their left side and exploded a small hill before them.

“Strike 3, we’re taking fire! Get this thing off of us!”

“We’re trying, Commander! You’re too far ahead of us!”

“Kaden! Can’t you do something to give me anything to shoot at?” Nakyla demanded.

“Just give me a second!” the Cassarian growled from the controls.

“Kaden, we don’t have a second!”

Raith was thrown hard against his restraints as Kaden banked sharply back to the left. Up ahead, he caught a quick glimpse of jagged rocky outcroppings that dropped into the darkness of a narrow ravine. His ears fell flat once more as his eye widened. No…he wouldn’t…There was no chance for Raith to finish the thought before the small ship abruptly plunged into the ravine.

“Kaden, are you completely nuts!” Bud yelped.

“Just shut up and let me save our asses already!”

“Alpha1! Alpha 1! We’ve lost contact…!”

Raith was speechless as his grip tightened on the armrests. The quick maneuvering was constantly throwing him against the chair and his restraints. Light from another energy blast shot overhead and struck an outcropping of rock.

“Kaden!”

Kaden didn’t reply as he banked sharply to avoid the fractured falling stones. A loud clang rang off the side of the ship’s hull. The impact forced the ship to lurch to the right.

“This is it! Nakyla, be ready!” Kaden yelled as another abrupt bank, then a second in the opposite direction, left Raith’s body screaming for reprieve.

Gravity suddenly took ahold of him, slamming him into his seat and dropping his stomach into his lap. The small ship launched out of the ravine nearly vertical, and as soon as it was clear of the rock, Kaden threw it into a sharp, steep bank to the left. Another loud clang struck the right side of the ship, then the rattle of metal on metal began to continuously echo through the interior.

“What the hell was that?” came Nakyla’s voice.

“There it is, Nakyla! You’re only going to have one shot at this!” Bud yelled over the noise, interrupting the growing concern.

“On it! Just keep it steady for a second, Kaden….”

The growing hum of the charging energy cannon suddenly added to the chorus of sounds. The instrument lights and radar screen began to flicker. Raith’s eyes widened. This could not be good! He felt the energy blast leave the cannons attached to each wing. The lighting once again flickered and faded, but then completely went out. The loud hum of the engines suddenly stopped.

“Oh shit! Commander, we’re losing power!” Kaden yelped as he frantically tried to level the ship off.

There was no time to think. “Kill power to everything and divert it to the engines!”

“On it!” came Bud and Nakyla’s voices in unison as the pair frantically keyed in commands and hit switches at their respective stations.

The engine power sputtered a couple more times before going completely quiet. Noise and voices erupted all around him, but Raith understood none of it. He could feel gravity pulling them toward the surface. And it came down to this…After everything he’d been through, he was going to die cutting a path through the drones to allow safe passage for a few straggling refugee ships…

“Brace yourselves!”

Kaden’s frantic voice broke through the madness around him just before everything went silent.

“Raith! Raith, can you hear me?”

Raith felt dull pressure on his shoulder, felt a jarring shake. Pain shot through his head, neck, and shoulders as he jerked upright.

“Whoa, take it easy…” a voice called.

He cautiously leaned back into the chair as he brought a sluggish hand to his temple. His head pounded with every beat of his heart, his pulse rang in his ears.

“Raith, are you alright?” It was Nakyla’s voice. His surroundings slowly began to register. He could hear faint electrical sparking and the scent of burnt circuitry hung heavy in the air.

“Ugg…what happened?” he moaned quietly as he slowly opened his eyes.

“Strike 3, we’re ok, for the most part. How many of you are out there?” came Bud’s voice from the front.

“4, sir. Do you need assistance?” came the crackling reply.

“Right now, keep your eyes open and on your scanners. We’re easy targets down here. We’ll get in touch when we know more.”

Raith groaned as he tried to sit up. He felt Nakyla reach across him to release the restraints.

“He alright?” came Bud’s worried voice.

“I’m ok, in a matter of speaking. What the hell happened? Kaden?”

“The damn fool crashed us, that’s what happened,” Nakyla muttered as she helped him to his feet.

“I would like to have seen anyone else get us down in one piece! We were in a steep bank when the power went out! It was all I could do to level her out enough to land like we did!”

“Take it easy. You did good-we’re alive,” Raith grumbled as he paused to let his spinning vision level out. Everything hurt were he’d been slammed against the seat’s restraints, especially his right shoulder. Mouser was going to have a fit. But there was no time to dwell on minor injury. Bud’s comments to the fighters still in the air were of more importance; they were sitting targets should more drones arrive and four ships would be no match for a swarm of them. His eyes widened as he cast a quick glance to Kaden and Bud at the front of the ship. He had to shield his eyes from the nearly blinding light beyond.

“The drone-was it destroyed?”

“Yeah. Nakyla’s shot crippled it and one of Strike 3’s fighters finished it off. They report that for now, the coast is clear,” Bud replied.

“It won’t stay that way for long. Kaden, what’s the status…”

Raith’s thoughts were interrupted by the sudden sounds of electrical sparking somewhere behind the right wall panel. His eyes widened as his gaze cleared enough to take in the ship’s interior. The few things that had been strapped down were now scattered across the floor. Several access panels were jarred loose and he thought he could see wisps of smoke streaming from a couple.

“I’m still trying to get systems back online, commander. There is not enough power to start up diagnostics, nor do we have radar or communications, other than the portable comlink,” Kaden mumbled as he opened a large electrical access panel near his flight controls.

“Can you get us back in the air? We really cannot afford to lose another ship.”

Kaden’s critical gaze locked onto him briefly before he shook his head. “Not without power. I can’t figure out where the disruption is. Once that’s fixed, if it can be fixed, there’s no telling what shape she’s in outside.”

Raith took a shaky step towards the door. “We may as well open the hatch then. I don’t know if I can take much more of this burning circuitry, and not like keeping the door shut will protect us any better. Bud…”

“I’m on it,” the tall Kalatian quickly replied while moving to the right side entry door. The hatch handle turned easily, but Bud struggled to push the door open. It finally released abruptly, sending Bud flying out with the swing of the door and into the bright afternoon sun.

“I’m alright!” he called as they all rushed toward the open doorway. “Huh, well that explains a lot,” came his curious mumble.

Raith, Nakyla and Kaden all arrived at the open doorway at the same time to see Bud’s critical gaze locked on the side of the ship.

“What the hell…” Kaden mumbled as he stepped past the others and out to examine the large gaping hole just over the ship’s right wing. Sparks periodically shot out from the charred and exposed wiring. The section of panel that had once covered the hole hung several feet down toward the ground. It appeared that a section of wires had melted to the underside of the panel and was the only thing keeping the piece tethered.

“Shit. This is the wiring that powered the cannons. When it pulled free, it severed one of the power mains to the whole ship. This should have never been wired like this! Whoever did this hack job needs to have their electrical privileges revoked! We’re lucky this thing didn’t explode in midair!”

“But can you fix it?” Raith asked as he stepped out and examined the damage over Kaden’s shoulder.

Kaden’s incredulous glare quickly turned to him. For a moment, the Cassarian was speechless. “You’re kidding me right?” he finally asked. Kaden’s jaw dropped when Raith only raised a brow in question. Kaden dramatically huffed in frustration as he pushed past and back into the ship. “I’m a pilot, not a mechanic,” came his notably irritated voice from inside. He reemerged with a tool kit and headed to work, mumbling under his breath the entire time.

Raith turned to Bud and Nakyla. Up above, he could hear the comforting sounds of the strike squadrons’ engines as they patrolled the immediate area. “Have there been any reports from the other squadrons?”

Bud shook his head. “Not that I’ve heard yet. With our communications down, for the most part, the only way we’ll know anything is to use Askar as a relay.”

Raith sighed heavily as he slowly walked to a nearby rock and sat. He didn’t like this one bit. They were stranded out in the middle of nowhere in the afternoon heat, with no power, no long range communications, and a busted ship. They’d not even had time to load their excursion suits before the alarms when off notifying them of near space radar contacts. It had been so long since refugees from the expanse had arrived to Talos that Raith’s first instinct had been that their enemy’s command ship had finally returned. It had been a shock when garbled voices came over the radio’s speakers. The real scramble began when a large swarm of drones were also detected. He’d had no time to attempt to communicate with the arriving refugees before the troops were scrambled and the attack squads launched to defend the new arrivals.

He sighed and glanced over at the cursing Kaden as he struggled with burnt wiring. Taking this ship had been a last minute change. The Alpha team’s regular ship had been damaged in a previous battle with the drones and they had been forced to take this small 8 person transport-converted attack ship instead. Obviously whoever attached the energy cannons to the underside of the wings had been in a hurry. At least the weapons had not been damaged too badly in the hard landing. They were rapidly running out of operational cannons, and decent ships for that matter.

“Hey Raith.” Bud’s quiet call drew him out of his thoughts. His best friend stood beside him with the portable comlink. “Perhaps we can find out what’s going on out there.”

Raith sighed quietly as he reached up to take the bulky device. Bud sat on a neighboring rock and leaned his retrieved weapon against the ship’s hull.

“Strike 3, Strike 3-come in, Askar,” he called. Static burst forth from the device’s speaker before it cleared and the young squad leader’s voice came through.

“Go ahead, Commander. It’s good to see everyone’s alright down there.”

“Yes, we’re ok for now. Just a few bruises,” he paused as Kaden cursed loudly and jerked his hand away from a bright spark. “And burns. What’s the status up there? Any news from the rest of the fleet?”

“Initial reports say all strike units are accounted for and safe. There were no serious losses. I’ve heard reports of some damages to ships, but so far everyone aside from you and your team and our group has made it back to Refuge City.”

Raith shook his head. It was a relief that everyone was safe, but more damaged ships was troubling. They were running out of scraps and spare parts to patch them up. A sudden ruckus arose at the wing. Raith didn’t hear what was said, but Kaden was yelling at Nakyla to get out of the way or do the work herself. He shot her a stern glare as she backed away with a mischievous grin. As usual, the Malkaian showed nothing other than a shrug at his warning as she left Kaden to his work.

“What news do you have on the refugees?” he called back into the comlink.

“Um…just a minute. We just received an updated transmission a few minutes ago and haven’t had a chance to read it.” A few moments of silent anticipation passed before the static crackled from the speakers once more.

“It sounds like there were 21 ships total with 379 survivors. All but one of the ships landed safely. The report says one landed quite hard and was beyond repair. I’m sorry, sir, but there’s not any more detail.”

379 survivors and 21 ships? The numbers didn’t sound all that impressive, but considering there were roughly only seven million known survivors out of a star system of billions, every single additional incoming soul was a miracle. 7 million survivors and all were crammed into the mountain sanctuary now known as Refuge City. All he could do was shake his head in wonder and hope that no one was badly injured in the ship that crashed.

“Has there been any further drone activity?”

“No sir, not that we have seen. The screens are clear and there have been no reports from base. How much longer until you’re back in the air?”

Raith watched as Kaden shot him a dark glare and heard the pilot resume his angry grumbling.

“Hopefully within the hour.”

Kaden turned to him with an incredulous glare. “What?”

“Just keep in fairly close formation on our position and keep a careful watch on that ravine. I don’t want to be taken by surprise.”

“Will do, commander,” came the reply.

“379 survivors, eh? That’s a pretty sizable group. I’ll be curious to hear their story. It’s been more than 6 months since the last group came in. I hope they came in some decent ships as I’m not so sure Kaden’s going to fix this busted heap of scrap,” Bud mused beside him.

“I’ll get it patched up, dammit! Just don’t know if it will happen in an hour’s time!” came the snappish reply. Kaden’s actions grew more animated as his frustrations began to grow.

“Just calm down already. We know you’ll get it fixed. Getting all worked up will solve nothing,” Nakyla quipped from her place in the open door way. She idly picked at her nails with the tip of her dagger. Raith and Bud could only shake their heads and share a quiet smirk. Kaden was so easily riled up.

Several minutes passed in silence as Raith’s mind began running over all the tasks that would be awaiting him when they finally got back to the city. He felt Bud’s curious gaze and finally looked over to his friend with a raised brow.

“You nervous over there? Your tail ain’t stopped twitching about since you sat,” Bud mused.

Raith scowled as he attempted to calm his tense nerves. Now that he thought about it, the nervous habit was tiring the muscles in his lower back. He sighed heavily and shook his head.

“I suppose the longer we sit here, the more I begin to worry. Those drones can’t ignore us forever. It’s not like them to have left us alone this long. It’s been, what, 6-7 hours since the refugees first arrived?” He allowed another sigh. “I should be checking on the survivors, helping coordinate their integration into the city and analyzing their accounts to see what I can learn from their ordeal. Sarsan is going to want a full report soon, and I know I’ll have to deal with Raphal’s frustration with the progress in getting the survivors in the system. And I definitely need to be looking at the ships to see if there is anything we can use…”

“What is it with you Leonians? I swear your minds run a hundred miles an hour for no reason! Raith, the survivors are not going anywhere, the ships are not going anywhere, there’s a task force already doing all the things you just mentioned, so just relax already! Oh wait-I forget-Leonians don’t know how to relax,” Nakyla spat.

Raith shot her a fierce scowl but said nothing. It was not worth the effort with Nakyla. He had an equally biting remark to make concerning Malkaians, especially about their blatant lack of respect for authority. Nakyla tended to speak her mind no matter to whom her blunt remarks were aimed.

“Enough, Nakyla. You know I’m the only one allowed to call out his Leonian quirks,” Bud cut in with a grin. The grin on his dark friend’s face immediately eased the tension. Bud reached over and placed a strong hand on his shoulder. Raith flinched as pain shot through his old injury.

“Besides, I’d be more worried about what Mouser’s going to say. That shoulder’s hurting you again, isn’t it?”

“This shoulder is always hurting me. It isn’t anything I can’t handle,” he mumbled.

“Even so, you know how Mouser is, especially when it comes to you. Sarsan will understand. He may be the overlord for what remains of our universe, but he’s still your father, and he’s still the kindest old man I know. I still have a hard time grasping him in being in his position,” Bud replied.

Raith paused at the comment. This was true. The Sarsan he remembered was the kindly, storytelling Taloan who’d adopted and raised him as his own, the man that had once been a simple mayor of Keylar City. The tired, aged man now at the helm of the intergalactic refugee camp housed in a giant rock anthill was not the father he remembered. The attacks that befell them four years ago had changed everyone…

“It should not be like this. Sarsan should not have to…”

Kaden’s sudden sharp yelp interrupted his thoughts. Raith’s surprised gaze locked on the Cassarian as a brilliant ball of arcing energy leapt out of the damaged panel, sending Kaden flying backward. Raith shoved himself to his feet and ran to where Kaden landed flat on his back.

“Kaden! Are you alright?” he called in alarm as he knelt at the dazed pilot’s side.

“Shit! Raith!”

Raith’s head snapped about to see a ball of orange flames burst from the damaged wiring. Bud had already hesitated and turned back to the ship. He disappeared inside before Raith could stop him.

“Bud, get the hell out of there!”

Nakyla quickly arrived next to him and took hold of Kaden’s arm. “We’ve got to move back!” she said and began to drag the near unconscious pilot back. Bud emerged from the ship with a fire extinguisher and quickly began working at dousing the flames as he and Nakyla drug Kaden to a safe distance. He quickly ran back to retrieve the comlink. There was no way this ship was flying any time soon.

“Askar, come in!”

“Go ahead, commander. What’s going on down there? I thought I saw smoke.”

“We’re going to need a lift; this ship isn’t going anywhere.”

“Copy that. We’ll be down in a second.”

Raith set the comlink on the ground next to Kaden as he knelt. The cocky little ass was breathing at least, but his eyes were wide and dazed. “Kaden, can you hear me?” Kaden blinked weakly before slightly turning his head to look up at him. “I fixed it good, commander,” he replied with a thick tongue.

“He’ll be alright, Raith,” Nakyla snorted and stood.

Bud arrived at their side. “Well, that’s that. I got the fire out, but I think she’s done,” he reported.

“Yeah, I figured as much. I really don’t want to leave it sitting here. We could use the parts and those cannons. But we don’t have time to strip it down here. We’ve already wasted enough time,” he grumbled.

“Hopefully, the drones will ignore this busted heap and we can come back for it later. It could be tethered to one of the larger scouting ships and lifted back to the city,” Bud said as his large hand came to rest on his good shoulder.

Red dust began to whip about as Strike 3’s lead transport fighter came in for a landing. The trio shielded their eyes as they watched in anticipation. As soon as the ship landed, the rear cargo hatch opened and several soldiers headed their way. Raith quickly spotted the tall, lanky Cassarian squad leader at the head of the group.

“Commander Raith, sir! There anything we should gather from the ship?”

“There’s a few weapons inside, but the cannons will have to wait. Help me get Kaden up and let’s get the hell out of here before we press our luck!”

Askar nodded with a grin and gave the orders to his men. Soon, everyone was safely aboard and headed back to Refuge City.