Of Fire and Night - Kevin J. Anderson [49]
"Those ships are renegade. We need those ships. We, therefore, are going after them." Lanyan repeated the transmission across the cavalry fleet. "They haven't been gone long. Our ships are lighter, we have enough fuel, we're fully armed, and our in-system engines are just as fast if not faster than the big capital ships." He rubbed his hands together. "We'll catch up with them, all right."
Some recruits took heart from his words, riled up and ready to fight the treacherous compy bastards; others were more realistic about their chances. Lanyan saw the moods shifting like eddies in a river. As his ships raced along the trajectory of the hijacked battle group, he gave an impromptu pep talk. "Grid after grid has winked out. Our whole fleet is being taken over by the compies. We cannot let it happen here, at the cost of our very lives, if necessary! We'll fight hand-to-hand, if it comes to that. Dammit, those are my ships!"
He observed the uncertain expressions of the soldiers aboard the transport, watched how they shifted from panic to determination. Everyone knew that the Grid 0 warships vastly outgunned their collection of vessels. These young soldiers believed they didn't have a chance. Nor did they have a choice.
But Lanyan knew secrets about EDF vessels that none of these kleebs understood. "Never underestimate the Earth Defense Forces. Trust me on that."
26
JESS TAMBLYN
Seconds seemed like hours as Jess stared into the sea of Charybdis. Cesca had vanished into the water, swallowed by the living depths.
Save her, Jess silently begged the wentals. Save her!
Suddenly, she burst to the surface again, rising with a misty splash that clung to her like a halo. Her clothes and her skin were drenched, and now her eyes were bright. The bloodstains were gone. Her wet dark brown hair seemed to be alive. She rose, standing on nothing.
"You're alive again," Jess said, his voice the breath of a whisper.
When she stepped onto the shore, Cesca's face was filled with an illuminating essence. "Not just alive." Her voice was louder, clearer. "I feel more alive than I have ever been."
Jess came forward, scanning her face, afraid that he might discover the boiling destructive power of a tainted wental, as he had witnessed in the memory images. But he saw only Cesca--only her smile, and her freedom from pain. She was healed.
He raised his hands, looked out at the living ocean of Charybdis, and shouted, "Thank you!" He gave a jubilant laugh. "Thank you!"
Inside both of their heads now, the wentals said, We must always be cautious.
"Yes. We will. But she's alive, and you took that risk for me. Thank you for saving her life as well as mine."
Nikko had backed away to the repaired Aquarius, watching the two of them, his expression full of awe mixed with hesitancy. Jess and Cesca contained so much energy that the young pilot probably feared they would achieve some sort of critical mass when they were together.
With an excitement he could not contain, Jess wrapped Cesca in his arms, touching her for the first time in what felt like a lifetime. Jess could not measure how long he had wanted this, how much he had missed her. He stroked her hair. "See? There's nothing to worry about."
The energy within her is unspoiled. Our actions have not created a tainted wental. She is part of us, but she is also changed forever.
Jess held her shoulders, looked into her eyes. Long ago, when they were merely a man and a woman, their bond had been powerful. Now that both of them were more than human, their love was transformed and infinitely different, stronger than ever.
Even the shadow of reality could not dampen his joy. He reiterated what she already knew. "From now on, Cesca, your touch will kill. We're isolated."
She touched his cheek. "We're