“She surfaces whether Stephanie wills it or no—and usually in the direst of circumstances which, I am sure you will agree, this is.”

  “Indeed.” Grilfir looked at Sho. “I will need Admiral Jaleck—and the Ghargilum Afreghil.”

  He should not have been surprised to find them dining together, Elza laughing at something the Dreth admiral had said and V’ritan blushing crimson. They all looked up as the main screen went live.

  “This is a matter for volunteers only,” the king warned the admiral and his Warrior, and they both nodded.

  “We will put the call out,” they told him, “but don’t be surprised at how many we’ll have to turn away.”

  Grilfir wasn’t, but he was surprised when the Dreth Navy assigned to Meligorn said they were staying.

  “I release you to go if you need to,” he told them but the Dreth commander shook his head.

  “No, our greatest champions will go with you, and we will not leave our allies defenseless. That is not the way of honor.” He glanced across at Jaleck. “The admiral has already given her blessing if we feel we should leave, but she will go with you, and you are sending the champion of your world. We can ask for nothing more.”

  “We will do our best not to let you down,” the king told him.

  The commander had laid his fist over his heart. “It is all we ask.”

  King Grilfir turned to V’ritan.

  “Make sure The King’s Warrior is ready. Prepare to leave to support the defense of Dreth.”

  “Move! Move! Move!” Jaleck shouted as Dreth warriors ran helter-skelter across the flight deck.

  She looked around at the hangar and sighed. Regretfully, she’d barely settled into the Hrageth’s Favor and had looked forward to flying her into the next battle, but it was not to be.

  The spell that would take them to Dreth was dangerous—and not only for the ship that used it but for every caster involved—and the Witch was risking them all. Every mage she’d taken to train the Witches to follow her and every Witch in Training would put their lives on the line for the defense of her world.

  The least she could do was transfer her command without complaining—and do it quickly so as not to keep them waiting. Timing was essential. Jaleck snapped back to the world around her.

  Dreth pilots, gunners, and technicians piled into fighters. Champions made themselves fit in ships designed for two. Shuttles were standing room only. She could only imagine the chaos onboard The King’s Warrior as they landed.

  It was time to instill some order.

  She stopped the next pilot to pass her.

  “You, take that one. Stow your gear behind you.” She pivoted and caught another warrior. “And you, get into that one. It’s closer and I want you out of here before that pointy-eared bastard decides he can’t wait any longer. Move!” she roared when the warrior hesitated.

  Jaleck moved down the line to redirect pilots, stare down over-eager warriors, and create a sliver of order in the pre-war chaos.

  Chapter Fifty-Two

  Captain Emil Pedersen ran through the ship. He stumbled as the Ebon Knight shuddered into normal space and clutched the side rail to stop himself from falling. If anyone on the command deck saw it, they gave no sign when he arrived.

  He glared at the pilot. “You were supposed to wake me, Wattlebird.”

  The man gave him an unrepentant grin. “The man pulls two-and-a-half shifts and wants a four-hour wake-up call. Pfft. Stephanie would have my balls.”

  “So will I, and seeing as she’s not here—”

  “With all due respect, sir, she still scares me more.”

  Despite his irritation, he smiled and glanced toward the forward viewscreen. “How far out are we?”

  Jonathan returned to his board. “We’ve jumped clean.” He glanced at the comms team. “Has Notaro finished squealing, yet?”

  “Yes, sir. We’re all set to go.”

  “I thought we called ahead,” Emil commented, and the comms tech nodded. “We did, sir, but portaling is quicker than a comms wave and…well, they don’t like surprises.”

  He bet they didn’t and could only imagine how many ships they’d scrambled when the Knight had appeared out of nowhere.

  “I picked a location that nothing had covered,” the pilot told him, “or we’d be stardust and atoms.”

  “Very good.” The captain didn’t say anything more. The man didn’t need any encouragement.

  Jonathan’s hands flicked over the controls. “I’m taking her in now, sir, and if you don’t think the Navy squealed about this little trick, you have another think coming. We’re putting on quite a show.”

  “Scans and comms, patch me into the news footage.”

  “Aye, sir.”

  After a minute’s delay, half a dozen smaller screens edged the viewscreen. All of them showed the Ebon Knight’s long shadow haloed by light.

  “What is it?” the Federation reporter asked. His short silver hair stuck out at unruly angles and the jacket he’d throw on didn’t quite hide the silk pajama shirt he had on beneath it.

  Emil wondered how much trouble the cameraman would be in for showing where the Meligornian anchorman’s pajama shorts ended and his legs began.

  The crew snickered. His co-anchor, though, didn’t look much better. Her blue eyes were wide as she stared into the sky, a fleecy white dressing gown belted firmly around her waist.

  “I don’t know, Jalel, but it’s huge.”

  “Amelia…are…are you in your nightie?” he asked and dragged his gaze from the fiery view overhead.

  She rolled her eyes. “Yes, Jalel, I am because I think our viewers are way more interested in knowing what’s flying over our heads than in me being dressed to the nines. Seriously…take a look at that.”

  The Meligornian flushed but turned his face obediently to the sky. The camera followed his gaze.

  Sounds of wonder echoed from around the command deck, and Emil didn’t blame them. The Ebon Knight’s descent was bright enough to light up the land below.

  “Jalel, d’you think that’s a shooting star?” The woman sounded almost frightened.

  “Nooo….” he replied but sounded completely unsure. He hastened to correct the impression. “What shooting star slows?”

  “Oh…” Amelia continued to stare upwards. “It is, too.” She glanced toward the camera. “Are you getting that?”

  The cameraman had knelt and angled the picture so he caught the ship and Amelia’s wondering face. The camera bobbed.

  “I got it, Ams.” His voice was hushed with awe as he added, “Best. Footage…ever…”

  “Is that… Is that a shuttle?”

  The camera had caught the flare of engines and the sleek powerful lines of the new Team Morgana gunship rising into the sky. Emil knew the Knight’s visit and Stephanie’s mercy dash wouldn’t stay secret for long, but he also knew the Navy was aware.

  As if on cue, the screens showing the newscasts went dead.

  Jonathan snorted. “Well, I guess that’s one way to tell folk the show’s over.”

  The captain headed to the door. “I’ll make sure they got on board okay. Don’t forget our rendezvous.”

  “As if I cou…er… Aye, aye, sir!”

  Emil ignored the man’s slip. What they were taking with them made their little jaunt into Earth’s atmosphere look like a walk in the park. His pilot had good reason to be nervous. One slip and this would be a very short trip, indeed.

  He forced himself to walk until he heard the door to the command center close behind him, then he broke into a run. Thankfully, he arrived in the passenger lounge in time to watch Brenden and Avery guide the shuttle into the bay.

  “Damn, those boys are getting good,” he murmured.

  The captain waited until the outer hatch had closed and the hangar had atmosphere before he hurried out to meet the team.

  Far below them, Amelia gaped at the camera. “What do you mean, they cut the broadcast?

  “They’ve jammed the signal,” the cameraman explained.

  “What? All of it?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” He gulped and held the camera steady and focused on the ship out of long habit.

  She pursed her lips. “Keep filming, anyway,” she snapped. “They can’t stop you doing that, can they?”

  “No, Ams, they can’t.”

  “Good. Jalel, did you hear that? The Navy jammed our broadcast.”

  Her co-anchor didn’t look too pleased, but whether that was because of the jammed broadcast or because he’d realized the whole world had caught him in his sky-blue silks, she didn’t know. And honestly, she didn’t care either.

  He realized his own cameraman was still filming and smoothed his expression into one of determination. “That’s okay, Amelia. They can’t stop the word from getting out. We’ll broadcast this footage as soon as they let us back online.”

  “Yes!” she replied fiercely but her eyes widened as if she’d only now realized something. “Do you think the Witch’s team is off on another secret mission to save the world?”

  Jalel looked at the sky. “Well, if she is, it’s not something they’ve seen fit to tell us and we will hound them until they do.”

  Amelia looked up as the fire above them continued to move and this time, grew smaller as it lifted into the night sky.

  “And we will pray for their safe return,” she murmured.

  Oblivious to the reporter’s well-wishes, Stephanie and Captain Emil returned to the bridge with Lars and Vishlog in tow. The rest of the team worked at stowing their gear.

  “We’re clear of the atmosphere, sir,” Jonathan reported as soon as they stepped through the door. “Coming up on the packages, now.”

  “Packages?” Stephanie asked.

  “Jonathan and the weapons section got to talking one night,” the captain explained. “It’s not something I’d recommend in a time of peace.”

  “And?”

  He gestured to several bulky shapes ahead. “We’re picking them up now.”

  “Why not before?”

  “Before we went down for you?”

  She nodded.

  Emil’s lips twitched. “Let’s simply say it’s not something you wish to go screaming into the atmosphere with, right?”

  “No, sir.” Jonathan’s voice sounded strained, and all his attention was on his board.

  A hush settled over the bridge and she stilled. From the concentration she saw around her, whatever they were picking up was either very delicate or extremely dangerous.

  “Got them, sir,” the pilot reported almost a half-hour later, “and the loading crew reports the packages are safely aboard and very securely nestled in.” He paused, then added, “Oh, God, I hope so. I wouldn’t want them to get jarred at all.”

  She glanced at Emil. “Did you make this a volunteer-only crew?” she asked. “We might not come back.”

  He returned her gaze, amusement in his eyes. “Since when are our trips ever expected to be anything but one way?”

  “Do we have more pod training, today?” Ka asked, but Todd shook his head.

  “Not today. We’re in-system and on standby. The last thing we want is to be in the pods when we’re needed out here.”

  She sighed.

  “And tell the guys it’s light workouts only. I don’t want anyone exhausted when the call comes.”

  “When, boss?”

  He nodded, his face grim. “When, Ka. They’re out there.”

  No sooner had the words left his mouth than the lights around them flashed amber.

  Todd grinned. “That’s our cue.”

  She returned the grin and hurried to the ready room. He followed and his thoughts went momentarily to Stephanie. She smiled at him in memory, and he forced himself to smile in response and pushed aside the thought that this fight might be the one he didn’t come back from.

  He’d made her a promise and he was damned if he would break it.

  The battle was up on the viewscreens when the team assembled in the hangars, armed and armored and ready to go.

  “No, I won’t let you crazy assholes wait in the fighters,” the flight controller said. “The last thing I need is a joystick-happy jockstrap igniting his burners and making his own exit through a closed hatch.”

  Todd had looked along the line of troops. “Joystick-happy?” He sighed. “Gary, what did you do this time?”

  “I… Nothing, Lance.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, Lance.” Gary looked at Jimmy and then at Reggie. “Unless one of these two clowns has used my name in vain again.”

  The Scotsman scowled. “Unlike you Limey bastards, highland folk own up to their mischief.”

  The pirate ship on the viewscreen moved to block the convoy’s forward progress and the escort in the lead opened fire. Swarms of small fighters erupted from each ship’s hull before a second hostile vessel opened fire on the opposite flank.

  “Fuck me,” the flight controller muttered, and Todd looked up.

  “So, we go man the fighters, now?”

  “No!”

  Gary snickered. “It was worth a try, boss.”

  He returned it and swallowed his irritation. “Yeah, it was.” His face grew serious. “Stay sharp. We’re gonna be needed real soon.”

  “Got a feeling?”

  “I keep thinking I should be looking for a sniper.”

  “That is not good, boss.”

  “Why not? You don’t really want to let the Navy boys have all the fun, do you?”

  “Heck, no, sir, but when was the last time you had that itch?” His face grew bleak and the man did a hasty backpedal. “Don’t answer that.”

  Todd didn’t but he spent the next few minutes banishing images of another team of Marines falling around him, of falling himself, of—

  Someone touched his arm and he gasped.

  “Do you want me to punch him, boss?”

  That made him smile and evicted the nightmares he hadn’t been able to shift. “Nah, Ka. I’ll think of something.”

  The team snickered, and Gary groaned.

  He brightened shortly after, though. “Man! The Navy’s on the ball this time.”

  They watched as several Naval ships arrived and cruised in behind the pirates like a pack of sharks.

  “The captain’s not gonna like that,” Todd murmured as more hostiles arrived and all attacked the opposite side of the convoy. “If they keep it up, he’s gonna make us all deodorize.”

  “It’s not our fault we smell bad enough to keep them away.” Gary’s light-hearted smile faded as he caught the look on his leader’s face. “What?”

  “There’s always a gotcha,” he told him as he studied the viewscreen. “I wonder if there’s some way to shift the focus.”

  “Not unless you want scans kicking your backside.”

  Todd pursed his lips. “Nope. I need them too much to make them mad.”

  He frowned. “Team up and grab your gear. The second the asshole in control unlocks this door, I want you in a fighter and heading out. Make your own door if you have to.”

  The team gave him puzzled looks. “Boss?”

  In the short silence that followed, he looked into their faces and caught each one’s eyes before he moved onto the next. When he spoke, he was deadly serious. “Assume we will have a big bastard to take down.”

  The lights around them turned amber and Ka gave him a filthy look. “Boss, I’m gonna ban you from speaking before a fight.”

  The captain’s voice came over the intercom as the viewscreen changed. “Marines!”

  The team was at the doors when they released. They secured their helmets and raced to their fighters. The vessel that filled the screen should never have been a pirate ship. It was as big as any ship of the line and left no one in any doubt as to its capabilities.

  “The motherfuckers have themselves a super-dreadnought.” Reggie noted and chuckled. “Let’s go blow those bitches up.”

  The Devil’s Care shuddered around them.

  “Are we hit?” Angus sounded alarmed and Drusilla took his arm.

  “Yeah, it felt like it. And it’s time we shut the big bastard down, don’tcha think?”

  The lights changed from amber to red and the captain’s voice rang through the ship. “All support personnel to the life pods. I repeat. All support personnel to the life pods. Engineering, prepare to evacuate. Life support, prepare to evacuate. Marine Team Brogan, stand by to launch. Wait for my go. We intend to ram them.”

  “What the fuck?” Gary slowed and Todd shoved him forward as he passed.

  “You heard the man.”

  He made sure the man moved and comm’d the captain.

  “Sir? Brogan. Don’t ram them. Run directly at them and slide over the top. As you go over them, we’ll slide into the ship in your shadow. They won’t have time to worry about you with us inside.”

  Klaxons added to the clamor, and the AI announced another hull breach.

  Todd spoke hurriedly. “Once you’ve dropped us, run. There’s nothing you can do from there. Save your crew and make sure the Devil lives to fight another day. We’ve got this. We are your secret weapon, sir.”

  The captain’s voice spoke over the speakers. “Hold all evacuations. Repeat. Hold all evacuations.”

  To Todd, he managed three words. “God speed, son.”

  Chapter Fifty-Three

  Surprise and amusement rippled across the pirate’s bridge.

  “Who are these? Meligornians?” the captain asked and his words drew another wave of laughter across the command deck despite the shock in his tone.

  The Navy destroyer they’d attacked veered toward them and shifted all power to its forward shields as it increased speed.

  “I told you to take out its engines.”

  “That was what this salvo was for.” Weapons sounded frustrated.

  And well he might, the captain thought, given that we now face her nose and bolstered shielding.

  They were so busy watching the Devil’s Care that they didn’t notice when several life pods ejected and streaked towards their hull.

  None of them heard Piet chuckle. “Nothing says ‘knock, knock’ like a hundred bombs hitting the outside of your precious little ship.”