Part 38 (1/2)

”Incoming blaster fire,” Ranth reported.

”Raise s.h.i.+elds to maximum. Evasive tactics” Vax ordered. ”Return fire at will.”

Zical gestured to Dr. Laduna's body. ”Place his body in a shroud and launch him out an airlock. I don't want his DNA aboard for the Sentinel to shoot at.”

”Yes, sir.”

Zical turned from the dead scientist to her, piercing Dora with a direct, hard gaze that revealed his determination. She knew he would never give up, no matter the high probability of failure.

And yet he didn't deceive himself or his crew either. ”We can't outfight an entire fleet of Jarn.”

Her gaze flashed to the vidscreen even as she linked with Ranth's sensor array. The Jarn were trying to prevent them docking with Guranu.

Zical fired rapid orders at her. ”Infiltrate the Jarn computer systems. Help me get the Verazen to Guranu.”

233.

”Understood,” Dora replied, aware that Zical would do what he could to keep the s.h.i.+p flying. But against an entire fleet, the likelihood of success was close to zero. It was only a matter of time until the formidable opposition struck their s.h.i.+p, slowed their momentum, or hit a vital part of the Verazen. But failure meant that the Jarn's mission to turn off all the Sentinels would succeed, leaving the galaxy open for invasion.

Leaning against a wall, Dora took one last deep breath then left her body behind, applying her entire attention to her task. Forcing the psi link to pull all her mind into Ranth, she didn't hold back even a tiny fraction of her self. She'd merged many times, but never before had she linked every last particle of her consciousness. No longer could she feel her chest moving up and down with each breath.

No longer could she feel the bulkhead behind her back, the deck beneath her feet, taste the bitter fear in her mouth, or hear Vax and Zical devising strategy to keep them alive enough to survive until she and Ranth could help.

Energy from Dora's, body fed her psi. Ranth called upon his vast store of power and together they pushed forward the attacking fleet. With the s.h.i.+elds of Jarn s.h.i.+ps locked down tight, she and Ranth didn't try to push against the force fields or tug at the energy patterns, but searched for a crack.

Here.

Ranth led the way and together they wormed inside, through the hull, into the computer's heart. With a psi thought, Dora incapacitated weapons. Ranth disabled communications. Together they plunged into the core and fried the drive, withdrawing a nanosecond before the s.h.i.+p imploded, the hull squashed in h.e.l.lish heat and melting metal.

One by one, they found the key to infiltrate the Jarn s.h.i.+ps, but since the Verazen was so outnumbered, they required swifter measures to accomplish their goal. They had to be more efficient, faster, deal with more of the enemy in one psi attack. Even as Dora and Ranth contemplated the problem, a laser burst targeted their s.h.i.+p. Only a brilliant and severe last-second course change saved them from instantaneous death.

Together Ranth and Dora repeated the procedure on s.h.i.+p after s.h.i.+p, searching for a more efficient means to cause ma.s.sive destruction. They took out a squad in nanoseconds but their efforts weren't fast enough.

Ranth we need to split up.

Your human mind cannot withstand part.i.tioning.

Dora understood. The link between her body and mind might detach under the stress. If she weakened, she might never be able to return to her body and she would die. Even as she worried for her unborn child, she made the necessary decision, the only decision, her soul wailing at the necessity.

If we don't save the s.h.i.+p, I won't have a brain to worry about.

Compliance.

234.

Ranth split their consciousness weakening them, but they'd doubled their productivity. Spilt again.

At four times their original speed, they tapped into s.h.i.+p after s.h.i.+p, becoming more efficient, deadlier, faster. And still the fleet closed in on the Verazen, ignoring their terrible losses, their Jarn will unbreakable as they flew into the death and destruction of Dora's and Ranth's lethal attacks.

a.n.a.lysis, Dora demanded, the connection to her body almost gone. She'd become lost in the cybers.p.a.ce of infiltrate, attack, disable.

We fail within thirty seconds.

Split again You cannot. You will die.

We have no other option.

Wake Kirek, Ranth suggested . He will lend his strength to ours.

No. he must be at full strength to get past the Sentinel's guard. Split again. Do it.

Dora's mind fractured into multistreaming ribbons. And each ribbon wormed through cracks to the Jarn s.h.i.+elds, sought out command and control and altered the drive.

Disable. Destroy.

In the far recesses of her mind, she weakened, drew on last reserves of energy.

Single-mindedly she held one thought first and foremost. One goal.

Demolish the fleet.

Save Zical.

He must live. And as she used the final supply of her humanity, she finally understood what Zical had been trying to tell her. On the verge of losing her life, she'd never appreciated living more. On the edge of losing her future, she wanted to live to bear her child. She wanted to raise their child with the man she loved.

She loved Zical.

Even as she destroyed and killed and attacked, she pushed herself harder, longer, to save him, his s.h.i.+p, his mission. She loved him. She fed on that love, letting the strength of emotion push her past her last reserves, until the Jarn fleet was no more. She loved him. That's why she'd picked him out among the billions of ent.i.ties. She'd always loved him, she simply hadn't recognized the emotion.

Now she was certain of her love.

And then like a burst of energy that flashes too hot, she was done. Finished.

Goodbye, my love.

Zical held Dora in his arms, hugging her close. Tears streamed down his face. Stars.

He hadn't known that losing her would feel as if a part of him had been lost. Shattered.

235.

He hadn't known that his insides would churn like raw acid. That the agony would rip his heart to shreds.

She'd paid the ultimate price to take out the Jarn fleet and to save them all. And while her heart still beat and her lungs drew air, Ranth had informed him that it was only a matter of time before her body gave out.

She'd stretched her mind past the snapping point. Not even a healing circle could bring her back. There was nothing of her spirit left to gather.