{"id":489,"date":"2014-03-18T00:00:23","date_gmt":"2014-03-18T04:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/?p=489"},"modified":"2014-03-17T20:46:28","modified_gmt":"2014-03-18T00:46:28","slug":"thirty-five","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/?p=489","title":{"rendered":"Thirty-five"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

When the black ships came gliding out of the night, dark against the stars, we should have known the end was upon us.\u00a0 Perhaps we would have if we\u2019d had eyes to see at the time.\u00a0 We had been blinded by then and all chance of saving ourselves, all hope of Mimir\u2019s survival, had already been utterly obliterated.<\/h3>\n

— From the personal journal of Rachel Farragut<\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

19 Decem, 5249 PD<\/strong><\/p>\n

Lindsay watched the bombers against the clouds, startling slightly as she realized they were lifting higher instead of descending for another pass.\u00a0 She poked Kara hard in the ribs and pointed upward.<\/p>\n

\u201cLook,\u201d she breathed as she peered up past the leafy canopies that were their cover as they sheltered in a copse of trees a few hundred yards from the vineyard\u2019s property line. \u00a0\u201cThey\u2019re lifting.\u00a0 They\u2019re running.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRunning?\u201d\u00a0 Kara grimaced.\u00a0 \u201cAre you sure that\u2019s what they\u2019re doing?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lindsay\u2019s stomach gave an uncomfortable lurch and she swallowed.\u00a0 \u201cI sure as hell hope so.\u201d\u00a0 The alternative isn\u2019t something I want to contemplate.\u00a0 I\u2019m not even quite sure I know what the alternative would be, but I know it\u2019s not going to be something I\u2019d like.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cMe too.\u201d\u00a0 Kara edged out from under cover to get a better look.\u00a0 Gray clouds were moving in from the west and the wind was stiffening.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe there\u2019s a storm coming.\u00a0 Maybe they\u2019re breaking off because of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully that\u2019s it.\u201d\u00a0 Lindsay sucked in a breath, looking down over the rolling hills toward the sea.\u00a0 They were on Kara and Gabe\u2019s property, now, property she knew almost as well as she knew the woods where she\u2019d grown up, the woods she lived in now.\u00a0 She closed her eyes for a moment, taking a slow, deep breath.\u00a0 She could smell the smoke that drifted on the air, could taste the fuel and exhaust from the fighters and bombers.<\/p>\n

So many minds.\u00a0 So much fear.<\/i>\u00a0 She shivered.\u00a0 Kara squeezed her shoulder.<\/p>\n

\u201cReel in,\u201d her friend murmured.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not worth it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always worth it,\u201d Lindsay said, swallowing hard.\u00a0 It was only half a lie.\u00a0 She knew what she might be doing to herself.\u00a0 Her hand unconsciously strayed toward her belly, showing no sign of her pregnancy at this early stage.<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t wonder what this is going to do to all of us right now.\u00a0 All I\u2019ve to do is find Brendan.\u00a0 That\u2019s all I have to do.<\/i><\/p>\n

A thought brushed against hers, faint and frail.\u00a0 She latched onto the sense of Brendan, relief making her knees momentarily weak.<\/p>\n

I thought you were dead.\u00a0 I was afraid you were dead.<\/i><\/p>\n

The sense of him was weak, but it was there.\u00a0 You\u2019d know if I\u2019d died.\u00a0 Are you safe?<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cFor the moment.\u201d\u00a0 She murmured the words even as she pushed them to him.\u00a0 Kara grimaced, squeezing her arm.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou found him?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lindsay made a \u2018sort-of\u2019 gesture with one hand, biting her lip.\u00a0 Where are you?<\/i><\/p>\n

As safe as I can get for the moment.\u00a0 Freder and the inspector are here.\u00a0 Winston\u2019s hurt worse than I am, I think.<\/i><\/p>\n

Lindsay swallowed hard.\u00a0 How bad is it?<\/i><\/p>\n

I think I busted my ribs.\u00a0 Not sure what else.\u00a0 A lot of pain.<\/i><\/p>\n

She could feel it nibbling at the edges of her own consciousness.\u00a0 Her breath quickened.\u00a0 They had to be close.\u00a0 She caught Kara\u2019s hand and darted out into the open, heedless of what might see them.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoly shit, Lindsay, what are you\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re close!\u00a0 I can feel his pain, they\u2019re close.\u201d\u00a0 She tried to use their bond as a guide, tracking the bright thread that tied them together in her mind\u2019s eye.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t let me go.\u00a0 Don\u2019t stop talking, Brendan.\u00a0 Stay with me.<\/i><\/p>\n

She felt his pain spike and winced herself.\u00a0 His thoughts were weaker now.\u00a0 Trying.\u00a0 It\u2019s hard.\u00a0 Hurts a lot.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cJust hang on,\u201d she whispered.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re coming.\u201d<\/p>\n

We?\u00a0 Who\u2019s we?\u00a0 What are you\u2014Lin!\u00a0 Lin, no.\u00a0 You can\u2019t.<\/i><\/p>\n

She actually laughed.\u00a0 Too late.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cThere!\u201d\u00a0 Kara jerked on her arm, spinning her to the side.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re over there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lindsay blinked, eyes stinging as a gust of wind blew smoke from a smoldering bomber in their direction.\u00a0 \u201cHow do you know?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust trust me,\u201d Kara said.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s a cellar beneath that fuselage.\u00a0 They\u2019ve got to be down there if they\u2019re close.\u00a0 They\u2019re sure as hell not out in the open, are they?\u201d<\/p>\n

Brendan?\u00a0 Are you underground?<\/i><\/p>\n

Yeah,<\/i> he thought back.\u00a0 One of the cellars, I think.\u00a0 Hard to tell.\u00a0 Vision\u2019s blurry.<\/i><\/p>\n

Lindsay grimaced.\u00a0 He must have hit his head again, too, which made her even more worried than she\u2019d been a few minutes before.\u00a0 No one needed him to undo all the work that Ezra had done to patch him up again.<\/p>\n

Shit, where\u2019s Ezra?<\/i><\/p>\n

Probably at home with Alana.\u00a0 Keep talking to me, Lin.\u00a0 I keep trying to pass out and staying conscious is getting hard.\u00a0 Starting to drift.<\/i><\/p>\n

Her lips thinned as she and Kara broke into a dead run.\u00a0 Just hang in there, Brendan.\u00a0 I\u2019m coming.\u00a0 I promise, I\u2019m coming.<\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2022\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2022<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cCommunications.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tomasi looked away from her console and toward Marshal Windsor, who stared at the video and sensor feeds that their evacuating fighters were still broadcasting.\u00a0 They\u2019d keep broadcasting until they were out of range; standard operating procedure.\u00a0 It was only a matter of time, though, before they were well out of range, traveling to their destinations on the Marshal\u2019s orders.\u00a0 \u201cYes, sir?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnything from that fleet that\u2019s coming in?\u201d<\/p>\n

Tomasi checked her boards just to be sure, then shook her head slightly.\u00a0 \u201cNo, sir.\u00a0 They\u2019re running silent.\u00a0 I\u2019m not even picking up ship to ship, but…well.\u00a0 It looks like they took out some of the long range relays and sensors before they moved in for the kill.\u201d<\/p>\n

There was a collective wince and shudder that ran through the staff in operations at her poorly chosen words.\u00a0 The young pilot turned her gaze to her console, stared at her hands.<\/p>\n

Windsor\u2019s hand fell on her shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s all right,\u201d he murmured.\u00a0 \u201cWe were all thinking it.\u00a0 You\u2019re just the one that said it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, sir,\u201d the girl said quietly.\u00a0 Windsor\u2019s fingers flexed and he stepped away.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarshal, the bombers are pulling back,\u201d someone on sensors said quietly, as if they feared shouting would somehow shatter the fragile control they all maintained, as if speaking louder would leave them all utterly shattered.\u00a0 \u201cDo you think that maybe they\u2019re leaving?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot bloody likely,\u201d Windsor said, heart sinking to the level of his boots.\u00a0 \u201cThis is what it was like at Mimir.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re here to kill us all,\u201d someone said.\u00a0 \u201cThey want our planet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShips are moving into geosync.\u00a0 They may be setting for orbital bombardment.\u201d<\/p>\n

No maybe about that.<\/i>\u00a0 Windsor closed his eyes.\u00a0 I love you, Rachel.\u00a0 I love you.<\/i>\u00a0 He took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cHow many over Nova Spexi?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLooks like three, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGunports are cycling open.\u201d<\/p>\n

So this is how it ends.<\/i>\u00a0 Windsor cleared his throat.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s been an honor, ladies and gentlemen.\u201d<\/p>\n

All they could do was watch as the visual feeds showed the first of the blasts two heartbeats before the ground began to shake with the effects of the bombardment.<\/p>\n

The first siege of E-557 had begun.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When the black ships came gliding out of the night, dark against the stars, we should have known the end was upon us.\u00a0 Perhaps we would have if we\u2019d had eyes to see at the time.\u00a0 We had been blinded … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-489","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-two-ashes-to-ashes"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p25yjF-7T","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=489"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/489\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":492,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/489\/revisions\/492"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.embklitzke.com\/e557\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}