The Line of the Sol Empress

Chapter 2.3

Celeste steeled her expression. "I would bet my life on it. In fact, I am."

"Yeah. And now you are betting my life too." Moon's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Thanks for that."

She glared at him. "Like I said before, this is more important than either of us."

"So what is so important about preserving the genetic line?"

"Tradition. The direct genetic line from Empress to Empress has continued unbroken for over a millennium. The people believe in the tradition, and the following of countless billions makes her very influential. There is great power in that, power leveraged to the benefit of all of humanity. Break the line, and the Empress will forever be diminished. Also, her genetics can open up doors that few know about."

Moon scoffed. "Well, in my experience, tradition is just peer pressure from dead people."

Celeste paused with her mouth open, staring at him. "I do not know whether to laugh or cry at that comment."

Shrugging, he said, "I usually just drink. So, what of the others in your Order of Phoenix? Why are you the last hope?"

Dark hair cascaded across both sides of her face as she dropped her head. "My dear friends... All dead. Someone must have betrayed us. I am the last one."

"For what it is worth, Priestess, I am going to do my best to keep both of us alive."

A small smile brightened her face. "I thank you for that. The moment I stepped on your ship, my life was in your hands."

Turning away, his voice took an edge. "It still is." He called out. "Sai, do you have a course solution?"

"Yes, sir. It is now displayed."

A green dotted line appeared on the holographic star chart that led to and around the red giant star.  The Phoenix Star appeared as a green triangle, the interceptor as a red triangle, and the torpedo as a blinking red triangle. Moon studied the display.

"Damn. That is going to be rough. What is our status?"

"Our current relative velocity is eighty-two-point-five C. We will reach the star corona in approximately twenty-one minutes."

He grinned. "Sai, I believe that is a new record speed for the Phoenix Star."

"Yes sir, but we won't be able to maintain it for very long. Drive coolant temperatures are approaching alert levels, and fusion reactors are operating at one-hundred-and-twelve percent capacity. Also, the torpedo is still tracking and closing. I estimate it will be only about three minutes behind us when we reach the corona, assuming we can maintain our relative velocity."

"Don't spare the horses, Sai."

"Horses, sir?"

"It's a metaphor. Maintain velocity no matter what the drive condition is."

"I see, sir."

The ship shook again. Celeste reestablished her tight grip on the arms of her chair. Color drained from her face as her eyes widened further. "Tell me the truth, what are our chances?"

Moon shrugged. "Hell, I don't know. Not good. But what does worrying about it do? It won't change my response."

"So how do you know so much about Commonwealth starships and quantum torpedoes?

He leaned back and put his hands behind his neck. "I did time in the Commonwealth Military as a starship engineer years ago, specializing in power and propulsion systems. But that only lasted a few years. They said I had a problem with following the rules." He made air quotes motions with his fingers for emphasis.

She rolled her eyes. "Why am I not surprised?"

The yellow lights on the translucent display boards transformed one-by-one to red, and then to red blinking. A chorus of beeps and screeching tones sounded.

Moon drew his lips tight. He mumbled, "That's not good." He touched an icon on the board to silence the alarms. "Sai, status!"

"Estimated time to star corona is four-point-two minutes. Estimated torpedo impact at current velocities is seven-point-five minutes. The quantum drive temperatures have reached critical levels. Automatic safety shutdown is imminent, sir."

"Bypass the shutdowns, Sai."

"Sir, I must remind you--"

"I am aware of the risk of implosion, Sai. The risk from that torpedo is greater. Bypass the shutdowns. We'll cut the drive when we enter the corona. Are the thrusters ready for full output?"

"Yes, sir."

He turned toward Celeste, whose eyes seemed to have grown even wider. "Here comes the fun part, Priestess. Better buckle in."

She lowered her head. "For what it is worth, Moon, thank you for helping me."

Moon turned away from her. "There is another saying: no good deed goes unpunished. I just hope this one is not a capital offense."