Flight From Sanctuary is about to depart. Line up for early boarding! Part three of your sneak preview of Star Mage Saga book six is two days late, sorry. If you missed part one, click here.

Chapter Three

Parthenia watched Carina suiting up, her expression sad but resolute. Parthenia’s feelings were the same. Just when they could finally resume their long voyage to Earth, yet another obstacle stood in their way, and this one seemed insurmountable. The Regians had stranded them, emptying even the Peregrine’s fuel tanks, and now the aliens were about to attack.

The injustice of it all made her bitter. They’d fought so hard and been through so much, why couldn’t they get just one break? One thing that would come easy to them, that they didn’t have to fight tooth and nail for?

She snapped her helmet locks in place and gently sucked on the tube that connected to her elixir reservoir. A small amount of the sour liquid spurted into her mouth.

As she looked up again, she saw Carina crossing the armory, walking toward her.

Her sister’s face was grave as she put a hand on Parthenia’s shoulder. “I just want to be sure you understand. You have to protect the kids first, the same as last time, okay? I’m relying on you.”

“Is it going to be the same as before, though?” Parthenia asked.

The previous battle with the Regians had been short and decisive. The mages hadn’t needed to Cast Split much—they’d focused on Healing the soldiers who had been burned with acid during the initial assault.

From the demeanor of her sister and the men and women around her, no one expected things to go so smoothly this time around.

“Honestly? I don’t know,” Carina replied. “We don’t know exactly how many Regians are coming, but if those ships are only carrying a few hundred of them each, we’re going to have a hard time. We have to prevent them from boarding, then we should be okay. But if they break through somehow, we’re gonna be swamped. I don’t know if it’s much consolation, but if that happens and we lose, the Regians might decide not to use mages as hosts.”

Revulsion swept over Parthenia as she recalled the time she’d spent as the aliens’ captive—the dreadful cold, darkness, and humidity of their planet; her desperate attempts to make elixir to save her brothers and sisters; and how she’d forced her way through suffocating soil to make her escape. “I’m not going back to that place. I swear, I’d rather die.”

Carina looked down for a moment as if debating how to respond. When she raised her face, it was full of fire. “That’s the wrong attitude! You have to survive, Parthenia, no matter what. You must live. You never know what might happen. I don’t want you to ever give up, okay? Even if the situation seems hopeless. Promise me you won’t give up.”

Parthenia chewed her lip.

Carina grabbed both her shoulders and gave her a gentle shake. “Promise me!”

“Okay! I promise.”

“Good. I have to go now. When the battle begins, stay at the back with Darius and Nahla, at a safe distance. Cast Split to help us out when you can, of course, but your priority is the youngsters. Jace won’t be there to help you. He’s at another airlock with Ferne and Oriana. I need you to do this for me.”

“All right. I hear you.”

Carina nodded, appearing satisfied, and then returned to the group of soldiers who were still suiting up.

Her sister had taken command, as she had in the earlier battle. She seemed the obvious candidate, given her military experience and her knowledge of what the mages could do, and no one had objected.

Parthenia understood why Carina had made her responsible for the protection of their siblings: she couldn’t organize the defense of the ship and safeguard their brothers and sisters. Her sister’s instruction didn’t feel like an imposition, as once it would have. Parthenia wasn’t sure why—if Carina had changed or she had.

A hand touched her arm.

She turned to see Kamil.

“I wanted to—” he said, but before he could finish, Parthenia hugged him tight, their armored chests crushing together.

After a moment of surprise, he hugged her back.

“I was going to come and find you,” said Parthenia, “after we messaged. But I had to make sure my brothers and sisters were settled in.”

“It’s okay,” he replied. “I also thought we’d have plenty of time to see each other. I didn’t want to crowd you. You’ve been through a lot.”

“We all have. Oh, I wish you had come to see me, or I’d gone to see you.”

“It can’t be helped now. We weren’t to know what would happen.”

They’d been holding each other awkwardly as they talked. Parthenia let go of Kamil and looked up at his face, visible through his open visor.

She wanted to kiss him. It might be her last opportunity. But she couldn’t do it unless they took off their helmets, and it was too late for that.

“When this is over, we shouldn’t wait to meet up,” she said.

“No, we shouldn’t,” Kamil agreed. “Not this time. As soon as the battle’s finished, I’ll comm you.”

“Or I’ll comm you. As soon as it’s over.”

Kamil gave her a long look without speaking, and Parthenia understood his unspoken meaning. They were both thinking the same thing: their chances of seeing each other again were slim.

A lump swelled in her throat. Life was so unfair. Why couldn’t they have had more time together? Her chin trembled, and Kamil’s face blurred in her vision.

“Just try not to get hurt, okay?” she mumbled.

Through her tears, she saw him smile. “Not getting hurt is my number one tactic.”

Parthenia swallowed. “How can you joke about it?”

In a more serious tone, Kamil answered, “It’s the only way to get through it.”

Then his features brightened once more. “Anyway, if I do get hurt, you can save me again.”

“I’m not a magician! If you’re seriously wounded, I can’t—”

He raised a gloved hand and placed his forefinger on her lips, repeating, “I’ll comm you as soon as the battle’s finished.”

As he went to join his group, who were heading out to guard one of the airlocks, Parthenia watched him.

***

Carina comm’d Bryce. She’d sent him with Ferne, Oriana, Jace, and the mercs Halliday and Jackson to the airlock that adjoined the Deep Sleep chamber. Thirty more Black Dogs accompanied them, while she’d kept most of Mezban’s soldiers with her. Due to their commander’s traitorous actions, she didn’t fully trust them.

“All set?” she asked him.

“All set. How about you?”

“We’re nearly ready. Just about to head out.”

“Got an ETA on the Regians?”

“Hsiao reckons another six minutes until the ships arrive.”

“It’s a pity we can’t blast them before they get here.”

The soldiers in the armory were ready and awaiting orders. Carina told them to follow her. She was going to lead the defense of the main airlock.

As she strode from the chamber she continued her conversation with Bryce. “Yeah, but we can’t fire a shot without any juice.”

Without fuel, the Bathsheba’s space armaments were useless. Her human passengers were her only defense.

They had to prevent the hordes of aliens from gaining a foothold inside the ship. If the Regians broke through the line of resistance at any of the airlocks, it would all be over. Like a rising tide, the aliens would sweep in, overwhelming anyone who stood in their way.

“At least a tough decision’s been taken out of our hands,” said Bryce. “It wouldn’t feel right to hurt the living starships.”

The objection had occurred to Carina, too, before she realized the Bathsheba’s weapons were dead anyway. The creatures were acting against their will in bringing the aliens to mount a second assault. Hurting them would have felt very wrong

“Yeah, I guess in a way we’re lucky it’s out of our hands,” she said.

“How many ships are coming?”

“Fifty-eight.”

“Fifty-eight?”

Carina didn’t answer. There was nothing she could say to make their situation seem better.

“And how many Regians is that?” Bryce asked.

“You saw how big the ship that brought us here was. She could accommodate two or three hundred human beings. As to how many Regians would fit aboard one of them, it has to be the same amount, maybe more if they squeeze them in.”

Bryce seemed lost for words.

“When they arrive we’ll have a better idea about where they’re going to concentrate their forces,” said Carina. “I may move some troops and mages around according to where the fighting is heaviest.”

“We’ll be listening for orders.”

“I know. Good luck.”

“You, too,” Bryce replied. He didn’t close the comm, however, and neither could Carina bring herself to do it. Silence hung between them like a suffocating blanket.

She’d arrived at the main airlock. She checked the time. The Regians were due in three minutes, yet she still couldn’t say anything more to Bryce or close the channel linking them.

He was the first to crack. “Carina, I—”

“Don’t say it.”

She heard his breathy sigh.

“We might not see each other again,” he said.

“It’s a strong possibility, I admit, but, please, let’s not go there, huh? I just can’t. It’s too much.”

“If you say so.” Bryce’s tone was pained.

She was also hurting, but the idea of speaking as if they would never see each other again only hurt worse.

“I’ll keep you updated,” she said crisply, and closed the comm at last.

I hope you enjoyed the third snippet of Flight From Sanctuary. Check in next Saturday for the final extract before the book goes live.