2.12 - Grudges of Fellwhim

[Transcript]Fellwhim Commune got wind of us finishing a job over in the Eadron Quadrant. . That abbot I gave a ride to way back when must have told them an abomination was loose in the Continuum. Not like I’m the only one.Hyperskiff drifters come blasting out of faster than light travel, their neutrino substrates hot on the scopes. Hamark takes co-pilot and Zery takes point on the reverse thermal accelerators on the back of the ship. Ruthin starts running in circles in the hold around her chrysalis, but no time to calm her down. The first trio of Hyperskiffs come in from linear Y fast and I have to hammer a stilted command into the console to duck the ship into a roll.Hamark gets fully integrated and I give him the stick. The Commune drifters open fire with Weak Force repeaters. One hit of those and the vitro-plastic steel will spontaneously alpha-decay under the strain.  We tuck into the Spectrum Nebula and that mistake hits us like a wall as a blistering scalpel of psychic energy slams into us. Ruthin is going more frantic but not time to worry about that. The Avantis Commune taught me a few things about cognitive duals and I managed to deflect the worst but, Shoals be damned, they must have an abbot or Creed Inquisitor on one of those hyperskiffs.Hamark and Zery are feeling it, too. Right up until Ruthin stops panicking and then goes stock still. The psychic pressure of the attack vanishes but the drifter’s hail fire from behind doesn’t let up. It’s touch and go. A few scrapes from the repeaters but no hull breaches. Hamark’s busy with flying and I start plotting coordinates. Can’t get our celestial bearings in the nebula so I settle for the metaphysic diagram. I try a nerve request but get no response. Try again, but nothing. Hamark throws us into another roll and I tumble from the cockpit to trouble shoot. Down and towards the back where the vitro-plastic steel flowers cobalt-blue veins. The thrum cage beats irregularly. The organic and elemental vault where the diaphragm breaths is soaked in blood, a hemorrhage somewhere from one of the repeater shots.There’s no time for a better plan. I cut along one of my dorsal arms, pushing my fist into the thrum cage membrane. I feel it latch on, the cobalt rich blood inculcate into my body and my own vitality bleeds into it. The diaphragm gets more stable but I start seeing dark circles. I scream for Hamark to hit the nerve request one last time.