Obsidian gradually woke to the familiar hum of Amarok’s engines. Darkness surrounded him, save for the faintest sliver of light where his bed’s shutter met the bottom frame. The isolated feeling was a warm welcome, improved only by the sleeping pony pressing her weight down on his body underneath the blanket.
Searching for the time, Obsidian remembered he had placed his VMUI at the corner of the bed. His hoof moved slowly towards it, careful not to wake Glare. A gentle tap on his device activated the screen’s back-light. Reading the time quickly, he laid the device screen-down to block out the light. Silently yawning, he gave the unicorn a quick nuzzle and closed his eyes once more.
Obsidian’s ear twitched at the sound of knocking against the pressure door. He ignored it, as another set of knocks made themselves heard. After a third set, Glare stirred. “You going to get that?” she mumbled.
“Guess I’ll have to.” Obsidian placed his hooves around Glare, rolling the pair gently towards the wall. Releasing her, Obsidian rolled back towards the shutter, cracking it open slightly and looking around. With no one in sight, he opened it a little more and slithered out.
Opening the pressure doors as knocks were heard for a fourth time, the changeling found himself scowling once again at the same pony who delivered documents to him last time. Without any exchange of words, the changeling took the stack from the pony and retreated back into his quarters, throwing the folders onto the table without reading them. After another quick scan of his surroundings, he slipped back under his bed’s shutter and closed it.
“What was that all about?” Glare whispered, wary of the other crew in their beds.
Obsidian wormed his way back under the blanket. “Bunch of documents. Didn’t read them. Just saw our names on them.”
“New assignment, I guess?”
“Probably. We’ve gone a good two months without one now. Security detail is starting to get old.”
“Hmm.”
Silence fell. The changeling could sense something was nagging at Glare, and predicted an impending question. “What’s on your mind?”
“How did you—”
“Changeling.”
“Right. So”—Glare rolled onto her side, propping her head up with a hoof—“you’re able to manipulate emotions as well, right?”
“To an extent, yes. And before you ask, no, I’ve never done that to you.”
“I wasn’t going to ask you that. In fact, I was going to ask why you never did it to me after Enigma.”
“You mean why didn’t I drain you of the emotions you felt after we got back aboard Amarok?”
Glare nodded.
“Emotion manipulation is merely a delay tactic,” Obsidian explained. “As soon as the effects wear off, you’re back to where you started. Even if I had only partially removed those emotions to numb such feelings, you’d end up in the same situation when it happens again. No, you needed to sort yourself out with your faculties intact.”
“That’s a chilling thought. The prospect of having to take another life again, that is.”
“You persevered once. You can do it again. The key difference is that this time, you’re prepared.”
“I just—I just don’t want to reach a point where it desensitises me. As much as I’d hate to go through all of that again, I’m thinking it would be better I felt that way, than to not feel anything at all. That’s a part of me I don’t want to lose, because what then? I no longer care? I start enjoying it? That’s what scares me the most.”
“Glare, that’s not going to happen.”
“How do you know? How can you be so sure?”
Obsidian shrugged. “Guess I’ve just got a good feeling about you. Right, I should probably raid the galley before my duty starts.”
“Do you have to?” Glare whined. Stretching, she nudged herself closer to the changeling. “Sleep in a bit more. I can be your breakfast.”
“You know I’d never feed on—wait, was that innuendo?”
Glare looked at Obsidian with a sheepish grin. “Too much?”
“A little. Seriously though, I need to go.”
“Five more minutes?”
“Fine. You’re lucky you’re warm and soft.”
Glare giggled, wrapping her hooves around Obsidian, and the pair closed their eyes once more. Obsidian opened his shortly after, frowning. “There’s still something on your mind.”
“Nothing gets by you, huh? Actually, the other thing on my mind is what’s on your mind. I don’t have to be a changeling to figure out there was always something eating away at you, and I'm guessing it probably has something to do with Equestria, or your past. Maybe both. Either way, I'm concerned for you.”
Obsidian sighed. “Fine. I owe you at least that much, don’t I? Do you remember what I said about ‘lings forming a temporary connection when we share energy? And what happens when the recipient is dying?”
“Yeah?”
“Well there’s more to it. The effect on the donor’s psychological well-being can be devastating, even for just one such connection. Some ‘lings take it pretty bad. Most, actually. You know, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been asked why I hate Equestria so much, and most times I’d just keep my mouth shut. They wouldn’t understand. Words cannot express … what you go through.”
“Try, anyway.”
“I don’t know. It’s like … maybe it’s like a surgeon losing that first patient, or watching someone slip from your hooves over a cliff. Except it's on a completely different level. More intense. Vivid. Persistent. Even that doesn’t come close to describing the connection and it’s effects.”
“How many times have you done this?”
“A terminal connection? Exactly one hundred and four times. One of the rare few who could handle more than one or two.”
Glare frowned. She knew the experience must have been awful, yet as much as she tried to empathise, the unicorn could not. “Obsidian, I want you to make me understand.”
“I’ve tried to think of some way, but I don’t think I can.”
“You mentioned in the hospital that only the strongest emotions could be coherent. I assume that’s what happened with my father?”
The changeling’s eyes grew wide, and he almost scrambled away. “Whoah. Glare, no. I know where you’re going with this. No. No, that’s not going to happen. What I showed your father was one thing, but this is something else entirely.”
“You don’t have to suffer alone.”
“No.”
“Obsidian—”
“Not happening. Drop it.”
“Will you stop being so … so damn aloof all the time?” Glare hissed. “If we’re going to make us work, you need to let me in. No more secrets, remember?”
“I’m not—I—I need to go. I’ll see you later.” Wasting no time, the changeling slid under the shutter, donning his pressure suit and departing in a hurry.
“Obsidian!” Glare called out in a whisper. After the pressure doors closed, Glare hammered a hoof on the pillow. Grumbling, she rolled onto her back and pulled the blanket over herself.
Tossing about over the next few minutes, Glare sighed. Opening the shutter, the unicorn checked her surroundings and levitated the documents on the table toward her. Turning the reading light on, she opened the folder with her name on it.
Good day to you, Infiltrator. Your upcoming assignment is as follows:
In recent months, Infiltrators aboard the stealth destroyer Basilisk have been tasked with capturing key figures in the ranks of the Turanic Raiders for interrogation. Several of their officers, including fleet commanders, have revealed most if not all emerging technology fielded by the Raiders, past or present, is being developed in a single research facility. The subjects claim they are unaware of its location, however they did point us in the direction of one place that may have answers.
Silicon Oasis: An old civilian installation converted into a Raider recreational base. According to each subject, the base is a popular point for off-duty crew to moor their ships and stay for weeks or months at a time. It is also the ideal place for networking, or circulating news, with key figures regularly visiting the installation. As such, infiltrating this base will be vital to gathering intel.
Amarok will approach, find a suitable point of ingress, and retreat to a safe distance. Due to possible advancements in Raider sensors, Amarok’s prolonged presence in the vicinity may cause detection. As such, no immediate support will be available within the installation.
Your orders are to gather intel on the whereabouts of both the research base, and on potential high-value targets. To assist, several documents have been provided as infiltration aids, if Raider interaction is necessary. Additional objectives may be set by either Lieutenant Commander Shadow, or through Amarok as required.
Document 2A outlines details for a stolen goods trader cover. An insignificant magical artefact will be provided as a sample product to support this story, with document 3A included as an instructional guide on the item’s usage. 2B and 2C contain information on slave trader or recruitment covers. In either scenario, you will act as the participant.
Lieutenant Sparky will be issued custom-made armour to appear more Raider-like, while Chief Obsidian shall use his abilities to achieve the same results. Specialists Swift and Shift will remain on standby, acting as directed by Lieutenant Commander Shadow. All three are advised against following the other Infiltrators unless necessary, to ensure a low profile.
In addition to the aforementioned documents, several others have been included for planning and preparation. Document 1A outlines all relevant information pertaining to the installation. Due to the nature of this mission, document 4A details the significant amount of equipment to be provided for use in the event the squad is compromised.
“Sorry I’m late,” Quasar announced his presence as he entered. “Ensign Sierra had me reviewing a larger than expected maintenance log.” Moving to the head of the briefing room, his second in command stepped out of the way and allowed the Captain to proceed as he addressed the Infiltrators. “You’re probably wondering why I’ve joined you all for this particular briefing. Commander? What have you told them so far?”
“Nothing yet, sir. You weren’t that late.”
“Right, then.” Quasar faced the Infiltrators seated around him. “You’ve had a read through your briefing packages already, but this is going to be more of a conference, or debate, than an actual briefing. Suffice it to say, we have little information to go off, which admittedly, is a recurring theme for us. However, we haven’t finalised a plan yet, and figured we’d get your input. Commander?”
Eclipse stepped forward. “So, first thing’s first. The data on the exterior of the base is limited, but we know it is littered with static defences, both on the surface of the base, and on hundreds of missile platforms around it. Before we can even start to think about the objectives, we need to find a way to get to that base.”
“Given we are having this discussion, I assume the usual method is out of the question?” Obsidian asked.
“Unfortunately after our last mission, a lot of things have been called into question, including the effectiveness of our cloak generators,” Quasar explained. “We know the base is old. What we don’t know is if it has been outfitted with the same sensors that detected us. Fleet Intelligence has advised us to go no nearer than five klicks to any capital ship, with a recommendation of at least ten, so, we’re open to suggestions.”
Shift spoke first. “How about we allow ourselves to be captured somewhere nearby?”
“Too great a risk,” Shadow replied, before Quasar or Eclipse could open their mouths. “We’d have no guarantee of surviving, plus we’d likely be stripped of our equipment. Besides, we might not even be taken to the base at all.”
“Took the words right out of my mouth,” Eclipse agreed. “I had thought perhaps our Deckhoof might be able to perform a series of teleportations while the rest of the team floats through space, but the issue with that is visibility. Flashes like that would draw too much attention.”
“Why don’t we just float all the way then?” Swift proposed. “You bring us in as close as possible, and we coast along for a bit.”
Quasar sighed. “Yeah, that’s the best we’ve been able to come up with as well. It’s time-consuming, but at least it’s discreet. We’d need to stock you all up with sufficient oxygen though. Unfortunately, we can’t map out the base without risking detection, and I’d never ask you to teleport blindly, in case you get stuck in a floor or wall. This means you’ll have to perform some recon once you’re on the external surface, to find a safe point of ingress.”
“Do you have some cameras to spare?” Glare enquired. “If I can pick up a data transmission from one that I teleport inside, I should be able to figure out how to bring everypony else in, too.”
“That’s … brilliant. Why haven’t we thought of that?” Pulling a notepad out from his pocket, Eclipse quickly scribbled something onto a new page.
Obsidian cleared his throat. “This is all well and good, but I’m a little concerned about the time factor. Say we leave Amarok five klicks from the base. Now suppose it takes us … fifteen minutes to float there. That’s fifteen minutes we’re just sitting ducks. And at those speeds, how do we safely decelerate?”
Eclipse turned to the changeling. “Do you have a better idea, Chief? We considered the possibility of re-purposing one of our torpedoes to get you close to the base, but even if you arrive cloaked, there’s only ninety seconds worth of it. Once it becomes visible, you’ll likely be hunted down or captured. If Raiders find ordnance just floating about, Amarok will likely be next.”
Shadow raised her voice. “Funny you should mention hunting and capturing, actually.”
“You have a suggestion, Commander?”
The zebra hummed. “Perhaps. Who can approach the station?”
Eclipse blinked. “Uhh, Raiders?”
“Exactly. So you find a lone ship, we capture it, and my team can use that to get aboard the station.”
“You’re suggesting we grab one of their Daggers and get you six to dock at the base?”
Quasar cut in. “No, frigs would be too conspicuous. I like the idea, but you’d need something smaller. A Thief would work perfectly. They’ve got the space for six, and they’ve got equipment to cut through a hull if they can’t go in through the front door.”
“Wait, we can’t do that. Amarok’s a destroyer,” Eclipse argued. “We don’t have the agility to keep up with ‘vettes that might make multiple course corrections. One minor deviation from the Thief while the infiltration tunnel is active, and we’ll be sending all of you through space.”
Glare raised a hoof. “What if I just teleported everypony over? I’m familiar with the internals of Raider ships, so getting stuck won’t be an issue. If you’re cloaked, we get close, and it’s just one simple spell. Though perhaps we might need to limit it to one or two being teleported to the ship.”
“That still doesn’t solve the problem of how a destroyer would intercept a corvette though,” Obsidian retorted.
“That shouldn’t be a problem,” Quasar replied. “As soon as we arrive in the system, we’ll comb through sensors, filtering out any contact that isn’t a Thief. We’ll monitor vectors and plot estimated courses. Ensign Sierra can then short-jump us along a target’s estimated track, while matching velocity as best we can and nudging ourselves as close as safely possible.” Turning to Glare, he added, “Then it will be all up to you, Deckhoof.”
“Send me in alone to subdue the crew,” Obsidian volunteered. “Wing blades would be safer than pulsars.”
Eclipse nodded. “Fair point. Can’t risk stray rounds damaging the ‘vette. Alright, this plan seems doable. We might refine the steps a little, but I think we can work with this. Now, onto your objectives once you’ve made it aboard the installation …”
As the insertion beam faded away, Obsidian and Glare found themselves floating alone outside Amarok. Lighting her horn up, Glare searched for the invisible destroyer, until she felt Amarok’s presence. Pulling herself and Obsidian towards it, Amarok became visible when the pair was less than half a metre from it’s camouflaged surface.
With no time to react, the pair hit the hull flat against their bellies, winding them. Securing their front mag boots, they lied prone and raised their heads. Immediately, Amarok disappeared from view. Looking over at Obsidian, Glare yelped and almost jumped off into the void when she saw the changeling’s disembodied head looking back at her.
“This is a little creepy,” Obsidian commented. Lowering his head, everything came into view again.
Glare mimicked the action. “I’ll say. I almost leapt out of my suit when I saw you!”
Obsidian opened his comms. “Eclipse, we’re in position.”
“Understood, Chief,” Eclipse replied. “Stand by.”
While the two waited, their eyes travelled up. Pinpricks of stars were strewn across a blackened void, twinkling with various colours and intensities. Partially hidden over the destroyer’s forward hull were denser clouds of stars, in the direction of Balcora. At the opposite end, a section of space appeared devoid of light, where the two assumed a nearby asteroid belt lied.
Before they could take in more of their surroundings, Eclipse’s voice returned. “Alright Deckhoof, Amarok is in position below the Thief’s estimated course. The ‘vette’s vertical blind spot is below negative three-zero degrees. As soon as you’re in the blind spot, we will perform a four-second roll, rotating two-eight degrees until you’re aligned with the Thief’s course. Remember, this will be a negative three G manoeuvre for you and the Chief, so ensure your mags are properly secured. Time until manoeuvre: Two minutes.”
“Understood,” Glare replied, terminating communications. “Hey, Obsidian?”
“Yeah?”
“I know this is probably not the right time, but I just wanted to apologise.”
“What for?”
“About our argument before. I was selfish for prying—”
“You weren’t being selfish, and you don’t need to apologise. Don’t worry about it.” Sitting upright, Obsidian quickly changed the topic. “You know what? If it weren’t for the fact that we need our pressure suits out here, this would be a perfect spot for a picnic.”
Glare followed suit, trying not to focus on the top half of a floating changeling. “I never would have figured you’d be one for picnics.”
“I don’t care much for them. You know me. I prefer small, enclosed spaces, rather than a park or something. That said, I think I’ll make an exception, given our location.”
Glare moved up beside the changeling. “I’d probably prefer it at Balcora, though,” she said, leaning towards Obsidian and covering up her helmet camera for good measure.
Obsidian placed a wing around Glare after covering up his own camera. “See, that’s a little too much. Too bright for my liking. However, this”—he gestured above—“is perfect. If I knew how to teleport, I’d probably stick a few tubes of food paste in my helmet, take an hour of oxygen, and sit out here while off-duty.”
“Only problem is, how do you sit comfortably when your hind mags are engaged?”
Obsidian shrugged. “How about a tether? Your body will be relaxed in any position if you’re weightless, so sitting is pointless.”
Eclipse’s voice returned. “Chief, Deckhoof, the Thief is less than a minute away. You two ready?”
“We’re as ready as we’ll be, Commander,” Glare confirmed.
“Uhh, are you two alright out there?” Eclipse added. “We can’t see anything from your helmet feeds.”
“Yeah, we’re fine. I just wanted to see how quickly you guys reacted to that,” Obsidian lied, as he and Glare uncovered their cameras. The pair engaged the rest of their mag boots and positioned themselves securely against Amarok.
“Not the best time to be running experiments, Chief,” Eclipse lectured, before proceeding with the final countdown for Amarok’s manoeuvre. “Rolling in three … two … one …”
Obsidian and Glare felt a powerful force attempt to pull the two away from the hull, as Amarok started to spin. Though their mag boots held firmly, a definite strain was felt on their hooves, as if something attempted to stretch them vertically. As quickly as the force made itself known, Amarok stabilised itself, and weightlessness returned. Looking around, most of the stars towards the galactic centre were now in sight, though neither had time to enjoy the view.
“I see the corvette,” Glare announced. As the vessel approached, she started to make out its features, beyond the mottled black and yellow livery that gave each Raider craft their distinctive appearance. Underneath the cockpit was a stubby, tapered cylinder with a pair of hatches on its front face. Mounted to either side behind and slightly above were mass-driver turrets, raised just enough away from the hull to allow coverage past the bulging block that made up the rear half, sporting four engines.
Steadying her breathing, she focused. Lighting up her horn, she looked towards Obsidian. Receiving a nod, the changeling disappeared in a flash. As the corvette passed overhead, Glare saw a faint flash shining out of the cockpit. A few seconds later, the vessel started veering wildly in multiple directions and at one point entering a spin. After half a minute, the corvette finally stabilised.
After an uneasy silence, Obsidian’s voice came through. “Amarok, the Thief is secured. Will keep the ‘vette on course, as I don’t trust myself with piloting this thing.”
“Understood Chief. Already on an intercept course. Will extract you via the insertion beam,” Eclipse replied. After a moment, he added, “Are you able to adjust heading slightly by zero-zero-seven, zero-two, at least?”
Deciding to join up with the changeling, Glare teleported into the corvette’s cabin. She immediately regretted the decision, sighting eleven bodies piled around the back of the cramped interior, with yellow sprays and spatterings of blood decorating the walls, and sizeable globs coalescing in mid-air. The unicorn fought valiantly to ensure her last meal remained where it had been, out of fear she’d drown in her own helmet.
Looking back and finding the nauseated unicorn, Obsidian moved away from the controls. “Ahh, right, I was going to suggest you teleport directly back into Amarok to avoid seeing this.” Flicking some blood off a wing, he moved around Glare, rotating her to face forward. “There. Out of sight, out of mind.”
“Heh, sounds like something Swift and Shift would say.”
Obsidian pulled an almost disgusted expression. “Well, I certainly wasn’t going for that.”
“Chief? You still with us?” Eclipse asked. “You able to comply with the heading adjustment?”
“Oh, right,” Obsidian flapped his wings a few times towards the controls, while replying, “Yes, still here. Adjusting heading … and done. I think.”
“Looks good from our end,” Eclipse replied. “Thanks. And good work.”
Obsidian gave Glare a sidelong glance. “Wow, did I just get a compliment?”
“I think they’re warming up to you.”
“Now let’s not go overboard.”
“Technically, we already have.”
“… That was a horrible joke, and you should feel horrible, Glare.”
Disengaging from Amarok after its crew scrubbed the corvette clean and loaded it up with their equipment, Shadow headed away from Amarok. Setting course for the Raider station, she took the long way around, heading through the dense and fragmented asteroid cluster.
Having had the time to familiarise herself with the ship’s systems, the zebra used the corvette’s original transponder codes and received clearance to dock from an automated communication system. After receiving the appropriate vectors, she allowed the vessel to coast along at a reasonable speed.
At the weapon’s station, Obsidian noticed a contact on the ship’s sensors, approaching on an intercept course. “Shadow. Two o’clock high.”
“I see it.”
“What do you want to do?”
“Keep our turrets ready, but don’t track the target.”
Levelling off to their starboard was another Thief. Shadow watched as the corvette flew alongside. After a few seconds, it accelerated hard, pulling ahead momentarily, before slowing back to maintain a broad formation. It repeated the action once again, shooting past, then decelerating.
Swift craned his neck, watching the other vessel. “I think we’re being challenged to a race. Do that thing they just did.”
“Swift, now is not the time,” Shadow lectured.
“If you want to blend in, I think this would be the perfect time,” Swift countered.
Obsidian could not help but agree. “He’s right for once. When in Canterlot, do as the ponies do.”
“I have a feeling I’m going to regret this.” Shaking her head, Shadow took the controls, mimicking the other ship’s actions. Almost instantly, the other corvette was off at full burn.
Shadow followed, pinning everyone to their seats as she pursued the Raider. Catching up from a couple of hundred metres away, the zebra observed the corvette, chasing as it lightly grazed an asteroid and turned to follow the trail of rocks. As she closed the distance, the corvette performed a sharp turn and pitched up, burning radially out for a moment to match its track to its next heading.
Swinging wide, Shadow narrowly avoided an asteroid. Losing ground, she accelerated once more, while her passengers were on the verge of passing out. As the asteroid field started to clear up, the two corvettes rejoined. Looking out once more at the ship now off her port, Shadow watched it waggle, banking clockwise and anti-clockwise in short, quick movements.
Waggling too, Shadow relaxed a bit. “I think we’re done he—HEY!” she yelled, as the Raider rammed sideways into her ship, towards another asteroid nearby. The two armoured engine nozzles on the right side of the ship caught against the rim of a crater, causing the corvette to spin wildly. Fighting with the controls, Shadow halted the spinning and cut the engines.
“Are they mad?” Glare yelled. “They just tried to kill us! And as far as they’re concerned, we’re one of them!”
Inspecting her instruments and readouts for signs of damage, Shadow was surprised to see nothing significant was affected. “At least these ships are sturdy. Let’s just get to the station.”
“Preferably before we destroy our only guaranteed ride out of there,” Glare added, watching as Shadow adjusted the corvette’s heading back towards their destination.
Comprised of multiple structures akin to scaled-up skyscrapers, the station was brimming with activity, emitting lights from multiple levels at the many view-ports distributed across all sides. Small tunnel-like assemblies snaked away from each structure in bundles, splitting off and taking detours around the entire station to form a complex, interconnected highway which elongated pods travelled along.
A ring of berths and hangars surrounded the station, from simple telescopic bridge connections, to small hangars and larger tub-shaped housings for capital ships. A fly-by of the station suggested the number of ships docked were likely in the hundreds.
As Shadow made her final approach and followed the guidance system of the station, the others readied themselves. Sparky donned his armour, ensuring no part of his body could be seen underneath the overlapping plates. Obsidian went bipedal and tried different styles of Raider appearances in front of the twins, while the pegasi provided commentary and criticism on each illusion.
“Eh, too plain.”
“Too flashy.”
“Red and black? Seriously?”
“Ugh, fine. You know what? Just go for it. Who knows, maybe you’ll blend in with that edgy look. You’ve already got a suitable name to go with it.”
“You think I’m stupid enough to use my real name with a disguise? And what’s wrong with a scar on the armour?” Obsidian argued.
Swift pointed to the illusion’s chest. “Mate, just look at it. You’re gonna put a large, diagonal cut on the chest plate? Come on! What, you’re going to put one of those knife fight scars over one of your eyes as well?”
“Shut up, I’m sticking to this. And you of all ponies shouldn’t be talking about scars.”
“Hey, I earned this scar! Besides, nopony thinks scars on hooves are edgy, so—”
“I swear, if I hear you use that word one more time, I will smack you upside the head,” Obsidian threatened with a backhoof gesture.
“What word? Edg—Oi!” Swift yelled, rubbing the back of his head after Obsidian’s wing whipped across it. “The buck?”
“Yes. That word.”
As the pair argued, Shadow brought the corvette to its final position. As she approached, the occupants started to feel the installation’s artificial gravity take its effect. Eventually, the ship landed on one of the station’s docking pads with a light jolt. While the six waited for an extension bridge to attach to the main hatch on the port side of the vessel, Shadow moved to the ship’s mid-section. “This is it. How are you feeling, Glare?”
“If I said I was nervous, it would be an understatement. I really don’t like the idea of playing either a recruit, or a slave.”
“Yeah, about that,” Obsidian started, “Shadow, I suggest we deviate from the plan a bit. Let Sparky and I go in first to carry out some observations before we bring Glare out. Two ‘Raiders’ wandering around aimlessly would gather too much attention with Glare.”
The zebra nodded. “Fair point. Just keep your comms open.”
“That’s the plan. If something goes wrong … listen for the words ‘Titty Sprinkle’.”
“PfffHAHAHAHAHA, what?” Swift roared with laughter, while his brother fell on his back and kicked his hooves in the air.
Glare rolled her eyes. “Don’t ask.”
“Alright, focus,” Shadow raised her voice. “Obsidian, Sparky, good luck. The rest of you, with me to the aft section. I don’t want Raiders passing by and finding us in one of their ships.”
Obsidian waited until the other four were out of sight, then took hold of the large manual lever protruding from the centre of the main hatch. Rotating it up and aft, the door moved partially inward and upward, before swinging out with a mechanism that kept it parallel to the corvette’s hull.
Stepping out onto the drab grey bridge, Sparky closed the hatch behind him and followed Obsidian toward a small airlock at the opposite end. Equalising pressure with the rest of the station, the airlock granted access for the changeling and diamond dog.