A Way of Honor (Champions of the Crystal Book 2)

Chapter 16: No Way Home

An hour later, Sabrina sat back and sipped at the water bottle Therenden had forced on her. She noticed that her fingers were cramped and shaking from overuse, and she wondered how Mara was faring. Therenden was resting too, rubbing absently at his fingers, as Mara checked the sensor connections one more time.

"No," Khediva said, sounding desperate. "I still cannot find him. Shahina must be blocking me in some way."

"So we can't get to Tirqwin at all?" Sabrina asked. "Mara, could you get me aboard? I could get him to an escape capsule, maybe."

"No," Mara said. "I wouldn't risk it."

"Nor would I," Khediva said.

"Then I guess when we escape the Way, we'll have to take Shahina with us," Sabrina said.

Mara stared at her as if she were crazy. "Drag a High Ship out of a Way? Sabrina, I haven't the power to even begin to contemplate such a thing!"

"Well," Sabrina pointed out, "Shahina is towing us somehow. There must already be a connection. And unless we break it, either we'll stay in the Way, or Shahina will have to come out with us. Right?"

Khediva and Mara were silent for a long time. Then Khediva said, "It must be a physical connection; a tractor beam would not hold together in a Way. I do not see how we can disconnect ourselves; I have no means to repel the grappling hook, and none of you can go outside the hull in a Way."

"I can't get a good enough sense of it to disconnect it," Mara said, after closing her eyes in concentration. "Everything's so vague!"

"Can we shoot it off?" Therenden wondered.

"The release of energy in a Way would kill us all!" Khediva said.

Mara turned, pacing a tight circle, her hands rubbing at her forehead as if she had a headache. "I do not see that we have a choice. I will have to attempt to take us all out of the Way, Shahina included. I cannot leave Tirqwin in their hands. But this attempt may kill us all."

Sabrina and Therenden looked at each other. Then Sabrina went to Mara and took her hands. "Mara," she said, "if you feel it start to go bad, if you reach a point where you know we won't make it, then save yourself. Get home somehow. You owe it to all the people of the Realm, and all the people who've died for the Realm. Don't stop to try to save us."

Mara looked past Sabrina, at Therenden. He nodded gravely. "Tell my mother I died well," he said.

"And take care of Scotty for me. Somebody has to," Sabrina said, mustering a smile.

"I agree," Khediva said. "Whatever happens, you must live." She paused, and when she spoke again, her voice held a new note of urgency. "Mara! We are preparing to emerge!"

Mara released Sabrina's hands, her fists clenching as she concentrated. Sabrina went to stand beside Therenden, watching breathlessly.

"Mara," Khediva cried, "link with me! It is the only way!"

Mara laid her hands on the globe as if sleepwalking. Khediva's lights flickered, then stabilized at a dim level. Sabrina felt as though some huge force was tugging at her; her stomach churned in an overwhelming wave of nausea. She heard the groan of overstressed metal and the acrid smoke of overheating circuitry. She and Therenden clutched at each other as the Ship rocked violently; then it was as if a giant fist slammed down out of nowhere and pounded them into the deck plates.

Strangely enough, Sabrina's last thought was of the alternate self she had seen in Mara's conjuring, the aged and despairing woman whose prayer had been to die well. I did it, Scotty....