Setting Fire to the Stars (a MM Sci-Fi Romance)

Chapter 23: Anchor

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Lauren
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"Ugh, come on!" A grunt left me as my foot connected with the cockpit door. The white surface groaned beneath my boot as though I were disturbing a beast from its slumber.

Our crash landing left the ship without power, the door to the outside world subsequently sealed. Synth already tried activating the control panel next to the door, but it was ultimately pointless without a working power source. It didn't help that it was still sweltering inside the cockpit. "Goddammit!" I shouted as I kicked the door again, the curse leaving my lips before I could stop myself.

"Calm down, Lauren," Synth advised, squeezing my arm. "Wasting energy is not going to get us out any faster."

"Then what do you suggest we do, huh? We are literally seconds away from having an entire alien armada come down on us, and we're trapped inside a giant metal sauna!" I yelled, swiftly kicking the door again.

"We will think of something," she assured. "But we cannot afford to lose our heads right now. Just take a deep breath and try to think logically."

Clenching my jaw, I inhaled deep to calm my nerves. After a few seconds, I released the breath slowly. She was right, of course. Since waking up aboard the Vesphirae, my sanity had been steadily unraveling. This whole situation with the Emperor was bordering on ridiculous. Now with every second we wasted trying to escape our metal prison, the enemy was closing in. We were so close to freedom that the thought of being recaptured now sent me spiraling out of control.

My heart pounded away in my ears like the beating of a drum as I searched for another way off the ship. The lights of the computer were dark, the blank screens reflecting my scowling face back at me almost mockingly. Without any power flowing through their circuits, the ship was a lifeless chunk of metal. The cockpit was illuminated only by the clouded sunlight filtering in. Fortunately, the front of the ship hadn't been submerged in dirt, debris falling away from the cockpit window as we had rolled to a stop.

"You think we can break through?" I motioned towards the glass with my head.

Synth tilted her head upward, before nodding slowly. "Maybe. It is made of reinforced siochrone glass. We will need something significantly powerful to break it. That or we could blast the door down with the gun we stole, but that will take longer and no doubt draw more attention."

"Can't we just shoot through it?"

Synth pinned me with a look like I had claimed the sky was red. "Siochrone glass is designed to reflect xetbolts inside the ship and out. If we tried to shoot it, the bolt would ricochet off the windshield."

I glanced down at my hand, wondering briefly if I could use my powers to get us out, like that kid on that 80's style Netflix television show. I'd managed to do something similar to telekinesis, recalling the way that I had launched Adamas violently against the wall. Maybe this ability, wherever it had come from, could do more than I had even realized. "I wanna try something."

"Be my guest," Synth muttered as she sat down to rest against the wall. "Just make it quick. Every second counts."

Once I made sure Synth was comfortable, I turned my attention to the glistening windshield. Swallowing thickly, my hands flexing uncomfortably at my sides, my eyes fell shut as I struggled to picture the silvery thread in my mind. At first, the small string of the light was nowhere to be seen. My jaw clicked with tension as I waded through the dark sea of my consciousness. Faintly, the string began to appear out of the black waters. Unlike before, the image of the thread was unfocused and hazy. When I attempted to grab hold of the string, it seemed to slip through my fingers.