The Tethered Mind: Skyratchet

Prologue

Blaster fire roared around us, the blue energy bolts scorching the metal walls of the shuttle, leaving sizzling marks in their wake. I darted between cover, my heart pounding as the relentless barrage echoed in the narrow pass. The Ree were closing in, their boots pounding in sync like a war drum, reverberating off the metal and glass around us. Iggy was crouched ahead behind a metal container, his face twisted in frustration as he hurried to charge his pulse blaster.

"Pipsqueak! We're running out of time!" he shouted over the din, his voice barely cutting through the relentless hum of laser fire. "'Visit a new planet, ' you said. It'll be fun, you said. I hope you have an exit strategy for this?""

"Why do you always have to moan?" I ducked behind a half-melted crate as blue bolts streaked past, evaporating chunks of rock and glass, sending them spraying into the air like dangerous fireworks. Gritting my teeth as I pulled out my railgun. "I mean, some of these guys are probably from another planet, right? It's not my fault they're trying to kill us!"

Iggy gave me a look that said it was definitely my fault, and truth be told, he wasn't wrong. I had caused a bit of trouble with the Ree. and it turned out the Ree ran this whole star system. And wouldn't you know it they liked to keep grudges?

My Haste buff was still on cooldown, and I needed it now. There were far too many guns. It was like someone had turned the sky sideways and unleashed a rain of glowing death, all aimed at us.

I squeezed the trigger, and the rail gun crackled to life, spitting out sizzling bolts of energy. The air shimmered as the shots cut through the atmosphere, each one a white-hot streak. I had found the rail gun sitting on Iggy's workbench a few weeks back. He had meant to surprise me with it, or so he claimed when I "borrowed" it.

"I was gonna surprise you, Pipsqueak!" he'd grumbled. "Fix it up for you." He'd always had his eye on it.

Still, it was easily my best weapon, though it seemed like these Ree soldiers were soaking up shots like they'd been dipped in energy shields. It was taking far too many rounds to drop them.

The ship, or shuttle, was an upgraded version of the one I had won off Trilberry. Still old and rusted in places, but a lot bigger—originally built for collecting asteroids or hauling large shipments across the system. The cargo hold we were in, though narrow, stretched a good hundred feet in length. Half-filled crates of strapping and hooks lined the walls, littering the floor with debris, providing us with the only semblance of cover in this chaotic firefight.

I fired off another shot, watching as the beam from my railgun sliced clean through one of the soldiers. He went down in a crumpled heap, but his buddies were closing in fast, moving along the ship to our entrenched position.

That's when I saw it—a flicker of light in the corner of my eye. A plasma grenade, spinning lazily in the air, its deadly glow growing as it arced toward Iggy's position.

"Iggy! Move!" I yelled, but he was already in motion.

Without a second's hesitation, Iggy hurled himself out from behind the container just as the grenade detonated. The explosion was deafening, a shower of molten shrapnel ripping through the air. I heard Iggy curse in a mix of at least four different languages, clutching his side as a piece of metal lodged itself in his armor.

"Pipsqueak, we're boxed in!" he wheezed, his voice strained.

I scanned the area. He was right. The only path ahead was the cockpit, but it had security doors. Getting them open and getting inside without being cut down by laser fire was impossible. The Ree was closing in, and we didn't have much time or many options. My mind raced. We were outgunned, outnumbered, and pinned down.