The Forgotten Way (Champions of the Crystal Book 6)

Chapter 15.3

Sabrina stumbled a little as she and Ford hurried down the strangely empty corridor. A sick exhaustion was settling over her, and she was beginning to be afraid she wouldn't be able to defend them from the next Kyan they met.

"Not much farther," Ford murmured. "Then we'll rest."

"We can't afford to rest," she argued. "We're running out of power. We have to smash the jammer while we can."

She could feel him weighing the probabilities. Then he sighed. "They're letting us run loose as long as we aren't near anything critical. There's no way we can avoid them once they decide to catch us again."

"They're letting us exhaust ourselves."

"Yes. Every door we open, every light panel we charge, we're draining our energy with no way to refuel," Ford said.

"So what do we do?" Sabrina asked.

Ford stopped, turning to face her. "There's only one real chance. Destroy this ship and everything on it."

Sabrina stared at him in shock. After a moment, she said, "I thought we had to warn everybody."

"We'll leave pieces enough for them to figure it out. But they're not going to let us near the jammer, and we don't have enough power left to force our way through. The only way we can deactivate it at this point is to remove its power source—the ship."

"I don't know how to do that," Sabrina said. "We don't know where the engines are or what kind they are, and I don't see how we can overload them without knowing that."

Ford smiled tightly. "You're thinking like a mere mortal, Sabrina. Think like a Guardian. We don't need an explosion; we just need to move one half of the ship away from the other. Or, preferably, move four quarters away from each other."

Sabrina forced her sluggish thoughts to keep moving. "Or move pieces of the hull on all sides of the ship. But that just kills us, and eventually the Kyan. It doesn't necessarily destroy the ship."

"Once the engines are cut off from the controls, they will overload or shut down no matter what kind they are," Ford said.

Sabrina was silent for a moment. Then she said, "Well. I was kind of hoping my martyrdom was a ways off yet."

Ford nodded. "You aren't any more surprised than I am. I intended to die of old age or debauchery. Preferably both."

"And here we are without a debauch in sight."

"And no time to start one." Ford sighed. "I regret it too, Sabrina. But let's do this while we still can."

Sabrina took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and clutched his hands in hers. "Okay."

As she concentrated, feeling the flow of energy between them, she could also feel Ford's growing sorrow and a wave of love for her. It filled her with a desperate regret, and she was torn between the need to get on with her duty and the yearning to return the gift he was giving her.

"Wait," she said suddenly, opening her eyes. "I have to have my last words."

"Hurry," Ford urged.

"I love you. And I couldn't imagine a day of my life without you in it." She smiled at him through her tears. "And yes, I want to marry you."

Ford smiled back at her. "Easy to say it now."

"I mean it. I'm going to try for an air pocket. If we survive this, I'll take on the entire Miahn establishment with you."

Ford's smile grew into a grin. "I love your optimism. And I love you too."

They shared a kiss, lingering as long as they dared. Then Sabrina closed her eyes again, took a deep breath, and felt the energy flow into her again from Ford. It wasn't the overwhelming rush she'd felt earlier, but it was still strong. She envisioned the ship breaking into pieces.