Chapter 6: Through Fire And Ash

Rhys muttered a curse, his knuckles white as he gripped the controls. The Necrolythian ship had them pinned. Laser bolts zipped past, so close he could almost feel the heat. Every jolt shook the Ironsight, alarms screaming in his ears, red lights flashing like angry eyes across the console.

Jax was shouting something, but the blood pounding in Rhys's ears drowned everything out. They weren't going to make it. His mind raced for a solution, but nothing came. The Necrolythian ship was faster, its movements more precise, and their shields were already failing.

Then, out of nowhere, everything changed.

A blinding flash erupted, so intense it bleached the darkness of space to pure white. Rhys squinted, instinctively yanking the controls to dodge—well, whatever that was. The Ironsight lurched violently as a shockwave slammed into them, tossing the ship around like a leaf in a hurricane.

"What the hell was that?!" Jax shouted, holding on for dear life as the ship spun wildly.

Rhys clenched his jaw, fighting the controls to steady the Ironsight. Amid the chaos, his gaze flicked to the forward screen. He caught sight of it—the source of the blast. The Abyssal Maw, that monstrous hulk of death and metal, was gone. In its place, a massive cloud of debris billowed outward, the beast torn apart by some unimaginable force.

It must have been one of those Arbiter-class warmachines—the so-called "angels of destruction" whispered about in spacer bars. With a single, devastating blast, it had obliterated the Abyssal Maw. Even from here, Rhys felt the force ripple through space.

For a heartbeat, everything seemed frozen. Rhys stared at the expanding debris cloud, hardly believing his eyes. But the shrill wail of cockpit alarms snapped him back to reality.

"The Necrolythians!" Jax hollered. "They're still coming!"

The enemy ship had been thrown off balance, spinning as it struggled to right itself. Rhys wasn't about to let this chance slip by. His fingers danced over the controls, steadying the Ironsight just as the Necrolythian craft regained its bearings.

"Fire back!" he shouted.

Jax was already on it. The ship's cannons roared, spitting plasma toward the target. The alien ship twisted and turned, dodging most of the shots, but a few found their mark, splashing against its dark hull.

"Got them!" Jax exclaimed, a rare spark of hope lighting up his face.

No time to lose. Rhys jammed the throttle forward, sending the Ironsight into a steep climb. Maybe they could shake the Necrolythian off their tail. But the enemy was relentless. Its guns blazed again, lancing streams of deadly energy their way.

"Shields down to 20%!" Jax shouted. "They won't hold much longer!"

Rhys's jaw tightened. The walls were closing in. He ran through their options—none good. The Necrolythian ship was too fast, too strong. They couldn't keep running.

Then it hit him—a crazy, reckless idea. But it might just work.

"I'm taking us in," Rhys said through gritted teeth, flipping the switch for the forward thrusters. "Up close and personal."

Jax stared at him like he'd lost his mind. "Are you nuts?! It'll shred us to pieces!"

Rhys shot him a grim smile. "Not if we get it first."

The Ironsight surged ahead, diving straight at the enemy. Rhys pushed the engines beyond their limits; the ship groaned, metal protesting. The Necrolythian craft seemed caught off guard, hesitating as it tried to adjust course.

"Brace yourself," Rhys muttered, fingers hovering over the trigger.

They hurtled toward each other, a deadly game of chicken. The gap closed in a heartbeat. The enemy's guns flared, but Rhys was quicker. At the last moment, he jerked the controls, rolling the Ironsight sharply out of harm's way and unleashing a barrage of plasma into the Necrolythian's exposed side.

"Direct hit!" Jax yelled, excitement breaking through the tension as the enemy's shields flickered and sputtered.

But the fight wasn't over. The Necrolythian ship retaliated, its guns hammering their already weakened shields. The cockpit shook violently. One or two more hits like that, and they'd be nothing but stardust.

"Jax, get ready!" Rhys barked.

Jax's fingers flew over the console, locking onto the enemy's power core. A low hum filled the cockpit as the main cannon began to charge, casting an eerie glow over everything.

"Come on, come on..." Rhys whispered, eyes fixed ahead.

The Necrolythian ship was closing fast. This was it—their one shot. He tightened his grip on the controls.

"Firing!" Jax shouted.

A brilliant beam of plasma erupted from the Ironsight, streaking toward the enemy. It struck dead-on, slamming into the weakened hull with a thunderous explosion. The alien craft shuddered, its armor buckling.

For a heartbeat, Rhys dared to hope.

But then the Necrolythian ship, smoking and battered, lurched forward. Its cannons glowed, readying a final, deadly shot. Rhys's stomach dropped—no time to evade.

"Brace yourself!" he yelled, throwing up an arm instinctively.

The enemy fired. Or it tried to. Before it could hit, the Necrolythian ship's core overloaded. It erupted in a massive explosion, the shockwave slamming into the Ironsight and sending them spiraling.

The cockpit lights flickered out. Rhys's ears rang; his vision blurred. He fought to steady the ship as systems sputtered back to life.

From beside him, Jax groaned, looking like he'd been through hell. "Did we... did we make it?"

Rhys blinked, scanning the debris-strewn space outside. A shaky laugh escaped him.

"Yeah... somehow," he said, running a trembling hand over his face.

Jax let out a weak chuckle, sinking back into his seat. "That was absolutely crazy."

Rhys managed a tired grin. "Told you we'd tear it apart."