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-Transmission Lost-

-Sounds of Madness-

Chapter Three: Break Free

by Havoc

"Duty is the most sublime word in our language. Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more. You should never wish to do less."

• Robert E. Lee

******

-You know that the Pteryd will eventually turn against us, don't you?-

Ara'lana glanced up from the intelligence reports she was reading. Admiral Kris was watching her carefully from where she sat, in a chair opposite her desk. The younger Ailian officer had brought the reports in to her, and remained in case Ara'lana had any questions or further orders for her. Ara'lana wasn't surprised to hear the question from her co-conspirator. Selina had always been the most skeptical of the stage of their plan which required forging an alliance with the Pteryd, and would have argued more strongly against it if she also hadn't understood the need to increase their numbers.

-I'm aware of that,- Ara'lana said, looking back to the reports. -The Pteryd have never demonstrated a desire for anything other than wiping us out, and I do not expect them to start now. Their alliance with us is one of convenience, nothing more.-

Admiral Kris nodded. -They are hoping to play along with us until the war exhausts both sides, then move in for the kill. We should not be allying ourselves so closely with them.-

Ara'lana sighed slightly. -It is a risk, yes. But we can afford to take it, and we have to take it.- She gave a contemptuous snort, gritting her teeth slightly. -The human factions that have chosen to follow us are significant, but unreliable, even those that have formal statehood. While I am content to use the humans, the Pteryd will be much more valuable to us in the long term.-

-Perhaps,- Admiral Kris said slowly, though she did not seem entirely convinced.

-You worry too much, Selina. I have not come this far by failing to account for the risks. When the time comes that we must break our alliance with the Pteryd, we'll be ready for it.-

Though it was not enough to satisfy her, Kris knew that Ara'lana was the superior strategist to her. It would have to do for now. -Yes, Admiral.- She folded her hands in her lap. -Have you any questions about the latest reports?-

-A few,- Ara'lana said slowly. She traced her finger along the report. -We seem to be making good progress everywhere, but we're getting hung up in Sector Two. I want those shipyards, Admiral, and...- The communicator on her desk began to chirp, forestalling anything further from her. She switched the device on. -Go ahead, Lieutenant.-

The volume of the communicator was turned low, so that Admiral Kris wasn't able to hear what was said. She could, however, hear the tone of voice that was speaking, and the voice sounded hurried and anxious. She could also see the shift in expressions on the other Ailian's face, see the gradual lowering of her ears and the raising of her fur. When Ara'lana slammed her hand down on the desktop and stood up hurriedly, it hardly came as a surprise to Selina.

-Lieutenant, sound the alarms basewide, and keep all security personnel on high alert,- Ara'lana almost shouted into the communicator. -I do not want the alert rescinded until this matter has been attended to, is that clear?- She angrily switched off the device, her tail lashing the air in her fury. A moment later she smacked her desk again and began pacing.

-What has happened, Admiral?- Selina asked, watching her carefully.

Ara'lana whirled around to face her. -My daughter has vanished from her cell. And Major Tal'in is dead. Her weapons are missing.- She shook her head. -I knew that leaving her alive, even temporarily, was a mistake. Sentimentality on my part.-

-Well, she doesn't have anywhere to go,- Admiral Kris said. -We'll find her. That's the good thing about mistakes. They can usually be fixed.-

******

While sneaking around was something that Aria was usually quite skilled at, she was finding it very difficult now. For one thing, she had little idea of where she was going. Of the whole base she was in, which she was now realizing was far larger than she had first thought, she had only seen one of the hangar bays, her mother's quarters, and the cell that she had spent the last several days in. Aria also had no idea what planet she was on, if she even was on a planet. For all she knew, she could be on a self-contained station in deep space. The Ascendancy had several such stations, and it was conceivable that Aria's mother could have used the power she wielded during her time as Chief Admiral to construct one of her own.

Wherever she was, Aria would need to find a way out, and that meant finding her way to a hangar in order to commandeer a ship. Preferably one which could be piloted by a single person, although she figured she could manage a two- or three-person ship by herself in a pinch, and certainly one which had hyperspace-capable engines. That ruled out a fighter, which was unfortunate because speed would probably be quite important in her escape, and ruled out most ships of troop transport size or larger, which was what she had seen the most of at the base so far. All of that boiled down to a certain need for luck.

After she had used the late Major Tal'in's key to escape from her cell, Aria had made her way out of the prison block of the base. She had managed to avoid the guards, who did not seem to maintain static positions but rather circulated the area in staggered patrols. By covertly observing them, she was able to keep them unaware of their presence and slip by when they passed. Major Tal'in's key was indispensable, letting her slip in an out of doors whenever she needed a quick place to hide.

-If only I'd thought to play along a little with...that woman,-_Aria thought to herself, while hiding in what seemed to be an unused security office during one such occasion. She couldn't bring herself to even think of Ara'lana as her mother right now. _-But it didn't even cross my mind. I objected as soon as the suggestion came from her. It would have felt...unnatural, somehow, to even pretend to agree with her.-

A moment later, Aria was drawn out from her thoughts as a shrill alarm began to sound. She rolled her eyes, covering her face with one hand.-Well, the luck couldn't last...Someone would have had to find the major's body eventually.-

Listening to the door, Aria could hear footsteps running around the corridors outside. She gripped the pistol she had taken from Major Tal'in's body tightly, ready in case someone decided to check her hiding place. But eventually the footsteps died away, and things were quiet outside once more.

After waiting a bit longer until she was reasonably certain the hallway was clear, Aria took out her pilfered key and waved it over the inside of the door handle to let herself out. The door gave a quiet, negative chirp and refused to open. Frowning, the Ailian swiped the key again, but still the lock stubbornly refused to disengage.

-Damn,- she said to herself. -It was inevitable that they would revoke her security clearance soon after they found her...- In a burst of frustration, Aria tossed the key to the ground and crushed it with the heel of her boot. She thought hard for a few moments, wondering what to do now. Not for the first time in her life, she cursed the strict security regimens of the Ascendancy. The security office might as well have been another cell if she didn't have the necessary means of leaving it. Now all she could do was sit here and wait to be captured again.

-Think, Aria, think,- she mused. -There must be some way out of here. This isn't a prison cell. It won't be as hardened as a cell would be.-

Looking around, she thought about what she could do. Like all of the rooms she had visited in the base, there were no windows, and no other apparent weaknesses in the walls. She _could_always kick the door open, but that would probably set off another alarm and draw guards to the area. And that was assuming that Aria's attempt to use the invalid key hadn't already triggered some sort of silent alert. So that left the contents of the room to try to help her...somehow. All that the room held was a pair of chairs, a desk, and a computer terminal which seemed to be disconnected from the base's power grid.

-Not much help here,- Aria grumbled, nibbling on a claw. She gave a growling snort of irritation, resisting the urge to smash the computer to pieces. That would accomplish little other than making her feel a bit better, which wasn't much use to her right now. -Come on, dammit, there has to be something...- Taking a deep breath, she happened to glance up at the ceiling. When she did, an unexpected smile spread across her muzzle. -Well, hello...-

Nestled up in the ceiling was a slotted metal panel, a vent opening to the air circulation center of the base. The panel was square and seemed to be a meter to a side. The fit would be tight, but Aria thought that she could squeeze through headfirst. First she needed to get up there and pry the vent panel off.

Aria quickly pulled one of the chairs in the room over and climbed up onto it. She was able to reach the vent handily with the aid of the chair, and she extended her arms up. Her fingers were able to fit into the vent slots. With an experimental tug, she checked how well the panel was attached to the ceiling. The tug told her that the vent cover should be fairly easy to pry off, so long as she applied the correct leverage. Grinning again, Aria drew out the knife she had taken from Major Tal'in. She slid the blade in between the panel and the ceiling, and then pulled down as hard as she could.

With a sharp clang, accompanied by the abrupt and rough snap of the blade breaking in two, the panel swung down and away from the air vent, hanging from the ceiling by one edge. Unsheathing her claws, Aria reached inside and managed to get a good grip on the inside of the ductwork. Owing to the fact that her arms were still somewhat weak, this was likely to be slow going, but Aria determinedly pulled herself inside the duct.

-Now let's see you stop me.-

******

-Give me an update.-

Ara'lana had gathered the heads of her security departments into her ready room, along with Admiral Kris and Seirin-143. Owing to the size of her main headquarters, there were several different security chiefs, in charge respectively of hangars, external security, facilities, and the armories. All of them were now fully aware of the situation, and they were all eager to avoid their leader's wrath by containing the problem.

The chief of external security was the first to speak up. -We have scanned the outer limits of the planet's magnetic field,- she said, -and our long- and short-range sensors have not been able to pick up any ships lingering in the area. It seems unlikely that the escapee has received any aid from outside.-

Ara'lana gave the female a withering glare with her emerald eyes. -That much is obvious, Commander,- she said. -I _hardly_expected that anyone followed a trail of footprints to this base, after all. I would be more worried about someone on the inside giving her aid.-

The security chief of facilities straightened up in his chair. -That's not possible, Admiral,- he said. -Everyone here is loyal to you. Nobody here would have given aid to the prisoner. And in any case, nobody knew that she was here except for the people in this room, Lady Shi'ala, and Major Tal'in.-

-The guards in the prison block certainly knew, Lieutenant,- Admiral Kris pointed out. -And they would have been in the perfect position to orchestrate an escape.-

-They knew they were responsible for a high-priority prisoner,- the facilities chief said. -They were not informed of her identity. They would have no reason to assist her.-

-Excellent, then that means her escape was merely a result of their own incompetence,- Ara'lana said, in a mock-cheerful voice. She pointed to the facilities chief. -Lieutenant, once the situation has been dealt with, you will see to their executions. I have no use for security personnel who can't keep their assigned areas secure.-

The male looked as though he wanted to protest, but on reflection he seemed to think better of it and kept his mouth shut, only nodding in agreement with his leader's directive. He picked up a small tablet, tapping a note of the order for later reference.

Looking to her hangar security chief, Ara'lana posed another question. -How have you augmented the security for the hangar bays, Major?-

-The guard on all of the main bays has been doubled,- the officer replied. -We have assigned additional personnel to the secondary bays as well. Additionally, we have locked out all of the entrances to the tertiary and maintenance bays to all except for your personal security code, Admiral. The prisoner will have a hard time gaining access, to say the least.-

Ara'lana frowned at her. -I would feel a little better about that assessment if we could determine where she was, Major.-

~Lady Me'lia,~ Seirin-143 put in. ~Perhaps I might offer the assistance of some of my people? We are uniquely suited to tracking.~ The Pteryd indicated its short antennae. ~I brought seven of my people with me. I know your facility is very large, but we are able to link telepathically. We can search much more efficiently than your own security personnel can, if you give us authorization to leave the areas that have been set aside for us.~

Admiral Kris caught Ara'lana's eye, and shook her head fractionally. The meaning was clear to the elder Ailian. -That will not be necessary, my friend,- Ara'lana said. -We can handle this issue ourselves. I would not want to put any of your people in unnecessary danger. If they will remain in their quarters, we will let them know when they may safely leave.-

Seirin-143 opened its mandibles slowly, and then clacked them together once. ~Very well,~ it said, in just as monotone a voice as ever. ~If that is what you wish, you are our hosts, after all. We wish you luck in the search. If there is anything we can do, please let us know.~

-I will. In the meantime...-

-Admiral Me'lia!- the facilities chief said suddenly. Everyone looked to him, and they saw that he was staring at his tablet. The Ailian's ears were pricked forward, his eyes locked intently on the screen. -Forgive my interruption, but the sensors in one of the hangar bays just went crazy!-

Admiral Kris leaned forward, her tail twitching as she stared at the male officer. -Probably a malfunction. The major just informed us that all of the hangars are well secured.-

The security lieutenant shook his head. -It's not from the entry doors, m'lady. I'm talking about the security sensors in the air duct system of the bay. They're much more sensitive than the air duct sensors in the rest of the base, to detect leaks from the ships. The sensors in Auxiliary Bay Four just registered an obstruction.-

Ara'lana smacked a hand down on the table. -It has to be her! That's why our search teams haven't found her. She's been moving through the air ducts.- She looked to her chief of hangar security. -What's in Auxiliary Bay Four right now?-

The major shrugged. -Nothing of serious consequence. The Pteryd ship is being housed there, but I doubt Lieutenant Me'lia would be able to pilot it. Everything else in there is in various states of disassembly, for maintenance. There's nothing in there she could...- Suddenly, the major's eyes widened and her ears laid back flat against her feline head.

-What is it, Major?- Admiral Kris barked at her.

-The Kre'la'ris,- the hangar chief said. -One of our fast-attack patrol ships. It was in the bay for an overhaul of its main engines. I received notification this morning that the work had been completed, and they were going to transfer it back to the fleet before the escape drew personnel to other duties. That ship is fully armed and ready to fly.-

Ara'lana stood up quickly, jabbing a finger in the facilities chief's face. -Lieutenant, take a special response team down there right away. We know that she's armed and she has special forces training. I don't want any chances to be taken.- The lieutenant nodded and got up from his seat, rushing out of the room.

******

As quietly as Aria could manage, she kicked one side of the air vent cover below her down and out. Luckily, the panel didn't detach all the way, and just swung away from the ceiling by one edge. Hanging out of the open vent by her claws for a moment, she then dropped down to the floor, landing lightly on all fours. Her tail hanging loosely to the floor, Aria peered around at her surroundings. She was in a hangar bay, and she'd landed behind a ship that was recognizable to her as an Ascendancy light-load transport, despite its bloody red paint scheme. A two-person ship normally used for carrying small loads of supplies between larger vessels in a fleet formation, the transport's engines were currently in pieces on the hangar floor.

Still, she had been fortunate to find her way to a hangar at all. Though the ships she could see from her position seemed to be disabled for maintenance, she might be able to find one which was in good enough shape to fly. Drawing the heavy pistol she had liberated from Major Tal'in, Aria crept around the edge of the ship. The hangar appeared to be lightly occupied, if at all. She supposed that they were more concerned right now with guarding the entrances, and that most of the personnel who might otherwise have been inside were searching for her elsewhere. Aria focused her own attention on searching for a ship she could pilot.

After a few minutes of searching, Aria was starting to despair. The only ship she had found in the hangar that looked as though it would be flyable was an unusual vessel, recognizable to her only from pictures she had seen during her military training: a Pteryd light corvette. Composed of curved surfaces and bulbous compartments, the ship was decidedly out of place among the angular, aerodynamic forms of the Ailian vessels. Aria immediately discounted it as an option. Though the ship was a perfectly fine one as far as its integrity, she had no idea how to pilot a ship of Pteryd design.

Then, just when she was about ready to give up and crawl back into the air duct system, Aria hit the jackpot. Threading her way in between the scattered parts of two fighter craft, she found herself looking at a ship that made a wave of nostalgia wash over her body. Majestic and intimidating in its jagged, predatory design, the ship before her was one of the hundreds of fast-attack patrol craft that could be found in the fleets of the Ascendancy. Walking up to it, Aria laid her furred hand on the smooth external armor. Though painted red like the rest of her mother's vessels, the ship was identical to the Cha'la'fa, the patrol ship that she had been piloting when she'd first met Jack.

-Looks pristine...,- Aria said to herself. She walked around the ship, examining it closely. The vessel seemed to be in working order, with no panels out of place or pieces missing. Coming to the entry hatch, she placed her palm on the sensor meant to open the door. Nothing happened. -Well, that was expected.-

Rolling her eyes, Aria pried a claw into a small recessed panel near the entry hatch and pulled it away. She got to work fiddling with the wiring behind the panel, seeing what she could do with it. After so long piloting this class of ship, she had a keen understanding of the wiring inside of it. Concentrating as she was, she almost dismissed a quiet sound behind her out of hand, but then she paused.

-What was that?- she thought, turning her head. Looking over her shoulder, all Aria could see was the clutter of ships awaiting repair. Her pointed feline ears pricked up, listening for the sound again. She could have sworn that she had heard it, like something skittering along the floor. But whatever the sound had been, it did not repeat itself. _-I need to get this ship up and running quick.-_The Ailian turned back to the door controls, continuing her work with the under-panel wiring.

The sound returned, louder this time, just as she was putting on the finishing touches, and Aria whipped around. Before she could even register the object swinging in her direction, she was struck squarely in the face by something that felt as hard as steel. The blow threw her against the side of the patrol ship, and the back of her head smacked against the armor with enough force to make her vision go black for a split second.

Her eyes cleared just as she felt cold, strong fingers wrapping around her neck. What she saw sent a shock of terror through her body. The Pteryd that had her by the throat was much different from the representative, Seirin-143. This one had designs scrawled on its carapace in black dye, and it's razor-sharp mandibles were blackened as well. Aria had only heard stories from older soldiers who had fought in the border conflicts, but even so she knew that she was facing a Pteryd warrior. One that looked like it wasn't too interested in taking her back to her cell.

-Let...me...go!- Aria managed to choke out, swinging one arm down to reach for the pistol she'd stowed in her belt. The Pteryd was too quick, swinging up one of its middle legs to pin her arm to her side. Quickly running out of air and desperate, Aria kicked out with her own leg, swinging for the soft underbelly of the insectoid alien. Her foot connected, and the Pteryd gave a sharp buzzing squawk from its mouth. Its grip loosened slightly on her neck, giving Aria the chance to draw a deep breath.

Bringing up her free arm, the Ailian grabbed the back of the Pteryd's head. Snarling, she bared her fangs and headbutted the creature mercilessly. The impact set her ears ringing, but more importantly she heard a sharp crackling sound and another squawk of pain. The pain she felt in her own head set her blood boiling, and she smashed her skull into the Pteryd's a second time. This time the insect let her go, stumbling backwards and buzzing angrily.

~You'll regret that, Ailian,~ the Pteryd said. Its monotone psychic voice sounded strained. Aria saw that her headbutts had cracked the shell on its head. Black blood was streaming from the spiderwebbed cracks, dripping down its face. As Aria watched, the Pteryd clacked its mandibles menacingly, taking a shaky step back towards her.

-I've regretted a few things in my life, but this will not be one of them,- Aria said in a low, dangerous growl. She drew the heavy pistol from her belt, leveling it at the Pteryd. -You would have done well to bring something more to this fight.-

~My death will be of no consequence,~ the Pteryd said. Aria found its voice to be maddening with the lack of emotion it betrayed.~We are legion. And you will never make it away from this base. It is too well secured, Ailian.~

-Noted.- Aria fired once, the sound of the shot from the heavy pistol echoing around the hangar as the round transited the Pteryd's head. She watched the insectoid wobble once on its feet, then crumple to the floor, one of its legs twitching jerkily in its final death throes.

Aria brought a hand to her aching throat, feeling where the creature had choked her. She was fired up enough to feel the disappointment of not having been able to test the enemy more fully in combat, but she was in a hurry. Tucking the pistol away again, she turned back to the panel. Connecting the final wire, she replaced the access panel and then hit the door switch. The entryway slid open, and Aria rushed inside the ship, sealing the hatch behind her and re-scrambling the lock. If anyone tried to come into the ship, they would have to take at least as long as Aria had needed to get inside.

Rushing up to the cockpit of the patrol ship, Aria sat in the pilot's chair. -Alright, let's see here...,- she muttered. The controls were identical to her old ship, and her hands knew what to do by muscle memory. With a few flicks, she felt the familiar hum and vibration of the ships engines starting up, and the heads-up display initialized on the front viewport. Keeping an eye on the readouts, Aria waited for the ship to power up fully.

Before Aria was ready for take-off, she heard the comm system chirp. She ignored it, continuing to wait for the patrol ship to come to full power. As the power levels climbed, the Ailian flipped the proper switches to power up the shields, navigation computer, weapons, and hyperspace engines. All the while, the comm system kept chirping incessantly. Finally, Aria reached over and pressed the switch to answer the call.

-Go ahead, whoever you are,- she said. Aria wrapped her hands around the controls, flexing them and hearing the subtle changes in pitch as the maneuvering thrusters fired off. They seemed to be in working order.

-You know who it is, Aria,- growled the voice of Ara'lana. -Power down that ship and walk out, unarmed. You have no hope of escaping. Even if you manage to get airborne, my fleet and that of my human allies is above the planet. You'll be destroyed before you can get a kilometer outside of the atmosphere.- There was a brief pause, and then Ara'lana continued to speak. -My people have the ship surrounded, and they'll override the door lock before long. If you surrender before they have to come get you, I'll let you live.-

Aria actually allowed a laugh to escape her muzzle. -I am far past believing anything you say.- She goosed the engines, hearing a low roar rumble through the ship. -You might want to have your people get away from me, now, unless they'd like to hitch a ride on the hull through vacuum.- She switched off the communication system before Ara'lana could respond. Moments later she heard a smattering of thuds against the outside of the ship as whoever was outside in the hangar opened fire with small arms. Aria smirked at their futility, knowing that even the heaviest of Ailian infantry weapons could do little to the armor of the ship.

Pulling up on the controls, Aria lifted off from the hangar floor. She spun the ship around to face the hangar doors. They were closed, of course, and Aria knew that she probably had no way to get them open. By the conventional method, anyway. Fortunately, she wasn't even dreaming of trying the conventional method. Calling up the patrol vessel's targeting computer, she focused the crosshairs on the doors. Selecting the proper weapons setting, Aria fired. Four low-yield missiles streaked out from their pod and connected with the doors. The explosions buffeted the ship and scattered debris across the hangar, but her shields protected her. Without allowing the smoke from the missile strikes to clear, Aria punched her accelerator and streaked forward. After a brief screech of metal on metal as she scraped the jagged hole through the hangar door, Aria was free.

What she saw outside was a completely unfamiliar landscape. Aria had been correct in some of her thoughts from before. She was not_on Lirna, but just which planet she _was on she had no idea. Her patrol ship was skimming over a snow-covered base, numerous buildings rising here and there. From the looks of things, the majority of the base was underground. Startled Ailians on the ground below looked up at her as she flew overhead. A few of them raised weapons and even managed to get shots off at her, but they missed hopelessly as she raised her speed and pointed her ship's nose at the sky. As her altitude increased the color of the sky darkened from light to deep blue.

-Gods...,- Aria breathed, looking at the radar image on her heads-up display. According to what she was seeing, space above whatever planet she was fleeing contained at least seventeen ships of Ailian and human design. Twelve of those ships were battleship-sized or larger. Gritting her teeth, she increased power to her shields and considered her options.

-I can fight, flee, or surrender,- Aria thought. -Surrender is not an option, and if I fight, I'm going to die for certain. That leaves only fleeing, but those ships are certain to have tractor beams. They'll grab me before I can get very far.- Not to mention the fact that Aria needed time for her navigation computer to calculate the proper hyperspace route back to Lirna, and of course she would need to remain stationary for the calculation to be most effective. She watched the radar image carefully, seeing the ships starting to react to her presence. -Unless...This is fucking crazy, but it might be all I have.- Reaching for the hyperspace controls, Aria took a breath. -I can't believe I'm about to do this again...-

Aiming her ship for a free spot in the mixed fleet, Aria pressed the control that would activate her hyperspace engines. The ship's computer sounded the alarm that she was about to head through hyperspace blind, which she ignored. Holding her finger on the control, the alarm stopped a moment later and she was pressed back into the pilot's seat as the patrol ship accelerated to faster-than-light speeds, breaking through into hyperspace. She held the jump for just three seconds, long enough that she could be sure that was far enough away to be able to sit for her computer to do a navigation calculation.

When she emerged from hyperspace, she was holding steady near a star. The fur on the back of her neck raised up as she realized just how close she had come to colliding with it. Letting out a breath that she hadn't realized she'd been holding, she switched on the navigation computer, keeping her proximity sensors turned up to their maximum settings. If any ships got within five thousand kilometers of her while she was divining the course to take, she wanted to know about it. Sitting back to wait, Aria felt a wave of exhaustion wash over her.

-I hope the computer works quickly,- she thought tiredly. -If this ship is anything like the Cha'la'fa_, the crew quarters should be quite comfortable. I could use a good, long sleep on the ride home...-_

******

Ara'lana was in the foulest mood she could remember experiencing in a very long time when Admiral Kris arrived in her office. She was poring over the initial reports from her daughter's escape. Besides the damage to the doors of Auxiliary Bay Four, there was minor damage to the air circulation system, not to mention the loss of several experienced soldiers who hadn't survived the missile blasts in the hangar. And that was on top of the death of a member of the Pteryd entourage, which had been less than pleasing to Seirin-143. If only the damned bug guard had stayed put inside its ship!

-Admiral Me'lia,- Admiral Kris said. -I have that update you wanted. We were able to track the route she took through the base to get out. We're working on updating our security so a similar incident won't occur again...-

-Selina, with all due respect, I don't really give a damn about that now,- Ara'lana snarled. She looked up at Admiral Kris. -I don't suppose our human friends have been able to determine where she might have gone? Hyperspace tracking is one of those things they are so troublesomely better at, after all.-

Kris shook her head. -They haven't. She took a blind jump. Extrapolating it would put her ship moving into an uninhabited sector of space, so I think we can assume she took a short jump and then stopped to make a proper one.- The younger admiral bit her lip. -It wouldn't take a large leap of imagination to say that she's probably heading for Lirna, though.-

-Of course.- Ara'lana put the reports down, tapping her desk top thoughtfully. -The computer on the Kre'la'ris...Were we able to wipe it remotely before she escaped?-

Admiral Kris hesitated. Her friend wasn't going to like this answer. -We're not certain.-

-Not certain?-

-No. We initiated the wipe, but we can't be sure how much we were able to erase. The Kre'la'ris might have some intelligence value to the Empress.-

For all that, Ara'lana took it better than she thought. -I thought as much,- she said. She flicked her snowy white tail thoughtfully, glancing up at the ceiling for a few minutes. Finally she looked back at Admiral Kris. -We may have to accelerate our operations somewhat. Get all the fleet commanders on a channel to me, Selina. We have some planning to do.-

-Yes, Admiral.-