The Shizukana Kage burst out of the depths of black-space with a thunderous boom, entering the Menkalinan system in a dazzling flash of light. The primary star of the binary system appeared at superluminal speeds, quickly dominating the ship’s view. The intense blue-white glow from the star lit up the bridge like a constant flashbang, swallowing every shadow as blazing solar flares danced around the fiery sphere like claws.
Parri squinted against the blinding glare until the ship’s canopy automatically adjusted the glass tint to shield her from the relentless light. She eased the throttle back, skillfully maintaining the ship’s velocity above the light speed threshold to prevent it from re-entering normal space. The Lentz Alcubierre Tunnel Drive emitted a rhythmic clicking as it powered down, a soothing heartbeat that prompted Parri to relax her grip on the yoke. Pressing the magnetic release button embedded in her nanosuit’s chest, she was liberated from the chair’s embrace, allowing her to float gently out of her seat.
“Okay, Commander, we’ve arrived,” she announced over her shoulder.
Kai hesitated for a moment, sympathetically watching Shreya as she intentionally avoided meeting his gaze. “Thanks, Parri,” he said, reaching for the overhead handle to pivot his body. As he drifted back to the cockpit, Parri maneuvered around the flight chair to swap positions with him.
“The weapon mount indicator on the starboard side lit up again mid-flight,” she reported, pointing at the continuously blinking alert on the console. “I cycled it as you suggested, but nothing changed.”
Kai nodded thoughtfully as he lowered himself into the seat, instinctively tapping the magnetic lock on his suit, the familiar jolt snapping him against the chair. As he toggled the switches to regulate power, a familiar fragrance of honeysuckle drifted into his senses. Cautiously, he glanced from the corner of his eye, feeling Parri’s enthusiastic presence uncomfortably close to his cheek.
“And I also noticed some drift in the flight stick,” she continued, her hand resting on his shoulder and mimicking the yoke’s movements. “There’s a noticeable dead zone when pulling port negative pitch.”
Kai rolled her hand off his shoulder as he reached overhead to activate the scanner suite. Moments later, the seat began to tremble unexpectedly.
Parri jostled the flight chair playfully, explaining, “I’m pretty sure one of the bolts in the flight chair is loose. I was leaning to the left for most of the—”
“Parri,” Kai interrupted sharply, “I’m well aware of the damn issues.”
She fell silent, retreating behind the chair, her posture shrinking under the impact of his words. In a gentle, almost hesitant voice, she murmured, “Sorry, Commander.”
Kai briefly leaned forward to press a series of buttons, activating the telescope. As he eased back into his seat, a wave of regret washed over him while he listened to Parri’s shallow breathing, struggling to adapt to the hierarchy of command. With a deep sigh, he softened his tone. “I’m sorry, Parri. I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that. Um… thank you for the turnover.”
A smile swiftly reappeared on her face, dispelling the awkward tension as she leaned over the flight chair, her breath brushing his neck. “It’s okay, you’re grouchy. I get it,” she said with infectious enthusiasm. “Having to deal with that stuck-up Ursaen, who wouldn’t be?” Beneath a cascade of violet hair, her eyes danced between the cosmic view outside and the radar display above his knees.
Kai pressed and held the radar sweep button, releasing a broad-spectrum radio pulse. As the wave returned, the computer turned the signal into a series of pinging sounds that echoed across the bridge, each note dropping in pitch and frequency like a musical scale. Eventually, the sounds culminated in a perpetual deep rumble that vibrated through the ship’s hull, signaling the end of the scan. Turning his gaze to the display on his right, a list of orbital bodies appeared on the screen.
Parri shivered slightly, a playful grin spreading on her lips. “I get goosebumps every time that happens,” she admitted.
Kai smirked, glancing at her with an amused twinkle in his eye. “Rattles the bones, doesn’t it?”
She confirmed with a humming, “Mm-hmm.”
“Do me a favor and hop onto the SAT,” he instructed.
“Really? You’re actually permitting me to use the son of a… um… sunnyfull analyzer? Son of whatever you call it,” she stammered.
“Sonification Analysis Telescope,” he corrected with a chuckle.
She saluted playfully and swung herself across the bridge toward the sensor station in the back, announcing, “One son of an anal thingamabob coming right up.” Reaching the station, she swiftly typed in the access code and grabbed the goggles from the box labeled ‘HMD.’ As the device powered on, she slid the headset over her eyes, where her surroundings warped into a stark, overwhelming expanse of blinding white space with no horizon. With breathless anticipation, she watched a scan of a human body materialize before her, and a digital message flashed overhead: ‘Standby: new user.’
Once the scanning process concluded, the empty expanse dissolved like dripping paint, revealing the universe in vivid detail. Parri looked down, her heart pounding as the edge of the ship fell away into the vast depths of space. A sharp gasp escaped her lips as she turned her gaze upward, racing toward the glowing blue-white star. Her new digital eyes peeled back the blinding light, revealing the splendor of the star’s surface as it churned like blue lava. She felt like an insignificant speck of dust, cast before a magnificent deity, her wide eyes fixed in awe as she stared at the massive sphere before her.
Over her shoulder, the tiny Topaz Outrider-class ship receded into the distance, as if abandoning her. Panic seized her chest with the instinct to swim to safety, but before she could act, she was whisked away, standing on the outer hull of the ship. The jarring transition made her head spin with vertigo.
With determination to master the technology, she focused on the closest planet. When she pondered the distance, the number 430 light seconds appeared before her. Feeling a flicker of understanding, she imagined herself closer. Like a flash of lightning, she was thrust across the emptiness of space, jolted to a sudden stop in a low orbit around the planet. The quick transition made her stomach drop like a roller coaster ride as she quickly slapped a hand over her mouth, fearing the sudden urge to burp was something worse.
“You okay back there?” Kai’s voice cut through the haze.
“Fine, fine, just—” she swallowed hard, trying to steady her swirling stomach. “Give me a second.” Looking up at the planet, it seemed tantalizingly close, calling her to reach out. Curiously, she extended her hand, only to have her fingers bump against the bulkhead of the bridge.
Kai chuckled, “Tried to touch something, didn’t you?”
“No, no, I was, um… just making sure I was next to the wall,” she fibbed, her cheeks flushing.
He suggested, “Try thinking about the details of the object.”
“Details?” In that moment, a menu bloomed before her, brimming with facts about the planet’s surface, atmosphere, gravity, and orbital period. Parri tilted her head back, shying away from the flood of information. “Oh wow, would you look at that?”
Injecting more advice, Kai said, “You can reorient yourself by thinking of the ship.”
“Thanks, I already figured that out,” she muttered with a playful scoff. Taking a deep breath, she cleared her mind, determined not to think herself into oblivion by mistake. Turning back, her eyes landed on the distant speck that was the Shizukana Kage. Curiously, she picked up peculiar sounds resembling crumpled paper echoing in her ears. “Um… Kai?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m looking back at the ship and hearing these strange noises. It um… sounds like tap tap, tippy, tap tap.”
“You’re picking up the ship’s signature,” he explained. “If you focus on a planet, you can hear those, too. The telescope is converting electromagnetic data into audio, hence the name Sonification.”
Parri tilted her head to the side, mimicking a curious pigeon, as she scanned the vast expanse of stellar objects. “I think I’ve got it. What am I looking for?” she inquired.
“A technosignature at the edge of the system.”
“Hum. Well, I see three signals. Which one?” Parri asked, narrowing her eyes as information about the signals appeared before her like holographic placards.
“The one that indicates a debris field,” he instructed.
A few tense seconds later, Parri isolated the signal, her face lighting up with triumph. “Bingo, I got it! Locking down the coordinates now.”
“Copy that,” Kai responded. “Setting the destination.”
As the ship lurched forward, Parri watched the cosmos fade away into complete darkness. Surprised, she asked, “What happened?”
“We’re moving, so you can take off the headgear.”
“Aww… okay,” Parri muttered, sliding the goggles off her eyes. As she stored them in their designated compartment, she cast a sidelong glance at Shreya. The stoic Ursaen woman met her gaze with a brief, unflinching stare before turning her focus back to the canopy. Having momentarily forgotten the enemy was on board, Parri’s lip curled with distrust, a defiant snort escaping the back of her throat.
At the pilot’s chair, Kai glanced at the contacts panel on his left, the target signal indicating active ships in the area. “Here we go, putting our hands back in the cookie jar,” he muttered quietly.
From the back of the cramped cockpit, Shreya’s voice cut through the air, calm and steady. “Mr. Randal, despite your reluctance, I still need to find the Von Braun. It’s my only chance of finding answers.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know. Keep your panties on,” Kai shot back, shifting his attention back to the flight controls. “Parri, get your butt to the engineering console. I need you ready at a moment’s notice. It looks like we’ll be running two kay again,” he instructed firmly.
As they approached the outskirts of the system, Kai eased off the throttle, slowing to a safe approach speed. Aligning their trajectory with the debris field signal, he shifted his focus between the distance and time indicators, calculating the exact moment to act.
Meanwhile, Shreya noticed the sensor station was still running with Parri’s code logged in. With the other two occupied, she took advantage of the distraction and relocated to the console, where she quickly reviewed the sensor logs. With no time for a detailed check, she selected the bulk data set containing the Stygiamite footage and user login profiles, copying the entire collection to her nanosuit’s digital storage. When Parri’s curious gaze shifted toward her, Shreya subtly folded her arms behind her back, edging in front of the console to obscure her activities.
When Kai blurted out, “Okay, purge now!” Parri spun her attention back to the engineering console, slamming her finger on the button labeled ‘emergency cooling.’ In mere seconds, the ship shuddered and exhaled, dumping all its heat into the thermal capacitors. Pipes along the walls groaned and hissed as the ship rapidly cooled, causing visible ice crystals to form along the edges of the canopy glass.
Once the hull temperature plummeted to a frigid 2.7 Kelvin, Kai yanked the throttle back. With a visceral jolt, the Shizukana Kage was thrown back into normal space. Without hesitation, he flicked four toggle switches behind the flight stick in quick succession. “Vents closed. Running two kay,” he announced over his shoulder. “Parri shut down all non-essentials. It’s about to get really hot in here, and I don’t feel like roasting my chestnuts.”
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
“On it,” Parri replied, a mischievous grin spreading across her face as her fingers flew over the switches, efficiently cutting power to non-vital systems.
Shreya gracefully floated to the front of the ship, her fingers curling around the back of the pilot’s seat for support. As the dreadful scene unfolded beyond the canopy, her heart sank. The Karl Jansky was in ruins, fragmented into two large sections, barely recognizable as a ship, with shimmering debris sparkling in the void like glitter. Above the wreckage, an imposing Juno-class ship loomed, its once-bright red paint now battered and faded from countless battles. Stenciled along its armored hull in bold letters was the name ‘Sun Tzu.’ At the helm, the infamous Prefect Marcus Ovius, a name that elicited a muffled grunt of disdain from her throat.
The Juno-class vessel was the pinnacle of the Ursaen Legion’s might, a formidable counterpart to the UCC’s Hades-class capital ships. Its elongated fuselage, shaped like a pointed oval, rose ten decks high with a bridge nestled near the front. The large, forward-swept wings extending from the rear formed a bold and intimidating silhouette, complemented by the iconic nacelles at the tips. Twin floodlights lit up the battered remains of the disaster, casting ghostly light over the lifeless hull as six ferry drones buzzed back and forth like busy bees, scavenging for anything of value.
From her side console, Parri emitted a drawn-out whistle of amazement. “Holly crap. Look at the size of that space whale,” she exclaimed, her eyes wide with awe.
“Yeah. Oversized pomp, if you ask me,” Kai said sarcastically while pointing out the two squads of Ares-class ships patrolling the area, “and it’s not alone.”
Shreya refocused her attention on three worker drones hovering a few kilometers away as they carefully maneuvered the battered remains of the Von Braun into a cargo crate, prepping for transport. “There! Mr. Randal,” she said, hurriedly pointing over his shoulder. “We need to retrieve the black box from that ship.”
Kai glanced back and forth between the Von Braun, the cargo crate, and the watchful Ares-class ships. “Well, that’ll be a trick,” he mused, crossing his arms and leaning back in the pilot seat. “How do you propose we get it?”
Shreya hesitated for a moment, her eyes drifting back to the imposing Sun Tzu. “If you allow me to use the radio, I could contact my commanding officer, Prefect Ovius. I’m sure he would be grateful for a sit-rep.”
“Um, how about we don’t give away our position?” Kai retorted, his tone condescending. “This is clearly a restricted zone, and”—emphasizing with exaggerated finger quotes—“our presence here is not exactly authorized.”
Joining the conversation, Parri leaned in behind the flight chair, a spark of mischief lighting up her eyes. “I vote boom and zoom.”
Kai shook his head, signaling toward the patrols. “Not a chance. We’d have to open the heat vents and drop stealth. The escort would blast us into space dust long before we had time to power up the shields and weapons.”
Shreya frowned, eyes darting between the two. “I hope y’all aren’t considering stealing the black box, because that would definitely escalate the situation.”
A glimmer of intrigue danced in Kai’s expression as he ignored the Ursaen woman, lightly pinching his bottom lip with his fingers. “We might be able to slip inside the cargo crate,” he proposed. “It’ll be a while before they can transport the Von Braun, so I’m thinking we could perform a silent soft dock and have one of us EVA into the container. A simple bacon and eggs.”
Parri’s face lit up with excitement. “Ooh, breaking and entering! I love the sound of that. Can I be the one to perform the spacewalk?”
Shreya huffed under her breath, her advice falling on deaf ears. Once again, the crew of the Shizukana Kage was so absorbed in their clandestine plotting that they didn’t notice her slip away. She floated to the communication console, her steady hands adjusting the frequency dials. The familiar clicks and whirs punctuated the silence as she opened a channel to the Dynasty fleet.
“Sun Tzu, this is Shreya Nova, Over,” her voice resonated clear and confident over the radio waves.
“Why do I have to be cooped up in the ship while you have all the—” Parri stopped mid-sentence, her head snapping toward Shreya. “What the hell? Commander, the Ursaen is betraying us!” she shouted, her eyes flashing with panic.
Kai’s attention flicked to the back of the bridge. “She’s what?”
Parri anchored her feet against the deck, her posture tense, ready to spring into action. “I’ll stop her, Commander.”
“Wait, Parri, don’t! She knows how to—” His words trailed off as he helplessly watched Shreya sidestep his co-pilot’s reckless attempt to tackle her. Parri gagged in surprise as Shreya caught her collar mid-flight and yanked her back toward the flight console. Startled by the swift turn of events, he quickly caught Parri in his arms, her body crashing into his chest with a winded huff. As Parri’s bewildered eyes shifted to meet his, the surprise faded fast, replaced by a deep scowl. “I tried to warn you,” he said, an amused smirk playing on his lips.
“That bitch!” Parri spat, twisting and squirming against his arms, desperate for revenge.
“Stop, stop.” His grip tightened. “Blondie will wipe the floor with you. She’s already given away our position. There is no point in fighting her now,” he reasoned.
“Like hell, there isn’t!” she exclaimed, her voice brimming with determination as she twisted her body over his arms, lunging for the gun case at his feet. In her frantic struggle, her knee smacked hard into his jaw, while her elbow drove into his thigh, making Kai wince in pain.
He grimaced, bearing the onslaught as he tightened his grip around her waist, pulling her forcefully from beneath the console. “Parri, quit it,” he growled, maneuvering her into a bear hug, trying to control her flailing limbs. She thrashed violently, like a wild alligator caught in a net, until he squeezed tight enough to force out a startled gasp from her lips. “Are you done?” he huffed, his voice demanding.
“Yes,” she wheezed.
Releasing his grip, he pushed her off his lap. “Good. Now that you’re done throwing a tantrum, can you help me enable the subsystems?” Glancing at Shreya with an annoyed side-eye, his voice dripped with layered sarcasm as he said, “Heavens know we wouldn’t want to look like we’re trying to hide anything.”
Parri caught herself against the wall, her teeth clenched. “I told you she couldn’t be trusted.” Shooting him a stern glare over her shoulder, her nose crinkled with resentment. “Maybe you should listen to me more often.”
Kai waved his wrist dismissively. “Yeah, yeah, you told me so. Congratulations on being right. Now do as I asked, and get the systems back online.”
The speakers crackled with an authoritative voice. “Shreya Nova, this is Sun Tzu. You are in a restricted zone. State your intentions. Over.”
Shreya steadied herself, took a breath, and pressed the microphone. “Sun Tzu, I respectfully request to speak with Prefect Ovius. I have additional information regarding the events of the test flight. Over.”
As she waited for a response, Shreya’s gaze shifted to Parri, who floated toward the engineering console. The young woman shot her a fierce glare, radiating animosity and defiance as she brought the subsystems back online. As she slowly backed away, her fingers made a bold ‘I’m watching you’ gesture, but Shreya maintained a blank expression, her focus on the impending conversation with the Prefect.
“Hey,” Parri barked, demanding attention. “Don’t think you’ve gotten away with this. I’ve got my eyes on you. I knew you were trouble from day one, and you’re just lucky Kai stopped me.”
“Parri,” Kai interjected, his voice growing exhausted, “we’ve already been compromised, so arguing with her isn’t going to help.”
Parri gave her Commander a wide-eyed look of disbelief, silently questioning whose side he was on. “I don’t know how she sank her venomous fangs in you, but I’ve got your back, Commander.”
The speakers crackled again, disrupting the tension as the Prefect’s voice broke through the static. “Centurion Nova, this is Prefect Ovius. Sit-rep. Over.”
Shreya took a slow breath and explained, “Prefect, as you know, the Von Braun was severely damaged upon its return. Shortly after, a Stygiamite ship emerged from the anomaly. The alien vessel incapacitated the Karl Jansky with some sort of EMP blast, which cut off your transmission. We were overwhelmed by a swarm-type weapon that led to the ship’s destruction. I regret to confirm the deaths of Russell Robbins and Amir Frost during the attack. Have you located Den? Over.”
Kai momentarily diverted his gaze from Parri, his eyes switching to the patrol ships as they broke formation, their vectors heading toward the Shizukana Kage. His hand instinctively hovered over the throttle for a quick retreat as he input a new destination for the LAT drive. When he looked back at the radar, he saw the hollow circles representing the patrol ships included an ‘X’ symbol in the center, indicating the deployment of weapons. His eyes flicked to the shield status, still regenerating and not ready.
The speakers popped once more, “Centurion, Prefect, copy your last. I am dispatching an escort. You are cleared for a soft dock on the port side. We will continue this conversation in person. Out.”
As the transmission faded to static, Shreya released the microphone and turned around to see Parri’s fuming glare watching her every move. Meanwhile, Kai stayed alert, eyes fixed on the Ares-class patrol ships as they assumed flanking positions. “See, Mr. Randal? The issue is resolved,” she declared, with a hint of triumph in her voice. “The Prefect is willing to cooperate.”
“I wouldn’t start counting chickens just yet,” he muttered, diverting his attention to Shreya. “Can we trust him?”
“Who?”
“That Prefect fella.”
“Oh, him,” she hesitated, “Um…”
As he leaned in, eager for a response, his eyebrow slowly lifted in concern. “Your silence is not filling me with confidence.”
“It’s complicated,” she admitted, her tone evasive.
“That’s it. We’re running!” Kai proclaimed, spinning back around in his seat and grabbing the flight stick. “Everyone, hold on tight.”
“No, no, wait,” Shreya pleaded. “Running would definitely get you shot. Just stay put. I’m trying to defuse the situation before you two make it worse.”
“Make it worse?” he shot back. “I had everything under control until you opened the window and started waving at the enemy.”
“Hardly,” Shreya scoffed, rolling her eyes. “You two were bumbling around like a pair of incompetent pirates, begging to be captured. I’m surprised you’re still alive because all your plans so far have been haphazard and ill-conceived.”
“We’re not pirates,” Kai objected.
“Then explain how you obtained the footage of the Stygiamite attack?” Her words faded with a long sigh, composing herself. “You know what? It doesn’t even matter anymore. I refuse to be dragged into your criminal activities. If you want to stay alive, let me handle this.”
“This isn’t going to end well for us,” Kai muttered, giving his co-pilot a stern look. With a serious tone, he rattled off a cryptic demand, stating, “Parri, peeping tom, blind canister.”
Parri stared at him like a deer in headlights, eyes wide and filled with confusion. Gradually, her brow pinched with worry as she recognized the smuggler code, a secret method of communication he rarely used unless the situation was serious. “Commander?” she asked, hesitant for an explanation.
With an exasperated sigh, Kai rubbed the bridge of his nose under his glasses, his words slow as he tried to explain indirectly. “When we dock, it’s a safe bet the Ursaen Legion will search this ship. What do you think they will find?”
“Um…” Parri stammered, her eyes flicking nervously across the bridge.
Kai gently shook his head. “The data?”
“Oh, right!”
Bounding to the primary computer console, Parri’s fingers flew over the keys as she downloaded all the illegally obtained data regarding the prototype onto a small, metallic storage device. With each passing second, she quickly erased the original data from the computer’s database, ensuring no trace remained. Clutching the media tightly in her hand, she slipped into the central passageway behind the cockpit.
After entering the cargo bay, she vaulted over the catwalk railing and floated down to the deck. To her left, a simple triangle-shaped metal plate on the bulkhead beckoned. She pushed against one corner, feeling a satisfying displacement as the plate dislodged and floated free from the wall, revealing a secret compartment with a cargo canister inside. In the weightlessness of zero gravity, she effortlessly pulled the barrel-shaped container into the bay, exposing the keypad nestled on the side.
Punching in the code, the securing latches clicked open with a satisfying pop, and the lid unsealed with a hiss. Glancing around to make sure no one was watching, Parri opened the container and tossed the drive inside. When she closed the canister, the digital label on the side flickered and automatically scanned the contents of the storage unit. A smirk formed at the corners of her lips as the doctored display declared the contents to be ‘fresh fruit.’ She slid the canister back into its hidden compartment, replacing the false wall with a soft click.
Meanwhile, in the cockpit, Kai piloted the ship under the watchful eyes of the escorts as they guided him toward the Sun Tzu. Nearing the port side of the massive ship, the engine’s hum faded into an unsettling silence as he eased off the throttle. He flipped the switches for the docking hatch, his eyes fixed on the miniature screen on his HUD, as he carefully adjusted the flight stick to align the external port connections. “Well, here we are, sticking our heads in the lion’s mouth. I sure hope this works,” Kai muttered.
“It will, Mr. Randal. If you and your co-pilot can remain quiet, I’ll deal with the Prefect. You’ll see, I’ll straighten everything out and you two can be well on your way,” Shreya replied confidently.
Kai scoffed, his attention distracted by docking procedures. “Uh-huh, the Ursae Dynasty isn’t exactly known for its generosity toward ex-Colonial pilots. I doubt it will be that simple.”
“You know, trust goes both ways. You wanted me to trust you before showing me the footage of the alien attack, so now it’s your turn.”
Kai’s eyelids drooped, his lips pressed tight, feeling trapped in a self-made snare. His silence grew louder as the telescopic metal tube from the Sun Tzu latched onto the outer hull with a violent jolt. Shreya tightened her grip on the nearest handhold as the two crafts were pulled together, the walls trembling with a mechanical ratcheting sound. When the Shizukana Kage lurched to a stop, Shreya tapped her heels, securing her boots to the deck, as she strode across the bridge toward the back door, just as Parri re-entered the cockpit.
The two women locked eyes in an intense standoff, neither allowing the other to pass. As Parri narrowed her eyes, Shreya’s expression remained stoic. Peering past the Ursaen woman, at Kai in the cockpit, Parri yelled through the doorway, “So, what do we do now, Commander?”
Shreya confidently stepped through the door, one hand firmly gripping the frame as her presence pushed Parri aside. “Now we handle this professionally.”
“I wasn’t talking to you,” Parri sneered, dramatically avoiding physical contact with Shreya as if she were infected with a contagious disease.
Kai activated his mag-boots and stood up from the flight chair with a tired slump. His limp gesture toward Shreya matched his wary tone as he said, “I suppose we follow her.”
Parri activated her boots, her face showing concern and disapproval as she craned her neck to watch him walk by. “This is a bad idea.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” he mumbled.
“Then why are you going along with what the ice queen says? Let’s pop the docking clamps and burn like hell,” she suggested, deliberately projecting her voice.
Kai hid a smirk. “I wish we could, but my little ship isn’t a match for the armaments on the Sun Tzu, and the escorts can outrun us without breaking a sweat.”
Parri jogged to catch up, her boots clomping against the deck. “You should’ve let me shoot her,” she grumbled.
Question for the Comments: Shreya thinks she’s "defusing the situation," but Kai and Parri feel like they’re being led straight to a firing squad. Do you think Prefect Marcus Ovius is actually going to be "grateful for a sit-rep," or did Shreya just walk her rescuers into a trap?
I am updating every single day until the grand finale, one more to go.
Rating. It helps the story finish strong on the charts!
Was Shreya right to open the radio channel to the Sun Tzu?
