Chaos Heir

Chapter 1304: Damage

Khan saw the alien getting farther and farther away on the screens connected to the scanners, spinning seemingly out of control. Yet, he didn’t dare to interrupt the acceleration.

Whatever that alien was, he had already proven himself capable of catching up with the ship. Khan’s sole possible solution was to go even faster and reach safer areas, but the problems now came from within the hull, too.

Some of the red marks across the ship’s insides had eroded or disappeared altogether after Liiza’s spell, leaving those surfaces and technology partially naked against Khan’s destructive presence.

The artificial illumination was the first to suffer from that change. All the lights in the ship went off, accompanied by sizzling noises that announced their permanent destruction.

The surfaces themselves followed, releasing low screams that seemed to precede their imminent breaking point. Even the control desk started to flicker, and Khan needed it to adjust his trajectory toward the celestial body.

Of course, only one person inside the ship could deal with that issue and didn’t hesitate to get to work.

Liiza held back a groan as she fought against the growing pressure inside the ship to stand up. A transparent barrier of ice still covered her belly, and more of it appeared around her feet, securing a stable foothold whenever she had to step forward.

Khan truly would have loved to help, both now and before, but his hands had to remain on the steering wheel, and his element was unsuitable for dealing with threats so close to the ship. His time would come. He actually desired nothing else now, which didn’t help Liiza.

Some cracks opened on the bridge’s floor by the time Liiza reached the first eroded line. She planted both feet down, securing them through her ice, and one hand supported her belly while she bent to patch the damage.

Liiza couldn’t fix the red marks under the increasing pressure, but her ice could act as a band-aid. She had already done the same with Khan in the end. The more extensive nature of the current scarlet symbols only made everything more challenging.

Nevertheless, Liiza pressed on, driven by the need to ensure the ship’s survival and pressured by the uneasiness that seeped through the mental connection. She couldn’t sense the aliens anymore, but Khan’s instincts still warned them about their vicinity.

The process took a while. Each one of Liiza’s steps had to be careful and methodical. A single mistake could make her slip and fall prey to the increasing pressure, but everything accelerated once the ship finally reached its peak velocity.

The internal pressure disappeared. Zalpa could finally escape the invisible cage that had trapped her on the bridge’s wall, but Khan didn’t even consider her as he jumped off his seat, immediately reaching Liiza.

Liiza was doing well on her own but welcomed the warm arm around her back, using it as an additional support during the procedure. Khan let her lead him and accompanied her throughout the ship, staying at her side while she painted ice trails over the half-faded red marks.

Some of the ship’s functions resumed working when Liiza began to deal with the last patches. The artificial illumination never went on again, but that was hardly needed with three pairs of shining eyes in those small areas.

As for the other functions, Khan didn’t care. He didn’t know what had happened to Wayne, Deni, or the outpost, but he couldn’t muster himself to think about them, either.

Only the control desk mattered, and Liiza understood that despite her lack of knowledge in the field. Once she finished patching up the last red mark, she wrapped an arm around Khan’s neck, letting him lift her and bring her back to the pilot’s seat.

The control desk resumed working correctly, but alarms and red labels filled it. The ship wasn’t made for that kind of pressure, nor was it as sturdy as Khan’s previous vessel. Khan stood before a grim picture, but his mind didn’t stop churning ideas for a single second.

The brakes were gone, and the same went for the engines. The thrusters had been the first to give in, and the tank had exhausted its fuel, too.

Some energy reserves had survived, but the mana barrier was bound to need them. The communications were also offline, but the navigation system had survived, seemingly just to tell Khan how terrible the situation was.

The ship was now stuck in a forward motion with no way of decelerating. Also, its course would bring it directly into the celestial body, where it would face its dense atmosphere.

It was unclear whether the mana barrier would be enough to deal with the violent impact on the planet’s atmosphere. Still, the crash into whatever awaited the trio at its center was bound to crush the ship and anything inside to a pulp with no way of decelerating.

Besides, decelerating wouldn’t solve the main problem. Despite the incredible speed, the uneasy sensation had never left Khan, so he knew that those black aliens were still upon him, and the ship wouldn’t survive another confrontation in space.

“[Zaza, strap yourself somewhere],” Khan ordered. “[This will get bumpy].”

Liiza glanced at Khan when he slipped away from under her to stand up. Her white light remained on him while he secured her on the seat’s belts, being careful not to apply pressure on her belly.

“[Once I get outside],” Khan whispered, rechecking the belts, “[Protect the ship].”

“[Leave it to me],” Liiza responded, grabbing Khan’s arm to pull him into a short, sudden kiss. “[Go now].”

“[I love you],” Khan couldn’t refrain from exclaiming. Liiza’s confident face and the fact that her ice was still protecting her belly almost forced those words out of him. He couldn’t have wished for a better wife.

Liiza simply smiled, following Khan with her gaze while he walked past the pilot’s seat, crossing the bridge to enter the cargo area. The menus around the ship’s entrance were gone, but the manual override had survived, and Khan placed his hand on it.

Then, when everything started to tremble, Khan opened the door into the blazing inferno outside.

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