I do not know what made her call out then, her voice strained by the force of her acceleration. Turning from the display of the aerial battle, turning my back on the Emperor, I returned to Lorian’s side. To Valka. Finger pressed behind my ear, I asked, “What is it?” She never answered. I gripped the back of my seat, glanced away an instant to Lorian. The intus was looking up, bereft as I was of any task. Valka shifted in her seat. Her ship shook around her. Sir Tristan’s medal gleamed. Her lips parted, shaping the unheard word. “I—” The holograph went dead.
