<div>
<div>
Random Encounter spiraled through the void, weaving around and between streams of plasma. Yvian thrilled a little at her deft maneuvering. She forced herself to take a deep breath, relaxing her shoulders and tried to push down the thudding of her heartbeat in her ears.
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Random Encounter gave as it fired its guns was a mild vibration. Yvian had spent her entire life in the void. In the months since she met the Captain she''d seen more of it than most of her species ever imagined, but she still felt a twinge of disappointment when cannons didn''t make noise like they did on Holovision.
<div>
<div>
<div>
Niroco. The freighter''s shields had been destroyed, along with its engines. The desperate calls for help that had drawn Yvian here were now silent, but the distress beacon itself was still active.
<div>
<div>
Random Encounter. We''re up against the Madlad himself. Mark thrice cursed Mims!"
<div>
Random Encounter several minutes ago. Yvian had been pretty confident in the plan at the time. Now she was having second thoughts.
<div>
<div>
Encounter''s shields, dropping them six percent. "Just shoot ''em and get out here."
<div>
<div>
<div>
Encounter again. The ship shuddered as the shields ticked down. "I thought you said you''ve got this!"
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Encounter," the female explained. "Only two life signs. Pixens. Female. The human''s not on board."
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Random Encounter shuddered. Her desperate dive for the missile put her on a straight trajectory. Child''s play for the pirates to hit. Yvian didn''t have time to care. She swung her sights to bear down on the projectile, trying to angle the ship so she could shoot it without hitting the Niroco.
<div>
Encounter''s anti-missile turret activated as Yvian strafed the ship sideways. A beam lanced out, striking the projectile at a third of the speed of light. The beam turret ate a lot of power, and it was too weak to do much damage to another ship. It was, however, perfect for detonating hostile ordinance.
<div>
<div>
<div>
Niroco. The Random Encounter surged forward to block plasma with its shields. Too late. Several dozen bolts sped past as Yvian moved the ship to block the fire.
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Random Encounter shot forward, charging the pirate directly. Yvian let out a scream as she bore down on them, all fourteen guns firing in one long, continuous burst.
<div>
<div>
Random Encounter, strafing sideways to avoid crashing into the debris of the ship she''d destroyed.
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Niroco." He was as calm as always, but there was a subtle tension in his voice. " And hurry. The ship''s decompressed, and we''ve got wounded."
<div>
Encounter around. The fight was over, but the work wasn''t done. She still had people to save. "We''ll be there in..." she engaged the autopilot and ran a quick calculation. "Eight minutes."
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Random Encounter. The sudden change used to make her stumble, but she was used to it by now.
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Encounter. As soon as they cycled out of the airlock, Mims had them set down the victims and remove the voidseals. The plastic scraped the face and arms of the adolescent male as it retracted. Yvian looked over at the other body. It had taken a lot more damage. Mostly because the woman was naked, for reasons Yvian didn''t want to think about.
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
Encounter''s twice as fast as a Shrapnel, with twice the firepower and five times the shielding. Hold on a sec." He tapped his wrist console and activated his comm. "Lissa, it''s Mims. The Niroco''s clear. You can start repairs."
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>