Tahuuk jumped while the ship was still in the air.

  He landed beside Vindarion’s body with a heavy thud, snow bursting outward in a short wave. Without hesitation, he stepped forward, leaned down, and tore his spear free.

  The prison’s main entrance loomed behind him. Guards were already spilling out, shaking off shock as more poured in from within. Tahuuk turned. He ran.

  Jason lay where he’d fallen, barely conscious. Tahuuk reached him in moments, hoisted him over his shoulder, and bolted toward the ship.

  It wasn’t low enough yet—but that didn’t stop him.

  Gun mechanisms clicked to life at his side.

  “Hurry up!” Tahuuk roared toward the cockpit, his voice nearly swallowed by the storm.

  Whether the pilot heard him or not didn’t matter. Gunfire erupted.

  Only short bursts made it through. Fingers were numb from the cold, weapons jamming under rapid fire, visibility reduced to white chaos. It gave Tahuuk just enough room to weave.

  The ship descended further, its engines kicking up another violent wave of snow that blasted toward the guards.

  Tahuuk leapt aboard and slammed his palm onto the control panel. The rear ramp began to rise.

  Bullets chased them inside. Some struck the ramp. Others ricocheted within the cabin. One slammed into the ceiling and buried itself in a pillow along the sidewall, spraying fabric into the air.

  The ramp sealed shut. Impacts echoed dully from outside.

  The pilot twisted around in his seat. “We need to move—now! After that other ship escaped, they alerted the space guard. We don’t have long.”

  The engines roared.

  Tahuuk staggered as the ship lifted, then forced his way toward the rear. He lowered Jason onto one of the narrow beds and yanked open a storage cabinet, grabbing bandages and a stim.

  The ship shuddered violently as it clawed its way into the upper atmosphere.

  Tahuuk steadied himself and pressed the stim toward Jason’s wound—missed—realigned—missed again. On the third attempt, he drove it in. The liquid hissed as it injected, the torn flesh slowly knitting just enough to slow the bleeding.

  Jason groaned, jaw clenched.

  Tahuuk wrapped the bandages tightly, covering both entry and exit wounds.

  From the cockpit, the pilot shouted, “They’re here!”

  Tahuuk moved forward. Through the forward window, he saw them—ships flanking both sides, rising into space alongside them.

  “What now?” Tahuuk asked.

  The pilot exhaled slowly. “We dodge. Emergency FTL needs a straight line—just a few seconds.”

  “You think we’ll make it?”

  The pilot smirked faintly. “I’ve been through worse.”

  The ship suddenly rolled hard to the side, slipping behind the pursuing vessels.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “They’re lining up,” the pilot muttered, sweat beading on his brow.

  Three ships locked in behind them. Side-mounted cannons rattled to life. Laser fire stitched the space around them, some striking the hull, others converging toward the engines.

  The pilot pulled back hard. The ship tilted vertically, bleeding speed as the three pursuers overshot. One peeled off to the side.

  He slammed the controls forward, leveling out behind the remaining two.

  “Engaging emergency FTL,” he muttered.

  “Johnny…” Tahuuk said quietly. “You sure about this?”

  “Four seconds,” Johnny replied, wiping sweat from his face. “They won’t—”

  “That one on the right is closing fast.”

  Johnny swore and shoved the controls forward. The ship dipped sharply, lasers slicing overhead.

  “Damn it—the timer reset.”

  Alarms screamed. Missile lock. “Perfect,” Johnny muttered. Two missiles streaked toward them.

  Johnny yanked back on the controls and flipped a switch. Dense particulate matter burst from the rear of the ship, forming a thick, shimmering cloud.

  The missiles wavered, confused—then detonated harmlessly inside the cloud, scattering light like stars.

  Johnny looped the ship around and cut straight through the haze, passing two pursuers as they pass at the same time.

  Once they bursted out on the other side, they passed one of the guard ships at close range, barely missing each other.

  The opening was enough. FTL engaged. “Told you,” Johnny said, forcing a grin.

  Tahuuk noticed his hands—still trembling.

  Then the alarms screamed again. Johnny’s smile vanished. “We were hit.”

  The ship lurched violently. FTL cut out. Lights died. They drifted—silent and powerless—into the black.

  Johnny cursed under his breath, hands flying across the console. “Condenser’s fried. We overheated. Reboot’ll take fifteen minutes.”

  Tahuuk exhaled and returned to the rear.

  Jason was awake now, breathing shallowly, pain etched into his face.

  “Sorry,” Jason said weakly. “For being a burden… brother.”

  Tahuuk shook his head. “You saved me. I save you. That is how it has always been.”

  He paused. “Bloodbrothers.”

  Jason tried to smile. It didn’t last.

  "What happened to the clients, the siblings?"

  "We fought, but... they got caught by the soldiers, there were to many. I barely escaped with the pilot they were supposed to meet."

  Jason hid his face, trying to hide his saddened expression.

  “If I could control that power… those white irises…” His voice faltered. “It would’ve been different. I’m still not strong enough.”

  Tahuuk’s expression shifted. White Iris. The elder’s words surfaced in his mind—old teachings, half-remembered truths.

  Before he could speak, the cabin filled with light. A soft, aquatic blue washed over the walls. Outside, something vast drifted past.

  A jellyfish guardian—colossal, ethereal—floated through the void, its translucent body pulsing gently. Trails of shimmering dust followed in its wake. Smaller ones moved alongside it, silent and serene.

  No one spoke. The light faded. Systems hummed back to life.

  “Yes!” Johnny shouted from the cockpit, fists clenched in triumph.

  Tahuuk remained still. He turned to Jason, exhaled slowly, then stepped forward.

  “I know where we go next,” he said.

  Johnny glanced back. “Where?”

  “My homeworld. The Akicita tribe.”

  Johnny thought for a moment. “Not an easy place to enter… but it’s close. And we don’t have many options.” He nodded and began entering coordinates.

  Tahuuk returned to Jason.

  “At my tribe,” he said quietly, “you can learn to control the White Iris.”

  Jason looked at him. “I thought you didn’t want to go back.”

  “It’s not that,” Tahuuk replied. “I was banished. They may refuse us.”

  He turned toward the window, where the last traces of the guardian’s light faded into darkness.

  “But we can’t keep living in the past.”

  The engines flared.

  The ship vanished into FTL.