Race to the Docks

Zack's breath hitched as the Skrixx claw slashed down, its jagged edge glinting in the alley's flickering light. He raised the dead Volthar Shard, a desperate shield, and braced for the hit. A blur slammed into him—Tani, her shoulder ramming his side. The claw grazed his arm, tearing through his sleeve and slicing a shallow gash across his bicep. Pain flared, hot and stinging, but it missed anything vital. They crashed into a pile of trash, soggy wrappers and broken tools scattering under them. The Skrixx screeched, mandibles snapping inches from their faces, black goo splattering the dirt with a hiss. Tani yelped, clutching her bloody leg, her chip glowing faintly as she kicked at the thing with her good foot. Zack rolled to his knees, adrenaline surging, and grabbed her arm. "Move!"

The other two Skrixx skittered closer, their six legs clicking like a swarm of knives, cutting off the alley's far end. Zack's new cut bled, mixing with the glass wound from the school, soaking his sleeve red. His chip buzzed hard against his wrist, holo-screen flickering in his peripheral vision. Output unstable. Recommend calibration. Fat chance. The shard-beast's energy still buzzed under his skin, wild and raw, like a storm he couldn't control. The lead Skrixx lunged again, claws slashing. Zack yanked Tani behind him and swung his fist, shard clenched tight. A weak burst of blue light crackled from his knuckles, grazing the thing's faceted eyes. It flinched, shaking its head with a chittering snarl, but charged right back. "Come on!" he shouted, half-dragging Tani toward the alley's mouth, her weight pulling at his sore arm.

They stumbled into the open street, smoke curling thick around them. The evac docks loomed ahead, a quarter mile off, their pads lit by the orange glow of shuttle engines and the green streaks of Skrixx plasma raining from above. Korran's Reach was a corpse—prefabs collapsed into smoldering heaps, market stalls reduced to ash, bodies sprawled in the dirt. Zack's chest tightened, each breath a stab of panic. Lila could be anywhere in that wreckage, trapped or worse. He tapped his chip, fingers trembling. "Lila, you there? Please." The screen blinked red, static buzzing. No signal. Tani limped beside him, her braid swinging wild, blood streaking her pant leg. "We're not gonna make it," she rasped, glancing back. The Skrixx burst from the alley, their screeches piercing the chaos, legs churning the ground like pistons.

Zack gritted his teeth, jaw aching. "We will." His eyes darted across the street—wreckage everywhere, hover-carts flipped on their sides, crates spilling mining gear and tools. A rusted mining drone leaned against a charred wall, its rotor busted, frame dented but whole. A spark of hope hit him. "There!" He pulled Tani toward it, her limp slowing them down. She winced with every step, her breath hitching, but didn't argue. The Skrixx were close, their chittering a wall of sound that made his skin crawl. Zack dropped to his knees beside the drone, shoving the dead shard into its power slot—a cracked socket meant for Volthar cells. His chip buzzed again, screen flickering. External Type: Techkinetics. Channel bioelectric current. He'd done it with the shard-beast, sort of. Maybe he could again.

He pressed his hand to the drone's hull, cold metal biting his palm, and willed that buzz in his chest to move. Nothing at first. The Skrixx screeches grew louder, claws scraping closer. "Come on," he muttered, squeezing his eyes shut. A jolt shot through him, sharp and hot, like fire in his veins. Blue sparks crackled from his fingers, sinking into the drone. Its lights flickered, then steadied, a low hum kicking in. The rotor spun, sluggish but picking up. "Get on!" he yelled. Tani climbed aboard, clutching the frame with white knuckles, her bloody leg dangling off the side. Zack jumped behind her, gripping the controls—two joysticks and a throttle, stiff with rust. A Skrixx lunged, claws swiping at the drone's edge. He slammed the throttle, and the machine lurched forward, scraping the dirt before lifting a shaky three feet. The claw raked the back, metal shrieking, but they pulled ahead, wobbling through the smoke.

The drone sputtered, its hum faltering. Zack's hand tingled, the buzz in his chest dimming like a dying battery. "No, no, no," he hissed, sweat beading on his forehead. He pushed harder, focusing on that itchy energy, and another burst of sparks flared from his palm into the hull. The drone steadied, picking up speed, weaving through the street's wreckage. Tani clung tight, her voice cutting through the wind. "How are you doing that?" Zack didn't answer—couldn't. His head throbbed, vision blurring at the edges, a dull ache spreading behind his eyes. The docks grew closer, a chaos of shouting settlers, flashing lights, and lifting ships. One shuttle remained, its ramp still down, engines whining high-pitched and desperate. People swarmed it, a mass of shoving bodies, fists flying as they fought for the last spots.

A deep roar rolled through the air, shaking the ground. Zack twisted, glancing back. A shard-beast barreled down the street, bigger than the one in the alley, its hide bristling with Volthar Shards that glowed like blue fire. Its claws sparked, electricity arcing in wild bursts, tearing up the dirt. Skrixx scattered, some turning to fight it, others still chasing the drone. "Faster!" Tani yelled, her voice cracking. Zack's hand shook on the controls, the buzz flickering weak. The drone dipped, grazing a toppled crate, and he forced another jolt into it, teeth gritted against the pain in his skull. It surged forward, dodging a burning prefab husk. The beast gained, its roar rattling his bones, Skrixx clinging to its back like parasites. One leaped from a rooftop, landing on the drone's side with a thud. Tani screamed as its claws tore her sleeve, grazing her arm. Zack twisted, slamming his fist into its face. A spark flared, brighter this time, and the thing tumbled off, twitching in the dirt.

The drone hit the dock's edge, skidding across the plasteel pad with a grinding screech. Zack jumped off, legs wobbling, and pulled Tani down with him. She stumbled, clutching his arm, her face pale under the blood and soot. The shuttle's ramp was a warzone—people packed tight, a kid wailing as his mother shoved through, a miner swinging a wrench at a man trying to cut ahead. The shard-beast roared, closing in, its claws tearing chunks from the dock. Skrixx swarmed behind it, their screeches blending with the settlers' screams. Zack's shoulder burned, his legs screaming, but he pushed into the crowd, Tani limping at his side. "Wait!" he shouted, voice raw. A burly man blocked the ramp, his jumpsuit patched with VortexCorp logos, shoving a woman back with a grunt. "Full up!" he bellowed. Zack ducked under his arm, dragging Tani past. The man swung, fist clipping Zack's jaw, but they stumbled onboard, crashing into a wall of bodies.

Inside, the shuttle was a sardine can—people pressed shoulder to shoulder, sobbing, yelling, some praying under their breath. The air stank of sweat, blood, and burnt metal. Zack slumped against a bulkhead, Tani beside him, both gasping for air. His chip buzzed, screen flickering in his vision. Bioelectric output detected. Capacity: Tier 1, unstable. He swiped it away, scanning the faces around him—miners, kids, a woman clutching a broken tool like a lifeline. No Lila. His throat closed up, a hard knot forming. She wasn't here. The shuttle shook, engines roaring as the ramp started closing. A deafening crash rocked the hull—the shard-beast hit the dock, its claws tearing into the plasteel pad. People screamed, shoving toward the back. The beast climbed, its glowing eyes locked on the shuttle, Volthar Shards pulsing in its hide. A Skrixx leaped onto its back, clawing at its spine, sparks flying in a chaotic mess.

The shuttle lurched, lifting off, but the beast's claw caught the ramp, bending it with a groan of tortured metal. The pilot's voice crackled over a speaker. "Hold on!" The ship tilted, engines whining louder. Zack's hand buzzed, that wild energy spiking as the beast's shards pulsed close. His chip chimed, sharp and urgent. Residual Absorption window: 10 seconds. He didn't think—just lunged for the ramp, reaching past the crowd. Tani grabbed his arm, her grip shaky. "Zack, what the hell?" He shook her off, hand brushing the beast's claw as it clung to the shuttle. A snap of electricity hit him, raw and searing, flooding his veins like liquid fire. The beast roared, its grip slipping, and fell, crashing to the dock with the Skrixx in a tangle of limbs and sparks. The ramp slammed shut, the shuttle rocking as it climbed hard.

Zack slumped back, chest heaving, the new buzz humming under his skin like a live wire. His chip flickered. Absorption complete. Capacity increased. The shuttle broke atmosphere, Korran's Reach shrinking below—a smoking ruin, green fire licking its corpse. Lila was down there somewhere, lost in the chaos. Or gone. Zack's hands shook, the dead shard still clenched tight, as the galaxy swallowed him whole.