Heart of Star Snippet 3

Andromeda looked above her. The subspace currents were outlined in her goggles, revealing one saving opportunity.

“There's a stray current four meters above us,” she shouted to Daniel, even though he could have heard her whisper, “It'll carry us right at Hawkens if we can catch it. On my mark I want you to cut defensive shielding and put all the fields from my suit into catching that current!”

Andromeda couldn’t afford to lose this match. She didn't wait for Daniel to reply. She swung her legs over her head in a flip that carried her upward. As she righted herself she gripped the remaining tach-rod in her good hand, and disengaged it from her feet.

“Now Daniel!” she cried as she directed a full strength field to form in front of the rod. She could see the soft glow of her suit fields between her and her tach-rod as Daniel submitted to her orders.

As predicted she caught the current and was carried rapidly towards her opponent. Andromeda cried out as she put every once of her energy into the assault and began to hurl bolts at Hawkens as she sped toward him.

Though Hawkens was quick enough he didn't attempt to escape her path. Redoubling his attack he sent a volley of energized arrows through his field as quickly as he could. The blows knocked Andrmoeda about threatening to divert her course, and pummeled her field as they rematerialized into dust on impact with her field.

A glancing blow finally skewed her trajectory exposing her vulnerable side. She felt a searing heat as a final beam of energy collided with her shard harness inches away from her shoulder blades.

“Your harness has been damaged. Auxiliary systems offline,” Daniel reported almost immediately. Ande’ tightened her grip around her tach-rod, but it produced no field.

“Daniel, we’re going down!” Andromeda flailed violently as she began to descend faster and faster toward the ground.

“Commencing emergency field buffering,” came Daniels voice again. Andromeda’s shards dimmed briefly before returning with an intense glow that created an orb of light around her. Like a falling star she streaked toward the ground trailed by the glow of energy that bathed her.

The earth seemed to be speeding up toward her, and she had no more time react to the imminent impact. As her glimmering field reached the earth ahead of her, a loud hissing and rumbling could be heard. The ground cratered on contact with the orb and a burst of dust appeared within the field as Andromeda’s inertia was converted by the field.

Though much of her inertia was absorbed her impact was violent as her body fell into the large hole created by the shard field. Dust covered and bruised she crawled from the pit.

Looking up her cold blue eyes met those of her new apprentice standing above her in the sand as the words escaped her lips.

“Damn.”