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One of the Lakelanders steps forward, a captain or lieutenant judging by the white stripes on his unifor the word stop But we can’t hear hiines

"Go!" Farley shouts, appearing at the back of the plane She hurtles into the closest seat, buckling herself in with shaking hands

Cal doesn’t need to be told twice His hands work double-ti, as if this is second nature But I hear hi himself of what to do The Blackrun lurches forward, wheels rolling, while the rear ra the interior of the craft with a satisfying pneuet this thingback into his pilot’s chair with an alrabs a lever on the panel, pushing it forward, and the jet obeys

It rolls ahead, on a collision course with the line of soldiers I grita brutal scene, but they’re already running, fleeing the Blackrun and her vengeful pilot We tear fro second, to find the runway in chaos Transports roar past the barracks, heading for us, while a troop of soldiers fires boldly fro into the metal hull, but never puncture it The Blackrun is ht that rattles us in our seats

Kilorn gets the brunt of it, not having fastened his safety belts properly His head bangs against the curved wall and he curses, cradling his bruised cheeks "You sure you can fly this thing?" he growls, directing all his anger at Cal

With a sneer, Cal pushes further, urging the jet to its top speed Out the , I see the transports falling away, unable to keep pace But ahead, the runway, a bland gray road, is steadily coreen hills and stunted trees have never looked sohe hears ines "Cal"

Behindtoo badly to be of any use "Barrow, you got one last ju at my brother

Shade doesn’t seem to hear him His eyes stare forward, his face pale with fear The hills are closing in, seconds away now I picture the jet driving over the end over end to explode in a fiery wreck Cal would survive that, at least

But Cal won’t let us die Not today He leans hard on another lever, the veins in his fist standing out sharply Then the hills fall away, like a cloth pulled off a table It’s not the island I see anymore but the deep blue autumn sky My breath disappears with the land, stolen away by the sensation of rising through the air The pressure pushesal them Behind me, Kilorn stifles a yelp and Shade curses under his breath Farley doesn’t react at all She’s frozen, her eyes wide in shock

I’ve experiencedco the imines throwing us skyward, while my own body is so powerless, so passive, so dependent on the craft aroundcycle, but also better Biting my lip, Ito nothing but roaring engines and our own pounding hearts Wisps of cloud flit by, breaking across the cockpit like white curtains I can’t stop lass to get a good look outside The island wheels below, a drab green against the iron-blue sea, growing suish the runway or the barracks

When the jet levels out, reaching whatever height Cal decides on, he turns in his seat The s look on his face wouldat Kilorn "Can I fly this thing?"