page45 (1/2)

Her instructions were to fly to Novador and hand in the fugitives, then herself It seemed a reasonable option prior to his departure, but now not knowing if Mason was dead or alive, it was impossible to comply with the command

Obedience was fine when things were cal to plan, but if he believed she could sit idly by and forget him, then he wasabout obedience, only that she loved Mason too much to simply abandon him to his fate

How to help him? Find him?

She sent oneto find you—then made a decision She needed a shuttle and there were two docked: Stealth, which was too badly daed to use, and Callo’s little speeder, which had been battered during her attee

It didn’t take long to determine the hull was intact, if a little dented, and the controls for flying the ship were functioning However, she had to spend ti it was capable of landing and taking off again She plotted a route to the last known position of Mason, the location of his co a beacon

The planet’s surface was covered in jungle and she needed a landing platform for the craft, somewhere flat and clear The recon syste, possibly some kind of cultivation It meant there were natives nearby, but she had to chance that they were friendly

She went to the Titan’s aruns in a bag, along with food, water bottles, and aonto her shoulder, she returned to the docking bay and released the locks securing the shuttle With one last look around the bay, she entered the airlock and closed the door behind her

A day had passed since she’d last heard fro was the belief that he was still alive She felt the ache in her soul, the core of her being, and until she was convinced otherwise, she wasn’t going to doubt that ache

Relying on another burst of adrenaline, which had kept her going with little sleep and food, she dis sto clamps

Jade had a little time to familiarize herself with the controls; however, the autopilot did the hard work for her as it flew the vessel through the planet’s at into the skies about the jungle, the little shuttle swerved between the peaks of the trees until it cae

The villagers ran away as the shuttle buear held out, as had the daain was a different s to worry about—the natives

She climbed out of the shuttle and felt the heat of the day The sticky air ilued itself to her bare arms

The women hid in the shadows of the huts, while thethe bag over her shoulders, the weight of it causing her to hunch, she cautiously walked toward the nearest building

She needed their help They ht have seen Mason, possibly the otheron the dirt and crouched down,herself small, as little threat as possible

Picking up a stick, she began to draw a picture in the dirt Three of theone with vines around his forehead, and they edged forward, close enough to see what she drew They pointed and chatted in their own tongue, waving in the direction of the trees