Uzbecka

Uzbecka felt a surge of adrenaline as she unleashed a blast of wind at the two Cloak pirates who had entered the hold through a large blasthole. She had been guarding the flux cores with the engineer, Thulia, and two passengers, Darius Mann and his scribe, when the green-clad intruders burst through the hull, armed with railguns and shoulderblades. Uzbecka erected a shield of air to deflect their shots, while Thulia grabbed a wrench and tried to fight them off, but the engineer was quickly overpowered and knocked unconscious, leaving Uzbecka alone to face the enemies.

She knew she had to protect the flux cores at all costs. They were the source of the Runagate's power and they contained three gloomer spirits, born out of the magnetic fields of the Swirl. The Runagate used the flux energy to fly and navigate through the Swirl, avoiding the skywhales that lurked within, ghostly airships that fed on the flux attacking anything else they could trap.

The Cloak pirates might intend to bleed the gloomer weirds, or to sell them on the black market. Uzbecka could not let that happen. She had sworn an oath to protect the Runagate and its crew, and she felt a kinship with the gloomer spirits, who had helped her hone her weather magic, helping her learn how to channel the flux energy through her body and mind.

But now, the flux cores were damaged, and the gloomers were in danger. Uzbecka could feel their distress, as they struggled to maintain their connection to the Runagate. She could also hear the sounds of battle outside the hold, as the Remoras, in their red Mantas, attacked the Runagate from above.

Uzbecka knew they had little time left. She had to fend off the Cloak pirates and secure the flux cores, before the Runagate crashed or ran afoul of the Remoras or the skywhale looming above them. If the skywhale got a taste of the flux leaking out the cores, it would come at them, and she feared what it would do when it did.

She centered herself in the present, and the two Cloak pirates advancing on her. She had managed to wound one of them with a blow with a loose timber, but she was unprepared for this. Uzbecka wondered who they were behind their green Manta masks, and why they had chosen to become sky pirates. She wondered if they had families, friends, dreams, or regrets. She wondered if they felt any remorse for the lives they had taken, or the lives they were about to take.

She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. She could not afford to be distracted. She had to fight, and as the Mantas moved towards the flux cores, they were also driving her towards the hole basted in the Runagate's hull. She raised her hands, ready to unleash a blast of wind, when she heard a loud noise behind her. She turned, and saw a familiar figure emerge from the blasthole. Harlaan was brandishing a peevee pole, and he looked tired, but determined.

"Uzbecka, I'm here to help!" he shouted, as swung the pole at the nearest Cloak pirates. "Are you alright?"

Uzbecka felt a surge of relief, and gratitude. She nodded and smiled. "Harlaan, you're a sight for sore eyes!" she said. "I'm fine, but the flux cores are not. We have to get them out of here, before the skywhale comes back!"

Harlaan nodded and moved closer to her. She saw him frown as he glanced at the flux cores. They knew how important they were, and how dangerous they could be, and the cracks on the sparing metal casings, the faint glow of the gloomer spirits inside, worried him.  When a flux core exploded, this was enormously destructive, and when a gloomer spirit possessed a person, this would lead to madness, and death.