“Tactical, lock on Shrikes, two each, on the closest four targets,” Celesta said as she looked at the course plots. “Helm, bring us about! Reciprocal course, keep your turn as tight as you can. Nav! Begin updating our track back to the jump point. Let me know if it looks like we’re going to be cut off. Coms, keep looping my original all-frequency message until we get some sort of response.”

There was a chorus of affirmations and a few pops and groans could be heard as the Icarus was put into a tight turn and fought against her inertia. Celesta was suddenly very much wishing the RDS was active and available even as the helmsman throttled up the mains to keep the turn as tight as possible. A “tight” turn in interstellar terms was still over a hundred thousand kilometers at the speed they’d been flying, but when the Icarus came out the other side they’d still be carrying most of their forward velocity.

“Ma’am, the Midlands wants confirmation of RoE,” Ellison said, referring to the rules of engagement Celesta had handed down regarding use of weapons.

“Reiterate that they are not to fire first,” Celesta said. “Nav, do we have a path up past the four ships facing us to the jump point?”

“No, ma’am,” the chief at Nav said immediately. “They’re too far out and arrayed too wide. We have no angle to take that they can’t easily beat us to.”

“Very well,” Celesta said calmly. “Plot a course for the X-Ray jump point.”

“Ma’am, the X-Ray jump point is—”

“I am well aware of current flight restrictions, Chief,” she cut him off. “Under the circumstances I would say I’m more interested in extending and escaping than adhering to the rules of a Senate subcommittee that no longer exists. Now carry out my orders!”

“Aye aye, ma’am!” the chief said, his face bright red. “X-Ray jump point course plotted.”

“Helm, come onto new course and bring the engines to full power,” Celesta ordered. With the orientation of the system at that particular time the X-ray jump point was more or less “behind” them, giving them the option of running around the primary star and trying to put some distance between her and the four ships facing off with her. If she was actually required to transition out of the Xi’an System using that jump point she knew it may very well be out of the pan and into the fire as it was impossible to know what was beyond. The Senate subcommittee on territorial expansion had strictly forbid any flights past Xi’an after the war, even simple recon flights by automated drones.

“Engines answering all ahead flank,” the helmsman called as the Icarus swung past the apex of the ponderous turn she was executing.