“We must have translated into a solar storm,” he growled loudly , seizing the ragged edge of the shattered pulp it for balance as the ship was smashed again. Helmsmen in front of the Librarian desperately tried to steer the ship , whilst simultaneously fighting to stay on their feet. The din of churnin g servos fought against the fiery thunder assailing the vessel, as the blast shields covering the view-points started to retract. It was an automated sy stem that kicked in as soon as the Geller fields powered down and the ship re-entered realspace.
Dak’ir felt the danger before he saw a thin line of ultra-bright light creeping into being at the bottom edge of the shielding. “Shut th—” Horrified screams smothered the brother-sergeant’s warning as multiple shafts of super-heated light reached
into the bridge. An ensign nearest the viewpoint spontaneously combusted as the deadly solar energy washed over him. Others at the consoles suffered a similar fate. A ship master spun, crying for the Emperor’s mercy , the left side of his face a blackened ruin. A naval armsman, with enough presence of mind to hunker down behind a console, pulled his laspistol and administered a killin g shot between the poor bastard’s pleading eyes.
Dak’ir felt the heat against his armour tangibly. It was like wading through a wind tunnel as he fought to reach the blast shield’s emergency override lever. Not wearing his battle-helm, the view for Dak’ir shimmered through a heat haze. His naked skin was untroubled by it, though he saw a blisterin g servitor less resilient to the solar flare. It ravaged the inner walls, setting cables aflame and burning out circuitry .
Pyriel threw up a force dome around the crew, who crawled into it on their hands and knees. The blinded and the burned were dragged, mewling, into the psychic sanctuary whilst the dead were left to crisp and blacken, their bodies becoming human torches in the blaze.
The crack in the shield in g was only centimetres thick when Dak’ir reached the override panel and threw back the lever. Agonisingly slowly , the armour plates rolled shut again and the hellish light was cut off. Pyriel ended the force dome and sagged. His face was beaded with sweat, but his eyes conveyed his gratitude as his gaze met Dak’ir’s.”