Editing The Tales of the Emperasque: Part Eleven (section)

==9-083-001-M42==
The Swift coasted along through space, its shields still locked at full. Whatever the object that had been closing on them was, it wasn’t in a hurry to close, and had drifted into the Swift’s wake without firing. It was keeping a steady distance of a few light-seconds behind them.<br>
“My Lord, the moon of that gas giant is now 1,015 light seconds from our position. Barring catastrophic engine loss, we will reach it in…one day and change,” Wilcox reported from his station.<br>
“Acknowledged,” Ir’Shal said, his own mechadendrite dancing over the controls. “Weapons?”<br>
“Dorsal batteries at ready. Target still out of range, sir. Flank batteries charged, but they can’t target the contact from their position. Torpedoes armed, but no targets in range,” He’Stan reported.<br>
“Master Ir’Shal, do you have anything in the ship’s cogitator banks about this object’s origin?” Wilcox asked.<br>
“Negative, this ship’s sensor package isn’t powerful enough to identify it from this distance,” Ir’Shal replied after checking.<br>
“My money’s on a sensor drone from some xenos race,” He’Stan said over the Salamander’s private vox channel. “We could be outside the Astronomican for all we know.”<br>
“Doubtful, but not impossible,” Ir’Shal replied. “Lord Vulkan, we could deactivate the Void shields, to increase our speed considerably.”
“We could. Is it safe? I don’t know,” Vulkan said.<br>
“Nor I. It is simply a suggestion,” Ir’Shal said.