The communicator at Lu Zhen's waist released a burst of static.
Vanish's voice came through in broken pieces. "Engine...locked...cannot reverse..."
Lu Zhen lifted the device. "Vanish, can you hear me?"
Only static answered them.
The alien vessel's announcement continued above them.
[Passage crossing: twenty-three percent.
Navigation control unavailable.
Automatic destination locked.]
Leng Pan looked toward the black crystal they had used to control the gate anchor. "The system registered us as emergency operators. We might be able to use the anchor to interrupt the crossing."
Lu Zhen examined the controls. Most of the symbols had disappeared, leaving only a warning that the anchor could not operate inside an active Passage.
"What if we activate it anyway?" Leng Pan asked.
"The vessel is already inside one spatial tunnel. Opening another could tear it apart."
"It might also push us out."
"On which side?"
