by L H Whitlock
Bixom nodded. “That is the responsible thing to do. Although I am not sure it matters in the end. We might as well have a little fun.”
Brock supposed the Hilian was right, but he swam on in silence. He was too distracted to play games right now.
“Y-you know,” Alyssa said after a while. “This is k-kinda fun.”
Brock rolled his eyes. “Oh, sure, loads of fucking fun. Will it be fun if we drown?”
Alyssa continued to hum, ignoring his last comment. “Y-you know, I got a question.”
“Sure, baby.” Brock’s muscles convulsed with fatigue. Despite his constant movement, the cold made him shake and his teeth chatter.
“W-why do y-you call me ‘baby,’ but not Bixom? I’m not an adolescent.” Alyssa turned in the water, swam a few paces, and then turned again.
Bixom snorted. “Yeah, Brock, why is that?”
“Eat a log,” Brock mumbled to Bixom’s laughter. “It’s just a term,” Brock said, hoping this would be the end of the conversation. Why’s everyone busting my balls?
“A term for what?” Alyssa questioned.
Brock sighed. “It’s just a term that guys use for girls. It’s… uh… out of respect.”
“Oh… I see.”
“Hello out there,” a voice called out.
Brock, Alyssa, and Bixom froze. A light glowed over the water, swaying side to side, reflecting off the thick black, slimy surface.
“Don’t be afraid. We’re here to help. Yes, we are.”
The spot light settled on them. Brock stared at the approaching vessel, but the light blinded him and he couldn’t make out what was on the other side.
24
The raft bobbed in the water, jostling Brock as it drifted lopsided in the oily water. The raft balanced on top a pile of scrap metal, discarded advancements, plastics, and buoys.
Brock pulled Alyssa against his body, hoping to offer her warmth. She shivered uncontrollably and clutched a heavy, musty throw around her body. The cold, damp air nipped at him through the protection of the thick wool blanket and he clenched his jaw to keep from clattering. A small fire in the center of the deck flickered and crackled as it teased him with the promise of warmth, but it didn’t quite penetrate his skin. Bixom sat across from Brock, the fire light casting a shadow over him and making his brown hair appear darker and his face seem older.
Brock glanced across the fire at his rescuer, an elderly woman with stingy white hair framing a face wrinkled with age. A metal plate covered the left half of her face with a hollow hole where her eye once was. She stoked the fire with one hand and the other hung at her side, consisting of a metal pole with a large gloved hand. One of her legs was constructed with curved steel, the other with a boxy metal, and she wore a large dress that fell off one shoulder.
“Don’t be worried. I’m Nadia. I was eliminated twenty years ago. Yes, I was. Now, we all live here.” She stretched her arms out, displaying the darkness that surrounded them.
“Where exactly is here?” Brock questioned.
“We are beneath. Beneath the city. On the surface long forgotten.”
***
Alyssa shook and clenched her jaw to keep her teeth from clattering. Her body ached from the impact of her fall and she could hardly lift her head. Not to mention her face throbbed, particularly her eye, from her previous abuse. Despite feeling like she had been hit by an asteroid, she breathed a sigh of relief.
I’m alive. Holy blastos, I’m alive. She couldn’t believe jumping had actually worked, let alone that Brock and Bixom had followed her into what they had to assume was certain death. Well, if they hadn’t, they would have been shot to death, but still, jumping into a black pit took a lot of guts.
From beneath her lashes Alyssa studied Nadia. When the Developers eliminated someone they discarded all of their advancements. Nadia clearly had quite a few. Her missing limbs had been patched together with an array of material, all primitive and hardly functional.
She chanced a glance at Brock. He clutched a blanket around himself and she leaned against his side, trying to warm up. Even covered in the filth of the water he was handsome and so brave. Bixom leaned forward and held his hands over the fire, rubbing them together. An edge of the tattoos on his arm peaked out from the wrist of his slender suit. The black color was harsh even against his tanned skin.
“How could the Developers have forgotten about it down here?” Brock asked, his voice shaking from cold.
“Ah, yes. They built and built for so long that they forgot they were building on something. Yes, they did. Eventually, they believed they made this entire planet.” Nadia leaned forward, her head shaking slightly, causing her white hair to dance around her face. Though her smile was kind and her green eye showed warmth, Alyssa still had a queasy feeling.
“Is there a way back up?” Bixom asked.
“Up? Why would anyone want to return? You endanger us all if you try. We are unknown, but then we would be known.”
“I have to get ahold of my team, they’re in danger. We have to stop the Developers. They’ll destroy my family,” Brock spat, his body stiffening beside her.
The woman thought for a moment. “We take matter to Heng; he will know what to do.”
Bixom snorted and shifted on the bench. The flame flickered in his hard brown eyes, giving him a menacing look. “They destroyed the planet my people were taking refuge on. They are now in pursuit of them, to destroy them all. For what? For nothing!”
Nadia studied Bixom for a moment. “We bring matter to Heng. Yes, we do. He know what to do.” She offered a smile that stretched the wrinkles from her face, then pulled a lever. The floating craft jolted into motion.
Alyssa sat and snuggled closer to Brock, hoping he wouldn’t protest. Though it wasn’t her fault the Developers had destroyed Aray or that they were after Brock’s team, she still felt a stab of guilt.
25
“Alberta, tell your damn exes to get off our ship!” Gloria yelled. Evin pushed the butt of his E-gun to her head.
“Get to your knees,” the green man sneered. Gloria looked over her shoulder at him as she slowly knelt, a glare twisting her teal lips.
“I tells them, gets fuckings ship. But say first. What’s this? Nots finders keepers.” Alberta shrugged and crossed her legs from her position on the floor, leaning against the viewing window.
“Someone whack her over the head. She needs a damn reboot,” Gustavo grumbled, attempting to roll from his stomach and into a sitting position. His hands were tied behind his back, his tanned face red, his bottom lip bleeding, and his golden hair a mess. He managed to flop onto his back where he growled with defeat. The bottom of his shirt had ridden up, showing his tanned abs.
Lily struggled against her restraints and glanced from Ulrick to Tally.
“Tell your boyfriend to kneel or I’ll shoot him,” Tally ordered, giving her E-gun a wave.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Lily asked. “I mean, he looks like he is in a bad mood.”
“Okay, fine, tough guy.” Tally smirked and pointed her gun at Lily. “If you don’t kneel with your hands behind your back, I’ll shoot your little girlfriend.”
Ulrick sprung forward. Tally screamed and stammered backward, accidently shooting off a round into the ceiling. Ulrick grabbed her weapon, spun her around, and knocked her knees out. Tally fell with a cry, her light green hair spilling over her face. Before Evin was able to come to her rescue, Ulrick lunged forward and punched him. Evin collapsed to the floor, unconscious.
With a satisfied snort, Ulrick bent, hoisted Lily up, and slowly untied her hands. His fingers brushed against her wrists and, despite their situation, Lily couldn’t help the blush that rose to her cheeks.
Ulrick’s midnight-blue eyes twinkled as though he knew her thoughts. A rare smirk dimpled his cheek and Lily’s lips tingled with the desire to press a kiss there.
“Your hands are untied…” Ulrick said in a low voice.
Lily snapped out of
her daze and quickly shuffled away from her warrior. “Right… Thanks…”
She dropped her gaze to her feet and sped over to Gustavo to untie him. She knelt at his side and Gustavo wagged his eyebrows at her. Lily punched him in the shoulder.
“Do you want me to untie you or not?” she hissed.
“Ow!” Gustavo whined.
“Serves you right.” She untied him. Then she slapped her hand on his stomach playfully.
Gustavo gripped his stomach and made a fake crying noise as he rolled to his feet.
Yanking down his shirt, he stormed across the room toward the supply chart. “I’m going to do a quick inventory and find the supply room. Try not to get into another hostage situation while I’m away.”
Lily smiled and nodded at him. She undid Alberta’s restraints next and the pilot jumped to her feet, yanked Tally up by her green hair, and tied her to a chair. Lily pulled Evin’s unconscious body off the floor and secured him next to his sister. He sagged against his twin, nearly toppling the two to the floor. Tally growled and shoved her shoulder against his limp form, causing him to slump forward.
“Does have coordinates?” Alberta asked.
“Yes, I entered them. The TIP is almost ready and we will be on our way shortly,” Ulrick responded, not taking his eyes off the window.
The door slid open and Gustavo stormed back into the room. “Hey, you guys, we’re low on supplies.”
Lily crossed her arms and sighed. Can’t we just get a break? “How low?”
“Like, we’re going to fucking starve to death and have to attack the Developers with toothpaste if we don’t restock,” Gustavo grumbled. “The entire weaponry was raided. Of course the ship has its weapons, but there’s nothing for us to use once we get there.”
“Is there somewhere we can stop?” Gloria asked, dabbing at the corners of her mouth with teal lipstick.
Ulrick turned from the window. “We could. It would delay our journey. There is a small planet about three days away.”
“That’ll do, no point going on a rescue mission without actual ammo.” Gustavo sat in a chair with a huff. He brushed his hand over his blonde hair, smoothing out the knots.
The TIP activated and a wormhole distorted space, showcasing a misplaced galaxy in its center. Lily stared at it in awe. It wasn’t the first or last time she would enter a wormhole, but it still seemed crazy to her that they could travel thousands of light years in mere moments. The ship jolted as they entered the sphere. The lights flickered and the ship shook as it passed through the bulk. Elongated, distorted lights and matter laced with veins of electricity flashed outside the floor-length windows.
Tally looked between Gustavo and Lily. “Wait… what’s this plan? Where are you going?” Tally’s tone increased in pitch with each word until she was frantically struggling against her restraints and her green face tinted a shade of mint.
“We’re going to get our friend from the Developers,” Gloria responded, tossing her golden hair over her shoulder.
Groaning, Tally dropped her head. “Just… just tell me you’re not going to their planet.”
Evin stirred next to her, blinking his green eyes rapidly as he woke.
“Where else would we be going?” Lily responded, glancing up from her RAB.
“You guys are crazy, just let us go. We won’t tell anyone, we just don’t want any part of this,” Tally pleaded.
Lily raised her eyebrow. “Maybe you will think about that next time you hijack someone’s ship.”
Evin grumbled and nudged Tally. “I told you we should have chosen a different ship!”
Tally nudged him back. “How was I supposed to know?” Tally flailed her legs in another desperate attempt to escape but quickly gave up with a grumble.
Lily sighed and blocked out the twins’ arguments as she scrolled through her RAB, reading notifications from the Hilian and Renegade ships that had TIPed when Aray was attacked.
“I need to update Rowan on our position and let him know where we are going. Have you spoken with the Hilians yet?”
“Not yet. Call Rowan and let him know. I will do the same with the Hilians.” Ulrick stepped out of the room to make a quick call.
Lily dialed the number for Rowan’s RAB and waited for him to answer.
Rowan’s hologram formed almost immediately. “Lily!” Rowan said with a smile. He wore the standard black cargo pants, black t-shirt, and vest. His white hair was sleeked back and his tan was looking dull compared to its normally orange tint.
Lily returned his smile. She hadn’t realized how much she missed speaking with him. She used to have to check in with him daily, but since they had all agreed on going black for a few days after escaping from Aray, she had not spoken with him in quite some time.
He anxiously twisted one of the many rings on his eight-fingered hands. “Why are you dressed like that?”
Lily looked down at herself and laughed. She had forgotten that they had dressed up in disguise to blend in with the pirates. The outfit she had on was much different than her standard black cargo pants and boots.
“It is a long story,” she replied.
“Who’s with you?”
Gustavo stepped up next to Lily. “I am here, and so are Alberta, Gloria, and Ulrick.” Alberta and Gloria moved closer so they could all be seen.
“I’m so glad you’re all okay.”
“How is everyone holding up on your end?” Lily asked.
“Well, it’s been rough trying to find a place to set up base for the time being. When Vincent and Chuck blew up camp they didn’t leave much behind. We spent the past few solar rotations trying to retrieve all the data and destroy anything that is confidential or could put any of the refugee camps at risk.”
Lily pinched the bridge of her nose. Vincent’s betrayal had cost a lot of lives and had left the Renegade in shambles. As usual, Rowan seemed to be handling the situation with expertise, but then again she didn’t expect anything different from the leader of their army.
“Where’s Brock?”
“That is why we are calling. He de-materialized before we were able to escape from Aray. It seems that the Developers had people working within the Hilian ranks and they took Brock, thinking that he was one of theirs.”
Rowan’s brow creased and he crossed his arms over his chest in thought. “So…you’re going to get him.”
“Of course.”
“And should I assume you have some foolproof plan?”
“Something like that…”
“So, where are we going?”
“I will send the coordinates for the Developer’s home planet. We think Brock is there or on his way there. You should probably let us scout out the area first. It is an unknown system and the host star is extremely unstable.”
“You think it’s a good idea to be going out there?”
“We do not have a choice. The Developers should not expect us to come and probably will not realize that we know where they are located. Give us a few days. We have to get supplies first; we do not have many weapons or food so we need to stock up.”
“I’ll wait for your call. Once you tell us to be on our way, we’ll TIP somewhere close so that we are ready when you need us. You are going to need more than our ships though; we lost a lot of people.”
“Ulrick is speaking with the Hilians now. We will have them join you once we are able to better assess the situation.”
Rowan nodded and crossed one arm over his chest in a salute. “Be careful. Talk to you soon.”
Sighing, Lily glanced up from her call and stared at the two pirates. She would let them go, but they had no escape pods.
Ulrick had finished his call before she hers, and now he stood in front of the window, glancing out at the passing constellations, seemingly deep in thought.
Lily moved next to him, allowing her arm to brush against his. It caused a flutter in her chest, and heat raced up her arm until her entire body seemed to be consumed. Ulrick looked down at her, his e
yes settling on their connecting skin.
Lily motioned to Tally and Evin. “Can we just drop them off somewhere?”
Ulrick caught her chin and tilted her face so that her eyes met his. “We would lose too much momentum. They may choose to de-board when we are restocking.”
Lily looked back at Tally and Evin. “You hear that? In three days you can de-board, but for now there is nothing we can do. I will let you go, but you have to promise to behave.”
“Fine,” Tally grumbled. “Just keep that crazy asshole away from me.”
Alberta shrugged. “Whats? Don’t do anythings.”
26
The float rocked violently as it slowed its pace. Tangled strings of bulbs glowed overhead, growing denser the further they traveled. The oily water shimmered green and red in the dim light like an iridescent painting. Islands of plastic, metal, and wood bobbed in the water, moving with the motion of the natural tide. Netting held the clumps of material together, creating a floating base. Atop sat huts made of boards, metal, and discarded enhancements. Conjoining the floating hills of junk were metal chains. Thin canals ran between the rows of huts. Rubber buoys between the islands squeaked as they grinded together, the sound so high pitched it made Brock’s teeth tingle.
“We go to Heng now,” Nadia said. She guided the floating vessel down a thin canal.
People milled about on limbs that varied from human to highly advanced works of art. Some waved in greeting, others darted inside their huts. Brock could only see a few yards ahead in the dim light and sweat poured down his face from the heavy, rotting, damp air.
“Heng know what to do,” Nadia repeated in reassurance. Her arms shook slightly as she used a long pole to keep them from bumping into the islands of floating junk.
“Who is Heng?” Bixom asked, crossing his arms over his chest for warmth.
“Heng’s our leader. Once a highly decorated Developer, then thrown away.”