by E M Garcia
“She’s still here, Tam, she just can't run the ship, Mac said.
“Forty-five seconds until drop out.” Gale said. "All sensors black."
"Last time we thought that, we had a stealth ship on our ass," I said. This time, it could be two.
"The message is away, Ambassador,"Alix said. "If Trick is gonna answer, he’ll do it soon."
I nodded. "Start maneuvering us toward that jump point, Mac. Lieutenant, let me know the second--".
"Ambassador," Gale's tense voice cut me off. "A ship just decloaked two hundred meters off our starboard bow."
My hands paused over the console as I watched a small blue dot materialize on my sensor screen. I swallowed and forced myself to breathe. "We always knew there was a chance they would show up again, people. Keep moving."
I said the words more to myself than to my men. Their movement hadn't stopped.
"Gale?"
"One hundred meters and keeping pace," he said. "Without Cal--"
"We can't tell if their firing up or just watching us," I finished. “Alix where the hell's that return message?”
“I pinged Trick again. He's not answering.”
“If he doesn’t respond soon we’ll have to go into that jump blind.” Mac turned around. “Who the hell knows where we’ll pop out.”
“Just get us there, Mac" I said, frowning at the consoles. "We’ll worry about where we come out later.
“Three minutes to jump.” Gale said. "That stealth ship is still keeping speed. At this rate, they're gonna follow us through the gate."
"If they don't blow our engines from behind."
"The fuck? There's another ship decloaking."
I glanced back to the sensors. A second dot, twice as big as the first had appeared on our other side. The first ship blinked then exploded in a waves of rocked, and then was still.
"Was that what I think it was?"
"A shockwave," Mac said grimly.
“Ambassador we are being hailed.” Gale said. "It's the Hammer."
My heart sank. I turned to Mac and Gale, motioning for them to keep working. “Alix, bring it up on the speaker but do not give him a visual.”
“Understood.“ Alix punched a button on his console. Without Cal's chirp to alert me, I had to wait for him to nod to let me know the channel was open.
“Commander Price,” I said, forcing my voice to remain calm. “We’ve had some excitement over here.”
“I’ll bet” Price said. “We've been trying to reach you.”
“Yeah, that's part of the excitement. We had to admit make an unscheduled detour. One of the crew has had to be quarenteened for a case of Zendrean meseals. My paperwork had doubled before that stealth ship got nosey. Thanks for that, by the way.”
I mouthed “how long” to Mac. He held up two fingres in response. I looked at Alix. He shrugged. Still no word from Wes.
"Ambassador you should be aware Dr. Cage's status in the Galactic Alliance has changed."
"I can't say I know anything about that," I said, keeping my voice light. "But I don't see how it changes anything. You can't condemn her to confinement twice. Now, if you don't mind keeping this channel clear? We're late enough as it is."
“Ambassador you can't make that jump with Dr. Cage on board your ship. She stole the RAE AI.”
Busted. “I will confiscate the copy of the AI and give it back as soon as I returned to port.”
“She didn't steal a copy of the AI, Ambassador” Price said. “She stole the whole thing.”
I froze. Mac whispered something beside me, but I couldn't hear him over the rush of bloos in my ears.
“Say again?”It wasn't possible. What Commander Price was saying just wasn't possible.
“I said Dr. Cage stole the AI. The whole thing. Half the galaxy is going ballistic.”
“He’s telling the truth, Tam.” Alix said from behind me. “My console’s getting overrun with messages. GA, Fleet, Aurora, Qu’ren, all of them want to know where the Lady is.”
"Forty-five seconds," Gale whispered. "What do you want to do?"
It resisted the urge to turn and snap at Gale. It wouldn't have made me feel better, and it certainly wouldn't fixed the mess we found ourselves in. I held up a hand to silence him, and turned back to the speaker.
“Commander Price… say again? You're breaking up. Can you say that again?” I turned to Alix making motion, making a single motion, swipe across my throat, telling him to cut the line.
He nodded when it was done. "You know that trick never works, Ambassador."
"It does when all you need is to end the conversation," I sighed. "Tell me Mason sent those coordinates."
Alix grinned. "Sent them to Mac's terminal already. He's on Benjo."
"They're in." Mac said. "Ten seconds to jump. Five. Four--"
Gale cut through the count down. "Brace for impact!"
The Cal shuddered and swayed as it entered the jump point. Blue-green light streaked across the sensor console, thickening and gathering until it covered the entire screen.
Mac heaved a sigh and leaned back, letting his head bob against the back of the chair. "We're away. I think that last hit took out the aft engine."
I swallowed and unhooked my harness. "Gale, how long until we hit Benjo’s orbit."
“Two hours” he said, turning to look at me. The look of concern on his face made my heart twist. "Are you alright?"
I nodded. “How long will it take the Hammer to figure out where we're going?
“Ot depends on how good their intel on Trick is,” Gale said. “It doesn't take a genius to figure we'll deal with this in house.”
"Let's hope they're behind, then." I pushed myself away from the chair, patting Mac on the shoulder as I passed him.
The cockpit around me barely registered as I floated back toward my office. Price's words played on repeat in my brain. J'Selle had lied. She hadn't taken a copy of the AI. This wasn't a petty office theft I could smooth over with the right apologies. It had never been a pleasure cruise. For all I knew, it had never really been a going away trip.
A strong hand settled on my upper back. I didn't need to turn around to know it was Alix. Gale and Mac wouldn't dare check on me when I was this shaken. Neither of them wanted to face my wrath if they upset me more. They didn't know I was fresh out of anger. There was nothing but disappointment left.
"I should have known she wasn't telling the truth," I said, rubbing my forehead.
Alix let his hand slid up to grip my shoulder. "How could you? She's your big sister. Nobody blames you for not wanting to think the worst."
I shook my head, struggling to hold back the flood of tears. It was true. Other than the Admiral, J'Selle was the only I had left. I shook my head and swipped my eyes with the back of my hand.
Alix moved forward, pulling me back against his chest and wrapping his arms around me. He pressed his lips against my hair and murmured softly. "Everything's all right, Tam."
It wasn't, and I was pretty sure it wouldn't be any time soon, but I loved him for saying it. When my tears finally stopped, I leaned back to look at Alix. The expression of pain on his face was more than I could stand. He bent foward, slowly pressing his lips against mine in the sweetest, most delicate kiss I had ever experienced.
I stared into his eyes when he pulled away. I don't know what I expected, but it wasn't the regret I saw on his face.
"LT...." I whispered. "It's okay."
Alix laughed softly, but there was no humor in it. "I think the Fleet will disagree with you, ma'am. I sure as hell do." He sighed and pushed himself off the wall, putting space between us as he launched himself back toward the cockpit.
"When the Fleet catches up with I'll have a lot more to answer for than who's been in my bed."
Alix hesitated. He kicked off the wall and pushed toward me again. This time, he stopped centimeters out of my reach. "I like you, Tam, more than I should. But this can’t happen."
Before I could respond, Alix laun
ched himself back toward the cockpit and disappeared inside.
21
Chapter 21
22
"Run me through it one more time," Izzy said, pushing the hovering container of salt away from her face. "Like a five-year-old, if you don't mind."
With Mason on the way to help us, food preservation took a back seat to resource maintenance. That turned out to be a good thing, since Izzy's historical preservation methods were all designed for a standard gravity environment. The mess still stank of vinegar and chilis, a large blob of which we had sopped up as a team when I came down to talk.
I plucked the salt shaker out of the air and squeezed it between my fist. "I've taken you through it three times, Iz. It's gonna be just as confusing the fourth."
"It wouldn't be if you didn't leave so much out," she said. "It's not like you to be shy about sex."
"That's because we're usually talking about you're sex life, not mine." Most of the time, I didn't have one to speak of. "Can we just focus on what's going to happen when Mason gets here?"
Izzy shrugged. "That's the boring part. I'll stay down here, Mac will stay upstairs, and you and that dreamy Lieutenant Barnes will try not to make googly eyes at each other while an outlaw fixes our ship. See? The last part's much juicier."
"This is serious, Iz." I tossed the salt shaker behind my back. If the gravity generator were working, it would have easily collided with the wall across the room. Instead, it floated happily toward the dead food generators.
"I patched up the bullet wound in your arm, Tam," Izzy said. "Believe me, I know how serious this is, but I wounder if you do. Running from the Fleet? Inviting an outlaw into our home? None of that sounds like the Tam Cage I know."
I hesitated. Izzy was right. I hadn't been acting like myself since I saw Gale on Aurora. Since then, my life had become something I didn't recognize. Secrets I should have saved for my closest friend felt safer when revealed to others. The trust and faith of my crew only made me feel more unqualified to lead them.
Gale rapped sharply on the fridge, interrupting before I could answer Izzy's accusation. "We just got a message from Trick. He's almost here."
"We'll have to finish this conversation later, Dr. Kimball," I said, slipping quickly into my official voice. "One of us will come get you when our visitor has deboarded."
I launched myself toward the exit before I could fully take in the look of disappointment in her eyes. In almost a decade of working together, I never once left Izzy behind, but our work usually invovled dinner, cocktails, and boring conversation. Just because my life had turned to weapon fire and evasion didn't mean I had to drag my best friend along.
"Are you ready for this," Gale asked once we were out of Izzy's earshot.
I raised an eyebrow. "Why the hell would I be?"
He smiled and patted me on the arm. Back on Aurora, the same gesture stoked my temper. Now, it gave me a burst of fuzzy warmth. I hadn't felt that since we were back on N'Cali.
"Just stay calm and act natural," he said. "If Wes was involved, he'll be just as nervous as you are. If he wasn't, then this is just an old buddy giving us a hand."
I followed Gale back down to the shuttle bay. It was the one thing on the ship still had full function. Either J’Selle and Daq hadn’t shut it off after their escape or they planned to have someone board us from the beginning. A two-man cruiser slipped through the shield wall and floated to the deck. As it cut it's thrusters, it cruiser lifted a few centimeters into the air.
The cruiser's ramp lowered and Wes Mason launched himself through the opening. His long black hair was pulled back from his face in a pony tail. He looked at Gale and I and whooped.
"You all weren't kidding." He rolled forward, sommersalting to a stop an arm's length away from me. "What the hell happened here?"
A broad smile erupted on Gale's face. He floated toward Wes with an extended hand. “Same thing happened to all of us, Trick. She got olde and went soft.”
“Speak for myself,” Wes said, patting his nonexistent gut. “Nell’s an amazing cook.”
"Who's Nell?" I asked.
As if in answer, a sky blue andorid glided down the cruiser ramp. The low gravity seemed ot have no effect on its metal feet. They clung to the deck as if the gavity still worked. It stopped next to Wes, swiveling it's metal head between the three of us.
"Nice to meet you, Ambassador Cage," it said, it's lights blinking with every word. "I am Nell."
I looked at Mason in confusion. "Your droid? Is it--"
"Fully self aware," he said, patting Nell's chassis. "But they really prefer to be called Nell."
“I didn't realize that tech had advanced that far," I whispered.
“It’s years away from being commercially viable. A decade, maybe, if I'm unlucky.” Wes shrugged as if a feat of technological advancement was just another day for him.
“How long have you been working on it?" Gale asked.
Wes shrugged. “What do you think got me bounced out of the Federation?”
I looked back at the droid in disbelief as it extended a hand toward me. When I caught Mason's expectant glance, I reached out and wrapped my fingers around its metal palm.
"Likewise, Nell," I said. "Welcome aboard."
Mason nodded firmly. The smile returned to his face. I must have passed his little test. "Looks like I had the right idea staying grounded. What kind of trouble did you get into?"
“I didn't do anything,” I said. “It's a long story, and I'd rather not get into it now. Mac says it looks like the AI's fine. It’s just not connecting with the rest of the ship.”
“Yeah, well, Mac was always decent to her. If he says she’s fine I believe him.” Wes rolled his eyes and jerked his head toward Nell. The droid braced it's hand against his back and pushed. He shot forward toward the lift, turning to brace his feet against the back wall and propel himself up toward the AI control room. Gale and I followed.
I had only been in the control room a handful of times since I took command of the Cal. Since Daq and J’Selle sabotaged the ship, I hadn’t been down at all. The artificial intelligence we thought of as Cal lived in a single room on board ship contained in a flickering ball of pure data. Cal didn't look that different from RAE, except she barely came up to my chest. Blue light streamed from the ball to wires and nodes embedded in the walls. It moved in every direction, but it only circled itself.
“It's a data loop,” Mason said, motioning to his droid.
“What the hell is a data loop, kid?”Gale asked.
"Like solitary confinement for software," Wes said, scowling at the swirling orb. "Cal's okay, but there's nothing coming in and she can't get anything out."
“A human would go insane,” I said.
“Does it look like Cal is taking it any better?”Wes asked.
I looked back at the orb. No, she didn't.
The android shuffled closer to Wes. It's chest casing slid apart, revealing tools and palm data pads arranged in precise rows.
Gale whistled. "Impressive. Is that one of you're designs, Trick?"
"Oh, yeah. I design all of Nell's bodies in my labs down on the surface." Wes pulled one from the group and turned back to Cal.
"This one is my favorite," Nell said in a soft stoccato voice. "Wes, is you're friend sick?"
Wes rolled forward, arranging his head and arms near Cal. "Yeah, she is, Nell. But we're here to help here. Take it easy, Cal. I’ll get you out of there.”
“You talk about Cal the same way Mac does, like she's an actual person.”
“She has thoughts and memories just like an organic." He said, sliding the tool over Cal. "She can develop associations with people that are similar to fondness or love. She can note frequent presnece and she remembers if they disappear. How is that different from missing a friend?"
“But without proper infrastructure, she can’t communicate those thoughts or memories." Gale rolled his eyes. "He always conveniently forgets that part."
“She
can’t talk to someone unless they understand her language. Just like organics before one of us invented these.” Wes held up his communicator. Like his ship, it was far ahead of any commercial or military technology I knew.
Cal seemed to slow and calm. Light shot through the walls of the room in every direction, bouncing to the nodes and making them glow. The air seemed to press down on my shoulders, guiding my feet back toward the deck.
Wes raised his hands above his head, catching himself in a handstand as the gravity kicked back on. His shirt slipped a few inches down his torsoe, confirming that the crack about getting soft was bullshit. He lowered his legs to the ground and stood up, spreading his hands as if waiting for applause.
“That should do it," he said. "Cal, are you with us?”
“It is good to hear you’re voice again, Trick.” Cal said.
Mason looked back at me, a smug smile on his face.
“How's the ship, Cal?” I asked.
“My subroutines are still coming online, Tam. I will need five minutes to compile a complete report” A beat, then. "Thank you for saving me, Trick."
"Any time, Cal," Wes said, thinly veiled anger in his voice. “What the hell possessed Shadow and the Lady to do this to Cal?”
Gale shrugged. “That was just one in a series of fucked up moves. This whole trip's been a cluster fuck. We took fire from a stealth ship a few days back.”
Wes looked at me is his expression impressed. “And they call me the outlaw ”
“That's what happens when you break the law,”Alix said as he strode up the corridor. I couldn't be sure, but I thought there was an extra heaviness to his steps.
"Missed you, too, Dad." Wes turned his back to Alix, lowering his green eyes to me. "Since you said the food generators were on the fritz, Nell and I brought some food up. If LT's honor code doesn't get in the way of his stomach, I'd for us to sit down before I head back down to the surface."
Trick's gaze was as intense as Daq's, but it smouldered instead of the Knaewa's sharp chill.