by E M Garcia
LT stood at the workbench gathering concussion grenades. He glanced up at me as I entered then fixed his eyes back on his pile. It was the iciest reception I'd ever recieved from him.
“Jackson once told me you never go into battle with bad blood between your soldiers,” I said.
“He told me that too," he said calmly. "Was that something else your father said?"
“Maybe? I was seven when he said it. He was fifteen," I walked toward the bench, leaning against the back and looking up at him. "Dad wasn't home much during those years."
"Jack never talked about him much."
“He didn't believe in dwelling on the past, I guess,” I said.
“There's no bad blood between us, Tam.”
"I might believe that if things hadn't changed so much since you found out about. Honestly, the last few days it's like you can't stand the sight of me."
“No, I can always stand the sight of you,” he said. “In fact, most of the time, I could stand to see a lot more. And maybe a little bit less.”
"Is that why you kissed me?"
Alix whistled. "You cut right to the point, you know that?"
I shrugged. "I don't have a choice. When this is over I'm either taking back over the ship of getting arrested. Either way, you won't speak this freely with me again."
"You're observant," he said.
"It's my job."
LT took a deep breath, he placed the grenade in his hand next to the pile. His eyes were a conflicting jumble of emotion when he looked at me. I couldn't pick them all apart, but the need and guilt came through clearly.
"I kissed you because from the second you walked into that restauraunt on Aurora, I haven't been able to get the image of your lips out of my head," he said, holding my gaze. "I left because when you're best friend's baby sister is crying her eyes out, you don't make a move on her. Hell, you don't make a move on her at all in my book."
"I'm not a little girl, Alix," I said. "I can handle the weight of my own emotions."
"Not when your big sister uses you for target practice," he said. "Nobody's strong enough to handle that. It was wrong for me to kiss you."
"It didn't feel wrong," I said. "But thank you for apologizing anyway."
Alix stared at me, shaking his head and smiling. "You're unbelieveable woman."
"But this can't happen.” I said, quoting his own words back to him.
“Timing is a bitch."Alix looked down at the pile of grenades again. "Jack'd probably kick my ass for even thinking about it."
“And then there's Daq,” I said.
“I already told you, he's not a problem. If Shadow is still himself, he’ll do the right thing, and when he does, you’ll forgive him.”
I snorted. "How can you be sure of that when I'm not?"
"The same way I knew you wouldn't turn The Lady in. You still won't, if you can help it." He shrugged. "The Cages are loyal"
“Let me see how not killing him goes first,” I said. With equilibrium restored, I turned to go get ready for the trip.
“Just so you know, Ambassador, “Alix said as I left, “When you forgive Shadow that wasn’t why I said no.”
27
It took an hour to get The Demon, LT, Wes, and their gear loaded into the shuttle. Xaveer, who had spent most of the trip hunkered down in his cabin and the dinning room, balked at the light armor the Fleet provided and decided to go without. Wes and Alix likewise opted out. I didn't want a helment obscuring my vision on the way down, but I took the light vest just in case. Gale, Izzy, and Mac stayed on the Cal with Nell's favorite body.
Once we were loaded, pulled away from the shuttle bay and descended toward the surface of Benjo. The Alliance shuttle was plush compared to the Wreckers old armored tank, but it was cramped by my standards.
"Having trouble getting comfortable, Ambassador?" Wes asked when he caught me twisting in my seat.
I rolled my eyes at him. "Remember the part where I live on a warship and you have a fleet of souped up luxury cruisers?"
"Like a lot of things in life, it's not the amenities, it's the size." Wes winked. Since he found out I could hear RAE, his disposition had improved. I wondered how long it would last when we got to the surface.
“What does this outpost like, Trick?" Alix asked. "What are we flying into?"
"We're into flying the bottom of a desert canyon," Wes said, tapping his com and bringing up an image of Benjo's cracked surface. "It's an old refinery I converted when I was researching Nell. Not exactly postcard worthy, but it does the job."
Mason was being kind. The image of Benjo on the com looked like a blown out waste land. It must have taken an insane amount of resources to sustain even one person on it's surface, let alone three.
“I mean, what kind of security system do you have?" Alix asked through gritted teeth.
Wes smiled “Concussive rounds only, LT.”
I raise an eyebrow in surprise. "Really?"
The body of the shuttle shook as we broke through Benjo's atmosphere. I turned back to the controls and took them in hand.
“Really, the last thing I need is a murder charge added to the list because a scavenger got nosy. A couple of years ago--”
Suddenly, I felt a familiar pressure at my temples and a surge of cool air.
"Shadow," I whispered.
“You shouldn't be here Tam,” Daq said.
“Neither should you!" I shouted. Alix was wrong. The second I heard Daq's voice again, I was just as enraged as before. When we got them back to the Cal, I would strangle both of them.
Xaveer leaned forward. “He's talking to her.”
“Yeah, we got that Demon,” Wes said. “Do they know we’re close?”
“You can’t come closer, Tam.” Daq’s tone was frantic, insistent.
The screeching alarm tore through the mental link, dragging me back to the cockpit.
“Cal? Nell?” Wes called. "Everything okay up there?"
“I believe we are under attack, Tam," Cam said flatly.
"So do I." Turnign to the sensory, I did a scan for anything out of the ordinary on the surfce. Nothing. "Wes?"
He shrugged. "I told you, all I've got are concussive rounds and a few security bots. I don't know--oh shit...."
Five small dots appeared on the display. Blinking red circles surrounded them as the took off from the refinery heading to rendevous with the shuttle.
"Those are not concussive grounds!" I gritted my teeth and turned throttle as hard to the left as I could. The shuttle banked, groaning as it turned on the tightest axis it could manage and shot off in the opposite direction. All five dots followed us.
"I don't know what happened!" Wes said.
"Shadow and The Lady got ahold of your toys, that's what." Xaveer grunted.
"I don't manufacture weapons here, just design them. Keep that kind of stockpile here would be suicide."
"Did you dump the factory before you took after you took possession, Alix asked. Wes swore under his breath.
"Tam, we've gotta get out of the air," Alix warned. "Or we're gonna get torched."
"They're on our ass now, LT," Wes said. "You want us to slow down so you can get out."
"I'm not slowing down for anybody," I snapped. "Strap in."
"Tam?" I heard the worry in Alix's voice. I wanted to turn around and reassure him, but his concern was warranted. I was far from okay. I was fucking pissed. If J'Selle wanted to send missles down my throat, she could take them right back.
I opened my mind, reaching toward Shadow until I felt the cool rush from his end of the link. Get ready, I said. I'm comin'.
"Cal, can you give me a hand here?" I asked. "I've got a pack of missles I need to put somewhere else."
"I am unable to assist, Tam. The alien AI is assaulting my systems."
Shit. I switched the shuttle to manual control and took control of the steering column.
"Nell, what about you," Wes asked.
"I still have control of the facilities on t
he planet, but the missiles do not appear to have originated from our network." I could almost hear the frown in Nell's voice.
"Gloat later," I snapped when I caught a glimpse of Mason's smug expression. "Find me a place to run. Now! It's your planet."
Wes nodded and turned back to the console. "Yes, ma'am."
I craned my neck to look at Alix in the back. "LT, tell me you packed something with kick."
He looked at me with a confussed expression, then his eyes widened as he finally caught my drift. "Demon, how's your aim latetly?"
A deep belly laugh was Xaveer's response. As I turned around, Alix slid the biggest case from the pile and clicked it open, revealing the heavy assault rifle tucked inside.
I pushed a button on the consol and the side door slid open with a rush of wind. Once Xaveer was outside, I opened the shuttle's engines as far as they would go. On the viewscreen, the surface of Benjo blazed past, twisting and turning as I pulled every manuever I could think of to buy us time
A weak explosion rocked the shuttle. The Demon roared in triumph. "Scratch one!" His voice sounded too far away.
"Alix, Xaveer outside outside?" I asked.
"Go home," Daq said. An echo of his lips on my skin made me shiver.
"Yeah!" Alix shouted over the rush of wind.
Get out of my head, Shadow.
"Is he strapped in?!"
Alix laughed.
Fucking hell. "Wes, I need that plan," I said.
"I'm working on it!" He pulled his wrist com up, swiping two fingers across the surface. "Other than up, there's not many places to run."
Daq pushed through again. "If you don't leave...I can't protect you."
Who the fuck asked you to protect me?
Another explosion. "That's two!"
"Tam...please...." Daq pleaded. "Don't do this."
"I'm a little busy right now, Shadow," I snapped. "All right, Plan B. Alix, get Xaveer back in here."
"No can do, ma'am," he said. "The Demon's on the roof."
"You have to run," Daq whispered.
"I'm working on it!" I wasn't sure if the words went through my head or came out of my mouth. "LT, if you can't get him inside, tell him to hold on and take a deep breath."
"What are you gonna do?" he asked, dread creeping into his voice.
"Give Jay her missiles back."
"Shit." Alix pounded on the roof of the shuttle twice and sat down, strapping himself back into his seat.
There was another explosion. I punched the door control and pulled back on the pitch. The shuttle's nose tilted up in the air, sending us zooming out of the canyon. Xaveer's claws screech against the roof. I pulled harder.
"If anybody's got a better idea, I'm all ears," I said. "Cal, I need a boost the engines."
"I am unable. I am unable. I am unable--." Cal's voice squeaks and shuddered.
"Cal?" I called. She didn't answer. Neither did Daq. RAE's soft voice filled my, blocking out every one else. The console in front of me lit up. It started as a gentle glow then grew until it was so bright I had to shield my eyes. Behind me, Alix groaned in pain. The light dispeared as suddenly as it had come. I looked down at the board again. Engine capacity 110%. Just enough to put me in the driver seat.
"Thanks, Cal," Wes whispered.
"That wasn't Cal," I said. "Hold on!"
I turned the shuttle over, sending it into a death spiral aimed at the far corner of the facility. On the sensor, the missiles tracked us. The turned in the same sharp spiral, twisting through air closer and closer together. Another explosion. The shuttle rocked and groaned in protest. Two lights disappeared from the screen.
At the least second, I pulled back, pointing the nose of the shuttle back toward the sky. Below us, the last missle impacted against the side of the refinery. The shuttle screeched and lurched then tumbled.
"We're going down!" I shouted, pressing myself back into the seat. The smoking black hole left by the crate grew on the view screen. We sank into the darkness, ramming into the side.
The darkness took me. I saw Daq's face in it. His eyes wrinkled at the corners as tears streamed from his eyes.
"She'll kill you," he whispered. Then he disappeared.
28
A pounding ache in my head brought me back to consciousness. I unhooked myself from my seat, groaning as my body fell sideways against the seat. When I tried to move, every bone in my body ached in protest. RAE murmured in the back ground. His ramblings weren't calm any more and they weren't insistent. The force behind them bordered on rage.
"You awake, Ambassador?" Wes slid a cool hand over my forehead, brushing the loose strands back from my face.
"That's one word for it." I pushed myself upright and turned around, craning my neck to see Alix couched in the back. "Where's The Demon?"
"He's fine," Alix said, jerking his thumb toward the door that was now a sun roof. "Outside getting the lay of the land.
"You've skills in the air woman, I'll give you that," Xaveer shouted. "But you need to work on those landings."
I rolled my eyes at the cheesy joke, but really I was just glad the Demon was still with us. "I said I'd get you in, I got you in."
"Through the side door, maybe," Wes said. "We've still gotta get into the living room. Nell, are you still plugged in to our network?
"I am," Nell said. "RAE does not seem to notice my presenece."
"Lock down the security, and then firewall our servers. See if you can slow him down. Be careful, Nell, if he catches you, he will attack."
"Understood, Wes."
"It's not gonna work," I said. "RAE already knows we're here. I can hear him."
Wes nodded. "We still have to try."
We climbed out of the shuttle and gathered what was left of the equipment beside it. It amounted to a handful of the concussion grenades, a stun gun, and Xaveers assault rifle. I was afraid to ask how he managed to cling to an assault rifle through a shuttle crash.
We filed down the hallway in a line, Wes at the front, Alix and I in the middle, and Xaveer in the back. As we reach the end, whirling servos echoed in the silence behind us.
"You are an unauthorized entrant," a mechanical voice shouted. A green security bot slid out of a recessed segment of the wall. "Hold and submit yourself for investigation!"
"Demon!" Alix shouted.
Xaveer tossed the assualt rifle to Alix. His hands free, he grabbed my arm and pushed me behind him. He slid into a crouching position with his hands out to the side and his claws bared. Alix raised his assault rifle.
"Wait!" Wes stepped between us and the droid, flicking his wrists to launch a small black desk at each of them. The discs stuck to the bot's chassis and sank in with a sizzle. "Nell?"
"I have lost connect with the facility server, Wes," Nell said.
Alix groaned in frustration. He opened fire. "Trick, get back and let me shoot that thing!"
"I need a minute! "Wes said, bringing his comm interface.
Xaveer inched back as he fired his pistol, pushing me deeper down the hallway, away from the security droid.
"They don't have lethal rounds, just on bolts."
"That's not really comforting when you know how much stun bolt to the ass hurts," Xaveer grunted.
"Almost there," West said through gritted teeth.
RAE's voice rose again behind me. It sounded so clear, I turned around, half expecting to see a two meter orb in the middle of the hall. The sharp sound of gun fire and my team's frantic shouts faded away, replaced by the murmur and my heartbeat in perfect rhythm.
I walked toward the sound, following it into the room beyond the corridor. Whatever it had been, it was now a bootstrapped replica of J'Selle's lab on Aurora. A maze of towering machines supporter a massive AI housing twice the size of Cal's. RAE hovered in the center, bloated to twice its usual size, swirling in panic and frenzy. The murmur in my brain turned to a screech.
"Tam?"
"Where the hell did she go?!"
The Wreckers
shouted for me, but I couldn't turn back to answer them. The swirling ball of energy seemed to call to me. A sense of dread crept over me as I watched it, but I couldn't look away.
One of the Wreckers came up behind me, putting his hand on my arm. It wasn't until he called my name that I realized it was Wes. I tore my eyes away from the AI to find Wes staring at it, his face grim.
"What's happening to him?" I locked my knees to keep them from buckling. I already knew the answer.
"I won't know until I runs some tests," Wes whispered. "But I think this is what happens when you lock an AI up for too long."
Swallowing a lump in my throat, I turned back to RAE. "Can't you help him? He's in pain."
Wes's shoulders slumped. "We never learned enough about his code."
Panic swelled in my chest. I reached for Wes's arm to steady myself as I struggled to breath. RAE's pain weighed down on me with the force of a black hole.
"Please, Trick," I whimpered, bracing my hands against my head. "Help him."
"Gun!" Xaveer shouted.
J'Selle walked out of the maze of equipment, brandishing one of the stolen pistols. "Why did you come here?"
Xaveer and Alix trained their weapons on J'Selle. Her icy gaze slid to them for a second before moving back to me.
"I left you alive, Tam," she said. "And this is how you repay me?"
"Put the gun down, J'Selle," Alix said through gritted teeth. "Don't make me shoot you."
A hint of a smile crept over her lips. "LT, we both know if you were going to shoot me, you'd have done it already."
From the way Alix set his jaw, I suspect J'Selle's guess was right. She walked closer to me, pivoting until she stood close to RAE. Movement behind J'Selle caught my attention, a sliver of green skin creeping along the shadows in the rafters. Daq.
"Just go home," J'Selle whispered. "All of you go home!"
"You know they can't J'Selle," Wes said. "You went to far. The Alliance is going to rain hell fire on whoever's holding on to RAE when they catch up."
J'Selle rolled her eyes. "The Alliance. They've tried to get ride of me once. I'm not foolish to think they won't try again."