While Erryla conferred with Halver, Farran, and Meida, Adrienn whispered to Cira. The two conferences were tense, hurried, and hushed, but in very different ways. The four senior officers standing straight, their shoulders back and their gestures sharp despite keeping quiet voices. Adrienn was curved toward Cira and zir gestures, when ze made them at all, were small and quickly terminated. Ze looked like ze was trying to disappear in plain sight. Compared to zem, Cira looked practically calm. Maybe the difference was guilt. Cira had confessed, after all, but Adrienn was still burdened by heavy secrets.
“Doctor Naess, do you have everything you need?”
Adrienn jumped at Erryla’s question, and a second later zir hand dropped to the bag slung over zir shoulder. “Yes, sir.”
As ze walked toward quarantine, Adrienn swallowed hard and ran zir hand over zir brown hair, rubbing the shorn sides of zir head and then pushing the longer top locks out of zir eyes. Not once did ze look at Riston. Only when the active force shield compelled zem to stop did zir hazel eyes finally flick up to meet Riston’s darker gaze. The captain deactivated the barrier and, exhaling heavily, Adrienn stepped into the bay.
Despite their time constraints, Adrienn was a doctor before everything else. Ze touched Riston’s arm and gently guided zem to sit on the closest medbed, verbally activating the platform’s sensors as ze did. The basic sweep only took moments, and then mechanisms were injecting zem with an array of nutritional boosters. Only after Adrienn was satisfied with Riston’s current health did ze start messing with it. Adrienn removed a sealed package from zir bag and opened it to reveal a three-centimeter-wide strip. Chem restraints. They were fabric woven with sensors, circuits, and a thin but unbreakable clasp.
Adrienn grasped the clasp between zir thumb and forefinger and lifted the flexible device out of the package, but then ze stopped. Shoulders tense, ze stared at Riston, zir hazel eyes shimmering with worry and zir expression layering the question ze asked with so much more meaning than anyone else would hear. “Are you sure about this?”
“Yes. I’m the one who suggested it.” Riston felt nothing but gratitude for Adrienn even now. Ze wanted to give Adrienn a hug, to thank zem for the risks ze’d taken and the work ze’d done. All Riston could do was offer a small, tense smile and hope Adrienn understood.
Then Adrienn gestured for Riston to take off zir shirt and Riston’s stomach dropped. Stars. Somehow, ze’d forgotten ze’d have to strip so Adrienn could fit the fabric bands around zir upper arms. Resolutely not looking at Cira, Riston ducked zir head and complied. No matter how many impossible fantasies ze’d had about them one day being together in a room and slowly losing clothing, this situation had never entered zir mind. Ze felt exposed, and ze knew the feeling would only get worse if ze met her eyes right now.
“This can be activated by voice command or remote,” Adrienn warned. “It also has a tamper-initiated switch, so be careful crawling through some of the smaller spaces. If it gets caught on something and pulls, it’ll probably read as an escape attempt. You’ll be dosed with a strong sedative, be out in seconds, and stay out for eight to twelve hours.”
“I understand.” Riston slipped zir shirt back on when Adrienn finished. “Thank you.”
Adrienn’s shoulders relaxed. Outside quarantine, Halver huffed and crossed his arms. “That’s a first. Didn’t think a captive would ever thank us for putting chem restraints on them.”
“Few others would volunteer to wear them, though. And I fully believe you won’t activate them unless you have to,” Riston said as ze stood. “Are we ready to go?”
Halver glanced at the captain, a question in his angled eyes. Only when she nodded did he enter the commands to drop the force shield. Riston heard the faint buzz of the power shutting down, but ze didn’t move until Erryla granted permission. Everyone was stressed and beyond exhausted, and an overreaction now would put zem to sleep for eight to twelve hours.
Riston expected Erryla to brief the group, giving them all instructions that would also, ze was sure, serve as a warning for zirself, but Erryla simply looked over the gathered crew and nodded once. “Be careful, and keep the lines of communication open. I’ll see you soon.”
With one quick, sharp salute, Halver led Riston from the room. Outside medical, several others were waiting. Riston recognized the two senior engineers—First Lieutenants Owin Keenen and Quinley Sly—but there were also four security personnel and one nurse whose names ze couldn’t place. No one introduced them.
The crew fell into line with Halver, and Riston wasn’t surprised to find zirself flanked in front and behind by security. Predictably, the crew also subtly but implacably put themselves between zem and Cira, separating them as much as possible within a group of only ten. Seen in a certain light, this setup might look like an honor escort, but the distance between zem and Cira plus the faint pull of the band around zir arm was a stark reminder of the truth. Still, for the first time, Riston was walking through the main corridors of Pax Novis. Well, not exactly the first time, but the first time ze didn’t have zir head down and wasn’t trying to keep to the edges, focused entirely on disappearing. Now, ze strode through the center of the wide, well-lit corridor surrounded by legitimate crewmembers. Despite the chemical restraints, ze could almost pretend ze was one of them instead of the imprisoned outsider. Almost.
Silence reigned. The crew didn’t talk to one another, not even in hushed murmurs, and Riston didn’t dare speak. The only sounds were arrhythmic footsteps as they walked into an elevator. Zir mind was far less quiet. Everything ze wanted to say to Cira but couldn’t sat heavy on zir tongue and swirled inside zir head, chaotic enough to obliterate the surrounding quiet. The elevator stopped at level four, releasing them onto the deck devoted to power systems and shield generators. This wasn’t their final destination, but it was the fastest way to get to where the others would be waiting for them.
The others. Zir heart pounded and the churning in zir stomach got worse the closer they got to zir friends. Even Cira’s presence faded. Was ze doing the right thing?
It’ll be fine, ze told zirself. The real threat is the saboteur, not the crew. Because Riston truly believed the captain meant her promise of safety for the others. There was a chance this would still end with them all in a Paxis prison or permanent exile, but they’d be alive.
Riston watched Quinley, the engineer at the head of the line, repeatedly check zir handheld screen against the section designations on the doors and hatches the group passed. Was it nervous tension and a desire not to waste time, or unfamiliarity with this level? Ze didn’t think Meida and Erryla would send inexperienced engineers, but ze didn’t like how long it was taking for them to find their way, especially when ze could’ve guided the group exactly where they needed to go. Ze kept zir lips sealed tight. Offering would probably only make things worse.
Thankfully, once they found the right hatch and sealed themselves inside the passageway, the engineers began to move with the surefootedness of familiarity. It was the rest that became overly cautious.
One of the security team kept looking around as though they’d not only never seen this part of the ship but hadn’t even known it was here. Maybe, to someone who lived in the light, open sections of Novis, this very well might feel like being suddenly transported onto another ship. Novis’s main halls were white on white on white, all of it brilliantly lit. It was beautiful curves, gleaming display panels, and small touches designed solely for human comfort. None of that thought had gone into these spaces. The metal had been left its natural shade of dark silver-gray, and lighting was minimal, limited to strips set on either side of the grated walkway and every five meters or so in the walls. Few screens, consoles, or multi-dimensional displays had been installed, and even most of the panels and hatches opened manually and not by computer control. It would be easy, Riston supposed, to believe these sections belonged on a ship centuries older than Novis if someone wasn’t used to the transition that happened beyond certain doors.
Riston was unreasonably pleased that Cira, at least, seemed comfortable here. Then again, she’d always liked knowing everything, investigating it instead of relying on what she was told. It made sense she’d be the same about her home.
“We’re getting close to the section coordinates,” Quinley finally announced, confusion in zir tone. “What in the stars did we come here for?”
“We’re about to find out,” Halver said. The threat of what would happen if they didn’t was left implied, but Riston met Halver’s gaze with as much confidence as ze could possibly fake. And it was absolutely faked, because they were in a section even ze and the stowaways rarely bothered using. Nothing of importance ran through here. What could Tinker have found?
They turned a sharp corner, and Quinley stopped. Halver nearly slammed into zir back. Riston only understood why when ze managed to peer around the bodies ahead. A bank of lights was out, enshrouding a six-meter section in darkness. Quinley murmured nervously, and it was clear ze didn’t want to move forward. A signal from Halver brought two of the security team forward. With a careful reorganization of the line, they took the lead, weapons drawn. Halver was close behind. The rest trailed behind like asteroids in the tail of a massive comet.
Then a shadow shifted and separated from the wall. Riston recognized the shape, but Halver tensed, his hand dropping to the weapon secured at his hip.
“Gently, Tinker,” Riston called, fear shoving the words out. Ze couldn’t watch anyone else die today.
“I’m alone.” Her high voice carried clearly across the space. Riston watched with zir heart in zir throat as she took measured steps away from her hiding place, hands held out, and then ze scanned the shadows and the passage beyond. Nothing moved. Ze’d gotten good at picking out hiding places, and ze didn’t see anywhere Treble or Greenie might be.
“No one here will hurt you,” Cira promises from the back of the group. “It’s good to see you, Tink.”
“You, too, Ensign.” She smiles faintly at Cira, but her eyes quickly shift back to Riston. “Are you okay, Zazi?”
Normally, to ward off the chill of the passages, Tink stayed swaddled in layers of thick fabric, but today she’d stripped most of it and left it in a pile on the floor. She only wore a basic jumpsuit. It was closely fitted, thin enough to fit under a vacuum suit, and the decision was clearly purposeful—she wanted everyone to know she wasn’t carrying anything dangerous.
“I’ve had better days,” ze said as wryly as ze could manage, “but I’m okay.”
“Yeah, I think all of us are in the same place today,” she said, mimicking zir tone. “It’s good to see you, though. I would’ve made it harder for them to find me if you hadn’t been here.”
“Where are the others?” Halver’s voice was even, but there was tension in the line of his broad shoulders.
“They’re nearby. This is more my area of expertise, so I volunteered to meet you here and show you everything.” She cocked her head, her short black hair swinging. “Well, I say ‘volunteered.’ Really, I ran away while they were arguing about it.”
“Tink.” Riston groaned her name before ze could bite it back. Ze wished ze could be surprised. Of course the others had tried to stop her, and of course she’d won the argument, even if she won by simply abandoning Greenie and Treble to carry on the fight alone.
“It’s okay, Zazi.” Tink gave zem a smile that carried too much fear to be reassuring. “I’m small, unarmed, and I have information. That’s always been enough to save me before.”
“You’re so lucky you’re adorable,” Riston muttered.
Only the quick flash of a dimple gave away Tinker’s quickly suppressed smile. The strangled huff from behind zem sounded like Cira stifling a laugh. Halver didn’t catch his laugh as fast, but he covered by turning it into a cough and then clearing his throat. “Where is your information, then, Tink?”
Frowning and suddenly serious, Tink gestured toward a small crawl space. “Should I lead you in, or do you want me to follow?”
Pride rose in Riston’s chest before the implications settled. Ze should’ve understood the instant ze saw the pile of clothes. Tink had perfectly constructed this meeting as a display of non-threatening innocence. It made Riston sick. She was barely two months past her eleventh birthday. She shouldn’t know how to present herself this well to authority. Her brilliance with tech, mechanics, and engineering, was one thing, but most people twice her age never showed this kind of survival instinct. As ze waited for Halver to choose, ze closed zir eyes and hated every experience that had drilled those skills and lessons into her.
“Lead,” Halver said, pausing before adding, “Slowly, though.”
Tink turned, her head tilted down, and gripped a step of the inset ladder, then began ascending. One of the security officers followed. The rest of the cavalcade trailed after, crawling into the narrow passage one by one with Riston trapped firmly in the middle.
Before the hunt had begun, the only time Riston had used this particular crawl space was when ze’d forgotten the ship’s maintenance rotation and had hidden up here for two hours while a team worked below. This shaft was so small that crawling was the only way to travel, but the curved ceiling and walls kept it from feeling suffocating. With eleven people filling the space, the temperature rose noticeably—there was nowhere for the heat of those bodies to go, so it sat heavy against zir skin. Ze’d gotten used to being cold after three cycles. The longer they crawled, the hotter it got and the harder it became to breathe. It felt like the air was thickening, though it might be nerves clogging zir lungs more than air.
Where were they going? They’d searched this section of the ship already and found nothing. This passage was solely a way for crew to get from one maintenance area to another, and a way to connect systems. Then again… Was that it? If one wanted to disrupt a ship in secret, a small connection point might be just the place. Depending, of course, on what in the name of every ship in the fleet the goal of the disruption was.
“There.” Tinker’s voice bounced back, slowing their forward motion and drawing everyone’s attention up. Ahead, Tinker seemed to be pointing to a panel set in the curved wall. She didn’t open it; instead, she moved back and let one of the engineers, Owin, take her place.
“I don’t see…” When Tinker’s arm shifted, clearly directing attention to a specific section, Owin’s murmurings faded. Then he gasped. “Quinley, get up here.”
The second engineer responded immediately, and Riston had to flatten zirself against the wall of the passage to create space for Quinley to pass. Owin’s hand was inside the panel, touching or pointing to something Riston couldn’t see.
Quinley blinked, furrowed zir brow, and leaned closer. “What is that?”
Owin’s responding gesture seemed to say, “Exactly!”
Soon, the two were kneeling in front of the panel with a channel opened to Meida and the three were speaking in half sentences that flew at superluminal speeds and made no sense to Riston. Ze caught phrases—power relay, information conduit, programmed conversion—but they lost meaning in context. It seemed like Tinker was the only person who wasn’t confused.
Halver waited quietly at first, but then he began to shift closer. Tension crept into his posture. His hand clenched. Finally, his patience snapped. “Report, Lieutenants.”
“Sir!” They both jolted and shot each other a speaking glance. Finally, Quinley hesitantly began to speak. “All we have are theories. Given the communication issues and what happened to the other vessels, we believe this device uses the junction as an access point to several systems and is rewriting data as it passes through this data relay channel.”
Owin nodded. “If that’s the case, whoever is controlling this device could trick our computers into believing a lot of things that aren’t actually real.”
“Like creating a response from Paxis even though our messages haven’t left the ship.” Halver squeezed his eyes shut so tight they became nothing but wrinkles. “Not
good.”
Riston looked at Tinker, watching her open her mouth and close it without saying anything. Through the open comm line, Meida sounded like she was thinking aloud with the engineers interjecting comments into her stream of consciousness. Tink had something she wanted to interject, too, but she was holding herself back. Caution had been slammed into them both by circumstance and necessity. Now wasn’t the time for it, though.
As soon as Riston caught her attention again, ze nodded, hoping the silent encouragement would push her to speak. When ze glanced back, Cira was there, offering zem the same soundless support. The sight of her was nearly shocking. Here. She was actually here and so much else had been happening ze’d nearly forgotten. Before today, ze hadn’t thought it was possible to forget when Cira was in the same room.
“I think…” Tinker’s soft words fell into a second of silence. Every head turned her direction, but only when she was sure no admonition was coming did she continue. “See, I don’t think you could control or cut off the communications systems from here—not completely. However…” She pointed to one of the panels. “That runs straight from here to engineering.”
“Directly into the core systems,” one of the engineers breathed. “Dammit. This thing is more powerful than I thought. It could rewrite huge sections of system code once it’s active.”
“It’s not active?” Halver glanced between the engineer and the panel. “Then remove it!”
“I want to know exactly how it’s hooked in before I risk taking it out, sir.” Owin cast an uncertain glance at Quinley. “The device’s sophistication hints that it’s capable of more than data restructuring, and just because it’s not actively changing software doesn’t mean it isn’t…”
“Armed?” Quinley suggested when Owin didn’t finish.
“I was trying to avoid that word, but yes. Consider this armed and awaiting a trigger.”
“You think it might be an explosive.” Halver’s question fell flat. Riston tried not to let that image fill zir mind, but it was so easy to picture the expanding ball of flame and force blowing the walls of the ship to bits and sending them out into the black.
Pax Novis Page 24