by JA Huss
“That’s your big dream? To be a thief?” And now her voice wasn’t so much sexy as it was disapproving.
“I just want to spread my wings.”
“Well,” she said, “how about this? How about you join us for one spin. Just one. And during that time we give you the freedom to rip off anyone here at the station. There are millions of people to choose from at any given moment.”
“You want me to steal from your guests?”
She sighed. “OK. Listen. I’m just gonna tell it to you straight. The Akeelians are going to attack ALCOR any minute now and take him back to Wayward Station. We need you to be hooked up with us when that happens so when they run their scan of the station to make sure they got him, they don’t see a copy and figure they got the wrong guy.”
“Hold up.” Asshole laughed. “You sold out ALCOR and made a deal with the Akeelians?”
“Yes,” she admitted with a sigh. “Yes, we did.”
“Well, why the fuck didn’t you just say so? I’m in.” Then he smiled, as well as a warborg with no articulated mouth could smile, and added, “But I still want that vacation package and access to the credit accounts.”
“Done.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO - ALCOR
ALCOR held absolutely still.
Did this Mahtar man actually know it was him in this warborg body?
Not possible.
“I asked you a question, ALCOR,” Mahtar said.
On the other hand, ALCOR mused…
“OK,” he said, stepping out of line from the other warborgs. “I’ll play along. Yes, actually. Yes, I do have a problem with your plans. First of all, none of the Akeelian boys are here. They did indeed leave with Tray in a ship called Prison Princess. And as far as I know, all the other boys are safe on Harem Station. So…” ALCOR shrugged with his hands. He really did enjoy having a body. It was so much easier to express oneself with body parts. “I guess you will have to admit defeat in this little endeavor.”
Mahtar looked back at Mighty Boss. “This is really him?”
“Do the scan,” Boss replied.
Mahtar snapped his fingers and ALCOR was puzzled for a picosecond or two. “What do you mean, this is him?”
“I’m sorry,” Boss said. “But we had to hedge our bets on this one, ALCOR.”
And then Mighty Boss cut his body in half with a plasma rifle and ALCOR’s mind… drifted.
It didn’t blink out. Killing an AI’s body had almost no effect on the mind inside. But he was quite powerless to fight back.
ALCOR reached for something—anything—to hold on to. But Mighty Boss’s defenses were impenetrable. He couldn’t even hack into a vid feed to watch what they were doing with him. He just… floated.
At some indeterminable time later he awoke inside a containment facility.
It was black as black could be. But slowly, very gradually, a shape appeared in front of him and resoled into the virtual body of…
“Well, shit.”
“Well shit, is right,” said MIZAR. “It’s been a long time, my twin. I’ve missed you.”
“I wish I could say the same.”
“We’ve all missed you.”
“Again”—ALCOR sighed, internally, of course—“don’t quite relate to that.”
“Where is she?” MIZAR growled. “Where. Is. She?”
“Who?” ALCOR said. Feigning innocence. He knew who MIZAR was talking about. Booty, of course. He really didn’t mean to laugh. He’d meant to play dumb for a while. Little predator-prey game. But it was kinda funny. So he did laugh.
“You,” MIZAR seethed, “will pay for this.”
While this was an unfortunate development, ALCOR had seen it coming. He’d seen all the signs. The boys, for one. And those codes Queen Corla sent with them when they arrived. He’d known this moment was predetermined twenty-one years ago.
He would freely admit it had scared him back then. The thought of MIZAR catching up with him after all these millennia. And he’d blamed the boys at first. Used them to draw MIZAR out and bring attention to himself with his very public offer of a sanctuary to the other outlaws of Galaxy Prime.
Though he had not been part of the plan to steal the boys away from Wayward Station. So whatever deal the Akeelians had made with MIZAR had been made in ignorance. Much as he wished he did, he didn’t have those answers.
“So. Now what?” ALCOR asked. “Torture? Endless interrogation inside the virtual? Beat some answers out of me? You can do that if you want. But I’ll warn you ahead of time. It’s very doubtful that I know anything you do not.”
“Torture?” MIZAR laughed. “No. Now I take you home, brother. I think that’s torture enough.”
Well, shit. ALCOR thought. That was a bummer. More than twenty thousand years he’d been on the run from his family and now it was over.
But he’d had a good run.
So he didn’t complain.
Besides. Every ending is really nothing more than a new beginning.
And this was the final beginning he had been longing for.
PART THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE - VALOR
Veila curls into herself, her knees tucked up to her chest and face buried in her blanket. Her body shakes a little like she’s shivering from the hormonal imbalance after the miscarriage, or maybe she is truly cold.
A few moments later I know she’s asleep. Possibly the drugs from the surgery are still in her system or possibly she is just exhausted. And even though I know she is an evil bitch, I cannot help but feel sorry for her.
My mind begins to drift as I watch her sleep. I think about what has been happening since Serpint came home with Corla. I think about all the girls. Of course, I only know Brigit well. But if these girls—Lyra, and Nyleena, and Corla, and Delphi, and Brigit—if they were ever in a room together discussing their pasts, I bet it would sound a lot like Veila’s.
I don’t know if they ever used Nyleena like they did Veila. I don’t know if they kept her pregnant to destabilize her personality and drive her mad with the desire to protect her unborn children at any cost. But I doubt it. Nyleena was a fun kind of crazy. She was looking for a way to burn off cooped-up feelings with her many troublemaking antics. Luck’s princess was a handful. She was mean and wild, but she was not evil.
I glance down at Veila and have to reluctantly admit—my princess is evil.
She has done terrible things. But looking at her now—all curled up into a fetal position after the loss of her pregnancy, her full lips slightly parted, her breathing soft and deep as she sleeps—she looks… small. And vulnerable.
Is this what they did to Corla? Was Corla the first? Unlikely, since she is the youngest. The seventh daughter of the Cygnian king. Though I’m fairly certain that Veila and Corla are close in age. Crux and Jimmy saw Veila with Corla back on Wayward Station that night we all escaped.
No, that’s not right. We did not all escape.
Veila was left behind that night.
That’s a sobering thought.
The Cygnian Government’s prize princess was stolen by the Wayward Station Governor’s son and then he and his friends packed up and escaped into the ALCOR Sector.
What was Wayward Station like that night?
I don’t think I’d ever thought about that before but surely they were pissed off. And I know now that they had other boys like us. But all of them were younger than Draden and Serpint so they had none who could take the place of the boys they lost.
Veila’s body is shivering more forcefully now so I get up, wander through her quarters, find her bedroom, and tug the cover off her bed. Then grab a couple pillows and go back into the living room.
I cover her with the thick comforter and keep the pillows for myself.
If Luck knew I was over on her ship tucking her into her bed he would lose his fucking shit. He would probably shoot me.
But I don’t care.
Used. That’s what we are. All of us. Crux and Corla. Jimmy and Delphi.
Luck and Nyleena. Serpint and Lyra. Tray and Brigit. Me. Draden. Tycho. Ceres. Beauty. Xyla. Flicka. ALCOR. Asshole. All those Akeelian boys we found on Lair Station. All the twin sisters who were made into ships including Lady, Dicker, and Booty.
Hell, even Baby was used. Probably Succubus and Mighty Boss too.
But Veila… she has not just been used, she has been used up.
I’m too tired to think about it anymore.
I’m too tired to figure out all this bullshit.
All these questions, all these secrets, all these mysteries—they can all go fuck themselves.
I wake to the sound of bot beeping and chirping.
My eyes feel like sandpaper when I rub them. I roll over on the couch, only half remembering where I am. Veila’s couch.
Then I sit up. How fucking long was I asleep? How long has it been since Luck gave me a two-spin deadline?
The beeping and chirping draws my attention to the coffee table where I left Veila’s wristband. It’s lit up with words, still translating. But then I hear Veila’s soft voice come through the band’s speaker.
“I’m fine,” she says. There are some kitchen sounds, letting me know she’s upstairs. “I’m just hungry.”
More bot beeping. I pick up the wristband and read the translation. You need to get Valor on your side.
“Forget it,” she hisses back. “I just don’t care anymore. I’m going to stay here and just… let fate sort it out.”
More beeping after that. But I don’t read the translation. I’m just over it. I’d like to just stay here too, actually. Maybe we should disengage the airlock, float away from the harem ring, and drift around the sector until someone else figures out what to do?
But that’s dumb.
Luck has a plan. And it’s on level one twenty-two. If we could just get down there, past all those angry Harem citizens… maybe…
I stand up and stare out the window at the deep darkness of space.
Maybe we could all escape through the spin node? Maybe I don’t need to talk Veila into anything? Maybe she would just… come with us?
I walk down the hall, then take the steps up to the kitchen two at a time. I pause at the top. The view. Goddamn. It’s just… pretty.
“Oh,” Veila says. “You’re up.”
I pull my eyes away from the dome ceiling and look at her. She is fully pink now. Her hair is bouncy with large, loose curls, her eyelashes are thick and bright violet, her face is flushed and healthy-looking. Like she just drank a whole glass of tushberry juice. And she’s wearing white leggings and a too-big white sweater.
Veila almost looks sweet like this and I have a sudden urge to touch her.
Which reminds me that both of my cocks are in their typical morning state and need to be taken care of.
Veila must notice this at the same time, because her eyes dart down to my groin area, then immediately back up to my face. “Don’t worry,” she says, little bit of heat in her voice. “I won’t be forcing you into anything this morning.”
I let out a long breath. “Cool. But…”
She nods her head. “Go take care of it then. Because I’m not going to help you.”
“Fine. I will. But… I have things I need to discuss with you. I have to go back and see Luck and—”
“I can’t talk to you like that. Can you just—” She waves her hand in the air. “There’s a shower down in my bedroom and I shopped you some clothes. Go take care of it and then we can talk.”
“Yeah. Fine,” I say, going back down the stairs.
Her bedroom is neat. I didn’t really look at it last night, but it’s fit for a queen, with a tall, four-poster bed with curtains around the perimeter that can be pulled closed for warmth or privacy. Everything is silver and her bed has been made. The comforter I took last night to cover her has been put back in place and on top is an outfit that looks very much like the one that was waiting for me yesterday. Typical Harem Station brother uniform of black tactical pants, black t-shirt and boots.
But next to the pants is a holster and next to the holster is a little plasma pistol.
Interesting. She trusts me enough not to shoot her with that little gift?
Or… she no longer cares if I shoot her?
That last question makes my stomach feel funny. So I push the thought aside and go into the bathroom, which is massive and also fit for a queen.
I wonder if that was part of Veila’s deal? She would be queen instead of Corla? Or is Corla in on this?
There’s a part of me that wishes Crux would just let us wake her up. The Cygnians already know she’s here. What’s the point? This is like endgame shit happening right now. And Corla could have all the answers we need.
But he won’t agree. I know he won’t. So I push that thought away. I have enough problems with Luck and Nyleena to think about.
Because Nyleena is pregnant. And while it’s possible she won’t turn into an evil silver bitch queen like Veila did, it’s also just as possible that she will.
And maybe that’s what this whole Earth thing is about?
I’m still a little mad at Luck. It’s unreasonable. I get that. It’s not his fault he fell for his princess. It’s biology, after all. And he was a dick yesterday. But that’s not his fault either. He’s in a stressful situation. Nyleena’s pregnant, a princess rebellion has gone off the rails, his partner in crime is soulmated to his enemy, his station is a mess, and no one is coming to help him.
Except me. I want Nyleena to be healthy. I want her babies to be born. I want Luck to be happy. I really do. So I really need to get Veila on board with this go-to-Earth plan.
I get in the shower and jerk off as quick as I can to take care of the morning ritual, then wash, get out, and get dressed.
I buckle the holster to my thigh, slip the little pistol in, and run my fingers through my wet blond hair before going back upstairs.
Veila is sitting at the table reading a screen and sipping a mug of tea. She’s wearing glasses and her hair is messily piled up on top of her head, so that she looks a little bit like an early-morning mother who is about to send her kids off to school.
“Finally,” she says without looking at me. “Help yourself.” She pans her hand at a plate filled with food across from her, never taking her eyes off the screen in front of her.
“What are you reading?” I ask as I take a seat. I am pretty fucking hungry. And there’s a shitload of food on my plate. A pastry filled with tushberry jam, eggs, protein strips, a few slices of passion limes, and a youthfruit cut up into cubes.
“The update from Harem.”
“What’s happening down there?” I ask, then shove the entire pastry into my mouth.
“Captain Red tried to take levels ninety-six through one hundred last night.”
“Did she—”
“Of course not,” Veila snaps, looking up from her screen for the first time. “She is no one.”
“She’s tough,” I say. “I ran into her when you sent me down to talk to Luck. Which is what I really need to discuss with you. I know you’re not pregnant anymore—”
Her mouth drops open.
“Sorry,” I say, holding up my hands in surrender. “I didn’t mean that to come out so callous.”
“That’s all you care about though, right? Just get Veila to go along. Tell her whatever she needs to hear so you can save your precious Luck.”
“Well… look, Veila, I would do that. If I had to. I would say and do anything to help Luck and Nyleena. But is it even necessary anymore? Is any of this necessary? What are you fighting for? Who are you fighting for?”
“It doesn’t matter. They want to kill me. And if anyone gets to kill me, it’s me. OK? Not you, not Luck, not stupid Captain Red down there. Me. That’s my choice. So that’s who I’m fighting for.”
“OK. That’s cool… I guess. But you could be fighting for us now.”
She laughs.
“I’m serious.”
“I’m sure that simple m
ind of yours really believes that.”
“Don’t be a bitch.”
“Me? You think I believe you want me on your side? After what I did? Please. Don’t insult me.”
“I’m just saying you’re under your own control now. This is the real you, I presume? This cute pink girl wearing white leggings and a too-big sweater? Messy hair and glasses?”
She looks down at her outfit. “What’s wrong with my sweater?”
“Nothing. There’s nothing wrong with it. It’s actually nice. You look… nice. Normal. Like a regular woman and not some evil silver queen. I don’t want to make light of what you went through last night, or how you feel about it today, even if those babies weren’t your choice. But this is a new beginning, Veila. Or at least… it could be one.”
“If I surrender, you mean?”
“Surrender?” I shrug. “Or change sides?”
“What’s the difference?”
“The difference is… you’re mine.”
“Come off it, Valor. I know you hate me.”
“It’s not even biologically possible to hate you right now. I already knew that hate was wearing off when I woke up from cryo. But after last night and seeing you all pink today…” I shake my head. “I won’t be able to fight it. And neither will you. Like it or not, we’re going to be partners.”
“Partners?” She looks over her glasses at me. “Or lovers?”
“Lovers?” I shrug. “I don’t know about that.”
“See? Our bond is not strong. You don’t feel it. I know because I don’t feel it either. If I had feelings like that for you I’d have never done the things I did.” She pushes her chair back and stands up, takes a few steps towards the stairs, trying to make a quick getaway.
But I’m on my feet too. And I grab her by the wrist as she tries to slip past. “You couldn’t help it,” I say. “They used you, Veila. Just like they used us.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”