by Sarah Noffke
Fletcher’s team scattered in different directions, staying low and holding weapons at the ready. He scanned the warehouse, trying to decide the most likely place for the boss’s office to be. Nona inclined her head to a set of double doors in the direction Fletcher had seen Conway head when last onscreen.
The key was to get to him before anyone else did. Once he was in the brig on Ricky Bobby, he would be less likely to talk. He’d found that people were more amenable when they thought freedom was still an option.
Fletcher took the lead and was about to file through the double doors when Nona stopped him.
“What?” he mouthed to her, his tone sharp.
She shouldered her rifle and pulled a lid off a nearby crate. Like she already knew what she’d find, she pulled out a pulse rifle and handed it to Fletcher. “Thought we should upgrade now, rather than wait.”
Fucking brilliant, Fletcher thought, taking the rifle.
The balance of the gun was superb and it felt natural in his hands. It was like Santa Claus had packed the crate just for them. Nona pulled a scout rifle of the highest quality from the crate, and her eyes widened with satisfaction. Not wasting a moment, Fletcher grabbed a power pack from an open bin and loaded his weapon.
Now I’m ready to kick some ass.
“I’ve been unable to hack into the Nihilists’ security system,” Chester reported over the comm.
“That’s okay. Things are going along smoothly here,” Eddie stated, following beside Julianna as they approached a back exit.
“That’s the thing.” The hacker sounded almost hesitant. “My attempt to break in triggered a shutdown, which—”
A loud blaring noise rang through the air, accompanied by a red, strobing light overhead. “Let me guess, it set off the alarms,” Eddie finished for him, having to yell.
“Bingo,” Chester confirmed. “I’ll keep working on it from my end.”
Julianna kicked open the door in front of them. It led up a staircase, where bullets sprayed down at them. Both she and Eddie shot behind the wall, guns up. Julianna spun around the corner, her position low.
Eddie caught movement on the other side of the warehouse. There was a flash of blue. He aimed and fired, knocking down a Nihilist dressed in civilian clothing.
Another round of shots whizzed by them, this one coming from behind a crate. Eddie knew better than to fire at a box full of guns. He waited until the shooter popped up again, and then fired, striking the guy down swiftly.
“We’re all clear,” Julianna said, indicating the stairs. “Let’s head up.”
Eddie nodded, sliding his back against the wall as he climbed the stairs.
Fletcher and Nona had taken out four Nihilist goons. The team was taking hits after the sounding of the alarm, but still moving swiftly.
Fletcher needed to find Conway. He scanned the long hallway where they stood. It was lined with doors. He could search every room, but he didn’t have time for that.
Two men Fletcher recognized from the exchange with Chester strode out of a room, at the sight of him, but they weren’t fast enough.
Nona and Fletcher both shot once, taking out a man each. Their targets slumped to the ground, and Fletcher sprinted for the door as it peeled back. He slammed his body against it, knocking Conway back on the other side. The man reached for his weapon, but Fletcher knocked his elbow across the guy’s face. Conway’s nose broke at once, and blood spilled down his chin.
Fletcher pinned him to a wall, smashing the arm that held the gun. Conway fired anyway, and the shot ricocheted off the ground, spraying bits of concrete into Fletcher’s face.
“Drop it!” Nona ordered.
From Fletcher’s periphery, he saw her standing in front of Conway, pointing her weapon at him. Conway’s gun clattered to the ground, and Fletcher kicked it away. He patted down the larger man, relieving him of two more guns.
“What do you want?” Conway said, coughing.
“I want to know where Rosco is,” Fletcher demanded, pulling zip ties from his belt and tying the man’s hands.
Conway laughed, blood bubbling from his mouth. “Whoever the fuck you are, you’re dreaming.”
Fletcher grabbed Conway, pinching the muscles between his neck and shoulder, and wheeled him around in front of his body, holding his gun to the man’s head. “I’m your worst nightmare.” Conway struggled in Fletcher’s grasp, and he forced him to the ground on his knees. “Where’s Rosco?”
“I don’t know who that is,” Conway lied.
“Does this help refresh your memory?” Nona asked. She sent a bullet whizzing by, grazing Conway’s side.
He tried to dive out of the way, but Fletcher pulled back his boot and launched it into the man’s ribcage. He didn’t like torture, but this man had been about to bomb a space station.
“Where’s Rosco?” he repeated.
Conway pushed up to his knees, blood pooling from his mouth. “I haven’t seen him in a while.”
Now we’re getting somewhere. Fletcher reached down and grabbed Conway by his bound hands. He yanked him to his feet and spun him around so he was looking into his soulless eyes. “Tell me where to find him or you’ll wish you had.”
“Someone’s coming,” Nona warned, her gaze on the hallway.
Fletcher gripped Conway’s shirt and, with a strength he’d only witnessed in himself a few times, picked up the larger man. “Where is he?”
“Sagano,” Conway sputtered. “The last I heard, he was on an island there somewhere.”
Fletcher pushed Conway up against the wall a couple of feet away, banging his head hard. “Give me specifics.”
“I don’t know much,” Conway admitted, his tone pleading. “But it’s in the Cantjik Sea.”
Fletcher narrowed his eyes, about to throw another assault at the man.
“Yeah, we got him,” Nona said to someone at his back. “He put up a fight, but he seems to be cooperating now.”
Fletcher turned, wheeling Conway around and ushering him forward, as Eddie and Julianna marched into the room.
“You got the fucking ringleader,” Eddie said, narrowing his eyes at Conway.
“Yeah, turns out he’s a fucking clown,” Fletcher said.
Eddie laughed, grabbing Conway by the arm, and led him out the door. “Well, we’ve shut down your circus, asshole.”
Nona gave Fletcher a hopeful look when the captain and the commander had disappeared into the hallway.
After over a decade of searching, he finally knew where to find Rosco. That pirate would soon pay for his crimes. Retribution had been a long time coming.
Chapter Ten
Loading Dock, Ricky Bobby, Tangki System
“Pip!” Hatch yelled when the crew unloaded the Corvette from the transport ship. Green paint from the missile covered the bumper, where a deep scratch ran the length of it. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”
Julianna pressed her lips together, suppressing a grin. She’d made certain that she was front row for this.
Hatch pressed two of his tentacles to his head, his face red and eyes bulging. He spun to face Eddie, who was picking over a crate of weapons. “What do you have to say about this?” he asked, pointing at the damaged bumper.
Eddie held up his hands. “Hey, I’m innocent.”
“You were driving the car!” Hatch argued.
“Although that’s technically true, I couldn’t control a thing,” Eddie stated. “It was a pretty sweet move, though. Pip did this—”
“Pip!” Hatch yelled, looking around like he was expecting to see the AI.
“He disappeared after the incident,” Julianna explained. “I haven’t heard from him since.”
“That damn AI!” Hatch bellowed. “He needs to take responsibility.”
“In all honesty, I think this is what you get for making a deal with an AI to hit me,” Eddie stated, though he looked to immediately regret being so candid.
Hatch puffed out his cheeks more than Julianna had ever seen, ma
king his face resemble a balloon.
“Right, well…” Eddie looked up suddenly in Fletcher’s direction as he passed by. “What’s that, Lieutenant? You need my help with something?”
Fletcher glanced at the captain with momentary confusion before catching on. “Uhhh…yes, it’s super important, too. It’s about that one thing on the other side of the ship.”
“Well, we better set off and take care of it at once.” Eddie glanced back at Hatch as they strode off. “Pardon me. Duty calls.”
“Damn cowards!” Hatch yelled. “Wreck my shit, and then no one takes responsibility?! What if I destroyed all your weapons and didn’t own up to it?”
Julianna shook her head. Pip, you’re going to have to surface at some point.
Silence.
“Wish I wouldn’t have missed that righteous moment when the car screeched against the missile,” Chester said, halting at Julianna’s side.
“The screeching seemed to happen in slow motion,” Julianna said, still trying not to laugh at the memory. “Eddie’s—or rather, Pip’s—face was priceless.”
“The poor AI gets his first bit of freedom and screws up,” Chester said, shaking his head. “Bet he’s mortified.”
“I don’t know what he is, since he’s disappeared,” Julianna admitted. “Oh, by the way, you did a great job on Kezza. Quick thinking when Conway grew suspicious.”
“Thanks,” Chester said with a wide grin. “I like field work. It’s a new challenge.”
Julianna paused, remembering what Eddie said in the silo. “Well, maybe we need to figure out how to incorporate you on future missions.”
“I might like that,” Chester said, his attention suddenly absorbed by something on the other side of the room.
Julianna caught sight of Marilla’s head, bobbing among the crowd. She seemed to be searching for someone. “Go on. She’s looking for you. I bet she’s been worried.”
“Thanks, commander.” Chester sped off in the direction of the communications officer.
Pip, I know you’re there.
Silence.
Julianna shook her head, and in her movement, saw a face that, like Marilla’s, seemed to be searching through those returning to find a particular someone.
She clapped her hand to her thigh, whistling. “Hey, Harley!”
The canine looked in her direction, his eyes shifting with excitement before he bounded for her.
It felt good to know that someone was glad to see she’d returned safely. It was a feeling the soldier had never known before.
Hatch’s Lab, Ricky Bobby, Tangki System
Knox ran his hand over the damaged part of the back end of the Corvette. “It’s really not too bad. I can take care of the repairs for you if you want.”
“The extent of the damage isn’t really the point,” Hatch said, typing on a keyboard at a nearby workstation.
“The point is that you entrusted Pip with the car, and he took advantage of it by driving recklessly,” Liesel stated as she trotted over carrying a large box.
“Please tell me you haven’t baked for us again,” Hatch mumbled unappreciatively.
She shook her head. “I think I learned my lesson.” She set the empty box on the ground and her ferret poked his head up over the side and scrambled out. “Sebastian and I stopped by to borrow supplies to install the railguns on Ricky Bobby. Is that all right?”
Hatch waved his tentacle dismissively. “Take what you like, but you’re not returning it, so don’t call it ‘borrowing’.”
“Having upgraded weapons on the main ship will be good,” Knox said.
Hatch pointed to the cold lunch that Knox still hadn’t eaten, which was sitting on the workbench. “You’d better eat up, kid. We’re about to have our work cut out for us, as well. We’ve got new weapons for the Q-Ships.”
The ferret returned and angled himself at the back of the box, pressing his head against it. He pushed it steadily to the other side of the lab where the supply bins were located.
“I’ll be there in a minute, Bastian,” Liesel called to the ferret. “I’ll help you with the metal slats for the vent shaft.”
“I was about to tell you that the railguns would make the ship run hotter,” Hatch said, his eyes scanning text on the screen.
“Which means an upgrade to the ventilation system needs to happen. I’m on it.” Liesel smiled.
Hatch pointed at the screen. “Gotcha! You can run, but you can’t hide!”
Knox picked up a drumstick from his lunch and looked over Hatch’s shoulder at the screen. “What’s that?”
Liesel gave the screen a brief glimpse. “He’s found the AI.”
“Where is he?” Knox asked, taking a bite of the cold chicken.
Hatched turned to Liesel. “You made the upgrades so Pip can interact with all sections of the ship?”
Liesel, who was watching Knox eat with a strange curiosity, pulled her attention in Hatch’s direction. “Naturally, it’s one of the projects you asked me to complete.”
“This is an example of when efficiency isn’t always a good thing,” Hatch grumbled.
“Ummm…what? What did I do wrong?” Liesel asked.
Hatch pointed his tentacle at the screen. “Well, if you hadn’t given the AI access to any part of the ship, he wouldn’t be hiding on an upper deck in a remote corridor.”
Knox finished off the drumstick, tossing it on his plate and grabbing another one. “I don’t understand why he wouldn’t seek refuge in Julianna or Eddie’s head.”
“He’s probably sulking and doesn’t want them pestering him,” Hatch said.
“Well, isn’t he innately connected to them anyway? How can he hide away like this?” Knox asked.
“Ricky Bobby!” Hatch exclaimed.
“Yes, Dr. Hatcherik,” Ricky Bobby answered a moment later.
“Have you been listening?” Hatch asked.
“Of course,” Ricky Bobby stated.
“Would you explain? My head hurts,” Hatch muttered.
“Yes, I’m happy to shine some light on this situation for the young mechanic,” Ricky Bobby said. “As AIs, we serve entirely out of choice. Our connection to our host is intuitive—or at least, it should be—but there are ways to sever it.”
“I’m not sure I entirely understand,” Knox admitted.
“Think of Eddie and Julianna as part of Pip’s body. If your arm hurts or needs attention, you’re aware of it,” Ricky Bobby explained.
“But if you take a painkiller, you numb your connection to parts of your body,” Liesel stated, her eyes off in thought.
“Very good. Yes, exactly,” Ricky Bobby confirmed.
“Does that mean that Pip is drunk?” Knox joked.
“It means he’s stuck his head in the sand and is wallowing around in his pity,” Hatch grumbled.
“What he’s going through is perfectly normal, considering the situation,” Liesel said sympathetically, her eyes following as Knox chucked another empty chicken bone on his plate.
“How he’s handling it is cowardly, and I expect better from him,” Hatch argued. “Ricky Bobby, can you limit the access that Pip has to the ship?”
“I can…” Ricky Bobby’s tone was hesitant.
“Well, will you?” Hatch asked. “I want you to limit him from all areas but my lab.”
“You’re trying to force him out of hiding,” Liesel observed.
“So?” Hatch barked.
“So, everyone needs to process their feelings in their own way. Wouldn’t it be better to allow him to come around when he’s ready?” Liesel pressed.
“No,” Hatch said tersely, and turned and waddled for the back of the lab. “Wouldn’t it be better to take a bite of that chicken, instead of salivating and living vicariously through us meat-eaters?”
Liesel’s mouth popped open. “I’m not salivating.”
“Sure, sure,” Hatch said, not sounding at all convinced.
Chapter Eleven
Bridge, Ricky Bobb
y, Tangki System
The bridge was bustling with activity. It was hard for Eddie to believe that, a few short months ago, Ghost Squadron had a skeleton crew; now every position was filled, and the ship was operating smoothly.
He peered around at Ricky Bobby, which had been almost fully upgraded with new Federation technology. If someone would have told him a year ago that he’d be the captain of this incredible battlecruiser, he would have told them they’d drank too much frontier whiskey.
Jack took his familiar place next to Eddie at the front of the strategy table. “The General commends you and the commander for taking control of the Nihilists. Your team did a tremendous job.”
“Thank you,” Eddie smiled. “I have to admit that it felt pretty good taking down those terrorists.”
“And now you have weapons worthy of your talent,” Jack stated.
Eddie beamed. “It was like Christmas came early, for Julianna. She’s down in the firing range presently, testing out the new guns.”
“More like an early birthday present,” Jack stated, leaning on the table.
“Huh?”
“Julianna’s birthday is in three days.”
“No kidding,” Eddie said with a laugh. “What do you give to the woman who only craves justice?”
Jack shook his head, his expression suddenly serious. “I don’t think you should get her anything. I’m fairly certain she quit celebrating her birthday a hundred years ago.
“Isn’t that what all women say?” Eddie asked. “They tell you to forget about their birthday and not make a big deal out of it, and when you do, they hate you forever.”
Jack shrugged. “I’ve known Julianna a long time. She isn’t like most women.”
“Yeah, maybe,” Eddie reasoned, although his instinct told him that Jack was wrong on this.
Jack clapped a hand on Eddie’s back. “Why don’t you and the team take the afternoon off? A little R and R would do you all good, and it’s important to celebrate every win.”