by Viola Grace
The next few days would be hard.
Chapter Five
Weavers Guild Master Tefnar smiled at her through the com display. "I am glad that you made it out alive, Winder Corren. Nineteen occupants of the Yski village were taken by the Raiders."
"I was not aware of that." Neva felt ill. She had known that they were after her and the Citadel staff but had no idea that others were also targeted.
"Yes, apparently, they were taken before the Sector Guard arrived. No one knew until after the panic was over that they had been abducted."
"Who is looking for them?"
"The Sector Guard has been seeking them and they are preparing to send a retrieval team."
"Excellent."
Tefnar took a serious look at her and imbued her words with the weight of the statement. "They want you on the team, Neva, so we agreed to your reassignment from the Guild to the Guard."
Swallowing, she nodded. "I had best get myself to Fixer then. I will need some new uniforms. Neva out." She disconnected the call and headed out to Fixer's workshop before she could change her mind.
Mala was working with Carella and both women stared at her the moment that she entered.
They didn't say a word.
"I am here to report for duty in the Guard. I have been reassigned to the Sector Guard and my first assignment is waiting."
"Does Relay know what is going on?" Star Breaker took Neva's hand and gave it a light squeeze.
The woman in question came through the door in that instant. "She does now. Fixer, give her everything you can think of. She will be going on a retrieval mission in Raider territory and will need as much armour as you can plaster on to keep her in one piece."
Fixer opened her mouth, but two carts full of food rolled into the workshop and she nodded quietly. "Come on, Neva. Strip."
By the time Fixer had her in a deep gold bodysuit and was working on integrating plates of armour into the material, Effin had arrived and ordered Neva into a scanner before they continued.
"Those implants are one of a kind, I need confirmation that they won't come loose or get dislodged with frequent use."
She took Effin's hand and let him bring her to one of the scanners edging Fixer's workspace. A quick privacy screen unfolded, she shimmied out of the new bodysuit and the scans were completed so she could dress again.
"I promise not to tell Relay how quick you are, Effin."
He chuckled as he helped her straighten her suit with efficient movements. "And I promise not to tell Archer that your pheromones are strong enough to knock me over when he is nearby."
Neva frowned, "Stupid Wyoran senses."
"Indeed. Now, go get fitted for your work uniform." Effin patted her on the head and sent her back to Fixer to continue the process of getting geared up.
Stripes were added to the gold fabric, each one carrying enough material to stop and disperse a huge strike.
She was going to be as safe as it was possible to be as a Guardsman. Fixer was making sure of it.
"Now, your suit is armoured. Walk around and see how it feels." Fixer tucked into a sandwich and waved for her to move around the room.
The weight was definitely something she was aware of. The weight pulled on her shoulders but was supported by the bands that ran up her ribcage. She stepped down and did a few struggling push ups, stood and stretched before breaking into a light jog.
She kept working out until Fixer waved at her. "I think we should test the other thing."
Neva nodded and looked to the climbing wall that Fixer nodded to. Taking in a deep breath, she walked up to it, extended the sub dermal claws that were her last line of defence and started to climb the wall.
Having her bodyweight hanging by implants that came from under her nails was not the most natural of feelings, but with each foot that she managed to haul her body up, she felt a lack of pain and a surge of power. Her body was using her talent for fibre on her own tendon implants, changing them into what she needed.
When she had made it to the top of the wall, she used her claws to anchor a strand from the reels Fixer was building into her suit. She let the slow release of the reel under tension lower her to the floor.
When she was safe on the ground again, she snapped off the strand and turned to return to Fixer, but she was not the only person in the room.
"Hello, Archer."
"Hello, Winder."
She raised her eyebrow, "Nothing more original?"
"Sorry, it fits. When will you be ready to leave?"
"When Fixer can't fit anything more onto this suit."
He nodded. "Are you already armoured?"
"I think so."
He turned to Fixer. "Can I test it?"
Mala removed an apple from her mouth and nodded. "Sure, just not in the head."
He nodded and drew his energy bow, firing a bolt at the centre of her chest.
Neva saw the bolt coming toward her and couldn't believe that he would fire at her. The impact knocked her on her ass, but that was the only part of her that was sore. The suit had, indeed, absorbed the biological energy that he shot at her.
"That was really sneaky."
He held his hand to her and offered to help her to her feet. Looking up into his absurdly gorgeous face, she reluctantly held her hand out to him and let him help her. That one moment of contact sent a tremor of awareness through Neva, but she smiled. It was a far more gentle start than she could have hoped for.
"Okay, enough with the deep looks into each other's eyes. It is time for you to get ready for your first assignment, Winder. That means that it is back to the dais for you." Mala used the apple to point to the raised area and Neva sighed as she regained her footing for her weapons assembly.
Reels of threads made from metal, airy fibres and dense crystals were attached to her belt, wrists and rimmed her boot tops. Her talent would not lack for focus.
Emergency dart guns and stunners were wrapped around her fists and would activate with a particular hooking of her fingers.
Effin came forward while she was testing the range on the dart gun. "Your implants are functioning perfectly. Your talent has altered them for strength and function. Mala made the right call on the tendon attachment. It spreads your weight from your hands to all your other joints. I still am not sure how you managed to deal with the adjustment though."
Neva grinned and stretched her arms over her head. "It took some doing, but I managed it. That massage today definitely helped with the pretty-constant tension that I deal with, but I wouldn't trade that for anything."
The design offered to her had been ingenious--a wiring system that ran under her skin and allowed her to use her fingers or toes to comfortably support her entire body weight. It had started as a treatment for the constant tendonitis that her hands and arms experienced. A backup set of artificial tendons. When Mala had run the anchor points to her shoulders, Neva had experienced a tremendous boost in her physical capabilities, so they decided, with Commander's approval, to run the full tendon reinforcement through her system.
Aside from the tension in her joints, she had never had an issue with the implants. She just had to deal with the feeling of being constantly wound up.
She wiggled her fingers and shimmied her shoulders, settling into the heavier weight of the new suit. "So, are we ready to go?"
Mala held up a cobweb of wiring and grinned. "Just one more little addition. Stealth gear so that you and Archer can do a great job of sneaking in under the Raider radar."
"Great. Let's get it in so that we can get going. The Raiders usually process and dispense with the captured within a week, so the clock is ticking."
The Guardsmen in the room nodded solemnly and Mala moved to put the stealth tech into Winder's suit.
It was time to switch from Weaver to Guardsman and get her ass in the game.
Chapter Six
The Arrow was silent. They had locked down communications and were slipping past the monitors around the station t
hat the Raiders had claimed as their own.
Archer and Winder were not making a sound. Their ship was on full stealth and even the impact of a footfall could translate itself to the monitors.
The scans that Relay had provided indicated the holding areas were on the station side farthest from the shuttle bays. That left them one option, to drill into the station and make the most direct extraction that they could.
They had discussed their plan of attack and hopefully, they would execute it silently.
Mala had told them that their suits were synched, they should be able to see each other while using their stealth tech.
Archer brought them in just over the hull of the station. Their ship glided to a halt and settled gently onto the metal with the help of a subtle magnetic field. It took agonizing minutes, but a thud of impact was not a desirable noise to create.
Winder opened her harness and slowly allowed it to slide from her torso. Every movement had to be slow and controlled. Silence was key.
She stood and made her way to the floor hatch in the cargo area. A temporary installation, it was the perfect entry and exit space for this assignment.
There was a minute hiss as she engaged the seals to connect them to the station. The scanners on the hull indicated that there was no activity but a breathable atmosphere beneath them.
Archer flicked his hand and produced his bioelectric bow and nodded as he turned on his invisibility.
She opened the hatch slowly, pulled a segment of the heavier-gauge thread free and spun it while imbuing it with the power to slice into the thick metal hull. A monofilament stuck to the centre of the cutting area and she anchored it to her wrist while working her way through the outer skin of the station in silence.
The instant that the plug she was cutting released, she tugged upward with all her might. She held her breath as it plummeted to the floor of the Arrow only to stop short inches from the metal.
Archer eased it to the floor and he patted her shoulder as he dropped lightly through the hole and into the station.
Breathing a little easier, she engaged her invisibility and lowered herself through the hole with deliberate care. Hands on her thighs almost made her yelp, but Archer held her as she slid down his body and she had to swallow a groan. This invisibility stuff just was not fair, but at least he couldn't see the hot colour of her face.
A quick orientation showed her the wavy outline of Archer's body and she followed him down the hall to the holding area.
There were group cells and in one of them, she recognized all of the personnel from Yski. All nineteen were accounted for, but there was one extra person. She reached out and touched Archer's arm tapping once and then once again.
Raiders had put a sleeper in with her people once before, she was not going to trust them again.
As quickly as she could, Winder uncoupled the small scanner from her belt and ran it over the cells. There were six people rigged with tracking devices, two with explosives.
Archer reached out and tapped her arm with five fingers that then counted down.
In a rush, they deactivated their cloaking devices, used their talents to blow the cell doors and prepared to have the guards rush in on them.
"End of the hall, to the right and wait there. We will be with you as soon as we are able," Winder spoke and pulled the cell open to let the people of Yski free while Archer did the same for the others.
When the loaded personnel tried to get past her, she quickly tied a stun bracelet to each of them. It was light, airy and was carrying a large enough charge to blast out all of the tracking devices implanted inside them the moment she activated it. They never even felt it go on.
The peculiar sound of Archer's bow caught her attention and the gathering of Raiders in the hallway was becoming hard to see under the pile of stunned bodies.
The rescued personnel ran down the hall to the hole and a few of the eager sleeper agents were trying to climb into the Arrow.
Winder webbed the opening when she left so no matter how many people tried to boost someone into the ship, they weren't getting in unless she went first.
Winder pushed past the panicked folk and popped her claws. "Wait a moment. I have to set the atmosphere to the correct level for this many people."
She jumped, hooked the webbing with her hands and propelled herself into the ship. The remaining strands were recharged in case someone wanted to follow before she was ready and she moved quickly.
A dial here, a gas mask there and a small atmospheric current around the hatch. She lifted the mask and said, "Come on up." She turned on her stealth and waited.
The first woman had a bracelet, came through the hatch and dropped unconscious when the combination of gas and electric shock hit her. Winder quickly moved her aside.
It seemed that the sleepers had moved themselves to the front of the line. She had them all neatly stacked by the edge of the room when the genuine rescues started to pour through.
The gas knocked them out, but Winder simply moved them onto the other side of the cargo bay. It wouldn't do for the two groups to get mixed up.
She laid them all flat as they popped into the opening and when Archer moved into the hatch, his mask was already in place. She turned off her stealth and nodded to him.
Fifty souls had been rescued, now they only needed to make a clean getaway.
"Two of those are rigged with explosives. I have deactivated the electronics, but it will come back online again. We may want to use the special storage that Relay provided."
He nodded and took the two she identified, moving them into the blast-proof cocoons that they had. The tracers were burned out, so they were safe as long as the carriers were confined.
He moved them into the larger storage container and let the other rescued folks stay loose and asleep.
Winder placed a charge and sealed the hatch quietly, silently hoping that the station had a good shielding system for a breach, because it was about to be ripped wide open.
With the rescued people as comfortable as they could make them, Archer and Winder returned to the bridge.
"Are we ready?" Archer's voice was muffled by the mask, but he was intent.
"As we will ever be. They are locking on to this general area. Time to give them something else to worry about." Winder buckled in and gripped the arms of her chair.
Archer flipped the toggle that released the ship's magnetic clamps and they floated free. As they tumbled loose, the charge that she had set blew, propelling them a great distance from the station as venting of the explosion started a cascade effect through the structure.
Winder winced as she watched the home of the Raiders tear itself apart. "It looks like their system was not set up to handle a catastrophic breach."
"It is, according to Relay, the result of non-union labour. Very sad." Archer watched as the Raider ships alternately circled the station and made a run for it.
When enough time had passed in his mind, he triggered the engines and they pulsed their way to a jump point. They lost their stealth the moment before they jumped, but it didn't matter, the Raiders were busy trying to salvage their station.
While Archer flew the ship to Station 13, Winder kept an eye on the life signs in the hold. A few of the occupants were experiencing physical distress, but that was due to the sedative in the air. They would receive appropriate medical care in a vessel standing by to take them on. These people would not be setting foot on Station 13. They were not to be trusted until Minders and other Citadel personnel interviewed them all. They would receive therapy if it was needed and assistance in returning home.
"We are doing well. A few folks need medical attention, but if you can fire the engines, we can get them to safety."
"As you wish, Winder. Here we go."
They passed through the jump with only a mild ripple of sensation on Winder's part, but several of the folk did not tolerate it as well. The monitors recorded distress on half a dozen of their sleeping cargo.
When Station 13 loomed in the view screen with the emergency dock and ship next to it, she sighed in relief.
Archer opened the com. "This is the Arrow, running heavy. We have two prisoners rigged for explosion, half a dozen with trackers and several rescued personnel in distress. Please advise."
Haunt came on line. "Dock with the Medarik to discharge your cargo and return home, Archer. Oh, and welcome to Station 13, Winder."
"Thank you, Haunt. Good to be aboard." Despite her mask, she was smiling.
Kaylee was both snarky and perky at the same time. It was a combination that made her an excellent commander for a base that was mobile and yet could remain in orbit around any planet for as long as required.
Currently, it was in the vicinity of Balen, a world undergoing deliberate renovation by the living soul of the planet itself.
Archer followed the directions and docked with the Medarik. With a confirmed seal, they evacuated the sedative and pumped in standard breathable atmosphere.
With their masks still on, they showed staff from the ship to the free survivors. As the Arrow was evacuated, Winder began to breathe again. She didn't even realize how tense she had been.
She sighed in relief as they uncoupled from the ship and docked on the station. She removed her mask and rubbed at her features.
Archer did the same. "That was a very successful mission, Winder."
She looked over at him and rubbed at her neck and shoulders. "Wonderful. Glad to hear it. Now, where can I get a drink?"
Chapter Seven
A hug from Haunt was the most peculiar thing. It was part contact and part phase.
"How are you doing, Kaylee?"
"Fine, Neva, but you look like hell."
She smiled at her friend and noted the vague translucence. "Thanks, you are a little more transparent than usual."
"I am a little tired. Dirven has been working out and taking frequent showers. You know what that means."
Chuckling at Archer's pointed questioning glance, she raised a hand. "It is way more information than you want about your commanding officer, Archer. Trust me on this."