by K. T. Flores
Polaris talked crisply as the monitors finally changed their displays. “I have good news that leads to bad news. I managed to get into the connector memory stick, and I finally got into the regular Navarian database for guardians.”
She pulled up two lists of almost a hundred names and unfolded from her seat. Her asymmetrical pale green robe fell just above her knees in the front and dragged against the floor as she approached her wall of monitors. A gray fingernail clicked against one of the screens.
“I cross-referenced all the names on Helden’s stick with the ones in the guardian catalog.” She narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips. “They officially have immaculate profiles, but according to Helden, they’re all part of this candy trading ring in our system.”
Tauri swallowed, stepping up beside Polaris. “Now, isn’t this interesting,” she breathed. Horror and a strange sort of satisfaction warred within her. “If this gets out, the oligarchs will launch a huge investigation on Vice and guardians.” She turned to Cyril, placing a hesitant hand on his upper arm. “What do we do?”
He snorted, rubbing his temples. “Nothing. I don’t want anything to do with this. I’m only here for you and Kira. Nothing and no one else.”
“Oh, it’s too late for that, Sparkles,” she said, gesturing to the monitors. “No one will let us leave if they realize we have Helden’s connector. We became grounded the moment Kira pulled us into this mess.”
“I don’t care about anyone else, Tauri.”
She set her jaw, standing firmly in front of him. “I don’t think you’re listening to me. It’s not about anyone else. If these guardians are working with candy operations, they will never let us leave until we’re dead. You're the one that told me that. And these documents are talking about almost billion-unit operations. Who we are won’t matter to them.”
He narrowed his eyes at her, pupils constricting. They darkened to a stormy and unpredictable blue, but she wasn’t fazed.
Don’t test me, he seemed to say.
But she smiled darkly. I will test you. And you’re going to fail, she thought back to him.
They continued their stare off before he clenched his teeth, deflating.
“Fine, little bully. We need to call the Galactic Coalition. They’re the only ones the oligarchs will listen to for something like this. They’ll know what to do and who else to call.”
“Oh, and you know how to get in contact with the Galactic Coalition?” she asked sarcastically.
His hands went to his hips, chin raising. “Do you want my help or not?” he shot back rhetorically. “I know plenty of people active in the Coalition.”
She blinked, for a moment she forgot he wasn’t just Cyril, but an Oich-Ru. He would know people in the Coalition. But would they be people that would listen to a cry for help?
Tauri laughed at the absurdity of it all. “We don’t even have a Navarian proxy to talk to first. I’m not sure the Coalition will bother helping us after rejecting our seat.”
“Navar pulled their proxy seat at Helden’s suggestion a little more than thirty years ago,” Cyril corrected, watching her closely. “Is that not… what they told you?”
She blinked, feeling like she had been struck. Her chest tightened uncomfortably as she shifted under his and Polaris’ gaze. “No… We were always told that”—she swallowed, struggling to get the words outl—“we were denied our representative seat. I was under the impression that we petitioned every two years for our spot, and we kept getting rejected.”
She liked Helden less and less. If Navar had joined the Coalition, they would’ve had access to more aid. What type of oppurutnities had her home world missed because of Helden’s selfishness? She didn’t want to think about it.
Cyril pinched the bridge of his nose and screwed his eyes shut. “The Coalition doesn’t deny anyone a place. The worst that can happen is being put on probation, where your concerns and opinions are considered last and not publicly heard or shared—”
“I don’t want a government lesson.”
He pulled up his holocomm, muttering softly, “We could call Ka’ati. Or Fuyuki, Tahir, Patil… Maybe Qwi’Ve…”
Polaris scanned across another file she had displayed. “What do you think about asking for help from the Muses?”
Tauri nearly choked. “You can’t be talking about the Muses, right? The diviners? The miracle makers of old?” She couldn’t help her nervous titter. “Legend says they get their power from the stardust in their blood. I can’t imagine having that type of ability. " She wrinkled her nose. “It’s unnatural.”
Polaris retied the sash around her waist. “Some say it’s natural. We’re the ones that are unnatural. Somewhere along the way, we lost our connection to the universe. The Muses managed to find it again.”
“It sounds a little gimmicky to me,” Tauri said, crossing her arms.
Cyril sighed. “It’s done, I’ve contacted all the Representatives I know. Proxy Sahtri said he should be here in a week or two. He will gauge the severity of the situation, and then contact the Coalition. They’ll send Muses to help depending on how risky it’ll be to catch these guardians in the act. But I know the Muses have been preoccupied with the instability in the Bell system.”
Polaris pushed her hair behind her shoulders. “He’s welcome to see the files here. However, make sure you don’t give him the coordinates to my house. You two must bring him. I don’t want Coalitionists showing up unannounced whenever they need help removing a virus on their holocomm because they clicked on spam.”
“You sound like you have some experience with that,” Tauri said.
“Yes, but I’m not here to tell people to turn things on and off.” Polaris sniffed daintily. “It’s a waste of my time.”
“We’ll pick him up and let you know when we’re headed this way,” Cyril said, and Tauri jerked her head towards the stairs.
As they ascended, Tauri glanced at his hand. She wanted to reach out and grab it, but she wasn’t sure how he would feel. Would he pull away? Give her an appalled look? He had kissed her. But maybe he thought it was a fleeting moment of passion and instinct and thoughtlessness.
As if on cue, Cyril reached back, interlocking his fingers with her. “See? That wasn’t so hard, was it?”
“Whatever,” she grumbled at the back of his head.
She ignored his quiet laugher and her burning cheeks as they continued back to the hovercar.
∆∆∆
Almost a week after contacting Proxy Sahtri, Tauri and Cyril sat on the couch inside Bunny. Tauri was looking through documents for addresses or landmarks. Then, she placed the locations on a list of possible places where candy was being stored and moved through. Cyril was scanning through Navarian surveillance videos using a facial recognition program. It scanned for Kira, and all the hits weren’t real matches. She was surprisingly good at evading both the guardians and Cyril and Tauri.
Cyril reached down to hold Tauri’s hand, thumb rubbing against her palm idly.
Tired of staring at her screen, she turned to him with purpose. “What does this mean?” she asked bluntly, gesturing between them.
He glanced at her, leaning forward to steal a quick, searing kiss that left her sputtering.
“What does what mean?” he asked innocently.
“All of a sudden, you’re full of questions,” she grumbled, poking his dimple. “I don’t like assuming things about us. It leaves too much room for miscommunication.”
Something Orn had always warned her against.
“I don’t want to be with anyone else. Do you want to be with anyone else?”
“No. And I don’t want you to be with anyone else. Do you want me to be with anyone else?”
“No. So then we’re together, and that’s that.”
She swallowed thickly as he played with her hair that had fallen from her bun. “But what happens after all of this is over?”
His fingers ghosted across her cheeks. “Would you be mad if I said we’ll wo
rry about that when the time comes?”
“No.”
She kissed the pad of his index as he traced her bottom lip.
But it scares me, she thought.
Her eyes drooped to his lips, and she began to inch forward. As her lips brushed against him, a knock sounded. She leapt away, nearly falling off the couch.
“Bunny, open the door,” Cyril said, sounding as crestfallen and annoyed at the interruption as he looked.
The door slid open, and Tauri inched backwards, irrationally struck with the image of Fili standing with a gun pointed at them. Her hand blindly felt for her raypistol, her finger hovering near the trigger.
She sagged with relief as she found an unfamiliar face stepping into Bunny.
Amber eyes surveyed the ship, zeroing in on the gun in Tauri’s grip a moment before continuing their perusal. Red and golden designs embroidered on a black sherwani shimmered when the stranger moved. His golden pants and sandals rustled slightly as he stepped further into the craft. His black hair was wavy and windswept.
“Aneel!” Cyril clapped his shoulder “Where are your escorts?”
“Based on your message, I thought it would be best to come alone under the guise of a tourist. I had to leave negotiations on Goam rather suddenly for this, but Proxy Fe should be able to handle it. Have you been? The food is amazing.”
“I’ve never had better ruby potatoes than that place,” Cyril said, a sardonic upturn on his lips. It wasn’t quite a smile.
“Oh, you ate at the Ruby Heel? I should’ve known you would. A man of impeccable taste, as always.”
“How has Proxy Fe been?”
“She’s wonderful. I imagine Goam officials will not stand against her list of propositions for much longer. Really, I was sent for appearances, though no one will ever admit it. We feared Goam wouldn’t take Fe seriously because of her age.” He waved his hand with a hearty chuckle. “But who cares about politics.”
Cyril joined in his laughter with a question about Goam, and Tauri placed her raypistol back down as quietly as she could. She didn’t even know what Goam was. A planet or moon or asteroid? Maybe a city or an outpost? She almost interrupted them to ask, but she didn’t want to look uninformed.
She looked it up on her holocomm discreetly. It was a colonized asteroid that had recently joined the Coalition. It was a few systems away, next to one of the planets she had wanted to visit.
She stepped forward to Cyril’s side.
Aneel stopped midsentence, his attention shifting to her. He offered his palm for her to take. “Proxy Aneel Sahtri at your service. But, please, call me Aneel.”
She shook his hand, distracted by the assortment of bands and gems on his fingers. His bangles chimed softly.
“Tauri Solne,” she said, trying not to be too dumbstruck by the significance of his presence.
She hadn’t thought about it much when Cyril mentioned a proxy would be coming, but it was unreal to meet one. Her stomach fluttered with an odd mix of excitement and jealousy. She was a nobody, fumbling her way through oil and engines and longings. But this was a person with an authority she’d never imagined. He could bring change in ways she had only dreamed of. Hopefully, he would help them.
His gaze narrowed, and he folded his hands primly above his stomach, elbows straight and away from his body. “You don’t trust me.”
“It’s a little hard to trust anyone right now,” she admitted.
He tilted his head forward. “I can’t blame you. I hear Navar might need some assistance."
She nodded, trying not to think of all the files she’d read, all the videos and pictures she had seen of crimes caused by candy and greed.
“A bit of an understatement,” she muttered.
“To think we were having dinner on Pythagora a few months ago, Cyril. Discussing possible trade openings with the Pulver system. A very positive and great thing. And now we’re talking about corruption,” Aneel smiled dryly.
Cyril snorted. “It’s good to see you, too.”
“I expected nothing less from you and Kira,” the proxy said, rolling his eyes. He turned to Tauri, glint in his gaze. “Isn’t that right?”
“People keep saying that,” Cyril grumbled as she nodded enthusiastically.
“When do we begin?” Aneel inquired. “We have a lot to discuss.”
Tauri gestured to the door. “It’s a bit of a drive from here. But we can’t be too cautious given the situation.”
“Understandable. I’m ready whenever you are,” Aneel said, brushing away invisible lint from his sleeve.
She inhaled deeply, standing taller. “I hope you’re ready for this.”
Chapter Thirteen
A few days later, Cyril, Aneel, and Tauri stood before a warehouse. She tried to find something nefarious in the architecture that would indicate the nature of its secrets.
Dust coated the windows, and white bricks were turning gray from weathering. Vines crept and created cracks through the foundation and walls. The security cameras hung by wires, lenses smashed or blocked with spray paint.
“This isn’t a good idea,” she muttered to herself, rubbing her arms.
Tauri and Polaris had compared notes, and they agreed the warehouse before them had been used for Fili's candy operation. It was about thirty minutes from Polaris’ home. The underworld in this sector was sparsely populated, while the overworld was made of plains and some corporate farms.
“There has to be security here,” she called over her shoulder, frowning.
Cyril stepped to her side, brushing his fingers against her palm. “This is one of the older locations. Looks like they don’t use it anymore.”
“That doesn't mean it’s not guarded. If it’s guarded...” she trailed off, flexing her hand as his touch disappeared. “We’re fucked then, Sparkles.”
Cyril walked forward, slipping his gloves on. He tried the knob, and the door easily swung open to reveal darkness.
She glanced at the windows again, realizing they were boarded.
Aneel strode past Cyril, flicking on his flashlight. “I’m not standing out here all day, but you both are welcome to do so,” he said, voice muffled.
Tauri hurried after him, and Cyril followed. She fumbled to turn on her light, but it fell out of her grip when her shoulder slammed into something. Her yelp was muted slightly by her hands, her breath heavy even through the fabric of her gloves. She carefully retrieved the flashlight, pointing it in front of her.
It was a robot.
Furrowing her brow, she turned and angled her flashlight. She scanned as far as the light reached. Rows and rows of robots filled the warehouse.
They towered over Tauri, white except for the bright red of their arms. The guardian insignia was stamped onto the shoulder. Some had the stars indicating upgrades, but most of them were standard units. Where eye pieces should have been, dark empty space stared at her. From some of the wiring remnants, she figured someone had yanked them out. She did her best not to touch any of them.
Weaving her way towards the back, Tauri noticed an ajar door. She stepped outside and wandered, coming across large cargo containers. Carefully, she poked her head into one. The large, steel storage boxes had remnants of wrapped packages, and a mixture of powder and pills littered the bottom. She straightened immediately.
She took several pictures before heading towards the small group of trees beyond the warehouse. It looked like some type of orchard, but she couldn’t tell what fruit was being grown.
Tauri tilted her head back, gazing upwards. Chunks of the overworld had eroded away, allowing the vegetation to thrive in certain areas. The air was clearer here than her sector.
The sun wasn’t as harsh as it was in the overworld. It was comforting. Rejuvenating. She closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of the wind. She had only been inside for half an hour, but it felt like longer.
Shouts cut through her enjoyment, and she stiffened. A familiar voice grew louder while her stomach sank.
“We need Solne alive to figure out what she knows and who she got involved. I’d have killed her a million times over, but I’ve been too preoccupied with Oich-Ru. That bitch is a thorn on my side. Everyone we’ve sent after Solne has failed to find her,” Fili griped. “We can’t fucking find any of them.”
She smiled slightly, sending a thanks to Polaris. She had been hard at work erasing Tauri and Cyril’s existence from Navar. And she had no idea how Kira was evading everyone.
Fili continued, “Seriously, how hard is it to find a purple sparkly guy and a little street rat?”
Compromised. Get out now, she typed to Cyril on her holocomm. She looked back at the warehouse before shutting off her notifications. She didn’t want any sound or light to give her position away.
“No, stop! I don’t know what you want.” Someone cried out in pain. “Nobody has been by this warehouse in months!”
“That’s not what the motion sensor told us thirty minutes ago, Paxten.”
Shit. She had warned Cyril and Aneel about this. After reading so many of Fili’s reports, she knew he wasn’t stupid. He was careful and calculating. He had to be if he wanted to stay head of Vice and trade candy.
“Please, don’t hurt me!”
It was stupid and dangerous, but she couldn’t leave the person to fend for themselves. And if she could keep Fili distracted, then maybe it would give Cyril and Aneel enough time to get out of the warehouse.
Her body moved before she considered the consequences.
In front of her were three guardians and a farmer. The farmer had his arms raised, panic and blood across his face. Panting, he stared at her in fear.
She shot the gun from Fili's hand, and all eyes were on her.
After a tense moment, the farmer took off into the fruit trees, and Tauri forced her breathing to remain even.
No weakness.
The two guardians with Fili began to move, but he held a hand up.