by J. N. Chaney
I stared straight ahead as the picture began to form. The ingot was supposed to be on Xanderis. Jax had to be taking me there. It was a small victory, but I felt certain more would come to me.
This wasn’t over. I just had to focus. Settling back against the wall, I closed my eyes and poured all my focus into plotting.
Since the cell didn’t feature a clock or star map, there wasn’t any way to tell how long we travelled or how far.
Jax showed up every so often, four times by my count, to deposit nutrient bars and water. Two days at my best guess. Each time I had to turn and put both hands on the wall while he tossed them in. I badly wanted to test my luck but played it safe. No part of me was stupid enough to think I could take Jax in this current scenario. I was shoeless, weaponless, and no match for a cybernetically enhanced soldier.
So, I waited.
The hours crawled by and I used each. Making plans, discarding them, then circling back. More snippets and flashes of memories came, but in no particular order. How I came to be on the ship was a complete mystery, but maybe that mattered the least.
I came to the conclusion that Farah and Mack knew where I was headed. It was wishful thinking, but I hoped they weren’t coming after me. Another thought that occurred to me, more terrifying than any other, was that Jax knew the location of the replicators. If Kaska got those, the entire galaxy was in trouble.
Unless he already had them.
No, I couldn’t believe that. If he did, everything might as well be lost, and I refused to give in to that kind of thinking.
The door went transparent and Jax stared down at me from the other side. Instead of more rations, he held a pair of restraints and my boots. Not waiting for a prompt, I got to my feet and gave him my back.
Cool air rushed in when the door opened and I felt him enter, his large form taking up a large portion of the cell. The boots landed at my feet.
“Sans the blade. Thanks for the tip there. I already took that out. Don’t do anything stupid, Sergeant. Play things right and they stay on until you’re in Void custody.”
I hadn’t expected anything less, though it would have been nice to have that little advantage.
“It didn’t feel like we docked. Are we close?” Slowly so he wouldn’t think I was going to try something, I slipped the boots on and did the laces.
“Less than an hour. Hands.”
I put my hands together behind my back like I was saying a prayer and waited.
He snapped the restraints into place and double-locked them. “Sit on the floor. Legs out,” Jax ordered, then waited until I did it. He pointed at the camera. “The AI is watching. I mean it about not trying to escape. Not that you have anywhere to go. But if you try to get the cuffs off or play with the boots, you’ll regret it.”
On the outside I was the picture of submission. Thank you, General-Delgado, I thought. My adoptive father had given me a lot of practice pretending to obey and it might just save my ass today. Inside was another story entirely. I cursed Jax, the Vice-Admiral, the Empire, and even Leigh. His PAI might not be human but she could suck a dick too.
Jax left and the door slid shut behind him, blocking my view as it did. That left me alone with my thoughts again, but there wasn’t much to think about. More memories still filtered in, including details about the facility. Unfortunately, this wasn’t much help because it played like a corrupted holo. The information was random, a jumble of ill-fitting puzzle pieces. Labs, training rooms, off-limits. None of it made much sense yet.
Most of my time in the cell had been dedicated to coming up with ways to survive what was coming. Now fear curdled in my gut and my thoughts turned dark.
When the ship jerked and shuddered, a telltale sign that we were now docking, I welcomed the distraction. It didn’t take long for Jax to reappear.
“Let’s go,” he said after the door opened.
He leaned down to help me up. The motion wasn’t rough, but it didn’t win him any of my goodwill.
We walked out, his hand never leaving my arm. I supposed that was in case I bolted. Like he said, where would I go? None of the ships here would respond to me and I didn’t have Mack’s skills to make them.
My plan centered around my own willpower. I would endure whatever they threw at me, even if it cost me an arm and an eye. That eventuality seemed unavoidable and I’d made my peace with it. The brainwashing would be harder to overcome.
Despite the nerves galloping through me, I didn’t let myself tremble as we passed through the airlock and into the Void facility where a familiar face greeted me.
Kaska. The bastard stood in full dress uniform, a trio of soldiers behind him. They were dressed in the same all black uniform that Dolph had worn and held assault rifles. I noticed each had on a pair of black gloves, but I had no doubt they were Void operatives.
“Sergeant-Delgado. You made it. This is a good day indeed.” His eyes went to Jax. “And the replicators?”
Jax shook his head. “No opportunity. Orders said the Sergeant was priority. The Second Genesis appeared to be heading that way when I left. They are most likely moving it, if it hasn’t been moved already.”
The Vice-Admiral sighed a little but didn’t look too broken up over the news. “Too bad. At least we have the face of the Initiative. Once she joins the ranks a big blow will be dealt to the rebellion.”
Ah, there it was. That thought hadn’t even crossed my mind. Damn it. I wasn’t sure how right he was about that idea, but there would be an impact for sure. It took a moment for me to realize it wasn’t just a political move. Both Jax and I knew the location of Cerberus, where the rebellion’s home base was located.
Which meant Kaska knew. And that meant with my being here he could pin any attack on information I supposedly gave him. Something of this realization must have shown on my face because the smile on the Vice-Admiral’s face widened.
“I see you understand the implications of that. Good. You don’t look as worse for wear as I expected, Delgado. She didn’t put up a fight?”
Jax shrugged. “Not on the way here. It was a hell of a fight getting her off Neblinar though. She broke my nose.”
I did? That memory hadn’t come back yet, so it was news to me.
Kaska’s eyes widened. “I’m surprised, Jax.”
“Forgive my frankness, but you shouldn’t be, sir. Sergeant-Delgado is a skilled soldier. She’ll be a formidable operative and valuable addition to our ranks.”
“Hmm,” was all Kaska said. A chime came from his pocket and he pulled out a data pad. When he finished reading the message, he looked up and locked eyes with me. “I have a meeting. In the meantime, your training will start immediately. I just wanted to be the one to greet you.”
“Go to hell, Kaska. I’ll never join your little cult.” I couldn’t stop the words from slipping out.
When he signaled, one of the soldiers came forward and rammed the butt of his rifle into my stomach. It doubled me over and I fell to my knees, spitting clear liquid. It burned but I deemed the pain worth it. Though unintentional, it also made my ploy more believable if I fought back some.
“That’ll be your first lesson. This little stint of freedom is over.” Kaska nodded at Jax. “Get her to intake then schedule a debrief. We have a lot to go over.”
“Yes sir.” Jax saluted and waited for the Vice-Admiral to move off with his entourage.
Once they were gone, he lifted me to a standing position and tugged me down a hallway. “I told you not to do anything stupid.”
I didn’t respond.
We walked for a little while, down corridors that almost seemed familiar until Jax stopped at a nondescript door and touched the palm plate there. It beeped green and opened for him. Up to that point, some part of me harbored a hope that he hadn’t actually betrayed us. I hadn’t realized how much until the panel accepted his print and he took me inside to a military clerk—a woman with dark hair shorn to a buzzcut and serious expression, dressed in what I was coming to t
hink of as Void standard black.
“How can I help you?” She didn’t spare me a glance.
“New hire. Vice-Admiral-Kaska says to start training now. Her previous records should be in the system already.” He passed something to her. A data stick. “Information on how she’s spent the last few months, along with details on a recent head injury. You might have to adjust the training schedule for that.”
I was seething. The bastard had put together a file on me? I shouldn’t have been surprised but it just hadn’t crossed my mind. For two seconds, I debated the virtues of headbutting the son of a bitch.
The clerk took the stick but sent him a questioning look. “Head injury? Any notable side effects?”
“Minor memory loss. Can’t remember about a week back. A little more.”
She pursed her lips. “That will complicate things. Give me a second.”
The woman disappeared through a door behind her desk and returned a few minutes later with two soldiers. Again, each had one silver hand. It was then that I noticed the woman didn’t. All human, like me. Interesting.
“We’ll take it from here, Jax. She’s in the system as starting training.”
“Thanks.” Once the two men each had an arm, he nodded and left without a backward glance.
I was on my own.
The clerk finally addressed me. “From now on you’ll answer to Eva or trainee. Void operatives don’t have ranks. Cursory tests will be done to make sure you’re cleared to skip basic training, as well as aptitude tests. First, you’ll go through initial intake—a search for contraband, getting cleaned up, and a full medical scan.”
She stepped back and motioned us through the door.
The two soldiers took me through it and down another hallway. We stopped in front of a small hatch built into the wall and one of the soldiers moved behind me to unlock the cuffs. The other raised his weapon and pointed it at my chest.
“Strip. Throw the clothes down the chute.”
It was cold and clinical, no leering. During my service with the Empire, I’d been through the process enough times that it didn’t bother me anyway. I did as I was told and opened the hatch to shed the first skin of Alyss Cortez.
17
“Sit.” The Void operative to my right pointed at a medical bed in the small bay they’d ushered me into.
I did, casually scanning my surroundings for anything that could be used as a weapon. Not now, but if they left things out as a habit, I might be able to use it later. The search had been less than dignified with the two soldiers watching my every move. Clinical or not, I preferred not to repeat the process.
While I waited for whatever came next, I reflected on everything about the facility and the people within. So far, the only three who didn’t appear to be Void were Kaska, the military clerk, and the technician who searched me. A small detail, but it told me that the facility kept a staff of regular, 100% human grade employees.
Another one of them walked in then, a man in a white lab coat. He held a data pad in one hand and the other was hooked into his pocket as he walked over. The doctor’s smile was friendly, but I hadn’t missed the stun baton at his hip.
“Hello, Eva. I’m Dr. Parker. I’ve been looking over your file. Had a rough few months, from the looks of things. Broken ribs, gunshot wound, knife injuries. Most recently you had a mild concussion and a healthy dose of benzodiazepines. Correct?”
I didn’t think not answering the doc would be a good use of my defiance, so I answered. “Yes, sir.”
“Hmm.” He looked down at the pad. “And you’re having recall issues?”
I nodded. “Going back a week at least.”
“Any problems with that since you woke up?”
“None.”
“All right. The length of time you’re missing is a little worrisome, but not unheard of. Is there any chance you consumed alcohol around the time those were administered?”
Administered, like I’d gone to the godsdamned doctor for a shot or something. My retort died on my lips though because another image flashed into my mind. A bar, Farah and Mack, pink drinks. I shook my head. “Not that I’m aware.”
He hefted a wistful sigh and nodded at the soldiers. They pulled me to my feet and held me there while Dr. Parker pulled the baton and jammed it into my thigh. White hot pain radiated out from the spot and my leg locked up. If not for the soldiers holding me up, I would have collapsed.
“Sorry about that, Eva. One thing I should have made clear is that we don’t tolerate lying here. You had a thought just now. What was it? Before you answer, keep in mind that the baton was on the lowest setting.”
By whose standards?
“A short memory. Drinking, but I don’t know when,” I said. It took some effort not to let my voice wobble, but I pulled it off. Mostly.
Dr. Parker motioned for the soldiers to set me down again. “That’s better. Other than that, your altercation with the operative Jax was your last fight according to my data.” Again, I nodded. “Good. Overall, mild injuries. I guess that’s a hazard of the job though. I’ll need to run some tests to make sure there isn’t anything else going on besides the memory loss.”
The scan didn’t reveal anything that worried him, and I was cleared to begin training. I was given a set of black fatigues and deposited into a room the size of the cell on Jax’s ship. It contained one desk and one chair. A holo monitor sat on the table, a vid already queued up. The chair had built-in shackles for the wrists and ankles. One of the operatives directed me to take the seat and locked the restraints into place.
“Don’t look away or fall asleep. You have to use the facilities, signal.”
With that, they left me alone to watch the display.
The vid was propaganda. The priorities of a Void operative. Rules that mirrored those I’d followed since beginning academy. I wasn’t at all surprised to see the same mantra drilled into my brain. A Void operative had no family, no friends. Their only purpose was the mission.
Tell me about it, I thought. Jax was proof enough of that.
I’d watched the video three times and had started a fourth when the soldiers came back.
“That’s enough for tonight. Because of your status, you get a cell instead of going to the barracks.”
It didn’t hit me until that moment just how out of practice I was with military procedure. My first instinct was to respond with a snarky comment about the accommodations, which no doubt would have ended badly for me.
Biting back a response, I let them lead me to the brig.
Later, after consuming a ration worthy of dinners I’d received during my stint in solitary, I lay on my thin cot and stared at the ceiling. The day had been deceptively easy. I wasn’t sure if that was to make new recruits think the rest would be easy or if they just got the easy stuff out of the way first.
I also wondered what role Dr. Parker was going to play in it all. His initial cheerfulness hadn’t fooled me, and I wasn’t sure it was supposed to. The man had looked downright gleeful when he got to use the stun baton. I had a feeling he would be more involved as my training progressed and it wouldn’t be a fun time.
Real training began the next day after less than four hours of rack time, according to the display monitor I passed when they brought me in.
Two new soldiers, both Void members, took me to the same room as before. The same monitor sat on the table and I wondered if their form of torture included watching the same terrible video over and over. After I sat, one of the soldiers secured my ankles but not my wrists.
“Testing day,” he said shortly. “Answer the questions. Don’t fuck off or take too long on a single thing.”
“Got it.” Since I didn’t get reprimanded for failing to address him correctly, I figured the Void creed about no ranks was responsible.
For the next few hours I answered question after question, solved puzzles, and ran through basic sims. None of the tests gave any indication of my score, nor would I have known what they mea
nt anyway. The ordeal reminded me of the academy and all the help Farah had given me back then. I didn’t dwell on that for too long. Thinking about my friend would create more emotional baggage than I could handle for now.
Next were the physical tests, during which the two operatives never left, my constant wardens. They didn’t even have the decency to look bored with babysitting duty. I was their mission that day. Who knows, maybe they liked that kind of thing.
It started with running in a small space reminiscent of a training room. Equipment was crammed inside, some of it sticking out at odd angles so they fit. A technician with two flesh-colored arms prepared me without speaking. Some kind of mask went over my mouth, sticky pads were placed on my skin, and a monitor was strapped to my chest.
“Don’t touch any of the equipment,” the tech ordered. “Begin.”
The running machine started off slow, increasing every few seconds until I was at a full-on sprint. I was in pretty good shape, so at first it was just a regular workout for me. The technician tapped notes into his data pad.
At five kilometers, he made a change. The mask didn’t make a noise, but the amount of breath I could take in decreased exponentially. I shot a glance at the tech to make sure it wasn’t malfunctioning.
“Keep that pace as long as you can,” he instructed.
I did, but soon it didn’t matter how much I gasped for air—none was coming in. Not enough for me to keep the same pace I’d been doing at any rate. I stumbled, but the running machine didn’t slow. I tried to signal the tech, but he ignored me.
My situation got more dire over the next handful of seconds. I jumped off the machine, accidentally yanking some of the sticky pads off. The technician shouted something, but I couldn’t hear over my internal panic. The mask had to come off or I was going to pass out.