by Leslie Chase
She leaned against the wall, trying to look smug, but even after years apart Amanda knew her sister too well to be fooled. Hannah was hurt, exhausted, and half-starved. She was leaning against the wall for support. Taking her crawling back into the cave of the demon tigers suddenly didn't seem like a good idea.
"You can't do this," Amanda said. "I can't take you back into danger, not in your condition. Listen to your doctor."
Hannah shook her head. "I'm fine, sis. And you need the backup."
"What I need is to know you're safe," she said, but she knew that wasn't going to work. Taking a deep breath, she tried again, looking for an answer Hannah would accept. "Anyway, you need to do something more important, okay? I'm going after Markath, but if you can get to the Golden Kite and speak to Captain Harshaw, you can try and get to safety and let the other dragons know what's happening."
"And what good will that do?" Hannah asked. "It'll take too long to get to Marsport and back, even if he listens to me. We already went over that."
"Yes, but someone has to get the word out in case I don't rescue Markath," Amanda insisted. "I can grab food for a few days, I've got medical supplies. If I reach him we can hold out in there for until help comes — but right now, help isn't coming."
It wasn't entirely fair, or even a good plan, Amanda knew. The odds were against it, but it was better than Hannah trying to drag herself back into the hunting ground in her condition. Reluctantly, Hannah nodded.
"It's a stupid plan, but okay," she said. "I don't want to slow you down, and you never know. Maybe I can do some good."
She hugged Amanda then looked her in the eyes. "Don't you go getting yourself killed after sending me away, though. I'll never forgive you."
Amanda felt herself tearing up, and hugged her sister back. "I promise I'll do my best to stay safe."
With that, they cautiously pushed open the door. The Outrider's corridor was dark, the power still out to most of the skyship, and Amanda didn't dare use her flashlight where someone might see.
Hopefully everyone's still confined to the sick bay, she thought as she and Hannah headed off in different directions. Hannah towards the ship's prow, and Amanda towards the aft and the cave.
She hoped that the explosives she had slung over her shoulder would be enough to clear the passage. Neither she nor Hannah had any experience with this kind of thing, but it would have to do.
And Markath had better be okay, she thought. The anger at the idea of him being hurt was useful, it drove down her fear. Normally her terror would have paralyzed her, but with Markath's life on the line she couldn't let that happen. She had to be strong enough to reach him, there was no other option. If she didn't save her mate, no one else would.
The metal decking creaked and shifted under her as she made her way towards the front of the ship. That was where the exit Amanda knew about was, but it was also where the humans would be, so she moved as quietly as possible. Her heart sounded so loud in her ears that she worried that the men might hear it too.
She heard them first though, or at least Dieter. His voice came from the ship's bridge, muffled by the door but recognizable, and she strained to hear his words.
"—contacted you as soon as we could repair the radio," he said. "We're ready to assist when you arrive, Captain Rivers. This place is amazing."
The next voice to speak crackled with static, showing that the repairs weren't perfect. Even so, the cold hardness of that voice was chilling, and Amanda froze at the sound of it. "It had better be. We're taking a big chance, sneaking this out from under the alien's noses, and if it's not worth the risk I wouldn't want to have to explain that to the board. Turning my ship back for you isn't cheap or easy."
She remembered that name, and that voice. Rivers, the same man who'd turned down her offer to help when she'd lost contact with Hannah. It sounded as though she'd been right, and he'd had no intention of sending a rescue team after all — not until he'd heard how valuable the site was. Now he'll take everything he can make a profit from, but saving lives? Not his priority. Amanda fumed.
"I understand," Dieter said, and Amanda heard fear in his voice. Dieter wasn't any more comforted by Captain Rivers than she was, it seemed. "But you'll see when you get here. There's a whole city down there, it'll have everything we could need to understand the alien technology without having to deal with them ourselves."
Rivers made an unconvinced noise but moved on. "No complications to worry about?"
"A minor one," Dieter said, almost calm enough to be believable. "Nothing we can't handle, but an alien arrived to help us after our accident. It's under control, though."
Rivers swore. "Idiot. He'll be missed, you realize? We have to do things quickly before anyone comes looking for him. I take it he won't be around to tell his superiors what happened to him?"
"He's not going to be talking," Dieter assured him. "And everyone else is contained. Captain, there's no need to worry, I have it under control."
Amanda's heart thumped at that. No you don't, she wanted to shout from outside the door, but she kept her mouth firmly shut. This was not the time to draw attention to herself.
"I'm glad to hear it," Rivers said, contempt clear in his voice. "I'll be arriving to take charge of the situation in twenty-seven minutes. Be sure you're ready to move then. We'll want to clear out that cave as quickly as we can."
"Uh, yes sir," Dieter said. There was an unaccustomed note of hesitation in his voice before he continued. "What about my people? Some of them are badly injured, and others ... I can't be certain they'll keep their mouths shut about this deal."
The icy silence stretched for a second, and then Rivers spoke. "It is a shame that so many of your people died in the accident, Mr. Dieter. But the reliable survivors will be well compensated for their silence on this entire incident. If you're squeamish about making arrangements, simply have a list ready for me when I arrive. My men will see to it."
Before Dieter could respond, the static broke off. Rivers had shut down the connection.
Amanda swallowed, shocked at the callousness of it. She shouldn't be surprised, she supposed, given the amount of money this deal was worth. But still, murdering any witnesses who weren't willing to keep silent about it seemed like a step too far. She'd thought better of Dieter, even now.
I guess I gave him too much credit, she thought, trying to get herself under control again. I've got to get to Markath quickly, before those bastards arrive and kill everyone.
Captain Rivers sounded competent, dangerous, and like the last person she wanted to meet. And now she only had half an hour before he arrived.
She was about to move on when she heard Jim's voice. "Does that mean we should open the cave again, boss?"
"No, you idiot," Dieter shot back, and Amanda sighed with relief. The last thing she needed was for someone to go fetch mining tools from the supplies room and find her and Hannah missing. "We can't risk letting those monsters out, not until Rivers is here with his squad. They're armed to deal with that kind of shit, and we're not."
"But what if they find that damned dragon alive on the other side of the rocks?" Jim protested. "I don't think Captain Rivers will be too pleased with that."
"Better he has to finish the job than he arrives to find us eaten by those tiger creatures, right?" Dieter sounded exasperated as he explained himself. "I'll take a reduced payout over it all going to my next of kin. Now let's go double check that the landing field's clear. If Rivers damages his ship landing, we'll be blamed for it."
That was Amanda's signal to move on, and she quickly crept to the exit hatch. The jump down to the rocky floor below looked like a long way, but on Mars with its low gravity it wasn't as scary as all that. I guess I'm getting used to this planet, she thought as she dropped down. Maybe I'll even miss it if I leave.
When I leave, I mean, she quickly corrected herself.
Hitting the cave floor, she ran as fast as she could for the back of the cave. Behind her, flashlights came on,
lighting the cave in cold white light. Amanda ducked behind a rock as the lights played across the ground behind her, and prayed that she hadn't been seen. A quick peek back showed her Dieter and Jim trudging out of the cave mouth, oblivious to her presence. They walked towards the Golden Kite, lying at anchor just beyond.
Amanda couldn't see Hannah, and wondered if she'd made it across to the other skyship already. If she hadn't, hopefully she'd stay out of sight, but there wasn't much time for her to reach Harshaw and make her plea to him. Amanda wished she could tell her what she'd overheard, tell her to hurry.
I can't do anything about that now, she told herself. I've just got to focus on my bit of the plan and hope that Hannah can handle hers, or at least stay out of the way. With that, she turned her back on the outside world and made her way deeper into the caves. By now she knew the way to the collapsed tunnel all too well.
Lights had been set up there, casting the cave in a stark glare that would make any kind of stealth impossible. And as Amanda approached she noticed someone was sitting in the shadow between the lights, attention on the fallen rocks. Whoever it was, they wore one of the expedition spacesuits, and held a tablet computer to hand.
Amanda froze, looking at the figure. It had to be a sentry, left to watch for signs of Markath trying to break through. Of course they'd have left someone, they wouldn't trust their fresh rockfall to keep a dragon warrior from breaking through. With a little warning, Jim and his gun could be back there in time to meet Markath if he dug his way through.
I should have thought of this, she snarled at herself, wondering how to get past the sentry without him sounding an alarm. Of course it couldn't be easy.
Taking a deep breath, she considered her options. Hitting the sentry over the back of the head would work in a movie, but she knew better than to expect that to knock someone out safely. She'd be more likely to either kill him or piss him off, and she didn't want to do either.
She did have options, though. As quietly as she could, Amanda looked through her medical kit. There. A sedative injection that should put someone to sleep. It wasn't safe, but it was a lot better than smacking someone with a rock and hoping they woke up again.
The biggest downside was that it wouldn't be instant. Maybe there were drugs that would knock someone out in a matter of seconds, but they weren't the kind of thing that she carried in her medkit. But it would relax his muscles quickly, and that would have to do. He'd be much less able to fight, at least. I'll just have to keep him away from the tablet until he goes down, Amanda thought, loading a syringe with the drug and creeping towards her target.
She chose her thickest needle, the one that was intended for injections through a spacesuit. It wouldn't be easy to punch through, but it gave her a chance. Her pulse raced and it was difficult to keep her hand steady as she made her way closer. She'd never done anything like this before, never even thought about it, but here she was creeping up on a guard to knock him out.
At last she was close enough to lunge forward, grabbing hold of the figure's shoulder to steady herself. The sentry spun, pulling away as Amanda swung the syringe, and the needle missed its mark. Hitting at an angle, the tip glanced harmlessly off his suit.
The light caught the man's face for the first time, and she recognized Yuri, Svetlana's brother. The two of them stared at each other in surprise for a moment, and then Amanda recovered. It didn't matter that this was one of her patients — she still had to get to Markath, and that meant going through him.
But Yuri's reflexes were too fast. Before Amanda could bring the syringe up again, Yuri's hand closed on her wrist and twisted. Desperately, Amanda clung to the syringe, grabbing at him with her free hand. She couldn't understand the words Yuri hissed at her, but the tone made it clear he was swearing.
Amanda felt like swearing too, desperately trying to regain control of the situation. At least Yuri had dropped the tablet in the first moments of their confrontation, and wasn't shouting for help. But that wouldn't last, and Amanda knew she had to win quickly or not at all. If he attracted any attention from the rest of the crew her only chance would be gone.
Putting all her weight behind her arm she pushed hard. Yuri was taller, stronger, but he was also injured, and as he tried to push back his legs gave way, sending him tumbling to the floor.
Instantly, Amanda grabbed for him. Instinct took over and she held the other man up, keeping her from hitting his head against the stone floor. The two of them ended up in an undignified heap, wrestling for control of the syringe, rolling on the rocks.
With a heave, Amanda managed to trap Yuri under her, and pressed the needle closer to his chest. But Yuri had both hands on her wrist now and, as Amanda pushed down, he twisted. The needle struck rock inches from Yuri's neck, and the impact jarred it from Amanda's hand.
"What the devil are you doing?" Yuri hissed, glaring at her. "Have you gone mad, Doctor?"
Amanda scrabbled for the syringe, then paused with it poised to strike. She had Yuri pinned now, helpless. At her mercy. But she wasn't sure she could go through with it. Not while she was looking into Yuri's eyes. Do I have to do this?
Part of her screamed yes. She wouldn't be safe leaving any of the scavengers conscious behind her. Another part, just as loud, said no. Amanda was a doctor, and using her skills to knock someone out, especially someone who had been her patient only hours ago, wasn't right.
With a sigh, she sat back and looked down at Yuri. "I'm not mad, just desperate. I have to get back in there," she said quietly. "I have to get Markath out."
Yuri grimaced, glaring up at Amanda. Still pinned, he didn't look happy about the situation but at least he'd stopped fighting. "He's dead, Doctor. Those damned creatures got him, like they almost got me. That's why Jim brought down the roof, remember?"
He spoke using the calm, quiet voice people used when trying to reason with a crazy person. Amanda looked into his eyes, seeing pity mixed with the anger now, and shook her head angrily.
"That's not true," she said. Yuri didn't respond, but Amanda could see how unconvinced he was. Narrowing her eyes, she tried again. "They told you the same thing about Hannah, didn't they? Dieter and Jim love to seal people on the other side of this tunnel and tell you that they're dead."
That did get a response, a flash of doubt in Yuri's eyes. Frowning, the Russian glanced towards the fallen rocks, and then looked back at Amanda. "We were being chased by the creatures when they brought down the rocks the first time. They'd killed some of us, injured others."
He winced at the memory, and Amanda thought about his strange wounds, the cuts that had gone through his suit and into his flesh. Now that she'd seen the demon tigers, she knew exactly what had caused that and it wasn't a rockfall.
"But they told you Hannah must be dead," Amanda insisted, "and you know they were wrong about that, don't you? This is the same, only worse — they want Markath dead so that he won't interfere with their plan to smuggle the technology back to Earth. I can understand that, there's more money to be had, but leaving him in there is still murder. Do you want to be part of that?"
Yuri seemed to weigh that idea, and Amanda could see it taking root. Taking a deep breath and hoping she was making the right choice, she released Yuri and stood up.
"I don't want to fight you," she said earnestly. "None of us should be fighting, but Dieter has decided he wants it all. And, honestly, I don't care that much about him smuggling the stuff here off-world. What I won't stand for is him killing Markath to do it, and he's killed others to get this far. He almost killed you, and nearly killed Svetlana too."
That hit a nerve with Yuri, who froze half-way into getting up. The Russian's lips tightened with anger, and he swore quietly.
"The demon tigers are dangerous," Amanda pressed on, pushing her advantage. "But they aren't that dangerous. Markath fought off a pack of them to save me; he'll be alive and waiting on the other side of that rockfall, Yuri, and I have to go back for him."
Slowly, unwillingly, Y
uri nodded. "You are not crazy," he said eventually, almost to himself. "When they carried you and Hannah back inside, I thought it was strange that she was alive. You are right, they have been lying to me, to us all. But what will you do, if you do find Markath?"
"I don't know," Amanda admitted. "But your boss's friends are coming, they'll be here any time now, and they'll want to clean up this mess. They can't let Markath live, so I have to warn him, if nothing else."
Yuri made an unconvinced noise. Amanda swallowed nervously, shaking her head. "Look, it's not just us. Captain Rivers is going to kill everyone who won't keep their mouths shut about this mess. Dieter doesn't trust you all, and I heard them talk about it."
"Rivers?" Yuri swore in Russian, looking out towards the cave exit as though he was afraid the man would already be there. "He's coming personally? That is... not good. Yes, he is the kind who would kill anyone to stop this getting back to the aliens."
He grabbed at Amanda, too fast to stop as he held her by the arms. The look on his face was intense. "And Svetlana, bless my sister, she is not good at keeping her mouth shut. Especially after being blown up. If they are going to purge us, she will be amongst the first."
Amanda breathed a ragged sigh, halfway between relief and despair. The situation kept looking worse, but at least Yuri believed her. And with his sister's life on the line, maybe he'd even help.
"Look, no one's going to stop this apart from Markath," Amanda said. "So I have to get to him. Unless you think you can get Jim's gun away from him and hold off Rivers yourself?"
"Ha, no," Yuri's laugh was mirthless. "I wouldn't stand a chance against Jim, let alone Rivers and his men. You are right, Doctor. Or you are lying about all this, I suppose. I think that I believe you, though."
He let go of Amanda and looked at her stolen supplies, shaking his head in what looked like a mixture of horror and admiration. Picking up the box of explosives, he whistled nervously and then straightened up. "I suppose the worst that can happen if I help you is that you get eaten by the monsters," he said. "Serves you right, if this is all some kind of trick. Come, I will help you get through."