by Lea Linnett
Then the view disappeared, whizzing into a blur as Helik floored it.
40
She thought they were safe as they passed over the riot, flying high above the camp of reporters who made a ring around the fighting, some with their cameras now trained up at their transport. She thought they’d left behind the danger with the enforcers busy and the rebels contained.
But then something tapped sharply against her passenger window, and she yelped, spinning around to find a drone keeping pace with their vehicle, knocking into the glass like a bug on a lightstrip. She shied away from it, trying to cover her face from the camera soldered onto its frame, but she knew it was futile. She’d looked right at it.
“Are you all right?” Helik asked, fighting to keep his eyes on the lane.
Ellie ducked as the drone slammed into the window again, harder this time. “I-I’m fine, it’s just—”
“Fucking reporters,” Helik seethed, accelerating slightly to try and lose the relentless machine.
“How do we get rid of it?” She turned to look out the back window, and gasped. She could barely see Scott’s vehicle due to the small cloud of drones now trailing between them. “What if they follow us to the harbor?”
Helik growled with frustration, his eyes on the lane as they sped through the Senekkar. The whir of a motor sounded from outside, and Ellie watched with wide eyes as Scott’s transport hurtled past, trying to shake off his own swarm of drones. He wasn’t successful, and she saw him flit down a side lane between two skyscrapers, trailing his pursuers behind.
“Strap in,” Helik ordered. “Scott has the right idea.”
Ellie nodded, but leaned over to press a quick kiss to the levekk’s shoulder before she clicked the buckle of her seatbelt in. Despite the danger, she felt her heart flutter when the levekk smiled at her.
“We can do this,” she said, partly to convince herself.
Helik gave her a long look, his eyes softening. “With you here, I feel like I can do anything,” he admitted, and the flutter turned into full-on butterflies, her cheeks reddening.
“That was so corny.”
“‘Corny’?” he asked with a frown, and it took Ellie a moment to realize the Yumin Tok word wasn’t familiar to him.
“It just sounded…” Ellie faltered. “Kind of silly and sweet all at once?”
Helik grinned. “How about, ‘You’re the fire that melts the ice around my soul’?”
“Oh my god.”
“Or ‘the sun that chases away my fears’?”
“Helik.”
“Or I could serenade you on a public broadcast again, I suppose.”
“Stop it!” she hissed through a flustered grin. “Don’t say things like that, or I’ll end up kissing you right here, no matter who’s watching.”
He glanced at her, his gaze turned serious. “I don’t care who’s watching,” he murmured, and Ellie’s heart skipped. For a moment, the whir of the engine and the buzz of drones behind them fell away, and she thought she might never have been happier.
But then the light from the dome glinted off a camera that had pulled abreast of them, and Ellie knew she had to focus. The world outside was all too real. She ran a hand briefly over Helik’s forearm, wishing she could feel his scales beneath the jacket.
“We doing this, then?”
Helik nodded. “Let’s go.”
He abruptly slowed, swinging them down a side lane with enough force to make the entire transport lurch. Behind them, a large swathe of drones fell away, and Ellie gave a little cheer. But some still followed. Ellie felt her empty stomach roll as they cut a jagged path through the skyscrapers of the Senekkar. Helik wasn’t the greatest driver—he’d spent most of his life being driven, she was sure—but he stuck to the quieter routes, using the buildings for cover, and took them swiftly and safely through the city. The more they weaved, the more drones gave up the chase, until only a fraction remained lagging behind.
The city whizzed by Ellie’s window, a disconcerting blur of concrete and metal, until the jumble abruptly untangled, and the electric-blue edge of the Senekkar filled her vision. On the ground, she’d always thought the city center was massive, bustling with life and jam-packed with buildings. But twisting in her seat to look back through the window at it, it suddenly seemed like nothing more than an overgrown blip on the landscape.
They dipped down to a lower aerial lane, flying through the curtain without slowing, and for half a second, Ellie’s world was blue. The dome was thick, but not solid, and there was no gateway barring them from the outside world. At least, nothing physical.
The change was obvious as they skimmed the tops of buildings, flying out into the middle of an Earth winter. Far below them, Ellie saw that the figures walking the streets wore layers and layers of thick material rather than the thin garments that were popular under the dome. White snow dusted the ground, spread thickly over parked transports and low buildings as they passed over, climbing again. She felt the familiar cold in her bones despite the heat flooding the transport, and beside her, Helik shivered, his eyes widening as he looked around.
“I’ve never been out here in the cold season before,” he murmured, and Ellie squeezed his arm.
“You’re gonna love getting from the transport to the ship, then,” she teased, relieved to see him roll his eyes, a small smile cutting through the tense expression he’d worn whilst flying through the tangle of buildings.
A few drones still followed them as they passed over the Inner Districts, but Ellie barely noticed them now. She looked out over the city with undisguised awe. Even after her time in the Senekkar, the Inner Districts looked plenty enough like city to her. The buildings may have been shorter, but they were just as densely packed, and the aerial lanes around them and the streets below all bustled with a similar intensity. The expanse was a riot of twinkling lights, spreading out below them like stars in the wintry night. It was a far cry from the rural look of Manufacturing, and she quailed at the sight of it.
The Districts passed quickly as they sailed over them, and when she finally looked toward their destination, her jaw dropped. The New Chicago Space Harbor towered in the distance, its outline clear even in the darkness and reaching higher into the sky than even the tallest Senekkar building. It was wide, too, spreading out like a multi-layered mushroom to the north-west. Around it, she could see the blinking lights of ships coming and going, hovering around the monstrosity like the drones that trailed behind their own transport.
She’d always been able to see the space harbor from her home in Manufacturing, but back then it was a strange structure on the horizon, too far away to be really intimidating. From the air, with its tiered bulk growing closer and closer, the harbor was gargantuan, and Ellie felt a shiver run up her spine.
Beside her, Helik leaned over, placing a comforting hand on hers. “You okay?”
She nodded, her face turning pink. “Yeah, just… never seen the harbor this close before.” She glanced up at him. “Never been this close to leaving the planet before, either.”
Her conversation with Anna had brought home the reality of what they were doing, and Ellie had to bite down on her lip to stop it from trembling.
“I wish there was another way,” said Helik, watching her forlornly. “If I could take us to another Continent and still be safe, I would.”
“No, that’s not it,” Ellie said with a smile. “I’m nervous, but… I’m also excited.”
“Excited?”
Despite the fear, her eyes lit up. “You know me, I’ve been itching for adventure. Plus, my sister’s out there somewhere.” She looked down at her lap. “There’s nothing left for me here, really.”
Helik squeezed her hand, his eyes turning back to the lane ahead. “We’ll find her,” he promised, and then grinned. “We certainly won’t have much else to do out there.”
“How will you cope without fifty campaigns and events to work on at once?”
He gave her a sidelong look. “I
’ll find ways.”
She giggled, hiding her face in the window. It was easier to watch the scenery zoom past than to watch the stratosport approach.
But it moved steadily closer anyway, and Ellie almost jumped out of her skin when a voice filtered through the transport’s in-built comm. Helik stated their destination and followed the voice’s directions, allowing Ellie to heave a sigh of relief. The rebel riot must have distracted the enforcers enough that they hadn’t put out a warning yet. But they still had to move fast; the drones had peeled away, no doubt delivering their footage to their owners if they hadn’t already.
Ellie held her breath as they finally drew level with Bay 90, but she gasped in awe at the sight that awaited them.
The dock had two decks, the lower of the two opening up like a cavern as they hovered above. And parked on the lower level, with a small army of sub-species workers flitting around its belly like ants, was one of the largest ships Ellie had ever been within a mile of.
Her eyes bugged as she took in the overlarge transport. The lower bulk was windowless and stout, its wide rear entrance-ramp slowly folding up to sit flush against the body of the ship as Ellie stared. Above that were three rows of windows, with the curved glass of the flight deck on the top floor just visible from this angle. The rest of the ship was all blunt edges and dulled chrome that refracted the light of the floodlights above, and Ellie caught herself standing there with her mouth open.
“It’s huge,” she whispered, almost to herself. Beside her, Helik chuckled.
“That’s actually pretty small by freight standards,” he said. “My family never did more than dip their claws into the business.”
She nodded, still staring at it with fascination as Helik lowered them to the upper platform. There was a complicated mess of metal structures connecting their platform with a door on the top deck of the ship, with even more struts and staircases leading down to the dock, where the crew guided machines and hoses around the ship’s base.
They slipped from their transport, and Ellie tried not to look at the dents and scratches now littering the paintwork, courtesy of the drones that had followed them. They moved to the edge of the platform together, Helik leaning easily against the small railing that separated them from a drop that was too big for Ellie to measure. She sidled up to him cautiously, but forced herself to lean against the railing beside him, even if she kept a steadying hand on Helik’s arm while she did so. A cicarian far below them on the dock noticed them then, raising an arm in acknowledgment. Helik returned the gesture, and what followed was a series of jabbing hand gestures as the cicarian indicated that he wanted to speak to them aboard the ship.
Helik nodded, laughing a little. “Roia said he was direct,” he mused, looking down at Ellie. “Might be an interesting trip.”
Ellie smiled. She’d never seen Helik this relaxed before, despite the tension of their escape. It felt like he was radiating warmth, although she knew it was impossible for his species. She moved a little closer, pressing her cheek to his arm. She could get used to this Helik.
Their moment of peace was interrupted by the whir of an engine, and they turned to find Scott’s transport alighting behind them, looking even more scratched up than their own. Ellie’s smile widened with relief—they were okay!—but quickly fell when the occupants climbed out and she saw Anna in tears.
“Are you all right?” she asked, rushing forward. The girl clung to her in a fierce hug, heaving with sobs. Ellie looked at the others in horror. “What happened?”
Scott looked to the ground, the starter key for the transport clenched tightly in his fist. “We couldn’t stop. It was hard enough escaping the drones, and the enforcers know who she is…”
Devis looked on, sympathetic but firm. “The best option was to bring her with us. I’m sorry.”
Ellie’s heart sank, but there was nothing she could do other than hug the crying girl back as tightly as possible.
“You got away from the drones?” asked Helik, coming up behind.
“Just barely,” said Roia. She glanced at Scott. “He’s a surprisingly good driver.”
Scott grinned, rubbing his neck bashfully. “I try.”
“We should go,” Helik prompted. “Captain wants to see me, and I don’t want to risk the enforcers showing up.”
They all nodded and made their way towards the nearest metal walkway, Ellie still with her arm slung around Anna, who was leaving a wet smear on her shoulder now.
“It’ll be all right,” she said, trying to comfort her but not sure how. She’d left her family behind as well, but ultimately, it had been her choice. Anna didn’t have that luxury. “You’ll be safe with us.”
Anna nodded, sniffling, but was otherwise silent, and Ellie forced herself to focus on the narrow metal gangway that stretched out over the crevasse before them, wondering if it was as flimsy as it looked or if it would hold all of their weight with ease.
But they didn’t make it.
There was a click and a shout behind them, and the party whirled around to see a tiny group of sub-species now standing between them and the transports, the floodlights above glinting off their raised weapons. They were better outfitted than the mob that had descended on Devis’ apartment building, sporting black market handguns and stun guns already sizzling with electricity. And standing at the front was Cara, flanked by Taz and the dusky pink cicarian Ellie had seen at the rebel hideout—Deeno.
“Don’t move,” Cara barked, raising her weapon higher when Helik tried to step in front of Ellie and Anna. “You guys aren’t going anywhere.”
Ellie gaped. “Cara, what are you doing?”
The woman stepped closer. “Keeping you here.”
“Why?” said a murderous voice, and Ellie turned to see Scott glaring at the rebels, his face hard. “Wasn’t trying to blow us up enough for you?”
That got a reaction, but not from Cara. Behind her, Taz and Deeno shared a look, their expressions worried. “That wasn’t anything to do with us,” said Cara, giving them all a narrow look. “I don’t want to hurt you if I don’t have to.”
“Ha,” said Scott, his smile mirthless. “Weren’t you leading your little faction of Lodestars? How come they’re all back there”—he hiked a thumb over his shoulder at the Senekkar in the distance—“and you’re here?”
Taz was looking between Scott and Cara like she wanted to rush forward and punch him in the face for daring such a question, but her sister just shook her head. “We had a disagreement. I’m just here to keep you grounded until the enforcers come to arrest you.”
“You’re working with them?” Ellie asked, frowning.
But Cara’s expression darkened. “Never. I just don’t want these assholes getting away with this,” she snarled, gesturing at Devis and Helik.
Scott growled menacingly, but Ellie stepped in front of him. “But why? What have we done to you? Why can’t you just let us go?”
“Because you’re making life worse for us!” the Lodestar yelled, her gun lowering. “Letting you get away with this is like saying we don’t care that these… things brutalize us and treat us like servants! Why would you willingly be a part of that?”
“Because you’re wrong,” said Ellie. “They’re not so different from us, Cara. They’re just people. Some of them suck, sure, but some of them…” She turned, looking at Helik. “Some of them are so much more than that.”
“That doesn’t matter—”
“Fuck this.” That was Scott, throwing his hands up in the air and turning away. “I’m getting on that ship. I don’t have time for her.”
“Don’t move!” Taz shouted. “Move and I shoot!”
But the muzzle of her handgun was brushed aside by Cara, who was looking at them with a resigned expression.
“I don’t want to have to hurt you guys,” she said again, catching Ellie’s attention.
“What do you mean?”
She sighed. “Look, I’ll look after you—the humans, I mean. Even this
asshole,” she said, glaring at Scott. “I’ll have Taz and Deeno take you somewhere safe while we keep Kaan and the others grounded for the enforcers to find.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Scott said incredulously, his eyes widening.
“No,” Cara grit out. “I’m not even going to pretend that I understand whatever hold these fuckers have over you, but come on. You belong with us. All sub-species do. We need to stick together…”
“Cara…” Ellie shook her head, not quite believing what she was hearing.
“Come on, Ellie, I’m serious.” The Lodestar stepped forward again, her gun hanging harmlessly at her side. Taz and Deeno were watching her with shocked expressions, but Cara paid them no heed. “I’ll take you to see your guardian—Augusta, right?”
Ellie went still, the world slowing down around her. She did want to see Augusta; the memory of their final conversation hung like a dark cloud over her reunion with Helik. The woman had cared for her since she was a child, treating her like an actual daughter and teaching her how to make things. She could never repay Augusta for what she’d provided, and she missed her, no matter how angry she’d seemed over the comm.
A gentle hand touched her arm, and she looked up to find Helik standing beside her. She felt suspended, staring up into his eyes, which were hard with tension, but not as dagger-like as she’d once thought. They stared at each other in silence for a moment, and Ellie wanted nothing more than to lose herself in his embrace, feeling his strong breaths rise and fall beneath her ear as she laid her head on his chest, but her heart wavered.
She’d been without her family for so long…
Helik licked his lips—in a way that was so human—and said, “I could never force you to stay…”
Her heart sank a little, the words reminding her all too vividly of the moment she’d left his apartment, turning her back on him.
“…But I need you to know that my life would never be the same without you in it. And being free out there,” he gestured vaguely over his shoulder at the ship and the sky beyond it, “would mean nothing without you by my side.”