Lunara: The Original Trilogy
Page 76
"No, wait," Chloe said, her hands fighting to gain freedom, but her will surrendered. She knew this was the only way.
"No more," Shannon said firmly. "Remember this is for Alexandria. I’m scared, too. I think of Adol."
Chloe nodded. She stopped squirming. "You’ll have to push me."
Shannon didn’t hesitate. She grabbed Chloe by the hips, pushed her over the edge of the balcony…
And…
When Chloe opened her eyes, Trivium Port’s loading dock number four was under her feet, the wind flowed through her hair, and the sun set directly into her face. The trolley zipped along the line.
Desperate for it to stop, she pulled, pushed, and jostled the trolley, but it was no use. She couldn’t stop until the line ended. She was halfway down to the surface, racing faster and faster toward the solid ending of the cliff wall on the ground. Her feet dangled, her toes pointing downward. They were of no use. She had to get her hands free to drop and roll to a stop at the end. Shannon correctly strapped her into the trolley to start, but she hadn’t thought of the landing.
Her hands tingled as they started to go numb, dulling the pain of the straps chafing her skin. She peeked in front of her. The wall approached faster as each meter slipped past.
Hysterically, almost mentally unstable, Chloe searched for a way to get free before the abrupt ending.
The wind, cold and swirling, slung her around in a circle. She used the momentum to wiggle her left wrist. The straps loosened on that side.
"Jinx, Shannon did a good job," she muttered.
Frantic, she yanked her wrist through the loosening hole and freed it from the handle. Her glove ripped from her hand, and with nothing to support it, the nylon strap fluttered away down to the surface below.
Hanging by her right arm, she swung round, trying to grab the strap on her other hand. She missed. A thousand pins and needles pained her right hand. Her full weight had cut off the blood flow completely. She tingled so much, she couldn’t tell if the strap was tightening or loosening.
As she clawed and thrashed with her left hand, the nylon strap remained tight against the other. She grabbed the left handle to alleviate the tingling in her other hand.
The trolley continued toward the cliff, which was only a hundred meters away. Desperation drove her. She pulled up on the trolley, doing a chin-up and lifting her body away from the ground. She groaned as the muscles in her arms burned like lava injecting into her. It was working, though; the strap loosened as her weight lifted and began to lessen the pull on it. Not a moment too soon, she freed her hand with a tug and let go with the other.
She hit the ground at great speed. Fortunately, her movement was mostly lateral, and the impact with the ground wasn’t stiff. She curled her body into a ball and rolled several times before coming to a stop in the surprisingly soft ground.
Shannon tumbled in front of her, stopping to her side and spraying dirt and sand into her face. Chloe slammed her eyes shut and absorbed the small pebbles pelting her. It was over.
She checked herself for injury and shook the sand out of her hair. Shannon nodded toward her.
Chloe grabbed Shannon by the arm and pulled her hard. "You could’ve killed me. I barely got my hands out."
"Hands out?" Shannon said. "Why didn’t you press the release buttons?"
"What release buttons?"
"On either side, press them both simultaneously and the trolley releases the hand grips. See."
Chloe saw what she meant. In Shannon’s hand were the remains of her hand grips. She groaned.
Then her ears perked up as a distant whistle sounded. She felt chagrined, but more pressing than her dissatisfaction with Shannon was the sound of an approaching siren. She would have to be mad at Shannon later.
This isn’t over yet.
"They’ve found us already!" Shannon cried, running away from the siren and pulling on Chloe’s hand.
Chloe followed closely behind. She was running faster than she had ever run before, trying to keep up with Shannon. She was falling behind…
The landing pad was farther away than she wanted. She drove her legs harder. Shannon was way ahead of her now. She wouldn’t leave me, would she?
But it turned out to be lucky she trailed Shannon Buckley, because out of nowhere, as Shannon rounded a small transport vessel, Shannon was blindsided and took a slashing blow across the arm from a metal rod. She fell across the concrete pad.
The wound Shannon sustained made Chloe guarded and pensive. She took several small steps to Shannon while keeping a watchful eye on Shannon’s big, brutal attacker.
Chapter 12
The computer beeped, startling her concentration.
"Cycle 202, Degrees 28.56," Gwen said. "The seven hundred and fifty-third day of MSA rule on the planet of Mars and the seven hundred and thirty-fifth day since my father was assassinated."
The haunting image of her father’s assassination stirred in her mind. The rage from that day remained fresh, and if she closed her eyes long enough, she could still hear the cries of the crowd and feel—as her father’s head rested on her shoulder—his blood seeping deep into her clothes, soaking her chest and staining her skin. The coppery smell of blood still sickened her.
But the single motionless image of her father’s defeated face dominated the memory of that day. She saw the disappointment draw across it, having not been able to take Mars to its full glory himself and leaving before his task was complete. Still, his eyes held hope…for her leadership of Mars and more importantly, for her potential.
"Computer, begin event log," Gwen said, and then paused for a long moment. "There hasn’t been much happening within the MSA until recently and not by our own volition. The Alliance has been stirring up trouble around Jupiter. However, we extinguished the problem, but the threat of the Alliance remains."
My lady, the computer voice replied. How can the problem be eliminated and remain simultaneously? Your logic is flawed.
Gwen smirked. Leave it to the computer to nitpick over semantics. Clearly, the programmers of the historical event log didn’t like ambiguities. "Because we eliminated their advantage by destroying the Alliance’s vagabond base within the asteroid belt, whereby we eliminated their haven within the immediate area and eliminated any hope they had against our fleet."
Destroying the asteroid base alleviated the threat of the Alliance around Jupiter?
"And, Mr. Computer…I have also increased security patrols around the Jupiter stations, much to the objection of the officers assigned, but deep-space security has become an all-too-real issue. There won’t be any more disruptions to the supply lines. I can assure you."
After so much trouble by the Alliance, you can guarantee the safety of the supply lines.
"So much trouble," Gwen replied firmly, harsher than she wanted to, but nonetheless, she was annoyed. "The Alliance has been tamed, and this small issue with Jupiter is hardly a lot of trouble. Additionally, I will have the Alliance exterminated by the end of the year, and people will forget what happened. Soon, the remnant fleet of the Alliance will be found and destroyed.
The leaders within the Alliance will certainly continue their efforts on Mars and elsewhere in the solar system.
"The leadership of the Alliance will no longer be shielded by the laws of the MSA. Even with a peace treaty, I won’t allow these rebels to undermine my government. It is a direct attack against us."
Am I to understand the laws of the MSA do not apply to everyone?
"You understand correctly. The laws apply to MSA citizens, according to the peace treaty, and not t
o the people who wish us harm, such as Nathan Terry, Eamonn Dalton, Sarah McCloud, and…Parker McCloud." She swallowed Parker’s name. The crew still meant something to her, at least the idea of it.
They hated her. Eamonn could die at any time, and she wouldn’t care beyond the moment of glee when she found out. Chloe’s friendship, an enigma to her emotions, seemed less real with the distance time created between them. Parker was still a friend to her, at least she hoped so. Hopefully, his involvement with the Alliance was a matter of his ideas about Mars and dedication to Sarah more than a hatred for her. Still, his role in the Alliance distanced them. He was her enemy. And there were also Roche and Jan, who had both died fighting against her cause.
A fury formed in her eyes. "They’ll be brought to justice."
How will you accomplish this task?
"Too nosy again," Gwen said. "I won’t discuss my future plans with you. Fiction clouds history. I’ll only provide the facts for the archive."
My apologies. I am trying to understand.
The mechanical voice of the computer tried to soothe her, but she saw right through its psychological ploys. "You just need to know that Vice Chancellor Samantha Burns is hunting for the Alliance leaders."
Her terminal chimed. An incoming transmission signal flashed across the screen.
"And that is Samantha Burns now," Gwen said. "Computer, close the recording and save this session to the archives."
Recording complete. Should I schedule another appointment in one month’s time?
"Negative," Gwen said, switching off the event log interface and calling up the CommUn program. Samantha’s face appeared on the screen. "Samantha, how goes our plan?"
"Everything is on schedule," Samantha replied. Her hair was pulled back, her uniform straightened, and her face tight. She was more composed than she had been on their last meeting.
Gwen recalled when Samantha arrived from Lunara. She was enraged with the Lunaran staff’s failure to capture Eamonn Dalton, even with her plan in place. Only their ineptness stood in the way of capturing Eamonn, and Samantha hadn’t forgiven any of them. She punished them severely, demoting Morothe from command and extending officers’ service assignments on the distant colony. Mistakes weren’t tolerated in the MSA.
Finally, adding to her irritation, air command had lost the Protector’s ion trail within the atmosphere. At the time, Samantha had used the best of her diplomatic abilities to keep her anger hidden from Gwen. But Gwen knew her friend too well for her to hide the sourness on her face. It was unmistakable.
Gwen smiled. "Glad to hear. You weren’t in a good mood when you arrived."
"Failure within the MSA does that, and it is exactly why I’m personally overseeing the final stages of the extermination of the Alliance. We won’t manage this problem from afar for any longer. This issue needs to be resolved."
"And did Seth agree to help you?"
"I explained the need for Chloe to return to Hans Bauer." Samantha paused. Gwen didn’t reply. She was waiting for Samantha to finish the thought that was at the forefront of her mind.
"Your insistence on this issue was left out," Samantha continued. "He won’t find out about your command to capture the girl."
"Thank you," Gwen said. "Our time with her is running out."
Samantha smiled wryly. "Don’t you mean her time with us?"
Gwen didn’t smile back, letting Samantha know that finding Chloe was serious and a top priority to her. Samantha never liked the preferential treatment given to Chloe. She argued Chloe was the rightful property of the MSA because of her infractions against the MSA at the beginning of the war. Samantha claimed Chloe was piloting the Protector when it destroyed the Megacruiser. No evidence existed to substantiate the accusation, and the wartime courts dropped the matter. Something Gwen was happy to agree with, but it left Samantha with a loose end.
"I need her alive. It is critical Hans Bauer has a chance to examine her," Gwen said.
Samantha shrugged. "She is only his lover of the past. He is in your bed."
"But only as a service to her. I want him to come willingly." Gwen shifted in her seat. "Where are you headed?"
"Phobos," Samantha said. "I received a report of a stolen shuttle, and we are going to investigate."
Gwen sat back, fingering the top of her chin. "The orbital scanners are located on Phobos. I want you to use the scanners there to find the Alliance bases on Mars."
"Our intelligence team has been searching for months without success."
"But you haven’t been with them," Gwen said. "I want you to do it. I don’t want it just done."
"Very well," Samantha replied. "We’ll return to Zephyria when we are finished here."
"I want Chloe Jones with you before you return," Gwen said. "There is no time to waste. Until you return, I’ll attend to your duties."
Samantha’s eyes hardened, and her jaw locked. After a few seconds, she eased her muscles back to level. "I understand."
"You seem agitated."
Samantha bit her lip and then spoke: "We wouldn’t be in this predicament if you had executed the McClouds when they were found guilty of being part of the Alliance. You toyed with them for too long. Allowing Sarah to head the Aethpisian people was irresponsible and led to the continuation of the Alliance forces around the asteroid belt. Her husband has been her puppet this entire time."
Gwen stared at her vice chancellor for a long moment. She was about to speak when—
The alarm on her terminal chirped. She checked it, anticipating a priority message. And she wasn’t disappointed with any trivial matters. She read the news scrolling across the screen and gasped.
"What is it?" Samantha said.
"Shannon Buckley is in Trivium Port. Our security forces are chasing her as we speak. She broke into a ship museum, trying to find a transport."
"Shannon Buckley!" Samantha’s eyes hardened. "That means Eamonn is with her."
"Most likely…however, the report states another woman was with them. Her description isn’t available."
"The Alliance is planning something," Samantha said slowly, and paused. Gwen waited as Samantha churned the data in her mind, trying to fill in the missing pieces. After a minute or so, she spoke again. "I’m altering my course back to Mars. You’re in danger."
"No, this isn’t about me," Gwen said.
"Seth won’t stay on Phobos if Shannon can be found. Chloe can’t be far away."
"That is why you can’t tell him."
"But he is here to help me find Chloe. How can I find her if we can’t follow leads like this?"
Gwen raised her hand toward Samantha, cutting her words short. "Shannon Buckley needs to be followed and tracked. And with you in Trivium Port, she was alerted. She doesn’t like you very much, and neither does Eamonn. I can go in your place. My presence will only be seen as political and nothing more. For now, you stay quiet. Your lead on Alliance sabotage at the shipyard will help us find the hidden fleet. You trace their location back from your position. I will handle Shannon Buckley and follow her back to Eamonn and maybe even Chloe. When I need Seth, I’ll call you back down here."
"Seth will find out."
"But it won’t be before we have made significant progress toward finding Chloe. He’ll be pleased."
Samantha bristled. "I must capture Eamonn myself. He embarrassed us for far too long."
"Eamonn is my target," Gwen said sharply, the rage of two years ago pulsing through her veins. Her eyes blazed with a fiery light. "I’ll catch him at Trivium Port—where he killed my father—and I’ll execute him. I promise you’ll be present for that."
Samantha smiled.
"Go now and find the stolen shuttle." Gwen didn’t allow Samantha to reply. She deactivated the terminal, hurried toward the doorway, and left the room. Within five minutes, she was aboard a shuttle destined for Trivium Port.
Chapter 13
Heavy boots stepped toward Chloe on the landing pad. She turned to the attacker, but the se
tting sun blinded her eyes. She held her hand up and blocked the piercing rays. Then without even a warning grunt, the silhouetted figure grabbed her by the shoulder. She thwarted his grasp, clawing at his face, and retreated several meters away. The man, dressed in an overly long tunic, thick denim pants, and steel-toed boots, bent to one knee and twisted Shannon’s neck around. He must have recognized her because a sting of joy leapt from his mind. He turned to Chloe, smiling.
Chloe’s hair blew across her face as the bitter winds of the evening swept into the port. She wanted to shiver, but she held her body stiff as she stepped toward the man. She wouldn’t leave Shannon. Stirring every few moments, Shannon lay distraught, trying to fight the swimming in her head. Blood oozed from her arm, and when the man turned her onto her back, Chloe’s horror intensified as she saw a deep gash stretched along Shannon’s forearm.
Shannon needed medical attention.
Chloe leaped forward and heaved her shoulder into the man, but his chest and legs were too strong. Her weight wasn’t enough; she just bounced off him. Digging her feet into the ground, she went at him again. A crushing vise shot pain through her arm as the thick hands of the man grabbed her. She flailed, trying to escape, but it was of little use. She stomped her heel against his foot, and as she had expected, his steel-toed boots absorbed the assault. The man grasped her by the waist, pulling her in close to smother her flailing arms.
Shannon stirred below them, distracting the man long enough for Chloe to thrust her elbow into his jaw. The man shook it off and then laughed, squeezing his hand harder against her shoulder.
She groaned.
"Settle down. I can’t get bounty on your friend if I injure her too severely. And don’t think I won’t," the deep voice of the man bellowed.
"Let me go!" Chloe cried, continuing to squirm.
The man laughed again; then without coddling her in the least, he slammed her face down on the landing pad.
Pressed against the pad, her chest was numbed as the coldness of the cement pulled the heat from her body. She thrashed her hips, trying to wriggle away, but the man was too strong and heavy. Her mind flashed to Seth and how he would crush this man in the time it took for her to cry his name.