She lowered the large ship, trying to be extra careful to touch down gently. She was successful in touching down with the greatest of ease, although the ice sounded its protest in the form of a moan—deep and drawn-out—as it compressed under the ship’s great weight. It held.
She let out a long breath, and she heard Eamonn do the same.
"You doubted me," she said, kidding him.
He laughed. "I exhaled because the ice held. These ice sheets aren’t something pilots land on every day."
"I will be sure to practice to put your mind at ease," she said, and grinned. He nodded back toward her, relaying his thanks for her effort on the mission.
They gathered themselves and left the bridge for the surface.
The crunch of the ice under her feet felt odd to Chloe, like walking on the sandy dunes of Mars, except the ice clumped together, slicking to the bottom of her boots. Water ice, she thought. The blue hues and water droplets on her legs gave it away. The smell was pleasant, too—crisp, exciting her nose, unlike carbon ice, which always bit at the hairs when she inhaled it.
She stood several paces from the bottom of the gangplank, and the wind blew heavy, coming from in front, blowing snow into their faces. A flute-like sound whistled as the gusts passed over the hull of the Protector.
The cold bit against her face. She pulled the hood over her head and made sure it ran along the edges of her breathing mask to shut out any sudden cold rushes.
She hurried along to catch Eamonn, who was several paces ahead of her. He slowed to let her catch up. They headed toward the half-ice, half-tent structure a few hundred meters from them. A confidence lightened his pace. He no longer dragged his arms like a dejected youngster wanting his parents to buy him candy. His chest pushed out, his step jumped high and long, and she felt no doubts lingering in his mind. She remembered and loved this Eamonn, the man she respected and served. The daring escape had exhilarated him and sparked the same motivation that caused him to start the Alliance and fight the MSA.
She didn’t know for sure, but it seemed that destroying the MSA fleet coincided with the sudden change in him. Though she sensed something else pushing close to his immediate thoughts, he kept thinking back to his crew. He wanted to make Mars right for them.
Especially for Parker, who had stuck by them when Eamonn and everyone else had abandoned their crewmates, pretending their kinship never existed.
And, always present in his thoughts, the loss of Madelyn disturbed Eamonn. If he had felt the same obligation to save Madelyn from the MSA as Parker did for Sarah, maybe regret wouldn’t now be tearing him apart. But he had definitely decided that his task now was to help the crew make Mars right again.
Upon returning to Orcus, a similar realization arose within Chloe; no matter how much Seth pulled at her, she needed to remain loyal to the crew and the Alliance. The safety of her daughter from the MSA depended on it. For her, to start a fight against the MSA required a plan to destroy the Solarspot. Chloe worried about her friends. Their lives were at risk, and probably several would die. If not all. The plan was that foolish. But as long as they were successful, the sacrifice was worth it.
"Eamonn," a voice came from behind them—Shannon’s voice.
They spun around. She ran toward them, along the path they had already walked. "You were behind us?"
"Yes," she said, reaching them. "I put out the signal flares. You didn’t hear my calls."
"We are leeward," Eamonn said. "Is everything okay on your end?"
She waved for them to hurry along the path they were heading, toward the tent structure. And then she replied, "Everything is fine except the drone ship is freezing up. The atmosphere is different here, and water ice is forming over the inside systems. Olympus and Atalo have already fried three boards trying to reactivate the subsystems."
"Don’t let them ruin any more equipment," he said. "We need to come up with a new plan before we do anything."
"I’m glad you have returned."
Eamonn ignored her. "Any MSA communications traffic?"
"A little," she said. "They’re upset at you for destroying Delta fleet. I fear we have lost our surprise attack."
"I hope they think that," he said. "At least we know what they are thinking. A rigid stance against us can work to our advantage. No matter the size of the fleet against us, we have fluidity in our planning where they do not."
Shannon looked at him and shook her head. "To a point. We do only have a limited arsenal here, and without Parker and the fleet, we lost big assets."
"Parker is a great man, and he’ll return with Sarah and the Alliance," Chloe said.
A howl came from over their head, and then a gust of wind, colder than the dark side of Pluto, found the exposed holes in her suit, seizing Chloe’s joints like they were in a vise. She shivered. Eamonn put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her in close to him. She appreciated the warmth, even if it was fleeting.
They remained silent for the rest of the walk to the tent.
Inside, it was warmer than Chloe had expected but still not nearly warm enough. She left her coat on and cradled a cup of warm water to which had been added a single leaf from a plant Atalo couldn’t name. She wasn’t as sure as he was that it would be all right to drink, but she put any doubt aside. The taste was sweet with a hint of bitterness. She could have had a few more drops of sweetener, but it wasn’t bad, considering she was still shivering from the walk.
The water also allowed her to choke down the algae paste bars they used for ration food, a mélange of earthy tastes concocted by the minds of the research and development division of the Aethpisian government. She reminded herself that the bars replenished her body of missing vitamins and minerals.
"Look, we can’t fly the drone ship into the Solarspot anymore, no matter how much of a distraction we can provide for it," Shannon said in a stiff tone. "I know I’m not going to do it. Not without plasma shielding. The flight to the poles was lucky enough for me."
"I’m not even sure I can get it to lift off," Atalo Grove said. "The boards are shot. Ice is consuming the circuits faster than I can dry it."
Eamonn groaned from his seat from across the table. He had been sitting with his feet kicked up and his shoulders lowered into the chair. He was the only relaxed person in the room. Red Dust and Olympus had remained relatively quiet, only adding a point of contention when they knew something the group hadn’t mentioned. Quartz’s mind roiled, thinking of the danger ahead. Chloe had to shield her own mind from the other woman’s nervousness.
Finally, after five more minutes of idle discussion, she spoke. "Can’t we use the remaining netting nodes to take out the rest of their fleets?"
"Weren’t you a part of the Protector’s crew?" Shannon said. "You should know better than anyone that we can’t set up netting with so few nodes left. The Solarspot wouldn’t even notice it. The nodes would just knock away and disperse the net. It’s a waste of our time."
"I’m just trying to explore the possibilities," she replied, trying not to lash out. "Didn’t we destroy their fleet of ships? They won’t have enough to surround the Solarspot."
Shannon threw her arms up. "That was Delta fleet. They have Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Lambda, and Omega fleets around Mars—not to mention the two at Jupiter, one at Saturn, one at Lunara, and one following the Solarspot now. Your victory against Delta fleet did little to dent the MSA’s fortification efforts, especially the security for the Solarspot. Please don’t speak unless you have something constructive to say."
Chloe scowled. "I haven’t heard anything constructive from you yet."
Shannon’s entire face hardened; her eyes narrowed, her jaw squared, and her forehead furrowed. "We wouldn’t be in this mess if you had controlled yourself and not implicated Minister Cortez in the betrayal of Mars. Now shut up and sit in the corner as you have been. I—we don’t need your help."
"Jinx to your family," Chloe said, springing to her feet. Shannon didn’t know anything about the sit
uation at the gala; only Seth and she did. A surge of acid coursed from her veins and culminated in words she could not hold back. "With one thought, I could kill you. I could give you the nightmares of the past, leaving you in a terrifying coma for the rest of your life. You saw me do it on the landing pad. I will do it again if you can’t hold your tongue on things you don’t understand."
"You murdered the minister and his family. Just as you murdered that man during our escape. Don’t threaten me. I trust my sonic pistol over your abilities any day." Shannon slid her hand down to her holster, "Perhaps you deserve it."
Chloe balled her fists. "You didn’t seem to mind me being on a mission with you. Why are you suddenly hostile toward me? I don’t get it. I have been nothing but loyal to your cause."
"Liar! None of us trust you. I saw it in your eyes when Gwen mentioned Seth. He could turn you against us. I had my gun ready for you, too, in that foyer, always remember that."
"Untrue—"
"Save us your mouth. We know you love him and would kill us all for him."
Chloe shook her head violently. "I fight for Alexandria now."
Suddenly, she stood toe to toe with Shannon Buckley. With any other woman she might not have been so terrified, but Shannon had always been tough, willful, and…cold. And that coldness was the only thing she felt from Shannon’s mind.
Chloe gritted her teeth, showing them to Shannon. Then she did something unexpected; she shoved Shannon with two firm hands to the chest. Shannon, surprised by the attack, tumbled over the table and sprawled across the ice floor.
Chloe screamed: "I want the MSA gone! For Alexandria! As much as anyone!"
When Shannon raised herself to her knees, she looked at Chloe, venom dripping from her glower. But she didn’t spring back toward her or draw her gun. She stayed on her knees, waiting for Chloe’s next move.
Chloe didn’t take a step back. She looked at Shannon, thinking of how pathetic she was. Her hair was tattered, her face was tired and weary, and her uniform was stained by the red dust of Mars. She hadn’t changed her clothes in days. But she had brought all this upon herself, by killing the chancellor. Fate was punishing her. "Don’t ever doubt my loyalty again, or I will kill you."
Shannon didn’t reply. Simply, she stood and turned her back to Chloe.
Chloe looked around the room; Quartz and Red Dust had also turned their backs. She didn’t turn to look at the rest of the group.
Instead, she pulled the hood over her head, slipped through the doorway, and found herself in the cold, heading toward the Protector.
Chloe heard footsteps clank against the metal floor in the engine room of the Protector.
"What is going on?" Eamonn said.
"I’m not sabotaging the ship if that is what you are asking."
"I know you wouldn’t do that," he said, eyeing her progress on the fuel lines. "I came to see how you were. You left in such a rush."
"It isn’t hard to leave a place you aren’t wanted," she said, putting down the wrench she was holding. She picked up a rag, wiped the grease from her hands, and threw it down. "There wasn’t a point to me being there anyway. It wasn’t as if Shannon or anyone listened to what I had to say. Why are you here? Leave me alone."
"You forgot your breathing mask," he said, holding it up for her to see. "I thought you were in trouble."
Chloe grabbed for her belt. Her case was empty. In the confusion of the confrontation, she had forgotten to wear her mask.
Somewhat startled, she took in some short breaths and realized that she could breathe outside. There wasn’t a shortness of breath or a tightening of her lungs.
Mars was alive.
She wanted to smile, but she held it back. "I’m fine," she said, moving over to him and snatching the mask from his hands.
"I wasn’t checking on you. I’m concerned."
She didn’t reply for a long moment. "Do you trust me? No one believes me anymore."
Eamonn tilted his head, avoiding her gaze. "It isn’t that we don’t trust you. It’s only that…we realize that you would do anything for Seth. As Shannon said, it would be hard for us to be placed in a precarious position with you if we knew Seth was influencing you."
"But Orcus, I shot at him. I saved us from him. Doesn’t that count for anything?"
"I don’t know, Chloe. In the end, you still love Seth. No matter what you say, I know you do. How can we put you in a position to help us when we have that fear in the back of our heads?"
"I can’t control your fear. I’ll do what I need to for Alexandria. It is the same as Shannon and Adol. I don’t want Alexandria raised in an MSA-controlled Mars either."
"Or by an MSA-controlled Seth."
"Unfortunately, that is a horrible possibility as well," she said as her shoulders drooped. "And certainly not with a stepmother like Gwen Arwell."
"I think I understand," Eamonn said. "You scared Shannon. I don’t believe she doubted you could kill her."
She was ashamed of herself. Those words she said to Shannon were unacceptable to speak to anyone. She lowered her head. "I don’t know what happened. The gala still haunts me, and she pushed the wrong button at the wrong time. If I wasn’t so stupid—"
"You couldn’t have done anything different. Sarah has said so. Parker believes it, too."
"What about you?"
"I don’t believe you were responsible. Anyone with a heart like yours would have been fooled."
Chloe didn’t reply. The single image that kept flashing back at that night was of the pure evil on the chancellor’s face. She held back the pooling tears in her eye. Everyone who died haunted her. Their faces, their cries.
Eamonn put his arm around her shoulder. "Get some rest. I managed to convince them to let you help with my plan."
"On what condition?"
"No conditions," he said. "I’ll keep you away from anything awkward."
"Awkward. Now if that doesn’t ooze mistrust, I don’t know what does. It doesn’t serve you well to tell me you trust me to serve the Alliance and then say something like that."
"You can’t ignore Seth’s influence. And it would be unfair to the group if I let you near him."
His attempt to comfort her with a wry smile vanished as Chloe’s face twitched. The fires of her anger were spreading through her body, coursing through her veins. She stepped away from him. "I don’t want to hear your mistrust," she replied, the words forming raw in her throat. "I can leave in my starwing. I have my own mission with Seth to attend to."
"Don’t be angry. I can’t stand it when you’re angry. Of all the crew members, you never fought or had a bad word to say about anyone. Don’t ever let that Chloe escape you."
"She hasn’t left," she said. She threw her head to the side. "This is a war, and I have to be firm with my allegiances." She looked back toward him. "I understand I have been giving mixed signals. Because of Seth…it is such a gray area."
"You haven’t betrayed us," Eamonn said, stepping toward her. "This gray area around you isn’t as opaque as you might think. You have done a wonderful job keeping everything in perspective."
Chloe shook her head. "The gray area, where the fight for freedom meets the love of your life, I can’t escape it. Seth did. Unfortunately, he crossed to the other side. But it won’t happen to me. I’ll protect you."
Eamonn shook his head. "I know you can’t. I need you for this mission. The group is okay with your position within the plan. I need you to help me."
They stared at each other for a long moment. With what Eamonn had been through, he was still the captain she remembered. He had managed to find his way to them.
She smirked, a wry turn of her left cheek. "At least it will infuriate Shannon Buckley. I guess that is something the both of us can hang our hat on."
Eamonn laughed; a big, drawn-out, boisterous laugh.
Chapter 23
The room was dim. Gwen went to lift her head, but a rush of dizziness and a throbbing pain behind her forehead forced h
er back into the sanctuary of her pillow. Taking in a deep breath, she closed her eyes and waited.
The dizziness subsided. She found she was back in her bedroom, which was tidier and more proper than it had been in a long time. Samantha must have paid her a visit.
She pressed her tongue against the roof of her mouth, and it tasted like she had eaten dirt. She went to swallow, but her throat was too dry. Tilting her head to the side, she found a glass of water on the nightstand and drank it, gulps at a time. Her lips hurt as she drank. She withdrew the glass and fingered her lips gently. They stung. She leaned over, opened her nightstand drawer, and retrieved her mirror.
Her lower lip showed cracks in the skin. Her upper lip was better, but the left side had similar cracks as the bottom. The cold frost had bit hard against her. The skin along the side of her face and her forehead was blistered and had turned a cherry red. She couldn’t remember the burn. Did it happen during the initial ignition, when the ship blasted off, or when the searing hot tiles pressed again her body? An accurate memory of the event might never coalesce in her mind.
The back of her head hurt as she propped herself on her elbow. She tilted the mirror to see the damage. A crisscross of dermal stitching ran tight and uniform along the hair line. An excellent doctor had worked on them, perhaps Dakota Lars. What had happened? She didn’t remember exactly. How long had she been out? She pressed her memory, but her mind could not recollect the events of the last few hours…days…years. She had no way of knowing from her bed. The clock read late morning.
"What happened?" she muttered. She stared at herself for a long moment.
The nightmarish puzzle pieces of the museum crept back into her mind. Quickly, as if she had touched a hot skillet, she jumped away from the memory, trying to suppress the horror of the blue flashing light. She wanted to remember to help the MSA, but she knew it would disturb her. Instead, she thought about the reasons, like Samantha would. Why did they take that particular ship? What was their plan against the MSA? When would they spring it?
Lunara: The Original Trilogy Page 86