by Sarah Noffke
The two resumed painting in silence, listening to their own coarse brushstrokes like they were music.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Hatch’s Lab, Ricky Bobby, Paladin System
From beneath the DeLorean, Hatch’s tentacle appeared.
“I need a 9/16 wrench,” the mechanic called to Knox.
A moment later, he heard soft-soled footsteps as his assistant went to fetch the tool. He didn’t really need Knox to retrieve tools for him, but it made the repairs more collaborative.
This was something brand new for the Londil. In all his years, he had never really worked with anyone. With Cheng, he’d worked on one aspect of the Tangle Thief, while the doctor worked on the other. What he and Knox did was different. Better. He found himself whistling as the cold wrench was laid on his tentacle.
“Just another few bolts, and then I’ll need you to crank her up,” Hatch told Gunner as he took the tool.
“You got it,” Knox said, his tone excited.
“Dr. A’Din Hatcherik,” Ricky Bobby chimed overhead.
“I’m busy,” Hatch said, his annoyance flaring.
“There has never been an instance when I’ve called on you that you weren’t busy. I’ve never interrupted you unless it was important,” the AI said.
Hatch wheeled out from under the car, inflating to his normal size. “What is it?”
“I’ve received a report that a radiation tear has been detected. It would appear that the Tangle Thief has been used again.”
“Oh, dammit,” Hatch cursed, tossing the wrench to the side. “Have you contacted the captain and the commander?”
“I have, and they, along with Dr. Sung, are already preparing to leave,” Ricky Bobby said.
Hatch sighed. “Well, then, it sounds like it’s all being taken care of. Why are you bugging me?”
“It was Dr. Sung’s idea to alert you,” Ricky Bobby informed him.
Hatch looked over at Knox, who was wearing a curious expression.
“Go on,” Hatch urged.
“The Tangle Thief was used to steal quite a large supply of gold from inside a mine on Nexus,” Ricky Bobby explained.
At first, this made no sense to Hatch…like he was working out a rare, unsolvable equation. Then the implications of such a theft, along with everything else he knew, became clear.
“I can’t believe it,” he said in a hush.
“That they used the Tangle Thief to steal riches?” Knox asked. “I can. That’s what I would have used it for.”
Hatch shook his head. “They don’t want the gold for its wealth. They want it for its material properties.”
Knox scratched his brow, looking perplexed. “I don’t understand.”
Hatch shook his head incredulously at what he was about to say. “I was wrong. The Saverus are building an ark.”
Nexus, Tangki System
Eddie looked over his shoulder, keeping an eye out for any Saverus lurking nearby. Last time, they’d stayed behind to see who would come to clean up their mess, and he suspected they would do it again.
Cheng stumbled several times in the bulky, radiation-protective suit as he tried to get up the rocky cliff to the cave entrance. Although they’d parked the Q-Ship as close as they could, it was still a hike to where the tear was supposedly located.
When they reached the entrance to the cave, the bright light from the tear shone through the dark cave, illuminating every inch of the space. Eddie shielded his eyes as Julianna pulled out her sunglasses.
She’s always prepared, the captain thought somewhat admiringly.
“This tear is quite a bit larger than the last one,” Cheng said, motioning for them to back up.
“Well, they did steal the entire contents of a cave of gold,” Eddie stated, still in disbelief over the theft.
It would have been impressive, if the effects weren’t so sinister. The Saverus were one step closer to their goal, which was not only terrifying, but infuriating.
Cheng fired on his vacuum gun, or whatever he called it—the guy didn’t talk much or offer too many details. Eddie caught a hint of frustration in the doctor’s movements after a moment.
“I’m not near enough!” Cheng yelled over the roar of the machine. “I have to get a bit closer.”
“Be careful,” Julianna warned, squinting from the brightness of the tear.
The ground was uneven and sloped dangerously in places. Cheng shuffled forward a few inches. His covered shoe caught on a rock, and he lunged forward, initiating a chain of stumbling steps, unable to catch his balance.
Julianna bolted after him, reaching for him before he could tumble down into the tear that threatened to swallow him whole. Her hands missed him, and he fell to the ground. He grabbed onto the rocks to stop his momentum, and the device in his hands clattered to the ground and rolled toward the opening.
Julianna dove after Cheng and clutched his wrist. She held onto him, trying to catch her breath, and after a few seconds, she tugged him toward her, encouraging him up.
Cheng looked over his shoulder to where the device lay. “My instrument!” he yelled over the whirling sound the tear made, like wind beating in a sail.
Julianna nearly yanked him over to where they’d been before his tumble, trying to keep him safe. “It’s fine. I’ll go get it.”
Eddie shook his head. “No, you had an adventure just now. Let me do it.”
Julianna glanced over to where the instrument had landed, only feet from the tear. It was bouncing slightly, like the vortex of the tear could pull it in at any second.
“Yeah, fine,” Julianna agreed, handing him her sunglasses. “Wear these, though, or you won’t be able to see.”
“Thanks.” Eddie took the glasses.
“And be careful,” Julianna ordered. “If you get pulled in there, I’m not going in after you.”
Eddie gave her a roguish smile as he eased past her. “Don’t worry, boss. I’ll be right back.”
The suction of the tear quadrupled the moment he took a step forward, pulling at him with a strange intensity. Eddie felt like he was simultaneously walking against wind and being propelled forward. It was a bizarre feeling that he realized might mess up his movement, if he attempted to compensate for the competing forces in any way.
He crouched down low as he cleared the next few feet. The light from the tear was so bright it burned his eyes; a solar eclipse only yards away. A loud roar, like a train passing overhead, took over his hearing, blocking out all other noise. It felt like he was in the center of a tornado and was about to be thrown out of it.
Eddie lifted his foot, feeling an overwhelming pressure pulling it forward. He decided it would be best to crawl, and made to lower to the ground, but the vortex yanked him forward.
“Eddie!” Julianna yelled in panic.
The force dragged him several yards before he was able to anchor his weight and land on all fours. The tear was only five feet away now, the instrument within his reach. He extended his hand, his fingers brushing the edge of the device.
Inching forward with his face close to the rocky ground, Eddie gritted his teeth against the force spilling out of the vortex. He hoped his nanocytes were enough to hold up against the radiation blasting him in the face. If not, I might as well let the tear swallow me up and spit me out who knows where.
Again he reached out, extending his arm to its full length. His fingers bumped up against the instrument, knocking it farther away from him.
“Fuck me!” he yelled, the pressure on his face almost more than he could bear.
He took in a breath of what felt like cold wind and closed his eyes to the brightness. Operating on instinct, he placed his free hand under his chest for support and inched forward. His outstretched hand slipped around the handle of the device, but Eddie didn’t allow himself a moment of victory. Instead, he yanked the instrument toward his chest and rolled back the way he’d come, pulling up to a standing position.
As he tried to retreat, the force dr
awing him backwards was even more compelling than before. He fought the slope of the cave, the vortex and the howling wind. Eddie picked up his leaden foot to move forward and knew immediately that he’d lose the battle. He whipped his head around, covering it with his arm, firmly believing he was about to plummet into the oblivion.
He slipped back several inches, but something caught his arm and, with an impressive amount of force, drew him forward.
Eddie strained around to find Julianna dragging him back up to the flatter ground of the cave, her breathing ragged. When he was a safe distance from the tear, she let him go and doubled over, heaving on each exhale.
“Thank you,” Eddie said, his own voice hoarse. He handed the instrument to Cheng, who looked paler behind the hood of his suit.
“You nearly ruined my day,” Julianna said, straightening.
“You’re not done with me yet, Jules,” Eddie said with a relieved wink.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Hatch’s Lab, Ricky Bobby, Paladin System
“Do you want the bad news, the horrible news or the horrifying news first?” Hatch asked when Julianna and Eddie strode into his lab.
“I don’t think you understand how this game works,” Julianna said. “We’re supposed to be given an option between good and bad.”
“These are trying times,” Hatch said, his face drawn. “If there was any good news to be had, I’d give it to you.”
“I’ll take bad news for two hundred, Alex,” Eddie said.
Julianna shot him an incredulous look.
“What?” he asked, throwing his hands into the air. “It’s a fucked up time; I almost got sucked into oblivion. We’ve got to try and make light of things, or we’ll lose our spirit.”
Ignoring him, Julianna returned her attention to Hatch. “What’s the bad news?”
“According to my research, gold can be used to create a protective shield while transporting living organisms using the Tangle Thief,” Hatch stated. “But you’d need an awful lot of it.”
“Like a few tons taken from a mine?” Julianna asked.
“Yeah, that would do the trick,” Hatch chirped reluctantly.
“So if the Saverus cover an entire building or ark or whatever it is that they have with gold, it will protect what’s inside when they teleport Savern using the Tangle Thief?” Eddie asked.
Hatch shrugged. “I’m afraid so. I didn’t think it was possible, but they appear to have found the solution.”
“Which means that you were wrong when you said that there was no way they were building an ark and trying to transport animals,” Eddie teased.
“And he was wrong when he said that there was no material that could protect living creatures being transported,” Ricky Bobby stated overhead.
Hatch puffed up his cheeks. “So I made my first mistakes. Sue me.”
“Why gold, though?” Julianna asked.
“Gold can’t be corrupted the way other metals can,” Hatch explained. “Its chemical structure is the least reactive.”
“Are they really going to gold plate an entire structure or whatever it is that they need to take with them to Savern?” Julianna asked.
Hatch turned his attention to one of his workstations, checking the screen. “There are only thirty-five hundred species of life native to Savern.”
“That’s all?” Eddie asked, surprised.
“Only a select few can survive the hot climate,” Hatch reasoned.
“Is anyone else surprised that the Saverus come from a planet likened to hell?” Pip asked overhead.
“There you are, little buddy. Where you been?” Eddie asked. “I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve been busy working on my hedge fund portfolio,” Pip answered.
Eddie rolled his eyes. He sensed that Pip, who had initially loved the idea of being paired with him, now felt a little strange about the whole thing. Maybe he felt like he was cheating on Julianna. Or maybe he didn’t trust himself after the Corvette incident. Having a body was complicated, especially for an AI who was new to the whole thing.
“So all of the species on Savern could be housed in a manageable location?” Julianna asked Hatch, already thinking about their next move.
“It would still be sizable, but yes,” Hatch confirmed.
“How hard is it to find a giant-ass warehouse that’s being gold plated?” Eddie asked.
“About as hard as trying to find a four-leaf clover in a field of three-leaf clovers,” Pip answered.
“So that’s more of the horrible news,” Eddie guessed.
Hatch shrugged. “I’m afraid so. The Saverus have everything they need to succeed. Now it’s a matter of time before they execute their plan and steal Savern.”
“And then what?” Eddie asked.
Hatch shook his head, his expression morose. “The tear would be too large to close, and it would suck us in one way or another. It wouldn’t matter where we were.”
Eddie remembered all too well how powerless he had been to resist the force of the tear created by the missing chunk of cave. He couldn’t imagine the force of one large enough to fit a planet through.
Julianna let out a heavy sigh. “We have to keep searching. I’ll go talk with Penrae. Maybe there’s something she’s overlooked. There has to be another option. Something we’re missing.”
The anxiety in her tone unnerved Eddie. He’d never heard her so flustered.
“There’s something else,” Hatch said, his voice careful.
“What?” Julianna asked, her eyes widening.
“It’s relatively small in the scheme of things, but it’s something that I thought you should know,” Hatch stated.
“Go on,” Eddie urged.
“The pet store from Onyx Station was located,” Hatch said. “It was found on Savern.”
“We can’t find a giant warehouse being gold plated, but we were able to locate a small shop?” Eddie asked.
“It’s a bit easier to find a place that materializes out of thin air,” Hatch said, irritation heavy in his voice. “The Saverus were obviously just testing with the pet store, not overly concerned with its final location. My guess is that they had the gold sent to a place that wouldn’t attract attention; the same goes for whatever location they’ve chosen for the ark.”
“The animals?” Julianna asked, the unspoken part of the question hanging in the air.
Hatch blinked, looking away. “That’s why they needed the gold. The animals were all dead when the authorities found them.”
Eddie pressed his eyes shut. It was only animals in a shop, but it was fucking innocent animals in a shop.
“Since we know what the Saverus are looking for,” Julianna began, her words slow-coming like she was processing as she spoke, “Can we look for leads on Savern? Evidence of places where native animals and plants have been farmed for this ultimate goal?”
“That’s a good idea, Julianna,” Pip stated overhead. “I wish I had thought of that. Oh, wait…I did.”
“Anything useful?” Eddie asked.
“There’s a handful of leads, but the Saverus got a head start,” Pip stated.
“Loop Penrae in on what you find,” Julianna ordered. “She knows her people best and might see a clue we’d overlook. If we discover the facility, it might lead us to the Saverus.”
“And if we find the Saverus, we can take back the Tangle Thief before they have a chance to use it,” Eddie stated.
Julianna nodded back at him with pained conviction.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Anara, Cantjik Sea, Planet Sagano, Behemoth System
Fletcher knew exactly why Rosco had chosen the caves as his hideout. Not only would most enemies make the same mistake he did and think that the open compound was where Rosco was located, but the cave was also only accessible from the interior of the island. That meant they’d have to land the Q-Ship on the eastern side of the island and hike around. One entrance made the break-in even tougher—only one way in and out. Rosco operated with
brute force, but Fletcher was going to take him out with stealth.
Nona activated her personal cloaking belt when the hatch door opened to reveal the jungle stretching out on the other side of the ship. She flickered for a moment and then disappeared.
“This is really bizarre,” her disembodied voice said.
“Just remember that it’s not foolproof,” Lars warned, a sturdy expression in his eyes. “These guards may not be keen, but if they are alert, they’ll hear you moving through the forest, or see the surroundings you displace, like the sand and leaves.”
“I appreciate the heads-up, but I can handle it,” Nona stated.
“She’s like a cat; most targets never hear her coming,” Fletcher said, a proud smile on his face.
“I’ll be up that tree and ready on your mark.” Nona’s voice was confident, which Fletcher was glad for. Her position was crucial for this mission to be successful, and it all relied on timing.
“Okay, go on, then,” Fletcher stated.
Nona chuckled over the comm. “I’ve already left the ship.”
“Oh, right.” Fletcher laughed and turned to Lars, holding up the other cloaking belt. “Are you sure you won’t take this?”
Lars shook his head. “The point is that I need to be seen.”
In truth, they’d reviewed the plan, and this made the most sense. It was frustrating, though, that there were only two cloaking belts. Life seemed to always be short one life preserver. It was a cruel joke.
“I’d still feel better if you could disappear after creating the diversion,” Fletcher told him.
Lars wasn’t on his team of special forces soldiers, he was a friend, volunteering for this mission. Therefore, Fletcher couldn’t order him to do anything.
“Don’t worry,” Lars encouraged. “I’m excellent at running and blending in. I’ve been doing it my whole life.”
Fletcher nodded. “Well, it’s a big risk and it means a lot that you’re doing this. Thank you.”