“Of course not. The Captain never seems mad.” Merlo had rarely seen it, at least, though Zimi told her that it had certainly happened when the ship was invaded at The Bazaar. But what if she was angry with her anyway? Or perhaps she felt Merlo wasn’t trustworthy anymore. Merlo wasn’t sure she could handle it if her commanding officer didn’t trust her; and what if Branwen wanted her to leave, or something? Altairan “blood-debt” credits aside, what would she do, or where would she go? Could she see 286 again without the Destiny as a reason? Did 286 even want to see her again?
Mr. Leonard put a hand on her shoulder, timidly. “Calm down, please.” Merlo gave him a startled look. Had she really seemed so bad that Mr. Leonard felt the need to step in? She sighed. “You’re obviously pretty anxious, and you don’t need to be. Believe me, I’m needlessly anxious all the time, and I know what it looks like.” He gave her a kindly smile, raking his tidy, feathery blond hair out of his eyes. He must cut it himself, she mused. It’s not like he ever leaves the ship to have someone else do it.
Merlo shook her head, tossing her own unkempt hair around. She needed another trim herself. Maybe she should ask him to do it. Heh. “Nah, I’m fine,” She lied. “I just… I let the Captain down. She deserved to know. As soon as I found out.”
Now Zimi joined in the head-shaking. “I’m tellin’ ya, it ain’t like that. You’re not on a military ship no more, and the Cap'n ain’t mad.” She and Mr. Leonard exchanged looks and nods, as if they were both involved in some sort of secret Merlo reassurance group she didn’t know about.
It wasn’t as if she didn’t appreciate their intentions. It just… had trouble actually getting down into the place where her feelings lived and making her feel better, since she didn’t know how Branwen actually felt yet. If that even made sense. Regardless, she was just opening her mouth to relate her appreciation when the door to the bridge snapped open, Merlo instinctively snapping to attention.
Sirrah was first out, striding down the hall with her calm mask and unnatural Kala’s grace. Merlo’s eyebrows shot up when she turned, only a couple of doors down, and went back into her old room.
“Mr. Leonard, I need you to the engine room. Zimi, ready the cargo bay for departure; there has been a change of plans.” Zimi looked as surprised as Merlo felt as the Captain stepped out of the bridge on Sirrah’s heels and gave her orders; they’d just finished getting the ship ready to receive cargo a short while ago. “Merlo, I need you to get the Destiny ready for launch. Then I need to see all of you on the bridge for briefing.”
Merlo saw the serious cast of Branwen’s demeanor. “What’s going on, Captain?”
“The Kalaset has forwarded us a sizable advance payment, contingent on our accepting Kala Sirrah’s offer. She needs our assistance once more.”
Merlo blinked, even as Zimi nodded, half saluted, and rushed out. “But what about 286?” Merlo queried. Mr. Leonard left as well, hurrying out after Zimi, though not without a long backward glance that spoke volumes of his curiousity.
“You mean Prisoner 286?” Branwen’s narrowed eyes peered down at Merlo, serious but not harsh. Then, to the girl’s great relief, the Captain clasped a hand on her shoulder and gestured for Merlo to follow her to the bridge, face breaking into a comfortable smile as she did so. “It will be fine, Merlo.”
The two of them stepped into the bridge, Branwen letting the door slip shut behind them before speaking again. “It is my belief that you and Kala Sirrah are correct; or, at least correct enough for me to trust in for now. Besides, I am not one to turn others away when they are in trouble.”
“So you don’t think she’s dangerous?” Merlo furrowed her brow as Branwen gestured for them to both sit. She eased herself into the pilot’s seat and started preparations to warm the ship’s systems for the impending launch. Her head snapped back around to face Branwen as she realized what her Captain had just said.“Wait, who’s in trouble?”
Branwen thumped heavily into the co-pilot’s chair. “Oh, I do indeed believe Prisoner 286 is dangerous. Both from my assessment of her records, and my assessment of her in person. I knew she was a dangerous individual from the moment I saw her, just not the full extent of how much so. The fact that she was traveling with a Kala also caused me to underestimate the matter.”
The Captain shrugged lightly as she continued. “And, while I indeed have my reservations, I believe that Sirrah would not have brought her on board were she a hazard to the crew, and for now, I shall defer to her judgement… and yours.” Branwen laced her fingers together, stretching and cracking her knuckles in a series of surprisingly loud pops that echoed in the small room like a snapping bone. “And as for who is in need, suffice to say that a Kala has disappeared, and we have been asked to help locate her.”
12.3 - Zimi
“This information needs to stay confined to the ship. Are we understood?” The Captain’s voice had lost its typical amused, friendly tone, replaced by the much more serious aspect Zimi had come to privately refer to as Branwen’s “problem solving” mode.
She watched as Merlo immediately locked eyes with the Captain and gave a sharp, serious nod before returning to her work, fingers dancing lightly across the console and conducting the arcane calculations necessary for long distance spaceflight. “Of course, Captain. Stays with the crew.”
“Aye, Cap'n. Sure thing.” If Zimi had to say something about the Destiny so far, it was that the people were good and the travels were interesting. Maybe a little too interesting at points, actually.
“Of course, Captain.” She smiled over at Mr. Leonard as he spoke, standing politely next to her, hands clasped behind his back, letting her have a small space next to the console to sit. With the entirety of the crew here, the Destiny’s bridge was about as crowded as it could be and still have room to move about.
“You have all no doubt noticed the return of our two passengers.” Branwen paused as a series of nods ran the circuit of the room. “As we have little time, I will cut to the chase, as they say.”
“A while ago, as I am told, a respected Kala began a tour of several of her most favored clients, in preparation for her retirement. Somewhere along the way, she stopped checking in with the Kalaset. Now, whereas this by itself did not gain any immediate notice, as she could have been doing any number of things of a personal nature, Kala Sirrah recently received a package that paints a different picture entirely.”
Zimi nodded. Even Merlo seemed to be paying more attention now to Branwen than to her controls, not that she needed to focus on something so simple to her as a starship’s warmup sequence anyway. Mr. Leonard simply looked worried, faint wrinkles forming on his brow and at the edges of his gentle eyes.
Branwen leaned back, watching her crew, putting her boots up on a safe part of the panel in front of her and gesturing with her hands as she spoke. “A respected associate and patron of the Kalaset delivered unto Sirrah an encoded message, with instructions to hasten it to the Atelier on Kepa’ohalei. That was the delivery we just made.”
Zimi’s eyes widened, the import and events of their previous engagement suddenly more clear. She, better than perhaps anyone else here, knew just how important and rare of an opportunity it was to work with the Kalaset.
“So, that’s why it was such a big deal to get here quickly, then.” Merlo was nodding with understanding as she spoke.
The Captain nodded as well. “Once decoded by the Lumina on Altair, the message indicated something much more sinister than personal business. At some point in her travels, the Kala in question simply disappeared without a trace.”
“Wait, that’s not exactly simple, for someone to disappear like that, right Captain?” Merlo queried. Zimi knew that in a lot of places, like Urzran space or her home system of Eraki, people disappeared all the time. But Merlo was right: people don’t just vanish. Not people this important, and typically not near Altairan or Kepo space.
In response, Branwen gestured towards the ship’s engineer. “Mr. Leonard, how eas
y would it be for someone to suddenly vanish from Altairan-controlled space?”
It only took a moment for him to respond, his words rushing out over the curiosity audible behind them. “Not very, Captain. Not at all. Altair keeps complete records of every spaceport landing, launch, and Gate transversal, as well as there being a copious number of data trails for any credit-based transaction made. In short, far from simple.” He paused for breath. “It would be far easier, of course, for someone to disappear outside of Altairan space, but even then it would likely require quite a bit of influence to absolve such a distinctive data trail.”
Branwen nodded. “Exactly the point. While the Kalaset is bringing its influence to bear, the fact that this has happened at all is disturbing to them. Who could make such a notable person disappear so suddenly and completely?”
“Where do we come in, Cap'n?” To Zimi, being involved in pretty much any way at all with the Kalaset was a childhood dream come true. But anyone who could obfuscate their actions from one of the most influential organizations in the clusters was no one to trifle with, whoever they might be.
Branwen nodded to her. “We come in because Sirrah already feels she knows and can rely on us, and thus can vouch for us, in a time when the Kalaset is unsure who they can trust.”
“Yeah, the fact that we’re one of the quickest damn ships in the ‘verse, and we’re sitting right nearby probably factors into it a little bit, too.” Merlo grinned as she finished her tasks and spun her chair around to face everyone. Elsewhere in the ship, the familiar rumble of engines shuddered subtly through the Destiny.
“There’s one thing I don’t understand, Captain.” Mr. Leonard frowned, seeming thoughtful. “From the official records, Miss Sirrah is a rather young Kala. I would estimate she’s been active for less than a year, all told, and she seems an unlikely candidate to be investigating such a matter, despite her recent connections to the Altairan government. No offense intended, of course.”
Zimi wondered how he knew about all of that. He was so smart; he always seemed so well informed, too.
“She is not investigating it herself, not exactly.” Branwen shrugged. “Kala Sirrah wishes us to escort her to the home of Don Mateo, located on the other side of Kepa’ohalei. He is an influential patron of the Kalaset, as well as the person who contacted the Kalaset in the first place, through Sirrah, with his concerns. The Kalaset’s initial attempts to contact him have gone unanswered, and Sirrah wishes to personally investigate further before the Kalaset’s actions alert anyone that an investigation has begun.”
“Huh, I guess they’re worried that whoever’s behind it will make their trail disappear when they find out someone’s looking, I guess?” Merlo said, nodding as if she agreed with the idea. “I sure would if I were them.” Mr. Leonard nodded as well, his curiosity seemingly sated.
Branwen glanced around once more. “Indeed. Kala Sirrah would like for us to escort her there, to hopefully meet with Don Mateo, or at least learn from his household in person where he may have gone. We are to transport her quickly, with an eye to providing her with whatever assistance she might require and helping to keep her safe, should it become necessary.” She paused, seeming to scan the faces of her crew. “I realize that this is not exactly our typical line of work.”
Zimi huffed. “Cap'n, I think I speak for all of us when I say you ain’t getting rid of us that easy.”
Branwen smiled, and it quickly bloomed into an infectious grin. “Then we should prepare to depart. It is not a long journey, and time is wasting.”
12.4 - Prisoner 286
“At least you don’t have to set all your shit up again.” With an errant wave of her hand, 286’s hovering singularity dissipated, unceremoniously tossing all of Sirrah’s floating luggage into a pile in the corner.
The woman eyed her with a flat expression, then bent and started picking it all up to sort it out. “There is that.” 286 just grinned at her, folding her arms and leaning against the wall.
“So, this woman that disappeared… what was her name again?”
“Kala Tiala.”
“Yeah, that. So, she was someone important to you?” Sirrah didn’t say anything for a moment, calmly continuing to pick up scattered garments spilling from ruptured luggage. “I mean, I don’t see why you’d go to all this trouble if she wasn’t someone important to you.”
286 watched as the Kala picked up an elegant white and silver filigree dress, a stark contrast to the dark fabric of her current outfit with its high, tight collar and long, lacework sleeves. She seated herself on the edge of her bed and began smoothing and folding the outfit carefully. “I wouldn’t expect you to to be able to understand, 286. All of my sisters and brothers in the Kalaset are important to me. I care about all of them.”
286 found her unsurprisingly hard to read. But this was about what made sense. Human nature was human nature, no matter who you were. “Yeah, I’m willing to bet it’s more than that. You’re too keen on jumping into the middle of stuff over this. Maybe dangerous stuff. And what the Hel do you mean that I can’t understand it, anyway?” She glared belligerently down her bent nose at Sirrah, who sighed.
“I mean that you’re a diagnosed sociopath, and you seem incapable of grasping the full range of human emotions.” Sirrah eyed her, a hint of amusement glimmering in her lustrous brown eyes. “Something I’m sure you’re aware of.”
286 tried to glare at her further, even more belligerently, but couldn’t help grinning instead, no matter how hard she tried. The grin climbed the side of her face as she started laughing, drawing on for a little too long as Sirrah patiently watched her with an expression mixed somewhere between flat and bemused. “Yeah, no clue what’s wrong with the rest of you assholes.” 286 paused to wipe tears of mirth from her eyes. “If it’s not someone you know personally, or they’re not really useful for something, I don’t see why you’d care what happens to them.”
Sirrah gazed back at her, eyes gentle. “Tiala is a her, 286, not an ‘it’ or a ‘them’. Most of us care more easily, and more deeply, than that. Someone doesn't have to be currently amusing or useful for us to love them.”
Running a hand through the soft, close-shorn stubble on one side of her head, Prisoner 286 snorted derisively. “Right. Smells pointless to me.”
Sirrah eyed her curiously, reaching for another garment. “Like weakness, you mean?”
“Something like that.” 286 shrugged. “Speaking of amusement, I’m gonna go see Merlo. She’s got to be missing me by now.” She turned toward the door, grinning back at Sirrah over her shoulder. “But just so you know, you don’t have me fooled. I’m smarter than anyone gives me credit for.”
As the door swished open and she stepped out, only her Kinetic-enhanced hearing caught the reply, snatching it from the air as the door snapped shut. “Yes, you are.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Recovery Effort
Merlo
It didn’t take long for the Destiny to hit high orbit and slingshot to the opposite side of Kepa’ohalei, especially with Merlo actually attempting to utilize the Destiny’s top speed. Sand, city, and desert shrank beneath them, then planetary features flitted past as Merlo went opposite the planet’s rotation and dropped back into the atmosphere over their destination, the whole trip taking barely an hour.
It was a fun ride for her, being an hour of directly active piloting, which was sadly a rarity. Prisoner 286 had come and sat with her during some of the less intensive parts, keeping her company, kicking her feet up on the control panel and generally just chatting. Merlo’s feelings on the situation with the Prisoner were mixed. On one hand, she really liked her company, not to mention being strongly attracted to her. On the other, the woman had nearly walked out of her life not even a full day ago, with nothing more than a wave and a grin. And then walked right back into it as if nothing had happened.
The situation had left Merlo unsure of how to react, so she just hadn’t. And while 286 had been there with her, she
hadn’t really thought about it either, instead just enjoying her companionship and the way she made her feel. But if those feelings weren’t bothering her that much, maybe it didn’t really matter? Merlo reflected privately on how feelings were hard, and steadfastly avoided thinking about how 286 would probably be leaving again when they finished whatever it was they were supposed to be doing.
“We’ve got that cargo ship to our right, and I should be able to dock us once we’re past it.” Merlo spoke the words into empty air, hands busy on the solid controls of the Destiny.
As she’d expected, the com system came to life almost immediately. “Of course, Miss Merlo. Thank you for advising me. I’ll make the necessary preparations.” She didn’t know how he did it, but Mr. Leonard almost always seemed to be ready and waiting for the com. Maybe since he was always so eager to be helpful, he just sat around in the engine room with all the channels open or something.
Merlo had found that she actually liked the ever-present offer of company that he provided, even if he wasn’t there in the flesh. She’d grown fond of Mr. Leonard. He reminded her of someone from her childhood, though she couldn’t place a name or face to the vague memory. Over the com, she could just barely hear him humming some tune she couldn’t quite make out as they mutually left the channel open while they worked, in case of any need for quick communication.
Meanwhile, kilometers beneath them, a sprawling urban area slowly took form, resolving itself from the bland features of the land below and growing steadily more distinct as the Destiny descended. Se’char, the city beneath them, was nowhere near as busy with ship and transport traffic as Ba’neha had been. Even leaving Ba’neha had been time-consuming, with the huge number of visitors constantly coming and going.
Se’char, by contrast, was much quieter and less developed; it consisted mostly of a small, high tech central city hub with an extensive and well-maintained outlying residential area. After querying both the Exonet and Sirrah, Branwen had explained that the city was more or less built to serve the villas and vacation homes of wealthy off-worlders that enjoyed the perks of owning a vacation home on the planet most renowned for its distractions and entertainment.
Destiny Abounds (Starlight Saga Book 1) Page 24