by M. D. Cooper
Another minute, and she’d be safely inside.
Then something cold pressed against the base of her skull, and a man’s voice entered her mind
Ginia froze. She recognized the voice, she just couldn’t believe he was actually here.
A moment later, the shuttle bay doors opened, and passengers stepped off. The man who had threatened her was gone.
Ginia glanced around, frantic, trying to see where he went. Her heart raced, and her limbs shook as she wondered what to do.
The last passenger exited and she sprinted forward, rushing onto the shuttle only to freeze in her tracks.
There was still one other passenger on the shuttle.
General Samuel leaned forward in his seat. “We’re going to have a little talk, Ginia.”
She swallowed hard, unable to rid herself of the lump in her throat. “Sir…”
He rose up from his seat and approached her. “How dare you betray Silstrand? How dare you choose that worthless pile of shit over the SSF?” Samuel nodded his head to someone behind her, and several soldiers emerged from the rear of the craft.
One of them cuffed her wrists behind her back.
Ginia couldn’t believe what was happening. Panic and sobs rose in her.
“Please, sir. Please! I can’t…”
“You’ll be made to. Trust me,” Samuel said.
Then she was led away.
RETURN TO DEL REY
STELLAR DATE: 02.23.8948 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Del Rey Coffee Shop, Silstrand City, Silstrand
REGION: Silstrand System, Silstrand Alliance
Lana returned to the University district of Silstrand City, something she never thought she’d do. The weather was perfect for it—so sunny and warm that it felt like a sim. She walked the greens between the dorms where she’d once lived, and then turned down restaurant alley.
She stopped in front of the Del Rey coffee shop. Through the glass, people drank coffee as they sat together…laughed together. Maybe she should go in, but Lana didn’t really want to. She just wanted to see it.
Her reflection stared back at her, face drawn, sad. Suddenly, Winter stepped up beside her, and his reflection joined hers.
He scowled. “If you’re gonna grab a cup of coffee, you actually have to go in.”
“I don’t want coffee. I just wanted to see this place. This is where it all started. Or ended. I didn’t know it at the time.”
“Oh?” Winter asked, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
Lana nodded but didn’t turn to face him yet. “Fraa-X met me here and convinced me to smuggle the nano out of Silstrand for Scipio. This is when I said yes, to spite my father. Show him who was really boss. I lost a lot here.”
“You gained a lot too, right?” Winter asked. “Power, friends. A career.”
“Dad had always wanted me to enlist. Eventually he gave up, when I proved how clueless I was. The one thing I did to truly rebel against him put me right where he wanted me. Not his fault, though.” Lana turned to face Winter. “It’s all mine.”
“That’s the thing about life,” he told her. “We all do things we wanna do and things we don’t wanna do. Either way, we’ve no idea where they lead. That’s life, babe.”
Lana thought he might be right, but didn’t want to hear it. “Why are you here, anyway? Shouldn’t you be off cleaning Dolph or something?”
“I’ve been stuck inside an asteroid for the better half of a year. What do you think I’m doing?” Winter frowned and lifted his arms. “Vitamin D, baby! Just what old Winter needs!”
“You’ll burn,” Lana said and crossed her arms. “Hope you’ve lathered on the sunscreen.”
“I’m modded for that. Gotta protect my complexion and my baby blues! Just thought I’d see what you’re up to. You going back to the Polis Fury?”
“Eventually. I’m getting kind of hungry. Want to grab a bite somewhere?”
“You asking me out on a date?” Winter asked.
Lana shrugged. “Maybe I am. You got a problem with that?”
Winter snorted. “I don’t date. I hook up.”
“I’m done with hookups. If you want me,” Lana stepped up closer, “we date.”
“You really want to do this? You know what Gray will say? Kylie? If we go down this road, I can’t guarantee what happens.”
“You’ve been avoiding me all this time because you’re afraid of Grayson?” Lana laughed.
“I’m not! You know I can take him!”
She wasn’t so sure about that. “Maybe because you fight dirty.”
“Look, when we first hooked up, you were confused. Young. Going through a lot of changes. But on Chimin, you proved to be resourceful, grown up. A powerful, grown-ass woman in your own right. No longer a kid. And yeah, I like that.” Winter took a step closer, so their bodies were nearly touching. “I really like that.
“It’s hard not to touch you when you’re around. Hard not to do a lot of things, you know what I mean?”
Lana wanted to kiss him, but stopped short. “I asked you to lunch; you going to accept, or not?”
“I’m paying,” Winter said. “Don’t think I’m going to let you treat me. I’ll treat you. You deserve it.”
Lana felt her cheeks redden and she turned her head away.
“OK. We go into the Del Ray together. Maybe I can finally put this place behind me and move on.”
Winter pulled the front door open, but Lana stopped short as she received a planetary alert on the SSF’s general network.
She couldn’t believe it.
“Change your mind already?” Winter asked.
“We’ll have to take a raincheck.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Silstrand’s being invaded. Attacked. Stealthed fighters. I’m being called in. I’m sorry.”
She said goodbye and sprinted down the street.
“Not alone, you’re not! If there’s gonna be a fight, I’m not sitting on the sidelines…. Lana!”
ESCAPE!
STELLAR DATE: 02.23.8948 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Federal Courthouse, Silstrand City, Silstrand
REGION: Silstrand System, Silstrand Alliance
Kylie sat through hours of opening statements before she got to testify to everything she had done and witnessed while apprehending Paul. Being cross-examined, having everything she said and did be second-guessed, was exhausting. After lunch, statements were read in from off-world witnesses.
Just as they were to break for the day, Paul stood and raised his hand.
“I would like to testify before we wrap.”
“You’ll be testifying when the prosecution calls you,” the judge reminded him.
“I’m aware. I just want to say a few words,” Paul said as his defense attorney tried to grab him, but Paul sidestepped him.
The judge nodded, allowing him to be escorted up to the witness stand.
He was sworn in. Kylie watched with bewilderment as Paul took his seat and the prosecutor approached.
“State your name.”
“Paul Rhoads.”
“Occupation?”
“Admiral of the Revolution Fleet. I took over duties once my father was murdered. But he should’ve been. That’s the first thing I need to admit. The second is that all the charges against me are true. I’m guilty.”
Beside Kylie, her mother gasped and covered her mouth, but Kylie did her best to be strong.
“The truth is, I wasn’t coerced into doing anything. I wasn’t chipped. I did it because I was a true believer. I believed what my father taught me about AIs and humans. When he spoke, people listened. That’s not an excuse, it’s the truth. Like any good pastor, Father had a way of moving you. Moving you to see his truth. So when he told me I had to follow him across the stars and t
hat we needed a revolution, I believed him. I did it for the greater good.”
“Why are you telling us this?”
“I’ve had a change of heart. I’ve watched my sister cry, and nearly die more times than I can count. My mother, God bless her, has been beside herself with grief. Grief over what I did and how we all know it’s going to end. I just want to get it over with. Either way, I’m checking out of this place, aren’t I?”
The prosecutor began to ask questions to clarify what Paul was admitting to. The questions went on and on, but Kylie didn’t hear them. She only stared at the floor and felt her tears slip from her eyes.
Save him, she begged herself.
But she couldn’t. It really was over.
Half an hour later, the prosecutor pronounced himself satisfied, and the court adjourned for the day, with sentencing to be scheduled soon after.
Kylie rose and rushed to the witness stand to speak with Paul, even if the guards tried to keep her an arm’s distance away.
“Paul,” she whispered, her voice full of longing and loss.
“Time to let me go, Kylie. It’s for the best. Really. It’s OK.”
She shook her head. “It’s not OK. Nothing about any of this is all right. It hasn’t been for years.”
“I accept it. You should too. The mission, the fights…I’m ready for it to all end. Watching you and Mom suffer, it changed me.”
The guards took him away.
Kylie stood by herself, mutely watching the crowds disperse, when the rumble of an explosion shook the courthouse.
Kylie reached out to David.
She turned to rush down the aisle, but her mother stepped into her path, shaking her head as Kylie approached.
“Don’t go after him, Kylie. Let him go.”
“You need to move,” she ordered her mother. “Mom, move. Please.”
Katie’s eyes pleaded. “He’s your brother. He’s family. Let him go!”
A sinking realization hit her. “You knew someone was coming for him. Did you help them? Mom, did you help them?!”
Katie’s eyes shifted away, and Kylie knew it was true. She pushed Katie to the side and rushed past her.
“Kylie!” Katie cried and raced after her. “Please!”
Two SSF guards were down, and all she saw was Paul and Alberta racing down the corridor.
Lying prick, Kylie thought to herself, and chased after them, removing her sidearm.
Kylie burst through the courthouse door and looked to the sky. It appeared as though that statement was going to prove true.
FIGHT!
STELLAR DATE: 02.23.8948 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Barbaric Queen, orbiting Silstrand
REGION: Silstrand System, Silstrand Alliance
Rogers slid out from under the console and inspected his work. He’d installed the new casing and SC battery for an eventual AI for the Barbaric Queen.
Then he could prepare for some time off, get the piloting system reworked, and get the surgery he needed to save his sight and save his brain from imploding.
He slid into the pilot’s chair, a tugging pain in the back of his head. Ricket massaged his shoulders, and he enjoyed just being with her. It seemed that every moment was a gift in ways they hadn’t been before.
His mind flashed back to earlier, when he had visited a clinic on Silstrand while everyone thought he was buying supplies for ship upgrades—which was partially true.
“Your brain and eyes are being damaged whenever you fly the ship,” the doctor had explained. “Maybe an L1 or 2 could take the strain, but it’s messing with your brain’s synapses, forcing dendrites to rewire just to manage the ship. The headaches will get worse. Also, from what I can tell, your visions aren’t magic; they’re a manifestation of your mind trying to process all of the inputs from the ship’s systems. You’re just not built for this, Rogers.”
He knew his visions weren’t magic, but they’d helped him save the crew more than once. The ability was useful, but he couldn’t live with the pain. If surgery could fix him, he knew he had to take the chance.
“Try not to take your ship out until we can run more tests,” the doctor had cautioned. “I can’t say with certainty what another voyage will do to you.”
“In other words, get those repairs to the nav systems done fast, huh?”
The doctor had nodded. “Fast as you can.”
Rogers was brought back into the present as Ricket kissed him. He wished he could tell her, but he wasn’t ready. He enjoyed being extraordinary and wanted to revel in it a while longer. He wanted to feel important, like a hero, for as long as possible.
Ricket slipped into his lap and he held her close.
“You’re quiet,” she whispered.
“Just enjoying the view,” Rogers said, caressing her.
As he gazed up at her, his vision dimmed, and he saw only a blue haze. Ricket was completely obscured but he hid his panic by cracking a smile.
Inside, though, he felt manic.
“You’re barely looking at me, Jim. Are you upset about something?”
“Oh, honey. No, no. Of course I’m not. Just been a long few days.”
His vision cleared, and he was able to see Ricket’s concerned face.
He stroked her cheek. “Baby, I need to tell you something.”
It was time, even though he loathed to do it.
Ricket nodded. “Anything.”
Rogers wished he didn’t need to, but there wasn’t anything he could do anymore to stop it.
Just then, a message from Kylie broke in.
Rogers didn’t think before he answered and didn’t stop to ponder the implications of what he was about to do.
Ricket nodded. “Definitely. Let’s see if this baby is ready to put shore leave behind her.”
Rogers strapped himself into the pilot’s seat.
The response was immediate.
“Rogers, really.” Ricket shook her head as she slipped into position and took control of weapons.
“Hey, I schmooze all the space control towers where we dock and orbit. How do you think I get through the queues so fast?”
Ricket chuckled and shook her head as she looked over her board. “Shields and weapons are coming online. Let’s see how those improvements you’ve been making perform in combat.”
Rogers raised his eyebrows as he used thrusters to break free of the docking bay. “I was hoping for easier testing conditions. Look, here come a wave of those single-pilot fighters. I bet Admiral Matilda won’t mind if we shoot a few down on our way to the Revolution cruisers.”
“You’ve got it,” Ricket acknowledged.
Waves of fighters were appearing; visible as their stealth system deactivated upon atmospheric entry. Ricket fired at dozens of them, destroying many, but hundreds more were still reaching Silstrand’s surface.
Rogers shook his head
. “Suicide. Those Revolution guys can’t compete with the SSF with these numbers.”
“It is suicide,” Ricket conceded as they moved out of range from the surface attackers. “A suicide mission. I think they have only one goal.”
Rogers knew what that goal was, and secretly wished that Kylie hadn’t brought her brother in alive.
“Free Paul Rhoads? Bastard zealots,” he grumbled
“Zealots usually are,” Ricket said as the ship boosted away from the planet. Her chair reclined to absorb the gs, while her console rose overtop. “Nice upgrade. I approve.”
“It’ll be good for sex, too.”
“Rogers!”
He grinned, hiding the pain stabbing through his head. He’d make it through one more flight, protect Silstrand from these marauders and be the hero one last time.
* * * * *
“Slow down, girl!” Winter called out from behind Lana. “This way! I have a skycar!”
Lana turned and gave him a questioning look. “A cab?”
“No, I bought one. I got tired of trying to fit into the taxis here. I needed more room to breathe.”
“Bought?”
“Look,” he growled, gesturing toward a nearby lot, “Do you want to dig into my personal finances, or should we just get to where the fightin’s at?”
“Lead the way,” Lana said.
She followed after as Winter turned down a side street and ran toward one of the university’s visitor lots. When they reached Winter’s car, she was surprised to see that it was a top-of-the-line Feral X9.
“Damn…maybe I do need to check into your finances.”
“Just get in,” he said as the doors opened.
A minute later, they were in the air, and Lana had logged into the SSF’s defense network, combing through feeds and updates.
“Crap, there are hundreds of these bastards, they’re everywhere.”
“They have to have a target,” Winter said. “They’re not just here for a joyride.”
“Yeah,” Lana said, casting the man an acerbic look. “I get that, I just can’t tell where.”