by Holly Ice
‘Out of what?’
‘Everything. Whoever that was knew what they were doing. They severed the lander’s control over the ship. We’re passive, and they know which access panel I used.’
So they knew where we were. I pinched my nose. Watching Ludis’s speech was not worth this, no matter what intel it brought us. I already knew much of what he’d argue, but it was done. ‘Can you get around it?’
‘I’m not that good.’
‘And health?’
‘I got the code through.’
‘Good.’ Nothing else we could do now but see how they reacted. I waved at the screen. ‘May as well see if this changes his speech.’
The huge ship comm screen flickered to life at Quinn’s command. As before, it took up the entire cockpit window. Whatever we were locked out of, they’d left access to this, probably out of spite.
The picture was clearer than any of the small screens on the main ship. I saw every strand of Ludis’s hair from across the committee’s round table. No one else was in shot. No doubt he’d staged his speech there to give himself an air of leadership, but the space must echo for him as much as it had for me. He seemed undaunted. His fanaticism had given him new confidence, though not enough to override his morals, cancel the vote, and do what he wanted anyway. Always something to be thankful for.
‘Humans have travelled over seventy trillion miles from Earth’s solar system to Tau Ceti. Not by choice, but because our own invention killed us.’ He paused. ‘It’s hard for us to understand the magnitude of it. We’re a ship that has never housed more than one thousand four hundred and seventeen people. Earth had billions. The Moon and Mars and asteroids had millions more between them.’ He placed his hands on the back of Rima’s chair. ‘The committee decided, without asking the crew, that nanites should be placed in the bodies of the mission team sent to explore Ristar. They have tried to argue that these are different nanites, ones which have never caused us harm, but can we rely on that?’ He looked straight into the camera. ‘Can you entrust humanity’s existence to that? We are a colony, but we are also the last of our kind. We can no longer afford to take these risks.’
The camera panned to show Yara, Ksenia and all the other candidates who had taken the nanites, at least those he’d captured. They were still roughly tied, their hands behind their backs and ankles together. I searched their faces in the minute or so I had before the camera panned back to Ludis. Everyone was there but us three, James and Ashoka, even those that had been cut, though not those that had dropped out.
Ludis continued. ‘I’ve just shown you the committee’s candidates for the Ristar mission. All of them were told to ingest nanites or be dismissed, despite high physical and academic scores. Eight candidates refused to take these nanites and are prepared to go to Ristar to ensure it is safe for the rest of us. This is the team I recommend. If we vote for them, we’ll ensure our future.’
There it was. Could the ship really vote for him? They must know these eight hadn’t gone through any of the rigorous training Sabine had put us through. My vote and the documents supporting it went a long way toward showing that. These candidates would be soft in comparison to us, and untried. They’d work more like individuals than a true team.
I glanced at the elevator, surer than before that Ludis wouldn’t be content to wait for the vote. Those scouts hadn’t been sent to open the lander out of curiosity. He’d decided his way was best when he’d taken control of the ship, and he’d want to prepare his team for their exit.
‘And us?’ Yara asked from out of picture. ‘Are we as good as spaced?’
‘We’re not barbaric! Candidates infected with nanites shall have them deactivated with the emergency compound. This will be confirmed by Dannika, who’s volunteered to stay behind. She will ensure all nanites have left your system, active or dormant, before you leave the ship. She tells me this will take around a year.’ A frail older woman stepped forward. I knew her. She was among the top team in research and had often had dinner with my parents. No doubt she was the one to lock us out of ship systems and hide Ludis’s group so well. ‘Once Dannika has cleared you, the lander will collect you and you can rejoin the colony.’
‘What about health concerns? Nanites cured all kinds of diseases,’ Ksenia said.
‘And they made a solar system uninhabitable. What the committee has hidden from you is that they did this because they became semi-sentient, and we still don’t know why. They’ll be destroyed.’
Destroyed? I glanced at Siti and Quinn. Both were pale. He couldn’t mean to destroy all nanites on board the ship. Without them, systems stopped working. Atmosphere scrubbing would be reduced and solar radiation would rise to dangerous levels without the micro repairs to the shielding, especially for the genetic material on board. High radiation could damage their DNA, and we needed that if we had any hope of a diverse, healthy population on the ground. He couldn’t do this. We couldn’t let him. Replacing that many nanites would take months, months in which irreparable damage could be done.
‘You don’t think that’s short-sighted?’ Ksenia asked. She, too, looked pale and drawn.
‘Rima’s already had a chance to make these arguments. Does anyone have questions or comments in favour?’
The camera panned back to the candidates. Ratan wriggled forward to be seen. ‘You realise this is a mutiny? This hasn’t been a lawful changeover. How can this be a lawful vote?’
Ludis looked to the camera, his jaw tense. ‘I can live with not being forgiven if it means the nanite threat has been removed. Voting will begin soon.’ He cut the feed, and I swallowed down a sudden surge of bile. Whatever the vote said, he wouldn’t be backing down. He was as in this as the dropouts.
Siti’s fists clenched as she glared at empty space. ‘They’ll be back here, soon.’
‘I agree. We’re the last people they want on the lander.’ At least our presence here might stop them going straight to the health deck and realising they were cut off from their drug supply…
‘So what’s the plan? Are we going to stay here, or make a move?’ Quinn asked.
I did my calculations again. ‘We need them to waste at least five hours, long enough for the patrol to come to.’
Siti sighed. ‘Not sure Ludis will let us stay here that long. Now that he knows we’re on the lander, we’re a threat. A big one.’
‘Yeah. I was surprised he didn’t mention where we are in his speech to rile up his supporters.’
‘He probably wasn’t briefed yet.’
I wished he had been. If I had a clue how he planned to move us, I’d have a much better idea how to react. Problem was, I saw two sides. My gut was torn between staying on the lander to stop Ludis using it and leaving to help Ashoka secure the patrol. I couldn’t do both… but we didn’t all need to be stuck here during the siege.
‘Siti, I want you to sneak into the lower levels. Stay below C-14 until you can make a break for it. See if you can help Ashoka gather the patrol.’
‘Five hours is a lot of time to kill.’
‘I know, but if they break into the lander, it’s all we’ve got.’
‘I’ll do my best.’
She grabbed her stunner and gestured for me to open the airlock. She was out of sight in minutes, no doubt stealing up the stairs. I could only hope I’d made the right choice. If Rima gave up the override code, they could get our whole plan out of Siti.
* * *
Two hours passed before we heard chatter on the deck. Our surveillance was massively reduced now we weren’t plugged into the Courage’s systems, but I looked to Quinn anyway.
‘Any idea how many are out there?’
‘No.’ He hadn’t even touched the control panel.
I peered out the airlock, no longer bothering to shut off the lights or hide away. They knew we were here. Four bulky guards waved at me. Two guarded their friends’ backs while the other two approached the airlock. Both doors were as locked as they were before, so what were they plan
ning? Quinn was sure Dannika couldn’t guess the code. She didn’t have enough tries before the system would lock her out.
The tallest and most muscular guard grinned and used the intercom. ‘I heard a kin kid was squatting in the lander with some nanite-infested candidates.’
I rolled my eyes. Insults, was that their plan? ‘That’s me.’
‘You don’t think you’re safe in there, do you?’
‘Well, I know you don’t have the override code.’
‘That’s true, but we have something better.’
He turned to show a plasma cutter, strapped to his back. The intense heat it put out was stronger than entering an atmosphere and could easily get through both airlocks in under an hour, but it would also destroy them. They’d take months to fix without nanites.
‘You wouldn’t dare.’
‘What makes you say that?’
‘You’d waste months fixing the damage. Ludis wouldn’t waste that much time.’
‘He would prefer you leave the lander freely.’
I crossed my arms. ‘I bet he would.’ This was a threat, nothing more.
‘Any chance you’ll save us the trouble?’
Even if I didn’t need to waste their time, I wouldn’t leave. ‘You’re bluffing.’
‘Oh, honey. Your help would be useful, but it’s not required.’
‘He really gave you permission to cut your way in? He must have lost his mind. You know if the fix isn’t perfect, the lander could crash, right? So long, exploration team.’
‘We’re aware.’ He pulled the cutter off his back and began the set-up process without so much as a frown.
‘That doesn’t worry you?’
‘We’d still have the Courage.’
‘That’s meant to be a last resort. We don’t have the fuel to leave Ristar if we can’t survive.’
He shrugged and tested the cutter. A loud hiss and a dazzlingly bright light spewed out the metal tip. ‘Last chance to leave, Errai. Help us out, if you’re so concerned.’ He shut off the torch to don heavy gloves, a thick apron, and a face mask.
Quinn brushed against me, staring at the flame at it sparked back up. ‘He’ll never do it.’
The guard approached the first airlock, cutter lit and ready. ‘Still going to stay put?’
‘Why risk so much before the vote is even over?’ Quinn asked.
The guards didn’t reply.
‘I think they’re going to send their team before the results are in,’ I muttered, just loud enough for Quinn to hear. Nothing else made sense. If they won the vote, they’d have time, more than enough time, to get into the lander without a plasma cutter. The vote was a democratic smokescreen.
I could only stare at the blue-white heat of the cutter as it pressed closer and closer to the airlock until I could no longer see the guard’s gloved hands through the door. Then orange sparks flew across the windowpane, and the high-pressure screeching hiss of the plasma cutter fired through the outer airlock. They did it. They actually did it. I could see smoke at head height, where the cutter was almost through the metal, and then light filled the airlock. He was through, and yet he still cut, making the hole wider, and longer.
‘He has no idea what he’s doing,’ Quinn hissed.
‘What do you mean?’
‘That hole isn’t necessary. He could have cut out the door lock but he’s literally cutting out the door.’
‘Hey! Did you hear that?’ I yelled.
The hissing continued without pause, the line growing until it took up one side of the door, then two. They were halfway through the third cut when I finally understood. Collateral damage didn’t matter to them. They were so set on ridding the ship and Ristar of nanites, they’d accept almost any casualties.
‘If you don’t care about the damage you’re doing to this ship, why should we leave the lander? We have no guarantee we’ll be safe.’
The cutter finally shut off. At first I thought they were listening, but then a resounding crash echoed through the deck. They’d only moved out the way of the falling door. They were inside the first airlock. The second door didn’t have a code panel, which meant they’d be in the hold within minutes.
I looked to Quinn. He squeezed my hand. His other hand held his baton and was tapping it against his thigh. He was revved up, ready for a fight. My chest was tight, but I felt the same. All I wanted was to shove my stunner in their faces. The damage they’d done was enough to section the deck. We’d need to use the deck above as an airlock if the damage wasn’t fixed, which was an awful waste of oxygen. I couldn’t let them mutilate the lander too.
‘I’m letting them in.’
Quinn nodded and dropped my hand. ‘It’s our only choice. If I still had systems control, I could have opened the hold door and spaced them, but…’
Spacing them. I couldn’t imagine it. Thankfully, I didn’t have to. ‘Think we can win against four of them?’
‘We have to try.’
Less than three hours and the patrol would be moving. We had to delay. Eventually, they’d win and get their hands on us, but hopefully they’d torture us for the code instead of tearing open the lander like a tin can. Never thought I’d wish for torture… ‘You ready?’
The guards were already setting up near the lander airlock for round two.
‘We’re coming out!’ I yelled.
I entered the code as Quinn leant toward my ear and whispered, ‘They may be bulky, but the two in the back are from maintenance. They’re strong, but not fighters.’
‘We’re not fighters either.’
A smile bit into his cheek and his spicy scent washed over my senses as he kissed the top of my head. ‘We’re better trained.’
I smiled and followed him back into the lander’s cargo hold as the outer airlock opened. It wasn’t what the guards expected. They scrambled back, stunners and batons raised, but I swept my hand, inviting them in.
‘Weapons down,’ the big guy said.
‘No, sorry. After seeing what you did to that airlock, I’ll go freely but I won’t go unarmed.’
He huffed but shut off the cutter and shouldered through the first airlock door with his friends. They bumped shoulders in the small space, but there was no blip in their steady gaze. No doubt they were counting on the benefit of numbers.
I gripped my stunner and settled into a subtle stance. Any minute now…
The lead guard stepped forward, over the final airlock door. I tripped him as he stepped down. Quinn whacked the baton from his hands and I stunned him as he yelped. His baton scuttled across the floor and hit a metal canister behind me while the guard went headfirst into the deck. In the tight space, his friends almost had to walk over him to get to us. That was the benefit of Sabine’s brutal training, but I couldn’t get cocky. The other three would be prepared.
They jumped over their friend and rushed us, stunners up.
I sidestepped and punched a maintenance guard in the back. He stumbled into the stunner I’d placed against his side and went down hard. Two more. Quinn was facing both, blocking attacks with his baton but backing up, towards strapped-down supplies. I went after them, ready to stun the guards in the back, but they were already on him. Quinn tumbled over a pile of supplies and fell. His head hit the deck hard and he blinked up at the ceiling as the remaining maintenance guard’s stunner caught him in the chest. He was out.
The guards turned on me. I ran toward the far corner, stooping to pick up the first guard’s baton. With that in one hand and the stunner in the other, I waited. The closest guard aimed a kick at my head, but he’d telegraphed it. I dropped the baton, grabbed his foot, hauled him forward, and stunned his inner thigh as he fell past me. One left, and he was the biggest.
‘You sure this is what you want to do?’ I asked, retrieving the baton.
‘Only you left, and you’re a little thing.’
‘So’s Sabine.’
‘You’re not security-trained.’
‘Neither are you. You�
�re maintenance, through and through.’
He grinned. ‘Caught me.’
A series of feints and punches backed me toward the airlock. I breathed fast, impressed with his quick blows. He fought dirty, using the dark space and my smaller size to his advantage. He meant to trip me or trap me against a wall, but I’d spotted a pattern to his punches. I ducked under the next one and spun behind him. He turned before I could stun him, but it was enough to knock his confidence.
‘You’re fast.’
I was done with conversation.
He tried a similar series of feints and punches, but I knew what I was looking for now. I slammed the baton on his arm as he threw the last punch. He cried out and charged, bodily shoving me into a wall. My breath left me, and his charger was so close I felt the sparks against my neck, but I went weightless, thumped into the deck, and stunned his ankle. He collapsed on top of me, his butt around my shoulders.
I extricated myself. Not the most dignified win, but I’d take it.
* * *
I kept an eye and an ear on the deck as I tied the guards with shipping straps. I’d just finished with the second guard when I heard a faint ping. The elevator. I’d not have time to tie the rest, or move the cutter into the lander, but I didn’t plan on holding another game of who’ll blink first. Instead, I left the lander and locked the door.
Nomi and three other guards were clearly visible through the gaping hole in the ship’s airlock. No sign of Ludis. Nomi pointed to the stairs. I moved further into the ship’s hold to see.
Ludis clutched Rima’s arm tight enough to bruise, but she was already mangled, her fingers broken into unsightly angles. Bruises covered her neck down, and her clothes were dark and patchy, as if they hid injuries beneath. I wished I had my comm to record the way she staggered down the stairs because my eyes struggled to believe she’d been brought so low. What Ludis had allowed to be done to her needed to be documented.
‘Errai, still causing trouble?’ His voice carried.