by R. E. Vega
Brooks let out a sigh, not quite one of exasperation, but it was close. It almost seemed more of a resignation, and unfortunately for Lieutenant Brooks, that might have been an accurate prediction of his future.
Unnen Gosi was a local Castalian trader Kaylin had done business with a number of times. Only this was no normal trade.
“This?” Kaylin put her hands on her hips. Her jaw tensed so tightly she thought she might break a tooth or two. “You think this is acceptable work?”
Brooks maneuvered the box of cargo to the space near the door, setting down the box of what appeared to be fabric before turning to join the captain.
“It’s the best we could do given the circumstances.” The man Unnen had been working with for the past several weeks came over to stand next to him. Unnen turned to look at him, probably admiring what he considered a quality job. “You have to agree, the likeness is striking.”
Kaylin’s brow rose despite her best attempts to hide the contempt she was feeling. This is a goddamned mistake. How in the hell did I ever think we could get away with this?
The clearing of her first officer’s throat interrupted her thoughts. “It’s only three months there and three months back.” His voice dropped, and she was sure he was trying to cover his own discomfort at the idea of being stuck on the Castalian outpost for that long.
Once upon a time, Castalia would have been a fantastic place for a six-month shore leave. As it was now, it was little more than a ghost town, though the population was still here somewhere.
And if we can somehow complete this mission, maybe we can get things back to normal…
It wasn’t like Kaylin to worry about the greater good, particularly for the people of the Interplanetary Union. But things had become so bad under the new rule of President Trousso, she saw little other choice in the matter. If she could do something—anything—to get things back to the way they’d been under President Harcrow, she owed the former government that much.
She shook her head. “This isn’t going to work. There’s no way the inspectors are going to buy that this…this person is supposed to be my first officer. He’s supposed to look like Brooks.”
“Then give him an official demotion.” Unnen smiled, glancing over at the man beside him. “I’m certain that if you make a log detailing some event that transpired during the course of your visit to Castalia, you could justify a demotion for your second in command.”
She pressed her lips in a hard line, trying to think of a way—any way—to get out of the agreement she had made with Harcrow’s people.
The man Unnen had been working on smiled. “I think you’ll find I have plenty of experience being second in command, Captain Arleth.” He glanced at Lieutenant Brooks. “Not that I’m about to try and replace you. And let me say once again how much I appreciate that you’re willing to do this for me—”
Brooks interrupted the man. “It has nothing to do with willingness, Sir. This has to do with money. Enough for us all to get out of this game—to get out of whatever the hell happened to what we used to think of as the IU.” He lifted a brow. “And I fully intend on retiring with the funds that will be transferred to me upon your safe delivery to Oenone.”
Unnen grinned. “We’re all going to retire upon your cargo’s—Vice President Barner’s—safe arrival.” He glanced over at President Harcrow’s former second in command, who looked nothing like Brooks.
The two men were of a similar build, which was why Kaylin had accepted the job in the first place. They also had the same eye color and a similar hue to their skin. Their noses were the main problem—Barner’s was much more bulbous, making it infinitely harder to disguise. Considering it was his most prominent feature, it was also what concerned Kaylin most. They definitely would need to do something about Barner’s nose if they were going to get away with trying to pass the man off as Brooks for the next three months.
Unnen continued. “And I do think my handiwork was exceptional this time, Captain Arleth. He looks exactly like your first officer. You have to admit, compared to last time—”
“Last time we transported a woman trying to escape one of the brothels, Unnen. And she served as the ship’s cook on the transport. Not as my first officer.” Kaylin looked at the man requesting her services again. “It’s shoddy work, even for you.”
Unnen’s grin fell. “If you have a suggestion, Captain, I’ll be glad to try to fix it as best as I can. Or if you have—”
“We have no time for that, Unnen, and you know it. We leave at sunrise.” She motioned for Brooks to return to the cargo they had just delivered.
If this had been a normal trade run, she would have loved to stay an entire week. Even with the current state of affairs on Castalia, it was still far better than the grim conditions of deep space travel. And she wasn’t looking forward to the next six months any more than any of the men in the room were—she knew it was going to be brutal, and it had nothing to do with the length of the trip. It was much more to do with the knowledge they were going to be stopped by Trousso’s patrols at every opportunity, especially if this trip to Castalia raised any suspicions.
No, it was far better to make this trip as short as possible, not giving any of the crew shore leave aside from Brax. Not that what he was doing was much of a vacation, but she was certain he was going to enjoy the short trip all the same.
Brooks typed in the code on top of the cargo box, maneuvering the lid in such a way as to reveal the actual contents of the container. Not that the fabrics and dresses inside weren’t valuable in themselves—it was their value that hid the true nature of what was inside. At least, that had been what had always worked in the past. Figuring out the best way to hide contraband inside cargo boxes was something of a talent of Thad’s.
Brooks shifted something on one side of the container, revealing a tiny, empty compartment. He fiddled with something else, revealing a space on the other side of the box and he pulled out the contents, bringing the item back over to the group.
“Is that…is that what I think it is?” Barner’s face went white. “Is that—?”
“An A’lyph transformer.” Brooks nodded. “You have no idea what we went through to get this baby.”
Barner shook his head. “I don’t… Is that thing even safe?”
Kaylin shrugged. “I guess we’ll find out. But trust me…” She motioned at the man. “There’s no way you’re going to pass for Lieutenant Brooks without it.” The questionable safety of A’lyph technology was how Trousso had convinced the people in the IU that its banning was the only option. She had used one of these a few times on people of importance—it wasn’t as though you could just transport a wanted criminal without changing something about their appearance—or at least the appearance of their genetic makeup. The stakes were much higher this time, though, and she was all too aware that even an A’lyph magic trick that made her new passenger’s DNA look like that of her first officer’s might not be enough. Even though she had access to much of the data from Trousso’s new regime, they were coming up with new ways to keep tabs on the people of the IU all the time. For all she knew, they might have already found a way to read through the smoke and mirrors of the small device.
And it was still pissing her off that the only compatible DNA on board was that of her first officer. She would have preferred to trade anyone else. Even Thad. But that was a different story.
“How did…how did you get it past the inspectors? I mean…” He glanced at Unnen and back at the captain. “The new scanners Trousso’s people have… They should have caught this easily.”
“Don’t underestimate my ability to get a job done, Vice President Barner.” She glared at the man. “It’s why you hired me.”
ULAN
He wasn’t sure how long he’d been in the secret compartment, but it was long enough for both his legs to have gone completely numb.
By the time Thad finally slid aside the panel to release him, Ulan was starting to get irritable.
Thad shrugged and gave a wry little half smile. “Don’t blame me. Just following orders.” His expression sobered a little. “The customs officers were a lot more thorough than usual. They almost found us out.”
Ulan cursed in his native tongue. “What happened?”
“My work did the trick. The captain and Brooks are delivering the goods as we speak.”
“And you couldn’t have released me sooner?” Ulan stood fully and stretched, trying to work the kinks out of his body.
“You haven’t seen what Castalia is like now,” Thad says. “Trousso’s got his people all over this place. You can smell the fear from the top of the gangway.”
Ulan would have liked to see it for himself, but it wasn’t worth the risk. When Trousso came to power, he immediately ordered the deportation of all A’lyph from the IU. Those who ignored the order fared far worse. If anyone were to discover that Defiance had entered Castalia with an A’lyph on board—that he was one of their crew—the entire team would be punished. And they’d all heard the rumors about what happened to those who blatantly flouted Trousso’s new laws.
How the people of the IU could have willingly elected such a monster was beyond him. But perhaps he shouldn’t have been so surprised. The A’lyph, his people, were on friendly terms with humans in many of the outer colonies and outposts, but the closer you got to the center of the Interplanetary Union—Earth and its closest sister colonies—the fewer A’lyph there were. In those places, A’lyph were viewed with suspicion, even fear.
A farce, considering humans had done far more harm to his people than the other way around. And considering that humans wouldn’t have even made it off their dingy little planet in the first place if the A’lyph hadn’t shared their terraforming technology. Ungrateful species.
Ulan stretched his arms over his head. “When do you think—?”
CLANG!
The sound echoed down the corridor through the ship. Immediately, both Ulan and Thad went on the alert. Thad pulled the weapon from his belt.
“What was that, do you think?” Thad said quietly.
“No idea.” Ulan’s senses of sight and hearing were more advanced than those of his human companions—they’d be screwed without him, as useless as their pathetic human senses were—but there was too little information.
The sound came again.
“It’s coming from the stern of the ship,” Ulan said. “I can’t tell whether it’s coming from inside or outside, though. There’s too much echo.”
“Someone could be trying to get in,” Thad said. “Pirates, perhaps, thinking we’re all ashore. Or maybe some of Trousso’s people, performing an off-the-books investigation.”
“They’re not being very sneaky about it, whoever they are,” Ulan mused. Human idiots. “Either way, we should probably investigate.”
“I’ll go. You get back in the compartment.”
“If there’s trouble, you’ll want me there.”
But Thad gave a jerk of his head. “It’s too risky. If anyone knows we have an A’lyph on board, we’re all at risk.” He raised his wrist and tapped his communications device. “Gregson, do you hear that?”
“Yes, sir,” came the reply. “Ruce and I were just about to go investigate.”
“Meet me by the bunks,” Thad said. “We’ll go together.” He lowered his wrist and turned back to Ulan. “Get in, quick.”
Ulan wanted to argue, but he knew that the engineer was right. The safest thing for everyone was for him to return to hiding.
Grumbling, he quickly lowered himself back into the hidden compartment. His legs began cramping again immediately, but the space was too small and he was too tall to fold himself into any other position.
“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Thad promised as he slid the panel back over him.
Ulan muttered more A’lyph curses to himself as he listened to Thad’s footsteps retreat down the corridor. He enjoyed a good fight—especially against pirates—and he hated the fact that he had to sit this one out. He’d been itching for a good scuffle for weeks, ever since Trousso’s victory was announced.
He shifted slightly, trying to take the weight off his left hip, and listened. The ship softly ached and groaned in her usual ways—even the finest vessels had a voice if you listened carefully enough—but he was more interested in the unusual sounds today.
Another clang trembled through her. Now, with his ear right against the cool metal of the compartment, he could pinpoint exactly where the sound was coming from—the starboard side of the stern, not so very far from where he hid. It was almost certainly coming from outside, but when whatever it was struck against the outside of Defiance’s hull, the sound echoed through the ship’s very bones, amplifying as it traveled down the corridors. What sounded quite loud to them might not sound so very loud outside the ship—it could very well be someone trying to break their way in.
He waited, his ear pressed against the cool metal of the compartment. His fingers pressed against the wall, feeling for even the slightest unusual vibration. His slightly forked tongue slid across his upper lip as he focused the whole of his concentration on trying to decipher what was going on.
For what felt like an eternity, he heard and felt nothing. The cramps in his legs worsened, but he didn’t dare move them and miss even the slightest trembling of the ship.
And then, all at once, the silence broke.
First he heard another CLANG!—this one louder than all the rest. Then he heard the angry shout of Gregson. After that, the sounds became muddled—he heard the banging of metal, the grunts and yells of men, the thumps of a scuffle. Several blaster guns went off—but whether those weapons belonged to Defiance’s crew or the intruders, Ulan couldn’t say.
He couldn’t tell how many intruders there were. He could sense where they were in the ship, and that there was a great commotion going on, but that was it. Were three men of the Defiance enough to hold off whoever—or whatever—had broken in? Even if Dayna heard and joined the fray, it sounded like their crew was at a disadvantage.
Either way, Ulan had no intention of leaving his companions to face this danger alone.
He shifted, rolling more fully onto his back and pressing his hands against the panel above him. Surely there had to be a way out of here from the inside. Thad wasn’t one to overlook such details. He pressed against the panel, but it didn’t budge. When he couldn’t move it with his strength, he ran his fingers along the edges, looking for a latch or a catch that would spring the whole thing open.
He found nothing.
He tried using his strength again, this time employing his feet as well. He pressed and pushed and tried to slide the door from every angle. Nothing worked.
Cursing Thad for not thinking to provide him with some sort of escape route, he rolled back onto his side again, once more pressing his ear to the metal. The fighting sounded louder. Closer. If his crewmates hadn’t made quick work of the intruders, that meant they were in trouble.
And he was trapped, unable to do anything.
Unless…
Using his A’lyph virtue was generally unwise, but it was especially unwise when they were docked at an IU colony. They’d heard rumors that Trousso’s scientists were in the process of developing—or had already developed—technology that could sense virtue activity from nearly a league away. But even if they hadn’t, virtue wasn’t exactly subtle. Especially if the intruders were Trousso’s people.
But if Thad and the others couldn’t hold off the intruders by themselves, he would be found anyway.
No, he had no choice. The blasted humans were helpless without him.
Closing his eyes, he let the power build in his belly. Anyone looking at him would see his abdomen start to glow—the color differed from A’lyph to A’lyph, but his light was a cloudy blue—but to him it felt simply like warm smoke
, like he was being filled by hot, swirling air.
He raised his hands, pressing them against the compartment door above him. This was his last chance to change his mind, to stop his power.
But there was no other choice.
The virtue surged through him, flowing from his stomach up through his hands. The door of the compartment glowed blue for the briefest of moments and then blasted off its hinges, flying into the corridor above him.
He was free. And now it was time to kick some ass.
DAYNA
Dayna Jackson knew she looked much younger than her twenty-six years, and every so often her youthful appearance was an advantage.
She raised her hands over her head when the two men entered Defiance’s bridge, backing slowly toward the con. The gunfire stopped immediately, and she could see the look in their eyes—that look. The unmistakable assumption by the two men that she was theirs for the taking.
“Well, well. Looks like we saved the best for last, eh Jones?” The look he gave her was something between ogling and sneering. He took a few more steps toward her, lowering his weapon to belt level. “Oh, we are going to have some fun, love.”
“Please…” She did her best to make her voice sound as meek as possible as she inched toward the con. “Please, don’t hurt me. I’ll do anything.”
“Oh, you’ll do anything, all right.” The raider stepped away from the door to the bridge, nearly catching up to his companion. He leered at her as he used his weapon to motion her to the floor. “And the first thing I think I want is for you to get on your knees and open wide.”