by A. K. DuBoff
“Right.” Alyssa took a centering breath. She placed her hand on the biometric lock for the case; it let out an angry beep.
“The central security team may have overlooked your access, but I didn’t,” Mariah said. “You’ll never—”
Finn knocked her on the back of her head with a metal frame component that had been on one of the workstations. “Sorry, Alyssa.”
“No apology needed,” she replied. “I was about to do that myself. Help me get her over here.”
Finn and Alyssa dragged Mariah’s unconscious form to the MEC’s case. Alyssa grabbed her right hand and placed it on the biometric scanner. The display prompted for a password.
“Triss, a little help?” Finn said.
“On it.” Triss took her hacking kit and hooked into the console. She ran through the password combinations; in a matter of seconds, a match appeared and the case unlocked. “Huh. It was ‘Fuzzybutt0ns’, apparently.”
“Ah,” Alyssa nodded. “Good ol’ Mr. Fuzzybuttons. He was my pet rabbit.”
“Oh, you never mentioned him before,” Triss commented.
Alyssa scowled. “Yeah, it’s a bit of sore subject.”
“Why, what happened to him?” Jack asked.
“My parents decided it would be a great life lesson to eat him for dinner. Figures Mom would immortalize that event with her password.”
Jack’s mouth dropped open. “Your parents made you eat your pet rabbit?”
Finn whistled between his teeth. “That’s some messed up parenting.”
“Yeah… I’ll just be the one to say it,” Triss cut in. “Your mom is pretty awful.”
“No need to tell me.” Alyssa dropped Mariah on the floor and opened up the MEC case. She gingerly took the device from the pedestal and examined it. “I’ll find a way to get this into the right hands—somewhere as far away from here as possible. We need to grab the schematics, too.”
“I’m on it.” Finn pivoted to one of the workstations so he could access the files and grab the relevant documentation.
Triss handed Alyssa a carrying case for the MEC. “What do we do with your mom?”
“Lock her in the closet, I guess,” Alyssa suggested. “Someone will find her eventually.”
Jack helped Alyssa and Triss drag Mariah to a closet on the side wall and prop her up inside. She stirred when they had her in position and then began snoring softly.
Alyssa was the last to step out from the closet when they were finished. “Maybe we can come to terms with each other eventually.”
Triss took her hand. “I’ll be here to support you no matter what happens.”
“Thanks.”
“I hate to break up the tender moment,” Finn interjected, “but I have the files. And I just checked the security feed and we’re about to have some company. Looks like not everyone got our email about Mexcelente, and some of the guards that stayed behind seem to have found our actinium.”
“No need for the suits anymore?” Jack asked.
“Not as far as I’m concerned.” Finn began removing his. “The actinium has been removed.”
The others quickly stripped down to their regular street clothes and grabbed their gear.
“We’ll have to make a run for it,” Alyssa said. She drew her laser pistol. “And we might have to shoot our way out.”
Finn readied his pistol and grinned. “Oh darn.”
CHAPTER 17: The Great Escape
— — —
Jack followed Alyssa, Triss, and Finn out of the lab. Moments after the door slid closed behind them, rapid footsteps echoed down the hall from the direction of the exit.
“That’s the only way out,” Alyssa said. “If they shoot at you, shoot back.”
“No need to tell me twice.” Triss aimed her laser pistol in front of her.
“No argument here.” Jack readied his weapon. Without the containment canister or hazmat suit, he felt nimble and ready for anything the guards could throw his way. He smiled with anticipation for the thrill of the fight ahead.
Alyssa noticed his enthusiasm. “Why don’t you go first, Jack.”
He groaned. “You just want them to use me for target practice instead of you.”
“Obviously. Go on!” she urged.
With a sigh, he loped down the hall. “I have no idea where I’m going, by the way.”
“Follow the bad guys,” Triss replied. “It’s a fair bet they’ll be blocking our path.”
“Yay—” Jack’s sarcastic retort was truncated by a laser blast zipping by his ear. “And they found us.” He ducked around the corner of the nearest side corridor.
“Pretty sure they knew where we were the whole time.” Alyssa slid in next to him and crouched low to the floor.
“Hand over the MEC and come out with your hands up!” a male guard called out.
“Gonna pass on that.” Alyssa reached her hand around corner and opened fire.
“Take cover!” the guard ordered his companions.
Jack peeked around the corner as Alyssa pulled back, and he fired at the shoulder of someone wearing white body armor who was taking cover in the next hallway intersection. The shot connected and the guard sprawled dead on the ground.
“Nice shooting,” Alyssa said. She poked her head out enough to spot a target and fired, taking out another guard.
Triss and Finn were hunkered down on the other side of the hallway intersection opposite Alyssa and Jack, and they were engaged with their own set of guards.
“We’re picking ’em off!” Finn cheered. “Keep at it.”
It was Jack’s turn to take a shot while Alyssa planned her next move. He switched glanced around the corner, seeing one of the white-clad guards running across the hall to reposition. Jack fired two shots in rapid succession and the guard was struck in the leg and then his torso, causing him to fall backward with a cry.
“We’ll have them in no time,” Alyssa said.
“Jack, help us out on this side,” Triss said. “This is a better angle.”
“All right.” Jack prepared to jump across the hall. He lined up a leap and dove for it, unaware that one of his boot lashings had come undone.
Jack tripped the moment he left cover. He found himself standing hunched over in the center of the hall, completely exposed.
A dozen laser shots zipped all around him. Miraculously, none connected.
Not wanting to chance it, he finished his run across the hall and ducked to safety with Triss and Finn.
“That was close!” he breathed.
“We need to press forward,” Triss said. “Just seven more to take out and then we can run to the next intersection.”
Jack dropped to his stomach and positioned himself below where Finn was standing and Triss was crouched.
The three of them took aim and fired at the five remaining guards in their line of sight, while Alyssa took out the two guards visible from her angle. The seven guards fell to the ground amid their slain comrades.
Jack rose to his feet. “Body count is kind of stacking up.”
Alyssa assessed the pile of guards in the ineffective white armor. “That’s what they get for trying to take us on.”
“We’re kind of terrible people, aren’t we?” Jack realized.
The other three shrugged.
Jack brushed it off, and they resumed their forward push. Just shy of the intersection where the first wave of guards had taken up position, a new wave suddenly appeared down the hall. The guards began firing before Jack and the others could take cover.
A torrent of red blasts filled the corridor, completely surrounding the group. Yet, no one was struck.
“These guys have terrible aim,” Finn laughed and continued walking forward, remaining unscathed by the enemy barrage.
Alyssa shook her head with disbelief. “I think they are literally not capable of hitting us.”
Jack fired at one of the guards and his shot landed square in the guard’s chest. “Meanwhile, I’m not even trying to aim
and I hit them every time!”
“This is simultaneously awesome and ridiculous,” Alyssa agreed as she also opened fire while continuing forward.
“Good to be us, I guess,” Finn said as he took out another guard.
Triss laughed. “Look! I’m firing with my eyes closed and still have better aim than them!”
“I guess it won’t be tough getting out of here after all,” Alyssa said.
They continued working their way through the hall, firing randomly and taking out the guards while remaining untouchable. In short order, they reached the lobby where a final defensive line was waiting to stop them.
“You’ll never get away!” one brave guard shouted. He released two dozen blasts at the group.
All the shots struck the floors and wall around them, forming a singed outline of where they were standing.
Alyssa smiled. “You get an ‘A’ for effort, but we’ll be on our way now.”
They walked out the door while the guards continued their hopeless assault.
“We’ll get you!” one of the remaining guards called out. “You don’t stand a—”
Jack blindly aimed behind him and took out the heckler. “Best heist ever.”
CHAPTER 18: Nowhere to Run
— — —
Still laughing and joking while they casually strolled away from the GiganCorp lab, the group returned to the Little Princess with the MEC safely in hand.
“So, what’s our next move?” Jack asked as soon as they were on the ship. He flopped down on the couch. “Getting the MEC was easy enough, but we still have the Vorlox after us, and your friends from Svetlana’s crew need rescuing.”
Alyssa frowned and took a seat at the galley table. “I just wanted to get the MEC and be done with everything. Why did the Vorlox have to come along and make everything complicated?”
Triss coughed into her hand, “Plot Device Principle.”
Alyssa ignored her. “I guess we have no choice but to meet with the Vorlox and try to negotiate for our friends’ releases.”
“But where do we find the Vorlox?” Finn asked as he shoved Jack’s legs aside to make room on the couch for himself to sit. “They told us to get the MEC in two days—which we’ve now done—but there were no instructions about where to meet them.”
“Maybe they’ll find us?” Jack speculated.
“I don’t want Svetlana or the others to get hurt.” Alyssa shook her head. “I guess we just head up into space and see what happens.”
Without further delay, Alyssa and Triss piloted the Little Princess into orbit.
“Should we stick around in this system?” Finn questioned when the main space station around the planet was visible out the window in the common area. “I mean, the guards had terrible aim so we got away, but what if GiganCorp sends the authorities after us?”
“Good point,” Jack seconded. “We should probably put as much distance between us and this planet as we can.”
“Sending the authorities after us would mean admitting what was stolen,” Alyssa pointed out. “I’m not sure they’re ready for the breakthrough to be public knowledge.”
“There are ways to keep it vague enough,” Triss countered. “We should play it safe.”
“And what about the Vorlox? They probably know this is where we’d get the MEC, so it’s a logical place for them to come looking for us,” Alyssa stated. “If we go anywhere else, they might think we tried to run and will kill everyone.”
“Maybe we should go back to the Winkelson station?” Triss suggested. “That’s where we last encountered them and they told us to get the MEC for them.”
“Yes, but I don’t want to be implicated in the station’s destruction or those deaths,” Alyssa objected.
Jack raised his hand. “Not to be a downer, but we just killed about fifty people on camera.”
Triss groaned. “You’re right—we never set the camera on loop.”
“Not to mention my mom,” Alyssa realized.
“Outlaws!” Finn cheered.
“We have seen the power of reputation…” Triss mused.
“The possibility of warrants is a whole other matter and will have to wait,” Alyssa said, refocusing. “We just can’t get caught before we make sure our friends get free. Given that, we shouldn’t go to the Winkelson station. The other place we’ve encountered the Vorlox is where Luxuria was destroyed.”
“Where it all began,” Jack murmured.
“How delightfully full-circle, I know.” Alyssa took a resolute breath. “That’s where we’ll go.”
The Little Princess made the jump to hyperspace moments later before anyone could think of another reason for them to do something different. In reality, there was no clear course of action. They had in their possession one of the greatest scientific breakthroughs in two centuries, authorities could come to arrest them at any moment, a band of potentially crazed killers was after them, and their friends’ lives were on the line. Going anywhere was a risk, but at least going back to the site of a former home was a return to the familiar.
When the ship had completed its initial acceleration, Jack kicked Finn from the couch so he could stretch out. “I’m so tired. Hangover sleep is not good sleep.”
“Well,” Alyssa emerged from the cockpit, “this might be the perfect chance for me to test out the MEC’s application with coffee brewing.”
“Moment of truth!” Triss called out from her seat at the flight controls.
“If this doesn’t work, then we can start working our way down the infinite list of other things we can do with it. But if it does…” Alyssa trailed off as she turned her attention to rummaging through the galley for the parts she needed to complete her contraption.
Jack watched her work on the galley table for the next half hour, mounting components from other equipment to the frame of the existing coffee brewer. Based on the deftness of her movements, she must have theorized a design in the preceding months. Eventually, the MEC was the final piece to be bolted into place.
“This should do it…” Alyssa said at last. She loaded in the coffee beans and activated the machine.
A blue glow illuminated around the contraption and it hummed with the bright tone of an angelic chorus.
After ten seconds, the glow dissipated and the aroma of brewed coffee filled the cabin.
Alyssa removed the single-serve cup from the machine and waved it under her nose. “So far so good.” She took a sip. “Stars! This—” She took another sip. “You have to try this!”
She ran to the cockpit and handed the cup to Triss. Her friend took the cup and smelled it cautiously. “It does have a great aroma.” She took a sip. “WOW!”
The Little Princess rolled to the side as Triss’ hand jerked on the controls.
“Let us in on it, come on!” Finn urged.
Alyssa returned to the common room and handed him the cup.
Finn sampled it. “Alyssa, you’re a genius.”
“My turn!” Jack pleaded. He took the cup from Finn, only to find that there was barely a sip left. He took the warm, brown liquid into his mouth. It was the perfect temperature to satisfy without risk of burning, and the flavor exploded on his taste buds. The coffee had none of the burned or bitter flavor he’d come to expect, but instead it was like his mouth had just been hugged by a chocolate teddy bear. “Wow… This coffee is, like, really good.”
Alyssa’s eyes lit up. “You really think so?”
“Absolutely. I could see this being the next big craze.” Jack looked at the empty cup. “Can you make some more?’
Alyssa enthusiastically prepared second, and then third, portions for everyone. In case anyone wanted more later, she also filled a metal thermos with extra coffee, which would hold it at temperature for at least eight hours. Considering that they had no idea when, or if, the Vorlox would show up at their chosen destination, an energy boost might be needed later on.
The rest of the hyperspace jump was spent in a marvelous caffeine buzz. Ja
ck made his bed and cleaned the bathroom, then completed all the dishes and straightened up the cabinets. Never had he felt so delightfully energized. The coffee must have had a similar effect on the others, as Jack noticed that Finn was organizing all the equipment for computer hacking and Triss appeared to be cleaning up the central database files while Alyssa programmed some new navigation subroutines.
By the time the Little Princess was preparing to drop out of hyperspace, the interior was ready for a photoshoot and the systems were operating with fifteen percent greater efficiency.
“I haven’t been this productive and focused… ever!” Jack exclaimed. “I think you’re really on to something with this MEC-brewed coffee, Alyssa.”
“I was just going for flavor,” she replied. “I never dreamed it’d have these bonus effects. It must have something to do with the energy field changing the chemical properties.”
“Regardless of the science behind it, I’m hooked,” Finn said.
“I never should have doubted you.” Triss gave Alyssa a proud smile.
Alyssa beamed. “Thanks, guys.”
The ship exited hyperspace a kilometer from the wreckage of the Luxuria. To their surprise, the Vorlox battleship was waiting for them at the broken structure.
“Well, looks like we guessed correctly,” Jack said.
The front console beeped. “Incoming communication,” Triss told them. She accepted the call.
The weapons on the Vorlox ship sprang to life—casings rolling back from the giant laser guns and massive hydraulic arms training the weapons toward the Little Princess. “Do you have the MEC?” the Vorlox representative asked over the comm.
“Are our friends okay?” Alyssa countered.
“They are fine,” the Vorloxian replied. “And they won’t be harmed so long as you give us the MEC without a fight.”
The Little Princess lurched as it was suddenly grappled in a tractor beam and pulled toward the mammoth Vorlox ship. “Prepare to be boarded. You will hand over the MEC.” The communication ended.
“I can try to break free…” Triss said.
“No, if we resist the others are as good as dead,” Alyssa told her. “We’ll need to pretend like we’re cooperating until we can figure out another way for us all to escape.”