The Boundary Zone

by A. B. Keuser

  She hadn’t meant Maeltar specifically, but… “So why are you working with her?”

  “Because I need her. Once we’ve dealt with the problems on this and the other ships, you and I will be done with them, and we won’t need the help of any human anymore.”

  He was so quick to throw off allegiances; Mack couldn’t be sure where his goals lay.

  Aaron turned his back on her, so sure she was on his side—despite everything.

  But when he pulled a long knife from his boot and sized up the console in front of him, she didn’t hesitate. Driving her boot into his knee, she caught his wrist, wrenching away the knife before he could do any damage.

  She aimed the second blow to the back of his neck, right where cable had showed her.

  His body hit the floor with a sickening thud, and she shoved him to the side, sparing a glance to make sure he was still breathing.

  With him out of the way, she worked through the changes he’d stumbled into making and triggered a bounce shield over the console. Aaron could wake up and try whatever he liked. He wasn’t getting through that shield, and he wasn’t going to destroy another Ka mind if she could help it.

  She left him there, He wouldn’t wake before she got back to him, and in her brief contact with the console, she’d seen the approaching shuttle.

  Running down the corridors, she hoped Maeltar had wandered off in another direction. She didn’t have time to slow her pace at every corner. Didn’t have time to collect a gun.

  She skidded to a stop at the wing like hatch and ducked inside the hangar bay as soon as the opening was wide enough.

  Stacy and Raza both turned to her, guns drawn.

  “Where’s Cable?”

  They shared a glance before Stacy said, “Still on the other ship. He’s got a few things on your honey-do list before he can get back here.”

  Cursing under her breath, she looked over her shoulder to the still closed door.

  “I have Aaron here. If we can get things sorted out, we don’t need to go back to the other Kazahan.”

  “What do we need to do.”

  If Maeltar had taken the bounce bubble back to the other ship—more likely than other options—she didn’t need the two of them to deal with her brother.

  Glancing briefly at the guns in their hands, she knew she did not want them pointed at Aaron.

  She needed a distraction. “Your missing ship is out there and we need to deal with that.”

  “The Curran?”

  She nodded stiffly. “It’s floating out among the kazahans. I don’t know if there are any survivors on it, but based on what I’ve seen, it’s possible she’s the ship Maeltar is using.

  Stacy and Raza shared a glance. “Cable told us to help you.”

  “You can help me, but figuring out what we can do about that.” She drew a map onto Raza’s palm and sent them to Vinnita’s ship where they could do their initial recon.

  She had different fish for the proverbial fryer.

  Mack rounded the corner, looking for something... anything, that could help her bind Aaron. He'd be stuck if she could get him down to the brig, but there was little chance of that. He was too heavy for her, and she was dizzy simply from trying to stay upright.

  Touching a hand to the back of her head, she felt the wetness from where Aaron had torn her scalp in his roughness. She shouldn't feel sorry for him. He was a monster.

  Pulling apart a console, she looked for non-vital systems. Something her Ka captain friends couldn't berate her for when this was over - she knew such an item didn't exist.

  She reached in, feeling the pulse of the ship, until she found a piece of cording that didn’t vibrate with the ship’s life force.

  Trussing him up, she pulled the cording tight. She did not want to deal with him if he got out.

  She wrested his gun from its holster just as she heard Maeltar coming up the corridor, speaking as though Aaron was expecting her.

  "I don't know how the hell he did it, but that fucking friend of yours is on board. Carr is going to be the death of me.... assuming I don't get to be the death of him first."

  She laughed aloud but the sound quickly faded to nothing as she glared at the pistol in Mack’s hands.

  "Mackenzie, how lovely to see you again. And I thought your brother had you 'well in hand' I guess that was just too good to be true. Wasn't it? I suppose I'll have to teach you some manners, as it's clear your brother is too stupid to get around to that."

  "He's not stupid, just misguided. And so are you if you think I'm letting you anywhere near me."

  Maeltar smiled that sickly little perk of her lips that made Mack want to vomit. She watched the woman closely, waiting for her to make his move.

  She never did.

  The hard kick came from behind, buckling her knees and sending her to the deck plating. Nrog picked her up, using his large hands to bind her.

  "Come on. I'll take that sack of shit if you can manage her."

  Nrog only nodded. Mack's head swam as she tried to focus on anything, the ceiling, Nrog's scarred face.... anything.

  The crassicau held her gently, though she was immobile, and for the briefest of seconds, she wondered why.

  Maeltar led them back to the transporter room and Nrog dropped her unceremoniously on the pad. The tingling washed over her and she blinked. The transporter on the other ship was vacant, clear. She didn't pause to wonder why, she stood and ran. Her ankles stung with a dull pain where Nrog had held them in their awkward angle, but she pushed through that. Her boots made too much noise on the bastardized hull plates, and black spots started to pool in her vision.

  She made it to the door at the far end of the corridor before she heard Maeltar's irritated shouts. Her hands gripped the handle, reefing on it to push or pull it open.

  She’d deal with the woman when the time came.

  But just in case…. She snatched up the knife she’d left discarded, and froze.

  Aaron was gone.

  Thirty-Five

  Rattling and shaking, a shudder rippled through the ship.

  Bezzon looked around him as if the man was expecting a giant to appear out of nowhere and gobble up the ship whole. Watching his face carefully, Cable knew he was in for a treat when Raza's part of the plan worked itself out.

  "Where the hell is he?" The guard looked over his shoulder, and Cable wondered why they were the only two on the control room.

  He knew there were two dozen men here in Maeltar's employ, and then there was the Crassicau with questionable loyalties…. He would have expected one of them to be on guard duty. Thankful he was wrong.

  "You know, if we're going to be here a while, I'm gonna need to sit down."

  "You got hip problems, old man? Too bad. You're standing."

  With his tongue in his teeth to keep from saying something stupid, Cable looked past him and out into the void. He could see the twinkling glimmer of the other ship, the one where Kenzie was safe and sound, thank Goddess.

  Maeltar is there.

  "What?"

  "I didn't say anything. Shut up and don't talk again unless I tell you to."

  “She was brought to this ship. I don't know what happened after that.”

  Keeping his jaw clenched, Cable turned and looked to the panel beside him. Balling his fists, he managed to stop himself from punching the console.

  "It must suck to be you.” Cable said, turning a glare on Bezzon. “Lowest man on the totem pole. You don't even know where your boss is."

  "I said shut it." He jerked the gun toward Cable and looked nervously to either side. "I know where he is. And soon, you won't be able to stop us."

  He shrugged. "All I'm saying is, maybe your boss wouldn't want you to be here, staring at me and twiddling your thumbs. Maybe he'd want you to take some decisive action."

  "Decisive action like I kill you?" His finger slid down to rest on the trigger. "Don't be an idiot."

  "Of course not, two in the room would be past capacity. I hav
e a feeling the ship would tear itself apart just to be rid of us."

  As if he planned it, the ship shuddered again, and something twisted beneath them. Placing his hand on the console, Cable stayed upright. His guard didn't, but the gun in his hand stayed leveled at Cable's chest.

  Cable put up both hands to show he had nothing to do with the lurching. His guard's eyes immediately went to the hand he'd kept hidden thus far.

  "What the hell?"

  "Oh, this? Yeah, I wouldn't touch anything. The Ka ship is organic, so it gets sick... it infected me."

  Bezzon's Adam's-apple bobbed. "In-infected you?" He looked like he was about to toss his lunch right onto the deck.

  "Yeah, it's okay though. I mean, you haven't been touching the walls have you?"

  He turned an odd shade of green.

  "Oh, that's too bad. Somebody should have warned you..... Oh god. Tell me you haven't used the Lav? It spreads on contact so...." Cable pointedly looked down to the man's pants and grimaced. "I am so sorry. I've got about a half an hour until this falls off."

  A whimper escaped Bezzon’s lips and his hands trembled with the gun.

  "It’s this damn alien tech, never quite what you bargained for."

  Swallowing hard, the guard took a step toward the hatch and looked between him and it, shifting. "Maybe we should take you to Maeltar. I need to find a medic."

  "Won't do any good... since we have next to no knowledge about the Ka, we don't know how to get rid of this." He held his hand up and wiggled his fingers. "Pretty sure I'll be getting fit for a prosthetic when I get back to the fleet."

  The look of sheer terror on Bezzon’s face was priceless.

  Cable managed a grimace. "Tough luck."

  The ship shuddered again, and Bezzon flinched. The sound that escaped his mouth wasn’t particularly human.

  “You sure Aaron didn’t leave you here to die? Pretty sure he’s on the other ship with Kenzie.”

  The man’s breathing was coming too fast, he was on the verge of hyperventilating, and Cable edged closer.

  Eyes narrowed, he raised the gun again. “You’re trying to distract me.”

  “Was it working?”

  Bezzon didn’t answer, he straightened his shoulders as though ready to stand guard for the long haul.

  Cable wouldn’t have minded, but if the ship was deteriorating as quickly as KaDen said, he didn’t have time to waste.

  “So, he promised to give Kenzie to you,” how Cable managed to say it without a grimace, he’d never know. “And he also promised her to Maeltar…. What makes you think he’s going to do either?”

  “I know the new Aaron. After what you did to him, I know exactly what he’s capable of, and he knows who his loyal friends truly are.”

  “But is he loyal to you? Is he even your friend?”

  Bezzon’s face hardened into a mask of fury, and Cable saw his grip change.

  “Was Kenzie all he promised you? I mean, you’ve deserted the Fleet now, aided and abetted two known terrorists… a death sentence would be the kinder option in what the Fleet has on offer for that.”

  Straightening his shoulders, Bezzon said, “It’s worth it.”

  Cable wouldn’t argue that Kenzie was worth a bit of treason. Her brother was not. And getting her in the method Bezzon was going about it left a sour taste in his mouth.

  “Did he tell you what he is?”

  “Of course he did.” Bezzon’s words were harsh, as though Cable had insulted him by merely asking.

  An ugly snort rang in Cable’s mind. He repeated KaDen’s words verbatim.

  “He’s kindiran. He hasn’t earned the title of Ka.”

  Bezzon flinched away from the wall he’d backed too close to.

  “You don’t know anything about it.”

  “I do. Because Kenzie told me. Because Kenzie knows more about all of this than her brother does. And when this is all over, she’s going to be the one who decides where she winds up.”

  Surging forward, Bezzon’s face blurred to a beautiful red. He sputtered something nonsensical.

  Cable knocked the gun from his hand and sent him sprawling backward.

  When they were both back on their feet, Cable had the gun and Bezzon….

  Barrel leveled at his eyes, the sub lieutenant took a half step back. With his hands half raised, and a scowl on his face, he looked libel to dive.

  “I know you’ve seen my range scores for moving targets. Don’t try it.”

  He moved toward the console.

  “You aren’t getting off this ship alive.”

  “We’ll see.” He said, half listening, and not sure if he truly needed to reply.

  “Kenzie is mine, not yours. You don’t deserve her.”

  “If you think she belongs to anyone, you’re sorely mistaken.”

  He swung, and cable pulled the trigger, not bothering to watch as the man’s body hit the floor.

  Cable moved to the console welded into the old Ka tech. He punched in three commands, and the ship's lights blinked out.

  "I realize the saying 'keep them in the dark' might be relevant to some purposes, but I'd rather not be in the dark myself."

  I require two minutes.

  "Whatever you say."

  The emergency lighting snapped on and Cable blinked against the harshness.

  I have initialized an old training simulation.

  What remains of KaLongre’s mind will act like the power is bleeding.

  All other manner of things are going wrong.

  The only one who may recognize it is Aaron.

  We will have to keep him busy.

  The others will flee.

  Their ship is nearby.

  They will consider it “safe.”

  "Let’s hope they don't hurt themselves in the scramble."

  Bezzon’s comm brick quacked and clattered as distressed soldiers relayed information. The common consensus was the ship wouldn’t make it.

  "And now, we watch as they flee like rats from a sinking ship.”

  Hand on the console, Cable followed the instructions KaDen fed him and watched as the systems Aaron had incorporated shut down.

  Their processors died with a wheezing thrum….

  But the wheezing didn’t stop with them.

  He looked back at Bezzon, choking on the blood spilling from the hole in his throat.

  The gun in his hand held the weight of a full charge, but he tucked it into the back of his pants and left Bezzon to bleed out on his own. He didn’t deserve a quick death.

  Thirty-Six

  Aaron wasn’t on her ship.

  She didn’t know when she’d started thinking of KaDen’s Kazahan as her own, but she didn’t have time to correct the errant thought.

  Slipping back through the empty halls, she pushed into the control room and went to connect with the Ka. Maybe they could tell her what was going on.

  Her hand hovered over the console, when the hatch whispered open.

  “What are you doing out and about unsupervised?” Maeltar asked, her voice a low purr.

  Mack didn’t turn to face her. Keeping the knife securely at her side, she turned to face the woman who was starting to remind her of a bad rash.

  “You act like I’m a prisoner here?”

  “Aren’t you?”

  Maeltar stalked toward her, showing no sign she’d be taking herself off any time soon.

  She groaned in spite of herself and did her best not to roll her eyes. If Maeltar was her only other option, she'd rather be dead.

  “Don't look so glum. I'm going to make you a very promising offer."

  "I won’t accept."

  "That's too bad. Your brother is having his head sewn back together by my medic. I imagine he'd be quite put-out to hear you're not being cooperative."

  "Pretty sure I made it clear how little I care about my brother's option when I knocked him out.

  A sickly smile crept across Maeltar's face. "That is precisely why I've come to you with this�
�� offer. The blow you struck was not something that could ever be chalked up to something as simple as a sibling quarrel. You were trying to kill him. I know it. When he wakes up, he'll know it too. You're running out of friends. Fast. I would hate to see you turn your back on my friendship, when we could do so much together."

  "I don't want anything you could possibly offer." Mack stepped around the other side of the projection.

  "You don't even know what it is."

  "Then tell me. Clearly you want to. Why bother waiting for my permission."

  She smiled at Mack, the sort of look a butcher gives a pig, trying to entice it closer so they might slaughter it. But she didn’t move. She just held out her hand, resting it on the slim top of the console, as if she hoped Mack would take it.

  "I am going to kill your brother."

  Even though she'd nearly done the same moments ago, Mack's chest tightened at the thought. If it showed, Maeltar didn’t acknowledge it.

  "Not right away, but soon. I'm sure you can appreciate the mess he's making. Once he's taught you everything you need to know to get our ships up and running, he'll find a nice pocket of void to call his own."

  "This isn't much of an incentive. If I wanted him dead, I’d kill him myself."

  "You could try. But you didn't when you had the chance, so I don't think you're truly capable of it. Do you?"

  Mack didn't say a word. She didn't know the answer. Didn’t want to.

  "Once your brother is dead, you... well, you'll be mine."

  "I'm not a possession."

  "No, but you'll be a weapon. You can control these ships. The Ka race was so fearsome the fleet didn’t rest until it had wiped them out. I don't know why they were so terrifying to our ancestors... your brother is crazy enough to make me nervous, but I haven't seen anything yet that would be called 'terrifying.' Regardless, I want that power."

  "You can't become Kindiran."

  "No, but I can have a Ka army, a Ka fleet at my disposal."

  A chill ran through her. "What are you talking about?"

  "I've seen the cases, I know there is a whole future people on board this ship, waiting to be implanted and born. I want to help them conquer the stars.”

  "You want to enslave them, like you have the crassicau."