by CH Gideon
His crew maneuvered the recovery ship into place as his second, Bolus, accessed the wrecked ship’s databases.
“Sir,” Bolus called, “the scout’s data has been pillaged, all of it uploaded by the craft that took it out.”
Rasaka growled and slammed a fist into the arm of his seat. “Any idea who did this?”
“I’m reviewing the security systems now, sir,” Bolus replied, fingers flying across his console.
Rasaka watched quietly as the Exeter extended a tractor beam and pulled the wreckage toward the salvage bay.
“On screen, sir,” Bolus told him after a few minutes.
The viewscreen flickered and changed views, and Rasaka grunted as he spied the massive craft chasing the scout craft. His heart thumped loudly in his chest when he realized the ship was the largest combat vessel he’d ever seen.
“They didn’t have a chance, sir,” Bolus muttered, and Rasaka agreed, seeing the monstrous ship bearing down.
He narrowed his eyes and stared hard at the superdreadnought as it drew closer, weapons firing. “Whose is that?”
Bolus gasped. “I absolutely don’t know. Never seen anything like it.”
Rasaka watched the destruction of the scout craft and the pillaging of its systems by the Federation bots that invaded the craft after it had been scuttled. He saw the last of the bots barely escape the wreck and watched as the superdreadnought Gated away as if nothing had happened.
“Take us home,” Rasaka growled. “We need to report this immediately.”
Jora’nal would want to know.
“You need to see this,” Takal shouted as soon as Jiya and Geroux entered the lab. He waved them over.
Reynolds had been right. Takal had been working on the armor for the last several days without stopping. Pieces of the black suits lay scattered across his workbench. He held up a gauntlet, grinning.
“Nice,” Jiya joked. “A glove.”
Takal chuckled. “It’s so much more than that, young lady.”
He triggered a switch and a gleaming silver blade shot from the glove, jutting out about a half a meter.
“Woah!” Geroux muttered, taking a step back.
“There’s one in each gauntlet,” Takal explained, moving the shimmering blade so it struck a piece of steel rebar he had propped up. The blade cut through it with ease, the tip of the rebar clattering across the table.
“Damn, that’s sharp as hell,” Jiya exclaimed. “Where did you find those?”
Takal grinned. “Been scouring the ship, and stumbled across information regarding transference of energy. I applied the theory, and this is the result.”
“What do you call this?”
“I’ve been calling it ‘Kami,’” he replied.
“Divine energy?” Geroux asked, translating the word.
“Exactly,” Takal said with a nod. “What better name for it?”
“Those things look mighty dangerous,” Jiya mumbled. “I like them.”
“I’ve installed them on several of the suits,” Takal told them, “And I’ve sized a suit for each of you, so you won’t be swimming in them this time around.”
“Excellent,” Geroux said, grinning.
“What about your cloaking device?” Jiya asked.
“That is a different matter altogether,” Takal replied with a grunt. “I’ve been having difficulty shrinking the tech to make it more effective. So far, I’ve only managed to install it on one suit.” He pointed to a suit of dark armor set aside from the rest. “Fortunately, it’s in the one I sized for you, Jiya.”
Jiya cast a sideways glance at Geroux. “That leaves you vulnerable.”
“Not in that stuff.” Geroux shook her head and pointed at the armor. “The locals don’t have anything near this badass,” she said. “Besides, you’re more likely to need a distraction to get into the casino where the neural device is.” She grinned and raised her hand. “Looks like I’m volunteering.”
“You’re crazy,” Jiya told her friend, hugging her. “You sure about this?”
“We need to get Maddox and Ka’nak out from under that device’s influence before it does permanent damage. A person can only sustain that level of interference for so long before it starts to have consequences,” she answered. “Besides, I’m sure Reynolds wants Maddox to stop spending his money.”
Jiya chuckled. “No doubt about that.”
“Then let’s get it done,” Geroux told her friend.
“I’ve got an idea,” Jiya said, rubbing her hands together maniacally. “Help us get suited up, Takal.”
He sighed. “I’m going to regret enabling you, aren’t I?”
“The odds are good, Uncle,” Geroux responded, breaking out in a wide grin.
“The odds are very good,” Jiya confirmed. “Let’s get ready to kick some cheating casino ass.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Outside of the casino in a secluded alley, Reynolds turned to the crew.
“Understand that we’re not here to kill anyone,” he warned. “We get in, we get the job done and Maddox out, then we collect Ka’nak and return to the ship. Easy-peasy.”
Jiya nodded her understanding, knowing that since she was running point, he mostly meant her. She triggered one of the blades and grinned.
“I’ll keep these bad boys under wraps, don’t worry.”
Reynolds’ eyes narrowed into metallic slits. “Where did you get that?”
“Takal added it to the suit,” she answered. “Slick, huh?”
The AI leaned in, looking closely and whistling. “Hmmmm. Seems Takal and I need to have a chat here soon.”
“About?” Geroux asked, clearly feeling defensive toward her uncle.
“Oh, it’s nothing bad,” Reynolds assured her. “But yeah, don’t use that blade on anyone here unless you are positive you want to kill them, okay?”
Jiya couldn’t help but wonder why Reynolds was so riled up about the blades, but she knew better than to question him right then. They had a job to do, and Maddox and Ka’nak were counting on them. She could pick Reynolds’ brain later.
“We up to date on the plan?” Reynolds asked.
Geroux nodded, and Jiya glanced her friend’s direction. Just like Reynolds and Jiya had, she’d covered her armor with robes that flowed to her feet, and she wore a hood low on the back of her head. With the exception of the black-booted toes sticking out when she walked, there was no way to tell she was suited up in battle armor.
“I go in, try to grab Maddox, and make a scene. If he ignores me or resists, or someone tries to stop me, I escalate,” Geroux listed. “Big time.”
“Get out of the building if things get too hectic,” Jiya reminded her. “You need to be where Tactical can cover you without a bunch of collateral damage if need be.”
“We’re not expecting that kind of aggression from these folks, but you never know,” Reynolds told her. “Whoever is running the bigger game behind the scenes might not take kindly to us wrecking it.”
“I’ll be fine,” Geroux assured them. “The local security forces are understaffed and unprepared. I’ll bail if things get too hairy and wait for you two.”
“You sure we won’t trigger metal detectors or alarms at the door with all this armor?” Jiya asked.
Reynolds shook his head. “We’ll be fine. These guys are relying on their neural inhibitor to keep patrons under control more than they are basic security measures. Besides,” he tapped Geroux on the arm, “this stuff won’t trigger metal detectors.”
“Then let’s get this over with,” Geroux said, pulling her hood over her head and setting off across the street.
Reynolds and Jiya gave her a few seconds’ head start, then went into the casino. Both angling off to the left where Comm had directed them before the communications system went down. Robes bundled around them, hands crossed in front, they shuffled slowly into position as Geroux made her way toward Maddox’s table.
As expected, he was still there.
&nb
sp; “The bastard could have bought a destroyer with all the money he’s blown,” Reynolds mumbled.
“It’s not his fault,” Jiya defended. “If you want to take it out on someone, take it out on these casino people who are running the scam.”
“Oh, I intend to,” Reynolds assured. “Comm located the servers when he was scanning for the device.” He grinned. “A quick stop, and we’ll earn back every credit Maddox lost—and then some.”
Jiya grinned, watching her friend as they spoke. Geroux approached Maddox, pushing through the crowd to get beside him. Jiya could tell even from where she stood that Maddox was still caught in the thrall of the device. A few of the other players had vanished in the meantime, but with Reynolds’ endless supply of cash, Maddox played on, and the house let him.
“Uncle Maddox!” Geroux screamed as she tugged at the man, yanking him out of his seat. “What is wrong with you?”
The casino stilled at the sound of her voice and she made a show of it, pulling on Maddox and knocking a couple of the other players from their seats in the process. The dealer tried to stop her and she shrugged him off as the players, still under the fugue, scrambled like zombies to get back to their seats and continue playing.
Casino security responded immediately, and suited men closed on Geroux.
“I don’t like the idea of leaving her alone,” Jiya muttered.
“She’ll be fine,” Reynolds told her. “We have our part to play. We can’t be worrying about Geroux while we’re doing it.”
The first of the security men reached Geroux and grabbed her arm, but Geroux was having none of it. She twisted loose and leveled the man with a single punch. His head bounced off the carpet, clearing a path in the crowd.
Reynolds chuckled. “See? I’m more worried about the security guys.”
Alarms sounded, and a swirl of movement erupted, casino security moving patrons out of the way to reach Geroux as she ducked and dodged behind the lollygagging gamblers.
“Come on,” Reynolds said. “We need to go.”
Jiya growled but let Reynolds lead the way as Geroux reveled in the power of her armor, punching another man in the face and sending him toppling over.
The pair slunk casually down a back hallway as Security ran past, no one having put together the similarity in robes yet. Jiya hoped they never would, and they could get through the casino and to the bottom floor before anyone was the wiser.
“Hey, you there!” someone shouted. “You’re not allowed back there.”
Jiya chuckled. I should have known better.
Two security men came toward them as Jiya and Reynolds made their way toward the set of elevators at the end of the hall. Two more men were posted in front of the doors.
“You need to turn around, folks,” one of the men nearest the door told them, stepping forward with a hand out, palm up. “Authorized personnel only.”
“You take the front, I’ll take the back,” Reynolds passed using the comm chip. Jiya winced and covered it with a cough.
Jiya nodded and pulled her hood back, acknowledging the approaching man. “Oh, I’m sorry,” she told him, holding her pace. “I was looking for the restrooms.” She grimaced. “I really have to go…bad.”
“They’re back the other way, ma’am,” he replied, pointed down the hall, “You’ll need—”
“Yeah, yeah,” she mumbled. “Heard you the first time, asshole.”
Her hand shot out and grabbed the man’s wrist. Before he could react, she bent it backward and spun into him, pressing her hip into his upper thigh. She flung him over her shoulder and head over heels he flew, thumping heavily onto the floor, breath exploding from him along with his consciousness.
Reynolds shot down the hallway and met the two men coming from that direction. He drove a metallic fist into the first man’s jaw. There was a loud crack like a branch breaking off a tree, and the man dropped like a sack of mud.
The second man didn’t even get a chance to shout. Reynolds backhanded him into the wall and the security man grunted and slumped to the floor, wide-eyed but staring at nothing.
Jiya closed on her second target as Reynolds took care of his. She feinted a punch high, then dropped, sweeping the man’s legs out from under him. He cursed as he fell, reaching for his weapon. Jiya didn’t let him get anywhere near it.
She scrambled across the floor and drove an elbow into the man’s face, followed by a second and a third. Powered by the armor, the blows slammed the man’s head into the floor. With nowhere to move to lessen the impact, the man was out in a flash. His arms flopped to the ground as consciousness fled his body.
“Nicely done,” Reynolds told her as he came alongside and started digging in the man’s pockets. He pulled out a keycard and grinned. “Going down?”
Jiya got to her feet and winked. “Sure, why not?”
Reynolds triggered the elevator, and the door opened immediately. The pair stepped inside and waited as the door eased shut.
The Muzak system bombarded them seconds later.
“Oh, dear God,” Reynolds muttered. “What have I done to deserve the orchestral version of Bananarama’s Cruel Summer?”
“I don’t know, but I kind of like it,” Jiya told him, nodding her head to the rhythm.
Reynolds shuddered. “We’re so going to have to discuss your position as first officer if this is the kind of music you enjoy.”
Jiya grinned, but she couldn’t stop thinking about what they might be facing below as the elevator dinged away floors. “It can’t be this easy, can it?”
“Don’t jinx it,” he replied, “but probably not. Security’s distracted upstairs, which is the only reason we’ve made it this far.” He motioned to the obvious camera in the corner of the elevator. “I’m blocking this thing right now, but they’re going to notice shortly. We can expect a welcoming party once we reach the lower level.”
“So we go out hard and fast?”
Reynolds nodded. “As good a plan as any. The hallway opens to both sides of us if Comm didn’t screw up the blueprints for the place. We need to go left once we’re out of the elevator.”
Jiya nodded. “Got it.”
The song played on until the last ding sounded. Jiya and Reynolds moved to opposite sides of the elevator and crouched, waiting. She triggered the cloaking device Takal had installed in her suit and grinned when Reynolds blinked in her direction.
“Uh, that’s interesting,” he said.
“Takal’s little experiment,” she told him, amused by the look on his face as her voice came out of nowhere.
“Nice,” he told her. “How long does the effect last?”
“I guess we’re about to find out,” she answered as the doors crept open slowly.
As soon as there was enough room to get out, Reynolds bolted out, and Jiya followed.
A dozen security officers stood at the ready in the hall, weapons out.
Reynolds slammed into the crowd, which had clustered too tightly together, and drove the mass of them into the wall at their backs. Weapons fired but the blasts went wild in the chaos.
Invisible, Jiya unsheathed her Kami blades, remembering Reynolds’ warning, and slashed left and right at the same time. She cut through the barrels of two of the security men’s guns without them even seeing her. Explosions erupted as the men tried to fire at Reynolds, the blasts throwing the men into their companions.
Reynolds was a whirlwind of fists and feet and elbows, plowing through the officers. A couple managed to get off shots on him, but other than scorching his robes, they did nothing to the skeletal frame of his android body.
They were only able to fire once.
He slammed into them, breaking bones before knocking them unconscious. Jiya took out the last few who’d managed to stumble out of the mass of their companions. She launched herself at them, sheathing her blades at the last second, exchanging thrusts for punches.
She caught the first in his gut, bending him over double, then drove her armored knee i
nto his chin. The impact reverberated up her leg with a satisfying thud. He went out without even seeing her.
Then the suit flickered, and Jiya knew she was visible again.
“Doesn’t last long,” she commented as she went after the second guy. “Bummer.”
Able to see her now, the second officer slipped her punch and grinned at her, so she kicked him in the head. He slid down the wall and crumpled on the floor.
Reynolds went through the crowd and broke all their weapons in half. “Can’t be too sure,” he told her as she looked at him questioningly, and waved her down the hall. “Come on, it’s only a little farther.”
Jiya chased after him. At the end of the hall, there were two doors, one on each side. Reynolds pointed left, then right.
“Servers and neural device.”
“Who gets what?” she asked.
He grinned, showing metal teeth. “I’m going after my credits. You shut the device down.”
Before she could argue, he kicked the door open and ran inside. Shots rang out, and the thwap of metal hitting flesh sounded right after.
Jiya kicked her door in and charged in low, expecting armed resistance. Instead, there were three techs in the room. They cried out in terror and threw themselves into a huddle in the back of the room.
“Don’t hurt us!” one screamed.
“They made us do it!” another called.
Jiya ignored them, her eyes immediately drawn to the massive orb set in a cradle in the middle of the room. It looked like a giant eye, an inner black circle surrounded by lightning. It flickered and flashed, the brilliant lights dancing and caressing the clear glass orb that contained them. She stared at it for a moment, her gaze drawn inside before she realized it.
“No, you don’t, you glowy bastard.”
The annoying hum from earlier pushed hard against her skull, vibrating it, so she knew that this was the device. She circled the cradle and spied a number of cords running from it, obviously powering the thing, given their size.
She thought about slashing the cords, but she realized that would only make it easy for the techs to repair. No, she needed to make a point.