Bethany Anne raised an eyebrow, her hands hovering over the crate. “It’s not like you to guess about anything.”
Jean snorted softly, folding her arms as she leaned against the table. “Yeah, well, this time a guess is as good as I’ve got. I thought about taking the Kurtherian armor back to the Helena with me so I can start working out my part, but as much as I hate to admit it, this is more in Eve’s wheelhouse than mine.”
Michael walked in as Jean finished speaking. “Are you having trouble with the Kurtherian armor?”
Jean threw her hands up in frustration. “I can’t do anything with it until we figure out how the fuck the Seven made compounds out of organic materials that behave like inorganic materials.”
Michael frowned. “My guess from what we’ve processed of the memory crystal and what I’ve seen is that a species called the Bl’kheths is the missing link.”
His frown deepened at Jean’s inquisitive look. “We came across the kind of equipment that’s used for extracting DNA when we were in the Ooken factory.”
Jean’s curious expression dropped into one of utter disgust. “I can’t stomach the thought of using a living being that way, never mind a whole species. It’s enough to make me want to find their weak-ass excuses for scientists and choke the life out of them with my bare hands.” She sighed as the momentary rage passed. “I don’t see how we can think about doing the same, even if it’s for the benefit of all.”
“That isn’t the question,” Bethany Anne clarified as she pointed Michael to a crate on the pallet. “It’s how we’re going to use our gains ethically once we figure out the exact formula for Etheric-capable metals.”
“Not to mention finding a way for the majority of our warriors to take on the Ookens without getting turned into hamburger,” Jean ground out.
Bethany Anne nodded, matching Jean’s angry look. “We know the Seven have no issues with helping themselves to the genetic material of whole species to make Ooken. I want the equivalent of their ability or better, and I want a way to get it done that doesn’t cost lives.”
Michael paused with his hands on the crate’s lid, recalling Bethany Anne’s reaction to the scenes of death in the Kurtherian factory. “It’s worth waiting for.”
“I’m not the waiting kind,” Bethany Anne stated. “The sooner I can relax, knowing I’m not going to get another call to say one of the family has been hurt because their armor failed, the better.”
Michael opened the crate and narrowed his eyes at the carefully packed plates at the top. “This is a step back. I don’t think I’ll be fighting in it much.”
Jean grimaced at Michael’s look of dismay. “It’s the best I can do until I get back to QT2 and manufacture a new set. I won’t be happy until I’m assured that what we have is sufficient to protect against the Ooken.”
Bethany Anne placed the helmet and boots in the display case beside the one holding her battle armor. “I have faith you’ll work it out.” She closed the case and turned her attention to Michael. “You can always stay behind and get a head start on reading the crystals if you want to skip the tour.”
Michael tilted his head in consideration. “I can’t deny I’d be happier if one of us stayed close to the children. Aren’t the crystals more an ADAM or TOM thing?”
Bethany Anne nodded. “Yeah, but neither of them have hands to operate the equipment, and I’d rather we kept whatever we find to ourselves for the moment.”
Jean glanced at the cabinet inside the display case. “Where are you going to set up? I didn’t put anything but basic equipment aboard this ship.”
Michael deactivated the nanocurtain around the display case and cabinet, then opened the cabinet. “When I said ‘close,’ I meant close. Eve will find me a space in her lab where TOM and ADAM can have their discussion outside of my head.” He removed a pair of crystals from the top drawer of the cabinet and slipped them into his breast pocket. “Thank you for your efforts, Jean.”
Jean handed Michael the controller for the pallet holding his armor. “Thank me when you can Myst without leaving your armor behind.” She hugged Bethany Anne briefly before heading for the armory door. “I’ll see you when you get to the Helena.”
Bethany Anne waved her off. “It’ll be a few days before I’m done here, and the Helena isn’t going to be my first stop at QT2. Safe journey, and don’t let the Ooken surprise you.”
Jean turned back as she walked out of the door. “Let them try. I owe them one for Addix, don’t you think?”
“We all do,” Bethany Anne replied with a cold smile. “Believe me when I tell you I’m going to take my price in blood.”
“I don’t doubt it, my love.” Michael put a hand on Bethany Anne’s shoulder. “Are you ready to visit the children?”
Bethany Anne nodded. “Let me grab a few things first.”
Izanami appeared as they were walking past the lower access to the bridge on their way to the elevators. “My Queen. There’s something you need to see before you leave. The scout ships you left at what’s left of Qu’Baka have registered an anomaly they couldn’t pinpoint.”
Bethany Anne paused in her tracks. “What kind of anomaly?”
Izanami frowned. “That’s just it. It was so brief, all they were able to see was a flash of exotic energy.”
Michael brought the pallet to a stop. “You mean, Etheric energy?” he asked.
Izanami lifted her hands. “I meant what I said. I have no classification available for what Loralei picked up. What are your orders, my Queen?”
Bethany Anne pressed her lips together. “Wait a moment. ADAM, can you shed any light on this?”
There was a pause before ADAM responded via the overhead speaker. “I see the anomaly in the logs. I’d put it down to a malfunction in Loralei’s sensor suite since nothing else makes sense.”
Bethany Anne hesitated before dismissing it. “You're sure that’s all it is?”
“No one can be sure,” ADAM admitted. “But since the only exotic energy source we know exists outside of our dimension is the Etheric, and it’s definitely not Etheric energy Loralei picked up, I have to conclude that either Loralei is having an issue, or the laws of physics have suddenly failed and another reality has crossed ours. I know which one is more likely.”
Bethany Anne relaxed a fraction. “True. Still, watch out for any more inexplicable readings that come in.”
“I understand,” ADAM promised. “Also, Michael, I have arranged for Eve to make space for us to work on the crystals. I am still somewhat tied up with the Collective project, but I can weigh in if TOM can’t answer your questions.”
Bethany Anne grinned. “Perfect. You’ll be able to get started as soon as we’re done visiting the children.”
3
Devon, The Hexagon, Vid-doc Vault
Michael settled onto the couch next to Bethany Anne.
She slipped her hand into his while they waited for the children to be cycled down to their timeframe for the conversation.
“How do you think they are?” she asked, looking at Michael with a mixture of anticipation and dread.
Michael squeezed her fingers comfortingly. “They will be just fine.” He searched her face for the reason she was worried. “You’re still not entirely comfortable with this, are you?”
“I don’t know,” Bethany Anne told him with a sigh. “They’re our babies, but they’ve spent more of their lives inside the Vid-docs than out here in the real world. I feel like…” Her voice trailed off as she struggled to put her thoughts into words. “I feel like our lives are too dangerous to have taken any other route. I just spend all my days missing them. It’s jarring to see them grown so much between these calls.”
“Imagine how Mahi’ must feel,” Michael consoled her. “She has nothing to prepare her for her son returning as an adult.”
Bethany Anne pressed her lips together, appreciating Michael’s attempt to lift her out of the sadness that came with being separated from her children.
The sadness was replaced by amazement when the twins appeared on the screen a few moments later.
Bethany Anne only just managed not to curse. She put on a bright smile for the twins. “You finished the growth part of the process, I see. Look at you both!”
Gabriel rubbed his five o’clock shadow and grinned bashfully. “Aw, Mom.”
Alexis flicked her waist-length braid to the side and returned an almost-identical smile. “You’re okay with the change, right?” she asked.
Bethany Anne scrutinized her daughter’s face. “You look just like me.”
Alexis snickered. “Yeah, sure. Except for my freckles, which you promised me I’d lose before adulthood.”
Bethany Anne shook her head. “One day, you’ll have a daughter, and when she’s crying to you about something she can’t change, you’ll understand why I lied.”
“A white lie to spare your child’s feelings isn’t always a bad thing,” Michael offered. “Imagine if we had told you about the Seven the moment you were able to understand?”
Alexis rolled her eyes, a wry smile touching her lips. “You and Mom would never be so irresponsible.”
Gabriel snorted. “Yeah, Dad. We’d have had nightmares our whole lives.”
Alexis flourished a hand. “I don’t know. Remember the first time we saw Mom in her Baba Yaga disguise?”
Gabriel grinned. “Well, yeah. She kicked ass; it was awesome.”
Alexis looked over at her brother. “Funny, because I remember you dreaming Baba Yaga was coming for you every time you did something you shouldn’t for months afterward.”
Bethany Anne was warmed by the normality of her children’s bickering. “So, how are you getting on with the next stage of your training?” she asked, changing the subject. “I have to say I’m proud of you for not taking the easy option.”
The twins flashed identical grins at her.
“Damn straight, it’s not the easy option,” Gabriel agreed, then winced. “Sorry for the language, Mom. It’s kinda snuck in from being around so many military types.”
Alexis sighed. “Yeah. You wouldn’t believe how much cursing the specialists do. It’s f— this, f— that. I’d be shocked if you hadn’t been a bit slack about cursing when you thought we were out of earshot.”
“Zenith is a good program,” Gabriel told them. “You have to pass our thanks along to everyone who put effort into creating it. We’re refining our knowledge of everything we learned with Aunt Addix at our own pace, and the testing phases are helping us both to realize our potential with our extra abilities.”
“That’s not all,” Alexis agreed. “The opportunity to put what we’re learning into practice without real-world consequences is invaluable. I mean, spending a couple of days in a sewer system wasn’t a picnic, but we made good progress with team-building that we just can’t get back home.”
Gabriel nodded, but he was a bit wistful in his reply. “Yeah. We went into the Zenith scenario, having failed to bring most of our unit through with us. It wasn’t our finest moment.”
Alexis patted her brother’s shoulder. “Gabriel’s still sore about that. What he isn’t telling you is that our unit had the highest pass rate coming out of the Corral scenario. The other units barely got one or two through. We learned our lesson. We’re doing better to integrate the NPCs into a cohesive unit.”
Gabriel leaned into his sister. “Alexis has taken up social engineering as a hobby.”
Michael smiled, glad to hear that his main concern about the twins missing out on social time due to their unique upbringing was being addressed. “That’s great,” he enthused. “What about K’aia and Trey? Are they getting the most out of their experience?”
“Definitely!” Alexis exclaimed. “Although K’aia is as grumpy as always.”
Bethany Anne and Michael listened to their stories about the situations they’d been in with the non-player characters they were building into a team. All too soon, it was time to say goodbye.
“I wish we didn’t have to let you go,” Bethany Anne apologized. “But I don’t want you missing too much just so I can see your faces.”
“It’s cool,” Gabriel assured her. “I’m glad to have this time.”
Alexis nodded. “Yeah, Gabriel’s right. It is good to have any time. I miss you both.”
“Anyway,” Gabriel added. “Don’t you two have a war to win?”
“It’s been pretty quiet since we got back from Qu’Baka,” Bethany Anne told them. “The most exciting thing happening here is that the foundation of the new city for the Bakas is being printed today.”
She blew them both a kiss. “Love you both. Be good, and if you can’t, then don’t get caught.”
Devon, The Hexagon
Bethany Anne went to find Ashur and inform him of their trip after saying goodbye to Michael at Eve’s sublevel.
From there, her first stop was Network Command to begin the search for Mahi’. She walked through one unoccupied corridor after another until she found Tabitha and a skeleton crew working in the NARCS room.
Tabitha grinned when she saw it was Bethany Anne who’d entered. “Hey! I was wondering when you were gonna get here. The kids are doing well, right? I inserted myself for a bit to check on them.” She held up a hand to stay the concern coming from Bethany Anne. “Don’t stress it. I disguised myself as one of their instructors. They had no idea it was me.”
Bethany Anne doubted that. Tabitha was just too, well, Tabitha to be mistaken for anyone else. “They’re progressing well, despite the interruption for Addix’s funeral. If anything, I thought they’d be wrapped up in their grief.”
“No way,” Tabitha argued. “They’re too focused on their goal of getting ready to join the war. Besides, they’ve got each other. As long as that’s true, they can overcome anything.” She smirked. “Special Forces training included.”
Jacqueline turned from her monitor and grinned. “I helped with the research for that. K’aia’s just going to love all the ass-in-seat time.” She turned back to her monitor with a chuckle. “I’d feel sorry for them if I wasn’t green with envy.”
Bethany Anne walked over and placed her hand on Jacqueline’s shoulder. “You could always take the course and get the experience you want.”
Jacqueline considered the suggestion. “Seriously, I’d love to. But right now, I have something a little different going on with Mark. I’ll be honest, it’s exciting the hell out of us both.”
Tabitha waved her hands. “Bethany Anne isn’t here to hear about your VR fight club.”
Bethany Anne’s lips quirked. “Hold your horses, Tabitha. I might be. Is that the Hex Games I’ve heard about?” she asked Jacqueline with curiosity.
“The one my son is so obsessed with?” Tabitha added.
Jacqueline broke into a grin. “You know it. We lost a shitload of revenue when this war put a stop to us using the arenas for live events.” She shrugged at Bethany Anne’s frown. “Giving up the space was the right thing to do. Moving the entertainment parts of the business into the Vid-doc rec and training system made it easier for us to keep track of who’s subscribing to what services.”
She rummaged in a drawer and came out with a pair of orange-tinted wraparound glasses. “Mark came up with these. We developed them from an old piece of tech Sabine found in the archives while she was searching for Ashur’s imaginary space rats. They’re basic, and viewing is free, so we’re not pricing anyone out.”
Bethany Anne put the glasses on and was treated to immediate immersion in the crowd, who were cheering on a cage match between a team of Guardians in Were form and three Bakas armed with the new staffs. She smelled beer and pretzels in the crowd, along with sweat and blood from the cage.
She took in the reality of the sensory bombardment for a moment before handing the glasses back to Jacqueline. “How are you generating revenue from this if viewing is free?”
“You know you kids saved the day when you gave us this building,” Bethany Anne told her. “Devon appreciates it, as do Michael and I.”
Jacqueline smirked. “Oh, we know how grateful everyone is, but it was the only thing to do other than waste time building a place down here to train everyone. Besides, we’re making enough money from the games to keep the expansion rolling. We’re even sponsoring a number of teams in the league, and we’re allowing corporate sponsorship of other teams—for a fee. That way, we can afford to run the entertainments on a free-to-view basis.”
“There’s a league?” Tabitha asked. She shook her head as Jacqueline pulled up the league tables. “Of course, there’s a league.”
“It keeps the majority of the people here from getting into the seedy side of things,” Jacqueline explained.
Tabitha snorted. “Oh, there’s still plenty of that on Devon if you know where to look for it. The difference is that Ricole and her interns have created a regulatory body to make sure anyone working in the adult clubs is there of their own free will.”
Bethany Anne nodded. “It makes sense to protect the workers. The important thing is that the people working those kinds of jobs are protected and that they have access to advocates when things don’t play out fairly for them.”
Jacqueline blushed with pride, remembering a time back on Earth when she had been forced into a similar position they’d found the majority of entertainment workers in when they’d arrived on the planet. “We’ve gone a long way toward making sure Devon keeps its freedoms while people are able to earn a living with dignity no matter what job they choose to do.”
The Valkyrie Returns (The Kurtherian Endgame Book 7) Page 3