by Dana Kelly
“Hey, it was a few hours,” said Bloodtusk.
“And hummins are simpleminded, trusting beasts,” said Ostonk. “That’s plenty of time to get close to one.”
“You’re thinking of domestic canines,” said Grostonk. “But who cares! Who’s left to say you weren’t Orin’s best friend?”
“No one, since I hunted down and killed everyone else who was there,” said Ostonk.
“That was… That was what I was implying,” said Grostonk.
“Not everyone,” said Bloodtusk. “Ikunku, Sturmhardt, Misaki and Shulana are still out there somewhere, flying under Cartwright’s banner. Since they got deputized, I can’t even put legitimate bounties and those backstabbers. No offense, Ostonk.”
“None taken,” said Ostonk. “She should’ve stood by you. She should’ve stood by me.”
“Well, old friend, your loyalty will be rewarded,” said Bloodtusk. “That much I can promise you.”
“Oh yeah? How can you promise that?” asked Grostonk. “Schurke wants Orin. You couldn’t even kidnap his sister. Orin’s not going to suddenly appear out of thin air, just because you hope he will.”
“Well, he might,” whispered Eridani.
Torsha shivered. “At least he made it to Yuletide dinner.”
“Actually, he was a week early,” said Eridani. “But after what we witnessed, I’m just glad he’s okay.”
“That’s why my only option is to rally what’s left of my brother’s army,” said Bloodtusk. “We’ll get tanks. Lots of tanks! And inferno drones. We can storm Troll Forest! Skjöldukona won’t have the manpower to stop us, so we’ll just set down in Fjallahellan Bay. It’s a straight-line west to Troll Forest from there.”
“They’ll never follow you into battle,” said Grostonk.
“Yes, they will,” said Bloodtusk.
“Your brother was a great leader, and you couldn’t even control yourself long enough to take a single hostage,” said Grostonk. “Face it, Husthar, your brother and his army are gone!”
Bloodtusk roared, startling his companions. “Besides us, only the wealthy bastards who did it and the people who made me watch know that my brother is dead! Clearly, I can count on Ostonk, but you—my dear Grostonk—when you say things like that, it causes me to doubt your loyalty. You see?” He reached for his knife but found the sheath empty.
“Leave behind a little evidence?” asked Grostonk.
Bloodtusk snarled. “You get the idea!”
“The Buccaneers think Blacktusk is in jail,” said Ostonk. “It won’t be hard to convince them to lay siege to Cavern Lake if they believe that’ll get him out. Yeah, they’ll follow Husthar, all right. And if they refuse? It’ll be the last mistake they ever make.”
“You’re a psychopath,” said Grostonk. “Husthar, listen to me. Even if you did muster an army, you still can’t storm Troll Forest, because you’d be driving tanks across Rybecker.”
“So?” asked Ostonk.
Grostonk glared at him. “It’s a nature preserve!”
“Nature grows back, stupid,” said Bloodtusk.
“That’s like the only thing it’s good at,” said Ostonk.
Grostonk gritted his teeth and forced a calming breath. “Fine. You seem committed to sacking Cavern Lake. What about Surprise Destinations? They’ve got a fleet of airbuses that’s completely off the grid. You could hire them to run transport directly to the lake, so that way the location stays a secret. It’s a loophole Dark River’s legal team will surely button up in the future, but the way it’s worded now, you technically wouldn’t be in breach of contract.”
“We’d have to kill all the pilots,” said Bloodtusk. “I’d be stuck in court for years!”
“Not if they’re AI pilots,” said Grostonk. “We can add a top-secret location clause, so flight data gets automatically wiped based on whatever trigger or triggers we provide.”
Eridani looked worried. “That could actually work!”
“What do you want to do?” asked Torsha.
“I… I don’t know. Give a minute to think about it,” said Eridani.
Bloodtusk sat down. “I think you’re on to something, but… Hear me out. What if we hired robot pilots instead? We’d be able to manually wipe their memory as soon as they delivered our hostages.”
Grostonk narrowed his eyes. “That’s essentially what I just said.”
Bloodtusk scoffed. “No, it isn’t! I was being nice when I said you were on to something. You’re a moron, but I forgive you. Why don’t you go play some video games, so me and Ostonk can get some real work done, okay?”
“Yeah, you love your video games so much,” said Ostonk, and Grostonk stumbled backward into view. Except for being twice as tall, Grostonk looked identical to Ostonk. “Go on, get out of here!”
Grostonk sighed. “Fine. I’ll go, but before I do, just give me a minute to leave these here with you.” His dark brown fur bristled as he made rude gestures with both hands.
“Thanks for offering,” said Bloodtusk. “You can keep those.”
Ostonk laughed obnoxiously. “That was primitive, Grostonk. Think better, and you’ll be better… yourself.”
“That’s not how the saying goes,” said Grostonk. “It’s—That doesn’t make any sense!”
“Yet, you’re still here,” said Ostonk.
Grostonk rolled his eyes, turned around, and headed for the lift.
“You look like you have a plan,” said Torsha.
“I do,” said Eridani, and she silently closed the door. “Obviously, I can’t let them send the Buccaneers after our parents. Here’s what I’m thinking. I’ll go in there, unleashing all my anger in that bastard’s face. He’ll capture me, but you can always break me out if things go sideways.”
“It’s risky,” said Torsha. “He could decide to just kill you.”
“He won’t. Trust me,” said Eridani. “Here’s what we do next.” She leaned in close and whispered the rest of the plan into Torsha’s ear. “This will work. I know it will!”
Torsha raised her brow. “It just might. Okay, count me in.”
Eridani passed Torsha her phone, the crankshaft, and the lanyard. “See you soon.” She gave Torsha’s shoulders a squeeze. Taking a deep breath, she descended the stairs.
“See you soon,” whispered Torsha. She lay down the crankshaft and moved to the door. Using the card to unlock it, she peered through the gap.
In time, the lift chime clanked. The doors opened, and Eridani stepped onto the bridge. “Bloodtusk!” she shouted, and the chair creaked as Bloodtusk whirled around. “I’m here to make you pay for the murder of Thuraya Mir! I demand your surrender, to answer for your crimes, and I hereby execute a citizen’s arrest!”
Bloodtusk got to his feet. “How did you get on my ship?”
“I was right behind you in the luggage compartment the whole way here,” said Eridani.
“I thought I smelled something when I was in the lounge,” said Bloodtusk. “Destiny always favors the righteous. Ostonk, seize her! Throw her in the brig. Schurke will know exactly what to do with her.”
“What? No!” Eridani struggled as Ostonk pinned her arms behind her back and dragged her to the lift. “Let go of me!”
“Don’t make this harder than it has to be,” said Ostonk.
“I demand to know your name,” said Eridani.
Ostonk chuckled, and he shoved her inside. “You’re not in a position to demand anything.” He pulled up on her forearms, and Eridani yelped in pain. “Tell me where we can find Orin, and this’ll go a lot easier for you.”
“Not on your life,” said Eridani.
“It’s not my life you should be worried about,” said Ostonk, and the lift doors drifted closed.
Chapter 29
Friend or Foe
Eleski stood on the other side of a prison cell. Gripping a mop with a long wooden handle, she set it aside with a quiet tap. For a moment, she ran her fingertips along the door’s steel grid, and she sighed as she
gazed upon Eridani, sound asleep on the lower bunk, back pointed toward her. “Excuse me,” said Eleski, but she received no response. “Excuse me!”
Eridani stirred awake and rolled onto her back. “What?”
“I am sorry to wake you,” said Eleski.
Eridani glanced sideways at her visitor. “My mysterious benefactor, we meet again.” She propped herself on her elbows. “Hello, Eleski. Is there a nom de technologie, or is Eleski your public name?”
“You have deduced I am denshi-tengu,” said Eleski, and she blushed. “How?”
“I took a guess based on your speech patterns,” said Eridani. “But thanks for confirming my suspicions. I take it your friend is also denshi-tengu?”
“Your deception was unnecessary. I would have volunteered the information,” said Eleski. “And yes, you are correct in deducing Katsinki is also denshi-tengu. As to the matter of my name, Eleski is my public name, and despite the context, I am glad to finally meet you in person.”
“Wow, same here!” Easing back down, Eridani stared blankly at the underside of the upper bunk. “I’ve been totally dreaming about this moment my whole life.”
“That is wonderful!” said Eleski.
“No, that’s sarcasm,” said Eridani.
“Your unkind words are not unwarranted,” said Eleski, and she glanced away. “I wish to apologize.”
“For what?”
“My failure at the forward lift,” said Eleski. “I was unable to deliver the intended command scripts before you exited. There are no cameras in the stairwell, and although I detected you again at the bridge deck’s emergency exit, I was not able to implement a revised strategy in time.” Nervously, she rubbed her thumb against her palm. “I did not expect you to turn yourself in.”
“Oh, I imagine that’s the last thing anyone expected,” said Eridani. “Especially after all the trouble you went through to keep those brutes off our backs. Unfortunately, after what I heard them planning, I didn’t have much of a choice.”
Eleski looked downcast. “I am pained by my failure.”
“Ah, you did fine,” said Eridani. “Still, I can’t help feeling like you skipped over the part about why you helped me. Also, I’m a little unsettled by the ‘glad to finally meet you in person’ part, because now I’m thinking you’ve been stalking me, and since you’re denshi-tengu, you literally could’ve been almost anyone I’ve interacted with.”
“I will explain,” said Eleski. “Like me, many of my people can perceive the entirety of a given moment’s temporal pathways, how they intersect with nearby individuals and the scope of each person’s immediate purpose. We call such convergences ‘truths.’ Some of us are chosen to elevate the common truth. It becomes our purpose.” She placed her hand against the bulkhead. “For years, it was my purpose.” Leaning forward, she rested her forehead against the prison bars. “When I learned your name, my purpose changed.”
“I’m surprised Bloodtusk told you who he was going after,” said Eridani. “Well, I love my name. It’s a reference to stars that form the constellation, Eridanus—the river that flows from the foot of Orion. You can see it from Earth.”
“I am familiar with Eridanus,” said Eleski. “Perhaps you will find this difficult to accept, but I knew your name before my time with Husthar.”
“So, you were stalking me,” said Eridani, and she sat upright on the edge of her bunk.
“No,” said Eleski. “I first saw you when I met your brother.”
“He never mentioned having any denshi-tengu friends. Not close friends, anyway. Did you go to school with him?”
“I did not,” said Eleski.
“Ah, then it was magical happenstance,” said Eridani. “Let me guess—you were there when he ripped that truck in half, and now you just can’t stop thinking about him.”
“It was not a chance encounter,” said Eleski. “Very few events can be attributed to the forces of chaos. Our initial meeting occurred three months and seventeen days ago, aboard a Metroliner civilian shuttle—a full six weeks before the events in Van Alder. After exchanging introductions, we shook hands. As I looked into Orin’s eyes, I glimpsed his binary form and through it beheld every temporal pathway in all the cosmos.
“Overwhelmed by the experience, I abruptly disembarked at the wrong station and spent several hours at a nearby diner trying to understand what I had seen. Throughout my analysis, distinct from every other truth, my truths braided with your truths. I am no longer able to perceive my own future in any other context but bound to yours.”
Eridani stood and crossed the few steps to the bars. “Aw, shucks. I bet you say that to all the hostages. This feels like a work in progress, so here’s my feedback: you’re coming on a little strong. In the future, maybe don’t start with a romantic proposal two days after you helped murder my girlfriend.”
“Although I noticed dried bloodstains when I retrieved Husthar’s wetsuit from the cargo hold, I did not realize there was a loss of life,” said Eleski. “Neither did I realize there was another you considered close, as I did not think to explore any of your branching paths.”
“That path has a name,” said Eridani. “Thuraya Mir, and I love her very much.” She glanced away. “I always will.”
“Will you tell me about her?”
“What? No!” said Eridani. “Are you socially inept or just completely naïve? I really can’t tell.”
“It appears that my hope for your friendship is outpacing my ability to empathize,” said Eleski. “I am sorry for your loss. To have won your love, Thuraya must have been a very special person. I regret I was unable to delay her final truth.”
“You mean death, right? Because she died. She didn’t ‘final truth.’ She was murdered by your boss,” said Eridani. “Keep your sympathy, Eleski. It means nothing to me.”
Tears gathered in Eleski’s eyes. “Husthar is preparing to transport you back down to the Rhyondan surface. He will meet one of Admiral Schurke’s agents at a clandestine location to complete your transfer. I wanted to assure you that you will not be alone.”
“I wasn’t alone to begin with,” said Eridani.
Eleski brightened. “Are you proposing we form a partnership?”
Eridani scoffed. “What? No! I’m talking about the ocelini.”
“Who is the ocelini?”
Eridani blinked, and she smiled slightly. “What ocelini?”
“You are the one who spoke of an ocelini, and as such I expected you to explain his—”
“Swabby!” shouted Grostonk from further down the passageway.
Eleski jumped. “…his relevance. Please excuse me.”
“No talking with the prisoner,” said Grostonk. “Poker night in the engine room is over. I only caught a whiff, but it smells like you’ve got your work cut out for you.”
Eleski exhaled, and her shoulders sank. “I am on it,” she said and grabbed the mop. She shoved it into a rolling bucket, and without another word wheeled it toward the lift.
Eridani gripped the bars. “Grostonk! Thank God you’re here. Everyone on this ship is in grave danger. You need to get me on a call with my brother before it’s too late!”
Grostonk stomped close, dressed in jeans and a black superhero T-shirt. His dark brown fur blended with a shaggy beard, and he narrowed his deep purple eyes as he faced Eridani. “Yeah, right.”
“No, I’m dead serious! When he finds out I’m here…” She gestured an explosion and mimicked its sound. “Say goodbye to Imperium and all hands aboard.”
He crossed his massive arms. “Not buying it. It’d take him weeks to get here, and we can handle a B-class kinetic.”
Eridani shook her head. “Nope!” She popped the P at the end. “He may be on the books as a kinetic, but that’s not all he is. He can teleport. I’ve seen it with my own eyes.”
“You’re lying,” said Grostonk. “I’ve seen his file. He’s only demonstrated kinetic abilities.”
“Do I look like I’m lying?”
&
nbsp; “Maybe not,” said Grostonk. “What are you after?”
“I just want the ship to be safe,” said Eridani.
Grostonk slowly shook his head. “No, you don’t… Oh, I get it. You don’t really expect me to take you seriously, but you do expect me to mention our conversation to Husthar. So, if I say nothing at all to him, I win.”
Eridani shrugged. “Not true. If you tell him nothing, you keep losing. I see how they treat you. You’re very smart, but Bloodtusk takes all the credit for your ideas. If he’d sent the Buccaneers across the salt flats, Falcon still would’ve wiped them out, but the damage to the preserve would’ve been irreversible. Your plan—Surprise Destinations with AI pilots—actually could’ve worked with a proper strategist at the helm.”
“You heard that?”
“I’m here entirely by design.” She tapped the bars. “I’m here to avenge the death of my girlfriend, and that means dealing with Bloodtusk. You can help me by being a part of it, or you can refuse me and be a part of the casualties I leave in my wake.”
“Help you?” Grostonk snorted. “Why the hell would I ever help you?”
“Because I’m taking control of this ship. If you help me, you live.” Her expression darkened, and Grostonk stepped away from the bars. “If you don’t, I’ll do whatever it takes. Without compunction.”
He cleared his throat and mustered something that approached a derisive laugh. “From inside your cell?”
“This is my headquarters,” said Eridani.
“If I sign on, I’ll need some assurances,” said Grostonk. “Since Ostonk’s technically my twin brother, I can’t let you kill him. And if it’s a mutiny you’re working on, Husthar terrifies the crew. No one’s going to mutiny while he’s breathing free air.”
Eridani regarded him curiously. “What do you mean ‘technically’ your twin brother?”
Grostonk huffed. “Husthar and Ostonk go way back, and Husthar really likes having him around. In fact, he likes it so much…” He pointed his thumbs at his chest.
“You’re Ostonk’s clone?”
“His giant clone,” said Grostonk. “That’s right.”