by Cheree Alsop
I took it and a thrum of energy ran up my arm. I slipped the small rectangle into the inner pocket of my jacket and ignored the continued sensation of electricity buzzing from the card.
“You’re alright, Lord Gladicus,” the Quarian said.
“I hope so,” I replied.
He gave a small chuckle and turned away. I watched his back until the man left the room.
I knew better than to pull out the card again. Something like that would have made me a target in the arena. The Dark ‘Verse was a rumor, one with enough details and presence to be real, though nobody would admit to knowing how to get there or even of its existence. Holding the actual coordinates inscribed on the card Lord Fay had just given me validated the rumors, but made me ask one thing. When would I be so desperate as to seek out the Dark Universe?
Chapter Twelve
NOVA
“I was wondering if you would have the nerve to meet me.”
“Why would you doubt me?” Nova questioned.
The Cray glanced from her to Kovak. “You’ve shown plenty of nerve in other things. I guess I shouldn’t second-guess you now.”
Nova gave a nod she hoped looked much more confident than she felt. She hadn’t counted on Kovak’s presence. It shook her slightly to have him there. She could only hope Lord Baccus would be as circumspect as she needed.
“Now that we’ve gotten that over with, how do you plan to get us onto Akrul,” she asked.
She saw Kovak’s eyes widen, but didn’t look directly at him. She knew how it sounded. She didn’t need to also see the disbelief that would be justified on his face.
“I’m not getting you anywhere,” Lord Baccus said.
Nova’s heart fell. She feared for a moment that the Lord had gone back on his word.
“I know it’s an impossible task,” she began.
Lord Baccus shook his head. His slit tongue ran over his lips before he said, “Not impossible, improbable. And improbable tasks require great sacrifice.”
Nova’s expression changed. “But Lady Winden already paid you the marks and precious stones that I—”
He shook his head, cutting her off. “Not payment, My Lady.” He sneered the last words.
Kovak’s muscles tensed and he took a step closer to the Cray. Nova held up a hand. She was grateful when he stopped.
“Then what is it?” she asked.
Lord Baccus crossed his arms. “I’m not getting you anywhere because you are the ones getting you there.”
Nova waited. She was afraid to hear what was next, but she had to.
He didn’t make her wait long. “Lady Winden said you have a ship. Is it a good one?”
Nova glanced at Kovak. His dark gaze was stormy when he met hers, but he nodded.
“Yes,” Nova said.
“Very good,” Lord Baccus replied. “Because you have a delivery to make.”
Nova tried to follow his train of thought, but the conclusion she came to scared her too deeply to believe it. “What delivery?” she finally asked.
“The what doesn’t matter,” the Lord replied smoothly. “It’s the where that matters.” When she refused to ask, a grin spread across his light purple face and twisted his dark purple lips. “You are going to be my runners, Rabbits, if you will, for a load of supplies just ordered by Akrul’s finest. Ask specifically for Corporal Thaymes if you have the courage to actually reach Akrul. He will be expecting you.” He rubbed his hands together as if pleased with himself. “Easy as eating a chachimi, My Lady.”
Nova grimaced at the thought of the dish from the Animus system that was considered a rare delicacy. She didn’t care how anyone prepared it. Raw warkan egg embryo prepared in a vinegared fyn sauce had never been her favorite.
“Not a fan?” Lord Baccus asked. His voice lowered to a teasing, flirtatious tone. “Some say it’s an aphrodisiac.”
Kovak’s hands tightened into fists. Nova hurriedly spoke before he could act on the same impulse she wanted to entertain.
“I’ve always been a fan of larissan balls, myself,” she said.
The Cray’s face blanched at the mention of eggs harvested from a type of snake found on Evia.
His tone was one of complete disgust when he took a flat disc from his pocket and handed it to her. “Radio my ship when you’re ready to leave. My captain will give you the directions to the supply Trayshan.”
He turned away with a huff.
“Wait. You don’t have the supplies here?” Nova asked before she could stop herself. “Lady Winden didn’t mention a stop on a Trayshan.”
Lord Baccus glanced over his shoulder. “Are you kidding, My Lady? I don’t associate with scum. I’m a Lord, remember? Leave that to your gladiator.” A smirk crossed his face. “When you get there, I suggest you put your gladiator to work. At least he’s expendable.”
She just managed to grab Kovak’s arm before he went after the man.
“I got what I needed,” she told him. “We should go.”
To her dismay, he shook his head. “No, we shouldn’t. It’s too dangerous.”
She stifled a sigh. “Not you, too. I thought if anyone dared, you would.”
Surprise reflected in his dark gaze, but he kept it from his voice when he said, “I would dare to do anything you asked, I just don’t want to see you in harm’s way.”
She hesitated at the genuine worry in his voice. His eyes kept moving from her to Lord Baccus’ retreating form as if willing the man to return for the punch he so deserved. Though his shot had been at the gladiator, she had the distinct feeling Kovak was riled up on her behalf.
The thought softened her heart as the orchestra struck up the notes of another song. A glance at the massive crystal clock above the blue flame fireplaces that took up one entire wall of the ballroom showed it to be close to midnight. This would be the last song of the evening.
“Let’s not ruin tonight. Care for one last dance before things get too serious?” she asked.
Kovak studied her. The way he watched her made her feel as if he saw way past the strong front she put on and to the scared little girl inside who had taken a mission that was perhaps too big for any of them. But she couldn’t turn back. She hoped he saw that, too. She had bought him and saved him from Roan Seven. She hoped that meant he would trust her, even if that trust carried with it more guilt that she could think about at that moment.
He took her hand and bowed over it as stately as if he was indeed the lord he pretended to be.
“I would be honored, My Lady.”
Nova shook her head at that. “Just Nova, please, Kove. Sometimes it’s nice to hear my name without the titles and honors.” She lowered her gaze. “It makes me feel as though someone is interested in me instead of what I am.”
She realized what she had said and her cheeks heated up. “Not to say that you’re interested in me, I’m just saying that a name by itself, well, what I mean is—”
Kovak gave her a warm smile. “Nova, let’s dance.”
A matching smile spread across her lips. “I’m happy to.”
They joined the other couples drifting onto the ballroom floor. Nova’s heart leaped when Kovak spun her in a graceful circle before putting his hand at her waist. Tingles ran down her arm from where her other hand grasped his. The song began and they twirled across the ballroom.
“You dance like you’re floating.”
Kovak’s voice broke through Nova’s tumultuous thoughts. She blinked up at him. “I must say I’ve forgotten you haven’t danced a million balls before tonight. How do you find your first one?”
“Surprising,” he replied. At her questioning look, he said, “Some of the men look fancier than the women.”
Nova followed his gaze. Her eyes landed on a young man in a fancy frock of bright green with lace at the neck and cuffs, bright yellow pantaloons, and shoes made of an entirely brilliant shade of pink. She could barely stand to look at him and wondered how Lady Fulfing did so without going blind. The woman in question
wore a simple but elegant peach evening gown with white kolen silk gloves and matching shoes. Between the pair of them, the entire ensemble was liable to lose their eyesight.
“You have a point,” she said with a laugh.
Kovak’s smile touched his eyes. “You have a lovely laugh.”
He spun her away and then pulled her back. His hand felt warm at her waist as he danced alongside her up the long line after the other couples. They then joined the rows of men and women and clapped as other couples danced past. Nova looked at Kovak across the way, fulling expecting him to be watching either the dancing couples or the women on either side of her. Instead, she found him watching her, his gaze bright and chest rising and falling with the exertion of the dance. She fought for breath too and laughed silently. He grinned in return as if he guessed her thoughts.
By the time the dance ended, she was ready to call it a night. Her feet hurt and legs ached, but she couldn’t remember the last time she had enjoyed a ball so much. Only a glance of Lord Baccus as he left with a woman on each arm was enough to sober her with thoughts as to why they had really landed on Macindant.
After her brief interaction with the Cray Lord, her heart went out to the women. She knew both of them vaguely, mostly by reputation. Each was the third daughter of a baroness; their mothers were anxious enough to see them wed to send them after the Cray in the hopes of snagging a proposal. She shook her head and turned away.
“Are you sure this is our only option?” Junquit asked. “We don’t have the license for running supplies. Being a Rabbit will be illegal until we cross the Accord Line. Did Lord Baccus know we’d be breaking the law?”
Nova glanced at Kovak. His concern was clear.
“I’m sure he did,” she said straight to the point. “He reveled in it, actually.”
“That’s pretty serious,” Jashu Blu said from his seat at the secondary controls. The young man’s voice revealed his nerves at the mention of landing on a Trayshan.
Junquit’s golden eyes narrowed. “If we see him again, I’d like the honor of punching him square in the mouth.”
“I call second.”
Nova turned in surprise. “Kaj! I’ve never known you to be the violent type.”
The older man shook his head as he leaned against the nearest console to relieve his injured leg. “I don’t like this one bit. The original plan wasn’t this complicated.”
“It was,” Nova began.
“No, it wasn’t,” Junquit said, cutting her off with a boldness fueled by her fear. “Lady Winden is adding steps. She used to be all helpful, and now I don’t know if she’s helped you at all. The mission is getting more complicated, and if it’s alright for me to say, more impossible.”
Nova kept the same thoughts from crossing her face. She was searching for a change of subject when Kovak spoke up from his seat in the corner.
“What is this mission?”
Everyone turned to him. The gladiator looked calm and collected, but Nova could tell by the tightness of his gaze and the way his hand tightened and then loosened on his knee that he was truly bothered. He glanced at her, his eyes searching, before he lowered his gaze.
“Look. I know I’m just an acquired bodyguard, but I feel like I could help you more if I knew what the danger was.”
Nova exchanged a glance with Kaj. The Verian’s eyebrows pulled together, straining at his eyepatch. They both knew why telling Kovak would be a bad idea.
Kovak looked up at her again. “Supplying at a Trayshan is serious and dangerous. You could all be killed.”
“Not with you to protect us,” Jashu Blu said with the faith of the young.
Kovak shook his head. “There will be too many others wanting the supplies you need. And afterwards, when you’re Rabbits running without a permit through Accord territory, I can’t protect this crew against an entire fleet of Tributaire soldiers, especially without a skull beetle.”
Jashu Blu’s eyes lit up. “But I have a skull beetle.”
Kovak stilled.
Nova looked from him to the young Quarian. “You do?”
He nodded excitedly. “I’ll go get it!” He jumped up and left the bridge.
Kovak waited until the door closed, then shook himself visibly. “Regardless of what Jashu Blu has or doesn’t have, I really feel it is in your best interest to let me in on this mission.” A small smile lifted the corners of his lips but didn’t touch his eyes when he said, “Believe it or not, I may have experienced a bit of the ‘Verse and could help.”
Nova had to admit that he was right. They were planning to land on a Trayshan without a permit. And she had thought things couldn’t get more dangerous. What had she gotten everyone into?
“I don’t think—” Kaj began.
But Nova cut him off. “He’s right. He should know.” At the Verian’s surprised look, she said, “Knowledge can be priceless. And if my bodyguard,” she strained the word, “is going to protect me, it’d be best if he knows what he’s up against.”
Kaj watched her for a moment, then gave a slight nod. Nova knew she didn’t need the man’s approval, but to have his faith in her gave her enough courage to say what she needed to.
She turned to face Kovak fully. “My brother’s in trouble, really serious, deadly trouble, and if we don’t rescue him, my entire star system will be, too. He’s the heir to the Loreandian throne. By law, if he doesn’t return, the system will follow the male bloodline to my cousin, Lord Rishton Briofe.”
He watched her as if every word she said mattered. She couldn’t remember anyone who had paid her such attention; it was unsettling, given the circumstances. “Your brother is on Akrul.”
The weight with which he said the name of the planet let her know exactly what he felt about it. She couldn’t blame him one bit.
“He is.”
He glanced at Kaj. “And the plan to get him out is to run supplies to one of the Forbidden Planets. Have you thought this through?”
“You’re here, aren’t you?” Kaj replied.
Kovak watched him for a moment before turning back to Nova. “How do you know your brother is still alive?”
Nova’s breath caught at the direct question. Junquit gasped behind her. It was no secret the pilot favored her brother.
Nova looked at the floor and said with all the conviction she could muster, “I just know it.”
Silence filled the bridge.
Kaj was the one who broke it. “With our ship full of illegal supplies, we need to get there quickly. Can we count on you when things get rough?”
Nova knew without looking up that Kaj was addressing the gladiator. She refused to look at him, but waited anxiously for his response just the same.
“This is what I was bought for, isn’t it?” Kovak finally replied.
Nova’s heart twisted in her chest.
“Yes,” Kaj replied.
“You can count on me,” Kovak said.
At that moment, the door opened.
“I found it! I told you I had one!” Jashu Blu burst back onto the bridge with all the enthusiasm of a fiest in an electrical storm. He held out his hand. “A skull beetle! I told you so.”
He stopped in front of Kovak gasping for breath and grinning from ear-to-ear.
Kovak’s hand rose, then paused midair. There was something in his eyes Nova had never seen before. It was a deep need, a longing that made his dark brown gaze nearly black with desire.
On one of Jashu Blu’s left hands, the petrified skull beetle looked like little more than a wad of dirt about half the size of his finger. Yet the Smiren stared at it as though it was the most priceless object in the ‘Verse.
“Where did you get that?” Kaj demanded. “They’re priceless!”
“I won it playing Starbridge on Seclen,” Jashu Blu replied proudly.
Kaj’s disapproving look made the Quarian’s face pale. “You said I could take my leave when we landed, remember?”
The Verian gave a single nod. “Yes, but I didn�
�t mean for you to gamble away your paycheck.”
Jashu Blu gestured to the skull beetle with one of his other hands. “I didn’t! I got theirs along with the clothes off their backs.” He threw Nova a smile. “But don’t worry, My Lady. I let them keep their clothes.”
“I’m glad to hear it,” she replied.
But her focus was on Kovak. The Smiren’s gaze hadn’t moved since Jashu Blu had revealed the skull beetle. Though he sat with his hand inches from the Quarian’s, he didn’t allow himself to cross the final space.
She had heard many tales about the trials a Smiren went through to receive the trinity of tattoos he wore. She didn’t know the how of it, but was aware that a lot of the strength that came from the tattoos depended on the rare skull beetles. The beetles themselves came from the Smiren home planet of Smiria, which had been destroyed by roving members of the Hagala System Mob to keep the Smiren race from becoming too dominant in the outlier systems. That made the beetles rare and in high demand.
“I can’t,” Kovak said in a strained voice. He lowered his hand back to his knee where it remained clenched into a fist.
Jashu Blu’s smile fell. “But I found it for you.”
The Smiren gave his head a small shake. “I can’t take such a treasure from you. It’s worth more than this ship.”
The Quarian lifted a shoulder. “Money doesn’t matter to me. I have a job I like, a true Lady to serve, and friends. What more could I want?”
The young man’s simple assessment of happiness made Nova smile despite herself.
“He doesn’t want it,” Kaj said. “Keep it for yourself, Jashu Blu.”
Nova watched Kovak closely enough to see the flicker of his gaze; it was faint, but it definitely showed.
“But we’re going to a Trayshan,” Jashu Blu said. An edge of fear crept into his voice. “I’ve never been on a Trayshan before. It’s going to be dangerous. I would feel better if you had all of your strength.”
He held the beetle forward again.
The Smiren’s jaw clenched.
“Take it, Kovak,” Kaj said in a level voice. “We’re going to need all the help we can get.”