by EJ Fisch
Skeet and Zinni both leapt forward, quickly climbing the grappling cables that the Solaris men had used to access the roof. Ziva turned to Ryon, placing a hand on his shoulder and listening as the drone made its turnaround somewhere beyond. “Go help Marshay,” she instructed. “Make sure none of these guys get inside.”
Ryon nodded respectfully and hurried away around the opposite end of the house, avoiding the attack craft as it passed over again, mini gun blazing. It flew out over the river again, banking to the right to prepare for another flyover.
“Where the hell did Solaris get a drone?” Ziva exclaimed.
“Probably the same place they got that military shuttle,” Aroska said, brushing past her. “Let’s take this thing down.”
Ziva didn’t need to be told. She stepped forward quickly, cutting past him in return, and strode out into the open, taking a stance at the edge of the sheer drop-off down to the water. Aroska stopped a couple meters behind her and to the left, rifle raised.
The drone was on its return path. Ziva took two shots, successfully striking the port side missile launcher on the second try. The automatic gun began firing a spray of bullets, the targeting computer damaged. Still it approached. She fired again, this time hitting the nose of the craft straight on. It began to spin out of control and dove downward, colliding with the cliff below her in a billowing fireball.
The ground under her feet crumbled from impact before Ziva could move. She swiveled, ready to jump, but the piece of earth she stood on was muddy from the moist river air and her feet slipped out from under her. In a last ditch effort, she threw her rifle up over the edge and reached out to grab whatever she could. Her hand found a piece of ground that disintegrated when she touched it. She felt herself start to fall.
It all happened in slow motion. Ziva looked down as her hand slipped, estimating the drop to be nearly seventy meters. The realization that she was going to die hit her just as someone caught her hand.
Ziva looked down at her boots where they dangled in mid-air. Smoke and hot fumes drifted upward from the downed drone, making her eyes smart. She was swinging back and forth slowly and hit her shoulder on a piece of rock that jutted out of the cliff side. Her focus moved up to where Aroska had both of his hands closed around her arm. He was flat on his stomach, and her weight was pulling him over the edge centimeter by centimeter.
Desperate for an alternative handhold, Ziva clawed at the rock with little faith in its ability to support her. It came loose with the slightest touch, taking another chunk of dirt with it as it fell.
Aroska began looking wildly about for something to grab onto. An exposed root from the sarmi tree nearly reached him, and he let go of Ziva with one hand to take hold of it. He grasped Ziva’s wrist and she held his, but his arm was muddy and the grip wasn’t going to last much longer.
Ziva couldn’t recall her life ever being quite so completely in someone else’s hands – literally. She looked up at Aroska, whose face was contorted as he strained to hold her up and keep himself steady. He was looking straight into her eyes. No. He was going to just drop her. She could sense it.
“Don’t you dare even think about it!” she hollered. “If I fall, I’m taking you with me!”
She felt the muscles in his arm tighten as he mustered his strength for one last pull. His eyes were squeezed shut, but he was gaining ground and Ziva felt herself rise a short distance. She dug her feet into the side of the cliff and pushed, helping him as best she could.
Aroska heaved until her head broke the plane of the ground. She flailed for the sarmi root and he took hold of her other arm, helping her scramble over the edge.
Rolling as far away from the loose ground as possible, Ziva quickly recovered her rifle. Her eyes shifted toward Aroska as the two of them took off for the house. Why would you do that? Why not let me die? While she was thankful to still be breathing, she couldn’t fathom what force in the galaxy had prompted him to catch her. Perhaps it didn’t really matter – there was hardly time for gratitude at the moment anyway.
There was no noise coming from the roof as they approached. All that could be heard anywhere for that matter was the crackling of the flames that ate at the demolished car out front. The silence no doubt indicated that Skeet and Zinni had already dispatched the insurgents; they may have been outnumbered, but they never made mistakes.
Ziva slung her rifle over her shoulder and established a grip on one of the grappling cables, ready to hoist herself up, but the unmistakable click of a hammer being pulled back stopped her cold.
“Ziva,” Aroska said quietly.
She let go of the cable and held her hands out to each side as she slowly pivoted. One last insurgent appeared from around the side of the house and stood directly behind Aroska with a projectile pistol pressed against the back of his neck.
“Drop your weapon,” the man growled.
Aroska watched Ziva for a moment, then let go of the rifle that he’d been holding in his right hand.
“Hand over the kid, Payvan, and we can all go home.”
All of this is still about Jayden? “Would if I could,” Ziva replied casually, “but he’s not here.”
The insurgent’s eyes widened. “That’s impossible,” he said.
“Sorry to disappoint you.”
By the time the shadow crossed over the insurgent’s face, it was too late. The sound of a rifle discharging echoed through the air. The plasma round passed within centimeters of Aroska’s head and burned a hole into the insurgent’s right temple. Ziva watched him collapse and then shifted her gaze to Aroska, who had his hand over his ear and as though he didn’t believe it was still attached. She turned her attention up toward Skeet, who stood on the edge of the roof with his rifle still aimed at the dead man.
“Slippery bastard thought he could get away,” he said matter-of-factly.
Ziva stepped back to make room for Skeet and Zinni as they climbed down. “You guys okay?” she asked, scraping some of the mud from her shirt. It seemed ironic that she was the one asking them.
“Fine,” Skeet replied, exhaling with relief. “They said they were looking for Jayden.”
“So I’ve heard,” Ziva said, poking the dead insurgent with the toe of her boot. “And they came with heavy artillery. They’re getting desperate, and they’re willing to kill him if they have to.”
Zinni lifted an eyebrow. “So what do we do about the pile of dead bodies on your roof?”
“Toss them into the river. The pylae fish will be at them in no time. Now let’s go get that fire put out. We’ve got work to do.”
-29-
Payvan residence
Noro, Haphez
The three-dimensional image of the main Dakiti building stood a meter tall and turned in a lazy circle over the living room’s center table. Most accurately, it was a massive, self-sufficient medical research facility about ninety kilometers west of Calova, the capital city of Sardonis. It was well known throughout the Fringe Systems as the med center that handled only the most extreme cases. During the Fringe War it had been a military installation used by the Sardons and the Biasi – a scaly reptilian race from a neighboring system – in their efforts against Haphez. The whole conflict had started when the Haphezians refused to trade their caura extract, a gel-like substance derived from the saliva of the ill-tempered caura lizards that resided in the jungle. The extract possessed phenomenal healing properties and was one of Haphez’s primary exports, so the last thing they wanted was for someone to synthesize the formula and take control of the market.
After the Haphezian military had defeated both enemy civilizations, Sardonis had been ordered to destroy their base as one of their terms of surrender. Instead, they had negotiated and converted it into one of the most-high tech medical establishments in the galaxy. Besides serving as an exclusive hospital, Dakiti was known to conduct many biological experiments designed to help patients overcome chronic disorders and cure rare illnesses. Much of the research that took place there
was classified.
Ziva studied the hologram intently, gently massaging her chin as she pondered how they would get inside. The surveillance data that Skeet and Zinni had pulled up showed the perimeter to be more heavily guarded than usual, telling Ziva that something other than research was currently going on. She guessed the governor’s presence might have something to do with it and was growing more confident in her theory that Solaris had taken him there. But then there was still the reason he was there, the reason that the radical group didn’t want Jayden and Vinny Jaxton talking. They were covering something up, and the thought of finding out what it was sent a tingle of excitement through her body.
She minimized the hologram and got up from the sofa, heading to the dining table where Zinni was attempting to catch up to the Tantalis.
“Based on their current trajectory, they appear to be on their way home to Tantal,” Zinni announced when Ziva peered over her shoulder at the computer. She manipulated the data on the translucent screen and retraced the route with her little finger. “You’re sure he’ll go to Dakiti?”
“Mmhmm,” Ziva replied thoughtfully. “If he doesn’t go voluntarily, Solaris will find him and be after him again before long. They’re persistent.”
Ryon and Skeet came inside from disposing of the insurgents just as Aroska emerged from the guest room in a clean change of clothes that Skeet kept there. “What do we have?” all three asked simultaneously.
“Sorry,” Ryon chuckled apologetically, “old habits.” He rushed away to clean up without another word.
Zinni relayed what she had just told Ziva and showed them the tracking system on the computer. “I’ll be keeping a close eye on this thing this afternoon. We’ll be the first to know if anything changes.
“Figured out how we’re getting in?” Skeet asked Ziva.
“She’s only had five minutes,” Aroska scoffed.
Ziva cocked her head and scowled at him, re-activating the hologram with the remote in her hand. “Of course,” she said to Skeet.
They all went back to the living room and sat around the center table, watching as Ziva controlled the image. “There’s a massive sewer system that runs under the entire complex,” she explained, highlighting the route in red. “The drainage runs through to this outlet here—” she panned out to where it could be seen “—and into this river. There’s an access hatch there.” She switched to the infrared view, which showed the area to be crawling with soldiers.
“It’s not usually so heavily guarded,” she said in response to the vacant looks around her, flipping through a series of images taken at earlier times. “I’m beginning to think the governor is there, just like Jayden said, and as long as they have him, they’re not letting anybody in. However, they won’t be ready when someone gets out that way. This can be our exit route.”
Everyone nodded as they studied the figure. “You know how much I love sewers,” Skeet muttered.
“The exterior of the compound is solidly guarded so going in on foot is out of the question,” Ziva continued. “The sewers will be our back-up point of entry if all else fails. We’ll have to come in from above.”
Aroska maintained a calm and collected tone as he began to speak. Ziva guessed that Skeet had finally talked some sense into him earlier that morning. “They’re going to pick up anything we fly through there and shoot us out of the sky before we know what hit us. What exactly is your plan?”
He might as well have called her an idiot right there in front of everyone. “You’re forgetting that Sardonis doesn’t have nearly the caliber of defense systems we have,” she said, playing with the remote. An image of a small, two-man stealth fighter appeared, suspended above the minimized version of Dakiti. “I give you the H-26 Scout. We’ll fly at thirty klicks, out of radar range, and go for a high-altitude low-opening jump. We can have the onboard AIs hide the ships and then pick us up for extraction, and we’ll have plenty of cockpit space for passengers on the trip home. HSP has all of the equipment we’ll need.”
Skeet laughed out loud. “You came up with all of that in five minutes? Ziva Payvan, you never cease to amaze me.”
“We’ll focus on details later,” Ziva added, ignoring his outburst. “For now, start gathering supplies and we’ll see what becomes of Mr. Saiffe.”
-30-
Dakiti Medical Research Center
Sardonis
Saun had feared the worst when Solaris hadn’t contacted her after the second hit on Payvan’s house, but now that she was hearing the news for herself, she nearly threw her communicator against the wall. Bothum stood silently beside her, scrutinizing her with his yellow eyes as she spoke to Aroska.
“So then I guess it’s a good thing that the Tantalis came for him when they did,” she said calmly, though she could feel her face redden with anger. This was the third time her men had failed her.
“Except that leaves him even more vulnerable,” Aroska said. “The Tantalis don’t have any idea what they’re getting into.”
Well, that was a plus. Jayden was now separated from his Haphezian protectors, so that even if they did set out on an excursion to Dakiti, they would never find the truth until it was too late. Bothum would get Tarbic and Payvan, and she would get her life.
“At least Solaris won’t know what became of him,” Saun said, signaling for Bothum to pay attention to the conversation.
“They shouldn’t. Ziva placed a tracking device on him so we’ll know if they try to take him again.”
A tracking device! If it was an HSP device or anything remotely similar, she would be able to find and monitor the signal as well. “So,” she said casually, “are things still working out okay with her? I can’t imagine she’d take kindly to her house being attacked.” She stopped herself just before adding “again” – if she understood correctly, no one else knew about the attempted kidnapping the previous night.
“Things are… confusing,” Aroska replied, sounding rather uncomfortable about discussing the topic. “I don’t know what to think. I found out some things about her, Saun, things I can’t tell you. Blast, I shouldn’t even be talking to you now.”
Saun grew quiet and looked down, away from Bothum, unsure what to say.
She heard Aroska sigh. “I’ve still got to wrap my head around some things. I want so badly to hate her for what she did to Soren, but I’m starting to think I’m missing part of the story. I don’t know. She’s a manipulative, heartless shouka, but it’s hard to keep from admiring her talent and tenacity.”
Saun took several steps away from Bothum. “Things have changed that much since we talked at HSP four hours ago?” she said, forcing a short chuckle.
“Enough that I saved her life.”
There was total silence for several long seconds.
“Her life was literally dangling from my hands. I thought about just dropping her, but when I looked into her eyes, I couldn’t do it. Then of course she threatened me.” Here he laughed a little too. “I don’t think I want to kill her anymore. The more I find out about her, the more I want to know. I almost feel sorry for her. It may sound strange, but I think it would be interesting to see her smile. I’m not sure if she ever smiles.”
Saun felt an involuntary tingle of jealousy course through her. What was he talking about? The man had lost his mind. Not only was he completely unfocused, but he’d always told her how beautiful and comforting her own smile was. She had truly come to care about him after the incident with his team, despite the fact that it was never supposed to go that far. She often found herself wishing that they could still be together when this was all over, but she always had to remind herself that she had work to do and that if she did it correctly, he would most likely have to die. He and Payvan would both die, and she would get to live.
“Aroska Tarbic, pull it together!” she snapped, afraid she was starting to let her petty personal feelings get in the way. No, her anger was legitimate. He needed to have his head in the right place in order to do his job, and she
needed him to do his job so she could do hers.
He said nothing. Saun coughed, feeling the burn in her lungs and a great urge to change the subject. “Aroska, I’m at Dakiti.” That much was true. The East Sun had arrived in Sardon airspace about an hour earlier, and she and Bothum had been shuttled down to the research center.
That caught his attention. “What!”
“You said it would be worth checking out, so I did.”
He swore. “Yes but I didn’t tell you to go there! Are you alone? Damn it, you’ll get yourself killed!”
That’s what he said every time, word for word. It had always been a part of her charade, acting immediately on any tentative plans Aroska ever came up with. He’d been forced to come and bail her out of something on several occasions in the mere three months they’d worked together, and she’d always hoped that his coddling ways would work to her advantage when the time came. It appeared they would now.
“Relax,” she said, stifling another cough. “I’m fine.”
Aroska’s voice was frantic. “How long have you been there? What have you found? Any sign of the governor?”
“I arrived about twenty minutes ago,” Saun lied. “This place is huge, and they’re definitely hiding something. Everything below ground level is completely restricted. They wouldn’t even let me get close, even when I told them I was HSP, and now I think they’ve got eyes on me.”
“Saun, be careful!” Aroska was almost shouting. He groaned and swore again. “This is all my fault.”
Perfect. She had him hooked. “Aroska, stop it. I’ll just find somewhere to… hold on a second.” She held the communicator down to her side, but she could still hear him hollering even at that distance.
“This conversation needs to end now,” Bothum said quietly as he observed the assembly area below the balcony on which the two of them stood.