by Robin Banks
“Why should I waste the time?”
“Because you won, but we don’t know what or why. Doesn’t that detract from your victory somewhat?”
“You keep confusing me for someone who gives a damn.”
Gwen’s face falls. “You’re right. I do. I need to sit down or I will fall down.” She looks pale enough to faint, and she’s shaking all over.
“You can find the floor without anyone’s help.”
Gwen slowly lets herself down. “Just one thing. If this was all about me, why didn’t you just fire me? Or kill me straight up? I mean, it wouldn’t have been hard.”
“They didn’t want you dead, silly. They wanted to use your skills. They wanted you writing your little papers and giving your little lectures, but saying the right stuff. You’d gotten quite an audience for yourself. They just wanted to change the message.”
“So this is Fed, not Patrol?”
“Same difference. Who pays the piper calls the tune. We had to take a backseat after that clusterfuck in ‘68, but that was only ever going to be a temporary setback. People’s memories are short.”
“True dat. You know, I could forgive you for that. I mean, it makes logical sense. The only thing I can’t forgive you for is hurting Asher.” Her face contorts when she says his name. “There was no call for that.”
“Seriously? All I did was tell him the truth. Hardly my fault if he’s such a pussy.”
Gwen shakes her head. “No, that makes no sense. You wanted me off-planet. He wanted me off-planet. He’d been trying to talk me into leaving for weeks. He would have managed, too. I would have seen sense, if he kept talking sense to me. Only reason he didn’t drag me off bodily towards the end was that he couldn’t go himself. Why hurt him so he couldn’t move then try to split us up?”
Marcus’ smile breaks into a laugh. “And there’s me thinking you were marginally intelligent! That had nothing to do with us. That whole botched mess was the brainchild of your little friend there, before we got him to play ball. Played merry hell with our plans, actually.”
“What?” cries Gwen. Marcus laughs even harder at her expression.
I turn to look at Nick, and things start clicking into place. “You blew him off that cliff.” The answer is written all over his face. The guilt pouring out of him finally makes sense. “For what, for his job?”
“Some of us want to get somewhere in life, ok?”
“Asher did his level best to push you as far as you could go. He brought you over in the first place. He campaigned for you all along.”
“And what was the point in that? He’d always be number one. Nobody could compete with him. You might think it’s ok to be number two forever. I don’t.”
“So you wanted him injured so you could take over?” It suddenly hits me. “No. You didn’t. You said it back then and I didn’t pick up on it: fall like that, he should have died. But he didn’t. So you did your level best to carve your little niche while he was out of the way, to make sure that he couldn't come back and take back his place. Gods. How far did you go? Did you make those cadets fail? Did you cause that accident? Gods!”
I want to scream. I want to beat him into a pulp, to rip him apart, to taste his blood and give back to him tenfold all the pain he inflicted on Asher, on us. The only thing stopping me is the blaster Marcus has trained on me, and it’s a struggle to remind myself that that’s important. It’s not that I care more about living than about killing Nick; it’s that I can’t kill him if I get killed first. I don’t want to die without seeing him go.
Gwen is weeping quietly, huddled on the floor. Aiden is just standing there, incredulity written all over his face. When he finally speaks, his voice seems unnaturally calm. “Is this true? Did you?”
“You need to understand. What else was I supposed to do?” Nick starts babbling and gesticulating.
Aiden closes the gap between them, moving slowly and inexorably. He puts his open palm on Nick’s chest, right over his heart. I don’t understand how he can be that calm. He locks eyes with Nick and hold his gaze until Nick starts to calm down. He continues to hold it even as the dart enters Nick’s chest, even as his body hits the floor. Aiden just stands there, impossibly calm and still, looking straight at Nick.
Everything has happened so slowly and so calmly that none of us has had a chance to react. We stay frozen, staring at them, until Marcus starts to laugh. “Of all the improbable things! I had no idea that you had it in you!” And then suddenly stops.
I’d not heard the door open, but there’s a gap in it. Through the gap, I hear a murmuring. Marcus lets his blaster drop and kicks it towards Gwen. The door opens wider and Sasha walks in, pushing Marcus ahead of her with a blaster to his back.
“Well, this is a fine to-do. Wanna tie this asshole up?” She’s looking at me because I’m the closest, but I’m too stunned to move. “Today would be a good time.” I snap out of it and look around for something to use. I find some packing ties and secure Marcus’ arms behind his back. “Who is this joker?”
Aiden walks towards her. “Nobody you want to meet. Don’t let him turn around. If he does, shoot him. What the shit? How did you find us?”
“Got a tracker on you.” She holds up a tiny receiver. “Sound and location only. You were heading back to the ship, I thought, then you veered off in the wrong direction. Things didn’t sound like they were going great, so I thought I’d pop in. Looks like they were going worse than I thought. I hope you guys have a back-up plan, though, because I’m all out of ideas.”
“Which part of stay with the ship…”
“You can lecture me later, because you’re not dead. But he is, and he sounds like he needs to be. So how about we deal with that?”
Aiden closes his eyes, stands stock still for a few seconds, then shakes himself off. “Ok. Idea. We take Nick, this asshole, this ship. You,” he turns to Sasha, “get the hell back to your ship and forget about this. About us.”
“I don’t know what you’re planning, but you won’t get far. That’s a Patrol frigate you’ve got here. Soon as they know you stole it…”
“We don’t have to go far. Part of the plan. And asshole’s gonna be on record taking the ship out. Gives us plenty of time.”
“I’m not sure what you’re planning, but it doesn’t sound good.”
Aiden’s grin is becoming manic. “Trust me. This is brilliant. Better than ever. We have to go. Now.”
“What about her?” Sasha points to Gwen, still on the floor.
“What about her?”
“Whatever you’re planning, she should stay the hell out of it. Don’t you think she’s done quite enough?”
I’ve had about enough of this. “What is your problem with Gwen, exactly?”
“My problem?”
“You’ve been mothering her all along. Like she can’t cope.”
“Me, mothering…” Sasha splutters. “She’s pregnant! Can’t you tell?”
I know I should say something, but my mind’s gone blank and my mouth isn’t working. All I can do is stare at Gwen, who’s weeping quietly on the floor. Aiden snaps out of it before me.
“Is it true?”
“I’m not sure. It’s possible.”
“But how?”
Sasha cuts in. “When a mommy and a daddy love each other very much, for Gods’ sake this is not the time. You go do your thing. Let me take her home.”
I find my voice then. “Yes. Go.”
“What? No!” wails Gwen.
I walk over to her and pick her up off the floor by the shoulders. “You’re going. Now. No arguments. We’ll see you at home, or we won’t. But you take yourself back to Asher, ok? I love you. Go.” I turn to Sasha. “Take her. Please. Thank you. Can I borrow your blaster?”
“Do you know how to use it?”
“Pointy end forward. I’ll work it out. If not, I’ll bludgeon him with it. I might anyway.”
Aiden picks up Marcus’ blaster.
“Ok. Let’s.”
“Gwen? You tell Asher that I love him, ok? It will be fine. See you at home.” She looks about to protest but Sasha drags her out. I turn to Aiden. “K. You take the asshole. I’ll take that.”
While Aiden is getting Marcus to activate the ship’s access codes, I drag a body up the ramp and into the ship. I can’t think too hard about what I’m doing. I’m surfing an adrenaline wave and if I lose my balance I will drown.
“Ship is set. Departure any time.”
“Now’s good.”
We get off the tube. I think I can see Matilda still parked up. I’m probably imagining it, and I know that, but it makes me feel better anyway. If Gwen gets home safe and if Gwen is… I can think the words, just, but I cannot think my way through the concept. It’s too big.
“Course set. Now need to work out how to do this thing.”
“Plan still stands?”
“Absolutely. Better than ever.”
Marcus chooses this time to pipe up, his drawl still sounding relaxed. “You realize you’ll never get away with this? Whether you kill me or not.”
“Please tell me more. I’m fascinated by your opinion.”
“Even if the Patrol doesn’t come for you, even if the Fed doesn’t, my family will never rest if you harm me.”
“They don’t seem to think much of you, sending you off to be a foot soldier. What are you, a spare? A bastard?”
His eyes narrow. That must have hit home. “We all have our part to play.”
“Indeed you do. That’s what we love you for.” I holler at Aiden. “You wanna listen to this jackhole some more or shall I gag him?”
“Don’t care. Busy.”
“How long before we get there?”
“Four hours. This ain’t no tub. Do you know suits?”
“Barely. I’ll go check what they have.” I rummage around until I can find something to tie Marcus’ legs with. I don’t want him able to move around the cabin while we’re distracted.
When I get back, Aiden is still busy arguing with a screen. I sit down and stare straight into space. I’m walking a tightrope between panic and fury, neither of which would help me. It’s really important that I don’t think about anything but the job ahead of us. After a long enough time that I’m starting to believe we’re screwed, Aiden thumps the screen and swears.
“Problem?”
“No. Sorted. Know what I gotta do. Just need to do it. Suits?”
“Enough for a squad. They look good, too. Top notch. Ten escape pods.”
Aiden sighs. “No good to us. But I have a plan. I think. Wanna know?”
“I probably should.”
“Might regret it. Not pretty.”
“If you think it will work, that’s good enough for me.”
“It will work for them.” He waves at Marcus and that other thing. “Not sure how well it’ll work for us.”
“One out of two ain’t bad. Tell me.”
“Ship’s too good. Can’t just crash it. Wouldn’t make sense. Can shoot her down, though. Blaster hit. About there,” he points at a place in the side wall that looks just like the rest of the ship. “If I fuck a few things up first. Routine faults. Nothing major. I can set off a chain reaction. It will work. It will crash. Probably blow up, first. Need to get out though. Time will be tight.”
“Tight how?”
“Seconds. Point her towards something solid, blow a hole in her, get the hell out. Makes a nice story. Asshole at the wheel, taking us to jail or to space us, we break loose, accidental shot, kaboom.”
“Sounds good.”
“Not for us. Can’t take a pod. Not enough time. And they know how many they have, anyway. Can’t guarantee that big a kaboom. If a pod is missing, they’d look and they’d find it.”
“Chutes?”
He nods. “Tight timeframe. Risky. And a short drop. I don’t want her to hit something she shouldn’t. And I want her to hit hard. Only needs one of us. You can go first. I can stay on, shoot her down, see you down there.”
“Bullshit. I’m not leaving you. Something could go wrong.”
“Risking two instead of one for nothing.”
“It’s a bit late to start thinking about what we’re risking. The most important thing is making sure the plan works out.”
“What about Gwen?”
“What about her?”
“Could be your kid in there.”
“Could be. And I want to make damn sure they have a chance. With or without me. We won’t be able to try this again.”
“You don’t trust me.”
“I trust you enough to let you blow up the ship I’m sitting in. I don’t trust anything else. Something could go wrong. You might need me.”
Marcus has started to get agitated. He’s flaying around and screaming through his gag. I guess he’s finally worked out what our plan entails.
“So we’re gonna make him a hero?”
“No plan is perfect.”
“No, it works for me. We gonna shoot him first?”
“Have to. Don’t trust him otherwise. Can’t have him hogtied in the pilot’s seat.”
“Won’t the blaster burn show?”
Aiden shrugs. “Maybe. Still fits the story. But it will be a big kaboom. We put the DNA bags here,” he points to another area like any other areas. “Big boom there. DNA splatters everywhere.”
“Ok then.” I take out my blaster, and realize that one day I will have to deal with the enormity of what I’m about to do. Right now, it doesn’t seem real. Nothing does.
“Wait. In the back. For the story. Just in case.”
We roll Marcus over while he’s kicking and screaming in his bonds. Aiden holds him down and looks at me. I’m getting pummeled by their combined emotions, so I shield up tight.
I can’t do this I know I can’t do this I know I can’t do this I did it.
When I unshield, there’s nothing there.
Aiden gets up and nudges me.
“Gotta put them in place. Do what we gotta do. Get set. Ok?”
So we do that. We’re flying in a ship with two corpses at the helm. There’s a grotesque comedy to that. Aiden will practically need to sit himself on Marcus’ lap to maneuver. I’m a skipped heartbeat away from hysterics.
Aiden goes off to the back of the ship and banging ensues. Eventually he comes back through and nods at me.
“We’re set. About two hours to kill.”
“Going home.”
“Going home.”
We sit next to each other in silence. Whenever I find myself thinking, I shut my brain down. I stop myself crying because I know that if I start I might not stop on time, or ever. Every now and then Aiden holds up a shaking hand and glares at it until he’s willed it back into stillness. Neither of us looks at the bodies.
Two hours are a long time.
When it all starts to happen, it happens fast.
“Suit up. You know chutes?”
“Only in sims.”
“Good for you. Chutes suck.” He grabs me by the shoulders. “This is important. Keep it together. No matter what. Ok?”
“Ok.”
“Going home.”
“Going home.”
“When we hit atmo, I need you by that door. Set on manual. Push-twist-pull handle. Got it?”
“Yes. Done the sims.”
“Gonna happen fast. I say open the door, you open the door, you leap out, open chute straight away. Short drop with sharp stop. No hesitation, no looking back.”
“Won’t the door shut back behind me?”
“Nah. Rip off, most likely. We’ll be going fast.”
“You say go. I open the door. We jump together.”
“You know this makes no sense?”
“Probably. But it’s not negotiable.”
“Ok then.”
“Aiden? I’m glad you’re here. For me, not for you. I mean... I’m glad I know you.”
“Me too. Go now. Time soon. On my mark.”
When he shou
ts in my com, time seems to stop. The emergency handle moves unbearably slowly. When I finally manage to get the damn door open, the wind speed wrenches it from my hands and I narrowly avoid getting dragged out. I hear Aiden’s blaster go off behind me, and then a series of booms going through the ship, getting louder and closer. I’ve just managed to turn around to see what’s happening when Aiden runs into me. His momentum pushes us out the door, still clutching at each other. He whacks me on the chest to open my chute. I get yanked upwards while he disappears under me. When I see his chute blossoming, I can finally start breathing again. Way ahead of us, the ship must have hit home. I see the edges of the explosion over a crater rim before I hear it.
The ground comes upon me so suddenly that I totally fudge my landing. I hit my back so hard that I knock my breath out. I know my air tank didn’t crack because I’m not dead yet, but I think my back did. Everything hurts. When I finally manage to roll over, get on all fours, and catch my breath, I can’t see Aiden anywhere. I try to speak into the com but my body isn’t having any of that. When the com cuts in, his voice sounds pained.
“Can’t see you. You ok?”
I rasp an affirmative.
“Can’t get up. Need help.”
I manage to get myself upright. My back feels stacked wrong, but I can’t worry about that. I have to find Aiden.
It doesn’t take long. He’s just behind some rocks, out of sight but not that far away from me. He’s sitting up, so he can’t be injured that seriously, but he’s clutching a leg.
“You ok?”
“No. I landed on my back. Everything creaks.”
“Amateur. I landed like a pro. Think I broke an ankle.”
“That’s what you get for remembering your training.”
I manage to get him sitting on a rock. Plenty of them to choose from. “Can you move your toes?”
“In this? Hardly.”
“You probably just sprained it.”
“Makes no odds. Gotta get going.”
I look around. “Where are we?”
“About four hours walk from home. As the ship flies.”
“Hate to break this to you, but we ain’t no ships.”
“We’ve got eight hours of air. Give or take.”
“Do you ever regret your life choices?”
“Hope for a chance to regret this one. Shut up. Save air. Get going.”