Jen’s question caused Sera to pause and think it over.
She’d left one thing out of her response: Helen. Even though years had passed, Sera still thought about Helen every day. The shard of Airtha that her mother had given to her as an AI. That she hadn’t realized was her mother until after her father—who was also a creature of her mother’s at the time—pulled Helen from Sera’s mind and killed her.
All so she could completely control me…so much trouble over me.
That was what Sera couldn’t fathom. Why her mother had gone to so much trouble, spending decades to craft her into the person she wanted, a person who would kill her own father and then take over the Transcend.
I guess she wanted me to think that I’d made my own path, which was impossible when she was guiding my every move.
Jen said in response to Sera’s prior statement.
A burst of raucous laughter spilled out of the open galley door, and Sera resumed her approach, reaching the entrance and leaning against the frame.
At the long wooden tables sat Finaeus, Usef, Erin, and Nance. Kara was a little ways away, perched on a tall stool, her wings still resting on the ground despite her perch.
Misha leant against the counter, where the remains of the meal they’d eaten a few hours earlier were still laid out for the crew to snack on. To his right, a cup of coffee cradled in his hands, stood Flaherty, a ghost of a smile on his face as he regarded the group.
“OK, bilge rat, gimme your two best,” Erin said to Usef with a wide grin. “Better be deuces, too.”
“No such luck, little lady.” Usef slapped a ten and a six on the table. “Read ‘em and weep.”
Erin shrugged. “Well, means everything you have is worse. I think you’re the one who’ll be weeping.”
“One last game before we dump out?” Sera asked as she entered the galley and angled toward the chiller.
“One?” Erin laughed. “With these opponents, I can get in two at least. It’s like I’m playing against children.”
Finaeus looked over his hand and smirked at Erin. “Don’t get too cocky there. I’ve got your number.”
“You may be the second best engineer in the galaxy, but that doesn’t mean you can build a Snark manifest for shit, old man.”
“Second?” Finaeus puffed out his chest. “I invented jump gates, star mining, and dozens of other things that every one of you use every day and take for granted.”
“One word,” Erin replied with a wink. “Picotech.”
Nance pursed her lips and patted Finaeus on the shoulder. “Kinda trumps, Gramps.”
Finaeus’s face reddened, and he scowled at Nance. “After all our time together, you malign me like this?”
“I’ll malign you more if you don’t play or pass,” Erin said, gesturing to the pair of sixes she’d played in the interim.
“Fine, fine.” He dropped a pair of eights on the sixes.
Sera gave a happy sigh as she peered into the chiller, looking for something interesting.
she said privately to Jen.
Finally spotting a wheat ale that looked promising, Sera pulled the can out and popped the top open. She took a long swig and leant against the counter alongside Flaherty.
“So what do you make our odds?”
“Better than anyone else would have.”
She shot him a side-eye. “Not exactly encouraging.”
“Neither is Finaeus’s strategy,” Flaherty said, then looked into Sera’s eyes. “We’ll pull it off. I’m certain of it. But it’s going to be hard. Very, very hard.”
“That the best speech you have right now?” Sera asked, chuckling softly as she took a drink of her beer, watching as Finaeus launched into a creative string of curses as Erin won another round.
“If you’re coming to me for a pep talk, then we’re in worse shape than I thought.”
“Funny man,” Sera muttered before nudging him with her elbow. “Want to join in for a round?”
“No, I’ll just watch.”
She gave him a brief hug, then walked to the table and sat next to Nance. “Deal me in.”
“You join in late in the game like this, and you’re the bilge rat,” Finaeus intoned.
“Sure,” Sera replied, giving her uncle a wink. “Let’s see how fast we can get you back down there.”
COMMENCEMENT
STELLAR DATE: 10.24.8949 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Voyager, High Airtha, Airtha
REGION: Huygens System, Transcend Interstellar Alliance
“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again,” Carl intoned as the Voyager settled into a docking cradle on High Airtha.
“Except it barely feels like we’re the same ship,” Katrina groused. “They practically gave her a new hull.”
Troy agreed.
Carl snorted. “Way to be subtle, Troy.”
the AI retorted.
“Patchwork?” Now it was Carl’s turn to sound upset. “I’ll have you know I’ve sweat blood to keep your patchwork hull in one piece.”
“How many problems would it cause if we spaced our AI? Carl asked Katrina.
“More than he causes by being around,” Katrina said as she gave the forward consoles a narrow-eyed glare.
“Even with all these new systems on the ship?” Carl pressed.
Katrina glanced at the readouts, double-checking that the ship appeared powered down, but that the systems were ready for a fast restart.
“Yeah, even more so,” she stated.
Troy groused.
“Still so subtle, Troy,” Katrina said as she rose from her seat and stretched her limbs.
It was a given that while they were on their mission, she was going to worry constantly about the ship. She knew the upgrades would make it safer, but that didn’t mean she had to like the change.
Over the centuries, the Voyager had become a symbol in her mind. The one thing that solidly connected her to her past, proof that she really had traveled forward in time, and wasn’t just some crazy woman who remembered a past that never was.
But now, nearly everyone in the galaxy who was three jumps or less from a major trade route knew of the Scipio Alliance and the war being waged across the Orion Arm.
Which she supposed should be comforting. That, combined with the fact that New Canaan was a real place, an actual refuge that awaited when this struggle was over, should mean that the Voyager no longer needed to be that connection to the past for her.
I guess centuries-old habits die hard.
She finished her stretching and walked out of the ship’s small bridge, finding Fina waiting for her in the passageway.
“You ready for this?” asked the normally blue-skinned woman—who had reverted to natural flesh tones, and also altered her facial structure in order to fool any optical systems that caught sight of her.
“As I’ll e
ver be,” Katrina said with a resolute nod. “Your team ready?”
Fina had the largest group of unknowns under her purview. Roxy they knew to be a solid operator, and she seemed committed to taking down Airtha. Carmen, the AI in their group, was determined to make up for her failure on the Damon Silas, and the AI council at Styx had pronounced her fit for duty.
Jane, the pilot who technically had done some very unethical things—not that Katrina was anyone to judge—was the wildcard. So far as Katrina could tell, Jane’s loyalty was to her friends, not the mission—or anyone else, for that matter.
The woman had been a decorated pilot in the TSF before she’d joined with Justin’s side of the conflict. She had been involved in several infiltration ops in the past, and on paper, had the skills to get the job done.
Which meant that, in theory, so long as they didn’t get found out, they should have no problems.
And if anyone believes that, I have a ring to sell them.
Fina had paused before answering Katrina’s question, and the look in her eyes mirrored the thoughts that ran through Katrina’s mind.
“We’ll do the job. Come hell or high water. Our bombs will get set, and we’ll insert our virus on time.”
They clasped one another’s arms and then Fina turned and walked down the passage—which used to be a ladder shaft—and took a left toward the forward airlock.
Roxy and Carmen were waiting for her. As the airlock began to cycle, the pair activated their stealth armor, disappearing from view before the outer door opened.
Katrina nodded with satisfaction as she continued further aft to find Elmer, Kirb and Amavia waiting for her at the midship airlock. Camille, Malorie, and Iris stood outside the chamber, waiting for Carl, who was still in the cockpit.
“Everyone good to go?” Katrina asked.
“Good?” Malorie chittered with delight. “This is amazing.”
As she spoke, the red spider disappeared from view, and moments later, reappeared hanging from the overhead.
“I’m never giving this shit back. You know that, right?”
Katrina glared at the woman who had once been her captor and torturer, wondering for what had to be the thousandth time why she still kept Malorie around.
Probably because she’s useful and would get into too much trouble if I cut her loose.
“Well, you work for the ISF now, so you don’t have to give it back,” Iris said to Malorie, her lips quirked in a challenging smile.
Malorie’s head turned toward Katrina. “She’s making us sound all legitimate. I don’t like it.”
“You’ll manage,” Katrina said, her tone half encouraging, half threatening.
“Maybe,” the red spider replied. “You know…so long as the evil ascended AI who lords over this place doesn’t spot us and crush us.”
“We’ll be alright,” Iris said, glancing at Camille, who gave a nervous, half smile. “Everyone knows what to do. Follow your team lead’s orders, and in two days’ time, we’ll be drinking beers and laughing about how we killed an ascended AI.”
“Way to jinx it,” Elmer muttered.
Camille squared her shoulders as she sidled up to Iris. “You won’t mind if I use you for a shield when the beams start slicing things apart, will you?”
Iris had adopted a more automaton-like appearance, which facilitated several additional layers of ablative plating she normally didn’t wear. Like the others, she wore flow-armor overtop, able to disappear should the need arise.
“Don’t worry,” Katrina said, giving Camille a slap on the shoulder. “This will be a walk in the park.”
“Which is exactly what it looks like out there,” Kirb said from the fully cycled airlock. “We’re set down in the middle of a cedar grove.”
Katrina shook her head at her supercargo. “I did pilot us in, you know. Kinda noticed.”
“Always taking the fun out of things, Captain,” Kirb said as he turned and walked down the ramp, Elmer following after.
Unlike Fina’s team, Katrina’s group was all known quantities. Kirb and Elmer were men who had been with her for ages. They were steadfast companions as well as skilled fighters.
And though she’d only recently met Amavia, Katrina had known both of the woman’s former selves, Ylonda and Amanda. It was strange to see aspects of them both in the new being that had been forged out of Myriad’s attack on their lives. That being had been a shard of Airtha, and had tried to kill the two, forcing Ylonda to take refuge in Amanda’s mind.
“Good to go?” Katrina asked the woman, keeping her thoughts to herself.
“I’ve let HoltenCo know that their special courier package is en route,” Amavia replied as she patted the courier pouch tucked under her arm.
“Everything’s in order, Captain,” Carl said as he ambled down the passage and placed a hand on Katrina’s shoulder. “We’ll be good. The data drops are set up, all the comm channels are verified. No one is waiting for us out there. Our ship is just another specialty courier making a run from Bellatrix.”
“And we’re just headed into the maw of the most powerful creature in the galaxy,” Malorie added.
“Might be just the second or third most powerful creature in the galaxy,” Katrina corrected. “But remember. Just takes a lucky shot from a cheap security drone to put you under. Alert and ready. At all times.”
Krib called up the ramp, and Katrina nodded to Iris’s team.
“Good luck.”
Iris gave Katrina a confident smile, and Camille added, “Stay safe, Captain.”
Katrina waved over her shoulder as she walked through the airlock and into the too-white light that shone down from the Airthan star. It cast a wintery glow across the forest that surrounded the ship, giving the trees an almost bluish hue.
A groundcar was pulling away from the ship, and Katrina could make out Fina through the vehicle’s window. She assumed that Roxy and Jane were secreted within as well, and turned her attention to a second transport that waited a short distance away.
This one was longer, with room in the back for the crate that Kirb and Elmer were moving toward the vehicle. Next to the car floated a customs drone, ready to scan the cargo and review their order.
Katrina walked toward the bot with the calm certainty of someone who had bluffed her way past hundreds of customs officials, both organic and otherwise. When she reached the drone, she passed her tokens, giving the machine an emotionless stare as it validated them. Before the civil war, travel within the Transcend did not involve customs, but that had changed on both sides of the conflict, and citizens were under increased scrutiny at every port.
Granted, we’re all here with false identities, so they’re right to be worried.
The drone took a minute, and then sent an acceptance of her credentials and their cargo’s destination. It also passed Katrina a list of rules and regulations, listing sections of the ring that were off limits—which appeared to be over half of the structure.
Amavia asked.
Katrina replied.
Amavia and Katrina slid into the front seats of the groundcar, while Kirb and Elmer made sure the cargo was secure in the rear of the vehicle.
Amavia asked.
Katrina gave a resigned nod.
The other woman chuckled as the two men got in the car. “What’s easy?”
Katrina joined in the laughter as the car took off toward HoltenCo, where the team would do their legitimate business on Airtha before carrying on a restaurant and probably a bar crawl to kill time before they had to get to their targets.
Katrina twisted in her seat, watching the Voyager, next to which Carl’s team still waited for their car. She kept her eyes on the ship until the trees obscured it from view.
safe, Troy.>
She couldn’t help but laugh.
That’s true, she mused. I really do.
THE RETURN
STELLAR DATE: 10.24.8949 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Voyager, approaching Airtha
REGION: Huygens System, Transcend Interstellar Alliance
Two hours later, Sera was back on Sabrina’s bridge, this time with the rest of the crew—all of them crammed into the small space for the final approach to the ring that was their target.
Though the space could certainly house eleven people, Sera couldn’t recall a time when she had ever seen that many on the ship’s bridge—at least during her tenure.
Once again, she sat at the scan console, while Seraphina managed comm. Usef was at the weapons station, and from the stories Sera had heard from Sabrina’s recent adventures, the man knew what he was doing there.
The others were spread around auxiliary consoles, aside from Finaeus, who stood directly behind Cheeky, and Flaherty and Kara, who flanked the bridge’s entrance, both with arms crossed and brooding expressions lowering their brows.
“Dumping iiiiin…” Cheeky drew the word out, “three, two, one.”
The final word fell from her lips, and the forward display changed from the endless nothing of the dark layer to the brilliance of stellar space.
Dead ahead shone the light of Airtha, the white dwarf companion of the Huygens star. It was just under two AU away, but its small surface area caused it to appear as little more than a pinprick of light. Sera toggled the holodisplay to enlarge it until they could see the Saturn-sized star encircled by its celestial ring.
“Home sweet home,” Sera muttered, and met Seraphina’s gaze.
Seraphina laughed. “Feels like I just left. Which I guess I kinda did, just a few weeks ago.”
“It’s been a bit longer for me, but I get your drift,” Sera replied.
Even though she’d run her part of the Transcend from Khardine for some time, it was still less than two years since she’d left Airtha and travelled to New Canaan with her father.
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