by F. T. Lukens
The figure brought the baton down.
Liam screamed. His back bowed, he clawed at Ren’s arms, he choked on air, and then he disappeared.
_
Ren rocketed out of sleep. Scrabbling through the thick fog of the dream, vision awash in blue, he fought against the arms around him. He cried out when they clamped against his wound, and he twisted and thrashed. The strong grip pinned his arms to his sides and he couldn’t move. He couldn’t breathe. He had to get to Liam. He had to free Liam. They had him. They had him and… He kicked and bent, until he could slip his fingers beneath the hands that clutched him. He pried them off, nails biting into the flesh until they released him. Legs tangled, he lunged to get away and fell to the hard deck plating. Fresh waves of pain rent him; agony lit his nerves. Adrenaline thudded frenzied and fast in his middle, and he scrambled along the floor, kicking out with his heel when fingers wrapped around his ankle.
“Ren!”
The voice shocked him into the present, and Ren blinked.
Asher’s room.
He turned to find Asher half-hanging out of the bed, one hand clinging to the frame, the other holding Ren’s ankle. The blanket and sheets stretched between them. No longer covered, Asher’s bare skin bore a sheen of sweat, and goosebumps blossomed over his arms and chest.
In the low light, sprawled across the floor, Ren pressed his palms to the deckplate, and the systems of the Star Stream buzzed through him. He shivered in the cool air. With a thought, Ren sent warmth into the room.
Ren allowed his head to drop and he blew out a calming breath.
“Ren?”
“I’m here.”
Asher released Ren’s ankle and lowered his foot gently. The mattress creaked, and the sheets rustled, and then Asher sat cross-legged, wrapped in the comforter, facing Ren. He looked like a toddler at story time with his hair sticking up and ensconced in the folds of his favorite blanket. A line of dried drool crusted the edge of his mouth, and he had a mark on his cheek from the wrinkles in his pillow. His forehead was creased, and his lips turned down at the corners.
“Did you hurt yourself?” Asher nodded at Ren’s bandage.
Biting his lip, Ren peeled away the tape. Penelope’s regular attention to the wound had seen it heal significantly, and Ren could even see differences since he’d woken a few days ago. A trickle of blood slid down his skin from where a bit of medical glue had torn, but otherwise, it looked as it had.
“I’m fine.”
Asher’s concern didn’t abate. Instead, he leaned forward, elbows on his knees, fingers tented in front of his mouth. “Was that real?”
Ren nodded, sorrow and grief an internal tumult. “Yes.”
“That was really your brother?”
“Yes.”
Asher tilted his head. “Are you sure? Could it have been a trick?”
Liam’s pleas for home and his anguished scream echoed in Ren’s head. “No,” he said, voice soft. “No.”
“I’m sorry.”
“He’s in Perilous Space.” Ren picked a thread in the blanket. “Ollie said he might be there, and it made sense, but I was focused on finding you, on getting to you.” Ren swallowed. “I’ve abandoned him.”
“No. No, you haven’t.”
“I’ve lost him.”
“He hasn’t been moved yet.”
“They could be moving him right now.”
“Ren,” Asher gripped Ren’s hand.
“The Corps has him. They took him from our home. How could… how could you be a part of that? How could you have willingly joined them?” Ren looked up and met Asher’s stricken expression. “I don’t understand.”
“I told you I didn’t know. I didn’t know until we returned to Erden.”
Ren pulled his knees to his chest, but he didn’t disengage from Asher’s grasp. “Why did you join? You’ve never said.”
Asher sighed. He ran a hand over his brow. “It’s complicated.”
“My father was going to turn my mother over to a military organization because her eyes glowed. My stepfather likely killed him. They intended to hide me on a planet I didn’t want to be on and kept from me the fact that I’m a mythical being. I can handle complicated.”
“Fine.” Asher rearranged his blanket. “I was sixteen and stupid and wanted to get back at my mother for basically ignoring me for her political career.”
Ren raised an eyebrow. “Seriously?”
“Rowan was already off-drift. She’d saved up credits and bought a ship. Penelope went with her. I was lonely and bored and didn’t want to be either. I went to the recruitment office and signed my life away for five years. I went to introduction training at the facility and made some friends. I specialized in tactical operations, and the first few years that meant a lot of travel and the occasional skirmish. And by skirmish, I mean arguments between drifters and the need for protection of a trade route from marauders. It was easy. It was fun. I had friends. And then we received an assignment on a planet.”
Ren winced. Asher had barely taken a breath. His words were coming fast and clipped, as if pouring it all out as quickly as possible would allow him to outrun the underlying emotions.
“Erden.”
“Yes, and we were ambushed. And I was injured but kept alive because of my mother’s influence. I was in a cell for a year wasting away.”
Ren closed his eyes. “And your friends?”
Asher’s trip tightened. “Dead.”
“I’m sorry, Ash.”
Asher snorted. “Don’t apologize. I’m the fool. I should’ve known the Corps didn’t care the minute they let me stay in that cell for as long as they did. Then I trusted VanMeerten about you and I shouldn’t have.” Asher shuddered. “At first, I thought the Corps was too overwhelmed and bureaucratic to see the consequences of their actions on their soldiers and the civilians they encountered. And that hurt in a way I didn’t expect. But now, I know it’s indifference. They don’t care, as long as they get what they want. They don’t care who they hurt or who gets in their way.”
Opening his eyes, Ren tipped his face toward Asher. “Ash—”
“It’s funny, actually. I didn’t understand Vos at all. His motives were foreign to me. Why would a duster baron concern himself with the drifts? But I get it now.” Ren made a face. “I’m not saying he’s right either. He shouldn’t have captured you from your home and raided your village. The way he went about things was wrong. But I get it—that feeling of powerlessness in the face of a military machine.”
“We can change things.”
“We can try.” His voice dipped low. “We’ll find your brother. We’ll find him. Even if they move him, he’ll contact you again. Or we’ll find the files from the Corps. We’ll do something. For now, though, we have to tell Rowan. We have to let the crew decide what to do, and then you and I…”
Ren turned his hand over and threaded his fingers through Asher’s. “You and I?”
“I’m not leaving you again.”
The corner of Ren’s mouth quirked up. “I don’t want you to.”
“Then you and I will find a way.”
Ren hunched forward. “Perilous Space,” he said, squeezing his eyes shut. “The prison on the edge of the cluster near where the technopaths broke the sky. Heavily guarded and impossible to escape from.”
“We’ll free him. I promise.”
Ren believed him. Asher always kept his promises.
_
“Ren’s brother is in Perilous Space prison. He came to us in a dream, and I met him. The Corps will be moving him soon because of an increase in revolts. Ren and I will be formulating a plan, and you’re welcome to join us. If not, you’ll need to let us off at the next drift.”
Rowan blinked. Her mouth hung open. The food on her spoon slid off and splattered on her plate. Drops of sauce
flew over her shirt. “You want to what now?”
“So, he is there?” Ollie asked, unfazed. He passed the bread basket to a stunned Darby, who allowed it to drop through her hands.
“Um… can you please repeat that?” Penelope asked. She dabbed her face with her napkin.
“Yeah, same. Because it sounded like you want us to storm an impenetrable prison to rescue someone we’ve never met who can talk to you through dreams.” Lucas took a bite of his food and chewed obnoxiously. “I’m just saying a little more explanation is needed.”
Ren hunched down in his seat.
Darby picked the scattered bread from the table and tossed it into the basket. “Is this about freaky science-magic?”
“No.” Asher shook his head. “Well, yes, kind of. A little bit.”
“My brother,” Ren said softly, and all attention turned to him. “My brother can manipulate dreams and gather information. I’m not sure how it works. But the Corps has been using him against Vos. He’s tired and frightened.” Ren’s brow furrowed. “I don’t expect you to come with us, especially after everything.”
“I said we’d talk about it after finding Ash,” Rowan said as she wiped her shirt with a napkin. “But you’re right, Ren. I’ve allowed our lives to be interrupted since you came aboard. We’ve been stuck on a drift for months, we’ve been involved in firefights, and we’ve been on planets where we don’t belong. I don’t think we can do it anymore.”
“I understand. It’s fine.”
Asher slammed his fist on the table. Everyone jumped, and the plates and cups rattled. “No, it’s not fine. Don’t you get it? We can’t stay out of this. The conflict between Vos and the Corps will only spread. It already has. First it was Erden and then Mykonos and Phoebus and now Bara. This is escalating with or without us, and soon there will be no safe space for anyone.”
“You’re right. It’s going to happen with or without us. I’d prefer without us.” Rowan lifted her chin in the face of Asher’s betrayed expression.
“Rowan—”
“Do you get what you’re asking of us?” Rowan jammed her fork in Asher’s direction. “Not only is Perilous Space prison a maximum-security facility run by the Phoenix Corps—the very same organization that we blew up a camp to rescue you from, but also the same one that killed Ren. And not only that, but we’d be releasing other star hosts into the cluster who may not be as well-meaning as Ren and who may be even more powerful. We’d be stepping right between VanMeerten and Vos and embroiling ourselves in a situation that you’ve already said was dangerous beyond what we can imagine.”
“We’re already a part of it. I don’t understand how you can’t see that?”
“I know! But I’m not ready to choose a side. I don’t know who is right and who is wrong. I only know that both sides have tried to kill us.”
“We don’t have to be on either side. We can be our own side!”
“We’ll lose! We are no match against the Corps or Vos, especially if he has Millicent.”
“We have to take the chance.”
“We don’t! And we’re not!”
They shouted at each other over the length of the table. Rowan was almost out of her seat, and Asher bent his fork with his grip.
Ren placed his hand on Asher’s trembling fist. “It’s okay.”
Asher yanked his hand away. “How are you so calm and meek? Why are you not mad? Why are you not threatening to take over the ship and take us there anyway?”
Ren recoiled. “Because I’m not a jerk. The Ren that did those type of things died, remember? Yes, I want to rescue my brother. After finding you, it was the top of my list. It still is. I’m terrified about what’s happening to him. But I’m not forcing your sister and Ollie and Pen and Lucas into anything. They’ve already done so much for me. You have done so much for me.”
“Why don’t you ask them?” Darby asked, dark eyes darting between Asher and Rowan. “Don’t they get a say, or are you going to make their decisions for them?”
“Why don’t you stay out of it?” Rowan’s voice was sharp. “We’ll take you to Echo drift as we promised and drop you off, but you have no say in what happens aboard this ship. Got it?”
“Wait a minute, Darby did risk herself to rescue Asher.” Ollie planted his elbows on the table and met Rowan’s hard gaze. “You can’t discount our opinions on this, Rowan.”
“I can. I’m the captain. You’ve placed your trust in my decisions since you became crew so many years ago. I’ve bent over backward for the past year to accommodate these two. I’ve disrupted all of our lives. I’m done. There is no discussion.”
Darby stood from the table. “Right. Thanks for the food.” She shoved a few extra pieces of bread on her plate and picked it up. “I’m going to eat in my quarters. Let me know when we reach Echo drift.” She paused at the doorway. “I thought you all were different, but you’re just like everyone else. Out for themselves. Good luck with your brother, Ren.” And then she left.
Ren sighed. He pushed his fingertips against his closed eyes. The pressure felt good in contrast to the budding headache in his temples.
“We’ll be disembarking on Echo too.”
Ren dropped his hands and stared at Asher. “What?”
“We don’t have time to argue. They’re moving Liam, and we have a small window if we want to get to him.”
Ren’s throat closed. “Okay. We can do that.”
“If that’s what you want.” Rowan’s palms were flat on the table top. Her shoulders were tense; her green eyes glittered.
“I’m coming with you.” Ollie pushed his plate away. He raised his hand to silence Penelope’s inevitable protest. “You’re my sister, and, if it were you, I wouldn’t hesitate. I’m going to help Ren and Asher and make sure they come back.”
Lucas’s face was paler than normal. “You should get ready then. We’ll be there in a few hours.”
Guilt weighed heavy on Ren. He was the catalyst. He was the reason Asher was captured. He was the reason Liam sat in a prison. He caused the crew to fracture.
Ollie nodded and stood. Asher followed, and Ren pushed his chair back from the table. “Thank you, and I’m sorry.”
Rowan didn’t respond. She pushed her food around her plate. Lucas put his arm around Penelope’s shoulders and squeezed.
Ren turned on his heel and followed the others out of the common room.
_
They approached Echo drift. A heavy solemn stillness pervaded the ship, and Ren couldn’t help but feel responsible. Guilt weighed on his conscience, though he couldn’t own Rowan’s stubbornness or Asher’s passionate assertions. This wasn’t the first time the siblings had butted heads and it wouldn’t be the last. It might be the most significant, especially if Asher’s planned assault on Perilous Space prison ended badly. Ren didn’t want to consider that either, and he focused on the ship’s approach to the spinning metal microcosm in front of them.
Standing on the bridge, Ren watched through the vid screen as the drift became larger. Next to him stood Asher. In her captain’s chair, Rowan sat: back straight, legs crossed, looking like a queen on a throne.
“You can change your mind,” Asher said, voice low, head pitched toward Rowan.
“So can you,” she replied.
Asher let out a sigh. “I’ll contact you when we’re done. Until then, lay low. I don’t know how long we’ll be.”
She nodded. Casting her glance to Ren, she forced a smile. “Take care of them. Make sure they all come back.”
“I will.”
Lucas adjusted the goggles on his head, then pushed a few buttons on his console. “Automated docking engaged.”
Asher stepped toward the view screen. “Anything weird?”
“Everything is as normal.” Lucas spun in his chair. “Ren?”
Furrowing his brow, Ren reac
hed out through the sensors, vision shifting to blue. The drift’s many systems spoke to him, all running at capacity. Most importantly, there was no sickly-sweet churn of his stomach, or cold uneasy prickle over his skin. Ren pulled back to the ship. “It’s fine.”
“Good.”
“It’ll be a few minutes,” Lucas said. “I’ll let you know when the seal is complete.”
“Thanks.”
“It was good to have you back, Ash,” Lucas said in an uncharacteristic moment of seriousness. “We’ll see you again soon. I’m sure.”
Ren and Asher left the bridge. Asher hesitated at the exit, but when Rowan didn’t make a move to stop them, he sighed and followed Ren. They walked in silence down the corridor, their shoulders brushing.
Ren and Asher had packed their bags and stacked them by the aft airlock. Ren shrugged into Asher’s drifter jacket and tugged it close around him. He flipped up the collar and rubbed his cheek on the fabric, finding comfort in the sensation and the smell. It grounded him, and he’d need that leaving the Star Stream, the ship that had welcomed him and became his home in a way that only a technopath could understand.
Ollie and Darby waited for them in the bay. Darby had had nothing when brought on board, and now only had the few things Penelope had given her. Darby hadn’t said much since the confrontation in the common room. Ren didn’t know her plans. He doubted she’d go with them.
Penelope was there as well. She handed Ollie a bag. “There is medical glue and tape, antiseptic, and bandages in there just in case.” Ollie took it from her hands. She smoothed the collar of Ollie’s shirt. “You make sure you pick a reputable ship. Check the registration and last drifts visited.”
Ollie raised a dark eyebrow. “No reputable ship is going to take us where we need to go.”
She chuckled nervously. “No, I guess not. Well, pick a ship and a crew you can easily overpower if needed.”
Darby stroked her chin, her expression contemplative. “Huh. That’s not bad advice.”
“You could always ask Darby to steal one for you, too.” Penelope grinned, but it didn’t reach her eyes. Her gaze cut to Darby, who leaned against the airlock. ‘I’m sure she’d do it, if not for any allegiance, but for the thrill.”