I nodded. It was all coming together. “Well, that was really serendipitous that Redden was there with all those other government officials.”
“It was lucky,” Sylvia responded, completely missing the sarcasm. The prisoner was smiling at me, though, seeing I had put two and two together. “Not long after that, the Fathom started trying to assert control,” Sylvia continued, “uniting the different syndicate factions. Everything would have toppled to criminals if it wasn’t for Redden.”
If I stayed near these two, I would soon be dead. I was certain of that now. “Well, it sounds like you have quite a bang-up little government. So where are we headed now?”
“To Natera,” Wade explained. “There’s a hospital where we can take these people you rescued. And then we’ll take another transport to meet up with the Alliance high command and transfer the prisoner for questioning. And if you could help us in any way, we would appreciate it. As we’ve told you, things are quite dire.”
I smiled. I tried to go for warm. “You can count on me. I want to help. I’m just going to head out and say goodbye to everyone.” I got up and headed to the door.
Sylvia went after me — carefully, though, not to appear too threatening. She almost — but not quite — stood between me and the door. “I thought you needed to rest. You do not look well.”
“I’m okay,” I insisted, but now Wade was near me as well.
“It’s best you stay here,” Wade said firmly, though trying to hide that it was a threat.
What if I kill these two?
“They don’t seem like bad people,” Dip responded. “They might just be trying to do their job.”
They’re in my way.
“You are the sort of person whom good people would get in the way of.”
I looked both Wade and Sylvia in the eyes. “You can have the Messenger girl, but I’m not going with you to wherever the hell it is you’re going.” I had had enough of these two; it was time for me to try to find Diane, though I wasn’t quite sure how to start on that one.
Wade took a deep breath. “You killed numerous government officials in a big shootout. And now you somehow wound up under the name of a government employee everyone is looking for. You have a lot to answer for.”
I chuckled. “To whom? I know you guys think you work for a government, so you imagine that gives you authority over people, but governments only have authority as far as people fear them. And considering what I’ve done and what you saw me do, do you think I fear you guys?”
I let that hang in the air. There was a brief moment of silence as Wade and Sylvia considered how much they wanted to get killed — silence broken only by the Messenger giggling. I did not like her.
“Goodbye,” I finally said and turned to leave, but someone grabbed my arm. Sylvia.
“And I think I told you I’m not afraid of you,” she said, meeting my eyes with an unblinking stare. She meant it. That was cute.
“Well, you might want to reconsider that, nurse.” There was no mirth in my voice. I made it clear she was crossing a line for which there would be consequences.
She squeezed my arm, digging her fingernails into my skin. It hurt, but it also seemed so petty. I was just about to cave her nose in when I was once again smashed with a pain spasm. I fell to the floor, as it felt like my insides were being torn apart. I was so engulfed by the pain, I could barely notice my arms being pulled behind my back and the cuffs being put on me.
✽ ✽ ✽
“You have a problem with underestimating women.”
I know, Dip. I’ve admitted it before. I wiggled the fingers on my right hand, which was newer than the rest of my body, my original hand having been ripped off during a previous underestimation.
When the transport landed to let off all the randos I saved from the hospital, I was quietly transferred along with the Messenger to another, smaller vehicle that now took off for a destination that threatened to be my final one. I was still stuck in the emergency spacesuit and feeling quite uncomfortable.
“You don’t seem to be getting better.”
If I don’t die soon, I’ll work on it. You’re just being a useless pest right now, you know?
The Messenger was handcuffed to a seat next to me, looking like none of this bothered her at all. Wade stood nearby, watching me, his expression pretty neutral. Sylvia was off to my side, sitting on another seat, appearing quite smug. I wanted to do something to remove that expression, but I couldn’t let myself be baited. “What did you do to me?”
Sylvia stood up and walked over to me so that she was looking straight down at me. “I pressed my fingernails so hard into your arm that they broke skin. Your body did the rest.” She crouched down, bringing her face close to mine. “While we were waiting on Lavaria, I pulled up your medical file. There is an unknown poison in your system. You should be dead, except there is also activated Fazium in your body, fighting it. That’s why you were left in a coma. By all rights, you should be constantly screaming in pain.”
Oh yes. The Fazium. Something like tiny little robots flowing through your body, hacking it back together. Never used on a conscious patient. I shuddered at the remembrance of the pain when it ripped through my broken body and harshly fused it back together on Nar Valdum. Every nerve in my body was lit up like a Christmas tree. If I had been stabbed in the eyeball during it, it would have been white noise.
Sylvia sat back down. “Apparently, the poison and Fazium have fought themselves to a standstill — both lying essentially dormant. But as soon as there is even the slightest injury to you, the Fazium jumps back into action. And it is my understanding that that is very ... unpleasant.” She wasn’t smiling anymore. Not on the outside. But I still could detect the smug in her. She had dominated the big, scary Angel of Death.
And this certainly was a problem for me. I had mastered the pain before, but that took time after I immersed myself in it. Such pain surging out of nowhere would always disable me. On the plus side, the cuts she put in my wrist were already nearly invisible, the skin having completely healed. A neat trick, and all it cost was extreme, debilitating pain.
“We’re not your enemies,” Wade said, reminding me of my bigger problems.
“No, but I’m quite certain you’re taking me to them.” I glanced again at the Messenger, who returned a knowing look. “Anthony Burke,” I continued. “That’s the man behind whatever it is you people have going. He’s the one who nearly killed me, and he will finish the job at the first opportunity given.”
Wade scoffed. “We don’t work for some criminal leader. We’re the last of the Galactic Alliance — the only thing standing in the way of unknown tyrants conquering the known universe.”
I shrugged best I could with my hands bound to a chair. “Those aren’t mutually exclusive.”
Sylvia got up and patted me on the head. “I don’t understand what you’re worried about, but we’ll protect you.”
“Thanks, sweet cheeks.”
She frowned. “As long as you cooperate.”
“We’re headed to a secure facility,” Wade explained. “We’ll have a nice talk there and sort all of this out.”
“It won’t be nice,” I said.
Wade took a deep breath. “I’m sorry about this, but maybe you’ll understand when you learn more about what deep trouble the civilized universe is in.”
Wade and Sylvia went to the other side of the room to discuss something out of earshot, which left me to plan how to get out of my situation. Anthony must have heard about my reemergence by now, and I could only guess his people would already be on their way, so I had to act quickly. Wade seemed like a straight shooter — a real believer in the goodness of whatever nonsense he was involved in. So that meant he was someone I could manipulate. Sylvia was young and arrogant, which was also something I could work with.
But there was little time, and I was probably screwed.
I looked at the cute young thing bound to the chair next to me. She stared back. I winke
d and smiled at her. “So what are you doing after this?”
CHAPTER 6
“Here’s what’s going to happen,” I told Wade and Sylvia as our vehicle landed in the garage of a typically bland government building with few windows. “Some government officials you’ve never heard of are going to come take custody of me and take me away. Then they will kill me.”
Wade considered me for a long moment. “I won’t let anyone take you off Natera. How’s that?”
“And you need to help us out here, Mr. Rico.” Sylvia walked behind me and lifted me to my feet, my cuffed hands still behind me. “Whatever little personal drama you have going on doesn’t matter versus us trying to stop the Fathom from seizing full control of all the Alliance systems.”
“All you’re going to do is get a lot of people killed,” the Messenger said, still cuffed and in the chair next to mine. “And the end result will be the same.”
“She speaks!” Wade said as he got the woman to her feet. “I don’t know how you got yourself into this, girl, but you’d better very carefully consider whether you want to keep allying yourself with those who’ve been murdering millions of people.”
We all exited the vehicle into a small parking garage that was mostly empty. Standing there was a man in a suit looking at us anxiously. “So what’s going on?”
“Can’t explain it all now, Jim,” Wade said. “Just keep everything quiet.”
“I’m the extremely famous Angel of Death,” I told Jim. “Tell everyone. Alert the press.”
Jim stared at me for a moment and looked at Wade. “The refugees from Lavaria — a lot of them are talking about how the Angel of Death saved them from the Fathom.”
“We’ll explain everything soon,” Wade answered. “We just need to secure these people.”
Jim eyed the handcuffed blonde woman. “And is she one of the ... the ones that talk to them? Does she know anything about them?”
“That’s what we want to find out!” Sylvia shouted. “Can we not just stand here?”
“Oh, uh ... floor seven.” Jim pointed to a nearby elevator. “It’s all cleared out for you. Just tell me if you need anything more.”
“Thanks, Jim.” Wade smiled a little. “It’s been a day.”
“I’m the one who just woke up from a coma and dealt with both the ground forces and the gunship just to get manhandled by sunshine over here,” I said, motioning to Sylvia, “so I don’t know why you’re acting like you had a rough day.”
Jim took a careful look at me and turned to Wade. “So what did happen on —”
“We’ll explain later,” Sylvia interrupted, pushing me to the elevator. In the elevator, I stood next to the Messenger, while Sylvia and Wade stood behind us.
“We’ll treat you fairly; we promise,” Wade told me.
“I’m elated,” I answered.
How wrong is it if I kill them?
“There’s not really a metric scale on murder,” Dip answered.
Is it murder? They’re going to end up handing me to Anthony’s people. This is self-defense.
“You’d be trading their lives for yours. Doesn’t seem right. They appear to be decent enough people trying to help the citizens of the Galactic Alliance, and you’re a fairly awful person by almost any measure.”
Fair enough.
The elevator opened into a small hallway with a prominent door on either end. We headed to the one on the right and entered a large room with a number of computers but no people. There were many doors in the room, some solid metal and quite secure.
Sylvia went to one of the computers, waving her hand over a scanner on it and pressing some buttons. “We should be able to get a secure channel here.”
“Good. Redden is waiting,” Wade said.
“Getting it.” Sylvia pressed a couple more buttons, and on the screen was an older human male with a hard, weathered face. He had a graying goatee that was neatly trimmed as if to convey a sense of control the rest of his expression was having trouble selling.
“Well, that didn’t go as expected, did it?” Redden asked.
“No, no more information on Mountain Fall,” Wade said. “But we’re not empty-handed.” He placed a hand on the Messenger’s shoulder.
Through the screen, Redden silently contemplated the young woman. He asked, “Are you ready to tell us something about your handlers?”
“Nothing that will save any of you,” she answered, smirking once again.
Redden firmed his jaw. His eyes narrowed. “Wade, I want you to squeeze every little bit of knowledge she has about the Fathom out of her. I want to be very clear on this: Use any means necessary. I don’t need to hear about it; I only want to know what you’re able to discover. And if that requires means you find too unsavory, then you find someone else without limits.”
“I’d raise my hand,” I said. “But ...” I motioned my head toward my cuffs.
“Ah, your other prize,” Redden said. “We’ll get to you in a moment.” He looked at the Messenger again. “Girl, I hope you understand the gravity of the situation you are in. With the carnage the Fathom are inflicting, we will do anything — anything — to stop them. And right now, any resistance you put up is standing in the way of that. So understand what that means for you.”
The young woman didn’t look the least bit shaken. “And I want you to understand that the Fathom see you taking one of their Messengers as a direct slight against them and their authority. They will make an example of all of you. That means they will come after not only you but also any friends and family you have. They need to break you in every way possible so no one will ever contemplate doing such a thing again. So if all you’re going to damage is my body, then I’m the one here with the least to worry about.”
I had to laugh. That was pretty cool. “Is that a standard speech they teach you girls, or did you work on that in the elevator?”
Redden addressed Wade again. “Do whatever you need.” He looked at me, more than a little suspicion in his eyes. “And this is supposedly the Angel of Death?”
I tried for a friendly smile but didn’t put that much effort into it. “You can call me Rico.”
“Well, Rico, word is already spreading of what you did on Lavaria.”
“You haven’t asked what’s happened to the people you saved,” Dip said.
Why would I care?
“It’s the sort of thing a hero would worry about.”
Well, that’s asinine.
“So what are you doing with the people I saved there?” I asked Redden. “I assume they’re not all being handcuffed and imprisoned like me, the one who risked his life saving them.”
“Those who need it have been sent to a hospital nearby. The rest are being carefully guarded. You know how the Fathom are; they may take it as a slight against them that you saved people they tried to kill.”
I shook my head. “No, I don’t know how the Fathom are. Maybe this hasn't been explained to you, but I have been in a coma for the past couple months, so I’m just getting caught up on all the fun I missed.”
“Then I’m telling you,” Redden said. “That’s how they are.”
I nodded and turned to the Messenger. “Is that how they are?”
She didn’t say anything, but she smiled a little. I hadn’t liked her at first, but she was starting to grow on me.
I looked back at Redden. “Sounds like you’ve got your hands full saving the universe or something, so why don’t you let me go, because I have some personal matters to attend to, and I don’t want to get mixed up in this.”
“You’re already mixed up in this,” Redden said. “You were the impetus for this war that’s brewing, thanks to the collapse of the Galactic Alliance.”
“What do you want? A formal apology?” I considered that a moment. “Yeah, I can do that. I can type that up for you. I can write how sorry I am for publicly slaughtering most of your government. It won’t be sincere, but I can write all the necessary words if you need that on file or so
mething.”
Redden stared at me for a moment. “Is this all very amusing to you?”
I nodded. “Yep.”
Redden took a deep breath but betrayed no emotion. “Probably a lot of people you shot there deserved it. It was a corrupt government, and you exposed it. But now with the Galactic Alliance weakened, we have a threat unlike history has ever recorded. And it is up to me and anyone else left who shares the original founding vision of the Galactic Alliance — a vision of peace and liberty — to face down that threat. And I don’t know exactly who you are beyond being a capable killer, but you will either help us, or you will not like what happens.”
The threat was pathetic. Anthony was the one I was worried about — the one I was certain was behind this little remnant of the Galactic Alliance. This guy was probably just some sap being manipulated by him. “Okay, boss. Whatever you want.”
“We want Mountain Fall.”
I sighed. “I already explained to your agents here that I have no idea what it is.”
“No. You don’t. But Melanie Fincher does.”
It took me a second to recognize Diane’s real name. “I don’t know who that is.”
“Yes, you do. We know she has some association with you. And right now you are most useful to us as a means to draw her out.”
“Is that what we’re going to use him for?” Wade asked. “A way to trap Fincher?”
“Not you,” Redden said. “Concentrate on the Messenger you captured. Secure her and use whatever resources you need to question her. As for Rico here, we have some specialists headed your way to take him.”
“Who?” Sylvia asked.
“I don’t know exactly,” Redden explained. “A number of new orgs have formed as we patched together this government from whoever was left after Nar Valdum that we could trust. They work with us at the highest levels — getting us most of our information. They know what they’re doing. And they’ll be there any minute now.”
I looked at Wade and Sylvia. “Hey, some government officials you’ve never heard of are coming for me. Does that sound familiar?”
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