by A. K. DuBoff
He nodded. “The ship has been destroyed. It’s over.”
Kira breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank the stars!”
“It was foking spectacular!” Kyle grinned.
On the viewscreen set up behind the work area, a video of the sphere’s explosion was replaying on a loop. Kira watched the beam slice through it and then the secondary explosion vaporize the entire structure. She had to admit, it was a sight to behold.
Nia looked her over. “You look like you’ve been through a slaughter. Is that blood all over you?”
“There were some… obstacles,” she replied. “I spoke with the Trols briefly, when I was in the core. This was a rogue group. The ship had the last of the Trols who held those ideals.”
Sandren released a long breath. “This is going to be an interesting debrief.”
“That’s for sure.” Kira shook her head. “If you don’t mind, I’ll get in the decontamination booth now.”
The major looked her over. “It would be inhumane to stand in your way.”
“Hugs after you’re not covered in… that,” Kyle said, tracing his finger through the air from Kira’s head to feet and back.
“Rock-dog blood. Don’t you think it goes well with my hair?” Kira smirked. She had yet to see her own reflection, but she could only imagine the horror show.
“We’ll see you soon. Well done,” Sandren told her.
Kira jogged across the hangar to the decontamination stall. As she started to strip down, a bright chorus of voices suddenly spoke in her mind.
“Thank you. Now we are free.”
She jumped with surprise. “Are you the others?” Her heart pounded in her ears, but the fear only lasted a moment.
A warm glow filled Kira as the distant alien presence embraced her. She had no idea where they were in space, but in that moment, they were connected across the light years.
Joy washed over her—an elation so complete that the world around her melted away. She basked in the tranquil light surrounding her mind.
“Who are you?” she asked them.
“We are life. Love, compassion, hate, greed—we understand the spectrum of experience. Some of us, unfortunately, fell to the darkness that lives within us all. But now, thanks to you, they are free of their burdens, and we may build anew.”
“We didn’t know if there were others. I’m sorry we destroyed this ship and the world in Gaelon. I—”
A sense of serenity filled Kira’s mind. “We understand what you did was necessary. You tried to stop them through other means first. Not everyone would have been so compassionate when faced with such a challenge.”
“I wish it hadn’t come to that.”
“The cruelty that was in them is not our way. It needed to be stopped before it spread.”
Kira nodded. “I’d hoped there were others of your kind with different motivations. There’s so much we want to learn from you! Your technology, everything you know—”
“You are still a young race,” the chorus interrupted. “It is not yet time for us to share all that we can offer, but we’ll be watching you from afar. We see what your Empire has done for this galaxy, and we know its inhabitants are in good hands—especially yours.”
The peaceful glow began to retreat from her mind, and Kira braced for the inevitable internal void when it left her. However, even as she sensed the presence loosening its connection to her, the feeling of fulfillment didn’t diminish.
“A parting gift,” the voices said. “Keep protecting those in need.”
As quickly as they had arrived, the alien minds vanished.
“Wow,” Kira murmured aloud.
Kira’s heart leaped.
the AI confirmed.
Jasmine smiled in her mind.
CHAPTER 21
As Kira exited the docking concourse at Orion Station, a group of two dozen soldiers cheered and clapped.
The AI did have a point. Most missions took place almost exclusively in the field, with little support from base. In this conflict with the Trols, however, the fight had come inside the facility’s walls. Though the battle itself was fought in a remote location, the victory rang as a shared triumph—the vanquishing of a foe that had impacted the lives of everyone in that division of the Guard in some way.
“Man, I could get used to this hero’s welcome all the time,” Ari said with a grin.
Kira smiled back. “Don’t let it go to your head.”
“Too late,” Kyle ribbed. “Pretty sure he’s already updated the bio on his main Net video account with ‘galactic savior’ as his official job title.”
She scrunched up her nose. “Wasn’t that on there already?”
Nia laughed. “Oh, Kira, you should know by now that Ari’s ego knows no bounds.”
“Formal debrief will be in thirty minutes. See you then,” Sandren said as he passed by Kira and her team.
“Yes, sir,” she acknowledged.
They took a couple of moments to thank the soldiers who’d come to greet them, and then headed toward their quarters to drop off their travel items before the meeting.
Kira was surprised Leon hadn’t been waiting for her at the concourse, but she found him standing outside her quarters in his usual fashion. “There you are.”
“Kira!” He ran to her, arms outstretched. He held her close. “I was so worried,” he murmured into her hair.
“Being entombed in an alien death-planet-ship-thing wasn’t high on my list of preferred ways to die.”
Leon pulled back enough to look her in the eyes. “Are you okay?”
“Better than okay—especially now that I’m back home.” She kissed him deeply, happy that he’d staged the reunion in a more private location.
Kira unlocked her door and showed him inside. “Is it true that word is getting around the Guard about what happened?”
“Not around-around, but a fair number of people know. I think a few people started talking about it before it was made clear that it’s classified information.”
“Doesn’t surprise me.”
Leon sat down on the edge of her bed. “What happened after the ship was blown up? Your message was really cryptic.”
She joined him on the bed. “There are more of the Trols—or whatever they’re actually called. The others aren’t like the ones we met, though. They’re good, and kind, and they see what we’re doing in this galaxy and wish us the best.”
“Advanced, then?”
“So advanced. Between us, I don’t think we have a proper frame of reference yet to understand a lifeform like theirs.”
“After everything I’ve seen, that doesn’t surprise me.”
She took his hand. “But it’s over. The bad ones are gone.”
Leon cupped his free hand on the side of Kira’s face, and gave her a slow kiss. “What now?”
“First up, I have a debrief in twelve minutes.”
He dropped his hands to his sides. “Of course you do.”
“But after that, I honestly don’t know. More missions and… whatever, I guess?” She paused. “Also, I sorta got offered a position with the TSS.”
<
br /> “The TSS?” Leon came to attention. “That would be a change.”
“Yeah, I haven’t decided how I feel about it yet. I think it was an open-ended offer.”
“Then you have plenty of time to decide.”
“Oh, and I have something science-y for you to work on,” Kira continued. “I, uh, sort of ‘communed’ with the good counterparts of the Trols, and they passed some information on to me. Jasmine thinks it’s a fix to my nanite problems.”
“That’s… very interesting.”
“Yeah, so you should probably check that out.”
He nodded. “I’d definitely like to take a look.”
“Okay, how about I swing by the lab after the debrief?”
“Sounds good.”
They parted ways with another kiss, and then Kira headed to the designated conference room.
She settled into her place at the table, across from Colonel Kaen and Major Sandren, with the three members of her team to her right.
“To state the obvious, all of you have done amazing work over the past several days,” Kaen began. “You have demonstrated time and again how dedicated you are to your positions. You truly rose to the occasion, and you have the Guard’s sincere gratitude.”
“Of course, sir. Just doing our jobs,” Kira replied, and her team murmured their agreement.
The colonel nodded. “Well, let’s go over exactly what happened.”
The team members each recounted their version of the events. Kira was surprised to hear how close her team had come to losing control while stalling for time as she made her way back to the Raven. By the time they were finished, she was convinced that anyone else would have left her to die. She owed them her life many times over.
Kaen took it in silently, nodding and making occasional notes in shorthand on the touch-surface tabletop. When every member of the team had completed their report, he smiled.
“These reports have confirmed my impressions of the events.” He looked to the three soldiers on Kira’s team. “Effective immediately, you’re all promoted to the rank of corporal.”
The three soldiers exchanged glances.
“Thank you, sir,” Kyle said, “but doesn’t that mean we’re supposed to be squad leaders or something?”
“Rank is based on the needs of the Guard and the leadership positions we fill. Because of your work in special operations, none of you was afforded the opportunity to lead a squad. We know you could, and much more. It’s time that was corrected.” Kaen smiled. “Keep up this level of performance, and you’ll find yourselves sergeants soon.”
Kira beamed at her team. “Congratulations, Corporals.”
They wouldn’t say it out loud, but Kira could tell at least one of them was thinking something along the lines of ‘about bomaxed time’.
“As for you, Kira,” Kaen continued, “it’s about time you were promoted to major.”
Her heart skipped a beat. “Thank you, sir.”
Sandren smiled. “How many times do you have to prove your courage, commitment, and can-do attitude before you get something for your continued sacrifices?”
“I will fulfill my duty to the best of my ability.”
“To that end, we’ll need to reevaluate the best use of all of your skills moving forward. We’ll figure out your assignments in the coming days,” Kaen continued.
Kira nodded to the colonel. “Yes, sir, we’ll be standing by.”
“Now, go celebrate. You’ve earned it,” Kaen said with a smile. “I heard there’s going to be cake.”
— — —
Ellen settled into the chair across from President Joris’ desk. After more than a month away from Elusia, it was strange to be back in the place that had not long before been her home away from home.
“Quite an exciting month!” Joris said, smiling behind his steepled fingers.
“Drama I am very happy to now have behind me.” Ellen sank into her chair.
“Has Trisha called you in a panic yet?” He smirked.
“Only twice, but I was able to talk her down both times.”
“Good. I know you wouldn’t have recommended her for the Mysaran governorship if she couldn’t handle the position.”
Ellen nodded. “There’s no one else I’d feel more confident having in her role, especially with Fiona as her second-in-command. She’s dedicated and sharp.”
“I agree, that’s a winning combination. Plus, she supports unity within the Elvar Trinary.”
“Another benefit, for sure.”
Joris tapped his fingertips together. “There is someone who’s proven less than supportive on that front.”
Ellen tilted her head quizzically.
“Mitchell Korwen.”
“Right…” She let out a long breath, thinking back to her conversation with the mayor of Tribeca. It was unfortunate that she’d needed to resort to threats, but at least the matter had been resolved in time.
“As we move forward with unification,” Joris continued, “having someone more agreeable would expedite matters considerably.”
“Yes. Who do you have in mind?”
“You, actually.”
Ellen laughed. “Yeah, right.”
“Can you give me a good reason why not? We have always emphasized the need for local representation in the political arguments we’ve made with these recent events. You’re a Valtan native, and you’ve lived on all three worlds in this system. I can think of no better person to serve as a representative of Valtan interests while understanding the larger context of the political landscape.”
She worked her mouth. “I’m not sure what to say…”
“You can start by accepting the role. Play bashful if you like, but I know you want this. In all your changes of allegiance, your commitment to Valta has never wavered.”
“I don’t know how you’ll get the other representatives on the world to go along with it.”
Joris smiled. “Let’s just say I’ve already made a few calls to vet the idea, and I don’t think there will be any issues.”
Ellen thought for a moment. “Sir, I would be honored.”
“Excellent.”
“Then there’s also the matter of transitioning you to president of this system, once Valta and Mysar are officially brought into the Empire.”
“Formalities. And maybe someone else will want to run for that position. I’m happy I was able to get us this far, no matter what the future holds.”
She took a deep, satisfied breath. “A united system, finally.”
“We have a bright future together.”
— — —
Kira drummed her fingers on her crossed arms. Leon and Jack had been absorbed in their computers for the past five minutes.
“What do you—?” she started to ask, but Jack suddenly pushed back from his station.
“This is everything we were missing before,” he stated. “All the biological interactions with the tech, the control mechanisms, it’s all here.”
“What does that mean for me?” Kira asked.
“It means my initial assessment was correct,” Jasmine replied over the lab’s comms. “With this guide, I’ll be able to control your transformations. The application requires an AI, so it’s unlikely that use of the tech will become widespread. However, this means you’ll be able to maximize your abilities—should you choose to do so.”
“Being able to safely use super-speed? No complaints,” Kira said.
“You’ve really embraced the new abilities,” Leon commented.
“I know it’s strange.” Kira shrugged. “I hated that
Monica forced these changes on me, but now that I’ve gotten used to the idea of the nanotech, the abilities are kind of awesome.”
Jack grinned. “Fok yeah! You’re on the road to total badassery.”
“There is a downside to embracing the change, though.” Kira slumped in her chair. “What’ll happen to my team?”
“They’ll be a whole lot safer,” Leon replied.
“Yes, and that part’s great. But with their promotions, and now me having control of these new abilities and my own promotion, I’m concerned that the higher-ups are going to separate us.”
“A fascinating conundrum.” Jack rose from his station. “And I’m sure you two will have a riveting discussion about it, but I’m gonna go ogle this data. I know how Leon hates it when I dissect your weird tech in his presence.”
“Kira has expressed displeasure when I do that, as well,” Jasmine chimed in over the comm.
“Shocking that talking about me like a science experiment doesn’t give me the warm fuzzies,” Kira muttered.
“Knock yourself out, Jack,” Leon said to his coworker as he departed the lab.
“See ya.” Jack waved goodbye and then closed the door behind him.
Kira rolled her eyes and sighed.
“At least he’s useful.” Leon shrugged. “Now, I believe we’re at the part where I’m supposed to offer some insightful words of wisdom about life transitions and how friendships transcend current work assignments.”
She smiled. “Yeah, that sounds about right.”
“I thought so.” Leon crossed his arms and frowned. “Bomax, I’ve got nothing.”
Kira raised an eyebrow. “Seriously?”
He grinned. “Nah, I’m just messing with you.” He extended his arms toward her.
She took his hands, and he drew her in for a kiss.
“Look,” he said when they parted, “I know change can be scary and sad and all those other feelings we try to avoid, but sometimes that’s exactly what we need in order to grow and really come into our own. Whether your team structure changes, or you have different assignments, or even if you do decide to join the TSS instead, it’s a chance for you to try something new. A decade is a long time to stick with one thing, so change can be good.”