The Mir Chronicles- The Complete Series

by Leisa Wallace

  “Show off,” Lena said.

  Gideon grinned as Tern glided next to him. Tern also stepped onto a machine and effortlessly glided over the balcony railing without a problem. Lena felt Suki grip her arm and lead her glider over the edge of the railing. “You’ll get the hang of it,” Suki said. “It’s in your nature not to let things beat you.” Letting go of Lena’s arm, Suki flew to the front of the group. Lena leaned her body slightly towards Suki. When her glider moved just as slowly, Lena sighed with relief.

  “I’m sure you’ve already gathered that this is an old Opera House,” Suki explained leading the group around the upper floors while gradually descending.

  Lena’s confidence with the glider oscillated between panic and joy as she leaned to guide the glider after Suki. When it didn’t bolt from under her, she relaxed her muscles and grinned as it flew. Gideon’s shoulders shook in a silent chuckle as he watched her. She glared and turned her attention towards Suki.

  “It was already falling into disrepair when the Priestess took over. We’ve turned it into not only our workplace but our home,” Suki said.

  “Exactly what kind of information do you deal in?” Gideon asked, swinging his glider from side to side as he followed Suki.

  “We steal information,” Suki said.

  “And technology,” Evren piped in. “We steal it and sell it to the highest bidder. Mir, even in it’s declined state, has the most successful port in our galaxy. Leaders from around the world come here to trade their goods. They bring information with them; we find it and steal it. Most of these kids are quite good at it too.”

  “Pickpockets of information,” Gideon said under his breath as he looked around the room. “That’s what Ollie was doing at the hotel. He was gathering information.”

  “Yes and no. Ollie really did get caught and sold for stealing. We just hadn’t rescued him yet,” Evren answered.

  “We would have if Evren would have told us he was caught in the first place,” Suki said glaring towards her companion.

  “Didn’t you realize he was gone?” Lena asked.

  “Of course we did. But kids come and go all the time around here. We don’t give it much thought unless something suspicious is pointed out to us. Which, in Ollie’s case, it wasn’t,” Suki said, giving Evren a pointed stare.

  Evren didn’t seem the least fazed by Suki’s comments and acted like he hadn’t even heard them. “This is the room we test the technologies we’ve acquired,” Evren explained. Lena looked over the room again. Her eyes stopped at what she assumed used to be the stage. Holograms flashed in bright colors. Blues, purples, reds and greens cast shadows of light across the few Zoons who stood on the stage studying it. They looked deep in conversation as they analyzed the diagrams. “Every Zoon has different strengths and, as such, different job descriptions. The Zoons in this room are adequately good at testing the technology acquired.” They flew next to various theater boxes. Groups of kids and teens gathered around tables collaborating their information while others worked on different inventions. All seemed to have some pieced-together glider sitting next to them.

  “Acquired by who? By Ollie?” Lena asked.

  “Oh, no,” Evren said quickly. “Ollie gathers us intel. If the intel has information about new technologies we send our agents out to acquire it. He is too inexperienced for such a mission. Suki is the best at getting us new technologies. But of course, we have others.”

  Lena didn’t know what to say so instead focused on the Zoons. Most of them in the room had some kind of deformity that they used technology to compensate for. The Priestess’ reign had not been good to them.

  “What do you do with the information you get?” Lena asked, still taking in all she could see around the room.

  “When we find new information, we bring it here. We work with each other to decide who would benefit most from having it and we make deals,” Evren replied.

  They landed on the stage and stepped off the gliders. Lena’s foot got caught on the edge of her foot clamp and she stumbled her last step. “You blackmail people?” Lena asked catching herself and kicking the machine to the side. She did not like the glider.

  “Sometimes,” Suki responded, unashamed. “But mostly we just sneak into The Port, steal technology from the other worlds, and sell it on the black market.”

  “Do you work with the Priestess?” Gideon asked.

  Suki shook her head right away. “No. There is no love here for that woman. But we try to stay under her radar. Sometimes we bribe her Defense soldiers to look the other way. Sometimes we do deals with them to stay on their good side. We’re not sure how much she knows about us, but she hasn’t come after us, so that’s a good sign.”

  Lena looked back to Evren. The iris in Evren’s left eye had turned black with a thin ring of neon green. An electronic pulse zigzagged through the middle.

  “What just happened to your eye?” Lena gasped, still staring at him.

  Evren blinked. “It’s an electronic lens,” Evren said. “I invented it to monitor data associated with various transactions specific to the Centizoons operations. I issue each Zoon their own lens. When you look through it, the lens will automatically record, sort, and store information about the people you’re looking at. It will also tell you a variety of information on the person that’s been previously documented.

  “It sounds distracting,” Lena said.

  “It is,” Suki said at the same time Evren started talking.

  “Not at all. You can blink and turn the display on and off at will. I originally invented it to document who we’ve had transactions with without drawing attention to ourselves. But I found the more you know about a person, the better off you are. So we try to keep running tabs on everyone we meet. Your information is being recorded now. Quite brilliant technology, if one would just wear it.” He said the last part to Suki and gave her a scolding look.

  “It’s annoying,” Suki said. “And maybe I don’t like all my transactions being recorded.” She flipped her hair to the side. And whether it was the comment or how she moved, it caused Evren to turn bright red.

  “I don’t think it’s wise to record information about us,” Gideon said, bringing his glider forward. “Delete it,” he commanded.

  Evren backed his glider away from Gideon as he looked at him with wide eyes. “Nobody has access to our systems except the Zoons. Your information will be safe.”

  “You can’t guarantee you don’t have traitors within your group,” Gideon said. “Delete it.”

  Evren looked to Suki who nodded. Evren blinked his eye again and backed away. “Well, that’s weird,” he said. “Evangeline’s information seems to have disappeared on its own.” Evren’s eyes jerked in micro movements back and forth, and though he stared directly at her, it was obvious he was studying something else.

  Lena wasn’t surprised by the statement. Dorry had somehow programed her insignia to erase any electronic information about her. She didn’t know how he did it or why it worked, but knew it did. Gideon had told her before that when he was at the Interplanetary Military Academy he had tried to find her, but all traces of her were somehow never recorded.

  Tern interrupted the conversation. “I’m lookin’ fer my friend. She was captured by the Defenses several days ago. Do ya think ya can help me?”

  “Your friend was captured by the Priestess?” Suki asked, letting out a deep breath.

  “She was my friend as well,” Lena said.

  “Why should we help you?” Bates stepped from out of the shadows. His face wore a mixture of hate and resentment and was anything but friendly.

  Chapter Eighteen

  “We take care of our own,” Bates said. “And you are not one of us. In fact, if anything, now we’ve got even more reason to be on the Priestess’ radar.”

  “Bates, shove it,” Suki said, widening her stance in front of him. “The Defenses are searching for them. That’s reason enough for us to help them.”

  “No. It’s no
t.” He spat to the side. “You know the rules, Suki. We help our own. And they are defiantly not our own. And I’m not about to risk all we’ve built here to help them if they offer us nothing in return.”

  “We don’t do everything for gain, Bates,” Suki said.

  “Oh, really? We’re helping anyone now, are we? In that case, I know of a couple of people I’d really like to help, too,” Bates shot back.

  “These two aren’t some of your random love interests, Bates.”

  “But you clearly aren’t thinking straight when it comes to them,” Bates countered. “We take care of our own—that’s your rule isn’t it?”

  Their voices gradually grew angrier as they spoke. A small crowd had formed around them straining to hear what was happening.

  “If you knew who they were, you’d be helping them, too? Suki said.

  “Well that’s the thing, isn’t it? I don’t know who they are. Yet you’ve let them into our facility like they’re one of us. How do we know they’re not going to turn us over to the Priestess?”

  “Because this is Evangeline Adhara, you idiot,” Suki said. “Do I need to explain to you why she won’t turn you over to the Priestess? Or do you think you can figure it out on your own?”

  Bates glowered and didn’t look like he was about to back down.

  “What do you want?” Lena asked. “What do we need to do so you’ll help us get inside The Port?”

  Evren cleared his throat. “It’s obvious. There is only one thing we can do to satisfy the rules in place and ensure the secrecy associated with our group.”

  “What’s that?” asked Gideon.

  “Initiate them as Centizoons, of course,” Evren replied.

  The kids around them started to talk. At first they whispered but it quickly escalated into full-blown excitement. Some Zoons nodded while others shook their heads. Bates stood stone-still, staring at Evren. Lena could hear her name being spoken in the crowd around them. As she looked at the theater boxes, she could see groups of Zoons leaning against the railings straining to hear the conversation.

  “What exactly does it take to be initiated as a Centizoon?” Lena asked.

  Bates raised an eyebrow curiously. “To be a Zoon you have to prove you have a skill we need. I doubt you do.”

  “It’s nothing they can’t handle,” Suki said, glaring at Bates. The holograms on the stage cast weird, pink and green colors across her face.

  “It’s an act of three,” Evren clarified. Noticing the colors scrolling across Suki’s face, he waved his hand toward the nearest hologram which turned it off. “First you have to acquire intel beneficial to the Centizoons.”

  “Next, we want something that the Centizoons can sell. Something others will want that nobody else has. It needs to be physical,” Suki said.

  “And the third?” Gideon asked.

  “We need to know you won’t be a liability to our organization. That you won’t be crying like a baby and spilling the beans about the Zoons if the worst happens,” Bates said.

  “The worst being what?” Lena asked.

  “If you’re caught and tortured by the Priestess, that you won’t mess up and tell her everything you know about us,” Bates said.

  “And everyone here has passed this test?” Gideon asked skeptically.

  Suki shrugged her shoulders. “More or less,” she answered.

  Lena studied the crowd around them, their wide eyes anxiously awaiting their answer. A few people whispered, but the room had become mostly silent. These kids—they were just like her. Their lives drastically changed by circumstances completely out of their control. Lena didn’t know a lot about them, but they seemed loyal to each other. And when she thought about being a part of this group, she felt peace. Being initiated was a way she could stay on Mir and not be alone. They could help them free Birdee.”

  “How long will it take us to find what you require?” Gideon asked.

  “That’s completely up to you,” Suki said. “It just needs to meet the requirements. Most recruits take a few weeks. But if you have access to the right kind of information, you should be able to do it faster.” Gideon studied Lena, then looked to Tern who only shrugged his shoulders.

  It looked to Lena like Gideon was seriously thinking about joining the Centizoons. Suki brushed her hair over her shoulder so it landed on her back as she waited for the two of them to answer. Seconds passed slowly. He was taking too long. He was going to refuse. Anxiety gripped her insides. She couldn’t let the opportunity pass.

  “I have what you need right now,” Lena blurted out. Gideon turned towards her, but she quickly turned away from him so she wouldn’t see his reaction. She had what they needed to become Centizoons and she was going to use it. She focused on Evren and pulled a box from her pocket. She took a deep breath and opened it. She held it out for Evren to see the pieces of the broken device Dorry had given her. She cleared her throat. “The Priestess has a device that controls a person’s actions. This device will counteract it.” She handed the device to Evren who held it gently. “It’s broken. But I think it can be fixed if you’ll help me.

  “As for caving under pressure, we’ve been captured, hidden, hunted and tortured. We’ve also had the best hand to hand training this and other worlds have to offer. If we get captured, I can assure you we will not surrender. We will not flail in the arms or our enemies. We will fight. And if that fight happens to be to the death, then we’ll gladly join our loved ones who have gone before us. But we will not betray those we are bound to protect.”

  The room went eerily silent. The only sound Lena heard was the intake of her own breath. All at once the crowd burst into cheers. They clapped and hollered. Some chanted her name. Lena had no idea what was happening. She stared at Evren who was smiling, then at Suki who laughed and stepped towards Lena.

  “Why is everyone cheering?” Lena asked.

  “For one, that was the fastest initiation ever. And two, word travels fast around here. They know who you are. They know who you defied. And your little speech just now—that’s enough to get anyone who hate the Priestess cheering.”

  “So are we Zoons?” Lena asked Evren.

  The room went silent again.

  “I’ll need some time to verify your information,” Evren said. “But yes, you are now officially a Zoon.”

  “Lena is a Zoon,” Bates cut in. “Gideon and Tern will need to pass their own test.”

  “Are you kidding me?” Lena said. “We work as a team. If I make it, they make it.”

  “They need to prove their worth,” Bates said.

  Suki looked ready to argue, but Gideon held up his hand. Lena knew he would walk away. She knew he wouldn’t want to be a Zoon. Lena gave him a pleading look, begging with her eyes for him to join. She held her breath waiting for his answer. After a heavy pause, Gideon sighed in defeat.

  “Okay,” Gideon said. “If you promise to help us get into The Port, we’ll prove our worth to you. Do you have something in mind for me to get? Or can I pick something myself?”

  Bates looked at him curiously, then he looked at Lena. She stood clutching her necklace around her throat waiting for the answer. Bates stepped closer to her and lifted the chain from her hand. She released the medallion and let it hang from Bates’ finger. “I want the stone.”

  “You want my necklace?” Lena questioned.

  “No, I want the stone that was just flown into Arc. It has so much security around it, it’s got to be something special.”

  Gideon looked at him curiously. “Tell me more.”

  “There are myths surrounding certain stones,” Bates said.

  “The stones that created Mir,” Gideon said.

  “You know of them?” Bates asked.

  “My education was well rounded,” Gideon said. “That’s what you want in return for our help? A guarded stone?”

  “That’s what I want.”

  “And you think I can get it?”

  “No. I don’t. That’s my point. I�
��m just proving you’re not Zoon material.”

  “Do we get help from any Zoons?” Gideon asked.

  “Ah, yes,” Evren said adjusting the collar of his shirt. “You may each take one Zoon with you.”

  “Good, because I’m choosing you,” he said to Bates. “And Tern is choosing you.” He turned to Suki whose grin turned so wide, Lena couldn’t help but smile back. Tern didn’t seem upset by the fact that Gideon chose a Zoon for him. In fact, he stepped up next to Gideon in a show of unity.

  Bates’ mouth dropped open. The shock on his face caused Suki to laugh out loud.

  “You asked for it, Bates.”

  “And if you don’t do everything I ask of you,” Gideon said challenging Bates. “We get the Zoon’s help by default.”

  “Deal,” Suki said.

  Bates did not look happy, but he shook Gideon’s extended hand.

  “I need some equipment,” Gideon said. “I assume you have an equipment locker.”

  Suki nodded. “You can have what you need.”

  “Suit up. We have a stone to steal,” Gideon said.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Lena looked toward the door as Gideon entered the room with Suki, Tern, and Bates. This was the first time she had seen them since they left to plan their stone heist. Gideon was dressed in a black glider suit with a helmet covering most of his head. Pads covered his elbows and knees. He rocked back and forth on the glider. The lights attached to it blinked into view with each movement.

  Suki flew next to him and spun her machine in a circle. She wore the same safety gear as Gideon. Her glider flashed bright purple, the same colors as her prosthetic arm.

  Bates stood on his glider with his arms crossed in front of him. He did not look happy to be there, but Lena also saw an edge of excitement behind the scowl.

  Tern, like always, stood quietly to the side, a glider in his hand.

  Evren came up to Gideon and handed him a small round case. “Here’s a lens for you. It has all the information you need on the stone and those who hold it.”