The man’s helmet began to fog up as his breathing became heavier and more strained. His hands continued to shake nervously, and now his legs were joining in. He was on the brink of collapsing.
“Thor,” Kira ordered, “lower your weapon.”
He lowered his gun, but he did not holster it. Kira knew that if he wanted to, he could have the gun raised and the shot fired before the man across from them even had the chance to blink. Hopefully, he didn't know that, though.
“We have a doctor,” Kira offered. “Let us help you.”
“Why?” the man asked, still eyeing Thor down the sights of his gun. “Why do you want to help me?”
“Because that’s what we came here to do. We’re here on behalf of the Alliance. We’re here to help.”
The man looked as if he wanted to object, but his condition required a doctor. He knew that as well as the rest of them did.
“Fine,” he said, tossing his gun to the ground. He turned, without another word, and re-entered the shelter.
Kira waved the others on, and together they headed toward the entrance. Everyone was hesitant to enter the airlock, but the man had already disappeared through it. If they were going to get answers, they needed to follow.
“Can we trust him?” Bron asked.
“We don’t have any choice,” Dario replied. “We need to know what happened here.”
“Maybe I should stay outside,” Thor said, hanging back by the shelter’s door. “He’s clearly uncomfortable around me.”
The entire group couldn’t help but notice the hint of self-loathing wrapped around Thor’s words. Kira knew more than any of them how much of a struggle it had been for him to accept his past, how much he had struggled with what Grimm had done to him. She knew the man’s words had only reopened the wound he had been trying to heal since Thor openly rebelled against Grimm.
“No,” Kira said firmly, keeping her authoritative Captain’s tone heavy on her voice. “We do this together—all of us.”
Thor nodded and followed the others into the airlock. Once the air around them had been pressurized, the doors flew open, revealing what appeared to be a typical mining colony shelter. Kira and the others stepped inside, releasing their helmets and scanning their surroundings.
“Over here,” they heard the man who had been shooting at them call out.
His voice was weaker than before. His condition was worsening, and Kira knew that they had reached him just in time. He was huddled in the far corner of the room. Most of the lights were off, and at first, it was hard to see him.
As they moved closer and their vision adjusted to the low lighting, Kira saw the bundle of blankets piled next to him move slightly.
The man noticed Kira's apprehension immediately and lowered the edge of the thick brown fabric to reveal a Terran woman. Her eyes were pinched shut and her breathing was labored. There was blood running down the side of her face, and her entire body seemed to be shaking like a leaf.
“She’s worse than I am,” the man explained.
Dario rushed over to where the man and woman were seated. Kira and the others looked on as he assessed their conditions. The expression on Dario’s face did little to ease anyone’s concern.
“Alaria,” he said firmly, “go back to the ship and get my supplies. We can’t afford to move this woman, but she needs immediate attention.”
“The ship’s at least a mile away,” Kira replied.
“I can make it,” Alaria insisted.
“But can you make it fast enough?” Bron asked the question on all of their minds.
“I’ll go,” Thor offered.
He could run through the low gravity rocky terrain, burdened down by the combat armor, faster than any of them.
“Fine,” she said, nodding to him. “Hurry.”
“That’s why I’m the one going, isn’t it?” Thor replied, winking at her as his helmet snapped into place.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“You have to help her,” the man kept saying over and over as Dario attempted to do whatever he could to ease the woman’s suffering while they waited for Thor to return with his medical supplies.
“What is your name?” Alaria asked, walking up next to him. She gave him her trademark kind, genuine smile as she lowered herself down in front of him.
“Myles,” he replied, not taking his eyes off the woman. “And this is Kora.”
“Why don’t you tell us what happened, Myles?” Alaria said, resting her hand gingerly on his shoulder.
Myles’ eyes went wide. It was as if he were seeing the entire thing playing out in front of him. He leaned back, finally shifting his gaze from Kora to Alaria. Alaria kept the kind smile on her face as she waited patiently for him to speak.
“It happened very fast,” he began. “We were working. It was a typical day in the mine. But then, out of nowhere, ships began descending upon us from above.”
“They rained down on us out of nowhere. They were filled with soldiers, Arkadian warriors," Myles continued. "Arcanum soldiers," he added with a clear hint of disdain.
“If the Arcanum were here, that means Grimm is definitely behind this,” Kira said.
“Not just the Arcanum, though,” Dario reminded them. “The Arkadians were here, as well.”
“Arkadian warriors?” Bron asked. He let out a quick scoff. “Those peace loving pussies actually have warriors?”
“They’re not as peaceful as they’d have you think,” Kira replied quickly. “Not all of them at least.”
“Why did they come here?” Alaria asked.
“For the Divarium,” Myles said matter-of-factly. “The mineral we mine here.”
“A mineral?” Vinnie asked, with a scoff surprisingly identical to Bron’s. “All of this for a mineral?”
“It’s not just a mineral,” Alaria answered for Myles. “It could be used as a catalyst for high energy reactors.”
“What would Grimm want that for?” Dario asked.
“He could make some huge ass bombs with it,” Bron suggested.
“He can make bombs with just about anything these days,” Alaria replied.
As the discussion continued, the hairs on the back of Kira’s neck began to stand up. Something about the conversation was beginning to bring back memories of a time in her life she had forgotten about long ago.
“Why would he raid these mining colonies for that specific mineral?” Dario asked.
Kira knew the answer before it was spoken.
“To purify the galaxy,” Myles replied.
Every face in the room went blank as they turned their attention back to the injured man huddled in the corner of the room.
“That’s what the Arkadian said,” Myles continued with a weak shrug. “His name is Mordecai. He’s some crazed Arkadian warlord who led the whole thing and went on and on about his work with Grimm to purify the galaxy.”
“It’s official,” Dario said, leaning back on his heels and looking at the group over his shoulder. “Grimm has gone completely mad.”
“How did you survive?” Kira asked, wanting to shift the conversation again. Her mind needed to piece everything together before she announced what she was thinking—what she was fearing.
“We took cover deep in the mine,” he explained. “We waited there until we were sure they were gone.”
“Then you came here? With her injured like this?” Dario asked.
“We weren’t injured initially,” Myles explained. “But Mordecai left behind a swarm of Zel’Dar to finish off whatever survivors he may have overlooked. There were eight of us—at first.”
“Son of a bitch,” Bron muttered.
“How long ago did they leave?” Kira asked, trying to calculate if they could make it to the third colony in time to stop them.
“About an hour ago,” Myles replied.
Just then, the door to the airlock slid open, and Thor entered the room. He had made the trip—a mile each way—surprisingly fast. Yet, he didn’t look to be winded or strained at all.
“Here,” Thor said, marching across the room and holding Dario’s kit out to him.
“Just in time,” Dario said, setting the kit on the ground and rummaging through it.
As Dario worked to patch up the two survivors, the others paced around nervously, trying to figure out their next step.
“We have to get to the third mining colony,” Kira said. “There’s a chance that this Mordecai and his men are still there. Maybe we can stop them before they completely destroy that place, too.”
“Is it really safe for the six of us to go up against a man leading an army of Arcanum soldiers?” Bron asked.
“We have to at least try to do something. He’s out there killing all these innocent people, collecting this mineral, who knows what his next step will be,” Alaria said.
“I say we just blow them all to hell!” Vinnie said, jumping up from his seat.
“Yes, we’ll blow them all to hell with the state-of-the-art missiles and cannons our state-of-the-art ship is equipped with,” Thor said, smiling sarcastically.
Bron huffed as he crossed his arms over his chest. “You keep complaining about the Curio, but without it, you’d still be stuck on Vandor—running from robot rodent bounty hunters and Roughneck pirates.”
“You’re right, this is much better. Now we’re running head first into the face of danger, instead of away from it,” Thor commented with a chuckle.
“We’re all set,” Dario informed them, crossing the room in their direction. “Myles is much better off, and I think I got Kora patched up enough to at least make the trip back to Earth where she can get proper medical attention.”
“Good,” Kira replied. She walked over to where Myles was still sitting on the floor next to Kora. “Do you have a shuttle?” Kira asked him.
“We do, but I’m not sure if it was spared during the attack,” he replied. “And, neither of us are engineers.”
“Lucky for you, we’ve got one of the best engineers around right here,” Kira said, gesturing toward Alaria.
“It’s just across the way,” Myles said, pushing himself up.
“Perfect. Get suited up, and Alaria, Bron, and Vinnie will go over there with you to inspect the situation.”
Myles expressed his gratitude, and within a few minutes, the group of five were making their way toward the airlock. Bron carried Kora, who had regained consciousness and insisted she could walk. Still, Dario felt it would be best for her to save as much of her energy as possible.
Taking advantage of the moment, Kira filled Thor in on what Myles had told the rest of the group about the attack.
“Grimm’s lost his mind,” Thor muttered, mirroring Dario’s previous statement.
“Yes and no,” Kira said, shifting her weight back and forth.
“What do you mean?” Dario asked.
“Grimm’s working with the Arkadians,” Kira said, more in an effort to think out loud than anything. “But, as Bron pointed out before, the Arkadians are generally non-combative.”
“And?” Thor asked.
“There is a group, a sect really, that follow a religion known as Empyreanism. Within that religion, there are smaller, more extreme groups that believe in taking drastic measures to purify the galaxy.”
“’Purify the galaxy’,” Dario repeated. “That’s what Mordecai claimed he and his men were working to do.”
“How do they plan on doing something like that?” Thor asked.
“Death by the purifying light of a star gone supernova’,” Kira said, repeating word-for-word something she had heard before. Something she laughed at, at the time. “They want to find a way to make stars collapse in on themselves before the end of their lifecycle.”
Kira swore she heard an audible chill ripple through the air. Her own skin prickled with goosebumps at the thought of stars all across the galaxy imploding simultaneously.
“That would wipe out…,” Dario began.
“Everything,” Thor finished for him.
“I’m not sure that’s what they’re planning,” Kira said quickly. “That’s why I didn’t say anything earlier. But, it makes sense. Collecting the Divarium, the Arkadian soldiers, talk of purification…”
“They need to be stopped,” Dario said with purpose.
“That is what we’ve been hoping to accomplish this whole time,” Kira reminded him. “But now, we may have enough to get the bounties off our heads and actually team up with the Alliance.”
“We need to get a message back to Artanis,” Thor said.
“Dario,” Kira ordered, “go meet with the others at the shuttle. Tell Myles and Kora that they need to find Admiral Artanis and tell him everything that happened here. Tell them to make sure that he knows that we are positive Grimm is behind all of this.”
“On my way,” Dario said, nodding firmly as he marched toward the airlock, leaving Kira and Thor alone.
“We should get back to the ship,” Thor said, watching Dario disappear behind the sliding doors. “You’ll want to have the engines initiated and everything ready to go so we can get to the next colony as quick as possible.”
“I agree,” she said turning to face him.
He kept his eyes fixed on the metal doors. His face was stern but his eyes were filled with emotion.
“Are you okay?” she asked him, reaching out and setting her hand on his forearm.
“I’m fine,” he replied, turning to face her. “Really.”
“What that man said before…,” Kira started.
“Is not important right now,” Thor cut her off, pulling his wrist out of her grasp.
“It clearly upset you.”
“How could it not?”
“Because he doesn’t know you, Thor. You’re not like the others.”
“But, in a way I am. And no matter what, that’s how everyone will see me for the rest of my life. I can either hide it, hide who I am, or suffer being marginalized or demonized or…”
She stepped forward quickly, taking his hands in hers and squeezing them tightly. “Stop it,” she said to him firmly. “What they did to you can only define you if you let it. Your actions, your spirit, who you are, they can never take that away—they didn’t take that away.”
“Sometimes I wonder,” he confessed, inhaling sharply. “We have a mission to focus on right now. Let’s take care of business first.”
“Okay,” Kira said, stepping back and releasing her hold on his hands. “But, you know you can talk to me about this, right?”
"I know," he said, leaning forward and kissing her softly on the top of the head. "And I will when I'm ready."
“I’m going to hold you to that,” she replied smiling at him over her shoulder as she walked toward the airlock.
“I never doubted that you would,” he replied with a wink.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Their departure from the second mining colony was a mad dash of adrenaline pumped determination. Kira and Thor were already on the flight deck when Alaria, Dario, Bron, and Vinnie entered the ship.
The second Kira saw them cross through the airlock on one of the screens glowing around her, she sent a ship-wide broadcast, sending her crew into action. Alaria, Bron, and Vinnie rushed to the engine room, to keep an eye on things, while Dario joined Kira and Thor on the flight deck.
“It shouldn’t take long to get there,” Kira said, lifting the Curio off the ground and dialing in the coordinates for their next destination.
“Hopefully we’ll arrive before Mordecai has the chance to destroy the base the way he did the last one,” Dario added.
“That’s the plan,” Kira agreed. “We need to stop him from getting more Divarium if possible.”
“You really think that Grimm is planning to work with the Empyreans to destroy solar systems?” Dario asked.
He was standing behind the Captain’s chair, shifting his weight back and forth nervously as the mental images of white-hot implosions rippling through space once again shook through them.
“There’s really no telling what Grimm is up to,” Kira said. “But, I’m not sure what else it could be.”
“How would he even know about this religion’s extreme views? How do you know about it?” Thor asked.
“My first spec-ops mission,” Kira replied. “Right out of the Academy, Grimm recruited me to work with him on a mission to find and destroy the heart of the Empyreans’ experiments.”
“Did you?” Thor asked.
“Oh yes, it was a huge success. Can’t you tell?” Kira replied, shooting Thor a crooked smile.
“I just assumed anything you were involved in always was,” Thor replied, looking at her with the same playful smile.
“We thought we got them,” Kira continued. “At least, we disrupted them enough we figured they knew we were onto them and would stop.”
“How long ago was that?” Dario asked.
“About ten years ago,” Kira answered.
“Ten years? The threat of the Empyrean religion has been known for ten years, and no one has done anything to ensure that it was completely eradicated?” Dario said.
“Even then, the High Command didn’t feel that the Empyreans posed a huge threat. Once we found and destroyed their lab, they did acknowledge that something more was going on. But, Grimm was the one that took over the operation from there on out,” Kira explained. “He assured me time and time again that we had done our job, and that the threat had been wiped out completely.”
“Is it possible that instead of destroying them, he began to work with them?” Dario asked. “Even back then?”
“Again,” Kira said, “there’s no telling with Grimm. He’s done a great job obfuscating his reach. Everything he does, though, he does for a reason. But, what those reasons are, he rarely feels the need to explain to anyone. The one thing he always said, though, was that he was doing what needed to be done to protect Earth and the Terran race. Humanity’s survival was always his highest priority.”
“Seems like you two got pretty close,” Thor observed.
“He was my first mentor,” Kira explained. “He was the one who made me the soldier that I am. I can’t deny that. But, it’s been years since I’ve had any involvement with him. Well, besides the out-of-the-blue mission he sent me on to transport you to Jaantu 7. Just because I knew him once, doesn’t mean I know him now.”
"Still," Dario said, pacing back and forth now, "your personal knowledge of Grimm could end up being very beneficial in the future, Kira. It's like Ashford said, if we can understand his motivations maybe we can find a way to stop him. Or, at least a way of making sure that this ideology he's spreading can be shut down."
“That’s true,” Thor agreed. “He’s doing more than just staging a coup. He’s working with proxies, and by extension promoting, a very dangerous belief system. If that takes root, it will only strengthen his position.”
"Yes, well," Kira replied, keeping her eyes fixed on the viewscreen as the third mining colony came into view, "I don't think my memories of the times I had casual chats over lunch with Grimm are going to help wipe out an entire radical religious sect."
“Who said anything about lunch?” Thor said, leaning forward to get a better view of the colony, “it’d have to be at least dinner. Everyone knows that dinner is when serious conversations take place.”
“Well, that’s too bad then. We never had dinner together,” Kira replied.
Dario moved forward as Kira matched Thor’s hunched over position, squinting at the images in the distance. The mining colony was engulfed in chaos, but the closer they got, the easier it became to make out the images of Terrans, Arcanum soldiers, and Arkadian warriors scurrying about.
“They’re here,” Thor said, leaning back.
“It’s our lucky day,” Kira replied, taking the ship up higher. “Do you think they saw us?”
“It’s hard to tell,” Dario replied. “But, I don’t think it’ll matter.” He leaned in closer and stared out the view screen. “It looks as if they’re preparing to leave.”
“We need to hurry then,” Kira replied. “Thor, gather everyone up, now. Be in the airlock ready to disembark the moment the ship hits the ground. I’ll follow along soon.”
Thor nodded as he grabbed hold of Dario and led him out of the room, leaving Kira alone to search the horizon for a place to bring the Curio down. The rugged landscape of the mining colony complicated the task slightly, while at the same time gave them an unexpected advantage.
They needed to land somewhere that wouldn’t draw Mordecai and his soldier’s attention toward them. The countless ridges and craters would provide that, surely. Finding one that was level and wouldn’t end up top-siding the Curio was the issue, though.
“We’re ready to go when you give the order,” Thor’s voice came over the intercom.
“Good,” Kira said, spotting the perfect place to land the ship. She took the ship down, letting the vessel come to rest in the heart of a shallow gorge. The second the Curio hit the ground, she ordered, “Move!”
She didn’t wait to check her screens to make sure her crew got off the ship. She trusted that they did. Instead, she pushed herself up the instant the engines began to shut down and rushed out of the flight deck.
Her helmet was up and her Phantom in her hand before she reached the now empty airlock. The time it took the air to depressurize felt like an eternity. Kira's heart raced as she waited for the doors to open. Her body was pumping nothing more than pure adrenaline. They had to stop Mordecai. They had to stop Grimm.
Finally, the external air-locked door popped open with a hiss. Kira threw her shoulder into it, forcing it open faster, and stepped out into the open expanse of the mining colony. Ahead she could hear the sounds of plasma fire. They were muted due to her helmet, but she could never mistake the sound of a gun fight.
Climbing out of the gorge, she kept her head low and her eyes moving back and forth. The dark, open, vast star-speckled view of space served as the perfect backdrop for the scenes she encountered upon pulling herself out of the large hole.
Dario and Alaria had taken cover, not far from where she was. Both brandishing their weapons, popping their heads out from time to time to send a bolt of plasma flying in the direction of Mordecai and his men.
Bron, Thor, and Vinnie had moved further up. They were nearing the clearing where the enemy’s vessel was located. The large, metallic body of the ship shimmered as the glow of lasers, plasma, and electronic streams flew around it, some crashing into it, sending sparks of multi-colored matter flying into the air.
Many of Mordecai’s men were already aboard the ship, although many were still on the ground, as well. Kira marveled at the numbers. There must have been at least two dozen Arcanum and Arkadian soldiers still buzzing about their ship, using its belly for cover.
They weren’t attacking, though. Only a handful of the Arkadian warriors and Arcanum soldiers were engaging in combat. The others were focused on loading the ship.
“They don’t care about us,” Kira whispered to herself. “They just care about the mission, about getting the Divarium back to Grimm’s headquarters.”
Running up to where Alaria and Dario were, Kira ducked behind the boulder with them, her Phantom already locked and loaded. The second she caught her breath, she fell to her stomach and scooted herself around the edge of the large rock. Holding her gun out in front of her, she began to squeeze the trigger.
From that angle, it was harder to ensure precision, but it made it harder for their enemies to target her. Blasts crashed into the dirt ground around her, but none came close enough to cause her to retreat back.
Although her shots were hitting their targets, they didn’t seem to be doing much damage. Mordecai’s crew, like Kira’s, were all wearing combat gear. She pushed herself up and ducked back behind the boulder. Alaria and Dario were still firing sporadically toward the ship, but they, too, were struggling with delivering any lethal blows.
“We’re going to be here all day,” Kira said.
“We need heavier artillery,” Dario replied. “Even just a few grenades would do the trick.”
“Does Bron have any left?” Kira asked, peeking around the boulder again.
“If he did, I’m sure he would have used them by now,” Dario replied.
“Shit,” Kira muttered.
She scanned the scene in front of them. Vinnie and Bron were locked in combat with a handful of Arkadian warriors. The alien race’s large green bodies were almost completely covered by the sleek black material of their combat armor. Still, their sheer size was enough to give them away. They stood at least six inches taller than Bron, which was saying something.
Still, it seemed as if they were having some level of success. Vinnie, small and agile, was darting back and forth, getting as close as he dared, firing his plasma gun, then backing up before the bulky, clumsy Arkadian he was targeting could turn around. Vinnie’s cries of excitement continued to blare through their comm system.
Bron, too, was taking risks. He was facing off against a large Arkadian female. Her large frame made for an easy target. But, the fact that she was wielding an assault rifle of her own made it hard to get a clean shot off.
“Where’s Thor?” Kira wondered.
She fell back to her stomach and slid around the edge of the boulder, firing off a few shots as she searched through the chaos around them. A majority of Mordecai’s men had made it safely onto the ship now. There was only a handful left, buzzing about wildly, collecting any last-minute equipment they could find and ducking out of the way of any shots Alaria and Dario sent in their direction.
At first, she didn’t see him. How had she not seen him? He was in the middle of everything, locked in an up-close-and-personal fight with the largest of the Arkadians, the most well-armed, as well.
“Mordecai,” she muttered as she pushed herself up to her feet.
As she did, an Arcanum soldier seemingly fell from the sky. He landed on the boulder above them and turned his attention to Kira. His eyes flashed with evil as he threw himself forward, knocking her back to the ground and pinning her down under his thick frame.
His strength was unlike anything she had experienced before. He grabbed hold of her wrist, squeezing it tightly until she yelled out with pain and released her gun. Dario ran up behind them, firing a shot square in the man’s back. He didn’t even flinch. His eyes continued to burn down into Kira’s as he adjusted himself slightly, reaching for his own weapon, momentarily freeing Kira’s left hand.
Alaria now joined in with Dario, firing another blast at the man’s back. Still, he didn’t budge.
Kira thought fast. It was clear that his enhancement—or enhancements, there was no telling—seemed to make him invincible—to gunfire, at least. There was still one thing he was susceptible too, though.
As he shifted around to reach for his gun, she reached up and found the switch for his helmet. By the time he realized what she was doing, it was too late. The helmet retracted around his head, and within three seconds, he was clutching at his collar, desperately trying to re-engage the helmet. Kira took the opportunity to deliver a heavy kick to his ribcage which forced him to release his last remaining air. He fell to his knees, gasping at the vacuum of space before blacking out moments later.
Dario and Alaria rushed over and lifted Kira off the ground. She wiggled around quickly, grabbing her gun and glancing back to the place she last saw Thor.
He was still locked in combat with Mordecai. Mordecai, large and imposing, stood at least a foot and a half taller than Thor. He moved slowly, with precision. Thor, by contrast, moved with speed and grace, dodging each of his alternating blows with ease.
She could see that both of them had somehow lost their weapons in the fight. On the ground, just a few feet away from them, was the assault rifle she recognized as the make and model used by the Special Forces. She took a hesitant step forward, wanting to rush in and help in the fight, but not wanting to pull any of Thor’s attention in her direction. At the moment, the only clear advantage he had over Mordecai was his focus and reflexes.
She watched, waiting for the moment she could rush forward. She saw Thor land a blow square in Mordecai’s gut. The Arkadian man stumbled backward. He clung to his stomach and let himself fall to the ground.
Something wasn’t right. He was stumbling too far, there was no way he was that injured. Sure, Thor was strong, but he wasn’t strong enough to deal a blow that forceful through the layers of combat armor.
That’s when she saw it. Thor’s gun was on the ground behind Mordecai. As he tumbled backward, he stretched out his hand and grabbed it, rolling onto his back and simultaneously kicking Thor’s feet out from under him.
Although Thor didn’t fall, his reflexes too fast and his instincts too honed, he did stumble forward slightly. As he did, Mordecai reached up and pressed the pulse gun into his stomach.
Then, he pulled the trigger.
Time slowed. She felt the blast herself. She felt it hit her square in the chest, knocking the oxygen out of her lungs. She tried to open her mouth to scream but the words didn’t come out. As she watched him slump down, her heart sunk with him. Her hands began to shake as she tried to find her feet, her voice, her ability to move.
She was frozen in place, tears stinging her eyes, blurring her vision. Her ears rang as she watched Thor clutch his stomach in his hands, his face twisting with expressions of pain and agony.
Lying on the hard stone ground, he turned to her. His eyes caught hers, and he tried to speak. He tried to tell her to run, to leave, to fight—to do anything but let them win.
In a flash, the sounds of the fight raging around her came crashing back into her mind. Her feet began to move before she realized they were, and her instincts carried her forward.
“You son of a bitch!” Kira screamed, running at the gigantic Arkadian man, her Phantom held tactically out in front of her.
Her outburst drew his attention toward her, exactly what she wanted. She lifted her gun just as she saw Thor, out of the corner of her eye, roll to his side and grab hold of the Special Forces assault rifle she had spotted earlier. As soon as he lifted it off the ground, she let out another high-pitched scream, keeping Mordecai’s attention on her.
They both fired simultaneously. Mordecai, swift and well-trained, pushed himself to his feet and dodge her blast, but was unable to escape the plasma stream fired from Thor’s weapon.
A blast that close, like the one he had shot at Thor, would do damage. Combat armor could repel dispersed energetic matter, but condensed and coming straight at its target at close range, that was a different story.
He fell to the ground, clutching his right arm in his hand. Two of his men ran up behind him, grabbing onto his shoulders. Kira took advantage of the moment and ran to Thor’s side.
“What the hell are you doing?” he asked, his words weak. “Finish him! He’s down! You have to finish him!”
“His men are already there,” Kira replied, grabbing hold of Thor’s arm and slinging it across her shoulder. “Come on, Thor. Get to your feet!”
“Leave me!” Thor replied sharply. “Finish the job we came here to do.”
“We don’t have time for this,” Kira replied. “Get up! You have to get up!”
“You’re letting him get away.”
“I’m not worried about him right now,” Kira replied.
“Damn it, Kira, you have to…”
“You have to take an order, Thor. Shut up and let me help you!”
Thankfully, the men assisting Mordecai were too busy with their burden to return any fire. Bron rushed up to where Kira was clumsily kicking at the ground, trying to lift Thor’s massive frame. With ease, their Bandurian companion lifted him off the ground and slung him over his shoulder.
Thor let out a painful grunt.
“Maybe if you would have argued less and helped more, you wouldn’t be slung over a Bandurian right now,” Kira said to Thor as she pushed at Bron’s back to urge him to hurry.
The trio joined the others behind the boulders Alaria and Dario had been using for cover. Without a word, they ran together back to the ship. The entire time, all Kira could think about was Thor—his condition, his injuries.
She had never seen him take a hit like that before. She had never seen him go down in a fight before. He was always able to fight through the pain, to keep going, keep pushing. But, this time he didn’t. This time, she was genuinely worried.
“They still haven’t taken off,” Dario’s voice broke into Kira’s thoughts.
“Good,” Kira replied, pulling all her focus to the situation, letting her concern for Thor fade to the background, just for the moment. “Maybe we can stop them in the air.”
The crew entered the airlock together, Bron still holding Thor, who had continued to let out the occasional frustrated grunt during the short trek back to the ship. When the grunts stopped, though, Kira's blood ran cold.
Standing by the interior door of the airlock, once again waiting for the damned thing to pop open, she turned around slowly.
Thor was on the ground now, and Bron was kneeling over him.
“He’s not responding,” Bron informed them, trying to shake Thor back to a state of consciousness.
“What do you mean he’s not…?” Kira began, but just then the hiss-pop of the air-lock door opening jolted her attention back to the mission. “Damn it,” she said, spinning around. “Dario, Alaria, get Thor to the medical bay. Bron, with me.”
“What about me?” Vinnie asked, following Kira as she sprinted out of the airlock and headed toward the flight deck.
“You’re with me, too,” Kira replied. “More people, more guns, and more guns is what we need right now.”
Keeping her mind focused on moving her feet forward, on racing toward the flight deck and not toward the medical bay, was the hardest thing Kira had done on any mission to date. Her thoughts bounced back and forth between trying to loosely plan an aerial attack and wondering if Thor would be alright.
“Fuck,” Kira muttered. “Grimm was right.”
The memories of Grimm’s soldierly advice had been at the forefront of her mind. And now, one lesson, in particular, rang out in her mind. His warning—his constant warning that relationships had no place in the lives of military personnel, that all they did was distract soldiers from their ultimate purpose.
“What?” Bron asked, running alongside her.
“Nothing,” Kira responded quickly.
The instant they entered the flight deck, Kira began shouting out orders. “Both of you, to the pulse turrets,” she said as she plopped herself down into the Captain’s chair. She initiated the engines as quickly as possible and slammed her hand down on the intercom system, opening the ship-wide channel.
“Alaria, did you get him to medical?”
“Yes,” Alaria responded.
Kira held in the sigh of relief she felt pressing against her throat. This was no time to be thinking about that.
“Good, get to the engine room. I’m going to need the weapons array online as soon as possible.”
“Yes, Captain,” Alaria replied.
Alaria’s confirmation that all the ship’s defense systems were online and functioning couldn’t have come at a better time. Just as Kira lifted the ship off the rocky surface of the last mining colony, a small swarm of Zel’Dar became visible in her view screen.
“Mordecai left us a little present,” she said between gritted teeth, clutching the controls tightly. She let the buzz of adrenaline run through her, let the impending threat distract her completely from her main concern—Thor.
“Bron, Vinnie, you ready for this?”
“Hell yes!” Vinnie exclaimed.
“Do you need to ask?” Bron replied, a half-smile crossing his face.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Over the horizon, she could see Mordecai’s ship taking off. Her hands shook as she clung to the controls, her mind going too many different directions. On the one hand, she was preparing for the onslaught of oversized insects that continued to swarm ominously in their direction. On the other, she was trying to keep an eye on the large, unmarked vessel floating out into space. And then, in the very back of her mind, her thoughts continued to wander back to Thor.
She should just give up; she should just go to him.
She watched Mordecai’s ship drift further into space. They’d never catch them. They wouldn’t. Why should they try?
As her mind continued to race, the insects grew closer and closer. There weren’t many of them, but enough to create a very real diversion. They were on them before Kira had decided what to do. They were there, glaring into the view screen in front of her, while her mind was wandering off.
“Captain,” Bron’s voice broke into her thoughts. “Orders.”
“Turrets ready?” she asked.
“Yes.”
In a flash, the decision was made. It wasn’t a conscious decision; it was an instinct. Her body buzzed with energy as she bit down on her bottom lip, her eyes fixed on the insects swarming outside their ship.
“Clear the way!” she ordered. “Fire at will!”
Vinnie and Bron, standing at the plasma turret gun controls behind her, began to fire bolts of red hot plasma at the Zel’Dar swarm. The insects were too close, though. She had let them get too close.
“Going up!” she yelled, pulling forcefully on the controls. As she did, the sound of the Zel’Dars’ razor sharp claws grating against the ship’s shield and hull made her grit her teeth.
They followed her up, sticking closely to the ship.
“We still can’t get them,” Bron said.
“I can see that,” Kira replied.
This time, when she sent the ship falling back down toward the mining colony, she didn’t yell out her warning. There wasn’t time. The Zel’Dar were slightly startled by her second sudden change in direction, and they finally left enough room between themselves and the ship that she was able to send the vessel forward. They followed behind her closely, but now, Vinnie and Bron were able to find them in the crosshairs that appeared on the rear-view cameras.
“Awesome!” Vinnie yelled as he bopped up and down excitedly with each trigger pull.
It didn’t take long for them to shoot down the small swarm. The point of sending them out wasn’t to destroy their ship, Kira knew that. It was to distract them long enough that Mordecai and his men could make a clean getaway.
When the last of the insects fell lifelessly back toward the asteroid, Kira didn’t let herself relax. She squinted at her sensor array, searching for Mordecai’s ship. There was a faint beacon, far ahead of them now pinging on the sensor array.
Without a second of hesitation, she pushed forward on the controls. The Curio shuddered slightly, and a wave of disheartening panic washed through her. But, the ship did respond. Although it didn’t respond as quickly as she would have liked, it continued to pick up speed, and they were soon pursuing the unmarked ship becoming slightly more visible up ahead.
“Don’t relax yet,” she said to Bron and Vinnie over her shoulder. “We’re going after them.”
The Curio continued forward, gaining on the ship. Kira felt her skin tingle with excitement as the prospect of taking down one of Grimm’s accomplices pushed all her previous thoughts from her mind. In that second she was only there, in the Captain’s chair, leading her crew on a mission through space.
The beacon of Mordecai’s ship grew brighter on the sensor array. But then, she saw something else. Two more points of light seeming to fall out the back end of the ship. She leaned forward, staring intently at the specks as they grew larger.
“Shit,” she muttered. “We have company!”
The two specks were small class fighters, and they were coming straight at them at full speed.
“Bron, Vinnie, lock in, this might not be a fun ride,” she ordered as she kept the ship on course.
The fighter vessels continued their beeline straight toward them, weapons lowered and ready. Kira didn’t flinch as she dared the ships to get closer.
“Don’t fire until I give the word, I’m not sure they know about our pulse cannons, and maybe we can surprise them,” she said to Bron and Vinnie over her shoulder.
She urged the Curio forward, picking up speed as she went. Finally, just as the fighter ships were too close for comfort, she pulled up on the controls.
“Now!” she yelled.
Vinnie and Bron both fired. Vinnie continued to yell excitedly as Kira pulled the ship higher. The plasma blasts hit the ships, but bounced off, spraying the energetic matter out into open space. Their shields were good, very good. It would take a lot more than a few shots from the Curio to bring them down.
Kira watched her screens as the ships began to climb after her. Their smaller size and sleeker designs meant that they maneuvered about better than her ship. But, that didn’t mean that they could outfly her. That was up to their pilots.
Kira leveled the Curio out, waiting for the fighter ships to do the same. Once they were directly behind her, she ordered Bron and Vinnie to once again begin shooting at them. Despite the fact that the blasts were doing minimal damage, Vinnie continued to cheer with excitement every time he hit one of the ships.
Kira waited, watching the screens. She needed the ships to split up, to fly in opposite directions. When they did, she let out a sigh of relief. The alarms began to ring out as one of the ship’s cannons locked in on the Curio. The ringing always annoyed her.
She let out a grunt as she spun the Curio around to face off against the ship aiming at them. The Curio shook slightly at the sudden change in direction but gave into her insistent urging. Just as she did, another set of alarms went off.
The other ship was also locking in on them.
“Idiots,” Kira muttered. As the first ship let its blast fly, she jerked the controls to the right, letting the projectile zip past them, just barely missing the Curio’s left hull. The missile drifted off into space. The second ship released its fire now. Again, Kira jerked the ship to the side, this time placing the Curio back in the line of fire of the first ship.
The second missile buzzed past them.
“What the hell are you doing? Dancing with them?” Bron asked.
“I’m trying something,” Kira replied. “Open comms down to the engine room. Tell Alaria that I’m going to need warp right now.”
Bron did as she asked, still eyeing her every move with uneasy suspicion.
“You have to have more faith,” she said to him, feeling his accusatory glare. She continued to jolt the ship back and forth. “You should know by now that you can trust me.”
“Trust you to scare the shit out of me,” Bron replied.
“Keep your shit where it is and get back to the turret,” she replied with a cocky smile.
She jerked the ship to the right again as the first ship sent another missile in their direction. Then, again to the left. She could sense that the pilots were becoming frustrated. It was evidenced by the way their missiles began to stream in her direction with less and less precision. The shots were coming closer together, meaning the shooters were taking less time to place them. When she felt the moment was right, she gave the order.
“Bron, you focus on the front ship’s missiles. Vinnie, you got the back. The second those missiles come out of the cannons, target fire them down. They need to be close to the ships, directly under them would be best.”
“Roger that!” Vinnie’s high-pitched, excited voice replied.
Kira tightened her hold on the controls, waiting for the moment to come. She had to time it perfectly. She couldn’t risk getting caught up in the ripple of the explosions.
She fixed her eyes on the screen linked to the front camera. The second the missile lowered into the cannon, she yelled, “now!” hoping that the ship behind them had matched up with his companion’s timing.
As Bron and Vinnie released the blazes of energetic matter, Kira pulled up hard on the controls. The Curio climbed, surprisingly swiftly. She didn’t watch the screens to see if the turrets guns hit their targets. She continued to urge the ship upward.
When a ball of orange and yellow heat rushed up below them, pushing at the bottom of the Curio, shaking the floor beneath them violently, she threw the controls forward and slammed her hand down on the warp accelerator. In a flash, the Curio leaped forward through space, leaving behind a scene of destruction in its wake.
Leaning back in her chair, the feeling of adrenaline pumping through her veins was not the only thing Kira felt. The rush of escaping the multiple onslaughts that Mordecai had left for them would have normally filled her with a buzz of excitement.
But not then. She looked to her right, the seat that had come to be Thor’s regular place, to find it empty. Her heart sunk as she sighed, leaning her head back against the headrest of her chair.
“I’m sure he’ll be fine,” Bron said, walking up behind her.
She had forgotten that Bron and Vinnie were in the flight deck with her still. She shook her head and pushed herself up.
“He’s strong,” she replied. “I’m sure he’ll be fine, too. For now, though, we need to focus on our next step.” She leaned back and pressed down on the intercom system. “Dario, what is Thor’s condition?”
“Stable.”
“Can you leave him for a few moments? I need everyone on the flight deck,” Kira responded, feeling a wash of relief flow through her.
“Of course, Captain. He’ll be fine without me constantly hovering over him.”
“Good, then get up here. Alaria, you too.”
Kira leaned back, resting her weight on the row of consoles behind her. She knew they could have met in Thor’s room in medical. That way the doctor didn’t have to leave his side. But, doing that would not be the best thing for her. It was selfish, in part. She knew that if she saw him, in any condition, lying in a hospital bed, her mind would fixate only on that.
She couldn’t let herself do that, not yet. She had a responsibility to her entire crew, to the Alliance, to humanity. She had to stay focused, just a little longer.
“What is it, Captain?” Dario asked, walking into the flight deck with Alaria close on his heels.
“We need to discuss our next step,” Kira informed them. “We lost Mordecai in the fight. There’s no telling where he is, and I’m not sure venturing through space to search for him is the best use of our time.”
“I agree,” Dario replied. “But, can we return to Earth?”
Bron grunted, crossing his arms over his chest. “Your planet wasn’t the most welcoming to us the last time.”
“We need to warn Artanis about everything we’ve figured out,” Kira insisted.
“But, Myles and Kora have gone to do that,” Alaria said.
“They went to warn him about Mordecai’s activity on the mining colonies, but…” Kira’s voice drifted off as she looked to Dario.
“What?” Alaria asked, her big blue eyes bouncing back and forth between Kira and Dario.
“There’s more that he needs to know,” Dario answered.
“It’s not a certainty; it’s more of a hunch, really,” Kira added.
“What the hell is it?” Vinnie asked, throwing his hands out at his sides.
Kira quickly explained her belief that Grimm had teamed with the Arkadians to create the super-weapon she had once worked with the Colonel to destroy. She repeated, more times than she needed to, that she wasn’t sure; it was only a thought.
“It makes sense,” Alaria said. “We knew the mineral could be used in high energy reactors. It’d be ideal for creating a gravity weapon that could turn stars supernova.”
“The only thing the galaxy needs purifying of is madmen like Grimm and crazed religious zealots like Mordecai,” Kira replied.
Everyone looked at her. She hadn’t realized that her usual snarky tone had somehow shifted to something much darker. She smiled weakly and shrugged.
“Am I wrong?”
“No,” everyone agreed.
“Well, that settles it then. We’re going back to Earth,” Dario announced.
“Home sweet home,” Kira replied, spinning around to enter the flight path into the holo display. “Won’t be long, and we’ll be back in the heart of Terran space.”
“Still, no guarantees we still won’t be arrested on sight,” Kira said over her shoulder as everyone made their way back to their stations.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Thor’s condition remained unchanged during the first day of the trip. Dario informed them that the internal damage done by the pulse gun was minimal, thanks to the combat armor. But, the wounds were still there. The equipment he had on the ship was good, but not great. He wasn’t able to get a full-scope idea of how much damage had actually been done. Only time would tell.
Kira checked in on him regularly. She barely slept at all the first night, waking regularly to wander down to the medical bay to check on his condition. Thor mostly slept.
Her thoughts continued to shift back and forth, Grimm’s words constantly finding their way to the surface. His warnings about relationships, his urgings that her focus needed to be on her job. It was more than ten years ago, but still, his mentorship had long-since impacted her career, her life.
She had always valued his guidance. But, for obvious reasons, she was beginning to question it. Still, the momentary realization that she was concerned for Thor in the heat of a chase, so concerned, in fact, that she considered giving up completely and running to his bedside, still made her mentally retreat back to the time when she regularly turned to Grimm for direction. Something about the things he said made sense then and part of her felt as if they still did.
Alaria’s high-pitched giggle broke into her thoughts.
Kira was in the dining room, pushing a bowl of pre-packaged, dried-out oatmeal back and forth with her spoon. She had just been to visit Thor, to find his condition unchanged—again. Eating seemed like a good way to pass the time. At least, it seemed like that in the moment.
The instant she sat down, she lost her appetite.
“See? She likes you!” Alaria said, shoving Zola into Bron’s arms.
Kira looked up to see them, sitting on the couch across the room. The sight was an odd mixture of sweet and rugged. Alaria’s pale white skin contrasted beautifully with the dark color of Bron’s. The cat, small and agile, wiggled around wildly, trying to free herself from Bron’s muscular arms.
“No, she doesn’t,” Bron replied. “But I’m not fond of her, either.”
Alaria giggled again, taking the cat from him. Zola nuzzled at her face eagerly, as if thanking her for freeing her from Bron’s grasp. Again, Alaria’s laugh bounced off the walls, accompanied by Bron’s throaty chuckle. The sounds were a chorus of highs and lows, melded together perfectly in the simplicity of the moment.
Kira’s attention was drawn to the door leading from the common area toward the medical bay when Dario’s figured appeared in it. She pushed herself to her feet. Her heart skipped as she waited for another report on Thor’s condition.
Dario looked at her, her eyes wide, and shook his head. “Nothing’s changed,” he said solemnly. “Everything we can do for him has been done, at this point, it’s up to him. Plasma fire at that range causes cell death, and we can only hope his body slows its progress before it reaches his major organs.”
Alaria and Bron stiffened, their laughter falling out of the air as everyone waited for Kira’s reaction.
“He’s strong,” Kira said, “he’ll pull through.”
Everyone nodded in agreement, although no one spoke. Kira scanned their faces, noting the way they continued to stare at her as if waiting for her to say something more, to react, to break down.
“Can I see him?” she asked.
“You were just with him half an hour ago,” Dario reminded her, walking across the room and taking hold of her hand. “You need to rest. You haven’t slept in at least 36 hours. You haven’t eaten since we left the mining colony. You have to take care of yourself, Kira. This is not doing anyone any good.”
“I know,” she admitted.
Alaria and Bron recommenced their conversation, although there was something less light-hearted about it than before. Zola appeared to be the only one that didn’t notice a change in the mood. She continued to nuzzle playfully at Alaria’s face, and bat Bron’s hand away every time he tried to pet her.
“Dario, can I ask you something?” Kira asked as she slumped back down into the hard metal chair at the table.
“Of course,” Dario replied, sitting down next to her. “Anything.”
“Your relationship with Thane,” Kira began. “Do you ever feel like it affects your work? Do you find yourself worrying about him when you should be concentrating on something else, or just not able to focus on your job at all?”
Dario tilted his head to the side as he contemplated the question. “I think about him all the time,” he replied. “But, I don’t think it hinders my work at all. If anything, it makes me focus.”
“How is that possible?”
"What Thane is doing, sending the messages, is extremely dangerous. He's putting his life at risk to help me—to help all of us. Yes, sometimes I feel guilty that he's taking such great risks, but I don’t forget why we decided to do this. And, when I think about that, I use it as motivation to make sure that I’m doing all I can to repay him, taking the information he gives me and doing something with it. Together, we’re making a difference. We’re both risking a lot, but knowing that we have the other out there, working for the same purpose, keeps us going.”
Alaria’s light-hearted giggle once again filled the room, drawing Kira and Dario’s attention in her direction. Each time she looked away and looked back, Kira swore that Bron and Alaria were sitting closer together. Now, it even appeared that Bron was attempting to slide his arm around her, but Zola’s restlessness caused Alaria to wiggle about gleefully, making the situation adorably awkward.
“What about them?” Dario asked, smiling at the scene. “Do you think whatever is going on between them will hinder them from doing their jobs?”
“No,” Kira admitted.
“No,” Dario agreed. “We need these moments, these people in our lives.”
“But, with everything going on, with all the dangers around us…”
“There always have been and always will be threats, Kira,” Dario said patiently. “It’s the time we live in, the lives we lead. The universe is filled with uncertainties, with vast, endless space, where anything and everything could be lurking around any corner. The more we discover, the more we find out we have yet to learn. There will never be anything certain in our lives, but, there will always be people around us to love, support, encourage, and even challenge us.”
Alaria’s giggle and Bron’s deep, guttural laugh filled the air again.
“Let’s go for a walk,” Dario offered, motioning for the door.
Kira nodded and pushed herself up to follow Dario out of the common area. They entered the hallway, and as soon as the door slid shut behind them, they continued their conversation.
“I would recommend going anywhere but the medical bay, but I have a feeling that’s the only place you want to go right now,” Dario said, smiling weakly as he began to lead her toward the section of the ship where he was tending to Thor.
“I’ve never been good at mystery,” Kira replied with a half-smile.
“No,” Dario agreed, “you have not. That’s why I know your questions about my relationship with Thane are really about your relationship with Thor.”
“I know everyone knows about us,” Kira said, “but I haven’t been able to fully accept it, I guess. I’ve always felt such a huge burden to keep my relationships and my work life separate.”
“I dare say it’s impossible when you’re in a relationship with someone you work with,” Dario said with a sarcastic smile.
“That is why I don’t start relationships with people I work with. I don’t have relationships at all, really. I’m a pilot, a captain. I need to be focused; lives are in my hands. It’s a huge responsibility.”
"Regardless of your sense of duty, the conflict you’re experiencing is because you’re trying to deny the most fundamental part of your humanity – your need for connection," Dario explained, "it's what keeps us grounded, sane. It's okay to let someone matter to you. It's okay to worry about them. In fact, it’s more than okay, it’s necessary. You, of all people, shouldn't be concerned with your feelings affecting the way you do your job. You're experienced, dedicated, and completely focused."
“But before, when Thor passed out in the airlock,” Kira replied, feeling tears sting her eyes as the memories replayed in her mind, “all I wanted to do was run to him, to take care of him.”
“But, you didn’t,” Dario replied calmly.
They rounded one corner and then the next, tracing the route Kira had taken through the Curio a dozen times since leaving the mining colony.
“You stayed focused on what you needed to do. You got us out of there—alive. You navigated through an onslaught of Zel’Dar and an aerial battle with two of Mordecai’s men. And you did it with the same precision and zeal that you always do,” Dario continued.
“That time, but what if…”
“What if, what if,” Dario cut her off. “There are too many ‘what if’s’ floating around in the galaxy already. Don’t let them occupy your mind longer than is worthwhile. That which we do not master is destined to enslave us.”
They walked up to the door that separated Thor’s medical room from the rest of the ship. Dario didn’t hesitate before walking through, knowing that Kira would eagerly follow behind him.
“It’s hard not to,” she continued the conversation as they walked into the room.
She tried to keep her eyes from hovering over Thor. Seeing him, lying in the bed, made her stomach twist and turn with rage, sorrow, and fear. Dario walked up next to him, checking the equipment around him for any signs of change. He shook his head as he turned back to face her.
“Why?” he asked, keeping her focus on the conversation and not Thor’s condition. “Why is it so hard for you to let these feelings go?”
“It’s how I was trained, I suppose,” Kira admitted, sitting in the chair at the foot of Thor’s bed. “Grimm, he always went on and on about how relationships only hinder. We need to focus on saving the galaxy, not just one person. We need to realize that life is fleeting, and be prepared to give our life completely to our jobs, nothing else.”
“If we stop letting ourselves love, we lose what it is that makes us who we are. Humanity needs compassion. Life needs passion and unity and tenderness and trust. Without those things, we’re nothing more than machines.”
A sudden realization shook through her.
“That’s it,” Kira said in a harsh whisper. “Grimm—that’s his motivation. He lost the people he truly cared about, and he shut himself down to the possibility of experiencing that sort of pain ever again. He blamed the Alliance and he has taken it upon himself to make sure that any threats to humans were eradicated. He began to see the entire Terran Race as one collective, not as individuals. That’s what drove him to where he is now. He refused to let himself love. He refused to let himself feel. That’s the idea that he’s spreading.”
“What do you mean?” Dario asked, encouraging her to continue her path of understanding.
“He’s preaching the message that the only way to serve the Terran race is to glorify it above all else. He’s out there, claiming that the Alliance won’t do that. They won’t protect them at all costs. They only care about the money, the economic angle. He, though, will always do whatever it takes to protect our race, and he expects them to do the same. He expects them to give their lives completely to his cause, nothing else. He’s taking from them the one thing that makes humanity what it is—love, family, friends, relationships.”
“Then we should all feel a deep compassion for Grimm, to have lost so greatly only to have it change the very fabric of who we are is perhaps, the greatest tragedy of all,” Dario said in contemplation.
“It is,” Kira agreed. “He’s not a bad man, intrinsically. He really does believe what he’s doing is right. He just lost his way somewhere. He became bitter and cold and…”
“And a complete asshole,” Thor said, coughing as he tried to push himself up.
“Thor!” Kira exclaimed, jumping up and running to his bedside. “You’re awake!”
“No shit,” he replied, resting his weight on his elbows, “no one could sleep with all that talking you two were doing.”
“It’s nice to see you, too,” Kira said as she stepped back and crossed her arms over her chest.
“I’ll give you two a few minutes alone,” Dario spoke up. He checked Thor’s vitals one more time before nodding and walking out of the room, smiling back at Kira as he left.
“I can go, too,” Kira offered, “if you still need your rest.”
“Come here,” Thor said, reaching out and taking hold of Kira’s wrist, pulling her toward him.
She gave into his tug easily, her own longing to reach out and hold him pushing at her back, nearly throwing her into the bed with him. She sat down on the edge next to him, letting her eyes meet his.
“I was so worried about you,” she said, taking his hand in hers.
His upper body was exposed, his abdomen wrapped tightly in bandages where the pulsating energy of Mordecai’s shot burned through his skin. Her eyes drifted momentarily over him, remembering the first time she saw him shirtless, the first time they connected in the hotel back on Vandor. He opened up to her then, allowed himself to be vulnerable.
“I thought we weren’t allowed to worry about each other,” he replied, lifting an eyebrow as he waited for her rebuttal.
“When you get yourself shot, I’m allowed to worry.”
“But, I’m not allowed to worry when you run head-first into battles or insist on putting yourself in situations you know are dangerous? If that’s the case then I have a lot of things not to worry about,” he countered sarcastically.
“I only do crazy things like that because I know you’re there with me,” she said, smiling.
"Don't try to sweet-talk me, Captain Winter. You were searching for trouble long before you met me."
“Maybe, but I never found so much of it until you came along,” she replied.
“I could say the same.”
“Well, at least we can find trouble together,” she said softly, letting a serious tone work its way into her voice. “I really was worried about you, Thor. I was terrified that I was going to lose you.”
Her eyes began to burn as the memory of watching him collapse to the ground filled her mind. She pressed her hand into his chest on the spot just above his tattoo, and let the feeling of his steady heartbeat calm her.
He lifted his hand to her cheek, wiping away the single tear that had escaped her attempts to keep her eyes dry.
“I want you to worry about me,” she began, her words coming out in quick, short, emotional bursts. “I want to worry about you. I want to depend on you; I want to care for you; I want to protect you. I want to be with you.”
She inhaled sharply, swallowing the lump that was forming in her throat.
“I love you, Thor.”
"Kira," he replied softly, "there isn't a bounty hunter, pirate, or rogue Colonel anywhere in the entire universe that will ever keep me from being with you. Nothing will ever make me stop caring for you, and even before you gave me permission to just now, I worried about you. You're the person I want by my side not only in battle but all the time."
He cupped his hand around her neck and pulled her down to him, pressing his lips to hers softly.
“I love you, Kira,” he said, still holding onto her tightly.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The feeling of freedom that washed over her was instantaneous. She knew that she had made the decision, completely, to be with him. All of her fears melted away as she lowered herself to him, letting her lips hover over his, letting the taste of him fill her mouth.
He wrapped his hands tightly around her waist as if he was afraid to let her go, afraid to let the moment pass.
“This is for real, then?” he asked, lying back in the bed and pulling her up next to him. “No more trying to hide it, no more denying it, no more figuring things out?”
“Does that scare you?” she asked, sprawling out next to him, resting her hand on his chest.
“A lot of things scare me,” he admitted, lifting his hand to the side of her face and running his thumb along her cheek, “but being with you never has. Not even when you had a gun pointed at my face on day one.”
She let out a soft giggle. It was an odd sound for her. Perhaps she had been spending too much time around Alaria, or perhaps she was simply happy for the first time in a long time. Either way, she couldn’t help it.
“You had a gun pointed at me, as well,” she reminded him, pushing herself up slightly, resting her weight on her elbow and positioning herself so that her face was inches from his.
“Look how far we’ve come,” he replied, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her up on top of him effortlessly.
The instant her torso hit him, his face flashed with a sign of pain.
“Your wounds,” she said, pushing herself up quickly. “You’re hurt.”
“It’s worth it,” he said, reaching up and pulling her back down onto him. As he did, he grabbed hold of the edge of her shirt, lifting it off over her head swiftly.
The feeling of his bare skin pressing against hers sent shivers of excitement running up and down her spine. As she wiggled her way under the blanket still covering his lower half, she noticed very quickly that he wasn’t wearing anything more than a thin pair of combat briefs.
She could already feel him, hard and eager, pressing up against her. Her heart raced as she nestled herself down closer to him. She ran her lips over his neck as he dug his fingers into her sides.
When she let her teeth sink into his skin, softly and playfully, his skin filled with goosebumps and his hold on her increased. She knew he was still restraining himself, that his sheer strength could crush her. Still, she enjoyed pushing him, driving him crazy with longing.
She pushed herself up slightly, drawing a soft line with her fingertips from his chest down to his stomach, tracing over the outlines of his muscles, the rise and fall of his toned body, his perfectly sculpted physique.
As she lowered her hand a little more, he lifted his, finding her chest. He took one of her breasts in his hands, squeezing it softly, running his thumb over her nipple a few times, sending a fresh wave of chills running down her spine.
Just as she slid her hand under the waistband of his briefs, he moved his hand from her chest down to the fastenings of hers. The speed with which he was able to snap open the button and push them down to her thighs made her mind reel.
Before she even had the chance to take hold of him, his hand had found her pleasure center, and his fingers were sending waves of satisfaction mixed with the lustful desire for more washing over her. Her entire body reacted, her toes curled and her stomach tightened.
She bit down on her bottom lip, keeping in the moan of satisfaction that threatened to escape her. She tried again to take hold of him, to return the pleasure he was giving her. But, before she could, he wrapped his free arm around her waist and flipped her over, throwing her down onto her back and positioning himself above her.
“Your wound,” she said again, still breathless from the whirlwind of his sudden movements.
He reached down and pushed her shorts down even further until they were past her knees. She wiggled around, kicking them off eagerly.
He leaned in and kissed her softly, letting his body rest on hers, the feeling of their skin coming together again sending a bolt of longing spreading from her chest to her stomach.
“I’m fine,” he replied, pulling back from her and positioning himself between her legs. “I’ll prove it to you.”
With that, he thrust his hips forward. He didn’t use as much force as he could have, but still, the feeling of him sliding inside of her sent an unwitting gasp of pleasure flying from her lips.
She pinched her eyes shut as she arched her back, allowing him access to her, letting the moment wash over them both.
It wasn’t the first time they had been together, but it felt like it. There was something raw and passionate about it. There were no reservations, no fears, nothing between them and nothing holding them back.
She had made the decision to be with him, and he with her.
Their bodies moved in harmony with each other. Each time she lifted her hips, he lowered his. Each time she dug her nails into his back, he thrust himself deeper inside of her, just the way she wanted him to. Each time he leaned in to press his lips to hers, she was already waiting for him to do just that.
When she felt her stomach begin to tighten and her heart to race just a little faster than it already was, she reached up and grabbed onto his shoulders, tightening her hold on him and tilting her head back.
She tried to hold it in, to hold onto the moment, to let the feeling last as long as possible. But, it was impossible. The pleasure was too great; the passion was too real.
There was no stopping the satisfied moan from escaping her lips. There was no way of keeping in that feeling of ecstasy. Thor, pressing himself into her one last time, buried his face in her neck as he, too, let the feeling of release rush over him.
As he rolled off of her the moment of bliss continued to hang in the air. She moved to the side, making room for his muscular frame, and draped her arm across his chest, resting her head on his shoulder.
“I’m glad you figured everything out,” he said, turning to look down at her.
“Me too,” she agreed.
“Was it really something Grimm said to you ten years ago that made you so hesitant?”
“That, and personal experience,” she replied. “I wasn’t lying when I said that men in my life have always had an issue with my rank.”
“What exactly did he say?” Thor asked.
“It wasn’t so much what he said,” she replied. “It was how he said it. He has a way of making you believe him, of making you want to trust him, everything he says and does. That’s what he’s doing now. He’s so passionate about what he believes in. It seems so pure and genuine when he explains it. It’s so simple to fall into his trap, to let him into your head.”
“Well, he certainly got into yours. I suppose that’s just another reason for me to despise him.”
“I think you have enough reasons to despise him,” Kira replied, pushing herself up onto her elbow and lifting her hand to his face. She ran her fingers back through his hair, letting her eyes fix onto his.
“Yes, well, my personal beef with Grimm isn’t something that can be figured out or worked through. It’s permanent. What he did to me is permanent. It’s sewn into my genetics.”
“It’s horrible what he did, but like I’ve always said, it doesn’t have to define you.”
“Easier said than done I’m afraid,” Thor replied. “But who or what he made me—it will always be the only thing anyone sees when they discover what I can do, the only thing anyone thinks about when they find out what I really am.”
“What you really are?” Kira asked, pulling back from him slightly. “What you are is a fighter, a kind person, an obstinate asshole, at times,” she added with a flirtatious smile, “and the man I love.”
He shifted his gaze away from her, his eyes darting around the room as he searched his thoughts.
“Thor,” she urged, pulling his attention back to her, “for what it’s worth, I met you after the experiment, and I fell in love with who you are now. You can’t spend your whole life a slave to the past.”
He pushed himself up and pressed his lips to hers. It was a slow, tender kiss, filled with more feeling than words could express. And, he didn’t try to put his feelings into words. When he pulled back from her, he simply wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her down onto his chest.
That night, she did sleep, right next to him.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
“Look who decided to get off his ass!” Bron exclaimed as Kira and Thor made their way into the common area together the next morning.
Even though Thor was still recovering and needed to save his energy, he insisted on getting out of the medical bay the next morning. They would be entering Earth Orbit soon, and he wanted to be at least mobile when that happened.
“Well, since your fat ass was too lazy to visit me, I figured I’d have to come to you,” Thor replied quickly.
“Ah, I can feel the love,” Kira commented, helping Thor over to the couch.
They slumped down together. Thor left his arm draped around her shoulders, and despite the awkward feeling that instinctively threatened to form in her stomach at being so open with their relationship, she settled in next to him, letting the feeling of being close to him push all concerns aside, where she intended to keep them.
“Do we have a plan for what we’ll do when we get to Earth?” Dario asked, walking over to the sitting area, followed by Alaria.
“Find Artanis,” Kira replied.
“Hopefully we find him before the bounty hunters find us,” Thor added.
Dario took the open seat across from Kira and Thor and next to Bron. Alaria lowered herself to the ground, between Dario and Bron with the effortless grace that always accompanied everything she did. The instant she relaxed back, she opened her arms, ready to embrace Zola, who had come running spryly into the room.
The cat didn't run to Alaria, however. She leaped swiftly up into Dario's arms and meowed loudly as her communicator implant began to chirp.
“Thane!” Dario exclaimed, pushing back the cat’s fur to release the implant from its hiding spot. “I haven’t heard from him since we got to the Arbiter. I’ve sent messages, but he never replied. I was worried. I hope he’s okay.”
With each exclamation, Dario’s voice got slightly higher. His hands shook as he pushed himself up and set the transmitter down on the table in the center of them.
Thor tensed up slightly as they waited for the transmission to begin. Kira, too, felt a nervous twinge in her stomach. Messages from Thane rarely filled anyone else with as much excitement as they did Dario. They were usually filled with bad news or pieces of information that left a hollow feeling sitting in the pit of everyone’s stomach.
Dario clasped his hands together tightly, impatiently waiting for the message to begin. Bron and Alaria leaned forward, and Thor took Kira’s hand in his.
The instant the image of the attractive young man spilled out of the device, the message began.
“Dario,” Thane spoke quickly and in hushed tones, “I apologize for not responding sooner. Things here have been chaotic. Grimm is going non-stop. He’s working us all like dogs. He’s planning something, something bigger than he’s ever planned before. He seems in high spirits lately, which is not a good thing. He’s confident, Dario. He’s very confident.”
The man in the hologram paced back and forth a few times, running his hands through his hair as he collected himself to continue.
"He's planning large-scale assaults throughout the galaxy. I don't know when, or where, but I know they're going to happen. His forces consist of mostly Terran soldiers that defected from the TAF—Arcanum among them. He also has a small group of Arkadians working with him, and collections of bounty hunters and mercenaries. He's been biding his time, expanding his force, developing his weaponry. He won't divulge what he's planning exactly. The closer it gets, the more secretive he becomes. I will send more when I can. I’m sorry I haven’t sent more useful intel, he’s intentionally shutting out non-essential personnel. I miss you, Dario, dearly. Please, be safe."
And with that, the message ended. Thane’s image was sucked back into the device, and the familiar silence that followed his transmissions hung in the air.
"Large-scale assaults?" Bron asked. "What does that mean?"
“It means that what he’s been doing so far is nothing,” Thor replied. “The attacks on the mining colonies, the attempts to thin out the Alliance forces, they were just precursors.”
“They were a distraction,” Kira agreed, finally piecing together a question that had been burning in the back of her mind since they left the first mining colony.
“A distraction, from what?” Dario asked. “If they were to distract from the fact that he’s organizing a wide-spread coup, they didn’t do the job. We all always knew that there was the risk that he was planning something more.”
“They were a distraction from what he was doing to prepare for that something more,” Kira explained. Everyone focused their attention on her. “Grimm, unfortunately, is a very intelligent man. He never does anything without reason. All of the attacks on the outlying territories, yes, they pulled forces away from the Alliance. But, they did something else, as well. They exhausted the TAF. They masked Grimm’s real target—the mining colonies. If we hadn’t shown up, no one would have been sent from the Alliance to figure out what was going on there. Because everyone assumed he continued to stage attacks as false flags.”
“When, in reality, the mining colonies were his target all along. He wanted the Divarium,” Dario concluded.
“Exactly,” Kira said with a firm nod. “If he had started his campaign there, every fleet in the Alliance would have been sent to stop him. But, he didn’t. He knew better. He planned it this way all along, and it was easy for him.”
“Well, shit,” Bron muttered, slumping back in his chair.
“This doesn’t change anything,” Kira spoke, letting the confidence of her position as Captain work its way back into her tone. “Our mission remains the same—find Artanis and share with him the information we have obtained, clear our names and hunt Grimm down before more lives are lost.”
Everyone agreed, and a feeling of purpose once again finding its way into the air. Still, there was something troubling hanging around them. A silence filled the room.
That silence, however, was short-lived.
“Hell yes!” Vinnie exclaimed running into the room.
He didn’t even notice the worry on the faces of everyone around him. His smile didn’t falter as he ran up to them, spinning around and stretching his arms out. Everyone looked in the direction he came from, the direction he was indicating, and waited.
“Ship’s overall condition can be classified as terrible,” a robotic voice announced.
Before anyone could speak, the maintenance bot Vinnie had been working on rolled around the corner and into the room.
“That thing is bizarrely perceptive,” Kira quipped, shooting a smile over her shoulder at Bron.
“First priority, abandon ship,” the bot said as it rolled past the group and continued on to the kitchen.
Kira couldn’t help but laugh, as did Thor and Dario. Even Bron joined in once Alaria was unable to contain her high-pitched giggle any longer.
“Did you program it to do that?” Alaria asked, watching as the bot turned the corner and disappeared from sight. “To talk like that?”
“No,” Vinnie replied. “I guess the previous engineer did. I’ll try to fix it. I was just so excited I got the damned thing working I wanted to share it with all of you!”
“Well, we definitely needed the laugh,” Dario said.
“And, I think we’re going to need a lot more in the future,” Bron added. “Leave it as is, for now. I may lose my patience with it eventually and smash it for bruising my ego.”
“Oh, don’t let it get to you,” Alaria said, turning around to look up at Bron. “I think your ship is great.”
In a swift, graceful movement, Alaria pushed herself up off the ground and leaned in to place a quick, delicate kiss on Bron’s cheek. His eyes went wide and a smile crossed his lips. Everyone in the room watched in shock as the dark shade of Bron’s cheeks became even darker.
Kira couldn’t keep the smile from her lips as she observed the large, Bandurian man melt into a grinning schoolboy. Alaria giggled and spun around to face everyone.
“Well, we should probably focus on getting ready for arrival, don’t you think?” she asked, her smile wider than it had ever been before and her cheeks a bright shade of red.
“Sure,” Kira said, pushing herself up, “that’s what we’re all focused on right now.”
Everyone laughed as Kira and Thor left the common area, heading toward the flight deck together. Still, the smile would not fall from her face. Dario was right. Relationships, in any capacity, were the only thing that made everything they were doing worth it. Moments like the one they just shared, laughter, love, companionship—that was what would push her forward and keep her focused.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Walking into the flight deck, Kira and Thor took their usual spots, side-by-side, at the forefront of the action.
“It’s good to have you back up here,” Kira said as she grabbed hold of the controls in front of her.
“It’s good to be back,” Thor replied, sliding down into the co-pilot’s seat to her right. “I’d rather be here, clinging to the armrests out of sheer terror, than lying in a hospital bed, clinging to life.”
“Sheer terror?” Kira asked, feigning surprise. “Come on, now. It’s not like we’ve gotten into any situation that was that bad.”
“Yeah, you try sitting over here and seeing it from my perspective sometime and tell me that,” Thor replied.
“Let you fly? That would be something terrifying.”
“I thought you liked adventure.”
“I like breathing more.”
“You just like being in control,” he replied.
Kira took the ship out of warp, letting it drift into Earth Orbit. “What gave it away?” she asked, turning to shoot him a cocky smile.
As she turned her attention back to the viewscreen, though, something caught her eye and caused her pulse to begin to accelerate.
“Damn it,” she said, pressing down on the intercom button. “We’ve got company.”
“Already?” Alaria asked as Thor wondered the same thing.
“It’s a TAF patrol,” Kira said, checking the screen in front of her to confirm her suspicion. “They must have picked us up coming out of warp,” she reminded herself and her crew at the same time.
She reached down for the controls, ready to throw the ship into high-speed when an unfamiliar voice came over the intercom.
“Curio,” the TAF patrolman said, “we’re under orders to escort you to the TFS Victory. Please disengage your weapons array and assume formation.”
“Like hell we will,” Kira muttered under her breath.
“Admiral Artanis has been awaiting your return,” the voice continued.
“Artanis?” Kira asked, now opening the communication channel so her utterances could be heard by the patrol ship.
“Yes, he asked to have you brought to him the moment you returned to Earth.”
“Perfect,” Kira agreed, switching off the intercom before any more external calls could be picked up. She disengaged their weapons array and fell in behind the patrol vessel as they made their way to Artanis.
“That explains how they found us so quickly,” Thor mentioned. “If Artanis was looking for us, the Curio would have been a priority.”
“We’ll see soon enough, I suppose,” Kira replied, sitting back in her seat and piloting the Curio just behind the TAF patrol.
Arriving at the TFS Victory was an odd feeling. Kira had left that ship a respected combat pilot for the Terran Alliance Forces. She was returning as a wanted criminal with a bounty on her head and knowledge of her former Commander's descent into madness.
It came as no surprise to her that she and her crew were escorted into one of those damned rooms with no windows. The rooms she had been in a million times before, debriefing after missions, and usually getting scolded for some reckless act.
As she walked in, the sight of Artanis sitting at the heavy metal table in the center of the room made her feel like she had stepped back in time—to a time when things were simple, a time when getting a swift talking to was the worst thing she had to worry about.
Artanis sat upright like he always did. His lips were pursed and in his hands was a tablet, just like always.
“Captain Winter,” Artanis began in the same authoritative voice he used so well, “Commander Rockhold, Dr. Marner.”
The way he was speaking made Kira’s stomach turn to knots. It was so official, so dry. But, when the faint hint of a smile crossed his lips, she felt herself relax almost instantly.
“Your recent efforts to show your support for the Alliance have not gone unnoticed. It is because of that, and a little because of my insistence, that I am glad to announce that your bounties have been removed. Your names are clear.”
“Really?” Kira asked, reaching out and grabbing hold of Thor’s wrist.
“Indeed,” Artanis replied, the smile now fully spreading across his face.
“Yes!” Kira and Thor exclaimed in unison.
The entire group shared a moment of celebration. One they knew would be over quickly. The instant the excitement died down, Artanis cleared his throat, pulling everyone’s attention back to him.
“The two survivors you sent from the mining colony told me about the events that transpired. Is it true that Arkadians were raiding the colonies?”
“It is,” Kira said, stepping forward. “Their Warlord’s name was Mordecai. We did the best we could, sir. But we were unable to stop his men before they finished with the third colony.”
“We’ll need to make sure we keep tabs on this Mordecai,” Artanis said, reaching for his tablet and making a quick note. “In addition,” he added, not looking up at them, “I would like to ask you, Captain Winter and crew, to join me in an unofficial capacity in the endeavor to bring down Grimm.”
“Unofficial? Last time someone asked me to do something unofficial, I ended up with a bounty on my head and what feels like an entire galaxy out to get me,” Kira replied.
Artanis smiled to himself and leaned back in his chair. “This is for your own safety, Kira. Grimm will be looking for you—all of you. If he didn’t know you were still a threat to him before, he does now, considering your presence at the mining colonies. Once he sees that the bounties have been lifted, the Alliance will be the first place he checks. It’s best if we keep your involvement in the operation off the books.”
Kira considered what he said. She turned to face her crew. They were ragged and tired, but the spark of purpose was still in their eyes.
“We’re tired,” Kira said, keeping her back to Artanis. She let out a long sigh, before continuing. “But, hell, we’ve been tired since this damn thing started.”
She turned around and crossed her arms over her chest, assuming her familiar air of determination and authority.
“We’re in.”
“I’m very glad to hear it,” Artanis said, once again turning his attention to the tablet in front of him.
Dario stepped forward and nudged Kira in the back, forcing her forward a little more.
“There’s something else,” Kira said, quickly.
Artanis placed the tablet down on the table in front of him and regarded Kira closely, seeming to note the gravity of Kira’s tone.
“It’s only an assumption. There’s no certainty in it,” Kira began.
“Is it worth saying? You seem unsure,” Artanis replied, leaning back in his chair.
“It is,” Dario spoke for her.
Kira quickly spat out what she knew about Grimm's past with the Arkadians. She recounted their mission to find and destroy the Empyrean's laboratory, and her fear that Grimm may be working with them now to create the super weapon they once worked together to ensure would never come into existence.
“If there’s one thing I know about Grimm, sir,” she finished, “it’s that he won’t stop until he gets what he wants. He’s willing to burn the whole galaxy down.”
“He believes he’s doing what’s best,” Kira continued. “He’s weeding out the weak; he’s building a super army and putting himself in charge of it. He’ll do whatever it takes to come out victorious.”
“Victorious?” Dario asked.
“The Terran High Command,” she answered. “The governing body he believes to be too weak to do what needs to be done to protect us. He thinks himself the only person capable of leading the Terrans to greatness. As far as he’s concerned, the only way to ensure Earth’s safety is to make us the strongest, most feared race in the galaxy, with him as our leader.”
Artanis’ eyes narrowed as he listened. He waited to reply once he was sure that Kira had said all she needed to. But, a sudden, blaring whine erupted out of the tablet, stopping the words before they could escape his lips and drawing everyone’s attention to it.
Artanis sat up quickly. “An emergency message is coming through on the Galactic News Network,” he said, entering a code into the device and sitting back.
Out of the device pored a holographic image of the news report. Except, it wasn’t a news report at all.
Kira let out a muted gasp as Grimm’s face filled the space hovering over the table. His eyes, as cold and piercing as she remembered them, stared out at them.
“I am Colonel Baron Grimm,” his icy voice filled the room, bouncing off the walls and sending chills down Kira’s spine. “Undoubtedly, the news of my rebellion against the TAF has been echoing through the corrupt and despicable media channels across the Terran Alliance. This message is a warning—a warning for the Terran Alliance Forces. Surrender the remaining TAF personnel and turn over control of your forces to me, or there will be dire consequences. As you have seen, my actions have been calculated with precision. Do not make the mistake of believing I have not thought further ahead.”
The image remained suspended in the air for a second, or two, or ten. Kira wasn’t sure. It felt like an eternity. Finally, the broadcast ended and the light sucked back into the tablet.
“Oh,” Kira said, looking back to Artanis, “and that, we forgot to mention that. He’s planning on attacking soon.”
“Maybe you should have started with that,” Artanis said, standing up quickly and collecting his tablet. Tucking it under his arm he extended his hand to her. “It’s good to have you back, Captain Winter. Now, you and your crew need to begin preparing for war.”
FAR HOPE SERIES - BOOK THREE - SUPERNOVA
CHAPTER ONE
The thought of leaving the Curio was somewhat unsettling for Kira. Sure, it needed repairs; it needed a lot of repairs. But, somehow after a few good life or death experiences with the flying heap of metal, she had formed an unexpected attachment to it. It felt strange to not be onboard. It felt strange to not need to be close to the ship to facilitate a quick getaway.
It felt strange to know that it was safe for her to walk about in the open, away from her ship, with no worries in the world.
Strange in a good way, of course.
“Smell that?” Thor asked as he walked alongside her, his arm draped around her shoulder.
“What? That group of Rengar over there?” Kira replied, eyeing the oversized rodents out of the corner of her eye.
The beady-eyed, fur-covered traders were huddled together, more than likely trying to scheme their way into cheating their next customer out of a few hundred Galactic Credits.
“No,” Thor said, his tone light. “Freedom, Kira! We did it. We’re free citizens again.”
“I still only smell the Rengar,” Kira replied, looking up at him with a crooked smile.
“You’re not the least bit excited about this?” he asked.
“I am,” she admitted. “But…”
“None of that,” Thor said firmly, cutting her off.
He came to an abrupt stop; his arm still draped around her, and pulled her in close to him. Lowering his face to hers, he kissed her softly before pulling back and looking down at her with those dark brown, mischievous eyes and rugged, trouble-making grin.
“No ‘buts’,” he said, his tone still firm. “None of that token Winter cynicism, not today.”
“You know, it’s that cynicism that’s kept you alive for the last few months,” she pointed out.
“I won’t argue with that,” he conceded. “But, being that I am still alive, and finally a free man again, I want to enjoy it. And, I think you should, too.”
“I should enjoy you being a free man?” she asked.
Now, it was her dark blue eyes that were sparkling with mischief. Thor laughed as he brushed a strand of dark brown hair from her face.
Tilting his head to the side, his shaggy, dark brown hair falling into his eyes, he said, "you can most certainly enjoy that if you'd like. But, I think you should enjoy the fact that you, too, are a free woman again, Kira."
“I’m just not good at relaxing,” she admitted, reaching up and brushing aside the hair from his eyes.
“I think I could help with that,” he replied with a wink.
“You do, do you?” she asked, pushing herself up onto her tiptoes.
Thor leaned in and slowly pressed his lips to hers. An instant chill ran down her spine and almost all her natural preoccupations drifted away. There was something extra in the way he kissed her, something more than had been there before. There was more passion, more zeal, more of that fierceness that he possessed that she had grown to love so much.
He was truly happy to be free. And standing there with him amid the hustle of traders and merchants, military personnel and everyday citizens going about their business, she finally let the complete realization set in. It didn’t matter who saw them; it didn’t matter where they were. They were free. No one was searching for them; there were no bounty hunters after them, or pirates looking to hit it big on ransom money. They were free and safe and together.
And she was happy. Happier than she had been in a long time—happier than she imagined herself ever being again at the start of all of this. So much had changed since she first met him, especially her feelings toward him. But now, feeling his arms draped around her made her stomach flop excitedly. Feeling his lips graze softly against hers made her heart race.
She wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him closer to her. Just as he began to slide his hands down her back, slowly inching them lower and lower, a chorus of taunts quickly forced them apart.
“Is that what you two were doing all those hours up on the flight deck alone?” Bron asked. “That’s rather unprofessional, Captain Winter.”
“We would never…,” Kira started.
"At least we didn't have to see it then," Vinnie said, cutting her off. Wrinkling his nose, he continued, "maybe we should just leave them with the ship. Clearly, they need their privacy."
“It was just a…,” Thor began.
“I think it’s cute,” Alaria chimed in with a giggle.
“I’m so glad you all have something to say about our personal affairs,” Kira said, crossing her arms over her chest.
“They’re not very personal when you’re getting it on in the middle of a commercial space station,” Vinnie said, elbowing Bron in the side as they both chuckled.
“We were just…,” Thor started.
“There’s no point,” Kira said, looking up at him. “They’re just overgrown children.”
She couldn’t help but notice that there was one individual in their group that didn’t join in the banter. While Dario was one to generally remain outside of the quick back-and-forth that the others so often engaged in, there was something about his mannerisms that told her his mind was somewhere else completely. His eyes remained fixed on the ground, and his shoulders were hunched forward just slightly. She didn’t need to ask. She knew what he was thinking about. He would bring it up when he was ready, though. She knew that, as well.
“To be fair, one of us still is a child,” Bron quipped.
“You better be talking about yourself,” Vinnie replied, glaring up at his Bandurian guardian.
“I think we should be going,” Kira said, rolling her eyes as she marched forward.
There was energy among the group. It was excitement and relief all balled up into one. She noted it in the permanent smirk spread across Bron’s face, the extra bounce in Alaria’s step, and the cocky swagger that Vinnie was attempting to acquire. Even Thor walked a little taller.
Even amid the cloud of concern hovering heavily over Dario, Kira noted a slight air of relief in the older man’s movements. It had been a long time since Dr. Dario Marner was able to walk around a Terran vessel without the weight of a bounty on his mind.
“The Repair Bay is this way,” Alaria informed them as she turned down one of the many long, brightly lit hallways leading off of the TFS Arbiter’s main gallery.
After their meeting with Artanis, the crew had agreed that their first course of action as freed individuals would be to get the much-needed repairs done on the ship. Freed individuals or not, it was clear that they were not completely in the clear. Grimm was still out for blood, and chances were, they were pretty high up on his list of most-hated people in the Galaxy. They would want to make sure their ship was ready if and when the disgraced Colonel and coup leader finally showed his face.
“And, here we are!” Alaria announced as she led them through a large, sliding door.
“Damn,” Bron announced as he walked into the large repair bay. “This place is bigger than the Hangar back on Vandor.”
“Well, no shit,” Vinnie quipped. “That place was a hell hole located square in the middle of a larger hell hole. This is the TFS Arbiter!”
Bron was right—it was bigger than the Hanger. It wasn’t just bigger than the Hangar, though. It was nearly four times the size of his private shipyard he abandoned back in the Galactic Bazaar. Despite the size of the repair bay, it didn’t take Kira long to locate their beloved Curio.
“Always easy to find her,” Kira said as she led the group toward the large vessel. “She’s easily the ugliest thing in here.”
“Besides Bron, of course,” Vinnie added with a laugh.
Bron’s response to his side-kick's remark was the same as it always was when someone said something he disliked—a deep, guttural grunt.
“Well, once I get done with her, she’ll look a lot more menacing,” Bron said as he shouldered his way to the front of the group.
“Wait. What does that mean?” Alaria asked, following closely behind Bron.
The two of them standing next to each other was a sight that always brought a smile to Kira’s face. Bron, the large, muscle-covered, stern-faced Bandurian next to Alaria, the dainty, bright-eyed Telani made such a dramatic contrast that was as endearing as it was striking.
“It means that I’m going to load her up with more firepower than any of the sleek, shiny, high-end models you’ll find around here,” Bron replied.
“Firepower?” Vinnie asked, walking up next to Bron and crossing his arms over his chest as he stared up at him defiantly.
Yet another scene that always made Kira smile—the small Terran boy standing up to the mighty Bandurian. If it weren’t for Bron’s good-hearted nature, the young teenager wouldn’t stand a chance. But, Bron had a soft spot for the kid. All of them did. His spirit was contagious, and his smart-ass personality was always good for comic relief.
“Yes,” Bron answered, matching Vinnie’s stance—arms crossed over his chest—and squaring off to face him. “You got something to say about that?”
“Other than the fact that it’s completely idiotic? No.”
“This should be good,” Thor muttered with a chuckle.
Kira laughed as she nodded in agreement. They had learned long ago that Bron and Vinnie communicated this way. It was always done out of a place of love—no matter how unloving it appeared.
“And what would you suggest?” Bron asked.
“We need to upgrade the hull and improve the shield systems,” Vinnie replied.
“The hull could use a make-over,” Dario agreed.
“No one is going to worry about what the hull looks like if we can’t defend it,” Bron said.
“If we don’t upgrade the hull and shields, there won’t be anything to defend! She’ll be done after one good, square hit,” Vinnie replied.
“That’s the pilot’s job, isn’t it? To not get hit?” Bron said.
“Don’t bring me into this,” Kira said, holding her hands out in front of her.
“We need more guns,” Bron insisted. “More guns, more power.”
“We need better shields,” Vinnie countered again. “Don’t be so damn stubborn! You know I’m right.”
“He is,” Alaria said softly, walking up behind Bron and placing a soft hand on his shoulder. “The hull needs a major overhaul. And the shields… Well, they’re almost as bad as the ship itself looks.”
Bron’s shoulders slumped forward slightly, although there was a little sparkle in his eye that Kira couldn’t help but notice. No one else seemed to, though. Especially not Vinnie, who was about to jump out of his skin waiting for Bron to admit that he was right.
“See?” Vinnie asked, his eyes wide and grinning from ear to ear. “I’m right.”
“I won’t admit it,” Bron said, looking back at Alaria. “But, I will concede that the hull and shields need work.”
“And we’ll work on them first?” Vinnie asked.
“Yes,” Bron said, his jaw clenched slightly. “We’ll work on them first. But, when we get our asses handed to us in combat because our weapons array is shit, don’t blame me.”
“No, that’s when we’ll blame the pilot,” Vinnie said, spinning on his heel and marching triumphantly toward the Curio.
“I said don’t bring me into this!” Kira called after him.
“Kid was never good at taking directions,” Bron said with a chuckle. “We’ll get started on all of that, then, I suppose.”
“How long will it be?” Kira asked.
“I’d say at least a day or two,” Bron replied.
“That’s not too bad,” Kira said with a nod.
“All ready to get back out there, are you?” Thor asked.
“That can’t be true,” Alaria said, bouncing over to Kira. “You have to celebrate! No thinking about missions or flying or Grimm or any of that for two days.”
Just as the last words escaped her lips, the view screen hanging over her head, tucked into the corner of the repair bay, caught Kira’s attention.
“I think that’s going to be harder than it sounds,” Kira said, pointing so as to direct the others’ attention to what she was seeing.
There, illuminated in all his menacing glory, was Grimm.
CHAPTER TWO
Just the sight of him made a shiver of fear ripple down Kira’s spine. Even though the image was just a frozen picture taken from the broadcast Grimm had transmitted across the Terran Empire, she felt as if his eyes were somehow capable of seeing through the screen and burning right into her.
She could still hear his words playing on repeat in her mind: “This is a warning—a warning for the Terran Alliance Forces. Surrender the remaining T.A.F. personnel, turn over command of your forces to me, or there will be dire consequences for your inaction.”
“Colonel Grimm has made his wishes very clear,” an announcer explained as the image of Grimm disappeared.
The next image wasn’t much better, though. It was a short video caught during the height of the coup. The chaos and confusion could be felt through the viewscreen. Even Bron seemed to shudder back as the images flashed by.
"He will not stop until he gets what he wants," the reporter for the Galactic News Network continued. "Top officials have assured us that they are doing everything within their power to contain the threat, however."
“Everything in their power?” Dario asked, his eyes drifting over to Kira quickly. “Is it just me, or does it seem like no real plan has even been developed yet?”
Everyone turned their attention from the viewscreen to their fellow crew member. Dario, soft spoken and wise, was showing signs of frazzled frustration, something very unlike him. Kira noted the way his hands remained balled up tightly at his sides and his jaw was clenched tight.
“Dario, walk with me,” Kira said, moving away from the group.
She heard his light steps following behind her but didn't slow her pace until they were well out of earshot of the others. When she finally fell into step with him, she waited for him to begin. She wasn't going to pressure him into anything but she also couldn't have perhaps the most stable, consistent member of their crew on the brink of a breakdown.
“It’s true, what I said,” Dario began. “They don’t have a plan.”
“They haven’t had time to make one, Dario,” Kira said calmly. “Until we returned from the mining colonies, Grimm’s plans and intentions were almost completely unknown to the High Command.”
“Don’t you think we should be making our own plans and not just trying to figure out Grimm’s?” Dario countered. “Why are we always two steps behind him? Shouldn’t we be the ones calling the shots?”
"Coups don't work like that. That's the whole point of a coup, to no longer let someone else call the shots. Grimm doesn't care what we're doing because it won't affect what he's going to do. He's had this plan in place for a long time. He's not going to change it just because the Terran Alliance wants him to."
“Can’t we do something to make him have to change his plan?”
“That’s what we’ve been trying to do. Dario, you know this. You know how all of this works. It’s not the process that’s frustrating you.”
“It’s not,” he admitted.
“Do you want to tell me what it is?”
“I’m sure you know. If you don’t, you’re neither a good Captain nor a good friend.”
Kira wrinkled her brow and glanced at him defensively. He smiled weakly at her and shrugged. She returned the smile and wrapped her arm around his shoulders.
“We’ll figure out how to save him,” she said. “You have my word.”
“But how? What are our next steps? Where do we go from here? We’re working for the Terran Alliance now, but they haven’t given us any orders or laid out any plan of action.”
“Artanis will think of something, it’s important that the TAF stabilize the home front first,” Kira urged.
As she spoke, she pulled out the small, bracelet-like comm device that Artanis had given her before he dismissed them from their meeting. If he did need them, he would be contacting them on that. Part of her hoped he did contact them soon with a plan, while the other part of her hoped he took his time, giving them at least a few days to breathe and relax.
Looking down at the small silver device, she saw that he had not tried to contact them.
“I’ve known him for a long time,” she continued, placing the device back in her pocket. “He may not work at lightning speed, but that’s only because he’s ridiculously thorough. When he does present a plan of action, you can bet a million Galactic Credits on the fact that it’s going to work. He’s gotten us this far, hasn’t he?”
“But every day that goes by means Thane is in more and more danger. It’s been far too long since I’ve heard from him. And with each passing minute of silence, my mind fills with more bleak, terrified thoughts.”
“Dario, do you remember what you told me when Thor was in Recovery after the battle at the last mining colony?”
“About relationships?”
“About life and love and relationships and the reality we live in,” Kira replied. “You said that we can’t let the ambiguity of life weigh on us too heavily. Life is filled with uncertainties, you reminded me, and the only thing we can be certain of in this vast, ridiculously mysterious universe we live in is the people we share the experience with. You told me that holding those relationships close is what inspires us to work harder, fight harder, and live another day. What you’re feeling now, Thane is probably out there feeling the same exact thing. The only thing you can do with those feelings though is to use them as motivation to keep pushing forward.”
“But without a plan…”
“There will be a plan. And when there is, I need you to be as focused and driven as you always have been. Shit, the five of us need someone with a little sophistication to keep us grounded. So, I’m going to need you to keep being that person for us.”
“You would be lost without me,” Dario responded with a crooked smile.
“Completely lost,” Kira agreed, hugging him tightly. “I promise, Dario. I haven’t forgotten about Thane. None of us have. We will find and save him.”
“Thank you, Captain,” Dario whispered as he pulled back from her and nodded slowly.
Kira saw the slight glistening of a tear form in the corner of his eye. He plastered a smile on his face and nodded again. His hands were no longer balled into fists, and his jaw was more relaxed.
“I think I’ll go for a walk around the station, try to clear my mind a little,” Dario said.
“I think that’s a great idea,” Kira agreed. “I’ll be back with the others if you want to talk more.”
With a slight nod, Dario turned and walked away. His shoulders were still hunched forward, but not nearly as much as they were before. Kira took in a slow breath as she watched him go. She did feel for him. She couldn’t imagine being in a situation like the one he was enduring. It was hard enough being locked in the midst of a Galactic coup, knowing the person you loved was caught in the middle of the wrong side would be nearly unbearable.
Once Dario disappeared among the crowds, she turned. The instant she did, her eyes landed on Thor. He was looking right at her, his gaze locking on hers amid the bustle of the busy repair bay. He gave her a slow, easy smile, as he brushed a chunk of shaggy brown hair from his face.
Moving toward the group, he was the only one she saw. After talking to Dario, the only thing she wanted to do was hold him close. Thinking about losing him, almost losing him, made her heart sink into her stomach. Remembering him, lying in the bed in Medical aboard the Curio made her chest ache with desperation. It was then that she knew she loved him. And since then, her apprehensions towards relationships had melted away. Her fear of commitment, her concern for balancing her work life and her love life seemed like a petty excuse.
Thinking about what Dario was feeling made her appreciate what she had even more. They were together and they were free.
“Hey,” he said, extending his hand to her as she approached. “Is he okay?”
Alaria, standing nearby, hurried over. Her eyes were filled with a daughter’s loving concern. “Where is he?”
“He’s fine,” Kira replied. “I think. He’s upset about Thane.”
“Oh no,” Alaria sighed, her eyes scanning the busy repair bay.
“He went for a walk,” Kira informed her.
“Should I go after him?” she asked, her eyes still flitting about the room.
“I think he wanted to be alone,” Kira replied.
She could sense Alaria’s concern increase. The small, petite Telani woman wore her emotions clearly. She needed a distraction. The sound of Bron and Vinnie getting into yet another argument would provide just that.
“You get the supplies. Why do I have to?” Vinnie quipped.
“Because you’re the kid,” Bron said, crossing his arms over his large, brown chest.
“You’re the one acting like one,” Vinnie replied.
“I’m also the one putting a roof over your head.”
With that, Vinnie looked up in sarcastic defiance. “Oh, I didn’t realize you owned the TFS Arbiter’s repair bay,” he said. “You’ve come a long way since you left the Bazaar. I must have missed all these big developments while I was busy saving your ass time and time again.”
“You saved my ass?”
“Okay,” Kira said, grabbing onto Alaria’s arm and tugging her toward the duo. “I think you’re going to need some supervising if anything is going to get done on the ship.”
“We don’t need a babysitter,” Vinnie said, turning to face them with an expression of frustration on his face.
Bron also turned to face them, but his expression wasn’t as annoyed as Vinnie’s. In fact, he seemed almost pleased at Kira’s suggestion.
“We could use the help,” Bron said.
“And I could use the distraction,” Alaria agreed, smiling weakly, first at Kira, then a little brighter at Bron.
Vinnie huffed, rolled his eyes, and turned on his heel. As he marched toward the ship, he mumbled just loud enough to be heard, “I may end up having to be the babysitter.”
Alaria giggled softly as the color of Bron’s face went from dark to even darker with a tinge of red. Without hesitation, she stepped forward and intertwined her arm with his, tugging him in the direction of the ship.
Kira and Thor both chuckled as they watched the oddly adorable couple walk off. Thor wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him. Leaning in, he kissed her softly on the cheek, sending a shiver of chills running down her spine.
“You know,” she said, spinning around to look up at him, “I’ve been thinking about what you said earlier, and you may have a point.”
“Am I going crazy?” Thor asked sarcastically. “Is this a dream? First, I’m told I’m a free man again, and then Kira Winter admitted that I may have been right about something? This can’t be reality.”
“Do you want me to continue or not?” she asked, nudging him softly in the side.
"Hell yes, I want you to continue. I want to hear what I was right about!"
Rolling her eyes, she laced her fingers with his and scooted in close. “We should enjoy this moment,” she said softly. “We should enjoy our freedom and we should be thankful that we can do so together.”
His eyes, always deep and penetrating, fixed on hers. “What’s on your mind?” he asked.
He was the only person she knew that could do that—read her that way. He could tell when she was happy, sad, angry, or bothered.
“Dario’s worried about Thane,” she replied, pushing herself up onto her tiptoes and wrapping her arms around his neck.
“And you’re worried about Dario?”
“Yes, but that’s not all,” she replied. “It just got me thinking about what happened back on the last mining colony, and how hard it would be for me if I didn’t know that you were okay, and…”
His eyes narrowed as a look of pleasant surprise crossed his face.
“I know,” she groaned, “what have you done to me?”
“I don’t know,” Thor replied, leaning in and pressing his lips to hers fiercely, “but I like it.”
She laughed and pushed him back. “What I’m trying to say is that I’m thankful that I have you here with me,” she said. “I really don’t know what I would do if I didn’t know that you were okay.”
“It would kill me to be separated from you right now,” he said, nestling his face close to hers. “I can’t even think about it.”
“Then, let’s not think about it,” she said, pulling back and taking hold of his hand. “Let’s just enjoy being together.”
CHAPTER THREE
On a ship like the TFS Arbiter, rooms were easy to come by. Merchants, military personnel, soldiers-for-hire, whoever it was that spent any extended time on board the large Terran Forces vessel would need a place to sleep.
Although, sleep wasn’t what Kira and Thor had in mind when they tumbled into the room they had rented.
“Maybe we should tell someone where we are,” Kira said as they tripped over each other’s feet, their arms wrapped around each other and their lips pressed together.
“Why? So they can give us shit again?” Thor asked, leading her over to the bed.
Besides the small, attached bathroom, the bed was basically all there was in the room. The heavy metal walls emitted a soft light that seemed to seep through them, coming from nowhere in particular, but illuminating the space just enough to give it a soft but fluorescent feel.
“No,” she said as she undid the clasp of her gun belt and tossed her Phantom and holster to the side. “They might need us for something, though.”
Thor, too, tossed his sidearm to the ground before slipping the loose-fitting white shirt he was wearing up over his head. Her eyes flitted over him—his perfectly sculpted body, his chiseled chest and defined abs. Her gaze landed on the intricate tattoo that covered most of his left pec.
Reaching up, she dragged her fingers along the lines, tracing the designs in his skin. She could feel his heartbeat against her hand, strong and steady, and accelerated with excitement.
“The others can survive without their Captain for a while. I need you right now,” Thor replied, leaning in and pressing his lips to her neck.
A shiver of chills ran down her spine as his right hand drifted down her side. Her stomach turned with anticipation as he reached the edge of her shirt and slid his hand up between the fabric and her skin.
When he pushed her back onto the bed, she went gladly. Her arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him down with her. As they tumbled back, Thor lifted the shirt up over her head. The second she felt his skin pressed against hers, her entire body shivered with desire.
“Fine,” she said, her words coming out in soft, excited sighs. “Maybe they’ll be fine for a while without me.”
Her hands once again drifted over him. She never grew tired of the shape of him—strong, defined, broad shoulders, and muscular back. Everything about him made her want him more. The assuredness with which he moved, reaching down and undoing the clasps of her pants. The way his hands drifted over her with a soft sort of power, a tender roughness that only he could embody.
When he slipped out of his pants, she felt her stomach begin to flop excitedly. The second their bodies came together again, she let out a moan of both longing and frustration. She wrapped her legs around his waist; he leaned in further. She felt him pressing against her, his member prepared to slide inside of her.
Her body shook with excitement.
When he pressed his hips forward, her hands flew down to her sides, her fingers clinging to the sheets. Feeling him like that, being connected to him that way, had always given her a level of pleasure she hadn’t experienced before. The way he moved, the way his lips found hers with a force and passion that caused her to become completely lost with him, the way she could feel his heart racing in his chest, pressed tightly against her—it all made her want him more.
His lips drifted away from hers, finding her neck, sending shivers running up and down her spine. Her back arched, the combinations of feelings he was sending surging through her making the room spin.
He was firm in his movements, his hips thrusting up and down with passion and lustful desire. But, his kiss was soft, his lips just barely grazed over her skin, leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake.
She wasn’t sure how long they spent there, lost together in their ecstasy. It felt like forever and yet, it was over all too fast. When she felt the orgasm wash over her, she wasn’t ready to separate from him.
He always left her feeling that way—completely satisfied yet longing for more.
CHAPTER FOUR
She wanted to stay there forever. She wanted to lie in bed with his arms wrapped around her and forget about everything that had happened before and everything that would happen after that very moment.
Because that moment was perfect.
And that perfect moment was over all too quickly. It seemed like the second she settled in to enjoy it, an ear-piercing squeal filled the room, bouncing off the metal walls and causing the hair on the back of her neck to stand on end.
“What the hell is that?” she demanded, sitting straight up.
“It’s the Comm-band,” Thor replied, resting his weight on his elbows.
With a grunt, Kira pushed herself up out of bed. The near pain-inducing whine continued to slice through the air. Tossing the clothes on the floor aside frantically, she located the device and announced her achievement with a pronounced, "gotcha!" as she held the metallic band up triumphantly.
Giving the thing one good shake, she hoped to silence the ringing. Instead, she activated the call. An image of the silver-haired, stern-faced Artanis spilled out of the center of the metal band and hovered weightlessly in the air.
“Shit,” she exclaimed, tossing the device across the room and collecting up an armful of her clothes from the ground.
“Kira?” Artanis’ muffled voice beckoned.
“Just a minute,” Kira said as she bounced on one leg then the other, attempting to pull on her pants as quickly as possible. Thor tossed her a shirt as he, too, hurried to the room to collect his own items.
“I’m coming,” Kira called out, pulling the shirt over her head and lunging across the room. “Hey, Admiral Artanis,” she said as calmly as possible as she grabbed the Comm-band from its place on the ground.
“Did I call at a bad time?” Artanis asked.
Kira could feel her cheeks flush, and hoped that the image on her former commanding officer’s end of the call wasn’t as clear as the one she was seeing. His eyes were wide, although filled with a slightly amused sparkle, and the corners of his mouth threatened to turn up in a smile at any moment.
“No,” Kira said, trying to hide her breathlessness. “We were just resting.”
“We?” Artanis asked.
“Hello, Admiral,” Thor said, walking up behind Kira.
“Commander Rockhold,” Artanis greeted him.
Now the corners of his mouth did turn up, and a queasy feeling crept into Kira’s stomach. “How can I help you, Admiral?” she asked, wanting to shift the conversation as quickly as possible.
“You’re needed in a Terran High Command meeting.”
“A what?” Kira asked, her mouth dropping open slightly.
“You heard me,” Artanis replied gruffly. “It’s important, Kira.”
“Everything with you people always is,” Kira muttered.
“I take that as a confirmation of your attendance?”
“Take the fact that I doubt I have a choice in the matter as a confirmation of my attendance,” Kira replied.
“I’m glad to see you still remember how things work around here,” Artanis replied with that fatherly smile he always gave her. “Meet me in Conference Room 4 in an hour.”
With that, the call dropped. Kira let out a nervous laugh as she dropped the Comm-band onto the bed. Thor, too, chuckled slightly to himself as he ran his fingers through his very disheveled hair.
“That was nice while it lasted,” Kira said as she straightened out her shirt.
“It’s the price we pay for being so badass,” Thor replied.
“Sometimes I think I should have just gotten a damn office job,” Kira muttered as she marched toward the door. “How simple my life would have been!”
“You don’t like simple,” Thor observed as he followed behind her.
“I’ve never given simple a chance,” Kira replied, walking down the long, brightly lit hallway.
“Well,” Thor said as he walked alongside her, “if you want, after we’re done whooping Grimm’s ass, and bringing peace back to the Galaxy, and being the heroes, and all that, we can try simple together.”
"What are you saying, Commander?"
“Just a thought that I’ve had in the back of my mind since the whole mining colony incident.”
“Do you think we could do that? Simple? Isn’t that the opposite of everything we’ve done so far? Aren’t we that couple that looks for trouble together?”
“I didn’t say anything about staying out of trouble,” Thor said, eyeing her flirtatiously.
The giggle that slipped past her lips was a sound she was still getting used to. It didn’t fit her—not the her that she was before. But now, it seemed to have become a common part of her persona.
Their conversation was cut short when they entered the ever-busy TSF Arbiter’s promenade. Voices echoed off the thick metal walls, and bodies hurried to and fro. Walking side by side was nearly impossible, given the extremely crowded state of the walkway.
It was probably for the best. She needed to focus. Artanis wanted to speak to them about something important. She knew her former Commanding Officer well enough to know that he wouldn’t call an unscheduled meeting for anything less than extremely important.
Their first stop was the repair bay. Bron, Vinnie, and Alaria were all busy at work. Bron was dealing with the shields, Alaria with the hull, and Vinnie was pitching in where he could, running back and forth between the two with his own personal side-kick, his repair bot, following along behind him.
“We’ve set up a plan of attack,” Bron informed them when they all gathered together on the dock.
“And we’ve got the supplies in order,” Vinnie added.
“Are we still looking at a couple of days?” Kira asked.
“At least,” Alaria informed them. “But that’s not a problem, right? We’ve got the time, don’t we?”
Kira looked over a Thor who returned her glance. “We’re not sure,” Thor spoke. “Artanis just called. We’re wanted in a Terran High Command meeting.”
“High Command?” Alaria asked, her wide blue eyes going wide. “That sounds very official.”
“It is,” Kira answered.
“Do we all need to go?” Bron asked, holding out his oil covered hands. “I’m not dressed for ‘very official.’”
“You never are,” Vinnie replied.
“I’m sure Artanis would understand if you hung back,” Kira replied.
“Vinnie, you’re staying with me,” Bron ordered.
"Fine by me," Vinnie said, walking back toward the ship. "I don't want to sit through a stuffy meeting anyway."
“Damn stuffy meetings,” Vinnie’s repair bot echoed as it followed behind him.
“I want to go,” Alaria said. “And I’m sure Dario will, as well.”
“Radio him and tell him to meet us in Conference Room 4 as soon as possible,” Kira said. “We’re expected there in half an hour.”
And that half an hour flew by. Finding Conference Room 4 aboard the massive commercial station consumed most of their remaining time. What added to the difficulty in locating said conference room was that it wasn't located among the other conference rooms lining the long, official Terran Alliance hallway.
It wasn’t anywhere near the other conference rooms, for that matter. It was tucked way back in the farthest corner of the ship, behind an industrial strength storm door that required a retina scan to gain access.
How they got Kira’s retina into the system, she had no idea.
“You could have given us a heads up,” Kira said as she walked into the windowless room.
Artanis was seated at a long table, with a highly decorated Terran Forces Commander to his right and another to his left.
“I couldn’t risk someone overhearing our conversation,” Artanis replied.
“Why the need for all the high-security and secrecy?” Thor asked, walking further into the room.
“As I said before, there is still a very real concern that Grimm has double agents working among our ranks. We can’t trust anyone these days,” Artanis replied. “Despite the business-as-usual atmosphere hanging around here, nothing is usual. Our situation remains dire, and time is running out. We need to act—now.”
“Definitely should have gotten an office job,” Kira muttered to Thor as she moved forward to take a seat across from the small collection of officials.
Dario, Alaria, and Thor all took their seats on Kira’s side of the table. A tense silence consumed the room as everyone waited for someone else to speak first. Kira couldn’t help but notice that everyone seemed to be staring at her.
“Am I missing something?” she asked, scanning the faces of the Terran Forces Commanders. “I feel like you’re all expecting me to say something but I have no idea what it is.”
“We were hoping you had an idea of how to go about locating Grimm,” the Commander seated to Artanis’ right answer. She was an attractive woman, in her mid-forties, with long, black hair and uncharacteristically light blue eyes.
“Captain Winter, this is Commander Hopkins,” Artanis said, introducing the woman to his right. “And this is Commander Rush,” he said, gesturing to the man to his left.
“Well, Commander Hopkins,” Kira began, “I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I have no idea where Grimm is hiding out.”
"Are you sure about that?" Commander Rush said. He was a small man but built like a rock. His head lacked any trace of hair, but the bushy beard wrapped around his jaw made up for that.
“What do you mean?” Kira asked, leaning forward.
“This whole thing with Grimm started a long time ago,” Artanis explained. “About eleven years ago, to be exact.”
Kira knew what he was getting at before he even finished speaking. “My first mission,” she said with a tired sigh.
“Exactly. The new intel that your crew collected, that Grimm has been stealing Divarium from the mining colonies, can only mean one thing—he is associating himself with the Empyreans. More specifically, he is showing his allegiance to the Empyrean extremists.”
“The Empyrean extremists we located eleven years ago,” Kira added.
“That’s where you come in,” Commander Rush replied.
“I figured as much,” Kira sighed, leaning back in her chair. “But, I don’t know how you expect me to help you. Just because I went on a mission what feels like a lifetime ago…”
“You can help us find the location of the extremist Empyrean epicenter,” Artanis urged. “We believe that the location of the lab you and Grimm’s crew discovered may be the exact place he’s hiding out.”
“What makes you think he’s even there?” Thor asked.
“Because it doesn’t make sense that he would be,” Dario answered.
Now, everyone turned their attention to him with expressions of confused surprise. Even Alaria seemed uncertain of her adoptive father’s answer.
“You’re exactly right, Dr. Marner,” Artanis answered. “We’ve searched every obvious place in the galaxy. What we need to do now is to look at the not-so-obvious.”
“Isn’t an Empyrean lab an obvious hideout for an Empyrean extremist and coup leader?” Thor asked.
“No,” Kira answered this time. “Because we destroyed it.”
"A destroyed lab is good to no one unless you want to lay low somewhere," Commander Hopkins said.
“No one would expect him to be there because as far as everyone is concerned, it’s good for nothing,” Kira said.
“Okay, so, all Kira has to do is tell us where this lab is—or was—right?” Alaria asked, her voice bouncing with excited hope.
“Oh, that’s all?” Kira asked.
It was clear her dry sarcasm wasn’t widely accepted by her peers. She straightened up in her chair and shook her head.
“Yes, I was given the coordinates for the base,” Kira began. “But, it was a long time ago. Not to mention that I pretty much forgot them the second we returned from that mission.”
“There’s no way you can recall the location?” Artanis pressed.
“I’m sorry,” she replied. “But, I’m afraid I can’t.”
“Would anyone else that was on that mission with you remember?” Commander Rush asked.
“They didn’t even know the coordinates, to begin with,” Kira replied. “Grimm is a very secretive man, especially when it comes to mission intel. I was the only one on the mission besides him that knew where we were going.”
“And the others went along with that?” Thor asked, glancing over at her. “Seems a little shady.”
“They weren’t happy about it,” Kira replied.
“That’s very unfortunate,” Artanis said, glancing side-to-side at his fellow High Command members.
"Does that mean there's nothing we can do?" Dario asked a hint of desperation in his tone.
“Not exactly,” Artanis said, now turning his attention to Kira. “There is one thing we can try.”
CHAPTER FIVE
She knew that look. It was the “you’re not going to like this, but you’re going to have to accept it” look he gave her time and time again when going over her flight reports. Her stomach dropped as she waited for Artanis to continue.
“Anything,” Dario spoke before anyone else could even react. “We’ll do anything it takes.”
Kira looked over at Thor quickly. He, too, seemed to share her premonition that whatever Artanis was going to say was not going to be good—for any of them.
“I appreciate your enthusiasm,” Artanis replied to Dario’s quickly spoken comment. “I only hope it remains once I outline the plan we’ve come up with.”
“Let’s hear it,” Kira said.
"Obviously, our first step in locating Grimm is finding someone who knows the location of the Empyrean's base of operations in Arkadian space," Artanis began. "We had hoped that Captain Winter would be able to provide that information. But, we did prepare a backup plan just in case she couldn't."
“That’s good!” Alaria said excitedly.
“Yes and no. Yes, because we have found not only one, but two individuals who may be able to provide us with that information—a Rengar named Aldo Firax and an Arkadian named Kardok,” Artanis explained.
“And no because…?” Kira pressed.
“Because they’re locked up in Jaantu 7,” Artanis began.
“How long until they’re…” Kira started.
“For life,” Artanis added, cutting her off and answering her half-spoken question at the same time.
“So, how are we supposed to get to them?” Thor asked.
“It’s complicated,” Artanis replied. “We have no diplomatic channels to pull with the Jaantu institution. It’s managed by a private corporation—BanCor—and therefore outside of the Terran Alliance’s reach.”
“And it’s located right in the middle of Bandurian Space,” Thor said.
"Yes," Artanis agreed. "We could always just go in and use firepower to get them out. But, a direct assault on the prison would really upset the Bandurians and possibly lead to war. We have enough of a problem on our hands without upsetting another race."
“So how are we supposed to get to them?” Kira asked firmly.
Artanis, his gaze still fixed on Kira, explained, “that’s where you come in.”
“No,” Kira said, shaking her head and standing up quickly. “No, no, no.” She knew what he was going to say and she was not about to agree to it. “It’s a suicide mission!”
“What?” Thor asked, glancing back and forth between Kira and Artanis.
“He wants to reinstate our bounties,” Kira replied, not turning to face Thor.
“All of them?” Alaria asked, reaching out quickly to take hold of Dario’s hand. “But, they just got them removed. We were finally all feeling safe.”
“Not all of them,” Artanis replied. “Just Kira’s and Thor’s. We can send you both to Jaantu 7 and you can hook up with Aldo and Kardok on the inside.”
Alaria let out a soft sigh of relief, and Kira once again shook her head. Thor joined Kira on his feet, his arms crossed over his chest and his posture defensive.
“You really expect us to give up our freedom, again, and go as far as to voluntarily get ourselves thrown into the exact institution I’ve spent the last few months trying to stay out of?” Thor said.
"If we had a better option, we would use it. We wouldn't even ask you if we thought there was another way," Artanis replied calmly. "Kira, you know I wouldn't put you in a situation like this unless I felt it was absolutely necessary. This is the most direct link to the potential whereabouts of Grimm's base of operations we have."
“Admiral, I don’t know…” Kira started.
“If we even had an idea of where to start looking, we wouldn’t be having this conversation,” Artanis continued. “But we have nothing. Grimm’s coup was well planned and by all accounts of T.A.F. intelligence, there’s no trace of him to speak of.”
“It’s crazy,” Kira muttered. “It’s completely insane.”
“Is it really the only option?” Thor asked.
“What if it is?” Kira replied. “Are you seriously considering doing this?”
“If it’s the only way…,” Thor started.
“It’s the only way to ensure our deaths!” Kira quipped.
“I’ll do it,” Dario said, standing up quickly.
Kira and Thor immediately fell silent as everyone turned their attention to the older, grey-haired doctor. Kira knew that his age and size were deceiving. He was agile, strong, and intelligent. But, still, he would stand no chance in the high-security prison.
“Dario, no,” Alaria said, grabbing onto his hand and attempting to pull him back down into his seat.
“You realize what this mission entails?” Kira asked. “Dario, it’s suicide.”
“If it’s the only option we have, someone has to at least try,” Dario explained. “Every second we spend just sitting around; Grimm’s forces are getting stronger, his weapons more advanced, and his mental state more fragile. If doing this brings us closer to stopping him and freeing Thane, I’m more than happy to volunteer.”
“We can’t let him go in there alone,” Thor said, turning to face Kira.
“We can’t let him go at all!” Kira replied emphatically.
“We don’t have another choice,” Artanis said, looking at both of the Commanders.
“He has a point, Kira. We can’t just keep sitting around waiting for Grimm to act first. What if the next course of action he takes is detonating one of his Supernova weapons?” Thor said.
“Commander Rockhold has a point,” Artanis agreed.
“And, he’s about to have a bounty on his head,” Thor said, looking over Kira’s head at Dario. “I’m in.”
“What?” Kira said, spinning around to face everyone in the room. “No, no, no. We were supposed to be helping in the fight, not going undercover. I’m not qualified for something like this.”
“It’s not necessarily undercover…,” Thor began.
“Are you sure there’s no other way?” Kira asked, looking desperately at Artanis.
“The only other option is to run sector by sector searches of the entire galaxy, and that could take years,” Artanis replied.
“We don’t have years,” Dario said nervously.
Letting out a slight huff of defeat, Kira turned to face Thor, a scowl etched across her face. “You owe me a hell of a lot of simple if we make it through this,” she said firmly.
“I’ll start searching for office jobs right now,” he replied with a smirk.
“Fine,” Kira said spinning around to face Artanis. “You’ve got three wanted fugitives, ready and waiting.”
“Thank you very much for your bravery,” Artanis said, pushing out his chair and extending his hand in her direction.
“Don’t you mean thank you for my neck? Because this isn’t a mission. It’s more like a death sentence,” she replied, slipping her hand into his and shaking it firmly.
“That makes your bravery even more appreciated,” Artanis replied, sliding back into his chair. “Especially because…”
“Because? There’s more, isn’t there? There’s always more,” Kira said, shooting Thor a frustrated look before slumping back down into her chair.
“Especially because given the circumstances and the fact that Jaantu 7 is owned by a private company, the T.A.F. will not be able to be involved in the mission in any way,” Artanis finished.
“As in, once we’re in, we’re screwed?” Thor asked as he retook his seat next to Kira.
“As in, we can provide your ship with supplies, but once the bounties are re-instated, it’s up to you and your crew to devise your own escape plan,” Artanis explained.
“Oh, no problem,” Kira said sarcastically. “All we have to do is break out of the prison with the highest level of security in the entire galaxy.”
“It doesn’t sound so bad when you put it that way, does it?” Artanis replied, shooting her a half-smile. “Come on, Kira. What happened to the adventure-seeking, daredevil pilot that used to purposely put herself in these types of situations?”
“I never got myself into something like this,” Kira said defensively.
“You’ve gotten pretty damn close.”
“I have,” Kira admitted with a chuckle. “Fine. I’m still in if the others are.”
Thor and Dario both voiced their agreement in unison as Alaria let out a soft, heartbroken sigh.
“Wonderful,” Artanis said, slamming his fist down on the table with zeal. “I will reinstate your bounties to ensure your transport to Jaantu 7. I suggest you find a creative way to get arrested. You know, make it more believable.”
“I don’t think Kira will have a problem with that,” Thor said.
Artanis laughed and nodded his head. “No, I don’t think she will.”
“Okay, okay,” Kira said, sitting up straight. “That’s enough of that. What do we need to do, Admiral?”
“Well, I suggest you get back to your ship and regroup with your crew,” Artanis said. “Explain the situation to the others, and start planning. You won’t have long, but I will give you as much time as possible. Once you’re ready to head out, come find me, and we’ll finalize everything before your big departure.”
CHAPTER SIX
"You're going to do what?" Bron asked, leaning back on his heels and crossing his arms over his chest. The look of disbelief and slight judgment on his face was hard to miss.
“It’s our only hope,” Kira replied.
“Are you joining in on his suicide mission?” Bron asked, glancing over at Alaria.
“No,” she replied, shaking her head. “But my father is.”
The sadness in her voice was as easy to note as the criticism in Bron’s. They were all feeling some sort of frustrated negativity. They were just beginning to accept that they were free. They were just beginning to let themselves be happy and relaxed.
There was one individual among them, though, that met the news with excitement.
“I don’t know what you guys are so upset about,” Vinnie announced. “We’re going to get to see the inside of Jaantu 7! We’re going to get to see the galaxy’s most infamous prison!”
“Not all of us are going to get to see inside,” Bron said, glancing down at his side-kick over his shoulder. “Only the ones with a death wish.”
“I might have…” Vinnie started.
“No, you don’t,” Bron replied gruffly, the ridges engrained in his brow becoming even more defined with his scowl.
“Well, shit,” Vinnie muttered. “So, while they’re out there getting to see all the action what are we going to be doing?”
“Working on the ship,” Kira replied.
“How exciting,” Vinnie mumbled.
“How exciting,” Vinnie’s repair bot mimicked, the hint of sarcasm somehow apparent in the mechanical voice.
“You’ll be working on the ship,” Kira continued, “because it’s going to need to be in the best shape possible.”
“That could take years,” Thor replied with a chuckle.
“Let’s hope not,” Kira said. “Because we’re going to need the three of you to find some way to get us out of that hell hole.”
“What?” Bron asked.
“What?” Vinnie mirrored. “We’re going to bust you guys out of the Jaantu 7?”
The young Terran teen began to bounce around excitedly. His usually contagious energy didn’t spread to the rest of the group, though. Even his metallic side-kick seemed to emanate uncertainty
“Let me get this straight,” Bron said, shifting his gaze between Vinnie and the others. “You are going to willingly get your asses thrown into the notoriously dangerous maximum-security prison to search for two known criminals with the hopes that they’ll agree to work with us. And, once you find and sweet-talk those criminals, you expect us to swoop in and bust you out of said maximum security prison?”
“When you say it like that, it sounds crazy,” Thor replied.
“It sounds like a suicide mission, which it is,” Bron said firmly.
“It’s our only hope,” Dario said. He wrung his hands together and shook his head. “It’s our only hope. We have to do something. Even if we die trying, we have to do something.”
Kira walked over to him and draped her arm around his shoulder. “I agree,” she said firmly. “We knew what we were getting into when we all got on board with this crusade against Grimm. We can’t just give up now because we don’t like the plan. Every day that goes by is another day that Grimm is out there, probably killing innocent people on behalf of his screwed up ideology.”
“To be fair,” Bron spoke up, “Vinnie and I never fully got on board. We were just kind of dragged along.”
“Speak for yourself,” Vinnie said, still bouncing around slightly. “I was on board from the moment those pirates raided the Hangar!”
Alaria smiled at Vinnie’s enthusiasm. Walking up to Bron and lacing her arm with his, she said, “I think it’s a very brave plan. And, we will do everything in our power to make sure the Curio is ready to whoop ass when the time comes.”
Bron surprised both by Alaria's uncharacteristically crude language and the fact that her hand was still wrapped tightly around his forearm, perked up. The critical expression almost instantly melted off his face as his cheeks flushed red and his lips pursed together nervously.
“We’ll do our best,” Bron agreed, trying to play it cool.
“I’m glad to hear it,” Kira said, stepping forward and motioning for the others gather around. “So now, we need to talk technicalities. I know that, personally, my main concern is how you are going to get us out of Jaantu 7.”
There was a pause as they all thought. That silent pause was quickly ruptured, though, when Alaria clapped her hands together and let out an excited, high-pitched, “I have it!”
Everyone turned to look at her.
“I did some work for BanCor a few years back. I was working for Artech, the Telani engineering company. Have you heard of it?”
Everyone shook their heads "no" and waited, somewhat impatiently for her to continue.
“Well, it’s not important,” she said, pushing a strand of platinum blond hair back from her porcelain white face. “The thing is, BanCor hired Artech to do some work, and while I was there working, I saw some plans for Jaantu 7. Apparently, BanCor was commissioning some new construction or something. I guess that’s not very important, either. The point is they have copies of the plans at Artech!”
Everyone stared at her, waiting for her to say more. But, it was clear that she didn’t think she needed to.
“Okay,” Kira said calmly, “while that is interesting, how will it help you guys bust us out?”
“We can get them—well, we’ll probably have to steal them, to be honest—and use them to find weak points in the prison’s exterior, or a secret entrance or exit or whatever,” Alaria explained. “They were architectural and security plans, so we could do just about anything with them we needed.”
“That is a good idea,” Dario said. “It definitely would give you three an edge on figuring out how to get us out.”
“Artech has an outpost in the Galactic Bazaar for customers,” Alaria explained. “They’ll have a copy of the plans in their system there, I’m sure.”
“We could go undercover, too!” Vinnie yelled, bouncing excitedly. “Pretend we’re customers to get access to the place.”
“Sounds like a plan to me,” Bron said, ruffling Vinnie’s hair.
“Ok, good. So, now all we need to do is figure out how to get ourselves captured,” Kira said.
No one spoke.
“Well, isn’t this an interesting twist,” Thor observed. “We’ve spent the last few months trying not to get caught, and now that we actually need to, we seem to be blanking on how.”
“That’s it,” Kira said, smiling up at him. “We don’t need to think of new ways to get captured when we’ve already perfected a few! We just need to get ourselves in the same situations we always do.”
“Like running through the Galactic Bazaar, for example?” Thor recommended.
“That does make sense,” Dario agreed. “We don’t want to do anything too over-the-top and look like we’re trying too hard, but we don’t want to be too obvious either.
“And it just so happens that our ride is heading to the Bazaar, anyway,” Thor added.
“That is definitely somewhere we would get caught for sure. We can get off in Vandor, do some running through the market, maybe run into a few bounty hunters searching the Bazaar for their next payout,” Kira said.
“We definitely know that it’s possible to get spotted on Vandor,” Thor reminded her.
Kira laughed as she remembered the start of their adventure, running through the busy market place, pirates chasing them from one direction, Arcanum soldiers from the other, and a Rengar bounty-hunter somehow getting thrown into the mix, as well. It was there that they met up with Bron and Vinnie. And it was there that Kira first started to look at Thor as more than a wrongly accused criminal turned partner in crime.
“We fought our asses off to get off that rock alive,” she said with a chuckle. “And we’re just turning around and going right back.”
“It’s symmetry,” Thor said.
“It’s ironic,” Kira replied.
“It’s time to get inside,” Bron said, motioning up to one of the viewscreen hanging down in the corner of the repair bay.
There, illuminating the screen was an image of Kira with a sizeable bounty flashing underneath her name. She held her breath as the image changed to a picture of Thor, then to one of Dario.
“Artanis certainly didn’t wait long, did he?” Kira said, her eyes still fixed on the screen.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Scanning the repair bay quickly, Kira held her breath, hoping that no one around was paying attention to the viewscreen. It seemed that they were safe—for the time being. Still, the fact that their faces were now being broadcast on the entire space station meant that they needed to finalize their plans as quickly as possible.
“Bron, Vinnie, and Alaria,” Kira said quickly, still looking around them nervously, “Artanis promised to provide resources to make some upgrades to the Curio, so take advantage of that. We’re going to need this thing in top shape.”
“I don’t think we have time for that,” Thor replied. “Just make it work.”
“More than that, make it invincible,” Kira urged.
“We’re mechanics and engineers, not miracle workers,” Alaria replied, “but we’ll do our best.”
“No matter what, we will get you out of that hell hole,” Bron said confidently. “You can count on us.”
“We know,” Kira said, smiling at the half of her crew she was planning to leave behind. “I wouldn’t be putting our asses on the line if I didn’t think you could.”
“We still need to get to Artanis and let him know what we’re planning on doing. He’ll want to track our progress up until we get captured, at least,” Thor said.
“Right,” Kira agreed. “We’ll go back and tell him about our plans. You start making a list of the items you’re going to need.”
“That sounds good,” Bron said with a nod. “But, we’re still going to need to do a few things to the ship before we can take off.”
“Do them quickly,” Kira said.
“Let’s get moving then,” Dario urged.
Despite the sadness he felt at the prospect of having to leave his daughter, there was a renewed spark of energy in Dario’s step. Kira and the others noticed it as he purposefully marched down the repair bay, only looking back when he realized that Kira and Thor weren’t following him.
“Come on!” he called to them, waving them on with the enthusiasm of a child.
“Damn, is he going to turn into Vinnie?” Kira muttered as she and Thor rushed to catch up with him.
Thor chuckled as they fell into step behind their silver-haired companion. The trio moved quickly through the repair bay but paused before they emerged into the heart of the bustling TFS Arbiter promenade.
"What are the chances that everyone in the damned promenade has seen our faces flashing on one screen or another?" Thor asked.
“I’d say pretty good,” Kira replied.
“Any ideas as to how we’re supposed to navigate our way through that mess of people and make it to Artanis without being noticed?” Thor asked.
“Keep our heads low?” Kira offered.
“Captain Winter and her quick, critical thinking skills,” Thor said with a smirk.
“I don’t hear you coming up with anything,” she retaliated.
Thor smiled down at her and winked. She rolled her eyes and elbowed him in the side. Dario let out a frustrated grunt.
“Our only hope is to move as quickly as possible,” Kira said, slipping into her role as leader. “We stick to the walls, move in a single file. If anyone spots us, if anyone comes after us, we run.”
Thor and Dario nodded and waited for her to lead them out of the repair bay. Moving in a line, they did just as she had said. Their heads remained low, and their hands hovered over their sidearms, concealed under their flight jackets. Still, they moved as indiscreetly as possible.
Everything was going smoothly. They had made it over halfway to their destination without anyone around them so much as glancing in their direction. Everyone was too focused on what they were doing to care about anyone else around them. No one was looking for fugitives; no one cared about the bounties.
And then, they ran into someone that did.
They didn’t see him at first. All they saw was the bolt of bright green energetic matter flying in their direction. Most everyone around them saw it. The crowd around them fell to their knees, their hands flying up over their heads as the bolt of energy rushed straight at Kira. Thor reached out and pulled her back, his reflexes reacting before she could process what was going on, just as the surge of plasma hit the wall in the spot her head once was.
Spotting the source of the blast was easy. Everyone that stood between them and him was on the ground now. His gun was still pointed in their direction, and a cold, mechanical laugh slipped out past his lips.
“Nico Rax,” Thor muttered, eyeing the rodent-robot bounty hunter they had narrowly escaped back on Vandor. “What the hell is he doing here?”
“Looking for fugitives, clearly,” Kira said, pulling out her gun and lifting it up slowly.
The three of them stood, motionless, for a moment, Kira’s gun trained on the belly of their half-machine, half-Rengar attacker. They knew he wouldn’t shoot them—at least, they hoped he wouldn’t. Artanis had instated their bounties with that goal in mind, making them worth much more alive rather than dead. Kira hoped that Nico Rax was greedy enough to want all three of them alive.
Although, his shot directed right at her head made her wonder.