Niya
Nik’s holding Aymee and their new baby girl, the two parents staring at their baby like they’ve never seen a baby before. I’d think that was odd, except I notice that I’m staring too. So is everyone.
So much so that we miss the troopers’ approach.
“What’s going on here?” says a fierce-looking guy who’s wielding one of those combination bludgeon–mini laser cannons. His cohort is shining a powerful light right into Aymee’s eyes.
“Stop that!” Chlo says. “Can’t you see she just gave birth?”
“Why aren’t you at the birthing center?” says the fierce guy’s partner, who’s only about 2 percent less fierce-seeming.
“We couldn’t make it there,” Nik says. “Emergency.”
“You picked a helluva night to have an emergency,” the fierce guy says. “Vren, find out where the nearest center is. We’ll escort you.”
Vren pulls out one of those all-in-one devices the troopers carry and starts his search. I know exactly where such a center is but I don’t say anything. Chlo knows too.
“Say,” the fierce guy says while he moves his light around, illuminating each of our faces in turn, “I recognize you.” His light’s on Lasson, who shields his eyes.
“Doubtful,” Lasson says.
“It’s—” Vren starts to say, but just then his cohort shines his light on Chlo, and my fear rises another ten degrees. Her face is well known on Engra—there are images of every exile in all the public buildings, and Chlo has a very distinctive look, with her bright green eyes and mop of orange hair.
“Say, Bruck,” Vren says to his nasty partner, “forget that rich guy. This is Chlo Nightbird.” Vren turns his light up brighter, nearly blinding Chlo.
“Vren, I think you’re right,” says Bruck, who taps his bludgeon onto the side of his leg. “Yeah, I do think you’re right.”
Chlo stands up, about to speak, but Lasson interrupts her. “Chlo Nightbird is my life mate,” Lasson says. “As such, she’s protected under the laws of Choryn.”
“You think we give a damn about the laws of that shit planet?” Vren says. “What, are you going to threaten to disintegrate our hands?” He and Bruck laugh, like this is the funniest thing either of them has ever said, this reference to that scene in Joston Parst.
Lasson steps forward, joined by Joston, then Nik, who has to untangle himself from Aymee and their baby girl. The three males are pretty formidable, confronting only two. But they’re two mean, belligerent, determined Engra troopers. No telling what they might do.
“I’m sure we can work everything out,” Lasson says. “I was just at the palace this afternoon.”
“Aiding and abetting an exile?” Bruck says. “Vren, get out the cuffs.”
“Surely there must be a better solution than this,” Nik says. He’s still teary-eyed from watching his daughter’s birth, but, along with Lasson and Joston, he looks like he’s ready to kill these two troopers if the need arises.
And maybe the need has already arisen.
“Oh, there’s quite a fine solution,” Vren says. “As every exile knows.”
As every Engra knows. They mean that Chlo will be executed—I can’t stand to think of how they’ll do it—thereby stopping her from ever again returning to Engra . . . alive.
I see Joston’s hand on the back of his waistband, going for a weapon, and I hiss out a warning. If he uses the firepulse, we’ll be in even worse trouble than we’re already in.
Especially now that five other troopers have arrived.
“Well, Bruck, what have we got here?” says the brutish giant who’s apparently in charge.
“Sir,” Bruck says, “we’ve apprehended Chlo Nightbird.”
Behind us, the baby starts wailing.
“Get that baby out of here,” says the leader. “Immediately.”
Nik, Joston, and Lasson exchange quick glances before Nik says, “Sir, do we have permission to depart? Our transport raft’s at the airfield now.”
“And who the hell are you?” the leader says.
“First Officer Niklas Arca of the Star Line Express freighter Marinax,” Nik says. “And that’s my wife and baby.” He turns around and looks at Aymee, who’s sitting half in, half out of the s-car, clutching their new baby to her chest.
“From the Big World, are you?” Vren says as he flips through the data he’s been referencing.
“Yes, sir,” Nik says.
“Let them go,” the leader says.
“But, sir,” Bruck says. “Aiding and abetting.”
“That’s a baby, you idiot,” the leader says as Nik and Aymee’s baby wails louder.
“Yes, sir,” says Bruck.
“And as much as I’d like to parade this guy”—the leader sneers at Nik—“out in the front lines and let the rebels work out their misguided anger on him, you might recall that we have a current treaty with the Big World.”
“I’d forgotten, sir,” Bruck says, for the first time looking a little less fierce.
“Get out of here,” the leader says to Nik. “Go back to the Marinax and take your wife and baby with you.”
“Sir, just let all of us go,” Nik says, doing his best to act conciliatory.
“Now,” the leader says, “before I change my mind.”
“Do it, Nik,” I say. “Think about Aymee and the baby.”
Aymee grabs my hand. “I won’t leave everyone here.”
“I’m afraid you have no choice,” the guy in charge says to Aymee.
“Let our friends come back with us,” Aymee says, still trying for the impossible. The baby is suddenly quiet.
“You’re Engra,” the leader says, pointing his bludgeon at me. “This is your home. You have no business on the Marinax. Go back to your home and leave this matter to the authorities.”
“Come on, Niya,” Joston says. “Let’s go home. We’ll straighten this out in the morning.”
“Not so fast, fella,” says the leader. “You’re no Engra. You’re Chorynean. What the hell are you doing here?”
“He’s here with his life mate,” says Ozker as he runs out to the alley where our horror show is playing out. He must have caught sight of us on the perimeter cameras.
“An Engra who mated with a Chorynean?” Bruck looks sick to his stomach.
“It’s not against the law,” I say, wondering how the hellish fuck Ozker thought of saying that Joston was my life mate. But it was the best thing he could have said, because the troops are now letting us go.
“You two,” the leader says to Nik and Aymee, “take your overly loud baby, get in your transport, and get the hell out of here. Don’t come back.”
Nik nods, but I also see him pass a glance to both Lasson and Joston. The three friends have spent a lot of time together on the Marinax and they don’t need words to communicate effectively. I wonder if they’ve already considered the possibility of a similar situation and know what to do.
Nik and Aymee, holding the baby, head for the airfield.
“You two,” the leader says, snarling at me and Joston, “get in your s-car and go to your happy little home and never have contact with any of these criminals again.”
I want to argue, but Joston puts his arm around me and says, “Don’t you think we’ve had enough excitement for one night? Let’s go home, darling.”
I feel like kicking him, but I don’t, because I realize our only hope is to get through this moment and fix everything afterward. Assuming there is an afterward for Chlo . . . and for Lasson, because as Joston and I get in Ozker’s s-car, I hear Vren saying, “Sir, this is the Chorynean agitator Lasson Birtak. He’s the one who’s behind the rebellion.”
“Nonsense,” says Lasson as the troopers lead him and Chlo into their waiting van.
Joston reaches up to close the hatch of Ozker’s s-car, and I say, “Don’t you even think of leaving them here like this.”