Original: "The Remnant Fleet," Chapter 18
More words! Up to 45k on this version, which I think is around where the last version ended. I'm officially seeing this one through to the end! :D
Chapter Eighteen
Lalan Paget was unnoticed as she left the ship, though she understood why everyone had more important things on their minds. She moved to one side of the group and activated the camera on her lapel. She would move without argument if anyone shooed her away, but she couldn’t pass up the opportunity to record this historic moment. Constable Mara Heely and Ambassador Rogers both looked at the Wakerran through the glass porthole of her pod, and Bauwerji seemed to be giving a report to Admiral Reshef. They were speaking too quietly for her to hear over the hum and chatter of the docks.
The Balanquin engineer from the Sastruga also looked at the Wakerran, and whatever she said caused a new flurry of activity. Soldiers returned to the Adedoja and Admiral Reshef ordered a lockdown of the dock area. One of the constables finally noticed Lalan hanging around and ushered her toward the exits. When she looked back she saw Nerea and Valdis both breaking up into smaller swarms which floated back toward the ship.
“Can you tell me what’s going on?” she asked the man escorting her to safety.
“They think there might be another Wakerran onboard.”
“If they take this much precaution for one, I can’t imagine how dangerous a second would be.”
The security officer said, “Let’s hope we don’t find out.”
He left her by the lifts and went back to see where he was needed. Lalan took out her camera and held it in front of her face. She hit record, activated the stabilizer, and dropped her hand as the screen reflected her image back to her.
“This is Lalan Paget from the Home Press, reporting to you from the Quay. It’s been an eventful few days here on the station, beginning with the arrival of an independent vessel called the Sastruga. The ship’s Human captain, Cicerone Drayton, claimed they were attacked by a vessel that couldn’t be identified. Further investigation revealed that the ship matched one found in the Ladronis’ mythology. It was the ship of a race called the Wakerran, urban legends, monsters from prehistory...”
She could see past her camera as she continued speaking. Bauwerji was following Dr. Littlefoot toward the lifts, and Captain Drayton was walking with them. Cicero looked distraught, her brow furrowed as she worried her lip with her teeth. Bauwerji reached out and touched the other woman’s shoulder and said, “I’m fine. Cordwainer patched me up. I just need to heal.”
“It could have been so much worse,” Cicero said.
“But it wasn’t.”
Lalan nudged her camera to follow her. “Three people who are intimately connected to this historic moment are coming through right now. Dr. Cordwainer Littlefoot, Officer Bauwerji Crow, and Captain Cicero Drayton. I’m filming a report for the Home Press and I was wondering if--”
Bauwerji reached up and covered the camera’s lens with her hand. “No.”
“The people of Earth deserve to know if there’s a threat on their doorstep.”
“And they will,” Bauwerji said. “But we don’t need fearmongering.”
Lalan said, “I’m only telling them what’s happening.”
“How long does it take a message to reach Earth?”
“Seventy-two hours, unless it’s priority.”
Bauwerji said, “Then they don’t need minute-by-minute news. Just hold off, okay? Admiral Reshef will tell you when you can send your reports.”
“That sounds an awful lot like censorship.”
The lift had arrived, but Bauwerji stepped away from it. “Humans are reactive creatures. You’re giving them something they can’t possibly react to. They can’t leave Earth. They can’t fight back. They would simply be bouncing around your little planet looking for an outlet. Is getting an exclusive really worth causing that back home?”
Lalan said, “Have you ever been to Earth, Bowery?”
Bauwerji snorted and shook her head. “No. I came from a war zone. I have no interest in visiting another.”
“And what happens if the Wakerran destroy the Quay? What then?”
“What if they do? Would Earth really benefit from getting a heads-up from you?” She stepped onto the lift with Cordwainer and Cicero. “The less Earth knows, the happier they’ll be.”
Lalan put her hand on the lift door to keep it from closing. “Better to be blindsided? Caught off-guard in a sneak attack? How did that work out for your people? How many of your friends died in the first attack by the Catarrh?”
Bauwerji looked homicidal, but it was Cicero who stepped forward. “Do you need a Human to say it to you? If so, listen carefully.” Her voice was calm and measured. “There’s nothing Earth can do. There is no defense they can put up against these bastards. If the Wakerran get past the Quay and the combined fleets of the Paisian and Karezz, then Earth will be torn apart in less than a day. I have family back there. I assume you do, too. I would rather let them live their last few days in blissful ignorance than fear they can do nothing with.”
“Agree to disagree.”
“We don’t have to agree. But know that the next time you use emotional blackmail against my girlfriend like that, I’ll teach you some manners. I’m not a member of the Aphelion fucking Project and I can do whatever I want to you. Don’t make me get creative.”
Lalan tried to maintain her bravado, but the look of sheer determination in Cicero’s eyes was difficult to counter. She looked at Bauwerji. “I apologize, Officer Crow.”
“Just be smart about your occupation,” Bauwerji said. “If you upload without authorization, your credentials will be revoked. Aphelion and the Home Press won’t pay to have you shipped back to Earth so quickly, which means you would effectively be a prisoner here on the Quay with no way to pay for it. You would owe for your lodging and food. The debt would be crushing in only a few days. Your entire life would be wrecked. I’m not threatening you. I’m just enlightening you to the truth, ai?”
“I understand.”
Bauwerji nodded and touched Cicero’s arm. Cicero looked at her and, after a moment of silent communication, she stepped back. Bauwerji looked at Lalan. “Earth does deserve to know what is going on here, but in their own time.”
“And you get to dictate that?” Lalan said. “You and the rest of the Aphelion Project?”
“If Earth doesn’t like it, they can come out here and face the risks with the rest of us.”
“We’re here. Cicero, me, Admiral Reshef... we’re here now.”
Bauwerji said, “How many Human lives were lost when the Cetidroi attacked the Quay? Do you know how many Balanquin were killed? Because I do. Don’t make this a battle, Lalan, please. Don’t turn the command staff of this station against you on your first damned story. Even if you keep your credentials, this posting can be a very lonely place if the people in charge don’t trust you.”
She stepped back and the lift doors closed before Lalan could think of anything else to say. She looked back toward the ship, which was still teeming with activity. She chewed her lip and tried to think of what she would have done if she was still on Earth and heard news about the Wakerran threat. Bauwerji was correct; there was nothing Humanity could throw at the attackers that the Quay didn’t have. There was nothing they could do but watch in horror as death moved slowly through the solar system.
Lalan looked down at her camera, stabilized it, and hit record again. “This is Lalan Paget reporting from the Quay. For the time being... nothing important happened today.” In her peripheral vision she saw another set of soldiers moving forward to assist with searching the Wakerran ship. Under her breath she added, “And I hope to God it stays that way.”
#
The Sautoriau mercenaries were each processed by Mara Heely’s forces and separated into isolation rooms. Each one was scanned and cleansed of weapons or virulent diseases that could be spread through the Quay’s systems. They were ordered to change out of their uniforms and put on bland jumpsuits provided by the Aphelion Project. Heely oversaw the processing and chose one of the men at random to be taken aside into her preferred interrogation room. She had a headache, and she reached to rub two fingers against the base of her skull in the hopes she could stave off any symptoms that might come with it.
She hated dealing with Sau. There weren’t a lot of them, but the few who made it to the Quay seemed to cause enough trouble for a whole parade. She didn’t like painting an entire species as worthless thieves based on the actions of a relative few, but it did seem as if the Sautoriau who made it off their planet did so for the sole purpose of causing trouble elsewhere. Other races looked to the stars and saw mystery and adventure. Sau looked up and saw potential victims and purses that needed to be emptied.
Heely herself had been born on the Karezz home planet and left because there were just too many damn people around. Her family lived in a tower connected to five other towers by walkways above the street. The streets were full of barely-moving bodies, a stream of Karezza inching along the ground with their fellow pedestrians pressed against their fronts, their backs, crowded on all sides. There was barely any room to breathe on her home planet.
Then one day they found another world. A world with vast deserts and cities just ripe for the taking. Pelorum, home to the Balanquin and the Catarrh. All the Karezza had to do was defeat one race to earn the favor of the other. Since first contact was made with the Balanquin, they received the Karezz military’s help. The Catarrh were defeated and the Karezz offered to stick around to help with the aftermath of the war.
It was supposed to be a colonization. The Balanquin were supposed to accept their new lot as secondary citizens. She idly reached up to rub the back of her skull as she remembered the promises their first wave sent back. The Balanquin would be indentured, free labor for the construction of a second Karezz planet. A new colony would lessen the strain back home, and both worlds would be able to flourish and thrive.
If only their people on Pelorum had been able to fight temptation. A few more years and the Balanquin would have been too cowed to protest any... indiscretions their superiors might take. It was all ruined because a few horny Karezz chose to rape a few noisy Balanquin. And because of Bowery Crow. Fucking troublemaker. On the frontline for every war the Balanquin had ever fought, and she’d drawn first blood against the Karezz. Heely would never forget that, and she would never come to terms with the fact Bowery Crow was now her coworker. Her superior officer.
The security officer who had searched the Sautoriau prisoner cleared his throat. She realized he had been standing beside her for a while, and she shook her head to dismiss her ruminations.
“The room and the prisoner have both been cleared, ma’am. It’s safe for you to enter.”
“Safe for me,” she said. “Not for him.”
Heely tried not to wrinkle her nose as she entered the room. Sautoriau men had a distinctly pungent odor about them assaulted her Karezz senses. The room’s filters would diminish it somewhat, but it took some time before the reek wasn’t noticeable. She stood in front of the table and stared at the man’s ghoulish visage.
“You’re in the system as Kei Masilo. Is that accurate?”
He lifted his chin and narrowed his eyes at her. His tongue pressed between his teeth.
“Attractive. How long were you in service aboard the Wakerran ship? We know it was long enough for you to get bored. You were looking for replacements. So three months? Four? Sautoriau get bored quickly, but you have to work long enough to earn a good amount of mazuma. Four months sounds about right for someone with your record.”
Masilo said, “You are a fan of my work. Woman who appreciates artistry.”
Heely laughed. “Artistry? You call what you do art? Confined eight times in the past four years. You’re hardly a mastermind. You’re a grunt. Ground-level muscle who gets left behind while those in charge run free with the loot. Your employers hire you so they have someone to dump when things go bad. The correctional officers stop long enough to secure you, and they’re gone.” She smiled. “That’s why every constable and guard lets you go. We all know you’re nothing.”
He glared at her. “I have nothing to say to you, Karezz.”
“Oh, you have plenty to say. I want to know about your former employer. The Wakerran woman.”
Masilo leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest.
“Loyalty to the person paying you, is that it? Consider this. The Wakerran is in custody now. The Paisian are infesting every program on her ship. That includes her coffers. The Aphelion Project is now in control of whether or not you get paid. Which I suppose makes us your employers.” She put her hands down on the table and looked into his eyes. “How many Wakerran are on that ship?”
For a moment it seemed as if he wasn’t going to answer. Finally, he said, “Just one. She’s Socigines.”
“Yeah? What’s that mean?”
“Explorer, scout. I mean, technically, it means ‘the eyes from which we look and see,’ but simpler. She’s the only one on the ship.”
Heely said, “We have a report from someone who was awake when you took over the Sastruga. She says your boss was a slender lady who could move around easily.” She nodded toward the wall. “That woman who was loaded off your ship couldn’t walk by herself very well. She was top-heavy and leg-weak. Someone boarded the Sastruga and I want to know who it was.”
“Or I don’t get paid?” He shrugged “Or maybe I walk away without helping you. Maybe I don’t get paid, but next employer knows they can trust me. I keep my mouth shut.”
Heely said, “Or I drag you to the next room, tell your friend that you refused to help, then shoot you in the face before I ask him the same questions.”
“The Aphelion Project is too moral for that,” Masilo chuckled.
“The Aphelion Project wants to prevent another war. One Sau death to save countless Humans or Paisian or Ladronis lives? I may get scolded. But I won’t suffer for it.” She leaned closer. “No one cares if a Sau dies. That’s your entire business model. One gets killed, there are six more on Karakoz waiting to be hired.” She unfastened her holster. “Make your choice, Masilo.”
He looked at her weapon and then back at her face. “She calls herself Socigines,” he finally said. “There are four of them.”
“Where are the other three?”
Masilo gestured vaguely toward the door. “Out there.”
Heely furrowed her brow, then slowly realized what he meant. “We didn’t capture the ship that attacked the Sastruga. There are three other ships out there.”
“The Socigines is one person. Four bodies. One consciousness. Four ships. You catch one. Other three on high alert. Other three probably already on their way here to get their fourth back.”
Heely unfastened the straps holding Masilo to the table. “Get out of here. You’re free.”
“What about my payment?”
“You said it yourself. Use it to get more work.”
Masilo cursed in Sauto as he shoved his chair back. He rounded the table and Heely threw herself at him. He called her a bitch in his own language and shoved her away. As she stumbled, she pulled her weapon and shot him in the face. The security officers were threw the door before his body hit the ground. Heely spun on them, teeth bared and eyes flashing angrily.
“He slipped his bonds. Who the k’il strapped him down?” The men spluttered, but she waved them off. “Never mind. He gave up what we needed before he tried to escape. I need to speak with Admiral Reshef. Our troubles may only be just beginning.
Chapter Eighteen
Lalan Paget was unnoticed as she left the ship, though she understood why everyone had more important things on their minds. She moved to one side of the group and activated the camera on her lapel. She would move without argument if anyone shooed her away, but she couldn’t pass up the opportunity to record this historic moment. Constable Mara Heely and Ambassador Rogers both looked at the Wakerran through the glass porthole of her pod, and Bauwerji seemed to be giving a report to Admiral Reshef. They were speaking too quietly for her to hear over the hum and chatter of the docks.
The Balanquin engineer from the Sastruga also looked at the Wakerran, and whatever she said caused a new flurry of activity. Soldiers returned to the Adedoja and Admiral Reshef ordered a lockdown of the dock area. One of the constables finally noticed Lalan hanging around and ushered her toward the exits. When she looked back she saw Nerea and Valdis both breaking up into smaller swarms which floated back toward the ship.
“Can you tell me what’s going on?” she asked the man escorting her to safety.
“They think there might be another Wakerran onboard.”
“If they take this much precaution for one, I can’t imagine how dangerous a second would be.”
The security officer said, “Let’s hope we don’t find out.”
He left her by the lifts and went back to see where he was needed. Lalan took out her camera and held it in front of her face. She hit record, activated the stabilizer, and dropped her hand as the screen reflected her image back to her.
“This is Lalan Paget from the Home Press, reporting to you from the Quay. It’s been an eventful few days here on the station, beginning with the arrival of an independent vessel called the Sastruga. The ship’s Human captain, Cicerone Drayton, claimed they were attacked by a vessel that couldn’t be identified. Further investigation revealed that the ship matched one found in the Ladronis’ mythology. It was the ship of a race called the Wakerran, urban legends, monsters from prehistory...”
She could see past her camera as she continued speaking. Bauwerji was following Dr. Littlefoot toward the lifts, and Captain Drayton was walking with them. Cicero looked distraught, her brow furrowed as she worried her lip with her teeth. Bauwerji reached out and touched the other woman’s shoulder and said, “I’m fine. Cordwainer patched me up. I just need to heal.”
“It could have been so much worse,” Cicero said.
“But it wasn’t.”
Lalan nudged her camera to follow her. “Three people who are intimately connected to this historic moment are coming through right now. Dr. Cordwainer Littlefoot, Officer Bauwerji Crow, and Captain Cicero Drayton. I’m filming a report for the Home Press and I was wondering if--”
Bauwerji reached up and covered the camera’s lens with her hand. “No.”
“The people of Earth deserve to know if there’s a threat on their doorstep.”
“And they will,” Bauwerji said. “But we don’t need fearmongering.”
Lalan said, “I’m only telling them what’s happening.”
“How long does it take a message to reach Earth?”
“Seventy-two hours, unless it’s priority.”
Bauwerji said, “Then they don’t need minute-by-minute news. Just hold off, okay? Admiral Reshef will tell you when you can send your reports.”
“That sounds an awful lot like censorship.”
The lift had arrived, but Bauwerji stepped away from it. “Humans are reactive creatures. You’re giving them something they can’t possibly react to. They can’t leave Earth. They can’t fight back. They would simply be bouncing around your little planet looking for an outlet. Is getting an exclusive really worth causing that back home?”
Lalan said, “Have you ever been to Earth, Bowery?”
Bauwerji snorted and shook her head. “No. I came from a war zone. I have no interest in visiting another.”
“And what happens if the Wakerran destroy the Quay? What then?”
“What if they do? Would Earth really benefit from getting a heads-up from you?” She stepped onto the lift with Cordwainer and Cicero. “The less Earth knows, the happier they’ll be.”
Lalan put her hand on the lift door to keep it from closing. “Better to be blindsided? Caught off-guard in a sneak attack? How did that work out for your people? How many of your friends died in the first attack by the Catarrh?”
Bauwerji looked homicidal, but it was Cicero who stepped forward. “Do you need a Human to say it to you? If so, listen carefully.” Her voice was calm and measured. “There’s nothing Earth can do. There is no defense they can put up against these bastards. If the Wakerran get past the Quay and the combined fleets of the Paisian and Karezz, then Earth will be torn apart in less than a day. I have family back there. I assume you do, too. I would rather let them live their last few days in blissful ignorance than fear they can do nothing with.”
“Agree to disagree.”
“We don’t have to agree. But know that the next time you use emotional blackmail against my girlfriend like that, I’ll teach you some manners. I’m not a member of the Aphelion fucking Project and I can do whatever I want to you. Don’t make me get creative.”
Lalan tried to maintain her bravado, but the look of sheer determination in Cicero’s eyes was difficult to counter. She looked at Bauwerji. “I apologize, Officer Crow.”
“Just be smart about your occupation,” Bauwerji said. “If you upload without authorization, your credentials will be revoked. Aphelion and the Home Press won’t pay to have you shipped back to Earth so quickly, which means you would effectively be a prisoner here on the Quay with no way to pay for it. You would owe for your lodging and food. The debt would be crushing in only a few days. Your entire life would be wrecked. I’m not threatening you. I’m just enlightening you to the truth, ai?”
“I understand.”
Bauwerji nodded and touched Cicero’s arm. Cicero looked at her and, after a moment of silent communication, she stepped back. Bauwerji looked at Lalan. “Earth does deserve to know what is going on here, but in their own time.”
“And you get to dictate that?” Lalan said. “You and the rest of the Aphelion Project?”
“If Earth doesn’t like it, they can come out here and face the risks with the rest of us.”
“We’re here. Cicero, me, Admiral Reshef... we’re here now.”
Bauwerji said, “How many Human lives were lost when the Cetidroi attacked the Quay? Do you know how many Balanquin were killed? Because I do. Don’t make this a battle, Lalan, please. Don’t turn the command staff of this station against you on your first damned story. Even if you keep your credentials, this posting can be a very lonely place if the people in charge don’t trust you.”
She stepped back and the lift doors closed before Lalan could think of anything else to say. She looked back toward the ship, which was still teeming with activity. She chewed her lip and tried to think of what she would have done if she was still on Earth and heard news about the Wakerran threat. Bauwerji was correct; there was nothing Humanity could throw at the attackers that the Quay didn’t have. There was nothing they could do but watch in horror as death moved slowly through the solar system.
Lalan looked down at her camera, stabilized it, and hit record again. “This is Lalan Paget reporting from the Quay. For the time being... nothing important happened today.” In her peripheral vision she saw another set of soldiers moving forward to assist with searching the Wakerran ship. Under her breath she added, “And I hope to God it stays that way.”
#
The Sautoriau mercenaries were each processed by Mara Heely’s forces and separated into isolation rooms. Each one was scanned and cleansed of weapons or virulent diseases that could be spread through the Quay’s systems. They were ordered to change out of their uniforms and put on bland jumpsuits provided by the Aphelion Project. Heely oversaw the processing and chose one of the men at random to be taken aside into her preferred interrogation room. She had a headache, and she reached to rub two fingers against the base of her skull in the hopes she could stave off any symptoms that might come with it.
She hated dealing with Sau. There weren’t a lot of them, but the few who made it to the Quay seemed to cause enough trouble for a whole parade. She didn’t like painting an entire species as worthless thieves based on the actions of a relative few, but it did seem as if the Sautoriau who made it off their planet did so for the sole purpose of causing trouble elsewhere. Other races looked to the stars and saw mystery and adventure. Sau looked up and saw potential victims and purses that needed to be emptied.
Heely herself had been born on the Karezz home planet and left because there were just too many damn people around. Her family lived in a tower connected to five other towers by walkways above the street. The streets were full of barely-moving bodies, a stream of Karezza inching along the ground with their fellow pedestrians pressed against their fronts, their backs, crowded on all sides. There was barely any room to breathe on her home planet.
Then one day they found another world. A world with vast deserts and cities just ripe for the taking. Pelorum, home to the Balanquin and the Catarrh. All the Karezza had to do was defeat one race to earn the favor of the other. Since first contact was made with the Balanquin, they received the Karezz military’s help. The Catarrh were defeated and the Karezz offered to stick around to help with the aftermath of the war.
It was supposed to be a colonization. The Balanquin were supposed to accept their new lot as secondary citizens. She idly reached up to rub the back of her skull as she remembered the promises their first wave sent back. The Balanquin would be indentured, free labor for the construction of a second Karezz planet. A new colony would lessen the strain back home, and both worlds would be able to flourish and thrive.
If only their people on Pelorum had been able to fight temptation. A few more years and the Balanquin would have been too cowed to protest any... indiscretions their superiors might take. It was all ruined because a few horny Karezz chose to rape a few noisy Balanquin. And because of Bowery Crow. Fucking troublemaker. On the frontline for every war the Balanquin had ever fought, and she’d drawn first blood against the Karezz. Heely would never forget that, and she would never come to terms with the fact Bowery Crow was now her coworker. Her superior officer.
The security officer who had searched the Sautoriau prisoner cleared his throat. She realized he had been standing beside her for a while, and she shook her head to dismiss her ruminations.
“The room and the prisoner have both been cleared, ma’am. It’s safe for you to enter.”
“Safe for me,” she said. “Not for him.”
Heely tried not to wrinkle her nose as she entered the room. Sautoriau men had a distinctly pungent odor about them assaulted her Karezz senses. The room’s filters would diminish it somewhat, but it took some time before the reek wasn’t noticeable. She stood in front of the table and stared at the man’s ghoulish visage.
“You’re in the system as Kei Masilo. Is that accurate?”
He lifted his chin and narrowed his eyes at her. His tongue pressed between his teeth.
“Attractive. How long were you in service aboard the Wakerran ship? We know it was long enough for you to get bored. You were looking for replacements. So three months? Four? Sautoriau get bored quickly, but you have to work long enough to earn a good amount of mazuma. Four months sounds about right for someone with your record.”
Masilo said, “You are a fan of my work. Woman who appreciates artistry.”
Heely laughed. “Artistry? You call what you do art? Confined eight times in the past four years. You’re hardly a mastermind. You’re a grunt. Ground-level muscle who gets left behind while those in charge run free with the loot. Your employers hire you so they have someone to dump when things go bad. The correctional officers stop long enough to secure you, and they’re gone.” She smiled. “That’s why every constable and guard lets you go. We all know you’re nothing.”
He glared at her. “I have nothing to say to you, Karezz.”
“Oh, you have plenty to say. I want to know about your former employer. The Wakerran woman.”
Masilo leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest.
“Loyalty to the person paying you, is that it? Consider this. The Wakerran is in custody now. The Paisian are infesting every program on her ship. That includes her coffers. The Aphelion Project is now in control of whether or not you get paid. Which I suppose makes us your employers.” She put her hands down on the table and looked into his eyes. “How many Wakerran are on that ship?”
For a moment it seemed as if he wasn’t going to answer. Finally, he said, “Just one. She’s Socigines.”
“Yeah? What’s that mean?”
“Explorer, scout. I mean, technically, it means ‘the eyes from which we look and see,’ but simpler. She’s the only one on the ship.”
Heely said, “We have a report from someone who was awake when you took over the Sastruga. She says your boss was a slender lady who could move around easily.” She nodded toward the wall. “That woman who was loaded off your ship couldn’t walk by herself very well. She was top-heavy and leg-weak. Someone boarded the Sastruga and I want to know who it was.”
“Or I don’t get paid?” He shrugged “Or maybe I walk away without helping you. Maybe I don’t get paid, but next employer knows they can trust me. I keep my mouth shut.”
Heely said, “Or I drag you to the next room, tell your friend that you refused to help, then shoot you in the face before I ask him the same questions.”
“The Aphelion Project is too moral for that,” Masilo chuckled.
“The Aphelion Project wants to prevent another war. One Sau death to save countless Humans or Paisian or Ladronis lives? I may get scolded. But I won’t suffer for it.” She leaned closer. “No one cares if a Sau dies. That’s your entire business model. One gets killed, there are six more on Karakoz waiting to be hired.” She unfastened her holster. “Make your choice, Masilo.”
He looked at her weapon and then back at her face. “She calls herself Socigines,” he finally said. “There are four of them.”
“Where are the other three?”
Masilo gestured vaguely toward the door. “Out there.”
Heely furrowed her brow, then slowly realized what he meant. “We didn’t capture the ship that attacked the Sastruga. There are three other ships out there.”
“The Socigines is one person. Four bodies. One consciousness. Four ships. You catch one. Other three on high alert. Other three probably already on their way here to get their fourth back.”
Heely unfastened the straps holding Masilo to the table. “Get out of here. You’re free.”
“What about my payment?”
“You said it yourself. Use it to get more work.”
Masilo cursed in Sauto as he shoved his chair back. He rounded the table and Heely threw herself at him. He called her a bitch in his own language and shoved her away. As she stumbled, she pulled her weapon and shot him in the face. The security officers were threw the door before his body hit the ground. Heely spun on them, teeth bared and eyes flashing angrily.
“He slipped his bonds. Who the k’il strapped him down?” The men spluttered, but she waved them off. “Never mind. He gave up what we needed before he tried to escape. I need to speak with Admiral Reshef. Our troubles may only be just beginning.