The Xarren Escape (Plundering the Stars Book 2)

by James David Victor

  It took me too long to be aware of Xarren in my face, grinning like the devil he was. “Well, well, I didn’t think you had it in you, Yan. A small Goon like yourself. Well fought.” He made to leave, but then turned back around and leaned into my ear. “Oh, and if you try to throw a match again like just now, please know that I’ll be paying your dear sister a visit.”

  If the death on my hands was a punch to the gut, then his threat was a plasma bolt eviscerating me. How I didn’t collapse under the weight of my emotions was a miracle.

  Fear, sorrow, rage… Did I cry? Try to rip his head off? I didn’t know.

  Xarren could see the effect his threat had on me. He smiled and walked away. “Have a good day.”

  It was not a good day.

  The guards brought me back to my cell. Silence, no words for me and none for them and same with Jax and El, though they wanted to talk. This time, I wasn’t bolted to the wall. I was free to move about as Jax and El were. Because I wasn’t going to kill myself. Not anymore. And Xarren knew it.

  So, I laid down and cried and cried and cried until I was raw.

  And then cried some more.

  9

  Chapter 9 (JINX)

  “Try again,” I urged, for the umpteenth time.

  “I am trying, Jinx,” Amara shot back with a glare that would send a chill through even the hardest of bounty hunters.

  I put my hands up as she turned the dial to find the right frequency. Rayvan and Beleak had managed to find us a long-range transmitter so we could contact Pivek and Ketellin, albeit a very old and beat-up one, but it worked.

  So far though, it’d been days and only static. It was really gnawing it at us. Static could only really mean two things: either the transmitter wasn’t strong enough to get a signal to the Diego or Sanara, or K and Pivek were captured or dead. Amara was being realistic about the odds of us finding them, that they were…gone, but I wasn’t ready to admit that yet.

  I couldn’t.

  We kept trying while our hosts went about their days. I didn’t know what Rayvan and Beleak did on a daily basis aside from less-than-legal things, but they managed to get money and resources that one might think difficult to obtain in their circumstances, so I was okay with it. When they did come home, they sat in silence and watched as Amara and I tried in vain to contact our friends.

  Finally, after three whole days of fruitless efforts, Rayvan snapped.

  “Okay, I think you two need to just stop.”

  Amara looked at me with an arched eyebrow. She’d been preaching the same thing for a day now, but I just didn’t want to give up. Giving up wasn’t an option. Amara sighed and turned off the transmitter. I whirled on her.

  “What are you doing?” I demanded, hands on my hips.

  “We need to take a break, Jinx. And she’s right, this isn’t working.”

  I sat in the chair next to the transmitter. I felt deflated. If they were giving up, how much longer could I do this on my own?

  “So, you just want to quit?”

  “That’s not what I’m saying,” Rayvan said, coming over to us. “I’m simply saying that this method clearly isn’t working. You’ve been at this nonstop for days, and it’s draining you. We need to regroup and come up with another plan.”

  I felt tears threatening to spill down my cheeks. I wasn’t usually easily emotional, but she was right. I was drained. When we found Amara, I’d been so hopeful. If we found her, we could find the others, but as time had gone on, my hope dwindled. Now I was sitting on a knife’s edge between hope and despair, and I was dangerously close to falling.

  I took a deep breath and ran my hands through my hair. Man, I need a shower.

  “What do you propose we do, Ray? Because I’ve thought about this a lot the last few days. It’s not like I’ve been blindly listening to gargled space transmissions without planning, but for the life of me, I can think of anything else we can do to find them if they are still alive.”

  That was the big question, wasn’t it? Were we not hearing back from K and Pivek because they were dead?

  No. Couldn’t think like that.

  “There is one way, but it’s mad if you ask me,” Rayvan said as she paced.

  I strode over to her. “Tell me. I’ll do anything to find them if they’re out there.”

  Rayvan leaned against the wall and stared at me for several seconds, as if she was deciding if it was smart to tell me or not. Finally, her reckless side won out. “Well, there’s an imperial communications depot not far from here. On the edge of the district in no man’s land. No one goes there but imperials. I guarantee that you could get a transmission to your friends with their equipment.”

  “But we would have to break into a heavily-guarded imperial base.”

  “Yes, that is correct.”

  Amara threw her hands up and huffed. “Fantastic.”

  My Zarthian friend was always rather pessimistic and erred on the side of caution, but even I had to admit that the idea of breaking into an imperial base wasn’t exactly a great and risk-free plan. Elarri were not merciful and their military even less so.

  “You don’t exactly have a lot of options and as it stands, your current strategy isn’t working,” Rayvan said. Again, she was right.

  “I know,” Amara retorted.

  I sucked in a breath. “We should do it.”

  Amara’s eyes snapped to me, which was always unnerving. “Jinx…”

  “We don’t have a choice, Amara, like Rayvan said. I don’t want to sit here and waste time, and I refuse to believe that K and Pivek are dead or captured. So, if this is the only way to contact them, then I say we go for it.”

  She pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head. “I want to find them too, Jinx. We were a family after all. But we need a plan. This isn’t some low-value target we’re looking to steal from. This is an Elarri imperial comms center.”

  “I think the plan is an obvious one,” said Beleak, who’d been silent during this whole exchange. Like Ketellin and the Batoric, Beleak’s people were not talkative.

  “Well, by all means, please share, bird,” Amara said. I wanted to smack Amara for her rudeness. When she got agitated, all of her manners went out the window. If Beleak was offended, he didn’t let it show.

  “We knock out an imperial guard, have Rayvan wear their uniform, and walk us through the base like we were caught trying to sneak in.”

  Amara blinked once, then twice, very deliberate, as her lips were sealed in a grim line. “There are… so, so many holes in that idea.”

  Beleak shrugged. “I did not say it was perfect.”

  With a groan, Amara pressed her palms against her temple. “I’m open to other suggestions if anyone has any.”

  I frowned. “I don’t think there’s really all that much we can do, at least that’s quick anyway. We don’t have time to spare.”

  “I know.”

  “Then there’s nothing more to discuss, let’s do this,” Rayvan said as she pushed off from the wall and headed for the door a little too enthusiastically. I jumped from where I was and intercepted her.

  “Wait, wait, wait,” I said, gripping her shoulders. She raised an eyebrow. I blushed. “This could end very badly for all of us. We could get captured or killed. Or we may have to flee off-world. You could become a fugitive. I can’t ask you two to risk all of that for us. You’ve done more than enough.”

  Rayvan smiled, a wide grin that made her glow and made my heart skip a beat. She put a hand to my cheek. “I like you, Jinx. I’m happy to help.”

  Somehow, her desire to help despite my warnings made it even worse. My heart suddenly felt heavy, like there was a gravity well in my chest dragging me down. My eyes blurred with tears. But they were happy ones.

  “I was just a stranger, dying and alone. You’ve… You’ve done so much… I can’t ask this of you.”

  She smirked. “Then fine, don’t ask. I’m volunteering.” Her hand dropped from my cheek, but not before she wiped aw
ay a tear with her thumb. She made for the door again and paused at it. “Besides, Beleak and I don’t have much going for us here. We’ve been barely surviving for years now. That’s what life is like out here. Survival. Desperate and terrible. Honestly, I’d rather die doing something good for you than in some botched back-alley job that would only get me through the week.”

  That made sense. Truthfully, I’d sometimes thought that about some of the jobs I did for Yan. Back then, I hadn’t known why we were stealing—that he wanted to help his family. Doing good… Well, that was alright with me, and I was glad she felt the same way.

  I swiped at my eyes. “Okay. T-thank you, Rayvan. Beleak.”

  “It is our pleasure, amshen,” Beleak said with a beaky smile.

  I didn’t know what else to say. I was so lucky to have found them. No, Materelle brought me to them. She was watching over me. I could have died alone that night or have been found by any less-than-savory stranger, but Rayvan found me, and she helped me, and continued to do so. Did I deserve this fortune? Yes, I’d been dealt enough tragedy.

  “I’ll go make sure the speeder is in working order. Meet me at the garage. Grab all your things, since we may not be able to come back here if things go south.”

  Amara and I nodded. With that, Rayvan gave us a curt nod and left.

  It didn’t take long for Amara and me to gather our things. I had literally nothing but the clothes on my back, and even those were Rayvan’s. Amara had some gear though, but not enough that we couldn’t carry. She had several collapsible blasters, which was a plus and would come in handy, though hopefully we wouldn’t have to use them.

  The three of us left shortly after and met Rayvan at the garage. The speeder was already on and hovering when we arrived. Rayvan waved us on with an excited smile. Excitement wasn’t something we should’ve been feeling, but her attitude was contagious. We loaded up our things, as did Beleak, who’d hauled armfuls of bags and boxes that he carried from the home. There were still things back there, but I bet he figured that if they had to go on the run, they could swing by later.

  Once everything was loaded, we piled in, rose into the air, and jetted off south toward the night as the suns set in the northern sky behind us.

  The buildings below us went from bad to worse to ruins, from crowded slums to abandoned. Soon everything was overcome by sand dunes and tunneling nestor vines, which Rayvan explained were giant sentient plants that lived in many parts of the wastes and liked to live around solid objects, so they got bad in the outer parts of the capitol. They could be dangerous if one got near the head, but they were usually too deep to worry about.

  This planet was a nightmare.

  The journey wasn’t too long, thankfully. Less time for me to get worried thoughts in my head about how this could all go wrong. I’d had enough of it already as it was, and I didn’t need any more. Through the darkness, a tall lit-up building of cold metal loomed over the decaying ruins of the outer district and the dunes. Large, golden imperial flags adorned the sides. The comm center.

  Rayvan put us down on a largely sand-free street. As we climbed out, I was disturbed by the sheer silence and stillness of the night. There was no talking, no bugs or other nocturnal critters, just vast and empty silence. Occasionally, there was a distant howling, but it was far off. The silence was too oppressive. It felt like we were being watched, like every shadow and every patch of night had a pair of eyes within.

  That kind of raw paranoia could be a godsend or a curse in my line of work. Hopefully, it paid off this time.

  “Everyone stay sharp and keep quiet,” Rayvan whispered. “There’s no telling how many dreqlen live in these ruins, hiding out from the law. And there will be imperial patrols about, I’m sure.”

  We nodded. I already felt like this place wasn’t as abandoned as it appeared, so I was glad my paranoia wasn’t misplaced. Though, at the same time, I wished that we were alone out here. Couldn’t have it both ways, I supposed.

  With as quiet as it was, it was hard to stay silent. It amazed me how loud a simple footstep or breathing could be. Even when I had to be silent as a thief, it was always in crowded areas with lots of ambient noise. But out here, there was nothing. Like the vacuum of space. Cold and dead and quiet. Very unnerving.

  For a while, we walked along, no words spoken—of course—as the comms center loomed over the ruins ahead. It was several stories, with a massive transmitter dish attached to a tall tower at the center. The signal from that would be able to transmit to anywhere in the known galaxy. Exactly what we needed. If K was using the same hailing frequency on the Diego—or the Sanara, if they managed to go back for it—then we’d be able to reach him. If not…Well, I didn’t want to think of that somber option.

  My thoughts were interrupted as I walked right into Rayvan’s back, who had stopped abruptly.

  “What are you—” I began before she whipped around and put a large hand over my mouth.

  “Hush,” she whispered harshly. That made my hairs stand on edge. Danger.

  It didn’t take long for me to understand what she was referring to. Down the street, perhaps a block or so, was a voice. No, two. Having a conversation. Laughing. I couldn’t make out the words, but it was a mix of Galactic Standard and Imperial Elarri, so it had to be a patrol from the base.

  Rayvan dropped her hand from my mouth. “Okay, we need to take out that patrol. I’ll wear one of their uniforms and turn you three in.”

  I nodded. “Okay, how do we do this then?”

  “Like this,” said Amara before she darted off toward the patrol.

  “Wait, Amara!” I whispered harshly.

  Before we could say anything else, Amara was sprinting. The shadows hid her, and even at a full sprint, she was so light on her feet that she hardly made a sound. The rest of us crept up to watch. I wished she would have consulted with us, but when it came to combat, I’d learned that it was often enough to just point her in the right direction, get out of the way, and watch her go.

  The first patrolman came around the corner. He didn’t even see what hit him. He turned at the last second, but it was too late. Amara jumped and took him down with a violent dropkick that sent him flying through the stone wall next to him with a crash. We ran to help, but it wasn’t needed. Another patrolman was right behind the first, but Amara grabbed their rifle just as they were about to fire. She snatched it from their grip and wacked them across the face with it. The guard spun around and collapsed in a heap in the street.

  I was the first to arrive. I cleared my throat. “Well, that’s…one way to do it, I suppose.”

  Amara shrugged. “We don’t have all night to lie in wait. You’re the one who wanted to do this plan all half-cocked.”

  “Oh hush, the plan is fine.”

  Rayvan walked up then with Beleak in tow. She chuckled. “Not how I would have done it, but I won’t argue with results.” She skirted around the forever-scowling Amara and went to the patrolman who Amara had knocked out with their own gun. She knelt at their side. “This should fit me. Good thing they have the same size hips.”

  Without any warning, Rayvan stripped off her jacket and started to pull up her shirt. “Rayvan! Just put their jacket on.”

  She grinned back at me devilishly. “Shy, are we, Jinx?”

  My cheeks burned. “I-I just don’t think it’s necessary.”

  “Maybe not, but I like to be comfortable.” Still, she kept her shirt on and just put on the uniform. The same could not be said for her pants. Amara, Beleak, and I turned around so she could finish changing. When she was finished, she looked like any other imperial soldier, albeit not as large as the standard, but the Elarri did allow women in the military so Rayvan wouldn’t be anything out of the ordinary.

  She checked to make sure her rifle was fully charged before she slung it over her shoulder. Her hands patted at her belt. “Ah, here we are.” She pulled a golden keycard tied to a retractable cord. “This is a master key that most patrols carry around th
e base. Unlocks most doors. Obviously, it’s a security risk, but they know no one on Elarra would dare try to break into their bases. In the colonies, not so much.”

  “So that will get us in?” I asked.

  “Yes, but that won’t explain you three.” She dug into the pack on her hip and produced two small metal bands, then went over to the other patrolman and grabbed a similar pair.

  “Ionic bindings,” Amara said with a sigh.

  “Indeed, they are. Impossible to take off with brute force. Only the key-fob that accompanies each pair can. Every imperial carries a pair in case they have to enforce the law. Beleak and Jinx, you will wear these.”

  Without any ceremony, Rayvan clamped them around my wrists. They were cold. Once they were around each arm, she pressed a button and a beam of pink plasma-looking energy formed between the two and snapped my arms together. It was like a magnet, only a hundred times more potent. Rayvan put the other pair on Beleak.

  “What about me?” Amara asked.

  “If we had another pair, I would, but alas, this is all we have. Besides, you’re our super-strong wildcard. I need your hands free. Just pull your sleeves down over your wrists and hold your fists together so no one notices.”

  Amara nodded. “Okay.”

  “Alright, is everyone ready? Last chance to back out and find another way to reach your friends.”

  Everyone looked at me. As much as Amara wanted to find K and Pivek, it was me who was pushing so hard. We could abandon this near-suicidal mission and try to steal a transmitter or some other nonsense idea that would take too long. No, this was what we had to do. There was no going back.

  “Let’s do this,” I said with as much confidence as I could muster.

  Rayvan smiled and held her rifle at the ready. “Good to hear. Let’s go break into a highly-guarded military base and pray we don’t die.”

  Yes, let’s.

  10