“So we’re stealing a vase from an old lady? I don’t like it.” Charly shook her head.
“I don’t either,” Darius admitted.
“Who is the buyer, Shiro?” Holly asked.
“Some rich Centau,” Shiro said.
“Rich and Centau, how unique,” Darius said.
“The buyer is a Centau? Sounds sketchy,” Holly said. “Is there another buyer that’s not Centau?”
“I do believe I’ve already mentioned that this vase is hotly contended for. So if we, as a crew, are uncomfortable with selling the vase to a Centau, then we can procure another buyer quite easily.”
“Let’s cross that bridge when we get to it. I say we keep the Centau on the table till we decide otherwise. If we go through a fence, shouldn’t be a big problem,” Charly said. “I work with Centaus all day. I can listen for a fence the Centaus use to get their shit.”
“Still, we have to address the fact that we’re robbing from a grandmother,” Darius said. “I have a soft spot in my heart for grandmothers.”
“Doesn’t everyone?” Odeon asked.
“She’s not just a grandmother,” Shiro said. “She’s a filthy rich businesswoman. Cutthroat, I daresay. You know that it costs her fractions of a nova to make a hanger, and then you spend twenty to thirty novas for ten hangers?”
“Keeps me on my toes. Taking care of my clothing,” Darius said with a shrug.
“The vase in question has changed hands many times. It is just another token of their elitism. I shan’t budge on this,” Shiro said. He shook his head and swung his cane like he was hitting a ball. His visage had clouded over like he was frustrated, fighting against the crew’s sudden turn on his job.
“No one has to participate in the job who doesn’t want to. But I’m going ahead with it, for myself.” She surveyed the room, catching the eyes of each of her teammates individually. “If it’s just Shiro and me, so be it.”
“If Hols is in, so am I,” Charly said.
Odeon and Darius looked at Holly, then at each other.
“Really, Drake?" Darius said. “That surprises me.”
“What?” Holly asked. “I don’t like it. But she’s paid someone else to get a stolen treasure. They all do it. I’m tired of excusing some of them, but not others. They’re all culpable. They have a treasure in their possession? It’s up for grabs.”
“Still, it is very surprising, Holly Drake.”
“Odeon, last night you told me you don’t have a moral dilemma every time you approach a job. Why is this one different?”
“My heart is delicate for grandmothers.” He gave a slight shrug of his shoulder.
“Then you don’t have to be on the job. We can work it out without you.”
He looked away, his eyes narrow as though she’d struck him.
“Let’s finish the plans. We move in a few days,” Holly said. “You have time to make up your mind, Odeon. I’m not trying to rush you.”
9
Menakil Mapsoom lived in a spire on the east side of the Ice Jade district, closer to the White Jade side of things. It was an area Holly knew very little about—her sphere of living kept her more on the west side of the city center.
Menakil, they’d learned, prided herself on being as wealthy as the Centaus, but chose to remain apart from them. She’d formed a type of fortress around herself that kept her buffered from them, despite her obvious wealth and ability to build an empire.
Still, she was incapable, it seemed, of turning down an invitation to attend an exclusive mixer that boasted elite individuals from the highest ranks of the upper crust of the City of Jade Spires.
“Thank Ixion she doesn’t live on Paradise or Helo,” Charly said over the comms.
Though Charly had wanted to join the crew on the job, through gathering intel and planning, their hope to get Menakil away from her home was successful. She'd accepted the invitation extended by the rich Centaus—done via Charly—meaning they couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get the Constellation to leave her four-floor spire-top suite. Charly would be there to host the party.
“Agreed,” Holly answered. “What a relief to get a mark that lives within Spireway distance of our base.”
“Makes the job that much easier, and the escape as well. Oh, and she’s here, by the way,” Charly announced. “Walking around, looking a bit starstruck. The only Constie here.”
A light snow draped the city in soft flakes. The neon blue of the Ice Jade lights along the edges of the buildings cast an ethereal glow on the white veil.
“And we are clear,” Shiro said from nearby.
The Spireway platform had seen little traffic in the hour since the crew had shown up, but the passing stragglers had prevented them from beginning the operation till now.
Holly pulled night-vision goggles down over her eyes, squinted to see through the snow, aimed the grappling gun across the windy gap between the buildings, and squeezed the trigger. The recoil pushed her backward. Odeon was there to brace her, and she fell against him. It was like falling into a marshmallow, he was so bundled up in a thick coat and a fur-lined hood.
“Thanks,” she said.
She yanked on the cable, making sure it was secure, and together they anchored it to a decorative pillar at the edge of the Spireway walkway near them.
“Darius, you in?” she asked over the comms.
“Affirmative, Drake. I have the schematics pulled up—ready to disarm the alarms when you need it. Your feed is up, got you onscreen.”
“Excellent.” She attached her trolley to the cable.
The distance between the Spireway and the bottom balcony of Menakil’s suite wasn’t incredible, but it would still test her strength, and with the wind blowing in unpredictable gusts, she prayed to Ixion that she’d make it.
Odeon gave her a brief hug before she took off into the chasm. “Hold tight, Holly Drake.”
She laughed. “We’ve done this a million times. Or at least twice. I got this.”
“Are you going to hug me like that before I go, chap?” Shiro asked, removing his trolley from his pack.
“Will it increase the odds that you fall?”
Holly laughed and removed her goggles, stowing them in her pack, then slipped the straps back over her shoulders.
“Yes, Odeon, definitely hug Shiro. I want to see where this goes,” Darius encouraged. “Who has the bigger dick? Who will win?”
“That’s what we all want to know, isn’t it, Hols?” Charly said quietly. “That’s all we ever think about. Just like Darius, apparently. OK, so I still got my eyes on Menakil. Someone better engage with her soon, or she’s going to get bored and leave.”
“Can’t you do that? It's your party,” Holly pointed out. She took a breath and put her hands on the trolley handles.
“I could. But it might be too obvious. One of the Centaus should.”
“Do what you have to do, Charly. We haven’t even gotten to her balcony.”
“Someone’s coming,” Odeon said.
“I’m going,” Holly said, and she pushed off into the black.
The wind crashed against her body immediately. Snow pelted her in the face. Her shoulders and arms burned as she soared over the glowing city.
“I’m right behind you, Holly,” Shiro said in her ears.
“Me too,” Odeon said.
Holly got to the balcony and dropped, landing just inside a canvas-covered arrangement of furniture. Thankfully, the wind and the fresh snow meant that traces of them would be erased quickly.
Holly pulled her trolley off the cable and dipped into the shadows, away from the lights. The lights switched off soon after she got herself concealed, a signal that Darius was shutting off security as needed, watching what she was doing via the video feed from her comms.
Shiro dropped, removed his trolley and joined her. Odeon soon followed.
“That wasn’t alarming,” Shiro said. “I am, of course, being intentionally ridiculous. That was very alarming.”
He wore tight, black, winter clothing, which went entirely against his stylistic sense. It was good to see that he could adapt to his role on this gig, however.
Quietly, they put their trolleys back into their packs and prepared for the next step.
“Menakil is looking really bored,” Charly said, checking in. “I’m going to her now. I think I’m gonna have to introduce her to some Centaus, otherwise she’s going to be alone this entire party. I mean, how do you get to her position without making a couple of rich friends?”
“The rich don't need friends,” Holly said. “Keep her busy for now. We’ll check in when we’re moving out.”
She led the way up the exterior stairs to the floor that, according to their intel, held most of the Constellation woman’s treasures and trophies. Lights flickered on as they moved, then immediately switched off as Darius followed their pathway over the control grid on their way to the exterior door.
“Darius, you are on top of your job tonight, lad.” Shiro’s voice was soft but filled with appreciation.
“Thanks, old boy,” Darius said. “Got to keep you safe.”
“That’s what a crew is for,” Shiro said.
Holly climbed the stairs, her feet crunching in the snow, leaving footprints. She stole across the balcony that held a water fountain currently filled with snow. She motioned for Odeon. He joined her and stopped in front of the door, which was a large wooden affair full of intricate carvings.
“Very grand,” Shiro said quietly. “But who would appreciate its beauty except for her, since she has no social circle?”
Holly smirked and crouched beside Shiro as they both waited for Odeon to do his part.
The Yasoan removed his tools from his pack, and fiddled with the lock. His outerwear was so massive that it was like watching a fluffy bear wrestle with a pot of honey. Holly glanced at Shiro. The whites of his eyes shone in the darkness from the city-glow reflecting off the falling snow.
Odeon finished and touched his ear. “Lock is done. Darius, is the alarm system taken care of?”
“Aye,” Darius said.
Odeon put his tools away carefully and returned them to his pack, then opened the door.
They waited. When no alarm sounded, Holly slipped inside first.
Shadows grew around them, rising from the floor and corners of the room beneath the sparse reserve lighting of Menakil’s home. Unlike other treasures Holly had stolen from the elite, Menakil’s trophies weren’t kept in one specific room. Her entire living space was her canvas for displaying her wealth.
Holly paused and got her bearings as Shiro and Odeon filed in behind her and took up their posts at her sides. They crossed the small sitting room and carefully opened a door that led into a corridor. Darkness shrouded everything. No lights flickered on in response to their presence.
Holly led the way through the hallway, tiptoeing despite her near certainty that there was no one in the home but them. Soon they found the door to the room where the vase was supposed to be located based on what they'd gleaned from their intel and the recon they'd done, and they cautiously entered.
Everything seemed perfect. Shelves lined the walls of the room, laden with items ranging from books to the skulls of strange animals. There was only one single chair within the living space, suggesting that only one person was ever there to admire the surroundings.
“The vase is in here somewhere,” Holly whispered.
“Yes, that was the intel,” Shiro confirmed.
“You know what the vase looks like, Shiro. Find it, and let’s get out of here,” she replied.
He pointed. “That’s it over there.”
Before Holly could move to get the vase, the sound of footsteps announced someone clomping into the room through another door.
“What the hell?” a female voice said.
Holly jumped, startled.
“Someone’s here,” Odeon whispered.
The lights didn’t flicker on, and the entrance the new arrival had come through was also unlit.
The crew quickly crouched behind a large, waist-high bookshelf. Holly hoped their black attire would conceal them. They clustered together, listening for sounds that gave away what the newcomer was doing.
10
“A guard, perhaps? It seems so,” Shiro answered quietly.
There was the click-click of a light switch being tested, and a frustrated sigh.
“Who’s there?” the voice asked, betraying no fear whatsoever.
“Holy shit, someone’s in there,” Darius said over the comms.
“What gave it away?” Shiro whispered.
“That wasn’t in our intel,” Darius said.
“Yes, they’re here, but they can’t see us,” Holly whispered.
None of them had moved, and Holly hoped that the guard would leave. That seemed like a long shot, however. They needed to escape before Menakil returned.
“I cut all the lights and the security camera feeds,” Darius said. “Take the guard out and get out of there.”
“What if there are more?”
“All the lights are out. You just need to grab the vase and get out of there. Take out that guard and you can go,” Darius repeated.
“He’s right. Alright, let’s split up. Odeon, you get the vase. I’m going to go after her. Shiro, please watch my back,” Holly instructed.
Odeon separated from them and began sneaking toward the shelf where the vase was on display. Holly crept after the guard, who seemed to be holding a weapon in a ready position. She was inching slowly around the room, checking behind every freestanding shelf and table. The flooring was a thick, plush carpet that muffled their footfalls.
Despite the lack of seating, there was something cozy about the room. The scent of wood and plants, of newly turned dirt, and trees and wood-carved things permeated the place.
When their quarry was facing away from them, Holly rose and leaned close to Shiro’s ear to tell him her plan. He nodded, and they continued to head toward the guard. They would loop around and approach her from the back.
Holly trusted Odeon to stay out of sight until he was near the vase—he was a master of sneaking. But she wanted to get to the guard before the woman spotted them or they made a fatal mistake.
As they got closer, it became clear that they were up against a Constie; her dark hair and pale skin were evident even in the dim glow of the room. Holly clenched her jaw. Fighting Constellations was never fun. They fought like they had nothing to lose, and they had no warrior code, so anything was fair.
She assessed the size of the Constie and the layout of the furniture as she approached the guard, who moved with deliberate, controlled motions, betraying that she would be a match for them.
They got closer to her as she passed another freestanding bookcase, and aimed behind it with what was clearly a gun of some kind. Holly pursed her lips. The guard was going to find Odeon if they didn’t move quickly.
Holly glanced behind her and nodded to Shiro to indicate that they would grab the guard together. Holly would take the gun, while Shiro tackled her.
She began a count down with her fingers. She was almost to one, ready to jump the guard, when the woman shouted, and her aether gun went off.
An explosion of violet ripped through the room, blinding Holly in a sudden brilliance that scorched her eyes. She blinked and hit the deck, purple blooms of afterimages filling her head as she hid behind a long, waist-high console table that held a set of carved figurines.
“Shiro,” she whispered.
Her ears were ringing so loudly that she wasn’t sure if he even answered her. And if her eyes were still recovering from the sudden burst of light, that meant the others would be experiencing the same issue.
She blinked and blinked, trying to restore her sight, to get a read on what was happening. Questions swirled in her mind—was Odeon alive? Had he been shot? She fended off her worst fears, opting to stay calm and work through the issues.
She suddenly felt a hand on he
r arm, encircling it. She tensed, then relaxed when a reassuring pulse in the grip let her know it was Shiro.
Her vision returned. A faint glow remained along the edges of the crater the aether blast had made, like an outline. Holly squinted. The vase was gone. The guard stood in the same position as before, her gun still aimed toward where she’d shot. She looked about ready to shoot again.
Holly threw caution to the wind and lunged for the guard. Before another blast escaped the gun, Holly connected with the Constellation. Together, they fell toward the ground, landing on the thick rug, narrowly missing a large, wooden cube etched with tribal-style carvings.
The guard shrieked and immediately struggled to free herself from Holly’s fierce embrace.
Holly held tight.
Then the woman grunted and abruptly stopped struggling.
Shiro stood over Holly, a wooden figurine in his gloved hand. “She’s out,” he said, dropping his blunt weapon.
“Thanks. Not dead?”
“Doubtful.” He helped Holly up.
“Odeon?” she called.
“I have the vase.” He was suddenly beside them, cradling the vase in his arms.
Holly jumped again. “Shit. Everyone needs to stop sneaking around.”
“Set's us up for failure, wouldn’t you say, to not sneak around? Sneaking seems paramount.”
“Thanks for pointing that out. Bag the vase. Will it fit in the pack we brought?”
“The bag is adjustable,” Shiro said.
He removed his pack and pulled out a spare bag. In the wan light, Holly could make out a few features of the vase. Though her curiosity was piqued, she had little time to study the details. Odeon slipped it into the bag and tightened the adjustment straps, zipped it up, and secured the main strap across his body.
“Let’s split up,” Holly suggested. “In case the guard alerted someone.”
“I agree, Ms. Drake. What are you proposing?”
“Odeon, you have the goods—you go back the way we came. Shiro and I will head out through the building with Darius watching our backs. We can lead anyone away from you. Rendezvous at our spot.”
The Colossus Collection : A Space Opera Adventure (Books 1-7 + Bonus Material) Page 108
