by Aer-ki Jyr
Mina coasted to stop alongside her, breathing hard and barely able to speak. “Who is…after me?”
“That’s what we’re trying to find out,” the Archon said, casually standing next to the tree trunk and looking around. “Name’s Ginsi.”
“Mina.”
“Yes I know,” the Archon said with a smile.
“What now?”
“I have a few friends nearby. They’ll clean up the garbage while I keep you out of their hands.”
“How did you know I was here? And how did you know they were coming for me?”
“I’ve been watching you since a few days after you arrived on Optimus, and I expected they’d try again. Hijacking a ship is a big deal, and if they went to that much trouble to get you an infiltration job here would be a lot easier.”
“I used a fake name,” Mina said in mild protest.
“But paid with your own account.”
Mina squeezed her eyes shut, mentally kicking herself. In retrospect that was really stupid.
“Relax. You’re not used to doing this sort of stuff, and the name change was a good idea.”
“And you are?”
“I’m an Archon. I do lots of stuff.”
“Why did I rate an Archon…or anybody watching me?”
“We like to catch the bad guys before they can do bad things again…and I volunteered for the assignment.”
“Volunteered?”
“I like your music and wanted to meet you. Plus I didn’t want some Regular screwing up the assignment and letting them get to you.”
“Regular?”
“Someone who’s not an Archon or a Knight,” Ginsi said as a chirp sounded from her pocket. She pulled out an earpiece and slid it in on the right side of her head and listened to the message. “We’ve located their ship and I need to get to it before they can run.”
“Go ahead. I’ll hide here.”
“Like hell you will. You’re coming with,” Ginsi said, pulling her by the arm but Mina dug her heels in and wouldn’t budge. “I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise. Besides, I figured you’d want a little payback.”
“How?”
The Archon smiled. “Let’s see what we can manage, shall we?”
Mina hesitated, then gave in to the firm grip on her arm and the two of them started running through the trees again, this time off trail as they moved across about 300 meters of forest. There they came up on another trail but they avoided it, turning and following it a few dozen meters inside the trees as they headed towards the location Ginsi had been given. The trail led to a section of the island that was urbanized and had two large landing pads that were segmented into grids. Most were empty, but a handful of spots were filled with various dropships and aerial craft.
One of those spots had been filled recently, but was now missing its ship. A check of the navigational grid indicated it had not left the island vertically or horizontally, but where it had gone was much closer to the training facility and had put down in a clearing that was only a short jog away…ostensibly to stuff Mina in without having to carry an unconscious body with them any further than necessary. This was meant to be another smash and grab operation, and the longer they had between the grab and their escape the harder it would be for them to evade pursuit.
If they’d done it right Mina would have been gone without anyone missing her and the out of place ship being little more than a curiosity to the few sets of eyes that had seen it. The reason why Ginsi hadn’t revealed herself to Mina earlier had been because she wanted to bait the attackers in so they could capture them in order to find the source of these hits. The first group, or those that had survived the run-in with the commandos, had left some clues but didn’t know who had hired them. Ginsi intended to find a trail here and run it all the way back to the source, which was the only way that Mina would be safe, for there was no way she was going to personally guard her indefinitely. Her training was taking a big hit just being here, but this was a rare enough occurrence that she wasn’t kicking herself over it. This needed to be done and it was better for an Archon to do it than a security officer any day.
Ginsi could feel the mind of the ship’s pilot before the yellow/gray dropship came into view through the trees, with her stopping Mina behind a large one before they could be seen.
“Ok, there’s one guy onboard. Human. We go in, take him down, then wait and see who the cleanup crew misses and comes back here.”
“How? You’re not armed.”
Ginsi raised an eyebrow. “Do you really think I need to be?”
“Wouldn’t hurt.”
Ginsi smiled then turned her attention off through the trees. “I like you. Not the scared little girl most people expected.”
“I’m plenty scared, trust me.”
“But you’re not letting it overcome you. That’s the point. Now come on, follow me in and watch my back. I’ll take this guy down in under 5 seconds. Time me if you like.”
“Are all Archons this…”
“Impressive?”
“Not the word I was going for.”
“It just gives us something to do when we’re waiting on the action. Come on, I know what I’m doing.”
“Alright,” Mina said as Ginsi crept forward and she matched her footsteps as best she could. They wound their way through the trees until they came out into what was an outdoor exercise platform. Oddly enough it was in the middle of the forest with only trails connecting to it, which was probably why it wasn’t being used much. The Archon grabbed her wrist again and pulled her out of cover with the both of them running across to the side of the ship and skirting around it until they came to the open boarding hatch.
Ginsi held up five fingers and gave Mina a wink, then she grabbed the handle on the side of the doorway and swung herself inside. Mina followed her hesitantly, then heard sounds of a scuffle before seeing a body hit the floor in front of her just as she got in through the entry cupola and turned the corner into the central shaft that ran the length of the small ship.
“How long was that?” Ginsi asked.
“Under five,” Mina admitted a she stared at the man lying unconscious on the ground with a trickle of blood flowing from his forehead.
“Yeah, forgot to take the ring off,” Ginsi said, pulled off a relationship ring and tucking it into a pants pocket.
“I didn’t think Archons had boyfriends.”
“We don’t. But wearing one of these in public avoids people hitting on you, mostly, and my job here was to protect you, not pick up dates.”
“Thanks, by the way.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Are you really a fan?”
“I’m not a fangirl over anything, but I do like your music and your style. You obviously keep yourself in decent shape, and a lot of other musicians don’t.”
“Living forever has its appeal.”
“Damn straight,” Ginsi said, dropping down onto her heels and rolling the guy over so she could reach inside one of his pockets and pull out a datachip.
“What’s that?”
“Maybe nothing, maybe something. Have a seat, we’ll stick it out here and see if we can trap anyone else.”
“You mean you trap. I’m just the helpless observer.”
“You came from a maturia, right?”
“An Axius one, yes.”
“Then you’re not helpless either.”
“I can’t do that,” Mina insisted, gesturing towards their quarry that the Archon was now restraining using a small cord that she’d pulled out of another pocket in the civilian training garb she was wearing.
“What did I do?”
“You knocked him out.”
“And you can’t knock someone out?”
“I can’t hit that hard.”
“I’m a lot older than you. I wouldn’t expect you to. That doesn’t mean you’re helpless.”
“Feels like it,” Mina said, stepping back from the now restrained man and leaning agai
nst the sidewall and lowering her voice as she glanced out the hatch, not wanting to alert anyone to their trap if they did come back to the ship. “I couldn’t do anything the first time they attacked, and those weren’t even Human.”
“It wasn’t exactly a sparring match. They meant to hit you when you were off guard. Don’t let that convince you you’re helpless. Even I can be ambushed.”
“I can’t protect myself against this.”
“Some fights are like that, which is why you need help. I’ve been put into fights that I’d get my ass kicked in, and did get it kicked in, without help from others. It’s safe to assume that there’s always someone else out there stronger than you, and if you meet them in battle the key to victory isn’t in beating them, but surviving to fight another day. You’re alive, so you won that bout.”
“Doesn’t feel like it.”
“I didn’t say it was fun, but you made it through. That’s the point.”
“You my counselor now too?” Mina asked.
“Why, you need one?”
“Don’t know what I need. I thought this was over, now it’s happening again.”
“If we get the intel we need, we’ll make it the last time.”
“How do you know that? Everywhere I go, even under a fake name, they can still get to me. I don’t even know who wants me or why.”
“You’re not in this alone. We’re going to pursue this until it’s over.”
“Don’t you have something better to do? Not that I’m ungrateful, but there has to be a lot of people out there that need help.”
“There’s always bad guys doing bad things, but not that many try it in Star Force territory because they know we’ll come after them and won’t stop until we find them. They’re on our radar now, and that’s not somewhere they want to be,” Ginsi said, raising a hand before Mina could reply. “Get ready. Someone is coming. Get by that wall and when I signal you, I want you to stick your leg out across the doorway and trip them.”
“What!” Mina whispered.
“Just do it,” she said pointing to where she wanted her as the Archon pulled the body out of view and into the cockpit. “8 seconds.”
Mina didn’t know what she was thinking but she did as was told, watching Ginsi as she stood up and took position on the other side of the door. She held up her hand with four fingers, then pulled one down, then another giving Mina a countdown. When she balled her fist up Mina balanced on her hands and kicked both legs out sideways, making herself a barricade and feeling a foot slam into her right calf. Her legs got pushed over and she was pinned down for a moment as Ginsi’s head fell beside her as she tackled the guy.
“Nice job,” she said, rolling off the unconscious Human.
“He’s out?”
“Yep,” Ginsi said, getting to her feet and kicking the guy off Mina.
“What’d you hit him with?”
“A little Archon magic. He’ll be unconscious for at least an hour.”
“No really, what did you do? It looked like you just knocked him down.”
“No, you did. I just took him down the rest of the way and got my hand on his head,” Ginsi said, waving her fingers in the air. “Like I said, magic.”
“Telepathy or something?”
“Actually yes. I had to touch him to do it, but I was able to put him to sleep.”
“So why’d you hit the other guy with your fist?”
“They’re trying to kidnap you, and that ticks me off.”
“So you hit him even though all you had to do was just touch him?”
“Pretty much,” Ginsi said, extending her hand to Mina and helping her to her feet.
“You beat up people for fun a lot?”
“I beat up people a lot, and it’s usually fun, but it’s not for the purpose of fun so I’d have to say no.”
Mina laughed in spite of herself. She was still scared and aware that she was in way over her head, both with these attackers and this Archon, though Ginsi seemed friendly enough.
“Like I said, you’re young. I’ve had centuries to get used to this sort of stuff. You not so much.”
“Are you reading my mind?”
“Don’t need to. Your face is easy enough to read.”
“What’s that mean?”
“You wear your emotions on your sleeve.”
“And that’s a bad thing?”
“For an Archon, kind of. I can’t do it. I want to, but I’ve put on so much emotional armor that I have trouble taking it off. You’re totally out there, and even when you’re freaked out its refreshing to see that kind of openness. I envy you…a bit.”
“Wanna trade? Or can I buy that emotional armor somewhere?”
“You have to build it yourself, but I can let you borrow mine for a few seconds if you’d like.”
“What?”
Ginsi held out her hand. “Let me show you.”
“You’re going to put me to sleep too?”
“No.”
“Then what?” Mina asked skeptically, looking at her hand and recoiling a bit.
“Come on you wuss, just trust me. I’m trying to help you.”
“By holding hands?”
“I can’t access your mind without physical contact and I want to show you something.”
“Show me what?”
“What this looks like through my eyes. I think it will help.”
Mina bit her lip, unsure what to do.
“Do I have to quote your own song lyrics?”
Mina blew out an exasperated breath in surrender, then reached out and grabbed her hand. “I don’t think this is…” she said, suddenly having her mind alter. She didn’t understand what was happening, but suddenly everything looked different. The images she was seeing were all the same, the sounds were the same, the smells were the same...but they all felt different, as if in a different context. The dangerous situation she was in suddenly seemed routine and kind of pathetic with the fear being stripped out of her.
“This is how I see things,” Ginsi explained. “How are your emotions now?”
“They’re…gone.”
“Not gone. Look closer.”
“They feel gone…and I feel so badass, like I could take on the galaxy myself.”
“Close,” Ginsi admitted. “And what about your attackers.”
Mina looked down at the man she’d tripped, no longer seeing an overpowering monster but rather a poorly trained thug that was all weapon and little skill. “They don’t seem dangerous.”
“Because I know how to handle them. To you they’re an unknown, but sharing my, call it knowledge, you can see them in a different way.”
“This is so cool,” Mina said, genuinely thrilled for the first time in what felt like years.
“Think you can trust me now?”
“If you’re inside my head you already know the answer to that.”
“Say the words please, so you’ll remember them later.”
“I trust you,” Mina said, reveling in this…whatever it was. She didn’t even have a word for it.
“And just remember, I’m not the top Archon. So this isn’t as good as it gets,” she said, letting Mina soak in the sensations a bit more.
“I’ll take your word for it, because this is nutsy awesome.”
“Everyone lives in their own little ship otherwise known as your body and mind. You can customize and upgrade them in an insane number of ways. Some good, some bad. This is a peek at my mental customization. Take a good look and remember to trust me.”
“I’ll remember.”
“It’s going to change when I let go. So I need you to make a memory now that you can choose to trust in later.”
“Meaning what?”
“You feel and see through the customizations you currently have. Mine are going to disappear from your mind.”
“Five more minutes?” Mina pleased, looking around at the ship and everything, drinking in the context, for she even knew what all the little buttons and swi
tches in the cockpit did.
Ginsi laughed and let go of her hand…with the world suddenly shrinking and becoming a lot less stable.
“Hold onto as much of it as you can,” Ginsi prodded as Mina stumbled a step with her emotions ramming back into the forefront of her mind. Everything around her also felt dull and colorless, with the badass feel gone. Looking down at the unconscious man she was afraid again, but just a moment ago she hadn’t been. Which was real and which wasn’t?
“Trust me,” Ginsi said, waving a hand in front of her eyes to get her to focus. “Remember? Even if you can’t feel it, choose to trust me based on the memory.”
“I trust you, I trust you,” Mina repeated unnecessarily. “What do you want me to do?”
“Quit worrying. We’ve got this.”
“But you don’t even know who’s sending them yet?”
Ginsi glared at her, raising her chin slightly but saying nothing.
“Trust…right. If the badass says so, then that’s good enough for me.”
“Make it happen, girl. Words are cheap. Put them to use.”
“How?”
“Start living and let me worry about your security. Seriously, don’t even think about it. Trust that I’ve got your back.”
“You won’t be with me forever.”
“I’ve got your back on this threat. The rest are yours to deal with.”
Mina felt something ironic with that statement, but the memory betrayed her and she couldn’t put her finger on it. Was it one of hers or something from Ginsi left over?
“That feels reckless, but ok. I’ll try.”
“Good,” Ginsi said, lightly kicking the guy on the floor. “Security team is on the way to pick them up. Should be here in a few minutes, then we’ll get going. Time to get you back on tour.”
“Tour? That takes more than a simple call to set up.”
“Never said it was simple. But it’s what you’re going to do.”
“Wanna come with?”
“Until we find the source of this threat I’m sticking with you.”
“Really?”
“It won’t take that long.”
Mina frowned. “Can you sing?”
“Not really. More of a yeller.”
“Yeller?”
“Yeah, like being loud and guttural.”
