by M. K. Eidem
At Jamis’s sharp look, Taarig immediately rose and went to investigate.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
"Cali! Cali!"
Cali found herself struggling to hear the voice that was calling out her name. Why did it sound so far away? Why did it seem so urgent? And scared?
"Cali!"
Tay. It was Tay that was calling her name. Why? He was scheduled to work the door this shift. He'd been there ready to open the door for her right before, before what?
"Tay?" Forcing her eyes open, she found an olive-colored face looming over her. Tay's heavily-tattooed face now had new slashes of black running across it along with glistening streams of blue. "You're hurt," she croaked out.
"I'm fine," he denied. "You took the worst of the blast.”
"Blast?" Tay's words weren't making any sense to her.
"There was an explosion, Cali."
"An explosion?" Pushing herself up, she winced, her hand going to the back of her head, and found it wet. "Was anyone else hurt?"
"Just you," he reassured her. "Now stay down until the Meddygs gets here."
"The Meddygs? I don't need the Meddygs."
"Cali, you're covered in blood. You hit the wall so hard you left a dent."
"What?" She looked behind her, and there was a body-shaped dent where there should have been a smooth, metal wall. Ruk, how was she going to explain that? If she'd broken anything internally when she'd hit, her Zagreus traits would have immediately begun healing her while she'd been unconscious. Now, even the aches and pains she'd felt when coming to were starting to fade, leaving behind only the bloody evidence of an injury. Thank the Gods, Zagreus blood was the same red as an Earthan. "It's just a head wound. They always bleed a lot for Earthans. Otherwise, I'm fine. I don't need the Meddygs." Her gaze sharpened on him. "But you do."
"Me?" Tay couldn't believe Cali was concerned about him. Besides Mae, no one had ever cared if he was injured.
"Yes, you're bleeding too."
"Shrapnel." He told her as he helped her to her feet.
"What?" Not all her brain cells were functioning yet because Cali didn't understand why Tay talked about shrapnel.
"The bomb was filled with shrapnel for maximum effect. Directed toward The Brink by the looks of it." Tay knew he was right because of his past life on Gala. A life he'd hoped to put behind him, now that he and Mae were off that Gods’ forsaken planet. But it seemed some things you never got away from.
"The bomb?" She'd assumed some mechanical malfunction had caused the explosion. They were rare on a Star Base as new as this one, but not impossible. But when she looked around, she realized no pipes were sticking out of the structure. Instead, scorch marks and shards of metal were sticking into the wall and doors on The Brink's side of the corridor. "You're telling me someone intentionally set off a bomb on a Star Base?!" All her brain cells were firing now. "Outside The Brink!"
"So, it would seem."
"Tay?" Mae's trembling voice reached them as The Brink's door began to open.
"I'm fine, Mae," Tay reassured her. "Stay where you are. Don't come out here."
"What happened?" Ignoring her mate's order, Mae finished pushing the door open and gasped at all the destruction she found. "Oh, my Gods!"
"I said to stay inside." Tae was immediately at her side blocking her view of the worst of the destruction. "It's not safe out here yet."
"You're hurt." Mae reached out a trembling hand and gently touched his face.
"I've been worse." Tay gave her a quick, reassuring kiss. "Now, please go back inside, so I don't have to worry about you getting hurt too."
"I…"
"Go inside, Mae," Cali added her voice to Tay's. "Give everyone a drink on the house and keep them calm. They're going to need to stay inside until we get this sorted out. We'll be in as soon as it is."
"Al… alright."
The door to The Brink closed just as one of the lifts opened, and Sub Commander Ynn walked out.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Taarig stepped out of the lift and into what looked like a war zone. Acrid, black smoke hung in the air, and a confusing array of debris littered the floor. He'd been on Star Base One when one of its internal mechanicals had malfunctioned. A severed column had speared through multiple levels causing a massive loss of atmosphere and gravity. It had taken hours to stabilize that Star Base with multiple extreme injuries and many deaths. But with the severity of that accident, the evidence of destruction had been obvious, twisted metal and broken reinforcements, but there was none of that here.
What looked like long, plastic hair sticks, small glass spheres, and sharp, three-sided pieces of metal littered the floor here. None of these things were part of a Star Base. The wall across from him and The Brink’s doors had many of the sharp metal pieces lodged in it as if it had been the target.
He looked down the concourse and felt his heart miss a beat. Cali was standing there covered in blood, a lot of blood. He moved toward Cali when a large Elevsìs male rushed out of The Brink's damaged door. He went directly to Cali, touching her with a familiarity that had Taarig pulling up short.
"What in the name of the Gods happened here!?" Taarig demanded. 'Why is this male touching you?' he wanted to demand but managed to restrain himself.
Cali's head whipped around at Taarig's voice and her heart, which had finally begun to calm, began beating faster. He'd come for her. Taarig had come to see if she was okay. At least that's what she thought until his words sank in, along with his tone. He wasn't asking about her. He wasn't here because of her. He was here because of his Star Base, which cut deeper than any wound the bomb had caused.
"I'd have thought that was obvious, Sub Commander," she spat out coldly.
Xanto frowned down at Cali, surprised at her response. It wasn't like her to confront a powerful male this openly. Oh, he knew she didn't back down when challenged, but Cali preferred to remain in the background unnoticed and underestimated, but always watching. Maybe she'd been more severely injured than he'd thought.
"The only thing that's obvious, Khatun Baker, is that an explosion has occurred in front of your establishment."
"Then you know as much as I do," Cali told him.
Taarig glared at her for a moment then moved on to Tay, taking in his injuries. "You were at the door?"
"Yes," Tay told him.
"Tell me what you saw."
"I saw nothing, Sub Commander. I'd taken over for Hamm after the shift change. The corridor was empty until I saw Cali walking toward me from the market district. I was just moving to open the door as she approached when an actinic bomb went off."
"Actinic bomb." Taarig was suddenly chest-to-chest with Tay. "How did you know it was an actinic bomb?"
"Hey!" Cali didn't appreciate the hard, cold look Taarig aimed at Tay and pulled away from Xanto to go to her employee's defense. "Tay had nothing to do with this."
But her words were ignored as the Galaian and Apre continued to glare at each other.
"Answer me, Galaian," Taarig growled.
"Sub Commander!" Cali tugged on Taarig's s arm, but it had no effect. Before she revealed just how strong she really was, Tay answered.
"I could tell by the odor and the color of the smoke," Tay gritted out. He'd been dealing with males like the Sub Commander his entire life span, especially when he'd been a youngling. But he'd grown big and strong since that time, and now he refused to be intimidated. Even by an Apre Sub Commander. "And while the rest of the universe outlaws them, they are often used to settle disputes on Gala."
"And do you have a dispute with the Coalition?" Taarig demanded.
"No."
"With Wik Corp?"
"Of course not." Tay's tone revealed how completely idiotic he thought the Sub Commander’s question was.
"Then you must have one with the owner of The Brink."
"What?! No!" Shock filled Tay's tone and face. "Cali has been nothing but good to me and my mate. I had nothing to do with this!" Tay
's eyes flew to Cali's. "Cali, you have to know…"
"I do, Tay. Don't listen to the Sub Commander." She gave him a reassuring look before turning a hard gaze to Taarig. This time when she yanked on his arm, he turned and faced her. "None of my people would have done this, Sub Commander. So why don't you start doing your job and find out who did."
"I want to see all your visual recordings from before and after the explosion, inside and outside The Brink. I also want to talk to this Hamm."
"He went to his den," Tay said, looking to Cali.
"I'll go wake him," Cali said.
"Cali, you need to see the Meddygs," Tay argued, looking behind her.
Cali's head whipped around to see the species of healers exiting one of the lifts and heading straight toward them. She couldn't let them examine her. If they did, they could learn her secret.
"You took the brunt of the blast, Tay. You need to see them first." She saw him open his mouth to argue and continued before he could and used the one thing she knew he couldn't dispute. "It will ease Mae's fears. She shouldn't be upset right now."
Taarig watched as the massive Galaian took a deep breath then released it with a jerky nod.
"Good. I'm glad that's settled. Now, let's get into The Brink. That way, Mae can be with you while they examine you." Cali looked to Taarig. "And I'll go wake Hamm and get those recordings. Maybe then the Sub Commander can start doing what matters most to him, finding out who damaged his precious Star Base because he obviously isn't worried about those who were injured." With that, Cali ripped open the door to The Brink and went in.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Taarig found himself frozen. Did Cali believe that? That he cared more about what happened to the Star Base than what happened to her? After everything they'd experienced together, how could she even think that? She was the one that let another male touch her.
"Are you coming, Sub Commander, or should we just transmit the recording to your station in the Command Center?"
The male's question jolted Taarig from his thoughts, and he saw that the Meddygs had already entered The Brink. The investigative crew had arrived and were awaiting his orders. "I want all of this recorded, analyzed, then cleaned up."
"Yes, Sub Commander," they responded in unison, and Taarig followed the Elevsìs male into The Brink.
Taarig was surprised to discover how many beings were in The Brink at this time of the light shift. They'd all been moved to an area closer to the bar and were avidly watching the Meddygs treating the Galaian protector. His gaze searched for Cali as he moved toward them.
"She's gone to get Hamm," Xanto said, knowing where the Sub Commander's mind had gone. The Supreme Chairman insinuated there might be something going on between the Commanders of this Star Base and his daughter. It was one of the things he wanted Xanto to find out. Xanto hadn't been on base long enough to discover anything yet, but the interaction between Cali and the Sub Commander told him there was something.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Hamm stomped across his small den, ready to tear into whoever dared to bother him when he'd just settled down to rest. Prepared to prove why it was so dangerous to wake a sleeping Hogg, he yanked his door open, only to have his anger quickly turned to concern when he saw Cali standing there and her condition.
"What happen you?" he snorted, taking in the blood covering her.
"A bomb exploded outside The Brink."
"Bomb?" Hamm frowned in confusion. "Cali harmed?"
"No, I'm fine. Really," Cali stressed after his doubtful look. "I just happened to be walking up when it went off. I wasn't close enough to get seriously hurt, just some bumps and cuts. Now," she cut him off, "Sub Commander Ynn is waiting to speak to you in The Brink."
"To Hamm? Why?" Hamm's eyes widened. "He think Hamm place bomb? Cali think?"
"No, Hamm! No!" she immediately denied putting a reassuring hand on his arm. "I would never think that. You are an honorable Hogg. Whoever did this is not."
Hamm relaxed the fists he hadn't known he'd clenched. Cali had always treated him with respect. She believed he mattered. "Then why Sub Commander want speak Hamm?"
"Because you were on the door before Tay. The Sub Commander just wants to know if you saw anyone leave the bomb."
Hamm's eyes widened again. "Tay on door? Tay harmed?"
"A little worse than me because he was closer to the explosion, but the Meddygs are treating him now."
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Taarig watched as Cali walked out from where he knew the cegin was, followed by a Hogg. Hamm. That's why the male's name had seemed familiar to him. Cali told him about this Hogg. Vaine had tried to get him to buy her a drink. Gods, couldn't Cali hire normal beings?
"Hamm, this is Sub Commander Ynn," Cali introduced the two males.
"Sub Commander," Hamm grunted.
"You were on the door before Tay?" Taarig is immediately asking, not bothering with niceties.
"Yes." Hamm’s answer was short, with a hint of irritation at Taarig's disrespect.
"What did you see?"
Hamm just shrugged. "Lots people in. Lots people out. Hamm no see one leave bomb."
"Then you have no business being a Protector!" Taarig accused.
When Hamm snorted angrily and moved toward Taarig, Cali quickly stepped between them. "The Sub Commander meant no offense, Hamm. Did you, Sub Commander?" Cali glared at Taarig. "Hamm is still learning his position, but bomb detection isn't part of the job. That's something the Coalition is supposed to prevent from happening."
Taarig's lips pressed together in a thin line, but he didn’t argue with Cali because she was right. The Coalition was responsible for protecting the beings on a Star Base, meaning it was his responsibility to ensure that no unregistered ordinance got on it. Apparently, he’d failed.
When Taarig remained silent, she just shook her head at him in disappointment. "Now, I'll go pull those visual recordings so we can get to the bottom of this if you’ve finished provoking my employees."
"Go get them," Xanto spoke before Taarig could. "I'll make sure the Sub Commander behaves, and while they're transferring, you can get cleaned up." He gave a meaningful look to the Meddyg who was just finishing up with Tay.
"Good idea." Cali gave Taarig one last hard look then crossed to the hidden panel that led to her quarters.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
It only took Cali moments to copy the visual recordings to a portable strip, but Xanto would have known that. Just like he would have known, Cali could have done it from her terminal in the Owner's Booth, but Taarig wouldn't. So, he'd given her the chance to avoid the Meddygs, clean up, and finish healing. Maybe it was a good thing he was around.
Cali stripped off her destroyed clothing, letting them fall where they may as she crossed the room to her cleansing unit, unlike the others on the Star Base. Those used either chemicals or sonic waves for cleansing, depending on a being's preference. Cali's choice was water. Her parents had described how it was that way on Earth and how it hadn't been possible to do on their ship, The Discovery, when they'd left Earth. Once they'd settled on Diter, a moon that orbited Zagreus Prime, the homeworld of the Zagreus, they’d resumed the tradition. It was done in space rarely, due to the expense of purifying the water, but it was a part of Cali's heritage that she refused to give up.
Stepping into the unit, she tipped her face up into the stream of heated fluid flowing from the ceiling and let it wash over her body. Gods, it felt good. Slowly she began to massage the cleansing liquid her mom sent her into her hair. She carefully removed any debris she found, checking her scalp as she did.
She still had some cuts that, while no longer bleeding, hadn't completely healed. It told her just how deep they'd been. But it was the egg-sized bump on the back of her head that had her most concerned. She hadn't thought she'd lost consciousness, but this suggested she had. Ruk! That meant she’d need to use the rejuvenation tank.
Quickly she finished cleansing the rest of her body,
then shutting off the water, grabbed a towel. She didn't bother drying off as she moved to the oversized bench that contained her tank. After opening it, she stepped in and let the shimmering tendrils slowly pull her beneath the surface.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
"So, neither of you saw anything unusual outside before the explosion?" Taarig forced himself not to watch Cali walk away and concentrated on the task at hand, finding out who had almost killed her.
"I saw nothing," Hamm told him.
"No." Tay then expanded. "The normal sanitation crew hadn’t been through yet, so there was the normal amount of trash lying around but nothing that seemed unusual."
"Sanitation didn’t arrive as scheduled?" Taarig frowned; he'd have to look into that, even though sanitation was Wik Corp’s responsibility. "Can you think of anyone that left or entered right before the explosion?"
Tay silently thought back for a minute. "A Bix male left just as I came on duty, but he walked into the doors of the lift before they opened; he was so bashed. The only other one I saw was Nalo." Tay looked to the bar to where the male, who was one of their regulars, stood and pointed. "He’s there, at the bar."
"Nalo is a sweetie," Mae chimed in. "He's always asking how I'm doing and inquiring about my offspring." Mae didn't see Tay's frown as she rubbed her distended belly. "He wouldn't set an actinic bomb."
"How do you know that’s what it was?" Taarig instantly demanded, his gaze targeting Mae. But before Tay could tell the Sub Commander to back off or pummel him into the ground, Mae pulled up the sleeve covering the arm she always kept hidden, revealing the splotches and crisscrossing lines that marred her olive skin.
"Because I lived through one such bombing on Gala," she told him with hard eyes. "I'll never forget that odor."
Taarig was slightly taken aback at seeing the extent of the scarring on the small, Galaian female. Only the very wealthy on Gala had access to Meddygs. The rest had to survive with only the most basic health care, which wouldn’t have been able to do much for her.
