by J. N. Chaney
But the animal never moved.
I swallowed, slowly lowering my gun. “Is everyone okay?” I asked, looking at Abigail.
She said nothing, but I could hear Josef laughing behind me. “You did it!” he exclaimed. “Oh, thank the ancestors!”
Abigail walked closer to the dead animal, slowly, and bent to look at its face. “Nice shot.”
“Or lucky,” I said, holstering both pistols.
She stood. “Either way, it was still nice.”
A sudden roar erupted through the valley. Both of us turned, back on guard again.
The first cry was followed by another, leading our eyes to the same cliff we had spotted the last Boneclaw.
There, no different from the first, stood another. It raised its claws into the sky, screaming out into the valley.
“Shit!” snapped Abigail. “Not another one!”
“Not just one,” said Josef. “Look!”
Two more poked their heads above the ridgeline, joining the first. Each of them stood in a line, beside one another, watching us as we retrieved our guns, next to their fallen kin.
I tapped my ear, activating the comm. “Freddie, godsdammit!” I barked. “Where the hell are you?! We’re about to be overrun! Get your asses over here!”
The animals dropped from the cliff, coming down the slope, charging all at once. “What are we going to do?!” screamed Josef.
I cocked my pistol, taking aim at the first of the pack. I was pretty sure we couldn’t handle three of these things, not without more firepower.
But before I could do or say anything else, I felt the low hum of an engine, burning in the sky.
A missile slammed into the snow beneath the first Boneclaw, blowing its legs clean out from under it. Blood went everywhere, settling like dust.
The Renegade Star fired armor piercing rounds, along with another two missiles, filling the other Boneclaws with enough firepower to take out a small tank.
They died instantly.
“I apologize for the delay, sir,” said Sigmond, his voice filling my ear. “I do hope we weren’t too late.”
“Siggy, you sneaky bastard!” I yelled, like it was my birthday.
“Captain!” exclaimed Freddie, waving from the cockpit window. “Sorry we’re late! Is everyone okay down there?”
I looked at Abigail to see her staring at the fresh Boneclaw corpses…or what was left of them, anyway. “Pretty sure we’re alright. Why don’t you set her down so we can head out?”
“Understood, sir,” said Sigmond.
I glanced back at Josef and Lucia, who were both staring slack jawed at The Star. “Hey, you two okay?” I asked.
“I-Is that a ship?” asked Josef, pointing a shaking finger and refusing to take his eyes off of it.
“Is sure as hell is,” I said, cracking a smirk. “A damn fine ship.”
Seventeen
We laid Lucia on the couch in the lounge, telling Josef to stay with her while the rest of us took to the upper deck of the cargo bay.
“Thanks for the pickup, even though you were so late you nearly got us all killed,” I said, once the four of us were inside and the door was shut. I narrowed my eyes at Freddie, who looked so guilty, you’d swear he just killed his own mother. “There’s things that need discussing. One, in particular.”
Dressler stood with her arms behind her, regarding me. “What is it? Did something happen while you were out there? Does it have anything to do with that strange old man?”
“We found something that he’s been looking for,” I said. “Abby?”
Abigail nodded, reaching into her pack and pulling out the Tritium Core, showing it to the others.
Dressler’s eyes widened. “Where did you find that?”
“Underground, beneath a giant plant monster,” I said.
Freddie and Dressler gave me a confused look.
“Don’t ask,” I said. “Point is, I’m pretty sure it still works.”
“Fascinating,” muttered Dressler, touching the glass on the container. “To think, something like this was buried under a mountain of snow.”
“We’re thinking of giving it back to Karin and her people,” said Abby.
“Giving it back?” asked Freddie. “But do they even understand how to use something like this?”
“That’s the question I want to ask before we hand it over,” I said. “Josef has been out here, trying to find one of these for years. The way he tells it, the old one is dying. Not sure how long it’s got before it finally gives, but they’ve been shutting systems down one-by-one to conserve energy.”
“I see,” said Dressler, nodding slowly. “So, this core will fix quite a few of their problems.”
“That’s the idea,” I said.
The doctor stared at the device for a moment. “Then, if that’s the case, Captain, you should do it,” she said, looking up at me.
“You think I should hand it over?” I asked.
“If it helps them survive,” she said.
I looked at Abigail, then back at Dressler. “I gotta say, Doc. I’m surprised you’re okay with that.”
“Why? Do you think because I’m associated with the Union, I don’t know how to empathize with other people?” she asked.
I chuckled. “It’s not that. I just figured you’d be worried about them getting their hands on what could amount to a weapon of mass destruction.”
She nodded. “There is that, of course, but technology itself is neither good nor evil. It comes down to the person wielding it and what their intentions are,” explained Dressler. “And from what I’ve seen of Karin and the others, there is no ill-intent in this place. Only a will to survive.”
“Besides, they’ve been living with the other core for two thousand years,” said Freddie.
“Right,” said Dressler. “If they wanted to hurt themselves, they would have done so by now.”
I felt the ship tilt, turning as we made our final approach to the other landing site. “We have arrived, sir,” Siggy told me. “Please, prepare to disembark.”
“Looks like we’re here,” I told the others.
Abby stuffed the Tritium Core back in her bag. “Always on the move.”
Freddie opened the door and stepped out, followed by Abigail.
Dressler hesitated behind them, thumbing her wrist and staring at the dash.
“Something wrong?” I asked her, pausing at the door.
“You’re really going to hand over something so valuable to a group of people you barely know?” she asked.
I smirked. “I know. It’s stupid, isn’t it?”
“Stupid?”
“If this were a year ago, I would’ve stolen that thing and sold it, no questions asked.”
“And now?” she asked.
I shrugged. “I guess I just figure they need it more than we do. What’s with all the questions, Doc?”
“Nothing,” she said, quickly sliding past me. “Let’s just get going.”
* * *
While Abigail and I had been out in the middle of nowhere, stuck in a storm, the others had gone through the trouble of establishing a stable communications system between The Renegade Star and the underground city. The repeaters were fully operational, it seemed, and I could easily contact Karin and Janus whenever I felt like it.
“We have a team ready to escort you back,” said Karin, her voice coming through the comm.
“That’d be just fine,” I said, standing with everyone in the lounge, ready to disembark.
“They’ll be waiting for you near the cave,” she said.
I walked over to the coffee maker and poured myself a fresh cup. “See you soon, then.”
The comm clicked off, right as I went to take a sip of the brew. “Ah,” I said. “Tastes like shit.”
“Why do you keep drinking that if you hate it so much?” asked Dressler.
“You take what you can get,” I said with a shrug.
Freddie leaned closer to Dressler. “The Capt
ain used to have a better machine, but it was broken. We pulled this from a Union ship.”
“You stole that thing?” she asked.
“W-Well,” stuttered Freddie. “It was complicated.”
“They tried to kidnap me and Lex,” said Abigail.
“And murder the rest of us,” I said. “Ask Alphonse about all that, the next time you see him.”
“Why?” she asked.
I set the half-empty cup on the counter and walked to the nearby hall, ready to leave. “He was part of their crew.”
We grabbed our gear and left through the cargo bay, entering the white field and heading back to the city. It took no time at all to find our way through the tunnels, given how many times we’d made this trip by now as well as the armed guards at our side.
When the door to the inner sanctum opened, I saw Karin standing there, waiting. She smiled when she saw us, but her expression changed the moment Lucia appeared, being carried between two soldiers.
“Mother!” she exclaimed, rushing quickly to the old woman’s side.
“She took a hit, but she’ll be okay,” said Abigail.
Karin was about to say something else when she saw Josef enter behind the guards. “F-Father?” she said.
The old man smiled, extending his arms to give her a hug. She ran into him, and he pulled her close. “Karin!” he said, pressing his cheek to her hair.
“What are you doing here?” she asked. “I thought you were doing your research.”
“I was, but your new friends stopped by to pay me a visit, along with your mother,” he answered, beaming.
“Your dad really helped us out,” I said, giving Josef a slight nod. “That storm left us with nowhere to go. We might have died if he hadn’t been living in that shithole of a cave.”
“What an odd way to compliment someone,” observed Dressler.
“I do what I can,” I said, fanning my hand at her.
Abigail touched Karin’s shoulder. “We need to talk to you about something. Can you spare a minute?”
“Of course,” she answered, looking curious. “What’s the matter?”
“Not here, please,” said the nun.
Karin nodded. “The council room, then,” she suggested.
“The one Janus took us to?” I asked.
She nodded. “Shall I invite him as well?”
“Sure,” I said. “He should probably hear about this, anyway.”
“What about Lucia?” asked Freddie.
“I’ll be fine,” said the old woman. “Take care of your business. Josef and I will be in the medical center. I’ll take a nap in the pod and be good as new in a few hours.”
“You have a medical pod?” asked Abigail.
“Two of them, actually,” said Karin.
I cocked my eye in surprise. “You didn’t tell us about that. What other tech do you have stashed away in this place?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know,” said Lucia, chuckling like a crazy person as the two soldiers carried her away.
* * *
We sat around the table in the conference room as Janus appeared, materializing out of thin air. Before any of us could say a word, he looked directly at Abigail. “Is that what I think it is?”
Abigail opened her mouth, but paused. “What do you mean?” she finally asked.
“The object in your bag,” he said.
“You know what’s in there?” I asked.
He nodded. “The emitters in this room can detect certain devices, types of metal, and energy emissions. In this case, the presence of the core has set off an internal alarm.”
“An alarm?” asked Freddie.
“It’s probably because of how dangerous it is,” suggested Dressler.
“Precisely so,” said Janus. “May I ask you, Captain, where did you find such a device? Further, why have you brought it into this facility?”
Karin looked at me. “What is he talking about?”
I gave Abigail a nod to let her know it was time. She took the Tritium Core from her bag and set it on the table. “We found it in the other facility,” she explained.
“That’s a Tritium Core?” asked Karin, blinking at the device like she’d never seen anything like it. “M-My father was right! There really was another one out there!”
“He was,” I said. “We found it near the area he was already looking. This just happened to be buried under a pit filled with man-eating plants.”
She eyed the core, leaning across the table. “Amazing,” she muttered, like she’d never seen one before.
“Don’t you have one of these?” I asked.
“Yes, but I’ve never been near it in person,” she said.
“The core sits behind three layers of protective casing. Due to its instability, I’ve prohibited anyone from going near it,” said Janus.
“It can’t be moved?” I asked.
He shook his head. “It can, but only with great care. Given the lack of a viable replacement, there was simply no need to take such a risk. The core was still operational, albeit to a limited extent, so we decided to leave it where it sat until another one could be located.”
“Looks like today is your lucky day, then,” I said.
Karin’s eyes widened at that. “Are you giving this to us?”
“Only if you can show you understand it,” I answered.
“How do you mean?” she asked.
“Jace wants to make sure you aren’t going to blow yourselves up with it,” said Abigail.
Dressler cleared her throat. “A necessary concern, all things considered.”
“Once the new core is inserted, the lockdown protocol will take effect,” said Janus. “Systems will resume full operations and prevent anyone from ever interfering with it again.”
“Once you get it working, what happens?” asked Freddie.
“Power will be fully restored,” said Janus.
“But what does that mean?” he asked. “What other systems will come online?”
“Over the last five hundred years, roughly eighty-seven subsystems have lost functionality,” said the Cognitive. “Those include several food synthesizers, additional medical bays, global satellite uplinks, short and long-range transport vessels, and defense.”
“What was that about defense?” I asked.
Janus waved his hand and the wall changed to show several images. Several were from the surface. “This planet was originally armed with six ground-to-space missile platforms, only two of which are connected to this facility. Besides those, we also have two satellites in orbit with defensive capabilities.”
“You mean you could blow a ship up from the ground if you wanted?” asked Abigail.
“Indeed,” said Janus. “Although, that would only happen if there was an impending threat.”
“Like the people you told us about,” said Karin.
This changed things. If I gave these people this core, they’d have the ability to blow my ship right out of the sky. At the same time, it would give them a fighting chance, should the Union ever find them.
“Why didn’t we see the satellites when we entered the system?” asked Freddie.
“They could have crashed by now,” explained Janus. “In fact, that scenario is the most likely. Two thousand years is a long time for a satellite to remain in orbit. The decay process may have already set in, depending on a number of factors.”
Satellites or not, the land-based missiles were something to consider.
I got to my feet and looked at Abigail. “We need to talk outside,” I told her.
Abby nodded, getting up. “Excuse us.”
Karin nodded, along with Janus. “Of course. I understand,” she said.
Abigail followed me into the hall. “Where are we going?”
“This way,” I said, continuing into the other room and making my way to the exit.
The guard saw me coming and took the door handle, turning it. “Headed out?” he asked.
“Just for a second. We�
�ll knock when we need back in,” I said.
He nodded, and stepped aside.
Abigail and I stepped into the hall, walking a short distance from the entrance. The ancient tunnel had a few artificial lights scattered throughout, illuminating the walls with a gentle ambience.
I leaned against the railing, crossing my arms and looking at Abby. “What do you think?” I asked.
“We don’t really have a choice at this point,” she said, tapping her chin. “They could take it whenever they want. What could we do to stop them?”
“Good point,” I conceded.
“But if they wanted to kill us or take the ship, they would have done it already.”
“For a bunch of folks with zero exposure to other cultures, they sure have a talent for diplomacy,” I said.
“Maybe that’s precisely why they’re so diplomatic,” she countered.
“Fair enough.”
“There’s also the Union to think about,” she added. “If they find this place, they’ll wipe it clean. If we walked away from this, we’d be giving Brigham the grand prize.”
“Nah,” I said, dismissing the notion. “We both know Lex is the prize.”
“Second place, then,” she said, smiling a little.
We were both quiet for a moment, the weight of everything sinking in. We’d done so much over the last few days on this planet, it was easy to forget what was truly at stake. “Alright,” I said, finally. “We’ll do it, if you think it’s the right call.”
“Who knows if it is?” she asked, smirking at me. “But sometimes you just have to take a chance on people.” She leaned toward me.
I heard a sudden click. “Sir, pardon the interruption,” said Sigmond.
I pulled away from Abby and touched my ear. “What is it?”
“I’m detecting a slipspace tear forming on the edge of the star system,” he explained. “The same rupture we arrived from.”
I shot a hard look at Abigail. She touched her own comm. “Sigmond, who is it? Can you get a clear reading?”
“If my scans are correct, a Union ship,” he said, pausing only a second. “Confirmed. The incoming vessel is identified as The Galactic Dawn.”
Eighteen
Abigail and I raced back to the conference room in a mad panic. “We have to go!” I snapped, the second I saw Freddie and Dressler.
