Preservation_Age of Expansion_A Kurtherian Gambit Series

by Sarah Noffke

  “Funny you should say that,” Pip interrupted overhead.

  Julianna shook her head. “Hatch, you were saying? The ark is the best place for the client?”

  Hatch stared up to where Pip’s voice had broadcast from, but shook his head. “Yes. The pulse sent out from the Tangle Thief will be strongest at its location, to ensure that it is transported. For instance, the bottom of the planet, which is several thousand miles from the northern hemisphere, might actually not make it in the transport, since the device wasn’t designed to move objects as large as planets.”

  “So the Saverus would put the Tangle Thief in or around the ark,” Julianna confirmed.

  Hatch tied two tentacles behind his back and nodded. “It would go to reason. Which is why I put a tracker into this instrument.” He held up the device. “If you’re within range, it will help you find the client.”

  Julianna took the device from Hatch, turning it over in her hands. “And once we locate the client, we hook it into this, and it gives us the location of the receiver?”

  “That’s correct, Julie,” Hatch confirmed, two of his tentacles searching under a workbench. Finally, they retrieved a chrome box, which he lifted and set on the surface of the table.

  “What’s that?” Eddie asked.

  Hatch gave him a repugnant look. “A box.”

  “Right,” Eddie chirped cheerfully.

  “What’s it for?” Julianna asked.

  “Great question,” Hatch replied.

  Julianna gave Eddie a commiserate expression, slightly smiling at Hatch’s obvious bias toward her.

  “Once you locate the client—and I do hope you do that fairly quickly, since I’m not ready to be sucked into oblivion,” Hatch urged.

  Eddie laughed nervously. “We’ll do our best, boss.”

  “That’s very comforting. Once you locate the client, stick it in here.” Hatch opened a door on the side of the chrome box to reveal a hollow interior. “This device will render the client ineffective, throwing the best wrench we could hope for into the Saverus’ plans.”

  “You’re known for throwing wrenches, aren’t you, Hatch?” Eddie said playfully.

  Hatch ignored him. “So there you go. I’ve given you a way to find the receiver, and a method for stopping the Tangle Thief’s usefulness. That’s all I can do.”

  Julianna nodded her head in the direction of the chrome vault sitting on the worktable. Eddie took the cue and retrieved it. “Thank you, Hatch. You’ve given us everything we need. This is great.”

  Hatch’s cheeks puffed out as he averted his eyes. “I admit that what I’ve given you is pretty incredible, but it will do you no good if you’re not able to locate the client in time.”

  “Don’t worry,” Julianna said, her tone thoughtful. “We won’t let you down.”

  Hatch shook his head. “No, I’m not sure I’ve said things the way I meant to.” He opened his mouth, but hesitated for several seconds. “What I meant to say was, everyone is depending on you two. We stand to lose so much if you’re not successful. But of all the people who could have been chosen to lead this mission, you are the very best. If Ghost Squadron can’t stop the Saverus, it can’t be done.”

  Julianna and Eddie both stared at Hatch in quiet disbelief for several seconds.

  “Well, don’t just stare at me like a bunch of idiots!” Hatch yelled. “You have a damn mission to go on. And need I remind you, you’ll be safe in the ark, so do your damn job and protect the rest of us.”

  Julianna laughed, holding up the device. “We’ll see you soon, Hatch.”

  “I’ll be looking forward to it,” he said.

  “And get ready for a bumpy ride when we return, ready to end the Saverus’ fleet,” Eddie added.

  Hatch shook his head at him, rolling his eyes again. “Oh, get out of here, already. The moment’s long since passed.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  En route to Planet Savern, Q-Ship, Tangki System

  Heat rose off Savern in waves, blurring the structures and red rocks. The planet was covered in sand and sharp mountain ranges. On the edge of a northern coast, a large warehouse sat at least a mile from any other structure. In these holy lands, only the old buildings still stood, which was why the brand new warehouse stood out…well, that and it was plated in twenty-four-carat gold.

  The cloaked Q-Ship landed inside the fenced perimeter of the warehouse, not attracting any attention from the guards. Julianna lifted the Saverus goggles to her eyes and peered at the uniformed security patrolling the perimeter. They had the appearance of ordinary humans, but with the goggles, they were revealed to be shapeshifters, their snake forms similar to Penrae’s.

  “The Saverus dare to construct a gold building on this holy land, but they’re not brave enough to reveal their faces,” Eddie said, taking the goggles to see for himself.

  “No one knows that we still exist, or that our numbers are as healthy as they are,” Penrae reminded him.

  “It looks like your chance to jump is in about twenty seconds,” Julianna said, having timed the rotation of the guards as they patrolled.

  “I’m ready,” Penrae assured her, standing and pressing down her white lab coat. She had assumed there would be scientists inside the building, taking care of the native animals and plants.

  Her extensive knowledge of how the Saverus operated had been invaluable to plotting Ghost Squadron’s strategy. In a strange turn of events, Penrae had become an important member of the team.

  Penrae straightened the heart-shaped glasses on her face. She’d taken the form of a young woman with long, red hair and speculative green eyes. “I’ll radio you when I’m through security.”

  Julianna nodded, opening the hatch door. She checked the patrol briefly before giving Penrae the signal.

  The Saverus sped out of the ship and toward the main entrance of the warehouse, holding the only thing that would get them into the building.

  ~~~

  Penrae’s breath rattled in her throat and echoed in her head.

  This wasn’t her home, but these were her people, and she was returning to them. All she’d ever known were the Saverus. It was time for her to walk amongst them once more. It was time she do her part and help end this battle between the Saverus and everyone else.

  Penrae had considered her position carefully, and chose her side as only a shapeshifter could: through deception and lies.

  Because Penrae knew how the Saverus operated, she knew how this warehouse worked. From the outside, it looked like a regular research facility run by humans, but the security to get in would include something that only a Saverus could bypass.

  The queue to get into the warehouse wasn’t long, consisting of only two scientists and a few personnel. The person in front of Penrae moved up to the security clearance, offering his arm to the guard. The guard pressed a wand to the man’s arm, where a human’s pulse would be located. After a moment, the wand glowed green, meaning that the man was a Saverus, shapeshifted into a human.

  He was let through, and Penrae stepped forward, her chin held high.

  “Beautiful day, isn’t it?” Penrae said to the guard.

  He smiled, a bit of a flirtatious glint in his eyes. “Yes, but I hope it warms up. The forecast said it could get into the hundreds.”

  “Let’s hope it’s right,” she said, extending her arm.

  “Well, the forecast is about to change, isn’t it?”

  “That’s right,” Penrae said with a fake smile.

  The guard looked out over the grounds, holding his hand over his eyes like a visor. “Won’t be long now. I think you’re one of the last to enter the building. Maybe one or two more, and then security personnel.”

  “And then we’ll be off,” Penrae said, her voice vibrating with anxiety.

  They were using the Tangle Thief today. Soon everyone who was to survive the transport would be crammed inside the building, and it would all be over. Or it will be just beginning.

  The wand swi
ped over her wrist, but there was no response. The device should only be testing her chemical makeup to ensure her DNA met that of the Saverus, but she suddenly worried there was new technology in place.

  “Hmmm. Doesn’t seem to be working. Let’s try again,” the guard said, taking her arm in his hand and again waving the device over her. He kept his fingers pressed against her skin as they waited for the results.

  The light glowed green, and Penrae let out a slow breath of relief.

  “There it is. Must have been asleep,” the guard said.

  “Yeah, it must have,” Penrae said, hurrying away, all the while aware that the Saverus’s eyes were lingering on her back.

  She didn’t grant herself a moment to observe the strange space within the warehouse. It reminded her of Area 126, but she’d have time to explore later. There were more pressing matters, presently.

  “Headed for the western entrance,” she whispered into her comm.

  “We’re headed that way. We’ll be in position and ready,” Julianna replied.

  Penrae politely smiled at everyone she passed, keeping her chin lifted as she hurried through the corridors. She finally halted at a locked roll-up door by the loading docks. The smaller door next to it bore a sign that said, ‘Alarm will sound when opened’. Before joining Ghost Squadron, Penrae would never have considered breaking such a rule.

  How things have changed.

  She pulled a round, disk-like object from her pocket and stuck it to the security device at the top of the door frame that, if triggered, would sound the alarm. There was no way of telling if the dampener would work. All she had was Hatch’s word, and her confidence in the mechanic’s devices.

  She pressed against the release bar, and the door hesitated briefly before opening wide, allowing bright sunlight to spill into the artificially lit area. Silence greeted Penrae’s ears, and she let out a huge breath.

  Penrae was a Saverus. Her loyalty should be to her race.

  At her core, though, she knew the right thing to do, and had been preparing herself for it. She was here to betray her own, with little remorse.

  “The western entrance is open,” she whispered over the comm.

  ~~~

  Julianna fired up the device Hatch had given them to track the client and, by extension, the receiver. Eddie would be responsible for carrying the bulky, chrome vault, and Julianna was thankful that they were going to be cloaked, so he wouldn’t be conspicuous.

  The minutes that preceded a mission were always intense. It was the wait before the storm. The quiet before the nonstop noise. Julianna enjoyed those sacred minutes, using them to calm her mind as the tension rose.

  “I’d like to take this time to have a little family meeting,” Eddie said, cutting into her thoughts.

  She looked up from the device she was studying and offered him an insolent expression. “Now?”

  He shrugged. “We’re alone and in the Q-Ship, which is the only way I’m going to get a response.”

  “A response about what?” she asked. “What do you want to know?”

  He shook his head. “Not from you. From our favorite AI.”

  “Ricky Bobby isn’t here right now,” Pip said overhead.

  Julianna understood. “I think Eddie was referring to you.”

  “Oh, well, flattery will get you nowhere. What do you want?” Pip asked grumpily.

  Eddie didn’t appear deterred. “Why are you avoiding me?”

  “It’s not you. It’s me,” Pip stated. “You’re a great guy. One that any AI would be lucky to have. I just don’t think I’m ready to give you what you want. Call it immaturity on my part.”

  Eddie shook his head, chuckling softly. “You’re the one who begged to be paired with me. I even gave you access to my body.”

  “Look, we’re both adults here,” Pip continued. “And that was consensual.”

  “You slapped me in the face with my own hand.”

  Pip laughed. “We did have some good times.”

  “I totally understand,” Eddie said. “You’re a one-person kind of AI. No feelings hurt, but I’d at least like it all out in the open.”

  “I have a secret,” Pip said coyly.

  Julianna’s eyes widened as she stared at Eddie, not sure what to say.

  “We can be honest here,” Eddie encouraged.

  “Fine. I’m in love with Julianna,” Pip blurted out.

  “No. You’re. Not,” Julianna said, emphasizing each word.

  Pip sighed. “Wow, I feel a lot better. Alright, so now we can just go back to normal.”

  “Not even close,” Julianna said, shaking her head.

  Eddie laughed. “If you do in fact have feelings for Jules, it was probably pretty uncomfortable for you to be in my head, huh?”

  Julianna pressed her eyes shut, wondering how her life had gotten so completely strange. Is it too late to sign up for a normal life? One that doesn’t include an obsessive AI and impossible missions to save the galaxy…

  “I’m not going to lie,” Pip replied. “Being in the captain’s head wasn’t the pancake feast I figured it would be. But at least we tried it.”

  “No hard feelings,” Eddie said with a laugh. “We’ll have Hatch disconnect you when we return.”

  “I do lament losing access to a body, but I feel this is for the best,” Pip related.

  “Well, I’m glad you two feel better, because I’m completely mortified,” Julianna stated, opening her eyes—although looking at Eddie made her flush with embarrassment.

  “One day, you’ll be able to confess your true feelings, and when that time comes, I’ll be here,” Pip said, his tone cheerful.

  “Headed for western entrance,” Penrae whispered over the comm.

  Perfect timing. Julianna exhaled, activating her cloaking belt. “We’re headed that way. We’ll be in position and ready.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  Saverus Ark, Planet Savern, Tangki System

  Eddie’s body flickered a few times as he entered the warehouse, and then became completely solid.

  “Uh-oh,” he said, peering down.

  “Fuck, the cloak must not work in here because of the gold plating,” Julianna figured, her image solid as well.

  “We’re not exactly in disguise,” Eddie said, putting the cube-vault awkwardly under one arm.

  “No, we’re not, which means we’re going to attract a shitload of attention.” Julianna looked around, like she was searching for a costume.

  Eddie pushed the box into Penrae’s hands, catching her by surprise. “You’re in charge of this.” He pulled his gun out of its holster, feeling marginally better. “I’ll be in charge of this.”

  Julianna nodded somewhat reluctantly.

  “Penrae, you do whatever it takes to keep your cover,” Eddie ordered. “Keep some distance from us, in case we get caught. You might be able to swoop in and save us, or at least provide a distraction.”

  “Okay.” She looked like she’d just swallowed a large rock.

  Julianna held up the tracking device, trying to get a signal, and pointed it toward a dark corridor. “Good news. The client appears to be in here.”

  “Any chances it’s close by?” Eddie asked hopefully.

  “If by ‘close’, you mean ‘clear on the other side of this supposed ark’, then yes,” Julianna replied.

  “Rats, why can’t they make it easy for us?” Eddie complained.

  “You wouldn’t like easy,” Julianna pointed out.

  “True,” he agreed.

  “We’re headed this way,” Julianna said to Penrae, pointing at the long corridor. “It looks like that hallway loops back around.” She pointed at the one behind them.

  “I’ll go that way and meet up with you,” Penrae said. “I’m on the comm, if anything goes wrong.”

  Julianna and Eddie nodded before striding off in the opposite direction.

  ~~~

  Penrae felt like there was a huge sign on her head that said, ‘Traitor’. Ea
ch time she passed someone it became increasingly difficult to look them in the eyes. It was only a matter of time before someone questioned her on what she was doing and asked why she wasn’t in her designated place.

  When a group of Saverus dressed in lab coats rounded the corner, Penrae ducked into the nearest room.

  She squinted from the bright, overhead lights, feeling like she’d just walked into one of the sun rooms that her kind had on all their ships. They mimicked the sunlight on Savern, which Saverus needed regular exposure to for their overall well-being. She hadn’t worked up the nerve to tell the captain and commander that it was something she’d require on Ricky Bobby. Maybe when she proved her usefulness with this mission.

  As her eyes adjusted, Penrae realized that there were tropical plants filling the large room. They’d been planted in rock beds, and filled the air with a freshness that she relished. She touched the blossom of a hibiscus flower, enjoying its softness. It had been a while since she had been in the wild, and something about these plants seemed to call to a part of her that was deeply buried.

  Maybe her ancestors weren’t wrong to want to preserve Savern as it used to be, but their way of going about it was truly horrendous. She reminded herself that the Elders had been run off Savern because they were cruel to their own. Her race suffered by their own hand.

  Penrae smiled as a butterfly landed on a succulent plant. The room was peaceful, with its quiet plants and bright, artificial light.

  Something whizzed by Penrae’s head, and her hair whipped back. She spun around, looking for the source of the speed. Hovering in the air, flapping its wings in a blur, was something Penrae had read about but hoped never to meet.

  The eyes of the vampiric hummingbird flashed red, a hungry vengeance in its stare.

  Penrae backed up, but that only set the bird off. It dove at her, beak first. Penrae covered her head with her free hand, stumbling backwards on a cactus and dropping the cube. The quills pierced her skin, and she shrieked in pain.