by M. D. Cooper
“So, Bella’s burned, as is Sasha,” Tanis said as the car reached the outskirts of the larger city that was nestled at the base of the elevator. “Who do we have next?”
“Claire? Great,” Tanis said with a groan.
A moment later, the car stopped next to a shopping district, and a servitor approached.
“This for us?” Tanis asked.
Tanis opened the door, and the servitor placed several parcels on the seat next to her before making a chirping sound and saying, “Thank you for shopping at Avante Boutique, Miss Claire.”
“Thanks,” Tanis said and pulled the door shut before reaching for the top package. “Let me guess: mirrorsheath and bubble dress?”
COMMANDER ON DECK
STELLAR DATE: 02.24.4084 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: TSS Kirby Jones, polar orbit around Ceres
REGION: Ceres, Terran Hegemony, InnerSol
“Commander! So good to have you back aboard,” Connie exclaimed as Tanis pulled herself through the airlock, her rucksack drifting behind on a tether.
“You too, Sergeant,” Tanis said with a warm smile. “Glad to finally be back aboard my girl. Looks like she’s in better shape than ever.”
Connie looked around at the passageway, her engineer’s eye catching a few panels that should be locked down tighter and a light that flickered slightly. None of that needed to be brought to the commander’s attention, though.
“Aye, ma’am, the Jones is ready to kick ass and take names.”
Tanis had begun to pull herself down the passageway with Connie falling behind, but at the sergeant’s words, she paused and glanced over her shoulder.
“Don’t you mean ‘sir’, Technical Sergeant?”
The question took a second to make sense to Connie. ‘Sir’ was the normal address for all officers in the TSF, but Tanis preferred ‘ma’am’ when they were on the Jones.
Maybe she’s trying to toe the line after all the crap we’ve been through.
“Of course, sir,” she said aloud. “It won’t happen again. You said you got roped into doing some recruiting appearances down there, how’d they go?”
“Good,” Tanis said, turning back toward the bridge. “But I got new orders while I was planetside. Your trip here will have to count for our shakedown. We’re headed to Europa.”
“Really, Commander?” Connie’s brow furrowed in confusion. “That’s waaaay out of our normal patrol path—not to mention Admiral Cornell’s jurisdiction.”
Tanis only shrugged as she reached the ladder shaft and stopped to regard Connie with a level stare. “Those are our orders. I got them from Colonel Higgs himself. I’ll have Smythe get us a departure vector. I want to get out of here as soon as possible.”
“Uh, sure, yeah,” Connie stammered. “I’ll go make sure everything is ready below.”
“Sounds good, Connie,” Tanis replied with another smile before grasping a rung and giving a sharp pull to propel herself up the shaft toward the bridge.
As the commander disappeared up the ladder, Connie hooked her foot into a deck-strap, a puzzled expression on her face.
That was…weird.
She shook her head and pulled her foot from the strap before floating down the ladder shaft to the engineering deck. As she spun around and grabbed a handhold to pull herself along the lower passageway, Cassie reached out to her.
The sergeant didn’t bother to hide the disbelief from her voice.
Those five words set off alarm bells in Connie’s mind.
Harm had established a series of codes with her shortly after coming aboard as Cassie. The one he had just uttered was for an immediate meeting to discuss something in person.
She checked the rubric he’d made that determined where they’d meet depending on the time of day and code he used, and saw that she was to meet at the starboard inspection porthole.
Smart cookie.
That location was on her pre-flight checklist. From there she could see all the fuel hookup ports on the hull and get a visual on whether or not they were locked down properly.
When she arrived, Cassie was already peering out the porthole, bobbing her head like she was trying to see around the caps and safety netting.
“Oh, hey Sarge, heard we’re on the fast track to get out of here, so I thought I’d check the fuel caps, since we got topped up by a tanker earlier today.”
“Good work, Spaceman,” Connie said agreeably as she approached and peered through the porthole as well. To her surprise, there was a message projected against the plas that only became visible when she was right next to it.
[I tried to reach Darla, but so far as I can tell, she’s not onboard with Tanis. I traced where Tanis was staying, and someone attacked two people there. Those two people were advance security for Oligarch Alden. I don’t think that the person who just came aboard is Tanis.]
Connie didn’t have a safe way to respond, so she tapped the window, tracing letters as she spoke. “That third cap is for the helium three. Stupid thing never quite seats right the first time. Was supposed to be a part of our refit, but we had to leave before the new one arrived. See those two lines? Liam put those markers on. If they’re not aligned, then the thing isn’t locked down properly.”
The message she’d traced on the window was, [If that’s not Tanis, who is it, and where is the commander?]
“Got it,” Cassie said slowly then paused while nodding her head for a moment before asking. “What’s with the markings on the other ones?”
[There are a lot of possibilities, but the worst-case scenario was that our pseudo-Tanis was going to kill the Jovian oligarch. In my line of work, it’s always best to assume the worst. When I looked through the guests at the hotel, I spotted one of the covers I made for Tanis. A martial arts expert named Bella—who is now suspected of attacking those Jovians. Another of her covers was in use, too, altered to be a TBI agent, but that’s it. I don’t have any of her other registered ones coming into Ceres, or anywhere else. I have to assume she’s using a cover she and Darla made right now. I kept knowledge of Darla from most of the division. Whoever is doing this doesn’t seem to know about her. That’s very good.]
A wave of relief flooded through Connie as she replied to Cassie’s verbal question. “Well, after we had a leak one time on the H3 cap, we all got a little paranoid, so Liam put markers on the others too. They’re the same make…it’s nuts that they send us out without spares, but you know how things go sometimes.”
[What are we going to do about our faker?]
[Someone in the division is planning to sacrifice Tanis—and probably the rest of us—to assassinate the oligarch. I want to know who it is, so we ride this out. You need to find a way to tap all comms.]
“C’mon,” Connie said. “I’ll show you where we do a visual on the pressure bleed-off lines.”
[OK…I think I can do that. Think the real Tanis is going to follow us to Europa?]
[Tanis is a professional. You can bet your life on it.]
CANDY CANE SCHMUTZ
STELLAR DATE: 02.24.4084 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Elevator Terminal 19
REGION: Ceres, Terran Hegemony, InnerSol
Tanis rolled across the concourse that led to the elevator’s debarkation lounge, silently cursing Darla the whole way.
In addition to the mirrorsheath and mask—which Tanis had to admit she had become surprisingly comfortable wi
th—Darla’s outfit included bright red, wheeled boots with matching oversized knee and elbow pads, topped off with a large, white helmet.
Though she had seen plenty of people using various types of wheeled footwear for sport, Tanis had never tried them herself. Darla would be the last to learn about it, but once she got used to having a row of four wheels underneath each foot, Tanis admitted to herself that rolling around could be a lot of fun.
Claire’s fashion sense, however, ruined that fun.
Let’s be honest, Claire is just an outlet for Darla. I’m beginning to sincerely doubt that Harm had anything to do with setting up this particular cover.
On top of the mirrorsheath, Tanis wore a tightly cinched red and white striped corset with a pair of oversized candy canes that rose up and wrapped around her breasts. As luck would have it, the candy canes were both hollow, and her lightwand was tucked inside one of them.
Beneath the corset, stretching to her knees, was a thick rubber skirt that allowed for more movement than the hated ball dress, but wasn’t much better when trying to maneuver around other people on the busy concourse at high speeds.
Tanis was about to deliver a snarky response to Darla when her AI showed her the image of a man who had turned around to look at her after she’d passed, only to trip over a hoverbot and land on his ass.
The wide-eyed expression of total entrancement on his face was so comical that she burst out laughing, and nearly fell herself.
The AI laughed.
Darla didn’t respond, and Tanis kept her focus on rolling across the concourse, suddenly wondering why she’d put on the entire outfit. There was no reason why she couldn’t have just worn only the mirrorsheath, or gone without strapping wheels on her feet.
She reached the debarkation room for the elevator car, which was slated to arrive in just over ten minutes. As she waited, Tanis couldn’t help but notice an increased security presence in the form of armed TSF fireteams patrolling the terminal.
It was hard not to constantly surveil the area—which would make her stand out—so she busied herself with seeing how many times she could twirl in a circle, behaving as un-Tanis-like as possible. She managed to get a record of one hundred and seventeen before her right foot caught on a crack in the floor and she fell on her ass, letting out a surprised squeak.
Tanis gave a tittering laugh as she struggled to get back on her feet, something that was surprisingly difficult in the skirt. She could get on her knees and then stretch the rubber skirt far enough to place one wheeled foot on the ground, but as soon as she tried to put her weight on it, the wheels rolled, and the taut rubber pulled her leg back and dropped her onto her ass again.
The corset wasn’t helping either, making it impossible to simply bend over far enough to put a steadying hand on the ground while getting her feet under her.
Suddenly the hilarity of the whole situation hit Tanis, and she began to laugh. Here she was—the woman who had taken down two of the Jovian oligarch’s guards and then jumped out of a sixty-seven-story high window just the day before—now trapped on the floor by a rubber skirt, corset, and wheeled boots, all of which she’d voluntarily put on.
Even while laughing, Tanis tried to get up once more, and this time fell forward, barely catching herself before her candy canes smacked into the floor.
That only made her laugh all the harder, and half a minute later, she was gasping for breath, tears streaming down her face, wondering if she’d have to crawl onto the elevator car.
“Ma’am?” a stern voice said from beside her, and Tanis looked up to see a TSF sergeant standing over her.
For some reason, that one word made Tanis laugh so hard she couldn’t breathe.
“Y-y-yeah?” Tanis finally asked, desperately trying to calm herself as the uniformed woman stared down in consternation.
“Do you…uh…need a hand?”
“P-p-please.” Tanis nodded vigorously, desperately trying to steady her breathing.
The sergeant activated the full lock mode on her rifle and slung it over her shoulder before extending a hand to Tanis, who grasped it while trying to get her feet to remain steady under her.
She was still defeated by the tight rubber skirt, which was keeping her from rising even with help.
“Huh…that’s one heck of a…tricky…outfit you’ve got there,” the sergeant muttered. “Why don’t you sit back on your legs and hold out your arms.”
Tanis nodded and complied, still giggling at the situation as the sergeant reached down and placed her hands under Tanis’s armpits, lifting her straight up and then setting her down once Tanis straightened her legs.
“You good?” the woman asked, and Tanis nodded, taking several deep breaths to finally quell the laughter.
“Yeah…sorry…I don’t know what came over me,” she said while placing a hand on the sergeant’s shoulder and carefully turning to face the woman. “Thanks for helping.”
The sergeant’s lips pressed together, and a flush showed on her cheeks. She reached a hand toward Tanis’s chest. “You’ve got, ah…a…a bit of schmutz on your candy cane.”
Tanis didn’t move away, and the sergeant brushed the dust off the decoration, her hand trailing across her breast.
“You know,” the soldier whispered. “I’m off at twenty-hundred today…if you’re interested in drinks.…”
Tanis gave as much of a smile as the automaton mask would allow. “I’m busy today…but I really can’t say no to my savior. What about tomorrow?”
“Deal.” The sergeant, who Tanis saw was named Ava, passed her contact token over the Link. “Tomorrow. You pick the place.”
Tanis tilted her head and thrust out a hip, almost losing her balance in the process—which caused Ava to grab her corseted waist to steady her.
“I will, and I’m looking forward to it,” Tanis whispered.
“Sarge! You done feeling up the eye candy over there already? The LT wants us to check out a disturbance at the security gate,” a voice called out from behind Tanis, and she glanced over her shoulder to see a pair of soldiers waving at Sergeant Ava.
“Yeah! Coming!” Ava said as she removed her hands from Tanis’s waist and paused to make sure she was steady.
“I’m good,” Tanis said with a laugh. “Don’t keep your LT waiting.”
Behind her, she could hear one of the soldiers laughing. “See what I did there? ‘Eye candy’.”
“You’re so fucking funny, Greg,” Ava said as she walked away. “Wanna see me shove some candy in your eye?”
Darla chuckled quietly in Tanis’s mind.
AN UPGRADE?
STELLAR DATE: 02.24.4084 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Prima Plaza Hotel, Insi Ring
REGION: Ceres, Terran Hegemony, InnerSol
Tanis was back in the hotel room she’d first checked into as Claire upon arriving on the Insi Ring three days earlier. She was laying on the bed, still wearing the candy cane outfit, barring the corset—that had been removed and thrown across the room as soon as the door closed.
“Do we need to worry that they’ll trace the stuff in the hotel on Ceres back to this place?” Tanis asked as she gently rubbed her sides and lower back. “Some of those parcels were dropped off here first.”
Tanis nodded absently as she brought up the STC data she’d pulled, and looked through the departure queues.
“Damn…there it is.”
Pushing herself upright, Tanis pulled off the white helmet she’d almost forgotten about—until she laid down on it. “Looks like we have another ship to book. Do we know where in the JC they’re going?”
“Not while she’s in control of the Jones, no. Too risky. Besides, now that the oligarch isn’t in danger anymore, we have a bit of leeway to find out who is up to all this.”
“So where do you think they’re going?” Tanis asked. “The flight plan only has initial vectors and Jupiter’s nearspace as a destination.”
“Really?” Tanis arched an eyebrow as she rose and rolled over to the crates, popping the first one open. “If she’s going to take out the oligarch, wouldn’t she go to the Cho?”
