Underworld (Shadows of the Void Space Opera Serial Book 5)

by J. J. Green

  “It’s my tracer,” Sayen explained. “She’s going to take it out so we can destroy it.”

  “Of course. I’d forgotten,” Jas said. “Are you sure you can do it safely?” she asked Erielle.

  “Yes. I’ve extracted various pieces of shrapnel in this room over the years. I have everything I need.” She turned to Sayen again. “I’ll use a local anesthetic, okay?”

  As Sayen nodded, Erielle’s words reminded Carl of something that had long been bothering him about the underworlders. “So, you’re happy to use modern technology?” he asked. “You said some of your people went to Dawn. I got to know those people and they wouldn’t have anything to do with modern medicine or anything else that they thought was unnatural.”

  Erielle rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that’s what they were like. We aren’t all like that. They’re confused, in my opinion. It isn’t modern technology that we reject; it’s what comes with it. The Government uses technology to watch and control you digifreaks. The only way to avoid it is to refuse to take part in normal society. You think we’d choose to live like this if we could have all the benefits you enjoy with none of the downsides? Of course not. That would be stupid. But if we have to give them up to be free, we will. Now, I don’t suppose you know where that tracer is, Sayen?”

  “I don’t. I don’t even have a scar. They must have had it added as my body was being grown.”

  Erielle grimaced. “That might make it harder to get out. Let me think. They would have put it in the safest place possible. It’s probably somewhere without many nerves, and not very deep or near any organs. Ah, I have an idea. Turn around.”

  Sayen turned her back to Erielle, and the latter lifted her shirt and pushed her hands down the base of her back, under the waistband of her pants. Erielle frowned as she palpated the flesh at the top of Sayen’s buttocks. Her face brightened. “I think I found it. Just here. Give me your hand.” She took her hand and placed it on a certain spot. “What do you think? Can you feel it? I’ve got a scanner that should confirm it’s there. I’ll get it out.”

  “Great,” Sayen said, “and then, can I finally get some clean clothes?”

  Erielle laughed and nodded. Sayen prodded the spot on her buttocks. She noticed Carl and Jas watching. “Don’t you two have something else to do?”

  Sark came in with some soup for Makey, and Carl and Jas went to leave through the open door.

  “Wait a minute,” Erielle said. “Before you go, have you had any more thoughts on how to catch your Shadow?”

  “I haven’t,” Jas replied. “Have you, Carl?” He shook his head.

  “I heard that there’s a security meeting tonight at the HQ,” Erielle said. “A few Government officials are flying in from overseas. Would your Shadow usually attend those, Sayen?”

  “Yes, he would,” Sayen exclaimed.

  “Tonight?” Jas said excitedly, but her face fell. “That place will be locked down after our attack last night.”

  “Maybe,” said Erielle, “Or maybe they think you wouldn’t dare attack them again so soon, especially when all you’ve got is a beat-up old car and a few weapons.”

  “Maybe they’re right,” Carl said.

  “But if I were to help...”

  “You’re going to help us?” asked Jas.

  “I’d like to lend a hand. And I’ve got quite a lot of equipment that should make things more interesting.”

  “That’s great,” said Jas. “What made you change your mind?”

  Erielle shrugged. “I guess I finally understood this isn’t a 'them and us’ thing.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  “I can’t believe you lied to me about the invisibility spray,” Jas said to Erielle.

  “You think I’m going to tell a digifreak the truth?” the underworlder retorted as she retrieved the can from a cupboard in her munitions room. “This stuff’s so precious, I could sell it and buy enough blackmarket food to keep the whole neighborhood fed for a year.”

  “I understand, I guess,” Jas said. “Still, if we’d had it when we tried to catch the Shadow, maybe no one would have been hurt.”

  “I know. No need to remind me. That’s one reason I’m coming with you tonight. If anyone’s going to get hurt fighting these Shadows now, it should be me. I wasn’t thinking straight, and Makey suffered for it. I should have sided with you when you didn’t want to let him come with you, or I should have lent you the best equipment I had. I messed up, and the kid nearly died. I hope I’m going to put that right tonight.”

  “Don’t blame yourself,” said Jas. “If I hadn’t been so hard on him in Antarctica, he mightn’t have been so insistent. But neither of us knew what would happen, and he’s going to be okay.” Jas took the blaster that Erielle handed her and passed it to Carl, who inserted it in the special holster inside his jacket. “How’s Sayen doing?”

  “She’s got a sore butt, but she should be up and around tomorrow.”

  “Did it take you long to find the tracer?” Carl asked.

  “No, but it had worked its way in a little, and I had to dig it out. I melted it in a burner. Sayen’s got a few stitches. She wanted to come with us, the idiot. I told her to get some sleep, and in the morning I’d have a shadowy gift for her.”

  Jas was a little puzzled by Erielle’s attitude toward Sayen. At first, she’d seemed to hate the ground the woman walked on. Then that morning she’d been overly familiar and intimate when she’d examined her, and Sayen hadn’t seemed to mind. Now she was talking about giving her a gift. She wondered what was going on.

  Tucking the blaster that Erielle handed her into the belt of her pants, she said, “How are we going to get there?” If they had to use the car that the underworlder had lent them the previous day, it wouldn’t take the Shadows longer than a split second to recognize it. Or a split second longer to blow it to pieces.

  “I’ve got a vehicle that’ll help us blend in,” Erielle said. “You’ll see.”

  ***

  They were leaving the alley that led to Erielle’s place. The underworlder had covered herself in invisibility spray, including goggles to cover her eyes, saying that she would explain on the way. Jas worried about what she might have in mind. The spray brought its own set of problems, though it gave them plenty of advantages.

  Another large, black advantage was parked out in the street. A long, low Global Government limousine sat in the road, its doors open. An underworlder was giving it a final polish.

  “Woah,” Jas said. “How the hell did you get it?”

  “Now that would be telling.” Erielle’s voice came from Jas’ right.

  “What a beauty,” breathed Carl. “Can I drive it, or is it autodrive?”

  “They’re either or,” Erielle replied. “but I was hoping you would want to drive it. The autodrive safety control will stop us from getting too close to other vehicles, and that won’t work for what I have in mind.”

  “And what do you have in mind?” Jas asked.

  “I said I’ll explain on the way.”

  Jas hated the last-minute planning, but Erielle had wanted to have someone survey the Security HQ and report back. They got into the car and headed out. Erielle sat in the rear and outlined how they were going to kidnap Sayen’s Shadow.

  Sayen had given them a detailed description of their target, but many personnel would be leaving the headquarters that evening in Government cars, and they had to be sure that they had the right one. Erielle’s plan was that she would slip inside and down into the car park, hopefully undetected as she would be invisible. Her contact had scoped out the place, and she said she knew where to go for a close-up view of people entering the car park after the meeting. Carl and Jas would circle the block until Erielle notified them via short range radio that the Shadow was leaving, after which they would follow the car as it left the car park and make a second attempt at a kidnapping.

  “I don’t like the idea of you going in there,” Jas said. “The place could be crawling with Shadows. Bei
ng invisible doesn’t make you as undetectable as you might think. I found that out when we rescued Sayen. If it weren’t for her and Carl, a Shadow Jas would be walking around right now.”

  “I’ll be careful,” Erielle said.

  “How are you gonna get back?” Carl asked. “Even if we had time to pick you up, we can’t see you.”

  “I can radio to tell you where to stop for me, and I’ll do that if for some reason things don’t work out. But you’ll be busy catching your Shadow. I can make my own way home.”

  “I still don’t like it,” said Jas.

  “Do you have a better plan?”

  Jas was silent.

  They dropped Erielle off a hundred meters or so from the Security HQ. It was weird seeing the car door open and close but no one apparently get out. They checked that their radios were working, and set off to begin driving around the block while waiting for Erielle’s heads up.

  “I really don’t like this,” said Jas.

  “You keep saying that,” Carl said.

  “I keep feeling it.”

  The radio crackled and fell silent. It seemed weird to be using such an old technology, but Erielle had assured them that it was because radios were such an old technology that they were the most secure comms the underworlders had.

  Tension between Jas and Carl chilled the atmosphere inside the car. There was so much she wanted to say to him, but she never knew how to start, and the timing was never right. Something had nearly happened between them in Australia, but now they seemed more distant than ever. Thinking back over the last few days and wondering why things were never easy between them, she realized that she hadn’t been good company recently.

  “Carl,” she began before immediately drying up.

  “Yeah?” His eyes left the road and flicked toward her for a moment.

  “I...I’m sorry if I’ve been hard to get along with lately. It was going to Antarctica...it put me in a bad frame of mind. I’ve got some unhappy memories of my time there. I never thought I’d ever go back.”

  “No worries, Jas. Anything you wanna tell me about?”

  “Not now. One day.” Feeling a little better, she continued, “Hey, Sayen and Erielle have been acting a little weird toward each other. Is something going on between them, do you think?” she asked Carl.

  “Yeah, of course. Can’t you tell?”

  “Oh yeah. Yeah, I thought so.” In fact, Jas didn’t find those kinds of things easy to notice. The added information drove her concern about what Erielle was doing a notch higher. If anything happened to the underworlder, Sayen would take it hard, and with her fears about her parents’ safety, she had enough on her plate as it was.

  A burst of static came from the radio. “I’m inside,” said Erielle quietly. “Watching. Over.” The radio was silent again.

  Carl indicated and turned a corner. It was late evening, and the traffic was thin, which meant that they wouldn’t be held up, but Jas worried that it also made their car noticeable and suspicious.

  They’d passed the road leading to the car park once already. When they passed it again, a line of four limousines were queueing to get out. The meeting was over and the officials were leaving. Jas’ heart pumped faster. It wouldn’t be long now.

  The radio gave a burst of static, then was silent. They drove the quiet streets for another turn. The suspense was agonizing. When would the kratting Shadow appear? Jas hated waiting. She itched to act.

  “I think I can see him,” came Erielle’s soft voice over the radio. “He fits the description exactly.”

  Jas wished the underworlder wouldn’t speak except when completely necessary. Though Erielle couldn’t be seen, she could be heard.

  “He’s coming closer,” continued Erielle. “I can see him better. Yes, I’m sure it’s him.”

  Jas wanted to tell her to shut the krat up, but the sound of her own voice on the radio could also give the underworlder away.

  “He’s leaving now. Get—”

  Erielle’s words were drowned out by an explosion of noise. Jas and Carl jumped in their seats and looked at each other. The radio went dead.

  “What was that?” Carl asked.

  “I don’t know. I thought I recognized the noise, but—”

  “Do you think she’s okay?”

  “I don’t know. But we have to move. She said he’s leaving.”

  “I know. We’re nearly at the junction with the car park road. I’m slowing down. We should see his limo soon...Krat.”

  There it was: a limo waiting to join the main road. And right behind it was another one. Both had heavily tinted windows. Which one contained the Shadow?

  ***

  Jas’ mind was whirring as she tried to concentrate on the limousine in front of them. What had happened to Erielle? They’d received no further comms from her since that burst of loud noise over the radio. She thought of Sayen waiting for the underworlder back at the house. And she worried that they were following the wrong car.

  She gripped her blaster. What if a human was inside the vehicle? They’d wanted to capture the Shadow alive, but if it died in the firefight, she wouldn’t lose sleep over it. Killing an innocent person was another matter.

  Carl seemed to be thinking the same thing. “Hey, look, we’re coming up to a ditch on the side of the road there. What if I just force the car into it instead of you shooting the wheels out?”

  “Good idea,” Jas replied. She turned to scan behind them. The road was empty. No Shadows had noticed them this time, as far as she could tell.

  Carl sped up. The limousine in front edged away. Jas wondered what the occupant was thinking. Had they noticed, or were they too occupied with an interface inside? Carl sped up some more, and moved out toward the center of the road, but the bright headlights of a truck appeared around a bend in front of them, and he had to move back into their lane.

  Come on, thought Jas. The ditch was coming to an end. If they didn’t manage to force the limousine into it soon, the opportunity would be lost, and she wasn’t sure how they would stop the car without violence.

  Carl hit the accelerator, and Jas’ head whipped back. He zoomed out, but another truck appeared ahead. He slammed on the brakes and zipped back behind the limousine. The ditch on their left ended, and was replaced by forest. They were now way outside the city. They had to stop this car, and soon, before it reached its destination, where they might have to contend with other Shadows.

  “Krat. I’m an idiot,” exclaimed Carl. “It’s so long since I’ve been driving cars, I forgot.”

  “What?” Jas asked.

  Carl flipped a switch and pressed the accelerator. The pitch of the engine’s whine rose, and the car sped up, but it also flew up. In a few moments they were above the car they were following. Carl flipped another switch, and the engine cut out. They fell, landing directly on the front of the limousine, which rolled to a halt, its autodrive safety system kicking in. Inertia carried their car forward, and they slid down onto the road.

  Jas was out before the car stopped. She ran back to the limousine, her blaster in hand. The car’s roof was dented, and she wondered if the damage was preventing the doors from opening, because the Shadow hadn’t emerged and tried to escape. Carl was on the other side, holding his weapon. Their eyes met, and at a silently agreed moment, they pulled open the doors.

  The occupant was sitting on Jas’ side, looking more than a little surprised. It wasn’t Sayen’s Shadow. It was a woman with long, straight hair, wearing a kaftan.

  Chapter Eighteen

  They were nearly back at Erielle’s place. A muffled thumping came from the trunk.

  “Gee, I hope you’re right,” Jas said to Carl.

  “I’m sure,” Carl replied. “Well, pretty sure anyway.”

  Jas rolled her eyes.

  “It has to be the Minister for Global Government Security,” Carl said. “There can’t be many women who wear kaftans to work at government headquarters.”

  “But is she a Shado
w?”

  “Sayen definitely seemed to think so.”

  Jas shook her head. If they were wrong, they were in deep, deep trouble. She wondered what the sentence was for kidnapping a Global Government minister. The courts would add assault to the charge, as they’d had to manhandle the woman to gag her and tie her up and lift her into the trunk. At least it was roomy and had plenty of air, and it was nighttime so the woman wouldn’t get too hot. Still. They’d kidnapped a minister. She shook her head again.

  When they arrived, an underworlder came out to meet the car. Carl popped the trunk, and they went around the back to get the minister out. The woman’s hair was all over the place, and her eyes were nearly popping from her head. A torrent of angry protests were muffled by the tape over her mouth.

  “Better get her inside quick,” Jas said to Carl.

  She fought and struggled as he picked her up and hoisted her over his shoulder before carrying her down the alley. They thought it was safest to deposit the minister in the basement room where Erielle had put them before. They gave her a chair to sit on, but left her gagged and bound. The door had a secure lock.

  Sayen was lying on her front in Erielle’s treatment room. Makey was there, too. It was the early hours of the morning, and both were sound asleep. Jas gently woke Sayen and explained in whispers that they needed her to identify someone.

  Wincing, Sayen eased herself off the bed and hobbled to the door. Jas and Carl went with her as she made her slow way down the stairs to the basement. Their victim had gotten out of her chair and wriggled over to the door, and they hit her on the head accidentally as they opened it. A muted cry of pain escaped her gag.

  She didn’t look any less furious than she had when they’d gotten her out of the trunk of the car. Her face was red and sweaty beneath her tangle of hair.

  “Why did you take her?” Sayen asked. “Why didn’t you kidnap Shadow Bernie?”

  “Long story,” Carl said. “But, is that the Minister for Global Government Security?”

  “Yeah, that’s her all right,” Sayen said.