The Approach (Courage Colony Book 1)

by Holly Ice

  ‘How did you get the stunner?’ Aina asked.

  I looked at the weapon in my belt. ‘Pinched it from Ludis.’

  Aina winced. ‘Bet he’s in a world of pain.’

  ‘He was, until I stunned him.’

  ‘He deserves it. The screens were shut off after Rima and the committee went down, but we saw it all play out.’

  ‘The fight? Did you see Siti and Quinn get away?’ They hadn’t been in the food hall, but they hadn’t incapacitated the guard on this deck either. So, where were they? Had the guard not been there when they’d left, or had they been captured later?

  ‘I didn’t see anything, but cameras were focused inside the food hall. Vote security made their last stand there. They didn’t want to leave the committee. How did you get away?’

  ‘Ludis wanted to talk when I came to. Alone.’

  Aina huffed. ‘Stupid.’

  I didn’t argue. It wasn’t a good move. Though he’d never seen the back door to the kitchen. He’d probably thought he’d had me trapped. He’d been so keen to make me understand, to make me believe his mutiny was justified. He needed help when all this was over, therapy.

  ‘What’s your plan, Errai? I’ll help any way I can.’

  ‘You don’t need to.’

  ‘With my son behind this, I want to. I have to.’

  I sighed. ‘Okay. Let me think.’ I sank into the couch and rifled through the last few hours, trying to remember who was where when all this had happened, and where Siti and Quinn would have gone. My room and theirs were too obvious, but where else would they have thought to go? Comming them was risky, but it might be my only choice.

  The lights went out and blue and out, and I cursed until the screens lit up on Ludis’s blank face.

  He stood in the centre of the screen, flanked by the muscular Nomi and another, shadowed guard. Ludis’s cheeks were ruddy, which made me grin. His chest was rising a little quick for him to entirely have his breath back, too. They must have used a stimulant to revive him.

  He smiled into the camera, but it came across as more of a baring of teeth, threatening rather than reassuring. ‘Citizens of the Courage, I’m sorry you had to see us detain the committee. I promise you, this was the only way to gain a fair vote on nanite use in the Ristar mission. We tried speaking to them and they laughed us off. We tried negotiating, and they ignored us. Some members of my group went too far. They should not have harmed mission candidates. However, both candidates are in recovery and everyone else is safe.’

  He gestured behind him and the camera panned to take in his prisoners, including Yara, who promptly gave him a death glare. I nodded to her, even through the screen.

  ‘We’ll be deciding whether nanites should be allowed on Ristar’s surface with a final ship-wide vote. We don’t think it’s worth the risk, but the decision lies with you. Since the committee’s team refuses to support us, you can either choose our nanite-free team, or the nanite-riddled team selected by the committee. The vote will be held tomorrow. Until then, please stay in your cabins. My guards are on every level to ensure a smooth voting process. Please work with them. Thank you.’

  The screens cut out. He’d said everything with a straight face, as if he believed his mutiny held some element of choice. He didn’t even need a vote, but I knew him. He needed the sheen of democracy to legitimise his actions. I just hoped he knew that if it went against him, his allies weren’t likely to accept a people’s vote.

  Still, there was some good in his announcement. That short pan to the prisoners told me Siti and Quinn were either still free or being kept elsewhere, which meant we might have a chance of doing something.

  ‘Aina, I’ve got an idea.’

  ‘What do you need me to do?’

  I eyed her civil service coveralls. ‘Do you have a master key?’

  ‘No, only the committee have that kind of access.’

  I bit my lip as I debated how far I could trust her. She’d always been flaky, but I had no other options, not yet at least. ‘Remember this number: 2-3-8-7-9-2-1-4. It should override any door lock you find.’

  ‘Which doors am I aiming for?’

  ‘Do you have the patrol’s stunners?’

  ‘Yes, both of them.’

  Interesting. That likely meant not all the weapons had been taken from patrol. They must have taken at least some from the armoury. ‘Okay, take a stunner for yourself and get a sample of the patrol’s blood. I’m going to make a few calls, and then we’ll head out. I’ll need your comm. They took mine.’

  ‘Their blood?’ She unbuckled and passed over her comm.

  ‘Use a syringe from a med pack. We don’t have much time. I’ll explain later.’

  Ludis said they’d have guards on every deck, and I had no doubt the missing one on C-7 would be noted soon, especially if they’d gained access to ship-wide announcements. Cameras would be next, and comms. We needed to move fast. I used her comm to send Quinn, James and Siti comm messages, hoping they’d check in, James especially. If he was conscious, we had far better odds. He’d be in the perfect position to find out which drugs they’d used on the guards.

  * * *

  Within the hour, Quinn and Siti checked in. Both were safe, hidden in the algae farm levels, which made me smile: they’d used Ludis’s tactics against him. James, though, didn’t reply. I couldn’t wait any longer. I was pushing it as it was. I called Quinn. His face popped onto the screen two rings after I called. He was still in his casual clothes with a busted lip and a light sweat on his face, as if he’d been unable to keep still. Siti nudged into the screen beside him, boasting a black eye and a split eyebrow.

  ‘Are you two okay?’ I asked.

  ‘We’re glad you got away,’ Siti said.

  ‘Could you show me the room around you?’

  Quinn took the comm full circle, proving he was alone.

  ‘Are the patrol out cold?’

  ‘Yes, and there’s no guards below the cabin decks. They’re either lazy or they don’t have the numbers. What do you know?’

  ‘They planned this well. The patrol were drugged, likely through their food, and their group has security people on board. They’ll be guarding weak points and probably listening to comm messages.’

  ‘How did you get away?’

  ‘Ludis underestimated me. Look, I have a plan of sorts. Can you get to the last resort?’

  ‘You mean the–’

  ‘Don’t say it! They might be listening.’

  ‘Sorry. Yes, it’s possible, but why? We don’t have enough people.’

  ‘Doesn’t matter. Get there and protect it, just in case.’

  ‘Guard duty. We can do that.’

  ‘Actually, I need Siti for something else.’ She might be bruised, but she was still the best fighter we had, and well trained. I’d need her if I stood a chance of using the override code in navigation. The deck would be well guarded, perhaps even more than the food hall, but we’d have even less chance of busting in if we waited for them to get the cameras online.

  ‘Where do you need me?’ Siti asked.

  I wished I could say exactly what the plan was, but the risk was too great. They could be listening to every word. ‘Meet me where we stopped being friends.’

  ‘The exact place?’

  ‘The level.’

  She swallowed. ‘Okay… should we ditch our comms before we move? They can be tracked.’

  ‘Definitely.’ That’d stop them tracking us by our comm signals, or spying on our nanite data. It was very well protected, but if they got access, they’d know exactly where we were whatever we did or didn’t say over comms. ‘We’ll regroup at the last resort.’

  Siti gave me a thumbs up, Quinn winked, and the comm call blinked out. I snatched Aina’s comm from my wrist and threw it onto the sofa. We weren’t staying here, so it couldn’t do any harm on the cushions.

  ‘Aina, you ready?’

  ‘Right here.’

  I jumped. She’d snuck up behind m
e. ‘Don’t scare me like that.’

  ‘Sorry. You’re sure you want me with you on this?’

  I nodded. I didn’t have many other choices. There were few people I trusted, and those not with us now were with Ludis. ‘I need you.’

  ‘Where am I going and what do I need their blood for?’

  ‘Health. I need you to find out what drug they used. The blood’s for the diagnosis terminal.’

  ‘You want to counteract it?’

  ‘Ideally. We need more fighters.’ If Quinn was right and Ludis’s team was unable to cover all decks, the patrol was key. Waking them up would win us the ship.

  ‘Ready when you are.’ Aina tapped the stunner in her belt and carried another two, pilfered from the patrol and Ludis’s guard.

  ‘You’re well armed.’

  She smiled. ‘I thought your friends would want firepower.’

  I choked. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen this side to you.’

  Her eyes narrowed as she pressed toward the cabin door. ‘I wasn’t always sad and lonely.’

  * * *

  We headed for the elevator to avoid the cabin deck guards. Each step echoed on the empty deck, but no one opened their doors. Either Ludis didn’t have enough guards to chase me, or they hadn’t had time to find the missing guard yet. I pressed the down arrow, then heard the accompanying whine as the elevator moved. They hadn’t thought to lock down the elevators. Good.

  The doors opened and we stepped inside.

  ‘Use a terminal to report back once you know what drug they used,’ I said.

  ‘How? Neither of us have a comm.’

  ‘Message James via the in-ward comm in health. His comm won’t be monitored, and I’ll be able to access it from another room comm with the override.’

  Aina shook her head. ‘You’re relying on so few of us. Are you sure it’s not better to wait for the patrol to wake up?’

  I shook my head. I’d considered it, but we didn’t have time to waste. If Ludis and his team caught us too, we’d have no chance of ousting them. They’d put everyone in lockers and be done with it. ‘We don’t know how long the patrol will be under. It could be days, and Ludis will find us eventually.’

  ‘What if it’s more complicated than a standard sedative? I’m not trained to mix drugs.’

  ‘Then we’d need to trust someone from health. If you don’t trust anyone there, don’t put yourself in further danger. Report back and leave.’

  The elevator dinged. We rushed into the main health bay, weapons raised, as the smell of disinfectant washed over us. The automatic lights flickered on, dim for unwell eyes and unhelpful when sweeping for the enemy. We squinted into the gloom.

  ‘What was that?’ a man asked.

  ‘Lights came on,’ someone whispered. An older woman, maybe? ‘Either the kid’s awake, or we have visitors.’

  Their voices came from outside the health rooms, near the stairs, but the ward doors were open and I could hear every word.

  ‘Go check it out.’

  ‘You’re staying here?’

  The man groaned. ‘Fine. I’ll come with you, but it’ll only be that broken nanite lover.’

  They approached at speed, their boots clipping the deck. I took one side of the health doors and Aina took the other.

  The man stuck his head in first. Aina jammed her stunner into his neck with force. He fell immediately. I slid past him and faced a twin of Nomi. She was massive, already in a fighting stance, stunner up and a punch headed for my midsection. I jumped back, outside her range. She surged forward, her fist an inch from my nose, and then I heard a sharp zap. Her eyes widened and she crumpled, ploughing into me. I sidestepped most of her fall but caught her dead weight against my shoulder. She glanced off and hit the deck. I rubbed my aching shoulder. Aina had already moved to secure the man with his belt. I blinked and bent to do the same with the woman.

  We locked the guards in a tiny supply room and checked every corner of the health deck, including the private rooms, but the only other occupant was an unconscious James, his breath wheezing through the room.

  We lowered our stunners and returned to the elevator. ‘Terminal’s in the third back room. Can you handle this?’

  ‘I’ll do what’s needed. The best chance we have is with the patrol awake.’

  I nodded, entered the elevator, and punched in the deck number. ‘Don’t risk yourself. If we know what drug they used, we’ll have some idea when they’ll wake. That might be enough.’

  ‘Ludis’s group will know that too.’

  ‘Then we’ll be as informed as they are.’ Right now, I counted that as an advantage.

  ‘Hmm.’

  The doors closed on her motherly frown, and I gritted my teeth as the numbers increased, deck by deck. The air cooled in the elevator shaft, the lower levels less heated. Down, down, and the floor pushed into my knees as the elevator came to a stop on C-17.

  I raised the stunner and rested my finger on the trigger as the doors opened. The automatic lights were on, dim and faintly blue, and a shadow was heading for the elevator. Their hands were by their sides, empty, and slowly raised to their head, open in surrender. The figure stepped under the nearest light and smiled.

  ‘It’s me,’ Siti said.

  I lowered my weapon and grinned. ‘Get in here!’

  She hurried to the door. I passed her a spare stunner. She looked it over, checked it was operational, and gestured to the button panel. ‘Where to?’

  The doors slid closed, blocking the cooler air and some horrid memories. ‘Navigation.’

  She frowned. ‘That will be guarded with anyone they can spare.’

  ‘I know.’

  ‘Then why go there?’

  I rubbed my neck and sighed. ‘Rima gave me the override code.’

  Siti’s eyes popped. ‘With that you can control the whole ship.’

  ‘Only from navigation.’

  ‘Space me. I can’t believe Rima trusted us with that.’

  ‘She didn’t have much choice.’

  Siti’s finger hovered over C-2. ‘Security might be worse a level down, and we’ll need an advantage. If we can draw them, split them between decks…’

  ‘Agreed, but I should check in with Aina first.’

  I plugged the override code into the emergency communication panel and navigated to James’s inbox. There were many well-wishers’ messages and one voice message sent two minutes ago from health: ‘The terminal output a formula for the drug. It should wear off in the next two hours, depending on the dosage, but the counteracting formula has so many letters and numbers. I wouldn’t know where to start and—someone’s coming.’ A scuffle broke out and the line went dead.

  I bit my lip and hit the button for C-2. We were doing this alone.

  * * *

  The elevator slowed and Siti signalled for me to squeeze into the front corner of the elevator, where the wall would hide me. She did the same on her side, frowning. I doubted she’d be thinking about Aina. Siti was a better strategist, likely working through our choices. We could use all kinds of systems to flush out the mutineers, but getting to the nav control panels came first. I took deep breaths and braced myself for a fight. For all we knew, Aina had won hers, too.

  Feet pounded the deck the moment the doors opened. Siti and I judged their progress and jabbed the first two guards with stunners. We missed, and they retreated, out of reach. I glanced at Siti. She nodded, and we left the elevator.

  Three guards waited for us across the deck, baton and stunner in hand. As one, they rushed us.

  Siti flew into motion, ducking a punch to the head. I blocked a kick to my ribs. Two were on me. I stepped sideways, hoping to give myself room to move, but they expected it, and a well-placed kick robbed the air from my lungs. I gasped, bent over my knees as another kick crippled my back. I staggered, trying to get away. Nothing followed up, giving me a chance to regain my feet and look around. My chest heaved. Two guards were on the floor and one of Siti’s ar
ms hung limp. The last guard looked between the two of us, jutting out at one, then the other, sizing us up. Siti and I met eyes, nodded, and charged.

  We fell in a large tangle by the stairs, Siti underneath the man and me half straddling his chest. One leg had twisted underneath him and throbbed with fire.

  ‘Shit!’ I yanked my leg free and helped free Siti of the man’s stunned weight.

  She slid out and onto her feet, wincing as she tested her limp arm. ‘That’s not going to work right for a while.’

  ‘How bad is it?’

  ‘I think it’s just a badly pulled muscle. Hurts like anything, but nothing feels out of joint.’

  ‘Good.’ I looked around. ‘Well, there’s no way navigation guards missed that fight.’ They’d all hit the deck with a loud thump.

  Yet no one ran down, which meant they’d be ready for us upstairs, at the stairs and the elevator. They weren’t dumb enough to split their forces, but it’d been worth the try. I frowned at the nearest camera. Were they watching?

  ‘We can’t go up,’ I said. If the cameras were online, they’d massively restricted our options. What did that leave us?

  Siti turned and raced for the elevator. ‘Get in here. Now!’

  I hurried after her. ‘What’s wrong?’

  ‘The light lit up. If they call this thing up a floor, we’re trapped.’

  We got in just as the doors were closing. C-1 was lit up. My heart sped. We couldn’t go up there now. The elevator was already moving, pulling at my feet. I swung around until I found the emergency button. I flicked the glass up and slammed my palm down on the large red ‘stop’. The elevator jolted to a halt.

  Siti grabbed my arm as she struggled to regain her balance. ‘We can’t sit between decks forever,’ she said, righting herself.

  I frowned at the button. There were smaller numbered buttons beneath, 0 to 9. It would make sense if this… I plugged in Rima’s override code and hit enter. The light around C-1 faded, the call cancelled.

  I grinned. ‘We’re back in control.’