Psychogen (Galactic Syndicate Cycle Book 1)

by N. C. Madigan

  She found it far too easy to fall into metaphorical black holes of information. She followed a thread about the Moon Colonies, which began with a news story about what happened in the Colonies. The information was vague, but from what she understood, the leaders of the Moon had decided to release the poisonous gas, because the citizens of the Moon were revolting against the enforcers and the leadership.

  Liza continued to tap around, until her sister’s name glared up at her from the tablet.

  Vely Strange sighted on New Zion

  The Solar System Authority is still searching for Vely Strange, one of those charged with inciting riots on the Moon Colonies. She is believed to be in collusion with Cedrick Sones, another riot inciter from the Moon. The pair was last seen on New Zion. Attempts to locate the pair have not resulted in their capture. As always, any information on the whereabouts of these two criminals will be rewarded substantially.

  Liza’s mouth hung open, and she began to laugh. Becce and Dom, who had been tracing routes on the three-dimensional map of the solar system, looked at her.

  “What’s funny?” Becce asked. Liza glanced up at her friends.

  “My little sister is a galactic criminal!” she said, shouting the last word in laughter, while simultaneously jumping up from her seat. Becce and Dom lifted their eyebrows in identical looks. Liza stopped laughing, as realization and happiness spread over her face. “That means she’s alive!” She could hear Becce and Dom chuckling, but she didn’t care. It was the first indication she’d gotten that her sister was still alive. She wasn’t alone in the galaxy…

  “Did you find a stash of Fultraline somewhere?” Dom asked. Liza exhaled a long breath and dropped back into the chair she had been sitting on.

  “No, of course not,” she said. “I’m just happy.”

  “Happiness looks good on you,” Becce said with a wink. Liza smiled at her, and she truly did feel happy, and she knew that it had been a long, long time sime she felt that way.

  Liza picked up her tablet once more and read through the short article about Vely. This time, she saw there was additional information about this Cedrick character. Liza followed the links to several articles about him. But the more she read, the more uneasy she began to feel.

  Sones Family Found Murdered, Son Cedrick Suspected

  Fifth Robbery in Three Months, Cedrick Sones Accused

  Cedrick Sones and his Illegal Gambling Ring Shut Down

  “He knew things about me that I’ve never told anyone.”

  Liza chewed on her bottom lip as all the excitement from a moment before left her body, leaving her feeling deflated. Perhaps there was more to the galactic criminal story than she thought. Was this guy making her do things she didn’t want to do? Liza chewed harder, and all her feelings of happiness disappeared. Excusing herself, Liza left the cockpit and returned to her own room to brood.

  With the worry for her sister on her mind, Liza found it more difficult to keep her kathokinesis under control. It happened most while she was sleeping. She’d noticed it before, like her blanket ending up on the other side of the room. But it was getting worse.

  During sleep, her mind filled with images of horrors on the Moon colonies, of Vely being tortured, the memory of her father’s execution. Liza would wake up in a sweat, her body rigid and tense, only to find that her room had been blown apart. Clothes lying everywhere, her random trinkets nowhere near where she’d left them. She even noticed that the bolts holding down the desk in her room were loosening, the metal prying up from the floor in curls, like an old piece of paper in Vely’s books.

  One night, she had a particularly horrible nightmare, in which her entire family was lined up and systematically executed with gamma pistols. Worse, the Enforcers laughed during and after the bodies had fallen to the ground, their heads blown apart into many small pieces. In the dream, Liza fell to her knees, vomiting on the ground. Something crashed around her, metal clanging on metal, the ringing in her ears making her feel like her own head would explode.

  “Liza! Wake up!”

  She tore her eyes open. Around her, the room was in shambles. The desk had finally torn itself from the floor and was lying upside down against the other wall. Her clothes were everywhere, and one of the doors on the wardrobe had been completely ripped from its hinges. There was a large dent in the wall as well, where the desk had most likely struck.

  Becce was in the doorway, her face frightened, wearing only a tank top and a pair of loose shorts. Her hair was a tangled mess, having just been roused from bed. Liza stared at her, panting.

  “What the hell is going on?” Becce asked, stepping into the room, skirting around all the objects on the floor. Liza shook her head, rubbing her face with her hands.

  “I can’t control it,” Liza moaned. “Not in my sleep.” Becce sat down beside her on the bed and pulled the younger girl into her arms.

  “It’ll be okay. We’ll figure something out,” she said. Liza shook her head and stood up to pace.

  “I need to find my sister.” Becce looked at her sadly, and Liza could only interpret the look as meaning the chances of finding Vely were slim. In exasperation, Liza dropped back down onto the bed beside Becce.

  “What’s going on?”

  Dom now stood in the doorway, looking like he’d taken the time to throw on clothes before leaving his room. He stood now, his hands hanging at his sides, surveying the room. Liza turned her head to hide her blush.

  “Liza’s having a problem,” Becce answered. Dom stepped into the room and shut the door behind him.

  “I suppose it has something to do with this mess?”

  Liza finally faced him and explained that she was losing control of her power while sleeping; the clothes flying around the room, the desk, and the nightmares.

  “I think that too much stress about her sister is causing her katho abilities to become uncontrolled,” Becce said quietly, giving Dom a look. He pressed his lips together.

  “That’s why the Captain wants her to meet his contact on the Cove. He knows someone who might be able to give her some advice,” Dom said. He was moving around the room, righting the desk and chair, picking up the door to the wardrobe and leaning it against the wall. Liza watched him, twisting her hands in her lap. She didn’t trust anyone to help her. She only trusted Vely. “I’ll have Weed and Speed come fix this stuff when they wake up, if that’s okay,” Dom said, gesturing around the room. Liza nodded in consent. Dom gave her a smile, then excused himself. Liza’s stomach tightened in nervousness. He’d probably tell the Captain.

  Becce’s hands returned to Liza, pulling her back into a hug.

  “Dom and I will help you. Don’t worry Liza,” Becce said. Liza desperately wanted to believe her, but no one in her life had ever meant it when they said, ‘I’ll help you.’

  22

  Denny used his connections to get the three of them a decent hotel within the main sector. It was very close to the green light district that Denny had disappeared to for most of the day. The hotel workers were discreet, and Denny said they’d be less likely to tell anyone what they’ve seen. Either way, Vely was excited for an actual bed, rather than the hard, uncomfortable beds on the ship.

  “So what’s the plan?” Denny asked. The three had settled down on the beds, eating carry out food from one of the vendors nearby. Both Vely and Cedrick shrugged their shoulders.

  “No plan yet. Without the proper authorization codes, we’ll never get anywhere near the Cove,” Cedrick said between bites. Denny pursued his lips together, thinking.

  “And we’re sure that Liza will be there?” he asked.

  “Not absolutely sure, but I think there’s a good chance,” Vely replied. The food Denny had bought was strange and unfamiliar and took some getting used to. There were so many spices cooked into the food that her tongue had trouble sorting out all the flavors. Too many years of bland soybean mush.

  “We’ve already established that we can’t contact The Gypsy Star, since their com
munication line is blocked from outsiders,” Denny said. Silence fell for a moment while the three of them thought over the issue.

  “How do you know so much about the pirates?” Vely asked, eyeing the other man. He smiled pleasantly at her.

  “Dear, I have been a pilot for a long time. There’s not much in this solar system that I haven’t seen,” he answered. Until now, Denny had not given any reason for Vely not to trust him, so she chose to continue to trust him now, but the twisting feeling in her stomach wouldn’t go away. She couldn’t be sure if it was worry or the food.

  “I’ll go out tonight, see what I can dig up,” Denny said. “You’d be surprised how knowledgeable my Martian friends can be.” Cedrick nodded. He rose from the bed and dropped his carton in the trash. Vely watched him. How could he stand to eat this kind of food so quickly? Her entire mouth felt like it was on fire. She continued to watch him as he paced back and forth along the length of the room, alternating between rubbing his chin and scratching the back of his neck.

  Finally, Cedrick stopped and turned, pointing one finger at Denny. “What if…” he began, only to resume pacing. “What if we reprogram your ship to look like a pirate ship?” Denny raised a skeptical eyebrow. Vely snorted.

  “If that was possible, wouldn’t everyone do it?” she asked. Cedrick shook his head.

  “Not everyone wants to have their ship look like a pirate’s. That’s just a reason for the Solar System Authority to lock onto a ship and take it down,” he said. Denny tapped a finger on his chin.

  “We’d need a Galactic Syndicate authorization code to get in. Perhaps we can get our hands on one,” Denny said.

  “How?” Vely asked.

  “We steal one,” Cedrick answered with determination in his voice.

  “That, or…” Denny began. He picked up his bag from the floor and retrieved his tablet. He made a few quick swipes on the screen, then looked up, grinning. “We get one from a mostly destroyed pirate ship. At least there will be no duplicates. And trust me, you don’t want to try and steal anything from a pirate.” Cedrick and Vely glanced at each other. Vely had no other ideas.

  “What do we have to do?” she asked.

  A dark stranger joined their little group. Denny arranged to meet up with him outside of the hotel. The stranger didn’t speak a word to them. He simply led them through the dark streets of the Mars colony. Vely stuck close to Cedrick. She’d decided that her earlier worry had been her upset stomach from the food. After some digestion, the fluttery feeling in her stomach went away.

  Cedrick slipped his hand into Vely’s and gave it a squeeze.

  “How do we know we can trust this guy?” Vely whispered to Cedrick. He released a slow breath.

  “We can’t know, really, but we have to trust Denny,” he replied.

  “But what stake does Denny have in all this?” Vely asked. She watched Cedrick as she spoke and noticed that his face froze before answering.

  “I promised to do some work for him in exchange for his help,” Cedrick answered, rather dismissively. Vely frowned.

  “That sounds dubious,” Vely said. Cedrick gave her hand another squeeze.

  “Don’t worry about anything, Vely,” he said, and turned his attention back to following Denny and the stranger. Vely wanted to continue questioning him, but she got the feeling that he was done talking for now. The fluttering in her stomach returned.

  The stranger led them down alley after alley, through dusty archways between buildings, and at one point, they entered a pub, only to walk through and exit through the back. Vely couldn’t comprehend the ridiculousness of this route. Both Denny and Cedrick seemed too preoccupied with their thoughts to bother explaining anything.

  The stranger finally stopped at a door. He knocked, a series of raps and pauses. The door opened slowly, one eye peering out from the darkness beyond. The stranger raised a hand to the person on the other side of the door, and the door pulled open all the way. The stranger led the way into the dark passage.

  “Watch your step,” he said, his rough voice echoing oddly against the rocky walls. They were descending a staircase, and Vely wondered how deep they were going into Mars.

  Several minutes passed before Vely began to see light at the bottom of a stairwell. Noise, like the chatter of many voices, swelled from the gateway at the bottom of the steps. She could make out snatches of conversations, and they all sounded like bartering.

  They reached the bottom. The stranger turned to Denny and bowed. Denny returned the gesture, and the stranger disappeared into a crowd of people. Denny led the way into the light.

  The underground room looked like the market square of the Moon, but with deadlier merchandise. Weapons of all kinds lay on tables, gamma pistols of varying sizes, old knives, and weapons that Vely had never seen before. There were food items on some of the tables, which people passed by and looked at longingly. Many people were crowded into the dusty cavern, and Vely began to feel overwhelmed. Cedrick took her hand once more.

  “Shall we?” Denny asked, and led the way through the crowd.

  Vely relaxed as the sounds of the black market settled into her ears, bringing back memories of Liza yelling at junk sellers over the price of various items she’d picked up on the streets, the haggling, the shouting, the bidding. That was all gone now. But Vely was hopeful. After she found her sister, they could find a place, maybe even on Mars, to set up a new home and make a new life. At least on Mars, it seemed like most people were too busy or self-involved to care about anyone else’s business. And unless they looked different here, Vely didn’t see any Enforcers.

  Her thoughts were interrupted when Denny stopped at a table. The man behind it was tall and gruff looking; his head was bald, but his mustache and goatee were braided and twisted with beads and bits of faux leather. The visible skin was riddled with scars, including something on his arm that looked like the impact of a gamma pistol.

  “How did you survive that?” Vely asked without thinking. The man’s dark eyes homed in on her, but he smiled.

  “I was wear’n’ armor that day,” he said. “Lucky me, eh?” Vely nodded, marveling at the almost perfect imprint of the gamma pistol’s blast on his arm.

  “Armor made of what?” she asked. Cedrick and Denny both nudged her at the same time.

  “Vely!”

  “Hush!”

  The man chuckled. “Lead,” he said. “Hard to get, heavy as hell, but very useful. Wish I still had it, for the raids and all.”

  “Raids?” she asked. Beside her, she could feel Denny and Cedrick tense with irritation.

  “When the Enforcers have the whim, they’ll raid us. But most of them are too drunk and lazy to care,” he answered, seeming to be amused by Vely’s curiosity. So, there were Enforcers on Mars. Before she could ask him another question, he added, “What can I do for you lot?”

  Denny breathed in relief and stepped up to his table. “We need a Syndicate authorization code,” he said. The man nodded and pushed a few items around his table. Finally, he lifted a box. It looked battered, and several split wires stuck out from one side.

  “This is a coded drive from the Neptune Cycle. Found floating around nearby not two weeks ago. Fresh,” he said, holding up the box for Denny’s inspection. “Only the best for our curious little friend here,” he added, gesturing to Vely, who smiled and blushed slightly.

  “Still works?” Denny asked. The man nodded.

  “The code’s there. Just attach her up to your ship, override your ship’s real identity, and you should be good to go. Though I can’t guarantee you won’t be killed outright anyway,” the man said. “I don’t sell guarantees or promises.”

  “How much?” Denny asked. The man shuffled a bit before answering, as if he were debating.

  “40k,” he said. Cedrick and Denny both scoffed.

  “Are you kidding me?” Cedrick asked. Vely watched them. It seemed reasonable to her, but then, prices on the Moon had been grossly inflated.

  “30,
” Denny said.

  “34,” the man answered back. “As I said, it’s fresh.” Denny scrunched up his nose, and Cedrick still looked irritated.

  “Just do it,” Cedrick said, and he held out his arm, where his S-chip was embedded in his wrist. The man nodded and lifted his tablet to scan the S-chip and deduct the amount. Denny took the little box and looked it over.

  “It better work,” Denny mumbled.

  “It works,” the man said. Denny and Cedrick turned away to confer about the device. Vely was about to follow when she felt a grip on her upper arm.

  “Missy,” he said, his voice low. She turned and looked up at him, his hand still gripping her upper arm. “You might’ve changed your hair, but everything else ‘bout you is the same. Be careful, Vely Strange.” Vely blinked and shrunk back from his grip, her eyes wide with fear. “I’m not gonna tell anyone, but like I said, be careful.” He stuck his hand in his pocket and pulled out a piece of flattened metal and handed it over to her. Vely took it and looked it over. Embossed on the surface was his name, Ren Pera, and his communication code. “You ever need anything, contact me.”

  “How do I know I can trust you?” she asked, pulling the metal card to her chest, staring at him in wonder and fear. He chuckled.

  “I suppose you don’t,” he said. “I don’t have powers like you, but I can tell when someone does. You’re a Tranq, and he’s an Auger,” Ren said, gesturing to Cedrick. “And I can tell that you’re missing the other half of your Dyad.”

  “Liza,” Vely whispered. “How could you possibly know this?” A severe expression crossed her face. “Are you a Bloodhound?”

  Ren shook his head. “No. Let’s just say I’m psycho-sensitive,” he said with a lopsided grin. “You’re right to be untrusting, missy, just don’t forget about those closest to you,” he said. Vely stomach began to flutter once more, and she glanced over her shoulder. Denny and Cedrick had moved further away, looking over a table of weapons. Vely turned back to Ren.