“I’m a Tranquil!” Vely said. “We’re a Dyad!”
“A what?” Liza asked. Cedrick spoke up.
“Tranquils have certain powers, such as exuding a powerful sense of calm, which when used maliciously, can send a person into a powerful state of stupor, and can be easily influenced. Vely can also put special locks on buildings and rooms to keep others away. I’m an Augur, meaning I can see visions of the future.”
Liza absorbed this information. It was strange, but of course, why would her power be the only one in the universe? “And a Dyad?”
“A Tranquil and a Kathokenetic who are paired together, balancing each other’s powers. You two are from the same family, which is especially rare,” Cedrick explained. “It’s why your powers didn’t manifest until after the two of you were separated.” Liza pressed a hand to her temple, filing away this new information for later. She honestly wouldn’t care if she and Vely were aliens - she was just glad they were together again.
“I also suspect that you were lured away by a Bloodhound,” Cedrick added, making Liza’s frown deepen. “They use blood to find people like us. The Bloodhounds on the Moon had your mother’s blood, looking for Vely. But she stayed hidden. It’s possible that a Bloodhound smelled you and brought you on board. Your powers are coveted.”
“This is too much,” Liza said, turning away from Cedrick, pulling Vely with her. “I don’t understand any of this.”
“I’ll explain it all later. We need to leave though. We’re not supposed to be here,” Vely whispered.
“Leave? To go with them? Where?” Liza asked. Vely glanced back, then to her sister once more.
“I... I don’t know. Somewhere. You can’t mean to stay with the pirates forever,” Vely said.
Liza hesitated. “But where else can we go? The Moon is dead. The Sun Stations are out of the question. What else is there?”
“We could live on Mars. I know someone who might help us find a place to live,” Vely explained. Liza bit her lip and twisted her hands nervously. Vely pulled a glove off her hand and touched her sister’s cheek, allowing her power to fill her sister, relaxing her. Liza gave her a look.
“That feels weird,” she said. “Like ice freezing my veins.”
“Sorry.” Liza shook her head.
“There’s… someone on the ship…” she began. Vely’s eyes lit up.
“Someone who?”
“His name is Dom. He is… maddening,” Liza said, her voice low, still fidgeting despite her sister’s power. Vely smiled knowingly.
“Then we’ll figure something else out. Where is he?” Vely asked, eyeing the table.
“He’s not there. He’s with Captain; Dom’s the Quartermaster.”
“Hey!” Becce waved her arm. “We have more drinks!” Liza nodded to Vely, then motioned for Cedrick and Denny to follow. They joined the crew at the table, where a barrage of comments and questions began, from everything to ‘What was Liza like as a kid?’ to ‘How the hell did you get on the Cove?’
27
Liza was overwhelmed and wanted to return to the ship. But she couldn’t disappear, and she wasn’t going to leave Vely. So, she waited, answering questions, occasionally touching her sister’s arm to reassure herself that she was really there. Liza’s subconscious spent a lot of time piecing together the new information, and Liza realized just how much sense it all made, that they were so opposite, it made sense for the two to balance each other out. It was perfectly fine by her. She planned on never letting her sister out of her sight again.
Down the table from where she sat, Liza could see Cedrick and his pilot friend Denny, chatting with Corbin. They had traveled with Vely, and somehow managed to track Liza to the Cove. They had helped Vely, but could Cedrick really be trusted, after everything she read about him?
Cedrick looked up and met Liza’s eyes. He smiled, but Liza couldn’t shake the feeling of ulterior motives that might be hiding in his mind. As she stared at him, a flash of something, almost like a memory, filled her mind for a moment, before fading away. Confused, Liza turned her gaze away from Cedrick and back to her sister, tugging the now white hair.
“Are you sure you trust him?” Liza breathed to her sister. Vely turned her attention back to Liza, and gave her one of those condescending looks, at which she was well versed.
“He saved me, many times,” Vely answered, then dropped her voice a bit lower. “I have a feeling there’s more to him than he’s admitted to me, but so far, he’s never done anything to hurt me.” Liza bit her lip, still fidgeting. Vely shook her head. “You are still a worrier,” Vely said, tugging one of Liza’s dreads.
“They’re back!” It was Weed and Speed who spoke. They’d stood up on the benches along the tables and pointed in the direction of Captain Warwick and Dom, who walked with the crowd of other ship captains. The large group emerged from the tunnel, though most of the captains looked very grim. Liza wondered what had been discussed and what had been decided.
Warwick and Dom joined the crew at the table. At first, neither noticed the additional people at the table; it wasn’t unusual for crews to find other pirates they knew on the Cove. It was Dom who first recognized the similar features between Liza and the new face. Liza watched him circle the table and step up behind her. He leaned down between their shoulders.
“Liza, would this be your sister?” he asked quietly, and Liza answered with a nod. Dom’s face broke into a large grin, and he hugged them both with his long arms around their shoulders. Vely shrieked in surprise, laughing along with Dom. The three had Warwick’s attention now. To Liza’s dismay, Zimir had slithered up to Warwick’s side, and was glaring down at Liza and her sister.
“Who do we have here?” Warwick asked, his hands disappearing into the pockets of his long coat. Thankfully, Becce spoke up so Liza didn’t have to.
“Captain, this is Vely, Liza’s sister,” she said, sharing in the enthusiasm. Warwick smiled, and it almost reached his eyes.
“Wonderful! You’ve made your way to each other!” he said, which was followed by drunken cheers from the crew. Warwick motioned to one of the women serving drinks and ordered another round. The crew shifted to make room on the table for Warwick and Dom, the latter who seated himself directly between Liza and Vely, and began to talk, asking for the full story. Liza tried to contribute, but her mind was elsewhere. She could feel the burning eyes of Zimir on her, making her squirm. She wondered if he knew about Vely… that she had powers like her own. But his lecherous glare never landed on Vely; it continued to linger on Liza.
Dom touched her shoulder lightly, about to speak, when a loud commotion startled everyone. Heads craned in the direction of the noise coming from the tunnel. A large brute of a man, with a rough and scarred face and a long beard stormed through the crowd. His eyes flashed and his mouth was set in a deep frown.
“There are intruders in our midst!” the man shouted, his voice ringing against the walls of the cavernous room. The room broke into whispers among the tables. Before Liza could think, her head swiveled in the direction of the pilot who had brought Vely and Cedrick to the Cove. Denny was trying hard to keep his face straight, but Liza could see that Cedrick was glancing around nervously, his fingers twisting around each other. The Gypsy Star’s crew tried to remain calm as well.
The chaos began faster than anyone could have expected. Crews and friends at tables suddenly glared at each other, suspecting the other for being an intruder. Liza rose up quickly from her place at the table and reached for Vely, who followed suit. Dom jumped to his feet, his hands on the two girls’ shoulders. Warwick stared down the table at Cedrick and Denny, the only two he didn’t know, and in whom he had no vested interest.
Liza’s stomach lurched, but Warwick’s mouth remained closed. Liza was just beginning to feel a shred of relief when she was yanked backwards, landing hard on the ground. Shouts filled her ears, and it was a moment before she could see clearly again, the landing having jarred her vision into a blurred mess.
Someone grabbed her arm roughly and began to drag her without ceremony.
“No!” she cried, struggling against the strong grasp, but she couldn’t get away, and seemingly, no one could hear her. She looked back over her shoulder at the chaos behind her. Dom and Becce were holding Vely closely to them, looking around frantically. Liza opened her mouth to scream for help, but a heavy blow landed on her head.
“Shut up, bitch,” a voice said close to her ear. Before the darkness closed in, Liza could have sworn she heard Zimir’s laughter.
28
Dom’s hand curled tightly around Vely’s shoulder, but she tugged away, trying to find Liza. “Where is she?” Vely cried, jumping up and down to try and see over the chaos of heads and moving bodies. Among the pirates, red-uniformed Enforcers spilled from the tunnel, aiming their gamma pistols. Officers appeared behind the Enforcers, shouting orders.
“She’s probably with Corbin or Dr. D,” Dom answered, still trying to pull Vely away from the chaos. “We have to go.” Vely was shaking her head.
Cedrick and Denny had risen from the table and were trying to fight their way through the crowd, but it was too dense. Vely spotted several tall men pushing their way through the crowds, dressed entirely in black, with black hoods over their heads. Beside her, Dom sucked in a breath.
“That’s bad,” he said, and gave her another tug. “We can’t let them find you.”
“But what about Ced and Denny?” Vely cried, one hand reaching for her friends. Dom shook his head.
“They’ll have to fend for themselves,” he said. In a swift movement, Dom looped an arm around Vely and hefted her over his shoulder like a sack.
“Hey!” she cried, struggling against his grip, but he held fast. She could only watch as the men wearing black caught up to Cedrick and Denny. Two broke away from the group, each grabbing the clothing at their chests. The man holding up Cedrick peered into his face, then pulled a knife from a hidden place in his sleeve. He nicked the skin under Cedrick’s jaw and appeared to sniff the blood.
“Bloodhounds,” Vely moaned, watching in horror as Dom tried to fight through the panicking pirates. The man in black nudged the second one, who nodded, and Cedrick was carried off in a different direction. “What will they do to him?”
The other man in black, however, appeared to have no desire to find out anything else about Denny. The man dropped Denny to the ground and pulled a gamma pistol from his belt.
“NO!” Vely screamed, but the trigger was pulled. In the next instant, Denny’s body crumbled to the ground. Vely pressed her hands over her eyes just as hot tears welled up and spilled down over her cheeks. Her ribs hurt from being slung over Dom’s shoulder, and her racking breath from crying did not help.
“I’m sorry, Vely,” Dom said quietly to her. The moment had only lasted a little more than a few seconds, and all that Vely knew and had worked for was stripped away. She sobbed against his back as the crowd continued to move towards the docking bays.
Vely was numb by the time Dom deposited her in a room on the Gypsy Star, and left quickly, telling her to rest. The lingering smell of the room reminded her of Liza. Vely sighed and looked around. Clothes hung out of a wardrobe built into the wall, and the bed was rumpled and messy from Liza’s sleep. A small inset shelf contained several items, including makeup, some sort of wax, and miraculously, the books that Vely had left back on the Moon. A small bottle tucked away caught her eye. Vely picked it up. It was medicine, the medicine that Liza had gone to buy and never returned home. Touching the small bottle brought a fresh wave of tears to her eyes, as she pictured her mother, huddled against the cold, during the last moments of her life.
She put the bottle back on the shelf, crawled into the bed and buried her face in the pillow. Vely allowed new tears to fall and soak the pillow. When she closed her eyes, her mind insisted on repeating the scene of Denny’s death, of the gamma pistol obliterating his body. She heard the engines of the ship start up. The ship lurched as it moved away from the docking bay, and the engines roared to life. Vely closed her eyes, but she was jerked awake when the ship heaved to the side. She grabbed widely before she rolled out of the bed, landing hard on the floor.
“Brace yourselves!” a voice called over the ship’s intercom. “Man the guns!”
Vely pushed herself up and climbed back onto the bed, holding tightly to a shelf. The ship rocked again with another blast. A roaring noise filled Vely’s ears. With her eyes closed tightly, she held on as the ship heaved and tilted in all directions.
The clock in the room had moved forward a few hours when a gentle shake woke Vely from her nightmares. A woman stood over her, smiling sadly. Vely pushed herself up and wiped the dried tear streaks from her cheeks. “Who are you again?” Vely asked, looking up at the taller woman.
“Becce Kery. I’m the navigator for this crew,” she answered. Becce sat down on the bed beside Vely and rested a hand on her shoulder. “I’m so sorry about how this all turned out. I wanted the two of you on this ship almost as much as Liza did.” Vely nodded sadly.
“It’s not your fault. We’re the ones who snuck on the Cove with a stolen code,” Vely said. “We should have been more careful.”
Becce shook her head. “It wasn’t just you. The Enforcers…” Vely squeezed her eyes closed as the image of the black-clad Bloodhounds rose in her memory. “Well, you’re welcome to stay with us. But I can’t guarantee that we’ll be able to find Liza any time soon. That’s why I came here. Captain Warwick has called a crew meeting,” Becce said, rising to her feet. Vely sighed and pulled herself up from the bed. On the wall, there was a small mirror, which Vely glanced in, to make sure she was presentable. Already, her white roots were showing through the hair dye. She wondered if she should try to cover the roots up, or just forget about it. Vely turned and followed Becce from the room.
Becce led Vely to the bridge. On the center of the table, a holoprojector showed a map of the surrounding area of space. The crew had already gathered, and Vely found she’d already forgotten everyone else’s names, except for Dom. The crew watched her with interest as she took a seat next to Becce.
“You two always find the strays, don’t you?” a large bald man asked Becce and Dom, but he smiled as he spoke.
“They are a veritable stray magnet,” Captain Warwick said, without much humor in his voice. Dom and Becce smiled but said nothing. The bald man turned his attention to Vely.
“My name is Dirk, but you can just call me Dr. D,” he said. Vely nodded shyly.
“Introductions can be made later. We have much to discuss,” Captain Warwick snapped. Vely caught the almost imperceptible rolling of Dr. D’s eyes before he shifted his gaze back up to the Captain. Vely hid her smile behind her gloved hand.
Captain Warwick pressed a button on the holoprojector, and a diagram of the ship appeared. Several points were glowing red. “We took some fairly heavy damage when we tried to escape. The SSA had cloaked their ships, which is how they managed that surprise attack. We’re waiting for the all-clear from the Cove, after they’ve flushed the rats, and we’ll return for repairs. In the meantime,” He pressed another button and the projection of the ship disappeared, replaced by a map of the solar system. “The meeting today at the Cove was about some activities that the Sun Stations, Wal-Nad, and the Solar System Authority are implementing. Naturally, the Galactic Syndicate is displeased. Walnad plans to take over all the trading routes, or at least as many as they can get their disgusting hands on. The Sun Stations and Solar System Authority support this because it means less cost to them and more money in their pockets. Walnad has begun to fund the Solar System Authority goons to police the routes. Not to mention, they want to kill every one of us.” The crew members grumbled.
Vely looked around the table as a few whispered to each other. Her eyes drifted over a tall, thin man with a spiky beard, who was staring daggers at her from across the table. He looked like he was trying to read her soul, the way his sharp eyes bore into her skull. A ti
ny prod from her subconscious whispered to stay away from that man. With effort, Vely dragged her gaze from him and resumed staring at Captain Warwick. She could still feel the man’s eyes on her, even when the Captain continued to speak.
“Of course, many of you will remember the last time they tried to pull something like this,” Captain said, a disquieting grin on his face. “It didn’t go over so well. But this time, they are planning something much… worse.” Captain Warwick made eye contact with everyone around the table before he continued. His gaze lingered a moment longer on Vely before he moved on. “The Solar System Authority is capturing Psychogens, people like our friend Liza, to brainwash them and use them as a division of their military.” A pair of twins sitting across the table from Vely cried out in horror. “Under the SSA’s control, the Psychogens will be very dangerous enemies.”
“Is that why Liza was taken?” Becce asked. Captain Warwick nodded.
“That’s what I believe, anyway. I wouldn’t put it past some of our comrades to be working with those bastards, capturing our most powerful crew members,” he said. Vely saw in his eyes that he was lying. The Enforcers on the Moon always had the same look in their eyes, the same twitch of the mouth, He was lying. Under the table, Vely clenched her fists. “It gets worse than that, I’m afraid. While the SSA brainwashes our friend, they’ll be studying her, in order to refine a chip that can be planted in normal people, which will mimic the powers of Psychogens.” Beside her, Becce closed her eyes and pressed a hand over them.
“Any miscalculations in that plan on their part could be disastrous,” she said, and removed her hand from her eyes. “I still dream about what Liza did on our last raid.”
“The Sun Stations are behind these plans, but I can imagine that they’ll change their minds once they realize that Walnad and the SSA are going to move against them as well. But that’s not our problem. Captain Thane Lezal, the Galactic Syndicate’s new boss, wants the rest of us to focus on ruining the plans, of course. Taking out Walnad and SSA ships, looting as many merchant ships as possible, and leaving no survivors.”
Psychogen (Galactic Syndicate Cycle Book 1) Page 17
