Lars slammed his hand on the controls for the maintenance hatch, trying to force it to close faster. None of them could leave the airlock until the outer hatch had closed, and the green-lit fragment of debris streaked ever closer.
They heaved a collective sigh of relief when the hatch thunked closed and the inner hatch started to cycle. It opened in the same moment that the blast struck the liner, rocked it sideways, and sent them to their knees as they flung themselves into the ship. Instantly, the emergency protocols came into play and hatches snapped shut, compartmentalizing the ship to maintain its atmosphere in case the hull was breached.
Stephanie clicked her tongue. “Well, I guess he wasn’t bluffing.”
The team staggered to their feet and Lars looked around to make sure they were all okay. “Now what?”
She looked at the Dreth ship still docked to the Federal liner. “I guess we have to board the Dreth ship.”
“If it’s still attached,” Frog muttered gloomily.
Marcus clapped him on the shoulder. “There’s only one way to find out.”
They all agreed and stripped out of their emergency suits to head back to the main boarding area. Lars spoke to someone on his comms halfway there.
“What?” Stephanie asked.
“I told the captain to keep everyone in their cabins,” he said. “We don’t want any passengers or crew walking about until we can get this mess cleaned up.”
They raced back to the breach point, using the emergency override codes Lars was given by the captain to open and reseal each bulkhead they encountered. To their relief, they discovered the Dreth had used a hard dock rather than an umbilical to gain entry to the vessel.
Instead of blowing the passenger entry, they’d pierced the liner’s outer hull and used clamps to drag the two ships closer before they temporarily sealed the two ships together. The mystery of it was why they hadn’t released the clamps, dissolved the seal, and left. The team crossed into the other ship and ran through surprisingly empty corridors to find only the occasional Dreth body and rooms stockpiled with food.
They’d explored most of the ship when Stephanie entered another hallway and her magic woke and jolted a charge of energy through her. She followed it, found a large metal door, and called for Johnny, who removed the covering from the control panel and managed to activate it. As soon as the entrance was open, they both moaned and covered their noses and mouths.
For the first time, she questioned the wisdom of not staying in the emergency suits. They would have slowed the team down and none of them were used to wearing them, but they’d been stupid lucky not to have needed them.
The smell that surged over them was unlike anything she’d ever experienced. She put one foot inside and stopped to stare in shock and disbelief. Bodies lay everywhere, both human and Meligornian— children, animals, and the beaten and bruised corpses of over a dozen different women.
Johnny put his hand on her shoulder and pulled her back. He wrapped his arms around her and turned to pass her to Lars. “You shouldn’t have had to see that. I’m sorry.”
Before she could react, the scene faded, and she stood wrapped in Lars’ arms with her team surrounding her in a large, beautiful Meligornian field. Strike appeared and stood before them, but it was Elizabeth’s voice that echoed from the speakers. “Very good, team. I’m sorry you encountered bodies. I’m sorry that the universe is such an ugly place.”
Stephanie folded her arms. “I don’t know why that was necessary. All those women and children. It was horrible.”
Ms. E hadn’t liked including that part of the scenario, but it had to be done. “Stephanie, my job here is to prepare you for anything you might face out there. Like I said, the universe can be a very ugly place, and you have to grow up sometime. Better you do that in here with people who care about you than out there where people will try to use or hurt you in some way.”
Stephanie remained silent and simply nodded her head in understanding. The AAR AI began her report, went through the different sections of the fight, and broke them down into things done well and things done badly. This was one of the best scenario completions they’d managed. When the report was over, they woke in their pods.
Elizabeth stood beside Stephanie’s and put her hand on the girl’s shoulder as she climbed out. “Everyone, go clean up, but before you head to bed, meet me in the common room. I have an announcement.”
She turned her head to her charge. “Are you all right?”
She nodded and rubbed her forehead. “I know there is even worse than that out there. I know that in my life, I will probably see things that will never leave my mind. I guess it’s not a bad thing, though, to be sad about it when you see it. It shows I still have some empathy and caring left in my soul.”
Her mentor hugged her. “You have so much caring and empathy, I doubt you will ever lose it. You have to protect your heart, and you have to protect your soul. Everything else will be okay if you can keep those two things safe.”
Stephanie pulled back and gave her a tight-lipped smile before she headed off to take a shower. The woman shut the pod and sighed. This was one part of the job that no one wanted to deal with.
Once they’d showered and changed, the team made their way back to the common room. Everyone wore their pajamas and looked dead tired. Stephanie walked carefully and tried not to reveal the amount of pain she felt from the last session. When they were all seated, Elizabeth looked around. “Where’s Frog?”
“I’m here,” he yelled as he slid around the corner in an adult-sized Superman onesie.
They all chuckled as he took his seat and grinned from ear to ear. Elizabeth shook her head and laughed softly, the first real laugh she’d had in days. “All right, family. We have our travel information for the trip to Meligorn.”
Everyone but Stephanie cheered. It was hard to cheer when she could still see the bodies whenever she closed her eyes. The older woman watched her as everyone settled again. She felt for the girl but knew there was nothing she could do to fix it.
This was something else she would have to work out on her own. That was simply the way that it was for every warrior, soldier, and mercenary in the universe. For Stephanie, though, Elizabeth knew such carnage would never become commonplace or easy to deal with.
With an effort, Ms. E shifted her attention to the group. “So, the good news is that the Meligornian king and queen will pay for everyone to go to Meligorn, and not only those receiving awards. They know we’re a team, and even if you weren’t at the Gala, you were part of the reason those fighting fought so well. So, make sure your toenails are clipped, and you lose the… What did you tell that man at the party? Wash the idiot out of your mouth?”
Everyone laughed and Stephanie managed a smile for the first time since she’d left the pod. She nodded and shrugged. “Hey, sometimes, you have to tell them how it is. You can’t let these idiots keep walking around here like that.”
“That’s the truth,” Frog replied and shot the others an evil look.
“Awe, Frog is butt-hurt,” Marcus said and laughed.
“I think I would be too if someone put toothpaste in my shampoo and shampoo in my toothpaste,” Johnny quipped and laughed hysterically.
Elizabeth gave Frog a pouty-lipped glare and continued. “Make sure you clean up well because you will represent ONE R&D and the first witch of the Federation in front of Meligornian royalty…and may God help us all.”
The guys all put their hands up in the air and cheered. Lars grabbed Stephanie’s hand and raised it, and the gesture made her laugh. In turn, that made her relax and her team filled the hole she’d felt had been carved in her chest ever since she’d climbed out of the pod. She stood and raised her hand to silence the group. “And one more thing. We will make a pit stop at my house to see my parents. So, please, try not to embarrass me.”
“We’ll be as good as angels,” Johnny said, painting a halo around his head with his hand, and blinked as innocently as he was
able.
Frog ran up behind him and stuck two fingers on either side of his forehead like horns. “Demons posing as angels maybe.”
That night, they all went to bed in a good mood—laughing, singing, and ready to head out into the universe after an intense week of training. Not every day had been good, but not every day had been bad either. They had clicked at some point and really started to look and feel like a team. That was something none of them had dreamt would happen that fast.
The next morning seemed to come too soon for Stephanie, who heard the alarm and dragged her sore, tired, and bruised body into a seated position on the edge of the bed. She grunted with pain as she lifted her leg and pushed her fingers down her sore calves in an attempt to loosen them. Everyone was packed and ready to head back to the home base, and all they had to do was have breakfast.
She took her time getting dressed, not really hungry in spite of the workout she’d had. It didn’t bother her, though. She was merely happy she’d slept through the night without any nightmares from what she had seen. The whole scenario had begun to feel more like a dream or a movie scene than reality. It still wasn’t something she could wrap her mind around, but now, she didn’t have to. She decided that was probably for the best.
On the trip home, she curled up in a corner of the car and pulled her phone out. She had a missed call from Todd, and simply seeing his name made her feel better. Once she listened to the voicemail, she’d call him, knowing he had no idea she was coming to visit. Not unless he’d already run into her parents.
“Hey there, Stephie,” he’d said in his message. “I was hoping to get ahold of you. I guess you’re off doing some crazy saving the world shit, though. Tell Batman and Superman I said hi.”
Stephanie chuckled as he paused for a moment. “I…uh, I ship out tomorrow to boot camp. We start on the ground and then head up for space training. I keep remembering how you said to be careful and I wanted you to know I was listening.”
His voice caught a little before he continued. “Besides, I can’t go and die on you, you know? Who would you turn to for your pop culture knowledge? It would be lost for all time, and that’s too sad for our story. It would never make it to production. Anyway, you are the bestest best friend a kid could have. I will write you if they let me have paper and a pen, and you better be there at boot graduation to see me all fly in my uniform. I’ll put T. Cruise to shame. Love ya.”
The message ended and she sighed, realizing he had left the message the day before. She was shocked that he’d shipped off so fast and had thought he’d at least wait until the end of summer. Then again, he was champing at the bit to get away from his family, and school was over. There was nothing really to keep him around. She hoped that when she got home, things would settle, even if it did feel weird without him.
Once she’d arrived and everything had calmed after the initial excitement of reuniting with her parents, Stephanie snuck off to her old bedroom and pulled some of her nicest clothes from the closet. She remembered when she first ordered them.
Holding that memory close, she put on the blue wrap dress and pulled her hair into a low side bun. After she’d applied makeup for the third time because she kept screwing it up, she stared at the girl in the mirror and barely recognized herself. She had been stuck in ponytail-save-the-world mode. There really wasn’t time in there for blush, eyeliner, and mascara.
Seated at her desk, she cleared a space and set her phone in the middle of it before she opened her portfolio. The number she chose was one of the two sales calls she’d promised to make. The lead had come from her mom, who’d met the man on an elevator ride to the top floor of Mr. Martelle’s building. Stephanie dialed the number and put it on speaker, smiling as soon as his face appeared and floated above her handset.
“Mr. Harper,” she said, her smile warm. “This is Stephanie Morgana representing—”
“The cleaning company,” he finished happily and cut her off. “Yes, I spoke to your mother not too long ago. Yesterday, in fact. To be honest, I almost canceled this meeting.”
“Oh no,” she exclaimed and looked shocked.
“I know.” He chuckled. “But I came in today to discover the cleaning company I hired have shut their doors. No notice, no nothing. Just done. Gone. So, I guess you’re my angel in disguise.”
Stephanie gave him an appreciative laugh and launched into the details of what her parents’ company could offer. Mr. Harper listened attentively and asked a couple of questions here and there, but nothing she hadn’t expected. By the end of her spiel, she couldn’t tell if he was more interested in her or the company, but either way, she had his attention.
“What do you think?” she asked him. “The sales projections, the increase in your business, and the influx in hiring that goes along with it will require you to have a crew you can rely on. I think that if you accept a bid from my company, you will never go to anyone else.”
He sat there for a moment and his expression revealed that he was deep in thought. Then, he nodded. “I agree. You’ve bothered to get to know my company, our sales goals, and what our business entails. That makes me trust you and the company you represent. Have your mother and father write up a contract. I’ll look it over, and we’ll go from there.”
Stephanie gave him a thankful smile. “Thank you, and we’ll talk soon.”
“Oh, and Stephanie,” he replied. “Congratulations on the Meligornian award. You definitely deserve it.”
She couldn’t help but grin as he hung up and his hologram disappeared. As the last of it faded, there was a knock on her door and Lars stuck his head in. “Whatcha doing?”
“Running big business.” She turned and crossed her legs daintily.
Lars whistled as he noticed her dress. “Look at you, all dolled up. How’d it go?”
“He wants a contract from mum and dad asap,” she told him proudly.
Marcus stuck his head over Lars’ shoulder and Frog poked his head under his arm. “That’s what I’m talking about. Let’s go celebrate, girl.”
Stephanie thought about it for a moment and shrugged. “Why not? Give me five minutes to pull on some jeans, though. This outfit is strictly for when I need to impress.”
The team flew into the local bar like wild people who hadn’t had any free time in what felt like forever. They talked, laughed, told stories, and even managed to get out of there without any crazy fights like they’d had in the training session. Of course, in that bar, there were no Dreth hanging out and everyone cheered them like heroes. The guys loved it, and it took an act of God—or, in fact, the bar closing—to get them out of there and over to the hotel.
Stephanie’s parents had come along and laughed as they listened to the team talk about their lives before Stephanie, their upcoming trip to Meligorn, and how she was completely super-bad when it came to fighting. Her father gave her a fist-bump while her mother pouted, not wanting to think about her daughter in any fights.
As they turned the corner leading to the hotel, still laughing, they found themselves face to face with several members of the local gang. Their laughter died abruptly as they eyed the men cautiously. She recognized them right away, having watched them gather every night at the Gov-Sub park since she was a little girl. They, however, didn’t recognize her. They only recognized what they thought was a good chance to get their hands on some cold hard credits.
“Well, lookie, lookie, lookie.” The leader laughed. “All these guys and the one stepping forward is the tiny little girl.”
Stephanie smirked and cracked her knuckles. Behind her, Johnny grabbed her parents and yanked them back to make sure they stood where he could protect them. Lars, Brenden, Marcus, and Frog stepped forward, two on either side of her.
The thug shook his head. “This is even better. Four flyboys and a little girl gonna take on the Hoods… What are you—Stacy from the block?”
She managed to keep a straight face and raised her hand to silence him. “Keep it to knives and lower an
d we won’t have problems. If you draw a gun, your life is forfeit.”
The gang members shrugged but seemed to agree, and the two sides stared at each other for a moment longer before anyone moved. When they did, it was all together.
Stephanie hurtled forward, dropped with one leg bent and the other straight out, and slid across the sidewalk. She ducked low as she closed with the first gang member and pounded her fist directly into his nuts as she skidded beneath him. He groaned and made a gurgling noise as he clutched his crotch and fell forward.
Lars winced and grasped her hand to help her come up out of the crouch. He didn’t let go and she glanced at him, trying to read his thoughts before she followed the direction of his gaze. His gaze shifted to watch the two guys creeping up on them, and she smirked. She took hold of his other hand and prepared for what came next.
As expected, Lars waited for the right moment and heaved upward to swing her around in a circle and raise her legs off the ground. Her heeled boots slammed into one, two, and then three of their opponents. The attack either knocked them out or dazed them to the point of uselessness.
“Let go when you hit four,” she yelled.
Lars did exactly that and flung her with the full momentum of the swing. She twisted and drove her legs into another of the hoodlums. He tumbled and she landed above him with one foot on either side of his face.
Both sides managed a few good blows, but not a single one of the gang members were able to touch her. She was far better than any of the Hoods, there was no question about it. From his position as bodyguard, Johnny leaned in to watch and laugh at every good strike she made. “Oh, I taught her that move—it took her a few times to get it right—oh, damn. Nice punch.”
He glanced at her parents and noticed they were reacting quite differently to the fight. Her dad seemed enthusiastic, shifting from side to side, and had his own small silent celebration every time she kicked someone’s ass. Her mother, however, had gone into shock and stood there with a confused look as she watched her baby girl act like not such a baby anymore...or maybe a baby monster.
Witch Of The Federation (Federal Histories Book 2) Page 20
