by Skyler Grant
"I know several of you have plans to propose," Tamara said, starting the meeting. "Bravo was convinced she could help. I'll let her start us off."
Bravo rose to her feet and brought up a hologram clearly of a warship, although not of a design Quinn recognized.
"Kadello's flagship, the Endless Maw. Currently he is aboard it and overseeing the suppression of a rebellion on Tinsarsis Two," Bravo said.
"With a fleet accompanying him I bet," Tamara said.
"Of course. Still, if we want a shot at him without the full defenses of Imperius protecting him, this is our chance. I've already talked to Kalisa who has suggested a modification for our stealth systems. You bring in a fleet of our ships with your runic sphere, and we deliver two dozen teams of assassins aboard that vessel," Bravo said.
"That is cruder than I'd have expected of you," Mara said. "Do you even know the interior defenses of that ship?"
"Does it matter? If our stealth systems are working we can bypass them. Even if they jump back to Imperius, Kadello is still aboard and trapped."
"How would you get them out?" Quinn asked.
"That would be up to each team. Ideally they neutralize their target and, under stealth, find their own escape," Bravo said.
"What she isn't saying is that in such a situation, it probably doesn't happen. Especially if Kadello dies, and they likely sweep the ship with radiation to kill any hidden intruders," Mara said.
"A plan doesn't have to be complex to be good. A single team, a single breach point somewhere vulnerable," Bravo said.
"It is a terrible leader who just throws her people away," Mara said.
"You know those are perfectly acceptable losses for a target of importance and he qualifies. He is crossing lines with magic the Emperor didn't cross, and it is critical we remove him," Bravo said.
"Has anyone got any other ideas?" Quinn asked.
"I do," Kara said. "No fancy pictures here. The Emperor had a secret hangar under the capitol he could sphere into, and Sand knows all about it. We take our ship in, and she and our sneaky sorts bring down the Imperius defense network."
"Just like that," Bravo said dryly.
"It is what you do. Once it is down, we bring in our fleets and we seize Imperius, and this time there is no one to come to the rescue. You want to keep Vixana around, fine. If not, we put Duchess Alana on the throne and get out," Kara said.
Duchess Alana wasn't technically a duchess any longer. Her lands and holdings had been brought into the Clan of Thieves in exchange for control over Arkstone, a goal of hers long unfulfilled.
"I've never appreciated just how big you think, or grand your ambition is," Tamara said, staring at Kara. "I begin to see what Tourmaline likes about you."
"How feasible is that?" Quinn asked.
Sand said, "I controlled those systems once. I know every detail of them as they were. While they have had time to do improvements, they haven't had time to completely rewrite them."
"If we could gain control of the planetary defense systems, victory would be all but certain. If we simply managed to neutralize them ... I think we lose in a bloody brawl," Bravo said.
"And if they managed to keep control they would have the potential to easily neutralize all the fleets at our disposal," Mara said.
"I want Kadello gone, but not at that price," Jinx said.
"I have plan," Vess said.
That was a surprise. Vess wasn't much for tactics.
"Let's hear it," Quinn said.
"We have ship of one of these three. I shape-shift into Barr. Take on his look. Go meet other with bodyguards. Bravo provide them, faces not known," Vess said.
"And instead of a team of assassins fighting their way through the ship, we are brought right to him. Or, perhaps, even have him come to us," Bravo said, leaning back.
"Can you do that convincingly? Usually even in humanoid form you have some scales," Quinn said.
"Need help, little one. Boost control," Vess said.
Jinx said, "I can do that. Her people lost control of their shape-shifting abilities with a large bust of Chaos magic. If I hit her with a surge of Order magic I should be able to help her hold form."
"This puts a member of this family in a lot of danger," Quinn said.
"Two. I'd insist on going with her as one of the guards," Bravo said.
"You're the leader of your people and possibly pregnant, so no," Quinn said.
"I'm the best killer my people have. If you want Kadello dead, if you really want him dead, then you need me along," Bravo said.
"Quinn is right. You're too important on a few levels. We can't let you go. Send Sadina, if she's still alive," Mara said.
Bravo grimaced but nodded. "Fine, but it is a sentimental mistake. Yes, she lives, and I'll have her ready for pickup."
"The rest of us will stand by as an extraction team. Whether it's a fight on that ship or in space, I want us to be prepared for anything," Quinn said.
30
Quinn was back where he felt most at home, in the cockpit of the Centauri Bliss. Taki was playing copilot today. While she wasn't as good a pilot as Dela, Dela was busy interfacing with their sensors.
"I hate this," Quinn said.
"You've never liked waiting, sir. It is why we have so many bad plans, because you get antsy," Taki said.
"I don't get antsy. I just don't see the point in waiting around when something could be done now."
One screen displayed sensor feeds from Barr's yacht, which had just jumped into the Tinsarsis system. Tinsarsis was a Core world, but it had rebelled and broken from the Imperium to instead follow a self-appointed king.
A fleet now encircled the planet. The planetary defenses were still providing cover for the major population centers, but much of the rest was in flames.
"Do you ever regret it, sir? All of this? Ever wish it was just us and Mel again running jobs?" Taki said.
"I've some good memories of those days, but they come with a lot of darkness too. You miss it?" Quinn asked.
"I didn't have you like I wanted you, but we had a good life. I figured we'd be doing what we were doing for a long time. Seems like the road might be shorter now."
"He's a bad man," Quinn said.
"It doesn't mean he has to be our mess to clean up, sir. We didn't put him on the throne. We might have cleared the way a little, but we need to start drawing the line."
"We are. You know we are," Quinn said.
"Lot of talking and not a lot of going, and I heard someone around our table talk about a plan to seize Imperius," Taki said.
The yacht was making slow progress into the system. While an escort approached their systems weren't charged.
Quinn glanced over at Taki. "Was I wrong about Kat? All these years, I remember her as so kind and so decent, and she's kind of ..."
"Nasty, sir?" Taki asked. "She was best friends with Ice. I won't say you were wrong, sir, but I'll say you saw something a lot of us had a hard time seeing."
"And now we've added Bravo to our little family," Quinn said.
"You really like her, sir," Taki said.
Quinn winced. "How did you get that idea?"
"Sir, I love you. Totally and completely, and as the object of my obsession I know you pretty well. I don't mind this one that much. I mean, I don't like it, I never like it. But Bravo, she's an honest snake," Taki said.
"Ice is an honest snake. You hate her."
"Ice isn't a snake. Snakes just want to be left alone. They've got their fangs and their venom, but you don't mess with them and they don't mess with you. That is why an honest snake isn't bad, they're telling you to stay clear. Ice? Ice is just wild, and dangerous."
Ships had intercepted the yacht and escorted it to Kadello's massive vessel. They had visuals, although intermittent. Too large a data stream would have been suspicious. Bravo had linked them in to some of the implants of the assassins posing as guards. Right now they were still aboard the yacht. Vess made a convincing Barr.
"I feel like I should apologize for dragging you into all this," Quinn said.
"You remember it was me that dragged you, sir. Kicking and screaming. I don't have regrets. Well, maybe one," Taki said.
"What is it?"
"I hate how it makes me sound, sir. You've always needed me to be strong and capable."
Quinn glanced over at her. Taki even looked pensive.
"Talk of babies got to you, didn't it?" Quinn said.
"When it was just Jinx, that was one thing. At the time it was necessary and we all know ... she's something special, sir. It wasn't the same," Taki said.
"We're going to need to build a nursery. I love you, Taki. I've always been able to depend on you, and you'll always be able to depend on me. You'd be a great mom," Quinn said.
Taki reached out to rest a hand on Quinn's arm, holding it there for just a few moments before pulling it away.
Taki straightened up and frowned at the screens. Vess and the guards were aboard the Endless Maw now, being led by a young woman in an officer's uniform.
"Something feels off, sir," Taki said.
Quinn frowned, he was getting the same feeling.
"Kadello is no idiot. Barr was a shifty toad that meant him harm, and Kadello must have known. There should be more guards. There should be more of a spectacle to show who is really in charge," Quinn said.
"They're trying to make their guests feel overconfident."
Quinn hit the ships comm. "Bravo, we're getting bad feelings from what we're seeing up here."
"Oh, we are getting all kinds of bad feelings. Their ship-wide comms just went into lock-down mode. They could just be overcautious, but we're worried," Bravo said.
They had a good layout of the ship, at least based on the exterior. Enough for Quinn to be able to plot in coordinates for the section of the hull closest to their people.
The visual feed cut out. The signal they'd been getting from the bodyguards was gone.
"This could be coincidence. I know you want to jump in, but give it a minute," Bravo said.
"Sixty seconds, starting now," Quinn said, and told Taki, "This is me, controlled. See how controlled I am?"
"Not antsy at all, sir. A model of keeping it together. We're ready to jump. Strike teams are ready to go." Taki tapped away at the console.
The passage of seconds was agonizing.
Ten to go.
"Any last objections make them now," Quinn said through the comm.
"No objections. Let's get them out of there," Bravo said.
Quinn sent the coordinates to Jinx and reality twisted around them.
31
The Centauri Bliss materialized exactly where it was supposed to, barely off the hull of Kadello's ship.
Quinn got to see that much on the instruments at least before they died, along with the ship's engines and lights.
"No systems responding, sir," Taki said, her hands flying over the controls. "Complete shutdown. They aren't the only systems down, my implants aren't working."
That was bad. There wasn't even emergency lighting. Quinn's wristcomm was dead too. Between the glow of Quinn's runes and the windows there was at least some illumination, otherwise they'd be in total darkness. The rest of the ship would be.
"This has to be Kadello's doing, some sort of defensive system. Let's get down to the hold and engage the docking clamps manually," Quinn said.
The halls were almost impassable in the darkness. However with Quinn's spatial awareness he could have moved blindfolded through the ship.
The hold was well lit as they arrived. Glowing magical spheres hung in the air, providing brilliant light. Quinn recognized the feel of the magic, they were Kalisa's work.
"I've got the clamps, sir," Taki said.
Jinx and Kalisa were kneeling beside Melody, who looked to be unconscious. Kat was sitting on the steps nearby and clutching her sides.
Whatever had killed the power to their equipment must be having an impact on Melody and Sand as well.
"Kalisa, I need to know what is going on," Quinn said.
"If I knew, I'd tell you. Something has obviously disabled our electronics. It isn't everything otherwise biologicals like us would be having problem too. Magical power remains untouched," Kalisa said.
"Sand is still working, but she ain't right. She's pulling off the magic, but it is mine, not hers and it hurts her," Kat said.
"Right now we're blind and defenseless. I need some kind of answer," Quinn said.
"Whatever it is, Melody isn't broken. But I can't fix it, because the pattern making her up is just fine," Jinx said, pained.
Kalisa said, "I can maybe get the ship working. We use magical circuits for shielding and a few other specified applications. It can emulate electricity in some ways. It can be unpredictable and dangerous, but I think that is better than where we are now."
Quinn had to agree.
"That means you won't be on the attack. We still need to rescue Vess and the others," Jinx said.
"It is going to take me at least fifteen minutes. Maybe more. I don't see a way around that," Kalisa said.
It was a virtual eternity.
"Sand wants to know if it's local? If we go aboard will she be able to fight?" Kat asked.
"I don't know. When our people on that ship went dark it may have been this effect triggering that," Kalisa said.
Kat pushed herself to her feet, flames flickering around her hands. "Guess it doesn't matter. If she can't fight, I can. You'll get one or the other of us."
"You sure any of you want to go? No personal shields, no energy weapons, no implants, no comms, and one of our strongest magic-users has to stay here. This might be one of those escape with our lives moments," Taki said.
"We're not leaving Vess. Tourmaline wouldn't want us leaving Vess," Tamara said.
"We always come for family. Always," Jinx said with a nod, and her runes flared. "I'm our biggest hitter now. I'll lead us in."
"Can you even call out Tourmaline right now?" Quinn asked Tamara.
"It is only the implants that let her take control, remember. Right now she's nothing more than a jumble of memories in my head. I can do this," Tamara said.
Kara fired a shot from a conventional gun. The sound a massive roar in the closed confines of the hold. The beasts roared in response. "Always the badass and these still work."
"Take me and my companions," Ilsa said. "You can still bring an Unshackled with you and my friends will hunt just fine."
"This isn't your fight. It will be dangerous in there. I don't think you know how dangerous," Quinn said.
"I know. You all have been nice to me. I like you. Not just Quinn," Ilsa said.
Tamara nodded. "Right. We're bringing the Mistress of Beasts. We survive, we'll have a talk about families and places."
The Centauri Bliss shook. Taki had finally gotten the docking clamps to kick in.
"I'll have the breach charge set in another ninety seconds. You'd better figure out who is going," Taki said.
"I need Quinn. He can teleport me anywhere on this ship in an instant and we've a lot of systems to swap out," Kalisa said.
"We need someone to guard the ship. Taki, Dela," Jinx said.
"No implants, no genetic modifications. Just back to being plain and boring old human," Dela said with a sigh.
"She's trying to keep you alive. Us alive," Taki said sternly.
Even weakened, it still left them with a lot of numbers to breach. Bravo and Mara might not be able to use their stealth suits or implants, but both were still genetically enhanced killing machines, far above average human strength, endurance, and intellect. That applied to Tamara as well. Kat had not just genetic manipulations, but the powers of multiple Order magic lines. Kara was a Yek, her race incredibly strong and resilient with rapid healing. Jinx and Ilsa were both powerful magic-users, for all their talents varied greatly.
The other members of the family were off the ship. Ice was in charge of their fleets, Rena and Silver we
re off building their networks.
Those going quickly changed out weaponry, replacing energy weapons for the more primitive variants with lots of extra ammunition. Mara offered Ilsa the sword of Ilinar.
With a roar that shook the ship the explosives detonated. Shaped charges blasting a hole through the armored hull. Jinx led the way into the breach. There were forces waiting for them, but bullets simply bounced off her flesh.
"Time for me to get to work," Kalisa said to Quinn, grabbing his arm. "Take me to the engine room first, then my lab."
32
This was worse than even the past times the family went into combat and Quinn had to sit on the bridge. At least then he could listen in, and if something was happening he'd know about it. Almost everybody that Quinn loved in the world might already be dead—he just didn't know about it yet.
Kalisa lingered in the engine room only long enough to grab several containers of mana crystals, tucking them under her arms, before having Quinn teleport them both to her workshop.
As crowded as the ship was becoming these days, they'd still found a place for Kalisa's equipment. A scientific genius was neither useful nor happy without her tools, and there were a bewildering array of them.
Kalisa was almost at once scavenging through parts, the room lit by more glowing globes that she threw out. She grabbed a sheet of what looked like glass, runes flaring red as it divided itself into several irregularly shaped chunks.
"What are you doing?" Quinn asked.
"Building an interface, of sorts," Kalisa said, bringing out a handful of mana crystals. One at a time she pressed them into the rough center of the glass fragments to a hiss and a sizzle.
"I'm going to assume you know your ship. These need to go in every juncture box. Start with the most critical systems first," Kalisa said, sliding four of the shards across the table.
Quinn grabbed them and teleported.
There were a lot of critical systems on the ship. Normally he'd say that none were more critical than life support, but right now it almost seemed a secondary concern. With four people aboard their oxygen would last for hours, and even without power their hull armor insulated them enough that they'd only slowly lose heat into space.
