Trials of Conviction, page 17
A knocking sound came from the J1N's anti gravs, interrupting Kira's pity party. He stopped beside her, listing slightly to one side with his 'eye' pointing up at the sky.
"What is wrong with you?" she demanded, not certain if that question was aimed at him or herself.
The urge to scream crawled up her throat. The impulse growing with the drone's silence.
So, she let it out. Tipping her face to the hazy sky and sinking her rage into the primal sound that ripped free of her.
Again. And then again.
Until calm settled over her and she felt like she could think again.
"They wouldn't strand themselves here," Kira said.
Pallas might have a way off through his ability, but the rest didn't have that cheat. That meant there was a ship around here somewhere.
Kira just needed to find it.
"J1N, scan the terrain for metals commonly used in Tuann or Consortium ships," Kira ordered.
"Scanning."
Kira squinted at the terrain as she waited, paying close attention to anything that didn't belong. Any shape that looked artificial in nature.
"The number of data points is too great."
"Narrow it down to one or two materials," Kira ordered impatiently.
"Alright," the J1N responded, its tone almost sulky if Kira didn't know better. "Still does not compute."
"Never mind," Kira said as she caught sight of something at the base of two hills. "I think I found what I'm looking for."
She bounded down steps half buried in sand, striding across the landscape.
The sun was beginning to rise as Kira neared her destination. A dim orb whose rays of light barely made a difference. The gloom just a few shades brighter than it was at night.
The gap between Kira and the J1N widened as she increased her pace in excitement as a ship's outline took shape exactly where she'd expected it to be.
The ship was a forlorn figure in the austere landscape. Its running lights offering a tiny respite against the lackluster dawn. It was the same class as the Wanderer. Though the design was different. Not from any planet in the Consortium. Nor the Haldeel either from what she could tell. It looked like a bastardized version of a Tuann ship. The guns mounted on either wing making its design more aggressive than the Tuann typically favored. They tended to hide their claws, preferring to conceal their weapons in nondescript areas to make it difficult to determine their threat level.
This ship had its claws on the outside. Practically shouting that it wasn't to be fucked with.
Curious, Kira touched a wing, trailing her fingers over the metal and finding it cool to the touch. Inert. Another difference. The metal in Tuann ships felt alive. Her touch should have woken a reaction. A shimmer of colors to announce the ship's awareness of her presence.
"What are you?" Kira murmured, studying the ship in its entirety.
Tuann designed but Consortium made. Outfitted for a fight and just begging to be stolen.
"Jin was so right. Piracy really is fun."
Though technically she considered this closer to pure theft than piracy.
"Piracy is banned in all known territories of space,” the J1N said from above her.
"Then it's a good thing we're not in any of those territories."
She was pretty sure.
"My programing does not allow me to participate in a known felony. Should you continue on this course, I will be forced to take action."
That got Kira’s attention as she eyed the drone carefully.
Given the amount of firepower she and Jin had installed, that was a serious threat. To make matters worse, she couldn't do anything that would cause harm to Jin's original body.
"J1N, what are the rules on salvaging ships?"
There was a brief pause. "These vary based on the government enforcing them."
"Yes, they do, but a common theme throughout Haldeel, Tuann, and human space is that an abandoned ship is up for grabs by whoever chooses to salvage it."
As a former salvager, Kira was familiar with all of the laws governing the recovery of abandoned and dead ships. Although most humans focused on Tsavitee ships, there had been the odd one here and there who would target the Consortium's relics. She'd wanted to know the rules just in case.
"That is correct," the J1N said after a moment.
"Do you see anyone nearby who could lay claim to this ship?"
"That would be a negative."
"Then this isn't theft or piracy—we're simply salvaging an abandoned ship," Kira explained.
"I see."
With a sense of victory, Kira turned to the ship's airlock, only to find herself stymied a second later.
"Ah, crap," Kira muttered.
She didn't recognize the security system. Given the way the ship bristled with weapons like an unfriendly hedgehog, she should have expected its owner to go the extra mile to prevent unauthorized entry.
She was a decent hacker, but this was far beyond her skills. Jin, on the other hand, would have had no problem.
That actually gave her an idea.
Kira crooked her finger at the J1N. "Come here."
The drone was sluggish to obey, drifting toward her in fits and starts. Its lens ending up facing away from her despite being pointed in the right direction to begin with.
Kira made a frustrated sound before yanking the drone into position.
"Stay there."
She opened the J1N's access panel located at the bottom of the drone. Its leads dropped.
Normally, Jin could have wirelessly hacked the hatch, but since the J1N was a pale facsimile of him, she had to go old school.
That meant manually splicing into the system before using the J1N's programs to trick the door into opening. And hope the ship didn't use her for target practice in the meantime.
It didn't take long, the ship de-pressurizing several minutes later as the hatch opened.
"That was easy," Kira muttered with a frown.
A little too easy.
Despite that, Kira wasted no time, detaching the J1N's wires from the ship's access panel before stuffing them back into the bottom of the drone.
"Follow me and don't do anything stupid," Kira ordered, extending the akieri into its sword form.
She shoved the hatch fully open, pausing to scan the ship's interior before stepping fully inside.
Her guard lowered partially when she found no one waiting for her. Not enough to dismiss the akieri entirely, but enough to lower its tip so it pointed at the ground.
"A ship after my heart," Kira said, stepping carefully as she examined her surroundings.
Its design was spartan. Much more so than the outside. The plain metal walls and floors carried no additional embellishments. As cold and intimidating as its exterior.
Kira explored until she found a room that she assumed was the bridge.
The J1N meandered through the room like a drunken bumble bee as Kira sat down in the captain's chair, looking everything over.
She wiggled her fingers and set them on the keyboard. First—she’d commandeer this ship. Then—she’d see what she could do about picking Graydon up so they could get off this rock.
"Well then, let's get started, shall we?"
Eleven
Raider - The Wanderer
Raider glared at the woman he'd come to view as a particularly annoying little sister over the years. A minor miracle considering Raider's fractious relationship with the notion of 'family'.
Until Elise and Kira had crashed into his life and dragged him into their orbit, he'd been happy to give the concept a wide berth. He was a lone wolf. A half feral creature with no concern for anyone but himself.
To him, family had always meant the people who hurt and beat you. Those who thought they owned you simply because they'd been responsible for bringing you into the world.
He'd been a commodity. Someone they vented their anger and imposed their will on.
Kira changed that. The first he'd come to view as 'family'. Though he hadn't known to call it that back then.
He didn't have a word for the fact that she and the rest of the members of their tiny group were people he'd gladly lay down his life to protect. He wouldn't even have to think twice.
By the time Elise came around, he was more open to the concept of relationships. It helped that she'd captivated him from the first fake smile she'd given him. The one she used to fool the rest of the Curs into thinking she was a good person.
He couldn't help but be drawn to her duality. So like his. Her outwardly warm exterior a mask for the cold way she treated people. Often with them never realizing. Then there was the person he sometimes glimpsed when her guard was down. The stray acts of kindness when she thought no one was looking. Like the hospital bills she paid off for Bates's mother without ever letting him know that she was the one responsible. Or the little girl she'd given her food to when they were on Kala.
That girl had been starving and the protracted siege of the planet meant no one knew when they would be able to get supplies in next.
It was those little things. So at odds with the devious and cold woman he'd come to know.
Everything that happened afterward. Rothchild and her disappearance. Raider no longer cared. He knew who Elise was. Had been reminded of it the moment she injected the isotope that would allow her to follow Elena, thus taking Kira's place.
She was the only woman he'd ever loved. The mother of his child. A master of intrigue. And the ultimate survivor.
He was getting them back. Both her and Elena.
So, Blue had better get with the program. Annoying little sister or not.
Raider slammed a hand down on the table. "That's too long. This boat needs to go faster, Blue. I don't care how you do it, but get us to Rothchild."
Blue threw up her hands as a frustrated sound left her. "Do you think I'm not trying? You're asking me to break the laws of physics. The Wanderer is already running at capacity. We can't go faster."
Raider refused to accept that. "A Tuann ship could make that journey in half the time. Don't tell me it's not possible."
"Yes, a Tuann ship," Blue stressed. "For all the modifications Roake made to the Wanderer, she's still Consortium made."
Raider was getting tired of the excuses. "You've spent months in their territory. Don't tell me you've learned nothing that can help us."
That was why she was on Ta Sa'Riel, after all.
Raider had been tasked with babysitting Kira and making sure she didn't fuck up their alliance—or get herself killed with her stubbornness. While Blue was supposed to do a little intellectual espionage. Reverse engineer anything that might give them a technological edge in the war Himoto and Jace thought was coming.
"I've learned quite a lot, actually," Blue said. "But nothing that would help in this situation."
"How is that possible?" Raider snarled.
Frustration mounted.
"You're right. I could probably jury-rig some type of modification that would allow us to eke out a little more speed from the engines. BUT—" Blue held up a finger. "That would only cause massive damage. I doubt we'd make it even half way before they quit. We'd be stranded between systems, waiting for someone to answer our distress call. That would leave us worse off than we are now."
"Since when have you been the cautious sort?"
Blue had a history of disregarding any potential risks and sallying forth despite the objections of those around her. She'd endangered his and the Curs' lives on more than one occasion.
It figured that the one time he was willing to allow the mad scientist at the helm she'd gone AWOL.
"I'm trying to show a little personal growth and maturity," Blue spat, kicking the chair next to her. "If you weren't reacting emotionally, you might even appreciate that."
Raider's glare turned white hot. "Blue—"
"I'm sorry!" Blue cried. "But breaking the ship won't help Elena—or Kira."
Raider held back the words he wanted to spew. Most of them not nice or what Blue deserved.
The urge to issue a command forcing the point was hard to resist. Only possible because he knew it was pointless.
The first rule of command—don't make stupid orders. It was the fastest way to lose respect and most of the time it didn't work anyway.
"Raider," Wren rumbled from the corner of the room where he'd been watching the argument. "This isn't helping."
Raider ground his teeth together hard enough to cause pain to shoot through his jaw. He was well aware of that. But he also didn't know what else to do.
The restless energy in him demanded action.
The Wanderer's sirens wailed. The overhead lights turned red a moment later. Right after, the ship shuddered as something collided with its side.
"What's that?" Raider asked.
Blue was already scrambling for the bridge. "We're under attack."
The ship shuddered again as Raider and the others made it to the bridge to find Talon and Finn already seated in the pilots' chairs, one flying the ship while the other operated the weapon's system.
"What's going on? Status report," Raider barked.
For half a second, it occurred to him that Wren, as the most senior member on board, should be the one issuing orders before he dismissed that thought. It was his daughter at risk. This was his mission. He'd be damned if he'd allow anyone else to take command.
Kira was the sole exception to that rule. Partly because he had experience serving under her. But mostly because he trusted her implicitly and he knew she was as desperate for Elena's safe return as he.
"A Tsavitee fleet appeared moments ago," Finn answered.
The ship tilted as he evaded a round of strigmor eels, a particularly nasty Tsavitee weapon that looked like a long, silvery ribbon and moved like it was gliding through water, sinuous as it hunted their ship.
If they impacted, they would burrow through their hull, depressurizing everything inside.
"They're trying to capture us alive," Raider said.
Blue nodded in agreement. "They would have sent something better than eels otherwise."
Wren's gaze didn't move from the display of the Tsavitee fleet. "How did they get close?"
"They evaded our scanners somehow. It wasn't until they fired that our systems picked them up," Talon answered as Devon and Joule appeared in the hatchway behind them.
"Where's the general? Who has eyes on him?" Raider barked.
Raider's skin crawled at the thought of Aeron walking around this ship unsupervised while they were under attack from the Tsavitee. He wouldn't put it past the general to sabotage their ship to make it easier for the other Tsavitee to take them captive.
"We locked him in his quarters as soon as the alarms sounded," Devon answered.
Joule nodded. "I put a shield around the area as well. Just in case."
Good.
Kira would be proud of the boy. He was turning into a good soldier who'd make a fine leader one day if he kept going the way he was.
"How many enemies are there?" Wren asked.
"Too many," Talon answered.
"How did they even find us?" Blue asked as Raider moved to one of the other displays, bringing up the exterior feeds to see what they were dealing with.
A half dozen ships came into focus.
"Oh fuck," Blue cursed. "We're no match for them."
In addition to the Tsavitee Superior Class One ship in the middle, a vessel capable of housing approximately 120-150 souls, there were five smaller escort vessels arrayed around it. Each with an additional capacity of thirty to forty depending on the mix of species inside.
During the war, the Superior Class had given their fleet fits, pushing the Centcom's back again and again.
"Don't be so quick to count us out," Wren advised. "We are not without recourse."
"Look, I know the Tuann think they're the biggest, scariest thing in the galaxy who no one else can match," Blue said sarcastically before stabbing a finger at the window and what was waiting outside. "But we're heavily outnumbered and out gunned. Nor is it likely we can outrun them for long. Like I said before—the odds aren't in our favor."
Wren and Finn exchanged a look.
"Then perhaps it’s time we call in a few people who can change that," Wren said.
Raider stopped to look at his seon'yer. Something in Wren's voice warning him that the other man wasn't just talking out of his ass.
The calm on Wren's face, despite the very dark odds they were facing, was all Raider needed to see to know the old man was up to something.
"You're having us followed," Raider guessed.
From that look the two shared, Finn knew. And hadn’t told Kira.
"Harlow's people or Graydon's?" Raider asked.
Wren's eyes were steady as they met Raider's.
"Both then," Raider guessed.
Wren's facade cracked a tiny bit, enough to allow one side of his mouth to twitch up in approval.
Raider sighed. "I'd be angry you kept this from us if not for the fact it's probably going to save our asses."
He'd take the Tuann's interference over being captured by the Tsavitee any day.
"Whatever we're going to do, it should happen soon," Talon announced, firing the Wanderer's weapons. "Their ships are closing fast."
The Wanderer jerked under their feet, a boom echoing.
"I take it Harlow upgraded her weapons too," Raider said as the laser hit one of the smaller Tsavitee ships, destroying it.
Kira's little pea shooter wouldn't have been able to do that.
"Not bad," Finn said, looking over at his friend with a half-smile. "Looks like you're less rusty than I expected."
Talon’s smirk was small. "There are some things that are impossible to lose. Excellence is one of them."
"Arrogant," Finn murmured as he went back to concentrating on flying.
"Call your people in," Raider ordered Wren, coming to a decision.
Wren nodded, touching the communication panel on the forearm of his synth armor.
"Oh. Oh. Not good," Blue cried. "Another set of ships just came into range."
"Your people?" Raider asked Wren.
His seon'yer shook his head. "Doubtful. They were instructed to keep their distance until otherwise directed."
