Avalon

CHAPTER 24

IT TOOK LITTLE EFFORT TO CONVINCE HAMMER OF THE plan. It was as if he’d been expecting something like this all along. I knew you’d come around, his eyes said. I knew you’d choose to obey me.

But it wasn’t a choice. This was coercion, no matter the circumstance.

And it wasn’t without consequence either. Hammer insisted Jeth spend a couple hours in a regeneration chamber, a highly expensive treatment capable of healing a variety of basic injuries, including broken ribs.

“If I’m sending you on a job,” Hammer said, “then you’d best be in top form.”

Trouble was, the healing process hurt even more than the beating that had put him in such a state. Jeth knew Hammer most often used the regenerator as a torture device. He would have his enemies’ bones broken, then heal them, only to break them again. After his session ended, Jeth understood just how effective the method could be.

Still, less than three days after arriving at Peltraz, Jeth and his crew left again, this time accompanied by Sergei and Daxton Price, their new babysitters. At least Dax’s skill would come in handy if they had to track down Sierra and Vince. Jeth thought it likely they wouldn’t stay on Avalon, not with the ship’s failed metadrive.

They flew out from Peltraz on the Citation, the same C-94 Viper that Dax had used to escort them to the Belgrave Quadrant. The ship was registered to Roland Trudanth, a dummy name Hammer used when his own might draw too much attention. The Citation had been customized in one of Hammer’s chop shops to include a stealth drive and an entire arsenal of weapons, all carefully concealed and, needless to say, completely illegal on a ship of that class.

“Are you sure of those coordinates?” Dax asked from the pilot’s chair. Sergei sat copilot beside him.

Jeth glanced up from the nav station screen where he had just finished charting their flight path to an Independent planet known as Benfold Minor. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure. Lizzie double-checked that Benfold was within jumping distance from where we got picked up outside the Belgrave.”

“All right. Moenia City it is,” Dax said, leaning back in the pilot’s chair. He had a cocky manner about him, far different than what Jeth was used to from the Brethren. Most of them were completely serious, with the personality of mud, a phenomenon he now understood completely. He’d been doing his best not to stare at Dax’s and Sergei’s implants, but it was difficult as random bursts of pain kept shooting over the back of his skull and down his neck from the architecture.

At least the hood disguise had been doing its job. None of the others had noticed so far, although he thought he’d seen Dax cast a couple of knowing and sympathetic looks his way.

“We can get there in three jumps,” Dax said. “Not too bad. Shouldn’t take more than a couple of hours, allowing time for the drive to cycle up in between.”

Jeth didn’t comment. He gently rested his aching head against the back of the chair, settling in for the trip. He briefly considered joining Lizzie, Celeste, Flynn, and Shady down on the commons deck, but decided against it. Being up here would be boring, but he didn’t want to spend a lot of time with the crew right now. Their presence only underlined the reality of the future he faced.

The journey to Benfold Minor went smoothly, each metaspace jump normal and effortless. The Citation’s metadrive was in good shape, it seemed.

“Okay, Jeth,” Dax said as they began their approach, “as soon as the Moenia spaceport opens a line with us, run the trace program I showed you so we can figure out where Avalon is docked.”

Jeth nodded, silently hoping that Avalon was still docked. If any of Sierra’s story about having a contact with a metadrive was true, it was possible they’d gotten Avalon fixed and were gone by now. Olympia Seven wasn’t too far from here by the metagate route.

A short while later, Jeth joined his crew in the common room, along with Dax and Sergei. Jeth felt better than he had in days. Avalon was there, docked less than a kilometer away. They hadn’t been able to get a life signs read on the ship due to the type of security system in the spaceport, but so far he was hopeful Milton was still there.

Dax opened a hidden panel on the wall next to the view screen and started pulling out firearms, which he handed to Jeth and the others. Jeth took his without hesitation. Independent planets could be rough. Moenia, unlike a Confederation-aligned spaceport, didn’t have any restrictions on civilian firearms.

Dax flashed a look at Lizzie, whom he’d given a small but absurdly powerful M.U.L.E. 32. “Do you know how to work that, little miss?”

Lizzie rolled her eyes as she ejected the clip, checked the ammunition, reinserted it, and racked the slide.

Dax grinned. “I guess you’ll do fine.”

Jeth almost smiled, too. He didn’t find Dax as intimidating as most of the Brethren. Mostly because he seemed so normal and decent. Jeth wondered why a guy like him would’ve joined the Brethren. Hammer said he only took those willing, after all. For some reason, Jeth gave Dax more credit than that.

Dax faced the others. “Everybody under age, which means all of you besides Serge, pick out a shoulder holster and get it adjusted. Make sure you keep your jackets on and don’t draw any attention to the fact that you’re carrying. Minors aren’t allowed sidearms here. Got it?”

“We’re not dumb,” Shady said, grabbing a holster out of the compartment.

Sergei shot him a glare. “Watch your mouth.”

Dax patted Sergei on the shoulder. “Take it easy now. Hammer has me running this show, and I don’t mind the kid’s mouth.”

Sergei grunted in a way that told Jeth two things. First, that what Dax said was true—he was running the show. And second, that Sergei wasn’t happy about the arrangement.

“So, what’s the plan?” said Flynn.

“Recon first.” Dax walked over to the conference table and pulled up a three-dimensional map of Moenia City spaceport. “We’re here, and Avalon is docked there.” The places flashed on the screen as Dax touched them. “We’ll fan out and observe for a while, see who’s coming on and off. Then we’ll make our move.”

“Why not just go in there and take them?” Shady said, holding his gun aloft.

“Because Hammer doesn’t want to draw any attention to our presence,” said Dax. “Being a part of his organization is a death sentence on this planet.” Dax reached up and pulled out his implant with a wet, sucking sound that made Jeth’s stomach roil. “And they mean it. All the cops here carry weapons designed to disrupt the implant technology.” Across from him, Sergei removed his implant, too, both stowing them in their pockets.

Looking even more likable minus the implant, Dax swept them all with a hard gaze. “So none of you better even look sideways at someone without a go ahead from me. Yeah?”

A mutinous expression crossed Shady’s face, and his skin darkened to red. Jeth held his breath, waiting for Shady to do something stupid. He had a real problem with adult authority figures.

But then Shady nodded once and glanced away, muttering under his breath.

“Okay.” Dax clapped his hands, grinning. “Let me figure out where I want each of you and then we’ll get going.”

They left the Citation at intervals, everyone heading in different directions, except for Lizzie and Jeth, whom Dax had said should stick together. Dax might’ve been convinced Lizzie could handle a gun, but thirteen was a little young to run around a roughneck spaceport alone.

Jeth headed out of the docking bay and into the east wing of the spaceport. He wove his way through the throng of people walking here and there, heading for the shops and restaurants in the atrium or to some other wing.

Moenia City spaceport was an open, airy place, the feel exaggerated by the large glass windows letting in late afternoon sunshine. It had been a long time since Jeth had been planetside, and it took him a few minutes to adjust to the slight but still noticeable difference in gravity. The artificial gravity used in space sometimes felt just like that—artificial; its hold on you not as certain as the pull of a planet’s gravity, like a collar you could slip and then float away if you tried hard enough.

Jeth wished he could go outside and breathe in the natural air, free from the constant recycling and chemical treatment of the air in space, but there wouldn’t be time for that. As a compromise, Jeth stopped in front of a nearby window for a few moments and watched Benfold Minor’s two suns slipping beneath the horizon, leaving behind pale swirls of pink, purple, and gold in their slow decent.

He wondered if he could bear working for Hammer for the rest of his life if it was somewhere like this, a place where beautiful things happened every day, if only for a short stretch of time. Or maybe he could be a tracker like Dax. He knew that Dax spent a lot of time away from Peltraz. If Jeth didn’t have to see Hammer very often, he could at least pretend he was free.

Sighing, Jeth turned away from the window. He scanned the crowd as he moved on, hoping to spot Sierra. He’d imagined a hundred horrible things he would do to exact his revenge when he saw her. If she hadn’t double-crossed him, he might’ve escaped such a bleak future.

Ahead of him, Lizzie had pulled off to one side near a sign for Docking Bay D. Avalon was moored somewhere down that corridor, at Dock 11. Unlike a Confederation-aligned spaceport, the public were allowed into the bays, even if they didn’t belong to one of the ships docked there. But Dax had ordered Lizzie and Jeth to stay outside of the bay and watch for their targets.

Lizzie sat down against a wall across from the entrance to the bay, folded her knees against her chest, and pretended to read. Jeth spotted an open bench not far from her and sat down. Dozens of people passed by, but none of them turned down the corridor to Docking Bay D. His impatience rose with each passing second.

When more than an hour went by with no sign of Vince or Sierra and no word from the others, Jeth finally gave into his restlessness. He glanced at Lizzie. She’d long given up the pretense of reading and was leaning against the wall, hands jammed into the front pockets of her pants. He stood and walked over to her.

“What do you think?” she said, turning to face him as he stepped up next to her, leaning one shoulder against the wall.

“I don’t know,” Jeth said. “Dax told us to wait for his signal.”

Lizzie snorted. “Since when do you—” She broke off, her gaze fixed on something behind him.

Jeth glanced over his shoulder. His heartbeat doubled as he caught a glimpse of Sierra on the opposite side of the wing, heading this way among the continous flow of travelers. He turned back to Lizzie, moving closer to her for extra cover, although he felt certain Sierra wouldn’t spot them in the crowd.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Sierra passing them. She walked side by side with an elderly man in fancy clothes, some kind of blue tunic trimmed in gold. They turned down the corridor to Docking Bay D. Four men followed close behind them, marching in even points around a large gray container they were pulling along on a cart. All four wore firearms strapped to their sides. Judging from their matching green and gold uniforms, Jeth guessed they were some kind of special security detail. But what were they doing?

He was about to follow after them when Lizzie grabbed his arm, squeezing hard.

“Ouch,” he hissed, then froze at the look in her eye. He waited, not daring to move, and soon saw Vince walking past them after the others.

“Did they see us?” Jeth whispered.

Lizzie shook her head.

Jeth raised his finger to the communicator patch behind his ear. “This is Longshot. We’ve spotted them.”

Dax’s voice came back a second later. “Where?”

“Coming down the east wing entrance. Should be at the ship any minute. Do you want us to follow?”

“Stay put. Goliath and I will move in.”

Jeth stifled a groan. He hated being told to stay out of it, especially with an ape like Sergei stepping in. It wasn’t right. He should be the one to capture them. He wanted to see the look on Sierra’s face when she realized her attempt to steal his ship had failed.

“What are we gonna do?” Lizzie said once Jeth switched off the comm.

“Dax ordered us to stay here.”

“And since when do we do what we we’re told?”

Since Hammer threatened to turn you into a prostitute and me into a mindless drone. “Since now.”

“The hell we are.” Lizzie spun around and marched toward the bay entrance. Jeth chased after her, but slowed down at once when he realized the attention they were drawing.

“Don’t do this, Liz,” Jeth said, falling in beside her. “You don’t know what kind of trouble you might step into.”

“What I know is that our uncle is probably trapped up there. Not to mention my cat.”

Frustration and amusement collided in Jeth. He didn’t know whether to laugh or haul her to a stop and give her a good smack. In the end, he decided to go with her. He wanted to be there as much as she did. And it wasn’t like he was disobeying Hammer directly.

Unlike the docking bays at Peltraz, this one contained observation alcoves in between each dock, giving passersby a partial view of the moored ships. Jeth pulled Lizzie into the first one, needing to put more distance between themselves and the group ahead of them. They waited a few moments and then moved on.

As they passed Dock 7, Jeth stepped inside another alcove and looked out. All the air escaped his lungs as he realized there wasn’t a ship moored at Dock 9. Instead he was looking at Avalon, some fifty meters away. It had been years since he’d seen her land-docked. She looked so strange and out of place, her faded black color a little pathetic in the twilight. Still, relief filled him at the sight of her. She was here, whole and intact.

“What do we do now?” Lizzie whispered.

“Not sure yet.” Jeth peeked around the edge of the alcove in time to see Vince disappear inside Avalon’s rear access door.

A hand grabbed Jeth from behind, clutching his shoulder with a grip far too powerful to be Lizzie. He spun around, reaching for the gun strapped to his back. But he froze as he saw it was Dax.

“Thought I told you to stay put.” Dax stepped into the alcove, dragging Jeth with him. “I would’ve left you behind if I knew you weren’t going to listen. What are you thinking?”

Jeth scowled. “Just trying to enjoy making my own choices while I still can.”

A knowing look crossed Dax face. “Yeah, okay, Golden Boy.”

“What are you talking about?” said Lizzie

“Nothing,” Jeth and Dax answered in unison.

Dax glanced around the corner. “What are we looking at?”

“Sierra and Vince just went in, along with some old guy and four armed guards pulling a crate.”

Dax nodded. “Let’s assume the guards will drop off the cargo and come out again.” He raised his hand to the communicator patch behind his ear and opened all channels. “This is Ringleader. All units check in.”

One by one the others came back, identifying their current positions.

“Head toward the mark,” Dax said. “But don’t engage. Rally at the east entrance with me and the west entrance with Goliath.”

Irritated by the idea of more waiting, Jeth turned toward the window and tried to content himself with staring at his ship.

Flynn joined them a few minutes later. “The others here yet?”

Dax shook his head. Then he pressed his finger to the communicator patch again. “Goliath, you in place?”

No response.

Dax reached into his coat pocket and pulled out his black brain implant. With practiced ease, he slid the stem into the back of his skull. Jeth flinched at the sight.

Dax’s eyes went oddly out of focus for a moment, as if his consciousness had slipped his body. Then he blinked, his expression returning to normal. “Damn it.”

“Sergei didn’t respond?” said Jeth, feeling the first pangs of worry.

“No. He must not have his implant in.”

Flynn stared at Dax, his eyes wide. “You mean you really can talk mind-to-mind with those things?”

Dax grunted. “Something like that.” He gave it a couple of minutes, then tried the communicator patch once more. “You reading this, Goliath? Come back.”

Again no response.

Jeth pressed a finger to his communicator patch. “You out there, Tailspin?”

Celeste didn’t answer.

“Tailspin? Joyrider? Come back, somebody.” Something was wrong. Jeth knew it. Celeste would never leave him hanging.

Finally, he heard the click of an incoming communication, and the frantic sound of Celeste’s voice filled her ear. “Tailspin here, we’re in trouble. It’s—”

The communication cut off, but just before it did, Jeth heard a tiny hiss-pop noise, like the kind made by a gun shot with a silencer. He went still, frozen by shock and uncertainty.

“Was that gunfire?” said Flynn.

“Why would someone fire on them?” said Lizzie.

Dax didn’t answer as he peered around the corner again. Then he faced Jeth. “Think you can get Avalon’s door open?”

“I can,” Lizzie said before Jeth could reply. “Even if they’ve changed the security lock, I built a back door into the code.”

“Smart,” Dax said, looking impressed. “Let’s go.”

“What about the others?” said Flynn.

“We’ve got to assume that whatever trouble they’ve run into might be coming this way. We best not be sitting here waiting to get caught.”

Whatever trouble. A rushing sound filled Jeth’s ears. He took a deep breath and pulled out his gun. He needed to stay focused. Celeste and Shady could handle themselves. Mostly.

Jeth followed Lizzie and the others out into the corridor. As Lizzie worked on overriding Avalon’s lock, Jeth kept his gaze focused on the west entrance. He thought he heard someone coming once or twice but the corridor remained empty.

As soon as the door opened, Dax led the way inside.

At first Jeth thought the bay was empty, but then he saw the old man and the four guards lying on the ground around the container they’d been escorting. They were all dead. The nearest guard had been shot through the head.

“Oh.” Lizzie covered her mouth and looked away from the gruesome sight.

“Did Sierra and Vince do this?” said Dax, whispering

Jeth shook his head. “I doubt it.”

“Then who did?” said Flynn.

“Let’s find out.” Dax glanced at Jeth. “You know this ship better than I do. What next?”

In answer, Jeth lifted his gun to the ready position and then walked cautiously toward the ladder leading up to the commons deck. He could hear the sound of raised voices ahead of him. At least one of those voices belonged to Sierra. The others were male, although no one he recognized with any certainty. Jeth tried to make out what they were saying, but couldn’t.

He motioned for the others to wait as he climbed the first few steps, then dropped to his belly as he neared the top. From that vantage point he could see into the common room. His pulse quickened as he took in the six people. One of them was Vince, lying on the ground in between the sofa and gaming table. Whether he was dead or not, Jeth couldn’t tell, but he wasn’t moving. Sierra stood not far from him, her hands above her head. Milton stood next to her in the same submissive position.

Across from them was Marcus Renford. He was accompanied by two men in plain clothes that Jeth figured were ITA soldiers, given their standard, ITA-issued guns.

Jeth eased back down the steps to the cargo bay, beads of sweat breaking out over his skin. He quickly explained the situation to the others in a low whisper.

“Liz and I can flank them from the other entrance,” Flynn said. “No offense, but we’re quieter. You and Dax can get the drop on them from here.”

“It should work,” Jeth said, nodding. “But you two stay under cover until I give the signal. Especially you.” He glared at Lizzie. She rolled her eyes, but didn’t argue.

“Let’s go,” said Dax.

Lizzie and Flynn slipped away, heading for the front ladder up to the commons deck, while Jeth and Dax crawled up the back stairs. A minute or so later, Jeth heard a single click in his ear from the communicator patch—Lizzie, telling him she was in place. Flynn signaled next. Jeth glanced behind him at Dax, who gave him the go sign. Jeth stood up, ready to charge in.

The familiar sizzling crack of a stunner being fired echoed behind him, and Dax cried out. Jeth spun around in time to see him falling backward, arms flailing. Dax landed at the bottom of the stairs with a loud thump. The shooter stood just beyond the stairs, holding a stunner aimed at Jeth.

“Throw down the gun,” the man said. Like the men with Renford, he was wearing civilian clothes. Then Jeth saw the silver badge on the man’s belt, tucked underneath his coat, confirming his suspicions.

Jeth considered trying to get a shot off until six more ITA soldiers charged into the cargo bay. Celeste and Shady were with them, both held at gunpoint. But at least they appeared all right, unlike Sergei, who was slouched between the two soldiers holding him up. Blood ran down the front of one pant leg from a gunshot wound.

Jeth heard the sounds of a struggle behind him, but he didn’t dare turn to see what was happening as he slowly bent down and placed his gun on one of the steps.

A moment later, someone prodded him from behind. “Head down the stairs.” It was the familiar voice of Marcus Renford.

Jeth did as he was told, joining Shady and Celeste, who were kneeling in a line, hands behind their heads. The soldiers forced Lizzie, Flynn, and Milton into the same position. Jeth glanced at Milton, making sure his uncle was all right. Then his eyes found Sierra standing a couple of meters away, trapped between two soldiers holding her arms. Another soldier held an unconscious Cora. Jeth tensed at the sight of her. What had they done? Was she knocked out? Dead? Jeth forced his gaze away, guilt and fear making him dizzy.

Across from him, Renford stooped and rolled Dax onto his stomach, exposing the implant buried in his skull. He shook his head, making a disgusted sound. Then he glanced at Jeth. “So, what happened to you? Last we spoke you were supposed to be waiting for my men to pick you up.”

“Yeah, well, Hammer got there first,” Jeth said.

“So I gathered.”

Jeth’s mind was working fast as he tried to figure out his next move. “But I’m not so sure I understand this hostile reception. I thought we had an agreement.”

“Ah.” A hint of a smile danced across Renford’s lips. “So, you think to come here with Hammer’s men, mount a failed assault, and then attempt to convince me that you still want to honor our deal?”

“I didn’t know it was you in here, and I didn’t have any choice about working with Hammer. Like I said, he got there first. And this is my ship. Of course I came for her.”

Across from Jeth, Sergei was glaring so hard that his face had turned red. Jeth ignored him. His plan, if they got out of this, was to tell Sergei it had just been a ploy. Unless Renford actually did honor the deal.

“Yes, I understand.” Renford’s gaze moved from Jeth to Lizzie. “And you brought your sister. Excellent.” He approached Lizzie, then bent down and lifted her chin, turning her face more fully into the light. Lizzie tried to pull away, but Renford held fast. “You look so much like your mother.”

Outrage coursed through Jeth. Nobody touched his sister, not for any reason.

Renford addressed the soldier guarding Lizzie. “We’ll take this one with us, too.” The soldier immediately sheathed his gun, then stepped forward and pulled Lizzie to her feet.

“What are you doing?” In a panic, Jeth tried to stand, but the soldier behind him pushed him down, then pressed the barrel of a gun to the back of his skull mere millimeters above the implant architecture. Agony burst over Jeth’s head.

“Stay put, or I’ll blow a hole right through you,” the soldier hissed in Jeth’s ear.

Jeth went still, but he locked his gaze on Renford. “What do you want with my sister?”

Renford shook his head. “I’m afraid that’s an explanation that would take more time than I can spare. But I am grateful you brought her to me. Of course, it would’ve been easier if I could’ve met you outside the Belgrave. I might even have decided you were worth bringing along with me, but not anymore. You’re too much trouble and not enough value. Your sisters, on the other hand. They are most definitely worth it.”

“What are you talking about?” Jeth said, convinced the man was insane. Sisters? Value?

“What’s this?” Renford glanced at Sierra, his eyebrows raised. “You didn’t tell him? About his mother? How very . . . disciplined of you.” A smile that could only be described as proud rose to his face.

Sierra went pale, then red.

“What about my mother?” Jeth demanded, glancing between the two of them.

Renford chuckled. Then he crouched down, putting his face level with Jeth’s, a delighted glint in his eyes. He was enjoying this, Jeth realized. Renford relished the power he held over him. He relished the cruelty of it. “I can’t believe I’m the one to tell you this. Quite ironic, really. But your mother is still alive, Jeth.” Renford paused, as if allowing time for his nonsensical words to sink in. “And Cora is her daughter.”