CHAPTER 41

 

 

 

"Kari, is that you?" Gareth gaped at the screen. "When I heard they'd found your Phantom abandoned on some transfer asteroid I thought for sure…"

"It was close," Kari said. She sat squeezed between prisoners they'd rescued from Jic's ship and Ryker's armored body. Piper and Wren lay on the only beds, both unconscious. Atticus thought Piper would live but Wren had been poisoned. He'd found an old box of medical supplies and done what he could, but she was still closer to death than she was to life. In the hour since getting away from Jic's ship, Kari hadn't had time to think about it.

"What happened? We're getting all kinds of rumors."

"A lot. Atticus is going to send you some comms. Imperium, high level. You'll want to take a look. Then you'll want to send it to every person you know and make sure they do the same."

Gareth frowned. "What is it?"

"Proof that they'd planned to kill everyone on Zenith."

"Bastards! When they started gassing us…"

"Exactly. But it looks like it was only a splinter group. Dead now. The comms should give you enough leverage against the rest of the Imperium. Not everyone on Albion would support total extermination of a whole planet. Plus, there's proof that Jic and his group assassinated Senator Olfred."

"What?"

"They framed us. Although now we're guilty of killing a senator."

"What? Who?"

"Kimchan."

Gareth's lips twisted. "I never liked her anyway."

"They were fueling violence between Zenith and Albion to make the extermination… more palatable. When people see the truth, you'll have support."

"Why me? Where will you be?"

"I've got people here that need help, besides, I've never been good at talking to people. That's down to you."

"But—"

"Don't worry, I'm not sending you in alone. Ryker will help."

Ryker shifted where he sat next to Kari. "I don't think that's a good idea. In case you hadn't noticed…" He waved at the metal plates encasing him.

"All the more reason," Kari said. "The people of Albion have to know what happened."

"Kari, it's not me."

"It's exactly you!" She turned away from Gareth to face Ryker straight on. She swallowed the hard, stinging lump in her throat, determined to get through to Ryker. "Don't you see? This is what you always said, that the people of Zenith and Albion needed to find common ground. You've been fighting for this longer than any of us. Who better to make it happen?"

"I can't… I'm a monster."

"No." Kari gripped Ryker's arms, urging him to feel her through the armored plates. "You're no monster. You're the same man I met a decade ago. You're still a hero. You're still better than any of us. They'll listen to you."

"She's right," Gareth said. "People know of you. They respect you. A few bits of metal won't change that."

The muscles in Ryker's jaw worked where they emerged above the armored neck plates.

"This was always you," Kari said.

Ryker straightened. "Okay, I'll do it."

"Of course you will."

"I can't believe it," Gareth said. "We may actually live to see the end of the Imperium's choke-hold on Zenith."

Kari faced him. "We will. Now, you mentioned my Phantom…"

"The vultures were going to sell it for parts."

Heat spread over Kari's face.

"Don't worry. I told them that if anyone laid even one finger on it that I'd chop their balls off myself. It's still on that asteroid."

"Thank you," Kari said. "We'll pick it up. We have some things of our own to sort out. But the Universe is changing. You'll see."

Gareth grinned as Kari killed the connection.

"Do you really believe that?" Ryker said.

"Have you ever known me to be an optimist?"

"No."

"Do I say things just to make people feel happy and fluffy?"

"No."

"Then you should know that yes, I believe it. Things are changing."

 

***

 

Two weeks after escaping Jic's ship, Kari and her crew sat in Ghost's dining room feasting on a roast that Ryker had managed to cook between trips to Albion.

Wren hunched at one end of the table, eating more food than she had since they'd escaped Jic. She'd been in a coma for most of that time, her heartbeat barely detectable and breathing only a couple of times a minute. Only Atticus and his uncanny knowledge of the Guild and their poisons allowed them to find the right antidote in Wren's room. Even then, it had been a close thing. She'd woken up two days ago—as much to her surprise as anyone else's.

"What will you do now?" Ryker asked Wren.

She raised an eyebrow. "People still want other people dead. Whether the Imperium controls Zenith or not."

Kari and her crew paused, forks halfway to their mouths.

"You're still going to be an assassin?" Atticus said. His white hair stuck out from his head like a wild cloud and a smudge of grease stained his cheek. He'd spent all day working on the engines. They ran much smoother now, although somehow in the process he'd also made the lights temperature sensitive. Another 'quirk' to add to the growing list.

Wren shrugged. "What else?"

"You could heal people, you could do protection, missing persons…"

Atticus had a point. Wren's skills made her valuable in any number of fields.

Wren shook her head. "Not what I want."

"You want to kill? But after everything the Guild did…"

"Not for the Guild. I'm freelancing."

Atticus looked ready to argue more. Kari couldn't blame him, she certainly felt like she'd seen enough blood to last a lifetime. But Wren was special. She had something inside her that needed the thrill, the feel of the kill.

"I'll be selective about the jobs," Wren said. "Not that it's any of your business."

Kari nodded. It was probably safer for all of them that Wren kept killing targets. Otherwise it would be like having a live bomb sitting beside them that could go off and kill them all at any moment.

"Some people deserve to die," Piper said. Her face gleamed white under the fluorescent lights.

"Exactly," Wren said.

Kari squeezed Piper's shoulder. Physically, she'd almost recovered from their time on Jic' ship, although she'd have a scar across her temple for the rest of her life. But mentally… it would take a while for those scars to heal. But this time Kari would be there for her. With tensions on Zenith easing, and the Imperium no longer breathing down her neck, Kari finally had time to give Piper the help she needed.

"How are the talks going?" Kari asked Ryker, changing the subject.

"Not bad," Ryker said. "I made the ambassadors from Albion look real close at my neck today, where the metal is fused. One of them threw up into his hat and after that they were much more open-minded about our suggestions."

"You really think it will happen?" Atticus said.

"Oh, Zenith will be free of Albion," Ryker said. "Things are already better there. We're receiving medical shipments, food. It's getting better."

Kari smiled as she ate and let their conversation fade into the background. It seemed like only a few weeks ago that she'd been barging through the lower tunnels of Zenith to deliver a crate of guns to the rebellion. So much had changed since then. It was a lifetime ago. Finally things were transforming. It had cost a lot of lives. Too many. But here they were, on the verge of a free Zenith. Finally, she could fly around in her ship, with her crew, and take on jobs without the threat of the Imperium hanging over her.

The rebels had won.

Freedom forever.

 

 

***

 

Dear Reader,

 

Thank you for joining me for Kari and the crew's adventures. I hope you enjoyed reading them as much as I enjoyed writing them.

 

If you liked Starship Renegades, you will love The Nova Chronicles:

 

Plasma pistols, busted ships, and space adventure.

 

Nova is an adventurer with a heart of steel. All she wants is a quiet life and enough money to keep her ship flying.

 

The Universe has other plans.

 

Between ancient aliens bent on universal destruction, and a government bent on universal control, Nova can't catch a break.

 

Grab your space racer and strap in - this is going to be one wild ride!

 

If you enjoy space-cowboys, misfit-crews, and adventure, then you'll love The Nova Chronicles.

 

Get it now: https://saffronbryant.com/books/the-nova-chronicles-books-1-5-box-set/

 

 

Thank you for reading, and I'll see you in the next adventure!

 

~ Saffron