pulled his knife from its sheath.
“The purple bruise, just above my ankle. I thought I got it struggling against the ropes. It’s a bloody transmitter. The son of a Chigalla planted a bio-mimetic transmitter under my skin. You’ll have to cut it out. Cut it out now because I’ll blow this ship to the Seven Hells of Wrath before I’ll let them take us.”
Kyr flipped off his harness and knelt on the floor. He grabbed Aja’s leg to hold her still and without hesitation, sliced directly into the mark above her ankle.
“Deeper.” She gasped. “He planted it into the muscle. It’s already attached itself. Gods, Kyr, cut it out. Get it out of me.”
Kyr enlarged the incision, digging into her leg until the knife hit something hard; something he hoped wasn’t bone. He spread the edges of her skin apart and he saw a tiny metallic chip with living tentacles gripping her muscle fibers. He dared a glance at Aja’s face. Tears lined her cheeks but her eyes remained closed. She’d bitten down on her lip, drawing blood.
Steeling himself, he sliced through every muscle strand and used his knife to pry the thing out. Aja sucked in a deep breath just as the thing flipped onto the floor. From behind him, Kyr could hear Davi muttering curses.
“Hold her steady,” Kyr shouted. “I’m shooting this out the airlock.” He grabbed the blood-smeared chip and headed down the companionway to the galley.
“Kyr,” Aja called after him. “If they drop on top of us, I’ll have to come about again. Be ready.”
Kyr searched a locker for a container. By the Gods, he didn’t want the thing sticking to his ship. He dropped the bloody piece of metal into a prese jar and screwed on the lid. He wove his way to the supply bay. There was a small airlock there. He’d installed it in case they had to jettison any illegal cargo in a hurry.
He heard Aja call, “Prepare to come about.” He just barely had time to wrap himself in the wall of cargo netting before she yelled, “Coming about!”
His feet flew out from under him. The muscles in his arms took the strain as his ship swerved once more and he flew sideways, his legs in the air, his back crashing against the padded cargo wall. He held onto the jar for dear life.
When the ship righted herself, Kyr untangled his arms and legs and crawled to the sealed hatch. He flipped the lock and opened the small door, tossed in the jar and closed the door behind it, pulling the handle tight, ensuring he’d made a proper seal.
He hit the button and the exterior hatch opened. The jar was sucked into the blackness of space. Kyr closed the exterior door.
“Done,” he shouted.
“Then get your sweet ass back here and strap in,” Aja yelled. “I’m entering the Pikes. Shields up, Mr. Fedd.”
Kyr heard Davi’s weak response. “Yes, ma’am.”
Kyr threaded his way toward the cockpit, grinning like a madman. What a bloody wild ride this was turning out to be.
Daughters of Persephone
“Y ou lost them. You blood-sucking whore mongering son of a Chigalla, you lost them.”
The captain knelt on the deck. Face to the floor, he began to stammer out his apologies.
“Shut up, fool. You should have followed them into the Pikes.”
“But General, to do so I would have… I would have destroyed this cruiser.”
General Bom put a booted foot on the back of the man’s neck and mashed his face into the deck. “I told you to shut up.”
With cold eyes, the General surveyed the command room, hoping some officer would look up, would challenge him. He craved a battle, a bloody death by his hands.
There were no takers.
Cowards.
They stared at their boots, at the wall, hoping against hope they would be spared the captain’s fate, whatever horror that might be.
To be bested by a woman, his own daughter, at that. The Abomination.
“Get up,” he ordered the captain. “Scan this quadrant. I want our forces alerted in every system, at every refueling stop, at every supply depot. Tell
“The purple bruise, just above my ankle. I thought I got it struggling against the ropes. It’s a bloody transmitter. The son of a Chigalla planted a bio-mimetic transmitter under my skin. You’ll have to cut it out. Cut it out now because I’ll blow this ship to the Seven Hells of Wrath before I’ll let them take us.”
Kyr flipped off his harness and knelt on the floor. He grabbed Aja’s leg to hold her still and without hesitation, sliced directly into the mark above her ankle.
“Deeper.” She gasped. “He planted it into the muscle. It’s already attached itself. Gods, Kyr, cut it out. Get it out of me.”
Kyr enlarged the incision, digging into her leg until the knife hit something hard; something he hoped wasn’t bone. He spread the edges of her skin apart and he saw a tiny metallic chip with living tentacles gripping her muscle fibers. He dared a glance at Aja’s face. Tears lined her cheeks but her eyes remained closed. She’d bitten down on her lip, drawing blood.
Steeling himself, he sliced through every muscle strand and used his knife to pry the thing out. Aja sucked in a deep breath just as the thing flipped onto the floor. From behind him, Kyr could hear Davi muttering curses.
“Hold her steady,” Kyr shouted. “I’m shooting this out the airlock.” He grabbed the blood-smeared chip and headed down the companionway to the galley.
“Kyr,” Aja called after him. “If they drop on top of us, I’ll have to come about again. Be ready.”
Kyr searched a locker for a container. By the Gods, he didn’t want the thing sticking to his ship. He dropped the bloody piece of metal into a prese jar and screwed on the lid. He wove his way to the supply bay. There was a small airlock there. He’d installed it in case they had to jettison any illegal cargo in a hurry.
He heard Aja call, “Prepare to come about.” He just barely had time to wrap himself in the wall of cargo netting before she yelled, “Coming about!”
His feet flew out from under him. The muscles in his arms took the strain as his ship swerved once more and he flew sideways, his legs in the air, his back crashing against the padded cargo wall. He held onto the jar for dear life.
When the ship righted herself, Kyr untangled his arms and legs and crawled to the sealed hatch. He flipped the lock and opened the small door, tossed in the jar and closed the door behind it, pulling the handle tight, ensuring he’d made a proper seal.
He hit the button and the exterior hatch opened. The jar was sucked into the blackness of space. Kyr closed the exterior door.
“Done,” he shouted.
“Then get your sweet ass back here and strap in,” Aja yelled. “I’m entering the Pikes. Shields up, Mr. Fedd.”
Kyr heard Davi’s weak response. “Yes, ma’am.”
Kyr threaded his way toward the cockpit, grinning like a madman. What a bloody wild ride this was turning out to be.
Daughters of Persephone
“Y ou lost them. You blood-sucking whore mongering son of a Chigalla, you lost them.”
The captain knelt on the deck. Face to the floor, he began to stammer out his apologies.
“Shut up, fool. You should have followed them into the Pikes.”
“But General, to do so I would have… I would have destroyed this cruiser.”
General Bom put a booted foot on the back of the man’s neck and mashed his face into the deck. “I told you to shut up.”
With cold eyes, the General surveyed the command room, hoping some officer would look up, would challenge him. He craved a battle, a bloody death by his hands.
There were no takers.
Cowards.
They stared at their boots, at the wall, hoping against hope they would be spared the captain’s fate, whatever horror that might be.
To be bested by a woman, his own daughter, at that. The Abomination.
“Get up,” he ordered the captain. “Scan this quadrant. I want our forces alerted in every system, at every refueling stop, at every supply depot. Tell
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