Wings of Retribution (79 page)

Like a child throwing a tantrum,
Athenais thought, amused.  She let her guards get her to her feet, inwardly enjoying the nervous looks they gave the fingers wriggling in her shoulder, then followed the sounds of destruction in the hall.

Once she was done with her tantrum, Juno led them back through the palace at a fast pace, cursing.  Athenais was unfamiliar with the path they were taking, and it wasn’t until Juno turned onto the bottom level that she realized they were walking through the pilot’s quarters outside the docking area.

Juno stopped at one room, threw it open, and stepped inside.  Apparently, she didn’t like what she found, because when she came back out, her face was a thunderhead.  She brushed past Athenais and stormed into the shipyard.  Immediately, she singled out a graying man in his thirties, who cringed before her like a frightened rabbit.

“Where is Howlen?!” she demanded.

“Sleeping in his quarters,” the man replied.  “I have his room’s readout right here.”  He handed her a small black unit with a palm-sized display.

Juno scowled at it, then threw it in his face.  “You moron!  It’s been rigged.  He’s not in his room!”  For all her ‘Guiding Light’ nonsense, Juno looked like she was about to drop onto her stomach and start pounding the floor with her toes and fists right there.

The dockmaster began to sputter, but Juno swept her arm out over the bays.  “Close the docks.  Nobody goes in or out.  I want a thousand Warriors in here.  Twenty on every ship.  Anybody who approaches a ship gets
shot,
you understand?!”

“But the breach…” the dockmaster began.

“The breach can
wait
,” Juno snapped.  “Lock down the docks. 
Now.”

“Yes, of course.”  The dockmaster bowed deeply, then turned and started bellowing orders.

“Bring her!” Juno snapped, turning on Athenais’s five guards.  “Keep your eyes on her at all times.  She escapes and you’re all visiting the fish tank.”

Two Warriors grabbed Athenais roughly and shoved her after Juno, who was stalking out of the docks.  Athenais followed, chuckling.

Juno whirled and slapped her.

“Wow,” Athenais said, reaching up to touch her cheek, “You know, that kinda stung.”

Narrowing her eyes, Juno spun on heel.  “Bring her,” she commanded.  Juno made her way back to Athenais’s cell and shoved her bodily inside.  She left the five guards posted at the door and followed her in.  Then she tore the handset from her belt and threw it at Athenais.

“Talk,” Juno ordered.  “Tell them to give themselves up.”

Athenais caught the handset one-handed and looked down at it.

When she did not obey, Juno narrowed her eyes.  “I’m not going to tell you again, Attie.  You tell them to surrender or I’m going to stuff you in a cage and drop you to the bottom.  Special built.  I’ve been conferring with my engineers.  It’ll be floater-proof.  Half-inch mesh.  Corrosion-proof.  Imagine that, Athenais.  Not even the little fishies will be able to get you out.”

Athenais glanced up.  “You’re a spoiled bitch, you know that, Juno?”

Juno smiled cruelly.  “No more than you.”

“No,” Athenais said, “I’m not like you.” 

“
Make the goddamn call
!” Juno screamed.

Athenais sighed deeply.  At that, she lifted the handheld to her face and depressed the button.  “
Attention, crew of Retribution.  This is your captain speaking
.”  Her voice echoed against the stone walls around her in long, ominous waves.  She paused, meeting Juno’s eyes.
 
Glancing back to the receiver, she said, “
Raise Hell.  I repeat.  Raise Hell
.”  She released the button and tossed it back to Juno.

Juno narrowed her eyes.  “You’re going to the bottom, Athenais.  Tomorrow.”

“I’ll set my calendar.”  She wiggled the stump growing from her shoulder.  She already had four fingers and the makings for a thumb sprouting from the socket.  Smiling, she used them to flip Juno off.

“Maybe I won’t send you to the bottom right away,” Juno said calmly, pocketing the handheld.  “I’m sure I can drudge up enough from my PsyOps days to wipe that smirk off your face.”

“I doubt it,” Athenais said.

Juno stepped forward, utter fury making her eyes once more bright.  “Oh really?”  She was shaking in her rage.  “Is that a challenge?”

“As Rabbit would say,” Athenais said, grinning, “as things stand right now, you’ve got a very
low
probability of ever wiping this smirk off my face.”

Juno’s eyes narrowed.  “And why’s that?”

“Look behind you.”

Juno did.

Fairy grinned.  “Airhead, huh?”  And shot Juno in the face.

“I didn’t know it would buck like that,” Fairy complained for the thousandth time.  She shook out her arm, one hand pressed to her shoulder.

“It’s a compression weapon.  What did you think it was going to do?”  Athenais demanded, irritated that the little wench wouldn’t shut up about it.

“But it
hurt
,” Fairy whined, holding her wrist.  “Why didn’t you
tell
me it was going to hurt?”  Fairy sulked at the bulky Warrior, apparently Stuart’s latest victim.

Stuart shrugged.  “You said
you
wanted to do it.”

“You know I’ve never shot a gun in my life!”

“Oh for the gods’ sakes…” Athenais growled, an inch away from plastering the little moron’s brains all over the wall.  “Shut
up
about the damn gun, Fairy,” she snapped.  “Ragnar, what’s wrong with the Colonel?”

Howlen was slouched against the wall, staring straight ahead, unmoving.

The shifter frowned at Tommy.  “I’m not sure.  He’s been like that ever since we found him.”

“Drugged?”

“I think so.  He hasn’t said a word.  Didn’t even register that we came to pick him up.”

Athenais cursed.  “Great.  That’s all we need.  A vegetable.”  She eyed Howlen, wondering what Juno had given him.  Perhaps the good doctor had half a brain, after all, and had decided to keep her toys nice and quiet until it was their turn in the merry-go-round.  Still, drugging her victims didn’t seem her style.  Too easy on the victim.  To the parasite, Athenais asked, “How long’s it been?”

“Since we found him?  Two hours.”

“And there’s been no change?”

“None.”

Athenais sighed.  Something strong, then.  “Well, it’s your call, Fairy.  If you want us to leave him here, we can.  Less trouble for us, that way.”

Fairy flinched.  “
My
call?  Why?”  Like Athenais had just told her she had to clean a particularly nasty toilet.  Gods, she hadn’t been around the little twit more than ten minutes and she already wanted to get her hand around her skinny little neck.

“Because he brought you back to Xenith after you were scott free,” Athenais said.

“He saved my life,” Fairy said. 

“He gave you to a homicidal maniac,” Ragnar muttered.

The parasite sided with his former meat-jacket.  “We bring him.”

Athenais grunted and nudged Tommy with her foot.  “I thought you’d say as much.  It’s going to make things difficult, but for once I agree with you.  The bastard had half a dozen chances to jump ship and leave us all stranded here, but he stayed.  We owe it to him.”

“What about Rabbit?” Fairy asked.  “What happened to him?”

“That I don’t know,” Athenais said.  “Juno never mentioned him any more than to tell me he had failed to convince her to help us.”

Fairy’s eyes went wide.  “You think she dropped him to the bottom of the ocean.”

“The thought had crossed my mind.”  And it had not been a good thought.  Someday soon, she and Juno were going to take a very long jaunt into uncharted space.  Athenais was sure she could find a nova that would be suitable.  Maybe even a black hole, make things interesting for her.  After all, she seemed to have a hardon for pressure.

The four spacers looked at each other in silence.  “Is there any way we can find out for sure?” Ragnar asked.  “I don’t want to leave him behind.”

“I don’t either, but Rabbit can take care of himself.”

Everyone looked at Athenais like she’d rubbed shit on her face.  “You would
ditch
him?” Fairy demanded.  “After he saved you from Orplex?”

“I would’ve gotten out eventually,” Athenais said. 

“You’re soulless,” Fairy said.  “Rabbit’s your
best friend
.”

Athenais whipped around on Fairy in fury.  She would have flattened the little weasel right then and there, one-handed and everything, but both Ragnar and Stuart got in her way. 

“Calm down, Attie,” Ragnar said softly.  “She didn’t mean it.  She has no idea…”  He cleared his throat, volumes of understanding in his gentle eyes.  Then, more loudly, he said, “She just wants to make sure we do a good job of looking for Rabbit before we leave him here.  Right, Dallas?”

Behind their backs, Fairy stuck out her tongue.

Athenais narrowed her eyes and Ragnar turned back to look.  “
Right,
Dallas?”

“Right,” the little twit said.  Then she cocked her head, giving Athenais an amused smile.  “I mean, well, she doesn’t
try
to be a soulless bitch.” 

Ragnar turned to face Fairy and took a fistful of her shirt and lifted her completely off of the ground, one-handed, like she were made of foam.  The petite woman shrunk back in his grip as he brought her face to his.  Softly, but with enough force that Athenais could hear it, Ragnar said, “You say something like that again and I’ll beat the life out of you myself.”  He shook her.  “
Capiche
?”

Fairy stared back at him, wide-eyed in terror.

Ragnar set her down and shoved her toward Athenais.  “Now apologize.”

Fairy started to object, but one look at Ragnar’s face was enough to make her swallow her complaints.  “Sorry, Athenais,” she muttered.

Athenais heard a breath let out beside her, and realized that Stuart had been tensely moving closer to the shifter.  Interesting.  So the little worm had picked sides.  Good to know, if things ever got nasty.

Athenais sniffed and glanced at the door.  “Juno locked down the docks, so we’re gonna need a distraction.  Something big enough to—”

“
Attention all hands.  We have a Class I Emergency.  I repeat.  A Class I Emergency.  Enemy ships attacking.  All available pilots report to their duty stations for immediate launch.”