Lana's Comet (Outer Settlement Agency) Read online

  She turned, just a touch, and bit back a grin at the open looks of shock directed at their Commander Dhoma.

  He wasn’t finished.

  “I’m gonna tell you something and you’ll have to latch on to it when you need it. Today, you have your final round of mental stress assessments. I see the looks on your faces. I understand it firsthand. Everyone in charge of your training has gone through this. You’ll make it. Visualize what comes next. The fun stuff, hmm? Planetary sims, shuttle runs, all those things you thought you’d be doing instead of running laps for me.”

  A few of her comrades grinned, others wept. She didn’t blame them. Meash Corp had similar programs, only with far less stringent commitments to psychological safety. OSA protected people and planets. Meash Corp protected their money. They went to great lengths to ensure that secrets couldn’t be plied out of its higher-level employees. She shivered in empathy and tried to center her mind on him.

  “Any questions?”

  When no one responded, Cyprus sent them away with a “You’ve got this,” and after the last person left, he turned to her. “A word in my office?”

  “Sir.” She followed, keeping her eyes on a rear end she might not be able to see again. Might as well enjoy one final view. She prepared herself for a talking to and was ready to fire back. She was grown. If he had any regrets, that was on him.

  She didn’t.

  She enjoyed last night and happened to know he did too. She’d call him out on any bullshit he might try to fling her way.

  He said nothing as the door opened for his retina scan and he waived her through. Unlike the silver and tan that colored most of the facility, his office was a dark blue with soft green lighting emanating from the corners.

  His desk was as she expected. Clear. No mementos and, “OH!”

  In one breath, she was off her feet and on said desk, with one very attractive OSA agent looking down. “I had my brother scan my room today. It’s clean.”

  “So?”

  “New rule.”

  “Okay?”

  “As long as you’re in that uniform, you’ll do what I tell you to do.”

  “That’s illegal.” She shimmied out of her top. “However, out of uniform…”

  Teeth latched on her neck while his hands went to work on her trousers. She tried to help, but he didn’t need it, having her naked in two smooth movements. A massive palm pushed against her stomach. “Lay back down.”

  She did.

  “Spread you legs.”

  She did that too.

  But nothing happened. She looked down the length of her body to find him still clothed and staring at her. A rough thumb rubbed against her clit and she took a sharp huff of air. He smiled and brought his chair closer to the desk. “I missed breakfast. That’s your fault.”

  Hands hooked around her calves, dragging her to the edge of the desk.

  “I’m going to eat now and you’re going to be a good little recruit and not interrupt me while I do.”

  Good was such a relative term. If good involved keeping her mouth shut, that wasn’t happening. The man’s tongue traced her labial walls from one side to the other. The dance of his flesh across hers was both too brief and too long.

  She slammed her hand across her mouth and damn near bit her lip off to keep from moaning. Then he started sucking, working her as if he meant to consume her. “Please.”

  “Please, what?”

  “Please, don’t stop.”

  “Oh, I agree.”

  Cyprus’s tongue froze.

  Right about then it registered that this last voice hadn’t come from between her legs. Nor did it belong to Cyprus, who shot up and threw some clothes over her. She jumped behind him, scampering into her suit.

  “Vin, get out, NOW!”

  Who the hell was Vin? She wasn’t about to stop dressing to find out.

  “I have the thing you wanted. Who is that,” this Vin person asked.

  “Brother, I swear to you…”

  Brother? She did peek then. The beautiful, and very human looking Vin, waved four fingers in the air. “Hello, there.”

  She didn’t wave back. Vin shrugged and took a five-fingered grip on an omnitablet - one decorated with black Martian lilies. “That’s Michi’s!”

  Vin’s eyes rolled back and he pointed from the tablet to her face. “This involves her too? Oh man, you’re in deep.”

  Cyprus took a step, hands curled into fists at his side. “Shut up and get out.”

  But none of this seemed to faze Vin. He shot her another toothy smile and his shoulders shook with laughter. “I am not judging this. If my brother wants to service a woman—”

  “I’m going to kill you.”

  “– on his desk to start his morning, who am I to stand in his way? Are you going to introduce us?”

  “No.”

  Cyprus snatched the omnitablet and dropped it on the desk. She took a deep breath and stepped from behind him. “I’m Dr. Lana Kagen.”

  Vin bypassed her extended hand. To her horror, he saluted. “Trainee, Lana Kagen. This is getting better by the minute. I checked the files of both people in your room, Doc. In case you were involved with Ms. Yoshisumi’s disappearance. You left behind a profitable employer for this and it raises questions. Mind telling me what I’ve just risked my career for?”

  “It’s rather complicated.”

  “I see. Listen, I understand that I’m just a simple security director, barely able to walk and talk at the same time. And I get, truly I do, that I’ve interrupted a very important business meeting about this very serious and, as you say, complicated issue but—”

  “Meash Two is attempting to control the galaxy by bioengineering a disease to which only they have the antidote.”

  “Oh. Right. Shall I save this as ‘that thing I didn’t hear’ and move on with my day?”

  “Not exactly. I mean—”

  “Lady, either you’re crazy or the universe is. This is so out of my purview.”

  “Out of…you’re top level security!” She looked from one brother to the other, brain clearly incorrectly reporting everything he’d just said. Meanwhile Cyprus rolled his eyes and threw his hands in the air.

  “Just saying,” Vin continued. “I don’t get paid enough to handle that.”

  “I’m here because I can’t do this on my own.”

  “You’re here so my brother can eat—”

  Cyprus’s face turned a muddy, angry red and he pointed to the door. “Leave. Now.”

  “All of this…you two are serious, aren’t you? Aww, shit. Look, fix it.” The man turned, but didn’t leave just yet. “Rough translation, I’m kicking this up to my superiors. You get a week to sort this out, prove what you say is true and submit it to OSA.”

  “Or that, brother?”

  “Or I will. We can’t sit on this.”

  “They’re still months, maybe years out,” she offered.

  “I don’t care. Maybe you can’t read it in my features, but I know what those bastards can do.” Vin pulled out his omnitablet and started typing. “Meash logistics qualifications don’t transfer over without upper level approval. Congratulations, you just got upper level approval. You’re skipping simulations and going straight to the two-day space training. Take the unlocked tablet. Use the time to make all the connections you need to bring this to light.”

  For the first time since Vin’s entry, Cyprus looked at his brother with soft eyes and unclenched fists. “You don’t need to get involved with this.”

  “You got me involved. You leave this afternoon. And, would you look at that? Because of scheduling conflicts, I’m putting you down as her onboard facilitator.”

  “I can’t abandon the rest of my recruits.”

  “You won’t. They’ll need a day to recover. That gives you just enough time to come back and hit the ground running.”

  “Wait.” Cyprus paced in the small room, arms crossed, chin resting on his fist. “I’ll note that we’re tryin
g something new and testing it on Lana. They’ll record everything we say, so we’ll have to communicate via Yoshisumi’s omnitablet.”

  “We could do a loop on the dark side of—”

  Vin’s clicking tongue cut her off. “Too suspicious. You literally have to save the world and pass a flying test. And not in that order.” Vin’s head dropped and he typed some more. “You’ll have one of the older training shuttles. Do I have to remind you to keep your hands off one another?”

  Cyprus’s feet skidded to a stop and he had the nerve to smile. “No and thank you.”

  “Yeah, well, my name’s all over this now. As for you, lady, make sure you’re right before you go ruining all of our lives.”

  Chapter Ten

  It was a four-person shuttle with the back seats removed and a sleeping cot built for one. She dragged up the rest of her things and tossed them in the rear. He wanted to help, but couldn’t. Such an action would be noted. He couldn’t risk anything out of character.

  They played it safe during the load up, take off and had to continue to do so. To be this close and so artificially removed qualified as excruciating. For the first time in modern memory, he was sick and tired of OSA.

  “Systems check complete?”

  “Yes, sir. We’re closing out on the mesosphere, shifting for the thermosphere.”

  “Looks good. Kagen. Expect a bump.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  To her credit, she didn’t jump or scream as many did when they hit the bubble. Then again, this wasn’t her first time. The craft glided under the hands of a pure natural. She settled into a smooth resting point and sighed, falling back into the seat. “Clear.”

  Of all the inventive ways he wished to congratulate her on a job well done, he simply nodded and uploaded the flight stats to her files. Without a word, he handed her the unlocked omnitablet and passed the time reviewing files of other trainees.

  The urge to rest a hand of support over her shoulder was there and strong, but anyone at any time could look in on their shuttle. It wasn’t worth the risk. Unable to stare, let alone help, he left her to her espionage and worked on what suddenly felt trite and inconsequential.

  Hours passed and he fought off sleep. She still worked, fingers darting across the screen, a million kilometers a second. She’d sigh every so often, but otherwise worked in silence.

  “Sir?”

  The second he looked up at her smiling face, he knew. “What is it, Kagen? You’ve completed the assignment I gave you?”

  “Yes.”

  “And everything is in order?”

  “Completely.”

  “And backed up?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Good.” He set the alarm on his omnitablet for one hour. “Take your break. Calorie tabs are in the back, if you need them.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “That wasn’t a question, Kagen. A rest is required. Go.”

  Fleshy hips brushed against his shoulder as she went. It was no accident. The jolt of it was hot, immediate and gone too soon.

  He ached to turn and watch her sleep each time she shifted on the noisy sheets, but didn’t chance it and redirected his focus. The overhead switch panel provided a poor substitute, but he used the time to check what she’d downloaded from Meash.

  It wasn’t that she’d been right that shocked him. Rather, the degree to which she’d been that had him shaking with rage. Evidence of a virus called Telni brought bile scratching at the back of this throat. Each file contained endless pictures of test subjects with scabbed faces and dehydration so advanced that their skin was damn near see through. There were videos as well, but he didn’t have the stomach to watch them.

  Hadn’t they learned anything from Meash Five? The bastards had created a new species and now another branch of the Corporation meant to kill ‘em off? All of it done in the name of profit.

  No wonder Lana got out of there. The last woman who turned on a Meash Corp group nearly lost her life for it. He pulled up the files on Dr. Solia Calian and Lunar Sheriff Giancarlo Sable. Everyone knew they’d liberated the first Kin-Humanoids on Enceladus from Meash. How they’d managed it may be the key he and Lana’s survival.

  It wasn’t an issue of going to the authorities. Without knowing whom to trust, Calian and Sable had the scenes of horror broadcast to everyone in the system. Public outcry forced immediate action. It was a lot more certain than going through the proper channels.

  But that was a long time ago…back when Kin-Humanoids were still clones.

  Things were different now. Old thoughts wiped away. Supposedly. Thousands of Kin must work for Meash these days. If word got out, rioting was sure to follow and innocent lives on both sides would be lost.

  This required a soft hand, and OSA didn’t have a reputation for gentility.

  For every plan he came up with he’d find a reason to dismiss it. When the alarm roused Lana though, it came to him that he wouldn’t have to solve this problem alone. He had a confident woman beside him and he saw nothing in her eyes close to defeat.

  “I’m here,” Lana said and slid into the flight engineer’s seat. “I’m ready.”

  “I know.” He cleared his throat and went on with the training that still had to be done. “Your next task is to weld in open space. There’s a lot of junk flying around and not every sensor picks it up. Most won’t be an issue, but we need to see what you can do in the event of outer hull damage. Suit up.”

  “Where is the breach?”

  He shrugged.

  “Right, sir. What seems to be the problem?”

  “Good question. Sensors indicate that something near the wing is off a few degrees. It’s back where it meets the access hatch.”

  “Got it.”

  She did. The woman made smart decisions all the way around. Lana went out through the cargo bay door rather than near the deck to save time. She wasted some moments around the wing, but he smiled at the screen when she quickly realized that problem started with the elevon and not the wing itself. Her management of the shock angle and collision point velocity showed a talent beyond most. He zoomed in to check the momentary angle relative to the weld piece. Perfect. Cyprus signed off his approval on this section of her training before she even made it back inside.

  “You were magnificent,” he whispered as he helped her out of the suit.

  “With our without your assistance?”

  “Don’t get lippy, Kagen. But to answer your question, in spite of it.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  Had they not had the threat of distant minders, he’d have kissed her, removed her suit and…

  Sirens split the air, yanking him painfully into the present and they jumped back to their seats, heads shifting from one panel to the other. “What’s going on, Lana?”

  “Nothing. The sensors aren’t showing anything.” She leaned up to look out the windshield, then back to her screen. “This says that something is approaching fast, but there’s nothing there. I…I don’t know how to pass this part of the test.”

  “That’s because this isn’t on it. Get someone on the comms now. I’ll try to make…” The shuttle dimmed to emergency lighting and the engine whirled down. “…Contact,” he finished lamely. “It’s probably a sensor out of calibration.”

  “It’s a little more than that,” she added, pointing to one of the few lights still working. “The polarity panel is fuzzed. Maybe we can reverse them?”

  “If we can reach them. They’re through the lox tank baffles. Pull up the schematics, I’ll get the tools.”

  “We’re screwed.”

  “Because?”

  “Even though we can get to it from an interior access point, we don’t have the proper equipment to handle when we reach it, or rather, reach them. Trust me on this, Cyprus.”

  “Cyprus?”

  “Yep. Cyprus. It’s that serious. A regular visor can’t handle the infrared lighting. I’ve seen the damage from this and I’ve treated it dozens of times. I
t’s possible to reverse blindness with a medipod if we get to one in time, but we can’t even make contact with OSA base.”

  “Then we’ll be careful.”

  “This isn’t a joke.”

  “What choice do we have? Wait a day and a half and hope the oxygen doesn’t run out? It will, Lana. We might buy some time with the support systems in the control suits, but not much. We’ll have to do this by touch. We’re good at that.”

  At least she returned his smile and raised it with a wink. That was a start. Lana projected the glowing outline of the area he had to dig through. “There it is,” she said and zoomed in. “Two large blocks, separated by a synthetic backing.”

  He half ran the short distance to the rear of the vessel and yanked at the siding until it gave way, then he shoved his hands into the guts of the ship. Lana provided him with virtual eyes by projected the schematics against the wall. He followed the map and grabbed hold of the first panel. With gritted teeth, he hauled the thing up, dropping it at their feet with a loud thunk.

  He rotated his shoulders a few times before going back in, trying in vain to ignore the searing pain. He got the second one halfway up before his shoulder gave out and he had to switch arms.

  Lana toed one of the panels while he massaged his muscles. “So, these two things have to connect and separate.”

  “Yeah.”

  “No offense, but you’re struggling already. How am I supposed to lift up my end?”

  “You don’t have a choice. I need your help, Lana. I wish I could do it alone, but I, uh, left my medicine back on base. I’m not burning on all thrusters.”

  “Unbelievable.”

  “We were in a bit of a rush.”

  “Cyprus!”

  “If this hadn’t happened, we’d have made it back with time to spare. We still can.”

  She shook her head and circled the square metal boxes. “I’m about done with you and your—”

  “We don’t have time for this, Lana.”

  “Fine. Later. As for this, maybe I don’t have to lift it. The two just need to touch, briefly.”

  “What are you thinking,” he asked, hands clasped behind his neck.