Star Alliance (29 page)

Hicks came over to her.
 

“Would you mind covering things here for a bit?” Kaylan asked.

“Take your time,” Hicks said.

Kaylan headed to the med bay. The door opened, and she saw Brenda standing at her console.

“I was just about to go help Emma with analyzing the data Gaarokk provided about the Xiiginns,” Brenda said.

“Oh, okay, that’s good. I’ve been meaning to follow up with her, but I came here looking for Zack,” Kaylan said.

“He said he was going to one of the observatories,” Brenda said.

Kaylan rested her hand on the door. “How is he?” she asked.

“Time will tell. He’s been through a lot. His body will heal just fine, but he was a prisoner of the Xiiginn. That would take its toll on anyone. I’ve spoken to both Katie and Hicks to see what they had to say about it. I figured the military would have given them training that could offer some insight on how to best deal with it. They said we just need to be here for Zack, and take it one day at a time,” Brenda said. “You should go to him. I’m sure he’d like to see you.”

Kaylan nodded and thanked Brenda, then decided to head to the port observatory. It was the place Zack would go to when he was avoiding Redford. As she made her way through the ship, she kept thinking about their last moments together on the Xiiginn cruiser. She’d reviewed everything that had happened in meticulous detail, and when she grew tired of that, she would move on to before they’d even gone to Selebus that first time. She hadn’t been honest with herself then, but she was determined to be so today.

Kaylan rounded the corner and opened the door to the port observatory. Zack was sitting on one of the small couches, gazing out the window. He wore a white shirt and blue sweatpants. The Boxan stealth ship was on the opposite side of the Athena, so he had a clear view. As she walked in, he turned toward her and smiled. His face had sharper features, as if there were more of an edge to him than there had been before.

“Brenda told me you were here. Do you mind if I join you?” Kaylan asked.

“Please,” Zack said quietly and gestured next to him.

Kaylan walked over and sat. The side of his mouth drew down as he pressed his lips together, which was what he often did when weighing whether or not he should speak.

“I’m sorry I haven’t come sooner,” Kaylan said.

“You’ve had your hands full,” Zack said. “The others filled me in on everything you did to find me. I don’t know how to thank you.”

“Thank me?” Kaylan said. “Zack, you saved my life. Yes, you did,” she said when he started to protest.

Zack shifted in his seat. “Anyone else would have done the same,” he said.

Kaylan frowned. “Really?” she said. “Someone else would have kissed me and then locked me in an elevator because they thought they were going to die?”

Zack swallowed and met her gaze. “They tried to get me to do things and tell them about all of you. I fought them as hard as I could,” he said.

“You were their prisoner,” Kaylan said. That reason alone was more than enough for anything he could have said to the Xiiginns.

“I told them some things. She tried to control me,” Zack said.

“Etanu told me what happened,” Kaylan said.

“They had video surveillance on their ships, and she kept showing me the part of the video where I kissed you while they did things to me,” Zack said.

Kaylan reached out and rubbed his shoulder. “I’m so sorry for what they did to you,” she said.

Zack took her hand in his. “I’m not a soldier. I know there are other people who would have done things differently, but I would do it all again to keep you safe.”

Kaylan’s breath caught in her throat. “You keep saying how weak you are, but your actions tell a different story. No one else could have achieved what you did, and I don’t mean just saving my life. You fought for all those prisoners.”

“I had to. What was being done to them was wrong,” Zack said.

“That’s what makes you the strongest person I know and why I love you,” Kaylan said. Her throat thickened, but she felt a great weight lift from her shoulders, as if she were finally free of everything she had pent up inside. “I know you’re with Katie, but I needed to tell you, to say it out loud.”

Zack was clearly taken aback, and she watched as he tried to form words. “We’re not together, Katie and I. She, uh—knew my heart belongs to you.”

Kaylan’s eyes became misty, and her breath hitched. Zack started to say something else, but she cut him off. “Shut up and kiss me, you idiot.”

Zack pulled her toward him, and her lips parted as she melted into his arms. Heat coursed through her veins and she glowed inside. For the first time it felt like it was just the two of them on the ship. Her lips sank into his and she held him to her, losing herself in the press of his lips.
 

“I could kiss you forever,” he whispered.

Kaylan smiled. Zack’s eyes widened with surprise as she took off his shirt and then removed her own. She wanted this, and so did he. Her heart raced, and she moaned as their bare skin came together.
 

A short while later they lay naked on the couch, and Zack glanced behind them.

“Aren’t you afraid someone is going to walk in here?” Zack asked.

Kaylan shook her head. “No, I locked the door,” she said.

Zack frowned in confusion.

“Neural implants, silly,” Kaylan teased.

Zack snorted.

“You’re probably right though. We should get dressed,” Kaylan said.

Neither one of them could stop smiling. She hoped they could manage some semblance of control because they weren’t exactly in the clear. The Xiiginns could still find them, and they were light-years from home.
 

Zack looked at her and, for a moment, seemed uncertain.

“Day by day,” Kaylan said, placing her hand on his arm.

Zack nodded, and his gaze narrowed playfully. “Just so I’m clear, do I need to call you Commander while we’re alone?” he asked with a smirk.

Kaylan punched him in the arm, and he used it as an excuse to pull her in for another kiss.

“I’m just kidding,” Zack said with a grin.

Kaylan pulled herself away from him. “We’d better get to the bridge. I expect we’re getting close to the space station,” Kaylan said.

“I’ll meet you up there. Can’t show up at the bridge dressed like this,” Zack said, gesturing to his sweatpants and T-shirt.

They left the observatory, and Kaylan returned to the bridge. She felt like her lips couldn’t stop smiling, and there was more of a spring to her step than there had been before. She opened the door and saw Gaarokk, Ezerah, and Etanu on one side of the conference table, with Hicks and Redford on the other. She greeted them and asked to be brought up to speed.

Gaarokk sat hunched over, with his thick, dark hair hanging down his chest. The Boxan never complained about the tight quarters he found himself in, but Kaylan imagined it must get a bit uncomfortable after a while.

“There are two escort ships that are going to guide the stealth ship to the dock at the station,” Gaarokk said.

“What about us?” Kaylan said.

“They will have you dock near our ship. Kladomaor insisted,” Gaarokk said.

Kaylan shifted her feet. “Is there a problem we should be aware of?” she asked.

“I don’t know for certain. This station and the work being done there is highly confidential. Kladomaor told me they haven’t even shared with him what they’re doing. The good news is that we should be able to repair the ship, and from there we can take you before the council,” Gaarokk said.

“How do you think they’ll react?” Kaylan asked.

“Excuse me, Commander, but Kladomaor is hailing us,” the AI said.
 

“Put him through,” Kaylan said.

“Greetings. Before the Athena docks, they’ll scan your ship to determine if it will be allowed to enter the space dock. Once we’re aboard the space station, we’ll meet with the station commander by the name of Prax’pedax,” Kladomaor said.

“Prax’pedax is no mere station commander,” Gaarokk said.

“Who is he?” Kaylan asked.

“Technically, he’s my superior. He’s what you would call a fleet admiral, which means the work being done here is vitally important. We may have stumbled into something,” Kladomaor said.

“What else is new?” Hicks said with a wry grin.

“Indeed,” Kladomaor said. “Just be aware that there will be heightened security protocols in effect.”

“Understood,” Kaylan said.

The gravity tether was disengaged, and Kaylan put some distance between the Athena and the Boxan stealth ship so it could be safely guided to the asteroid space station. Two smaller, rectangular-shaped ships moved into position on either side of the Boxan ship and guided it away. The rectangular ships were dark gray and shuttle-sized. Another of those ships approached the Athena, and a comms channel opened from it.
 

“Greetings, Human vessel Athena. We will guide your ship into the space dock,” a Boxan’s deep voice said over comms.

“We’ll follow you in,” Kaylan said.

“We will first commence scanning of your ship. Please disengage any countermeasures that might interfere with an accurate reading.”

Kaylan glanced at Gaarokk.

“Standard protocol,” Gaarokk said.

The Boxan ship flew a quick circuit around the Athena and came back to its position in front.

“Scan complete. You are cleared to dock. Please follow us in.”

“Understood,” Kaylan said.

She climbed into the pilot’s seat and took control of the Athena’s thrusters. Their sensor feed was piped into the holodisplay at the conference table so the others could see what Kaylan was seeing on the HUD.
 

The space station had been built into a large asteroid over a hundred kilometers in diameter. The chunk of space rock had a hollowed-out central structure that went through the whole thing, and there was a deep amber glow coming from inside the central structure.

“That glow is just the resonance coming from the shield. Once we’re inside, there will be sections where an atmosphere is maintained,” Gaarokk said.

“What about the smaller, tower-like structures spaced across the outer surface?” Kaylan asked.

Gaarokk peered over her shoulder at the HUD. “They’re weapon systems,” he said.

Kaylan glanced up at him.

“We’ve been at war for a long time. Any type of work beyond the safety of the colony requires that measures be taken for our protection,” Gaarokk said.

Kaylan nodded. She brought the Athena to a halt, allowing the Boxan stealth ship to limp into the space dock first. Then Kaylan eased the Athena forward and passed the threshold of the cavernous interior of the asteroid.

“How many Boxans are here, do you think?” Zack asked.

“Probably a few thousand,” Gaarokk said.

“Remarkable,” Redford said. “Absolutely remarkable.”

The astrophysicist’s wide-eyed gaze was alight with wonder. Kaylan glanced at him and saw Redford wince.

He noticed her watching him. “It’s just a headache,” Redford said, and pointed to a bruise on his forehead.

The interior of the asteroid was lined with a metallic infrastructure. Gaarokk informed them that there were tunnels and facilities throughout. The asteroid was both an efficient use of resources and effective camouflage for a space installation. The Boxan stealth ship moved into position, and docking arms secured the ship in place.

“Now it’s our turn,” Kaylan said.

“Athena,” the Boxan pilot said through comms, “position your ship at the next slot, and the docking arms will do the rest.”

Kaylan took a deep breath. Docking any type of craft back home had required patience and skill. NASA pilots practiced for months before being able to dock a real ship. Trusting the docking arms to do their job was difficult for Kaylan.
 

Gaarokk nodded encouragingly.

“You got this,” Hicks said from the copilot’s seat next to hers.

She moved the Athena into position and used the lateral thrusters to move the ship toward the dock.

“Excellent,” the Boxan pilot said. “Just hold position.”

Kaylan brought the Athena to a stop. Docking arms extended from the space dock and moved into position. The docking clamps didn’t actually come into contact with the ship but used a gravity field to hold the ship in place.

Kaylan thanked the Boxan pilot for his help, and he advised them that transport to the actual dock would be provided at an airlock of their choosing.

“Will we need our spacesuits?” Zack asked.

“No,” Gaarokk said. “There’s a breathable atmosphere maintained now that we’re inside the space station.”

Zack nodded, and Kaylan noticed him glance at Etanu. The two had bonded during their imprisonment. Etanu had helped save Zack’s life, which made Kaylan inclined to give the Nershal a second chance.
 

This time the entire crew would be leaving. No one wanted to be left behind, and the crew was abuzz with excitement at seeing the Boxan space station. Use of an asteroid for a space station had been considered by the various space agencies of Earth since humanity had first started reaching into space. They had scratched the surface with mining installations but nothing like what they were about to see. They filed to the airlock.

“I’ll look after the ship, Commander,” the AI promised.

The airlock doors opened, and a floating platform moved into position. There were three Boxans on the platform, with two in powered armor. Glowing cyan lines marked the edges of the chest piece and legs.

“Please come aboard,” a Boxan said.

The crew stepped onto the platform. Gaarokk stretched to his full height and let out a big sigh.

“We’ll need to consider your height and build when we design future ships,” Kaylan said.

“I do like the Athena’s design. It’s quite capable, but I would very much appreciate more space,” Gaarokk said.

The platform worked like the one they had used on Nerva, but it was definitely in better working condition. Kaylan glanced over the side and didn’t relish the thought of plunging to the depths below. Zack glanced at her questioningly.