Going back into the alley had not been difficult, though they had constantly glanced at the entrance, expecting the guards to waltz in at any time. But they had not.

  Outside, Kaine had led the girl down another street to put some distance between them and the building, just in case security came sniffing. Ondine was concerned Val would not find them, but he’d remarked they were still close enough and would get closer once the glider arrived.

  As they waited, Kaine wondered how he would get his ship back. He had never considered doing it the legal way. It would require going through the administration and filling out forms. He doubted Qevahri administration was any better—let alone more effective—than the Imperial one, but he had to admit it’d be the safest course of action. Though he was concerned about how long it would take.

  He glanced at Ondine and found her staring at him, as she often did.

  “What now?” he asked.

  She kept looking at him silently.

  He shifted and turned his head.

  “I don’t know, kiddo,” he muttered. “I’ll think about that when I get my ship back—assuming I do.” He swung back toward her, waving a finger in her face. “And before you even think of going there, whatever happens, you’re staying with me. Got it?”

  She wrapped her arms around his legs and hugged him, and he stroked her hair.

  “There, there. All good. Hey, look! I think that’s them.”

  He pointed toward a glider that was now hovering above the warehouse.

  Ondine looked up. She broke away, grabbed his hand, and pulled him behind her as she started to run toward the building.

  “Whoah, slow down kiddo, there’s no rush!” He laughed as he hurried to keep with her pace.

  The glider turned a few more times, then moved toward them and began its descent. It landed in the alley behind the warehouse, a few feet from them.

  When it opened, Val rushed out and hugged him.

  “Kaine! I thought you were dead!”

  “Oh!”

  He wrapped his arms around the woman, but she quickly pulled away, blushing.

  “Sorry. I... Well, uhm, I’m glad you’re alive.”

  “So am I,” he said with a chuckle.

  Kaine blinked as he caught a glimpse of blue from the corner of his eye. Turning his head, he saw a tall blue-skinned woman standing before the glider.

  Val glanced back and grinned.

  “Oh! Kaine, this is Mrill. Mrill, this is Kaine.”

  The strange woman inclined her head.

  “I have heard much about you,” she said blandly. “I am delighted to make your acquaintance.”

  He quirked a brow. “Indeed?”

  “Don’t mind her,” said Val, “she’s a lot more interesting than she sounds. Come on. Let’s head back before someone comes looking. Nim will be happy to see you, I’m sure!”

  “How’s my buddy doing?” he asked as they went into the glider.

  “Oh, same as always, I suppose.”

  They sat and the vehicle took off, speeding through the air toward the spaceport.

  Kaine glanced at Mrill, then back at Val.

  “So, how did you two meet?”

  “She’s one of my brother’s new recruits.”

  “Your brother? What are you—”

  “Oh! That’s right. You wouldn’t know. Turns out Peter survived the Battle of Braxia! He was stranded there for years before he finally found a way off the planet. He’s been busy building a new army.”

  “Wow. Sounds like I’ve missed a lot!”

  She hit him on the shoulder.

  “That’s what happens when you take a phaser shot to the chest! Please don’t do that again.”

  “Heh. I’ll do my best.”

  “You’d better!”

  He looked away and noticed Ondine and Mrill were staring at each other.

  The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

  “Hey, kiddo,” he said, “that’s not polite. Just because she looks different doesn’t—”

  Mrill turned her impassive gaze toward him.

  “She wants to know why you saved her.”

  “What? I... How—”

  Val laughed. “Told you she was special.”

  He glanced at her, then at the girl who was looking at him with her big, innocent eyes.

  “What kind of question is that, kiddo?”

  “Was it for the money?” he heard Mrill ask.

  He jumped to his feet and waved a finger at her.

  “Now listen, you, don’t you dare—”

  The woman blankly pointed at Ondine. “She’s the one asking. Not me.”

  Kaine opened his mouth, closed it. Turned to look at the girl who still watched him expectedly.

  He sat back down next to her and frowned.

  “I can’t believe you’re asking that. Of course, it wasn’t for the money! If anything, I did the opposite of what they wanted. Don’t you remember, kiddo? They wanted the cube. They wanted you. As to why I brought you out, well...” He grimaced. “How could I have left you in there? That place was a nightmare. No one should have to endure something like that, least of all a kid. I don’t know what got into the head of those two men...” He sighed. “No, I get it, they were trying to save you, but that doesn’t make it right.”

  Tears streamed down the girl’s cheeks as she hugged him tight.

  The glider fell quiet.

  A few minutes later, they reached Starrider and transferred into the ship.

  With the girl holding his hand, Kaine marched through the halls, smiling.

  “Hey, buddy! I’m back.”

  “It’s good to see you again,” came Nim’s voice from above. “Both of you.”

  “Thanks.”

  They went to the control room. Kaine dropped into his favorite chair and swung his feet on the dashboard. Val shot him a glare and he quickly dropped them to the floor.

  “Sorry,” he said sheepishly. “Well, I suppose I should look into making an official request for my ship...”

  “We’ve already taken care of it,” said Val.

  “Really? Wow. Okay. Thank you.”

  “Might take months before we get a response, though.”

  “Oh. So what do we do in the meantime?”

  “We should ask the AI,” said Mrill.

  Val swung around and gaped at her Vron friend.

  “The AI?” Kaine glanced at her. “You mean...”

  “Hello Kaine,” said the ship’s disembodied voice.

  Val grumbled. “Yeah. He woke up.”

  “May I remind you I was never dormant?”

  “No,” she snapped, “you may not! And I don’t care what you think we should do. This is my ship and—”

  “I beg to differ. I do not belong to you. I am the property of the Imperial Exploration Department. If you do not wish to help save the Imperium, then you are free to leave the ship. I’m sure Kaine can give you a lift with his once he gets it back.”

  “What? I can’t do that! I...” She trailed off and squinted at the dashboard. Pointing to it, she turned her head to look at Kaine. “It knows, doesn’t it?”

  The man scratched the back of his head. “Well, considering it’s been here all along, including when you first boarded Starrider, I think that’s a fair assumption.”

  “Damn it!” She glared at the dashboard. “I wish you were dormant. We wouldn’t be in this mess without you!”

  “Which doesn’t answer the question,” remarked Mrill.

  “There is one more we need to track down,” said the AI. “But she has left the Imperium.”

  Val stared at the dashboard. “Left? You don’t mean...”

  “She has gone beyond the rim.”

  “You can’t be suggesting what I think you’re suggesting!”

  “We could wait for her to return, but it could be years, considering the nature of her research. By then, it would be too late.”

  “Too late for what?” asked a confused Kaine.

  “This thing,” said Val as she stabbed the air in the dashboard’s direction, “has put it in its head that it can save us from those invaders. Which is rich, considering it doesn’t even have a head!”

  Kaine blinked. “How?”

  “It won’t tell us!”

  “There are too many factors at play,” said the AI. “Human agency is paramount. But it relies greatly on instinct and causal reactions. Providing too much information beforehand could negatively affect your decision-making.”

  Val snapped. “That’s a load of crap.”

  “I don’t know,” said Kaine. “It kind of makes sense if you think about it.”

  “Are you taking sides with that thing?”

  “No, not at all, but... Listen, Val, think about it. If it had asked you to go to Rimzana to save me, would you have done it?”

  She stared at him, not knowing how to answer that.

  “You know you wouldn’t have. It’s okay. Who would take such an insane risk for a stranger? Now let me ask you this. Was it for the best or for the worst?”

  Val frowned and waved a finger at him.

  “How can you ask that? I refuse to answer!”

  He held his hands up in the air.

  “Alright, alright, then don’t. It doesn’t matter. But I think it was for the best.”

  “So you’re fine with letting a machine dictate our actions?”

  “That is not what I am doing,” said the AI.

  “Shut up, I’m not talking to you right now.” She looked back at Kaine. “Well?”

  He held her gaze. “Did the machine make you open my cage?”

  She opened her mouth, then closed it.

  “Did it stop you from leaving me on Alterica when you had the chance? Did it tell you to help me on Evenodds when those goons were trying to grab me? Did it—”

  “Okay, okay! I get it!”

  “Do you?”

  She sighed. “I just don’t like being manipulated.”

  “Is it manipulation if you know it’s happening?”

  “Yes! Besides, we didn’t always know.”

  “Have you never asked someone to trust you, when you couldn’t tell them what you were doing but were doing it for their own good?”

  “That’s different,” she said with a grumble. “Trust is a human thing. How can I trust a machine?”

  “Ah. So that’s what this is about. You don’t trust it.”

  “Of course I don’t! It’s sneaky and never asks for our opinion on anything. Besides, how do we know it really wants to help humanity? For all we know, it could be working for the aliens.”

  “I protest!” said the AI’s disembodied voice.

  “Oh, be quiet, the adults are talking.” She looked at Kaine. “I’m serious. Who knows what that thing is really up to?”

  “That has nothing to do with it being a machine, though. Human beings can be just as sneaky and manipulative.”

  “Well, I wouldn’t trust someone I’d just met, that’s for sure.”

  He smiled. “Like you didn’t trust me.”

  “Damn right!”

  “But you do now, don’t you?”

  She blinked. Looked around. Mrill and Ondine were both watching quietly. She turned to Kaine again.

  “I do,” she admitted. “But you’ve earned my trust.”

  “How?”

  Val crossed her arms. “Are you serious right now?”

  “Please, just humor me.”

  She grunted. “We’ve been through a lot, and you’ve always stuck your neck out for me. There. Happy?”

  “In other words, I never did anything to put you at risk?”

  “Quite the opposite,” she said grudgingly.

  “Alright. And how long have we known each other?”

  “Not long,” she muttered.

  “Now consider this. How long have you been on this ship?”

  “I...” She squinted at him. “Oh, I see where you’re going with this.”

  “Good. Then you see my point. Besides, if you’re worried it’s working for the aliens, well, the aliens have been here for a while now. Why hasn’t it taken us to them? It pretty much controls the ship, doesn’t it?”

  “Alright, alright, you win!”

  He chuckled. “It’s not about winning, Val. It’s just...” He looked toward the dashboard. “I think we’re all on the same side here, and we had better stick together if we want to survive this war.”