Mia eyed the destination highlighted on the map in front her. “You’re sure this is where we need to go?” Her acting captain called up a copy of the map to his command station and studied what had her pilot so concerned.

  Iral drew up her orders and reread them to ensure they’d properly input the correct destination into their GPS. “Those are our orders. Is there something bothering you?”

  “It’s in the middle of nowhere! There’s no outpost there, no command center, no base. Nothing! Why are they having us go to such a desolate spot to hand off our prisoner?” No matter how much she thought of it, carrying out a transfer at the location specified on the map made no sense to her.

  “Because the General wants to keep this a secret. If even we aren’t allowed to know the identity of the person we’re transporting, she probably doesn’t want anybody else finding out either.”

  Mia frowned. “Even that doesn’t make any sense. We were forced to disable our cameras in the cell. We can’t even check their status to make sure nothing’s wrong with them. We’ve been blindly feeding them one ration bar a day, but that’s it. Why can’t we look at our cargo? It’s just a person. This makes no sense. What have we gotten ourselves into?”

  “We knew ahead of time that anything we found relating to the facility was going to be classified,” Iral reminded her. “If what we’re doing is classified even to us, it must be really important. You heard the consequences if we look. Don’t tell me you’ve looked.”

  “Of course not!” Mia said defensively. “I wouldn’t put you guys at risk like that. I’m just saying, something weird is going on here.”

  “You’re right,” Iral agreed. “Whatever we’ve been dragged into, it’s big. Which is why I want nothing more than to be done with it and blend back in with the crowd. Once we wash our hands of this, I’m going to lay low for a while. I don’t want even more attention from High Command.”

  “You really think we’ll get that much attention?”

  “We’re already getting that much attention, just by virtue of being remotely part whatever’s going on. I do not want to get caught in the crossfire of some game I don’t know the rules to. In fact, I’d rather remove myself from the board altogether. That means no standing out for me. Not for a little while, at least.”

  Mia shrank back. “I hadn’t thought of it that way.”

  “The consequences are too high for us to keep playing,” Iral shook her head. She prayed to the gods that nobody had looked. “They said this mission is classified and I intend to keep it that way. Get us to our destination safely and make sure nobody looks. You’re our last line of defense at making sure we get to live normal lives after this. And also the first one who will be suspected if anything goes wrong.”

  Mia blanched.

  Rann ensured everybody’s weapons were in working condition before the exchange. While she didn’t expect to need them, one could never be too careful. Especially when they weren’t operating as a full team.

  Eimir and Kell had opted to stay behind to guard the safe house while they were gone. Reya and Adrian still needed the protection and, gods forbid, should anything happen to her and the others during their mission, somebody that would be able to inform the General.

  The team had arrived several hours in advance of the meeting time in order to ensure the surroundings were all clear. Nessah had made it clear that nobody apart from them were to lay eyes on the test subject. To that end, Tassie would be entering the incoming ship alongside Jyn to verify that the crew hadn’t disobeyed their orders during their long trip. Her job would be to run a systems check to ensure that none of the cameras had been accessed.

  Say nothing. Reveal nothing.

  Their orders on how to handle their mission were clear. The other team wasn’t in the know about anything involving Adrian and Reya and it was to remain that way. There was no jovial mood on the ship as the minutes stretched on, only tense silence.

  An incoming communication caught Tassie’s attention. “They’re here,” she announced to the rest of the crew, who were gathered alongside her on the bridge. Mia appeared onscreen as Tassie accepted the incoming call. Her face was as pale as her purple hair, but her voice remained smooth as she spoke, revealing nothing.

  Tassie instructed them on where to land in the clearing. Once their ship was parked next to theirs, she relayed the order that their entire crew was to gather at their bridge, with no exceptions. Mia simply nodded and relayed the order to her captain.

  Dressed in full combat gear, Tassie and her team marched off their ship with purpose and crossed the small clearing that sat between them and their destination. They boarded the ramp directly into the hull of the awaiting vessel.

  Rann and Beor broke off from Tassie and Jyn and made directly for the cell where Stanley was kept, navigating the metal confines with ease. The layout of the other team’s ship posed no issue for them, as it was one of the military’s standard models.

  Comms at the ready, Jyn and Tassie approached the bridge. Heavy doors slid open to reveal six people at the ready. Jyn frowned as he inspected them. “Standard teams are of seven people. Why are you one short?”

  Iral stepped forward. “As acting Captain, allow me to speak for the others. Our Captain was left behind at the facility to run the operation. You may verify this with the Commander.”

  “Excuse me while we do just that.” Jyn motioned towards Tassie. Without delay, she made the call. The soldiers gathered looked at each other nervously when it was accepted almost immediately.

  Commander Cyrix appeared onscreen, his face intent. “What’s the situation?” he asked gravely. After a quick run down, Cyrix confirmed what Iral said. Before hanging up, he reiterated to Iral that they were to follow Jyn’s orders until they were cleared to leave, at which point they were to return directly back to the facility without delay.

  The call ended and an unease spread throughout the room as the soldiers gathered reassessed the gravity of the mission. “Proceed with checking their systems for unauthorized access to anything involving the payload,” Jyn ordered Tassie. She once again said nothing and made her way over to Mia’s station.

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  “Don’t you think that’s a bit much?” one of the men said hotly as Tassie began her work. He eyed her with distrust, unhappy at the blatant invasion of privacy.

  “No,” Jyn said harshly before Iral could calm her soldier.

  “Mohr,” Iral hissed, “that’s enough. We knew this was going to happen when we accepted the mission. Things are going exactly as planned.”

  “That still doesn’t make it alright!” Mohr protested. “How do we know they won’t plant any false evidence and get us all in trouble?” He took a step towards Tassie, but a hand on his shoulder from the person next to him held him back.

  Jyn didn’t deign to answer, instead focusing on Iral. “Get your soldier under control. If he takes another step towards mine, I’ll view it as an act of aggression and respond with force.” The other Captain gulped, knowing he was serious.

  “We both know you wouldn’t!” Mohr said, ignoring the threat.

  “Stand down,” Iral ordered in a tone that brooked no disobedience. She shot a withering glare at the troublemaker, giving him pause. Her eyes promised retribution should he refuse to listen. The hand on his shoulder tightened.

  Mohr weighed his options as he glanced between Jyn and Iral. He searched for support amongst his peers and scowled when he saw their unsympathetic faces. “Understood,” he said through clenched teeth.

  Deciding on the next course of action now that Mohr was under control, Jyn tapped his comm and spoke.

  “Proceed with the transfer,” came the order. Rann looked at Beor and stepped back. She raised her gun and aimed it at the door while he approached the console next to the door. He input the code and a mechanical whirring sound emanated from it, stopping with a click a moment later. Grabbing the handle, Beor wrenched the door open.

  In the far corner of the dimly lit cell a figure lay on the floor with their back against the wall. Stanley’s eyes flashed open, and he scrambled to sit up, ready to defend himself from the intruders. Wariness shone in his gaze as he studied Beor’s menacing figure standing at the ready.

  Stepping aside, Beor waited patiently for Stanley to exit the cell. After’s a moment’s hesitation, the prisoner surrendered himself to his fate and walked out. He spoke when he spotted Rann aiming a gun at him, but didn’t make any attempt to flee.

  Beor glanced at Rann. “Does that sound like the same language Adrian speaks?”

  “I think it does,” she replied. “I haven’t exactly had much of a chance to become an expert in it. Reya would have a better idea.” Apart from hearing Adrian sing, she hadn’t had heard him speak his native language much. While the occasional word or phrase slipped out, he remained unwilling to share any details. When asked what he’d said, Adrian would only flash a curt smile and say not to worry about it. Reya was the only one to have the privilege to learn a smattering of words and phrases.

  Sandwiched between the two soldiers, Stanley could only follow as he was led off of the ship and into the next one. He stopped cold in shock upon getting his first sight of the alien scenery. Nudged forward by Beor, he missed his opportunity to continue staring. His brain worked overtime as he craned his neck over his shoulder in a vain attempt to get one last look.

  Instead, he was greeted by Beor, gun trained on him at the ready. His head snapped around as he became very cognizant of the weapon ready to kill him and sped up to distance himself, however little he could, from certain death.

  Rann led them into the deep into the ship, coming face to a door identical to the one from his previous cell. She walked up to the console and opened the door. Glancing back at Stanley, she stepped aside and motioned for him to go in. “Get inside.”

  There was no hope that he’d understand, but the message was clear as day to Stanley. With one final glance behind, he stepped into yet another cell. The door slammed shut behind him, startling him and driving home that he was still nothing but a prisoner. Again.

  Outside the cell, Rann stood beside Beor in front of the door and called it in.

  “We’ve secured the cargo.” Rann’s voice resounded clear as day to both Tassie and Jyn inside their helmets. He waited patiently for Tassie to finish, his eyes never leaving the group gathered before him. He refused to allow any harm to come to his teammate. His muscles tensed as he stared down the soldiers, who shifted uncomfortably under the scrutiny.

  “They’re clear,” Tassie said, to everyone’s collective relief. “None of the systems were accessed nor were the cameras turned on at any point.” Grabbing her data slate, she got up out of her chair and marched over to Jyn.

  “Then I believe, Captain,” Iral interjected while stepping forward, “that you have no further reason to remain on this vessel. If you would be so kind as to leave.” A curt gesture towards the door behind them told them all they needed to know about their welcome.

  “You’re to remain stealthed while returning back to facility. That includes while we’re on Verilia,” Jyn ordered. “Remain on standby for departure until cleared.”

  Mohr looked like he was about to explode but Iral cut in before he could speak. “Do we have an estimate for how long that will be?” she asked quickly as she saw Jyn tense and turn towards him. Jyn paused and refocused on her.

  “No,” Jyn said simply. “You are to remain here until further notice.”

  “You mean you expect us to – ” Mohr started

  “Thank you, Captain. Now, if you would please,” she said, her voice strained. Jyn kept an eye on Mohr. When he realized that the soldier would stay his tongue, he signalled to Tassie.

  Without another word, they both turned and left the bridge. Marching through the ship, they exited down the ramp and returned to theirs swiftly. No sooner were they inside did their ship seal itself back up. “I’m watching outside the ship to see if the try anything,” came Rann’s voice through their comms. “Figured I’d shut her back up as soon as possible to avoid any stowaways.”

  “Good job, Rann. Keep your eyes peeled. We’re on our way to the bridge,” Jyn responded. He glanced behind him, ensuring that nobody had snuck onboard. After a moment, he turned back around, satisfied that there was no one. “Tassie, gun out. I’m not taking any chances. Until we return to base, we are all to remain armed and ready for combat,” he ordered.

  Tassie calmly took her gun out of its holster and didn’t say anything. After relaying the order to Beor, he signed to Tassie to move forward. Wordlessly, she followed, scanning the halls for threats.

  Their footsteps rang loudly in the empty halls as they strode towards the bridge. They arrived outside the door and Jyn confirmed with Rann that they were on the other side by giving the code they’d agreed upon ahead of time. After a moment’s delay, the doors opened. The pair quickly made their way inside.

  The doors slid shut immediately after Jyn was inside and locked. He scanned the room quickly for danger but found none. “I’m going to guard the door,” he said while Tassie made her way to her station. He positioned himself beside the door and didn’t move further.

  Tassie finished her pre-flight checks and cleared them for take-off. Jyn gave the order and their ship rose off the ground. Ensuring that they were properly stealthed, she hit the acceleration and sped off into the distance.

  Sensors working overtime, they flew through the air undetected. After twenty minutes, the ship took a sharp turn and sped off on their predetermined flight path. It took another twelve hours until the safe house was in sight.

  Not once did the team’s concentration drop while they were in transit. Tassie only allowed herself to relax slightly once she landed the ship in its usual spot. After running a scan one last time to ensure that they hadn’t been followed, she gave the all clear to Jyn, who immediately called General Nessah to confirm the success of the operation.

  High Command’s relief was palpable upon learning that the operation had gone smoothly. Jyn ordered Rann to go ahead into the house and stand guard. With no idea how Adrian and their captive would react once seeing each other, he wasn’t going to take any chances. Once he joined Beor next to the cell door, he confirmed everyone’s positions and greenlighted the release of the other test subject.

  When the door opened, the man cautiously stepped out into the hall and between them. He said nothing as he was led through the halls and down the ramp.

  Stanley stepped off the ship and into the open, where a new world awaited him.