Teolix
I poured myself a drink as the dark room lit up from another nuclear blast hitting the planetary shields. They were still holding, at least for now. My engineer had them falling by the end of the week, and the corporation stopped negotiating after they managed to bomb our last FTL array. The siege was coming to an end, and I was out of options.
So, I resigned myself to watching the world burn from the comfort of the Executive’s old apartment in the center of New Eden. The glass walls and ceiling made for a wonderful view of the fireworks, but Ms. Virra’s choice of decor was… minimal, to say the least. The only furniture she had was a bed and a simple desk that didn’t even have a matching chair.
Giving her the Fury had been such a gods damned waste. I sighed as a particularly bright explosion lit up the sky.
“You seem to be in a tight spot here, friend,” a masculine voice said from somewhere near the door. I chuckled, then finished what was left of my drink.
“I’m afraid you’ll find no friends here. Although, I will admit my amusement as to the corporation's lack of patience. It’s become something of a trademark in our recent dealings, so it comes as no surprise that they would send an assassin to hasten my all-but-inevitable demise.”
“I’m no assassin.” An elven man stepped out of the shadows into the dim light of the shields. He didn’t seem like much, but they never did. I had learned my lesson about underestimating someone based solely on their appearances while dealing with Virra’s devil.
This one, though, had a shaved head and was wearing simple ballistic armor. He looked military, but more put together than the average corporate goon. More disciplined, to be sure. “And what, pray tell, would you want with the likes of me?”
“You misunderstand, Teolix.” The elf started walking towards the window as he spoke. “I’m not interested in you, but you might have information on someone who I am interested in. That information may just save your life. If you’re willing to cooperate.”
“You have my attention, but the degree to which I cooperate will be dependent on the information and the individual.” I turned my back to the man and poured myself another drink. “You see, in my line of work, some information is well worth losing one’s life to protect, and some individuals are best left unmentioned.”
“This isn’t one of them, I assure you.” The largest bomb yet hit the shields, causing them to dim before returning to their full strength. “You recently sold a ship and the buyer’s name triggered more than a few alarms back in the core worlds. I need to know where she is, or if you don’t know that, then how to find her.”
“Now, that is interesting…” I trailed off into my drink to give myself time to consider. “What is it that you're offering me in exchange for this information? Should I even possess such a thing, of course.”
“A way out,” he offered, then explained. “New Eden is gone. Nobody can change that at this point. But there’s no reason you have to go down with it. Say the word, and I can have you on your way back to the dragon clans tonight.”
“By what means do you intend to bypass the planetary defenses or the myriad of corporate vessels currently bombarding them?” I turned back around to watch the man’s response. “And please, be specific.”
I received a chain code in the feed that identified the mysterious elf as an Agent Silas of the Federation Special Operations Division. The code disappeared before I had a chance to record any information from it, and Agent Silas explained. “As you can see from my credentials, I have access to quite a few ‘toys’ that don’t officially exist. One such toy is a ship capable of passing through planetary defense shields without disrupting them. It’s also entirely undetectable. Getting you off-world is as simple as the two of us taking a stroll to the port and flying off into the sunset together.”
“You must truly see me as a fool if you expect me to believe that something of that nature is even possible, let alone allowed to exist.” I narrowed my eyes at the elf, but he just shrugged.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
“And yet, here I am.”
“Here you are, indeed.” I licked my lips as I considered the implications. “Alright, I believe that we may have found ourselves in a workable relationship. I’ll give you information on how to find Ms. Virra, and in exchange, you'll provide me with transportation to the nearest civilized world.”
“Not the dragon clans?” he asked, and I shook my head.
“I have absolutely no interest in ever returning to the clans. In fact, as an additional term, I would like you to report to them that I was slain this very night.”
“I think that can be arranged. Do we have a deal?”
“We do.” I inclined my head before adding one last stipulation. “Now, if you would lead the way, I will be more than happy to provide you with the information you seek after we depart.”
“Right this way.” Agent Silas started towards the door and I opened the feed to send a message to my lead engineer as I followed the elf out.
Alfonse, gather an unattuned navigation core and a rifle enchanted to bypass ballistic armor, then meet me at the port. I may have just found a way for us to escape this unfortunate fate.
~~~~~
We arrived at the port nearly twenty-minutes later and Alfonse was waiting for us by the main entrance. I waved him off to follow us at a distance until we knew which bay Agent Silas had docked his ship in. Alfonse was a professional, one of the best I had, and he caught on quickly.
The three of us traversed the nearly empty port until we passed through the door into bay forty-nine. In the center of it was a teardrop-shaped, black craft, barely larger than a shuttle. It certainly looked ominous, but the size was less than impressive.
“I believe that this is where you lower the ramp so that we can depart,” I pointed out, but Agent Silas just stared back at me expectantly.
“First, I’m going to need you to make good on your end of the bargain. Tell me where to find the person you sold the ship to, and we’ll leave together.”
“That was not the deal,” I growled.
“I’m altering the deal. We’re not going anywhere until you give me the information.”
“Lower the ramp immediately, or I’ll kill you, and have my engineer lower it for me.”
“Your threat has no teeth here, Teolix. The ship is locked to my bio-sig. If I die, you’re stuck here, and if your engineer so much as touches the wrong panel, then the explosion will take out half the city. This isn’t exactly the sort of tech that the Federation wants to risk falling into the wrong hands.”
“You’re nearly as infuriating as Virra was when I dealt with her. Are all elves this utterly impossible to deal with?”
He smiled at my complaint before shaking his head. “If only you knew. Now, tell me, shall I lower the ramp or is this conversation over?”
“I don’t know where Virra is, but I do know who she went to see, and last I heard, they left on fairly amicable terms. If you’re half as good at your job as you seem to think you are, then you’ll be able to leverage her to find your target.”
“And who is it exactly that I’m leveraging?”
“A wolf shifter alpha by the name of Lyscantra. Ms. Virra delivered a shipment of weapons to Drassun, then helped her assassinate the local Syndicate lord.”
“That’s… unexpected. Are you sure?”
“I am, and if that surprises you, then maybe you don’t know your target nearly as well as you think you do.”
“I hope you’re wrong for both of our sakes.” Agent Silas paused in thought for a moment before shaking his head. “Well, regardless. A deal’s a deal.” He placed his hand on the side of the ship and a ramp lowered, revealing the inside.
“It’s a relief that you’re an honorable man, Agent.” I grinned at him as I signaled Alfonse. “It’s a weakness that I rather enjoy exploiting.” A shot echoed through the docking bay, and the elf’s eyes went wide as he staggered back against the ship.
Alfonse stepped up beside me. “Boss, I brought the core, but I ain’t never seen a ship like this before. Could take me some time to figure out where to put the damn thing.”
Agent Silas chuckled as he spat blood onto the floor. “This was your plan, Teolix? I expected more from you.”
“Finish him and then get to work. Triple check everything. Assume a single misstep will end us both.”
“Yes, sir.” Alfonse lifted his rifle and fired into the agent three more times, before turning towards the exit. “I’ll need to get my tools, but I don’t think it will take too long for me to get this… Uh, boss.”
I turned towards the exit to see Agent Silas standing in the doorway holding a heavily enchanted sword. He had far fewer holes than I would have otherwise liked. “What are you waiting for? Shoot him!”
Alfonse fired into the Agent, but the rounds just passed through him without doing any damage. “I’m disappointed in you, Teolix, but at least I’ll be able to make good on my promise.” I realized he was an illusion and spun around just in time for him to stab the sword through my chest. “I’ll be certain to inform the dragon clans of your death.”