Chapter Thirty-Six

Coming Home

Message received through the egg

Nellie,

I’m coming home in two days your time.

I won’t lie; your last message scared me a lot. I never thought about it before, but other than the messages through the gate, I have no idea what is going on, do I?

I mean, I just don’t.

I don’t know what scares me more.

I come through that gate and find that everything is as bad as you say it has been, in which case I am the biggest bitch in the world for leaving you to deal with it all on your own…

Or

I come through that gate and find that you have been exaggerating everything to make me feel even worse about what I did, which would break my heart.

I guess part of me thinks I deserve that for what I did, and that is why I am feeling so worried about it.

Whichever way it works out, I know we have a lot to talk about.

Lucy.

“That’s it,” Nellie growled, snapping the datapad in half. “I’m getting that fucking asteroid!” She walked across the room and dropped both halves neatly into the recycler. “Ostie, I can’t believe she even said that.”

“I suppose she might be just trying not to panic?” Salem offered. “Coming back must be pretty scary.”

“You think?” Nellie asked.

“If I had done something like that, I don’t think I’d ever have the guts to come back,” Salem said bitterly.

“Wow,” Nellie said. “Well, for the record, I do want her to come back.”

“So you can throw an asteroid at her?” Salem joked.

“Maybe,” Nellie laughed.

“Well, on that note,” Salem pulled something out from behind her back. “I made you this.”

Nellie took the item and laughed.

It was an asteroid about the size of a small pillow and made out of some kind of spongy material. The detail on it was incredible.

“Non-lethal ammo?” Nellie chortled.

“Pretty much,” Salem sighed. “If it helps, I hope it goes well.”

“Thanks,” Nellie said. “So, shall we go greet our guests?”

“Let's,” Salem nodded.

Nellie led the way down to the conference room, where the Captain and his crew had been asked to wait. On the way down, Nellie and Salem double-checked their scan data.

It seemed that the news of their battle with the Line had spread, and they had recently gotten a couple of blockade runners in the system. This was the latest of the two. The other crew was still on approach, taking their time to scan the system as thoroughly as possible.

Still, you had to admire their openness about it all.

Unlike this crew…

Nellie walked into the conference room, finding the Captain bent over his datapad. He had been tapping out reports and details madly since he first arrived.

As yet, he hadn’t realized that its link to his ship had been severed.

“Captain Benton, thank you for waiting,” Nellie nodded to him as she sat down. “Shall we get to business?”

“Of course, your highness!” Benton beamed. “We understand how difficult things must be at the moment.”

“Now, what can you get us?” Nellie asked. “And how quickly.”

“We can get almost anything, Queen Bonne Chance,” Benton replied confidently. “Ammo, materials, food, you name it.”

“Excellent,” Nellie nodded. “And how often can you make these runs?”

“I imagine we can manage it once a week easily,” Benton said. “We have a foolproof method.”

“Wonderful,” Nellie smiled. “What forms of payment will you accept?”

“We can be flexible,” Benton allowed.

“Great,” Nellie made another note. “And how long have you worked for the Line?”

“Most of my life,” Benton replied, his face freezing as he realized what he had said. “Which is how I am so able to bypass the blockade; I have all the connections I need to supply anything you might need.”

Nellie smiled, having to admit that it was a pretty smooth recovery.

“Three things to know about me and my people,” Nellie offered brightly, seeing the captain relax as he thought he had gotten away with it. “First, we see a lot more than you can imagine, like the way your skin flushes slightly when you lie or that little flutter in the corner of your eyes.”

“Queen—”

“Also, we have taken apart more Imperial Line ships than you can even imagine. So we know how to find all the little hidden bits now. Like the hidden scan bay on your ship. It lit up our scans like a firework.” Nellie went on, ignoring his outburst.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

“Transmit!” Benton yelled at his datapad.

“That’s the third thing,” Nellie smiled. “We can not only see but easily block your ever-so-secret transmission frequencies.”

“I—” Benton started to say.

“One moment, please,” Nellie held up a finger, “We are waiting for someone.”

Cheape and Edwards walked into the room.

“Captain Benton?” Cheape looked surprised.

“Assistant Cheape?” Benton goggled. “I was told you were killed.”

“Captured,” Cheape smiled. “Contract voided, so I joined the Imperium.”

“And how did you join us, Edwards?” Nellie asked.

“Oh, hi again!” Edwards waved. “I joined when I was captured by the Princesses of the Nanite Imperium.”

Cheape elbowed him in the stomach, but all she did was hurt her elbow.

“Don’t talk to her like that, Carl! She’s the Queen!” Cheape hissed.

“Oh, shit!” Edwards paled. “I am very sorry, Ma’am.”

Nellie laughed and shook her head.

“No harm done, thank you both.” She watched them both leave.

“What happened to the other one?” Benton’s first officer asked, his eyes following the heavily modified man out of the room.

“My daughter made some changes,” Nellie said simply.

“Can such changes be earned?” the man asked.

“They can,” Nellie nodded.

“Cheape has not earned any?” Benton asked.

“She has, but she hasn’t wanted any, at least yet.” Nellie shrugged. “It is her choice.” She cleared her throat. “And it is Logistics Officer Cheape, by the way.”

“I see,” Benton leaned back in his chair. “We have been captured, haven’t we?”

“Oh, yes,” Nellie laughed. “If you can call it that.”

“If you do,” Benton looked at his crew, who all nodded. “We are no longer bound by contract to the Imperial Line.”

“Then consider yourself captured,” Nellie said simply.

“Excellent,” Benton leaned forward. “Now, as a crew formerly in the employ of the Imperial Line, what can we offer the Nanite Imperium?” He smiled hopefully.

“I do have to warn you that loyalty is something to consider,” Nellie said seriously. “We do not treat spies to a meal and a ticket home. We kill them.”

“Understood,” Benton nodded.

“Very well,” Nellie leaned forward. “Now, as far as information goes, do you know which ship the Ten Suns hostages are being kept on?”

“Which ship, no. Which wing? Yes.” Benton said.

“Excellent,” Nellie hooded. “Why don’t you all have a seat, and we can see how we can help each other.”

===<<<>>>===

“The hostages are being held by the ninth wing of the Imperial Line fleet,” Nellie told Hellena a couple of hours later. “There are four capital ships in that wing, but that is as far as we have gotten so far.”

“The ninth?” Hellena gaped.

“Yes, they are stationed in the system closest to Confederacy space,” Nellie went on. “Supposedly, they are on the largest capital, the Trade Winds, but that is a lie. According to our sources, they are moved around occasionally.”

“Forgive me, Queen Bonne Chance,” Hellena said. “But how is it that you have sources within the Imperial Line fleet that we do not?”

“They sent spies,” Nellie replied simply. “Some of them now work for us.”

“Some of them?” Hellena asked.

“The other ship attempted to run for the jump point after scanning the system.” Nellie sighed.

“Did they escape?” Hellena asked.

“No,” Nellie laughed. “We are not stupid, Captain, but they were.”

“If I may,” Hellena hesitated, “Are you sure of the loyalty of the former spies?”

“Of course not,” Nellie said seriously. “They tell us things separately, and we tell them nothing. They also know nothing of our connection to you or the Ten Suns. As far as they are concerned, we overheard radio traffic about the hostages and see it as an opportunity.”

“Thank you, Your Highness,” Hellena said with a small bow. “What action do you want me to take?”

“Try and verify the information,” Nellie said. “If you think it is likely enough to act on, we will act.”

“How?” Hellena asked.

“That you do not need to know yet,” Nellie said. “Rest assured, we will need to coordinate with you when the time comes.”

“You will?” Hellena asked.

“You are the one I made the deal with, Captain,” Nellie nodded. “It will be your ship we hand the hostages off to.”

“I’ll look into it immediately,” Hellena promised, and Nellie ended the call.

After a short meeting with Remy to discuss the security arrangements around their new recruits—which would be extensive until this whole thing was over—Nellie headed back to her apartments. She had only planned to be at the station for a day, but things kept getting in the way.

Now, with Lucy finally returning tomorrow, she had decided to stay until at least after their reunion. Her stomach twisted a little at the thought, but if it was nerves or anger, Nellie couldn’t tell.

Either way, it was probably better for everyone that she was not on a massive warship, just in case things went badly. Nellie crossed her fingers it wouldn’t.

Salem caught up to her as she arrived, wanting a minute to talk.

“What’s up?” Nellie asked, throwing herself into her favorite chair.

“I wanted to talk about the ‘Taking Liberties’ and, well, the rest of our fleet,” Salem said primly.

That prim tone suggested Salem had come up with a new way to improve efficiency or the like. It seemed to be one thing that had never changed about the synthetic, no matter how many times she upgraded. A core personality trait, certainly.

“What about them?” Nellie asked, grabbing them both a cup of HyperDrive from her own private dispenser.

“The design of the Liberties is annoyingly good,” Salem said with a wry smile. “It is designed to be run by a small crew, has more power than a typical heavy cruiser, and is very versatile.”

“Sec’s a good little designer,” Nellie nodded.

“Which got me thinking,” Salem said, sitting forward. “We have our own style of shuttles, drones, combat shuttles, and now heavy cruisers. If we consider the Bly as the default capital design and the Sparklight as the carrier, we have a design for most types of ship.”

“Okay, and?” Nellie asked.

“I want to make changes to several of them. Plus, introduce designs for the destroyer and freighter classes.” Salem showed her plans. “That way, we can standardize the fleet, automatically convert resources, and simplify the supply chain.”

“Go for it,” Nellie nodded. “In fact, have Sec design them. It will be a fitting punishment for the little rascal.”

“I will,” Salem nodded. “Thank you.”

“Anything else?” Nellie asked.

“Cheape is taking Edwards for coffee this afternoon,” Salem warned. “I thought you might want to know.”

“They won’t do anything,” Nellie laughed.

“I wish I had your faith in them,” Salem sighed. “But young women can be ruthless.”

“Oh, I know,” Nellie said. “But Cheape is too smart to make an actual move, and Edwards is not interested.”

After a luxurious two hours of sleep, Nellie awoke to find a delegation at her door.

“Yes?” Nellie asked the Four Cents, all crowded around her entryway.

“It ain’t fair!” Sec barked.

“What isn’t?” Nellie asked, smirking as she leaned against the doorjamb.

“Making all the other cruisers like ours!” Sec said indignantly. “Ours is special!”

“Is it now?” Nellie asked.

“Course,” Prim said with a sniff. “It’s ours.”

“So make it special,” Nellie said.

“I did,” Sec said accusingly, “And now Salem wants to make the rest of them the same!”

“Well, you did a good job,” Nellie said with a smile.

“Not good enough!” Sec insisted, jabbing his finger at the floor. “I demand a better ship!”

“Demand?” Nellie asked.

“Yeah, we—” Sec looked around to see the other three running for the lift tube. “Oh, shit.”

“Sec,” Nellie leaned down to look him in the face.

“Yes, merciful and loving grandmother?” Sec asked.

“You just volunteered to take charge of making the next three cruisers,” Nellie said, her voice very carefully neutral. “Wasn’t that nice of you?”

“Yes,” Sec said, shoulders drooping.

“Good,” Nellie said, gently patting him on the head. “Why don’t you go start right away?”

“Yes,” Sec slouched off.

“And Sec?” Nellie called. “When you are done, you can add one extra thing to the Liberties.”

“Really?” Sec asked, clasping his hands to his chest. “How liberal can I be in the interpretation of ‘one thing’ exactly?”

“As long as Salem approves it,” Nellie laughed. “And as long as you have it ready to go hunting bases in the asteroid belt tomorrow morning.”

“Three ships and the upgrade? In less than twenty-four hours?” Sec gasped.

“Better get moving then, hey?” Nellie laughed as he bolted for the lift tube.

Right, what was next?