09:59, January 5th, 2135

Less than a minute after returning on a shuttle to the Broken Shackle, they were safely away in hyperspace and on their way back to Port Vega. While he’d been on the ground, Selina and Ali had been using their craft as a picket ship, preventing Voidborn bombers from joining the suicide attack. They’d expended a significant amount of ammunition and taken several hits in the process. Consequently they were in need of resupply at a friendly port, and none of them were keen on overstaying their welcome in Kel space.

Knowing that the trip would take several hours at least, Kayden wrapped an arm around Elara’s waist and gently led her to the bedroom he shared with Dawn, Selina, Anna, and Ali. He knew that at some point he wanted to broach the subject of her moving into their room as well, but given the look on her face he decided that now probably wasn’t the right time. Her eyes were glassy and unfocused, and she moved as if completely on autopilot.

The moment they were alone in the safety of the cabin Elara burst into tears and buried her face against his chest. He rubbed her back soothingly as he murmured soft words of condolences, doing what he could to comfort her in that moment. In the back of his mind he knew that even for a tough soldier like her, only time would lessen the emotional pain of seeing innocent civilians die.

When her crying finally started to subside he led her to a shower and stripped both of their clothes before rinsing off the blood, dirt, and debris of the last 24 hours. There was nothing sexual about the action – both of them were far too emotionally and physically tired for that. Kayden carefully dried them both before taking her hand and leading her to their comfortable bed, pulling her into a tight embrace. She wrapped both arms around him as she laid her head on his chest, and in moments they were both fast asleep.

Several hours later Kayden woke up to Dawn gently shaking his arm to wake him up. He glanced over Elara’s still-sleeping form, his eyes tracing her blue arm which was clutched tightly around his chest. Not wanting to leave her alone with her sorrow he looked back at Dawn and shook his head.

“Don’t worry.” She whispered. “I’ll stay with her. Mirana said she wants to see you.”

Nodding, Kayden carefully lifted Elara’s arm and scooted out of the bed. She stirred as he did, but settled when Dawn’s warm body took his place, her tail wrapping protectively around the Kel woman’s leg. As he pulled on his pants and shirt in the darkened room he saw that Dawn started to run her hands through Elara’s white hair soothingly, kissing her forehead softly and humming wordlessly. Feeling a rush of appreciation for Dawn’s gentle care and protectiveness over his Kel wife he kissed them both on the forehead before slipping on a pair of shoes and stepping out into the hallway beyond.

[“Good morning Kayden.”] Ali said, her words echoing in his mind.

Good morning Ali. He thought back. How long was I out?

[“You slept for 7 hours, 12 minutes.”]

Did everything go okay while I was out? He asked in reply.

[“Yes. I would have woken you otherwise.”]

Good. Kayden replied, walking towards the mess hall. Give me the rundown then – what did I miss?

[“The latest status and intelligence reports are loaded onto your phone, but I will summarize the most important items: we will reach Port Vega in approximately 6 hours. Ms. Wier has already prepared a docking station for us, and has promised to resupply us with all haste. Given the extent of the damage though, it will be another 6 hours until we are underway.”]

12 hours then. Kayden summarized as he entered the mostly empty mess hall, waving to the few off-duty crew members. Got it.

[“When Celestia and the remainder of the Kel crew learned about the Kel president’s actions, they renounced their loyalty to the Kel military in the same way Elara did. They brought copies of the anti-Voidborn virus with them. They’ve also been working in shifts to dissect, catalogue, and analyze the Voidborn queen’s body for any vulnerabilities or clues as to where her cloning lab might be.”]

Any findings? Kayden asked as he swiped an MRE from the fridge and began to heat it.

[“Some. Elara told them about the slime creatures you encountered during Zerya’s trial. While they haven’t been able to clone the creatures themselves, they may be able to replicate the effect. It would help mitigate some of the queen’s speed advantages.”]

Okay, that’s something then. How goes the battle for Earth?

[“So far, our combined fleets have held the line in the Trappist and Bernard’s Star systems. Ashley is due to report in the next hour or so.”] Ali paused, feeling Kayden’s concern. [“The sensors on her ship report all systems functional though. She is fine, Kayden.”]

Thanks Ali. Kayden responded, sending wordless feelings of gratitude through their link.

[“She also located the hyperlane that the Voidborn fleet used to attack Kel Prime, and has closed it off.”]

Good.

[“There is more. Mirana and the Vrul have been poring over the information that you send them. She has requested to see you.”]

Dawn mentioned that. Kayden replied, recalling his last conversation with the slightly prickly Vrul woman as he began to eat. Any idea what she wants to talk about?

[“She did not share that with me.”]

I guess that’s my next stop then. He said before pulling out his phone to skim the remainder of the reports as he ate. Let her know I’ll be there in 20 minutes.

As he ate and finished reading the reports, Kayden allowed his mind to wander. To his surprise, his errant thoughts coalesced around the artifact the SCI had discovered on Trappist Prime. He wondered what plans the Voidborn had for the strange device, and how it would affect the war effort. He munched on his food mindlessly as he devised and discarded theories on what it might do.

Making a mental note to add it to his ever-growing list of potential future problems, Kayden popped the last bite of food into his mouth and stood. He walked through the halls of the ship, nodding respectfully as he passed human, Kel, and Vrul crewmates alike. Stepping onto the elevator he pressed the button for the floor the Vrul inhabited while summoning his nanobot swarm, forming them into a sealed suit of armour around him. When he stepped off it he took a deep breath of recycled air before moving down the hallway through the sliding doors while being showered in

decontaminant spray.

After taking a moment to recall where Mirana’s cabin was, he proceeded down the hallway and knocked gently on the first door to his left. When only silence greeted him he momentarily considered she might be somewhere else on the ship, debating exploring deeper into the section the Vrul had set up for themselves. He was about to ask Ali to locate her before the door finally slid open to reveal Mirana standing in front of him in her usual suit.

“Executor! I’m glad you’re here. Please come in.” She said, her voice filled with far more excitement than he’d ever heard her display.

“You wanted to see me?” Kayden said, stepping across the threshold.

“Yes. We’ve created the first batch of aerosolized neural link control disabling spray using the directions you recovered from the avatars on Kel Prime.”

“You work fast!” Kayden responded.

“Yes, well…when your race’s freedom is suddenly within reach after several hundred years of slavery… it provides a new motivation.”

“I can see that.”

“We’ve also completed several rounds of testing – first computer simulations with Ali’s help, then testing on dead tissue, then on live cloned tissue.” Mirana finished.

“Wait, how did you get live cloned tissue?”

“I…asked some of the Kel scientists for help. They were surprisingly eager.” She replied hesitantly.

Kayden couldn’t help but grin at the fact that the two groups were now working together. “That makes me happy to hear. What have you learned?”

“Thus far, the spray has passed all tests. The Kel scientists told us that the next step would be to test it on a simple creature with a comparable link – a cloned insect – but with your permission, I’d like to start testing it on a live subject and see if it disables the control link between us.”

Kayden furrowed his brow. “I understand you’re eager to free your people, but…wouldn’t that be dangerous?”

“No more dangerous than going into battle with the Voidborn queen.” She remarked, causing Kayden to wince before continuing. “We have to win this war. This… spray…may be the key to doing so. We may not have time to go through all the necessary safety precautions.”

“Fair point. It’s your decision Mirana, and I’ll support you either way. If you’re looking for my permission to spray yourself, you’ve got it.”

“I don’t think you understand.” She said slowly. “The spray isn’t used on us. It’s used on the executor…meaning you.”

“Oh.” Kayden replied, suddenly realizing what she was asking.

“Yes.” She said simply. “Even if I could, I wouldn’t do it without your permission.”

Ali? He asked. A little guidance?

[“It should be safe.”] She responded mentally. [“It conforms to the specifications in the avatar’s virtual world, and you did not have a reaction to it there.”]

Yeah, but that was a simulation – albeit a very realistic one. This is the real world.

[“Yes. It would be a risk to proceed, but I have reviewed her team’s data and it appears her testing process was quite thorough. Would you like for me to walk you through the results?”]

No. I’ve made up my mind. He replied mentally before nodding and speaking aloud. “Okay Mirana, let’s do this. What do you need me to do?”

In response, Mirana picked up a small black canister from her bedside before taking off the lid. “You may want to sit down for this. Retract your helmet as well.”

“Okay.” Kayden said, sitting on the bed and exposing his face.

She took a seat next to him before facing him. “When I spray this, it will disable your neural link for a short time. You will not have a connection to Ali, nor will you have control over your nanobots or arm. During that period I’ll use your control cable to reprogram your neural link, removing the control protocols installed by Executor Aldaris. When the neural link comes back online, we will be free.”

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Kayden nodded before gritting his teeth. “Alright. Do it.”

With a slight moment of hesitation Mirana brought the canister to Kayden’s face before depressing the top button, causing it to emit a clear spray. Kayden closed his eyes and inhaled, tasting and smelling something similar to mint. When she stopped he reopened them, feeling a soft numbness wash over him as his arm went limp.

“Just be careful rooting around in my mind.” Kayden joked as she pulled his metallic arm into her lap before extending his control cable. “It’s already been fried by the Roccan Alliance, Ali, Ali again, Aldaris, Dawn, and the Voidborn Queen. Not to mention the avatars. I’d like some semblance of it to remain intact.”

“You are in good hands, Executor.” She promised solemnly as she plugged his control cable into her tablet.

For several minutes the room was mostly quiet. Mirana worked silently on her tablet, scrolling through pages of text that Kayden couldn’t even begin to decipher. Her hands flew across the screen whenever she found what she was looking for, deleting and rewriting sections faster than Kayden could track. Gradually he leaned back against the bulkhead behind her bed and began to stare blankly at the unadorned wall, doing his best not to think about any unplanned future side effects.

“Done.” Mirana said, unplugging the control cable and smoothly pushing it back into Kayden’s arm.

“Did it work?”

“We’ll know when the spray wears off.” She said, turning to him.

“How long will that take?”

“It shouldn’t be long, though I can’t give you an exact time frame. Under an hour, likely. Can you feel your hand yet? That should be the first thing to come back.”

Kayden focused on his upturned hand for a moment before shaking his head. “Not yet. At least not that I can tell.”

“Tactile sensation may help.” She said before scooting further up the bed and sitting next to him, pressing her back to the bulkhead as she hovered her hand above his. “May I?”

“Sure.” Kayden replied.

He watched as she interlaced her fingers with his, laying her arm on top of his own. It was a strange sensation, seeing her hand in his while not being able to feel it. It was made all the more strange by the realization that he couldn’t recall any of his Vrul crewmates touching one another like this – their ever-present space suits made body contact almost taboo except between families and romantic partners.

“I…want to thank you.” Mirana said without turning to face him. “Not everyone would subject themselves to an experimental treatment the way you did.”

Kayden shrugged in reply. “It was the right thing to do, especially if it frees the Vrul.”

“So that they can join in the war effort.” She nodded.

Kayden shook his head. “I’d do it even if there wasn’t a war. I’ve lived under the control of others before. It wasn’t exactly the same as your situation, but the impact was the same.” He paused for a moment before continuing. “Nobody should ever have to live under the control of another.”

She turned her helmeted head to him. “Do you truly believe that?”

“Yes.” He replied without any hesitation.

“What about me? If this works, I could choose to desert you. I could leave your crew forever if I wanted.”

Kayden nodded. “You’re absolutely right. I wouldn’t even blame you either – our mission is beyond dangerous, and there’s a good chance none of us are coming back. You’re smart and talented – if you’re lucky, you could find somewhere nice to hide out while this war resolves itself. Maybe you could even do the same thing your ancestors did and use cryosleep to wait out the Voidborn attacks. Then you’d wake up to a new galaxy, yours for the taking. I’d miss you and the crew would be worse off for it, but… I wouldn’t stop you, if that were truly your decision.”

“Why?”

“Because you deserve the ability to make your own choices, Mirana. Assuming this works, you’re going to have to get used to that. I’m choosing to crew my ship exclusively with people who want to be here, making a difference. It’s your decision whether you want to be one of those crew members.”

She paused for a long moment before speaking again. “I want to tell you something. I grew up as a venter.”

“As what?”

“A venter. You know, small children who go into the crawlspaces in spaceships to repair damage after a battle?”

“Yeah, we…don’t have those.” Kayden replied, shaking his head. “Why the hell would they use a child for that instead of a drone?”

“It’s a way to teach us technical skills from a young age. We learn the guts of a ship, how it operates from bow to stern. The mortality rate is high in the first year, but by the second year we’re often faster and better at repairs than any automated system.”

“That’s terrible. How did you end up doing that?”

“My mother died from an infection when I was very young. My executor saw me as a burden, so he traded me from my home fleet to another fleet. Becoming a venter was the only way I could make myself useful to my new fleet, so…”

“That’s…terrible, Mirana.” Kayden responded.

“A few years in, there was a coolant leak in one of the vents a friend and I were working on.” She continued. “I got out in time, but my friend was stuck behind. I wanted to go back and save him, but my executor commanded that I leave him. I had no choice but to obey.”

“I’m starting to understand why you hate the Vrul control links so much.” Kayden responded, a tingle of feeling coming back into his hand. “This is personal.”

“It’s not just that one instance. There are many more. As I got older, I gained better control over my nanobot swarm than most. After being traded to yet another fleet I tried to make myself too useful to trade – so I experimented with creating security robots and started volunteering for away missions. I was always under someone else’s control though, and once was commanded to leave my squad behind so that our shuttle wouldn’t be destroyed.”

“Fucking hell Mirana.” Kayden swore.

She shook her head. “Then I met you, and things changed. You led me instead of commanded me, you showed me respect instead of contempt. You put your life on the line to protect me, and now you’re working to free my people.” She said before reaching up to her suit and pressing several buttons. “I want to thank you.”

Kayden sat in stunned silence for a moment as he realized the sound of her voice was no longer coming through her helmet – instead it was coming directly from her mouth. She pulled the faceplate away slowly to reveal a human-looking face with crimson skin and ruby red lips. The pupils of her eyes were heterochromatic blue and brown, and he could see the metal of her neural link peeking around the back of her neck.

“Mirana, wait. Won’t this make you sick?”

“Xenocompatibility, remember?” She said. “I was exposed to you. My body has adapted to be compatible with you. You can’t get me sick.” She paused for a moment. “Do you…like this form?”

“Mirana, you look incredible.” He said, unable to stop himself.

“Good.” She nodded before squeezing his hand slightly. “Do you feel that?”

“Actually, yeah.” He nodded, flexing his fingers before squeezing her hand softly in return. “I think it’s starting to come back.”

“Then we need to test your control over me.” She said. “Try to use your command codes to order me not to kiss you.”

“I-what?” He sputtered before she leaned in and pressed her lips to his.

Fireworks went off in his mind for a moment as he felt her let go of his hand and swing one leg over his lap. Never taking her lips off his she straddled him before pressing her body to his, cupping one hand behind his neck as she did. After a moment she pulled away though, a concerned look crossing her face.

“Is this…okay?”

“Absolutely.” He said, recovering from his momentary shock and wrapping both arms around her. “But I think I forgot to try the command codes. Do you think we could try again?”

She smirked in reply. “I think we could do that. Try to get it right this time.”

“As your executor, I order you not to kiss me.”

Their lips crashed together again passionately, with both of them sinking into the other’s arms. The darkened cabin seemed to melt away around them as he pulled her towards him urgently, running his hands up and down her back. She groaned with delight as she parted her lips, their tongues teasing one another as she began to softly roll her hips on him.

Finally breaking the kiss, Kayden grinned at her. “You know, for someone who’s never kissed before, you seem to know what you’re doing.”

“I’ve…watched several instructive tutorial videos.” She admitted, her crimson skin glowing almost purple.

“Want to show me what else you’ve learned?” He asked with a wry grin.

“Apologies for the intrusion, but Ashley is checking in. The message is text-only, but it is marked as urgent.” Ali interrupted over the comms.

Mirana slumped against Kayden before kissing his neck. “It’s okay. Duty calls.”

He groaned then responded to Ali over the comms. “Alright Ali. What did Ashley say?”

“She said that the Lokken are asking for our help. They found an artifact similar to the one on Trappist Prime a long time ago and have kept it hidden in a lab on Vulcan. They’re only realizing now that the artifact might be Voidborn, and they’re asking us to take a look at it.”

“What makes them think that it’s Voidborn?” Kayden asked.

“She showed them the readings from the artifact found on Trappist Prime – apparently it’s an exact match.”

Visions of a Voidborn attack fleet appearing over a world far behind the front lines appeared in Kayden’s head. He looked down at Mirana apologetically, only for her to shake her head.

“It’s okay. We still need to figure out how to use the spray on the remainder of the Executors anyways. This is our chance to get ahead of the Voidborn – we should take it.”

Kayden kissed her forehead before nodding. “Alright. We’ll take a quick trip to Vulcan, then we’ll free the Vrul. In and out, no problem.” He paused before addressing Ali through the comms one more time. “Let the crew know we have our next destination. We set course as soon as repairs are done.”