It was his favorite word.
Epilogue
***
Later that night, Nettoheld Rylie against him in bed. She curled up under his arm and burrowed into his side. It was too hot with his body heat so they had left the window wide open.
Netto couldn't sleep, nor did he want to. There was too much on his mind. He was afraid to sleep in case he was already dreaming. He didn’t want to wake up and find himself back in Ghost, alone, working as a mercenary or hired help to his brethren.
After he sent his answer to the EPED and told him that he would remain on Kepler, they had counter-offered with a local guardianship. He had brought it up to Rylie and although her excitement for the position eased him, he wasn't sure if he would take it.
To be a part of the panel of officials who oversaw the Kepler world would give him the power that he needed to protect what was his. He gently squeezed Rylie's arm.
It would also give them the power to ensure the future for the homesteads and a better future for the colony.
Now that Fert Tech had been demolished and its officials waited on transport to earth, it would be on his shoulders to mitigate the coming food crisis. The stores were large—which was a relief—but it would not last a Kepler year, and a Kepler year was longer than an Earthian year. Even if it was merely by a few short weeks.
Netto was lost in his thoughts about the future, enveloped in Rylie's personal sanctuary and looking out of place in her room, when he felt Zeph's ship power on.
Netto frowned and reconnected with the vessel, all of his previous musings quickly forgotten.
Has there been a change of plans? He waited for an answer that did not come. Netto sat up in bed and gently dislodged himself from Rylie, careful not to wake her. He walked toward the window, his feet not making a sound.
The backlights of the ship zipped on and the sound of the thrusters filled the air. He heard Rylie groan behind him as sleep left her.
His partner was leaving and he wasn't scheduled to leave until the next evening. Netto wasn't worried about it; he knew Zeph had been on edge since the very first day of this mission. The cyborg probably deemed himself okay to depart and Netto wouldn't hold against him. They had said their goodbyes in any way that a Cyborg would. With a nod and an inventory of the remaining materials.
“What's happening?” Rylie came up beside him.
“Zeph’s leaving.” He only wondered if his partner had brought on the Fert Tech employees after dinner. He was due to deliver them, as he was the only transport currently scheduled to go back to earth.
“I'm not entirely unhappy about that,” Rylie laughed softly next to him. “He didn't seem too thrilled that Janet no longer wanted him.”
Netto's eyes flickered away from the slowly ascending ship and back toward Rylie. “They had a fight?”
“I don't know,” she shrugged. “It’s what Janet does and always has. I could've told him from day one but it seemed he was the same way.” Netto mused it over but it didn't stop the shift of his metal within his chest. There was a sense of unease building within him, something wasn't right and yet everything did feel perfect in his world.
