His brow furrowed. “I have to figure out how to let Ally steal one of my shuttles and pretend not to know, but at the same time, I have to get onboard said stolen shuttle?”
“That’s right.” Mayra shrugged. “You’re a Vartik. It should be child’s play to you.”
Nojan laughed, putting his arm around his wife and pulling her close. “She might have a bias toward our kind.”
Kara laughed. “I hope not based on your example, brother,” she said, teasing Nojan.
Lyk wasn’t in the mood to laugh. “How in the seven known galaxies do you expect me to pull off what you just suggested? And if I do get on the lifeboat, then what?”
“Don’t worry. It will all work out.”
His jaw dropped. “Could you give me a hint about how it might work out?”
“Sorry, I can’t tell you that part or it could change the outcome. Just remember, she loves a Territh delicacy called whippy cream.”
“I’m sorry, whippy cream?”
Kara’s face filled the screen, her smile bright. “Looks like you’ve got your work cut out for you, brother. Good luck!”
The console went dead, and Lyk put his head down on his desk, wondering what the fuck just happened. He’d been back in contact with his family for less than an hour, and he’d already been advised to take part in a scheme too crazy to be real.
There was a knock at his office door. “Captain?”
Lyk sat up. Hitting a button on his desk made the door slide open. One of his security detail entered, approaching Lyk’s desk. “Captain, we’ve had a report of someone tampering with the shuttles in Bay 2. It’s the Territhian female.”
Lyk sighed, his head lolling back of its own accord. He wanted to groan at the absurdity of the moment. “Do nothing,” he said through gritted teeth.
“Captain?” his crewman asked, confused.
“Just leave her alone. She’s going to try to steal one of the shuttles, but don’t worry. I’ll bring her back.”
He looked out the viewport at the ribbons of color all around her. “She wouldn’t be stupid enough to try and launch in this wormhole, so we have some time. I want you to let all the other men know to give her a wide berth and let her take the shuttle. On my orders.”
The security crewman nodded and turned on his heel, leaving the office. Lyk stood, figuring he better let the bridge crew know what was about to happen. When he stepped back onto the bridge, he motioned to Celdrake to bring up the other ships on the viewscreen.
“Brothers,” Lyk said when he was finally addressing his four siblings, “I have news. I just finished speaking with Mayra, andthe Great Oracle of Territh has informed me that the human female, Ally, will be attempting to steal a shuttle from me. I’m supposed to let her and somehow sneak myself on board. If I do this, ‘it will all work out,’” he said the last part with air quotes.
“So when you see a shuttle launch from my ship, let it go. I’ll get it turned around and piloted toward Vartik as soon as I can.”
“She’s at it again,” Zelup said with a chuckle. “She did the same thing to me.”
“And me,” Calabez added. “She even told Penn to crash his ship into the surface of Dazimin to get his female back.”
“What happened?” Lyk asked.
“He got her back. When Mayra tells you do to something, you don’t hesitate.”
“Thanks for the advice.” Lyk saluted his brothers. “I’ll see you on Vartik.” He cut the feed, then explained what was happening to his bridge crew.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Celdrake said, rolling his eyes. “What happened to heading to the Outer Rim to sell off what we took from Rigellus? We’re headed to some world that isn’t even supposed to exist, and you’re just going to take off on a shuttle with the female? What kind of a pirate ship is this anymore?”
Lyk didn’t have time for the cyborg’s drama. “I know things are changing quickly, and I’m going to need you to be patient.” He stepped up to the console and hit the comm channel so what he was about to say would be heard by everyone on board.
“Men, I’ve always valued your service. You’ve shown bravery in the face of danger, and you’ve been handsomely rewarded. At the moment, we’ve become embroiled in something that none of us has ever faced before. It will take time to figure out where we go from here, but I can guarantee you that, no matter what, I’m going to look out for you.”
“We will be arriving at Vartik soon, and while there, I ask you to respectfully defer to my brothers, the leaders of this planet.They are just men, like me, like you, and they will treat you with respect. Until I can figure out where to go from here, I appreciate your patience.”
He clicked the channel off, then turned back to Celdrake. “You’ve always been my right-hand cyborg, and you’ve never let me down. I won’t let you down, either. Just trust me.”
