Roys chuckled, and for once, it wasn’t utterly bitter. “But none of that made the name stick, right?”
“No. During our first speeder test, straiers attacked. I was the only one out of thirty to survive long enough for backup. The troops started calling me lucky more often. The name stuck a year later after I was pulled out of my first planetary tour, where the entire team died because of a faulty shuttle, crashed and burned in atmo.”
I half expected him to mention why I was pulled out of that tour. Getting into a fistfight with a superior officer because they got lippy with me after a guard run. We had plenty of them, taking the speeders to protect vessels. Guess I did one too many “ill-advised” maneuvers, and the officer wasn’t pleased, so there was a bit of a tussle. A lot of cussing. More of their blood than mine. Corporate kicked me off the tour out of fear of future insubordination. They weren’t entirely wrong for being concerned.
“And now here you are, having been dragged off by unknown flora that should have killed us both,” Roys said instead.
I tapped the water pack leaning against my side. “With enough water to keep us going a while longer. Lucky, right?”
“I would have preferred not to learn firsthand.”
“Now that you know, will you start calling me lucky?”
“No.” His eyes had a mischievous glint in them. “Sucks when someone purposely irritates you, doesn’t it?”
I rolled my eyes and tried to get more comfortable. “Aren’t commanding officers meant to be more mature than that?”
“We normally are, but you love to test those boundaries; otherwise you’d be in the same position as me.”
My tongue ran over the back of my teeth. I kept my eyes on the cavern where the darkness swallowed our light. I wondered if that was the last that my parents saw, shadows creeping in, their tomb closing over them, panic and fear settling in as their bones broke and the dwindling air left their aching lungs. Or was it all over in an avalanche of viscera?
“Ten years and this is yourfirstplanetary tour? With your scores? Flight, combat, medical, I could hardly find a test you haven’t hit high marks in,” he said, returning my thoughts to our present tomb rather than past ones.
“Sounds like you were stalking me.” I pressed a delicate hand over my chest and veered away from him. “Should I be worried about my virtue down here?”
We both recalled the shower incident where Roys stumbled upon me and another having a late night sexcapabe. Roys knew my “virtue”was very nonexistent.
“My point is, your speeder skills aren’t all that is impressive about you. I wondered why Corporate kept such an insubordinate officer around,so yes, I had a peek at your records. There isn’t anyone in our troop who comes close to your tactical scores, and yet, you’ve barely been entrusted with more than chore duties typically given to cadets.” He gauged my reaction, which I refused to give, then went on. “Why, I wondered? And soon learned, because your fuse is always lit and you’re consistently trying to light everyone else’s.”
“Not everyone’s. Yours, absolutely.” I clicked my tongue before meeting his scrutiny. The light caught in his eyes, revealing their true shade, an ethereal blue he didn’t deserve. “Don’t lecture me, cap. You aren’t in any position to defend yourself.”
“That’s it. Going straight to a threat because I pushed a button or two.”
“The likes of you will keep pushing those buttons without a threat.”
“Likes of me meaning what, exactly?”
“Superiors who think they’re better than everyone else, even if they’re a fucking junkie who kissed the right ass to get where they are. How many officers did it take to get your title? I bet half of Corporate has had you on your knees in more ways than one.”
Those eyes consumed the light as the cave had, dark as could be. A muscle feathered in his jaw, and I smiled, leaning in so every breath fell over his cheeks. A sick sort of thrill paved a course through my nerves, catching my excitement alight rather than the fear that had been sparking all day.
“Thought I didn’t see those marks on your arms earlier?” I asked. “The candy makes sense now. Pop one of those when you need a fix, yeah?”
Roys’ eyes twitched and nostrils flared.
“Sucks when someone purposely pisses you off, doesn’t it?” I pulled away, prepared for the hit, the shout, the anger, whatever he had boiling within. My fingers twitched, yearning for that distraction.
Brows furrowed, Roys took a deep breath through his nostrils. “You are a dick,Ethin.”
“Don’t talk dirty to me. It’ll turn me on.”
Roys turned away, attempting to situate himself on his right shoulder instead. Disappointed, I watched him struggle, failing to get comfortable. His back was utterly fucked, even if the med spray worked wonders. His entire back was searing red and covered in ugly bruises and scrapes, like he had been dragged across rocks.
“Need more med spray, Captain?”
Roys barked out a harsh laugh, bitter as could be. “Fuck off.”
“Suit yourself, but I am not carrying you out of here. Fall behind and you’ll get left behind.”
