“What? How?” Jaiya wrapped her arms around the woman who always had her back, feeling a sense of both relief and worry flood her. “I should kiss you just to make sure you’re real.”
Zaera released her from her embrace and stepped back with her nose scrunched up. “Let’s not, and say you did.” She stuck her head out the door, looking both ways. “It’s nice to see you alive. We were worried we wouldn’t make it on time. We can chat later, but right now, I need to get you out of here, and fast.”
“What’s going on?”
“No time to explain,” Zaera said, shooting her a glance. “Will you be able to make a run for it?”
Jaiya bounced on the soles of her feet, testing her body’s condition. Other than being slightly malnourished and dirty, all seemed well. Her scaled side and chest felt tight but hopefully wouldn’t give her any problems.
Satisfied, she nodded. “Things could be better, but whatever you have planned for us, I’m with you.”
“We’ve taken over the penitentiary and the transport they were going to use to transfer the tributes in.” She tossed Jaiya her beamblade, who caught it without question. “It’s yours. You were the last prisoner to be found, and thank the Stars I did.”
“I’ll follow your lead,” Jaiya said, testing the saber’s weight. “Let’s go.”
The two of them rushed through the halls, dodging a few dead bodies that lay along the way. Fresh heat marks from blaster shots and energy weapons decorated the walls, along with the occasional bloodstain. Zaera didn’t bother to check around corners as they worked their way to the lift.
Once at the ground level, she understood why.
The hangar bay was destroyed. Ships and cargo were on fire; explosions had scattered corpses everywhere. Thick smoke floated into the night’s sky, dimming the twin moons’ glow.
A short distance outside the hangar bay, on a flat grassy field, was a transport circled by a group of fighters—enough to make up a wing. A group of people were loading belongings into the vessels.
Jaiya jerked her head to her Rear Wing Captain. “Is that . . .”
“Your wing?” Zaera smiled. “Yes. We decided to desert the military in hopes of rescuing you and the rest of the tributes.”
She started toward the open field, Jaiya hot on her heels. “But why?”
“It’s bad, Cap.” Zaera sighed.
“How bad?” Jaiya asked. “What happened while I was gone?”
“Those fuckin’ bastards sold us out,” she hissed. “I knew something was up as soon as you left for your mission. Our leaders told us that we forged an alliance with the Vresqoxk in order to defeat the Daextru. To fulfill our part of the deal, we were to hand over control of Terra and provide them with female tributes monthly until the war is won.”
“What? How are people taking the news?”
“Oh, it gets worse,” she growled. “There’s a draft. Each family must send either a son to military service or a daughter as a tribute to the Vresqoxk. They are making an example of anyone who refuses; all resistance is punished by public execution, broadcasted system-wide. ”
“So why even send me on the peace mission if this was their plan all along?” Jaiya asked, confused. “It doesn’t make sense.”
“Because they hoped that by having you there, you would keep the Daextru distracted,” Zaera explained. “Our main fleet was sent to join the Vresqoxk. They left us behind to guard the moon base and prevent any rebellion since our captain—” she glanced at Jaiya pointedly— “was on an important mission. As soon as you returned and were imprisoned here on Gaia, we took a vote and decided to rescue you. We’d rather die saving you than fighting a war we never wanted any part of.”
“So, where is the fleet now?”
“Our last update from Admiral Dias said they were stopping at a Vresqoxk starbase to recharge before the final push—”
“I need to warn Prince Idris.”
“We were hoping you’d say that.”
* * *
It was nice to be reunited with her wing, even though she was surprised that they had come to rescue her.
Their reunion was cut short by their rush to take off into open space—out of reach of any CTA bases. Jaiya knew of a route; she just needed to be able to guide the wing. Without her ID, she was afraid she wouldn’t be able to pilot her ship, but that turned out not to matter. Zaera had swiped a few IDs off the dead guards in case one of them worked.
Either by the Stars’ will or a crazy stroke of luck, the last ID she tried worked.
