Vytln knew they were assassins. He was well aware they were trained killers. Tanin initially got them on their team by paying them. But he hadn’t realized they were members of a group of assassins. He didn’t even know that group existed.
Or what they had to do with anything.
“Sway and Grace saw this symbol recently,” Tanin said. “It was burned on the back of a male who charged at them, saying he needed our females. He was crazed, he’d obviously just been tortured, and he was sent after Sway for a purpose. We don’t know why he was after Grace, or any of our females, but he was certainly sent after us for a reason. And judging by the mark on his back, we can say that they sent him. And they wanted us toknowthat they sent them. Specifically, they wanted the twins to know.”
Tanin looked at the twins, and it was Sorbet who spoke for both of them.
“We deserted their ranks. They need to kill us for that. They can’t have people out there knowing their secrets. We’re a threat. They’ve been after us since we left. It’s fairly typical for them to go after their targets’ weakness to gain the upper hand on them. And for us, that would be our female crewmates. It’s fairly expected for them.
“Sending that male after Sway was a soft attempt from them. More likely, it was a warning. They want us to be sent running. They know we’re stronger together, so they think if they can separate us, they can have a chance at us. So, either we stay and they go after our females. Or we go, and they have a chance to catch us in the attempt at fleeing. They don’t care if we know, because they know that, eventually, they can overwhelm us one way or another. They’re patient. They’re resourceful. They’re powerful. They have all they need to get us. With time.”
“So, we have two groups after us,” Trove said, leaning forward.
Tanin nodded once. “Kldyn is a more immediate problem, however, we will have to figure out how to deal with these assassins eventually. They’re considerably more careful,thorough, and dangerous than Kldyn. We are still working on what to do about them, but this is a warning that we cannot leave our females alone. They cannot go anywhere outside the Humility without an escort. At least, until we deal with them.”
Garnet raised her thumb in the air. Vytln did not understand why, though he recognized human sign language when he saw it. Whatever she meant by that, it appeared to be some kind of expression of understanding. Haven even returned the gesture.
Tanin waved his hand, banishing the mark and Kldyn’s holo at the same time. “And our next goal is Alred’s project. He wants to be biological again. He and Haven have already started working on it, but it’s not going to be an easy task.”
“It will almost be impossible, actually,” Alred said. “We were told when we first made the switch that it could not be undone. We did it regardless, knowing it would be the extinction of our biological species. Of course, my people were facing complete extinction at the time anyway, so it wasn’t like we had many choices.
“First, we need to figure out how to do it. We need to build my body. And we need an energy source powerful enough to perform the transfer. I don’t know how the original transfer was performed, but Haven says if we figure that out, we can start working backwards. I don’t expect to transferallmy memories from the last three thousand years, but I hope to keep the person I am through this recall. That is only around fifty years. Not too much, hopefully.”
“That’s our third problem,” Tanin took over. “We can figure out what to do about his identity once he’s biological again. There will be a lot of problems to solve after he’s breathing again, but we have enough trying to get him there for now.”
“It won’t be a quick process. This will likely take years. And a lot more resources and ability than we have now. Haven, Goldie, and I can work on planning. It’s nothing I expect you to do anything about for now. But I do appreciate your assistance.”
“Stop being so formal,” Trove yelled at him, laughing. “A project sounds fun. We need a hobby.”
Alred chuckled, a tiny glitch showing how touched he was despite his careless expression. “If it keeps your whoring tendencies under control, I’d say it’s good for you.”
Trove laughed once. “As if anything could! I’ll do both at once.”
Some of the others laughed. Tanin waited for them to quiet before continuing.
“Goldie is trying to find us jobs for medical equipment companies. They won’t be dangerous, and we won’t charge as much as typical. But the important thing is to build that relationship. We won’t need to worry about Kldyn in that regard, since those are company jobs and have nothing to do with him and his family
“Sorbet and Tebros will need to stop tracking Kldyn for now. They have to focus on the assassins coming after us. They’re a greater threat, and we don’t know when they’re going to try something against us. Since Sorbet and Tebros know them best, they will be the ones taking charge of figuring out what they’re doing.
“Alred and Sway will take over tracking Kldyn. I don’t want to avoid him forever. Vytln doesn’t care about what happens. You two should be enough to deal with him. He has credz and power, but he’s basic and simple.
“The rest of us will continue business as usual. We’ll assist where needed, of course, but the rest of our duties aren’t going to lighten because of this. Rok and I will take charge of deliveries. Garnet, Vytln, and Trove’s duties will be unchanged. Any questions?”
“I’ve got one,” Trove spoke up. “Where are Kldyn’s ships now?”
“Ship,” Alred corrected. “Two of his fleet remain on their usual duties. I’ve seen no deviation from their movements. It’s his main ship that has been chasing us. It’s called the Ch’t Mkylt. Which, if I’m translating from lvtl correctly, means lava rock. Is that correct, Vytln?”
Vytln, still with his arm around Haven. “Close enough.”
“Is that not correct?”
“It’s as close as Standard is going to be able to translate it without being overly wordy. My native tongue has multiple words for lava depending on where it is, how it’s flowing, and how hot it is. But I doubt you really care. So, sure. Lava rock is good enough.”
For some reason, Haven seemed to find that funny judging by how her body was shaking with silent laughter. He ran his fingers over her arm.
“Well, now I’m curious,” Alred crossed his arms. “What exact type of lava rock does ch’t mkylt refer to?”
“The explosive burst of magma and poisonous gas that comes with a violent eruption.”
