One of the guards grasped Silken's arm and raised it. The med-tech touched it with an injector. He moved over to Ciety and applied another to one of his arms. Then the three of them fled the cell and Silken crawled over to hold Nomik in her arms.
Belazir threw off his silk robe and strapped on a utility belt, checking the charge in his plasma gun.
"Report," he barked.
"There is little more, Great Lord. Ships have been launched to meet the foe, the battleworthy ships have closed around the mother ship in protective formation. With communications out we can do little but wait."
"Fool!" Belazir snarled and marched out of his quarters moving towards the bridge.
Outside the door Skarik na Marid's small squad formed up around Belazir in a protective square.
Joseph strode along behind Belazir, eyes blazing, his heart full of hate. Amos's words rang in his head, "It would grieve me, my brother, to have you die like a fool."
Benisur, what am I to do? God has placed our enemy in my hands. Can I turn away in fear for myself and still call myself a man?
He could almost hear Amos's answer. "Wait for your best moment before you strike. And do not condemn yourself as a coward if no such moment arrives."
Before them an elevator opened and disgorged another crowd of Kolnari warriors running to their battle stations.
Joseph's whole body pounded with his heartbeat, it was all that he could feel, the blood raging through his veins. Never have I felt such desire, not even in the arms of my beloved.
He grabbed Belazir by the neck and flung him into the empty elevator with a mighty shove, drew his laser and threw himself in afterwards just as the door closed. He hit a floor at random, then spun and kicked Belazir's legs out from under him, bringing the butt of his pistol down on the back of the Kolnari's neck with a vicious crack.
Joseph fired on the elevator's control mechanism and they lurched to a halt. Then he turned back to his prey, his blue eyes alight with joy.
"You!" Belazir screamed, staggering to his feet. The blow would have killed any normal human. "You!"
The Bethelite cast his weapon aside and drew the long curved knife. He could hear Amos's voice again-this time condemning him for a fool. And I do not care. Some things are beyond even loyalty, my prophet and friend.
The lift cage was large, built to transport a section or more of troops in power armor. Belazir sidled crabwise, tearing off the remnants of his robe. His body was matte-black except where the dusty gray of scars seamed it, a gaunt thing of massive bones and muscles shrunken and knotted and still powerful enough to crack teak beams. There was no mind behind the golden eyes now, and a string of saliva dangled from one loose-curled lip.
"You!" he screamed, and leaped with his hands outstretched to tear.
Joat was relieved to see that the corpse she and Joseph had left behind was still on duty behind the reception desk. Bros labored along beside her and at last she felt safe enough to put his arm around her shoulder and give him some support.
"No," he said, resisting her. "Not until we're behind a locked door. There's no telling who we might run into."
She blushed and compressed her lips. He was right, and she was embarrassed. It wasn't like her to get soft like this.
They moved into the Brig and she started trying doors, looking for one that wasn't locked.
Around the corner came two Kolnari and a medtech, moving so fast they almost collided.
"What are you doing here?" one of the guards demanded.
"We've been sent to relieve Kolnari guards for duty elsewhere," Joat said.
"No," the other guard said, looking hard at Bros. "No, she lies. He is a prisoner."
"Ridiculous," Joat snapped. "We are heading into the Brig, not out of it."
"This is Bros Sperin," the guard insisted. "I know him."
The other guard and the med-tech began to grin.
Oh shit! Joat thought and went for her laser.
The first guard slapped her hand aside and kicked her legs out from under her. Joat lay for a single instant, stunned; she'd forgotten, over the years, the inhuman speed of the Kolnari.
Bros is unarmed! she thought as she crashed to the floor and she saw both guards moving in on him. Before she could get her stunned body back in action the medtech had her in a hold that immobilized her. He stripped off one of her gloves and pressed an injector against the inside of her wrist.
The last thing she saw as her vision darkened was Bros going down in a flurry of kicks from the two Kolnari guards. She heard something snap, and then there was nothing.
She woke to the sensation of something heavy resting on her lap, holding her against a wall. Her eyes flickered open and she snapped them shut, the light in the room was so bright it drew tears. Cautiously, she slitted her eyes open and looked down to see what was so heavy.
Bros lay in her lap. He was perfectly still; blood trailed from his mouth. She snapped the locks on his helmet and tossed it aside, touched her bare hand to his pulse.
Chief Family Enforcer Vand looked down at her impassively.
"He is alive?" Vand asked.
Joat nodded wearily, then glanced up at him. Vand was much taller than she'd expected and twice as intimidating as he was on a screen.
"It would seem they questioned him very thoroughly," he observed. He looked away, his eyes never resting long on any place or thing.
Just as well, Joat thought. When he looks at me I feel like I'm about to be dissected.
"The Family would very much like to interrogate Mr. Sperin," Vand said, considering the notion.
Joat made a small flinging gesture and a knife slipped into her hand, she pressed it up under Bros's jaw.
"But you won't," she said with fierce determination.
"No," he said, his face still impassive, but a look of something like respect touched his cold eyes. "Of course not. In addition to restoring the Family's honor, the object of this mission was to rescue Mr. Sperin. It would hardly do to compromise Yoered's honor immediately after saving it. Now would it?" He smiled, and she wished he hadn't. "Our honor is an extremely valuable commercial property."
Joat had the impression she was being laughed at, though nothing visible backed it up.
"You must excuse me. We're in the process of teaching the Kolnari a rather sharp lesson on maintaining a certain standard of professional etiquette when in a Family port. Remain here," Vand commanded. "I have some medtechs on the way."
Then he was gone, moving lightly despite the bulky battle-armor.
As if I was about to scamper off and get into trouble, Joat thought sourly. She leaned her head wearily against the wall and closed her eyes. When she opened them she found herself looking into Silken's.
Silken sat on the floor across from her, with Nomik's head leaning against her breast, in a pose that mirrored her own.
Tears ran down Silken's cheeks and her expression was tired beyond all bearing. Her hair was wild and there was blood around her mouth, bruises on the porcelain skin.
Joat knew a moment's sympathy for her, realizing that Silken must be broken indeed if she was too weary to make threats.
Eventually the promised medtechs came and suited them up in quarantine outfits like the ones they were wearing. They lifted Nomik and Bros onto pallets. Each of the women walked beside one, looking down.
Joat wavered, wondering if she should try to find and destroy Belazir's store of stolen virus.