Codename: Night Witch (49 page)

Hand in hand, Sigrid let Suko lead her from the hospital, out and through the streets of the Crossroads. They might have had their pick of vehicles to whisk them to their destination, but she was in no rush and preferred to walk at Suko's side. She took her arm and let herself lean heavily against her, her head resting practically on Suko's shoulder. It seemed years since she'd had a moment like this, just to walk, not in a hurry to get anywhere too quickly. With each street they walked down, passersby turned to look, some pointing and whispering, others waving.

She never asked where they were going; it seemed clear enough. They were headed back to the transport paddock. The closer they got, the more curious Sigrid became, though Suko refused to divulge what was waiting for them there.

Before entering through the gates, Suko covered Sigrid's eyes with her hands, blindfolding her.

"Keep them closed! And no peeking! I'll know if you cheat."

"But I can't see where I'm going!"

"You'll be fine. Just a few more steps. Here. Stop."

Suko removed her hands. Sigrid kept her eyes closed, waiting, and not having a clue what Suko had in store for her.

"Is it a present?" Sigrid said. "For me?"

"Definitely."

"Is it jewelry?"

Even with her eyes closed, Sigrid sensed her partner's frown. "No," Suko said. "And since when do you desire jewels?"

"I wouldn't know. No one's ever given me any. Perhaps I've been missing out."

"It's not jewelry."

"Is it a kitten?"

"It's not a cat. I'm not giving you a pet. Oh, for heaven's sake. Open your damn eyes!"

Sigrid did so, slowly. And gasped.

"My God, Suko…"

"Happy?"

Happy wasn't the word for it. Amazed. Flabbergasted.
Thrilled!

Sigrid ran forward. Towering over her, and casting great shadows, was a ship. And not just any ship, it was her ship. It was, of course, the
Morrigan
.

More than fifty meters long, it filled nearly a third of the paddock. The long, sleek shape of its crew section jutted out like a needle, while the massive thruster fairing covering its cluster of main engines flared out to its rear. Standing under the forward landing strut, Sigrid let her hand run across its hard metallic surface, touching it, as if to make sure that it was real.

"Suko…how did you—?"

"Hitomi sent word. Selene brought her in this morning."

"Selene?" Sigrid said, asking of the
Morrigan
's
captain. "She's here?"

"I'm standing right here," Selene said, coming down the ramp. "Sigrid, it's good to see you."

"Selene!" Without thinking, Sigrid ran towards her, throwing her arms around her. "Selene! How did you even get her here? I mean, what about the blockades?"

"It was difficult," a new voice said from behind. Sigrid turned to see the magistrate, Lady Godelieve, approach. She was walking slowly with Lady Hitomi wheeling herself along at her side. Her daughter, Roos, was there as well, and looking much better, too. And not just Roos. The three girls she'd rescued from the freelancers were there; though they hung back, as if not quite certain of their place.

"Lady Godelieve," Sigrid said, "you arranged this?"

"That
was
part of our bargain, was it not? I promised you a ship and letters of transit." She stared up at the small military scout ship towering above them. "I just never assumed that
ship
would already belong to you."

"Thank you, Magistrate," Sigrid said. "I don't know what to say."

"There is nothing that needs be said. Your service to the people of Earth will long be remembered. Though…" Slowly, she looked up at Sigrid. "You
could
say that you'll stay. The other part of my offer still stands."

"To stay?" Sigrid said. "To serve you?"

Lady Godelieve shook her head. "Not to serve me, Ms. Novak. To serve the people of the Earth."

"The Pharma-Cabal is of no threat to you, Magistrate. With the marquis in your custody—"

"I'm not speaking of the Cabal or the Independents. Not even the CTF. The destruction of the Crow's Nest was not insignificant, Ms. Novak. Word of the massacre has already sent the markets into turmoil. The assets of every trader who died have been frozen. Hundreds of trillions of Federated dollars will remain locked in litigation for years."

"And without a Council," Hitomi said, "and without the moneylenders to back them, the Federation of Corporate Enterprises will become a nonentity. The days of the bureaucracy are over."

Sigrid looked between the two women uncertainly. "But, that's…
good
. Isn't it?"

Lady Godelieve shook her head. "I'm afraid the real war for supremacy is only just beginning. In the coming weeks, men like Lars Koenig will become a dime a dozen as more warlords emerge to lay their claims. So you see, Ms. Novak, the people of Earth need you. Perhaps now more than ever before. All we can ask is that you consider our request, and that you remember us."

"I will, Magistrate. I promise." Standing in the shadow of the
Morrigan
, she reached over and took Suko's hand. "But for now, I think it's time my partner and I returned home. We've been gone too long."

"Then I shall bid you farewell and safe journeys. Though, if I may make one last request?" Lady Godelieve took a step to the side. Behind her stood her daughter, Roos, along with the three rescued girls. "My daughter has expressed her desire to return with you. As have the others.
If
your offer still stands."

"Of course!" Sigrid said. "By all means."

Sigrid turned to face the four girls, watching as they made their way forward. "And…this is what you wish? All of you?"

"Yes, Lady Novak," the smallest and youngest of the four said. Sigrid recognized her as the very same one who'd killed the last of the Freelancers. Her name was Halimah. "We've all talked about it. We want to go to New Alcyone. We-we want to be like you."

"Like me?" Sigrid stepped closer, studying each and every one of them in turn.

The girl nodded. "We want to undergo the treatments. We want to be…" When her voice faltered, Roos stepped forward.

"We wish to endure the process of augmentation, Lady Novak, and—" she took a moment to swallow "—and Activation."

With her hands clasped behind her back, Sigrid strode back and forth before them. The girls stood immediately at attention. "Activation? Do any of you even know what that term means?"

Behind her, Lady Hitomi cleared her throat. "I
may
have given them the general gist. Just the broad strokes. So they would know."

Sigrid turned back to the girls with an eyebrow raised. "So, you think you know what it means to be Activated? To be a woman of Alcyone?"

"Yes, mistress," the girls said as one.

"And you're not afraid?"

There was a slight moment of hesitation, though again they answered together. "No, mistress."

Sigrid nodded solemnly and renewed her pacing. She stopped in front of Halimah. "Not afraid?" she said again. "That remains to be seen. Now grab your kits and get aboard. All of you. We leave in twenty."

The girls leapt forward, grabbing up their satchels, though it took four footmen to wheel Roos's collection of eleven steamer trunks up the ramp.

"If you were trying to frighten them," Suko said, "I don't think it worked."

"Were you frightened?" Sigrid asked. "When they came for you?"

"Me? I couldn't wait to go! You didn't see the hellhole I grew up in, did you? What about you? Were you scared?"

"A little." Sigrid nodded. "I thought it was going to be like summer camp."

Sighing, Suko draped an arm across her shoulders. "How wrong we were."

"Oh, I don't know," Sigrid said as they strode toward her ship. "It was a little bit like camp. We had fires."

"Only after Tarsus attacked us and nearly burned the place down."

"We camped out."

"We got lost in the woods. I almost drowned!"

"We got to sleep in those cozy barracks with all our friends."

"Friends? Sara used to torture you! Are you sure we're remembering the same place? You're making me think they monkeyed with more of your memories than we thought."

Sigrid hugged her close. "My memories are just fine, thank you. It was on Alcyone where I met you. I will always remember it as a paradise."

EPILOGUE

August 17, 2354

New Alcyone, Pegasi Space

Floating on her back in the calm ocean waters, Sigrid stared up at the glowing orb of Circe far above her. The gas giant filled nearly a third of the night sky, bathing everything in a soft orange glow. New Alcyone's three moons hadn't risen yet, which allowed her to see an unusually high number of stars. She could even see the spindly ring of the Warp Relay circling above her in orbit if she zoomed in enough.

Sigrid let herself float with the tide, rising up and over each gentle wave. She was already several kilometers out and floating further away, carried along by the currents that swept between the series of islands that made up their ever-expanding colony. Out here, there were no young ones to hound her with questions, no military women or men grilling her for tactical advice. The only sounds were of her own breathing and the water lapping against her skin. She was utterly and completely alone, and it felt glorious.

More than quiet, she was at peace. The voices in her head were gone, and she hadn't felt any trace of the pain for weeks. Whatever hold Emily Gillings-Jones had on her was gone.

But not even she could stay floating out here forever. She could only hide from her friends for so long. Turning back, she started kicking her way to shore.

The shoreline was completely invisible to her. There was only black water as far as even her enhanced eyes could see. Yet Sigrid swam with the certainty of knowing exactly where she was. It was impossible for her to ever be lost, even this far out, linked as she was to the nav-sats parked above her in orbit. Within minutes she heard the rolling surf gliding across the sandy shore. Sigrid let one of the larger waves carry her in, riding it until she sensed the bottom rising up to meet her.

Pulling herself from the surf, she strode up the wet sandy beach, wringing out her hair along the way. She smiled at the sight of the girl who was waiting for her, the woman who would always be waiting for her.

"So it's true," Suko said, "there really
are
such things as mermaids."

She was standing in the soft sand with her trousers rolled up and holding out a large towel. Perhaps it was the sight of Suko waiting for her, or perhaps it was the knowledge that Suko would always be there for her, but at that moment, Sigrid was compelled to kiss her in a way that went beyond reason or measure, and Suko didn't appear to mind at all.

And when the kiss ended, Sigrid refused to let her go, holding her soaking wet body against her, dripping water on her shoulders, her shirt and her trousers.

"Sorry," Sigrid said. "Now I've gone and made you all wet."

"And when have I ever complained about that?"

"But you hate the water—oh." Sigrid blushed.

Suko gathered her back in, holding the towel around her. "You were out there nearly three hours. I was starting to wonder if you were avoiding us."

"No. I wasn't avoiding anyone. I just needed some time to think."

"Think? I think I like the sound of that even less. Nothing good ever came out of thinking."

"It's not what you think."

"Oh?" Suko said suspiciously. "And what do I think?"

Sigrid sighed. She hadn't intended to get into any of this. Not yet, and certainly not here. In her mind, they were going to have this conversation at home. She was going to prepare a proper dinner—or perhaps send for one, yes, that would be more accurate. Then she would broach the subject when the mood was right. Perhaps after drinks or a round of frenetic lovemaking. But it was too late to turn back now, and Suko was looking at her expectantly.

"I've been thinking—"

"Yes, you mentioned that."

"I've come to a decision. I'm-I'm leaving here, Suko. I'm leaving New Alcyone. And I'm leaving tomorrow."

"What? Wait, Sigrid, now hold on—"

"Not forever! And not
permanently.
And it won't even be for long. I promise. But I have to leave here. You know
why
, Suko. Between all the stares and the whispers, I'm going to go mad!"

"No one's whispering, Sigrid. And no one's staring either. Granted, Isabel's left eye does tend to
linger
, but that's only because she's having problems with her optical module—"

"Suko, I'm
trying
to be serious!"

"And so am I!"

"I
know
what they're thinking, Suko. They're worried I'm going to snap back and become this Night Witch again. They're afraid, aren't they?"

"They're not afraid, they're just—"

"They're
afraid
, Suko. They're afraid of me."

Suko gave a long sigh. "It will get better, Sigrid. I promise, but you have to give it time."

"I will. And I believe you. But for now, for now I think my leaving is for the best. For all of us."

"This is your
home
, Sigrid."

"It's
our
home, Suko. Yours and mine, and I love it dearly—more than you can imagine. But I can't stay. Not now. Besides, there's a whole universe out there that needs us."

Suko folded her arms, regarding her carefully. "This is about that magistrate woman, isn't it? Lady Gobsmack."

"You know her name is Lady Godelieve, and no, it isn't about her. You've seen what's happening out there, Suko. And you know what a difference we can make."

Suko shook her head. "It's not your responsibility. You can't fight the evils of this world on your own."

"And I won't."

Now that the subject was fully broached and out in the open, her excitement at sharing her plan grew, and she clasped Suko's hands in hers.

"I've already spoken with Lei-Fei and Khepri—"