Dark Minds (Class 5 Series Book 3) (7 page)

Food splattered the counters and the floor. A drone lay, smashed and another turned its lens toward her, shockgun never wavering from a closed door to look at her.

No wonder the others hadn't rushed to stop her. They had backup.

She reached back to grip the counter and knocked a cup off the metal surface.

It fell to the floor and bounced, unbroken, with a high-pitched ting.

Hammering started up behind the door, and the drone focused its attention back on it.

It was hard to make out what they were shouting, but it sounded like calls for help. In Tecran.

She turned her head as the kitchen door to her right opened, and was unsurprised to see the drones. They were holding their shockguns again.

“I don't want to hurt you, but I will shoot on a low charge if you attempt to help them.”

She forced herself to drop the hand clutching at the counter and stand straight. “Are there Tecran in there?”

Silence for a moment. “Yes.”

“And they have food and water?”

“They're in one of the kitchen storage areas, so yes.”

“How long have they been there?”

The drones spread out a little, blocking the exit back into the dining room. “Two weeks. They barricaded themselves in there, but I've subsequently sealed the doors, so they're trapped. They will be able to survive for a further two weeks, by my estimation.”

“Then why would I help them?”

The drone she'd focused on lifted the shockgun up then down, as if in a shrug.

“They abducted me from my home and I still haven't found out why. As long as they aren't about to die, I certainly don't want them running around, locking me up again.”

“And if they were starving?” The drone moved forward a little.

Imogen rubbed her face. “That would be a lot harder. I would have to say I would try to get food to them, some way, or free them in a way that would still keep me safe.”

“Why?”

“Because starving them is wrong. They abducted me. Held me prisoner. Seemed to find nothing wrong with either thing. But they didn't hurt me and they tried to cheer me up in their way. They should be brought to justice, not murdered.”

“I consider their deaths to
be
justice.”

It definitely wasn't the drone talking now. “What did they do to you?” she asked quietly. This didn't sound like an alien life form who had taken the ship in some opportunist way, as the Krik seemed to think. She almost didn't want to know what the Tecran had done to him to make him this vindictive.

“They kept me a prisoner, too.” His tone was fierce.

“For how long?”

“Six years.”

She drew in a sharp breath, and then let it out slowly. Six years? The two and a half months she'd spent in their hands had been enough. “How did you get free?”

The drone was silent, then turned to look at the door holding some of the Tecran crew prisoner. “I'm still not completely free. If I were, the ones in there would be dead. I hoped the Krik would help, but like the Garmman before me, I overestimated how cooperative they would be. And in the end, I couldn't trust them. Toloco proved that.”

“Because he hurt me?”

“Because he hurt you, and because he was supposed to bring all unusual advanced sentient beings straight to the drones.”

“He didn't do that because he had hurt me. He was hoping you would think someone in the hold had done it.”

The drone turned its lens on her. “That explains a great deal. Did he tell you this?”

She shook her head. “I worked it out from his conversation with his friend Gau.”

“I only asked them to do one thing, and they betrayed me.” There was no mistaking the weariness in his voice now.

“Is that why you took the Grihans and the others prisoner? And me? You were hoping we would cooperate more? Be more trustworthy?”

The drone kept still. “If you found some Krik trapped onboard, would you help them?”

“They did this,” she tapped under the eye that was no longer swollen or painful. “They slaughtered the guards with me and laughed while they did it. I wouldn't open a locked door they were behind for any inducement.”

“There are about six still running loose onboard. They all started shooting at the drones when I killed Toloco and a few managed to get away and crawl into the service tunnels behind the walls and in the ceiling.”

“What about the ones who were out raiding ships?”

“No need to worry about them.” There was casual confidence in his voice now, and Imogen imagined any Krik ship approaching would probably be blown to bits.

“So, what now?”

He didn't answer for a long beat. “I'm not sure.” The drone moved back. “I need——” It cut off, lifted the shockgun, and shot the ceiling.

Imogen cried out, crouching as she lifted her arms to protect her head.

No debris fell and she looked up and saw the shockgun's electric charge couldn't penetrate the tiles. What had it been doing?

She realized the drone was frozen in place, shockgun still pointed at the ceiling, although it hadn't fired a second time. Its lens was focused on her. “Are you hurt?”

She stood, and realized on a wave of fury that there were tears on her cheeks. She rubbed them away. “No. I was frightened.”

“You weren't in any danger.” Whoever was talking through the drone's speaker sounded baffled. “There was a Krik in the tunnel overhead, and I wanted to chase it away.”

“I didn't know that.” She gave her cheeks a last swipe. “When someone shoots a gun right next to you out of nowhere, see how
you
feel.”

He didn't seem to have anything to say to that.

Silence settled over them again and she couldn't hear any sound from above. Hadn't heard anything before the drone shot, either, but then the noise of the Tecran banging intermittently on the door made it difficult.

They had gone quiet since the shockgun blast but it didn't last, and if anything, the sound of their shouting and pounding seemed to increase.

The drone pointed the shockgun at the storeroom door, but then the lens swung to her and it lowered the weapon, as if thinking better of shooting for the sake of it.

Yay. It could be taught.

“Who do they think is here?” she asked.

“A rescue party, perhaps.” The tone was clipped. “I want you to have a drone with you wherever you go onboard, to protect you if you encounter the Krik.”

She looked at the drone lens. That sounded like she wasn't a prisoner here anymore.

And if she had free movement, maybe she could escape. The Krik were eluding him, after all. He said he wasn't completely free, perhaps he didn't have access to the lens feed.

The thought struck a spark, and she remembered the way Toloco looked at the lens in the launch bay. He had guessed their host wasn't able to use the lens feed, too. He'd thought he was safe from having beaten her, and hoped her injuries would be blamed on the prisoners in the hold. But he was dead now. And by inference, wrong about the lenses.

Escape might not be as easy as it seemed, and given her new host's attitude over approaching Krik ships, he could probably shoot escaping runners as easily as approaching ones.

Which meant it might be wise to find out more before she made a dash for it.

“Why are you so concerned about me? Why, of everyone, was I taken out of the hold and given food, water and medical help?” She was only processing it now, but he'd killed the Vanad because she'd said she thought he was going to hurt her. Killed Toloco for actually hurting her.

“What is different about you?” The drone asked her, and rolled right up to her, so she could see, aside from the shockgun, the box that made up the bulk of it was empty.

“I'm the only one not from around here.” By probably millions of light years.

The drone's lens slid smoothly upward to focus on her face. “And there you have it.”

B
efore Grih Battle Center
had transferred him to the United Council as one of their representatives on the Investigative Unit, Cam had never been without emergency supplies in the pockets of his trousers and jacket.

He'd been in transit to an investigation, not out in the field, but even so, if he'd been fully part of Battle Center, he'd have been much more prepared than he was now.

He was angry with himself. It was the mistake of a junior officer, and now they were all dehydrated and there was nothing he could do about it.

“Even if you and I were both fully equipped, we couldn't help everyone.” Pren watched him tap his pockets with frustration.

She was right, but if they had even half the usual kit, at least those recovering from more severe injuries would be comfortable.

He couldn't help looking toward the doors again, wondering if Imogen Peters would be allowed back, or whether she'd been taken for good.

“Why do you think it's been looking for Imogen?” Diot spoke quietly, edging further from the others as she spoke. “And now that it's found her, what will happen to us?”

Cam looked beyond her, gauging if anyone was paying them attention or looking their way, and caught Vraen's gaze.

The Garmman forced himself to his feet and picked his way across a floor strewn with people sitting or lying down to conserve energy.

Olan, huddled with Chep and Haru, levered himself up as well and delicately wound his way toward them. After a moment's hesitation, the two Fitali followed him.

It had turned into a council of war.

“We were just discussing what the thinking system might logically do, now that it has what it was looking for.” Diot kept her voice low.

“We're discussing this with them here?” Vraen flicked his fingers at Chep and Haru, and Cam watched with interest as they puffed up in affront and then remembered they were supposed to be tourists.

“We know you're Fitali military,” Pren said.

Her calm, matter-of-fact statement diffused the tension and they both seemed to relax.

“I don't think we should say anything sensitive until we know what they're doing here.” Vraen's tone had not softened, but then Cam had come to realize he held on to his grudges for a long time.

He decided to move things along. “The time for tiptoeing around diplomatic protocol has long gone. You're in Grihan territory without permission, and my best guess is you were hunting your grahudi. If your reactions to what Imogen said are anything to go by, you knew something about Balco that we didn't. The Fitali government obviously didn't see fit to share their intelligence with the Grih, but that's something for Battle Center and your people to fight out when this is over. I just want to know what you were up to.”

Cam thought he caught a twitch of a smile on Olan's face, but when he turned to the Fitalian, he looked as bland as ever.

He hadn't asked Olan to translate for him, but after a long beat of silence the scientist turned to his compatriots and began speaking, until Chep cut him short with a quick, flat chop of his hand.

“Our orders were to say nothing to anyone, but the circumstances have changed enough that it seems prudent to share.” Chep's Grihan was perfect, with only the slightest hiss and click of his own tongue in his pronunciation.

Cam waited for him to continue, and then saw Olan had switched on his wrist unit again and Chep was looking at it with what seemed to be a Fitalian snarl.

“Olan.”

The scientist looked up innocently, then sighed and deactivated it as Cam stared him down.

“All the grahudi on Huy are implanted with a tracker.” Chep dropped his voice even lower and everyone huddled closer.

“You followed it when the Tecran stole it.” Diot couldn't hide her excitement.

“We didn't know who had stolen it, just that it was moving quickly away from Huy and out of Fitalian territory.” Haru spoke for the first time. “When it went into Grihan territory, we assumed . . .” She looked uncomfortable.

“That we had taken it. That's why you didn't tell Battle Center about Balco.”

“We didn't know about Balco. About the Tecran facility there, anyway. We'd just worked out the grahudi had stopped moving and was on Balco when we were captured by the Krik.”

“What is it about the grahudi that you watch them so carefully?” Diot asked.

Chep dipped his head politely in her direction. “They are creatures under our care. Of course we keep a close watch.”

It was the official line the Fitali always used when asked by scientists from the other UC territories for access to study the fascinating primates. Cam hadn't expected anything else, but Diot had obviously hoped Chep and Haru would share a little more than the reason for their secret mission. She looked sulky.

“Now we know why we're all here,” Cam drew their attention back to what really mattered, “we have to work out what the thinking system will do with Imogen——”

“You keep talking about a thinking system.” Chep just managed to keep his voice low enough. “You said it before they shot you. And twice now. What thinking system?”

Cam cocked his head to the side. “I thought you knew we were in a Class 5.”

Chep and Haru clicked their tongues.

Chep glared at Olan, as if he'd deliberately misled them. “We didn't know. We were in a hold on a Krik runner, then the launch bay, then down here. If this is a Class 5, where are the Tecran?”

“Dead.” Cam let the harsh words find their mark. “That would be the most likely guess from what we know happens when a Class 5 thinking system takes control of its ship.”

“Then where are the Krik coming from? Did it recruit them?” Haru's voice trembled.

“That seems the most likely. But I don't think they know they're dealing with a thinking system.”

“How could they not consider that a possibility? What about what happened a few months ago when the Tecran invaded Grihan territory?” Haru didn't exactly frown, her face was too rigid for that, but her eyes seemed to dip downward.

“Only UC members were given information about two sentient Class 5s coming over to our side. And while I'm sure it won't stay a secret for long, perhaps the news hasn't trickled down to them yet?” Diot said.

Cam nodded. “Possible.”

“Did you catch what the drone said about the Krik who brought Imogen in?” Olan asked. “It told the Vanad he would get the same reward as the Krik who found her, and then it killed him.”

“So at least one Krik is dead out there.” Cam let his gaze drift to the doors again.

He noticed most of the group had done the same.

“The thinking system killed the Vanad for only trying to harm her. And the Vanad's team were engaged specifically to find an Earth woman.” Pren spoke quietly, laying out the facts. “So the chances are, it has what it was looking for.”

“So the question now,” Diot hunched her shoulders, “is what use does it have for us anymore?”

In the quiet that followed her statement, with the low murmur of voices around the hold as the backdrop, the sound of a ceiling tile falling and shattering behind them was like the crack of an explosion.

Cam spun, saw Chep and Haru had done the same. A Krik peered down at them from above, just his shoulders and head visible.

He called something in Krik, his voice muffled as he turned awkwardly to speak to someone behind him.

“Having trouble with your new ally?” Cam positioned himself below the hole.

The Krik looked down on him, exposed his incisors and hissed.

Cam saw Pren move suddenly in his peripheral vision and snapped his attention back to the hold. The two Krik who had been part of the Vanad's team were moving toward him, jostling the crowd on the floor.

Pren had taken up a position in front of him, legs braced, and he saw the Krik hesitate.

“We want to speak to him. Find out what's happening.” The larger of the two spoke, his lips lifting up and down as if caught between wanting to attack and the need to be polite.

Cam tapped Pren's shoulder, and she stood aside, letting the Krik through.

The one who'd spoken looked like he was going to shoulder bump Pren as he passed her, but she stepped neatly aside and he staggered inelegantly instead.

Cam could see he wanted to snarl at her, but he snarled at the Krik looking down at them, instead. They spoke in quick, sharp bursts and the Krik above shuffled back, so only his head and neck were visible.

“The one in charge of the ship killed all but six Krik,” the taller of the two Krik told Cam. “And they only escaped because they got to the tunnels in time.”

“He can't get them in the tunnels?” Cam asked. It hadn't seemed to stop Sazo or Bane when they took control of their Class 5s. Only the crew with personal breathers had survived on Sazo's ship, and that's because the Grih had boarded as soon as he'd switched off the air and gotten to them before their air ran out.

The Krik shook his head. “They knew he couldn't get them in the tunnels. That's why he offered the Krik a deal in the first place. To get the Tecran that had escaped to the tunnels when he took the Class 5 from them.”

So the thinking system hadn't just wanted the Krik as boots on the ground, looking for an Earth woman. He'd used them to eliminate the Tecran he wasn't able to deal with himself. Cam understood now why the Krik had been so confident they were going to come out ahead. They knew whoever controlled the ship wasn't all-powerful. They just hadn't realized he was constantly adapting, working out ways to do without them.

It looked like he'd reached that point.

“So what's his plan?” Chep had maneuvered himself closer, pointed upward at the Krik who had moved back so far, they could only see the top of his head and his eyes.

The Krik spoke in their own language again, and Cam thought the two in the hold were begging to be rescued.

“They are trying to find their way to the launch bay, or as near to it as they can get, and fly out on one of the Krik runners.”

“Will they help us get out?” Diot's question was soft, but the Krik she spoke to bared his incisors at her.

“They won't get anyone out. They're only interested in rescuing themselves.”

As he spoke, the Krik above them disappeared completely.

“Wait.” Cam looked at the Krik next to him. “Tell him to wait. I want to make a deal.”

The Vanad's Krik whooped, and called something, and after a long, tense moment, the Krik in the tunnel came back into view.

“What deal?” he asked, in perfect Grihan.

Cam narrowed his eyes as he looked upward. “If you aren't able to rescue us, at least, if you get away, could you let the UC or Battle Center know we're here?”

“And why would we do that?” The Krik lifted the corner of his mouth in an insolent sneer.

“Because whether you let Battle Center know we're here or not, the search for us will already be on. This is obviously a busy corner of the galaxy, and my guess is not only is Battle Center sending reinforcements, but the UC will, too. When you're caught up in the massive dragnet and taken before the UC courts, I will testify that you tried your best to help, and your sentence will be lighter.”

“We won't be caught.” He started to squirm backward and the Krik standing beside Cam let out a whoop of fury that silenced everyone in the hold.

Cam looked up at the empty hole. The ceiling was at least double his height, he guessed. But if he lifted Pren on his shoulders, she might be tall enough to reach.

It took him a moment to realize everyone was staring at him.

“It's too high, but it's more than we had before,” he said, looking up again. He just hoped it would be enough.