Justice Keepers Saga - Books 13-15

Chapter 5-2

Jack showed his cards to Arin and Corovin, who both whistled. Just like that, Rajel’s self-satisfied smirk vanished. The man moved like a viper, snatching the cards out of Jack’s hand. “What do you have here? Damn it!”

Cocking his head, Jack allowed himself a small smile. “What was that you were saying?” he asked, his eyebrows dancing. “About being my worst nightmare?”

They were interrupted by a chime from the comm system.

“Captain,” Corin said, his voice coming through the speaker. “Er…Jack. Whatever. You may want to come up to the briefing room. We have a message from Director Tal!”

And just like that, game night was over. The four of them tucked their chairs under the table, left the chips right where they were – they had no real value in any event – and hurried out the door.

Jack’s stomach was doing flip-flops. The only way Larani could have gotten a message out was to locate a SlipGate and hack it. Not an easy task. She would only put in the effort if she had something crucial to report. Which meant either very good news or very bad news. If anything had happened to Melissa…

Summer’s anxiety echoed his own, making it that much harder to ignore. Jack forced the troubling thoughts out of his mind. With any luck, the Salusion Resistance had just won a major victory, and Larani was calling to tell him that the Ragnosians had abandoned the planet.

Double doors admitted him into the briefing room, one of the few places on this ship that had a window. He saw only stars through those panes of slanted glass. Anna kept talking about putting a table in here, but for the moment, the space was bare. The Scrappy had been unfinished when he stole it from the Leyrian Military.

He was grateful for the lack of furniture; everyone had gathered to hear Larani’s message. Anna, Cassi, Sun, Drayvin, Corin, Shinela and Kevin: they all formed a ring around the room, leaving an empty space in the middle. When Jack and his poker buddies joined in, things got very cramped indeed.

Three holograms appeared before him: Larani flanked by Melissa and Novol. The chief director smiled and nodded to him. “Jack,” she said. “I’m glad to see you’re doing well.”

He stepped forward with hands clasped behind his back, studying her with lips pursed. “Well, you’re all here,” he said. “So, I assume you’re not going to tell me that someone died.”

“I’m afraid it’s worse than that.”

“What happened?”

Larani ran her gaze over the lot of them, then took a deep breath. “I am calling you from Velezia,” she explained. “The three of us had to leave Salus to get this message out. We have intercepted Ragnosian intelligence that I am sending you now.”

Anna verified that on a SmartGlass tablet, her mouth twisting as she read the report. “Are you sure about this, Larani?”

“I am,” Larani replied. “In five days, the Ragnosians are going to attack Leyria.”

Jack felt his jaw drop, sweat breaking out on his forehead. “They wouldn’t,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s too heavily guarded. They would have to commit every ship they have on this side of the galaxy!”

Heaving out a breath, Larani shut her eyes and turned away from him. She began to pace, but the hologram remained stationary. Melissa and Novol watched her with wary expressions. “We both know that the war isn’t going well,” she said. “Leyria has lost seven out of the last ten engagements. The Antaurans aren’t faring much better.”

Larani froze, twisting around to look over her shoulder. “The Ragnosians want a swift end to the conflict, and they are willing to commit their forces toward that goal.”

Corovin came forward to stand beside Jack, grunting as he considered the news. “My people would only commit to something like this if they were certain they could win,” he said. “And the latest reports suggest they can.”

Pressing her lips together, Anna stared down the three holograms with that grim resolve she often displayed right before she went into battle. “We have a bigger problem,” she said. “The Ragosians won’t stop with Leyria. They’re going to hit Laras as well.”

“Laras,” Melissa stammered. “Why?”

“Because they want to exterminate the Nassai.”

Those words left a chill in the air. Jack shivered. Anna had told him about this plan before, but until now, it had seemed like a remote possibility. With a potential g******e, he suddenly felt inadequate to the task of stopping it.

Summer was panicking. Usually, when he was feeling anxious, she offered warm emotions to calm him down. This time, it was Jack who had to soothe her. He tried to let her feel his love and his determination. He wasn’t sure if it helped.

Anna stepped forward with her head down, sighing softly. “Telixa Ethran told me that her people fear the Justice Keepers more than anything else.” She looked up into Larani’s eyes. “For a while there, I thought I had changed her mind, but she seems to have reverted.”

Melissa scowled. “That’s probably my fault.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Larani snapped. “The point is we must mount a defense for both Leyria and Laras.”

“I hate to be the one to point out the obvious,” Rajel said. “But we’re all wanted criminals. If we go to Leyria, they will throw us in a prison cell. And that’s best-case scenario.”

Anna shot him a glare. “Doesn’t matter,” she said. “The Nassai have always been there for us. I’m not gonna let them down when they need us.”

“Me neither,” Melissa added.

Jack turned on his heel, running his gaze over the rest of his team. And they were his team. Anna was right; he had been neglecting them for too long. “Then it’s settled,” he said. “We’re going to Leyria.”

were

“You want us to divert a third of our defense force to protect Leyria?” It was a simple question, but Harl Peran spoke with such disdain Anna almost regretted bringing it up. As high councilor, the man would be responsible for bringing her request to the Alosian Council. Only they had the authority to divert those ships. Anna had come here, hoping to find a sympathetic ear. She should have known better.

A heavyset man with dark skin and a silver goatee, Peran stood by the window, looking out on a glittering city under a clear, blue sky. “Need I remind you, Ms. Lenai,” he began, “that we severed ties with Leyria in protest of their unconstitutional detainment of immigrants?”

His office was a simple room with white walls and tall bookshelves. An old-fashioned, wooden desk sat in the light that came in through that window. Anna noted some of the pictures that Peran kept there. The man had a wife, children, several pets. He obviously cared a great deal about his family. That being the case, he probably saw any compromise to Alosian security as a threat to the people he loved most.

Drawing in a deep breath, Anna shut her eyes and tried to centre herself. “I understand that, sir,” she replied. “But we’ve been working in partnership with the Nassai for centuries. Alios has benefitted from that relationship.”

She stood before him in unrelieved black: shoes, pants, shirt. Some people said it made them feel powerful. Right now, Anna felt anything but powerful.

butThe high councilor turned around, grimacing when he saw her. He went to his desk and slid his fingers across the surface of a SmartGlass tablet, scanning its contents. “I have nothing but respect for the Nassai and the Keepers who Bond them,” he said. “But this planet is still recovering from the attack we endured six months ago.”

“You were willing to divert those ships to protect Belos.”

“Belos is another Fringe World,” he countered. “Even if they are under Antauran control. There are ties that go back. But Leyria? We owe Leyria nothing.”

Anna strode around the desk, causing the man to back away until he was practically cowering in the corner. That look on his face. Did he think that she was about to pummel him? “All right,” she said. “Then let’s try this. If the Ragnosians conquer Leyria, they will have quelled all resistance on this side of the galaxy. The Antaurans will fold without Leyrian support.”

“And how does this change my assessment of the situation?”

“Because,” Anna pressed. “Once the Ragnosians have Leyria, the Fringe Worlds will be their next target. You know I’m right.”

Glancing out the window, Peran took a moment to consider that. A heavy sigh burst out of him, and he deflated like a ripped sack that spilled its contents onto the floor. “I will bring your proposal to the Alosian Council.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Outside the office, she found a large reception area with green carpets and cream-coloured walls. Four round pillars supported a high ceiling. The place was quiet, but she did catch the occasional raised voice from one of the rooms down the hall.

Jack was sitting on a wooden bench with one hand on the armrest, his eyes closed as if he were in deep meditation. “How did it go?” he asked when she came out.

Anna sat down beside him, linking arms with him and resting her head on his shoulder. “About as well as you’d expect,” she murmured. “He’s going to take our proposal to the Council, but he doesn’t like the idea.”

“You think they’ll let us go?”

“Would it stop us if they didn’t?”

A blush painted Jack’s face red. “No,” he said. “I guess it wouldn’t.”

Together, they began a long trek through the hallway that led back to the lobby. A new set of worries started racing through Anna’s mind. Five days. They had less than five days to fly to Leyria and prepare for a devastating attack. It would take four and a half just to get there. If the Council didn’t approve her plan in the next few hours, the Scrappy would have to go alone.

Larani was still trying to get through to Leyria, still trying to warn them about the danger. So far, she’d had no luck, but Velezia was much closer to the homeworld than Alios. Even with a slow ship, Larani could be there in eight hours. Ten tops.

“I keep running through it in my head,” Anna mumbled. She hadn’t intended to discuss this topic, but the words were coming out of her mouth, and it was too late to hold back now. “I keep thinking about what I might have done differently. There had to be something I could say, some way to convince Telixa that we don’t have to be enemies.”

somethingJack stopped dead beside her, a wince twisting his face. “Anna,” he began. “I know you want to see the best in people, but Telixa Ethran is ruthless and paranoid. Please tell me you’re not blaming yourself for all this.”

“No,” Anna said. “I’m not.”

“Good.”

“I wish it were my fault.”

wishThat last bit earned her some serious side-eye, but she stood by it. Things would be a lot easier if she could just find the one thing she had done wrong. “Well, there’s one I haven’t heard before,” Jack remarked. “Why would you want it to be your fault?”