Page 6 of Rebels Rising

I didn’t want to stick around when he discovered I’d killed her by caving her face in with my fist.

I also realised that neither Addy nor the captain were aware of Jorna’s betrayal, or her death. That was likely a story better told at a later date when things had calmed down a bit. As it stood, tensions were high from the battle and our own betrayal of the IU’s military. Unfortunately, corruption led to the formation of a rebellion, the oppressed always finding a way to fight back. I was now a part of that rebellion, no longer able to hold back from the fury they had ignited.

And though I wished I could do it all on my own, I was still only one person and couldn’t topple an intergalactic threat by myself. Perhaps it made me a bad person, but I hoped these men and women would continue to put their lives on the line to fight with me to end The Program’s reign of evil. I was going to need all the help I could get.

Dave Junior nudged at my thigh with his wet nose, and I glanced at him to see what he needed. Bal was still on his back where I’d placed him to keep him safe while I welded the door shut again, except he wasn’t sitting nicely. I should have been paying closer attention, but with Bromm the way he was I could admit I was struggling to focus on much else.

Unfortunately, that had only given Bal the freedom to tug and poke at Junior, who was currently glaring at me from his position at my feet. Bal’s fingers were jabbing at multiple different eyeballs while the other yanked at his ears, and Junior was very clearly nearing the end of his patience. When I didn’t immediately remove Bal from his back, he released a warning growl that was more vibration that vocals but somehow sounded much more dangerous.

I took the hint.

Bal didn’t want to release his hold on Dave Junior straight away, clinging to him and digging his fingers in further to stay put. I didn’t entirely blame him. He was only a baby and hadn’t encountered a creature like Dave Junior before. Neither had I, for that matter, and I wasn’t about to deny him his curiosity. I just needed to find a way to redirect it into a safer, kinder,gentlermethod of exploration.

The ship rocked again, but this time it was less like heavy turbulence and more like we’d bumped into something. The next moment, Eloria Stanson’s holographic face appeared above Bromm’s body for a second time, though the stress lines around her eyes and mouth were significantly more pronounced.

‘Captain, they’ve locked down the station’s hangar bay. I can’t open the doors,’ she said, her voice pitched higher in her panic.

I pursed my lips in annoyance. Not at her, but the situation. I should have expected them to make things as difficult for us as possible, and I had up until my attention had been diverted to Bromm.

Bal began to fuss and wriggled around in an attempt to get back to Dave Junior, but I held him firm. I stroked the top of Bal’s head, enjoying the softness of his fine blonde hair as I attempted to settle him, and it worked. His head tilted to rest against my shoulder and he nuzzled against my neck, his small breaths puffing against my skin and tickling me.

‘I’ll handle it,’ I told her. ‘Just get ready to set off as soon as those doors open.’

‘How?’ she asked.

We didn’t have time for me to elaborate, but I realised I would need to come clean about most (if not all) of my abilities if we were going to work together smoothly from here on out. Especially if they were looking to me for direction.

‘I can hack into the system and override their commands, but I should start now before we lose the opportunity to escape before they mobilise their own ships. Get ready to fly, GC Stanson.’

‘Yes, Captain,’ she agreed, and though the call cut out I could tell she was still unsatisfied with my vague answer, but she would just have to wait for the long one.

‘Howareyou going to do that?’ asked Captain Hironimus, and I turned to see that both he and Addy were looking at me with expectant and openly curious expressions.

‘I’ll explain it later,’ I waved them off. ‘No time now. Can someone please hold Bal until I’m done?’

I wasn’t sure why I found it so odd when Foryk was the one to take him from my grip and cradle him against his broad chest, but it was shocking to see him handle a baby at all let alone so tenderly.

What shocked me even more was how easily Baldr took to him. After gazing up at the oversized Tornu with wide, wonder-filled eyes, he quickly made himself at home against Foryk’s chest. He even attempted to hug him back, though his little arms only spanned the length of one of Foryk’spectorals. And when Foryk practically melted beneath Bal’s affection, I had to fight to keep my jaw from hitting the floor.

I scrutinised the gruff man with a new perspective, and decided I liked what I found. Bromm had clearly already discovered something less abrasive about him for them to become such close friends, and now that I was seeing it I didn’t think I’d be able to stick to viewing only his tough outer shell.

Who knew Foryk was a closet softie?

Another judder rocked through the ship and I physically shook those thoughts from my head. I didn’t understand why I was so distracted, especially considering the dire circumstances we were still in, and I had a job to do.

I grabbed Bromm’s hand between mine again, needing the connection to ground me. The ship was brimming with all these people relying on me to get them to safety, all these people that had chosen to stand up for what was right even when it went against their orders; that had turned their backs on their military because I’d taken a stand and the believed in my cause. It was overwhelming, and my chest constricted at the mere idea of it all.

Going against The Program had never been my initial plan. All I’d wanted was freedom for myself and Libby and the chance to lead a normal life away from the pain and torment of constant experiments and mind games. Things had gotten so far out of control and I was struggling to wrap my head around it all. It felt like I was being bombarded not only by my own emotions that were far too big to contain, but the expectations from everyone around me. Even now, Libby and all the other women were back in their cave living a simple life in the wilds while I was out here trying to save everyone.

It was too much.

But I could think about all that later. Right now, all I had to do was open the gate.

My eyes closed, almost of their own volition, and I could see the bright blue glow through the thin skin of my eyelids. A tick later and I was inside the web, the thick glowing line I’d landed on pulsing with the energy of untapped information, a physical siren call to follow its trail. It whispered to me, a buzz of untapped knowledge directing me where I needed to be.

I followed.

It hadn’t always been so simple and easy to navigate through the web. When I’d first discovered it, I’d been stuck in the same spot for ages. It wasn’t until I’d learned how to rifle through the possibilities for passwords and lock codes that I was finally able to move around and explore. Now, it was as easy as breathing. I didn’t even need to think about it beyond my goals. It was as if the web responded to my innermost thoughts and desires and directed me exactly where I needed to be.

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