Page 57 of Salvaged By the Alien Pirate

“Good.” I feel Neon’s satisfaction through our bond, her strategic mind already mapping contingencies. “We’ll need legitimate channels when this breaks open. The Brotherhood won’t be able to ignore evidence from multiple sources.”

“Just be careful,” McCoy warns. “K’vex isn’t working alone. Push too hard too fast, and we’ll lose any chance of identifying her network.”

After McCoy’s hologram fades, Neon turns in my embrace, her expression serious. The glow of her implants mingles with my tribal markings, a physical manifestation of how perfectly we complement each other. “We’re going to have to move soon. The Eclipse is planning something big, and K’vex is their key to making it happen.”

The ship’s chrono chimes softly, marking the start of third shift. Neon stretches against me before reluctantly pulling away. “I should analyze these encryption patterns more thoroughly. Meet you in your office in twenty?”

I press a kiss to her temple, savoring her warmth one last moment before duty calls. “Don’t get too lost in the data streams, little hacker.”

Her answering smile carries that fierce determination I’ve come to cherish. “No promises. But I’ll find what we need.”

Chapter 19

Neon Valkyrie

Thedataflowsthroughmy neural implants with a clarity I’ve never experienced—sharper, faster, more intuitive. It’s as if the mate-bond with Cirdox has not only changed my heart but has also upgraded my very hardware. My tech responds with an almost symbiotic efficiency, each data pattern unfolding with a precision that would have been impossible just days ago. It’s like my systems have been waiting for this connection, now finally complete.

I pause, fingers drifting to the claiming marks on my neck, a soft, involuntary smile curving my lips. The connection we forged is... astounding. How could something so primal, so instinctual, mesh so flawlessly with my tech? I’d feared that binding myself to him would mean surrendering my independence, my control. Instead, it’s as if the vastness of space has suddenly been mapped in perfect detail, each star burning brighter, each pathway clearer. And there’s... a lightness wherehis constant pain used to be. A relief that floods through our bond, a silent, shared joy that he’s free.

A flicker of red in the usual blue data stream catches my eye—an encryption pattern I’d recognize anywhere. My heart pounds as I dive deeper, neural implants pulsing with increased activity as I decrypt the fragmented message. What emerges makes my blood run cold.

“Cirdox,” I say, voice tight with controlled urgency. “You need to see this.” My fingers fly across the tactical display, pulling up the evidence I’ve been gathering for weeks. The communication logs materialize between us, timestamps perfectly aligned with Eclipse movements in ways that can’t be coincidence.

His wings snap wide as he processes the implications, markings pulsing with dangerous intensity. “K’vex,” he growls, the name carrying years of betrayal. “Show me everything.”

I project the full scope of her treachery—fleet positions leaked to Eclipse vessels, security protocols compromised, even detailed reports about his recovery from bond-sickness. “She didn’t just sell out a few patrol routes,” I explain, highlighting key transmissions. “She gave them everything.”

Cirdox’s predatory instincts surge through our bond as he studies the data, his wings mantling with barely contained fury. “Clever little hacker,” he murmurs, though his voice carries steel beneath the praise. “You’ve been tracking her all along.”

Before I can respond, the tactical display erupts in cascading warnings. K’vex’s sabotage is spreading faster than we anticipated, corrupting system after system with viral precision. Through our bond, I feel Cirdox’s tactical mind racing, calculating odds even as his protective instincts scream to get me to safety.

“Neon!” Cirdox’s voice carries the full weight of command as he sees the pattern forming in the chaos. “Take control of thesystems. You’re the only one who can counter her algorithms fast enough to save the ship!”

The urgency in his tone galvanizes me into action. My fingers fly across the interface as I dive deep into the corrupted code, fighting to contain the digital infection before it reaches our core systems. He’s right—my neural implants give me an edge that might mean the difference between survival and watching everything we’ve built burn around us.

My fingers fly across the interface as strings of corrupted code spread through our defenses like poison. “Multiple breaches detected,” I report, neural implants burning as I fight to contain the damage. “They’re dismantling our security protocols faster than I can patch them.”

“Computer, initiate security protocol Delta-Seven,” I command, but the system responds with ominous silence. My screens flicker and distort as foreign code consumes my carefully maintained defenses.

“Engineering reports critical failures in the shield matrix,” Grig calls out, his usually steady voice tight with tension. His pale blue fingers dance across multiple control panels. “The targeting systems are rejecting manual overrides.”

Zara’s fur bristles as she checks another failing system. “Navigation’s compromised. They’re locking us out of our own helm controls.” Her tail lashes with barely contained fury. “Even the backup systems are failing.”

“K’vex couldn’t have done this alone,” I growl, desperately trying to salvage what I can. “These encryption patterns... they’re too sophisticated, too familiar.” My heart pounds as recognition hits. “This is Kira’s work. She must have helped K’vex compromise our systems after she escaped the facility raid.”

The realization makes my blood run cold. McCoy warned us Kira’s Eclipse enhancements made her more dangerous than weanticipated. Now she’s turned my own security protocols against us, using intimate knowledge of how I think, how I code, to tear down everything I’ve built to protect this ship—this family.

“The auxiliary power couplings are still holding,” Grig reports, his large eyes fixed on the engineering readouts. “If we can reroute essential systems through the secondary grid—”

“No time,” Zara cuts in, her sharp ears flattening against her skull. “Multiple Eclipse signatures detected. They’re moving to surround us.”

My fingers fly across the interface, fighting against code that feels like a twisted mirror of my own work. Every security measure I’ve crafted since joining the crew is being dismantled with surgical precision. If they gain full control of our systems, it won’t just mean our capture—it will give the Eclipse access to every Brotherhood shipping route, every facility we protect, every colony depending on us for luminore... for survival.

“They’re not just trying to take us down,” I say, watching another firewall crumble. “They want our entire network. Every supply line, every safe harbor, every resistance contact we’ve built.” The enormity of what’s at stake makes my voice rough. “If they succeed, the outer colonies won’t stand a chance.”

Through our bond, I feel Cirdox’s fury rise like a storm as he realizes the depth of this betrayal. His wings snap wide, casting shadows across the bridge as he moves to coordinate our defense. But we both know that without our systems, we’re fighting blind.

The proximity alarms shriek to life as multiple Eclipse warships materialize from hyperspace, their weapons already charged and targeting systems locked onto the Void Reaver. We’re surrounded, outgunned, and our own tech is turning traitor in our hands.

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