Page 29 of Escape from Nova Nine
More lights blinked on.
And on, and on, and on…
The best hallucinogens in the galaxy could have never given him a vision like this. A huge cavern, bigger than the refinery, filled with starships. Antique personal starships.
They were stored in a giant metal frame. He lost count at thirty, and he couldn’t see how far down the cavern went, or how many were on the other side. Each ship rested on its own sliding platform and had cables and lines attached. The unknown collector favored retro-advanced design and big engines.
And flying among them, griffins. All four breeds, from what he could see, though mostly common and stealth. They seemed to be treating the levels like a giant vertical habitat built just for griffins. The bright lights had obviously disturbed them. He sensed echoes of their distress.
“If Lantham could see this, he’d think he’d transited to the paradise dimension.” He laughed. “Sutrio, too. Now we know why the staff will never be able to keep griffins out of the mine.”
“The comms satellite is really close.” She looked up, then whistled. “Holy gods of… You could launch everything at once through those airlocks. Only cityships have anything like these.”
Two monstrously big airlocks spanned the entire cavern ceiling. He wondered where they opened. Near the rest of the facility? And how long did they take to open?
Speaking of time, how long had they been gawking at the wonder of the ages? He pulled on the cable to get Julke’s attention. “Five minutes.”
“Shit.” Reluctance etched her face, but she turned away and stepped with him into the lift. She closed the lift gate and used the controls to send the lift down.
Questions crowded into his mind. “Do you think Kanogan knows about this?”
She shook her head. “I doubt anyone alive does. And he’d never let stinking griffins stay. He collects people, not things.” She paused, then caught his gaze. “I’m re-thinking my original step-forward plan.”
The gleam in her eye gave him an inkling of where she was headed. He nodded gravely. “You’re right. Not bold enough.”
“Anyone can make off with a single starship.” She gave him an invitingly evil grin. “But how many can say they’ve liberated an entire warden’s fleet?”
He grinned back. “Go bigandgo home.”
The lift stopped at the level where their cable snaked out the airlock doorway.
Just as he was about to reseal his helmet, she stepped close. “I know this isn’t the best timing, but could I interest you in a kiss? I’ve made a recent vow not to let golden opportunities slip by again.”
“Yes, please.” He opened his right arm to hold her as she raised on her toes. The exosuits made it awkward, but he didn’t care. The touch of her lips and the scent of her breath imprinted him like he was a newly hatched griffin.
Even though she’d contained her emotions, he felt her reluctance as she pulled away and sealed her helmet.
He felt all that and more as he sealed his own. He made his own vow to do everything in his power to keep this brilliant, nova-sexy woman in his life.
11
NOVA NINE FACILITY • GDAT 3243.125
In the privacy of his luxurious fresher, Drow Kanogan slipped naked into the almost too-hot waters of his bath to drift, letting the undulating currents soothe his aching hips. No denying that the pain was getting worse with each passing day. The gently frothing water hid the worst of the disfigurement, just like the distortion hood and robe saved him from seeing his reflection in the eyes of others.
He missed the comforts and pleasures of civilization. He missed being beautiful. His ruined body could be fixed on any of a hundred planets in the CGC, but that had to wait another year until he’d built up the resources to ensure his absolute safety. Until then, he’d have to limp along with massages, baths, and pain patches.
Lately, his operation had suffered from mistakes by others, but things were already improving. Working the prisoners longer hours gave him extra product to sell, and more profits to invest in improving capacity. By his calculations, the coming influx of people and equipment would pay for itself in two hundred days.
And if rumors were true about trouble coming in the galaxy, he could name his price for the precious commodities that Nova Nine produced. Unrest offered plenty of opportunities for smart entrepreneurs with experience in building empires to acquire–
The door irised open to admit Loulez, one of his protectors. She stood stiffly, eyes focused on the wall. “Your pardon, sir. Security Chief Taiyang must speak with you immediately.”
He frowned as he pulled himself back to the steps. “This had better not be another blowout.” She knew better than to interrupt his therapy if it wasn’t serious.
“No, sir. Visitors.”
Despite the steamy heat as he climbed out of the water, his stomach turned cold. “Robe.”
