10
Mia, The Phantom
Xenon Alpha,the moon filling our view screens, was beautiful. Unlike Earth’s moon, this one rippled in waves of reds, oranges, and browns, more like Saturn than the bare rock I was used to, Earth’s moon was always glowing silver with darker craters. I had no idea what this one looked like from Xenon itself, but the dark black spot we were heading toward reminded me, not of the caterpillar I’d imagined in the briefing, but now a black leech sucking the moon’s blood. I had no idea where that creepy image had come from, but I didn’t like this place. It felt… wrong.
“How long until we’re in range?” I asked.
“An hour, give or take.” Kass sat at the pilot’s controls as I monitored every bit of energy, frequency, or light approaching or leaving the moon. His presence, while I was still upset with him, somehow helped me breathe. The last mission had been exciting, a chance to prove our skills, a wild ride in outer space with no one at risk but ourselves.
This was completely different. Fighting squadrons from the Battleship Resolution were on standby waiting for us to take down the odd magnetic field being generated on this moon. Starfighters. Shuttle pilots. Titan teams. And the people on Xenon, their entire population was less than the number of people who lived in one suburb of Berlin.
Not a lot of people by planetary standards. But when every life on that planet depended on one Starfighter MCS team to liberate them from Dark Fleet control? Depended on me?
Kass and I were literally the only MCS team they had. We were alone out here. Truly alone. I felt like I was breaking an entire city full of innocent people out of a maximum-security prison, and if I messed this up, they might all die. Thousands and thousands of prisoners, dead with the push of a button.
Did they have those zapper collars on their necks like some of the freakish science fiction movies? Did Queen Raya have a big red button on her throne, one push and everyone’s heads would explode?
“I don’t like this.” Normally I would have kept the thought to myself, but this was Kass. After all the missions we’d done together in the game, he wasn’t going to ignore my instincts.
“We’re almost there,” he replied.
Our comms lit up, and I looked at Kass, held his gaze as I answered. “MCS Becker.”
“Phantom, this is Group Five Leader.”
Oh hell. General Jennix.
“Copy that, Group Leader. Go ahead.”
“Commissioner Gaius’s prisoner escaped from the brig prior to mission launch. We have unconfirmed reports that there is a pilot in medical claiming to have seen him on board the Phantom prior to launch. Can you confirm?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, General.”
“I see.” There was a long pause, and I waited, watching Kass. He clenched his jaw, then reached down to his controls and activated his comm.
“General, this is MCS Remeas. I was unable to allow MCS Becker, my pair bond, to go into battle alone, sir. I will turn myself in once we return to base.”
“MCS Becker, are you all right? Are you able to complete the mission?”
“Affirmative. The mission is a go,” I said.
“Very well. I will deal with both of you after this is done. Jennix out.”
I bit my lower lip as I turned my entire focus, my existence to the screens and code in front of me. And then… I couldn’t hold my tongue a moment longer. “Kass?”
“Yes, love.”
Damn it, why did he have to call me that when I was ready to rip his head from his body and shove it down his throat for lying to me. For humiliating me. For making me doubt everything and everyone, including myself.
“I hacked into the training program,” I admitted. All I’d been feeling for him had been anger, but my voice was quiet now. Almost… done in. “I saw the evidence myself. Every single mission we completed had been tampered with. Why did you do that?”
“What are you talking about?” He turned in his seat to stare at me. Eyes wide, stunned. He didn’t have an easy way about him. He was uncomfortable. Angry. Off-kilter, which was a new and unusual look from him.
“I hacked into the Starfighter Training Academy system. I pulled up our training records. Every single mission we completed—every single one, Kass—had been modified to make the tasks easier to complete.”
He shook his head in complete denial. “No.”
“Why did you do that?” I would ask the same question over and over until he answered me.