Chaos Space - Marianne de Pierres [33]
Mira experienced the slicing pain again.
While you are in Primo I cannot protect you from what I feel.
Can you repel them?
No. They have penetrated a vulnerable section of my body. I must concentrate my efforts on controlling my bleeding.
Mira felt sick. Insignia bleeding.
Who would do this? Mira’s thoughts skittered over possibilities. Insignia, ask Station Intel for assistance.
Long moments passed.
Station Intel has been instructed not to respond to us. Insignia’s voice sounded fainter in her mind.
Landhurst! Mira knew it immediately. What can I do?
Don’t leave me. . .
Insignia? Insignia!
The biozoon’s presence began to fade. Mira tried to pursue it into its darkening mindspace but their connection had narrowed to the width of a pulsing cord. She mind-grasped one end of the cord and focused her energy into it. Their combined thoughts brightened her awareness. She saw the six armed humanesques with cutting equipment burning Insignia, the trajectory of their approved shift queue position, Rast arguing with the marshals at the entrance to their berth.
Why won’t they let her in?
Insignia did not—could not—reply. The biozoon’s thoughts darkened again and the cord began to pull from Mira’s mind-grasp.
She let go of it and ordered the vein to expel her. Its membranes shaped into an upright seat. She breathed deeply until the transition dizziness passed; swallowing the acid that fizzed in her throat.
Rast.
Mira ran along strata until she reached Rast’s cabin. It was orderly, one wall lined with a selection of weapons from the Principe’s armoury. Mira seized a pistol and ran to the egress scale that joined to the docking tube.
Insignia. Release.
The scale peeled back and Mira peered into the tube. At the far end she could see Rast, Catchut and Latourn. They’d exchanged their fellalos for casual garb. Rast had her hands jammed deep into her short-coat pockets and was talking to the tube marshal.
Mira hid the pistol in the folds of her fellalo. She walked slowly towards them, her head bowed as if she were hesitant and nervous. Landhurst will not have Insignia. He will not. She felt their stares on her.
‘Halt!’ said the marshal. ‘Return to the biozoon.’
Mira’s reply was to jerk the pistol from her robe. ‘Let them board.’
The marshal froze—not from fear, she realised belatedly, but in concentration.
Suddenly the docking tube began to constrict around her. Mira ducked as the marshal drew a gun and fired at her but Rast spoiled his aim and Catchut leapt for his throat, gouging at it with a practised killing action.
The marshal flopped over and dropped his weapon.
The three mercenaries hastened towards Mira as the tube narrowed to half its inflated height. By the time they all reached Insignia’s egress scale they were crawling on their hands and knees.
They squeezed through in single file, Catchut last.
As the scale sealed behind them, Rast grabbed Mira by the shoulders, giving her a shake. ‘What in the shit is going on, Baronessa?’
Mira pressed the pistol against the mercenary’s chest. ‘There are people cutting their way inside Insignia from the payload cavity. I think it’s the Stationmaster.’
‘Landhurst? Why him?’
‘I c-can’t say for sure. He seemed more interested in Insignia than Araldis.’
The mercenary took a moment to weigh the likely accuracy of Mira’s instinct. ‘Where are they exactly?’
‘Inside the high abdominal sphincter, cutting into her digestive system.’
Rast slid a small satchel from under her coat. ‘Catchut, stash this in my cabin. Bring back some hardware.’
‘On my way, Capo.’
‘Lat?’
The injured man looked pale but steady. ‘Time to climb back on, Capo.’ He limped after Catchut.
Rast turned to Mira. ‘Can we shift?’
‘We are in the queue but Insignia is bleeding internally. I don’t think she will be able to take her focus from it.’
‘Then pull the plug on the ‘zoon and fly us.’
Mira went numb with fear. ‘Autonomy? I—’
‘Do it. We’ll take care of the rest.’ Rast turned to follow Latourn and Catchut and then swivelled back. ‘Where did you