CHAPTER 12

ARTEMIS

T he shipwreck wasn’t actually as bad as it looked. At first glance, it was completely totalled and incapable of flying. Nothing but useless scrapped metal. In reality, most of the damage was superficial. The parts I’d been collecting would need replacing, or at the very least remoulding to fit back into place.

The more I examined the extent of the damage the more I began to realise the job was more like completing a puzzle. Inside was a bit banged up from the impact, but for the most part everything was still intact. It really was just the external pieces that got scraped off during the skid as well as a few bumps and bruises that would need to be ironed out.

It was the best news the camp could have received.

Still, it was going to take a few days to bring it back to flying standards, but what was a few days compared to the few weeks we’d previously assumed?

Still, there was a little niggling voice in the back of my mind whispering that our good luck wouldn’t last. What were the chances that the scientists would perform an experiment on me that gave me the ability to fight back, I’d free all the women in that particular facility, level it, survive the wilds of an unknown planet, find the perfect place to lay low, and find a ship that I could fly to save the kids? It was too good to be true. Our luck was about to run out soon and we needed to act quickly before it did.

I sat in solitude by the creature. I’d been calling him Dave. I couldn’t really say why, nor could I decipher it’s gender, but it seemed like a Dave to me. Either way, I enjoyed his company because he was the only one who wasn’t constantly asking me questions.

I didn’t mind helping the other women learn survival techniques, really, but it was mentally depleting after a while. The skills I had were from brief research or personal trial and error, but where I had the opportunities to learn from experience, they did not. The Program had taught a few of them some survival skills, like Francesca and her partner’s ability to create a fire, but not all of them were so lucky. If I were to leave them to search for their children then I needed to know I’d be leaving them with enough knowledge to survive without me.

I cringed even thinking about it. I hated that they were looking up to me for guidance. Leading was never something I’d had an interest in, even when I’d been promoted at Nova Academy. It was a massive responsibility that I would rather someone else took, and I was hoping my absence would create a vacuum that someone else would step in to fill. It was tiring enough dealing with my own traumas and issues, let alone everyone else’s too.

Which was why I was hiding behind Dave while the rest of them celebrated the continued hope that I would bring back their children. Even Libby was enjoying herself with Francesca. The two of them had spent the whole evening together in their own little bubble, and it filled my heart with joy to see my best friend so happy and free, interacting with someone who wasn’t me. The only thing that could have made it better was if Bal were here, too.

The very idea of leaving her behind where I couldn’t keep watch over her made me itch all over. Been there, did that once already. Never wanted to do it again. But I also wasn’t willing to risk that baby growing in her belly, either, which left me no other choice than to execute this rescue mission on my own.

That was why I had chosen to hide away by myself. I needed to plan. I didn’t even know where they had taken the children yet, let alone how I was going to get in and out with so many kids all on my own.

Then there was the small issue of my new abilities. I hadn’t tested my control over them yet, nor did I have any information about my limits or needs in order to do what I had done in the facility again. If I was going on this mission solo, then I’d need the protection of the metal layer over my skin at the very least, but if I could somehow manage to recall that forcefield again it would make things a lot easier. I could just surround myself and the kids behind the shield to keep us all safe if we were attacked. The problem, however, was that I had yet to attempt to control my new upgrades. I had no clue if it was even possible. Last time could have simply been a fluke brought on by my nanites responding to the high stress of the situation.

It was something I’d have to play around with once I knew where I was going.

The other worrying issue was how in the hell I was going to carry over two dozen children, the majority of which didn’t know me or had any reason to trust me, out of whatever facility they were being kept in and onto the ship. And once that had been achieved, how was I going to fly away without anyone the wiser?

I’d thought my plan to go undercover at Nova Academy was insane and impossible, but this beat even that.

I couldn’t even disguise myself anymore. They would surely know my face by now, and if they didn’t then they would likely have some other way to identify me. If they’d managed to obtain the security footage of me at the Entario Waystation then I wouldn’t put it past them to have the ability to track me like that again.

Solve one problem at a time, I told myself in an effort to make things seem a little more manageable. I’d achieved the impossible once, albeit with quite a few bumps in the road, but I was successful all the same.

Deciding to ignore what I couldn’t control just yet and focus on what I could do, I made a vague plan to see through while I was still planet-bound.

First, I had to fix the ship. No problem. That was something I could do easily enough.

Second, I needed to play around with my newfound abilities to determine how to use them effectively, and not just for the mission. If I could figure it out then I could protect the group long-term as well.

Third, once the ship was up and running, I could continue figuring out issue number two while also digging into The Program’s databases to determine the location of the kids.

Simplified, it didn’t seem so daunting. It also gave me a place to start so I wasn’t sitting around with my thumb up my ass like a dolt while everyone was watching and waiting for me to progress with the mission.

Unsurprisingly, they were all very eager to get their babies back. I understood their impatience. Baldr was a constant motivation in the back of my mind. There wasn’t a tick that went by where I wasn’t thinking about him, and he wasn’t even biologically mine.

Despite helping Libby raise him, we decided early on that I would take on the ‘aunt’ role. Yes, I was helping her raise him, but I wasn’t his mother. I didn’t want to be, either. When we’d learned of my inability to have children of my own Libby had offered to let me unofficially adopt Baldr and raise him as ours, but I’d declined. Adopting a child wasn’t exactly an unappealing concept, but my feelings on the matter were still too raw. I’d resolved to revisit the subject once I’d process my feelings, but pregnancy had always been a dream of mine.

Libby and I had spent many turns imagining our bellies rounded with our babies. Even though I now knew the likelihood was practically non-existent I couldn’t get rid of the image. It was burned into my brain after so long wishing for it.

After all the failed attempts The Program had made to impregnate me, it was clear the nanites coursing through my veins had gone rogue and were unprogrammable. The first attempt had been the most successful. For a few short days I had an embryo growing inside my womb, up until the nanites killed it. Apparently the growth was too much like the cancer they had originally eradicated so they destroyed it. After that, they learned that the semen was the cause of the growths and killed the sperm off before it could even reach the egg.

So despite my fertility, I was in possession of the universe’s most effective and permanent contraceptive. No babies for me.

I had been through the emotions of that discovery already. When I’d lost the baby the first time I’d been distraught, but feeling sorry for myself wouldn’t solve the problem. It wouldn’t fix me. This was my reality now. I wasn’t barren, but I may as well have been.

Shaking off my solitary pity party, I refocused on my plan. Standing back up, I patted Dave on his large, wrinkled, leathery head and thanked him for being my sounding board, then I made my way over to where Libby and Francesca had their heads bent so close together I almost felt as if I were interrupting something a little more… intimate. I said almost because I didn’t really care. I wasn’t going to take up much of their time.

‘Hey Libs,’ I called to her, grabbing her attention. She jerked away from Francesca as if they’d been doing something wrong and turned wide green eyes on me. ‘I’m off to bed. I’ll be up early tomorrow to get a start on the ship.’

‘Oh, okay. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow, Francesca,’ she said to the redhead beside her.

‘You can stay a bit longer if you want. You don’t have to come with me if you’re not ready,’ I told her.

She studied me contemplatively, then seemed to come to a conclusion. ‘You sure?’

‘Positive.’

‘Okay. Sleep well, A.’

I smiled at her and gave her a knowing look. She wouldn’t miss me tonight, not with Francesca giving her so much attention. ‘You too when you get there. Night.’

I felt her eyes on me for a little while after I’d turned and walked away, but I also felt the exact moment she returned her attention to her crush. It was obvious for me to see now, and if this evening was any indication then it seemed her feelings weren’t unrequited. I was happy for her.

There was an offshoot of the cave beside the tunnel Karmella and Driselle had claimed that Libby and I had claimed for ourselves. It wasn’t a tunnel, but more like a pocket within the rocks that expanded into a large cavern that we’d turned into a cozy little living space. We’d created two mattresses and pillows made from leaves and other spongey materials we’d scavenged from the forest floor. We were in the process of drying the hides of the small animals we’d insnared and consumed which we intended to sew together into blankets. There were inconclusive discussions as a group about whether it was worth it to go back to the facility to check for any supplies, but I was on the team that was firmly against it so we were collecting the hides for clothing purposes, too.

In the centre of the room there was a slightly raised platform we were currently using like a table, and there were other small pocket-holes dotted about the walls we planned to use for storage.

There was a lot more work to be done to make it into a proper home, but it was safe, it was warm, and it was mostly enclosed.

That reminded me that we also needed to create some sort of door or privacy screen at the entrance. A few of the other girls had a habit of snooping. Our first night here I’d woken up to find one pair – Harriet and Ingrid – standing over me and Libby like they were debating whether they should kill us in our sleep. That was one altercation I hoped to never have again, but they seemed to get the memo to leave us alone. Harriet especially had learned that waking me up was never a good option. I’d choked her out so hard she still had bruising around her neck, but the action seemed to have had positive consequences around the group as a whole. I’d earned their respect – albeit through fear – enough that no one had yet to try anything again.

Plus, they listened to me now. I guessed they preferred to have me as an ally rather than an enemy.

Me too, ladies. Me too.

I settled myself on top of my mattress. I pretended the flat, lumpy thing by was one of the bunks from The Carina. I never got the opportunity to try out the beds at Nova Academy since I’d been captured before I could, but I imagined they were even better than the ship’s. I hoped everyone was doing okay, that they were safe. At the very least I hoped they were sleeping in comfortable beds each night. The last thing I would wish upon them was for The Program to treat them like subjects.

Or to turn them into their subjects…

Nope, not going there. They wouldn’t do that to an entire military base. I doubted they would have been given access to Nova Station if they hadn’t struck up an alliance with the military’s leaders alongside whichever IU political representatives they had on their side.

But this wasn’t what I wanted to think about when I drifted off to sleep. I wanted to remember the way it felt to be held by Bromm. I wanted to remember Reece’s kindness. Adara’s loyalty. Foryk’s protectiveness. Even Dorian and his team popped into my head, ready to stand guard against my nightmares the way they guarded us against the populace once upon a time.

I wondered if they were still assigned as the guys’ protective detail. Had they managed to acquit Reece?

Fuck the captain, though. He could burn for eternity for all I cared, the traitorous bastard. The thought had occurred to me that Adara was with him in his mission to keep me compliant for The Program to swoop in and take me back, but I always ended up dismissing it. Sure, she and the captain were lovers, but I believed whole-heartedly that she was my friend. Despite the small niggling sense of doubt whenever I thought about it, I chose to believe she would never do anything to hurt me. She’d never exhibited any signs that she would. Quite the opposite, in fact. She’d gone to bat for me consistently.

Except, when I imagined them all lined up, arms open in welcome, the captain was still there. He stood beside Adara, long arms open wide as he beckoned to me like the others.

It was his glowing yellow eyes that haunted me when I finally drifted off.

???

‘And what do we have here?’ a chilling voice cut through the mele of sounds like a whip, immediately silencing the rising murmur of countless other voices.

‘The runaway, sir. We’ve reacquired her, just as you asked.’

‘Ah. Little miss troublemaker. You’ve caused quite the stir, you know. Such a naughty girl.’

A hand stroked over my head, fingers tangling with the knots in my hair. I couldn’t see who the hand belonged to. There was something over my eyes that was preventing them from opening. They wanted me blind.

They always removed at least one of my senses, and it was usually my sight. They thought I wouldn’t be able to turn on them if I couldn’t see them.

I’d prove them wrong, just like I did before. I’d get free again, find Libby, and run away too far for them to follow. And hopefully I’d take out a good portion of the bastards in the process.

‘You really are a naughty little thing, aren’t you, precious girl?’

The man kept repeating the nickname. Precious girl, precious girl, precious girl. I hoped it wouldn’t stick. I could feel the tension in my jaw as my teeth ground, desperate to sink into his flesh so he’d stop calling me that. Then maybe he’d stop touching me, too.

No such luck. His voice had gentled now, and I knew it was him stroking my hair.

‘I’m your master now, precious girl. You belong to me. There won’t be any more escape attempts from you, I promise. You’ll never escape me. You’ll see.’

???

The panicked screams jolted through the memory I didn’t think I’d ever be rid of, but I was oddly glad to hear them compared to the sound of his voice echoing through my mind.

I bolted upright, taking Libby with me who was wrapped around me with a vice-like grip. She blinked open her eyes, momentarily bleary from the sudden wake-up call but was quickly replaced by alertness. Forced habits died hard, not that I wish for her to ever give up that particular gift.

‘What’s going on?’ she croaked.

‘I don’t know,’ I said as more screams pierced the air. They bounced around the stone walls as if hundreds of people were screaming at once, heightening the panic.

We darted out of our room to check what was happening, Libby a step behind me at my insistence. She huffed at my protectiveness but didn’t argue, instead simply peering over my shoulder to see what the fuss was about.

In the centre of the cave where I’d fenced in Dave, we soon found the source of the women’s panic. Karmella was somehow out of her claimed tunnel, her baby strapped to her back with pieces of torn clothing she’d tied together to create a sling. She was crouched in front of the fence, slowly backing up as she hissed and growled at Dave.

Dave, who was previously mummified and forever at rest, but not so much the forever part, it seemed. He was now somehow awake and towering over the lot of us.

A low rumbling reverberated through his chest as he responded to the threats before him, but to me it sounded weak and half-hearted. I couldn’t say what it was about the sound that made me believe Dave was disinterested in us, but it was definitely more than simple weakness.

Curious, and unsure why I felt so safe to do so, I stepped forward. Libby grappled to hold onto my arm and pull me back, but I was too fast and slipped out from her hold before she could properly latch on.

‘Artemis, don’t,’ she hissed out through her teeth. Her fear for me was evident through the tremble in her voice.

‘It’s okay, Libs. I’ll be fine.’

‘Just because you’re practically indestructible doesn’t mean it won’t still hurt you, A. Get back here!’ she snapped.

Without taking my eyes off Dave I waved her off, which only seemed to incense her further. ‘Stay back, Libs. Let me handle this.’

I didn’t wait for her response, quickening my pace until I was right in front of Dave’s snout. His two, red, venom-filled fangs protruding from his mouth, slowly swung my way, and his dried skin creaked and cracked as he fought through the mummification to turn his head.

When his deep red eyes, just as dangerous a colour as his fangs, met mine, I saw a depth of sorrow and ancient wisdom burning through them. They pinned me in place, and I didn’t try to fight it even when I felt a stabbing sensation probing my brain.

One slow blink from Dave and understanding dawned. It was him. He was inside my head.

Suddenly, he lurched forward, the tip of a single fang embedding itself into my right arm just below my brand. It was a shallow wound and he retreated again as soon as he’d made it, and a soul-deep understanding of this creature before me instinctively settled within me.

Sure, he’d just injected me with his venom, but he didn’t mean me harm. His eyes were calm, but there was an almost pleading quality to them as I watched them close one last time.

And the sound he made, his final breath, would stay with me forever. It was filled with peace, like he’d been waiting for a long time and had finally found what he needed to truly let go.

The sounds around me were muffled while I stayed transfixed on the magnificent creature before me, and he me. Despite closing his eyes, I knew I was the one that held his attention as the redness inside his fangs trickled out and spider-webbed into his body. The whole process looked slow and painful, the poor beast releasing an agonised grunt as it finally spread to his brain. Then he crumpled to the floor and his body caved in on itself, crumbling until he was nothing but dust.

He was gone.

But he’d left something behind.

A miniature version of Dave stood in the centre of the cloud, sneezing as it swirled around him. It was an adorable sound that he quickly followed with a high-pitched bleating noise that reminded me of a goat. They were one of the few animals on Earth I had seen while trapped inside the facility Libby and I had grown up in, and to hear it from this tiny creature melted a piece of my heart.

It bleated again, the sound conveying its confusion at the situation, and I couldn’t stay still a moment longer. Hands reached out to pull me back, but I merely shrugged them off and knelt in front of the little Dave.

‘Well, if it isn’t Dave Junior,’ I cooed. ‘It’s okay, little guy. It looks like Daddy’s gone now, and I’m so sorry for your loss, but I promise you’re safe.’

He sniffed at the wound Dave had left on my arm, recognition lighting up all six of his big red eyes. They stared up at me with such innocence and trust that I opened my arms for him to climb into. Only a fraction of the size of his daddy, he was still a massive thing. I’d probably liken him to the size of a large canine, and he almost bowled me over in his eagerness for affection.

I wrapped my arms around him, stroking my hands down his skin that was a deep purple. A slightly darker shade than the tree trunks outside. Perfect to blend into the shadows and the underbrush.

Suddenly, my arm started to tingle, which then grew into a burning sensation quickly followed by a wave of dizziness so strong it actually knocked me on my ass. Dave Junior fell with me, still nuzzling affectionately at my chest, but as I locked eyes with Libby as she approached, I knew something was seriously wrong.

I didn’t have any more time to think about it, because the next moment I was overcome by another wave of dizziness that carried with it an overwhelming fatigue. Still holding on to Dave Junior, I succumbed to unconsciousness.

???

Something warm and wet slid over my cheek, slowly rousing me from the most peaceful sleep I could ever remember having. There were no dreams, no nightmares, and the urge to whack away whatever was slathering up my face was more due to annoyance than any defensive mechanisms.

It slid over my cheek again, this time travelling further across my other cheek and back again without pausing. And again. Over my forehead. My chin. My mouth.

When it stroked over my nose it left behind a residue that blocked my ability to breathe, and that’s what had me finally bolting upright, frantically wiping at my face to clear it.

‘Serves you right,’ came Libby’s voice from the side. There was an exasperated quality to her comment that confused me.

Swiping at the gunk also covering my eyes, I cracked them open to peer at her only to come face to face with the most adorable little creature I had ever seen. Big red eyes blinked at me above a short snout that ended with a round red nose, and I was reminded of the old Earth folktale about a reindeer with the glowing red nose.

Without making the conscious decision, my hand was already stroking down supple purple skin that was softer than anything I had touched before. Small fine hairs covered the creature like peach fuzz and tickled my palms and my fingers, the texture velvety and smooth.

A rude noise tore from Libby’s throat as she watched, and though I felt she was hoping I’d snap out of whatever it was about this adorable creature that enraptured me so thoroughly, my fingers kept trailing down its back towards a long, sturdy-looking tail.

With deadly-looking barbed tips at the end that struck a remarkable resemblance to a mace…

‘You’re insane,’ she ground put, and though her words were scolding the effect was watered down by her amusement. Why she was trying to hide that particular emotion, I didn’t know.

‘What are you, sweet thing?’ I cooed at the baby now climbing into my lap with a contented sigh.

‘You don’t remember?’ asked Libby, concern now lacing her tone.

I shot her a confused look before shaking my head. I tried to access my memory, but there was a fuzziness in my brain whenever I tried to dig deeper that sent a wave of vertigo through me. It was so strong that I almost knocked myself out by poking at the vacant hole, so I stopped. I’d learned a long time ago that poking at a raw wound would only make things worse.

‘That thing in the middle of the cave woke up. It did something to you. It was like you were in a trance and I couldn’t snap you out of it. None of us could. It bit you, then it just… turned to dust and left this guy behind. He’s been immovable from your side ever since. He wouldn’t even let me close to you to check if you were still alive.’

Her voice cracked at the end, and a surge of guilt rose inside me. Gently nudging the heavy creature off of me, I ran over to Libby on unsteady legs and practically collapsed in her arms.

‘I’m sorry, Libs. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m okay.’

She wrapped her arms around me tightly, but her next statement helped me understand where her amusement came from. ‘I figured that out when you started snoring.’

I scoffed, pulling back now when I felt my strength was starting to return so I didn’t need to lean on her as much. ‘I do not snore.’

Her answering smirk said otherwise, but I refused to believe it. Out of the two of us, she was the loud sleeper. I was as quiet as an angel.

But then her explanation registered in my brain and I glanced back at the creature in shock. Now that I was really looking, I could see it. He was smaller and vibrant with life, unlike Dave, but I was looking at a suddenly very annoyed Dave Junior. He bleated at Libby and shoved his way between us, then levelled his youthful gaze on me as if expecting praise.

‘Now, now, Dave Junior. That wasn’t very nice,’ I scolded him firmly. Two pairs of pointed ears flattened against his head and he whimpered at my displeasure. I shot Libby a harsh glare when she snickered behind her hand.

‘Be nice, Libs. He’s just a baby.’

As if he understood my words, Dave Junior cast what could only be conceived as a smug glance from under a row of short, thin eyelashes the same deep purple colour as the rest of him.

‘Oh, don’t you start,’ she sniped at him, and his head whipped back towards me as if to say look, she’s being mean!

I laughed at them both and did the only thing I could think of to try to make peace. I placed one hand on top of Dave Junior’s head and entwined the other with Libby’s so they could see that I wasn’t going to choose one over the other.

I didn’t know what it was about him, but my instincts were screaming at me that it was my job to care for him now that his daddy was gone. It saddened me that he was an orphan, and I wasn’t sure what exactly had happened. Libby mentioned he’d turned to dust, but I couldn’t imagine it. How could a creature that large and sturdy just dissipate into nothing so quickly?

Either way, the result was the same.

I considered for a brief moment that I should let Dave Junior back out into the wild, but immediately shot the thought down. There was a vicious need to take care of him, and the mere concept of pawning him off on something, or even someone else made me my stomach clench painfully with panic. No, he was mine to care for now, and there was no denying it.

But that raised another problem. I was leaving soon, and I couldn’t take him with me. It wouldn’t be safe for him, and I didn’t know how to take care of him here yet, let alone in a spacecraft.