Warrior's Pain (Cadi Warriors Book 4)(5)

“What are they doing?”

“Cutting into the hull,” Exo replied as he went to a compartment, and pulled out a weapon.

“Fuck. What are we going to do?”

“I’m going to erase our database, so the flesh merchants don’t learn the location of our colony.”

“Flesh merchants!”

We’re under attack by flesh merchants! What in fuck’s sake? Can things seriously get any more fucked up? Nope this can’t be happening.

“Riley!” Exo yelled.

“What?”

She snapped out of her downward spiral, and turned her wide eyes away from the view on the screen. Riley looked at Exo wondering how he recalled her name out of all the human colonists.

It’s the purple hair and tattoos, Kreskin.

“Riley, your necklace is one of your people’s storage chips, correct?”

Riley nodded.

The Miran Sona had been kind enough to let her listen to some of the music she had on the jump drive pendant. She’d even been able to show her photographs to June. Anyone who had been taken with personal items, got to keep and use them. The M’s were cool like that, despite being kidnappers.

“May I have it, please.” Exo reached out his four-fingered hand.

She didn’t hesitate to hand the pendant over.

“What are you going to do?” Riley asked, as Exo placed it on a beige circular pad atop the console.

“I’m going to load our navigation chart onto your storage chip.”

“Uh, Exo, I don’t know if there’s that much room on it. And if you discovered it was a memory drive, won’t the flesh merchants figure it out too?”

“Space is not a concern. The Jurou Biljana may discover the storage chip, if they manage to breach the control room. As a precaution, I will hide the chart among one of your many files, and encrypt the data, so it can’t be copied off the charm without becoming corrupted,” Exo explained as he brought up a long list of files she stored on the drive.

“Um, okay.”

“Pick one of these files.”

“That one.” Riley pointed to the Leonard Cohen song. “Hide it in Hallelujah.” It seemed an appropriate choice, if they made it out of this.

“Good.”

With a swipe of Exo’s hand, Riley watched a bunch of symbols scroll across the screen. It seemed like forever before Exo handed the drive back to her. With quivering fingers, Riley secured the pendant around her neck. She couldn’t believe he was letting her hold onto it.

Shit. Don’t fuck this up.

“We should’ve found a way to fortify our vessels against these people, after the attack on Cila and Zer,” Exo babbled to himself as he typed on the console.

Riley observed the screen with mounting horror. The image showed the interior of the central loading bay. There was now a gaping hole in the floor.

Oh, sweet mother of god.

The creatures spilling into the loading bay reminded Riley of a television series, where the people would shed their skin, to reveal a frightening green reptile beneath.

“Exo, you need to hurry.”

Riley shook in abject terror as she watched the flesh merchants board the ship. There was no way they could repel the horde of giant reptiles. Riley was more frightened than when she learned she was going to prison. This shit, made that event look like a walk in the park.

“Stay behind me,” Exo warbled, as he pointed the alien gun at the sealed bridge door.

If it was possible, Exo was paler than normal, and his voice shook more than its usual twitter.

Those freaks cut through the belly of the ship, and they’re packing serious heat. We’re so fucked. What the hell is Exo going to do with a single gun? Riley’s eyes darted from the door to the display screen, then back again.

“Don’t lose that charm around your neck,” Exo reminded her. “I almost have the vessel’s database erased. Just a moment more.”

Riley gripped her necklace. She wasn’t a rocket scientist, like her friend June, but she knew how imperative it was to hold onto it.

“I know. You don’t have to explain it to me again,” Riley replied. Her voice was a bit more caustic than intended. “The scaly dudes can’t know the location of New Earth. I got it.”

“But, if we make it out of this, it’s our only hope to find home,” Exo stated morosely.

If we make it out of this, it’s our only hope to find home, Riley parroted.

“Home,” Riley snorted hysterically.

To think, the New Earth colony had become her home, and she was grasping the only hope to return there. Up to this point, life had been one cruel joke after another. That seemed to be her lot. It was really starting to piss her off.

“Fucking bullshit,” Riley cursed fate in disgust. “You know what, fine, bring it on!”