«And what could he have done?» Lindon barked. «None of us noticed and he what, would have?»
«What are we going to do?» Laneth closed her eyes with her palm.
Kayla put her little hand on the woman’s shoulder. The girl already told them all that they shouldn’t have touched Serena, forcing her out of her quarters all the time. Unlike all of them, Kayla felt like their Captain needed some time to be left alone. But no one ever listened to her, doing what they thought was best.
The girl sighed, realising that if only she were a bit older, then, maybe, her words would have more weight among the crew. She hoped Serena was okay.
Even though the woman barked at her that day when they lost Falana’s trace, Kayla never felt offended – she was scared a bit, but only until she learned that Hunter got killed in the scuffle they experienced on the planet. Knowing how greatly the woman loved the man, Kayla knew that it wasn’t at all easy for her to lose someone who meant so much.
«Lyssa!» Wolfin barked so loud that it made Kayla flinch.
«Yes?» the AI replied.
«Send message to SS Growler to meet with us ASAP! Set up a meeting point at…» the Veluthian checked with their list of places they were checking in search for any news about Falana. «The Parati. Tell them we’ll be waiting for them.»
«Sending message…»
«And you expect us to what? Sit around and wait?» Lindon growled.
«And what are we supposed to do, huh, Lindon? What do you propose we do? Do you have any idea where Serena might have gone?»
«Stop it, please!» Kayla pleaded.
The men turned to the girl and saw her eyes filled with tears. Wolfin took a very deep breath and stepped up to her, lowering to his knee and meeting her gaze:
«I’m sorry, little bug…» he sighed.
«Please, don’t fight!» the girl sobbed, feeling her soul aching for the family she found among these men and women on the ship she started to call home.
«We’re just worried for our Captain, Kayla.» Laneth pat the girl on her shoulder. «That’s all.»
«I understand! But this is not the way to do things!» Kayla raised her voice, crying. «Serena would never want this! Not like this!»
Lindon watched the girl, realising that even though she usually wasn’t really seen or heard, always silently following someone – mostly Laneth – for the first time she drew attention of them all. And, most importantly, it was the first time the man saw her crying.
In a sudden realisation he understood that Serena might have run because they didn’t give her enough time to cry and grieve over Hunter’s demise. After all, they didn’t even have anything left of the man for her to be able to say goodbye and have a funeral.
Perhaps, he thought, Serena ran, because she needed closure that she wasn’t able to get among them.
Turning back to the working station, Lindon couldn’t shake off the feeling that they’ve failed Serena when she needed them the most.
Arriving at Parati they’ve parked their ship in the massive space port and began waiting for the arrival of SS Growler. Their partners came a day later – a bit dishevelled and tense, they debriefed the crew of SS Lyssandra on the facts they’ve managed to uncover in their investigation.
Cipher wasn’t really surprised to see Serena not amongst them, but when he heard that she ran off, his demeanour changed in a split second.
«She what?!?» he screamed, jumping from his seat from behind the table.
«She left, Cipher.» Wolfin sighed, seeing how pale Cipher became.
He knew the two men from SS Growler were friends with Hunter for a long time and have been dealing with losing him as well – only, they did it by drinking and remembering all the fights they’ve gotten into together ever since they came to know him.
«When? Why?!» Cipher exhaled, realising that their investigation was the only thing that actually kept him going and since they lost Hunter it was his straw to stay sane.
That and the fact he knew Serena wanted to find the bitch that killed her lover and their friend.
«Any idea where she might be?» Pher asked, grunting with disapproval. «Any of those places we’ve been to where she ran off to fight?»
«I don’t think she’ll be there, Pher.» Lindon said, feeling hollow. «She ran to be alone. She’ll find a new place to get the solace she needs.»
«Fuck!» Cipher gritted his teeth.
«The reason I called you for a meeting is because we have to decide if we need to find Serena as much as we do – Falana.» Wolfin shook his head. «We can’t do both. But if we go after Serena, we might give Falana a chance to find new hideouts and new resources to utilise.»
«You’re wrong, Wolfin…» Laneth took a sip of wine, which she preferred to drink whenever they discussed business.
«In what way?» the Veluthian shot a heavy gaze at the woman.
Laneth sighed, leaning back on her seat and raised her eyes:
«I might not be as good a programmer as Serena, but I had some time to see how her protocols are made.» she said. «I can write a protocol to utilise the ship’s scanning systems to intersect messages and info from passing ships. If any of those have any mention of Serena or a woman similar, we’ll know. This won’t make us searching for her directly, but will allow us to keep an eye out for her, wherever she went.»
«So you’re proposing we continue chasing Falana and leave the search for our Captain to your ship?» Cipher growled.
«Both our ships, Cipher.» Laneth shrugged. «We’ve split up to cover more space in search for the bitch… if we do so again, we’ll have advantage, because every ship that passes yours and ours will be scanned for messages, articles, news of any kind that mention Serena or someone who looks like her.»
«And you’re sure you can write a protocol this sophisticated?» Pher asked.
«I’ll help her.» Lindon nodded. «I have some experience in searching for people in outer space, I know a bit how to make a protocol like that. Though, usually, it wasn’t my job to write them.»
«Any help will be appreciated. Because I have no idea how long it might take me.» Laneth shook her head.
«I suggest we start right now, because the more time we waste, the further away both Serena and Falana might go…» Wolfin sighed.
Chapter 3. Silver
Daruta. The smallest planet in the Laithorian Empire.
It’s most prominent niche of export was always related to growing many different fruits and vegetables, collected from all over the known Universe. Everything that was safe for human consumption was grown on its vast fields and farming factories and processed into a vast variety of goods. But the population wasn’t just farmers, as they were raised in the very same harsh environment as Veluthians – a bit easier to tolerate, but still allowing the natural mutations to strengthen the bodies of those who were once descendants of Terrans. The artificial DNA alterations did the rest.
Darutan people were just as focused on the military upbringing and valued fighting skills. That is why any major city had a whole plethora of fighting clubs where everyone could test their strength. The most promising fighters could easily find a professional fight coordinator to take care of them if they wished to fight for a living.
This club wasn’t one of the biggest, but it was proud to present some of the strongest fighters among people living in the area.
This woman was a newbie. She just moved in somewhere