Phoenix City, Saraya, Standard Year 404

  “Will has escaped from his cell, but he’s still inside the prison.” Daren said, relief clear in his voice. “And they need a distraction.” He added thoughtfully. Will was yet alive, and as long as Will lived, there was a chance all of this would get resolved in a way that did not turn the human cities of Saraya into ash, he thought.

  “Do you know who you’re talking to?” Sophia asked, noting the somewhat puzzled look on Daren’s face as he read the message. They were sitting across from each other at a table made of carved golden hued wood, in front of a generous sized window that let in the light of the burning hot Sarayan sun. Sophia ran her hand over the velvety green moss that covered her comfortable chair and most of the interior of the ship, trying to calm her nerves. She had just finished showering, washing off the grime, grit, and fear of the day. She was now sitting inside an alien ship, across from an alien that could become invisible at will, and her government wanted her dead. Sophia, was having a rather bad day.

  “I suspect.” Daren said, looking up. “The leadership for this mission has been… delegated.” Daren said the last word with great care. “We were all attacked, Sophia. That is… unprecedented. Entirely unprecedented. And it appears that our channels of communication may have been…” Daren paused, as if unable to entirely voice the obvious facts of the situation. “It is inexplicable.” He said instead. “But there is only one man to whom Robert… my contact, would delegate.”

  “You believe you’re speaking to President Hawk.” Sophia said quietly, filling in the blanks. She had been observing Daren closely and the conversation he was having was clearly subject to significant time lapses, the distance implying that he was speaking to someone on the planet of Tundra. Daren had historically shown a great deal of insider knowledge on Tundra’s future plans. Clearly, his contacts ran all the way to the top. As a Sarayan, Sophia was trained to believe the Tundran president was enemy number one. Although, President Hawk was at least human. Well… most likely he was human. And if he was, perhaps he was not their greatest enemy. And Daren was most definitively not human. As far as Sophia was concerned, at the moment the enemy number one title was up for grabs. She took a sip of her tea and waited to see what Daren would say next.

  “It’s very likely I’m speaking with President Hawk.” Daren agreed, getting up abruptly to pace across the compact interior of his shuttle in spite of the stiffness in his shoulder. Although he had been recently shot, he felt the need to move. It helped him think. “And unlike Robert” Daren continued, trying to keep the bitterness out of his voice “unlike Robert, he is choosing to trust my judgement. So it is up to me you see, or perhaps up to us, as to the nature of the distraction we will provide.” Daren smiled slightly, and it was a rather smug smile. This was not an opportunity he planned to waste.

  “And the goal is to distract the guards inside Phoenix Penitentiary so that they are not focused on the search for Will?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can we use visibly alien technology to accomplish this goal?" Sophia asked.

  Daren’s smile grew a shade brighter as his eyes met hers. “Yes.” He said. “On that Robert and I are now in full agreement. An attack was made. An attack on us. The consequences… the consequences are intended to be visible.”

  ---

  Jonno smiled slightly, looking down at the message on his wrist comm. The plan was far from ideal, but he would see his sister soon. And he missed her. Their distance was still palpable by the time lag in their communications. It was taking about three minutes for his texts to reach her and for her responses to reach him. This time, their messages had crossed. But the idea they had each arrived at independently was exactly the same. Alanna’s new fiancé, son of the Tundran president and all around nepo baby James Hawk, had escaped his prison cell. But he was still trapped inside the prison. And a distraction was needed to ensure the guards were occupied by something other than the search. Jonno and Alanna were in perfect agreement as to what sort of distraction they needed to create.

  “You have to go back.” Jonno said, looking over at the incredibly nervous man sitting in the car next to him. The man was his main contact inside the prison. A low level employee, his job was to restock vending machines and clean the break rooms, but he had access. And that was all that mattered.

  “No.” The man shook his head. “I can’t. Please. I’m already…” He was nearly shaking. He had not expected Jonno to be waiting for him personally. This was Jonno Summers. He was terrified of the guards inside the prison. But he was even more terrified, of Jonno Summers.

  Jonno put a hand on the man’s shoulder, his voice calm and reassuring. “You’ve done well.” He said. “It’s almost over. All you have to do is tell them you noticed some of the filters were damaged. It’s your job to check. It’s perfect. And your daughter will be taken care of. She can get better. You know that.”

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  “But… but the filters are fine.”

  “But they won’t be.” Jonno said patiently. “The filters will be damaged, won’t they? You need to go back in, take care of the filters, and tell the guards they might die. Nothing distracts a man from doing his job like the possibility of impending death. You need to go back in. Now.”

  Eyes wide with terror, the man nodded. His daughter was sick. And he needed the money Jonno was offering him. Desperately. And Jonno was a man of his word. All he had to do was finish the job. It was close now. So close. And Jonno would keep his word. He always did. The terrified man took a breath. “I need to go back in.” He agreed.

  “Good.” Jonno said, handing the man a new wrist comm he had the foresight to bring. And then he sent a text to the nepo baby. The first distraction was on its way. But according to Alanna, there would be more. After all, little sis had moved up in the world. They had accomplished a lot together. It would be interesting to see what they could accomplish, with the support of an entire planet. Jonno smiled slowly, flashing perfectly even white teeth. As far as he was concerned, the planet of Tundra and their president had better step it up. So far, he had been carrying the entire mission. And the only reason the president’s son was alive was that Jonno’s contact on the inside had stepped up and saved James Hawk’s life. The Tundrans had damn well better appreciate the support they were getting. And they had better deliver.

  ---

  The Gray Serpent, Edge of Sarayan Space, Standard Year 404

  “He’s escaped.” Alanna said for the ten thousandth time, pacing the length of the training room where virtual figures could be activated to attack them at will. The training room was one of the few private locations on the compact ship, and she was comfortable here. “James escaped his cell but he’s trapped inside the prison and we are not there.”

  “Wanna get out and push?” Prescott said mildly, crossing his muscular arms with bemusement. The ship was on its way at top speed. Beyond that, it would take the time it would take.

  “Let’s go over the plan again.” Tony said patiently. The entire team was sitting inside the training room and the space had been carefully swept for any listening devices. At this point, everyone was aware of the fact that there had been a leak, and every precaution was being taken. Their mission depended on secrecy. And all their lives depended on it.

  “She’s the bait.” Prescott said, nodding towards Alanna. His voice reflected the lack of enthusiasm they all felt about the plan. “And we’re trusting that pretty boy Jonno not to stab us in the back. The one we’ve all heard shittalking Alanna all over the Sarayan news. Even if pretty boy’s heart is in the right place, my money’s on the warden not following through.”

  “No one betrays Jonno Summers.” Alanna said quietly. “He’s made sure of that. You don’t understand who he is. But I do. And other Saryans will understand. The warden won’t betray Jonno.”

  “He’s a pimp.” Prescott said, eyes narrowed in distaste.

  “He is… he’s a successful business owner.” Alanna said carefully. After all, he was.

  “Right. He owns a brothel.” Tony said sourly.

  “Jonno does a lot of things.” Alanna corrected him. “And people don’t betray him. Not ever.”

  Prescott shifted slightly, glancing at the others in the room. He was the chosen spokesperson of a fairly quiet group, but they were all thinking just about the same thing. So he stated the obvious. “A lot of things have to go right with this plan. If the warden cooperates and if this Jonno can get us inside the prison as some of the guards, then theoretically all the prisoners will be released and we can get our people and get the fuck out. So we’re out of the giant tree. We still have hundreds of feet of concrete to cross, with no cover. What about the turret guns? Based on the schematics President Hawk sent over, they surround the prison on all sides. Even if we make it out, we’ll get mowed down.”

  “The president said he will make sure the turrets are disabled.” Alanna said, trying to tamp down on her own uncertainty. It was not quite clear to her how President Hawk was going to make that happen. “And he’s already provided us with detailed schematics of the prison, including a general idea of where James is located.” She added. “Once we’ve landed, President Hawk will announce his intended targets, giving the Sarayan civilians a chance to evacuate. And James has been hard at work.” Alanna added somewhat sharply, not entirely thrilled that her fiancé had participated in mining her home planet with nuclear warheads. “There are eight targets and eight tactical nukes, plus the four on the moon. Nearly everyone will have friends or family members at these locations. The entire planet will be in an uproar by the time we get to the prison. The guards will not be at their best.”

  “It’s not the president’s support I’m worried about.” Tony said, his eyes on her.

  “I trust Jonno.” Alanna said, trying to get Tony to understand. “He’s my family and I’ve known him my entire life. And he wouldn’t get to where he is, be who he is, without being the best of the best. Not because he came from the right family, or because he knew the right people. Jonno’s at the top of his game, and he made it all on his own. He deserves your trust, Tony. And your respect, too. I trust him the way you trust James.”

  Tony nodded. But he did not look particularly thrilled, or reassured.

  Alanna sighed, she had done her best to convince everyone the plan would work. She just wasn’t sure her best was good enough. Momentarily distracted, she looked down at the buzz of her wrist comm. She had hoped for a text from Jonno, but it wasn’t. Unexpectedly, it was from Grant.

  Grant: good luck. You will have help.

  ---

  “The president says getting you back is the weakest part of the plan.” Tony said to Alanna later that day, in private.

  “You planted a tracker on me. You can find me.” Alanna reminded him.

  Tony’s eyes narrowed with worry as he looked at her. “And if he hands you over to Lorelai before we get you back?”

  “Lorelai keeps her prisoners at Phoenix Penn, no matter how you slice it, that’s where I end up.”

  “And will that still be true after the mass breakout?”

  “There won’t be time to…”

  “You’re completely outside of our control. For hours.” Tony shook his head. “I don’t like it. It’s not what James would have wanted.”

  “It is what is.”