To Rescue a Villain

Chapter 22

[Once again, the music video above was made by Kin Rin (and it's a really pretty one, I think. The clips are from Mirror's Edge so you know it has to be stunning).]

Our ship was slowly inching its way into one of the ports when the pilot started muttering to himself, flipping a few switches with no response. "The station's oddly quiet," he informed us just in case we were curious. Then he added the frightening words: "Too quiet."

"Huh." I was considering probing for more information but jumped when I heard a loud thump to my left. The sound came from Maddox, who was loading a machine gun of some kind. The other two were doing the same, which made me feel left out since I'd only brought a tiny pistol just in case I needed to use it.

"If something's happened to Mr. Hacket then we need to make sure he's alive. Otherwise we'll never get paid," Jala informed us as she took a few cautious steps toward the ship's exit. "I'll head out first."

I watched as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other, impatient for the vehicle to land. They really saw Derek as nothing more than a money machine, didn't they?

"When you get inside, Hacket's AI will direct you," the pilot continued. "Just make sure to—"

The ship suddenly hit the ground midsentence and started screeching across the ground, the sound of metal scraping metal killing my ears. I barely had time to spot Jala jump off before the front of the ship collided with the end of the room and we were sent flying. I barely managed to avoid hitting my head on the hard floor, letting my arm take the blow instead which didn't feel much better.

As I sat on the floor, trying to pull my bruised body up, I heard an explosion behind me and turned to see the ship go up in flames. If the blow hadn't killed the pilot then the explosion definitely did.

"That hurt," I stated obviously as I got to my feet, still feeling a bit wobbly, and looked to see how the other three were doing. Not surprisingly, they were already armed and headed toward the nearest door.

"Welcome, hired mercenaries." Di's voice echoed inside my ear and I immediately sagged in relief. It was nice to hear a familiar voice. "Your employer is in trouble and needs your help. Please proceed to the door on your right."

I hurried to catch up with the others and drew my pistol. I'd been unsure about using a gun before but now I was too nervous not to. I took my position behind Maddox and followed the girls into the long, metal hallway looming before us.

"I have taken the liberty of locking all the doors except the ones you need to enter," Di told each of us over the speakers and in our ear pieces just in case the speakers were broken. "Please make haste. If you allow Derek Hacket to die he will withdraw your pay checks."

I laughed as we ran through the opened doors. Even Di was talking about cash.

As we traveled through the maze of completely empty hallways, which struck me as a little odd, I touched my earpiece and spoke quietly so none but Maddox could hear since he was right next to me but couldn't care less.

"Hi, Di. How are you?"

"I am doing fine," the computer informed me, not sounding excited about our reunion at all. "This is your first time on the moon station since Derek Hacket's promotion."

"Yup. How is he?"

"Surrounded."

"By what?"

"I do not know. For some reason I've lost control of all systems and security cameras within range of him."

If Di didn't even know what was going on then there was cause for alarm. "Di, why is the rest of the station completely empty?"

The computer paused, as though calculating how my reaction would affect the mission. Little did she know I already knew the answer. "You need to focus on locating Derek Hacket first."