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  "What?" she glanced down at her bowl. "Oh, no. You go ahead."

  He pulled her bowl over and spooned gray mountains onto his tongue. Nova smiled once more at the woman and walked away. There were too many people for her to make a break for the dig site. No doubt by now Alaina would have warned all of the soldiers. They wouldn't let her even get a smell of the dig-site, let alone descend into the tunnels. She'd wait until dark, when there should be fewer people around.

  She hiked away from the crowded tent, back up the hill. A new layer of sand buried her footprints as soon as she lifted her feet and the scorching desert sun beat down on her shoulders.

  It was a peculiar planet. Barely a speck in the greater scheme of things and yet here the Confederacy was, plowing through it. What were they looking for?

  "Cal, can you bring the lander closer. I think it's safe from being shot down, at least for now."

  "Not if that captain has anything to say about it," Cal replied.

  Nova sat in the sand. She gazed out across the heat-hazed horizon. The Confederacy was up to something, there was no doubt about it, but that wasn't why she was here. She had one mission and one mission only; get the fugitives, and get paid.

  She raked her fingers through the warm sand, drawing patterns in the grains.

  An hour later, a high-pitched buzz made her lift her head and gaze out at the horizon. The buzz got louder until the shimmering silver blob resolved itself into the lander. The metal was dull and rusted compared to the ships of the Confederacy, but at least it was hers.

  It parked out of sight of the Confederacy ships and a pile of sand built up against its side.

  Nova trudged over and climbed inside. The engine roared into life and the glass bubble closed around her.

  The ship rumbled and lifted off the ground. It hovered above the desert and sent swirls of sand into the air. Nova gripped the armrests, take-off was always the worst part in the small lander. The main thrusters ignited and the lander zipped away from the sand. Gravity and inertia tugged at Nova's body and pushed her back into the chair.

  Thick clouds zoomed past. The ship streaked up, carrying trails of mist through the air then shot out of the top of the clouds. Drops of moisture coated the glass bubble and streamed off as the ship shot forward.

  It was a short journey out of the atmosphere and into the darkness beyond. The ship quaked as it left atmosphere. Heat poured off of the outer shell and coated Nova's skin in a thin layer of sweat.

  Darkness and speckled stars replaced the blue sky and the heat dissipated in the vacuum of space. Nova allowed herself to breathe again and her shoulders relaxed back into her chair.

  The homing function guided the small lander to Crusader. The bigger ship loomed like a gray whale in the vast emptiness. Rust and dents covered the older ship. From the outside it looked like a metal bubble with extra bits stuck on, like the pilot's pod; a smaller bubble at the front, and the capsule-like cargo pods attached to the sides. The model was massively outdated, but Nova loved it all the same.

  She caught sight of the burnt-out remains of the right cargo pod and winced. Jagged pieces of broken steel jutted out from a large hole through which the empty cargo pod could be seen. Scorch marks blackened the area around the hole.

  The lander stopped below Crusader and the two airlocks clicked into place. Nova unclasped her belt and pushed against the trapdoor. It swung up and slammed down onto Crusader's floor. She pulled herself up into the main ship and breathed in the familiar smell of Crusader, home.

  Cal waited beside the engine. His metallic hand clasped a cool drink of Blue. She accepted the glass and smiled at the robot. No doubt he'd seen the horrible gray goo she'd been eating and had felt a twinge of sympathy.

  The blue liquid slid down her throat with the pleasant taste of berries and bubble-gum. It erased any remnant of the gruel and left a refreshing zing over her mouth.

  "That was perfect. Thank you, Cal."

  The robot took the empty glass from her. "I'm just glad I didn't have to touch that gruel."

  "Tell me about it," she said. "Were there any changes while I was gone?"

  "Not really. We've been doing some preliminary scans, to get a better handle on what's going on. Whatever they're doing, it's big. Unfortunately they've shielded the area, so we can't get a good look."

  "That's okay, I'm going in after dark anyway," Nova said. "I'll get a better look then. For now I need a nap."

  "Good. There hasn't been anything else out of the ordinary. There are no other ships on the planet except for the ones you saw and it doesn't look like there are any others approaching either."

  "Okay, so they've got all the people they need for whatever this is. How's Crusader's fuel cells?"

  "Still leaking. I've patched them up as best I can, but it won't last long. We need money to get new ones. I don't suppose that lovely scientist you spoke to would give you the money?"

  "I really don't think he's the type. And even if we had the money, is there anywhere within range we could go?"

  "Yes. There's a small repair planet not far from here. I've already checked their inventory. They'll have what we need."

  "Good. Let me know if anything changes."

  "Confirmed," Cal said.

  Nova left the storage bay and went to her sleeping pod, she collapsed into bed and fell instantly asleep.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Nova wore a dark skin-hugging suit that would shield her heat signature from infrared scans. She strapped a knife to her ankle and tucked her plasma pistol into the holster at her belt. She'd lost most of her usual supplies in the cargo breach, so that left her with just her weapons and a rope. She hoped she found the fugitives soon, and that they didn't put up much of a fight.

  "The usual plan. If you don't hear from me in twelve hours, take emergency measures. If there's no result after twenty-four hours, get out of here and try to contact someone from the Maw."

  "Confirmed," Cal said.

  She'd considered taking Cal with her for backup but he'd make it harder for her to go undetected. Besides, he still needed a proper service; the occasional spark from beneath his main compartment was warning enough.

  Nova slung her bag over her shoulder and dropped into the lander. It detached from Crusader and took her down to the planet. The landscape was completely different in the dark. The moons cast the ominous green clouds in soft blues and reds which reflected off the dirt and grit so that the desert looked more like an ocean. The trees around the oasis, which had looked like they were struggling under an impossible weight during the day, now had the look of peaceful rest.

  The only thing to wreck the calm was the sound of machines and digging, that whirred across the desert. The Confederacy had decided to continue their excavations through the night. A bright artificial glow came from over the hill, evidence of the massive spotlights which lit the work area.

  Nova cursed. Bright lights and workers would make it a lot harder for her to sneak past. Why couldn't they all be asleep like normal people? Still, she had to make it down into the tunnels. Who knew how much longer the fugitives would wait? They could be laying bombs while she sat watching.

  She bent low with one hand on her gun and skirted to the right so that she stayed behind the excavation and well out of the circle of light. She dropped to her knees and then crawled to the top of the hill on her elbows. Sand scraped across her hands and got lodged beneath her fingernails. Her pulse pounded in her ears; she was a sitting duck for any soldier with a sniper rifle.

  She lay on top of the hill and looked down at the workers. They scurried back and forth from the green trees to the desert, carrying dirt and other items which she couldn't identify. The relaxed guards stood at random intervals around the work-site and talked amongst themselves.

  The sand was cold and rough against her skin and the wind lifted up small grains and hurled them into her face and hair.

  Flashes of sandstone blocks, a building, glinted amongst the rustling leaves of the f
orest.

  Nova frowned; if the planet had never had sentient life then there shouldn't be any buildings. The Confederacy were here for a reason, they never did anything unless they could get something out of it. So the Confederacy knew something that the Cloud didn't. Still, she couldn't be distracted by a crumbled building. She had one mission on this planet: find the fugitives and hand them over to the Confederacy for her reward.

  She nodded once to herself and stood. She sidestepped down the sandy hill toward the waving leaves. The trees hid her progress from the rest of the excavation. She crept all the way down to the very edge of the small forest.

  Leaves rustled and voices from the dig-site drifted on the desert breeze.

  Nova pushed forward through the first layer of branches and into the forest beyond. Cold air surrounded her and she shivered. The trees flicked back into place behind her, surrounding her in green and hiding the desert. She may as well have stepped onto another planet.

  The small sandstone blocks she'd seen from above were just the beginning. More blocks, covered in vines and moss, crowded near the center of the trees. They created a step-like pyramid which ended just below the highest trees.

  Carvings traced every surface of the sandstone blocks; pictures of people and animals scampered from one side of the pyramid to another. Symbols and charms weaved up the structure; an ancient language. At each of the four corners, halfway up the pyramid, sat metal bowls with black soot stains across their inner surfaces.

  Other decorations dotted the corners of the pyramid. Statues of creatures which Nova had never seen stood as sentinels at the corners. At the very top, seated just beneath the canopy, was a gilded dragon. It crouched on the highest block, its eyes staring down the front of the pyramid. Its carefully carved scales glinted golden in the mixed moonlight.

  A metal door, a recent addition by the Confederacy, stood open at the base of the pyramid. Beyond, a dark tunnel stretched away. Confederacy workers walked in and out in a continuous stream.

  What are they doing? It was an illegal excavation, that much was certain. The Confederacy had decided to steal a few ancient relics before the Ministry of Historical Affairs could get hold of them. These kinds of artifacts would be covered by the ancient monuments act, public property. But in Nova's experience, the laws rarely applied to the Confederacy.

  Nova counted the time between the workers and took note of the way they shuffled about. She pulled her dirt-covered jacket out of her bag and threw it over her shoulders, ignoring the musty smell.

  A break in the line of workers. She crept across the sand, head low, footsteps steady and straight through the steel door.

  Alcoves led off of the wide tunnel to either side and paintings of alien animals ran across the walls. Each alcove held a dusty podium where no doubt statues used to sit. Mixed in amongst the ancient relics, metal panels ran along the wall and emitted a faint, bio-luminescent glow which lit up the tunnel. There was no need for torches or glowballs because the tunnel provided its own light.

  Nova ducked into a side alcove where she wouldn't be noticed and took the time to study the carvings. The walls and floor were mostly made of the same yellow sandstone as she'd seen on the outside. The metal portions were shiny silver, probably steel or something similar but they were set into the sandstone, part of it, not something added by the Confederacy.

  A large archway spanned the tunnel, lower than the rest of the corridor with a foreign script carved across it. There was a hint of familiarity to it though, something which tickled the back of Nova's neck.

  "What language is that?" she said.

  "It's similar to the ancient languages of Earth," Cal replied, inside her head. "There are traces of ancient Mesopotamian, Mayan and Egyptian. There are also other symbols which I can't identify. Some of the images have been seen at ancient sites on other planets."

  "What are they doing on the wall of a tomb, a hundred light years away from Earth?" she said. Her mind raced with possibilities. It was as if humans had made it into space eons before the first recorded moon landing, but that was impossible.

  "That data is unavailable. However, a rough translation can be made based on human texts," Cal said.

  "Alright, upload the patch," Nova said.

  Cal sent through the software upgrade and the symbols transformed into something Nova understood. The translation software allowed her eyes and ears to interpret foreign languages, provided there was a patch for it.

  She whispered the words under her breath. "Enter and you will have the power to control the universe."

  "I suppose Codon was partly telling the truth," Cal said.

  "Looks that way," she said. "I'm going to have to go further though. Those fugitives are supposedly working in the deep."

  "Confirmed," Cal said.

  She waited for the next worker to pass by her alcove and then stepped out. She walked with her eyes locked onto her own feet, avoiding the gazes of everyone she passed. It wasn't hard to find her way; the lighting in the tunnel walls guided her.

  The sounds of excavations echoed through the tunnels. It rumbled and shook the earth, threatening to cave-in at any moment. Not that that would be a problem for Codon or the Human Confederacy, it would just mean finding more workers and sending them to dig past their crushed companions.

  The further Nova went, the fewer workers she saw until she found herself alone in the eerily lit tunnels with the echoing excavations her only company.

  As she went deeper, the noise got louder, as did the vibrations. The shaking set her teeth on edge and she could feel her bones vibrating. Her legs wobbled with the motion of the ground. She kept one eye locked on the ceiling, scanning for signs of a cave-in.

  She reached a fork in the tunnel and heard raised voices. She slowed down and tiptoed to the fork, listening.

  "It's now or never. We don't know what's going to happen when they make it through."

  "Maybe not, but it's too early. We're not ready."

  "So what? How many more times do you think we're going to be able to get away? This might be our last chance and we have to make it count."

  "What if whatever they uncover does our job for us?"

  "We can't count on that. Besides, you saw it 'you will have the power to control the universe'. We can't let the Confederacy get that."

  "That's a bunch of crap carved above an ancient tomb. It wouldn't be the first time idiots have fallen for that kind of rubbish."

  Nova didn't have to hear more to know who she'd found. The fugitives were planning their next attack and from the sounds of things, it could happen at any moment. She frowned. She could use her gun and take them both out but then what would she do? Cart two bodies out of the excavation site?

  She could threaten them and order them to walk out. Somehow she didn't think they'd come without a fight. They were on edge and that made them unpredictable. Unpredictable was dangerous.

  She glanced at the yellow wall. There was more writing carved here but the letters were much smaller and interspersed with tiny pictures.

  "You rose up and grasped your hands around the universe. You held it in your grip and it was good," Nova repeated the words. There was something wrong about them; the beat of the sentences didn't feel right.

  "Cal, how sure are you of this patch? It doesn't feel right," she said.

  "I'm not sure at all of the patch. It's only been recently created and is largely based on dead languages, so it's impossible to confirm. Rest assured, I am collecting information based on what you see, and the patch will probably undergo multiple upgrades."

  "Something's not right," Nova said. "It's like it's telling the reader their own history, but that doesn't make any sense."

  "Perhaps it's a spiritual text?" Cal said. "The sentences in such documents are often aimed directly at the reader."

  "Maybe," she said.

  She continued to read the passage but it still wasn't right. She rested her hand against the wall. She didn't have time to stand there a
nd read ancient alien carvings when there were two fugitives planning to blow the whole place to pieces.

  She forced her eyes away from the wall and turned back toward the voices. There was only one thing for it. Even if she did have to carry two bodies out, she was sure that Codon would forgive her, in time. After all, she was saving his damned project.

  She reached into her holster and pulled out her gun, checked it over. The blue tube on the top glowed with pent-up energy. She strained her ears for their voices. It was easy to tell exactly where they were standing based on their loud voices and the echo in the tunnel. She took a deep breath and stepped around the corner.

  An older man with a thick mustache, Nova recognized him from his pictures; Jinks, looked at her and his eyebrows shot up to his hairline. "What the—"

  The other man, Tiny, also sported a thick mustache and a chunk of his left ear was missing. He followed Jinks' gaze and fell silent. They both stared at Nova with open eyes and mouths. Their fingers twitched, no doubt readying to dive for the guns at their belts.

  "I will give you one chance," Nova said. "Come out of here with me now and you'll live. Try anything and I'll be forced to kill you."

  "And who the hell are you?" Jinks said. He glanced sideways at Tiny.

  "There's a pretty penny on both of your heads. Dead or alive."

  "Well," Jinks said and held his hands up high near his head. "We'd hate to cause you problems."

  "I'm sure," she said.

  "But we're not going to spend our lives wasting away in some jail cell when the Confederacy is blundering around like it does."

  "Then you'll escape, like last time, and I'll find you and collect another reward," she said.

  "Sorry," Tiny said and his hand whipped down to his gun. He flicked it out of its holster and leveled it at Nova.

  Nova set her sights and squeezed the trigger. Her arm flicked with the force of the kickback but she barely felt it amongst the vibrations that filled the tunnel.

  Tiny's gun flashed white and sailed out of his hand and into the air. It clattered to the floor of the tunnel two yards away. He let out a cry and grabbed his right hand to his chest, nursing it with his left. He looked at Nova with wide-eyes, his mouth working.