The Starlight Lancer

Chapter 129: Dwelling of a Ghost

"It is not hard to get lost in the Nova Rim, whether intentionally or not."

—Bago Balgmyr, former Patriarch of the Endengemnon Syndicate

Zaina took her first steps onto Bantoor and tasted the hot, dry air. Everywhere she looked were steep, uneven rock formations, or sand. Not a plant to be seen from the small plateau Reida had landed them on to the horizon.

Kazlo and Baeus were beside her. Reida had taken off again to detach the Order's ship, restrictor and all, from her new vessel.

Baeus pulled up beside Zaina. "Bantoor's a fascinating planet. One of the Deepworld's bread baskets, even though the world is barren by nature. Large sections of the planet have been terraformed to serve as farmland. Why, they produce so much food they're able to export about seventy percent of it, all while having one of the lowest ratings in the Starvation Index. Their food production-to-population is among the highest in the Deepworlds."

Kazlo sighed. "Let's get Gizmo off your ship and have a look, shall we?"

Zaina retrieved the glyph once Reida had detached the tow cables. She handed him over to Kazlo, who took the glyph and examined its exterior. "Looks like he's in good condition from a hardware standpoint."

"I make sure to clean him once a week at least," she replied.

"Good," he said. "Follow me."

Zaina glanced over at Baeus, who was right behind her. Reida had parked her ship, but she hadn't left it yet.

She wants Kazlo. Keeping him away from her is the key.

Zaina turned and jogged to catch up with Kazlo, who had gone on a thin path behind one of the larger rock formations. They didn't have to go far—Kazlo slipped through a foot-wide crevice.

"I don't think I'll fit through there," Baeus remarked.

"Yeah, probably not," she replied, wincing. "I'd tell you to go back to the ship, but I don't think that's a good idea."

"You think she'd try something?"

"I can't rule it out," Zaina said. "Why don't you wait here? I'll be back out as soon as I let Kazlo know what's going on."

Baeus chuckled. "You don't need to worry about me, you know."

"It's all precautionary," Zaina replied. "We don't know what she's planning or when she'll make her move."

Baeus's pod turned around. "Do what you need to do. I'll be here. But—" He paused.

Zaina's head tilted to the side. "But what?"

"I don't think you need to be so afraid of her. I mean, if it comes down to it, you're still a lancer."

Zaina frowned. "She's killed lancers before."

"Right," Baeus said.

Kazlo called out from the cave, "Hey! You out there?"

"Yeah, coming!" Zaina shot one last look at Baeus and then slipped through the narrow opening. Her armor scraped against the stone walls, but she made it through. It was much more homey inside than she expected—the stone walls had been carved out to make a small room in which most of the space had been dedicated to tables and desks covered in glyph parts and other machine pieces. The walls were covered in shelves, and nearly every inch was jam-packed with dust-covered mechanical bits and bobs of varying sizes and shapes. A handful of computers were scattered across the desks, and Kazlo was turning them all back on. He'd already turned on a pair of floodlights taped to the ceiling, lighting up the entire space.