The Last Atonian

Chapter 10:

Xander felt like his arms were going to fall off. Yulia was not a heavy burden, but she was an awkward one, especially when he had to keep adjusting her position to make sure their skin didn't come into contact. All in all, he just wanted to find Veerna so they could get the heck out of there.

"What if she's not in the branding room?" Suzan asked as they ducked down yet another dark hallway. Xander was of the opinion that Rulon needed to invest heavily in the wonderful invention known as "lights".

"Let's cross that bridge when we come to it, Sue," Xander said crossly. Mostly because the same thought had passed through his mind, multiple times. "We still have to find the branding room."

She said nothing, simply tramping along behind him. Suzan was definitely getting tired, and so was Xander. It weighed down on them, forcing silence between them. Talking took too much effort. They kept going, not really knowing why, but knowing full well that if they stopped to rest, they could be found and recaptured.

As Xander passed a branch-off in the corridors, he blinked back exhaustion, intent on continuing with his journey. However, a hand shot out of the darkness and wrapped around his wrist, pulling him close. Before he could yell, a familiar voice hissed at him. "Don't make a sound, idiot! It's me!"

"C-Commander?" Xander stammered. "I thought ... I thought you died on Barank!"

Sareen glared at him. "You think that numbskull Rulon could get the better of me?" she asked. "You really don't know me, then. Suzan," she added in greeting.

"Hi, Commander." Suzan was watching her brother, trying to determine his facial expression.

Something was off about Sareen. Her body language showed uncertainty and perhaps even a little anxiety, something Xander had never seen her demonstrate before. The commander's gaze lingered on Suzan, small, so out of her element, before turning back to Xander. "Where is Vold?" she demanded.

"She gave herself up so we might escape," Xander said. "She's in the branding room. Unfortunately, we need her to get in the landing bay. It needs Rulon's eye pattern."

"Ah." Sareen's expression again changed. She looked extremely uncomfortable for some weird reason. "So we have to get her, then."

Xander nodded. "Otherwise, we're not going anywhere."

"How did you get here?" Suzan asked.

Sareen smiled mirthlessly. "In a ship that's now blown to bits," she said. "Taken by the best pilot in the galaxy, with a psychologist and the pilot's little doctor sister."

"Chris Chase?" Xander said. He'd heard of the legendary pilot, but had never laid eyes on him. "And Don Collego? He's alive?"

"Unless he moved the shield I placed over him, yes," Sareen said. "He's here somewhere."

Xander bent his head and whispered, "Thank the stars." The burden of guilt inside of him eased at the news of Don's survival. "How did you escape?" he added.

Sareen smiled thinly. "I made a deal with Rulon."

"What kind of a deal?"

"That's none of your concern." Xander's powers activated instinctively, and he knew immediately that the commander was lying to him. But why? What sort of deal had Sareen made with Rulon? And why was it of concern to Xander?