Against the Tide - A New Elysium Story [Complete]

The Best Way to Solve Problems

Meyer watched in quiet contemplation as the blood of General Neris mingled with that of Major General Yaremova and tinted the dry, grey soil of Astraphos in a dark shade of crimson.

He could finally feel the tension in his body begin to relax a bit. Admittedly, having to watch the General shoot the Major General and then proceeding to shoot the General himself was certainly not how he had imagined his career with Orion's Reach to end. Then again, none of the events that had unfolded since his return from Six had been anything like he had imagined.

As Meyer looked up again, Amy Larsson suddenly rushed at him and threw her arms around him. He froze up in surprise and shock, thinking for a moment she was just getting close enough to knife him in the gut. Even as he realized she was in fact hugging him, his fear was only slightly alleviated. And the scowl that the male pirate threw his way for a moment didn't help either.

Next to him, Riviera cleared her throat audibly, and Larsson finally let go of him.

"Meyer! You did it!" she exclaimed with a beaming smile.

"...did what?" he asked sheepishly as he stared down at her.

He had felt quite confident just moments ago, when he had executed their little coup. But now that he was faced with the two-colored gaze of that uncanny, small woman, he felt like he was back on Six and she was about to break his nose again before forcing him to strip and sending him off.

But instead, she reached up to pat his cheek, still grinning. "You took down Orion's Reach!"

"Uhm, well, I didn't exactly... I mean, I had help," he mumbled, and cast a look around.

It's gonna take a whole lot of foot soldiers, he recalled what he had told Park.

Around them, the hunters had begun to mingle and discuss. Some of them looked his way expectantly, or eyed the two pirates with suspicion or curiosity. Nobody seemed to know what to do, but at least they weren't shooting each other. Up ahead, he saw Dalton make his way down the rocky slope of the hillside from his sniper spot. He owed that man another fifty bucks now, for making that shot Meyer had thought to be impossible. Riviera moved to stand next to Meyer, a suspicious frown on her face. He had told her about the two pirates, but judging from the doubtful look on her face, she didn't seem to believe one word.

He couldn't blame her. The pirates both looked exhausted and battered. The purple-haired man in particular, with his blood-soaked shirt and dark shadows under his eyes, looked like he had been awake for fifty hours and spent the entirety of that time being forced to listen to Alonian opera music. Yet the expression on his face was almost bored as he casually unwrapped a piece of chewing gum to pop it in his mouth. Meanwhile, underneath a layer of dust and ash, Amy Larsson's face was as pale as the white part of her hair, but she grinned as if it was her birthday and Christmas all wrapped in one day.

They made for quite an odd pair. Yet those ragtag pirates had successfully infiltrated the headquarters of Orion's Reach, and set into motion a series events that would unravel a massive conspiracy. On any other day, Meyer would have considered the mere idea of that absolutely insane. But it seemed like insane was his new normal now.

"If anything, it was you two," Meyer said. "You brought this place down...Without you-"

"Oh no," Amy Larsson interrupted him and gestured dismissively. "We're just gonna be the ones who'll blow it up."

"Blow it up?" Park, who had moved to Meyer's other side, asked.

"Yes, Matt," she nodded and cracked a grin, "But because we've become such good friends by now, I'll give you thirty minutes to evacuate the facility."