Number Seven //Book Three// - Dark Matter - COMPLETED

Nowhere to Go

"Two!" Six exclaims through the comms. "Is Ryo still alive?"

"Yes, but..." Two trails off

"Don't kill him." Six says.

"There's nothing more to talk about." Two tells him

"We need you on the bridge." Six says. "We've received a subspace transmission."

"From who?" Two asks

***

Two walks into the bridge

"Put him on screen." Two says. Teku shows up on the screen. "Teku. I'm glad to see you made it out alive."

"The feeling's mutual." Teku says. "Can I also assume that Ryo made it out?"

"Yes, I kept up my end of our deal." Two says. "He's on board."

"We need to discuss his return." Teku says

"I said I'd get him off the planet and I did." Two tells him. "I didn't promise anything after that."

"You should know that I did not leave Zairon empty handed." Teku says. "I am, in fact, in command of a fleet of ships that remain loyal to the emperor."

"He's not emperor anymore." Three points out

"He is the rightful heir of ishida." Teku says. "And we want him back."

"Just outta curiosity, when you say fleet, how many ships are we talking about, here?" Three asks

"Six cruisers, three destroyers." Teku says

"All with nowhere to go." Three says. "No direction."

"It's true, we are homeless and without allies, but we are united behind one purpose: To restore our emperor to his rightful place." Teku says

"It's not that simple." Two argues. "He has things to answer for. He's a tyrant, a mass murderer..."

"A ruler who had to make hard decisions." Teku says

"He attacked us, stole from us, and more importantly, he bears some responsibility for the death of our friend." Two says

"Not to make this all about me, but he also sent an assassin who tried to kill me...Repeatedly." Three adds

"I know there is bad blood between you, and I know that nothing pained him more." Teku says

"He tell you that himself?" Six asks

"Ryo was raised to never show weakness." Teku says. "But I know for a fact that he was heartbroken."

"That's assuming he has one." Three says

"I do not want us to be enemies." Teku says. "So, as a show of good faith, I have something to offer you."

"What're you talking about?" Two asks

"It concerns the man who kidnapped you and brought you to zairon." Teku says

"You mean Boone?" Two asks

"I sensed he was untrustworthy, so I placed a tracking device on his ship... As a precaution." Teku says. "I know where he went."

***

"The coordinates that Teku provided are deep within an uninhabited system." Android says, walking into the mess where the crew is. "It would appear their Marauder has not moved in some time."

"Offgrid. Some kind of hideout." Five says

Seven wraps her arms around her body, shivering

"Or it's the place the ishida fleet's waiting to get the jump on us the second we drop out." Three says