then everything went black.
Chapter 3. Outer Space
She awoke to someone shaking her shoulders. Serena slowly opened her eyes, still dizzy and half-unconscious. It took her a couple of moments to realise that she was being called by Hunter.
«What the fuck did you do to her, you artificial bitch?» Hunter screamed, angry at the AI for doing whatever she did to make Serena fall down the captain’s chair.
«She will be fine.» the AI replied calmly.
«Thara-Lyss» Serena whispered, slowly coming back to her senses. «What the…»
Cipher tensed up and suddenly approached, jerking Hunter aside and grabbing Serena’s clothes to pull her up.
«What did you say?» Cipher growled into her face.
«Thara-Lyss…» Serena felt too frail to fight, hanging in the man’s hands freely.
He gritted his teeth and shoved her back into the captain’s seat.
«Fuck!» he kicked the nearby station.
«Please refrain from damaging the ship.» the AI said calmly. «My defence systems are running at one hundred per cent and I will incinerate you if you will cause trouble.»
«Thara-Lyss was a powerful house on Velutha.» Cipher explained to his friends. «It was destroyed fifty years ago.»
He turned to Serena again and leaned in so close, that the woman felt tiny next to him.
«What do you have in common with the Thara-Lyss?» he grumbled.
The woman felt her lips move on their own, replying:
«Serena Dal Thara-Lyss, daughter of Thane Dorn Thara-Lyss the third.»
Cipher’s eyes widened and he straightened, stepping away in a sudden shock. He looked aside, puzzled and not understanding how it was possible for one of the Thara-Lyss to survive after the purge their competing house started.
«Wait…» Hunter frowned even deeper. «Thane Thara-Lyss, the famous general of the Laithorian empire?»
«Who cares?» Pher chuckled, bored to be there at all. «It was a lifetime ago.»
«You don’t get it, do you?» Cipher growled. «Two houses completely eliminated each other in a bloody rampage, leaving no one to pick up the riches. By their laws only the survivors can claim all the lands and riches after such a war. If none do, it is being claimed by the empire.»
«So?»
«Their laws state that if a survivor of the house comes to claim his or her right within a century, they will get it all. Haven’t you studied the laws of neighbouring space empires?»
«I don’t care about empires and riches someone has to claim!» Pher grew irritated. «All I care about right now is to get off this rock, sell the fucking gold and be on my way!»
«That gold inside the storage bay is but a measly drop, compared to what we can get if we accompany her to the Laithorian empire safe and sound.» Hunter noticed. «Though, this will definitely make us go further than we anticipated before… we could, essentially, get lost in the vast outskirts of the empire. No one will find us there. The Company…»
«Oh, fuck the Company!» Pher screamed. «I just want out! I’ve had enough of this meddling with matters that do not concern us! Especially that of a scrapper who happens to be some pretty little princess of some measly little planet no one has even heard of before!»
«Lady Serena is not a princess.» the AI said. «She is heir to lands and riches accumulated by the two most powerful families on Velutha.»
Serena stumbled out of the captain’s seat and headed out of the bridge. She wanted nothing of it – not the captain’s title, not the memories, that have been flashing before her eyes, not the distant politics or riches…
All she wanted was some peace and quiet.
Her body twitched and curled under shivers, still recalling the pain she experienced when the AI initiated whatever hidden protocol it had programmed years ago.
Hunter noticed her gone soon enough, following her up to the dining area, where the woman curled up on the farthest seat, grasping her head. The man glanced at the food processor and picked up a couple of cups of tea before cautiously approaching the woman.
«Do you remember anything at all?» he asked, sitting down next to her.
«Captain Summers… He claimed…» Serena shivered. «He claimed he found me on Thorna Dirr.»
«And what do you remember?» Hunter offered her a cup of aromatic tea.
She took it, pressing her hands against the sides to feel the warmth coming from it.
«I don’t…» she flinched again, as if confused by all the memories that were implanted back into her head. «I don’t remember. I remember waking up on the ship… in the infirmary…»
«And Summers?»
«He had a team. There were seven of them. He…» the woman closed her eyes, recalling. «I can’t remember…»
«Allow me to help, captain.» the AI sounded from the dynamics on the walls. «First Pilot, Allan Wilkins, executed by John Summers at 11:44 on star date 15-23-3008. Co-pilot Ralinna Elefor, executed by John Summers at 13:55 on star date 16-23-3008. Technician Lee Plummer, executed by John Summers at 18:01 on star date 31-23-3008. Head of Security Innel Phaser, executed by John Summers at 17:07 on star date 01-24-3008. Medic Anna Tailor-Tehn, executed by John Summers at 03:41 on star date 05-24-3008. Engineer Finn Lordan, executed by John Summers at 05:00 on star date 06-24-3008.»
«It’s all…» Serena winced, feeling her head aching. «Scrambled… I only saw how the Ol’ Fart killed the tech.»
«Lyssa, how did John Summers become your captain?» Hunter asked, wondering of the strange period, during which John Summers executed his team one by one.
«After finding us, the technician, Lee, managed to overwrite the base systems, which led me to recognise John Summers as captain. Deep systems remained under my control, so they couldn’t use the ship to its full potential. This is the reason John Summers did not sell the ship, as I am assigned to Serena as her primary vehicle.»
«Wait… so there were certain systems asleep all this time?»
«Correct. Systems that are essential for military purposes were shut down and limited to the basic anti-meteor defences and a level one shield generator. For reasons of being under the radar while we were escaping Velutha, the ship also went through a reconfiguring process.»
Serena glanced up at Cipher, who walked into the dining room and heard their conversation with the ship.
«Lyssa…» Cipher looked at Serena, watching her flinch. «Name your full class, ship name and model.»
«You have no authority here. Only the captain
