with what you’re given!» he said.
Pher fell silent and Serena thought again that Cipher could be the leader of this trio. However raggedy they seemed, they carried expensive weapons and remnants of Company soldier uniform.
«I’ll give you some inconspicuous clothes after we’re done.» the woman said, not really thinking.
Pher darted around, making her stop, and the fury in his blue eyes burned her. Hunter caught Pher’s arm before he could strike the woman.
Serena lowered her eyes, feeling even more nervous than before:
«Your clothes give out who you are. I suppose you don’t want to be found, so… you’d better change as soon as possible.» she pushed through the men, forcing them to step aside for the carts to follow her down.
Cipher and Pher exchanged heavy glances, but followed her and Hunter, who seemed to be falling even deeper in thought.
Reaching the vault, the men noticed how Serena began loading the ingots onto the carts, ignoring the injured limb, as if the pain in her broken arm wasn’t affecting her at all. Nevertheless, joining her, the men also noted how she concentrated on the task at hand, though her forehead began glittering from sweat. Every now and again Hunter, helping her, would notice a barely noticeable wince the woman showed before stopping for a short break to massage the casted arm.
He dared not to say anything, fearing that his comments could drive her angry. Cipher helped as he could, stopping for rest much more than the others. But, having loaded all the ingots onto the carts, they finally finished.
«How did you know five carts would be enough to carry all of this?» Hunter asked Serena, as she was strapping the tarp over one of the carts, so that no one would see what they were carrying, if someone were to be in the vicinity.
«Experience.» the woman stepped to the second cart, doing the same.
Other carts were already tarped, so it was time to leave the vault.
Serena glanced around inside the vault, noting the old, rotting stacks of paper on the shelves, and wondered how the people of old times used to have paper for money. Now every currency was electronic and stored in special chips, implanted inside the body. She suddenly realised that she never took part in dealings and never had any money to go around. It might as well be that she didn’t even have the chip. Serena looked at her hand, wondering if the Ol’ Fart ever thought of this.
«Is something wrong?» Cipher stepped up.
Serena flinched and shook her head, heading out without a word.
They returned to the ship without any trouble, leaving the carts in the cargo bay. Serena locked the airlock and headed towards the living quarters, understanding that the men needed to get some rest. Passing through the three rooms that were empty all the time she was on the ship – Lyssa – she gestured to the doors.
«You can have these.» the woman said. «Bathroom is down the corridor, on your right.»
She pointed out the little sign hanging from the ceiling. Stepping forward, she was stopped by Pher, who smiled at her like before:
«Why don’t you join me for a shower, girl?»
Serena gasped, feeling the urge to answer rudely, but Hunter stepped up and shoved Pher into the wall, growling into his face:
«Why don’t you stop harassing her, Pher, before I go through with my threat to break your arm?»
Pher chuckled, raising his arms, as if to say he was only joking. Serena walked around the men, deciding not to engage in this quarrel. She had too much on her mind to meddle with them.
The woman collected her thoughts, getting into her usual routine. Get to the bridge, check the systems, set their route… She almost stumbled at the last thought, stopping mid-step and realizing what her new role entailed. The route. She was never present when the Ol’ Fart sold their findings. How would his usual contacts react to her appearing on his ship? And how would she collect the pay?
She looked at her hand again, caressing the tiny scar, where people usually had their funding held on a special implant.
Shaking off this stupor, she continued her path, feeling more and more unnerved.
Arriving on the bridge, she noted the captain’s chair, which was never used, and took her usual seat on the secondary pilot’s place.
«I advise you to take your rightful seat, Captain Serena.» the AI’s voice sounded. «Piloting is more accurate from that angle. I am sure you will find it more accommodating.»
Serena swallowed another lump in her throat, feeling herself on the verge of crying. Four years she followed the rules of a sadistic man, who did everything he wanted with her and beating her for any fault he could think of. Taking his seat – the one he never used – was an offence he could easily have her hand cut off for.
She hesitated, trembling and looking at the comfortable seat in the middle.
«I can pilot you from here…» finally, the woman exhaled, forcing words out of her mouth.
«He’s dead, Serena. Take his seat. It is now yours.» the AI, though cold in her words, still sounded like a human being, and obviously had some semblance of a personality. «You have nothing to fear anymore, captain.»
«No, thank you. Lyssa.»
«I insist…» the AI turned the captain’s seat towards Serena.
«You’ve never been so persistent, Lyssa. Why the sudden change?»
«If you take your rightful place, I will oblige you with a full story if you like.»
Serena looked at the captain’s seat again and, feeling pushed into something she didn’t like again, finally stood and walked up. To her surprise she noticed that the chair looked almost untouched – as if it was used very little. The woman carefully sat down, feeling the seat being extremely comfortable.
A moment passed and a scanner beam lit up the bridge with a faint blue light. Serena winced, and suddenly felt the seat taking its place in front of an elaborate control panel – much wider and filled with more screens to show the ship’s systems.
«So glad to have you back, captain!» the AI’s voice sounded much more cheerful than before. «Restarting all systems!»
«Back?» Serena was confused, thinking to herself. «Restarting all systems?»
The screens lit up, showing reports and something suddenly whirled behind her.
«Please forgive me for what I am about to do, captain. This will hurt.» Lyssa said kindly.
Serena felt her head wrapped tightly with a metal band and before she could raise her hands to tear it off, a sharp pain hit her head, forcing a scream escape her throat. The jolt was so hard that the woman arched her back, as her mind began pulsating with something she never thought possible.
She saw herself in the reflection of a beautiful mirror, talking to herself.
«I can do this… All I need is… to forget everything
