5 Chapter 5: 1-Star Motel

There's no way to tell the time here with the view that I've got, but I take a guess at what it could be right now. I left for Haorzoh at 17:09, the time spent there must've been about thirty minutes. I've been in this cell for what feels like close to eight hours and not once have I been checked on.

I stand up from the uncomfortable cot they gave me to sleep on and inspect the bars. They aren't high-security laser bars to singe at the slightest touch, but instead primitive metal bars that I can grab onto. I do and give the door a shake, solid and stable, no breaking these down.

"Thanks for the timely rescue, guys."

I feel around the outside of the bars where the chunk of metal rests in the center. My finger grazes over a keyhole, but there's no key in this room. They were lovely enough to leave me in my tank top undershirt, and that means I still have access to a couple of bobby pins I leave clipped to the bottom of the shirt for quick thieving.

I pluck one from its spot, look at the door to check if anyone is around, and bend it into a makeshift lockpick. Now I just need a torque. My pants have a button to close a pocket! I rip it off-- this will make a doable torque.

I get to work in picking a lock without even being able to see it. I insert the ribbed end of the bobby pin and insert the button into the bottom half of the keyhole. The pin feels for tumblers and moves them to the resting position. Once a tumbler rests, the button turns the whole keyhole to hold it in place.

I do this five times before the button I'm turning goes around halfway and I hear the click I've been waiting for. The door unlocks and slides open, and I tiptoe out of the cell and into the small hallway. As quiet as I can, I walk up to the door and try to open it, but I already knew it wouldn't open without Bouncer's password and thumbprint.

Backing up, I take a look around the room again and find a tiny ventilation system installed at the corner of the room. It's a tight squeeze, but I bet I can make it. I just need a way up there. The table resting across the room will do just fine. I slide it under the vent and pull the grate off quietly.

If my shoulders fit, then the rest of my body can squeeze behind. I jump in and feel the metal walls tighten around my body. It's as if they're closing in on me, but I ignore it and shuffle along. I wiggle ahead for a few meters before I hear my door swish open and a voice cries out about a missing prisoner. My heart races once they acknowledge the vent's grate being open.

"He's in the vents. Everyone keep an eye on the vents!"

My body hovers over another ventilation system, and I only see a single goon sitting down in his room reading a magazine. I breathe in deep and tell myself to get ready and be quick. On the count of three, I push against the grate until it falls off and front flip into the room.

The grate hits the goon's head and he stands up quickly while tossing his magazine to the side of his bed.

"What!? Hey, that Nev kid is here! He's in here!"

He raises his fists and I crouch low. He tries to swing at me, a straight punch with the elbow outstretched all the way. My body shifts to the side slightly and I drive my own fist into his stomach to knock his air out. Once I hear him wheeze, I stand up and deliver a spinning backfist just like Knight taught me for an easy knockout.

He goes down with a limp body and I frisk him with my palms for a blaster. He's got nothing? Where do they keep their weapons? "You're not making this easy for me."

I have no choice but to leave the room and hope that no one will catch me on my way to the hangar bay to steal a jet. I get to the side of the door and take cover, pressing my back against the wall and letting the door slide open for me to take a peek around the corners. Nobody--time to move.

I dart out of the room and quickly make my way down the hall. My bare feet makes a soft patting noise as they carry me across the metal floor. Booted footsteps can be heard stomping in my direction, and by the sound of it, there's more than just one pair.

I find another door unlocked and head inside. It looks like some sort of lounging room with a bar counter, several televisions, and even some pool tables. I have to hide, they might check this room. I scale the wall and decide to hang onto a support beam that runs across the room's ceiling.

The door opens, Bouncer and two others enter with guns drawn. He points at the bar counter without saying anything, and the goon goes to search around it. He points to the sofas and chairs on the opposite end, and the other guy checks it out.

"You know," he says, "you'll catch a cold running around here with no socks. Why don't you come on out and I'll make you a nice, warm soup."

I stay quiet and cling to the bar. The goons are still searching their areas, but they're nearly done. How long until they decide to look up instead?

"I talked to your boss, he's an ass as always. You already knew that I'm sure."

The goons regroup with Bouncer and scan the room with their eyes. My forehead becomes clammy as it suffers under a blanket of sweat; my palms can easily slide around the beam.

"When I told him how much I wanted for you, he said he couldn't afford it and they'll save money by rehiring for your position. His words, verbatim. Maybe now you'll reconsider picking a winning team?"

I close my eyes tight as my gut says that someone is bound to look up in the next ten seconds. I let Bouncer talk as I do my best to blend in with the shadows.

His P.V.D pings and he brings up his wrist to hear the transmission.

Beta-Ray Goon (Personal): "Boss, our exterior shields have taken minimal damage. Shields are at 99% proficiency, someone's shooting at us."

Bouncer (Personal): "I bet it's those damn Heat Wave mercs being bitter again about selling their medic to slavers. You two, get out there and chase them off, I'll keep looking for the kid."

The goons leave, and Bouncer takes one last look around the room before leaving as well. I jump down and let out the breath I was holding. I wait, and wait, and wait, then I check the door's corners again and begin running down the hallway.

"Nev!? I can hear you running!" Bouncer calls out. His boots chase after me and I pick up the pace. There's no way he's faster than me, but his gun can do the chasing for him. If I'm spotted, I'm shot, he doesn't really miss often from what Titan says.

I drift around a corner, my feet slide along the floor and I nearly fall because of it. Suddenly all the doors won't open, and I can only assume he's put his mothership on lockdown to make it easier to catch me.

"If you make me break a sweat, I'm tossing you out of the airlock!"

"You've gotta catch me first!"

I keep running and running until I realize that it all just connects to one big loop without any doors to go through. I stop in my tracks and wonder if Bouncer is just standing somewhere and waiting for me to bump into him. I'm truly stuck.

"Nev!? I don't hear you running anymore! Stand still and I'll come get you! You can trust me!"

I ball my hands into a fist. No matter where I run, I'm going to get shot like a fish in a barrel.

"Hey! Can you hear me!? Did you decide you didn't want to die tired!?"

I can hear him begin to walk again, but how far he is and which direction he might come from, I don't have a clue. The boots get louder and louder, and I can finally see his shadow loom over a wall. I back peddle away from it, but that only makes him go faster.

I stop and lean against the wall, there's no point in keeping the chase up. Maybe I can convince him to put me back in the cell.

"There you are..."

I breathe in deep and try to get my stomach to stop doing flips. "I was just stretching my legs. It got a little cramped in my room."

"It's bedtime, and I've got a little something to help you knock out for a long time," he says as he raises his gun to my chest.

Suddenly the whole ship rumbles, and all the lights that illuminate the white floors and walls turn off, and we're left in complete darkness. Different, dim lights turn on, and all the doors open and stay open.

I dart into the nearest one and leave Bouncer bumbling around on the floor as he fell during the initial rumble.

I can hear his P.V.D call from my hiding spot.

Beta-Ray Goon (Personal): "Boss! We were just hit by a virus! I don't know how it got past the security, but our power is gone!"

Bouncer (Personal): "How hard is it to take out a few Heat Wave losers? Wait a minute--an idiot Heat Wave merc would never be carrying around a fancy EMP like that. Who's out there!?"

Beta-Ray Goon (Personal): "Lux-Roulette! They're here for the kid!"

Bouncer (Personal): "Titan! That lying, sleazy, trashy little fox! I'll kill Nev before they get the chance!"

I hear Bouncer stomp away in a direction with obvious anger in his breathing. I try to calm my own breathing down as my heart races at the thought of getting caught now. A soft ping makes me jump to the ceiling, but I'm quickly relieved to hear a familiar voice.

Knight (Hacked_027): "Nev? Can you hear me? Get over here and respond."

I find out that a discarded portable radio is somehow receiving a transmission from Knight. I pick it up and insert the earpiece to make it to where only I can hear him.

Me (Hacked_027): "Knight? How did you get this channel working?"

Knight (Hacked_027): "Cheq helped me pinpoint you, after that, it was a matter of finding a transmission near you and hacking it to get your attention."

Me (Hacked_027): "What's going on out there? Bouncer's whole ship just went dark. Apparently, you guys hit him with an EMP?"

Knight (Hacked_027): "Cheq's work again. We couldn't use a standard one because of the exterior shields, so he sent one through wireless connections."

Me (Hacked_027): "Bouncer's got it out for me bad. If I'm seen, I'm dead. Advice?"

Knight (Hacked_027): "Titan and Cheq are out there right now fighting some Beta-Ray jets. I'm supposed to get you to the hangar bay safely so that they can fly in and pick you up. Are you ready?"

Me (Hacked_027): "Not really."

Knight (Hacked_027): "Exit the room you're in and take a left."

I peek my head out and can still hear Bouncer crazily sprinting all around the ship looking for me. I make a quiet dash to the left and stay low.

Knight (Hacked_027): "I'm using Cheq's software to hack into Bouncer's P.V.D. Now I can see him on the radar. He's close, use the room on the left to hide."

I duck into the room and look around. The dim light doesn't help me find out where a good hiding spot is, so I decide to press against the wall near the door. I stand up straight and hold my breath again as Bouncer's footsteps get closer. As I hear him stop right outside my door, the only noise I hear now is my own heartbeat.

I feel myself freaking out. My head is pounding and I feel dizzy, my entire skin is shimmering in sweat and my breathing is becoming audible.

Knight (Hacked_027): "Nev, you have to calm down. I can hear you breathing, and that means he can hear you too."

I shake my head and shut my eyes tight. I wipe my forehead and run my fingers through my hair.

Knight (Hacked_027): "Stay still. Just listen to my voice. When I was in the Defense Force, losing your cool meant death for you and any fellow soldiers near you. Keeping your head is key for any battle, even this one right now."

Keep my cool. Yeah, I can do that. If Knight can stay calm while taking fire from an entire battalion, I can steady my breathing while this fat slob stands at the other side of this wall. That's what he is, a fat slob. A fool with a gun. He's probably out of breath after chasing me around this crappy ship.

Knight (Hacked_027): "He's leaving."

I hear Bouncer walk away down the hall where I just came from. I silently slip out of the room and find another door leading to the hangar bay. It's by far the largest room with the most storage in it, so a hiding place is ready if I need it.

Knight (Hacked_027): "Nev, Titan is letting Cheq do the fighting. He's coming in, watch that you don't get run over."

I stand to the side of the hangar bay and watch as their Oxy-Gate opens up with one of Cheq's hacks. Titan comes in quick and makes a dirty landing, but otherwise, he didn't quite crash. His hatch opens up and he scans the room for any enemies.

He spots me running up to his ship. "All aboard! Everyone is chasing after Cheq right now, so now's a good time to get you out of this hole."

I climb into the cockpit with him. "You couldn't have come sooner? I had to spend my whole time in a boring cell."

"Sorry, we needed Bouncer to think we weren't coming tonight. Looks like we waited long enough."

He closes his hatch and we begin to hover inside the hangar bay. He directs his nose to the one fighter jet that's still parked and fires a few photon shots at it to damage the wings.

"He won't be in such a rush to fly after us now," he says while smiling. "Ah, that feels ten times better knowing that's ol' Bouncer's ship."

"The next time you have a long-standing nemesis, can you keep me out of it?"

"When I die, you're inheriting all of my old grudges."

We fly out of the hangar and enter deep space. I see the Motley not too far from the battlefield, that's probably how Knight was able to talk to me so clearly.

Titan engages his comms console.

Titan (Personal): "Cheq, shake those guys off and head for home. I've got Nev."

Cheq (Personal): "You got him? Did Bouncer leave any cuts or bruises?"

Titan (Personal): "He's a little more naked than we left him, but our sweet little Nev remains relatively unmolested."

Cheq (Personal): "Good. I'll lose these guys and join up soon. Cloaking now!"

He looks back at me. "He'll be home soon. By the way, we weren't just sitting around shooting the shit while you took a nap at the worst motel. We were busy."

"Busy?"

"Wait until I show you what we found while you were gone."