Perhaps she really did want to take down the enemy as much as I did.
“Anything else?”I asked with a sigh.
Thinking about Rain exhausted me, which was part of why I’d avoided it for so many years.
“There is one more thing.”Rain winced as she pulled up a holographic news report on her built-in computer.
The image showed a doctored photo of Maxx and me, our faces twisted into sinister sneers.Below the picture was a bold headline: “Nera Cotrobin and Maxx: Enemies of the State.”
I snorted.“Seriously?Those pics have obviously been doctored.I’ve never had abs like that in my life.”
“Of course I don’t have any proof of this, but I would bet this is all Earth Space Fleet.They’re aware of the tightening noose around their necks, so they launched a massive propaganda campaign against you.They think that if they manipulate public opinion with skillful precision, spreading false information and painting you both as villains in the eyes of the unsuspecting masses, no one will believe anything you have to say.”
She zoomed in on part of the article that claimed I abandoned my crew during a critical mission, leaving them to die while I fled to save myself.
“The bunch of cheese dicks,” I whispered.
“I don’t think they were counting on Maxx’s proposal yesterday, and since that aired on live TV, with your crew right there, it proved that your crew is still very much alive.If you want, I can send stills of them from yesterday to this tabloid news rag to counter it, as well as video of a certain respected Space Fleet captain throwing a tantrum by destroying his own ship.”Rain smiled diplomatically, as if all of this would be the polite thing to do.
“A little bitch clap from us to them.I’m for it,” I agreed with a nod.“Do it.”
Her right eye twitched, and her holographic computer sprang up out of it, held in place with orange holographic cubes that stemmed into her artificial retina.“Earth Space Fleet’s desperation is showing.The more they lie and act out, the closer we must be to exposing their crimes.”
“Let them come at us with their lies,” I said, determination sizzling through my veins.“We’ll tear down their house of cards, and when we do, the whole universe will know the truth.”
Chapter five
Maxx
“Hey,Pete,”Nerasaid,her voice warm and inviting, yet tinged with an undercurrent of urgency as we stepped up onto the platform.“Uh, we kind of need your help.”
Other than Pete, the platform was empty.Everyone else bustled around the beach below to prepare for our wedding, which would begin in two hours.No doubt Pete was helping by staying out of the way.
He glanced up from his frothy yellow drink with an umbrella in it, surprise flickering across his face.“Does it require hair removal again?”
“Not this time,” I assured him.
Nera looked at me with a question in her eyes, but I shook my head.We weren’t going to get into that.Not now.Not ever.Not with anyone, in writing or verbally.Nope.
“Anyway,” I prompted.
“Yes, uh…” She took a deep breath before explaining our plan to lure Earth Space Fleet into a trap using the Xenoxx scale.
As I listened to Nera lay out the details, I realized how much trust we were putting in Pete.We were asking him to do so much, and if anything happened to him, I would be devastated.We all would be.Over time, he’d grown on me, and once we left here, I would truly miss him.
“However,” she added, “this puts whoever does this at great risk, and we can’t ask you to do this without being completely honest about what’s at stake.”
Her big brown eyes searched Pete’s face for any hint of reluctance.
Pete’s bleached hair caught the bright sunlight as he ran a hand through it, worry etching lines on his usually jovial face.“That’s… That’s a lot to take in.But I know how much this means to you…and I can’t just stand by and let Earth Space Fleet do such shitty things, can I?They took people from you.Important people.”
His words stirred something within me, a mix of admiration and empathy.I knew all too well the pain of loss, and I could see it mirrored in Pete’s eyes as he spoke.We had each suffered at the hands of death, and even though his daughter had suffered a natural illness, he knew that kind of grief well.
“Are you sure about this, Pete?”Nera asked.“We don’t want to force this decision on you.”
Pete took a deep breath, seeming to draw strength from some hidden wellspring of resolve.“I’m sure.”
“You can even film yourself if you want,” Nera suggested.
