Page 50 of The Last Hunt
“We might need to make a run for it,” Aethon says. “I think the head mechanic was trying to waylay me so that Cho could get to you.”
Maeve nods, her sharp eyes peering at the Archer. “I think the Archer is fixed,” she says, her voice low. “I can tell by the angle of her starboard wing.”
“Good,” Aethon replies. At last, a bit of luck.
They quietly walk to the door of the ship. Aethon opens it and lets Maeve go so that she can start the engines. Aethon does a quick security sweep, making sure nothing is amiss. The second the Archer turns on - the dash lighting up, the engines purring - TAI and CAL blare to life.
“Captain Trell! Captain Bladesbearer!” CAL says loudly. “We were monitoring communications while the ship was offline and -”
“ - we picked up comm hijacking!” TAI finishes. “But we couldn’t let you know because you -”
“- didn’t transfer us to your tabs!” CAL says, his voice as close to anger as Aethon has ever heard. “And look where that got you!”
“Maevey-pie, you’re hurt!” TAI exclaims.
“TAI,” Aethon interjects. “Pay the maintenance bill. We need to get the hell off this starbase.”
“On it!” TAI replies.
“CAL,” Aethon says. “Do whatever you need to do to override the maintenance bay’s force field so that we can fly the Archer out.”
“Valley Starbases’ systems are woefully out of date,” CAL says, his tone haughty. “Their AI doesn’t even speak hyper-union. I’ve already got it tied up in a loop.”
“Bill paid, Aethon!” TAI says.
“Get us the fuck out of here,” Maeve orders. She rests one hand on the arm of her captain’s chair, and the other around Aethon’s waist. He pulls her against him automatically, supporting her.
The Archer lifts off and reverses out of the bay. Hails start popping up on the viewscreen, but they ignore them all. Helmeted maintenance workers and starbase guards flood the bay, their arms raised, pulse guns aimed at the Archer.
“Flash ‘em, TAI,” Maeve says roughly.
“Oh honey, you’re speaking my language!” TAI says.
The Archer’s lights flare, blasting at least 200 lumens straight into the eyes of everyone in the bay. They all falter, their hands raising to their temporarily blinded eyes. The Archer reverses completely out of the bay and spins, zooming away from Valley Starbase.
“Nice flying, TAI,” Aethon says.
“You’re a peach, Aethon!”
“Is the ship fixed?” Maeve asks. “How’s the support strut?”
“We monitored the work even while we were offline,” CAL says. “They didn’t do a very good job, but it’s definitely serviceable. No danger of falling apart while we’re in jump space.”
“And there are no signs of tampering,” TAI adds.
“Memphis Nedd must have been willing to do a small favor for Quinlar Cho by holding me up, but not one big enough to actually damage his reputation,” Aethon growls.
At that assurance, Maeve finally sags against Aethon. He leans down and lifts her up, one arm under her shoulders, the other under her knees. She wraps an arm around his neck and doesn’t protest, which worries Aethon more than anything else. She’s warm against him, tall and heavily muscled, and Aethon hugs her to him, her weight a comfort. She’s alive. He made it in time. Relief is sharp in his chest.
“Make for the nearest jump point,” Aethon orders the AIs. “And go at best speed.” They agree, and Aethon turns, carrying Maeve back to her room.
He sets her down gently on her bed. When he starts to move away, Maeve grabs his sleeve. Aethon looks down at her, concern tight in his gut.
“Where are you going?” she asks. She stares up at him with a fierce expression that Aethon can’t quite read.
“I’m just getting the medkit,” Aethon replies. “I want to clean up your arm and whatever else needs tending to.”
Maeve lets out a slow breath and nods, releasing his sleeve. “It’s in the cabinet next to the washer and dryer.”