Chapter 5 #2
But their eyes. God, their eyes. When my light caught them, they flinched back, blinded, terrified of even hoping.
My chest tightened. These were people. Someone's daughter. Someone's sister. Someone's mother. And the corporations had reduced them to this.
I knew these cages. Not these specific bars, but I knew the feeling. The helplessness, the terror, the way hope dies a little more each day. I'd been here. And I'd gotten out.
Now it was their turn.
Rage bloomed in my chest, hot and clean. I felt it echo through the Tether: Lyrin's answering fury beside me, Vaelix's cold calculation from orbit, even Kaedren's grim resolve outside. We were united in this: these women were getting out.
"Get these cages open!" My voice cracked. "Now!"
Three of Kaedren's security team hustled up the hallway, instructed the women to cover their eyes and ears, then blasted the locks off the doors.
The sound echoed through the space, sharp cracks followed by the clang of metal hitting concrete.
Some of the women screamed. Others didn't even flinch, too far gone to care.
I rushed into the first cell and knelt beside a woman. I reached out, placing my hand gently on her arm. She pulled back, sliding farther into the cage and huddling with another woman.
"It's okay." I kept my voice soft, non-threatening. "We're here to help. You're safe now. But we don't have much time. Will you come with me?"
Nobody budged. I slowly moved closer and knelt next to another woman. She curled into a ball, trembling. A flash of light on her neck caught my eye, something metallic embedded in the skin. I gently brushed her hair aside, and my stomach dropped.
A chip. Black and circular, embedded at the base of her skull.
"Son of a bitch."
"Vaelix, do you read me?"
"Loud and clear, Kira. What's wrong?"
"These women have been chipped. Even if we evacuate them, the corporation can activate the chips, find us, and subdue these women again. Can you disable them?" I asked.
"One moment, please," he said.
My heart raced. I kept my hand on the woman's shoulder. She was still trembling, but she hadn't pulled away. That had to count for something.
"We are transmitting an override code now. The women shouldn't feel anything, but you will need to confirm that their chips have been deactivated. We can remove them once they're on the Starbreaker."
"Do it!" I yelled.
"Transmitting now."
I held my breath. One beat passed, then another. The moment stretched on for what felt like hours. Then Vaelix's voice broke through the silence.
"Transmission complete. The chips have successfully been disabled."
I leaned down to the woman whose shoulder I was touching.
"Sweetheart, I'm going to brush your hair back from your neck, okay? We sent a transmission to disable your chip, and I need to make sure it worked."
The woman whimpered as I brushed her hair back. The small chip sat dark and silent against her skin.
"The chips have been disabled," I said. "Thanks, Vaelix."
I stood and raised my voice, making sure it carried to every cell. "Listen to me! My name is Dr. Kira Vale. We're from a ship called the Starbreaker, and we're here to get you out."
Faces turned toward me. Hope and fear warring in their eyes.
"The corporations trafficked you. They held you here against your will. But that's over. As of right now, you're free. You're not property, you're people, and we're taking you home."
I paused, then pushed harder. "But corporate forces are coming, and we need to move now. Will you trust me? Will you run with me?"
For a moment, nothing. Then one woman stood. She was tall, rail-thin, with scars crisscrossing her arms. She looked at me with eyes that had seen too much and nodded once.
"I'll run," she said, her voice hoarse from disuse.
Another woman stood. Then another. Then suddenly the entire cell was moving, women helping each other to their feet, leaning on one another.
Lyrin appeared at my side, helping a woman stand with surprising gentleness for someone his size. She looked up at him, seven feet of alien warrior in armor, and flinched.
"Easy," he said softly. "I've got you. Just lean on me."
She hesitated, then did.
I moved through the cells quickly. In the third one, I found a young woman cradling what looked like a bundle of rags. Then the bundle moved.
A baby.
"Oh my God." I knelt beside her. "How old?"
"Three months," she whispered. "They said... they said they'd take her if I didn't cooperate."
Rage flooded through me again, hotter this time. Through the Tether, I felt Kaedren's fury spike so hard it made my hands shake.
"They're not taking anyone," I said firmly. "You and your daughter are leaving together. I promise you."
I helped her stand and guided her toward the exit. Around us, Kaedren's team moved through the remaining cells—no shouting, no weapons pointed, just steady hands coaxing traumatized women toward freedom.
I ran outside to find Kaedren. "Have the corporate forces arrived yet?"
He shook his head. "We have maybe five minutes."
"Let's get everyone loaded. Now."
Reports started coming in from the other shuttles. All loaded. All ready.
I strapped into my crash couch and looked at Lyrin. "Did we get all of them?"
"Hundreds," he said. "More than I could count."
The weight of that number hit me. How many lives had been trapped in those cages? How many were heading toward freedom right now?
"How many did we lose?" The words felt like broken glass in my throat.
Lyrin's jaw tightened. "Five of ours. A few of theirs didn't make it."
Eight lives. Maybe more. Eight people who'd woken up this morning with no idea it would be their last day.
I closed my eyes, and their faces swam in the darkness; the green-skinned soldier bleeding out in my hands, his purple blood warm on my fingers.
The women who'd died in those cages before I could reach them.
But hundreds of others were breathing. Hundreds of women who'd been property an hour ago were strapped into these seats, heading toward freedom.
Was it worth it?
Through the Tether, I felt Lyrin's certainty: warm, absolute.
Yes.
I wasn't sure I believed him yet.
I only knew I wanted him to be right.
The shuttle engines roared to life, and we lifted toward the stars.