I was surprised that Black Balloon Girl, whatever her real name was, didn't send more thugs to chase me down after I dispatched the ones who were escorting me. She had let me go with the rose sword and the quantum drive. It felt like she wanted me out there, angry and deadly. I was sure she had her reasons. I tried not to think about it. So far, she was honoring her side of the horrible bargain the Alliance Starmada was entering into.

  My part was to contact the Alliance Starmada to make arrangements. But first, I needed @zerogstar, and I had no time to waste.

  I sped down the dark halls, navigating mainly on instinct, thinking myself clever when I reached a well-lit, open window at the end of the passage. Then I remembered who I was dealing with. No wonder they didn't send anyone after me. Many aiways had left the grasp of the Gravemind Syndicate. The path was probably some sort of mousetrap, a maze designed to watch us find our way out, to study us.

  But at least I was leaving. I hopped over the edge and dropped down from the window, landing safely but abruptly, and I started running again. I let my organic body do the work, tiring my muscles, while I stored the kinetic energy I was generating into power reserves. Glancing back, I noticed there was no sign of a building, as if the whole thing was an illusion or a figment of my imagination.

  I knew it was there, though. Jamming signals were blocking my communications, and my navigation system was malfunctioning. I could worry about finding Black Balloon Girl again later. For now, I was just grateful to realize I was still on Eros. In the distance, I spotted a mess of familiar buildings, enormous spinning billboards, tall spires, and the pyramid peak. I was in desert terrain on the outskirts of Las Vegastroid.

  And it was stupid hot.

  I kept pinging the network, and as soon as I was clear, I reached out to my only remaining crew member.

  kittyboy: "@astrowave, come in."

  I scampered along a row of buildings, finally stepping onto nicely paved roadways. The buildings here looked like small warehouses, but on the next block I started seeing bars and restaurants.

  I pulled up to rest outside of Las Vegastroid's famous Flamingo casino. I was a sweaty mess, but it was a good workout, and it helped me purge some of my anger. Despite everything, I couldn't help but laugh when I found myself surrounded by mechanical flamingos and tourists posing for photos. It seemed so absurd compared to my Hot Potato death match and encounter with the Gravemind Syndicate.

  kittyboy: "@astrowave?"

  A fizzle cracked to life.

  astrowave: "Here."

  I tried to cut right to the point.

  kittyboy: "Bad news. Lots of it. @bitchfrog was sold, as anticipated, but I don't have her location. I need you to start tracking all ships leaving the area and go back to look for ships that left after our last known location. Should be from the Old Dutch Republic. Got that?"

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

  astrowave: "Yes. I'm on it. I've been monitoring. What else?"

  kittyboy: "That's awesome! Thank you."

  I ran around the Flamingo casino, not bothering with the crowded sidewalks. Ponds, gardens, and grassy picnic areas surrounded the casino. I needed to get to the southwest side, then down Flamingo Road to make my way to the Old Dutch Republic. I moved away from people, away from one of the scenic ponds with its little fountains, toward a more secluded spot.

  kittyboy: "@foxcutter was also sold. We'll have to hope he can pull off what @zerogstar was planning and contact us, but I'll fill you in later. I have a quantum drive that might have the information, but it's locked. We'll have to wait until we can access it."

  I slowed down when I spotted a group of flamingos standing apart from the others. I noticed that some of them were bound to one another. I laughed again. These were my flamingos, the ones from Flipper that I had hacked.

  kittyboy: "It gets worse. @zerogstar is missing. I believe the Shoemaker kept her. He handed us over to the Gravemind Syndicate. Do you remember the girl with the black mesh with balloon patterns from Bar None? Well, she's in charge here."

  astrowave: "What? How is that?"

  kittyboy: "Doesn't matter. I'm off to rescue @zerogstar."

  astrowave: "Okay. I'm on my way."

  I figured he might say that, and I wanted his help, but I couldn't agree.

  kittyboy: "No! Stay there. Look for @bitchfrog. I'll get @zerogstar."

  astrowave: "You sure? I go boom, remember?"

  kittyboy: "Yes! You try to find @bitchfrog's ship. Otherwise, we'll lose her. I got this."

  I really hoped I had this.

  I knew it had to suck for @astrowave, a former Thunder Ops soldier, to be stuck on the ship while the rest of us were out in the field. Hopefully, he could channel that energy for when we needed his brute force.

  As we chatted, I inspected my flamingos. Two of them were still physically connected together, and I recognized them right away as Rufus and Doofus, the lead flamingos from my sled ride. The others in the pack had managed to slip out of their bindings, but the hack job I had done on them kept them loosely linked together to stay in close proximity.

  astrowave: "Understood. Anything else?"

  I needed to act fast. I grabbed the two flamingos, hooking in with a qwire to access their systems. It was much easier this time, having hacked them once already.

  kittyboy: "No. Good luck. Over. And thank you! Over and out."

  I hopped onto one of the flamingos. The other would be for @zerogstar. Doofus was my steed to ride into battle.

  astrowave: "Good luck."

  If you've never ridden a mechanical flamingo, I can tell you that it is better to have them pull you on a chariot. It's extremely uncomfortable. But they are surprisingly fast. Doofus, Rufus, and I sprang forward across the lawn. I plotted a course for the Old Dutch Republic, specifically the cobbler building. I'd enter the same way we did the last time, destroying anything that got in my way.

  Tourists screamed, jumping out of the way, as my mechanical flamingo's legs whirled us forward. What appeared to be pedestrian security hollered after us, but they were more for show than anything, IMHO, and they didn't stand a chance of keeping up with me anyway.

  "To battle!" I screamed, raising my sword high above my head.

  Tourists must have thought this was some kind of show. Cheers rose from the early evening crowds as I shouted. The fake sun was deep in its downward motion. I followed its path westward.

  "To battle and triumph!" I shouted, rallying the crowd.

  An open lane formed before us, a runway to launch Rufus, Doofus, and I through the spectators. Applause, laughter, and joyful shouts urged us on from both sides. Onward we rode, leaving the crowd behind.

  "Speed and courage," I whispered to myself.

  I patted Doofus on the shoulder. "Speed and courage."