Through the Ghost
Chapter 7

A few hours passed, Anna’s vitals stabilized, yet she remained unresponsive. Lanie had set course for the Orothros home base, yet the prospect of returning feels like an afterthought as he kept watch over the sleeping operative. Her chest gently, rhythmically, rose with each shallow breath. She looked so peaceful he could feel the muscles in his face start to contract in remembrance of happier times.

“How is she?” Jaya asked from the doorway.

Tal looked up from his seat next to Anna, it’s exactly where he was the last time Jaya had checked in on them. Allie had successfully patched Anna up, but the rogue operative had been kept sedated.

“She’s good,” he replied.

“Good. In the meantime, you should get some rest, she’s not going anywhere.”

He nodded half-heartedly, indicating he’d consider the request.

She turned to leave, but hesitated. She looked back at him, meeting his red rimmed eyes. “Why did they take it from her?”

“She’s no longer part of Orothros.”

“I figured as much, but they don’t normally remove it from retirees.”

He sighed. “Because she was no longer the hero they wanted her to be. She’d crossed a line they wouldn’t forgive.”

“What was that?”

The truth, he wanted so badly to share it with his sister, his family. “They didn’t want her to kill Swann.”

“Why?”

“Treaties, fear, take your pick. In the end, they couldn’t trust her to play along with their games so she was sent to the darkest hole they could find and Lance was removed.”

The two siblings faced each other. Tal watched Jaya take in the information that the people she swore to protect might turn on her. She then left him alone without any more questions.

Tal sat there, alone, thinking about what Anna said back on Theron and the mystery of Chara.

For as long as he’d known her she’d always been rational, studious, and calculating. It was always about finesse, and precision, whereas he’d preferred more direct approaches. He’d been the emotion-fueled berserker, diving headfirst into the fray. Where she’d been the cold-blooded agent, taking calculated risks, trying in vain to keep him in line. Then again, a lot could change in five years.

Upon reflection, it felt almost as if they’d switched roles. He’d shut himself off from the world. The last time he’d seen her prior to Theron she’d made a decision that had placed them at odds for the first time in years. She’d hidden it from him, and that hurt worse than the fact she’d defied the Council.

He pulled out the vial, the one she’d stolen from the Souri. It was a about half the size of his thumb, with a light blue liquid trapped inside. He sloshed it around thoughtfully. Do the secrets ever stop, he wondered as he slowly tilted the vial back and forth between his fingers.

“Any idea what this is?” he quietly consulted Allie.

It is not so much an antidote as a cure to a disease. There are reports of a type of plague that has spread on a few remote planets. No official reports have been made, but there is a substantially high mortality rate.

“Why would the Souri be interested in it?”

You would have to ask one of them but, judging from the way you left things on Theron, they will not be taking our calls anytime soon. I found no mention of it in any of their logs while we were there.

“Wait, you went through their files without permission?”

I got bored. Besides I was not under any impression I was forbidden, she answered.

He chuckled as he imagined the sly grin on her face.

“Then I suppose I’ll just have to wait for Anna to wake up,” he remarked, tucking the vial back into the breast pocket of his coat.

“You won’t have to wait long,” she rasped. Tal sat up in his seat, startled by the response.

“Hey,” he said as comfortingly as possible.

“Hey,” she replied with a weak smile.

Without thinking about it his right hand reached out to grasp hers. For a moment, his thumb lightly caressed the top of it. Then, just as quickly, he retreated his hand back to his side.

A moment of awkward silence passed. Anna cleared her throat. “You wanted to ask me something?” A groan escaped through gritted teeth as she sat up to face him.

“Yeah.” He took a deep breath. “Have you always snored like a chainsaw?” he joked, taking a moment to break the tension.

Her laugh, while weak, managed to lift his spirits. Then she winced, and it brought him back to reality.

Tal took a preparatory breath before asking, “Who’s Chara?”

“You tell me,” she replied.

“You kept repeating the name over and over after you were shot,” he replied, not wanting the moment to slip away.

Anna sighed in defeat. “She’s... someone important to me.”

Her eyes locked onto his. He wanted to get lost in their emerald stare. “Do you trust me?” she asked.

“I’d say yes, but you did just threaten to leave me on an ice planet.”

“I know, and I’m sorry. I should have told you, but I didn’t know if you’d even want to help me.”

“I get it, I do, but still,” he paused before flashing a disarming smile. “You’re not exactly convincing me I can trust you.”

“I wish it could have happened differently, but even if they helped us, they could have insisted on waiting to make more? Or, they’d expect another favor in return. I’d lost enough time as it was, trust was not exactly a high priority.”

Tal leaned forward so that his forearms rested against his legs. His smile faded. “And if you’d gotten yourself killed?” he asked while shaking his head in disbelief.

She looked at him grimly. “At least I would have tried.”

An exhale of frustration exited his lungs as he sat back up. His fingers ran over his orange hair.

“Fine. Tell me where to go.”

Hope flickered behind her eyes, then is immediately hidden away as she laid back against the bed. “Alexandria Quadrant. 1623, 4842.”

“Get some rest, Allie will let you know when we’re there,” he announced. The chair screeched lightly on the floor as he pushed it away. His hand pressed against the door pad, it flashed green, and slid open. He could feel her eyes watching him as he exited the room; he risked on last glance as the door closed.

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