Planet Eaters (Galaxy Mavericks Book 8) Read online

  “Then fight.”

  “Thing is, I don't know how.”

  “You've never fired a gun?” Devika asked.

  Eddie rubbed his head.

  “Fine,” Devika said. “I'll show you.”

  She pulled out her handcoil, ejected the magazine, and unloaded its needle-like bullets onto the dashboard. She motioned him to come.

  Eddie approached, his eyes on the bullets.

  “They're not going to hurt you,” Devika said.

  This guy was too scared. She wouldn't be able to trust him with a gun. Not yet.

  “This is a standard issue handcoil,” Devika said. “These are nine millimeter needle bullets. They're electromagnetically charged and they rip through a target.”

  She handed him the empty gun. He took it gingerly, as if he might accidentally drop it. Then he pointed it at the windshield.

  Instinctively, Devika pulled the gun down.

  “Are you crazy?” she asked. “You want to depressurize the ship and kill all of us?”

  Eddie’s eyes widened.

  “Never point it at something you don't wish destroyed,” Devika said. “Gun rule number one.”

  Eddie gulped and nodded.

  “To load the magazine, you insert the needles—like this—with the needles facing the nose of the gun. Then you load it the magazine, wait for the click, disengage the safety, aim, and shoot. Got it?”

  “Uh…”

  “You have time to practice,” Devika said. “That’ll be your homework.”

  Eddie practiced unloading and loading the gun. Once he loaded it the third time, Devika took it and hooked it on her belt.

  “Hey, I wasn't done,” Eddie said.

  “You have to learn fast when you're traveling with me,” Devika said. “Things happen quickly.”

  Eddie looked out the window longingly.

  “Yeah, they do.”

  The radio beeped.

  “This is Romeo Beauregard of the Galactic Guard. State your location.”

  Devika put on her headset.

  “This is Special Agent Devika Sharma. There are five of us on board, and we’re all safe.”

  “Glad to hear it,” Beauregard said. “Maintain your present location. We’ll come and meet you.”

  “Got it.”

  Devika disconnected from the radio.

  “Told you things happen fast,” she said.

  Eddie practiced loading a pretend gun.

  “I’ll be ready,” he said.

  Michiko found the canteen, a small circular room in the middle of the ship.

  Her legs ached and her stomach growled.

  She opened the refrigerator.

  It was stocked with water and fruit—apples and oranges.

  She sighed.

  Then she moved around the kitchen, opening all the drawers until she found a can of tuna and crackers.

  Groaning, she popped the tab on the tuna and scooped it out with a fork onto a paper plate. She mixed in some lemon juice and she ate.

  Tasted like rubber.

  But it tasted better than nothing.

  She sat on the kitchen counter, eating quietly. A black wisp caught her eye—Clark was swirling around the kitchen.

  Michiko guarded her tuna.

  Clark approached, his red eye blinking slowly.

  “Get your own,” Michiko said.

  Then she looked down at the can of tuna, and back at Clark.

  “Oh, okay,” she said, offering the can.

  With a menacing bite, Clark ate the can of tuna, and it disappeared within his insides.

  Michiko stared at him curiously.

  “So what’s your story, Clark?” she asked. “Why did you get separated from the rest of your kind?”

  Clark swirled in place, looking at her.

  “It doesn’t make any sense, you know,” she said. “How an alien like you can end up away from your pack. Did you run away?”

  Clark blinked.

  “Did they kick you out? Did you do something bad?”

  Clark blinked again.

  “Where are you from?”

  Clark pooled on the ground like a galaxy of black smoke.

  “Well, I’m from the planet Asiazil,” Michiko said. “And I don’t know if I’ll ever go back. I kinda made a really big mistake. I lied to my parents about dropping out of nursing school and I hid it from them for a long time. They almost died because of me. If that stupid Florian had his way, they would be dead right now. I can’t even begin to think of an apology.”

  Michiko nodded to Clark. “So if you did something bad and got expelled from your home, just know that I understand you completely.”

  Clark burped.

  “Do you have friends, Clark?”

  Silence.

  “Guess not, huh? You Planet Eaters seem like a race that sticks together, though. Surely you have someone who must be missing you right now. Even though you’re a different race than me, I refuse to believe you don’t have feelings of some kind. We all deserve friends, you know?”

  Her stomach churned, but this time from sadness as she remembered three smiling faces.

  “I lost three friends,” Michiko said. “I guess I could say that your race killed them, Clark. But you didn’t so I’m not mad at you. But they died for no reason, and it wasn’t fair.”

  She felt heavy, like an anchor. She didn’t even know if she could move. Every time she thought of Rudy, Ashley and Hassan, she wanted to vomit.

  “I’m going to stop Florian,” Michiko said. “I don’t care what it takes.”

  Silence.

  “The people who rescued me seem really nice, don’t they?” she asked. “I haven't figured them all out yet, but I think we’ll get along. I think we’ll get along just fine.”

  Clark swirled away, hugging the wall as he exited the canteen.

  “Thanks for listening,” she said, rolling her eyes. “We’ll have to work on your conversational skills.”

  Clark disappeared.

  “Don’t eat anything else!” she shouted. “Absolutely no carbon dioxide, oxygen, nitrogen, or any other building block of life, you hear me?”

  But Clark was gone.

  Michiko sighed. She grabbed another can of tuna from the fridge and ate it, trying to ignore the rubbery flavor.

  “I’m tired of repeating myself,” Keltie said. “I said go away.”

  Keltie sat on a bunk bed in her small living quarters, looking out at the stars.

  For the last two minutes, she had been trying to get rid of Grayson.

  But he knocked on the door again.

  “Listen, Keltie, why don’t we talk this out?”

  She pursed her lips.

  “Do you even understand why I’m mad?”

  Grayson went quiet.

  “Exactly,” she said.

  “Hey, hey,” Grayson said. “You didn’t even give me a chance to respond!”

  “Then respond,” she said.

  “I should’ve warned you about the Planet Eater thing,” he said. “I know it brings back hard memories. I’m sorry, and for what it’s worth…”

  As Grayson spoke, she swung off the bed and walked to the door. She ignored his speech.

  She placed her door on the handle, tried to gather herself, do everything she could to stop from exploding.

  Then she whipped the door open.

  Grayson’s eyes widened.

  “You’re so wrong it’s not even funny,” she said.

  Grayson gasped.

  “You’re sorry for not warning me?” she asked. Her voice was quiet but angry. “Thanks for your consideration.”

  Grayson rubbed his head.

  “Uh, I guess I'll stop talking, then.”

  “I guess you forgot that those aliens destroyed an entire planet and killed my best friend in front of my eyes,” she said. “They're the reason I can't sleep, they're the reason I can't do anything other than be here on this journey because I want to avenge Claire. So when you bring one
of them on board and expect me to be happy, and then apologize and completely miss the point—”

  “Did I?” Grayson asked.

  She paused.

  “Did I miss the point?” he asked. He pointed down the hallway. “Okay, so I blew it. But maybe this is an opportunity. Maybe it's a chance to find some answers.”

  Keltie leaned against the doorframe, her arms folded.

  “Who knows,” Grayson said. “Maybe we’ll be able to use Clark to find the mother colony and wipe those things out. But if we expel him, we’ll never know. I don't want to take that chance, do you?”

  “I'm just not ready for this.”

  “None of us are,” Grayson said. “And I still deserve a slap, I suppose. But we've got to work together, right?”

  SLAP!

  Grayson’s cheek stung and he looked at Keltie, flabbergasted.

  She was grinning.

  “I was just going to give you the cold shoulder,” she said. “But since you suggested—wow, that was really cathartic.”

  Grayson rubbed his cheek.

  “Glad I could be of service,” he said.

  “Just be a little more considerate,” she said. “Because we all know Devika won't.”

  “Deal,” he said. “Are we good, then?”

  She brushed past him, close enough that they almost touched.

  “I'm still not letting you off the hook about what happened on your ship.”

  Grayson thought for a moment, then smiled.

  “You talking about the kiss?”

  “No, the lack thereof.”

  “Ha,” Grayson said. “I was waiting to do it after one of those damsel in distress moments.”

  “Keep waiting,” Keltie said, waving her hand as she walked toward the bridge. “Because it's a girl’s world.”

  “Let’s level set,” Devika said.

  Everyone was on the bridge now, gathered around Devika, who straddled the pilot’s chair.

  Grayson and Keltie leaned against the wall. Eddie sat on a railing, balancing himself. Michiko sat on the floor, eating a can of tuna, and Clark hovered over her.

  “First, our target is Florian,” Devika said. “We've got to find him at—”

  Michiko cleared her throat.

  “What?” Devika asked.

  “We’re a team, right?” Michiko asked. “Kind of hard to be a team if I don't know everyone, right?”

  “Make introductions on your own time,” Devika said.

  “I barely know your name!” Michiko said. “For the longest time, I thought you were Lara Stella.”

  Devika sighed.

  “She has a point,” Eddie said. “Nobody ever starts building a house with the roof first, you know?”

  Everyone stared at Eddie, and he shrugged.

  “Heh heh, guess it sounds better in Spanish,” Eddie said.

  Michiko sprang up.

  “Okay, let's do an activity,” she said, smiling. “Everyone introduce yourself, where you're from, what brings you here, and…just because it'll be hilarious to listen to, answer this question: would you rather win a billion dollars or get fifteen IQ points added to your mental capacity?”

  Grayson laughed. “Man, you're a bundle of energy.”

  “A bundle that is going to get deposited at the next space station,” Devika said.

  “Lighten up, Devika,” Grayson said. “We’re killing time right now anyway.”

  A voice inside Devika's head told her to relax, to calm down and let things take their course.

  But she couldn't listen to it. There was so much at stake. She didn't have time for silly games!

  She started to speak, but Michiko interrupted her.

  “I know you want to talk business,” Michiko said. “but if I'm going to be on a spaceship with all of you guys, no offense, but I want to know if you're ax murderers.”

  “Axes are so three centuries ago,” Keltie said. “I prefer poison. It never goes out of style. And you never see it coming.”

  “Well-played,” Michiko said. “And that means you get the honor of going first!”

  Keltie stepped away from the wall and stepped toward the center of the group.

  “I'm Keltie Sheffield. I'm from Macalestern. Up until a couple of days ago, I was employed as an interplanetary real estate agent, selling luxury to the richest people in the galaxy. Life was great until the Planet Eaters destroyed the planet I was selling. And now I'm here. As for the question, I would take the billion dollars, no questions asked.”

  “Mmm,” Michiko said. “You sure?”

  “Positive. I'd use it to pay down my debt. With my job, you never know when the money will come. And considering I don't have a job right now, I'd really need the cash.”

  “Fair enough,” Michiko said.

  “I'll go,” Grayson said, saluting. “Name’s Grayson McCoy. I was active Galactic Guard until a few days ago. I'm from Provenance, our galaxy’s windy capital. I'm here because of Keltie.”

  Grayson nudged Keltie and she nudged him back.

  “Oooh, are you two an item?” Michiko asked.

  Grayson and Keltie both looked at each other and blushed.

  “I'll take that as a yes,” Michiko said.

  “And to your question,” Grayson said, “I would take the IQ.”

  “You're just saying that because I said the opposite,” Keltie said.

  “I'd use the new IQ points to devise a scheme to make two billion dollars,” Grayson said, tapping his temple with his pointer finger. “You can keep your chumpy billion, girl. Hell, I might even make three billion with the right idea…”

  Michiko pointed to Devika. “Dev! You're up!”

  Devika folded her arms.

  “You have to participate!” Michiko said. “It's the rule.”

  “It's my ship. I make the rules,” Devika said.

  “Not right now you don't,” Michiko said, frowning. Then she brightened. “Come on. Share your story with us.”

  “There's no story to tell,” Devika said.

  “Everyone has a story to tell,” Michiko said. “Even the guy who won the Guinness Book of Records for Most Boring Person.”

  Eddie tilted his head. “Wait, there's an award for that?”

  Michiko winked at him.

  “Ah, I get it,” Eddie said. “You're just making it up to convince her to share something.”

  Michiko shushed him.

  “Devika Sharma,” Devika said. “From Bartholomew IV. Hunting Florian. No answer to your silly little question.”

  “Well that was rude,” Michiko said. “Bartholomew IV, huh? Were you there when—”

  “Next person,” Devika said. “Don't even start.”

  “So you were there when—”

  “Next. Person. Now.”

  Eddie jumped off the railing and wiped his hands on his jeans.

  “Eddie Puente. Nice to meet you guys. I was born on a little backwater planet in the Zachary Empire, but I call my home—or what's left of it—Refugio these days. I've got a son, a wife, two loving parents and an incredible abuela, and Florian kidnapped them. I just want them back, that's all. I'd give anything to be back on my garbage route, pretending none of this ever happened. But I'm gonna fight. And I'm gonna stop Florian. Whatever it takes.”

  “That's so sad,” Michiko said. “Why did he take your family?”

  “Long story,” Eddie said.

  “Okay,” Michiko said, giving him a knowing nod. “What about the question?”

  “I'd take the money,” Eddie said. “These days, money is IQ. Plus, gotta pay off the planetary debt my family owes from buying Refugio.”

  “And then there was me!” Michiko said. “I'm Michiko Lins, and I am from the sunny, windy, flowery planet of Asiazil. I was a volunteer with the Galaxy Corps before I got mixed up with Florian, and I'll spare you guys the details, but I'm doing this to avenge three friends. I won't be able to live with myself until I do. And to answer my own fabulous question, I would take five hundred millio
n and seven and a half IQ points. No one said that was against the rules. Best of both worlds!”

  She gestured to Clark, who was swirling next to her.

  “And this, my friends, is Clark. I have no idea what actual race of alien he is, where he's from, or even why he's here. And I won't even begin to guess how he would answer my question…”

  The group laughed.

  “Over to you, Devika,” Michiko said.

  “Finally,” Devika said. “Listen up, everyone. The Galactic Guard is on their way to meet us. We’re after Florian Macalestern and Florian Macalestern only.”

  “Speaking of which,” Keltie said, “do we have any leads on his current location?”

  Everyone shrugged.

  At that moment, a large Galactic Guard rescue ship blinked out of hyperspace and overshadowed the warship.

  Beauregard spoke through the radio.

  “This is Beauregard. We’ll connect with your ship. Make ready for our boarding.”

  2

  “Hurry up, you idiots, before the Galactic Guard finds us.”

  Florian Macalestern shifted in the seat of his escape pod. His leather chair creaked, and his shoulders rubbed against Huxley’s and Tatiana’s.

  Hux, broad-shouldered to a fault, pulled his arms closer to his chest. Tatiana, who smelled like strong perfume, and not in a good way, moved away and sighed. Her hair was frizzing and it rubbed against Florian’s cheek.

  All around them, henchmen in white suits shifted uncomfortably. They were piled into the pod like clowns in a clown car.

  The place smelled like a college dorm.

  “How hard can it be to find a hunk of metal in the middle of space?” Florian asked, agitated.

  He was getting very, very tired of sitting, stewing, brewing in his henchmens’ juices.

  “Sort of like a needle in a haystack, boss,” Hux said, scratching his forehead. “Figuratively speaking.”

  Brute!

  He didn't need sarcasm right now!

  “I'm sure the men are doing their best to find us,” Tatiana said. “They do have a hand tied behind their back, Flo. They have to search for us manually.”

  “It's called a scanner,” Florian said. “It was all laid out for them when we discussed it. We were supposed to kill those intruders when they invaded my ship. That didn't work, so we were supposed to self-destruct the ship. Now you are telling me that the intruders are alive and the damn ship didn't self-destruct! What's next? What other bad news should I brace myself for?”