Astraya stepped aside, and the marine stepped past, reaching into a compartment on his harness to withdraw a canister of nanites.

  “Computer says you need this, Ma’am.”

  As she accepted the canister from his hands, Peony scrambled to pull herself together. Commanding a company of marines, and defending a ship weren’t exactly part of her job description.

  Nor, she thought sourly, Is liaising with an Odyssey agent.

  “We’re not that bad,” Astraya put in mischievously, showing she had a deeper connection through Peony’s implant than the tech had realized.

  “Get out of my head,” she snarled, and looked at the marine. “What’s the plan?”

  “The Calliope informs us you carry gel modifications that will allow the hull to repair itself in atmospheric conditions?" he asked.

  “I do,” Peony allowed cautiously.

  “Then the captain thinks this would be a better solution than electrifying the hull,” he informed her. “We let them…”

  Peony’s eyes widened and she finished the idea for him.

  “We let them cut through, and allow the gel to close the gap.”

  His visor hid the marine’s eyes, but she saw his mouth tighten.

  “Exactly, Ma’am. He’d like us to start on the upper deck, and he’d like the Odyssey agent—”

  “Where he can see me?” Astraya asked, raising her eyebrows at him.

  This time a flush of color rose up his neck.

  “Yes…Ma’am,” he managed, and Astraya gave him a broad grin, and started down the corridor.

  “Then let’s not keep the nice man waiting.”

  Peony stifled a smile as his lips twisted with consternation, and decided she couldn’t upset him any further. She pointed to the blaster hanging at his waist.

  “Can I…” she began, and he slapped a hand over the weapon.

  “Not for civilian use,” he snapped, slapping a hand over it and pivoting to stalk back down the corridor, calling to Astraya as he turned down a side corridor. “This way, Ma’am.”

  Peony clapped a hand over her mouth as she heard him mutter, “Wouldn’t want to lose sight of you, now, would we, Odyssey bein’ what it is an’ all…”

  If he noticed her action, he didn’t comment, but kept a brisk pace until they reached the elevator.

  “Captain says hurry,” he began, stepping inside. “Something about a scan your ship couldn’t stop.”

  The elevator started to rise.

  “Probably a life-form check,” Astraya said knowingly. She caught the look Peony shot her. “It’s what Odyssey would do…”

  Carver gave her a look of distaste, and filled in the rest, “Right before they hit us with a blast of—”

  The ship shuddered and the elevator stopped.

  “—something to knock out the electronics,” the marine finished sourly. “Assholes.”

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  “Hey!” Astraya protested. “I resemble that remark.”

  “Yup,” the marine agreed, reaching up to unlatch the escape hatch in the elevator’s ceiling. “No offense, Ma’am.”

  He turned to Peony, then stooped, cupping his hands.

  “Looks like we’ll be climbing the rest of the way,” he informed her. “I sure hope your Calliope is shielded.”

  “Indeed, we are,” the ship replied through their implants.

  Peony froze.

  I’ve never heard the Calliope use that voice, before, she thought as she received an unceremonious boost from below, and tumbled onto the elevator roof.

  Carver’s “Move your ass!” was followed by a belated, “…Ma’am,” as Astraya’s head appeared in the hatchway behind her.

  “Calliope?” Peony asked, scrambling to her feet and looking for the ladder.

  A strip of light lit it up.

  “That’s not all we shielded,” said another voice. This one, too, sounded Calliope, but not, and then it gave a very un-Calliope-like snicker, before ordering, “Climb!”

  Just how many clones had the ship made of itself? Peony mused, And how am I going to deal with them all?

  “Don’t worry,” replied the Calliope voice she was used to. “There are only four of me, now, and that should be sufficient.”

  The ship rocked again, and she gave an uncharacteristic snarl.

  “That left a mark. I’m going to need you to get the gel up to the observation deck, and—”

  “How about right now!” the first Calliope snapped. “Here, let me make it easier.”

  The gravity around them lightened as Carver emerged on Astraya’s heels, and Peony sprang for the ladder.

  “Move it, Sugartits!” came a fourth Calliope voice, and the original Calliope sighed.

  “That’s Callie,” she said. “She’s our marine liaison, and the one responsible for infiltrating the shuttles’ control systems. I’m afraid the mercenaries haven’t been the best of influences.”

  “Now’s not the time for chit-chat,” the second Calliope snapped. “I’m up to my data stacks in coding violations. We need that breach sealed and someone…” A small light lit Astraya’s face, then flicked to Carver. “…removing the hacksess point they’ve made on the obs deck!”

  “Callistemon,” the Calliope said by way of introduction. “Systems security and counter-offense.”

  “The only thing I’m finding offensive,” Callistemon retorted, “Is that the smart-ass battle cruiser keeps going for its torpedo tubes every time it thinks my back is turned!”

  “You hacked the battle cruiser?” Peony felt a little faint.

  “Well…duh…” the Callistemon snarked. “Callie’s got the shuttles, but wrangling three of them’s a bit of a stretch when you’re figuring out which words are instructions and which ones are just cursing, especially if you want to keep their weapons systems locked down, their doors closed, and remove the air from their compartments, while landing them somewhere. I get the battleship. It’s only fair.”

  “Next time, it’s your turn to take the motherfucking shuttles,” Callie told her. “If Odyssey didn’t want them retrievable and their occupants alive, I’d just put them into the nearest cliff.”

  “No!” Peony objected. “They’re colony assets, and we need them intact or we won’t get anything from their re-sale.”

  “You’re not selling all of them,” Callie told her. “One of these little suckers is my next shell!”

  “Uh…” Peony didn’t know what to say to that, and was saved from having to think about it by the nudge of a blaster rifle muzzle from below.

  “Payment for services rendered,” Callie explained, just as the marine nudged Peony, again.

  “You stuck?” Carver demanded irritably. “Because, Ma’am, I really don’t want to have to carry you.”

  “No…No, I’m fine,” Peony hastily answered and resumed climbing.

  “Keep going up,” the lieutenant instructed. “Obs deck is two levels up.”

  Stifling a groan, Peony kept moving, glad she’d hit the gym every day, in spite of the amusement it had caused the crew.

  “As if you needed to keep fit in space…”

  Well, now, you know, she thought, forcing her hands and feet to keep moving. Although I’m not sure there is a routine that could have made me ready for this.

  The ship shook, and the sound of sporadic firing came from one of the corridors they’d just passed.

  “You’ll need to get a batch of nanites to that, as well,” came Calliope-voice Number 3.

  “Calico,” the Calliope told her. “Oversight and resource prioritization.”

  “And don’t either of you forget it,” Calico reminded them. “Now, if you’d please hurry. You are needed in multiple places at once, and I don’t believe that’s a human capability.”

  Peony reached the final level, and the doors opened ahead of her. Rather than wait for another prod from Carver and his rifle muzzle, Peony scrambled through, taking cover at the next intersection and letting the marine take point.

  He crouched just in front of her, taking a quick check at the intersection and cursing softly as their HUDs were inundated with a rapidly shifting set of images.

  “You got me?” Callie demanded, when they slowed, and he waved a hand.