Diggs had taken to exploring.

Not that there was much to explore in the compartment. Random piles of filth and trash not even she could find treasures in, yet Maggie encouraged it. Since his awakening he’d welded himself to her, and for a loner and borderline misanthrope like herself, it was an uncomfortable fit, but also it wasn’t healthy for him. She was in decent health, as Blye could attest, but she wasn’t getting any younger. What would happen to him when she was gone? Seeing him strive for a little independence, no matter how tentative, gave her peace of mind that he would be okay.

At least they’d all kept themselves occupied during the trip. She had her repairs, while the Knights spent a great deal of time training. The To’uuk had left them their swords, strangely enough, or maybe they were carefully hidden, but between those and the quarterstaffs they drilled for hours. The training utterly fascinated Diggs, as young boys often were by such things, and true to her word the Chevalier had taught him some basic moves. Maggie was glad to see that, too.

Might come a day when he’d need to defend himself, and she wouldn’t be around.

The Tinker looked up from the keyboard she was tapping away at as the young medic sat down beside her, her face glistening with a thin sheen of sweat. “Looks like the kid gave you a workout,” she chuckled.

“He’s enthusiastic, even though he’s still in the ‘Swing about wildly’ stage,” Blye chuckled...her eyes going wide a second later as her hand went to her belly.

“You all right?” Maggie asked.

“The baby just kicked,” she smiled, reaching for her hand. “Here...feel.”

“No, I’m good,” she protested, but the Troisième would have none of it. Her grip was strong as she placed the older woman’s hand on her stomach, taking a moment to find the right spot, and then keeping it there despite Maggie’s attempts to pull away. At first, there was nothing, but then…

“...oh…” she whispered, as she felt movement beneath her fingers. A familiar pang gripped at her heart, but Blye’s genuine warmth proved too strong for her armor. Another nudge from the child growing inside of her made both women blink, sharing a smile as the Tinker removed her hand at last.

“Don’t you worry about hurtin’ the baby, with all that swordplay?” she asked, needing to change the subject.

“Exercise is healthy,” the medic assured her. “The boys take it easy on me though, and I wear extra padding. Besides...women have been carrying children in all sorts of conditions for hundreds of thousands of years. We’re resilient.”

“I reckon that’s so,” Maggie drawled. The entire conversation was uncomfortable for her, but the time spent in their company...not to mention how Diggs had bonded with her...had chipped away at her inhibitions about kids. “Though I can’t help wonderin’...”

A tremor rippled through the deck, more sensed than felt, as Maggie froze. “Drive’s off,” she blurted out, getting to her feet, as the others looked at her in confusion. “Means we’re in a system.” Another deep thrum reverberated along the hull, as she nodded in confirmation. “Maneuvering thrusters,” she explained. “We’re landing for sure.”

Diggs was at her side in a heartbeat, clinging to her as he stared in silence. “Gonna be okay, kid,” she told him, as the orderlies came forward.

“Does that mean we’re leaving the ship?” Joona asked.

“Don’t know for sure, but it’s likely,” Maggie confirmed. “They want us off, but they won’t go too far out of their way to do it. Either way...get ready to move.”

Blye considered their options and decided. “You heard her...make sure everything’s packed and ready to travel.” She glanced back at the Tinker. “How much time do we have?”

“Half hour, forty-five minutes?” she guessed. “More, if they get shunted to a parking orbit. Not likely though...most worlds don’t care for the To’uuk any more than we do. They’ll want to show ‘em the door quick as they can.”

“Right then. Let’s get to it.” The Knights went straight to work, packing away anything loose and locking up the cargo containers. The trash they left behind, as Maggie double-checked the equipment she’d been working on, ensuring access panels were reattached and her tools were safely stored, before turning her attention to Diggs.

“Now we’re gonna be leavin’ soon, so I want you to do the same as before,” she told him. “You hold on tight, you only look down, and you stay with me. Understand?” The boy nodded, his small frame already trembling in apprehension as Maggie sighed and pulled him close. “It’s gonna be fine,” she vowed, stroking his hair.

They could hear more sounds and vibrations as the ship descended, until one final thump banged the metal beneath their feet, as the humming ceased. “We’re down,” Maggie said. “Won’t be long now.” Her eyebrows raised as she saw the Knights on one knee in prayer...each one holding a quarterstaff. When the finished their benediction and rose she looked at them curiously. “Y'all expectin’ trouble?”

“Just preparing for it, should the need arise,” Blye answered.

“You take out a bug, gonna be the last thing you ever do,” she warned.

They cut her reply off as the hatch slid open, revealing a squad of aliens waiting in the corridor. “It is time for you vermin to depart,” the leader ordered, clicking at her as its voder translated.

Maggie was prepped and ready. With her head bowed...after making certain Diggs’ was too...she went straight into her bootlicking routine. “Mighty warrior, this most unworthy creature hears and obeys.” The humans filed out of the compartment as the guards fell in around them, their scaly bodies pressing close as she held the boy by her side.

So many questions filled her head. Where were they going? What kind of world were they being dumped on? There were some real doozies out there, nightmare planets where human life was worth less than nothing. If they’d landed on one of those…

Once again, they were marched through the looping halls of their To’uuk vessel until their escort came to a halt at the main hatch. It took Maggie a moment to realize the aliens were all staying well clear of the entryway, and once the portal cycled open she saw why.

The sunlight flowing through the opening was a brilliant blue-white, blinding them after a week in near dark conditions. If this was a Class B or A-type star, high in ultraviolet, no wonder the infrared-loving bugs were standing clear.

“Leave,” the head bug ordered, raising a spiked arm and pointing into the harsh light.

Don’t need to tell me twice, Maggie thought to herself, as she bowed to the To’uuk officer. “We lowly creatures hear, and obey,” she answered, bobbing her head, gripping Diggs tightly as she led him down the ramp, shielding her eyes from the harsh sunlight with her free hand.

Reaching the ground she squinted hard, taking in her surroundings. It looked like a desert world, and what few structures she could see were dilapidated and in need of repair. The ship had landed at what appeared to be a remote auxiliary spaceport, which was odd. If this was their original destination, where was the cargo they’d come to pick up? The passengers? Where were the agents and dock workers waiting to take delivery?

The acid in her stomach seethed as she hissed through her teeth. “I got me a bad feelin’ about this place,” she murmured.

Blye appeared at her side. “Where are we?” she asked.

“No idea,” Maggie shook her head, “but I suppose it might be…”

“....look out!” Prash shouted, slamming into the trio and throwing them to the ground. The Tinker woofed when he knocked out the wind of her, echoing what she’d done to Diggs back on Azhakom, as she heard the whine-crack of a particle beam rifle. The Knights were already up and moving, while she covered the young boy with her body as best she could.

“Rogue! Rogue!” Joona screamed, charging the ship with his staff at the ready, as a bug scuttled down the ramp to meet him, firing yet again, missing the Sixième by several meters. It had to be all but blind in the actinic light, and rogue bugs weren’t known for their self-control.

The To’uuk screeched as it fired a third time, the blast atomizing a patch of ground only a short distance from where Maggie and Diggs were hugging the dirt...but in the time it had taken the alien to let loose three bursts, Joona had closed the distance. With a move worthy of his teacher he knocked the weapon from its grip, sending it flying, as he whipped the other end of his staff around for a strike against the bug’s head.

It rocked the creature, catching it off guard, but it wasn’t the killing blow the orderly had hoped for. Its armored carapace sent the staff skittering aside...and now, despite the glaring sun overheard blinding it, it knew where Joona was. With another screech like fingernails on slate it leapt at him, driving its bulbous abdomen towards his belly. Too late he recognized the danger, trying to dodge clear...but the heavy creature slammed into him, knocking him off his feet and pinning his struggling body to the tarmac as it jammed its stinger into his flesh.

Joona howled in agony while the demonic creature injected him with its poison just as Prash reached his side, leaping and kicking the bug clear...but Blye was thinking two moves ahead. She’d swerved to the left at the last second, grabbing the rifle Joona had knocked away and socked it into her shoulder, taking a moment to familiarize herself with the awkward weapon, before taking aim and firing.

The top half of the bug disintegrated, exploding in a geyser of tissue and fluids as it toppled over to its side. Maggie risked raising her head, not looking at the Knights, but back at the ship. Should any of its buddies avenge its death they were doomed, but no more To’uuk came down the ramp. She glimpsed one staring back at her...the officer, she guessed...before the hatch slammed shut with a loud clang.

Rolling off her young charge, Maggie checked him for injuries. “You hurt anywhere?” she asked in a panic, as he stared at her wide-eyed. They were both okay as far as she could tell, but the poor kid had been traumatized all over again, that much was certain.

They’d deal with that later. “Come on,” she urged him, climbing to her feet as the pair stumbled over to rejoin the Knights. Blye and Prash were kneeling beside their fallen comrade as Joona convulsed, his eyes only showing white as they rolled back into his head.

“To’uuk stingers are loaded with a powerful neurotoxin,” she informed them, rising her feet and facing the ship. “Give us our supplies!” she shrieked at the vessel. “If I can get to our gear I can save him!”

The only answer she received was a thundering rumble, as the ship’s engines came online, spewing smoke and flames from the exhaust as it lifted.

“Fuck me to hell!” Maggie screamed, “RUN!” She grabbed Diggs so hard she yanked him off his feet, sprinting to put as much distance as possible between them and the spacecraft. Blye and Prash were right on their heels, each grabbing one of Joona’s arms and dragging him across the terrain as the humans raced for their lives.

The To’uuk vessel roared with power as it rose into the sky, the shockwave smashing them to the ground and blasting them from the landing site, rolling and tumbling until they came to rest as the ship disappeared into the heavens.

Hacking out a mouthful of dust Maggie crawled to where Diggs lay, frantically checking him for injuries once again. He struggled to sit up, his chest wracked with coughs as he fought to clear the dirt from his lungs. Neither of them seemed to have broken anything, thank God, and she hugged him tight as he whimpered into her chest.

It was several minutes later when he dared to look up at her. “Come on,” she said, “we gotta check on the others.” The boy thought about that for a moment and then nodded, the pair helping one another to stand, as they staggered over to where the Knights had gathered. Prash was cradling his arm, obviously fractured, while Blye bent over the poisoned form of Joona, his convulsions growing weaker and less pronounced.

“Can you help him?” Maggie asked...as the medic shook her head.

“Not without our supplies,” she answered.

“No...I mean…there’s gotta be something you can do!” the Tinker said in desperation.

“...just one thing,” she whispered, as she slipped a small blade from her boot. Blye looked over at the older woman and young boy and closed her eyes. “You should go check out those buildings,” she said quietly. “We’ll join you shortly.”

Maggie shuddered, and then looked away. “Yeah…” she said hoarsely, “reckon we should. Come on kid...nothin’ more to see here.” She tugged at his arm, but he was rooted to the spot, staring at the young Knight who had befriended him, before looking back up at her, his mismatched eyes pleading with her to make it all better.

“Come on,” she said once again, “we got a job to do...and so do they.” This time he followed alongside her, trying to turn his head as she yanked on his arm.

“...you don’t want to be looking back there, kid,” she whispered. “Trust me.”

Behind them, she heard Blye offer a prayer to Mother Terra…

...a thump…

...a soft cry…

...and then nothing, but the desert wind.