Broken Flyght – Chapter 1

It’s time to confess. I can’t hold back this secret any longer from the crew, and the longer I keep quiet, the more anxious I get. I am entrusting these people with my life and my safety. We’re partners in this adventure, and they deserve to know.

I swallow hard, and my neck sweats as three pairs of eyes stare up at me. Wait. Make that four. Hedwig, the brown chicken, has wandered into the room as well.

“What’s up, boss?” Carlos, our resident tech expert in all his sixteen-year-old glory, hesitates as he assesses my mood. “You look a little pale.”

How long have I been standing here trying to talk myself into this?

Probably too long.

“Vivian?” Skylar interrupts, insistent. “Spit it out. We’ve only got an hour before we reach Customs.”

Our ship, the Amagi, is racing through the fabricated wormhole between the Californikos System we just left and our home, the Brazilianos System. Soon, we’ll be at the end jump ring and on our way to sit in line and be inspected.

Time is ticking away, Vivian.

“Okay,” I say, more to myself than to those watching. “Okay. So, I believe I’ve come up with a way to solve our cash flow issues.”

Marcelo, my relationship broker, the man who is here to find me husbands and consorts of my own, raises his eyebrows. This is his signature expression. “We discussed a few options the other day. What did you come up with?”

I blink as I remember what we talked about, breeding designer animals. Lia, the person I put in charge of our current pig shipping situation, and all-around helpful crew mate, would love to breed designer animals I’m sure, but…

“It’s nothing we spoke of already.”

My nervousness has tied up my tongue, and I don’t know how to start. Then the condiments on the table catch my attention. I jump forward to grab Dad’s hot sauce and hold it up.

“You want to make hot sauce and sell it?” Skylar’s eyebrows match Marcelo’s now. She’s dubious.

“Not just any hot sauce, though. You see…” I take a seat across from them. “I used to think my dad made all of those trips to Rio for fun, you know? Backpacking with friends. Getting drunk without my mom around. But… but it turns out he was a lot more adventurous than I gave him credit for.”

I set the bottle down on the table, and Lia’s eyes grow wide.

“There’s something in that hot sauce, right? It’s spiked?”

I nod slowly. “Before I left Ossun, Dad took me out into the woods and dug up a box full of seeds he’s been collecting for the last ten years. Seeds he discovered on Rio, in the jungles. And guys?” I laugh, letting the chuckle turn rueful. “You would not believe what some of these seeds do.”

I watch Skylar out of the corner of my eye, and her cheek flinches. There’s only one person in this room I need to accept this idea one-hundred percent, and it’s Skylar. She’s my cousin, she’s family, and she’s my best friend. She and I are in this together for the long-haul. Everyone else is temporary.

Her cheek twitch turns to a lopsided smile. “Like what? Are we talking like…” She waves her hand in the air. “Uppers, downers, and enhanced sexual drive? Stuff like that?”

“Wellllllll…” I drag out that one word until it’s long enough to stretch back to Palo Alto.

Her smile falls. “What then?”

I make eye contact with Marcelo. “What if I told you you could take a pill and de-age to your thirties?”

Marcelo sits back in his spot and folds his arms over his chest.

“What if I gave you a piece of candy that allowed you to read someone else’s mind?” I ask Carlos. His mouth drops open.

“What if I concocted an oil that when you used it in a bath, you could shapeshift into a cat? Or a bird? Or another person,” I ask Skylar. She guffaws. But I turn to Lia.

“I have the perfect tea for you to drink before bed, and when you sleep, you’ll dream of what will happen the next day.” I tap on the table. “And it will all come true.”

“You’re joking.” Carlos shakes his head.

“You don’t know Vivian like I do. When she’s this tongue-tied and nervous, she’s not joking,” Skylar says, her voice breathy and light. “Uncle Nuno hit the jackpot?”

I’m suddenly transported back to our family holiday parties, my dad standing around with the other dads and husbands, drinking hooch, and saying, “Someday I’m going to hit the jackpot. Just not this year.” They all laughed and toasted each other.

Shit. Have they all known about this hobby for years?

“Sky? It’s the fatherlode of jackpots.”

Carlos whistles, and Lia shakes her head.

“So, like, I could shapeshift into another person? That would make undercover work so much easier.” Carlos’s face brightens.

I hold up my hand. “I haven’t figured out how it works yet, so don’t quote me on that. There’s a lot of information in the database I have to sift through.”

Carlos’s eyes narrow. “What database?”

“One my dad made. It’s on Hecate —”

“It’s on the duonet?” he interrupts.

“Uh, yes? I think so?”

His eyes narrow further. “You have no idea what you’re talking about, do you?”

I shrug, trying not to roll my eyes. “Look, I really don’t understand how any of that stuff works.”

“Let’s get something straight. The duonet is where all the data goes between servers on all the Seven Worlds and more. Hecate is what we use to access it, okay? Hecate is not the duonet. It’s a gateway to it.” He stands up. “This is red-level, classified shit here. Nothing should be on the duonet.”

“It’s password protected!” I feel I need to defend Dad here who is even more clueless about technology than I am.

Carlos shakes his head. “Not good enough. If what you’re saying is true —”

“It is true,” I insist.

“Then we have to secure our data. No one should know about this but us. Athens Industries owns Hecate. They have a monopoly on the tech, but I can maneuver around that.”

I’m about to remind him that a good half of the ship runs on Athens Industries code between the systems and Ai. But I’ve seen his den of technology.

“What can you do?” I ask.

“Run my updates a whole lot faster. I’ve been trying to wean us off Hecate for six months. But I’m pulling the plug now, today.” He heads off to his den. “Come see me when you’re done! We need to download your data off the duonet!”

The room falls into silence after his departure. “Well, Carlos is in,” I say.

“I’m in too.” Skylar rubs her hands together. “This sounds like a juicy venture. So, what are we talking about here? Drinks, sauces, teas?”

Marcelo side-eyes her. “Before we get into the nitty-gritty details, I want to know what you’re thinking and what you have for plans already.”

I explain how I found everything, what most of the seeds do, and how I asked Ken Mata, my ex-boyfriend and head of Flyght, for help. Skylar’s smile falls when I mention Ken. She told me to stay away from him, and I asked him for help. But her tune changes when I mention the Diamond Flyght license he’s granted us.

“Yes!” She pumps her fist. “I knew we’d get it eventually!”

“That’s great news,” Marcelo says. He leans forward, ready to ask more, but Skylar interrupts him.

“Diamond. Level. I bet we can pick up some fancy clients within a day. No more pigs for you, Lia.”

Lia has been silent, in and out of the galley, for most of the conversation. She catches my attention when she places a cup of steaming coffee in front of me. I swear that she’s better at being a grandfather than my own grandfather was.

“You look tired,” she says, shrugging.

I can only imagine how I look. I’ve barely slept in the last four days. My voice is hoarse, and my eyes are made of sand. I keep trying to blink life back into them, but there’s nothing left to give.

“I’m exhausted, but I can’t sleep. There’s too much going on in my head.”

“I can see that. Can I get you anything else?”

“Nothing but your opinion. What do you think of this?”

“Me?” Lia presses her hand to her chest.

“Yes, you.” I glance at Marcelo, but he’s quiet and staring into space. Skylar is peering into Dad’s Happiest of Hot Sauces bottle like it has secrets just waiting to pop out and reveal themselves.

“Well, I love the Happiest of Hot Sauces.” She waves to Skylar and the bottle. “And I think lots of other people would like it too. But don’t you think it’ll be dangerous manufacturing and testing these strange things? Selling them?”

“Well, I figured I’d test them on myself.” I shrug and Marcelo grunts.

“Captain!” Lia gasps. “You’re our only source of income. What if you kill yourself? What if these seeds do awful things to you?”

The sixteen-year-olds are the only ones speaking sense around here because all I can think is, “So what?” It’s not like I have a death wish or anything. But I’m already up against major odds.

“Well…” I shrug. “I’m not going to test them on anyone else but myself, so that should answer your question.”

Lia stares at me for a full five seconds. “Somehow I knew that was the answer you were going to give.” She throws back her head with a laugh. “Captain, I won’t tell you not to do this. If the other things are anything like the hot sauce, you’ll make a million credits easy.”

I sink farther into my seat. “I need three point three million credits, Lia.”

“Then I guess we better get started soon.” She backs out of the room with a smile and a wave. She wants me to be careful, but ultimately, she approves.

Skylar slips the bottle of hot sauce into her pocket as she stands up. “Sounds like a great plan, Viv. Let me know when you need some beta testers.” She winks at me.

“You’re okay with this? I thought you’d disapprove.”

“Me? Disapprove? I’m no longer on my mother’s ship.” Her smile is wicked and sends shivers down my spine. I feel like her years of being careful are over. She’s always been a little reckless, but she kept on the conservative side to please her family. Now, with no one here to rein her in, Skylar is a force that cannot be contained. “Man, your dad is one resourceful guy.” She shakes her head. “My dad hates risk, barely leaves his house. He makes great pie though.”

Her wristlet chimes at her.

“Gotta go. Need to prep for arrival.”

Once she’s gone, it’s just Marcelo and me. And Hedwig. She’s pecking at something over in the corner.

“I have to give you credit where credit is due, Ms. Vivian. You said you would do anything to buy back your family land.”

I raise my shoulders a bit.

“You also said you were boring and predictable.” He laughs. “I happen to think you’re pretty far from. Ken Mata is really going to back this venture?”

“Yep.” My nervous fingers immediately give me away.

“And you’re going to start dating again?”

“Yeeeeeeeep.” I break into a silly smile when I see his approving grin. “I missed him, and I think… maybe… he missed me too.”

Marcelo nods his approval. “He will be a great first addition to your network. Do you think there are other women?”

This question catches me off guard. “Hmmm, no, maybe? I don’t know.” I pop my lips as I think.

“Go on,” he insists.

“When we spoke, he seemed… lonely. Like he’s been apart from others.”

Marcelo nods. “I’ve heard the same. He won’t be an easy consort because he’ll have his own business, but I’m sure you’ll make a good pairing. How will he be with other consorts?”

“He says he’ll be fine with it.” I shrug, hoping Ken will stick to his word.

“I guess we’ll see. I’m making arrangements for your first date, back home in Sagae. He’s a native of Sakata City. I hope you’re ready for this.”

I gulp down the coffee Lia gave me and nod to Marcelo.

“I’m ready and raring to go. Let’s get through Customs and drop off these pigs. We have work to do, and I need an engineer, or I’m never growing these seeds.”