Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own these characters (well, most of them anyway)

Author's Note: Bit random, but this chapter sort of has a soundtrack. I ended up listening to Gaeta's Lament from Battlestar Galactica (season 4) while I was writing this chapter and it just seemed to fit quite well. If you haven't heard it, go check it out. It's an amazing, haunting song. Anyway. please leave a review with any comments. Enjoy!


Chapter Eleven

It was by no means easy to knock out an android. But as it turned out, slamming their head into a sheet metal door was one way to do it.

Iko's visual display rebooted and ran through the system diagnostics. The damage was minimal and she had no pain receptors to warn her otherwise. The impact hadn't even broken the skin. She sat herself straight up and blinked a few times to allow her circuitry to realign properly. She glanced around at the others beginning to gather. Gregg was sat a few feet from her, his head in his hands. He shrugged off the comforting hand Cres tried to lay on his shoulder.

"I take it, it didn't end well," Iko said quietly as Thorne came into earshot.

Thorne shook his head.

"They took Cinder," he said. "And Rose is –"

Thud! The noise drew his and Iko's attention. Gregg was on his feet. He had kicked over a metal bucket with chicken feed. He kicked it again for good measure. But it didn't seem to be enough. He picked up a number of fist-sized rocks from the path and hurled them at the hanger door. They clattered off it with every throw, shattering the stillness that had fallen since the attack ended.

Iko watched him uneasily. He was usually so calm, so quiet. Every sound as the stones hit the door reverberated through her and seemed to punctuate her own thoughts as she processed what Thorne had said.

Cinder. Bang. Rose. Bang. Hanna. Bang. Bang. Bang!

"Aaaaaaaaarrgh!" Gregg cried as he sunk to his knees in despair and frustration.

No-one stopped him. No-one tried to comfort him. They were each grieving to their own degrees. Cress and Scarlet, tears in their eyes, stood in the comforting embrace of their respective partners. Iko couldn't help envying them just a little.

"I'm going after them," Gregg said suddenly.

"Of course we're going after them," Thorne replied, taking a step away from Cress.

Gregg shook his head and got to his feet.

"No, I mean I'm going. Now," he said firmly. "I'm taking a podship."

"Like stars you are!" Throne replied.

"Why not?!"

"Because you don't know how to fly it!"

Gregg started to walk away. "Well you can fly one, how hard could it be?"

"Gregg," Throne called after him. "Gregg! Stop!"

Throne jogged over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. Gregg turned so fast and punched Thorne square in the jaw, it wasn't until Iko saw Thorne's head snap back that she realised the blow had been struck.

Gregg carried on walking away as Cress came to Thorne's side.

"We should maybe give him a minute," Iko said, hoping her insight would be useful.

"A minute?" Scarlet commented. "He may need a full hour."


Gregg didn't care if he would be searching for the rest of his life. Three of the most important people in his life had just been snatched away from him and he was sick and tired of feeling helpless. Useless. Worthless. A good-for-nothing shell who could be used for experiments and spare parts.

Not anymore.

He paced around his small room on the Rampion, throwing clothes and his few keep-sakes into a bag. His thoughts fixed on the three women he was determined to find.

Cinder – the queen who had freed him from endless, dreamless sleep. The one who had spent months searching for him and his sister when Mistress Caprice had taken them. How was he ever – ever – going to repay that sort of kindness? She would never ask for anything in return, but that didn't mean he wouldn't offer up the world to help her. To help any of the crew. They had done so much – taken him in, taught him pretty much everything he knew. Given him a home and a place to belong. There was no way he could abandon Cinder now.

Rose – Princess Rose of the United Kingdom. The most breath-taking person he had ever met. Sure, she was beautiful. Everyone could see that. The million-plus followers she had on the net-feeds could see that. But Gregg had seen so much more in her. He had seen her heart. The compassion she had for everyone she met. The grace with which she carried out her duties without complaint. The way her warmth and jovial nature seemed to spark and ignite from within and shine in her eyes and her smile. All he wanted to do was see her smile. He thought back to the kiss they had shared in Brazil. He thought of that moment of pure surprise when her lips first touched his. He had thought about that kiss every day since and wondered if it had meant as much to her as it did to him. He couldn't help but wonder if he was still kidding himself that a princess like her would care for a shell like him. Could ever love him…

He caught himself and shoved the fear aside. He thought instead of her hand in his as they ran from the fight. Of the security they had both shared with each other, even for the briefest moment before she was taken from him. A wave of determination swept over him and he continued to pack. He was coming for her. He would not let her down again.

A picture stopped him dead in his tracks. It was a picture of him and Hanna on her sixteenth birthday last year.

Hanna – the third and possibly most important person in his life. Holding the picture in his hand, he sank onto the edge of his bed.

He remembered the day he had been woken from the stasis pod on Luna. Everything had been so strange and confusing. They told him he was a shall. That he was safe. That he was free. What did that even mean?

They told him he had a sister.

He was nine years old at the time and could not even speak yet after the long sleep. There in the bed next to him was his sister. His kin. His blood. She was sleeping. He could tell she was younger than him. She was so small and peaceful. He got out of his bed and sat on the edge of hers. He took hold of her hand and counted the similarities he could see between her fingers and his – the shape of the nails, the crinkles in her knuckles. They were the same. When her eyes finally opened, he silently promised to love and protect her always. No-one would ever separate them again.

And until June this year, he had kept that promise.

A sob escaped his lungs and his shoulders began to shake. "I'm sorry," he whispered to the photograph. "I'm so sorry."

Movement at the door snapped him back to the present. He jumped off the bed and tossed the picture aside as Thorne came into the room. Gregg noticed the bruise forming around Thorne's jaw, but he was too strung out to muster up any sense of guilt or even amusement at the sight.

"Gregg," Thorne said quietly. "I can't let you just leave like this."

"You can't stop me," Gregg replied, cursing himself as tears stung his eyes. "I'm not a prisoner."

"Of course you're not," said Thorne. "But you are part of my crew, which means I'm responsible for you. Just like I'm responsible for Cinder. And Hanna. And Rose."

"Yeah, well you've done a fine job of looking after them, haven't you?" Gregg spat.

"You don't think I know that?"

Gregg paused. The guilt and remorse in Thorne's voice caught him so completely off guard, he forgot his own anger for a moment. He looked at Thorne.

Thorne looked at the floor, his hands shoved into his pockets.

"I don't think you know what they mean to me," Gregg said. "I can't just –"

"Are you kidding me?" Thorne interrupted. "I know you love Rose." He said it like it was clear to the whole world. Warmth rose in Gregg's cheeks and a lump caught in his throat.

"I know if it was Cress in danger…" Thorne continued. "And trust me, I've been there. I know the feeling well. As for your sister…" Thorne stopped for a moment, his lips pursed like there was a secret waiting to escape. He let out a heavy sigh before he continued.

"Cinder saved my life, you know. In more ways than one. She got me out of that prison in New Beijing. She… Well, she drives me mad, honestly. I mean, she never just does as she's told and she drags me into these crazy crusades at the drop of a hat. Spades! She repainted my ship without so much as a heads up!"

He paused and fixed Gregg with a serious gaze. "She's the closest damn thing I have to a sister and, stars above, there is nothing I wouldn't do for her… Well you know, within reason."

Gregg could appreciate his words. He knew they were heart felt. He felt a little of his restlessness slip away, replaced instead by exhaustion. He sank back onto the edge of his bed. The picture of him and Hanna caught his attention again and he could not hold back is grief any longer. His whole body shook as tears coursed down his cheeks. Thorne pulled him into a comforting hug and Gregg balled his hands into fists, trying desperately to regain some control over his emotions. It didn't work.

"I was supposed to protect her," he said, his voice muffled by Thorne's shoulder.

"I know," Thorne replied. "So was I."

Gradually, Gregg began to feel his heart rate slow. He breathing evened out. The tears began to dry.

"Listen," Throne said, releasing Gregg. He sat back and looked him in the eye. "We are going to get them back. Together. No power in the galaxy can stop us."

Gregg returned Throne's determined look. He released a tense breath and for the first time since his sister had been taken from him, he began to feel strong again. This time would be different, he thought. This time, he would not fail them.


The dense fog of the drugs was beginning to lift as Cinder returned to consciousness. Her head lolled from side to side as she struggled to regain control of the muscles in her neck. Her head pounded and bright green words scrolled through her vision. They hurt her eyes, so she blinked them away. She didn't need her mechanical brain to tell her she was in bad shape. She could feel it.

She tried to lift her hand to rub her forehead and release some of the tension there, but her hands would not move. They were tied down. She tugged against the restraints, but they would not give an inch.

Then the realisation hit her. She couldn't feel it against her skin. Cinder lifted her head just far enough to be able to see her right hand. Her ring was gone. Panic flooded her mind. She couldn't remember if she had been wearing it when Hanna had dragged her onto the ship. She knew she'd had it first thing that morning. But then the fight had taken over everything and –

The door opened and the gaunt man entered.

"Where am I?" Cinder demanded. "What did you do to me?"

The gaunt man did not reply. He checked a monitor to Cinder's left, just out of her line of sight.

"I demand you answer me!"

"Hahaha!" The cackle came from the door. Mallorie was watching her with amusement.

"You can demand all you like, Your Majesty," she spat. "He will only answer to me."

"What do you want with me?" Cinder asked. She pulled against the restraints again.

"Nothing," Mallorie replied. "I simply wanted the pleasure of your company."

Cinder did not need the orange light in her vision to tell her this was a lie. Mallorie had plans for her, she knew it.

"You can torture me all you want," Cinder said boldly. "I won't tell you anything."

Mallorie laughed again. "My dear, there is no knowledge you possess that I could possibly desire. But you are right about one thing. I can torture you all I want. By the time your friends – if your friends find you, they will find you broken and babbling and begging for death."

Cinder did not respond. She did not give the satisfaction of showing fear.

"To think my queen was –"

"Your queen," Cinder interrupted. "Is dead. Torturing me won't bring her back."

"No, but it will be cathartic nonetheless."

With that, Mallorie opened her mind and crawled inside Cinder's. The invasion was strong, overpowering, ruthless. She could feel Mallorie picking through her thoughts, tossing aside any sign of resistance. A sadistic smile spread across her face. "Ah," she said. "Now, this looks promising."

Cinder could visualise a box in her mind. A box that had been sealed and locked a long time ago. Mallorie stood over it.

Please no, Cinder begged silently. She didn't care if Mallorie could sense it or not. She put up every wall and barrier she could to protect the box. But Mallorie found her way through. She pried the box open.

Cinder screamed. The pain was instant. Flames licked at her body. The heat was unbearable. Smoke filled her lungs and she choked. In her mind, she was three years old again. Her nursery was burning around her. The fire became her whole world. Nothing could save her.

But she knew it wasn't real. She knew she had lived through all of that. She tried desperately to rise out of the memory and back to the present, but every time she came close to breaking the surface, Mallorie was there to force her under again. Back to the flames. Back to the nightmare she had suffered for years. But there was no waking up from this. No escape. The fire consumed her. Her screams were useless.