The living room in Sonny and Callie's home was crowded. Because of recent events, Sonny saw the need for a battle plan. He thought of keeping himself out of the line of fire but the situation had changed. He needed to go with them to Stellar Unix.
Corso wasn't happy. Maurice Miller was at Stellar Unix and still planned to capture Sonny again to extract flux from him. Sonny needed to be kept away, not get closer.
"Sonny should stay safe. By going with us, he's in danger." Corso stated, looking at Sonny. Sonny understood Corso's worry. After Keiran had abducted him, he noticed how Corso had become even more protective of him. Sonny looked over things.
Maurice Miller had to be found, and captured. They also needed to free King Aldoor and Queen Marcia. The Golden Armour was the key to that. This task fell on Solaris and from the sound of things, the armor was well hidden. They had found the area where it could be located on Stellar Unix but Solaris had to go in alone. According to the code of honour the Paladins operated under, Solaris could bring one partner but not a fellow paladin. She chose Corso. Sonny worried for his friend's safety. He knew Corso was capable of doing what was asked of him but he didn't feel good about letting him do this. Especially with the issue of the Chissian army. They still didn't know why they were here but Maurice Miller was a good bet.
He had seen through him. He was a flunky, someone else was above him. That him think back to the board meeting that the Pirates attended. There was a person, in addition to Miller, missing that day. Something made him suspect this person was the real threat. He recalled the coldness in Jar'Eels eyes. The young man truly believed he had murdered his father.
Sonny knew that facing this young man would be hard. Despite everything, he still cared for Bleylock. He came close enough to this proud General to see his true nature, see the insecure man he really was. Sonny shook his head as Corso touched his shoulder. Sonny quickly touched his hand. letting him know, he was fine. Corso's expression softened. As long as Sonny was fine, he could deal with everything else. Solaris finally established contact with Stellar Unix and was debating how to raise an energy grid to be able to view a map of the location of the Golden Armor. She needed extra physical training for this. As the Paladins talked among themselves, Sonny's gaze fell on Callie. She was doing some online investigation into the Chissian Military using her press card and contacts.
"That was interesting. Sonny, Corso, I think you want to have a look at this." She said. Corso rubbed his chin.
"Curious. Lieutenant Marshall was kicked off the investigation the Chissian Military did on the Ascaron matter. I'm gonna dig some more. Thanks, Callie." Corso said. Sonny nodded and handed Corso a Laptop.
"Do your magic. Hopefully this will clear things up." He said.
It didn't take long before Corso had a long list of encrypted files ready for reading.
"Better get comfy, we are in for a long night." He said.

That proved to be correct. The material was exciting enough to keep them awake. Sonny took a file about the associates Lieutenant Marshall had. This was a very well connected man, high ranking officer with a spotless record, except for this incident. It piqued Sonny's curiosity. Something about the scenario did not sit right. Sonny started to probe deeper. Who was his connection outside the Chissian Military? It didn't take too long until he found a very familiar face.
"Bleylock again? Let's see who else in Technoid has any ties to you." He muttered.
Within a few hours, the information was already coming together. Corso looked at the whiteboard they had used for notes.

"Alright, so. Lieutenant Marshall has close dealings with Maurice Miller. He sold military grade weapons to the Chissian Army from Technoid. That said, a weapons contract doesn't permit the Chissian Military to roam free in Technoid operated areas. We need to know more." Corso said.
"I'll set up an appointment with Duke Maddox first thing in the morning. Artie will be accompanying me." Sonny said.

The following morning, Sonny and Artie arrived at the Technoid building. Sonny expressed that the matter was urgent, so Duke Maddox made time for them. After reviewing what the Pirates gave them, he nodded.
"This concerns me. I can't recall any contracts for weapons sales, especially not to a military nation like Chissia." He said. Sonny nodded.
"It's possible this has been disguised as other shipments to Abraxor." He said. Duke Maddox nodded.
"I'll leave it up to your people to get to the bottom of this." He said.
"There's more to this, Your Excellency. This military group from Chissia under the command of a Lieutenant Marshall, is looking for Corso. He used to be part of the Chissian military until he was dishonorably discharged. This is part due to what happened on Ascaron. Turns out, that's the planet the Pirates' Flux comes from. We're still searching for a piece of the planet that holds the core, the source of said Flux." Sonny informed him. Duke Maddox nodded seriously.
"The Chissian military has no jurisdiction here. Without Technoid involvement, Corso can't be arrested. Perhaps it would be an idea for Technoid to put Corso under protection for now." Duke Maddox suggested. Sonny smiled. That was going to be quite the conversation. Corso wouldn't like it. At all. Maybe keeping him at Shiloh Security was a better option.
"I don't think that's wise. Corso is used to take care of himself. If I order him to do this, he might do something unpredictable. Just give him a legal message that he can't be legally arrested unless it is a Technoid operation." Sonny stated. Duke Maddox agreed. He looked at the Shiloh security video again.
"This man, Lieutenant Marshall. I know him from somewhere, but not as a military operative." Duke Maddox muttered and brought up a file.

"I knew it, it just never ends. I should have jailed him when I had the chance." He sighed. Sonny looked over his shoulder. It didn't even surprise him one bit to see who the operative was. As a bonus, the meeting also had Maurice Miller as a participant. A clear connection started to form.

"General Bleylock. Why am I not surprised?" He muttered. Duke Maddox slammed his fists in the desk.
"How did no one ever notice?" He said before he looked at Sonny, with a thoughtful expression.
"You used to live with him. Did his behaviour ever strike you as odd back then?" He asked. Sonny shook his head.
"No Your Excellency. We still lived our separate lives. I was completely consumed by my research, I never noticed what he was doing. Even when I really had to, like when he started to use my research. I should have stopped him when I had the chance." He said. Duke Maddox looked at him.
"I wish I didn't have to bring up the past with Bleylock again. I know what he did. It was terrible." He said. Sonny swallowed. He didn't want to talk about this but Duke Maddox needed to hear the truth.
"That was a long time ago. Yours and later, the Pirates' combined efforts made sure there was no permanent damage. I'm grateful." Sonny said softly. Duke Maddox nodded.
"Bleylock was difficult, even then. How deeply was he involved with the Metaflux project and how did he force you and Labnor to keep quiet about it? Another attack?" Duke Maddox asked and looked at Sonny. The question shocked Sonny. He was sure he had managed to keep the incident off the record. Duke Maddox knew anyway. Who told him? Sonny wanted to know. He didn't want others to know about it. Duke Maddox looked at him and seemed to get his inner struggle.
"I've known for some time. It was pure luck you survived. I stood next to your wife in the emergency room. I saw the injuries." The Duke said, and lightly touched his arm. Sonny fought the emotions that rose inside. Fear, guilt and disgust. Memories from that night flashed through his mind. Helena's calming hand, holding his through it all. The X-rays that showed just how hard those punches landed. He shouldn't have gone alone. But if he hadn't, Sonny knew what would have happened to Helena and to his unborn son. It was better Bleylock took his anger out on him. He had to protect them at all cost. Sonny let the memory go as he felt the other man touch his arm. Duke Maddox needed to know what made Bleylock snap. Sonny sighed.
"He threatened Helena. If I didn't comply, she would've been in danger." He managed. Duke Maddox frowned. Sonny was always very collected. This question showed a side to him he'd never seen before. Duke Maddox realized the mask Sonny wore was cracking. If he only could have hid Sonny somewhere back then. Professor Monteague had informed him that Sonny had a slight shake in his hands ever since. He was glad he told Corso. He could do something to help.

"I would have jailed him if I had the chance. Helena was pregnant at the time. I cared as much for her as I did for you. When you married her, I really thought it would be the end of it. That he would leave you be." The Duke Managed. Sonny nodded.
"I take it you know the rumours about how soldiers and prisoners were treated by him during interrogation?" Sonny managed to force out. Duke Maddox nodded.
"Rumors but nothing concrete. Do you know more?" He asked. Sonny nodded slowly.
"He had a chance to change things, he just chose not to. When his father made it clear to him he would never approve of him. Not gradually, but rapidly. He became manic within days. After that family council, Bleylock changed. It was like the person I knew him as just vanished. Out came a hardened soldier, incapable of any human emotion." Sonny said. Duke Maddox looked at him.
"Have a seat. It's time you tell me all you know about Bleylock." He said. Sonny nodded

"I hope you're comfortable, because that's a long and painful story.

Solaris studied the grid work that Coran and Zoonia sent. Finding the place where the Golden Armor was hidden was becoming a living nightmare.
"We're too low. There will be an indicator when we're using our Flux but the jump to reach it will be hard." She said with a sigh. Zoonia nodded.
"You'll need to jump from the blue vibrational field, through the green and up to the purple one. It's a mighty high jump." She said. Solaris agreed.

"To even train this jump, I need to use my Flux. It's banned, remember? Not to mention Miller can very likely track it. And let's not forget about my twenty million bounty. We can't underestimate Miller. I can't train until I can do this undetected." Solaris said. Corso was close by and overheard.
"Solaris is right. She should train somewhere safe. Like perhaps, a holotrainer" He suggested. Solaris looked at him.
"Tell me more."

Miller knew time was up. There was no way to track the Paladin Leader Solaris. It was possible the Pirates played a part in the matter. From the look of things, Sonny wasn't worried about him at all. His contact reported that he often communicated with Duke Maddox and the tracking bracelet was blocked off each time the Pirate Chief went to The Black Manta. He had seen images of the ship. It had three smaller ships following it during raids. The ship also had a cloaking device that let it stay invisible to radar and sight. This wasn't too surprising. He knew the Pirates, had been experts on espionage and stealing data. Hacking had been one of their specialities since early on. Under Sonny, they changed direction. No longer just common thieves, they dealt in stolen technology. They wouldn't need that anymore. The pardon was irreversible.
It came to the bounty hunter, Keiran. He failed his mission. Sonny still roamed free and had a day job as CEO of Shiloh Security. If Keiran couldn't deliver him the Pirate Chief, he should consider other options.

Duke Maddox was mortified with what Sonny told him. He failed to see Bleylock's ongoing seduction of his young rising star, and the relationship he had been tricked into. Hearing Sonny's account of events, he knew the horrors he had lived through.
"Technoid will compensate for your inuries. This was my fault. I never should have let him be your mentor.." He said, Sonny felt sorry for him.
"It's no one's fault but Bleylock's. Let's not forget that." He said. Duke Maddox nodded.

"I want you to come in for a medical check up on those injuries. Just to be sure." He stated. Sonny smirked at that.

"You sound like Corso. After seeing that file, he also wanted that." Duke Maddox looked at him.

"Does Corso have the medical skills to treat you if this turns out to be more serious? I could always use the fact I contracted you." He stated. Sonny nodded.

"Corso has the needed expertise. It's not the first time he treated me for serious injuries. Some of the Pirates are even better doctors. I've done marrow extraction for years." Sonny said. Duke Maddox looked at him as he touched his cybernetic eye.

"You invented the formula to treat cybernetic eyes, to keep it from being rejected. I should've known." He said thoughtfully. Sonny smiled.

"It's better this stayed a secret. It would put too many people in danger if you knew. The process leaves me out of the running for days." He smiled.

"Alright. I'll let you have it your way. If something Corso can't treat shows up, you'll come to our hospital." He said. Sonny nodded. He didn't want to share until he had more to go on. Duke Maddox didn't know that he had another Bleylock on his board of directors. Jar'Eel had so far done a good job of going unnoticed but it would not continue. Sonny said fare well and headed back home with Artie.

Corso was waiting for Sonny to arrive. He studied Sonny's old medical files. There was a crack to his spinal cord that worried him. Most of the smaller cracks had healed but this one went deeper. Corso recalled Sonny's reaction last time they extracted marrow from that spot. His fists had clenched involuntarily and he couldn't hold back a yelp as the needle went in. It got infected. That was far worse than most extractions. There was a way to make sure Sonny was ok. He needed those new x-rays immediately. He heard a light knock on the door. As he looked up, Sonny entered. He looked tired, like he had just been through an exhausting questioning. Sonny handed him a document with Technoid's emblem and Duke Maddox' signature.
"It's all taken care of. The Chissian army has no jurisdiction here and it's illegal for them to take you. Duke Maddox also has some ties if we need them. You're safe for now." Sonny said as he sat down. Corso looked at the paper, a small smile forming on his face.
"Thanks Sonny, I owe you one." He said.
"See it as a returned favor." Sonny smiled. This made Corso raise an eyebrow.
"I want to know just how long did you have an eye on Callie? I know you. You don't just jump in a relationship. Trust me. I should know." Corso said. Sonny laughingly raised his hands in a surrendering motion.
"It happened some time before the interview with the coaches. I wouldn't have minded being there personally but I would have needed an immunity agreement. When that fell through, I did the second best thing. I was already smitten." He admitted. Corso chuckled. Sonny suddenly realized something.
"What do you mean with 'Trust me, I know'?" He asked. Corso wasn't sure how to handle this. That was a slip of the tongue he already regretted.

"Guess I have to come clean, huh? It's been a long time coming." Corso started.

"What are you talking about?" He asked. Corso sat down with a sigh.
"Are you really that thick? Even Keiran figured this out." He said. Sonny also sighed. A picture started to form.
"Tell me how you really feel." He said. Corso nodded and looked at him, really looked at him.
"You're going to make me say it, don't you?" He asked. Sonny nodded calmly./span/span/span/span/p
"Corso, look at me." He said as he saw Corso look down. Fear of rejection was written all over him. Corso slowly looked at Sonny, who stepped closer.

"I know what this is about. I just want you to say it. To make sure." He confessed. "I don't want to ruin what we have over this." Corso looked at him.

"I was thinking the same thing." He tried to joke. Sonny placed a hand on his shoulder.
"I figured you'd act on it. You always do." He said.
"I was hoping you would make the first move." Corso said. That made them both laugh.
"I should have done so. And now it's too late." Corso said. Sonny smiled carefully.
"You want to tell Callie about this?" Sonny asked. Corso nodded. "She can probably handle it." He mused. Sonny smiled.
"I'll be there when you tell her. It probably won't be bad but I'll be there for you." He told his friend. Corso nodded.
"I just wish I told you before so I could maybe have a kiss… a single kiss." He muttered. Sonny caught him completely by surprise by pushing him against the wall and initiating said kiss. Corso was too shocked to react at first. Then, something inside broke and he placed his hands around Sonny's face, and returned the kiss.

On the Black Manta, Solaris was preparing a jump inside the holotrainer. Zarind was acting as her guide and Artie put on some music to have Solaris relax. It was an amazing sight to see how the sound waves converted into a grid and Solaris traversed the grids by flowing with the music. A jump here and there was all she needed to stay in the flow. She reached a pink going into a light blue grid pattern at the end. Zarind looked at her.
"Prepare your energy crystals, we'll speed up things so you can get to the purple base." He said. Solaris nodded and pressed a few buttons on the sleeve of her uniform. Artie adjusted the music as Solaris made a new attempt to jump. Red, orange, yellow, green, light blue, indigo and finally, purple. Solaris attempted to float in the music but was unsuccessful. She managed to reach the ledge with her right arm, but wasn't strong enough to hold on.
"It's no use. I just can't get that last jump." She said as she got up from where she fell. Artie nodded. He noticed her struggles. Zarind gave him specific music to help Solaris find the rhythm for the climb. She was nearly there, but that last jump just didn't work.
"It wasn't a bad attempt. You're very close, your helmet cam caught a small glimpse that looked like a locator." Artie stated and showed it. Solaris nodded.

"Still didn't make it. I have to boost myself more to get up on the purple level and probe deeper. It's the only way to find the Golden Armor." She said. Zarind nodded.

"When you boosted me, you used much of your blue energy. It's possible your blue crystal is drained and needs a charge. Let's try that. That's gonna be twelve hours of meditation. Use your mind's eye to look where you need to seek." Zarind said. Artie grinned.
"We have a quiet room on board. Pirates need to be de-stressed, too." He explained as he opened up the door to the room. Solaris smiled.

"Leave me in here for twelve hours, I should be feeling better." She said. Artie nodded. He didn't say it out loud but he had a backup plan in mind. Solaris might not be a fan but he felt like he had to. If it could help the Paladins and the Pirates with this mission, he would go all in. Artie quickly made a battle plan. As soon as Sonny and Corso were done with their business, he would ask. What was the worst that could happen? A 'No'? As he walked down the corridor with Zarind, he noticed the door of Sonny's cabin open, and Sonny and Corso exit.
"Sonny, Corso, can I speak to the two of you for a moment?" He asked. Sonny and Corso turned towards him, puzzled.
"What is it?" Sonny asked.
"Solaris needs to get all the way up to the purple energy grid to fully see the location of the Golden Armor, right? Her energy won't boost enough to allow this climb." Artie explained. Corso nodded.
"She used her booster to help Zarind. I warned her but she didn't listen." He said. Sonny nodded.
"It was necessary to save Zarinds life. Do you have a solution?" Sonny asked. He could tell Artie knew something about Stellar Unix and their ways, something he wasn't sharing. Sonny was getting curious. Artie had a big smile on his face.
"Solaris will be meditating in the relaxation room for the next twelve hours to charge her depleted crystal and get a mental image of where we need to go. That said, it might be good to have a backup plan." He said, Sonny nodded. Artie gave this idea some thought. His young assistant was growing with his job.

"Please share what you have in mind," He asked. Artie nodded.
"We know what split Opal, Sapphire and Rainbow apart. What Solaris needs to boost her energy is for the three of them to meet. and talk about the past. She has some regrets about how things ended." Artie said.

Sonny nodded. He knew from personal experience how guilt and shame could eat away at you. What Artie suggested was a good thing for Solaris.

"It's a good idea but we have no idea where Opal and Sapphire are." Sonny said. Artie grinned.
"Leave it to me. I'll snoop around in the archives of the old Stellar Unix city; Fountain of Gold. There's bound to be something there that will lead us to them." He said. Sonny nodded.
"Permission granted but run this by me and Corso before you tell Solaris." He ordered. Artie saluted and was on his way to the ship's command center to start working. Zarind looked at him.
"That young man is one hell of a hacker. He reminds me of one of my home planet's greatest hackers, Hawk Tidman. Pity what happened to him." He said. Corso looked at him.
"When Artie joined us, he had no prior history we could verify. All our own hackers came up completely blank. I wonder what caused him to scrub his history clean." Corso said. Sonny agreed. Zarind looked at both of them.
"I can ask Coran to send the logged DNA sample we have from Hawk Tidman. He looks a lot like the guy." Zarind explained. Sonny looked at him.

"Tell us Tidmans story."

Corso and Sonny were astounded as Zarind told the story. Hawk Tidman was a legendary hacker working for the Paladins but never joining them. He married young and gave birth to a son, Arthur. Arthur had a nanny from Abraxor, a planet known for its cold heartedness. She tried to do her work that way in the Tidman family. Arthur wasn't given love and care when his mother was working in the hospital. His nanny showed the small child the abraxor way of being. When Hawk found out, he fired her from her position. The nanny was vengeful and retaliated by abducting his son at the age of four. The Tidmans were devastated. A lot of effort was made by the Paladins to find the child but when they finally tracked the nanny down, the old woman already died and there was no kid around. Until this day, no one knew what had happened to the child. The Paladins had no authority on Abraxor. They couldn't investigate there. Sonny looked at Corso.
"Abraxor again. This is going to turn into a 'thing', isn't it?" Sonny mused. Corso agreed.
"Well, it did produce Bleylock." He said. Sonny nodded.
"Have Arties DNA profile compared to Hawk Tidmans. I have my suspicions." Sonny ordered. Corso nodded. As soon as Zarind sent the DNA profile over, Corso compared them.
"Hello Artie. Or should we start calling you Arthur?"

Finally, we learn more about our jovial young Pirate. How did his upbringing affect him before he joined the Pirates?
Will Artie's plan help Solaris get that final boost, or will this open wounds should have remained closed?
Will Corso have something to counter the injury to Sonny's spinal cord, or has the injury healed?
More and more strings pull Bleylock's family into this story. Who are the Bleylocks?
What is their story?
Is this the real King in this intricate game?
All this and more, in the chapters to follow.
Thank you to Paranoidgirl, for not only Betaing, but also coming up with twists that helps elevate the stories. I hope all my readers enjoy this story.
I can already reveal a new chronicle will follow this one when it is done.
If you like this or feel something needs to be addressed, let me know in a review.