The Way Forward

by Baker Lutgens

Part 12 of 12

"You're not going, Dayna. That's final," Vila said. "There's not enough room. We'll be crowded enough with the six of us in there."

"Then stay behind and let me go. You know I'm the best shot."

"The best shot isn't what we need this time. We need the best pilot and the best navigator. You know I'm better at those things than you are."

"Dev's the best at navigation. Maybe he should go."

"He's got a family; I don't. Let me do this my way, okay, Dayna?" He smiled placatingly, "Besides, we need you to stay here and keep an eye on Orac. You know how unreliable he is."

"I am not unreliable—" Orac interrupted.

"Shut up, Orac. Remember our discussion right after we rescued you?" Orac remained silent. "I thought so," Vila concluded. "It'll be all right, Dayna. It shouldn't take us more than a day, and we'll stay in contact." He finished fastening his gun belt as Jenna joined them in the tiny workroom. "Hello, Jenna, just let me grab a couple of things, and I'll be ready to go. Be right back."

"That's been an interesting change," Jenna remarked to Dayna. "Vila never fussed over Avon in the early days."

"They stick together like glue now; that's why it's been so hard for Vila to sit here waiting for him to come back."

"Avon grows on you. When I first met him, I wouldn't have given two credits for him. He was completely self-contained and contemptuous of everyone else in the galaxy; he was a snarling, sneering jerk." Jenna laughed, "I would have spaced him in an instant if we hadn't needed him. But after a couple of years, I found myself whining, 'Avon, take care,' and 'Avon, watch out for yourself.' He was still a snarling, sneering jerk, but I was enjoying it. What is it about the man that makes you want to strangle him and love him at the same time?"

"That's not how it was for me, but I saw that with Tarrant. He certainly wanted to strangle Avon, but in the end it was 'is Avon all right?' "

"And Cally?"

"Oh, they fought like cats and dogs at times, but they stuck together pretty much. If you paid attention, you could see that Avon always deferred to her in the end."

"Avon is always deferential to women. I wonder who we should thank for that? His mother or his father?"

Dayna considered. "Let's thank his mother this year, and his father next year."

"And how was it for you?"

Dayna smiled. "I always liked him, right from the start; I even flirted with him. He flirted with me too. But then Servalan killed my father, and somehow I felt different about Avon, more serious. That sounds funny, doesn't it?"

"I think I know what you mean. Avon became more important as a friend than a flirtation."

Dayna looked puzzled. "Yes, I guess that's it. My feelings changed in an instant. It still sounds funny, but I don't know how else to explain it."

I do, Jenna thought. You needed a father, so he became one. Not the Avon I used to know, but I like this one even better.

Vila rushed into the room, wearing a knapsack. "I'm ready to go now, Jenna. Can we get started?"

"Not until Cully says the speeder's completely recharged. What have you got in there, Vila?" She lifted the knapsack's flap and peered inside.

"Just some supplies, nothing special."

"It's nearly all medical supplies, Vila. Nobody's been hurt."

"You know Avon. Remember when we had radiation poisoning?"

"Ah, yes. Avon was falling all over the flightdeck with dizzy spells while insisting there was nothing wrong with him," Jenna explained to Dayna.

"Sounds like Avon," Dayna agreed. "He could have an arrow through his chest and swear it was just mild indigestion. Lucky he's such a bad liar."

Jenna took Vila's arm. "Come on, Vila. We'll go to the hold. Cully's probably done with the recharging by now." She urged him out the door.

" 'Bye, Dayna," he said, "and look after Orac. We'll be back soon."

"Look after Avon," she replied, "and watch out for yourself."


Tarrant was walking with Dase in the morning. She wasn't sporting a black eye, but she didn't look well rested.

"How did you sleep?" he asked conversationally. It was ill advised.

"Not well."

"Rash bothering you?"

"No."

They walked in silence for a while. Then he ventured, "Avon's snoring?"

"Partly."

Surely Avon hadn't engaged in unwelcome behaviour, but Tarrant was curious enough to ask, "What, then?"

"He's a restless sleeper. Rolls over a lot. Heavily."

"Squashed you?"

"Yes, but don't worry—he slept through it all."

They walked in silence again. To lighten the mood, Tarrant observed cheerily, "We should meet up with Captain Stannis and Vila before noon."

"Good. I need a bath."

Blundering onwards, he said, "We could all do with a bath."

Dase looked sideways at him, through narrowed eyes.

Tarrant realized his error. "Well, not you of course. You smell fine. No, it's the rest of us that are beginning to get a little ripe. You hardly sm . . ." his voice trailed off.

"You're in a hole, Tarrant."

He stopped digging.


Task leaned a little toward Avon and lowered his voice, "What's up with Dase? Did she sleep badly?"

"I can't see how. I slept right through the night," Avon answered.

"How are you feeling?"

"Remarkably rested and fit considering I spent the night sleeping on the ground under a tree. The ground didn't seem quite so hard last night. But that's not my preferred venue."

"Yes, I think you're more the Briggston Arms type."

Avon smiled slightly, thinking of hot showers and breakfast in bed. "Maybe we should arrange another night or two there before we go. After all, no-one seems to have spotted any of us."

"We can't. It wouldn't square with the scene we left at the flyer. I'm certainly anxious to see the last of Gauda Prime. Pity about the mining companies. Had it stayed in the hands of the farmers, it probably could have resisted the Federation."

"Had it stayed in the hands of the farmers, the Federation wouldn't have been interested."


"Recovery Party to Salvage Party," Orac's voice issued from Avon's commlink.

Avon keyed open the link. "That's very good, Orac," he said with a touch of sarcasm.

"I thought it prudent to be circumspect, under the present conditions."

"Present conditions?"

"If someone should overhear the conversation," Orac explained smugly. "I didn't wish to use real names. That would be too dangerous."

"If someone was close enough to hear you calling us, they would already have killed or robbed us—probably both."

Vila broke in, "I've always said Orac is thick, haven't I? Don't answer that Orac; you won't be helping yourself. And who asked you anyway? Avon? Jenna says we're very near you now. Can you hear us? I mean the speeder, that is."

"Hold on, Vila, we'll listen." Everyone was silent for a few moments, ears straining.

"There," Tarrant said and pointed. "I think I hear something in that direction."

"We hear you, Vila," Avon said. "But just to be cautious, we'll take cover. You continue to follow our signal, and when you see a clearing, land."

"Right. 'Recovery Party' out."

They scattered and ducked out of sight behind trees as the sound of the speeder came closer. Moments later, it came down where they had been standing. When it settled, Vila was first out. Crouching, he did a quick three-sixty, his gun ready.

"You don't need to impress the ladies, Vila," Avon advised. "You can't."

"Avon! Are we ever glad to see you! Is everyone all right?"

"Everyone's fine, Vila."

Jenna got out of the speeder. "Let's get everything loaded and get out of here. I don't like being out here, and I don't like leaving the Lady for so long, not on this planet. Tarrant! What happened to you?" She glanced disapprovingly at Avon.

Tarrant, still slightly bent over, touched the patch on his head and nodded in Avon's direction, "He did. He hit me."

"Avon!" Jenna exclaimed.

Before Avon could defend himself, Dase bent to set down the bag holding the teleport parts. A large, dark red stain showed on the back of her flightsuit.

"Dase!" Jenna said. "Are you all right? What happened?"

Dase pointed at Avon. "It's his fault."

Jenna turned and glared at Avon. "What have you been doing to my crew, Avon?"

"Later, Jenna," he said tiredly. "Let's just get out of here." As Jenna reluctantly turned back to the speeder, Avon focussed his own glare on Tarrant. Tarrant grinned triumphantly. Avon failed to notice the similar grin on Dase's face.

It took several minutes of packing and re-packing, but they squeezed the salvaged parts and what was left of their supplies in the back of the speeder. Then they squeezed themselves in. Built for four, it was overcrowded with six.

"We used to do this at the FSA," Tarrant said. "We got twenty people in one speeder."

"We got twenty-two," Dase said.

"Hollow boasting."

Dase stuck out her tongue at him.

Twenty-two? Avon thought. Our record was nineteen. Of course, speeders were smaller then.

Jenna took the speeder up and turned back towards Briggston. "It'll take us about three hours to get back. I hope everybody went to the bathroom before we left."

Vila began hesitantly, "Jenna . . ."

"You'll have to hold it, Vila. We're getting out of here. No stops, no detours, and no arguments from you, Avon."

"Did I say anything?" he asked sweetly, assuming an uncharacteristic—and unbelievable—expression of innocence.

Jenna keyed the speeder commlink, "We're coming back now. Recovery complete. We'll be there in about three hours."

"We'll put the coffee on," Dayna's voice responded.

"Did you get everything you wanted, Avon?"

"Enough. The stardrive casing hasn't been breached. It may be largely intact. Dase and I can look at it when we get back to the ship—"

"AFTER I've had a bath," Dase corrected.

"After all of you have had baths," Vila added. He didn't earn any goodwill.

"Thank you, Vila," Avon said. "I am constantly amazed at your tact and gracious manners."

"Well, you'd have said the same thing in my place."

"Happily, I am not in your place. It would make me happier still to—"

"That's enough," Jenna silenced them. "Did you get anything from the teleport?"

"Quite a lot, actually," Avon replied. "We've got two of the crystals, a teleport bracelet, and most of the circuit boards and specialized components."

"Did you get anything from Slave and Gambit?" Orac's voice cut in.

"Yes, Orac. I got two circuit boards from Slave, and Gambit's circuit board."

"Thank you, Avon," Orac said. "How soon can I access them?"

"It shouldn't take long with Dase's help." Avon turned to look at Dase, who had fallen asleep on Task's shoulder. "She didn't get much sleep last night. I can't imagine why," he explained to Jenna.

"I can," Tarrant grinned at Jenna. "She shared a shelter with Avon."

The speeder jerked slightly, and Jenna looked at Avon speculatively.

"Shut up, Tarrant," Avon growled. "Let Jenna fly. I'll tell you about it later, Jenna."

"No, that's all right, Avon. You don't have to explain," Jenna said stiffly. But you'd better, mister, she thought.

"You can explain to me, Avon. I'd like to hear about it," Vila urged.

"You would. I'll satisfy your prurient interests later," Avon answered.


Avon waited with Jenna while Task took Dase to the Lady's minuscule medical unit and Vila and Dayna took Tarrant away to rest. Then he took Jenna's arm and led her into her cabin, closing the door behind them.

He handed her one of the small bags he'd brought from the Scorpio. "I brought this back for Dayna. She's sharing your cabin, isn't she?"

"Yes, what is it?" she said as she took the bag from him.

"Two of the multifunction guns we used after losing the Liberator, and some of the changeable clips for them. Ours disappeared during our rescue from Blake's base. She'll enjoy having them to work with. Perhaps she can duplicate them for us."

He reached into his pocket. "I have something for you too," he said, taking her hand and turning it palm up. Holding his closed fist over her open palm, he dropped a length of shiny, fluid, metal links into it.

Jenna gasped, "My necklace! I lost that on the Liberator when you put me in the life capsule! I thought it was gone forever!"

"I found it after I launched your capsule. I put it in my pocket."

"But how did you get it off the Liberator? I thought everything was lost."

"I took it with me when I went looking for Blake on Terminal. I thought you might be with him. It was on the Scorpio when we crashed. That was one of the things I wanted to salvage."

Jenna put it around her neck and fastened it. Then she rested her hand on it for a moment, enjoying the familiar feel of it. She let Avon hear the gratitude in her voice, "Thank you, Avon."

He smiled slightly, fleetingly, and left.


"Avon?" Vila had been looking for him; Task wanted him in the medical unit, and he wasn't in his cabin. Vila had checked his own cabin, in case Avon hadn't been sure which was assigned to him. There was something familiar on the bunk. Vila picked up a slim, metal, pocket-sized case and thumbed it open. Pictures of his mother and his sister. He'd never thought to see them again. He gazed lovingly at them. "Thank you, Avon," he whispered.
"You don't appear to have picked up any nasty bugs while we were out there, Avon," Task observed while studying the display on the Lady's portable med scanner.

"Did anyone?" Vila asked, alarmed.

"No, everyone's fine."

"What about Dase?" Avon asked.

"She's fine too. That's just a skin irritation. Something in the creature she smashed was antagonistic to human skin. It's clearing up. It probably wasn't an insect though. It was likely something mammalian or reptilian, seeking warmth."

"The stain was too big for an insect," Avon observed.

"What about all that glycolene?" Vila asked. "It couldn't have been good for everyone to be inhaling that stuff."

"It can't hurt you," Task assured him. "It smells bad, probably tastes bad too, but it's harmless. You could bathe in it without any problems."

"I have done—once, a couple of years ago." He looked resentfully at Avon. "It felt harmful to me."

Avon explained, "It can't interact with human cells, Vila. The molecules twist the wrong way." He jerked involuntarily as Task applied an icy, cold patch to his chest and studied the display.

"Oh yes, I see," Vila answered, wondering just what the hell Avon was talking about. "At least everybody's okay then."

"I still have to take a look at Tarrant," Task corrected, "but there's no reason to believe there's anything wrong with him—other than the obvious injuries."

"Yes, about those injuries, Avon," Vila asked in his best and least believable nonchalant manner. "Did they have anything to do with Dase not getting enough sleep?" Vila asked.

"Nothing at all. Tarrant injured himself the first night when he was on watch. He says he was trying to stop my snoring. He's joking of course; I don't snore." He braced himself for the second frigid patch.

"Dase was so uncomfortable the first night, especially after her encounter with the local wildlife, that I suggested she share my shelter so she could use hers as groundcover. I slept through the night. I would have thought she had done so too; I wasn't aware of any sleeplessness on her part. Perhaps she just isn't the outdoor type, which demonstrates her good judgement. That should satisfy your lurid curiosity, Vila." He watched Task peel off the patches and replace them in the diagnostics box.

Disappointed, Vila said, "Tarrant made it sound much more interesting."

"He was teasing you, Vila, just as he's always done. That shouldn't surprise you any. Leopards don't change their spots. You haven't changed yours." Judging that Task must be finished torturing him, he stood up and resumed his shirt.

"What do you mean?"

Avon's face softened a little, "I mean he can always count on you to rise to his bait, Vila. Well, is that it, Task?"

"Yes, you're fine, except for your limp. I still want you to consult a doctor about that. Vila, would you go find Tarrant so I can take a look at him?" he asked.

Avon could hear Vila muttering to himself as he passed down the corridor. "A leopard, eh? Avon called me a leopard. Well, I guess I am," he told himself with pride.


Jenna joined Avon at his makeshift workbench. Parts were strewn over it in no order that Jenna could discern.

"How's Tarrant?" he asked, holding two pieces together to test for fit.

"Task said it's just a muscle strain. He gave Tarrant something and sent him to lie down for a few hours. I left Dayna and Vila fussing over him."

"Vila fussing?"

"Yes. Why? Is that so unusual?"

"For Vila and Tarrant, yes. They haven't gotten on well in the past."

"Maybe they're growing up."

"Tarrant maybe, but Vila?"

"Task has certainly been helpful to have along. Pity we didn't have someone like him on the Liberator. A medical background and a military background; it could have saved us a lot of misery. Do you think he'll stay with us, or do we need to get him back to Avalon?"

"I believe he'll stay. I think he's lost his taste for full-time rebelling. He's said that much, but not anything about going anywhere else in particular."

Orac interrupted, "You have moved some of the components out of my view, Avon. Kindly readjust the camera lense."

Avon reached over to a small video pickup clipped to the edge of the workbench and adjusted it. "Can you see everything now, Orac?"

"Yes, thank you. Go on about your work."

"So how did it go down on the surface?" Jenna asked.

Avon put down a component and started examining another piece. "Really rather well. We found the Scorpio much more quickly than I had expected. Orac and Tarrant were quite right about it: it wasn't worth repairing. It wasn't a very good ship, not as good as this one, but you would have enjoyed having two ships at your disposal. I'm sorry I wasn't able to get it for you, Jenna."

"I'm not. Well, I would have liked having two ships, but I'd rather have all of you back."

Avon picked up another piece. "Sentiment is a weakness, Jenna."

"No, it's a strength. You know that."

He smiled. "We found the stardrive at the end of the first day. It had come loose and lodged under an induction tube. If that happened fairly soon, it might be largely unharmed. Dase and I can look at it tomorrow, when she's rested."

"Yes, about that . . ."

Avon smiled again. "It has to do with that large stain on her back. She wanted to spend the first night in the Scorpio or the flyer."

"Too dangerous."

"That's what I told her. Apparently something crawled inside her flightsuit while she was sleeping. She smashed it, but it couldn't have been very pleasant. The stain was too large for an insect. Probably a juvenile rodent of some sort." He looked up briefly, "But I don't think it would be helpful to tell her that."

He bent to his task again. "Ah!" Two pieces fitted together and he quick-glued them. "That won't hold for usage, but we'll be able to duplicate it now that we know the shape and dimensions." He set the pieces aside.

"Well?" Jenna encouraged.

"Well, what?"

"Go on. How was it your fault, and why couldn't she sleep?"

"I insisted on her sleeping under a fallen tree. It was for her own protection," he defended. "Task and Vila and I did that before. You use a survival blanket to make a sort of tent. Once you're inside, it masks your heat signature. Unfortunately we didn't have enough blankets to spare for ground cover. I gather there were a lot of decaying leaves and wildlife under the trunk. Whatever it was she crushed, it gave her a rash. Task treated it; she'll be fine." He played with some more broken pieces.

"I thought Tarrant said something about sharing a tent."

"I thought you said I needn't explain."

"My curiosity is killing me."

Avon smiled again. "Sorry."

Jenna watched him testing the fit of broken components for a while, then she started trying to piece some together. "Those won't fit together, Jenna," Orac offered.

"Thank you, Orac," Jenna said, not sounding as though she meant it. "What happened to Tarrant?"

"He claims I hit him while I was sleeping. He also claims I snore—"

Orac interrupted, "You do snore, Avon."

Avon looked at Orac resentfully. "Utter nonsense, of course. But he said when he straightened up, he hit his head on a broken branch and strained his back. I wouldn't know; I slept peacefully both nights."

"Going to take up camping as a recreational activity?"

"Hardly. I found the Briggston Arms much more agreeable."

"Well, you can't go back there. We'll be leaving as soon as the new cargo is delivered and loaded. That'll be today," Jenna said, picking up some different pieces to try.

"We can't go back under any circumstances now, not unless there's a complete change of management at the hotel. When we found the flyer stripped, we made it look as though we'd been waylaid. By the time the rental agent convinces the local constabulary to investigate, the site should be old enough that they'll have to believe we're dead somewhere. With the number of dead bodies that undoubtedly present themselves uninvited on Gauda Prime on any given day of the week, they probably won't even look for ours."

"Avon!" Vila burst through the doorway. "Oh, hello, Jenna, your new cargo's here. Avon, look what I found. This must have fallen out of the cargo Jenna delivered a couple of days ago." He offered a visdisc to Avon. "Look! It's the one you were watching at the hotel."

Avon snatched it from Vila and stuffed it in his pocket. "Thank you, Vila. I'll look at it later."

"What is it?" Jenna asked, interested.

"Nothing. Just a lecture on new programming techniques."

"Oh. Well, I'd better go supervise the cargo loading." Jenna put down her component pieces and stood up. "Why don't you try this for a while, Vila? You'll probably be better at this than I am." She disappeared in the direction of the hold.

Vila took her place and dug around in a pocket. "Look what else I found, Avon." He displayed a small, plastic box to Avon.

"What is it?"

"A mini-visdisc player. For—you know," he gestured at Avon's pocket. When Avon reached for the player, Vila snatched it back. "Me first, Avon. I'm the one who found them."

Avon smiled broadly and shook his head. "And what will you play in that device?"

"The visdisc in your . . ."

"My pocket, yes."

Vila smirked and said, "And how will you watch the disc without my player?"

"I'll get Orac to do it."

"Oh, yeah." Defeated, Vila handed the player to Avon. "Don't wear it out, all right?"

Avon stood, still smiling. "Thank you, Vila. I'll be in my cabin."

"Satisfying your prurient interests?" Vila called after him.


Carnell had arrived on Albion only the day before. Avalon's overcrowded evacuation ship had been boringly slow. Everything had been boring on that ship. There had been no-one to interview who could advance Carnell's goal of bringing down Servalan, and he had become uncharacteristically fidgety.

He stood with his back to the door of his assigned quarters and studied the effect. The moveable partition just concealed his sleeping area. Of course anyone coming in would know his sleeping area was behind the partition, but Carnell wanted some part of his cramped quarters to remain private.

It was the best he could do for now. The Albions had offered Avalon usage of the deserted Federation base, and it wasn't very accommodating, not with so many evacuees to house. Later some of them would undoubtedly move in among the Albions. And some of them would abandon the Rebellion. Human nature. It was unreasonable to expect everyone to embrace the Rebellion as tenaciously as Avalon did. She was obsessed; most people weren't. Undoubtedly some of the Albions would join her. It was always the same. Most people came and went. Few people were as driven as Avalon—and Servalan.

They were much the same, those two. Both were accustomed to using deception and force to advance their ambitions. Avalon was less deadly of course, but just as driven as Servalan.

Both sought power. Avalon would be more benign than Servalan had been. She wouldn't compel people to do her will, not with brutality and cruelty anyway. And she hadn't yet risked anyone's life without their permission, but that would come eventually.

Both sought Orac and Avon. His genius would be essential to maintaining control of billions of people, scores of planets, an immense area of space. Avalon would be very careful with him, as careful as she knew how to be. But if she ever gained his assistance, she would have difficulty retaining it. She wouldn't understand him, and she would make a mistake. But it wouldn't be fatal for either of them. Servalan, on the other hand, might well kill him on impulse. She could never resist her impulses and usually gave free rein to her temper.

No matter. Carnell just needed Avon long enough to destroy Servalan. Which Avon would willingly do. It was just a matter of time and circumstance—circumstance that Carnell would endeavour to arrange.

The door announcer buzzed irritatingly. Carnell made a note to see if someone could reprogram it with a more pleasing sound. "Yes?" he responded.

"Graham Cauder here."

Carnell palmed open the door. "Come in, come in! It's a pleasure to meet you. Please sit." He offered the chair with its back to the door. They hadn't found a desk for him yet, and he was compelled to use a trick to put his visitors at a disadvantage. Avalon understood what he was doing and would decline to sit, but Cauder didn't know Carnell.

Cauder sat down, and Carnell took his own chair, the one carefully placed with a blank wall behind it so a visitor would be forced to concentrate on Carnell. "I understand Avalon explained the project I'm working on for her, did she not?"

"Yes, you're trying to locate Servalan. I'm not sure how I can help; I never had any contact with her. When we ejected the Federation, she wasn't yet the President."

"Your help would be of an indirect sort: helping me to understand what happened here during your fight with the Federation will advance my understanding of her personality and likely actions." And my understanding of Avon, he added privately. "The Federation kept control of Albion through extortion, didn't it?"

"That's an understatement. They planted a solium radiation bomb in one of the polar regions with the transmitter here on this base. We never really believed they would use it and were horrified to discover it had been activated as we were breaking in."

"A particularly vicious base commander."

"Yes, a Major Provine. He died here in the fighting."

"And how was the device disarmed?"

"That was Blake's people. A security expert named Vila broke into the safe and found the data card with the bomb's location. They decoded it back on their ship and discovered the bomb was located thousands of miles away. If not for their teleport, the technical expert, Avon, would not have gotten to it in time. He and a mercenary who had been helping us, Del Grant, went there and disabled the device."

Cauder added, "I've since heard about Blake's about-face, and I must say it surprises me. I saw nothing of that nature when he was here."

"We don't know exactly when it started," Carnell said, "but it was most likely later. When he was here, he was probably just what you thought him to be: a devoted rebel leader." But probably not—you were lucky he decided to help rather than hinder, Carnell thought. "What can you tell me about Kerr Avon? Servalan seems to have devoted a lot of her resources to trying to destroy him. Perhaps it would be helpful in finding her."

"I had little interaction with him; he kept mostly to himself. He wasn't a very personable man, but he clearly knew his work. The mercenary, Del Grant, seemed to have had a shared history with him. Perhaps he could tell you more."

Carnell leaned forward a little eagerly, "Del Grant? Could you arrange for me to see him?"

"Sorry, no. He left here a few days after Blake did. Once he'd helped us finish dealing with the Federation prisoners and we'd paid him, he was off to somewhere else. I don't know where; I assume it was to another assignment."

Carnell stood to signal an end to the interview. He'd learned everything he could from Cauder. Cauder stood too. "I appreciate your help, Cauder. I'm sure you agree that the Federation remains a threat to peaceful planets like Albion. With dangerous members of its previous power structure still at large, no-one is safe from their ambitions. Perhaps you could ask some of your colleagues about this Del Grant. Or, indeed, anyone else from Blake's group. We can't interview Blake, but the others might be able to give us useful information."

"A pleasure. As I said, Blake's actions surprised me, but Albion owes a great deal to Vila and Avon. If you should come in contact with them, please let them know they're always welcome on Albion." He palmed open the door and left.

Carnell sat down, thinking about what Cauder had said. He hadn't really learned anything new about what Avon had done here, but this Del Grant was a promising lead. There was something familiar about the name 'Grant.'


"If you set it on that white circle, it'll hold the pot while you open it," Dayna directed Tarrant.

"Like this?" He set the coffee carafe on the indicated circle and loosened the lid. The carafe itself didn't budge. "That's great, Dayna, thank you." He poured two mugs and set them on the table.

"So tell me about it," Dayna encouraged.

"About what?"

Dayna made a face, "You know: the mission. What happened?"

"I crept around the woods for a couple of days and everyone else salvaged parts from the Scorpio."

"Oh, great story, Tarrant. You should publish that. That's not even two sips of coffee, let alone a mug."

"All right," Tarrant grinned. "But I really can't tell you what the actual salvaging was like; I wasn't there. Avon had me guarding the perimeter." He took a slow sip of coffee to exasperate Dayna and continued, "We found the wreck sooner than we'd expected and got the stardrive on the first day. It looks pretty good to me, but Avon says it may not be intact inside. It had broken loose and lodged under one of the induction tubes. Oh, and the glycolene tanks had ruptured."

"Guarding the perimeter would have been the preferred assignment, then."

"Yes, I guess it was. The others were pretty foul smelling when they came back for the night. Task and I took turns standing watch while Dase and Avon slept. That's when Dase had her encounter with the local fauna. Something crawled inside her clothes and she smashed it. Made a slimy mess inside her flightsuit. She didn't have anything else to wear except that short dress she wore at the hotel, and that wouldn't have been warm enough."

"Short dress?"

Tarrant laughed. "You should have seen us, Dayna. We masqueraded as business travellers. Avon was the important man with the money, I was his dim-witted nephew-cum-assistant, Task was a bodyguard hired by the courting company, and Dase was supposed to show us around the company's various sites. With a short dress and high heels, she was also supposed to influence Avon. We called her 'the business perk.' She was great, tottering around in those silly shoes and cooing, 'You're so clever, Mister Dastor,' and hanging onto his arm."

Dayna laughed, "Oh, I wish I could have seen that! What did Avon do?"

"He just walked around looking severe and smug at the same time. You know, the way he usually looks. It was perfect," he chuckled. "And it was great staying at the hotel. We had dinner in the room, and the breakfast buffet was fantastic. I could get used to a life like that pretty quickly." He pulled a face. "But not to sharing a room with Avon. He snores. I suppose you could get used to it—with noise cancelling earplugs."

"I know."

Tarrant looked interested. "Really?"

"Yes, remember that supply run Avon and I went on together, just the two of us? Rather than nap in one of the cabins, Avon insisted on using one of the sleep alcoves on the flightdeck. I guess he didn't trust me to handle the Scorpio on my own. Maybe he thought I might fall asleep. No chance of that. His snoring kept me wide awake the whole time."

"It was his snoring that gave me a black eye. I heard him during the night when I was standing watch. When I tried to stop him, he rolled over and hit me in the eye. I whacked my head on a branch and strained my back."

"How is it feeling now?"

"Fine now. Task gave me something. That and a few hours rest took care of it. And by the way, thanks for figuring out how to lengthen my bunk."

"You're welcome. What happened the next day?"

Tarrant looked embarrassed. "That was when I distinguished myself by getting captured by two of the locals. Neither one of them was very bright, but they were bright enough to catch me. They had already stripped the flyer. We left some belongings scattered around it to explain our disappearance from Gauda Prime and started hoofing it. Avon hasn't said anything about it to me yet. I'm still waiting for that shoe to fall."

"Avon brought something back for me. He found two of the clip guns and some clips. I can use them as templates to build us some more."

"You and your guns. I don't suppose you've had time to resupply yourself with a bow and arrows?"

"No, I haven't had a chance to look for suitable materials. I might have done if I could have gone with you. My bow and arrows from Xenon were on the Scorpio. Too bad Avon couldn't bring them back," she sighed.

"At least you got the clip guns. He brought back something I thought was lost forever: my picfolio with pictures of Deeta."

"He brought back something for all us. Have you thanked him?"

"Not yet."

"Maybe you'd better do that."


They were two days out from Gauda Prime when Tarrant tired of waiting for Avon to castigate him for his failure on the salvage mission. It was up to him to initiate the confrontation.

He found Avon and Dase in her tiny workroom just off the engine room and hesitated in the doorway, unsure what to do. Dase noticed him first. "Oh, hello, Tarrant. Come look at this." She indicated the scattered pieces of the stardrive. "It's really an elegant concept. Simple, but elegant."

"It's not really my field, I'm afraid."

Something of his distress communicated itself to her, and she looked quickly from him to Avon. "Well, it's very worth the study. I can hardly tear myself away. And speaking of that," she checked the chronometer, "I guess I'd better tear myself away. I need to check the engines. I'll be back to help you later, Avon."

She downed her tools and gave the stardrive a last appreciative look before she stepped past Tarrant and into the corridor. He could hear her saying to herself, "TD fifteen, in real time."

Without looking up from his work, Avon asked, "What is it, Tarrant?"

Embarrassed at being caught out, Tarrant answered, "Nothing really. I just wanted to thank you for finding my picfolio. Those are the only pictures I had left of my brother."

Avon was uncomfortable accepting his thanks—Avon was always uncomfortable with emotional demonstrations. "You're welcome. What else?"

Tarrant shifted his weight and cleared his throat. "I was just wondering how you're getting on."

"No, you weren't. You were wondering when I'm going to chastise you for getting caught by those imbeciles on Gauda Prime."

"Yes, all right. That's partly it. But mostly I wanted to say I'm sorry for letting you down."

"How did you let me down?"

"I got caught and disarmed by a couple of village idiots when I was supposed to be guarding your back. I'd say that's pretty disappointing."

"Maybe to you, but not to me."

A familiar flash of resentment coursed through Tarrant. "You're going to say you expected nothing better from me?"

Avon sighed and put down his tools. "I was going to say it could have happened to anyone. I said it then, and I meant it. It could have happened to any of us, Tarrant. Worse, I left you out there trying to do guard duty with diminished resources." Avon returned his gaze to his work. "You could have been killed. I meant it when I said I was glad you were all right. I said it at Blake's base after the crash, and I meant it that time too. I've come to . . . like you, Tarrant," he finished uneasily.

Tarrant threw his head back and laughed. "Don't struggle so hard to say 'like,' Avon. I'll settle for 'tolerate.' For what it's worth, I've come to 'like' you too." He seated himself at the workbench. "Now tell me how I can help with this."


"You left them alone in there?" Jenna asked Dase.

"Yes, but I don't think they'll rupture the hull."

"Dayna said they fought for nearly four years."

Dase laughed, "I think they've gotten over that now. Relax, Cap, I'll check them in an hour. If they're both alive, we can consider they're probably not going to kill each other anytime soon."

"Good thing. I was worried that having the two of them together on the Lady would be a replay of the conflicts between Avon and Blake on the Liberator. I can't have my crew torn apart and tense all the time like it was then."

"I didn't see anything like that on Gauda Prime, Cap. They'll work it out; they'll have to. I imagine Avon can easily take over navigation, and Task says he's good with communications."

Jenna looked at Dase sharply. "You know about that? I hadn't had a chance to tell anyone yet."

"That the Brins and the Devrils will be leaving the ship? No-one's told me, but I knew it would happen. Is it because they're nervous about what Avon might get them into, or because of what happened when we left Xaranar?"

"A little of both. Either one would be enough. Somewhere out there someone may still be trying to kill us. We'll have to find out who it is."

"You've swapped one danger for another, haven't you? It used to be the Federation, and now it's an enemy you can't even identify. Life is going to get very complicated, but at least we'll have some advantages—as soon as Avon and I get the stardrive and teleport working. Have you talked to Avon and the others about staying on?"

"No, I just assumed they'd be doing so."

"Maybe you'd better talk to them. They may be wondering what they should do with themselves after we get to UP Teal."

"You're right, Dase. I'll do that now. Thanks for staying. I really appreciate it."

Dase smiled. "I wouldn't miss this for the galaxy. It's going to be a wild ride."


The only places that were big enough to hold all seven of them were the flightdeck or the cargo hold. Jenna wanted everyone's full attention, so Lissa and Dev were manning the flight deck while Avon, Tarrant, Dayna, Vila, and Task gathered in the hold. Everyone was present except Jenna and Dase.

"Any idea what this is about, Avon?" Vila asked nervously as he carried Orac through the door.

"This may be the point where Jenna explains nicely that her business is hauling freight, not fugitives, and that we will be leaving the ship at UP Teal."

"Do you really think so? I don't want to leave; I like it here."

"So do I, Vila," Task said. "You've become my friends, and I'd like to stay with you."

Avon asked, "You don't wish to rejoin the Rebellion?"

"Not for now. Maybe someday."

"It's all right, Vila," Dayna said, resting her hand on his arm for a moment. "Jenna isn't going to dump us somewhere."

"You're not worried, Tarrant?" Vila asked.

"No, but I have a job, haven't I?" Tarrant grinned.

Vila didn't share his amusement. You didn't find personal ads for thieves. He needed to be some place where he could be self-employed—some place with plenty of locks and pockets to pick. They might need to be very nice to Avalon, if they could find her.

Orac began, "I predict—"

"No!" Vila cut him off. "We don't want to hear your predictions. The one about the Liberator being destroyed was bad enough."

"And it happened too, as I predicted."

"But not the way you predicted."

"Quiet, Orac," Avon instructed as Jenna and Dase entered the hold. Vila came to his feet, ready to cajole, whine, or plead—whichever was necessary. "Jenna, you're not going to turn us out, are you? It's just that it's been really nice being with you again, and I'm sure we could be very useful to you if you'd let us."

Jenna took pity on him, "No, Vila, I'm not going to turn you out. That's what I wanted to talk to everyone about."

She found a place to sit where she could see all of them. "I could say I need you all to stay because I need a crew. Or I could say I need you to stay because you all have talents I could use. But the truth is that I want you all to stay because I'm glad to have found old friends and made new ones. I just don't want to part with you."

"And what's the bad news?" Avon asked.

"The bad news is that I do need a crew. After our little episode leaving Xaranar, Lissa and Dev want to find safer jobs. They have to think of their families. None of us can blame them for that. The Devrils have children, and Lissa's pregnant.

"But if you agree to stay, you don't have to work—sorry, Vila, I know how much that word upsets you. You don't have to earn your keep. I'll hire crew if I have to, and you'll still have a home here. Or if you wish to leave, I'll take you wherever you wish to go. But I hope you'll stay, under any circumstances you chose. I find that I need you all."

Orac piped up, "I can be very helpful as well, Jenna. You'll see."

Jenna smiled indulgently at him, "Yes, Orac, I know you can be helpful."

"Captain—" Tarrant began.

Jenna stopped him. "Just 'Jenna,' Tarrant. You've earned that."

"Jenna, I appreciate the chance you've given me to fly again. I'd say that means more than you'll ever know, but you do know, don't you? However, like you, I don't want to be parted from old friends." He turned expectantly to Avon, as everyone else did. Dayna's and Vila's eyes were pleading. Avon would decide for them, just as he always had.

Avon asked gently, "Are you sure this is the best choice for you, Jenna? You've slipped below the Federation's radar and built your own business. Involving yourself with us might destroy all that."

"I know. But you're all worth more to me than any business. I need you for yourselves. If it comes to that, I can sell the ship and we can find another way to be together. What do you say?"

Avon smiled, a genuine smile. "I say we've never heard a more generous offer. We'll stay. I'm sure between the seven of us we can run this ship properly."

Epilogue

AGENT > CLIENT : 2 f, 4 m, dep GP 2 days ago poss recov O dest UPT instr?

CLIENT > AGENT : proc UPT wait 4 instr

END