Corso couldn't bring himself to look at Sonny.
After emptying his heart he just felt… hollow.
He could barely keep upright.
Sonny just sat there, having listened to it all.
How long did that take? Hours? Sure felt like it.
His military career was the worst choice he'd ever made.
It cost him everything once more.
Just to sell his soul for a military that did not care and just used him up and spat him out at the end.
Sonny silently looked at him, taking it all in.
To be found guilty of killing the one you love must have been… hell.
He should know.
Corso tensed up again as Sonny looked at him.
"Corso..." He said softly.
Corso jolted and didn't meet his eyes, staring at the ceiling.
"At ease Corso. I'm not going to do anything." Sonny said, making sure to keep his tone of voice light.
Corso sighed and put a hand over his face as he let the tension in his muscles go.
Then, finally, he looked at Sonny.
There was silent understanding in his eyes.
He hadn't seen that in a long while.
He just wanted to hug the other man so badly.
But he shouldn't.
He didn't want to hurt Aryn's memory, nor risk that it wasn't mutual.
As he stood up, Sonny did the same, smiling.
Corso held out his hand for a handshake.
Sonny took it, and both men looked at each other with a smile.
They'd overcome any obstacle the galaxy put up, together.
Sonny looked at the screen in front of him in his office.
Getting access to Coro's files from the Chissian military was unsurprisingly difficult.
It reminded him of Technoid's security.
Bleylock insisted on security.
Looking back, that was a red flag.
Sonny shook his head to clear his mind, took another sip of the still hot coffee mug at his desk and got to work.
Sonny was at an impasse.
After weeks of searching, he figured Technoid didn't have the files he wanted..
They tried to hide it.
He wondered why that was.
Maybe Duke Maddox finally got onto Bleylock and hid things from him.
And probably from Sonny as well.
Just because they were close didn't mean he divulged everything to the other man.
And Bleylock was paranoid.
A control freak.
Wanted to know everything.
Sonny never bothered looking for answers, it could risk his life.
Still, this could help so many people.
That said, he wasn't going to investigate Technoid this time.
He called in Bennett and Corso, who looked surprised.
Still, once he told them he needed information on Bleylock, they nodded.
"Never met the guy, but even on Chissia, there were stories. My advice: stay as far away from him as we can. But since you brought him up… that's not really an option, is it?" Corso asked.
Sonny sighed.
"I know more about him than I'm comfortable telling, but that will come eventually. Right now, we need to find out what he's up to right now." Sonny confessed.
Bennett nodded.
"I think you need to keep your distance from him. If what you say is true, that bounty is from him. Let's just keep you away from him." He said, rather thoughtfully.
Corso agreed.
"The bounty might get people talking to us. But it also makes you an obvious target. And we might need to know just why that bounty is: Technoid will never give that truth." Corso suggested.
He could see Sonny's face turning sour as he sighed.
"I hate that you're right. Once we know more, I'll tell you all more. Hopefully these leads we have will get us closer to our goal. Bleylock is a serious threat that we have to stop." Sonny said.
Corso didn't like the sound of this.
"You make him sound even more dangerous." He said.
Sonny locked eyes with him.
"You have no idea. I'd hoped Duke Maddox would let him go by now, but Bleylock knows how to manipulate people so his plans go through." He said.
Corso couldn't hold back a sigh.
Sonny knew more than he let on.
"Do you happen to know this plan? Would be nice if you could share." Corso said, trying to act calm.
Sonny looked at them both.
"He wants to rule the entire Galaxy. Always wanted it. And it looks like we're the only ones who can stop him. But we have to be careful. One mistake, and we'll all be killed, and then no one can stop him." Sonny said, looking at Bennett and Corso, who looked down, the severity of the situation sinking in.