Baeven kept them all together in a high sec cell.
The meeting place for the coming auction remained secret. Once they arrived, Baeven’s guests were not allowed to leave or make any type of transmission until the issue at hand was decided.
Baeven possessed some means of jamming or cutting off the facility and blocking all tracing and transmissions within that area.
Naero went on display for the highest bidder.
Baeven controlled the auction.
Of course the main sticking point remained whether she actually carried part or all of the Kexxian Data Matrix somehow.
No one from Triax was present.
Some of the bidders didn’t want to take any chances. They offered to buy her outright, and have their people take her apart and figure it out later.
But then they haggled about the price.
Thus far, the offers ranged from: metric tons of credits or other fungible wealth; entire fleets of ships; and entire worlds–including their economies and populations. Then there were appointments to the Boards of Directors at various Gigacorps, or Directorships themselves, granting Baeven unimaginable wealth, influence, and godlike power over the lives of trillions.
When not up for bidding, Naero sulked or plotted with her fellow prisoners, in either abject despair or boredom.
“We never should have trusted the outcast,” Gallan complained. “I’m sorry, Naero. I’m embarrassed and angry that he took us down so easily. Haisha. Some Spacers we are.”
“What if he does sell you?” Tarim said. “Then we aren’t worth anything. What’s he going to do to us? Cut our throats? Poison our food and water? Blow us out of an airlock?”
He worked himself up like that until basically they all told him to shut the hell up.
Even Naero had to take a turn against his incessant blubbering. “Will you be quiet with all that? It’s not helping us at all, Tarim.”
“I...I can’t help it. I can’t stop thinking about what he might do. What could happen.”
Tarim fidgeted, asking questions based on his fearful nature, reacting to almost everything with terror and despair.
All of them worried. Each of them dealt with fear in a different way.
Strangely enough, Ellis seemed to gloat over the situation a little and tried to make light of it. His response?
Laugh in the face of fear.
“It’s kind of funny, no? It’s like being back with Kattryll, but without the torture and the buggery. Cheer up, Tarim. There are only so many times they can kill and revive us. At least we have each other against this betrayer, and all of the Gigacorps, and our other enemies. No problem. We’ll find a way out. I’m absolutely sure of it.”
Ellis’s flip nature bothered Naero almost more than her former uncle’s treachery–if in truth, he’d ever been her uncle.
Baeven might tell her anything to keep her off guard.
Even if he had been family once, as an outcast, he was dead to her and her clan now. Nothing would stop her from killing him if she got the chance.
Instead of Naero being ordered out, the security panel to the brig slid open without warning.
Baeven strode in among them.
Alone.
Gallan attacked immediately. Followed by Ellis, and finally Tarim.
Baeven stunned Ellis with the back of his hand, knocking him ten meters across the room, leaving a red smear against the wall.
He endured a glancing blow from Gallan. He merely winded Tarim and let him drop.
Naero maneuvered for an opening.
Gallan gave it to her.
Baeven countered Gallan’s combinations and flipped him into the high ceiling corner. The big Spacer fell hard and did not move.
Naero attacked low off the floor, and then from the adjacent wall behind Baeven.
She tossed hidden stun powder directly into Baeven’s face.
He deftly deflected most of it with one hand, but still gagged and choked.
Naero followed up with combo kicks to several vital areas, like kicking someone made out of steel.
She hit Baeven with several microbomblets she and Gallan had kept concealed on them.
The blasts rocked him and pushed him back across the length of the cell.
She got a good running start, ending with a powerspin kick that should break his neck.
Baeven caught her ankle. Speed. Terrifying
His raw strength. Horrific.
With one hand, he slammed her against the wall to either side of him.
Wham, wham, wham.
Several times, faster than thought.
Massive pain erupted in her ribs, arms, and legs. Multiple tears, twists, contusions, and micro-fractures.
He dropped her to the floor, helpless and gasping, ribs moving in ways they shouldn’t.
Baeven could have slain her and the others easily. At any time.
In a day or so, her smartblood might regenerate much of the damage. But he made sure her next several hours would be filled with wrenching pain every time she moved.
He grabbed her by the hair and yanked her to her feet. Naero gasped. She felt her eyes bulge as if they might burst.
She ground her teeth, but other than a few weak grunts, she did not cry out. She wouldn’t give the bastard the satisfaction.
He stared into her eyes up close, his scorching breath on her face. “I warned you not to trifle with me. I thought you were smarter than this, Naero. But I guess not. I don’t want to hurt you and your friends. But I will. If you force me to.”
“Please, don’t hurt her,” Tarim pleaded, crawling on the ground, still clutching his gut. “Oh, Jesus.”
“Be quiet,” Baeven snapped.
He glared at Naero again and shook her, knowing full well the intense pain it caused.
She felt her eyes roll up. She almost blacked out.
“Listen to me,” Baeven said “The next one who interferes with me I cripple. Including you, Naero. You don’t need to be able to walk to be of use to me.
“The next I kill. No hesitation. No mercy. Understand?”
She barely managed to nod.
“Good. Now, come with me and cooperate. Clean yourself up. More interested parties have arrived. They wish to examine you, along with the others, and renew the bidding.”
“Why didn’t you just leave me with the Triaxians?” she said.
“They don’t have the information I desire, and they always double-cross you in any case. I couldn’t trust to their heavy-handed methods to tell me anything. Besides that, I detest them the most of all the Corps.”
“I hope this is all worth it, you renegade son of a bitch.”
He half-smiled. “Such flattery. Some of our new guests claim to have certain ancient testing methods they would like to try out on you. We shall see.”
“Just what do you want, Baeven? Wealth, power, control?”
“Information. Knowledge. Still so many things I want to know, and I’m running out of time. Thus far, all the players know something. All of them possess one or more pieces to this puzzle. Perhaps these new tests will tip the scales. That’s why I’ve lured them all here to this secret location–to find out who knows what, and put it all together.”
“You’re playing all the Corps against each other?” Naero laughed, even though it nearly killed her. “You didn’t strike me as the ambitious or greedy type, Baeven. I guess you’re just a criminally insane fool.”
He smiled a grim smile. “You could be right.” He led her out of the brig and secured it behind him.
“I have always been quite mad, they say.”
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