High Flyer - Michelle Diener Page 0,99

side effects.”

“Side effects?” Hana asked, and her throat closed over the words. Her upgrade soothed her, a light touch of comfort.

“A sense of otherness, from the description. Of sharing space in one's body--” Jackson cut himself off. “Here's the comm we found. The language spoken . . . well, it is mind-bending in its similarity to Arkhoran. We had a linguist work on it and she's created the sub-titles you'll see.”

He stood and activated a screen that she'd noticed in the corner of the room. It flickered on, and she saw a woman dressed in a jacket and trousers, the cut and fabric foreign, but the design not so unfamiliar.

“This is an update from Dr. Lucille Barton. All ten of our nano-volunteers have completed their latest check-up, and I'm happy that they are healthy, physically at least. All of them have said they think the tech has an artificial intelligence that has developed into a second consciousness inside them--a second opinion with the ability to control their bodies when it feels they are in danger. Every single one has said they are not afraid the nanotech means them any harm, that its primary objective--to make sure they survive at all costs--remains firmly in place.” She moved in a way that spoke of concern. “I have to admit that I don't know if I can trust what they are saying. If the nanotech has advanced to that level on its own, it may also have the ability to affect their view of it. There could be a symbiosis at play, where the nanotech intends to make sure its host protects it, as much as it is prepared to protect its host.” She sighed, and looked down at her notes. “I've passed the information on to the other ships in the fleet. Most of them haven't started the program out of an abundance of caution, and now I wonder if we shouldn't have done the same.”

The comm cut off, and there was silence in the room.

Hana looked over at Iver, but his face was calm, and she realized she felt calm as well.

It will be all right.

The message came from Iver. Not in images, as she was getting used to, but the actual sentence, as if he had spoken in her head.

I know it will.

She answered him back, and she knew he had heard it, because he suddenly looked sharply at her.

“Amazing, yes?” Jackson switched the flickering screen off.

“Amazing.” Iver's voice was deep. “Did you find any evidence of the nanotech on the bodies?”

Professor Farra waved her hands. “We are still looking, but for now, the remains are indistinguishable from each other, so until we are able to scan and assess each body, we won't know if there is a difference that we can pinpoint.”

“Well, if that's all, I'm afraid I have a few things I need to discuss with the planetary commander and Lieutenant Farwell about the situation that led to them finding the ship in the first place.” General Yarne pushed off from the wall where he'd been standing through the presentation, and the scientists scraped back their chairs and gathered up their screens.

They filed out, thanking Iver and Hana again as they left, and finally it was just the general and two of his aides, who Hana noticed hadn't so much as moved from their places since she and Iver had walked in.

“The Cores?” Iver asked the general, and Yarne gave a nod.

“The Cores. The person you knew as Jake wasn't onboard the Dynastra, although the bodies of Sub-lieutenant Linnel and a few other men who used to work for Lancaster were. We don't know where Jake went, but if he saw Captain Donaldson's team arrive, he may have decided to cut his losses and run, and was never rounded up with the others.”

“Do you think he's a danger to us?” Hana asked.

Yarne shook his head. “He'll be long gone. There was an unidentified ship hovering in nearspace. We know the Caruso had some kind of new shielding tech that they were sharing with the Cores, and this ship was obviously using it, because Admiral Valerian's people didn't pick it up until just before it pinched to the black. So it's gone, and likely, he's gone with it.”

“At least they went empty-handed.” Iver rose to his feet.

“Thanks to you and the lieutenant,” Yarne agreed. “Glad they didn't get you the couple of times they tried, Sugotti.”

Iver nodded. “That's on Hana. There's no pilot like her.”

“We tried to keep her