Black Labyrinth: by J.N. Chaney

Author:J.N. Chaney [Chaney, J.N.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Variant Publications
Published: 2019-12-07T16:00:00+00:00

20

“Are you sure you understand the plan?” Magnus asked.

“Ezo is not as stupid as you seem to think he is,” Ezo said as two former Marines went over his borrowed set of Repub Mark V armor. They yanked on plates and double-checked closures, making sure he was squared away. “But Ezo is trying to figure out how any of you bucketheads moved in this stuff.”

“You get used to it,” Magnus said.

“Somehow, Ezo highly doubts that.” Ezo stood in his old ship’s shadow while Cyril and TO-96 worked with some of the crew to load Geronimo with the last of the gear. Cyril remained in his Novian armor, and the bot kept his telecolos finish—it was only Ezo who’d be impersonating a Republic trooper.

Just then, Sootriman and Abimbola walked through the hangar bay doors. His wife waved, and Ezo felt his heart swell. That woman would be his undoing.

“You’re just in time,” Colonel Caldwell said from beside Magnus. “We were about to send them off.”

“Without a goodbye kiss?” Sootriman said, putting her hands on her hips.

“Trust me, wife, that was not my intent.”

“The hell it wasn’t.” She reached forward and grabbed him by his suit’s collar, then she pulled him close and kissed him on the mouth. Ezo knew he talked a big game, but public displays of affection like this always made him a little embarrassed. Then again, she was a fabulous kisser.

“Okay, you two,” Magnus said.

Sootriman put a hand to the Lieutenant’s face and didn’t let up on Ezo. A few people laughed, and Ezo smiled.

“If you don’t stop now, we’re going to have to finish this somewhere else,” Ezo said with his lips still pressed against hers.

Finally, Sootriman pulled away. “I just didn’t want you getting any ideas about running off with some Repub deck wenches.”

“None of the deck wenches I’ve met kiss like you,” Ezo said.

“And how many, pray tell, have you kissed?”

“You probably shouldn’t answer that, son,” Caldwell said.

“Before you get going, I have something for you,” Abimbola said. The Miblimbian pulled a small leather pouch off his belt, and then reached in and withdrew a handful of poker chips. He flipped one to Ezo and then handed one to the other company commanders. “For luck.”

Ezo turned the chip over in his hand. It had the Gladio Umbra’s icon on one side—a circle with an open bottom and the shape of a spearhead within—and a 50-credit symbol on the other. “Where in the name of all mystics did you get these?”

“I’ve got a source,” the giant replied as he turned and winked at Azelon. “If we are going to gamble with our lives, we might as well start a few credits ahead. We need all the juju we can get right now. Plus, if you pull short on an Antaran backdraw table, it never hurts to have an extra chip up your sleeve.”

“Yeah, ’cause that’s what Ezo’s going to be playing when he lands on Moldark’s creepy-ass ship.”

“I like ’em,” Magnus said, flipping it once and then stuffing it inside his Novian chest plate pocket.

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