"Not often," Wixa said with a shrug.

"But now?"

"Maybe." Wixa said it with reluctance, never happy to admit to being in the dark.

"Maiga's got some kind of secret plan hasn't she?"

"I think so."

"Any idea what?"

"Well, if I knew then it wouldn't be a secret, would it?" Wixa felt a surge of irritation. Maiga certainly had something up her sleeve, but she wasn't giving it away. "Will you stop asking stupid questions? I'm trying to concentrate."

She frowned down at her Snapper, showing the safe route Gry was sending them on, to free the team of Lifers who would help them take the control room of the station's defences. Economic sanctions might be its primary defence, but it wasn't entirely toothless when the chips were down and the shooting started.

"This way, we're close to -- what the hell!"

She jumped back as a door opened ahead of them and two Watch officers came out, a man and a woman. Wixa cursed silently as the two officers saw her and Jaff and shouted for them to stop. She'd seen the life signs on her Snapper, but dismissed them as just more curfew bound residents, like the others in the many living quarters along this corridor. Wixa glanced at Jaff and muttered.

"Play dumb, that shouldn't be a big stretch."

Jaff opened his mouth to snap back at her, but the officers reached them and he shut it again.

"What are you doing out of your quarters?" The man demanded. "Didn't you hear the curfew announcement?"

"Oh, but my mother wasn't feeling well," Jaff said, all wide eyed innocence. "I was taking her to the doctor."

Mother? Wixa made a note to make him pay for that later. What's wrong with wife? The two officers looking somewhat baffled, but rallied.

"Well you can't just now," the man said. "Give me some ID, now."

"But she really isn't feeling well," Jaff protested. Wixa made some convincing moaning noises and leaned on him heavily. Come a little closer, she thought, feeling the weight of her handgun concealed in a holster on the back of her belt.

"We'll have a doctor sent to her quarters," The woman officer said. "Show some ID now."

Well of course their ID would be flagged and get them captured again at once. And the bastards wouldn't come close enough. Try to jump them from this distance and Wixa and Jaff would be shot down before they could lay a hand on them.

"Oh, ID, right." Jaff stalled, fishing around in his pockets looking for his ID, bringing out various bits of junk and mysterious widgets. "I've got it here someplace." Wixa hoped one of the officers would get impatient and step closer to frisk him.

"Hurry --"

A dark shape materialised out of the shadows behind the two Watch officers. A fluid movement and the male officer flopped to the floor. His female companion started to turn and the figure's movement became fast, one hand snapping out, sending the gun flying, the other chopping across the woman's neck sending her to join her colleague on the floor.

It took no more than five seconds.

Wixa and Jaff looked up from the unconscious pair on the floor to the female figure clad all in formfitting black, including a hood and mask hiding the face. The formfitting garment actually fitted a little too tightly, straining at the hips. The figure removed her mask.

"Jasini!" Wixa gasped. They'd included her in their plans, as a general friendly, and Maiga had tried to give her a specific assignment, but Jasini had just said she'd rather improvise. Maiga had looked at her oddly, but shrugged and agreed. Wixa grinned. The right choice. "Just like the old days, eh?"

"Please, there's no time," Jasini said, sternly. She bent over the fallen Watch officers and pressed a spray injector to their necks. "That will keep them out for hours. I'll conceal them, you two get on with whatever you're meant to be doing." She stood up and put on her mask again. "By the way, you both owe this month's subs for the cat club, and your share of the tea fund."

"Er, do you want it now?" Jaff asked, looking nervous.

"Oh, get out of here." Jasini bent to drag off one of the Watch officers. Wixa grabbed Jaff's arm and pulled him away.

"I'd heard she was ex-black ops," Jaff said, glancing back over his shoulder, Wixa doing the same. Jasini had vanished along with the unconscious Watch officers. "But seeing that... well, I'm telling you right now, I'll never be late with my cat club subscription again."

~o~

Alex had had enough of sneaking around.

He walked into Station Security with a squad of fake Watchmen at his back and sent them to work. A battle instantly ensued, but Alex himself went straight for the Chief's office.

Alarms were ringing now; Maiga's people were attacking the station's control facilities, taking them back from Bara's people. Lifers versus drifties coming to a head at last.

Alex had his money on the lifers.

His blood was up, adrenaline surging now, so he grinned with delight when he stepped into the office to find Max sitting behind the desk. Oh, good, it had to be him. I'm going to enjoy this.

"What's going on?" Max demanded, as Alex walked in. "My monitors have gone dark. Give me a report."

"A report? Well, you're screwed for a start."

"Screwed?" Max said, eyes narrowing.

Idiot, Alex thought. The important word in that sentence was 'you're'.

Max came around the desk. "I don't have time for your crap." He drew his gun, heading for the door, moving to pass Alex.

He didn't pass Alex. He ran into Alex's fist coming the other way and staggered back, then sat down hard on his backside.

"What the fuck?" He stared up at Alex now pointing his gun, covering Max. "You treacherous bastard!"

"Shut up. Toss over your gun."

"Come and take it."

The ingrained response. Alex didn't mind, he wanted some exercise. He moved towards Max, but Max's foot lashed out and slammed into his shin. With a groan, Alex dropped to one knee and Max attacked, flinging the two of them down onto the floor.

Both men lost their guns. Neither cared. This had been coming since the moment they met. Well matched in size and strength, they both struggled to gain the advantage, until Max managed to pin Alex, holding down his hands by the wrists.

"I'm going to give Bara your head," Max snarled. "Mutiny must be in your blood, eh, fag?"

Alex rammed his knee up hard into Max's crotch. They were too close together to actually get him with the knee cap, but the impact was enough to make him moan and slacken his grip. Alex tore his hands from Max's grip and rammed a fist into Max's nose, then shoved him away hard. Max's slid along the floor, slamming into Neex's desk.

Alex staggered up, panting. "Like you're not waiting for her chair as soon as you can take it!" He spat the words at Max while he looked around for his gun.

But Max was only momentarily stunned and scrambled to his feet to lunge at Alex again and they grappled and staggered around the room.

Max got the advantage through Alex's bad luck, something he felt sure he'd got far more than his fair share of. In their struggle they'd scattered the contents of the desk and shelves, and Alex put his foot down on something that slid out from under him, pitching him backwards. He tried to keep his feet and failed. His head smacked against the edge of the desk as he fell and everything went grey and muzzy. Laughing in his triumph, Max dragged Alex up and dumped him face down on the desk. He leaned over, pinning Alex with his body weight.

"Familiar position, Lieutenant?"

Alex couldn't answer, too dazed and hurt, but then his eyes widened and he made an inarticulate protest as something came into view. It glinted in the light. A knife.

"Goodbye, fag."

Alex shut his eyes, and saw Sev's face. On that night. The night Bara stood staring into the abyss and Alex and Sev made love for the first time. Really made love, not the fumbles in the dark they'd had when drunk on shore leave. That night they chose a future, now that their past had gone forever. That night they chose to cling to each other, whatever that future held.

As the knife touched his throat Alex wanted to die with his mind full of the memory of Sev's hands on his skin.

Then a scream came, that wasn't his own. The weight of Max pinning him vanished and Alex sucked in a breath he didn't expect to take. He almost slid off the desk, but someone caught his arm as he slipped and heaved him into the chair.

"Easy," a voice said, a woman's voice. She shoved the chair up against the desk and let him lean on that so he didn't fall over. He managed to focus as she moved away from him and saw Major Jax bending over the semi-conscious Max on the floor. The fabric of his uniform was scorched away from his shoulder, the skin badly burnt.

Jax holstered the pistol she'd shot Max with and produced a set of handcuffs from her pocket.

"Tool of the trade?" Alex asked, his voice hoarse and shaky.

Jax scowled at him. "Stop talking, you look awful."

Once she'd secured Max to a firm fixture on the wall, Jax came back over to Alex, and checked the back of his head where it had hit the desk.

"You need the doctor."

"I'll be fine. Just catch my breath." He felt better for seeing Max chained to a wall and moaning. "I didn't know you were one of Maiga's people now."