In the Service of the Guild
Table Of Contents
DEDICATION
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
In the Service of the Guild
Copyright © 2019 Paige Daniels
Paige Daniels asserts her moral right to be identified as the author of this book.
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Paperback 978-1-0767-6089-0
Cover and Typesetting by Streetlight Graphics
DEDICATION
To family… It isn’t always blood. I couldn’t have done this without all of you.
CHAPTER ONE
THE ETHOS VIRUS HAS RAVAGED ANOTHER COLONIST OUTPOST ON CORGON-9. THIS IS THE TENTH OUTBREAK ON AN INDEPENDENT PLANET. THE COUNCIL OF INDEPENDENT PLANETS HAS MADE NUMEROUS PLEAS FOR VACCINES FOR THOSE HARDEST HIT, BUT THOSE PLEAS HAVE GONE UNANSWERED BY ALL THE KEEPER FACTIONS.
On the floating display, a lifeless child hangs limply in her mother’s arm. The scene unfolding before me elicits the barest hint of remorse for the woman. I click the scene off before I have time to think about the atrocities, then I turn to face the man in the mirror. I brush a few hints of dust off my crisp black uniform then straighten the medals and ribbons adorning the crimson sash hanging across my chest. My hand drifts to my freshly shaved face, and my fingers brush the cherry-red birthmark on my jaw, which is usually hidden by stubble.
Fuckin’ formal ceremonies…
I turn away from the mirror and head out of my cramped quarters. I close my eyes and take a deep breath of crisp, clean air then head to the white limestone building in the distance. Footsteps scurrying next to me make me turn around.
An athletically built blond woman in the same uniform as mine, but without the sash and medals, calls to me breathlessly. “Paladin Reece!”
“You’re late, kid.”
She glances at her comm-tile and looks at me unwaveringly. “I am not. I’m right on time.”
The edge of my mouth curls slightly. Plebe Cane is one of the best recruits I have trained and will surely make paladin in record time, but I can’t let her know that.
I return her look and growl. “Are you arguing with me, Plebe?”
She stays stock-still and stares right at me. “Sir, no, sir. I will try to be earlier next time.”
“Very good. If you’re on time, you’re late.”
Since I’m nearly a foot taller than she, I walk at a quick pace so that she nearly has to run to keep up with me. As I walk, I ask her, “Do you know what we are going to see today?”
“Sir, yes, sir. Paladin Hale is to be relieved of his paladin title. He’s now an untouchable, unfit for paladin service because of his betrayal of the Guild.”
“Believe everything they tell ya, Plebe?”
“Sir?”
“There are always two sides to every story. Remember that. The Guild is bought and paid for by one Keeper faction or another.”
She looks shocked at my frank statement.
“Look, kid, I’m one of the few paladins that’ll shoot you straight here, so it’ll do you good to listen to my advice. In theory, our services are available to anyone who can afford them, but who in this galaxy can afford our services but the four factions who own all the wormholes?”
She shakes her head and says, “I’m sure there are some independent corporations that could…”
“Eh, in my nearly fifteen years of service, I’ve seen that maybe twice. Trust me, kid, we’re owned by the Keepers. Why do you think the only way to rise to the level of daimyo is to align yourself with a Keeper faction? Sometimes the balance will tip toward one Keeper faction more than others, and therein lies my point. Know who’s in charge and stay on their good side.”
We stop in a grassy courtyard with a white stone building facing us. Flanking either side of the building are stone stairs that lead up to a quarterdeck. Uniformed people are all gathered around, looking at it, and a low murmur of anticipation runs through the crowd.
I continue on, “Hall was stupid. He pissed off the Liu-Khatri faction. Five of the thirteen elders either are in marriage pacts or have children in marriage pacts with the Liu-Khatri. They’ll spin it like he crossed his daimyo, but plenty of people cross their daimyos and don’t get more than a few hours of PT.”
She gives a wry smile. “Like you? Screwing Daimyo Rone Corbin’s wife?”
I should rip her a new one for the familiarity of that remark, but the reminder of shoving it down that ass clown’s throat cracks a smile across my face. “First, watch yourself, Plebe. Second, she wasn’t his wife at the time. Third, my point exactly. Daimyo Corbin made a pact with the weakest faction at that time because that was all who would take him. No one cared, so I got a few days in the box, and mostly everyone thought it was funny. However, had I done that with a more powerful faction, I wouldn’t be talking to you now.”
“Sir, I just want to do my job. Politics isn’t my thing.”
“Me, neither. You see me rushing to make daimyo?”
She shakes her head.
“Right. I got no interest in indenturing myself in a marriage contract or kissing some Keeper’s ass for the rest of my life. I just want to go out and execute whatever or whoever they want me to take out. Which brings me to my last bit of advice…”
“Sir?”
I look up at the parade deck, where a man in drab brown clothing is flanked by a man and a woman in uniform. Behind him are thirteen elders dressed in red robes. The crowd goes silent.
I turn to Cane and whisper, “Hale might’ve been spared with just being busted down to plebe and given a few whacks, but…” I look at the man kneeling before the elders and take a deep breath. “He ran his mouth. It would be one thing to screw up or refuse a run, but to publicly speak against a faction… That’s a whole ‘nother thing. Keep your mouth shut—do what they tell ya. Kid, it’s not a matter of politics. It’s a matter of survival.”
“Sir, yes, sir.”
We’re both quiet and turn to watch the scene in front of us. An elder, an old woman with long flowing white hair, steps forward and speaks. Her voice is projected throughout the courtyard.
“Fellow members of the Guild, it is with a heavy heart that I must strip this once-noble paladin of his title. From this day forward, Paladin Hale has never existed in our ranks. There are repercussions for not following orders.” Her voice rises to a fever pitch. “We are members of the Guild! We are elite, not some run-of-the-mill mercs. There is honor in our ranks!”
The crowd laughs and cheers. As she closes her eyes and breathes deeply, the crowd silences. She looks at the uniformed people who escorted Hale out and nods.
The man and the woman produce solid-metal batons and without emotion introduce the instruments to Hale’s body. Hale makes few sounds as the paladins take turns unleashing the wrath of the elders on him. Slowly, Hale’s body slumps to the ground in a puddle of crimson. The crowd’s raucous cheers fill the courtyard. I look at my side, and my plebe is joining in the frenzy. I cannot. Hale was an honorable man, just stupid. This is not an honorable way to die. The elders and Keepers are turning the Guild into something it was never meant to be. I heave a sigh. Nothing much I can do, I guess, except serve until I die.
CHAPTER TWO
The ceremony ends with the two paladins heaving Hale’s body off the quarterdeck. It’ll stay in the courtyard for a few hours before a few plebes are dispatched to dispose of it. As everyone files out, I take note of all their faces. They are all much younger than my thirty years. Most everyone my age made daimyo or died years ago. I have no friends. Nobody has friends in the Guild—just those you may trust a little more than others. My body feels every bit of the nearly fifteen years I’ve served as paladin. On a daily basis, my robotic arm and cybernetic eye cause me pain, my knees ache, and memories…
Plebe Cane’s voice breaks my wallowing. “Sir, what are my orders for the day?”
“I looked at your times on sim-training session One Lima Niner, and your stats aren’t what they need to be. I want you in that trainer for the remainder of the day. I’ll be checking on you at the end of t
he day, and if you aren’t where I want you to be, then prepare yourself for night PT.”
She looks at me wide-eyed. “If I may ask, sir, what is the target range I’m aiming for?”
“What fun would it be if I told ya?”
She starts to protest but is stopped by my look.
“I’d get goin’, Plebe. You’re wasting time.”
“Sir, yes, sir.”
She runs toward a high-rise glass building in the distance. I smile, remembering my time in simulators. It was absolute hell training in a hot, dark room with a myriad of tactical situations one might encounter as a paladin. What we don’t tell the plebes is that most of the situations programmed into the simulators are unsolvable. I start to head to my quarters when I’m stopped by a buzzing at my wrist. I look down at my comm-tile:
DAIMYOS ROAN CORBIN AND WALKER RAINES REQUEST YOUR PRESENCE IN MEETING ROOM A IN FIFTEEN MINUTES.
I barely breathe out the words, “Ah, fuck. What the hell is it now?”
I squirm in my scratchy formal wear. The least they could’ve done was let me change into more comfortable gear, and given their late appearance, I had more than enough time to change. I know it’s just their way of fucking with me. I stretch out in a chair at the side of the conference table, and before I’m able to get too comfortable, a voice rings out.
“Daimyos Corbin and Raines entering the room.”
Getting their adjutant to announce them is a fairly douchey move. I slowly rise for my superiors. Two men clad in gray shirts and pants with matching gray jackets adorned in medals and ribbons stand in front of me.
One man in his late forties, with dark hair and round glasses, greets me by shaking my hand. “Paladin Reece, how are you?”
“I’m great, Daimyo Raines.”
The other man, too, is in his late forties but has a receding hairline and is much smaller than Daimyo Raines.
“Daimyo Corbin, how is your wife?” I ask.
Corbin’s eyes grow wide, and he shouts, “I should send you down the same path as Hale for your insolence!”
I feign a shocked look. “What? I was just asking about the health of your family.”
Raines takes an exasperated breath and says, “Both of you stand down.”
I shrug. Both the Daimyos sit, and I join them.
Raines continues, “Let’s cut to the chase. We need you on a rather sensitive case.”
“Yes, sir.”
Raines continues, “Do you know the nature of Hale’s transgression, Paladin Reece?”
“Sir, I’m not privy to the goings on—”
Both of them give me a cut-the-shit look. They know I’ve been around long enough to get the real dirt on most situations around here.
I start again. “Hale fucked up a run having to do with the Ethos vaccine. He spoke publicly about his distaste for the Backic faction’s policy of withholding vaccines from colonies who needed it most and instead using it to gain votes and power. From what I hear, the votes didn’t go so great for the Backics at the latest galactic conference, and that shipment of vaccines was headed to the Liu-Khatri faction, where they were supposed to exchange it for voting seats at the next galactic conference.”
Corbin’s eyes narrow. “Do you share his views?”
I shrug. “Frankly, I don’t give a shit. I don’t know any of the colonists. I figure the Keepers have their reason, and it isn’t any of my business.”
Raines smiles. “Exactly. The Backic faction has a perfectly viable plan for working with the other Keeper factions in releasing the vaccine in a controlled fashion. All will get the vaccine in due time.”
Both the Daimyos are grinning from ear to ear, thinking I’m completely snowed by their line of bullshit. The real story is that the Backic faction sells every new batch of the vaccine to the highest bidder. Then whatever Keeper faction wins the bid sells the vaccine at extreme markups, which means the only people able to afford it are the wealthiest and most affluent and never independent colonies. Honestly, I couldn’t give two shits. It’s the way things have always been and will always be.
I look at the two men and sigh. “So how does this affect me?”
Corbin answers, “Hale was supposed to guard a shipment of vaccines to a Liu Khatri–controlled planet, but instead it was overtaken by the Separatists. The word is that he was in on the heist the whole time.”
Raines clicks on his comm-tile, and a picture of a skinny young man floats above the conference-room table. Raines continues, “We’ve been able to piece together, from intel gathered during Hale’s interrogation session, that this man received the shipment and was responsible for hiding the items. We haven’t been able to discern where the shipment is being hidden, though.”
I lean back in my seat. “So get the man, interrogate him, and get the shipment?”
Corbin shakes his head. “No, just retrieve him and plant a worm on his systems, and we’ll take care of the rest.”
“I’m more than capable of getting the information I need from him and retrieving your items.”
Raines answers, “Believe me: getting this man is going to be more work than you think. Bring him back here, then we’ll assess from there.”
I narrow my eyes at him, wondering what he’s not telling me.
“The information is being sent to your comm-tile. Review it and be ready to leave first thing in the morning.”
“Sir, yes, sir.”
I stand as both men leave then look at my comm-tile. “Well, fuck me…”
CHAPTER THREE
This run is going to take more prep than I thought. I rush across the campus to my quarters to plan this op. No way am I going to have the time to plan this effectively. A bump to my shoulder shakes me from my thoughts. I look up.
Fuck. I don’t have time for this.
A man ten years my junior with flecks of silver running through his jet-black hair gives me a lopsided smile, his blue eyes gleaming. “Get a cherry assignment from the Daimyos?”
“None of your business, Tabor.”
Though I try to ignore him and continue to my quarters, he stays close like a fly swarming. “You should’ve given it up a long time ago, old man. This is a young man’s game. Sell yourself to one of those Keeper women—or men—and get a nice cushy daimyo job. It ain’t too bad of a life.”
“Shut up, Tabor.”
“Seriously, Reece, just hand this job over to me. I got it from here.”
I ramp up my speed a few notches and bump him in the shoulder as I pass him.
This time, Tabor stays behind and laughs as I speed toward my quarters. “Give me a call if you can’t figure it out, Reece.”
Tabor Gerr has been in the pocket of Daimyo Corbin since Tabor made paladin. Both of them have a grudge against me. I guess I understand Corbin’s beef with me, but Tabor’s hate for me has mostly stemmed from the fact that Corbin has told him to hate me.
After an invigorating walk across campus to my quarters, my mind is almost clear of the confrontation with Tabor. First thing: ditch the formal wear for my usual attire of cargo pants and a T-shirt. I settle into a worn chair in my tiny quarters then project all the intel the daimyos have given me on my mark and the vaccine into the air.
It looks like Hale was in collusion with the Separatists to get them the vaccine. I shake my head. Hale was stupider than I thought. The Separatists put on a great ruse that they’re for the common people and they want to take the down the Keepers to make wormhole transit free for all. However, it’s nothing more than another power grab in a disguise of benevolence for the people. Hale was snowed because as soon as the Separatists got the shipment of vaccines, it seems they sold it to Jake Po in exchange for a pretty sum of credits. Jake is a mover and shaker on the black-market scene. He got his start as a hacker, and once he made a good sum there, he branched out into other black-market ventures. Now in his early twenties, he’s made a name for himself. He’s definitely not up to Keeper status, but he is fairly powerful and protected. Getting to him won’t be easy. I can see why they wanted me to just bring him back here for interrogation. Overcoming his security is going to be a trick, and more than likely, the vaccines aren’t going to be stored in just one location.