Chapter 2

"Uh Max?"

"What's up?" he asks,

"Can we get as far away from here as possible?"

He chuckles and smiles, "Sure."

"Now!?"

He jolts and looks out the window, two massive ships hover over the ruined Destroyer that Kiara was once imprisoned on.

"Did they follow you?" she asks,

"Not likely, they won't be able to see us just yet, not until we move."

"What else would they be here for?!"

"Kiara, I'll explain later, but a looooot of people want you."

"You came for ME?"

"No. But I did find you. Let's get out of here now."

"Will they be able to follow us?"

He jumps into the seat and straps himself in. "Only until Pirate's Moon."

"What is that?"

"Scan through my logs, I'll get us out of here."

"Oh boy."

"Relax, we aren't dying today."

He powers up the engine and goes immediately into hyperdrive. They fly for maybe six seconds before Kiara finishes scanning the logs and data that Max has collected.

"So Pirate's Moon has an electric stone core?"

"Exactly, they have more mass-"

"Max they are catching up!"

"How far behind?"

"Several miles, barely out of range!"

"Alright, we'll use the tunnels in the moon and hide our escape."

They fly down close to the moons surface. The surface suddenly begins exploding around them.

"They are trying to clip us!" Kiara says,

"And we're gone!"

The ship they are turn flies up and down into a narrow hole in the ground, big enough for two of their ships to fly in side by side.

The sounds of the explosions fade to nothing.

Kiara appears out of his arm into the seat next to his and looks back at the wall, as if looking through it.

"Not bad Max."

He smiles, "You say that like you weren't expecting us to get away."

She rolls her eyes. "I trusted you, you're just a little insane is all."

He chuckles. "Honestly. Like actually honestly, I think that is a factor that keeps me alive. Taking risks like that I mean. They never expect it, or they underestimate it."

"Hm, interesting. Alright, so where we headed?"

"T'Biwen."

"Then you take the next left."

He smiles, "Yes ma'am."

He does as asked and they nevigate out and hyper drive away.

"Why do they want me? Are there no other AI programs?"

Max shakes his head, "You're it Kiara. No one knows why or who but someone posted a pretty big bounty for you if I'm not mistaken."

"And how am I supposed to believe you aren't trading me in for the bounty?" she asks,

She still trusts him, but she doesn't want to make it too easy for him, or seem too easy to trust.

He shrugs, "The only thing I really got is the logs and data I've saved. But I promise Kiara, I was only scavenging, I'm not about the bounty hunter life. I was actually headed to T'Biwen anyway, this was on the way, I thought, why not. I'm not about to trade you for some bounty. If the bounty is pretty high, they never want you for anything good."

"Noted. I trust you Max."

"Good, likewise. I spend a lot of time helping people."

"Sounds good to me. What's in T'Biwen?"

"A lead. A friend of mine has gone silent. I intend to find out what happened."

"An attack?"

"Maybe. I know he would just ghost like this, or, if he was attacked, he wouldn't go down easily."

"Then we won't be wasting any time."

He smirks. They arrive at the giant planet and start to land. "Remember, people are after you."

"I understand. I won't be a distraction."

He scoffs. "Kiara I don't want you getting noticed. You're not a distraction. Just talk to me. No one else."

"...Got it."

He transfers her to his PMC or Portable Mind Console and walks off the ship after hiding his face once more.

"Max? Why do you hide you face?"

"I make a lot of enemies, can't always predict when, I prefer they don't know who I really am. These clothes kind of blend in, a lot of other races share similar cultures where they hide their skin."

"Either for beliefs or health."

"You got it. Besides I'm not too shabby in a fight."

"Considering we outsmarted two Tabkril Giants. I'll take your word for it."

He grins. They leave the docking bay and make their way to an apartment building. Max walks down the hall, he sees the cracked door and readies his hand on his pistol.

He creeps closer, pulls his pistol and pushes open the door. He looks in and stares at a black and red figure, aiming a pistol at him.

"Zylis?"

"How do I know you aren't a Sylvie?"

"How do I know you aren't one?"

She narrows her eyes, "Last Chance."

"Our first encounter was at a nightclub, we were both undercover. It was....interesting to say the least."

"Uh-uh! Enough said."

They holster their pistols, "Why are you here?"

"I haven't heard from Pilo in a while. He'd never just go dark on me."

She sighs and curses, "He was supposed to meet me yesterday we were going to copper hunt."

"Hmm...you've looked around much?"

"Not really, I got here like 20 seconds before you, I thought you were a tail."

"Well, let's find him."

She tilts her head. "You look good Max."

He snorts, "Not bad yourself."

She walks over and looks at the fridge's exterior wall. Max walks to a desk and opens the top drawer on the left, but it's empty. He searches the other drawers, he pulls out a few different papers. And reads over them, but they are about completed bounties and Bill receipts.

"Wow, well he was pretty careful with receipts."

"Heh you have no idea." Zylis says,

"Where would someone hide something they don't want found?" Max asks softly to himself,

"The Closet maybe?" Kiara says to him quietly,

"Hm. Maybe."

Max gets to his feet and starts to the bedroom.

"Zylis is a bounty hunter?"

"Yes. She's the higher ranked arachnid race."

"I can see why, four other legs that can be as sharp as spears. It should make bounty hunting quite easy."

"She is a deadly woman."

"You'll have to tell me the story of how you became affiliated some time."

Max agrees and looks around, but it's pretty clean. Zylis walks in and searches the nightstand.

"Ugh. He didn't make it easy."

Max stands and looks at her. "Well...first place that pops into your head, where is the place you think he'd assume you would think of to look?"

She scoffs, "Um....hmm....in the ceiling or the wall?"

Max thinks for a moment, "We were his only friends right?"

She shrugs, "I guess? Why? You think someone else beat us here?"

"No, I think he knew us really well. My guess would be the bathroom. What if whatever we are looking for is in the bathroom wall?"

They stare at each other for a moment and walk out and hurry to the bathroom. Max taps the wall, while Zylis looks carefully at the tile wall in the shower.

"Hm."

Max looks at her, "Find something?"

"Maybe." she mutters,

With one of her spider arms, she strikes a square tile that is about as big as her fist. It cracks and chips. She uses her arm again to force off the broken pieces, the two pieces fall out into her hands with ease.

Max walks over as she reaches in and pulls out a small folded piece of paper. Zylis looks at Max, shocked.

"I guess you knew him just as well as he knew us."

Max shakes his head, "I can't believe I was right. Clever idiot."