The Hyperion appeared in the familiar scene of Deadman’s Port.
The bridge was dead silent. Jean realized both Horner and Raynor were glancing at her with a look unfamiliar to her. Neither of them showed any sign of being pleased by what could be called as a victory.
“Ahh, boys, I’ll take the artifact to meet the Moebius.”
Even Tychus realized something was off. He used the artifact as an excuse and quickly departed.
Raynor nodded before turning to Horner. “Check the casualties.” He ignored Jean, just like he has been ever since they left Xil.
Jean stood still as the captain worked. The calm look on her face wasn’t affected by Raynor’s decision to keep her on ice.
The casualty report quickly came out.
200 infantry marines, Mar Saran and Agrian, entered the battlefield. 147 returned.
114 war pigs entered battle. 78 came back.
43 hammer securities were turned to 26.
All 19 mercenary reaper guards remained intact. They remained with Jean through the battle and were never put into combat.
All 11 vikings were killed in action.
2 of the 4 goliaths were destroyed. The rest were heavily damaged.
There were 73 Warden marines, 10 Warden reaper, and 20 Warden marauders that landed on Xil. Now there were 34, 4, and 5, respectively.
Out of the three siege tanks the Raiders recovered on Xil, two survived.
That was one of the most painful battles the Raiders have fought. The Raiders lost almost one third of their units. The viking squadron was completely wiped out. The Warden units were crippled.
The hull of the Hyperion was heavily damaged. Repairing it would take time and money.
Yet Jean considered what happened as a good trade. The Moebius Foundation offered 250,000 credits for the artifact fragment. They were worth around 50,000 minerals.
That was a lot of minerals. A battlecruiser costed around that number of minerals. In other words, the Raiders just traded a few men for a capital ship powerful enough to conquer a small planet just by itself.
Jean would make that trade anytime, but apparently the rest of Raider High Command didn’t share her opinion.
Jean recognized the look Raynor and Horner were giving her. It was a mixture of disbelief, shock, and fear.
They were afraid of what she just did.
Back on Xil, when Jean came up with the idea of sending every single viking to a certain death, Raynor looked at her like she just announced she was a zerg.
“I would never send my men down there to die. That’s how Arcturus does things, not us.” Those were his exact words. “We will find another way out.”
But Jean wasn’t counting on another way.
Jean understood the reasoning behind the man’s response. After all, she knew all about what happened to Kerrigan, but she didn’t care if the man had a good reason. All she knew was every cell in her body demanded her to gain power, and she couldn’t gain anything if she was dead.
So Jean did something rather cruel. Without telling Raynor or Horner, she opened up a channel to the viking pilots and informed them what the situation was. For some men she appealed to their honor and loyalty. For others she promised a giant paycheck to their next of kin. For the rest, she used threats on their families and friends.
Raynor only knew about what was happening after the vikings left the hanger, which was also opened up under Jean’s command. Now that things were already done, Raynor had no choice but to go along with this plan and prepare to evacuate the ship.
In the end, she got the Hyperion out, but she also lost the trust she worked so hard to build between her and Raynor. Everything she gained in half a dozen major battles was practically gone.
Sending men and women to certain death was one strike. Giving orders and deploying combat units behind her commander’s back was another. She was certain Raynor wouldn’t arrest and execute her, but likely she would be kept away from the major chain of command.
That was unfortunate, but it was a worthy price to pay. Jean didn’t feel any regret or anger. She merely calculated how it would affect her plan and how she could use it to her advantage.
“I'll be at the port. Call me when you need me.”
She turned and walked out of the bridge without a single sense of hesitation. If she couldn’t do anything in the Raiders, she might as well put her effort in somewhere she could.
As the girl left, Horner and Raynor looked at each other quietly.
Jean let out a loud moan and fell on her back. Her body sank into the soft bed.
Beside her, Viper ran her fingers through her sweat-soaked blonde hair. Her eyes wide open.
“That was...hot.” The ghost whispered in what could be described as awe.
Jean smiled and sat up in the bed and started to dress herself. As she put her shirt on, Viper slid her arm behind Jean’s back. Jean smiled before falling back into the bed, to Viper’s satisfaction.
The two laid there for a while. The room was quiet before Jean suddenly spoke up.
“I need a ship.”
She was fairly certain Raynor wouldn’t make a move on her, but after what she did she doubted he would give her command of the Raiders again. If she stayed on the Hyperion, there would be nothing she could do.
Viper nodded. “I’ll give you a battlecruiser and all the crew members aboard. Is that enough?”
“One battlecruiser is just the right amount. What do you want in return?”
Viper sighed. “Just consider this as a favor. Not everything has to be a deal.”
Jean didn’t answer.
Viper bit her lips. She was willing to be more than just Jean’s ally and occasional sex partner. Ever since she broke free of the effect of the neural inhibitor, Jean was the first person she met. As sad as it was, Jean was her first and only friend. She wanted them to be closer.
Unfortunately, the fact that Jean didn’t say a word meant she wasn’t accepting that offer.
This was one of Jean’s few problems. She could observe those around her and do her best to act emotionally. She could sleep with others and pretend that she loved them. The problem was when it came to things more subtle, things that couldn’t be deducted by logic or experience, things like these concealed hints of love, she was completely ignorant.
“A group of mercenaries, Kane’s Plunderers, has messed with the wrong person. Help me take him out. We’ll split the loot. You can get the warbots.”
“Fair enough.” Jean sat back up. “We should move now…”
Suddenly, both Jean and Viper acted swiftly. Jean wiped her right hand on her watch and took out two gauss pistols modified so she could use without a CMC armor. Viper jumped from the bed to a shelf and snatched her C14 sniper rifle. Both girls turned to a corner.
There, stood a Tal’darim blood hunter. Realizing he was discovered, he exited cloak mode.
“I’ll find out who designed the orbital defense network and I’ll make him pay.”
Viper muttered. Her chamber was supposed to be one of the most heavily defended place on the platform. After she and Jean infiltrated the platform and assassinated Orlan without much difficulty, Viper worked hard to prevent the same thing from happening to her. She not only remotely ordered the mercenaries to set up much more layers of defenses but also hired a group of elite mercenaries as her personal guards. Still, none of that stopped the Tal’darim covert assassin from just walking in to her room.
If Viper didn’t sense the blood hunter as soon as he entered and psionically alert Jean, there was no telling how long the blood hunter could stand there without being detected.
“Don’t blame your underlings, terran female.” The blood hunter said nicely. Jean noticed his scythe, while in his grip, wasn’t lit. It was an odd thing to see for a Tal’darim.
Meanwhile, the blood hunter continued. Jean could tell he wasn’t doing this intentionally, but the provokingness in his tone remained. It was literally a habit.
“After all, your people are savages. Your puny technology is no match for the might of the Tal’darim.”
Viper groaned impatiently. “What are you doing here?” If it was someone else she wouldn’t bother with the questions, but a blood hunter was not an easy foe. She wouldn’t start a fight with him without absolutely needing to.
Luckily, she didn’t absolutely need to.
“Relax, terran. I am not your enemy. I am merely a messenger.”
“A messenger? For whom?”
The blood hunter tossed a circular object on the ground in front of the two women. A figure was projected into the air.
Viper lowered her weapon and eyed Jean. She herself didn’t know any Tal’darim, so this message must be for Jean.
“Ascendant Nyon.” Just like Viper imagined, Jean recognized the figure.
The Ascendant seemed to be in a worse condition than the last time he and Jean talked. The last time they met, Nyon was the warlord that controlled an entire fleet and a powerful ground army. He executed dozens of terran prisoners in front of the eyes of the Raider High Command. The entire Raynor’s Raiders was at his mercy.
Now, the warrior seemed defeated. Nyon tried to cover it, but Jean could see some fractures on his armor and some wounds on his body.
“Terran female.” Nyon spoke again, but he suddenly realized he had no idea what Jean’s name was. “What is your name?”
Previously he never felt the need to ask for Jean’s name. After all, he was sure she was going to die and asking for her name would be pointless, but now things have changed.
“Jean. Jean Turner.”
“Well, Jean.” Nyon toyed with the name and eyed Viper. “We might want to talk in somewhere private.”
“I trust her.” Jean looked at Viper sweetly. Viper smiled but still stared at the blood hunter in alert.
“Don’t seem so confident. Your mating partner might betray you. One of mine did.”
Jean looked at Viper, smiled, and turned back to Nyon. “What you want to tell me, you can tell her.”
“Fine. Just don’t regret it.” Nyon did his typical smirk. “I am offering you a deal.”
“I’m listening.”
“I propose an alliance.” Nyon held his right arm out in a persuading fashion. “You have just defeated an army with one at least twenty times smaller. Even as your enemy, I am impressed.”
Jean nodded.
“Imagine what we can do with your tactics and my army. We will be unstoppable. Together, we can conquer the entire sector. The Swarm. The Daelaam. Other Tal’darim Ascendants. Ma’lash.” As he said the last name, his mind was on something else. Someone else...but he left that part out. ”We can even deal with your terran foes. I can make you the Highlord of your people.”
“It’s Queen, by the way.” Jean subtly reminded. “But do you mind telling me why I should trust you? The last time we met, you tried to kill me.”
“And now I need you.” Nyon said casually. In the Tal’darim world, the identity of friends and enemies could be easily exchanged. When someone became useful, they could be friends. When someone outlived their usage, their death would be within a short countdown away.
Jean kept on looking at him, waiting for something more. Nyon decided he needed to give more information.
“After what happened on Xil, I realized I needed change. I am powerful, but, as painful as it is to admit, I am not the strongest. I need more than brute force to ascend. So, I set my eyes on you.”
“The female warrior that slaughtered one-third of my forces and escaped with the item I am destined to protect. I can easily slaughter you in a duel, but when it comes to commanding armies, you have a strength I do not have. I need that strength.”
Jean nodded, convinced. “How exactly should we collaborate? You are on...I presume Slayn. You know where I am at. We are half a sector apart.”
“Keep this communication device with you. I will contact you when I need your advice. In return, I will provide military aid whenever you need them.” Nyon said generously. “As a show of my sincerity, I have sent twenty blood hunters to you in a cloaked transport. They will follow your command and act as your bodyguard. They will kill anyone you wish...except me, of course.”
Jean nodded. She wasn’t surprised. That sounded like a precious gift, but Jean knew the blood hunters were in fact spies working for Nyon. No doubt they, while protecting her life, would tell the ascendant everything she did. If Nyon wanted it, these blood hunters would turn on her in a heartbeat.
Still, she was fine with it. A squad of twenty blood hunters was a force to be reckoned with. In a good position, it could take down a small army. They might be working for Nyon, but she was certain she could use them.
As the communication ended, Jean turned to the blood hunter, who hesitantly lowered his head in obedience.
