Cavalon tucked the core under one arm to try and fasten on his weapons belt, but the soft black leather slipped through his fingers. Emery caught it before it hit the ground. He gave her an apprecia tive nod, and she plucked the core from his grasp before offering the belt back to him.
“Kharon, please respond,” Jackin said, his tone decorous, yet resigned. He clearly just wanted to be able to say he’d followed protocol. He knew no one would answer.
Cavalon fumbled for a few moments until he got the belt secured around his hips. On one side hung a narrow sheath which held a long, serrated combat knife. A heavy black laser pistol sat against the other thigh.
He flashed Emery a grin, trying to appear casual. No one here knew that he hadn’t been taught to shoot a gun, and that he more than likely shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near one. He suddenly wished he’d been made to endure the basic training required of all new Legion recruits.
Jackin crossed his arms and gave the air-lock door a skeptical once-over. “What’s your plan here, Oculus?”
“This is a redundant air lock, right?” Cavalon asked.
“Yeah, this is the primary. Secondary we can unlock from inside, if we can get in there.”
Cavalon walked up to the sealed doorway. “And we’re definitely equalized?”
Emery, still clutching the warp core, stood on her tiptoes and squinted through a small observation window. “All green in there. Good to go, boss.”
Cavalon pushed up his sleeves, and his skin buzzed as his Imprints energized. They wove a path up his arm, trickling into his back and shoulders. Mouth full of the taste of copper, he spared a short-lived thought of concern for “volatile interfacing,” then ripped the door from its track.
With a small hiss, the air between the two spaces equalized, and to Cavalon’s intense relief, they didn’t lose pressure. The heavy door groaned as he set it aside. Jackin stared at Cavalon’s arm with impressed interest as the gold and bronze squares settled back into their standard formation.
Jackin nodded slowly. “Huh.”
“Holy shit,” Emery said, mouth agape, her purple gum stuck between her tongue and teeth. “That was awesome.”
Warner leaned forward, eyes narrowing as he stared at the Imprints. “You’re the one the guys have been talking about, aren’t you? The royal?”
“Nope.” Cavalon shook his head. “Definitely not.”
“Royal?” Emery piped. “No shit?”
“That’s ridiculous.” Cavalon gave a stilted laugh. “What would a royal be doing in the Legion?”
Jackin crossed his arms. Emery and Warner just stood and stared at him.
Cavalon cleared his throat. “Should we go inside, or do you all just want to stand here and ogle me?”
Jackin and Warner shook their heads as they crossed through the open threshold and into the secondary air lock.
Emery remained, a smug grin on her face. “I think I’d rather ogle.”
Cavalon rolled his eyes and brushed past, Emery following close behind.
Inside, Warner tapped the screen beside the secondary air-lock door, and it slid open. A dark corridor lay beyond, splitting off left, right, and straight, all lit with the same dim red lights as the air lock.
“Hold up,” Jackin said.
Cavalon looked down to find the optio crouched beside the primary door. He squinted at a small, crooked device fastened low beside the door frame.
“What’s that?” Emery asked.
“I don’t know,” Jackin mumbled.
“Doesn’t look Legion,” Warner said.