He kicked open the door, dread coiling within him over what he’d find.

The container was full of wreckage, scraps of metal and signs of violence, with the wall dented. Qalu sat on the far side, trussed but not gagged. Her head tendrils fluttered, though the situation was too tense for him to interpret those movements. The bounty hunter spun as Helix stepped inside, leveling an elongated weapon—a xerxax—commonly used by the Vurnoi, though Helix couldn’t confirm whether Krag was Vurnoi through the heavy armor.

“You waited until the last possible moment,” Krag said in a deep bass rumble. “I had begun to question your commitment.”

Beside him, Aevi hissed, showing her teeth at the hunter, and her tail sliced in the air in angry slashes. Helix picked the little one up for fear that she would attack and get hurt. Gently, he stroked the top of her head and down her back, all his attention focused on Krag.

“I’m here now. Let Qalu go. I’m the one you want. There’s no reason to hurt her.”

“My reputation must precede me, and yet, if it does, why do you persist with the notion that I need a reason to hurt someone?” There was no rancor in the question, nor any anger, and that made the words even more threatening.

“You have a reputation for professionalism,” Helix said, taking a step forward. “There is no gain in injuring those for whom there is no contract. I’ve heard that you’ve never lost a quarry, not that you do violence on a whim. I’m here within the specified time frame. Therefore, let her go. Please.” In truth, he was stalling.

As the bounty hunter stalked over to him, the numbers finally stopped scrolling. The syndicate had all their dirty credits back, but they probably wouldn’t notify Krag in time. Helix stood his ground, trying not to dwell on what came after termination of life status. Doubtless, organic beings had their ideas in order preparing for such a moment, but before this, he’d been energy and information, difficult to lose entirely when he could make countless copies. Perhaps he would return to that state, his code dispersed into the atoms of existence.

It was impossible to read anything from the hunter’s countenance, but instead of closing the last few paces to Helix, Krag wheeled and cut through Qalu’s bindings. Aevi leapt out of Helix’s grasp and darted over to Qalu, scrambling up her body and nuzzling against her with soft sounds of distress. Slowly, Qalu maneuvered to her feet, moving as if her joints pained her.

“Go,” he urged, putting himself between her and Krag.

“Not without you.”