“Things have changed since you disappeared during the battle at the void tear,” Ellenton explained, still piloting the ship but craning her neck to one side so Dawson could unlock her collar as well. It clattered to the floor and Dawson kicked it under a seat, then offered the key to Thorne.
A week ago, she would have hesitated to take it. Would have had to stop and consider the consequences of using the key and becoming a free warden. But not now. She’d committed herself to this course, had joined up with Kaiden and his friends, and now – well, now there was no room for uncertainty. She took the key and broke her vow to always support the Warden Corps.
Her collar fell away with a soft click. Anticlimactic, almost. Probably she should have felt more emotional about it, but knowing what the Party had done, what it’d become, there was no doubt this was the correct course. She might have made a vow to the Corps, but first she’d made a vow to serve the people. When those two conflicted, picking between them wasn’t much of a choice at all.
Congratulations! You have been released from the warden program and are now a free warden. You retain your character, along with all gear and experience collected. The Anakoni will no longer be your respawn point upon death, but the last large city, outpost, port, or settlement you visited prior to dying. Welcome to the full Nova Online experience!
“You feel any lighter?” Ellenton asked from the pilot’s seat.
“I feel like I’ve just declared war against the Party and all of its supporters,” Thorne said. “And so have you. But why? That’s what I don’t understand. Why did you help me?”
“It’s like Dawson said earlier,” Ellenton answered, talking over her shoulder while flying the shuttle. “The Corps has changed. You know Moran’s always been the power-hungry bureaucrat. More concerned with moving up in the Party than running the Warden Corps. But hey, fine by me, I always said. We still got the job done when we needed to, for the most part. But when Kaiden and his friends attacked you on the Anakoni, something changed. The Party branded them traitors, rebels, terrorists.”
Thorne could only see the profile of her face, but it was enough to see a questioning frown stretch across the pilot's features. “Now, I hadn’t known them long, but they struck me as a pretty alright bunch. Rebels? Doubtful. Terrorists? No way, Jose. That didn’t sit right with me, but hey, I was just a lowly lieutenant, right? What do I know? Then there was that nonsense at the void tear – you know, when the dark turen decided to play demolition derby with our fleet? Yeah, ever since that happened and you disappeared in the middle of it, Moran’s gone off the deep end. Says you’re a traitor now.” Ellenton laughed and shook her head. “Then the story came down the line that you let yourself be bested by Kaiden and his friends to cover their escape. And with classified information, no less. They said you were working with the resistance the entire time. Now, I didn’t think Kaiden and his bunch were terrorists, but I knew for darn sure you weren’t. So I said to myself ‘El, this has the stink of Party politicking all over it.’ From then on, things only got worse.”
“Worse is being too gentle,” Dawson said, then cracked his knuckles angrily. “Moran started showing up in-game all the time. Wanted to be a hands-on leader all of a sudden. Wanted to bring his own personal henchmen with him, too.” Dawson hiked a thumb over his shoulder. “That colonel you saw back there? Tarsin?” He laughed. “That moron hadn’t played Nova for more than a week before today. Hadn’t joined the Corps either. Then, all of a sudden, him and a ton like him – not even worthy to be ensigns – start popping up. Came ‘highly recommended’ by Moran, too. Got appointed officer ranks right away. Ranks they didn’t – and don’t – deserve. They’ve been superseding the authority of every warden from lieutenant to general since. It used to be rank counted for something. Was a thing to be respected. But now, all that seems to matter is whether you kowtow to Moran or not.”
Colonel Tarsin? That level twenty-one’s the captain of the Anakoni. And Moran expects experienced career wardens to take orders from him?
Dawson was pacing now, fists clenched. “Now, I like to think of myself as a tolerant individual. I try to be reasonable. Undermining the integrity of my Corps, though? That’s a fine way to piss me off. And then there’s…” He paused and the anger drained from his face a moment. Looked like he was caught up in a memory. “And then there’s the crackdown.”
Ellenton nodded solemnly as he said it.
“They haven’t just gone after people close to Kaiden and the others. The Party’s using this crackdown as an excuse to go after anyone and everyone. They took my neighbor’s kid a couple nights ago. Now, I’m not gonna say the boy was a saint, but he wasn’t a danger to anyone. Just stupid kid stuff, a bit of anti-party graffiti – typical rebellious phase. Happens to the best of us. Didn’t stop him from being disappeared in the middle of the night, though.” Dawson shook his head. “I’d always heard rumors of that sort of thing happening, but rumors are rumors, you know? And besides, if it did happen, the criminals that got brought in probably deserved it. But this? This was different. They damn near took the whole family. And for what? Didn’t even have a warrant. Seems they don’t need those anymore.”
“Things are changing, and fast,” Ellenton said. “Worst they’ve been since… well, since the Test, I figure. Dawson’s not the only
