Christmas was supposed to be different this year. Nearly a year had passed since the chaos at the Shiawase Corporation building back in Seattle, where Tex Alvarez had narrowly survived a New Year’s Eve to remember. Now, here he was again, facing another holiday season that wasn’t turning out as planned. Tex had come up to the luxury space habitat Constellation 5—floating at the L5 point, trailing the Moon—to spend time with his wife, Julia. After everything they’d been through, the long-distance relationship was holding up, but it wasn’t easy. Julia was always up here in the stars, managing Shiawase’s interests, while Tex was stuck down on Earth, wrangling criminals in the grit of Texas.
The trip had been meant as a peaceful getaway, a chance to reconnect in person for the first time in months. VR was one thing, but for Tex, it was no substitute for the real thing.
“Gotta love the holidays,” Tex muttered, shaking his head as alarms blared around them, flashing red against the polished steel and glass of Constellation 5.
Julia looked just as frustrated as he was, her calm composure tinged with disappointment. “Of course, this happens now,” she said, her voice tight. “It couldn’t wait a few more days?”
Tex sighed. “Looks like we’re right back to where we left off last year.”
Before they could say more, a voice boomed from every screen, commlink, and VR channel across the station. The image of a man Tex had hoped to forget appeared, smug and dangerous as ever. Jonathan Kirkland.
“Good evening, residents of Constellation 5. As of now, this station is under my control. Stay calm, follow my instructions, and no one needs to get hurt. Any resistance will be met with swift consequences. Welcome to your new reality.”
Kirkland. Tex felt a knot tighten in his gut, his hands clenching into fists. A year ago, they had crossed paths, and it had nearly killed him. Now, here the bastard was, ruining his Christmas—and, by the looks of it, threatening much more than just his holiday plans.
“I need to get moving,” Tex muttered, looking to Julia. “Stay here. I’ll come back for you.”
Julia’s eyes flashed with concern, but she nodded. She knew this was who Tex was, and nothing would change that. “Be careful, Tex. This isn’t just another Lone Star case.”
He gave her a grim smile. “I’ve got this.”
Tex slipped into the maintenance corridors, moving quickly. He wasn’t armed, but that didn’t matter. He had his instincts, and they’d kept him alive through worse. As he navigated the station’s labyrinth of tunnels, the sound of his commlink crackled to life.
“Alvarez, you copy?”
The voice was sharp, professional—Lt. Jenna Pierce, a corporate security officer. Tex had heard about her through the grapevine, but they’d never crossed paths. He was glad to know there was someone else on the station with a brain.
“Copy that,” Tex responded, moving swiftly. “You got eyes on what’s going down?”
“Yeah. Kirkland’s men have control of key systems. I’ve been evading them, but it’s bad. You need to get to me—there’s something I need to show you.”
Tex raised an eyebrow but kept moving, Pierce’s directions guiding him. “What are we dealing with here?”
Pierce hesitated for a moment. “Let’s just say it’s bigger than a standard hostage situation. Meet me at the auxiliary control room. We’ll talk more then.”
Tex’s gut told him she was holding something back, but there wasn’t time to question her. He moved quickly through the station, taking down a few mercenaries along the way—one unlucky grunt tried to stop him near a loading bay. Tex quickly incapacitated him, his hand wrapping around the man’s collar.
“What’s Kirkland’s game?” Tex growled, shoving the man against the wall.
The merc sneered, spitting blood. “You don’t know? He’s here for Deus.”
Tex’s heart skipped a beat. Deus? That couldn’t be right. Deus had been destroyed years ago, or at least that’s what everyone thought. But the merc’s eyes told a different story. “You’re lying.”
“Wish I was,” the man wheezed. “Station’s got Deus locked up in a digital vault. Kirkland’s gonna free it… and then blow the whole damn place to cover it up.”
Tex shoved the man to the floor, disbelief running through him. Deus? He hadn’t signed up for this.
Reaching the auxiliary control room, Pierce greeted him with a grim nod. “I heard what the merc said,” Pierce said, her face tight with tension. “Deus is here. I didn’t know Kirkland was after it, but… it makes sense. This whole station’s a front for research. Shiawase and a few other corps have been studying Deus in secret.”
Tex shook his head, trying to wrap his mind around the scope of the situation. “So Kirkland’s here to free Deus and then blow the station?”
“Exactly,” Pierce replied. “But there’s more. Kirkland’s rigged the reactor core with demolition charges. If we mess with them too soon, it’ll alert him. We have to time this perfectly. I’ll defuse the charges, but you need to take down Kirkland first. If he realizes what we’re doing, we’re all dead.”
Tex’s eyes hardened. “I’ll handle Kirkland. You do your thing, but wait for my signal.”
Pierce smirked. “Deal. Let’s save this Christmas.”
With that, Pierce got to work, slipping into the shadows while Tex made his way toward the control center. As he approached, he could hear Kirkland’s men securing the area. With cold efficiency, Tex took out two guards, knocking them unconscious before making his move into the control room.
Inside, Kirkland stood by the main console, flanked by two armed goons. Julia was there too, her hands cuffed to a chair, but her eyes were sharp, watching everything with a calm that Tex admired.
“Alvarez,” Kirkland greeted him with a smirk. “I knew you’d show up. You always do.”
Tex’s hand twitched toward the gun he’d taken from one of the mercs, his eyes narrowing. “Let her go, Kirkland. This doesn’t have to go down like this.”
Kirkland laughed, a hollow sound. “Oh, but it does. You have no idea what’s really at stake here. Deus will be free, and when it is, the corps will pay me more than you could ever dream of.”
Tex’s jaw tightened. “And then what? You blow the station, kill everyone here?”
Kirkland’s eyes gleamed with a twisted kind of joy. “No loose ends, Alvarez. That’s how it’s always been.”
Tex’s finger squeezed the trigger, and the room erupted into gunfire. Kirkland’s two goons were quick, but not quick enough. Tex took one down with a clean headshot, diving behind cover as the second returned fire. A few tense moments later, and the second merc was down, leaving just Tex and Kirkland.
Kirkland fired a few shots, forcing Tex to take cover behind a console. “You think you can stop me, Alvarez? I’ve been planning this for years!”
Tex ducked out, firing back, but Kirkland had moved, closing the distance between them. When the bullets ran out, Kirkland charged, and Tex was ready. The two men collided, fists swinging in a brutal, desperate fight. It was just like before—Tex’s raw strength against Kirkland’s cold, calculated precision.
They crashed through the control room, knocking over equipment and slamming into walls. Kirkland taunted him with every blow. “You’re too late! Deus will be free, and you can’t stop it!”
Tex gritted his teeth, swinging hard. “Guess you didn’t count on Christmas miracles.”
As they fought, Julia managed to slip her cuffs. With quick thinking, she grabbed a piece of debris and struck Kirkland from behind, staggering him long enough for Tex to land the final punch, knocking him out cold.
Tex stood over the unconscious Kirkland, panting, his knuckles bruised and bloody. “Pierce, we’re clear.”
“Got it,” Pierce’s voice crackled through the comms. “Defusing the charges now.”
A few tense minutes later, Pierce’s voice came back. “Charges defused. We’re in the clear.”
Tex let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, turning to Julia. She gave him a tired smile. “You never do anything halfway, do you?”
Tex chuckled, pulling her into a tight embrace. “Nope. Merry Christmas.”
Together, they stood in the control room as the alarms finally ceased, looking out at the stars through the viewport. Another disaster averted, another bad guy down. It wasn’t the quiet holiday they’d hoped for, but it was theirs.
“You know,” Julia said, leaning against him, “maybe next Christmas, we should stay Earthside.”
Tex grinned. “Sounds like a plan.”
But deep down, he knew wherever they went, trouble would follow. And that was just fine with him.
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