Ganymede Plunder
Page 3
On the moon’s surface, Nate dragged Jorge to the buggy. Dom waved him forward, the gesture somehow frantic. As Nate drew closer, the Cataphract’s jamming signal fell away. Dom shouted, “Run!”
“What’s the rush? I have literally run through a starship carrying a heavy, ugly man.” Nate wheezed for emphasis.
“Radiation spike.” Dom jabbed a finger at the instrument panel inside the buggy. “The Cataphract’s reactor is going to breach.”
Nate goggled. There are so many people still here. He turned, unsure of what to do. Indecision anchored him to the silicate-ice surface of Ganymede.
Pearl got out of the buggy, lumbered to Nate, and grabbed him with a hand that brooked no argument. The big pirate king dragged Nate to the buggy, shoving him inside. Nate struggled, but with only half a will, because he could see the sense in running.
Inside, Dom gunned the buggy’s engine. It scudded over the rocky surface with a whine, heading for Cadence.
They made the road, gravity holding them firm. The buggy made better speed as it raced away. The vehicle shook, Ganymede trembling in fear. Bright, brilliant light. The dawn of a sun behind them, then the hand of a monster tossed the buggy forward, bouncing and skating as the Cataphract’s reactor blew, turning two hundred souls to ash.
Chapter Four
It was easy to avoid detection. With an ICF reactor scattering moon dust all over Cadence’s dome, emergency crews were everywhere. Free citizens of the spaceport helped where they could. Community overrode greed for a sliver of time.
It wouldn’t last. Not on Ganymede, and not in Cadence.
Nate sighed. They were in the small room he and Valerie shared above the Triage Tearoom. She sat in her chair, wheels glinting an accusation. Dom lounged against a wall, looking like he wanted a fight, but not ready to pick one yet. Pearl loomed, leaning over the coffin.
The lights inside dared them to open it.
“It’s locked.” Valerie fussed with her console on its rickety table. A data cable slithered between the coffin and her console, sharing secrets.
“Can you open it?” Nate didn’t know if he wanted her to.
“I think we should leave it shut.” Pearl made it sound like what he thought was as close to reality as made no difference.
Dom pushed off from the wall, crossing his arms. “The Empire is rotten. This is a weapon they want to use against the free.”
“Against the likes of us, you mean.” Pearl scowled.
Dom laughed. “You’re not free, pirate king. You grub for doubloons in the mud. No, this is for enemies of the Empire. They don’t understand the harder they hit, the more rebellion grows.”
Nate kept the whole Dom-is-the-Emperor-in-Waiting thing quiet. Pearl didn’t need to know those secrets. “It’s a kid. You can’t make weapons from kids.”
Dom nodded like he agreed. “Were the prisoners laid near the coffin?”
Pearl looked at Nate, then Dom. “How’d you know?”
“It’s the coding.” Dom ran a hand through his hair. “It’s how the weapon works.”
Valerie punched the air as the coffin gave a chirp. “There! That did it.”
“Did what?” Nate looked at the coffin. Aside from the beep, nothing seemed different.
“This.” Valerie turned her chair, wheels sliding silent on the rough floor. She needs that Personal Augment, so she can pretend to walk again. Valerie bent, pressing a button on the coffin. With a hiss, the lid lifted, vapor clambering over the side to lurk on the floor.
Pearl slammed it shut. “No. That’s about enough of that.”
“You’re outnumbered,” said Dom. Nate noticed his hand lingered on the butt of his blaster. “You don’t give the orders here.”
Pearl laughed. “Yes, I do. You want to know why?”
“I’m sure you’re going to tell me.” Dom pushed his chest out, walking close to the big pirate king. Nate winced in expectation. No one threatened Pearl.
Pearl laughed, clamping a hand on Dom’s wrist as he went for his blaster. He shook Dom’s arm like a baby’s rattle, the weapon dropping to the floor with a clatter. Pearl pushed him away as the door burst open. A handful of pirates rushed in. Monty and Jorge weren’t among them. Pearl’s smile was fat and predatory. “Because I’m never outnumbered. Not on Ganymede.”
Pirates hustled the coffin out. Nate watched them go, glaring a warning at Dom. Pearl’s goons trickled down the steps from their room, sewage finding its own level, leaving them alone. The big pirate considered Dom for a moment, then turned his attention to Nate. “Chevell.”
“This going to be another favor?” Nate grimaced.
“You understand, right?” Pearl’s lips settled in a line. “You know why. Your off-world friend doesn’t know how Cadence works. But you do.”
Nate nodded. “Whoever looks in the cask must die. Ergo, no one can know what’s in the cask.”
“Ergo?” Valerie blinked. “I don’t think I’ve heard anyone say that out loud.”
“Live and learn,” suggested Nate. “If we spoke to the kid in the coffin, we’d know secrets. Secrets can be shared. Secrets can only be kept by dead men.”
“And women,” said Valerie.
“Or by people who don’t know them.” Pearl nodded. “You did square by me, Nate. You get to live.” He trudged out, his bulk making the stairs creak as he left them.
Dom glared at the doorway. “We need to get the coffin back.”
Valerie slouched in her chair. “Why?”
“Because it’s a weapon of unspeakable power.” Dom paced. “Because it’s the right thing to do.”
“What kind of weapon is it?” Nate didn’t know how bad a possibly-dead kid in a coffin could be. “A bald child can’t be much threat.”
“You wonder why people are piled at the base of the coffin?” Dom’s pacing picked up speed. “It’s in the reports I stole, but I can’t figure out why. Just that we’re on the right path.”
“Can’t say as I found the tactic easy to understand,” admitted Nate. “It made our people easier to find.”
“Umm,” said Valerie. “First, Pearl’s thugs aren’t ‘our’ people. Second, if the Cataphract hadn’t crashed, there might be a use.”
Nate looked at Dom. “Do you know what she means?”
“I agree, Pearl’s goons aren’t our people.”
“No, the other thing.”
“No clue.” Dom shrugged.
Valerie spoke so quietly Nate almost didn’t hear her mutter imbeciles. “What did the Cataphract lack that it might normally have?”
“A drive,” said Nate.
Dom nodded. “A full crew. Or a Marine contingent.”
Valerie shook her head. “Air. The ship didn’t have air. And do you know what you carry in the air?”
Dom brightened. “I know! Speech. Sound. Music.”
Nate sighed. “I’m sure you’re going to tell us, Val.”
Valerie folded her hands in her lap, looking down at them. Or, down at where the coffin had been. “Viruses, Nate. You spread viruses in air.”
“Uhh.” Dom looked sick.
“And we just gave the weapon to Pearl?” Nate turned, rushed for the door, then stopped, fingers on the handle. He looked back at Valerie, very slowly. At her sad face, her downcast eyes, and the empty spot where the coffin was. “Oh. Oh, Val.”
“That’s right.” She ignored Dom’s confused look. “A plague ship landed on our world, and we took patient zero into our home. We opened the cask right here.”
Drinks in the Triage Tearoom were a muted affair. Nate pushed his sour beer from hand to hand. Valerie ignored hers. Dom’s fist clenched around his own cup so tightly Nate feared he might break it.
Nate leaned forward. “This isn’t the end.”
“It’s not?” Dom met Nate’s gaze. “I don’t have the blessing of the Empire here, Nate. My father and I don’t see eye to eye on this.”
“I figured.” Nate leaned back, sparing Valerie a look. She didn�
��t look sick, but the slump of her shoulders said I’m dead already. They didn’t know for sure, but Val was smart. She’d done the math. Nate reckoned she was probably right. “I’ve got a plan.”
“You do?” Dom’s brows raised in surprise.
“I do.” Nate gave a sly smile. “We’re going to steal from a pirate king.”
You’ve finished Ganymede Plunder. I hope you loved it!
The next story in The Empire’s Rogues is Dragon’s Bargain. Grace has stolen data worth a fortune and means to barter her freedom with it. It’s never that easy, and the entire might of the Empire is focused on getting the data … at any cost. An excerpt is included at the end of this book.
[https://www.books2read.com/DragonsBargain]
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About the Author
Richard Parry worked as an international consultant in one of the world’s top tech companies, which sounds cool, but it wasn’t all cocaine parties. He lives in Wellington with the love of his life, Rae. They have a dog, Rory, who chases birds. The birds, who have the power of flight, don’t seem to mind. Richard’s online hood is:
www.mondegreen.co
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Also by Richard Parry
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Rogues 2: https://www.books2read.com/DragonsRun
Rogues 3: https://www.books2read.com/GanymedePlunder
Rogues 4: https://www.books2read.com/DragonsBargain
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Book 1: https://www.books2read.com/TychesFlight
Book 2: https://www.books2read.com/TychesDeceit
Book 3: https://www.books2read.com/TychesCrown
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Book 4: https://www.books2read.com/TychesDemons
Book 5: https://www.books2read.com/TychesGhosts
Book 6: https://www.books2read.com/TychesAngels
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An empire falls.
Before there was a Tyche, the crew were scattered. Nate wore the Emperor’s Black. El helmed mighty destroyers. Hope joined the new Republic’s reclamation projects. Kohl fell in with the Yakuza. And Grace was a prisoner. Grab their origin stories as they become the heroes the universe needed them to be.
Collection (origins 1-6): https://www.books2read.com/TycheOrigins
Or get them à la carte…
Origin 1: https://www.books2read.com/TychesFirst
Origin 2: https://www.books2read.com/TychesChosen
Origin 3: https://www.books2read.com/TychesHope
Origin 4: https://www.books2read.com/TychesFury
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Not sure where to start? Get the reading guide here: https://www.mondegreen.co/future-forfeit-reading-guide/
It’s 2150AD. There hasn’t been a corporate war… until now.
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Book 1: https://www.books2read.com/ChromedUpgrade
Book 2: https://www.books2read.com/ChromedRogue
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Glossary
Acceleration Couch Crew couches support crew members during high-G maneuvers. They are fitted with gimbals allowing free movement. Their dynamic gel system supports all points of the body in both positive and negative G, providing some protection against grayout, blackout, redout, and G-LOC (G-force induced Loss of Consciousness). They remove the need for G-suits in modern spacecraft, although many space suits are still equipped with anti-G technology anyway.
Artificial Gravity Artificial gravity is generated through use of a configurable energy density field of positive mass at the defined base of the ship. It uses the same technology as an Endless Drive, except in reverse (Endless Drives use negative energy, whereas positive is needed to simulate gravitational effects). Artificial gravity can be used in any situation where a significant power source exists to create a configurable energy density field (typically a reactor, although large yield capacitors and fuel cells have been known to work for brief periods).
Blaster A weapon that fires streams or bolts of plasma (high energy ionized gas). They deliver high energy to targets in the form of heat. They are effective weapons against most targets, although heat-shielding (ablative or insulating) has been shown to be an effective armor against them.
Bridge see Guild Bridge.
Cargo Freighter (also, Merchantliner) A larg
e cargo starship used by traders in and between systems.
Carrier The largest class of warship, carriers stock many smaller fighter craft for deployment.
Ceramicrete A composite construction material commonly used in the manufacture of structures. It is very strong and durable, and can be manufactured to be impact and heat resistant (even to weapons fire levels).
Console Any type of personal terminal. Keyboard and gesture controls are still prevalent. Keyboards are especially useful on consoles mounted to the arm of a ship suit.
Corvette A smaller, lighter attack craft than a destroyer, corvettes are mostly used for coast guard duties in-system.
Crust Spacer slang for planet.
Crustbuster A large payload thermonuclear weapon, deployed against planets to disrupt the surface crust. Typical designs yield energy sufficient to crack most Earth-sized worlds to the core, yielding wide scale destruction and loss of life. Their use in war or insurrection has typically been infrequent and as a last resort, because the world they are used on becomes inhabitable for most forms of life forever. More common uses include destruction of enormous asteroids.
Destroyer A large warship. These are reconfigurable bastions of destruction. They can be deployed solo or as a part of a fleet, often alongside carriers.
Empire The ruling dictatorship of the wider human civilization.
Endless Drive The Endless Drive creates negative space energy (a “bow wave”) to pull a vehicle at effective superluminal speeds. Endless ships don’t exceed the speed of light, but rather contract space in front of them and expand space behind it (space is doing all the hard work). The exigent concern with Endless jumps is the violation of linear time. Endless Drives are equipped with buffers to stop crews exceeding human tolerance for the experience of linear time; while human perception of linear time may be an illusion, it is a convenient one. If the buffers break, allowing the ship to move too fast, then human consciousness falters (resulting in mild to severe mental illness) or is extinguished entirely. Endless Drives are difficult to use near gravity wells and in such circumstances are guaranteed to malfunction. This and other safety concerns has shifted common FTL to the Guild Bridges, although privateers still often run free traders with Endless technology. The Empire Navy also use Endless Drives as it is often inconvenient to disclose locations of sensitive operations to the Guild.