Smuggler's Luck

by S. W. Gunn

  “Just great.” He said to himself as thoughts of Elyse hammered through his head.

  For some reason he found himself deeply compelled to find her, like a rat to cheese. He spent the rest of his time in the fold fidgeting uncomfortably. It was an experience that he did not like, especially since he was stuck sitting in the pilot’s chair with nothing but his own thoughts to entertain him, his own very unpleasant thoughts...

  The nav computer beeped to let him know that he was approaching the destination. It was the longest time in the fold of his life. Jarron shifted in his seat and got ready, he had found that he was always able to react faster than anyone else in space. The ship rocked slightly and dropped back into normal space. Jarron ran his sensors, which told him that five Grokmal fighters were in orbit. Jarron found it odd that every time he had dealt with the man who kidnapped Elyse there was always Grokmal nearby. It made him believe that the man must have hired them. Jarron knew that a bunch of clumsy Grokmal fighter pilots were no match for him, especially now that he was so mad. Jarron decided to eliminate these ships here and now so it would not be an issue during his escape. They had not spotted him because of the distance of the moon he was orbiting. Jarron decided to make a bold attack. He would fold space directly on the way point besides the outlying fighters and then hit them hard. Heck, he could probably take out two of them before they would even respond. An evil grin crossed his face as he came up with his plan. He tapped the commands into the nav computer, which responded quickly since the way point was so close. Steeling himself for the upcoming fight he pulled the lever to activate the fold engine. His small ship jumped forward and almost instantly stopped. Jarron immediately twisted the controls and began firing rapidly at the nearest ship, which responded immediately by exploding in a ball of flame.

  “One bastard down.” He said to himself.

  Jarron spun the controls wildly and began to target the next ship. The Grokmal slowly responded to his presence and the explosion of one of their ships. Before they could move very far Jarron targeted and brought down the second ship. It slowly trailed in a smoky ruin towards the planet below. Jarron began to spin the ship towards the next fighter. The Grokmal did not even try to fly in some sort of protective formation; they just headed straight at him. This would prove to be too easy. Jarron whipped by the first wave attack they attempted, making sure to swerve wildly in circular manner to prevent from being hit. Immediately he cut his main thrusters, which sent him drifting. Once the drift began he had the movement thrusters on his left kick hard and fast, which sent him into a sudden sideways spin. As the spin quickly turned him to face the rears of the Grokmal ships, which were beginning a very slow arcing turn, Jarron cut on the right side thrusters and then the main engines. This sent him rocketing towards his opponents ships. With rapid trigger fire Jarron eliminated another Grokmal. It was then that the remaining Grokmal must have realized that they were seriously outmatched. The last two stopped their slow arcing turns and began to flee. Anger welled in Jarron. These bastards would not live to see another day. He bore down on one of them and executed the ship with brutal laser fire. Turning quickly he hunted down the last fleeing ship and sent it exploding in a ball of flame. Jarron grinned at his efficiency. At one time he had seriously considered joining the Galactic Defense Force. He decided against it when he got a hold of their rule-book. The amount of regulations and rules that they would hold over any member was just too much for him. He just hated being told what to do, which undoubtedly was why he was kicked out of his father’s home.

  “I’m coming Elyse.” He stated grimly.

  Jarron scanned the planet and found the singular base. It was heavily fortified against any sort of air strike and no doubt they knew what he had just done. Jarron was certain that it was not fortified for a single person infiltration so that plan was still his main goal. After some more scanning Jarron found a clearing that was about a third of a day walk through a forest and next to the base. He decided to enter the atmosphere far enough away that he could skim the surface of the planet undetected and leave anyone tracking him with no knowledge where he was. In fact, he went with the opposite side of the planet. He entered the atmosphere quickly and skimmed along with ease. It was not very long until he was at the clearing. Instead of landing right in the center of the clearing Jarron nestled the ship as close to the wooded area as he could. As he landed he searched the small ship for anything he could use, all he found was a small repair kit and a heavy jacket. The repair kit had all of the tools that he would need for either repair or sabotage. He slipped on the jacket and slung the small toolkit bag over his shoulder. Jarron ran to the nearest dozen shrubs and dragged as many as he could to provide the ship with some limited camouflage. The ship would not be easily spotted unless someone was intensely searching for it.

  “Time to go.” He told himself.

  For some reason he felt no doubt about his plan or his overall goal. Nothing but completing his objective and reuniting with Elyse crossed his mind. Once he was ready he turned towards the direction of the base and began walking. He moved at a brisk pace, almost driven by some unseen force that made him feel unrelenting and untiring as he went. At his pace he found himself within visible view of the base quite quickly. It was a lot more complex than the scanners had indicated. It was a massive building that had a long run of fencing around the entire thing. There was only one entry point that led out to a large landing pad. Jarron noted that on the landing pad was the same ship that he was pursing from Cantua. He was right, Elyse was here. Jarron slowly circled the outside of the fenced base from a far enough distance to see if he could find an access point. He saw dozens of guards, all wearing that same dark brown robe as their leader. Each was armed with some kind of laser rifle. Jarron knew he would have to wait until dark to make his move. He worked his way to the closest part of the forest that was near the entrance. He sat and watched patiently as the men who captured Elyse exited the base and headed to their ship. Jarron wanted nothing more than to gain a measure of revenge against them but he knew he had to rescue Elyse. Everything else was unimportant. Finally the sun began to set.

  Once the sun had set Jarron watched carefully for his opportunity to strike. He just needed to get one of the guards alone to get the information that he needed and gain access into the base. His opportunity came when one of the guards split off from the group and slowly began a walk along the side of the base and directly towards him. The pace he was walking and lack of attention he was paying led Jarron to think the man was running off for a quick restroom break. Letting out a wicked grin he pulled out the heavy wrench from the toolkit and clenched it tightly. Sliding behind a tree he waited until the man had stopped and started doing his business. Jarron crept slowly along until he was within striking distant. Right as the man finished what he was doing and pulled his robe back on Jarron struck. He cocked his arm back with the wrench and when the man turned to look at the noise Jarron made he struck the man alongside the head. The man dropped like a rock.

  Speaking to no one in particular he said, “Now to find my way in.”

  Jarron rolled the man over to his side and stripped off his robe, which he would use as a disguise. He searched the man and found a swipe badge of some kind. It looked to him like it would be an access card. Jarron picked up the man’s rifle and leveled it towards him. After a few minutes the man groggily awoke. Fear immediately crossed his face as he saw his own weapon pointing at him.

  Menacingly Jarron said, “Don’t so much as say a word or I’ll kill you. I need information from you. If you tell me what I want to know you’ll live. If you don’t tell me what I want to know, you’ll die. Do you understand?”

  The man nodded slowly.

  “Good. Now first, did you see a woman brought in by those bounty hunters?”

  The man nodded again.

  “Do you know where they took her?”

  He nodded again.

  “Tell me.”

  The man replied, “Th
ere is a storage containment area. She was placed in a stasis box and secured there. The area is located within the rear area if the building.”

  “Is it hard to navigate the building?” Jarron asked.

  The man shook his head as he answered, “It’s simply designed and there is a map of the building as you enter.”

  Jarron grinned. He was happy to hear that he would be able to find her if he got into the building.

  “Will your swipe card open everything?”

  The man shook his head.

  “What else will I need?”

  The man replied, “Only one of squad leaders has a card that could get into the containment area. Mine will not.”

  Jarron nodded and asked, “How will I identify one?”

  “They won’t have rifles, just pistols.”

  Not wanting the man to alert anyone Jarron set the rifle to stun and fired at the man. The man immediately slumped unconscious. He dragged the man around the tree and out of sight. Slipping on the robe Jarron headed directly towards the building. Jarron pulled the hood of the robe over his head to try and obstruct anyone from identifying him. He glanced around as he approached the entryway. There was dozens of cameras. Jarron doubted they would be overly effective in the dark with the hood over his head. As he passed through the gate he swiped the card, which responded with a green light and a beep. Jarron slowly walked from the gate and towards the entryway of the building. Normally he would have been very uncomfortable in this type of situation but he was driven and felt nothing but steeled resolve. He walked as confidently as he could to the entrance of the building and slowly swiped his card through the scanner there. It lit green and beeped, just as the gate had. The door slid open to allow him entrance, which he responded to by briskly walking through. The inside of the building was very basic and sterile looking. It reminded Jarron of one of the hospitals he had visited as a young man. It was deadly quiet and only the sounds of his boots tapping against the plain brown floor could be heard. The walls were the same color and there seemed to be absolutely no decor. Jarron was intensely curious about the purpose of this place. Why would someone go through so much trouble over Elyse? He found the map that the man had mentioned. He was right about the design of the building. It was very straightforward. The building consisted of more than half of it being living quarters for what must have been a massive number of guards. There was a huge dining area, dozens of restrooms, and assorted storage rooms. Jarron noticed that the whole second level of the building seemed to be unmarked. He found the storage area that he wanted so now it was just a matter of finding one of these leaders and getting a badge.

  “Where the heck can find one?” He asked himself aloud.

  Jarron thought about it for a moment and decided that possibly the dining area or the living quarters might be a good place to wander until he could find a leader in order to find a badge. He referred to the map and immediately began walking towards the living quarters. It appeared the dining hall was on the way so he could probably look quickly there before exploring the living area for a leader. As he walked through the halls he occasionally passed a random guard or two, none wore pistols. They seemed oblivious to him, which left him to believe that it was due to the large number of guards employed here. Jarron found his way to the dining area. He slowly walked up to the machine that dispensed food and had it dispense him a meal. It did not care what the food was, he just wanted to blend in while he looked for a leader. After he got his tray he slowly walked through the dining area examining the guards as he walked. It took him several minutes of pretending to find a place to sit before he finally found a leader. The man was slightly smaller than Jarron and wore the same robe as everyone else here did. He looked to be in his mid-thirties with cropped sandy blonde hair and green eyes. He was engaged in an intense conversation with those at his table. Jarron carefully selected a nearby table that was unoccupied. Setting down his tray he sat so he could watch the man. Once the man was going to leave Jarron would follow him and then strike. He sat there slowly working at his plate, pretending to be lost in thought, as he kept a close eye on his target. After what seemed like forever, the man stood and waved to the people who he was sitting with. Jarron watched him slowly walk away from the table and towards the exit. Jarron stood and slowly followed the man as he left the dining hall. He took an immediate right turn and down the hall, which Jarron mimicked. The man was oblivious that someone was following him. Jarron continued to pace him for a bit longer to try and time his attack when no others would be around. As they came down a barren hallway the man stopped and turned to a door. He opened the door and entered. Jarron knew it had to be his quarters since they were deep in the area that the map labeled as quarters. Jarron paused for a moment. Steeling himself for what was about to come he walked up to the door and knocked firmly. Lifting his rifle he took aim so he would strike as soon as the door opened.

  The door opened and the man’s voice said, “What.”

  As soon as he came into sight Jarron pulled the trigger, which sent the man barreling backwards. The door flung open and he saw two other men stand from a small nearby table. It appeared to him that they were playing cards. Before either man could react, Jarron fired his rifle repeatedly, which cut down the other two men. He stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. He moved to the man who was his target and searched him. He did not have the card on his person. Jarron slowly worked his way through the man’s quarters until he found it sitting on a small stool by the table. He snatched the card up and headed towards the door.

  “That wasn’t too bad.” He confidently said before he walked towards the door.

  Usually the stun would keep a man unconscious alone for a good hour or two, which would be more than enough time for Jarron to find and wake Elyse. He rejoiced because he was well on his way to freeing her. It would be a very easy escape for them once she was awake. He opened the door and exited the small quarters, making sure to close the door firmly behind him. Confidently he strolled down the hallways through the living quarters and back out to the main hallway. From here he just needed to walk through a series of hallways and to the back pathway where the storage area Elyse was being held. He was glad as he entered the last few hallways near the storage area. It appeared to be quite empty since he suspected they would not expect unwanted visitors making it this deep into their base. Jarron had thought to worry about discovery of any of the guards that he took out but he knew if he made it to Elyse it would not matter. He made his way to the final hallway. The lights were dimmed significantly here. Jarron made his way to the final door. It was labeled ‘Subject Storage and Containment Area’. It sounded like a ghastly name for basically a stasis prison for innocent people. Jarron could only imagine the kinds of tests that bastard was performing on these people. He wished he could release them all but he had to focus on Elyse. He quietly swiped the leader’s card through the nearby scanner, which lit up green and then beeped. Jarron pulled on the handle and slowly walked into the room. He was completely stunned by what he saw. The rectangular shaped room went on from left to right the full length of the building. Searching this room was going to take Jarron quite some time. He sighed and immediately began his search. Turning to the left he went to the first box. Each one was labeled in a manner that could help, the first one said ‘Kalan 38 years’. It brought him a little hope. If the man who labeled this knew Elyse was not just human Jarron might be able to find her. Jarron walked briskly down the left side reading each sign. He was appalled just how many people the bastard had kidnapped. There must have been over three hundred people contained in the boxes. He saw several potentials that were labeled ‘human 22 years’. Oddly enough he even found several Eal’tain and Grokmal labels. None of the Eal’tain was close to Elyse’s age so he knew that they were not her. It was not until he reached the back row on the right side that he found the one that had to be hers. It was labeled ‘Race unknown 22 years’. Jarron moved to the side of the box and slowly began tinke
ring with the main terminal. He was unsure how to open it and he knew that he had to be careful so not to harm Elyse. He played with the controls and finally the seals began to pop. Jarron stopped. He realized that something was very wrong because he should have sensed her presence but he did not. Slowly he backed away from the box.

  “This is bad.” He angrily said.

  A loud alarm rang out on the speakers which let him know that he had been discovered. Giving a deep frown over the fact that he had not yet found her he continued to walk briskly down the path hoping that she would be in a later box. No others came close to her.

  A gruff voice behind Jarron and near the door called out, “Stranger you are trapped. Surrender now and we won’t kill you outright.”

  Jarron hefted his weapon because he could not allow himself to be captured. Taking cover he slowly snuck towards the voice.

  The loudspeaker of the building clicked in, “Close him in. We’ll gas him.”

  Jarron recognized the voice as the man who had hired them. It made him quite angry to hear his voice. Jarron heard the single door close and lock. He was trapped. A smoky haze began to fill the room, which caused Jarron to panic. He would not even be able to fight his way out. He ran to the door and tried to open it. The door was locked and the foggy haze was getting thicker. Jarron kicked madly at the door and then finally leveled his weapon at the handle. He pulled the trigger and the blast hit the handle but did not destroy it. Jarron fired two more times. Blackness started to swirl in his head. He moved to fire again but his arms would not respond. Finally everything went black and he felt his shoulder collide violently with the ground.

  Chapter 11

  Jarron did not know how long he was out but when he groggily awoke, he found that his shoulder was in pain. His blurred vision started to clear up and he could tell immediately that he was facing the ceiling of some sort of containment cell. Slowly he sat up and knew that it was indeed a containment cell. He was sitting on a simple padded mattress that was resting on a small metal block. There was a toilet and a sink against the back wall. The entry point appeared to be a glimmering energy shield. Jarron had never been imprisoned but he had heard that energy shields were impossible to penetrate.