by Tim Marquitz
Cabe and Torbon watched her go, clearly caught off guard by her sudden flight since they didn’t run after her, and they disappeared behind her as she circled the far end of the pleasure ship. There, at the opposite berth stand, she edged around the corner and caught her breath, thinking about how she’d ended up there, preparing to do what she was planning.
She chuckled at her recent recklessness, wondering what Beaux and Mama would think of her.
She stood a half-dozen meters behind the Wyyvan soldiers at this point. Her pulse thrummed in her veins, adrenaline ready to light the ember, and she questioned her impulsive leap into action, but she knew time was running out. She had to do something before her people were spotted and the pirates and Wyyvans turned on them.
Still, for what she pictured working out properly, she had to get in close. Real close. All while avoiding being seen.
I’ve done worse, she thought, trying to convince herself, but there was no fooling herself this time around. No, you haven’t. Liar.
She sighed and brushed off her rebuttal. This wasn’t the time to be arguing with herself.
Taj gritted her teeth and hunkered down even lower than she already was. Then she crept out from behind the berth and sneaked up behind the grumbling Wyyvan soldiers. She clasped her pistol in a sweaty palm and forced her finger to stay off the trigger until she was in position, lest she accidentally fire off a shot in her excitement.
She couldn’t let that happen. She needed to be precise.
After what seemed like forever, she inched up behind the mass of Wyyvans, their backs to her, looming above her given how low to the ground she crept. Her breath clung frigid to her lungs in anticipation.
She bit back the urge to draw a fresh breath since any noise she made now might give her away. That was something she couldn’t afford.
She hunkered in place a moment longer, awaiting her opportunity, and then it arrived. The soldiers shifted enough that she could see through their legs to the grouping of pirates across the way.
That was when she acted.
Taj raised her pistol and fired through the opening, blasting a pirate center mass. He shrieked and stumbled and fell limp, wound billowing black smoke.
Then all gack broke loose.
The pirates returned fire without hesitation, believing the Wyyvans to have shot first. Wyyvan soldiers stumbled under the barrage and shot back without even realizing—or maybe not caring—that the first shot had come from their side.
Sort of.
Taj bit back a grunt as Wyyvan bodies toppled around her, blaster fire scorching the air over her head. She ducked even lower, scraping her knees on the tarmac, and bolted back to her hidey hole behind the far berth. She felt a flush of relief flood through her as she pressed her back to the hard steel.
But she couldn’t rest. There was still too much to do.
She sucked in a deep breath and started off again at a run, circling the pleasure craft and returning to where the rest of her people hunched behind the forward berth.
“Are you crazy?” Cabe asked as he pulled her into a tight hug.
She shrugged in his embrace. “I thought we established there was a distinct possibility of that earlier,” she replied with a half-smile.
Things had definitely changed since the Wyyvan showed up the second time around.
She slipped free of Cabe so she could watch the battle between the Wyyvans and pirates. Out in the open the way they had been, it was a massacre all around, bodies dropping quickly, neither side having much in the way of cover, not having expected to wage a war.
But that was exactly what Taj had been hoping for when she’d instigated it. Still, it wasn’t enough to let the two groups battle it out.
She shot forward, pistol raised and firing. “Hit them now before they realize we’re here,” she shouted.
Caught off guard by the sudden rush of Furlorians joining the fight, both sides hesitated, trying to figure out what was happening, and they paid for it in blood.
Bursts of energy scarred the air and dropped soldiers on both sides without bias. Then Torbon joined in with the charge rifle, a crackling spider web of energy tearing through the pirates a moment later.
Shrieks of agony filled the air, but they lasted only a few seconds. Both armies, already shattered from their unexpected battle with each other, fell beneath the onslaught of Furlorians swarming around them.
Taj raced across the bloody, body-littered tarmac, tapping her comm and screaming for Lina to open the hatchway.
She needn’t have bothered.
The gangplank dropped as soon as the Wyyvans and pirates were dead, and the door hissed open. Lina stood in the entryway, waving them on. “Come on,” she shouted. “We intercepted a report by the Ovrun security forces. They’re massing and preparing to come our way. Fighters are charging up.”
Taj snarled and ushered her people up the gangplank. Torbon and Cabe made sure Dent got inside, and the rest of the Furlorians escorted the bound pirate boss up the gangplank as quickly as he could manage. He glared at Taj as he passed, clearly wanting to say something, but the gag kept it locked inside his mouth.
For which Taj was grateful.
She didn’t want to talk to the man, let alone look at him although there was something inside her that wanted to gloat. She would when she had time.
Once he was aboard, she brought up the rear and reveled in the sound of the door closing behind her.
“Put him in with the lizards,” she told the crew, pointing to Rath. Then she raced to the bridge, knowing her people would carry out her order.
Lina greeted her with a somber expression when she arrived on deck “Fighters incoming,” she reported. “We don’t have more than a minute or two, at most.”
Taj shoved Cabe toward his seat. “Then get us out of here,” she ordered.
Cabe complied, not bothering to strap in before engaging the thrusters. The Discordant rose quickly, angling toward the sky and shooting off without hesitation.
Alarms sounded as they climbed, the bridge illuminated in the ugly crimson Taj was so sick of. She narrowed her eyes to ward some of the light off and clung to her seat while absorbing the scene playing out across the view screen.
Two fighters closed on the Discordant, growing bigger in the screen, and she bit back the urge to curse. They were damn fast.
“Rear shields at full,” Lina called out. “Hitting the space now.”
Taj held her breath as the view screen blurred, then they were free of the planet’s orbit a scant few seconds later. The alarms died off once they were clear, and Taj slumped into her seat with a whoop!
“We’re clear!” Cabe shouted.
“Not entirely,” Lina contradicted. “It looks like our three pirate ships from earlier were parked in orbit.” She gestured to the view screen. “They’re angling our direction and giving chase again.”
Taj nodded, having expected them to be there, given what Doran had told them. He apparently hadn’t been bluffing after all.
“Make sure they get a good image of their boss tied up and stuffed in a closet and warn them off. They do anything to slow us down or hurt us, and we open a smoking crater in Rath’s head. Make that as clear as possible, Lina.”
The engineer nodded and went about following Taj’s command, ordering Jadie and Kal to prepare the transmission to the pirate ships. The bridge was a bustle of activity as the Discordant pushed away from Kulora.
A short while later, Lina sprouted a huge grin. “Message received,” she announced. “The pirates are backing off, staying at a distance.”
Taj grunted, acknowledging the engineer’s report. “I guess that’s the best we can hope for.” She cast another glance at the view screen, happy to see the pirate ships falling back. “Now to figure out how to lose them permanently.”
“What do we do now?” Cabe asked.
Taj clambered out of her seat and headed for the door.
“It’s time to have a conversation with a robot.”
Chapter Sixteen
The door to Vort and Dard’s cell opened, and a strange, auburn-skinned alien was shoved inside by Kal. The alien stumbled and flopped onto his butt as Dard inched over to give him the tiniest bit of space. The door shut with a sullen thump behind the departing Furlorian, and Vort examined the new prisoner whose very presence made their own stay even more uncomfortable.
“What do we have here, Commander?” Vort asked, staring at the gagged and bound alien, amused by his sudden appearance. The rodents had clearly begun to revel in their status of temporary overlord. Seemed no one was safe.
Dard shrugged. “I’m not sure, but I presume he’s dangerous given the gag and ties keeping his arms secured. We should probably leave him be.”
The newcomer grunted against the gag, his eyes narrowing in a blatant attempt to garner sympathy.
Vort simply laughed at the attempt.
“He does look quite intimidating, doesn’t he?” Vort asked. He shook his head, feigning uncertainty. “I agree, probably in our best interest to avoid him…as much as possible in this restrictive little cell we’re trapped in.” The captain glanced about as if seeing the closet for the first time. “Though, I’m really not sure where we’d go to avoid him. Perhaps, seeing how our limbs are free, it might be in our best interest to fold him into the smallest space possible and stuff him in the corner. What do you think, Commander?”
“Excellent idea, Captain,” Dard agreed.
The captive alien, however, didn’t appear to like that idea at all. He scrambled to his feet as best he could and glared at Vort and Dard, daring them to come at him, even though it was clear to everyone he stood no chance of winning out.
The captain chuckled at the alien’s response. “Come now, Terant, we’re only jesting.”
Vort climbed to his own feet and reached out. The alien shifted backward, but there was nowhere to go. He bumped into the wall. Vort grabbed the edge of his gag and yanked it loose. “There, that’s better, isn’t it?”
Dard shrugged. “That has yet to be seen, Captain.”
“Too true,” Vort replied, keeping his eyes on the newcomer. “You’ll have to pardon me for not freeing your hands just yet, but I think it best we get to know each other better before I release you fully. You understand, I’m sure.”
“I do,” the alien replied in a roughened voice sounding like sand through a sifter. He spit out pieces of cloth before meeting Vort’s gaze. “I’ll settle for being able to breathe properly for now.” He dropped to sit in the corner. “So, what landed you two in here?”
Vort waggled a finger. “I’ll ask the questions, if you don’t mind,” he said, making it clear it really didn’t matter if the man minded or not. “Then, if you answer appropriately, we’ll be open to discussing broader matters, such as your freedom. Right now, I want to know who you are and why you are here.”
“A pragmatist, I see.” The alien grinned. “Good, I can work with that,” he said. “My name is Rath, and I’m here because those furred little demons got in the way of my business.”
“And that business is?”
“Exactly that. My business,” Rath replied, offering a crooked grin. “And since we’re being so friendly, what do I call you besides captain and commander, neither rank I recognize, of course?”
Vort grinned, liking the fierceness of their new cellmate. “You may call me Vort, and this is Dard, my second in command,” he said, pointing to himself, then Dard in turn. “We, too, are here thanks to the creatures who captured you.” His grin widened. “It seems we have something in common, an enemy.”
“So it would seem, Vort,” Rath told him, meeting the captain’s grin with one of his own. “And what should we do about that enemy?”
Vort chuckled and motioned for Rath to spin around so he could undo his bonds. “I think it’s in our best interest, our mutual interest, to discuss exactly that. I suspect, however, we might get farther along were you more comfortable. What say you, Rath?”
Rath nodded. “We might just.”
“Then so be it.” Vort tore at the bonds, pulling them one after the other until Rath was free.
The pirate boss shook his arms out as soon as the bindings were removed, and he turned about, still grinning.
“I most definitely believe we can start a dialogue, Captain,” Rath stated, slumping back to his seat on the floor, looking far more comfortable this time around.
Vort winked at Rath, already liking the dark-skinned alien. As much as he enjoyed Dard’s sycophancy, it was a real pleasure to converse with someone as devious as himself.
Better still, there was a real chance Rath could help Vort find his freedom whereas Dard would always follow in Vort’s shadow; useful but hardly more than an effective servant.
That alone made releasing the Terant worth it.
Chapter Seventeen
Taj found Dent in the mess hall, Torbon seated beside him. Jadie stood off in the distance, low-key on guard, keeping an eye on Dent. The mechanoid sat stoically, staring off at nothing while Torbon stuffed his rations into his mouth, grunting and grumbling the entire time.
Taj flopped down beside them.
“Slow down, Torbon,” she said. “You’re gonna choke on that protein bar.”
“It might make it taste better,” he replied, washing it down with a small cup of water. He sighed once both were gone. “This rationing gacking sucks.”
She nodded, knowing it was only going to get worse if things didn’t work out soon. Exactly that in mind, she turned to face Dent, snapping her fingers to get his attention.
He started, as if he’d been caught up in a daydream, and snapped his eyes wide, turning their orangeness her way. “Yes?”
“We need to talk,” Taj told him.
“Yes, I suppose we do, at that.” He shifted in his seat to face her, looking like a recalcitrant child expecting to be punished by his parents.
“I don’t exactly like approaching things this way, especially given how everything went down on Kulora, but our position is even more dire than it was before. I’ve got to be bluntly honest with you,” she told him. “We lived up to our end of our deal, and now we need you to do the same.”
He sighed, and his neck twitched so hard that Taj heard something inside twang. Dent shivered for a few seconds before finally getting himself under control. “I’m sorry,” he said, one hand spasming. “I needed the alphabet Pandu promised in order to fulfill my part of the deal.”
“The alphabet?”
“Yes, the proto-stimdrive, like I just said,” he clarified unintentionally, speaking as though he’d never spoken incorrectly.
Taj stared at him quietly for a moment, realizing he seemed to be getting worse. The little tics and twitches had grown into full-blown spasms and shudders. His capture by Doran and the ensuing conversation between them hadn’t helped his stability any, she’d noticed. Dent was slipping off the rails, and that only meant bad things for Taj and her crew.
She could only wonder how bad off he’d be had Rath gotten his hands on him.
Dent’s foot beat a furious rhythm on the floor before finally sputtering into a slow tap. “I’m sorry. Pandu’s betrayal was…most unexpected. Had I been able to claim the device I needed from him, I would have happily provided you with the information you needed.”
Taj growled. “Wait a minute! So, you’re telling me you won’t give me what we need because you didn’t get your little device?” She jumped to her feet, slamming a fist into the table top. “We did our part, and now you’re gonna tell me you won’t hold up to yours?”
Jadie crept forward, hand on her pistol, and the rest of the Furlorians stashed about the room took notice of the conversation for the first time. They stared with wide eyes, wondering what was going on, their interest suddenly piqued.
“No, please, you misunderstand my intent,” Dent told her, raising his hands in a pacifying manner. “I am a mechanoid of my word, as I told you originally. I am, however, not one capable of
providing you such information as of yet.” He tapped the side of his head. “My elephant is scattered, disorganized and locked down, and I don’t have the key,” he told her.
For once, Taj knew what he meant to say and didn’t bother questioning his word choice.
“It is not that I don’t want to give you all I promised, it is that I cannot,” he said. “Not yet, at least. I will, most assuredly, but I need the proto-stimdrive to organize my knowledge and access the correct information. It is the means to decrypt my mind, so to speak. It is not possible without it.”
Taj bit back a growl and dropped back onto the bench. “So, everything we did on Kulora was a waste of our time.” She swallowed hard thinking about it. “We could have died there, and all for nothing.”
To his credit, Dent slumped into his seat and looked as abashed as a malfunctioning Sperit android could. “I-I-I…” The mechanoid’s eyes fluttered and darkened, then brightened again, as if a switch had been flipped. “I am deteriorating rapidly,” he told her. “The Terants’ efforts to access my databanks only worsened my condition, causing this form to fail even faster than expected.” One eyelid twitched open and closed of its own accord. “I fear it won’t be calculator until I am completely useless, to you or anyone.”
“So, you need this proto-stimdrive to function?”
Is it bad I’m starting to understand the glitches? she asked herself.
“I do.” Dent nodded. “There is simply no other means of doing it.”
Taj gnawed on her lower lip as she pictured being forced to turn around and face down the pirates and Wyyvans on Kulora again—not to mention Ovrun’s security services—in order to claim the device the mechanoid needed to free his mind.
No matter how much she thought on it, she couldn’t bring herself to feel it was worth the sacrifice after all they’d already been through.
“I’m sorry, but we can’t go back to Kulora,” she told him, not leaving any room for argument. “That’s not gonna happen.”
Dent turned his head sideways a bit, staring at her. “Oh, no…” he started, “I wouldn’t expect that of you. We left quite a mess back there, I imagine. It would be rather difficult to unravel.”
