Phoenix in Flames

by Jaleta Clegg

  Fedrithus was a dead end, meant to end her career with the Patrol. If she didn't go crazy with boredom and the endless heat, it would be a miracle. She could look forward to years here. Unless she resigned.

  She'd use her time the best she could. She'd sift through records and files when she could. She'd play her part. And she'd plan a way out.

  She left her dusty, hot room to find the canteen. Sheets would be nice. And a towel. And all the little niceties of civilization she'd taken for granted for so many years.

  Chapter 5

  "The cargo is loaded," Beryn announced. "We're good to go."

  "We've got a window near midnight," Clark answered.

  I flipped another page in the reader. Not that I was really reading the file in front of me, but if I appeared busy, the others usually left me alone.

  "What is that?" Beryn asked over my shoulder. "Advanced bio research papers?"

  "No, trade research," I answered, shutting the reader.

  "We're headed to Tireo next," Clark told me. "They specialize in textiles and handwork like embroidery, not bio research. Textiles are more your specialty."

  I shrugged, standing up from the table. I was feeling crowded. "It sounded interesting." I rummaged through the cupboard until I found the cookie tin Jasyn usually kept full. It was empty except for some dried crumbs. I put it back.

  Louie started to cry. He was in his nursery, supposedly sleeping. Clark went to get him.

  I found a package of crackers and took them to the table. I picked one out of the wrapper and bit into it as I opened the reader.

  "I think we still have cheese left," Beryn offered. "Do you want some?"

  He didn't wait for me to answer. I didn't bother, I knew he wasn't going to wait. It would give me a chance to say no. I curled my feet under me and tried to concentrate on the words of the article I'd downloaded at random.

  Beryn whistled while he sliced cheese. He put a plate on the table in front of me. And then he sat down and helped himself to the crackers. He chewed for a minute.

  "You aren't really reading that," he said after a long minute.

  "I am trying to," I said. "It requires concentration."

  Beryn ate another cracker. We could both hear Clark talking nonsense to Louie. Louie giggled.

  "Wouldn't you rather play cards?" Beryn asked.

  "No. Last time I played, you kept accusing me of cheating." I kept my eyes on the reader. The article was way over my head, delving into the technical aspects of invertebrate biology on a planet I'd never heard of. I had to keep reading the same sentence over and over. It still didn't make sense.

  Beryn ate another cracker, crunching it noisily. "How about a game of Crystals, then?"

  "I'm trying to read."

  "If you want left alone, why don't you go into your cabin?"

  "Because if I went into my cabin, someone would follow me in there to make sure I wasn't moping. Or something equally stupid."

  "So you want me to go away?"

  I sighed and set the reader on the table.

  "You weren't really reading that anyway," Beryn said, grinning.

  "How much can I pay you to go away?"

  "Not enough," Clark answered as he rejoined us. Louie babbled happily. Clark stuck him into his chair at the other end of the table.

  "Kaka!" Louie shouted, reaching for the crackers.

  Beryn handed him a cracker and a chunk of cheese. Louie shoved them both into his mouth. He reached for more. Beryn handed him another cracker.

  "You're going to choke," Clark said to his son.

  "I learned a new variation on Comets," Beryn said. "You'll like this one, Dace."

  "I don't want to play Comets. I want to read my article."

  "Only because Darus threatened to quit if you came down into the engine room again before we lifted." Clark turned the reader so he could see the article. "The Role of Phosphoric Nodule Deposits in Invertebrate Reproduction Strategies on Undictus Minor?" He turned it back to face me. "Are you working on a degree in invertebrate biology?"

  I shut the reader off and crossed the lounge to put it away in the cupboard where it belonged.

  "She downloaded the file at random," Beryn said. "I watched her do it."

  "Do you want me to tell him what files you downloaded?" I asked Beryn.

  Clark grinned. "I already know. Romance novels, wasn't it?"

  Beryn's face turned an interesting shade of pink. "At least I understand them."

  "And who says I'm not understanding that?" I waved in the direction of the cupboard.

  Their looks told me they didn't believe me.

  "Kaka!" Louie said, banging on the table. Beryn handed him another cracker.

  I sat down at the end of the table. Louie was at the other end. He chewed his cracker and stared at me. I stared back. Louie had his mother's dark hair and his father's green eyes. And his own twisted sense of humor. He pulled the soggy cracker out of his mouth.

  "Kaka," he said. He flipped one arm back and forward. The cracker flew the length of the table and hit me in the face. Louie screeched with laughter. "Kaka!"

  I wiped slimy cracker from my face.

  "Nice aim, kid," Beryn said.

  Clark handed me a wet cloth. "At least he isn't screaming at you this time."

  I wiped my face and hands clean. "Kaka to you, too," I said to Louie.

  He squirmed in his chair.

  "You want some cheese to go with that?" I asked.

  I took a slice of cheese and flipped it the length of the table. It landed in front of Louie with a splat. He looked down at the cheese then up at me. He poked the cheese. He picked it up between his finger and thumb.

  "Kaka," he said. He threw the cheese at me. His aim was off. He hit Beryn in the side of the head.

  I laughed.

  Beryn peeled cheese off the side of his face. "Very funny," he grumbled.

  "It was when he hit me," I said as I handed him the wet cloth.

  "Kaka," Louie shouted. He reached for the package of crackers.

  "No throwing food," Clark said as he handed Louie another cracker.

  Louie didn't even try to eat this one. He cocked his arm back and let it fly. It shot past me and hit the floor.

  "Louie," Clark said.

  "Kaka," Louie said and smiled at his dad.

  "Not if you're going to throw them," Clark answered.

  "No food fights," Beryn said as he tossed the cheese back to Louie.

  Louie slapped his hand on the cheese and giggled at the sound it made.

  I moved away before he could throw it at me. I sat on the benches at the back of the lounge. Beryn turned in his chair to watch me.

  "We've got some other games," he offered.

  "I don't want to play." I picked up one of the cushions scattered on the benches. It was embroidered with a clumsy set of daisies. Ginni had done it. She was proud of it.

  "You want to embroider pillows?" Beryn asked. "I know where Jasyn put the stuff for it. There are several more waiting."

  I made a face. "Does the phrase when Hades freezes over mean anything to you? I hate embroidery."

  "We picked up some jewelry makings a while back," Beryn said.

  The cheese slapped him on the ear. Louie giggled. Beryn rolled his eyes as he peeled the cheese off.

  "You corrupted him, Dace. See what you taught him to do?"

  "Good job, Louie," I said.

  "Don't encourage him," Clark said. "Jasyn's going to pitch a fit over this."

  "I'm going to pitch a fit over what?" Jasyn asked as she came through the hatch. Twyla and Ginni were with her. They were all carrying bags.

  "Nothing," Beryn and Clark said together.

  "Kaka," Louie said, grinning.

  "I don't think so," Clark answered. He lifted Louie out of his chair and set him on the floor.

  Louie toddled over to me. He banged a wet hand on my leg. "Kaka," he said and giggled.

  "That's an improvement." Jasyn put her bags on the
table. Ginni and Twyla added theirs. The pile threatened to tumble off the edges. They started pulling things out. Scarves and jewelry and oddities that might or might not sell someday. And trinkets they wanted for themselves.

  Jasyn pulled out a large box that made clunking noises as she lifted it free of a tangle of embroidered collar pieces. She carried it over to me. "You need a hobby, Dace."

  "I have a hobby," I answered.

  "Fixing the engine is not a hobby. Between you and Darus there isn't a piece on it that dares to break. No, this is something you'll like." She pulled a low table out of the slot under the bench and locked it in place. She put the box on the table. The front of the box was printed with a picture of a wide meadow full of flowers with mountains in the background.

  "It isn't a painting kit, is it?" I'd tried painting once. I was hopeless at it.

  "No, something better," she said. "It's an old art form. It's called a jigsaw puzzle, though the man I bought it from couldn't tell me what a jigsaw was." She lifted off the lid. Inside were hundreds of small pieces. She picked up a piece. One side was printed with flowers, the other side was gray. "You put these together and they make the picture on the front," Jasyn explained.

  I stirred through the box with my finger. "This will take days."

  "That's the point," Jasyn said. "It's something to do, Dace."

  "Jasyn," I protested as I slid the box lid back on.

  "It beats trying to read that science paper you downloaded," Clark said. His look warned me to accept the puzzle.

  "Thanks, Jasyn," I said. "I'll need a bigger table."

  "I think we can arrange that," she said.

  Chapter 6

  "I'm telling you it was the ship," Largo said. "I saw it. It couldn't have been any other ship."

  "There weren't any ships in port called the Phoenix Rising," Matthias answered. "It couldn't be them."

  "I'm telling you it was," Largo insisted. "I recognized the ship. They must have changed their beacon."

  "Law abiding citizens like them stripping out their beacon? I sincerely doubt it."

  "But it was the ship, I'm telling you—"

  They both stopped talking, sipping their drinks, as a rowdy couple walked too close to their booth.

  "She's going to roll him in the alleyway," Largo said with a grin. "Leave him lying in his nothings with his wallet gone."

  "There isn't enough in the wallet to tempt us," Matthias said. "No petty theft here. We're after something bigger. We don't want to attract attention."

  "That's what I'm trying to say. We do what we were hired for here, and then we go after the big payday on our own. You want to work for someone else the rest of your life? You're always saying you want to branch out, be independent. This is our big chance."

  "Stealing a beat up old freighter?" Matthias shook his head. "The ship isn't worth the fuel to fly her. And they're too well connected. It's trouble, Largo."

  "Not the ship, Matthias. Her."

  Matthias shook his head again. "Not worth it, Largo. She's too well protected. She's got Patrol connections. We don't want that kind of trouble."

  Largo grinned. It was an evil grin, the kind that made small children cry. "Not anymore, Matthias. I heard her sponsor has his teeth pulled. He couldn't protect himself from the rain. And she's a long way from him."

  Matthias took a long pull from his drink. "Talk to me, Largo."

  Largo leaned forward across the gritty table. He pushed a bowl of nuts out of his way. "She's got a lot of enemies, some of them will pay for the privilege of revenge on her. We snatch her when she goes off shopping. We take her out to the sale and put her up on the block. She's on our ship for two weeks, tops. We walk away with a big pile of cash. They won't chase us, they'll chase the one who buys her. No risk to us."

  "Big risks, Largo. Use your brain. No, I don't like it," Matthias said shaking his head.

  "You don't think big enough, Matthias." Largo moved back, lounging against the wall of the booth.

  "You don't even know if it was her."

  "I know what I saw."

  They fell silent again as a group of spacers walked past.

  "Think about it, Matthias."

  "I am."

  Largo drained his glass. He thumped it on the table. "They're headed for Tireo next. Ananda is on Tireo. We could pay her to do some looking for us."

  "You pay her. I'm not spending my money on a long shot. Not this time."

  "And when I'm right?"

  "Then I'll think about it. We'd still need a ship."

  "We get Kolly in on it. He owes us a favor or three. And he's got a legit ship. Until he screws up again and gets caught with another load of goods."

  Matthias closed his eyes and sipped his drink. It was the sign that he was thinking and thinking hard. Largo licked his lips in anticipation.

  "You prove she's the one, hard proof," Matthias said, stabbing a finger at Largo, "and you get Kolly lined up, and I'll think about it. I have to find out how much she's worth and who wants her. You find out if that really is her ship. This is going to take some planning. If we decide to work it."

  "It's her ship," Largo said, smiling again. "I'd bank on it."

  Matthias snorted derisively. "That's what you said about the diamonds."

  "I'm not wrong. Not this time."

  Matthias still didn't believe him. But he was willing to at least consider it. That was enough for Largo. For now.

  Chapter 7

  The puzzle proved harder than I thought. I tried picking pieces out of the box and fitting them together. It didn't work. I kept getting lost. Each piece had interlocking edges that had to fit exactly. There were a lot of pieces with tiny yellow and blue flowers on them. I pulled out two more tables. I had to put it all away when we launched.

  Ginni flew with me as copilot. It was the first time I'd worked with her in the cockpit. She was nervous. Clark sat behind her and watched over her shoulder. She was good, once she relaxed. But by then we were past the jump point. I let her shut down the sublights while I checked the status of the hyperdrive. Everything was solidly in the green.

  It was the middle of the night for us. Most of the crew were already asleep. Clark and Jasyn left to check on Louie.

  "Did I do all right?" Ginni asked when we were alone.

  "More than all right. You did great."

  She sat back in her chair, swinging one short leg. She was tiny, shorter than even me. Most people took her for a child. She'd been impersonating a boy when I first met her.

  "You've got your certification from the Academy. All you need now is experience," I said, trying to reassure her.

  "I've been flying with Clark and Twyla for the last six months. I should know this ship by now."

  "You did fine."

  "Clark says you're the best pilot he's ever met." She eyed me sideways, unsure of my reaction.

  "He's very good himself." I wasn't sure what she wanted from me.

  "Jasyn said you once flew a Starfire Class all by yourself, through an asteroid field."

  I stopped pushing unnecessary buttons and leaned back in my chair. "That was a long time ago. I'd almost forgotten that." Lady Rina had owned a yacht, the Swan. It was old, an antique, but lovingly maintained by her engineer and friend, Caid. It had been a privilege to fly, she was a beautiful ship.

  "They don't teach Starfire anymore at the Academy."

  "They never really did. I only learned because the instructors still had them loaded on the simulators and wanted to see what I'd do."

  "Why did you become a pilot, not a full engineer?"

  "Because at the time, I thought being a pilot was a better route to owning my own ship. Engineers don't own ships. They don't command them, either."

  "You like being captain?"

  "Sometimes, maybe. Not when there's paperwork. Or when I have to give orders. Which I don't give anymore. I don't think anyone would follow them."

  "Was it hard? Working for Lowell? We heard stories, sometimes. J
asyn didn't share most of them. Not with me, at least."

  "Yes." I let that bald statement hang in the air without further comment. It had been hard. And it had cost me what I treasured most.

  "Do you want me to sit watch?" she asked in a small voice.

  "If you want. I'm not really tired, though, so I can take watch."

  "I'm not tired, either." She watched me warily, as if afraid I might shout or bite or something.

  I sighed. "It was hard. And it was painful. And I don't want to remember it."

  "But it's part of who you are. Clark says it helps to share. People think because I look like a child, I must be young and innocent. You know where I came from. You know who I am."

  "It's easy to forget, Ginni."

  She was an orphan, like me, only she'd grown up on hostile streets. She'd pretended to be a boy to save herself from the death squads. Her mother had been a prostitute in the Sidyatha, allowed to live only as long as the Sidyama looked the other way. Ginni had been an inconvenience. Her mother had thrown her out when she was five. In many ways, her life was much worse than mine had been. At least until I'd gotten mixed up with Lowell.

  "I don't know if I'm ready to talk about it," I admitted to her.

  "What was it like, living like a rich princess?"

  "It was horrible. I had to dress right. And I spent hours on my makeup and hair every day. I wasn't allowed to wear boots very often. And I had to learn how to dance."

  She laughed. It was like liquid light pouring over me.

  "There was a lady I think you would have liked," I continued. "She called herself Madame Yosefie."

  Ginni settled sideways in her chair, her chin resting on her hands on the back. I told her the parts that I could remember with a smile. I told her about Madame Yosefie. I told her about shocking the society ladies at the parties. I told her about Linas-Drias and the endless stream of traffic and glowing lights. I told her about the Emperor's palace. While we talked, my cat Ghost appeared and settled herself in my lap. Her purr rumbled through my hands as I stroked her.