“He’s fixed it,” grinned Raan.
“Told you so,” said a smug Starfire.
“I better get down there,” said Tranter, walking out of the pilot section. A hover trolley full of parts and tools followed him into the aircar. He met them two hours later in the crew lounge. “Well, we’ve double welded the hair line cracks in the ion engine housing,” he said. “I could tow you with the Josie, but I ain’t that sure of her engines that much either. I think they still need a bit of fine tuning. I could risk it, but I reckon your Android’s done a good enough job to get you to Manta Six.”
“Why there?” asked Erion.
“Just because,” muttered Tranter. He didn’t do complicated explanations very well.
“There’s a shipwright workshop there we can use,” said Hal.
“Ah,” said Erion. “This has something to do with you two, doesn’t it?” She looked at Starfire.
“Why is it always me?” she asked.
“Because your face gives you away, Lieutenant,” answered Erion. “If you didn’t know what was going on, you would have been bursting with curiosity by now.” The hatch opened and Delta Ten walked in.
“Well done, Del,”
“Yes, excellent work,” said Erion. The android accepted the praise without comment.
“We should be going,” he said. “We have been in this quadrant too long and may attract attention.”
“I’ll be with you all the way,” said Tranter. “I’ll make sure I’m real close so you’ll be on my scope. If you drop out of hyperspace, I’ll know and come back for you.” He caught Erion’s eye and smiled, “See you on the other side, Major.”
“Yes,” she said, smiling back. “See you on the other side.”
Chapter 9
“Manta Six dead ahead,” called Raan as the two ships came of hyperspace together. They let Tranter land first, and watched as the Josie grew smaller and smaller as she dropped away from them. She was nowhere to be seen when the Grennig landed on the concrete in a cloud of dust.
“Those big Cargo doors are open down there,” Raan pointed out of the windows.
“Let’s get her inside,” said Starfire. It didn’t take long to manoeuvre the Grennig inside the cargo bay and Starfire cut the engines. A short ride in the Grennig’s internal aircar brought them all out at the rear cargo bay passenger hatch.
“Well, are we just going to stand here?” asked Erion, when nothing happened for a while. Hal put up his hand.
“I’m waiting to hear something, Major.”
“Hal,” said Tranter’s voice over his comlink.
“Yeah?”
“She says it’s okay. Bring ‘em down.” Tranter cut the link and Hal looked at them all in turn.
“I have to say something, first,”
“Not another one of your warnings,” muttered Erion, not quite under her breath.
“This ain’t a going to be a warning, Major,” drawled Hal softly. “This will be a promise.”
“Oh,” said Erion, sarcastically, “we’ve never had one of those before.”
“We mean it, Major,” said Starfire, earnestly, thinking of the Trenee. “If we tell you this, we will have broken our word to some very special people.”
“Not just that,” added Hal. “You’re going to see something today that only me, Star and Tranter know about. We got to have your word that you won’t breathe a word of it to anyone.”
“You got my word, man,” Raan held out his hand, Terrellian style, and Hal shook it, briefly, but firmly. Hal put his hand out, and lifted his fingers up to show Erion his palm. Erion touched it with her own, interlocking his fingertips, briefly, in the Aurian traditional ‘weapons free’ gesture.
“You have my solemn promise too, Hal,” she said.
“I’m gonna need your word too, android,” Hal glared at Delta Ten, who bowed low.
“I have altered my programming to prevent me divulging any information I learn here.”
“Right then, come on,” Hal and Starfire stepped through the little hatch and the other three followed. They walked past the Josie Dog and pulled up short when they thought they had seen Thirty Seven. A big black robot, wearing a sticky label on its chest bearing the scribbled name ‘AL’, nodded politely and said,
“My name is,” there was a terrible, high pitched screech, then it continued again, “but for today, you may call me Al.”
“Fraggin’ hell,” said Raan, “I thought you were Thirty Seven there for a second.”
“I have found that all the humans I have met inexplicably seem to make the same mistake,” he said, sadly. “This is why, for your convenience, I wear this wonderful badge that Con Tranter has made with his own hands.” Erion nodded to another Citizen and took the offered, metal hand.
“And you, I am guessing, must be Betty.”
They followed Hal and Starfire into the visitors’ lounge, where Vermillion rose to greet them and told her tale again.
“So, now you have heard our story,” said Vermillion. She tilted her head onto one side. “We have trusted you with our very existence. Now Hal, can you not tell Major Dubois, Captain Raan and Delta Ten why you had to go to Serrell?” The tall gunman nodded.
“Sure. When we all went to Serrell, me and Starfire got separated from Erion and Raan. We were taken prisoner by some natives. We kinda pissed ‘em off and they took us to a sacrificial stone. We woke up underground and met the Trenee. They’re dragons. They helped us get to Dolton’s underground base and fixed up our ship. We promised we would keep their presence a secret. That night in the Cantina, they called to us. Told us to come.” He leaned back again and they realised he wasn’t going to speak about it anymore.
“So that’s it,” breathed Erion. She sighed to herself. Hal had spoken more words to her in the last two minutes than she had heard him say in the last twelve months. She looked at Starfire, “When you mentioned dragons, I thought you were joking.”
“Can you tell us anything else about them?” asked Vermillion.
“Well,” Starfire accepted another coffee from Raan, “like Hal said, they’re called the Trenee. There were hundreds of thousands of them, but they’re nearly all gone now,” she paused and looked at Vermillion, “like you. Their king is called Kaura and his son is called Grennig.”
“Damn it, that’s why you insisted on the stupid name!” said Raan. As its pilot, Starfire had been given the choice of ship’s name and insisted on the Grennig.
“Yeah, they used to fly all over Serrell, but now they hide underneath the surface like Terrellians,” she said, bitterly. “Grennig told us he would never be able to fly like his ancestors, so I thought I’d at least give his namesake a chance.”
“Did you find out what they wanted?” asked Erion .
“They never actually said at the time,” answered Starfire. “We both felt terror; sheer terror. Something horrible was coming and they couldn’t stop it.”
“We know what it is now,” said Hal. The Federation is going to build their new Information Retrieval base on Serrell.”
“Shit!” Raan and Tranter spoke together.
“No,” gasped Erion. Their last mission had been to destroy the Information Retrieval Building on Castillon. Now it looked like their efforts had made things worse for another race.
“Hey guys,” it was Tranter. “I’m down here with Bob and a few of the boys. Do you reckon you can send Del down here?” Delta Ten stood up and bowed, gracefully to Vermillion.
“Do you know the way, Delta Ten?”
“I do now, Vermillion,” he answered. “One of the Citizens helping Con Tranter has just sent it to me.”
“We must get back to the Cantina as soon as possible and discuss all this with Gant,” sighed Erion. “Although how we are going to do it without mentioning the Trenee, I don’t know.”
“We have been examining the data that Hal brought back from Serrell. Your problem is three-fold, is it not, Major?” asked Vermillion.
“Call me Erion,
” she said, “and yes, you’re right. Not only must we find safe homes for the Terrellians living in complete ignorance with the Trenee, but now we have a hundred and sixty three political prisoners of all races, who the Federation thinks are all dead, and over Five Thousand, two ton dragons.” She rubbed her temples and sighed again.
“Hal,” Vermillion lifted her bronze and silver head to look at him. “Would you please show Starfire and Captain Raan around the complex?”
“Sure,” he said. They all rose and Vermillion caught sight of Starfire’s little necklace.
“What is that, my dear?”
“This? Oh, it’s just a little necklace that Grennig gave to me. It’s made from the local flowers, doayth, I think they call them.”
“Starfire, would you give me the necklace? Could I keep it?”
“Of course, if you want it,” Starfire backed up to Raan and lowered her head so that he could untie it for her.
“It has no special significance,” said Starfire.
“Oh, I think this may be of vital importance,” said Vermillion. She and Erion shared a look. “Now, please feel free to sample the delights of our hydroponic gardens. Citizen Hofolhdxhy will be honoured to show them to you. When you see him, would you ask him to come and see me please?”
“That felt like a dismissal,” whispered Raan as they waited for the internal aircar to come and get them.
“Erion’s got that look in her eye as well,” added Starfire. “You know, that look she has when she’s planning something.” Vermillion’s complex seemed to stretch forever. It took them nearly ten minutes to reach the hydroponic gardens. Citizen Hofolhdxhy was, as Vermillion had predicted, very excited by their presence and proudly showed them around. The gardens were beautiful and the multi-coloured flowers and plants were all in bloom, permeating the air with their delicate scent. The imitation sunlight was at that moment set to dusk and the night insects had just started to whistle and chirp. The Citizen left them sitting by an ornamental pond with a cascading fountain and set off to visit Vermillion.
“So,” said Starfire after a cigarillo and a short, companionable silence, “Erion tells me you fell in love with a homicidal android and had to blow its head off.” Raan glared at her and attempted to change the subject. He knew if he brought it around to food, she would be distracted, for a while at least.
“Wonder what local time it is,” mused Raan. “I could do with a quick Vanity and a meal.”
“Me too,” Starfire stretched out on the bench and nudged Hal, who had fallen asleep.
“Hey, we’re going to wander back to our quarters; maybe get something to eat. You coming?”
“Sure,” he stood up, settled the blaster in its holster and they walked out of the garden together.
Tranter was in the guest quarters when they returned, leaning back in a chair and sipping coffee.
“Hey,” said Raan, “how’s our ship?”
“She’s fixed, man,” he grinned. “That android of yours can sure weld. In the end we left it. Number one engine housing is stronger now than it was when it was new.”
“Good to know,” said Starfire. “What do we do now? Go back to the Cantina?” Raan shrugged.
Vermillion looked into space for a few seconds, and they all realised that she was in contact with someone.
“We have been watching the crystal that you brought back for us, Hal. The Trenee are an ancient and peaceful race. We will welcome them here with open arms.”
“What about the humans?” growled Hal from the corner. “You got Terrellians who have been living underground with the Trenee for hundreds of years. They don’t know anything about the outside world and they ain’t ever seen a Trenee.”
“On top of that you got over a hundred and fifty prisoners from all the races,” added Tranter. “It only takes one nutter to bring the whole thing crashing down.”
“Hal, Tranter, I appreciate your concerns,” said Vermillion, raising a hand. “I am hoping that the Rebel Alliance can take all the prisoners. I am assured that they are political prisoners and captives of the state, brought in only to build this new Information Retrieval system of theirs. I am hoping they can be relocated to their homelands, taken to where they wish, or integrated into the Alliance.”
“And the Terrellians?” asked Hal. “They ain’t ever seen a Trenee, Vermillion. You can’t send them to Terrell either. You ain’t seen it down there. They wouldn’t be able to cope on Terrell.”
“We were thinking of Katraia,” said Erion. She met Hal’s flat stare without flinching.
“Look, you said yourself that they are intelligent and well educated. Kaura said it would be easy to re-educate them for life outside.”
“It ain’t that easy, Major.” Hal looked away and reached into the breast pocket of his black shirt for a cigarillo.
“It’s always with you,” said Starfire, quietly. They all looked at her. “The agoraphobia. It doesn’t go away. You just have to kind of live with it.”
“I am sure the Trenee could help with some form of Hypnosis…”
“No!” Hal and Starfire both blurted out at the same time.
“Once you’ve had that mad woman in your head, you wouldn’t want it again,” explained Starfire, darkly, the memory of the terror she felt, still raw in her mind. “Anyway, it’s part of who I am,” she said. “I know they live in tunnels like rabbits, but I’m still Terrellian. I wouldn’t want someone to take that away.”
“Likewise,” muttered Hal.
“We will think of something. Do not worry. Now, please relax and eat.” A square table slid out of the wall underneath the food replicator and two legs dropped down to support it. Two benches slid out of the wall and they all climbed over them to sit down. Vermillion handed Erion a data crystal. “Would you be so kind as to pass this on to Thirty Seven when you see him?”
“Of course,” she answered, zipping up the jewel into her tunic pocket’
“It contains all the details of your visit, and your promise.”
“Promise?” asked Starfire.
“Yes, Lieutenant. Erion has given her assurance that all this will happen without revealing our existence.”
“Well, good luck with that,” said Raan, sardonically as he tucked into a cheese salad.
“Should be possible,” said Starfire. “We just tell the Alliance that the Trenee want to come here. As far as they will be concerned, this is an empty planet and the Trenee are human.
“Citizen Hofolhdxhy says the plant specimen from your necklace is already growing well,” said Vermillion.
“Well, from what you told us, they won’t starve if nothing else,” Raan took a bite of his plated salad.
“Pass the protein,” grinned Tranter.
“Here you are, Tran,” said Erion. She passed Tranter a sandwich and he blushed and nodded his thanks. Raan and Starfire shared a grin. Everyone in the Alliance knew how Erion and Tranter felt about each other. Everyone except Erion and Tranter that is. Starfire wanted to take Erion aside and tell her how Tranter felt about her, but Raan was running a book on their first kiss and he had a lot of money riding on a much further date. Delta Ten walked in.
“Both our ships are now refuelled and ready to go,” he said.
“You want company on the trip back, Tranter?” asked Hal.
“Thanks all the same, man, but you know I prefer to travel on my own.” He looked pointedly at Starfire. “Saves all that whining and complaining about the food.”
“What do you mean!” she snapped. “Your passengers aren’t supposed to have to abseil down to the cargo floor.”
“The boys have fixed up the ship just fine,” he said. “The engines are back in balance again.”
“We have done much than that, friend Tranter,” said Vermillion. Tranter tried to guess what she meant but in the end, he clawed the disposable napkin from his throat and hurried from the room.
“What have you done?” asked Raan.
“We owe him so much,” explained Ve
rmillion from her little stool. “He almost died fighting Citizen Rimek to save us. Then almost died fighting him again, and had to self-destruct his beloved ship to save you all. A ship that he thought impossible to replace.”
“Not the Rebel,” said Starfire, “surely not the Rebel.”
“But it was an alien ship,” said Raan, rising from his seat.
“Are we not aliens then?” asked Vermillion, tipping her beautiful head on one side. Everyone except Hal made a rush for the door.
“So Thirty Seven and Tranter didn’t just happen across that old alien wreck then?” mused Hal as he lit an after dinner cigarillo.
“It was our freighter, Hal, and the Rebel was one of our scout ships.”
“He deserves it, Vermillion,” said Hal, softly, “he’s a good man.”
“And so are you, Hal. Is there nothing that we can do for you?”
“Stay alive, Vermillion. I ain’t got that many friends left.”
“Then you should find some more, old friend.” Vermillion leaned across and touched his wrist with a silver and copper digit. “You should not let the fear of losing loved ones bar the way to making more.”
“Hal! Hal! You gotta get down here!” Tranter’s excited voice filled the room and Hal stood up and walked out. Tranter was rushing around the bay, waving his arms like a child presented with his first bike, and too excited to speak properly.
There she was, squatting on the bay floor, next to the Grennig. She was a two seater launch, dwarfed by the massive corvette and looked like a sleek, black dart. Even her windows were blacked out. The only thing that stood out was a small, steel plaque that bore the name ‘The Rebel’, just under the port windscreen. She had a shielded thruster at the back, slender, swept back wings and a short, but pointed prow that meant she could fly in the atmosphere as well as in space. If she was anything like her predecessor, she would also have enough firepower to bring down a small destroyer. Tranter stood on the port side, took a deep breath and pressed his right hand on the side of the ship, nervously. He had done this once before and knew what to expect. The shock of it travelled up his arm, into his brain and almost knocked him off his feet. He gasped in pain and his legs gave way but his hand still stuck to the side of the ship.
Starfire and the Space Dragons: A Grennig Crew Adenture Page 11
