by Taylor Smith
Cade shook his head. He’d heard Andy and Malian speak of getting ship hulls from somewhere, but they would never give him a straight answer as to who was delivering them. He always assumed it was either a non-aligned world they’d made a deal with, or something more sinister. After all he learned he’d never make light assumptions of the Neese family again. But he still had to ask, “Hulls from who?”
Andy looked back at his screen and said, “They’re entering the tube.”
Cade huffed at Andy’s ignoring his question, and turned to double check the tactical station again. “I’m not ready, Andy,” he said after making sure the screen was still clear.
“You’re a great XO, Cade. You’ll be a great Captain too.”
Cade simply shook his head and continued monitoring his console. Three years ago, Andy had thrust him head-first into the XO position aboard the Reaper. He was too young to be second-in-command of such a ship, but Andy wouldn’t trust anyone else for the job. That was easy to understand, since the former Captain of the Reaper was a traitor to Clew, and a Deshi sympathizer.
But now he was talking about a Captaincy, which was an entirely different ballgame. He decided that if he couldn’t get through to Andy that he’d take it up with Malian when they returned home. He was appreciative of Andy for thinking he could handle it, but Cade knew he wasn’t ready for such responsibility.
Criss’ voice sounded through the speakers on the bridge. “Reaper, Criss. There are two crew aboard. Only mild resistance. One had a knife.”
“Anyone cut?” Cade asked.
“Yeah, Steve. But nothing serious,” Criss replied. “He broke the guy’s nose for it. Do you want me to jettison the cargo?”
Andy shook his head. “No. Stuff the crew into the ship’s escape pod and launch it. We need another hauler for pickup runs.”
“Copy.”
An angry chirp pulled Cade from his thoughts and back to the tactical system. “Contact!” he said loudly as he watched the data flow across his system.
Andy looked up to the main screen that showed the stars outside the ship, and said, “Verify. It should be our hopeless Sister.”
Cade waited a moment, and then nodded when the small red blip turned green on the tactical display. “It’s friendly. And yes, it’s the No Quarter.”
Andy groaned and leaned his head back. “I was really hoping to get this done and be on our way to Krit before she showed up.”
Cade shrugged. Even knowing a familial blow-up was coming, it would be good to see Saundi again. “Cut her some slack. It’s been a rough two years for her,” he said. “At least she’s out here trying.” Saundi had taken Haley’s death as hard as Cade had. She was directly responsible for the nightmare that befallen her friend. Cade had Andy to lift him from the slump he’d dove into, but Saundi refused to stay in one place long enough for anyone to help her deal with it.
His screen twitched with a new contact, streaking away from the hauler they were grappled to. “The pod has launched,” he reported.
At that moment, Criss’ voice confirmed it. “Pod’s gone.”
“Very good. Secure the ship, and take an inventory,” Andy replied. “As soon as that’s done, slave the hauler’s guidance to the Reaper and we’ll send it off with the rest of the haul.”
“Aye, Captain.”
Another alert told them that they were being hailed. Andy took a deep breath, and answered it from his command chair. “Hello, Sis.”
“I’m coming aboard,” Saundi’s terse reply echoed across the speakers.
Cade’s brow knit. “Not with a boarding action in progress.”
Andy shook his head and said, “Saundi we have people working here, and we’re at intercept speed. Wait until we’re done.”
The channel closed.
Cade shook his head and checked his screen again. “She’s upset,” he muttered and watched as the No Quarter approached. “She needs to back off until we can get everyone back aboard and the tube retracted.” The Reaper was moving relative to the hauler in order to catch it, and then stay connected. Docking ship-to-ship wasn’t difficult, but it required both ships being able to make small corrections in order to safely and successfully align perfectly. The Reaper was unable to make those corrections, which wasn’t too dangerous, but it would be a rough docking maneuver.
Andy moved to the comms station and opened the channel again. “Saundi! Back off! We have people aboard that hauler and we’re still grappled!”
“All done here. We’re coming back,” Criss announced over her suits comms.
Cade shot upright. He accessed her channel from his station and shouted, “Get back aboard the hauler! Do not enter the tube! Repeat! Do not enter the tube!”
“Shit,” came the response from Criss. “Moving back.”
Cade rechecked his screen and said, “They’re docking!”
Andy activated the ship-wide channel and tied his boarding team into the broadcast as well. “All hands, ship to ship docking in progress at speed. Brace for possible impact.” He closed the channel and turned to Cade. “Get on the helm!”
Cade leapt away from the tactical station and landed heavily at the helm. “Here they come!” He shouted as he gripped the console and worked to secure himself to the seat.
The Reaper bucked hard as the No Quarter made contact. Cade was thrown from his chair as he hadn’t had time to secure himself to it. He landed on the floor next to the comms console and scrambled to get back to the pilot’s station.
Outside, the boarding tube bowed and twisted as the Reaper was forced out of position. Thin metal braces gave out and were thrust outward as they were forced to bend in unnatural angles.
Cade finally righted himself and took control of the cruiser. He fought for a moment to get a grasp on the problem in their position and then began to correct it. More than once, he wished he had his implant. Understanding the data would have been effortless with the tiny machine’s assistance. After several minutes, also fighting with the added weight of the No Quarter, he was able to return the ship back to its original bearing.
“That was a lot rougher than it should have been. Did she ram us?” Cade asked Andy in an incredulous tone.
Andy shook his head unknowingly and reactivated his comms. “Criss, report.”
The bridge was silent for a several tense seconds. Cade felt his heart skip a beat before she finally replied. “Yeah, we’re fine. Barely. Who do we owe for that little ride?”
Cade and Andy both breathed a sigh of relief. “Check the tube and let me know what its condition is. Get back aboard if you can. If not, we’ll launch the shuttle.”
Cade leaned back in his chair. He was worried about his team aboard the hauler, but when Criss didn’t respond immediately, he felt an anxiety creep up on him that he wasn’t expecting. He shook that from his thoughts and walked to the comms station to stand next to Andy, and activated another channel to engineering. “Finn, report.”
“Did someone hit us?” came Hubert Finnegan’s shouted response.
Andy shook his head and released a humorless laugh. “More or less. Are we whole?”
“I’m seeing damage reports from our starboard stations near the airlock,” Finn replied with more than a hint of annoyance. “A shorted power relay and some fried wiring. Nothing terribly bad, but the forward grapple on the port side was nearly ripped from its housing when we were pushed out of position. No injuries, thank the stars.”
“Roger that, Finn,” Andy said. “Do what you can.” Andy cut the channel and sighed. “That could have been worse. Go meet Saundi at the starboard airlock, Cade,” he said as he sat back down. “I don’t trust my judgement with her right now. I’ll meet you in the war room when the boarding team gets back.”
Cade nodded and left the bridge. He couldn’t help but wonder what Saundi was thinking. Ever since Haley’s death, she’d acted the part of a loose cannon, and he could sympathize with her to some degree. But to endanger people like she just did was crossi
ng a line.
He made his way out of the forward sections of the ship and to the starboard airlock to find Finn, along with a damage control team, working to remove several panels. He shook his head at Finn, who gave him a scowl, then nodded toward the airlock hatch.
Cade looked through the glass to find Saundi waiting with her arms crossed. When she saw him, she held her hands up and shouted, “Any time now!”
He slapped the control panel beside the hatch and it slid open. He produced a fake smile and said, “Hello Saundi.”
Saundi rolled her eyes and sauntered aboard, followed by two of her crewmen. “About time. Were you going to make me wait all day?”
Cade tilted his head. He could smell the booze rolling off her and her escorts. It made it difficult to maintain his smile. “Who’s your pilot?”
Saundi ignored him and looked around. She swayed a bit as she turned and noticed the repair crew, then asked, “Your ship’s falling apart, Cade. You should scrap this thing for a new one.” The crewmen with her laughed.
Cade’s smile never wavered. “Who’s your pilot?” he asked again.
The larger of the two crewmen stepped forward with an annoyed look on his face. “I’m her pilot. Is there a problem?” he asked with a smirk, and pointed to the patch on Cade’s long coat. “Just because your patch is red, doesn’t mean I answer to you. I only answer to –“.
Cade slugged him, hard, with his left fist. A slight metallic sound accompanied the crunch of the man’s nose as he fell.
Saundi laughed belligerently. “Oh, you did it now, Garns. You made my brother mad!” she sang out, still laughing.
Cade ignored her drunken antics, grabbed the fallen pilot with both hands and lifted him slightly. He heaved, and dragged Garns across the airlock floor to slam him into the metal wall. “You nearly killed three of my crew!”
Saundi seemed to sober a bit, and suddenly rushed over to Cade. “Ok. Ok, Cade. I told him to do it. Ease off.”
Cade rounded on Saundi and spent every bit of willpower to try and tamp his temper down. “Tell these idiots to get off my ship. Now.”
She had seemed to finally calm down and realize her little game wasn’t as funny as she’d thought. “Mr. Veller, grab Garns and get back to the No Quarter.”
The man named Veller, who had kept his distance from Cade the entire time, quickly grabbed his fallen comrade and helped him out of the Reaper’s airlock.
Cade slammed the hatch shut and locked it. After seeing those two, he didn’t trust anyone on that ship. He grabbed Saundi by the arm and began leading her toward the war room.
“I know where it is!” she struggled to get out of his grip.
He continued to ignore her as they walked past the damage control team, who all gave him lop sided grins and several salutes. Then he noticed Criss standing behind them, watching wide-eyed. He paused a moment, again glad she was ok, and nodded to her. She grabbed his arm briefly, as he walked by.
***
It was ten minutes into Andy’s shouting at Saundi that he finally sat down, red-faced. Andy looked deflated, as if he’d spent every ounce of energy he had to yell at his Sister.
Cade had sat quietly in the war room with them. He’d been adopted into the Neese family, who saved his life at one time, but he still understood that there were boundaries to be crossed only by blood. Chastising Saundi Neese, Cade thought, was well beyond the boundary in which he wouldn’t cross.
“I’m sorry,” Saundi said for the hundredth time, like a child in trouble with a parent.
“I don’t want you to be sorry, Saundi,” Andy repeated himself again. “I want this to stop. The No Quarter has the reputation of a party cruise, and now you can’t even catch an outdated tramp hauler.” Andy raised his arms in alarm and said, “You even had its timetable and course!”
Saundi grimaced and said, “We were too late! By the time we got there it was already two hours ahead of us.”
“Why?” Andy asked suddenly, his eyes like daggers daring her to answer truthfully. “Tell me why you were late.”
Saundi’s eyes lowered to the table and she refused to answer.
Cade figured they made a layover at one of the many entertainment colonies in the Krit System before the hauler jumped for Torj. They were all dives, as many of the non-aligned and newly-aligned worlds were, but they were still fun from time to time. Casinos and resorts were springing up in desperate attempts to gain capital, and they hadn’t been in the Alliance long enough to be so strict on security that Clew crews couldn’t go unnoticed.
In a few more years the security would be tighter and there would even be a small Allied Fleet presence in the system. For now, however, it was still ripe for the picking.
Cade reached across the table and grabbed Saundi’s hand. “We both have problems with moving on, Saundi. I think we both have to try a little harder.”
Saundi’s hand gripped Cade’s for a moment before she let go and said, “I’m trying.”
Andy slapped his hand on the table, which made them both jump. “Try harder, or pass the No Quarter on to another Captain.”
Saundi’s head snapped up. “What?”
Cade also whipped his head toward his brother, who suddenly seemed a bit larger than he’d been, even when he was yelling.
“Turn your act around,” Andy said slowly, “or you will lose your ship.”
Cade’s mouth dropped. Saundi had practically grown up aboard the No Quarter. By the time she was fourteen, she was brilliant. Her entire life was that ship and, oddly enough, the crew would follow her into hell and back if she thought it would make a profit. It took decades for someone to learn the skill of command, but Saundi had been a prodigy. Cade didn’t really agree with the model of “taking away her favorite toy to teach her a lesson,” but this was another boundary he didn’t dare cross.
Saundi was outwardly rattled. She stared at her brother for a moment and finally said, “You can’t do that.”
“I won’t have to. When father hears about today, he’ll rip that patch off your chest himself.”
The silence was deafening. For several moments, Cade simply looked between the two. Just as he was about to interject, Andy’s head tilted and he looked away from them. He’d obviously been pinged across his implant.
“Criss needs us on the bridge,” Andy said and stood.
Cade stood with Andy to leave the room, and then paused when he noticed Saundi’s immobile form. “You coming? It could be important.”
She looked up at him slowly, as if just waking up and nodded.
Cade entered the bridge half expecting to hear contact alarms from the tactical station, but all seemed quiet. Criss had returned to the comms station, and Terry was lounging at the helm with little to do as they were still anchored to the No Quarter. Steven Wards manned the tactical station, and was watching the three enter the bridge with curiosity.
“What do we have, Miss Hulbert?” Andy asked as he sat down.
Criss turned and said, “We received a subspace ping, Captain. Its broadcast is carrying one of our signatures.”
Subspace communications was, to Cade, a technological irritation. It was fairly easy for a ship to house the equipment to receive short subspace bursts. The more complex the message, however, the more equipment is needed. And then there are terms of actually sending a subspace message, which only planetary infrastructure, some space stations, and the larger ships, such as the Alliance battleships, can facilitate. It made communications difficult, but most people managed by only using long-range bursts when absolutely needed. The signature, or frequency, of those bursts was a message itself.
“Send the signature to my station,” Andy ordered and looked down to his screen. He double checked the frequency against the list of meanings in the ships database and looked up to Cade and Saundi. “It looks like this is Jerry’s general alert. The Yanna System.”
Cade’s brow knit. The last time he’d spoken with Jerry was over a month ago. She’d given them inte
l on the science vessel sale at Torj Station. He was surprised at how her personality had seemed to change since meeting her at Stormcall. She was a mystery. “What kind of alert?” he asked.
Saundi answered, “There’s only two types that she uses: alerts and alarms. An alarm sig’ would mean she’s been compromised. But I’ve never heard of that old cow needing help.”
“Right,” Andy replied with a shake of his head at his Sister’s explanation. “The alert, though, just means she has some trouble she needs help with. It’s probably nothing major, but I’ll take the Reaper and check on her.”
“I’m coming,” Saundi said quickly.
Andy stared at her for a moment. He shook his head and was about to say something, when Saundi continued.
“No more playing around,” she said with her hands raised slightly.
Cade looked between them. He’d grown to love the Neese family, especially his adoptive siblings, but he didn’t fully trust Saundi or her crew.
Andy looked at her for a few more moments before nodding. “I’ll hold you to that.”
Chapter 4
Haley slammed her fist into the small desk, causing the old keyboard and several knick-knacks to jump. After nearly two days of recovery from her encounter with Jerry and the meds she’d used, she was back at Jerry’s shop. It was after dusk when she’d arrived back in town and found the store locked and quiet.
On her way, she was surprised to find that the surveillance equipment she’d set in place previously was now working. She found it odd, but then dismissed it, and assumed that with Jerry locked-up, whatever equipment she was using to jam her, was now offline.
She’d found several notes on the front door of the shop. Some were queries about ISD, or Interstellar Drive parts, and even one from an admirer. Haley ignored them. Whoever left the notes would obviously wonder where the woman was, but it was too soon to raise any alarms about it. After watching the colony’s reaction when Jerry had shut her shop down for forty-eight hours because of Haley’s snooping, she realized it was a very quiet and laid-back place to live. She figured she had at least another twenty-four hours, perhaps two days, before anyone became concerned.
