by JN Chaney
I held up a hand. “I get it.”
He nodded. “Right, of course,” he said, continuing. “It’s about the star chart and our current heading.”
“Oh?” I asked. “You find a better route?”
“Not quite,” he answered. “I was studying the chart with Lex and comparing it to the galactic net’s universal starchart. Granted, there are many unexplored regions, but it seems our end destination has already been explored and no planets were found.”
“You mean the map leads to nothing?” I asked.
This was just great. I was a wanted fugitive in two empires without much money and hardly any supplies, and for what?
“Oh, no, Captain, that’s not what I was saying. There’s definitely something there. It simply isn’t Earth.”
“You’re not helping your case, Hitchens. Just tell me what it is.”
“In short, a planet, but nothing like what we’re after. I believe, rather, this to be a second step along the path. I suspect the atlas is leading us to the beginning of the next leg of our journey.”
“Next leg? You think this atlas of ours is only the first half or something?”
“That could certainly be the case. I wish I could say I knew.” He scratched the side of his face. “In any case, we must continue to follow the map. I’m certain we’ll find an answer if we remain vigilant.”
“Not like we got a choice,” I muttered. “We can’t go back.”
“No, I don’t suppose we can,” he said, shaking his head. “But at least we can keep moving forward.”
* * *
The slip tunnel took us into a system right outside a nebula. There was a bustling space station here, which happened to be just outside of Sarkonian territory. According to the galnet, the station was owned by a scientific research organization that paid a healthy tax to the Sarkonians to allow them access to this region.
Seemed like a waste of money to me, but what did I know?
“There are three ships with Deadlands identifiers,” informed Sigmond.
“Put me through to the one with the cleanest record,” I said.
A few seconds later, I was chatting with a guy named Hutch about taking two passengers into safer space. He agreed to a modest payment of four hundred credits and a bit of manual labor while onboard, and I told him that was fair. I knew Bolin would do whatever he had to in order to get his daughter to safety. If that meant cleaning some dishes and mopping a few floors for a week or two, I figured he could handle it.
I docked The Star with the science station, but didn’t plan to stay very long. The encounter on our last stop still had me looking over my shoulder for the Sarkonians, which wasn’t a feeling I enjoyed. The faster we left, the sooner I’d be satisfied.
Of course, our path had us heading directly into Sarkonian space again, which wasn’t exactly ideal, but slipspace tunnels weren’t flexible. They only ran through specific paths and ultimately didn’t give a damn what you wanted. Our next tunnel, if we still planned on moving forward, remained our only option.
Once I had the ship docked, I opened the airlock and told everyone to get out and stretch. “Grab a drink if you’re thirsty. Get some food. We lost our supplies in the city, so this is the place to pick up what you can.”
“What about us?” asked Bolin.
“I’ve already found a ship willing to take you,” I said.
He looked surprised. “You did that for us? Thank you so much!”
“It was nothing. I just made a phone call. Go to docking platform three and ask for Hutch. He’s the captain of that ship. It’s a cargo transport that specializes in…what was it, Siggy?”
“The procurement and transfer of adult entertainment, including video, holographic, handheld devices, and artificial humanoid replicants,” responded Sigmond.
“Oh, yeah,” I said. “He transports exotic goods. Nothing to worry about.”
The girl, Camilla, was standing a few meters from us, talking to Lex. Her father called her over, after a moment, and told her it was time to leave. “Already? I was hoping to stay.”
“These people have done enough for us, Camilla. We need to take care of ourselves now,” said Bolin.
She nodded, looking at me. “I kept the box,” she finally said, and lifted it up. “I left it inside on the couch. You can have it for saving us.”
“That’s nice of you,” I said.
“I just found it in that pit, and we would’ve sold it to you if those soldiers didn’t come.”
Bolin smiled, hugging his daughter. “She’s a good one, my angel.”
The kid was a thief, so not much of an angel, but I didn’t argue with the man. If he wanted to believe she was an innocent do-gooder, then by all means, let him delude himself.
“Bolin, a word?” called Octavia. “I need to check those wounds before you go.”
“Ah, yes, thank you!” said the former shopkeeper. He looked at me. “Thank you again, Captain.”
He went quickly to Octavia, who waited patiently with a medkit in her lap. Hitchens was there to assist, as usual.
Camilla stayed next to me, her eyes still on me.
I glanced at her, wondering why she hadn’t followed her father. “Why are you still here?” I asked.
She seemed to study me. “You’re a Renegade, aren’t you?”
I raised my eye. “Who told you about that? Was it Abigail?”
She shook her head. “I’ve heard of Renegades. You steal and do what you have to do to stay alive. You’re like me.”
“You ain’t far off,” I told her. “But you’re also not close. You do what you have to because you have no choice. I do it because I like it.”
“You like stealing?” she asked.
“Only under the right circumstances,” I explained. “But yeah, I do, and I’m pretty damn good at it.”
“I only did it to help my Papa,” she said, glancing at her father. He had his shirt off next to Octavia, who seemed more than eager to touch his back and reapply his bandage. “He does everything for me.”
“You’re right, he does,” I said. “You want to take care of him?”
She nodded.
“Then, stay out of trouble. Do what he tells you. Don’t be like me, kid. It ain’t good for your health.”
She lowered her head, her face full of disappointment. I could tell she wanted more.
I let out a long sigh. “Look, kid, you’re not bad a thieving, but you keep going about it the way you are, you’ll wind up dead or in a cage. You gotta get some brains if you wanna stay ahead.”
“Brains?”
“When I was your age, I got arrested for stealing some bread. This was back on Epsy and I lived on the streets. Once they let me out of juvy, I got set up with a parole officer. You want to know what he told me?”
“Something about being good and getting off drugs?” she asked.
“Nah,” I said, fanning my hand. “He said if I wanted to stay out of trouble, I had to work on not getting caught.”
“What? Your parole officer said that? Why?”
I smirked. “His name was Jesson. Not really your average parole officer, but he was a good guy and he taught me to steal.”
“He taught you? But isn’t that bad for a parole officer to do?”
“Not on Epsy. That place was bad news. You had to be smart to get through those streets. Jesson understood that. He didn’t waste time teaching us how to be upstanding citizens, only how to survive. That’s the trick to this galaxy, kid. You gotta learn how to keep yourself alive. Sometimes that means stealing a loaf of bread to feed yourself. Other times, maybe it means you gotta shoot someone. Either way, the point is survival. Jesson showed me what I was doing wrong, running in blind, not understanding the layout of a place. He taught me how to set a mark and follow them. Study them. That’s your problem, kid. You didn’t case that facility before you snuck in. Even if you think you did, you didn’t do a good job, because those cameras picked you up and that’s how they got y
ou. That’s how you got caught. You gotta know all the blind spots, all the cracks in the glass. Next time, plan it out better. Be better than the fools chasing you and you’ll always come out ahead. More importantly, when everything finally does go to shit, have yourself a way out.”
She nodded, slowly. “Blind spots. A way out. I think I get it.”
“No, you don’t,” I said, patting her shoulder. “But maybe you will in a few years, once you’ve fucked up a few more times.”
Nine
I made sure we didn’t stay on the station for too long. I figured it would be better for survival if we kept moving.
Hitchens and Octavia returned with a cart full of machines. I had no idea what any of it was, but I figured if they went through the trouble, it must be worth it.
We still didn’t fully understand what was going on with Lex, after all, and something told me it would do us well to figure it out.
I moved The Renegade Star towards a nearby gas giant, closer to the next slip tunnel. “We ready to go, Siggy?”
“Yes, sir. Activating the slipspace drive now.”
I brought up the star chart, examining the data I’d pulled from the device Hitchens had given me. The entire galaxy came into view, and a thin golden line stretched from one system to another, somewhere far from here, towards the outer rim. It was out of known space, as far as I knew. I had a hard time believing Earth, if it even existed, was so far away.
But hell, this map had to lead somewhere. They usually did, from my experience. Maybe this was the flight path of an old research ship from two thousand years ago, back when this technology was in its prime. Maybe we could scrap what we found and sell it off. If this whole expedition fell apart, there was still a chance I’d walk away with something.
Shit, you had to stay optimistic, right?
A tear in space formed ahead of me, just above one of the gas giant’s eighty-six moons.
“The tunnel is clear, sir. Shall I proceed?”
“How long are we looking at this time?” I asked.
“Fifteen hours, approximately.”
“Long enough for whiskey and regrets,” I said. “Take us in, Siggy.”
“Proceeding, sir.”
The ship shuddered as our thrusters ignited, followed by a loud SNAP.
My seat jerked.
The Foxy Stardust on my dash bobbled violently.
“Sir, I am detecting unusual activity along the outer hull,” said Sigmond.
The Renegade Star rattled again, this time so much that I felt my body slam into the harness around my shoulder. “Is that a fact?” I snapped. “Stop moving and scan the ship. Find out if we were hit by some kind of debris.”
I activated the ship’s com. “Attention, we’re experiencing some turbulence. Sit your asses down and buckle up.”
“Captain Hughes!” screamed a voice from the lounge. “You need to get out here now!”
I unbuckled my harness. “I swear to gods, Siggy, if you ran us into an asteroid, I’m going to kick your digital ass.”
“I pray that isn’t the case, sir.”
The cockpit door slid open and I stepped into the lounge. Abigail was standing near the window, staring with a wide-eyed expression. She turned to look at me, open-mouthed. “We have a problem!”
“What are you—”
The airlock blew open with a shattering blast that knocked both Abigail and I on our asses. I hit the wall, rolling to the floor as the world blurred into a haze.
I felt a ringing in my ears as I struggled to stand, only to fall back against the wall. I could hear the faint screams of someone far away…or were they close? Was it Abby? Was she calling me?
I pushed myself off the floor, trying to see ahead of me. The blurred outline of something, a person moving, came toward me.
I reached for my pistol, thumbing the holster on my hip as I tried to get my grip, but it was difficult.
“…alert…”
A voice in my ear. It sounded like Sigmond.
“…sir, there is…you must…alert...”
“Siggy,” I muttered, suddenly aware of how dry my throat was. “Siggy, what’s going on?”
“The ship is being boarded, sir. You need to stand up, quickly.”
“Boarded?” I muttered, coughing, but I couldn’t see much of anything. Only the haze and black spots across my vision.
I sensed something moving. Figures coming out of the airlock. “Sir, you must get up at once. The enemy is here. You need to stand,” said Sigmond.
One of them stopped, looking at me and walking closer. “What do we have here?” he asked in a deep, scruffy voice. “You must be the guy in charge.”
“Who…the fuck…are you supposed to be?” I managed to ask, blinking rapidly, trying to make out his face, impossible as it was.
He laughed as he stood over me. “The man who’s taking your ship.”
Before I could say anything else, I felt the top of his boot slam into the side of my head.
* * *
A scream woke me.
“Get away from me!” yelled Octavia.
I cracked my eyes open to see her laying prone on the floor. Her chair was on its side, seemingly tossed to the other end of the lounge.
Two Union officers stood over her, each with a hand on a little girl’s shoulder.
Lex.
There were too many things to process at once. Too many questions racing through my mind. I pushed every last one of them aside and focused on the girl in front of me.
She stood between them, helpless to do anything. Her cheeks were wet from crying as she watched them taunt the cripple on the floor.
Abigail sat behind her, across from me. I could see she was unconscious, knocked out in one of the chairs. Her head was drooping forward, bangs hanging across her forehead, hiding her eyes. Each of her wrists had been tied to the chair. Either she’d put up a fight or these guys exactly knew who they were dealing with.
I tried to lift my arm, but felt the pressure of a plastic strap across my wrist. Fuck.
“Please, you mustn’t hurt the girl!” pleaded Hitchens. He was in the hall to the right of me, behind Octavia, an armed guard in front of him.
“Shut the fuck up, fat man!” barked the soldier. He pushed him, knocking the doctor to his knees. The other men laughed.
“Hey, I found another one!” called a voice. It came from the direction of the cargo bay.
Freddie. As the soldier brought him closer, I could see a mark across his left eye. It was fresh and still bleeding.
At least he tried to fight, I thought.
“Sit over here,” the Union official in the center of the room said. A captain, by the look of him, the leader of this group.
I’ll kill him first.
A young man approached the officer. He was lower ranking. Maybe an ensign in his mid-twenties. Black hair, well-kept. Quiet eyes. “Captain Anders, sir, what are your orders?”
The middle-aged officer looked over each of his new prisoners. Before his eyes could land on me, I pretended to be unconscious. “Extract what you can from their system. We’ll blow the ship once we have what we need.”
“The ship has an AI, sir. We won’t be able to break its encryption with the equipment we have on hand,” the young man responded. “If we were to tow the vessel back to Union territory, we could have a specialist meet us to assist in the extraction process.”
The officer nodded. “We’ll transfer these prisoners to the hold and return with both ships. Good catch on the AI, ensign.”
“Thank you, sir,” said the young man.
The captain looked at each of the other men. There were six in total, by my count. “Begin the transfer immediately. I’m ready to get out of this sector.”
I cracked my eyes, barely enough to see anything. Two men took Lex by the wrists, pulling her away from the rest of us. She tried to resist. “No! Let me go!”
One of the men smacked her across the cheek. “Quiet down!”
&nbs
p; She clutched the side of her face, but didn’t cry.
“Stop it!” demanded Octavia. “She’s just a child!”
“Tell her to calm down,” ordered the captain.
Octavia looked at him, then at Lex, hesitating. “Lex, do as they say. I promise it will be all right.”
Lex held her hands in front of her waist. “Okay, Octavia.”
Another soldier cut the straps on Abigail’s wrists, then lifted her legs. “Hey, help me with this one,” he told another man.
“Sure thing,” said the other soldier. Together, they hoisted the woman up and moved her to the airlock and into the other ship.
Hitchens and Freddie followed, each with a rifle buried in their backside. They said nothing as they walked.
Finally, only the captain, Octavia, and the ensign remained. “Let’s get this woman onto the ship,” said the officer.
“Are you going to carry me?” she asked him.
He raised his brow at her. “If we give you back that chair, will you play nice?”
“Are you that afraid of a crippled archeologist?” she asked. “What am I going to do against six armed soldiers?”
“Fine, but I promise you, if I see you try anything, I’ll have this one—” He pointed to the ensign. “—shoot you on the spot, right in your little chair. Is that understood?”
She nodded.
“Ensign, if you would,” said the captain.
The young man brought the chair over to her, then helped Octavia into it. “Hands where I can see them, please,” he told her.
She kept them in her lap, and he began pushing the chair towards the airlock.
I shut my eyes again, waiting. The captain approached me, standing there. I could hear him breathing.
“Now, what to do with you?” he muttered.
I heard a click in my ear. “Standing by, sir.”
Good, but I couldn’t give Siggy any orders yet. Not until I got myself out of this chair.
I felt a hand on my wrist as the officer began to untie me. It was taking him longer than it should, but that was because he only had one free hand to do it with. The other, I knew, was still holding his handgun. Without opening my eyes, I understood that the barrel was aimed squarely at my head. If I tried anything now, I’d be dead before I could move.
