Dragons of Mars Box Set

by Leslie Chase

  Rorax nodded. All of that made sense, which was part of the problem. Isolated bands of pirates were a problem, and it would probably be impossible to get rid of them all. But individually, they lacked the strength to do more than pick off single ships. With Korgan holding them together and running things efficiently, they could pose a serious threat to both the human colonies and the Dragon Empire itself. He had to break this up, and fast.

  "Shall we make the call, then?" he asked, keeping his thoughts hidden under a practiced layer of calm. Korgan nodded and clapped him on the shoulder.

  Getting through to LakeTech wasn't as easy as he'd expected, though. The hybrid technology didn't seem to want to cooperate, and it took a lot of fiddling and cursing by Korgan and his engineers to make the connection. From the frightened looks they shot their boss, Rorax got the impression that the humans weren't too happy about their new jobs. He wondered if they'd had a choice about it.

  Once the link with the communication network on Earth was established, though, the humans on the other end of the line didn't take much convincing. They had clearly been expecting a call from the pirates, and immediately sent for Adele's father.

  The biggest problem was the delay. The human technology was limited to light speed, and that meant that there was a ten-minute delay between a signal being sent and received. That slowed down the conversation to a crawl. As they waited for Mr. St. George's reply, Korgan grinned and pulled out an old pirosh board, setting up the pieces with practiced speed. Rorax groaned at the sight — they'd been playing each other since childhood. Korgan had won two games out of every three, so of course that was what he wanted to do to pass the time. Rorax let Korgan make the first move, and they'd gone through the opening moves by the time that the human's message arrived.

  "What do I need to do to get my daughter back?" St. George asked without preamble as soon as he was on the line. "I want this done as quickly and as painlessly as possible, and I will pay any reasonable ransom."

  "Sensible man," Korgan rumbled. "My demands will be easy for you to meet, and then she will be returned to you safe and sound. As long as you do exactly as I say, everything will be fine."

  With that, he began listing his demands. Rorax couldn't help admiring his brother's easy command of the situation as he listened to the deal. Korgan clearly knew exactly what he wanted. Some of it was human technology that wouldn't be easy to steal on Mars, some the raw materials they'd need to build their own base. Again, Korgan was thinking long term, wanting to have access to things that would let him run the pirate crews for a long time.

  Most of the list, though, was given over to luxuries. The kind of things with which he could buy the goodwill of the undisciplined dragons who followed him. Or which he could trade for a share of their profits, if they brought in a haul without him.

  Once he'd finished listing his demands, Korgan turned back to their game. The reply seemed to take forever to arrive over the gulf of space between Mars and the LakeTech headquarters on Earth.

  Twenty minutes later, Mr. St. George's response came through and he seemed to be the soul of reason. He balked at nothing, simply taking the list and repeating it back to make sure he had it correct. Rorax had to admire him, as well — his love of his daughter was enough to make him swallow his pride and pay the ransom without question.

  It wasn't the bravery of a warrior, but he supposed it was a kind of bravery after all.

  "I'm glad that you are cooperating, Mr. St. George," Korgan said once it was done. Rorax heard the satisfaction in his voice, though he kept his smugness confined to his smile. "I will send you the exact coordinates of the exchange once you've gathered the goods I require."

  Again, that long, long wait as their message made its way to Earth and the reply came back. "Very well. It will take me two days to make the arrangements. And if my daughter is not there for the exchange, unharmed and safe, then my ships and their cargo will remain in orbit, out of your reach. Good day."

  Korgan smiled, pleased with himself, and shut down the call.

  "Why didn't you let him speak with her?" Rorax asked, curious. "I would have thought that was the normal way to handle this, let him know that she's alive and unharmed."

  "It's not necessary when he can see her at the exchange," Korgan said. "He knows we have her, and he'll be able to hold back the ransom if we don't bring her along. And it makes things simpler. Can you imagine how long a conversation would need to be for him to make sure it's really his daughter he's speaking to? With the light speed delay, we'd be here for hours and no closer to being paid. This way, we don't have to put up with hours of human sentimental mewling."

  The contempt in his voice told Rorax that his brother was speaking from experience. His brother had more than enough experience at this to know how to do it right. Still, he wondered that the human hadn't even asked about it. Perhaps Korgan's way of handling ransoms was simply well enough known amongst the human leaders that he had known it would be a waste of time? It doesn't matter. The arrangements are made, and that buys some safe time. Now to let the emperor know where I am, and end this.

  Rorax stood up to go, but Korgan waved him back to his seat. "Not so fast, little brother. There's still a game to finish, and we haven't had a chance to talk. We'll have some food, drink some wine, and you can tell me how you came to capture this particular human."

  With a groan, Rorax sank back into the chair and looked at the pirosh board. The situation there wasn't looking too good — he'd already lost half his knights, and his dragon pieces weren't in a good position. On the other hand, he'd seized his brother's stronghold and scattered his formation. There was still a chance he could pull off a victory if he tried hard, but there was a long game ahead of them.

  I guess I'm not going to be able to report to the emperor until this is done, he thought, reaching for one of his dragons and pondering his next move.

  11

  Laura

  Left alone on the tower, Laura glared into the darkness feeling sorry for herself. At least with Rorax gone, so was the temptation to jump him and do something she'd really regret. Picking a fight with him hadn't been a great idea, but it was so much better than sleeping with him would have been.

  What the hell am I even thinking? He's the last person in the system I should be interested in. Telling herself that didn't help one bit. Laura tried to remind herself of the bad romantic choices she'd made in the past, but something told her that this time it would be different. Rorax wasn't like any man she'd ever met.

  Turning away from the edge of the tower she cursed under her breath and stalked towards the center to sit down. Now that she was alone, she realized that she didn't have any supplies with her on the tower. No food, no water, not even something comfortable to sit on. The hard, uneven crystal surface of the broken tower wasn't comfortable, and who knew how long it would be before Rorax returned?

  Or worse, until one of the other dragons found her up here.

  At least she had a bit of space and privacy. Around her, the forest of crystal spires stretching into the darkness. As long as she stayed away from the edge nearest the pirate camp, she could pretend that she was alone in the alien cave. She couldn't see any of her captors, and they couldn't see her.

  I might as well try to get something useful out of this, she thought as hours passed. There was no telling how many more chances she'd get to be alone and unwatched, so she ought to take advantage of this one.

  She checked the quantum communicator on her belt, relieved to find it undamaged in the fighting. It had been built to be tough, reliable even in the rough terrain of Mars, but no one had expected it to be carried into a fist fight. Surrounded by alien technology as she was, she had no idea whether it would work, but she ought to try. Switching it on, she muttered a quiet prayer that someone would be waiting for her call.

  "Adele? Are you listening?" she asked, quietly and tentatively. Silence, and then a click as the call was answered.

  "Laura! There you are,
" Adele said. "I've been so worried. Are you all right? Have they treated you well? What's happening?"

  "I'm fine, just fine. They've treated me okay, so far." That wasn't entirely the truth, but Laura didn't want to worry Adele when there was nothing the other woman could do to help. Better to just smooth things over for now. "How are things at your end?"

  Adele paused before answering, and Laura felt a knot of worry building at that. She waited patiently, and eventually Adele spoke again.

  "Not ideal, I'm afraid. There's been a complication with the ransom."

  Laura felt her jaw clench painfully and took a deep breath. "You mean your father doesn't intend to pay for me, don't you?"

  "I'm trying to convince him!" Adele's voice was a mix of anger and fear, and Laura just wanted to hug her. "Don't give up hope, Laura, I'll find a way."

  Laura groaned, shaking her head. It wasn't a surprise, not really — the St. Georges hadn't gotten rich and powerful by spending their money easily. At least I've done my job, and gotten Adele home safe and sound, she thought bleakly. That'll look good on my epitaph, if this is the end.

  "What's his plan, then?" she asked, shaking off the feeling of doom. "You're safe now, and I'm still alive. That means he didn't just tell the pirates to fuck off when they asked for a ransom. I assume your father has a plan beyond this point."

  "He does," Adele said. It didn't sound like she was happy about it. "He, um, he wants to teach the pirates a lesson about attacking his family. So he's going to tell them he'll pay, but instead of the supplies they've asked for, it'll be Captain Yates and a few anti-ship missiles that meet them."

  "Oh." Laura paused, thinking about that. "You're not meant to tell me this, are you? I'm supposed to lead them into the trap thinking I'm getting ransomed."

  "Captain Yates is supposed to rescue you if he can. But you're right, I'm not meant to warn you — father is worried you'd give the game away. That's not fair."

  Laura snorted and shook her head. "Fair has nothing to do with it. He just wants the best chance of hurting the people who threatened his daughter, and I don't really blame him. Even if it does put my life in danger."

  "I'll keep trying to convince him to pay up," Adele promised. "I'd rather see you come home safe and sound—"

  "It won't work," Laura said, interrupting. "Your father doesn't want to encourage attacks on his family, and he'll not pay the same for me as he would for you. Hurting them at the hostage exchange is his best shot, and I doubt you'll talk him out of it."

  She tried to think through the weapons at Captain Yates' disposal, and it wasn't a cheerful thought. Olympus Colony wasn't heavily armed but it had a few smart missiles meant to take out a skyship. So far they'd been enough to keep the colonies themselves safe from the dragon pirates. The crew of a single pirate ship wouldn't risk getting too close to a colony, even if they could turn into dragons.

  But with the force that Korgan was building up here, that wouldn't last for long. And she doubted he'd restrain himself once he had the ability to attack a colony directly. Maybe Mr. St. George is right, she thought. If he can take out the leaders in one strike, it might be worth doing no matter the cost.

  She doubted that he'd have made that call if it was his daughter he'd be sacrificing, though. Being considered expendable stung, even when she agreed with the call. Even if the LakeTech team wanted to save her — and she was sure they'd at least try — she'd be on the ship they were shooting at. Her odds of survival were slim, at best.

  Laura sighed. Back to plan B, getting out alive herself. At least there was some satisfaction in knowing that, even if she failed, the pirates would pay for what they were doing.

  "Okay," Laura said at last. "How is this meant to work, and how can I help?"

  "Captain Yates is having the defense missiles installed on a skyship," Adele said, sounding unhappy. "It's not easy, the technicians say they aren't meant to be used like this, but he needs them mobile. When the pirates let us know the exchange site, he can bring them into range. The idea is to use your communicator as a beacon, so we can see where they are before they get too close."

  Laura started to object, but Adele talked over her. "It's all right, Laura, I promise. Yates won't fire until you're clear of the ship unless they spot that there's something wrong — at which point, well..."

  She didn't complete the thought, but she didn't have to. Laura knew that if the pirates worked out the exchange was a trap, then getting shot with a missile would probably be a kindness.

  "That makes sense," she said reluctantly. "Okay. If I can, I'll leave the communicator on their ship when I get off it, so Yates can shoot at that."

  "Good idea," Adele said. "Get clear as soon as you can, and we'll blow them to hell. My father wants the pirates to learn what happens when they mess with LakeTech, and I want them to learn what happens to anyone who hurts my friend."

  Laura couldn't help smiling at that. Adele didn't often show her ruthless side, but when she did, Laura was glad that Adele was on her side. She'd learned her father's lessons well, and would make a dangerous enemy. But then she thought about Rorax being in the crosshairs of the rescuers, and a sudden pang of fear shot through her. The idea of him being killed felt awful.

  "If I'm going to use this as a beacon, I'd better keep it off to conserve power," she said at last, pushing her feelings aside to focus on the practical. "I'll check in with any news I get."

  "Okay," Adele said. "I'll be here, listening. See you again soon, Laura."

  Laura grinned at the ceiling. Adele is an optimist, she thought. There are so many things that can go wrong here, but it's nice to know that she's rooting for me.

  She tried to keep her thoughts on that, and not on the fight the rescue team would face. The worst part of that was worrying about what would happen to Rorax. I shouldn't care, I should be glad that he's going to be dealt with, she told herself. He's a pirate, and the one who attacked me. If he ends up being killed in my rescue, he only has himself to blame.

  It didn't help.

  By the time Rorax returned, Laura had managed to get her feelings under control. Or at least she thought she had until she saw him swooping down out of the darkness towards her tower carrying a heavy sack. The burnt hole she'd left in his wing reminded her that he was vulnerable, and she didn't like that thought.

  Damn, why do I have the worst taste in men? Laura had enough experiences of guys she really shouldn't have trusted, but falling for the pirate who'd kidnapped her was her worst choice yet. At least with the humans she'd been able to pretend that she might be able to change them.

  "You don't look happy," he said as he landed before her, and Laura felt her face harden into a glare. Anger was easier to cope with than her other feelings.

  "Of course I'm not happy, I'm a prisoner here and you didn't even leave me anything to eat or drink," she snapped. It felt good to let her anger out, but she couldn't exactly tell him what was really on her mind.

  "I've brought some supplies this time," he said, putting down his sack. "It's not much, just water and some ration packs, but it will keep you going until this is all over. And I've got good news, Adele: your father has agreed to pay the ransom, so you won't have to stay much longer."

  Laura pursed her lips, somehow annoyed that he was still calling her by the wrong name. He was trying to reassure her, but every time he called her 'Adele' it grated. I can't blame him for that, though. I’m the one who told him that was my name.

  Grabbing a bottle from the bag, she took a long drink from it. The water was cool and refreshing, despite a faint chemical tang. Whatever the aliens were using to filter it didn't seem to be working quite as well as it should.

  "You know, I bet you could get a pardon or something if you just took me home right now," she said, dropping the finished bottle back into the bag. "You don't have to stick with this life."

  Something flashed in Rorax's eyes at that, an expression she couldn't quite grasp. His smile looked forced, almost bitter. "You don'
t understand why I'm here. I can't do that."

  "If you don't want to go back to the Dragon Empire, that's your call. I bet that you could make it big on Earth, though. Either help us understand your technology, or just go on talk shows and write a book. 'My Life as a Dragon Pirate' would be a best seller, you'd never have to work again."

  Anger flickered across his face and he snarled something in his own language. Getting control of himself he glared at her.

  "You think I'd betray my principles so easily? For your money?" His voice rose and he towered over her, but she didn't back down.

  "Goddamn it, Rorax," Laura said, throwing up her hands and meeting his glare. "Yes. Yes, I think you'd do pretty much anything for money, and you know why? Because you kidnapped me for ransom, that's why."

  She stepped forward, jabbing a finger into his chest. Rorax stepped back, surprise and confusion replacing his anger.

  "That isn't the same thing," he said. "Don't think you understand me, or that you have the right to judge me."

  Laura laughed bitterly. "Oh no, you don't get away with that. You dragged me here, and I damned well will judge you for that. If you want me to think better of you, then you'll have to give me a reason to change my mind."

  They were so close now, Laura could feel the heat of his body. Rorax towered over her, his intense alien eyes flashing as they glared at each other. She could feel her heart pounding, and she felt the connection between them as Rorax snarled. For a second, they were motionless, frozen in mid-argument — and then he turned away, breaking the moment. His wings fluttered angrily, and he strode away to the edge of the tower.

  "You can think what you want of me, I don't care," he said at last. "I will keep you safe and get you home, whether you trust me or not."

  Laura took a deep breath and counted to three before letting it out. "Do you really think I believe that? You care, Rorax, and we both know it. So why not take me up on my offer? What does this place offer that Earth doesn't?"