The Pirates of Sufiro (Book 1) (Old Star New Earth)

by David Lee Summers

  Ellis stood, pacing the room. He reached for a cigar and decided against it. He put his hands on the back of the chair he had been sitting in. "It felt too real to ignore."

  Fire stood and stepped over to her son. She put her arms around his shoulders. "Ultimately, you have to do what you think best." The three remained silent for some time.

  The silence was shattered as Rubin burst into the room. "Come to the shuttle, quick! Something's happened!"

  "Avast, there!" Ellis moved away from the chair. "What the hell kind of report is that. Stand to and report properly, BCom Rubin."

  Rubin stood at attention. "Commander, sir. The Firebrandt reports the Cluster has left orbit. CPO Adkins requests permission to pursue."

  Ellis looked toward Firebrandt. "May I use your teleholo, sir?" Firebrandt nodded. Rubin followed Ellis as he strode through the house. Ellis sat and called the ship. He saw Weiss, looking perplexed.

  "What are you doing on this frequency?" asked the communicator.

  "Has every damn one of you forgotten military protocol?" growled Ellis. With his peripheral vision, the commander noticed that Firebrandt, Roberts and Fire had gathered around. "Report!"

  "The Cluster has moved out of orbit, sir. Velocity increasing. CPO Adkins requests..."

  "Damn!" Ellis heard Adkins' voice in the background. She moved into view of the holo pickup. "I'm sorry, sir. We've lost the Cluster. It looks as though she's jumped."

  "Back to wherever she came from..." Ellis sighed. AN END TO HOSTILITIES

  John Mark Ellis looked back to the teleholo. "Thank you, Adkins. Mr. Rubin and I will return to the ship after we finish our business here."

  "Very good, sir." Adkins stepped out of the teleholo's field of view. Weiss looked expectantly at the commander.

  "Mr. Weiss, please check to see that interstellar communications have been restored," said Ellis, at last. Weiss nodded and touched his forehead, concentrating.

  "I have contact with Titan, sir," said Weiss, excitedly.

  "Inform them of the events of the past two days. Tell them I'll file a full report once we've wrapped up the Erdonium situation." Weiss acknowledged and turned off

  communications with the surface. Ellis sat back with a blank look on his face. Feeling drained, he ran his fingers through auburn hair.

  "How are you doing, sir?" asked Rubin. The young B-Com wore a worried frown.

  Ellis felt around his uniform jacket for a cigar. He retrieved one and stared at it for a long moment. Finally, he bit off the end and put the cigar in his mouth and lit it. "Can they really be gone?" Ellis held the smoking cigar in his hand.

  Fire looked at her son. "You almost sound like you lost a friend." Her voice was strained. She angrily brushed long, black hair behind her shoulder. "Remember these are the bastards who took your father from us."

  "I know," said Ellis looking down at the smoldering cigar. He held out a hand to Rubin, who helped the commander to his feet. He stepped between Firebrandt and his mother and walked back to the living room and sat heavily on the couch. Firebrandt, Roberts, Fire and Rubin followed and found seats. Fire sat opposite her son.

  "Mom," began Ellis, "you have to understand. I'm not convinced that the Cluster is actually evil. I think they're studying us. As I was trying to say earlier, they may even be trying to communicate with us." The commander saw the BCom's jaw drop.

  "Communicate?" asked Rubin. "How? Why? We've received nothing from that ship in all the times we tried to contact it." Rubin looked to Firebrandt to see if he held the answer to the riddle.

  Firebrandt winked at the young man. "Always remember, Mr. Rubin, a ship commander must be very careful to whom he reveals what information." The captain turned his attention back to Ellis. "By the same token, a commander must learn to trust his first officer."

  Ellis nodded and told his second-in-command about the feelings he had. He told about the dreams and sensations he had been getting.

  "I didn't think that scream the other night was a simple nightmare," whistled the B-Com. "I wonder why you're the only one who picked up those feelings?" Rubin's eyebrows came together.

  "That, Mr. Rubin, is something I should very much like to find out." The commander rubbed the back of his neck using his free hand. He felt the strain of this first mission, but was glad to realize that Rubin didn't regard the contact as a result of that strain.

  Firebrandt re-lit his pipe. "But who are they, what do they want? What is the Cluster?"

  Ellis shrugged. "I don't know. My best guess is that the people of the Cluster are some kind of superior life form. To them, we're like a one-celled animal under the microscope."

  "Or a rat in a maze, sir?" asked Rubin. Ellis nodded. He noticed his cigar was growing short. He returned it to his mouth, took a puff, then dumped the ash in the tray to his side.

  "Yet they communicated with you," said Roberts. "They know you're intelligent."

  Ellis' eyebrows came together as he considered that. "Actually, they communicated on a purely emotional level. It could be that they don't regard us as intelligent."

  "Somehow, we have to convince them," said Fire. She stood and walked behind her son, rubbing the tension out of his shoulders. "If it is a misunderstanding, it's cost thousands of beings their lives. Not to mention the life of your father."

  Ellis nodded sadly while putting out the cigar. He felt his eyes grow moist and a lump form in his throat. He remembered Rubin's presence and cleared his throat, keeping the tears from surfacing.

  "Communication with the Cluster doesn't sound like a trivial task." Firebrandt shook his head.

  Ellis scratched the stubble on his chin and leaned back on the couch as his mother moved back to her seat. The more he thought about the Cluster, the more he wondered whether or not they had communicated with him. Deep down in his soul, he knew they had. Now he just had to convince the Admiralty.

  "I don't know about anyone else, but I'm hungry," complained Roberts. Everyone around the room nodded in agreement. The adrenaline rush that had been present for the past days while the Cluster had been in orbit was beginning to wear down. Everyone felt the need for refreshment.

  Roberts cooked dinner and the four ate. The problem of the Cluster ship had gone almost as quickly as it came. Ellis sank into his chair at the dining table as he realized his original mission was still incomplete. Erdonium was not moving. As such, he still had to patch up relations between Tejo and New Granada. He brought the subject up while he picked at the food on his plate.

  "I don't think there will be a better time to patch up relations," said Firebrandt, lifting a forkful of mashed tubers to his mouth.

  Fire grinned wistfully at her son. "You dealt Tejo a serious blow. They respect you, now, I'm sure."

  "I wouldn't be so sure," said Ellis. "Negotiating with a brick wall would be easier than getting through to Clyde McClintlock and Rocky Hill."

  Firebrandt was lost in deep thought. He looked up after several moments. "I agree about Hill. He'd sell his own mother if he could get away with it. But, Clyde might surprise us. Especially if he has any of his father in him."

  Roberts shook his head. "Clyde has been nothing but a puppet of the Hills since day one. What would ever change that?"

  Firebrandt shrugged. "Who knows? Still, I think it would be a mistake to assume there won't be any changes in Tejo after the defeat they've suffered."

  Ellis considered his grandfather's words, and was forced to admit the statement probably held truth. He found himself wondering just how wishful the statement was.

  Ellis and Rubin finished eating. The commander stood, lit a fresh cigar and nodded to Rubin. They went out to the launch to return to the ship. Fire, Roberts and Firebrandt followed them outside. The commander hugged his mother. The two officers stepped aboard the craft. The airlock doors closed with a hiss. With a thunderous roar, the launch's engines fired, propelling the craft back to its home in the stars. * * * *

  Rocky Hill stormed into Clyde McClintlock's office the
morning he heard the news of the Cluster's disappearance. McClintlock examined the monitors, confirming the ship's departure. On his holographic scanner, he could see the Rd'dyggian ship and the Firebrandt. There were no other vessels. The only freighters that were in the area left when the Cluster arrived. Clyde McClintlock could not explain the sense of emptiness that filled his soul at seeing the Cluster gone.

  "Well," said Hill. "What are you planning to do?" "Do?" asked McClintlock, looking up from the scanner. "About what?"

  "About the New Granadans! The truce was only for the

  duration of the crisis." Hill sat down heavily in the chair

  opposite McClintlock's desk.

  "You want to attack again?" asked McClintlock. "They

  destroyed my entire supply train. Most of our armed forces

  are dead. The only way I could go forward at this time would

  be to institute forced conscription."

  "I'll do it," said Hill.

  McClintlock looked into Hill's stony eyes. For the first time

  in his life, the colonel questioned the nature of his friendship

  with Rocky Hill. The colonel wondered whether or not he was

  on the right side in the war. "Mr. Hill, the only reason for

  pursuing this war is your own greed." McClintlock moved to

  his chair and sat at the desk, facing Hill. "I fought the New

  Granadans because they were blowing up mines and creating

  havoc. Yet, to tell you the truth, I think a whole lot of people

  believe they were justified because we enslaved them." Hill clenched his teeth. "It's not just my greed. Every Tejan

  has profited by New Granadan workers. Tejo would not have

  been built nor grown as it did without money. Sam Stone may

  have used migrant labor, but look where it's brought us. You

  wouldn't be in this office if it weren't for the New Granadan

  workers."

  "Yes," said McClintlock, "look where it's brought us. Do the

  ends ever justify the means? My father was governor of New

  Granada."

  "He left, because he saw how much greater the Tejan

  dream could be."

  McClintlock stood and moved away from the desk. "Mr.

  Hill, I'm placing you under arrest before you destroy both

  Tejo and New Granada."

  Hill reached into his coat. McClintlock saw the motion and

  tensed. As the governor pulled a hepler, the colonel leapt,

  knocking Hill and the chair over. The hepler skittered across

  the metal floor. The governor gasped for breath. The colonel

  turned a somersault and made a grab for the fallen hepler.

  Reaching blindly, Hill caught McClintlock by the ankle. The

  colonel tried to shake him loose. He tried twisting and

  screamed as he turned his ankle in the governor's surprisingly

  strong grip.

  Hill regained his breath, crouched and lunged for the

  hepler. He missed slightly, causing the pistol to clatter further

  into the corner. McClintlock gritted his teeth, forcing himself

  to stand. He grabbed the governor by the collar and yanked

  him to his feet. The colonel had never really realized just how

  much shorter the governor was.

  "The madness ends now," said McClintlock.

  The governor tried to scramble out of the colonel's grip.

  "Let go!" he shouted. Hill wrenched himself around and

  McClintlock saw him start to bring his knee up. The colonel

  released his hold. Hill lost balance and fell to the ground.

  Again, he scrambled for the fallen pistol.

  McClintlock drew his own pistol. "Stop!" he ordered. Hill grabbed the pistol and began to turn.

  "Drop the pistol," ordered the colonel. Hill's eyes blazed

  with fury. The colonel aimed and fired. The pulsed beam

  sliced the governor's hand. Hill screamed as the pistol

  dropped uncontrollably to the floor. McClintlock stormed over

  to the governor and lifted the little man by the back of the

  collar and the seat of the pants.

  "Computer," called McClintlock. "Open channels to medical

  and security."

  "Communication channels open," reported the computer. "This is Colonel McClintlock, medics to my office

  immediately. Security, send an armed escort."

  Moments later, medics swarmed into the colonel's office

  with an anti-gravity stretcher. They strapped him in, as

  ordered by McClintlock. Moments later, the security guards

  stormed in. McClintlock ordered the guards to place the

  governor under arrest.

  "What charge?" asked one of the security guards,

  dumbfounded.

  "Treason," said McClintlock. "He plans actions that would

  cause the fall of Tejo." The colonel saw tears streaming down

  the face of his childhood friend as the medics carried him to

  the base infirmary. Once he was alone, the colonel sat at his

  desk. He was shocked to realize that he had just started a

  military coup. He realized he had to finish the job. McClintlock

  could hardly believe his own words as he declared martial law

  and ordered all Tejan officials arrested. McClintlock had his

  computer call Caroline Chung of the Mao Corporation. Her expression was horror mixed with rage as she looked

  at McClintlock's image on the holo. "How dare you impose martial law!" shouted the Tejan head of operations. "How is

  this going to affect Mao Corporation interests?"

  "For the better, I dare say." McClintlock nervously tapped

  his fingers on the metal desk. "It's time for the madness to

  end."

  * * * *

  Aboard the Firebrandt, Commander Ellis sat in the command chair staring at the holo of empty space. With the Cluster gone, he felt an odd emotion and one that was, for the most part, new to him, loneliness. He shook his head and tried to bring his thoughts back to the Erdonium problem.

  Weiss sat back, abruptly, as if stunned. He turned to face Ellis. "New developments in Tejo, sir. You'll never believe it."

  Ellis shifted, leaning forward. "Try me."

  "Clyde McClintlock has just taken over the government. He's declared martial law in Tejo." Weiss shook his head in astonishment.

  "You're right," said the commander, startled. "I don't believe it." Ellis opened his mouth to speak again, but Weiss cut him off.

  "Sir, Colonel McClintlock is signaling. He would like to meet with you in his office under Mt. Mathews."

  Ellis turned to Rubin. "How's the energy supply for the launch?"

  "We have enough for two more round trips, sir." Rubin paused and looked into his commander's eyes. The B-Com saw his commander's resolution. "You're not considering going down into the heart of a military coup, are you?" Rubin rubbed his hands together, worried.

  "Tell McClintlock I'll be there," said Ellis, standing. He straightened his jacket and turned to face Rubin. "Are you coming?"

  Rubin leapt to his feet and followed his commander back to the launch bay. As they stepped into the bay, Rubin retrieved a hepler from the weapon's rack and handed one to his commander. Ellis nodded his approval. They stepped into the launch. The airlock hissed shut and the launch detached itself from the ship.

  B-Com Rubin questioned his commander's decision to go down to some meeting called by a man who just betrayed his own government. For all Rubin knew, they could find themselves prisoners of that new government. As they approached the surface, Rubin was surprised to see a Rd'dyggian launch on the ground. He set the launch down next to the other.

  When Ellis and Rubin stepped from the launch two armed guards in gray uniforms with faces like stone met th
em. Rubin felt a sinking feeling. His worst fears seemed to be coming to pass. They were led through the labyrinth of tunnels that led to the colonel's office. Colonel McClintlock and Captain Arepno waited in the office.

  "I'm glad you were able to come," said McClintlock. The colonel's eyes were red, outlined by dark circles. Ellis thought he looked as bad as he himself looked only twenty-four hours before.

  "The Gaean Alliance won't take kindly to a colonel declaring himself leader of one of their member worlds," said Ellis. Rubin and the commander seated themselves opposite McClintlock.

  The colonel dismissed the armed guards with a wave of his hand then sighed. His shoulders were hunched. Rubin wondered when he had last slept. "No, they won't. Believe me, the last thing I ever wanted was to be leader of Tejo. It's a situation I hope to remedy in the very near future."

  Arepno shifted slightly. His purple moustache wriggled. "You did not call us here to complain of your problems as a leader."

  McClintlock shook his head languidly. "No, I called you here because I wanted to formally acknowledge my country's defeat. We tried to invade New Granada for reasons I now see to have been unsound."

  Ellis snorted. "It's a little late to make realizations, isn't it?" The commander reached into his coat and pulled out a cigar.

  "I'm sure you can appreciate my position. I was a military officer following orders." McClintlock began tapping his fingers nervously on the desk.

  "I do not know that I understand," said Arepno. "It goes against Rd'dyggian military philosophy to follow orders without question."

  McClintlock nodded. "Perhaps, I should have had a course in Rd'dyggian military philosophy." He looked from Arepno to Ellis to Rubin. "Gentlemen, I acknowledge defeat and I am prepared to make any military reparations required."

  Arepno slammed his fist on McClintlock's desktop. "End slavery!" The words of the translator unit were barely discernable over the noise that issued from Arepno's own mouth.