Surveying the large crowd, Anna spotted representatives from a lot of the outlying farms and camps that had been spared the forced labor of the pirates. As she looked at their gaunt faces and ragged clothing, she knew they had fared little better than the citizens of the town.
Swallowing hard, Anna stepped up to the microphone located at the front of the platform. “We’ve finally got a chance to get out from underneath the thumbs of those pirates. Connor, Ryan, and I have brought back weapons. We’ve got wizard scouts to help us. All you have to do to win back our world’s freedom is to fight.”
“We can’t fight back,” yelled a potbellied man who was standing near the front of the crowd.
Anna didn’t recognize the man. Must be from one of the outlying farms, she thought.
The potbellied man elbowed his way forward until he was clear of the crowd. “I’m no soldier, and neither is my family.” He jerked his thumb at a slim man in his twenties who’d followed him out of the crowd. “I’m not sending my son to die for no reason. My clan and I can hide in the mountains until this blows over. It’s not our concern.”
“This isn’t going to blow over,” said Connor as he stepped next to Anna. “The titanium vein’s played out. My un...err, the mayor says that even working double shifts, we won’t have half as much processed ore when the pirates return as we had last time. You all saw what that got us.”
“My nephew’s right,” said the mayor. “I accepted this position on the condition that the outlying clans would send us help at the mines. They have, but we can’t mine what’s not there.” The mayor looked out over the crowd. “I’m a peaceful man. I always have been, but when push comes to shove, I’m not going to let the pirates destroy our town and kill my family. There comes a time when everyone has to fight, like it or not.”
“I’ll fight,” said Dylan, one of Connor’s friends from the mine. “So will Artrim.”
The teenage boy standing next to Dylan nodded his head.
Anna couldn’t help but notice that it wasn’t a very big nod.
“Kids,” said the potbellied man. “It’ll take more than kids and a patched-up piece of space junk crewed by half a dozen old space tramps to fend off the pirates.”
Anna unconsciously glanced at the Donovan where it rested on its landing gear in the open space near the courthouse. The battered ship was uncharacteristically on its stern with its bow pointing skyward. Ryan had landed vertically in the center of town earlier that morning for effect. It had certainly gotten everyone’s attention, but not all of the attention had been positive. The patches running the length of the old starship didn’t exactly inspire confidence.
Old Man Ryan and his crew were standing at the base of the platform.
At the potbellied man’s words, Ryan bristled. “You can say what you want about me, but leave the Donovan out of it. She’s armed and ready. She’ll do her part in any fight, and so will her crew.”
The potbellied man scoffed. “Words are cheap. I’ve seen the measly amount of so-called weapons you brought. They’re all small arms. What good will they do when the pirates come with those walking metal monsters of theirs?” The man turned around to face those behind him. “All we’ve got is the word of a young girl and a crazy old man that they’ve got wizard scouts and other weapons on the way. I’ll believe it when I see it.”
Anna’s face grew hot. “They are coming, I tell you. Wizard Scout Trinity sent word their plan worked. The Defiant is on its way here along with a Yaridian transport full of weapons. That includes some medium and heavy UHAAVs. Between the Defiant, the Donovan, and the weapons that are on their way here now, we’ve got a good chance to make the pirates think twice before they try to attack us.”
“She’s right,” said the mayor showing courage Anna didn’t know he had. “We don’t have to beat them all. All we’ve got to do is make it obvious that it’s not worth the pirates’ trouble to keep coming back. They know as well as us that the titanium vein is playing out. All we have to do is give them a bloody nose. Then they’ll find somewhere that’s easier pickings.”
“No,” insisted the potbellied man. “All you towners are going to do is stir up trouble for the rest of us. We farmers can hide in the hills until the pirates have given up looking for us. I doubt those imaginary wizard scouts of these kids even ex—”
Boom! Boom!
The double explosions came from above. Anna looked upward as did the rest of the crowd. Two bright steaks of light lit up the eastern sky. The streaks were on a direct path for the town.
“It’s the pirates,” shouted the potbellied man. “They’ve come back early to teach us all a lesson.” Shaking a fist at Anna, the man ran toward the podium.
Connor stepped in front of Anna. He needn’t have bothered. Ryan met the potbellied man before he got to the podium and decked him with a short uppercut to the jaw. The potbellied man was a good forty pounds heavier than Ryan and thirty years younger, but the man went down like a sack of wheat flour. The remainder of the Donovan’s crew lined up beside Ryan and faced the crowd.
“It’s not the pirates,” Ryan yelled, making himself heard over the shouts of the crowd. “Haven’t you been listening? They’re our ships.”
Some in the crowd continued running away, seeking whatever cover they thought they could find. The majority of the town’s citizens stayed in the plaza. Anna wasn’t sure rather they were any braver than the others, or just smart enough to realize that none of the available cover in the town would do any good against high-energy plasma beams from above.
One of the two starships, the Yaridian transport, passed overhead and landed to the south on the outskirts of town. The Defiant made a vertical landing next to the Donovan. Once the dust settled, an opening appeared near the top of the Defiant. Two figures stepped out onto an elevator which began lowering them to the ground. Anna recognized one of the figures as Trinity. She looked impressive in her black battle suit. Lieutenant Commander Janet Stevens looked equally deadly in her Empire special operations camouflage uniform. Once the two reached the ground, Trinity and Janet headed straight for the platform. The crowd parted to clear a path for the two Empire soldiers.
Climbing the platform’s short stairs, Trinity took a position to Anna’s right while Janet stood on her left between Connor and her.
“My name is Wizard Scout Trinity Delgado,” said Trinity, her voice amplified over her battle helmet’s external speakers. This is Lieutenant Commander Stevens. We’re here to help.”
Anna noticed the potbellied man standing next to his son, rubbing his jaw with his left hand.
“The only thing you’re going to do is get us all killed,” said the potbellied man. “You can bully me around all you want, but that’s the truth. We can’t fight the pirates. They’re too strong.”
Trinity removed her battle helmet and attached it to her utility belt. Her long black hair flowed down her shoulders. “Lieutenant Commander Stevens and I have been briefed on the situation. I’ve seen this kind of thing done before by the pirates. They’ll use you until you no longer suit their purpose, then they’ll nuke your planet to cover up the evidence.” Waving a hand at Anna and Connor, Trinity said, “These two were brave enough to go find help. We’ve got weapons, we’ve got a dozen UHAAVs, and we’ve got space cover. All you need to do is find the courage to stand up against the pirates one time, and you can win your planet back.”
A man standing a few paces from the potbellied man took a step forward. “That’s easy for you to say. You can always leave in that starship of yours if things go bad. We’ve got to remain and face the consequences.” He pointed at the potbellied man. “Jay Bob’s right. The best thing we can do is run and hide in the mountains. The pirates won’t waste their time hunting us down. What would be the point?”
Trinity shook her head. “That’s where you’re wrong. They will hunt you down. They’ll want to make an example out of you for any other planets who are contemplating resistance. Your best and only hope is to fi
ght back. I’ve got Lieutenant Commander Stevens and five wizard scouts with me. I give you my word of honor as a wizard scout that we won’t leave until you’re free of the pirates. If you fight, you won’t be fighting alone. We’ll show you how to use the small-arms weapons. Those of you who are familiar with operating heavy equipment at the mine can make the transition to the smaller UHAAVs easy enough. We’ll be with you every step of the way.”
“So will the crew of the Donovan,” shouted Ryan. His words were backed up by the nods of his fellow crewmen. “Talos has been our home for fifty years. We’re not going to desert it now. Wizard Scout Trinity and her people are offering to give you the means to fight back. All you have to do is stand up to the pirates this one time and give them a bloody nose they won’t forget. Talos can be free again.” The old man pointed at a woman holding a baby in her arms with two small children by her side. “If you won’t do it for yourselves, do it for them. Your children deserve better than what the pirates are going to do to them. They deserve a home; a home where they can be free.”
“The pirates will have heavy armor and starships,” said the potbellied man. “All we’ve got is—”
A loud clanking noise came from the south. The crowd turned. A large metallic head popped into view over the courthouse as a six-legged, gray-steeled monster came strolling down the main street. The crowd surged back on the verge of panic.
“As you can see,” said Trinity, blaring the words out over her external speakers, “you have heavy armor too. We’ve got a dozen cats and two starships that are more than capable of taking on the pirates’ transport. We’ve also got enough small-arms weapons to equip two companies of militia.”
“They’ll bomb the town,” insisted the potbellied man. “They’ll bomb our homesteads. We’ll all be killed. You said yourself that they’d hunt us down.”
“Not if you choose to fight, they won’t,” said Trinity. “They won’t hunt you down because they won’t have too. We’ve got a high-energy force field generator on the transport. We’ll gather everyone on the planet and bring them to town. You’ll be safe enough behind the transport’s defensive shield.”
“They’ll nuke us,” insisted the potbellied man. He looked around at the crowd as if trying to convince them by sheer force of will.
“They’ll try,” said Old Man Ryan. “The Donovan’s got fifty-gigawatt cannons and torpedoes. She’s more than a match for a lone pirate transport. I reckon the pirates will be more concerned with saving their own hides than nuking you. You may not even have to do any fighting on the ground. You may only have to make a show of force.”
“What if you’re wrong?” shouted the potbellied man as he turned to face the platform. “What if they do nuke us?”
Trinity jumped off the platform and walked up to the potbellied man. She stopped an arm length away. “The shield will stop at least a half dozen nukes before it buckles. The Donovan will either draw their transport off or destroy it before they can fire more.” She jerked a thumb at the Leviathan cat that now stood next to the two recon ships. “Between our UHAAVs and the town’s militia, we can handle any ground assault they try to make. You’ve got a chance to win your freedom if you just find the courage to try.”
The potbellied man glanced over at his son.
His son looked back. “I’m tired of living on the crumbs the pirates leave us, Dad. We’ve got a chance to fight back. If these wizard scouts are willing to help, my vote is to take them up on their offer.” The young man laid a hand on his father’s shoulder. “I say we fight.”
The potbellied man glanced around at others in the crowd before looking back at Trinity. “I think you’re wrong, but I can tell when I’m outvoted. I still say you’re going to get us all killed, but I’ll not go against my son. What do you want us to do?”
“That’s more like it,” said the mayor. “The wizard scout has a plan. The pirates aren’t going to know what hit them.”
Chapter 11 – Jerad
__________________________
After some heated discussion, Trinity was able to convince the commandant to allow Sergeant Ron and the Defiant to remain on Talos an extra month before having to return to their duties at the Intergalactic Wizard Scout Academy on Velos. That had been two weeks ago. The old recon ship had come in handy making recons of the surrounding space and setting up automated early warning sensors along the outer edges of the solar system.
“Not to mention the fact you like having Sergeant Ron around for advice,” said Jennifer in Trinity’s shared space.
“That too,” Trinity admitted. “He can be a contrary old fart sometimes, but I value his opinions more than I’ll ever admit to him.” She smiled. “Besides, I’d miss having the Defiant’s hundred gigawatt main guns around to back up the Donovan’s fifty gigawatt plasma weapons.”
“I’m sure,” replied Jennifer.
Trinity was sitting at the desk in her quarters on the Defiant. She glanced around the small room. A fully packed duffle bag lay on the otherwise empty bunk behind her. She took a final look at the two empty wall lockers before returning her gaze to the half-meter sized hologram of a handsome, slightly gray-haired man standing above a metal disk on the desk.
“You’re going to hate to see the Defiant leave, won’t you?” said her fiancée Jerad. “From what you told me, Sergeant Ron’s still got another two weeks before the commandant wants him back on Velos. Why are you moving into town when you could stay onboard a while longer?”
Trinity looked at her fiancée. “Why? I suppose because I want the townspeople to know we wizard scouts are committed to them. They’re doing okay at the moment, but the proof in the asteroid dust will be when the pirates show up. I want to be close by the townspeople when that happens. It’ll all work out somehow.” She gave a tired smile. “Right now, I’m more interested in hearing about you. Are your TAC officers easing up on you cadets now that you’re out of pre-Academy and in the Academy proper?”
Trinity knew the Academy’s TAC officers never lightened up on cadets, but she needed to talk about something besides her own problems. Jerad didn’t get to use the hologram disk she’d given him very often, so she wanted to take advantage of every minute.
“Ha!” laughed Jerad. “If anything, TAC Officer Myers has doubled down on our load. He’s woke us up early twice this week for a twenty-klick road march before breakfast.” He pointed down at his boots. “I’ve got blisters on my blisters.”
Trinity gave a genuine smile. She had a feeling that was one of the reasons she loved the man. He could always make her laugh. “Well, one of these days when you get your DNA baseline taken, you’ll be able to self-heal,” she told him. “Then you won’t have to worry about blisters. All you’ll have to worry about is people blowing holes in you with plasma rounds.”
Jerad laughed. “Ah, I can hardly wait.” His smile faded. “Seriously though, how are you holding up? I can tell you’re stressed. Is the training for those civilians going badly?”
“No,” Trinity said, temporarily forgetting she didn’t want to talk about her problems. “I mean, it’s only been two weeks. The other wizard scouts are doing wonders getting everyone trained, and Janet, uh...I mean Lieutenant Commander Stevens, is a wiz at organization. She’s got every able-bodied man and woman on Talos formed into platoons and companies. If the pirates will just hold off for a few months, I think we can put up a pretty good defense.”
Jerad frowned. “I thought you said they weren’t coming back for another five months or so. Is there something you aren’t telling me?”
Trinity laughed. “Oh, believe me, there’s a lot I’m not telling you. Not all of it has to do with Talos, so don’t worry. You need to concentrate on graduating and getting your golden-dragon insignia.” She winked. “Once you’re a full-fledged wizard scout, I’ll teach you the secret wizard scout handshake and everything.”
Jerad’s eyes widened slightly. “You mean there really is one? My friend Tam told me there was, but I didn’t—”<
br />
Unable to maintain control, Trinity burst out laughing. She laughed hard enough that tears came to her eyes.
“Very funny,” said Jerad before he began laughing as well. “All right. I suppose I deserved that. I should’ve known better than to believe Tam. She gets some strange ideas every once in a while.” He grinned. “She even tried convincing Telsa the other day that every computer in the galaxy was linked together in some secret plot to rule the universe or something. Can you believe that?”
“Not really. I’ve got a feeling that would take some doing. Nevertheless, I’d like to meet this Tam of yours. She sounds like an interesting person.”
“Oh she is that,” said Jerad. “Now that we’ve made it through pre-Academy training and are real wizard scout cadets, I’m told we’ll start getting more passes.” Jerad grinned again. “But I’ll tell you this right here and now. I’m not planning on using my first pass to introduce you to any of my friends. I’m going to want you all to myself in some romantic cabin as far up in the mountains as I can find.”
Trinity felt her face grow warm. “Sounds good. Hopefully no one starts a war or something before then. Time off for wizard scouts is few and far between during wartime. By the way, how’s Telsa holding up in training?” An image of the short scientist she’d worked with during the Cavos mission popped into Trinity’s mind. She had fond memories of the feisty grad student who’d helped her stop a civil war.
“She’s hanging in there,” replied Jerad. “Telsa may be short, but she’s got enough determination and spunk to outfit a whole company of cadets. If I was a betting man, I’d lay odds she’ll be a wizard scout when our class graduates in four years.”
Last Stand on Talos Seven Page 10
