by Henry Vogel
Rupor pulled himself past me. “I’m not going to kiss you, but would appreciate it if the two of you came back alive. Your deaths would put quite the damper on my courtship of Heidi.”
“I wouldn’t want my death to inconvenience you, Rupor. You have my solemn vow that I will endeavor to stay alive,” I replied. Turning to Harris, I said, “You’ve got good instincts, Harris. Pay attention to them and I know you’ll get the women safely back to the ship.”
“If you’re quite finished kissing your wife and being kissed by my wife-to-be,” Martin said, “perhaps we could get on with this?”
“Yes, O Jealous One. You go northwest and I’ll go northeast.”
“Got it. Last one to the fight buys the drinks when we get back to civilization!”
With that, I swam quickly away from my group. Swimming across the surface of an asteroid looks easy and sounds easier, but it takes a lot of practice to achieve a balance of upward push and forward pull. I hadn’t gone asteroid swimming in close to four years, but I was quite accomplished at it before crashing on Aashla. The rhythm came back to me within seconds and I flowed across the asteroid’s surface faster than I could have run in full gravity.
A couple of laser shots flashed around me, but neither one was close. I was too low to present a good target and too fast for accurate aiming with a hand weapon. Meanwhile, the shots told me where to find the pirates. I slithered and swam around rocks and craters and ridges until I got behind the pirates’ position. Then I headed straight in, hoping to catch them by surprise.
I came upon a band of four pirates moving and shooting toward the ridge we had hidden behind. With a grin, I pulled myself forward at top speed. Then luck turned against me. One of the pirates looked down at his belt to get a fresh energy pack for his pistol and saw me out of the corner of his eye. We were on different comm channels, so I didn’t hear his shout, His friends most definitely did.
I was twenty feet from the pirates when they spun about, pistols raised to burn me to a crisp!
CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR
Three pirates brought their lasers to bear on me while the fourth pirate fumbled to replace his discharged energy pack. I had no cover available and the pirates could easily burn me before I covered the twenty feet separating us. That left only one option.
Instead of reaching forward for my next swimming stroke, I planted my right hand at my side then pushed hard to the left. Laser blasts flashed where I had been a split second before, but I was five feet to the left now. As the pirates swung their aim in my direction, I pushed off a lump of rock with my left hand and passed just under the pirates’ aim before they realized what was happening.
After missing me twice, I doubted the pirates would overreact to my movement again. But I thought they would expect more of the same from me. Rather than zigging back to my left, I pulled my knees in tight and then kicked out and down. Pushing off that hard and at any kind of upward angle should have sent me flying off the asteroid and into empty space. But I’d closed in on the pirates, so crashed into three of the pirates instead.
Two of the men tumbled backward with arms windmilling and legs kicking. Both lost hold of their lasers, which went spinning off to who knows where. The third staggered back and tripped over the fourth pirate, who still crouched trying to reload his pistol. The tripping pirate smacked his head against the rock the pirates had been using for cover and dropped his laser.
That left me standing over the fourth man. Made clumsy by his haste to replace his laser’s energy pack, the man dropped both of them. I grabbed the straps of his vacuum harness and heaved him straight up. The pirate’s mouth opened in a scream I could not hear as he flew off into the void.
The pirate who had hit his head was groggy and unresisting as I stripped off his spare energy packs and sent him up to join his fellow. I picked up both lasers, reloading the empty one.
“Martin?” I called on the comm. “I’ve got a couple of lasers. Two of the pirates are out of the fight and two more have been disarmed. Where are you?”
“Having less success than you, it appears,” Martin replied. “Assuming you’re responsible for the two pirates heading into space, I’m about forty feet west of you, pinned down by laser fire.”
Now that I knew what to look for, I spotted laser flashes to the west.
“I’ll be there in a few seconds. In the meantime, do as Megan instructed and don’t get yourself killed.”
“Thank you for that advice, David. It would never have occurred to me!”
I was already swimming in the direction of the laser flashes when I replied. “Don’t thank me. I’m just relaying Megan’s orders. But if you like that advice, just wait till you’re married!”
“I heard that!” Megan said over the comm.
“So did I,” Callan added dryly.
“Um, the stress of combat makes men say things they don’t really mean?” I offered as I came up behind the two pirates firing at Martin.
“Yeah, what he said!” Martin added.
My first shot burned a hole right through the pirate on the left. The pirate on the right reacted as if he was in normal gravity, spinning and jumping so fast he lost his footing and rose off the ground. Martin swam up, grappled the laser from the floating pirate, then shoved him up to join the other two in orbit.
“Are either of you dead?” Megan asked.
“No, sweetheart,” Martin replied. “And thank you for the invaluable advice on dying, which I shall always endeavor to follow to the letter.”
“You’d better, dearest,” Megan growled.
Martin looked at me. “As a reformed pirate, it pains me to admit that I don’t really like pirates any more. Let’s finish this!”
Without another word, Martin and I slithered off toward the remaining pirates.
“Far be it from me to interfere with such bold battlefield heroics,” Rupor said, “but this might not be the best time to engage in a full assault on the rest of the pirates.”
Martin and I exchanged glances and slowed our advance on the pirate’s position. It was hardly the sort of comment either of us expected from Rupor, so it caught our attention.
“We’re listening,” I said.
“You’ve rather suddenly and spectacularly shot or scattered half a dozen of the pirates. We may not have heard the cries of those six men, but the other pirates will be sharing the same comm channel. They heard everything.”
“And why does that mean we shouldn’t continue attacking?”
“You attacked their superior numbers, overcame their superior weaponry, and took six of their number out of the fight. Now is the time for us to make a tactical retreat while the pirates are still back on their heels and reluctant to engage us.”
The sergeant added, “His Highness has a point, sirs.”
“In case there is any doubt, I fully support Rupor’s suggestion, also,” Callan said.
“Do I need to add my vote to the tally?” Megan asked.
“I believe we’re outvoted, David,” Martin said. “The rest of you keep moving toward the docking bay. We’ll catch you up.”
Without another word, we changed directions and swam back toward our family and friends. A couple of minutes later, we caught up with them. They had gotten beyond the large rock I’d pointed out to Rupor before Martin and I went on the offensive, but not by much.
“Yes, David, you were right,” Rupor said. “Swimming on an asteroid is far more difficult than I imagined.”
“I didn’t say anything about your progress!”
“No, but you were thinking it.”
What can I say, he was right. Were my thoughts really that plainly written on my face?
“Yes, love, anyone who knows you well can see your thoughts clearly written on your face,” Callan said.
“To your credit, your words and actions always match your thoughts,” Megan added.
“Enough with the fawning over Honest David,” Martin growled. “I’ve been thinking how best to get u
s moving faster. David’s game of crack the whip, when he flung four of you behind the ridge, gave me an idea. We’ll split into two groups again, line up head-to-foot, and David and I will each tow a group behind us. The rest of you just have to use your free hand and foot to keep yourself a few inches off the ground.”
“Just like a train!” I exclaimed. I got blank stares from everyone but Martin. “But I guess most of you have never heard of trains...”
It was the work of but a moment to create the two line ups. For simplicity, we went with the two groups we’d split into earlier. That left me towing Callan, Megan, Rupor, and Harris. Rupor suggested Martin and the marines serve as our rearguard, just in case the pirates went on the offensive sooner rather than later. With that decided, I towed my four passengers in the direction of the docking bay. It took a few minutes for everyone to get into a rhythm, but once they did we made good time across the asteroid.
“How long will it take to reach the docking bay?” Callan asked.
“At the rate we’re going, we should reach the entrance in another five minutes,” I replied. “In fact, the ship should be within range of our comms about now. Heidi is monitoring channel ten seventeen. Switch to that channel after your next push off from the ground.”
Since I didn’t have to hold onto anyone’s foot, I went ahead and changed channels with one hand while keeping us moving with the other. The signal had some static, but I had no trouble hearing Heidi’s voice.
“Aashla’s Hope to the captain. Do you copy?”
“Loud and clear, Heidi.”
“Oh, thank God! We’ve been worried sick, David. Where are you and who’s with you?”
“I’ve got their Highnesses, Martin, Megan, and a squad of marines. We’re swimming across the surface of the asteroid toward you. We should be there in-”
“Get under cover, now!” Heidi cried. “Quint just sent an armed pinnace out to find and destroy you!”
CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE
We were surrounded by all sorts of good cover against an attack from the ground, none of which would do any good against an attack from above. I scanned all around us hoping to spot something close by, but came up empty.
“David, look to your right and back a bit,” Rupor called.
I immediately swung to my right, trusting Rupor to know what he was talking about. A jumble of boulders lay scattered across the surface, just thirty yards away from us. The rocks were far enough apart for us to wriggle in between them but close enough to give cover from every direction except directly overhead. In truth, it was better cover than I’d hoped to find.
“Martin, do you see the cover Rupor found?”
“It looks great,” Martin said. “Get the ladies and His Highness wedged in there as fast as you can.”
“What about you? Aren’t you coming?” Megan asked.
“No ma’am,” the sergeant answered. “We’re going to keep heading straight.”
“What?” Megan cried. “You’ll be an easy target out there!”
“Yes, they will, miss,” Harris said. “It’s a marine’s duty to protect civilians from the enemy, even at the cost of his life.”
Megan stifled a cry but, to my relief, she didn’t break our train.
“Don’t worry, Megan,” Martin added, “we won’t be quite the sitting ducks you imagine. The pinnace will come upon us suddenly and probably be past us before they even realize we’re here. I think we can reach that overhang ahead of us before they can get back to us.”
“Aashla’s Hope,” I called, “how long before you can come after us?”
“We began the startup procedure as soon as the marines retreated back to the docking bay,” Heidi said, “but the reactor won’t be online for another seven minutes.”
“Do not cut any corners to get to us sooner,” Martin ordered. “A reactor containment breach would be far worse than the eleven of us being forced to hide for a few minutes!”
“Heidi is piping your conversation throughout the ship,” Laura said. “As chief engineer of this ship, I acknowledge and accept your order, sir!”
I reached the edge of the boulder field and pulled up. Catching Callan’s hand, I guided her in between two of the larger ones.
“Keep moving, Callan. Megan is coming in right behind you.”
As Callan slipped from my sight, I sent Megan in after her.
“You’re next, Harris,” I said. “Whatever happens, stay with the women and guard them with your life! The prince and I will be just inside the edge of the field, keeping an eye out for pirates.”
It was a tighter fit for Harris, but he managed to pull himself in after Megan. Before Rupor and I could get under cover, the pirate pinnace swept up from the direction of the docking bay.
As Martin predicted, the little ship overflew our positions, but the pilot really knew his business. Braking thrusters fired and the pilot threw the ship into a flat spin. The pinnace was still moving away from Martin and the marines, but the gunner got off one shot before the pinnace passed beyond the horizon. The bright beam cast the bleak landscape into sharp relief for a fraction of a second. And, in terrible silence, the laser struck the ground and bodies went flying!
CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
Blasted bits of rock spun off into space as I struggled to see through the afterimage of the bright laser beam. I saw two bodies tumbling across the surface of the asteroid and out of sight. A third body pin wheeled into space. I had no idea what had happened to the remaining two men.
“Martin?” I called. “Sergeant?”
Over the comm I heard a gasp and the sound of someone trying to stifle crying. I received no reply to my call.
“David?” Callan’s voice was quiet, calm, and controlled. “What happened?”
“The pirate gunner took a shot at Martin’s group before the pinnace passed over the horizon. It appears to have been a hit or a very close miss.”
“What of Martin and the marines?” she asked.
“I...don’t know. They aren’t answering their comms, but they could be unconscious or the comm could be damaged.”
“Or they could be dead,” a small, shaking voice added.
“We don’t know that yet, Megan,” Callan said, her voice stronger and more commanding than before. In that voice, I recognized her switch to princess mode. The situation demanded decisiveness, not emotions. If Martin was dead, she’d cry later.
“David, swim over there and find out what happened to the men. Go as fast as you can, but also be careful. That pinnace will be back soon.”
“What will the rest of you do?” I asked.
“Stay here where we have some cover. Now go!”
I swam off as fast as I could go, terrified of what I might find but even more terrified of the uncertainty I felt.
“Heidi,” Callan called, “how many casualties do we have under Tristan’s care right now?”
“My latest report shows fourteen dead, six in critical condition, and dozens of wounds ranging from serious to minor,” Heidi replied. “According to Tristan, none of the injuries in the last group are life-threatening.”
I zipped over the ground, swimming faster than I’d done since academy relay races. The laser had scorched a three-foot line in the asteroid. Even if the shot was a direct hit, no more than two of the men could have been struck by the beam.
“Those casualties are lighter than I’d feared, but heavier than I’d hoped,” Callan said.
“According to reports, as long as our men were withdrawing, the pirates only fought hard enough to keep them moving backward,” Heidi replied.
“Odd,” Callan said. “Why wouldn’t the pirates fight harder? If they wanted us to escape, they could have just let us go!”
“Callan, the pinnace is returning,” Rupor interrupted.
“They could have transmission scanners,” Heidi said. “Maintain comm silence for your own safety.”
At the scorch mark, I’d turned toward the docking bay. Martin was towing the marines in that
direction. If the blast struck behind him, it was likely he’d be thrown in the direction he was already going.
I risked a quick look over my shoulder, hoping to spot the pinnace. It was easy to find. The pilot flew back to us slowly, the canopy of the little ship facing down toward the asteroid.
“Maintain comm silence,” I said. “The crew is trying to spot us visually.”
I heard an exhalation of breath. Callan did that when she was exasperated with me.
“Yes, dear, I know I’m not maintaining comm silence,” I said. “If the crew of the pinnace is going to find anyone, I’m going to make sure it’s me!”
I got my wish. The pinnace rolled over to bring its belly gun to bear on my position. I zigged to the right then zagged to the left. A hurried laser blast struck a good ten yards from my position. All I needed was another couple of seconds and I could reach some form of cover.
I put my hand into a dark depression, planning to push off the side of it. Instead of rock, my hand touched clothing. Instinctively, I grabbed a fistful of fabric. My momentum pulled the man out of the shadows. He was covered in burns and blood, but a scar stood out on his cheek.
I’d found Martin!
CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN
I couldn’t tell if Martin was dead or alive and wouldn’t be able to find out until I could put some cover between the pinnace and me. As if to drive that home, the landscape was lit by the flash of another laser shot. The ground boiled not more than three yards from where I would have been if grabbing Martin hadn’t checked my speed.
“I found Martin.”
The pirates already knew where I was, so there was no reason not to give Megan some hopeful news. I slung Martin over my back in a miner’s carry, another thing included in the low-gravity vacuum training at the academy. I wouldn’t be as fast or maneuverable as before — something which might kill me — but at least I knew how to carry a wounded man.
“Is he alive?” Megan asked.
I wished she hadn’t made even a short broadcast over the comm, but I understood why she did it. Meanwhile, I was swimming again, trying my best to move fast and change directions even faster.
