“I’ve heard the Silent Runners control the drug trade there,” Vin said. “The jungles hold native dema pods.”
Charley recognized the name. Dema was an intense and addictive stimulant.
“This is gonna be tight,” Vin warned as he diverted all power to roof and aft shields.
As the Surprise passed underneath the cruiser, the larger ship opened fire with its flak guns from point blank range. Whilst the light guns could damage the fighter, they wouldn’t destroy it outright. The Silent Runners clearly intended to board and take prisoners. What they hadn’t banked on was the Surprise’s kamikaze run. The fighter was bombarded with incendiary pellets that shredded the shields within seconds. Rather than allow themselves to be scooped up by the cruiser, Vin clearly intended to break planetary orbit, even if the Surprise broke into a million pieces. Charley gripped the edge of her chair, praying that the hull held firm. Seconds dripped past as the ship received an absolute hammering from the enemy squatting on top of it.
“Dispersion vapor,” Vin said, toggling a gray dial on the dashboard. A thick veil of gas poured from the ship’s aft end. He magnified the rear screen view and the pirates watched hopefully as the cruiser was shrouded in a red cloud. Dispersion vapor was designed to disperse heat signatures so that enemy vessels couldn’t lock onto their targets. The Surprise only had around ten seconds before the vapor dissipated, but the small window could mean the difference between escape or destruction.
“Seems we have some tricks yet,” Charley said with a grin.
The fiery inertia of the jungle planet’s upper mesosphere was now creating a halo around the ship. The dashboard pinged a warning. The cruiser had abandoned the idea of firing flak and launched two missiles instead. Charley couldn’t tear her eyes away as she watched the blinking objects approach the Surprise and smash into the aft shields. The ship lurched savagely, throwing everyone off-balance.
“Damage report,” Vin yelled at the AI.
“Propulsion breach,” came the reply. “The Surprise is crippled.”
Vin cursed and gripped the steerage bar as if it were a long lost child. The Surprise ‘bounced’ across the upper atmosphere before dipping its nose into the atmospheric soup. The ship shook so hard Charley thought all the rivets would come loose. Vin pushed the steerage bar as far as it could go. The Surprise dived dangerously through the atmosphere, but there was method in his madness. The ship was losing altitude so fast that its trajectory would be difficult to track. Further, it was notoriously difficult to fire at a moving target through a large planet’s upper mesosphere. Two more missiles came screaming toward them, but they fell wide, confounded by the conflicting forces at play. By the time they’d achieved a lock on the Surprise, Vin had ample time to detonate them with his forward lasers. The Surprise plunged through a cloud of acrid smoke, their view of the planet obscured. Charley watched the nav screen in white terror. The cruiser was entering orbit but had adopted a much safer entry vector.
So far, the fleeing Surprise had managed to stay intact. Now it had the added bonus of a thick black cloud between it and the enemy vessel. Vin leveled the craft out as they neared rolling hills of thick jungle. He cruised over the canopy as long as he could, the propulsion unit spluttering and wheezing its death throes. The ship finally dipped below the tree line and all Vin could do was try and land safely. Easier said than done in a dense, tropical rainforest. The craft forged a path through the trees, narrowly missing enormous trunks by mere inches. Finally the inevitable occurred, and the fighter’s port wing tip glanced against a trunk. The impact wasn’t cataclysmic but it sent the Surprise into a spin.
“Brace yourselves!” Vin yelled as the vessel ricocheted off tree trunks like a pin ball. Charley was thrown across the galley and she heard Vanessa scream from her room. The Surprise gave one final lurch and settled on a bed of tree ferns. All she could see through the viewscreen was foliage and smoke. The propulsion unit was well and truly shot. Silence reigned as the pirate crew found their feet and checked for broken bones. Apart from an emergent headache, Charley was unharmed. Vin had been strapped securely in the pilot’s chair and looked OK. Gronko was leaning against the wall as if nothing had happened. Harry was rubbing his right hip but was able to stand.
Charley found Vanessa in the corner by her bedroom door. She seemed a little stunned but there was no serious injury. Thanking the stars her crew was intact, Charley checked the diagnostic airlock report. Bonesse was certainly breathable. She popped the hatch and took a look outside. A thick, humid curtain enveloped her and she was overwhelmed by the manic chitter of a thousand monkeys. She couldn’t see them, but knew they were watching from the forest canopy. The Surprise had settled in a level position around eight yards from the ground. Towering paladin trees rose to all sides. The forest was alive with color and probably extreme danger. Vin climbed out alongside Charley and surveyed the scene with his wrist pad. The unit projected the terrain and gave them a large-scale map to reference.
“Southern forests,” he murmured. “According to my data, the Silent Runners run a supply depot to the north, near the Hidar Plain.”
“And the cruiser?” Charley asked nervously.
Vin shrugged. “What we did certainly wasn’t from the Flyer’s Manual, but it worked. They’ll have a hard time matching our heat signature through all that canopy.”
Charley felt a huge weight lift from her shoulders. She heard the bass hum of a large ship far above them, but it passed over and continued west.
“Right, so they’re not an immediate threat,” Charley said. “But how do we get off this rock?”
Vin looked wistfully at the Surprise. “If I had the right tools I might just be able to rig this tub. At least enough to allow us to travel back to Pankar for repairs.”
Charley contemplated the thick, unnerving forest. “Sounds like we should take what we need.”
Vin grinned and laid a hand on her thigh. “Damn straight,” he said. “That’s my little pirate.”
Vin was about to kiss Charley when Gronko emerged from the hatch and began lowering himself to the ground using a tree creeper.
“Let’s get to work, then,” he growled. “Show me the Silent Runners’ camp and I’ll turn them into red paste.”
“That ugly motherfucker is right,” Vin said with a faint grin. “We need to move and move quickly. Better to attack where they least expect it rather than wait to be overwhelmed.”
Charley nodded and climbed back into the Surprise.
“What’s happening?” Vanessa asked.
FIGJAM was rubbing against her foot, but she seemed oblivious. Charley lifted the PalBot and hooked it into her belt.
“Mmm, home again,” FIGJAM purred. “Do you mind if I stare at your crotch for a while?”
Vanessa gazed at FIGJAM with intense disgust. “What’s that hideous thing? Does it have a virus?”
“Ignore him and you’ll be a lot happier,” Charley said crisply. “Listen, Vanessa. You need to get changed into my spare utility suit. Our numbers are roughly the same so it should fit OK.”
“Right, boss,” Vanessa said, disappearing into Charley’s bedroom.
Harry sauntered over with a canvas tube slung over his shoulder.
“Marooned on a planet with hostiles on all sides,” he said with a wink. “Old-fashioned pirating at its finest.”
40
Charley gave Harry a peck on the cheek and withdrew to the bedroom to retrieve her weapons belt. Vanessa was halfway into her spare utility suit.
“Take one of my blasters,” Charley said. “You’ll need it out there.”
Vanessa took the gun reluctantly, hooking it into her utility belt. If she was going to be a pirate, she’d need to learn how to do more than look pretty.
“Let’s go, people,” came Vin’s voice topside.
Charley took one last look at the ship’s interior. A ship that had become her home. She really hoped she’d see it again in one piece. It would be devastating to lose jus
t as she was beginning to fall in love with it. The men were waiting in the jungle, ready to move. Vin spoke to all of them, a steely glint in his eyes.
“The Silent Runners have tracked us from Mina IV,” he said. “They knew we had the mining job and they waited for us to finish it before attacking.”
Charley snorted in disgust, though she had to admit it’d been a smart play.
“They didn’t get our minerals,” she grunted.
“That’s right, Charley,” Harry enthused. “Our future in still in our hands.”
“The ship’s damaged but I think we can find the right parts,” Vin went on. “The Silent Runners run a smuggling depot north of here. We can infiltrate and take what we need. The pirate way.”
“Let’s move out,” Charley said.
Vin on point, the party moved silently through the jungle. He was still ignoring Harry, who was content to walk at Charley’s side. For her part, she made sure she had Vanessa in her sights. Gronko followed at the rear, a scary and discomforting presence for friend and foe alike.
The sun beat down through the trees. Alive with the sounds and smells of countless animals and plants, the tropical rainforest was beautiful. Charley knew better than to touch the various flowers and fungi in the undergrowth. She doubted the bandit cruiser had a fix on their location. For now, they could move around with complete freedom. On the other hand, their Beluga Run certainly wasn’t going to plan. They’d recruited crew members but were still desperately low on resources. The galaxy couldn’t be won over with one measly ship.
FIGJAM muttered something at Charley’s belt, so she muted it. It wasn’t the right time to let the PalBot do his thing. The terrain was relatively flat but the undergrowth was thick. Vin used his beaten, scratched broadsword to cut through the lush foliage. The sun struggled to penetrate the high canopy, but when it did it burned with fierce intensity. At length the party reached a small glade and Vin called a halt. Charley took a long swig from her water canister and sat gratefully under a tree. When she realized it was filled with fire ants, she was more than happy to keep moving. Vin agreed, keen to reach their destination before nightfall. The party simply wasn’t equipped for a long trek through unknown terrain. They didn’t have thermal coccoons or any protective field gear. Charley regretted not having the foresight to load such supplies into the Surprise before they began their run. This pirating caper took some getting used to. The management side of things didn’t come naturally to her, but she she resolved to address their needs at the next trading center. If they made it that far.
Just when she’d settled into a nice rhythm, a rowdy tribe of monkeys came swinging down from the canopy and attacked Vin at the front of the line. Several plasma blasts whizzed past Charley’s head and three of the critters fell dead. Charley turned to see Gronko grinning from ear to ear, his plasma rifle recharging.
“I don't fuck around,” he sneered. Charley didn’t reply. She wasn’t sure if she liked this renki at all. Luckily, Vin was relatively unharmed. One of the monkeys had clawed at his scalp but the wound was superficial.
Having learned that the animals in this jungle weren’t shy at all, the party continued through the trees. At length the towering paladins thinned out and the rainforest became more of a woodland. Dappled sunlight kissed the ground and walking became a little easier. The party came across a family of black pigs and gave them a wide berth. Charley wasn’t sure whether her blaster could pierce those thick hides. The hours dragged on as the pirates picked their way through the lush woodland. Harry tapped Vin on the shoulder and took point. The younger Teks drifted back down to Charley and walked alongside her.
“We need to reach Hidar Plain before sundown,” he said. “Camping in the jungle without cocoons isn’t a good idea.”
Charley nodded her agreement. Most of the jungle’s lethal creatures may well have been nocturnal. She was glad Harry’s pace up front was as quick as Vin’s had been. The old pirate had the stamina of a much younger man. The shadows cast by the swaying yule trees were growing long by the time the party reached the edges of the Hidar Plain. A rolling expanse of green stretched out before them. A string of red light sat on the northern horizon.
“Bandit camp,” Vin said with a trace of contempt. “We can set up a cold stop here. Tomorrow morning we try to find a way in.”
Charley considered the terrain carefully. The forest continued to the west and then ran north around the back of the bandit camp. Their approach would probably need to be under cover. Yawning, looked for a comfortable spot on a bed of tussocks. Vanessa carefully watched what Charley was doing, but it was obvious she was out of her element.
“It’ll get easier,” Charley said kindly. “Hey, at least you’re free now.”
Vanessa grinned as she nibbled on a protein stick.
“I don’t mind at all,” she said. “I just hope I can be useful to you.”
“Where are you from?” Charley asked, sensing the girl needed to talk.
“I was born on Abeya,” Vanessa said. “One of the larger trading families in Spacetown.”
“I’m from Sandflower Downs,” Charley said with a knowing smile. “We’re practically sisters.”
Vanessa frowned. “Where’s that?”
Charley chuckled. “Southern wastes. Don’t worry, I’m trying to forget it too. So how the hell did you end up as Fallon’s pet?”
Vanessa grimaced.
“Sorry, that was a clumsy term.”
“It’s OK,” Vanessa said. “That’s exactly what I was. My family ran into financial trouble. We fell out of the trading syndicate that protected us. My parents tried to make things work in the street, but it’s hard to get ahead on Abeya.”
“Don’t I know it,” Charley said.
“My younger brothers and sisters needed food. The local bandit leader offered to buy me. It was Fallon.”
Charley shook her head, knowing the story all too well. Fallon had probably paid a pittance for Vanessa, yet her parents had lost a daughter forever.
“For what it’s worth, you have a new family now,” Charley said.
“I know,” Vanessa replied, her eyes burning with appreciation. “And I’ll never forget it.”
Sleep was hard to come by. The renki insisted on running some kind of perimeter guard but his heavy footsteps kept waking Charley up. She wondered whether Gronko actually slept.
Dawn emerged clean and pure. The still air promised another hot day. Vin woke everyone with curt efficiency, keen to get some trekking in before the sun grew too hot. The plain seemed to shiver in the near darkness. Every now and again a hoot wafted across the camp.
“Something out there, Vin,” Charley warned.
Harry appeared by her side and rested a hand on her shoulder. The action was innocent enough but Charley felt a jolt of electricity through her body. If Vin noticed, he gave nothing away, looking intently across the plain through his optics.
“Paja deer,” he said in awe. “Tens of thousands of them.
Charley’s stomach lurched as she realized the shimmering plain was alive with chestnut brown deer. They were quite small, but sported straight, sharp antlers. There was no doubt they would be a major threat if panicked. Vin spent a long time peering through his optics. Charley badly needed a pee, so she found a suitable saltbush for privacy. Just as she was taking a long swig from her canteen, Harry’s lithe form appeared through the dawn murk.
“I thought about you all night,” he said, taking her arm and leading her into the dense scrub. “I can’t help it.”
Charley grabbed the back of Harry’s head and pulled him toward her. Their lips met hungrily, tongues colliding in lust. She sucked the older man’s top lip and ran her hands down his toned back and buttocks. He unzipped her utility suit and exposed her cleavage. She pulled open her lapels to allow him to cup her breasts. He kneaded them like a depraved animal. Charley gasped, desperate to take things further.
“Charley?”
It was Vin, back at the camp. Sh
e zipped her suit and made her way back to the others. Harry would know to hang back a while.
“What’s up?” she asked as casually as she could.
“The bandit camp is behind that mammoth paja herd,” said Vin thoughtfully. “They have a defensive perimeter. There’s no way we could gain entry through stealth. We need another way.”
Charley looked out at the plain and considered the heaving mass of life out there.
“Is there any way we can leverage the herd to our advantage?”
Vin grinned. “Exactly what I was thinking.”
“But how?”
“Like this,” Gronko growled, pointing a huge flare gun at the herd. “No time like the present, eh?”
Before anyone could protest, the renki had sent a purple flare soaring and fizzing barely two yards above the heads of the paja deer. Charley had to admit it was the perfect choice of weapon - loud enough to spook the deer, not so loud that it would alert the bandit forces further north. The paja began hooting and hollering, stamping their hooves fitfully. Some of the more skittish beasts made a northward dash, away from where the flare had originated. Where one deer ran, the rest invariably needed to follow. At length a low, steady thunder rolled across the plain. The herd was charging the bandit camp! Charley could see flashes of gun fire through the dawn, presumably from turrets at the south gate.
The scene was rife with chaos and fear, but Charley had never seen nature conjure anything quite as awesome as the large scale paja stampede. It was as if the wilderness was rising up to claim the slimy bandits, the scoundrels who made a living from looting the land.
“Do they know we’re here?” Charley asked Vin.
“I doubt it,” the pirate snorted. “They have much bigger problems right now. Let’s move.”
41
Charley arranged her weapons belt and fell in behind the others. It made sense to move in behind the herd, to take advantage of the confusion that would be reigning supreme at the camp. It felt surreal to be rushing across the Hidar Plain in the pre-dawn, blaster drawn and ready for what would be a dangerous battle. She couldn’t really blame Gronko for being so rash - he’d struck while the paja deer were perfectly positioned. Launching the attack at dawn made sense too. Sometimes the best results were simply matters of opportunity.
The Pirate Guild Page 19
