Silence reigned once again. Charley sank into a cross-legged position and took several deep breaths. Harry appeared, gingerly rubbing his jaw. Molly and Vanessa were unscathed. Gronko calmly cleaned his bayonet extension with a rag and sat on the edge of a log as if waiting for further orders.
“Well, that was pretty fucked,” FIGJAM observed.
“We should leave,” Charley said.
Harry nodded. “Those insects were dependent on the geothermal heat generated here.”
The crew rose tiredly and assumed their original formation. Not far to the north, the terrain became more like the snow-laden woodland they’d grown accustomed to. Charley was relieved to walk away from that geothermal hellhole without loss of life.
Silent, rocky hills rose to either side and the crew trudged through a narrow pass. On the other side Harry spotted the glow of some kind of habitation through the trees. It was already mid-afternoon and the daylight was fading. The weak light was coming from a dome-shaped structure built from ice and snow. There were a dozen similar structures in a forest clearing. Snow began falling and Charley felt the first chill of night.
“Let’s see if we can stay the night,” Harry said hopefully.
The inhabitants of the snow domes received the visitors with bland indifference. Judging from the smell wafting through the camp, Charley guessed there was some kind of narcotic at play.
“Cadence minerals,” Harry muttered. “I’d know that smell anywhere.”
Charley looked at him quizzically.
“Fumes released from melting certain minerals,” said the old pirate. “It sends people into a stupor.”
Charley wasn’t sure if there was a single person in the camp who wasn’t under the influence of the drug. Harry pulled her away from the domes.
“Addicts are unpredictable,” he said. “Let’s find a free dome if we can.”
Charley wondered how these people made a living. Did they trade with the other settlements or simply live off the land? Whatever the case, she sensed they were on a quick road to self-destruction.
Harry found a free dome and beckoned the other pirates in. Gronko closed over the opening with an oily rag to allow for their body heat to stay trapped within. The forest outside was silent save for the occasional murmuring from the other domes. Vanessa assessed Charley’s shoulder, which had been radiating a dull ache for the past few hours.
“Clean through the muscle,” she commented. “Could’ve been a lot worse. Let me bind it and you should be fine.”
Charley looked at Vanessa with surprise. “You didn’t tell me you had Medic skills.”
Vanessa grinned as she applied a strong pressure bandage. “For some reason Petyr Fallon insisted on it. He hated doctors.”
“A good skill to have, whatever the reason,” Charley said thoughtfully. “We’ll put you through extra classes when we get back to Danderly.”
“I’d like that,” Vanessa beamed.
56
Charley must have drifted off to sleep, because when she woke it was light outside. A few forest dwellers stood around a bonfire in the early morning mist. Their hollow eyes and vacant gazes told Charley she wouldn’t be getting much sense out of them. Her crew mates emerged in dribs and drabs, bright-eyed and ready for a full day of hunting. The snow domes had been surprisingly comfortable.
“Today we move deeper into the foothills,” Harry said. “I don’t think these folks have been hunting much, so the elks won’t be spooked.”
The pirates breakfasted on field rations. Charley yearned for the room service she’d grown accustomed to at the Ajuna Sapphire on Deep Blue.
As he had the day before, Harry took point. After around an hour of trekking through montane woodland, there was evidence of another geothermal spring to the north. Unwilling to take any chances with a giant insect attack, the pirates gave it a wide berth. At midday the trees grew thicker and the party found themselves in a fairly dense tract of cool rainforest. The bracken and undergrowth reached Charley’s waist. A low hoot echoed through the trees, guttural and heavy. Harry made the signal to drop and Charley found herself surrounded by bracken. Through the foliage she could just make out a ridge line. Silhouetted through the mist stood a very large and elegant elk. She’d seen images of elks from all over the galaxy, but this one was seriously huge. Taking the antlers into account, it was probably thirteen or fourteen foot tall and would’ve weighed more than a few ton. Its powerful chest and legs suggested it could easily charge and kill any one of them, including Gronko.
There was a full minute of silence as Harry seemed to absorb the regal presence of the beast. At length he ushered Vanessa forward to crouch alongside him. She drew her crossbow and consulted closely with the old pirate before loading a gray-colored dart into the groove. The dart covered the ground surprisingly well and lodged itself in the beast’s flank. Its breath was visible in the cold as it stamped in agitation.
Harry held an arm aloft in a signal to freeze. The elk stamped, stumbled and ultimately fell. The old pirate rushed to the mammal’s side and checked its vital signs. It was still alive.
“Tranq dart,” Harry said as Charley joined him. “Vanessa is learning quickly.”
Harry nodded to Gronko, who produced a bone saw from his pack. Charley went cold.
“You sure that won’t be permanent?” she asked as Gronko began cutting at the antlers from the base.
“That’s the art of the silver elk,” Harry said. “Those antlers will be bigger and stronger within five years. The only downside is it won’t be able to fight until then.”
Charley nodded. She supposed it was a price she could live with. Still, she couldn’t watch Gronko as he went about his work, instead taking a turn through the trees. She turned the figures over in her mind - if Harry was right, the Pirate Guild would soon be flush with funds. How they spent it was largely up to her. There were so many possibilities she thought her brain might explode. The temptation was to continue amassing wealth. Continue being a pirate. But the safe play was probably to return to the Guild Hall at Danderly and consolidate their funds. She was on the verge of making a decision when a thunderous roar rolled overhead. It was a ship. A cruiser, svelte and streamlined. A silver sword on blue stars emblazoned on the starboard hull. That wasn’t a bandit vessel - it was an Imperial cruiser.
The unwelcome visitor pressed low over the trees as it headed south. There was no evidence that it had seen the pirates.
“Quick, up to Reiko Bluff,” Harry said.
Charley followed Harry up a sharp incline to the west. The top of the bluff granted a view of the frosted plateau they had landed on. The Imperial cruiser was heading straight for Scantia. Once it was in firing range it let loose with a series of life-seeking missiles. Charley watched in horror as the glowing red spears zeroed in on the low, modest buildings and reduced them to rubble.
“What’s going on, Harry?” she asked the old pirate.
“That’s the vanguard of an invasion force. I suspect Galactus is coming here to make Frostfire his own.”
“Why?” Molly asked. “He has the core worlds.”
“I don’t know,” Harry admitted. “I see no strategic benefit.”
“He isn’t hunting us, is he?”
Harry shook his head. “I doubt it. We’re a nuisance to the Empire, nothing more. Surely they have larger fish to fry.”
The cruiser hovered over the ruined village before heading south.
“There are hundreds of similar settlements scattered across the plateau,” Charley said. “Tens of thousands of innocent people. Survivors of the long cold.”
“As good as dead,” Gronko mused.
Charley reflected on her desperate upbringing. Families made to fight each other on the streets for petty scraps. It was no way to live. The hardy inhabitants of Frostfire had a chance to build again. To grow alongside a planet that had been dealt a harsh hand. She couldn’t allow women and children to be slaughtered by an arrogant, trumped-up Emperor. It just
didn’t seem like the kind of thing a pirate would do.
“Harry,” she said softly, “Piracy isn’t just plunder and profit, is it?”
The older pirate looked at Charley intently, understanding exactly where her mind was heading.
“No, Charley, it isn’t,” he agreed. “Occasionally we will take a stand against oppression. No one fucks with a pirate’s free galaxy. No one.”
“Please tell me we’re leaving this rock,” FIGJAM said irritably.
Their ships. Overwhelmed with concern for the locals, Charley had forgotten about them. Harry whipped out his optics and scanned the plateau.
“Ships are fine,” he said. “The missiles were life-seeking. They target DNA signatures. That way, some buildings and machines are still usable when ground troops move in.”
Charley breathed a sigh of relief.
“We’re gonna need those ships,” Harry mused. “And a whole lot more.”
“We’re staying right here,” Charley said, addressing each of her crew in turn. “I won’t leave innocent people to die.”
Gronko grunted as if Charley was crazy, but said no more. Molly and Vanessa wore puzzled frowns. Harry looked deep in thought.
“I have no idea if we can survive this, Captain,” he said at length. “But there are certain things we can do.”
“Go ahead,” Charley said. “You have the floor.”
“That cruiser was just the vanguard,” he began. “Galactus wants to establish a military presence here and he will steamroll anyone standing in his way. I have one or two theories on why, but I’d prefer to keep that to myself until I know for sure.”
Charley nodded, happy enough with that.
“What matters now is organizing our defenses,” Charley said.
“That’s right,” Harry agreed. “Our immediate problem is that cruiser. I don’t recommend going up against that thing with our fighters - we would lose. Badly. I think we should seek out settlements the cruiser hasn’t destroyed yet. We probably have twenty four hours before the thing makes another pass over this region.”
A terrain projected from Harry’s wrist pad. It showed the plateau and its forested surrounds.
“According to the map, there’s an old base to the east. A place the enemy might be careful not to destroy. We should use that to our advantage. I propose we stage our counter-strike from there.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Charley said. The others nodded enthusiastically.
“Do we go back for our ships?” Vanessa asked.
“I think they’re safe for now,” Harry said. “They’re DNA-coded, after all. The Empire would need to jack them first and that takes time.”
“Then let’s head east on foot,” Charley said. “We have a lot of ground to cover.”
The pirates moved out over gentle hills dotted with yaba trees. Gronko had cut the elk antlers into neat segments and now carried them in his pack. As for the elk, it would soon rise from its slumber and carry on as it always had.
57
Snow began to fall at around two in the afternoon. The landscape was dusted for an hour or so before the weather cleared again. The pirates descended a tight valley which opened out into an expansive plain. Harry ensured they remained on the north bank of a wide river. The snow was thick underfoot, smothering the wildflowers and tussocks. The howling wind penetrated Charley’s bones. Thankfully Harry set a cracking pace and her core temperature was nicely elevated. At length the pirates came across a village nestled in the bend of the river. The settlers reported that whilst no Imperials had been spotted, they were certainly aware of attacks in other regions. Charley addressed the villagers in the town square.
“My name is Charley Silverton,” she said. “You’re all at extreme risk if you stay here. We intend to commandeer the old Imperial base further east. If you join me, I can guarantee a fighting chance of survival.”
The villagers regarded Charley with disbelief.
“How in the hells do you think you can defeat an Imperial invasion force?” asked one. “It’s a ludicrous notion.”
“No less ludicrous than staying here, waiting to die,” Charley pointed out.
“Enemy numbers will be great, but we have a small chance if we band together,” Harry said. “We have the advantage of surprise. We can put the Imperials on the back foot. Plus, they’re a long way from home. If their supply lines can be cut… ”
Harry let the possibilities hang in the air. The situation was dire, but not impossible. These honest folk really had no choice but to trust the pirates if they wanted to survive.
“We’ll come with you,” said a large man. “My name is Durant and I believe I speak for most of the villagers.”
Charley took the man’s hand. “Well said, Durant. I plan on justifying your faith in me.”
Perhaps Durant saw the fierce intensity in Charley’s eyes, because he moved with sudden urgency.
“You all have half an hour to collect your things!” he yelled.
Charley used the time to assess the terrain ahead. She had a good view of the plain from the roof of the local water tower. The abandoned military installation, called Ghost Fort by the locals, was nestled at the base of a rock wall far to the east. A wide, swift-flowing river provided protection on approach. It was as well defended as the ancient castles Charley liked to watch on Nex.
“Solid position, isn’t it?” Harry commented at Charley’s shoulder.
“If only battles were fought the way they used to be,” she lamented.
“I actually think the Imperials will want that base unscathed,” Harry said. “I’ve heard rumors of a vast missile silo in there.”
A gust of wind sent chills down Charley’s spine. The scale of the coming conflict was escalating every minute.
“I’d like to be in before nightfall,” she said nervously. “We can leave Molly to shepherd the villagers.”
And so it was. The way east was relatively benign but darkness was gathering like a menacing noose. It was almost pitch black by the time the pirates stood at the base of the Ghost Fort’s forbidding outer wall. The battlements were empty, yet conveyed a palpable sense of dread. Guided by light beams generated by their wrist pads, the guerrilla fighters approached the front gate and were surprised to find it wide open. Scavengers had obviously breached the outer courtyard at some point. Harry led the way through a decrepit courtyard and up several flights of steps to a cylindrical keep.
Harry surprised everyone by ignoring the DNA lock and rapping on the huge double doors with his fist.
“You serious?” Charley asked.
“Desperate times,” Harry shrugged. “My instincts tell me this place is inhabited.”
Charley’s hand strayed to the butt of her right pistol. At length a voice rang out over the general com channel.
“No fuckin’ way,” came Harry’s spirited reply.
The doors swung open to admit the pirates. Charley blinked in astonishment - how could these people be so trusting? But then she saw the assortment of gun nozzles directed the pirates’ way as they walked in. The interior of the keep was immense. A staircase cascaded into an expansive concrete floor. A ring partition had been erected with defensive gun emplacements at regular intervals. Some forty people stood inside the defensive partition, no doubt keen to see if Charley and her crew represented a threat.
“Why let us in so easily?” Charley whispered to Harry as they made their way down the steps.
“They outnumber us eight to one,” Harry pointed out. “Plus, we don’t look like Imperials.”
Charley pursed her lips, hoping against hope that she was allowed to reach the bottom of the stairs. The imposing keep was truly a relic from another age, more like a throne room than a military structure. As such, the place had a rich, heavy sense of history. Charley was certain plenty of blood had soiled the smooth floor over the decades. What interested her most was the ledge along the south wall that suggested access to an external rampart.
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“You can stop right there,” a commanding voice intoned as Charley reached the bottom of the stairs. The guns behind the partition hadn’t been lowered despite the pirates’ non-threatening body language. At length a man emerged from behind the barricade and introduced himself.
“My name is Jack Kovacs,” said the grizzled, ripped young man. “I’ve been running a salvage operation out of Ghost Fort for six years. As such I claim ownership of the facility under Imperial Law. Which makes you my guests. I hope you don’t overstay your welcome.”
Charley grimaced. This was going to be tricky.
“You seem vigilant,” Charley began. She’d seen the long range scanners behind the partition. “I’m glad to meet like-minded people. My name is Charley Silverton, Captain of the Pirate Guild.”
Kovacs looked confused. On some vague level Charley noted his saturnine good looks. His short, unkempt black hair and wide chocolate-colored eyes. There was a hardness in those eyes but also unwavering dedication to the right cause.
“The pirates are long dead,” the scrounger said with disdain. “But their memory is respected in these parts. You’re gonna have to prove it.”
Charley’s mind raced. She considered showing Kovacs her stuffed bank account, but that would be crass. In the end, Harry saved her.
“Pirates don’t need to prove shit,” the old man snapped. “Stick around long enough, though, and you’ll learn a thing or two.”
Kovacs’s face melted into a smile. “The arrogance rings true at least,” he admitted. “What brings you here? What do you want from us?”
“Nothing,” Charley said quickly. “We want to help defend the Ghost Fort.”
The Pirate Guild Page 27
