“Entrants scanned. No immediate threat detected,” said a male sounding voice from what I presumed was this station's version of the General Use Program. The jets of air currents were cool and powerful as we seemed to stretch toward the top of the complex. This little man ruled over the station as if it were his own fiefdom and his private offices were at the very top. We finally stopped at a level called Pod 1/3. The doors slipped open directly into private quarters. It was a wide, round room with a panoramic and generous viewport that gave a beautiful view of space and the other side of the station's landing pads and walkways. Everything was in burnished or brushed metal and leather and deep, plush carpeting.
“Looks like you made some upgrades,” said Diamond appreciatively. “Last time it was gleaming, sleek minimalism.” The dwarf grinned and waddled over to a small recliner. A long haired tuxedo cat sat, lazily regarding us.
“Yeah well, it was time for a change. Ivan! Up!” Barked Jinkx. Ivan seemed not to pay much attention to him until the dwarf batted him away physically. Only then did the cat deign to even move, looking indignant, and that was to slip off the recliner, glance back at us with disdain and disappear into another room.
“You don't mind allowing people you don't know directly into your private quarters?” I asked, looking around. I had to say I was impressed.
“I can read people very well. If I didn't think it was a good idea to bring you here, I wouldn't have. And besides, if you tried anything funny you'd be shot down by several hidden lasguns in this room alone. And you've been scanned within an inch of your life while in the elevator, even if it didn't seem that extensive,” he said, smiling. I guess I really do look that harmless.
“Besides, you're with him. And I trust Diamond Dog. One of the guys in the business who is actually honest and true to his word. Rare,” said Jinkx. “Never thought to see you show up here again, Diamond. You should have let me know it was you calling.”
“Well, I wasn't entirely sure if you would be answering. How are. . .the rest of your men?” Jinkx shrugged.
“They're doin'. Things have changed and not for the better. We've been getting squeezed by privateering agents from the US, the UK and Canada. As ruthless as folks out here are the privateers are worse and they're becoming more powerful every year. They have new weapons I've never seen before. One of my guys turned privateer. Pissed everyone off. We lost a lot of profits and a lot of people when he turned on us. No one fares well when they get into it with a privateering vessel. He was working as a spy for them. We've got other problems too. Anyway, I heard you wanted some detonators. Why?”
“I'm-” he began. I cleared my throat. He glanced back and began again.
“We're on our way to a mission and I thought I might need some on board. You never know when they'll come in handy.” The dwarf's eyes widened slightly.
“You're going past the belt?” Diamond nodded. “Why? What's out there that interests you? Who're you working for now?”
“I can't say.”
“You a government agent now?”
“Hell no!” Said Diamond. The dwarf smiled and then he looked over at me.
“Who are you?”
“To be honest, it's actually my mission. He's coming along to help out,” I said.
“You guys. . .know what's out there, don't you?” He countered. We both shrugged as if we didn't know anything. He gave us a sly look.
“We're going to Mars. The situation is dangerous. We can't say much but those detonators will come in handy.” I said. The dwarf frowned and took up a short pipe lying on an early Regency cellarette and lit it. It looked very similar to the mahogany one my wife stored her favorite wines in. He took a long puff.
“So you do work for the government,” he insisted. His shrewd eyes were studying us intently now. I wondered what he knew.
“No, we don't. We have our own private group we work for. The government has nothing to do with it,” I said.
“Why Mars?”
“There's a lot more going on than meets the eye. In fact, it's become a dangerous place for humans.” I said.
“Come on, Jinx. I know you know something,” said Diamond.
“Surely you must have heard or seen something strange out here?” I countered.
“Maybe.” The dwarf took another long puff on his pipe and slowly exhaled. His expression was unreadable.
“For years now I've heard reports. Disturbing things from wayfarers and other vagabonds coming and going. Years. No one took such things seriously back then. But I filed each and every wild story I'd heard away in my mind. One day, years ago, I commissioned a secret mission for one of my men to go out there and see what was happening. His name was Derek. You knew him, Diamond.”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I gave him a ship and some instructions to record everything he saw, bring back anything if he could. I never saw or heard from him again. All intelligence I've sent to investigate was cut off. Disputes and killings and privateering soon had my hands full. Lately, things are. . .different. The air is different.”
“What do you mean different?” Asked Diamond.
“Aliens.” It seemed the little man had to spit out the word with difficulty. “I never believed in them before. I've never actually seen any of them but I get reports from those that come from Mars. And some of the people I've seen come through this station. They look, act and speak like humans but, I don't know. It's like there's something just a little bit off. It's like being watched by someone or something you can't see or reveal. I'm usually the one doing all the watching and surreptitious observing behind closed doors.”
“They're there.” I said resolutely. “In fact, they're not only on Mars but they're on Earth too.”
“How?” He asked in dismay.
“They have biotechnology that enables them to look like us. They've studied us from afar which is why they can speak some of our languages.”
“Then you've just confirmed what I've been thinking for a long time now.”
“Some of them are extremely dangerous. They want the destruction of the human race. We don't have much time. We're on the clock,” I said.
“And that's why you want detonators. To go along with those sleek fighters you've got docked here?” We both nodded.
“How much are they going to cost me, Jinkx? I know we're on good terms but-”
“You've just paid for them.” Jinkx waved his hand vigorously. “I've been looking for more information about them for years. Your friend just confirmed it. That might be the single most precious piece of information I've ever received. Just tell me how many you need and I'll have them for you within the hour.”
. . .
“So, can we rely on Jinkx as an ally of sorts in all this?” Asked Diamond as we waited for Jinkx to locate a vendor selling detonators.
“I don't know. I don't trust smugglers, Diamond.”
“Well, I'm just putting it out there.” I certainly considered it. When I really had some time to think it over, it was a prudent idea. Jinkx was the top-most hydra head of The Legion, according to Diamond, and he had access to a lot of power and resources. You never knew when someone like that could become very helpful, especially when you needed things to be off the record.
And lately, half my life was off the record.
4
We left with a heavy, sealed steel suitcase full of nuclear detonators, a plasma fuel coil and a few groceries loaded onto a hover truck. The force field around the case shimmered slightly as a labor mech helped load it into the Ghost. Jinkx rode with us on a little suspensor chair, carrying himself as if he were a king sitting on his throne. He was bobbing up and down and weaving slowly, a few of his big mechs following behind. Jinkx was also generous enough to have a fueling crew personally come to our landing pad and re-fuel all of our ships.
“Diamond, let me know what's going on out here. Information is my main trade. It comes above everything else these days and especially anything outside the inner realm.
”
“Sure, if you can do something for me. If we need information or supplies, do you think you can help us out?” Asked Diamond. Inwardly I was feeling apprehensive. I didn't want to be closely aligned with criminals.
“I can. Depending on what you need.”
“I've got a lot of enemies. I don't want to cause you trouble, Jinx.”
“It's no trouble I can't handle. Not if what you guys say is the truth.” I felt that odd feeling again, a sensation rising in me, like tiny breaths blowing on the hairs of my skin. As if we were being watched by something from afar. On the station. The feeling disappeared as we boarded our ships. I decided not to say anything about this feeling to Diamond. I signaled Will to start up the Phoenix. His fingers flew deftly over the control panels and we watched the screens as the Ghost readied for take off at the same time. I switched the intercom on to coordinate the take off with the train. We began our pre-flight inspections again.
After the count down I put on my harness, feeling the minute vibrations of the engines through my feet and body. I opened a comlink channel and hailed the Ghost.
“What's up?” Asked Diamond.
“You know Diamond, that guy might be useful to U-net in an unofficial capacity.”
“I was just thinking about that. The only thing is, Jinx ain't no angel. If we do business with him, we have to be prepared to pay.”
“Well he just said you can pay him in information, right? You didn't have to pay money for those detonators.”
“That's a one time deal, Bob. Thing is, when dealing with people like him, that payment gets more and more expensive. And folks like him don't do business with outsiders.”
“You mean me?”
“Right. No offense, but I'm the contact there.”
“No problem. I think he's a good contact for us if we need supplies, or information about avoiding certain people like Ms. Shark-teeth, but we'll proceed with caution.”
“Duly noted,” he said.
We finished our journey to Mars studying maps, playing chess, checkers or just talking. Mars loomed like a rusted globe, hanging like a red eye in space. Thin wisps of white clouds sailed over the horizon.
“Phoenix-Ghost train ready for landing.” I heard Diamond announce over the intercom. Will and I prepared for a coordinated landing. Over various places around the planet I glimpsed soft blue auroras flickering out in delicate blankets of light. It was the very first time I'd seen such phenomenon on Mars and it never occurred to me that the planet would even have them. One more undiscovered detail that enchanted me about this planet. Mars was becoming a living, breathing sister to Earth.
It was night as we descended down through the atmosphere. We passed through the faint bands of dying evening light and a full spread of stars twinkled in the sky as we brought the ships down just a mile from the abandoned village of Dorwe. It took some time before the entire train was safely landed. I turned on the scanners and swept the area for life signs.
“I don't see anyone around yet.”
“What happened here?” Asked Will. “Where are the villagers?”
“I think some time ago I got a message from Genevieve mentioning that they'd moved away and abandoned the place.”
“I wonder why?”
“Me too. She didn't expand on the reason. I should have asked. I'm not detecting anything close by. My scanners aren't picking up any nearby lifeforms. How about you, Diamond?” I asked.
“Nothing on my end is being picked up either.”
“Well keep your eyes and sensors peeled. Genevieve and her team should be showing up here any time now.”
I suited up and attached an air tank to my back, affixed on my helmet and helped Will suit up afterward. I opened the ramp to the Phoenix and walked out with my laser dragon at my side, Will right behind me.
“Diamond, we're going to take a walk about around the fighter ships to make sure they're alright,” I said.
“Gotcha.” I turned on a flashlight, it's light a bright arc, sweeping over the top to the bottom and then I glanced under each of the ships in the train. Will was still at my rear. I bent down to look under one of the ships. A flash of faint blue light flickered across the sky. The aurora was winding across it like a serpent. I turned back and glanced over at the mountainous rock dwellings. They sat like ominous faded shadows against the night sky. That odd feeling again washed over me. I suddenly looked around.
“What is it?” Asked Will.
“I don't know but I think it's best if we get back to the Phoenix until Genevieve gets here,” I said. Will just cocked his head to the side as if he didn't understand. I turned and saw in the light of the flickering auroras what looked like tall shadows approaching. I put my hand to my weapon, glancing at the boarding ramp and made to guide Will back to the Phoenix. Suddenly, I heard whispering voices. I turned around again to see several humanoid people approaching. A couple of them were human. It sounded like one of them was speaking in Hanga. Finally, the man switched to English.
“Nice ships you got here,” he sneered.
“I like the look of these ships too,” said another, a Suwudi.
“I think you'd better leave,” I said slowly. I felt adrenaline release through my body, rushing through every cell. The hairs on my body stood on end and I became very still. My fingers flickered over my laser dragon. I silently primed my gun for fire.
“Don't move, scum, unless you feel like being blasted into a million tiny pieces,” said the first one. “I can see your hand moving. Don't do it.”
“What do you want,” I asked quietly.
“What else? You got some mighty fine ships there. We could use them. We want them.”
“You can't have them.”
“You know we're gonna take them, don't you?” Taunted the first man. The lights in their helmets nearly made them look ghoulish. I couldn't tell if they were another team of sentinels, though I quickly doubted that thought, adventurers or smugglers. Or pirates. I had no idea what they were. Whatever they once were, now they were common thieves. It was the first time I'd encountered this and I could have kicked myself for bringing Diamond into a mess that I hadn't anticipated. I tried to calm the situation by slowly putting my hands in the air but as soon as I opened my mouth to speak again they went for their weapons. In a split second the air was crackling with lasgun fire. Diamond, who had been quiet and unseen during the verbal spat was hiding behind one of the ships in the back of the train. Laser fire exploded from behind me as he took one of them down with a powerful, long range blaster. The thief's helmet was punctured and seared half off and he began the slow death struggle, gasping for air. I was a lot faster at pulling my weapon than I thought I'd be and my laser dragon went off with a powerful explosion that surprised the thieves but not for long. I ducked and rolled under one of the fighter ships in the train only to hear the commotion grow louder! A wheeled rover vehicle was barreling toward us. Genevieve! Diamond kept up the rapid, deadly fire power on them from his vantage point, keeping them dancing in the sand, unable to get a clear shot at him or me. He caused them to scatter from their position. I was able to get a few shots in, hitting their speeder, taking a small chunk from it but not enough to do any real damage from where I was. One of them turned and fired, searing off the tip of a wing of one of our fighter ships. They were trying to regroup and they would have eventually gained the upper hand had Genevieve and her team not arrived. Bolts of laser fire ripped through the air from all directions as a full scale melee ensued.
“Thieves! Scavenger scum!” I heard a woman's harsh voice cry out like a battle roar. It was Genevieve. Two figures leaped from the carrier, deftly blasting away at our attackers. Another was shot through, his suit smoking from the holes of laser fire blasts. He fell like a dead weight. A volley of laser fire erupted as they fired on the new vehicle that had shown up but it was shield protected. It was difficult for me to see what was going on as dust and laser fire for a while was all I could make out in the dark. My helmet a
fforded me some night vision capabilities but I had no time make adjustments. Sparks flew off from the arc of buzzing light from the rover's shield, frustrating their efforts. The thieves, cowards that they were, jumped back into their own vehicle and fled into the darkness. Diamond finally jumped down to the ground.
“Hoo! What a welcome mat, Bob!”
“I'm sorry I dragged you into this!” I apologized to him, feeling responsible for the whole matter. But Diamond sucked his teeth. He didn't seem to bothered by it at all.
“Look man, I used to be a smuggler. Dealt with some of the nastiest characters around. It ain't the first time I've been in a battle.” He focused on the three figures approaching us, his blaster poised and ready in the air, resting on his right shoulder.
“These are our allies. Genevieve, Tulos and Rychik. We were waiting for them,” I said.
“What happened?” Asked Diamond. “You guys were late! We could have been toast out here.” Genevieve came and stood by me, giving him a curious stare. Rychik and Tulos were busy scanning the perimeter of the area.
“Late?” Exclaimed Rychik, looking around in the darkness. He had with him a pair of night vision binoculars. “I don't think so. It's you two who are late.”
“This is. . .Diamond Dog, I'm guessing?” She gruffed. I nodded.
“Well listen here, Diamond Dog. We were expecting to see you guys here far earlier this morning. If you had come when scheduled we might have avoided this problem.”
“I'm sorry. We stopped off at Gunner's Run for a little. . .business.” I said, glancing back at him. She looked surprised.
“You? At Gunner's Run? What in the black suns for?” I pointed at Diamond. She threw him a disapproving scowl.
“One of the ships in the train had a fuel coil that needed replacing. We stopped there to get some needed supplies. Guessing by the welcome we received here, we're going to need them,” I said.
“What supplies did you get?” I saw that hard mercenary look spread across her face.
“Nuclear detonators. A whole case of them.” Her eyes widened as big as moons. And then a slow smile crawled across her face.
Mission: Attack on Europa Page 4
