by Kal Spriggs
Kral nodded, “This is unfortunately true.”
“To be clear, I’m not offering vital positions and few positions of any authority. We need fueler crews, we need basic maintenance work, we’ll need people to help keep this base operational. There are a thousand unwanted tasks, but they need to be done, and we can always use the help.” Lucius met the alien’s eyes.
“I will need to think on this.” Kral said, his voice hesitant. “I know some will choose exile.”
“I understand. When you have an answer for me, tell the Marines.”
***
Mason McGann studied the face of his jailer. He saw suspicion there, along with distrust. He quirked an eyebrow at her, “Well?”
Lieutenant Lauren Kelly stared at him for a long moment. She glanced around at the others in the room and slowly he saw the resolution on her face crumble. She finally threw her cards down in disgust. “I fold.” The others at the table groaned as well. Mason swept the chips from the center of the table into his pile.
Mason gave her a lopsided grin, “Well... look at that, I guess I win again.”
“Funny, that,” the navy Lieutenant to Mason's right said. “That's, what, four hands in a row?” Her nametag read Toria. Mason had heard Lauren Kelly call her Jessi.
“Five,” the Marine on Mason's left said. He wasn't wearing his uniform top, but Mason had heard the others call him Tom. “He had the straight flush, a royal flush, a straight, four aces, and whatever we all just folded on.”
Mason gave them all an innocent look, “I'm a lucky guy, what can I say?”
“Right...” Tom the Marine shook his head. “Glad we're playing for Republic scrip, or I'd be out most of my paycheck.”
“What do you folks get paid in?” Mason asked.
“Right now, whatever currency we happen to have,” Lieutenant Toria answered with a shrug. “The Baron tries to make it all balance out.”
“Swell guy,” Mason muttered.
“Better than some,” Tom the Marine said with a grimace.
“Oh?” Mason asked.
“Yeah,” He shot a glance at the others, “I did some time as a merc, not an official one, mind you, just hired security really, back on this tiny rock called Hotel Seven...” He shook his head, “We show up and the bastard who signed us on paid us in company notes. Says we can exchange it at the company store. Company store says we can buy goods and services there, but they don't have any cash for trade at the moment. Took me ten years to buy my way off that rock.”
Mason nodded, “There's a few like that.”
“The 'citizens' on Faraday for example,” Toria grimaced. “I hope the bastards get what they deserve from the Chxor.”
“I wouldn't wish the Chxor on anyone,” Lauren Kelly said, her voice tight. “There's plenty of good folks that will suffer along with the bad. My experience, the good folks suffer a lot worse.”
Mason gave her a nod, “That's how misfortune always works. The scum always rises to the top.” He finished stacking his chips. “So... another hand?”
Tom the Marine grimace, “Not for me, I'm out.”
Lieutenant Toria shook her head too and stood from the table, “Nope, I'm headed up to my ship.” The pride in her voice was obvious.
“Ship?” Mason asked.
The female lieutenant stood a little straighter, “Yep, I've got my own command, it's a Terro Class corvette, the Mongoose. We captured her from some pirates and the Baron appointed me as the commanding officer.”
“Well,” Mason gave her a nod, “Congratulations.”
“I've had command for a month now,” she smiled. “But thanks, it's a good feeling.” Mason sat back as the two left, then quirked an eyebrow at Lauren. “Well, what to do now?”
She smiled at him, “Well, there's always the cafe.”
Mason grimaced. “I'd rather use the bar down on G level.” The cafe was too... clean for him, and they didn't serve alcohol. Down in G level some enterprising soul had put together a bar out of an old storage space. It had dim lighting, a low ceiling, and it felt like a fire trap. Mason loved it.
“You were asked to stay out, remember?” Lauren smirked.
Mason grimaced. “Yeah, I know.” He shook his head. “A misunderstanding... and you saw it, that roughneck threw the first punch.”
“Right...” She nodded, “Was that before or after you threw your drink in his face?”
Mason shrugged, “I don't really remember.” He didn't, which bothered him. The truth was, though, that he was going more than a little stir crazy. He longed for freedom, of the sort that involved him and his ship alone in space. Too many people around him made it too hard for him to remember his restraint.
His hand dropped again to the prayer beads on his hip. I have to remember my restraint, he thought. He rolled up the winnings and tucked them inside his jacket on the inside pocket. It wasn't much, especially since it was small bills of Colonial Republic scrip. Most of the single notes cost more to print than they were worth.
Still, a little extra currency never hurt. And the good thing about playing officers, especially dedicated officers like those in Baron Giovanni's employ... they were terrible at poker and they didn't have the first clue how to cheat. Not that Mason really needed to, either, but he at least knew how to bluff. When his luck was up, like tonight, he almost couldn't lose.
“You play grav-ball?” Lauren asked.
Mason frowned, “Not in...” He shook his head at the memories that brought up, “... not in a very long time.”
“They've got a small court, knocked together down by the reactors,” she said. “We could go one on one.” Mason could see the challenge in her smile and the confidence of someone who worked and trained in zero gravity on a regular basis.
That's right, she's super commando Chxor killer, Mason thought, when she's not playing baby-sitter to me. Some part of him winced away from the idea of awakening some of his old skills. He'd let them go rusty for a reason. Still... another part of him awakened at the challenge in her voice. What would it hurt to blow off a little steam... just this once?
“Sure,” he said and his smile matched hers, “Let's play.”
***
Lucius had just stepped back into the command center when Nix Reed and Anthony Doko showed up at his shoulder, “We just got our first real offer.”
“Really?” Lucius quirked an eyebrow. “I was beginning to worry we’d made the situation outline too vague to appeal to anyone.”
“I don’t like it.” Doko’s voice was flat.
“I doubt you’ll like any of them. Tell me.”
Doko shook his head, his dark eyes serious, “It’s Admiral Mannetti, it’s Lady Kale.”
Lucius winced.
“She’s got a lot of ships,” Nix said, looking back and forth between the two. “What, do you two know her?”
“We have some... history,” Lucius admitted. “It gets a little complicated.”
“She stabbed him,” Doko threw up his hands.
“Stabbed you?” Nix said, puzzled.
“Right in the chest.” Doko said, his voice rising. “She missed his heart by half a centimeter.”
“I was about to arrest her for treason against the Nova Roma Empire at the time.” Lucius shrugged, “I’m sure she didn’t mean anything personally by it.”
“She stabbed you?” Nix said, still confused.
Colonel Proscia approached, “Sir, tell me you’re not going to make any agreements with Lady Kale.”
“Let’s just see what she has to offer,” Lucius raised a hand.
“She stabbed you?” Nix asked again.
Lucius turned to her, “Yes, she stabbed me.” He moved over to the communications section. Operating from the base opened considerably more space, though they’d had to patch in all the equipment to the older antenna and power connections. “Dial her back.” They’d patched the War Shrike’s ansible through a laser relay they installed in the base, otherwise Lucius would have had to go ba
ck aboard to make the call.
The wait would have been easier if Lucius didn’t hear Nix and Tony in quiet conversation behind him.
“We’ve got an answer, sir.” Lieutenant Palmer’s drawl was never more welcome.
Lucius took a deep breath, “We need whatever help we can get. Patch her through.”
“Lady Kale,” Lucius greeted. He met her dark eyes. He looked into those still depths for a long moment until she finally gave him a friendly nod.
“You’re looking good Lucius,” her sultry voice spoke, “How is my ship?”
Out of the corner of his eye, Lucius saw Nix mouth 'her ship' in question to Anthony Doko. “You’re looking good too, Lady Kale. The War Shrike’s seen a lot of action, but she’s still in good shape.”
“I understand you’re looking for allies. You’ve got something big planned, with a very big reward.” She wore a caricature of the uniform Lucius wore, the neck cut absurdly low, and she leaned forward as she spoke. Lucius was suddenly reminded of just how well she filled out that uniform.
“Yes I do.” Lucius answered, keeping his eyes locked on her face. “Do you want me to forward you the outline?”
“No, I think I can trust it will be as brilliant as ever, coming from you, Lucius.” She thrust her lower lip out in a pout, “I just hope you won’t let our past… unpleasantness get in the way.”
“The scars have all faded nicely. You play even with me and I’ll do the same.” Lucius smiled politely. “What do you bring to the table?”
“Good.” Lady Kale smiled, “I always liked you, Lucius. There was never anything personal about our unpleasantness before and I’m glad you understand.” She toggled something off the screen, “I’ve just forwarded my ship strength. I’ve got the Peregrine still and added a couple Republic cruisers along with some scouting units. Now, how are we going to divide the spoils?” She cocked her head as she awaited his response.
Lucius spoke briskly, “The planet we hit is a charity case.” Lucius continued to speak over her fluttering laughter, “But ships captured, munitions, salvage, all that is split into shares determined by what each party brings to the fight.”
“That includes the Dreyfus fleet?” She asked, “You wouldn’t lie about that just to get more support, now would you?”
Lucius met her eyes, “No lies. Equal share on the Dreyfus fleet, so long as we can take it.” He tried not to remember the brilliant officer he had nearly fallen in love with and tried to focus on the dangerous pirate she had become. If not for the fact that she had trusted him, who knew how far her treason might have progressed? From what he knew of her, she might have pulled it off. Then again, she might have destroyed the Nova Roma Empire, Lucius thought.
She finally nodded, a half smile on her face, “I love it, darling. I think both of us will be very happy with how this goes. Perhaps we could make this into a more… long term relationship afterward? Hmmm?” Her voice suggested all sorts of interesting interpretations.
Lucius smiled, “Perhaps.”
“Well, I’ve got some preparations made, see you soon, darling.” She cut the transmission.
“She’s got to get her knives sharpened.” Doko stage whispered.
Lucius rubbed a spot on his chest in remembrance, “They’re sharp enough, trust me.”
***
It was several days before the next serious offer.
Captain Doko called him to the command center just after breakfast, “Baron, we’ve got an… interesting offer.” He shrugged, “I’m for it, but Captain Reed doesn’t like it.”
“I’m on my way.”
There were times that Lucius wished he could run all the operations from aboard the War Shrike. Those times included when rushing across the base to the command center. The battleship, for all her size, was tiny compared to the base, and he’d never been more than five or ten minutes away from the bridge.
“What’s the news?” Lucius asked, after finally stepping through the hatch.
“We’ve got a message from a Republic officer,” Anthony said.
Nix Reed shook her head, “Oh, God, next you’re going to say he’s a patriot and a legend.”
“Well… he is… on some worlds in the Republic.” Doko shrugged, “It is Admiral Collae.”
“He’s a leader of a rebel faction that’s tried to seize power on several worlds!” Nix said, “Not only that, but our smuggler friend ran across him once before, not too long ago. He allied with a Tommy King wannabe, and Mistress Blanc.”
“Mistress Blanc?” Lucius asked as he moved over to the communications section again.
“Yeah, she’s supposed to be a psychic and very talented. She’s also a pirate and a very nasty one. Not nearly the same league as the Shadow Lords, but pretty nasty stuff.”
“We’ve confirmed it wasn’t the actual Tommy King?” Lucius asked.
“Well, apparently the smuggler and the fake got in a firefight. The real Tommy King would have left the smuggler dead. I guess it went the other way.” Nix’s voice was dubious, “Either Mason McGann is the luckiest man alive or that wasn’t really Tommy King.
“Or Mason McGann is as good as Tommy King,” Lucius said, his lips quirked in a smile.
“Doubt that,” Nix said. “Mercenary and pirate work is a lot more lucrative than smuggling. Anyway, if ‘Admiral’ Collae is willing to work with scum like that, we’d be better off making a deal with Thomas Kaid himself.”
Lucius shook his head, “We’ve already dealt with the devil. We might get lucky and they’ll back-stab each other before they get around to us.” He pressed a button, “Go ahead and connect us.”
The man who appeared on the screen stared at Lucius with cold, calculating, blue eyes.
“It seems you had more luck with Mason McGann than I did,” Admiral Collae said. “I trust you’ve verified his information and we’re not all dancing to his tune?” His gruff voice immediately put Lucius on edge.
“We’re taking precautions. The system is currently in enemy hands. We’ll need to defeat them—“
“I read your message.” Collae interrupted. “I was surprised the avenue you chose to take with this. You’re risking a lot letting every pirate and would-be warlord know what you’re planning on doing.”
“I’m giving them enough information so they know what they’re getting into. We can always turn away anyone we don’t feel we can trust.”
“True.” The rebel Admiral stared at Lucius for a long time, “So, here is what I bring. I have two Forerunner destroyers, a Liberator carrier, and my own ship the Rubicon. All told, I’ve got twenty four fighters, four squadrons, almost a wing.”
“And what about your allies? Do you speak for Mistress Blanc and the fake Tommy King, as well?” Lucius smiled.
“You have some excellent sources,” Admiral Collae’s eyes narrowed, “Tommy King, if it was him, seems to have made himself scarce. Mistress Blanc will, graciously, accompany me. She’ll bring her ship.”
“Good. Too bad we won’t have the Revenge along, the firepower would have helped.” Lucius matched the other man’s cold gaze.
“Yes, the Tommy King of my acquaintance never got around to bringing it, said his crew had it someplace safe. I think that, unfortunately, he lied.” Admiral Collae moved his square shoulders in what might be a shrug, “A pity.”
“Yes, true that.” Lucius nodded, “Care to discuss the distribution of spoils?”
“No, it can wait until I get there. I trust you’ll forward coordinates for link up soon?”
“Yes, as soon as we’ve got sufficient forces, you’ll receive coordinates for rendezvous.” Lucius smiled, “Neutral space, safely away from well-traveled space.”
The other man smiled slightly, it looked painful. “I get the feeling you’re concerned for the refugees you shelter. You needn’t. I have no interest in them or in Faraday, after we liberate it from the Chxor.”
Lucius felt his stomach flutter. He returned the other man’s words, “You have some ex
cellent sources.”
“I’ve got spies everywhere, Baron Giovanni.” Admiral Collae smirked, “Really, I just had to put things together. I honestly felt tempted make my own move to secure the system, once I figured out the details, but I think that having the exact coordinates for the fleet will speed things up.”
“I see,” Lucius answered.
“I trust I am now indispensable to your efforts.”
“Yes, we’ll definitely be bringing you along.” Lucius said. “We’ll contact you soon.”
“My, god, sir, what do we do?” Nix Reed looked devastated. “He must have infiltrated my people, somehow. I don’t even know how…”
“No.” Lucius shook his head. “I think it’s far more likely that he’s just a very, very smart man and we’ve got too many clues out there.” He paused a moment in thought, “By now, information must have hit half the Republic that the Chxor found and seized a planet out there. You were isolationist, but there were still the occasional trading ships coming through, correct?” Nix nodded slowly. “Put that together with a little bit of intelligence on myself, the rumor of refugees on the move, and the offer I put out there and we were bound to have someone guess at least very close to the truth.”
“Baron, there’s no way in hell we can trust him, you have to realize that!” Nix Reed said.
“I don’t think we’ll be able to trust any of the allies we make,” Lucius said. “But no, I think more importantly we can’t underestimate this man. If we don’t bring him with us, he’ll follow and strike us from behind after we’ve destroyed the Chxor. Better to know he’s there with us, where we can watch him.”
***
Lieutenant Palmer chimed Lucius’ desk later that night. “Sir, we got another one that Captain Nix and Doko have signed off on. Some o’ them no-mad people.”
“Nomads?” Lucius asked, frowning.
“Yes, sir, them as live on ships.” Lieutenant Palmer confirmed. “Captain Doko’s talking to them now, they’s apparently got several ships fixin’ to fight.”
“Thank you, Lieutenant.” Lucius said, “Let Captain Doko know I’ll be there soon.”
