Footsteps rang out in the corridor. Finally, someone coming to see what was going on? Casmir hoped for the president or someone with the authority to negotiate with those pirates.
Asger ran in with the secretary of education slung over his shoulder.
“What are you doing, Casmir?” Asger asked when he spotted him standing in the middle of the room, eyes glazed with concentration. “Doesn’t this spinning block have any weapons?”
“Inadequate ones. I’m writing code.” Casmir waved at the weapons panel in case Asger wanted to try firing back.
“Set me down, you hairy orangutan,” Nguyen growled, slamming a fist into Asger’s armored back.
“I’m a handsome knight, not a hairy anything. If you’d seen my calendar you would know.” Asger set her on her feet. “Don’t try to escape again. Your station needs you.”
“I wasn’t trying to escape.” Nguyen ran for the comm panel, reached for it, but hesitated. She looked daunted by all the flashing indicators. “I was trying to find a weapon so I could shoot you two invaders and get back here.” She glanced at Casmir. “Have the pirates commed?”
“Oh, yes. They want you to surrender the station. They were supposed to give us fifteen minutes to think about it, but they apparently come from a system with very fast minutes.”
“Surrender the station! What are the Kingdom ships doing?”
“Nothing. They’re willing to help if you agree to Kingdom rule.”
Nguyen swore and kicked the console.
Casmir shrugged helplessly, trying to braid together if-then-go-to lines in a logical way as he glared at Asger, as if he were an appropriate conduit for his irritation with the Kingdom in general.
“I spoke to Ishii,” Asger said quietly, waving at his chip. “This isn’t his idea. Ambassador Romano was supposed to be along to negotiate with the local governments so they would let us pass unimpeded on our gate hunt. But when this all started, he stepped up and took command of the Fleet. Ishii and the other captains want to fight the pirates, but Romano is one of the king’s handpicked diplomats and has the power to take control of the military.”
“Diplomat!” Casmir threw his hands up. “I’ve only spoken to him once, and I know he’s an asshole.”
“He probably doesn’t think he needs to be diplomatic with you.”
“Or the entire station?”
“Shut up!” Nguyen glared at them and pointed at the comm panel, to an open channel. “This is Secretary of Education Nguyen. I need to speak with your leader.”
“This is Admiral Chaos Cutty,” the bass drawl of the pirate purred. “I’m still waiting to hear from your president.”
“The citizens objected to his presidency, so we impeached him. The secretary of the treasury and I are the only two members of the president’s cabinet currently holding office until such time that new elections can be held. What is your purpose in being here?”
“Did your robotics minion not make my purpose clear? We intend to take over your station and claim it for ourselves. If you surrender immediately, we will allow the current inhabitants to continue residing on it under our rule. You may serve us.”
Casmir expected Nguyen to sputter as much as Ishii usually did, but she lifted her chin and glared at the display as she calmly answered. “We objected to Kingdom rule, and I am positive that pirate rule would not be a superior option. I am, however, open to listening, if you wish to argue your position.” Her gaze rolled toward the ceiling, and Casmir knew she was only buying time.
He approved. He wanted to tell her his plan, but the channel was still open. He hunted around the room, found paper and a pen in a drawer, and wrote a quick note.
“I don’t intend to argue why we would be superior leaders,” Cutty said dryly. “We are here to take over your station, not compete at a debate bowl. Your options are to comply without a struggle and let us have it, or to put up a fight. In which case, my men do enjoy a good challenge and are always in need of training. That will, however, mean we have to force your people to work for us and do repairs when we arrive.”
“It sounds like we have to work for you either way.”
Casmir hurried over with his note: I have a virus to send to them, but we need to trick them into accepting a file.
Nguyen looked at him—squinted at him—as if she were seeing him for the first time and trying to figure out whether he could be trusted. He spread his hands and tried to look inoffensive. She had to see that, no matter whose side he was on, he would want to survive the pirate attack.
“Not necessarily,” Cutty said. “If you cooperate fully, we will let those residents who wish to relocate leave.”
“Residents who’ve lived here for generations and consider this their ancestral home?”
“It would be their choice.”
“Some choice,” Nguyen breathed, staring down at Casmir’s note. “But I see we have few alternatives. I assume that if you take over the station, you will wish to protect it, even from Kingdom warships. We have no desire to side with the Kingdom.”
Casmir tried not to wince. Asger did wince.
“Is our presence not proof enough that they fear to deal with us? They will not attack the station if the Rogue Asteroids protect it.”
Casmir wondered if Ishii and the other ships were listening in on this conversation. He also wondered if Jager or Romano truly had set this all up. It distressed him to imagine the Kingdom dealing under the table with brutal pirates. Surely, Admiral Mikita had never resorted to that.
“You do seem to have them cowed into inactivity.” Nguyen didn’t bother to hide her disgust. “We officially surrender, Admiral. What do you want next?”
“We will send some of our ships to dock at your station. Allow them to attach to your locks without impeding them. I will come personally to speak with you and find an appropriate leader to be my second-in-command there and a liaison between your people and mine.”
Nguyen’s dark eyes flared with indignation—at the suggestion that she was not an appropriate leader?
“I understand. The president’s chief of security programmed the airlocks and shuttle-bay doors to go into a lockdown mode so nobody could come or go. I’m not sure where he is currently, but I do have a transmission code here that I can send.” Nguyen rested a hand on Casmir’s note. “You’ll need to transmit it from the outside to the sensors on the docking side. It was intended to be shared with the Kingdom ships, but since it’s clear they are uninterested in helping us…”
“Quite. Send it. And prepare to receive me, Secretary.” There was a lewd innuendo in the man’s tone.
Nguyen sneered but made herself say. “We’ll be ready.”
She nodded to Casmir. Since he was already linked to the station’s network, it was a simple matter to transmit his newly wrapped file to the comm computer and then over to the admiral’s ship.
Once it was whisked away, he waved for Nguyen to close the comm.
“Please tell me that’s something that will seriously screw them up,” she said as soon as the channel was closed.
“It knocked out all the power and auxiliary systems on our ship,” Casmir said.
Her brow crinkled. “You made it?”
“No, I only added an element to hopefully spread it among all their ships. It was the work of an astroshaman leader named Kyla Moonrazor.”
“I’ve heard of her. She’s infamous in this system.”
“The Kingdom is learning about her now too.” Casmir doubted Ishii would want him to share any more details than that, so he looked at the scanner display, hoping to see sign of the pirate ships losing power.
“How soon will we know if it worked?” Asger asked from behind them.
“Soon,” Casmir said. “I hope.”
As Tate reached for Kim’s arms and his buddy strode toward her with his switchblade, Zee attacked. He morphed back into his human form so that he had hands and grabbed Tate, throwing him against a wall hard enough that his armor crunched. Th
e wall buckled.
The man with the switchblade lunged at Kim. She dodged as she whipped up a block, batting aside his knife arm. His hand hit the wall, and he dropped the weapon. She shifted her weight and slammed a side kick into his groin. He partially blocked it, but the force was enough to knock his butt backward while his head pitched forward and down. Without dropping her foot, she rocketed a second kick into his jaw. This time, he flew backward and hit the floor in a jumble.
More guards rushed toward Kim, but Zee moved at light speed, blocking attacks and hurling people halfway across the gym before they knew what struck them.
“Look out!” more than one hostage cried.
Rache, Kim sent a message to go with the footage she’d been streaming to him. Now would be a good time for—
An alarm shrieked throughout the gym and spa. “Station breach on Level 6. All personnel must evacuate to a lower level. The atmosphere is venting. I repeat, station breach on Level 6. Evacuate immediately.”
Everyone sprang to their feet, shouting and screaming in alarm. The guards were closest to the gym exit, and they rushed out the doorway first. Some of the hostages started forward, but a figure in black armor landed in front of them, and they jumped back.
Get the hostages up the rope, across the roof, and away on the catwalk, Rache messaged Kim as he raced past her and after the guards, slamming the doors shut behind him. I’ll make sure the guards don’t follow.
Weapons fire opened up outside of the closed doors, and the hostages that had been determined to run that way and obey the computer voice faltered.
Is there really a station breach? Kim replied.
No. Not yet. The pirates have stopped firing. I’m using subterfuge, as your hound suggested.
It’s delightful.
I’m glad you approve.
Kim looked for the rope he’d mentioned and spotted a long chain dangling down from a tidy circular hole freshly cut in the ceiling.
A man ran past her, not caring that thumps, screams, and the buzz of rifles firing came from the corridor outside. He grabbed the door and tried to yank it open. It didn’t budge. Rache had either locked it or blocked it somehow.
“That’s the way out!” Kim ran into the middle of the gym, with Zee sticking close to her side, and pointed at the chain. The thirty-foot climb would be easy enough for her, but she could tell from the average age of the hostages that many people would need help. Still, it was better than remaining captive.
This is a chain, not a rope, Rache, Kim messaged before thinking better of distracting him.
Forgive my hasty word choice. I shall endeavor to use more precise vocabulary when we discuss literature.
I expect that. Thank you.
“Up to the roof.” Kim waved and pointed, now standing right under the chain. “Scholar Chi. Over here.”
“Scholar Sato! It’s so good to see you.” Her chubby colleague ran up, his mussed black hair sticking out in all directions, a bloody gouge in his temple where his chip had been removed. “Unless you wish me to go up that first. Then I’m less delighted.”
A lean athletic man lunged for the chain and climbed up it.
“No, I expect you to go second,” Kim said.
“I may need a boost.” Chi looked up the chain. “Of thirty feet. Why is that ceiling so far away?”
Others who had the strength to make the climb hurried to follow the first man. Kim almost told them that the warning had been a fake, but they were moving so quickly and efficiently that she decided to let them believe they needed to get off the level. If Rache couldn’t handle all the guards, it would be better to get the hostages out quickly.
She hoped he could handle them all. If he couldn’t, she would have to figure out a way to rescue him.
“I can’t climb that,” a woman in her sixties said.
A bronze-skinned man in a rumpled but expensive hand-tailored suit stood beside her, gripping her hand. “And I won’t leave without my wife.”
“This situation is intolerable,” the woman said, rubbing her face with a shaky hand.
“Zee?” Kim asked.
The crusher loomed closer, and the couple skittered back with wide eyes.
Kim lifted a hand, trying to let them know Zee was on their side. “Can you carry people up that chain on your back?”
“Certainly.” Zee morphed, and his legs seemed to shrink a little as he reallocated his mass into an extra set of spidery arms.
Kim gaped, though she shouldn’t have been surprised by now at what he could turn into.
“If you can grab onto his back…” she started, but Zee swooped up the couple, locking the husband under one arm, the wife under the other, and using the remaining two to climb. “That also works,” Kim finished.
She ushered more people up the chain. As soon as Zee dropped off the couple, he jumped down, landing with a heavy thud that left dents in the wood floor. Without pausing, he snatched up two more people—older ladies who shrieked louder than the alarm Rache had sounded—and headed up again.
Scholar Sato, Rache messaged her. Some of my opponents are sleeping. Do you know anything about this?
I thought you might prefer them that way.
It does help end the combat more quickly, but for a man who enjoys a challenge, walking into a room littered with snoring enemies is a disappointing experience.
I’m sorry. Next time, I’ll leave them awake, let them know you’re coming, and tell them about all your secret weaknesses.
After Zee carried the last hostages up the chain, Kim shimmied up herself, afraid that he would come back down for her if she dawdled.
All of my secret weaknesses? Surely, you can’t imagine that I have more than one or two.
Kim pulled herself up the chain easily, noticing how much of a difference the lesser gravity made. As she scrambled onto the rooftop—Zee was already leading people to the catwalk and giving them boosts up to it—a soft thud sounded behind her. She spun and found herself face to face with Rache. Had he climbed? Or jumped from the street outside the gym? She wasn’t sure.
Smoke wafted from a couple of melt marks in his black armor, but he did not appear injured. He held out his gauntleted hand.
Not sure what he meant to give her, she lifted her palm. He laid five empty vials on it.
“In case you wish to reuse them,” he said.
“Thoughtful of you.”
“I try to be a conscientious ally. Let’s see if we can find the control room and talk those pirates into leaving, shall we?”
“Don’t you need to rejoin your men and escape the station?”
“Not yet. They’re still loading the shuttle and the special cargo hauler they brought over.”
“Looting?”
“Borrowing. I had Lieutenant Neimanhaus fill out a rental form, and we even left a deposit.”
“Considerate.” She hoped his people weren’t taking all of the submarines on the station. Not that she cared much about the gate at this point. Mostly, she wanted the chaos to end here and to make sure Chi and the others wouldn’t be threatened again.
“Yes. Did you happen to see an older couple that look vaguely like Dr. Peshlakai?”
Kim wasn’t good at picking out resemblances among people, but she did think of the married couple that Zee had helped, and thought they might be the right age to be Yas’s parents. “Yes. They went that way.”
“Good. Follow me.”
23
There was no day or night cycle in the ventilation system of Death Knell Station, and if not for the clock integrated into Bonita’s helmet display, she wouldn’t have had any idea how many hours passed before Viggo contacted her. It seemed like she and Qin had been hunkered in the large duct for days, recycled air flowing past them in spurts as the filtration system turned off and on.
The two Drucker men are returning to their ship, Viggo reported.
Good. Do you know if the others went back too?
The sirens and sounds of weapons fire had lo
ng ago faded, so she assumed the skirmish had ended. She hoped that none of the locals who had helped her had been hurt. Even though she’d paid them to pick a fight with the Druckers, she hadn’t paid them that much. It had only worked because she’d chosen a station full of people who hated the pirate family.
My cameras can only see what’s adjacent to the ship, but I am scanning the local news channels. I believe the Druckers still have a shuttle docked here. There was something about them being responsible for a fight that broke out, injuring people and damaging station structures, and the locals are attempting to impose a fine on them.
Any chance they’ve all been ordered back to that shuttle?
There’s a chance. But I did not see anything in the news about their access to the station being denied.
Bonita nibbled on her lip. We’ll wait a while longer before heading back.
Her stomach growled. She wished she’d brought snacks instead of extra ammo.
“Viggo says the two men guarding the ship just left,” she said quietly, well aware that they were close to a wall that led out to the main concourse. Now and then, clunks and shouts drifted back to them. She didn’t want their voices to be audible to someone walking past a vent. “Hopefully, the rest of the Druckers will leave.”
A clunk sounded as Qin shifted her weight in the claustrophobic air passage. If Bonita hadn’t been in combat armor, it would have seemed spacious, as far as ductwork went, but Qin was much taller and broader than she, even without armor.
“Thank you for taking that risk for me,” Qin said. “Maybe you should go back to the ship and let me know when it’s safe for me to sneak aboard.”
“They might object to me walking back on too. I don’t have any way of knowing if they believe I arranged all that, if I was haplessly caught in the middle, or something in between.”
An alert flashed on her contact. A request for permission to send messages directly to her chip—from Johnny Twelve Toes.
Crossfire (Star Kingdom Book 4) Page 31
