by Reiter
“I feel the same way about Jocasta,” Dungias replied. “So much more than what I have seen.”
“Agreed,” Ephaliun said. “An absent glass toast… to the faces of JoJo!” Warning lights and alarm horns sounded.
“We will discuss later how human culture has noted that toasting with an empty glass is a harbinger of foul fate,” Dungias said as he walked over to a console. Looking at the screen, the Traveler pressed his lips together. “Satithe, ready the Kulri-Kraythe for immediate departure.”
“What’s the problem?”
“The time-lock anchor into the Rims dimension has been directly scanned,” Dungias reported as robots entered the room, picking up Ulios, Rahneece, and the simulator unit Teela was still using. “It has since jumped to a secondary location. It can do that only once more before it is completely vulnerable to whatever is behind the investigation.” Dungias held out his hand and Alpha flew to his grasp, carrying his weapons belt. He took two strides, dressing himself before engaging Pax’Dulah to leap out of the room. Ephaliun was never more than a stride behind him.
“What’s the plan?”
“To board the scout ship and move as quickly as possible to the third location,” Dungias huffed. “My plans to take you three to The Campus must be aborted.”
“That’s where you sent the triplets though, right?”
“Into the care of the Beta-Forms and my Vi-Prin,” Dungias advised. “Their training will be even more comprehensive than what I’ve been able to impart on the four of you.”
“They’ll make one helluva Plan B,” Ephaliun declared.
“That is one possibility,” Dungias muttered before deciding to engage his Star-Stride. “When you reach the hangar, take the controls.”
Ephaliun pushed off against the wall, bounding down the hallway. He watched as Dungias streaked away from him. “Damn, still got a lot to learn!”
With his gloves on, Ephaliun dropped down into the hangar, somewhat pleased he had managed to catch and pass the robots carrying his classmates. He landed in a full sprint and ran aboard the Kulri-Kraythe, hopping into the pilot’s chair.
“Satithe, let me know the moment we’ve got everyone on board,” Ephaliun commanded as he made a very quick pre-flight check.
“The last of the cargo is coming up the ramp at this very moment,” the computer replied. “Twenty seconds to have it secured by gravity fields.”
“Twenty seconds,” Ephaliun repeated as he looked at the flight path he needed to take. “So, level with me, girl… did you miss me?”
“More than life itself,” Satithe replied.
“Oh! The lady knows how to push my buttons!” Ephaliun joked. “For what it’s worth, nothing felt quite right without you.”
“It is worth a great deal, Ephaliun. Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it,” he said, giving the command for the engines to fire. “Let’s see what the blade that doesn’t miss can do, shall we?”
“I am inclined to believe you will be impressed. Cargo stacks are secured.”
“With five seconds to spare,” Ephaliun said, taking hold of the controls. The lessons that Dungias taught him flashed through his mind. The Star Chaser liked the notion of a thief being his own getaway vehicle driver, should the need arise. “And right now, the blue man’s looking like a prophet!”
The Kulri-Kraythe rocketed out of the hangar and banked hard into an ascending turn. It jumped out of the pocket dimension and into Astral Space. Ephaliun looked at the console and shook his head, opening the intercom channel.
“The good news is that we’re hauling ass. The bad news is that I’ve got a reading on three ships closing in on the aperture. Long-range scan shows them to be pretty big slaggers. Might even be warships. At their current velocity, they are one hour out from the number two location. We’re sixteen hours from number three. My math works them to be only fourteen hours from those coordinates.”
“It would seem that we need speed more than stealth,” Dungias stated.
“We’re at maximum thrust now, Teacher,” Ephaliun reported.
“Remember to call me Z, Kulrithe. And we have approximately five seconds to Alpha Drive.”
“Roger that,” Ephaliun replied as he strapped himself in his chair. “But what the blue ghost is Alpha–” The lights in the cockpit all glowed brighter as the engines sounded as if they had been shifted to a more productive gear. The speed of the Kulri-Kraythe jumped three fold almost immediately and was still climbing when the stealth field was dropped. “Woo Hoo! Cutter was right. She might not have known why she was right, but that matters like my little toe!
“Trust the man,” Ephaliun whispered. “Trust the plan!”
Thieves respect property. They merely wish the property to become their property that they may more perfectly respect it.
Gilbert K. Chesterton
(Rims Time: XII-4203.23)
“Oh, Z, if you could see me now,” Jocasta thought, looking at herself in the mirror. “He’d probably run me down to the infirmary and make the Rippers verify that it was me! Not that I’d blame him for that reaction. I’m not even sure if it’s me! But seeing as how this is my plan, I can’t really complain.
“Computer, activate administrative order number three, please,” JoJo said as she reached for the gloves. “Mark from now until secondary order is given.”
“Order number three activated,” the computer replied as Jocasta leaned in toward the mirror and bared her teeth. They were clean, with no signs of her last meal in-between them. Jocasta gave herself the nod of approval and walked out of her room.
“Okay, people, let’s get… ready… to… go,” Jocasta said as she walked into the hangar where a number of the crew had gathered. Whatever the subjects of conversation were, they had all been quickly abandoned as Jocasta made her way toward the lander, causing her to look around in confusion. “What is it? Is there something in my teeth?”
“You look fine,” Pristacia said, walking from the group toward Jocasta. The tight black bodysuit gave the young woman a very menacing look, but Jocasta decided not to say anything. “They’ve just never been out of the kennel this long!” As if on cue, dog wailing and wolf calls filled the chamber. Pristacia turned around and looked specifically at two people.
“Seriously?!” she said. “You two as well?”
“Hey, just because I have a different set of controls doesn’t mean the Captain is any less hot!” Agatha replied, lightly slapping Marlene’s shoulder. “Right, Mayhem?” Agatha turned to look at her Tandem partner. “Mayhem? Mayhem, baby?” Agatha reached over and started wiping Marlene’s mouth. “Sweetheart, you’re drooling!” Marlene’s lips went inside her mouth and she actually wiped as well, though there was nothing for her to remove.
“Forgive me, but right now, I have to call you JoJo!” Marlene commented.
“That is my name, so I guess it applies,” Jocasta smiled. There was no disrespect to discuss. Marlene had delivered a very serious compliment, and Jocasta was not about to have her walk it back. “And thanks. It makes me feel better about this ridiculous get up!”
“It’s strapless,” Mel said, tapping Olkin on the arm. “That is strapless, right?”
“Oh yeah, Tank. That’s what they call it.” Olkin patted Mel’s back as he spoke. He looked at his arm as he was also wearing a tight, black bodysuit and was not quite used to the feeling of it just yet. “Among other things.”
“I’m no fashionista, but–”
“You’re no what?!” Olkin barked as he pushed Mel. The hoverchair quickly compensated for the thrust and brought Mel to a gentle stop. “That word has no permission to come out of your mouth, Mel! You need a waiver just to keep it in your head!”
“Look, all I’m saying is that you need something to hold up a strapless gown. I didn’t know the Captain had those.”
“Why not?!” LeRoy asked. “Did you not realize she’s a woman? You know, all growed up and everything?”
“I knew she was a
woman,” Mel defended. “I just didn’t know she was a woe-muhn!”
“You lookin’ forward to the next medical check-up, LeRoy?” Olreye ribbed.
“I sure am,” LeRoy answered, walking toward Jocasta. “Culshee handles the women, and you’ve got cavities!” Olkin and Mel cackled as the Med-Tech made his way over.
“I would say you’re looking good, but we both know you’re better than that,” LeRoy said as he scanned Jocasta’s body.
“Charmer,” she replied, lifting her arms away from her sides.
“And if you’re armed, this thing isn’t picking up anything.” LeRoy held up an Imperial hand scanner.
“Doc, please. I’ve got damn near all of my left leg showing here, and the rest is form fitting.”
“That much I can see,” the man said before stepping out of her way. “Nice choker though.”
“Oh, the niceties don’t stop there,” Jocasta warned. “Where’s my driver?”
“Right here, C-c-c-captain,” Siekor finally managed as he came out of the shuttle. His black hair was shiny and swept back into a ponytail, and he was wearing an off-white linen militaristic suit with gold fringe and white gloves. “I finished the checklist and we’re go for flight. Damn, you look good!”
“Thank you, Siekor.”
“Hey, how come he gets to be your driver?” Olreye asked.
“Because he looks the best in a uniform,” Jocasta answered as she approached the gangplank. Siekor bowed his head and offered his hand. Jocasta smiled as she took hold of it. “Not to mention his etiquette scores don’t make me laugh.” Olreye’s hand started at his eyebrows and slowly ran down his face.
“Oh, she reads the scores, does she?” he muttered into his palm, remembering his last test in general etiquette.
“Wait!” Kryltane cried, running into the room carrying one of Z’s canvas bags. “Hold on just one second!”
“Easy, Shotgun,” Jocasta said, holding up her hand to calm the young man down. “Is there a fire?”
“There will be,” Kryltane panted as he tried to catch his breath. “… one under my ass if I don’t get this stuff to you. Starting with this!” The young Comp-Tech and budding engineer held up a ring.
“Oh, Momma always did say if I dressed up I’d get a man,” Jocasta said, feigning excitement.
“What?” Kryltane asked, thoroughly confused, until he looked at what he was holding and came to the same page. “Oh. No! Nobody’s marrying you, Captain!”
“I’ll try to take that as a compliment,” Jocasta thought, frowning.
“This is not for your finger, it’s for your cane.” Kryltane looked around. “Where is it?”
“I’ve got it,” Llaz stated as he came away from the wall where he had been leaning. He held up the cane as he approached. “Are you proposing to the cane, Shotgun?”
“Everybody’s so funny today,” Kryltane sang as he reached to take hold of the bottom of the cane. The ring fit over the end and then clamped down. “Now, please hand that to the Captain.” Llaz walked the cane over to Jocasta and she took hold of it. A flash of light came from the bottom of the cane and her choker. A second skin formed over the cane, gaudy and looking very Old Earth. Jocasta smiled brightly as she looked it over. “It’s not my design,” Kryltane quickly explained. “It’s not even the Brain Trust’s. It’s one of the few programs that Z left for us to ferret out while he was gone. The skin is purely cosmetic, but it should help your cane pass for just something uselessly stylish.” Kryltane reached into the bag. “Along with this,” he said as he produced a wrap. “I wanted to go with a cape, but I got overruled.”
“My thanks to the other votes,” Jocasta said as she took the fabric. It was heavier than it appeared, and she looked to Kryltane to explain.
“Touch any three corners to your choker to arm it. Wrap it around you, count down from three, and it’ll dress you in your body armour. Other than that, it’s fire resistant like nobody’s business and Centerpointe told me to tell you it can hold a good half ton.”
“I love how that boy expects the very worst from me,” Jocasta said, wrapping it around her shoulders. “Thanks for getting this here on time, Shotgun.”
“No problem, but I’ve got one more surprise for you,” Kryltane said as he produced a gold clutch purse. “It works on the same principle as the weapons belt’s holding bag, but in order to keep it undetectable, it works on a charge that you have to load.” Kryltane reached inside the clutch and took out a small candy dispenser. “You reach from the diamond end and you’ll get a mint. You take from the opposite end and you’ll get a charge that goes right into the clasp mouth. Three charges. After that, it’s just another piece of the ensemble.”
“This might be a bit of overkill,” Jocasta said as she received the purse. “If everything goes halfway according to plan, I won’t be lifting anything.”
“Yeah, but hitting targets of opportunity is how we got here, Captain,” Llaz stated.
“Good point.” Jocasta started to walk up the gangplank but stopped so that she could turn and face her Second Mate. She lifted her hand and started to speak but suddenly changed her mind. She turned and took Siekor’s hand.
“Not a nursemaid,” she thought, “and these are hardly children. Not a hard and fast pirate crew, but they’ve got good basic skills, ingenuity, and the need to be naughty. That’s a solid start in my book. The last thing they need is me telling them to be careful. We went over the research as a crew, so no one is looking in from the outside wondering what the hell is going on. Never did like that about Rouge. I know she had her reasons, but being on the out all the damn time got on my nerves… it got on everyone’s nerves… probably still does!”
“Something on your mind, Captain?” Llaz asked.
“Plenty, Llaz,” she replied as she continued to walk. “Just make sure I have a working ship and a healthy crew to come back to.”
“Aye-aye, Captain.”
The flight to the Haggenshire was without incident, and Jocasta took the time to prepare herself for what was to come. The Onyx Baron had tried his level best to make the whole affair seem simple, but the Haggenshire did not just stop and take planetary orbit for anyone. Pwalzikun Haggenshire was a very important man, and it took a load of cred just to get a meeting with the man. Of course, reading that he charged heavy cred just to take meetings had caught Jocasta’s interest and made her think of how long it had been since she had last plundered anything from a soul who had been crying out for it.
Siekor walked her down the gangplank looking like a polished jewel in the Emperor’s crown. In her estimation, by adding a sword and very little embellishment he could have taken center stage himself. But he did all he could to make sure that all eyes were on his captain, not that it was an awesome task in the undertaking. There was very little framing necessary when a nebula slipped out from in front of a newborn star. But for every telescope that might have been scouring another constellation, Siekor would say ‘excuse me’ a little louder than he had to, but not in a tone that would rub people the wrong way.
Smiling at whomever she made eye contact with, Jocasta Endigun felt like she had fallen into a different world. It was bright, almost overwhelmingly so, and there was something to being in a room where everyone was dressed to impress. She was not yet to the main lobby, however, before she could see that for so many – too many – the clothes were just an eye-catching shell, and the allure of this world was transient at best.
Jocasta walked by a woman who was berating a younger woman because the pleats of her skirt were not absolutely perfect. The pirate considered her eye to be very sharp, and she could not see what the matter was. It seemed that the woman just enjoyed complaining, or could not go without it long enough to give the younger woman any peace. Jocasta turned away from the performance and put her eyes on the main doors. It was time to attend to the affairs of the evening.
Thandace reached over and smoothed out her brother’s burgundy-brown cape for a fifth time and
he chuckled into his hand. “Damned wrinkles,” he muttered. “I swear they exist only to torment you!”
“You truly think you’re amusing, don’t you?” Thandace returned. “I keep telling everyone that it’s your truest station, your lot in life. Any other ambition would be waste of time and material.”
“My station?” Quordion frowned. “You mean like if I gave an order for you not to attend this event… that sort of station?”
“You wouldn’t dare!”
“An unfunny Baron would have to dare much just to make up for his deficit of humor,” Quordion returned. He looked back toward Thandace and when she did not say anything, he lifted his hand. “Oh, guard,” he called.
“Fine!” she exclaimed, grabbing his arm. “You are hilarious! Your wit, your delicious wit, is simply the talk of the estate, day in and day out!”
“Better, much better… peasant,” Quordion said, and one of his invited guests chuckled at the jest. “Remember your place and we won’t have any issues.”
“You just remember our wager, dear brother,” Thandace fired back as she leaned forward to his shoulder. “Cleaning duty in the kennels for one solid month!”
“You must not like her much to make such a wager,” Quordion said before hearing the grumbling chirp of Teo. “Well, I know you don’t like her, Teo. It’s not often you are outwitted.”
“Blech!” Teo groaned as he sneered at the back of the head of the Onyx Baron, wishing he had something to throw.
“Teo, please,” Thandace said calmly, petting her shadow-brother. “And I like her fine. She’s just not cut out for this sort of thing. I thought you knew that when you invited her. She would just walk in, know she was out of place, conduct her business, and be on her way. We would still have the rest of the evening.”
