12 Days of Christmas: A Christmas Collection

by Laura Greenwood

  Before I could speak into the comm on my bracelet, Cedar halted me.

  “The intruders might hear you. We can’t risk letting them know we’re aware they’re here.”

  He was right. Again. How did I not think of that? At this rate, I might turn out to be an even worse captain than L.

  “Shoot them a warning in morse,” Cedar instructed, an urgency and clarity in his voice that I wasn’t used to from him. Gone was his kind attitude and relaxed vibe. It was finally becoming clear why he was the emergency first responder. The seriousness suited him.

  Glad I was fluent in morse, I shot a message to both Hain and Rowan’s individual receptors.

  -... .. .-. -.. .. . .-.-.- / ..-. --- ..- .-. / .. -. - .-. ..- -.. . .-. ... .-.-.- / -... / -.. .-.-.- / .-. . -.. .-.-.-

  With a soft vibration, two replies found me at the same time. With a confirmation that they were both located in the cockpit, I nudged Cedar.

  “We have at least four intruders. Five if one of the shapes isn’t Birch. We should prepare for the worst.”

  “Deadlock Protocol?” Cedar whispered and I nodded.

  “We can’t let them escape if they have Birch. Why oh why did L lock away the weapons? Did she actually anticipate a mutiny?”

  “Yes she did,” Cedar deadpanned. “She knew that she was in the minority.”

  “As much as I like to gossip about L, we should do this later. Let’s get to the nearest computer terminal so we can initiate the protocol and lock them in. Then we can decide what to do with them.”

  We sneaked back through the corridor until we reached one of the main computer nodes. We had access to most of the ship’s functions with our handheld devices, but the Deadlock Protocol was one of the things we could only initiate at one of the terminals.

  Cedar stood guard while my retina was scanned and my fingerprints were matched with the records.

  “Captain Partridge confirmed,” CC boomed.

  “Quiet, you silly computer,” I hissed. “Initiate Deadlock Protocol. Immediately. We’ve got intruders at the Back Door.”

  “Intruders, how lovely,” CC chimed and I wanted to hit her. “Would you like me to warn them before they’re locked in?”

  “Don’t you dare.”

  “I’ll take that as a no.”

  “You better or I will make sure your motherboard is destroyed once and for all. And your fatherboard. And whatever else you have inside you.”

  There was a moment of silence as CC’s electronic brain processed my threat. Then, her monotonous voice came out of the speakers again, but this time a little quieter. “You will be pleased to know all entrances around the Back Door have been locked. You will not be pleased to know the intruders have escaped.”

  While I let out a string of colourful curses - most of them threatening death to all AIs in this universe - Cedar was typing furiously on his scanner.

  “She’s right. There are no life signs left on this deck besides ours. So unless Birch is hiding in the crew quarters, he’s gone. They’ve taken him.”

  2

  Birch was gone. I couldn’t believe it. Blasters. You know how they say that you don’t realise how much you like something until it’s gone? Well, it was true for Birch. In my mind, I could see him leaning lazily against the wall of the common room, showing off his broad chest and cheesy smile. A temptation that I had always resisted, even though it was hard as hell. They were all off limits, and L had made sure it stayed that way. Now he was gone, and I may have lost my only chance of getting to know him better.

  The three remaining men were all waiting for me to say something, but I kept putting it off. Instead, I looked out of the large window in the command room which gave me an excellent view of the meteor belt we were just passing through. We were flying on autopilot, so unless CC was having any strange ideas, we were free to enjoy the spectacle. Well, we would be, if some mysterious space pirates hadn’t just kidnapped one of my crew.

  Rowan quietly cleared his throat and I sighed inwardly. It was time to do my first big Captain gig.

  “Okay, there’s no time to lose. Birch is gone and we don’t know who’s taken him. He could be anywhere. So far, our sensors haven’t picked up any other ships in our vicinity, but that means nothing. We’re not a combat vessel after all. We need to be ready in case the kidnappers get in touch. It’s strange that they only took him and nothing else. They could have taken supplies for the colony, but no, they only took one of the crew.”

  “Aye, if I was a pirate, I’d kidnap the captain,” Rowan rumbled in his deep voice. “No offence, Ma’am.”

  “None taken, I’ve been thinking the same. And stop the Ma’am-ing, just call me Captain. Or Lucy. Right now, we don’t need formality, we need solutions.”

  Rowan looked a little uncomfortable, but then Hain nodded at the other two. “She knows,” he whispered loud enough for me to hear it. The other two men looked both relieved and horrified. I was curious, but at the same time I probably didn’t want to know what dirt L had collected on them.

  I sighed. “This is a new start. We will leave the past behind us, and that included anything L may have told you to say to me or about me. Same with what I might have said to you. I’m proud to be your Captain and I’m sure we’re going to be a great team. Now, can we get started on our rescue plan?”

  They looked a little downtrodden, but all nodded and turned to the screens in front of them.

  Luckily, this room had almost the same equipment as the bridge, but was a lot more comfortable. And right now, we didn’t need to fly the ship, we just needed access to the sensors.

  “Cedar, have you been able to get a read on his vital signs?” Suddenly I was glad that the latest Fleet policy involved getting a tiny implant into your arm that continuously monitored your heartbeat and blood pressure. Even though it wouldn’t be able to tell us where he was (why the effing stars didn’t they include a GPS), we’d at least know whether he was alright.

  “I’m working on it. I think I’m close.”

  “Good. Hain, have you managed to figure out how they got onto the ship without us knowing?”

  “Easy. L put some loopholes into the shield code. I assume it’s so she could smuggle in her nightly visitors. Any good hacker would have been able to disarm our shields long enough to use one of the ports.”

  I cursed L once more. Because of her horniness and selfishness, I was now one crew member short. A very pretty, attractive crew member.

  “But why’d they only take Birch? The individual space pods and gear are all in that loading dock as well.”

  Hesitantly, Rowan raised his hand. His expression a strange mix of fear and doubt. “I think I might know why.”

  “Lay it on me,” I sighed, rubbing my fists in my eyes. This was not how I imagined my first day of Captaining to go.

  With a short click, Rowan opened a file that had previously been locked. I glanced sideways at Hain and him, wondering how they managed to break through L’s seal. Maybe they were even more skilled than they let on?

  An official-looking document appeared on the holotable. A quick glance was enough to make my blood boil.

  “Slavery?!” I scowled, slamming my hand hard on the table. “Slavery?! I can’t even! How dare she!”

  Cedar gently touched my shoulder, probably in an attempt to calm me down. “Captain…”

  I swatted his hand away. “Don’t Captain me. This is unacceptable!”

  “I can’t believe this… She actually sold him to a group of merchants?” Hain whispered in disbelief, a saddened look gracing his beautiful face. From the three guys, I had seen him talk most to Birch. They must’ve become rather good friends, even under the circumstances.

  “The contract is waterproof,” Rowan muttered appalled, staring at the unruly signature of the previous Captain. “I guess there’s nothing we can do…”

  “We’ll see about that,” I scoffed, wiping the contract from the table to make room for a map. “Colony Twelve will have to w
ait. Rowan, reroute us to Slaver’s Bay.”

  The three men stared at me in surprise.

  “But… L signed the document. The moment we set foot on this ship, we became her property. That’s how the law works. We’re not authorised to reclaim Birch,” my second in command reasoned.

  I let out a hard laugh, even though nothing about this situation was remotely funny. “You’re forgetting one thing. The moment L died, she was no longer able to have property. As the new Captain, ownership automatically transferred to me. And by the damned stars, I certainly didn’t give them permission to take Birch. By the universe, we’re in our right to get him back,” I barked, glad I was well versed in the intergalactic laws of our solar system. “Now why are you all standing there? Get the ship rerouted, transmit a signal, update the system. That is an order. Move!”

  The three men scrambled to their feet and saluted me. Wow, it would take some time to get used to this.

  We all headed to the bridge, leaving the comfort of the command room behind. I mentally patted myself on the back for being firm with my men, instead of drooling all over them. Not my men. The men. They weren’t mine. Well, they were according to the laws of space. But I was trying really hard not to think about that. I wouldn’t be abusing my position like L did. Not even if they were all so delicious.

  I glanced at the three of them. Rowan’s usual playful smile was replaced with a concentrated frown as he rerouted the ship. Hain pushed up his glasses, his eyes flickering dangerously dark underneath them. Cedar’s shirt was still too crisp to my liking, and to my discern, I could only think of one way I wanted to crumple it. Why were they so hot? And why did they all look so good together? Rowan with his casual attitude and lopsided grin, you couldn’t but feel at ease around him. Cedar’s stern face and piercing blue eyes, the serious note in the composition. Hain, dark and mysterious, but with a mischievous twinkle underneath his glasses. But it was an odd sight without Birch nervously running around from one side to the other. It didn’t feel… right.

  In the span of one day, we were two crew members down. The ship was oddly quiet without L’s endless array of annoying questions. Almost eerily quiet. You could actually hear the soft humming of the motors below deck.

  What a difference. I certainly wouldn’t miss her.

  But Birch.... From the four of them, he had always been the kindest to me. Even now that I knew it was actually L who made them behave like such massive dickheads. Now that she was gone, all three of them were definitely much more mellow and a spot warmer.

  It made it all feel more real now that we were turning the P.E.A.R. around to fly to Slaver’s Bay. Not that it was an actual bay. It was an entire planet that had become a haven for outlaws and criminals. And bankers, strangely enough. No idea where it got the name from. Maybe some romantic notion of pirates living on an island, watching their ship sway in the harbour. In reality, it was a cesspit that I’d only visited once before.

  It wasn’t very far - the pirates (or traders, if you wish) caught us off guard not far from their home planet. The question was, did we want to approach stealthily, or announce our presence? We had no major weapons to speak off, so they could easily blow us out of the sky if they wanted to. But we had no cloaking capability either. Maybe contacting them was the easiest option. If they didn’t return Birch to us, we could always try other ways. We needed to get him back, that much was for sure.

  “Hail Slaver’s Bay,” I commanded and the guys all looked at me in surprise.

  “We’re actually going to try and talk to them?” Hain asked, frowning.

  “They are criminals. It won’t do any good trying to bargain with them. Not that we have anything to bargain with,” Cedar said quietly.

  He was right. We had nothing... except for the supplies for Colony Twelve. But they needed those... right?

  “Ced, bring up our inventory. Let’s see if we have anything valuable on board. Something that’s not essential for the colony.”

  Shooting me another dubious look, Cedar turned around to his console, bringing up a long list on the main screen.

  “Delete anything valued at less than one million stars,” I ordered. I hoped that the pirates used the common currency of the Galactic Union. If not, we’d need to find some way to convert it into theirs.

  The list shrunk to about two dozen items. I quickly read through it - most things were essential for the colonists. I wasn’t ready to sacrifice their well being for Birch. Not yet, anyway.

  “Look, those whisky bottles... who are they for?”

  “Commander Brown on the Colony. He requested them specifically. Forty-year-old malt from Islay, a Scottish island. Seems to be good stuff.”

  I grinned. “I think the Commander will have to do without his whisky. I’m sure he’ll agree that rescuing my crew mate is more important than his hangover.”

  Hain smirked. “Want me to hail them now?”

  I nodded, gripping the sides of my command chair tightly. “Aye, let’s do this.”

  The symbol of the P.E.A.R. appeared on our main screen - a large oval shape surrounded by stars - together with a pirate flag. So predictable for them to have that as their call sign. Hopefully they were as moronic as their flag.

  “This is Captain Partridge on the P.E.A.R. calling the command of Slaver’s Bay.” My voice didn’t shake at all and I was immensely grateful for that. I had to present myself as strong and unyielding. And a little ruthless, perhaps.

  A grainy image of an old man appeared on the screen. He was smoking something and I wasn’t sure if the haziness of the picture was due to the quality or his puffing.

  “I’m Captain Redbeard, second in command of Slaver’s Bay. What do ya want?”

  “I believe you have one of my crew. His name is Birch and he was unlawfully taken from my ship. I would like him returned immediately.”

  Redbeard laughed heartily. “Are ya actually posing demands? That’s rather cute.” He turned to someone outside the picture and made an obscene hand gesture.

  Stay calm, Lucy. Don’t let this bastard deter you from your aim.

  “Yes, I am indeed demanding his return. According to Galactic law, it is my right to claim him back. My predecessor did this bargain with you, but she is no longer with us and therefore the contract is null and void.”

  Redbeard laughed even harder. “Thank you for providing me such good entertainment, dear girl. Now, piss off.”

  I sighed. “I would be willing to trade for him, as a show of goodwill.”

  “Yeah? What do ya have that I would want?”

  I pulled up a picture of one of the Scotch bottles onto the screen and sent it to him. His eyes widened slightly before he could hide it. Gotcha. He knew how precious those bottles were.

  “Not interested,” he drawled, taking a deep puff of his cigar. “I told ya to piss off. If ya don’t, I’ll send a little torpedo your way.”

  “Okay, we’ll leave then. And drink that lovely whisky. My boys have been looking forward to it. Actually, they don’t even want their mate back. After one taste of the Scotch, they all but forgot about him.”

  “And why shouldn’t we just hijack your ship and take it without bargaining?”

  “Well, we might be a small vessel but we have the latest weapons. I dare you to try.”

  My bluff was so obvious that I was surprised Redbeard didn’t just switch off the vidlink. I would have certainly done so in his position.

  “What’s that guy’s name again?”

  I smiled inside. “Birch. He was taken from us only a few hours ago, so he should be easy to find.”

  Redbeard turned to one of the people around him. “Find that Britch guy.”

  “Birch,” I corrected. “Like the tree.”

  “Ya got a crewmate named after a tree? This is getting more peculiar by the minute.”

  I didn’t tell him that in fact all four of my colleagues were named after trees. He didn’t need to know that rather embarrassing fact. No idea if that was a
coincidence or whether my father had consciously chosen them to be on my ship. Not that it had been my ship when I started this mission. But now that L was dead, it was mine, and I was going to look after my crew the best I could.

  “Found him,” someone said and a moment later, a half-conscious Birch was dragged in front of the camera. “That him?”

  “Yes,” I hissed. “And if you even harm a single hair on him, you will meet my wrath.”

  Redbeard laughed again, but this time it was a little less arrogant. “We’ll put him in a shuttle as soon as ya send the whisky.”

  “No way. I’ll send you the bottles as soon as Birch is safe on my ship.”

  “Why should we trust you?”

  “I’m not a pirate. That’s why.”

  He thought for a moment. “Good reason. We’ll send him up now.”

  Birch was dragged out of the picture again and my heart beat a little faster at seeing a small trickle of blood on his forehead.

  “Cedar, get the med bay ready. We might need it. Rowan, head to the shuttle bay. I’ll join you there in a moment. Hain, get those bottles out of storage and put them into one of those autonomous little rockets you like to play with.”

  He looked a little ashamed that I knew about his hobby. He didn’t realise that I had long since hacked into the camera in the guys’ living quarters. Just because I had my own rooms due to being of the opposite sex, didn’t mean I wanted to miss out on their banter. And by the stars, the banter was definitely interesting. With L restricting our privileges on the holotables, watching the four of them was the only reality show I could stream on my screen. Shame I only managed to get a visual on the common areas. I could only imagine what went on behind closed doors.

  The image of L helping herself to one of my men flashed through my mind and I shuddered. On second thought, I rather not imagine it.

  “A shuttle left Slaver’s Bay,” Cedar announced, reminding me this was not the right time to be thinking about what they did in their private quarters. What I could be doing in their private quarters. Or what they could be doing in… Stop it, Luce!