Into the Dark (Dark Universe Book 1)

by Jason Halstead

  Meshelle was there, but that’s where Aden’s biggest surprise came from. She manned the weapons console on the bridge. Someone else was in the captain’s chair—another female Vagnosian, but Aden hadn’t had a chance to do much more than hear her give orders to the crew.

  The door chirped next to him, signaling someone wanted entrance. He turned the ponderous suit and shifted his gun up, signaling the targeting reticle to flash into existence. Amber turned with him, moving easier in her suit, and waited for the door to slide open and reveal Fluvulis.

  “Get a suit on,” Meshelle snapped. “The Uma’s a small ship and if something happens that causes a decent hull breach, you’ll be sucked inside out before the emergency bulkheads can seal the breached area.”

  The captain turned to face him. “My sister’s right. And I don’t take kindly to visitors on the bridge. What’s your purpose here?”

  Fluvulis ignored their warnings and moved forward on his tentacles. “The alarm sounded. Are we under attack already?”

  “Already?” the captain asked. She glanced at Meshelle. “This is expected?”

  “We’ve got a Dresden light transport inbound for us that refuses to answer comms. They’re blocking our scans but the optical recognition systems have picked up modifications to their ship, including multiple weapon systems.”

  “A Dresden?” Fluvulis said while one tentacle rose up to trace circles on the side of his head. “I recommend running.”

  “Our black box is still charging or calculating or doing whatever it is they do,” the captain said. “How about you tell me why we should run?”

  The Kesari moved forward some more and pointed one tentacle at the holographic image floating above Meshelle’s console. “My people are providers. We come across all manner of devices and equipment for the civilized races of the universe to use. That particular one looks like a nova cannon. Short range, but very dangerous.”

  Meshelle turned to stare at the three-dimensional model. She rotated it and cursed as she saw the weapon mounted under the nose of the approaching ship. “Janna, he’s right. At current velocities, we have ninety-seven seconds until maximum range.”

  Janna, the captain, slapped the arm of her chair. “Chuck! How long on the FTL?”

  After a sphincter clenching silence of several seconds, the Argossian’s deep voice came across the ship’s speakers. “These don’t come with reliable display systems, Captain. My guess is two minutes, but that’s plus or minus a lot.”

  Janna turned to Meshelle. “Mass drivers. Hit them now.”

  “Long range for mass drivers,” Meshelle argued. “They’ll have time to evade.”

  “Do it!” Janna snapped and turned to the Lermian. “Wherever they go, we go the opposite way. Full burn.”

  “Yes, Captain,” he responded and began to slide his hands across his console.

  Meshelle did likewise, though Aden could see through the clear mask of her helmet she wasn’t happy about it. A few more precious seconds passed until she announced, “Mass drivers away. Reloading. Ready in three, two—”

  “Kessoc, as soon as they deviate, you go the opposite way,” Janna snapped.

  “Firing,” Meshelle announced. “Reloading. Do you want me to keep wasting ammo?”

  “Captain, they’re not deviating.”

  “Firing,” Meshelle growled again. “Twelve seconds to maximum range.”

  Janna swore. “Evade!” she snapped. “Get us away!”

  Aden reached out a hand to the wall, fearing the worst. His action was unnecessary; the artificial gravity in the ship compensated for the thrusters. He counted down in his head as the view through the armored windows changed and they began speeding away from the threatening ship.

  He reached the two-second mark in his head when Twyf let out a shrill yelp. “Enemy ship is changing course! They’re venting too. Power readings are up and down. You hit ’em good, boss!”

  Aden looked at Janna and Meshelle, trying to figure out who was who.

  “Bring us back around and we’ll finish them off,” Meshelle said. “We can salvage the wreckage.”

  Twyf held out one hand for silence and then said, “I’m reading multiple contacts leaving the station. Their system scans must have picked this up.”

  “Self-defense!” Meshelle growled.

  “We fired first,” Janna said.

  “Captain.” Chuck’s voice came over the speakers. “We’re charged up and ready to go.”

  Janna sighed. “Kessoc, get us out of here.”

  Meshelle clenched her fist on top of her console but turned away. She looked at the Kesari and pointed a finger at him. “You know more than you’re saying.”

  His small mouth twisted in a parody of a smile. “Yes, but you’re being paid enough to look past it.”

  Meshelle faced him a moment longer and then spun away and stomped out the door of the bridge. Aden watched the door slide shut and turned to look at Amber. She shook her head inside her helmet, warning him to stay quiet.

  He turned back and watched as the stars in the windows shimmered and then disappeared. The black box had been engaged and they were heading through space so fast not even light could keep up with them.

  Chapter 6

  Aden waited for Amber to move, but she remained as solid as a rock. They might as well have been rocks for all the mobility the suit he was in gave him. He turned his head inside his helmet enough to see Janna pop her helmet off and lower it to her lap. She reached up and then scowled when she realized her hand was still in her suit.

  The Vagnosian stood and worked the release on her suit. It split open in the front from her neck down to her waist, letting her slide it off and kick it to the side. Her dark caramel-colored skin was lighter than her sister’s but the black serpentine tendrils on her head swayed with the same agitated movement. She wore dark red shorts that left her legs exposed halfway down her thighs and a loose-fitting one shoulder top. Her shoulders and arms were bare save for the bracelet she wore that Aden suspected was full of electronic surprises.

  She turned to look at Fluvulis and jerked her head towards the door. “Amber, escort our guest off the bridge.”

  Amber stiffened and clanked her metal heel against the deck. She turned sideways until Fluvulis wiggled two tentacles in the air and used the other ten to move across the floor. He passed by the human guards and out the door as it slid open automatically.

  After Amber walked out behind him and the door shut, Janna turned her gaze on Aden. She tilted her head as she studied him in his borrowed suit. Her tendrils rose and swayed, not as agitated as before but conveying interest instead. “Terran, remove your helmet.”

  Aden secured his rifle to his back and reached up to twist the helmet free. He lowered it in one hand and offered her a quick smile. “Aden, Captain. My name is Aden.”

  “I hear you’re one step up from a stowaway.”

  Aden’s smile faded. “I’ll do whatever it takes to prove myself, Ma’am.”

  She tilted her head again and smirked. “You want to impress my sister—you need to prove you’re as tough as she is. Don’t go for tougher—she’ll have to kill you then.”

  “Captain?”

  She nodded. “You’re cute, for a Terran. Keep your nose clean and do a good job and who knows what might happen. I’ve been thinking about adding my own security officer to the Uma’s crew.”

  “Um, yes, Ma’am,” Aden stammered. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  She nodded. “Bridge time’s over. I’ll see you around. Good luck.”

  “Thanks,” Aden mumbled before he turned and walked out of the bridge. He walked in the heavy suit until the door slid shut behind him. Once he was alone, he slowed and let out a deep breath. He shook his head and shuffled down the hall towards the lift that would take him down to the main level.

  “What have I gotten myself into?” he muttered on his way into the armory. He froze and stared. Meshelle was stripping out of her armor and had her back to him.
He turned, wondering if he could slip away before she noticed.

  “What did she say to you?”

  Aden jerked his head back and stared at her. He closed his mouth and swallowed. Playing stupid wouldn’t do him any good and he knew it. Vagnosians were known to be shrewd, cunning, and very competitive. He walked into the room and said, “She told me I had to prove myself to earn your favor. And that I better not be too good or you’d kill me.”

  Meshelle turned and stared at him. Her tentacles of hair rose up and then settled down. “What else did she offer?”

  “Offer?”

  Her dark nostrils flared. “Don’t play coy with me, Terran.”

  Aden shook his head. “Sorry, I’m not. I mean, I wasn’t trying to. She told me that if I kept my nose clean she was thinking about adding a security officer to her crew.”

  Meshelle’s hair rose as she spat out a stream of words in her own language. Aden knew better than to ask what she was saying. She bent over and grabbed the legs of her suit so she could slam them into the locker. She did the same with the top of her suit and turned back to glare at him. “What else?”

  “Ma’am?”

  She grabbed her boots and slid her feet in them before looking up at him. “Did she try anything else? I know her. She’s younger and faster and smarter than me. She wouldn’t stop with that. Was it sex?”

  Aden choked and wished desperately for an asteroid to slam into the ship and kill him. “No!” he gasped. “I mean, she said I was cute, for a human, but she didn’t do any more.”

  Meshelle snarled. “She planted a seed. Tell me, Terran, have you ever mated with a Vagnosian?”

  Aden shook his head. “I’ve, uh, never had the pleasure.”

  “Our races are compatible enough. We can’t breed, but we can have sex,” she said. “Quite compatible. Your men are larger and not so obedient as mine. Stronger and more energetic. Many Vagnosian women go out of their way to have a Terran consort.”

  Aden groaned and shook his head. “I’m, uh—I’ve heard that. Seen it, I guess. I’ve worked security at a few cantinas and we get all sorts of people there.”

  She snorted and walked up to him. She stopped in front of him and slapped her palm against his armored crotch. “Keep this away from her,” she hissed. “I don’t want it, and she only wants it because she thinks it will upset me.”

  Aden glanced down and then back up. He could barely feel the pressure against his privates. “What? Why?”

  “We’re sisters.” Meshelle snorted and let him go. She stepped around him and walked towards the door. “What more reason does she need?”

  Aden turned to watch her but he only managed to see the heel of her boot as she rounded the corner and walked down the hall. He shook his head again and sighed. Amber had brought him here, and then he’d seen an amazing Tassarian who had flirted with him. Now two Vagnosian women, and sisters at that.

  “I just wanted to play with my gun,” Aden lamented. He laughed after the words came out. At the rate he was going, he’d be the only one playing with his gun!

  Chapter 7

  Aden studied the weapons arrayed before him on the table. He let out his breath and pointed at the first one on the left. “Okay, that’s the HAM Thrower, two missiles in the magazine, one in the tube. Next is the Kagra Assault Cannon with the eight-shot drum of eighteen millimeter rockets. Then the Alaska sniping rifle, Colson CAW, and Betari Suppressor. On the right we’ve got the Pyros Arms heat gun, my Cern Security Standard pistol, and the Ticotti Needler pistol for soft targets.”

  Amber glanced at Garf and then back at him. “Good. What about my pistol?”

  He studied the sidearm on her hip as she twisted to let him see it. “Predator anti-armor,” he said. “That’s big enough to put a hole in the hull!”

  Garf chuckled. “Not the Uma’s hull.”

  Aden frowned. “This yacht’s been modified that much?”

  “Evolved through a series of overhauls,” Amber said. “It keeps getting tougher, but that’s how we learned to suit up whenever we might be in danger.”

  Aden nodded and then glanced back at the gear on the table. It was only about half of the equipment contained in the armory and didn’t include the grenades, auto-turrets, and other equipment. “I can’t believe you’ve got weaponry like this. You could pose a serious threat to a station. Nobody ever searches your ship?”

  Garf snorted. “This ship is registered as Vagnosian; that makes it protected under interstellar law. They would need a very convincing reason to justify a search, and anything less than a major crime would still need evidence provided to the Vagnosian government and their approval.”

  Amber nodded at the Devikian’s explanation. “Besides, we play nice. Mostly. People don’t hire us to do anything stupid; they have their asses covered. And Meshelle and Janna both make damn sure our asses are covered too, so nothing comes back on us.”

  “About them—”

  Garf slapped his hand on the table and shook his head. “Don’t even try,” he warned. “Two of them been going at it as long as I known them, and I been working with Meshelle for almost ten cycles now. I was her first hire.”

  “No you weren’t,” Amber snapped. “You were her third.”

  “Them other two are dead,” he huffed. “That gives me seniority.”

  Amber rolled her eyes. “We’ve been rushed. Have you met everyone yet?”

  Aden ticked off names on his fingers. “Meshelle, Janna, Amber, Garf, Chuck, Twyf, Tosc, Kessoc, and the Kesari. Is that it?”

  “Seph?” Garf asked.

  Amber nodded. “Seph is Twyf’s podling.”

  Aden had to dig deep to remember how the Tassarians were born in pods that contained up to six tadpole-like newborns. They lived the first few months of their lives in water until they grew and changed into their adolescent, and air-breathing, forms. “Podling? Oh, sister. Right.” No, I haven’t met her. I know sometimes Tassarian podlings have different colors, does she? What’s she do?”

  "Good guess, Seph has pale blue skin," Amber answered. “And she does just about everything.”

  “Everything, or everyone?” Garf asked with a chuckle.

  Amber smirked. “Yes, sometimes that’s her job too.”

  “Am I missing something?” Aden wondered. “You make her sound like a—”

  “She’s our intelligence officer,” Amber said. “And being a Tassarian, she has special talents when it comes to information.”

  Garf laughed again.

  “I see,” Aden lied. He had an idea what she meant, but he wasn’t quite sure. If she was anything like her sister—and being Tassarian meant she probably was—she would have no trouble catching any man’s eye.

  “Let’s stow this gear,” Garf said. “Grab the heavy stuff first, bare-skin.”

  Aden jerked and glanced down at his arm. He had hair on his skin but nothing compared to the fur-covered Devikian. He scowled and turned to reach for the portable missile launcher when Kessoc’s voice sounded over the ship’s speakers.

  “Dropping to subluminal in ten seconds, nine—”

  “Shit! Way to give us some warning,” Amber snarled.

  Kessoc continued, oblivious of her complaint. “Eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. Standby!”

  “Warning for what?” Aden asked.

  “For trouble,” Amber snapped. She’d moved to her locker and was pulling her armor out. “Damn it! I hate wearing this shit with my clothes on!”

  Aden turned and saw Garf was working on his locker too, though without the haste and excitement of the Terran woman. “You always expect trouble when you come out of superluminal?”

  “We’ll get the notice if we need to worry,” Garf said. “Good to be standing by, though; the boss appreciates that.”

  Aden turned back to Amber. “Wait, so you’re still putting that shit on?”

  “Mercs, meet me in the bow lounge on the zero!” Meshelle’s voice snapped over the speakers.

 
Amber stopped and looked down at her suit. She had one leg in and was trying to shove the baggy leg of her pants into it. “Fuck,” she muttered and dropped it. She kicked it back into her locker and turned. “Come on,” she grumbled.

  Aden filed out behind her. They made their way down the hall that ran the length of the yacht and passed through the galley. On either side, hallways led to the left and right, each ending at the port and starboard engine rooms respectively. Farther up, the main hall intersected with passages leading to staterooms along the outer hull. Ahead, doors lined the hall opening into smaller crew quarters. At the end of the hall, a door slid open, allowing them into the bow lounge, complete with windows that opened up to the solar system they’d just entered.

  Aden stared out the window, trying to find constellations he could identify. Not only was nothing familiar, but a band of darkness stretched across the horizon, blotting out most of the stars. He frowned even as he moved out of the way of the door and towards the windows on his right. He turned to ask and saw Meshelle enter behind him with Tosc and a pale blue Tassarian in tow.

  Meshelle looked around, her eyes landing on each person and then passing on. She nodded to no one and said, “There’s a lot of debris in this system, so everyone suits up when we get in closer to the asteroids. Our target is in the rock cloud, a bigger rock than most of them. We’ll take the shuttle and hope nothing hits us.”

  “Sounds like fun,” Tosc muttered.

  Her hair slithered in response to him but she kept her eyes moving. “When we dropped in, Twyf saw a blip of another ship, but it disappeared before she could hit it with another scan.”

  “Malfunction?” Garf growled.

  “Might have ducked into the rocks,” Amber suggested.

  “Or it might have cloaked,” Seph offered. She shuddered and hugged her arms across her figure-hugging black halter top.