Finn was taken completely by surprise. “Um.”
The cabin fell utterly silent, all eyes were on the pair.
Julie cleared her throat. “Psst. The answer you're looking for sounds something like; 'why, be my guest.' or 'not at all!' or even; 'my rack is your rack.'”
Ashley didn't wait for an answer, she just rolled over, crushed her back into Finn's chest and pulled his arm over her shoulder. “It's not like that, Cynthia is snoring so loud the cabin's about to implode. Besides, as you can see I'm still wearing my vacsuit.”
“Suuuure!” Came the jeer from above as Douglas smiled and nodded. “Just keep it down when the lights go out.”
“Anyway, about the Captain's mood; he was about to join Stephanie below. They finished their sweep of the hauler and were just getting ready to check the cargo manifest.”
“Did he say what it was?” Asked Vera.
Ashley hesitated a moment before answering. “It's military, I know that much.”
“What, like munitions for the front kind of thing?” Julie prodded.
“That would have come up on passive scanners,” Finn pointed out. “What I saw was very dense but there were a lot of open spaces between. It didn't have a profile I recognized at a glance, but it wasn't weaponry I don't think. Not exclusively anyway.”
“Well, I shouldn't say more than I have already, but I know for sure that it has something to do with Vindyne tech.”
“Like the stasis pods on the slave train?” Asked Agameg.
“Uh-huh.”
“But there were no biological readings. It must be heavy equipment or something,” Finn added.
“That might explain why it took us eight days in hyperspace and extra time to set up. He's cherry picking,” Douglas said. “It must be a pretty good haul. I smell bonus.”
“I wouldn't assume extra profit,” Agameg replied. He looked much more relaxed. “When we entered the cargo train and saw all those Vindyne stasis pods Captain Valance had a very strong reaction. I would assume he has personal business involving Vindyne. Perhaps they are a subsidiary of Regent Galactic.”
“Well, I've heard a lot about the privateering days from Stephanie. Enough to know that big equipment means a big payday. Either way, we'll find out what's in those containers or we won't. It's not our job to know everything. Besides, I trust Captain's judgement. If we don't need to know, we don't need to know,” Ashley concluded sleepily.
The conversation came to a gentle stop just then. No one was willing to argue that point with her.
Spoils
“How's the Samson Captain?” Stephanie asked as she met Jake in the cargo train management center. It was more elaborate than the one aboard the Vesuvius. Made for longer trains with more mass and complex systems, there was a control ring with positions for two crewmembers. The ring included several control panels and displayed the general status of the interior and exterior of the cargo train through two large holograms.
As ordered Stephanie had only checked the general status so they knew they wouldn't have any problems hauling the cargo off into hyperspace.
“The Samson will survive, as usual. We got away with three small holes, one really big hole. We lost five crew all told, four of them were new.”
“It could have been worse. Do I know the seasoned crewman we lost?”
“It was Feretti.”
“Ah, I don't think they'll miss him in the berth. I hear he stunk the place up pretty bad.”
“He kept his section in pretty good shape. I'm getting tired of training new people,” Jake said as he stepped into the center of the control system and turned the main console on.
“Captain, I've got to know, why so tight lipped about this haul?”
“You know it's Vindyne military gear.”
“Yes, but there's a lot more to it. I've never seen you go through so much trouble verifying a capture. We went almost two weeks out of our way.”
“When there was a much easier capture just a day away.”
“An unarmed hauler, right.”
“Well, for one, this hauler doesn't carry supplies,” he said casually as he brought up the holographic display of the cargo. “These are Marauder class Corvettes. This train contains thirty.”
Stephanie looked at the three meter long hologram of the cargo train outside of the command ring. She couldn't believe her eyes. “They were transporting warships? Why not just fly them individually?”
“When Regent Galactic bought parts of Vindyne they didn't arrange for crews on each vessel. That area of space is in chaos, there are power vacuums everywhere. It's worse than war in that area of space, dozens of solar systems are collapsing. Getting a trustworthy crew together is pretty hard.”
“So they crew one armed hauler and hide the corvettes inside. You're right Captain, this is worth a fortune. You're going to be a hero all over again.”
“That's the plan but whoever crews these won't be thanking me. Aside from solid shielding and an easy to clean interior these ships are cheaply made, cramped and slow.”
“You've served on one sir?”
“I don't know, but I remember them somehow. I can't stand the look of them, but they're familiar. The manifest says these ships were sold as is, so I'm hoping Vindyne didn't get a chance to wipe their databases.”
“What are you looking for?”
“Any records referring to the First Light or her Captain. Oomal said she met me at Zingara station before I started captaining the Samson. That's right inside Vindyne space. I might have friends out there, allies.”
“Maybe a ship?”
“I'm not getting my hopes up. Whatever happened to me was severe. It might have been so bad that I don't want to remember.”
“But you need to know.”
“Exactly, and if anyone knows how I could find my daughter or what she's running from, it would be other people from my past.”
“And in the meantime this privateering is going to make you so popular that she'll know exactly where to meet you.”
“Right. Those are my plans. As for the crew, I think they have one hell of a bonus coming. Just don't inform them yet. I don't know what our allies can afford to pay for these.”
“Did you ever think of taking one? The Samson's a great ship for her size, but she's ageing and we've been going after some serious targets.”
“I don't know why exactly, but even though I know there's good technology aboard, I don't trust these Marauders. I get this mental image of hull plating that's just a couple centimetres thick under all that energy shielding,” he shuddered and started the computer core activation sequence on the Marauder Corvettes. “One big EMP and you're left with nothing but a flimsy hull.”
“Right, in that case forget I asked. No wonder Vindyne fell apart.”
“That won't stop me from stealing several power amplifiers and materializers. That'll have to wait for tomorrow, it'll take nine hours for the computer cores to finish loading up. They're completely cold.”
Just Visiting
The Blue Skipper was built around a very old fashioned concept. The designers had made the ship so it had as much cargo space as possible within a one hundred fifty meter long frame. The vessel was made to carry relatively small amounts of precious cargo, not to haul a long train of containers even though it did have the standard hookups as an afterthought. The hull was shaped as though it was made of large square blocks. The six engines had been retracted so the ship could fit into the landing bay, they were the only round parts to the vessel.
The bulky appearance and grey hull suited her owner perfectly. Bruce wasn't a complicated man, and he believed in the merits of dedication, hard work and little else.
One huge armour plate had been removed from the lower port side engine and Alice could hear someone rattling around inside as she approached. She hesitated for a long moment.
“You've come all this way. No backing out now,” Lewis coaxed through her subdermal communicator.
“Not
now Lewis,” she replied mentally. It was her memory of him, the quiet times they spent together and the life she enjoyed with him for just a few months. Ara Enormis wasn't a place she'd choose to call home, but in a short time she had made friends there, found acceptance, had even played the hero once when raiders went after a large convoy and she drove them off. Alice had also fallen in love.
Bruce's head came up out of the engine compartment. His blond brow was furrowed, his shoulder length wavy hair was a mess and he was stripped to the waist. He was frustrated with whatever difficulties he was having down there. At first he didn't notice her, then she stepped forward.
He noticed her, his grey blue eyes looked her up and down then locked with hers. For a moment he still looked irritated. Before long his expression softened. “Sasha?” He asked quietly.
She nodded and took a few more tentative steps forward. “My real name is Alice.”
He pulled himself out of the engine compartment, took three long steps and caught her up in his arms. “I know,” he said quietly as he held her to him. “I missed you.” He was a large man, two and a quarter meters and still had the thickly muscled build of a colonist farmhand.
“I'm sorry I had to leave the way I did,” She pressed her head against his chest. How could she have thought he would be anything but kind to her?
“I understand. They got to me, put me away for a few weeks but turned me out when their machines told them I didn't know anything. I wouldn't have told them anything if I did.”
“I wish I could have warned you, told you to run. I was so worried but I couldn't look back.”
He turned her face up to look at him with a finger under her chin and gently wiped a tear away. “Hey, ease up. Everyone's fine here,” he whispered before kissing her slowly. Long moments later he picked her up and walked her straight up the entranceway ramp.
This wasn't anywhere near the reception she expected. “Didn't get married while I was away?” She asked, nibbling his earlobe.
“You're a hard act to follow. Haven't had so much as a weekender.”
“So you're just going to drag me to your cabin and have your way?” She teased, slowly drawing her finger down the center of her vacsuit, opening a slit down to her navel.
He took the bare metal staircase leading up to the berth three at a time. “Yup, might just keep you locked in there for a while. Don't want you getting away too soon.”
Alice feigned an exaggerated expression of shock and squirmed a little, his arms tightened around her knees and shoulders in response. “Oh no! What will I have to do to win my freedom?”
Bruce laughed as he stepped through the doorway to his quarters. “We're about to find out.”
Happy Landings
Ashley stood in front of the new materializer. It was her first time using one made primarily for dispensing food. The machine was smaller than the other dispensers in the galley, but according to Finn it was just like the expensive ones fast food places used. The Captain had one built into his command unit, he had loaned it to her a few times to make vacsuits for herself, but it couldn't do food very well. She had secretly tried.
“One serving apple sauce,” she ordered. It listed what she had requested on a small screen with various pictures showing different varieties. She selected one and it appeared a moment later. In one swift motion the spoon went into the sauce and then her mouth. “It tastes so real,” she whispered to herself as she savoured it.
Looking around to make sure the galley was still empty she put the small bowl on the table and looked back at the materializer. “Peach sauce,” she ordered quietly. The screen displayed only two varieties and after she selected one it appeared in a similar bowl. She picked it up and smelled it. “Oh my God, Vindyne employees ate like kings.”
Putting it down, she giggled and looked at the materializer. “Okay, now let's try something a little more interesting. Banana cream with chocolate sprinkles in one bowl with a larger bowl on the side,” her eyes went wide as the built in computer concocted an image on the screen that depicted what she was looking for. Ashley selected it and a moment later she carefully took it out of the machine.
With great care and precision she poured the apple sauce and peach into the larger, empty bowl simultaneously so they were each taking up half the space then she transferred the fluffy banana cream on top. She just stared at it for a moment, holding her spoon at the ready.
“Having a late snack?” Stephanie asked as she walked into the galley.
“Couldn't sleep anymore, kept thinking about the magic food machine.”
“You know this thing can make a pair of boots in a few minutes just as easily as it can churn out chow,” Stephanie said as she took a spoon from the cup on the counter and made to join in on Ashley's snack.
“Oh no you don't! I created it, I'll eat it!” she called out, holding her spoon up like a weapon.
Stephanie laughed and shook her head. “What is it anyway?”
“Peach sauce on one side, apple on the other, banana cream with sprinkles on top,” Ashley said as she took her first spoonful of apple sauce and cream. She rolled her eyes and sighed after a moment, enjoying her creation.
Stephanie thought for a moment and snapped her fingers. “Hot chocolate pudding cake,” she said to the machine. “With whip cream,” she finalized her selection and it appeared, steaming in an insulated bowl.
Ashley eyed the fragrant desert as Stephanie took a seat at the table. “I've never seen that before.”
“It takes hours to make from scratch.”
She slowly inched her spoon towards Stephanie's bowl. “Can I try just a little-”
“Is your spoon-fu good enough? This is a test you should not undertake I think.” Stephanie said as she took an exaggerated defensive posture with her spoon.
“Fine, I'll just try it next time,” Ashley pouted. “I shouldn't have more than one desert a day anyway. Regular fitness supplements only do so much in regular doses.”
“You've got that right. This pudding is going straight to my hips. Especially if we spend this much time in hyperspace between jobs.” She took a bite of steaming cake and pudding. “Then again, we could always have this machine add all our nutritional and physical maintenance supplements to deserts.”
Ashley's eyes lit up. “Nooo, you're kidding right?”
“Nope, too many alterations change the flavour though. We could experiment.”
Finn walked into the galley, glanced at the two women and their deserts then stopped at the materializer. “Chocolate flavoured meal replacement bar, eight ounces.” After a moment it appeared and he sat down.
Ashley and Stephanie just stared at him silently.
“What?” He asked around a bite of his snack.
“You could order any of twenty thousand dishes and you get an energy bar?” Stephanie asked.
“It's breakfast. We're coming out of hyperspace soon.”
Ashley checked the time on her small wrist computer and boggled for a moment. “You're right, it's a lot later than I thought.”
“You mean earlier. It's oh-four hundred.”
“Still night time,” she retorted as she slowly scooped a spoon full of peach and cream.
“Only if you're on certain worlds. Local clocks are all different than Coreworld Time,” Stephanie added.
“I still think it's night time. They call it night watch anyway.”
The three ate their snacks quietly, Finn and Stephanie enjoying foods they hadn't had in a long time and Ashley savouring something that she had only dreamt of.
When Finn finished his bar he ordered another and made his way to the bridge. Captain Valance was already there, looking over a hologram of a silver hulled ship doing combat with a carrier twice its size. It looked like a sleek antique vessel attacking a modern killing machine, only the antique was winning in brutal fashion.
“Good morning,” Finn said as he handed the meal replacement bar to him.
“It's still night cycle,” h
e replied as he rotated the combat scenario viewpoint.
“I've never seen a ship like that before, what's it called?” Asked Finn.
“The First Light. The database we stole from those old ships we're hauling says it's called the Sunspire now.”
“Looks like it's tearing that carrier to shreds, none of her fighters have a chance either.” The losing ship exploded outward from the center.
Jake stopped the playback and zoomed in to the impact area. “They must have thrown a couple hundred kilograms of antimatter at this thing along with God knows what else. Headed straight on as well, no fear or hesitation in the tactical approach.”
“That hull might be pretty thick, I hear they were paranoid when they built some of the long range ships a couple hundred years ago.”
“Sudden decompression is something everyone avoids however they can. I just can't believe what this database is telling me,” Jake said quietly, Finn could barely hear him.
“What's that sir?” Finn asked as he checked the ship's status.
Captain Valance sat quietly looking at the profile of the silver ship in front of him. Just when Finn thought Jake wasn't going to answer he chuckled and went on. “Apparently I Captained this ship. There was a ridiculous bounty on my head and in the database I'm still marked as being in custody. Vindyne had it out for me and it looks like I was caught.”
Stephanie and Ashley came through the bridge doorway then and judging from their expressions they had heard the Captain's last statement.
He went on. “I was the Captain of a long range Freeground destroyer. That explains my military experience. I think I know how to call home,” he said quietly. “Too bad it would take over two months for any message to get there.”
“Two months?” Ashley asked, shaking her head as she settled into the pilot's station.
“Unless I get something through the high priority Newsnets, then it might be a little over a week.”
“Expensive,” Stephanie said as she started sending wake alarms to several crew members through the communications station, starting with Cynthia. “I know it would cost my entire savings to send a short encrypted burst.”
Awakening sf-2 Page 7
