by Isaac Hooke
“Well, first of all, they wouldn’t do that to a VIP client such as yourself,” Rade said. “And second of all, yes, the VR porn helps. But tell me, how does Algorithm feel about the whole thing?”
“About being my host?” Surus said. “He has been very accommodating. Though it is fairly uncomfortable to have another entity take control of one’s body, as you can probably imagine, he is happy to play whatever role he can, at least until we recover Ms. Bounty, or I otherwise transfer to a new host.”
Rade stared at her for a few moments, unsure of how to tell her what was on his mind. And then he simply blurted it out: “I came here to offer you my face. You never did get your chance to slap me.” He turned one cheek toward her and braced himself for the painful blow he knew was coming. He just hoped she didn’t shatter his cheekbone or jaw.
“That won’t be necessary,” Surus said. “I’ve changed my mind. You betrayed me only to save your crew and... your children. Then after, you went ahead and risked your life to rescue me. I was also touched by what you did for Harlequin. You could have let most of his body float into the intense plasma from the sun, and yet you went out there on the ramp and grabbed hold of him. A lesser man would have done none of these things. So, I could not rightly hurt you for performing these good deeds. Instead, I can only reiterate my thanks to you.”
“Well, you’re welcome,” Rade said, feeling uncomfortable about being cast as a hero. “I saved you because I had to, of course. You are my client, and I need the money.”
“If I had a mouth, I would be grinning now,” Surus said. “Because you and I both know you did not rescue me for the money.”
Rade put on his best scowl. “You think you know me, Green?”
“I know you well enough,” Surus said. “And I know what you did was out of honor. You are a man of your word, Rade Galaal. I am glad to count you as my ally. And my friend.”
Rade pursed his lips, saying nothing for several moments. Then: “Well, I gotta get back to the bridge. I have a ship to run, you know. Let me know if you need anything.”
She spoke when the hatch opened and he stepped under the threshold.
“There is one thing,” Surus said.
Rade glanced over his shoulder. “Name it.”
“I will need access to the 3D printers,” Surus said. “To begin construction of a new weapon.”
Rade couldn’t help a wicked grin. “It’s yours.”
twenty-two
Because of the Argonaut’s reduced speed, Falon’s ship remained a full day ahead; the three additional craft rendezvoused with it shortly after the vessel rounded the sun, and all four enemies proceeded toward the Gate as a single unit.
“Why aren’t they trying to slow us down?” Tahoe asked one time when Rade was on the bridge. “They could send one or two of those Corsairs to intercept us.”
“They could,” Rade agreed. “But we’d be in full view of the authorities. Any attack now would only attract the attention of the system’s police and military vessels. The customs officials might not let the remaining ships pass the Gate after such an incident either, especially if the authorities conclude our attackers were in their employ.”
“Good point,” Tahoe said. “I wonder if they’ll attack in the adjacent system, then.”
“According to the Argonaut’s database, the Gate opens into Zambian territory,” Rade said. “It’s essentially a satellite system: there isn’t much of a military presence. There is a dome colony on a planet, and a couple of Zambian corvettes in orbit. And that’s about it. There is another Slipstream, but it doesn’t currently have a Gate, so there’s no leaving once they enter.”
“No Zambian customs ships are waiting on the other side of the Gate?” Tahoe asked.
“The records indicate there are,” Rade said. “So that means another two corvettes, for a total of four in the system. There are no other authorities present. And by the way, the Gate is relatively close to the planet that contains the dome colony. We’re talking twenty-three hours away, at the speed the enemy is traveling.”
“I don’t like it,” Tahoe said, extending a noise canceler around Rade to talk privately. “Those Corsairs could easily handle the four corvettes, especially if they catch them by surprise. Here’s how it could go down: they leave one ship by the Gate, feigning engine troubles. Send the other two to the planet, and open fire when the corvettes in orbit least expect it. Meanwhile, the ship staying behind at the Gate fires simultaneously, disabling the customs vessels. They hack the node probes so that the attack isn’t reported over the InterGalNet. Then when we arrive, they take us down without any problems whatsoever.”
“That’s certainly one possible scenario,” Rade said.
“It certainly is,” Tahoe said. “So what’s the plan? We continue to follow them?”
Rade nodded. “That’s right.”
“And what do we do when we reach the Gate?” Tahoe asked.
“All we can do,” Rade said. “We pass through in material condition ZEBRA, with hatches and scuttles sealed, and weapons ready to fire. Missiles, anyway.”
“You have family on board,” Tahoe stated.
“I know,” Rade said.
“Are you sure about this?” Tahoe said. “Maybe we should stop at a station somewhere and drop off the twins at the very least? Somewhere far away from that free port.”
“We could,” Rade said. “But the key term is far away. We’d lose valuable time flying to any station like that. No, Tahoe, we have to proceed.”
“We could just call in the big guns, and let the United Systems know what is going on here,” Tahoe said.
“And what do we tell them?” Rade said. “That our former allies have turned on us? We have no proof. Sure, we can tell them that they tried to trap one of their own, but that only shows they’re quarreling amongst themselves. We have to find out what these Greens are up to, and what they’re planning to do with the Acceptor.”
“Even if it means losing everything?” Tahoe said.
“Since when did you replace Fret as the negative one?” Rade said. “As far as we know, at the moment, the enemy is simply running.”
“But like you said, there is no exit Gate in that system,” Tahoe said. “We’ll have backed the enemy into a corner. Do you remember what you once told me, many years ago when we first met? Back a scared man into a corner, and you’ve got a fight on your hands. Back two scared men into a corner, and you’ve got yourself a war.”
Rade nodded slowly. “We may have a little bit of a fight, yes. But as I said, we need evidence that the Greens are up to no good before we can call in the big guns.”
THE ENEMY SHIPS passed through the Gate a few days later and vanished.
As the Argonaut approached the Slipstream twenty-four hours after that, Rade took his seat on the bridge.
“Lui, what do we have out there?” Rade said.
“Two Dakota customs corvettes are waiting on this side of the Gate,” Lui said.
“Fret, request instructions from customs,” Rade said.
Fret’s mouth moved, but Rade couldn’t hear him as the comm man had activated a noise canceler around his station.
A moment later Fret looked up, repealed his canceler, and said: “They’re telling us to proceed through the Gate.”
“Just like that?” Rade said. “Well that’s handy.”
“Though a little suspicious,” Tahoe said.
“True,” Rade replied. “Fret, inform them we’re launching a telemetry drone for safety reasons. Shaw, full stop. Lui, send a drone through, and turn it back immediately.”
The drone released and vanished through the Slipstream.
“The customs officials are ordering us to proceed,” Fret said. “A little angrily. They say we’re violating every Gate traversal protocol in the book.”
“Stall them,” Rade said.
The drone returned a moment later. “So what do we have?” Rade asked.
“Two Zambian customs vessels await
just beyond the exit Gate,” Lui said. “Everything otherwise seems normal in the system. I’m reading the two corvettes above the nearby colony. There are no signs of the four enemies. I’m guessing they’re lurking on the far side of the planet, just out of view. They would have reached it by now.”
“No other starships are near the Gate?” Rade asked.
“No,” Lui said.
The drone docked a moment later.
“Boss, customs is getting antsy...” Fret said.
“We’re going we’re going,” Rade said. “Shaw, accelerate. Maximum allowable Gate traversal speed. Bax, set material condition to ZEBRA.”
“Setting material condition to ZEBRA,” the Argonaut’s AI intoned.
“If our Vipers were online, I’d be telling you to charge them right about now,” Rade said as the starship approached the giant gray ring that encircled the rip in spacetime.
“I’m ready to fire Hellfires on your command,” Manic said.
Rade nodded slowly. “Let’s hope we don’t need them.”
He overlaid the view from the external nose camera in the upper right of his vision and watched Shaw pilot the Argonaut toward the Gate.
He unconsciously held his breath as the vessel passed through.
He knew the transition had occurred when the constellations completely changed.
Two small, dark objects resided directly ahead.
Rade glanced at the tactical display.
“I’ve spotted the two Zambian customs vessels,” Lui said.
“They’re telling us to halt for scanning purposes,” Fret said.
“Shaw, do it,” Rade said. “Lui, have you picked up any more vessels in orbit around the colony?”
“Just the two Zambian corvettes,” Lui said.
“Bender,” Rade said, “see if can you decrypt the data feed streaming in from a remote telemetry drone somewhere else in the system. Preferably not something too far away, with little time lag. I want a bead on the opposite hemisphere of that planet. Find me those missing ships.”
A moment later Bender said: “Got a feed. Sending it to Lui.”
“Okay, I see three thermal signatures in orbit around the far side of that planet,” Lui said. “Two belong to Corsairs. The third is a merchant.”
“What happened to the fourth Corsair?” Rade asked.
“No idea,” Lui said. “Could be hiding behind another planet.”
“They wouldn’t have had time,” Rade said.
“The customs ships are approaching,” Manic said.
Rade glanced at Tahoe. “So much for your theory about the Greens taking out the Zambian vessels in a surprise attack.”
“Maybe they still intend to,” Tahoe said. “But just haven’t gotten around to it yet.”
“Maybe,” Rade agreed.
He watched on the external camera as the two customs vessels approached. When the ships were about three kilometers away, a third craft emerged from behind one of the corvettes. Rade thought it was a shuttle at first. But then he realized it was far too large for that.
“Corsair!” Manic said.
“We’re taking Viper fire!” Lui said. “From both corvettes! Damage on decks two, four—”
“Manic,” Rade interrupted. “Target the closest corvette with a full barrage of missiles and return fire.”
“Missiles away!” Manic said.
“They’re launching mag-rail countermeasures,” Lui said. “We’ve lost two of the missiles... the rest got through! The second corvette is repositioning for an attack run. And the Corsair, meanwhile, is firing missiles of their own!”
“Target those missiles with our mag-rails!” Rade said. “And Shaw, initiate evasive maneuvers!”
“This is odd,” Lui said, sounding puzzled. “Half of the missiles from the Corsair are targeting the corvette.”
Rade glanced at the tactical display. Sure enough, the red dots representing the missiles had separated into two groups, with one group heading toward the remaining corvette.
Several flashes appeared on the external camera.
“The first spread just struck the corvette,” Lui said. “It’s disabled.”
Rade glanced at the second wave of missiles on the tactical display. Only one of the remaining incoming dots had vanished, falling to the Argonaut’s point defenses.
“Brace for impact,” Rade said. He was regretting having kids aboard all over again. And more importantly, regretting ever going on this mission.
More flashes appeared on the nose camera feed, these ones brighter. On the tactical display, the incoming dots vanished.
“Did the missiles hit?” Rade asked.
“No,” Lui said, sounding puzzled. “The proximity fuses detonated early. They caused no damage. Wait... the Corsair is firing Vipers now, too!” He glanced up in confusion. “Both corvettes just broke apart.”
twenty-three
What the hell is going on?” Rade said.
“Boss, I’m getting a tap in request from the Corsair,” Fret said. “It’s Bourbonjack.”
“Tap him in,” Rade said.
Bourbonjack’s hologram appeared before Rade, seated in the center of that circle of stations known as the Sphinx.
“Eject debris,” Bourbonjack said.
“Excuse me?” Rade said.
“Do I have to spell it out?” Bourbonjack growled, leaning forward. “I’m trying to save your sorry ass! Eject debris and cut off your engines! Make it seem like we severely disabled your ship.”
Rade glanced at Tahoe. Then: “Shaw, cut power to the engines. Bax, flush the garbage chutes, and include some organic matter from the galley in the ejecta.”
“I’m having the robot chefs toss frozen chicken into the garbage as we speak,” the Argonaut’s AI replied.
Bender grimaced. “Not the chicken!”
“Flushing chutes,” Bax said.
“You might want to throw some debris from your damaged decks into the mix,” Bourbonjack said.
Rade muted the connection and glanced at Lui urgently. “Damage report!”
“We’ve got breaches on decks two, four, and seven,” Lui said. “The damage to neighboring compartments has been severe. We’ve lost several storage compartments, and the shuttle hangar bay has explosively decompressed. The telemetry drone, Dragonfly, and Raptor are still intact, but we lost three Centurions who were fine-tuning the shuttle at the time of the attack.”
“What about sickbay?” Rade glanced at Shaw. From her pale face and taut expression, he knew she was ready to vacate her post and run down there at a moment’s notice.
“Sickbay is undamaged,” Manic said. “For the time being.”
Rade slumped in relief, as did Shaw. Like the bridge, sickbay was located relatively close to the center of the ship, and was thus protected from most hull breach scenarios.
“Bax, have some Centurions get down to those damaged sections and toss as much debris into the void as they can,” Rade said.
“I’ll get on it,” the Argonaut’s AI said.
“It’s too bad we can’t selectively turn off artificial gravity in places,” Manic said. “That would expedite the process.”
Rade unmuted Bourbonjack. “Do you mind telling me what the hell’s going on? Why the sudden change of heart?”
“One of those Corsairs in orbit above the planet is mine,” Bourbonjack said. “The Raccoon. I lent it to Ghal before this whole debacle of an operation began. Anyway, my men didn’t like what they saw taking place on the surface below.”
“And what did they see, exactly?” Rade asked.
“Phants, coming in through the Acceptor that was relocated to the surface,” Bourbonjack said. “Ten at a time. And most of them weren’t Greens.”
“Well that’s the worst news I’ve heard in a while...” Rade said.
“I’ll say,” Bourbonjack replied. “They’re using it as some sort of staging planet, as far as we can tell. The city itself is lost. Ghal’s mercenaries razed it.”
&
nbsp; “Ghal’s mercenaries?” Rade asked.
“Yes,” Bourbonjack said. “They’re aboard the other Corsair, the Salient. Those men can’t be trusted.”
“If they were responsible for what happened at the Franco-Italian moon base,” Rade said. “Then no, they can’t.” The memory of those dead women Artificials lined up in a row flashed back into his mind.
“The Green, Ghal, himself was aboard the merchant craft,” Bourbonjack continued. “Along with Falon, who transferred over with the Acceptor shortly after we passed through the Gate. Falon ordered me to remain here guarding the entrance, while the rest of the ships proceeded to the planet. After arriving, the two Phants carried the Acceptor down to the dome colony.”
“And what about the corvettes in orbit?” Rade said.
“Possessed by other Greens by now,” Bourbonjack said. “None of the Zambian corvette AI cores have anti-Phant shielding.”
“The corvettes here by the Gate?” Rade asked.
“Their AIs were possessed as well by other Greens from the merchant ship before departing,” Bourbonjack said. “Which is why we took out their communications systems along with their weapons in our first strikes.”
“We’ll have to collect these Phants at some point,” Rade said.
“Maybe,” Bourbonjack said. “But for now, you’re getting your asses aboard my ship. The Greens can’t be allowed to know you survived. Falon is going to be pissed. We were supposed to disable you, not destroy you outright.”
“That would explain why they didn’t fire missiles at us,” Lui commented.
“Wait a second,” Rade said. “The Phants possessing the AI cores can just inform the others of what happened via that supra-dimension they use to communicate.”
“That would be true,” Bourbonjack said. “If they actually knew what had happened. See, I had one of my hackers install a logic bomb in the AI cores of the customs vessels shortly before the Phants possessed them. Gotta love the outdated software these Zambians run. Anyway, the moment the corvettes opened fire, all external cameras and sensors ceased operating.”
