“You don’t think he’ll go back on his word, do you?” Heather asked.
“I hope not, after seeing all of those destroyed ships in the asteroid belt where he was living, I don’t think we would have much of a chance against him,” Monica says.
“You’re probably right. Let’s just do what we can to not piss him off,” Cinnamon said.
“Agreed,” said Monica.
While aboard the Rose, an ease-dropping robot grinned with delight. Monica and her friends were unaware that Rojex had the ability to listen to every word they were saying from long distances. He kept their words stored in the back of his artificial mind. Rojex didn’t feel threatened by the weak humans, and had no intention of betraying them. The only thing Rojex wanted at this point was to destroy anyone who was affiliated with the UPG, due to the death of his friend, Tommy Two Fingers. It didn’t take a long time to find the one person aboard the Rose. After he captured the screaming Asian girl, he threw her over his metallic shoulder, and then took her back to the Huntington for questioning.
Rojex held her firmly down in Monica’s flight chair as she interrogated Pong Ling, “Who are you, and where is Luis?” Monica yelled. Pong didn’t respond. Rojex squeezed her muscular, but skinny arms, causing her to yell out.
“All right…I stole this ship…from Elijah,” Pong said.
“Elijah? What the hell would Elijah be doing with Luis’ ship?” Monica asked. Again, Rojex had to apply pressure to get Pong to talk.
“Is Luis a friend? If he was, I hope he wasn’t close to you,” Pong said.
“Why do you say that?” Monica asked.
“Because he was taken to someone named Mr. Toad, and I heard he’s not coming back. Elijah had his ship in the hanger bay,” Pong said, wondering where the hell the robot had come from. “Would you mind telling your giant toaster to lighten up?” The robots eyes glowed dark red, as he restrained himself from tearing off Pong’s head. “You’re not that impressive…robot. I have a metal dildo that can make me scream as well,” Pong smiled, trying to show that she wasn’t scared. Rojex gripped her arm tighter.
“How do you know about Luis?” Cinnamon asked.
“Is Elijah a friend of yours?” Pong asked Monica.
“A former employer, but definitely not a friend. Why?” Monica asked.
“Because I found out about Luis and his friend, the White Skull, a few hours ago…before I slit Elijah’s throat,” Pong said proudly.
“What? What did you hear about the Skull? Wait a second, you killed Elijah?” Monica asked, in shock. She couldn’t believe that this little Asian girl, in a schoolgirl’s outfit, could have killed Elijah.
“Yes. It is a debt that had to be paid for reasons you don’t need to know. As for the White Skull, he was also taken to Mr. Toad,” Pong said, wondering if she was saying too much.
“Why are you in this sector?” Monica asked Pong.
“Because I’m tracking down the president’s aide, Alexander, he’s also with Mr. Toad. Apparently, the president, and this Mr. Toad, are working together,” Pong said.
“What do you want with Alexander?” Monica asked.
“I’m going to kill him…as well,” Pong simply said, as if murder wasn’t something out of the ordinary.
“I see. That is very interesting. Well, I can’t really blame you for that, since he is an asshole. It does look like we have something in common. We are trying to locate and rescue the White Skull, and my friend here is looking to kill some UPG scum. It looks like we are looking for the same people and are heading in the same direction. I could use another beautiful woman on my crew, if you would be interested. Would you be interested?” Monica asked, with a twinkle in her eye, looking Pong up and down.
“Sorry, sister, I don’t swing that way…and I work alone. But, I would like to tag along, since you destroyed the ship I was going to use to get to Alexander,” Pong said.
Monica bit her lip at Pong’s comment, and held herself back from taking a swing at her. However, Monica had a feeling that she would be able to use her. “That would be fine. Since I did destroy your transportation, and the fact that I hate that pig, Alexander, you can come with us. Do you have any more information about the Skull?”
“Only that they took his girlfriend as well,” Pong said. Monica’s right eye began to crazily twitch when she heard the word, girlfriend. She was having a hard time thinking of Jesse being with any woman other than her.
“All right, Natalie can you take…” Monica looked at Pong for her name.
“Pong Ling,” the gorgeous Asian woman replied.
“Can you take Pong and find her a room until we need her?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Natalie replied, as she stood up. Rojex released his hold of her. Pong rubbed her sore arm.
“Right now we’re tracking the ship the White Skull might have been in. When we have some more information, I’ll call on you. Also, try to think of anything you may know that may help us,” Monica said.
“Fine,” Pong said, as she was escorted out of the command room by Natalie.
“I should warn you. The Mr. Toad that she is referring to is the ruler of the Renexobious species. If your friend is with him, he may be dead already. He must have done something to upset him,” Rojex said.
“Tommy Two Finger said that Jesse, the White Skull, unfroze a girl named Jaime. Tommy also said that he was the one who froze Jaime for the UPG. According to him, she was supposed to go to this, Mr. Toad. Now, Jesse is supposed to transport her, but he set her free instead. Tony, didn’t you say she had black eyes?” Monica asked him.
“That’s right, and Jesse also said the same about Luis.”
“Didn’t you tell us that the Renexobious have black eyes?” Monica asked Rojex.
“That is correct. It sounds like the girl, and your friend, are half-breeds, and they are lost to you. The only one you may be able to reclaim is your Jesse, that is if he’s not already dead. If he released the girl, Mr. Toad will not let him live,”
“I’ve got you girl! You half-breed alien bitch!” Monica yelled in her Australian accent, as she pointed at the wall. Everyone looked at her as if she were crazy. “I knew there was something wrong with her! She’s a damn alien! Am I good or what?”
“Monica, are you all right?” Cinnamon asked.
“Yes, I’ve got that bitch. Now, hopefully Jesse will take me back. Now, all we have to do is rescue him,” Monica said as her eyes widen.
“She’s got that crazy look again,” Heather whispered to Cinnamon, making her smile.
“What was that?” Monica asked Heather.
“Nothing,” Heather answered, holding back her smile.
“I hope they didn’t eat my baby,” Monica said.
“We should continue scanning for the energy particles to find out where they took… your baby,” Rojex said, grinning.
Monica snapped out of her crazy trance, and said to the robot, “You’re right. Since Natalie is not here, will you operate the scanner?”
“Yes,” Rojex said, as he sat at the console, adjusting his black leather trench coat.
The Huntington and its crew continued on their quest to find their friend, and to seek revenge. Pong sat in the room that Natalie had temporarily given her. It was more like a waiting room, with a small bunk tucked in the corner. Pong felt a little strange wearing clothes, and momentarily had the urge to take them off. She held herself back though, because she realized that this was a ship full of lesbians. Instead, she practiced some of her martial arts techniques so that she could clear her mind. Pong realized she had a lot to think about. She knew the woman she was just speaking to was Monica; she had seen her on the news before. She also knew who the White Skull was. She had met him once when he did a small job for the Triads. They didn’t exchange many words when they met, but she knew he was a good man, regardless of his reputation.
When Jesse was younger, and just kicked out of the Navy, he stayed at the Yellow Dragon Space Station for a little whi
le, before joining Captain Barakat’s team of cutthroats and scoundrels. While on the station, he studied Wing Chung Kung Fu under Master Hung. When Pong studied martial arts, she also studied under Master Hung. After Jesse became the White Skull, Pong began her training, and Master Hung told her how Jesse had been one of his star pupils, and that he had great potential to become a master himself. Master Hung also told Pong how nice and respectful Jesse was. She felt that since Master Hung had thought so highly of him, she would like to help find Jesse.
Back in the command room, Natalie had taken over the scanner for Rojex. She continued to scan for the energy particles. Natalie felt that it was probably the most boring assignment she had ever had. Finally, within two hours, they detected a ship of unknown origin. Tension grew in the command room, as they hoped that they found the right ship this time. Monica had Janet keep a good distance from the alien ship so that they wouldn’t be detected.
“It is not the ship we are looking for,” Rojex informed Monica.
“How do you know?” Monica asked, in frustration.
“The ship is too small to be Mr. Toad’s. It is probably a Renex guard ship, left behind to patrol the surrounding area. They must be guarding a base or a secret meeting place.”
“So Mr. Toad’s ship should be close by, right?”
“Possibly,”
“Well, how powerful is the guard ship?”
“You’re not thinking of firing at it, are you?” Cinnamon cut in.
“How else are we going to get Jesse back?” Monica asked.
“Your weapons could do some damage to their ship, but, it may not be enough to stop them,” Rojex said.
“We shouldn’t have disabled the Rose…and the Black Ice is too far away to retrieve. Do you have any ideas?” Monica asked Rojex.
“Yes. The only thing we can do is to try to take them by surprise. Once we get close, you can open an airlock, I will jump onto the Renex ship, and tear open a hole in their hull. Once I get in, I will go to their command room and kill them. The guard ship is small, and will only have a crew of around four or five.”
“Very well.”
“Since I know the Renexobious language, I can probably find out where Mr. Toad’s ship is located.”
“Could we use the ship to infiltrate their location, without being blown to bits?” Tony asked.
“Yes, if we use the guard ship to dock with Mr. Toad’s ship, I can make it seem as if we had been attacked and need assistance. But, that will only buy us a few minutes. The Renexobious are an intelligent species. It won’t take them long to figure out that we are not their guards,” Rojex stated.
“All right, let’s do it. Janet, bring us directly behind the Renex ship….all ahead full,” Monica ordered.
“Yes, ma’am,” Janet responded.
The Huntington increased in speed as Monica sat in her command chair. As the Huntington drew closer, the alien ship began to turn toward them. “Slow down, and bring us starboard of their ship,” Monica ordered.
“Yes, ma’am,” Janet replied.
“Natalie, fire the…” before Monica could finish, the Renex ship fired their weapons. A purple energy beam hit and shook the Huntington with great force. All but Rojex was knocked to the floor.
“Natalie, fire at their ship!” Monica yelled out, as she climbed back in her chair. Natalie fired the Huntington’s weapons, but with little effect on the Renex ship.
“I’ll inform you when I’m in the ship,” Rojex said, as his feet clawed the deck as he left.
“Janet, close off the third level, and open the airlock for Rojex. As soon as he leaves the ship, seal it back up,” Monica ordered.
“Yes, ma’am,” said Janet.
“All crew who are on the third level, go to the second level immediately until further notice,” Monica announced over the Huntington’s p.a. system.
The alien ship fired a second shot across the side of the Huntington, leaving a nasty cut in the hull. “God damn it!” Monica blurted out.
“All of the crew is off the third level, ma’am. I opened the airlock, and Rojex is off of the ship. I’m closing it now,” Janet reported.
“Very well,” said Monica.
“Ma’am, we lost two women on level two when the enemy ship fired on us,” Natalie reported in a sad voice.
“FUCK! Back us out of their firing range, we’ll let Rojex take care of business,” Monica called out.
“Yes, ma’am,” Janet replied.
The alien ship ceased firing on the Huntington. Once they were far enough away, Janet turned the ship around, and faced the Renex ship. They watched as Rojex crawled on the hull of the alien ship, like a giant metallic spider. Monica and the others watched as Rojex looked back at them. Monica felt it was disturbing watching Rojex crawl on the ship, like an evil gremlin. Within seconds, he effortlessly tore open a hole in the hull, sucking one of the Renexobious brethren out into space. Rojex smiled, as he watched the alien expand, then explode. A trickle of blood spurted on his long black leather trench coat. He didn’t bother to wipe it, instead leaving it as a trophy. He deeply despised the Renexobious for making himself and the other robots servants. He thought back to the past when he was a slave, and how so many times he had to mutilate innocent humanoids for the Renexobious’s food. Rojex, and the other robots, would spend hours covered in blood, as they carved the humanoids like cattle.
When the revolt on planet Renex took place, Rojex was happy to be altered and upgraded by the blue haired warrior, Felus. Felus led the attack on the Renexobious planet a few hundred years ago. He belonged to the species called the Pulse. The Pulse was a species of humanoids that looked exactly like humans, except they had blue hair, blue eyes, and blue lips. The Renexobious considered them a delicacy, since parts of their bodies excreted the taste of sweet berries. The Renexobious had invaded the Pulse homeworld over one thousand years ago. Although the Renexobious invaded their beautiful world, they left the Pulse alone so that they could replenish their population, only to return every twenty years. To their surprise, the Pulse ended up being their undoing in the end, and the demise of their homeworld, planet Renex. There were two other Pulse races which were attacked by the Renex. One race had pink hair, and the other had purple hair. The blue Pulse race lived towards love, honesty, and the arts, while the pink Pulse race lived towards passion and sex, and the purple haired race was considered more of a superior, intellectual race. All three races lived separately apart, and had little or no contact with each other. The Renex preferred the blue haired Pulse over the rest, since they tasted the best.
Rojex entered the Renex ship and immediately made his way to the command room. Once he reached the hatch to the flight room, he tore it open. The Renexobious fired at Rojex. His armor plating protected him from the laser blasts. With his sharp, claw-like hand, he punctured the chest of the first Renex guard. Its body lifelessly slumped to the deck, as the other two Renexobious charged at him. The strength of the guards knocked Rojex to the floor. While on the deck, the silver robot ripped the leg of one of the aliens with his hand. The guard dropped to the floor, and grabbed its leg in pain. Rojex rose to his feet, and slashed at the third Renex’s throat, tearing it clean open. Blood flowed to the deck, as the other guard began to lick the floor. Rojex looked at the alien with disgust and shot it in the head with his own laser pistols.
After Rojex was finished making sure the Renexobious were all dead, he called over to Monica and told her to dock the Huntington to the alien ship. He jettisoned the bodies out of the airlock. Shortly after connecting the two ships, Monica, Don, Tony, and the Haven sisters, boarded the alien ship. Cinnamon gagged from the smell of the blood on the deck. Rojex sat at one of the computer consoles, as his heavy metallic hands typed rapidly, but lightly, on the computer console. He room was illuminated with the soft purple lights on the ceiling.
“Why is it so dark in here?” Cinnamon asked.
“The Renexobious like the dark. Too much light hurts their eyes,” Rojex an
swered. In awe of the strange, different technology, Monica and the others walked around in observation.
“This ship is pretty sweet,” Heather said, while running her fingers over some purple lit up buttons.
“Yeah, it’s kind of Gothic,” Cinnamon stated.
“Have you found anything yet?” Monica asked with impatience.
“Not yet,” says Rojex.
Tony was in heaven. Never in his life had he seen such sophisticated equipment, and said, “Don, let’s take a little tour while the robot looks for the information.” Don, who was also intrigued by the alien ship, happily agreed. “Monica, we’ll be back in a second. I have to check this ship out,”
“Fine, just hurry back,” Monica said. The purple lights reflected off of the women’s faces as they leaned in, watching the robot typing incredibly fast. Monica continually sighed as tapped her foot on the deck.
“Don’t worry, we’ll find him,” Heather tried to reassure her.
“I’ve found Mr. Toad’s location,” Rojex stated.
“Where?” Monica asked, with excitement.
“There is a secret base, twelve hours from our current location,” Rojex said, as he continued to type.
“A secret base? What kind of base?” Cinnamon asked.
“It is a joint base. It appears the base is where the Renexobious give the UPG their technology. They exchange science and technology between the two species. It seems that Mr. Toad is there with the president. Other than that, there is not much information. This ship is only meant to patrol the surrounding area.”
“So, can we use this ship to enter into the base?” Monica asked.
“Yes, but like I said, it won’t take them long to figure it out.”
“That’s fine.”
“Can you find out exactly where the White Skull is?” Heather asked.
“No, but from the communications I read…I think he is on Mr. Toad’s ship.”
“Excellent,” Monica said.
“There’s one other thing,” Rojex said.
“What?”
“It appears that Jaime has killed herself after she found out that she was the daughter of Mr. Toad. I’ve also read that Luis is also his son, and is due to take his father’s place as the ruler of the Renexobious. The only other thing I found out is that apparently the Renexobious have their own secret plans, but they don’t say what they are,” Rojex informed them.
Voyages of the White Skull Book 1 Page 25
