Her smile was incongruous with my memory, but it was absolutely her. “Celina?” I asked out loud, although I was mostly just processing.
“Captain Hoffen,” she replied demurely.
I crossed the room to shake her hand but she wasn’t having any of it. She grabbed me and pulled me in for a hug.
“I don’t understand. How’d you get here?” I asked as she gave Nick a hug.
She didn’t answer right away but gave a worried look at Marny. Last time they’d seen each other Celina had directed much of her distrust at Marny.
“Accept my apology for being a bitch?” Celina said.
Even I knew those were the right words. Marny, who’d been just a little rigid, melted and crossed the room with a huge smile. “You’ve got a story to tell, I’d say,” Marny responded and gave Celina a big hug.
READY TO SAIL
Celina – or Lena as we learned she liked to be called - caught us up on how, after we’d left her on the cutter, she’d been able to locate and rescue her sister, Jenny, with Tali, Jordy and Ben’s help.
I turned toward Tali, who was next to me. “So what I don’t get is how you figured out who we were at the training facility.”
We were all sitting around a large bonfire Tali had started. I’d never seen such a large open fire before and it made me nervous, but Tali assured me she did this all the time.
“Mostly it was the team makeup. A female pro with two competent rookies. Marny’s training actually worked against her, we’ve been trained to pick apart Marine discipline. No offense, Marny.”
Marny raised her beer and tilted it toward Tali. “None taken.”
Tali continued. “You also have a slight bobble in your stride from your prosthetic. That mostly sealed the deal for me. Not to mention, Lena here gave us a pretty good description of your group when you were together on the Red Houzi base. So, I’ve got a question for you. How’d you take down Ben? We haven’t lost a team member in over a year and certainly not to rookies.”
“I didn’t figure it out until the end,” I said.
“You’re killing me. What?”
“You guys are so good that you were using the computer players against us. One of you would show yourselves for a second, or take out a holo just to see what would happen next. Computer players would react predictably, real opponents wouldn’t, giving their positions away. Once you identified us, you could focus on flushing out and lighting us up. So, I did the same thing,” I said.
“You used the computer players against us?”
“No, I disarmed you by acting like a computer player. You had obviously caught on to the way we were setting traps – near groups of holos. I put Nick in a spot where you would expect him to be waiting and where Ben would be required to commit himself to make the kill. I was nearby, acting like a computer player. As soon as I heard Nick get hit by Jammin, I reacted. I’d never do that in real combat. Nick’s too valuable, so it wasn’t really fair.”
“Thanks bud,” Nick saluted me from his seated position.
“That’s the point,” Tali said. “That’s combat. There are patterns to how people behave. And it’s never fair. You picked up on our pattern in less than ninety minutes. You have to know how unsettling that is.”
“Unsettling was watching you and Marny go at it,” Nick said.
“I’d like to have seen that,” Lena said.
“Your martial skills are superb, Marny,” Tali gave her a warm smile.
“Nobody should move as fast as you do. Thanks for dropping the staff, by the way. If you hadn’t, you’d have ended me pretty quickly.” Marny conceded.
“Your defense was incredible. I couldn’t leave without experiencing your hand-to-hand.”
A male voice came from behind us. “Jammin says seventy-eight seconds.”
“I counted seventy-six,” Tali responded.
The taller team member who’d introduced himself as Jordy Kelti walked into the fire-light. We shook hands and introduced him to Ada.
“Ada. Such a pretty name.” He had a friendly smile that showed way too many teeth for my taste. I felt a stab of jealousy when Ada returned it.
“Where’s a guy get a drink around here?”
Jenny had jumped up when Jordy arrived, run over to the cooler and pulled a bottle out. She obviously had a crush on him. Having heard her story, it wasn’t hard to imagine why.
“So where are you headed next?” Jordy asked. He’d taken a seat next to Ada.
“We just finished a week of shore leave, and we’ll be outta here early next week,” I said. “How about you guys?”
“We’re between jobs. It’s hard to get back to private investigations after… well you know…” Tali said. The thing was, I did know. We could have very easily turned down the Navy and taken a safe job. It was hard to turn away from an adventure.
“Any chance you’re looking for a gig?” I asked. I’d need to clear it with Nick and Marny but I just had a feeling about this team.
“You lose something?”
“No, but we’re headed into something that could get dicey.”
“You’re serious?”
“I think so.”
“I don’t think we’re looking for work - I just don’t see us as crew.”
“This’d be a one-time gig. We’ve got a contract with the Navy for extra security.”
Jordy stood up and walked over to where we were talking. Apparently, I had his attention.
“Why would the Navy pay for extra security for your run?” he asked.
“I can’t tell you outside of an NDA (non-disclosure agreement). If you’re interested in talking about it further, we’ll be picking up a load in Puskar Stellar tomorrow afternoon. It’s a serious offer.”
“Hmm. I’ll talk to the team and get back to you. Send me details about when you’ll be loading tomorrow.”
“I can do that,” It felt good to reach out to someone I had respect for. Maybe they'd take the gig or maybe not, but at least I'd been proactive.
It was well after 0030 when Ada, Marny, Nick and I shuffled into the waiting car and started back for Puskar Stellar to drop Ada off.
“Talk about a change … I hardly recognized Lena,” I said after we took off.
“She’s probably gained ten kilos since we last saw her. That’s a heck of a story about how they rescued Jenny,” Marny said.
“Tali, Jammin and Jordy are the real deal,” I said. “I hope they think about my offer.”
“They will,” Ada said.
“How do you know?”
“Like a moth to a candle. You guys are the real deal too and if you watched the non-verbal communication between them, you’d know it. They could no more walk away from a fight than you guys would.”
“You really see us like that? Primed for a fight?” I asked. It wasn’t how I saw myself.
“Not so much fight - more like not stepping away from doing the right thing. None of you have an ounce of back-down in you and I guarantee that Tali and Jordy saw that. It’s who they are too. It’s also why I want to be part of the team. I want my life to add up to something, just like you do.”
It was a sobering thought and sat me back in my seat.
“You were getting pretty chummy with Jordy there,” Marny teased Ada. “I’d be careful with that one.”
“Oh he’s nice enough, but I think I’ve got his number.”
“A little pretty for me. I go for the dark, rugged ones.” Marny gave Nick a wink.
We dropped Ada off and made it back to the resort without incident. Tomorrow would be busy, but at least Marny wasn’t going to make us do combat exercises, for once.
When I woke up the next morning, I took a shower and put a suit-liner and vac-suit on for the first time in a week. My AI reminded me that I had an earwig on and asked if I wanted to remove it or simply integrate it. The earwig had significantly better resolution than my suit’s HUD, so I opted to integrate. I’d collected a small pile of clothing from our different adve
ntures and decided to send all of the new items to the recycler. I’d keep my dress clothes, but didn’t see how I’d need a running outfit or swimming suit anytime soon. If I did, I'd simply replicate one.
I joined Nick and Marny in the living room. Breakfast was a simple affair and I chose a meal bar and orange juice. If we weren’t working hard, I didn’t want to get too filled up.
“What time are you picking up Tabby?” Nick asked.
“About 1200. I thought I’d show her Sterra's Gift and she could ride along when we picked up the load.”
“Yup. I think Marny and I are headed there now. Navy still has a little work left, but it’s all external and they’re okay with us being on board while they finish up. Do you want the suite for tonight?”
Nick and Marny’s bags, which had grown on this visit, were both sitting by the door to the hotel.
“I’m hoping to convince Tabby to spend the night on the ship.”
“Okay, I’ll get us checked out then.”
“See you on board, Cap.” Marny gave me a quick thump on the shoulder and the two of them grabbed their bags and left.
I sifted through my comms and responded to the numerous small details that seemed to make up my life. My AI was learning how to help me process the comms and I was spending time teaching it how I wanted to respond to most things. Business communication was a new thing for my AI. I really needed to look into an upgrade that would help with the process.
Initially, I looked at different legal plugins, but they all seemed too specific. I was conflicted. I really didn’t want those kinds of details to take over my life. I’d be happy to pay Ordena to handle it for us. Nick, no doubt, would also keep a pretty good watch on things. I kept searching, but hadn’t found a suitable plugin by the time I needed to pick Tabby up.
Just as I was climbing into the cab, I received a comm from Tali. She was interested in talking about our job and would meet us at the location I’d sent to her last night. If there was any way to get her on board, I’d do it. I still had a bad feeling about this mission and bringing in a heavyweight team would go a long way toward resolving that.
I showed up early and actually got to go into the visitor’s center of the Naval Academy. It was more like a museum than anything else. There were two large replicas of ships. The Magellan class battleship got my attention. In addition to every conceivable type of turret and missile array, this ship showed something I hadn’t expected. At the front of the ship it looked like most of the bow was solid. There were sensor arrays across it, but the normal seams where panels were connected didn’t seem to be in evidence.
“It’s cast in a single piece at the largest foundry ever built in space.” The voice belonged to an older officer dressed in a crisply pressed uniform.
“That’s hard to imagine. Must make it nearly impossible to stop.”
“We’d like to think so. Captain Peltrain,” He held his hand out as a greeting.
I accepted his hand and shook. “Liam Hoffen.”
“Thinking about a career in the Navy, son?” He was apparently not interested in beating around the bush.
“No, sir. Not eligible. Just here picking up a friend.”
“Well that’s a shame. A cadet?”
I was a little uncomfortable. I knew they had rules against public display of affection, but I didn’t know what else might be off limits. Not much I could do about it.
“Yes, sir. Tabitha Masters.”
“Name doesn’t ring a bell. First year?”
“Yes sir.” I was relieved to see Tabby enter the room with a small pack. She raised her eyebrows on approach, but otherwise didn't say much. When Captain Peltrain turned to see her approach, she pulled up into attention.
“At ease, Miss …” He was clearly retrieving her information, “Masters. I was just talking to your friend, Mr. Hoffen, here.”
“Yes, sir.” He was still reading his HUD. It was generally considered rude when talking to someone in person, but we were in no position to point this out.
“Hate to keep you from leave. Nice meeting you, son.” He nodded and walked off.
Tabby visibly relaxed. “Let’s get out of here,” she said. I had a cab standing by and we walked out wordlessly and jumped in.
“Nice guy,” I said.
“He can be a pain in the ass, but I’m on leave and don’t want to talk about it, so what’s the plan?”
Coolidge Space Elevator, I directed the cab. “They’re just finishing up Sterra's Gift and I need to pick up a shipment in Puskar Stellar and meet with someone about crewing for us. You okay with all that?”
“I’m in for anything.”
When we’d left the space elevator a few days back, it was dark and rainy and we hadn’t been able to see any details. Today the sun was shining brightly and the structure was an incredible sight. The ten-meter diameter tether stuck up through the blue tinted glass building. From our vantage point in the cab, we could see that the MAG-L had a few tracks that also entered the large terminal.
“How long does it take to get to orbit?” Tabby asked.
“Coolidge ship yard is 520 kilometers straight up. It takes ten minutes to get to the top, just like it does coming down.”
Tabby switched out of her cadet uniform and into her old vac-suit while I bought us a couple of one-way rides to the top. We shared the elevator car up with four other naval personnel. They were all enlisted and working for the shipyard. Each talked freely about the work they’d been doing, but most of it was beyond me. We exited the elevator onto a large platform that was the central hub joining many hallways. The exits were set up like spokes on a wheel and went in every direction.
Locate Sterra's Gift. My HUD lit up with a long floating arrow that superimposed on the inhabitants of the station.
“This way.”
We walked for twenty minutes and turned down a hallway with an airlock at its end. I imagined that Sterra's Gift was on the other side and that it was pressurized but SOP dictated the lock. We both automatically pulled our vac-suit hoods up upon seeing the universal indicator L-1, letting us know we were one level away from vacuum. For us it wasn’t an exercise, we’d experienced decompression and didn’t have any interest in a repeat.
I placed my hand on the airlock panel and it cycled immediately. If the other side had been vacuum, we’d have had to wait for the lock to fill with atmo. Immediate entry meant it was pressurized, as I’d expected. We cycled through the far door of the lock and walked across the gang plank. I was surprised to see that the outside airlock door to Sterra's Gift looked new. It made some sense. In the short time we’d been around the ship, the door had been removed or forcibly opened at least twice.
“We got some upgrades. She’s been sitting here for the last week.”
“I’ve never been on board,” Tabby said.
The inside of the airlock was sparkling clean and freshly painted. I didn’t recognize it in the least. We walked across the hallway toward the armory door, which sat directly opposite the airlock. The door was open and Marny had things lying in the doorway. Both hallways and the door were just as crisply painted as the airlock had been. Marny must’ve heard us and stuck her head out of the armory.
“Heya Cap, Tabby,” she said. “Ship’s clean as a whistle. Navy sicced their bots on the interior. You gotta look in here, too.” Marny was excited.
I stuck my head into the armory. It was just as clean as the hallway. Where there had once been shelves full of projectile ammo, there were now cabinets with some blinking lights on them. Marny looked to be in the middle of organizing a rack full of blaster rifles, pistols, and different types of ordinance. On the other side of the room were several armored vac-suits. It was in disarray, but I knew Marny would be working on that.
“Weird without all the ammo,” I said.
“That’s what all those blinking lights are - capacitors and batteries for the turret. I looked at the specs, it’s a big boy. Wish we’d had that before. Go find Nick in the
engine room before you go forward, I think he wants to show you some changes.”
“Looks good, Marny. Let me know when you’re done with the chandlery.”
“Aye. They’ll be here in an hour or less.”
I showed Tabby the galley and mess and then took her back to the engine room. Nick had a large vid-screen on the wall in front of him that was currently displaying different system statuses.
“Tabby, welcome aboard.” Nick hopped out of his chair and gave her a quick hug. “Like my new station?”
“It’s great. This chair wasn’t here before was it?”
Nick chuckled. “No. I can tell which end of the ship you’re interested in. You’re going to want to see this, however.”
Display exterior Sterra's Gift. Rotate slowly on vertical axis. Apparently, Nick’s AI wasn’t used to his new vid screen, so he had to pinch the display from his HUD and throw it up on the screen.
The ship he displayed resembled my knowledge of Sterra's Gift but there were significant exterior differences. My eye first jumped to the turret. It looked a lot different without the crow’s nest. Instead of popping up so the gunner could get a clear view of the targets, it was flat and in-line with the spine of the ship.
The next major difference was that we no longer had missile racks, but instead there was a new missile tube running down the lower side of the ship. Probably the most significant change was some sort of an engine port that pointed forward, exiting just beneath the missile tubes.
“Is that a forward thrust engine?” I asked Nick.
“Yup. They gave us a heck of a deal on it.”
“I can do a hot approach?” One of the things I disliked about Sterra's Gift in combat was the constant flipping over for deceleration, or at least accelerating on a new vector.
“It adds a lot of flexibility. Like it?” he asked. Pride showed on his face - this ship was important to him.
“It’s incredible. How much did we spend?”
“We went in the red a little on this. The engineer approached me on Thursday, needed an additional seventy-five for it all. I probably should have asked you, but he needed an answer right away. So then I figured I’d wait until you got to see it.”
Privateer Tales 3: Parley Page 13
