Bloodlines

by Richard Fox

  Chapter 25

  “I think we’re landing,” Popov said as the confined space of the maintenance tunnel shook around them.

  Jerry held on to the thick, black cable above him, steadying himself. They’d been airborne for the better part of thirty minutes. The flight had been a little bumpy. It was obvious that Abendu’s pilot wasn’t familiar with flying human craft. But then again, how could he be? They hadn’t gone FTL, he knew that. They were still on the SI planet at least. He hoped.

  “Where’d they take us?” Elias asked.

  “No way of knowing,” Popov told him.

  The hissing of pistons sounded at the far end of the tunnel as Valiant’s landing struts absorbed her weight. Jerry scooted down to the display panel and saw the cargo ramp already folding down, the pirates waving to the crew to stand.

  The pirates had done a horrible search of the ship. They’d followed the aliens on the ship’s internal feeds, watching as they ransacked the crew cabins, gone through the galley and reserve food stores, even the head. They passed through engineering, without so much as giving the maintenance tunnels a glance. Jerry doubted they even knew the panel was there. Two of the pirates had been more focused on arguing over Jerry’s data pad and playing Xaros Elites 2 than actually finding any more crew members.

  “IR is still down,” Popov said, looking at her wrist computer.

  Jerry turned away from the display. “Now what?”

  Popov frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “We’re on the ground now. We need to find a way to help the crew and save the ship. Get back to Carson. That’s what my dad would do.”

  Popov glanced over her shoulder, eyes wide. “Is Colonel Hale here? How’d I miss that?”

  Jerry opened his mouth to argue, but Popov cut him off.

  “Listen, kid. I’m glad you want to help, but we need to handle this very carefully.”

  “Carefully?” Jerry asked, trying and failing to keep the frustration out of his voice. “What do you mean, carefully? They’ve stolen our ship and kidnapped our people. Careful went out the window an hour ago.”

  “Yes, carefully,” Popov repeated, holding Jerry’s gaze. “We need to understand what’s going on before we can do something about it. First things first.” She turned to Elias. “You’re the computer guru, right? You know your way around the ship’s systems?’

  Elias glanced at his brother, then back to the Pathfinder. “Yeah, I know a little.”

  “Can you lock down the engines so they can’t take off again?”

  “Uh…I think so, yeah, I can probably do that. But I’ll get into the engine room to do it.”

  Popov nodded. “Okay, that’s a start. What about comms? What do you need to fix those?”

  Elias was silent for a minute, obviously working the problem out in his mind. “I’d need to be in the cockpit for that. The communications subsystems all run through the co-pilot’s station.”

  Three of Abendu’s men stayed behind in the bay, another in the cockpit, the pilot who seemed to be going through Valiant’s systems. In the bay, one of the pirates motioned to the other two, saying something Jerry didn’t understand. They responded with angry-sounding curses, then turned and headed for different sections of the ship.

  Patrols, Jerry thought, watching them separate.

  “What do you want me to do? I can take out those guards easy,” Jerry stated, tightening his grip on the pistol.

  “The first thing I want you to do is make sure that thing is on safe,” Popov said, eyeing the weapon in Jerry’s hand.

  “It is.”

  Nodding, Popov said, “The second thing is to keep quiet. I don’t know who these guys are, but they’re professionals. They’ve done this before, so don’t make the mistake of thinking you’re smarter, just because they’re alien or are unfamiliar with our technology. A bullet doesn’t care what species you are.”

  Jerry felt his face flush. “I know that.”

  “Good, then we’re on the same page. Elias, where’s that terminal you need in engineering?”

  “Near the back. Right next to the back-up temporal particle inhibitor and FTL wave containment field generator.”

  “And how long will you need?”

  Elias shrugged. “I don’t know, five, ten minutes.”

  “Okay. We’re going to get you to the terminal. Jerry, your job is to keep an eye on the guards.” Popov pointed to the video feeds.

  Jerry couldn’t stop the groan. “You’re making me stay in here?”

  Popov nodded. “We need to keep track of where these guys are. We can’t do that if we’re all out there. Can you hack Valiant’s computer systems?”

  “No.”

  “Well, then, I guess he has to do it then. Which means you’re on overwatch. You think all Pathfinder missions are filled with glorious combat and gun battles? Most of what we do is look and listen. If the enemy discovers we’ve been there, our mission is a failure.”

  Jerry wanted to argue, wanted to tell her that she wasn’t thinking clearly, that she needed him out there. He could protect them. He could fight. Instead, he nodded and said, “Okay. I’ll keep an eye on them.”

  “Good. Elias, you ready?”

  The younger boy swallowed hard. “Yes.”

  “Let’s go.”

  Elias unsealed the maintenance hatch and pulled it open, folding it down and carefully setting it on the deck. Popov crawled through first. Jerry watched her on the cameras making a quick check of the compartment, then whispered for Elias to follow.

  The input terminal Elias needed was near the aft part of the compartment, on the opposite side of the only entrance. They crept to the main walkway, then made their way aft, ducking under conduits and over clusters of thick, black cables. They reached the terminal and Elias went to work, Popov standing protectively behind him, watching.

  Jerry cycled through the internal feeds, tracking the four guards. One was still in the cockpit, sitting in Greer’s seat, working on the computer. One was leaning back against one of the rover’s tires, smoking an odd twisting pipe, seemingly obviously to everything else around him. Another had started rummaging through the crew berths, looking for keepsakes, and the forth had…

  Jerry frowned. Where’d the fourth go?

  Frantically, he started cycling through all the cameras. He hadn’t left the ship, had he?

  The mechanical clank of a hatch unlocking gave Jerry his answer.

  He’s in engineering.

  He found the camera and watched as the big-eared alien stepped cautiously through the hatch. He wore all black, had a back tactical vest strapped around his torso, and carried a heavy-looking rifle. He’d removed his facemask, revealing a wide mouth and one jagged bottom tooth that stuck out in front of his upper lip.

  Jerry checked Elias and Popov and the cameras and bit back a curse. Popov was gone. Where did you go? Jerry thought, eyes darting back and forth between his brother and the approaching alien pirate.

  He didn’t have any way to warn his brother without giving away his own position and potentially letting the rest of the guards know they were on board. He still had his pistol, but that would be too loud, and he wasn’t sure he’d be able to knock the alien out before it could turn on him. He’d been in a few hand-to-hand fights, but after the Battle of the Spirit, he’d realized that alien physiology was nothing like humans, and they might not react the way a human would.

  Popov still hadn’t appeared as the pirate reached the small side walkway to the maintenance tunnel hatch. Fortunately, he seemed to be focusing on something else, and not on the access panel, lying open on the deck. He was focused on Elias.

  I have to do something, Jerry told himself. If he could catch the pirate off-guard, maybe that would be enough.

  He crawled to the access hatch and peered out. He couldn’t see the pirate; he’d already passed. Jerry got to his feet outside the tunnel, keeping low and moving carefully to the edge of the small path, gun held by the barrel in one han
d.

  He turned out into the main walkway, breath catching in his chest as he saw the pirate standing there, facing him.

  “A boy?” the pirate asked, looking confused. “No, no, no, Abendu will no—”

  The pirate’s body shuddered, back arching, eyes bulging. He rose up on his toes, dropping the rifle as his hands shot up to his neck. His mouth opened to scream, but only managed a wet gurgle as blood sprayed out and flowed over his gloves’ fingers.

  “What?” Jerry said, shaking his head, confused.

  The pirate’s body began to twitch. He made several abrupt, guttural gasps, spraying blood with every breath. After a moment, his hands went limp, falling to his sides. That was when Jerry saw the third hand under the alien’s jaw, and the hilt of a knife sticking out of its throat.

  A shadowy hand pulled the knife free and the pirate’s body dropped to the deck with a thud.

  Popov wiped her blade on the pirate’s clothing, then slid it back into its sheath on her belt. She made a cursory check of the pirate, obviously making sure he was dead, then looked up at Jerry, frowning. “Aren’t you supposed to be watching the cameras?”

  “I—” Jerry started, his remaining words catching in his throat.

  Popov raised an eyebrow at him. “You?”

  Shaking himself, Jerry said, “I thought… I thought you’d gone somewhere. I thought Elias was in danger. I was trying to help him.”

  “Popov,” Elias said, coming up behind her. “I think… oh my god!”

  Elias covered his mouth, eyes wide in terror at the sight of the dead alien’s blood everywhere. He swallowed hard, eyes locked on the pirate’s corpse.

  “It’s all right, Elias,” Popov said, standing. “You don’t have to look at it.”

  “He’s… he’s dead?”

  “He’s dead.”

  Elias pulled his hand away from his mouth. “I’ve never seen a dead body before. Look at all the blood.”

  “Stabbing people repeatedly tends to do that,” Popov said. “Did you find anything out about the engines?”

  “I… yeah…” Elias said, obviously transfixed.

  Popov snapped her fingers at the boy. “Hey, Earth to Elias, did you find anything out about the engines?”

  “Sorry, yeah,” Elias said. “I can’t complete the shutdown from here. Not by myself anyway. There is a secondary command that has to be entered from the bridge to complete the shutdown, and they have to be entered in sequence.”

  “Okay, so we have to get you do the bridge?”

  Elias nodded, then shook his head. “No, I mean, I have to enter a code up here, then someone else has to enter the code in the bridge right after me. It’s a timed event, to prevent tampering.”

  Popov grunted. “Of course it is.”

  She looked down at the corpse for several long moments, seemingly considering their options.

  “I can do it,” Jerry said. “I can enter the second code. You just have to tell me what it is.”

  Elias held up a small pad. “I’ve already written it down for you, here.”

  “Wait a minute,” Popov hissed, motioning for them to keep it down. “It’s not as simple as just walking down there and typing in a code. There are still three pirates out there, all as heavily armed as this guy.” She prodded the corpse with the toe of her boot. “And there’s no telling how many others are close by. For all we know, there could be hundreds.”

  “Yeah, but they’re not here now,” Jerry said. “All we have to worry about now is the three on board the Valiant. If we can take those out like this guy, then the others won’t know anything’s wrong until it’s too late.”

  “It’s not that simple,” Popov repeated. “I doubt I’ll have another opportunity like I had here to ambush all three. Especially the one still in the cargo bay; there’s no way I’ll be able to approach him without him spotting me first.”

  “We can do it,” Jerry said, reaching down and picking up the pirate’s rifle. It was heavy, heavier than the gauss rifles he’d used during the Battle of the Spirit. “We can do this together. I mean, it’s not like we have much a choice, right? If we don’t, the entire mission will be a failure. Without the Valiant, we have no way of getting back to Terra Nova.”

  Popov clenched her jaw and took a deep breath. “Give me your pistol.”

  “What?”

  The Pathfinder held out her hand and repeated, “Give me your pistol.”

  Jerry frowned, reluctantly pulling the pistol from his waistband and handing it over.

  Popov took it and turned to Elias. “Here.”

  Elias’s eyes went wide, darting between the gun and Popov. “What? No… I don’t know how to use that. I can’t…”

  “You can,” Popov said, pushing the weapons closer. “And you will. Your brother’s right, if we don’t save the Valiant, our mission here is a failure, no matter how much progress Carson and the others have made. We don’t have a choice. And you need something to defend yourself with if it comes to that. Take it.”

  Reluctantly, Elias reached out and took the pistol awkwardly in both hands.

  “You hold it like this,” Popov said, moving his hands and fingers into position around the grip. “Safety off, pull the trigger. Don’t point it at anything you’re not willing to destroy. But, by God, if someone’s trying to kill you, you kill them first. Understand?”

  Elias nodded.

  “Hey,” Popov said, bending down to look into Elias’s eyes. “Understand?”

  “I understand.”

  “Good. We’re going to get out of this, I promise.” She turned back to Jerry. “Okay, snake-eater, here’s the plan.”

  ****

  Jerry bared his teeth as he pulled open engineering’s main hatch, willing the door not to make a sound.

  The second pirate was still rummaging through the personnel cabins on Valiant’s crew deck. He’d gotten lazy, and left his rifle propped against the bulkhead just inside Petty Officer Torgeson’s berth.

  After checking the positions of the remaining three guards, Popov had led Jerry out of engineering, down the short corridor to the portside stairwell, and onto the crew deck. Jerry could hear the pirate rummaging around inside one of the berths, several cabins down. The hatches on the cabins nearest them were all hanging open, making it easy for them to clear as they advanced.

  Popov slowed as she neared the final open hatch, pressing herself against the bulkhead next to it. She had her knife out again; the plan was to dispatch this pirate just like she’d done before—quickly and quietly.

  Jerry held the rifle ready, turned slightly so he could watch Popov and the deck’s entry hatch behind them. Slowly, he side-stepped toward Popov as she rotated her knife to hold it in a reverse grip. Their eyes met and she held up three fingers. Jerry nodded and she counted down.

  At one, she flipped around the hatch and charged into the room.

  There was a grunt, then what sounded like an alien curse, followed by more grunting.

  Jerry stepped up to the door and froze.

  Popov and the pirate were locked together, the alien’s back pressed against the far bulkhead, hands wrapped around Popov’s, holding the knife away from his throat. Popov drove a knee into the pirate’s chest, but the alien twisted away from the blow, using Popov’s momentum against her, twisting her so her back was against the bulkhead.

  Popov gritted her teeth and shoved against him. She managed to get a boot behind her and pushed off the bulkhead, sending them both staggering across the cabin.

  Jerry didn’t hesitate. He stepped through the hatch and swung the butt of the rifle in a downward arc, catching the pirate by his ankles, knocking him off his feet. Pathfinder and alien landed with a crash.

  The pirate growled, twisting his body and heaving up with his hips, launching Popov off, sending her falling back into the small bed against cabin’s side bulkhead.

  Jerry stepped forward as the pirate scrambled to his feet, swinging the rifle around again. The alien caught i
t mid-swing, side-stepping the blow, and twisting the weapon free of Jerry’s grasp, pulling him off balance. Jerry brought a boot up, stopping himself from slamming into the bulkhead, then twisted back, lunging for the alien.

  He wrapped an arm around the alien’s throat and squeezed with everything he had. The pirate’s hands clamped down on Jerry’s and the boy felt every muscle in the alien’s body clench. Popov appeared next to them, slamming fist after fist into the alien’s face, each impact a dull thud accompanied by a metallic jingle as the alien’s earrings clanged together.

  Jerry held on.

  The alien’s fingers dug into Jerry’s skin, drawing blood that streamed down his arms. Jerry gritted his teeth against the pain, a part of him screaming at him not to let go. And he held on. Pain flared down both arms and the alien thrashed; nevertheless, he persisted.

  After several excruciating seconds, Jerry felt the alien’s body slump and weight increase as the pirate’s legs began to give out. He pressed his back against the bulkhead and slid to the ground, never loosening his grip. Jerry felt the alien take a final breath, then go completely limp, head canting over, ears drooping.

  Popov squatted in front of him, putting a hand on his bleeding arm. “Hey, it’s okay.”

  Jerry didn’t let go. Part of him knew Popov was telling the truth, but another part of him, a part driving by sheer rage and primal instinct, told him not to let go. If he let go, the alien would break free and kill them both.

  He met Popov’s eyes, her expression softening. “Really,” she said. “It’s okay. He’s gone. Let go.”

  Jerry looked down at the alien’s lifeless head, its weight sagging against his arm. Blood pounded in his ears. He released he’d been holding his breath, blowing it out in relieved gasps.

  He unclenched his fists, his fingers aching, and let the alien slide to the deck. Jerry pushed himself away, eyes locked on the alien. He’d killed Netherguard during the Battle of the Spirit, but never anything like this. This was a completely different experience. This was something personal.

  “You okay?” Popov asked.