by Matt Novotny
“They are,” said the Cochkala, taking in the three Humans and their Torvasi guard. He touched his slate, and the guard’s device chimed. “I’ve included the route if it’s needed. They’ve been assigned an empty crew pod on deck three. The door code is included, and the room has been provisioned.”
“Excellent.” Sin’Kura nodded to one of the Torvasi. “Take them to their quarters and lock them in. Stand guard until relieved.” Then she said something to him in a different language.
“Yes, mistress,” he replied, then gestured to the Humans. “Come with me.”
“Um, mistress, the captain extends his regards and asks that you join him in the ready room for the transition to hyperspace,” the Cochkala said quickly.
“Lead on,” Sin’Kura said. “I’m right behind you.” She gave him a toothy smile. His nervousness aroused her. She glided after his retreating form. The rails lining the corridor provided handholds for propelling themselves in zero G and making minor adjustments to keep from bouncing off walls. Sin’Kura moved as if she had been born in zero G, making only the smallest corrections with the lightest of touches on the rails.
Two of her Torvasi were already in the cabin. She gave the two following her a brief glance to confirm they were still with her. She strapped herself into a comfortable seat as the captain came in from the far side hatch.
“Princess, you made good time up from the surface,” he said.
“Any motion from the Ptolemy?” she asked.
“It will make contact with the decoy shortly,” he said, looking at her with one eye stalk while another looked at a console array. Several pseudopods punched at controls and the Tri-V displayed the position of the ships and lines projecting the point of intercept. “Do you want to stay and watch?” The other eyestalk turned so both were focused on her.
She thought for a moment, tempted to stay and taunt Rains, but she didn’t want to wait for the communications lag. “Let’s be off,” she said finally.
“Very well.” He flipped a toggle. “Bridge, this is the captain. Go ahead and jump.”
Sin’Kura sat back as the universe unmade itself.
* * *
Bes woke as the shuttle bumped and there was a clunk of locks engaging.
Must have nodded off, she thought.
One of the transport’s Zeewie crew moved quickly through the passenger compartment to open the door. A moment later, Sin’Kura floated into compartment and to the door, followed by her Torvasi bodyguards.
Bes heard movement in the cockpit but wasn’t able to see anyone.
Sin’Kura glanced back. “Bring the guests along.”
“Yes, mistress,” the Torvasi answered, then turned to the Humans. “Put these on,” he said, handing each of the Humans a set of magnetic “boots” that adjusted to their feet with Velcro straps. He nodded as they complied. “Good. This way.”
Yeorgi started to ask a question, but Sin’Kura had already moved through the door. Until now, they had never seen her hurry.
The Torvasi herded the three Humans through the door into an airlock with “Gendrus” stenciled on the wall, then motioned for them to wait as Sin’Kura spoke briefly with a Cochkala. After a few minutes, she seemed satisfied. “Take them to their quarters and lock them in. Stand guard until relieved.” Then she added something in another language, staring at Bes with a knowing smile.
“Come with me,” the Torvasi said. It led them down several ladders and through a pair of corridors. Bes held tight to Sabine’s hand while the child looked cautiously at the ship and the crew as they moved about their business. ‘Bastian was constantly looking about with his three eyes, and Bes saw he had clamped a claw through the harness on Sabine’s Peacemaker uniform. Yeorgi followed them, managing to look both menacing and bored. They reached their destination, and the guard punched a code into a screen, then motioned them into a room with four sleeping compartments.
Bes looked at Yeorgi apprehensively. “Please,” she said to the Torvasi, “put us in separate rooms.”
He ignored her, opened a cupboard in the wall, and pointed to the lower shelf. “Food.” Then he pointed at some bottles on the next shelf. “Water.” He pushed a button and a monitor at the end of the room came to life showing a course plot and the image of another ship headed out of the system.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” asked Bes.
“Peacemaker,” was all he said before leaving and closing the door behind him. It locked with a click.
Yeorgi laughed.
* * *
Survey Ship Ptolemy
Captured Shuttle, Kuiper Belt, Earth System
Rains unbuckled and headed for the airlock, stopping just long enough to put on his armor. He heard a whump as the Ptolemy docked with the transport and cursed himself for not planning better so he was already prepared when he got the call from Cargill. Fortunately, his BAMF armor was designed to be put on quickly, so he was outfitted in minutes and caught up to the Cajun squad at the airlock.
Jackson snapped down his visor, enabling the connection to his rifle. The HUD sprang to life. He quickly checked that he was reading the Cajuns and had a link to the Ptolemy. “We’re ready Cargill. Anything new?”
“All clear here, Peacemaker.”
All four Cajuns had green indicators in his HUD, but he still asked, “Ready?” Four “Ayes” came back. He nodded to Guidry, who ran the bypass for the airlock. The shuttle doors opened, and the team went into action. Trahan tossed a remote into the shuttle that floated in the zero G. It bounced off the far bulkhead and ran a scan of the transport. Rains held his breath as the scanned image appeared in his HUD. Except for the pilot sitting at the controls with his hands raised and a small box on one of the passenger seats, the transport was empty.
“Go!” Rains said.
The Cajuns passed two by two into the transport and within seconds had the pilot restrained. Above the door to the cockpit was a banner that read “Fast Transport Inc. If the cash is there we do not care.”
“I’m going to sue your ass! You have no right to—”
“Shut up,” said Rains. “Benoit, check the transport logs. Trahan, check that package for explosives.”
“Explosives?” said the pilot. “I don’t got no explosives!”
While Benoit worked through the flight systems, Trahan ran a sensor over the package. Rains took a knee next to the pilot who was starting to look a little wide eyed at the assault rifle casually resting on the floor near his head.
“Where are your passengers?” Rains asked.
“I never had any,” he said. “I was paid to land in a swamp and a cat-lady with a creepy cyber-eye gave me that package. She said it was a prank and some guy she worked with would probably chase me down to get it. She said you were a rich corporate type who would probably pretend to be a Peacemaker and that I was to just keep going. That’s all I know.”
“When you were ordered to stand down I transmitted my credentials. You should have stopped then.” Rains looked to Trahan, who shook her head.
“All clear,” she said. “But look…” Written on the package was “Jackson Rains.”
Rains keyed his comm. “Cargill, back trace this transport to where you first picked it up. The pilot claims he met up with another shuttle.”
“On it,” said Cargill.
Benoit chimed in, “He has the computer locked out. I can break in, but it will take some time.” Rains pulled the pilot to his feet by his collar and handed him off to Guidry.
“Unlock it,” he said. Then to Guidry: “If he tries anything, shoot him.”
The pilot looked from one to the other. “You people can’t just—”
Rains turned him. “What’s your name?”
“Pedro.”
“Look, Pedro, I can and will, but let’s say for a minute I believe you aren’t involved in this other than being hired to deliver a package. The best way for you to convince me is to cooperate.”
“I know my rights!” said Pedro.
>
“Have it your way,” said Rains. He turned to Benoit. “Break it. Don’t mind the damage.”
“Wait!” said Pedro. “I’ll open it. Cut me loose.”
Rains nodded to Guidry, who unlocked Pedro’s restraints, but kept him covered. Pedro moved to the console and unlocked it. Benoit scanned through the logs. Her head snapped back to Pedro. “No sign of a meet-up with another ship,” she said.
Pedro dove for the console, but Guidry was faster, slamming him in the back of the head with the butt of his rifle. Pedro dropped like a stone and Guidry restrained him again. As he knelt there, he noticed a thin trickle of green coming from Pedro’s mouth. “Richard!” he called and tried to find a pulse.
Fontenot checked Pedro over, but shook his head. “Dead,” he said. “Looks like he had a suicide capsule.” He scraped a sample into a vial for analysis.
They searched the rest of the transport and found a gun in a quick-draw holster under the console but nothing else. Jackson opened the box and pulled out a chip. Jackson pocketed it to examine back on the Ptolemy.
“All right, team, back to the barn. We’ll leave the transport here, and I’ll request a forensic crew to come out and retrieve it and the body,” he said. Rains keyed his comm. “Cargill, we’re headed back. Anything on your end?”
“No, Peacemaker, but I have the computer trying to backtrack the transport from where I first picked it up. What’s our course?”
“Back to Earth, for the time being.”
Rains immediately headed for his small cabin. He took out the chip and slotted it into his slate.
There was only one file, named “Rains’ Eyes Only.” Rains scanned the file for electronic traps, then opened it. Kr’et’Socae looked at him from his slate.
“Rains, I hope you are enjoying my little joke. Sadly, you’ve wasted your time,” the big Equiri said. “Now that you’ve had some time to think about my terms, I believe it’s time to fill you in on your mission. You have spent enough time being the Peacemakers’ puppet.
“In the restricted databases, you will find itinerary information for the members of the Peacemaker Council. It will appear as an encrypted file, most likely under the name of ‘Transit’ or something even less imaginative. I want you to access and copy those files, though being a Human, you probably won’t be trusted enough to read them. On this chip is a program that will verify that data. You won’t be able to transmit the files because of the encryption, but once you have obtained them and the program has authenticated them, it will give you the location to deliver the data in exchange for the lives of your friends.
“You see, I’m very close to accomplishing one of my larger goals and it’s only fitting that you help bring it to fruition.” Kr’et’Socae smiled into the camera, and Rains wanted nothing more than to see his head explode in a pile of gore.
“You, Peacemaker, are going to help me kill Guild Master Rsach.”
* * * * *
Chapter Twelve
Survey Ship Ptolemy
Rains’ Quarters
His first reaction was a bark of startled laughter. Then he realized that Kr’et’Socae was serious, that he wanted—no, that wasn’t right. He expected Rains was somehow going to go along with what he wanted.
Kr’et’Socae was many things, but he wasn’t a fool. Until Rains met Amos and the Cajuns, the Peacemakers had been the closest thing he had to family. Recent revelations aside, he still believed in the mission of the Peacemakers. He questioned their motives and their methods, but the ideal still held up for him.
When he entered the foster system, he had found out that for a lot of people “family” was just another method of control. They loved you, except. They’d be there for you, unless. Think about the family. Everything would be better if you would just…
Rains had heard every version of those things, but there were only two that still made sense. Bes had told him to Be True. Not to anything that was defined for him, but to himself. The second was something his father had told him: You are what you do when it matters.
Now, more than ever it mattered. But far from the sense of security and purpose he longed for, when he thought about Sabine, he was back in the chair in the principal’s office when the news about his mother had broken him. It was years before he had forgiven her, forgiven his father, as if, somehow, they had died on purpose, simply to leave him alone. Rains knew that Bes was with Sabine, but he also knew that in her heart she would be asking the same questions he had struggled with.
Kr’et’Socae likely had his background from the leaked files, if he hadn’t known before, and he knew the Equiri wanted to hurt him for the death of his mate. Perhaps even for killing Thraff, but some things still didn’t add up. The former Enforcer had to still have agents within the Peacemaker Guild, otherwise there was no other way for him to have stayed ahead of the guild for this long.
So why use Rains? What was the long game? Kr’et’Socae had to gain something, Rains was just missing it. If he just wanted to kill me, I’d make it an even trade, he thought. If he wanted to disgrace me, there are easier ways to accomplish that, too.
Rains kept examining the situation, turning it over in his mind. He worried at it like the socket of a missing tooth; every time he touched it, he felt an ache, but he couldn’t stop.
For the sake of argument, let’s say I do what he wants.
Rains had no illusions that handing Rsach to Kr’et’Socae on a silver platter would change anything between the former Enforcer and himself. If Rains did that and succeeded, then Rains would be as infamous as the Equiri. But it was also a two-edged sword. It would do a great deal of damage to the reputation of the Peacemakers. Likewise, it would damage humanity’s image, but only within the current structure of the current Union. In some places, the estimation of humanity would benefit, infamy and fame walking hand-in-hand.
And if I refuse, those things are also true.
Rains would be seen as a failure, ineffective, perhaps even within the Peacemakers, but the Galactic Union at large couldn’t care less.
No, my personal reputation and humanity’s image can’t be the goal.
The small percentage of beings who cared would be evenly split between “look at the coward” and “look how noble he was to sacrifice his family.” And it was a negligible number of people.
Rains chuckled. Who was the third man to walk on the moon?
He shook his head. The only tangible benefit Rains could see was that while he was working to rescue Bes and Sabine, he wasn’t on the board doing other things. Obviously, Kr’et’Socae was interested in Snowman, but Force 25 wasn’t ready to move yet. There was still a lot of work to integrate the Trenta Knights, and even more in consolidating their new base of operations on Snowmass.
That can’t be it either.
He had to get more information. He needed to access Kr’et’Socae’s full file. It had been sealed after he was imprisoned, and Rains’ level of access hadn’t allowed him to read it.
If Rsach were killed, then the Peacemaker Council would select a new guild master. How does that benefit Kr’et’Socae?
It would certainly disrupt Peacemaker operations. There would be a lot of maneuvering, but it wouldn’t do any significant damage. Even with a prolonged debate, the wheels would only slow, not stop, without a guild master. Besides, given their methods recently, Rains wasn’t so sure a shakeup would be the worst thing that could happen. Rains felt a moment of shame for even considering it.
The first thing I need to do is figure out where Sin’Kura took them. And until I do, I have to plan for how to get my hands on those files. He couldn’t consider giving them to Kr’et’Socae. That was unthinkable, but if he needed them to get Sabine’s location, maybe he could discuss it with Hak-Chet…
Rains’ mind kept going back to what would happen if Rsach was no longer the guild master. He didn’t know much about how the council had changed in the past. Had any guild master been assassinated? That would be seen as a failure by th
e Enforcers, maybe even drive a wedge between the two groups within the Peacemakers. But they would still elect a new guild master and—
The thought suddenly hit Rains. A division between the Enforcers and Peacemakers would cause enough chaos to stop the guild cold, but it was still temporary unless Kr’et’Socae thought he could influence the selection process…That would mean…
To do that, Kr’et’Socae would need to have an agent on the Council. Jackson felt a chill.
If that’s true, Jackson thought, I can’t trust anyone in the Peacemakers.
* * *
Sanctuary Plantation
Louisiana, Earth
“All right folks! Listen up.” Amos looked around at the group. “I know y’all’re here for the party, but plans change. Someone decided to hit us. Didn’t work out so well for ‘em, but they got what they came for. They took Bes and Sabine. For now, we don’ know why or what dey want.”
There was an angry murmur as everyone tried to talk at once. “Family business!” shouted someone from the back. Amos held up his hands for quiet and got it.
“Too right. Family business. We was hit, and we’re gonna hit back, harder than anybody gonna believe, but this ain’t no time for pride. You’re all mercs, or close enough, and you know there’s family and there’s family.” Amos pointed to the Cajuns. “Family.” Then to the Olympians. “Family.” Then he pointed to Sebastian and Rikki, Tikki, and Tavvi. “Family.
“We all got family that’s blood and family we choose. If you in dis room, you already decided to put it all on da line. We do that on contract, but this time it’s personal, an’ we’re gonna kick some ass, I gar-on-tee! Blood for blood!”
“Blood for blood!” came the call from around the room.
“Now, anybody dat gonna be part of da problem instead of da solution can hitch up an’ ride now. I got no time for your shit!” Amos glared around the room, daring anyone to speak up. Nobody moved.
