by John Walker
Vic lifted his gun as the laser came his way, slicing into the console as it covered the surface in black. Two quick blasts were all he could manage before he dove to the floor, going prone. The beam cut directly over him, hot enough to sear his hair. A rumbling explosion made Vic’s ears ring.
The laser turned off. The man fell to the ground, but he’d shot the reactor, ruptured the thing with his ridiculous cannon.
Vic crawled to his feet, hurrying over to the only operating terminal in the place. The ether core appeared to be unstable. An emergency message filled the screen. The place would go up in less than ten minutes without immediate containment. Since he had no idea how to even start, it was time to go.
“Borden?” Vic rushed back to the door then slipped into the maintenance tunnel again. “I’ve got a serious problem down here.”
“What did you do?” Borden asked. “We’re picking up a serious power build up. Did you mess with the reactor?”
“No, one of them did.”
“What’s that mean?”
“The whole place is going to blow up in a few minutes.”
Borden sighed.
“You think you’re put out? I’m about to die down here, man!”
“We’ll dock now,” Borden said, “but you damn well better hurry. We don’t have much time to get out of here.”
Vic climbed the ladder two stories, shifting to the next flight to get to where The Pegasus would be. He checked his scanner on the way up. Dots were swarming the place, probably in a total panic. He wondered what they’d do… if they even had a plan for such a catastrophe.
This place was old enough, Vic thought. I would imagine they’ve thought about what to do in an emergency.
“Attention!” The woman didn’t sound so smug this time. Her voice trembled as she spoke. “Get to the escape pods immediately! The reactor has been breached. It will detonate in eight minutes! Repeat, get to the escape pods right now or kiss your ass goodbye. This is the last message. I’m out of here!”
I mean, I guess that’s something. Vic picked up the pace, charging toward the docking ring. At least they won’t try to steal our ship now. He wondered how the Gold Empire would feel about them blowing up the station. They don’t have much to say about it since they sent us here and hadn’t checked it out.
He passed by other doors leading to empty docking clamps. His objective was three away. Footsteps slapped the deck ahead of him, people probably running for their lives. None of them must’ve thought Borden planned to stay. I wonder if they think we’re responsible. He doubted they cared given the circumstances.
“I’m in position!” Vic shouted. “Are you docked?”
“Dude,” Borden said, “I’m doing it now. They aren’t exactly helping me now that you’ve screwed up their home. Relax.”
“You realize what’s about to happen?” Vic aimed his weapon down the hall. He doubted anyone would come but if they did, he needed to be ready. “What it’ll be like over here when this goes up?”
“I’m about to attach our ship to the place,” Borden said. “Yes, I know what it’ll be like. Now you’re distracting me. Settle down.”
Settle down! Son of a bitch! Vic cursed, pacing as he waited. He couldn’t see The Pegasus… and he wasn’t sure it would make him feel better to watch it slowly approach or not. At least then I’d know how long it’ll take to get here. He moved a good twenty feet down the corridor, checking for more pirates.
Scans showed they were moving downward. Okay, so I’m good.
“Hey,” a voice behind him made him jump. “You caused this, huh?” Vic turned to look at a young man, probably in his twenties. Brown hair was long, partially covering his dark eyes. He held a pistol, aimed at Vic’s head. “You’re the reason this place is about to go up in smoke, right?”
“Technically,” Vic replied, “it was one of your guys. Some crazy laser thingie I’ve never seen before… you can’t blame me for this. I just wanted a couple parts without my ship and buddies getting hijacked in the process.”
“Son of a bitch!” The man took a step forward.
The station shook violently, making them both stumble. Vic threw himself against the wall to maintain his balance. His opponent collapsed, losing the gun in the process but he scampered forward on all fours. The man lunged as Vic brought the knife down, sliding it directly into the man’s back just as they grappled.
The blow brought out a huffing groan. His grip tightened though, indicating he still had some fight in him.
Vic wiggled the blade left and right, bringing out an agonized scream. That made the guy let go. As he fell, the man tossed a punch, catching Vic in the balls. The blow made his stomach feel hollow in a second, but it wasn’t hard enough to cause any real damage. He couldn’t yank the blade out before it was torn from his hand by the weight of his opponent.
“We’re here!” Borden shouted. “Sealed up. Go! Get on board! Now!”
Vic hit the panel, slipping into the tunnel. A couple blasts followed him. One caught him in the thigh just before the door closed. White hot pain made it difficult to see. He staggered to the airlock door leading to The Pegasus, hammering the surface with his palm.
Lyson opened it up, pulling him inside. The door closed behind them. A moment later, the magnetics released with a clunk and they were on their way. As the thrusters engaged, Vic winced, clinging to the doctor as she dragged him back toward the medical area.
“What happened?” Lyson asked.
“Asshole shot me,” Vic grunted. “Just before the damn doors! Shit, I knew I should’ve finished him off when he fell! Dammit!”
“You’ll be okay. It’s just a leg hit. We can fix that.”
“Yeah, I’m just tired of needing to be fixed,” Vic muttered. “You’d better hurry, Borden! This thing’s going up soon!”
“I thought I’d stop for tea!” Borden shouted. “Just be quiet and hold on! I’m going full burn before we get out of here. Somewhere safe this time. Damn stupid Gold Empire jackasses! I can’t believe…”
The rest of what he said faded as Vic gave into the pain. They made it to medical where Lyson helped him sit. As the main thrusters engaged, the ship really started shaking. Vic watched his computer through blurry eyes. Power increases on the space station went critical and a moment later… it detonated.
They were only barely beyond minimum safe distance. Possibly five thousand kilometers. The end of the shockwave rocked their vessel, making the lights flicker and the whole place quake. Lyson strapped him down to the table, leaning over him throughout the tremors.
When it finally settled down, Borden spoke over the comm. “And that was way too close for comfort, folks… but we’re on our way now. Thanks for your patience and relax. Next stop, an actual safe harbor. Talk later.”
Vic slumped, closing his eyes. Next time these people want to do something besides move on, I’m telling them to go to hell. He swallowed hard. “I know what it’ll take to fix that wound. Mind putting me out, Doc?”
“No problem, Vic.” Lyson patted his shoulder. “Rest now.”
A hypo hissed next to his ear. His body felt leaden in a matter of seconds. Unconsciousness followed. Blessed blackness after his ridiculous run. I don’t ever… want to do… that… again.
***
Zem leaned back in the chair of the command center staring at the ceiling. They’d been sitting around for a couple hours in anticipation of Loch’s arrival. The entire compound had been trapped. McCully did incredible work setting it up. She proved herself far more useful than he anticipated.
I should’ve known better. She’s a damn captain. She got there for a reason.
Ronnie and Dora moved the ship well away from the complex. They took up position far enough off that they wouldn’t be scanned upon arrival but could arrive within a few minutes if an extraction became necessary. Zem didn’t anticipate it would. He had full control over the base. Even if every man came down from the enemy ship, they didn’t stand a chance
.
I’ve anticipated you, Loch. This is going to be a quick brawl.
“Hey,” McCully stepped inside, “I finished the inspection. All the explosives are good to go. You want to take a walkthrough? I can watch the control for a bit.”
“No, I’m good.” Zem nodded. “Thanks though. I appreciate it.”
“You warming up to me a little?” McCully asked. “I didn’t anticipate a thanks.”
“Maybe a little.”
“The Special Forces unit you belonged to…” McCully took a seat nearby. “Did you guys do something that ended up pushing you out? Something you didn’t agree with?” He didn’t answer immediately. “Or was it something you did that command didn’t like? Maybe a little at any cost kind of thing?”
“Something like that.” Zem looked at her. “You been on those types of missions? No connection with command, no word from your superiors… left on your own to make decisions that are picked apart later? I’m not slighting you if you haven’t, but most of the regular units don’t find themselves in that position.”
McCully shrugged. “I’ve been on missions that took us behind enemy lines. I know what it’s like.”
“Not like this.” Zem shook his head. “Not remotely. The fact of the matter is, we’re insanely expensive. Highly trained, best gear, etc… but none of that’s important. We can still be considered expendable. Often if our actions embarrass the wrong people. Which frustrated me. Getting a reprimand because some dumbass officer got butt hurt? Screw that.”
“Is that what happened then?”
“For the most part,” Zem said. “Yes.”
“Want to talk about it?”
Zem sighed. “I never have before.”
“Might be time.”
“The brief version.” Zem leaned forward. “We went to extract a high value asset. Some intelligence piece of shit. Command thought they were hanging out on this world out on the far end of the frontier border. Been giving us detailed intel about Gold Empire movements for the better part of a year.
“Their cover got blown. We were dispatched to get them back but just us. A ship, a lot like The Bounty but less fancy, a pilot, and us. Comms back to base wouldn’t be possible because the buoy was taken out just after our guy let us know where he was. We should’ve known shit wouldn’t be good.”
“What happened?”
“When we got there, our asset was a prisoner. We busted in but couldn’t find him. The pricks who caught him hid him somewhere and he didn’t have long to live according to them. They wanted to bargain. We didn’t have time. Intelligence suggested Gold Empire warships were incoming to take our guy back to their colonies to interrogate him.
“We weren’t about to be brought down for that shit. So…” Zem sighed. “We started executing the prisoners. The last guy decided to talk. Told us where our man was. We got him out. On our way to the ship, my CO blasted the final bad guy. He figured there wouldn’t be any witnesses that way.”
“So how’d you get caught?”
“One of our own grew a conscience.” Zem shrugged. “Got us busted.”
“Did you resign?”
“Immediately. Did I think it was right to kill those people? Maybe, maybe not. They were standing between us and the objective. We didn’t have time to be nice. So… we did our jobs. Whatever it takes. You know how many times our CO told us that? Do whatever it takes, guys. Get it done.”
“And so you feel like the one time you did that…”
“We got hosed. So yeah, I’m bitter.”
“I get it.” McCully rolled her chair closer. “But you know, that’s how the military works. Sometimes, there are double standards. You can’t always be in the right. They didn’t drum you out, didn’t bust you or anything. Do you really think you did better for yourself by leaving? You could’ve stayed. Helped other people.”
“I kind of got selfish after that shit.” Zem smirked. “Call me cynical. I’ve only just recently found myself turning over a new leaf. When I met Rita and the others, I found a new unit. One I knew wouldn’t rat on each other… one I trusted with my life again. And I can’t tell you how good that felt.”
“Which is why you were willing to come to this place with a skeleton crew to save Rita.” McCully touched his arm. “Zem… would you consider coming back? Joining us again? Give it another shot? Under different leadership, of course.”
“No.” Zem shook his head. “Never. Why? What’s the point? I’ve got everything I want out here.”
“Rita’s not returning to this life,” McCully replied, gesturing around her. “She’s probably going to work for that MerCon lady. And your buddy Borden? I think he’ll have to go too. His time in this job’s limited anyway from what I hear. And that’s it. Your crew’s done. Broken up. I just… want you to land on your feet.”
“I always do.” Zem looked past her as Torrence entered the room. “Besides, I’ve got some plans of my own, Captain. Maybe I won’t need the military anymore for much longer.” He stood. “What’s going on? You got something to report?”
“That Biggun asshole took a nap,” Torrence said. “Nostros is watching him. Got word from Dora. She’s going comm silent until we send her the code. Which means we’re pretty much good to go for this guy. When we get a signal that he’s arrived in the system, I’ll get into position and hang out for a few hours while he flies in.”
“Sounds good,” Zem replied. “I’ll keep you company at that point.” He turned to McCully. “You mind handling our prisoner? Since I know you’d rather I not shoot him in the head after we’re done.”
“Yes,” McCully said. “I’ll take care of him. Just… think about what I said. There’s a place for you.”
“Thanks.” Zem pulled Torrence aside. “I needed a break from the generosity.”
“She trying to get you to come back?” Torrence asked. Zem nodded. “Would it be so bad?”
“Yeah. I’ve left that behind. Imagine having to break a bunch of bad habits. Again!”
“Nah, you’d be fine. Besides, I could use someone like you on my squad.”
“Oh, you think I’d report to you?” Zem chuckled. “You’re insane.”
“We worked well together on the space station.”
“That we did.” Zem nudged her. “Maybe you should retire from that shit. Come with me. We can start up a new crew. McCully thinks Borden’s on the way out but I disagree. Plus, we’ve got Hayes now. She’s solid. The four of us are a good start to getting work out in the frontier. They won’t civilize it for years yet.”
“When this war is over,” Torrence said, “we’ll be needed to keep the peace more than ever. Systems will rise up. All kinds of shit will go down. It’s important that we’re around to fight them off. To keep everyone safe. That’s why I think we’re both hitting you up to come back. Do you want to be part of the problem?”
“Because I’m a thief?”
“Pretty much, yes.”
Zem sighed. “I don’t know. I mean, we never took too much. Not enough to be a real issue at least.” He leaned against the wall. “And we’re helping a lot right now.”
“Maybe Rita’s got a place for you.”
“Working for MerCon?” Zem wrinkled his nose. “That’s bullshit. I can’t believe she’d even consider it. Unless she’s got the hots for Erris.”
“I don’t think she swings that way.” Torrence lowered her voice. “Thing is, we’re going to be doing important work. Not fighting pirates and shit. Really saving people. Keep up the swing. You’ve been doing good with us… so what? There’s always room for more, pal. And I think you know that.”
“Yo!” McCully called. “We’ve got contact! A ship just popped in through hyperspace. I’m running a scan now to confirm it’s Loch!”
“Ah,” Zem waggled his brows, “saved by the bell. We can continue that chat when we’re sitting around bored.” He moved over to the computer, waiting for the positive ID. It came a moment later. “Right on. This is it, folks. Torre
nce, have Nostros bring Biggun in here. McCully, you know what he’s got to do. We’ll wait until the first chat’s over.”
“Yep. I’m on it.” McCully sat at the computer. “Better hurry. If they call us, we need him here.”
“Going now!” Torrence called.
Okay, Rita. If you’re alive, we’ve got you. Zem steadied his nerves. They were still four hours away from the planet. Plenty of time to relax and prepare himself. No need to get riled up now. Just keep calm. Plenty of time for adrenaline. Right now, this is finesse. I’m glad McCully’s here. I probably wouldn’t have enough to take us through this situation.
***
Rita felt the telltale signs of leaving hyperspace. She began to pace. They likely popped in hours from the planet. Does that mean I still have time before Loch demanded to speak with me? Before the guards come to take me somewhere? The answers came down to how efficiently they ran their ship.
I can’t imagine they’re all that impressive, Rita thought. Those with some military training might know what they’re doing but they’re still saddled with civilians. Which meant slower responses, less accurate calculations, and more time to figure out what to do. I have to get to the surface to make a move.
After half an hour, she flopped on the bed. When no one came for her, she figured they must actually be focused on getting to their destination. The technical side of such a thing mattered. Achieving a reasonable orbit, establishing contact with anyone that cared about a massive ship showing up, and arranging transport to the surface took concentration.
Maybe Loch’s more on it than I thought.
The door opened. Rita sat up, checking the time. It had been an hour since they left hyperspace at that point. Loch came in, moving directly to the table where he took a seat. Gesturing at the opposite side, he waited for her to join him.
“We’ve arrived at my compound,” Loch said. “We’ll be in orbit within an hour or so. Then we can head down. You’ve had enough time to think about this situation and my offer. I would like your answer.”
