by R. E. Graham
“Then we will not resist,” the Captain finally said as he accepted the pirate lord’s hand and shook it.
“Hern, move all of the personnel off of the bridge and take them to the dining area.”
“Yes, Lord,” the strike team leader said to Mikhail. He pointed his thumb over his shoulder back towards the blast door for the bridge. “Let’s go. Everyone out.”
The Ignis’ crew somberly shuffled off the bridge and followed the pirates out of the area.
Mikhail turned back to the Captain. “We are going to need you to open your cargo bay doors.”
“What are you planning to do with my ship?” Nero asked hesitantly. “Are my people going to be in any danger?”
“Please, Captain, the doors.” The pirate lord’s eyes were very stern.
Seeing there was not going to be a further conversation the Captain walked over to one of the stations and pressed several keys. They couldn’t hear it up on the bridge as the cargo bays were depressurized and the air was sucked out. Afterward, there was a dull roaring sound that echoed through the ship as the four doors opened on either side of the spacecraft.
“Deimos, we are ready to load the cargo.”
Nero wished that he and his ship were anywhere else than right here and now. He watched on a screen that displayed security cameras in the two long bays that ran nearly the length of the ship that WarMechs were being loaded. He didn't know what was coming next, but his gut instinct was they were getting ready for all sorts of danger.
Chapter 20
Cycle: 434 Month: 4 Day: 1
Outer Rim Colonial Alliance Space
Planet: Ko’Bac
Location: Aboard the Ignis
Mikhail checked the clock for the local time. It had taken them an hour from the launch of the attack to being fully loaded. Jax along with the mech jocks and some other personnel had joined the crew aboard the Ignis. Captain Nero remained silent but was clearly brooding over the entire affair of the pirates being on his ship.
An additional bridge crew had been assembled from people from across the Onyx base and the fleet to operate the captured vessel. The pirate lord knew that it would be a bit rough as the team wouldn’t have a lot of time to get to know one another, but he needed the experienced crews aboard each of the ships in the rest of the fleet for another piece of his plan.
"Lord, everything is in place, and we are ready to go," Jax said as he stepped up next to his old captain.
“Excellent. Mr. Colbert, please inform the fleet we are ready for phase two,” Mikhail said to the much older man who now operated the Ignis’ comms.
“Ay,e aye,” he said as he sent the encrypted text message to the other Onyx ships.
The Midnight had already disengaged its tube after the others had boarded the captured vessel and now was positioned near the Fini and Kilroy.
Deimos watched from his captain’s chair as the Ignis hopped away from Ko’Bac and headed for Frost. Inside he felt his heart and mind struggle against one another. His resolution still had not changed, but it hadn’t gotten any easier to cope with either. Regardless, one of the two lords were about to die. He only wished it hadn’t come to this.
The hop to the border world took only a flash of a second for the crew, but six rotations had already passed for everyone else in reality.
“We have all green across the ship, Lord,” Sahara said as she surveyed her screens.
She had been assigned as the temporary captain of the Ignis, but Jax would ultimately remain in command as the phases of the plan unfolded. The overrider's objective after the ground teams disembarked was to hide until they were needed to pick up the WarMechs. Afterward, they were to clear the atmosphere and jump back to Ko'Bac as soon as possible.
Mikhail was thankful that so far everything had been very smooth.
We still have a long way to go before it is all said and done. Don’t get too comfortable with things. Plenty can be screwed up even now.
Frost could now be seen on the main viewscreen. The snowy world looked so serene at that moment.
“Untold influence and power are within your grasp. Reach out and take it for yourself!” the voice spoke within him.
Yes, soon Ruby will be mine. Then nothing will stop me.
As they approached the planet, the blockade of ships and PLOWs became visible and was identified by the Ignis’ sensors.
“Oh boy, there’s a lot of ‘em out there,” Mr. Colbert said to himself out loud. He looked up and realized everyone else was staring at him. “Sorry about that.”
“How many ships are there?” the pirate lord asked as he turned back to the screen.
“I uh…a lot. And there are at least ten of the PLOW stations too.”
In orbit around the planet, the Republic had positioned many of the deadly Planetary Linked Orbital Weapons. They packed enough firepower to totally obliterate invading ships with ease. When accompanied by a Republic fleet they were that much more difficult to destroy.
As more and more worlds defected from the edges of the Republic, the military brass had commissioned for PLOWs to be stationed on border worlds. This helped two-fold. One was to defend against any invading forces, the other was to pacify the local populace. It only took one insurrection on a border world with the orbital weapon platforms to discover that they could just as quickly be used to defend a planet as they were capable of being used to launch precise tactical attacks on those below.
“Lord, I have located three War Carriers!” the temporary comm’s officer said with a tremor of fear in his voice.
The massive ships known as War Carriers were built for one purpose, to carry war and bloodshed wherever they traveled. They had tremendous load capability for ground forces, were armed to the teeth with point defense turrets and capital weaponry and came packed with squadrons of fighter aircraft.
As a standard military procedure, they also would be deployed with their own escort fleet which added even more to the mix. A single War Carrier was capable of prolonged engagement with ground forces and could operate for a year on its own, depending on the campaign needs. Only three other nations had been able to develop their own equivalent to the War Carrier, the Vortorian Federation, Lotus Imperium and the Union of Stars. The latter of the group had experienced the ferocity of the Republic's version first hand on several occasions.
Seeing the dominant display of force in orbit above Frost did not fracture Mikhail's resolve. He had prepared himself for this and knew that everything hinged on the next part of the plan, which was to get past the blockade and down to the surface.
Captain Nero had been escorted off of the bridge and reunited with the rest of his crew. The injured had been taken off the ship and placed aboard the Midnight, which when he protested was explained to him by Lord Onyx that it was necessary but that they would be released when the Ignis returned to Ko’Bac.
Multiple armed pirates stood guard over the prisoners down in the ship’s kitchen and dining area. Nero placed his hand on his head as he fretted over what could be happening up on the bridge. The Ignis had been his father's ship and had been passed down to him. Like many other transporters, this ship was his life. Without it, he would have to locate some other crew to join and start his way from the bottom. That is if they even survived all of this.
Jax sat at one of the stations on the bridge with his back to the rest of the crew.
“Have you heard from your informant?” Mikhail asked the overrider.
“Not yet. But I have sent my own message to signal that we have arrived in system. Shouldn’t be long now.”
Within the main Ruby headquarters on Frost, Redbeard held two datapads. He checked back and forth between the spreadsheets and analyzed them for any discrepancies. Despite having personnel that oversaw all the records of his dealings across his realm, he always verified payments and the movement of goods.
He believed that a lord always had to be on the look for someone looking to steal. After all, he was constantly in the com
pany of pirates. Every single one of them was labeled as criminals, that is if the Republic ever caught them.
Cinder tapped his hand against the doorway as he poked his head into the pirate lord’s office. “Sir, Frober is at the door.”
Redbeard stood up from his desk and placed the tablets down. He rolled his shoulders and stretched. “Alright, let’s go.”
“I was able to get you tickets to the theatre this evening,” Cinder said as he stepped aside to allow his boss to pass through the doorway.
The pirate lord nodded to himself as he buttoned his business jacket and headed down the hall. “Sam’s been looking forward to this play for months.”
“She should be excited you are making time to go, Lord.”
“That’s the goal, but I doubt it,” Redbeard said as he approached the front door.
A guard saw the pirate lord coming and waved his hand over the door panel. The door slid open, and two more guards stood watch to make sure the entryway was safe for Redbeard to enter the waiting vehicle.
The sight of Redbeard made Frober’s heart pound in his chest. He had been with Ruby for over a decade and had been the Lord’s personal driver anytime he was on Frost. About a week ago he was contacted by Jax and agreed to a fortune to give location information on where his boss was when he got the signal.
Today had been like any other until his communicator got the notification that Onyx was in system. When he first read the encrypted message, he felt a tightness in his upper chest from stress. His mind raced with thoughts of what could happen to him if Onyx failed and it was tracked back to him. However, the payday, if they came through, would mean the difference between being a lackey the rest of his life or being able to retire from this profession.
He quickly typed a reply to the Onyx overrider saying, "Taking him to his home," then typed in the address. Frober nearly dropped his handheld device just as he hit sent and the door for the vehicle was opened by one of the nearby guards. In a flash, he stuffed his communicator into his inside jacket pocket and tried to look natural.
“Lord,” he said as he looked into the rearview mirror.
“Take me home Frober,” Redbeard responded as he got comfortable in the backseat.
“Yessir.”
The guard shut the door with a muffled thud, and the luxury vehicle pulled forward through the half circle driveway. Traffic was nearing its peak as commuters were heading home after a long day at their office jobs in the city.
Redbeard had elected to settle his operations in Winter Haven cycles ago. Some in Ruby spread rumors that it was because of how the city council was corrupt, and others thought it was because the outer limits of the city were uninhabited and helped in making bodies disappear. The truth was much simpler than anyone gave it credit. When Val Henders married his wife, he knew that her heart always longed to live in the thriving city ever since she was a little girl living in squalor. It was a gift that her husband's power could give, and he enjoyed seeing her happy.
While Lord Ruby was known for being truly brutal to his enemies, he had a soft spot for his bride in more than one way. Tension had built up between the two to the point that Samantha stopped coming around the main base or other gatherings. She had always been pleasant toward Frober, which made him feel even that much more guilt in personally driving her husband to what would hopefully be his last stop, permanently.
The driver brought the vehicle to a halt at a traffic light and nervously tapped his finger on the steering wheel as he looked back up into the rear facing mirror to see if the pirate lord was watching him. Thankfully he was not as he was skimming through something on his own communicator. Making deals and following up on his realm's business seldom stopped for Redbeard, and now was no different.
I hope this isn’t going to blow up in my face. You guys better show up and do what you gotta do.
Chapter 21
Cycle: 434 Month: 4 Day: 7
Outer Rim Colonial Alliance Space
Planet: Ko’Bac
Location: Onboard the Ignis
Jax was beginning to get a bit anxious as he sat waiting for a response from his informant within Ruby. Everything now rested on Lord Ruby's personal driver, and it made the overrider give into his old habit of biting his nails. A notification alert popped up onto his screen, and he nearly fell out of his seat.
He touched the icon and it opened the message. "We got it, Mikhail," Jax said getting overwhelmed by his excitement.
“Feona, take us in,” the pirate lord said as he took a seat at the captain’s chair and secured his harness.
He reached over and pulled the microphone from the chair and switched it to speak with the entire ship by twisting a nearby knob. “This is Lord Mikhail, prepare for atmo re-entry.”
The speakers made an audible click as the speakers were cut and Lord Onyx switched the mic to speak directly with the dining area on the ship where the Ignis’ true crew were being held hostage. “Please bring up Captain Nero to the bridge.”
Hearing his name, the Captain’s head shot up. One of the guards on the edge of the group motioned with his rifle’s barrel. “You heard ‘im, let’s go.”
Several minutes of walking later Joe Nero was back on the bridge of his ship. It felt very odd to him to know it was being helmed by invaders, but so far that they had stuck to their word, so he didn't see a reason to rock the boat.
“Ah, Captain, we will need your assistance for the next part of our plan,” Mikhail said as he gestured for him to sit at one of the empty stations.
Nero crossed the bridge and took a seat. He connected his own harness securing him in case of turbulence. Afterward, he spun his chair around and looked at the view screen.
“Is that Frost?” the Captain asked as he thought he recognized the white tinted world.
“It is. We are about to encounter the Republic’s blockade. I need you to give your authorization codes and tell them that we are heading to Winter Haven to drop off goods.”
His mind began to identify the massive floating shapes around Frost as the Captain stared at the screen longer. Right then he started to wonder if he had made the right choice in cooperating. He knew that things were going to go badly for him and his people.
“What are we going to Frost for?”
Mikhail felt that the Captain didn't need to know the truth, at least not yet. "Just get us through, and we will handle the rest. Oh, and Captain, don't try anything stupid. If they suspect something is up and have to board the ship, we will kill you and your crew faster than you can blink."
Nero gulped and believed the pirate lord’s promise. He nodded uneasily and spun his chair back around to face his station’s terminal.
“We are being hailed,” Mr. Colbert said as he saw the desire for comm connection from one of the Republic’s ships.
“Get us through Joe,” Lord Onyx said firmly as he stared at the back of the Captain’s head.
After taking a deep breath, Nero pressed a button to confirm the connection.
“Approaching vessel identify yourself,” came a stern voice over the bridge’s speakers.
“This is Captain Joe Nero of the Ignis. We are requesting to land on the surface,” he said as he tried to speak as calmly as he could.
“What business do you have on Frost?” the voice asked.
“We are here to pick up cargo to transport to Ko’Bac,” the Captain said lying.
“Authorization codes?”
“One-six-nine-four-alpha-sigma-theta-eight-six.”
There was a moment of awkward silence as the space traffic controller verified the ship’s code for it to be cleared to land. Nero’s hands began to sweat as he shut his eyes waiting for the response.
“You’re clear to land,” the anonymous voice finally said.
The Captain swallowed hard then answered. “Thank you.”
As the connection was cut Mikhail turned to Jax. “Are you sure the jammers on the mechs will work?”
"I'm as sure as I can
be, Lord. They are modeled after the same one we used on the Only Hope so it should do the job.”
Before takeoff, the pirate lord had sent the overrider to construct eight jammers for the WarMechs in case things turned bad for them when they caused a distraction downtown in the city. They were installed on the backs of the mechs and hardwired through to the cockpits, but they hadn’t had field testing yet.
The overrider’s confidence was all that Lord Onyx needed. They had been on plenty of runs in the past, and Jax always came through.
Feona eased the Ignis toward the planet. Mikhail shook his head as he thought about how easy it had been to get access to land.
Since the Republic controller allowed them through without having to pass the massive scanner rings, he must have been dirty.
It didn't entirely surprise him that Redbeard had influence even on the Republican blockade. Truthfully, it was impressive that he was able to set up shop on a border world to begin with. Now it was becoming clear how he was able to.
Even though Mikhail had listened to protests about attacking the rival pirate lord on his home turf, he knew that it was vital on sending a message to the rest of Ruby. If they succeeded here and now it would secure his grip on the other branch, and his realm would triple in size. Deimos had suggested that the other lords of the Five Skulls would be greatly upset at a lord going to war with another, but Mikhail wasn't worried.
Having a realm of over fifteen worlds made him more powerful than the other three combined. Besides, he didn’t have any issue with them just with Redbeard. And he certainly wasn’t going to leave another Ruby pirate in charge to maybe one day try to assassinate him again. He had already been attacked by a pirate that was loyal to Yondo.
Before leaving Ko’Bac, Mikhail tasked Jax with finding someone to set up informants in the other branches. The idea was to at least have some kind of intel in case one or even all of the other lords decided to launch an assault on Onyx after Mikhail was through with Redbeard. He hoped that things would remain calm between the other branches, but he wanted to be prepared.
