His lasers shut down and went red on his display. It would take them thirty seconds to cool down.
He checked his console. It showed he had ten dumb missiles and five smart missiles. He had to use them strategically. He would save the smart missiles for when the enemy's shields went down.
The Black Thorn roared alongside the Icarus, releasing a barrage of missiles. Byron flicked the switch for the countermeasures, sending a cloud of flares burning into the night.
Two of the missiles locked onto and exploded in the flares, but the rest plowed into the Icarus.
As the bridge rocked, Xana yelled, "Containment breach! Venting plasma!"
She ran off the bridge while the floor veered to one side.
The Black Thorn had continued to the port side of the Icarus, but its shields still glowed yellow. He launched two heat-seeking missiles at the pirate ship.
The shields went from red to black. They were down.
Scarlett whooped. "We've got the engine core in our sights. Blow that shit!"
Chetaara whirled around to thrust out her hands. "No! That would cause the ship to explode and kill Fala."
Scarlett winced. "Oh, yeah. That would be bad."
"We don't want that." He knew he could fire a shot, and he only had a few seconds before the shields restored. He remembered what Xana had said about the heat.
He fired a dumb missile.
The missile roared off to slam into the Black Thorn's fins. In the explosion, the pieces swirled off into space.
The Black Thorn responded by sending more laser fire streaking into the Icarus. The Icarus wailed as the shields on the port side went from yellow to black.
Scarlett sent the Icarus into a spin. "We've lost port shields! Starboard is almost gone."
Chetaara looked up. "Master, the temperature aboard the Black Thorn is rising."
He couldn't hold back a grin. "Xana was right."
The Black Thorn began to go into a spin on its own. For once, it turned away from the Icarus.
He pointed. "Scarlett, don't let her get away."
His laser guns cooled down enough for him to send more shots into the Black Thorn's rear. The shields went from yellow to black right away, collapsing.
Xana hurried back onto the bridge with smoke darkening her face and clothes. "The core is hot, but I've got it locked down."
One glance at the pirate ship on their screen, and she added, "It looks like they're directing power from the shields to the engines."
Chetaara nodded. "It's going critical."
The Black Thorn's engines went from white hot to red to dark within seconds. The ship stopped maneuvering and went into a drift.
Scarlett threw up her fists. "Fuckin' A!"
MISSION SUCCESSFUL
+5,000 XP
+500 CREDITS
Chetaara laughed and clapped her hands. "We did it! The Black Thorn has shut down."
The girls all rushed to Byron, planting kisses on his cheeks, his forehead, and lips at once. He laughed while fighting to come up for air under them.
"Okay, okay." He held out his hands so they would draw back. "We can celebrate later."
Chetaara stroked his crotch. "And we will."
NEW MISSION: RESCUE PROFESSOR BAH-TEE-FALA
REWARDS: 500 XP, 250 CREDITS
"Right now, we need to rescue Fala and get that missing gem. Scarlett, can you dock with the Black Thorn?"
Scarlett dropped back into her pilot's seat. "I can fly this ship right up Jokah's ass if you want."
Byron grinned. "The airlock is fine. We should--"
The voice came again, and he recognized it immediately as the one he had heard inside his head earlier.
Byron, can you hear me?
He looked up at the ceiling. "Yes, I hear you. Who is this?"
Chetaara and Xana frowned at him but he waved them off.
I'm Otis Accolade. I'm the one who gave you the invitation to Venus Online. Do you remember?
"Yeah, of course. Where are you?"
I'm in the game with you. Trapped. Where I am specifically, I'm not really sure. Look, you need to find me. I can help all of us escape.
"How? I don't understand--"
I don't have much time. I'll contact you again soon. In the meantime, stay alive but keep fighting. Venus Online isn't just a game. He's going to use it to take over the world. The real world. He's--
The voice fell silent.
"Otis? Otis?"
Scarlett leaned over to him. "What the fuck was that?"
He touched his temple. "Otis Accolade. I heard his voice in my head. He said he was trapped inside the game and needed me to help him get out. That he could free everyone."
She held out her hands. "But that don't mean shit. He made the whole fucking game. Why the fuck would he be trapped inside it?"
"I don't know." He clenched his fists. "But I'm gonna find out."
=×=
In the Icarus, Byron stood by watching as Xana worked on the airlock of the Black Thorn. It had been sealed and no one aboard the pirate ship responded to their hails, but she said she could open it. Having seen what she could do, he trusted her.
Sure enough, after a few minutes of working on the console, the airlock hissed open.
Xana stripped naked and disappeared as he aimed his laser rifle into the open doorway. Chetaara ignited lightning on her fingers as Scarlett readied her guns.
They stepped through the airlock into the Black Thorn. He could see what had once been a pleasant entryway now shattered. Thick smoke choked the air as sparks flew from exposed wiring. Boxes were scattered around the entrance.
A laser blast came out of the smoke to hit Chetaara in the chest. She flew back against a wall. Her health bar dropped by half, but the armor took most of the impact.
Byron fired into the smoke, where he could see health bars pop up. Three of them.
He called out, "We don't want to hurt anyone. We just want Fala and the gems."
Captain Jokah called back, "Well, that's a problem, love, because I do want to hurt someone. And we kind of had the gems first."
Shots flew back at Byron and his women.
One shot hit Byron's left arm. It burned through his armor but his health bar only dropped by a quarter of its length.
He and the others scattered while rushing to get behind the boxes. Byron found shelter and shot at the health bars. With a shout of pain, one of the bars dropped to zero.
+100 XP
The clouds shifted and Byron caught a glimpse of the outline of a pair of breasts so he knew Xana was sneaking by, invisible.
He kept firing until he heard a shriek, and another health bar dropped to zero.
Xana had found a target.
Chetaara thrust out her hand, and the smoke ripped away like a hand sweeping it aside. He assumed she used her telekinetic code. Now they could all see Captain Jokah standing in front of them, looking the same except for a mechanical arm. Bah-Tee-Fala stood in front of Jokah, naked and with Jokah's sword at her throat.
Jokah raised her eyebrows. "Oh, that was a bit of fun, wasn't it? Lost a couple of my best ladies, but that's all right. I can always get more."
She raised her metal hand and wiggled the fingers. "Like the new gadget? Cost me an arm and a leg."
She burst out laughing. "No hard feelings, though. Too bad we couldn't keep shooting at each other, but I'm in a bit of a rush. You wanted the professor? Here she is, although I'd put your guns down if you want her in one piece."
He kept his rifle pointed at Jokah's head. "We have you outnumbered. We've got you in our sights, and if we kill the professor, you get nothing so we win anyway. Now hand her over and you might just live through this."
Jokah put her free hand to her mouth in a fake gasp. "Oh, blimey, you got me dead to rights. I guess I better let her go."
She swung the sword away from Fala's neck and pushed on her back. "Right, off you go."
Fala stumbled forward, keeping one arm across her nak
ed breasts and the other over her crotch. She headed right for Byron with tears streaming down her face.
He kept his weapon pointed at Jokah. He knew the pirate captain well enough to think this was a trick, but he wasn't sure what the game was. He watched Jokah's hands as they fell to her sides.
"Throw down your weapons," he yelled.
Jokah shrugged and dropped her sword onto the floor with a clatter.
"All of them!"
Jokah pouted as she reached for her belt. "Oh, you're no fun."
She dropped a knife and pistol onto the floor, too.
Fala ran up to Byron and ducked behind him, putting him between her and Jokah.
OBJECTIVE REACHED: RESCUE PROFESSOR BAH-TEE-FALA
+500 XP
+250 CREDITS
At that point, Byron realized he had no idea what to do. He couldn't arrest Jokah because he wasn't a cop. He didn't want to kill her because she still seemed like a living and unarmed person, even though he knew she was just a computer program. He didn't want to leave her trapped on a dead ship to die.
He looked around. "Xana, can you get this ship working again?"
He couldn't see Xana but her voice came out of a corner. "Um, I think so. I'd need to, uh, take a look at the damage and get some supplies from the Icarus."
"Okay." Byron jerked his gun at Jokah. "Captain, we're locking you up and we're gonna fix your ship enough so you can get somewhere safe. But you're not getting the treasure. And you're gonna give up this pirate game. I find out you're still raiding ships, I'll kill you myself."
Jokah clasped her hands over her ample chest. "Oh, Byron, my dear. You are too sweet for this Galaxy. Unfortunately, I'm gonna have to turn down that generous offer. 'Cause you're the ones in trouble."
His words died in his throat as he felt a stabbing pain.
He spun to see Fala holding the handle of a knife driven into his side, puncturing his armor. She had another knife in her other hand. They were small enough that she apparently had hidden them in her palms when she had been supposedly covering her breasts and crotch.
Fala had a smirk on her face as she put the second knife up to his throat. "Drop your weapons, all of you."
Chapter 19
"What the fuck," Scarlett yelled.
Chetaara bared her teeth and lunged at Fala with her claws bared. Sparks popped between her arched fingers.
The knife at his throat dug in and he felt the pain of it piercing his skin.
Fala snarled. "I said, drop your weapons. You too, Xana."
"Don't do it," Byron yelled. "Kill her. We can't let them get the weapon."
Scarlett and Chetaara looked at each other.
Fala narrowed her eyes.
Byron knew he couldn't let Captain Jokah get the weapon. She was crazy, and would destroy the universe. He'd rather die right there. "Do it! Kill her!"
Scarlett shook her head. "Nah, baby. We fucking love you, man."
"No!"
Scarlett threw her guns to the ground. Chetaara lowered her hands and let the sparks die. Xana reappeared and threw her knives down next to Scarlett's guns.
Fala chuckled. "Very good."
"I think he got the point." Jokah laughed. "Oh, you should have seen the look on your face, Sweet Cheeks. We got you so good."
The pain in his side throbbed as he turned his head enough to glare at Fala. "Why are you doing this? Working with her?"
Fala raised her eyebrows. "You make it sound like I have been doing anything else. I have always been working with Captain Jokah."
"Why would you be working with her? You warned us about her. You were attacked by her. Tortured by her."
Jokah giggled. "Oh, that was a bit of play acting, love. We just took her in a room and made out for a little bit, then cut her up for show."
Fala lowered her eyes. "The truth is, I knew I could not get the gems on my own. It was too dangerous to travel the Galaxy myself. I also had a reputation as an archaeologist to protect. So I offered to help Jokah get the gems while I pretended to be an innocent victim. The original plan was her to pretend to kidnap me at the Star Flower and kill everyone on board, but you stopped us."
Jokah wrinkled her nose. "Yeah, and this worked out so much better. I mean, all I had to do was just follow you all, and you practically handed me the gems. But I don't wanna share, so we're just gonna chuck you all out now."
"You fucking cunts!" Scarlett yelled. "Fuck you both in the ass!"
Jokah giggled. "Oh, been there, done that."
Scarlett's upper lip curled. "Not the way I do it. I'll get a motherfuckin' rocket launcher, shove it where the sun don't shine, and blow your ass into the next galaxy."
Jokah pursed her lips. "Still might like it, baby. I definitely like your robot, Byron. She's got spunk."
"My name is Scarlett, not 'your robot.' And I got spunk, all right. Byron's spunk, which is more than you got."
Jokah laughed so hard she doubled-over.
Fala just smirked.
He shot Jokah a glare. "You're still outnumbered. And your ship is wrecked."
She pushed out her lower lip in a pout. "Oh, darling, you disappoint me. You should've learned not to underestimate me by now. Come on out, ladies."
Hatches swung open on both sides of the walls, and ten women in black bikinis crawled out. They all carried laser rifles and had them aimed at Byron and his women.
Jokah strutted over to him with a swing in her hips. "And as for a ship, well, yours is mine now. What do you call it, the Icarus? I think I'll call it the Punk Bitch instead. Whatcha think?"
The pirate girls all laughed.
Jokah cocked her head to one side. "You know what's really funny, though? I had a little help from Lady Necralia, too. She tipped me off to this whole treasure deal, and got me in contact with Professor Beautiful. And she thinks I'm gonna take the treasure and give her the weapon. Can you believe it? No, I'm gonna take that bloody weapon and blow up Necros and take over her whole empire. Call it the Jokah Empire. That has a nice ring to it."
Byron's mind spun, trying to think of a way out. They were outnumbered, and betrayed by one of their own. On top of that, the knife in his side throbbed with pain. "You won't get away with this."
Jokah put her hands on her hips as she giggled. "Oh, honestly, is that the best you got? Of course I'll get away with it. I've already gotten away with it. All I need to do now is take out the trash."
She walked over to a secondary airlock and tapped buttons. "I could just shoot you, but you know I love a bit o' flair. So I'm gonna throw you out into space, one by one. And because I know you love these little ladies of yours, Byron, we're gonna save you for last. Let's start with the little one."
Two of the pirate women grabbed Xana by the arms.
She flipped over, kicked them in the head, and landed on her feet while the pirates dropped to the floor.
Fala jabbed Byron in the neck. "Do that again, and I will cut his throat."
Xana clenched her fists but let two more pirate women take her arms and drag her to the airlock. When Jokah pushed a button, the doorway hissed open. On the other side was a small chamber in front of another door leading to open space.
Jokah widened her eyes at Byron. "Last chance to join me, Sweet Cheeks. We could make this Galaxy beg for mercy together."
He staggered from the pain that overwhelmed him from the knife. For a moment, he wondered if the knife pierced a vital organ, and if he would bleed to death before getting to a medpak.
It gave him an idea. He said, "Okay."
She blinked. "Oh, you gonna try that again? Well, you'll have to pass a better test this time than licking my fanny. You're gonna have to kill your green girlfriend. Come over here, love."
Fala gave him a shove on the back, and he obediently stumbled towards the airlock.
Jokah pointed at the console. "Just push that button to shut the door, and this one to shoot the little green girl into space, and maybe I'll let you be my little fucktoy."
> He reached for the button and locked eyes with Xana.
Xana gave him a smile. "It's okay. We had fun, right?"
"Yeah. But I think it's time we switched things up." He gave Xana a wink, and glanced quickly at Fala.
Treasure Chest: Venus Online 3 (LitRPG Sci-Fi Harem) Page 12
