Ep.#2 - No Risk Too Great Page 2

  “I don’t know, she looks pretty banged up.

  “Well, her chief engineer was one of the original designers of this class, so if anyone can get her flying again, it’s him.”

  “I’d love to get a look at her helm someday,” Erica admitted.

  “I’m sure that can be arranged,” Robert told her.

  “Seriously?”

  “I think I can do one better, in fact. How’d you like to learn how to fly her?”

  “I’d love to,” she replied enthusiastically.

  “Once Commander Kamenetskiy gets main power restored, we’ll get you in the simulator.”

  “There’s a simulator on board?”

  “Full immersion,” Robert assured her. “All five senses. It even hurts when you die.”

  “Maybe we can turn that setting off?”

  “Most people do,” Robert assured her. “You can learn to fly pretty much any ship in that thing. The Aurora, the Navarro-class shuttles, the Dragon fighter; you name it.”

  “I’d enjoy that.” Erica looked back at the Aurora. “Not that those skills will ever be of much use.”

  “Says who?” Robert replied.

  “What do you mean?”

  “We’re stranded God knows where, and God knows when. We’ve got two good working shuttles, and eleven Dragon fighters. We can use all the pilots we can get.”

  “Seriously?” Erica asked, genuinely afraid that he was joking.

  “You really like that word, don’t you?” Robert teased.

  * * *

  “I still think we should’ve set down a click or two outside of town,” Jessica grumbled as they moved aft through the Seiiki toward her cargo bay.

  “Got a few people headed our way,” Josh warned over comm-sets.

  “From what direction?” Jessica asked.

  “All directions, and some of them are packin’.”

  “Told ya,” Jessica said as they entered the cargo bay.

  “What’s the sit?” Kit asked as he checked his sidearm.

  “We’ve drawn some interest,” Jessica replied. “Armed interest.”

  “Tell me again why we had to set down in town?” Marcus complained.

  “For the last time, if we had set down incognito and walked in, it would’ve have looked suspicious,” Nathan explained. “I mean, they have to know that they’re the only ones on this rock. They’d damn well know that strangers had to come by ship.”

  “Yeah, but they won’t know where our ship was, or what kind of ship we were flying,” Jessica argued.

  “We’re here to get intel, Jess. People are more willing to talk to friends than enemies.”

  “And they’re more willing to kill strangers.”

  Nathan rolled his eyes. “Open the hatch,” he instructed Marcus.

  “You sure?”

  Nathan just glared at him.

  “Just askin’,” Marcus grumbled as he activated the hatch.

  The aft cargo ramp that served as the hatch over the entire bay split across the top as it began to slowly swing away and head down.

  Jessica reached down and fingered the safety and charge buttons on her sidearm, preparing for the worst.

  “Don’t shoot anyone,” Nathan told her.

  “I won’t if they won’t.”

  Nathan looked to Kit for support.

  “Don’t look at me,” Kit told him. “I’m on her side.”

  Before the ramp deployed enough for them to be seen, Jessica reached over and mussed up Nathan’s hair.

  “What are you doing?” Nathan inquired, batting her hand away.

  “Making you look less military,” she explained. “You should’ve left it long.”

  The ramp continued its downward swing, revealing the heads of those gathered outside. Nathan offered a friendly wave as the ramp continued downward. But the moment the locals could see that Nathan and his crew were armed, their hands went to their sidearms.

  Nathan put up both his hands as the ramp came to a stop. “We’re not looking for trouble,” he assured them as he headed slowly down the ramp.

  “Then why are you strapped?” a man at the forefront of those gathered replied.

  “Why are you?” Jessica snapped back, her hand also on her sidearm, just in case.

  “Jess,” Nathan said under his breath.

  Jessica squinted as she scanned every man there, and then lit on the one standing to the speaker’s right. The man’s hand was hovering just above his gun, twitching. “Kit,” she said as she drew her weapon with lightning speed.

  Kit did the same, so quickly in fact, that the man with the twitching hand froze, his eyes wide at the speed of their draw.

  “I don’t want to kill anyone,” Jessica announced, “but I’ve got no problem doing so if need be.”

  The man who had spoken looked at the eyes of both Jessica and Kit, noting their steely gaze and razor-sharp attentiveness. Their speed had bested his, so much so that none of his cohorts had even gotten their guns half-drawn.

  Nathan sighed. Same old Jessica, he thought. “Like I said, we’re not looking for trouble. So why don’t we all put our guns away.”

  A devilish smile crept onto Jessica’s face. “I believe we’ve made our point,” she said, holstering her weapon.

  Kit followed suit, his eyes still darting from one man to the next.

  “Then what are you looking for?” the leader of the group asked.

  Nathan started down the ramp again. “We’re checking in with all the settlements in the area, looking for work.”

  “What kind of work, the man asked, still eying them suspiciously.

  Nathan reached the bottom of the ramp, turning his head back toward his ship momentarily. “Kind of obvious, don’t you think. We’re looking for anyone who needs cargo runs. Imports or exports. Don’t care much what. Just looking to keep our tanks filled and our pantry stocked.” Nathan offered his hand. “Conner Tuplo, captain of the Seiiki.”

  “Jorda Basque,” the man replied, shaking Nathan’s hand.

  Nathan did his best to match the man’s grip strength, not wanting to send the wrong signals. He had no idea who these people were, and whether or not they could be trusted. But one thing he had learned over the years was that you didn’t want to appear weak, nor too intimidating. “Pleasure to meet you. This is Jessica, Kit, and Marcus.”

  “Kind of a small crew, huh?”

  “Three more inside,” Nathan told him. “Figured it was best not to come on too strong.”

  Jorda eyed the Seiiki a bit. “She looks new. There aren’t many of these old birds flying any longer.”

  “We try to take good care of her,” Nathan lied.

  “Pretty odd, you showing up here. We don’t get many visitors this far out.”

  “That’s why we’re looking out here,” Nathan explained. “Less competition.”

  Jorda chuckled. “You could’ve found less competition without traveling so far past the line.” He looked at Nathan again, then at the others, sizing them up. “You got Alliance troubles?”

  Nathan wasn’t sure what to say.

  “Isn’t that why you’re out here?” Jessica chimed in nonchalantly.

  “We’re out here to avoid the complications that come with the Alliance,” Jorda clarified. “But that doesn’t mean we’re interested in hiring operators that are, shall we say, less than legal?”

  “You have nothing to worry about with us,” Nathan assured him.

  “I don’t know. This is an Alliance shuttle. An old one, to be sure, but still Alliance.”

  “They stopped using these long ago,” Nathan told him. “Sold them off in public auctions, in fact. Most of them are being used by privateers like us, but closer in to the line.”

  “Why would a privateer want to use an ancient shutt
le?”

  “These Navarro class shuttles are quite versatile,” Nathan defended. “Especially if you manage to get your hands on some of the different mission modules…which we did.”

  “What kind of modules?” Jorda wondered, intrigued.

  “Let’s just say we can carry a lot of cargo, a lot of people, or a mixture of both. We can even take her into the more dangerous systems, if the price is right.”

  “You have weapons modules?”

  “We know a guy,” Nathan replied.

  “Then you must be based somewhere,” Jorda surmised.

  “Persa,” Nathan told him.

  “Never heard of it.”

  “Most haven’t. Like you, that’s the way they like it. Not far, though. A few hundred light years, at most.”

  “Then you’ve got full energy banks?” Jorda asked, surprised.

  “Of course.”

  “That explains why you prefer to steer clear of the Alliance.”

  Nathan and Jessica exchanged a glance.

  “So, are you in need?” Nathan asked.

  “We’re in need of a lot of things,” Jorda replied. “And this ship is one of them.”

  Nathan didn’t like the way Jorda had said that. “I can give you a fair price for hauling… cheaper than most.”

  “What’s to stop me from takin’ her?” Jorda asked, his tone becoming less friendly.

  “Other than quick-draw, here?” Nathan replied, pointing over his shoulder at Jessica. “Josh? You listening?”

  On the underside of the shuttle, on either side of the bow and either side of the aft cargo bay opening, small, single-barreled plasma cannons dropped down and immediately took aim at the locals, their plasma generators humming to life as the cannons darted back and forth, demonstrating how quickly they could change targets.

  The locals moved back one or two steps. Apparently, the demonstration had achieved its desired affect.

  “Like I said, we’re not looking for trouble, just work. But, we’re not about to let some backwater potentate make trouble for us. If you’re not interested in hiring us, that’s fine, we’ll be on our way. But if just one of you draws down on this ship, or any of my crew, we’ll melt your little town to the ground, and not bat an eyelash.” Nathan took a step forward, staring Jorda in the eyes, a look of unwavering confidence on his face. “Do I make myself clear?”

  Jorda stared at him for a few more seconds, trying to appear as confident as Nathan. Finally, his expression began to change, quickly forming a broad smile. He laughed out loud, turning to his men, who also laughed, although not as heartily. “How about I buy you all a drink?” he offered, slapping Nathan on his shoulder.

  Nathan also smiled. “I think I’d like that…a lot.”

  * * *

  After the initial confrontation, Jorda’s attitude had changed considerably, In fact, he had become downright hospitable, treating them to a light meal in addition to their local brew.

  “You never said how you came upon our little world,” Jorda commented as he poured them another round.

  “A long story, actually, Nathan replied. “Suffice to say it was more by accident than by design.”

  “What did you call this stuff?” Jessica asked, taking a sniff of the pungent concoction.

  “Coru,” Jorda replied. “It’s a mixture of grains and dekka fat, cooked and fermented. It’s a complicated process that takes some time.”

  “With a bit of a buzz, as well,” Nathan added.

  “You build up a tolerance to its intoxicating effects after a while.”

  “You guys drink this stuff all day?” Kit wondered.

  “The men do. The women, not so much. Most have a hot mug of it first thing in the morning, then a few cold ones throughout the day.”

  “Works for me,” Marcus commented, taking a big swig of his brew.

  “It’s quite filling,” Jessica added.

  “Helps get us through the day without having to eat.”

  “You don’t eat all day?” Nathan asked.

  “For the most part,” Jorda confirmed. “Dinner is our one big meal.”

  “I could go all day without eating, if I got to drink this stuff all day,” Marcus commented.

  “What’s a dekka?” Nathan wondered.

  “A big rodent. Lives in the brush, eats anything that’s already dead,” Jorda explained. “Disgusting buggers, not edible at all. Their fat is the only thing worth a damn. But the only way to consume it is in coru, otherwise it’ll make you sick as a dog.”

  “So, how long have you lived here?” Nathan asked, hoping to get some more information out of Jorda without tipping him off to their situation.

  “About forty years,” Jorda replied. “I came over with my parents when I was a child.”

  “How long has this settlement existed?” Jessica asked.

  “Gruner was originally an aramenium mining base, established about a hundred years ago. But the vein ran dry sooner than expected, and the mining company pulled out. Most of the families just decided to stay.”

  “Why?” Jessica wondered. “From what we’ve seen, this rock is pretty barren.”

  “It’s an acquired taste, that’s for sure,” Jorda agreed. “But it keeps the undesirables out. Most who come to live here are looking to get as far away from the Alliance as possible.”

  “Yourself, included?” Jessica asked.

  “I’ve never had any contact with the Alliance, myself, but I understand why people dislike them. Too many rules and restrictions. Most people don’t like being told what they can and can’t do.” Jorda eyed his guests, thinking. “I take it none of you has had much contact with the Alliance, either?”

  “We try to stay clear of them, ourselves. Makes life less complicated,” Nathan explained, trying to appear of similar ilk.

  Jorda topped off his own mug. “It was rather good timing for us,” he stated. “You appearing when you did.”

  “How so?” Nathan wondered.

  “Well, we do some trade with nearby systems,” Jorda explained. “You know, to get the odds and ends we can’t produce ourselves.”

  “What do you offer in trade?” Jessica asked.

  “You’re drinking it,” Jorda smiled. “Coru is popular on fringe worlds. Especially barren ones like Dencke.”

  “Dencke?”

  “That’s what we call our little world.”

  “And coru gets you what you need?” Nathan wondered.

  “Usually. Sometimes we have to trade it for something else, and then trade that with another world to get what we’re looking for.”

  “You said it was good timing that we showed up?” Nathan queried.

  “Our usual transport, the Coralie, is several weeks overdue.”

  “You think they ran into trouble?” Jessica wondered.

  “Don’t really care,” Jorda replied. “My concern is the batch of coru that was supposed to ship out. Coru doesn’t have a long shelf life, and we can’t drink it all ourselves. We were counting on the Coralie to pick it up and trade it with a guy on Hadria for medical supplies, which we’re running low on. Maybe you can help us out?”

  “I don’t see why not,” Nathan said.

  “What’s our cut?” Jessica asked.

  “Will you take ten percent of the Coru as payment?” Jorda replied.

  “Make it twenty and you have a deal,” Jessica countered.

  “Only because if I don’t, we’ll probably lose the entire batch,” Jorda said. “Deal. How soon can you depart?”

  “How quickly can you load us up?” Nathan replied, downing the last of his Coru and smiling.

  * * *

  “Hadria?” Cameron said. “Never heard of it. Do you even know where it is?”

  “About thirty light years from here,” Nathan replied over comms
. “We managed to squeeze a little extra info about the place from them, so I’m pretty sure we can locate it.”

  “Well, what are you hauling for them?”

  “Coru. Think protein shake mixed with dark beer.”

  “Sounds awful.”

  “Marcus loved it.”

  “I’m not sure this is a good idea,” Cameron told him.

  “I’ll send word via jump comm-drone when we get there,” Nathan promised.

  “You didn’t tell them about us, did you?”

  “Nope. Our cover held. I think the fact that they were desperate to get their stuff to market helped.”

  “If we don’t hear from you in twenty-four hours, I’m sending Dragons out to find you.”

  “Fair enough,” Nathan agreed. “How are things there?”

  “Vlad has the starboard ZPED back on line, but only at thirty percent. It should be enough to run all the environmental systems, and power the shields to keep out wildlife,” Cameron reported. “We still don’t have artificial gravity, so we’re still dealing with a port lean, but at least it’s only five degrees.”

  “I take it you’ve moved everyone back inside?” Nathan asked.

  “We’re working on it,” Cameron assured him. “The sun’s already setting here. We should have everyone inside before it gets totally dark.”

  “Very good.”

  “You guys be careful,” Cameron urged.

  “Don’t worry,” Nathan replied. “I’ve got Jess watching over me.”

  “That doesn’t help,” Cameron replied.

  “Okay, I’ve got Neli to answer to as well.”

  “That’s better.”

  “I’ll send an update in a few hours. Seiiki out.”

  “Aurora Base, out,” Cameron replied.

  “Is he always this reckless?” Laza asked. “Procedure dictates the captain should stay with the ship, and send junior officers out on such details.”

  “Nathan is more hands on than most captains,” Cameron explained.

  * * *

  Nathan studied the navigation display at the center of the Seiiki’s forward console between him and Josh, dumbfounded by what he was seeing. It was the first time that any of them had returned to space since the crash earlier that day. “This can’t be,” he muttered in disbelief.