The initial jump was to be relatively short. They would have some 76 hours in the nothingness that was jump before emerging into the uninhabited system for recalibration and possible battle.
Despite the danger hanging over them, time began to drag. Tess’s ever-present spider-bots took care of any chores that needed doing, meals were served in the lounge, and after a few hours, Cale and Dee were confident in their Tess-enhanced skills with the weapons systems.
Surprisingly, though, Cale and Dee were not bored. They were getting to know one another, and discovering a growing attraction. What began as a nervous comparing of simulation scores evolved into an endless discussion about nearly everything. Cale found that he was coming to regret those occasions when Dee interrupted their seemingly endless talk to return to her stateroom for sleep. And Dee was finding it difficult to break away. By the time Tess warned them of the approach of emergence, Cale had on several occasions been forced to remind himself that he was no horny teenager, but an allegedly mature man facing an uncertain future. He found it increasingly difficult to focus on plans for that future, especially plans that did not include Dee. For her part, Dee was becoming determined to solve the mystery of this attractive but enigmatic man who seemed able to endlessly avoid or change the subject whenever she managed to bring up the subject of his background. For her part, Tess was fascinated by watching this mating dance and relating it to the thousands of volumes on human behavior she had consumed and the variety of others she had witnessed over the last four centuries.
Finally, though, Tess began the countdown to emergence, and the two humans reluctantly returned to matters of life and death. When Tess announced E-minus five minutes, Cale and Dee stepped into an unexpected hug. For a moment, Cale was lost in the smell and feel of Dee’s hair, and then was surprised to find himself dipping his head and her raising her lips. For a long moment, time stopped as they shared a long, slow kiss that suddenly broke in a flurry of mutual confusion. With an embarrassed “Oh, dear,” Dee fled to the control room, trying desperately to control her breathing and focus on the quickfirer controls.
A troubled Cale dropped into one of the lounge’s comfortable seats as Tess activated the laser fire control system and the familiar targeting grid appeared on the main viewscreen.
“Time, Tess?”
“E minus four minutes and counting, Captain,” came the crisp reply.
Four minutes! That exciting hug and that incredible kiss had lasted less than a minute? Surely, that was impossible! “Are you sure, Tess?” he blurted before chiding himself. Of course, Tess was sure!
“Now three minutes, fifty-one seconds, Captain,” Tess replied in a neutral tone.
Cursing himself silently, Cale forced himself to concentrate on Tess’s countdown. “As soon as we emerge, change your attitude ninety degrees in any direction. Once you have inertial drives, boost max in that direction. If she’s already there, they may not be able to change course and attitude quickly enough to finish us off. If we get there first, you can cut your drives and swap ends as soon as you detect an emergence. They should be expecting us to continue our emergence course while we recal. Maybe we can just run away. But if not, with any luck we’ll get a few shots at her fat belly before she can adjust her attitude. Of course, we’ll need a full sensor scan as soon as possible after we emerge.”
Tess’s tone was patient. “Yes, Captain. Your previous instructions were quite clear.”
Cale cursed himself again, but failed to reply as the time hack on the viewscreen showed less than a minute to emergence.
As the time flicked from “00:01” to “00:00,” the familiar twisting sensation of illness passing too quickly to be felt told Cale they had emerged. Space beyond the laser-targeting grid assumed the star flecks of normal space. Cale started to ask Tess about her sensor scans, but her voice forestalled him.
“Initial scan complete, Captain,” Tess reported in her crisp no-nonsense tone. “No traffic or hazards in range.”
“All right, Tess. Change attitude and let’s boost max and put as much distance as possible between us and that jump point.” The starfield slewed around dizzyingly.
“Boost is at max, Captain,” Tess reported. “ Stellar index shows jump point for Angeles to be approximately 30 degrees around the plane of the ecliptic. We are driving ninety degrees to solar south of our emergence course at 1.52 G pending recalculation and reorientation.”
Then she continued more conversationally, “Long-range scan will be complete in 38.3 seconds, but so far, no sign of our pursuer.”
“Great,” Cale replied. “But keep your sensors hot and be ready to adjust attitude. Let’s build up as much delta vee as we can, but be ready to shut down the drive and swap ends.” He could almost see an affirmative nod accompanying her calm “Yes, Captain.”
Tense silence settled in as Cheetah drove away from the jump point.
It was some five minutes later, just as Cale was beginning to relax that Tess said, “Captain! I show an emergence at the jump point. I am cutting the inertial drive and beginning attitude reversal.”
Cale watched the star field slew around again as Tess reversed her attitude, then freeze. The jump point through which they had just emerged was undetectable by normal instruments, of course, so the star field now filling the viewscreen seemed identical to the previous one.
“Can you ID the ship?” Cale asked.
“The ship has no beacon running,” Tess replied. “However, she is Epsilon class.”
“That’s our pirate,” Cale replied. “Lack of a beacon is the final verification. What is our present velocity, and is there any chance he could catch us?”
“We are coasting at 0.012 percent of light speed. His capabilities are unknown, but if he has the standard sensor suite, he may have difficulty locating us, since we are no longer emitting drive traces.”
“Captain,” Tess continued, more urgently. “Our sensors now have a side view of the pursuer. His hull is greatly enlarged in the engine room section.”
Cale snapped to attention. “Then there’s no choice. We cannot run; he probably has engines from a delta or Din-class. Tell Dee to fire on the bridge area. I’ll concentrate on the engines.” He punctuated the sentence by mashing the ‘fire’ button on the laser control. At almost exactly the same time he felt, rather than heard, a thrumming vibration through Cheetah ’s hull as Dee opened fire with the quickfirer.
Tess displayed the track of the otherwise invisible laser beam as it impacted the bulging engine room of the pirate. She also displayed the tracks of the quickfirers’ rocket projectiles as Dee walked them across the sensor array marking the ship’s bridge.
The pirate still had no shields; he was apparently still spinning down his jump drives and powering up the inertial drives that would provide power to both shields and weapons. Antennas severed by the stream of collapsium-plated rockets began drifting away from the enemy’s hull.
Cheetah ’s inertial drives were idle, so Tess could route all their power production to the weapons. The laser recharged in less than three seconds, and Cale again slashed the beam across the pirate’s engine room. There was a few seconds’ pause in the thrumming vibration as Tess’s mechs reloaded the quickfirer.
The thrumming resumed, and suddenly the bridge area of the enemy belched instantly freezing atmosphere. Dee’s shots had penetrated both the outer and inner hulls and opened her bridge, and perhaps the whole ship, to vacuum. Cale fired one last slashing beam, and then called, “Cease fire.” The thrumming stopped, but his finger rested on the firing button as he assessed the damage to the pirate.
They had certainly had time to spin up their inertial drives, but they still showed no shields, and seemed to be drifting, not under control. If any of the pirates were still alive, Cale guessed their entire attention would be on survival, not on their former victim.
Cale watched for a few more moments for signs of life aboard the pirate, and then said, “Okay, Tess, adjust your attitude and let’s boost max for the jump point. You can recal on the way.”
Unfortunately, Dee entered the lounge in time to hear his instructions. Her face reddened. “NO!” she shouted. “What are you talking about? There may be injured or dying people aboard that ship! We have to try to help them!”
Cale shook his head. “I’m sorry, but no. What we have to do is get away from here before the survivors get drives or weapons operational.”
Dee snorted. “Ridiculous! I insist that you let me go aboard and offer my help!”
Cale again shook his head. “If we stay here, or even worse, go aboard, any survivors will either kill us for our ship, or carry on with their plans for torture or enslavement. These are pirates we’re talking about, not traders. Consciences and gratitude are not part of the package.”
“How can you know that? You can’t know that!”
Cale sighed. “Actually, I can know that, and I do. I’ve dealt with pirates before.” He noted that the star field in the viewscreen was wheeling about as Tess adjusted her attitude, but he knew better than to mention it to Dee.
He was thinking hard, trying to figure out how to explain to Dee without revealing too much. “I know how they think,” he continued. “If their ship is badly damaged, they’ll simply take any other ship available. There are few places a pirate can get a badly damaged ship repaired without many hard questions. Chances are that captain has already slit the throats of any badly injured crewmen, and has all the survivors working on getting engines and especially weapons operational. Piracy is a capital crime on almost any inhabited planet in the universe. The evidence aboard that ship would hang everyone aboard. So, any good Samaritan that stops to help them will regret it.”
“No,” concluded, “We’ll report encountering a derelict when we get to Angeles. They can investigate if they care to. But we’re going to put parsecs between us as quickly as possible!”
Dee opened her mouth to reply, and then the red faded from her face as she forced herself to calmness. “It’s wrong and I still don’t like it,” she replied, “but it’s your ship. How’s your conscience holding up, Captain?” She stormed across the lounge and slammed the door to her stateroom. Since ship bulkheads and doors are made of lightweight alloy, the slam was not particularly impressive.
Cale winced as her parting shot hit home. He stared at the viewscreen, seeing other scenes than the star field. “Not too well, Dee,” he murmured. “Not too well at all.”
Dee remained in her stateroom until they emerged in the Angeles system, refusing to come out for meals or anything else. Tess reported that she responded to conversational attempts with silence or monosyllables for most of the weeklong period. But as their emergence neared, Tess reported that Dee was questioning her about Cale, his background, and how he had ‘dealt with pirates before’. She warned Cale that her questions would be harder to deflect this time.
Cale spent the entire week in misery. He had spent a fortune and countless hours of planning and acting to escape his past. To Emo Arror, there was no problem; just tell Dee whatever she wanted to hear, any story that seemed suitable. But Emo Arror was dead. Cale had killed him off ruthlessly and with malice aforethought. No, it was Cale Rankin and through him, John Smith experiencing the agony; John because of his highly developed moral and ethical sense and his conscience, and Cale for those same reasons but with the added factor that he was afraid he was falling for Dee.
Nothing he could say would make her understand about the Terror. In fact, he didn’t understand it himself. The years since Mina’s death seemed shrouded in a dark haze; as though he had been a dispassionate observer, watching through a dark curtain as Emo Arror was born in fury and became a monster and John Smith faded until he disappeared.
How could he explain to Dee what he didn’t understand himself? How could she understand the overwhelming hatred that had driven his hunger for revenge?
Okay, try a different angle. How would attorney John Smith conduct a defense for defendants John Smith, Emo Arror and even the comparatively innocent Cale Rankin?
Well, attorney John Smith would talk about defendant John Smith’s spotless reputation, his moral and virtuous behavior. Then he might talk about Smith’s discovery of corruption high in the government of Peltir IV, and the injustice of his arrest, his secret trial, and the sentence to slavery in the mines and certain death.
‘Ah’, the prosecution would say. ‘But the defendant had escaped from the mines. They were no longer a threat. No, this virtuous man voluntarily gave up his virtue. Nothing gave him the right to pursue a career of theft, kidnapping, and murder. He created Emo Arror from his own hate and vengeance.’
‘But wait!’ Smith would say. ‘Do not forget the loss of his beloved while pursuing an honest career. The defendant made two sincere attempts to pursue honest gain. The second attempt cost him his beautiful Mina! There must be understanding…’
Cale pulled himself out of his reverie. No, there would not be understanding. Other men had broken the chains of slavery without resorting to piracy. The ever-faithful Yan Carbow
back on Jackson, who offered John Smith half of what his own labors had earned, was exhibit A.
Moreover, other men had lost loves without becoming murderers. True, John Smith and Emo Arror had personally killed only three men, all in fair combat. But every life ended or ruined by The Terror’s pirate thugs could be laid at the feet of John Smith. The blood on his hands was no less real than that on the hands of a Bob Smiley.
Again, Cale forced his thoughts away from his musings. He dropped his head into his hands, and discovered tears coursing down both cheeks. Tears of guilt? Tears of shame? Or perhaps tears of despair, the hopelessness of making Dee understand, the realization that he might never escape Emo Arror? Before he could decide, he drifted into fitful sleep.
On the morning of the last day before their emergence, Cale summoned all his courage and asked Tess to invite Dee into the lounge for a conference.
She came, wearing a plain shipsuit. This one had not been tailored, and was several sizes too large. She wore no makeup, and her hair was in a tight bun.
“You wish to see me, Captain?” she asked coldly. Her face could have been carved from granite.
“Yes, Mistress Raum,” he replied in an equally cold and formal tone. “We need to have a serious discussion before we emerge in Angeles’s system. Please sit down.”
“If you’re planning to try to talk me out of screaming my head off about that ship,” she replied, still standing, “You can forget it. If you don’t report that fight to the authorities as soon as possible, I certainly will.” She stared at him grimly.
He grimaced. “You’re being ridiculous. We know nothing about Angeles but what is in the stellar index. Namely, that it is class C, with active star travel and trade, ship maintenance and repair facilities available, and that it is one of those hereditary monarchies you fear so much.
“What we don’t know is whether it is a tightly controlled police state that will lock us up just for having an armed ship or maybe a wide-open, lawless place with gang bosses and a powerless figurehead for a king. All I’m asking is that we feel things out a bit before we start bragging about what great and powerful warriors we are.”
“I’m not talking about boasting,” Dee replied heatedly. “I’m talking about possibly saving lives. Now, that may not mean much to you,” she continued acidly, “But it certainly means something to civilized people!”
His temper started to flare. “Enough that you’re willing to risk spending months or years in a cell being ‘interrogated’?” He asked. “All I’m trying to do is keep us alive and free, and perhaps even keep Cheetah in our possession. We’d be fools to jump into an unknown situation and start yelling about pirates!”
She put her hands on her hips and smiled grimly. “So first I’m a braggart and now I’m a fool,” she said, acid dripping from every syllable. “I don’t know what you’re concealing or what you’re running from, but I don’t care. It is obvious you aren’t the honest trader I thought you were. I think you’re a pirate yourself, and I think you tricked me into helping you get rid of some competition.” Her glare was deadly. “And I hate you for making me a murderer. No, Captain, I will not lie for you and I will not keep silent. Are you going to kill me, too?”
Cale’s shoulders sagged in defeat. “No, Mistress,” he replied dully. “You’re in no danger from me. I hope Angeles is as civilized as you seem to think.” He straightened and returned her glare. “And I sincerely hope that you never find out just how un civilized the universe can be!”
This time he was the one to stamp out. Just before he tried to slam his door, he caught a look of surprise and doubt on her face.
Their emergence into the Angeles system was unremarkable. A large space station picketed the jump point. Cale would have liked to point out the impressive arsenal of weapons it displayed, but Dee was still refusing to leave her stateroom. Tess assured him that she was not ill, but was simply refusing to associate with him. Tess reported that Dee was monitoring comms.
“Welcome to the Angeles system. Please cancel all motion relative to this station, and stand by for Customs,” an obviously recorded voice began. It had barely finished before his screen cleared to reveal a man in a plain shipsuit.
“Angeles Customs,” he began. “Please state your mission. If this is simply a recal stop, and you do not plan to approach the fourth planet, you may proceed without customs clearance.” The man’s attitude was attentive and businesslike.
Cale’s hopes began to climb slightly. “No, sir, I’m here to possibly discharge a passenger. I’m carrying no trading cargo this trip.”
The man on the screen nodded. “System of origin?”
Cale frowned. “This trip, Faith. Before that I was on Torlon and Ararat.” He didn’t want to mention New Chin; the rumors might have already been flying, and he preferred not to mention both of the sunstone planets. However, Dee knew that he arrived on Faith with a passenger from Ararat. He did not dare ignore it.
The man snickered. “Torlon? I thought they had lost spaceflight.”
Cale nodded. “So I discovered. There was an old man running an orbital scrap yard, but there were no flyable ships on the planet. The old man was leaving.”
The agent sighed. “Another world gone.” He shook his head sadly, and then, more briskly, “Is your mission religious in nature? I ask because you’ve been to Ararat and Faith.”
Cale shook his head. “No, sir. I picked up a passenger on Ararat and delivered her to Faith. Uh, sir, I had an encounter with a pirate at my last recal. I need to know how to report that.”
The man straightened and his tone turned brisk. “Are you in need of repairs or medical assistance? We can provide both.”
Cale shook his head. “No, sir, we’re undamaged. But I need to report the incident and also report a derelict spacecraft.
The man’s eyes widened. “You’re undamaged?” At Cale’s nod he continued, “Your weapons systems must be sealed for the duration of your stay in the Kingdom. An inspector will be boarding shortly to complete the customs inspection and seal the weapons.” He paused and his expression and tone became less official, more naturally curious. “We show you as a Stinger class courier. I am unfamiliar with that class vessel. Is it typically armed?”
Cale nodded. “ Cheetah was built as an imperial viceroy’s yacht and courier,” he explained. “The class was named Stinger because of the weapons systems she mounts.”
Finally, a genuine smile appeared on the man’s face. “Interesting vessel. I’d volunteer to do the inspection myself, if I wasn’t chained to the comms this cycle.” After a few more courtesies, the man said, “I’m going to connect you with the Search and Rescue branch of the Royal Piracy Control Force. They will be the ones to deal with your derelict. Good luck.” He faded from the viewscreen to be replaced by an older man. This one was grizzled, and his mottled skin revealed his decompression experience. “S and R,” he announced shortly.
“Good day,” Cale said politely. “I must report a derelict spacecraft in system NS047923. The vessel is suspected of being a pirate.”
The man’s face relaxed into an easy grin. “Shot up a pirate, did ya? Good. What other information can you give me that will help us locate the derelict?”
“It’s a modified Epsilon class. She will be near the Faith jump point, and will probably be on a trajectory in line with that emergence. She did not maneuver while we were present. We did not approach the vessel.”
The man’s eyebrows went up. “How d'you know she’s a pirate?”
Cale shrugged. “She tailed us in the Faith system and through the jump, showed no beacon, and had an oversized engine room.”
The man laughed aloud. “That’s a pirate, all right. So insteada bein’ ambushed, you ambushed them! I like it!” He nodded approvingly. “And then you had the good sense to light outta there insteada stoppin’ to admire your work. There's not a lot of stupid on you, Captain.”
He sobered. “An S amp;R and a Piracy Control ship will be departing this station in ten minutes,” he said. “They are armed, and are prepared to deal with stranded pirates. You understand that a copy of this conversation will be provided to His Majesty’s Justice Ministry? I hope you were planning to spend two or three weeks in the Kingdom. I doubt they’ll let you leave until our vessel returns and reports.”
Cale nodded. “I understand.”
As soon as the man signed off, Cale said, “Tess, my stateroom. Ship’s business.”
Tess took the hint. As he entered the stateroom she reported, “Room is secure, sir.”
He nodded. “Good. Okay, in a few minutes we’re going to be invaded by a customs inspector. He’s going to be motivated not only by his job, but also by a natural curiosity about an unusual class of ship. At any rate, I expect a very thorough inspection, especially since he will also be looking for weapons. I need somewhere to stow the diamonds. I won’t need them here; the checks from Faith will cover our expenses. But I don’t want them found, either.”
“Understood, sir. Please give the bags to the mech at your stateroom door. The diamonds will not be found unless they disassemble me.”
Cale gathered the bags of stones from their hiding places, and gave them to the spider-shaped mech he found outside his door.
“Now,” he said, “We have to decide what to report. With Dee aboard and suspicious, I can’t deviate much from the truth. I also cannot reveal your contributions to our survival. So, I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to make you look dumber and me look smarter than I am.”
There was humor in Tess’s tone. “Of course, sir. That has been necessary many times since I first did it during the Insurrection 400 years ago. I will not be offended.”
Cale grinned and nodded as Tess continued, “We are being hailed by the station, Captain. The inspector is approaching the personnel lock in a one-person shuttle.”
Cale rose. “Okay, Tess, let him aboard, and let’s see how much damage Dee is going to do!”
The inspector was not the man on the comm. This one was older, a round-shouldered, career bureaucrat. As soon as he exited the airlock, he swiveled his head as he looked around. Finally, he turned his attention to Cale and Dee, as she exited her stateroom and joined them.
He flashed an ID. “Captain Rankin?” he asked in a formal voice, “I’m Tor Redon, Angeles Kingdom customs. I reviewed the Stinger class specs, but your vessel seems to vary somewhat from the standard.”
Cale nodded. “I’m not surprised, Ser Redon. I know about some of the modifications, but most just took place over the last 400 years.
“For instance,” he continued, “I understand that the standard spec calls for two Alliance quickfirers, Cheetah has only one, and has had a laser installed in place of the second. That, in turn, called for a somewhat larger fusactor. I have no idea when that was done,” he lied, “But I’m sure it would be an interesting story. As would many others.” He sighed. “Ah, if these walls could only talk!”
Redon chuckled. “If it was a viceroy’s yacht, I’m sure many of the stories would not be fit for repeating.”
Dee reddened. Redon seemed to see her discomfort and changed the subject. “I do not see a bridge or a control room, Captain.”
Cale smiled. “It’s more of a ‘control closet’,” he replied. “The ship has a very large and very advanced AI that controls most functions. Those functions requiring human intervention are usually referred to the lounge viewscreen.”
“Actually,” he continued as he showed the inspector the ‘control room’, “That’s why I could afford to buy her. Her last owner just couldn’t adjust to an AI that advanced. He was always afraid it would make an error and strand him in null space. Finally he couldn’t take it anymore.”
The man glanced around the small cubby. “I see his point,” he replied. “These controls are pretty rudimentary.”
Cale smiled as he pointed out the controls for the quickfirer and the laser. Redon placed gaudy seal tape on both consoles, warning them that removal of the seals was punishable by up to five years’ hard labor.
Despite the thoroughness of Redon’s inspection, there was simply too little ship to take much time to inspect. Cale went out of his way to be cheerful and friendly, and less than an hour elapsed before Redon pronounced himself satisfied. “You may proceed to the fourth planet, Captain,” He said in a formal tone. “Maximum permitted acceleration is. 5G. Be sure to maintain communication with System and Orbital Control. I hear you had pirate trouble,” he continued in a more conversational tone. “I suspect you’ll be hearing from the Justice Ministry. Don’t let them scare you. Pirates are not popular in the Kingdom.” Cale escorted the man to the airlock and watched as he cycled through and returned to the station.
Dee seemed only somewhat mollified. “At least you had the decency to report it and send S amp;R. They may still be able to save some of those poor souls’ lives.”
Cale shook his head in disgust. “Those ‘poor souls’ were intent on robbery, kidnapping, rape, slavery and murder,” he replied acidly. “And if any of them are found alive, they will be executed after some of the shortest trials in history.” He scowled. “But, that doesn’t matter to you, does it? Someone else will be doing the work. All that matters is that you don’t get your own dainty little hands dirty. I hate bleeding hearts like you!” He spun on his heel and stamped into his stateroom.
As soon as he entered, Tess notified him that they were cleared to proceed, and that she had programmed the assigned vector. At his muttered “Go,” she began moving away from the station. Cale was angry, morose, sad, and ashamed, all at once, and would need time to deal with it. She had his approval to maneuver. She could handle everything else for a while.
Cale was not the only human on board dealing with emotional turmoil. Dee was dealing with the reactions of the people Cale had talked with. Where was the outrage at the presumed deaths aboard the pirate? Even the rescue agent had congratulated Cale on his decision to run away. Pirates were just thieves, robbers, weren’t they? Why this unbridled hatred? Oh, sure, there were many horror stories, but those were just for vids and frightening children, weren’t they?
Like those pictures and vids supposedly from Atlantea. A pirate gang had supposedly raided the entire planet! It was claimed that they had looted the major cities and escaped with three shiploads of loot while committing horrible atrocities. It had to be fiction, of course.
But the newsies were all over it, with pictures and vids supposedly showing the actual raid. It was horrible, unthinkable stuff. All it proved was that some writers had insanely lurid imaginations. Human beings simply could not do those things to other human beings.
Could they?
She asked Tess for official records of pirate activity. Not sensie vids, not horror vids, but real, authenticated records.
There were plenty. The records on Atlantea were not yet complete, with post-mortem investigations continuing. But there were plenty of other records. Overwhelmed, she told Tess to limit it to the last twenty years. Even so, it ran to thousands of screens of information.
It appeared she had been wrong. In their own way, the cold, bald official pictures, descriptions, and vids of torture, mutilation, and murder were even more horrifying than the slick vids the newsies produced.
She had been wrong. Humans could be that inhuman. She still didn’t know why Cale hated them so much, but she was coming to understand the general hate and repugnance toward pirates. Dee closed the files with a grimace. It was a whole ugly world of which she had been ignorant, and her black and white “life is priceless” attitude was beginning to show shades of gray.
No, they weren’t just thieves and robbers, or street gangs in starships. They were monsters. You cannot reason with monsters. No amount of psychobabble could rehabilitate them. It had been tried in the Old Empire, as had conditioning and even machines that “adjusted” them — by reducing their IQ to 80 and conditioning them to be content with menial jobs. That last one had worked, but had quickly been stopped on grounds the treatment was “inhumane.” So mankind settled on the time-honored solution used with other forms of deadly animals: shoot on sight.
But what about Cale? What did he mean he’d ‘dealt with them before’? He was obviously familiar enough with pirates to put up with her disgust rather than chance following her wishes. Could he have been right? The S amp;R agent seemed to think he was.
Her thoughts in a whirl, she stayed in her stateroom through the 42-hour trip to Angeles, the system’s fourth planet.
Her musings were interrupted by Tess’s quiet voice. “Mistress Raum, please join the Captain in the lounge. We are approaching Angeles, and have received instructions.” Her tone was formal and neutral.
Cale greeted her with a curt nod. “Mistress Raum, we have received instructions from Orbital Control. We are directed to ground at the government starport rather than the orbiting commercial port. I assume this relates to our incident with the pirates.
“I do not know what to expect,” he continued. “However, I think we can expect to be detained, or at least our freedom of movement to be restricted until the S amp;R mission returns, which may be two to four weeks. We are certain to be questioned. Please answer all questions fully and truthfully. Do not try to defend our conduct, and please try to avoid being judgmental.”
He presented her an envelope. “Technically, my contract with Faith’s government is complete. We are two jumps from Faith, and you are no longer in my custody. That envelope contains the check your father sent along. If you wish, you may consider our business concluded, and go your way.
“However,” he continued, “Angeles is not the mutual choice I promised you. I would like to offer you transport to any other system within two jumps of Angeles, if you so desire.” He sighed deeply. “I very deeply regret the difference in outlook that divides us, and that prevented us from becoming better acquainted. I hope you will consider my offer.”
Dee was numb. It was so sudden! Just like that, everything is over. She had lost her home and family, her whole planet, and now his cold, formal tone suggested she had lost the only person left that she was beginning to consider a friend. She was on a strange planet with no one she knew. All she had was that damned envelope, and money was no substitute for a friend. She suddenly felt very small and helpless. Tears started to well in her eyes, and she clamped down on them mercilessly.
She swallowed. “Thank you for the offer, Captain,” she replied in the same formal tone he had used. “I will certainly consider it.”
She paused, and then rushed ahead. “I have been doing some research, and have come to conclude that my reactions may have been hasty and ill-advised. I would like to apologize for some of the comments I have made and the tones I have used. I now realize that you had only our survival in mind, and that my demands might have resulted in our deaths, or worse. I shall try to be as objective as possible when questioned.”
Cale smiled with genuine warmth. “I think I know what a difficult admission that was, Mistress. Please consider my offer seriously. You would be most welcome.”
Dee started to reply, but Cale was called away for the landing formalities. Dee returned to her stateroom. She began gathering her belongings in case she was removed from the ship. In only moments, she was finished, her pitifully few belongings fitting easily into the small bag the police had sent with her. Tears welled again, and this time she didn’t stop them.
Some half-hour later, she was aroused by Tess’s voice. Dee was too emotional to notice, but the cold formality was gone from the AI’s tone. “Dee, the captain wanted me to let you know that we are on final approach, and will be grounding at the government port in ten minutes. He suggests you gather your belongings, since either or both of you may be removed from the ship.
Dee sniffed mightily. “Tess! Do you suppose I could take the shipsuits with me? You know, the ones we tailored?”
“I am certain the Captain considers them yours,” Tess replied. “Particularly since you have so few other outfits. Should you have the opportunity, I recommend some serious shopping.”
Dee grinned through her tears. “An excellent suggestion, Tess,” she replied. She sobered and sighed. “Oh, how I wish you could come with me!” She wailed.
“I’m sorry I cannot,” Tess replied. “Dee, please seriously consider the captain’s offer. He would very much like you to join us.”
“I will, Tess, I promise.” She began, then, “Oh, wait! Where are you bound from here?”
“The captain has not yet decided,” Tess replied. “We will ground in five minutes, Mistress. In the meantime, may I suggest some attention to your appearance?”
“Oh my god!” Dee exclaimed, as she jumped and ran for the ‘fresher. Oh, lord. Her eyes were red and swollen and there were tear tracks down both cheeks.
As she tended to her appearance, Dee frowned in thought. The Captain hasn’t yet decided? Dee did not know a lot about shipping, but she knew that starships, large or small, are expensive to operate. How could he not have a goal in mind?
Maybe he was planning on picking up a high-value shipment or passenger in a hurry here. Oh, wait. He hadn’t been planning to come to Angeles. In fact, any plans he had were probably totally ruined by Aron Ekron and the government of Faith.
Only a slight bump announced their grounding under Tess’s flawless control.
The Kingdom of Angeles Official Starport was smaller than its commercial equivalent. When Cale surveyed his surroundings, he noted only one empire-pattern destroyer, and one corvette and two frigate-sized vessels, though their configurations varied from the Old Empire norm. Apparently, they had been built since the Fall. All three towered over Cheetah.
A heavy overcast threatened rain, though Tess reported the temperature to be a comfortable 23 degrees C. A gravity of only. 87 of standard and a temperate climate had made the Kingdom the most cosmopolitan and prosperous business center and tourist destination in the Orion Sector before the Fall. Even then, the Kingdom had been the only planet in the Empire to be a hereditary monarchy. Since the Fall, several others had arisen, but none was as universally supported by its people. The hereditary rulers of Angeles had without exception been men of wisdom and vision, and the royal family went to great lengths to insure that tradition would continue.
They were hailed just as a small, single-seat vehicle headed toward them. “ Cheetah, His Majesty’s government requests that all passengers and crew remain aboard pending the arrival of the investigator now approaching. You are requested to cooperate with his investigation in order to minimize your inconvenience. “
The man who debarked from the tiny vehicle and entered Cheetah ’s lock certainly did not look intimidating. He looked more like a hotel manager than an investigator. His suit, if that word applied, consisted of a light jacket over a tunic and flaring pantaloons, all in bright, varied colors. He was of medium height and build, and wore a large grin that certainly looked sincere.
“Good morning!” He greeted Cale cheerfully. “Or is it afternoon, ship’s time?” He shrugged. “Oh, well, no matter. Let’s get rid of the official nonsense, so we can talk.”
He produced a wallet and displayed a gold badge and a gaudy identification card. “The name’s Sana Archuk, R. I. S. That’s Royal Investigative Service. I’m here to investigate your report of involvement with a pirate at your last recal stop. There. Now that’s done, and I’m sure you’re suitably impressed.”
Archuk looked around him. “What an interesting ship! I’ve never seen anything quite like it. Stinger class, eh? Must’ve been a small class. But I guess you hear that a lot.”
Cale could not help but grin. Archuk took his breath away. He introduced himself and ushered Archuk to a seat in the lounge. “Tess,” he asked, “Would you ask Dee to join us, please?”
“Of course, Captain,” Tess replied.
“Tess is the ship’s AI,” he said to Archuk. “I’m sure you’ve looked up the specs on the Stinger class, but the real thing can be a bit overwhelming at first. Cheetah was originally built in the Alliance as an Empire viceroy’s yacht and fast armed courier. Tess is the most advanced AI I have ever encountered. Apparently, the viceroy wanted a yacht he could take out by himself, and that required the Alliance comp specialists to pull out all the stops. Tess can actually compute and execute entire jump programs.”
Archuk’s eyebrows rose. “So, what does she need you for?”
Cale laughed aloud. “Not much, I guess. I’m just the guy that tells her where to jump.”
Dee came into the lounge wearing one of her ‘tailored’ shipsuits, and in moments, she and Archuk were chatting like old friends.
Finally, the investigator’s permanent smile faded slightly. He sighed. “Well, I guess we’d better get to it, before my boss decides I’m goofing off. No pressure. Just tell me what happened. Start at Faith.”
Cale nodded. “I grounded at Faith to deliver a passenger…”
“I didn’t think Faith got a lot of passenger traffic,” Archuk interjected.
Cale shook his head. “They don’t. I stopped at Ararat to do some banking business, and took on a passenger. I guess it was some kind of religious thing. Anyway, I discharged my passenger…” he went on to tell Archuk about his involuntary government contract. He showed the investigator the contract and the checks. When he came to the circumstances of Dee’s boarding, the investigator shifted his attention smoothly to her.
“Extraordinary!” he exclaimed. “They actually exiled you with no legal process at all?
“Oh no,” Dee exclaimed. “I can assure you there was legal process. In fact, the Planetary Senate authorized the charter and the bonuses.” She attempted to explain the interrelationship of the church and government of Faith, but Archuk waved dismissively. “Faith is one of our nearest neighbors,” he said. “We’ve been aware of the growing influence of the church for many years.”
Dee continued, outlining her activities and her suspicions concerning her proposed marriage, including her suspicion that a hereditary monarchy was planned.
Archuk laughed aloud. “Mistress, I have no doubt that your suspicions are well-founded, but I assure you a hereditary monarchy is not necessarily a fate worse than death!”
Dee stammered and tried to apologize, but Archuk waved her off. “No apology necessary, Mistress.” He turned to Cale. “So, Captain, you accepted the charter, and lifted with the lovely Mistress Raum bound and gagged in a stateroom.
Cale picked up the story, explaining how Cheetah ’s advanced sensor suite had detected the follower. He shrugged. “I couldn’t stop and return to Faith; it wouldn’t have been permitted. I kept trying to examine her closely, but the angle was bad. All I knew was that she was tailing me, and when I speeded up, she speeded up, and when I slowed, so did she.”
“Was she showing a beacon?”
Cale nodded. “Yes, while we were in Faith’s space. It is recorded on the sensor logs. Anyway, I decided to re-route to Angeles. It was the nearest world with ship repair and excellent medical facilities, and I was afraid I might need either or both. Besides, the jumps were short, and the intermediate recal stop was uninhabited.”
Smile gone now, Archuk nodded. “Good thinking. Our space station is fully equipped to provide help.”
Cale nodded and continued, explaining the preparations they had made during the first jump, and explaining Cheetah ’s attitude jets. He told of the plan he had formed, and the hours of practice he and Dee had done while in jump.
“When we emerged,” he continued, “I had Tess use the attitude jets and boost us max at a right angle to our emergence course. As soon as we detected the emergence, we shut down the drives, reversed our attitude, and prepared to fire, if necessary.”
Archuk nodded. “And it was necessary.”
Cale frowned. “Well, we didn’t just start shooting, if that’s what you mean. However, our sensors were getting a side view of them now, and I could see the enlarged engine room. That meant we probably could not outrun her. And now she wasn’t running a beacon. She had to be a pirate. No trader would overpower an Epsilon class. It would cut the hold space almost in half. I had to open fire before she got shields and weapons up!” He slammed a fist into the chair’s arm.
“So,” he continued more calmly, “That’s about it. I fired the laser and Dee used the quickfirer. When I saw her venting atmosphere and saw she wasn’t raising shields, I figured that was our cue to boost max for Angeles.” He glanced at Dee. “There was some rather.. uh… spirited discussion about that decision.”
Archuk turned his permanent smile on Dee. “You didn’t agree with his decision to run,” he guessed.
She hesitated before nodding. “I felt we should stop and help any survivors.” She reddened. “I guess I was, well, forceful. The second jump wasn’t very pleasant.”
The agent’s smile flared its full force. “Well, I think this is a pretty cut-and-dried case. I’ll need your sensor logs of course, captain.” Cale nodded, and Archuk continued, “I’m afraid we will have to insist on your continued presence on Angeles until the S amp;R ship returns, but I see no reason to restrict you beyond that.
“You’re free to leave your vessel now. I’m sure you’re both anxious to get your feet on solid ground. There are a number of reasonably priced but good quality hotels just off the field, and the planetary net will help you find one, as well as shopping information, mistress. I’m afraid it will not be possible for you to return to your ship, so make certain you take everything you need.
“As for you, young lady,” he continued, “I feel I should tell you that your captain may very well have saved your lives by ignoring your demands. One does not approach a wounded wild and deadly animal. One simply renders it powerless, and then runs like the wind as far and fast as possible!”
Dee reddened and nodded wordlessly.