by Clara Woods
Besides, she’d discovered another problem she wanted to think about. Earlier she’d checked out the fuel tank. They wouldn’t be able to get back home from Oscuris. She was pretty certain the little cash she’d given Uz and Doctor Lund wasn’t going to be enough, which meant that she’d need to find a way to get money for fuel. Maybe get some cargo, and what better place than the galaxy’s perpetual smuggler’s hole? If only she could ask the cyborg. He probably knew half the population on Oscuris personally, and could give them tips as to who was the best smuggler to reach out to. Then again, he kept insisting he wasn’t a smuggler.
12 Oscuris Arrival
Lenah felt butterflies in the pit of her stomach as she brought the ship out of the warp bubble. It shook a few times, and pressed her into the pilot’s seat when their speed slowed down drastically. This was the easy part. The hard part was surviving whatever the cyborg was up to. She’d tossed and turned in her bunk all night, but hadn’t come up with any good solution apart from leaving as fast as possible. After finding some cargo, that is.
Persia was off somewhere spending quality time with her laser pistol, but Uz and Doctor Lund were with her in the tiny cockpit. Doctor Lund sat in the copilot’s seat, while Uz was squeezing her big body into a small foldable chair behind him. None of them were talking. Lenah hadn’t been specifically forward with the information that she’d never flown a real ship before, but from the cyborg’s muttering in the past day, they’d probably guessed nonetheless.
They’d barely seen him. He only left his room to go to the lav or get water and hand out nutrition bars, but every time he passed her, he muttered something under his breath. Something about her being a liar and not even a real pilot.
The comm beeped in the silence.
“This is the Star Rambler, incoming,” Lenah said as way of an answer. Was that what you were supposed to say?
“Welcome back to Oscuris, Star Rambler. Though you don’t sound like Captain Terhuk,” a cheery, youthful voice answered over the comm. Were smugglers on a smuggler planet supposed to be cheery?
“Uhm, the Rambler has new owners,” she managed. Damn, but she hadn’t been prepared for the ship to be recognized anywhere. With the size of the galaxy and millions of starships out there, what where the odds? And what an indication about the Rambler’s old owners that it happened on this planet.
“Ah, and with whom do I have the pleasure?”
At least for this question, she was prepared. “This is Lenah Stardust. Asking permission to land.”
“Welcome, Lenah Stardust.” Instead of giving them permission, the comm went silent, even the background noise cutting out. The other end had pressed mute. Great.
A few nervous seconds passed until the comm crackled again. “Permission granted. Please proceed to landing bay 17.”
“Oh, this is not good. What an unlucky number,” Uz murmured.
“Then let’s hope it’s only bad luck for the ones who get off here,” Lenah answered, wondering yet again if the cyborg would really leave.
She steered the ship toward the landing station. Compared to Astur’s many large ports, this one was tiny, just like the planet. Oscuris was one of the smallest planets inhabited by humans, and definitely one of the harshest ones. Its short days made it hard for humans to adjust to a comfortable rhythm, apart from being completely out of sync with the Cassidian Standard calendar, but that wasn’t why it was called Oscuris. That was because of the clouds of smog and dirty air covering the majority of the atmosphere. From space, the planet had looked like a dirty blob instead of showing individual continents. It was also so far away from its sun that temperatures never went much over zero degrees Celsius even in summer, despite the planetary heating on all year long. Ages ago, this planet had been a settlement of spice root producers, but they had since left. Now, the only business that remained on the planet was smuggling and everything associated with it.
Lenah had looked up the temperature earlier and found it to be a nice warm July day of two degrees above freezing. Thank the stars for her Cassidian silk undershirt.
The cyborg and Persia appeared. Lenah had spent breakfast with Persia this morning, trying to figure out if they should make a move on the cyborg. Persia had that weapon, after all, and the cyborg looked fairly fleshy, apart from the arm and enhanced spine. In the end, they decided to only use the weapon if he started something first.
They might have stolen a ship, but that had been out of strict necessity. And there was no denying that he had treated them well, not at all how Lenah would have expected a typical hostage situation to go. In fact, she didn’t feel like a hostage at all. A former smuggler cyborg with a conscience? Hopefully a cyborg that they’d soon never see again.
The landing station came closer, and she could make out the number 17 toward their right. Slowing the ship down further, Lenah imagined she was in a simulation instead of real life. It definitely helped calm her nerves after the stressful landing and takeoff experience in Port Dumas. She didn’t like that everyone was crowding behind her, watching what she was doing. Telling them to buckle up in case she fucked up the landing wasn’t an option either. She might as well enjoy the risk.
Carefully, she steered the craft over the number 17 and initiated the landing sequence. A few seconds later, they were safely on the ground. Her inner cheering was interrupted by the cyborg storming down the corridor loudly. Since he usually moved in almost complete silence, she had to assume that he wanted them to hear. She watched on the camera feed as he went straight to the cargo hold and hovered over the opening screen next to the outer hatch. He seemed to be hesitating. After a few seconds, he turned and looked straight into the camera. Was it that obvious that they’d be watching? Silently, he mouthed two syllables.
Thank you.
Then he turned and jumped out the half-open hatch and vanished into the crowd.
“That was anti-climactic.” Persia poked her head through the door. Did that mean he really had only wanted the ride? Or was he getting more people?
“Bridge, Lenah Stardust from the Star Rambler here. Permission to take off? We decided to take a tour of the planet first,” Lenah said into the comm. After a short silence, the comm crackled, and the voice on the other end gave her clearance.
“We’re taking the scenic route today,” she announced to the others before taking them away from the landing bay. She still meant to explore the town and pick up some cargo, but at least they wouldn’t be parked on bay 17 any longer.
13 Big Rat
Even the knowledge that places such as Oscuris existed hadn’t prepared Lenah for how bad it really was. As quickly as they could, she and Persia made their way through the crowd, trying not to breathe too much. Everything was full of gray sand, a mixture of local desert and old-fashioned coal heating systems. Little needles of it were carried in with the wind, getting stuck everywhere and leaving a toxic stench. The open display of smuggled or stolen goods was shocking. Were there no laws here? No police or private security?
They narrowly evaded crashing into a hover cart heavily loaded with crates that were wrapped in semitransparent plastic foil. Under there, it looked suspiciously like weapons. Whatever it was, it seemed too heavy for the cart, which was bumping along, struggling to suspend the load. The slim boy directing it, in gray pants and shirt, didn’t even look up or apologize as he passed them.
All around, people were dressed in odd combinations of dull colors, showing a mishmash of multiple cultures. Unlike any world Lenah had ever visited, this place wasn’t dominated by only one race. There were many humans, but she’d already seen several Craff and even a Cassidian.
Thanks to spending almost two full days in the same clothes, her blazer and pants were sufficiently rumpled to not stick out too much, but she had the inexplicable feeling of standing out nonetheless. It was something in the way she moved, as if there was a code to walk around hard-faced, eyes down but secretly scanning the surroundings, something you could only learn by spending t
ime here. She couldn’t fathom how the men and women crowding the main street away from the port didn’t constantly bump into each other. Next to her, Persia was walking stiffly, probably trying and failing, like Lenah, to blend in.
They’d re-landed after flying a circle around the whole planet, then setting down in a different landing bay. If the cyborg had been back with his buddies, he’d hopefully assume that they’d already left.
As they stepped around a hover cart full of laser guns, Lenah couldn’t shake the thought that trying to make money in this place was a really bad idea. Maybe even worse than the idea to let themselves run out of fuel and send a random distress signal into space, hoping for the best.
While they’d taken their spin around the planet, Uz had further proven her computer skills by locating a virtual bulletin board deeply hidden in the starnet. It listed openings for jobs in Oscuris: many involving transport, others more on the theft side. Together, they’d found and evaluated an opening to transport some light cargo to Lunara Station, which would give Lenah the chance to follow up on the informant’s lead. They should have just enough fuel to get there. The listing hadn’t said what they’d be transporting, only that it was small, but Lenah couldn’t be picky.
Uz had also uploaded a map of Oscuris onto Lenah’s wristpiece, but even so, following the indicated route was difficult. The small town was full of alleys, many of them not showing up on her map. The streets that did show up weren’t much bigger, either. Knowing which street they were supposed to take and which one was a dingy alley that would likely get them killed was close to impossible.
They took a left turn, entering an area with fewer warehouses and more homes. The buildings were so crooked, they seemed to rely on one another to not fall down. Windows were rare, and the few Lenah did spot were almost completely hidden under a thick layer of dust.
Everything was grimy here. In the beginning, Lenah had tried to protect her mouth with the collar of her shirt, and so had Persia. They’d realized quickly this made them stick out even worse.
“Do you think everyone here dies of dusty lung at a young age?” she asked in Persia’s direction.
“Not sure. Probably most get killed by less natural causes before they have the chance to breathe in a deadly amount of dust.”
Lenah had to agree with the wisdom in that opinion. When she wasn’t drunk or angry, Persia was reasonable company.
“I think we need to turn right here,” she said after rechecking her wristpiece.
Persia halted, giving her a dubious look. “Here? No way.”
A commotion behind made them both turn.
A group of tall men in beige uniforms was pushing their way into the junction they’d passed a minute earlier. For a moment, Lenah thought they’d specifically looked and started walking in their direction, but she discarded the idea. She knew no one on this star-forsaken place, apart from a kidnapping cyborg whose face she never wanted to see again.
She had to admit that he’d behaved better than expected, not to mention he’d cleaned up into a nice sight. But that didn’t change the relief she felt at getting rid of him.
They’d been automatically pushed forward into the street Lenah had indicated when an incredibly thin man, painted in layers of soot, suddenly appeared right in front of their faces, showing a toothless grin. “A coin, ladies.”
“No, sorry,” Lenah answered, recoiling from his ugly grin while trying to push past him. And failing. With surprising speed and strength, he took hold of her arm and yanked her toward him. A moment later, she felt a knife at her throat.
“Dunno if I believe that, lady. Give the coins over or —” Instead of finishing the sentence, he put enough pressure to Lenah’s throat to draw a tiny bit of blood.
Persia looked at her, wide-eyed. She fumbled in her pocket and produced a handful of low-denomination plastic coins.
“That’s all I have.” Persia held it toward the beggar, but he just spat at her.
“Nah, tha canno be true. Her clothes.” He pressed his knife harder into Lenah’s throat. “Them are worth a hundred time tha.”
“We really don’t have any more,” Persia said.
“We got robbed, and now that’s all we have.”
“Tha so?” the beggar answered. “Then give me them clothes. You.” He pointed the knife at Persia, then at Lenah, to indicate Persia was to undress her.
Lenah started to wiggle in his arms, trying to get an advantage over him that would free her before he got the chance to cut her throat. She had no doubt he wouldn’t mind the latter. This didn’t seem a place where killing people would be punished. There was probably a quota somewhere that to be a good citizen of Oscuris, you had to kill at least three people a month.
She managed to lift her arms a little, giving her the flexibility to attempt one of the moves Marcus had shown her. Remembering him pained her. She’d grown up admiring her father’s lead guard, but back on Astur it had seemed he was deep into business with Kahoot’s smuggler mafia.
When the beggar didn’t seem to notice her movements, she lashed out at his face and managed to hit him in the nose. He let go and stumbled back. His mouth was wide open, but his eyes weren’t even on her anymore. His gaze had shifted to the street corner, where Lenah got a glimpse of the men in beige uniforms approaching. Suddenly their attacker couldn’t get away fast enough, and within seconds he had vanished out of sight.
As had most other people. The street that had been buzzing with activity moments before was suddenly vacant.
“Let’s move,” Persia urged, but Lenah was already on her way. They walked quickly, trying to not call any extra attention to themselves. It seemed that threatening young women with a knife hadn’t alarmed any of the few people out, but these men in beige did. They made Lenah’s skin tingle, even though she couldn’t say why. Better to avoid crossing paths on the open street.
“There it is.” She pointed toward one especially dingy-looking building up ahead. Wobbly stairs led up to a second-floor entry, which was lined by a dirty sign reading ‘Medical Tinctures and More’.
Not caring about being careful, Lenah leaped up the stairs and opened the door. This could either go badly or well, but hesitating at the door wouldn’t change that. Besides, she really wanted to get off the street.
They stepped inside a dark room, and at first she couldn’t see anything. The one window in the room was so dirty that hardly any light fell in. Even the bulbs hanging off the ceiling were covered in dark-gray muck. After a few seconds, Lenah noticed a middle-aged man behind a metal counter, with a receding hairline and an enhanced eye that glittered in the darkness. His massive figure spilled over the stool he was sitting on. He took them in slowly as they stepped closer.
Lenah cleared her throat. “Um, hello. Are you Big Rat?” It was the contact name that had been given along with this address on the bulletin board.
“And who’s asking?”
“I’m Elle Stardust, and this is India Kan.” They’d decided earlier to use made-up names.
“Elle, all right, all right. And you’re here for what, you said?” He narrowed his beady natural eye at them, a comical gesture given his size.
“We’re here for a cargo to Lunara Station.”
“Hmm,” he said, lowering his gaze toward a data pad in front of him.
Lenah waited for the better part of thirty seconds before realizing he was ignoring them. “Hey, I was talking to you.”
Slowly, he looked up again. “Good, you have some spunk.” He cocked his head. “No experience, that much is obvious. Coming from money. Judging you’re here, you must have lost it all. Did you run away from home, young girl?” His mocking tone wasn’t lost on Lenah. Apparently the regular clothes that had made her look underdressed at her father’s party were an extremely bad choice for Oscuris.
“Tell me, how will I know you won’t – hmm – lose my shipment?” The vendor grinned, revealing a pair of blue metal fangs.
At the last moment, Lenah ke
pt herself from shrinking back. She’d show him that she had the necessary spunk to get this job.
“Simple.” She shrugged. “We’re not interested in the cargo. As you said, we’re new to this and don’t know anyone to sell it to. But we are interested in the money.”
As his face stayed skeptical, she shot him her most convincing grin, sending the emotion of urgency in his direction. Again, a fierce headache pierced her head, but something felt different from the last few times. It wasn’t just the pain, but something was leaving Lenah. A trickle, but it was there, visible in how Big Rat’s eyes went from mocking to doubtful and finally started to dart around in worry.
He looked her up and down once more, fangs showing through his lips as she tried not to fidget. It was hard, but with her head pounding and her own feelings of urgency, somehow she managed.
“Fine,” he finally snarled at her. “You have the job, ladies. But don’t disappoint me.”
He gave them a direction on Lunara Station, typed down their names, and waddled into the back of his shop. A short while later, he came back with a small box.
“Payment’s half here, half at Lunara Station.” With those words he handed them a small stack of units and the box before waddling back to sit behind his counter. They had clearly been dismissed.
14 Unfriendly Faces
Lenah felt ecstatic. Her ability was coming back. Whatever had happened to it before wasn’t permanent.
Persia took the lead back into the street, carrying the box. Taking a deep breath of relief, Lenah followed her. That had gone better than expected, as had the cyborg’s departure. Apparently, Uz’s worry about parking on the unlucky bay 17 wasn’t living up to her expectations. But the moment the shop’s door closed behind them and Lenah blinked into the smog-filled daylight, she realized that wasn’t true. The beige coats, a group of five, were waiting for them outside the shop.