He looked at her. “Listen, I already lost one girl to these idiots. I’m not about to lose you too.”
“But the things they’ve done to me…” Corri fought back tears.
Fox put a hand on her shoulder. “I understand. I’ve been there myself, but trust me. I’ll figure something out. I always do. Okay?”
She nodded reluctantly. “Okay.”
“Now let’s get ready before they grow bored and blow us to pieces.
Fox and Corri descended Hoppers ramp, their hands stretched in the air.
As they reached the bottom a particularly large Drahk, Fox took for the commander, barked at them to wade through the water without making any sudden moves.
They followed his instructions.
On reaching the muddy bank, several Drahk dragged them closer to the trees and forced them to their knees before the commander.
The Drahk hunters snatched the blasters from both their holsters.
“Well, what have we got here.”
“A human and a Vosan,” the commander grinned. His hunters clicked and clacked merrily. “Looks like me and my boys are going to have some fun, starting with your ship.”
“Please, no,” Fox begged. “I’ll give you her access codes. She’s worth a lot of money.”
The Drahk commander smiled at him and lifted his radio to his face. “Let her have it, Brask.”
The airship’s guns whined as they sped up and a streams of spiraling plasma exploded from the nozzle.
At first, Hopper’s armor held. Within seconds, the plasma melted through her hull. The Drahk cheered and opened fire, blasting holes in her exterior, reducing her to a pile of scrap.
Fox looked away, his eyes welling. “Sorry girl. I tried.”
“Now for the two of you.”
“Take us to Lord Vismark and get it over and done with.”
“Lord Vismark?” the Drahk said confused.
“That’s why you’re here isn’t it? Lord Vismark wants me to help with his sick scheme.”
The Drahk gathered around them broke into harsh clicking laughter.
Reality slowly dawned on Fox.
He and Corri exchanged worried glances.
“If you aren’t taking us to Vismark, then why go to the trouble to get us off the ship?”
“We’re taking you to Lord Vismark, alright. But he didn’t say anything about not having a little fun first?”
Fox shook his head. That’s a very Drahk thing to say.
Corri shot him a look that said I told you so.
Fox held up his hand. “One thing before we get started. How did you find me.”
The Drahk commander looked at him like he was stupid and pointed at his neck. “The doctor put a tracker in you.”
Four Drahk forced Fox onto his stomach and started removing his armor. Another group did the same with Corri.
Rather than screaming, as Fox had expected, she remained silent.
For a second, he saw the hate in her eyes, and he wished he’d listened to her.
“Been a while since I’ve enjoyed me some fresh meet,” the Commander said, setting his rifle in the jungle litter. He started undoing his uniform.
And explosion erupted above and debris rained down around them.
Fox looked up to in time to a flaming gunship engine smash two Drahk gunners into the mud.
As the smoke above cleared, the Drahk raised their weapons and fired into a clear sky.
The sky answered with heavy plasma, huge bolts coming out of nowhere smashing one Drahk after another.
Corri curled into a ball and threw her arms around her head.
Spotting their blasters, Fox sprang for them and tolled to his feet, firing on the Drahk as they fled from the falling fire.
Before Fox knew it, he and Corri stood in a circle of scorched bodies alone.
Fox looked for the source of the plasma fire.
The air shimmered and a black ship twice as big as Hopper materialized. He didn’t recognize the vehicle.
Corri gave him another accusing glare as she refitted her armor.
“What? I said it would work out somehow, and it worked out somehow, didn’t it?”
He watched the black bird descending wondering who it was…hoping it was friend rather than foe.
He looked at the smoldering Drahk remains. If he had to guess he’d say friend, but then again, he had been known to guess wrong on occasion.
14
Unexpected Guests
Kelvin lowered Sable to the ground, her jets throwing water into the air. He lowered the side ramp. “Hurry up and get in,” he shouted over the intercom. “They’ve got more air support heading this way.”
The Vosan and human hurried up the ramp, each carrying a gun.
“You’re Fox,” Kelvin could hardly believe his eyes.
“That’s me. Thank you for helping us, human,” he said.
“Save the pleasantries, we need to get out of here.” Kelvin pulled the controls and Sable climbed back into the sky. “Reactivate stealth drive, Sable.”
“Stealth drive activated,” she confirmed.
Both unexpected guests had the good sense to strap themselves in.
He checked the two bogeys closing in on his map and pulled sharply to the right, expecting them to keep their bearing. To his amazement, and horror, they adjusted their course. “Anyone care to explain why they can still see us?” Kelvin shouted over Sable’s roaring engines.
“It must be the tracker,” Fox said.
“Tracker?” Kelvin shouted. “What tracker?”
Fox pointed to his neck. “They installed a vocal implant. Turns out they included a tracker.”
Kelvin didn’t even want to ask about the vocal implant or why and how the Drahk would give a Vosan one. “What the hell can you do to fix this?”
“Do you have any medical tools?”
“In one of the drawers in front of you.” Kelvin wondered what he was about to do. “You plan on performing surgery back there?”
“If you have an EM tool, Corri can fry the tracker’s chip.”
The woman looked at Fox like he’d gone mad. “You want we to do what?”
“You’ve got a steady hand. It’ll be fine,” Fox said nonchalantly.
Corri didn’t look convinced.
Fox made a right racket as he rummaged through the drawers.
“Incoming,” Kelvin shouted.
The Drahk fighters pulled in behind him and opened fire.
He banked right then left, missing most of the blast. He quickly checked their range and saw they were too far back for the EMP.
He accelerated sharply into a wide loop. To his surprise they followed. “These guys are stubborn shits. Hurry up and sort out that tracker.”
Fox pulled a tray from the last drawer, fearing it might not have what he was looking for. He grabbed what he thought was a medical pulse device and flipped the power switch. It made the same sound the unit on Hopper made.
“Found it,” he shouted as the ship turned sharply.
Despite the powerful on-board dampeners, the force flung him against the wall, and flung the contents of the drawer all over the cabin.
Somehow, he managed to hold onto the medical pulse device.
When the pilot finished the turn, he slumped to the ground and quickly made his way to Corri, strapping himself back in next to her.
“Hold this,” he said pressing the unit into her shaking hands. “It’s already powered.”
“What am I supposed to do with it,” she said, her face turning green.
“Run it along my scar. When the beep reaches a constant high pitch, press the red button. And don’t throw up.”
“I’ll do my best, but no promises,” she said, taking a series of long deep breaths.
Fox lifted his neck and spread his fur then put it back down again. “And when you push the button, make sure you’re holding it steady.”
The ship jerked and flung them wildly against their straps then ba
ck into their seats, before leveling off again.
Corri’s eyes bulged. “What’ll happen if I miss?
Fox shrugged. “I don’t know.” He lifted his neck again and tried not to pull away as Corri pressed the device scanner nub into his skin. “Youch!”
“Oh, stop crying like a baby.”
She traced the unit back and forth.
The ship rumbled and she jabbed him in the side of the neck.
Fox gritted his teeth and moaned in pain, trying his best not to yelp.
“Sorry, I’ll never find the it if he doesn’t stop rolling this ship all over the place.”
“Just get it done,” he growled.
“I’m trying.”
Corri ran it across his throat again, the beeping ranging from a low hum to a high bleep and back again.
Fox clenched his jaw and grabbed the armrest tight, his fingers hurting. He’d experienced less pain in Drahk torture chambers.
Kelvin pulled Sable into another tight circle as orange plasma streamed by, barely missing the ship.
“I think I know where it is, but I need you to stop moving the ship so much, dammit!” Corri screamed from the cabin behind.
“Three more of the bastards are coming in and they’re too far for my EMP. If I stop moving, we could die!” he shouted back.
“If you don’t stop moving, we will die,” she countered.
Kelvin figured he couldn’t argue with that. He thought quickly, trying to come up with a plan.
“Okay, Sable will still shake when they hit us, but I’ll give you three seconds of fairly steady flight.”
“That’ll be plenty,” she called back, though she didn’t sound sure.
“Sable, split all available power equally between fore-thrusters and aft shields.”
“Power redirect, complete.”
He checked the map to find another three fighters heading their way.
“Okay, it’s now or never,” he told himself. “We’re about to slow down,” he told Corri.
He pulled on the brakes and Sable slowed quickly. Emergency lights flashed as several plasma streams smashed into her, draining the shields. He swayed from side to side, avoiding some of the enemy fire.
“Aft shields at sixteen percent,” Sable warned.
He pulled harder on the brakes, his arms straining. “Here come your three seconds. Get ready!”
Unable to slow as fast, the enemy ships sped on, white flames jetting from their engines and propelling them forward.
Kelvin made a slight adjustment and pulled the trigger. Sable’s plasma cannon whirred, tearing three Drahk ships to pieces. Smoking husks spiraled to the swampy jungle below.
“Three seconds starting now.”
“Got it.” Corri called from the cabin. “I think.”
Kelvin slammed on the accelerator, the sudden force sinking him into his chair as the remaining Drahk ships came around.
He took Sable left and the Drahk fighters continued in a straight line. “Whatever you did, it looks like it worked.”
“Thank the heavens,” Corri called. “It was starting to feel like a blender back here.”
“Good flying,” said Fox.
“It’s what I do,” Kelvin breathed heavily, trying to calm his nerves. “I’ll find somewhere safe to put her down so we can talk.”
15
Old Words
Fox sat in the black ship’s mid-cabin sipping on his water can as Corri and the pilot drank their warm beverages over small talk. He stretched out on the couch, working knots out of his neck and shoulders. The furnishings softened the otherwise hard interior. Control panels and displays covered most surfaces. The inside of the ship was not unlike Hopper in that sense, but it had a lot more space. His couch alone took up more space than all the passenger seats on Hopper.
He swigged the canister, unable to believe that Hopper was actually gone. His hand shook as he squeezed the can in anger. If only he could end the Drahk scourge, maybe the Galaxy would be a better place…maybe the other species would come to their senses and allow slavery to fade into history.
He suspected another species would simply take the Drahk’s place in the proverbial food chain. Lord Vismark’s plan didn’t seem so insane after all. Fox rubbed his left temple with his free hand, as he tried to work out where it all went wrong. He’d never entertained the idea of tyranny before.
If things continue the way they are, I’ll end up a slaver myself one day.
A muscle in his shoulder twitched.
All this stress is doing a number on my mind and body. He regarded the water can. I’ll have a real drink as soon as I get off this damn planet.
He watched Corri and the pilot laugh as they shared a joke. Fox hadn’t yet asked him about leaving Roth. He wasn’t sure he could trust the man…not that he and Corri had much of a choice with Hopper gone.
Fox’s eyes flicked back to the displays, checking the external camera feeds to make sure the Drahk hadn’t tracked them.
The pilot turned away from Corri, watching Fox. “Sable has a state-of-the-art stealth drive. They’ll never find us in this swamp.”
“That’s what I thought when I landed Hopper,” Fox grumbled. “And they blew her to pieces.”
Corri put an arm around his shoulders. “You didn’t know they’d installed a tracker.”
“That doesn’t make it hurt any less. Hopper and I go a long way back.” He sniffed the air, the bitter leaves in the pilot’s cup causing his nostril to pucker.
“It’s herbal tea,” he said, raising the cup. “To victory.”
Fox nodded. “To victory.” He sipped on the water canister, feeling anything but victorious, before passing it to Corri.
“To Victory,” she said.
“You know our names,” Corri said. “But you still haven’t given us yours.”
“Kel...” He coughed. “Sorry, must have choked on a tea leaf. Name’s Ernest Perry.”
Corri raised her cup again. “We’re lucky you showed up when you did, so now that I know your name, allow me to thank you properly, Ernest Perry.”
“Glad I could help. It felt good to stretch my wings.”
“You’ll help us off this planet, won’t you?” Corri asked.
Ernest rubbed his neck. “I don’t know if I can do that. Transporting unauthorized passengers would put me in breach of contract with my client.”
“But you can’t just leave us here,” Corri pleaded, her eyes shimmering.
“I’m sure we can find somewhere safe outside the jungle. Besides, I might be here for a while. I have business to attend to.”
“What kind of business could a human have on Roth?” Fox said, eyeing him with suspicion. “And how did you know my name?”
The pilot cleared his throat. “The short of that story is I work as an independent contractor. My most recent client was interested in a looped message coming through Jump Gate Delta. The message you sent on behalf of Michelle.”
Fox’s ears perked. “My message made it through the gate?”
“It did. My client saw that it reached her family.”
“That’s…nice.” Fox stared off into the distance, his thoughts drifting back in time to when he and Michelle were slaves.
Corri put her cup down on the small table hard. “It seems everyone knows this Michelle but me.”
“Michelle was an old friend,” Fox explained, his chest burning at the memories. “She died a long time ago. I promised her I would get a message to her family, so I transmitted the broadcast, not thinking it would actually reach them. This is most…unexpected.”
“Oh, I see.” Understanding registered on Corri’s face. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
Fox shrugged. “Like I said, it was a long time ago.” He turned to Ernest. “So, you came all the way here to inform me that my message has reached its intended audience?”
“Of course not,” Ernest said, the sarcasm clearly lost on him. “My client discovered encrypted data hidden inside your message.
It seems someone is using your playback loop to contact our enemies back in human space. My job is to check the source of the broadcast and download the root files. Then we can work on figuring out where the communications are going.”
That got Fox’s interest. “And the broadcast brought you to Roth? I’ve only been on Roth for a few days. Hopper’s signal couldn’t have reached human space already.”
“I can’t remember the time signature, but the message my client picked up was old for sure. The data hidden inside it, however, was much more recent.” Ernest scratched his bald head as he hesitated. “My client requested that I also stop the broadcast. He fears communications from the Drahkonis system making their way to human space will make our leaders nervous. I’m here because my scanners point to that black spire in the middle of the city.”
“Now that I know the message reached Michelle’s family, I have no reason to keep broadcasting.” Fox mumbled. “I knew Vismark’s spire acted as a relay, but I had no idea that my original broadcast was still bouncing around the Drahkonis system after all these years.”
“Is there any way to stop it?”
“I suppose you could broadcast a disruptor signal, but we’ll need those root files you mentioned. We’ll need to transmit it via a quantum communicator if we want it to propagate through the relays in the intergalactic network quickly. Otherwise it’ll take decades. Maybe even centuries.”
“Sable has a quantum communicator. But it sounds like everything hinges on me getting those files. This Vismark you speak of,” Ernest said. “He owns that spire?”
“Vismark is the slave lord who runs the city. He took me there as his prisoner a few days back…after failing to rescue a young slave girl named Sasha.”
Ernest stopped with his cup halfway to his mouth. “What happened?”
“A story to share over a proper drink some other day perhaps.”
“Fox barely escaped,” Corri added. “Almost died, but he pulled through in the end. Poor Sasha, though.”
Ernest locked eyes with Fox. “Listen, it sounds like you’ve been through a lot lately, but it would be really useful having someone who knows their way at my back in there. I saw how you handled that blaster. You’re a pro. I can fly a ship better than most, but I didn’t expect this assignment to take me into a Drahk settlement. My shooting could use a little work if I’m honest.”
Starfighter Page 10