A look of irritation and disbelief was returned. "What? Seriously? Pipe duty?"
I glance back toward the Fracker's bridge. "Aside from Barnes and Collins, we have a pair of pilots back there. You want to leave our security to them?"
Tanner returned a half frown, half scowl. He knew I was right, but he wasn't happy.
I turned and hurried through onto the alien vessel, Xurpok had already disappeared around a far corner. The first thuds from blaster fire were followed by the screeching screams the Maxans usually let out just before they died. So long as the screeching continued, I knew Xurpok was driving forward.
Ten minutes into our venture the whumps from plasma rifles firing came to a stop.
I opened a comm. "Xurpok? Where are you?"
"At the bridge. I have five officers still alive, but I could use your help to restrain them."
"I'm on my way."
When I arrived, two of the five were already dead, having succumbed to wounds received during the assault. Two more were on the floor and were acting groggy, the last of the living Maxans was against a wall, struggling for breath as the air had been pushed out of his chest and pressure kept applied. The Maxan winced almost convulsing before a breath was allowed in.
"He won't talk," Xurpok said.
I looked at the other two before turning to the third. A stream of seeming gibberish exited its mouth.
The Maxan drew in a breath before letting out an ear-piercing screech. With a quick chop, Xurpok crushed its throat, cutting off the noise.
"That's one way to do it. He wasn't going to talk."
The Corbo turned toward the remaining two.
I took his shoulder. "Wait. They couldn't talk now if they wanted. Let me drag them back to the Fracker. We can interrogate them once they come fully to. I would suggest you check the ships logs to see if you can find anything out. Could be the Maxan are just using this ship for a transport of their own people."
Xurpok turned for a console. "I will do as you say."
I opened a comm. "Barnes. Run us another scan of this ship. How many bios do you see?"
"One sec... I count four."
I switched channels. "Tanner, come out to the main hall, take a left and follow the body trail to the bridge. I need your help dragging a Maxan back to the Fracker."
"Dragging? Just how big is this Maxan?"
"Standard size. We have two of them here. I'll meet you in the hall."
The Maxans were taken aboard the Fracker and secured. A dejected Xurpok entered the pipe after a several-hour search of the logs.
I asked, "What'd you find?"
"The logs have not been updated for over a hundred years. The last entries mention a fleet of warships and a forced surrender. When the Maxans came aboard they began a systematic annihilation of my people. Eighty-six hundred died on this ship. I have to believe the others are gone as well. Nav entries from that time show the transport fleet to still be together."
Tanner scowled. "Wiped out all your people? Harsh."
"There is more. I found references to our special units. Of the forty-four who survived, my brother and myself were sent through to that remote location. The others were placed in stasis and sent through a gate in the other direction."
"So the others are still out there?"
"No. The nav coordinates were changed after they were placed in the chambers. Their ship was directed into a star."
Tanner frowned. "Wow. Why would they do that?"
"After our help with the escape they came to fear us. I was witness to that fear, but thought perhaps it was limited to a few. Unfortunately those few were our politicians."
I placed my hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "Tell you what. You stick with me. If my commanders won't allow you to join my squad— I'll end my enlistment. After that you and I will come out here to freelance. The CDF has a bounty on dead Maxans. Lots of mercs out here trying to make a living at it. And with your abilities we could make a small fortune in a short time. And you could have your revenge."
Tanner grumbled. "I'm past due for retirement as well. If Sarge is willing to form up with you, well, I would offer my services too."
Collins nodded. "Count me in."
Barnes slowly shook his head. "I just re-upped for another five years. But I don't want to be out here beating the weeds if the rest of you aren't around. I guess in that instance I'll be heading back to the signal corps. My old colonel bugs me to come back every time I see him."
Tanner chuckled. "Every time you see him? What is that, like twice since you joined us?"
Barnes nodded. "Twice is every time."
Chapter 3
* * *
The ride back to Alday Port was quiet. A civilization had just been lost. Ordinarily our squad would have shown quite a bit less caring when hearing such news. They weren't Humans. But this was our friend, a fellow fighter. And from what we could tell, a just and fair individual. I quizzed him about his people and their war.
The Corbo had been at peace when a chance encounter by a scout ship brought back an enemy that was determined to take everything they had. For the Corbo it had been a war of attrition, losing one colony after another as a relentless enemy advanced. In the end their only option was to flee from their home planet.
I thought about our own war with the Maxans and how we were now the aggressor. They had attacked us first. And they seemed bent on continuing to do so. As a result, we were countering their war and beginning to push into their territories. It had been a lesson to the other hostile species we had encountered. Don't piss off Humans. We have trouble backing down from a fight. But the war had not been without heavy losses on both sides.
Back at Alday, my plea to the admiralty went unheeded. They were stubborn. Here we were with a fighter who was not only superior to us in every physical way, he was smart, and he had every reason to despise the Maxan. It was probably the most difficult thing I had ever done, but I turned in my resignation and accepted my retirement the next day. Collins and Tanner immediately followed, with Barnes requesting and receiving a transfer back to the signal corps.
In a surprise move, Mendez joined our squad after receiving a full medical discharge. Her leg had healed, and a prosthetic had been ordered and was on the way. The four of us sat in a bar on Alday station while Xurpok remained on his captured Maxan Warstalker, unable to obtain a temporary visa.
Tanner finished the last of a mug of beer, setting it down hard on the table to draw attention. "So. What happens next?"
Collins said, "We need a ship."
"We have a ship."
A chuckle was returned. "We can't go out fighting in a Warstalker. We need something like the Fracker."
I took a sip and waved over a waiter. "Refills here if you would."
I then turned to Tanner. "I talked with Lieutenant Dumon this morning. He's getting a new ship. The Fracker is being retired."
Tanner scowled. "What? Why? That's a great ship."
"It's a good ship, but modern versions are floating off the assembly lines every day. The entire assault line is being replaced. The new models are about three times the size and have better weapons."
"Weapons aren't what you need most on an assault ship. Armor is what gets you in close enough to board."
"I was told they are finding the assaults too costly. They'd rather sit back and fight a shooting war. Personally I think it's a mistake. There will be an overwhelming cost for repairs and for replacement parts. Marines are more cost effective. And you often end up with a captured vessel, which also has value."
"Wow. So we might literally be the last of the Assault Marines?"
"I believe this is where our good timing comes in. The lieutenant said they would be relegating assault missions to merc crews. There will still be a bounty per Maxan body, but they will now be adding a ship bounty. And there are a lot of Maxan ships out there waiting to be taken."
Collins asked, "What would the bounty on something like that Warstalker be?"
<
br /> "The lieutenant said possibly as high as a half-million credits. Which brings up another issue. The admiralty wants that Warstalker. They claim privately owned warships cannot be riding around in Human space. Word is they may be looking to confiscate it."
Tanner sat forward. "Confiscate! They have no right to do that! Xurpok took that ship on his own."
"This is their space and they have every right to police it however they want. Now— I've put the lieutenant in a tight spot. He wasn't happy to do so, but he agreed to do it. If within the next twenty-four hours he hears word that they are definitely coming for that ship, he will pass the word on to me. So after this bit of lunch here, you'll all be returning to the Warstalker."
"And where are you going?"
"I have business to attend to so we can get this venture off the ground. In case you've already forgotten, we are all now unemployed. And I don't know about the rest of you, but I don't care to be crammed into some tiny apartment where I live out my days on my pension. That's not a retirement I have any interest in."
Two more rounds of beers were consumed before I strode off toward the Office of Government Surplus. They were aware of the coming fleet of more than three hundred assault ships and that they would be responsible for their disposal. The weapons would be stripped away and the ships auctioned off. The first such auction would be taking place in sixty days and the Fracker was listed as possibly being in that first group.
From there I went to the OMS (Office of Mercenary Services). The initial bounty lists were out. The bounty for a Warstalker came in at three hundred eighty-six thousand credits for a top condition model. Auctions of the assault ships were expected to bring in close to two hundred thousand. I was feeling good about our chance for acquiring the Fracker. I returned to the Warstalker and the others for a frank discussion.
"I believe I have a path forward, but it involves a big commitment by Xurpok. This ship, he has to be willing to turn it in for a bounty. And from there we use the proceeds to purchase the Fracker and whatever gear we will need to conduct business. And that business will be taking Maxan ships. Big, small, doesn't matter. Each will have a healthy bounty on it and we'll be in prime position to take it."
Tanner said, "He'll commit. He wants revenge. Collins and I had to talk him out of heading back to their territory with this ship by himself."
"If we're all aboard with this plan we only need his approval. Tanner, go bring him in."
The vote was unanimous. After a very short discussion with Xurpok, he agreed. I returned to the OMS and arranged for the first bounty to be paid. Xurpok's ship was flown from the docking bay to another dock on the station and registered under my name. The Warstalker was then turned over to the OMS.
With our plan moving forward, I was off to fill the short list of supplies we would be needing. A small warehouse was rented, and the purchased supplies were stocked. We had been having meeting after meeting discussing the items we would require. A food supply, weapons of our own, battlegear— including suits, these were things we had to acquire. And we had at least two months to try.
As scheduled, the first auction of retired assault ships came up. I was seated in the audience during a live bid for the Fracker. It was the eighth ship to be auctioned and the bids had fallen significantly after the first two had gone out above the estimate. The market for their use was shallow. Only a few citizens were in need of a heavily armored transport. The Fracker was purchased with a sixty thousand credit bid, which was the minimum, a price equivalent to its salvage value. We were happy to have it.
An engineering firm was hired to rework some of the interior to our needs. Each member would have their own private bunkroom and bathroom. The size of the dining hall was halved, with the converted half being made into a retention room. There was always the possibility we would take the occasional prisoner, we now had a place to store them until we returned for our bounties. A live Maxan would bring double that of a dead one. A freezer room was added for the second version of those potential passengers.
A Marine's battlegear was personal. There were several supplier outfits that sold gear to mercs. Much of it was better than that supplied by the CDF. We had gone to one such supplier and come away with a load of gear and enough spares that we would be ready for almost any assault mission possible.
I had purchased a battlesuit that was fully constructed of the synth-leather found in my prior combat boots. The designers had gone all out to retain the flexibility and comfort of the standard battlesuit. In some areas they had surpassed both. After snapping pieces together for the first time, I was eager to put it to use.
Back at our warehouse I asked Tanner to set his blaster to minimum power and to target me as I attempted to dodge any plasma bolts sent my way. I was disappointed with how few I was able to evade, but it wasn't from any drawbacks of the suit. Herb Tanner was just that good with a blaster.
Chapter 4
* * *
With my suit-testing regimen complete, Fletcher Collins stepped forward for a test of his own. The blaster power was turned up to the one-quarter setting. It was easily enough to kill an unprotected Marine. Collins wanted to know just how well the grounding function of the battlesuit worked. I sat back to watch the circus that was certain to erupt.
"Quarter power, no more." Collins ordered.
"I'm at one-quarter. I told you three times now," Tanner replied.
"And that's one-quarter from the bottom, right?"
Tanner chuckled. "Are we doing this now or we gonna wait until we're old?"
Collins gave a nod. Before he could move, a blaster bolt impacted his chest, knocking him from his feet. Tanner laughed as an angry Collins regained his composure and got to his feet.
"That was uncalled for."
"Yeah, but it was fun."
Collins charged toward his friend and was immediately taken down with another strike to the chest. Once back on his feet, several minutes were spent dodging and dashing away from the bolts released by Tanner before a final strike spun Collins around like a top with a second hit slamming him to the floor. A hand was raised signaling an end.
Tanner smirked. "You sure you want to quit? I could do this all day."
Instead of an angry response, Collins dusted off his suit as he walked over to his friend. "Not bad at all. Other than your shenanigans at the start, every one of those strikes were tolerable. I'd have been a hurting puppy with our old gear."
I said, "Let's not forget the Maxans won't be using quarter-power in any fight."
Collins nodded. "No. But I do have a good idea of what to expect from glancing blows. Come on Tanner. Your turn."
Tanner laughed. "Not in this lifetime. Not when I know your primary interest is to punish me for being a jerk."
"That right there— is what makes you a jerk."
"Come on. You can call me that over a beer."
Mendez chimed in. "Hold up. I'll join you." She hurried after on her new prosthetic.
I turned to face Xurpok. He had been in a depressed state. "Nothing you could have done differently. The Maxans are bad news and your people happened in there without any defense."
"I'm most bothered by the abandonment."
"Again. Not because of anything you did or didn't do. And had you been there with your people you'd have been dead as well. Our trip running through the Warstalker, that was possible because we were only fighting one ship. Had there been another, when it was inevitable that they had lost, the Maxans would have destroyed that ship just to kill us off."
Xurpok took in and released a long slow breath. "I volunteered for the special duty. I kept a positive attitude through dozens of surgeries. I gave it my all in training— all so I could protect my people from the Herzek. And what did they do? They turned me out. While I have no thoughts of mercy for the Maxan and their butchery, I am torn over my allegiance to my people."
"Look," I said. "If it was up to your people, for any who had gotten to know you, you would have been fully acc
epted as you are. Even when confronted by us you showed compassion and mercy. I and the others here with us consider you not only a friend but a kindred spirit. You were abandoned by those whose anti-war voices were loudest. And they were wrong."
I placed my hand on Xurpok's shoulder. "You may have lost one misguided family, but you have gained another. Maybe it's time you awoke your brother?"
Xurpok slowly shook his head. "I now fear waking him. What if he feels differently than I do? What if he wants retribution against everyone? I would not want to choose between protecting you and accepting my brother."
"We've made our choices. He will have to make his. Don't base your decision on what you fear. Your brother deserves to know."
"And he shall know. When I feel the time is right."
The retired Marine we had hired as a pilot came into the warehouse. "They've finished the updates to the Fracker. I was told it is ready for our inspection."
I stood. "Excellent. Thank you, Sammy. Xurpok? You ready to see your new ship?"
"My ship?"
"The bounty, although officially collected by me, was yours. The Fracker is yours— unofficially, but officially."
"Then let us go to her."
"In a few weeks we should be in Maxan territory. We're warriors, fighting is what we do. Maybe a good fight will lift your spirits."
As had been agreed to for his admission into the warehouse area of the port, a police escort for Xurpok was called. When the escorts arrived, the walk to the Fracker took fifteen minutes. The hatch was closed, and the ship was soon pulling away.
During the ride out to Maxan space, Xurpok was introduced to Texas Hold 'em. With beer being plentiful and no restrictions placed upon its consumption, credits were being used as the gambling currency.
Tanner shook his head. "That's three hands in a row. Where are you hiding cards? This is absurd."
Collins chuckled. "He's just outplaying you, Tan. He's good. Just be glad you aren't playing for your beers."
Mendez nodded. "He's either good or has lady luck backing him up this game. That's it. I fold."
The Squad Novelettes 1-5 Page 8