Mercenary

by Dennis Young

  Briggs wasn’t certain, but he thought she mumbled “Fucking comedians” as she entered her cabin. Or something to that effect.

  * * *

  Theia

  Habitable planet similar to Olde Earth, Standard Galactic Registry (SGR) 282. Theia’s star is G4V Spectral Class, smaller and a bit cooler than Earth Standard. The star’s official classification name in accordance with the classic Morgan–Keenan (MK) registry is Laberos, Greek for “bright”. In normal conversation and usage, it is simply referred to as “the sun”.

  The Laberos system consists of eight planets named after ancient Greek legend and genealogy; Gaia, Theia, Eos, Crius, Tethys, Pontus, Eurybia, and Heolis. Gaia, Theia (with its moon, Hyperion), Eos, and Crius are typical iron-core rocky planets, while the others are ice sub-giants, similar to Solar Uranus or Neptune.

  Theia is smaller than Earth, approximately 11,000 kilometers (6800 miles) in diameter, with lighter gravity and thinner atmosphere. Theia revolves around Laberos closer than Earth does Sol, making the local year shorter, 346 Standard Days. The thinner air and lower gravity has led to physiological changes in the inhabitants, such as taller, leaner, less muscular bodies, elongated ears for better hearing in the thin air, more efficient lung capacity, and better blood circulation.

  Theia was colonized in the early 3100s (Olde Earth Calendar), and saw a near failure due to soil issues. Fertilization techniques are the core of Theia’s economy, licensing intellectual property to other worlds of the Confederation.

  Theia has two principal land masses along with dozens of islands of various sizes. Oceans are filled with indigenous life, but native land life is not as plentiful, partly because of the afore-mentioned soil problems.

  Theia has one moon, Hyperion, 2500 km in diameter, orbital period twenty-two standard Theia days.

  Theia’s population is totally human and approximately 100 million.

  Theia has only seven major urban locations as of this writing, three in the northern major land mass (called Northland) and four in the southern (called Southland). The largest city on the planet is Anchor Prime, population approximately 3 million, a coastal city on the Northland Ocean.

  Theia’s governmental system is parliamentary, with a ruling Prime Minister and two Houses. Below the Prime Minister is the Planetary Governor, the House Leaders, and the Courts. There are Regional Governors who are elected every six years by the local population. The Prime Minister is elected once every four years, with a maximum of three terms.

  Theia is central to the military of the Laberos system, with the Marine HQ and academy located near Anchor Prime. Currently the Off-World Fleet Command (OFC) HQ is temporarily located in Southland, with plans in the next decade to relocate, but the decision where has not been made. This is a major issue with the Theian government, as the OFC is central to Southland economy.

  Theia is considered one of the best examples of colonization since the Outward Presence Movement began nearly a thousand years ago.

  * * *

  Anchor Prime, High Station Landing Port…

  Bird One settled on the pad at High Station. A medevac transport was waiting to whisk Taylor and Arty to the nearby hospital and was gone mere minutes after Talice’s team exited the ship. They were all dressed in camis, with sidearms and shockrods. Talice had almost succumbed to the idea of having everyone appear at Scarbach’s door in full combat gear. Briggs and Rory had talked her out of it, yet both admitted it might be fun. Besides, High Station security likely would have had a conniption and thrown the place into lockdown.

  The five of them walked three kilometers to Scarbach’s office, powered through the entrance like they owned the place, and entered his secretary’s office unannounced. Had they been ten minutes earlier, things might have been even more interesting. As it was, the secretary—Sheila, as Talice recalled— was straightening her skirt, but her hair was a dead giveaway. As were the tracks on the front of her dark blouse. Talice didn’t crack a smile. Everyone else in the team ranged from snickering to suppressed laughter.

  “We’re here to see Scarbach.” Talice offered no greeting, and a no-nonsense look. She headed for the office door.

  “He’s not in!” Sheila lunged for the remote lock switch, missing badly. It didn’t matter. Talice would have kicked the door in anyway. As it was, the door only bounced off the wall once as she flung it open.

  Rory was on her left. Briggs was on her right. Orta was at her back, and March faced the door, guarding the rear. To Scarbach, it probably looked like a hit.

  A comm unit was in the little weasel’s hand, poised in midair. His mouth hung open, his eyes were big as a twenty-meter target. His face paled as they entered. For ten seconds, no one moved or spoke.

  “Talice!” Scarbach finally grinned and set the phone down… very slowly.

  “Cowley’s dead. Taylor and Arty are shot up. Your hostages are still hostages. This ‘fringe group’ has a weapons cache I’d die for. And damn near did. We’re here to talk business.”

  Talice glanced over her shoulder. “Javi, tell Sheila to go home and close the office for the rest of the day. Everybody out. Then make sure no one interrupts us.”

  “Aye, Captain.” Orta took his exit and closed the door behind him.

  “Step out from behind the desk,” said Rory, moving to one side. He motioned to a chair in a corner. Scarbach sat. The smile on his face was starting to crack.

  Talice pulled a foot rest in front of Scarbach and sat facing him. “Now. Did you hear what I just said? You owe me three Troopers. And an explanation.”

  “It’s a hazardous business —”

  “You have no idea. Living can be a hazardous business. Look around you.” Talice motioned to Briggs. “They’d never find the body. Now, talk.”

  “I don’t know —”

  Talice moved her face closer. “One more fucking lie out of your mouth, and it will be the last. I’ll ask questions, you’ll give answers. If I don’t like the answer, we may find out which appendages you can live without. We might start with the one Sheila so recently gave her love to.”

  Scarbach was no longer smiling. Rory moved to one side of the chair. March, the other. Briggs stood behind Talice like a mountain, a shockrod in his hand.

  “You’re a big man in the merc business, but right now, you’re my little bitch,” said Talice. “Who is this group and who are the hostages?”

  Scarbach shook his head slowly.

  “Briggs, knife.”

  Briggs handed Talice his duty knife over her shoulder. It was heavy, dark, and probably looked like it weighed five kilos as she held it to Scarbach’s eyes.

  Scarbach sagged. “They are a fringe group. Very well supplied.”

  “Did you know that before we went in?”

  Again, Scarbach shook his head. “The hostages are three of my extended family and a bunch of their friends. Talice, I don’t even know most of their names.”

  “Why would they be a target?”

  Scarbach huffed a breath. “You know the answer to that. Trade. Creditmarks. Money. Hostage-takers for hire is big business on the other side of the mountains. But they didn’t want creditmarks, they wanted gold.”

  “Gold?” Talice laughed. “There are planets that give gold away.”

  “Not here, and they apparently have no transport to get there. But if I pay, they’ll just keep the hostages and up the price.”

  Talice narrowed her eyes. “How do you know that?”

  Scarbach nodded to his desk. “Get my comm. There’s a message a nephew, Tooley, sent before they confiscated his unit. It says, ‘no deal’. He was trying to warn me.”

  Talice sat back. She handed the knife to Briggs. “Okay, so you’re in a box. But we’re with you. So here’s what we want. Taylor and Arty will get full medcare until they’re healthy again. You’ll give us the means to break your friends and family out, hopefully without killing them all. We take no, that is no responsibility for what happens to them in the raid, but I swear
by my commission as a former Marine, we’ll do everything possible to bring them out alive.”

  She paused, but Scarbach said nothing. “And we want Bird One and a crew, hand-picked, and I’ll do the picking. Permanently. Ours. On your tab. We’re letting you in on the action. All you have to do is sit in your office, let Sheila service you in whatever way makes you a happy man, and provide the money we need.”

  “…What?”

  “Don’t make me repeat myself. I might get confused and add something.”

  Scarbach shifted nervously. “Or what?”

  Rory snickered. Briggs chortled. March blew a raspberry.

  Talice leaned forward again, her face a breath away from Scarbach’s.

  “I mean… what do you need? I’ll want details, you know. So I can put it on order.”

  “Why don’t you just give us your account number?” asked Briggs. “Then you can take the rest of the day off, too.”

  “My… account…”

  Talice withdrew a worn journal from her hip pocket. “Here. Just write it down. We’ll take care of everything. Welcome aboard.”

  * * *

  Talice’s wristcom chimed. Let’s have a drink at The Olde Place. Mac.

  She swung her legs over the side of the rented microtel bed, nearly cracking her foot against the wall. Mac! I haven’t heard from her since my discharge! Mac!!!

  She glanced at the time. Damn. I guess we celebrated last night a bit more than I thought. She checked her creditcom implant, her camis, and her weapons. Yeah, it’s all here. Made it safe. Maybe Briggs or Rory. But I do remember checking in. Sort of.

  She typed a quick reply. Mac! 1500 Hours, The Olde Place. Talice.

  Shit! Gotta shower, get breakfast, find out where the team is, plan our meetings, go spend Scarbach’s money…

  She chuckled. He caved like the whiny little weasel he is. I’ll talk to Shelia, tell her to keep him happy… maybe put her on the payroll! She laughed out loud, slid into a robe, and headed for the shower room. It was going to be an interesting day.

  * * *

  Talice waited at a corner table, watching the door. The Olde Place hadn’t changed. Same scarred high-top tables, same chairs that never seemed to have all four legs the same length, same sticky floors… She loved it here. Lotta good nights. Lotta memories. Damn, it’s been too long…

  Rory and Briggs were “shopping”, March hadn’t responded to her commtext, and she knew Orta was home with his family. He was a good guy, married young, big family, the kind of guy Talice really didn’t want on the team, simply because of his lifestyle. Too many responsibilities to be out in the fucking desert being shot at. Maybe I can help him find something here, training or… Mac!

  Through the door came a figure in a hoverchair; stocky, skin the color of dark chocolate, ruined legs dangling below the seat, and a grin from ear to ear. Talice ran to meet her, hugged her, drew back, hugged her again. Then they simply looked each other in the eye for long moments.

  “Hua,” said Talice, softly.

  “Hua,” Mac gave Talice a glance. “You let your hair grow.”

  “Yeah, well, you’re getting new legs, so I thought…”

  Mac chortled.

  Talice led her to the table, moved a chair aside, and the hoverchair sidled up close. Mac raised the seat. Talice ignored the remains of her meal, eyes still locked with Mac’s.

  The barman walked up quietly. “Jonie Macauley, I see you’ve met our resident royalty, Talice Wyloh. How can I serve you today?”

  Talice glanced aside at the man, then back to Mac. “Is this guy bothering you?”

  Mac grinned. “Bud only bothers me if he doesn’t bring me beer and a shot.”

  Talice nodded. “Make it two, peasant.” Bud gave a flourished bow and headed back to the bar.

  Talice sat back. “Two fucking years, and I don’t hear a thing from you. I was starting to think my old drill instructor didn’t love me anymore.”

  “You’ve been busy. I’ve been fighting my own battles.” Mac pointed to her hoverchair. “Finally, I caught a break, and Fawkes called in a favor.”

  “Fawkes? Our company Major? Yeah, he was okay. Helped me out, too. Got me my first mission after discharge.” Talice nodded to the hoverchair. “Gets you around a bit easier?”

  “You have no idea. I can dodge traffic now and outrun slow walkers.” They laughed. Bud brought their drinks and a basket of bar snacks. They clinked their glasses, downed the shots, and followed with a long pull on their beers.

  “Hua!” Talice laughed again, slamming her mug on the table.

  “Hua!” Mac followed suit.

  Talice leaned over the table. “So, what’s up? To what do I owe your company, lady?”

  Mac looked around, seeing no one was watching. Or listening. She sat a small device on the table and touched a red button. A nearly-invisible privacy screen shimmered around them.

  Talice’s eyebrows furrowed, and she lost her smile.

  “Word says you’re about to do something stupid with your team.”

  Talice drank. “No idea what you’re talking about. You gonna pull the DI act on me here, after two years?”

  Mac met her gaze. “Don’t bullshit me, Princess. You don’t land at High Station with a medteam waiting and not have rumors start. I know the pilot. He had no qualms about talking.”

  Talice waved a hand. “We get shot at. Sometimes we get shot.”

  “That’s not the Marine I’m hearing.”

  Talice scowled and drained her mug. “We lost Cowley. Twenty-five-year-old kid, first mission. Two more wounded. Bad intel. It happens.”

  Mac sipped her beer. “So now, you want to make amends.”

  “No, I want to put my team back together, retrieve that kid’s body, and finish the job. So we made a deal.”

  “So I’ve heard. Now what?”

  Talice looked into her empty mug. “I need three Troopers. I needed a ship, but that’s taken care of. Hardware is in the works. Two, three days, and we’re back at it.”

  “That’s not all you need.”

  “Yes, Sergeant, please tell me what I need.”

  Mac grinned. “You’re a fuckhead, you know that? Always were.” Her face became serious again. “You need a coordinator in-ship, someone to tell you when to keep your head down.”

  “I don’t need a ‘mother hen’ to tell me shit.”

  Mac leaned over the table, nearly into Talice’s face. “Listen… I know your little secret and why you resigned. I know why you were taken off the mission register and put behind a desk. If you don’t get your head on straight, you’re gonna get yourself and a lot of other people killed because you’re pissed for the wrong reasons. And as your former DI, that’s not acceptable.”

  Talice counted to ten mentally before she answered. “We’re not Marines anymore, Mac.”

  “Bull. We’ll always be Marines. You don’t walk away.”

  Talice sat back again and blew a breath. “I’m trying to make a living, doing the only thing I know how to do, which is shooting at the bad guys. What am I supposed to do?”

  “If you’re not careful, you could end up being a bad guy yourself. That’s why you need eyes. That’s why you need me.”

  Talice thought for a long moment, then shrugged. “Rory and Briggs miss you. So do I.”

  “Then let’s get the gang back together. My contacts say you’ve recently come into a windfall.”

  Talice laughed. “You might say that. Actually, we just threatened to cut off his pleasure unit.”

  Mac snickered, and after a moment, they were laughing together again.

  Talice slowly calmed. “It’s actually not a bad idea. But I still need to find a crew for the ship.”

  “I’ve got that covered. You know Fawkes would do anything for you.”

  “Yeah, he wants my body.” Talice smirked. “Hell, I’d almost let him have it for the ten minutes he’d last.”

  They laughed again. This time, Mac had tears running down
her cheeks before they stopped.

  “Fawkes is your guardian angel, Talice. He wants to see you succeed. Your daddy was his First Lieutenant. Dragged Fawkes wounded out of a firefight. Damn near got killed himself doing it. Fawkes never forgot.” She toyed with her glass for a moment. “It hurt him when you resigned.”

  Talice nodded. “I know. And I didn’t find out about him and Dad until I’d been in for over four years.” She paused. “What’s this about a crew?”

  “I’ve got names. And speaking of names, I’m going to vet your team, too. Get Orta out, get him dirtside where he can raise his family. Drop March off somewhere. He’s okay, but he’s not what you need. I’ve got other names I want you to consider.”

  “But Rory and Briggs, pass muster, right?”

  “Oh, hell yes. I love my big boys.” They laughed again.

  Mac touched a green button on the jammer and the shimmer disappeared, then dropped the device in her pocket. She turned to the bar. “Bud! Another round for the Princess and me!”

  She looked at Talice again and smirked. “Mama’s gonna take care of you and the boys. Real good.”

  “Fuck you,” Talice muttered, grinning like an idiot.

  CHAPTER TWO

  How it All Began (Part One)

  Not Officer Material

  “Know yourself,

  and you will win all battles.”

  Sun Tzu, “The Art of War”

  Once upon a time…

  There was a little girl with a dream.

  And like many little girls with dreams, this dream concerned her daddy.

  “Daddy, when I grow up, I wanna be just like you.”

  “Daddy” was Kellan Wyloh, and “Mom” was Laura. The little girl, of course, was Talice, all arms and legs and big ears, and light brown hair down to the middle of her back.

  “Okay,” said Daddy, a Marine for life, in fifteen years when he met the lovely Laura. Two years, and they were contracted, or “married” as the Olde Earth ritual was called. Two more, and Talice was born, growing so fast that by the time she was four, she was tall as Laura’s waist and riding two-wheelers. Motorized two-wheelers.