A Bellicose Dance

by Patrick M J Lozon

  Strangely, she didn’t tell them about him.

  She was interrogated and nearly killed in the process. They tortured her over and over. They were looking for information, anything that they could use, anything against Signus. They broke her, Ryan could tell. Her voice turned hollow, distant, like she was carrying some awful truth, some unforgivable guilt.

  He was in the cockpit at the time. He wanted to run over to comfort her. But that wouldn’t help. He knew that much.

  So he stayed there, and he listened.

  She stopped and wouldn’t tell anyone more. No one forced her. It was an unwritten rule. Although, after a few more sessions, she was able to continue.

  After the fall of the Signite resistance, she was finally released. They transferred her to a space station, barely alive at this point. Fellow slaves nursed her back to health. Apparently, the station doctor provided some help as he had some knowledge of Signite physiology. Her wounds healed poorly.

  She was assigned to a hydroponics dome as part of the food production labor pool. She was lucky. Given her condition, hard labor may have killed her. She stayed there for the majority of her captivity. They fed her just enough to get by. She would steal food when she could. Her masters were moody, which often led to beatings. She talked about them to the others, how she had felt so powerless, so helpless. She had learned to block out the pain.

  She had seen others go through worse.

  Things changed dramatically after the arrival of the slavership Xabuntz II. Its captain had contracts to fill. He bought up most of the slaves from the spaceport administrator. It was rumored that he gambled, and couldn’t refuse the credit.

  This was where Ryan pieced together a bit of history. Apparently, Aviore was particularly valuable, given her previous military inquisition. Captain Gick of the Joahack had known about Aviore's credit worthiness but had failed to make it to the station on time. Gick had connections. He knew the Zigot League would pay handsomely for a high profile Signite citizen. The League had made it clear that it would pay significant bounties to any Xi-Empire citizen who would produce such slaves. No questions asked.

  They were looking for something, Ryan just didn’t know what. But that explained the connection in the Joahack’s log - a bitter entry, a minor reference to a profitable slave from a wary slaver looking for easy profit – all twists of fate.

  However, the captain of the Xabuntz II was ignorant of anything about her. In fact, the captain had made other plans for Aviore. He had developed a liking for humanoids, for her in particular. He isolated her and kept her for himself.

  In the beginning, Aviore did not know why she never saw any other slaves. After the captain’s visits, she began to understand. In time, she realized she would never be sold. She was his personal property. Others may have faded away, lost all hope, given up, but she didn’t. That was when she told them about him. About how they met, about how she fell in love. She told them she hung on because of him. Because he would, somehow, come for her.

  But there was something she hadn’t counted on – the effect of time. There was no way to measure it. No way to know how much passed by. Her feedings, which were irregular at best, provided no point of reference. It tore her down, little by little. The knowledge that time was passing away. The strength she once had, was fading to nothing. She didn’t have it in her to keep going.

  But then it happened, like a fairy tale come true – he came. She thought it was a dream, that she had finally died. It wasn’t until she awakened on this ship that she realized it wasn’t a dream. He had come and saved her. The very captain of this ship, her hero.

  Stuck in the port wing maintenance tube, wrestling with a release valve, he momentarily stopped what he was doing. He swore he could feel her smile.

  Her manner seemed to change in the following days. The haunted look, the pain, all seemed to have lifted. The group sharing, talking through the torturous past, seemed to be helping. She carried a playful ease about her, and it drew him in even closer. He brought up the Signite Commander in conversation, and the fact he claimed to know her. Aviore’s reaction was of immediate excitement. Turned out he and Aviore had known each other quite well, something about him being a close friend of her family.

  Ryan had managed to arrange a com link just before they had closed off to go dark. As he guided Aviore down into the study, her smile lit the room and tears streamed down her face. She spent the next few hours catching up with an old but dear friend. They had talked mostly of Signus, the way things had been, before the Xi-Empire.

  It was the end of the sixth week since he had found her. She lay beside him, in their bed. Bandages and braces were part of the past, although she was still very sore, still on the mend.

  She pulled him close.

  “I love you, Captain Ryan James.”

  He looked into her with those brown eyes and they stripped him down to his very soul.

  “And I love you,” a tear flowed down his cheek. “I never truly believed…”

  “Shhh…” she put her finger to his mouth.

  “Believe it. I am here. I am yours, forever, if you want me.”

  He laughed, eyes twinkling. “I do.”

  “Then come here.” She pulled him over. ”I want you.”

  They made love.

  Near the end, she held him so tight, she could not let him go. Her tears wouldn’t stop.

  He stayed quiet. He didn’t ask her why.

  He just held her close.

  * * *

  One of Ryan's many self-elected duties was the ongoing task of teaching himself everything about the Dancing Queen, again and again, until he had it all committed to memory. He drilled himself until he knew every facet of the ship, every subsystem, every control, every circuit. He crawled through every maintenance tube, every access hatch, reviewed every specification.

  He had to know everything. The Dancing Queen was his ship.

  He vaskpar continued to help him. His Signite was almost there. He surprised Aviore one day by asking her, in Signite, what time it was. She replied automatically, realizing only after, just what he said. Unfortunately for Ryan, she haughtily decided to test him. It was not long before she left him scratching his head and wondering what gibberish she had just said. Sure, he could have accessed Gem's libraries but that was too much like cheating.

  "I don't like linguistics anyway," he retorted back to her in his own defense.

  "If you get stuck, I'll do it for you," she replied teasingly. At that, Ryan picked her off her feet and carried her into the bedroom. They did not get much work done that day.

  On the night cycle, when the ship was quiet, and her interior lights dimmed, Ryan would sit in the cockpit, amongst the stars.

  He loved the stars.

  Aviore would join him and melt into his lap. They would stay there for hours, often in silence, and watch the universe pass by. Familiar constellations began to appear and Ryan knew they were drawing close.

  “Not far out now, we are almost there. So this means we’ve some work to do beforehand.”

  “What are you getting at, Ryan?” Aviore had learned enough of his ways to be suspicious.

  He was determined to show her how to pilot the ship before they reached the Xeronian colony. It was a complicated task, and he knew she would not like it.

  “I need you to learn how to pilot her.”

  “Oh, her, as in your baby here? Why is it this ship is a she, and Gem is a she too? What is it with you males? Oh, and by the way, Gem can land this ship just fine.”

  “Ah, you still need to know how to pilot this ship.”

  “Fine then – show me.”

  Which he did, a number of times. It did not help that her frustration levels climbed every time she failed. She just couldn't remember all the control functions. There were simply too many things to keep track of.

  Then he told her about the vaskpar.

  It all made sense to her then, how he had learned so much in such a short time. How
he had done the seemingly impossible in such a short time. She had heard of similar devices before but found the idea of it somewhat vexing. She was not at ease with having a metallic impostor embedded in her brain. Of course, it didn’t help when he suggested she get one.

  “I don’t want a thing like that in my head. No way.”

  “You just don’t understand it. You can communicate with others, and you have access to all the knowledge…”

  “No.”

  “This will help you do things as well - like pilot this ship. I am going to need you to fly her one day. You know that. We’re going to war and anything can happen.”

  She winced. She would do anything for him. Well, almost anything. But he was right about this. She needed help.

  “It won’t hurt, will it?”

  “No.”

  “They’re not going to give me a lobotomy by doing this are they?”

  “No. This device sits on top of your cranium and interfaces into your brain. It is not embedded in your brain. You will find that it will help you store and recall information quicker and more accurately. That doesn’t sound so bad, does it?”

  “No, but I suspect you there is something more to this you aren’t telling me.”

  He laughed.

  She liked seeing him laugh. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him.

  They were interrupted by Gem announcing they were in safe communications range of Xeronia. Ryan established a link and exchanged updates.

  Long distance reconnaissance probes had picked up something remarkable - a war had started within the Xi-Empire - a civil war. Additional probes were deployed and a Xeronian scout ship was currently being prepped for a mission. Ryan reviewed the new information, excitement building within him.

  This was it!

  Of course, they needed more information and Xeronia was the intelligence source for their tiny rebel force. What they needed was a communications network that was bullet-proof. He conferred with Tsaurau on this. Xeronian specialists were assigned to the problem immediately.

  On final approach to the mountainous red planet, Ryan set up the main monitor so everybody could view the flight. Needless to say, most of their passengers were not impressed with the barren world until they saw the side of the mountain slide away to expose a full starship bay.

  On arrival, the crews and passengers of both the Dancing Queen and the Signite destroyer needed to go through the required medical quarantine. Everyone was checked thoroughly. The delay cost valuable time, which was yet another problem for the teams to consider.

  Ryan’s first order of business was to visit his friend with Aviore at his side. Tsaurau attempted his all-too-inhuman smile as he introduced her. He spoke with unprecedented expression and even attempted to exercise some ‘human’ charm. Ryan enjoyed the spectacle, laughing to himself. Unfortunately, their friendly chatter soon changed to plans of war and Aviore left for a full Xeronian medical work up.

  They retired to Ryan’s old apartment, requesting the Signite Commander, Tmaurau, and Taldig to join them.

  The ad hoc meeting started with a celebratory drink of brandy. Taldig took only a sip before setting his glass down. He preferred vegetable juice. Tmaurau rather enjoyed it and guzzled down his first greedily. Ryan provided his obligatory warning to be careful, as it would sneak up on him.

  Once everybody was seated comfortably, Ryan began. "All of you have reviewed my report?"

  They nodded. Taldig commented, "I must compliment you, a rather impressive piloting effort on your behalf, Ryan."

  "Thank you, Taldig. Your training has more than helped. Gentlemen... if I may call you that?"

  They nodded. Translations were always getting in the way anyway.

  "I have a problem," he continued. "We are commandeering as many ships as possible in order to provide a healthy force against the Xi-forces. We have a limited number of ships and limited know-how. The people that we free from bondage are not always the ideal military technicians or pilots. The act of assembling this fleet will prove to be a very difficult endeavor and will cost us time and resources. In addition, resources are very scarce, especially the ones needed to provide repairs to our captured ships. These logistical issues need to be solved, otherwise, we are never going to be ready. Here’s the rub, this civil war is the key to our success, but it won’t last forever. The time to move is now, while our enemy is divided. We have to do the impossible, and quickly."

  Ryan looked over to Lortay. "Commander, could you provide some information on your base?"

  "Gladly. We have established a military spaceport on a planet in the 63rd-quadrant. I don't know what coordinates you people use, but..."

  Tsaurau interrupted. "The recent communications with your computer systems have helped out a great deal, Commander. Please…" He gestured to the fireplace. A holographic image of the constellations appeared above the mantel. The image, finely detailed, displayed hundreds of small colored dots blinking and swirling slowly. "The red dot is us, the blue, your base in the Gamian Quadrant," explained Tsaurau. "You must forgive me, as this is not to true scale."

  Lortay recognized the references. "Oh, of course, I see now. This is a tremendous help. Thank you." He continued on, referring to the holographic image intermittently.

  "So, in summary, we have at our disposal, approximately two hundred and twenty-five Signite ships. Unfortunately, from our own recent experience, we know they are no match for the Xi-Empire's fleet."

  "Your technology is not exceptionally inferior," stated Tmaurau, attempting to convey encouragement.

  "Just the same, we will have to upgrade all of their ships," interrupted Ryan.

  “You may note that previous patrolling of the Gaminan Quadrant was very heavy, but this has changed since the start of the Xi-Empire internal conflict," commented Taldig.

  "I am willing to form a group to help your technicians," offered Tmaurau.

  "Indeed, I'm sure things have changed," stated Tsaurau, "But the possibility of exposure is still very prevalent. Father, you do realize that your members must volunteer for such a role? This may be quite dangerous."

  "Yes, Tsaurau. My engineers are an eager lot. They desire some excitement. I expect we will need to refuse some requests."

  "Thank you," said Lortay. "We welcome all the help we can get."

  "Before continuing, may I recommend two other members attend this meeting, Ryan?" asked Taldig.

  "Of course, who do you have in mind?" Ryan asked.

  "Wharsoff and Gor. We have need of representatives for the Showmish and the Brogs."

  "Of course, my oversight. Invite them in, please," agreed Ryan. "The more, the merrier."

  Taldig took the floor. "We can operate two central spaceports: the Signite base and here. We'll try to keep a good balance of trained personnel on both ports. Ships will be shuttled to either base for repair after they're captured, depending, of course, on their proximity."

  “This will also raise the risk of being discovered,” offered Tsaurau. “The council must agree to such a measure.”

  "And we're going to be spread very thin," commented Ryan, pessimistically. "We’ll need to bolster base defenses and have emergency escape vessels parked at each base, just in case."

  "There are other issues, as well," added Tsaurau. "For instance, the projected influx of escapees from captured vessels will pose a very real burden on the hosting infrastructure. These victims will need medical attention, food, clothing and a host of other resources.”

  “In addition,” added Taldig, “we must establish an effective sensory network to provide adequate tracings for intelligence gathering on enemy activity.”

  "Yes, we need to build that network as soon as possible. I also propose each of our ships be outfitted with some sort of tracing scanner jamming device," offered Ryan.

  "We do not have such a device," returned Tmaurau.

  "Then we need to invent one," replied Ryan flatly.

  Just then the doors opened and the two new
members arrived. The Brog, named Gor, stepped in first. The group moved to allow him space, then Wharsoff followed.

  "Hello, Commander Ryan James," hissed Wharsoff. Gor followed with a grunt.

  "It is good to see you are both doing well. Would you like some brandy?"

  "No thank you, it does not agree with my palate," replied Wharsoff.

  Gor declined with a tentacle wave. Ryan had wondered if the Brog could even drink.

  Just as well. More for him, if Tsaurau didn’t drink all of it first.

  He brought the two aliens up to speed. Surprisingly, it was Gor who spoke up once the true scope of the issues were explained. His guttural snorts and whistles came out in a delayed dance of sounds and gestures.

  "We have a functioning base. Our technologies do not match, but we overcome."

  "How did you manage to keep a base hidden and operational for so long?" asked Ryan.

  "Through the years, after the Great War, we had made an arrangement with the filth. We gave them something and they stopped their constant scrounging."

  "An arrangement?"

  The Brog growled, his way of laughing. "We grow a type of plant and keep them in supply, and they leave us alone. It is but a weed and grows naturally between the ice layers. But they do not know that."

  A drug more than likely thought Ryan to himself. Probably an arrangement made without the Emperor's official signature. "Where is this base - on Grak?"

  "No, it is on a moon in our system, beneath the surface. It is hidden very well. The filth found our others but they could not find that one. We have only a small count of ships that are spaceworthy. They are very old and are no match for the filth. We need your help to make the filth feel good fear."

  "You will have it," granted Ryan.

  Wharsoff spoke up. "I regret to say, we no longer have such facilities or technology left to offer."

  Ryan noticed he had his stubby arms crossed - a Showmish demonstration of shame. "Wharsoff, your people have helped out a great deal already. The Showmish are noble warriors."

  "The personnel problem remains paramount," interrupted Tsaurau. "A place is required where members of all races can be trained for combat. At the same time, there must be an availability of supporting infrastructure. One of the most important requirements of such a base is its ability to avoid detection by the Xi-Empire for an indefinite period of time, and remain functioning effectively in the event of an interruption of supplies."