A Pirate's Tale: The Only Solution Is Retribution

by Saxon Andrew

  “Just look at it and tell me if you notice anything,” Gem answered.

  Four hundred yards later, Desiree stopped and pointed out into the dried out landscape, “Gem, that mound of soil looks out of place.”

  “I’ve got one on my side as well,” Victoria quickly added.

  Gem smiled, “Tell me what made them look out of place?”

  Desiree shook her head slightly, “I don’t really know. It’s just…just…they don’t fit the pattern of the ground around them.” She turned to Gem, “What is that mound?” Gem pulled a hand weapon off his belt and aimed it to the right of the mound. He pulled the trigger and a large blast of dust shot up into the dry air beside the mound. A huge creature that looked like a cross between a scorpion and tarantula came out of the mound and moved away almost too fast to follow. “WHAT IS THAT THING!?” Desiree said loudly.

  “It’s one of our local predators that preys on other animals out here.”

  “Is that another one on my side of the road?” Victoria asked.

  “It is. It’s probably the mate of the one I scared off. I want both of you to look at the other mound, focus on it, and tell me what you see.”

  Both women squinted at the mound and Victoria said, “I see some kind of pale white stick or something sticking barely out of the ground above it.”

  “Do you see it as well, Desiree?”

  “I do.”

  “That is the breathing tube that creature uses while it’s hiding underground.”

  “Gem, that mound is more than five hundred yards away. How am I able to see that small tube from here?” Victoria asked.

  Gem turned around and started walking back toward the shipyard; the two women turned and walked beside him. “Your bodies have been transformed from what they were before you started the processes. Your eyesight has been greatly enhanced but you have to focus on using the enhancement.” Desiree opened her mouth but Gem held up his arm, “Hold your questions until I finish.” Desiree closed her mouth and nodded. “If you want to see a distant object, you have to deliberately focus on it. Pretty much all of your new talents will have to be deliberately used and won’t just appear at random.”

  “What do you mean?” Victoria asked.

  “Well, for example, your strength is greatly increased over that of a normal human but when you shake someone’s hand you won’t crush it. You’ll have to deliberately squeeze harder for that to happen. The same is true with how fast you can run, jump, or hit something. You don’t have to worry about doing something extraordinary unless you make a willing decision to do so.”

  Victoria and Desiree looked at each other and Desiree said, “What exactly do you mean by how fast we are?”

  “That is the next part of your training and most of that is going to take place on Victoria’s ship when we leave here. For now, we are going to take four or five walks a day until your new nerves completely connect to your brains.”

  “What about this seeing something abnormal?”

  “Victoria, your brain now see’s patterns in the images it receives from your eyes. The new nerves transmit much faster and more information than before and your brain is able to decipher those images faster as well. You will see things that you would ordinarily miss and that is not something you will have to focus on to use.”

  “That’s why Leonidas saw the black vehicle with the man standing outside it?”

  Gem smiled, “Exactly right.”

  “Gem, do these changes increase our intelligence?”

  “No, Desiree, but it will appear you’re a lot smarter.”

  “Why is that?”

  “Because you’re going to see patterns that others miss and that skill alone will make you seem much smarter. Truth be told, most IQ tests humans use to measure intelligence are based on questions like, which one doesn’t belong in this group, or what is the next shape in this series. They measure your ability to see patterns and relationships. In that regard, you will be highly improved but your basic intelligence has not been changed. You are the same persons coming out of the changes that you were going in.”

  “Gem, I saw Leonidas knock two large crewmen on their butts on our Starliner faster than I could follow…”

  “Victoria, both of you will have that ability when you complete your training.”

  “Will we be able to go into a tavern and immediately see anyone that might represent a danger to us?” Desiree asked.

  “You’ll be able to see anyone that’s focusing on you but that might be due to both of you being very beautiful females and nothing else.”

  “Could we tell the difference between the two?”

  “Over time, you will, Victoria. But that comes with experience and you’ll only get better as time goes by.”

  “Gem, I have some questions about you and the first Victoria.”

  “I will not answer them.”

  Victoria stopped walking and stared at him, “Why not?”

  “Because that lies between her and me and I’ll not minimize it by sharing it.”

  Victoria continued to stare at him and then relented as she turned and started walking toward the shipyard, “I think I understand.”

  “Good.”

  • • •

  They were almost back at the entrance to the shipyard when they heard pop, pop, pop sounds off to the left, “What’s that?”

  “That’s the two crews working on learning their small arms.”

  “Shouldn’t we join them?”

  Gem looked toward the mound and then turned back to them, “How do you feel.”

  The two women looked at each other and Victoria said, “I’m tired but I’m not fatigued. I can handle some more physical activity. I really want to learn how to use our small arms”

  “I do as well, Gem,” Desiree quickly said.

  Gem twisted his head to the left and said, “I doubt either of you will ever need them but if you’re up to it, I’ll take you over. Just don’t wear yourselves out.” They entered the gate and turned toward the firing range. Victoria and Desiree had to be assisted back to their quarters at the end of the day. But…their accuracy with the new weapons astounded the rest of the crews.

  • • •

  “WHERE IS SHE?!” Serge screamed.

  “Sir, she has dropped out of the universe. She may have left this galaxy for another one in the distant known universe.”

  “SHE WOULDN’T DO THAT!!”

  “Why not, Sir?” the Chief asked.

  “Because she would lose the value of the wealth she stole from me. She won’t do that and if she attempts to convert it into precious metals or stones, I’ll immediately be informed if she does. So far, that hasn’t happened in this galaxy.”

  “She could convert it into currency used by the other galaxies that trade here.”

  “The Unity allows only a few commercial trading companies to do business in this galaxy and they tightly control the flow of foreign currency. I’m certain she will not go through the Unity to convert it.”

  “Then we really only have one clue on where she, or the man she was with, might be going.”

  “Oh?”

  “She told her sister that she was going to see about using the man to make John Blakely pay for killing your double and Lyla. Tortuga is where they will go if they’re going to make that happen.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “I’m going to hire some pirates to keep an eye out for them and to contact us if they show up.”

  “You don’t think you’re stretching here? They have more wealth than they could ever use, why would they go after a pirate?” Serge asked.

  “Emotions always trump wealth, Sir. They’ll do something to make him pay for his actions. They may pay someone else to do it but we’ll track whoever goes after Blakely back to them.”

  Serge nodded and his Security Chief left his office.

  Chapter Seven

  Leonidas stood with Gem and stared at his newly modified warship. He tur
ned to Gem, “That looks like it just came off an assembly line.”

  “There’s no help for that. The metal used to make the twin hulls is brilliant when it’s molded into place. Your two ships have actually been given a double hull because of the possibility of my being on either ship.” Leo started to speak but Gem interrupted him, “We are going to paint both hulls with a special paint that is made of normal high strength alloy material. The paint we use on your ship will make it look old again.”

  “Why are you going to use special alloy paint?”

  “Because your ships are going to be scanned and you don’t want the scanner to know that you have hulls made of the material we use on our warships.”

  Leo nodded, “You’re right about that. What happens if we’re attacked and some of the paint is blasted off the hull?”

  “There will be a supply of it in storage and you can repaint it. I’m going to assume that if you’re attacked that you will dispose of the attacker and not allow information about your inner hulls to get out.”

  “How much can the hulls take?”

  “A single hull can handle ten Unity Warship Blasters. Your double hull should handle at least twice that number. However, it is not indestructible! If you’re attacked by a large fleet, run.”

  “It would be nice if someone would develop a force field.”

  Gem shook his triangular shaped head, “Force fields are not possible. However, your hulls are the most advanced in our galaxy. Your speed will also be much higher than a normal warship so don’t hesitate to use it if needed.”

  “When do we start training on the weapon systems?”

  “That will start in two days.”

  Leo looked at Gem, “You finished faster than planned?”

  “Forty-five days was still a long time. My mother called in two more engineering teams and that is what sped up the process. Your ship has caused my ship designers to start building a new model of twin hulled warships to match up with these two. They’ve learned a lot from the process and are stronger for the effort. Mother has conceded that this was worth doing with the additional power we’ll have in our new ships.”

  “Victoria’s ship doesn’t have a blaster on its hull.” Leo said while comparing the two ships.”

  “And your ship will only have two on its hull. The others will be hidden inside the ship’s hull and will emerge if they’re needed. Actually, Victoria’s ship is twice the size of yours and houses more blasters than your vessel.”

  “That’s good.” Leo looked at him, “I’ll notify the crews that we’ll be leaving in two days. How are Victoria and Desiree coming along in their training?”

  “They’re actually making faster progress than you did.”

  “What?”

  “I suspect sharing the experience with someone else makes both of them work harder to not fall behind. You didn’t have that.”

  “If I haven’t told you before, thank you!”

  “You’re welcome. But you should know that this mission is bringing me more excitement than I can say. I really think it will be the most fun I’ve ever had.” Leo smiled and wondered if that was a good thing. “By the way, what is your pirate name going to be?”

  Leo’s eyes went wide, “Name?”

  “Well, you have to have a pirate name and a cover story when you waltz into Tortuga. You better start working on that.” Leo rolled his eyes and then nodded. “I also need a name to put on your ship now.”

  “I’m stumped on that.”

  “Do you think there are military records on you?”

  “I’m sure there are.”

  “Well, it might not be a bad thing for others to know that you were a professional mercenary before the Unity disbanded the Legions. They probably won’t know about your former CO being killed by Blakely’s ships. It wasn’t registered to you.”

  “Are you suggesting I name the ship and use a name that could be tracked back to my military records?”

  “I am. A large number of pirates are former mercenaries. Some of them might know you on Tortuga. Using a different name might cause you some problems.”

  “Put the name Thermopylae on the ship.”

  “And your name will be?”

  “Leonidas Alexander.”

  “The best disguise is one that’s real. You can use your anger at having your Legion disbanded by the Unity as a reason for you to become a pirate. The other good thing about doing it this way is your crew won’t slip up and accidently say something suspicious.”

  “Blakely did see me on the ship he attacked,” Leonidas said absently.

  “You can tell him you were going to attack it but he beat you to it.”

  Leonidas smiled, “Now that is good thinking, Gem.”

  “That’s what I’m here for, Leonidas.”

  “What has Victoria chose for her ship’s name? The last one was named ‘Life’s a Party’.”

  “She chose, ‘Play Toy’.”

  Leonidas laughed, “That fits. I’m sure she’ll just tell anyone that knew her that she was bored with the older, smaller ship.” Leonidas paused, “What’s going to happen if she runs into someone that knew her?”

  “She’ll apologize for not remembering. She’ll tell them that she’s met so many people during her party travels that it’s all just mush in her mind and ask where they knew her. She’ll be able to fake her way through it. Pretending to be intoxicated will make it easier to believe.”

  “She needs to work on that.”

  “Already playing the role. You’ll see next time you see her.”

  “Gem, are you alright?”

  “I am.” Leonidas stared at him and Gem raised both arms, “I’m as alright as I was when Victoria was still alive! I’ll be fine!” Leonidas nodded and turned back to the ships. Something was going on with Gem but he wasn’t saying what it was and he knew not to push it.

  • • •

  Desiree stood behind Larry, Arnold, and Joe as they questioned the Insectoid Engineer standing behind them. Joe shook his head, “I’m not clear on how to fire a missile at a target.”

  The Insectoid raised its head and clacked, then looked at them. He pressed a button on their panels and said, “When you press this button, it allows you to go through training attack patterns and work with your weapons system. No missile will be launched but the computer will track your results. There is a glass cover over this button so you don’t accidently press it during battle. Understand?” The three nodded. “If the ship’s Scanner Officer detects a possible enemy ship moving toward you, your panels will be activated automatically. The one of you that’s in the optimum position to launch against the incoming ship will see the data start appearing on their display and the coordinates of the attacker will be fed to the first missile in the launch tube you control. You will press the red, I repeat, the red button which will launch the missile when the green light illuminates on your panel.”

  The three crewmen looked at each other and Larry said, “That seems easy enough.”

  Desiree said, “It’s too easy. Do not fire unless I give you orders to do so.”

  Arnold raised his hand and said, “What if there are multiple attackers moving on us.”

  “Your panels will be assigned the ones that you will fire on. The data for each target will be sent to the corresponding missile in your tubes,” the Insectoid answered.

  “How do the blasters figure into this?” Joe asked.

  “The blasters will be used on approaching ships first. The missiles will be fired if the blasters fail to take the targets out.” Larry opened his mouth and the Insectoid quickly said, “If a target on your panel is destroyed by the blasters, the data for the missile assigned to it will automatically be changed to a different target,” the Insectoid answered.

  Desiree looked at the engineer, “The blasters have a longer range than the missiles?”

  “No, they don’t. But you have a finite supply of missiles and the blasters can be recharged.” Desiree nodded. The Eng
ineer continued, “If you find you are highly outnumbered, then start taking them out with missiles first to lower their numbers before they move into their blaster’s range. That will be a decision that you will make and enter into your weapon command system. You can always return here and have your missiles replaced if you run low. I trust that you will attempt to run from any superior force attacking you but this is the tactics you should use if you can’t.”

  Desiree nodded, “Can you start some practice attacks for them to work on?”

  The Engineer smiled and lifted an electronic unit off his belt. He pressed a button and the three crewmen heard from their panels, “Enemy vessels approaching. This is not a drill, prepare to launch!” Desiree watched the three work hard to keep up with the attackers and after each session, they began showing remarkable improvement. Within four days, they were working together and even high numbers of attackers were not getting close to the ship. Desiree asked the engineer before he left the ship, “Will the missiles we launch be seen by an attacker?”

  “The missile ports will open and close in less than a second. The missiles are only ten feet long and will present a frontal profile of less than three feet. Most scanners won’t pick them up until they’re less than five miles out. They will be moving too fast for the target ship to do anything before they hit. The missiles are programmed to fly away from their targets before turning toward them and won’t be tracked as having come from your ship. I suspect the ship they hit will believe they were fired from another ship.”

  “And if there’s no hiding we’re armed?”

  “Then you can change the missiles programming on your panel to go straight at their targets.”

  “I can see why the Unity leaves your species alone,” Desiree remarked.

  The Engineer clacked and said, “We intend to keep it that way. We’ve learned a lot building these two ships and we’re changing a number of things in our newer warships that we learned during this process. You have an excellent ship, Captain. Keep it safe.”

  “I will do everything in my power to do exactly that.” The Insectoid walked away and Desiree realized that the Insectoids didn’t look so scary anymore. She discovered she liked them a lot and knew there was no deception in their dealings with others. She welcomed that trait after her dealings with humans.