Scout's Honor: A Planetary Romance

by Henry Vogel

  “It will not happen again, sir.”

  He nodded and seemed to be satisfied. “Now, can that...thing...in your head teach you how to fly this airship?”

  I checked and, to my surprise, my implant did have information on piloting airships. As Rob headed aft toward the princess, I concentrated on the airship controls. I tried very hard to ignore the discussion taking place at the stern, but it sounded like the "protectee" version of the speech Rob had just given to me.

  I needed to figure out how to gain altitude so we could reach the prevailing winds. That meant forward speed and the right angle on the ailerons to generate lift beyond that provided by the gas envelope. A little experimentation with the controls showed me what I could do from the wheel. I’d have to set the ailerons by hand, but I could pilot the ship well enough to get the princess back to her country.

  Looking up from the controls, I spotted a dark smudge on the horizon. Grabbing my survival pack, which Rob had brought aboard, I took out the binoculars and trained them on the smudge. Ice lanced through my gut as the smudge came into focus.

  A sandstorm stretched across the horizon, bearing down on us!

  Chapter 17

  The sandstorm drew visibly closer in the few seconds I watched through the binoculars. We needed a new course and a lot more speed or the storm would have us!

  “Rob!” I called as I turned the ship away from the onrushing storm.

  Turning from the princess, brows drawing down in irritation at the interruption, he said "Not now—”

  “Sandstorm! It’s closing fast!”

  Rob was standing next to me seconds later. I handed him the binoculars as I turned the ship away from the sandstorm.

  “Look through—” I began.

  “We have similar devices,” Rob said, lifting the binoculars to his eyes. “Though none are so sharp or powerful as these.”

  Studying the storm, Rob added, “It appears you can fly this ship.”

  “Not well enough to fly through the storm.”

  “Can we outrun it?” he asked.

  “Probably not, but...” I turned to the princess, “Highness, take the wheel and hold it steady. I need to show Rob something.”

  She took the wheel without a question. I led Rob to the engine room, below.

  “Have you ever worked a steam engine?” I asked.

  “Yes, years ago,” he replied.

  “If we’re going to have a chance of outrunning the storm, I’ll need as much steam as you can get me,” I told him. “Even if the storm catches us, having our own power may help.”

  As Rob began feeding wood to the fire, I added, “I’ll send the princess below. It will be safer for her down here, out of the storm.”

  The wind had risen considerably in the short time I’d been below. Taking the wheel, I told the princess to go below.

  She gave me a sudden smile, “You kiss quite well, David. The woman who marries you will be a lucky woman, indeed. For her sake, whoever she is, do be careful!”

  She turned and went below, leaving me to wonder exactly what she meant.

  Rob built up the steam quickly, powering the twin propellers to spin ever faster. Still, I doubted we could outrun the storm. It bore down on us, gaining no matter what I did with the airship’s controls.

  I fought the buffeting wind, scanning the desert for any place where we could land and take cover. Then the storm blotted out the sun and sand scoured the deck.

  The storm was upon us!

  Chapter 18

  The storm swept over the airship and visibility was cut to nothing. I wasn’t sure if I could see the bow or was half imagining it through the swirling sand. I fought to keep us from being driven into the ground or being turned sideways to tumble keel over gas envelope. The ship danced on the wind, beyond my ability to exert much control over its course. I sensed more than saw a dune rise up before the ship and just managed to keep us from plowing into it. The airship’s keel still scraped the top of the dune, jarring the ship.

  Time vanished, leaving me with no idea how long I’d been fighting the storm. My implant told me it was mere minutes, but I felt as if it had been hours. Flayed by sand, my body taut with tension, I was on the ragged edge of exhaustion. So I did not notice that Rob was beside me until he grabbed my arm.

  He was shouting but I could barely hear him over the storm, “Boiler pressure is rising too fast! Probably a clogged pipe, but there’s no way to fix it before it blows. Not in this storm.”

  I shouted back. “You and the princess will have to abandon ship! I’ll get us down close to the ground so you can jump safely.”

  Rob nodded. He understood there was no other way to insure the princess’s safety.

  “I’ll blow the whistle when it’s time for you to jump,” I said.

  “What of you, lad?”

  Instead of answering, I shouted, “I’ll find you once the storm passes!”

  “I don’t doubt it for a moment, David!” Though it was obvious he did doubt it. Clapping my shoulder, he went below.

  I took the ship down until I was sure I saw ground beneath the airship, then blew the steam whistle long and loudly. Its wail rose above the roar of the storm and I hoped Rob and the princess had jumped safely. As the wind drove the ship up again, I heard the steam whistling again. For a moment, I thought the whistle had jammed, then I realized the sound was coming from below—from the boiler!

  I dashed for the ship’s railing but was too late. With a roar, the boiler exploded!

  Chapter 19

  I drifted on the edge of consciousness, struggling to stay away from it. For I knew pain lurked behind consciousness and I could not have one without the other. Better to float in mental limbo for a while longer, hoping the pain would get tired of waiting for me and go away.

  “David!”

  The voice reached to me, below the surface of consciousness, and pulled me upward. That voice meant something to me. It meant beautiful green eyes. It meant long raven hair. It meant a warm smile and a tall, slender body. It meant Callan! I came fully awake at the thought of her. With awareness came the pain, but also remembrance. Raiders. Escapes. The kiss. Her betrothal. My oath.

  “David!”

  I tried to respond but managed only a soft cough. Then I struggled to stand and found I could not. Prying my eyes open, I discovered I was buried under the debris from the wrecked airship—wood, rope, cloth. Experimenting, I found I could move one of my arms. I knocked on the wood as hard as I could.

  “David? Is that you?”

  I knocked again.

  “Rob! He’s over here! He’s buried under the wreckage!”

  Footsteps approached and then a pair of eyes peered at me through an opening in the debris.

  “I’m glad to see you made it, lad,” said Rob. “I can’t see much of you in there except your eyes, but I assume the rest of you is intact.”

  His arm reached as far into the opening as possible, “Here’s a water skin. Drink, clear your throat, and conserve your strength. It’s going to take a while for us to free you.”

  The water tasted heavenly and the sound of debris being cleared was music to my ears. And it lasted all of two minutes.

  “Rob!” The princess sounded worried. “There are horses coming!”

  It was silent for a few seconds then Rob cursed.

  “What is it?” I managed to croak.

  Rob’s reply was flat and chilling. “Slavers.”

  Chapter 20

  “How far away are the slavers? Do you think they’ve seen you?” I asked.

  “Half a mile, maybe,” Rob answered, “and I doubt they’ve seen us yet. We should blend in with the wreckage at that distance.”

  “Then hide!” I said. My implant told me half a mile was almost a kilometer. They could get clear if they left now. “When they get close, I’ll call out for help. Maybe they won’t look for anyone else if they think I’m alone. At the very least, they’ll have fewer men searching for you.”

&nb
sp; Rob stood, “It’s the best chance we’ve got, Highness. Let’s go!”

  The princess’s voice drifted down to me, “Take care, David!”

  I heard the two of them scrambling away followed by silence. Finally, I heard the riders approaching.

  "Help!” I called. “I’m trapped under the wreckage!”

  The light was blocked and then voices began jabbering in a language new to me. It wasn’t surprising, but it would make things more difficult until my implant could analyze and imprint the new language.

  More jabbering came from the slavers, followed by the sounds of wreckage being moved. With horses to help drag larger, heavier pieces of the wreck, it only took fifteen minutes before hands were pulling me out. I put on my best grateful smile.

  “I am so happy to see you! I’d never have gotten out on my own.” I exclaimed. “How can I ever thank you?”

  The shadow of a rider fell across me.

  “You can start by telling us where the princess is,” said scarred-face. “And then you can explain what happened to my airship!”

  Time for plan B.

  Boost! I snatched a sword from the slaver closest to me and leapt for scarred-face. All I had to do was take him hostage. That ought to be easy enough.

  Moving impossibly quickly, scarred-face grabbed my wrist and threw me several meters from his horse. Then, he somersaulted off his horse and drew his sword, all before landing lightly on his feet.

  Dropping Boost, I rolled to my feet and stared at him, “Who—”

  “Ah, forgive my poor manners. We have not been properly introduced!” scarred-face said, bowing. “I am Martin Bane, Scout Second Class of the Terran Exploration Corps!”

  Chapter 21

  “What-?” I began, but my thoughts stalled there. I tried again, “Why-?”

  “You have quite a fascinating array of conversational gambits, my good man,” Bane said, “but let’s get back to the one important issue. Where is Princess Callan?”

  That got through to me. “The princess and her bodyguard jumped off your airship during the sandstorm. Sand had clogged the boiler and pressure was getting dangerously high. I’d planned to follow them, but never could drive the ship close enough to the ground again.”

  “You flew my ship into a sandstorm?” Bane asked.

  “No, I tried to run from it. The storm was too fast.” I waved my hand toward the wreckage, “You can see the end result. But the princess is probably miles away from here.”

  Bane didn’t believe me and called to his men, “Keep searching around the wreck. I’m sure those two are around here somewhere.”

  His men probably would find the princess and Rob unless I could distract them another time. Boosting once again, I leapt onto Bane’s horse, slapping its flanks with the flat of my sword. Bane was caught by surprise, but his men ran for their own horses. The chase was on!

  If I could get a dune between myself and the airship wreck, it would give Rob and the princess a chance to slip away from the site. I just had to keep the slavers busy for a few minutes.

  The slavers were much better riders than me and came close to cutting me off before I topped the nearest dune. Two riders were racing to block me and it looked like they were going to succeed. Trusting to Boosted reflexes, I stood in the saddle, dove over them, and rolled down the far side of the dune. Whooping, the slavers chased after me.

  At the bottom of the dune, I prepared to die fighting the slavers. Instead, they stayed well away from me and began twirling weighted ropes. Three riders threw their ropes at the same time. I jumped over one and ducked another, but the third wrapped tightly around my legs. Three more ropes followed, pinning my arms. Struggling against the ropes, I toppled over and could only watch as Bane strode over to me.

  “We’re going to find the princess,” he said. “and you’ll get to watch while she’s sold at auction. Then I’ll sell you at auction, too, and use the money I make to replace my airship.”

  Grinning, Bane bashed me on the head with his sword pommel and all went black.

  Chapter 22

  I awoke lying down, my hands and feet tied to a bed frame. Bane was there, watching me, a thoughtful expression on his face.

  “How old are you, kid? Twenty-four?” he asked.

  “Not quite.”

  “You must be the youngest Scout First Class ever,” he said.

  “Nope,” I replied.

  “Second youngest, then,” Bane said. “And not by much, I’d bet.”

  “What makes you think I’m a Scout First Class?” I asked.

  “There’s no Master Scout with you,” he said. “And since you’re not mourning one’s death, it seems obvious you were exploring alone. You can only explore alone if you’re a Scout First Class.”

  “Does that mean your Master Scout—the one who was completing your training—is dead?”

  “Yeah. We were hit by an asteroid right after our exit from the wormhole. She was killed instantly.”

  “How did you end up...” I wasn’t sure how to complete that sentence.

  “Like this? Raider, kidnapper, slaver?” he asked. “It’s a long story and we don’t have time for it.”

  “Have you got a pressing engagement somewhere?” I asked.

  He shrugged and said, “I crash landed a day’s walk from Morda, the Mordanian capital. I managed to walk to the city, but ended up in the worst part of the city. My implant picked up the gutter language spoken there, so I even sounded like one of the dregs of society. I went into the wrong bar, got into the wrong fight, Boosted at the wrong time, and killed a couple of thugs.

  “That’s usually not a big deal in the poorest quarters, but there was extra security because of a certain princess’s fifth birthday. Someone had tried to celebrate Her Highness’s fourth birthday by kidnapping her, so the city guard was being extra careful this year. No one in the city knew who I was and I couldn’t give an explanation they were willing to listen to.

  “I even tried telling them the truth, but even I wouldn’t have believed my story if I’d been in their place. I’d usually have gotten time doing hard labor, but someone decided to make an example of me. I was sentenced to hang. Instead of hanging, another prisoner and I escaped. I’ve been working the other side of the law ever since.”

  He stood, “Some of us aren’t lucky enough to crash on top of royalty, Wonder Boy. Some of us get stuck dealing with the seedy underbelly of a primitive civilization.”

  Bane was about to add something when the door flew open. Rob and the princess were pushed into the room by grinning slavers. My sacrifice had been for nothing!

  Chapter 23

  Bane beamed at his men. “Well done, lads! Who gets the bonus for making the capture?”

  “No one,” Rob growled. “We came here on our own.”

  “You did what?” I said

  Bane nodded toward me, “I’m with Wonder Boy on this one. Why would you give yourself up after you worked so hard to give us the slip?”

  “Because we saw an army of trogs coming this way,” answered Rob. “There are hundreds of them. Distasteful as it may be, this trading post was our only hope for survival.”

  Bane’s expression grew serious and he said, “Rouse the men! Get spotters on the rooftops!” Turning to Rob, “How much time have we got?”

  “Thirty minutes, if you’re lucky,” he replied. “Highness, please release David.”

  “No, princess!” Bane barked. “Wonder Boy is—”

  “The best warrior here,” Rob interrupted. “Let him help us.”

  Bane thought for a few seconds, nodded, then said, “Wonder Boy—”

  “My name is David Rice,” I said.

  “Very well, Rice,” Bane said, “give me your word of honor—as a Scout—that you will relinquish your sword to me after the battle.”

  I looked to Rob. He nodded.

  “Yes, you have my word,” I said.

  As the princess untied my bonds, tears pooled in her eyes.

  �
�Hey, Highness,” I said, rubbing my wrists, “don’t cry. We’re going to get out of this alive, you know. Then we’re going to escape from Martin Bane and get you home in time for your wedding.”

  Princess Callan wiped her eyes and tried to smile, “What makes you so sure of that, David?”

  “I crossed the ocean of night and survived being cast upon the rocks,” I said. “Then I found you in your most desperate hour. Isn’t it obvious? I’m the mythical hero who rescues the beautiful princess!”

  The princess giggled, “But isn’t the mythical hero supposed to marry the beautiful princess?”

  “Shhh! Don’t let Rob hear you say that,” I said. “I don’t want another lecture from him! These trogs—are they the blue men you were fighting when we met?”

  Prince Callan nodded as I stood.

  Bane said, “There are swords in the next room. Grab one.” Then he asked, “Who has the Onesie? It could be useful.”

  “It’s gone, lost when the boiler exploded" I said. “Besides, firing the Onesie just makes trogs mad.”

  “You’ll forgive me if I don’t believe you,” Bane said. “I’ll have to search—”

  A shout interrupted him, “To arms! The trogs are here!”

  Bane shot a look at Rob, “You said thirty minutes!”

  “I guess you weren’t lucky,” Rob shot back, as we grabbed swords and ran from the building.

  As I’d expected, we were back at the trading post. From all around us, spears waving, blue figures charged toward us!

  Chapter 24

  I took one look at the trog horde and knew they would overrun us with ease. Turning to Bane, I asked, “How well do you know this outpost?”

  “What difference does it make?” Bane almost shouted.

  “Does it have a storm cellar or a root cellar?” I demanded. “Some place underground with a single entrance?”