The Dragon Circle

by Irene Radford

  All of their problems seemed trivial compared to getting Dalleena to safety where she could mend in peace and quiet.

  And what of his appointment with his son, Martin. He needed to leave today if he was going to make it to Aurora on time. He prayed the shuttle had enough fuel to get him back to Sirius and the crystals had finished growing. Would his brothers ever forgive him for deserting them at this terrible time?

  In short order he managed to hoist a reluctant Dalleena aboard Irythros’ back. She seemed more alert this morning and moved with more ease. But she still walked stiffly and cautiously.

  “What about you, Iianthe? How will you fare, grounded and alone?”

  (I am not without defenses, Stargod Konner. Go. Keep your lady safe. I respect her courage and your dedication to those you love.) A curl of steam snaked out of the dragon’s nostrils.

  “Farewell, friend. Take care. I hope our next meeting is less fraught with danger.”

  (Danger will always follow you, Stargod Konner. Take care that you defeat your enemies with honor.)

  Now what did that mean?

  Konner did not have time to reflect on it. Irythros pranced down the creek, splashing through the rain until he had enough momentum and lift for takeoff.

  He flapped his wings vigorously until they were secreted among the thick clouds. The air was a little drier up here. But not much. Thoroughly soaked and chilled, Konner clung to Dalleena and the dragon for warmth. He clenched his teeth so they did not chatter.

  Soon Dalleena began to shudder violently in the cold. Konner wrapped his arms tighter around her, letting her draw what little warmth she could from his body. He clamped his knees tighter against the dragon’s back, hoping for a smooth flight and gentle landing.

  (Understood,) Irythros said. He sounded more sober and mature than Konner remembered. Had he curbed his youthful energy out of concern?

  Konner sensed more than felt the land rising beneath them. He presumed they headed south, toward the clearing. The clouds and the cold deadened all of his other senses.

  And then they lost altitude abruptly. Dalleena swallowed a yelp of surprise. Or was it dismay.

  Konner’s stomach flipped and his balance distorted. He dropped one arm from around Dalleena to clutch the dragon’s spinal horn. The clouds stayed with them until they were barely fifty meters above ground. Irythros circled lazily. Dalleena spotted a fire and pointed it out to Konner. The stolen IMP lander came into view. He made out Loki’s and Kim’s red hair among a scattering of people.

  As promised, Irythros landed slowly, gently, working his wings to cushion them.

  “Where’s the shuttle?” Konner shouted to Loki before Irythros had fully settled.

  Loki’s face looked grim. Kim’s looked just as bad. They told him in blunt terms of Kat’s escape, her sabotage, and her theft of the shuttle. They had few rations and were far from help. The IMPs would come and find them as soon as Kat revealed their hiding place.

  Even if Konner could get the lander up and running he wasn’t sure he could get past his own booby traps aboard Sirius with any vessel other than Rover.

  “Forgive me, Martin. I think I’m going to miss your court date and our one chance to be together.”

  CHAPTER 42

  KAT PARKED the shuttle out of sight and weapons range of the camp. No sense in being shot down by her own people in a notorious smuggler’s vessel before she could explain herself.

  “Where is Captain Leonard?” she asked the first guard she encountered on the perimeter of the village.

  Her feet ached from wearing the too thin and too large boots she’d found thrown into a locker aboard the shuttle.

  The guard shrugged and gestured with his head toward the cluster of cabins and huts. Kat proceeded. She asked everyone she met where to find their captain. No one knew.

  “Captain is still aboard Jupiter. She’s vowing to remain aboard until we find the crystals or until the ship’s orbit decays beyond repair,” Josh Kohler, the navigator, said. “M’Berra’s out chasing an injured native kidnapped by one of the outlaws. Guess that puts me in charge as senior officer.”

  “What about Pettigrew?” Kat did not like to think about the self-righteous Marine in charge of the mission. They needed level heads and careful plans to capture her brothers and reclaim the king stone.

  “Lotski has him doped up and pumped full of antibiotics. She’s ordered bed rest until she’s certain his wounds do not infect.”

  “Wounds from what?”

  “He claims that a dragon dropped him onto ancient razor wire soon after first landing.” Kohler worked his cheek muscles to keep from laughing out loud.

  Kat did not see the humor in the situation. She knew from personal experience just how big and dangerous a dragon could be.

  “The man is delusional.” Kohler sobered. “But then we all knew that before this mission. Can’t have him charging into the fray and possibly damaging one or more of the crystals in his enthusiasm.”

  “He’d likely do that.”

  “Yeah. Pettigrew wants revenge. Been raving about it for hours. Word from the latest batch of refugees is that the enemy sneaked back aboard Jupiter with a bunch of bushies. All armed to the teeth. They killed a bunch of people who opposed them and stole the rest of the crystal array.”

  Kat’s knees grew weak. She did not want to believe the three men she had met capable of the atrocity of murder. Bad enough that they deprived animals of life to feed themselves. But to kill another human!

  Somehow, the legendary exploits of her brothers did not match the image she now had of them.

  “I know where the O’Haras are hiding,” Kat blurted out before she had time to rethink her plans. “But we have to move fast if we are to capture them and recover the crystal array.”

  “I think we need a superior officer, Kat,” Josh refused to look her in the eye.

  In that moment she knew he’d never move much higher than navigator. He was good at that job, but he did not have the self-confidence and initiative of an officer of the line.

  Kat had no intentions of letting this man hold her back just because he outranked her by one degree and had two years’ seniority on her.

  “Fine. I’ll fetch M’Berra. Where did he go?”

  “That way,” Kohler pointed vaguely to the south and west. “He took a squad out before dawn, as soon as Lotski discovered her patient missing.”

  “Dalleena, Konner’s lady. The middle brother hadn’t returned to the hiding place as of two hours ago. I bet he stayed behind to grab her. He’s the only one who could correct the sabotage I left behind. We’ll leave Konner to M’Berra. Our first officer will keep the man busy and away from the clearing. Best to strike the others while they are divided. They have Ms. Baines.” She hoped the last statement would spur Kohler to action. He’d been watching the diplomatic attaché with lustful eyes for weeks.

  “My orders are to secure this compound at all costs. Unless M’Berra counters his own orders, or Captain Leonard tells me otherwise, I and the people under my command will stay here and prevent the locals or the O’Haras from stealing the stores or burning the place down.” Kohler bit his lip and refused to look Kat in the eye.

  “Very well. I’ll get Captain Leonard’s orders to move out. Where’s communications?”

  “Uh . . . James is missing. His escape vessel must have landed in a different sector. Our communications are rudimentary, just what Brewster could cannibalize from a lander that’s out of action. Some local bacteria is eating away at the cerama/metal.”

  Kat did not like what she was hearing. Not one little bit. Disorganization, lack of leadership. Fear. Why had they all evacuated? The ship should still be manageable, even without the king stone.

  “We’ll need a mechanical genius to get that lander in the air again.”

  “Just don’t let Konner O’Hara near it,” she muttered. “Any other vessel that comes within hailing distance will have to be dunked in the saltwater bay to kill the bi
o-gunk in the upper atmosphere. Otherwise, we’ll lose them all.” She captured Kohler’s gaze with her own until he nodded. “Permission to contact Captain Leonard aboard Jupiter, sir.” She saluted smartly. At least she’d make it look like she proceeded through proper channels.

  “Permission granted, Lieutenant Talbot.” Kohler returned her salute. He stepped back and began scanning the horizon with a FarSight® sensory visor. The infrared detectors would reveal more than his eyes peering through the gloomy clouds. At least the rain had let up a little down here in the valley.

  Kat sloshed through mud churned by too many boots toward the largest hut in the center of the village. A mess sergeant had managed to boil up some grains for a cereal breakfast.

  He shook his head and grumbled. “First salvage trip back to Jupiter, I want the hydroponics tanks and all of the food stores. First priority. No questions.” He pinned Kat with his gaze. “Growing food in the dirt is most inefficient. If these grains had been tanked, I could feed twice as many people on half the amount. This planet needs civilizing. Fast.”

  “I’ll do what I can,” Kat replied. She grabbed the next bowl of mush and chowed down. No telling when she’d eat again and she’d had nothing since last night’s meal of roasted vegetables—she had refused the rabbit so proudly caught by one of Loki’s warriors.

  From the chow line, she made her way to the largest hut. She figured she’d find communications there.

  A harried Sergeant Brewster sat at a collapsible table with six handheld communicators and pieces of the lander’s more elaborate system configured to beam data among them. Eight other noncoms crowded around her with demands to contact this person, that officer, a love interest.

  “Silence!” Kat cut through the jumble of people with the authority of her rank, her training, and her superior height.

  “Communication with Jupiter has to take priority,” she announced.

  The noncoms met this demand with loud protests and indignation.

  “We can sort out units after we recover the crystals. I know you are missing friends, people you care deeply about. We can only hope they have landed in friendly territory. But we have no hope of reuniting any of you until we get those crystals back. Now disperse and see to your gear.” She leveled a stern gaze at each of them.

  They snapped to attention, saluted smartly, turned, and departed on a quick march.

  The sergeant heaved a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Lieutenant,” he said realigning some of the handhelds. “Maintenance has been slack on the landers. We’ve been too peaceful for too long. There are parts missing. Weird atmospheric fluctuations and a lack of satellites are interfering with communications. I think that green layer in the upper atmosphere is creating havoc.”

  “Are the missing parts a lack of maintenance or sabotage?”

  “Your guess is as good as mine. First landing party had all their comms and weapons stolen by the locals the first night, then returned—inoperative. I vote for sabotage.”

  “Can you reach Jupiter?”

  “Sometimes. But even if I can get through, there is no guarantee the captain will answer.” He began fiddling with and adjusting his units.

  “Why wouldn’t a comm officer answer a hail from the surface?”

  “Captain’s the only one left aboard. Who knows what she’s doing to maintain orbit. Might be too busy to answer.”

  “Keep trying to reach her. If she answers, tell her I’m on my way up with the captured smuggler’s shuttle Rover.” Kat took off at a run for her brother’s vessel. She could not allow mud and drizzle and discomfort to slow her down.

  “Take a squad with you,” Josh Kohler called as she hastened away. “Start salvaging what you can.”

  Kat grunted a noncommittal reply as she ran.

  The shuttle was fast. Faster than any lander designed by a GTE engineer. Almost as fast as a two-man scout, or even one of the new cyber-fighters where the controls were linked to the pilot’s brain synapses. Commands happened as fast as thought. Still, the trip took hours. Far too long.

  With the dragons at his beck and call, Konner could easily have eluded M’Berra’s squad and returned to the clearing. A few more hours would see the crystals connected and buried. The confusion field would snap into place soon after.

  When Jupiter finally came into view, Kat shook her head in dismay. The cruiser was a mess. It listed at an odd angle, half pointed toward the planet below. It no longer spun to generate gravity. The troops had fled the ship with too much haste to secure bay doors. Only a few lights showed in those open bays. It looked dead.

  She had less time to save the ship than she thought.

  Kat prayed that Captain Leonard had kept enough power generating to provide atmosphere.

  She docked without challenge. In the back of the shuttle she found an EVA suit that fit remarkably well. Her uniform EVA had to be custom tailored to her tall frame.

  Atmosphere did not register on the suit until she found the bridge. The first air lock did not want to close behind her. She slammed the panel with her fist. Sparks flew. Her faceplate instantly polarized and her helmet light dimmed. After a few moments her vision cleared and she found the door closed.

  Another fist to another control brought air into the lock. When it reached point zero five atmospheres, Kat dared release her faceplate. And wished she hadn’t. The air smelled stale, as if the scrubbers were overtaxed or only working at half capacity.

  Another few moments brought the pressure up and the inner door creaked open slowly.

  Lieutenant Commander Amanda Leonard swung her chair to face the door, a needle pistol in her hand. A huge bruise covered the right side of her face and swelled that eye closed. Her upper lip curled in a sneer.

  “So you’ve come to finish the job your brothers started,” she snarled and tightened her finger on the pistol.

  CHAPTER 43

  “MASTER MARTIN.” His Super Snooper, en‘hanced with the latest features thanks to his friend Gerald, appeared on the screen in front of the graph Martin was building showing shipping lanes of the Galactic Free Market.

  “What?” Martin replied querulously. He almost had enough data to put this portion of the program into the hologram star map he and Bruce and Jane were composing.

  “I have detected activation of the rescue beacon assigned to Melinda Fortesque’s agent-at-large, Sam Eyeam.”

  “Where?” Martin sat forward eagerly. He sent his graphs into the background. The Sam Eyeam could be anywhere in the known galaxy. But Martin was willing to bet that Melinda had sent him in search of Konner O’Hara, to keep him from returning to Aurora in time for the custody hearing.

  “Unknown. The signal is faint and irregular.”

  “Guess.”

  “Star charts do not extend to the location suggested.”

  What to do? “My dad needs help. I know it.”

  “May I suggest, Master Martin, extrapolation from the merchant charts.”

  “Yes!” He’d designed the project to show anomalies in the ever-changing borders among the GTE, the Free Merchants, and the Kree Empire.

  A three-dimensional swirl of colored lights appeared in the far corner of the room. The hologram had swelled since the last time he’d set it into motion. GTE solar systems appeared in blue, the Free Merchant stars in green, and the enemy empire in red. Known jump points flashed yellow. The chart nearly filled the room. Even then, the vast distances between stars were hardly representative.

  As he examined the troubled borders, several stars changed color, from red to green, green to red, and blue gobbled up three from each. Aurora changed from blue to green and back again in less than one digital minute. Melinda frequently used the threat to withdraw from the GTE as leverage in negotiating trade concessions or waivers in the judicial system. Martin had no idea what today’s switch involved.

  He hoped his mother’s threats did not have anything to do with the custody hearing coming up in just a few days. Or worse, the arrest and conviction of K
onner O’Hara.

  “Scaramouch, show me the beacon.”

  “Insufficient data.”

  “Extrapolate.”

  “Insufficient power.”

  “What?” Martin pulled up a diagnostic. Sure enough, the huge mapping program and holographic display had eaten up almost all of his spare memory and speed.

  Dared he ask Melinda for a few upgrades?

  No. “Melinda can’t be involved in this in any way,” he muttered to himself.

  He called Bruce and Jane. Neither one had a solution.

  Martin paced the room. He wandered through the hologram, watching the changes in colors, looking at how the jump points connected star systems in seemingly random patterns.

  Crystal drives made jumps possible, bridging the light-years. Crystals made near instantaneous communications between the planets possible. Crystals . . .

  “Scaramouch, locate souvenir crystal from camp.” The icon of two fencers moved back and forth across the screen.

  Two years ago Konner had given him a tiny crystal, a miniature of a king stone. “My dad said it would be a tangible reminder of our friendship.”

  Perhaps it was something more.

  Experiments on integrating crystals into computer components had drifted through the scientific journals several times over the last decade. Always the government had classified such experiments as top secret and made the growth of miniature crystals illegal.

  Martin did not question how Konner O’Hara had come by such a thing.

  “Your crystal is secreted inside your personal terminal.” The computer’s voice sounded almost animated.

  Of course. Martin had been hiding childhood treasures in there for years. He’d cleaned it all out last year on his birthday, feeling too old for such things. But he’d left the crystal there. It was more than just a memento from a favorite camp counselor.

  He yanked open the wall panel revealing the guts of the machine. He remembered now that he had hidden the crystal, about the length of his palm, here, because this was one place Melinda would not search, one place his tutors and companions had no need to access. Konner and his unique gift were parts of his life he had always needed to keep separate and secret from his mother and her flunkies.