by T. R. Harris
“Understood.”
“Who are you working for?”
“I am not sure—”
“Wrong answer; I’m energizing the flash generators now.”
“No! I honestly do not know, not for sure.”
“Take a guess,” I said, smiling. I love it when my enemies squirm.
“They are on Sylox – and they paid in Linorean credits. I assume it is for the exchange rate.”
“The Linoreans; you mean the building contractors?”
“Among other things.”
“And they have their own credits?” That was news to me.
“Yes, they are exchangeable credits within their affiliate banks.”
“And what were your instructions?”
“We were only to intercept your craft, not destroy it, so as to delay your arrival on Hyben.”
“For how long?”
“Thirty standard hours, no longer.”
“Are there any of these Linoreans on Hyben? And who were you in contact with?”
“The Linoreans may be on the planet; they are represented by many races, including the Hyben, I believe. For a contact, I only know of one. His name is Limbor.”
Jonk Limbor, the fat slob of a building contractor! Suddenly the picture became a little clearer.
“And why would the Linoreans want a galactic war?”
“That is beyond my comprehension, Mon King. My ship is simply a security escort vessel that operates with several of the major construction companies in this part of the Union. We have a few weapons, enough to repel pirates – as well as overwhelm a private starship such as yours – or that had been our understanding. We do not hold any animus towards you or your mission. And on that note, we wish to survive this encounter, if you can find it within your manner to grant us forgiveness.”
“I’ll let you live, Groff Nuer, but this won’t be forgiven. I will release your ship, and your systems should begin to reboot in about twelve hours, so it may get a little stuffy – and very cold – over there between now and then. I’ve also attached an explosive device to your hull that’s impossible to detect or remove without detonation. So when your systems come back up, do not attempt to communicate with these Linorean bastards or I’ll set it off. Is that understood?”
“Perfectly, Mon King. We will comply.”
I hadn’t really attached an explosive device to their hull but they had no way of knowing that. And since they’d already underestimated me once before, I was banking on them not risking it again.
Ten minutes later, I left the stricken spaceship and bolted off in the direction of Hyben once again. I was now one hundred percent convinced Miranda would be there, since these Linorean characters – including my old friend Jonk Limbor – wanted the Stone to be destroyed. They wanted war, and it didn’t take too much analysis to figure out why.
War was good for business, especially the construction business. As things are destroyed, they have to be rebuilt, and the shadowy Linoreans would be there to accommodate – while the pesky Humans would not.
So who were the ones who wanted the Stone recovered?
It’s obvious that whoever did recover the Stone and return it to the Velosians would become heroes. From the gist of the conversation I had with the people who’d kidnapped me, they had naively expected Miranda to simply hand over the gigantic hunk of diamond to them after the theft. From there I could see them letting the tensions rise to a boiling point before showing up with the Stone. At that point they could point their alien fingers at me and Miranda, along with the entire Human race
I was convinced the thugs in the warehouse represented this second faction. They wanted me to recover the Unity Stone, so it could be preserved. Otherwise, why pay me to stop Miranda? So who were they, and what was their agenda? They appeared to be the ones who had originally planned the theft, with the Linoreans now simply taking advantage of the situation to further their own cause.
I laughed out loud. The warehouse people had really blown it when they chose Miranda to steal the Stone. They obviously had no concept of Human nature – especially female Human nature. Here was a woman with a twenty-nine thousand carat diamond in her possession – and they really expected her to just turn it over them?
Yeah, right, that’s not going to happen. Just ask any guy who’s ever given a woman an engagement or a wedding ring and then had the relationship go south.
And this Stone was the Mt. Everest of diamond rings.
Seeing that they had been expecting anything other than what had transpired only proved their ignorance of Humankind.
But now the Hyben star system was on my screen and in an hour I would be on the planet. I teemed with confidence, knowing that Miranda would be there. Now all I had to do was find one Human female hiding somewhere on an entire planet, and do it over the next few hours.
And if I fail? Well, no big deal – just the start of an interstellar war and the probable extinction of the entire Human race.
Chapter 21
The planet Hyben was your typical uniform brown and blue globe, with a few patches of light green wrapping the equator. In reality, this would be only the seventh planet I’ve set foot on, not counting Earth. I had been to Mars – briefly – and then a couple of other Union planets while working with Pulte, before settling on Sylox. After that I’d vacationed on a couple of the more-populated worlds in the surrounding stellar systems.
If I could get this damn Unity Stone affair behind me, then my Noreen II would take me to even more alien worlds. I just hope I won’t be running for my life when it did.
The data Yorf had sent me placed the Ionin Design Company in the city of Lioren-Cur, which jived with the information the thugs had given me in the dirty Sylox City warehouse. IDC was the company that had originally carved the Stone, turning a huge chunk of opaque, dirty-looking crystal into a two-foot tall, rather sensuous-looking, freeform work of art. So even though they had created the Stone in the first place, they were also the most logical start my search.
Lioren-Cur was the largest city on the planet, and was located at the edge of a dusty desert bordering a shallow, blue-green sea. The navigation program sent me right to the city, and I set down in the largest of three spaceports servicing the population.
While making my landing approach, I could see vast excavations to the north of the city, where the sand of the desert had been scraped clean revealing massive, striated slabs of stone. Even to this day, work crews were freeing the giant stones and cutting them into construction-size blocks. There were no forests visible, so the natives were using the only raw material that was available. The process seemed both ancient and practical at the same time.
The gravity of Hyben is about three-quarters that of Earth, so I would have a spring in my step while here, even if the noticeable drop in oxygen would require me to wear a small nose tube. I would also need a wrap-around sand-shield over my eyes to protect against the omnipresent blowing sand.
Overall, the planet Hyben was a real shithole, and I was glad I’d only be here for a few hours.
I strapped an MK-17 flash pistol to my right hip, a Ka-bar combat knife onto my right calf and placed a small Taser at the pit of my back, hidden under my khaki-colored waistcoat. The serious, big-bang weapon and knife were for any hostiles I may encounter, while the Taser was for Miranda – if she didn’t come along peacefully.
I opened the side hatch to the Enterprise and stepped outside, only to be immediately welcomed by a blast of lung-sucking hot air like I’d never experienced before. I gasped for breath, which with the lower oxygen level, required extra effort on my part, and tended to draw even more scorching air into my lungs. Damn, it had to be frickin 120-degrees out here, if not more!
This was unbearable, but the natives would have air conditioning inside their buildings – wouldn’t they? They couldn’t have evolved to a point where this was comfortable? For a moment there, I considered returning to the Enterprise and donning on of the spacesuits I had onboar
d. But then I dismissed the idea. I never did look good in spacesuits.
There was a soft breeze blowing which only served to exacerbate the heat and stir up the restless sand of the desert. I looked at the exquisite paint job on the Noreen, and hoped it wouldn’t be sand-blasted off by the time I concluded my business on the planet.
Within minutes, a small, open-air cart pulled up, with two brown and dusty natives riding in the front. As they climbed out, I saw that they were both about a foot taller than me – which was the case on most lighter-than-Earth-gravity worlds. Their hide was dry, wrinkled and tough-looking, evolved to accommodate the constant abuse suffered from the blowing sand of their desert world. Both wore equally drab, grey uniforms that looked like they’d seen better days.
The one carrying a datapad approached me first.
“Your transponder indicates Sylox as your planet of origin, is that correct?” His voice was as gravelly as the soil beneath my feet.
“That’s right.”
“What is right? I did not ask for a direction, but a confirmation.”
“I meant the information you have is correct.”
The native frowned. “Duration of stay?”
“Not more than a day or two.”
“The docking fee for two days is two hundred fourteen credits. How will you pay?”
“Electronic transfer; the funds are in the transponder account. And I’ll need transportation into the city.”
By this time the other native had moved up to the Enterprise and was running his hand over the smooth surface of the ship. “This is a fancy vessel you have here, traveler” he said over his shoulder. “It is unfortunate it will not look like this in two days’ time. Yet if you wish, you can rent a hangar for only a hundred-forty credits more.”
A hundred-forty for only two days of storage was highway robbery – but the Noreen was my new toy and I’d really hate to see the paint job ruined.
“Sure, that sounds fine. The keys are in the ignition. She’s restricted to only ground transport at this time, so don’t get any ideas about trying to take her for a spin around the system. It won’t work.”
The native looked at his companion and they both smiled. “We would not even think of it, traveler. The fee will be taken from the account; Hangar Thirteen, when you are ready to leave. A ground transport will now be requested. Enjoy your time on Hyben; we don’t get many visitors from Sylox anymore, so two in one day is rather rare.”
“You had another arrival today? How long ago?”
The talkative native turned to the one with the datapad. “Three hours ago – maybe a little less?” he said with a frown.
“Did you call a transport for her, too?”
“Yes we did, but how did you know it was a female?”
“Because we’re together; can you find me the same transport?”
“If she has reached her destination, then we can call it back. Let me inquire.”
My heart was racing. This was the first real break I’d caught since this whole thing began. If this same cab can take me to where Miranda had been dropped off, then I could be done here on Hyben in a matter of hours. And maybe it was the heat talking, but I was to the point where all I wanted was the Unity Stone. What happened to Ms. Miranda Moore was no longer my concern. If she resisted giving me the Stone, then she’d find out what a shitty mood I was in.
As it turned out, my lucky streak was continuing. The same cab was available for me; I’d just have to wait an hour for him to drive back from the city. I was sure – or at least I was hopping – that Miranda couldn’t work out a deal and have the cutting begin while I was waiting for the cab.
I began to pace nervously near the main gate to the spaceport, watching the long, deserted road from Lioren-Cur for any signs of an approaching vehicle. During the wait, I sought what shelter I could from the blistering heat in the shade of the guard shack. Still, it wasn’t much, and I was soaking wet and panting for breath within minutes.
The natives had been right; they not only had very little traffic from Sylox, they had very little traffic from anywhere, period. The place was a ghost town, which made the fee for the hangar seem all the more out of whack. Normally I would have haggled, but I had more important things on my mind than saving a few credits.
Like where was the damn cab?
Chapter 22
When the cab finally arrived, I apparently committed some kind of faux pas when I jumped in the backseat and began barking orders. The disgruntled driver simply hitched an elbow up on the barrier between us and sent me a scowl.
“Just slow down, alien,” he said in a drawn-out, gravelly voice. “It will be ninety credits just for coming all the way back out here. And then another hundred for the rush order.”
“You’re kidding? That’s more than they charge back on Sylox, and I don’t see a lot of people waiting in line for your service.”
“Only you.” The native met my eye with a steely determination. “In advance.”
I grunted, but began digging in my pocket. I handed him two hundred Union credits, and then he turned back to his controls and put the cab in gear – without giving back the ten credits in change. I bit my tongue as I slumped in the rear seat. At least the cab had air conditioning. I suppose that’s worth an extra ten credits.
Forty minutes later we were in the city and pulling up to one of the older-looking block buildings – if one stone building could be classified as looking older than any other.
“This is where you dropped off the other Human?”
“I don’t know what species you are, but this is where I let off the female of your kind. I have to say, she was just as rude and demanding as you. Do all members of your race act in such a manner?”
“Pretty much,” I conceded.
“Then I hope to never see your kind around here again.”
“Unfortunately, I’m going to need a ride back to the spaceport in a few minutes. Will you wait?”
I guess the expression shit-eating grin was universal, because that’s just what the cabbie flashed me. He hesitated before answering, while appearing to revel in the agony I was going through. I knew he’d wait – the question was for how much?
“Two hundred for waiting, plus another hundred for the trip back.”
Knowing that Miranda was already in the building with the Unity Stone – which could be broken into pieces at any time – I simply gritted my teeth and nodded.
“In advance.”
“Bullshit! What’s to say you don’t just drive off?”
“That is a possibility; I suppose you will know when you leave the building. I will wait, but for only forty-two Hyben intervals. I hope you have a conversion timepiece.”
I did; my watch could link with the galactic Library – their version of the internet – and adjust to local time intervals. As it turned out, forty-two Hyben intervals were only twenty-two real minutes.
I dug into my pocket again and pulled out a money case. I had the credits in cash, but just barely. Just like on Earth, we don’t carry a lot of cash out here in the galaxy. And I’d left the escrow money back in the Enterprise.
I climbed out the cab and once again experienced the stifling heat of Hyben. I wanted to say more to the cabbie, but that would have to wait until after he’d served his purpose. At that point, it would be anyone’s guess how that situation would turn out.
I quickly entered the large stone building through a double foyer designed to keep the heat and sand from penetrating the interior. Once through, I noticed that the anteroom was air conditioned, large and could pass itself off as the lobby of most executive buildings back on Earth. I approached a reception counter where a bored-looking native female watched me with a frown.
“That is two in one day,” she said even before I had a chance to say anything. “Third floor, then turn to your left.”
I took the stairs rather than the elevator, just in case someone was watching, and when I reached the third floor exit, I was disappointed
to find that the door there wasn’t equipped with a window. So I had to cautiously open it and stick my head out into the corridor for a quick look. It was empty, as far as I could tell, so I slipped inside and hugged the wall, MK-17 held firmly in my right hand. Ionin Design would be down the hall, past the elevators.
I was surprised that Miranda would bring such a massive diamond statue to the jeweler here by herself. After all, it was the most valuable sculpture in the entire galaxy. I couldn’t imagine her just walking in and saying to the creators of the Unity Stone, can you guys cut this into smaller pieces for me, please?
Having had that thought just cross my mind, I should’ve been expecting the electronic lash when it whipped out of nowhere and jerked the MK from my hand. The sharp crack of the whip stunned me momentarily, and then the hallway was suddenly filled with four of the tall, tough-looking Hyben natives. They were unarmed, except for batons and one with the whip, and they were upon me before I could pull the Ka-bar.
I saw the first baton come arching in towards me, and I sidestepped it with ease. Unfortunately, I stepped right into a second one, which caught me across the back of the head. The blow stung like a bitch, but it wasn’t debilitating. I spun around and placed a booted foot squarely into the chest of the nearest attacker. In the light gravity – and with my superior Human strength – the kick sent the native flying through the air, trailing an echo of crunching sounds behind him as ribs cracked and lungs were punctured. That left only three attackers to now contend with.
I have to say at this juncture, I was restless for some real action. Since leaving the Army years ago, I’d had absolutely zero opportunity to use the skills I’d learned in combat training. Now, as the muscle memory returned, and the frustration that had built up recently was released, I lashed out at the Hyben natives with a fury bordering on animal ferocity.
My lightning-quick fists found pliable flesh and brittle bone, and I continued to strike even after two more of my attackers went down and the last remaining native was attempting to escape.