Cosmic Cabaret

by SFR Shooting Stars

  “First of all, I’m so sorry that your mother and your daughter are stuck on Despreviel,” he said in his softest voice. “I’m here to help.”

  He wanted to pull her into his arms, smooth her hair, tell her that everything was going to be okay, but he couldn’t lie to her. Even though he was furious at her for not telling him about her daughter, he’d decided to shelve it for now. They could argue about it later. When Zara was safe. When the religious zealots who’d stolen her home and family from her were nothing but a distant memory.

  “Want an energy drink? You might need it.” He cracked open the silver cannister and handed it to her.

  “What is all this?” she asked, when she’d finished the cola.

  “Notes that combine traditional intel with citizen reports and observations. As a Galactic Force Intelligence Officer, I’ve been working on the Desprezível situation for some time, mostly gathering information from freighters, former citizens, and people who’ve gathered information via the BlackWeb, When I booted up my tablet tonight, I discovered a ton of new stuff.”

  “Stuff that can help us?”

  “I hope so.”

  Suzy picked up a sheet of paper. “It’s all in Revenaltois. I can’t read a word of it.”

  “Sorry,” he said, pushing his glasses up onto the bridge of his nose. “When I’m working, I tend to revert to my native language because I can think faster that way. Let me help you make sense of it.”

  He scooted his chair closer to her and tried not to notice the scent of her. Fresh from the shower, she smelled like the fruit trees that bloomed on his home planet. He wished they had nothing more to do than to explore each other, fall into bed and make love, but her child’s life was at stake and he had to keep his mind on the information in front of him.

  She flipped through one stack of papers after the other. Davell translated his notes and explained the things she didn’t understand.

  When she finished, he asked, “Do you know anyone within the regime?”

  She shook her head. “In my line of work, I tried to stay as far away from them as possible.”

  “Not a single person?”

  Suzy took off her hat and shook her hair loose. He felt his dick harden when she ran her fingers through the jet black bob, so he closed his eyes and tried to refocus on the matter at hand. When he was this close to her, it was hard to think about anything other than sex.

  “Wait,” she said. “I know one person in the regime, but he won’t be any help. He had a deal with the owner of the last club I worked. He got free tickets to all the shows as long as he didn’t reveal our location.”

  “I thought they outlawed SweetWine first thing.”

  “They did, but lots of clubs had plenty of stores, and demand was at an all-time high. Plenty of club owners were willing to take the risk for the right payout.”

  “Tell me about him. Name? Rank?”

  “I have no idea what his rank was but everyone called him Mausebar.”

  “Mouse bear?”

  “I think it was because he was a big man, with sharp features and broad shoulders, but in personality, he was more like a mouse. He was quiet, meek even, especially when compared to the majority of those knuckle draggers.”

  He might be just the man I want to talk to.

  “Any idea what kind of job he had?”

  “Something boring. Supplies, uniforms? I can’t remember exactly but I do remember thinking it was a very safe office kind of job.”

  Maybe the Gods are smiling on us.

  “Would you recognize him? If I brought him to you?”

  “Sure. He was in the front row of dozens of my shows. He propositioned me a few times, but I kept putting him off.”

  “He wasn’t attractive?”

  Davell was no fool. He understood the power Suzy would’ve had in choosing her bed partners. He really didn’t want to know what she thought about any man other than him, but he had to ask.

  Suzy shrugged. “He was a decent looking man, but he was too plain, too quiet. He had no sparkle. No charm. He was too old for me.”

  “Go easy on him. Not every man can compete with someone like me.”

  She swatted at him with her hand, and for the first time since this afternoon, she smiled. “Stay on task, Lawless.”

  “He wasn’t very distinctive, then?”

  “Right. He was ordinary.”

  “What was his offer?”

  “A weekend getaway. It was pretty vague, but I think he expected me to read between the lines, which is pretty easy for a burlesque dancer.”

  As an intelligence officer, Davell knew better than to get his hopes too high, but Mausebar sounded like the perfect candidate for the plan he was formulating.

  “If we’re very, very lucky, he is in supply. When ZX took over the Desprezívelian government, the regime had to set up a whole new supply systems. Most of the freighters that serviced their docks, both bringing in imports and taking away exports, refused to work with them, so they had to find new ships. Most of those vessels belong to independent operators, criminals and rogues, who are generally willing to do anything to improve the bottom line.”

  “How does that help us?”

  “It might give us some bargaining power, a way to get them off the planet.”

  “But I can’t call him from here.”

  “We’re not going to be working from here. We’ll be on planet.”

  “No,” she said. Her jaw was a firm line.

  “We don’t have another choice. Not if we want to save Zara.”

  “Your genius plan is to take me back there?”

  “They don’t have to know it’s you. You’ll be traveling in disguise.”

  “Newsflash: I’m pretty well-known there. My photo has been on dozens of posters and e-magazine covers. Someone would recognize me before the airlock closed behind me.”

  Davell took off his glasses and tossed them onto the table. He leaned back in his chair and took a deep breath. He’d spent his professional life as an agent, studying dozens and dozens of strategies and tactics, participating in all kinds of role play and simulations, but this would be the first time he’d considered involving a civilian.

  It was a dangerous plan, but it was the only one that made sense.

  “You want your mom and daughter to be safe and I want to overthrow the regime and reboot the SweetWine trade, right?”

  Suzy held her hands up. “Wait a second. No one said anything about overthrowing the regime.”

  “I wish you’d told me about your daughter, but we’ll discuss that later, after she’s safe and has the medicine she needs. We both can use this opportunity to achieve our individual goals.”

  “What’s your goal?”

  “Since the takeover of Desprezível, I’ve been tasked with finding a way to return Desprezível to the people. SweetWine is a huge economic engine, throughout the galaxy. It’s not just the planet that’s suffering. It’s wine sellers and restaurants and resorts all over the galaxy. That’s what I was working on when I took my forced vacation.”

  “Look, Desprezível is my home planet, and I love it dearly. I’d give anything if things there would return to normal, but at this point, all I’m concerned about is my kid and my mom.”

  “Do you believe in fate, Amber?” His eyes met hers.

  “I don’t know what I believe any more.”

  “We were brought together for a very specific reason. I can help you and you can help me.”

  “I can’t go back. Not now. Not until the regime is overthrown. It’s too dangerous.” Her hands shook as she tied the knitted shawl around her neck. “I know I agreed, but I’ve changed my mind. Someone will recognize me as soon as I step off the ship.”

  They were standing at the dock, having already passed through the cleansing airlock. Their ship, a water purification ship out of Wazellia, was scheduled to arrive in less than five minutes. They were the only travelers waiting. Behind them Quantum’s full-line of adult entert
ainment was in full swing. The handful of other people standing around were employees of Blue Star and they’d help the ship and land and eject.

  “We’ve made this decision, Amber. It’s the only thing that might work.”

  “What if it doesn’t?”

  There was always a chance, no matter how many times you’d rethought, reworked and rehashed a plan that it might not come together. Sometimes that wasn’t a big deal, and the only thing it meant was that a new plan was needed. In this case, a failed plan might find Davell and Suzy imprisoned, or worse, at the hands of the Eiferer.

  But, on the other hand, if the plan worked, Desprezível would be free, Amber’s family would be safe, and SweetWine would flow throughout the galaxy again.

  “It will. It has to work.”

  “But what if someone sees me and alerts the Eiferer?”

  “They’ll never recognize you.”

  It hadn’t been easy to find garb that would cover her curves. Her body wasn’t exactly easy to hide, but luckily he’d be able to search the costume closets of several acts aboard Quantum. Underneath piles of sequins and tons of satin, he’d found some plain, homespun clothes that reminded him of the things his mother and sisters wore back on Revenalt. It hadn’t been easy to convince Suzy to wear them.

  Suzy touched her forehead. “There’s always a chance the makeup won’t hide it. What if I sweat and it runs, revealing my mark?”

  “That makeup will only come off with a special remover.”

  “If they catch me, Zara and my mother will be in grave danger.”

  They’d discussed this many, many times, but Suzy didn’t want to do anything that would put her daughter in more danger.

  “Here’s the thing,” he began, ready to repeat himself for at least the twentieth time. “They’re already incredibly in grave danger. If we don’t do something, and soon, they’re almost certainly doomed.”

  “I know. I know. It’s just that I’m so scared.”

  “I won’t let anything happen to either of them.” Davell wished he felt as confident as he sounded. The truth was that he was 99% sure he could protect her, but he’d been an agent long enough to know that there was always a chance that something could go wrong, but this wasn’t the time to tell Suzy that. He was overstating his power and understating the danger, but he didn’t have a choice. This was an all or nothing mission.

  “I’ve done everything I can to save my kid.”

  “I know that, and it’s the main reason you can’t stop now. What kind of life will she have if Desprezível is ruled by these zealots? This is your only chance to save her. Without overthrowing these bigots, she’ll have no chance.”

  “This regime won’t last forever. They never do. In just over twenty years, I’ve seen at least five come and go.”

  Desprezível had been cursed with weak leadership for as long as Davell could remember. Known around the galaxy as “The Pleasure Planet”, it had never been able to defend itself against brutal, egomaniacs like ZX, but this regime was better organized and more fanatical than any of its predesescors.

  In the distance, through the reinforced glass surrounding the dock, Davell saw the ship approaching. The lights on the dock, red and green and blue, began flashing.

  He pulled the tablet from the messenger bag he carried on his hip and typed one line.

  Headed to Desprezível. Will transmit details as soon as possible.

  His boss, Colonel Jack Westenburg, wasn’t going to be happy. In fact, even if the mission was a success, he might still lose his job, but he couldn’t think about that now. He’d committed to a course of action and he intended to see it through.

  “This regime might be different, and we must do our best to move them out of the way as soon as possible.”

  “Look, I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but two people can’t change the course of things. It just doesn’t work that way.” She stepped backward, toward the door of the airlock. It was clear to see that she was very close to bolting. He couldn’t let that happen.

  Davell grabbed her wrist and pulled her closer. He placed his index finger under her chin and lifted her head until their eyes met. “Oh, but it does.”

  “But I’m just a dancer. I’m not a politician or a spy or a counter-operative. I’m just a girl who got caught up in the machine.”

  “You’re much more than a dancer. You just haven’t realized that yet.”

  Suzy gnawed at her bottom lip. “You really think we can do this?”

  “I know we can do this.”

  The water purification ship wasn’t going straight to Desprezível, so they had a few days to get used to the disguises. They’d mostly stayed in their private quarters, not wanting any member of the crew to suspect they weren’t merely merchants from the backward world of Warbullia. She’d been so relieved when no one asked why Warbullians were aboard Quantum anyway. They practiced speaking to each other in the formal manner of the Warbullians and Suzy tried to remember to ‘look plain and act like a wife’, an essential part of the backward social and religious tenets of Warbullia.

  It wasn’t easy.

  Suzy had never felt plainer in her life. From the day she’d begun taking dancing lessons, she’d been trained to stand out, not fit it. The stiff brown dress was baggy and shapeless but somehow it still itched. Her hair, normally ironed and sprayed, was limp and lifeless. She hated everything about the disguise Davell had crafted for her and she had no idea if she could ever pull it off.

  “Do you have any idea how much I hate this?” she asked.

  Davell straightened the bright purple wrap he’d tied around his head. “About as much as I hate this?” He turned from the mirror and faced her. “But we have to make it work.”

  “We look ridiculous.”

  “Nonsense. We look like the traveling Warbullian merchants we are.”

  “Of all the planets in the galaxy, you had to pick one of the most backward.”

  “That was on purpose. ZX doesn’t have many allies and if he were to pick one, it would be Warbullia. They marginalize women, thrive on extreme religion, and refuse to use anything but the most basic technology. They two regimes might look different, but they’re certainly birds of a feather.”

  “But I have to walk behind you.”

  “Not forever. When we finish this mission, wherever we go, you can walk in front. Promise. I like looking at your butt.”

  “Who doesn’t?” She fired back, trying to cover the anxiety building in her chest with her usual sharp repartee.

  Suzy had no idea what would happen to them after they finished their work on Desprezível. She’d probably be able to get her job back. After all, she’d doubled the nightly ticket revenue for that bastard Ramshead, and he would take her back in a second. Davell would likely go back to traveling the galaxy and trying to right wrongs. It would hurt to lose him, but if her mom and Zara were safe, she could live with it.

  “We’ll be safe?” she asked. She’d lost count of how many times she’d asked him for reassurance but she couldn’t seem to stop herself.

  “You have my word.”

  The next day, just after lunch, they docked in Desprezível. After thanking the crew for their help, Davell held her hand and they stepped into the airlock. Suzy wasn’t sure what to expect when they stepped outside, onto the dock in Festa.

  The airlock whirred to a stop and the pneumatic doors opened. With one last squeeze of her hand, Davell stepped out ahead of her.

  In the weeks she’d been aboard Quantum, everything had changed. Instead of the flower vendors and food carts that used to line the street leading from the docks to the theater district, there were lines of soldiers, dressed in gray uniforms and carrying rifles balanced on their shoulders. Her hometown had completely lost the vibrancy that made it so unique. It was nothing more than a shell of what it once had been.

  Just up the hill from the dock, there was a customs station. It would be the first big test of their ruse. Their travel documents look
ed authentic and their clothes were believable enough, but there was still a chance that the Eiferer manning the desk would decide that something about them was suspicious.

  Don’t give them any reason to look at you more closely.

  Davell stepped up to the window and pulled his travel documents from the leather messenger bag that hung at his right hip.

  “Woman,” he barked, his Revenaltois accent totally masked by the Warbullian one he’d been practicing since they’d left Quantum. “Show the man your papers.” He shook his head, as if to apologize to the Eiferer for the obvious shortcomings of all women. “Hurry. Don’t waste our valuable time.”

  After a lifetime of making her own rules and expecting men to follow her lead, the condescension in his voice was hard to take. She wanted to fight back, demand the respect she deserved, but she knew that would be a death sentence.

  She shuffled up to the window, passing her fake documents to Davell, who handed them to the Eiferer.

  “Enjoy your stay, sir,” the man said, after stamping the documents. “Madam.”

  It was nearly impossible not to cheer with relief.

  “To the inn, woman,” Davell barked.

  They hadn’t hired a vehicle, as Warbulliajns believed that walking was more righteous than riding. Normally, she would have complained, but she appreciated the opportunity to see how everything in her hometown had changed. It was heartbreaking, but she couldn’t close her eyes. The planters, usually filled with the brilliant blooms of flowers, were empty, only dirt and a few dead weeds. The storefronts were all closed, many of the windows covered with boards or thick black paper. Everything looked empty, worn, like the polish has been sanded off leaving only the stone and bare wood behind.

  “Why are you dawdling, woman? We must find a place to sleep before the dual suns set.”

  She shuffled along behind Davell. Up the steep hill, just to the left was the building that used to house the Gilded Peacock. Her heart lurched at the way all the beauty had been leached from a place that had been such a centerpiece of Festan culture. On every corner, there were stone-faced, silent soldiers. The townspeople they passed averted their eyes and everyone looked worn and old.