She opened the hatch, stepped over the portal, and shut it behind her. He had the override switch, so she only had a few moments to get ready. Flinging herself to her closet, she chose a T-shirt and slipped it on. It covered her breasts. That was good enough for now. With a hop, she reached her drawers, flung one open, and grabbed an emergency prober. It was long and thin, meant for testing nexus nodes. Jabbed at a gut or in someone’s face, and it could do harm. It was better than trying to fistfight Jick.
She hefted the prober. Jick might be groggy from hitting the back of his head. He also might be even more enraged.
“Darcy!” he shouted, banging on the hatch.
She squealed as she started, and that made her angry. This was Jick.
“I’m coming in,” he said, “and I’m going to do you.”
“Go away!” she shouted. “Fix the recorder and quit joking.”
“Joking?” he shouted. “You think I’m joking?”
“I don’t want to hurt you anymore.”
He chuckled evilly. A moment later, the hatch clicked. Jick pushed the portal open, and he stared at her with bloodshot eyes.
“I like what I see,” he said. “Nice legs, Darcy.”
She refused to cover herself. During her times portside, she had taken a few self-defense courses. She would attempt to jab out one of his eyes. It would be a difficult thrust, but worth everything if she succeeded. Then she realized he’d shut off the recorder. There wouldn’t be anything to prove why she’d murdered him.
The queasy feeling returned. Why did the crazy person always have the advantage? It was utterly unfair.
“Oh, Darcy,” Jick said, entering her quarters. “You can’t imagine how many times I’ve fantasized about coming into your chamber like this. We’re going to have such a good, good time.”
That decided it for her. She would kill him. A Bo Taw could also read her mind later and see she’d had no other choice.
Jick advanced another step. She set herself. He eyed the prober in her hand.
“Do you think you can hurt me with that?” he asked.
“I hurt you once already, and I’ll do it again.”
“No. I’m the one who is going to do the hurting. I’m going to be very rough, Darcy, and I’m going to try many, many different variations.”
Darcy drew a ragged breath. She needed to trick him again. Then—
The ice hauler’s warning klaxon began to wail. The pulse sounds were unlike anything she’d heard before.
Jick cocked his head, and he scowled.
The klaxon blared louder than ever. It was a primary emergency.
“How did you do that?” he asked.
“I had nothing to do with it.”
“What’s the emergency?”
“I have no idea,” she said.
He snarled. The klaxon noises were becoming painful to the ear.
“Let’s check it out,” he said.
“You first,” she said. “I plan to get dressed.”
“Do you hear that? It’s a primary emergency.”
“Yes,” she said, amazed at this. What was causing it?
Then the hauler’s AI came online. “Warning,” it said. “A foreign spaceship is approaching. A collision is imminent. Warning, a—”
With an inarticulate howl, Jick spun around. He jumped through the hatch and raced to the command module.
Darcy Foxe heaved a sigh of relief. The klaxon continued to blare, however. She set aside the prober and rushed to her drawers. It was time to get dressed, wake the others, and see what kind of vessel planned to ram the ice hauler.
14
Silence filled Ice Hauler 266-9. The klaxon no longer wailed. With a slow step, Darcy entered the command module to see Jick hunched over the sensor screen.
He glanced back at her. Worry lined his thin face. “What is that?” he asked. “Do you have any idea? I’ve never seen its like.”
She glanced at the command screen. A giant spheroid majestically approached on a clear collision course. It was still several kilometers away and seemed to be slowing. A visible hangar bay opened. Two smaller vessels poked out, each of them headed for the hauler.
“I’ve already woken Glissim,” Darcy said.
Jick appeared not to hear. He fiddled with sensor controls. Nothing visibly changed.
“I don’t think it’s a Kresh vessel,” Jick said. “According to this, the outer hull is made of an unknown material. If I had to guess, it’s some sort of collapsed matter.”
Darcy shook her head. They had heard rumors of a Chirr attack in the inner system. It was amazing to think the insects had spaceships. She didn’t think the vessel out there belonged to the Chirr, though.
“Collapsed matter is very dense,” Jick explained. “I believe the vessel has heavy shielding is what I’m saying.”
“A warship,” Darcy said.
“A probable non-Kresh warship,” Jick amended.
“You heard the news earlier, right?”
“You mean about the Chirr space fleet?” Jick asked.
Nodding, Darcy asked, “Could this be a Chirr vessel?”
“I doubt Chirr ships could make it this far unnoticed. I think the vessel came from outside our star system.”
Darcy edged deeper into the chamber. Like every other room aboard the ice hauler, it was cramped and far too cozy.
“I don’t like this,” Jick said, straightening. “I’ve heard rumors of invaders before.”
Darcy remembered hearing something about that, too.
“What do you know about that?” Jick asked.
Darcy took another step closer. Frowning, she examined the alien vessel on the screen. It was bigger than a Kresh hammer-ship.
“There’s something I don’t understand,” Jick said.
“What?”
“We’re at the edge of the Fenris System. The alien ship is black, but doesn’t appear to be radar-resistant. Surely, the Kresh would have spotted it long ago and brought warships to intercept the vessel. So, why haven’t they done that?”
Darcy sucked in her breath.
“What?” Jick asked. “You know something.”
“Remember the report about an alien ship simply appearing?”
“Now that you mention it,” Jick said, “I do.”
“Maybe this ship has a star-drive.”
“You mean hyperspace?” asked Jick.
“Something that would have kept it off Kresh sensors,” Darcy said. “If it traveled through hyperspace, the vessel wouldn’t show up on radar until it reentered normal space.”
“If such a thing as hyperspace even exists,” Jick said.
“Do you have a better explanation?”
Jick stared at the screen. “What I don’t understand is why it’s coming at us.”
One of Darcy’s hands flew to her mouth. She moaned. Maybe she knew exactly why the alien vessel approached them.
“What do you know?” Jick asked.
She hesitated telling him. What difference would it make now? She almost blurted the news, and found it difficult to utter the words. Why was that?
“Darcy?” he asked.
This made no sense. Tell him. Finally, she stammered, “I-I found something in our asteroid.”
“What do you mean, ‘found’?”
“Something ancient,” Darcy said.
“An ancient alien thing?”
“Maybe.”
Jick’s mouth dropped open. He studied the ship. “Do you think they’re here to retrieve the ancient thing?”
As Darcy thought about that, she frowned. “It doesn’t make sense, though.”
“The alien ship is out there. That ought to be enough proof.”
“I know. But the thing I saw was embedded in ice, in an asteroid. It must ha
ve been there a long, long time. Why would this ship show up now?”
“You think it’s a coincidence that it arrived at the asteroid at the same time we did?”
“Maybe, maybe not.”
Jick put both hands around the sensor panel, staring down at it.
“We have to warn the authorities,” Darcy said.
“You mean warn the Kresh?”
“Of course,” she said. Then his words struck her. She couldn’t believe it. Jick? “Don’t tell me you’re a Humanity Ultimate.”
“Why should the Kresh rule us?” he said. “Humans used to be free, you know.”
“Oh yeah right,” Darcy said. “A few minutes ago you showed why the Kresh should rule. Without their guidance, humans run amok, turning into rapists, for one thing.”
Jick’s facial muscles tightened. “I played a little joke. It’s possible it was in poor taste.”
“You weren’t joking,” she said. “You told me you weren’t.”
“Darcy, Darcy, Darcy, you never have understood me. Of course it was a joke.”
“You’re a Humanity Ultimate.”
“Not really,” he said. “Can I not have a few of my own thoughts, though?”
“I should report this.”
“No. We should figure out the right thing to do. Look. The smallest alien shuttlecraft is slowing down.”
“We must report this,” Darcy repeated. “Whether you like the Kresh or not, our people belong to them. These are invaders.”
“They might fire on us if we try to radio anyone.”
“Jick, we’re spacers. We must report this.”
He stared at her, and he couldn’t help looking at her breasts. “Okay,” he said.
It angered her that he still lusted after her body. And it made her even madder that she’d argued to gain his permission to call. She was in charge of the ship, not him.
Darcy moved to her seat, sat down, and opened channels for Spacer Command Outer Asteroids. Harsh growling sounds came out of the speakers.
The two of them exchanged glances.
“The aliens aren’t going to let us call anyone,” Jick said. “They’re jamming us.”
“Should we attempt to hail them then?”
“Go ahead,” Jick said.
Darcy Foxe scowled once more. Don’t ask him to do something. He’s Jick. He just tried to rape me. I’m the commander. I don’t need his help.
She opened channels, directing communications toward the approaching shuttlecraft. “This is Ice Hauler 266-9. It appears you plan to board us. I must inform you that we are part of the Kresh Imperium. We are under their protection. I request that you speak with us so we may come to a peaceful solution.”
“They’re jamming us,” Jick said. “That means they’re not peaceful.”
“Maybe they could be,” she said.
“Really?”
“They’re just being cautious,” Darcy said.
Jick grew pale, which seemed like a strange time to become frightened if he hadn’t been before this. “I hope you’re right. I don’t think you are, but I want you to be. I’m . . . I’m worried.”
So am I, but what can we do? Nothing. We have to see what happens.
The big spheroid came to a halt two kilometers from the asteroid. The larger shuttle took up station half a kilometer from them. The smaller one kept closing.
“Look at that,” Jick said, using an indicator on the screen. He circled an area of the triangular-shaped shuttle, the small one. “That appears to be a laser port, and it’s aimed at us.”
New, harsh sounds emanated from Darcy’s panel.
“What is that?” Jick asked in a quavering voice.
Darcy adjusted her panel. “I’d say our sensors picked up their scanners. They must be studying us, and they’re being very rude about it.”
After a full minute, the sounds stopped. Now, the smallest alien shuttle approached even closer. Extra tubes poked out and aimed at the ice hauler.
“They’re not trusting,” Jick said.
“We could launch off the asteroid and try to ram them,” Darcy said.
“Why?”
“To show them we’re dangerous and that they have to talk to us.”
“I’d say they’re going to talk once they’re here.”
“Maybe we should see them first. There are worse things than dying.”
“No,” Jick said. “Once I die, it’s over. As long as I live, I have hope. So, we won’t be ramming them today.”
“I’ve heard strange stories about the Chirr.”
“These are not Chirr,” Jick said.
As he spoke, the shuttle began to make the final braking maneuvers. The ice hauler trembled as the alien vessel landed on the asteroid. A tube snaked from the other craft to their outer lock.
“Let’s go,” Darcy said. “We might as well greet them as they enter our ship.”
Glissim joined them in the small chamber. She was petite, blonde, and usually full of smiles. Today, worry creased her face. “Who are they, Darcy?”
“We’re about to find out,” she said.
Beyond the outer lock came clangs and the hissing of atmospheric pressure.
“That is against all regulations,” Darcy said.
“We can’t stop them,” Jick said. He gave her a leer, an up-and-down study. “So we might as well sit back and enjoy it.”
Darcy focused on the inner airlock and straightened her uniform as she waited. A new clang told her the outer hatch opened. The aliens were almost inside the ice hauler’s pressurized quarters.
“I hate the waiting,” Glissim said. “What if they eat us?”
“They’re not Chirr,” Jick said. “It’s impossible they’re Chirr. The bugs are at Heenhiss, not the outer asteroid belt.”
The inner entrance began to slide open. The aliens from the giant warship were almost inside the ice hauler.
Darcy couldn’t help herself. She stood at attention, frightened and curious of what she’d see. Beside her, Glissim moaned. Jick waited behind them.
The airlock slid open, and a human strode onto the ice hauler.
Before Darcy could exhale in relief, she saw her mistake.
Underneath the black uniform, the alien had polished metal parts and plastic flesh. His face was as lifeless as a mask. He had silver-metal orbs for eyes in black plastic sockets.
Behind him was an elongated monstrosity of flesh and graphite bones. It was too long-limbed to be human. With every motion, the thing made faint whirring sounds. Did it have motorized joints? It certainly possessed an armored body.
Glissim gasped, and she might have staggered backward. Darcy grabbed her elbow, steadying her crewmate. Then Darcy stepped forward and saluted as if the black-clad metal man was an inspector.
“Welcome aboard Ice Hauler 266-9. I am Senior Darcy Foxe, the commanding officer of our ship.”
“I am Toll Three,” the metal man said in a modulated voice. It only hinted at machinery, but it lacked emotive inflection.
“Welcome, Toll Three,” Darcy said. “We see you’ve come in force. I mean your massive warship. Is there a reason for that?”
The alien smiled, revealing steel-colored teeth. He unlatched a device from his belt, clicked it, and waved the thing before Darcy and Glissim. The creature watched the device, finally clicking it off and returning it to his belt.
“You are human,” Toll Three said. “Facts dictate that your species originated at Earth.”
“Homeworld,” Darcy said. “You’re familiar with Earth?”
“Of course,” Toll Three said. “Our origin point is also the solar system, but from a science hab orbiting the planet Neptune. We are cyborgs.”
“We’re related?” Darcy asked in a weak voice. As she spoke, she refused to look at the other thi
ng behind Toll Three. Cyborg . . . Didn’t that mean a meld of man and machine?
“Your query is immaterial to the project at hand,” Toll Three said. “The battle fleet has arrived in the Fenris System. We are here to conquer and submerge your flesh into the whole.”
An icy terror worked along Darcy’s neck.
“First, the Prime Web-Mind desires knowledge concerning the alien construct.”
“What construct?” Darcy asked.
“Subterfuge will gain you agony, Senior Darcy Foxe. We have sensed the machine buried in the ice. The Prime Web-Mind has no records of it. What is the construct’s function?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Darcy whispered.
Toll Three studied a device embedded in his left wrist. “My sensors indicate you are lying. Therefore, a demonstration is in order.” He crooked a finger. Without another word, the tall cyborg behind him whirred forward with deceptive speed.
Glissim screamed, stumbling backward.
“No!” Darcy shouted.
The cyborg reached for Darcy. She flinched. It made no difference. Impossibly strong hands clamped onto the flesh of her upper arms. The thing pulled her near Toll Three as the others watched in horror.
Toll Three held a small, round object. “This is the agonizer. Observe.” He touched it to her neck.
A sizzle of pain lanced through her. Darcy screamed as she writhed in the cyborg’s grip. Toll Three removed the agonizer.
“Let me restate the question,” he said. “What is the construct in the asteroid?”
“I don’t know,” Darcy gasped. “We just found it.”
Once more, Toll Three studied his wrist device. “This indicates that you spout more subterfuge. This is an error.”
“Please,” Darcy whimpered. “I’m telling you the truth.”
“Then why did your vessel land on this particular asteroid? There are over ten thousand asteroids to choose from.”
“We’re hauling ice to Jassac,” Darcy said.
“For what reason?”
“The Kresh are terraforming the moon around Pulsar.”
Toll Three’s silver orbs remained motionless. “That is a clever deception, but unsuccessful. The probability of you choosing this asteroid at random means you are likely lying.”
Alien Wars Page 9