A ball of red energy hit the blaster, sending pieces of shattered metal skittering across the floor.
Jake glanced up.
Major Maksim stood in the doorway with a phase pistol in his right hand. The Covian major glanced at Phyllis Gegorma’s lifeless body. “I never did like her.” He pointed his pistol at Jake.
Jake didn’t care what happened to him. His eyes turned to Casey. Her face was covered by strands of black and purple hair. A growing pool of dark liquid was on the tiled floor near her head and shoulders. Something wet formed in Jake’s eyes.
“It’s a shame about Casey,” said Maksim as he gestured with his phase pistol toward the body underneath the desk. “I really did like her. I might’ve let her live, just for old-time’s sake.”
Jake took his eyes off Casey’s body long enough to glare at Creao Gegorma’s great-nephew. “Kill me and get it over with. What are you waiting for?”
The major shrugged. “Everything in due time, I always say. Why rush things? The old man’s dead, and now thanks to me, so is my dear cousin.” He gave a half laugh. “She would’ve killed me sooner or later. It was only a matter of time. I just beat her to the punch.”
“So now what happens?” Jake said, stalling more for time than really caring what the man had to say. All he wanted to do was get to Casey. First, he had to get rid of Maksim. “I suppose you’re going to take over Transporters International now and sell the weapons to the highest bidder.”
Maksim smirked. “If only I could. Unfortunately, there are a hundred others in line to take over ahead of me.” He gave another of his half-laughs and pointed at the body of Phyllis Gegorma with his pistol. “Actually, there’s only ninety-nine ahead of me now. Nevertheless, I’ve got a lot of work to do to prepare the way.” The Covian major walked closer to the desk with the computer terminal, being careful to stay out of Jake’s reach. He picked up the mini-light with his left hand.
“You can destroy that if you want,” Jake said. “It won’t matter. Casey’s people will get through the planet’s shield eventually. They’ll find out what happened. The Trecorians will hunt you down. They won’t rest until they find you.”
Maksim laughed. “Jake, Jake. You have no idea how to play the game of politics, do you? I want the Trecorians to take over Lastreo and capture what weapons are still here. My adversaries in my late uncle’s company would gain too much power if they were able to sell them. I need the Trecorians to do my work for me.” With that, the Covian major stuck the connecter for the mini-light into the network port for the computer terminal and smiled. “If my uncle was right, your Maggie will have the planet’s shields down within minutes.”
Jake looked at the Covian trying to gauge his intentions. “So what are you saying? You’re going to let me live?”
Maksim laughed. “Not hardly. I can’t have your Maggie running loose around the galaxy righting wrongs and doing good. If what my uncle told me is correct, she’ll go crazy and self-terminate once she finds out you’re dead. I’m afraid it’s time for us to part ways, old friend.”
Jake looked into the barrel of the phase pistol as Maksim pointed it at his head. He didn’t care. At least I’ll be with Casey.
Something red struck the side of Maksim’s head at the same time as a ball of green shot out the phase pistol’s barrel.
A sledgehammer slammed into the side of Jake’s head.
Then everything went black.
Chapter 35 – A Visitor
____________________
Consciousness came in spurts of soft voices and flashes of light, mostly green. As the durations of consciousness increased, the green light turned to white. During his more lucid moments, Jake became aware of touches on his face. For the most part, the touches felt like hands. Once, the touch was more like that of a slimy tentacle.
Eventually, the fog surrounding Jake dissipated and his awareness of the surroundings came into clear focus.
I’m lying down.
He sensed softness under his back.
I’m in a bed. Where?
The sound of soft breathing came to his ears. Something gentle touched his forehead. He recognized the feel of a hand. Forcing his eyes open, he stared straight into the face of an angel. The angel’s crystal blue eyes looked familiar.
“Casey?” Jake managed to whisper.
The angel’s face appeared to wince as the blonde-haired woman pulled her hand back.
No, not Casey, Jake thought. The memory of green beams striking the woman he loved flooded into his mind. His surroundings blurred. He forced his vision to clear. I won’t cry. I’ll never cry. He looked at the blonde woman closer. “Lieutenant Fisher,” he said in an almost normal voice. “Or should I say, Trish Bistoria.”
The slim-figured woman leaned back in the chair that was near the head of his bed.
Jake glanced around. He was in a small room. Another bed, empty, was to his right. The room had the unmistakable, antiseptic smell of a hospital. He looked back at Casey’s sister. She was dressed in a white, medical technician’s uniform.
The woman’s blue eyes seemed to sparkle as she touched a nametag over her blouse’s left breast pocket. “The name’s Johnston. Can’t you read?” Her eyes stopped sparkling. “To save the question-and-answer session, I’ll just bring you up-to-date. You’re in the spaceport hospital on Trillian. You’ve been in an induced coma for six weeks. Not many people can say they took a phase round to the head and lived, even if it was only a glancing shot. You’re lucky to be alive.”
Jake didn’t feel lucky. “Where’s Casey? I want to see her.”
The muscles around Trish Bistoria’s mouth tightened. Her crystal blue eyes held no trace of sparkle. “I watched the videos. You were there when the Gegorma bitch killed my sister. You know what happened.”
Jake had known, but he’d had to ask. The room blurred again. He forced his eyes to remain clear. “I want to see her body. I want to say goodbye.”
The blonde woman’s eyes softened. “The custom on Trecor is to have our bodies disintegrated. My sister’s funeral was five weeks ago, along with my cousins’.” She turned and looked at the windowless wall opposite Jake’s bed. After a dozen heartbeats, she turned back and reached toward him before stopping her hand in midair and placing it in her lap. “I’ve said my goodbyes and let them go. You need to do the same.”
A thousand memories of Casey ran through his mind. Once again, the room began to blur. He forced the memories aside. “Why are you here? Are you an assassin? Have you come here to finish what Maksim tried to do?”
The hint of a smile came to Trish Bistoria’s lips. “Our good major got what he deserved. That battle computer of yours, your Maggie, was keeping track of you with the tele-bots I gave you. She guided your ground crew to your location. The octopod shot Maksim just as he was getting ready to shoot you. A fraction of a second later and the major’s phase round would’ve gone through the center of your forehead instead of grazing the side.”
Jake remembered something red hitting the Covian major just before the color green had become his universe. “So what happens now? Why are you here? Are you going to kill me?”
After staring at Jake for three heartbeats, the blonde woman shook her head. “No, Jake. I’m not going to kill you. As to why I’m here, I’m here because of my sister. Casey cared for you, deeply. I watched the videos. I found out when the medical techs were going to bring you out of your coma.” She touched her white uniform. “I borrowed one of their uniforms. I wanted to be here when you woke. I wanted to be the one to tell you. It’s the least I could do for Casey.”
Jake returned the woman’s stare. He nodded. Something stabbed at his heart. He ignored the pain. “You’ve told me. Now what?” His words came out harsher than he intended. He sighed and spoke in a softer voice. “Did you get Gegorma’s weapons?”
Trish Bistoria nodded. She seemed to relax as if more comfortable dealing with facts than emotions. “Only half. The other half of the weapons had alr
eady been moved. We don’t know where, but I’m on it. I’ll find out sooner or later. There aren’t many places in the galaxy to hide five-billion-plus weapons without someone knowing about it, even during a war.”
The memory of being told the Empire had been attacked by the bats came back to Jake. “So what happens now?”
The blonde woman shrugged. “That’s up to you, Jake. My uncle, Duke Bistoria, felt obligated to transport you here to Trillian. Officially, Trecor’s neutral in the war between the Empire and the Crosioians. Unofficially, he gave your ground crew enough credits to get your Paladin repaired. That was all he could do without risking Trecor’s neutrality.” She smiled. “By the way, with the Gegormas dead, their tournament ended without a winner. There’s no prize. Looks like you’re back to mercenary duty with the Conglomerate.”
Jake snorted. “The Conglomerate doesn’t want me. And I don’t want them either.”
Trish gave a half-smile that reminded Jake of her sister. “Intergalactic wars have a habit of making strange bedfellows. Your 57th is out on assignment. They’ve taken heavy losses. I’ve got a feeling the Conglomerate will be more than happy to have you back in the fold.” She shrugged. “It’s a living. What else can you do? You don’t want to be a copper miner, do you?”
Jake wasn’t sure what he wanted to do, but he knew it wasn’t mining for copper. He decided to avoid the decision for the present. “What are you going to do?”
Casey’s sister smiled for real as she touched her blouse. “The first thing I’m going to do is ditch this uniform. It needs a good washing. Then I’m going to see if I can find the rest of those weapons.” She shrugged. “After that, who knows?”
“So that’s it?” Jake asked. “You’re gonna leave, and I’ll never see you again?”
Trish Bistoria laughed. “Never is a long time, Jake. That Maggie of yours is a helluva computer. The two of you make a good team. You never know when you might look around and see a familiar face.” Her crystal blue eyes twinkled. She touched the nametag on her blouse. “Of course, the name might be changed to protect the innocent, but I’m sure you’ll understand.”
Jake did.
Without another word, Casey’s sister rose, walked to the room’s only door, opened it, and left, closing the door behind her.
Jake stared at the door for a long time.
Memories of Casey filled his mind. He forced the memories away.
“I’m a mercenary,” he whispered. “I’ll always be a mercenary.”
Finally, blissful sleep overtook him, and he knew no more.
Epilogue
____________________
Three days after the clandestine visit by Trish Bistoria, Jake found himself wandering into the 57th Medium Mechanized Company’s maintenance hangar at Trillian’s main spaceport. A hot-off-the-press Conglomerate contract was safely tucked away in the databank of the electronic notepad he carried in his flight suit’s breast pocket. As a once again official member of the 57th, his Paladin occupied the work bay assigned to them. All the other bays in the massive hangar were empty. The freshly painted, green-and-black camouflaged Paladin was the hangar’s sole UHAAV.
As he approached the bay, Tilley and Jason stopped what they were doing, stood at attention, and saluted.
Jake didn’t bother returning their salutes. “Don’t ever let me catch you doing that again. Status report.”
“We’ve got Maggie back in working order,” said Tilley, who was having difficulty trying to look serious.
Jason winked two of his four eyestalks at Jake. “I might’ve bought a lot more extra parts than I told you about before we left Trillian with that fancy charge card the Gegorma woman gave you. I don’t think we’ll be hurting for spare electronics for quite a while.”
Jake nodded, then eyed the Paladin’s green-and-black paint and frowned. He patted his breast pocket. “I’ve got our orders. What’s left of the 57th is being shifted to a desert planet. We’ll be joining them there. I’m afraid you’ll need to redo Maggie’s camouflage to something more appropriate.”
Tilley turned to Jason. “I’ve got a feeling there’s gonna be a lot of overtime for us this month.” She turned back to Jake and laughed. “I assume you got an advance on your contract with the Conglomerate so you can pay us. I’d like to make one last round of the bars before I leave Trillian.”
Jake shook his head. “No time. I finagled transport on an old freighter that’s leaving tonight. As for pay, I’m only working for a percent of salvage from now on.” He gave the closest thing to a smile he could muster at the moment. “Like Maggie always says, we gotta learn to take risks.”
Tilley laughed. “Believe me, every day with you is a risk.” She pointed at the Paladin’s cockpit with her chin. “Maggie’s inside waiting. Jason and I’ll see if we can rustle up some desert paint.”
After his two friends left, Jake grabbed a utility belt with an anti-grav unit off a workbench and floated to the Paladin’s rear-access door. The hatch was already open.
Maggie sat in the copilot’s seat wearing a gray flight suit without a helmet. As she spun her chair to face the hatchway, strands of red hair flew across her face. Brushing them away, she eyed Jake. “Well, are you coming in or what? My isotopic battery’s full, but there’s no use wasting energy. I’d like to close the door.”
Jake entered. He glanced at the pilot’s seat but didn’t sit down.
Maggie stood and faced him. “How are you holding up, Tiger?”
Shrugging his shoulders, Jake glanced around the cockpit. He looked at anything but his AI. “Right as rain. Couldn’t be better.” He concentrated on an old oil smudge located on the cockpit’s metal deck.
Maggie stepped closer. Her voice was soft when she spoke. “It doesn’t do any good to keep your feelings inside, Jake. You’ve got to let them out, or they’ll tear you apart from the inside. I know you cared for Casey. I know you lov—”
“What do you know about it?” he growled as he locked eyes with his AI. “You’re a computer. You’re just a hologram. You can’t feel. You…you can’t love. You can’t…”
Maggie’s eyes turned a shiny green. She stepped back as if she’d been slapped. After a moment, she whispered, “I honestly don’t know what I am, Jake. I wish to Creator I did. What I do know is that I’m concerned about you. You’ve got to let it out. Don’t do this to yourself.”
Jake balled his fists and gritted his teeth. “Don’t tell me what to do. You’re a tactical computer. That’s all you’ll ever be. I’m a mercenary pilot. That’s all I’ll ever be. We’ve got a mission to do. Getting our mission done is all I care…all I…” He fell to his knees and stared at the oil smudge on the deck. The smudge blurred.
Something warm touched Jake’s shoulders.
Maggie bent down on her knees in front of him, keeping her hands on his shoulders.
The smudge blurred even more. He forced his eyes to clear. I won’t cry. I’ll never cry. He avoided Maggie’s eyes, looking at anything and nothing. His eyes focused on a thin strand of something dangling from the copilot chair’s headrest. He looked closer. It was a strand of purple hair.
The room blurred, and Jake’s shoulders began to shake. He sensed Maggie’s arms wrap around him, holding him close. He felt her warmth. He didn’t care that it came from a thermal beam or that her body was a hologram. The darkness of the universe closed in around him, its loneliness threatening to engulf him completely. The room blurred even more. He wrapped his arms around her. He felt something moist on the side of Maggie’s face. His shoulders began to shake harder.
“They killed Casey,” he sobbed. “They killed her. I’ll never… I’ll…”
“I know, I know,” whispered Maggie. Her voice choked. “You’re not alone, Jake. You’ll never be alone while Tilley, Jason, and I live. Let it out. Don’t let grief tear you apart. That’s not what Casey would want.”
An image of the black-and-purple-haired Trecorian appeared in Jake’s mind.
His sho
ulders shook.
And he cried.
The End
Acknowledgments
____________________
I would like to thank my biggest supporter, my wife, Karen. She is my safe harbor in a stormy world.
About the Author
____________________
Rodney Hartman is a retired US Army veteran with over twenty years of experience in military operations ranging from Infantry Private in the paratroops to Chief Warrant Officer flying helicopters during the Persian Gulf War. Mr. Hartman worked for many years as a computer programmer before retiring and pursuing a career as a full-time writer. Mr. Hartman lives in North Carolina with his wife and family along with their cat, McKenzie.
If you would like to find out more about the author and/or upcoming books, please visit: http://www.rodneyhartman.com/
You may contact the author at: [email protected]
Depending on volume, the author will try to respond to all emails.
Steel Apocalypse Page 28