by J. K. Mabrey
"Okay," he said. "We finish the job for Garos, but I want to keep monitoring the situation on Soltin. I'm not saying we'll do anything about it, no matter what happens. I just want to keep monitoring the situation, and monitor the Council's response."
"Good," Dani said. "Do we have somewhere to buy this farm equipment or do we have to track down illegal grain smugglers on Tian?"
"I know a place that might work," Brax said. He shrugged. "Balez, it's in the Outer Spiral, but they have one of the largest trade markets in the Galaxy. It's secure and their merchandise is always top notch. I think we'll be able to find enough of what Garos needs."
"Good," Zavik said. "If this works out, we'll be done with this job."
"Then, maybe we can pay off Rodderick and find our own jobs again," Charra said.
"That is the goal," Zavik said, unsure if it was really still his goal.
Dani went to the cockpit and Zavik followed her. Brax took Rudy to run another check on the weapons system, he always found ways of improving it, and it had started to impress Brax more than annoy him. Charra laid his head back at the table and closed his eyes. He was taking the free time to relax, something Rovun were almost incapable of doing, Zavik thought.
Dani punched up the portal to Balez and lifted the Rinada high into the atmosphere of Cedona. The planet was fully baked in sunlight and the traffic Zavik thought he saw earlier spilling out over the skyline was now at least five times thicker. Lines of ships moved uniformly across and in between towering building. A few broke off here and there, spiraling down to their destination. Dani cut through a thick line of ships, skimming the top of the convoy. There were strict protocols to follow when traveling around Cedona. Without them, there would be hundreds, if not thousands, of collisions a day. She didn't much care for the rules regulating air travel, but all the same she did follow the path of ships heading for space. The flood of ships leaving the planet was like a waterfall flowing in reverse. The ships hit space and dispersed across its vacuum, each ship heading for a portal. There were clearly a few portals with very high demand. An almost constant flow of ships from the surface of Cedona queued in front of three portals that Zavik could see. Distant flashes of light erupted as the portal's bubble collapsed and sent the vehicles fleeing tens of thousands of light-years across the Galaxy. Another portal he saw had no such queue. A lone ship slipped into the bubble and blue arcs sprang from the center as it disappeared.
They flew past over a dozen portals before reaching Balez. Between the portals and the planet orbited many space stations. Dani tried her best to avoid them just because that was what she always did. The best way to avoid detection by a system is to stay as far away from sensors and ships as possible. Many of the space stations around Cedona were for research, a few for traffic control and monitoring the portals. Almost a third were for defense and they were spread out across the entire surface of the planet.
Attached to each station were large dreadnoughts of varying makes. Mostly Chokmnd origin, with a healthy mixture of Rovun, Iriquios, and Farlin. The dreadnoughts made up the heart of the Council Fleet. They were large, spanning twenty-two hundred feet long and almost five hundred feet high, and filled with heavy turbolaser cannons. A single dreadnought was capable of holding its own with minimal support in most situations. The Council was used to dealing with small pirate incursions. The pirates often thought having only a single dreadnought and an accompaniment of fighters in their system meant they would have easy salvaging to do for the next week. They quickly and permanently learned the mistake in that thinking.
A few of Earth's dreadnought class ships were commissioned for use by the Council, but Earth had its own fleet as well. The other races kept a few ships for their own fleets too. The Council fleet was more a show of solidarity than anything. The Fleet Commander in charge had full authority of the ships commissioned for the Council, but the Council did not reign supreme.
As happened during the Red Moon rebellion, and at other times of high tension in the Galaxy, the races recalled many ships from the Council Fleet and absorbed them into their own. It was a move that saved the Galaxy from being ruled by Varin. The Iriquios and Farlin did not allow their ships to be used in an invasion of Earth and instead fought against the invading Chokmnd and Rovun, helping Earth repel their attack and set up the stages to end the rebellion above Chokmna.
Zavik had never seen so many dreadnoughts stationed at Cedona. They were typically spread throughout the Galaxy, more as a show of presence than force. He had never had many problems with them being around, then again, Dani always tried her best to avoid any and all ships that she could. Charra seemed a bit uncomfortable with them hovering over systems, but paranoia was not something new for Charra. Zavik wondered how much of the fleet had been recalled to Cedona because of the attacks, and briefly wondered how vulnerable it made the other systems. He felt confident the major systems were still well protected, but something had to be sacrificed. Whatever systems weren't high priorities or whichever ones didn't have the right political friends. It made him sick to think that a planet might be put at a greater risk just because its leaders weren't friends with whoever was calling the shots with the fleet. But that's how it goes sometimes. Politics often cost a person more than just their fair share of taxes and fees. Sometimes it was much more.
The Rinada queued up at the portal for Balez. They had to wait for three other ships to pass through before getting the green light and freeing themselves from the political stench of Cedona.
Chapter 17
Brax pointed them to a city on Balex called Girmen. The Rinada skirted along a large body of water as it approached the city. The water formed a bay at the southern end of the city. The bay was filled with shipping vessels making an effort to navigate the established port. Four prominent skyscrapers sat just off the water's edge, encircled by buildings that diminished in size the further away from the center they got. Small homes occupied the outer section of the city and Brax advised them to land beyond the outskirts. Two mounds of rock poked through the houses, breaking the organized flow of homes. The Rinada touched down just past the last row of houses. Dry land, covered over by a light brown grass, stretched beyond the city. Further from the city rose two large peaks accented among many smaller hills. To the north sat fertile land transformed by an irrigation system where crops grew. Green stalks rose high in the air, and the green fields stretched out towards the horizon. Zavik could see the low drifting haze of grey smoke emanating from the poorly maintained machinery.
"Do you know anyone here?" Dani asked Brax as they left the ship.
"No, not really," he replied. "I've been here a few times, once while working for Red Moon, so I have some contacts, if they're still around."
"Better not be wasting our time," Charra said and laid his shoulder into Brax's.
"Like I said, they have some of the best markets in the Galaxy," Brax said. "We'll be able to find what we need. I just don't understand why you didn't want to land in the city. It'll take an hour to. Get to the heart of they city from here."
"If we land at a spaceport in the city, they'll take out information and put it on their network," Zavik said. "I don't want to give whoever's trying to kill us any more help than they already have. Landing out here helps to keep us off their radar."
Charra looked out at the city and said, "It won't matter if we die before we get there."
"Don't be dramatic," Zavik said. "It's not that far."
It was about a ten-minute walk from where Dani put the Rinada down to the edge of the city. A wide street ran through a neighborhood of houses deep into the heart of the city. There was trash littering the street and dull brown grass had permeated through the thin layer of concrete, covering it in a thick carpet. Many of the houses looked abandoned. Some that Zavik thought had to be abandoned because of their deteriorated look had someone come to the front door as they walked past. A few of the aliens stared at them, most just slammed the door back shut. The roofs were mostly dis
colored gray with sections of shingles falling off or completely dislodged. The sides were speckled with flaking paint. Whole sections of walls were cracked and broken, leaving gaping holes in the structures. Almost every house had some piece of graffiti on it. Words Zavik couldn't understand, pictures depicting horrible things that he could. There was even a very detailed picture of an Iriquios woman on the side of one of the houses. Iriquios had a look similar to humans and this depiction only had a few subtle differences to distinguish itself. Too bad someone else had come along and drawn a Rovun sex organ right next to her face. Charra chuckled when he saw it, though Dani found it disgusting. Vines crept up a number of houses, threatening to bury them forever in their midst if action wasn't taken soon. A sweet smell of decay and rotten food hung in the air. It made Zavik queasy. He wanted to run through the neighborhood, but the thought of any fast movements made him want to throw up even more.
They each held a hand steady on their sidearms but saw no one threatening as they moved through the neighborhood. The few people they did see all hid from them or just sat on their porch, lazily bobbing their heads as they moved along. An Iriquios grabbed her two children and one that wasn't hers, a young Chokmnd, and pulled them inside. When they passed her house they heard the door open back up and the kids were allowed to return to their games.
A Savin did try and sell them drugs, but Charra's growl and twitch for his gun sent the young alien running. He dropped his stash and had to seriously contemplate stopping to pick it up. Charra again chuckled at that.
They came to a crossroad and crossed a practically empty highway. Just like that, the houses were clean and well kept. The street was empty and free of trash. The horrid smell Zavik thought he was getting used to was actually gone, replaced by the fumes of vehicles. They continued down the street another two miles and they saw more kids playing in the streets. They didn't run and weren't snatched up by their mothers as they approached. A few of them would look at the strangers traipsing through their neighborhood with an uneasy look, questioning who they were, what they were doing, but others didn't even seem to notice them.
The neighborhood slowly grew taller and the buildings turned from wood dwellings into steel offices. The streets were now filled with solicitors trying to sell everything. They were offered games of chance to win money, junk items to buy, and a few interesting things as well that they knew were more than likely stolen. They passed a weapons shop and the Savin running the store front saw Charra's pistol. He remarked how nice of a weapon it was and offered to pay a nice amount of credits for it in exchange. Charra thought about it for a moment but found he had an attachment to it he didn't think possible. He couldn't quite figure out why and it frustrated him. Still, he kept the gun and consciously made an effort not to lose this one. Brax thought he should have taken the deal. After all, he said, it's just a gun. With the amount he was offering he could have bought three new ones. They heard many catcalls directed at Dani. It made Zavik uncomfortable and he could only imagine what it made her feel like. One Iriquios even approached her as she walked in the middle of them and tried to talk to her. Zavik pushed him back and told him to get lost. He didn't take kindly to that and pushed Zavik back, saying she deserved to be with a real man, not some scrawny human. The Iriquios most certainly didn't take kindly to what Charra did next. He grabbed the alien by the arms and twisted his left arm out of socket. The Iriquios let out a deafening scream. Charra tossed him against a wall and slammed a fist down right next to his face. The thin metal wall collapsed around his fist and left a large imprint as he pulled away. The Iriquios stared at the dent in the wall that was the size of his head and holding his arm against his body, he ran away.
Zavik felt only slightly emasculated at Charra taking care of the situation, but he was grateful none the less. Dani was too. They didn't hear any more catcalls for a few blocks until they ran into someone who hadn't seen what Charra did. He just clenched his fist and growled each time.
"Do you know where we're going?" Zavik asked Brax.
"Yes, I think," he said twisting his head from left to right. "Hmm...Well, you know I never came into the city this way."
Brax kept them walking straight to the heart of the city. They came to another row of businesses and he ducked into an open room. Clothing items hung on racks in the room and a glass case at the back of the store held a cache of weapons. A Chokmnd and Sequoia were browsing around and two Savins stood behind the counter.
"You know these guys?" Zavik asked.
"No," he said. "I remember this place, but it wasn't run by Savins last time I came here. It was run by a Rovun."
Brax approached the counter and said, "I'm looking for some equipment, farming equipment to be specific." He pulled out a handful of credits and laid them on the counter, resting his hand on top of them, a sign that he was willing to pay for what they could offer. "Do either of you know where I might be able to find some available?" He slowly lifted his hand.
One of the Savins looked at the other and then back to Brax and said, "I might have a cousin who deals in items like that. You're not a cop are you?" His voice was particularly rough for a Savin. It sounded like he smoked for most of his life.
"No," Brax said. "Why, are they stolen?"
"Does it matter?"
Brax looked at Zavik and shook his head. "No. Whatever it takes." The Savin reached for the credits and Brax pulled a chip back. "I'll come back for those if we don't find what we need."
"Tell him Darus sent you. He'll take care of you," the Savin said with a sly grin. "He's always got new merchandise coming in. I'm sure you'll find what you need."
They traveled halfway across the city taking a public bus that stopped just down the street from the store. The bus was shiny and clean. The side said, Funded by the Municipal Restoration Fund. An assortment of residents was on the bus, most had their heads buried in personal devices. A rough looking Chokmnd eyed the group as they boarded. His eyes lingered on Dani a bit longer than he liked, but that was nothing out of the norm.
"We're here," Brax said when the bus reached their stop. They stood before another store, very similar in style to the one they just left. The buildings rose a little higher and the streets were very busy. The store was littered with patrons and they had to push their way through to reach the back counter.
A Savin and two Rovun were behind the counter. One of the Rovun asked if they needed help.
"Yes," Brax said. "I talked to a Darus out in the southern part of the city."
"Darus?" the Savin asked hearing the name.
"Yes," Brax replied.
"What about it?" the Savin asked. The Rovun turned away to help another customer.
"He said you might be able to help me get some farm equipment. Said you always have a steady stream of new supplies."
"Did he now," the Savin chuckled to himself. "That's not what he tells my mother at Rextian."
Zavik had no idea what Rextian was and didn't feel like asking. Brax clearly didn't know either by the look of his crinkled brow.
"Tell me what you're looking for," the Savin said, "I'll see what I can do. Name's Stiner, by the way."
Rudy gave him a list of the equipment they were looking for. Four tractors, a cultivator, a plow, an irrigation system, a baler, and a harvester. Zavik was certain they would have to make several trips to deliver all the pieces of equipment. There was no way they were all fitting in the cargo hold of the Rinada.
The Savin looked over the list, running through it over and over again. He nodded and said, "Uh-huh, uh-huh," throughout. "You might be in luck. I just happened to receive a whole lot of farm equipment. I'll have to check to make sure I've got everything here. I was going to sell them individually, make a nice profit, but it looks like you'll take most of it off my hands. That'll make it easy, so I can give you a fair price."
"That sounds like what we're looking for," Brax said. "Where can we pick up the equipment?"
"I had it dropped off at a storage garage w
e have up north. Meet me there later today and we can work out the final numbers."
"That works for us," Brax said.
"No funny business," Stiner said. "You don't show up, I'll sell them the first chance I get."
"We'll be there, don't worry," Brax assured him.
They returned to the Rinada and waited. This time, they were going to take the Rinada into the city. Zavik was hoping for a quick pickup. He was anxious to finish the job for Garos, more so he could focus on the attacks than for the sake of Garos's well-being. He realized that but didn't care anymore. Either way, the job would get done.
Dani flew the Rinada to the garage location Stiner gave them just as the sun was beginning to set. The city was half covered in shadow, the other half draped in an orange glow. The mountain peaks clung to the light as it raced up the sides. The last shimmer of white pinged the top and left only a soft glow of yellow to resonate from the city's artificial light.
The garage was large and the roof open. Dani dropped the Rinada into the right side of the garage. Opposite them sat many large crates, a few tractors, and other smaller pieces of equipment. An encouraging sign to them all. There looked to be enough pieces there to fill the order for Garos.
Stiner, another Savin, and two Rovun stood in front of the equipment. They looked to be finishing up a game of cards when they landed. Zavik grabbed his pistol and the others similarly equipped themselves. Charra looked at his heavy blaster and picked it up. He started to swing it around his neck, thought about it for a second and put it back in his room. Zavik looked at him, questioningly.
He shrugged and said, "Probably won't need it."
They all got off the ship and stepped into the cool night's air. A quick chill ran up Zavik's back and the hair on his arms stood up. It had gotten much colder since the sun went down. The four aliens nodded at each other and started to walk towards them.