To Vicky, the slaver’s station looked like an old refitted Leviathan Asgard Series design, at least it wasn’t rotating to simulate gravity and the cargo bay doors were wider and extended further from the main torus shape of the station than she expected. Before the shuttle got close enough for the slavers to react, she could see Hands sent his security override code to disable their communications and defenses.
Hands opened the cargo bay from back on the Artemis, which was well away from any ships or sensors in the area. Vicky slowed the shuttle and eased into the all but empty bay. There was plenty of room as she settled into a landing and noted Hands closed the doors behind her. No one was moving as her sensors detected atmosphere flowing back into the now re-sealed hangar.
Her wrist comm chimed and she answered it while still keeping an eye on her sensors. Hands said over the encrypted comm channel, “The station is mostly deserted. As I hoped it would be. It appears most of the slaver crew is out on a delivery run. Their transport is usually in this hangar. I have isolated the three remaining crew members. One is likely asleep in a crew compartment, another is in their main control room, and the last one was working in an environmental service duct. I have locked them all in their respective locations, and have them under video surveillance. I’ll let you know if any of them get loose.”
Vicky relaxed a bit with that news but she would remain vigilant. She said, “That will save us some ammunition, but we’ll still have our work cut out for us, and that delivery run could be over any time while we’re here.”
Hands said, “True, but if the ship’s or station’s sensors detect anything I’ll give you all the warning I can. I have already ordered the station’s loading drones to begin moving food supplies, ammunition and medical supplies they can identify to the cargo bay. You will have to search anywhere else for any goodies our neighbors may have onboard. The access to the scout ship is in the hangar where you are parked.”
Rita said, “I already saw it, Hands. I know I agreed to install your pilot drone to get the scout ship back to you, but the idea still makes me nervous. I hope the drone doesn’t bang it up too much on the way back to the ship.”
Hands said, “I would appreciate that Sister DiMarco, I have done enough repair work for a while. There is one other thing, Sister Legrande. It appears the slavers left one of their guests behind. There is a young man in their main holding cell. Leave him there or release him as you see fit. You already have the station diagram in your wrist comms.”
Vicky said, “Thank you, Hands. We’ll take it from here, Legrande out.”
Dr. Ezra said, “We can’t just leave him there as Hands suggested. I know Rita has to get the scout ship ready, but surely we can take a few minutes to release the poor fellow.”
Vicky sighed and said, “We can at least check on him, Doc. He could be sick or something. The cells are near one of the storerooms we were going to search anyway.”
Rita said, “Ok, I’ll get to work on that ship if the air is good out there now. You two keep your heads on straight dealing with the guy they have locked up.”
To answer Rita, Vicky checked the readings again and opened the command cabin door and the cargo bay doors beyond that. The three of them stood and walked out of the cabin. Rita activated Hand’s new pilot drone and walked it to the scout ship in an alcove off the main cargo bay. Dr. Ezra and Vicky headed in the opposite direction to a cargo elevator.
Vicky and Dr. Ezra descended two levels to the detention level. Here, according to the schematics Hands had of the station, were several different sized holding cells, a communal shower, and toilet facilities. Hands said food was delivered when it was deemed necessary, from the crew galley a level above them.
The wide, rusty industrial sized cargo lift stopped, and Vicky lifted the metal gate by a worn woven strap. They kept their rifles ready but saw no one in the stripped-down rounded corridor. They moved cautiously, but quickly to reach the holding cells.
Curved panels were missing here and there along the bulkheads and overhead. Only the gravity plating under their feet was left intact along the curving passageway. They could see patched wiring, oddly labeled circuit boxes and unmarked conduits behind the missing panels.
The two of them reached the holding cell and could see the young man through the cell bars immediately. He was sitting on the bare floor with his back against the solid outer wall, facing the cell door. He looked up as they got closer, a puzzled look on his unshaven face. He stood as they looked him over from the heavy steel cage-like doorway, but he made no further move towards them.
Dr. Ezra slung the rifle he carried over his shoulder and said, “We’re not slavers. We came to check on you and hopefully release you.”
Vicky also swung her rifle up over her shoulder and said, “Are you hurt or sick? We wondered why you were left in there alone.”
The man took a few steps in their direction but stopped just shy of the door. He wore ragged clothes that might once have been nice and had a heavy looking metal collar around his neck with a welded ring in front and padlock holding it together in the back. He looked them over for a moment and furtively looked around behind them. After swallowing hard the young man looked ready to speak.
His voice sounded raspy at first as he said, “I haven’t talked much the past few days. The Master and his men have left me alone while they took the others away. Before they left, they only let me out to clean up after them. The Master said he still hasn’t decided who to sell me to. He claims the bids were all too low. I think he just likes to keep me around.”
Dr. Ezra and Vicky exchanged a glance before the Dr. Said, “Did this Master say why he was having trouble selling you?”
The young man shook his head and said, “He said my skills were special, he wouldn’t let his men rough me up the way they did everyone else. I don’t know if he really meant my skills or my body. He had me clean his personal rooms a lot. Most of the others did too.”
Dr. Ezra said, “I’m a Doctor, you look malnourished and dehydrated. Why don’t we get you out of there and get that collar off you.”
At the mention of the collar, the man reached up to touch the metal around his neck but also took a step back from the door and looked around behind them. It seemed as though he thought their offer of freedom might be a trick. He licked his lips and watched Dr. Ezra closely as he took a water bottle out of his pack.
Vicky said, “It may have been a while since you had that collar off, but we would be happy to remove it and take you far away from here. What’s your name?”
The man said, “My name? I’m Damon. No one has used my real name except the Master when we were alone in his rooms since the transport I was on was attacked.”
Dr. Ezra asked, “How long ago was that?”
Damon thought about that for a minute then said, “I’m not sure. I left Camelot on a Tuesday. The jump was long, but I think it was over two months before it was done. We were attacked within an hour of the jump. I guess I’ve lost track of time. What’s the date?”
Dr. Ezra and Vicky exchanged a glance before Vicky said, “It’s May twelfth, 2120.”
Damon took a moment to process the date. He shook his head as tears welled up in his eyes and said, “I’ve been here over ten months then. It didn’t seem that long somehow. My mother must think I’m dead. Could you let me out, please?”
Dr. Ezra moved without a second thought to open the door. Vicky tensed up a bit in case Damon was less friendly than he appeared, but relaxed when he stepped out and sank to his knees outside the cell. He sat there for a moment then shook his head and stood back up, a tormented look of suppressed anger on his face.
He said, “Thank you. I don’t know why you’re here or what you want, but if there is any way for me to repay you, all you have to do is ask.”
Before Dr. Ezra could say anything, Vicky said, “We’re not anything like the slavers. We’re here looking for supplies, really anything that might be useful. We have drones loading food, wea
pons and medical supplies already. We’re looking for less obvious goods.”
Dr. Ezra nodded then handed the water bottle to Damon. He said, “Drink some of that, but not too fast. We’ll have to find you something to eat soon too.”
After taking a sip, Damon said, “Why would soldiers be looking for supplies? Doesn’t the USNA provide you with all you need?”
Vicky realized the armor might be misleading, and said, “We’re not actually with the USNA. We kind of borrowed the armor and weapons. It’s a long story, and really, the less you know about it right now the better off you’ll be.”
Damon took another bigger swallow of water, replaced the cap and said, “ I don’t care who you are, as long as I get off this miserable pocket of Hell and on with my life, I’m with you. I’ve worked all over the station. The galley is above us, where they cook. The crew sleeps on that level too. If they were hiding any personal treasures at all they would be in their rooms.”
Vicky said, “We have a storeroom on this level to check first, but we can go up a level after that. When we get to the hangar, we can see about cutting that collar off of you too.”
Damon said, “The storeroom on this level is where they go through the luggage of the people they take. Once they go through it, anything they don’t want goes to recycling. With everyone gone, it’s probably empty.”
Vicky said, “Let’s check it out anyway. Maybe they left something behind.”
Sure enough, when the three of them reached the storeroom, with Vicky following behind Damon and Dr. Ezra, it was empty. There were pieces of what looked like travel tags in the room, but otherwise, there was no sign of the luggage or their previous owners. Damon looked from Dr. Ezra to Vicky and shrugged. They turned around and followed the curving corridor back to the cargo elevator.
The trio went up a level and left the cargo elevator again. This level was in much better condition than the level below, but also showed signs of imperfect repair work. Damon pointed to the left and the two would-be pirates followed his lead. There were crew cabin doors along the corridor, but they left those alone for the moment. At about the same location as the holding cell below, they reached a galley and seating area, far smaller than those on the Artemis.
While Dr. Ezra and Damon looked over the food supplies in the galley, Vicky decided to check in with Rita and Hands. She sent a text on her wrist comm to Rita first and got a reply back in a relatively short time that she was still installing the drone pilot. She smirked at the terse reply but messaged Hands on the Artemis next.
To her surprise, before she sent the message Hands called her. He said, “Captain, I’m afraid one of the slavers on your level has escaped his confinement. He is moving away from you towards the station’s central elevator. From there he can reach any part of the station. I have the elevator locked out, but if he succeeds in manually overriding me, he may escape.”
She said, “We’re on it. Doc, one of them is loose. Back me up and keep an eye on our new friend.”
Vicky left the galley and followed the curving corridor away from the cargo elevator with her rifle up and ready. She passed an open doorway and paused briefly to make sure the slaver hadn’t doubled back or left an accomplice behind. The rooms inside looked like a luxury suite on a cruise ship or an expensive hotel. She moved on.
She had just turned to head further down the corridor when a plump and balding old man in silk pajamas came around the bend and gaped in surprise at Vicky. His eyes narrowed as he raised the pistol in his hand towards her. She fired as much from reflex and training as anything else. The fat man surprised her even more by diving out of the way and getting a shot off in her direction.
Vicky felt the bullet from the pistol hit her armored abdomen. The force from the small pistol still surprised her and she fell back, gasping at the sudden pain. She remained conscious though and saw Damon hurdle over her with his empty hands spread like talons towards the fat slaver. The two struggled for control of the gun the slaver had. She heard another shot as she struggled to sit up and saw Damon rip the gun from the slaver’s now limp hand.
Dr. Ezra knelt by her side, but kept his rifle pointed at the slaver as he asked, “Are you hurt, Captain?”
She stood and felt the spot the bullet had hit. Her armor was dented there but intact. She winced at the thought of how she would have fared without it, or the tirade her combat instructors, Hands or even Marcus would have had for her if she’d gotten shot again.
She sighed at the thought of Marcus and said, “I’m fine. I don’t think our corpulent friend fared as well. Please see to him and Damon.”
He nodded then stepped quickly to examine the slaver, whose once fine silk pajamas were now soaked in an expanding pool of blood. Damon was shaking a little with his feet to either side of the crumpled body as Dr. Ezra gently moved him out of the way. Vicky tried to shake off her body’s reaction to the blow to the stomach she had taken. The armor stopped the bullet, but her body still absorbed some of the impact. She stood beside Damon and looked down at Dr. Ezra and the clearly dead slaver.
Dr. Ezra stood up and said, “That shot went right through his heart, he died almost instantly.”
Damon said, “That was too quick then. He was the Station Master. He made all of us in collars call him Master too. Those are his rooms through the open door. You’ll probably find any good stuff inside. He had a hidden panel in there. I never saw what was behind it.”
Vicky called up Hands and Rita on her wrist comm. She said, “We found your escaped slaver, he was the station master. He’s a little dead now. Any movement from the others or any other trouble we need to know about?”
Hands answered first, “That may be the first and last time anyone referred to that cretin as a ‘little’ anything. Gilbert Tasmin was a fat bloated toad of a man, and the galaxy is better off without him. I see no sign of the other two still here trying to escape, and no sign of other ships in the area.”
Rita also answered, “I’m about done with the drone here, and the only movement I’ve seen are the drones loading supplies onto our shuttle and this ship. Did you let their captive out yet?”
Vicky said, “We’ll talk more about him when we get back up to the hangar. For now, yes we have him, and he’s showing us all the slaver’s secrets. Let me know if anything changes for either of you. Legrande out.”
She turned to examine Damon more closely. His ragged clothing had a smear of fresh blood from his former captor across the chest. His hands had stopped shaking and he was breathing normally again. She looked him in the eye and saw that the cowed look he had when they found him in his cell seemed to be gone. He didn’t look away from her scrutiny at least.
She said, “Thank you. I didn’t expect you to charge him like that. I don’t think he did either. Do you feel some relief from killing your tormentor like that?”
Damon looked at the body then back at her and said, “Not relief, not even justice, but I’d do it again. He didn’t just hurt me, or the people on my transport, he hurt hundreds, maybe thousands of people here. I have no idea how many lives he and his crew ruined. Killing him isn’t enough though. Someone will replace him, and this place will just keep on ruining lives.”
Dr. Ezra spoke up and said, “I think we can do something about this place at least. Can’t we, Captain?”
Vicky nodded and said, “I’ll take care of it personally, once we’re done searching for supplies and goodies. You said something about a hidden panel?”
Damon lead the way into the dead slaver’s rooms. It was opulent inside, the wall panels were worked in gold leaf, the floor was covered in thick, plush carpets, and the dark polished furniture looked to be carved from real wood. None of those luxuries would be of much use to them on the Artemis though. Damon pointed out the false panel in the bedroom.
Damon said, “The lazy bastard kept me here by his bed to serve him sweets from a tray while he watched holo-vids so he wouldn’t have to lift them to his lips himself. I think he enjoyed s
eeing me cater to his every whim.”
The concealed panel pulled away easily to reveal dozens of data cubes. They were labeled with odd characters and surely were encrypted, but Vicky scooped them all into one of the bags she brought with her. It was a pity none of the slaver’s luxury items would be useful to them.
Dr. Ezra asked, “What did you do before you were taken, Damon?”
Damon shrugged at that and said, “I graduated from the Astronavigation course at Kennedy International two years ago, almost three years ago I guess it’s been now. I worked as a technician on a U.N. Survey ship for after that, but I finally got a billet on a Caravel science ship. I always wanted to explore, and I didn’t have many ties back home, on Orion. I was supposed to meet my new ship at Utopia Station while it was taking on supplies and fresh crew between missions.”
Dr. Ezra and Vicky exchanged another glance. Dr. Ezra said, “What are the odds of that?”
Damon said, “The odds of what?”
Vicky changed the subject by asking, “Anywhere else we might find some hidden goodies?”
They scoured the station for supplies and made sure the two remaining slavers did not escape. There was little of value beyond what the drones loaded on the two ships. Vicky found a couple of bottles of alcohol in the empty slavers quarters. Dr. Ezra loaded one of his bags with spices in their galley, and Damon brought them some data cubes with holo-vid movies. Otherwise, they found nothing of lasting value.
Rita had the drone pilot installed on the refitted and heavily armed scout ship by the time the three of them returned to the hangar. She raised her eyebrows at seeing Damon, but said nothing. Vicky hoped they had something to cut his collar off with in her tool kit.
Vicky introduced Damon to Rita and said, “Damon is coming with us, at least for now. I have one last job to attend to before we leave. I won’t be long though. Find something to get that collar off him. Then get settled in the shuttle, and have the scout ready to follow us back to the ship.”
As Vicky headed to the cargo lift again, Rita said, “Should we really bring another stranger on board, Captain?”
Escaping Utopia: Part two of the Renegade Galaxy series. Page 4