Dreaming of Atmosphere

by Jim C. Wilson

I stripped the bedding from the bunks, as both were spattered in blood, and used them to mop up what I could. I got a bucket of water from the mess compartment and went to work. I also got a few bottles of ammonia and bleach to mask any DNA traces.

  I was perhaps an hour into my job when Zoe came into the compartment. She was pale, and covered in dried blood from working on Artemis. She walked straight into her shower stall, clothes and all, and let the hot water wash on to her. The screen was opaque, but I could clearly see her silhouette through the glass. I saw her strip down out of her jump suit and saw bloody water splash onto the shower screen. She had a slender, almost lithe body and before I could see more, I realised that I was staring.

  I went back to work, trying my best to ignore that fact that there was a naked young woman showering not three metres from me. It was difficult.

  “I can come back.” I called to her.

  “No, I’m almost done. Can you pass me a towel?” came her reply. Good god, my face started to turn red again.

  “Ah…okay. Shit. I used it to mop up blood.”

  “My bottom locker. Should be another one there.”

  “Okay.” I bent down to open it, and pulled out another towel. When I turned around, still on my knees, she’d opened the shower and had stepped out. Water ran down her tight body in rivulets, following her curves. I watch a single drop go from the tip of her dark hair, which was pasted to her shoulder, down her chest, between her small, perfectly formed breasts, down her belly button, and was lost in a light tangle of pubic hair. I stupidly held the towel out for her, my mouth agape. It had been a while since I’d seen a woman in all her glory like this. Space can be a lonely place.

  She stepped up to me and ran her fingers through my sweat-caked hair. She was nervous, I could see, and she had a longing in her eyes that mingled with the fear and uncertainty that had been her world for the past few hours. I wanted to hold her, to make her fear go away. But most of all I wanted to fill her longing.

  I pulled her hand down to my mouth and kissed it. She cupped my face in her hands and pulled me up to kiss me. I stood, and encircled her in my arms. She was shivering, and I wasn’t sure it was because of the cabin temperature. Her probing hands tore the clips on my jump suit open and she peeled me free of it, our mouths still locked in a deep kiss. I stepped out of the suit and carried her to her bunk. A part of my mind nagged that I shouldn’t take advantage of her like this, that I had a duty to her as her Space Daddy. A louder, more insistent part of my mind told me that we both needed this.

  We made love, consuming our need and burning away the terror and the stress of combat and danger. It was passion, pure and simple, and it drove our desire like fuel tossed on a fire. When we were spent, we didn’t speak, only lay there for a few minutes more before duty drove us to get up. I surveyed the cabin, the scent of ammonia and sex strong on the air. I’d cleaned the blood off the deck, and the ammonia had taken care of any that had seeped into cracks or grooves. My work here was done. I bent to grab the bucket and rags I was using, but Zoe just took my arm.

  “Leave it, I’ll finish here.” She looked me in the eyes as she said it, and gave me a faint smile that reached her eyes.

  “Zoe…” I began.

  “Thank you. For being here.” She shoved a bundle of my clothes at me and gave me a light push. I dressed quickly and left the cabin. I found that I was also smiling.

  15.

  Nearly ten hours later, we were closed up in the command module. The hull repairs were almost done, enough for us to get underway again. Artemis had been stabilised by a nanite injection that began to repair the damage to her body, and I’d helped Zoe rig up a portable monitoring sensor that would feed information to Zoe’s overlay. All while we worked, we never once mentioned our encounter, but I could see she was still thinking about. A subtle change had come over us, we stood closer than we needed, and we found reasons to get the other’s attention. Even though I knew little about medical technology, I somehow found myself useful.

  I found myself pondering my new found attraction to her, and where it had come from. Was it simply my need for psychological healing that drove me to her? Was I being inappropriate, taking advantage of my position of authority over her? I’d always found her attractive, but I’d never found her appealing. Now all I could think about was her. At least I wasn’t thinking about Artemis anymore. Not that I was before. I mean, I wouldn’t even try, well she was very forward in her advances. She had a way of muddling up my thoughts when she was near. But now it was as if a fog had cleared from my mind. Now I despised her. I couldn’t even think of why I’d found her attractive before. She was poison, I could see that now, and Zoe was my antidote.

  “What are you so happy about, Donny?” asked Max, who had caught my far away stare and the smile that was turning the corners of my mouth up.

  “I’ll tell you later.”

  “He fight with shirtan! Warrior smiles with pride!” came Crege in the front.

  “You both did, I’m proud of you all.” said Max, grinning. She switched on the PA and spoke into the mic, “Whatever happens in the next few hours, I want you all to know that I’m proud of you all. You’ve handled this crisis with grace and courage. I love you all. Even you, Cuts.”

  Fel turned around and placed a hand on her shoulder.

  “It is always an honour to work under one of such calibre, Maxine, you do the Dreaming proud.”

  “Kitrak!” came the salute from Crege, thumping his chest.

  “You’re the best Captain on this ship, Max!” I said, grinning ear to ear. She thumped me on the arm and smiled back.

  “You guys are horrible. Especially you, Donny.”

  “The Corporate shuttles are hailing us, Captain” broke in Fel, “They’re asking us to ensure atmosphere is in the port airlock and prepare for boarding. The one designated Alpha is moving to dock. The Beta is standing off, probably on overwatch in case we try anything.”

  “Let them in, tell them we’ll meet them at the airlock. Let’s go, Donny.”

  This time I’d brought my ablative jacket and wore my PX-2. I even stashed a couple of party poppers in my jacket inner pocket. I escorted Max along Deck 1 to the port airlock and watched through the port holes as a black shape arranged itself over the outer airlock door. A few minutes later the outer door chimed and Max activate the release. He hatch irised open and several dark forms stepped through to the outer airlock chamber. There was two large, alien guards on either side of a man wearing a long black coat and suit that shimmered in the bright light. It was as if it was made of black gloss plastic, with tiny stars sparkling in the light. Behind the guards were four menacing looking synthetics. These were larger, more powerful robots, and they carried what looked like thermal cutters in their hands. A shoulder cannon rested on each synthetic, beside their angular heads.

  The guards were pale green, almost blue-skinned men with nearly featureless faces. Pink, or pale red, eyes glowed faintly from their grim faces. These were instantly recognisable as Frikk, mercenaries from the Tantis System near the far side of the Votus-Eridani Network. They were heavily armoured and carried stub-rifles, carbine energy weapons that use a pistol grip. They’re great for close range gun fights, such as starship interior fighting.

  The man didn’t look pleased to be here. Screw him, we weren’t either. Max opened the inner airlock once the outer one was closed and the guards pushed their way into our ship, virtually pushing us back at the point of their guns. The man followed.

  “I am Captain Maxine Cooper, skipper of this unaffiliated freighter. Would you care to explain why my ship was attacked and boarded illegally?”

  “You are harbouring an enemy of the Corporations, and have destroyed Corporation property while doing so.”

  “Perhaps we should take this to my conference table.”

  “You will assemble your crew immediately.”

  “Okay, but you’re wasting your time. I told your boss there was no one here that isn’t part o
f my crew, and those drones were destroyed in self-defence.”

  “Comply, and we’ll be done with this unpleasant encounter as soon as possible.”

  Max glared at the man, and then stalked towards the ladder well to Deck 2. She called over my shoulder to muster the crew in the mess deck. I ran back to the command module and told the others, then piped the crew via the PA.

  By the time I got down to the mess compartment, nearly everyone was there. When the last of us had arrived, we were pushed into a group in the middle of the compartment. The guards and the synthetics surrounded us and generally looked menacing, while the Corporate man paced. I found myself standing next to Zoe, and I nodded to her reassuringly.

  “Corporate Intelligence indicates that this ship is in the employ of one Benedict Jenner, and that an agent of this individual boarded the Dreaming of Atmosphere at the Corus Cluster. You will turn Artemis Deriss over to me, and her cargo, and the Koveli-Xue Corporation will not hold your Captain or your crew responsible for the destruction of its property twelve hours ago. Failure to comply will cause the forfeiture of the Dreaming of Atmosphere, and the incarceration of Captain Cooper. Your crew will be left at the Harakiwa Station to find their own way.”

  “Under whose authority does the Koveli-Xue Corporation act? You can’t just seize our ship or myself without a legal writ! We don’t have any Artemis what’ser name on board and we never have.” Maxine was doing her best lawyer interpretation.

  “But you don’t deny working for Benedict Jenner?”

  “We do, we never have and never will work for criminals.”

  “Our records indicate that you have received payment from Jenner in the past, your argument is invalid.”

  “Unknowingly! He was acting through a factor, a man by the name of Isaac Cameron.”

  The man had that faraway look people get when reading their overlays.

  “That is correct. We have confirmed Isaac Cameron did indeed act in Benedict Jenner’s place. However, we have footage from Corus Cluster security that shows you and your First Mate meeting with Jenner before leaving the habitat.”

  “And that’s when we found out who we had been working for previously. You can see how we reacted to that.”

  There was more staring off into space from the man.

  “I see. Your statements do indeed seem to check out. We have one anomaly unexplained, however. Your departure from Corus Cluster.”

  We all tensed up. Max was trying her best to keep a poker face; it was only because I knew her so well that I could see the tension in her neck and back. A warm hand slid its way into mine and I looked down to see Zoe’s hand there. I looked into her eyes and saw the fear there. I squeezed her hand and smiled, I hoped it was reassuring and I tried my best to look confident. The man continued.

  “There was a surveillance malfunction reported at the same time as your listed departure and an hour prior. There seems to be missing footage of events leading up to your departure, and they resume without explanation shortly after you leave.”

  “So? The Corus Cluster is a poorly maintained station, everyone knows that.”

  “You don’t find it convenient?”

  “I find it for what it is. A shitty security system on a shitty station in a shitty star system.”

  The man stared down at Max for several long minutes. Eventually he turned away and barked an order to the synthetics, who began to march off in different directions.

  “My security detail will search your ship, if we find Ms Deriss you will be dealt with harshly. I cannot guarantee the safe passage of your crew to Harakiwa Station, if this is the case. Droids, be sure to scan for magnetically shielded cavities. We are wise to modern smuggling techniques, Captain Cooper, and will tolerate no misdirection on your behalf.”

  The man continued his pacing as the synthetics left the compartment, leaving us with the Frikk and the Corporate man. For once, I saw the cunning of old man Hieron at work. Magnetically shielded cavities used to be hard to find, but were necessary for the safe shipment of certain contraband that needed to be protected from radiation. Chemicals, narcotics and nanites were susceptible to radiation damage, and using magnetic shielding protect them from the harmful rays from outer space. Hieron Donovan, however, never smuggled the more common types of contraband. He never used magnetic shielding, and turns out he was never caught either. After nearly an hour of searching, the synthetics returned and reported in the negative. They had not found Artemis in her coma. The man was not happy.

  “What is your destination?” he demanded

  “Eridani System. Looking for some quality leave time for my crew. We’ll be looking for work when we get there. Had enough of the frontier for now.”

  He stared into Max’s face, but I could see she was more confidant now. A vein began to pulse on the man’s forehead.

  “Koveli-Xue does not forget, remember this, Captain Cooper. If you have been deceiving us we will learn about it and you will pay for this sli...” Right at the end of the man’s rant Maxine suddenly punched him in the stomach, driving the wind from his lungs. The Frikk and the synthetics raised their weapons almost in unison. While the man wheezed for breath, he held a hand out behind him for them to hold their fire.

  “You shoot up my ship, put my crew in danger, detain me and my ship and falsely accuse us of smuggling. Then to top it all off you threaten me. Get off my ship. I will be reporting this illegal action to the Protectorate fleet when we pass through the Harakiwa Jump Gate.” Max snarled through clenched teeth, her fist held at her sides.

  He recovered and gave her an ugly sneer and turned about swiftly so his long coat swished in the air. His synthetics followed him out, and the two Frikk waited a moment with deadpan stares before filing out towards the command deck airlocks. Once they were off the ship, Max, Fel’negr, Crege and I rushed to the command module. We tracked the two shuttles as they left, and we didn’t hear from the Spear of Orion or her shuttles again. Within the hour, we were under way once more, and we fished Artemis out of the cavity we’d stashed her in.

  16.

  At last we arrived at the Harakiwa Jump Gate. Of all the advances in technology over the centuries, none have eclipsed the importance of these wonders of science. These massive structures are the arteries of galactic society. They link the thousands of star systems that make up the Galactic Protectorate, and allow trade to exist between the stars. They exist, and because of this humanity has swept the galaxy and left behind Mother Earth.

  As history would tell it, one of the first Jump Gates was opened on our home planet nearly fifteen centuries ago. This taught us the terrible lesson that Jump technology and gravitational mass don’t mix. The resultant explosion forever robbed us of the birthplace of humanity. Jump Gates, from that point on, were only ever constructed at points in a system where gravity holds little sway. Lagrange points in a system were carefully checked and analysed, and even then perfect points were nearly impossible to find. The custodians of each gate timed activations to coincide with the faint waxing and waning of gravitational pull, as planets pass by and tug gently upon the great rings.

  Structurally, the gates are a torus of metal and machinery easily large enough to accommodate the largest of starships. Conspiracy theories abound about private Corporate Jump Gates that lead to hidden star systems accessible only to the Corporate elite, but such stories have little basis in fact, I’m sure. Anchored to each Jump Gate is a military outpost called a Jump Station. These habitats serve as the primary base of operations for the Protectorate military fleets, and tend to cater to frontier traders and transporters. They’re an excellent source of gossip and news, and many travellers stop at the Jump Stations at either end during their journey. The stations are named for the system their Jump Gate connects to. For example, the station on this side of the Jump was called Harakiwa Station, while the Station in the Harakiwa System was called Argessi Station.

  We had no plans to stop at the station on the Argessi side of the Jump Gate,
but Max told us we were to stop at the Argessi Station to refuel and pick up supplies. I knew she had an ulterior motive for stopping as well, but she was being very secretive about it.

  There was a moderate amount of traffic passing through the gate and we joined a queue, the bane of Crege’s existence. Today he showed an unusual amount of patience, however, and he managed to remain silent the entire time we waited. Within a few hours we were entering the Jump Gate, and this did wonders for our spirits.

  Artemis had since woken up. We filled her in on what transpired and she for once had nothing to say. She seemed to be thinking things through; although what decisions she was making I had no idea. Just when it looked like she wasn’t going to say anything at all and we moved to leave her to rest, she called out to Zoe.

  “Thanks,” she said, “You saved my life.”

  Zoe muttered something about just doing her job, and sheepishly went about organising some instruments for calibration. I left Artemis to her sombre mood, and carried on with my duties for the day. Later, I called in again to check on her, and collided with Zoe as she was leaving the med lab in a hurry. Her face was bright red and she was looking at her feet when I ran into her. She muttered an apology and ran off without so much as a greeting. I looked after her, confused, and turned back to the patient. She was giggling.

  “Oh, this is priceless!” She was laughing, “You’ve graduated from Space Daddy to Sugar Daddy!”

  “What? What did she say?”

  “Nothing, it’s more what she didn’t say that told me. I could practically see her floating. Did you know she was humming?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. We don’t gossip on this ship, just so you know. I suggest you follow the rest of the crew in this matter and keep your mouth shut.”

  “Oh, I’m just having a little fun. It’s been so boring on here, I don’t even have access to the ship’s library. Tell you what, you get Maxine to relax the local network ban for me and I’ll not start singing playground songs about you two.”