Pirates (BOOK ONE OF THE RIM CONFEDERACY 1)

by Jim Rudnick

  As he pondered that for another minute or two, word came in that they’d have to shuttle down to the station as all berths had been taken up or reserved for Barony use. He grunted with that and arranged his away team and shuttle pilot, and they moved down through the Marwick to the shuttle bay.

  Moments later, under his command, the shuttle pilot did a complete circle around the station first, noting nothing really surprising in their circuit. There was the occasional flare from a welding bot doing maintenance on the station’s surface while still others floated near cargo bays doing regular maintenance work and cleanup of escaped rock and ore that floated near the cargo bays. As they came round the station to the sunlight side, they made their way to their assigned shuttle bay and docked inside quite neatly and quickly. Working their way through the station’s own customs and medical officers, they were soon in the main corridor and moving inward toward the administrative elevators that would take them up to the station master where they’d pay their respects.

  “Remember, fellows, watch everything and note everything. And you, Sander, you put out your ‘feelers’ and take in as much as possible,” Tanner said to his away team. His XO Templeton and Lieutenant Greeley nodded, and Lieutenant Sander smiled back at him. They knew they were there on the station to find out as much as they could and to just act like Navy men everywhere. Tanner had no doubts that wouldn’t be hard for any of them, as they left the lift and moved down the corridor to the Administration Offices.

  Turning inward, Tanner and his XO went into the offices as Greeley and Anders walked on toward the center mall area. The administrator’s receptionist smiled up at them and motioned with her hand to enter.

  “Morning, Captain, XO. Administrator Cooper will see you right away,” she said as they marched by her small desk and into the office to the left.

  And what an office, Tanner thought. Enormous windows opened up on a view scape of ITO below, a world swirled with blues and greens and speckled with clouds. Closer to the station were arms of the station and the held berthed ships and shuttles. Even a Barony Navy cruiser was docked, it’s blue and red crown symbol quite evident in the steady sunlight. Smaller bots under power moved around the cruiser doing regular maintenance chores while again the flash of welders could be seen occasionally.

  “Captain,” the small man in the chair said, as he turned away from the view to face his guests, “so nice to have you here. We received news of your quest to visit us and will make the station wide open to you and your men.” The man rose and rounded his desk to offer his hand, which the XO and Tanner took, and then they settled into the chairs in front of the large desk. As the administrator returned to his chair, Tanner noted a rock, an ore sample most likely, was proudly displayed on a wooden pedestal on the desk. It’s faint purple color and specks of something silver caught the light in the office. It seemed to glow, he thought.

  “Administrator Cooper, we’re pleased to be here and thank both you and the Baroness for your hospitality. But to be perfectly frank with you, this is not a quest at all. We’re just looking for a few ex-naval men who’re rumored to be on ITO—or maybe here on Landers Station. It’s really no big deal. We’re just ‘following orders,’ I’m sure you understand,” Tanner said. Their cover story of looking for ex-Rim Navy men had seemed a likely one, and his XO had contributed blaming it on their superiors would surely ring true to this bureaucrat. The administrator took the bait right away.

  “Always the way, eh fellows! The boss sends you on another of her—or their—wild goose chases. No real reason behind it, just do it. Yes, I commiserate with you both. It’s no fun just ‘following orders’ and I should know,” he said as he pointed at the stack of files and paperwork on his desk. “About all I really do here is shuffle paperwork mostly and for real reason.” He sighed and leaned back in his chair, half turning toward the huge window behind him.

  “This place is pretty self-sufficient. We simply send down colonists and bring up ore; the ore moves back to Neres via those transports, and then they return with more colonists. Not as many as we’d like, mind you ... but the colony grows a bit each month. And I’m the guy who signs for everything.” His voice was a bit exasperated, but even Tanner could understand being stuck in a bureaucrat hell.

  “Same for us in this case, Administrator. We just have to look for a couple of ex-Navy men who’re wanted back on Juno in time for the next Rim Council meeting. Seems someone wants to talk to them before that, which only gives us about two more days of looking.”

  Tanner pushed back his chair slightly and got to his feet as did his XO.

  “So, we’ll be off. We thank you for your hospitality, and I will make sure that our men behave themselves, and we will depart sometime tomorrow—most likely by mid-afternoon,” Tanner said as the administrator jumped to his feet.

  “Right, Captain. If you have any troubles at all, just have whomever message me immediately, and I’ll speak to them. Can’t have a Baronial guest receive any troubles here at all ... you can count on me, Captain,” he said as he waved goodbye, framed in the window behind him with ITO.

  Tanner nodded and he and the XO left the offices quickly and turned toward the large center mall area ahead and to the right. As they walked, Tanner shook his head at the XO, who was going to make a comment it seemed, and pulled out his PDA. Quickly, he wrote “Most likely we’re being recorded,” and the XO nodded after reading the note. Tanner erased the note and they walked on. Even though the administrator had been more than friendly, Tanner thought, he was still in the employ of the Baroness, and for a Rim Navy man that meant caution for openers. Hospitality, yes—but trusting, no.

  At the center mall, the two stopped and looked at the large cavernous space ahead and above them. This area was the center of the station, and as such, was the home for most of the entertainment spots, the hotels, the shops, and stores. They even had a zoo, Tanner noted. Throngs of colonists mingled with station personnel; he saw a few station guards about, in their midnight black and royal blue uniforms, the norm for all Barony forces. Over on the far left were some sidewalk cafés where one could sit and people watch, which is where they headed first. Grabbing a small table, they ordered mineral waters, and while the waiter went inside to find their drinks, they watched the stream of people and families as they walked by.

  “No one seems to be in a hurry, nor even a bit agitated that the quarantine has stopped their progress down to ITO,” Commander Templeton said dryly. “In fact, it’s like they’re all on vacation,” he added.

  “Excuse me, but you’re about right on that point, Commander,” a man sitting with his family at the table next to them interrupted. He smiled at the two Rim officers and nodded his head.

  “Sorry to interrupt, but we’re so close here and I thought that I’d clear up any misunderstandings you might have. My name is Donny Turner and this is my wife, Judy, and our daughter, Amanda. Amanda is fourteen today ... so we’re out for a trip to the zoo and then a nice dinner.” His wife grinned at them, and the daughter smiled shyly as she used her long spoon to get right to the bottom of her ice cream sundae glass. Teenager and she’ll grow to be a pretty woman, Tanner thought as he noticed the deep dimple in her right cheek. He smiled back at them all.

  “Well, Donny, Judy, and Amanda. Nice to meet you all. Now tell me, you’re colonists, correct?”

  “Correct, Captain. We will be moving down to Emmanuel when the quarantine is lifted. I will become the Assistant Head Assay Chief, and Judy will work in the offices at the new college there. Amanda will be beginning her final few years of school at the New Barony High School. And while we await that final move, we are all treated as guests of the Baroness—we pay for nothing here on Landers Station. Now that’s what we call a true vacation,” he said as he finished off his glass of what looked like lemonade and ordered another one.

  “So while you await the final leg of your journey, everything is paid for here on Landers?” the XO queried.

  “We all get one
of these,” Amanda said, as she pulled a small card from her breast pocket. She offered it to the XO who took it and looked it over.

  “We use it to ‘pay’ for everything, but we don’t use our own money. We use the Baroness’s money, we suppose,” she said as her dimple deepened. Twinkling birthday eyes and that dimple; Tanner suddenly wished to be twenty-five years younger as he smiled at them all.

  “That’s a real nice thing to have done. Next time we see the Baroness, I’ll comment on how nice that was,” he said as he looked over the card before handing it back to her. It looked like an ID card with Amanda’s name, her colonist number, and date of birth, which was today, he noted, along with that black magnetic strip that carried other information which he couldn’t see, of course.

  “So, any idea on how long this quarantine might last?” he asked with no hint of caution in his voice.

  Judy replied, “Not really. All we know is that it is supposed to be over soon. But we’ve been here almost two weeks, and we’ve heard that same thing every day.” Her head shook negatively, and she gestured at the throngs of people around her.

  “Colonists keep coming, so we assume that it really will be any day now. All we can do is to wait ...”

  “And go to the zoo!” Amanda said as she grinned and stood to her feet.

  “Come on Dad, Mom, let’s go! I want to see the Jael feeding again,” she said as she shook her Mom’s arm and pulled her toward the edge of the street just past their table.

  “Well, Captain, Commander, it seems that we’re on our way. So nice to meet you, and if you’re ever in Emmanuel, please look us up. We will be living in the first yellow house past the bridge going east out of the city, we understand. And we’d love to say hello again.” Donny and Judy joined Amanda in the street and moved along with the throngs of people in center mall.

  “Want to drop by that Jael feeding session?” the XO said a bit dryly, a lift of one eyebrow accompanying his question.

  Tanner shuddered.

  “Not on your life! Was almost dinner myself, and that’s as close as I’ll ever get to one of those beasts,” he muttered as he shook his head.

  “Message Anders and Greeley and let’s get back to the ship. Shifted shore leave to begin in one hour for all except for a skeleton duty crew,” Tanner said to his XO, as he stood to join the flow and return to the ship.

  Later in his quarters, Tanner noted in his own log that the colonists all seemed to be happy awaiting the end of quarantine, the Baroness paid for their upkeep while the quarantine lasted, and Lieutenant Anders had found no dissenting viewpoints at all. Even the Landers Station personnel had shown that the Rim Navy crew was to be treated with respect as the Baroness’s invitees.

  On the whole, Tanner thought, everything here was above-board and the quarantine would be lifted when it would be lifted—until then it posed no one any problems. He glanced out his own porthole at ITO that lay below, now darkened in twilight. Shore leave sometimes posed a problem for their hosts, but he didn’t expect any troubles from the Landers Station guards. My crewmen will be well treated. He turned back to reports and provisioning tallies that needed his attention. He sighed. Being the captain was not all fun. He made the note to leave tomorrow by noon to get a bit of a jump on the thirty-two-day trip back to Juno. Time to go back to Juno. He picked up his stylus, began to check additions, and poured another Scotch.

  # # # # #

  “Well, Captain, what else do you have to say for yourself?” Colonel McQueen held up a hand to stop Tanner from replying. He’d just listened to the captain’s report on his mission and the few clues that Tanner had been able to gather on the Pirates.

  “You get made captain, a good thing, I thought. Your mission was to go out and find the location of the Pirates, and other than an Adept officer’s pre-cog thought that there may be a Pirate called Rhys … you come home empty. No Pirates. No location and to top it all off, you get drunk AGAIN and alienate the Baroness’s step-daughter, the Right Honorable Lady August, you almost get the Duke D’Avigdor killed in a hunting party, and now, you suddenly realize that you’ve no idea where the Pirates are, let alone how to stop them. Do I have that just about right, Captain,” the Colonel said, his fingers tapping on his desk and his eyes boring into Tanners.

  Tanner stood at ease but not really. What’n hell is the issue?

  “Sir, with permission, I would be the first to say that yes, my mission goals are far from complete, but due to the … uh … mitigating circumstances—”

  “And exactly how does pissing off the Baroness’s step-daughter,” snapped the Admiral, “qualify as a mitigating anything? Do you have any idea on just what kind of an idiot I look like to the Baroness when her daughter files that kind of a report AND the Baroness has demanded that the report be a part of the next Council Agenda? And it will be … and so in less than a month, I need answers, Captain … answers.” The admiral shrugged, as if to ward off the knowledge he didn’t have and looked at Tanner for an answer. And Tanner had none, yet.

  “Admiral, I do realize the kind of pressure that you’re under, and yes, I also realize that I must—I will find those Pirates, and yes, I also know that this must be done before the next Council meeting. So my promise to you is just that. In the next few weeks between now and the Council meeting here on Juno, I will find the Pirates … and bring them to justice. You have my word on that, Sir … and you can count on that, Sir.” Tanner snapped to attention and his eyes drilled straight into the wall above the admiral’s head.

  The admiral sat still for a moment, quietly frozen like a Jael who was stalking his prey, seeming in deep thought. He fiddled with his desk mat’s corners and geometrically lined up the mat with the edge of his desk … and then seemed to have made a decision.

  “Tanner … Captain Scott … I believe you. And I will hold you to your word. I need the Pirates in hand by the next quarterly Council meeting, and there can be no equivocation on this time line or matter at all. Failure to fulfill your mission will mean major sanctions against your standing here in the Rim Navy, I’m afraid. And my boy, this will not be to my liking, but I will be required to enforce that termination—the Council and the Baroness will see to it! Get out there and find them! Dismissed,” he added in a softer tone and then reached for a file folder on his desk as he half-turned away from the rigid captain in front of him.

  Waiting for the elevator, Tanner had visions of life here on the Rim without being a Navy man; of maybe trying to find a home out on Bottle perhaps with a native girl or even living on the Duke’s dime on Anulet at the ducal hunting lodge … and shook his head. There would be no life here for him, he knew, without the Navy and that meant that he had to work on finding the Pirates. And finding them fast. The only way to defuse the Baroness and her daughter, pretty as both of them were, was to hand over the Pirates.

  # # # # #

  “Sir, we’re approaching Eons, and we’re about—”

  “Attention, RN Marwick, this is Eons Orbital Control, please identify yourselves …” came the standard Ansible directive from the ever-patrolling ship in high-orbit around the planet.

  Eons was the one world that lay truly outside of the galaxy here in this part of the Rim. It was slightly below the plane of galaxy from galactic north and with a blue giant star almost twice the size of Rigel. It held its position only because its star was so immense, so large that its closeness as second planet in that system meant that it moved around its star quickly with a year there being only 103 earth days in length. Dessau, the capital of the planet, was also home of the Rim Naval Academy and was one of the planet’s claims of fame, but not the one that truly was at the crux of Eons reputation.

  The reason that Eons was known throughout the Rim was that it was also home for the Issians … a religious group that bred the Adepts and brought them to maturity here on the Rim. Issians were well known, of course, throughout the Rim but not toward the galaxy center with any real penetration as they tended to maintain their well-being
only here, close to the inky blackness that lay just past Eons. And other than the close links that they held with the Rim Navy via their Adepts becoming officers, they truly held to themselves, only occasionally forming close-knit closed groupings on few other planets at all. Most Issians lived on Eons which was the way of the Rim, and that’s what most people expected.

  “Comm, call over to Orbital Control and let them know we’re going to touch down at the port on Dessau, and we’d like to get in and supplied quickly, if possible, under Code Red A-7. And get them to acknowledge right away too, Comm,” Tanner said in a rush then to his communications officer, looking for speed on this landing.

  As the Comm officer quickly snapped their requests down to planet authorities, Tanner watched the display screen awaiting the green highlights that would show permissions had been fulfilled and that they could land … and was still waiting when Lieutenant Elliot sighed and clicked on the audio signal.

  “Yes, thank you RN Marwick, but as no one here knows what a ‘Code Red A-7’ means … uh … sorry, Sir, we’re still trying to find an academy officer to … uh … one moment, Sir, please …” The cadet’s voice faded at that point.

  “Sir, the Eons Orbital Control station is populated with Rim academy cadets, who ... um ... have not yet, I’d suppose, had any training on the various Rim Navy landing codes, well, I mean the special use ones,” Elliot said in a explanatory tone. “Guess they’ll ask for help on that one and then,” he finished with an aside.

  Tanner nodded, knowing that the lieutenant had only been on active duty for less than a year, and yes, he’d surmised the same thing. Cadets needed to learn, but that time line he had was getting shorter.

  “Permission granted, RN Marwick,” said the cadet on Comm duty on the Orbital Control station, as the perms on screen went green. Tanner thought to give that cadet an A and motioned for the Helm to take her down.

  As they stood on their tail, the thrust from impulse engines balanced their descent, and they dropped steadily toward Eons and the landing pad below. Other ships slowly rose as they touched down, other Navy ships, a Barony cruiser and frigate, and even an Alex'in hegemony sphere too, Tanner noted, but he had no time to dwell on it.