The Renegade Star Series: Books 1-3 (Renegade Star Box Set)

by JN Chaney

  “What are you—”

  The airlock blew open with a shattering blast that knocked both Abigail and I on our asses. I hit the wall, rolling to the floor as the world blurred into a haze.

  I felt a ringing in my ears as I struggled to stand, only to fall back against the wall. I could hear the faint screams of someone far away…or were they close? Was it Abby? Was she calling me?

  I pushed myself off the floor, trying to see ahead of me. The blurred outline of something, a person moving, came toward me.

  I reached for my pistol, thumbing the holster on my hip as I tried to get my grip, but it was difficult.

  “…alert…”

  A voice in my ear. It sounded like Sigmond.

  “…sir, there is…you must…alert...”

  “Siggy,” I muttered, suddenly aware of how dry my throat was. “Siggy, what’s going on?”

  “The ship is being boarded, sir. You need to stand up, quickly.”

  “Boarded?” I muttered, coughing, but I couldn’t see much of anything. Only the haze and black spots across my vision.

  I sensed something moving. Figures coming out of the airlock. “Sir, you must get up at once. The enemy is here. You need to stand,” said Sigmond.

  One of them stopped, looking at me and walking closer. “What do we have here?” he asked in a deep, scruffy voice. “You must be the guy in charge.”

  “Who…the fuck…are you supposed to be?” I managed to ask, blinking rapidly, trying to make out his face, impossible as it was.

  He laughed as he stood over me. “The man who’s taking your ship.”

  Before I could say anything else, I felt the top of his boot slam into the side of my head.

  * * *

  A scream woke me.

  “Get away from me!” yelled Octavia.

  I cracked my eyes open to see her laying prone on the floor. Her chair was on its side, seemingly tossed to the other end of the lounge.

  Two Union officers stood over her, each with a hand on a little girl’s shoulder.

  Lex.

  There were too many things to process at once. Too many questions racing through my mind. I pushed every last one of them aside and focused on the girl in front of me.

  She stood between them, helpless to do anything. Her cheeks were wet from crying as she watched them taunt the cripple on the floor.

  Abigail sat behind her, across from me. I could see she was unconscious, knocked out in one of the chairs. Her head was drooping forward, bangs hanging across her forehead, hiding her eyes. Each of her wrists had been tied to the chair. Either she’d put up a fight or these guys knew exactly who they were dealing with.

  I tried to lift my arm, but felt the pressure of a plastic strap across my wrist. Fuck.

  “Please, you mustn’t hurt the girl!” pleaded Hitchens. He was in the hall to the right of me, behind Octavia, an armed guard in front of him.

  “Shut the fuck up, fat man!” barked the soldier. He pushed him, knocking the doctor to his knees. The other men laughed.

  “Hey, I found another one!” called a voice. It came from the direction of the cargo bay.

  Freddie. As the soldier brought him closer, I could see a mark across his left eye. It was fresh and still bleeding.

  At least he tried to fight, I thought.

  “Sit over here,” the Union official in the center of the room said. A captain, by the look of him, the leader of this group.

  I’ll kill him first.

  A young man approached the officer. He was lower ranking. Maybe an ensign in his mid-twenties. Black hair, well-kept. Quiet eyes. “Captain Anders, sir, what are your orders?”

  The middle-aged officer looked over each of his new prisoners. Before his eyes could land on me, I pretended to be unconscious. “Extract what you can from their system. We’ll blow the ship once we have what we need.”

  “The ship has an AI, sir. We won’t be able to break its encryption with the equipment we have on hand,” the young man responded. “If we were to tow the vessel back to Union territory, we could have a specialist meet us to assist in the extraction process.”

  The officer nodded. “We’ll transfer these prisoners to the hold and return with both ships. Good catch on the AI, ensign.”

  “Thank you, sir,” said the young man.

  The captain looked at each of the other men. There were six in total, by my count. “Begin the transfer immediately. I’m ready to get out of this sector.”

  I cracked my eyes, barely enough to see anything. Two men took Lex by the wrists, pulling her away from the rest of us. She tried to resist. “No! Let me go!”

  One of the men smacked her across the cheek. “Quiet down!”

  She clutched the side of her face, but didn’t cry.

  “Stop it!” demanded Octavia. “She’s just a child!”

  “Tell her to calm down,” ordered the captain.

  Octavia looked at him, then at Lex, hesitating. “Lex, do as they say. I promise it will be all right.”

  Lex held her hands in front of her waist. “Okay, Octavia.”

  Another soldier cut the straps on Abigail’s wrists, then lifted her legs. “Hey, help me with this one,” he told another man.

  “Sure thing,” said the other soldier. Together, they hoisted the woman up and moved her to the airlock and into the other ship.

  Hitchens and Freddie followed, each with a rifle buried in their backside. They said nothing as they walked.

  Finally, only the captain, Octavia, and the ensign remained. “Let’s get this woman onto the ship,” said the officer.

  “Are you going to carry me?” she asked him.

  He raised his brow at her. “If we give you back that chair, will you play nice?”

  “Are you that afraid of a crippled archeologist?” she asked. “What am I going to do against six armed soldiers?”

  “Fine, but I promise you, if I see you try anything, I’ll have this one—” He pointed to the ensign. “—shoot you on the spot, right in your little chair. Is that understood?”

  She nodded.

  “Ensign, if you would,” said the captain.

  The young man brought the chair over to her, then helped Octavia into it. “Hands where I can see them, please,” he told her.

  She kept them in her lap, and he began pushing the chair towards the airlock.

  I shut my eyes again, waiting. The captain approached me, standing there. I could hear him breathing.

  “Now, what to do with you?” he muttered.

  I heard a click in my ear. “Standing by, sir.”

  Good, but I couldn’t give Siggy any orders yet. Not until I got myself out of this chair.

  I felt a hand on my wrist as the officer began to untie me. It was taking him longer than it should, but that was because he only had one free hand to do it with. The other, I knew, was still holding his handgun. Without opening my eyes, I understood that the barrel was aimed squarely at my head. If I tried anything now, I’d be dead before I could move.

  He managed to loosen the knot, and then got to work on the other, pushing my arm back in the process.

  I let my body go limp, like a ragdoll. I fell forward.

  The captain backed up, standing over me. I could sense the debate going on in his idiotic brain. Should he carry me or get one of his men to do it?

  “Docker, get in here and load their captain up,” he barked.

  I nearly smiled at how predictable he was.

  Docker came running from the other ship. “Yes, sir. I’ll handle it.”

  “Hurry up and get him inside. We need to get out of this sector, quickly.”

  “But we have the cloak,” said Docker.

  “It only covers our ship,” said Captain Anders. “And without access to this ship’s system, we won’t be able to use theirs.”

  “Does that mean we’ll be vulnerable to attack?” asked Docker.

  “Only if we stay here for too long. This area is too far out from Union space. There
are ravagers, pirates, Sarkonians. We can’t risk a fight while we have this vessel in tow.”

  “Understood, sir,” said Docker, lifting my arm over his shoulder.

  He pulled me to my feet, but I sank back to the floor, hitting it with a loud thud.

  “Docker, you need to hold him up,” said the officer.

  “Right,” said Docker. He bent down to take my hand.

  I cracked my eye open, glancing at his waist…at the gun on his hip. It was an M-7, standard military issue. No fingerprint scanner on that one, unlike the M-8. Lucky for me.

  As he lifted me, I felt my toes touch the floor. I was a foot taller than this asshole, so he strained to hold me. Good. That left him distracted.

  It left him vulnerable.

  My right arm swung across his chest and waist as he angled my body against his own, and my hand came within a few centimeters of his holster. Now was my chance.

  I grabbed for the pistol at his waist and pulled it free. I opened my eyes fully, staring him in the face.

  His mouth dropped as I met his gaze, and I dug the gun into his side. “Sorry, Docker,” I said.

  With our eyes locked, I pulled the trigger.

  He collapsed on the floor in front of me and clutched his side.

  I turned the weapon on the officer right as he was about to do the same to me. “Freeze.”

  He paused, hand around the grip of his gun. He glanced at his weapon, then at me.

  “Go ahead,” I muttered. “If you think you’re fast enough.”

  Anders swallowed. “Your people are on my ship. If you try anything, they’ll all die.”

  “But you’ll die first,” I said. “Put the gun down and step away. If you don’t—”

  He brought his arm up, suddenly, trying to catch me off-guard.

  I shot him in the neck, forcing a hole clear through the other side. He looked surprised as he staggered back, falling on his ass, with blood pouring out of the new hole like an upturned soda bottle.

  I stole the gun out of his hand, stepping back with it.

  Anders gasped, with garbled, wet sounds instead of words, struggling to breathe. He clutched at the wall behind him, trying to pull himself up, but couldn’t do it. All the strength in him was leaving. He’d be dead within the minute.

  Good.

  “Siggy, can you seal their docking clamps?” I asked. “We can’t have these assholes trying to run.”

  “Their ship has its own AI unit, but I’ve been working to override its firewall. It appears to be missing the latest firmware update, which is good news. I should have access within the next ten minutes, approximately.”

  I heard someone yell from the other ship. “Hurry! Get to the captain!”

  “Do what you have to, Siggy,” I said. I glanced at Anders right as his eyes had gone empty and he stopped moving.

  I stepped over Docker, who was fading in and out of consciousness, and ran to the wall adjacent to the airlock. Footsteps raced through the corridor on the other side.

  Any second now.

  I felt the wall behind me shake as the remaining soldiers came running. I could hear them grunting, clumsily stomping. Union dogs were never light on their feet.

  I took a long, clean breath, my fingers on the triggers, extended my arms and turned into the airlock door.

  Two men met my guns the very next second, and four eyes stared down the barrels.

  They each started to open their mouths, but I fired a pair of bullets before either could make a sound.

  Brains spattered across the wall behind them, and the bodies collapsed.

  Four down, two to go.

  I moved quickly through the interior of the ship. It wasn’t like any Union vessel I’d ever seen. The design was newer, cleaner, more concise. Good for a small crew like this.

  “Sir, if you’ll pardon the interruption,” said Sigmond. “I’ve infiltrated the firewall. The opposing artificial intelligence is attempting to stall my progress, but I believe I will take control—” He paused. “—Now.”

  I heard a mechanical sound beneath my feet, like something snapping into place.

  “Locks have been secured. I will proceed with quarantining the other AI.”

  “Good luck,” I whispered, getting close to a larger room in the center of the ship. It resembled my lounge, from what I could tell. An open area with tables and chairs, but the furniture was nicer and it lacked the same homely smell as The Star.

  I heard a woman’s voice from further down the hall. “Where am I?! Who are you?!”

  “Guess Abby’s awake,” I said, turning my attention to the end of the corridor.

  I took a few steps in that direction, but stopped when I heard a rustling noise, followed by a man’s cry.

  I raced toward it, prepared to fire, when I saw Abigail step into the hall, a rifle in her arms. She reacted by jerking the gun up toward me. “Whoa!” I snapped, raising my hands.

  She pulled the gun away when she saw me. “Captain Hughes!”

  “You okay, Abby?” I asked, staring at the barrel.

  She turned the gun away from me, but didn’t lower it. Smart, since there was still one more soldier to deal with. “What happened? I woke up a minute ago to this jackass trying to handle my—” She paused. “Where’s Lex?”

  “They have her somewhere on this ship.” I tapped my ear. “Siggy, do you have eyes in here yet?”

  “I do now, sir,” he responded. “Everyone is being held inside the brig, near the back of the ship, opposite the bridge. You’ll want to take the next right.”

  “Siggy says they’re down that way,” I said, pointing to the branching corridor.

  “How many soldiers are left?” she asked.

  “Siggy, what’s the count? Is it just one?”

  “Affirmative, sir.”

  “Just the one,” I told her.

  She nodded. “Follow my lead, then.”

  “You follow mine,” I said, stepping in front of her. “Don’t be thinkin’ you’re in charge just because you whooped that guy’s ass.”

  TEN

  I knew by the body count, up to now, that the last remaining soldier was the ensign, the mid-twenties kid who suggested they take our ship. I wagered a punk like that couldn’t match me in a fight, especially with this crazy nun by my side, but I also wasn’t stupid enough to drop my guard.

  I raised both pistols as we neared the brig door. “I’m detecting movement inside,” Sigmond said in my ear.

  A quick nod to Abigail told her as much as she needed to know, that this was the right spot. She returned the action, extending her rifle.

  “Open it, Siggy,” I whispered, not wanting to touch the access panel. It was better to keep my weapons pointed ahead of me and my eyes forward.

  “Right away, sir.”

  The door slid open, revealing the inside of the brig, and—

  “I surrender!” said the ensign on his knees with his hands behind his head.

  I kept my guns trained on him, then leaned inside to make sure there was no one else. Even with Sigmond’s assurances about the crew count, it was better to be safe than dead.

  After I was satisfied, I turned back to the man before me. “Huh,” I muttered. “Didn’t think he’d just give up.”

  Abigail rushed by me and kicked the boy in the chest. He let out a sharp woof as the air left him and he fell on his back. A second later, Abby had her knee on his ribs and a rifle in his mouth. “Where is she?”

  “O-er d-er,” he said, his tongue flapping against the metal.

  “What’s he saying?” I asked.

  The ensign pointed to his left, across the room.

  I walked past the two of them.

  “Captain Hughes!” exclaimed Freddie. He was inside a small cell with Hitchens, some distance down the hall.

  “Thank goodness!” said the doctor.

  Across from them, I spotted Octavia in her wheelchair, with little Lex beside her on the floor.

  “Everyone okay?” I
asked.

  “As good as can be expected,” said Octavia.

  I called back down the hall at Abigail. “Hey, before you kill him, can you ask that guy how to open these?”

  “Answer,” she commanded, squeezing the grip of the rifle.

  “Might wanna take that gun out of his mouth first,” I added.

  She growled, but did as I said.

  “The access code is 33918,” said the ensign. “Please, don’t shoot me!”

  “This guy makes it too easy,” I muttered.

  I typed in the code on Freddie’s cell. As soon as I hit the last digit, the door unlocked.

  Freddie grabbed the bars and pushed it free. “Where are the rest of those men?” he asked.

  “Dead or dying,” I said, typing the code into Octavia’s side.

  Another click, but this time I grabbed the handle and pulled it myself. “Need someone to push you?” I asked her.

  She rolled her wheels, moving towards the opening. “I have it, thank you.”