by Drew Wagar
‘Udian?’
Coyote was checking his astrogation scanner, looking for any sign of the other Caduceus. The scanner was still clouded with static from the explosion. He zoomed it in and out, looking for any tell-tale signs.
Nothing…
‘Where is he?’ Rebecca said, her voice high with alarm.
‘Looks like he didn’t make it,’ Derik said slowly.
‘But we can’t make the run on Beenri with only three quarters of the weapons…’
‘Hold it,’ Coyote snapped, studying the scanner. The static was clearing. The scanner pinged. A ship ahead of them.
Coyote switched from the rear view to the forward one.
The wide-band crackled.
‘Apologies for being out of formation,’ Udian’s voice rumbled. ‘The resultant acceleration was a little on the fierce side.’
Well, I’ll be…
‘Udian, how the frak did you survive that?’ Derik exclaimed.
‘A simple diversion of the ships entire power output into the rear shields and hull integrity system,’ the deep voice intoned. ‘I fear I may have overloaded a number of bio-pathways aboard. It may be sometime before the Hammer forgives me.’
‘I hate to admit it but I’m actually pleased to see you,’ Rebecca said, her voice brighter than it had been since they’d arrived.
‘Indeed,’ Udian returned. ‘It is gratifying to see we all survived that altercation.’
‘Blow me a kiss, Udian,’ Derik mocked. ‘And I’ll give your metal ass a polish.’
‘I’ll decline your generous offer if it’s all the same to you,’ the deep voice rumbled back with amusement.
‘Back to the script folks…’ Coyote called time on their reunion. ‘Derik, jump to Geinona, por favor.’
‘Coming right up, boss.’
Coyote leant back in his seat.
Wonders will never cease. First time we actually operated as a team. And all it took was a few near death experiences and a brace of nuclear bombs!
Jim re-read the entry from the ancient book.
The enemy boasted, 'I will pursue, I will overtake them. I will divide the spoils; I will gorge myself on them. I will draw my sword and my hand will destroy them.’
Daddyhoggy looked through the text as well.
‘They don’t mince their words, do they?’ Jim breathed. ‘They mean to eradicate us.’
Daddyhoggy looked at him beadily.
‘Oh dear. I thought we’d begun to understand the imperative tense.’
Jim raised his eyebrows. ‘I beg your pardon?’
‘Granted,’ Daddyhoggy returned obsequiously.
‘What are you talking about?’ Jim demanded, changing tack.
Daddyhoggy fluffed up his feathers. ‘You’re interpreting this as a threat. That the Thargoids intend to pursue, overtake and destroy…’
‘That’s what it says!’
‘No, it does not,’ Daddyhoggy said slowly.
‘Yes it…’ Jim stopped, aware he was dealing with a fearsome intellectual.
‘Quite finished?’ Daddyhoggy said, waiting patiently.
Jim bit down on his frustration again. ‘Go on.’
‘It is not a threat,’ Daddyhoggy replied, after a moment. ‘It is a reminder.’
Jim frowned. ‘A reminder? Of what?’
‘Read it again.’
Jim scanned the text.
‘You’re saying the Thargoid’s aren’t the enemy? Then who is?’
Daddyhoggy straightened. ‘Oh, that’s quite obvious. And the enemy boasted? It’s you.’
‘Me?’ Jim replied, outraged.
‘Oh, the difficiencies of this basic mode of speech,’ Daddyhoggy lamented. ‘You in the expansive encompassing plural, not the specific singular.’
Jim continued to stare. ‘You mean us? Humans?’
‘Yes,’ Daddyhoggy replied. ‘The meaning is quite clear.’
‘But that’s ridiculous,’ Jim replied. ‘They’re attacking us!’
‘Indeed they are,’ Daddyhoggy acknowledged. ‘But this is not a boast from their perspective. This is a reminder of why they are attacking you. You are the enemy. You are the ones boasting.’
Jim shook his head.
‘You seem surprised by this,’ Daddyhoggy observed.
‘Of course I’m surprised!’ Jim shot back. ‘You’re telling me this is revenge on us! That the Thargoids are claiming we intended to destroy them!’
‘A fair summary,’ Daddyhoggy nodded.
‘But that’s not true.’
Daddyhoggy recoiled in surprise. ‘Yes it is.’
Jim shook his head. ‘The Thargoids are an aggressive species bent on our destruction…’
Daddyhoggy regarded him. ‘I’m afraid to inform you that your history is rather, how shall we put it, selective.’
‘You’d better tell me your version,’ Jim replied, cautiously.
‘I can do better than that,’ Daddyhoggy replied. ‘I can tell you the truth. If you’re willing to hear it.’
The four ships arrived in the Diedar system. Coyote immediately flipped his Cobra over and dived away from the space lane which ran towards the planet.
‘Key Torus drives,’ he announced, ‘We’re going on a little tour to a smuggler’s paradise. I think we deserve a little R and R after all that…’
All three ships neatly lined up and triggered their drives in sequence, Rebecca bringing up the rear. She watched the planet and the sun slowly roll away in the side viewers. They were heading into deep space, there was nothing out here.
What’s he got in his devious mind this time?
Rebecca stretched her shoulder. It was still stiff from the injury that the Thargoid had dealt her, but the Health Extreme nanobots were doing their usual efficient job. Another day or so and it would be just another memory.
Long minutes passed. The flickers of light in the darkness that marked their movement through the void, minute debris disintegrating against their shields, began to thin out as they moved away from the most travelled parts of the system. No ships crossed their path.
Coyote abruptly came to a stop, turned and then accelerated off again. They had to re-key their Torus drives each time. The process was repeated a number of times.
Wild goose chase?
The planet was still receding slowly, now little more than a small crescent in the rear view, even the sun was beginning to noticeably shrink. They were a long way out.
Ahead Rebecca could just make out the reflections of the other three ships faintly sparkling in the distance in front of her. Just above them, something else was slowly coming into view.
Bigger than a ship, must be a station of some kind.
The object was pulsating slightly, as if changing shape. As they approached Rebecca could see it was spinning. At least, part of it was.
Mass locked. Hyperspeed aborted.
There was a brief feeling of deceleration as they returned to normal flight. Rebecca’s Spectre formed up behind the two Caducei. The Dark Star was moving forward slowly.
In front of them all was a station, with a spinning central carousel. It looked distinctly second hand, with patched hull panels and a large black stain across part of the external hull where something had hit and splattered long ago. There were no navigation lights or in fact any lights of any kind. It looked deserted.
A Transhab station. Haven’t seen one of those for years. Thought they’d all be decom’d.
‘You always bring us to the best places,’ Derik announced.
Coyote ignored him, gently coasting the Dark Star towards the darkened landing bay. Rebecca heard the click of narrow-band comms initiating.
‘Como estas, Sanctuary.’
‘Estoy muy bien, Coyote! Look what the cat dragged in. Got some company I see. You in trouble again, amigo?’
‘Need a place to lie low for five,’ Coyote replied. ‘These… these are my friends. You can trust them.’
‘Really?’
�
�Well, no. But they’re sound. Permission to come aboard?’
‘Usual rules apply…’
‘Usual rules.’
Coyote redirected the comms to the other ships. ‘Follow me in, one at a time. Try not to act suspicious.’
‘What are the usual rules?’ Udian demanded.
‘You’ll need to have your nav console purged so this location remains secret. Nobody knows how to get here unless they’ve already been. Consider it a smugglers’ privilege.’
The ships lined up for the approach. Powerful spot lights lit up on the station, focusing on the four ships. As each docked the lights were extinguished and the station disappeared back into the darkness of space.
Rebecca stepped off the landing ramp of her ship looking around her in surprise. The landing gantries were strewn with debris, bits of ships, drive units, fuel scoop convertors, cargo bay extensions, shield generators and all sorts of associated junk from ships both large and small. Around the bay were large numbers of ships, all broken down, some half dismantled. She even saw an ancient Cobra Mk1, half collapsed on corroding landing legs. There was no sign of life.
A breaker’s yard? Nice choice of hideaway, where’s the R and R?
The floor was covered with discarded conduits, bolts, ripped and torn sections of hull plating. Here and there were puddles of grease, leaked coolant or other even less salubrious fluids. Rebecca daintily side-stepped them, trying to stay clear. Everything was grimy, covered in grease. Even the air felt polluted, with a strong whiff of unidentified fumes. The dim illumination showed the air was full of dust.
Derik, Udian and Coyote had already reached the end of the gantry.
‘Charming decor.’ Rebecca commented.
Coyote smiled slightly.
‘It’s a frakkin rat hole,’ Derik said in dismay. ‘Thought you said this was a smuggler’s paradise.’
Coyote gestured around him. ‘You’ve got scenery, you’ve got history, you’ve got raw materials – what’s not to like? Follow me.’
Coyote lead them to the inner airlock, keying in an access code that he kept hidden from their view. The doors to the airlock opened and bright light spilled out.
The airlock seemed to be in much better repair than the external bay. They filed in. It was a tight fit with Udian’s large metallic body. Rebecca found herself wedged uncomfortably in the corner. The outer door closed. The airlock rotated. They felt a gravity adjustment taking place.
The inner door opened. A blast of noise hit them.
Rebecca blinked in surprise.
The inside of the station was arrayed in front of her. Plush pile red carpets covering a cascading arc of stairs with gilt-edged hand rails led down into a courtyard decorated with fountains. A huge chandelier hung overhead, dominating the space and providing glittering illumination. Everywhere she could see were bars, gaming and gambling tables, dining facilities. Huge tubes containing bubbling liquid and aquatic creatures decorated the walls, along with a collection of fine art, statues and glass artefacts. The structural pillars of the station were covered in deep mahogany and carved with intricate detail.
There were hundreds of people inside, milling around, appearing to be having a good time. None of them looked up or appeared to see anything unusual in their arrival. They looked like ordinary spacers, pilots, travellers and traders. They all appeared to be having a great time.
Rebecca looked around. Udian was unmoved as usual, Derik looking around almost salivating with delight. Coyote was looking back with a wry grin on his face.
‘Best kept secret in the galaxy,’ he said, smugly. ‘Welcome to Sanctuary. We’ll refuel here, prep our next move. Take some time out.’
‘Wow,’ Rebecca replied.
‘Yeah. Most people say that,’ Coyote grinned. ‘Try not to overindulge. Easy to do.’
‘Coyote? That you?’ a voice from the crowd shouted.
A man emerged. Tall, dark and handsome with a strong physique. His hair was black and he sported a neatly trimmed goatee style beard that counterpointed his darkly tanned face. He was dressed in a lightweight tunic with golden embroidery and matching slacks, his fingers adorned with large golden rings.
Coyote turned to greet the newcomer.
‘Jaenus?’
‘What you doin’ here, old man?’ Jaenus said, jumping up the stairs towards them. ‘Sullying my pad with your old school fashion sense? Still wearing that tatty old head piece I see…’
‘I never change, you know that,’ Coyote replied with a grin.
‘More’s the pity.’ Jaenus replied. ‘This your crew?’
‘We’re travelling together,’ Coyote answered, obliquely.
‘You guys fallen in with this old pirate?’ Jaenus demanded, looking around at them. He seemed completely unfazed by either Derik or Udian.
‘Times are tough,’ Derik quipped, shaking his hand.
‘This is Derik,’ Coyote said. ‘Best bounty hunter in the business, so he says.’
‘Don’t you know it,’ Derik fired back.
Jaenus grinned and looked at the big machine standing behind him.
‘I’m guessing Udian Shulth,’ Jaenus said. ‘Wow, this is a privilege…’
Derik rolled his eyes. ‘Again… I don’t get it…’
‘I’ll dispense with the pleasantries if it’s all the same to you,’ Udian replied, coolly. ‘My needs are simple, refuelling and repairs. If I may be excused?’
Coyote inclined his head slightly. ‘We’ve got five hours, then we need to be back at work.’
Udian didn’t wait for a response but proceeded to march away, making for what appeared to be a maintenance zone on the far side of the interior of the station.
Jaenus pulled a face at them, as if asking if everything was ok.
‘Don’t be offended,’ Derik said, laughing. ‘Not ripping you to pieces on first sight is actually pretty much his biggest complement.’
Jaenus shrugged and then turned to Rebecca, his eyes widening in appreciation at the sight of her. She smiled by return.
‘And who do we have here?’ he asked, looking from Coyote to Rebecca and back again. ‘You didn’t tell me you were bringing such an enchanting woman with you…’
‘This is Rebecca,’ Coyote said, eyeing the pair of them. Rebecca was coyly looking up at Jaenus, clearly rather impressed. She offered her hand. Jaenus took it, giving it a quick kiss. ‘She’s…’
‘Available,’ Rebecca said, interrupting. ‘Care to show me around?’
Jaenus’ grin widened, putting an arm around her, steering her away. He winked at Coyote over his shoulder. Coyote rolled his eyes.
‘Is she safe with him?’ Derik said, looking after the departing couple.
‘Define safe,’ Coyote replied.
‘You trust him?’ Derik said, looking at him with his good eye.
‘Oh, I trust him ok,’ Coyote said, wryly.
‘So she’s not going to get stabbed or held hostage or nothing,’ Derik looked mildly concerned.
‘Not stabbed,’ Coyote acknowledged. ‘She might get nailed though.’
Derik burst out laughing. ‘Say what?’
‘Jaenus is an inveterate womaniser,’ Coyote said, with a wry grin.
Derik managed to regain a degree of composure. ‘And you know this how exactly?’
Coyote looked across the hall appraisingly, seeking out the welcome sight of the main bars not too far away. ‘Oh… a couple of reasons. One, I’ve never seen him with the same girl twice…’
‘And two?’
Coyote grinned. ‘I taught him everything he knows. Care for a drink?’
‘What do you know of Old-Earth?’ Daddyhoggy inquired, once Jim had composed himself again.
‘In what context?’
‘In terms of when humanity left the cradle of its birth and ventured out into the stars.’ The avian replied.
‘Depends where you take it from. If you mean the generation ships, sometime in the 22nd century.’
‘We
can safely discount those,’ Daddyhoggy said. ‘Most remain still in transit. A tragic experiment with far reaching consequences. It’s not directly applicable to our immediate problem.’
‘The discovery of the Thru-space drive technology then,’ Jim replied. ‘Witch-space, wormholes, the whole chart navigation. Mid 23rd Century.’
‘Excellent,’ Daddyhoggy seemed please. ‘At least we can start in right place. What next?’
‘Humanity spread out, terraforming planets where necessary, colonising others. First it was Chart one, then with the discovery of galactic hyperspace routes, the rest of the charts.’
‘So far, so accurate,’ Daddyhoggy said. ‘And what did mankind discover on those planets when he arrived?’
‘Depends,’ Jim replied. ‘Some planets were inhabitated. Others were not.’
‘Ah,’ Daddyhoggy said, with a knowing nod. ‘That is where the fiction begins.’
‘You’re going to claim they were all inhabited and mankind forced them off? That’s nonsense.’
Daddyhoggy shook his head. ‘Quite the reverse in fact. As mankind spread out amongst the stars he discovered… nothing. There was no life. Mankind was unique, so it seemed. No aliens were found at all.’
‘That’s impossible,’ Jim countered. ‘They’re all around us. You, for example!’
Daddyhoggy’s wings fluttered out and he looked angrily at Jim, clearly offended.
‘I am not an alien!’
Jim was complete bemused. ‘But…’
‘My ancestors flew in the ancient skies of Old-Earth, as did those of all of the avians across the charts.’
‘What?’
‘The same can be said of all the felines, the canines, rodents and amphibians.’
Jim was shaking his head but Daddyhoggy continued undaunted.
‘The 24th century was the start of many things. A genetic breeding programme or a failed experiment,’ the big bird intoned. ‘Humanity’s legacy, for good or for ill, was to bless or curse the native species of Earth with consciousness and enhanced intelligence, so as to ease the loneliness of the void. For many decades it worked. Animal and human societies coexisted in harmony. Colonisation proceeded apace. Each species adopting planets as they found them suitable. Until the schism, until the purists.’