by Zach Winderl
“What are we looking at?” Atom asked.
“Large ship.” Spooling information held Hither’s attention to the boards in front of her. “I’m registering something with greater mass than a small moon. I’m not sure if it’s actually a ship or a pirated moonlet.”
Atom glanced over from Shi’s com-station. “A moonlet?”
Hither flipped a hand and the initial readings on their approaching target sprang up on the console in front of Atom. As more information poured into the Ticket’s scanners, the picture gained clarity.
It did, in fact, look very similar to a small moon.
“What kind of readings are we getting on that thing?” Atom asked, scrolling through the information with idle curiosity.
“Fair low EM projections for something that large.” Hither’s eyes pinched as she flicked through the incoming information. “They seem to be running silent, other than microburst communications with more than a dozen undesignated points throughout the galaxy. And I wouldn’t notice those except I’m actively scanning the target.”
“No outliers?”
“Not that I’m detecting, although there could be a few scout ships beyond our scan range. If they’re there, they are running dark.”
“I wonder why I’ve never come across anything like this before.” Atom scowled at the projections, spinning them in the air with a flick of his finger. “Daisy, how close are we to visual?”
“Deep scans will give you a fuzzy, but nothing that will help us at this point.”
“And we’re sure this is our target?” Atom stroked his chin in thought.
“I don’t see how it could be otherwise,” Hither replied. “It’s sitting smack on the coords you gave me. It’s too far outside normal lanes to be a coincidence. And it’s the only thing within two AU’s worth mentioning.”
Pulling the image up on Shi’s console, Atom examined the grainy picture. With each second, the pixilation recalibrated, until Atom stared at a rough surfaced asteroid.
“You weren’t kidding,” Atom said. “She’s almost a rogue moon.”
“Think the client’s ship is hiding in her shadow?” Daisy asked.
“I’m not so sure,” Hither replied. “These EM bursts are coming from the moonlet itself. That’s pointing to some sort of station on the surface, or just below the surface. Or perhaps a ship tethered to the surface.”
Atom studied the moonlet. As they approached, a deep crater hove into view, revealing a line of recessed docking bays visible only as shadows through the scanners.
“You picking up the bays?” Atom asked Hither. “There are enough to haku an entire mid-sized fleet at once.” The presence of man-made structures countered by the lack of ship traffic surrounding such a base ticked a warning switch in the back of Atom’s mind.
He swiped the images of the moonlet off his screen and pulled up the coms.
“This is the merchant ship One Way Ticket requesting docking clearance,” Atom called out, flashing the ship’s transponder ID as he spoke.
For a moment, the only sound on the bridge was the soft hiss of the com system.
“Merchant ship One Way Ticket, this is fleet vessel Harvest Moon, maintain your current course. Once clear of our perimeter, you will be notified and guided into the correct docking bay via beam interface.”
The connection blinked out, leaving Atom with a surprised look on his face.
“I guess we’ve officially been invited.” He spun away from the console and stood. “What’s our time looking like?”
“Rough estimate is twenty ticks,” Hither replied.
“Daisy’s got this, Hither. I want you geared and ready to float. Daisy, grab your gauntlets on the inbound, and then join us in the hold as soon as we touch down. I don’t know what we’re expecting here, but I want all hands, and prep like a hostile drop.”
Hither closed out her station and hopped up.
“See you in a touch,” Daisy continued to stroke Mae as he studied the fast-approaching asteroid.
***
The beam-supported docking proceeded as smooth as if Daisy had dropped the ship himself.
Atom focused on the upcoming meeting. As tricky as the search for the Ave Maria had proven, he wondered if the job might be better stowed in the back of his hold. As he strapped on his rail pistol, he smiled down at Margo. She sat in the little bunk he had rigged to the ceiling, swaying like a miniature Buddha.
“Best lesson learned on a job,” he said as he straightened the collar of his shirt and slipped into his dulled brown jacket. “Look the best you can with a new client and play the honesty card, Margo. You’d be surprised the leeway you can garner from a little honest banter.
“We don’t have time for another job at the moment, but talking one out can’t hurt either side.” He picked her up and set her on the floor with a loving tousle of her hair. “As long as they know where they stand in your docking order, most clients are more than willing to work with you and wait their turn. Good clients wait for good work to be done. And if they’re in a rush, they can always move on with their second choice.”
He guided her from their shared rack-room and towards the hold.
“Can’t say I’ve been more impressed with a beam dock in all my time as a pilot,” Daisy laughed as he fell in beside them. “I think the whole crew is ready to hit this one. We plan on sticking with you through hell or high water.”
“Appreciate it.” Atom picked up Margo and tossed her to the pilot.
Margo squealed with delight.
“It’s nice to see you looking normal again. I can’t say anything about prison agrees with either of us.” Atom gestured to the pilot’s attire. Dressed in his usual canvas work pants and snug, short-sleeved shirt, Daisy nodded in agreement. At his hip, hung like a pair of shackles, bounced his power gauntlets.
“Back there,” Atom continued. “You said you’ve never killed anyone since leaving school. How can you be so sure with those gauntlets? They can liquify a man’s innards faster than a rad-burst. I’ve seen you dust cement walls with ease. Seems a human’s a touch squishier than cement.”
Daisy patted his gauntlets as he carried Margo through the galley. “I always set them to the lowest level when I fight people. That should limit the damage to broken bones and concussions.”
“Should?”
“That’s what I tell myself,” Daisy quirked a smile. “I still sleep at night.”
As they stepped out onto the landing above the hold, Atom paused and looked down on his little crew. He marveled at the change from when they first set foot aboard his ship.
Atom swore Byron had grown a few inches in the months aboard.
As a whole, they seemed more a family than any crew he had flown with before. Shi stood in her customary heavy-weave poncho, her hands hidden beneath as she shared a quiet laugh with Hither. The ex-courtesan wore a simple dress that flattered her figure and complimented the spritely red curls framing her face.
Cocking an eyebrow at Hither’s choice in footwear, Atom trailed Daisy down the stairs. “I hope we don’t run into trouble,” he said, gesturing to her heels.
“Why, Atom,” she dropped a demure head bob to hide a shy smile, “You should know by now that I hide behind improbability. Nobody expects more than a pretty face when I wear shoes like this.”
She held out her foot for inspection and then executed a perfect pirouette on the tip of her other shoe.
“Plus,” she leaned in with a stage whisper, “I can always kick them off.” She mimed a shocked look. “For some reason, that always surprises people.”
“Don’t ferget she kin use the heel as a lockpick, ice-pick, an’ maybe even a toothpick,” Shi said with a laugh as Atom and Daisy approached.
“Only if she wants them to lose a tooth.” Atom joined the light laughter.
“Or an eye,” Hither added.
“Where’s By?” Atom asked as he set Margo in the pram and looked back to the closed doors of the workshop. “He knows
we’re all heading out, right?”
As if on cue, Byron trotted from the side hatch and joined the others.
“I miss somefing?” the mech asked.
“Not a thing,” Daisy grabbed the sprouting boy in a headlock and roughed him up. “Just Hither flashing some leg. Nothing you haven’t seen before or will probably see again.”
“Ah, why I always miss the goods,” Byron lamented as Hither slapped Daisy in the arm.
Daisy laughed and set Byron down.
“People,” Atom called out as he powered up the pram and hovered it close to the hatch. “We need to focus up. This might be the first client meet I’ve had where I can honestly say I have no idea what lies ahead.
“We stay tight and we stay focused.” He locked eyes with each member of the crew. “Until we understand who we are looking to take a job from, I want each of you to watch each other. I don’t anticipate walking into any danger at this point, but the Walkers are far-reaching, so we approach cautious-like.
“Stay sharp, stay alive. And if things go null, fight for the Ticket. If you can’t make it here, get to the Black and have Koze blast a pulse.”
A round of affirmatives met his glare.
Atom turned back to the hatch, rolled his shoulders, and prepared for the final docking lock. The rest of the crew settled behind him as the familiar thump of a settling ship met their ears. They readied.
A surprising hiss startled Atom, causing his head to snap sideways as the main cargo ramp broke seal and whirred to life.
“Koze?” Atom shifted stance, his hand drifted to his pistol.
“I’m sorry, Atom.” Kozue sounded perplexed. “I turned over nav-control of the ship for the docking procedure. I am trying to ascertain how they are controlling anything beyond that.”
“Seems a touch hostile.” Shi grinned and flipped her poncho back as she stepped up beside Atom.
“Simmer,” said Atom.
The others turned their attention to the ramp as it fully cracked the seal and began to drop. They fanned out, their eyes sharp and senses heightened. From around the edge of the ramp a pale blue light seeped. Atom glanced at the others and then led them over to stand ready.
The ramp settled with a thud that drove a shiver up through Atom’s bones. The crew stood ready in the mouth of their ship, looking out into an empty hangar. Dull metal walls framed the moon carved rock and while some ambient ship pops and hisses met his ears as the Ticket settled into her berth, the hangar hung in eerie quiet.
“Seems like we should have a little mist to set the mood,” said Hither from Atom’s left.
Shi snickered.
Daisy joined in, his deep basso echoing through the empty chamber. “Maybe they could pump in some gloomy music.” The pilot continued to laugh, ignoring Atom’s frown. Despite his face speaking otherwise, the relaxed, jovial nature of the group pleased Atom as they stepped off into the unknown.
Even Byron joined in, mimicking haunting reed flutes from a third-rate jump-scare vid.
“Easy, kin,” Atom hissed as he fired up the suspensors on the pram and hovered Margo towards the ramp. “Let’s keep our guns loose and eyes sharp. Just don’t forget, we don’t want to lose a paying gig.”
A broad access hatch in the hangar wall opened to reveal a solitary figure.
“Atom Ulvan of the Meriwether han,” the figure called out.
Atom recognized the player from the tavern. Atom nodded in greeting.
“Nice to see you again,” Atom said in a business-like manner. “I never did get your name when we met back on Lassiter.”
The man shook his head in disappointment. “I suppose that means you didn’t pay too much attention to our play then. I understand I wasn’t the headliner, but I did play an important role as the village chief in The Seven Samurai of Verona.
“Bronte, Alderon Bronte,” the man said with a flourishing bow. He swept his long grey hair back as he rose to stand before the crew.
Atom introduced the crew with polite reserve.
Bronte nodded to each in turn before directing his attention back to Atom. “If you would kindly follow me, I will take you to our han leader.”
Exchanging glances with his crew, Atom fell in beside Bronte and allowed the player to lead them across the empty hangar and into the interior of the hollowed asteroid. Beyond the hangar, a series of tunnels carried them past redundant air-locks and blast doors.
“Welcome to our village,” Bronte said with theatrical grandeur as the last door hissed opened to reveal that the center to the moonlet had been hollowed out and a complete biosphere hidden within.
“Well, en’t that somfin.” Byron stepped past Bronte, amazement plastered over his face.
The group stood at the head of a cliff-side path dropping into a cauldron valley. Atom had to remind himself that they stood inside an asteroid, free-floating across the Black. At the foot of the switch-back path, rice paddies checker-boarded the flat valley floor. A river gushed from a cliff face on the far side of the habisphere and wound a lazy path through the paddies until it fed into a broad pool that lapped at the base of the cliff to their right.
Hither joined Byron at the edge of the cliff, resting a hand on the sturdy wooden rail marking the edge of safe travels. “I’ve seen small streams aboard luxury ships,” she whispered in amazement. “I’ve even seen decorative ponds, but this is bordering on a lake.
“How did you do this?” She turned her wide eyes back to Bronte.
“Money,” he replied with a matter-of-fact tilt of his head. “We needed a refuge that was safe and mobile, so we built this. It’s a completely self-sustaining system. Everything recycles.
“I’m not saying that we’re above bringing in outside food and materials,” he laughed, stepping forward to offer his arm to Hither.
Without waiting for the others, he led the way down the easy decline of the wandering path. Falling in a step behind the pair, Atom nodded for the others to keep up. Not used to playing second fiddle, he spent the walk in careful observation of their surroundings.
“How you run the grav in this fing? Byron walked nearest the railing and ogled the scenery. “Overlappin’ plates?” Wouldn’t that frow external readings?”
“A very finely tuned plate,” Bronte replied without turning.
“A single plate?” Byron stammered. He pressed on his temples with his fingertips as he tried to compute the power and precision necessary to manufacture anything of the scope Bronte suggested.
A few silent, awestruck minutes later, they reached the level floor of the synthetic valley and stepped out on the path across the lake of rice paddies. Following Bronte, they strolled past lines of stooped workers who sang a haunting song and planted to the steady tempo.
“How many people live here?” Atom asked, watching the sowers.
“Enough.”
Atom nodded, calculating land area and trying to gather a rough estimate in his head.
Drawing near to the river, Atom felt himself lulled into a sense of calm. Cicadas chirped a steady rhythm. Across the river, a wall of tall pines rose to the skies above. The path crossed a simple wooden bridge and Atom marveled at the whole landscape as they stepped onto the sturdy wooden beams. Behind them, a synthetic sun bathed the fields in a golden light, while ahead a peaceful shroud of shade beckoned.
“Not much further.” Bronte paused atop the arch of the bridge and turned back to Atom, ignoring the others.
Stepping up to face Bronte, Atom flashed Hither a glance. She returned the look with a serene smile. “Do you have any idea what this meeting is about?” he asked the player with a touch of concern. “Most jobs I entertain, I have a rough idea of what will be discussed. Being kept in the dark tends to point to something I’m not going to like.”
Bronte gave a knowing, but sad smile. “I am privy to my lord’s council, but it’s not my place to pass along this information.” He clapped a hand on Atom’s shoulder in a friendly fashion. “Know this, though, if you choose no
t to accept the job, you will be permitted to depart without any interference. We have faith in our ability to disappear. We aren’t worried about anything beyond this contact.
“Beyond that.” He shrugged and turned to look up into the gloom of the forest. “You will need to speak with my lord.”
Atom looked over Bronte’s shoulder at the landscaped forest and narrowed his eyes, trying to see what lay hidden in the shadows.
“Lead on.” Atom gestured to the woods, even as his hand rested at his hip for the reassuring heft of his pistol. “I personally don’t feel the need to draw things out any longer than necessary.”
Bronte laughed with hearty enthusiasm. “I heard you were a succinct man and tenacious warrior.”
“The two flow in the same riverbed.”
“Then onward and upward,” said Bronte and with a sweeping gesture he led Hither on the downward sloped timbers of the bridge. “The sooner we reach the village, the sooner you shall have your meet with my lord.”
***
The climb through the pines doubled their paddy-crossing walk. In and out of trees, the path wandered as if a child had laid the stones as whimsy carried her. Only after they paused at a dramatic overlook and continued through a thick and ancient stand of trees did Atom sense the approach of their destination. Just beyond the silence of the copse, they crossed into a well-tended cemetery.
Atom eyed the neat rows of simple wooden grave markers. On each, a name stood out, carved in a flowing, archaic script.
“How long have you lived here?” he asked. “Everything seems such an odd mix. I know this was all built by the hands of man, but there’s a feeling that everything I’m seeing has been here since the beginning of time.”
“I believe that was the original goal,” Bronte preened. “I don’t know how long this has been here, but I can tell you have multiple generations buried in this cemetery.
“This row,” he said with pride as he rested a hand on a marker. “Contains my family, going back to the ninth generation.
“That would make me the tenth.” He fixed Atom with a contemplative look. “That would put this village at roughly three hundred years old. But my family wasn’t among the original occupants.”