Genetic Purge (The Galactic Outlaws Book 2)

by Bradford Bates

  Ice moved us through the light air traffic towards our dock. Mars had changed since the last time I had been here. It was bigger, the whole damn place just felt bigger. It was if the buildings had gotten taller, and there were more of them than before. It made sense as the cost of living on old Earth continued to rise. people and companies branched out to less expensive planets. Mars being the closest to Earth in size and look was an obvious choice.

  At least this time I wasn’t here undercover. All I had to do was get the damn box and its hidden surprise delivered and get the hell off of this planet. Seemed easy enough, but anything that seemed to easy often led to death, and dead men couldn’t collect credits. This was a battle Samantha would have to fight on her own, but now that they had no way of shutting her down, she stood a chance. Freedom was always sweeter when you fought for it. At least that’s what I told myself.

  While she was in for the fight of her life, we would be heading back to Serenity for a little R&R. That and the cameras inside of the casinos there should provide us with a pretty damn good alibi for whatever destruction she rained down upon the people that opened her crate. It might not be enough to keep us from being hunted, but I sure hoped it would be.

  I guess that would depend on if they found out we had the datastick Max had passed to me before he died. While I hadn’t found anything worth killing for yet, at least in my opinion, that didn’t mean there wasn’t a huge secret buried in the stacks of unfiltered data. His rundown of the files had given us enough information to act, but it might take years to find what the N.E.A wanted to keep hidden so badly.

  The Talon rocked gently as she touched down. I felt the slight shake as the landing clamps attached to her, and then the old girl was still. It was time to get to work. This should be the easy part of our plan, and it might even buy us enough time for Ice to track down who the man in the white robe was. We didn’t have a picture of him, but a damn good description would go a long way. There couldn’t be too many crazy people out there in white robes with staffs that lit up with red fire. Once we knew who he was, maybe we could find out how many more of them there were.

  Gabe and Maze were waiting for me in the cargobay. Gabe already loaded the crate up on the hoverpad, and it was ready to go. I wasn’t taking any chances. Each of them was outfitted with a rifle and more than one backup weapon. No matter what happened afterwards, we didn’t even have a plan if the crate didn’t make it where it was supposed to go. If someone came after us, I knew my team could handle it. There was nothing to do now but get moving. I started to open the doors, and they stopped and then reversed.

  “Ice, this isn’t the time for jokes.”

  “No joke, Cap. The damn city is having a riot right now. Something to do with water rationing in the poor districts. Your route would take you right through the thick of it.”

  “You have to be fucking kidding me?” I knew she wasn’t, but I still mumbled a few curse words, hoping that she was just screwing with me and would open the door soon, telling me it had been a joke. Ice piped in the local news feed over the comm system, and it actually sounded like it might escalate to all-out warfare if the enforcers didn’t get it under control quickly.

  “I’m going to send a message to our employer and see how they want us to proceed.”

  “Are you sure that’s a good idea, Captain? Won’t they just tell us to deliver the goods on time?”

  “They might, but then it’s their cargo that’s at risk. We can’t guarantee safe delivery through a war zone.” I paused to think about it. I had the feeling they would tell us to get the cargo there and on time, that was the deal we made. I had to try and do something to talk them out of it. “Get Dr. Marcom on the line.”

  There was a faint crackle and then the line stabilized. Dr. Marcom’s silvery smooth voice came crisply through the long distance connection. “Captain Drake, it’s good to hear from you. Is everything going smoothly with the delivery?”

  “We had to make a brief stop before landing on Mars, nothing to worry about, but now that we are here, it looks like we might be forced to delay the delivery.”

  “Well, that would be unfortunate.” His words dripped with frost.

  “Well you see, it seems that Acentua City is suffering through some full scale rioting at the moment. I don’t understand all the facts, but if we try and move the package now, I won’t be able to guarantee its safety.”

  “Captain, the content of that package is very delicate in nature and needs to be delivered on time if it is going to still be viable,” he paused. “Do you understand what I’m saying?”

  “That you are willing to take the risk of moving a package through uncertain territory, knowing that such a small crew couldn’t fight off a larger group of civilians without making the afternoon news?” I hoped that I put just the right amount of sarcasm in my voice. I already knew what the answer would be, but I had to try.

  “I’m saying the terms of our original deal stand, and if the package isn’t delivered, the consequences that come with that solely rest on you.”

  I knew exactly what the consequences were and there was no way we could chance them. The good doctor had me over a barrel, and he knew it. Nothing made me angrier than knowing someone else had the upper hand, but it wouldn’t do to let any of that creep into my voice. “Ah, that’s what I thought you meant.”

  “See that it gets done.”

  The line disconnected and I was left staring at the package wondering if it was worth the risk. Samantha was inside of the box and if it fell into anyone’s hands but the doctor’s people, we would be shit out of luck. Our whole plan would be worthless. I forced myself to stop staring at the box and looked between Gabe and Maze. I knew they would both stand by me no matter what. It wasn’t like we had a real choice, to have any chance at a future we needed to get Samantha to them before the clock expired.

  “Well, I’ve got good news and bad news.”

  “Give me the bad news,” Maze said.

  “The bad news is we have to get this package to the address despite what is going on outside.”

  “Is there really any good news, Captain?” Gabe said with a smirk.

  I knew the man was exasperated with me. I’d gone against every piece of advice he had offered on this mission. In the future, I was going to have to make a more concentrated effort to listen and validate his ideas. Gabe was a good man, he just didn’t always show it. “Not really, but I will be taking twenty percent of the ship’s cut and redistributing it to the crew.”

  “Well that is good news,” Gabe said tugging his electric blue hat down over his eyes. “Let’s get this shit show on the road.”

  Maze just started checking her rifle, and I started to do the same. Both of us must have had the exact same thought because we headed back to the armory to grab extra power packs. That was something once you learned the hard way, you never forgot. Sure it sucks to lug the extra weight around, but no ammo when you need it the most leads to dead smugglers. I for one wanted to avoid that outcome at any cost.

  “Let’s do this.” I hit the button to lower the ramp and let the sounds of the volatile city wash over me. It was going to be a long day.

  CHAPTER 19

  CAPTAIN DRAKE

  The station seemed clear as we walked down the ramp. Whatever was happening in the city hadn’t made it out to where we were yet. I was tempted to tell Ice to get the bird back in the air and that we would signal her for pickup, but I was worried about them restricting airspace due to the violence. The riots kind of explained why the air traffic had been so light as we descended in the heart of the city before moving out to our designated landing.

  The front of the private spaceport was open, but a large contingent of guards were circling the entrance. As we approached, one of them broke away from the group and jogged towards us. The man had dark skin, and a few symbols carved into the hair on the side of his head. He looked to weigh about two fifty. I wouldn’t envy the man that got on his bad side. He ext
ended his hand towards me and started to speak.

  “Captain Riley.” He gave me a quick but firm nod as he introduced himself. “I wouldn’t suggest heading into the city now. If you can wait on your ship for a few days, I’m sure you will find that things like this tend to sort themselves out relatively quickly.”

  I reached out and clasped the man’s hand. “I understand, Captain Riley. Unfortunately, our employer demanded that we risk travel into the city regardless of the circumstances. Something to do with product expiring if it’s not delivered on time. You wouldn’t have any idea of the safest way for us to proceed to this location would you?” I held up my holo so he could see the address.

  He ran a hand through his hair. “Well, you are going to be in a spot of trouble once you reach here.” He circled a section of the city with his finger. “If you can make it past that point, you should be home free.”

  “What’s the deal with that area?”

  “The rebels have taken it over.” he grimaced. “For now.”

  “Is there any way for us to circle around it to get to our location?”

  He thought about it for a few moments before responding. “You could try heading south first. The problem is the building you are going to is just outside of the area I indicated, but well inside of the wider area the rebels patrol.”

  “Thanks for your help, Captain.” I shook his hand again, and he turned to leave. “One last question, Captain, why do you call them rebels? Aren’t they just rioters?”

  “Well they used to be but someone has them more organized this time, and they are putting up one hell of a fight. All of this over a few showers being cut short. Can you believe it?”

  He turned and headed back towards his men directing them to remove the barriers they had in place so we could pass through and continue towards the city. I thought about what he said. All of this over a few showers being cut short, and I thought about how I felt every time Kyra raided the hot water heater for parts. Deep down, I understood what the rebels were feeling. It started by cutting back your water, then maybe they moved two families into each apartment. Next you were waiting in lines for loaves of bread. It was a slippery slope and the only way to stop it was to fight back.

  As soon as we passed through the makeshift barricade, the men moved the barrier back into place. I had to give the captain credit. His men were efficient, and they listened to his orders. I almost felt bad for the first group of thugs that tried to break into this station. I had a feeling it wasn’t going to go well for them.

  I motioned for Maze to take point ahead of our small group, and she jogged forward a few steps and started to scan the area. Her cybernetic eye would help us spot threats before they became a real problem. She’d saved me from more booby-traps than I liked to admit, but not all of us could be fancy cyborgs. Gabe and I took up positions on either side of the crate as it hovered along. The only consolation we had right now is it moved automatically, and one of us didn’t have to steer it. Three sets of eyes, backed up by three guns was always better than two.

  Time seemed to slow down as we worked our way further into the city. We hadn’t seen any major damage yet, just a few acts of vandalism that dotted the vacant streets and maybe a few scorch marks from blasters. I kept my head on a swivel. Every noise made me feel like we were about to come under attack. The streets were empty which gave the city a deserted feel I’d never experienced on Mars before.

  The miles continued to tick by. It wouldn’t be long now before we reached the edge of the contested territory. I had no idea what was going to happen there, but I wouldn’t be giving up the crate without a fight. Letting down my crew and Samantha wasn’t an option. We had to get her to the drop-off, or all our lives were forfeit.

  “Drake, there are cars stacked across the road up ahead,” Maze said.

  My rifle rose automatically, and I started scanning the buildings to either side of us. Gabe was doing the same thing. Maze still looked casual, so I felt pretty confident we weren’t about to be ambushed. If we were going to try and skirt around the rebel’s territory, this would be our last real chance to do it. I looked down at the crate and forward to where the cars were and wondered what our best course of action would be.

  “Can you tell if any of the cars are moveable?”

  “It looks like the two in the center have working hover pads, the rest are down on the ground.”

  Damn, that meant it was probably a gate, and if the rebels were actually organized, then they probably already knew we were coming. Trying to avoid them now would be pointless. Fuck, I hated this. If it was any other job, I would have just told them the shipment would be late, but that wasn’t an option here. There was nothing to do now but keep moving forward.

  “I guess we are going to find out just how organized these rebels are.”

  “Are you sure that’s a good idea, Captain?” Gabe said sounding worried.

  “I think it’s the only chance we’ve got to get the package there on time.”

  “I agree,” Maze said.

  “I still don’t like it, Captain. We could be walking into a trap,” Gabe chirped back.

  “We could be, but the way they have it set up it’s more like a gate. That means they let people in and out. We’ll just have to hope we have something they want.”

  “Shit,” Gabe snarled.

  “I never said it was a good plan.”

  “I hear that from you more than I would like,” Gabe muttered as he scanned the buildings.

  There really wasn’t much I could say to that. It was true I was a pantser pure and simple. I like to have a loose plan that I could adapt and change on the fly. What good was a full on plan when everything fell apart and turned to shit. We were close enough now that I could see the two cars hovering in the center, Maze had been right as usual.

  We had almost made it to the gate when four rifles appeared on either side of the road pointed towards us. A man climbed on top of one of the hovering cars in the center and smiled down at us. Well if we weren’t knee deep in it already, we certainly were now.

  “That’s close enough,” His voice boomed across the open space.

  All of us stopped in the center of the road waiting to see what was going to happen. Gabe had his rifle up, but at a look from me lowered it to the side. No reason to give them an excuse to have itchy trigger fingers. Maze kept scanning the area, but she didn’t give me a signal to indicate that there was anything special waiting for us.

  The man jumped down onto the hood of the car. He had a rifle slung across his back, and his black vest had a red handprint on it. “Road’s closed. We’ll be relieving you of your possessions, and then you can go on your way.”

  “Seems like a fair offer.” The man’s smile broadened at my words, and he started to move forward. “Shame we can’t accept it, though.”

  The man stopped stone cold still obviously not used to being rejected. “I don’t think you understand what’s happening here, friend. We have you dead to rights. The Mars Coalition doesn’t want your blood on their hands, but we do need all the firepower we can get.”

  “Like I said, it’s a fair offer, but the way it stands if we don’t deliver this package on time, we’re dead anyway. So you’re going to have to come up with something better or your coalition is going to be a few men smaller.”

  He laughed. It wasn’t what I had expected, and I wasn’t sure if it was a good thing or not yet. A few of the rifles moved, but no shots were fired. He stood there looking at us a smile stretching across his face. He put his hands on his hips and shook his head.

  “Seems like we are in quite the pickle. I just can’t let you leave, and if you won’t give up the guns, well it doesn’t leave me with a whole lot of options.”

  “The way I see it, you have more options than you think.” He motioned for me to continue. “You see.” I pointed towards Gabe and Maze. “Me and my crew are the best in the verse at getting things where they need to be. We have a ship, and it sounds to me
like you might be in need of our services.”

  He thought about it for a moment and started to rub the stubble on his chin. “It seems we might have something to talk about after all.” The man leapt back over the car, and a moment later it pulled backwards, giving us access to the road beyond.

  Once we went inside it would be a hell of a lot harder to fight our way out of there. I didn’t see a way for us to make it out with the crate if they attacked. That left us with two options if an attack happened. We could leave it behind or open it and hope for the best. Neither of those options were very appealing, but with eight rifles trained on us, we didn’t have a lot of other options.

  I motioned towards Gabe, and he started moving forward. Maze and I fell in beside the crate. The man that had spoken to us moved over towards me, and the hover car slid back into place behind us sealing us inside of their compound.

  He extended his hand. “They call me Sly Jeff. You can call me Sly or Jeff.”

  I shook his hand. “Well Sly, I’d say it’s time we get down to business. We’re on a bit of a clock.”

  “You must be to risk coming here.” He laughed and patted me on the back like we were old friends before turning and moving into the complex. He motioned for me to follow. “Earth Republic’s got you by the balls, I take it?”

  “Something like that.”

  He gave me a quizzical look. “You’re not from around here are you?”

  “Not even remotely.”

  “Maybe an N.E.A. problem then.”

  “That hits closer to the mark.”

  “Fuck em all is what I say. It’s about time someone showed those tyrants we don’t need them.”

  “Seems like we might be speaking the same language after all,” I said with a grin.

  He laughed and led us another block forward. He ducked into a building after motioning for us to stay put and then reemerged with another man. Half of his face was burned. It didn’t look like a new injury. It was something he could have had fixed over a weekend if he had the credits. It made me think that he left it there on purpose, maybe it was a symbol of his devotion to the cause. Maybe it just intimidated people enough that he didn’t feel like getting it fixed.