“Who is…?” Sujay asked again.
“Sujay! This is my old smuggling partner Tim Riley! He’s one of the few guys in the galaxy who thinks he can fly as good as I can!” Forrest said.
“Old smuggling partner?” Sujay asked.
“Yeah. C’mon Sujay, I’ve told you about him,” Forrest said.
“You’ve never once mentioned -”
“So Tim, what is the deal with the armed guards here? Are you really worried about little ol’ me?” Forrest asked.
Riley chuckled. “Nah Forrest, just a precaution. With the war over, blockade running only attracts the daredevils and the psychos. Can’t be too careful around here anymore.”
Tim Riley possessed the same love of flying as Forrest and seemed to live in the air. He was also a very skilled fighter pilot on behalf of the Coalition, and earned Triple Ace for bringing down fifteen ships. Having fought until the bitter end of the Unification Wars Riley became a smuggler after the war, and sought to bring supplies to the oppressed peoples of the Core. Riley was one of the few who trusted Forrest after he’d defected, since people to him mattered more than politics. Riley also taught Forrest everything he knew of the smuggling trade. He knew that Forrest was a more than capable flier, what mattered was his loyalty and ability to deliver. Forrest completed Riley’s “tests” such as flying reconnaissance in the midst of a Core/Rebel clash and proved his loyalty to the smuggling ring. The two remained friends and each brought plenty of business to the other. Over the last year, Riley was suddenly absent in the smuggling circles, and Forrest thought he had settled down. What struck Forrest as odd was Riley’s crisp, blue military garb.
“So, what brings you to Alcyone Riley? The sky-high smuggling rates?” Forrest asked.
“Forrest...Alcyone is my home now. I’m here to organize the defense force against Ivanov,” Riley replied.
“Whoa, settling down? You?” Forrest asked.
“Yeah, I have. It’s peaceful here, and I don’t want that greedy Admiral to get his hands on our land here,” Riley growled. “We’ve settled here, and we cannot allow those greedy bastards to steal the land where we’ve spilled our blood building our homes!” Riley’s tone made him appear like he was preparing his men for bloodshed.
“Hey buddy, I’m just here to deliver some parts…”
“Do you like it here Forrest?” Riley asked.
“Yeah...it sure is pretty…” Forrest replied. He looked around. Riley and his men had the fire of zealots burning in their eyes. “...But I just came here to deliver parts.”
“Ah, right. You should be paid for your efforts since you took the risk of bringing us these vital supplies,” Riley said as a thought cascaded into his mind. “You know, if you’re looking for some more money I am in dire need of some mercenary pilots. It’s not like Ivanov will wait forever with this Embargo. He’s tested our defenses a lot lately but there isn’t a pilot good enough to challenge him here.”
Forrest got a glint in his eye, and a grin spread across his face.
“Nope. No no no no no no no!” Sujay interrupted. “We’re just here to deliver our parts, get paid and get out of here. We need to go. Now!” Sujay said as he shoved Forrest aside.
“Well, based on the damage to your ship’s engine, I’d say you don’t have much more than a really expensive hovercraft. Doesn’t look like that’ll be breaking orbit anytime soon,” Riley said.
“Aww, I can fix it,” Forrest replied, as he waved his hand in the air.
“With what parts? The city needs every last component they can get for the coming airfight. Now, we could provide you with a fighter ship that would be yours to keep if you help us defend the city…” Riley said, as he turned to walk away. He continued: “You see gentlemen, the cityscape here is well developed, but we’re not an armed people. We don’t have a proper fleet to defend against an Admiral. We’re desperate for fighters who can match the skills of the Core,” Riley said, as he lead the group to his command center.
“What we need is to get paid,” Sujay whispered harshly to Forrest. “Get paid, scrap or fix up our ship, and leave. We have debts to settle Forrest,” Sujay explained as he tugged at Forrest’s arm.
“Scrap the Dreamweaver? Are you nuts?” Forrest screamed at Sujay.
“If it gets us out of here with credits, then yes. Paying to get that ship to break orbit again will cost more than it’s worth!” Sujay snapped.
“You shut your dirty whore mouth! The Dreamweaver is an icon! A hero of our time!” Forrest said as he waved his finger through the air.
“...It’s a ship,” Sujay said.
Riley and his men watched in amusement as Forrest and Sujay argued about what to do with the Dreamweaver.
“...That’s your offer?” Forrest asked the scrap dealer.
“I feel like I’m going to be sick just thinking about it,” Sujay replied.
“Take it or leave it,” the dealer said.
“But...you...you can’t expect me to…” Forrest muttered as he struggled to hold back tears. “Sujay you can’t make me do this!” He cried.
“Do it or I will,” Sujay said. “So help me Jack Forrest I will pay for those computer geeks to steal your title and sell this ship myself!”
“You’re a monster!” Forrest screamed. As he ran away he saw the Alcyone fleet parked and sparkling in the sunlight. His eyes lit up like Christmas.
“No, too soon. Can’t forget about my baby just yet…” Forrest whimpered.
“There, it’s done. I managed to get a little more out of him, but it’s the best we can do,” Sujay said as he tossed Forrest the credit chip.
“That’s what all of this came to? My beloved ship for a teensy wheensy little piece of plastic?” Forrest said as he burst into tears.
“So Riley, what’s Ivanov’s plan with this blockade?” Sujay asked.
“He’s become a renegade Core Admiral who bombs and conquers ‘troublesome’ planets by force, then acquires or re-sells their assets, which has made him one of the wealthiest men in the galaxy. The blockade is a trumped up charge to justify his embargo,” Riley said. “Let me ask the two of you this. I’ve known Forrest for a long time, and I think I’ve got a good grasp on you Sujay. Are you saying that you don’t want to dole out a little bit of punishment to the Core? Could you live with yourself knowing that hundreds of Core Admirals will be resting on their fat asses here in their cushy resorts and mansions? Will you be able to rest knowing that they bulldozed over every citizen who ventured out and settled here?” He asked.
“Yes because of what you’re doing to my ship!” Forrest shrieked as he held up the credit chip.
“I don’t have any property here, so I don’t have any attachment,” Sujay added.
Riley sighed. “Then what if we hired you on as ‘consultants’ for your expertise? I’ll make it worth your while…” He said as he tossed a credit chip at Forrest which showed the amount he was willing to pay.
“We need to help them,” Forrest said, as he turned to Sujay with big, puppy dog eyes..
Sujay rolled his eyes and sighed. “No. Half your city is abandoned. This is for all intents and purposes a lost cause. Do better.”
“What are you doing?” Forrest pleaded in a whisper.
Riley pulled out another credit chip and tossed it to Sujay. Forrest looked over Sujay’s shoulder. “That’s a lot of zeroes!” Forrest giggled as a glob of drool dangled out of his mouth.
“Okay, I’m convinced,” Sujay added.
“Excellent. I’ll take you to our fleet.” Riley gestured to the others, and lead them to the flight bay.
“These are some of the saddest looking pilots I’ve ever seen!” Forrest shouted. The men standing in front of their ships were haggard and tired. Nightly bombing runs have kept the civilians awake, but these men still mustered the strength to stand at attention in front of their ships.
“Their ships are just as bad, if not worse,” Sujay said. “A ragtag fleet with all kinds of different make
s and models - makes setting up some kind of repair system damn near impossible!”
The pilots themselves were as diverse as their ships - ranging from civilian militiamen to mercenaries from every corner of the known regions.
“So what do you two think?” Riley asked.
Sujay sighed. “Forrest, don’t get any wild ide-”
“Admiral Ivanov is going down!” Forrest shouted. “He’s going down on me harder than Sujay’s mother-”
“Really? At a time like this?” Sujay screamed. The pilots struggled to contain their laughter at Forrest’s overconfidence.
“One more condition Riley,” Forrest said as he turned to the Commander.
“Name it,” Riley answered with his hands behind his back.
“I want the codename Dawn Leader,” Forrest said. Sujay groaned and rolled his eyes.
“We can do that. However, there’s still the matter of your ship to attend to. Yours too Sujay,” Riley said. He led the duo through the shipyard.
“You didn’t think we’d have fine men such as yourselves fighting in pieces of slag did you?” Riley asked.
“Well based on the ships your men were using…” Forrest replied.
“Oh, those ships are sturdier than they look. The men here are great mechanics, doing incredible things you wouldn’t believe with their machines,” Riley said. “There’s yours Forrest.”
Forrest stared, dumbfounded. It was a Nebular Scuttle class fighter ship, the sleekest, fastest fighter ship in the galaxy. It was equipped with rapid-fire twin blaster cannons on the nose. The wings spread out in the back like two golden plumes that channeled the fire of the engines and gave the ship her speed. The Nebular came into production right at the end of the Unification Wars, but Forrest saw one of them in action with his own eyes. The Coalition didn’t have a chance in the skies.
“How did you…?” Forrest stuttered.
“We found it here, abandoned. It’s been modified too. Goes faster than anything I’ve ever flown, I can tell you that,” Riley said. Forrest didn’t respond, he just walked over and hugged the ship.
“Did you just…? Okay. Yup.That is happening. Sujay! Let’s go look at your ship,” Riley said as he waved Sujay over.
Riley showed Sujay one of the more classical Core fighter ships. Known as the “Stingray”, these ships were wide across the front, but the body was sleek. They had great lift and speed, but they couldn’t maneuver as well as other fighters. Thanks to their heavy plating and shield tech, these ships could take a serious beating and could fly in every environment. The blaster cannons were on the wings and had been modified to deliver ion blasts, which would fry the circuits in enemy ships. Riley could tell that Sujay wanted this ship and turned to his fighter pilots.
“Atten-tion!” Riley shouted. The fighter pilots fell in line.
“I have here two men who have agreed to help us defend against Ivanov’s invasion. These two are some of the best fighter pilots the Core has ever produced...and they let them slip through their fingers! I introduce to you quintuple Ace Fighter Jack Forrest!” Riley said as he riled up the haggard defenders.
“Welcome Ace Fighter Forrest!” The men shouted and saluted in unison.
“I like the sound of that. Good call Riley,” Forrest whispered to Riley.
“Just wait for Sujay’s intro,” Riley replied. “And I present to you men, one of the best Naval Officers the Core has ever produced...a man they didn’t believe fit to command their skies...a man we know will send Ivanov and his fleet riling back for the Core...your Starfleet Commander Sujay Malak!”
“Welcome Starfleet Commander Malak!” The men greeted and saluted in unison.
Sujay couldn’t believe his ears. All his life he’d wanted to be commended for his abilities as a Naval Commander. Sujay felt a warmth in the depths of his soul. He remembered all of those long nights studying tactical maneuvers, star maps, and understanding how to calculate the gravity of a planet's influence on the battlefield. He felt his pride swell deep within, a rising tide of confidence that made Sujay believe these fighters had a chance against Ivanov.
“Let’s give them Hell!” Sujay screamed in excitement, and raised his fist in the air.
“YES SIR!” The men replied to Sujay and saluted.
“Oh Starfleet Commander Sujay!” Forrest said as he bowed before him. “We’re not worthy! We’re not worthy!” He chanted, then rose to his feet.
“Well, that was fun,” Forrest said. “Okay guys we’ll call you when we need you. Dismissed.” The pilots dispersed and returned to working on their ships.
“Yes! We sure will!” Sujay said.
“Right, now we have an aerial assault to plan out,” Riley said as he slapped Forrest with some written battle plans.
Riley escorted Forrest and Sujay to his command center. Sujay noticed that it was housed in the old “Hall of Justice” building. As they entered the building there were about fifteen armed men in full black body armor and heavy weaponry, geared to fight a small war. Forrest seemed oblivious, but Sujay felt a little tense about the presence of these soldiers here. Especially for such a peaceful planet.
“Out of curiosity Riley, how did you become the organizer of Alcyone’s defense force?” Sujay asked as he tried to sound nonchalant.
“Oh, once the embargo started, people were given a chance to leave. Many of the people who lived here and the city’s leadership simply got up and left. The ones who stayed are those who’ve built their lives here. They needed a defense leader, so I volunteered,” Riley explained as he poured himself a glass of brown liquor.
In Sujay’s mind, this explained why the streets seemed abandoned for such a large city. Still, there was something off about the city streets. They felt haunted with an unnatural chill in the air. There was also something different about these men in the Command Center. They weren’t makeshift militia fighters like the pilots were. These men had vicious weapons, armor and a professional demeanor. Their lips were tight, as though they’d been welded shut. Sujay wanted to help the pilots. Their eyes were warm and engaging. These men had an iciness in their stares, as if they were waiting for him to die in the skies.
Forrest, Sujay, Riley and his command team debated for hours on an adequate battle plan. The fighters would take on the bombers, and the primary goal was to last long enough for Riley to arm his ‘secret weapon’ to use against the frigates and the destroyers.
“So uhh...what’s the weapon?” Forrest asked.
“What? It...it doesn’t matter…” Riley replied.
“Like heck it doesn’t matter!” Forrest shouted. “If you expect me to fight up there in defense of your city, you can’t be all secret mastermindy and keep secrets about a secret weapon that will bring down the Core battleships! I need to know what this thing is so we can fight around it!” Forrest said as he drew circles in the air above the city map.
“Alright, fine. It’s a cannon,” Riley confessed.
“Ooh a cannon! Thbbbt! Big whoop!” Forrest replied.
“It’s an ion cannon! Capable of delivering three exajoules at a target-”
“Oh yawn, I’m bored listening to this lecture!”
“Damn it Forrest, you asked!” Riley shouted as he slammed his fist on the table.
“True, I did. Although telling me that you have a massive ion cannon at the ready to blow Ivanov out of the sky would’ve sufficed,” Forrest replied.
Riley pinched the bridge of his nose. “What is the tactical capability of your fighters Riley?” Forrest asked.
“They’re good pilots. They just need some synchronization. We were hoping that you and Sujay could provide that. That is what I’m paying for...can you deliver?” There was an undercurrent of harshness to Riley’s voice. A voice that wouldn’t tolerate failure.
“Yup, we can do it. Sujay here is the one who can do all of the synchronization right buddy?” Forrest asked.
“We sure can,” Sujay replied as he forced out a grin.
“This is w
here you’ll be staying,” Riley said as he slapped Forrest and Sujay on the shoulder. Both men gazed up in amazement at the massive luxury hotel, which was only half-lit and even showed blaster scarring.
“What happened here?” Sujay asked.
“The Core attempted to acquire a foothold under my watch, but we were able to drive them back. This place is one of the safest in the city,” Riley said.
“I love it! Very accommodating for a man such as myself,” Forrest said as he adjusted his coat.
“Well, there are provisions inside, but our food is limited due to the embargo,” Riley said.
“Can’t you...y’know, grow stuff?” Forrest asked.
“We’ve tried, but the soil here on Alcyone is laced with nickel. Every soil sample comes back with enough nickel to be considered contaminated. We’ve had to rely on imports for our food source,” Riley said. “Alas, once the Core realizes that they can’t steal this planet from us, she will send us machines to extract the nickel out.”
“Certainly hope so,” Forrest said with a dinner roll in his mouth.
“At least our fish is edible, and thanks to the fishing guilds there is plenty here for you,” Riley said. “Enjoy your stay gentlemen, I shall come for you in the morning.” Riley bowed and took his leave.
“Something is fishy here,” Sujay said.
“No kidding. Does this mackerel smell right to you?”
“Forrest! I was talking about the situation!” Sujay hissed.
“Oh, bad word choice then buddy.”
“Doesn’t something seem...off about the situation here, with Riley?”
“The man is giving us a huge payment, two fighter ships and letting us stay in the ritziest hotel ever! What can possibly be off about this?” Forrest asked.
“Gee, I don’t know. Perhaps it’s too good to be true? There’s an eerie chill to this city. I don’t think Riley is telling the truth. Why would he need to hire so many mercenaries to defend his city? Where is he getting the money from?”
“Sujay, Riley is one of the good guys. True you may have fought against him in the war, but you don’t see him rubbing your nose in it do you?”
Horsemen United: Horsemen Origins Books 1-5 Page 11