Metal Boxes

by Alan Black

  Jay backed up and started to hiss.

  “Stop it, Jay,” Stone said. He took the breastplate from Wright. “If Jay doesn’t want to wear it, that is fine.”

  Jay marched up to Stone and stood in front of him.

  “It looks like she wants it,” Wright said. “I think she just wants you to give it to her. Don’t worry, Mister Stone. I won’t take it personally.”

  Jimbo and Wright continued to pull straps and bits of metal from the hand cart, explaining what each item was and where to strap it on. In addition to the breastplate each drasco was outfitted with matching shoulder guards, shin plates for their front legs, face shields, wrist bracelets extending up their arms to their first elbow just below the arm flap knuckle, and a chromed tail spike cap. Stone pulled off the mismatched leather straps from Melanie’s old saddle, but the drascos were so enamored with their new jewelry they did not notice.

  The drascos were prancing about showing each other bits of odd metal and various spikes that caught their attention.

  “I didn’t sleep for that long. How did you do this that quickly?” Stone asked.

  Jimbo snorted, “Mom got onto an arts and crafts kick a few years back. She put together a whole room full of machines and fabricators to do all sorts of spangley stuff. It was just a matter of punching the right buttons and putting in the right raw material. Dani has a weird imagination about this stuff.”

  Wright shrugged with a self-conscious smile. “I used to read a lot as a kid. I read of lot of wizards and dragons kind of stuff. I-”

  “Holy cats!” Maggot interrupted. He had come up on them unseen while they were busy watching the drascos. He backed away slightly when Jay trotted up to him. “These things are scary enough. You made them look like something out of my worst nightmares.” He looked as if he was torn between pulling his pistol and running headlong from the room.

  “Steady, Maggot,” Stone said. “Jay is just trying to show you her new pretties. They may not be very mean but they sure look the part.”

  “I should guess so,” Maggot said. “I was worried about someone spotting you two, but with Jay and Peebee looking like this there isn’t a chance anyone is going to be looking at anything else.”

  Ruth’s voice filtered down from a speaker high overhead. “You folks ready? James says we have two minutes to hatch opening. Junior, you make sure they are clear in the corridor before you shut that hatch, hear?”

  “Got it, Ma.”

  “Okay, everyone stay close,” Maggot said.

  Stone reached out and grabbed his cousin by the shoulders. He pulled him and hugged Jimbo close for a while. Neither boy said a word. Stone turned and grabbed the controller to the containers.

  “I am ready, Commander Wright. Agent Storovitch, at your command.”

  Jimbo pulled out his p.a. and broadcast a video of the main hatch. Everyone could see Ruth, Brenda and Melanie waiting there. Melanie was bandaged from neck to waist, her arm in a pressure cast held straight out from her body. Her face was streaked with tear tracks, her hair was greasy and flopped about in every direction. She looked like a victim of a serious industrial accident, never-the-less she was laughing at something Brenda said.

  It was only seconds, but it seemed like an eternity until the hatch slid open. The massive freight hatch made it appear the whole bulkhead was moving to the side. The matching hatch to the station corridor opened at the same time. The corridor was wide enough to handle a huge volume of freight traveling in both directions. It looked empty.

  There were squeals of pain, crying and moaning, overlaid with calls for help. Everyone’s eyes looked at the video hologram of Ruth and Brenda guiding Melanie into the personnel corridor on Bravo Deck. All three women were shouting and yelling at the few people within sight. They were causing such a ruckus that all activity on the business corridor halted to watch them pass by.

  Jimbo grinned. “That’s my family. They may not be great actors, but they are loud.” He stepped into the freight corridor and looked both ways. He spread his arms wide and waved them about. “We are in the middle of third watch. So unless some freighter captain is in a rush to meet a deadline I doubt if anybody is moving cargo at this time of the day. Everyone awake must be watching the show upstairs. Best get a move on, ya’ll. You’ve got a ways to go without getting caught so be careful.”

  “What about security cameras?” Wright asked.

  Maggot held up a small device. “Video camera jammer; it really just freezes a frame. It is all we need in an empty corridor like this.”

  “Isn’t that illegal?” Wright asked.

  “Not for agents of the Emperor with a writ to serve,” Maggot replied. “And I have that writ.”

  Stone followed Wright and Maggot into the corridor. He tried to work the container controls and herd his drascos at the same time, but he kept bumping into one or the other of the drascos with the containers. The huge containers banging into Jay and Peebee did not seem to bother them. It just made it difficult to keep moving in a straight direction.

  Stone switched to using the second container’s controller. He jumped up on the top of the container sitting on the front edge. Jay and Peebee pranced around the containers. Stone had to work to keep them from running between the two containers and snagging the connector cord. It was hard to keep them from racing ahead or running off some side corridor.

  Finally he called to Peebee. He slapped the top of the container he was sitting on. “Up here, girl. Jump up, Peebee. Come here, jump up here.”

  It took a while, but Peebee leaped up on top of the container, her feet scrabbling across the smooth top. Her claws did not find anything to grip so she slid across and off the other side crashing to the deck. The hover mechanism kept the container stable without even a slight dip at the weight changes. They continued to move at the brisk walking pace set by Maggot and Wright.

  Peebee wonked excitedly; she leapt completely over the container and landed softly on the deck.

  “No,” Stone said patiently. “Up here.” He kept slapping the top of the container. “Here. Jump here.”

  Peebee wonked again and made a leap almost straight up. She came down on the top of the container. Her slight sideways momentum started a slide. She sat down with a plunk and stuck. She covered most of the top of the container spread out with her feet splayed apart. The drasco had a look of triumph on her face.

  Stone reached back with his free hand and wrapped an arm around Peebee’s neck. He gave her a squeeze and blew his breath across her face. He inched the second container closer to the first. He reached across and patted the other container top.

  “Jay, let’s see if you can do what your sister did. Up. Come on, Jay. Jump up.” He slapped the top of the first container for emphasis.

  Jay did not leap. She walked along the first container for a few steps. She turned sideways and walked along beside it. Her double-jointed knees allowed her to walk forward while her body twisted sideways. She placed both hands on top of the container, rose up on her hind legs and while still shuffling forward put her front feet on the container top. With a push from her haunches she slid on top of the container, splayed out.

  Peebee wonked in encouragement.

  Jay slid around to face their direction of travel. She sat up with her tail trailing down between the two containers.

  Stone eased the second container back so he would not be slapped by an inadvertent twitch of her tail. He was sure their tails shot over their heads as weapons when they were angry, but he was not sure how much control they had over them. The rough hide made any slap by a drasco tail painful. Their spike was bone hard and sharp. The flashing chromed spike cover tied on with black leather straps studded with silver spikes made their tails look deadly.

  Jay turned her head so she was facing backwards with her body facing forward. She wonked happily as the corridor slid past them. She balanced carefully and stood up on her hind legs. She stretched her neck upward not even coming close to the high ceiling. She
flapped her arms about and wonked loudly.

  Wright finally interrupted her conversation with Maggot long enough to glance behind her. She came to a dead stop when she saw both drascos on top of the containers. Peebee was sitting regally as if she were surveying her domain. Jay was standing and wonking loudly.

  “So much for not drawing attention to ourselves,” Maggot said. “I guess you four can’t go anywhere quietly, can you?”

  Stone shrugged, “Sorry, Maggot. I figure we stand a better chance of not getting noticed if we get where we are going a bit quicker, so if you both pardon the impertinence, git yer backsides up here and let’s get a move on.”

  Maggot nodded. “Okay. I have never ridden a cargo container, but what the heck. Move over, Jay and give me room.”

  Jay dropped her head and hissed.

  “Jay. No,” Stone said. “Sorry, Maggot. Well crap!” He glanced around. “There.” He pointed at a junction slightly ahead. He guided his containers around Wright and Maggot and sped toward the junction. He put the containers into a stable hover and jumped off.

  Stone grabbed a freight cart. It was the same type of mover as his containers but it was configured in a flat arrangement without sides or a top. It was for moving casual freight around the station. There were a dozen such carts available with various freight company names stenciled on their base. He grabbed a cart stenciled ‘Tamvor Station’. He used the universal cord from the cart’s rear controller and hooked it to the front of Jay’s container. He then hopped back up on the rear container with Peebee.

  He had made the connection quick enough that Wright and Maggot trotted up just as he picked up his controller.

  He gestured with his free hand at the front cart. “If the lady and gentleman would climb aboard car number one we can get this train up to speed. Sorry, you are going to have to sit on the deck.” Once the two were aboard he raised their platform up so it was at the same height as the top of his containers. Maggot sat dangling his feet over the side. He offered his hand to Wright and she slid next to him.

  Stone toggled the speed. He started slow and built up speed until they were flying along the corridor.

  Maggot looked around him and called back to Stone, “This is great. I wonder why we don’t see more people riding these things around.”

  “Station’s discourage it,” Stone said, “because of insurance liabilities or some such nonsense. We will get a lecture on safety if we bump into station security especially going this fast. Trust me, if I have to stop fast none of us will stay up here. We will end up in a crumpled pile on the deck.”

  “Nice thought,” Wright mumbled and glanced between her feet at the deck flowing swiftly beneath them.

  “Take the next right,” Maggot called back to Stone.

  “Aye, aye, signore.”

  “Can you guide into an elevator or do we need to dismount?” Maggot asked.

  “Elevator?” Stone blew a raspberry. “I can guide into an elevator, up a ramp or even use a null gravity chute. Staying on is a different matter so elevator it is. Which deck are we going to?”

  “Charlie Deck, why?” Maggot asked.

  “My p.a. says we have elevators just ahead.”

  Maggot twisted around and glared at Stone. “Did you query the station database to download a map? Because that would put your name out there for anyone-”

  “Easy, agent,” Stone said. “I have never been to Tamvor. Neither has the Golden Boulder for all I know. That does not mean the Stone Freight Company doesn’t maintain a database of schematics on every station any of our freighters might visit. I have the database on my p.a.”

  “I didn’t see anything like that listed when I was reviewing your data files,” Maggot said.

  “Nor would you, Agent Storovitch,” Stone replied coldly. “It is none of your business. That is company information.”

  “But-”

  “Elevators ahead,” Stone said. He spoke a series of numbers into his p.a. The doors slid open before they got there. He slowed his train down slightly and guided it into the elevator. The doors slid shut and the button for Charlie Deck lit up without anyone having to get down and push the activator.

  “How did you-”

  “Trade secret.” Stone interrupted.

  “Getting a bit snippy aren’t you, Midshipman Stone?” Wright asked.

  Stone snapped back. “Sir. Sorry, sir.” He realized he was getting a little irritated at having everything he did questioned, poked and prodded. After all, he was the victim here wasn’t he? He was the one someone tried to kill. No. They called him stupid first, then they stuck him in a dead end job and then they tried to kill him.

  “Charlie Deck. Hang on for exit,” Stone snapped. The elevator doors slid open. He circled the containers and guided them into the hallway. Even though it was not a freight hallway it was wide and high enough they could have passed themselves with room to spare.

  There was a small knot of maintenance people milling about the elevator doors. Stone was grateful Jay and Peebee forgot to wave. The drascos swiveled their heads around to watch the people. Most of the maintenance crew backed away from the train and flattened themselves against the bulkhead. A couple of the crew blanched, raced down a corridor, jumped into an open room and slammed the hatch shut behind them.

  Maggot pointed to their right.

  Stone gritted his teeth. He guided the container train to the right. He realized he was also very tired of people telling him what to do when he already knew what to do. Maybe he should go back to Aunt Ruth and Uncle Jim’s and ask them to give him a ride home. He shook his head. That would not help. He would just have Dad, Mom, Grandma and Grandpa telling him what to do. “Maybe it wasn’t just people,” he thought, “maybe I am getting tired of letting the events control what I do instead of controlling the events around me.”

  “Hunh!” he said aloud.

  Peebee propped her head on his shoulder and huffed a breath across his face.

  Their speed was enough the breath wisped away before reaching his nostrils. Stone reached up and patted her head just behind her chrome and red flame faceplate.

  “Thanks for the sentiment, Peebee. I am not mad at you and Jay. Just mad I guess. Maybe we should have stayed on Allie’s World.” He immediately rejected the idea. The reasons they had for leaving were still valid. Allie herself was in trouble because of him. “Well, Hammer too,” he thought, but it was Allie who jumped to mind.

  He slid to a smooth stop in front of the doorway to the EMIS office. He was surprised to see it was a real door not a hatch. It even had frosted glass inlaid with the Emperor’s logo. Stone settled the containers to the deck and put the controller in park. He coded a lockout on the controller tagging their use to him only.

  Maggot and Wright stepped to the door.

  Maggot stopped with his hand on the doorknob. “Mister Stone, you better stay outside with your drascos.” He and Wright disappeared inside.

  “Not a chance,” Stone muttered. He hopped down and went to the door. He looked back at Jay and Peebee. They were sitting quietly watching him and seeming to watch everything else at the same time. “You two coming or not? Come on, you follow me.”

  He pushed the door open. Out of curiosity he glanced at the side posts and lintel. Barely visible was a hidden hatch that might slam shut if the station lost atmospheric containment. He nodded to himself. He liked the look. It reminded him of the door to Aunt Ruth and Uncle Jim’s living room, but this one had an emergency hatch as an added safety feature.

  “We’re not open right n-” The man stopped when he saw Jay and Peebee trail in the door behind Stone. He froze for an instant and shouted “Intruder alert.” He and two other office occupants dove behind desks only to come up with guns at the ready.

  Stone stood squarely between the men and his drascos. He looked at them calmly while Maggot and Wright waved their arms trying desperately to head off any gunfire.

  “Get out of the way, boy!” The man shouted.

&nb
sp; “No,” Stone said through clenched teeth.

  Maggot shouted, “Stand down. Everybody relax. They are friendly.”

  The man peeked out from behind his desk. “Really?”

  Maggot nodded.

  “They are only friendly because I say they are friendly,” Stone said with a shake of his head. “You put those weapons away or I will give the command to attack. They will rip you and your buddies to shreds before you can twitch a finger on the trigger. So put your weapons down.”

  “Stone, that’s enough,” Maggot said. “I told you to wait outside.”

  Stone looked at Maggot for a couple of heartbeats. Without turning he said, “Peebee.” He pointed at her.

  Peebee wonked happily at the attention and rattled her chest plate. By accident she slapped her wristbands against the chromed steel. The resulting noise clanged and echoed across the room.

  Jay clanked her wristbands against her chest plate and wonked loudly. She shook her shoulders causing her jewelry to rattle. The effect looked more like an angry juggernaut preparing to do battle than a happy Drasco dance.

  “Ok. Ok. Ok,” the man said dropping his weapon. The other two men followed suit, but they all stayed behind their desks.

  Stone stepped far enough into the room so Jay could get her tail in the doorway. He shut the door and turned back to the people in the room.

  “First,” he said pointing at Maggot, “I don’t take orders from you, and when I do, if I do, you bear in mind that you need me more than I need you.”

  He looked at the first man. “Second, signore. I am a midshipman in the Emperor’s navy. I understand I am not in uniform and you could not know my status, but don’t call me ‘boy’ again.”

  The man glanced at Jay and Peebee then back at Stone. “Yes, Mister. I was rude and I apologize.”

  Stone nodded his acceptance. “Third, I understand you are holding two of my friends in custody for the murder of Commander Wright and Midshipman Stone. Is that correct?”

  The man looked at Maggot. “What is this, Agent Storovitch? You are way off your beat and then you lead this kid…sorry…navy midshipman in here with those whatever they are.”