Of Bravery and Bluster

by Scott Kelemen

  Paula’s brow creased in thought. “Well, they can’t just hide it from the random silly cadet. So, it can’t just be out on the surface or eventually someone would ask.”

  Johanna accepted the logic immediately. “So, under the surface. They would need power. A lot of it. So, they’d need flexibility to siphon off the power through cloaked circuits. Putting it near the power core would let them run every system on the station through their secret controls and bleed off what they wanted, when they wanted.”

  Nadia got excited, “This station’s power is primarily geothermal, given the active core and dim quality of the sunlight from Taurus A. It’ll be deep.”

  Johanna nodded. “So, we have a direction they’ll be searching in. We’ll search for them there. Try and get ahead.”

  Paula was thinking as well. “We need weapons.”

  Johanna shook her head quickly. “We can’t look like the enemy.”

  Nadia pointed at the fallen mess that was Sheffeld tied up in the dead Adonlaeydian’s tangle of limbs. “Having a weapon didn’t help her much.”

  Johanna reminded them, “Didn’t help either of them. Come on. We need to move. If we’re still here when the medical teams arrive, they’ll never let us go.” She directed her attention to Marrah. “Stay here. Stay out of our way. And if you have a shred of a conscience, don’t tell them what we’re going to do.”

  Marrah spat on the ground at her feet. “You’ll burn your whole career for helping these alien scum after letting them free.” She’d regained her composure, and dove right back into her lie.

  Paula laughed. “You better pray not even one of us makes it back from this, or you’re the one who’ll be facing those hard questions.”

  Paula and Nadia helped each other up and jogged into the corridor, considering which way to go.

  Johanna paused, and fixed Marrah with another considering stare. Then, she reached down and heaved with all the strength in her light-world frame on one of the dead Adonlaeydian’s legs. Her efficient mind walled off the reality of what she was doing, robbing from the bodies of the dead. Only practicality existed in that moment.

  And whatever she had told Paula, they might need help. And she dared not leave this in the same room as Marrah.

  She propped the leg up on her back, then jammed a hand under the weighty bulk of the alien. Fishing around, she touched the clammy flesh of Sheffeld, traced down along her arm, and wrapped her fingers around the MAAC pistol that had survived the impact where its owner had not.

  Sliding out from under the burden, she let the two bodies settle back into place.

  Marrah glared at her. “And you claim to be innocent?”

  Johanna met her eyes squarely. “I have never said that.” Explaining no further, she concealed the pistol under her grey uniform overcoat, and followed her cohorts into the corridor, leaving behind the Trinitian in the room that looked more like a battlefield than a laboratory.

  Chapter 15

  Makaio looked to Shawn. “Alright. Send the request for a voice connection.”

  Shawn’s finger hovered over the ‘send’ button on his datapad. “You ready for this?”

  Makaio grinned. “Let her have it.”

  Yo Min warned him, “Play it smooth!”

  Makaio’s grin only widened. “This is going to be fun.”

  ***

  Ivy watched the blinking light on her pad with a touch of trepidation. “Are you sure they can’t trace this?”

  Fallon returned a confident nod. “Child’s play, my dear. This is what you’re paying me for. I mean, if these jokers had any real talent, we might be in trouble. But they’re just some random, transient Navy cadets, right? I’ve been living in this system for years. They’re in my world.”

  Ivy relaxed. “Alright. Here we go.” She tapped the button. “Mister Walker? I’m glad to see you’ve changed your mind. Your message said we had to talk.”

  “I thought over your offer. My answer hasn’t changed. I would have let it go, but you had to go threaten my family.”

  Fallon blinked at that. He mouthed the words, ‘You did?’

  Ivy muted the connection, “He’s exaggerating. I just implied that I might take it to the next level.” She activated the sound again. “I hadn’t yet, but -”

  Makaio cut her off, “I don’t take threats well. Neither do my friends. You want to take a stab at us? Fine. Do your worst. Meanwhile, we’re coming after you.”

  The connection was cut.

  Ivy went white. “What the hell was that?”

  Fallon was at a loss. “Thought you said they had swallowed your bait: hook, line and sinker?”

  “I thought they had! Walker tried to make it sound like he wasn’t convinced, but I knew he was rattled when I knew their names. I tried to spook them with a little fear, making it sound like my support could hurt people they love.”

  “Well, they must have bought that. But they aren’t just waiting around. Why are you putting so much into this?”

  “I owe someone, and she’s calling in the favor. Didn’t know it would get so out of hand. But I can’t turn back now. If I quit, I won’t get clear of what I owe her.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “I gotta get back to my studio. They don’t know where I live, and I need to keep out of the corridors in case they’re wandering trying to find me. I think I have enough to fake a recording of Walker agreeing to do the job. I really wanted more footage to cobble it together, but what I have will have to do. Then my friend can blackmail them or use the recording as proof – whatever she intended to do.”

  ***

  Derek staggered into the station security office, breathless and spooked. He clutched at an arm as if he had bruised it rebounding off a few walls. “I need help! This – this woman, she’s made a threat on my life!”

  He wasn’t a professional actor, but he always enjoyed the few chances he had to perform on a stage.

  ***

  Ivy entered her studio to find Virri waiting. “What have you gotten me into? The whole station is on lock-down! You called these guys pigeons, but one of them made a death-threat against me! Says they’re hunting me down! And now station security is looking for me!”

  Virri tried to calm her down, “They’re cadets! Not vigilantes.”

  “They are the least of my worries! I care what station security is going to do! My picture is all over the wall displays, and they’re saying I’m wanted for attempted murder! I’m going to lose my whole life here!”

  “Calm down!” Virri insisted. “I told you, I have a couple of the security guys on my payroll for the week. They need to allow a bit of a fuss, but they’ll settle things down. Just stay out of sight. Finish the recording, and you’ll have done your part.”

  “Really? We didn’t get them to agree to anything. I’m not sure how good I can make this.”

  Virri disagreed. “I have enough to fake a recording that will keep people guessing. If it goes totally my way, they’ll be charged. Worst case, they’ll be so busy fending off accusations that their performance on the Trip-E will be terrible. And now they’ve done something to stir up station security, too. If they don’t find you, they could be chastised for making a scene. I might even be able to make it seem like they were trying to cover for their attempt to sell secrets. But not if security grabs you and forces a confession. Then it will all fall apart! So you need to lay low.”

  “This isn’t worth what I owe you. I never promised to tear my life apart for you! I’m turning myself in, and I’m gonna clear this whole thing up before I get hunted down in some corner. They’re calling me armed and dangerous!”

  Virri snapped, “You’re not. But I am.” She drew a pistol from her bag. It was a hideous antique, a low-powered MAAC with a single setting and barely enough juice to punch out two or three rounds before it would need a recharge. But it was all she had been able to find on the mining station’s black market.

  Ivy’s mouth dropped open. “You’re insan
e!”

  Virri’s hand shook a little as she raised the weapon. “No. Maybe a little desperate. You’re not the only one whose made promises she needs to keep.”

  Ivy measured the other woman’s eyes. She shook her head. “You can’t.”

  “You don’t think I will?” Virri’s hand quivered again, with anger or fear or both.

  Ivy repeated, “I said I don’t think you can. I’ve seen killers before. You might want to be one. But you aren’t. I’m ending this. If you’re smart, you’ll clean up your mess and hope they don’t track you down. I’ll tell them as little as I can. I owe you that much.”

  “Our debt isn’t settled!”

  “After what you put me through? We’re done.” Ivy held her gaze. “Do you hear me? Whatever happens, we’re even. I was stupid enough to do this, so I’ll take whatever punishment comes and keep your name out of it. The rest is on you.”

  She turned her back on the muzzle of the MAAC aimed at her and walked from the studio.

  The shot never came.

  ** *

  Jerrak always thought a security posting on a run-down mining station was perfect. He could run a few scams and collect some off-the-clock kickbacks all while pulling down a steady paycheck.

  He was feeling less certain about his life choices with a gun in his back, prodding him on. Virri hissed in his ear, “Come on, open it!”

  Jerrak snapped back, “I don’t have the damn override process memorized! Hold on!” He was flipping through the control menus, trying to find the option that would let security officers into any space on the station. The door would lead into the restaurant where Ivy had first met Makaio and Derek. He finally found what he was looking for, and entered the phony access codes he used when abusing his authority instead of exercising it.

  The door slid open and Virri tore past him into the subdued lighting inside. The mining station didn’t maintain a full day/night schedule, but she knew the restaurant closed for two hours due to a gap in their shifts. She had used that to her advantage alongside Ivy the first night in port to set up the recording devices she had needed to catch their conversation.

  “What are we doing here, anyway?”

  Virri snarled at him, “Keep up! The whole damn plan has gone out the window! We need to erase any trace we were ever here!”

  She rushed into the central hub of the restaurant only to have the lights flick on. Standing in the center of the room were three uniformed figures. Two in the rugged style of station security, and the last in the pristine blue-on-blue of the Alliance Navy. The uniform of Lieutenant Commander Sarlow, her instructor and assessor for the Trip-E.

  Her and Jerrak froze.

  The lead security man crossed his arms. “Well, our source was right. Only a matter of time before you showed up here.”

  Sarlow took a step forward. “You will drop that side-arm, cadet. This game of yours is over.”

  Virri clutched the pistol. Her fingers worked. Ivy had been right. She hadn’t been able to pull the trigger. Staring into the cold face of her superior, she knew she wouldn’t be able to do it now. Not even to end her own pain.

  Her future was evaporating in front of her.

  She had been called to serve Trinity, and she’d screwed it all up. Now, she was going to be sacrificed for the cause instead.

  She dropped the weapon to the floor.

  Chapter 16

  Water dripped from Dianne’s freshly showered hair and trailed down her neat ponytail. Bounce was back in her step despite the grueling night ripping their mining drill apart, rebuilding it, then holding it at a state of hot standby for the morning. The shower had only added to her hopeful energy.

  The confidence she felt was worth the long night. They had done a full run-up less than an hour ago. The drill performed perfectly. If it didn’t function smoothly today, she would be out of options. But it would work. She knew it.

  Grabbing hold of a safety bar above the door, she swung into the airlock and landed with a lightness she felt in her heart. “Well? Ready to make some history?”

  Reygi glanced up from her weighted boots she was strapping on. “History?”

  Dianne strutted over and toggled open her vac-suit locker. “How about progress? Better?”

  Suzi Arlock heaved shut the torso of Terro Basq’s suit as she answered with enough grandiose flourish to match the words, “History sounds better. We’re about to stage the most epic comeback in modern times!”

  Dianne grinned. “That’s the spirit.” She picked up her helmet and reached in to activate the microphone inside. “Seiji, do you have the drill maneuvered outside?”

  His always high, thin voice came back as a reedy whisper through the suit speakers. “Ready and waiting.”

  “We’re on our way.” She juggled her helmet toward the rack, but it slipped past her fingertips. It ricocheted off her bench and cracked twice more off the deck plates before coming to a heavy rest by Reygi’s left boot.

  Reygi bent to retrieve it, handing it across the airlock to Dianne. “Couldn’t all go smoothly, right?”

  Dianne took it back, running a finger along the spidery fracture that had formed across the clearsteel face plate. The impact shouldn’t have been hard enough to cause the break. Clearsteel was a few orders of magnitude more resilient than plexiglass. That it would shatter meant there had to have been a flaw in the material. “Guess I’m lucky it held as long as it did.”

  Reygi smiled. “Keep thinking like that. Good luck you found it inside, right?”

  “Right.” She stepped briskly back into the DepRec, trying to keep her happy energy going. Keying open the damaged equipment return, she plugged in the helmet to let it cycle through the damage estimate before whisking it away to the complex storage system.

  She was reaching for a replacement from the shelf when she froze. The diagnostic should have noted the break in the plate and maybe a few minor glitches after the weeks she had been using it. Instead, the display was indicating half-a-dozen near failures. Nothing immediately critical, but any of the imperfections might have failed at any moment if any sort of strain came on the systems. She didn’t think any would result in her instant death, but they would cause an emergency that would force her to return inside. If she didn’t react perfectly, or if she panicked, they might have killed her.

  It was impossible. She had run her checks properly when she stripped out of her gear last night. She was new to the Navy, but even cadets were trained exhaustively in the basic principles of working in space. You checked your suit. Twice. Would the euphoria of getting the drill ready and the fatigue of a long night make her forget? Would she have just slipped into the suit and pushed out of the airlock?

  Would her team do the same?

  Suddenly afraid, she rushed back into the airlock. “Terro, did you do a full read on your suit before you put it on?”

  “Sure. Glad I did. Had a few loose seals in the shoulders. Didn’t notice them last night.”

  Dianne switched to the others. “Suzi? Reygi?”

  Reygi grumbled, “Yeah, my rotation jets were completely empty. I hadn’t used more than a blast or two yesterday. At least, I didn’t think I had. But I must have siphoned off more than I thought.”

  Suzi shook her head. “Ahh, no. I did last night. Probably should, shouldn’t I?”

  Dianne was already opening the mic on her new helmet. “Seiji, you worked up your suit before you went out, right?”

  “Never fail, Dianne. No issues noted. What’s happening in there?”

  That surprised her, and nearly set her mind at ease. Could it all be a coincidence? Then she remembered that Seiji had kept his suit in the drill locker all night, in case they needed to retrieve something from their drill site overnight.

  But the rest of them all had errors. And if they all did, then what were the odds of the other teams being the same? That was it! ‘That was what we hadn’t done right! We all did technical checks, but not security sweeps!’ This wasn’t an error. This was
sabotage.

  Dianne’s pearl skin lost its creamy undertone, reduced to pure, pale white. “Seiji, get back inside the airlock. Now.” She didn’t wait for his answer, shifting to the circuit shared by the team leaders for emergencies. “Jenna, Ian, Greg…Nura.” She added the last after a heartbeat of soul-searching. Yes, even she deserved to know. “This is Dianne. All our team vac-suits are crapping out. Just like the drills. All of them! You need to stop your egress and make sure all of your team suits check out.”

  Nura came over the line with a snarky laugh. “You want us to cost ourselves time because you can’t check your own kit?”

  Dianne bit back what she wanted to say, actually trying to help, “These were not errors! Listen to me, we had too many failures. This was deliberate.”

  Jenna came over the net, “We’re in the lock, at zero-pressure and holding. Are you serious? How do you know?”

  Dianne shot back, “There were too many and too well hidden. The faults were small, meant to slip by surface scans. Any of them might fail, or they might not. Walking into the vacuum would be playing roulette with your life. Please trust me!”

  Jenna took a long time to respond, obviously weighing the pros and cons. Weighing her belief. “Fine. We’re pulling back. If you’re selling us a line, I am going to hunt you down, Starling.”

  Dianne switched target, “Ian?”

  “I heard. Larrey just reported a flicker in his heads-up display. We’ll pull back until we can check his HUD and the rest of our suits.”

  Nura cut in with a derogatory snip. “I’m not costing my team that sort of time. We trust our work. We already have our drill on the outer pad and we’re not turning back. Team 2 clear!”