“Why?” Min Hae asked, sitting back as he sipped from his drink.
“Well, let’s just say no one wants to be caught for anything here on Daestramus. Our reform system is not one anybody would spend a lot of time in,” Narvu said and Min Hae nodded, hiding a grin. Narvu was as good as his.
“No worries. I'm just here to sell my goods. Would you perhaps know a good seller of technologies? Daestramus is famed for their quality goods,” Min Hae asked.
“I can see if I can set something up, for a price,” Narvu said, and Min Hae grinned.
“I'm sure we can sort out a price.”
Chapter - Too Smooth
We'd been in orbit around Daestramus for seven days, and Cheerleader had exited the system some time ago to link up with Bregend's ships.
He personally commanded a newly captured battle cruiser, with a Destroyer, two cruisers and two Corvette's rounding out his squadron.
He had only taken two days from arriving in Parnmal to transfer his people and parts from his old ship to his new one.
He'd risen to his appointment as Captain admirably. Which was why he found himself in charge of six ships instead of just his own.
The relations department had been talking to the Overseer as well as the City governors for some time, trying to reach an agreement, but it seemed for some reason that the leaders were tending towards the middle path of siding with neither us nor the Syndicate. The reason I hadn't left the planet to explore more was because I got an odd feeling from Marhtu, as well as the fact that they had always implored us to stay instead of leaving.
It might be a tactic to keep us here to protect them if the Syndicate comes, I thought.
I stood, stretching.
“In Sook, you have command,” I said.
“Certainly, sir,” she said, remaining in her seat as additional options were added to her work terminal.
As we walked out, I turned to Janice and Dave who were on watch for now.
“You two hungry?” I asked, and both of them shrugged as I gave them the evil eye.
“I'll take that as a yes, considering your new found inability to make a decision,” I said, a grin coming across my face as they rolled their eyes.
“I'm going to start putting on some weight with all this food,” Dave said with a grin.
“Its cause of those damned pastries you’re addicted to!” Janice said with a playful shove.
“They are a sight better than what we had before,” Dave said, smiling at his wife, stopping their pushing match.
I took the long route, walking by the gun decks.
“Hey, Chief Zor,” I said to the Sarenmenti, who was studying something intently on his data pad.
“Commander,” he said, looking as if he was debating whether to ask a question by the way his stub of a tail moved.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Well, sir, I have some upgrades planned for the Resilient when she reaches dock. I know we won't be going in for a while because of our current mission, but if you'd like to see?”
“Of course,” I smiled. It was good to see anyone showing initiative, plus it was a sight to see Chief Zor slightly unsure of himself.
I whistled, moving the hair out from my face, my red eyes undoubtedly dancing as I read what Zor proposed.
“That is quite the upgrade.” I moved through a few more pages as I noted some changes that I'd seen before. “I see you've been working with Eddie,”
“Yes sir. He told me how even though Resilient is a beauty, the PDF was focusing on making ships at speed, so they cut corners and made systems that worked, but weren't as efficient as they could be,”
I ran my hand through my hair, resting it behind my neck.
That could work.
“Alright. Finish your plans, have a talk with Krat and work out a system that works for everyone. And take into consideration the new blow-out panels,”
Instead of looking crestfallen Zor looked excited. I couldn't help but grin.
“Thank you, Commander,” he said, chewing on his wad of gum.
“Good work, Chief. Keep it up,” I said, patting him and moving on.
I talked to and saw people I knew. This was where I did my job. On the bridge I danced with death, my ships, my instruments, my people the artists that strung them along. Down here I could see them, talk to them, laugh and forget that we were orbiting a planet with sentients on it. There was still some of that hero complex, but I had spent enough time trawling through the bowels of Resilient to be the kind of guy in charge that someone could talk to and expect to get the time of day.
“You three, shake a leg!” one engineer said to us as the two of them tried to jiggle a panel in place.
Dave, Janice and I pushed the heavy panel into alignment and the two engineers quickly secured it.
“Thanks..,” the engineer that had yelled us over went an interesting color of red. “I, uhh, commander..,”
“Don't worry about it,” I said. “What are you doing here?”
“Systems refit, pulling the old messed up, or haphazard panels and replacing them with new ones,” the second engineer said, pressing the drop down function as the panel extended down, revealing wiring, chips, processors, gauges and lights.
“Good work,” I said, smiling at them and patting the engineer that was still in shock of the gaffe he'd made as I continued on.
“So I heard that the mess chef is looking to make some ice cream,” I said to Dave and Janice.
Dave looked like a happy child as Janice rolled her eyes.
“You were right, you are going to get bigger, massive even,” Janice said with emphasis as I laughed.
“Thanks, dear.” Dave sounded pleased with her statement.
“Look at what happened with just the regular rations!” Janice said a glimmer of a smile on her face.
Dave looked himself over as if discovering his new size for the first time.
“Huh! Well, will you look at that! When did that happen?” he said with a smile. It was always refreshing being around Dave and Janice. They always had some kind of joke and I knew I was as safe as could be with them.
By the time we got to the mess the conversation had changed from Dave's gaining weight to naming the different kinds of ice cream we could think of.
“Wasabi, Sake, venomous snake, raw horse meat... What?” I asked their slightly grossed, and weirded out stares.
“Where the hell did you find those flavours?” Dave asked as they'd been talking about cookies and cream, or chocolate mint chip.
“I went to Japan for fun. Cheerleader ordered,”
“Ah... why?” Dave asked.
“Opening our horizons, and apparently getting Monk, Bok Soo and I more cultured. After the horse meat we left.”
“I think I would too,” Janice said.
“Don't knock it till you try it. Japan also has a ton of flavours of kit kat,”
We quickly went through the mess, eating and talking to a few people we knew. Dave had three bowls of ice cream. How the man didn't get a brain freeze I'll never know. We finished up and headed to the armories. It had been a while since I'd gone down there. The Bridge and my quarters were well away from it.
“Well, this feels somewhat familiar,” Shrift said as I walked into the armoury.
“What you doing in here?” I said as we touched forearms, a greeting taken from the Avarians.
“I was bored, so I felt like playing around with a few mechas. Your Commandos are almost as bad as you,” he said, my eyes raising to my mecha which was bolted to the armoury's overhead.
“Not going to let that one go are you?” I asked as Dave and Janice snickered.
“I don't think anyone's going to forget that. I think Yasu made it a training module,” Dave said
“Yeah. Salchar and his reckless friggin stunts,” Shrift grunted as I grinned.
“Got to do what you've got to do,” I said, spreading my arms.
“So what are you here for, oh grand comman
der? No need for you to hide out in here anymore,” Shrift said as he sat back, eating cookies.
“Just wandering around,” I said.
“Well you know where everything is. Though I have an issue you might find interesting,” he said, tapping his data pad. I turned it around to see it.
“Ahh, the new mecha's. We'll finally have a couple basic models throughout the Free Fleet instead of having to modify old ones and add a ridiculous amount of customization to get them working.”
Janice and Dave studied the plans over my shoulders.
“Well, we'll still have the customization ability, just in a more... refined fashion,”
“You mean no needing to tweak the inner workings because they're garbage,” I said.
“Exactly,”
“Let's see what damage we can do to this mecha,” I said, grinning to shrift as a hologram of a mecha appeared on a table.
“It's a powered suit, not mecha! I thought you lot would snap out of that trend,” Shrift said, half annoyed.
“Why did the Syndicate call them mecha's then?”
“Cause Lady Farigate hated calling them suits. She thought it made the Union sound too refined. So she picked mechas, which are supposed to be damned massive machines,” Shrift said.
“Good to know. Maybe we can reverse that. Your task is to change people from calling these mechas to the proper powered suits,” I told him.
“They could also be called armored exoskeletons,” Shrift said.
“One name!” I said, grinning.
“Alright, alright,” Shrift said as he stood and we walked to the mech... powered suit.
“We'll leave you to it,” Janice said.
“Have fun watching, weirdos,” I said as they grinned.
They knew I didn't like having to have people watch me. They also knew that I respected them as well as Calerd, Shreesht, Krom and that I thought of them as Mecha Tail members. They went to either side of the armories, taking a seat and watching the world go by as I got elbow deep in the suit hologram.
*****
Marhtu didn't even need to signal to his Kaaorv as they pressed their Orv to the messengers chest. The messenger gurgled in pain as they thrashed against their chains. Marhtu knew the prisoner was beyond tired, but pain was still a great motivator.
“Say that again,”
“They're not Syndicate,” the pitiful creature in front of him said as Marhtu mused. He hadn't known if this Salchar was testing him, or really not part of the syndicate. Now he knew the answer he had to decide what to do with it. No one lied once his Kaaorvs had their time with them.
The messenger had been an analyst within what was the technically non-existent Damestrus military. He had been saying the same thing since he entered Marhtu's presence, but Marhtu wanted to make sure. Plus he hadn't had many people re-educated by his Kaaorvs in a number of days. With a flick of his finger the Kaaorv ran their Orv against the creatures nerve bundles. Marhtu watched in fascination as the creature thrashed like an animal being electrocuted, but with the screams, and consciousness, of one in much greater pain that they could actually feel.
The Kaaorv waited a few minutes before touching their Orv to the creatures brain, activating every nerve bundle in painful brilliance. Marhtu grinned as he watched the creature die in pain so incredible Marhtu couldn't even fathom it. It took him a few seconds before he regained his composure, more excited than before and no longer dopey eyed. So many recalcitrant's to be reformed, he thought with sadistic glee as he pressed a button that connected him to his secretary.
“I want a plan written up to take those ships and to get me the head of that fleet,” Marhtu said, not waiting for a response as he ended the call.
He was going to get a fleet to be able to change the arrangement with the Syndicate and he would take over Frosha and Flor. The Sarenmenti and Kuruvian slaves were a good product. If he had them he'd be able to remove the disobedient masses of Damestrus. It’s all coming together, Marhtu. He said as he flicked to another Kaaorv going through their final training ritual, killing their family through torture.
Kaaorvs after a certain amount of using their Orv could only feel when they used it against others. Some would cry, or only touch their victims as emotions rode them. Though eventually they would use their Orvs for hours, craving the ability to feel once again. The Kaaorv cried as they applied their Orv to their mother. Marhtu watched, this was his world. This was how he had retained his power all of these years. He snapped his fingers a woman that had dared to try and start a rebellion used a razor sharp blade to cut Marhtu's food, personally feeding him. Others would have killed their opponents, it would have actually been a relief to his slaves, but Marhtu dislike death, he enjoyed watching his slaves, once great people, broken and suffering for the rest of their days. All of Marhtu's slaves spoke to his power, and his sadistic ways.
****
Min Hae had learned a lot of things he didn't like. Narvu had been a great source of information, though Min Hae felt that he was being checked out as much as he was checking Narvu. The Overseer was looking more like a tyrant than anything. He had a secret military that the Syndicate had never found out about. They were Marhtu's strength and were known to take people in the middle of the night. Slavery was a common trade between Marhtu and the syndicate crews.
Also that if a group called the Kaaorv, or red flowers came knocking it was better to kill yourself than let them have you. They were professional torturers that had been broken into obedience. Now it seemed that something was up, as markers that Min Hae had put in place were being tripped. Something big was underway, but he had no idea what yet.
“Gogs, I need something!” Min Hae said, venting his frustration as Gogs bent over his workstation.
“I'm trying to find something, anything. But these people are good. They actually write notes and destroy them once the recipients have them. If the people they lived around knew who they were they'd be killed. Keeping who they are a secret is as good for Marhtu's well-being as it is for their own.”
Min Hae knew this, but it still did nothing to relieve his anxiety.
“The fleet is sending down more people,” Gogs said as Min Hae leaned over his shoulder to read the information scrolling down Gog's screen.
It seemed that the first relations people that had come to Damestrus had been hit with a bout of flu native to the planet. Marhtu had his doctors working on it and had sent up a vaccine to be used on the rest of the fleet.
“Why does he want more people down here?” Gogs thought aloud.
“Hostages,” Min Hae said simply. Gogs eyes became decidedly darker. Min Hae knew how Kelu had threatened Gogs' family, torturing his nephew before Gogs became his slave effectively.
“There will be something eventually,” Gogs said.
“I just hope it's soon enough,” Min Hae said, knowing he would need more information to convince Salchar about his suspicions. His thoughts were derailed as Gogs squeezed his back where there had once been wings in alert.
“Marhtu is requesting for Salchar to come down to make their agreement to be part of the Free Fleet official. In two days,” Gogs said without prompt.
“It's a trap,” Min Hae said, the others in the room all agreeing in their own way.
“We need to set up a way to communicate to them without being compromised,” Min Hae said to Chrys.
“There's no way to get it to them without Daestramus knowing who we really are,” Chrys said.
If Daestramus knows, then other planets will know who the hell we are and our ability to gather information without others knowing we are will be lost.
“That's a last resort. What other options do we have?” Min Hae said, looking to everyone for suggestions.
“We need to send the signal from somewhere we can't be traced. Or if it is traced then it doesn't matter,” Ervstl said.
“We should choose someone to take the blame that wouldn’t be an issue for us,”
“How about the City J
ak Governor, Roshvi?” Baldabuh said.
Min Hae looked to the man to explain his reasoning. He thought it was a good idea, but that didn't mean he was going to let his people have any easy time.
“He's the biggest supporter of Marhtu, and that’s something that the people in his city hate. He's also the nearest city, and has moved most of his underground military to aid Marhtu. He's vulnerable. If Marhtu thinks that he's been betrayed he'll elect someone else,”
“How do we know the new person will be any better than Roshvi?” Min Hae asked the floor and one of the operators/engineers put his hand up. Min Hae pointed to the grinning Chaleelian.
“We make sure of it.”
“Indeed, and we get some people into position.” Min Hae looked to them all.
“You're going to the City of Jak. I want you to use any contacts you already have to get more, there in the city. We need to have people within the city structure when it changes over to a new leader.” Instead of arguing, all of them took on determined expressions.
I picked well.
“Gogs and I will stay with the ship.” A few looked as if they were about to object before Min Hae glanced at them, silencing them before they could say anything.
“Get going.”
They dispersed as Min Hae took his seat. So close but so far.
So what do you think Salchar is going to do?” Gogs asked.
“He'll go down there. He's willing to give anyone a chance. I don't know how Marhtu thinks he's going to pull this one off.” Min Hae raised an eye brow to Gogs.
“That’s my job,” Gogs said, pulling his fingers in, making a squishy noise. Min Hae hated the noise, which was probably why Gogs did it so often.
Chapter - New Resident
Connolly didn't know when he'd been more tired. Probably back when he was doing basic training for the Free Fleet. The harsh lighting, lack of air and heavy gravity nearly broke him but he'd gotten through it. At least now he knew he was doing something productive. He knew how to fight in space as well as on ships and stations. He was learning how to do orbital drops onto a planet and his fighting skills had improved exponentially. On top of that, while working on Nancy he was seeing ships coming together. He knew how to meld, lay power conduits as well as make them, replace bulkheads and use four drones at once.
Free Fleet #03 No Rest for the Wicked Page 14