by Gun Brooke
“Aye, sir.” Nia rose and wiped her hands. “Isn’t this a terrific place? The air smells like my mother’s fruit pie.”
Beaux had to smile. “I thought it had a sweetness to it. See you in ten, then.” She made her way over to the vacant spot and put down the tent and her backpack. Looking around her, she paid special attention to the trees. When that beast was about to attack, she had become more shaken than in a long time. She would have shot it if that odd-looking animal hadn’t interfered. If she hadn’t been so shocked at how fast it all happened, the sight of the smaller creature rolling the large one down the hill would have been funny. Instead, Beaux had felt weak at the knees, and that reaction didn’t sit well with her. Ever since she had joined the military and later become her own boss, she had forged her persona through battle. Then again, she hadn’t been on a virgin, unknown planet before, where everything was alien. She grudgingly acknowledged to herself that going off on her own was not only idiotic—it had been downright suicidal.
Pulling the tightly packed tent out of its cover, she pressed a sensor that allowed air to fill the thin seams, erecting the rectangular shape within ten seconds. Around the edges of the bottom, small struts extended, and all she had to do was hold the ends toward the ground and press another set of sensors for anchors made of a carbon-metal alloy to shoot into the ground. Finally, Beaux gave them a good tug, which engaged a set of barbs that locked the struts in place.
Inside the tent, Beaux inflated a cot, using the same method as with the seams. She rolled out her sleeping bag and inventoried the items in her backpack to see if she needed someone from the Empress to bring her anything when the next shuttles were launched. Deciding she was all set for now, she exited the tent and locked the fastening behind her. Over by Nia’s tent she could see her crew waiting for her. As she strode toward them, she motioned for them to join her in the center of their part of the camp.
The crew formed a semicircle in front of Beaux. Looking curious, they stood in the relaxed manner they knew she preferred. Yes, she ran her ship using a military command structure, but she found the rigid discipline of having lower ranks stand at attention counterproductive. If she needed to pull rank or exercise punishment, locking their heels at attention was even more effective.
“As Nia may have relayed already, I’ve decided to stay planetside—for now. I know I’m not alone in wanting to keep a close eye on these passengers.” Beaux placed her hands on her hips. “Ilienta Enterprises has invested more money than all of us could ever dream up in a lifetime, together, and if something goes to hell, I don’t trust them. I’m not about to risk my crew, my shuttles, or my ship for some greedy corporate suits. This is hardly a secret, as you all know me well.” She saw a hand go up among the men to her left.
“You know I’ve had a strange feeling about those suits, Cap,” said Tracks, one of her most seasoned crewmen, moving the twig between his teeth from one corner of his mouth to the other. “The miners are a rough bunch, but they’re still just hired help. Those suits…” He shook his large, bald head.
“I know. I can safely say there isn’t one among you who hasn’t approached me at one point with the same sentiment. I plan to keep an eye on things for a couple of days, and I’ll bring more security planetside tomorrow when the other shuttles arrive. Tonight, I need us to take turns keeping watch here among ourselves. Not only because we don’t trust the passengers, but”—Beaux cleared her throat—“I’ve seen predators in the forest, and one in particular was twice as tall as you, Tracks.”
“You went out alone, Cap?” Nia gaped. “That’s not protocol.”
“I know, I know.” Beaux held up her hands, palms forward. “I’ll have to write myself up, but in a way, it was good that I did. At least now we know we need to watch our backs in more ways than one. I’ll take first watch at the far end.” She motioned with her thumb toward her tent. “Tracks, you’ll take the other end. Two hours.” Beaux listed the others who needed to relieve each other.
“Aye, sir.” Tracks bit down hard on his twig. “Before people hit the rack, I’ll take Nia and a few others to secure the perimeter. That way we’ll have some warning before the locals come to eat us.”
“Ah, you’ll be safe, Tracks,” Nia said sweetly. “I’m the one who’ll be dinner first, being young and tender.”
Tracks grinned at the diminutive girl. “You mean young and tough.”
Beaux sighed. Another meeting that digressed. Still, she knew the constant banter between crewmembers in this case eased the tension they’d all been under the last eight months. “All right. We all know to be vigilant. When you relieve the crew over by the shuttles, inform them of what we’ve just decided. Tell them to come see me if they’ve got questions.”
“Aye, sir.” Her crew spoke simultaneously, and a few of them straightened into a semi-salute.
Beaux watched Tracks and Nia walk over to their supply tent and return with perimeter wire. They would wrap it around the trees in an uneven pattern, and anything, or anyone, touching it would set off the alarm via their short-range communicators. The beast from earlier would plow straight through the wire without a problem, but that would not happen without alerting them. Mentioning the animals had hopefully made even the most relaxed crewmember on guard wary enough not to dream about walking around unarmed.
“Here, Cap. No need to sit on the ground.” Nia came up to Beaux carrying a foldable chair. “It’s uncomfortable enough to keep you awake.”
“Thanks.” Beaux took the chair and sent a quick glance at Nia’s hip, where her sidearm sat securely. “Good.”
“It’s me you’re talking to, Cap.” Nia raised her leg. On one side of her ankle, another weapon was strapped against her boot, and on the other, a large knife. Nia grinned and nodded at Beaux’s feet. “I learned from the best.”
Beaux bumped Nia’s shoulder gently with her fist. “Stay vigilant.”
“Will do.” Nia hurried back to Tracks, the wire slung over her shoulder in a big roll.
Beaux returned to her tent and unlocked it. She wasn’t hungry, but she needed to eat something. Pulling out an emergency ration and a bottle of water, she sat down outside her tent and bit into the food. The sun was completely hidden behind the mountain now, and it was quickly growing dark. The sky above her looked velvety purple, which offset the stars in a way that made them look as if they were burning like little white flames.
Normally, Beaux was used to seeing stars as faint streaks on the Empress’s screens as the ship tore through space. As a child she had spent many hours on her back on the roof of her home identifying the constellations and dreaming of living and working in space. Now she gazed up at this alien piece of sky where she couldn’t recognize any constellations. Being eight months away from Cimeria, and regarding space from a completely different angle, she noticed that some of the stars and planets were the same as those she could view from her homeworld, but their position was skewed. Beaux had been far away into intergalactic space many times, but never this far, nor in this sector. Nobody had ever found anything worth exploring here before Ilienta Enterprises did.
Watching Tracks and Nia move past her with their wires, she nodded at them and made sure no furry beasts surprised them while they busily pulled the thin threads among the trees. Every meter, they attached bright-yellow strips, warning humans of the wiring. Once they hooked up the system to the power unit, it would also hold a low current, which wouldn’t permanently harm any human, but it would hurt.
As the velvety purple switched to black, making the stars look even starker, Beaux heard the faint, brief beep that meant Tracks had engaged the perimeter watch. Relaxing marginally, she sipped from her water and settled in for her two-hour watch. As she looked over her shoulder, she saw the faint light from a fire someone had started at the other end of the crew’s camp. She hoped the guards she’d placed were enough to ward off any danger, known or unknown.
* * *
A few sentinels stood along the edge of
the camp. Moon crawled closer, keeping low to the ground. Behind her, Dancer mimicked her movements, something he had done since he was little. She didn’t have to tell him to be quiet.
At the far-left side, another, smaller, group of tents had their own guards, which were dressed like the golden-haired woman from the forest. Why did they stick to themselves? Since those tents seemed to be only residential, Moon ignored them and crept to the darkest end of the main part of the camp. The shuttles created a massive backdrop for the vast lines of different-sized tents. The largest ones were located where it was darkest, while spotlights had been erected on tall poles around the residential tents. Why didn’t they illuminate the entire area? Did they consider this part of Haven, or perhaps even the entire planet, uninhabited?
Moon moved slowly, afraid to run into potential traps invisible in the dark, but she found nothing to hinder her progress as she neared the closest tent. Over by some fires, men and women were talking and laughing. The sounds seemed so unnatural to her after being on her own for so long, she shuddered at the memories of her existence as a slave. Forcing them into the dark alcoves of her mind again, where she knew how to erect walls around them, Moon motioned for Dancer to stay back. She pressed her body against the reinforced canvas of the tent, grateful it was dark gray instead of stark white, as the ones over where the uniformed people were staying. This way, her dark clothes wouldn’t stand out too badly if someone looked in her direction.
The opening to the tent was locked, which made her curse inwardly. She felt along the metal rods running down on each side of it and, at the bottom, found a small gap. Looking around her, expecting raised voices at any moment, she still didn’t see anybody. If anything, the voices by the fires were louder, as if more had joined in. Were the people over there celebrating?
A clicking sound made her jump, but then she realized it came from the lock. She had tugged harder than she meant at the rods lining the opening, and somehow the lock had come undone. No alarm klaxons blared, and no one from the fires came running in her direction. She pulled at one of the flaps and pressed her shoulder inside before she talked herself out of it. Still keeping low, as she had no way of knowing if someone else was inside, Moon stepped into the large tent.
A faint light coming from screens on standby made it possible for her to see the massive amounts of equipment. Computers, of course. So many technical items she couldn’t identify. Was this a lab? And if that was the case, what was it meant to explore? Listening for footsteps but not hearing anything, Moon crept up to the closest computer and regarded the vaguely familiar console. She pressed a sensor and flinched as the screen changed to an unfamiliar logo. “Ilienta Enterprises,” she whispered. She pressed the sensor again, expecting a screen asking for identification to show up, but instead a list of what looked like inventories appeared. So, no guards, no traps, and not even a lock on the computer. Was this arrogance, or were the invaders just underestimating an unknown planet?
Moon listened again as she skimmed through the list. The people had to be from the Cimeria sector, as she understood the language. Moon had no idea what half the stuff was for, but words like drill bits, explosives, laser saws, sample kits, and, of course, weapons of all kinds gave her chills. It didn’t take a genius to realize these people were here to find out if they could discover something worth unearthing and taking back to where they came from. Even in the bowels of the ships she had lived on, she had heard of how the people she served wasted resources for their own benefit and always looked for new planets, moons, and asteroids to explore—and exploit.
Of course, this had to be why these people were here. Why else would they arrive in such large numbers and have all this technical equipment? Best-case scenario, they might be here to find out if Haven was habitable, as so many worlds in the Cimeria sector were overpopulated. If that was true, surely they’d be more interested in the plains Moon had hiked to the south of this mountain chain. Who in their right mind would try to find an area for settlers among steep mountains and narrow valleys?
A muted growl outside interrupted her rampaging thoughts. Dancer. Looking around her as her heart pounded fast and hard, Moon saw a long, narrow box where all the cords seemed to converge. She pulled her knife from her belt. Knowing very little about electricity of any kind, she was aware it didn’t go well with water or weapons fire. She prepared to be shocked as she pressed her knife into the slot on the side but was relieved when the casing opened and the sensitive wiring inside was exposed. Not hesitating, she pulled her small water bottle free from her leg pocket and poured its contents into the box. Small, blue flames flickered while traveling along the wiring. In the far back of the tent, a computer gave a faint pop, and then several others made the same sound and went dark. To make sure the rest of them would end up hopefully short-circuiting, Moon set her sidearm to its lowest setting and pushed the trigger while aiming at the box. It fizzled, and a foul smell hit her nostrils. Now, some of the other equipment gave muted pops, and some began to smoke as well.
Dancer’s growl was louder now, and Moon hurried toward the opening. Throwing herself onto her knees, she carefully poked her head outside. She heard approaching voices but detected no urgency in their tone. If anything, they sounded inebriated.
“Shh.” Moon placed her hand on Dancer’s nose. “We’re leaving.” She took time to snap the lock closed after pressing the rods together. Hopefully the longer her sabotage went undetected, the more damage would be done to their equipment.
Bending over, she hurried back toward the forest, this time with Dancer in front of her. When they were well beyond the tree line, she slowed down and looked back. The noise from the camp was still loud, and she even heard singing. Not anything like her mother had used to sing to her or, of course, any of the songs some of the older slaves had taught the younger in the late evenings in the slave quarters. She couldn’t make out the words coming from the fires, but the gruff voices weren’t singing about yearning for freedom, being reunited, or, most forbidden, of vengeance.
Moving through the trees toward her shelter, she began to plan her next move. Haven was a pristine sanctuary. And as these people seemed to think the rule “first come, first served” applied—as humans went, Moon had been here first.
No matter what it took, she would stop them and make them leave.
Chapter Six
“What the hell are you talking about, Drak?” Beaux stepped well into the man’s personal space, narrowing her eyes as she glared into his. “Should any of my crew have sabotaged your research equipment? Are you insane?” After an uneventful night, not counting the partying miners on the other side of the large camp, she’d been met with Kragh and Drak’s ridiculous accusations.
“No need for insults, Captain,” Drak said hotly. His eyes were paler than usual as the morning sun reflected in the near-colorless irises. “I repeat, since you clearly have problems understanding simple statements, when my lab technicians entered the main research tent this morning, every…single…piece of equipment was fried. It didn’t take them long to realize someone had short-circuited the entire machine park via the circuit box.”
“Why would my crew do something like that? Do you have any evidence to prove your accusations?” Beaux wasn’t backing down. She trusted every member of her crew with her life—let alone the toys and gizmos belonging to their passengers.
“It’s hardly a secret that your crew harbors animosity toward my company as well as the miners. Too many skirmishes aboard the Empress for me not to look their way for an explanation.”
“Skirmishes in the ship’s bar and the mess halls that were started by your lot just as often, yes, but to jeopardize our pay after having to put up with the most demanding passengers since the Empress was launched—hardly.” Beaux knew she was antagonizing her client by confronting him like this, but she was too furious to care. “You just may have one or two disgruntled subordinates with a hidden agenda.”
“I won’t rest until this is set
tled. Fortunately, we have several backup systems, and this time we won’t be so trusting. I’m placing our own security in every tent where we have equipment of any kind.” Drak poked his index finger into Beaux’s shoulder.
Not missing a beat, Beaux grabbed his fingers and twisted them, and his entire arm, around and pressed them against his back, making him moan. Immediately two Ilienta security officers pointed their sidearms at her head—and they in turn found themselves in the sights of Beaux’s security team.
“Now, now. Let’s take a step back, everybody.” Kragh stepped close to them, holding up his right hand in a calming manner. “Please, Captain Lestarion, let go of my next in command. If you break his arm, our collaboration could be irreparably damaged.”
“We have no collaboration, Mr. Drak,” Beaux hissed, but she let go of him, and he stumbled backward. “You post all the guards you want, but be assured, so will I.” Fuming, Beaux turned around the stalked back to her crew’s camp. To her surprise, Somas and Veyar were standing in the center of the camp, waiting for her. “What the—who the hell is minding the store?” She was still furious, and now she spat the words.
“We were just planning to stop by for a quick look while we were delivering more rations, as we didn’t trust those fools to not hog everything.” Somas nodded toward their passengers. “We could hear from here what you were screaming about over there. Good thing we showed up. We need to plan, Beaux.” To hear Somas use her first name among the rest of the crew spoke volumes. He was as concerned as she was.