The Torgoran Revolt (Plundering the Stars Book 3)

by James David Victor

  Like any place that attracted the downtrodden of the galaxy, the “scummy and villainous” of us, Terr-Ten Station was a hive of interesting folks, species I’d rarely seen, and even some that I had no name for. We saw a slug-like thing with yellow-green skin that crawled by, slime trailing behind it. There was a golem of a person made of shiny, silvery stone, they were eight feet tall and everyone gave them a wide berth.

  Amara saw me staring. “Korgeckens. They come a lava planet on the edge of chartered space. They don’t leave their home often.”

  I gawked at them. “Places like this always make me wonder what kind of things I’m missing out there.”

  “I’m sure you’re missing plenty.”

  We continued on. We passed markets filled with every item one could possibly want, from the legal to the illegal, from simple food goods to weapons that could probably take down this station with one blow. It was a veritable smorgasbord. If we hadn’t been on a critical mission, I would have loved to stroll around and gawk at everything, maybe pick myself up something nice.

  Maybe one day.

  Despite the fact that this place was a supposed hive of bad people, it was surprisingly orderly, and I didn’t see much security. On occasion, we spotted a patrol of thickly armored thugs that had a bright yellow symbol on the chest like three interlocking cubes, which was the symbol of the station, as Amara explained. But still, there weren’t a lot of these patrols. Order was kept because everyone assumed that everyone else was just as ready to shoot and kill you for transgressing against them. A wise assumption.

  Some fights did break out, but they usually ended with fists and not blasters. Most of it was between drunks, spilling out of bars, though I saw one at a street-side mech fight and one bettor got steamed thinking he got cheated. When someone loses money, anger is always close behind.

  Which was a fair reason why I tried not to gamble anymore. That, and I didn’t have a lot of digits to spend.

  We walked for easily over an hour before we came close to our destination. Amara strode with purpose, without any hesitation, as if she knew every inch of the station and didn’t need to think about directions. And maybe she didn’t. There was still so much I didn’t know about her. I knew the bullet points of her past, but she didn’t like to elaborate on any of it, which was fair. As with most of us, there was a lot of pain in her past, and if she didn’t want to talk about it, then she didn’t have to talk about it.

  Once we were through the markets and a long series of living blocks, we came to a long field of factories that manufactured saints-knew-what, but they belched toxic brown clouds into the controlled atmosphere of the station. I questioned that, as for a station with artificial air for the most part, how could there be such pollution, but Amara pointed out giant air filtration machines high above us that kept the air clean.

  It was only after these factories that Amara finally slowed as we neared her contact.

  The station was so large that they had whole river systems built in, some for power and others for sewage. Amara led us down the latter. The brackish water was probably brown because of unspeakable things and not from the mixing of salt and freshwater. Though, I had to admit that as we descended the steps, the smell didn’t overpower me. It was there, an ache that wanted to assault my nose, but it held off.

  We traveled along the sewage canal, holding tight against the metal walls. There wasn’t a lot of room to maneuver, which was inconvenient for us, but probably a good defense mechanism if you were hiding a secret base down there.

  It felt like we walked for a mile in those dim corridors, with only the pale-yellow fluorescent lights to guide us. But after a while, Amara came to a halt and held up her fist, the signal to stop.

  She turned to us. “Alright, the base is just up ahead, or was anyway.”

  I nodded. “Got it.”

  “I can’t promise you anything, Yan,” Amara said. “They’d maintained a base here for a long time, usually manned by my friend and a few others. It’s been a few years so it’s very possible that they’ve been compromised or decommissioned.”

  “It’s better than nothing. It’s a lead, that’s all I can ask for,” I said with a shrug.

  “What if he doesn’t want to give you the information?” El asked. She cracked her knuckles. “Are we gonna have to bust some skulls?”

  “Don’t worry. Fallan and I were close when I was with the resistance. And no, we won’t fight. I’d rather not make enemies with any more heavily-armed groups, thank you.”

  I laughed. “You love a good fight, Amara, quit lying.”

  She gave me a glare. “Maybe once I did, but I like to play it smart now. And you shouldn’t be so incorrigible. You’re wanted by more groups than I have fingers.”

  I put my arms behind my head. “You’re not wrong.”

  “Alright, come on, let’s see if this trip was worthwhile or not.”

  So, we padded ahead. The sewer curved to the right, which hid a thick steel door around the corner. It was scorched with old blaster scores, the area around it dirty and covered in soot. It didn’t look promising, like a fight had happened.

  Amara felt the same way. Her face contorted with concern. But still, we had to push forward. She grabbed hold of the door handle. It wouldn’t budge. That would have stopped most people, but being a Zarthian, she wasn’t about to be stopped. With both hands, Amara yanked with all her might. The door groaned and popped, exploding off its hinges with a loud screech. If people didn’t know we were there, they did now.

  “So much for the element of surprise,” I said.

  “I don’t think that was ever an option,” El replied. “Only one way in. No sneaking.”

  As soon as we stepped in, we knew this wasn’t the resistance base we were expecting. Pink hunra smoke rolled out into the corridor, engulfing us in its sweet aroma. I covered my mouth. It had been a while since I’d partaken in the drug. Now wasn’t the time. This wasn’t the type of temptation I needed right now. The others covered their mouths too and stepped in.

  Gone was the supposed military base. It was now a drug den. It was a wide-open space, with low ceilings and thick metal walls, though the paneling was exposed in places and rust had set in on others. Crouched in corners and lying against the cold walls were derelicts of several species, all smoking hunra. Upon our entrance, and our breaking their door, the users all jumped up and cowered. Understandable. Hunra could distort reality in the user’s eyes very easily.

  Amara scanned the crowd for Fallan, but it was clear that there were no Torgorans present. My heart sank. Without her contact, I didn’t know how we were supposed to find Jax and Jinx.

  But Amara wasn’t ready to give up. “I’m looking a Torgoran, a man named Fallan. Is he here?”

  Everyone went silent for several seconds. It was clear that they were all terrified of this small, super-strong woman. I didn’t expect an answer, or if I did, I didn’t expect a good answer, but then several of them raised their malnourished arms and pointed to the hallway on the other side of the room.

  Amara nodded and thanked them. “Go back to your entertainment. No need to worry.”

  I was unsure how much that would reassure them. I remembered well how paranoid one could get on hunra. And I usually only smoked enough for a subtle high, not enough to really wreck my life, not like these folks. Still, it was a dangerous, slippery slope. Which was why I’d tried my best to stop.

  “Let’s hope they’re telling the truth,” Amara said, striding toward the hallway.

  “Or that they understood the question,” Rayvan quipped back.

  “That too.”

  Amara pushed through the smoke to the other side of the room—us on her heels—to where a small, narrow hallway led deeper into the former base. The lights here, like in the main room, were dim and flickered. I didn’t imagine this den paid their power bill on time, so they probably had to siphon it off someone nearby.

  The corridor was long and winding, covered in old wire
s and piping. Some of the pipes leaked, and the floor was cracked and covered in dirt. I wondered what happened to the base. Had it been attacked, based on the blaster scores on the door? There weren’t any other signs of damage beyond gradual wear and tear. Maybe Fallan would be able to explain. Assuming he was cooperative.

  We tensed as we neared the end of the hall. There was another door ahead, this one with a small circular window built in. Before we arrived at it, I could see the dim pink glow of a hunra-filled room beyond.

  Amara stopped before the door. Her shoulders tensed as she took in a deep breath. I felt the same. This was it.

  She stepped forward. The door slid open with a groan. The whispers that populated the room suddenly ceased. We stepped in.

  This room was likely once the command center. There was a holo-terminal in the center, with pods of old consoles around the perimeter, all of which were broken and covered in dust. There was no other furniture, no chairs or tables beyond the old equipment that was built into the ground and walls.

  Addicts huddled along the perimeter like they had in the main room. I scanned them for our target. There was maybe a dozen. The first few weren’t humanoid. Then there were a couple of Torgorans, both skinny women that couldn’t be Fallan. Then I saw a Goonish girl that looked at me with empty eyes. She reminded me so much of myself and made my spine tingle.

  Beside me, Amara went rigid. I followed her gaze. She hadn’t described Fallan, but this must have been him. Like most Torgorans, he had reddish hair and auric skin. But this Torgoran was massive, more similarly built to an Elarri like El than to Jinx or Jax. Despite his size, his eyes were sunken, and his cheekbones were sallow. The drug had taken its toll. His features did not look natural.

  “Fallan,” Amara called, her tone devoid of emotion.

  Whatever his reaction I’d imagined, he didn’t follow. His eyes went wide. He cursed. “A-Amara?”

  She took a step toward him. “It’s been a while, friend.”

  The way she said “friend” made it perfectly clear that they were far from friends. There was more of that dark history that she didn’t like to talk about.

  He stood up slowly, dropping his hunra pipe. The pink smoke parted around him as he moved.

  “I…” He licked his lips. “I didn’t think I’d see you again.”

  “Well, I hadn’t planned on this pleasure either, but here we are.”

  Fallan wanted to bolt. I could see the twitch, see the fear running through him. Some of it was the paranoia that hard users displayed. But not all. There was real terror at seeing Amara again.

  She put her hands up to soothe him. “Just stay calm. We’re not going to hurt you. I just need some information about the resistance.”

  “And what makes you think I know it?”

  “I don’t. That’s what the talking is for.”

  The “talking” wasn’t really talking, though. She knew he was about to run. So, Amara dove for her former comrade, but he yelped and ducked out of reach. He was more slippery than he looked, though I found addicts always seemed to have this quality about them, no matter their physical size. It would have been simple to shoot him, but the smoke made it hard to see and the room had plenty of innocent bystanders. We couldn’t risk hurting them, or accidentally killing Fallan.

  So, we chased after him. I dove for his legs, but as soon as I grabbed him by the ankles, he was through my grasp. Rayvan and El tried their best too, but as Elarri, they were bigger and slower and just didn’t have the agility—though Fallan was practically the same size, but that didn’t appear to matter right then. He was still slick.

  He ran, bolting away from us like we were ghosts there to haunt him. Amara cursed and charged after him without a moment’s hesitation. Me and the others followed her.

  The chase led us out of the base and back into the sewer tunnels, though he took us the opposite direction of the way we’d come. He was faster than he looked and all we could catch were glimpses of his feet as he swerved around the bends and corners. Amara and I did our best to keep pace, but he had the advantage of knowing where he was going.

  We came around a corner to a long corridor. Fallan was gone, and the corridor was much too long for him to have gotten away, but then, we heard it: the patter of frantic hands on metal rungs. He was climbing out.

  There was a maintenance tunnel, a small vertical shoot to the surface, not too far away. I ducked my head in and looked up. Sure enough, Fallan was above, trying his best to escape. Luckily, in such a confined space, his girth put him at a disadvantage, as his shoulders kept rubbing against the confined walls, slowing his progress.

  “I got him,” I declared, and started climbing. Amara was smaller than me, but I’d been climbing, shimmying, and scaling my way into large buildings for years and getting away with rich people’s valuables. In a foot race she might have had me, but no one was a better climber than me.

  I leapt up the shaft, taking three rungs at a time. Fallan looked down in surprise to see me rapidly approaching. He cursed and doubled his efforts.

  For a moment, I thought I was going to catch him. His ankle was within reach, though even if I could grab it, I doubt I could stop him. But before I could try, he reached the top hatch and pushed it open. He laughed and crawled out with a wicked smirk. He peered down at me, his eyes twinkling, and closed it.

  Saints! A moment later, I was at the top. Light streamed through some slits in the hatch, so I was able to see. It didn’t take long for me to find the latch to open, but I had to hope that Fallan didn’t lock me out.

  The latch turned. Opened. I was out in fresh air again.

  Fallan had led us to another market, though this one was smaller and more benign, mostly food and clothes. Still plenty of people, though. I lost sight of my prey for a moment, but then caught sight of his bulk pushing through the crowds. I climbed out of the shaft and hurried after him, not bothering to wait for the others.

  Amara caught up with me before long and we continued after him, side by side.

  Fallan was a shifty git for someone so large. He wove through the crowded streets with ease as if skimming through water. We kept after him, but had trouble staying close, as we kept knocking into people, which was dangerous considering most everyone here was a criminal, some of which I was sure would kill us for even the smallest slight.

  But we couldn’t let Fallan get away. He was our best bet at finding Jinx. Though why he was running was beyond me.

  He ducked into an alley right before a large metal cart pulled by an eloco blocked the entrance. Amara skidded to a halt as her face contorted in a grimace, but I didn’t stop. I hung right into the alley right before and kept running, my arms pumping. There was trash everywhere and I passed some messy derelicts passing around some hunra, the sweet-smelling smoke caressing my senses. This station definitely had a drug problem. Then again, most large settlements did.

  I could hear Fallan ahead, his frantic footsteps pounding against the cold metal floor. His shadow darted into another alley, so I turned to head him off. He almost certainly knew these streets and alleys better than me, but I’d always had a keen sense for direction. That was why I was so hard to catch when pursued by authorities. I was a small and skinny Goon, not particularly strong, but I was quick, agile, and could contort and jump like no one’s business.

  He continued down the alley, but we’d run in enough circles for me to know where I was. I took the left alley this time. For a moment, his footsteps went away, and I worried that maybe I’d made a mistake, but then the sounds of their pounding roared back. Closer than ever, so close, just around the corner. I tensed, ready.

  Fallan came around the corner. I dove and tackled him. He clattered to the floor and into a pile of garbage. No time to think about how gross that was, though I could feel wet and slimy remains all over me. Not fun.

  Though dazed and high, my new Torgoran friend had enough sense to try to throw me off, but I put my whole weight on him and did my best to hold him down
. He threw a punch, smashed into my cheek. I saw stars, pain swimming in my vision, but I held firm. I punched him back. We exchanged blows, exchanged blood and sweat and spit, as we grappled for control. He was going to win. He was bigger and stronger. But I had time, and reinforcements.

  I smiled when more footsteps sounded behind me. The distraction allowed Fallan to finally toss me aside, but before he could run, a blaster bolt rang loud and scorched the wall beside him.

  “Don’t move,” Amara demanded, her face contorted in a glare so venomous that I was sure it would haunt my dreams.

  Fallan wanted to run still, but his survival instincts were more in control than the drugged-up paranoia he was being fueled by. He put his arms up.

  “J-just, just take it e-easy, Amara.”

  She grimaced. “I said I just wanted to talk. You’re the one who ran like an idiot and made this hard.”

  He gulped, backed against the wall, and slid to the ground, his lip quivering with fear. I wiped blood from my lips and nose. My whole face ached, but it wasn’t anything I’d never received before. And I’d dished out worse.

  Amara looked back at me. “You okay?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. Let’s just get this done.”

  She turned back to her friend. “You will answer my questions truthfully. For each lie, I will put a bolt in a limb.”

  He gulped. Rayvan was spooked too. “Uh, I thought you just wanted to talk?”

  “I did, but he pissed me off.” Amara turned her attention back to Fallan. “Now, do you know a resistance fighter by the name of Jax? This is him.” She pulled out a data-pad and showed him the digital rap sheet that Pivek had found for us.

  Fallan took it wearily. His bloodshot eyes scanned Jax’s image closely. “This is… This is Jax Navari. L-lieutenant Navari. He used to be stationed here before…” His voice trailed off, and his eyes glazed over as if he was seeing something terrible. “I believe he was transferred to the base on Halyon. That’s…that’s all I know, I swear.” He typed something into the data-pad. “Here are the coordinates.”