Iron Legion Battlebox

by David Ryker

  Volchec stared at her like there was no one else in the room. “You don’t even have a rig. Yours was trashed on Telmareen, and we can’t—”

  “I do,” Alice said, cutting her off. “I have one. A good one.”

  Volchec looked at her questioningly. “How?”

  “The arena, it’s—”

  “The battle arena? Kepler, you know that an arena rig isn’t combat ready.”

  “It can be. I can have it ready. I won a bout this morning, there’s a lot of scrap to go in it. My guys can—” She stopped herself this time and stared into space above Everett’s head. “Shit.”

  “What is it?” Volchec asked.

  “My crew, the mechanics — they’re… they’re some of my father’s friends. They’re retired pilots and build the rigs for the prizes there. Shit. If I ask them to prep the rig for combat they’ll say something to my father, and—”

  “We can’t risk it.” Volchec said it without emotion. “If he finds out that I’m going behind his back to get you approved for duty, then—”

  “I have an idea,” I said quietly, raising my hand. They stopped and looked at me. “I know someone who can do it.”

  “Who?” Alice asked, almost leaping down my throat.

  “The Mecko who worked on Greg—” I said it before I realized what was coming out of my mouth.

  Volchec’s eyes widened to the point that I thought they were going to shoot out at me like little missiles.

  I swallowed hard, willing the words back into my mouth, but they wouldn’t go.

  Everett muttered under her breath in disbelief. “Jesus Christ.”

  Mac burst out laughing.

  Volchec looked like she was going to strangle me. “Maddox, if you tell me you took my fucking steel and staked it in an arena bout, then I’m going to—”

  “He didn’t,” Alice jumped in. “He didn’t. I found Red this morning and we got to talking — I told him about the Mecko — she’s an excellent mechanic, and that if he wanted any work done, she was the one to—”

  Volchec waved her arms, her skin a boiling red. “I don’t even care — just get out. All of you, get out.”

  No one moved.

  “Get out!” she exploded. I’d never heard her scream, and I didn’t think that someone of her size could generate that sort of volume, but she did.

  Everyone scrambled to their feet at once.

  “Everett, you stay. I need to talk to you,” she said between breaths. Her voice was bubbling with rage.

  Everett paused, fired me a quick glance that either meant let’s talk later or never talk to me again — I couldn’t tell which — and then sat back down. We would talk later, we needed to, even though what had happened the night before now seemed like a distant dream.

  We got outside and Alice pulled me away from Mac and Fish before they could speak to her.

  She breathed a sigh of relief and grinned, jabbing me in the chest with her finger. “Thanks for the support in there.”

  “I tried, but—”

  “But you’re scared shitless of crossing Volchec, yeah I know.” She turned away and shook her head. “And yet you still do everything you can to piss her off. You’re an idiot, you know that?”

  “Yeah, I know that.”

  “The dumbest smart person I’ve ever met.”

  “Thanks?” I raised an eyebrow. She was still shaking her head.

  “And that slip about Nak — that stupid Mecko — shit, you’re lucky I knew who the hell she was,” she said, letting off a low whistle. “Volchec was about to rip you in two.”

  “I know,” I said, the adrenaline finally draining away. “You saved my ass.”

  She jabbed me in the chest again. “You’re damn right I did. So, with your rig, and now this — I think that makes us even. Two for two.”

  “What?”

  “Twice you’ve saved me, and twice I’ve saved you now. We’re even.” She smiled and I felt warm all of a sudden.

  “Twice?”

  “Jesus, what are you, stupid? The Regent Falmouth and Telmareen. Twice.”

  I screwed my eye up, smirking. “Well, technically, it’s three times. The first time I saved your skin was on the Falmouth, when we first got hit. The second time was on Draven, when I got you out of that transport. The third was on Telmareen. So I’d say that you still owe me one, as it stands.”

  She scowled at me. “I don’t count the one on Draven.”

  “Oh no?”

  “No. That transport was going to stop eventually, and I would have broken out when it did. So that doesn’t count — because I wasn’t in any real danger.” She made a pfft sound with her lips and brushed her hair over her ear. “And plus, I don’t like owing people stuff.”

  “Well, if it’s any consolation, I wasn’t counting,” I said softly, smiling at her. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”

  She rammed her fist into my arm. “You’re such an ass,” she laughed and breezed past me, already calling out to Mac. I could hear their laughter behind me as they fell into an old and unforgotten rhythm. She was right, I was an ass. I ground my teeth. What the hell was I doing?

  I asked myself that question, and realized that I had absolutely nothing close to an answer. I tried to think of Everett, but slowly, her face morphed into Alice’s. I forced it back, but again it changed until I could see her in my mind, grinning, laughing, rolling her eyes at me. I sighed and stared out over the rail and thought of Greg instead. That didn’t make me feel any better. He was going to be about as pissed as Volchec was with me.

  But, if nothing else, I still had Mac, and there was no doubt that his offer of taking me with him on his next visit to the brothel on the lower deck was still on offer. And yet, as bad as things were, I still really hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

  I chuckled to myself and knocked on the rail with my knuckles. “Things could always be worse,” I mumbled, leaning out over the drop. “Things could always be worse.”

  11

  The door opened a few minutes later and Everett came out, her expression gloomy, to say the least.

  She stopped at the threshold and sighed, then looked around for Alice. She dipped her head toward the open door. “Volchec wants you,” she said.

  “What for?” Alice asked, turning away from Mac.

  Everett shrugged. “She just said she wants to speak to you.”

  Alice fired me a quick glance and then ducked inside. Everett rubbed her head and turned to Mac and Fish. “You two can go. Be ready — we move tonight.”

  Mac and Fish nodded in unison, and then walked off without another word. I always admired how they could go from joking and laughing to serious and ready for action in the blink of an eye. I guessed it was a conditioning thing. I wasn’t quite used to turning it off and on like a switch just yet. My mind was a scrabble and I had to focus to get it on track, and even then it still derailed itself with the slightest nudge.

  I turned to face Everett as she approached. “Hey…” I said, my voice toned up a few notes higher than usual. Though it wasn’t something I tried to do.

  She stopped and looked at me like someone might a stray dog. “Hey yourself.”

  “Do you want to talk?” I asked, almost timidly. I felt nervous all of a sudden, but it wasn’t hard to know why. I liked Everett, that much I was certain of, and last night was a big deal. When I’d first met her a year and a half ago, on the Falmouth, I never would have said we’d be where we were — had done what we’d did. And yet, there wasn’t a shred of me that regretted it. I just couldn’t speak for her.

  “About what?” she said, raising her eyebrows coolly.

  “About last night? About… us.”

  “Us?” She smiled endearingly. “You really think there’s time for us right now?”

  I swallowed. “I just meant—”

  “I know what you meant, Red.” She sighed. “But now’s not the time.” All the affection she’d shown was suddenly gone. It was like we were back to day one
. “We’re shipping out in a few hours, and you should get ready. Get cleaned up.”

  “Dem,” I said, my voice quiet. “Did I do something wrong?”

  She stared at me, a brief glimmer of wistfulness in her eyes. “No, Red, you didn’t do anything wrong. It’s what it was. Last night — it needed to happen. It was bound to, right? I’m not going to be childish and say that I didn’t feel anything, because you and I both know that’s a lie.” She stepped a little closer. “But this can’t work — can’t keep happening. And deep down, you know it’s not right.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I wasn’t being short, I was genuinely asking. Girls weren’t exactly my forte.

  She chuckled and clapped me on the shoulder like we were buddies. “I’ll catch you later, Red. I’ve got some stuff to do before we head out. Be ready as soon as you can — I wouldn’t keep Volchec waiting twice in one day.” She stepped past me, her body close to mine for an instant, and then she was striding away. She got about ten meters before she turned back. “You’re not coming?”

  I shifted back and forth. “I’m, uh… I’m going to wait here for a bit,” I said awkwardly. I couldn’t get ready until I knew where Greg was, and that meant I had to wait for Alice.

  Everett stopped and then nodded, smirking to herself. “Of course you are, Red.” She sighed. “You know, I liked you a lot better when you weren’t chasing her around like a lost puppy. It doesn’t suit you, you know that?”

  I opened my mouth to say something in my defense, but she’d already turned away, waving coldly over her shoulder.

  I hung my head. “Fuck me,” I muttered. Volchec’s door stayed closed for a long time, and after a few minutes of stewing on Everett’s remark, I worked myself up to walking away, muttering to myself under my breath as I did. I didn’t think I’d ever had a worse day, and that was including the time I almost died on Genesis and then was conscripted, as well as the attack on the Falmouth. And of course the transport-debacle on Telmareen. And yet, this one still sucked worse. And it’d started out with so much promise, too.

  Alice would reach me when she needed to — or at least I hoped so — and I didn’t want to catch Volchec when she opened the door. I didn’t think that would go down very well. Just a few hours later, I was headed for the Tilt-wing with Greg already en-route there, along with everyone else’s Mechs, and the gang, back together again.

  Volchec sent out a ping saying that our Tilt-wing had been pulled out of storage and was being prepped for launch in a hangar with a long designation.

  I guessed that Alice had found Nak and gotten everything ready, because when I got to the hangar, the hallway was blocked by a procession of droids delivering our rigs. They were on big flatbed trolleys not unlike the one that had taken Greg away at the arena. At the back was Mac’s HAM, being loaded on last. Then it was Alice’s Alpha, which by the look of it had been made a little more robust. It had much larger chunks of armor coating the arms, shoulders, and midriff, and the pistols had been swapped out for plasma cannons almost identical to the one hanging off Greg’s hip. It was still decked out in tribal colors and had the cape hanging off its neck, but if possible I thought it looked even more formidable than it had before.

  Greg was ahead of that, next to be loaded on, and had been given back both his real Samson and pistol. I squeezed down the side, pausing next to his trolley. Through the door ahead, I could see them loading Fish’s Panther, getting it upright and secure in the hold before they loaded Greg and the others in. Greg was back in standby, and I didn’t want to clamber over him to apologize now. I just rested my hand on his instead, feeling his grip colossal and steel-cold in mine. I squeezed, knowing he couldn’t feel it, and then edged past, duffle on my shoulder, toward the ship.

  When I got onboard, Alice and Volchec were already in the cockpit. I could hear them talking — catching each other up on what had been missed. Volchec seemed at ease, so obviously the whole blackmail thing hadn’t been a sticking point for them. At the end of the day, Alice was a damn good pilot and a better soldier. So I was guessing she was glad to have her back on board. Alice had perjured herself, the same as us, so Volchec must have been taking that as a sign of loyalty, and the fact that Alice was prepared to blackmail her a sign that she wanted back on the team that desperately. Volchec still had plenty of pull — and a shit load of respect after the Falmouth. The Federation was familial as hell, with lots of families going into the service, like Alice’s, so it wasn’t just the those on board that owed her — there were thousands more parents and siblings and friends who all knew her name, and that meant that there were always favors that could be called in. I smirked up through the open door over the top of Fish’s Panther, but didn’t go up. I’d leave them be, and I definitely didn’t want to cross Volchec just yet.

  There was no sign of Mac and Fish, or Everett. Guess they were still en route. When they brought Greg on, I busied myself securing him, waving off the droids to give myself something to do. I was tightening a ratchet strap across his shoulder when Fish and Mac came aboard and slung their bags into the sleeping quarters. They both gave me nods and then headed up to the flight deck and took their seats in the cockpit without saying much. I couldn’t believe that less than twenty-four hours before they’d been pounding shots. And now, they were special ops, back in the saddle and ready to take some scalps. I had to admire the focus, dark as it was.

  Everett came up the ramp last, a huge bag over her shoulder — far bigger than needed for her kit. Behind her was a droid with another trolley. It was stacked up with bags similar to what Everett was carrying. I came around Greg’s shin and cut her off. “Hey,” I said, leaning awkwardly against Greg’s knee.

  “Red,” she said, smiling. The bag was heavy on her shoulder, that much was clear. “You good?”

  I nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine. That looks heavy, you want me to—”

  “Nah, it’s good,” she replied, hiking it up higher on her back. It knocked like there were field boxes in there — equipment, weapons. I let the noises compute but didn’t say anything. Probably just another of Volchec’s special orders from the armory. She kept her arms on the strap, still smiling politely. “This is kind of heavy, so, uh, if you wouldn’t mind…”

  She shrugged her free shoulder and stepped forward a little.

  “Oh, sure,” I said, stepping back and proffering the narrow gap between Greg’s knee and the hull.

  She scooted past and went into the living quarters, closing the door behind her. The droid left the trolley next to Mac’s HAM and then disappeared down the ramp.

  I watched her go in silence, wondering what the hell I was supposed to do now — this was uncharted territory for me. This sort of shit was worse than going into battle. Maybe it was why Mac preferred to keep his relationships professional. I smirked at that.

  “Maddox,” came Volchec’s voice from the catwalk.

  I turned to look at her, standing straight. “Major.”

  “You going to get your ass up here? We’re taking off.”

  I swallowed. “Yes, Major.”

  She sighed and went back into the cockpit and I looked up at Greg. “Ready for another one, big guy?”

  I strapped myself into one of the seats at the back of the cockpit and waited for takeoff. There was no sign of Everett, and Alice didn’t look like she was going to move from her spot next to Volchec, who was running through what she was doing out loud, flicking switches and twisting dials, for Alice’s benefit.

  Mac and Fish both had their heads pushed back against the headrests. Fish looked a little hungover, his eyes more bagged than usual, his skin a little less taut. He hadn’t said two words all day — which wasn’t really very out of character for him, but I still got the feeling he was being quieter than normal. Mac was his same old self. Hungover or not, he was still himself.

  A voice crackled in the air as a droid hailed us from the control space. “Foxtrot niner niner, you are cleared for take-off. Stay safe. All peopl
e.”

  Volchec exhaled. “One Federation.” She twisted in her seat. “Everyone strapped in?” We all nodded. “Alright then, let’s get this bitch in the air.” She pushed the controls forward and pulled them back, working the flaps, and then reached forward and pressed the ignition.

  The engines chugged to life and then started to spool, whining as they picked up speed. The ship wobbled, and Volchec stretched out of her seat, pulled the cover off another switch, and then pushed it open. A light came on on the dashboard and started flashing. A second later, the hangar doors clanged shut and sealed behind us and then the airlock unwound itself in front. A couple of scraps of debris shot into the darkness of space and a blanket of stars glimmered in. The ship tilted downwards and the pressure equalized, and then Volchec eased us along. The landing pads rattled as the thrust pushed us into the air and my guts settled against my spine as Volchec took us out with practiced precision.

  She dipped down and wheeled around the Athena. The thing was huge — like a floating moon. All I could see was Athena to one side, and endless space to the other. We drowned in shadow until we hit the edge, and then sunlight flooded the cabin. I covered my eyes and squeezed them shut to stop the ache, and by the time I opened them, Volchec already had us on vector and was prepping for hyperdrive. She lined us up, tapped the details into the screen between her and Alice, and then confirmed them. She took a breath, flexed her fingers around the throttle and then cracked a smile I could barely see from where I was sitting.

  She didn’t say anything before she floored it, and I don’t know that I expected her to do, but it seemed like such an exciting thing that it was almost undercut by the casual nature of it.

  Her fist moved forward, taking the throttle lever with it, and all the stars smeared across the windscreen and then disappeared completely. The Athena vanished from my peripherals and my eyes squeezed into my skull. And then that was it, we were in darkness.