by Kal Spriggs
Then, ominously, the sound and most of the lights died. Mel’s continued movement towards the controls caused her to float up against the restraining harness.
“Reactor’s out. Backup is down too.” Marcus's bitter words cut through the silent cockpit. “We’re sitting ducks.”
***
“This is a mistake, we should try to fight them,” Marcus snarled. He floated across the cargo hold from Mel. All of them gathered there, hovering near the airlock. Most of them faced it as they waited for the GFN ship to dock.
“They could have a hundred men aboard that ship. If we fight them they’ll kill us all.” Mel answered. “As long as we live, we have a chance of stopping that ship.”
“Do you have any idea what those terrorists will do to us?” Brian asked, his voice flat. “You do know that they once executed the entire crew of a luxury liner just to get attention.”
“She’s right. They won’t kill us out of hand.” Rawn said angrily.
“Just like she vas right about not trying to evade?” Stasia asked. “We are trapped, now, because of that.”
“It’s too late to change the plan now.” Mel said. She kept her voice flat. She was tired of the bickering, of the ship, and of the way that everyone seemed eager to pass blame but hesitant to accept responsibility.
“Why? Is it because you don’t want us to fight them?” Strak clenched his over-sized fists.
“No because they’re already here.” Mel jutted a chin at the airlock where lights were now visible.
The hatch opened and a silhouette threw a small object inside.
“Get down!” Marcus shouted as he pushed forward in front of Mel.
A pulse of intense sound and light knocked Mel to her knees. A wave of something washed across her skin. She clutched at her eyes and screamed at the intense pain; losing her balance she toppled to her side and curled into a ball, her senses totally overwhelmed. Her body tingled, and her mind fought to make sense of what had just happened.
It had to have been a stun grenade. Those were designed to incapacitate, with a strong stunner field. They produced a flash and detonation to disorient those not caught by the initial shock. As her senses returned, she realized that Marcus had taken the full blast, which was why she was still conscious, albeit blind and deaf.
She lay still and slowly counted away the seconds until her eyesight and hearing would return. It wouldn’t be long, only a minute or two, she told herself.
It felt like eternity.
“…take that one, he’s our man. And take that one too. He has knowledge we can use in the seizure of the ship.” The cold voice cut through the buzzing in her ears.
“Sir, what about the women? Neither of them are lookers, but it’s been a long time since the men have made port.”
“No... not these. They’ve skills we might be able to use.” The man’s voice was deep and cold. “Robert, you and Giles restrain the rest of them in our cargo hold. Merric, take your team and extract their core. Our agent said the antimatter was at ninety percent, so it will help us with the warship significantly.”
Mel couldn't make out the further murmur of conversation until they moved closer to her again. “If you can, strip the magazines as well. We’re strapped for time, though. Get scuttling charges placed as soon as we have the core. First sign of anyone, get back aboard. I’ll give you thirty seconds and then I blow the charges.”
Mel opened her mouth to speak when a finger was pressed to her lips. She was so startled, she limply allowed her hands to be bound.
“Taking the first lot to the cargo hold, Colonel.” That voice came from whoever was holding her.
“Get on with it. I’ll be on the bridge.”
A voice murmured in her ear a moment later, “Stay limp, for God’s sake. If they realize you’re awake, it’s more than your neck on the line.”
She stayed limp, partially from confusion at the words and partially from the lingering effects of the stun grenade. She slit her eyes open, though, and monitored their progress once they boarded the other ship. Peeling paint and battered fixtures were all she noticed. Plainly the terrorists weren’t big on maintenance of their own ship. She hoped they took better care of the environmental system. It would really suck to suffocate, she thought, because some idiot hadn’t bothered with basic maintenance.
Her captor stopped at a hatch and then carried her into a dark room. She opened her eyes wider. Stacks of plastic crates filled most of the room. “Giles, keep bringing them down. Cover for me.”
A nervous voice spoke, “If they figure out—”
“Then we’re both dead, Giles. You, they’ll probably space right off, but me, they’ll torture until they find out everything I have to tell them.” Her captor leaned her back against the wall and began removing her restraints. “So... go cover for me and stop looking so damned nervous.”
“I’m going,” the sullen whine answered. A moment later Mel heard a hatch groan shut.
Mel opened her eyes and stared at the man’s face. He had closely cropped brown hair, brown eyes, and the pale complexion of most spacers.
“I knew we had at least one double agent in our crew, I never suspected the terrorists would have one of their own.” She wondered if she could believe anything this man said.
He smiled: “And I figured there were only two people I could trust aboard that ship.” He shrugged, “I figured the pair of kids who had their parents blown apart by GFN terrorists wouldn’t be inclined to join up. Good thing you stand out as being both female, blonde, and cute.”
She shook her head, feeling the buried anger flush her face with heat. She ignored his comment about her looks. “Not likely that I'd work with those bastards,” Mel said. She looked around until she saw Marcus’ prone form. “How’d you know?”
“One of my associates got me a roster of the crew before my… companions and I departed Expo.” He shrugged, “It came with all the files on the prisoners. As much as I dislike them, Guard Intel does a very thorough background check.”
She started, “You’re not—“
“No, I’m… with someone else. We’re very interested in stopping GFN from getting that ship.” He quirked an eyebrow, “Though I’d be interested in who killed Agent Mueller.”
Mel shook her head, “I assumed it was the GFN agent. The surviving one, anyway. Giran was GIA, I guess he had a change of heart.”
“Yes, I’d heard. Honestly, I’m not trusted enough to know the names of the two agents Guard Free Now had aboard.” He shrugged, “But I know GFN didn’t kill Mueller. They wanted him alive for interrogation.”
Mel frowned, “Then who—”
The hatch opened. The agent spun and his hand dove inside his jacket, but he relaxed a second later. An overweight man, his face beaded in perspiration, carried Stasia into the room. The agent nodded, “Giles.” Mel studied the other man for a moment. He wore clothing strained at the seams. His lank, blond hair looked greasy and unkempt.
Giles just nodded, “They aren’t paying attention. Even so, they might notice—“
“I’ll expedite.” The agent nodded.
Giles deposited the unconscious woman and left. The agent shrugged, “I don’t have much time. The others are… well, paranoid doesn’t really describe it. They know that people want to kill them. Some of them… take it to extremes.” He shrugged, “They’re extracting the antimatter core from your ship. It’s a delicate process, so they’re a little distracted.”
Mel gulped, “The only people who do that—“
“Are trained professionals and pirates, yes, GFN does tend to attract the best of men.” He scowled, “Just be glad the ‘Colonel’ thought you and your companions had useful skills. Otherwise…” He looked away.
“So what now?” Mel asked, clenching her fists. The thought of being helpless…
“Now, we finish getting your other companions in here and we find out who we can trust.”
Mel thought back on Rawn’s words. “I’m not su
re we can trust anyone.”
He smiled, “Probably correct.” He looked over his shoulder as Giles entered. This time he carried Strak’s heavy body. The fat man grunted and sweated under the weight. The agent returned his gaze to Mel, “But your terrorist was taken for debrief, along with one of your crew.” The man shrugged, “Do you think I can trust the others not to betray me?”
She shivered as she thought about the group. There wasn't a lot to recommend them and she definitely didn't trust any of them. Well, no one besides her brother, anyway, she thought. “We’ve got a rex addict, a criminal hacker, and…” she thought of Brian and his secrets “… I’m not sure what. It might be best not to trust them.”
“I didn’t plan on it.” He held out his hand, “I’m Robert, by the way. Call me, Bob.” Bob’s crooked smile seemed to dare her not to trust him.
She took his hand in her tingling and clumsy fingers, “Bob, pleased to meet you.”
“Mel, take charge of them, get them ready. When the time comes, they need to follow my directions.” Bob stood, “Giles, let’s go.”
Mel looked at Stasia, Strak, and Marcus. She frowned, “Wait, where’s my brother?”
Bob glanced at the three unconscious bodies, he frowned thoughtfully, “The Colonel ordered two men taken. I didn’t see who they were. One of them must have been your brother.”
Mel gritted her teeth as she made the connections, “Brian.. he must be the GFN agent!” It made sense suddenly, “He was with me when Mueller died. He disarmed the agent, he’s got some kind of combat training. He betrayed us!” She felt hollow suddenly, “What do they need my brother for?”
The agent shrugged, “The Colonel didn’t say. Obviously something important. Was he doing anything vital?”
Mel shook her head, “He was involved in the coding for the first transmission. Maybe the terrorists want to know what exactly was sent.”
The agent frowned, “Maybe.” He glanced at the agitated Giles. “We need to go, before they realize we’re taking too long. I’ll try to get to see your brother, but…” He shrugged, “They use us two for menial tasks. They won’t let us near a vital prisoner.” He nodded once more and stepped out.
They pulled the hatch shut and she heard the bolts lock it in place.
She shivered. There was nothing she could do, now, except wait.
***
Marcus coughed and rolled over. Mel saw him shake his head and peer around blearily, “Oh, god, I hate those.”
“Stun grenades?” Mel asked. She didn't know that anyone might come to recognize the effect. Then again, if anyone deserved it, Marcus probably did.
“No. Withdrawal symptoms.” He blinked up at the dim lighting, “Stun grenades too, though.”
“Withdrawal?” Mel asked, uneasily. “I thought you said you’d stocked your implant.” She looked around nervously. She did not like to think that she was locked in a tight area with a rex addict in withdrawal…
All forms of rex caused permanent brain damage over time. At first this was a slight dulling of emotions. This first part was reparable, if someone caught took care of it quickly enough. Even so, the symptoms were likely to proceed.
Less than one in a thousand people could walk away from rex forever.
“Yeah, I did.” He shook his head. “But that stun grenade did something to my implant.”
“That was, what, an hour ago? You’re feeling—”
“My body chemistry’s been tightly regulated for a long time now. It’s off kilter, okay?” He shook his head.
“Are you kidding me?” Mel stared, “You can’t handle an hour without—”
“Hey, lets not get into control issues, okay?” Marcus snapped, “I’m not the one—”
“Oh just get a room, will you?” Stasia snapped, clamping her hands over her ears. “Oh my head. I hate those.”
“Withdrawal symptoms?” Marcus asked.
“No, stun grenades.” Stasia shook her head, “Though it is almost as bad as withdrawal.”
Strak sat up, rubbing a heavy hand across his face, “Nah, withdrawal’s worse.”
“Uh, am I the only one in here who’s never gone on holiday at the pharmacist?” Mel asked. She privately downgraded the small value of trust that she had earlier evaluated. These people are not the ones I want to depend on for my survival, she thought.
Marcus frowned as he massaged the back of his neck. “Probably... you were always a goody-two-shoes.” He looked around, “Where’s Rawn?”
Strak looked around, “Where’s Brian?”
“Brian is a GFN terrorist.” Mel snapped, “And the other terrorists took Rawn because they need him to do something.”
Strak surged to his feet, “Take that back, you lying piece of filth.”
Marcus immediately placed himself between Mel and Strak. “Hold on there!” He turned to Mel. “I think you need to explain yourself.”
Mel gritted her teeth. She clenched and unclenched her fists as she spoke. She stared over Marcus’ shoulder into Strak’s eyes, “The terrorists took two people. I heard them clearly. They said ‘take our man for debrief, and take that one, we need his knowledge.’”
“You’re lying.” Strak snapped. “Brian would never—”
“You saw him point at Brian and Rawn?” Marcus asked.
Mel looked away, “Of course not, I was blinded from the stun grenade.”
“Then your brother must be the terrorist, because—”
“GFN terrorists killed my parents you sack of—”
“Enough!” Marcus snapped, “Mel, you were dazed from the stun grenade, you couldn’t see what was going on, you probably could have heard wrong too.” He took a deep breath, “I don’t want to hear anyone blaming anyone else.”
Strak grudgingly nodded once. Mel bit back on her desire to say how she knew exactly what the terrorists had said. Obviously Strak couldn’t be trusted, or else he had far too much faith in his former boss.
“Fine.” Mel snapped. “Either way, we need to be prepared. They’re disorganized right now and they obviously don’t feel we’re a threat. We should be ready to move when the time comes.”
Stasia frowned. “An hour ago you were saying we should not fight, when we had weapons and equipment. And now you want us to fight when we have none?”
Mel shrugged, “Circumstances have changed. Either way, time will soon run out out for Vagyr.” She paused, “Also, I heard them talking about taking the core from the Kelly.”
Marcus and Strak both nodded. Strak spoke, “Makes sense, a lot of pirates do that with wrecks. They can’t count on coming into just any port to refuel.”
“Isn’t that dangerous?” Stasia asked. The hacker sounded very nervous, Mel noted. Then again, antimatter was, by its very nature, extremely dangerous to handle.
Strak scowled, “If they’re stupid, yeah. We wouldn’t feel a thing, though, and it would solve our problems.” He shrugged, “It’s not too hard, though, just delicate.”
“You’ve done it before?” Marcus asked.
Strak looked uncomfortable, “A couple times.”
“Was that when you were working for Brian?” Mel asked.
Strak scowled, “No, that was before.” He looked at Marcus, “Wanna shut your girlfriend up before I sock her?”
Mel started to her feet, “I’m not his—”
Marcus rolled his eyes, “Enough.” He massaged his forehead.
Mel sat herself on a handy crate. She didn’t know who to glare at, so she sat with arms crossed and glared at the wall. As soon as she got out, she was going to get her brother. After that she was going to stop the Fenris and then… then she was going to show those murdering bastard terrorists some justice.
***
There was no sense of time, but it felt to Mel as if days passed before the hatch opened. Bob poked his head in, he shot a glance around, then looked at Mel. “Ready?”
She nodded, “This is our chance, guys, lets move.” She jumped to her feet.
&nbs
p; The others stared at her, “What’s going on?” Marcus snapped, “Who the hell is he?” Mel could hear the distrust in his voice.
“This is Bob.” Mel said, her voice honey sweet. “Bob is a double agent. He’s going to help us get out of here and stop the Fenris. He is, coincidentally, how I know Brian is a GFN terrorist.” She kept her voice honey sweet as she glared at Strak.
“I don’t care what he says,” Strak snapped. “That’s a lie.”
Bob looked around, “Look, trust me or not, it’s better outside the locked room than inside it.” He shrugged, “They’ve docked with the Fenris. Half the crew’s aboard already, the other half is racked out or on duty.” He tossed a pistol to Mel, then a second to Marcus. “There’s eleven millimeters of trust, each.” He threw a heavy bag into the room, “Your environmental suits from your ship too.”
Marcus frowned down at the large pistol. “Why the heavy ammo?”
“They’re wearing body armor. And…” He pulled an enormous revolver out from inside of his jacket. “I like big guns.”
“Either way, lets go,” Mel snapped. She jacked the slide on her pistol and stepped forward. “Let’s get my brother.”
Bob shook his head, “The boarding party took their prisoner. Their double agent went with them. They left before I had a chance to see if your brother was all right. But I doubt they’ve caused him harm, not when they need him.”
Mel nodded unhappily. “Fine then. We board the Fenris.”
Marcus frowned, “I’d be happier taking this ship. We might be able to beat it to Vagyr—”
“And say what? ‘Hi, we’re aboard a GFN pirate ship, which we pirated, after escaping GIA custody because one of us murdered the agent in charge.’” Mel bobbled her head back and forth in her best impression of a brainless idiot, “‘Oh, by the way, there’s an insane AI warship headed here to wipe out all life in the system!’” She treasured the look of irritation on Marcus's face.
Strak shrugged, then gave Marcus a disgruntled look. “She might have a point.” He looked like he would rather have admitted to eating children.