《Arpeligo》


 Chapter 1

    A space stationshould be considered one of the most astonishing pieces of intelligent engineering and construction. The emptiness of space is one of the most hostile places for any creature that originated from a planet¡¯s surface and to take that emptiness and fill it with a strong habitable structure capable of withstanding the dangers of interplanetary stresses and also the traffic of thousands of humanoids a day should be enough to fill any sensible person with awe.


    But to Jerall and her brother Jalldrid, the space station they were in at the moment, Arpelligo, was exceedingly mundane. And for all the persons occupying it or docking at it from their shuttles an freighters, or viewing it as they passed by on whatever purpose they had, the space station was nothing out of the ordinary. That such a structure could exist was taken for granted, indeed, that such a setting could exist without such a common thing as space stations was a setting unimaginable.


    After all, space had been domesticated for thousands of years.


    Jerall and her brother were one of the several dozen species that were represented in the common room of the station. At the moment, the two were finishing up the remnants of a meal and were just starting their talk of business. It was clear from their body language that they were meeting to sort out problems.


    Jerall picked lightly at the bread light substance on her plate and spoke harshly to her brother, ¡°And what is Deward claiming exactly?¡± she crumbled up the food on her plate with the long dexterous fingers her species had. ¡°That we mishandled his merchandise?¡±


    ¡°In a sense,¡± Jelldrid replied, looking down on his data pad. ¡°But obviously that¡¯s not true technically, as we don¡¯t actually handle the goods per our contract with him.¡± He sighed, the long snout his species had naturally made them look dower, but now especially the weight of dismay made him look especially tired, ¡°He¡¯s using a lot of technical language to bypass that little bit of legality, but either way, the machine worked before we transported it, and it doesn¡¯t work after it was received i.e., it must have broke while we were transporting it.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s absurd,¡± Jerall lashed out angrily, looking off to the side, ¡°These moves were we don¡¯t touch the goods pay less, but are structured specifically so that we don¡¯t get these types of claims. How can we get paid piddle and still have a big claim over our heads? We shouldn¡¯t have to deal with this!¡±


    ¡°Right.¡± Jelldrid replied, not looking up. He was still frowning at the datapad, apparently used to his sister¡¯s behavior.


    ¡°And what does DRAIS say about this? As the booker for this move they have skin in on this too, right?


    Jelldrid returned his attention to his sister and shifted his weight comfortably, ¡°Right, I am still waiting on a response from them. A lot of this should be covered by them, but depending on how much the repair costs on the machine are, we could be looking at a fair amount due from us.¡± He shook his head and shrugged, ¡°Perhaps 5 or 7 percent, I¡¯d say.¡±


    "That, on top of the kickback for claim negotiation.¡± Jerall added contemptuously. Jalldrid didn¡¯t respond .


    There was a pause between the two and Jalldrid returned his attention to the datapad and started punching in characters. Jerall nibbled on her food.


    A loud metallic clang reverberated through the system, and then the hissing of released gas equalizing pressure. A ship had just docked at the station and seconds later, the passengers unloaded. Jerall watched them with disinterest, several different species came off and most of them hustled off in practices ease. Several families came off too, perhaps looking for a new home and life here on the station. Many such migrations had been increasingly more common these days due to the instabilities in the sector.


    Jerall suddenly slammed her fist down on the table in passion, ¡°By Space, Brother, how are we supposed to be able to run a business like this?¡± She turned towards Jalldrid angrily.


    Jalldrid looked up in surprise, ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡±


    ¡°Everything! What isn¡¯t a problem? We just lost all our profits from this job, this was supposed to be an easy fix. But now we are left with nothing. And it¡¯s always like this, how are we supposed to make a living, if they can¡¯t take money away from us one way, they will find another!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re overreacting, sister,¡± Jalldrid responded with concern, ¡°This isn¡¯t the first time this has happened and we¡¯ve made it through okay. And once we purchase the stabilizer for the roto-engine, we¡¯ll have a lot less claims regarding the transport.¡±


    ¡°Yeah!¡± Jerall said, still on fire, ¡°The profits from this job were supposed to go to that, but now those are gone and the purchase will be pushed back, again. We¡¯ve been trying to buy the stupid stabilizer for half a year now, but all we have are delays and delays and our equipment is just going to continue to deteriorate. We can barely keep up with repairs as it is.¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Jalldrid responded defensively, ¡°Ship repairs should be paid by Asdred. They own the ship you know.¡±


    ¡°Of course I know,¡± Jerall responded savagely, ¡°we pay them half our income to lease the ship! Gal-uh-xy! That¡¯s the root of the problem, right there you know! We should be able to own our own ship!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, well it would be nice if we won the galactic lottery too,¡± Jalldrid said grumpily, ¡°but it can¡¯t be helped. All this is the cost of doing business. We are doing the best we can, but we don¡¯t have control over all this stuff. We knew this coming into the business!¡± Jerall snorted in displeasure.


    Jalldrid sighed, ¡°Look, we have the job you picked up going on tomorrow, and after next week when we get back, DRIAS will be posting the next batch of jobs on their board and we¡¯ll get a decent job out of that too, maybe two if we are lucky. If everything goes smoothly from those jobs we should have earned enough to afford the stabilizer. That¡¯s all we can do! This was a small job that we did on the side and it didn¡¯t pay off, I¡¯m sorry! But at least we didn¡¯t lose anything on it.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s wrong,¡± Jerall replied flatly. Her fire had disappeared and she now slumped in her seat, ¡°Its just plain wrong.¡±


    Jalldrid frowned in concern again, ¡°We¡¯ll get up from this; we always do. Good jobs are just scarce now due to Asdred and that other family squabbling. It will be over in half a year and then it will be easier again. We are a successful company you know. DRIAS has a lot of faith in us and we will get good jobs from them. You are acting strange, what¡¯s wrong? There is something else, isn¡¯t there?¡±


    Jerall didn¡¯t respond, but watched the departing passengers from the passenger ship. Almost all of them have dispersed by now, but currently a single man of a species she hadn¡¯t seen before was coming off it. It was clear he was unused to such a place and he looked around in half awe and half worry. He had with him a single bag and he walked forward uncertainly.


    ¡°Next month is the five year anniversary of us starting up Freeline Transportation, you know.¡± Jerall said, breaking the silence. She looked back to her brother, ¡°Our Company will be five years old, and what do we have to show for it? We are practically right back where we started.¡±


    Jalldrid didn¡¯t respond at first, contemplating his sister¡¯s works. He then shook his head at his sister, ¡°It was never our goal to become wealthy; we just wanted to be able to work for ourselves, remember? Not many people have as much success as us; many don¡¯t last past the first year. And look at us, we¡¯ve been able to support ourselves independently for the past five years, that a first for anybody in our family. I think we have done well. What were you expecting? We have accomplished our goal, what more do you want?¡±


    ¡°I know, I know!¡± Jerall said, ¡°I know what our goals were. But I had just hoped that maybe we would surpass them, you know?¡±


    ¡°That might have been a foolish hope.¡±


    Silence came back up between them and the lobby they were in was losing its members fast. The meal time was ending and most of the people were returning to work. Inwardly, Jerall smiled slightly. Despite everything she was still glad she and her brother decided to strike off on their own five years ago, if only to escape the numbing routine of desk work that everybody in their family subscribed to.


    She sat up suddenly, almost in alarm and startled her brother. She peered out across the nearly vacant room towards the foreign man she had saw earlier.


    ¡°What, what is it?¡± her brother was asking, looking up from his datapad.


    ¡°That man over there, what species is he?¡±


    Jalldrid looked over at him, ¡°Never seen it before. Looks like a mammal judging by the hair on its head. Why? It¡¯s not that unusual to see new species now and then. We live on a trading station, you know.¡±


    ¡°I think he¡¯s a Citizen.¡±


    Jalldrid looked back at the man for a second and returned to his work. ¡°Don¡¯t be stupid.¡± He said flatly.


    ¡°It¡¯s true!¡± she insisted, half getting up, ¡°I saw him with his headpiece on just now!¡±


    Jalldrid looked up at his sister skeptically, ¡°You must have seen it wrong. There is no way a Citizen would be here.¡± He looked over at the person of interest again, ¡°And why isn¡¯t he wearing it now? From what I heard, Citizens never take it off.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± She said breathlessly. It was clear she believed her own words, ¡°But I saw it.¡±


    Jalldrid protested, ¡°But you¡¯ve never even seen a citizen before, how can you be sure? Hey wait!¡± Jerall shouted at his sister, who had now gotten up and was making a beeline towards the alleged citizen. The man had ordered a plate of food and was now sitting down with it, eyeing it suspiciously. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Jalldrid hissed at his sister when he caught up with her, dodging the tables.


    She ignored her brother and pushed forward. Within seconds she was standing right in front of the stranger with her brother in tow. The man looked up from his food in surprise.


    They stared at each other for a second, and then Jerall made a fist with her right hand and then gathered it in her left. She thrust them both forward with a slight bow and said, ¡°Peace to you.¡±


    The man looked back at her without saying anything, his utensil still hanging in the air. It was difficult to read the facial expression of this new species, but it looked like it was annoyed. He slowly responded with words, but Jerall did not recognize the language.


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t appear to even know galactic standard,¡± Jalldrid, said amazed. ¡°How can he be a citizen? Put your hands down already and leave him alone.¡±


    ¡°Shut up!¡± Jerall snapped at her brother. He scowled back at her. The foreigner sighed and then reached for his bag next to him, obviously searching for something. ¡°We don¡¯t have time for this,¡± Jalldrid spoke up again, ¡°we got to be back at the yards for the de-cretization in an hour. What could you want from this poor man? let him-¡° Jalldrid gasped suddenly.


    The foreigner pulled out the citizen¡¯s headpiece from his bag. The head piece was a small metallic item about 4 inches across with a perpendicular piece straight up from the middle and a large gem like stone in the center. When the foreigner put it on, it fit nicely across his forehead.


    After securing the accessory, the man spoke again. ¡°Can you understand me now?¡± Jalldrid eyes were wide in astonishment and he didn¡¯t respond. Jerall nodded stiffly. ¡°What can I do for you?¡± he added stiffly.


    Jerall spoke quickly, not resting her hands, ¡°I am Jerall and this is my brother Jalldrid, we are the owners to Freeline Transit, an intra-sector hauling company. I¡¯d like to propose a business opportunity to you.¡±


    The Citizen scowled and responded indignantly, ¡°Excuse me?¡±


    ¡°Please, Please,¡± Jerall said desperately, ¡°It will only take a moment of your time, I won¡¯t hurt to hear us out.¡±


    ¡°Excuse us for a moment, Citizen.¡± Jalldird interrupted respectively before the Citizen could respond. He grabbed his sister and turned her away.


    ¡°What in the blazes are you thinking?¡± he whispered angrily, ¡°What business proposition?¡±


    ¡°This is our chance to get out from under the thumb of Asdred!¡±


    Jalldrid paused in sudden understanding. ¡°I know what you are thinking.¡± He whispered accusingly, ¡°And it is insane. Are you insane? You know what Section 17 means, we shouldn¡¯t even be talking with him, we shouldn¡¯t even be here. Under the thumb of Asdred? This whole sector is under their thumb! You are insane!¡±


    ¡°We are on Arpeligo, Section 17 doesn¡¯t apply here. You¡¯re just scared aren¡¯t you?¡± Jerall taunted. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°By Space, Yes I am! He¡¯s a citizen, you fool! You make him an enemy out of him and it is all over for us, business and otherwise. Don¡¯t you know what a Citizen is?¡±


    Jerall grabbed her brother¡¯s shirt and dragged his face close to her. She whispered fiercely to him, ¡°Listen you useless lump of carbon, we did not start Freeline to live a life of mediocrity, we did it to live free from the influence of the Asdred family as much as possible. Even now, we are at their mercy from having to lease their ship from them. When we will finally be free in reality? No other chance like this will come again, so shut up and stay behind me!¡±


    She released and turned back towards the citizen, with a smile on her face. The long muzzle her species had revealed several layers of teeth as the action. The foreigner looked uncomfortable.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure what you might be expecting of me,¡± he said warily, ¡°I¡¯m probably not like any Citizen you¡¯ve ever met before. Whatever ¡®business opportunity¡¯ you want to talk about, I¡¯m probably not interested. You¡¯d have better luck preying on some other traveler.¡±


    Jerall quickly took a seat directly across from from the citizen. Jalldrid hesitantly took his seat as well. The siblings didn¡¯t speak and the citizen frowned back at them. ¡°Is my translation program running properly?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Jerall gasped back, ¡°Yes, I am sorry. It is working fine, we can hear you.¡±


    ¡°It''s just,¡± Jalldrid cut in, ¡°We have never been in the presence of a Citizen before.¡±


    The man blinked in surprise, ¡°Never? Are we that rare?¡±


    ¡°Here you are,¡± Jerall added, ¡°If citizens do come to the station, they do not get off at the common floor, they always enter through the glassway, up above. I doubt they would ever set foot upon this floor anyway.¡±


    ¡°Ah,¡± the man replied uncomfortably, ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t know that. I only came to this station because I read there were job openings. I didn¡¯t come expecting some sort of special treatment.¡±


    Jalldrid responded in disbelief, ¡°You are looking for a job?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s only natural isn¡¯t it?¡± the man replied defensively, ¡°I need money for food and lodging. Nothing is free, right?¡±


    Jerall replied, ¡°no, no! you are right, I apologize for my brother here, he is just an idiot. All people need have the right to support themselves with a job, even citizens. Our names are Jerall and Jalldrid, can we have the honor of knowing your name, Citizen?¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± the Citizen said, looking down at his plate of food. He hadn¡¯t touched it yet and to Jerall, it looked like the man had never seen that dish before. He looked up again, ¡°you can call me Bob.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Citizen Bob,¡± Jerall continued, ¡°In, fact, you could say that that spirit of personal achievement is the truth that brings me here today. As I said before, my brother and I are the owners of Freeline Transportation and we run it as an independent hauling business. The Asdred Family owns 95% of the transportation industry in this sector, but five years ago my brother and I decided to venture out and earn a living for ourselves. As of now we are licensed to haul cargo from and to any point inside this sector as one of only a handful of independent contractors in the entire sector!¡±


    ¡°Congratulations,¡± Bob responded halfheartedly. He was looking at his food, perhaps wondering what the proper way of eating it was.


    ¡°But still,¡± Jerall continued as if giving a speech, ¡°we cannot get away from Asdred. The Asdred family is the only company that owns ships capable of hauling cargo in this sector, and as such we still need to lease our Cruiser from them and the leasing is not in our favor.¡±


    ¡°But still it is the only option available to us and we believed that we could make it even with that.¡± Jalldrid added.


    ¡°Is it not working now?¡± Bob asked dryly.


    The sibling answered together, Jalldrid saying yes and Jerall saying no. Jerall glared at her brother and pushed forward.


    ¡°We are able to survive but that is it. Asdred tolerates our existence, but if they wanted to, they could squash us in a heartbeat by simply denying us continued leases with them on their equipment. As it is anyway, we hand over to them the majority of our profits. It is simply not a sustainable structure for business.¡±


    ¡°Its works fine.¡± Jalldrid added in protest, ¡°We are covering all of our expenses and we continue to do work. We are not losing money.¡±


    ¡°But we aren¡¯t gaining any money either,¡± Jerall said earnestly turning to her brother, ¡°sure, we can make it through like we have been, giving all of our exceeds to Asdred. But we aren¡¯t saving any money, we are stagnate; unmoving. That is as good as dying, what do we do in 60 years when we realize that all of our efforts have produced nothing?!¡±


    Jalldrid stared back stonily at his sister, ¡°we will have earned an honest clean living, and we have done it by ourselves. Isn¡¯t that enough? That is more than our Father did and he provided for his family well enough. What do you have to complain about? Didn¡¯t dad always say that it was enough to simply take care of family?¡±


    ¡°Father was a fool!¡± Jerall spat and Jalldrid paled in anger, ¡°and so are you! The mindset that mediocrity is desirable is unacceptable. But all of us, all of the second class citizens seem okay with it. We have the right to pursue something better!¡±


    Jalldrid responded angrily, ¡°You, what¡¯s gotten into you? You know as well as I do how much Dad sacrificed for us! How dare you-¡± He started stand up, but a sudden clapping stopped him.


    ¡°Hey, you two!,¡± Bob hissed, lowing his hands, ¡°What¡¯s the matter with you? Keep it down! Are you trying to create a scene? Isn¡¯t this a conversation that you two should have in private? As siblings and as business partners? Why are you coming to me anyway? If you are looking for consulting I am afraid I can¡¯t help you. And if you are looking for investing capital, I would be even less helpful. I may be a Citizen, but that doesn¡¯t mean I am rich. I certainly don¡¯t have enough money to loan you enough to buy your own cruiser.¡±


    The two siblings stared back at Bob in disbelief and he shifted uncomfortably under their gazes. ¡°What?¡± he asked defensively, ¡°If you have something to say then say it.¡±


    ¡°Only citizens,¡± Jerall said uncertainly, forgetting her anger, ¡°Can own spaceships.¡±


    Bob lifted his eyebrows in surprise, ¡°Really? That sucks.¡±


    Jalldrid broke in; his eyes squinted in sudden suspicion, ¡°Did you live in a black hole till now? How can you not know that?¡±


    Bob¡¯s face reddened but he said angrily, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t know.¡±


    Jalldrid continued in indignation, ¡°It is this law that restricts the movement of the lower class the most, owning a spaceship is the sole right of a citizen, not for the secondary class like us. It has been common knowledge for a thousand years. How can you not know this? In fact, allow me to be frank, are you really a citizen? I know what a citizen is, and you sir, do not fit the definition.¡±


    ¡°Then tell me, what is a citizen to you?¡± Bob replied, scowling.


    ¡°To be a citizen means to be powerful. It means to be wealthy and superior and it means to be above the rest of us.¡±


    ¡°You make it sound mystical,¡± Bob replied cynically.


    ¡°And, to quote Gerantis,¡± Jalldrd continued coldly, ¡°A Citizen is, ¡®A plague more deadly, more powerful, and more impatient than our tiny minds can comprehend.¡¯¡±


    Bob was taken aback at his words. He looked at the two with a frown. ¡°Who is Gerantis?¡±


    Jalldrid huffed indignantly but Jerall cut in saying, ¡°Just some poet from long ago, don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Jalldrid looked away.


    ¡°Look,¡± Bob sighed, ¡°I¡¯m sorry I don¡¯t live up to your expectation. Well, actually I¡¯m not, i don¡¯t care what you two think about me. I have had a long and tiresome trip here and I am in a bad mood. I don¡¯t need to prove myself to you. You approached me, remember? Spouting off something about a business proposition, which I have actually heard yet mind you. If you¡¯re looking for fresh meat to exploit, please go elsewhere as I am losing patience. I just came to this station for a job.¡±


    ¡°I am sorry Citizen, please, you are right. You can ignore my brother,¡± Jerall spoke hurriedly, ¡°And believe me, we are not trying to hustle you into anything,.¡± She paused, thinking about the best way to frame her words, ¡°As you know, we are second class citizens and while many of us are content with that fact, I do not want to rest on this. I want to be able to break through the barriers that society put in place, the ones that have nothing to do with law. I want to surpass the limits of mediocrity we are fated to have. But the way I am doing it now, there is no way it will happen.¡±


    ¡°Is this more poetry?¡±


    Jerall pushed forward ignoring the comment, ¡°You are right to suggest that we need to own our own ship to succeed the way I want to, but as second class, it is illegal for us to do so. I need a citizen to own it in our stead. You say you are looking for a job, I¡¯d like to propose to you a plan for you becoming a co-owner in Freeline Transportation. With a citizen on as part of the ownership, even a company like Freeline can own a spaceship.¡±


    Bob didn¡¯t respond at first, but looked back in an expression Jerall couldn¡¯t interpret. She suddenly felt like she had made a mistake after all.


    Bob spoke out at last, ¡°How did you even know I was going to be here? I hadn¡¯t told anybody where I was going, yet when I arrive I find you two waiting for me. Who are you working for? Did Lawnberg send you?¡±


    Jerall swallowed nervously, ¡°Sir, we are not working for anybody and we were not waiting for you. I just happened to notice you were a Citizen when you put on your head piece to order your food. We really are just common workers; we are independent contractors with DRIAS. You can look us up, I¡¯m sure it¡¯s public record!¡±


    Bob shook his head in disbelief, ¡°What? Are you telling me you just approached me, a complete stranger, for this out of the blue?¡± he scowled back at them. ¡°I don¡¯t believe you. And you probably don¡¯t believe me, but I tell you I really don¡¯t have any money for you to scam off me!¡±


    ¡°It''s fine if you aren¡¯t interested in the offer,¡± Jalldrid said suddenly, turning back to Bob, ¡°But I won¡¯t allow you to keep insulting Freeline. We are not some scum sucking duo, we are a respectable independent hauling company. I¡¯ve put my life into this and I¡¯ll not let anyone, not even a citizen, talk like that about us.¡±


    Bob looked back stonily. ¡°Sir,¡± Jerall cut in, ¡°I don¡¯t give a radiated rognut whether you have money or not. All that matters to me is that you have the legal ability to own a ship! I¡¯ve dreamed of making this kind of deal with a citizen that is not attached to an existing noble family, but it was never a possibility to be taken seriously before.¡±


    ¡°But here you come, portraying yourself, if you¡¯ll pardon my words, as a common man. Although you are a citizen! Who else could I possibly turn to with my need? And sir, we are in dire need. We are imprisoned by the laws of society that we cannot break out of by our own strength. We¡¯ve tried for the past five years!¡±


    ¡°For Freeline to survive, it must own a ship! Do you understand now why I bring this up to you, this seemingly absurd proposition? It¡¯s not out of madness or some ulterior motive; it is out of desperation and a desire to achieve something beyond the ordinary.¡±


    Bob listened carefully and now looked at Jerall with not unkind eyes. He sighed and said, ¡°Please don¡¯t believe that I am unsympathetic to your problem. But I am afraid that I am not the person you are looking for and this isn¡¯t something I can agree to on a whim. I don¡¯t know anything about the hauling industry, and I don¡¯t know what it is you are specifically-¡°


    Jalldrid broke in with sudden energy, ¡°It doesn¡¯t have to be like that, I understand your reservations, they are completely normal. And this situation is sudden and unpanned for us too. But listen, we are leaving for a job tomorrow morning that will last a few days. It¡¯s a pretty standard job of delivery a load of¡­ what was it?¡± he asked, turning to his sister.


    She stared back blankly. ¡°Processed carbonite.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± Jalldrid replied, ¡°Such a shipment isn¡¯t complicated at all. Come with us! You can stay with us, observe our operation. It will give us time to talk to each other, let you understand Freeline much better and be able to make an informed opinion about us. If you like what you see, we can talk about details and I¡¯m confident that you will find a partnership with us to be beneficial. Together we can provide you a secure job as well as a place to call home. And if you feel otherwise,¡± he shrugged, ¡°We can also help you find a job here after we¡¯re done. No harm done!¡±


    Bob shifted uneasily in his seat. ¡°I don¡¯t know guys. I mean, I need to find some lodging yet for tonight. Not to mention I was supposed to meet somebody here regarding a job post I saw. I don¡¯t think I have time¡­¡±


    Jalldrid interrupted, saying quickly, ¡°For the time your with us, we will pay for you living expenses. Not to mention we would have lodging available on our ship for you. And in the end if you don¡¯t like what you see, you won¡¯t have lost anything.¡±


    ¡°I¡­ well¡­¡± The citizen stopped and sighed. When he looked up, it was almost carelessly, ¡°Fine, I understand. Give me some time to consider this. I would still like to find a place by myself here at least for the first night and perhaps tour the station a little. It is my first time on a station like this, you know. And later tonight, I will be looking up your company on public record. After I acquire more public information on you I will let you know if I will accompany you tomorrow.¡±


    Jalldrid, seemed unable to respond to Bob, but Jerall stood up quickly with a large smile on her face. ¡°As you say, Citizen, please plan on meeting us at docking port 16 at 0600 tomorrow. You won¡¯t regret this sir.¡± She made the same gesture with her hands as she did when they first met, putting her hands together in front of her. ¡°Peace of the stars on you.¡±¡¯


    Bob frowned, but replied clumsily, ¡°You have peace too.¡± He looked back uncomfortably at the two, of which one seemed unable to put her excitement into words. Bob added grumpily, ¡°Now, let me finish my lunch in peace.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± Jerall responded quickly, getting up. ¡°Enjoy your lunch citizen.¡± She turned to her brother and dragged her away, ¡°We¡¯re going to be late for the de-cretization if we don¡¯t hurry.¡±


    The siblings left the room quickly, Jerall not even trying to hide the massive joy she was experiencing on her face. ¡°Wipe that grin off your face,¡± Jalldrid said, ¡°Nothing¡¯s final, nothing¡¯s anything.¡±


    ¡°What is the problem, Brother?¡± she replied, leading them into the hallway, ¡°Fortune is finally radiating down on us. You had a change of heart at the end! This is our chance to truly become independent! This will never happen again to us were our lives tripled. Imagine it! What would Freeline look like if it could own its own ship?¡±


    Jalldrid grunted in reply. He could imagine what his sister was talking about. But it was painful to do. The possibility of having such a precious thing and thought that they might or might not attain it twisted his gut. He looked back at the man alone in the eating hall.


    The man sniffed his food and took a small bite. His body twitched in revulsion and he spat it back out quickly. Pushing the food away he turned away and looked out the large view screen that showed the endless stars outside, a hand propping up his head in thought.


    ¡°He¡¯s dangerous.¡± Jalldrid said. ¡°If we handle this wrong, we could lose everything.¡± He shook his head; he knew that she couldn¡¯t understand.


    Jerall huffed, picking up her pace, ¡°We¡¯ll be using our time together to study him too, you know. If he turns out to not be what we are looking for, we¡¯ll cancel the deal too, you know. I¡¯m not stupid. Besides, he¡¯s a perfectly normal fellow. It¡¯s like he said, Citizens are people too, not mystical creatures full of unseen power. Trust me in this, I can tell.¡±


    ¡°There is always section 17, Sister. That rule is very real and we¡¯ve just invited the citizen onto our ship.¡±


    She rolled her eyes. ¡°You heard him didn¡¯t you? He didn¡¯t even know that only citizens can own ships. I don¡¯t know where he grew up, probably a black hole like you said. He probably doesn¡¯t even know about section 17.¡±


    Jalldrid thought about it and as he did so, his lunch threatened to return. He groaned, ¡°I must have been mad, Jerall. This is too risky. We will lose everything over this.¡±


    ¡°No we won¡¯t, ¡° Jerall said confidently. They reached the crossroads in the station where they would split ways and they both stopped. The corridor was busy and hundreds of different species walked past in every way, ignoring them. ¡°This will be a great day for Freeline, Jalldrid. You will look back at this day and admire my courage and insight.¡± Jerall chuckled and Jalldrid didn¡¯t respond. ¡°Go do your thing, Jalldrid, tomorrow¡¯s a big day for us.¡±


    Jerall turned and left and Jalldrid stood still in the hallway for a couple minutes, attracting attention from passerbys. ¡°We are going to need some divine help on this.¡± He said after a moment. With that said, he turned and left that spot too.

 Chapter 2

    ¡°A citizen?¡± asked Rafel with heavy skepticism as he stood, leaning heavily against the counter next to him and tapping his memo pad carelessly against it. Rafel was short and stocky reptilian creature with dark beady eyes that darted around most of the time as if they couldn¡¯t keep still. Rafel was a good person, though uneducated and from an impoverished background. He worked well in his skill set, maintenance on their ship, but he was of little use on anything else. When Jalldrid informed him that a Citizen was coming with them on their next haul, Rafel¡¯s understanding of what a citizen actually was prevented him from comprehending such a thing.


    ¡°Come on, Jall,¡± Rafel said, shortening Jalldrid¡¯s name with a soft laugh, ¡°What are you saying? You expect me to believe that?¡±


    ¡°Just¡­ just.¡± Jalldrid replied, unsure how to respond. The two of them were in the lobby of the DRIAS booking agency, Rafel had come for some maintenance reports. ¡°I don¡¯t care if you believe me, or even if you understand¡± he snapped back at Rafel who looked back carelessly at him, ¡°Just get the Stirrups ionized and make sure all the labor have where their uniforms on properly. We are going to leave on schedule today, understood?¡±


    ¡°Yes sir, Boss,¡± Rafel replied sardonically with a salute.


    Jalldrid scowled, but left the scene without a word. He couldn¡¯t blame Rafel for his reaction. He had never strictly enforced all the policies that the company was supposed to have. When you employ people like Rafel, it is best to give them a little slack and let them do their thing without too much regulation. But today was different, today they needed to give the Citizen a good show.


    Jalldrid gritted his teeth, it was nearly 0600 already and they were still a half an hour at least away from actual departure. Who was he trying to fool? His company was an operation held together by the vision of Jerall and a few scraps of metal.  The employees they hired were a ragtag bunch of scoundrels because those were the only types they could afford to pay and they had a hard time paying them as it was.


    Their ship was technically a licensed Roto-Hualer, but in reality it was an old shuttlecraft from an R-9 Syrrilian passenger liner about ten decades past its expiration retrofitted to be able to support a roto-engine. Again, it was the cheapest equipment they could lease from Asdred, and the only reason it remains serviceable are the extensive repairs that Rafel and Jalldrid constantly put into it.


    Looking at his own company with an unbiased view, he could see little value in it. Its assets were practically non-existence, but then again so were the liabilities and equity. All that the company really was a bunch of expenses that offset practically every revenue they had.


    Jalldrid stopped in the middle of the hallway, fighting the urge to bang his head against the wall. The more he thought about the situation, the more he regretted ever following his sister over to the citizen¡¯s table and engaging in this mad pursuit. Sure, he was really proud of his own company and its accomplishments, but the thought of trying to show it off to a Citizen¡­ Jalldrid felt nauseous. He leaned his head against the cool siding of the hallway, ignoring the peoples passing by. He had had a sleepless night last night.


    ¡°Jalldrid! How does the wall feel?¡± his sister¡¯s voice carried across the hall, light and chipper. It was clear she was not feeling the pressures he was.


    ¡°Cool and comforting.¡± Jalldrid replied wearily, ¡°I didn¡¯t get much sleep last night.¡± He continued, looking up at his sister, ¡°listen, I don¡¯t think-¡°


    There he was! Standing next to his sister uncomfortably in a dark blue jumpsuit with the Freeline Transport logo etched into the front! By the power converters on the space station, had Jerall actually asked the Citizen to wear their uniform for the journey? The scene was so unexpected Jalldrid was dumbfounded.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t get much sleep either,¡± Jerall said practically bouncing up and down, ¡°I found Bob meandering the hall a little bit ago and lent him one of our uniforms. I was just telling Bob how excited we are to be able take him on this trip with us and show us what we are all about. This is a great opportunity for both of us, and I predict, a lasting and fruitful partnership.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± Jalldrid replied faintly. He had had a slight hope that the citizen would think better of this and not show up at all. ¡°I¡¯m going to get the shipment details from DRIAS and we can go over them together once we get going.¡±


    ¡°Already got them,¡± Jerall replied, waiving the docu-pads in front of him and moving forward, leading the group to the hanger bay where their ship was docked.


    Jalldrid frowned, following his sister, ¡°Really? When have you cared about the docu-pads? You always leave that to me.¡±


    ¡°ha, ha,¡± Jerall said carelessly with a smile, ¡°what are you saying? You know how much all the details in a job matter.¡±


    ¡°As a matter of fact I do,¡± Jalldrid muttered to himself. Did she need to show off so obviously in front of the Citizan? ¡°Did Lucross say anything about the move?¡± Jalldrid continued, ¡°I usually can get additional info from him when I get the Docu-pads.¡±


    ¡°Nothing special,¡± Jerall replied casually, ¡°That dispatcher was pretty groggy this morning. It looks like he had a rough night last night, if you know what I mean.  This is a pretty standard trip.¡±


    Jalldrid grunted and said nothing. Bob spoke up suddenly, ¡°What are these transaction details or docu-pads you are talking about?¡±


    Jerall gave her brother a look telling him to explain it Jalldird stomach turned, but he complied. ¡°You might think that a move occurs,¡± Jalldrid spoke as if it was a prepared speech, ¡°when the actual goods are transported from the origin to the destination. But the truth is far from that, the move technically occurs when I have the possessor of the goods at origin says that Freeline has taken the goods from him and then when Freeline has the destination possessor of the goods say Freeline released the goods to him.¡±


    Bob looked uncertain so Jalldrid continued, ¡°in other words, unless I get these docu-pads, given to us by the Booking agent, in this Case DRIAS, by the way. Unless I get these duco-pads imprinted by the warehouse where we pick up the goods and then get it imprinted again at whatever the destination might be, it would mean the move did not take place and we wouldn¡¯t get paid for doing the job. These docu-pads are the move, in a sense.¡±


    ¡°Interesting.¡± Bob replied unconvincingly and Jerall gave a short laugh.


    ¡°I think so too, that is why I leave all these trivial matters to Jalldrid to take care of, while I actually get the job accomplished.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not trivial¡± Jalldrid protested, finding it difficult to match his sister¡¯s mood, ¡°When getting paid is dependent upon these docu-pads getting completed properly. And I see that you have apparently have seen the importance of them yourself, otherwise you wouldn¡¯t have bothered getting the docu-pads from DRIAS this morning.¡±


    ¡°True, true,¡± she replied lightly. ¡°Also, I need to tell you, we are transporting a passenger on this trip. I mean,¡± she looked back at Bob and winked, ¡°other than our esteemed Citizen.¡±


    ¡°Another passenger?¡± Jalldrid replied in anguish, ¡°My dear sister, you need to tell me these things before hand, we don¡¯t have the supplies for this, and we are not prepared for another additional passenger. Galaxy, woman! Where are we picking up the passenger and where is his destination?¡±


    ¡°It can¡¯t be helped;¡± Jerall responded moodily, his irritation breaking her bubbly atmosphere, ¡°I just made arrangement this morning for her. You¡¯ll just have to get some more supplies and make sure our guests are comfortable. We are picking her up only a couple parsecs out of route after we pick up the goods, but her destination is the same. It won¡¯t be a problem and her pay is good.¡±


    ¡°Sister¡­¡± Jalldrid growled, but he did not want to make a scene in the corridor, much less in front of Bob. But where in the galaxy had Jerall even gotten the job for the passenger? DRIAS does put these types of jobs on their job board, but those were few and far between. But then again, did it matter? Jerall was right; passenger jobs were easy money and were much coveted by the various Hauling agencies on the station. It was most likely that she had picked up the job from DRIAS when she got the docu-pads this morning.


    ¡°Alright, we are here.¡± Jerall announced, as if either of them could have missed the fact that the blast doors had opened up and that the huge bay full of ships was ahead of them. Still it was an impressive sight and Bob¡¯s eyes lighted up at the sight.


    Inside the bay hundreds of ships of sat patiently, like a pack of slumbering giants. The ships were of various sizes of course, some located as far left as possible in order to utilize the tallest ceilings that way. These ships filled the entire volume up from ceiling to floor and ate up much of the ground space as well, so much so that Bob had to ask, ¡°How can they even fit those ships in here? There hardly seems as much of a meter room for error.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    ¡°Of course,¡± Jerall responded. She had not stopped to look at the large ships and it was clear to Bob that theirs wasn¡¯t of the large type, ¡°The computers have sophisticated landing algorithms that synchronize their movements with the ship¡¯s own sensors, the stations fine-tuned sensors, and also with the large roto-engines this station has installed to help guide ships in. I doubt an actual person handles the controls on the landing. It is a very complicated movement and I think we are fortunate not to have to be bothered with that at all. My excellent piloting skills are enough to move our baby around.¡±


    Bob nodded in acknowledgement and kept his eyes wide looking at all the beautiful spaceships they were passing by. Jalldrid felt his stomach twist in a knot, feeling again that this was all one big mistake. Their ship didn¡¯t compare with these ones. While in function, the biggest ships docked in the left portions and the docking bay to take use of the height their and the smaller ships docked to the right, the reality was that the ships were unofficially ranked from best to worst.


    Sitting on the very last docking pad, the furthest away from the entry way, laid their ship, a dirty gray hulk. Jerall never expressed any form of discontent with their ship or disgust at their last place in the hierarchy and Jalldrid did his best not to let it bother him either. They had their own pride as it was being the only independently owned hauling company in the station, but now with the comparison between their ship and even the small ship next to theirs, Jalldrid could not help but feel ashamed.


    ¡°Our beautiful ship!,¡± Jerall said as if she was showcasing a precious treasure, ¡°We call her the renegade, but we haven¡¯t had time to print that name on the sides,¡± Jalldrid didn¡¯t think that there was even a good place for the printing on the battered un-uniform surface, ¡°We named it after our aspiration of becoming an independently operating hauling business outside of Asdred¡¯s influence.¡±


    ¡°The ship is a revamped R-9 class shuttle and it is equipped class 9s Roto-engine. The Renegade is fully licensed within DRIAS standards of course, otherwise we wouldn¡¯t be able haul their job¡¯s, and it also conforms to Asdred operating conditions. The engine is original with the ship, but carries with it modifications of our own to make it work more efficiently.¡±


    Jalldrid snorted at her last statement. The only modifying that he and Rafel had done on it was to make sure it continued to run. When she said that this was the original engine meant that it was really old and needed constant repairs in order to keep it running.


    ¡°Still,¡± Jerall continued, bringing the group up to the ship and typing figures into a control patch on her wrist that opened the door on the ship. The hydraulics let out a whine of compliant as it moved slightly, opening up like a maw on a Vorashnish Salamander, each side slid out separately. ¡°When we first got the ship, it was still operating under D-1 Hauling authority, so we had to reissue many of the old Dresign relays in order to get it up to code with the new D-3¡­¡± Bob interrupted her speech.


    ¡°Wait, just hold on.¡± He spoke, sounding a little lost and annoyed about it. Jalldrid looked at him in slight alarm. ¡°I won¡¯t pretend to understand most of what you are saying, you are probably already aware I am ignorant about much of the hauling industry. I don¡¯t really know anything so you can probably leave much of the technical details. But honestly,¡± he added with an almost cynical disbelief pointing at the ship with his left hand, ¡°How can you haul goods with that ship?¡±


    Jalldrid felt his stomach twist up, almost making him groan. He knew it would be like this, he knew their operation could only create scorn from somebody like a Citizen¡­


    But then Bob continued almost desperately, ¡°I mean, where do you store the goods in a ship that small?¡±


    Jalldrid could only stare back at the Citizen in disbelief, the thought that this man could not be a Citizen flashed inside him again. Jerall responded kindly after a brief moment. ¡°It¡¯s good question,¡± she lied, ¡°we don¡¯t actually store any goods on the ship during the job. We have what is called a roto-engine onboard and while the device can be used for many different types of work, it is most often used to haul large quantities of goods through space. All that it takes is a powerful enough engine to operate it. An engine we have, by the way.¡±


    Bob looked uncertain, ¡°How does the roto-engine haul goods? What is it?¡±


    Jalldrid wanted to bite the man¡¯s head off, asking him how he could possibly not know what a Roto-enginge was and whether or not he was actually a real citizen and not some fake. Instead, he replied shakily, trying to get over the fact that he is explaining an elementary concept to a citizen when he had previously thought citizens were all-knowing.  ¡°Its like this, all the ship really needs to do is to operate the roto-engine. The Roto-engine throws what could be described as a large net around the goods, the field it produces reduces the mass the goods in the net have and also attaches the whole thing onto the ship housing the roto-engine. With a roto-engine, even a ship like the Renegade can easily haul a shipment 10 time sits size. Similar to the size of the shipment of processed carbonite we are planning to haul today.¡±


    Bob nodded as if he understood, but was clear he didn¡¯t. ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to seeing it in action.¡± His cheeks were slightly flushed, recognizing the fact that he had embarrassed himself with the question.


    Without pause Jerall led Bob into the Renegade with Jalldrid following behind, ¡°We are always working on improving our operation, whether it be with our organizational structure, types of labor we hire, and direct modifications to the Renegade. Most recently, we have added manually operated grapples to allow us to move the goods around us while in space, rather than having to send out teams or have another shuttle move in to GAPSD to assist us in minute maneuvers.¡±


    The lights flickered on uneasily and lit up the inside cabin in a dull white light. But even as Jerall continued to speak, they warmed up and got brighter, ¡°The ship can roughly be divided into 3 compartments disproportionally and two decks. The living quarters, including sleeping quarters and galley are down this hall on the top deck,¡± Bob peered down the alleyway that led to a room that was clearly the kitchen and dining area. Small hatchways along the hallway betrayed the several sleeping quarts lined next to each other there.


    ¡°Below on the lower deck is the operating room.¡± Jerall explained, actually leading them down there. It was difficult to tell what the room actually held it was so full of equipment and bulkheads jutting out irregularly; there was hardly any room to move around. ¡°This area used to a lounge of sorts when it was built, but that was just wasted space,¡± she moved in, squeezing her thin body inside the small pathways created around the piles of misc equipment and tables. Jalldrid was about to suggest that the citizen didn¡¯t need to see this particular area of the ship, but the man followed her without hesitation and Jalldrid just shook his head.


    The lighting in here was severely dim due to the clogging of the room, but Jerall was experienced enough to walk through it without issue. Bob on the other hand, could hardly put one foot in front of the other without bumping or crashing into something. Jerall snickered at him. ¡°This is the Roto-engine,¡± she said, pointing out a large outcropping of machinery that seemed to be one complete unit, ¡°As you can see, it is taking up the primary amount of space in this area.¡±


    Bob touched the panels and casing with his hand as if it might break at his touch. ¡°I see.¡± He said softly.


    ¡°Also down here,¡± Jerall continued, pulling Bob forward ¡°is the engine room, taking up half of the lower deck space. The engine room used to be sealed off from the rest of the lower deck, but since then we needed to upgrade the engine and now that the whole ship is basically all commercial use anyway, there really isn¡¯t a need to separate the rooms.¡±


    The engine room could hardly be called a room; it was rather just a continuation of the mess that was the lower deck. Even if they had told Bob, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to distinguish the grappling hook controls from the fusion reactor.


    ¡°And lastly,¡± Jalldrid intervened, understanding that an explanation of the ships power would be a waste of time, ¡°We have the control center and bridge.¡± He pointed up the narrow ladderway that led up half a level.


    ¡°right,¡± Jerall continued, ¡°The bridge is on neither the top floor nor the bottom floor, but the quasi-space between floors,¡± she said with fake theatrics, ¡°It is just in the front of the ship and connected the two floors.¡± There was a sealed door between the bridge and the lower deck and she passed through the ladder way with Bob right behind her.


    A voice calling out to Jalldrid made him depart from his sister. ¡°Rafel,¡± Jalldrid spoke, makeing his way back through the lower deck, ¡°Are we fueled up?¡± Jerall continued the tour, taking the citizen up to the bridge.


    ¡°Yes, yes,¡± Rafel replied, ¡°and the Stirrups- are properly ionized, just like you asked.¡± Jalldrid saw that the mechanic didn¡¯t have his full uniform on as he had asked him too, but suddenly he realized he really didn¡¯t care. Nothing was going to make the trip any better than it was. ¡°Was that the esteemed Citizen?¡± he asked, looking over Jalldrid¡¯s shoulder at the figure now leaving the lower deck.


    ¡°I have no idea,¡± was Jalldrid¡¯s rough reply, ¡°He says he is and he¡¯s got the headgear to prove it, but I¡¯ve never been so disillusioned in my life.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°I mean, he¡­ he doesn¡¯t seem to know anything! He doesn¡¯t know basic norms or elementary concepts. He¡¯s totally naive, like he grew up in a totally isolated environment!¡±


    Rafel frowned, ¡°Maybe he did. You don¡¯t know what it means to be a citizen. I hear that some citizens in a family are simply kept in luxury their whole lives and never actually leave their homes ever.¡±


    Jalldrid shook his head, ¡°I don¡¯t know, the whole thing is giving me stomach pains.¡± He slapped his mechanic on the shoulder, ¡°I want this job to go as smoothly as possible, alright? It is a straightforward job; it shouldn¡¯t be a problem for us. Just make sure the engine stays running.¡±


    ¡°Right¡¯o Boss,¡± Rafel responded sardonically again. He paused for a moment ¡°and what about section 17? You two have considered that as well, right?¡±


    Jalldrid¡¯s gut twisted for the tenth time that morning. He wouldn¡¯t be surprised if his innards weren¡¯t a tangled mess by now. ¡°Of course we have.¡± He said resolutely. Not that that actual meant anything.


    ¡°Where is our esteemed Citizen going to be sleeping, might I ask?¡± Rafel continued.


    Jalldrid sighed one last time, ¡°Of course, he¡¯ll be in the guest quarters. But then again, our captain has also signed aboard a hiker we will be taking on up after our origin pickup. So that means that we will have two extra people on board and since we want to give our citizen the most comfort we can afford, the captain will be giving up her quarters and sharing one with me.¡±


    Rafel winced, ¡°Does she know about this?¡±


    ¡°Not yet,¡± was the resigned reply, ¡°this is going to be a rough trip.¡±

 Chapter 3

    From a un-informed view, such as the view of Bob, the physical location of the Arpeligo seemed impractical. Rather than have the station orbit a planet or moon or any other habitable celestial body, the station was place literally in the middle of nowhere. There was no other inhabited location, artificially manufactured or not, within parsecs of the station.


    When Bob questioned this, after the ship and crew departed the station without incident and was how half a day out to their origin destination, Jalldrid took great pleasure in explaining to Bob not only why the station was placed in the most optimal point in the sector, but also why it was inevitable that the station would end up there considering the historical, cultural, and sociological events in the sector.


    ¡°You see Bob,¡± Jalldrid spoke, for once dropping the title citizen from his name in his enthusiasm, ¡°In the past, the sector wasn¡¯t ruled so completely by the Asdred family like it is now. There were several other clans that occupied it, each with lots of their own influence. At times they fought in petty conflicts with one another, and at other times they got along semi-peacefully. The station was actually built in the Orcion cluster by the Hulian klan 250 years ago. The station took two years to complete and was created in thirds using the three shipyards that Ocrian has. Then each section of the station was hauled three parsecs over to Carsini and assembled there.¡±


    ¡°Why Carsini?¡± Bob asked with genuine interest. He, Jalldrid, and Jerall sat comfortably on the small bridge together. Rafel and the three other members of the crew were on the lower deck, prepping the roto-engine and performing some last minute training on the new grappling equipment.


    Bob added with a rare display of geographical knowledge, ¡°Isn¡¯t Carsini an uninhabited asteroid?¡±


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t then,¡± Jerall called out from behind the helm, ¡°The Hulian Klan mucked it all up!¡±


    ¡°Its true,¡± Jalldrid said eagerly, ¡°The Asteroid at that time a chuck of rock with huge deposits of valuable ore inside, Eridium, valahite, and so on. The asteroid at the time was technically part of Asdred territory and the mining operation occurring there was under Asdred jurisdiction. It was a not so subtle move on Hulian¡¯s part to extend their reach of influence by planting a huge fat trading station right next the mine. In one stroke, the Hulians basically annexed the mining operation on Carsini. And of course, the space station came with defenses.¡±


    ¡°So what happened then?¡± Asked Bob, catching Jalldrid¡¯s enthusiasm, ¡°How did the Asdred family react?¡±


    ¡°How do you think?¡± Came the rough reply from the engine room down below. Rafel stuck his head up the unsealed shaft leading towards the bridge and growled at Bob, ¡°The two families started blowing each other into space dust and getting all the foundationers and planets caught up in the crossfire, just like they always do!¡± He turned to Jalldrid and said, ¡°The roto-engine¡¯s got an alignment issue, Jall.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± Jalldrid responded, swinging into action, ¡°what¡¯s the ARGO¡¯s fame level?¡± He moved swiftly past Bob and swung himself down the shaft.


    ¡°Its holding steady at O-.235,¡± Rafel said, letting Jalldrid pass by, ¡°but you know that won¡¯t last once the engine is put into serious action.¡±


    ¡°Right, right.¡± Jalldrid replied absentmindedly out of sight, his words echoing up the ship.


    Rafel turned back to Bob. His black beady eyes were unreadable to him, but he grinned and said, ¡°Don¡¯t let this fool fool you! He¡¯s got himself a real lay education, but what good does the past do for you when you can¡¯t keep up with the present?¡± Without a word he swung down the shaft after Jalldrid.


    Staring the down empty causeway, Bob asked aloud, ¡°What did Rafel mean by the term ¡®Foundationers¡¯?¡±


    ¡°He means us.¡± Jerall responded matter of factly. In a practiced motion, she swung up from the helm seat and stood up stretching in the center of the bridge. At Bob¡¯s surprised look she laughed and said, ¡°The ship flies itself mostly. It¡¯s only when we need some real maneuvering that somebody needs to be in the seat. I pilot most of the time because it is what I am good at. That and ordering people around.¡±


    Bob considered her words. ¡°Foundationers is the term for the Syllicons?¡±


    Jerall nodded, ¡°Yes, Syllicons is the official term that Citizens use with us. But there are lots of names, some more pleasant than others. Second class citizens are the most accurate I would say, but I think many Citizens prefer not to mingle even their names with us. We like to refer to ourselves as Foundationers ¡®cause it identifies us as the foundation on the hierarchy pyramid in the empire.¡±


    Bob nodded in understanding. With a loud plop, Jerall sat down in the Captain¡¯s seat and it creaked slightly as she leaned back comfortably in in. ¡°We¡¯ll be arriving at our origin in a couple of hours,¡± she said conversationally, ¡°Once there it will take a couple more hours to secure the goods in the roto-engine and get all the docu-pads impressed. After that it is a short trip to pick up our hiker and then it will be a five day trip to our destination where we will unload the goods. Then it¡¯s back to the station.¡±


    ¡°You head back empty handed?¡± Bob asked with a frown, ¡°I would have thought that you would string moves together so that you could maximize your travel time.¡±


    Jerall paused at the sudden probe, but responded readily, ¡°You¡¯re right, that would make more sense. It used to be that way, only a couple years ago even. We could be away from the station for more than a month at a time taking job after job and always using the destination of one to be the origin of the other. It took careful planning and as always, a bit of luck. But since the Asdred and Hulian family started disputing with each other over territory two years ago, the number of jobs available to us has dropped significantly.¡±


    ¡°Trade has stagnated?¡±


    Jerall shook her head, ¡°No, the volume of hauling shipments hasn¡¯t decreased significantly; their conflicts don¡¯t disrupt the sector that much yet. But more and more areas are become danger zones. In the past two years, the number of danger zones increased significantly, logically lowering our available areas of business. Our contract with DRIAS has us only performing moves that occur within areas that are safely and away from any possible danger, you see. As you can probably tell,¡± Jerall threw her arm out appraisingly, ¡°This ship would not do well if any kind of attack was thrown against her.¡±


    Bob contemplated that and asked, ¡°What would it take to be able to perform the moving in these ¡°danger zones¡±? I take it the pay is better in the danger zones as well.¡±


    Jerall sat forward and laughed. ¡°Of course. But we would need a different ship!¡±


    Bob raised an eyebrow, ¡°Perhaps one you would purchase if I were with you?¡±


    Jerall lost her smile. ¡°Not even then,¡± she said bluntly, ¡°Firstly, we weren¡¯t planning on getting a different ship with at all. The plan would be to change our arrangement with Asdred and transform our agreement from a lease into a lease-to-own which would include a more reasonable payment schedule.¡± Bob nodded in acknowledgment. ¡°Secondly,¡± she continued, ¡°If we wanted to perform these so called, ¡®danger moves¡¯, it would require a special licensing and along with that an inspection to make sure the ship clears all the codes and standards for that that kind of work. As much as I love the renegade, it doesn¡¯t have the shields, the armor, or even the coded engine power to obtain clearance.¡±


    ¡°But it meets the weaponry requirement?¡± Bob asked with a light smile.


    Jerall rolled her eyes, ¡°Its illegal for ships to have weapons. Only specifically authorized ships can have those. Professional mercenaries have them and when they are needed they are hired along with the transport as part of the contract in specific danger zones. Those kinds of zones are mainly threatened by pirates rather than the families.¡±


    ¡°And getting another ship is out of the question? One that could handle the danger moves?¡±


    Jerall shook her head, ¡°We couldn¡¯t afford it, even if we had a generous payment schedule,¡± she turned and eyes him with a small smile, ¡°Unless, of course, you provide a bunch of capital.¡±


    Bob didn¡¯t even respond, but looked away towards the starry setting outside the viewport. In the pause, the sounds of muted words and the groans of machinery moving filled the ship.


    ¡°Jerall¡­¡± Bob started.


    ¡°Please call me Captain when we are on board the ship,¡± Jerall interrupted calmly, ¡°I¡¯m sorry and I don¡¯t mean it maliciously at all. When we are not on a job, you can keep calling me Jerall, but on the ship it is important to maintain a clear flow of command in case of a possible issue arising. All my crewmen do it, even my brother.¡±


    ¡°I understand, Captain,¡± Bob responded, and then added with a grin, ¡°How did you two decide who was captain, anyway?¡±


    The Captain huffed, ¡°As if I¡¯d let my little brother command the ship. Sure he¡¯s got brains, but he doesn¡¯t have the vision or the aptitude for command. He¡¯s too soft!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m amazed at how well you too get along, considering how different you two are.¡±


    Jerall shrugged, ¡°We make up for each other¡¯s weaknesses. Even I understand that without him Freeline wouldn¡¯t exist.¡±


    ¡°Why did you two decide to do this any way? What were your goals?¡±


    Jerall smiled at Bob, ¡°Aren¡¯t these questions getting a little personal?¡±


    ¡°Not at all.¡±


    Bob¡¯s reply was serious and Jerall cleared her throat apprehensively. ¡°Well,¡± she said, thinking back, ¡°It was my dream, not his. Our father had lived his life as one of the dispatchers within DRIAS and when he died I felt a terrible sense of uselessness in his career. Jalldrid says I should respect our father¡¯s work more, but I don¡¯t see the value in that type of desk job.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    ¡°At the time I was working as an employee of Asdred Transportation, their hauling branch. When Dad went I decided that I needed to get out and do my own thing and since my skills were in this industry, it only made sense.¡±


    ¡°You dragged your brother along?¡±


    Jerall smiled, ¡°I took him with me just as much for him as it was for me. He actually had an education from the University of Terarsis and had only recently come back to the station. He would have been content with a mundane life like Dad¡¯s but I knew that would be a waste of his talents. With his brains, we were able navigate our way through the bureaucracy and actually obtain company status.¡±


    ¡°How did you get the funds to start up the business?¡± Jerall scowled and Bob replied defensively, ¡°hey, I am sorry if the questions seem too personal, but you must understand my need to understand this company completely.¡±


    With a continued scowl, Jerall replied, ¡°I had been planning to start my own enterprise for as long as I can remember and had been saving up as much as I could. However, that really wasn¡¯t much. We got money from DRIAS when Dad died, and with that we were able to up front expenses and also set up an operating agreement with Asdred in regards to the ship. Also, business was good back then. If we had tried in this current climate we wouldn¡¯t have made it.¡±


    Bob nodded in acknowledgement. ¡°Does Freeline have any mission statement of sorts, or official goals?¡±


    Jerall blinked. ¡°Goals? Yes we have a goal, our goal is to make money by doing the jobs.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± Bob replied with a smile, ¡°but it is the goal of every business adventure to make money, true? I meant some sort of statement that defines the company¡¯s policies and decision making whenever times get tough. You could even think of it as the company¡¯s value and drive. Like say for instance you mission statement was, ¡®To Achieve a sustainable enterprise through integrity and honest work¡¯ or something or other like that.¡±


    ¡°Our goal when we started,¡± Jerall added persistently, ¡°Was to be as independent from Asdred as possible. That is still our goal, but you won¡¯t see that slogan framed up anywhere in the ship, if that is what you are asking.¡±


    ¡°No, but that¡¯s okay.¡±


    ¡°I mean,¡± Jerall added earnestly, ¡°I understand why those type of things may be important to big companies, but for us out here, we have to get along as best we can, scrapping out a living with every other creature. Those mission statements sound nice on paper, but in the reality, we have to what has to be done to survive.¡±


    ¡°I understand what you are saying,¡± Bob replied, holding his ground, ¡°But I still believe it is a good idea for every company to have a least a guiding principle to support them during times of crisis. I fear that without one, a company could find themselves led astray.¡±


    ¡°Your line of thinking,¡± Jerall said looking hard at him, ¡°Is one of romanticism only.¡±


    Bob let that slide without comment and looked out the view port again. Jerall sighed and asked, ¡°What is it you have on your mind, Citizen? I can tell you have something you want to say but are afraid to say it. As potential business partners, we need to be open with each other. Ask me any questions you have!¡±


    Bob looked back, ¡°I think that Freeline will need a new strategy and that the current way of things will not let it last, even if I were to join you. You believe that your trade will get better in the next few years?¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± she boomed, ¡°The petty fights between the families happen all the time, at least once a decade. Its always the same cycle, they start fighting over some planet or such, the free trade dwindles, after a couple years the fighting ends with different boundaries on either side and trade resume its normal course. It¡¯s as Rafel said, we get caught in the crossfire every time the families have a bad day, but it always rebounds in the end. This time too, I believe that we have already past the low point in the fighting. It will be all uphill from here.¡±


    ¡°The conflict this time is bigger than you think,¡± Bob replied, ¡°And it won¡¯t end anytime soon.¡±


    Jerall leaned back in her chair again. ¡°On what basis have you determined that?¡± she demanded, then she added with light mockery, ¡°Do you know the inner politics in the conflict?¡±


    ¡°I did some research into the industry last night,¡± Bob replied conversationally, ¡°And you are correct when you talk about the swings the industry has taken in the last century due to the families inner fighting. As you say, it has happened many times before. But the current situation is different. Instead of fizzling out like it usually does, the fighting has only intensified. Both sides have suffered big losses over the last year, but neither side is anywhere near reaching a settlement. The differences between the two families are too great, and this particular conflict has been brewing for decades.¡±


    ¡°Nonsense,¡± Jerall challenged with a smile, ¡°You do ¡°some research¡± and now you are an expert? Where are you getting your information from? The Asdred¡¯s and Hulain¡¯s have fought countless times before and always reached a peaceful end. Why should this be any different?¡±


    ¡°A variety of reasons,¡± Bob answered thoughtfully, choosing his words with care, ¡°In a way, you could say that all those previous fights were leading towards this culmination. Obviously, this is not my own analysis, but this is what I was reading last night. I can give you my sources if you want. The biggest factor here is simply the decline of imperial influence in this sector. In every other conflict in the past, it was the imperial family that forced peace. Other factors include a near equal balance of power between the two houses this time, Asdred economically and Hulains militarily, preventing either one from dominating the other. Another is also the quiet backing on both sides from allied houses in the form of supplies and sometimes actual military support. Not to mention that the fighting over the centuries between the two houses has created a deep hatred with one another and probably negates any ability to settle thing peacefully. Without an influx of strong imperial presence, I foresee not only this entire sector becoming embroiled in this, but other nearby ones as well.¡±


    Jerall stared at Bob in disbelief and responded grumpily, ¡°And how can you possibly know all this? Are you some banished prince from the Hulian house?¡±


    Bob replied grumpily, ¡°Hardly.¡±


    ¡°Seriously,¡± Jerall asked, sitting forward in her chair with agitation. ¡°Where are you getting your information from? It sounds to me like bunch of words of doom and nothing more. The universe, much less the trade in this sector isn¡¯t going to end because a couple families can¡¯t keep their temper under control!¡±


    ¡°Why are you angry at me?¡± Bob asked, ¡°Of course, the foundationers like yourselves will be affected less by the growing conflict than other people. But like you said, trade for you has had a significant decline. I suggest, for your own benefit, to get Freeline qualified to handle danger zones shipments if you wish to survive the continued conflict. The conflict is just going to get worse; the signs are everywhere.¡±


    ¡°What signs?¡± Jerall demanded, ¡°Things are quiet at the station, I haven¡¯t heard any of this stuff you are talking about. I stay up to date on industry news and trends too you know, but I haven¡¯t seen anything like what you are talking about. Business is going on as usual and there are none of these signs you are talking about, unless you mean superstitious omens you might see around.¡±


    Bob replied crossly, ¡°Don¡¯t omen me! These are clear factual events; let me list them off for you! Just yesterday the conflict area expanded into three new zones, and it¡¯s predicted no zone will be clear of that stigma anytime soon. Heavy fighting occurred in the Orius system last night and there the Asdred forces were routed. New contracts have been signed with local mercenaries by the Asdred in response and the Frain family just promised to send additional supplies to them, this time not limited to food and medical supplies, but real weapons. Things are only escalating here, there is even rumor that Asdred has acquired an ICG Sential ARC wave and will be bringing it online soon.  What other signs do you need?¡±


    ¡°How can you know that?!¡± Jerall final exploded leaping up from her seat.


    ¡°Why do you keep asking me that?!¡± was Bob¡¯s heated reply.


    For a moment Jerall was aghast. She ground her fingers together and spoke slowly as if every word had to be ripped off a hard loaf of bread, ¡°Maybe because I want to know where you are getting your information from, Citizen??? None of this was reported on the galactic newsfeed this morning and the Orius system is a hundred parsecs away, no such communication can be sent that quickly!¡±


    Bob looked back at her, his own disbelief on his face, ¡°I got all from my head piece. That should be obvious. I course I can get reports that quickly from the netsphere.¡±


    ¡°No! Of course not,¡± Bob replied angrily, ¡°don¡¯t you know what a head piece is?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a piece of metal made to make the citizens feel better about themselves.¡± Jerall snapped back.


    Bob glared at Jerall. ¡°You playing me, Captian? Are you telling me you don¡¯t know?¡±


    ¡°Know what!?¡± Jerall snarled, looking ready to tear the offending man apart.


    ¡°its¡­¡± Bob started, ¡°That¡¯s not it at all! The head piece is the most advanced mechanism ever created. It what really sets Citizens and second class people apart; the access to the headpieces. How can you not know that?¡± Jerall only responded with a mute glare. Bob sighed and added, ¡°Look, I¡¯m sorry, I thought everybody knew. The Headpiece isn¡¯t just some ceremonial wear, it¡¯s an advanced piece of hardware that connects every wearer with every other wearer in the galaxy instantly. From it, I can gather practically any kind of data I may want. Last night, I looked into the current events in this sector along with several reports from journals as well as university studies. I did a proper market analysis, you know. You don¡¯t have access to this stuff?¡±


    Jerall only responded fierce whisper, ¡°What?¡±


    Bob shifted uncomfortably, ¡°Look, I¡¯m sorry; I didn¡¯t know you didn¡¯t know. But, I used it when I first met you in order to communicate, right? I had downloaded a program that translated for me. Obviously now I am using a standard comm link in order to speak, but I didn¡¯t have that on me before.¡±


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you wearing it now?¡±


    Bob paused, and then answered, ¡°It¡¯s in my quarters at the moment. I don¡¯t like using it because it gives me a terrible headache and makes me nauseous. I¡¯m not used to using it yet.¡±


    Jerall stared down at Bob, who again shifted uncomfortably. ¡°I don¡¯t believe you.¡± She snapped after a moment.


    Bob snarled back at her. ¡°Fine.¡± he spat, throwing his hands in the air, ¡°I don¡¯t even care; believe what you want.¡± He turned and left the bridge, heading up towards the second deck. ¡°I¡¯m only an observer here anyway!¡±


    Watching him leave, Jerall sat down slowly into her Captain¡¯s chair and nibbled on the ends on of her long brown fingers. She stared out the view port vacantly.


    Loud clumping sounds indicated the approach of her brother from down below. ¡°I thought I heard some yelling up here,¡± Jalldrid said as he climbed up into the bridge. He looked around as he entered, ¡°Where did the Citizen go? You didn¡¯t yell at him did you?¡± When Jerall didn¡¯t respond, he added uncertainly, ¡°Captain?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s gone to his quarters,¡± she suddenly spoke bringing her attention to her brother. ¡°He said he was tired.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± Jalldird replied, shifting his weight from on leg to another and wiping his dirty hands on a rag. ¡°You know,¡± he added, ¡°Try not to upset the Citizen, Captain. I know he¡¯s not like any citizen¡­ I mean, he¡¯s not like how we imagined citizens would act like. But still, he is a citizen; we should be treading carefully around him. Don¡¯t forget section 17.¡±


    ¡°Right.¡± she said absently.


    ¡°Right,¡± Jalldrid replied slowly. He clapped his hands together, ¡°well, the roto-engine has been re-aligned; we should be ready to go when we reach origin. Any particular orders before we arrive?¡±


    ¡°no, nothing special.¡±


    ¡°great,¡± he said already on his way up to the upper deck, ¡°in that case I¡¯ll make my way to the galley and prepare a little something for the guys. Would you like anything?¡±


    ¡°What is your take on the current family conflict?¡± Jerall asked suddenly twisting around to see her brother halfway gone.


    ¡°Err,¡± he responded, flat footed, ¡°Well, what do you mean?¡±


    ¡°I mean, is this conflict really going to end soon? We won¡¯t survive in this environment much longer.¡±


    Jalldrid shrugged, ¡°Its gotta¡¯. I understand you are worried, but these all end the same way. The families throw a fit; throw the sector into chaos for a little bit. The imperial family steps in and calms things down and then it turns back to normal. It¡¯s how they entertain themselves, I guess. It¡¯ll end soon, you see. I think things are already looking up.¡±


    Jerall nodded, looking away again.


    ¡°Soooo, did you need anything?¡±


    With a flick of her hand she replied that she was good.


    ¡°Good.¡± With a twist he was gone. In under an hour later the renegade arrived at their origin.

 Chapter 4

    The origin point on the trip was a place that Jalldrid had never been to before, which was rare these days. He and Bob were hunched over, looking out from the Bridges viewport at it with uncertainty. Bob asked after a moment, ¡°What is it?¡±


    Jalldird cleared his throat importantly, ¡°Some sort of mining platform, I should guess. See that appendage over there? That is definitely from an ACE Blaster unit, commonly used in mining platforms to help clear away rock and debris in a mine.¡± The particular piece of equipment Jalldrid pointed out looked like a vast arm that hung out threateningly from the station, ready to crush anything that got close to its maw.


    Bob continued to look out. ¡°But this is a gas giant.¡± It was a statement.


    Jalldrid cleared his throat again, ¡°right. There is no solid mass hear that needs to be crushed in that manner.¡±


    After another pause, Bob offered, ¡°Maybe they use it as a simple grappling arm like you have on this ship now. I imagine there is a lot of processed Carbonite that will need to be maneuvered into position for the haul.¡±


    ¡°Maybe,¡± Jalldrid replied with a frown, ¡°But why is there a load of processed carbonite coming from this type of mining station anyway? It¡¯s not like they produced it here. Like you say, the platform is orbiting around a gas giant. They should be exporting the gases here, not metal, much less processed metal.¡±


    The platform they were looking at was tiny compared to the station they came from. It looked old and dangly, kept in a weary orbit around a huge planet called Mirke. Looking at the platform from the bridge, it looked dark and foreboding. There was little activity to be seen on it.


    ¡°They must have gotten the shipment from a trade of their actual goods and now are reselling the carbonite.¡± Bob added hopefully, ¡°Or maybe this was just a stopping point in the transportation of the goods.¡±


    Jalldrid stood up, ¡°Probably the former, eh? Who cares? We¡¯ve got a load to pick up. What¡¯s the ETA, Captain?¡±


    Jerall was in the helm seat again and she called back, ¡°I¡¯ll have us at the receiving dock in 5 minutes.¡±


    ¡°Right, I¡¯ll gather up the goonies.¡± He started for the upper deck and climbed up the causeway. Bob was close behind him. ¡°You don¡¯t want to stay here on the bridge?¡± he asked, looking back over his shoulder.


    ¡°I¡¯d like to see the action.¡±


    There was a short laugh form the helm, ¡°You won¡¯t get any action with him, I am the one who oversees the loading and unloading. All Jall does is get the docu-pads signed and smoozy up with the warehousemen.¡±


    ¡°I occasionally,¡± Jalldrid added, moving away from his sister, ¡°Also make sure that the roto-engine remains stable and that the attachment is secure and other important things.¡±


    He reached the upper deck and proceeded down the hallway banging on the two sealed hatchways near the back of the ship. ¡°Time to get up guys, we¡¯ll be there in five!¡± there were no sounds of reply from either hatch so he pounded again, harder. ¡°Oi, get up you goonies, there is work to be done.¡±


    One of the hatched opened quickly. A small creature crept out of it. ¡°Galaxy, man. There is no need for that!¡± the figure said, annoyed. ¡°I heard you the first time.¡±


    Bob observed the creature, it was short and hairy and once it had properly extricated itself from the quarters it was clear it had four arms. The bottom pair of arms where shorty and stockier while the top two were limber and long. The creature did not wear a shirt, although Bob guessed it was from lack of personal hygiene rather than cultural traditions.


    Jalldrid scowled, ¡°Just remember what happened last time, okay Fallin? If you weren¡¯t Rafel¡¯s brother-in-law, I wouldn¡¯t have taken you with us again. Get yourself dressed properly, wear a shirt at least. We are running a proper business here, not a freshman dormitory.¡±


    Fallin shrugged with an apathetic smile and then climbed back into this hole to fetch a shirt. ¡°Watch it bro!¡± Bob heard Rafel say from inside.


    During the talk, the other hatchway had opened too, and out came two properly dressed guys. They huffed at the fresh air and one of them said, ¡°Why can¡¯t we have planned this out so that the origin wasn¡¯t in the middle of the day. Huh? How are we supposed to get any sleep?¡± They were the same species as Jerall and Jalldrid and Bob had learned earlier that they were actual a pair of second cousins of sorts. The partner chuckled at his friend¡¯s remarks.


    ¡°The rest of the world sleeps at night, you geniuses.¡± Jalldrid growled. But he handed a data pad to the first, ¡°here are the stats of the load we are getting, please cross examine the dimensions when we arrive.¡± He handed a strange looking instrument to the other, ¡°and you, please take the IRN reading when we arrive too. After we have those straightened, we¡¯ll begin the loading procedure.¡±


    Rafel had escaped his room and was in the hallway now; the only dressed in the uniform besides Bob. ¡°You want the grapplers put on standby?¡± he asked, his arms folded.


    Jalldrid shook his head, ¡°No, we will not be needed them today.¡±


    Immediately, the two cousins began groaning in complain. ¡°Then why did we even bother with training on them if we weren¡¯t going to use them?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve got to learn them sometime; when else do you think you will get training on it?¡± Jalldrid growled poking back at the cousins, ¡°Besides, you haven¡¯t learned a thing yet anyway.¡±


    ¡°I thought I had done a decent job on it at least,¡± Fallin replied carelessly, leaning out of the hatch with only two arms. ¡°They ain¡¯t that difficult.¡±


    ¡°either way, we are not using them today. I¡¯m told that they have a receiving dock large enough to hold this ship and the goods. We¡¯ll just attach it directly to the renegade from there, just like the old days. Now guys,¡± he added, pointing his finger out at each one of them, ¡°This is as simple and straightforward an assignment as they come. As you know we have with us here a citizen, let¡¯s show him what a Hualing crew looks like on a haul and do an efficient and professional job here. There is no room for mistakes, you understand?¡±


    It was clear that Jalldrid was looking for an energized response, but all he got was a mocking ¡°hurrah!¡± from Fallin and halfhearted replies from everybody else. The two cousins looked at Bob suspiciously, not quite sure what to make of him.


    ¡°Just get to the lower deck and wait for our arrival.¡± Jalldird ended with resignation. ¡°We¡¯ll be there in a couple minutes.¡± With some grunting the cousins moved down the hallway with Fallin following behind, struggling to put on his shirt.


    Rafel had stayed behind a bit. ¡°I just want this to go smoothly,¡± Jalldrid practically pleaded, ¡°there is no need for any mixup.¡±


    With a grin, Rafel replied, ¡°I¡¯ll keep my brother in line; I can¡¯t say much for your cousins though. You¡¯ll have to trust your sister to manage them.¡± Rafel moved down towards the lower deck too.


    After they left, Jalldrid groaned slightly.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Bob asked.


    At the words, Jalldrid straightened up suddenly. ¡°Nothing!¡± he said with fake brightness, ¡°This is going to be a great move! Now come with me, I¡¯ll take you along on my process and you¡¯ll get to see a little more of the platform with me.¡±


    With that, Jalldrid motioned Bob with him and settled together in the galley. Over the intercom, the voice of the captain came through, ¡°All crew, we¡¯ll be landing imminently, prepare for set off.¡±


    ¡°Ah,¡± Jalldrid said, securing himself, ¡°They must not have a roto set up to guide ships in.¡±


    ¡°Is that unusual?¡± Bob asked, mimicking Jalldird¡¯s positioning.


    ¡°A little, having a roto set up to drag ships in is safer and easier than just trusting the pilot to navigate in smoothly. Every landing is different, with a variety of factors such as the force of gravity, density of the air and possible currents affecting the approach, so unless a pilot has a lot of experience, it would be difficult to land in a foreign area.¡± He added with a wink to Bob, ¡°But don¡¯t worry, the Captain can handle this with her eyes closed.¡±


    A second later, the ship shuddered in expectation and then landed swiftly, jarring the contents and the persons on board. From the bridge, Jalldrid could faintly hear his sister laughing. ¡°Now¡¯s not the time to be showing off!¡± Jalldird said, wincing.


    ¡°That was a much more exciting landing than my landing at the station.¡± Bob commented lightly. Jalldrid just grumbled.


    Upon landing, the doors at the back of the renegade opened noisily and the crew piled out, ready for some work. There were few people inside the bay area they were in milling about on their consuls, our just sitting around lazily.


    Jalldrid clucked his tongue at he looked out across the bay. ¡°So unprofessional,¡± he said, ¡°it doesn¡¯t even look like they have the goods prepared for us. Are we going to have to wait for them?¡±


    He grabbed a passing dock worker and asked, ¡°Hey, how come we have to wait for the goods? They should be ready to load upon our arrival.¡±


    Annoyed, the worker shook him off and answered, ¡°Cool your reactor man, it¡¯s on the freight elevator now and will be here any minute.¡±


    The worker left but Jalldrid still frowned, crossing his arms impatiently. Bob stood next to him uncomfortably and then asked, ¡°Why do you need an IRN reading on the goods? Isn¡¯t that figure given to you on your docu-pads?¡±


    Jalldrid shifted, ¡°Of course, all the specs on the shipment are given to us on the docu-pads, but I have found that there is often a small degree of error in the values.¡±


    ¡°Really? I thought that it was inter-sector law that hauling carries have precise specs for the goods they are hauling.¡±


    Jalldrid raised an eyebrow, ¡°You really must have done some research. But its fine, for the docu-pads the figures just need to be reasonable so that if we are stopped of the sector patrol the officers can know what king of cargo we have just at a glance. However, I want the exact figures from the IRN scan. A lot of carriers don¡¯t bother with it, but if you adjust the roto-engine to match the exact figures of the cargo, you can increase the roto efficiency by 2-5%, depending on how off the docu-pads are. Those saving add up.¡±


    Jalldrid looked around, ¡°And speaking of the duco-pads, I need to get them from the Captain. Galaxy knows that she won¡¯t get them properly imprinted.¡±


    Jalldrid left and Bob remained standing where he was. None of the dock workers paid Bob any attention.


    The loading bay they were in was much smaller than the bay in Arpeligo. Only two ships the size of the renegade or one big one could have fit in there. The font section where the ship entered through was clear for the most part. Random pieces of equipment lay scattered about; it looked like the bay also was used as a repair dock.


    Bob was especially interested in the thin plasma like membrane that was stretched across the entrance that the renegade passed through. That membrane, Jalldrid had explained, was designed to only let only particles of a certain density pass through it. In other words, gasses and most liquids would be repelled by it like a wall, but something like a spaceship, would pass through it easily. It made Bob nervous to think that he would only have to pass his hand across it to reach the vacuum of outer space, but everybody else seemed to give it no care.


    The interior of the bay was a mess, either from the platform being too busy to be able to organize the equipment and goods properly, or it was just never cleaned. Bob hoped it was the former and he looked out in disgust. The whine of the freight elevator could be heard and it was getting louder and louder as the goods approached the docking level. The workers started gathering around what he could only guess was the exit to the elevator.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    The captain soon exited the ship and started barking orders at her crew merrily. Jalldrid exited behind her and came up Bob. He did not look as happy as the Captain was. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he said gruffly, waving the docu-pads in front of him. ¡°We are going to get some work done.¡± he sped off towards an exit marked, ¡°Dispatch.¡±


    Bob followed behind. ¡°You don¡¯t seem as happy as the Captain is?¡± He asked conversationally.


    ¡°Don¡¯t know what you are talking about, Citizen,¡± Jalldrid replied, smacking the automatic door sensor when it didn¡¯t open for him. ¡°I am very happy.¡±


    ¡°I see.¡± Bob said. Jalldird smacked it again with a curse and the door opened with a woosh.


    ¡°I asked your sister this,¡± Bob continued, ¡°But I¡¯d also like to hear it from you. Why did you decide to start Freeline Transportation with Jerall?¡±


    ¡°She really wanted too,¡± Jalldrid replied without hesitation, ¡°and she would have done it with or without me. However, I knew that if I didn¡¯t join; she would ruin herself in no time. I¡¯ve said this before, all she has is drive, no brains whatsoever.¡±


    At least they were consistent, ¡°You must really like your sister, to do all this for her.¡±


    Jalldrid paused. ¡°It¡¯s not all that bad.¡± He conceded. ¡°I admit there is a bit more¡­ glamor in this than a job at the station or even as a crewman on one of the large companies under Asdred. Besides, she¡¯s my family.¡±


    Bob nodded. ¡°What is the structure of education on the station, and how was yours different?¡±


    ¡°Whoa, that¡¯s a turn in topic conversation,¡± Jalldird replied, turning a corner.


    ¡°Sorry, I was just thinking about a conversation I had with the Captain.¡± Bob replied apologetically.


    Jalldird shrugged, ¡°Arpeligo, and by Arpeligo, I mean Asdred because they are the owners/rulers of it, does offer public education. As virtually all of the occupants of the station work for Asdred in some form or another, it is in their own interest to raise the education for all the second class citizens there. However, it¡¯s not mandatory and is only offers basic studies. Advanced learning there is vocational only.¡±


    ¡°But you went to a University elsewhere?¡±


    Jalldrid nodded, ¡°The University of Terarsis. It is rare for a native to the station to actually leave the station for additional education, but outside of Arpeligo, it¡¯s not unusual.¡± He glanced over at Bob, ¡°I don¡¯t want you to think that all second class citizens are like my Sister or Rafel, or any of the other people you meet on this trip. You are visiting the lowest part of society where poverty and ignorance is bred. It¡¯s not like there are only two castes here, the citizens and the second class. The second class has a wide range of people, from wealthy and educated to the opposite. The university I attended was filled with second class citizens.¡±


    ¡°What made your father decide to send you to school, if it is so unusual?¡±


    Jalldrid frowned. They had walked down the dim and flickering hallways in a seeming endless path and now had reached a lobbyish area. There was man at the counter working and Jalldrid approached him asking, ¡°Is the Dispatcher in? I¡¯d like to go over the shipment with him and get the docu-pads imprinted.¡±


    The man looked up from his seat slowly as if he could not believe he was getting interrupted. ¡°Dispatcher?¡± he replied faintly.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Jalldrid replied forcefully, waving the docu-pads, ¡°I need to get these imprinted.¡±


    The man hesitated, and then got up from his seat, ¡°I¡¯ll go get my boss.¡± He stated, leaving the office.


    ¡°You do that.¡± Jalldrid called out after him. After the door shut, he turned to Bob, ¡°I can¡¯t believe this place. How can they not have the dispatcher on duty when we are here?¡±


    Bob didn¡¯t answer, but waited patiently. Jalldrid sighed, ¡°Despite whatever my sister thinks, Dad was a great man. He wanted better for his children than what he had and he knew that the only way for that to happen was through higher education. He had meant to send Jerall to Terarsis, she was the oldest and he only had enough money to send one of us. She refused though and gave the opportunity to me instead so that I could go.¡±


    ¡°Why does your Sister seem to dislike your Dad so much, if it was through his efforts that you were able to go to university?¡±


    Jalldrid held his hands up in surrender, ¡°Don¡¯t ask me to understand my Sister, she is a regular nut job. But Dad overworked himself for Asdred, and that¡¯s partly why he died five years ago. She can¡¯t forgive him for that it seems, even if it meant that is how Freeline was able to function. Perhaps she feels guilty? I don¡¯t know. But don¡¯t let her fool you; she has a great deal of affection for our Dad.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Bob replied dryly. ¡°She didn¡¯t seem to show any of that earlier.¡±


    Jalldrid shrugged, ¡°that¡¯s just the way she is.¡± Bob nodded in understanding. The office was quiet except for the humming of a processor in the corner. ¡°I want to ask you,¡± Jalldird spoke suddenly, ¡°Why you decided to actually come with us. I saw how suspicious you were at first, and that¡¯s actually quite reasonable on your part. I was half convinced you wouldn¡¯t show up this morning.¡±


    Bob smiled slyly back, ¡°and perhaps you would have been quietly relieved if I hadn¡¯t come?¡± Jalldrid didn¡¯t respond so Bob continued, ¡°Like I said, I did some research last night and I found something interesting.  I believe it was it was called Section 17?¡±


    At his words, Jalldrid closed his eyes and let out a soft groan. Bob laughed back, ¡°Section 17 allows any citizen to order any interstellar ship around that they are on regardless of any circumstances, correct? With such a convenient rule at my disposal, I am not surprised that most interstellar shipping companies avoid having citizens on their ship¡¯s at all costs. I realized just how much you were risking by just having me aboard and that proved your sincerity towards me.¡± Jalldrid remained silent and Bob laughed again while slapping him on the shoulder, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I don¡¯t plan on interfering with your operation at all. But you know,¡± Bob continued mischievously, ¡°If I¡¯m not treated the way I want, I might just do something¡­¡± he laughed again.


    Before Jalldrid could reply, the door opened again and in stepped a huge and tough looking man with his lackey behind him. Bob would have thought the man was all brawn, except for the clever looks in his eyes. ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± he demanded.


    ¡°No problem,¡± Jalldrid replied, suddenly polite. He still looked slightly shaken though. ¡°I just want to get these docu-pads imprinted and perhaps go over a few details of the shipment with you.¡±


    The boss glared down a Jerall and repeated incredulously, ¡°Imprinted.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Jalldrid replied lightly, ¡°I want to get paid for this move, don¡¯t I?¡±


    The man scowled and then snatched the docu-pads from Jerall¡¯s outstretched hand. His lackey went back to work, paying them no mind. The Boss asked as he looked over them, ¡°What questions do you have? This looks like a pretty straightforward move. Processed Carbonite, yes? Being delivered to a receiving dock in Carthis? Standard load size, your ship should be able to handle it.¡± He put them down roughly, ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Jalldrid said, peering over at the docu-pads in the man¡¯s hands, ¡°I noticed some of the details were missing that should be filled out. I want the pickup and loading dates entered, I see those are missing. Some of the liability wording is mixed up as well, it looks like it was just copied from another form but it doesn¡¯t fit with this kind of load. Lastly, the origin address is in there, but I don¡¯t actually have a name for this organization. I was wondering if I could have all this fixed here. Oh,¡± he added as an after though, pointed down at the pads, ¡°The owner of the goods isn¡¯t listed as well, that should be there as well. It has all sorts of problems! We can¡¯t be expected to work with docu-pads like this.¡±


    The boss said shortly, ¡°I don¡¯t have time for this.¡± He tried to give the docu-pads back.


    ¡°But,¡± Jalldrid said, taken aback. ¡°This is your job! I need these imprinted.¡±


    ¡°Fine,¡± he snapped. He took them back and walked away to the other side of the room.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Jalldrid cried.


    ¡°You wanted these imprinted, so I am imprinting them! Shut up!¡± It looked like he was hooking up the docu-pads to a data processor.


    But¡­¡± Jalldrid said, not finishing his sentence. He looked out at the boss, apparently ill at ease.


    ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± Bob whispered to him.


    ¡°He just needs to put his thumb on the pad and it will imprint it on it. I don¡¯t understand what he¡¯s trying to do.¡±


    A second later he returned with the docu-pads, ¡°Here you go. Now get out of here.¡±


    Jalldird took them, but asked faintly, ¡°What about the other issues¡­?¡±


    The Boss gave him one last look as if Jerall was a particular nasty bug and left without a word. Jalldrid watched him leave in apparent disbelief.


    ¡°Hey,¡± Bob said, tugging on Jalldrid¡¯s shirt, ¡°Let¡¯s go, you¡¯re not going to get any more out of these people. Let¡¯s get back.¡±


    ¡°I.. I just can¡¯t believe it.¡± Jalldrid said, letting himself get led away by Bob. ¡°This hardly seems like a professional operation. Getting docu-pads work wrong isn¡¯t uncommon, but most places will fix it for you. I¡¯ve never had a dispatch treat me with such disrespect!¡±


    ¡°Not everything can operate as smoothly as you would like it too.¡± Bob said diplomatically, ¡°As you said earlier, you sometimes have to work with some lesser quality people in this job.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but this goes beyond that,¡± Jalldrid replied, looking down at the Docu-pads in his hands. ¡°I mean all companies that work with DRIAS all operate with some sort of standard. I don¡¯t know how this agency was able to become qualified to work with DRIAS, but I can tell that if they don¡¯t fix thing up soon, they will be tossed out of DRIAS on their next inspection.¡±


    Bob peered over at the docu-pads, ¡°Are they imprinted properly?¡±


    ¡°I guess so. I just don¡¯t understand what the dispatcher was doing.¡± He looked up and shook his head, ¡°Let¡¯s just load up and get out of here, I don¡¯t like the feel of this place.¡±


    They exited the hallway through the door again. It didn¡¯t open automatically like it should have again and Bob pounded the sensor to open it again.


    Upon entering, Jalldrid gasped, ¡°What in the galaxy¡­?¡± He sprinted ahead of Bob and caught up with Fallin. ¡°What is the meaning of this? Why were the goods put into Valahide?!¡±


    Fallin shrinked away defensively, ¡°Don¡¯t ask me. It was prepared that way by these guys.¡±


    Jalldrid looked back at the load in astonishment. ¡°What?¡±


    Bob couldn¡¯t see what Jalldrid was so excited about. The load of goods was unmistakably in the center of the dock now, Jerall and the Cousins were prepping the load. Bob couldn¡¯t see the processed carbonite though; the whole load was presumably inside the huge grey container.


    Bob caught up to Jalldrid, ¡°What are you so excited about?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a Valahide container,¡± Jalldrid explained practically jumping in agitation, ¡°That kind of container is generally used to move delicate or especially valuable goods because the Valahide provides a whole other level of production. It is especially good in moving food items, as it gives protection from radiation and other potential threats during interstellar travel. But it is expensive and there is no need for it on this load. It¡¯s just processed Carbonite.¡±


    He moved away again to accost a dock worker and complain about the Valahide and how it wasn¡¯t even in the docu-pad details. Bob let him go and instead followed Fallin back to Jerall. Fallin grumbled slightly, ¡°Don¡¯t know what¡¯s his problem, he doesn¡¯t need to bag such a deal out of it.¡±


    Sensing Bob¡¯s approach, Jerall looked up and waived, ¡°Citizen, How did it go?¡±


    ¡°We got the docu-pads imprinted, so good I guess.¡± Bob replied evasively. ¡°How did the loading go.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s was pretty simple,¡± Jerall replied brightly, ¡°It was already nicely packaged for us, it was mainly just a matter of positioning at this point. We are just waiting on getting the Roto-Engine hooked up to it now. In fact, it should have been done by now. Rafel,¡± she started, talking into a comlick on her wrist, ¡°What¡¯s the hold up?¡±


    ¡°Sorry Captain,¡± Rafel answered back, his voice crackling through the receiver, ¡°the IRN figures were off significantly from the docu-pads. Pretty shoddy work if you ask me, I¡¯ve got no idea where they got their figures from. It¡¯s like we are hauling a completely different type of cargo than what they scanned.¡±


    ¡°Or they just messed up their scan¡± Jerall replied back.


    ¡°Possibly. I had Fallin perform another scan and to make sure it wasn¡¯t us who messed up. But we were right, it will take another couple of minutes before I can reconfigure the roto engine to the correct settings.¡±


    ¡°Understood,¡± She replied back into the comlink, ¡°Inform me when you are ready to go.¡±


    ¡°How come they packaged up the goods for you in Valahide?¡± Bob asked in place of Jalldrid.


    ¡°We aren¡¯t paying for it so why do we care?¡± she said with a laugh. ¡°The owner of the goods probably just wants to make sure his cargo is safe. It doesn¡¯t affect us at all, so don¡¯t worry.¡±


    ¡°Jalldrid¡¯s pretty upset about it,¡± Bob said looking back at him. He was currently shouting something and waving the docu-pads in front of a worker who looked like he was trying to escape.


    ¡°Everything upsets my brother.¡±


    Bob turned back, ¡°How would this shipment be hauled normally, if it wasn¡¯t put into Valahide?¡±


    ¡°For Processed Carbonite,¡± Jerall said, ¡°We wouldn¡¯t put it in anything. We would just hook up the raw materials to the roto-engine and go. There is no need for anything else.¡±


    Her wrist link chirped, ¡°Ready over here Captain.¡±


    ¡°Do it.¡±


    It looked to Bob that the whole back end of the renegade exploded in a flash of blue light. Bob yelped in surprise and stepped back, but no inferno enveloped him. Looking closely, Bob saw light slowly condense from a wide field to a much smaller scale and slowly wrap itself around the Valahide container like and amoeba.


    ¡°It¡¯s beautiful.¡± Bob said, mesmerized by the light.


    Jerall smirked, ¡°I guess it is. It¡¯s not supposed to look like that through. The new style Roto-Engines don¡¯t produce any light at all, but we like ours the way it is.¡±


    Jalldrid came up to them shaking his head. ¡°I just don¡¯t understand this place.¡± He said, sounding exasperated, ¡°There is no clear management structure, I can¡¯t get a hold of anybody who would know or be able to do anything about this. Nobody seems to know why the shipment is in Valahide. Don¡¯t they know how expensive that stuff is? How can a dock run itself like this?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t sweat it.¡± The Captain said, slapping her brother on his back, ¡°We are set and loaded, the Roto-engine¡¯s running smoothly. We are ready to get out of here and deliver this load!¡±


    She stepped forward and shouted out at her crew, ¡°Alright, everybody on board in five minutes or we will leave without you!¡±


    Bob commented to Jalldrid, ¡°For a straightforward shipment, there seems to be a lot of strange things.¡±


    ¡°Tell me about it,¡± Jalldrid groaned back. Together, they boarded the ship again. Within minutes, the ship shuddered and lifted off the dock slowly, the goods lifting off with them. After a brief delay, the renegade shot off, turning on the heavy engine and escaping from the planet Mirke

 Chapter 5

    Jalldrid continued to grumble and complain about the shipment for the next hour after their departure from Mirke.


    ¡°It¡¯s psychotic!¡± he would say loudly and anybody who happened to be nearby. ¡°What¡¯s the point of having an intrasector tariff if nobody bothers to follow it!¡±


    Apparently, the impression he had gotten at origin from the large and angry dispatcher on his docupads proved to be illegible. It was unlikely, he conceded when his sister yelled at him to shut up, that it would really matter in the end. ¡°But still,¡± he added stubbornly, ¡°What kind of operation do they having going on when not even the basics of hauling regulation are not followed?¡±


    Jerall sat on the Captain¡¯s chair in the bridge and sighed in exasperation to Bob, ¡°It¡¯s too bad the roto-engine is working fine. If it was malfunctioning, it would at least shut my brother up and turn his attention elsewhere.¡±


    It turned out that the roto-engine is what took up the majority of the labor force¡¯s actual work. Apparently, it took constant monitoring and calibrating from two operators at once during transit. Bob had inquired as to what exactly was needed during this process, but he had gotten lost in the complicated explanation Rafel had given him. Still, work on the roto-engine went on constantly and was divided into 6 hour shifts between the crewmen, each working as a pair.


    ¡°It might seem terribly inefficient,¡± Rafel remarked to Bob as he tinkered inside the engine room, ¡°and it is disproportionally one of the most costly parts of the job. Even on the bigger and newer ships with the new roto-engine models that automate much of the process, a large crew is still needed operate it during transit. Our engine is small and doesn¡¯t need as much monitoring as the much larger ones.¡±


    ¡°it¡¯s a good thing too!¡± Bob heard Fallin shout across the lower deck. Fallin was on duty at the roto-engine at the moment along with Jalldrid and he sat back lazily. ¡°Without it, people like me would be out of an easy job.¡± He laughed out loud.


    Bob took the next few hours before they reached the pickup zone for their other guest to learn more about the crew members and their respective duties and feelings towards the company. Bob quickly felt it would be enough time to understand the nature of many of the crewmembers.


    Fallin proved shamelessly open with Bob. He talked without remorse about his previous work and his current attitude towards life. ¡°My life to too short to have to worry about following all the rules that faceless governors make,¡± he said smugly, ¡°I was born as a second class  and that¡¯s how it should be.¡± He added with a grin towards Rafel, ¡°The best thing that ever happened to me was when the rat over there married my sister. Once he was connected to me, I knew I could wring him dry.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡± Bob replied dryly. His distaste towards Fallin was evident.


    Fallin turned a keen eyes towards Bob, ¡°And what about you? I hear you are a citizen, but you ain¡¯t like any citizen I have ever heard of. Where are you from, eh? What¡¯s your story?¡±


    Bob stood up to leave, ¡°Thank¡¯s for your time Fallin.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s fine!¡± Fallin called out after him, ¡°You can keep your secrets. I tell you all about me, but you don¡¯t have to. You live by different rules, you¡¯re a citizen!¡± Fallin cackled loudly at him as he left.


    The two cousins turned out to be very uncommunicative, particularly since their shift at the roto-engine didn¡¯t start till later and the wanted to sleep until then. After Bob had knocked on the open entrance to their quarters, one of them poked his head out just to scowl at him. Without a word, he shut entrance in Bob¡¯s face.


    Bob spent most of the time when Rafel then, learning about his employment with Freeline and some of his past that led him there.


    ¡°I had known the captain back when she worked as a pilot with the Asdred Corporation.¡± He had said, ¡°But I never worked with her much. When her brother came back from school, they decided to start their own company and they asked me to come on with them.¡± He shook his head, ¡°It was a crazy idea then, and it¡¯s still crazy now. None of the other independent hauling companies had survived past the first year, they barely had enough money to start a lease on a ship, let alone the blasted roto-engine. And when they first got this ship it was a heap of junk that ran only half the time and only then with serious trouble. I swear, I spent my entire first two years here performing constant maintenance, always having to try to, as the captain said, make it work, instead of purchasing replacement parts like we really need to. But of course, they didn¡¯t have the money for that.¡±


    ¡°What made you stay with them then?¡± Bob asked, putting tool that he couldn¡¯t identify into Rafel¡¯s outstretched hand. ¡°It must have been very difficult. Didn¡¯t you have a nice job with Asdred?¡±


    Rafel laughed, ¡°I did it because it was fun! Jalldrid is a good man and I got to know him well very quickly as we worked together repairing this ship. It might have been a harder job, or at least more hours of work, to come to Freeline, but the pay isn¡¯t any worse. Don¡¯t underestimate Asdred! I may be the best mechanic on the station, but I never completed my education, so my pay was low already. However, the best part about this is the autonomy we have. There was such bureaucracy in Asdred Trans. but here it is much more simple. I simply enjoy working here much more.¡±


    ¡°Even though there is much more work?¡±


    Rafel smiled and took his eyes of the stabilizer he was working on, ¡°The bosses here work with you instead of against you. It¡¯s a good feeling! There is a reason the company has lasted this long, mind you. Despite what it might look like, the Captain and Jalldrid are very sharp people. I only hope that we can continue like this going forward.¡±


    He turned back to his work and Bob sat still for a moment, thinking. He said after a moment, ¡°Has either the Captain or Jalldrid informed you as to why I am here?¡±


    ¡°As a matter of fact they didn¡¯t.¡± Rafel said easily. ¡°I had assumed at first that you were simply a transit guest like the one we will be picking up soon. But that doesn¡¯t seem to be the case. Why? You want to tell me? Why has a citizen come with us, if not as a passenger?¡± He glanced over at Bob with a raised eyebrow.


    ¡°I¡¯ll leave that up to your imagination for now,¡± Bob said, ¡°If the bosses haven¡¯t told you, I will follow their lead in this.¡± Rafel shrugged and returned to work. ¡°I would like your opinion, though,¡± Bob continued, ¡°On the current industry trend for your type of hauling.¡±


    Rafel frowned, ¡°That¡¯s not my area of expertise, I am afraid.¡±


    ¡°Then let us be more general,¡± Bob conceded, ¡°How has business been the last year? Has it been getting steadily worse due to the Family conflict? I read a report that currently half of all the available trading zones in this sector have been declared ¡°danger zones¡±. This is up from the one quarter it was 5 years ago when Freeline started. You have effectively lost a third of your business and competition has become fierce for these jobs.¡±


    Refal kept his frown, ¡°It¡¯s true that we have been going on fewer jobs recently, but for me that simply means more time to fix up the ship. If you¡¯ll notice,¡± he said proudly, gesturing across the engine room, ¡°the renegade is running much more smoothly that it used to only last year. But as for your danger zones, I don¡¯t have much to say. You read the report, not I.¡±


    Bob nodded, and asked, ¡°Do you think it is possible to get the renegade qualified to run in the danger zones?¡±


    ¡°No possibility!¡± Rafel said with a laugh, ¡°None at all! The renegade barely passes hauling standards as it is. The costs to upgrade the ship would be enormous and I doubt the ship could even handle it. It would better to get a new ship entirely!¡±


    Bob let it go and asked instead, how he had gotten stuck with Fallin as a brother ¨Cin-law. Rafel rolled his eyes, ¡°Had I known that my wife came with such baggage, I would have thought twice about marrying her!¡± Bob laughed with him.


    The picking up of the next passenger was even more interesting than the pickup of the goods at origin, Bob concluded. The space they entered was much more populated than the mining platform and several ships could be seen from the view port in the bridge at they started their approach.


    ¡°It¡¯s kind of an out of the way planet,¡± Jalldird explained, on the bridge with Bob and Jerall. Jerall was in the pilot¡¯s seat again. She pointed to a dark blue speck in the distance.  ¡°That is the planet where our guest is from. I¡¯ve never been here before, its a rarity that has occurred twice on this trip already. The planet is called Cydon, according to our map. It¡¯s not notable in any way, its population is comparably small, its resources are minimal. The only thing that makes it unique is the large portion of citizen¡¯s here.¡±


    ¡°Are we going to land on it?¡± Bob asked, hoping to be able to see such a landing.


    ¡°Afraid not,¡± Jerall said, ¡°This ship is not designed to handle atmospheric conditions.¡±


    Bob clucked his tongue in disapproval and Jalldrid laughed, ¡°Very few inter-stellar ships can enter an atmosphere, my dear Citizen. If you look over there to you left you will see another space platform, that¡¯s where we will be picking up our guest. We first need to drop off our goods over there,¡± He said pointing directly ahead, ¡°Because the station doesn¡¯t allow loaded ships to come too close. It not unusual, they just want to be extra cautious. But special ships carry the surface dwellers to the station and from there the inter-stellar ships then pick them up.¡±


    Bob frowned, ¡°I had hoped to see the planet up close at least.¡±


    The renegade reached the drop off point of the goods and Jalldrid returned to the lower deck to help coordinator the powering down of the Roto-engine. Within moments, the blue white light that wrapped itself around the Valahide container withdrew itself from it and then disappeared altogether. The container was left drifting in space and the renegade started moving away.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    ¡°Is the container going to be okay?¡± Bob asked with concern. ¡°It¡¯s just drifting there. What if it hits something? Or what if somebody just comes up and takes it?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that¡± Jerall responded dismissively, ¡°This drop off zone is carefully monitored by the platform so that such things don¡¯t happen. When we come and pick it up again, we will have to identify ourselves to the station in order to take it again. Not just any ship can just come and drag it away; all ships are monitored and easily identified. And also, it takes careful calibration of a roto-engine to grab hold of a container and that takes time, especially in space. Most ships don¡¯t have a roto-engine. Take that one for example,¡± she said letting go of the controls with her right hand and pointing out of the view screen. She pointed out a ship that Bob had not even noticed before. It was sleek and dark with no running lights on it to illuminate it in space. It cruised slowly around the perimeter of the dropoff.


    ¡°What about it?¡± Bob said, coming closer to the front to get a better look at it.


    ¡°That ship cannot have a roto-engine, it not designed correctly for that. From what I can tell, I¡¯d say it is primarily a private ship for a Citizen. Even so, if it came and took the goods, there would be clear record of it.¡± Bob grunted in understanding and looked out at the ship apprehensively. It looked suspicious to him.


    After dropping the goods, the renegade quickly approached the platform that held their guest. Jalldrid had stayed below deck to welcome her when she came aboard. Over the communicator, Jerall was receiving specific instructions for her approach and landing to the station. She listened and followed them with slight annoyance.


    ¡°This station seems much more organized and friendly than the last one.¡± Bob commented. The station was lit up brightly and looked clean and well maintained from the outside. Bob liked the sight of it.


    Jerall grunted in disapproval, ¡°They are taking intersteller travel too seriously for such an inconsequential planet. They are going to grab hold of my ship with a roto-engine and bring her in, the prissy buffoons. Why can¡¯t they trust me at the controls? I hate it when they do that!¡±


    Sure enough, as they got close enough for Bob to see some of the details of the landing area, a gentle jolt took hold of the ship and it Jerall let go of the controls and sighed. ¡°Why do we even bother? They take the fun out of piloting.¡± Personally, Bob liked the idea of being guided in. It seemed safer.


    ¡°No blue light, eh?¡± Bob asked with a smile, ¡°I think I like the blue light of your roto-engine better.¡± Jerall grinned at the comment.


    Soon, the ship landed inside a wide ship bay on the platform. Looking out, Bob saw dozens of other ships there as well as well as hundreds of workers down below. ¡°A busy station.¡± Bob stated. ¡°They must have a lot of traffic here. I wonder what their primary form of business is? Clearly it is not hauling goods.¡±


    ¡°Who knows?¡± Jerall answered, ¡°It probably related to some cultural exchange or market down below. There is a large population of citizens on the planet, but it doesn¡¯t concern us. Besides, this really doesn¡¯t count as busy.¡±


    Bob continued to look out across the platform, ¡°I think I¡¯d like to go down and have a look around. Do you think there is time?¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t leave the ship.¡± Jerall said flatly, looking at her nails, ¡°We don¡¯t have the permission for that.¡± She looked up suddenly, ¡°Well, you probably can. But we shouldn¡¯t be here long; I imagine we¡¯ll leave in less than ten minutes. You can come here later when you want to travel.¡±


    Bob frowned, ¡°You guys have a lot of restrictions on you. Do you need permits or permissions for everything?¡±


    Jerall laughed, ¡°You say funny things sometimes.¡±


    Her comlink buzzed and she said into it, ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°We have the passenger,¡± Her brother¡¯s voice came through. ¡°We are ready on our end.¡±


    ¡°That was fast.¡± Jerall remarked back.


    ¡°She didn¡¯t have much luggage and was ready and waiting when we arrived.¡± The comm squawked back.


    ¡°Right,¡± she answered back, ¡°I¡¯ll clear us for departure then.¡± She clicked off her watch and turned on the ship communicator to request permission from the station control.


    Bob listened quietly to the Captain as she bantered with the control tower. Control didn¡¯t seem to like how fast the whole exchange happened and made her stay put. Jerall sighed in exasperation and said, ¡°Those stupid apes. We are all ready to go, why do they have to make everything so difficult?¡±


    ¡°Its probably security related.¡± Bob commented.


    ¡°What, does the renegade look like a terrible threat? Let us go already.¡±


    Bob shrugged, ¡°Appearances can be deceiving.¡±


    It was another few minutes before control contacted her again, this time they we were cleared and again, the ship was guided out by a roto-engine. Jerall complained mightily, but soon enough, they were freed from the station and set to go.


    ¡°Finally,¡± Jerall said, blasting the ship forward as soon as roto-engine disengaged. She had had the engines already running as the roto-engine was still attached, not per station policy.


    ¡°All that¡¯s left now is to pick up our goods again and then we are free.¡±


    Bob nodded without comment, not that she could see him from the helm. ¡°Will we be long, getting the goods again?¡±


    ¡°Not really, we already have all the specs of the valahide shipment, we will just to a quick scan to make sure no aberrations occurred before we take it up again.¡± She turned on the comm again and spoke to the local relay, identifying herself as the owner of the valahide shipment. After a pause the relay turned he to standby. She slammed the comm off in disgust.


    ¡°That ship is still out there,¡± Bob said, pointing to the dark mass within the viewport. ¡°What do you think it¡¯s doing?¡±


    Jerall looked at it too for a moment and said, ¡°I¡¯d say that is a Citizen operated ship. Otherwise it would not be able to run dark like that. The controller wouldn¡¯t allow it. That being said, it''s therefore none of my business.¡±


    Bob continued to look at the craft, only being able to see it from the dark blot in the stars. After a moment, Bob spoke, ¡°When you have time Captain, I¡¯d like to see your financial statements from the last few years.¡±


    ¡°Why would you want those?¡± Jerall asked loudly, ¡°I¡¯ve never looked at them¡± She laughed at herself.


    Bob scowled with sudden dislike before Jerall continued again, ¡°Sorry, I was joking. But you¡¯ll have to speak to Jalldrid about that request; he handles all that kind of stuff.¡±


    Bob left the bridge, going up to the second deck where Jalldrid was still guiding the new passenger.


    ¡°And here,¡± Jalldrid said, opening up one of the hatches for the quarters, ¡°Is where you will be staying during our trip.¡±


    Bob knew that the passenger was female, but he couldn¡¯t tell what species she could be, much less what gender she was just by looking at her. She was short and wore a thick gray garment that covered her entire body, including her face. Her only luggage, it seemed, was a tiny suitcase that Jalldrid was currently carrying for her. Bob doubted that she had packed any additional clothes for the trip.


    As the door opened she poked her head in without a sound and paused for a moment. Jalldrid continued lightly, ¡°Not the most spacious quarters, but it will do fine, especially considering how light you are traveling.¡±


    Without a word, she turned and grabbed her suitcase from Jalldrid and climbed into her room. As he shut the hatch, Jalldrid called out, ¡°If you need anything, don¡¯t hesitate to call me.¡±


    The hatch shut and Jalldrid said venomously, ¡°You¡¯re welcome, you little buggar.¡±


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be saying that about your precious customers.¡± Bob said lightly.


    Jalldrid scowled back, ¡°that customer, hasn¡¯t said a single word to me. She just stands there, with her faceless tunic. I tell you Citizen, people who don¡¯t show her face can¡¯t be trusted.¡± Jalldrid turned and stomped down the corridor.


    ¡°She¡¯ll be easier to transport if she doesn¡¯t do anything, right?¡± Bob asked, following Jalldrid. He just snorted in response. ¡°Listen, when you have time,¡± Bob continued, ¡°I¡¯d like to your financial statements for the last few years.¡±


    ¡°Would you like this period¡¯s quarterly statements as well?¡± Jalldrid responded, entering the galley and heading towards the hatchway to the lower deck.


    ¡°If you could.¡± Bob responded politely.


    Jalldrid paused at the entrance to the hatchway, tugging on a necklace he was wearing. He pulled it off and handed it to Bob, ¡°this key will give you full access to the ship¡¯s computer. You know how to operate a standard Revcloud ERP? That¡¯s the kind of system we are using.¡±


    Bob handled the key tentatively, ¡°Are you sure about handing this to me?¡±


    Jalldird laughed, ¡°We don¡¯t have much worth this kind of security anyway. Most transactions require a memory code as well as that key, so it¡¯s not like you can steal what little cash reserves we have.  The statements are in there and, well, we have no secrets to keep from you anyway.¡± Jalldrid smiled and ducked into the hatchway.


    Bob stayed in the galley, fingering the kay and thinking. Jalldrid¡¯s com squawked and he heard Jalldrid say into it, ¡°Yeah, yeah, I here, I¡¯m setting it up now.¡±


    There was a ship computer terminal in the galley and Bob turned to it tentatively. Truth was, he did not know how to operate a Revcloud ERP system. After entering the key he fumbled around, trying to figure out how to use the.


    Standing there, he felt the ship¡¯s roto-engine engage, shaking the whole ship before calming down to a steady rumble. Bob paused, listening to the ship work and he smiled. He turned to the computer again and cursed himself for his lack of knowledge.  After a few more moments of struggle, Bob gave up and returned his quarters.


    ¡°Everything is so alien,¡± Bob said to himself as he entered his quarters carefully. He knew there was a computer terminal in there as well. ¡°Everything is new, even the bloody ¡°standard¡± operating system. How am I supposed to live like this?¡±


    He paused in disgust again, closing the hatch slowly and staring down at his bag. After a moment, he slid down into his bed and took up his bag, shifting through its contents. ¡°It always comes down to this?¡± he said again, with annoyance. ¡°Why does this have to be so difficult?¡±


    He pulled out his head piece again and stared at it with revulsion.  He shook his head and took a deep breath in preparation. He closed his eyes and slowly attached the headpiece to his head. Within a moment, as it always did, his mind was flooded with an uncontrollable amount of data he didn¡¯t want. ¡°Come on, concentrate,¡± he said to himself, ¡°It just takes time a practice. You¡¯ll get the hang up it eventually.¡±


    After a few moments of careful breathing and efforts to relax, the data turned more fluid and clear. He smiled to himself at the success, but then suddenly the headache came and he groaned. ¡°They say this goes away too¡­¡± he said to himself again.


    He opened his eyes and stared down at the terminal near his bed. In a swift movement he turned it and entered the key. ¡°Alright, boy. Now, how does one operate Revcloud ERP?¡±


    Bob felt the slight fluctuation in his connection due to the renegade entering cruising speed. It jarred him a bit and he lost his place on Revcloud ERP instruction. It also stabbed him with a sharp increase in his headache. With a curse, he struggled to find the data again. While searching, a news item he couldn¡¯t stop came forward, interrupting him. He pushed past it, barely noteing what it said.


    Bob stayed in his quarters for the next few hours and the ship was quiet. They had entered the long tiresome part of their journey that only included the dull wait for their destination, still days away.


    Unknown to them, a great stirring was taking place at the system they just left. The dark unidentified ship was suddenly accompanied by a whole fleet. The planetary authorities panicked at the sudden assault force, and managed to send out a single transmission of alarm to their Asdred superiors, before their communication¡¯s array was systematically destroyed.


    The defensives came up running, but they were too little and too late to do any serious damage or even delay. And while the forces were overwhelmed and the command cut off and the landing forces descended, the authorities could only ask each other unintelligently, why would the Hulian force bother such a worthless planet?

 Chapter 6

    Fallin and Jalldrid¡¯s shift at the roto-engine ended hours after the pickup and they were relieved by the two cousins, Roota and Foota, who came down late from their quarters. Despite their long sleep, they did not look more alert and ready for work than before, but Jalldrid knew they never looked alert and ready.


    After getting relieved, Fallin immediately turned to the galley for refreshment before he too returned to his quarters. Jalldrid felt just as weary, but he went to the bridge instead to meet with his sister first.


    ¡°Hey,¡± Jerall said, seeing Jalldrid come up from below. Jerall noted she didn¡¯t look very happy.


    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± He asked, coming close.


    ¡°There¡¯s been news on the wire,¡± she said, ¡°Asdred lost the Orius system a couple days ago. Also, three new zones have been declared ¡°danger zone¡±, the Wilichan, Lilian, and Estora.¡±


    Jalldrid froze at the news. ¡°Galaxy! The Orius system was supposed to holding well, we were told that there had been strong deployment and that a loss there wasn¡¯t a real possibility. By Space, three new sectors?¡± he shook his head. ¡°What is Asdred doing?¡±


    ¡°I know,¡±Jerall said sourly, ¡°When is the Imperial family going to step in? Isn¡¯t it about time? This war is destroying this sector¡¯s trade.¡± Jalldrid could only cluck his tongue in disgust.


    Jalldrid sighed, ¡°Listen I¡¯m going to my quarters to get some rest¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you mean our quarters?¡± Jerall interrupted angrily, ¡°Did you forget that I am now sharing with you, after you gave mine away to the Citizen?


    ¡°I¡¯m going to the quarters,¡± Jalldrid said, ignoring his sister¡¯s question, ¡°for some rest so call me if you need anything.¡±


    Jalldird left the bridge and his sister called after him, ¡°We need more shipments, Jalldrid!¡±


    Jalldrid walked down the hallway to his now shared quarters, mulling over the news. He growled in disgust and turned at his entrance, lifting the hatch. As he did, Rafel exited his own.


    ¡°Getting some sleep?¡± Rafel asked as he expertly exited the small hole.


    Jalldrid nodded. ¡°You?¡±


    Rafel made a face, ¡°I just had a couple hours. Obviously my shift won¡¯t start anytime soon, but Fallin just brought some Droden beans in with him and you know what that does to his system. I don¡¯t want to stay in that room.¡±


    Jalldrid chuckled and entered him room with a loud clunk of the hatch. Almost immediately, the hatch to the Citizen¡¯s quarters burst open and Bob crawled out uncoordinated, falling over on the floor and landing painfully. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Rafel asked in alarm, hurrying forward to help Bob up.


    ¡°Lavatory.¡± Bob said quickly, his face green in sickness. Helped up, he was unsteady on his feet.


    ¡°Right,¡± Rafel said, amazed. He helped Bob forward. ¡°Space sickness? I¡¯ve never seen somebody have it before.¡±


    ¡°No, not space sickness,¡± Bob snapped back. He shrugged off Rafel who was too slow for him, and practically sprinted to the galley. Rafel followed slowly and was in time to hear the sound of Bob¡¯s sickness come through the walls. He waited for a few moments and called out in soft amusement, ¡°Are you alright, Citizen?¡±


    His answer was another bout of sickness and Rafel chuckled. ¡°I really have never seen space sickness before, Citizen. I heard it was something that land dwellers often had when they ventured into space, but I never really believed it. You are a first.¡±


    Bob crawled back out of the lavatory and Rafel helped him up and into a seat. Bob had lost his green hue, but was now pale and sickly and trembling slightly. Bob breathed heavily next and Rafel shook his head.


    ¡°I told you,¡± Bob said in halting speech, ¡°It¡¯s not space sickness.¡±


    ¡°Yeah?¡± Rafel responded with a raised eyebrow, ¡°Are you sick? You didn¡¯t bring a disease on board did you?¡±


    ¡°no, no.¡± Bob replied to his relief, ¡°If I wear my headpiece for an extended time, it makes me sick like this.¡±


    ¡°Headpiece?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, my headpiece. It connects me to the netsphere. I was looking at news and stuff, doing some research, and I had it on too long.¡± He shuddered again in Rafel¡¯s arm and Rafel hoped he wasn¡¯t going to be sick again. Thankfully he didn¡¯t.


    ¡°The netsphere?¡± Rafel responded, questioningly.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Bob replied, ¡°Listen, I¡¯m going to go lie down again; I feel terrible.¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡± Refel said, letting Bob go unsteadily back to his quarters. He entered his room with only a little trouble and closed the hatch behind him.


    ¡°The Netsphere, huh?¡± Rafel said aloud, ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    Nobody answered him though and he went about his business.


    Bob soon figured out that life on board the ship was pretty boring as most of a trip was simply crossing parsecs. In hindsight, it was obvious that was what it was, but still Bob was surprised by how dull the job was, especially for a passenger.


    The shifts at the roto-engine were long and routine, but Bob was surprised that the entire crew did it without complaint. Jalldrid explained that not only was it their job to do, it was their primary job. In any case, it was no worse than any factory or desk work. While on shift, various forms of entertainment were available to them, games, music and otherwise and the captain was wise enough to be lax in that regard. As long as the roto-engine stayed within the accepted parameters of operation, the Captain didn¡¯t care how the crew spent their time.


    Even with all that, what made the shifts on the roto-engine most tolerable was the fact that they were never alone. The partner was always with them, and a lot of the time, so were the other crew members. It seemed that when the men were not sleeping in their quarters they were in fact hanging out in the operation room. It was a small ship after all and in the end, all the crewmen lived together well and despite the apparent ill-favor some of the crew had with each other, they still tended to migrate and hang out together all the time.


    It was therefore an ironic twist that the original lobby area of the ship that had been converted into the operation room was still the primary spot that the crewmen gathered. Food was mostly consumed there as well, as it seemed the crewmen could not eat away from each other. Despite the break in policy, Jalldrid said he gave up on forcing the men to keep food out of the lower deck. ¡°It¡¯s good that they all are able to get along well with each other so well and it¡¯s not worth trying to fight that.¡± Still, food in the engine room was strictly forbidden.


    Other than the shifts at the roto-engine, at which every person, including the captain, performed, there were three other scheduled jobs. The first was command on the bridge. Perhaps this was even more wearisome than that roto job because practically nothing happened ever while they were cruising. The job of actually piloting the craft was given to the computer. However, it was DRIAS policy to keep some sort of command on the bridge for possible emergencies.


    As Captain, Jerall took the bulk of the shifts on the bridge and she rarely mingled with the men. Jalldrid said it was to keep a professional difference between the crew and her which Bob accepted at face value. Other than Jerall only Jalldrid and Rafel were authorized to operate the bridge shift and they took alternating shifts on it with Jerall.


    A full time man in the engine room was not needed, but it was policy that every two hours it was to be inspected. Rafel told Bob that during their first job five years ago, the engine had mis-calibrated and wasn¡¯t noticed until the engine overheated and shut itself off to prevent catastrophe. ¡°we were lucky that at least the auto kill still worked on it,¡± Rafel said, ¡°otherwise we would have been adrift.¡± He made a hand gesture Bob quickly learned was sign to ward off such an end. Apparently Rafel was superstitious. Only Rafel and Jalldrid performed this work, taking turns checking on the engine.


    The last duty on the ship was the meal preparation. No full time chef was employed obviously; the two cousins and Fallin were the ones who did the cooking and cleaning up. It seems that that job was literally written into their job description. One of Fallin¡¯s few redeeming qualities turned out to be his cooking ability.


    ¡°Cooking is one of the few skills,¡± Fallin had said to him as he tossed around vegetables with his four arms, ¡°That rewards you immediately. I like eating good food, not the crap that some people put out.¡± He snickered, apparently throwing a jab at Rafel who was notorious in the kitchen.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    Therefore, despite how dull each of three jobs were onboard the ship, there was a real need to have all six people on board in order to operate the ship with relative amounts of work and non-worktime. Of course, the regular household duties of people living together for extended periods of time were still present. This was mainly in the form of cleaning, and it was astonishing at how much of it was needed.


    Bob integrated himself as best he could with the crew and it turned out easier than he imagined and he even helped out on some of minor chores in the ship, despite Jalldrid¡¯s objections. Bob was surprised by his energy.


    ¡°Listen Jalldird,¡± Bob had to say to him sternly, ¡°I¡¯ll simply go crazy if I am not allowed to do anything here. You should know how boring these rides can get it, there is only so much sitting and sleeping and eating I can do! Let me work! Let me do something, Lord knows I can¡¯t operate a roto-engine.¡±


    ¡°But Citizen,¡± Jalldrid pleaded, ¡°Please consider my position. If it ever gets known that I had a citizen perform labor for me¡­¡± he couldn¡¯t finish his sentence. ¡°I have no idea. Nothing ever like this has ever happened before! Why can¡¯t you act like a citizen even a little bit? You¡¯re supposed to¡­ I mean you need to¡­ I don¡¯t know! You¡¯re supposed to be different from us.  Don¡¯t you know what it means to be a citizen?¡±


    ¡°Apparently not,¡± Bob said dryly, ¡°And neither does anybody else on this ship, either. Why can¡¯t you ease up? Everybody else treats me normal.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because their ignorant and don¡¯t know any better! To them a citizen was just an abstract idea, but I understand it clearer than them. I admit that you¡¯re not at all what I had expected from a citizen and I think I¡¯ve been considerably flexible concerning you, but you¡¯ve reached the limit. I can¡¯t have you work. There are proper ways to treat a citizen and improper ones. Please understand Citizen.¡±


    Bob looked back at Jalldrid with a sad frown. ¡°I do not enjoy being ostracized, Jalldrid. Don¡¯t presume to tell me how I should be treated. Isn¡¯t it enough for me to want to be treated fairly? And fairness here would dictate me to take on an appropriate portion of the chores. You propose a business partnership between you, your sister, and I but what do you expect me to do if I do accept it? Just sit back with my portion of ownership and do nothing, riding off my name only? That thought is repugnant to me! I expect to be able to work alongside you as equals, is that too much to ask?¡±


    Jalldrid broke out in rare heat, ¡°Don¡¯t you ¡°fair¡± me, Citizen, it a contradiction to hear such words from you! You need to take your title seriously or it will be us who will have to pay!¡±


    Bob did not answer Jalldird but instead sent a quick word with the Captain. ¡°If he wants to chip in let him.¡± Jerall answered carelessly, ending the stalemate. ¡°You¡¯ll never see me deny free labor!¡± she laughed. After that, Jalldrid never mentioned it again.


    Contrary to Bob¡¯s enthusiasm on the ship and his easing into part of the ship¡¯s crew, the other passenger separated herself as much as possible on the small ship. She rarely left her quarters and only did so to eat, relieve herself, and perhaps stretch her limbs. Even Jalldrid wondered what kind of person she could possibly be, but the Captain¡¯s iron rule was not to bother their paying passenger so she was left to her own businesses. The only way her presence affected the ship¡¯s running was the idle speculation she inspired in each person as to what she could possible me doing alone in her quarters.


    After five days of travel the renegade was nearing its destination. Even Jalldrid had to admit that despite the confusion at the origin, the job had gone as smoothly as possible with no quarks in the engine popping up, no slips on the roto-engine occurring, and no significant slacking on the part of his crew at their jobs.


    ¡°After all your worry,¡± Rafel said laughing at Jalldrid who was taking his shift on the roto controls with one of the cousins, ¡°This has turned out to be one of the most uneventful journeys we have had in awhile. Barring we fly into a gravity well,¡± he added, performing his superstitious ritual.


    Jalldird grunted, not wanting to concede. ¡°and barring that everything goes well at destination. Don¡¯t shut down the engines till we reach our end, they say. A lot of things can still go wrong.¡±


    ¡°puh! You¡¯re just a lump of fun, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d have to agree with Jalldrid,¡± Bob said, suddenly poking his head down from the bridge into the engine room where Rafel was. ¡°I would think that destination would be just as tricky as origin, if not more so. Especially if we have to drop off the passenger before we deliver the goods. We¡¯ll have to unload the shipment again in order to get close to the passenger docking, like we did when we picked her up.¡±


    ¡°Look at our Citizen now, Jall!¡± Rafel said jovially, ¡°He spends five says on a ship and thinks he¡¯s an expert.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m just chiming in,¡± Bob said with a frown. ¡°Jerall¡¯s in a sleepy mood and not much for company up here at the moment.¡±


    ¡°I believe that,¡± Jalldrid replied, ¡°And I thank you for your support. Unfortunately, we¡¯ll be dropping our passenger off after the goods, as per our contract with her, so that won¡¯t be an issue. Still,¡± he said looking back at Rafel, ¡°A lot of things can happen. I¡¯ll be happy only when I have the destination¡¯s imprint on my docu-pads.¡±


    Rafel shook his head, but returned his attention to the ionizer port on the engine room he was inspecting. Bob stared down thoughtfully.


    ¡°When you have time,¡± Bob said after a moment, ¡°I¡¯d like to meet with both you and the Captain.¡±


    Rafel perked up at the words but didn¡¯t move from his spot. Jalldrid looked up from his controls thoughtfully. ¡°Of course, I¡¯ll come up to the bridge when my shift ends and we¡¯ll talk together there.¡± Bob nodded and started to withdraw when Jalldrid added, ¡°Are you feeling okay?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± Bob said with a smile, ¡°It¡¯s just a small headache and nausea. I¡¯ll get over it quickly.¡±


    ¡°Space sickness again?¡± Rafel chimed in. ¡°If you feel the need to hurl again, please don¡¯t do it in the corridor. You know it¡¯ll be me who cleans it up.¡± Bob glared at him and left, leaving Rafel behind chuckling.


    Jalldrid threw Rafel a questioning look.


    ¡°The first day out here,¡± Rafel explained putting down his tool, ¡°He came stumbling out of his quarters sicker than a space ridding mussles. He claims it¡¯s not space sickness but I don¡¯t believe him.¡±


    ¡°If it really is space sickness, then let him be.¡± Jalldrid chided. ¡°It¡¯s a terrible curse to have.¡±


    ¡°I would if he would admit it and take some drugs to calm himself.¡± Rafel objected, ¡°But he¡¯s too stubborn. He keeps claiming it¡¯s due to the netsphere, but that sounds like reactor waste, if you ask me. He¡¯s too proud.¡±


    Jalldrid tilted his head to the side in thought. ¡°Did you say netshpere?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Rafel responded, ¡°It¡¯s some sort of religious ritual, I think. Spiritual connections and what not. I don¡¯t know. But it¡¯s a classic move to blame you problems on spiritual matters and it¡¯s a cheap way to deflect reality, I say.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re one to talk,¡± Jalldrid said sarcastically, ¡°you who can¡¯t mention engine failure without pulling out your stupid charm and- look there you go.¡± He added. Rafel had taken out a small decorative ornament from his pocket and crossed his chest with it, mumbling.


    ¡°Some things are not meant to be toyed with.¡± He said, ¡°Black holes, engine failures, space anomalies and any number of unpardonable dangers are out there for us, just waiting to kill us. I¡¯ve got a wife back home to get to. Galaxy knows there is no lonelier grave than the cold of a broken ship.¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± Jalldrid said, losing the warm mood, ¡°Let¡¯s not test the limit of our Citizen¡¯s endurance of ridicule. Besides,¡± he added thoughtfully, ¡°I think I¡¯ve heard of this ¡°netshpere¡± before, but it was more of myth than anything else. I wonder if there might be truth in what he says.¡±


    ¡°Great, giving credit to his crazy religion.¡± Jalldrid didn¡¯t respond.


    Rafel continued to tink around in the engine room. ¡°How soon do you think until we reach destination?¡±


    ¡°By the end of the day, to be sure.¡± Jalldrid responded. ¡°Then we need to go and drop off our passenger, that shouldn¡¯t take much longer if I remember the docu-pads correctly.¡±


    ¡°Then we return back to the station?¡± Jalldid nodded in affirmation. ¡°We haven¡¯t had back to back jobs in a while now.¡± Rafel commented. ¡°Thats a lot of empty parsecs you¡¯re traveling. Do you have another job lined up yet?¡±


    ¡°By the time we get back,¡± Jalldrid responded, ¡°DRIAS will have posted new jobs on the board that we can grab.¡±


    ¡°What are you meeting with the Citizen about?¡± Rafel asked suddenly. At Jalldrid look he added, ¡°Hey, it¡¯s strange enough having a citizen on board. Don¡¯t think we can¡¯t see that something is going on, because it¡¯s obvious. The citizen was asking strange questions earlier to all of us. How we feel about the business and so on. And now you¡¯re meeting privately with him and the Captain. It makes me wonder you know.¡±


    ¡°You can keep wondering,¡±Jalldrid said, ¡°This is a matter between him and us.¡±


    Rafel¡¯s face darkened, his beady eyes drawing up into slits, ¡°I think I¡¯ve earned the right to know. I¡¯ve been with this company since it started and anything you guys do affects me too. If you¡¯re planning on selling the business¡­¡±


    ¡°Who said anything about selling?¡±


    ¡°Nobody said it, Jall. But we¡¯re thinking it. It makes me nervous, you see. We all know business has been poor lately, and there is no end in sight for now. And then you bring in a citizen and start showing him around the place. I can add figures together, Jalldrid, even if I can¡¯t multiply them. What are you meeting with the Citizen about?¡±


    Jalldird shifted uncomfortably and sighed. ¡°Stop pretending you can¡¯t hear us, Foota.¡± He said, leaning over to his cousin at the other end of the Roto-engine. ¡°and listen up. I don¡¯t want there to be any misunderstandings here. I can understand if you are concerned. And Rafel is right, business has been poor lately, but believe me when I say now clearly, the Captain and I are not even considering the possibility of selling the business to anybody, much less to a Citizen with no experience in the industry. And I know for a fact that the Captain would sooner fly the renegade into a star-¡° Rafel took out this ornament quickly and crossed his chest with it- ¡°then sell Freeline. To her it is her life. So you can be at ease about that.¡±


    ¡°Then what is the Citizen doing here?¡± Rafel asked quickly, ¡°I doubt somebody who has space sickness would want to have a simple cruise on a hauling ship.¡±


    ¡°The Citizen,¡± Jalldird said forcefully, ¡°is here on business. We have offered a proposal with him, but it is nothing that would affect you directly. And if and when the conclusion of our time with the Citizen comes you all will be made fully aware of what happened. But at this time, we are keeping the proposal between us. And the most likely end of this is that it will come to nothing but a waste of time. So stick to your work and let¡¯s finish this shipment well!¡±


    Rafel looked entirely dissatisfied with the answer, but didn¡¯t say any more about it. Foota leaned his head back, contemplating the information and how he would exaggerate it with the rest of the crew.  ¡°Great,¡± Jalldrid mumbled, ¡°I knew this shipment wouldn¡¯t end well.¡±

 Chapter 7

    It was a couple hours later when Jalldrid¡¯s shift at the roto-engine ended. Fallin came sliding in after him along with the Roota, the other cousin. Foota quickly explained his version of the news involving the citizen and Jalldrid quickly climbed up the bridge to avoid their inevitable questions.


    ¡°Jalldrid!¡± Fallin called after him as he left the room, ¡°What is the meaning of this? How much do you actually know of this Citizen? What are you planning?¡±


    Jalldrid scowled back down at them, ¡°I¡¯ll let your imaginations stew down there.¡± He closed the hatchway. ¡°Noisy buggers.¡±


    ¡°and just like that,¡± Jerall said loudly from the helm, ¡°The over thrusts steady the ship while the roto haul pulls the ship diametrically during the deceleration. The trick is to be able to steady the two forces or you will never be able to move the ship according to your own will.¡±


    Bob was frowning slightly looking over the controls Jerall was displaying. ¡°Sounds complicated.¡± He commented. Jerall chuckled as he continued to look over the instruments, ¡°Looks complicated too.¡± He ended.


    ¡°Well,¡± she said, turning back to her controls, ¡°You¡¯ll get to see it in action when we leave cruising speed soon. It¡¯s a lot easier to learn these things when it¡¯s seen in action. Real learning happens through experience anyway, not through formal education.¡± Jalldrid coughed behind them.


    ¡°I doubt I¡¯ll ever be able to learn this particular skill.¡± Bob said dryly.


    ¡°Oh, come on! This is simple and fun. Nothing is easier to learn than that.¡±


    Bob rolled his eyes and looked at Jalldrid. ¡°How was the shift?¡±


    ¡°The roto-engine is doing fine.¡± Jalldird spoke, coming up and taking a position against the wall near them. ¡°It seems we¡¯ll finish the shipment without a single blip on the roto-engine¡¯s side. The crew is getting suspicious though. They are worried about what the Citizen is doing here.¡±


    ¡°You should have just told them instead of leaving them in the dark.¡± Jerall said easily, turning her chair around and facing the bridge. She crossed her legs and smiled. ¡°News of a partnership with a citizen can only be good news for everybody.¡±


    ¡°But it¡¯s not final yet.¡± Jalldrid said.


    ¡°For now!¡± Jerall said confidently. She turned her chair to Bob with a grin, ¡°But that¡¯s gonna change soon, right? That¡¯s why you asked for this meeting.¡±


    Bob cleared his throat. ¡°Right. That¡¯s right.¡±


    He shifted uneasily trying to think of the best way to start the conversation. ¡°Alright,¡± he said, ¡°Let¡¯s talk about the current conflict with Asdred and the Hulians.¡±


    ¡°Come on, haven¡¯t we already discussed this?¡± Jerall said, ¡°This is old news.¡±


    ¡°Well, how about some new news,¡± Bob countered, ¡°The planet Cydon and its system is now occupied by Hulian forces. This happened four days ago, right after we left actually. I say this only to show just how-¡°


    ¡°No it hasn¡¯t¡± Jerall countered, her arms crossed and leaning back. ¡°We would have heard it on the Wire by now if that was the case.¡±


    Bob frowned, ¡°Perhaps the Wire is behind on the news,¡±


    ¡°Four days? That¡¯s not likely.¡±


    ¡°Or maybe Asdred is purposely withholding the news from the populace. They do control what comes out of the wire don¡¯t they? They probably don¡¯t want people to know how weak they are.¡±


    ¡°This is ridiculous,¡± Jerall said pointedly. Jalldrid stood to the side with a deep frown. ¡°You can¡¯t make stuff up to begin your presentation.¡±


    ¡°This isn¡¯t made up!¡± Bob replied indignantly, ¡°This is actual fact, Cydon has fallen to Hulian.¡±


    ¡°Did you get this from the netshpere?¡± Jalldrid asked, cutting in.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Bob replied nodding to him, ¡°I¡¯ve also got detailed analysis from top rated universities concerning the economic consequences of this little war. I have market reports from the Asdred Company itself, concerning their hauling branch. I¡¯ve got a lot of data to work with and its all clear.¡±


    ¡°Clear in what way?¡±


    ¡°Despite your hopes otherwise, this conflict between the two houses will expand.¡±


    Bob paused, letting his words sink into Jerall and Jalldrid. Jalldrid looked trouble but Jerall was still challenging.


    ¡°And you got this information from your magical headpiece?¡±


    ¡°I understand your hesitation to believe just my words from a device you don¡¯t understand.¡± Bob said diplomatically, ¡°But since our last conversation on this matter five days ago, you do know that what I had said came true, right?¡± Jerall didn¡¯t answer.


    ¡°You mentioned all this to Jerall before?¡± Jalldrid asked quietly.


    Bob nodded, ¡°Yes, I had talked with her about my views on the industry, a little early perhaps, on the first day. It was there we both learned what my connection to the netsphere really was. I didn¡¯t know that foundations were unaware of its existence.¡± He shrugged, ¡°I¡¯m probably breaking some unspoken code on the subject by talking about it with you, but whatever. I¡¯ve looked and there is no law prohibiting you learning of it.¡±


    ¡°I have heard of the netsphere before,¡± Jalldrid said, drawing attention, ¡°But it was regarded more as paranoia than as truth. There was a group of people in the university campaigning about access to the netshpere, but few believed in such a thing in the first place. I still find it hard to believe that such network exists outside of even common knowledge of us.¡±


    Bob scowled, ¡°Thankfully then, I¡¯m not here to convince you two that the Netshpere is not just a product of my imagination. There is enough data from your own records to be able to draw a trend.¡± He stepped forward drawing out the computer key. ¡°May I?¡± he asked, ¡°I¡¯ve put together a simple presentation.¡± Jerall nodded silently.


    Bob imputed the key into a terminal on the bridge, and then started executing a couple commands to the computer. A few seconds later, the view screen on the bridge cut out and the view of the stars was replaced by a very plain graph.


    ¡°Jalldird, gave me access to your financial records as I asked him to and he kindly allowed me use of the Key.¡± He pointed out at the graph, ¡°This graphs shows your five years of net earnings from your own financial records. I know you have seen this all before, but please bear with me. The first year shows you going out strong with moderate gains, and then the next two shows modest growth. The two years after that show a decline.¡± Jerall grunted but Bob ignored her.


    ¡°Looking at these figures, I asked myself what had the strongest correlation with how well your business did.¡±


    ¡°We know why our profits declined,¡± Jerall burst in angrily, ¡°The number of shippments-¡°


    ¡°Please, Captain,¡± Bob interrupted, ¡°let me present this.¡± Jerall sat back in a huff.


    ¡°You¡¯ll be happy to know,¡± Bob continued easily, ¡°That it was not due to poor management that your earnings dropped the last two years. My analysis of your statements shows that despite the decline, your efficiency on your jobs has actually gone up. Many of your ratios stay within industry standards.¡± Bob imputed another command into the computer and the graph disappeared, replaced by a bunch of numbers.


    ¡°Here is a brief look at your company, according to the numbers,¡± Bob said happily. ¡°Each of these figures is compared to the industry average for that year and in many of the categories, you perform better.¡± Jerall didn¡¯t smile at the praise to her company, but she lost her scowl at least.


    ¡°So¡± Bob continued, replacing the view screen again with another graph, ¡°If management is not the issue with your decline in revenue, then what is? I believe this graph clearly illustrates the problem; it almost exactly mirrors the earlier graph showing revenue. See?¡± with another command, the first graph was transposed onto this one and the view screen now showed two different colored lines running closely together. ¡°This graph shows your total shipments performed each quarter.¡±


    Jerall snorted in derision, and even Jalldrid rolled his eyes. ¡°I brilliant analysis, Bob. We had the hardest time figuring this out before now,¡±Jerall added sarcastically.


    ¡°I¡¯m not done yet,¡± Bob continued, unperturbed. ¡°This is all leading up to a point, so please stay with me. The next question asks, why has your number of shipments declined? As you know, you get your jobs from DRIAS, the largest transportation coordinator in this sector, based out of the space station. With a couple inquires to them, I was able to get some figures from them.¡± With another click of the button, the duel graph disappeared and a new one replaced it.


    ¡°Where did you get these figures?¡± Jalldrid suddenly demanded.


    ¡°Like I said, I got in contact with the accounting department at DRIAS and I asked for some of these reports from them. I have a record of my transmissions with them, if you would like.  Anyway, with the information they provided, I was able to deduce these numbers.¡± He pointed up at the screen, ¡°These are the total number of shipments DRIAS has booked over the last 50 years, divided by years. As you can see, there is a slight trend of growth, with a few periods of small decline. Overall though, you can see that the number of moves DRIAS has hasn¡¯t been significantly increased or decreased over 50 years. DRIAS is clearly a very stable company not easily affected by events. Specifically,¡± Bob zoomed in in order to see the last five years of DRIAS closely, ¡°In the last five years, DRIAS has had a steady growth of one or two points every year, even during the last couple of years during the conflict. In fact,¡± Bob zoomed out again on the graph and several chunks of years on the graph got highlighted in green. ¡°The highlighted years here are the years similar to the current conflict. Most lasted more than three years but none more than seven.  And, as you can see, the number of shipments DRIAS had during those times hadn¡¯t decreased significantly at all, even on the conflicts that last longer than the rest there wasn¡¯t any change in the amount of shipments.¡±


    Jalldrid looked forward with a frown, understanding were Bob was going. Jerall sat defensively with a scowl.


    ¡°Still,¡± Bob continued, ¡°These figures alone don¡¯t mean much unless¡­¡± Another graph was transposed over this one as well and again, it closely mirrored the rates again. ¡°I¡¯ve just put up the public records of DRIAS¡¯s earnings every year. This is just so we can be clear, that the total number of shipments and the total earnings of DRIAS are stable and not really affected by the occasional conflicts between the Families.¡±


    The new graph disappeared, leaving the graph with the total shipments for the past 50 years still in view. ¡°So I tell myself, surely the conflicts must have affected DRIAS in some manner, even if it didn¡¯t change these figures. I mean after all, it is a transportation company. So let me alter this graph little bit in order to display my new findings.¡± Gracefully, the graph morphed a little bit, each of the bars for each year got split into two colors top to bottom, keeping the total for each year the same, but dividing the shipments into two categories. ¡°The Red part on top represents the number of shipments that year that were designated as danger shipments that required the special licensing. The lower blue part represents the normal shipments.¡±


    The graph was impressive, Jalldrid had to admit. The portion of Red moves throughout the years stayed at about a fifth of the total moves consistently. The only exceptions were the Green years that still showed the times when the conflicts were occurring and during those years the red moves doubled and tripled in their proportion and in a few areas even rose to cover the majority of the moves that year. The chart made him sweat.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    ¡°Let¡¯s zoom into the last five years again,¡± Bob said. The years came up clearly, with the green covering the last two years in an ugly tint. The red moves the first few years were within 20% but the last two years showed a sharp increase. ¡°These last two years actual shows an unprecedented growth of these danger moves,¡± Bob said calmly, ¡°Already, only after two years, the amount of danger moves is above 50%. As it is now, Freeline is barred from taking over half of the moves DRIAS has to offer.¡±


    Bob looked back at the two of them. ¡°Of course, you two are already aware of all of this information. Even if you hadn¡¯t seen it presented this way, I know from my talks with you two that you both said what I had just presented. It¡¯s nothing new; my only point is to show the current trend of the industry and to perhaps point forward and say that-¡°


    ¡°None of this proves anything,¡± Jerall interjected forcefully, ¡°If anything, it proves that what I am saying is right. We are currently at 50% volume for danger moves, but this is the low point of the crisis. Looking back on the other crisises proves this. None of them ever went above 50% and only stayed there for a short time before turning back up and reaching normalcy as the crisis dissipated. It will happen here as well.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a valid point,¡± Bob conceded, ¡°but even a 35% rate or 30% rate will kill you if it stays there for any extended period of time. You haven¡¯t quite felt the impact of the high percentage yet because it has happened so quickly as the crisis has unfolded. But soon you will feel the squeeze as the bigger more secure agencies push you out. Even if DRIAS does favor you, they ultimately have to answer to Asdred who will force DRIAS to give them shipments. And let me tell you, no conflict that has ever gotten so bad so quickly has ever been able to end in any reasonable period of time. I feel that this conflict will not end this year or next year, but more like five years down the road.¡±


    Jerall bit her fingers lightly as she glowered up at the current graph. Jalldrid spoke up, ¡°All of this is speculation. And how can you say that we haven¡¯t felt the effects of the crisis after that first graph you showed? Of course we are getting affected by it. We¡¯re getting affected by it, and we are making it through right now. I have to disagree with that.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s fine if you do, but can you say that your current rate will keep you in business? Admit it, if it gets any harder or even if it gets a little easier you will not make it. It¡¯s only if the industry gets better very quickly that you have the chance to ride this crisis through. Within a year, you will start looking into getting unauthorized and illegal black market shipments just to stay afloat.¡±


    ¡°That will never happen,¡± Jalldrid replied venomously. ¡°Please watch what you say.¡±


    ¡°I agree that it is a bad idea. Getting caught with black market goods will kill you, I¡¯m just trying to make clear how I feel about Freeline Transportation. I am sorry to say this, but I do not see you making it through another year with your current business model, even if I don¡¯t make use of the information I gather from the netsphere. Information, by the way, which confirms what I have said here.¡±


    Jalldrid sat quietly, taking in the words and looking at Bob. Bob expected Jerall to object immediately again, but was surprised to see her looking off to the left in deep thought. Bob shifted uncomfortably.


    ¡°At this point, even if I join you and we purchase this ship together with a more modest payment plan, it won¡¯t work. Not just us but many hauling agencies will go out of business this year.¡±


    ¡°What are our options?¡± Jalldrid asked quickly.


    ¡°The safest, and probably your least likeable,¡± Bob said slowly, ¡°is to close up Freeline now. You don¡¯t have any debt and you can get out of it pretty easily with some money left over.¡±


    ¡°And then get jobs with Asdred Hauling again?¡± Jerall demanded, coming out of her stupor. ¡°You¡¯re out of your mind.¡±


    ¡°Captain,¡± Jaldlird growled, but she waved off his compliant carelessly.


    ¡°It would only be until the crisis ends,¡± Bob said defensively, ¡°then you can start up Freeline again. Think of it as a hibernation period during winter. I think it is a very good option, personally.¡±


    ¡°What and then hide again when the next crisis comes?¡± Jerall asked bitterly, ¡°Or whenever its gets tough? I don¡¯t want that kind of life. How can you think about giving up what we¡¯ve worked so hard to gain? There is no way to tell if we would even be able to start again.¡±


    ¡°I understand, I thought you wouldn¡¯t like that option.¡± Bob said, sitting back, ¡°But the only other option I can think of is to become danger zone qualified. If you can get that, the amount of work available to you increases significantly as there is a lot less competition. The jobs pay better too, of course.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not possible to get the renegade danger zone qualified,¡± Jalldrid said flatly.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been told so. I¡®ve looked into it myself a little bit though and I have to agree with you. We can¡¯t do it with the renegade.¡±


    ¡°And we can¡¯t lease a danger zone qualified ship from Asdred,¡± Jalldrid added. ¡°They simply wouldn¡¯t let us. They would rather have their own workers use those ships where they can maximize their profit. And there is no other company we can lease ship¡¯s from in this sector, not with our contract with DRIAS.¡± Bob nodded with each of his points silently. ¡°and we can¡¯t purchase one without you joining us and even if you did, again Asdred wouldn¡¯t sell it to us.¡±


    Bob looked back at him with a frown. ¡°Are there no other places that could sell us a qualified ship?¡±


    Jalldrid shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know, probably not. There is not much of a market for used ships in this sector. You¡¯d have to go outside of it to find something maybe.¡±


    ¡°It might mean a few sacrifices,¡± Bob said, ¡°but I think it is possible to be able to purchase a ship that is danger qualified. We¡¯d have to look into it and it¡¯s true that we don¡¯t have the funds now, but there are certain ways of raising the money available that we could look into.¡±


    ¡°Certain ways?¡± Jalldrid asked skeptically. ¡°Like what?¡±


    ¡°well,¡± Bob said, scratching his chin. ¡°We could borrow the money.¡±


    ¡°Borrow money?¡± Jalldrid responded incredulously, ¡°from who??¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d have to look into it,¡± Bob said defensively, ¡°But I¡¯m sure there are some institutions who would lend us money if we had a sound financial plan. At least, it was like that where I came from and I¡¯m sure there are similar institutions here.¡±


    ¡°Of course there are,¡± Jalldrid said with heat, ¡°I can name four right now, the BHC, Asdred Financial, Starwide Financial, Sector Initiative; all of these are banking institutions that lend out money to businesses. But they don¡¯t lend money to foundationers.¡±


    Bob stared back at Jalldrid with a frown and shifted uncomfortably. ¡°I understand that, but again, just like how Freeline could purchase a ship with me with it, couldn¡¯t it also be qualified to get a loan?¡±


    ¡°We probably couldn¡¯t even put together a profitable business model that includes paying back the any type of loan as well as the expense of the interest. Haven¡¯t you seen our numbers?¡±


    ¡°There are still other options to consider,¡± Bob replied earnestly, ¡°They include options like selling off portions of your equity to raise funds,¡± Jalldrd¡¯s jaw dropped at that option, ¡°Or perhaps the best option would be a partnership with another agency that is qualified for danger moves; a sort of deal where you share jobs, both regular and danger jobs. I don¡¯t know, these are just possibilities. Or maybe we could-¡°


    Jalldrid Interrupted, shaking his head in disbelief, ¡°Yes, yes, you are right, it¡¯s possible! All that you are saying is within the realm of possibility. But it¡¯s not probable! If we can find a ship danger qualified and able to purchase and if we can secure a loan from some institution, or even if we try one of you other crazy ideas, we would still be left with the most daunting part of this. We would need to learn how to manage the completely different type of industry of danger moves, new licensing, new permits, new codes and rules and tariffs and new market, and if we can all do this within, what? A half year? A Year? We might be able to succeed. But that is a lot of ifs and it¡¯s not an area we have any experience in and quite frankly I¡¯d say that you don¡¯t have any experience in this either!¡±


    Bob looked away from Jalldrid back up at the view screen. ¡°And most likely,¡± Jalldrid continued, ¡°All of these things would turn out to be fruitless and we would have wasted a lot of time and energy on it that would have been better spent finding new moves to perform!¡±


    ¡°I just don¡¯t see you surviving on your current business model though,¡± Bob practically pleaded, ¡°You have got to try something else!¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t know anything else!¡± Jalldrid burst back angrily. He stared at Bob with a scowl but then leaned back in his chair with a sigh and rubbed his face. He looked back out at Bob and then turned to his sister, ¡°You have been uncharacteristically quiet, Captain. What are your thoughts?¡±


    Jerall was staring in the opposite direction and Bob wasn¡¯t sure if she had even been listening to their conversation. In a swift motion, she cut the display off of the view screen, returning it to the cold stars of space and said loudly, ¡°Freeline does not have the resources to pursue alternatives. We either do this with what we have, or we don¡¯t do it at all.¡±


    Jerall¡¯s words seemed to have finalized the discussion and neither of the men bothered to add anything else to it, but sat quietly instead. There was an odd air of defeatism there and after a moment Bob spoke, ¡°I understand your position, I really do. I thought you would say something like that, you have a lot of pride in your business and that¡¯s not necessarily a bad thing. You guys have a good operation here I think and I feel you would do well if the setting we different. So please understand that I am doing this not because I think you company isn¡¯t worth it, but because of the industry as a whole right now. I am sorry, but I don¡¯t think I will be joining Freeline, although it was a very generous offer on your part and I will not forget that.¡± With those words, Bob got up withdrew the key from the control panel and handed it back to Jalldrid, who accepted it without a word. ¡°I¡¯ll keep all your data secret, so don¡¯t worry. God knows I won¡¯t be doing anything in your industry when I get back to the station anyway.¡±


    Jalldrid stared at the key for a second, but then stood up to meet Bob with a small smile, ¡°You said when we met that you wouldn¡¯t serve well as a consultant,  but then you put together a presentation like this? Clearly you were trying to deceive us at first.¡±


    Bob laughed, ¡°Who¡¯d want to get involved with a scary looking bunch such as you two?¡±


    Jalldrid rolled his eyes, ¡°I want you to know too that we are not simply dismissing your conclusions about us. We¡¯ll look into options available to us, just not the ones that you are putting forth. Still, if we do make it through the next few years, and the market improves, would you consider coming back to us?¡±


    ¡°Of course! Like I said, you two are good managers of this business; I have nothing against your company.¡±


    Jalldrid nodded, ¡°We¡¯ll take you back to the station when we are done, just as we agreed to. We¡¯ll also do what we can in helping you get a job, but honestly, you¡¯ll probably find you won¡¯t need our help.¡±


    Bob nodded with a smile and left the bridge, latching the upper exit shut behind him.


    ¡°I feel like we just got our reactors scavenged from us¡± Jalldrid said to his sister once the hatch shut.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let it bother you,¡± Jerall said, still facing forward, ¡°He¡¯s just a normal man with no experience in the industry, not a prophet. He can¡¯t see the future any more than we can. We¡¯ll make it through this.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a real shame to have him go though, especially like this. He seems like a good man.¡± Jalldrid sighed and put the key back around his neck. ¡°What¡¯s our ETA, Captain?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll be there in two hours.¡±


    Before Jalldrid could answer, the hatchway to the bridge from above opened without warning. Jalldrid scowled at the breach in protocol. ¡°Its gotta be our citizen,¡± He said marching up the hatch as it opened, ¡°but he should know better than to just enter the bridge without knocking.¡± He stopped short as he saw the small female passenger enter clumsily, still covered completely by her garment.


    ¡°Miss,¡± He said politely, ¡°What can we do for you? If you needed something, you should have used your communicator; we generally don¡¯t allow passengers on this bridge like this.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d like to change my destination.¡± She said flatly.


    Jalldrid nodded with a frown, ¡°I¡¯m sure we can work something out, as long as it is reasonable. You should know though that detours might cause and increase in your charges. We are about to land at our destination for our goods now, so let¡¯s talk about it after that and we¡¯ll set up something up. Okay?¡± He tried to guide her away out of the bridge.


    ¡°No,¡± She said stubbornly, not moving, ¡°I want to go there now.¡±


    Jalldrid froze at the words and stared down at her curiously. Jerall turned around abruptly in her chair and said, ¡°We have a contract, miss. Your timetable is set for negotiation but only within our agreement. Unfortunately, we have a non-negotiable timetable for our goods and they are due at the destination shortly. It will only be a few hours delay, so it shouldn¡¯t matter too much.¡±


    The passenger acted as if she hadn¡¯t heard Jerall¡¯s words and reached into her clothes and pulled out a docu-pad. ¡°This is my new destination. I want you to leave now.¡±


    Jerall glared at her and snatched the outstretched docu-pad from her. After looking it over for a second her glared back and demanded, ¡°Are you crazy?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Jalldrid asked,¡± Where does she want to go?¡±


    Jerall turned to her brother and handed the docu-pad over to him. ¡°She wants to go to the Parius System.¡±


    ¡°Parius?¡± Jalldrid asked in disbelief, ¡°That¡¯s clear across the sector that will take weeks! And it is in the opposite direction of where you came from.¡±


    The passenger didn¡¯t respond and Jerall cut in, ¡°No, we will take you to our contractual destination at our contractual time. You will have to try to book a ride from there to Parius because we are not taking you.¡±


    ¡°Sister,¡± Jalldrid said, forgetting her title for a moment. He was still reading the docu-pad, ¡°Parius is currently listed as a level three transportation alert. Civilian and foundationer traffic isn¡¯t even allowed in it!¡±


    ¡°You will disengage roto-engine and leave your cargo behind.¡± The passenger said unperturbed, ¡°You will leave immediately.¡±


    Jerall stood up and bore down on the passenger, ¡°No we won¡¯t. You do not have the right to order us around. You, however, can go back to your quarters and wait until we arrive at your destination. Understand?¡±


    ¡°You will do this,¡± The girl replied, ¡°Or I will have your ship decommissioned, your company broken up, and you both imprisoned.¡±


    Jalldrid paled at the words but Jerall barked back, ¡°what?¡±


    The passenger pulled off her facial covering, exposing her head and the shiny headpiece attached to it. ¡°As a citizen I order you Syllicons to follow my directions,¡± she said confidently. ¡°Section 17 gives me that right.¡±

 Chapter 8

    Jerall looked at the passenger with a slightly confused air. ¡°You¡¯re a citizen?¡± Jalldrid was frozen.


    ¡°Yes,¡± She replied emphatically, ¡°and you¡¯ll do as I say.¡±


    ¡°Look, Miss Citizen,¡± Jerall cut in, ¡°I don¡¯t care if you¡¯re the Governor of the Orius system. Your status on the ship is only that of our contracted passenger and you¡¯ll get treated as such. We¡¯ll be taking you to where you have already agreed to and that is final.¡±


    The passenger got angry for the first time and she drew herself up to her full height, short though it was. ¡°I am a citizen, you larze mice! You must take me to the Parius system or I will have the defense force decommission your disgrace of a ship permanently. Understand?!¡±


    Jerall looked as if a rather repulsive slime rodent entered her bridge. ¡°You can¡¯t do that.¡± She answered indignantly. ¡°If you keep spouting more nonsense, I¡¯ll have you forcibly removed to your quarters- you space ridden Monicaly. Nobody orders my ship around but me!¡±


    ¡°Wait, wait!¡± Jalldrid burst in, visibly frightened, ¡°Captain, wait. You can¡¯t do that!¡±


    ¡°What do you mean I can¡¯t do that?!¡± Jerall replied angrily, turning to her brother, ¡°This is my ship!¡±


    The passenger interrupted impatiently, ¡°disengage the roto-engine now, I want to-¡°


    ¡°Shut it!¡± Jerall snarled back at her. Jalldrid blanched but didn¡¯t say anything. With a push of a command, the whole of section 17 appeared on the view screen.


    ¡°Section 17 deals with our relations with Citizens,¡± Jalldrid explained. ¡°You should have read this whole thing as soon as you came in to contact with Bob like I did. It says a bunch of things, but most importantly it warns us that when a Citizen is on board a ship, they have the authority to dictate the direction and use of the ship! This is why I told you to be careful! Especially concerning interstellar travel, citizens have huge power over foundationers!¡±


    ¡°And if we refuse?¡±  Jerall demanded.


    Jalldrid swallowed, ¡°we can¡¯t. Like she said, she can bring down the full weight of Asdred security on us for disobeying her command here.¡±


    Jerall stared hard at the view screen for a moment. Then she swore violently.


    ¡°This is why I told you to be careful around Citizens,¡± Jalldrid responded angrily, ¡°I told you they were dangerous. How did you not know she was a citizen?¡±


    ¡°This and that are separate matters,¡± Jerall said coldly. She turned on the Comm and yelled into it, ¡°Bob! Get up here now!¡± She switched it off without waiting for a response.


    Jerall demanded from the passenger, ¡°Did you just change your mind or did you plan on going there from the start?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care to answer those questions,¡± the passenger replied with a snarl.


    ¡°and what¡¯s in Parius for you anyway? You know it¡¯s a danger zone, closed off from public travel, what could you possibly want there?¡±


    ¡°Again, that¡¯s none of your business!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s reactor waste, Citizen! Of course it is our business; we would be the ones taking you there. What makes you think that this ship could even make it past the border security there?¡±


    The passenger paused and then answered, ¡°They¡¯ll let me in.¡±


    Before they could interpret her words, the hatchway form the upper level opened and Bob came crawling in. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Bob replied, annoyed. ¡°You could be a little politer with your requests.¡±


    Jerall didn¡¯t answer but swung her want and pointed at the passenger accusingly. ¡°Negate her orders for me.¡±


    ¡°I¡­ What?¡± Bob asked uncertainly.


    ¡°Yeah!¡± Jalldrid replied, suddenly bright, ¡°That should work!¡± Bob looked back, still confused.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± the passenger demanded.


    Jerall ignored her, ¡°Bob, this passenger is a Citizen and she ordered us to go the Parius system right now.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Bob said, looking over at the passenger. He studied her head piece, ¡°I thought you said you never saw citizens.¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re are crawling out of the bulkheads now,¡± Jerall answered indifferently, ¡°Under Section 17, Citizens have the authority to waylay and alter any route of any foundational ship they are on. That being said, she ordered us to the Parius system which we really don¡¯t want to go. Can you just belay her orders, as a citizen?¡±


    ¡°Uh, sure,¡± Bob replied uncertainly. ¡°do you want a statement in writing or will a verbal word do or what?¡±


    ¡°Who in the space are you!¡± the passenger barked out furiously at Bob, causing him to flinch.


    ¡°Ignore her Bob,¡± Jerall answered, ¡°Just a verbal word from you wishing to go to our original destination should suffice.¡±


    Bob looked at the passenger and replied somewhat lamely, ¡°I am Bob, a citizen. I want this ship to go to its original destination.¡±


    ¡°There you go,¡± Jerall stated, turning back to her controls, ¡°Crisis averted. In the future, I now know to screen all passengers to make sure no cockroach of a citizen can interfere with us.¡± She keyed in commands to the computer and the view screen returned to normal. ¡°We¡¯ll be at our destination shortly.¡±


    ¡°Captain,¡± Jalldrid said still looking at the passenger warily, ¡°You still need to be polite to them.¡±


    ¡°She just tried to take over my ship,¡± Jerall replied evenly, ¡°I am afraid I have lost my ability to be polite to her.¡± She keyed in a few more commands and turned back to the passenger. She hadn¡¯t moved.


    ¡°Now for the last time,¡± Jerall barked, ¡°We¡¯ll be taking you to the contractual destination. Please wait in your quarters until then, it will only be a few hours.¡± She stared down angrily at the passenger.


    The passenger didn¡¯t respond, but was staring at the floor. She seemed frozen, but replied back something incoherent.


    ¡°What was that?¡± Jerall demanded. Bob looked at the passenger uneasily.


    Suddenly, the passenger reached into her cloak and pulled out a shiny bare blaster. It looked bulky and uncouth in her small hands and she wielded it inexpertly. Still, its tip was deadly and she pointed it at the shocked Jerall and screamed, ¡°Take me to the Parius system, now!¡±


    Everybody in the bridge froze at the sight of her shaking hands holding up the gun. She was breathing heavily and looked scared, but she held the blaster resolutely. She screamed again, ¡°Do as it say!¡±


    ¡°Just calm down,¡± Jalldrid started to say standing up slightly, ¡°Put the blaster down and let¡¯s talk this over-¡°


    The passenger swung the gun around and pointed it at Jalldrid, shutting him up. ¡°No talking, just do as I say!¡±


    ¡°And then what?, ¡° Jerall asked boldly, not moving even as the gun came onto her again, ¡°it¡¯s a weeklong trip to Parius. Are you going to hold us to gun point the entire time?¡±


    ¡°Shut up!¡± She screamed, her face flushed and sweaty.


    ¡°No, really,¡± Jerall continued calmly, ¡°I think it¡¯s a great question. Have you thought this through at all? Do you really plan on holding us at gunpoint for a full week, without sleep or rest? The moment you do, we¡¯ll wrestle back control from you. If I were you, I would simply lock us all out of the bridge and take control from there, but I doubt you know how to interact with the comm on this ship, much less operate it and land it.¡± The passenger stared back at Jerall wildly.


    ¡°Now listen,¡± Jerall continued, ¡°I can see that you are frightened, but this is not the way to do this-¡°


    The passenger suddenly removed her gun from Jerall and turned it to Bob who put his hands up instinctually, his eyes wide in fear. ¡°Without your citizen¡¯s interference,¡± The passenger said, breathing heavily, ¡°You will have to obey me again under section 17.¡±


    Bob stared at the gun in alarm. ¡°Can you really kill a fellow citizen?¡± Jerall asked standing up out of her chair, ¡°I would think there would be real consequences to that, as opposed to killing a foundationer.¡±


    ¡°I hope you can come up with a better argument than that,¡± Bob said dryly, keeping his eyes on the blaster.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think we¡¯ll follow you easily, if you kill Bob,¡± Jalldrid spoke up, earning the tip of the blaster as well. ¡°Its one thing to follow the commands of a citizen under section 17, it¡¯s another to follow the commands of a murderer holding us hostage.¡±


    The passenger stood unsteadily on the bridge, her small hands slippery with sweat and her eyes wild and dangerous. She said again, shakily ¡°We are going to the Parius system.¡±


    ¡°No we are not.¡± Jerall replied firmly, now standing rather close to the passenger. The passenger stared at Jerall for a second. ¡°You will do as I say!¡± She snarled suddenly, bringing her blaster back to Bob with clear intent. She squeezed the trigger, firing the blaster.


    Jerall stepped in quick as a bolt and grabbed the passenger¡¯s arms, swinging it up. The blaster¡¯s spray of fire showered the bridge momentarily as both Bob and Jalldrid drove out of the way. The flashes of light and sparks of mayhem lasted only a moment as Jerall twisted the blaster away from the passenger and slammed her head against the bulkhead fiercely with a savage snarl. The passenger went limp from the impact. The incident ended as quickly as it began.


    ¡°Are you two alright?¡± Jerall called out.


    The moment lasted only a second, but it left the bridge in a mangled mess. The blaster managed to fire off five shots before it was subdued, and those five shots lefts five burnt and melted holes on the wall and ceiling in a straight line. The smell of burnt ozone and melted metal filled the cabin.


    ¡°I¡¯m alright!¡± Jalldrid called out, getting up slowly from the floor, ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± He assessed the damage on the bridge with a frown.


    ¡°I¡¯m alright too,¡± Bob said, crawling up and sitting against the wall. ¡°I¡¯m not hit at all, I just have a slight burn on my arm from some shrapnel, but I¡¯m fine.¡±


    Jerall paused for a moment, then picked up the blaster gingerly and turned on the comm. ¡°Rafel! Get up here, and bring Foota with you too!¡±


    ¡°What happened?,¡± Rafel answered in a frightened voice, ¡°It sounded like there was an explosion!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll find out when you get here!¡± She replied shortly into the comm. She flicked it off impatiently.


    She came and kneeled down to Bob as Jalldrid keyed into the system. ¡°Show me your arm.¡± She said gruffly.


    Bob winced as she examined the burn and said shakily, ¡°Thanks for saving me. It looks like she really meant to kill me, that brat.¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t about to let her do as she wanted on my bridge,¡± Jerall replied steadily, ¡°much less murder.¡± She looked at the wound a moment longer. ¡°It doesn¡¯t look like any actual shrapnel entered the wound, it¡¯s just a burn. We should have some dressings available here, but you¡¯ll still want to get it looked at when we reach our destination.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± Bob replied in a murmur.


    Jalldrid spoke up from his terminal. ¡°She blasted the circuit interface here!¡± he said, ¡°it¡¯s totally fried, I don¡¯t see how we even have power here now-¡° a second later the lights died on the bridge, leaving only the auxiliary red lights. Jalldrid swore.


    ¡°Rafel!¡± Jerall shouted, slamming her hand onto the comm again.


    ¡°I¡¯m here, I¡¯m here,¡± Rafel answered, opening the hatchway form the lower deck quickly, ¡°I¡¯ve got Foota too!¡± they both clambered in and Rafel stood up in astonishment, ¡°Galaxy, Captain! It looks like somebody took come blaster shots in here!¡±The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ¡°She did!¡± Jerall spat, holding up the blaster to be seen. Rafel blanched at the sight of it. ¡°Foota, take our passenger and tie her up and lock her up in her quarters. Make sure she doesn¡¯t have any other weapons in there either and turn off any computer access as well.¡±


    ¡°Where did she get a blaster from?¡± Foota asked amazed, apparently hesitant to pick up the unconscious little girl. Jalldrid called Rafel over to him and then looked at the damage together.


    ¡°Who knows?¡± Jerall answered, ¡°She¡¯s a citizen, so she must have her connections. I don¡¯t want her able to do anything until we release her at destination, understand?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll want to take off her head piece too.¡± Bob replied, standing up with a wince. ¡°We don¡¯t want her contacting Asdred with whatever story she wants.¡±


    Jerall stared at Bob suspiciously for a moment, then swooped down and detached the head piece from her with a soft click. She tossed it to Bob, ¡°Here, you take care of the stupid thing.¡± She turned to Foota, ¡°After you lock her way, go down and make sure we will be ready for delivery. We should be there soon.¡± Foota nodded and took the passenger with him as if she was a dangerous animal. Jerall handled the blaster still, uncomfortably.


    ¡°Hand me the blaster too, Captain,¡± Bob said, ¡°If you¡¯re uncomfortable with it.¡±


    Jerall looked at him uncertainly and then handed it to him with a huff. With a quick action, he took it and disarmed it, sliding it into his shirt.


    ¡°Looks like you have some experience with weapons, Citizen.¡± Jerall commented, stepping towards the two men. Bob shrugged and didn¡¯t respond. A second later, the main lights came back on in the bridge. ¡°Good work, guys.¡± She said brightly.


    ¡°Don¡¯t thank me yet.¡± Rafel replied darkly, ¡°getting lights to the bridge is a far cry from being able to interface the system back together. All I did was bypass the circuits for the lights, but for the more operational aspects of the ship, there will not be such an easy fix.¡±


    ¡°What kind of damage are we looking at?¡±


    ¡°Most of it is superficial,¡± Jalldird said, pointing at the five blast marks. ¡°We can bypass for these minor systems, but the real problem is the interface control here. It¡¯s completely defunct; we¡¯ll have to replace it when we get a chance.¡±


    ¡°What does this mean for us now?¡±


    ¡°It means,¡± Jalldrid replied leaning back pessimistically, ¡°that the bridge doesn¡¯t have coordination control over the systems anymore. We can still fly straight of course, but we can do any actual maneuvering from here. If our destination had a roto-engine to guide the ships in, it wouldn¡¯t be a problem, we¡¯d just let it take us in. But as it doesn¡¯t, we¡¯ll have to reset the systems to manual control from each of the main stations below and try coordinate the any landing together.¡±


    ¡°Is the roto-Engine okay?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Rafel added in, ¡°That system has always been manual, so it¡¯s not connected here.¡±


    ¡°Good, good,¡± Jerall said, ¡°We can still make it for delivery.¡±


    Jalldrid hesitated and then answered, ¡°We should consider scrapping the delivery for now, Captain. It¡¯s difficult enough to land with a load on the roto-engine, but to do so manually from the separate stations will be a nightmare. We can disengage the load here and leave a tracker on it and then land at the destination shipyard for repairs. We can be back and ready to deliver the goods tomorrow, or we can sub-lease the delivery to another agent in the area-¡°


    ¡°No,¡± Jerall said stubbornly, sitting down in her Captain¡¯s chair, ¡°We can make the delivery just fine as it is. Our delivery cannot wait a day without penalties.¡±


    Jalldrid struggled for a moment. ¡°Are you sure? Being a day late won¡¯t be that big of a deal, especially considering our circumstances. DRIAS has always been understanding towards us and including the fact that it was their passenger that tried to kill us, they should be very lenient with us.¡±


    ¡°No, we need to be professional, Jalldrid. We need to show DRIAS that we can complete the job even if we encounter problems if we want to be considered an elite hauling company. We can¡¯t be babysat by DRIAS forever.¡±


    Jalldrid sighed and nodded. ¡°Understood, we¡¯ll make the delivery as is. I¡¯m going to go file a report of this incident with DRIAS.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Jerall suddenly asked sharply.


    Jalldrid paused in surprise. ¡°The repairs we put into the ship will be paid by DRIAS since the damage is due to their customer. If I can make a report and submit the claim soon, before we start repairs, we can get the new parts paid by DRIAS.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll do no such thing,¡± Jerall said heatedly. Bob looked on curiously, ¡°DRIAS doesn¡¯t need to know about this incident, we¡¯ll pay for the repairs ourselves.¡±


    Jalldrid looked shocked. ¡°What are you saying? This is a clear case; we should get DRIAS to pay for the damages if we can. This shouldn¡¯t be our expense.¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t bother DRIAS with every little thing,¡± Jerall said, ¡°again we can¡¯t appear needy to them. Don¡¯t you understand?¡±


    Jalldrid was flabbergasted, but was saved from making a response by Rafel. ¡°Jall,¡± he said alarmingly, ¡°We have a problem.¡±


    ¡°What now?¡± he hissed.


    Rafel said something that Jerall and Bob couldn¡¯t hear.


    ¡°What?¡± Jalldrid demanded, swooping in over Rafel¡¯s shoulder. The two spoke furiously together.


    Bob walked over to Jerall. ¡°Is it your new strategy to appear unshakable to DRIAS in order to garnish favor with them?¡± He asked lightly.


    Jerall looked over to Bob with a scowl. ¡°I suppose so.¡±


    ¡°In that case,¡± Bob said quietly, ¡°you would still need to report to DRIAS that this case occurred, otherwise they wouldn¡¯t even know of it to know how well Freeline handled it. You can do so without asking for compensation too. Either way, they would want to know something like this happened.¡±


    Jerall grunted in non-reply.


    ¡°Captain?¡± Bob asked quietly.


    Jerall paused, and then stood up quickly and said to Bob. ¡°You should go get your burn wrapped up, Bob.¡± She turned and marched to the two men up front. ¡°What up now?¡± Bob stayed silent.


    Jalldrid whipped around. ¡°Our external communication relay is out. We didn¡¯t catch it before because the systems aren¡¯t connected here at all, but it looks likes and overload surge made its way there and disabled it. It doesn¡¯t look like it can be repaired. I¡¯m sorry captain, but we need to scrap the delivery.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Jerall answered resolutely. ¡°We¡¯ll work around it if we have to.¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t work around this!¡± Jalldrid answered impatiently, ¡°It will be hard enough to try and land this ship at a repair dock as it is with no communication and our interface gone. It will be impossible with the roto-engine running with the load.¡± He turned to the comm and barked in it, ¡°Fallin and Roota, prepare to disengage the roto-engine and set up a tracker.  Power down the Cyclic rate to .00345.¡±


    ¡°Belay that order,¡± Jerall cut in forcefully, putting her hand on the comm.


    Jalldrid looked up in astonishment, ¡°Captain!¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re completing our delivery, Jalldrid.¡± Jerall said firmly.


    ¡°This has gone beyond trying to appear strong to DRIAS,¡±Jalldrd answered, truly angry now, ¡°we are in a serious crisis here, Captain! Even DRIAS¡¯s policy in this instance tells us to scrap the mission and set up a tracker on the load! We can¡¯t complete this load without communication.¡±


    ¡°Bob!¡± Jerall said suddenly turning to him, ¡°Will you be able to communicate with the destination with your headpiece?¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­¡± Bob replied slowly.


    ¡°You¡¯ll help guide us in, correct?¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Jalldrid spat. Rafel looked up apprehensively.


    ¡°We can use the Citizen¡¯s communication equipment,¡± Jerall said turning to her brother, ¡°with that, we will be able to operate the landing and complete our delivery.¡±


    ¡°What- You can¡¯t-this is Crazy!¡± Jalldrid seemed unable to put his objections into words, ¡°What are you talking about?!¡±


    ¡°Bob can communicate for us, can¡¯t you see?¡± Jerall answered, unshakably calm.


    ¡°NO!¡± Jalldrid shouted, stepping up to his sister, ¡°I don¡¯t see it! I don¡¯t see why we should depend on this unknown technology to try to complete this move that has already been compromised. It¡¯s too risky for this. Its fine to end it here, we will get generously compensated by DIRAS for the trouble and repairs! Why are so desperate?¡±


    Jerall looked down at her brother with wide eyes, the smoke and smells slowly drifted through the room. She turned to Bob, ¡°Bob, please go get your headpiece ready, we are making the delivery.¡±


    Jalldrid stared at his sister, aghast. ¡°Why are you doing this, sister?¡±


    Jerall finally snapped, shouting back, ¡°JUST SHUT UP YOU IMBECILE AND DO AS I SAY! WE HAVE TO COMPLETE THIS DELIVERY!¡±


    The bridge became silent after Jerall¡¯s words. Rafel tried to hide behind the terminal he was looking at while the two siblings stared at each other, Jalldrid in disbelief and anger, Jerall in firm stubbornness.


    Bob broke the silence. ¡°What do you mean by saying that you have to complete the delivery, Captain?¡±


    Jerall answered back curtly, ¡°This doesn¡¯t concern you, Citizen. You have already decided against joining us.¡±


    ¡°On the contrary,¡± Bob replied easily, ¡°You are asking ne to be a relay of communication. Before I do such a thing for you, I would like to confirm its actual necessity. Jalldrid is providing us with a perfectly reasonable alternative to your, quite frankly, irresponsible command for completing the mission.¡±


    Jerall didn¡¯t respond and turned away. Bob asked flatly, ¡°Why don¡¯t you tell us what is really in the valahide container, Captain? Lord knows it¡¯s not processed carbonite.¡±


    The ship seemed to become still for a moment. ¡°What is he saying, Sister?¡± Jalldrid asked dangerously. ¡°What does he mean by not processed carbonite? What is it then?¡±


    Jerall continued to remain silent.


    ¡°Come on, Captain,¡± Bob said coaxingly, ¡°It¡¯s obvious that it is something illegal. The valahide was used to cover up its real contents, but there were many other signs. There was your questionable way you got the move in the first place, and there was also the confusing behavior of the origin agent that now makes sense as they were not a licensed agent of DRIAS. But the most important give away was your refusal to terminate the shipment now and report this incident to DRIAS. This isn¡¯t a DRIAS shipment is it? Jobs taken illegally don¡¯t have any of the safety nets that official moves get and the black market of hauling is unforgiving. So tell us, what really is in the vallahide? Or do you even know?¡±


    A soft gurgling sound came from Jalldrid. Bob looked over at him and he was losing composure. He asked accusingly, his eyes wide in intensity, ¡°Did you take an illegal job, Captain?¡± Jerall didn¡¯t answer, and Jalldrid suddenly shouted, ¡°ANSWER ME, CAPTAIN!¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± Jerall snapped back, ¡°Yes, I did Jalldrid. And no!¡± she added, turning to Bob, ¡°I have no idea what¡¯s in the vallahide container. It could be carrying imperially offensive contraband for all I care, it doesn¡¯t matter! When you are carrying goods for the black market, you don¡¯t ask what you are hauling!¡±


    ¡°How could you do this Captain?¡± Jalldrid cried out, ¡°You¡¯ve sold out Freeline Transportation to the ingrel wastes of the undergalaxy! And you¡¯ve put us all at risk for Imperial prosecution!¡±


    ¡°Oh stop with your melodramatic screeching.¡± Jerall answered cruelly and patronizingly, ¡°It¡¯s never going to get that far.¡±


    ¡°You have no idea what you are doing!¡± Jalldrid hollered, ¡°Or that you¡¯ve done to us! We were a respectable hauling company and now you¡¯ve dragged it through reactor scum!¡±


    ¡°So we had to get our hands a little dirty, so what? We needed the business!¡±


    ¡°What would father say if he knew¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare bring that old fool into this!¡± Jerall answered, her eyes blazing, ¡°He worked his whole life for the ¡°respectable¡± industry, and it got him nothing!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve betrayed us all!¡± Jalldrid shouted, deaf to her words, ¡°And most pertinently, you¡¯ve left us in an impossible situation! I don¡¯t suppose this passenger who is actually a citizen came from DRIAS either? Now we are left with no compensation from DRIAS for the damage the passenger did nor any compensation for our inability to make delivery now!  How could you do this to us!?¡±


    ¡°I HAD NO CHOICE!¡± Jerall burst, finally screaming at her brother, ¡°You heard the presentation that Bob gave us. We can try to sweet coat it, but we both know the truth! Freeline is going bankrupt! We hadn¡¯t had a move in weeks and no prediction of any sort was telling me we had anything to look forward to either! I did it for us, I did it for Freeline! We need work to survive, but what happens when there is no work, Jalldrid? I wasn¡¯t about to let Freeline get destroyed just because of the arrogance of a couple citizen families. Freeline means much more to me than that!¡±


    ¡°You¡­ You¡­¡± Jalldrid said, his eyes bulging in rage. ¡°If we get caught, our license will be revoked on the spot! What will happen to Freeline then, eh, Sister?¡±


    ¡°Hey!¡± Bob shouted, clapping his hands loudly to get the siblings attention. ¡°You two will need to figure out this issue between yourselves later. Right now you have a serious problem that needs to be addressed. What are you going to do about the present delivery?¡± he turned to Jerall, ¡°What will the black market agency, or whatever you call it, going to do if you don¡¯t complete their delivery?¡±


    Jerall bit her lip. ¡°It depends upon what actually happens to the goods.¡± She answered, ¡°They weren¡¯t clear as to what it was, but it¡¯s definitely important to them. At the least, in the situation where we don¡¯t make the delivery on time, they¡¯ll take huge deductions from our promised pay, deductions that we cannot afford. We need to make delivery, today!¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s worse case?¡± Bob cut in.


    Jerall shrugged, ¡°Worse case is that we lose the goods entirely. It¡¯s the undergalaxy, who knows what they would do to us if the catch us.¡± She looked up, ¡°We need to make delivery, at whatever the cost Jalldrid. We have to.¡±


    Jalldrid looked back at his sister seething with animosity. ¡°We¡¯ll make the delivery¡± he said after a moment, ¡°but you¡¯re going to relieve yourself of command, Jerall.¡±


    Jerall scoffed, ¡°What? You¡¯re going to take command, little brother? You don¡¯t have it in you, under what guise will you make your mutiny?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not fit to be Captain anymore!¡± Jalldrid barked. ¡°Will you step down or not?¡±


    Somewhat stung, Jerall answered back after a moment, ¡°Who will you have fly the ship? None of you are qualified to do so.¡±


    ¡°You will obviously. Under me. After all you¡¯ve done, I¡¯m sure your dedication to Freeline won¡¯t end now.¡±


    For an eternal moment, the two stared at each other, their wills clashing. Rafel stared at them, frightened. Finally, Jerall conceded. ¡°The seat¡¯s yours, little brother,¡± she said, stepping away from it. ¡°I hope you don¡¯t find it too big for you.¡±


    Jalldrid ignored the comment and slammed his hand against the comm, ¡°Crew, this is acting Captain, Jalldrid speaking. As you are already aware, we are in a hard situation. Our interface is destroyed and our communication relay is inoperable. Our best choice would be to drop our load, scrap the mission, and go in for repairs. Unfortunately, that option is unavailable to us. As it is, we will be trying to make delivery with our goods as we are now. I don¡¯t need to tell you that this will take an immense amount of coordination and luck. I¡¯m going to need all of you to dig down deep within yourselves and pull out every scrap of effort you can possibly find in yourselves and put it to use right now. More specific instruction will follow shortly as we plan the delivery. That is all!¡±


    He slammed the comm off again and turned to his sister, ¡°Please get in the pilot¡¯s seat sister and plan our route.¡± It looked like she was going to object, but after a moment, settled down without a word.


    ¡°Rafel!¡± he snapped, now turning to the mechanic. Rafel¡¯s eyes were full of fear. ¡°Is there anything else you can do up here?¡± Rafel shook his head wordlessly. ¡°Good, then get down and station yourself on the starboard thruster control. I know that is not a position you are used to, but I need you there, understand? And also, please keep the specifics of what happened here a secret. Got it?¡±


    Rafel nodded curtly and left the bridge down to the lower deck, performing his ritual all the while.


    ¡°Citizen!¡± Jalldrid spoke, turning to Bob at last, ¡°You know what I¡¯m going to ask you, right? Do you think it will work?¡±


    ¡°It should work, if I can get the right programing.¡± He answered. ¡°But I have a quick and perhaps meaningless question. Do we know or care to know why the passenger citizen was so desperate to not enter this system in the first place?¡±


    Jalldrid frowned, ¡°No to both. Please go get your headpiece, Citizen.¡±

 Chapter 9

    The crew was frightened. It was unprecedented that Jalldrid would take command and the only explanations they had was for the current situation was that their passenger had gone rouge and blasted up the bridge. That explained why they were trying to fly the ship without the interface, but it didn¡¯t explain why Jalldrid had taken command.  It was clear something big was going on, and that Rafel knew what it was. Rafel wasn¡¯t speaking of it, but it he was scared and his fear spread to the rest of them.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Roota asked angrily, stuck at the roto-engine controls with Fallin still. ¡°We should be scrapping the delivery with this kind of damage!¡±


    ¡°There is something amiss,¡± Fallin replied anxiously, looking over at his brother-in-law who stood at the starboard thruster control. The reptile was continually performing his superstitious ritual and shaking slightly. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen Rafel like that before!¡±


    Foota was at the port thruster control, standing nervously as well. ¡°We¡¯ve never done this kind of landing before; we don¡¯t have training for this. What is the Captain thinking?¡±


    ¡°Acting Captain you mean,¡± Fallin replied, ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear? I thought you said that nobody was seriously hurt on the bridge? Nothing short of death would make the Captain give up her command!¡±


    ¡°She wasn¡¯t hurt!¡± Foota replied defensively, ¡°She was perfectly fine.¡±


    Fallin slammed his fist against the roto terminal, ¡°THEN WHY IN THE BLASTED RACTOR DEPTHS IS JALLDRID ACTING CAPTAIN!?¡±


    There was no answer for him.


    On the bridge, Bob entered back onto the scene. Jalldrid was nervously plotting the delivery with his sister. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we put Fallin at Port thruster control? He actually has experience in that system.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Jerall replied, ¡°Fallin is also the most experienced with the roto-engine. Our top priority is the goods, and we can¡¯t under any circumstances let us slip in our grip on it.¡±


    ¡°But that doesn¡¯t do us any good, if we can¡¯t control the ship,¡± he mumbled back. He didn¡¯t pursue it any further though. He looked up as Bob entered.


    ¡°Citizen! Please give me some good news.¡± Bob entered with the headpiece attached to his forehead, and Jalldrid admitted to himself that somehow, he really did look like a Citizen with it on.


    ¡°I¡¯m getting it set up right now,¡± He grimaced back. ¡°This will work though; I might be able to tie the communication directly into the ship too, if you¡¯ll let me try.¡±


    ¡°Here,¡± Jalldrd replied handing Bob the Key again. ¡°If you can that would be fantastic. We need communication as soon as possible as we¡¯ll be exiting cruising speed soon. We¡¯ve been out of communication for 5 hours now.¡±


    Bob frowned as he came to the communication terminal and entered the key. ¡°Five hours? How can that be?¡±


    Jerall answered, ¡°We don¡¯t keep the communication opened all the time, that would be a waste of energy. Instead we take communication dumps twice a day instead. Still, we always check for updates before we exit cruising speed to make sure we haven¡¯t missed anything important, like a cancellation of delivery. We should have done that a half an hour ago, but we missed that.  We¡¯ll be exiting cruising momentarily. Not like it matters anyway.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Bob answered, ¡°There a good chance I won¡¯t get this up before we exit then.¡±


    Jerall shrugged apathetically, ¡°Like I said, it doesn¡¯t matter. This isn¡¯t the type of shipment that can cancel.¡± Jalldrid grunted in response. ¡°Acting-Captain,¡± Jerall spoke suddenly with a slight mockery in her voice, ¡°We¡¯ll be exiting in 30 seconds.¡±


    Jalldrid opened the comm, ¡°We¡¯ll be exiting cruising speed in 30 seconds. I know you are nervous about this delivery, but I want you all to know that I have complete faith in our ability to do this. Jerall will be handing specific instructions to our thruster operators and I¡¯ll be relaying commands to the roto operators. We¡¯ll exit, maneuver in and unload the goods quickly and without any trouble and then make our way to the nearest station for repairs. Please put your faith in us for a smooth delivery.¡± With a flick he turned off the comm.


    ¡°Great speech,¡± Jerall commented dryly.


    Jalldrid scowled, ¡°please open a line to the thruster operators.¡± He turned to Bob, ¡°Any luck?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Bob said, frowning at his work, ¡°I¡¯ll have this on momentarily.¡± Jalldrid nodded.


    ¡°Exiting in 10... 9¡­ 8¡­¡± Jerall started. The whole ship seemed to seize up in apprehension.


    Jerall never made it to 1. At 4, the shop shuddered and dropped out, exiting cruising speed out of control and tumbling slowly in space in obvious peril.


    Bob was impressed how the siblings handled the crisis. Jerall immediately started barking orders into the comm to Foota and Rafel regarding control of the thrusters while Jalldird did the same to the roto operators.


    ¡°Reduce roto hold by .23%, Fallin,¡± Jalldrid said steely into the comm, ¡°and increase ionization to 40%. Roota, I need you to keep the inertia ratio at 23/42.¡±


    Jerall was barking inter her comm, ¡°Foota, I need the port equilibration at 40 degrees, but keep thruster pressure up at 60 BSI! Rafel, put steady thrust at 40% for 5 seconds, and then give it bursts at 80%, then bring it down to 20!¡± She stole a look at the view screen. ¡°We¡¯re losing roto-cohesion, Jaldrid!¡±


    ¡°I know!¡± Jalldrid shouted, ¡°Roota! You¡¯ve gotta keep up your ratio! Increase output through the tertiary manifold if you have to.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m trying!¡± Roota shouted, dimly heard on the bridge.


    The ship continued to tumble and a terrible groaning sound started to sound throughout the ship. Bob looked around at the sound apprehensively. ¡°You¡¯re stressing the bulkheads!¡± Jerall shouted.


    ¡°Just get the ship under control, Jerall!¡± Jalldird shouted back, ¡°I¡¯ll take care of the roto!¡±


    The ship continued to groan agonizingly as the crew tried to steady the ship. A few seconds more and Jerall shouted again, ¡°The ship is going to tear apart!¡±


    ¡°She¡¯ll hold! Fallin, reduce roto hold by another .23%!¡±


    ¡°At that low of a hold, we might lose the shipment!¡± Fallin called back.


    ¡°Better than the ship getting ripped apart!¡±


    The ship continued to tumble; now red warning lights attacking the crew from the consoles. Bob stood frozen bracing himself unnecessarily against the wall and hoping that Jalldrid wouldn¡¯t ask him to perform some action. Then, slowly, Bob felt the ship right itself and he heard the groaning cease. Looking at the view screen he saw the stars become steady. And then, only the red lights still flickered, the remnants of the crisis. He let out a slow relieved breath he hadn¡¯t realized he had been holding.


    Bob asked tentatively, ¡°Did we make it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Yes we did.¡± Jalldrid answered, still paralyzed in his seat. Then he turned to his sister savagely, ¡°Galaxy, Jerall! What happened? The ship almost got destroyed!¡±


    Jerall swore viciously, ¡°It wasn¡¯t me; something pulled us out of cruising speed prematurely!¡±


    Jalldrid ignored her and attacked the comm, ¡°Rafel! Is everybody alright down there?¡±


    ¡°yes, what happened!?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t know yet.¡± Jalldird answered as Jerall threw her hands up in the air in frustration. ¡°What kind of damage is there?¡±


    ¡°No real damage, beyond existing of course. If anything, this shows us that the ship is working properly. The only thing is the roto engine, the shipment is hanging on by a particle. We were that close to losing it.¡±


    ¡°Considering how low we reduced the hold, it¡¯s amazing it held on at all. Do you think we¡¯ll have to reset it?¡±


    ¡°Definitely, I suggest performing a full cycle run on it, to make sure it is running properly and then engaging it to the goods again. Shouldn¡¯t take more than ten minutes.¡±


    ¡°Will it get these blasted lights to stop flashing at me?¡±


    Rafel laughed halfheartedly. ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°Then make it so,¡± Jallrid ordered. Then he added, ¡°Put a tracker on the goods though, just in case.¡± After he got an affirmative from Rafel, he switched off the comm. He sighed, putting his hand on his head. ¡°Do we know what happened, Jerall?¡±Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    ¡°I¡¯ve got nothing,¡± she spat, punching buttons on her counsel, ¡°The only thing that could pull us out of cruising speed early like that is a massive gravity well, and there was nothing like that on our route. Even now, there is nothing, planet or otherwise that could have pulled us out. I¡¯ve got nothing, check your precious Drive engine for faults!¡±


    Jalldirrd closed his eyes and sighed in exasperation. After a moment, ¡°Are we close enough to make it to destination on our regular drive?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re quite a bit out,¡± Jerall answered, hitting some key and bringing a map of the system onto the screen. A green dot appeared marking their position and she looked up at it. ¡°But if we can get moving quickly, then we might make it on time.¡±


    ¡°Good, then we¡¯ll restart the system and get moving again. We¡¯ll run a full diagnostic on everything when we reach a repair port in this system. For now, we¡¯ll complete the delivery as scheduled. Not that we have a choice.¡± Jerall grunted at the last comment.


    Bob stared out at the map on the screen. ¡°Citizen,¡± Jalldrid interrupted, coming up to him, ¡°How¡¯s the communication coming? Have you reached the station yet?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Bob replied, shaking his head, ¡°I¡¯m certain I¡¯ve got the correct program, but I¡¯m simply not able to make connection with the station. I¡¯m not sure why. I have, however, managed to tie on by headpiece with your ship, you should be able to manipulate the call yourself now from your terminal. Perhaps you¡¯ll have better luck reaching them, than me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure I will,¡± Jalldrid chimed, reaching for the terminal, ¡°I doubt you¡¯ve ever used one of these things in your life, anyway.¡± Bob rolled his eyes.


    After playing with it for a moment Jalldrid frowned. ¡°Are you sure you programmed this right? I¡¯m not picking up any communication traffic in the system.¡±


    Bob clucked his tongue in disgust, ¡°As sure as I can be. I¡¯m going to try to go for a data download and see if can¡¯t just get some information on this system.¡±


    ¡°Hold on, I¡¯ve got a ship coming up on our starboard, I¡¯ll see if I can¡¯t get into contact with him.¡±


    ¡°What kind of ship is it?¡± Bob said, wincing at his connection.


    ¡°No idea, I don¡¯t even recognize the registry on it. I should have them on in a moment. Actually,¡± he added, brightening up, ¡°It looks like they are hailing us! Now we know your system works, let me pull them up.¡±


    Bob stood still for a moment, and then his face paled in horror. ¡°Oh my God.¡± He whispered.


    ¡°What?¡± Jalldird answered, distractedly.


    ¡°This system has been attacked by the Hulian navy.¡±  Jalldrid snapped upright at Bob¡¯s words, ¡°That ship is a Hulian scout.¡±


    Jalldrid froze at Bob¡¯s words, then quickly switched off the system map off the view screen and pulled up the short range scanners. On the screen, an ugly red blip approached them steadily from starboard.


    ¡°Hey!¡± Jerall called out from her seat, ¡°Give me my map back!¡±


    ¡°Jerall!¡± Jalldird cried out, ¡°That¡¯s a Hulian short range cruiser! This system¡¯s been attacked! We¡¯re in a danger zone!¡±


    Jerall stood up quickly. ¡°Keep calm, it¡¯s going to be okay.¡±


    ¡°But sister, what do we do?¡±


    ¡°What pulled us out of cruising speed then,¡± Bob spoke slowly, ¡°Was probably the Hulian Navy. They surely brought equipment to drag approaching ships out of cruise so they can¡¯t be surprised by anything. They set up a non-approach communique over two hours ago that we missed. Jalldrid, they are not going to like us coming into the system.¡±


    ¡°And they really won¡¯t like whatever it is we are hauling.¡± Jalldrid answered, sweating hard, ¡°We¡¯re an illegal carrier now in forbidden space. Galaxy!¡±


    ¡°Just stay calm,¡± Jerall answered her eyes wide in fear, ¡°our communication gear was destroyed by that brat! They¡¯ll understand that, we are a ship under duress! We just let them do their thing, and we¡¯ll be let go.¡± Despite her words, she didn¡¯t appear too confident.


    Suddenly, the comm in the bridge exploded in harsh words, ¡°Interstellar Hauling carrier renegade, this is the Hulian Family Light Cruiser Starcry, you have entered a class 3 forbidden territory without proper permits and are under suspicion interstellar crimes. You are to stay put and prepare for boarding. Any attempts at escaping you will be fired upon. Interstellar Hauling Carrier renegade,¡± the message repeated itself.


    Jerall reached forward and turned down the volume, cutting down the voice. ¡°What does that mean,¡± Jalldrid cried out, ¡°What¡¯s going to happen to us?¡±


    ¡°It means nothing is going to happen to us!¡± Jerall shouted, ¡°We are too small for them to worry about, they are in the middle of attacking a system for Asdred¡¯s Sake!


    ¡°That¡¯s assuming we haven¡¯t got anything truly criminal in the valahide!? Much more than losing our license, We could be talking about prison, or even execution in this setting!¡±


    ¡°Then we should run then brother, while we have a chance!¡±


    ¡°You heard them though! If we even drift the side, they¡¯ll blow us to space dust!¡±


    ¡°Then what do you want to do, acting-captian?¡± Jerall answered savagely.


    Jalldrid was paralyzed in indecision.


    ¡°We¡¯ve got another problem, you too!¡± Bob cut in frantically, ¡°We¡¯ve got the God Damn Hullian most wanted child on board! What do you think they meant by criminal activity?¡±


    ¡°What in the blazes are you talking about?!¡± Jalldrid shouted at him.


    ¡°That passenger of yours! Now we know why she was so scared of coming here, she knew what was happening! She¡¯s a child of the Asdred main family; I¡¯m pulling her id off the Netsphere now. If the Hulians find out we have her here with us, we¡¯re toast!¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re what?¡± Jalldrid responded angrily.


    A loud banging on the hatchway below saved Bob from a response. Rafel entered in without permission, ¡°What in the galaxy is going on? Was that a hulian ship on the comm?¡± Roota was coming in behind him. ¡°What are we going to do!¡± Rafel demanded, looking at Jalldrid.


    Jalldrd remained frozen. The small sounds of the angry Hulian ship reverberated throughout the bridge.


    ¡°We¡¯re running, now!¡± Jerall shouted, taking command. She turned off the Hulian words, and opened the ship wide channel. ¡°We¡¯ve entered a warzone people! We¡¯re bugging out of here as fast as possible. We¡¯re making a line straight starboard until we reach space were we can enter cruising speed. Understood? Roota, I need maximum Port thrust now!¡± She jumped down in her seat and started punching her controls. After a moment, she turned back to Jalldrid, who still hadn¡¯t moved, ¡°Jalldrid, Wake up! I need you downside!¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± he said softly, reaching up to his now red face. In a moment he was gone.


    The bridge was silent as the clamoring down beneath barely made its way up.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry it has come to this.¡± Jerall said softly from up front.


    ¡°You should be,¡± Bob replied angrily, ¡°Since technically all this is your fault. I¡¯m not the one you need to apologize to most though. It¡¯s your brother and your crew that really deserve it. This looks like the end of Freeline, either way you look at it.¡±


    Jerall responded through gritted teeth, ¡°We¡¯ll survive and I¡¯ll make it up to them. I¡¯ll make it up to you too! You¡¯ll see, I promise.¡± Bob merely nodded in response.


    Jerall¡¯s comm beeped and her brother¡¯s voice came through frantically, ¡°We¡¯re all set, go go go!¡±


    ¡°Right.¡± Jerall spoke and a moment later, the renedage shot off, away from the approaching ship. The moment after, the Hulian ship started firing.


    A few shots grazed the renegade, shaking it up and Bob heard Jalldrid groan from the comm, ¡°They really are shooting at us¡­¡±


    ¡°Of course they are you idiot!¡± Jerall growled back, ¡°Give me all the power you can!¡±


    ¡°But we¡¯ll lose our shields if I give you any more...¡±


    ¡°Shields aren¡¯t going to save us, give me the blasted power!¡±


    A moment later, Bob felt the ship increase velocity. ¡°What are our chances?¡± he asked quietly.


    Jerall stole a look at the side interface. ¡°We¡¯ll reach cruising ability in 30 seconds,¡± she answered, ¡°Or not at all!¡± Bob didn¡¯t comment that she didn¡¯t answer the question.


    The firing got more concentrated as the enemy ship sensed the possibility of escape. Despite the moment, the bright silent streaks of light passing them by looked pretty to Bob. The moment seemed surreal.


    ¡°There are not really trying to hit us, are they?¡± Bob commented, ¡°They can¡¯t be that bad of shots.¡±


    ¡°Who cares what they are up to, we¡¯ll be out of here in 20 seconds.¡± Jeral responded loudly, not bothering to wipe the sweat accumulating on her brow. She chuckled nervously, ¡°we might even make it.¡±


    Her last comment was a mistake, for as soon as she said it the ship was hit. It didn¡¯t blow apart the ship as Bob had expected, but rather cut power completely, leaving them in the dark. The ship continued forward turning slightly, powered by inertia.


    ¡°They¡¯ve hit us with an ion array!¡± Jerall shouted, ¡°They¡¯ve got us.¡± She sat still, seeming unable to believe it herself.


    Bob let that statement sink in for a moment. He watched as the enemy ship came over them triumphantly. It felt anti-climatic. He added, ¡°How come I feel the engine still running in the ship?¡±


    Jerall stared back at him for a second, then jumped out of her seat and screamed down the hatchway, ¡°The Cruise Drive is still on!¡± She clambered down the hatchway, ¡°Shut down the Blasted Cruise Drive!¡±


    Bob heard violent shouts from the lower deck. He crossed over and poked his head through. The men were panicking.


    ¡°The Ion array should have shut down every circuit on this ship,¡± Jerall was shouting. ¡°How can the Drive still be on?¡±


    ¡°Galaxy if I know, the Drive¡¯s a separate system!¡± Jalldrid was yelling, ¡°They are all separate systems! We¡¯ve hobbled this ship together so much; it¡¯s a miracle it still flies!¡±


    ¡°Why can¡¯t you shut it down?!¡± Jerall screamed, now looking at Rafel who was working in the engine room. The other men looked on in terror.


    ¡°I¡¯m trying! But some many of the system controls are out now, I can¡¯t even¡­¡± Rafel didn¡¯t finish his sentence, but buried his head into his hands.


    ¡°What happens if we can¡¯t shut down the Drive?¡± Bob asked, the calmest one there.


    Jerall whirled around, ¡°It means we go shooting off into Cruising speed with no direction and all odds that we crash into a star or planet, or some other mass capable of destroying us! It¡¯s a sure death!¡± Rafel was working frantically again.


    Bob thought about it. ¡°Aren¡¯t we okay? We have probably haven¡¯t exited the artificial mass that the Hulians created holding us here by now, and if I remember the countdown correctly, we should have shot off already. Aren¡¯t we safe?¡±


    Jalldrid and Jerall stared back at Bob blankly. A second later, Bob felt the Drive give a great shudder, and then kick into full drive, sending the renegade and its crew out of the system in a bright flash.

 Chapter 10

    During Cruising speed, the renegade hardly made any noise. Bob had thought this was strange, but then again he did not know the physics behind it. The silence in the ship was even more disconcerting now, every other part of the ship was disabled due to the ion array and there was no noise in the ship to be heard besides the whimpers and hard breathing of its frightened crew. None had moved an inch since the sudden cruise except for Rafel who had slumped to the ground.


    Bob was still hanging loosely form the hatchway form the bridge and he looked curiously at Jerall. ¡°So what now?¡± he frowned down at her. She buried her face in her hands and Bob felt his anger spike. ¡°So what now? It¡¯s all over? We¡¯re not dead yet, can¡¯t we just drop out of cruising speed? What¡¯s the problem?¡±  Nobody answered. ¡°OI! Answer me!¡±


    ¡°No! We can¡¯t!¡± Jalldrid exploded, ¡°The ION array destroyed all of our equipment! The ship is dead!  Everything is dead! We can¡¯t do anything, this is how we die, Bob!¡±


    Bob¡¯s face hardened and he spoke decisively, ¡°Forgive me if I don¡¯t just accept the inevitability of my death here. I want a proper explanation, why can¡¯t we just exit cruising speed? We haven¡¯t been killed yet.¡±


    ¡°Fine, Bob!¡± Jalldrid screamed, ¡°You want an explanation? How¡¯s this, with our controls out, we won¡¯t exit cruising speed until a massive gravity mass pulls us our forcefully like before. That gravity mass will be a star or planet that will immediately crush this ship!¡±


    ¡°There must be more to this than that.¡± Bob persisted indignantly.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you turn on your magical headpiece and find an answer then, Bob!¡± Jalldrid said heatedly. ¡°Citizens are all knowing, aren¡¯t they? Find us an answer!¡± He turned to his sister viscously, ¡°This is all your fault! You¡¯ve killed us all because you couldn¡¯t stick to the rules!¡±


    Jerall lashed back, ¡°Don¡¯t ¡®rules¡¯ me, Brother! You can¡¯t survive by always playing by the rules! How was I supposed to know the Hulian Navy was going to be there?¡±


    Jalldrid welled up in rage, ¡°YOU COULD HAVE KNOWN BECAUSE THE COMMUNICATOR WOULD HAVE TOLD US SO, BECAUSE THE PASSENGER WOULDN¡¯T HAVE DESTROYED IT, BECAUSE YOU WOULD¡¯VE GOTTEN THE PASSENGER FROM DRIAS! NOT FROM THE BLACK MARKET!¡±


    ¡°Our Captain did what?¡± Fallin asked sharply, ¡°Black market deals?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Jalldrid hollered cruelly, ¡°Guess what crew? Our cargo this time that our captain so graciously set up for us was black market goods! We were performing an illegal shipment, gentlemen. And now we are paying for it with our lives.¡± He pointing his finger down at his sister, ¡°and it¡¯s all her fault!¡±


    ¡°None of that matters anymore!¡±


    ¡°Nothing matters anymore!¡± Fallin shouted, ¡°We¡¯re all going to die!¡±


    Jerall lashed out angrily at her brother, ¡°If you and Rafel had done a better job at making the ship work instead of repairing half-heartedly, this would have happened either. Where are the safety nets to stop a ship from entering cruising speed, Huh? Your shoddy repairs are just as faulty as I was!¡±


    The whole level exploded in violent words at the last accusation, Roota and Foota lost their cool and came forward yelling as if to strangle both Jerall and Jalldrid with their words. Jalldrid stood and hurled accusations against his sister and Jerall shouted defenses against her actions. Fallin remained seated but shouted his own objections from his seat at the roto control. Only Rafel remained quiet on the lower deck. From Bob¡¯s view he looked to be praying.


    Disgusted, Bob shook his head angrily and left. He closed the hatchway as he exited and then it was dark, if only a little quieter. No lights on the ship were working outside of the engine room and the only sources of lights were the ephemeral flickering of the pseudo-stars that passed in the view screen. Bob sat down in the captain¡¯s chair and stared out at the eerie sight.


    Jalldrid burst up through the hatchway looking lost to Bob. ¡°I feel like strangling my Sister.¡± He said blandly.


    ¡°What are they doing down there?¡± Bob asked pointedly, ¡°I notice they aren¡¯t shouting anymore.¡±


    Jalldrid shook his head, ¡°Mostly nothing. They are trying to see if they can jump start some of the equipment using energy from the drive.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not trying to help?¡±


    ¡°It won¡¯t work.¡± Jalldrid said lifelessly.


    ¡°You¡¯re an idiot.¡± Bob said snarled, ¡°There is no point in giving up yet. It¡¯s not like we have any control over it, might as well have some hope then. A miracle could happen.¡± Jalldrid didn¡¯t say anything and Bob got up out of the chair, ¡°We¡¯ve forgotten the passenger, by the way. I¡¯m going to go get her; she shouldn¡¯t be alone at a time like this.¡±


    Again, Jalldrid didn¡¯t bother to answer; he just stumbled across the room slightly shaking his head.


    It was absolutely dark in the hallway that led down to the crew quarters and Bob had to go forward feeling his hands against the cold wall. Cold feelings started to get at him as he walked steadily down the path and his hands started shaking slightly.  ¡°Yeah, yeah, I understand,¡± He said to himself, ¡°You¡¯re scared and you¡¯re going to die in this crummy old space junk. I got it, I got it, just quit shaking on me.¡± He hands didn¡¯t stop and he pounded his fist against the wall and leaned heavily against it.


    He reached her door after a long walk. It was the third on the left and he was half expecting to hear her clamoring loudly from inside it in outrage, but it was silent. Feeling around the hatch, he knocked on it politely and waited for a response. There was none, so he unlocked the hatch and opened it cautiously. He stared at the opening uselessly and then spoke nervously, ¡°I¡¯ve got your blaster out, so don¡¯t try any funny moves, okay?¡±


    A disembodied voice replied to him steely. ¡°Where is my Headpiece?¡± It demanded.


    Bob jumped slightly at the voice. ¡°I have it here. You can have it back; we¡¯ve been hit by an ion array so it¡¯s in a self-repair cycle. You won¡¯t be able to use anytime soon.¡±


    There was a pause, ¡°If we¡¯ve been hit with an Ion array, then the blaster won¡¯t be working either.¡±


    Bob chuckled lifelessly, ¡°I didn¡¯t want you to immediately attack me.¡± He stopped talking; he didn¡¯t know what else to say.


    ¡°Why haven¡¯t we¡¯ve been boarded yet by the Hulians? Or have you come to give me up as a bargaining chip to try to spare your filthy lives? I¡¯d sooner kill myself than let the Hulians have me.¡±


    Bob shivered at her voice. ¡°Well, you don¡¯t have to worry about that particular horror. Apparently we¡¯ve slipped into Cruising speed without controls and now we are just waiting for a planet to squish us. Better that than freezing to death at least. The ion array took out everything but our Drive.¡± Bob wasn¡¯t sure how to continue, ¡°I thought you should know.¡±


    There was no response and Bob sighed. ¡°I¡¯m going back the bridge, there is a little light there at least. You can come if you want, I¡¯ve decided to forgive your trying to kill me. You can¡¯t hurt anything more at this point.¡±


    Bob turned and left as the passenger¡¯s voice carried out, ¡°I want my headpiece back!¡±


    ¡°Come to the bridge and it is yours!¡± Bob called back.


    Bob made it back the bridge, welcoming the little light afforded by the view screen. Jalldrid was still there alone, leaning back on a portion of the burnt wall and staring out the view screen. Bob came in and sat down on a lifeless counsel.  Jalldrid stirred a little at his presence.


    ¡°It¡¯s strange that our fortune can be reversed so suddenly,¡± Jalldrid said, ¡°Just a couple hours ago it was smooth rising, then everything went supernova.¡± He snapped his long fingers, ¡°This was supposed to be a simple trip. It would have been better to let ourselves get captured by the Hulian¡¯s now. I couldn¡¯t make the choice though¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure you jinxed this shipment with all your talk.¡± Bob snorted. ¡°The passenger should be making her way here any moment. I didn¡¯t see a need to keep her locked up anymore, there is no light back there.¡± Jalldrid nodded apathetically. ¡°How much longer do you think we have?¡±


    ¡°Any moment really,¡± Jalldrid replied, ¡°There would be no warning, not at this speed.¡±  He paused a moment and then continued, ¡°No, that¡¯s probably not true, it will be a while before anything happens. In fact, there is a great chance will die from starvation or something else before we get pulled out. Space is vast my friend.¡±


    There was a loud clunk and they both turned to see the passenger enter in clumsily, struggling at the hatchway to let herself in. Jalldrid and Bob watched her silently as she fell with a slight crash and cry. She got up quickly though and stuck out her hand to Bob expectantly. Without a word, Bob handed over her headpiece and she took it back quickly and took a seat against the wall.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    ¡°It was like this when Dad died too, actually.¡± Jalldrid spoke again, ¡°One moment everything was running smoothly, the next moment gravity was reversed. I was a year away from graduating from university when he died.  With the degree, I was going to join an engineering firm a get away from the Space station for good. But here I am, still tangled up in the mess.¡±


    ¡°You couldn¡¯t have stayed at the university?¡± Bob inquired.


    Jalldrid snorted, ¡°With what money? Most of the tuition was being paid by a compensation package our father earned. With him gone, that went away as well. He couldn¡¯t have waited one more year¡­¡±


    The bridge fell silent again. ¡°How did your Father die?¡± Bob asked.


    ¡°A Trifula attack that got him in the end.¡± Jalldrid replied dryly. ¡°Brought on early by exhaustion. My Grandfather died from the same illness. I always thought I would go the same way eventually, but maybe being squashed by a star will be more exciting.¡± Jalldrid turned suddenly stared at Bob curiously. ¡°I haven¡¯t asked because it is none of my business,¡± He started, almost accusingly, ¡°And excuse my frankness, but what in the Galaxy are you? How are you a Citizen?¡±


    The passenger wrapped her arms around herself and sat quietly. ¡°I wasn¡¯t born one,¡± Bob answered, ¡°it was a title given to me. More like it was thrust upon me without my consent. Strange isn¡¯t it? As you say, fortunes can change quickly and outside our control. I would have preferred to stay the way I was though.¡±


    Jalldrid grunted. ¡°How stupid,¡± he replied dryly. ¡°I would have given anything to be a citizen, and you treat it like Space waste.¡±


    Bob chuckled slightly, ¡°I don¡¯t think space waste is the appropriate term, but I understand what you mean.¡± Bob looked around, ¡°You know, I really don¡¯t feel like I am about to die. Its more like a silent camping trip. I feel alive right now. I can¡¯t help but feel we are going to make it out of this.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Jalldrid said emotionally, suddenly bowing his head, ¡°I¡¯m sorry it came to this, I¡¯m so sorry.¡±


    ¡°I guess my optimism isn¡¯t contagious.¡± Bob answered dryl. He let the moment hang. ¡°Is Rafel the only one with a family?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s the only one married, but both Roota and Fallin have kids.¡± Jalldird answered sadly.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have a family?¡±


    Jalldrid laughed lightly, ¡°My only family is here with me already. What about you?¡±


    Before Bob could answer, the ship shuddered and stopped.


    It was so sudden, and noiseless the Bob didn¡¯t simply blinked in confusion. Cautiously, he stood up and walked up to the edge of the view screen, craning his neck to see the outside. Gone were the pseudo lights from that appeared during the cruising speed; they were replaced by real stars. He stated the obvious fact, ¡°We aren¡¯t dead.¡± He looked over a Jalldrid who started star stuck ahead. He lashed out in annoyance, ¡°Are you kidding me, Jalldrid? After all your talk about death and destruction, we are just fine? You can really pissing me off, you know!¡±


    Jalldrid flew out of his chair, wretched open the hatchway and bellowed down it, ¡°Sister! We¡¯ve exited cruising speed!¡±


    There was a loud clamoring from the lower level as it seemed that Fallin and Jerall fought to enter the Bridge first.


    Fallin and his many arms won, ¡°We¡¯re alive?!¡± he exclaimed, looking out the view port.


    ¡°What did you do?¡± Bob asked curiously.


    ¡°Nothing!¡± Fallin answered, ¡°We didn¡¯t do this, nothing was working down there.¡±


    ¡°Wait you fools!¡± Jerall spoke, pushing herself up now, ¡°before we all get too excited; remember this doesn¡¯t change anything, if anything it¡¯s now worse.¡±


    ¡°How can you say that?¡± Fallin replied angrily.


    ¡°We still don¡¯t have any of our systems, you idiot!¡± Jerall said, ¡°Now we sit here and freeze to death in space, or asphyxiate, whichever comes first!¡±


    ¡°Somebody could find us though!¡± Fallin protested.


    ¡°We have our citizens,¡± spoke Jalldrid excitedly looking at Bob, ¡°They could call for help with their head piece, right?¡±


    Bob help up his headpiece gingerly, ¡°How much time do we have before we die out here? These were hit by the ion array too and they are in a repair cycle now. It will be 48 hours before I can use it again.¡±


    Jerall and Jalldrid looked at each other. ¡°The Drive is still functioning,¡± Jalldrid spoke, ¡°We can modify it to give off enough heat to survive that long. The problem is oxygen. With the scrubs offline¡­¡± he didn¡¯t finish the sentence.


    ¡°How much Oxygen do we have left?¡± Fallin asked loudly.


    ¡°With the eight of us breathing,¡± Jalldrid answered, ¡°A little less than 24 hours.¡±


    There was silence for a moment and then Fallin said, ¡°So we need to kill off half of us, so that the other half can survive?¡±


    Jerall snarled, ¡°Now¡¯s not the time for joking around, Fallin.¡±


    Fallin laughed, ¡°No, I just wanted to lighten the mood. But aren¡¯t you all forgetting something? We¡¯ve been pulled out of cruising speed by an artificial source. That means that somebody is out there right now!¡±


    Everybody looked back at the view screen as one. ¡°I don¡¯t see anything out there.¡± Bob said.


    ¡°It could be too far away to see without any enhancements.¡± Jalldrd said nervously.


    ¡°Or it is simply at an angle we can¡¯t see from the view screen.¡± Bob spoke, ¡°There is no way to tell with the scanners down. If there is somebody out there would they even be able to detect us? We wouldn¡¯t show much energy reading on a standard scan as we are, right?¡±


    ¡°Exiting cruising speed creates a huge distortion in space,¡± Jalldrd replied. Bob stepped forward and got as close to the screen as he could, pressing his face against it and craning his neck in order to see the most possible. ¡°They would have to be blind not to see us out here. There is another view port in the galley,¡± he said, turned around, ¡°I¡¯m going to go check it out!¡±


    ¡°Wait, I see it.¡± Bob said quietly. The room became silent as well. ¡°I can¡¯t see much from this angle and it is steadily turning the wrong way from us, but it is definitely a ship.¡± He paused, ¡°Or station.¡±


    ¡°Let me see,¡± Jerall said aggressively, pulling Bob away and plastering her face against the screen.


    ¡°It¡¯ll come into view again soon,¡± Bob said, turning back to the bridge members, ¡°It¡¯s quite large and quite near.¡±


    ¡°They haven¡¯t made any moves to come save us yet, though.¡± Jerall said still straining to see in vain, ¡°It could be Hulian.¡±


    ¡°It could be the Imperial police ready to lock us up for all I care.¡± Jalldrid said loudly.


    ¡°Better them than pirates.¡± Fallin responded.


    Jerall finally turned away from the screen, ¡°pirates wouldn¡¯t have the ability to pull us out like this, it takes advanced hardware to do so. If I had to hazard a guess, mind you considering we should have been pulled out by a star and flattened, I¡¯d say we stumbled upon some military training grounds. That¡¯s the only thing I could think of that would explain that type of equipment.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s hardly good for us.¡± Fallin commented, ¡°We¡¯ll get incarcerated for trespassing.¡±


    ¡°We have two Citizens with us,¡± Jerall said, suddenly cheerful. ¡°We should be able to work out something.¡±


    There was a pause and Bob spoke up, ¡°This is all so sudden and I am having a hard time following. What is our current situation?¡±


    Jerall tuned to Bob brightly, ¡°We¡¯ve got less than 24 hours to get rescued before we all die from lack of oxygen. However, we are going to get rescued soon because we have undoubtedly entered some restricted zone and we are right next to some large ship. Jalldrid,¡± Jerall said, turning to her brother, ¡°Please interrupt Rafel¡¯s death ceremony and modify the Drive to generate heat if you can. No need to take our chances.¡±


    Jalldrid nodded and left down the hatchway towards the engine room. ¡°I¡¯ll see what kind of damage I can do to the scrubs as well. Maybe I can jury rig them somehow,¡± he mumbled, ¡°give us some more time.¡±


    ¡°Fallin,¡± Jerall continued, ¡°Go to the galley and have Roota and Foota stop eating all our food. I know they went there to stuff themselves before they died, but we might need it now.¡±


    Fallin laughed and left, leaving Jerall and the two citizens on the bridge. Jerall turned and spoke to the passenger darkly, ¡°How are you doing Miss Citizen? You¡¯ve really screwed everything up, you know? I hope your happy at how this all turned out.¡±


    ¡°What can I do?¡± Bob asked, trying to distract Jerall from her wrath.


    ¡°Get your blasted Headpiece to work soon!¡± Jerall responded harshly, sitting down in her captain¡¯s chair. ¡°And let us know when you see a ship approaching, I¡¯m going to try to do some recoding.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± Bob replied, looking out the view screen again. There was nothing to be seen but the stars.


    ¡°Blast.¡± Jerall said suddenly, pounding her control panel. She let out a long sigh. She looked over at Bob with a small smile. ¡°The panel¡¯s not working of course.¡± She leaned against her hand. ¡°I still don¡¯t know if it was the right choice to flee or not, from the Hulians.¡±


    ¡°It looked like a no win situation.¡± Bob commented.


    Jerall rolled her eyes, ¡°Its looks like a no win situation from the very start actually. Either go bankrupt as a company or turn to criminal activity. In fact, my whole life is a no win situation, either try to start something yourself and fail, or work a dull and meaningless job until you die. You end up with the same thing, which is nothing.¡± She sighed again and turned to Bob with a small smile. ¡°A pretty crazy day for you though, huh? This wasn¡¯t exactly the trip you signed up for.¡±


    Bob scowled, ¡°Aren¡¯t you taking this a little too carelessly?


    ¡°Not at all,¡± Jerall replied without hesitation, ¡°any less carelessness would be a mistake. I am carrying the exact amount of carelessness appropriate for this situation.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s fantastic,¡± Bob replied in displeasure. ¡°Your brother agonizes over this company and you joke around.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s Jalldrid¡¯s job to be serious.¡± Jerall responded back quickly.


    ¡°Whatever,¡± Bob said, ¡°I¡¯m heading back to try to get a view of the ship from the aft window in the galley.¡±


    Jerall waived him off and he left without a word, up to the second level. From the Captain¡¯s chair, Jerall sat unmoving. After a moment, she said aloud, ¡°I guess it really is over, even if we get back.¡± A slight noise from the corner caught her attention. ¡°If you¡¯re cold, go down to the engine room¡± she spoke loudly, ¡°The first mate is making the Drive give off heat.¡±


    ¡°Nobody asked how I feel about this.¡± The passenger said quietly, her voice chattering with coldness.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Jerall answered airily, ¡°No kidding. I haven¡¯t forgotten how you tried to kill us before, you know. Unless you can tell me that your headpiece is going to get repaired within the next 10 hours, you can continue to remain silent for the rest of your time here.¡±


    Still shivering, the passenger got up slowly and went below deck to get warm. Before she left she turned and spoke back, ¡°You all pretend to be civilized, but I know what will happen when no help comes.¡±


    ¡°And what¡¯s that?¡± Jerall asked haughtily.


    ¡°You will all kill me first to preserve oxygen.¡±


    Jerall stared back at her, letting her words sink in. ¡°Probably, considering you¡¯re the fault of all this here. Don¡¯t worry though; I¡¯d be next right after you. I¡¯m just as sinful as you are here.¡±


    Without another word, the passenger retreated down the hatchway to get warm. Sitting in her seat still, Jerall started to shiver too. ¡°I guess it really is getting cold in here.¡±

 Chapter 11

    The ship really did feel dead to Bob now. It had gotten considerably colder on the upper deck and if Bob could see anything, he was sure he would see his breath. His fingers hurt slightly feeling the cold metal in the hallway leading to the galley.


    The galley had a tiny little window in it and it let in almost no light from the stars. Still, Bob was thankful for even that as he entered the room. Roota and Foota were no longer in the room; presumably they had left for the engine room for some warmth. Their mark had certainly been left there though, food remains lay scattered across the floor and counters in their crazy indulgence. Bob grimaced in disgust as he stepped around the trash.


    Looking out the view port, Bob wasn¡¯t able to see the ship he was looking for. He spent another minute waiting, but growled in disgust and left. There was a bad smell in the galley.


    He made his way down to the lower deck, bumping his head slightly in the cramped corridor. The rest of the crew had gathered themselves around it for warmth, and probably comfort. The passenger sat off to the side wrapped tightly in her cloak.


    ¡°What does this mean for us?¡± Rafel was asking, clutching his ornament, ¡°What happens when we get rescued?¡±


    ¡°What do you think will happen?¡± Jalldrid responded, tightening up something near him and turning back towards the group, ¡°We¡¯ll get taken into custody for a bit by whoever is out there until they can get us figured out.¡±


    ¡°But what if they don¡¯t let us go?¡± Roota asked quaveringly, ¡°We have no idea what kind of territory we have entered; people have been blasted away for less!¡±


    ¡°Any kind of custody would be better than here.¡± Fallin said peevishly.


    ¡°With the help of our two citizens,¡± Jalldrid continued convincingly, ¡°I¡¯m sure it won¡¯t be too much trouble. After that is all over, we have enough credits on us to be able to send you all back to the station. That¡¯s the plan at least.¡±


    ¡°But what about Freeline?¡± Rafel begged, ¡°What¡¯s going to happen to you two? What about our jobs?¡±


    Jalldrid didn¡¯t respond immediately. ¡°I¡¯m afraid Freeline is now dead with this ship, guys. We don¡¯t have any capital to repair the ship and DRIAS won¡¯t help because this shipment isn¡¯t covered under their insurance. What is more, if this all goes down the wrong way, we could end up facing criminal charges for what we were doing.¡±


    At that last statement, the men burst out angrily. ¡°Criminal charges?¡± Roota said heatedly, ¡°are we going to get caught up in that too?¡±


    ¡°We weren¡¯t doing anything wrong!¡± Fallin was saying, ¡°We didn¡¯t know what the shipment was!¡±


    ¡°This is all the Captain¡¯s fault, she dragged us down here like this!¡±


    ¡°Quiet you!¡± Jalldrid shouted angrily, ¡°Nobody is going to get any of those charges but the Captain and me. All of you are only employees and when we get back to the station, I¡¯m letting you all go and your connections with Freeline will be cut. Do you understand?¡±


    ¡°What are we supposed to do then?¡± Roota grumbled, ¡°Why does this need to happen? Isn¡¯t there anything you can do? I won¡¯t be able to find another job like this.¡±


    ¡°Use your head for once, Roota,¡± Fallin said derisively, ¡°There¡¯s more than criminal charges and debts to worry about for Freeline, isn¡¯t there? Who was it exactly you took this job from? And how do you think these people will react when they find out the goods are lost? I have a pretty good idea, that¡¯s why when we get back I¡¯m not just leaving Freeline, I¡¯m leaving the station and I¡¯m never mentioning my connection again.¡±


    Foota looked back at Jalldrid fearfully, ¡°Is that true? Are they going to come after us?¡±


    Jalldrid cleared his throat. ¡°No, they will not ¡°come after¡± any of you because you won¡¯t have any connection to Freeline. I don¡¯t know any of the details from the captain yet anyway, so I have no idea who ¡°they¡± might be. I¡¯ll have to ask her when I feel better.¡±


    ¡°So what now then?¡± Roota asked, ¡°It¡¯s getting colder and the oxygen won¡¯t last forever. When is the rescue coming?¡±


    Jalldrid¡¯s answer was to look up at Bob. ¡°Anything?¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t see anything,¡± Bob replied, ¡°I tried to go to the port window, but I couldn¡¯t see anything there either. I don¡¯t know why they haven¡¯t reached out to us yet, but there could be multiple valid reasons. There is no need to be worried yet. The ship or whatever it is should be coming into view soon up front and we¡¯ll get a clearer idea then. I swear the ship is right out there, it¡¯s just circling us badly.¡±


    The men looked up at him from their seats and despite the dim light of the engine room; he could see clearly their fear and worry. ¡°Uh,¡± he continued, ¡°And I want you all to know, then if we do get taken into custody, as a citizen I mean, I¡¯ll do whatever I can do to help the situation. You can count on me.¡± Nobody responded and Bob couldn¡¯t tell if his words actually did anything. He shifted uncomfortably. ¡°I¡¯m going up to the galley again so see if I can¡¯t see anything before it comes to the front.¡± Bob turned and left, bumping into the equipment in the corridor again.


    ¡°I¡¯ll come with you,¡± Jalldrid said quickly, coming up from behind and scooting past Roota.


    Bob looked back at the men as they huddled closer to the heat. The passenger remained to the side. ¡°Will it be okay to leave them with the citizen? They won¡¯t take out their fears on her?¡±


    Jalldrid actually chuckled, ¡°There is not a chance of that; none of them are that type. Like I said, both Roota and Foota have daughters that care deeply about and Fallin isn¡¯t stupid. Rafel, well, Rafel wouldn¡¯t hurt a fly. They also realize the importance of keeping you two citizens happy in this situation.¡± Bob nodded and moved forward, climbing up the hatchway to the galley. ¡°I¡¯d also like to thank you for what you said back there, about willing to do what you can to help them.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m actually not sure how much I can do.¡± Bob replied, stepping up onto the second level. He stooped down and helped Jalldrid up.


    ¡°Thanks¡± Jalldird grunted, getting up, ¡°Still, I want you to know that we all appreciate it, especially considering what kind of situation we brought you into. There is no reason for you to do so much for us.¡±


    Bob paused, considering. ¡°Your Captain made a mistake, and it has turned into this. Nobody else is at fault here. And even if it was just the Captain who needed to help, I¡¯d still do what I could for her. Despite what she did I still think she is a good person. If this all turns out okay, maybe I will forgive her.


    There was a slight pause before Jalldrid answered. ¡°I think she is a Skidi.¡± He said angrily.


    Bob chuckled, ¡°I don¡¯t know what that word means, but I can understand what you mean.¡±


    Jalldrid faced curdled slightly as they both stepped forward to the small port. ¡°These two are such pigs.¡± He growled, ¡°Look at this mess they made.¡±


    ¡°They must eat when they are upset.¡± Bob said dryly.


    Jalldrid got to look out the port first and he stared vainly out trying to get a look at what was out there, but there was nothing to see. ¡°Galaxy!¡± he growled, ¡°what nebula is this thing hiding in?¡±


    ¡°My turn,¡± Bob said easily, sliding in.


    Seeing an unspoiled treat laying on the counter, Jalldrid snatched it up and bit into it aggressively. Bob stared out of the view port. ¡°You see anything?¡± Jalldrid asked, still chewing.


    ¡°Nah, the renegade¡¯s is rotation we must not be aligned with it at all. Let¡¯s head back-¡° his sentence ended abruptly. Jalldrid looked at him curiously, and then Bob exclaimed softly, ¡°Jesus Christ!¡±


    ¡°What, what is?¡± Jallrid demanded.


    ¡°¡¯I¡¯m not sure.¡± Bob replied, now standing on his tip toes.


    ¡°Well, let me see!¡± Jalldrid demanded, as Bob stepped back.


    ¡°It¡¯s gone now, I only saw it for a second.¡± Jalldrid ignored his words and strained to see.


    After a few moments, he turned back. Bob was only a silhouette in the near total darkness. ¡°Well, what was it?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I¡¯m not sure.¡± Bob replied uncertainly.


    ¡°What do you mean? You can¡¯t describe it?¡± Jalldrid demanded. ¡°Was it the ship?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it was the ship.¡±


    Jalldrid stared at him expectantly. ¡°Well?¡±


    Bob shook his head, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I can¡¯t be sure. It was very close and, judging by its trajectory, it¡¯ll be in the front view screen clearly very soon. We should just look there.¡±


    Jalldrid growled, ¡°Fine, let¡¯s go there now then and you can keep your secret to yourself. You¡¯re scaring the microbes out of me, man!¡± He brushed past Bob and moved down the corridor with Bob right behind him. ¡°Besides, it¡¯s the renegade that rotating around, probably not that ship as much. ¡°Trajectory¡± isn¡¯t the right word here.¡±


    ¡°Right.¡± Bob replied flatly behind him.


    The tunnel was cold and dark and Jalldrid couldn¡¯t help but feel a sense of dread as he walked through it, thinking of what could Bob had seen to make him react the way he did. He hurried forward towards the small starlight that filtered up from the front through the open hatchway.


    They entered the bridge, one after another. Bob was shivering now from the cold and he rubbed his arms together. His hands were numb from where he hand clutched the freezing metal around the hatchway.


    Jerall looked like she hadn¡¯t budged and inch since Bob left, but sat looking calm and collected in the Captain¡¯s chair. ¡°The ship should be coming into view shortly.¡± Jalldrid spoke as icily as the upper level. He didn¡¯t bother to mention what Bob might have seen.


    ¡°Good,¡± she replied, shifting in her seat. ¡°How are the men doing?¡±


    ¡°As well as can be expected.¡± Jalldrid replied not without some aggression. ¡°Anything new up here?¡±


    ¡°What do you think?¡± Jerall responded icily back. Jalldrid just scowled.


    The seconds ticked by and Bob felt uncomfortable in the tension now in the room. He swung his hands back and forth and looked around. After a moment he added, ¡°Should be here any minute.¡± Neither person responded to him.


    Then suddenly it was there, scrolling into slowly. Jalldrid gasped at the sight and Jerall¡¯s face hardened. Bob leaned back against the wall and sighed.


    A huge ship was coming into view, bigger than any ship that docked at the Arpelligo or any other station. It was the type of ship that parked itself near a station and had little ships inside that moved people. It was practically a station itself and it was so close it looked to be almost squashing them. It would soon take up the entirety of the viewscreen.


    More than that, it was clear that it was a ship meant for war. The ship was bristling with armaments, heavy plating, and massive engines in the rear to power such an incredible thing. It was shaped like a giant torpedo itself, its length easily exceeding Arpelligo¡¯s longest straight line.


    ¡°It¡¯s a ghost ship.¡± Jalldrid said in awe. ¡°It¡¯s dead!¡±


    Facing them, so close that they could see the individual bulkheads, an entire section of the front port of the ship was gone; blast marks and severe scorching covered the immediate area. It was a gaping hole of blackness into the ship, making it a true ship of death. Debris and rubble floated unevenly next to the blast hole, surrounding the ship. Bob shivered at the sight.


    Jalldrid whirled back to Bob suddenly. ¡°This is what you saw?¡± he demanded.


    Bob nodded slowly, ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure.¡± Jalldrid cursed heavily. He turned to stare back at the ship.


    ¡°Do you recognize the type of ship?¡± Jerall asked.


    Jalldrid huffed. ¡°I¡¯m not too familiar with military craft, but even so this is something way beyond me. It¡¯s beyond anything as far as I can tell, there is no way a Hulian or even an Asdred Navy has something like that. It¡¯s huge! It has got to be imperial.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not imperial,¡± Bob added, stepping forward slightly, ¡°Not that kind of ship. It not practical to build an enormous ship like this, for the same resources you could make dozens of smaller ships and end up with more firepower between them. The energy it takes to run that kind of ship is unimaginable. Nothing like this has been built for hundreds of years.¡±This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    ¡°A hundred years?¡± Jalldird asked belligerently, ¡°Now it¡¯s a sure thing that everybody is dead over there. Galaxy, look at that scar! What could have caused that?¡± he turned to Bob, ¡°And how in the galaxy do you know so much about that!?¡±


    ¡°A better question is,¡± Bob said, passing his attention to Jerall, ¡°What was it that pulled us out of Cruise? Was it that ship? I doubt it. There could be more out there.¡±


    ¡°What, more dead ships?¡± Jalldrid asked sardonically, ¡°Fat lot of help that will get us, there¡¯s going to be nothing else in this system.¡±


    Bob turned to Jalldird angrily, ¡°It will get us something. Anything is better than waiting around for our oxygen to run out! There has got to be something out there, that ship certainly didn¡¯t pull us out, as you say it¡¯s dead! ¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not completely dead,¡± Jerall cut in, standing up out of her seat. She pointed out the view screen, ¡°It hard to see form here, but it looks like some of the aft sections still have power. You can see some lights on.¡±


    The three stared out again at it, trying to come to grips with what they were seeing.


    ¡°Can lights stay on indefinitely on a ghost ship?¡± Bob asked tentatively.


    ¡°Indefinitely is too broad of term for me to use,¡± Jalldrid responded, ¡°But I¡¯ve heard of ships remaining lost and dormant for hundreds of years before found again. It¡¯s every scavenger¡¯s dream! Galaxy knows space is the best preserver. If they¡¯ve got enough power, it¡¯s possible.¡± He shook his head again, ¡°But there won¡¯t be anything else out there to see us, I don¡¯t care what our Citizen says. Like I said, nobody would let a salvageable wreck like that sit in space for hundreds of years. Its raw metal alone is worth a fortune.¡±


    ¡°Fine,¡± Bob spat, ¡°That¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll take your professional word on this one. And if you¡¯re right, then there is still another option available to us other than group asphyxiation.¡± He looked at Jerall. Jalldrid followed his gaze.


    Jerall stared back at him for a second before answering. ¡°I get what you are saying Bob. If there is power over there might be Oxygen? You¡¯re right, there could be.¡±


    ¡°We could send a team of four;¡± Bob said quickly, ¡°That way we guarantee enough oxygen here for the people staying to get rescued. Splitting up like this is the only way to save everybody!¡± Neither sibling responded and Bob continued, ¡°Or it could easily be a suicidal mission, in which the members would all suffocate in their space suits. God knows there are an awful lot of assumptions here.¡±


    ¡°No kidding,¡± Jalldrid interjected pulling out his hand to help count, ¡°You¡¯re assuming there is Oxygen over there, which is 50/50 in my opinion. You¡¯re assuming you would actually be able to breach and enter the ship in the first place, which might as well be an impossible task without knowing the structural layout of the ship. You¡¯re assuming you¡¯ll actually be able to cross space in space suits safely though rubble, and finally and most unlikely, you¡¯ll need to get four volunteers from this crew to risk their lives out there when they could stay alive here!¡±


    ¡°They could only stay alive if four sacrifice themselves.¡± Bob said sternly, ¡°You think this is a poor option? Fallin wasn¡¯t joking when he said that you would have to start kill each other off to save yourselves. I¡¯ve seen it happen before; you bet your ass it will happen here if we don¡¯t do something to give them hope.¡±


    Jalldrid glared back at Bob but couldn¡¯t respond. Bob added, turning to Jerall, ¡°I think it is our best option at this point. Now, I do have some experience with zero gravity suits and, more importantly, I have faith that we will be able to find what we need over there. I¡¯m volunteering myself for this mission. I know its desperate, but I¡¯ll be honest, we are in a desperate spot. Every second we waste deciding is literally a second of our lives ticking away.¡±


    Jerall stared back at him with a strange look on her face. Jalldrid made as if to say something, but fell silent again. He shifted uncomfortably against the wall, then burst out again suddenly, ¡°If you go and die out there, that will mean we will have to rely on our passenger to contact help for us. Considering how she tried to kill us before, I doubt she¡¯ll be very cooperative.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯ll want to survive as much as the rest of us,¡± Jerall spoke straightening up from her slouch. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go visit our crewmen.¡± With that she got up and left the bridge, climbing slowly down the hatchway.


    Jalldrid stared at her passing figure. ¡°This is madness,¡± he said savagely.


    ¡°I don¡¯t deny it.¡± Bob replied, climbing down after her. Jalldrid snorted in disgust and then followed them down.


    Jalldrid made it down just in time to here Jerall start.


    ¡°I¡¯ve got bad news, boys¡± She said frankly, ¡°There is no help coming for us. The ship we saw is a ghost ship.¡±


    Rather than an outcry of sound, then crew absorbed the news in quiet terror. Only Fallin shifted his face, hardening at the news.


    ¡°However, Our esteemed Citizen here has come up with a brilliant plan with the best odds of all of us surviving until help can be reached through the headpieces. Quite frankly, it¡¯s our only option at this point. There is a chance that the ghost ship we saw still has Oxygen. It still has power and its close so we think we will be able to reach it if it is there. A team of four will be dispatched over there to find it and, with some luck, survive.¡± The crew stared back at her in disbelief but she continued relentlessly, ¡°That will leave the four people here with a guarantee of survival.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the chance of survival for the people going out there?!¡± Fallin demanded standing up heatedly, ¡°How do you know there is still oxygen over there?¡±


    Jerall growled back, ¡°There no point in giving figures to the possibilities, there is either oxygen or no oxygen over there and that¡¯s that! However, we can see the lights on over there and both Bob and I believe in this. That is why we are both Bob and I will be going on this trip. Obviously we need two more volunteers.¡±


    ¡°If you think you¡¯re going to go over there without me, Sister,¡± Jalldrid cut in viciously, ¡°Then you¡¯ve lost equilibrium. I¡¯m coming too.¡± Bob rolled his eyes.


    ¡°Great,¡± Jerall continued, not missing a beat, ¡°I know this is short notice, but that leaves one left. This is strictly volunteer, but since we need to keep the at least one citizen here,¡± She glared at the passenger for a second, ¡°That leaves one of you four to come with us. If I had my choice, I¡¯d like to have Fallin.¡±


    ¡°What?! Why me?¡± Fallin objected.


    ¡°One,¡± Jerall responded with equal force, ¡°You are the only one here without a family,¡±


    Fallin grumbled something about his sister.


    ¡°Only one here without a family dependent upon him,¡± Jerall corrected with a wave of her hand, ¡°Secondly you are the one with the most experience in the zero gravity suits. Lastly, and most importantly, you¡¯ve got the tenacity of a survivor which we will need.¡±


    ¡°Yeah I¡¯ve got the tenacity,¡± Fallin answered, ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m going to stay! These kinds of heroics are what get people killed. There is no way you¡¯re making me go out there! Let one of these two oafs go!¡± He added, pointing to Foota and Roota, ¡°They both have experience too!¡±


    Jerall stuck Fallin with a stare for a few moments, but he held his ground resolutely. Disgusted, she turned to the rest. ¡°So he has spoken, what do you say?¡±


    Roota and Foota remained mute and kept their faces down, cowering from Jerall¡¯s glare. The passenger looked on indifferently. After a moment, Fallin kicked Roota, ¡°Come on one of you! This is your opportunity to show yourselves, you cowards!¡±


    Roota stood up angrily, ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear that you! I¡¯ve got a family at home and some kids that need me. So does Foota! What about you? What do you have that¡¯s worth your life? A lifestyle fit for the lowest dreg of humanoid company? You can just throw yourself into a black hole, Fallin!¡±


    ¡°You think that you¡¯re better than me?¡± Fallin shouted, swelling in rage, ¡°You looking down on me, huh? You think you can pressure me into this? Well, I tell you,¡± he said pointing at all of them as they stared at him with two of his arms, ¡°You all are no better than I in the end, we are all just struggling to survive! That¡¯s all that life is and if I take the easy way, what¡¯s it to you? I do things my own my.¡±


    ¡°You coward,¡± Bob said distastefully.


    ¡°You bet the Ship I am! I didn¡¯t sign up for this, none of this happens when proper protocols are followed!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll go.¡± Rafel said quietly, interrupting Fallin.


    Fallin froze for a second, his eyes bulging, ¡°You? You¡¯re scared stiff of any work done out there! You¡¯re a cowardly fool who depends upon superstitious nonsense to give you the energy to get up every day! The only thing you do out there is be a drag! What do you offer the out there?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not about what I can do out there,¡± Rafel replied, shaking, ¡°But what I can do for those left here. Somebody has to go.¡±


    ¡°But- but,¡± Fallin shouted, ¡°What about my sister. Your wife?? You¡¯re just going to leave her a widow if you go. Who will take care of her??¡±


    ¡°That will have to be left to you then,¡± Jerall replied for Rafel, stepping forward and taking him by the arm. ¡°Now that we have our full team, we¡¯ll be off. Can¡¯t have us wasting your precious oxygen, this situation doesn¡¯t offer much time. You guys stay here, keep warm, and keep your citizen happy! Come on guys.¡± She strutted across the level heading towards the aft department practically dragging Rafel. Bob followed her and after only a slight hesitation, Jalldrid followed as well, shaking his head.


    ¡°That¡¯s a suicidal run!¡± Fallin called out after then, practically chasing them across the way, ¡°Suicide, you hear me?! You¡¯re a fool Rafel, you will die out there for sure. And you¡¯ll be more alone than ever in your life!!¡±


    ¡°He won¡¯t be alone!¡± Jerall snapped back, pushing Rafel ahead of her, ¡°We¡¯ll all be there too. Now shut up and get back there! Rafel¡¯s made his choice and so did you!¡± with that she marched ahead.


    ¡°Out of the way,¡± Jalldrid said sternly, pushing Fallin aside. He passed by and the four left the engine room.


    ¡°Who do you all think you are?¡± Fallin shouted back. ¡°I¡¯m not going to thank you for this!¡±


    The four entered the aft section, right below were the galley was. It was only that section that had the access out to the open space outside and it also housed the limited gear they had for emergencies.


    ¡°That noisy buggard,¡± Jalldrid growled. ¡°He doesn¡¯t need to put up that much of a stink.¡±


    ¡°Ignore him,¡± Jerall answered wretching open a hatch and pulling out gear. ¡°We¡¯ve cleared the first step of getting volunteers, but no other part of this will be easier. Here take this,¡± she added passing over some suits to Bob.


    Bob eyed the suit distastefully. He looked up at Jerall, ¡°On second thought, I notice that all the circuits in the suit are out.¡±


    ¡°Brilliant work, Citizen,¡± Jerall commented, ¡°Of course they are inoperable; we¡¯ve been hit by an ion array. Here you¡¯ll need this.¡± She passed him a helmet that looked questionable.


    Bob stared at the suits some more as he passed them around, ¡°Forgive me if this is a stupid question, but with all the controls out how are these suits supposed to operate? For that matter,¡± he looked out towards the exit of the craft, ¡°The membrane divider is out of order too. How are we supposed to get out?¡±


    Jerall grinned back, ¡°No reversing course now, Citizen. It¡¯s too late for that.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re going to have to do everything manually, Citizen,¡± Jalldrid responded already getting his suit on. ¡°The renegade has emergency systems for this case; we will be setting up an airlock here. Also, even if the circuits are out on these suits, they¡¯ll still function. We just lose some of its perks, such as its scrubs. If these suits were working, we could all live off the oxygen it scrubs on the ship. As it is, we each have about a half an hour of oxygen stored in these for each of us.¡±


    ¡°So,¡± Jerall continued, completing her suit, ¡°We¡¯ve got thirty minutes to find oxygen over there. Help me put on this helmet, Rafel.¡±


    Bob froze his face in a scowl as Rafel shuffled over to Jerall. ¡°Half an hour? That¡¯s an awful short period.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps it was easier to sell your idea without knowing what you were actually saying.¡± Jalldrid replied dryly.


    Bob ignored him, his suit still in his hands. ¡°Just hold on,¡± he said angrily, ¡°How are we even supposed to get over there? With no controls on our suit we literally float around out there! You guys have experienced that before, right? The ship¡¯s close, but it might as well be a galaxy away if we have to try to jump over there.¡±


    Jalldrid responded again, finishing putting on his suit, ¡°For the guy who came up the idea, you sure seem nervous, Citizen.¡±


    ¡°Shut up, Jalldrid!¡± Bob snarled, ¡°I¡¯m being serious here.¡±


    Jerall rolled her eyes, ¡°get your suit on already citizen. You may be losing your nerve on this, but I still believe. No, we are not just jumping over there and yes, we realize what it means to not have the circuits work on. You might not know what you are doing, but have a little more faith in us. This is your idea, remember?¡± Bob stood stubbornly still. ¡°BY SPACE, GET YOUR SUIT ON ALREADY!¡± Slowly, Bob did what he was told.


    ¡°Alright pay attention you two,¡± Jerall continued, pointing out Bob and Rafel, ¡°Once you get your headgear on, the switch on the back will be the start of your independent air. In other words, 30 minutes starts from then. Wait until I tell you so before switching it, okay?¡± Rafel nodded silently, clutching his ornament tightly in his right hand.


    ¡°What¡¯s that plan then?¡± Bob started, now actually pulling the suit on with attitude, ¡°If we aren¡¯t jumping then what-¡°


    ¡°What do you think you doing, Rafel!¡± Fallin snarled, coming into the room like a night prowler. He snatched Rafel before any of the other could intervene, ¡°You¡¯re going out there over my dead body, you idiot!¡± With all four of his arms, he took hold of Rafel who squawked unintelligibly and tossed him out of the room. ¡°You can just stay here over there.¡±


    Jalldrid moved forward, but Jerall stopped him. They watched the exchange silently.


    ¡°Somebody¡¯s got to go!¡± Rafel wailed, sitting up and holding his face where he scraped against the floor. ¡°I didn¡¯t see you volunteering.¡±


    ¡°Not you,¡± Fallin roared, ¡°You¡¯re just a coward who¡¯ll screw it up.¡±


    Rafel got up unsteadily. ¡°What do you want then Fallin? Out of the way,¡± he growled, ¡°You can¡¯t stop me. I¡¯m doing this for you, you know!¡±


    ¡°What did I ever do to deserve this?¡± Fallin shouted, bearing down on his brother-in-law, ¡°You don¡¯t owe me anything. Get-get back there.¡± Rafel had tried to scoot past him, but Fallin grabbed the ceiling with his arms and kicked Rafel back and knocking him over again.


    Rafel stood up again breathing heavily. He wiped some blood off his chin looked at Fallin and then shrugged his arms, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, we¡¯ll die I don¡¯t go, brother. We¡¯ll all die if five people stay here. We are already wasting oxygen.¡±


    Fallin ground his teeth, ¡°You¡¯ve never stood up to me before, why now, Rafel?¡± Rafel didn¡¯t answer.


    ¡°Fine,¡± Fallin said suddenly, ¡°Fine. I get it, I¡¯ll go I your stead.¡±


    Rafel squawked in protest but then Fallin slugged him in the stomach with his two right arms silencing him. He said savagely, ¡°Get your filthy reptilian hide back to the engine room before I knock you unconscious and drag you there.¡± Rafel paused a bit; moaning in pain, but soon got up and left, crawling back towards the engine room. ¡°Take care of my sister,¡± Fallin added as Rafel retreated from view. He turned back to the three left.


    ¡°Welcome to the crew,¡± Jerall said brightly, ¡°I knew you¡¯d come, but wasn¡¯t that a bit harsh? You didn¡¯t have to hit him.¡±


    Fallin paused and glared back at her, ¡°This is no different than just killing ourselves so that the others can survive. This is all you fault Captain, I hope I¡¯ll stay alive long enough to see you die first.¡±


    Bob shook his head and sighed, ¡°I think I preferred Rafel¡­¡±


    Fallin chuckled cynically. ¡°Not after you see me in action, Citizen,¡± answered, reaching in and pulling out his own suit, specially made to fit his body, ¡°I¡¯m the best at these kinds of maneuvers. Especially without our powered suits.¡±


    The rest up the set up was done in while Jerall tried to explain the plan quickly. Jerall and Jalldrid set up the temporary air lock while Fallin and Bob finished dressing themselves and locking in their headgear. Jalldrid had with him a load of special equipment.


    ¡°Ready?¡± Jerall asked the group. Only Bob responded and it was with a small nod. ¡°Press your switches on my mark, remember we¡¯ve got 30 minutes each from that moment to get to the other ship and find oxygen.¡±


    ¡°Just one thing,¡± Bob said, raising his hand. ¡°In your professional opinion, what are our chances of succeeding here?¡±


    Jerall raised her eyebrow. ¡°Press you switch in 3¡­ 2¡­ 1¡­ Mark.¡± At the countdown they all pressed the switches together. A second later Jalldrid de-pressurized the air lock and ten seconds later, space spread out before them.

 Chapter 12

    Thankfully, even if electronic circuitry was dead, physics still worked. Each of the suits had been equipped with magnetic holders on the boots to keep them stationary on the ship. That being said, walking out onto the surface of the ship was one of the most surreal experiences Bob ever had. Of course, there was no gravity and with only the boots keeping them in, Bob felt an indescribable insecurity. Also the suit he had on was a little too big for him, he felt like he was swimming in it.


    Still, time was against them and they had to move fast. Ignoring the sudden nausea in his stomach, he swallowed his fear and continued forward, following the other three who seemed to have much less trouble than him.


    Directly perpendicular to their bodies and parallel with the renegade was the ship. It filled practically the entire landscape with its hull. With it hovering so close above them, Bob was overwhelmed by its sheer enormity. Even more than the Arpeligo, to see such a construction and know that it actually once moved across the galaxy freely filled Bob with a sense of awe. Bob wondered what the ship did during its life.


    Looking at it more closely, the giant ship looked more scarred and damaged than ever before. As big as it was, having the front starboard section broken like that meant that a space ta hundred times the size of the renegade had been gouged out and all that debris was floating around carelessly. Long streaks of black scorched hull ran down the ship like rivers down from a mountain. It was a ghastly sight and Bob wondered if there was truly anything still functional on a ship like that.


    The space around them was littered with rubble from the disaster. Some pieces were only tiny pebbles floating around in a storm, but others were as large as the renegade itself. Even walking across the deck, Bob had to dodge the debris around him.


    With the equipment in the suits non-operable, there was no communication available between the four members, only crude hand gestures barely distinguishable in in their suits. Jerall and Jalldrid seemed to be on the same wave length in that regard, but for Bob he couldn¡¯t help but feel truth in the words of Fallin from earlier. If he died out here, it would be without hearing the voice of another soul again.


    Jerall had picked their launching spot when they were inside yet. It was the best location on the renegade from which they were to conduct their operation. It was only a few paces up the hull of the renegade but in the suits in which each step was a chore it felt like and mile and with the oxygen ticking down, an eternity. Halfway there Bob felt a sharp tap on his shoulder. Turning around he saw Fallin guesting out with two of his arms. He looked to where Fallin was pointing.


    Floating far beyond them and partially on the other side of the ghost ship sat an unmistakable space station. Little could be understood about it from the distance except one crucial fact. It too was dead.


    The station had what looked like a spider web of columns around it making a soft sphere around a solid core. A section of the columns, however, showed similar damage that the ghost ship had, a huge section had been blown away and it was dark and wounded. If Bob had to guess, he would have said that the Ship rammed the station. Of course, there was no way to be certain. He turned back to the task at hand, ignoring the equally imposing but eminently insignificant structure.


    A small sun was there as well; provide barely any extra light into the system. Its light was white and cold and Bob shivered looking at it and wondered why a station would be out in the empty system in the first place. He pushed his thoughts back and moved forward with the group.


    At the launch sight, Jerall and Jalldrid set up what looked like a harpoon gun. It attached itself to the renegade¡¯s hall in a way that would have made Rafel cry. This part of the plan wasn¡¯t explained well to Bob, but then again time was short and he wasn¡¯t going to helping in it all. Basically, the idea was to launch the harpoon like thing at the ghost ship above and have it attach to the hull using strong magnets and cruel looking claws. Connected to the harpoon was a long length of cable, or so it had been described. Looking at it now, it didn¡¯t look adequate for its task. If Bob had a choice he would have doubled its length just to be sure the harpoon would make it to the ghost ship before ending. At this moment, though, there was no choice.


    Within minutes, the harpoon was successfully set up. Apparently they had had some sort of training with this kind of set up before; otherwise Bob was certain it would have taken the whole half hour to get it prepared. What use was the harpoon setup beyond this unimaginable disaster? It didn¡¯t matter anyway. Bob knew that if he had to help in the set up, he would only have screwed it up. He stayed back and waited patiently, trying his best not to breathe.


    At some wordless signal, Jerall back away quickly from the harpoon gun, leaving Jalldrid at its base. Turning around, Jerall gathered Fallin and Bob and pulled them all back a ways, well clear of the harpoon gun. Then they turned around and watched Jalldrid at his work. With the way he was leaned over, it was impossible to see his face.


    It was painfully obvious that they would only get one shot at this. If something went wrong, if the harpoon didn¡¯t stick correctly at the other end, if they ran out of cable, if the firing mechanism malfunctioned, if a hundred other possibilities happened, it would be over.


    A large chuck of rubble was floating overhead; right in the way of Jalldrid¡¯s shot. It was moving away, but slowly and Fallin grew impatient threw all four hands in the air as if to shew the rubble away. Feeling only a little silly, Bob did the same but the rubble moved in agonizing slowness. Bob tried to think about how much time had passed since they started, then realized he had no idea. He felt that at any moment he would be out. He suddenly felt lightheaded just thinking about it.


    Without warning, the harpoon suddenly shot off jarring Bob back into reality from the burst of light and the vibration across the ship. Bob realized he forgot to worry about the shot. Emerging from the small dust cloud, Jalldrid came forward, warding it away. All eyes were on the harpoon.


    It took only seconds for the harpoon to reach its destination, but again, to Bob it felt as if it would never arrive. Whether it was by Jalldrid good timing or by the fates of the universe, the harpoon miraculously made it through without hitting any object, except one small piece that barely altered its trajectory. Looking at the cable as it disappeared silently, Bob saw the entirety of it go, then fall back slightly in the rebound. With all said and done, it looked as if only 5 feet was spared.


    After the Cable stopped shaking violently, Jalldrid grabbed it roughly to hold it still. Looking up at the course of the cable he gave it a couple soft tugs and waited. Nothing happened so he tugged again, harder, and then again putting all his strength into it. Bob almost had a heart attack seeing Jalldrid look like he was trying to wretch the blasted harpoon free form the other side, but thankfully, nothing stirred. Releasing the cable with one hand Jalldrid turned to the group and gave the signal for success. A large smile played upon his face.


    Next to Bob, Fallin threw his hands in the air again and, presumably, let out a loud yell of adulation. Bob just shook his head and Jerall strode forward without delay.


    The next part of the plan was the most complicated and required the most technical effort on Bob¡¯s part. Jerall synched up the cable, making it at tight as he could dare, securing the end to the base of the harpoon launcher. Each of the party had to then attach a particular cord from their suit onto the cable.


    ¡°We are really going to have to jump?¡± Bob had asked incredulously when he first heard the plan back on the renegade still. ¡°I had said that jokingly!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll be attached to the cable still, so you won¡¯t go flying off into space, but essentially yes.¡± Jerall explained, showing off the specific part of the suit that was to connect to the cable. It was a hard metal that kept itself perpendicular to the cable so that the user could have some base to control orientation. ¡°You¡¯ll disconnect your boots magnetization and you¡¯ll leap up at the ship, letting your inertia carry you over there. The cable will keep you on track. Landing will be the tricky part though; you¡¯ll have to turn your body around while traveling so that you end up on your feet and then tighten the break line of the cable to slow yourself down so that you don¡¯t crash into the ship.¡±


    Looking at the cable now and watching Jalldrid help Jerall attach herself, Bob realized Jerall failed to mention the most important part of this. Doing this quickly. Bob had completely lost track of time already, but looking at the actions of Jalldrid and Jerall, he could tell that it was going to be expiring soon. There would be no time to wait for any shenanigans on the cable line.


    With a small bounce, Jerall lifted off the renegade like was a rocket taking off from the ground. Looking at her, it was clear she had done something at least similar to this before. She kept her left arm strictly to its side with her right cuffed up next to her with a tight grip on the break line. Halfway there, she used her right arm to brace herself against her cord and slowly pull her body around so that she was facing them.


    Within moments she started to slow down as she pressed her break line shut. He destination as rapidly approaching, but even as she threatened to smack into it, she slowed significantly and by the time she reach it, she only had to step off gracefully like she was ascending from a staircase. As soon as she hit the hull she quickly magnetized her boots and was ready to go. Bob wondered at her incredible control.


    Fallin¡¯s turn was next and for once his multiple arms proved a hindrance as their potential flailing could throw off his balance. Still, it was clear at once that he had had similar experience. He was able to orient himself correctly and landed at the other end if not with as much grace as Jerall, then with more definite footing.


    Suddenly it was Bob¡¯s turn and he was now sweating despite the chill in his suit. Jalldrid was beckoning him forward and suddenly he felt as if the magnetization on his boots had been turned to max. Striding forward, Jalldrid came and pulled Bob towards the harpoon. Bob suddenly regretted very much ever stepping on foot the Arpeligo where he had met Jerall and Jalldrid and came to this unfortunate fate.


    Standing at the base of the harpoon, Jalldrid was hooking up Bob to the cable without help. After that was done, Bob and him stood still, Jalldrid waiting for Bob to step up and take hold of the cable. After a moment, Jalldrid forcefully thrust the cable into Bob¡¯s hand and pulled Bob¡¯s face up to his. He started yelling something at Bob, but Bob could only stare back. He could not read that species lips. After Jalldrid completed his speech, he smacked Bob across the faceplate. Perhaps it was meant to give Bob strength, but it only made his ears ring.


    Bob was not a religious man, but looking up at the cable and then across to the other ship and seeing the two people waving at him with six arms, Bob prayed to God. ¡°Jesus Christ, give me strength.¡± With that, and his heart pumping a million gallons a minute and surely wasting all his oxygen, Bob reached down and disengaged his magnetism and leapt up without thinking. It was the only way he could have leapt.


    Bob felt that Jesus gave him too much strength. He was going faster across the stretch than he hoped he would. He tried to concentrate on what he needed to do, but the fast approaching hull of the ghost ship and little pieces of rubble floating by, threatening to knock him over kept distracting him. Still, halfway across by his estimation, he started to twist his body against the hard cable. He wasn¡¯t as gracefully as Jerall and his left arm flailed wastefully against him.


    He had successfully managed to turn himself horizontal at least and was starting to actually think he was going to make it when a piece of rubble floating by hit him. It was a small piece by any standard, hardly bigger than a soft ball, but it was hard and hit his outstretched feet and used leverage against him. In a moment he had lost control and lost his grip on the cable.


    Bob started spinning out of control around the cable. The rubble had decreased his speed slightly, but the destination was fast approaching and Bob had lost all ability to tell when that would come. Spinning around the cable, Bob could only hear his own hard breathing and the soft ¡°vrrr¡± from the vibrations of the cable. He wondered if that would be the last thing he would hear.


    Letting go of all thought of righting himself or even trying to stop the spin, Bob struggled desperately for the Breakline. After flailing for a few minutes he secured it and tugged on it as hard as he could. With a sudden jerk, Bob felt like his suit was going to tear itself away from him. The force hurt him painfully as the suite scrapped and tugged against his side inside. He lost further stability as his body bounced around from the sudden change in force. Still, he did not stop immediately and within moments he felt his back slam against the unforgiving hull of the ghost ship. He was luckily in the rotation that slammed his back first and, but the hit knocked the air out of him and his shocked body was unable to grasp any support to keep him on the hull. He stated to float away again.


    Four large strong arms reached up and snatched him before he could float away again. He felt himself get pulled down to the hull and Jerall grabbed his legs and magnetized the boots quickly. Only one activated, pulled his right leg down to the metal. The left remained where it was. Jerall gave it a quick look, but then turned, shaking her head, signaled for Fallin to cut him loose from the cable.


    Back on solid ground again, Bob lay still on the plate, breathing heavily and trying to calm down from his experience. Jerall leaned over him with concern, trying to talk with him and shake him down. With an effort, Bob put up his hand, trying to say that he was okay, that his back didn¡¯t hurt that much, that he didn¡¯t think any bones were broken, and that what he really needed was a hug after his near death experience.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    Bob doubted she understood the whole message, but she pulled him close and gave him a big hug. Oddly, Bob thought he felt a little better.


    In the end, fiasco with Bob didn¡¯t really waste much extra time. Jalldrid hardly waited for Bob to be saved before he too took his turn up the cable. He too was in the trajectory of some rubble passing through, but he stuck out his left hand and struck it forcefully way before it could affect him. It looked cool and Bob scowled back at him, still lying down on the ghost ship hull.


    Without any other incidents, Jalldrid made it across safely and disengaged himself with ease. He waived at Bob quickly but Bob scowled back and took the cue to slowly get up and get moving again. In a sudden shocking move, Jalldrid reached up and disengaged the harpoon form the ship and let it float away. Bob would have squawked more if he had the energy, but Jalldird just shrugged back. They couldn''t leave to the two ship¡¯s connected for long and potentially have the renegade get pulled and crash into the ghost ship. Bob watched sadly as the cable floated slowly away. There was no return to the renegade now.


    Without any hesitation, Jerall continued forward towards the destination only she knew. With Bob¡¯s left boot inoperable Jalldrid had to help Bob forward. Idly, Bob wondered if he was not rather a drag on this mission. Maybe they should have just left him behind. Not that he was going to argue with them. For the hundredth time, Bob wondered how much time they had left.


    It looked like Jerall was heading for the nearest crater to them. It was a large black hole on the otherwise smooth surface of the ship they were on and it looking like the hole went deeply into the ship. As they approached Jerall got on her knees and bent forward into the hole trying to get a better view of what could possibly be inside.


    By the time Bob made it there, she had already stood up. The look on her face was not hopeful. She immediately started signaling Jalldrid who let go of Bob to respond back. Bob took the opportunity to peer inside the crater too.


    Bob understood immediately what Jerall was upset about. There was literally nothing to see. It was all darkness down there and upon retrospect; it seemed obvious to Bob that there should be. There was so little light other than what the millions of tiny stars afforded. None of that light reached down far into the crater and there was no light coming from it either. There could be the entrance they were looking for down there, there was no way to tell. Bob stood up and looked around. In front of him towards the destroyed section of the craft were dozens of similar holes, all presumably without any light in them. They did not have time to search them. The realization left him cold and he turned and looked at the leader.


    The Captain and Jerall were having a very animated conversation using only their arms. Presumably they were discussing what to do now, but it wasn¡¯t clear to Bob what they were saying. He shook his head and looked away, a dead feeling slipping into this stomach.


    Fallin had actually taken his look into the crater a step further and had actually entered the nearly perpendicular drop. He was climbing slowly down, using all four arms expertly, but soon he was out of sight.


    Bob looked back towards the station he had ignored before. He wondered what kind of people used to live there. Was it a large population such as what Arpeligo had? Did they live and walk on the station with trade and commerce? Where they all dead over there too, with centuries passing without any disturbance to their sleep? Then more practical questions came into his head, had this ship really rammed into the station? Why would it, with all its fire power, do that? If they were fighting, wouldn¡¯t it rather use all its armaments to reduce the station to slag from a safe distance? And surely, a disaster like this would be catastrophic for a ship, but not fatal. Surely after the accident they could both call for help or rescue? Bob was left with unanswered questions.


    Bringing his attention back to the task at hand, Bob noticed more craters behind him, away from the center of the catastrophe. Less of them certainly, and much more spread out, but there none the less. An idea suddenly sprang into his head. He got up and hit Jalldrid on the shoulder to get his attention.


    Jalldrid turned to him and it was clear to Bob that he was not in the mood to be toyed with. He glared back at Bob. Bob swallowed and tried to convey his idea. Jalldrid stared back uncomprehending.


    Bob struggled a moment, then tried again. ¡°We should search in that direction!¡± He shouted uselessly, pointing toward the aft section of the ship, away from the giant hole. He gestured with his arms in exaggerated motion, ¡°There is power over there, and we might find a hole we can actually look into! We won¡¯t find anything different up here, much less oxygen. It¡¯s all dead!¡±


    Jalldrid didn¡¯t understand what Bob was saying, but luckily Jerall was there right behind him and was able to get the idea from Bob. She pulled Jalldrid around and explained what Bob was saying, in their own strange language. Jalldrid was proving to be skeptical and held his ground. Frustrated, Bob sighed and looked back towards few craters behind him. Perhaps none of them would let them in in the end.


    At that moment, Fallin reappeared from the hole he had crawled into. He looked angry and frustrated as well, he climbed out of the hole shaking his head. As soon as he got up he strode to Jerall and started yelling at her in an unheard voice, yet clearly understood intent. Jalldrid intervened, perhaps to defend his sister, but Fallin pushed him away angrily with his two left hands. Jalldrid fell over unsteadily. With his two right hands, Fallin grabbed Jerall and lifted her off the hull. He pulled her close as if to choke her.


    Without hesitation, Jerall head butted Fallin in the helmet. No real damage was done it was more of an intent to get his attention and to calm him down. Regardless, Fallin held her up a few more seconds before letting her down again. He let her go and stood in silent agitation. Jalldrid was able to get up steadily after a moment.


    Taking control, Jerall pointed out the craters further back and then without waiting for an answer headed in their direction. Anybody who stayed would get left behind. Bob followed her quickly with Fallin right after and Jalldrid taking the back. Whatever he was arguing about with Jerall, it looks like her lost.


    In the direction they were traveling, there were about seven craters within reach of their location. Depending on how much air they had left, there was probably even less of a chance they would be able to get to all seven if the first few didn¡¯t prove to be helpful.


    Thinking on it, Bob wondered why they hadn¡¯t put more thought into what they were looking for earlier. Sure, they were simply desperate and in a hurry to get out of there, but shouldn¡¯t they have come up with a more reasonable plan? How were they expecting to get into the ship? Bob recalled what Jerall had told the group earlier.


    ¡°How to enter this ship is the most important part here, guys, ¡° She had told them as they were putting on the finishing touches of their suits. ¡°Ships aren¡¯t designed to simply be accessed from the outside by some scavengers. Furthermore, we don¡¯t have the equipment to simply cut a hole and break in. The odds of finding an airlock that we would be able to work with are so against us; we are not even going to pursue it.¡±


    ¡°Why not?¡± Fallin asked, ¡°On a ship that size, there must be hundreds of entry points that we could use!¡±


    ¡°Airlocks aren¡¯t made to be opened simply from the outside.¡± Jalldrid explained, ¡°Furthermore, this thing is a warship. It¡¯s not going to be designed so that people can simply infiltrate it by putting on spacesuits and climbing over it. No, we will need to get in another way.¡±


    ¡°And what way will that be?¡± Bob asked, feeling exhausted already.


    ¡°Obviously, we¡¯ll be going for the weakness in the ship,¡± Jerall said brightly finishing setup on their equipment. ¡°All those holes over there are opportunities for getting inside the ship. It¡¯s only a matter of finding the right one.¡±


    Jerall was right about one thing. There were certainly a lot of holes on this corner of the ship. Unfortunately, none of them looked to be promising.


    The first they had looked at was so dark inside that even with Fallin crawling inside it, he couldn¡¯t see anything useful. There could have been an opening inside it that the four could get into, even if there wasn¡¯t air immediately, which of course there wouldn¡¯t be because it would have been all sucked out in the vacuum already, getting inside the stupid ship was the first step before they could even look for air in it.


    Bob scowled in his helmet. This whole trip was his stupid idea; he was too naive when he suggested it.


    Jerall arrived at the next hole, but only gave it a quick glance before leaving it behind as well. Bob, a little behind, took a little extra time to peer into it. It too was black as space inside it. Feeling disheartened, Bob looked up. They were looking for a hole in a section of the ship that was still alive, right? How far back would they have to go? Bob thought perhaps, there was no hole near them that would work.


    Jerall was moving fast across the hull of the ship, recklessly not using her magnetized boots correctly. If she made a mistake in her movements, she could lose her balance and, at worst case, lose her grip on the hull and float way.


    The third crater they made for was very wide, almost as wide as the entirety of the renegade. It was very shallow as well, and with its shape, it looked like a large bowl. If they decided to explore it, it would be relatively easy to get down into it. Also, with the wide open feel of it, there was enough light to be able to see around in it. Still, there was no sign of life in the crater, no flickering lights and exposed relays shorting out. Jerall stood at the top of the crater uncertainty and waited for the rest of the group to arrive.


    All together, the four of them stood atop the crater silently staring down into it. Judging by their demeanor, Bob concluded that they did not have much oxygen left. If the group did decide to explore this crater looking for an opening, they would not be able to get to any other ones before they ran out of time. After conferring with Jallrid, Jerall ultimately decided against this crater. They turned and left without looking back at it.


    The walk to the fourth crater was long and strenuous. Especially with only one of his boots was working, Bob feared that by the time they reached it he would have used all his oxygen from his heavy breathing. On the way, they appeared to have crossed over into a different section of the ghost ship. Gone was the flat smooth surfaces that had been on before, instead jagged outcroppings and odd protrusions of some strange equipment littered the surface now, if it could be called a surface. There was no longer any conformity and when they did arrive at their crater it proved to be a very deep gouge into the ship¡¯s hull. Looking at it, it appeared that what used to be there was a large turret of some sort before it got torn away, taking a section of the hull with it.


    Jerall was there first as always and she looked down into the hole first. After a moment, she crouched down ever further, trying to get the best line of sight she could. Bob was there shortly after.


    At first, the hole didn¡¯t look any different than the others. It was completely black and impossible to tell how deep the hole was. Furthermore, it wasn¡¯t very wide; only one person could fit down the hole at a time if they wanted to go down it. Bob shook his head at it and looked further across the ship. Only a couple more holes could they pursue if they wanted to, but the prospects were looking dim.


    Jalldrid arrived a moment later and his face filled with disgust at the sight of the hole. He turned to move away when Jerall grabbed him by the ankle and pointed down at something Bob couldn¡¯t see. They began to talk again with each other. Bob wondered, shouldn¡¯t they be leaving already?


    In a sudden motion, Jerall reached out a grabbed a chuck on debris from around them and threw it down the shaft. It quickly disappeared in the shadows of the hole, but only seconds later a blue shimmer appeared not 20 feet down, as if the rubble had hit a puddle. The shimmer spread across the width of the hole and then settled down and disappeared. It only lasted three seconds.


    Without hesitation, Fallin came up and immediately entered the hole headfirst. Bob wasn¡¯t too heartened by the sight, obviously not as much as Fallin was. He looked around again and shook his head as Fallin disappeared in the crevice. This was the last chance.


    Right after Fallin entered, Jerall went down into the hole too, staying behind him and moving forward carefully. Jalldrid extended his hand forward as if to invite Bob first, but Bob shook his head. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we wait until they return to give us news?¡± he tried to shout over to Jerall. He tried to gesture his words.


    Jalldrid shook his head and pointed Bob down into the hole again and then tapped the inoperable chronometer each suit had attached to it. Clearly, they were running out of time.


    With nothing else for it, Bob peered in again, just in time to see Fallin reach and slowly pass through the blue energy barrier. It lit up the corridor brilliantly as Fallin passed through, displaying the dirty damaged corridor. Was that the plasmic type barrier that kept air in and solids could pass through? Was there air on the other side? It was the best hope at the moment. The only hope really.


    Bob entered in only after a slight hesitation. The inside was cramped; it significantly decreased in size only a few feet in. His sides were scrapping the rough surface of the ship and he felt suddenly claustrophobic. The fabric of his suit caught on a minor outcropping shortly in and after a slight panic he freed himself from it. At this point, it was completely black and he had to go forward feeling the slides of the tunnel.


    Suddenly a blue shimmer lit up his way, signaling that Jerall had slipped through the membrane. In that moment he was able to see the inside more clearly but there wasn¡¯t much to see besides the wreckage of a torn and gutted section of the ship. He stopped a moment halfway through and put a steady hand on the side of the tunnel. He tried to feel any life in the ship, but not a hint of any kind of vibration made its way to him. Maybe his suit was too insulated to feel anything, but he couldn¡¯t help but feel a sense of dread and the sense that he would soon die in this tunnel. Stealing himself, he moved forward.


    He came to the membrane soon and he put his hand against it. It lit up brightly at his touch and offered a slight resistance to him. He pressed in and passed through.


    He was immediately disappointed. There was no pressure against his suit on the inside of the barrier, just the vacuum of emptiness. Even though the emergency barrier was active, there was nothing inside to keep safe. As he passed through, the light from the membrane illuminated the small cave like structure they were in again. Fallin and Jerall were working furiously at something in the corner and Bob let his hand stay there to keep light up. Jalldrid appeared soon after, crossing through the barrier with similar disgust.


    He turned to Bob with a questioning glance and Bob did his best to shrug. Leaving Bob to keep the light up, he went forward to see what the two were up to. Looking up, Bob saw the stars outside and wondered if there was still a chance they could get out and try another hole. Probably not. He kept his focus on the stars. If we were going to die here, he would prefer to be gazing at them rather than the ugly dirty metal around him.


    There was a commotion up front, and Bob reluctantly returned his attention there. There was some sort of argument and Fallin violently shoved both Jalldrid and Jerall away with his arms and then he latched all his limbs upon the siding he was on like a spider on a wall. He then proceeded to do his best to try to tear it away, struggling vainly against the metal. It was a desperate attempt and Jerall and Jalldrid looked on for a second, and then turned to each other, talking again in their gestures again in the way only siblings could understand.


    Was this all useless in the end? Well no, now that Bob thought about it, even if they died out here the four still on the renegade would still be saved. That was the whole idea of the plan, wasn¡¯t it? They did their best until the end, but like Fallin had said, this was really just a sacrifice to save those on the ship. Somehow, Bob felt a little comforted. As he stood there, he thought he could feel his loss of oxygen coming on. He felt a little dizzy.


    Suddenly, Bob felt the walls of the ship groan slightly. He looked back at Fallin who was struggling mightily with the siding. A moment later the siding came off in a fantastic burst of motion, and with it a blast of air came out as well, filling the space as the laws of physics demanded. Bob felt the warm air course over him and put pressure upon his suit. The pleasant feeling lasted only a moment though because a split second later the siding that Fallin had wretched off came flying it way towards Bob from the blast and smashed him on the side of the head in a horrendous crash.


    The last thing Bob saw before losing consciousness was a pool of his own blood floating before him and Jerall working frantically above him, shouting his name and trying to tear off his helmet. With air back in their space, Bob could hear again but her loud words hurt his head. ¡°At least it¡¯s warm,¡± he thought carelessly before he faded out.