A Galaxy Unknown (21 page)

A little before noon, Hawkface returned to her cell. She was secured, gagged, and then taken to the anteroom where she was fastened to the overhead bar before it was raised so high that she was barely able to touch the deck with the tips of her boots.

"What's she doing here?" one of the guards sitting at a desk, asked.

"She gave me some lip earlier and I thought that I'd let her watch us eat lunch so she could see what's she's missing. Also, it gives us something to look at. She's a looker when she's fixed up. What a body! Look at that skirt. It's so tight that I thought I'd have to carry her up here. She can't move her legs more than a dozen centimeters at a time, even when she swivels her hips."

"You're a fool," the other guard hissed. "You're coming damn close to crossing the line regarding abuse of prisoners."

"I'm not abusing her. I'm not even touching her. I'm just teaching her that she shouldn't give lip to the guards. Call it an educational session."

The first guard seemed about to argue but the food elevator arrived with their lunch. In minutes, the four guards on duty had collected in the anteroom to attack the fried chicken, mashed potatoes with gravy, and corn on the cob. Dessert was Lemon Meringue pie, and when Jenetta's stomach starting rumbling loud enough for the guards to hear over the sounds of their gourmandizing, a couple laughed heartily.

As the guards were finishing lunch, another entered the cellblock from the outside corridor.

"Hey, you guys didn't leave me much," the newcomer said.

"Run up to the kitchen and get some more," Hawkface said. "We didn't think that you were coming back before the shift ended."

"Ah, I got roped into working security at an operations briefing. There's something really big going down. Most every single ship that operates out of this port is here, and the ship's officers are all attending meetings in the conference center."

"What's up?" another guard said.

"I don't know exactly, but I heard that every warship in good fighting condition is being readied to leave the day after tomorrow, including the two new ships at airlocks 1-Sierra and 1-Tango."

"The battleships?"

"Yup, the ones that we stole from right under the noses of the stupid Spaccs. The word is that they're space ready, provisioned, and fully armed."

Jenetta's ears had picked up every word, and she knew immediately that this was the final piece of information that she needed. Everything would be in confusion as last minute preparations for ship departures were being wrapped up. People would be exhausted from overwork, and a lot of people would be having parties tonight since key personnel probably wouldn't be allowed to imbibe alcohol on the night before leaving port. With a major operation in the works, other raids would have been canceled, so the tugs and small ships necessary for the support of ancillary and cleanup operations should be sitting empty and idle. The situation was ready-made for an escape attempt.

* * *

An hour before dinner, as the first shift was preparing to go off duty, Jenetta was finally returned to her cell. After the guard had locked the door and released her, she worked her jaw and arms to remove the stiffness. She had gotten so used to wearing the skirt all day that she didn't even think about the peculiar way that it forced her to walk as she hobbled around the cell working out the details of her escape and planning the timing. Although she could have raised the rear zipper to give herself more freedom, leaving the skirt looking more like a tourniquet than a garment was an integral part of her plan.

When she heard the dinner bong, Jenetta moved immediately to the circle. Shortly, a guard opened the viewing slot in her cell door, looked in, then put his hand to the window and secured her before unlocking the cell door and carrying in her meal. Since the head-butting incident, they'd normally just backed out and released her, but this time the guard circled her several times. It was Romeo, the small guard that had used the food elevator to get the two apple pies, then called her a bitch and laughed about her not getting any. Her boots made her inches taller.

"I heard about this outfit— and about you spending the afternoon in the anteroom. I'm real sorry to have missed that. They let you down just before we came on duty. Say, how would you like some fresh apple pie tonight? All you have to do is drop to your knees, pull down my pants, and give me some relief." He snickered, as he flicked a finger against the tautness of her skirt where it covered her thighs. "That is, if you can even get down on your knees with that skirt on." When no answer came, he said, "No?"

Jenetta kept her face composed and stared straight ahead. Failing to get a rise from her, Romeo patted her ass a couple of times and then left, locking the door behind him.

Looking in the viewing slot, he said, "I should leave you secured and make you eat while lying on the floor. That would take you down a peg, Miss High and Mighty." His eyes pulled away from the slot to be replaced by his hand with the controller, then the slot slammed shut.

Released, Jenetta bent over, picked up the tray, and carried it to her cot. The meal was just rice and vegetables but she ate it greedily. She'd been famished ever since she'd watched the guards gobble down the veritable banquet that was their normal lunchtime fare.

When she had finished the meager repast, Jenetta very precisely placed the tray in front of the door. She'd been calculating exactly where it needed to be for each guard, since they all picked up the trays differently. Satisfied, she retrieved the controller from beneath the toilet bowl, and tested it by changing the bands from solid to flexible. It still worked! She next unzipped her skirt all the way to her waist to remove the half-slip. Letting it drop to the floor, she kicked the slip into the closet, and re-solidified her restraint bands.

For the next fifteen minutes, she practiced securing and releasing herself while standing on the circle with the controller concealed in her right hand. The small black controller, hidden as much as possible in her black gloved hand, while being held against her black leather skirt and black leather vest, should go unnoticed if Romeo followed his normal routine. She hoped that he wouldn't get amorous again. That could wreck her entire plan.

Hearing the single bong that indicated Romeo would be starting to collect the trays, started Jenetta's heart pounding in her chest so loudly that she thought he would surely hear it. This was an all or nothing plan; a chance for freedom, or a life of slavery, sexual abasement, and servitude as a mindless nympho. Luck had been on her side before and she hoped that she had just a little bit left.

Romeo finally reached her cell after some fifteen minutes, and looked in. Jenetta was standing on the circle, with her wrists against the belt. Concealed in her right hand was the small controller. Both hands were carefully positioned against her skirt to hold it tight against her. With a cursory glance, it should appear to still be zipped, even though it was open to the waistband in the back. Romeo's face disappeared from the viewing window and his hand appeared with the controller just before Jenetta felt her restraints lock. As the hand with the controller retracted from the slot, and the slot was closed, Jenetta used her own controller to release herself. She held her hands where they were and waited patiently.

Romeo unlocked the door, and shoved it open unceremoniously. Apparently, her earlier disinterest had hurt his ego enough to ensure that he wouldn't make any new overtures tonight. He simply bent over to get the tray.

Chapter Seventeen

~ August 10
^th
, 2267 ~

Regardless of what else Jenetta might have thought about Romeo, she couldn't fault his reflexes. She had shifted her weight to her left leg as the cell door began to open, and then stood motionless until his hands touched the tray. Her leg was a blur as she drew it back for the kick, but he saw the movement and tried to straighten up. As quick as he was, he just wasn't quite quick enough, and his upward movement only served to help Jenetta. Her booted foot caught him under the chin with a force that surprised even her. Combined with the momentum from his own effort to rise, he lifted completely into the air, flipped over, and came down obliquely on his head and neck. Jenetta heard the sickening sound of vertebrae shattering, but Romeo also grunted as he landed, so Jenetta jumped over to him, prepared to put the stiletto heel of her boot through his throat if he moved. He didn't. After a few anxious seconds, she pulled back her leg and bent to feel for a pulse. Romeo's days of fondling his baton were over.

The flip had sent Romeo sprawling partway into the corridor so Jenetta swiftly dragged him back into the cell. She removed the thick brass key from the outer lock, checked the corridor, then closed the door quietly. She pulled his stun pistol from his holster and set it on the floor where she could get to it quickly, before removing her restraints, skirt, vest, corset, and boots. She would need to be able to move freely for the rest of the night, and her company-provided clothes were definitely designed with the opposite objective in mind.

The only garments available to her that would allow freedom of movement were Romeo's, so she began to remove his uniform. As she unbuckled his belt and unzipped his trousers, she quipped, "I hope you're happy, Romeo. You finally got me to pull down your pants." The black humor was a defensive mechanism of the mind to distance herself from the horrific, albeit necessary, act that she had just perpetrated.

After stripping the guard to his under-shorts, Jenetta began pulling the uniform on. Fortunately, Romeo was among the shortest guards in the detail, being only a couple of inches taller than Jenetta herself. His shoes were several sizes too large, but she shoved his socks up into the toes, and they were usable. She had to roll the bottom of the trouser legs up, but luckily the belt was the adjustable kind so she was able to tighten it down to fit her smaller waist. The final uniform adjustment was the shirtsleeves, and rolling the cuffs several times proved adequate.

Removal of the slave collar was her final task, and as she examined the black controller, she located a small flap that concealed two buttons marked lock and constrict. She aimed it at herself, pressed the lock button, then reached up and tugged on the collar. To her almost unrestrained delight, it stretched easily. Pulling it out, up, and over her head, she was free! At least partially.

Eager to begin the next phase of her escape, Jenetta picked up the stun pistol and moved to the cell door. She peered out cautiously. Nothing was moving in the part of the corridor she could see, and no noises could be heard. She pulled the door open quickly and stepped out, pistol at the ready. All the cell doors appeared to be locked. She hadn't really expected to see anyone else here since regulations prohibited having more than one cell in a cellblock open at any one time. Still, she breathed a slight sigh of relief for having reached this point and was invigorated with new energy to proceed.

Taking a deep breath, and then releasing it, she hurried quietly to the door that led to the anteroom. The door made not the slightest sound as she unlocked it and opened it sufficiently to peer out. She had expected to find at least one guard lounging there, but the room was empty. That had to mean that they were either in the other cellblock corridors, or the head. There wasn't any light coming from under the door to the privy, so that narrowed the choices to the cellblocks, unless someone had reason to sit in the dark. She checked the small lavatory just be sure it was clear before proceeding. It was empty, as she'd expected, but you could never depend on simple deduction and assumption. She couldn't afford any surprises at her back.

She'd been housed in cellblock C, so she walked now to the door leading to cellblock A. She was going to have to open every door eventually, so this was as good a place as any to start. Taking two deep breaths, she pushed open the door.

The guard for the block was just backing out of a cell with a tray. He never even knew what hit him as Jenetta fired the pistol. He pitched forward, back into the cell, the tray and dishware clattering loudly to the deck. His unmoving legs protruded into the corridor so Jenetta figured that he was down for the count. She hoped that the stun pistols were as effective as the ones used by Space Command. A full blast from one of them would knock you out for anywhere from four to eight hours. She half expected the prisoner in the cell to cry out, but the silence was entirely understandable when you remember that everyone was punished whenever they spoke. The prisoner was no doubt secured and unsure of what was going on, but Jenetta couldn't take the time to investigate further at that moment.

"It would be nice to know how many guards are on duty," she said to herself, very quietly, as she moved to the cellblock B door. Her best estimate on guard count was four or possibly five. It was best to estimate conservatively, she knew. "Two down and three to go," she said before quickly pushing open the door to peer in. There was no sign of any movement in B and the cell doors were all closed, so she gently let the door close again and moved to cellblock D.

She could definitely hear noises coming from the cellblock as she readied herself and then pushed open the door. Rosewood was walking towards her pushing a cart and he spotted her immediately but didn't realize at first glance that she wasn't another guard since she was wearing a uniform. As Jenetta brought her pistol up, he froze for an instant, then started to back away, tugging desperately at the pistol in his holster. Jenetta's shot hit him dead center and he collapsed backwards into a seemingly lifeless pile. She closed the door silently, muttering to herself, "three down, two to go."

Cellblock E was clear, so Jenetta moved to the door of cellblock F. Just as she began to push open the door, the doors to cellblocks G and H both opened, and guards pushing food carts emerged. Jenetta's heart couldn't possibly have beat any faster or harder as she crouched down against the partially open door leading to F block, trying to make herself as small as possible while she waited for both guards to present themselves as clear targets. The guard from cellblock G spotted her first and she fired into his chest. As he was falling, she swung the pistol to fire at the guard coming from cellblock H. He was turning to sprint for the cover of the cellblock so the blast hit him in the middle of his back and he dropped like a meteor caught in a gravity well.

"And that's five," Jenetta muttered as she slumped weakly against the door frame of cellblock F. The adrenaline that had sustained her since the arrival of Romeo in her cell was beginning to drain from her system. With the guards unconscious, she could now move onto the next phase of her plan, freeing the other prisoners.

She was still collapsed against the doorframe a half-minute later when the door was suddenly pulled wide open. As her support disappeared, she spilled onto her back into the cellblock entranceway. She found herself looking up at the guard named Bellis! He was as surprised as she for a second, but then began to reach for her. Her response was to raise the pistol, but he was fast. He halted his movement, shifted his weight, and aimed a kick at her hand. The pistol went flying towards the other side of the anteroom, but not before she'd managed to get off her shot. He seemed to totter for a second, and then fell unconscious, atop her. She grunted as his full weight landed on her prone body and she lay there for a few seconds to get her wind back before pushing him off and getting up.

"And that's six," she said as she shook her hand to relieve the stinging sensation cause by the force of his kick. "I sure hope he's the last."

After retrieving the pistol that Bellis had kicked from her hand, she quickly checked each of the cellblock corridors again to make sure there were no other guards still feeding prisoners. The cellblocks appeared clear. To ensure that no guards were enjoying the services of a female captive eager for better food or treatment, she checked every cell door in blocks B through H. All were locked. Lastly, she rechecked each of the downed guards, except the one in cellblock A; she already knew that she had a potential problem there. All appeared to be sleeping soundly, except of course for the one in her cell.

"Okay, Carver," she said aloud to herself, "let's see just what kind of trouble we're going to have in cellblock A."

Pushing open the door to the block cautiously, she peered in. The guard's legs were still sticking out of the cell, just as she had left him. Staying as close as possible to the wall on that side, Jenetta moved down the corridor, checking each cell door as she went, until she was adjacent to the cell opening.

Moving her head just far enough to see that the guard's stun pistol was now missing from his holster, Jenetta's mind started racing. She knew that she couldn't enter the cell and risk being shot, and she couldn't just leave because her escape plan included bringing all of the prisoners with her. She pulled back and said in a loud and commanding voice, "This is Jenetta Carver of the Galactic Space Command. Throw out the stun pistol and you'll be released."

She was hugging the wall with her pistol at the ready when she heard a familiar voice call out from the cell, "Captain?"

"Gunny?" Jenetta said in genuine surprise.

"Aye, Captain. It's me."

Jenetta released her breath and peered slowly into the cell. Gunny Rondell was lying on his side, aiming the stun pistol at the doorway, the full weight of his upper torso crushing the unconscious guard's face and head into the rough stippled surface of the plasticrete deck. His restraints were still engaged so his ankles were locked together and his wrists were pin-ned to his waist. His only garment was his boxer shorts. He appeared clean, but weeks of beard growth covered his normally clean-shaven face. His limited mobility had allowed him to reach the stun pistol, but he hadn't yet been able to get to the guard's controller to free himself.

Jenetta holstered her pistol as Gunny relaxed his hand. Just knowing that he was still alive buoyed her spirits immeasurably, and seeing his familiar face made her heart soar with delight. Similar feelings of relief were coursing through Gunny at that moment.

"That looks like a very uncomfortable position, Gunny," Jenetta said casually, as she moved into the doorway and leaned against the frame, folding her arms in front of her.

"Aye, Captain, it is, but at least I've found myself a nice cushion to rest on. Sorry that I can't come to attention."

"You're also out of uniform," she chided facetiously.

"Yes ma'am. Sorry, ma'am. I seem to have misplaced mine somewhere. May I say that yours is quite attractive, although your tailor seems to have gotten the measurements wrong."

"Really?" Jenetta said, dropping her arms and looking down at her clothing in mock seriousness as she pulled the extra abundant material in the trousers outwards. She grinned as she glanced down at Gunny. "He told me that this was the new look." Jenetta reached into a pocket and pulled out her controller. Aiming it at Gunny, she released his restraints and then made them flexible.

Gunny stretched his arms and, as he stood up, he said, "Thank you, Captain."

"One more step, Gunny."

Aiming the controller at him again, she pushed the button that would make the collar flexible.

"All set, Gunny, you can remove all the bands now."

"Really?" His hands went to the collar first and he pulled it over his head. As he rubbed at the red discoloration on his neck where the collar had been, he said, "Ah, it feels so good to have that off. I thought I'd go crazy if they shocked me one more time."

"I know what you mean. The pain is incredible."

Gunny removed the rest of the bands before asking, "Has Space Command taken over the station, Captain?"

"No, I've just decided that we've visited here long enough. Have you noticed that their hospitality leaves so
much
to be desired?"

Gunny smiled for the first time in weeks. "Aye, Captain. And the food makes you long for ice-cold Marine field rations. How many in the escape party, ma'am?"

"So far, just you and me. But I want to take every captive with us; at least those that will go."

"You think that some will want to stay in this miserable hellhole?"

Jenetta took a deep breath and then released it slowly. "I don't know, Gunny. I do know that they've been brainwashing the women and some are already resigned to becoming pleasure slaves at resorts in the Uthlaro Dominion. They may refuse to leave with us."

"Well, I'm ready to leave as soon as you give the order, ma'am."

"First I need you to collect all the sleeping guards, strip them to their shorts, and lock them in this cell. I'm sure that one of their uniforms will fit you, but I don't know how long they'll be unconscious so lock them up before you start trying on clothes."

"Aye, Captain. Should I put my restraints on this one?"

"No, it's possible that we'll need all the restraints later. Make sure that you account for every controller and jail key that the guards are carrying, and hang onto them, personally."

"Aye, Captain."

While Gunny was rounding up the guards, Jenetta sat down at the computer console in the anteroom. Calling up a list of prisoners, she found that Crewman Browne was in block H, cell 4. Entering that cellblock, she peered in the window slot of the cell. She confirmed that there was a man in the cell, but she wasn't sure if it was Browne since he was lying on the cot with his back to her. Deciding not to just enter the cell, because he might get up and swing at her before he realized who it was, she put her mouth to the slot and said, "Prisoner, move onto the circle."