Gunship (12 page)

Skeeter nodded and slowly let go of the wall to push off and join the others. He felt better now that he had thrown up, but the weightlessness was still disorienting. He found if he moved deliberately, though, that the motion wasn’t too bad and he was able to better control himself. Chang waved him over, and together they grabbed another field and moved out.

A few hours later, they had all gathered back in the cargo bay. This time, they sported lightweight chest plates and body armor over their clothes. Ty handed out battle rifles with electric firing plugs to the crew and then waited for Reilly’s direction.

“Let’s warm up with a few movement drills, and then we’ll go from there. Seth, you partner up with Ty, and Gunny and Duv, you guys over there. I’ll jump in or run my own on this side. Alright, straight flys, hooah?”

“Hooah, Captain! Straight flys!” Chang, Ty, and Duv echoed back.

“Exercise!” Reilly called out. She hit a timer so it would count off one-minute blocks, then turned to demonstrate the first drill to Seth.

They started off with simple drills, pushing off from the wall Superman-style, or left or right side, or on their backs, and moved to more intermediate drills that included wall work and then using tethers. Reilly got Seth started on each drill and jumped in as his partner when Ty needed to give his healing ribs a break. They were all rusty, but soon the motions were becoming fluid as they became accustomed to the weightlessness again. Soldiers in the ISUs were trained to fight in all environments, and zero G was one of their fortes. Chang and Duv used modified harnesses that allowed them to clip in at various points around the cargo bay then push off from the nearest hard surface. Reilly would toss targets randomly as the team used their lines to rapidly pop out from cargo to fire, then return to cover as the harnesses pulled them back. They also practiced movement from cover and defensive positions while Ty, sequestered behind some cargo, randomly fired at them. Reilly focused her attention on Seth, demonstrating each movement then watching as he did it and making corrections as necessary. The rifles emitted an electric pulse that gauged accuracy and counted hits without damaging the ship. A holoscreen kept track of each participant’s hits, misses, and overall accuracy during the training. Ty, although injured, was neck and neck with Chang, and Duv was close behind on the hit count. They were all solid shots, which was one of the reasons Reilly had hired them to begin with. Seth did about average for a new shooter, but she was confident that with some practice he would shape up to be a fine shot as well. After three hours of hard training, they split up to take care of their regular duties and see to the ship.

Reilly cleaned her rifle, took some extra time to check her gear, and then looked over Ty’s gear as well to make sure it was in order. It felt good to be training again, although the soreness in her muscles reminded her that she needed to change up her workout to make sure she was in fighting condition for zero Gs, too. Then she made a note to order some new gear for Seth when they got to Roen and headed up for some chow. Despite everything that had gone wrong, it seemed to have turned into a good day after all.

—————

Razam Welch was not pleased. “You said they had been bugged. Why can’t we track them?” He drummed his finger impatiently and glared at the so-called surveillance expert Crazy Ray had called in to discuss the plants on Reilly Campbell’s ship.

Crazy Ray paced irritably nearby while the pale-faced man explained about range limitation on the plants.

“We only gave the boss short-rangers, since he just wanted to see what they said once they left, ‘case they had his Wanted Man Number Three on board. But they didn’t say nothin’ important, so we didn’t shoot them down or bring them back. You’d need some Seekers now to find ’em,” the man finished up, nervously looking from one crazed maniac to the other while he waited for his fate to be decided.

Seekers had been designed as long-range bounty hunters. They relied on biometrics which Crazy Ray strictly collected from all of the people who came on board his station to ensure security for his guests, and for occasions such as this where he might have to track one down. Each unit was capable of traveling long distances through space and could cover several solar systems on its own, although the tracking time would take considerably much longer. Seekers were incredibly expensive. Crazy Ray was pleased to see Welch’s look of surprise when his man mentioned them. That was good, since it meant that Welch had underestimated him. Mistakes like that could lead to favorable situations, situations in which he could choose to kill Welch, or perhaps coop him for his own uses. He did need another pet, and it would be fun to watch his detainers break Welch and mold him into the next Vishon. Crazy Ray allowed himself a private smile before returning to the task at hand. There would be plenty of time for pleasant thoughts after he had Reilly and Ty in his detention center. Seekers would work, but even with all of them employed, it could take a month or more to locate the targets, depending on how far they had travelled after departing the station. Still, the machines were faster and less intrusive than sending in actual shock troops. Seekers also gave the added element of surprise. Once they confirmed their targets, they could monitor them remotely or tag them with a nanotracker that could be handed off to a command tracker to be used by Enforcers, shock troops, assassins, even Crazy Ray himself. Then he could act at the moment of his choosing, a single crystal window of opportunity that favored his success. He imagined that moment when they would realize they were caught, when they would realize who had caught them, the taut expressions, the smell of fear and sweat and anticipation of what was to come. He smiled again, lost in the moment, and then turned back to the man.

“Do it.”

“Right away, Boss. How many of ’em you want?” The man gestured at two others, who came off the wall they had been trying desperately to blend in with. “We got fifteen right now, and we can get probably another twenty or so…”

“All of them. I want all of them, and I want them programmed and launched by this evening. You report back to me once it is done, understood?”

“Yes, Boss.” The man turned a shade paler and began to sweat. He eagerly disappeared from the room with his assistants hard on his heels.

Welch was tapping his handheld as Crazy Ray glanced back at him. “What are you doing?”

“Hiring you the best Tethers money can buy.”

He held up the handheld to display some of the most notorious bounty hunters in the galaxy. Each one was highly skilled and had a ship capable of running up to five Seekers. As Tethers, the hunters would sit silently and wait for a confirmation signal from one of their Seekers. When they received it, they would send an encrypted message to Welch and would immediately pursue the target until it had been captured or killed, depending on the Controller’s preference.

Crazy Ray paused, his turn now to be a bit surprised. Half of the hunters on the list were men he frequently used for his operations.
Welch is better connected than I expected,
he thought, storing away this fact with hundreds of others he had collected already. He smiled fiercely back at Welch.

“I may start to like you in spite of yourself.” He waved a man over, who promptly poured them each a shot of brandy from a bottle labeled “Red Dwarf” that depicted a stunted, sniveling caricature of a small, disgruntled-looking man wielding a staff wickedly titled “Old Slammer.”

Welch grinned back in kind as he took a sip. “You’d better be careful. That almost sounded like a compliment.”

—————

Reilly continued to drill the crew without mercy. Skeeter was dealing better with the zero Gs but still had bouts of nausea. They all were sore, tired, and bruised, but the training was challenging and kept them engaged, despite the beatings they took daily.

Reilly went over defensive positions, shooting in the open, and using armor plates to absorb any hits if you got caught without cover. Chang demonstrated different movements that could be done on a harness rig, while Ty reviewed shooting from stationary and mobile positions. After an hour of practice drills, they switched over to small-unit tactics and worked on movement throughout the ship. When they finally finished, everyone was happy with the results. They had assaulted the bridge, cargo bay, and common room multiple times. Reilly, Chang, and Ty rotated through as the opposing forces to increase the challenge and hone their own skills. There were no breaks and anything went. As in war, the winners were those who could improvise. In the ISUs, the motto was “Train like you fight,” and Reilly and her crew kept true to this core concept. Even Skeeter was pushing his limits in an effort to keep up with the more experienced warriors. By the end of the day, he was able to execute all of the basic drills without error.

They had just begun to gather in the common room for midday chow when Duv came on the comms mic to the ship.

“Just wanted to let y’all know I’ve got Roen in view. I repeat, we have Roen in view. Almost home, folks! Woohoo!”

The crew pushed to the bridge and stood around Duv, taking in the scene with excitement. The tiny blue, gray, and orange world floated on the horizon like the beacon of a lighthouse calling them home to a safe port and a hot meal. Chang started talking about the marketplace and fresh vegetables, while Ty wondered about getting a replacement night scope for one of his rifles and Duv offered to buy the first round of drinks over at the Iron BAR, one of the ISUs’ favorite watering holes. Even Reilly joined in the discussion, sharing her favorite place to eat and which bazaars had the best deals.

As the planet grew larger, the crew scattered to take care of last-minute items and pre-landing preparations. Ty directed Skeeter and Chang as they loaded up extra items for trade on the planet. Duv called down to the surface and reserved a berth for the ship near the metalworks. Reilly pulled up her console and found three messages waiting. Two were old buddies working the defensive platforms orbiting Roen who had already detected her ship and wanted to catch up for a drink. The third message, however, caught her off guard. Duv turned when he heard her swear and then followed up with a curse of his own.

“What the hell is he doing here? I thought that bastard was dead!”

“Apparently not. He wants to meet us.” Reilly leaned back in her chair. She had served under the Commander. He was still active in the ISU, and if there was a fight to be had, you could bet he’d be square in the middle of it. Zain was militant to the core. If the man feared anything, no one had been able to tell Reilly what it might have been. He was a brilliant strategist who had led the ISUs through some of the fiercest battles in the galaxy and on to victory. When something went so wrong no one could fix it, Zain got the call for the job. Reilly was wondering why the Commander wanted to meet with her now, after all this time. The man was no idiot, and everything he did, he did with a purpose. She knew him well enough to know that she wouldn’t get answers across the link. Zain would tell her face to face or not at all. She responded to his message. Moments later, she received a time and place in return, then signed off. Ty had been with her on more than a few of Zain’s crazy one-way missions. In several cases, they were the only ones to make it back. This unexpected blast from the past added to Reilly’s uneasiness. Something was up, and she didn’t like it.

Duv checked the electro boards and gave Reilly a thumbs-up. She nodded and grabbed a mic.

“This is the Captain. Prepare for entry. Seal all lower hatches and confirm tie-down status. How copy?”

Ty came on. “Roger, good copy, Captain. Be advised all tie-downs completed, all lower hatches sealed. On our way up. Out here.”

A few moments later, the crew gathered on the bridge, butts in seats and strapped in for landing. Normally, this wasn’t required, but with extensive hull damage anything, could happen during a reentry. Reilly and Duv sat side by side as the ship entered the atmosphere. They took a shallow angle of entry as the ship groaned, creaked, and shuddered its way towards the ground. Soon, the darkness of space disappeared and the red dirt of Roen became dotted with tiny trees and rivers. As they entered the lower atmosphere, a loud clang and another shudder shook the ship.

“Captain, I’m gonna need help on this landing. Looks like we are losing the starboard rear thrusters.”

“Roger that. Want to try for a square down?” Reilly had a glint in her eye.

Duv grinned back. “I’m always game for a showy landing. You’re on!”

A square down made use of the working thrusters to bring the ship in over the berthing platform and then perform a straight drop using the thrusters at the last moment to bounce the ship briefly before letting it settle. It was a sound method, especially if you had thruster issues. By turning the thrusters down and then immediately back on, they would all rev at the same time and balance the ship for a smooth landing. Reilly and Duv synched their motions. Skeeter watched, fascinated. As the platform came into view below, they climbed briefly, squaring the landing gears with the berth, and then cut the thrusters. The ship began to drop as Reilly counted backwards from five. On one, just as it seemed the ship would soundly smack into the ground, Duv and Reilly jammed on the thrusters again, and for a moment they hovered then settled gently onto the platform. A couple crew dogs nearby clapped and catcalled at their landing. Reilly grinned at Duv, who shook his head admiringly while he cut the engines. Skeeter stayed up front to help shut down the bridge while the rest of the crew headed to grab their tactical packs and side arms before opening up the cargo bay. Chang met them at the door, gave the all-clear sign, and then punched the release button.

Hot, dry air rushed into the bay along with some of the red dirt that Roen was famous for. They stood for a moment as the ramp went down, breathing the fresh air and squinting in the bright light of Roen’s twin suns. Reilly walked down the ramp followed by Ty and Chang, who looked around at the shipyard, taking in the activity and the people. A few folks called out welcomes and hellos as they walked around the ship, making sure the landing gear was solidly placed and checking out the damage. The cows meandered out into the bright light after them, lowing and blinking, before making their way over to some nearby bushes for a snack.