Jason King: Agent to the Stars 1: The Enclaves of Sylox (18 page)

I just nodded, while slowly reciting: “The bastard.” The cabbie was long gone, and with nearly all my cash.

I placed the still unconscious and bound Miranda Moore in the front seat of the transport, and set the Unity Stone carrying case on the floorboard. I then turned to face Morick.

“Thanks for doing this. I hope you don’t get in too much trouble for helping me.”

“I shall not. Did you know that the Human wished us to break the Unity statue into various smaller pieces?”

“I know. That’s why I had to stop her.”

“The Unity is our greatest work, one we have boasted of for hundreds of years. I accept the fact that we would have eventually acquiesced to her demands, yet not before several of my employees had been killed, and possibly even me.”

“The Unity Stone is safe now, Morick. I’ll be getting it back to its rightful owners – if I can get off Hyben.”

“Then may luck and providence ride with you, Human. I suppose now not all Humans are evil.”

“I wouldn’t go so far as to say that,” I said as I slammed the door in his face and flicked the ignition. I had an hour’s ride ahead of me, and my constant vigilance for the
Suforairee
would be exhausting. And my head was still pounding – both from the deafening sound of the shots I’d fired from the Glock and from the hit I’d taken from
The Incredible Hulk
.

Yet when all was said and done, my visit to Hyben had been a success. I had the Stone and I had Miranda, and with four days to make it back to Sylox.

That would teach them to mess with Jason King!

Chapter 25

Fortunately, the trip back to the spaceport was uneventful, and by the time I pulled the large black transport through the main gate I was feeling pretty good about myself.

My mood began to change for the worse, however, when I noticed the nervous look on the face of the guard who waved me through the gate. His bored and distracted manner shifted immediately the moment he moved up to the window and saw who was driving. As I pulled away from the gate, I saw him rush back into his shack.

Could the police already be here?

The spaceport was nothing more than a large expanse of open ground, with some large concrete slabs, but mainly just dirt. There were very few spaceships in the field, so it was easy to see if any activity taking place. Nothing; the place was as dead as when I left.

To the west of the main field were three distant rows of hangars, with the first row comprised of the smaller units, those that would fit the
Enterprise
. I raced across the spaceport toward the hangars, not paying any attention to designated roadways, just cutting across landing pads and leaving a growing cloud of sandy dust behind me.

When I reached the first row of hangars I slowed down and began to count the units I passed. Just as with all alien writing, I couldn’t read a lick of Hyben, but fortunately the imbedded translation devices we all had fitted behind our ears had a way around that. By simply chanting tanslate-KKL898 (KKL898 was my code), the device would pick up the electronic signal from any equipped sign, label or marquee and provide a verbal translation in my ear.

However even with this feature available, I didn’t need it to locate Hangar 13. I simply had to count as I drove the transport along the row of huge, articulated doors.

My blood pressure skyrocketed when I reached Number Thirteen – and found the door open and the hangar empty. I slammed on the brakes and jumped out of the car, shielding my eyes against the abrasive blowing sand and harsh afternoon light to scan the field once again.

My starship wasn’t there. Not in the hangar or on the field. I clenched my fists and could feel my heartbeat sound prominently in my ears.

What did those stupid port-jockeys do with my ship?

Now the panic on the part of the guard at the gate was understandable. Well, I was going to get some answers, even if that left the guard without any serviceable limbs once I was through with my interrogation—

Just then I heard a loud boom overhead, and as I looked up into the blindingly bright sky of Hyben, I saw a shadow coursing across the sky. My heart skipped a beat; it was the
Enterprise
, and she was coming in way too fast.

I only had a moment to drag Miranda and Unity Stone from the transport before the Noreen II came screeching across the thin concrete outside the row of hangars. Sparks flew and bleached pieces of concrete were thrown into the air as the metal skids scraped and tore along the surface. The ship was designed to drop straight down for a landing, not come in horizontally like an airplane. And now it was skidding along the ground – and heading straight for me.

The red radiant hull of the Noreen II smashed into Morick’s transport, sending it hurdling into the air before the nose of the ship came crashing into a closed hangar door a few down from Number Thirteen. I had ducked into the open interior of my hangar when it became obvious that the starship was going to land very close, and now I could feel the heat radiating off the hull as the
Enterprise
came to a rest a mere twenty feet from where I hid.

I gritting my teeth in anger as I saw the prominent dent left in the front quarter panel from the ship’s impact with the transport. The nose was also buried a good six feet into the other hangar, so I could only imagine the damage caused to that side of the ship. As you can imagine, I was ready to kill someone – anyone.

I didn’t have to wait long.

The side hatch of the
Enterprise
slid aside and the two Hyben port workers jumped out. They shielded their faces as they ran from the ship, lucky their clothing didn’t ignite from the intense heat the ship still carried from its rapid descent through the atmosphere. They were coming my way.

As the first one ran through the open entrance of hangar thirteen, I reached out a strong arm and grasped the frayed edge of his uniform. The cloth ripped, but he still fell on his back, looking up at me with wide, panicked eyes.

“They were shooting at us!”

This caught me off guard. “What?”

“They were shooting at us,” the Hyben repeated.

His companion now stopped in front of me. “We’re really sorry we took your ship,” he yelled, gasping for breath. “But you said you’d be here for two days. Please call off your ships before they kill us.”

“What ships? Who’s shooting at you?”

“The ships – three of them – in orbit. We only wanted to take a bolt out to the moon and back. We didn’t mean to cause any harm.”

“How did you get it to fly? It was supposed to be in ground-mode only.”

The one standing pointed to the Hyben on the ground. “He did it! He knows how to circumvent such controls. Blame him.”

“You came with me, Soris! You are just as responsible.”

“Shut up!” I commanded. “I don’t care about you taking the ship, only about those who were shooting at you.”

“They are not with you?”

“No, they’re not.”

Both Hyben looked at each other, and then the one standing turned to me and said, “Then it looks as though you have enemies coming this way.”

“They followed you?”

“Yes. Fortunately, your ship is smaller and more maneuverable through the atmosphere, so we got here first. But the others will be here within ticks.”

“Shit!” I bent down and picked up a still groggy Miranda Moore and the Unity Stone case. “Are the keys still in the ignition?” Both aliens nodded.

As I ran out of the hangar and toward the
Enterprise
, I yelled back at the port workers. “I’m going to expect a full refund of my docking and hangar fees because of this!”

I didn’t hear the reply – if there was any – as I became distracted by the scorching heat the closer I got to the entry hatch. It was all I could take as I darted into the ship and hit the close button on the wall next to the door.

Some relief came once the door closed, but not much. The interior was now contaminated with the heat from outside, taking the temperature inside the
Enterprise
to easily one hundred-thirty or more.

I threw Miranda on the sofa and the Unity Stone case into a small storage compartment near the refrigerator. Next, I cranked the air conditioning up to max while slipping into the pilotseat. The engines were already primed, so all I had to do for liftoff was to send a tremendous blast of lifting chemical flame out the bottom of the ship, knowing that the resulting fire would leave the skin of any nearby hangars burnt and blistered. If the two Hyben port-jockeys had moved from behind the hangar’s metal walls, they would be incinerated.

I didn’t wait around to check their status. Instead I arched the
Enterprise
into a forty-five degree incline, and in less than five seconds I had already reached the nearest puffy contrail left earlier in the sky when the ship had entered the atmosphere. I then fully-engaged the gravity drive, something that was not recommended this close to the surface.

Fortunately, I was far enough away from any ground structures that I achieved a clean gravity-well and shot out into space.

Chapter 26

The hull must have cooled instantly in the vacuum of space, because it suddenly became icy cold inside the ship. I turned down the a/c and then checked the proximity sensors. Whoever had shot at the Hyben – thinking it had been me at the controls – would be streaking for the surface, and not expecting the
Enterprise
to turn right around and head back into space. At least that was what I was counting on.

Sure enough, I picked up the other three ships below me and vectoring toward the spaceport. Their signatures indicated that they were of similar size as the one that had attacked me on the way to the planet – the lightly-armed escort ships of the Linoreans. They were small enough to land on the surface, yet too large to make radical course corrections within the atmosphere. I was bolting past the Hyben moon by the time my three pursuers had managed a long, arching journey back through the atmosphere of Hyben and into space. However, once they had cleared the atmosphere, they, too, engaged their gravity drives and set off after me.

If these were the only three ships following me, I was in no real danger. I was faster than they were, and only another ship angling in could catch me. Of course, any stationed ahead along my path could cause me problems.

I put my sensors out to their max.

Unlike the first encounter I had with Linorean escorts, these ships wouldn’t hesitate to blow me out of space without a second thought. The Linoreans’ intended goal was to destroy the Unity Stone; that’s why they had tried to delay my arrival on Hyben, so that Miranda could do just that. But now they could achieve the same result by blasting the
Enterprise
out of existence. Not only would the Stone be destroyed, but it would also deal very effectively with me and Miranda, the only two witnesses to the Linorean Foundation’s complicity in initiating a galactic war.

This new reality also meant that I would have to shoot first and ask questions later. I couldn’t risk any potential threat getting too close to me on the way back to Sylox.

There came suddenly a crash from behind, and I whipped my head around to see Miranda pressed up against the back bulkhead of the salon, her head and shoulders on the floor and her feet sticking straight up the wall. She was glaring at me and her face was beat red. She yelled something through the gag. Although it was unintelligible, the message was received loud and clear.

I set all the necessary autopilot controls and warning alarms and then slipped out of the pilotseat to help her back on the sofa.

Even though I was trying to help, Miranda still resisted, jerking from side to side and kicking me once very close to the family jewels. I eventually gave up being nice and just threw her on the couch.

“Dammit, Miranda, calm down! The game’s over, so just relax. I’ll take off the gag if you promise not to start yelling.”

She relaxed visibly and nodded. Her eyes were filled with tears – not from pain or sorrow, but from anger.

I approached the couch, and just as I reached over to undo the gag, she lashed out with her foot again, impacting my shin just below the right kneecap. In excruciating pain, I hobbled back to the chair on the other side of the salon and pulled up my pant leg. She had broken the skin and the wound was already beginning to bleed.

“You bitch!” I yelled. “Look what you did. That’s going to hurt for a week, if not more. So screw you; keep the gag on. I didn’t want to hear anything you have to say anyway.”

This got her to calm down completely, as I could make out a muffled, “I’m sorry.” It still took me a full five minutes before I chanced going near her again. This time she allowed me to untie the gag.

“Thanks; I’ll behave. Now, how about the straps on my wrists?”

“Not a chance,” I replied. “You’re as mean as a honey-badger, and I’m not even going to risk untying you. Believe me, Miranda, but you don’t want to suffer my wrath right about now. I’m liable to turn all alpha-male on you if you provoke much further.”

“I know that,” Miranda said. “And you are much bigger than me and more skilled at hand-to-hand combat. I’d be stupid to try anything.”

“You were stupid to steal the Unity Stone and set the whole galaxy on fire. But you did it anyway.”

“For seven million dollars, and originally it was just a heist. It wasn’t until later that I learned the significance of the statue.”

“That doesn’t mean squat in the whole scheme of things, now does it sweetheart?” I said. “You’ve managed to get the most-powerful creatures in the galaxy all up in arms and looking for us. Some want me to succeed; others want it to be you. Honestly, I still haven’t sorted out all the players yet, but I’m sure you don’t even know a tenth of the problems you’ve caused.”

“So what happens now? You return the statue, save the universe and become the hero?”

“Something like that. But you didn’t leave me any choice. It’s either that or billions of creatures will die, including our own kind. Who does something like that and then feels no remorse? Are you really that self-centered?”

Miranda shifted her gaze to her feet and actually looked embarrassed. When she looked up at me again, the tears were flowing freely.

“I’m sorry, Jason, really I am. I didn’t ask of any of this to happen. They came to me and dangled a boatload of money in front of me. And it
is
a nearly thirty thousand carat diamond. What girl could say no to that? I honestly didn’t know it would cause all this trouble.”

“Then why didn’t you just turn it over to your employers and take your money?”

“Because I saw through their scheme. If you haven’t noticed, these aliens have a nasty habit of underestimating us Humans. I knew they’d throw me under the bus as soon as I did the job.” And then she smiled though her tears. “Besides … it’s a nearly thirty-thousand carat diamond! I couldn’t help myself.”

“And another miscalculation on their part,” I said, managing a weak smile in return.

“And now we’re being followed?”

“Yep, and those people out there just want the Stone destroyed, which makes this ship simply a target on their screens. We have four days to get back to Sylox, and my enemies have wormhole comms and an organization powerful enough to print its own money to back them up. I’d say our chances of getting back safe and sound are somewhere between slim and not-a-chance-in-hell.”

“They’re my enemies, too, Jason. As you said, they were going to make me a scapegoat in the theft, just like you. So you see, we’re on the same side now, and only by returning the Stone and revealing all I know can I – we – be saved.”

“Nice speech, Miranda, but I’m not buying it. Now why don’t you just sit back and enjoy the trip. Oh, and by the way, the cuffs stay on.”

**********

I had to think. I had the statue and Miranda, and now all I had to do was get it back to Sylox and prove to the Union that I wasn’t the one who stole it. Unfortunately, those who wanted the statue destroyed knew where I was and where I’m headed. I could outrun the three ships behind me, but eventually others would join in the chase. And there would also be units heading out from Sylox, forming a gauntlet for me to run.

As if on cue, I noticed two more distant contacts appear on my screen, one to each side and slowly vectoring in. I did a few quick calculations and found that at my present speed – which was already at max – it would be six hours until intercept. They had the angle on me, and six hours would still leave me far short of my goal.

I had to disappear, and in a spaceship on full gravity drive that meant only one thing.

I went back to where Miranda was now sitting on the couch, glaring at me.

“Listen, we just picked up two more tails and they have the angle on us. In six hours their weapons will be within range and at that point we’re as good as dead.” I took the fact that Miranda wasn’t screaming at me as an indication that the message was getting through.

“What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to make us disappear, but that won’t be enough. We also have to change course after we do, otherwise they’ll just project our path and continue the pursuit.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Of course you don’t. You’re an amateur playing a very serious game of life and death. Those people – things – out there aren’t playing around. They know they have all the eggs in one basket now and all they have to do is smash the basket.”

“That doesn’t answer my question, asshole.”

She was really quite pretty when she was mad – which seemed to be all the time.

“I’m going to cut the engines and go dark.”

“Cut the engines? Won’t they be able to catch up with us if you do?”

“Very good, Miranda, you win a cookie. Yes they will, in a matter of minutes in fact. That’s why we also need to change course, and do it quickly.”

“But don’t you need the engines for that?”

“Damn, girl, you’re two for two. And that’s why I’m going to use the atmosphere from inside the ship to move us.”

“The atmosphere … from inside the ship? Won’t we suffocate if you do that? Can’t you use your chemical maneuvering jets?”

“That fuel leaves a trail. No, it has to be the atmosphere.” I was through with school for the day. “And that’s why I need you to cooperate and get into one of the spacesuits I have onboard. I’m going to cut you loose; however I won’t tolerate any bullshit from you. Do you understand?”

“Whatever.”

“Do you understand?” I repeated.

“Yeah, sure.”

“If you try anything, it may be simpler just let you die rather than risk a galactic war and the destruction of the Earth. Measured against that, your life rates a very distant third. Now don’t cause any trouble.”

I cut the nylon strap holding her wrists together, half expecting the woman to lash out me again. Luckily – for her – she didn’t.

We rushed to the utility closet and pulled out two self-contained space suits from inside. They carried their own oxygen supply good for up to eight hours. The ship also held three thousand gallons of water, which, with enough time, could be converted to an oxygen atmosphere, yet for the first several hours of our getaway, we would have to rely on just the gas from the suits.

Next I had to find a way of venting the atmosphere from inside the ship in a powerful enough jet to alter the course of the
Enterprise
. Fortunately, such venting was already planned for in case of a fire, so with a little adjustment to the nozzle aperture of one of the port vents to increase the velocity of the escaping gas, it only took me a minute to make the preparations.

“Gravity’s going down, too, so strap in,” Miranda slipped into the passenger seat next to me and obeyed.

“They won’t be able to detect us?”

“Only if they’re right on top of us and using magnetics. The problem is that with our momentum, once I cut the engines it will be hard to adjust our course by more than a few degrees. Theoretically, that will still leave us comfortably within a search grid.”

“So if they can still find us why do it?”

I didn’t answer; instead I simply killed the gravity drive and the internals simultaneously.

The effect was immediate and startling, as I felt my stomach climb into my throat as if I’d just breached the summit of the highest roller coast ride on Earth. The feeling of falling was short-lived, however, and soon replaced with lightheadedness and the sensation of floating in a crystal clear ocean.

I looked over at Miranda and saw her smiling. “Whew, that was cool. Can I unbuckle now?”

“No. I need to change course first. Even though it’ll be gradual, we may still feel the effects.”

I opened the relief value, and three things happened simultaneously. First, having left basic power still active in the ship until the course correction was made, I noticed the atmosphere content level on my screen begin to drop rapidly. Also an alarm sounded, which I quickly overrode. Next I saw our course begin to deviate from the yellow line I’d set on the screen to indicated our original path. The red line signifying our new course was separating slightly to the right of the yellow line, slowly but surely.