DJ's Mission (13 page)

‘El Gato – your presence in Saturn has been
leaked but your mission still has an Alpha status priority. It is to proceed as
planned and on schedule. However two unplanned complications may advance your
timetable. The bounty hunter Red Falcon has been reported on Titan hunting you.
This is a false-positive. He is only hunting you as part of his cover. However,
I am unsure as to his true objectives and motives. Also, in the near future you
will be contacted about a side job. Take it. It will bring us closer to the
Cartel. This may prove to be advantageous to future operations. – K”

As always, Stephanie wondered about her mysterious
handler. In the five years that they had worked together, not once had she ever
seen or talked to him. But he’d never let her down and always seemed to have a
full understanding of whatever situation she was thrust into. Besides, if it
hadn’t been for his foresight and guidance, she wouldn’t never made it off of
Kepler-22 Bravo alive.

Even as she pondered this, the data concerning the
side job came across her SANDD. There wasn’t much information, just a location
for a meeting. Hitting the confirm button, Stephanie punched in the new
destination on her skimmer’s autopilot controls and the inter-planetary shuttle
shifted course.

If he wanted El Gato to work a side job, then El
Gato would be ready. Closing her eye, Stephanie imagined her ‘El Gato’ persona
and the nanites in her system went to work.

Nanites are self-replicating microscopic androids
which can be programed with a variety of purposes. Her nanites were the
crowning achievement of the CIA – Coalition Intelligence Agency – scientists.
Their primary purpose was to modify her outer appearance without permanent
damage or need to go under the scalpel. Just like magic, her hair began to
shorten and darken until it was raven black. Although, she did add a streak of
purple just for the fun of it. Even though she couldn’t see them at the moment,
she knew her eyes had become crystal blue and her nose had shrunk on itself,
becoming rounder and more of the traditional ‘button’ nose.

Not caring if anyone in a nearby transport could
see her, Stephanie stripped down and slipped into her tungsten alloy bodysuit
which was, once again, a wonderful achievement by the CIA scientists. The
bodysuit was sleek and sexy with the look and feel of black leather but was
made from the hardest metal alloys known to man. Woven in the fashion of
ancient chainmail, each ringlet was so small that they couldn’t be seen with
the naked eye. This process created a suit of incredible flexibility which gave
her full range of motion while imparting protection from most ballistic and
stabbing weapons. Once she was dressed for her meeting, she called up maps of
the zone on her computer. It was time to find every route in and out of the
meeting area.

She knew if she failed to plan, then she was
planning to fail. Not this kitty.

*   *   *   *   *

Once Kaitlyn returned to her room, she made sure it
was locked and rushed to UR-L8’s side and gave the boxy android a big hug.

“OMG! Where have you been? Did you find my dad?
What did he say? Is he coming? Well?”

The black and yellow robot back pedaled a few feet
and tried to make sense of all her questions. “This unit is pleased to return
to your side. I must say, you have grown one-point three inches in my absence.”

“Thanks now spill it!”

UR-L8 had been Kaitlyn’s companion long enough to
understand her mannerisms and what she meant from her brief command. Focusing
its holo-emitter on the nearby table, it began transmitting its message.

When the image of her father came into view and
began to speak, she couldn’t help but hold her breath.

“Hiya squirt. I just wanted you to know that
I’m on my way and nothing will stop me from rescuing you. I can’t say exactly
when or how but if UR-L8 gives you this message, then know that I’m close. Be
ready to leave at a moment’s notice and pack light. Love you.”

Wiping away tears of joy, Kaitlyn went to her
closet, pulled out a suitcase and began to pack. She knew she would only be
able to take one bag, so now came the difficult decision on what to take and
what to leave behind.

*   *   *   *   *

When Jagger Jax woke up the first thing he noticed
was pain.

Stun Batons operate on the simple principle of
overloading the body’s central nervous system with a vast electrical charge.
This in fact causes all the muscles in the body to contract violently all at
once. Which has the side effect of leaving the stunned person sore and tired
when they wake up, which was another reason they were favored by LEOs galaxy
wide.

“Ughh,” was about all Jagger Jax could manage.

DJ handed him a glass of water. “Drink this, it’ll
help.”

“Remind me not to do that again.” Jax downed the
water before slowly rolling his neck and back, trying to loosen up the tense
muscles. “For the record, those things suck.”

“I agree but sometimes they’re useful.”

“I bet. I just don’t want to be on the receiving
end again, ever.” Jax looked around the room. It was comfortably decorated and
way out of his price range. “Where are we?”

“We are currently Mocha’s guests while he makes
arraignments for a meeting with someone named Absolem.”

That got Jagger Jax’s attention and he sat up a
bit straighter. “The Cartel boss? Why are you wanting a meeting with him?”

DJ once again explained his cover story of being
hired by Kaitlyn’s biological father and his intention of kidnapping her from
the Titan Avionics executive. To Jax’s credit he didn’t interrupt or shy away
from the inherent danger that went hand and hand with DJ’s goals. When the
bounty hunter finished, he waited to see what the ex-thief would say before
continuing.

“And you are telling me this, why?”

“I have a proposition for you.”

“Thanks, but you’re not my type.”

DJ grinned at the sarcastic answer. It reminded
him of his time in the military. Besides, it was far better than the self-pity
Jax had been wallowing in earlier.

“Actually, I want to offer you a job while I’m here
on Titan. Although what I have planned is technically illegal and might land
you on the wrong side of the Saturn Sheriffs.”

Jax shrugged. “No worries. You know my history;
I’ve fractured a few laws before.”

“True.”

“The two real questions are what does it pay and
what do you need me to do?”

DJ nudged the bound and unconscious form of
Fisher. “Whatever bounty we get from this scumbag plus ten thousand credits.”

“Done.”

“But I haven’t told you about the job.”

“Falcon, I have less than fifty credits to my name
and the only work I’ve been able to get is unloading freighters and even then
only two nights a week. No one wants to take a chance on me, honest or
dishonest work.”

DJ slapped him on the back. “Done. We’ll figure
out some way to keep you on the right side of the law. Trust me.”

Jagger Jax cocked his head to the side and paused
for a moment. “Trust is earned not given. However, you have already given me
more of a chance than anyone else. That counts for something.”

DJ nodded. “It’s a start.”

“However I must warn you, Absolem will not be
happy to see me or have me around.”

“Mocha warned me as much but I will tell you the
same thing I told him, my dealings with the Cartel boss will be strictly
business. He cannot tell me who to have or not to have on my team. When you
jumped in on the fight downstairs, you earned the right to be here.”

“Thanks Falcon, that means a lot to me, it really
does.”

“Don’t mention it. Now, what can you tell me about
Absolem? My intel on him is very sketchy.”

Jax poured himself some more water as he began to
speak. “Well first off, he’s a Geometrid.”

“A what?”

“A Geometrid. Imagine a fifteen foot blue
caterpillar, add above average intelligence and no morals and you have the
general picture of a Geometrid.”

DJ nodded. “Never heard of them before but this is
a huge galaxy.”

“Actually, from what I understand they’re
reasonably common in the Andromeda galaxy but are rare in ours.”

“What is this one doing here? Other than running
the Cartel.”

Jax shook his head. “He doesn’t run it, he’s just
an underboss but he is in charge of all criminal activities around Saturn and
Jupiter. I’ve had dealings with him in the past.”

“Mocha mentioned that he can be bribed.”

Jax nodded. “Yes. Spice is his one weakness that
is if you don’t count his fondness for bloodshed.”

“Mocha knows of a dealer receiving a shipment of
something called Moonbeam.”

“I know the spice. It’s a purple powder derived
from some sort of flower on Andromeda. It’s rare and expensive. So I’m betting
we are gonna jack the shipment from the smuggler and use it to bribe Absolem.”

DJ nodded. “Sounds like you’ve done this before.”

Jax grinned. “I told you I fractured a few laws in
my youth.”

There was a knock on the door. Without hesitation,
DJ pulled the captured Graver Mk3 from his belt and passed it to Jagger Jax.
The former thief immediately did a quick peek to see if the gun was loaded and
moved to the side of the doorway. From the way he moved and handled the weapon,
DJ knew that Jax was experienced with the sidearm. Stepping forward, the bounty
hunter drew his own weapon and opened the door.

It was Mocha.

The chocolate shaded casino owner stepped in with
his hands held up and palms empty. “I’m unarmed and bring news.”

DJ holstered his weapon and signaled for Jax to do
the same. “What’cha got for me?”

“Just what I promised.” Mocha began to reach into
his belt pouch but hesitated when he saw the two warriors flinch. Considering
that they were both armed, he moved with exaggerated slowness and pulled out a
datapad. “Your meeting with the freelancer is scheduled for midnight and your
meeting with Absolem is set for three in the morning. Plenty of time for you to
pay a visit to Needles to give him my message and liberate him of the spice.”

DJ took the offered datapad. “You realize that if
this goes sour or you betray me, then a mutual friend of ours will not be
pleased.” Judging from the way Mocha’s face paled, he understood the threat. “I
plan on transmitting the details of our arraignments to him just in case. If
you are on the level and I fail, then you are clear. If not…”

Mocha raised both hands. “Everything is kosher, I
swear. Now I can’t guarantee that the freelancer or Absolem will listen to you
but those are out of my control.”

“Agreed. You can rest easy Mocha. If you are right
and this Needles character is just a smuggler who isn’t affiliated with the
Cartel, then we’re good.”

“He isn’t. I swear.”

DJ nodded to Jax. “Let’s go.”

Jax nodded and lifted the bound man. Throwing him
over his shoulder he said, “What do you want to do with the prisoner?”

“Cargo. Once captured a mark becomes cargo to be
transported safely and securely to the authorities.”

“Huh?”

“Bounty hunting has its own lingo and traditions.
For now, follow me.”

“Just to let you know, I’m not the greatest at
taking orders.”

DJ snickered. “Sounds like something I said to a
friend of mine not too long ago. But don’t worry, this sounds like the
beginning of a great friendship.”

Without another word to the casino owner, the two
warriors walked out of Mocha Delights. DJ knew that he wasn’t home free, yet.
He had entered the casino with only the smallest inkling of a plan but at least
now he had a plan of attack and more importantly, help. Only time would tell
how the rest of the night would play out.

Chapter 11

They paused at the front door of the casino while
Jagger Jax put on his breathing apparatus and DJ fitted one on their prisoner.
Even though the Coalition had built a terraforming plant on Titan nearly a half
century ago and it had been running non-stop for that whole time, the
atmosphere was still too nitrogen rich for humans without some sort of oxygen
device.

DJ flagged down a yellow cab but before the cabbie
could pull up, a familiar red cab cut him off.

Tony leaned out the window. “Hey there Marine,
looks like you could use a ride.”

DJ nodded. “As a matter of fact, we do.” Opening
the back door to Lucille, DJ asked, “Can you pop the trunk?” Seeing the hatch
open up, he added. “Put the cargo in there and hop in.”

Jax followed directions without comment and they
were soon underway. Once the doors of the taxi were closed, he popped off his
mask. “God, I hate these things.”

Tony nodded once. “I know what you mean, even
after all these years of being on Titan I can’t stand them either.” Shifting
his attention to the bounty hunter by angling the rear view mirror slightly,
“How’d your meeting with Mocha go? Profitable?”

“Yes. He was shocked to see me again and sent his
dwarfs to test me. They didn’t enjoy the rumble.”

Tony slapped his steering wheel. “Oh my god, I
wish I could’ve seen that. They’ve thrown me out a few times. It would’ve been
fun to see them get their backsides handed to them.” As Tony swerved to avoid a
slower moving cabbie, he asked, “Not that I’m complaining, but where to?”

“The Sheriffs must have a jail on Titan. We need
to get rid of some excess cargo.” Tony nodded and switched lanes without a
word. Jagger Jax seemed lost in thought, so DJ took a moment to look out the
window at the amazing landscape that was Titan.

They were currently flying over a huge lake of
liquid methane. He knew from his research that is must be the Kraken Mare, the
largest lake on Titan. Mocha Delights was actually located on the eastern shore
in one of the relatively new settlements which dated back about twenty years or
so. Judging from the map displayed on his HUD, he guessed that they were
heading toward the island named Mayda Insula, the site of the first settlement
on Titan. The island was totally enclosed in a bio-dome and the location of the
largest population on the moon, including the home of the Titan Avionics
executives.