Reavers (Book 3) (18 page)

“Great.  Just great.  So what do the little upstarts want for the pleasure of docking on
their
station?”

“That’s the problem.  They won’t tell me.  They refuse to speak to anyone but the captain.”

“Of all the stupid . . .”

Rosalyn crossed the bridge, took her seat, and tried to compose herself.  When she was ready, she nodded once to Andreas.  Slowly an image formed on the main monitor.  As the figure focused and took on detail, she had to cover her mouth.  It was all she could do not to laugh openly at the tall man standing proudly.  Boldly on the chest of his uniform was a large illustration of a mouse standing over a dead cat.

“Are you the captain?” the man asked in a deadly serious tone.

“I am,” Rosalyn said, attempting to match his serious tone.  “What are the terms for docking?”

“No weapons, no combat armor, and thirty percent of all sales are to be paid to the glory of the Great White Rat.”

“Are you kidding me?” Rosalyn demanded as she stood.  “Thirty percent is outrageous!”

“If you don’t like the terms, feel free to try elsewhere,” the man said smugly.

Rosalyn started to protest but cut herself off.  Slowly returning to her seat, she nodded in acceptance.

“Excellent!  Welcome to the Rat Hole.”

As the transmission faded, the entire bridge crew burst into laughter.  Even Andreas was chuckling openly.  The same emblem of the rat and the dead cat stood above every docking port.  If Rosalyn didn’t know better, she would have guessed they were about to enter a theme park.

“What is the galaxy coming to?” she asked as the ship docked.

Tardos stretched as he started to wake from his nap.  He had spent the entire day with the kitchen staff cutting and peeling.  With the boarding party still in the sickbay, his life was incredibly dull.  The captain had no choice but to avoid other ships until her crew was back on its feet.  That didn’t really matter to Tardos anyway.  After his performance on the raid, he knew he wouldn’t be invited to tag along on another raid.  The only problem now was to figure out what he wanted to do on the ship. 

As he shifted to the edge of his bunk, his aching hands shouted their opinion.  Working as a chef was obviously out of the question.  Shifting his gaze around the room, Tardos thought of his options.  From the appearance of the crew, there was a lot of heavy lifting needed.  That was something he had never been any good at.  The only muscle in his body that was worth anything was his brain.  Sadly, old age was working its havoc on that, too.

Truth be told, he had a good run.  He had spent most of his life among the most successful of pirates.  The things he had seen and experienced would make him the envy of half the crew.  That was
before
the mishap.  As his thoughts continued on of their own initiative, recalling past memories at random, a sniffle interrupted.  Like a colossal train wreck of free thought, Tardos scrambled to pick up the pieces and collect his thoughts.  Turning, he found Sasha hunched over, sniffling faintly.  After a few stretches to reawaken his old joints, he moved to the girl’s bunk.

“Everything alright?” he asked softly.

“What?” she asked in surprise, swiping at her eyes.  “Oh, Tardos.  Yes, I’m fine.”

“Then what’s with the tears?”

“They had me cutting onions,” she said with a shrug.

“So you’re working in the kitchen now?”

“Sort of.  They still haven’t decided if they want me.  Revel said I’d always be welcome to join the raids, but after that last one . . .”

Sasha sniffled again.  Tardos wondered if her onion story had any merit.

“I’ll tell you what, why don’t we go visit Kevin,” he said, patting her shoulder encouragingly.

“I don’t know . . .”

“Well I do,” Tardos said with a wink.

Pulling with all of his lackluster strength, he dragged the girl along.  About halfway to the sickbay she started walking on her own.  Every now and then they would pass a crewmember lazing about.  The entire ship was bored stiff.  When they reached sickbay, Tardos readied himself.  Most likely he’d have to argue his way in again.  The half rate butcher they called a doctor refused to let anyone in who wasn’t sick or dying.

“We’re here to see Kevin,” Tardos said diplomatically to the man leaning against the door to sickbay.

“What do I care?”

Tardos had to blink as the man casually sauntered off.  Shaking off the surprise, he headed into the sickbay.  Instead of the characteristic moaning and whining, the place was filled with a tranquil quiet.

“Are we in the right place?” Sasha whispered.

“You indeed are,” a man resting against the wall plating mumbled.

“What’s going on here?” Tardos asked in confusion.

“The good doctor is out.  Without him around, this place isn’t half bad.”

“Well then, let’s not waste our good fortune,” Tardos said with a smile.

Walking deeper into the sickbay, he was amazed at the calm of the injured.  Several were playing cards and chatting quietly with visitors.  They all seemed completely oblivious to their conditions.  If Tardos hadn’t known better he would have assumed he had gotten turned around and had inadvertently walked back into the crew quarters.  His study of the others was quickly interrupted as Sasha started pulling him along.  He suppressed the urge to chuckle.  The girl he had drug half way here was now dragging
him
.

“Would you like some company?” Sasha asked sheepishly as she peeked through the opening to Kevin’s room.

It wasn’t a room really, just a bed lined with various machines.  A thin curtain was the only divider between it and the next “room.”  There weren’t even any chairs or the like for visitors.  With a shrug, Tardos walked past the girl and took a seat on one of the smaller machines.

“Of course he wants your company,” he said as he tried to get comfortable on the quietly humming machine.  “He’s injured, not
dead
.”

Kevin chuckled as Sasha slowly entered the room.  His head and shoulders were fixed in place by a combination of casts and uncomfortable looking metal shafts.  To Tardos he looked like some kind of cybernetic mummy.

“How are you doing?” he asked as Sasha looked for a place to sit.  “Found anything to pass the time?”

“Don’t worry, just sit anywhere,” Kevin said to Sasha.  “These are rugged old things.  I bet a rifle blast wouldn’t disable them.”

“What are they for?” she asked cautiously.  “I wouldn’t want to sit on something important.”

“Unless you sit on Kevin’s lap, I doubt you have to worry.  Then again, he might not mind that either,” Tardos said with a grin.

“So how are you, really?” Sasha asked, ignoring Tardos.

“Despite my appearance, I’m just fine,” Kevin said.  “I should be up and about any time now.”

“Well that’s wonderful news,” Tardos said, leaning in closer.  “Revel’s already got his claws on you I bet.”

“You can’t be serious!” Sasha protested.  “How can he ask you to join him after what happened?”

“It’s
because
of what happened that I can ask him,” Revel said from the opening in the curtain.

Sasha turned an unpleasant expression on Revel, something halfway between desperation and rage.

“Don’t worry, he’ll be fine,” Revel said with a smirk.  “While the rest of us were caught with our pants down, he knew exactly what was going on.”

“What happens the next time they catch you unprepared?” Sasha asked with obvious concern.

“They thought it would be an easy raid,” Kevin said.  “They let their guard down.  They won’t let that happen again.”

“The boy’s right,” Tardos said comfortingly.  “Plus, it really was a shock that the captain cared so much about a cargo hold of D rations.”

“But . . .” Sasha tried to protest.

“It’s alright,” Kevin said, turning his head to face her.  It obviously took some efforts against all the things holding him still.  “After all, someone has to do it.  If I’m out there, then I know you’re safe here.”

A deep blush filled Sasha’s face.

“Well, that’s our cue,” Tardos said, hopping off the machine.

“What?” Revel asked as he turned his head downward to look at the man half his height.

“You’ve got your raider, and I’ve found out my friend will be back on his feet.  Now let’s leave them alone.”

Revel turned a confused glance on the pair in the room as Tardos pulled his free arm.  Finally understanding, Revel let out a thunderous laugh as Sasha’s blush deepened.

“You kids have fun,” he called out as he followed Tardos.  “Don’t play too rough with him; I want him on his feet
eventually
.”

Tardos studied the carefree crewmembers as he slowly headed toward the exit.

“You seem lost in thought,” Revel said with a hearty slap to Tardos’ back.  “Worried about your young friend?”

“Kevin?  Not in the slightest.  Sasha feels so guilty about what happened she wouldn’t dare make a move while he’s in that gear.”

“Who said anything about Sasha?  I don’t know if I could resist her charm if I were in his position.”

“Never!  I hate to admit it, but Kevin is too tightly wound.  I honestly can’t imagine the boy would ever do anything remotely improper.”

“Really?  Then what is he doing here?  This isn’t exactly a monastery.”

“A series of bad choices and a horrible family life.  I’d imagine it’s the same story for half the crew.”

“Odd, he doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy who makes bad choices.”

“Everyone is young once.  Experience is the best teacher.  Once you make a few mistakes you know how to avoid them in the future.  But enough about that; let’s get out of here.”

“Got a problem with blood and gore?” Revel asked with a playful jab.

“Not at all, it’s the quiet.  This place is seriously creeping me out.  Not to jinx it or anything, but where exactly did that sorry excuse for a doctor disappear to?”

“I’d imagine he’s out with the captain getting supplies.”

“Getting supplies?”

“Yeah, we docked with a Freeport a little over an hour ago.”

“A Freeport?” Tardos asked.  “Why hasn’t the captain told the crew?  A little time outside the ship would do wonders for the boredom.”

“Well that’s the problem.  It isn’t exactly a Freeport anymore.”

“Hold on.  You’re telling me our captain, Captain Dubois,
intentionally
docked at a guild owned port?”

“Not exactly.  Turns out someone bought the place not too long ago.  We didn’t even know until we got here.”

Tardos suddenly turned white as a sheet and bit his lower lip.

“What’s wrong?” Revel asked.

“Please tell me one of the major guilds owns the station we are docked with.”

“Nope.  Some upstarts.  Got lucky with some weapons . . .”

The short man bolted off with a speed Revel didn’t believe was possible for his age.  The look of terror on Tardos’ face sent a chill down his spine.

Thankfully the Great White Rat guild hadn’t touched the interior of the station yet.  It remained identical to any other Freeport.  Rosalyn shuttered at the thought of that horrid emblem covering every surface of the station.  The few remaining locals didn’t seem pleased either.  Those that hadn’t left already did their best to look pleased with their obnoxious new landlords.  Their new taskmasters marched around with a smugness that could only come from ownership.  The locals listened with forced smiles as the taskmasters explained in detail how they would
improve
the Freeport.

“This makes it five,” Andreas said as he followed behind Rosalyn.

“Five what?”

“Five Freeports left.  It won’t be long now until every last one has joined a guild.”

“Don’t bother,” she said with a sigh.

“Bother with what?”

“Trying to ruin my mood.  That hideous emblem already did more damage than any random tidbit of depressing news could do now.”

“That was not my intention,” Andreas said as he straightened.

Rosalyn had to pause.  Slowly turning, she studied the man standing uncomfortably behind her.  She had actually gotten through his armor.  For the first time she could remember Andreas hadn’t simply ignored her taunting.

“Then what was your intention?” she asked, probing.

“I know this is not the most opportune moment for this,” Andreas cleared his throat, “but it is time we joined a guild.”

“Don’t tell me you want to wear that silly uniform, too?”

“I’m being serious!”

Rosalyn pulled back a step.  He had responded to her taunt.  Something was troubling him.  Quickly glancing down, she studied her outfit - nothing overly provocative today.  She hadn’t been taunting him much either.  Could it have been the failed raid?