Rebel (2 page)

"I didn't take Steerforth," said Cole.

"It is my gift to you, courtesy of the immortal Charles."

"You and Mr. Dickens can have it back," said Cole. "I just hope you're more accurate about your military predictions than your name."

Cole had the uneasy feeling that some nameless god of the space-ways grinned sardonically and silently mouthed the words:
Well, you can hope.

It wasn't home—that was the
Teddy R
—but it
was
headquarters.

It was Singapore Station, perhaps the most remarkable structure on the Inner Frontier. Its genesis went back some eleven centuries, to the 883rd year of the Galactic Era, when two small space stations, built midway between the Genoa and the Kalatina systems, were splitting the business in a sector that could support only one station. In desperation their owners decided to form not just an economic partnership, but a physical one as well. The two stations were moved to a midpoint between the systems by space tugs. Workmen and robots labored for three Standard months, joining them physically—and when they reopened they found that business was booming.

Others saw and learned and copied, and by the fourteenth century G.E. there were dozens of such super-stations across the Frontier. They found that the bigger they were, the more services they could provide—and the more services they could provide, the more clientele they could attract, so they kept combining and growing.

By the time Cole and his crew first docked at it, almost two hundred such stations had combined into one super-station—Singapore Station—that was as heavily populated as any colony world, and measured some seven miles in diameter. It consisted of nine levels, with docking facilities that could handle almost ten thousand ships, from huge military and passenger vessels to the little one- and two-man jobs that were commonplace on the Frontier.

Singapore Station was well named and well located. An interstellar gathering place reminiscent of the fabled international city back on old Earth, it was halfway between the Republic and the huge black hole at the galactic core. Warring parties—and there were
always
wars going on in the galaxy—needed a Switzerland, a neutral territory where all sides could meet in safety and secrecy, where currencies could be exchanged, where men and aliens could come and go regardless of their political and military affiliation, and Singapore Station filled that need.

It was also a wide-open venue. Whorehouses, catering to all sexes and species, abounded. So did bars, drug dens, casinos, and huge open "gray markets." (By definition no item was illegal or contraband on Singapore Station, so there couldn't be any black markets.) There were elegant hotels, comparable to the finest on Deluros VIII. There were gourmet restaurants, side-by-side with slop houses, as well as alien restaurants catering to more than one hundred non-human species.

Four of the nine levels possessed what had come to be known as Standard gravity and atmosphere, though no one knew if that was Earth Standard or Deluros VIII Standard (and since they were almost identical, no one really cared). There was a level for chlorine breathers, one for methane breathers, another for ammonia breathers, and one small section with no atmosphere at all, where space-suited men and space-suited aliens could meet as uncomfortable equals. A middle level provided automatic transport for all.

Cole had chosen Singapore Station as the headquarters for his rapidly growing fleet of ships the first time he set foot on it a year earlier. It was the one place on the Inner Frontier where he trusted the security, where he could replenish his supplies, and where he could make contact with those who might be interested in hiring the services of the
Teddy R
and its sister ships. Though David Copperfield still negotiated Cole's end of the contracts, he didn't have enough contacts to solicit sufficient work to keep Cole's small but growing navy busy— but there was one man who did, and that was the man who ran Singapore Station. Known as the Platinum Duke for his multitude of platinum prosthetics—not much of the original man remained on the exterior except his tongue, lips, and sexual organ—he had formed a partnership with Cole that had proved profitable to both parties.

The Duke also owned a large casino known simply as Duke's Place, and it was the unofficial hangout of the
Teddy R's
crew. The Duke himself kept a large table at the back of the casino where Cole and his officers were always welcome, and where there was no tab for food or drink.

Cole entered the casino and walked past the human and alien games to the Duke's table, accompanied by his Chief of Security, Sharon Blacksmith, and David Copperfield. Val had accompanied them as far as the entrance, but made a beeline for the gaming tables the moment she entered. The Duke's security system alerted him to their presence, and he emerged from his private office, looking far more robotic than human, to greet them as they reached the table.

"I hear you took care of Machtel without firing a shot," said the Duke. "That's, what, three in a row?"

"It makes more sense to assimilate the ships and crew than destroy them," said Cole, pulling a chair out for Sharon and then seating himself. A robot approached, and he ordered drinks for himself and Sharon. "You want anything, David?"

"A bottle of Cygnian cognac," replied the dapper little alien.

"Come on, David," said Cole. "Your metabolism can't handle our stimulants."

"I know," replied Copperfield. "But I don't have to open it. I'll just let it sit here on the table in front of me for atmosphere."

"Fine," said the Duke. "If you don't open it, I can sell it later."

"You'll have to forgive him," said Cole. "He gets a little more obsessed every day. I can't believe he hasn't visited one of the whorehouses here."

"David Copperfield would never frequent a brothel!" said the alien heatedly.

"I stand corrected," said Cole.

"How many of Machtel's ships and crew did you confiscate?" asked the Duke.

"Eight ships, fifty-seven Men and aliens," answered Cole.

"That's quite a fleet you're accumulating," said the Duke. "You're going to run out of challenges before too long."

"We've
faced
challenges," replied Cole. "Trust me, they're overrated."

"Besides, we can't go getting him shot up now that I've finally got him trained," said Sharon.

"Decorum forbids me from asking what you'd got him trained to do," said the Duke, his human lips smiling in his platinum face. He looked over at the Valkyrie. "You'd think she'd stop by and say hello."

"She will, after she's beaten your table or blown all her money," said Cole. "You know her."

"I still wish she'd hire on right here. I never saw anyone who could spot a cheater quicker, and I've never seen the human or alien who could beat her in a fight."

"She's quite remarkable," agreed Copperfield.

"I need her right where she is," said Cole.

"You wouldn't be happy with her anyway," added Sharon. "Wilson's the only person she'll listen to."

"Why is that?" asked the Duke.

"Because he's never wrong," said Copperfield. "Except when he disagrees with me."

"Funny," added Sharon with a smile. "I was about to say the same thing."

"Ah!" said the Duke, looking across the room. "I see Commander Jacovic has joined us."

"He was a little late getting in," replied Cole. "I had him escort the new ships back, just in case one of the them tried to pull anything funny." He waved his hand to catch Jacovic's attention, and the tall, thin Teroni walked across the room and joined them.

"Welcome back, Commander Jacovic," said the Duke.

"I am just Jacovic now," replied the Teroni. "I am no longer an officer in the Teroni Navy."

"Commander of the Fifth Fleet, to be exact," said Cole.

"That's in the past. We are no longer enemies, and neither of us is a member of any Navy."

"Except our own," said Sharon. "The only difference between you and Wilson is that the Teronis haven't offered a ten-million-credit reward for you, dead or alive," said Sharon. "The Republic's Navy is somewhat less enamoured of our Captain."

"Out here that's a badge of honor," remarked the Duke. "In fact, it makes you a hero. The fact that you were justified, that you actually saved millions of Republic lives by forcibly replacing your captain, doesn't quite detract from the fact that you are the most wanted criminal in the galaxy."

"How comforting," said Cole dryly.

"And by the way, the reward is now up to twelve million," added the Duke.

"Whoopie," said Cole unenthusiastically.

The Duke studied Cole's face. "Our hero looks neither pleased nor proud. Why not?"

"We both know the Navy's not going to send a major fleet to the Frontier after the
Teddy R
as long as they're in a war with the Teroni Federation," answered Copperfield "but if they keep making the reward bigger and bigger, then sooner or later, despite your security, Singapore Station is going to be crawling with bounty hunters."

"It won't happen here," the Duke assured him. "Whoever accepts the contract will want to live long enough to spend it."

"You can stop one killer," continued Sharon. "But what if twenty of them form a partnership? That's still better than half a million a man."

"Enough," said Cole. "The risks go with the job."

Sharon was about to reply when they heard a cry of triumph from across the room.

"She beat your
jabob
game," noted Cole, referring to the alien gaming table where Val was holding up a fistful of cash.

"It would be so much cheaper to have her work for the house than play against it," muttered the Duke.

A robot delivered a bottle of whiskey to Val.

"Not to worry," said Cole. "She'll chug-a-lug a couple of bottles of booze and probably wind up losing it all back to you."

"Remarkable lady," said the Duke.

"She's got her share of rough edges," agreed Cole. "But when the chips are clown, she's the one I want protecting my back."

"Just so long as she leaves your front alone," said Sharon.

Suddenly the Duke summoned a robot. "Where are my manners?" he said. "What will you have to drink, Commander?"

"Just Jacovic," the Teroni corrected him. "And if it's all right with you, I think I would prefer to eat."

"My kitchen is at your disposal."

"Meaning no disrespect, but there is a restaurant three levels down that specializes in Teroni food," said Jacovic. "I just stopped in to tell Captain Cole that we returned without incident, and to say hello to you." He got to his feet.

"You'll be back later?" asked the Duke.

"Yes."

"Give me the name of the restaurant and I'll see to it that there's no charge."

"Thank you," said Jacovic, "but I prefer to pay."

He turned and headed to the door.

"A little anti-Man sentiment there?" asked the Duke.

"No," answered Cole. "A little pride." He shrugged. "Besides, out here he's got nothing to spend it on."

"We have
that
in common," said a familiar voice.

Cole turned and saw Forrice, his First Officer, spinning toward the table with his remarkably graceful three-legged gait. The burly Molarian, whose tripodal structure made sitting on chairs crafted for humans all but impossible, waited until a robot brought him a seat that had been made especially for him.

"I thought you were busy spending all your money, Four Eyes," remarked Cole when Forrice finally seated himself.

The Molarian's reply was a guttural growl.

"What happened?"

"Guess," muttered Forrice.

Suddenly Cole grinned in amusement. "Wrong time of year?"

"It's not funny!" snapped Forrice. "You and Sharon have sex whenever you want, which is altogether too often if you want my opinion, but Molarians are different. Our females are seasonal."

"And the Molarian whorehouse didn't have any in season?"

"Not one!"

"Poor baby," said Sharon sympathetically, and neither Cole nor Forrice could tell if she was sincere or teasing him.

"So what do you do now?" asked Copperfield.

"It all depends," said the Molarian. "Have you and the Duke gotten us another assignment yet?"

"No," said Copperfield. "Steerforth wanted to give the crew a week's shore leave. Well, Singapore Station leave, anyway."

"Then maybe I'll borrow one of the shuttles," said Forrice. "There's supposed to be a Molarian whorehouse over on Braccio II. I could be there and back in three days' time."

The Duke shook his head. "You don't want to go anywhere near there, Forrice," he said.

"Oh? Why not?"

"There are a couple of hundred Navy ships in the vicinity," said the Duke. "At least, they were there two days ago."

"What the hell are they doing out here?"

"The usual," answered the Duke. "Forcibly recruiting cannon fodder. Plundering agricultural planets for supplies. Appropriating fissionable materials from a trio of mining worlds. Pacifying a couple of worlds that have somehow annoyed them. And then explaining that they were doing it all for our own good. You know the Navy."

"We
all
know the Navy," said Sharon. "We were in it. That's why we can never go back to the Republic."

Anyway, I hate to put a damper on your love life, Forrice," continued tin Duke, "but I'd stay away from there until we get definite word that the Navy has left."

"It's a damned lucky thing Molarians don't believe in God," muttered Forrice. "Because if we did, I'd be sure He hated me."