The Siege of New Terra (Star Sojourner Book 7) (2 page)

The Denebrian kept walking. “Deduct it from my pay, Terran scud.”

“We could take three of them,” I said, “if we can avoid the lights. Can you tags swim the width of this river underwater? It's only about forty feet across.”

“Won't know unless we try.” Bat took deep breaths and forced out air.

“What's he doing?” Chancey asked me.

“Hyperventilating, Chance. It gives you more time underwater.” I started to do it too. I didn't tell Chancey that you could also pass out from the technique. It had never happened to me, though, in all my years of free diving.

“OK.” Chancey scanned the circling hovairs and took deep breaths.

The human and his two companions backed away from the water's edge and waited with drawn stinglers that gleamed in moonlight.

“See you tags on the other side.” I drew in a deep breath and slid underwater. If I thought I was cold before, I didn't know what cold was. I clamped my teeth to avoid exhaling and swam across the slick bottom, my hands groping, and using plants to pull myself along.

I was shaking badly when the bottom finally sloped up and my head broke the surface. I quietly drew in a deep shuddering breath and crawled up the bank to dry land.

Bat was already there, on his knees and shivering as he caught his breath. Chancey broke the surface about halfway across the river and started swimming.

“C'mon, Chance,” I whispered and unholstered my weapon.

A light swept the water and Chancey dived. He surfaced near shore and crawled up the bank.

Stay under, Huff,
I sent as we crouched low and ran to the shelter of trees.

“Bat,” I said, with cold slurring my words, “suppose you sneak over to the hovair and take out the Deneb while Chance and I take on the three by the river.”

“Y'all want me to
kill
him?” Bat's eyes widened in darkness.

“If you can catch him off guard,” I said, “order him into the ship and go in with him so the infras won't pick up either of you. But don't put yourself in danger to save him, Bat. Believe me, he wouldn't do it for you.”

Bat lowered his head and nodded. “OK.”

I patted his shoulder.

“Chance,” I said, “we've got to waste those three and throw two bodies into the river.”

“Yeah. Then we take their place for the infras. I got no quarrel with that.”

I finally stopped shaking in the hot, humid air.

“What scares me…” Chancey said.

“Is that these scuds murder their hostages when the ransom creds don't show up,” I finished his thought. The decapitated heads of hostages had been sent back to their families when the ransom wasn't paid. “These people are animals,” I said. “Suppose…” I wiped my face and some bugs on a sleeve and stared at the hovair. “Suppose…”

“C'mon,” Chancey said, “what're you thinking?”

“They might kill Joe before this night is over, Chance, unless…”

“Suppose. Unless … Chancey repeated.”Spit it out, tag."

“Change of plans,” I said. “Suppose we create a diversion?”

Chancey glanced at Bat. “We're listening, man.”

“Suppose we…” I started.

“There he is!” I heard the human call. Huff had emerged downriver from the three pirates and ducked back under as they fired at him.

“Chancey, Bat,” I said. “I've got an idea.”

“We're friggin' listening, man!” Chancey said. “Will ya friggin' tell us?”

“Suppose, after we get rid of these scuds,” I said, “you trot back to Sojourner, Chancey, while Bat and I wait inside the hovair, if all goes well.”

“And?” Chancey said.

“At my signal on the comlinks, you take off and buzz the camp.”

“Can do.”

“All hell's going to break loose, Chance,” I said. “That's when Bat, Huff, and I land the hovair near the big tent, grab Joe and go.”

Chancey grinned his lopsided grin. “Sounds like a plan, Superstar.”

“A dangerous one for you,” I said.

“For all of us,” Chancey added

“Remember, Chance, Joe's being held in the big tent.” I glanced at the grounded craft. “We could probably make it to the hovair under cover of trees, but that would mean abandoning Huff.”

“We don't leave nobody behind,” Chancey said. “Not even the fur ball.”

I patted his shoulder. “If things go wrong and we can't meet back at the gorge, we'll meet upriver, at the tributary. Agreed?”

They nodded.

“Bat? You up for this?”

Bat squeezed out his soaked cap, crammed it back on his head and smiled. “I signed on, didn't I?”

“I hope you don't live to regret it,” I told him.

“I hope none of us does.” He crossed himself, fished inside his wet shirt, pulled out a crucifix and kissed it. “I truly hope none of us does, bubba.”

I guess the three pirates near the river felt pretty safe from us. They were covered by the circling hovairs. The land between them, and Bat and me, was stark and open, lit only by moonlight, with a few stands of spindly-trunked entwined Bonsai trees. Our stinglers are short-range beam weapons. The pirates must've figured we'd be fried by the ships' big guns before we got close to them. They were probably right. But what they didn't figure on was our bag of tricks.

Chancey trotted away, staying under the cover of a grove of entangled trees as he headed for the hovair. The Deneb had gone inside. Bat and I moved along the muddy slope behind the river until we came to a stand of trees that spread down to the water's edge.

By the ruddy light of the moon, we found what we wanted, a good-sized boulder. It was hard to pry it out of mud that sucked it back in. Finally, with our backs against it, our feet sliding, we got it rolling down to the river.

“Yes!” I said as it bounced faster. We unholstered our weapons. “Set it on stun,” I told Bat. We'll drag the crotes under trees where the infras can't detect them."

He let out a breath in relief and spun the ring to stun setting. I heard the splash as the boulder rolled into water.

“What was that?” the human pirate asked and swept his light across the water where the boulder jutted above the disturbed surface. “Did that crotefucker just surface and go back under? C'mon,” he told his two companions, also humans, I realized, “I want that slimeshittin' Vegan like a drowning man wants air!”

“Go easy,” one of the other humans said. “He already took out two of our people.”

“I'll go easy when his fuckin' head is on a platter. The man who takes that bottom feeder gets a thousand creds from my own 'count!”

Bat and I stayed low as the three pirates trotted to the water's edge, still under the trees where we hid.

“Dammit!” I muttered as one of the airborne craft hovered above the pirates.

“Do you figure,” Bat asked, “those infras can pick up warm bodies under trees?”

“It looks that way, Bat,” I whispered. “The ships have got ears too.”

“Guess we'd best be quiet.”

“Oh no!” Huff's head broke the surface near the pirates. The hovair was directly overhead.
Not now, Huff!
I sent the thought.

“What'll we do?” Bat asked in a throaty whisper.

“We're committed. Let's go.”

We slid down the muddy slope until we were in range of firing and stopped behind a slender trunk. The pirates fired at Huff and he went under again, but one of the hovairs dropped out of the sky, skimmed the water's surface and fired a missile into Huff's position.

“Oh, no,” I whispered as water erupted in a blaze of fiery light and spray. “Huff…”

“That oughta do the slimy fucker!” the human leader shouted. “Look for his body. I want his
head
. The fish can have the rest of him.”

I spun my stingler's ring to hot beam, lifted mental shields, and fired. The leader screamed and threw up his arms, then sank lifeless to the mud with his jacket smoldering. “That'll do you,” I said through clenched teeth.

Bat swept his weapon, still set for stun, and the other two pirates crashed to the ground before they could fire.

“Huff.” I stood up and scanned the water. If he was dead, his body would float, unless it were so torn…

The hovair banked and soared in our direction. I realized that Bat was pulling on my sleeve. “They've spotted us!” he cried. “Jules! We've got to make it to the hovair. It's our only chance.”

A missile exploded to our left.

“Duck!” Bat shouted as tree trunks exploded like shrapnel around us.

I threw a glance back at the empty surface with my stomach knotted and followed Bat as he ran to the grounded hovair under cover of trees.

Chancey sprang the hatch from inside and we threw ourselves into the deck while he snapped it shut. The Deneb lay dead in a corner. The craft's engines were idling with a keening sound like a bird of prey ready to spring into flight.

“Where the hell's Huff?” Chancey asked as I slid into the pilot's seat and strapped on the belts.

“We're not sure,” Bat told him, but…" I saw him shake his head. My throat went dry and tight. Tears burned my eyes. I wiped them on my sleeve and lifted the craft into the night sky. “Strap on!” I called as I flipped switches to shut off all our lights. “It's going to be a fast ride.”

They did.

My stomach caved against my backbone as the hovair streaked skyward in a shuddering climb that pinned me to the seat. I hung onto the controls and watched a viewport full of stars. Through the port window, I saw the pursuing craft rise to follow.

“Here we go!” I muttered, slowing, and threw on full reverse thrusters. The hovair lurched over its right wing in a sickening dive and we plummeted toward the ground. “And here we go again. I forced the craft into a pull-up that seemed to defy the laws of gravity.

Hemorrhoid time!

I leveled, forced out a breath and bored toward my pursuers. I fired at one, but missed. Lights parted from the two craft as they separated and left me a hole. Red flashes from their wing stingers went wide.

Then I was past them. They'd be a long time doubling back. Shit! The leader's craft rose to follow me in that wingover maneuver.
You're cutting it too sharp!
I thought.
Watch out!
His craft swung wide, slammed into the flank of the slope and exploded. I moaned as his silent scream ripped through me.

Terror!

Inside my chest. Terror. As the great void opened. Alone. I tried to shake the link and lift my shields as he drifted into geth, that state between lives. Alone through a black chasm. A scream without a voice. Jesus and Vishnu! I was locked with his spirit. I banked the hovair, circled above the blazing ruin of his ship, and projected soothing thoughts.
Geth state is peaceful,
I sent.
Great Mind will embrace your kwaii, your spirit.

I kept an eye on the returning hovair.

“Terran!” A human voice came through the radio. I maintained silence as I climbed. “You've won the night. Join us. The pay is good. Our lives are free. We get the most beautiful women and the best toys creds can buy.”

I sat back in the cushioned seat and smiled. It was a poor advertising stunt. All he wanted was our heads on platters. “Eat shit and die, mother fucker.” I shut off the radio before he could come back with a retort, and headed for Star Sojourner.

Through the port window, the river appeared as a bent silver knife that cut the land. I rubbed my eyes. If I'd been alone, I would've headed back to search for Huff, but the last pirate hovair was somewhere in the night sky and had also gone dark, searching for our position. The glint of moonlight on our hull could give us away. I couldn't risk the lives of my two teammates for the sake of my Vegan buddy who might already be… I pushed aside that thought.

Chancey sprang the hatch, dragged the Deneb's body to it, and threw him out into the gorge.

We were silent as I landed the hovair near our starship. The only sounds were the squawks and grunts of night hunters and their frightened prey.

Chancey got out. Bat and I watched him make his way to Sojourner and climb inside. Was it possible that we would lose two of our teammates, Joe and Huff, on this dark night?

* * *

The pirate camp below scrambled into high gear as Chancey shut down Sojourner's lights and buzzed the tents. He strafed the ones I'd told him were ammo sheds. One of them exploded and sent a plume of fire and smoke swirling into the night sky.

The pirates snuffed out all lights and fired at Sojourner with beam rifles and a rocket launcher. I saw men board the two remaining hovairs as I held my craft rock steady above the tree line and waited for my chance to land and rescue Joe. Bat, in the co-pilot's seat, was tense and silent, staring through the forward viewport.

Chancey banked our starship and led the band of men and aliens away from the main tent where I'd felt Joe's mind patterns.

“He's given us our chance,” I told Bat as I dropped below the camouflage projection to ground level and taxied behind the main tent. “Keep her idling and ready, Bat.” I sprang the hatch and leaped to the spongy ground.

The night was drizzly and humid, with frightened squawks and growls of jungle creatures. I unholstered my stingler and trotted around the tent to the rolled-up flap. The grounds were empty.

It was dark and silent inside the tent, with a moldy smell. “Joe!” I whispered as I entered, my stingler drawn and set on hot beam.

“Sorry, no Joe,” a guttural human voice answered in Stelspeak.

I swung in his direction. The stingler was knocked spinning from my hand.

“No Joe here either.” I caught the raspy tone and bitterroot smell of an Altairian behind me. “Will you settle for Frak the Altair, and Dirk, the Terran?” he asked.

I moved away but was thrown against Frak by Dirk. A fist crashed into my face. I thought my skull had fractured as I slid to my knees. Pain blazed through my head and I felt dizzy, but I started to get up.

“Stay there.” Dirk shoved me to the ground with his boot.

“OK.” I squinted in the sudden glare of a light. I would've reached for the leg knife strapped under my right cuff, but both their guns were trained on me.

The tent was empty, except for stacked boxes against the walls, and the two pirates.

Frak squatted beside me. Altairians are not my favorite race in the world colonies with their crocodile looks, their cranky temperaments, and their bitterroot odor, except for Commander Ca Prez of the Alliance Star Fleet.

“Did you really think it would be that easy?” Frak lifted his thick green scaly tail and laid it across my hip. “You just walk in, say 'Hello Joe', and walk out with your leader?”

“It would've been nice,” I said through the fog in my throbbing head.

He chortled deep in his throat. “You must believe we're all fools.”

“Where's Joe?” I started to get up again.

“Stay there. Frak pointed his stingler at me and tapped the ring.”Hot beam."

Dirk walked back with twine from the boxes. “This one's the tel, Frak. Get down.” He pushed me to the floor and roughly tied my wrists behind my back.

“How do you know that?” Frak asked.

“I saw his picture on the vid screen from Alpha Colonies Broadcast. He's the one who led slave miners on planet New Lithnia to rebel. They killed their Altairian overlord and the guards.” He chuckled. “Your people, Frak.”

Thanks a lot, ACB,
I thought. Anything to bring in an audience.

“So
you're
the scud who did that?” Frak lifted his tail and lashed me with it. “Nice job, slimesucker.”

I gritted my teeth. “Where's
Joe
?”

“You gonna crawl to him?” Dirk asked and tied my ankles.

I closed my eyes and tried to spin a coil of tel to influence them, but my mind was too unfocused from the blow.

Frak took a comlink from his blue sequined vest, his only clothing, and turned it on. “This is Captain Frak of the Guards Unit,” he said into it. “We just captured one of the invaders, Commander Tryst. The tag's name is Jules Rammis. He's the tel.”

“Good work,” a husky human female's voice came through. “We captured the other one inside the hovair.”

“Dammit!” I muttered.
Bat.

“What about the slimetroll in the starship, Commander?” Frak asked.

“He managed to get away. For now. Our two remaining hovairs are giving chase. They'll bring him down, unless he attempts to go off-planet. Iglor is warming up one of the starships.”

“Ask her about the Vegan,” Dirk said. “He killed two of our people by the river!”

“I heard that, Dirk,” she said. “We haven't found his body.”

I let out a sigh of relief.
Huff.
I tried for a mind-link, but my head still throbbed too much to concentrate,

“As we say here,” Dirk told me, “don't count your Zens before they cluster for the Mating Flight. Your Vegan friend probably washed downriver as floating nuggets.” He chuckled and ran the tip of his stingler across my cheek. “I think our Commander has plans for you.” He stood up and holstered his weapon. “C'mon, Frak. He's not going anyplace.” Dirk shut off the light and they left.

I lowered my head to the grimy tent floor and stared at the rectangle of dim lights through the tent's doorway, and tried to ignore the smell and feel of caked mud laced with pebbles beneath my head. A patter of rain beat on the tent's roof, and the sounds of humans and aliens quietly talking and laughing drifted from outside.

Sweat trickled down my face and across my ribs, though I was still wet from my swim in the river. I ran my tongue over dry lips. I could've used a drink of water.

This night's rescue had turned into a disaster, and I feared what tomorrow held for us.
Lisa,
I thought. Would I ever see my young daughter again? And Sophia, my lovely, exotic Sophia, with a smile that could light the night and put stars to shame. I closed my eyes and tried to sleep.