[05] Elite: Reclamation (21 page)

She shrugged. ‘Instinct maybe. It comes naturally.’

‘You’ll have to show me some time. Remind me to stay on your good side.’

‘I want a bunk, as much privacy as is practical and in no way am I at your disposal for anything else. Clear?’

‘Clear as the void, lady.’ Hassan blinked in surprise at her business-like assertiveness.

‘And you won’t call me lady, either. Salomé’s a ridiculous name, but it will do until I find out who I am. Are we agreed?’

She held out her hand towards him. He took it gingerly, but this time there was only a firm handshake.

‘Six months, yeah?’

‘Just remember,’ she said. ‘If you betray …’

Her eyes widened and the colour drained from her cheeks. Her hand went limp in his grasp.

‘Hey, what’s up? You remembering something?’

She sat stock still for a long moment before recovering and looking him in the eye.

‘Don’t think of double-crossing me, that’s all.’

He had few doubts on that score. Whoever she was, she’d been thrown some serious flux before winding up on his ship. She was as tough as Duralium hull plating.

‘A deal’s a deal.’

A buzzer went off.

‘Hyperdrive is spooled,’ Hassan announced, looking around at the indicators. ‘Time for your next lesson. Want to try that?’

Salomé nodded and spun her pilot’s chair around to face forwards once more.

‘Disarm the weapons and shields … yeah that’s it, flip the switches back up. The chart is over there, bring it up and tap the Ferenchia system. Got it?’

‘Four light years,’ Salomé read off the display. A whir and a mechanical thump signalled the weapons had been stowed.

‘We’ve got a jump range of five. Just call up the jump control and we’re set.’

‘That’s it?’ She seemed surprised it was that easy.

‘That’s it. Just don’t touch the flight controls. The ship can’t be spinning when you jump.’

‘Why not?’

‘Because bad stuff happens if you do.’

‘Bad stuff?’ Salomé asked.

‘Mis-jumps. Trust me, you don’t want to know.’

Salomé touched the jump control. The
Talon
flickered and disappeared.

***

Plasma streaked past the cockpit windows, a burning hell of atoms ripped asunder by temperatures beyond imagination. Below the boiling maelstrom of sunspots and faculae rolled away, the surface of the star an almost infinite wall of emolliating fury. Ahead an incomprehensible arc of glowing fire curved up into space, magnetic field lines pulsing with more energy than a civilisation could consume in a thousand years; a solar flare a hundred thousand kilometres long.

Into this inferno flew the
Coup de Grâce
, its shields carving a flowing wake through the superheated gas. Heat shields strained at their limits, the cooling systems fighting a losing battle against the overwhelming rage of the star.

A trickle of sweat rolled down Dalk’s forehead, but his grip on the flight controls never wavered. Fuel scooping in the atmosphere of a star was not for the faint hearted. Reckless in the extreme or the move of the desperate, it was a calculated chance to refuel sufficiently to intercept his quarry. To give him time to extract them before Octavia could find them.

Warning: Hull Temperature 125% of Tolerance. Abort manoeuvre!

Dalk had an experienced sixth sense for how much punishment his ship could take. He’d calculated his trajectory with utmost precision. Too deep and the
Coup de Grâce
would burn up in a flare of disintegrating plasma, lost in the blazing ferocity of the star’s corona. Too shallow and the fuel scoop would pick up nothing of value.

Internal tanks full. Fuel scoop deactivated.

Dalk wrestled his ship upwards, gently pushing the drives to full power. The
Coup de Grâce
blasted away, its trajectory marked by a glowing stream of superheated solar atmosphere. The blackness of space beckoned.

A faint tinkling noise echoed through the ship as it cooled. Hull panels contracted as heat was radiated away into the void.

An audacious move, dangerous even. Danger was part of the job for any Elite combateer. High stakes and high risks for those that knew when to push and when to back off.

With the additional fuel Dalk could cut down his jump times dramatically. He was only two hours behind his quarry and gaining all the time. It wouldn’t be long now.

The ship oriented itself … and jumped, leaving the blazing fury of the star light years behind.

***

The
Talon
materialised in the Ferenchia system. A series of quick transits pulled them into orbit space around the main planet. Known as the
aegis
, this area of space was supposedly a safe zone. Experience often taught otherwise.

Salomé could see a myriad of bright dots moving slowly against the background of stars. There were streams of lights in some places; queues of ships stacking up to dock or take a new course through the system. Ahead of them in the distance were bigger objects. Salomé glanced at the scanner, realising they were out of range. To be visible this far away …

‘That’s one of the main stations,’ Hassan said, reading her thoughts. ‘It’s a beast, ten kilometres across at its widest point. Holds thousands of ships.’

Salomé blinked in surprise.

Ten kilometres?

‘You should see the ones in the core worlds though,’ Hassan said. ‘There’s one called Raymo’s R & R & R, you wouldn’t believe how big that is …’

 ‘What about those others?’ Salomé asked, gesturing at the other bright points of light.

‘Those’ll be friends of yours. His Majesty’s Imperial Navy. They’ve usually got one of their flagships hereabouts. Reminds everyone how impressive they are.’

The narrowband comm communication buzzed.

‘Eagle Mark 1
Talon
, this is approach control. State destination.’

Hassan toggled the comm and returned the call. ‘Approach control.
Talon
receiving. Requesting clearance for surface approach. Spares and luxuries for sale planetside.’

‘Standby
Talon
.’

Salomé looked around. ‘Problems?’

Hassan shook his head. ‘They need to slot us into one of the traffic lanes. It’s a busy system, that’s a lot of work. Give ‘em time.’

Ahead the space station grew larger. It was a vast wheel, turning slowly on a central axis where a large rectangular docking slit could be seen. The tiny lights of approaching ships could be seen in a series of parallel lines approaching the docking bay. To the rear was a separate section, which was stationary. Larger ships were docked nearby, connected to the hub of the station by various clamps and securing tethers.

‘Eagle Mark1
Talon
. Vectors and descent profile are being sent now. Do not deviate from your assigned flight path.’

‘Confirmed, approach control,’ Hassan replied, ‘and thanks.’

‘Eagle Mark1
Talon
, handing off to port authority jurisdiction. Make contact after entry interface. Out.’

Hassan studied the data and configured the autopilot to manage the approach. The
Talon
banked around as he let the on-board computers take control. Hassan frowned as he looked back at the series of Imperial ships that were holding in high orbit. One capital ship was fairly common, the Imperials liked to demonstrate their might to the outlying systems on regular occasions. Today there were a series of escort ships flanking the massive Interdictor battleship positioned adjacent to the station. Neat formations of fighter ships could just be made out escorting the mammoth vessels, alongside a menagerie of smaller frigates, destroyers and support vessels. This wasn’t just the typical Imperial display. It was a task force.

It could just be an exercise, but Hassan had an uneasy feeling there was more to it than that. Moving an Imperial fleet through independent space was always going to raise a few eyebrows. He cast a glance across at Salomé.

Mysterious Imperial girl, mysterious Imperial ships.

It had to be a coincidence, she couldn’t be that important could she? He scolded himself for being jumpy. A flagship like that meant a Senator of an entire system; it was nothing to do with his mysterious passenger. He needed to focus on the task in hand; a quick stopover to throw any pursuers off their tail.

The drives fired, nudging the
Talon
into a lower orbit and reducing its velocity relative to the planet. By silent autopilot command the ship flipped over and pitched up, angling itself for atmospheric entry.

‘Gets a bit bumpy here,’ he said. ‘Make sure you’re buckled up.’

Salomé had already done so. She was studying everything assiduously, filing the information away in her mind. Hassan watched her rehearsing what he’d already taught her. She was a quick learner, he’d not had to repeat a single instruction to her.

A few discreet enquiries via a few contacts might reveal who she was. Maybe there was a reward for her recovery, maybe he could even pull off a ransom? Somebody in Imperial space had to know who she was. He’d have to be careful about how he did that, assuming he wanted to keep his limbs intact. A shame in some ways, but less risky than keeping her aboard if she did have some kind of profile.

Ionised gas flickered around the cockpit windows as the ship entered the rarefied grasp of the upper atmosphere. Slight tremors caused the ship to vibrate and a distant roar signalled the growing density of the atmosphere.

It didn’t last long. The stars above faded from sight as a pale azure glow surrounded them. The sense of deceleration was palpable. The streams of glowing gas faded away as the ship adjusted its configuration. Outside small flaps corrected the aerodynamic profile of the vessel, steering towards the correct approach for the city.

Hassan felt the increasing grip of gravity pulling at him. It was accompanied by a sense of unease. He didn’t plan on this stopover being a lengthy one, but there was plenty to do.

Clouds whipped past the cockpit windows. A sizable storm was brewing to the west of the city. They could see lightning crackling around the towering white peaks as they flew across far above the clouds. Below it was pouring with torrential rain, yet up here the sun always shone.

‘Eagle Mark1
Talon
, this is port authority. You are secure from ablative phase. Follow guidance beams. Landing confirmed at Bay 48, Plaza 16.’

Hassan thumbed the comms again. ‘Port authority. Confirmed, 48, 16.’

The clouds disappeared astern. Salomé watched the approaching city through the cockpit window with wide eyes. The central buildings were dramatic. Lofty crystal spires speared the sky, rising kilometres above the surface. Delicate buttresses connected some of them, looking impossibly fragile at this distance, sparkling in the light of the system’s bright star. Every one was designed with a variation on a smooth organic curve, blending into each other and sweeping out into smooth enormous arms at ground level, within which nestled beautifully manicured gardens and immaculate forested areas. Above them tiny transports zipped and turned in ordered procession. Salomé could just make out tiny figures moving in the wide streets. Larger spacecraft were arriving and departing all around them.

She sighed, puzzled at the way she felt. There was something captivating, even enthralling, about travelling between worlds. It had always sounded so mundane, but watching the sky brighten from the darkness of space, seeing the sun disappear behind a distant horizon, watching the planet rise up beneath you, seeing the city come into sight. There was beauty here, even poetry, something beyond just the mechanics of flying. She nodded to herself. Wonder, that’s what it was; the call of exploration and the unknown. She felt it, pulling at her soul.

To take a ship, head out into the unknown … what’s out there?

She gasped involuntarily with the thought of it all.

The main city fell behind them and the
Talon
slowed, banking and descending. The buildings out here were less impressive and far less attractive. Blocky structures mixed with domes, towers and haphazardly planned expressways. As they continued to overfly the area Salomé could see a wide expanse, with hundreds of vessels clustered below. Hassan toggled a series of switches and a faint whirring announced the extension of the undercarriage. The ship came to a halt above an empty expanse where a large 48 could be seen marked on the ground. With a blast of thrusters the ship settled down with a light thump.

The narrowband comms buzzed.

‘Eagle Mark1
Talon
. Welcome, Commander. The Landing fee of fifteen credits has been deducted from your account.’

Hassan shut down the
Talon
’s avionics and sprang up from his seat.

‘Gets more expensive all the time,’ he muttered. ‘All set?’

‘What, precisely, are we doing?’ Salomé asked.

‘I need to order some fuel, supplies and sort out that transponder.’

‘And what about me?’

‘You’re going to need a bio-check and immunity meds. Once that’s done we’ll see if we can get you that ID.’

Hassan led her down from the cockpit, through the living quarters and into the cargo bay. He punched a large control on the bulkhead. With a clunk and a hiss, the rear quarter of the bay folded outwards and a ramp lowered into position. A blast of humid hot air wafted into the bay. Salomé recoiled in surprise.

‘It’s hot!’

‘Tropical latitude,’ Hassan explained. ‘We’re not far from the equator.’

He walked down the ramp and stepped onto the smooth tarmac of the landing plaza. Salomé followed him out, hesitating as she took in the startling sight of huge vessels moving around above her. Some were leaving, some arriving just as they had. Others were loading or off-loading cargo using huge mechanised units. The tall buildings of the city could be seen far in the distance, framed by the thundery clouds they’d flown above on the way in. People shouted orders, gesturing above the din of noisy loaders, ship thrusters and the occasional roar of a vessel overhead.