A Pirate's Tale: The Only Solution Is Retribution (18 page)

The Pirate Captain saw the ship suddenly accelerate and maintain its distance from his two ships.  His eyes narrowed and the woman appeared on his display again, “I’m so sorry, but my crew insists that I must keep my distance from you.  I think you’d make a great dancing partner but my crew disagrees with my finding out.”

The two pirate ships chased the luxury yacht for three hours and moved no closer.  The Captain grew more frustrated with each passing minute and he hit the communicator button, “I WILL CHASE YOU TO THE END OF THE UNIVERSE IF I HAVE TO; YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE!!”

Desiree looked at Victoria, “Try one more time to talk some sense into him.  If that fails, tell him we’ll stop and wait for his arrival.”

“Are you sure about that, Desiree?”

“I am.  This is on him.”

Victoria pressed the communicator and smiled, “Dahling, why don’t you just turn around and go your way.  I love your persistence but you could get your little ole ship damaged if you aren’t careful.”

The Captain yelled into the monitor, “I’M GOING TO TAKE YOU MY SELF AND TEACH YOU WHAT DAMAGE MEANS!!!”

Victoria’s expression changed to a pout, “I’m sorry I’ve upset you so.  I’m going to stop and await your arrival.  Please hurry.”

• • •

The Pirate Captain’s monitor went dark and the commander of the second ship appeared, “Captain, I don’t like this!”

“What do you mean?  We’ve scanned that ship and it doesn’t have anything on it that could harm us!  She’s bluffing!”

“Captain, you only bluff when your life is on the line if there are no other avenues to survive.  That woman has other ways to escape.  She can simply stay ahead of us and go to the nearest Traffic Controlled Planet and we would be forced to back off.  There’s more here than we see.”

“I am going to take that ship, Robert and you will follow me in!”

Robert looked around his bridge and then turned back to the Captain, “I’m sorry, Captain but I’m not willing to take that risk.”

The Captain’s face showed his rage, “I’M GOING TO BLAST YOUR HEAD OFF YOUR SHOULDERS!!”

Robert smiled, “I welcome you to try, Captain.  Care to stop and do it now?”

The Captain knew he was going too far; he was no match for the other ship’s commander.  “You and your crew will not share in the takings!”

“That’s fair.”  Robert looked over his shoulder, “Shut down the boosters.”  He stared at the monitor as the Captain’s ship accelerated away at high speed.

The scanner operator said, “Do you honestly think that ship is dangerous?”

Robert turned and looked at him, “At any point has that woman look the least bit frightened?”

“No, she didn’t.”

“That tells me more than any scanner could reveal.”  He turned to the monitor as the other ship flew at high speed away from them and said, “I really do hope I’m wrong about this.”

• • •

“Captain, one of the ships has shut down its boosters; the other is moving in at high speed.”

Desiree focused on the situation and made a decision.  She pressed the ship’s intercom and said, “Missile Team One, target a missile on that incoming ship and fire as it approaches maximum range.”

“Yes, Captain.  Targeting now.”  Larry activated his panel and saw the approaching ship’s coordinates being sent from the scanners to the first missile in the launch tube.  He waited and then saw the green lock-on indicator illuminate.  He pressed the fire button and the missile shot out of its launch tube.  It immediately activated its small drive field inside the Play Toy’s field as its small engine ignited and it shot away at an incredible speed.

The closing speed between the missile and the pirate ship was impossible to track accurately.  The pirate’s scanners never saw the small missile coming and it hit the ship in the dead center of the ship’s bow.  It blew through the bridge and penetrated all the way to the landing bay before it exploded.  The entire ship went up in a gigantic blast blowing debris out in all directions.  Arnold and Joe high fived Larry, who stood up and took a bow.  They would be watching that recording for months to come.

• • •

Robert sat on his ship and suddenly saw the Captain’s ship go up in a massive explosion.  He jumped out of his chair and then whipped around toward the scanner operator, “What happened?”

“I have no idea, Robert!  The Captain’s ship was between my scanners and whatever hit it.  I know it wasn’t a blaster that did it.”

Robert sat down in his chair and stared at the shockwave moving out from the destroyed ship.  Suddenly, the image was replaced by the woman’s face, “Oh, I do hate that I had to do that.  Would you like to come and see me?”

Robert shook his head as the ship they were chasing turned around and started toward them.  “No, we don’t want to do that.”  He looked over his shoulder, “Reverse course immediately.”

He turned back to the monitor and the woman smiled, “You’re so much smarter and handsomer than the other pirate.  I do have a tiny request.”

“What is that?” Robert asked in a shaky voice as the large gold colored ship began gaining on him.

“Let’s keep this little incident just between the two of us, shall we.  If it gets out that my little ole ship is dangerous, why men might avoid me and that would be just awful.”  Robert stared at the woman and knew he was looking at a demon in the form of a beautiful woman.  The woman lowered her eyes, “I would hate to have to come looking for you if I hear someone ask if it was my ship that killed a pirate.  Will you do that for me, Dahling?” Victoria asked as she batted her eyes.

“Not a problem.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to come see me?  You are so smart.”

“No, that’s quite alright.”  He ended the communication and looked at the pilot, “Go to maximum speed and get us out of here!”  He looked around the bridge, “The Captain had his ship shot out from under him attacking a freighter that was a disguised warship.  If any of you mention that gold colored ship, I will have you flogged and thrown out of the airlock without a suit!!”

“Do you honestly think she could find us?” the Weapons Operator asked.

Robert glared at him, “Do you want to find out?!”

The Operator stared at him and said, “No, I do not.”

“Make sure everyone knows the story!”

“Yes, Captain.  Thank you for keeping us alive.”

“Never mentioning that ship again is part of doing that. Pilot!”

“Yes, Captain.”

“That ship is still gaining on us.”

“We’ll arrive at the filament before it can catch us.”

The Scanner Operator looked up from his panel, “They must realize they can’t catch us and are stopping the chase.  They’re slowing and changing course.”  Robert fell back in his chair and breathed a sigh of relief.

• • •

Desiree turned and looked at Gem, “Why didn’t that ship turn to avoid the missile?”

“They were out running their scanner coverage.  It also appears my mother ordered the newest missiles installed on the ships.”

“What?”

“I thought the engineers were going to put the former generation on board but somehow that order was changed.  It appears you have the latest model.”

“What’s the difference between the two?” Victoria asked.

“The older model was twice as large and about half as fast.  The new model is hard to see on a scanner when it’s moving directly at a target.  Its frontal cross-section is incredibly small and the nose has sharp angles cut into it to reflect any scanner beams away.”

“So you ordered the old model installed?”

Gem looked at Desiree, “I did.  I really didn’t think they’d even install the old model on another species ship but it appears Mother takes keeping me safe a lot more serious than I thought.”

Victoria stared at Gem before saying, “Why is keeping you safe so important?”  Gem looked at her and remained silent.  “Tell me, Gem!”

Gem’s thorax swelled as he inhaled.  “I’m slated to follow my mother and be the next ruler of my planet.”

Billy smiled, “Hey, we have a rock star on board.”

Jack said, “Holy crap!!  You’re not just in the Royal Family; you’re the head of it!”

Gem looked at him, “Not yet.  Mother holds that position at the moment.”

Desiree looked up and rolled her eyes.  Victoria saw her, “What are you thinking?”

Desiree blew out a quick breath, “I not only have to make sure you’re not harmed but I also have to make sure Gem stays safe.”

“Do not concern yourself with me,” Gem replied.

Desiree looked at him, “What do you think your species will think about humans if you’re killed while you’re with us?”

“They’ll think I made a foolish decision but I don’t think they will blame your species.”

“Are you sure about that?!”

“Well, not really.  But let’s not worry about it until it becomes an issue, shall we?”

“Easy for you to say,” Desiree answered as she slumped back in her chair.

“Lighten up, Desiree.”  Desiree turned to Victoria, “It is not our intention to get involved in situations that might put us in danger.  We’re simply going to maintain our cover of being a party ship.”

“And what happens if Leonidas calls us in to help him out of a tight spot?”

Victoria stared at her and sighed, “You’re right.  We’ll put Gem in a shuttle and send him home if that happens.”

They turned and looked at Gem who was quietly clacking.  What’s so funny?” Victoria asked.

“Just who is going to make me do that?”

The two women looked at each other and Desiree rolled her eyes again.

• • •

Serge looked up from his desk as the Security Chief entered his office, “Yes?”

“Sir, we’ve received a message from the Unity inquiring as too why we are stopping other Commercial Trader’s ships.  The official in charge of Unity Naval Forces says that sort of aggressive behavior violates Unity bylaws governing competition and he would not like to open an investigation into our behavior.”  Serge stared at the Chief as he continued, “We’ve been stopping ships to check for your daughter’s presence.  We’ve focused on those that are going to planets she’s familiar with.”

Serge closed his eyes and lowered his head.  He took breath and looked up, “Tell me what this memo is really saying.”

“They’re saying that if we want to keep doing this, a substantial bribe is going to have to be paid to the official that sent the message.”

“Do you not think one of the companies we’ve been stopping hasn’t already done that?”

“Probably, but this is how the game is played.”

“Have you had any success in stopping those ships?” Serge asked.

“No, we have not.  The DNA scanners have shown that Ana has not been present on any of them.”

“How much would I have to pay to continue stopping other commercial ships?”

“At least fifty million credits.”

“Let me tell you how I’d rather see you spend that money.”  The Security Chief nodded.  “We know when she was last seen on Kellinger, right?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“And now you’re quite certain she is no longer on the planet, right?”

“Yes, Sir.  We’ve pretty much left no stone unturned.”

“Then how did she leave?”

“I’m sorry, Sir.  I don’t know what you’re asking.  She must have left on a Starliner.  Getting on a commercial trading ship wouldn’t work.”

“Why not?”

“Because we have sensors all over the commercial space port.  Her DNA would have been detected the moment she stepped through one of the gates.”

“So, if she left, it had to be on a Starliner or a private ship,” Serge repeated.

“Yes, Sir.”

Have you checked out the private ships that were on Kellinger when she was present?”

“We have and nothing indicated they were involved in her disappearance.”

“So, she had to leave on a Starliner, correct?”

“That’s what we’ve assumed, Sir.”

“Use that money to find a female passenger that left Kellinger but has no records of ever arriving on the planet.”

“Females that live on the planet leave it all the time.”

“I know that!!  But they have local addresses.  Find a woman that left Kellinger who does not have a local address.  It will have to be someone that booked passage off the planet but has no record of ever arriving.”  The Security Chief stared at Serge, who said after a few moments, “I trust you have someone inside the Starliner’s booking agencies that can search their databases for that information, don’t you?”

“Yes, Sir.  What about stopping other company’s vessels?”

“Stop doing it.  If that were going to work, it would have by now.  Get back to me if anything turns up.  Also notify that Unity Official that we will cease stopping ships immediately.”

“Yes, Sir.”

• • •

Three weeks later, the Security Chief contacted Serge Romanov on his personal frequency.  Serge took the call and said, “Well, did anything turn up?”

“Yes, Sir.  We found three women that were visitors to Kellinger who booked passage off the planet during the time frame we think Ana left.”

“And?”

“We aren’t able to confirm any arrival that happened more than three months earlier; the Starliner’s purge the databases older than three months.  However, one of the women booked a flight to Luminus.”

“Isn’t that planet famous for building personal starships?”

“It is, Sir.”

“What was the woman’s name?”

“Victoria Lenora De La Pascal.  She is a wealthy widow who inherited a huge fortune from her husband.”

“How huge?”

“More than half a trillion credits.”

Serge’s head tilted to one side as he asked, “Do you have a description?”

“Better than that, Sir.  I have a photo.”

An image appeared on Serge’s console and he stared at it.  “She looks nothing like Ana.”

“That’s true, Sir.”

“What about the other two?”

“We’ve already found them and scanned them.  They are not Ana.”

“What about this Victoria something or other.”

“We’ve not been able to find her.  The ship builder on Luminus says that he built her an expensive luxury yacht and sent her on her way.”

“When did that happen?”

“Two weeks after your funds disappeared.”

“What do you think about this?”