The Rings of Haven (7 page)

“What the hell?” Nathan exclaimed. It appeared that every member of his team, including Vladimir, had their weapons drawn. Nathan seemed to be the only one of them that did not. “Something I should know, guys?”

“Step back!” Jessica ordered. “Hands high!” Tobin, with his hands held in plain sight, stepped back from the cloaks, turning to face Jessica as he slowly raised his open hands.

“I was only reaching for the cloaks,” Tobin insisted in his most charming and innocent tone. “I assure you.”

Jessica peeked over her shoulder to verify that the rest of her team were prepared to back her up. She stepped forward, grabbing Tobin by the collar and spinning him around before shoving him up against the wall. Enrique shifted to his left, getting a better angle from which to keep his weapon trained on Tobin without Jessica being in his line of fire.

“What is it?” Nathan inquired, standing to try and get a better view.

Jessica turned around, pushing the cloaks to one side to reveal a gun rack containing dozens of hand guns, assault rifles, grenades, and what looked like shoulder-fired rocket launchers. “I thought you said you weren’t armed?” Jessica challenged Tobin.

“I said
I
wasn’t armed, when we first met in your hangar bay,” Tobin defended. “I did not claim that I owned no weapons.”

“Uh huh,” Jessica mumbled as she inspected his hidden arsenal. “Do a lot of hunting, I suppose?”

“Nathan,” Jalea protested. “If your security personnel are going to react so violently at the slightest possible threat, we are all in for a very difficult time here on Haven. I assure you, most of Haven’s residents are far less tolerant of such behavior.”

“I apologize,” Nathan responded. “But in the interests of all our safety, you might want to tell us now if there are any other
weapons
you might have hidden on board?”

Jessica gestured to the others to stand down, as she too holstered her weapon. Tobin turned to face Nathan, his hand slowly coming back down to his sides as he spoke. “This is my entire stock,” he promised. “They are only for defensive purposes.”

“Defensive purposes?” Jessica questioned. “Against what? A battalion?” Jessica handed him the pile of cloaks he had originally been after, gesturing for him to exit the compartment before her.

“You would be surprised at how much
defensive
armament can be required on Haven,” Jalea said.

Tobin began handing out cloaks to each of them. “I would suggest that you wear these cloaks at all times during your visit. They are common here, and will serve to protect you from the environment. They will also help you to hide your weapons from view, as well as to help you to blend in amongst the crowds.”

Nathan accepted the last cloak as Tobin stepped past him. The cloak was made of a thick yet light-weight fabric that had obviously not been washed in sometime and smelled rather unpleasant.

Tobin cracked open the hatch, which swung downward toward the tarmac. Small steps extruded from the hatch itself as it neared the deck, stopping about fifty centimeters from the dull gray surface outside.

The cabin quickly filled with the heavy, humid air of Haven. An unusual smell, a mixture of mechanical fluids and a pungent, musky odor immediately hit Nathan. The aroma was almost overpowering at first but soon subsided. After nearly a month living in the scrubbed, temperature-controlled air of their ship, the natural atmosphere, no matter how aromatic, was a welcome change.

Tobin was the first one out, moving gingerly down the boarding ramp and dropping the last step down. Being nearest the hatch, Nathan was next to exit the ship. He stepped out onto the ramp, standing tall in the open air. The sky was a pale, unnatural-looking amber. He realized why their entry into the atmosphere had been so turbulent, as he could feel the increased air pressure of this moon. It was somewhat warm, and quite humid, as if it would begin to rain at any moment.

Nathan looked around briefly. They were parked between two long metal-clad service buildings. The buildings themselves were obviously cheap and easy to construct, with a few doors and windows, and a single roll-up cargo door. Looking forward and aft, he could see they were at least several rows back from either side of the berthing yard. He could see plenty of activity, with people moving about their various ships, and service vehicles cruising between the rows of stalls.

He looked up at the sky. Its subdued amber was almost like the sky on Earth just after the sun had dropped below the horizon. But this world’s sun was still sitting low in her sky. It was small and pale compared to their sun back on Earth, and provided considerably less light than he had expected. Nathan could even look directly at it for several seconds without hurting his eyes. In the opposite direction of the sun, the gas giant around which the moon of Haven orbited filled the bottom half of the sky from the ground upwards. The light reflecting off the gas giant provided a secondary light source, casting fainter shadows in the opposite direction of the ones cast by Haven’s sun. The effect was wholly unnatural, and it gave the entire scene an eerie cast.

Nathan made his way down the ramp, dropping the last step onto the tarmac. His landing felt light, as if he had jumped down only a fraction of the actual distance. The gravity here was only half that of his home world, and a quarter less than the Aurora’s standard gravity. He jumped up and down a few times, finding himself coming considerably farther off the ground than he would have expected under normal circumstances. It was an unusual sensation—both frightening and exhilarating at the same time—which brought a boyish grin to his face.

“You know, Nathan, you are probably the first person from Earth to set foot on another world in over a millennia,” Vladimir told him as he dropped to the tarmac next to him.

“Guess I should’ve said something profound, huh?”

“What the hell is that smell?” Jessica asked as she stepped off the ramp.

“Not exactly profound,” Nathan mumbled, “but accurate.” Vladimir chuckled as he bounced up and down, bounding a few steps away from the ship as he too experimented with the reduced gravity.

“This area is covered with an edible fungus,” Tobin explained. “It is everywhere there is dirt, and it can be rather pungent. It is, however, very flavorful and nutritious. It has in fact made civilization possible on this moon, as it grows with almost no effort and is quite a profitable commodity. Although it is not as appreciated on other worlds as much as those that grow it would’ve hoped.”

“What time of day is it here?” Nathan asked Tobin.

“It is midday.”

“Really? It looks more like sunset.”

“We are late in our light cycle.”

“Light cycle?”

“While Haven is passing between the star and the planet, there are fifty-two days of normal day and night. When we pass behind the planet, there is only darkness for the following fifty-two days.”

“No sun for fifty-two days?” Jessica asked rhetorically. “How depressing.”

“One becomes accustomed to it over time,” Tobin commented nonchalantly.

“Explains the abundance of fungus,” Jessica mumbled.

“So what happens next?” Nathan asked.

“We must go to one of the labor halls. There we can hire a crew to do the harvesting for you. The sooner this is begun, the sooner you will have funds with which to purchase the goods you require.”

“Lead the way,” Nathan invited.

“Transportation should arrive momentarily. So, Ensign,” Tobin said, looking at Jessica, “if you could refrain from shooting them, it would be appreciated. It is a long walk to the main terminal area.”

“I’ll try to control myself,” she promised.

“I must caution you all,” Tobin continued as he raised the hood on his cloak to cover his head, “to use discretion while on Haven. Keep covered up as much as possible when outside to protect yourself from the elements. Although the sun does not appear strong, it does deposit considerable radiation on our little world. The fibers of these cloaks are designed to reflect much of this radiation. And do not attract attention to yourselves. Most of the people here are not residents of this world. Therefore, they are as apprehensive as you are about their own security. It would serve you well to remember this.”

“Are you suggesting that we don’t defend ourselves?” Jessica challenged. She knew that he was not, she just wanted him to understand that she wasn’t about to let anything happen to them.

“Of course not, Ensign. Just think twice before pulling your weapon,” he suggested as he turned to lead them away.

“Thinking twice is usually a good way to get yourself killed,” Enrique commented to Jessica under his breath.

“Yeah, that’s exactly what I was thinking,” she agreed. “Listen, you and Weatherly take the rear. You try to soak up as much intel as you can while you watch our six.”

“Got it,” Enrique acknowledged.

“Sarge, you keep your eyes on Danik.”

“What’re you going to be doing?” Enrique asked.

“I’ll be watching Tobin,” she told them, as their transportation arrived. “I don’t trust that skinny little shit.”

* * *

The ride through the spaceport had been brief, having moved along at a good speed. But traveling the short distance from the spaceport to the labor hall had been anything but. The spaceport was the center of all commerce and activity on the small world. During the ride, Tobin had informed them that most of Haven was still undeveloped. The moon had only been colonized a few decades ago to provide support for increased harvesting of the rings. It was because of this that Haven City—the only city on this world—had spread out in all directions from its sole spaceport.

After exiting the main gate, they had only needed to travel less than a kilometer down one of the many roads leading away from the spaceport. From what they had seen, each of these main roads was lined with shops and offices of various interests. There were also all manner of street vendors peddling their modest wares. Nathan guessed that they could probably purchase everything they needed by spending a few days shopping these congested lanes.

After spending considerable time working their way slowly down the boulevard, they arrived at a large, tan building. It was dirty and its exterior was in considerable disrepair. There were many men and a few women lingering about outside. A large sign over the massive double doors identified the purpose of the building in a language that Nathan could not decipher. By the looks of the men milling about, however, he was pretty sure they had arrived at the labor hall.

“It would not be wise for all of us to enter the hall,” Tobin instructed as they dismounted the vehicle. “Perhaps only a few?”

“Jessica?” Nathan asked, seeking her read on the situation.

“The four of us go in,” she suggested, gesturing at Tobin, Jalea, Nathan, and herself. “The others can look around out here.”

“Perhaps four is too many?” Tobin urged. “I was thinking perhaps just you and I—”

“Where the captain goes, I go,” Jessica interrupted. The determined look in her eyes told Tobin that it would be pointless to argue.

“I see. Then perhaps the three of us—”

“Jalea is my interpreter,” Nathan insisted.

Tobin sighed in acquiescence. “Very well, the four of us it is.” He bowed his head slightly and extended his arm toward the main door, inviting them to enter.

“Sounds good,” Nathan agreed. He was definitely out of his comfort zone, and felt better having Jessica—who had proven herself in combat on more than one occasion—deciding how to best keep them safe in this unfamiliar land. He turned to Tobin again. “How long do you think we’ll be in here?”

“It depends on how many bidders are still looking for work today,” he explained. “This late in the day, however, I expect our choices to be few.”

“Don’t you love how he answers a question without actually answering it?” Jessica muttered to Nathan under her breath, raising a slight smile on his face. It was something he had already noticed about the man during their first meeting.

“Okay,” Jessica spoke up, turning to face Enrique and the others. “We’re going inside this big ugly building here. Should be a hoot. You four take a look around out here. But stay close, and keep your ears on. I have no idea how long we’ll be, or how quickly we’ll be looking to move out when we’re done. So stay flexed and ready.”

“You got it, Jess,” Enrique answered. Vladimir and Danik had already headed away toward the nearest shop that appeared to deal in some type of technology. Enrique turned to follow, gesturing for Sergeant Weatherly to join him.

“Lead the way,” Nathan told Tobin.

Tobin turned and headed up the steps to the building, with Jalea, Nathan, and Jessica following. He entered the hall, removing his hood on the way in, and bowed to the gruff-looking man behind the front counter. After a brief exchange with the clerk, Tobin gestured for them to follow him deeper into the hall. “I informed the clerk that we were looking to hire a harvesting crew. He informed me that there are a few crews still available, so the bidding should be quick.”

They followed Tobin into the main hall. The room was large and open, with high-beamed ceilings. There were large heavy wooden tables and benches lined up throughout the room. It looked as if it could accommodate hundreds of workers when filled to capacity. At the moment, there were only a half-dozen teams remaining, each represented by at least two leaders.

The clerk delivered a small electronic tablet to a man sitting behind a large desk on a raised platform at one corner of the room. Nathan assumed it was a data device similar to the ones they used on the Aurora. He watched as the man read the small pad, preparing to perform his part of the hiring ritual. About the room, the various team leaders noticed their entrance, as well as the arrival of the clerk. Nathan realized these events had alerted them to the presence of a new employment opportunity, and each of them appeared to be preparing themselves to bid.

The large man behind the desk gestured for Tobin to approach, exchanging words with him. A moment later, the man spoke through the loudspeaker. “The Volonese cargo ship Volander wishes to hire a harvesting crew,” the man announced. “Expected quota is three hundred kilotons. Completion time is two days. Payment desired is ten percent minus fees and expenses.” The man paused, giving the team leaders a chance to crunch their numbers and prepare their bids. After a minute, he continued. “The bidding is open.”