We approached the top, diamond-shaped crown and landed in a still-open port—Bay D-2. I tried various radio signals hoping to trigger the hatch behind. One of the common bands worked. The hatch closed behind us and sealed the depressurization chamber, letting the air flood back up. A green light showed on the inner wall. So…some of the systems were still online after all these years—incredible. A power source was still connected, solar, I deduced from the array of panels deployed on the station’s superstructure.
I got out with Wren, wearing a light mask and suit. At the back of the landing pad, double doors led to a command bay that had been looted over the years. Many ore bins and sorting stations that it overlooked on a lower level caught my attention. A perfect ambush zone. We could stage an explosive web of horrors for our guests. Blow those bastards out of the sky.
Wren and I worked for hours installing explosive packs and trip wires that I’d picked up on Gainor, booby trapping the place nicely. The artificial grav docks were still functional, a definite plus, otherwise we’d be floating off our feet. Heating and air systems had automatically kicked in with our presence. When it was done, we had two sets of fireworks installed in the command bay, fore and aft. All exits were wired to the touch of a button. Both Wren and I would carry remote detonators.
I’d even rigged Starrunner to explode should the worse-case scenario occur, we got boarded, then we’d all go up in a cloud of smoke. Let’s hope it didn’t come to that. TK’s bulging eyes blinked when he saw what we were doing and what I was planning.
“Why don’t we just zoom off to a faraway star system? Do we have to be so dramatic?” His voice was a low plaintive mutter.
I snorted. “And have the next ice man waiting around to jab us with a pick? Gotta nip these moguls in the bud, TK, buddy. Do you want to live running in fear for the rest of your days?”
“No, but you’re not considering all the risks.”
“Trust me. This is the minimum risk. Once we get rid of our bugbears, we’re free to roam the galaxy, working our scams.”
Wren mumbled her agreement. “I’m fed up with being shadowed by murderous scum.”
TK sighed and threw his hands up in the air. The man looked gray and worn around the edges. Arolin, a martial arts expert, once told me the color of a man reflects his aura when his number is up. I think TK was feeling a bit of that. That slight quivering in the left wrist, the nervous tic of eye, the quick labored breathing and grey pallor of face. Perhaps the scrape back on Trellian had been too much, or maybe Billy’s death had got to him, or my hand being shot off. Whatever, he looked as gray as a ghost, and I guessed he was on his way to cracking.
I set Starrunner on a course for Elphi Alpha’s airspace to stage the call, far away from Deros. I made sure that we were out of warp and the tracker was active and we were speaking within range of its pickup. I had my friend Loue on Elphi Alpha play an imaginary script, rehearsed in advance on an encrypted line. I didn’t want to give Baer and his mongrel brood a lot of time to plan an attack on us, so I only gave them two hours lead time.
“Loue? Meet us at the upper dock D-2 on Belisar…yeah, that’s the one, the abandoned ore hub orbiting Deros…Yes, that’s two hours on the nose, not a minute later or sooner. Don’t worry, I’ll have both phaso and amalgo ready and waiting for you….Price, an even 40. Any fuckups, or no shows, and the price goes up 50%... Believe me, I’ve had enough hassles with these pieces of shit and I’ll be glad to get rid of them…that cockroach Baer’s almost cooked me twice. After this deal I’m going on a long ride to Pegasus or Ramses or whatever…Yeah, bittersweet memories.” I cut the line and saw the activating circuit light in yellow and knew the message had gotten through, to whoever, wherever. The signal piggybacked off our own transcom and would be sent through encrypted and unencrypted channels.
“It’s done,” I said and moved away from the pickup range.
Wren remarked, “Let’s just hope they don’t seize the opportunity to blast us out of the sky.”
“Don’t worry, Wren. We’ll get our payback.”
A particularly dark legend surrounded Belisar station, one of alien origin lost in time. Strange and inexplicable artifacts found down there on the dwarf planet: a squid-like intelligent warlord race, Zakro or Zipri or something, extinct now, whose only legacy was scattered bones with fanned, herring-bone spines turning up on the odd world or two. Made me shiver. All the mine charters came through Belisar at one time, the mining deeds for every jackleg asteroid, no matter how small. But some unknown scourge had infected the dwarf planet, an epidemic or parasite of some sort, made its way into the mined ore and the station had been closed.
“You should be more worried about Mong than Baer,” said TK, interrupting my reverie, “at least from what you describe of the man while you were strapped in that chair. If it were me, I’d turn tail and never look back.”
“That’s you, not me. As I said, TK, there’s no bucking necessity.” Still I recalled that frightful face of the star lord and his hulking presence and shivered. Mong was a red herring who was impossible to read.
TK’s bright bird-like voice chirped. “Mong’s lust for the alien tech exceeds what you’d expect from a power monger of his sort. He could have empires, planets, wealth
