“She's right, the three of us have a better shot.”
Stephanie gave him a surprised look.
“What? I had a lot of time ta think while I was with Nanna. I've served under a lot of Captains. Out of all of 'em I've made the most cash, seen the best ports, gotten out o' the worst scrapes with this one right here. I may not be happy about this whole debt business but I'm stayin' aboard this time.”
“Great, we're saved,” Stephanie said with a sideways grin.
“Do y'want me or not?” Frost asked her.
“Sure, you can come. Why not?” She teased.
“Well, I think I know a man who can sell us a ship,” Frost replied. “Can't beat that can ye?”
“Oh I could, but I leave that sort of competition to crew of a lesser pay grade.”
“You're a piece o' work, you are,” Frost said, shaking his head.
Jake was thinking during their banter, looking out over the massive city scape all around them. “Frost, contact that friend of yours. We need something cheap and solid for planet hopping.”
“He could rent ya somethin' if that's the case.”
“He might not be getting this ship back.”
“Ah, cheap and solid, aye.”
The Exile
Yuelle Varr was a more interesting destination than Alice could have imagined. She had never been to a highly volcanically active planet that had so much water. The Clever Dream had come out of its worm hole only one hundred thousand kilometres away from the planet's atmosphere, an absolutely perfect jump.
There were no defence or commercial facilities in orbit or in the outer solar system. Two research stations, one in orbit around Yuelle Varr and another closer to the system's yellow sun were the only noticeable man made features in the system that weren't planet bound.
She guided the ship into an outer orbit and rotated so the transparent section of the cockpit was facing the planet. She could see there were at least two volcanic eruptions taking place on that side. The clouds of dust and steam were massive, covering most of the southern pole. The thin black strips that adorned the planet's surface were the only signs of land.
“I've seen water planets before, but this is amazing. What information do you have on this place?”
“The buoy states that this world is owned by a number of private parties. There is a small emergency dock in orbit. The listings include only twenty one thousand eighty four residents in private mansions. Travellers are warned not to approach unless invited.”
“So there are defences of some kind?”
“Yes, electromagnetic interplanetary pulse cannons with a range of one quarter light year.”
“That must have cost twice as much as settling on the planet itself. I've never heard of anything like it. Signal our contact that we're here. I don't think they like people hanging in orbit for too long without announcing themselves.” Alice waited a moment while Lewis made contact with the person Wendy had listed as the recipient.
“The coordinates are on your station. They didn't send any other message.”
Alice looked at the coordinates on the cockpit overlay. The marked location was on the twilight line, it would be night in minutes and she was approaching from the dark side of the world. She started her entry sequence.
Moments later she was skimming the dark, turbulent waters. Racing towards the craggy cliffs ahead. The stone that poked up from beneath the water looked like black, jagged teeth, the cliff ahead was like some upraised clawed hand. “I'm starting to see why they film holomovies here.”
As she closed on the coordinates she started looking for a launch bay or landing platform and found it after one pass. It was just over two thousand meters above sea level, a spoon like appendage jutting from a massive black stone mansion that emulated the jagged upward jutting features of the mountain it was built on. “Lewis, is there a geological report on this area?”
“Yes, there is actually.”
“Does it mention how safe it is? Any active volcanoes nearby?”
“Tectonic and volcanic activity are well within safeties. I would have told you if it were otherwise.”
“I know, just checking.”
She brought the ship down in the middle of the landing platform. In three directions around it ended in a sheer drop, but there was more than enough room for her to land. There were guides painted on the landing platform showing where to access the fuel lines and how to direct a ship into a hangar somewhere below.
There weren't many lights on in the mansion, and for a moment she was wondering if she'd have to go knock on the door.
“Instructions from the residents; You are to bring the cargo inside via the upper walkway,” Lewis informed her.
“That's just at the front of the landing ramp?”
“I would assume so.”
“Okay, take control of the cargobot and bring the crates up behind me. I have to see this,” Alice said as she unbuckled, stood up and put on her sidearm and flight jacket.
The cargobot was an unassuming lifter robot that had six extendible arms, a one meter by one meter pair of track feet that could widen or narrow for more or less stability and manoeuvrability. Its sensor covered round head rotated and scanned the area around it as the robot pulled the closed antigravity sleds with ease.
The main doors were made of solid stone and opened as she approached, revealing a dimly lit foyer beyond the threshold. It was decorated with black and grey stone statues of bony, scaled water demons in ferocious combat. The various creatures were frozen in place, rending each other with long claws, tearing into one another with exaggerated jaws. The statues were carved deeply into the walls all around her and in the center was a dais for a centrepiece, but it was empty.
In near silence a cloaked figure descended the long, winding staircase set against one side of the foyer. “I trust the cargo is in good condition?” Said the thing in a raspy, low tone that she could feel in her chest.
“Everything is as I received it from Wendy.”
“The salvager. May I see it please?”
Alice turned and nodded at the cargobot and it carefully moved the cases between her and the creature then opened the nearest one. For the first time she could see some of his features. Its three long fingers were double boned, one was outside of the skin, the other was inside. It had two opposable thumbs that fit between the three fingers, and they all ended in claws extending from the bare bone.
It reached into the container and lifted the stasis chamber with one hand and set it down beside the antigravity sled. The chamber weighed over three hundred kilograms and she tried not to show her surprise at the creature's formidable strength. She caught a glimpse of its face and immediately wished she hadn't.
One side was covered in bone, it looked like these creatures grew a second skull on the outside of their heads. It was complete with carnivorous teeth and razor sharp vertical bones with barbs running from its temple to jawline. The eye on that armoured side was large, and its milky, light yellow pigment caught the light for only a moment.
The other side of its head was not as well armoured. It looked as though someone or something had broken pieces of its outer skull away and she could see its dark blue and grey skin along with its inner teeth. There was a void where the eye on that side should be and a long scar ran across the skin and bone.
He was two and a half meters tall, perhaps closer to three and moved with a grace and certainty that was absolutely unnatural by human standards. His joints didn't seem to bend the right way, but arbitrarily turned in whatever direction he needed to move in.
“You have done very well,” he said as he checked the display panel on the stasis chamber. “These are in perfect condition,” he opened the top of the chamber and plunged his hand inside. A moment later he carefully withdrew an egg the length of her forearm and held it up in her direction. “Did she tell you where she found these?”