Roxana moved next to him on one side and Glaucon and Tamara sat opposite, facing them both. They looked at each other. The journey was ending, and once they reached the Titan, they could expect a new life of training, hard discipline and danger.
“You ready for this?” asked Roxana.
Xenophon nodded eagerly.
“Yes, I think we all need this. My contacts on Attica have come up short, and with no more money, they simply aren’t interested.”
“What about the information my contacts in the military sent over?” asked Roxana.
He shook his head.
“People just aren’t talking. Somehow, Erika Montoya and her cronies have managed to get in with the leadership of the re-instated democracy, and they are hell bent on capturing and trying anybody tied in with the old regime.”
“It’s worse than that, you heard what happy to Antonia, my friend from the city. Her brother was working for the city security forces. The entire family has been arrested, and somehow he died in custody before he could be tried.”
Xenophon nodded in agreement.
“Yeah, convenient pattern. I don’t know about the rest of you, but if I’m going to get anywhere with Montoya, I’m going to need to be prepared, and that is going to cost money.”
“A lot of money. At some point, we both will want to head back to Attica, and I’m not doing that without a couple of bodyguards.”
Tamara chortled to herself, apparently not in the slightest bothered that the others could hear her. She looked up to see Roxana, Xenophon and Glaucon staring at her with a stoic line of serious faces.
“What?” she asked innocently.
“You think our situation is funny?” asked Xenophon.
Tamara straightened her back and was about to speak but was interrupted by the loudspeakers.
“Docking procedure started, please remain in your seats,” said the dull voice. Tamara looked back at them, each awaiting her answer.
“Look, I thought your world was supposed to be this glowing beacon of democracy and tranquillity. Hell, half the people I know keep telling me how they wish the Alliance would be reformed as it was. They are all desperate to reconnect with the old mother country.”
“Yeah, well, it’s not like that anymore,” said Glaucon bitterly.
Xenophon, however, leaned forward.
“Tamara, they might think that, but in reality, Attica was never a place of tranquillity. Democracy can be dangerous, and our form put a lot of power into the hands of the citizens. They are fickle and volatile, quick to anger and vicious when pushed.”
Tamara nodded, noting the passion with which both men spoke. It was clear the trouble on Attica were more than just a simple, local problem. Neither really wanted to be on the transport, and it was just as likely they had no real interest in being mercenaries.
Maybe we have more in common than I thought.
A loud crunch followed by several bursts of gas, probably steam, erupted from the ceiling pipes. Tamara looked worried, but Roxana placed her hand on the girl’s shoulder and spoke quietly.
“Don’t worry, it happens quite often. A landing on a ship producing a gravity field this strong can put a lot of strain on the vessel as it lands. It isn’t like the old days of zero-gravity in ships.”
Red lights flashed along the one door near the first airlock seal. Several more thuds and blasts of steam poured from various parts of the transport, but after Roxana’s explanation, they seemed unperturbed. The lights increased in tempo until staying fixed. A loud hiss erupted around the frame, and the airlock itself opened to a cloud of vapour. It took several seconds to clear before revealing the secondary airlock that was already opened. The speakers voiced one final message.
“You may now leave. Please check you have removed your personal items. All transports will be leaving in four hours.”
Xenophon released his strap and stood up. He stretched and grabbed his small bag containing all his remaining possessions. Several passengers moved to the airlock, and he fell in behind them. Glaucon followed, and several more passengers arrived, forcing the rest of their group to the back. It didn’t take long to move through the narrow doorway and into the landing bay inside the ship. Xenophon emerged from the door and stepped onto the solid floor. The bay itself was unlike anything he had ever seen before. It looked more like a giant cave than the bays he’d seen on other ships. He glanced back to find Glaucon stood staring at the same. The rest of the passengers continued past them both.
“Have you ever seen anything like it?” asked Glaucon.
Xenophon shook his head. The walls were rough in finish, but he knew this was a side effect of the hardened material used in its construction. A dozen transports, each of similar size to the one they had landed in, were laid out in a loose line. Scores of new arrivals moved out in long columns and made their way to what looked like a large security checkpoint. A group of half a dozen potential recruits walked behind them and back onto the ship. They looked bruised and tired as if they had just emerged from some gruelling ordeal. Roxana and Tamara reached them both and tried to get them to move.
“Come on, we need to get through clearance. Apparently, they are turning some away.”
“What?” asked Glaucon.
“The one guy, him over there,” said Tamara as she pointed to the man in question. “He said they wouldn’t take him because he’s on a security risk list.”
“That’s just great. What are the chances we’re on it?” muttered Xenophon.
“Let’s go and find out. Either way, our transport is leaving soon. We need to know, one way or the other.”
They moved away from the transport and joined the large queue of prospective mercenaries. It was a good opportunity to examine the interior of the mighty ship. The Titans were famous, not just for their rarity, but also their ability to operate as self-contained fleets. There were not just transports in this part of the ship. There were over thirty heavy fighters as well as landing craft, gunships and bombers. It was a veritable mobile fortress.
“Where are you from?” asked a scruffy woman. She must have been in her late twenties and wore a pair of well-worn overalls. Her accent was thick, nothing like the gentlemanly voices of Glaucon and Xenophon.
“Uh, Attica, you?” answered Xenophon, unsure as to the reasoning behind her question.
“Ah, Alliance mercs then. We’ve got a couple of yours with us. I reckon we’ve got volunteers from every Terran system. You joining the infantry?” she asked.
Xenophon glanced to Glaucon, and he just shrugged. Xenophon sighed at his friend’s complete lack of help. He looked back to her.
“We don’t really know. I guess we’ll find out soon enough.”
The queue was moving quickly, and from where they were stood, it was very clear that prospective mercenaries were being split into two main groups. Xenophon tried to determine what each group had in common, but it was very clear.
“You thinking what I’m thinking?” asked Roxana.
“The groups?” asked Glaucon, also concerned at what was happening.
There was no more time to discuss it further as they were now at the security point. The guards were not regular military, but they were armed with a variety of heavy weapons. A man with the mark of a sergeant approached.