Starship Magic 1: Broken, page 7
part #1 of Foremid Saga - Starship Magic Series
“I do and you’re right. Go ahead. If there is something alarming to you, tell me.”
Chapter 14
A few days pass and the Crucible goes through a few more FTL jumps to make sure the Mars security forces and Ryker aren’t able to follow them. Whisper has dropped a few homing beacons that will travel to different worlds using the tracking signal she found on Graven and herself. She also submitted a few anonymous tips about an unpainted Guild vessel in the same areas as the beacons. If Mars finds Conglomerate ships searching, they will have to call in for Empire reinforcements, which will slow both sides down.
Now that she is safe for the moment a glaring reality surfaced about the Crucible. There is nothing to do on the ship. Sure there was an intergalactic internet connection but it took half an hour just to get one news page feed. There is no TV and not even any books. Kat just stared at the stars from the cockpit each day thinking about what the next move should be.
The fifteenth night comes along and she starts to go crazy. Whisper and Fury did help take the edge off but they didn’t have much to talk about. Fury liked to talk about weapons. Knives, swords, guns, cannons. It was all he ever said. Kat was interested in it but each talk felt like a lecture more than a conversation. But at least he’s nice. Whisper is about to get on her nerves. Almost every word out of her when she speaks is sarcastic.
Kat is hoping things would get better once they dock in a port. Which is still something she is figuring out how to do. Without money, it was going to be a challenge. There are funds in her account unless Ryker had or bought access to them, but even then if she made a withdrawal it would send a red flag. It is still on her last-resort list which is about to turn into her all-she-has-left list.
They just finished their seventh jump for the day, and her stomach is feeling queasy. She goes to bed not really knowing what time it is. Just knowing that she was tired.
Whisper wakes her up a few hours later. “Kat there is something concerning me about your health.”
Kat raises her head out of the bed, still groggy from being woken up. “What is it?” She asks while rubbing the sleep from her eyes and slobber from her mouth.
“You’ve been taking the pills for your cybernetics and everything seems alright but you have been moping around for the last couple of days. Your mental health is not in a good state.”
“Yes well, there isn’t anything for me to do in this metal coffin we’re calling a ship.”
“There is something else that’s been concerning me, since you’re up.”
Kat sighs because the only reason she was up is because of this conversation. She says, “Alright, what is it?”
“Our passenger hasn’t woken up yet. It’s been about two weeks since we left Mars and twelve days since I stopped giving him sedatives.”
“Do you think something is wrong?”
“I’m not sure. I’m not a medical virtual assistant.”
“Can’t you access those, and learn it all?”
Whisper says sharply, “Not from out here with the terrible bandwidth. All of these alternate routes and older jump points can’t access the amount of information I need.”
“I knew that might be an issue but we can’t take any of the normal routes and have to stay in the dark zones right now. Not with Ryker and the Martians out looking for us. Since we did just blow up something from each of them, I am going to go out on a limb here and say they are still looking for us. Even with it only being two and a half weeks ago.”
“On that, I have an idea.”
“Do you now? What’s that?”
“This ship isn’t currently registered at all, which is why they thought we were part of the Guild.”
Kat adds, “That and the special magi-tech barrier this ship has.”
“What if we were to paint over the exterior and get the ship registered. We could really make this vessel a cargo ship, it has enough space in the hold to do small yet profitable runs.”
“You mean make my lie I gave to the Mars guy real.”
“Yes. Then we wouldn’t have to use these bandwidth forsaken places anymore.”
“I really wish this ship had some booze on it.”
“What for?”
“I need to call to ask for another favor.”
“Call? Who are you going to contact?”
“The man who raised me after I ran away. Knox Steel.”
The walk to the bridge was the third longest walk of her life. There was no doubt in her mind that Knox would help her. It was the idea that she was getting him and Gale involved with what she is in. Again. Whisper told her that the first time that she was turned on was a year ago. Which means it had been a year and a few months since her last time she saw him. They were letting her stay in their extra room, her old one, while she was looking for the ship and AI. Knox dropped her off at an abandoned laboratory asteroid that gave her a funny feeling that it wasn’t really abandoned. She was right and that was the last time she saw him. He would probably have a million questions for her, he always did.
Her hand hovers over the call button, trembling. She tells herself it's ok because she really does want to know how he and Gale have been. Then that's when the questions will start. How and where have you been, then the ever fun how much is this going to cost me. She knows it is just because he cares about her. It’s just hard to answer those questions to him when things are starting to come back into her memory. Like the couple she killed because they told Ryker to watch where he was walking. Ryker bumped into them not looking where he was walking on his augmented reality device, or AUG as he named them. She had to do it with her bare hands. Memories like that were flooding in more and more over the last few days like the tide coming in. Nightmares and dreams wake her up, with another set of restored memories.
14
Kat tells herself to relax and presses the button. Immediately regretting the decision but there was no stopping it now. Even if she did stop the call he would know it was her and just call back. It had been a whole three seconds and she hovers her hand over the disconnect button. Knox answers the call. His is an older man with streaked gray and black hair with a great big beard to match and sharp blue eyes. She never asked about his age but guessed he was in his sixties.
He says, “Thank you for calling Steel delivery. Where steel isn’t only my name, it's my quality and guarantee. How can I help you?”
“Hey Knox, sorry to be contacting you like this, but I need a favor.” Says Kat looking up to the main screen of the bridge, leaning up against the cockpit. It is good to see that he’s still alive and the people she stole the ship from didn’t associate him with her. She watches his facial features as he looks down and away, rubbing at his gray beard.
“I’m not sure who you think I am miss, but I think you have the wrong person. I just run a simple taxi service out of Bexar Omega space station. If that is what you were looking for young lady, then I might be able to help you.”
She knew what was going on. Mars Security or Ryker must have tapped his line. He always knew when things like that were happening to him. Something Kat always wanted to ask about just never did. It might break the illusion of his gentle teddy bear like demeanor. She just wanted to love the surrogate father he is to her. Anything that happened before didn’t matter.
Kat says, “Oh sorry about that mister. I thought you were my friend Knox.”
“No trouble at all, I run taxis out of Bexar Omega and every now and again I get a job on Apollo Prime. Look me up if you need anything later.”
“I will, thanks,” and she cuts the transmission.
Whisper asks, “Kat what was that all about?”
“Knox must have known the Martians and or Ryker are after me and have his line tapped. Even if it is just a program scanning over the line. It would be too dangerous to talk to him.”
“You monkeys are a strange lot, playing pretend to fool a computer program.”
“Set a course for Apollo Prime; Knox is going to meet us there. Also, try to find a port that doesn’t mind keeping us off the books.”
“Why’s that?”
“Ryker or the Martians might be there too. I had been living there for a few months while I was looking for your original blueprints.”
“You were looking for me? Well, this is news to me.”
“Set the coordinates and I’ll tell you all about it.”
Kat had told Whisper the medium version of her story. There were a few places she skipped over like Apollo Prime. It had been a dud of a search, which by that point was the norm for her. Sure there was always another clue pointing in another direction but it always led to another hollowed out or abandoned laboratory. It was shortly after that she called Knox to come pick her up and that’s when she went back to the first lab that lead her on the wild hunt she had been on.
Whisper finds a dock with a keeper who doesn’t mind being discreet for a price. They work out a deal and Kat trades him some of the supplies that she doesn’t have any use for but her host seems to more than appreciate. A few Conglomerate grade blaster batteries, a couple of boxes of MRE’s, three boxes of assorted bullets, and a fancy bottle that once held perfume. A cleaned and sterile bottle. She had to make sure that it wouldn’t accidentally pass around Compel. For the people it could affect and the harm it could cause if someone copied it.
Kat takes Whisper and Fury, and makes sure to lock up the Crucible to where only she can get in. Now she just has to hope that her short and shady host doesn’t start looking through wanted ads. Knox would meet her where he would always tell her to meet him in a situation like this. The local pub or bar. Not the nice ones either, the one that looks like its barely afloat but never shuts down. She already knew which one that is. She used to frequent it while she lived there trying to peel information out of people that flowed through there. The owner Tamsin had a good sense of humor too, she called her bar The Dive.
The first few steps in make Kat nostalgic. Then the smell hit her nose. A wet musky odor mixed with throw-up, piss, and sweat. That is a smell Kat wishes she could forget even if it did bring back some good memories with her and Tamsin. Everyone turns their head to look at her, their eyes shift to her hip where Fury is, then back to her face. Guns were a no-no on space stations. Kat knew this but didn’t want to leave Fury on the ship for multiple reasons. Typically, when someone wore a gun on a space station it was for causing trouble or for looking like trouble. Kat was in the later group, not minding the signal Fury was giving off.
In the back of the bar, a heavyset man stands up catching Kat’s eye. Her eyes sting and vision got blurry, and this time, it isn’t from the smell. Her stride toward the man has purpose behind it. Nearly three weeks in space with little more than MREs to keep her belly filled, the feeling of being practically alone and being hunted, and she missed the man she considers a father. There had been too many things that have happened since she last left him and she just wants to break down in his arms and tell him everything. Kat wraps her arms around Knox as he does the same to her. She gives him a big bear hug, lifting him off the ground.
Knox hugs her back, “Watch it now Kitty Kat, you don’t want to break me.”
“Right, sorry, I have cybernetics I’m getting used to now.” Kat sets him down and takes a step away, looking away from his eyes, rubbing her arms.
“Really?” Knox says with a confused looked. “How did that happen?”
“Long story, but there is something I need to talk to you about first.”
“Alright, tell me what’s it going to cost me.”
Kat laughs knowing that was coming. “You always think it’s going to cost you something every time I talk to you.”
“That might be because every time you’re around I’m spending more money than I normally would.”
“Ok. You’re right this time, it’s a big favor.” Kat tells him the short version of what happened for the last few months of her life. The reason she disappeared from that space station, the surgery, Whisper, Fury, Crucible, and Graven. He listens patiently, adding in a few audible grunts here and there for good measure. Kat isn’t sure if this is going to get him in too much trouble or not but she needs his help right now.
She says, “So that sums it up and that’s why I need a new ship ID and a coat of paint.”
“Well now, ain’t that something. I think I might be able to help you, but if I do… you know it might bring unwanted attention to me.”
“I know, but I don’t have anyone else to turn to. You have been like a father to me for years now. The last thing I would want to do is to see you or Gale in trouble or worse because of me but… You’re my only hope.”
Knox shakes his head, letting out a sigh, which turns into a single chuckle. “Gale’s probably gonna kill me, but if you asked her directly like that, I know she’d say the same. You might not be our blood Kitty Kat, but you are our child. Just like you said.”
The tears she is holding back begin to streak down her face and a pair of strong callused hands wipe them away. She looks up to him and he has a big smile on his face behind his mostly black beard.
He says softly, “Hey now, no tears.”
“I know but this is the first time we’ve talked about this. It’s nice to hear. I have felt that way for so long. I was just afraid to hear the answer and I shouldn’t have been.”
He reaches his arms around her, giving her a comforting squeeze. “I love you like my own child, remember that.”
“I will and thanks, Knox.”
“Right,” he says clearing his throat, “Now let's start talking shop while we get you back to Bexar Omega. Have you picked out a color yet?”
15
Two days later, she got back to Bexar Omega. Knox had towed the Crucible back to his dock. That way it looked like he was doing repair work. Which was partly true. There definitely was some repairs that needed to be done.
Kat is sitting down in the dock staring up at Crucible, eating last night’s leftovers. Leftovers! As in real food. It is as near to bliss as she could get. Gale’s cooking is better than ever, and she wonders why she ever left her loving family to join some stupid military. Memories of the rampage remind her why she left. The feelings of needing to be something or someone that could stop that from happening again so some other little girl doesn’t have to lose her parents.
Ryker crosses her mind too. She had to search for the plans for him and was driven away a second time from her new family. He wanted the AI core that Whisper and Fury were made from not because of the AI but because the nano-tech box it was attached too. While she was in the vents planning she could hear the scientist talking about the tests they were going to perform on Jarvis, the name of the AI in the box. The box was the most advanced nano-machine in the universe with an AI that could control it all, which they were testing out military applications for that nano-tech.
Kat puts another spoon full of the stew in her mouth, melting away any bad thoughts as she watches the robot arms begin to put the first coat of paint on Crucible. The color looks perfect. She can hear boots walking up behind her and she quickly turns to see who it is. Knox is there with a big smile on his face.
He says, “So I see you finally chose a color.”
“I did, yea. Do you like it?”
“I wouldn’t have picked it out for you. I remember you painting your whole room purple when we let you pick out the color but it looks great.”
“Oh my God, I did do that didn’t I? It was a phase, I think, and thanks.”
“So why blue?”
“It’s always been my favorite color. It reminds me of my parents. My biological ones, plus you and Gale. The times we spent at the park. The times we just laid out in the grass in front of your house. Then that one delivery of yours to that awful planet, what was it called?”
“Cardecia.”
“Yes! That place. Which was awful. But the whole time you had on this blue shirt, one that Gale made you wear. It made me feel safe. Just like now, and it just feels right to me somehow.”
Knox grunts a little as he sits on the railing next to Kat.
He says, “On to other topics. Gale has been asking about you and she’s worried. You haven’t been staying at our place at night and then there’s that man you got on your ship.”
Kat nods, “I’m alright. I don’t want to be at your place and cause you trouble if someone tips off Mars or Empire Security. Plus Graven’s out cold and has been for weeks now. There’s nothing to worry about with him.”
“That may be the case now, but what are you going to do with him?”
“Not sure yet. He tipped me off about the explosives that were in my arms, the drug Ryker was giving me, and was sent to contact me originally by General Ajax. He can’t be that bad. I’m going to hear what he has to say and then go from there.”
“That’s a good plan and good reasons. We just want you to be careful.”
“You know anything about him?”
“Aye, but it’s not for me to talk about. I know his military record and have heard him talked about by some of my contacts in the forces. They all say the same, keep an eye on him.”
“Oh I will, he did shoot me already, remember.”
Knox lets out a laugh. “Yes, you told me.”
Kat crosses her arms, “Hey, that’s not funny. He shot me in the leg with a shotgun blaster. At close range.”
“Like you said, he did have a bomb around his heart.”
Kat’s face flushes, “I… yes he did.”
“Just watch yourself girl, Gale and I want to hear from you more often, not hear about what happened to you.”
She smiles, “I know and I will.”
“Now come on back to our place. Gale is waiting with some lunch for the two of us. She won’t care if you just finished those leftovers either. She’ll just say you need to eat more or that you’re wasting away. You know how she gets if we’re late.”
Another week flies by before Kat realizes it. The ship is finally finished getting painted. Knox always insisted on if things were going to be done, to do it right. He told her it was a manner of pride. That with this being his Kitty Kat’s first ship, he wanted to make doubly sure that it is up to snuff before letting her go back out into that dangerous star ocean.
