“That’s really unhelpful, Aaron,” Yvonne says while I call up Zane and Lalia.
“Hey bro!” Zane, per usually, is entirely too cheerful.
“I think we may have a problem.”
There’s a pause, then, “Well, not much of a surprise there, at this point.
I roll my eyes. “Do you see that ship on your heat map?”
“Hold on.”
There’s some movement on the other end of the comm, then a surprised, “Oh yeah, there it is. My computer didn’t alert me. Piece of junk—”
“I can’t be sure, but I think those are the people I used to run with when I was just out of Amerov.”
There’s another pause. “Seriously?”
“Yeah, they roam this section of the galaxy, but not usually this far out. They must be chasing a bounty. They don’t know my ship, but you still have a bounty up on yours. Let’s head perpendicular to their course and hopefully they just think we’re random passing ships. They’re not bullies or anything…I mean, they weren’t when I was with them.”
Who knows if the captain is still the same one I worked for. Either way, I’d prefer not to get involved. Separate of the fact they’ll probably want to steal the three separate bounties I have with me at the moment, the crew didn’t exactly like me. Ever. And they especially didn’t by the time I left. That pit in my stomach turns into something entirely different. This is not good. Very not good.
Definitely going to head to uncharted space after this is all over.
“You look a little ill,” Yvonne whispers while Anya crawls over the control panel to press her face to glass, taking a look at the approaching light.
“They don’t…exactly…like me.”
She gasps, putting the back of her hand to her forehead in a mock faint.
“Shut up,” I mutter.
She chuckles once, but glances out the viewport, worry behind her eyes. She doesn’t know the extent of the situation I do, but she can’t be happy about this. It’s a nice little safe nest she has going on right now—her and her sister in my ship, knowing I’m perfectly happy to stay away from people and protect them from anything, and her sister likes me. Bringing other people into the situation is bound to make her nervous, particular when she still has her bounty up, and they may try to simply take both princesses from me by force.
Which reminds me.
Yvonne’s bounty isn’t to return her to Clock, so I can’t place any sort of claim on her. But Lalia and Zane’s still are. I took my claim off Lalia’s bounty when Captain took it as exchange for letting me go—which apparently was just Audra paying him off—but I can put it back. On Zane as well. It won’t do me any harm, it’s not like Captain can track us down by that. But perhaps it’ll afford them some protection if anyone in my old crew has to argue with Clock to get the bounty. It’s pathetic protection, but better than nothing.
No such thing exists for Yvonne. Who’s standing next to me, staring out the viewport, hand on the back of my seat, gnawing on her lip.
She eyeballs me, and steps back awkwardly, folding her arms. Weird. Usually she’s the one making me uncomfortable. Too bad I don’t know what I did. Would be nice to replicate.
Keeping the ship in an opposite course from where the largest ship appears to be heading, I watch the thermal map and pray to myself they’re not going to be nosey about us. We’re far enough away if they want to catch the features of the sibling’s ship and it’s bounty, they’ll have to actually get nosey and start following. I can’t outrun them in this old trash bucket. Neither can Zane and Lalia. Their ship is technically studier but just as old as mine.
I mutter to myself about humans. Anya gives me a look somewhere between amused and fake insulted. I make a face at her. She only giggles.
Tapping my fingers on the control panel, I pace to the bunk room and go through what little papers I have in my desk and spare weapons I keep. If we end up in that ship, I don’t want them going through my personal stuff. I doubt they will, what with me having no bounty myself and how unhappy they’re likely going to be to see me, but it doesn’t hurt to stash everything away. There are plenty of panelings in the floor that aren’t supposed to come up but Bat has fixed them to do so.
Once my ship looks as if no one has any personal items in it—which I’ll admit I was sparse on to begin with—I check the maps again. The humans are quiet. So is Bat, eats perked, nose pointed at the map, watching.
They’ve veered of the course they’re on. Definitely following us.
“Dammit,” I whisper, and turn the craft perpendicular to our course again experimentally. Maybe they were just heading this direction. If they end up turning again, they’re definitely following.
A few tense minutes pass, and the angle of their course changes to eventually intercept ours.
I’m ready to throw something.
“You really look ill,” Yvonne mutters.
I shoot her a glare. Not helping. They have a bigger ship, a bigger crew, and if they feel like taking in the siblings and the royals, they will. I’m not particularly frightened of them for myself, but I’ve no idea how they’ll react to Bat.
And like hell if they’re going to take the three million I’m owed for Yvonne’s bounty, even after she gave me what we bargained on to get Anya out of Amerov.
If I can’t keep control of the situation, they’ll take Zane and Lalia too. Back to Clock. Which will bring them both to Captain.
Rescuing Anya was one thing. If Captain takes the siblings, I’m not going to be able to do anything about it.
I swallow a lump in my throat so tight I have a problem breathing.
If this were a few weeks ago, I’d make some sort of bargain to split their bounty between me and my old crew, and they could take over the trouble of the siblings if they were so inclined.
Now? Siblings or not, Captain’s not getting his grubby hands on them. So, these people aren’t getting their hands on them.
“Guys?” I ask, calling back up the sibling’s comm. “Let’s keep going at a normal speed. Don’t want to act like we’re running, but they’re definitely trying to overtake us. If they want us to land in their hanger, fighting isn’t going to do much good. Just do as they say and meet up with me and don’t start talking. I’m going to try to see if I can talk my way out of this.”
“Are we screwed?” Zane asks. “Your tone sounds like we’re screwed.”
I grimace. “I’m…not sure. The crew doesn’t like me. The captain…might still hold some good will. We’ll see.”
Good will isn’t going to do much in the face of three huge bounties. It might mean I don’t get shot by one of the crew members and no one goes after Bat—maybe—but it doesn’t mean Captain Lee is going to just let me leave with all the humans with a wave and a smile.
“You don’t know if there’s good will?” Yvonne asks. The ship is becoming less of a light in the vast dark of space and more the silhouette of a massive vessel drifting through the weightlessness. Lee has done well for himself. His crew was already growing by the time I got out of there. I’d think good for him if this wasn’t currently causing me anxiety.
Yvonne isn’t taking her eyes off the shadow of the ship.
“It’s complicated,” I hedge.
She finally tears her eyes from the viewport to my face. There’s no sign of flinching in the way she meets my eyes. There hasn’t been for a while, but this feels different. I’m not certain how I feel about it.
“I feel like that’s your answer to everything,” she says, not unkindly.
I shrug. “Everything has been.”
She nods, eyes on Anya, then the viewport, then me. The silence deepens. The larger ship catches up at a snail’s pace. I go over multiple arguments and scenarios in my head, none of which make me feel better. Perhaps Captain Lee isn’t even in charge anymore. If he isn’t, that’s going to be worse. He’s what little shield I have between this all going to hell in the span of 0.2 seconds.
Bat takes to ignoring the viewport and heat map and sits on my leg. I pet his ears. He’s never met these people, but I’ve told him a few stories, and he’s not a fan. I’m not certain if he’s frightened or annoyed, and I don’t want to ask. He won’t tell me, not with the princesses here.
Eventually, when the shape of the ship on the heat map nearly overtakes our two little dots of ships, and it’s shadow is approaching from behind—I can only see it in the back camera now, our front viewport firmly facing the other direction—the comm blinks.
I stare at it for a moment, considering the ramifications of simply ignoring them. But ignoring them until when? All the way to Zar? Or skip Zar, head right to Neyla Ve?
Not going to work.
“What?” I say over the comm, diplomacy be dammed, because they don’t know it’s me, don’t know my ship, so they’re the rude ones to be following.
“Hello there little ship,” says a rather mocking voice on the other end I don’t immediately recognize but pokes a familiar part in the back of my brain. Given the life of bounty hunters, it’s surprising I’d recognize any one of them. I was hoping, just a bit, all the old crew who didn’t like me would be dead or long retired. “Your sister ship is registered for a bounty for the high-security prison, Clock. We’re going to take you in and—”
“Yeah, I know they have bounties up, that’s why I’m taking them to Clock. Bug the hell off.”
There’s a pause. Much too long of a pause to be from my words. I’ve personally seen them steal the bounties of solo hunters. Not much honor among semi-criminals.
Silence lasts so long I glance at Yvonne, just to make sure I’m not missing so sort of obvious human reaction. She looks as lost as I am.
“Ship,” says the voice, less certain this time. “What’s your captain’s name?”
Technically, I’m the captain. “None of your business. You gonna stop following us?”
There’s another pause, then the voice on the other end says, “Oh my God,” and hangs up.
“That’s really unhelpful, Aaron,” Yvonne says while I call up Zane and Lalia.
“Hey bro!” Zane, per usually, is entirely too cheerful.
“I think we may have a problem.”
There’s a pause, then, “Well, not much of a surprise there, at this point.
I roll my eyes. “Do you see that ship on your heat map?”
“Hold on.”
There’s some movement on the other end of the comm, then a surprised, “Oh yeah, there it is. My computer didn’t alert me. Piece of junk—”
“I can’t be sure, but I think those are the people I used to run with when I was just out of Amerov.”
There’s another pause. “Seriously?”
“Yeah, they roam this section of the galaxy, but not usually this far out. They must be chasing a bounty. They don’t know my ship, but you still have a bounty up on yours. Let’s head perpendicular to their course and hopefully they just think we’re random passing ships. They’re not bullies or anything…I mean, they weren’t when I was with them.”
Who knows if the captain is still the same one I worked for. Either way, I’d prefer not to get involved. Separate of the fact they’ll probably want to steal the three separate bounties I have with me at the moment, the crew didn’t exactly like me. Ever. And they especially didn’t by the time I left. That pit in my stomach turns into something entirely different. This is not good. Very not good.
Definitely going to head to uncharted space after this is all over.
“You look a little ill,” Yvonne whispers while Anya crawls over the control panel to press her face to glass, taking a look at the approaching light.
“They don’t…exactly…like me.”
She gasps, putting the back of her hand to her forehead in a mock faint.
“Shut up,” I mutter.
She chuckles once, but glances out the viewport, worry behind her eyes. She doesn’t know the extent of the situation I do, but she can’t be happy about this. It’s a nice little safe nest she has going on right now—her and her sister in my ship, knowing I’m perfectly happy to stay away from people and protect them from anything, and her sister likes me. Bringing other people into the situation is bound to make her nervous, particular when she still has her bounty up, and they may try to simply take both princesses from me by force.
Which reminds me.
Yvonne’s bounty isn’t to return her to Clock, so I can’t place any sort of claim on her. But Lalia and Zane’s still are. I took my claim off Lalia’s bounty when Captain took it as exchange for letting me go—which apparently was just Audra paying him off—but I can put it back. On Zane as well. It won’t do me any harm, it’s not like Captain can track us down by that. But perhaps it’ll afford them some protection if anyone in my old crew has to argue with Clock to get the bounty. It’s pathetic protection, but better than nothing.
No such thing exists for Yvonne. Who’s standing next to me, staring out the viewport, hand on the back of my seat, gnawing on her lip.
She eyeballs me, and steps back awkwardly, folding her arms. Weird. Usually she’s the one making me uncomfortable. Too bad I don’t know what I did. Would be nice to replicate.
Keeping the ship in an opposite course from where the largest ship appears to be heading, I watch the thermal map and pray to myself they’re not going to be nosey about us. We’re far enough away if they want to catch the features of the sibling’s ship and it’s bounty, they’ll have to actually get nosey and start following. I can’t outrun them in this old trash bucket. Neither can Zane and Lalia. Their ship is technically studier but just as old as mine.
I mutter to myself about humans. Anya gives me a look somewhere between amused and fake insulted. I make a face at her. She only giggles.
Tapping my fingers on the control panel, I pace to the bunk room and go through what little papers I have in my desk and spare weapons I keep. If we end up in that ship, I don’t want them going through my personal stuff. I doubt they will, what with me having no bounty myself and how unhappy they’re likely going to be to see me, but it doesn’t hurt to stash everything away. There are plenty of panelings in the floor that aren’t supposed to come up but Bat has fixed them to do so.
Once my ship looks as if no one has any personal items in it—which I’ll admit I was sparse on to begin with—I check the maps again. The humans are quiet. So is Bat, eats perked, nose pointed at the map, watching.
They’ve veered of the course they’re on. Definitely following us.
“Dammit,” I whisper, and turn the craft perpendicular to our course again experimentally. Maybe they were just heading this direction. If they end up turning again, they’re definitely following.
A few tense minutes pass, and the angle of their course changes to eventually intercept ours.
I’m ready to throw something.
“You really look ill,” Yvonne mutters.
I shoot her a glare. Not helping. They have a bigger ship, a bigger crew, and if they feel like taking in the siblings and the royals, they will. I’m not particularly frightened of them for myself, but I’ve no idea how they’ll react to Bat.
And like hell if they’re going to take the three million I’m owed for Yvonne’s bounty, even after she gave me what we bargained on to get Anya out of Amerov.
If I can’t keep control of the situation, they’ll take Zane and Lalia too. Back to Clock. Which will bring them both to Captain.
Rescuing Anya was one thing. If Captain takes the siblings, I’m not going to be able to do anything about it.
I swallow a lump in my throat so tight I have a problem breathing.
If this were a few weeks ago, I’d make some sort of bargain to split their bounty between me and my old crew, and they could take over the trouble of the siblings if they were so inclined.
Now? Siblings or not, Captain’s not getting his grubby hands on them. So, these people aren’t getting their hands on them.
“Guys?” I ask, calling back up the sibling’s comm. “Let’s keep going at a normal speed. Don’t want to act like we’re running, but they’re definitely trying to overtake us. If they want us to land in their hanger, fighting isn’t going to do much good. Just do as they say and meet up with me and don’t start talking. I’m going to try to see if I can talk my way out of this.”
“Are we screwed?” Zane asks. “Your tone sounds like we’re screwed.”
I grimace. “I’m…not sure. The crew doesn’t like me. The captain…might still hold some good will. We’ll see.”
Good will isn’t going to do much in the face of three huge bounties. It might mean I don’t get shot by one of the crew members and no one goes after Bat—maybe—but it doesn’t mean Captain Lee is going to just let me leave with all the humans with a wave and a smile.
“You don’t know if there’s good will?” Yvonne asks. The ship is becoming less of a light in the vast dark of space and more the silhouette of a massive vessel drifting through the weightlessness. Lee has done well for himself. His crew was already growing by the time I got out of there. I’d think good for him if this wasn’t currently causing me anxiety.
Yvonne isn’t taking her eyes off the shadow of the ship.
“It’s complicated,” I hedge.
She finally tears her eyes from the viewport to my face. There’s no sign of flinching in the way she meets my eyes. There hasn’t been for a while, but this feels different. I’m not certain how I feel about it.
“I feel like that’s your answer to everything,” she says, not unkindly.
I shrug. “Everything has been.”
She nods, eyes on Anya, then the viewport, then me. The silence deepens. The larger ship catches up at a snail’s pace. I go over multiple arguments and scenarios in my head, none of which make me feel better. Perhaps Captain Lee isn’t even in charge anymore. If he isn’t, that’s going to be worse. He’s what little shield I have between this all going to hell in the span of 0.2 seconds.
Bat takes to ignoring the viewport and heat map and sits on my leg. I pet his ears. He’s never met these people, but I’ve told him a few stories, and he’s not a fan. I’m not certain if he’s frightened or annoyed, and I don’t want to ask. He won’t tell me, not with the princesses here.
Eventually, when the shape of the ship on the heat map nearly overtakes our two little dots of ships, and it’s shadow is approaching from behind—I can only see it in the back camera now, our front viewport firmly facing the other direction—the comm blinks.
I stare at it for a moment, considering the ramifications of simply ignoring them. But ignoring them until when? All the way to Zar? Or skip Zar, head right to Neyla Ve?
Not going to work.
“What?” I say over the comm, diplomacy be dammed, because they don’t know it’s me, don’t know my ship, so they’re the rude ones to be following.
“Hello there little ship,” says a rather mocking voice on the other end I don’t immediately recognize but pokes a familiar part in the back of my brain. Given the life of bounty hunters, it’s surprising I’d recognize any one of them. I was hoping, just a bit, all the old crew who didn’t like me would be dead or long retired. “Your sister ship is registered for a bounty for the high-security prison, Clock. We’re going to take you in and—”
“Yeah, I know they have bounties up, that’s why I’m taking them to Clock. Bug the hell off.”
There’s a pause. Much too long of a pause to be from my words. I’ve personally seen them steal the bounties of solo hunters. Not much honor among semi-criminals.
Silence lasts so long I glance at Yvonne, just to make sure I’m not missing so sort of obvious human reaction. She looks as lost as I am.
“Ship,” says the voice, less certain this time. “What’s your captain’s name?”
Technically, I’m the captain. “None of your business. You gonna stop following us?”
There’s another pause, then the voice on the other end says, “Oh my God,” and hangs up.
