Fly to Prime
By Layton
Chapter one
“We have scanned your ship and found no illegal goods aboard” the intercom hissed.
The dark haired man sat in the front seat smiled grimly his gash of a mouth broadening in the green glow of the instruments “Yeah, yeah” he muttered looking out of the side window at the patrol ship hailing him.
“Thank you for your co-operation and welcome to Paranid space” the speaker clicked off with a final disappointed crackle. Like everything else on the ship the intercom system was second hand salvaged from another wrecked Argon Buster that had somehow became semi-embedded in an asteroid in some unexplored part of Split space.
“That was quick usually they wait until you go in a bar before scanning you what did they want?” the cold thickened voice of his partner Bran sniveled from the sleeping quarters in the back.
“Usual cop wanted to know if we had anything worth a bribe” something nagged at him though. He rubbed his fingers over the growth of stubble on his chin. I need a shave and a bath he thought and I defiantly need a drink.
Bran blew his nose loudly and came into the cockpit “Damn flu” his red nose wrinkled as another sneeze brewed up.
Fly chuckled as the smaller man buried his face in a tissue “Told you to get a jab when we were in Dark Waters”
“I don’t trust the squids, they put stuff in the jab to stop you smoking”
Fly liked Bran, he was totally dishonest in business dealings and knew how to get the best of any negotiation he was an uncomplicated kind of companion never intruding on thoughts or things he didn’t know anything about. But once he started smoking he had to be watched around anything that could be broken and the more important the piece of equipment the more likely Bran was to break it. That’s why Fly was happy that the little man caught the flu not that he liked to see his friend in discomfort or anything like that it was that you can’t smoke when you have the flu it makes you cough your guts up as Bran found out at the previous port they’d visited.
“Wonder what kind of flu I have?” he sniffed.
“Where are you from Bran?”
“Argon of course”
“Then you have Argon flu”
Fly’s hands went to the control panel and brought up the HUD he waited patiently for the ships computer to lock onto the nearest NB (Navigational Beacon)
“Computer Database Updated” the intercom crackled.
Wonder what they’ve changed this time? Almost casually he flicked through the stations and ships on the list he didn’t see anything different but then the list is huge running into thousands of ships that are traveling through the system and the fixed stations that are more or less in a permanent location. He selected the station filter from options and flicked his eyes down looking for the nearest Argon way station. No way station?
“So if I was born in Boron I’d have Boron flu?” the little man’s face screwed up in a look of confusion.
“Only if you are Boron” he slapped the little man on the back and laughed.
“But Jama said we could get other kinds of flu” he sniffed again.
“Forget that idiot” Fly growled “Anyway more important things to think about like the Argon way station has gone”
Bran stopped sniffing “There ain’t been no war between the races for Jazuras” automatically reading his friend’s concern his hands flickered over the consol to confirm.
“Years and don’t use double negatives” Fly corrected absently.
“No, I don’t see it” He ignored the correction now wasn’t the time to argue about language he did however smile to himself.
That’s what had been bugging him! The ship that scanned them had been a Perseus M3 only the military used M3’s certainly not the local police maybe some of the police in the outer more dangerous sectors but never in one of the home worlds only the Teladi to the South and the peaceful Boron two gates over in the East not like this is a dangerous sector in fact it was considered something like a milk run the local police are easy to bribe and can be persuaded to close their three little eyes to anything but the most flagrant of rule breaking there are other friendly race sectors between any pirate or Kha’ak activity. Why hadn’t he seen it before? There was a big difference between an M3 fighter and an M5 scout but then it’s so usual to be scanned in a system it becomes apart of every day life and unless you are carrying something illegal you don’t sweat it.
“Get me to the trading port” Bran said climbing out of his seat and going into the back.
“Okay” He said reluctantly.
“Jama might not be all together legitimate but he knows things that others don’t” Bran said coming back into the front with his shoulder holster half on.
Fly looked at the holster and grunted.
“You just don’t like her because she flies a Falcon”
He made a sound kind of a cross between a grunt and a snort.
“Not all Falcon pilots are pirates”
Fly smiled “Really? What did you fly when you were a free trader?”
“A Falcon” he replied embarrassment in his voice.
“You can’t pull that one on me I know damn well that Jama is an old pirate friend of yours“ he looked at the little man and smiled “but she’s an old pirate friend that has uses” flicking the curser down to the Trading center box and hitting enter. He climbed out of his own seat as the auto pilot took over.
“Please wait” the intercom blares.
“Bloody thing” he cursed from the back getting a snort of laughter from Bran.
Trinity Sanctum Paranid Trading Station
Docking Computer confirming ID ‘Please wait’
ID CONFIRMED
DOCKING GRANTED
Auto pilot activated flashed across the HUD.
“Really need to get another speaker for this thing” he said sticking a finger in his ear to emphasize the point. He opened the locker marked BOSS from behind the pilots seat and removed his own holster and sidearm.
“I’ll ask around when I get to the bar”
“Don’t go out of your way to make trouble” Bran’s trading methods could leave disgruntled traders behind disgruntled traders with the money to seek revenge.
They watched in silence as the trading port went from a speck in the distance surrounded by other smaller specks to a full grown station surrounded by full sized laser towers. The addition of laser towers since their last visit was ominous and each eyed each other..
“They are defiantly expecting trouble” Bran whispered as a Nemesis M2 cruiser and its four M3 escorts rumbled past.
“Yeah” But what kind of trouble he added to himself.
The Paranid wish to welcome you aboard this trading station all foreign visitors please note that trading restrictions are in place.
“What the…?”
Bran took no notice of the announcement he popped the hatch and started twisting and turning down the hot corridors until he came to a pale coloured door. Fly puffing and panting finally caught up with him.
“Now I remember why I never leave the ship in Paranid ports” Sweat dripped off the end of his blocky nose and ran down the crease of his lip and into his stubble.
“You complain too much you know that Fly” He put his hand to the print plate on the wall. Enter Bran Ahola the small screen flashed and the door slid open.
“We all have vices” The big man shuddered at the smoke filled room and the heaving mass of bodies within the bar. Following the small figure of Bran he weaved in and out of the crowd careful not to bump or knock into anyone space bars were dangerous places and many of the other species have strange customs about physical contact. Knowing where Brad is going helps as he can concentrate on not offending anyone it’s not that Fly as his name implies is weak he can handle himself but he doesn’t go looking for trouble “Flynn” his father would say “A trouble avoided is a credit in the bank.” not that his father ever tried to avoid trouble but he used to say it when Flynn was a kid and the idea sort of sunk in. Flynn was his given name after a 21st century Earth film star but once he had joined the Argon Federation Space Corp his name had been changed to Space Fly and later shortened to just Fly and it had stuck.
He found himself at a table, sitting around the table were obviously pirates, and each wore a black flight suit and visibly armed. Standing in the middle of the pirates and talking loudly was Jama dressed as usual in a one piece leather suit, she wasn’t visibly armed but Fly knew from experience she had a weapon on her somewhere. The little Teladi was not someone you messed with and survived.
“Bran, Fly!” Her voice boomed the pirates eyed them both cautiously. Jama looked at them and waved her webbed hand the pirates faded into the background and disappeared.
“Business going well?” Bran asked.
“Roaring, roaring” she looked at Fly.
“Something amusing Jama?” he said looking at her face and the scale on her forehead for any sign of danger, it was red but not the dark red of anger so commonly shown in the Teladi.
“You want information and you’ve come to Jama for it” her red eyes flashed along with the scale.
Bran stepped in front of him his eyes angry and voice angry “Twice I’ve saved your life, do you acknowledge the dept?”
“Oh Bran I’ve missed you! No debt I’ll give you the information out of friendship” she smiled well at least it looked like she did.
“What would you know of friendship?” he said his voice relaxing.
“Very little but I’ve been trying out human emotions, humour, loyalty, friendship and I’ve even been practicing smiling” Her lips pulled back exposing the hard pad inside her mouth the effect was quite frightening.
“I find you need teeth to really pull it off” she said critically.
“The information, Jama”
“The Paranid have gone to war with the Argon, all Argon ships and all those of the race Argon are to be imprisoned, impounded or terminated”
It took a moment for what the little Teladi had said to sink in.
“How did this happen?” Bran asked his hand sliding inside his jacket.
“The arrogant Argon took some traders prisoner and refused to release them”
“You mean pirates” Fly grunted.
His eyes flicked around the bar many of the patrons were staring at them.
“Yes, they were employed in that profession”
Why would the Paranid go to war over a few pirates? He looked at the Teladi as she carried on speaking.
“You are in a dangerous situation” she whispered.
“So are you” Bran replied opening his jacket to reveal his handheld.
“But I’m used to it” she gave the gun a glance and ignored the threat.
The Teladi have something to do with this. What exactly he wasn’t sure about but Jama defiantly knew more than she was letting on. He could feel the tension in the air and as was his skill could tell that violence wasn’t far away.
“So where does this leave us?” He asked.
“We have a trade opportunity here” Jama moved her gaze from the gun and rested on Fly. Bran also visibly relaxed his hand moving to his side.
“So that’s what this is about making credits” he grunted and sat down.
“What else is war for? Soil? Religion? No, it is all about money and money equals power it always has been this way”
Thinking about the history all wars were over money or power apart from the Xenon wars which were about genocide and the more recent Kha’ak wars, nobody had yet worked out why the Kha’ak had attacked as they don’t take anything only destroy but then maybe that is the purpose.
“So where do we come in?”
Jama’s lips pulled back again in a smile resembling that of an old man who forgot to put his teeth in.
Fly to Prime pt1
Moderators: TheElf, Moderators for English X Forum
Part 2 is up but short as am really busy at the moment.
http://forum2.egosoft.com/viewtopic.php ... 19#1462919
http://forum2.egosoft.com/viewtopic.php ... 19#1462919
Layton
For the SPLIT!
For the SPLIT!