Chapter 14

The Astral Feather approached Junkers Refuge on a course to reach Dock Seven, being guided in by a pilot craft, covered in a variety of flashing lights and navigational beacons. The process of docking was a slow one. The onboard computers constantly relayed info with the pilot ship and made navigational corrections where it was needed. Port speed in almost all docking lanes was incredibly slow as an accident with debris could tie up a dockyard in lengthy cleanup routines for days or even weeks. With a major dockyard like Junkers Refuge, that would create a significant logistical situation. The pilot craft veered up and away as the Astral Feather locked onto a dock beacon and slowly maneuvered into a berthing gantry. The adjustable gantry secured the vessel and maneuvered it into position, so the stations airlock lined up with the one on the ship, then locked everything in place.

Jack, Pri, Cardox and Sita took up positions around Lucinia. They formed a square with the captain in the middle once they had passed the security officer handling new entries. He warned them that they would be on their own from that point on and to keep out of trouble if they valued their safety. As they moved down the dock way, a second group moved up to approach them, all armed with subguns or pistols.

“You won-a-da Canton’s customers, yeh?” The tallest of them said, gesturing towards the superstructure of Junkers Refuge with his hand.

“Yes,” Lucinia replied. “You’re here to take us to him?” She looked at his hard looking features, pale skin, large chin, violet eyes and shaved head.

“Yeh sees, jas followin us yeh, no funny stuff and we get along real good now.”

“Noted,” Lucinia looked at Cardox, who gave her a nod in return.

“Callin me Freddy if ya be feelin it,” The leader of Cantons’ entourage said. “Be’ind me be Axel, Shan-ba and Render.” They each nodded as Freddy said their names.

Axel was a Cordivain, a rodent like race with sharp features and large ears, though his were covered under a canted helmet that did little to match his poorly fitted body armor. Shan-ba was a Zandivae, long lived and fae-like with some physical traits like Terrans. Differences included cloven hooves for feet, light brown furred body, bovine like tail, fuzzy ears and modest horns off her head. She wore a smaller helmet and some kinetic protection on her torso, upper arms and legs. Pale blue eyes looked over Lucinia and her crew with a warmness that seemed out of place for the location and situation. Render was a human, dark skinned, large and broad shouldered, his dark eyes regarded everyone carefully from behind a mask of scars and faded injuries. Jack figured he was likely the first to fight and the immediate muscle if things went wrong. Jack gave him a nod when their eyes met and noted, with some relief, that Render nodded in return. They may be hired guns, but they still acted like people, treating Lucinia’s crew as potentially profitable customers to be looked after.

“I’m the captain of the Astral Feather and this is my security detail.” Lucinia motioned to the team around her.

Freddy nodded at each in turn, giving Pri a bit of a peculiar glance before turning to lead the way.

Pri wondered as she followed the others, seeing Jack look at her momentarily with a reassuring expression.

They moved up the dockway and onto a larger appendage of the station where traffic picked up, primarily lifters and loaders transporting crates to and from waiting vessels.

“I had no idea there was this much traffic on the station.” Jack remarked.

“Be hard ta feed tousands yeh, with little to grow onboard eh.”

“So, most of this is foodstuff and necessities?” Jack asked.

“Aye, tis. Steady flow round ere. We stockpile lots adda surplus. No repeatin Anda station yeah.”

“Good call,” Jack thought momentarily of the story of Anda station.

They had suffered a critical shortage of food during a freighter guild strike related to increasing pirate attacks. The station served as a mining hub on the border of League space and lacked a significant guard presence, leading to a lengthy pirate occupation. It took three weeks for the League to drive the pirates away and establish a supply line. In those three weeks, the station descended into anarchy and left a lasting impression about the vulnerability of remote stations in unguarded systems.

The group moved down the larger docking spine before entering the station proper, emerging into a large open space reminiscent of a city layout. It was all capped by a high, meters thick plastic dome that held in atmospheric pressure. Externally, it was protected by armored plates and was defended by laser projectors to burn away any rock or debris that could threaten station integrity.

“Jus up ere anodda block aye.” Freddy motioned up the lane.

Jack looked behind him momentarily to catch sight of everyone’s position before returning his attention to his sector. He kept an eye on the light traffic they shared the lane with. Occasionally a cargo lifter would come up the lane and make the foot traffic part like water around a rock. Jack occasionally caught sight of the destitute on the station. People that came to the refuge looking for a break and never found it. They lingered at the entrances to the alley ways, making him even more wary about using them for travel if the need arose. Jack saw many carrying homemade charge rifles that fired a .30 cal pellet by means of electrically compressed air. The effectiveness of the rifles varied wildly but could easily kill at close range.

“Ya wantin da star rockets eh?” Freddy asked.

“Yes, if their condition is new,” Lucinia replied. “Otherwise, we can do without.”

“Eh, tha boss got lots o stock, deals with all kind o’ arms outta here. He gonna be able ta look afta ya, eh?”

“I’m hoping so,” Lucinia caught his look and gave him a professional smile.

“Dem star rockets good?” Freddy asked passively.

“Pretty good,” Lucinia replied. “Gives you more options in our line of work.”

“What work be dat, ah?”

“Asset protection.” Lucinia kept it short and sweet.

“Ah yeah, dem pirate fucks be makin tings ‘ard round ‘ere sometime, know what I say?”

“I can imagine.”

“Dey go afta da freight ships, makin a pain all tha time.”

As they approached Cantons Supply, Freddy turned to Lucinia, “Jus inside ‘ere, me crew gonna wait outside, ya can take a crew or two in with ya if ya like.”

“You are ok with me bringing armed crew into your store?” Lucinia asked for clarity.

“Ya, we run a munitions business ‘ere, not a slave market or da like, know what am sayin?” Freddy gave her a smile and a nod.

“Ok, You are with me.” Lucinia said to Cardox, keeping his name from the conversation intentionally, then spoke to the others. “You three keep watch out here.”

They nodded their understanding, then she and Cardox entered the building.

Jack yawned and pulled out a smoke. “Ok to smoke here?” He asked Axel, who along with Shan-ba, had remained outside.

“Yup.” Axel replied and went back to fiddling on his commpad.

“You buggers get much trouble round here?” Sita spoke to Shan-ba who stood close by.

“Is sometimes,” Shan-ba spoke fast. “They come round tryin to steal guns or ammunition, but we fuck them up.” She seemed disappointed in her answer, as if she regretted having to do what she did.

“That lawless round these parts?” Sita put on a bit of a backwater accent.

“Yup. Got us a bunch of groups fighting for control of whole station. Fight hard an dirty.” Shan-ba replied. “Place is not a good one. Not safe.”

“Never have any problems with law enforcement fucking around, trying to restore ‘order’ on the station?” Sita said.

“Na.” Axel joined in and answered her. “Junkers Refuge ain’t recognized by the League. No recognition, no official support and no law enforcement unless the station pays for it.”

“And since the station was founded by prospectors and traders, no-one wants to pay, right?” Jack spoke.

“Is right,” Shan-ba nodded. “Must look after oneself here.”

“What a fuckin mess.” Sita muttered and leaned up against the wall beside Jack.

“I hope the captain gets what she needs.” Jack watched a few youths of several races playing with a ball near one of the alley entrances. “This whole place needs a proper fucking economy. Kids that grow up in this, are often doomed to be a part of the problem later. It’s all they know, so they don’t get a chance at something better.”

“Yeah, no shit.” Sita watched the same youths playing around for a moment, before looking further up the lane towards the large plaza ahead.

Lots of people moved about the lane, most carried something or other like boxes, packages and food deliveries. They were knee deep into their late-night work routine with little in the way of day shoppers, accounting for everyone’s frantic pace.

“I always get fuckin nervous when I see people scurrying about.” Sita took a tighter grip on her subgun and motioned up the street. “Like them fuckos, hundred paces up, left side.”

Jack and Pri both watched the ‘fuckos’ cautiously, seeing them moving in a bit of a tactical posture with charge rifles at the ready. They disappeared into an alleyway and Jack let out a sigh of relief. He dug into a pouch and pulled out a Zamblast packet, a sugary powdered drink mix one would add to water. Jack opened the top, wet his finger and dipped it into the mix.

“Watchya got there?” Sita looked at him with a bit of a childish smile.

“Yummies.” Jack offered her the packet and she took it, coating a finger.

“Zammies, fuck yeah.”

She handed the packet back to Jack and stuck the coated finger in her mouth.

“Eh?” Shan-ba gave them both a curious look.

“Hm?” Jack offered the packet over to her.

“Is goof powder?”

“No.” Jack kept down a laugh, barely.

“What is?”

“Just a drink mix. Tastes sweet.”

“Ok.” Shan-ba took the packet and sprinkled a bit in her mouth, noting the taste with enthusiasm. “Good.”

She handed it back to Jack, who then offered it up to Pri, and received a look of mild disgust in answer, then moved a short distance away to keep watch on an alley. Jack grinned and next made an offer to Axel, who just shook his head and pulled out a smoke before focusing back on his commpad once more.

As Jack, Sita and Shan-ba cast watchful glances up the street, a string of fireworks landed on the lane about twenty meters up.

“Yo, what the fuck!” Sita spat as they began popping off, drawing everyone’s attention.

Pri focused on the fireworks until she felt a sudden stinging sensation in her torso. She looked down and saw two wires protruding from her belly, before a sudden, paralyzing pain overcame her and a huge Terran took her in a solid grip. A burlap bag was placed over her head, containing a bit of a sweet smell that dulled her senses and Pri felt her consciousness slipping.

Jack and Sita were on heightened alert with the firecracker display, wondering what the random show was about. He looked around and cast a glance back at Pri, seeing the back half of her suddenly lifting away as an arm picked her up. In just a second, she was gone, with the feathers of her tail dragging across the ground, something a Sezar would never consciously do. Jack ran to the head of the alleyway and stuck his head around the corner to look, seeing the large Terran with Pri over one shoulder. The man turned and saw Jack, then fired a hipshot from his charge gun which struck the wall close to Jack’s head.

“Holy living fuck,” Jack snapped as he pulled back into cover. Immediately he was on the radio. “Breadbasket, Breadbasket this is Appleseed, message, over.”

Cardox came over the radio, “Appleseed, this is Breadbasket, send message, over.”

“Breadbasket, Candle has been subdued, currently abducted. Unfucking situation with Mallet, over.”

“Appleseed, afirm, Breadbasket and Goblet moving to support, over.”

“This is Silver Platter, what the fuck is going on? Over.” Jack gritted his teeth as he heard the somewhat distorted voice of Proculus over the radio, listening in from aboard the Astral Feather in the C.I.C.

“What the fuck, out.” Jack ended the conversation immediately.

“On your six, Appleseed.” Sita put her hand on Jack’s back, near his shoulder as he rounded the corner.

He had his subgun up, watching down the alley ahead while she covered behind, struggling to keep up as he raced to the end. Jack saw the man carrying Pri as he ran for another alley, followed by a pair of scrawny gunmen. He saw the burlap sack over Pri’s head, held in place by an elastic bottom, telling him she was out of the fight until they recovered her.

“Fuck.” Jack spat, then relayed over the comms the direction they were heading as he broke cover and ran for the next alley.

Sita dropped a flare at the entrance of the alley they were heading into so Cardox and Lucinia could follow, then rushed to catch up to Jack as he reached the end of the next alley. As he peeped around the corner, a few charge gun shots rang out and struck close to him.

“Fuck! Contact, several gunmen.” He snapped.

“Roger that.” Sita kept watch behind them.

Jack peeped again and caught sight of two of the gunmen aiming their guns at the alley.

“Gotta push out, we can’t take them here.” He saw the man carrying Pri take refuge by some steel crates part way up the intersecting alley.

“Fuckin need smoke or flash, fuckin nuts to make the dash.” Sita huffed. “Go auto, give ‘em a fuckin mag dump so I have a chance.”

“Copy that, get ready.” Jack flipped the fire control selector on his sub gun and prepared for his next action.

Sita rested her hand on his shoulder and tapped twice, fast, signaling him to lay down suppressive fire. He leaned out and let off a burst into the window where the first gunman hid, seeing unexpected results as the gunman dropped his weapon out of the window and slumped. Jack was already suppressing the second target as Sita took off in a full run across the intersection, sheltering at an alley corner across the way. As Jack took incoming fire, Sita peeped around and saw two shooters on a barricaded balcony. She took fast aim and knocked one down with several pulls of the trigger, then hammered the barricade to pin the other. She pulled back into cover as Jack fired on the same balcony, allowing her to take a breath, then step out and move up the alley in pursuit of Pri. Sita found cover behind a large metal crate and fired up through the thin floor of the balcony. She heard a muffled slump, then a few moments later, droplets of crimson liquid dripped down to the ground below.

“Appleseed, push up,” She called out and Jack broke cover, pushed up past her, all the way to the crates Pri had been carried behind.

“Tango’s oscar mike.” Jack called to Sita, who broke cover and ran to him, seeing Pri being carried further up the alley.