Chapter 16

The trip back from Starbase 17 to 22 with ambassador Moffit on board was a bit fraught. For a start, the crew took an instant dislike to him and he had to sleep on his own, making my bed a little overcrowded. Second, my poor starlight was not designed to carry five people, so I had to borrow a C02 scrubber to help out the life support system. It was a relief all round when we at last docked and we said good-bye to our passenger.

"So, what are we going to do now?" asked Lila.

"Well, I thought as we've got plenty of money in the bank, we would have a bit of R and R," I put forward.

"Can we go to Alexis 4?" suggested Candy. "They have this super big warehouse full of spares and tool."

"Don't worry about her," said Lila to Rachelle. "She's just a little soft in the head."

"No, I'm not," Candy snapped. "Anyway, they have a 'Stud Palace' there, too."

"Now we're talking," said a grinning Lila. "How about you, Rachelle, fancy some stud action with me?"

"No, I don't think so," she said with a weak smile. "I'm more your sauna and Jacuzzi girl."

"I'll expect we'll find something for you," I said. "Ok, we'll top up the tanks and head out."

"I see you've put in a flight plan for the Star Base 6 sector," said the Base commander.

"Yeah," I agreed.

"Well, perhaps you can drop some personal letters off for me?" he asked.

"Sure, sure," I agreed happily.

We hadn't always seen eye to eye but we were, at last, getting on well.

The transit took two weeks at minimum cruising speed but we were in no hurry.

"I'll go and report in while you lot can get yourself sorted," I said, "and I want you all to report in with me daily."

"Sure, Captain," said a smiling, no, leering Lila.

"Lila, you know what happened the last time you visited a 'Stud Palace'?" I said.

"Sure, I had myself some sexy fun, got myself kidnapped, raped and we captured a ship which we sold for lots of lovely cash," she said with a big smile. "What more could a girl want for a bit of R and R."

"Is that true?" I heard Rachelle whisper to Candy.

I didn't hang around for Candy's reply, instead I slipped the sex pistol converted stun gun in my pocket and headed out. After I saw the port authorities I went looking for some cargo.

"Mr Kelly," I said holding out my hand. "Your name was given me by Captain Jones of the port authorities. My names Captain Todd. I have a Starlight and I was looking for a cargo."

"Not much room in those old Starlights," he mused. "But I may have something, but it'll take a few weeks to sort out."

"Perfect," I said. "My crew are here for a bit of R and R."

"Good, I'll be in touch then," he said.

I punched in for a mug of number one coffee, for I had time to go through all one hundred blends, when Rachelle walked back on board.

"You ok?" I asked.

"Yeah," she said. "I've found a place and I've booked in for a few days, starting tomorrow."

"Good, good," I said taking a sip.

It was dark and bitter just the way I liked it.

"What about you?" she asked. "Are you going to do anything?"

"Yeah, I must get some shopping done," I mused. "New clothes and such."

"Yeah, me, too," she said.

"God, he was built like a donkey," whispered Lila loudly.

We were two days out with a sealed cargo of ten boxes, heading for Star base 9 and a secret rendezvous. What the boxes contained I've no idea and, in truth, I didn't want to know. Lila had been explaining her time at the Stud Palace non stop since she reboarded the ship.

"He nearly fucked me to death," she carried on.

"Shame he didn't," whispered Candy.

"And what sort of big tool did you find?" asked Lila somewhat cattily.

"Lila, you have the comm., I'm going to lie down for awhile," I said before things got totally out of control.

"Well, I found this great big wrench," said Candy, "it's just the job for that big nut on the end of the housing."

I didn't want to hear any more so I wandered off.

"You want me to come with you?" called out Candy.

"No, it's fine," I said. "Rachelle's already in my bed."

I was cuddling up to Rachelle's warm and curvaceous body when Lila burst into my room.

"Captain, captain," she shouted excitedly. "I think you are going to want to see this."

"Yeah, yeah," I grunted none too happy about being woken up.

"It comes and goes," explained Lila. "There, do you see it?"

"What is it?" I asked.

"Well, I think it's a ship many millions of klicks behind us, I expect following our warp trail and every now and again we can pick up its short range navigations pulses.

Why would a ship follow us?" I asked the room.

No one had any answers.

"Lets drop out of warp and drift for a time and see what comes up," I ordered.

It didn't take long, a few million klick; at warp speed could be covered in a few seconds.

"There," said Lila as a ship passed us by.

"Any idea what it was?" I asked.

"No way, captain," said Lila. "At that speed it's too distorted. Could be anything."

"Let's drift," I ordered, "and see what happens."

"There," said Lila. "He's back and on long range sensors now."

"Looks like he's lost us," said a sleepy looking and very naked Rachelle.

"So, what's in those boxes, Captain?" asked Lila.

It was a question I wish I knew the answer to now.

"Manifest says 'personal items', I said.

"Yeah, right," she scoffed. "Must be pretty valuable 'personal items'."

"Yeah, it's beginning to look like that," I admitted. "Where is he?"

"He's doing a grid pattern looking for our warp trail," said Lila.

"Let's just drift," I said. "We are doing what .3 warp and heading in the right direction."

"Yeah," agreed Lila. "Nothing big around here to pull us off course."

We spent the next two days just drifting and when we started to get off course we fired up the engines again and headed for Star base 9. We weren't going to dock at the Star base but head off to a little system just a little ways further on and park around it's gas giant and wait for our customer to show up. Trouble was that when we got there, he had already arrived and now was in millions of bits.

"Oh my god," cried Candy. "What happened?"

"Weapons fire," said Lila. "Somebody zapped them."

"Antimatter explosion," said Candy.

"Our mystery ship?" asked Rachelle.

"Could be," I mused.

Trouble was, I had a cargo to deliver and no one to deliver it to.