Chapter 6

An insistent beeping sound woke James and Tarra from a sound sleep. Tarra blearily looked up from where her head was resting on James' shoulder and said, "Computer, who is calling at this hour?"

"Your father, do you wish to accept the call?" The computer's voice, while sounding quite human, lacked the dynamics and vibrancy of the Didgeridoo's helmsman and AI.

"Yes, audio only," she replied.

"Hello? Dad?" she asked after a soft beep had indicated the call was live.

"Sorry to wake you Hon, but this is pretty important. Your mother said that the blockade runner was still on-planet and you might know where he is?" Her father's voice held a note of concern.

"Yes. His name is James and he hasn't lifted off yet. Why?" She looked over at James who had now sat up and was looking at her with confusion and some apprehension. He hadn't expected to run afoul of any over-protective parents after meeting Tarra's grandmother and listening to her and Tarra discuss his first sexual experience with her. Every indication was that the mores of Ragnor society were very open and non-judgmental, even when it came to sexual matters and relationships.

"I need to talk to him as soon as possible. We'd like ... no, we need his help. I don't want to discuss it over the comm. Do you know where he is or can you get a hold of him?"

"He's here Dad, you woke us both up."

There was short silence then her father replied, "Your mother didn't mention that part. Stay there. Don't go anywhere. Your brother and I will be right over."

"Where would I go at this hour? I'll turn the lights on for you. Bye." Tarra moved to get out of the bed, "I'll go put on some coffee; I can't stand the replicated brew. But first, we'd better put some clothes on, unless you're trying to impress my Dad or my brother Luke." She laughed as she headed to the bathroom giving her bottom a sexy wiggle. She stopped and looked over her shoulder to make sure he was looking. He was.

James had dressed and was sipping the coffee that Tarra had finished brewing. It really was great coffee. She was dead right about the replicator coffee being far inferior; it was very difficult for a replicator to match the flavor profiles of natural foods. The replicator, while very advanced technology, was also limited in just what it could create. It couldn't make machines or complex items. It was limited to the replication of homogenous things. It could create a block of plastic or a glass plate. Meatloaf was possible, but not a t-bone steak with distinct and separate fat, meat and bones.

The replicator itself was a very complex machine and used a substantial amount of energy. It was not possible to scale up replicators to industrial sizes to make large blocks of materials.

Replicators would never completely supplant farming as a food source. It was often less expensive to grow natural foods and people enjoyed the organic flavors and textures of real food far more. Replicators were perfect for a spaceship, where energy was abundant and storage at a premium.

They had just finished their first cup of coffee when the patio door slid open and a tall, imposing man looked in and frowned at them. He stepped through the door and was followed by a blonde haired, younger version of himself.

Tarra's father was huge, thought James. He looked just over 2 meters in height with wide shoulders. It was obvious that he was a fitness fanatic. His muscles were sleek and well defined; you could see the hidden power that was waiting under the surface. He wasn't built like a body-builder who goes for bulk and extreme definition, but rather someone who had tuned their body for both strength and speed. He seemed like a coiled spring that was ready to go off.

Just behind him, Tarra's brother was at least 5 centimetres taller. His body held the same power in reserve look as his fathers'.

"James, this is my father, Joseph Donovan and my brother Luke." Tarra said as she walked over and gave her father a hug.

James had stood when Tarra's father had entered and now stepped forward with his right hand out, "Pleased to meet you, sir."

Tarra's father engulfed his hand and shook it firmly, "Call me Joe."

Luke moved forward and shook James' hand as well, "We didn't interrupt anything did we Sis?" He grinned widely at her wagging his eyebrows.

She punched her brother on the arm, "No. We were sleeping quite soundly."

"Well at least this one looks somewhat intelligent. Not like that last idiot I had to chase out of here."

"You didn't have to chase anyone out of here. Now shush up. Dad, what's this all about?" She seemed suddenly worried about what was behind this early morning visit.

Joe looked grim, "I need to talk to James here about helping us out. We need a ride up to the moonbase, and we don't want the General to know we are coming."

Over the next twenty minutes, Joe explained the radiation waste threat and the deadly effects it would have on the whole planet. He put forth the plan that the colonists had come forward with in response. They couldn't just take out the whole base; Dumitrescu was holding most of Ragnor's space fleet personnel hostage on the moonbase. A more surgical approach was called for.

Two teams of militia members would infiltrate the moon base: one to secure the operations center and the other to take out the General and his immediate command staff. If they cut the head off of the snake, they expected the rank and file to surrender if they were offered clemency.

The mercenaries were a different worry. That could go two different ways. They may step into the power void that taking out the General left or they might stand down. If they could be assured that they would have amnesty and an opportunity to leave on their own, chances are they would lay down their arms.

"Who's the merc leader?" James wanted to know.

"A Colonel Haddis, he's running the blockade's interdiction platforms and patrols. He also has a strike team that we believe is meant to land and extract the amitia," Joe said.

"Where are you getting your information from?" Tarra chimed in.

"We have an insider on the moonbase that is feeding us information. She's a comm tech, so she has the ability to get messages to us. She contacted us after Dumitrescu released the virus. She's been able to feed us intelligence on what is happening up there. Until now we haven't had enough to be able to do anything. However the presence of your stealth ship has given us a potential way up there undetected. That, coupled with the urgency of this latest threat, has forced us to move."

James seemed lost in thought, "Haddis ... Haddis ... Joe, I think I may know of your merc Colonel. If he is who I think he is, then he is a man that you should be able to negotiate with, if his employer is gone. From what I know, he's not your common thug."

"How do you know him?" Joe looked sharply at him.

"I don't know him personally. But I have heard of him. The elite ranks of blockade running are kind of a special club. When we run into each other we swap stories and experiences. One of my acquaintances encountered the good Colonel on a weapons run into a system that was experiencing a civil disturbance. He apprehended my friend and confiscated his cargo and ship. Instead of killing him, he simply held him until his contract was over. Even gave him a lift off-world afterwards."

Joe was sceptical, "OK, so he doesn't kill captured smugglers, why would that make him trustworthy in this case?"

James blanched a bit at the term smuggler, but it wasn't worth splitting hairs, "My friend had a chance to get to know Haddis. He wasn't held in a brig. Once he gave his word of honor that he would behave, he was allowed free reign of Haddis' ship - at least the non-operational parts. He said that Haddis would talk about the merc code of conduct and that he truly believed in it. If true, then Haddis should be willing to stand down and sue for parole for him and his men if we took out his employers. We'd just have to give him that chance and not press him after the General and his staff are taken out. That strong belief in the merc code goes the other way as well. He will fight to his last breath to fulfill the terms of his contract."

Joe thought about what James had said. It aligned with the little they did know about Dumitrescu's associates. If true, it increased the odds of their mission success. They were ready to go anyway, but every piece of additional intelligence helped. Joe nodded at James and asked, "So, would you be willing to take two small strike squads of SF militia to the moonbase?"

James had already made his decision. His respect for Tarra and her family had been growing the more he spent time with them. If they were representative of the Ragnor colonists, then they were a people worthy of the risk to help them. "Yes, I'll do the run for you. Is there any way that we can get your inside contact to do something about the active sensors on the base? Even with the Didgeridoo's stealth ability, we might be detected by a good sensor tech or computer while we are moving. Every little advantage helps."

"It's possible. According to our contact, there is a lot of dissention in the tech ranks over the use of the bio-weapons and the threat of radiation from the waste. Dumitrescu's hold over his troops is not all it should be."

Joe thought back to the decision just two years ago to bring in the General to assess and revamp the space fleet that protected Ragnor from freebooters and other space borne threats. Dumitrescu's reputation was well earned as a hardnosed but efficient expert on space defenses. There had been rumblings about his heavy handedness and sometimes spectacular angry outbursts. Those rumors were ignored as hearsay or dismissed as unimportant. About six months ago, Dumitrescu had brought in about forty experts that he said were trainers that would be used to put the local fleet personnel through their certification exercises with the new systems and procedures that had been put in place.

Those "experts" had turned out to be four of Dumitrescu's old cronies that led a cadre of hired ship personnel and sensor techs that the General then used to take over the fleet and the moonbase. Colonel Haddis' mercenary team and equipment had been brought in on the heels of the coup to set up the blockade and interdiction patrols. Haddis also employed an elite special operations force that Dumitrescu planned to use to secure the amitia if given the chance.