Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Gird of Power Incarnate

(Voyages of the USS Tigershark, Vol 8 of the Eric Olafson cycle )

Chapter 16: Gird of Power Incarnate

The thing didn't move. Narth said."I am holding it. It is strong but not unmanageable." SHIP called."The asteroid has revealed previously unknown weaponry. It is taxing our shields to almost 20 percent." "Are you in danger?" "Oh, no captain. That tech is quite advanced, and I think it is Orlan but Mao took those weapons out with kilo loads . I was just reporting." I dialed my TKU to 10 and said."It's going to get mighty hot in here. Narth your shields are on, right?" "No, captain. I can't use psionics with these advanced shields ." "Okay, I count to three." The old woman was out of her mind."What is this?" "One - two - three." Thanks to my suit enhanced senses, I noticed Narth's shields come on and I fired. The TKU hammered into the alien war machine, just as it fired at me. Suit's shield's held, the robots did not. My blast punched a hole through its chest right where its head was. Carpet, curtains, and furniture in the path of the blast was set ablaze instantly, but only for seconds. The blast had hammered not only through the old robot but through the wall. It turned out, the old woman's office was not in but on the asteroid. The fires went out because all atmosphere left the room quite quickly. Which was unfortunate for Myra Bassett, she didn't wear any kind of sealable suit. --""-- Shea watched Circuit as he still examined the remnants of the Orlan war machine and said to me."It is TL 10 for sure, but it appears the Orlans did not develop much in terms of weapons. That robot would not even be a match to a Cerberus. Hans and his team encountered several dozen of the same kind. It didn't even slow them down much and he did not feel it was worth reporting." Circuit got up, while Warner standingood right in the chest cavity my blast made."It would have been a much more formidable opponent but it looks like it was at the end of its resources. This is very good neutronium laced armor, but a billion years is an awfully long time for any material, especially moving parts." Circuit pointed at the yellow seal foam that he had used to patch the wall breach."Most of the asteroid's tech is not even Tech 7." Jolaj walked into the office of the old lady."We were able to save the lives of both brothers, but the decompression and sudden temperature drop were too much for Myra Bassett. Cateria could only confirm her death." When Hans stomped in, the floor vibrated."We placed the PHRS-PANDORA container, all we need is your signal and this rock will be lifeless within the hour." "You encountered any problems you want me to know about?" Hans made a puzzled face."No not really, Captain. We suffered no casualties, other than Corporal Gefnor, tripping over an airlock barrier and accidentally backhanding Sergeant Miller. Boy, I tell you, Captain, if a Petharian backhand you wearing a strength augmenting Atlas suit, you feel it. But he wasn't really hurt other than his ego perhaps. I assure you it was an unintentional accident." He looked guilty."I am sorry for not putting it in the report." TheOther right behind him said."You didn't even make a report yet." Hans eyes widened and sighed."I will put it in, Captain." I had a hard time not to laugh out loud."No, Hans. I wasn't talking about that. I mean did you not encounter unusual tough battle robots?" My security chief could not shake his neck, but he tried anyhow. TheOther helped him out."She means those odd-looking robots, the ones we smashed." "Ah, those! No, Captain, they weren't particularly tough." "I see." Har-Hi was obviously fighting a laugh as well, I noticed despite his new Do suit mask."Maybe the Orlan's never anticipated our special kind of wrecking crew." Mao called me over the wrist com. "Captain, there are five Merrimac destroyers approaching the system. ETA eight minutes." "Fleet Units?" "No transponders at all." "Cloak the Tigershark and cease all combat activity, let's see who they are. Five Merrimac's with their MALS are a serious opponent. I have a feeling they are not fleet." Mao still on the line said."We got a Miguel Alcubierre Light Speed wavefront Energy Hammer, but it was never fully connected during our first mission. Now it is." Har-Hi pointed at himself."Would I be here with you if there was still any sort of combat activity out there?" --""-- "I can't detect a Merrimac energy signature in the system," Ronald said, manning the tactical station of the Killer-Clown. Ronald was perhaps even crazier than his boss, a true killing sociopath, he was a good mercenary but far from a good scanner operator, otherwise the lack of any artificial energy contacts other than the mines and the asteroid would have caused concern. Nick said."We dock, then we figure things out. Maybe they know if he was there." He motioned towards the Comm Console."Go hail the Bassett's." --""-- Elfi called."It's Nick Harlequin he requests docking permission." "What do you know, he came to us. Give him that permission, I much rather deal with him here, than when his forces are deployed planetside." --""-- Gerz, the Botnaar said."We received landing permission. I have to say whoever is on duty on their end is quite polite." Nick was too much in thoughts to register. For decades he was on the top of the game. And now he was on the run. His Union accounts frozen. A Notice to appear issued by a Union court. He knew he would lose his citizen privileges if he did not answer that summon. Could he risk it? If anything it was his brother who they were after, but he could not give an alibi. The assault and the extermination of sentient beings from a world within Union space were far more serious and a guaranteed one-way ticket to the scaffold. Not to mention the highly illegal Union Mil-Tech in his ships. His Killer Clown retaining the MALS and all Loki torpedoes alone was a certain life sentence. He needed to talk to his brother, maybe even drag him before Union authorities. The bounty alone would be more than worth it. Nick gave the order to dock. He was not taking chances of course and only his senior staff was to leave the ships, congregate in a tavern and see if anyone knew about Chucky's whereabouts. What he did not notice was the streams of quite advanced nanites streaming in as his crews opened the hatches. Neither did any of the bridge crews notice the activation of the prime code sequence. Ever since the Whakey incident during the last Kermac/Union war, Union fleet computronics retained a Prime Code sequence, re-establishing Union Fleet Command authority over the AI systems of all Union fleet vessels. While the Red Dragon knew about this feature and had it eliminated, the customers of surplus Union vessels without any command officer training did not. That a very advanced NNNTH interface assisted AI circumvented all layers of command codes, quietly fast and without rising any alerts and re-established was, of course, another aspect quite unique to this act. Nick Harlequin and twenty of his senior officers marched down the mooring arm tunnel. None of them really registering that there were no other ships of any kind moored. He was confident in his fighting abilities and his men, who were armed to the teeth and battle-hardened fighting experts. As he stepped through the final energy curtain that separated the mooring arm from the asteroids main concourse, he did wonder about the quiet ambiance, there was no one. None of the usual milling crowds. None of the stores that were right here were open. Ronald hefted his Raketen Gewehr differently and his white and red make up face with the painted on smile showed concern."Is there some sort of holiday? Where is everyone?" The Botnaar, listening to the name of Gerz having blue and white makeup in his frightening face and similar colored markings on his suit shared Ronald's concerns."Something is very wrong here!" A huge Saturnian stepped in their way, wearing what looked like the very latest Quasimodo destroyer suit, holding a full-sized TKU landing tank cannon."No, sir's everything will be alright. In the name of the United Stars of the Galaxies, and by the authority invested in me by the Assembly of the Union. I hereby place you, Nick Harlequin and all associates of the Nick Harlequin Inc. under arrest." While he said that, fifty Union Marines in similar suits aiming their SITKUs shimmered into existence. Ronald had his weapon at the ready managed to fire. A three burst of rockets left his expensive weapon, but all three micro missiles stopped in mid-flight and kept hanging in midair. Nick did not even notice the black haired human teenager, wearing an all-black version of a Quasimodo. He only had eyes for the Saturnian giant."This is outrageous! I am a Union citizen and this is not Union space." --""-- I felt like a dwarf as I stepped around my security chief. "This installation and its operators have by deed and association plotted and engaged in hostile activities against Union assets within declared Union space. These hostile actions were declared to be an act of war by the Assembly and ratified by a Union-wide vote. This facility has been placed under Union control and is thus Union territory. You are implicated in a large number of crimes, including alleged genocide, Mil-Tech trade and the possession of prohibited weapons without possessing proper licenses. Furthermore, a member of your company has been identified as the main suspect in an act of piracy against an official Union vessel." Nick became very angry and his complexion under his white make up changed as he yelled."I have five Merrimac destroyers filled with an entire regiment of battle-trained mercenaries. You little blonde bitch better think twice and let me go on. Your marines do not impress me." "Marines be so kind and impress the gentleman. Reduce his companionship." --""-- "Yes, Admiral Sir. I got Nick Harlequin and all of his men in custody. Well, what is left of them. My Marines were able to impress him after all. Brhama Port is under my control. There is significant ancient tech, apparently of Orlan origin. The nearby travel gate or wormhole structure is, according to my Science officer controlled by a device that is of similar but not the same origin. Do you want me to activate the PHRS-PANDORA device?" "Good Lord, McElligott gave you one of those?" "No, Sir we have twenty." "I am sending a battle group. We taking over management of Brhama Port. Wait for them to arrive. Secure the PHRS-PANDORA device and if you can never use any of them." "Aye Sir. Will I have to go after Nick and his men in a year or so?" "Frankly I don't know. I am not Judge or Jury, and neither should you be. I agree it is frustrating that the pirates and the Worm agents escaped, but we should not let our emotions guide our actions. If I did that, the Kermac would be history long ago and I would be Emperor of the Union. I trust you and to be honest, I like you like a son...or a daughter now. We gave you a terrible instrument of war and it appears the other Admiral gave you tools and weapons no one should have because we know you can be trusted with those. Erica, go after the escaped prisoners and kill if you must, but not just if you can." I swallowed because he was right."Aye Sir, I see your point and will heed your advice." "Any idea where those escapees went?" "Not for certain, but Nick Harlequin and Kirku Bassett are both of the opinion that N'Ger would be the most likely port of call." "Alright, keep after them. I want to know who pulled the strings. I really despise Nick and his crazy outfit but making such a blatant mistake is not him." "I keep an open mind and follow the trail wherever it leads." "The Thirteenth is closest, Battlegroup 13 Red Alpha is on its way. Their ETA is four days." --""-- Richard closed the connection and leaned back. McElligott had given her one of the most controversial and quite secret weapons, the PHRS-PANDORA. He personally refused to even stock it in any of his ships or bases. He knew the Space Force kept a supply in form of warheads, but its use was to be Assembly Approved and as a last-ditch effort. He was in his office at Arsenal IV, overseeing the refit of the USS Dominator and the integration of the Lyrec battleships. Erica's gift turned out to be a logistical nightmare of Russian Nesting doll character. The Karmat came with nine Lyrec battleships. Each Lyrec had hundreds of Seenian frigates, cruisers and thousands of destroyers and smaller craft. While the gift represented a value of many Trillion dollars and increased the fighting strength of the entire Union fleet in a considerable way; while it made bureaucrats and logistics officers, chief of them Admiral McElligott salivate, it wasn't him. Even though he had plans to give the Dominator to Harris, and once again take command of his beloved Devastator. There was Seenian Technology inside those Lyrecs and the Karmat, he had to deal with. The Dominator, for example, had a vault with 500,000 Casern type Battle robots, while they were accepting him as command giver because Erica gifted the ship to him. They represented a terrible source of power, he was still contemplating what to do with them. He then realized he was no longer alone. His future wife was one of those beings, but she had kept her word and used doors, the entity that stepped out of the deep shadows that were past his desk lamp would have caused fear in many, but he knew the being and considered it almost a friend. As much as a simple human could be friends with a god-like entity that is. The Narth Supreme said with his deep voice."I consider you a friend, at least as much as a simple Narth can be to the one they call the Eternal Warrior." "To you, I am just an infant, hardly anything even remotely eternal. Not that I came up with this rather silly title." "I find it quite befitting, and where does an eternity begin? It is certainly a concept that is not linear but Omni-inclusive." "And there you are, trying to share your wisdom and I am unable to really comprehend." "She is no longer the same, isn't she?" Stahl, of course, knew what the Narth Supreme meant. "She appears to be the same, but I feel her approach to things has changed." "The Dark One has stirred in her before, but without her conscious knowledge. On Thana Shoo it stirred and rose to the surface. Erica is now aware of the Dark One and he is no longer sleeping, that what is Eric is now firmly bonded with what is the Dark One. Tyr has lost control over Dark Blade, it is with her and so is Bereaver. She no longer forgets the ring." "What are you saying? Do we need to contain her somehow?" "No force can contain what is in her. If the current vessel is destroyed or killed, the prophecy ends and so does all existence as we know it. No one, not even the Voice knows what will happen then. I came to assure you my support as you are the Rock and the foundation. She will eventually go her separate way from Eric who is the Dark One, but both Eric and Erica love and respect you. Keep what I reveal to you close to you and remain the guide to a human child that will evolve into an entity, even the Voice of the Rule calls a god. Its first incarnation was evil and darkness ultimate, but there are indications its new awakening will be tempered by the strongest force of all the Omniverse. A force we Narth had to rediscover, you humans call it love." --""-- The Battlegroup was still at least a day out and I was actually sitting behind the desk that once belonged to Myra Bassett. I didn't have much leisure time for sure, as we officially occupied the asteroid under Assembly authority. I had defacto became the governor of the occupying force. Union laws and regulations, I didn't even know existed but Narth had no problem quoting were quite specific as what I had to do. For one I had to speak with representatives of miners, of the Bassett family, of merchants and business owners. Mining owners wanted to know about the status of their claims. Thankfully I had a Yeoman who was a walking law library. I had just dismissed the elected spokesperson of the bar and tavern owners. Assuring them that there were no plans to kill everyone and that they could do business as usual. Lease and rent contracts would be pending but most likely less than before and they would have to register as Union businesses. That I told them a white lie, because I had planned to indeed kill them all, was due to the talk I had with the Admiral. I leaned back and listened into myself, had I really planned to kill them all? Yes, the Bassetts were a sore, criminal bunch but Stahl was right. I was not their judge, I was a Union Officer and not an executioner motivated by my own mood and feelings. "Yes, you are the executioner. The ultimate judge of all that lives. You are the final answer, the end of all things. Decay and oblivion. The anti-light and the force that vanquishes what is created." These words came from within and I knew they were true. "You killed and destroyed the floating rocks. It was you who obliterated the Iteamh mountain village and it was you who killed over a thousand beings at Thana Shoo, many with a mere thought. You did because You and I are the same. We are one." "I want to resist you. I want to remain human. How can I live knowing I will be you? I hold honor, respect and duty sacred. I love Shea. I love Narth and Har-Hi. I love my friends and my ship." "You are me! What you become is your choice, the time of our awakening is not so distant anymore." I sighed deeply and realized, Har-Hi had come in and with him was a smudgy, slightly overweight man with a miner's helmet in his beefy hands. I straightened myself and smiled. I had changed into my Union uniform and said."You might not recognize me Mikesh, but I recognize you." He turned his worried face to my Dai XO and said. "How does she know me? I didn't do anything criminal." "Why don't you ask her?" He suggested. He came to my desk."Ms. Union Captain, I heard a pirate named Black Velvet came about the same time you came. If you have her in custody, I want to vouch for her, she has a good heart and I didn't do anything that would concern you mighty Union Bullies anyway!" His voice became more resolute as he went on. "Mikesh, what you just said warms my heart indeed. I am Black Velvet, it is sort of an undercover alter ego. Not that I am sure it will be much of an undercover thing after this." He squinted his eyes and bend over the desk to look at me closer. "Syrigh na Plaska, you do have her eyes." He then blinked."So you fooled me back then, and I made a fool of myself trying to get a good word in. We all know how you Unions deal with pirates." He moved his thumb across his throat and made a gnarling sound. "That's the price you take, killing civilians and raiding Union ships, but I know for a fact you are nothing but a hardworking miner, and I just found out a brave one." "She, well you saved my life from those good for nothing thugs. So I owed..well I thought I owe you that much." "Mikesh, I let you be the new asteroid owner, but I doubt you would want it." "No, not really. I still own my roid?" "Of course." "I don't think the Union will have much use for Kalimun." "There are still plenty of societies that do. Not much will change, except there will be law and order I imagine." Again he leaned closer."Hey I i! If you are Black Velvet, I told you I put those weird things aside if I ever find something else, remember?" "I do. You found something?" "Yes, another chamber, with the oddest things. Want to see it?" "Lead the way, Mikesh. Har-Hi why don't you be the Occupation administrator for a while? I am sure Narth will gladly assist you with all the regulations that come with that." "Spirits of the Universe, I had to walk in here." "It might prevent you from biting another Kermac." He grimaced and took my seat, while I followed Mikesh the miner. Outside I said."Still flying that thing we took the last time?" He grinned."No, I upgraded. You, messing up the brawlers of Ikesh and smashing the fighters he sent after you put him on the bad track with the Old Bird and I was left alone. I bought myself a real Tullerman Dinghy." "Odin help!" I whispered. I had hoped never to see one of those again. --""-- Truth to be told, the Dinghy was much faster than his previous ride and we made it to his roid in just under an hour. We bounced down the same long rough carved corridors in the same vehicle. Even the smallest rut made the thing bounce like a wild Fangsnapper due to the very low gravity. "A genuine Union starship captain you are, eh?" "Yep and this is no undercover identity either." "Hard to fake anyway. Even out here, you guys have a stellar reputation. We all think your Unions are big bullies, with all your super tech and transloco cannon things. But there is respect for Union Captains and now I know one." He kept on talking about my last visit too, and how he was bragging to the other miners about me visiting his roid. I was sure we drove a good deal longer than last time, but we finally reached a dead end, with the same yellow digging machine, anchored before a wall. This time I spotted the door frame he had found. I also instantly recognized the white skull symbol. The same winged and fanged skull, that appeared on my ring and my ax. The cold voice inside my mind spoke to me."The sigil of the Dark One." Mikesh, of course, did not hear those words, he pointed at the door."Whatever it is made of, it wore down the toughest digging teeth and didn't take a scratch. It resisted cutting lasers and even explosives, but for whatever reason, it clicked open just a few days ago." The door was open just enough for a man to squeeze in, but as I approached it swung wide open and revealed a chamber like room, that was not unlike the Chamber of things, just much smaller. I counted twenty alcoves, about big enough to accommodate an adult human, and some of these alcoves were exactly what I suspected them to be, the final resting place of humanoid beings. From the looks of it, they must have been there for a very long time. Even much of their bones had deteriorated to dust. The center of the room was a pedestal and upon it rested a loop like thing, black about three inches wide. Like a Deep Fish to light, I was drawn to it. I did hear Mikesh say something but I paid no attention. I touched it, and I knew it was one of those things that belonged to my true self. It was my belt, and without conscious thought I girded it around my waist. I had no visible closure or any kind of belt buckle. Two footlong cylinders, perhaps an inch in diameter appeared side by side on the right side of the belt, just like holsters for a stick like weapons. And containers they were, I touched one and Dark Blade grew in an eyeblink into my fist. The same touch to the other one formed Bereaver's handle right into my hand, another willful touch returned these weapons back into the stick like attachment of the belt. Oh yes, nothing existed in all the Omniverse that could stand against the Dark One. I did not lose consciousness or forget what occurred as before when I found the ring, but my mind returned to a clear state. I noticed Mikesh kneeling and shivering in fear. He tried to find words and I encouraged him to get on his feet."You have nothing to fear, Mikesh." "You..." He uttered. "You are not human. What...who are you?" I wanted to say Erica Olafson, but I answered."I am the Dark One." The same voice I heard at Thana Shoo spoke without a real source."You are not yet complete. You are yet a shadow of what you will become. Eight more tokens must be reunited with you." "Voice, I will become the Dark One, but I am not ready, I am growing darker by the day and yet I know I am in control. There must be someone I can ask for advice. Maybe I gain understanding eventually but perhaps too late." "There are many who want to give you advise and gain your favor and perhaps influence you towards their ideology and doctrine, you made the first steps towards true control. I am the Voice of the Rule and must remain impartial, but this advice I can give. Eventually, Eric will be the Dark One, but not Erica, until that time has come, and all twelve aspects have been reunited, you are in charge. Remember this, a female does not have to be passive, you are in control." "Then how do I be me?" "Take control." Mikesh came shaking to his feet. "This is your cave and all this too?" "No, I have what I need, my friend." --""-- Chucky was now certain that this was not such a good idea as it appeared before. At first, it was a great opportunity with enough profit to step out of his brother's shadow and start his own outfit. The groundwork was planned with great detail. First, the computronic of the Meteor freighter. It was easy to alter the computronic during maintenance. To change the prisoner transfer orders seemed more difficult at first, but it was just a matter of a little innocent bribery in form of an opulent breakfast and while the administration staff enjoyed a breakfast, courtesy of the actually non existing Administrative Office System Inc. a skillful system manipulator altered the documents right at the prisoner management administration. No one ever really questioned the numbers and orders. That he overlooked the Takkian was a small but horrible mistake. The cursed Siliconoid was immune to the Spore gas and had time to use GalNet. Now he was on the run, not just from Union hunters but he was certain his own brother was in hot water and most likely hot on his trail. His men were on the verge of mutiny, as they now realized that Nick did not know about this caper as Chucky had told them and that things looked grim. It turned out that none of the people he liberated had concrete plans where to go or what to do next. He could not understand why someone would spend many millions of credits and Polos to stage one of the biggest prisoner escapes in Union history, without contacting or needing any of the prisoners. The Kermac might be interested in a few of the former Union officers, but had no interest in pirates. The Togar did not care about a male Togar pirate, that operated as a free agent for decades. Even Lia, the Bassett found out it wasn't her father who had paid for her release. He did provide her with a very nice Togar built and Union refurbished battlecruiser and a substantial sum of Iridium chips to start anew, but he urged her to leave the Shattered system as fast as possible, knowing well that this is where anyone looking for them would start looking. Now, they had landed on N'Ger. Knowing they could not stay here for long. They needed fuel and provisions and decide what to do. They all, the twenty mercenaries that came with Chucky, and the eighty-four former pirates and prisoners that had thrown their lot with Lia had congregated in a loose circle right between the two ships. Lia was first to speak."We are fugitives. As gigantic as this galaxy is, there aren't as many places for us to go. The Karthanians have closed their space to all foreigners. Kaliment and N'Ger are no permanent ports for us. The Downward sector has just been discovered by the Union so to speak with several new member societies." One of the liberated pirates, he had flown with Crimson before stepped into the loose circle."I just come from the Lokta merchant house city. Because the Lokta House is run by an offshoot of the Golden, there is GalNet. "There is an arrest warrant for all leading members of Nick's Harlequins and they released all our names with huge bounties on all escapees." One of Chucky's men drew his weapon and aimed it at Chucky."You liar got us into this, I think I collect the bounty on your head and before Chucky could completely draw his weapon he was hit by eight energy blasts. Very little remained of Nick Harlequin's kid brother. Now everyone drew weapons Two sides developed. On one side the liberated pirates and worm agents. On the other side the remaining mercenaries. Lia said."We owe you our freedom, but we will not allow you to collect our bounty." The Harlequin man said. "I am taking the Merrimac and go right back, maybe Tirkov Steen is hiring. This outfit is burned." --""-- The battle group had arrived led by Admiral Erhardsen. The Admiral met me in the former office of Myra and after we had exchanged the proper military courtesies, he took off his duckbill hat under his arm and gave me a warm smile."Looks like the 13th Red Alpha did not come out for nothing. My recon units tell me the Togar are curious and a fleet is heading this way. I frowned."I am sorry, I know I promised the Eternal Warrior not to start any wars." "Not to worry, Captain Olafson. I am with the 13th fleet for a long time. We are stationed right at the edge so to speak. I know this region and our feline friends. They are not going to be very eager to start a war with us. I am certain they accept our explanation and return." "I yield to your experience, Admiral, Sir." "Now I personally wanted to do something about the Bassett situation for a long time, what about the Bassetts?" "Unfortunately, Myra Bassett did not survive the sudden decompression of her office." I pointed at the metal patch, Circuit had welded over the emergency foam sealed hole. "Both her grandsons and a number of surviving family members are currently in custody." He put his cover on my table and swiped his right hand over his immaculate hair."Splendid, we have prepared for this and have contingency plans. It seems Xen Tech and NAVINT want to have a closer look at the ancient alien tech and the wormhole gate as well." "What do you think will happen to this place?" "I think our Union Army will establish a permanent occupation post. The system declared a territory. Known criminals will be prosecuted. Those without records can resume their business, but I doubt we will permit pirates to use this place as a safe haven." I thanked him and said."I guess there is always Dyne. They might see an increase in business." He took the seat I had vacated."True that it seems you are not new to this region of space." "Unfortunately not, Admiral." --""-- The former lieutenant of Crimson had more bad news."Brhama Port is overtaken by the Union. I just heard a rumor that the old bird is dead and both Kirku and Elkir are in Union custody. I am not sure if they find enough on Elkir, but your father Kirku dealt with Mil-Tech plenty of times. They really don't like that." Lia knew that it was her escape that triggered the downfall of a five hundred year family business and the death of the old bird was on her hands. "They will come here, every bounty hunter of every nation and society will search for us. Shiss, Kermac, Nul, Oghr, and Togar. The lure of so many credits will bring them all out." Meateater and the rest looked to her for answers and the smudgy Oghr pirate grunted. "So what will we do?" Her eyes looked into the distance. "We leave this galaxy." "To where?" Someone in the circle asked. "I know of a trans-spatial gate that will take us to a distant galaxy. There is a King that will welcome us and give us a home. Far away from Union, Shiss, Togar, and everything. Once there we can rest and decide how we spend our future." Meateater rubbed his lantern chin."After a decade or two, the heat on us will have died down." After discussing their little options they all decided on Lia's plan." --""-- Whenever I sat in my command chair, all my nagging doubts left me. The Tigershark has jumped into Quasi-Space, only moments after we had left Brhama Port. Har-Hi with crossed arms standing behind Helm at the lower tier of our bridge."Another one down." Shea said."Technically they did not join, though." "But a fair number died." Har-Hi chuckled and turned to look at me."Got to hand it to you captain. We are living up to our reputation." Mao said."We are heading to N'Ger. Who knows what they call the place when we leave?" "We are after escaped prisoners and their associates. There is reason to believe they went to N'Ger, we have no business with the planet population. We didn't spend much time there last time." Our Yeoman with the flaming red hair handed me my ugly skull cup. I thanked her and said."Ms. O'Connell, we are not pirates anymore. Should I not get my coffee in a nice, clean Union fleet ceramo plast cup?" "If you wish, Captain." Narth said."Everyone can have coffee in a Union Fleet Ceramo plast cup. That skull mug matches your character much better, Captain." Elfi said."An I am not the only one missing seeing you in that Black leather suit. Sure Uniform looks nice, but that look had become sort of a trademark." Our Golden grinned."A sexy trademark for sure. I made a killing on the Black Velvet action figure collection." I tried to change the subject, while I petted Fenris who had showed up with the Yeoman. "What do we know about N'Ger anyway?" Sobody pulled up a holo of the planet and said."It is an independent planet in the Upward Sector of the M-0 Galaxy, taking the Galactic Core as a reference point and looking at it from the Z plane, N’Ger is Galactic West and south of the Togar and Jooltar regions of space. N’Ger, its sun and a handful of stars are located in a region still known as Wedmar’s Triangle. Wedged between the Jooltar, Togar and the Shattered Kingdoms." I paid attention to Sobody, his knowledge about the historical and political connections was invaluable and actually quite interesting. He kept speaking."Being between three big and still expanding space-faring civilizations and within reach of a dozen small ones N’Ger developed into the focal point of commerce and politics. It became a melting pot of cultures. N’Ger is famous and known through all four sectors of the Galaxy. The planet is the second world in orbit about Eller, an orange main sequence star. It is a dry world, but not as dry as Alvor's Cove, there is surface water, two very salty oceans and a diverse biosphere that apparently developed out of Thiobacillus. The local sentients are the Byki, generally known as Yellow Heads. The planet's name is derived from the native language that includes a clicking sound." I took a sip of my coffee, expecting him to tell us more, and since we were in transit, and the scanners showed nothing artificial, I let him give his little lecture. He had stood up and used images, SHIP supplied to illustrate what he was telling us about. "Long time ago, the Ongloran Federation made first contact with the Byki. The Ongloran assisted with the Ascent and technological advances. This region of space always saw much violence, wars, and fighting. That's when Emperor Wedmar, an Oghr established a small corridor of protected space, as a buffer zone between the Togar, Jooltar and Oghr kingdoms. It was protected by Oghr military might and was called the Wedmar Triangle. While nothing but the name remains today. Wedmar’s Triangle remains sort of a mutual accepted neutral region. N’Ger at the center of that triangle became a place of trade and rich in the process. Eleven Merchant houses established their own House communities, so-called Merchant House Cities, all of which are centered around the Glaring Desert of Profit. A large salt flat with markets, slums, small communities, and landing fields. The Eleven Merchant House Cities and the Emperor of the Byki rule the system and the planet and enforce local law." He pointed to Har-Hi. "You heard about the Dai that live here. The Ug-Ka Dai, their Dai Mother has been in orbit around N’Ger for centuries. While they are officially Okthi and their heart is dead, Dai Fighters are the main reason, no raid or attack on N’Ger was ever successful. But now since the Golden joined, and the Karthanians are soon to follow, the importance of the planet is declining." I had finished most of my coffee."You certainly would be missed, my Golden friend. I enjoyed that actually and if we fly together a few more decades, I won't be the same ignoramus I realize I still am." He sighed with a smile. "Captain, that would be the answer to my greatest wishes. Flying with you all for a few decades." He gestured around."Sodoby's Seat is a place of opulent luxury and I considered it my home. It is my home no longer, but this is." Krabbel agreed."I feel the same way." Mao wanted to say something too, but his face became all business."Captain, we got a contact that just appeared on the scanner horizon. I am certain it is a Merrimac." Har-Hi said. "There aren't many Merrimacs to be expected in this region, but one that is missing from Nick's collection." I agreed and said."It has an active MALS and most likely Loki torpedoes, Battle stations! Activate weapons and shields. Let's pull her out of Quasi and ask a few questions. " --""--