Prevail (The Pike Chronicles Book 2) (15 page)

“Fucking Tallos,” said Henderson. He took a bite of some type of freeze dried meat and said, “Of all the people to rescue, we get the damn Diakans.”

“I should’ve pulled the trigger,” said Kevin. He hadn’t touched his food the whole time they’d been seated.

“Bast was right. He could be a source of intelligence,” said Henderson.

“I know he’s right, but still.”

“Are you going to eat your food? It tastes like crap, but you should keep your strength up. Who knows what’s going to happen next.”

“Yeah,” said Kevin with a frown. He stabbed a chunk of mystery meat with his fork and wolfed it down.

“May I join you?” said Lieutenant Jarvi.

The request surprised Kevin. So far Jarvi hadn’t been very friendly and he couldn’t say that he liked him much. Maybe he should give him another chance. “Sure. Pull up a chair,” said Kevin.

Jarvi set his tray down and sat with the two Marines. “You are discussing the Diakans?” said Jarvi.

“We are,” said Kevin.

“An interesting development,” said Jarvi. “Here we are, former enemies, now allies, and we pick up Diakans who were your former allies, yet are now your enemies.”

“It’s ironic,” said Henderson.

“That’s one way of looking at it,” said Kevin.

Jarvi seemed to be enjoying his mystery meat.

“You like that stuff?” said Kevin.

“The food? Yes, this is one of my favorites.”

“Do you remember anything about the food on Earth?”

Jarvi stopped eating.

“Sorry. I don’t mean to pry.”

“No Chief. You are not prying. I am trying to remember, but I can’t recall anything about food. Although it doesn’t concern me. I am a better soldier without these attachments.”

Kevin figured this was as good as it got for him. It wasn’t surprising that he couldn’t remember a home cooked meal. The Juttari wouldn’t have any reason to cater to Chaanisar taste buds.

“You’ve always eaten food like this?” said Kevin.

“Yes. It is all I know. If you gave me one of your meals I would probably find it disgusting.”

“I know what you mean,” said Kevin. “That’s how I feel about this stuff. It tastes like cardboard.”

“It is packed with nutrients,” said Jarvi. “Everything the human body needs to function optimally is included. Your desire for flavor is a weakness you must overcome.”

There he goes again
, thought Kevin,
acting all superior
.

“Yeah, I don’t see that happening anytime soon,” said Kevin, rolling his eyes. “You know, now that you’re free of the Juttari, you need to learn how to be a little more human, and a little less Chaanisar.”

“There is no shame in being Chaanisar. Our human form has been optimized. So long as we are not controlled by others, we represent an evolved human form.”

As evolved as a robot,
thought Kevin. “I prefer flesh and blood to nuts and bolts, but that’s just me,” said Kevin.

“A Chaanisar is superior in every physical way, Chief,” said Jarvi.

“Really? Do you have a girlfriend?” said Kevin.

Jarvi looked confused.

“Exactly,” said Kevin.

“Do you remember any of your childhood?” said Henderson.

“Some. I remember my parents. My siblings. But I see them as pictures. I often see myself in the pictures. As if I am looking at someone else. But I don’t remember my interactions with them.”

Kevin thought back to his own childhood, the happiest time in his life. “It must be painful,” he said. “Sorry for bringing the whole thing up.”

“You have not caused me pain, if that is your concern. I want to know what my life was like before the Juttari.”

“How about sports?” said Henderson. “Do you remember playing any games? Do you remember kicking a ball around? Or throwing a baseball?”

Jarvi’s eyes turned up and to the right as he tried to access his memories. “No, Sergeant. I don’t remember playing any games.”

“They say smells are one of the longest lasting memories,” said Kevin. “Do you remember what anything smelled like?”

“No.”

“See that’s another thing that might be a trigger,” said Henderson. “If we had access to any odors from Earth, that could work.”

“Perhaps,” said Jarvi. “But I doubt we will find any familiar smells out here.”

“Yeah, we’ll have to get you back to Earth,” said Kevin. “Or find the Doctor.”

“You think your Doctor can help me remember?”

“If anybody knows how to do it, it’ll probably be her,” said Kevin.

“You think highly of your Doctor Ellerbeck.”

“I do.”

“All the more reason why we cannot rest until we find her,” said Jarvi.

Kevin nodded, and forced another forkful of mystery meat into his mouth, wondering if he would taste Earth food again.

“I don’t understand,” said Jansen, his eyes barely hiding their rage. “How could the prisoner be dead?”

“He had an accident,” said Kulberg, staying calm in the face of Jansen’s impending anger.

“What type of accident?” said Jansen.

“He fell out of the vehicle.”

Jansen’s eyes went wide with disbelief. “How is that possible?”

“The door was open.”

“Why would the door be opened?”

“Good question,” said Kulberg. “I guess I opened it.”

“You threw the prisoner out of your craft?” said Jansen, rising from his chair.

“I wouldn’t say I threw him out. Nudged maybe.” Kulberg tried hard, but couldn’t resist smiling. A rare, real smile this time, not the practiced one he usually showed the world.

Jansen exploded. “You’ve gone too far this time. Guards. Take Mr. Kulberg into custody.”

The guards didn’t move.

Jansen stood, pointing at the guards. “Did you hear me? Take Mr. Kulberg into custody this instant, or I’ll have you both arrested as well.”

The guards stood their ground.

“Those are my guards, Jansen. Not yours. And you know what else? I’ve grown rather attached to this station. I think it belongs to me now.”

“You’re crazy, Kulberg,” said Jansen, reaching for the communication link on his console.

Kulberg pulled out his energy weapon and shot Kulberg in the arm. The blast spun Jansen around, turning him a full three hundred and sixty degrees, and knocked him back into his chair. Jansen gripped his bicep, where a fresh hole smoldered, glowing orange like a tiny partial solar eclipse. “You shot me. Now you’re done for. You just turned yourself into a fugitive.”

“Why don’t you let me worry about all of that.”

Jansen groaned in pain, fear now filling his eyes.

“You know, all these years I’ve put up with your ego. The brilliant, all powerful Mr. Jansen.” Kulberg laughed. “You think you’re so bloody smart. Why do you think you’ve never found the raider base? Because I didn’t let you find it. That’s why.”

“You’re a traitor,” said Jansen, his voice higher pitched than normal.

“Name calling. The last refuge of the defeated,” said Kulberg. “Only you were defeated long ago. You just didn’t know it. How do you think the raiders found all those freighters? If you had any intelligence you would question those around you. But your ego is too big for that. How could one of your assistants outsmart you, the great Mr. Jansen? Impossible. Do you have any idea how much money I have made over the years?”

Jansen stayed quiet.

“Of course you wouldn’t. All this time you thought I was this little man who was happy with the meager salary you granted me. Well let me tell you, all those ransoms add up pretty quickly.” Kulberg laughed again. “I’ve got more money than I know what to do with. So do my men. See, unlike you, I know how to reward those who are loyal to me.”

“You’re a foolish little man,” said Jansen. “Money doesn’t change any of that.”

Kulberg fired his weapon again. This time it burned a hole through Jansen’s forehead. Jansen’s head snapped back from the blast, hit the chair and fell forward, his shoulders following until his head smacked against the desk. Kulberg stepped behind the large desk and pushed Jansen’s body off his chair onto the floor. He sat down in the chair and swiveled around to face Jansen’s body. “Remember what I said about name calling?” He then turned and faced the two guards who hadn’t moved from where they stood. “Guards, Mr. Jansen has been murdered. Effective immediately I am taking control of DLC station. I am also issuing a warrant for the murderer, Captain Pike, and his accomplices.”

“You’re a liar,” said Darla, pacing across the bedroom floor.

Seiben sat on the edge of the bed, watching her warily. He needed to choose his words carefully. Saying the wrong thing now would be like the opening shot of an all-out war.

“All you do is lie to me. I just can’t trust you,” said Darla.

“I didn’t want to worry you,” Seiben replied, trying desperately to save himself from Darla’s wrath.

Darla stopped pacing and turned to confront him. “Worry me? You didn’t want to worry me? What about turning me into a widow? Didn’t that bother you?”

“I wasn’t going to turn you into a widow.”

“No, you weren’t. Instead you just about got us all killed.”

“How was I supposed to know any of that would happen?”

“Exactly my point.”

Now he was confused. “What do you mean?”

“Do you think sporting the title of Captain makes you a soldier?”

“No, of course not.”

“That’s because you’re not a soldier. You never were. Yet here you are accepting what amounts to a military mission, with no concept of what the repercussions could be.”

“Are you saying if I had military training I could anticipate what happened?”

“No. I’m saying you should have turned down Mr. Jansen because you don’t have that kind of training. Because you couldn’t anticipate any of the possible outcomes, or prepare for them. Maybe Jon didn’t anticipate being attacked, but at least he knew what to do when it happened. We just sat here praying we wouldn’t be killed.”

“If I turned down Mr. Jansen I would be out of a job.”

“Do you love your job more than your family?”

“No. Of course not.”

“Then?”

He didn’t know how to respond, so he said nothing. Darla looked like she was about to unleash another verbal onslaught when an explosion interrupted him. The sound of gunfire followed in the adjoining room.

“The girls,” yelled Darla, running for the door.

“Wait!” said Seiben, grabbing Darla. “I’ll go.”

Darla slapped his hand away, panic filling her eyes, and said, “We both go!”

The couple ran to the door and looked out into the living room where Jon and Breeah crouched behind toppled furniture and traded fire with a DLC security team.

Darla looked back at him and said, “What is going on now?”

“I don’t know,” he said.

Up ahead the door to the girls’ room opened and Anki peered out of it. She was spending the night with Otka and Alina, while Jon and Breeah slept in the living room.

“Get back inside,” said Seiben, motioning with his hands for her to go in and stay low.

Darla jumped out and ran into the room, taking Anki in with her.

Seiben looked back into the living room where the firefight continued and wondered how he could help. Darla could stay with the girls, but if Jon and Breeah couldn’t hold off the security team they would all be done for. He went back into his bedroom and opened a drawer beside his bed. Inside it was an energy weapon Jon had taken from the men who had attacked earlier. He had given it to Seiben so he could protect himself if need be. Did he know more men would come? Was that what Darla was talking about?

He seized the weapon and headed back out. He may not be a soldier, but he did know how to fire a weapon. If you hauled freight you needed to know how to protect yourself. The raiders weren’t the only dangers out there.

His mouth was dry with fear, and his heart banged against his ribs like a war drum. He dropped to the ground and crawled out of his bedroom, trying not to call attention to himself. He didn’t want to fire from his doorway as he was afraid of drawing fire towards the girls’ bedroom. Instead he crawled out along the floor until he made it to the kitchen, and took cover behind the kitchen counter.

He looked over at Jon who had spotted him and was motioning for him to stay down. Seiben shook his head no, and signaled that he was going to fire and that Jon should take advantage of the distraction. Jon frowned, clearly worried that Seiben would get himself killed. Seiben wondered if Jon wasn’t right. He had to help. The security team didn’t know he was there. He would catch them off guard, if only for a moment.

Seiben turned to face the counter. He tried to steady his hand and control his breathing. He readied his weapon, gripping it with both hands, just like he had been taught in the self-defense class he had taken. How long ago was that? Ten years maybe? Fifteen? Maybe more? He was a younger man then. Would he be quick enough now? Or would he get himself killed? Maybe Darla was right? What business did he have playing soldier?

Your mind is playing tricks on you
, he thought.
Don’t think. Just act
.

He sprang up from behind the counter and fired repeatedly at the security team. He hit one of the men, dropping him. He then ducked back behind the counter just as a barrage of energy bursts flew over his head.
I got one!
Adrenalin surged through him, overcoming the fear he felt a moment ago.

Seizing the opportunity, Jon and Breeah both jumped up and fired. Seiben couldn’t tell if they hit anyone, but the weapon fire above him ceased. Should he risk another shot? They knew he was there now, and the odd energy burst flew by overhead. If he jumped up at the wrong time he’d be dead. He watched Jon and thought he could try the same tactic he used. The next time Jon fired, he would fire a second later. They would be focused on Jon and not targeting him. The best way to learn something is to emulate an expert, after all.

He watched Jon and waited. Jon fired back at the enemy, and a second later Seiben jumped up to fire too. When he did he saw the barrel of a gun pointed straight at him.