Heat and Light Page 6
As we approached the 850K klick mark, their control station linked up with our AI to guide us in. Ranger spoofed being linked. He wasn't about to let any old AI snoop around in our logs and controls or attempt an AI intrusion. To their AI, we looked squeaky clean with all the newer, but standard specs. Approaching the planet, we had to pass between two orbital scanner platforms to double-check what we had declared as onboard. Ranger spoofed that, too.
Every star system of any size had kinetic strike defenses to prevent the occasional asteroid, comet, or large meteors from dusting the system planets. These defenses could also be used to protect against rogue kinetic attacks. One of the positive off-shoots of the limits physics puts on space-borne power plants was that they were limited to a low acceleration. A kinetic strike launched and accelerated at the edge of a system would not reach speeds that would prevent easy interception.
Except for newly colonized systems, investments dictated having defense against a possible suicidal jihadist. Ships that didn't want to get vaporized stayed well within the posted speed limits.
At very high speeds, a ship’s deflector couldn't cope with even the thin density of interstellar gases and grains of sand. Beyond this speed, any object would ablate like a small meteor through an atmosphere. A nice, but temporary, light show.
In stellar systems, velocity over a quarter of light were not possible. The bow wave of solar winds would destroy a vessel. Before that, the radiation exposure would have killed the crew. Authorized in-system speed limits were much lower.
♦ ♦ ♦
After setting down in our hangar, we were met by a routine customs inspector. He did a cursory walk-through of the crew and passenger sections, opening a few easily reached cupboards and closets. His only non-blasé reaction was when he saw Roger and Dodger hanging out in the crew’s lounge, I smiled at that.
He did a quick walk through of engineering and entirely missed the fact that we had an identical section in the forward part of the ship. He sniffed around our empty cargo bays for a while. He seemed to be delaying, and I knew why. Been there, done that. After a respectable time, I asked him if he would accept a small gift of a few bottles of wine from my home planet. From my personal stock, of course.
We did that wiggle-waggle dance all ship captains do with customs inspectors. When the music stopped, he gave me an address where I could have the bottles delivered. He didn't want to be seen taking his gifts off the ship. Handing me the digital keys to the hangar and access cards for the port area, he trotted down the gangway.
We checked to see that the hangar was buttoned up and that our keys worked from both inside and out. Ranger, ever cautious, placed several surveillance drones around and on top of the hangar. He had a very suspicious nature.
With everything clear, Sandy started preparations for repairs on the port services hook up that had blown out. For some reason, this was the only hull penetration that did not have double valve isolation between the hull and the tanks it served.
Sandy had installed another valve inside the hull on our way in-system. She was happiest when she was busy. I arranged for delivery of coolant to replace what had been ejected into the void.
10 Miss Tuffet
To blend in with the civilians around the port, we had our fabricator make some suitably styled clothing. Clothing that would not only keep us comfortable in the current weather conditions but also hide our side-arms. The nearby city was called Tanner City, not much effort went into that name. All in all, it was a fairly large modern city for an outer fringe colony. It was planted on the coast of one of the planet's oceans and abutted a wide river. God, I hoped it wasn't Tanner River.
The planet had been settled three-hundred and eighty-two years ago, growing to a fairly decent population level. Tanner had been claimed and settled by members of a few large metal fabrication and mining unions, who had wrestled away control of several companies from their owners.
Company stock holders had played a massive sell-off during an economic downturn. Rather than fight through bankruptcy and union contract renegotiations, the owners turned over the entire companies to the unions. The dominoes fell one by one.
The unions split off and sold the remaining profitable divisions, and dumped the failed facilities, real estate, and equipment at the best rates they could get. Union leaders had told the workers, that after reorganization, the entire company would again soon be solvent and profitable.
The top union dogs had no such intention. After quick sell-offs, they formed a colonization consortium and told all the workers they were leaving for a very nice, resource rich and unspoiled planet. All the union workers were eligible to go cost-free. They were all given a sweet relocation purse as part of their ownership package. Over ninety percent signed up. The non-union employees were left in the dust.
Looking at the demographics and economic activity, everything looked pretty solid. The folks here had done very well for themselves. Not only had they established a stable industrial and agricultural base, they had also attracted other service and product companies that invested in the planet.
It was a very clean and pretty world. The only downside was that there were some large indigenous species that liked to eat people and livestock. The locals turned that into a profit-center with high-end big game hunting safaris. Tourists came from all over the inner reaches of the galaxy to bag a trophy or two.
Quite a bit of the exotic organic produce, that could only be grown on Tanner, was shipped off-world for a hefty profit. This planet would continue to do quite nicely for a very long time as long as the freighters and passenger liners kept running. A huge tourist draw were the large regulated casinos and live entertainment venues.
Taking Dodger with us, Mica and I set out to do some old fashioned looking around. Before we left, we stationed Roger and the three cargo bots inside the hangar. Each bot was staged in front of one of the three hangar doors. Anyone trying to get in would have to move a mountain of static metal. Ranger and Roger could easily handle security on the bay doors.
Sandy had a day's work ahead to finish repairs and inspect the hull fittings. I promised her we would stay for a week so she could see the sights and do any shopping or touristy things she might like.
Mica and I began our walking safari to Tanner city. It felt good to get out and stretch our legs.
♦ ♦ ♦
The first thing I remember of the attack was Dodger folding me head-to-knees and sweeping me up to his chest while fleeing the scene as our assailants took shots at us. He was huge and heavy, but he still out-classed any human speed sprinter.
He never slowed down even when taking corners. He bounced off the walls or dug in his feet to change direction. Being scooped up and transported like an infant, dazed me for a few seconds. Then I started worrying about Mica. Dodger told me he was safe.
Three minutes later, what seemed like a mountain dropped down in front of us from above. It was Roger in full armored gear. The damn things had inertial flight capability which Ranger had installed.
Dodger stopped and gently lowered me so I could find my footing. I was kept between them for our fifteen-minute return to the port enclave. I kept asking about Mica and all I was told was that he was in a protected area. I didn't remember getting separated.
Arriving at the hangar, I found the cargo bots still at their stations but moving in a much more alert fashion. Most of the larger maintenance bots were roving the hangar as if they were military battle-bots on point. Dodger escorted me up the gangway into the ship.
Sandy was on the bridge, monitoring several drone feeds. I dropped down into the command chair. “Sandy, we have to get Mica back to the ship pronto.”
“Ranger and I are already working on it.”
I breathed a sigh of relief but wouldn’t be able to relax until I saw his face back at the hangar. “Well, at least those thugs were very bad shots. Missed me every time.”
“Uh, Captain, look at your clothes.”
Glancing
down, I saw about a half-dozen burn holes in my jacket and shirt. All in a nice grouping on my chest. I should have been a toasted dead man. “What the hell?”
Sandy asked me to turn around. I did a slow revolution. “Just as I thought. Your back is peppered with holes too.”
I put my fingers through the holes in my clothing and felt my skin suit underneath. Ranger had modified our skin suits to include a mesh that used Surron shielding tech. The Nano-compilers seemed to be able to miniaturize anything.
“Mica and Dodger are on their way back. You might want to change clothes since the local law is on its way. You don't want them to see all those holes and start asking questions about how you weren't even scratched.” Before I left the bridge, I watched a drone feed that showed a bird's eye view of Mica and Dodger approaching the port area checkpoint. Mica was sipping from a to-go cup and looked like he was just out for a stroll.
After changing, I went into the hangar. I didn't want any cops inside the ship. Roger, still in his armor, was leaning against a crate near the hangar wall. The cargo bots were moving a few things back and forth for show. All the other bots were either hidden in spots in the hangar or had returned to the ship.
Mica and Dodger made their way through one of the hangar doors, soon followed by a human and law-bot. Dodger must have changed his jacket before leaving to bring in Mica. Since he'd been my shield, I bet the back of the one he'd had on earlier was more perforated than mine had been.
The human introduced himself as Detective Stavinov. He didn't introduce or make any reference to the law-bot. I greeted him with my name and introduced him to Mica.
“It seems there was a rather violent confrontation between your group and several other people. Can you tell me what happened?
I told him everything I knew, which wasn't much. We'd been walking through a commercial area and had been redirected by a road crew, who had just erected a detour barrier. They told us that a paving bot was going to be landed in the area soon and we couldn't continue along that street. They pointed us down a small side street between two buildings. I told Stavinov that, after entering the side street, Dodger had pulled me aside and we started running to get out of there. I didn't mention that Dodger had folded me up like an accordion while he sprinted away. We had no idea why someone would attack us, let alone use shoot to kill methods. I later learned that Dodger had microwaved two of the four attackers behind and both of their accomplices ahead of us.
Looking at Mica, Stavinov asked, “Do you have anything to add.” Mica replied that as we approached the barrier, he’d stepped into a shop to get a cup of the local coffee. He hadn't seen the assault. He wiggled the cup in his hand for show. I knew what was coming next, so I waved Dodger over and crossed my fingers.
The detective asked Dodger about his version of events. Smoothly backing up my story, he added that he had glanced back and saw several of the so-called construction crew start to draw weapons. He had used his hand weapon to distract them, giving us time to get gone. Dodger said he didn't know if he'd tagged any of them. He used a lot of spacer slang, but the detective got the gist of his story. In his version, the encounter lasted about five seconds. He was fudging that a bit. It took him less than two seconds to get me away safely.
I asked Detective Stavinov if they had apprehended any of that crew. He told us that whoever had been on the other side of the engagement was well gone before any law enforcement officers arrived. He added that they were looking for witnesses.
“What about surveillance video. That should confirm our story and allow you to ID the perps.”
Stavinov's eyes wandered. “Well, seems the surveillance coverage of that area was down but has since been restored. That happens, rarely, but it happens.”
I heard Ranger in my ear. “He's being deceptive captain.”
“What about DNA and Bio-Sniffers? Did they pick up anything?”
“Captain, that place is a very high foot traffic area, so anything we could pick up would show thousands or more people.” Ranger told me he was again being less than forthcoming.
I wanted to ask him how law enforcement had been alerted, but, in my experience, lawmen didn't like being questioned during an investigation. It puts them off their game, and I wanted to wrap this up since it appeared that no arrests or interrogations of suspects would be happening anytime soon, if ever.
Appearing to close things up, he asked where we had come from and how long we intended to stay in the Tanner system. He probably knew all that, but like a good cop, he was offering me an opportunity to lie. I told him truthfully that we had come from Ambigon and gave him our cover story, which was mostly true.
I saw his eyes take a momentary upward glance. It was a tic many people had when they were receiving a Q-call. He returned his eyes to me, holding up a finger in the universal sign to wait. He finished digesting what he had been told from the other end. After his call, his attitude and demeanor changed in a most positive way. He became almost apologetic, saying that every asset would be brought to bear on our case. The perpetrators would be caught and punished to the full extent of the law.
He added that he hoped that this incident would not paint a poor picture of Tanner City in particular, or of the Tanner system in general. He liberally sprinkled in a lot of 'sirs' and 'captain sirs' in those closing moments.
It was obvious that he wanted to get out of there quickly, but had to do this song and dance predicated on the information he had just received. Stavinov left us his Q-number and offered to help us in the future any way he could. He and the law-bot left the hangar at a quick walk.
“Ranger, what was that call about?” I knew that he could eavesdrop on Q-calls. No encrypted signals or computers were closed to him.
“Captain, the call he received was from the city's chief law enforcement officer. It verified our back story and clued him in on how important you and two others of your crew are.” He paused, “Your importance, it seems, is based on the fact that, together, you could buy Tanner City many times over if you chose to. They are very accommodating and differential to their visiting high-rollers. It helps keep revenue flowing in their direction.”
Listening to Ranger, I realized that, slowly but surely, he was becoming more and more human-like and less alien from another dimension. I would check in with Traveler to see if there had been a similar transformation. Roger and Dodger sure acted and talked more like humans than Jack and Joan ever had.
I saw the to-go cup in Mica's hand. “You didn't go into that shop just on a whim, did you.” It was a statement, not a question.
“Not on a bet. Dodger sent a Q-message to my heads-up display just as we were approaching that street barrier. My HUD was plastered with ‘DANGER HERE! 'GO THERE!' I followed the big red flashing arrow pointing to the shop. I sat in the back with my weapon in my lap and listened while Ranger kept me updated. Their coffee is excellent, by the way
“Ranger, what about that?”
“Sir, Dodger detected that the workers were carrying weapons. We were suspicious. To protect you both, he directed Mica away from you while you were talking to the lead worker. Captain, you are the most important person on this mission and must not be harmed.”
♦ ♦ ♦
Before any of us went beyond the hangar again, we had a war council. Ranger provided an up-to-date map for our heads-up displays that showed the areas where surveillance camera coverage did not exist or wherever there was an outage.
We learned that the local mobs had enough control to create temporary outages to hide their strong-arm tactics. They used that control very sparingly since the law leaned on them heavily when they did. We speculated that the attack was most probably a kidnapping for ransom attempt. The thug's weapons display was meant for intimidation, until Dodger put a few of them down.
While the upgraded deflector skin suits were fine for weapons protection, they weren't much good if we were physically overwhelmed, or gassed or poisoned or injected. Ranger said he would work on an u
pgrade for the skin suits.
We decided that no one would go anywhere alone. While Roger and Dodger provided some deterrence, and lots of defense, there was only two of them to protect three of us. Ranger and Sandy got to work on some small cloaked drones which would be used to continually monitor us and our surroundings where ever we went.
Each of us would have at least five cloaked drones hovering around us, and those would not only scan buildings and people but would also have brain scrambler capabilities onboard. Whenever we were all together, there would be a swarm of those things around us.
♦ ♦ ♦
The next morning, we received a Q-call from the Tanner Business Bureau, asking if they could arrange a meeting later in the day to discuss the business licenses required for independent contractors. To keep up appearances, we agreed to a meeting in our hangar after lunch. I wanted to get in some martial arts refresher training with Roger and Dodger before that.
We planned to stay here for a week for some shore leave and R&R. Mica wanted to try some high stakes competitive gambling at the casinos. He fancied himself a shrewd card player. Taking a week off from the mission was not an issue for Ranger. It would be over two thousand years before things would really start to unravel at the rift. Two thousand years was plenty of time. I had no plans to live that long.
Practicing martial arts is really good exercise and full body range of motion conditioning. I tried to keep a shipboard schedule of practicing at least every other day, but out on a ship in the cold dark, it was easy to get out of that rhythm.
What I knew I had learned in the military. All junior officers were required to do weekly supervised sessions. Every ship, frigate size and larger, had a dojo that was overseen by a very experienced senior enlisted master. The military considered martial arts excellent ancillary training. It kept the mind sharp, and the body tuned.