1 - The Life of a Smuggler

Trace leaned back in the hard leather chair and chewed repeatedly on the rubbery gum in his mouth. As he relaxed, he listened to the soft humming of the console. His eyes then shifted to the different instruments of the small bridge and their dimly lit panels. He muttered under his breath and put his feet on the console in front of him. Then a loud smack and sharp pain made him jump. He bent forward to rub his leg, but looked up.

“Get your feet off my console.” A woman stared down at him, holding her hand up high. Trace jumped from the chair and hopped away.

“Come on Maria, I was relaxing. That’s no way to treat your captain.”

“You have your own damn chair,” she said with a scowl. “And I’ll treat you like a captain when you act like a captain.”

Trace glanced back at Maria and laughed depressingly. She sat down harshly in her navigator’s chair and put on her headset, brushing away her long dark hair. She tugged on her open jacket and tried to get comfortable. She wore a white undershirt and tight jeans. Maria was a beautiful woman with a bad attitude. But she was a fine helm support and had terrific concentration, even in the worst of situations. Trace heard the door to the bridge open and turned.

“Give me that you fucking shits!” Marcus shouted. He stumbled through the door, his mechanic’s suit dirtied and stained from an obvious mishap. Oil had been spilled across his rigid unforgiving face. A small boy and girl ran to the opposite ends of the bridge laughing and shouting.

“Haley!” The boy yelled to his sister. He tossed her a small black box. She jumped and caught it, diving behind a console. Marcus lumbered toward her and she stood up pulling her arm back.

“Kline, quick!” She threw her arm forward.

“Oh no you don’t.” Marcus growled and reached for the box. His fingers tipped it and forced it sideways. Everyone looked at the black box as it slowly drifted through the air and toward the wall. Then Kline appeared in front of it, upside down. He caught it with a grin. Haley gave a cheer as he floated with a sneer. An arm swiped him out of the air.

“Alright, give Marcus back his part,” Trace said. He walked toward Haley. He then scooped her up from behind and held both children under his arms. “Now apologize and say you’re sorry.” Trace offered Marcus a grin.

“We’re sorry Uncle Marcus,” Haley and Kline apologized together.

“God damn it, I ain’t your uncle!” he retorted.

“Waaaa!”

“Scary!”

They shouted together and flailed their arms. Trace yelled for them to keep still as he tried to squeeze out the bridge door. He continued to carry them down the hall and then down a flight of iron steps. They huffed, making faces at each other until Trace set them down. He rubbed his chin and reached into his pockets. Both children quickly held out a hand with eager eyes. He glanced at their faces and frowned, pulling out two small sticks of candy in brightly wrapped red foil.

“It took you ten minutes to get Marcus to the bridge, so you only get one stick each,” he explained.

“Aw, you said we’d get two each.” Kline whined and reached for a gum.

“I said two if you did it in five minutes.” Trace gave the other to Haley. She snatched it from his hand and stuck her tongue out.

“Cheapskate…” Kline said.

“Tightwad…” Haley added.

“Swindler.”

“Stiff.”

“Scumbag!”

“Lowlife!”

“Hey!” Trace cut them off. “What’s with everyone today? And where did you learn those words. You two are like…six years old.”

“We’re nine.” Kline folded his arms.

“Yah, what do we look like,” Haley said, “children?”

Trace moaned and wiped his eyes. “Never mind then, why don’t you two practice in the cargo hold instead. And don’t damage anything.”

“Oh! Look at this Captain,” Kline said. He jumped back. As Haley and Trace watched, he grinned and disappeared. A second later he appeared at the back end of the hall with a wave, floating in the air. He then concentrated hard and disappeared again. Suddenly he appeared in front of Trace with his arms folded and legs crossed. Kline wiped his nose and grinned.

“Not bad,” Trace said, “combining your gravity boost and flash boost together.”

“Watch me, watch me,” Haley said. Trace felt the temperature drop and watched Haley glide backwards across the ground with simplicity.

“It’s like ice-skating!” she said. She then turned to come back.

“That’s stupid,” Kline said. He disappeared, reappearing at the other end of the hall to tease her. Haley narrowed her eyes angrily and glared. Kline disappeared again, but Haley quickly slapped her hand against the metal wall. A wall of ice froze across the hall several meters in front of her. Kline reappeared, stopping just as he bumped the ice. He landed on the ground and shouted silently. Haley pulled her eyelid down and stuck her tongue out.

“Alright Haley, those are great tricks too,” Trace said. He squatted down. Haley smiled and the wall of ice melted away leaving a puddle of dark water. “By the way,” he asked, ignoring the mess. “Where’s Scott and Mika?”

“Scott is sleeping!”

“Mika is in the shower!”

Again, they quickly answered together. Trace glanced at them both unsure who had said what.

“Captain, we’re leaving hyperspace in a few minutes, we’ll be at the target point in just a bit,” Maria called from atop the stairs. Trace glanced back then nodded to the two kids.

“Forget what I said earlier,” Trace said. “Go get your gears instead.”

“Waaaa! Remote controlled robots!” They shouted together as they ran down the hall. They both jumped over the puddle and spread their arms out making engine sounds. Trace sighed wearily and followed Maria into the bridge. Marcus finished wiping his face and waved to Maria thanking her for the handkerchief. He then turned to leave but stopped next to Trace.

“Can’t you at least buy leashes for them,” Marcus asked, letting Trace pass by first.

“If I do, it’s coming out of your pay.”

“Do it then! And make sure you buy the best there is!”

The door shut and Trace sat in his chair with a faint smile. As the light strings of hyperspace disappeared, their ship, The Lady Mar, appeared in normal space with a glow of sparkling matter. The lights dispersed leaving the body of a large scavenger ship. Maria and Trace glanced though the main view screen and took a deep breath. Everywhere outside the ship, hulking pieces of metal and plates drifted. The ribs of a giant ship were frozen in place while long beams and the support shells of small vessels floated aimlessly in long straight lines. It was a graveyard of metal ships, scrapped fighters, and destroyed gears. Some of them were from the Centauri Alliance while others were from the Kingdom of Heaven.

“It’s nice to know the Alliance and Kingdom are still at it.” Trace sat in his chair. Maria nodded slowly and moved her hands around the controls.

“Haley, Kline, are you both ready?” Maria asked though her headset. Capsules closed over both children in a special room and they opened their eyes. They floated through a virtual drifting space. In the cargo hold, two remote controlled gears switched on, and both stood upright from their kneeling positions.

“Aye ma’am!” they both shouted. Kline moved his blue and white gear to the doors first. It had thin arms connected to a sleek cone-shaped torso. It had a small abdomen, but long narrow legs connected to the waist juncture underneath the torso chassis. Haley then moved her pink and white gear behind Kline’s and waited.

“I’m here, don’t worry!” Mika hurdled over the back of her seat. She quickly tapped the console and opened the cargo bay doors. She then wiped her forehead and tried brushing back her short, matted, mint green hair with her hands. Mika was a young-looking girl. When she first worked with the crew, she told Trace she was 24; Trace wondered if it was younger than that. She was energetic, lively, and a damn good pilot. Mika often avoided conversations about where she was from and who she was, but Trace didn’t care. As long as the ship continued to make it out of grim situations, and her identity didn’t get him in trouble, he wasn’t going to complain.

“How about you Scott? Trace asked.

“Yeah, yeah, I gotcha,” a voice called back over the intercom. Scott yawned from inside his large bulky gear and watched Kline and Haley dash out. Kline circled to the left while Haley went to the right. They reported no active targets and then passed by the ship. Each of them shot off into the distance making wide arcs.

“Alright Kline, check Sector Three, and Haley, I want you in Sector Six,” Maria said.

They both radioed in and left for their new locations. Scott slowly left the hangar, waiting for his instructions, and tried his best not to doze off.

“Nothing here,” Haley said.

“Nothing here,” Kline copied.

“Kline move to Sector Five, Haley move to Sector Eight,” Maria ordered again.

They both replied and boosted in opposite directions. Haley arced around large rectangular debris and continued to search. Most of the scrap in her sector was from a large cruiser that had been torn in half. The two enormous hulls towered through the darkness while a field of small objects littered the space between them.

On Kline’s side, many smaller support ships littered his view. Against the massive bulk of capital vessels, the tiny gears and fighters appeared as nothing more than pebbles. Kline weaved his white and blue gear around the debris careful not to hit any pieces. He passed by a demolished carrier and picked up a target.

“Miss Maria, I think I found something,” he called into the radio, moving closer to the signal.

“I got it,” Maria answered. “The target looks intact and the pilot ejection capsule is missing. It’s also a boost type gear. It looks like we have a winner.”

“On my way,” Scott moaned. He lumbered his heavy salvage gear forward, moving around large pieces of debris, while bumping into the rest. A myriad of small pulses lit across his screen showing impact points. He yawned and turned off the display.

“How’s it look over there Kline,” he asked, squinting at the HUD.

“A-OK Sleepy,” Kline answered, saluting his gear. Scott waved his hand and moved through the debris. Once he reached the target, he slowed his gear and stretched his arms. He then carefully moved the target’s limbs, attempting to straighten it as much as possible, and then latched several cables around its chassis. After an hour of careful set up and retrieval, the gear was carefully set onto The Lady Mar’s main floor.

“Hey I said careful! Not there, over there. Watch the cable!” Trace was shouting when he heard a snap. The last cable broke and whipped sideways slashing just over his short black hair. As it snaked to a stop under Scott’s gear, Trace fell onto his butt.

“Oops, sorry Captain,” Scott said through his external speakers. His large gear turned and then walked toward the bay doors.

“Yeah you’d better get your ass out there!” Trace shouted. He waved his fist. Scott’s gear gave a half wave and then boosted away kicking a whirlwind of air toward him. Trace covered his head while Scott passed out of the thin shielded membrane protecting the integrity of the small hangar.

“Captain,” Maria’s voice echoed irritably. “The kids are bored and want new orders…I’m telling him now…would you two stop that!”

“Maria! Please, I’m busy!” Trace shouted at the walls of the ship. “Tell them to bug Scott!”

“Yes, sir.” Maria forced the answer. The intercom went dead leaving a peaceful silence again.

“This crew’s going to be the death of me,” he moaned, rubbing his forehead. “Now for my prize catch.”

He clapped his hands together and eyed the gear lying in front of him. Everything seemed to be intact and only a few dents and laser scars could be seen from where he stood. He danced to the gear and climbed onto its chest, hopping over various indents and decorated parts extending from its body. He glanced at the cracked displays of its eyes and jumped down to the chest. He then tapped his foot against various areas of the chassis looking for a hollowed hatch to open. After a few minutes he finally found it and grinned. He rubbed his hands together. Then the gear groaned and screeched, leaning up on its own.

Trace shifted backward, watching its arms and legs twitch. Before he had time to curse the chest rose foreword. He jumped off with a roll. The teal and silver armor of the gear reflected the lights of the hangar while casting thick shadows underneath. Its body turned to Trace and jerked forward. It lifted slightly, sliding one knee under its chest. It leaned back on the other but moved as if it were convulsing. When it finally stopped, its body was kneeling down on one knee while one of its forearms reached toward the ground. Its chest was leaned forward and its eyes downcast.

Trace attempted to laugh. As he reached into his pocket for another stick of gum the hatch opened, spilling out its compressed air. He then stuck the gum in his mouth and waited for the hulking mass of an angry Alliance pilot.

Trace stepped closer. Then a leg dropped and he stopped. He glanced down trying to formulate a greeting that didn’t involve I came to steal your gear but found it much harder than he thought. He heard a thump in front of him and looked up. There was no one there. He then heard a click behind his head and instinctively raised his hands.

“Who are you and where am I,” a woman’s voice echoed from a helmet. Her voice sounded young but harsh. It took all of Trace’s mental strength to keep from turning around.

“I am Trace Wester, and you’re on my ship The Lady Mar,” he said. A calm tone hid his curiosity and fear. “I’m going to be honest. It’s a scavenger ship and I’m here for your gear. If I had known the pilot was still alive I probably would have just left you. But since you’re here, and I’m here, I’ll drop you off at the nearest—”

“The cockpit systems are fried,” she interrupted. Trace heard her gun click again and he slowly turned. The woman was wearing a light blue Alliance flight suit. It tightly fit her body, emphasizing her thin waist, long curving legs, and prominent chest. The flight suit had a single zipper that started at her collar and disappeared between her legs. On the right side of her chest the Alliance insignia was embroidered. On both shoulders, her squadron and flight number were labeled. She took her free hand and unclipped her neck strap, lifting up the helmet. Underneath, red-orange hair spilled out, landing behind her shoulders and down her back. The hair partially concealed her ears and short bangs curved above her red eyes. There was also a large clump of hair above the bridge of her nose. She brushed the strands away with her gloved hand and slid the gun back into its holster.

“The name’s Robin,” she responded.

“Like the bird?” Trace asked. Robin stared silently.

“Yes, like the bird,” she said. She held up an open palm and stared into it. From her unflinching eyes and motionless hand, Trace wondered if she really was holding something. He leaned sideways. Robin sparked back to life and lowered her hand. “But as of now, I am a deserter.”

“Oh, that’s nice,” Trace said. He scratched his head. “But can I still sell your gear?”

“Both of you! Hol…hold it right there! S-Surrender now!”

Trace slowly held his hands up while Robin did nothing.

“Hey,” Trace whispered. “What are you doing?”

Robin frowned and held up her arms. She turned in the direction of the voice.

Stepping out from the shadow of Robin’s gear was a woman with a black flight suit. It had a different set of patterns and was lined in gold. On the right side of her chest the insignia for the Kingdom was embroidered. She held a black weapon in her shaking hands and stood off center. She then carefully took one hand from her gun and slowly brushed her short dark green hair. As she moved it, she twitched her florescent green eyes. The gun began sliding out of her hand. She yelped and quickly balanced it, holding it tightly again. She then closed her eyes in relief and opened her mouth, smiling back with a sense of accomplishment.

“Please don’t accidentally shoot us,” Trace said.

“I won’t, as long…as long as you do what I say,” she said. Her voice was as shaky as her trigger finger. “Um, please.”

“Alright, we’ll do whatever you—”He paused and squinted at the woman. “Wait, did you just say please?”

“You don’t know how to use that gun do you,” Robin said.

“Wh-What?” the woman asked.

“You’ve been charging it for a few minutes now. If you hold it down any longer, it’ll discharge and blow your arms off.”

The girl stopped shaking for a moment and stared. The gun beeped. The woman yelped in surprise and tossed it into the air, dropping to her knees. As she covered her head, the weapon bounced harmlessly and slid to a stop.

“Great thinking Robin,” Trace said. He folded his arms. “Lying to use her nervousness against her.”

As he laughed, Robin walked to the gun and held it up. Trace glanced at the bright red meter against its side and stopped. She cocked the gun backward, shutting it off.

“So, then you weren’t lying?” he asked.

“No.”

Trace turned to the would-be assailant. She smiled in embarrassment. “Why are you smiling?” he asked.

“S-Sorry.” The woman averted her eyes shamefully. She stood up and raised her hands.

“There’s no reason to surrender,” Trace said. “No harm, no foul.”

“Please don’t hurt me,” she asked. “I…I don’t want to go back out there. I can’t stand the emptiness.”

Robin looked at the frightened woman and raised her eyebrows. “You don’t mean…” she whispered quietly.

“What’s your name?” Trace asked.

“It’s Rint,” she said quietly. She then raised her eyes and giggled at her own ineptitude. Trace glanced back to Robin who merely stared and said nothing. She turned away and slid the other gun in her belt.

“Wait…can, can I have that ba-back,” Rint asked. She stood and jogged toward Robin, stopping when she turned around.

Trace ignored them and looked at the ceiling. He pressed his finger and a thumb to the bridge of his nose and rubbed as slowly as he could.

“Captain,” Maria called through the intercom. “We have intruders.”

“Really?” Trace kept his tone sarcastic. “I am so glad you people are on top of these things. Unfortunately Maria, I already know about the intruders.”

“Then you probably know that they’re also heading toward us with a contingent of Black Locust and Swarmers,” she answered, holding back her anger. “What are your orders then?”

“…wha? Who’s doing what now?” he asked. He heard a long sigh from the other side of the intercom. Trace realized the sigh was a signature sign of Maria’s mounting fury. He searched his pockets in panic.

“WE’RE UNDER ATTACK BY THE SATELLA CORPORATION!” she screamed. “WHO ELSE USES BLACK LOCUST GEARS YOU STUPID, IDIOTIC, GOOD-FOR-NOTHING, POOR EXCUSE FOR A CA—”

Silence. Robin and Rint stared at Trace as he pressed his teeth together with closed eyes. In his hand he held a small rectangular object with a dozen buttons on one side.

“Universal Remote,” he said. “Great for those times when you have to turn off certain ship systems.” He placed the remote back in his pocket and walked forward. “Come on you two, follow me. Keep your eyes open and make sure you’re careful.”

“What’s wrong,” Robin asked. “Are they going to board us?”

“Board us?” he repeated, “Hell, they usually just try and kill us.”

“Kill us?” Rint asked nervously, trying to keep up.

“Then what are we looking out for?” Robin asked.

“Oh, well there’s a puddle of water in one of these halls,” he answered.

Outside the ship Kline and Haley weaved and dodged around debris while shells and missiles trailed after them. Several Black Locusts had caught sight of their gears and were relentless in their pursuit.

“Let’s split up,” Haley shouted. She was spinning her body to avoid a string of cannon fire.

“Alright you go left and I’ll go right,” Kline said. He was mimicking her movement. “We’ll meet…over there.” His gear pointed to the inside hull of one of the demolished cruisers. Haley agreed and barreled away.

Kline darted around a large hull plate belonging to a capital ship chassis, and hid. He watched three of the Locusts dash away and waited. He sighed in relief and wiped the gear’s head with its arm. A Locust appeared in front of him. He ducked and drew his gun. It was a small handgun that carried few, but highly destructive cartridges. It resembled an old western style magnum, but the ammunition case was hexagon-shaped.

The Black Locust’s bullets ricocheted off the hull of adjacent debris. Kline jammed his gun under the Locust’s chest and fired a single round. The Locust sparked and blew apart. As Kline dashed away, a warning lock appeared. Trails of missiles were on their way.

Haley wasn’t having much better luck. After retreating and hiding from half a dozen Locusts she found herself pressed against the dark side of a hull support beam. As she panted, she slowly moved her head to peer around the side. Something blinked at the corner of her peripheral and she turned in the opposite direction. A robotic camera with a large gun stared back at her adjusting its lens.

“Cheater.” She held out her hand. It fired its small gun and the bullets harmlessly bounced from her gear’s chassis. She then flicked her finger toward the Swarmer. An icicle impaled its lens reaching all the way through. Then a dozen cameras appeared. Haley let her hand hover her gun. It was identical to Kline’s; large, silver, and deadly.

Kline laughed and weaved away from the pulsing lights climbing toward his gear. He spun his body and beckoned both Locusts to attack. As they raised their weapons they jolted to a stop, electricity coursing through their chassis. Kline had vanished but reappeared behind the gears. He pulled his arms out of their chests and dashed away. He spotted the rendezvous point and looked for Haley.

They both appeared at the spot simultaneously and cheered.

“I was first!” Kline shouted. Haley stopped and frowned.

“No I was,” she answered back.

“Nuh uh, I was!”

“Liar!”

“You’re a liar!”

“Kids! Kids!” They heard a voice interrupt. “What did I say about fights with each other?”

“Save it for the bad men,” they answered together.

“Good,” he answered back. He leaned over Maria nodded. “Now haul ass and get back to the ship, we’re leaving.”

“Haul ass!” They shouted repeatedly over the radio.

Trace opened his mouth in shock and scolded, “That’s a bad word, don’t say that!”

“The Captain is useless!” Kline yelled.

“The Captain is lazy!” Haley added.

“Sir,” Maria said. “Multiple contacts converging on their position, you two need to get out of there now.”

“Yes ma’am!” they shouted in unison. Kline glanced down one side of the empty hull while Haley checked the other. Black Locusts and Swarmers had completely surrounded them. They faced each other and nodded. Then they held their hands toward the side of the hull. A brilliant blast of energy sliced through and both Kline and Haley retreated. They continued to dodge missiles and gun fire as they were chased back to The Lady Mar.

“Activate hyperspace drives,” Trace shouted, sitting in his chair.

“But what about—” Rint began.

“Activating hyperspace drives,” Mika interrupted her. “Online in five minutes.”

“Make it one Mika,” Trace quickly said.

“One?!” Mika answered. She furiously tapped the console, darting her eyes from calculator to calculator. “If we get stuck inside a planet, it won’t be my fault.”

Haley’s core clapped its arms together creating a large wall of ice in front of her. It expanded wider, stretching out in an enormous sheet. Haley’s core then went limp, unable to move. As the enemy gears tried to break the ice sheet, Kline flashed behind Haley and grabbed her gear. He paused as an enormous axe sliced through the sheet of ice.

“That’s a boost type gear!” Maria said.

The gear pulled back its gigantic weapon and held it high. Kline concentrated hard and disappeared just as the axe sliced down. He appeared next to the hangar and took cover inside.

“Sir if that thing reaches us…” Maria warned.

“Hyperspace in 30 seconds,” Mika shouted.

“Sir,” Maria asked in a worried tone. Trace grinned and spun his chair.

“Scott, where’s my trump car,” he shouted.

A voice buzzed back, indifferent in tone. “Just look for the pretty lights.”

Outside the ship his gear waited, latched directly to the roof. Over his shoulder a mobile long range energy cannon had just finished charging. Powerful enough to puncture holes in capital ships, it was an extremely rare and expensive commodity.

“I got this guy.” Scott leaned into his seat and hit the trigger.

A beam of pure amplified energy erupted from the tip of the cannon. The black and yellow gear saw the build up of energy and dodged. The beam missed.

“Oh, I bet your laughing now,” Scott said. He manipulated the right arm. The gear pulled down on a handle sticking outside of the barrel, and a shutter field activated. The beam suddenly widened into a core shape, engulfing everything it touched. Small explosions popped in the distance and the light disappeared. The striped gear had been reduced to melted plating that welded its body together. Then it bent its arms and flashed one eye.

“Huh, I’ll be damned,” Scott said. He squinted at the tiny image on his blurry HUD. “It’s still moving.”

“Hyperspace in 10,” Mika said.

Kline appeared beside Scott’s gear and grabbed its chest. It flashed behind the closing hangar doors and then dashed into the ship.

“Bay doors closed, activating hyperspace drives,” Mika said. They felt the ship jolt and held their breath.

“Kline and Scott are in the Hangar,” Maria reported with a smile. They all sighed in relief, and sank into their chairs.

“Thank goodness everyone made it back,” Rint said. She wiped her forehead with the back of her hand.

Robin thought carefully and turned. “You’re not even part of this crew.”