Gartian territory was usually avoided by most species, even the fiercest. I didn’t know if the rumors were true, but I’d been told that Gartians were once peaceful humanoids with a special kind of knack for working with metals. They’d perfected their own grade of alloy that was surpassed by none.

That was before the sickness.

Their kind had been ravaged by a plague that had come to be known as the G-Pox. There was no known cure. It rotted limbs and pieces of flesh away. It was also unknown what caused G-Pox or why only certain parts would rot. G-Pox killed most Gartians who were infected, but the ones who survived … they did so by replacing their missing pieces with their alloy. Eventually the Gartians became cold and hard, like the alloy that held them together, their minds addled—they were said to be completely insane.

Personally, I’d never seen a Gartian, but the stories were enough to keep me away. An unstable species with nearly unbreakable ships … it was a terrifying combination. And I was currently on my way into the belly of the beast. Or rather The Pittsburgh was headed straight for the main planet that housed what was left of the Gartians. It had no name, and was only whispered about as if its existence alone was a cautionary tale. Of what it warned, I had no clue, and I hoped I wouldn’t find out.

Zula, Tamzea, and myself were all on the flight deck watching in morbid fascination as the Gartian planet slowly came into view. It was shiny, just like metal, and I wondered if maybe it actually was. Maybe they replaced things on it just like on their bodies. I shuddered at the thought. Or maybe it was actually a space station. Now that was actually plausible.

I shifted my mind to the task at hand. So far no one had responded to our hails. It was making me jittery. “So … um … what should we do?” My voice was an octave higher than normal, belying the nerves I was trying to hide.

“Turn around?” Tamzea’s voice wavered.

“They do still trade. Selling their alloy is what keeps them fed,” Zula offered in a blasé tone. Her white-ish knuckles on the console in front of her told me she wasn’t as calm internally.

“Okaay … ” I drawled. “So this shouldn’t be a big deal then.”

“They only trade with a few trusted people who then sell their goods on the open market. Unfortunately, the cost of Gartian Alloy is beyond our means at the price mark-up. Not to mention it sells out quicker than it can be supplied. There’s a waiting list years long,” Zula stated.

“Still, I’m sure just flying up to their planet shouldn’t be that much of a problem. I’m sure they won’t be worried about a teeny, tiny ship like The Pittsburgh when they have what they’ve got.” Who was I trying to convince? “Try to hail them again. Maybe you need to reconfigure the code or something.”

Zula punched the keys roughly. “My codes are always correct, but I will try to contact them again.”

I staggered back, too startled to react. As if it appeared out of thin air, a giant starship arose directly above us. It had to have—“Holy shit! They were under some kind of cloaking shield!” Fuuuuck! I thought those were rumors, too. “Is that a Gartian ship?”

“I’m guessing ye—” Zula’s attention was diverted to her earpiece. “We tried to contact you. We wish to speak with … We only wish to purchase … Yes. Yes, I understand.” She lifted her head, meeting my gaze. “They’re coming aboard.”

“What?” I squeaked. “Did they sound pissed?”

“No. They sounded in charge. Which they very much are of this situation.” Zula stood, ripping her earpiece out, and tossed it angrily on the console. “Why don’t you ever listen to me? If we make it out of this situation alive things are going to change around here.”

Excuse me? “I’m the captain, remember? Nothing changes unless I say so.” I crossed my arms over my chest, and met Zula’s dark eyes steadily. If she wanted a battle of wills, she’d find out no one was more stubborn than me. It was one of my best and worst personality traits.

Tamzea stepped in between us. “There’s no time for this now.”

“Right,” I said. “Let’s get ready to receive our visitors.” As if we have a choice.

The ship’s internal lights flashed to red in warning, and the buzzer that signaled a breech rang out through the air, piercing my eardrums. “And here I just went and assumed they’d wait for us to let them in.” Adrenaline surged through my system, my heart rate accelerating times fifty. I instinctively reached for my laser gun at my hip, running my palm over it. I wasn’t about to draw it in case the threat would get me killed, but I craved the reassurance the cold metal offered me.

Just as suddenly as our ship’s alert system had been triggered, it shut off, all systems back to normal. “What the hell?”

Zula was already at the computer. “On it.”

I glanced over at Tamzea, who was wringing her hands and gnawing on her lower lip. She didn’t have the temperament for these kinds of situations. Bring in a bloody patient to heal and she was at her best. I gave her a reassuring smile. “Everything is going to be fine, Tamzea.” I really hope I’m not lying to her.

“I have no idea what’s going on,” Zula muttered, still hunched over the computer. “I—”

“Guys.” Masha appeared at the door, which was odd, since she usually hid out in the engine room during any kind of intense situation. “We have visitors.” She grinned at us before spinning around to dash off.

My eyes widened as I stared after her. “Again … What. The. Hell?”

“It’s a good sign that Masha seems pleased, right?” Tamzea clutched at my shoulder, her lavender eyes filled with uncertainty and fear.

“I’m thinking that’s a yes.” I placed my hand over hers. “If you want, you can stay here. I’ll go meet our visitors. I got us into this situation, and hopefully I can get us out of it.” And with some of that Gartian Alloy, too. Despite everything I still had my eyes on the prize.

“No. We’re a team?”

I chuckled. “You don’t sound so sure. Is that a statement or a question?”

“I—”

I stepped away from Tamzea, meeting Zula’s gaze. “You both stay here. That’s an order. Disobey your captain and … I’ll think of something you won’t like.” I hurried to the metal ladder leading down to the control room without a backwards glance.

Fingers crossed that there will be a later for me … or any of us. Masha wouldn’t be happy about our visitors if they meant us harm, right? Unless she thought they could help with the engine, then maybe. I swear she loves that damn engine more than anyone or anything. It’s just not normal, even if she is a Guaviva.

My heart pounded in my ears, making it difficult to hear anything else. I forced my body to yield to the command to move. It protested with each step I took, sweat dripping down my spine, and also gathering on my face. Somehow I managed to get to the lower level of the ship without passing out.

What the— My mind blanked as is tried to process the scene before me.

Three tall, warrior-like men stood around Masha in a semi-circle. They looked mostly humanoid except for their size … and the fact that parts of them were made up of metal. But they were all smiling … at Masha. She was talking animatedly with her hands as she gazed up at them with adoration. I shook my head, blinking rapidly. I didn’t know what I’d been expecting, but certainly not what I got.

I cleared my throat. “Umm … Hey, Masha … You care to introduce me to your new friends?” The ones that just boarded my ship without permission, I added silently.

“Oh, Jane— I mean Captain Jane. This is Zar, Tar, and Dar. They’re Gartians.” She grinned at me, motioning to each of the three … men.

All three of them had long black hair. The more I looked at them the more— “Are they triplets?”

“Yes,” one of them, Zar maybe, responded. It at least would explain their names. As it turned out, all mothers of triplets, no matter the species, seemed to get weird about multiple births.

“Oh, right.” I had no idea how I was supposed to react to the whole situation. I was slightly more relaxed seeing how happy Masha was, but not completely at ease. After all, Zar, Tar, and Dar had just helped themselves onto my ship, and I still wasn’t sure how or why.

“They promised to get me my part, but in Gartian grade alloy!” Masha exclaimed, jumping up and down with pure joy.

I scanned my gaze over the three warriors. Except for the slightly jarring effect of the metal fused onto their bodies—which looked almost natural, as if it had melded with them or maybe like they were some kind of cyborgs—they were actually kind of attractive. A sudden thought occurred to me. What if that’s why they were being so accommodating to Masha? What if they weren’t insane freaks after all? What if they’d simply made themselves into some kind of cyborgs with their alloy? It wasn’t like I could just come right out and ask, though. “That’s great, Masha,” I said, while still eyeing the triplets.

“You have no reason to fear us,” Dar, maybe, stated in a deep rumble. “Masha has explained everything to us. You will be guests on our planet until the work has been done.”

I nodded, at least I think I did—the whole situation seeming beyond surreal. “Okay. Great. Thanks. I’m glad that us coming here wasn’t taken as some kind of insult or threat. I mean—”

“As I’ve said, Masha has explained it all. She told us that you are brash and rude with no sense of protocol, but your heart is in the right place.”

Frowning, I managed to keep my mouth shut. Masha and I are going to have some words later, that’s for sure. “Okay.” I was beginning to sound like an audio file stuck on repeat. I just didn’t know what else to say.

He then turned to Masha, addressing her. “You know what to do. We look forward to showing you the wonders of our planet.” With that, all three of them vanished right before my eyes. The ship’s alert system buzzed for a few moments before going silent, like when they’d entered.

“Masha,” I growled. “What the hell was that?”

She blinked her big black eyes at me as if confused. “They’re going to help me overhaul my engine, and the ship.” I didn’t miss the fact that she’d referred to it as her engine again.

“We’re kind of on a time crunch if we want to get the payment on Ash doubled.”

“No problem. They said it would take no more than twenty-four hours. They promised they’d make it their top priority. And they’re going to do it for a fraction of the money we have left.”

I narrowed my eyes at Masha, zeroing in on her flushed face. I’d always thought of her as childlike, but I knew for her species she was fully-grown, and as icky as it was, sexually mature. Did she like one of the Gartians that had just been on the ship? Maybe one of them would be the perfect match for her since they seemed to be part machine; at least I thought they were. “Umm … so they’re like cyborgs, huh?”

Masha nodded with excitement. “Yes. They’re so amazing! I can’t wait to see how smoothly my engine runs when it’s fitted with Gartian grade alloy!” She jumped up and down, clapping her hands.

So okay, maybe I was a bit of a pervert who translated almost everything into something sexual. It seemed like Masha was just enthused about the engine … as usual. “And you trust them?”

“Yes. I can read them perfectly.”

“Alrighty then. I’m going to go let Tamzea and Zula know what’s going on before they freak out up there.” I motioned towards the ladder leading up to the second floor of The Pittsburgh.

Things just kept getting more and more interesting.

The life of a bounty hunter is never dull.