The colonel glanced over at Tawn. “Stories from the war?”
Tawn frowned. “Nothing that tops that. Best I got is getting in a brawl back on Domicile at a bar. I was in a platoon of slugs that had been dropped on Pleda II. There were two Earther colonies there with a mountain pass being the way to travel between them. We were dropped in that pass and told to hold it. All the ships and fliers on that planet had been shot down, so our mission was on the ground.
“We set up our perimeters and turned back numerous assaults for a good three months. The Earthers didn't get anyone through that pass while we were there. After a particularly nasty skirmish, a transport landed and took us back to Domicile. We never knew why we were there or if our efforts accomplished anything.
“Once back on Domicile, we were given a week's leave to go unwind. Two of my slug sisters and I picked out this local bar. It had a tropical theme and everyone was walking around in flowery shirts and shorts. The bar was loaded with a bunch of jock regulars.
“My crew found a nice secluded corner where we could watch the locals and get plastered in peace. Two of the regulars decided they were going to arm-wrestle. One of my girls, Mikanda, decided to join the fun. She had just put down her fourth jock when the brawl started.
“For a good ten minutes, bodies flew in the air or were slammed to the ground. It was us three against a crowd of about twenty. We mopped the floor with them of course. Black eyes, busted noses, knocked out teeth, even a couple dislocated jaws. By the time the cops arrived we were sitting at the bar trying to enjoy another beer or two.
“Unfortunately, the locals and the management didn't see the fun in what we had done. They weren't much for sport. Instead we went to jail and then to the brig. Cost us just over a thousand credits each for damages. No charges were filed because we were soldiers and the war was still going on. Even had a couple of the brawlers catch us as we were being transferred from the jail to the brig. They thanked us for our service. Was humbling.”
Harris stopped mid-chew. “So three slugs walked into a bar... I think I've heard that one before.”
Tawn shrugged. “I told you I didn't have anything to compare.”
The meal was finished and preparations were made for the day that would follow. In the morning Tawn and Harris made a quick flight back to the warehouse on Domicile to inform the twins of what was coming. Upon their return, the colonel was standing in the docking bay with ten neatly dressed slugs and stumps.
Harris said, “Couple hours early?”
The colonel nodded. “We moved up the timeline. You two ready to do this?”
Tawn replied, “We are. We have the easy part. You sending them out like that? Looks like they're going to dinner.”
The colonel passed Harris a data file over a comm link. “This has the coordinates for the drop and a channel for their comm. Do whatever it takes to not be discovered. Surprise is our key strategy here today.
“Their dress is because we are being watched. You see the trunks the workers are loading on, those are personal trunks. Makes it look like you're transferring them home to Domicile. They'll gear up once you lift off.”
Tawn nodded. “Prudent. I guess that's it, then. Will hopefully see you shortly.”
The colonel grabbed her forearm. “Thank you both for doing this. Taking that load of ore will keep a half-dozen Earther warships from being built.”
Harris laughed. “No need to thank us, Colonel. We'd have done this just for the fun of it. I just wish I could see Baxter Rumford's face when her first load of ore goes missing. Getting some revenge for all she's done will be sweet.”
The gear was stowed and the personnel stepped aboard. As soon as the Bangor went into a hover, the trunks were opened and the ten-Biomarine team got to work on gearing-up. A slow ride south through the desert and then west toward the Rumford Mine had the shuttle settling on the sand at the designated location, fifty minutes later.
The squad leader of the slugs and stumps stood ready at the hatch. “Mr. Gruberg, we should be back this way in about thirty-five minutes. We won't be stopping for you, so do what you need to as we pass by.”
Harris nodded. “We'll be here and ready. And we'll be listening, so if you need help, don't hesitate to call out.”
The squad leader again thanked Harris and Tawn before hopping out onto the brilliant white sand of Eden. His team quickly disappeared into the roiling eddies of heat rising up from the surface. The hatch was closed.
Tawn said, “This is exciting. You excited?”
Harris chuckled. “Just another day at the office for me. I'll get excited when I see that freighter coming this way.”
As the team moved within visual range, the three guards given duty on the exterior of the freighter each saw their lives terminated. The ten member squad moved in quickly. The freighter was boarded through an open docking bay hatch, followed by moving through a main hatch into a hallway leading forward.
Another guard was dispatched before the corner was turned into the room where a dozen Earther Marines lounged about. Controlled chaos ensued for the next twelve seconds as the freighter guard was silenced. The team hustled back into the hall, moving their way toward the bridge.
The squad leader whispered, “Marine deck has been cleared. Proceeding on schedule.”
Six other crewmen were silenced before the ship was declared clean. The assigned pilot got to work entering the coordinates for the trek across the desert to the Bangor's location. The drives were powered on, brought up to level, and the big freighter began to move. Seconds later, the local controller called in to ask what they were doing. No response was returned.
Tawn said, “Here they come.”
“Now we can get excited,” said Harris.
The Bangor lifted from the sand as the freighter passed overhead. A port docking collar was selected as the landing site and the transfer tube was extended. A hatch on the side of the freighter opened and the Biomarine team came through.
Harris nodded as he congratulated their efforts. “Nice work. No casualties?”
The squad leader replied, “Everything has gone as planned. We should be heading skyward any second. This show now belongs to you.”
Tawn said, “We're positioned to take on either of those Earther ships that are in orbit, if needed. Neither has made a move our way.”
Tawn glanced at her display. “Heading up now. They don't move in the next two minutes, we may be out of here free and clear.”
Harris grinned. “Wish I could see the look on Baxter's face right now. Her first freighter load and we have it.”
Tawn winced. “You want to talk to her? She's hailing you on the general comm.”
Harris nodded. “Oh, I have to take this.”
Turning back toward the Biomarines in the cabin, Harris asked for quiet. The comm camera focused in on his face.
Baxter Rumford's image appeared on the display. “Bad move, goober. Just give it back and I may let this go.”
Harris offered his best confused look. “Please tell me what you're referring to. I'd hate to think it was something we've done.”
“My ore. Return it or pay the price.”
“Are you talking about that freighter we're watching that's moving up through the atmosphere? Looks to be alone. Some criminal element take that from you?”
Baxter leaned into the camera. “You've been warned.”
Harris said, “Don't know why you're accusing us. We're just sitting here in the cafeteria about to have lunch.”
Baxter shook her head. “You're a moron. I can see you're on your ship. I recognize that bulkhead right behind your chair. Give me my ore.”
Harris yawned as he looked intently into the camera. “How many times have you used us? How's it feel to be taken advantage of? All that work and now someone takes away your harvest? That has to smart.”
Baxter Rumford faced away from her comm camera. “Do it. I tried.”
As the comm closed, four wormholes opened out in free space. The freighter moved into the blackness that surrounded Eden just as four Earther cruisers showed on the nav display.
Tawn said, “We have company.”
“They don't know we're here. I doubt they'll destroy her. They want this ore.”
“So what do we do if they pull alongside and send over a boarding party?”
Harris smiled. “I don't think they'll have time before we jump. And if they jump after us, and try to dock, we can blast them from point-blank range. We've got this covered.”
Repeated general hails to the freighter were ignored as it headed toward free space. Two of the Earther warships closed at an angle as they continued their appeals.
Tawn said, “Calculations say they will intercept us before we can jump.”
Harris nodded. “They'll have three and a half minutes to try to board her. I don't see them rushing to do so before completing a few scans.”
“Uh, they do that and aren't they gonna see us all gathered right here?”
Harris shook his head. “Not according to the DDI. Scans of this ship should reveal nothing. From the outside it will look like an empty box. Our bigger concern, should they decide to board, is that they retake control of the nav system. They do that and we have no choice but to fight. And I'd really rather not fight in this space. The politicians at home would be calling for our heads.”
The two cruisers pulled alongside the fleeing freighter. The Bangor remained undetected, its signal emissions inhibited and its exterior skin colored to match the exterior of the ship to which it clung.
Tawn said, “They're moving in for a dock.”
The Biomarine squad leader stood. “If you open that hatch, I still have a comm-link to the controls. I could put her in a random zigzag pattern that will make it harder for them to connect.”
Harris frowned. “We open that hatch and they know we're here. I'd rather not do that until we have to.”
“One minute to jump,” said Tawn. “If they attach, that jump wormhole won't open.”
Harris scowled. “I need a volunteer to go aboard. If the Earthers manage to dump a team on there, we'll need someone to disable the safeties on that ship reactor. We get that to go critical and we might be able to take the docked cruiser with it. Could be a one-way ticket for whoever accepts.”
The squad leader replied, “You open that hatch for one of us and we're all going over. Whoever draws the straw to disable the safeties will need cover if they're going to pull it off.”
Tawn said, “Thirty seconds.”
Harris rubbed his forehead. “Lieutenant, take your men, prepare to storm aboard. Tawn, when they're across, close that airlock and retract that tube. We'll only have a couple seconds before we have to open up.”
As the Biomarines staged for their assault, the airlock was opened. Seven seconds later the opposite airlock closed, followed by that of the Bangor. The transfer tube retracted, and the small ship lifted off from the hull.
Tawn said, “Railgun is online!”
“Let's rip 'em open!”
Tawn fired and the hum of tungsten rounds exiting the rails was followed by the starboard side of the cruiser caving in on two decks. The Earther ship quickly dropped back, allowing the Bangor to spin up and over the freighter as the second Earther warship withdrew its docking tube. A wormhole opened and the freighter slipped through.
Tawn again squeezed the trigger for the autofeeders of the twin railguns. A steady stream of tungsten ripped into the cruiser's hull as it too powered back, instantly withdrawing from range.
Harris said, “Time for a jump. Wish we hadn't had to do that.”
“Seems to have accomplished what we wanted.”
Harris shook his head. “We just attacked two Earther warships after stealing a freighter that belongs to them. Both lived to talk, and worst of all, it happened in Eden space. Another fifteen seconds and we'd have gotten away, at least to somewhere that was not here. This will get back to Domicile and the media will have a frenzy with it. We may not be going home after this.”
Tawn said, “We could go back and finish them off?”
Harris scowled. “Wish we could. We'd be lucky to get close enough to take a shot now. And I'm sure they've already had comms with those other ships. We may have just flooded Eden space with Earther ships.”
“Still, they can't attack our colony. There's no evidence that the people at our colony were responsible.”
Harris set the coordinates for a wormhole jump. “No, but they got a good close-up look at us. We've been in and out of all the ports in our territory. Everyone knows what this ship looks like and who it belongs to. I'm thinking this caper may not have been worth the cost.”
The Bangor slipped through a wormhole, following the freighter's supposed path. The ship they pursued showed on the nav display.
Tawn said, “It's not moving.”
Harris opened a comm. The lieutenant yelled, “We could use some help over here. They have us pinned aft. We never got to the reactor and they now have control of the bridge. I expect they'll be turning us back any moment.”
Harris replied, “Be there in a sec. Can you get to an airlock?”
“Port side. Deck three. Airlock B.”
Harris nodded. “Give us thirty seconds, then make your move. We'll be there.”
The lieutenant said, “We have two down. Hurt bad.”
Tawn stood. “I'll pull the med-kit.”
As Harris pulled the Bangor alongside, a wormhole began to form in front of the freighter. Harris moved to weapons control. A quick maneuver saw a tungsten round ripping through the forward decks of the massive ore hauler.
The lieutenant yelled, “We just lost pressure in here! Tell me that was you!”
Harris replied, “Had to, they had a portal opening. Move to the airlock. I'm docking now.”
The airlock on the Bangor opened to a rush of air and the Biomarines carried their injured through to the open cabin. Tawn opened the med-kit as the lieutenant and his squad got to work on the casualties.
Harris looked over his shoulder. “The Earthers still in control?”
The lieutenant nodded. “Of all decks but the third.”
“No chance of taking her back?”
The lieutenant shook his head. “Probably a hundred Marines stormed aboard when they connected. Too many for us to stop without some planning. We took down a dozen or so before they pinned us in.”
Harris looked over the image of the damaged freighter on his display. “No way to take control over the comms?”
“They have it blocked out.”
Harris opened a general comm. “Talk to me.”
A voice came back. “You've violated property of the New Earth Empire. You—”
Harris cut the voice off: “Skip the rhetoric. I'm trying to figure out how we can work this out so you live. You have an issue with that?”
The voice replied, “You can leave us here. Our ships will come looking for us.”
Harris scowled. “Not leaving you with that titanium. I may be able to transport you to one of the truce colonies. You'd have to disarm, and it would take a half-dozen trips.”
Tawn looked up. “We don't have that kind of time. Earther ships could be coming this way any moment. They know where we jumped to.”
“I was hoping to get that one extra hop in before that happened.”
The voice came back: “We will not be leaving this cargo. It belongs to us.”
Harris frowned. “You aren't leaving me much of a choice.”
Five wormholes opened where the freighter had initially jumped through. Harris checked the nav display. All five signatures were Earther warships.
Harris flipped the railgun feed to auto and squeezed the trigger. “I did try.”
Hypervelocity tungsten rounds cut through the freighter’s superstructure. The ship shattered from stem to stern. White titanium ore spread out in a cloud, illuminated by a nearby star, as the ship to broke apart. Harris maneuvered the Bangor around the burning and exploding remains as the railgun continued to do its work.
A diversion toward the incoming ship had Tawn standing. “What are you doing? We can't fight those.”
Harris pressed a button on his console. A wormhole opened and the Bangor passed through. As it closed behind them, the threat of the New Earth warships was gone.
Tawn asked, “These men need care. That Domicile?”
“Yes. They'll get the best care here. We can swing by to fill Trish and Gandy in on what's happened.”
“You think it’s safe to go there?”
Harris nodded. “Will take the Earthers a day or two to file a complaint. They'll want to get all the facts in order so they can steer any negotiations in their favor. I just hope we can talk to the admiral while we're here. He might have some suggestions as to how we should proceed.”
The Zwicker class freight shuttle moved through Domicile space and down through the atmosphere. The injured were dropped at a medical facility, along with the remainder of the lieutenant's squad.