The Osprey settled on its landing gear in the Apophis City spaceport two days later. As the boarding ramp lowered, unfolding to touch the concrete, Jax walked down, Rudy behind him.
A black ground car with dark windows and no identification was waiting at the edge of the landing pad they’d been assigned. Mr. Ichiko descended the ramp. “That’s my ride.” He turned and offered his hand to Jax. “I look forward to hearing from you when your errand is completed.”
Jax looked around. “Nice ride. I never did ask, why Themura? If your coop partners are all on Jebidiah?”
The other man nodded once. “Ah, yes.” He made a motion taking in Apophis City beyond the ring wall of the spaceport. “Recruiting. There are a dozen or so private security firms here in Apophis, a few more in Jenkins Township. I’ll hitch a ride to Jebidiah from here once I hear from you.”
Jax shook the man’s hand. “We’ll be in touch.” The other man walked to the car. A door opened and the older man got inside, glancing back at Jax and the others briefly before the door closed and the vehicle departed.
As Ichiko’s car drove away, a heavy ground truck pulled up. A work crew jumped out. The team lead waved. “We’ll get you topped up and ready to go.”
Jax nodded. “Can you flush and recharge the biologicals? I had to do some in-situ work, and well, it’s not my specialty.”
The dark-skinned man nodded. “Sure thing, bub. Will take a few hours.”
Jax looked at the group. “Grab a drink while this fine man and his people work? Maybe there’s a dartboard somewhere?” He grinned. He turned to the ship. “Skip, go ahead and button up. Baxter, you’re on duty.”
“The Empty Keg got a dartboard,” the work team lead said as Jax and the others started off toward the pedestrian exit of the spaceport.
* * *
The Empty Keg was two blocks from the spaceport. “And I thought the Angry Spacer was a shit hole,” Steve said as they entered.
“I’ve never been to Themura,” Kori mused as they made their way to a booth. “What do they do here?” She reached into her pocket and removed her gPhone to look it up.
When they sat, Rudy said, “I’m going to explore. Call if you need me.” He didn’t wait for an answer, rolling off toward the far side of the moderately sized bar. Jax could see at least one droid of unknown age in the corner. It turned at Rudy’s approach. It was the first droid Jax had seen since arriving.
A tall, thin man ambled over to them. “May I take your order?” He was at least two-and-a-half meters tall. Probably from one of the asteroid mining settlements, initially. Even with bone and muscle augmenting meds, he must have been in agony all the time.
Jax opened his mouth, but Naomi spoke first. “You got New Terra Lager?” The man nodded. “Four of those and four shots of tequila.” He looked down at his tablet, then back up. “Food?”
This time Kori spoke. “Basket of fries and a basket of wings.” The server nodded again and left. She placed her gPhone on the table. “So, according to WikiGalaxia, Themura is mostly prairie. There’s only one ocean, freshwater.” She wrinkled her nose. “Apparently full of eels, which are one of the main sources of protein. This colony officially sucks.” She turned to look toward the doorway the droid had exited through. “You don’t think the wings are—?”
“Eels?” Jax offered. “Probably.”
They chatted about nothing in particular for a few minutes before the server returned with their drinks. “Please, enjoy. Your food will be here momentarily.”
Naomi grabbed the shot glass in front of her, motioning to the others to follow suit. She held the drink. “To making a lot of money.” Everyone echoed her toast and downed the shots. Jax looked at the woman, her light brown skin glowing under the dim lighting, one eyebrow raised.
Jax tapped his beer glass on the table to get Kori’s attention. When she looked up, he tilted his head. In the opposite corner of the bar from them, two men had just started playing darts. The two excused themselves as Rudy rolled back to the table. Naomi and Steve eyed the droid before the younger Delphino finally said, “So what’s your deal, Rudy?”
The droid’s matte red head turned to focus its camera pick up on Steve. The lens spun a few times, focusing. “I was born to a poor coal mining family back on Earth in West Virginia. Pa worked the mines. Ma made a little here and there doing laundry and other household work.” When Steve stared blankly at the droid, it said, “What do you think my story is? I’ve been with the Caruso family since before Jax was born. His parents bought me new, upgraded my systems, and I’ve been the family navigator ever since. When they were killed, I was on Kelso with the Osprey , so I became Jax’s navigator.” The lanky server ambled back over with a tray of food. Rudy rolled out of the way, mumbling, “Goobers,” as he did.
The server deposited the food. “Refills on your drinks?”
Steve nodded, not taking his eyes off the dart game. “Yeah, another round.” The man departed.