The Starhawk Chronicles Read online

  Jesse fixed K’Tran with such a calm look that it silenced the elder hunter. Seeing Kym open her mouth to protest, he gave her the same stare. Sighing, she closed her mouth, crossing her arms over her chest, and turning away.

  “I’m going to my quarters for a few minutes,” Jesse said. “Go to the cargo airlock and check out the pod. I’ll be there shortly.” He turned, striding past a gaping Kayla and through the bridge hatchway.

  Kayla could not believe what had just transpired as she watched Forster leave, her mouth open in amazement as no further argument was made to dissuade their captain. When the hatch had shut behind Jesse, she turned in incredulity to the others.

  “That’s it?” she asked, her voice all but a shout. “That’s all the fight you’re going to put up? You’re just all going to sit here and let him walk off to be killed? Everyone’s just okay with this?”

  K’Tran gazed at her, a sad light coming into his gray eyes. “The boy’s made up his mind. Once that happens, there’s nothing anyone can do or say to change it.”

  “Oh, really?” Kayla replied. “We’ll see about that!” Turning, she stormed off in pursuit of Jesse.

  From the co-pilot’s seat, Morogo began chuckling softly. K’Tran gave him an appraising look and nodded. “I know what you’re thinking,” he said. “That girl’s more of a danger to Jesse than the entire Nexus Gang combined.”

  *

  Sitting on his bunk in his quarters, the sole illumination coming from Lohren’s image on the holo-stand, Jesse gazed at the image of his love with mixed emotions. He still missed her terribly, but there was something different about his grief.

  K’Tran had been only partially correct when he said Jesse had a death wish. Month’s ago, he would have been correct. Jesse’s desire to die so that he might be together with Lohren had been great, had eaten away at him like a cancer. The past few days had changed that attitude. He felt that if he did die because of his own reckless abandon, Lohren would be disappointed with him. He loved Lohren far too much to do that.

  So his choice to face Rahk was not one of recklessness and a desire to die. Rather, it was more out of a need for closure than anything else. The game he and Rahk were playing was coming to a head, and it was time for the final roll of the dice. Rahk had been willing to sacrifice his entire crew, his brother included, to win at that game. Jesse was not willing to be so free with the lives of his friends. It was his risk alone, and he did not need to share it with anyone.

  Jesse gazed at the holo for a few more seconds. Lohren’s brown eyes, those eyes that always looked at him with such love in them, also held something that he had not noticed before. Hope. There was a hopeful look in them, as though she were looking at the future. Hope that they would be together again one day. Her last words came back to him once more.

  I love you, Captain Kid.

  “I love you too, Kiddo.”

  They would be together again, but this was not that day. He gathered his thoughts and walked out the door.

  Kayla was approaching the door to Jesse’s cabin when it opened and he nearly walked right into her. The surprise threw her train of thought, causing her to forget the speech she had been rehearsing on the way there. Instead she merely said, “Crazy, ultra brave, or just plain stupid? You tell me. I can’t decide.”

  “Sorry, Kayla,” Jesse answered, trying to push past her. “I really don’t have time for this.”

  “Well, damn it, you can make some time,” she retorted, continuing to block his path. “Do you really think that taking Rahk on like this, on his terms and his ground, is going to make things better?”

  “It will spare my crew,” Jesse replied. “Rahk wants me. He’ll leave you and the others alone.”

  “Oh bull!” she said, her voice rising several decibels. He managed to work his way past her and head for the cargo bay, but she stayed on his heels.

  “You know damn well that Rahk won’t keep any word he’s given. Once he has you onboard, he’ll open fire on us.”

  “Well, I am kind of hoping that you would have the good sense to get out of range once I’m over there,” he said. “I don’t want you guys waiting around in the hopes that you can make some kind of half-assed rescue attempt.”

  “You just don’t get it do you?” she said. “If you go over there, you’re going to die.”

  Jesse gave her a sad, and to Kayla’s way of thinking, resigned look.

  “Good luck to you, Kayla,” he said. “Who knows? Maybe my crew will let you sign on with them officially.”

  With that, he turned away, starting off down the corridor. At first she was tempted to follow him, but stopped as she passed the storage lockers near the airlock. One of them was marked in bold yellow lettering Airlock 2 Storage and below that, Emergency Environmental Suits.

  Kayla paused, the beginnings of a plan forming in her mind, and her face twisted with the faintest whisper of a grin. Captain Kid, you’re going to get some help, she thought to herself. Whether you want it or not.

  ***

  Jesse entered the cargo bay, noting with a small hint of satisfaction that his crew had indeed followed his orders. The training equipment had been moved away, and the cargo hatch set into the deck was open to space. The cargo pod sent by Rahk fit just well enough to allow access to its interior; the rest of the pod lay beyond the protective atmosphere shield.

  Podo looked at him, his dark eyes betraying the conflict of emotions beneath their surface. “I scanned the pod,” he said. “There are no explosives or anything unusual. It looks like Rahk is on the level this time.”

  From where he was leaning against a support post, arms folded across his chest, K’Tran snorted. “Yeah, this time,” he said. The words were leaden with sarcasm.

  Jesse stepped to the pod and opened the hatch, leaning down to peer inside. Everything indeed seemed to be in order, with no sign of tampering. He turned back to his companions, focusing on K’Tran. “You’re in charge until I get back.”

  “Fine,” the older man replied, his tone noncommittal. He continued staring at the opposite bulkhead, refusing to meet Jesse’s gaze.

  Kym stepped forward and embraced her friend, already sobbing. Kissing him on the cheek, she quickly turned away.

  Morogo approached, handing Jesse his gun belt. “Thank you, my friend,” Jesse said. “Any last advice before I go?”

  The Vor’na’cik seemed to consider the question for a moment, then shook his head, and pulled Jesse into a bear hug that threatened to squeeze all the breath from his lungs. When Morogo finally broke the embrace, his eyes were welling with tears. He gave Jesse a playful cuff on the side of the head, then backed away.

  “I wish you all the best of luck, Captain,” Bokschh offered, inclining his head in a bow. Behind him, Sneaker trilled a likewise remark.

  Climbing into the pod, Jesse shared a look with Podo who knelt beside the open hatch. “What do you want me to tell Mom?” he asked.

  “Well, I would hope that you’d wait until something happens before you tell her anything,” Jesse replied, smirking. “I mean, jeez, I haven’t even left the ship yet.”

  Podo chuckled softly. “You’re right. I’ll wait until after we seal the cargo hatch behind you.”

  “That’s more like it,” Reaching up, Jesse gave Podo a playful scratch behind one ear, causing him to purr unconsciously. “Take care, little brother.”

  “You too. I’ll see you when this is all over.” With a last smile, Podo closed and secured the hatch.

  Jesse waved to them through the window of the pod. He had to fight to hold back the wellspring of emotions that fought to break through to the surface. I’m never going to see them again.

  Another thought came to mind as the pod maneuvered away and the Starhawk’s cargo hatch sealed behind him. I wonder where Karson got to?

  ***

  As the craft maneuvered out of the cargo hatch, the atmosphere shield filled the gap left by its departure. The crew watched until the Starhawk’s hull blocked t
he craft from view. With reluctance, Podo shut the outer hull door.

  At that same moment, an alarm began screaming throughout the ship. K’Tran cursed. “That bastard Rahk couldn’t even wait for Jesse to leave before starting his attack.”

  “No,” Bokschh replied. His photoreceptor eyes had gone dim, a sign that he was remotely accessing the ship’s systems. “That is not the battle alert. It is the egress warning siren. Airlock Two has been accessed.”

  “The airlock?” K’Tran gave the drone a look as though it had just blown several microchips. “Who in the hell would be mucking around with an airlock at a time like this?”

  Everyone in the bay fell hushed, and looked from one to the other to the other. Podo gave voice to the question they were all thinking. “Where’s Kayla?”

  Those two words spurred them into motion and they rushed from the cargo bay. Stopping at Airlock Two, the view through the tiny inset window showed the outer door cycling shut. The locker next to it hung open. Kym took a quick inventory. “Three suits,” she said. “There are supposed to be four.”

  Turning as one, they made for the bridge. Podo was the first one to the viewports. “Aw, hell.”

  They crowded around him. Out in the void between Starhawk and Malcontent, they could see the pod carrying Jesse to his rendezvous. Clinging to the back of the vehicle, wearing the missing environmental suit, was Kayla Karson.

  K’Tran sighed, rubbing at his temples, feeling the beginning of a headache coming on. “Here’s where things get interesting.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  As his vehicle approached the Malcontent, Jesse’s heart began pounding with violent ferocity. For the third time in as many minutes, he had to fight back the urge to try taking control of the pod and turning back for the Starhawk. You’ve got to live up to your decision, even if it lasts only a few more minutes because of it.

  The trip took no more than five minutes, but to Jesse, it seemed like forever. A million thoughts raced through his head. He thought of his father, the companionship they had shared. The long, lonely nights when his father had been away on a hunt and Jesse needed someone to talk to. The cold emptiness he felt in the pit of his stomach when he learned of his father’s death, and how he vowed vengeance on the man who had murdered him.

  He thought of Lohren. His heart felt like it would explode the first time he had seen her. She had been the most beautiful thing he had ever seen and he knew they would be together forever. Then she was taken from him so violently.

  That day six months ago had been the worst of his life. Wandering out onto the prairie outside of the Piraxis colony, he had wanted nothing more than to die, so that he could join her. At one point, he had even ended up with the muzzle of his pistol against his temple, but could never bring himself to pull the trigger. How he had survived the weeks after that, he still did not know.

  The Malcontent filled the pod’s entire viewport now. With the docking bay looming ahead, Jesse did a quick check of his weapons, making sure they were fully charged. He swallowed down the lump of fear rising in his throat.

  In the last minutes before docking, he marveled at the events of the past two weeks. He had gone from deep despair at the news of the Nexus Gang’s escape, to almost total elation and enjoyment of the hunt back on Piraxis Three. Though he was loathe to admit it, he knew a big reason for that change was Karson. The young huntress had challenged him, had forced him to pick himself out of his pit of self-loathing. Unlike his other companions, she had not been afraid to tell him when he was making an ass of himself. If he was doing something foolhardy, she flat out told him, as she had in the corridor only a few moments before.

  Now, as the pod passed through the docking bay’s atmosphere barrier, Jesse wished he had listened to her. Moreover, he had wished she were there with him. At that moment, he could think of no one better to watch his back.

  The pod settled gently to the deck, and Jesse saw the insectoid figure of Tesk approaching from the docking control booth. Though the Mantilorian bore no weapon, Jesse still drew one of his pistols as he popped the hatch and exited the vehicle.

  “Welcome, Captain Forster,” Tesk clicked at him as he stopped a respectful distance away. “Do not fear. I shall not be the one to harm you.”

  “I know,” Jesse answered. “You’re saving that honor for your master. So where is he? I want to get this over with.”

  Tesk uncurled one of his clawed forearms, pointing to a hatch off to Jesse’s right. “He awaits you further in. He looks forward to meeting with you.”

  “I’ll bet.” Jesse snorted, turning away from the creature and, with his best confident swagger, strode off in the direction indicated. He paused at the hatchway, however, long enough to draw in a deep, shuddering breath, and hoped the Mantilorian had not noticed his trepidation. Despite his orders, Tesk might well decide to attack if he sensed any fear from Jesse. Fighting Rahk was going to be difficult enough without having to fend off any secondary assault.

  The hatchway opened, and Jesse stepped through into the corridor that lay beyond. The first thing that he noticed was the stench, a cross somewhere between rotting garbage and an animal’s den. A fitting analogy, since the animals that comprised the Nexus Gang were the worst kind of garbage the galaxy had to contend with.

  The lighting in the corridor was dim, but Jesse found that as no surprise. He and Rahk were hunting each other now, and he was sure Rahk, with his superior night vision, wanted to make sure conditions worked against Jesse.

  One thing that did surprise him was the cold. Kleezha came from a hot and very humid planet, and generally tried to reproduce the environmental conditions of their home world whenever aboard ships. The conditions aboard Malcontent however were the exact opposite. It was humid all right, but with a chill that cut right into the bones.

  It was like being inside a tomb.

  Jesse was certain that this had been intentional as well. After all, Rahk wanted Jesse to feel at home, since his grave would be very cold indeed.

  Shaking off the feeling of dread that threatened to overcome him, he pressed onward.

  Rahk pressed the cutoff switch on the communicator built into his cybernetic right arm. Tesk’s signal that Forster was onboard was unnecessary. He already knew, without monitoring the pod’s progress that his enemy had kept his word and come over to the Malcontent.

  With a sigh, Rahk adjusted the specially modified life monitor around his left wrist. Should Forster be the victor in this coming battle, he would find that a nasty surprise awaited him. The possibility was slim, but Rahk wanted to be certain, nonetheless.

  He settled back into the shadows, and waited for Forster to approach.

  *

  Kayla had clung to the back of the work pod as long as she dared, until the little vehicle was nearly at the opening to the docking bay. Then, just before it breached the containment shield, she pushed off, flipping herself head over heels and landing feet first on the underside of the corvette’s hull, the magnetic soles on her boots preventing her from ricocheting off into the void beyond.

  She paused for the briefest moment, fighting the waves of nausea that threatened to overcome her from the loss of equilibrium that always accompanied zero-gee maneuvering. As the sensation passed, she made her way to the very edge of the docking bay perimeter and stealthily peered in.

  The pod had landed and Forster was climbing out. The Mantilorian Tesk met with him, there was a brief exchange, and they parted company. They disappeared through two separate hatchways.

  She waited another minute before grabbing onto the side of the ship and heaving herself up through the atmosphere shield. There was the slightest hint of resistance as she passed through the energy barrier, and then she was inside.

  Kayla stood quietly a moment, again waiting for the side effects of her extravehicular activities to pass. Her head spun slightly, and she closed her eyes as she removed her helmet, shaking away the last of the disorientation, taking a look around. The bay was as
still as the void of space, the only sound the distant hum of the environmental recirculators. She ran to a set of storage lockers along one wall, stripping off her space suit as she went. In combat, the bulky metallic coveralls would only serve to slow her down. Jamming the suit into one of the lockers, she made certain it was shut tight, so that should Tesk return, there would be no hint of anything awry.

  Giving a quick check of the power supply on the small holdout pistol she tucked into the back of her belt, she pulled her taser staff from its sheath on her back. Gripping the weapon lightly in both hands, she exited the bay through the same door that Jesse had taken.

  *

  “Can you get a reading on either of them yet?” K’Tran asked, pacing the bridge of the Starhawk. For ten minutes he had paced, then sat in Jesse’s command chair, then sprang back to his feet and continued pacing again. The waiting was torture to him, as it was to the rest of the crew, and he felt that if something did not happen soon, he would scream so loudly that the sound would shatter the viewports.

  “Nothing,” Bokschh replied. “As soon as the pod entered range, the corvette’s shields went up. I am reading neither the Captain, nor Miss Karson.”

  K’Tran halted his pacing and, rather than sit in Jesse’s seat, moved instead to the gunnery chair. Pulling the scope down in front of him, he turned it until he had Malcontent targeted.

  “What are you doing?” Kym asked.

  “Insurance,” the hunter replied. “Jesse may think that Kleezha filth will keep his word, but I’m not so trusting. That ship makes one wrong move, I’m gonna open it up like a can of brill worms.” He gripped the firing controls tightly, so no one could see his hands shaking.

  In silence, the five of them stared out at the Malcontent, watching, waiting.