It continued for the first few months of the semester. Some days were worse than others and she could barely stand after the training sessions. The instructors weren’t concerned. “You’ll either get used to it or fail the classes,” they said. The doctors gave her some medicine to control the nausea, but it didn’t help and she stopped taking it after the first week.Once again, Nora kept her from giving up. “You can’t give in,” she said. “You’ll get over this.”And once again, she was right. By the end of the semester, Cierra wasn’t getting sick any more. She still had some difficulty with the practical aspects of flying, but she was getting better. She was now at the average, not just barely passing by.The ship almost seemed to be catching up to what she was trying to get it to do.***Cierra was lucky enough to be one of the first to take her final in the piloting class. She did well enough and passed, then was dismissed early. She hurried home to share the good news with Nora.“Nora, I’m home! I passed the final and - ”Her jaw dropped. Nora was standing in the middle of the bedroom, her eyes wide, with the uniform of an Intaki Family Style Restaurant halfway off.“Nora, what are you wearing?”Nora sighed. “I didn’t think you’d be home so early,” she said, finishing stripping off the uniform.Cierra frowned. “What? Why? Are you working at an IFSR?”“Yes,” Nora said as she started dressing in normal clothes. “While you’ve been at classes, I work at the IFSR.”Cierra shook her head. “But, you have classes then too.”“No,” Nora answered. “I don’t. I haven’t had any classes in almost a year.”“What?” Cierra sat down on the bed and shook her head again. “Why? Are you out of money?” She nodded, to herself more than anything. “You couldn’t pay for your tuition so you started working at the IFSR to pay for it?”“No,” Nora said again, sitting beside Cierra. “I’m sorry Cierra. I dropped out. I quit.”“What? But… why?”“I couldn’t do it, Cierra. I wasn’t good enough. I wasn’t smart enough. I was failing my classes. So I dropped out. I’ve been working at the IFSR for six months now. Whenever you went to class, I went there. I guess you had to find out eventually.”Cierra bolted up. “You dropped out? But… But I saw you doing homework!”“I was lying to you. It was all a lie. I’m sorry. But I couldn’t stand to tell you the truth. I’m sorry.”“So, you gave up? All that stuff about sticking with it and not quitting, you were just lying to me?”“No!” Nora stood up too and took Cierra by the shoulders, but Cierra quickly shrugged her off. “No, Cierra, I wasn’t lying. You can make it! Just because I was failing doesn’t mean you will! You can do it. I believe in you. I mean, you made it this far, didn’t you?”Cierra shook her head. “I…” She wiped at her eyes and turned and walked out without another word.***Eventually, Cierra came back and found Nora seemingly asleep. Cierra lay down on the couch and tried to fall asleep herself.Neither of them actually slept a bit.***The next day, Cierra went in for her pod implant surgery. It was early. Normally, they would have waited until just before the next semester started, but they had an opening and she insisted on it. The surgery went well.Nora visited her as she recovered. “How are you doing?” she asked.“I’m fine,” Cierra said. “A little sore, but it’ll fade soon.”“That’s not what I meant, but I’m glad to hear it.”“I really need my rest.” Nora sighed and laid a hand on Cierra’s arm, but she cringed dramatically at the touch. “Don’t do that, I just told you I’m sore!”“Cierra, please.”“I need to get some sleep.” She rolled over and closed her eyes. Nora sat down in the chair and waited until the nurses told her visiting hours were over.
***Nora didn’t try to visit again. Cierra stayed until she was well enough to get her pod pilot test done, which was a week longer than most people stayed following the surgery. Luckily, they scheduled the tests year-round, to help meet the demand.“Are you sure you’re ready?” the instructor asked her.“Yes,” she said. “I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”The instructor nodded and she was hooked up to the pod interface. As the machine lifted her up, she slowly breathed in and out, just as she’d been taught in her classes. She tried to block out everything but herself. She barely felt it as she was lowered into the warm pod fluid.For a brief second, she was floating in nothingness, then reality flared around her. For a moment, she was dazed. Everything felt more real than it ever had. She could feel every little molecule of air, brushing against her skin, such as it was.“Oh my goodness,” she sighed.“Yes, it feels good,” the instructor said. “Congratulations. Now we need to run a few tests.”“Whatever you say,” she said. Her head was swimming. It was almost too much for her to bear. But she bore it and listened to the instructor’s commands.After a few minutes, he gave the ok. “You can come out. You passed all those tests with flying colors.”Her conscience was stolen from her and when it returned, it was lessened. But the memory of it was still there. She was placed back onto the floor and she took a deep breath.When she stood up, she saw Nora there. “I’m a pod pilot!” Cierra squealed. “I did it!” She ran and threw her arms around Nora.“Congratulations,” Nora said, hugging her tightly back.
Saturday, 7 February 2009
The Birth of a Pod Pilot part 3:
“Being at 83% does put you at increased risk of these things. You’re about twice as likely to suffer mind lock, about five times as likely to just reject the implants altogether. The former means permanent paralysis. The later means you’ve wasted all the training time. Are you willing to accept these risks?”“I am,” Cierra said. “I want to be a pod pilot. I have ever since I was a little girl.”The admissions officer looked down at her shirt, which was a vintage Pod Heroes tee. “You do know you don’t actually turn into a spaceship, right?”She smiled. “Of course.”He smiled back and extended his hand. “Welcome aboard.”***The next semester, Cierra began her training. There were hundreds of others looking forward to becoming pod pilots in her classes alone. Supposedly, there were thousands others just at the campus she was at. Most of them wouldn’t make it. There was no guarantee that Cierra would ever make it either.Most of the classes were surprisingly standard, she found. Of the six she was taking, four could have just been regular courses at the university. They focused on mathematics and science and philosophy and biology. The math and science classes were advanced, for sure, but nothing too far out of the ordinary.“We’re learning the same things in our High Energy Physics course,” Nora told her while watching her do homework one night. “But I can’t really understand it that much.”“It’s not so hard,” Cierra said. “Besides, if you don’t get it, you won’t be able to become a research scientist. If you want help, I’ll be glad to tutor you.”Nora smirked. “I just wish I could steal part of your brain for my tests.”Cierra smiled and put a hand on Nora’s shoulder, which Nora covered with her own. “Don’t worry, you’ll get it,” Cierra said. “And trust me, the other classes I have are worse. That philosophy class is out there.”“What’s it about?”“What do you think? The philosophy of being a pod pilot. Of dealing with what it means to turn yourself into a spaceship and of being cloned. I think it’s all a load of baloney, but there are some students who really get into it. I swear, some people in that class seem like they’re there only to talk about their creepy fantasies.”Nora chuckled. “What, are they getting way to into describing how the ship docks and undocks?”“What, did you come and see today’s lecture?” Cierra asked.Nora playfully swatted at her. “Oh, shut up.”“And the biology class… Well, let’s just say that it’s a little weird seeing the where they put the implants and what they pull out so that they can put them in there.”“You know, you really don’t need a spleen these days. Especially if you’re going to be in a pod all day long.”“Then there’s the breathing class.”Nora raised an eyebrow. “Breathing class?”“Yeah,” Cierra said. “They teach you how to breathe and calm yourself down and basically… well, concentrate and center yourself. Sort of like meditation, I guess. It’s supposed to help you free yourself of distractions.”“What sort of distractions. What, ‘Oh no! Look out, it’s a Raven coming off my starboard!’”Cierra grinned. “Yeah, pretty much. That and, ‘Oh no! I’m having a missile shot up my ass. Ooh, boy, that really smarts!’”Nora raised both eyebrows. “Well, it could be worse. They could try, you know, simulating that experience for you.”Cierra rolled her eyes. “I think you’re a big enough pain in the ass for me to handle, Nora. Now come on, I’ve gotta finish this homework.”***Cierra had no issues with her first semester of pod pilot training. She watched others fail out; not because the material was too difficult for them, but because it wasn’t the fast track to excitement that they’d hoped. More than a few simply stopped showing up to class once they realized it’d take years to be fully trained. Cierra even felt like that a few times, but Nora was always there to keep her in line.
The second semester started well also. She and Nora moved off campus to their own apartment, which had benefits like more living space and enough room for a really big bed. Her classes also focused more on pod training, with Cierra learning the basics of spaceship piloting and putting the mathematical and scientific knowledge she’d learned the previous semester to work on pod-related matters like calculating trajectories and navigational corrections.The biggest change was the beginning of actual piloting courses. She went to the simulator every day and flew practice missions. They were exciting and she enjoyed them, but they actually gave her problems. She failed missions more than once, while other people passed them easily.One night, she was sitting at home, staring at a computer monitor. “Ugh,” she groaned after her ship once again failed to make the cargo run in time. “This is impossible!”Nora peeked into the room. “What’s wrong?” she asked.“This homework. They sent us some training missions we have to complete,” Cierra peered at the screen. “I have to make a cargo run through a deadspace complex in the allotted time. But there’s an asteroid field right in the middle! When I try to go through it, I always crash and die. When I try to go around, I can’t finish in time!” She ran her hands through her hair. “It’s driving me crazy!”Nora put her hands on Cierra’s shoulders. “Hey, don’t get so frustrated. You’ll get it, trust me.”“That’s the problem! I’m not getting it,” she sighed. “I don’t get any worse, but I don’t get any better either. These are supposed to be simple missions too. But I’m barely getting by. It’s always like I’m moving too fast for my ship to respond. I try to slow down, but it just feels… sluggish then, and I still mess up.”“Hey, as long as you get by, right? As long as you pass, you can move on.”Cierra rested her head against the desk. “Maybe. But if it gets harder and I don’t improve, I won’t pass. And my instructors are worthless. They don’t care about helping me out. They want people to fail, so that there’ll be less of us next semester!”“You’re too tense,” Nora said, squeezing Cierra’s shoulders gently. “You’re just getting frustrated because it’s not coming easy to you. The math and science was simple, because that was all simple brain power. But now you have to train your reflexes and hand-eye coordination, so it’s not so easy.”“You’re right,” Cierra said into the desk. “Maybe I should give up. I just don’t have those skills. I’ll never be a pod pilot!”“Don’t say that!” Nora gasped. “You will too. Believe me. You’re amazing, Cierra. You can do it. If you’re behind the curve a little, so what? The instructors don’t care about that, either. You’ll catch up eventually.”“I guess…”“Come on, you just need some rest. It’s getting late. Let’s go to bed.”“Alright.”***Nora was right, of course. Eventually, Cierra did catch up. She never got better than adequate, but that was good enough for the instructors, especially coupled with the high grades she got in the other classes. They were especially impressed by her perfect grade in the Meditative Concentration class (although that was due more to attendance. Anyone who showed up more than half the time passed the class).Her third semester started with more difficulty. They began true simulations, designed to really separate those who belonged from those who didn’t. They simulated pod implants using sophisticated electrodes and a few minor, temporary implants. The first time they hooked her up, Cierra threw up. She was nauseous for the rest of the day, even when she went home. Nora spent most of the night holding her hair back and she was doubled over the toilet.“This brings back memories,” Nora had joked. “Shut up,” Cierra choked out between heaves. “You’re making me laugh and that makes it - hurp!”
The second semester started well also. She and Nora moved off campus to their own apartment, which had benefits like more living space and enough room for a really big bed. Her classes also focused more on pod training, with Cierra learning the basics of spaceship piloting and putting the mathematical and scientific knowledge she’d learned the previous semester to work on pod-related matters like calculating trajectories and navigational corrections.The biggest change was the beginning of actual piloting courses. She went to the simulator every day and flew practice missions. They were exciting and she enjoyed them, but they actually gave her problems. She failed missions more than once, while other people passed them easily.One night, she was sitting at home, staring at a computer monitor. “Ugh,” she groaned after her ship once again failed to make the cargo run in time. “This is impossible!”Nora peeked into the room. “What’s wrong?” she asked.“This homework. They sent us some training missions we have to complete,” Cierra peered at the screen. “I have to make a cargo run through a deadspace complex in the allotted time. But there’s an asteroid field right in the middle! When I try to go through it, I always crash and die. When I try to go around, I can’t finish in time!” She ran her hands through her hair. “It’s driving me crazy!”Nora put her hands on Cierra’s shoulders. “Hey, don’t get so frustrated. You’ll get it, trust me.”“That’s the problem! I’m not getting it,” she sighed. “I don’t get any worse, but I don’t get any better either. These are supposed to be simple missions too. But I’m barely getting by. It’s always like I’m moving too fast for my ship to respond. I try to slow down, but it just feels… sluggish then, and I still mess up.”“Hey, as long as you get by, right? As long as you pass, you can move on.”Cierra rested her head against the desk. “Maybe. But if it gets harder and I don’t improve, I won’t pass. And my instructors are worthless. They don’t care about helping me out. They want people to fail, so that there’ll be less of us next semester!”“You’re too tense,” Nora said, squeezing Cierra’s shoulders gently. “You’re just getting frustrated because it’s not coming easy to you. The math and science was simple, because that was all simple brain power. But now you have to train your reflexes and hand-eye coordination, so it’s not so easy.”“You’re right,” Cierra said into the desk. “Maybe I should give up. I just don’t have those skills. I’ll never be a pod pilot!”“Don’t say that!” Nora gasped. “You will too. Believe me. You’re amazing, Cierra. You can do it. If you’re behind the curve a little, so what? The instructors don’t care about that, either. You’ll catch up eventually.”“I guess…”“Come on, you just need some rest. It’s getting late. Let’s go to bed.”“Alright.”***Nora was right, of course. Eventually, Cierra did catch up. She never got better than adequate, but that was good enough for the instructors, especially coupled with the high grades she got in the other classes. They were especially impressed by her perfect grade in the Meditative Concentration class (although that was due more to attendance. Anyone who showed up more than half the time passed the class).Her third semester started with more difficulty. They began true simulations, designed to really separate those who belonged from those who didn’t. They simulated pod implants using sophisticated electrodes and a few minor, temporary implants. The first time they hooked her up, Cierra threw up. She was nauseous for the rest of the day, even when she went home. Nora spent most of the night holding her hair back and she was doubled over the toilet.“This brings back memories,” Nora had joked. “Shut up,” Cierra choked out between heaves. “You’re making me laugh and that makes it - hurp!”
The Birth of a Pod Pilot Part 2:
He didn’t seem to pick up on her demeaning inflection. “Awesome. We’ll have to talk about it later. I have the whole series on reels. Even the unaired episode and the movie! Did you ever see the movie?”“Uh,” Cierra said, glancing over at Nora, “no. Never saw it.”“Oh, maybe you can come over and watch it some time. It was awesome!”Nora laughed and Cierra smirked as well. “Yeah, maybe,” she said. They had already arrived at the Easy Times, but the boy was about to drive past. “Stop here!” Cierra shouted.The car slammed to a halt and Nora and Cierra were already jumping out of the car. “But I have to find a place to park!” he said.“We’ll see you inside!” Nora shouted right as she slammed the door shut. The two of them ran up to the front of the line waiting to get in.“Hi Louis!” Cierra shouted to the bouncer, who smiled, nodded, and let her pass without a word.***That night, Cierra and Nora stumbled back to Cierra’s house at well past midnight. The two didn’t make any effort to stay quiet and bumped into things and were giggling hysterically as they clumsily lurched around.“Hey honey,” Cierra’s father said from the kitchen, where he sat with his eyes closed and head leaning back. “Did you have fun tonight?”“Yeah dad,” she said. “Hey, uh… Nora wansht to stay over t’night. Sthat ok?”“That’s fine.” He cracked an eye open and looked at Nora, who was swaying back and forth. “Is she alright?”“Yesh!” Cierra said. “She’s just… She’s a little sick. We’re goin’ ta bed.”“Goodnight honey. Your mother’s sleeping, so try not to make too much noise.”“Whatever! We’re goin’! Come on Nora!” She grabbed Nora’s arm and pulled her down the hallway toward her room.***The next day, Cierra and Nora woke up late and eventually went to school, two periods late. None of the teachers bothered to ask them where they’d been, why they were late, or why they looked so sick.Toward the end of the day, the boy who’d driven them to the club came up to them. “Hey, what happened to you two last night?”“What do you mean?” Nora asked.“After I parked, I came looking for you, but they made me wait in line for almost an hour before I got in!” he said. “And then when I got inside, I couldn’t find you at all!”“Oh, we went into the back,” Cierra said.“They wouldn’t let me in there to look for you.”“Yeah, my dad did some stuff for the owner,” Cierra said. “So we get to go into the back.”“Sorry,” Nora said, halfheartedly.The boy frowned and grumbled. “Well, maybe next time,” he said.“Uh huh,” Cierra answered, already forgetting about him.***Cierra managed to coast through high school, thanks in part to the apathy of the teachers and their unwillingness to challenge any students on any issue. She managed to accumulate a lot of friends who’d hold her hair back over a toilet, but not much else.She and Nora drifted slightly over the years. They were still friends, of sorts. But Nora’s parents pressed her to better herself. They punished her when she stepped out of line and, eventually, she stopped doing it. She still managed to have fun, sometimes even with Cierra, but it was much more restrained than before.She never thought about college during school, but having graduated, she now went about the task of getting into college. Luckily, her parents had plenty of money and the University of Caille had a low barrier of entry. Nora ended up going to the University as well, though her grades helped her get in at a lower rate.With the two faced with the prospect of living with new roommates, they gravitated back toward each other and got a dorm room together. In their first semester, Nora quickly came to regret this.Cierra took college as a further opportunity to party. She ditched most of her classes, spent most of her nights drinking, and on the nights she came home did so at late hours when Nora was trying to sleep.
The end of the semester didn’t come fast enough for Nora. She was eager to get away from Cierra. But on the next-to-last day before their break Cierra came back to the room uncharacteristically early with tears in her eyes.“I’m failing all my classes!” she said.Nora was flabbergasted. “You never went to class, never studdied, and never did any work. What did you expect?”“It wasn’t like this in high school!” Cierra wailed.“This isn’t high school,” Nora said with a sigh. “This isn’t the best university, but you do have to do some work to get by.”“My academic advisor told me if I didn’t pass all my classes next semester, I’m going to get kicked out.” she said. “Nora, I need help.”Nora sighed. “Alright, Cierra. I’ll help you. But you have to stop partying so much and stop coming in so late. Alright?”“Ok, I’ll do whatever you tell me. I promise.”***To Nora’s great surprise, Cierra lived up to her promise. She didn’t stop partying all together, but she kept it to the weekends. She managed to get in on weeknights before midnight without fail. And she actually studied, went to class, and did work.To Nora’s shock, she actually did well. Very well. When she got a 90% or better on all her midterms, Nora was floored. “I can’t believe you did so well!”Cierra looked a little hurt. “Why wouldn’t I? They were all easy.”Nora shook her head. “Cierra, I took some of these classes last semester. With the same professors. Like, in the Advanced Physics class, I got a seventy on my midterm. You got a ninety-three!”Cierra shrugged. “Well… Maybe it was because you were helping me.”“I never tutored you. I just made sure you studied and did your homework.” Nora shook her head. “Cierra… You never studied in high school, but you still passed. And now that you’re actually doing work in college, you’re doing great.”“So?”“Maybe you just needed to try. You could do… well, could do anything.”“Anything?” Cierra asked, suddenly looking awestruck.“Well, yeah. Anything, I guess. Right now, you’re just taking general classes. But what do you want to do, Cierra? What do you want to do with your life? Now’s the time to choose.”Cierra responded almost immediately. “I want to be a pod pilot.”***“Well,” her advisor said, looking at her records. “You don’t really have a history of grades showing you’d be eligible to become a pod pilot. It requires a lot of training and hard work.”“Yes, but this semester, I’ve actually been trying,” Cierra said. “I finally decided to apply myself. And I think that if I really had a challenge - like becoming a pod pilot would be - that I’d really shine.”The advisor nodded. “Well, Cierra, that’s admirable. But you need to understand that becoming a pod pilot isn’t just - ”“My parents are going to pay the full tuition,” she said.The advisor paused a moment, then slowly nodded. “Well… It can’t hurt to run the tests. You’ll also have to have an interview with a capsuleer admissions officer. We can set that up now, if you like…”***The interview with the capsuleer admissions officer went well. He agreed that Cierra hadn’t been challenged. “I see it all the time,” he said. “Some of the Federation’s best capsuleers didn’t realize what they could achieve until they really challenged themselves. Did you know Admiral Noir was only a yeoman most of his service in the war? But once he became a capsuleer, he really took off. That’s when he became an admiral, you know.”“Yeah, I learned that in school,” Cierra said.“As far as I’m concerned, you’re in,” the officer said. “But there is just one thing…”“What’s that?”“Well, your genetic scan came back at 83% compatible. That’s within allowable ranges. Usually, we do the cutoff at 75%. Anyone below that is simply not allowed to take up the training because of the risks of rejection or mind lock. And even a totally clean scan is not a guarantee against mind lock.”“So is there any problem?”
The end of the semester didn’t come fast enough for Nora. She was eager to get away from Cierra. But on the next-to-last day before their break Cierra came back to the room uncharacteristically early with tears in her eyes.“I’m failing all my classes!” she said.Nora was flabbergasted. “You never went to class, never studdied, and never did any work. What did you expect?”“It wasn’t like this in high school!” Cierra wailed.“This isn’t high school,” Nora said with a sigh. “This isn’t the best university, but you do have to do some work to get by.”“My academic advisor told me if I didn’t pass all my classes next semester, I’m going to get kicked out.” she said. “Nora, I need help.”Nora sighed. “Alright, Cierra. I’ll help you. But you have to stop partying so much and stop coming in so late. Alright?”“Ok, I’ll do whatever you tell me. I promise.”***To Nora’s great surprise, Cierra lived up to her promise. She didn’t stop partying all together, but she kept it to the weekends. She managed to get in on weeknights before midnight without fail. And she actually studied, went to class, and did work.To Nora’s shock, she actually did well. Very well. When she got a 90% or better on all her midterms, Nora was floored. “I can’t believe you did so well!”Cierra looked a little hurt. “Why wouldn’t I? They were all easy.”Nora shook her head. “Cierra, I took some of these classes last semester. With the same professors. Like, in the Advanced Physics class, I got a seventy on my midterm. You got a ninety-three!”Cierra shrugged. “Well… Maybe it was because you were helping me.”“I never tutored you. I just made sure you studied and did your homework.” Nora shook her head. “Cierra… You never studied in high school, but you still passed. And now that you’re actually doing work in college, you’re doing great.”“So?”“Maybe you just needed to try. You could do… well, could do anything.”“Anything?” Cierra asked, suddenly looking awestruck.“Well, yeah. Anything, I guess. Right now, you’re just taking general classes. But what do you want to do, Cierra? What do you want to do with your life? Now’s the time to choose.”Cierra responded almost immediately. “I want to be a pod pilot.”***“Well,” her advisor said, looking at her records. “You don’t really have a history of grades showing you’d be eligible to become a pod pilot. It requires a lot of training and hard work.”“Yes, but this semester, I’ve actually been trying,” Cierra said. “I finally decided to apply myself. And I think that if I really had a challenge - like becoming a pod pilot would be - that I’d really shine.”The advisor nodded. “Well, Cierra, that’s admirable. But you need to understand that becoming a pod pilot isn’t just - ”“My parents are going to pay the full tuition,” she said.The advisor paused a moment, then slowly nodded. “Well… It can’t hurt to run the tests. You’ll also have to have an interview with a capsuleer admissions officer. We can set that up now, if you like…”***The interview with the capsuleer admissions officer went well. He agreed that Cierra hadn’t been challenged. “I see it all the time,” he said. “Some of the Federation’s best capsuleers didn’t realize what they could achieve until they really challenged themselves. Did you know Admiral Noir was only a yeoman most of his service in the war? But once he became a capsuleer, he really took off. That’s when he became an admiral, you know.”“Yeah, I learned that in school,” Cierra said.“As far as I’m concerned, you’re in,” the officer said. “But there is just one thing…”“What’s that?”“Well, your genetic scan came back at 83% compatible. That’s within allowable ranges. Usually, we do the cutoff at 75%. Anyone below that is simply not allowed to take up the training because of the risks of rejection or mind lock. And even a totally clean scan is not a guarantee against mind lock.”“So is there any problem?”
The Birth of a Pod Pilot.
In the final installment of Birth of a Pod Pilot, we see the path a Gallente takes to become a pod pilot. Even in the Federation, the path to becoming a pod pilot is fraught with potential loss and hardship. In Cierra, we find a young woman who has to rediscover a dream and face her own self-doubt to make it.—Cierra lay on her stomach, kicking her feet in the air behind her. She watched the holovid with rapt attention. It was one of the newest sensations that was sweeping the ranks of the Federation’s pre-teens. It was Pod Heroes, the cartoon featuring three scrappy young pod pilots - a Gallente, an Intaki, and a Minmatar - teaming up to fight the evil Amarr Empire and their pirate allies.The show wasn’t factually accurate (the oldest Pod Hero was fifteen, the “Minmatar” was a generic mix of a Brutor, Sebiestor, and Krusual, the Rabbit was an actual rabbit, and all the pod pilots actually transformed into ships), but Cierra didn’t know any of that. She sang happily along with the theme song during the transformation scenes and didn’t even breathe when the Amarr Emperor unleashed his Deadly Doomsday Laser on the heroes.When the show was over, she ran into the kitchen and grabbed her mother’s leg. “Mommy, I’m gonna be a pod pilot when I grow up!” she squealed.“That’s nice, honey,” her mother said, not sparing a glance away from her own holovid shows. “Mommy’s busy. Go back and watch your show.”“Ok.”***By the time CONCORD passed legislation opening pod technology to the general public, Cierra had outgrown Pod Heroes. She was fourteen now and had friends and classes to deal with. She sat around a lunch table with twelve of her closest friends, exchanging gossip.“Did you guys see Laren Hoff on Vice last night? Oh my goodness!”“I got the new Midna album! It’s the best thing ever! I want to be just like her.”“So did Femi Baneui call you yet?”“Yeah, I know, it’s just the best thing ever! I wonder when she’s coming this way?”“No, not yet.”“I did! When he got out of the pool, I screamed so loud my parents came to yell at me!”“What’s wrong with him? He’s such a loser!”The back and forth was a bit overwhelming for Cierra. Though the girls were all her friends - all their time was spent with at least someone else from the group - she had never quite gotten into the gossip sessions. She usually kept quiet during them, only nodding or offering a simple answer whenever someone addressed her directly.“Hey, Cierra,” Nora asked. Of all the girls, Nora was the one closest to Cierra. The two spent most of their waking hours together. “You wanna go to the Easy Times tonight?”The Easy Times was a popular club for teens that played popular music and sold fake alcoholic drinks - though if you knew who to talk to you could get real ones. And Cierra did know. “Yeah, sure!”“Your parents gonna be ok with it?”She shrugged. “They won’t care.”***Cierra and Nora hitched a ride to the Easy Times that night with one of the older boys at school. Neither of them knew him, but he had a car and didn’t seem to care. The two girls huddled in the back seat, leaving the passenger seat empty. “So, you two been to the Easy Times before?” he asked them.“Uh, yeah, all the time,” Nora answered.“Cool, cool. I’ve never been, really,” he said.The two looked at each other and rolled there eyes. “Yeah, you should totally go some time,” Cierra said.“Uh, yeah. I’m doing that now,” he said.“Oh, right,” Nora said. The two girls giggled to each other and whispered back and forth.Cierra noticed something dangling from the boy’s rear view mirror. “Hey, is that a Pod Heroes ornament?” she asked.The boy’s eyes lit up as he looked back at them. “Yeah, it is!” he said with too much excitement. “Do you like it?”“I used to,” she said. “When I was, like, eight or something.”
The Pawn - Part One: Queen’s Gambit Accepted
The Place: Just outside Propadio, Tannakan I, The Bleak LandsThe Time: Yulai Convention 12.06.110 - EST 18:13
Drevek was still trying very hard to unravel this confusing mess and thought back to the day he had taken this damned job on.
His own words echoed through his head for the hundredth time. “If it is such a simple task then why is there such a high reward?”
The laugh had been too perfectly timed, too well rehearsed. “Well I guess I should have said simple for a man of your calibre.” The best holo-reel touch-up artists could have painted the accompanying wry smile on.
The question had clearly been expected and the response carefully prepared. Hell the whole conversation had been scripted before he’d even walked through the door. Why had he fallen for it so easily? Because he had needed the money of course. He should have smelt the rat but the smell of the money was stronger.
But in any case that was history and right now he had more immediate concerns. The harsh bark of a hound and muffled voices forced him to ignore his aching limbs. He crawled from his hiding place in a thicket of Asdeth bushes, stirring the sweet, sickly smell of their pollen, which he had hoped would hide his own scent. Striking a compromise between speed and stealth he headed back along the track for a few hundred meters, branched off in the direction of the port then doubled back once again making a crossroads of scent trails in an attempt to confuse the hounds.
Arcing round in a wide semi-circle to head back toward the port he decided to go as fast as he could, hoping to reach the river before the guard caught him up. Slaver hounds were well known for their incredible sense of smell but even they couldn’t track a scent across moving water. The guard were making plenty of noise themselves so he could risk making a bit of his own.
As he reached the river he heard the hounds and the voices of their handlers far too clearly behind him and it became obvious his attempts to confuse had not been as successful as he had hoped. Slipping into the icy water he stifled a gasp as it enveloped his groin and pushed away from the bank into the strong flow. He let it carry him downstream for a while expending energy only to keep afloat and stop his limbs from going numb.
He could see the tall buildings and smokestacks of Propadio spaceport only a couple of kilometres away, so near yet so far. Spotting movement in the trees ahead he realised the guard were downstream of him as well as upstream. Hope began to slip away as fast as his body temperature but the voice of his navy academy trainer, Flight Sergeant Baston, came back into his head “It ain’t over till the fat lady sings.”
“Get out of my head traitor!”
But “Boss Man” Baston would not leave “I’m not going anywhere without my towel sonny boy.” His often bizarre phrases came from his beloved collection of movies, allegedly made millennia before holo-reels were invented, which he’d delighted in revealing to his star pupil. Drevek had never even known such things existed and he had never encountered them since.
Recalling a scene from one of these funny old 2D movies featuring a derring-do hero by the name of James Bond, the name of which escaped him at that point, he gently broke a reed and sinking beneath the surface of the water used it as a breathing pipe.
Boss Man’s voice came back into his head again, “Someday, somehow I’ll make this up to you Drevek.”
“I never imagined this is what you had in mind.”
The movement of the water refracted the shapes of the two men and the hound standing at the riverbank above him peering straight down at Drevek. He knew the distortion would be worse from above the water and the guards were shielding their eyes from the light of the setting sun bouncing off the water’s surface so he stayed as still as he could. He couldn’t quite work out what they were saying but he knew they had seen or heard something and the hound was sniffing and foraging eagerly at the riverbank. He set his mind for a fight but knew he couldn’t win with such a beast there.
Suddenly something splashed into the water right above his head snapping his makeshift snorkel and he fought hard to contain his surprise and hold his breath. The water was now too turbulent to see anything but he could hear the hound barking excitedly above him. He was readying to spring from the water when the view cleared revealing a water rat swimming frantically, making it’s break for freedom.
Satisfied that what they had spotted moving was just local wildlife the men moved off upstream, the pair of them having to drag the hound who clearly wanted to chase after the rat. He lifted his head above the water and sucked in air as quietly as he could. Knowing he had to make more progress he crossed the river and made straight for the port, but he couldn’t stop himself from trying to work out what Baston was up to and his mind wandered back to when it had all started to go wrong.
*****
The Place: A bar in the suburbs of Dionyus City, Oursulaert III, EssenceThe Time: Yulai Convention 24.12.102
Drevek Tesnar stared at the breaking news story showing on the holo projection in disbelief. The only one in the bar paying any attention to it he had to listen hard over the din of laughter and raised voices.
“Maroslak Baston became the first, and so far only, Amarrian ever to be on the staff of the Federation Navy fifteen years ago after docking at the Navy station in Oursulaert in a freighter full of thousands of slaves he had liberated in a daring raid on a secret Amarrian slave camp in Tirbam, Tash-Murkon.”
The newsreader continued, “One of those slaves was the then fifteen year old daughter of now retired Federation Navy General Enterek Poposki. We can now go live to our reporter on Luminaire, Kerr Horot, who is with General Poposki.”
The scene changed to show two men standing outside a grand building, possibly the General’s house. “Firstly, thank you for giving us some of your time General. Could you give us your reaction to the announcement by the authorities on Dammalin VII that they have issued a warrant for the arrest of Maroslak Baston?”
“Well Kerr, frankly I am finding it very hard to accept. Maroslak Baston not only saved my daughter’s life but he was one of the finest men I ever had the privilege of working with. He clearly demonstrated his opinion on slavery when he docked in that freighter and then with five years of exemplary service for the Navy. I just cannot comprehend the accusation that he had a secret hideaway full of young slave girls. This makes no sense to me.”
“Thank you General. Back to the news desk.”
“Thank you Kerr. The Criminal Investigation Board on Dammalin VII have clearly stated that the evidence they have is overwhelming. They have passed on their findings to both the Gallente and Minmatar governments asking for their help with bringing Baston to justice and are offering a reward of two hundred million isk for information leading to his arrest.”
The report ended with a holo image of Baston rotating behind the word “WANTED” in large flashing letters.
“In other news….”
Drevek stood up and left the bar, leaving his drink half finished. His apartment block was just a short walk away. He was still struggling to take all this in when he opened his front door. Closing it behind him he heard a voice say “Don’t turn the light on Drevek.”
By the pale light of the moon filtering through the closed but thin curtains he could see the shape of his old trainer, his old friend, sitting in the corner. After a pause Drevek said, “I would ask you how you got in but of course you trained me how to do that a long time ago.”
“I assume you’ve seen the news?”
“I’m just trying to decide whether I should ask you if it’s true or not.”
There was silence for a few seconds, then “So, are you going to?”
“No.”
“I really need your help Drevek. There’s nobody else I can trust.”
Drevek opened a cabinet, took a bottle and two glasses and sat down. He poured the drinks and taking one of the glasses, drained it in one gulp. “What do you need?”
“An exit off this rock to a station with a shuttle. And…err…”, Baston’s voice failed and he had to cough to clear his throat, “…a new identity.”
If the situation had not been so serious Drevek would have roared with laughter. “Well, I think you know that I can, and will, do the first for you….but a new ID?”
“I know it’s a big thing to ask but you’re the only one I can turn to.”
“What makes you think I know anyone who can get such a thing?”
“Because I trained you to know such things.”
“NO.” Drevek became angry but managed to bring his voice under control, “You did not. You trained me to know how to get ships, weapons, hacking computers, stuff like that.”
He picked up the second untouched glass and drained that too before continuing, “I haven’t seen or heard from you in…what? Two years? Yet you let yourself into my apartment, a fugitive, and ask me to get you a new identity? That’s something altogether different. Only the government can do that.”
“And you work for the government.”
“I work for the Navy!”
“Same thing sonny boy.”
“DON’T CALL ME THAT…not right now…I’m not in the mood.”
Baston got up and shuffled despondently towards the door. His head hung low and he mumbled “I’m sorry Drevek, I shouldn’t have put this on you. Forget I asked.”
“Wait…maybe there is someone I can talk to. But you’ll have to get out of this apartment. I doubt it will be long before they come to visit me.”
The old man slumped to his knees fighting back the tears. “Someday, somehow I’ll make this up to you Drevek.”
*****
The Place: An interview room in the Navy office at Oursulaert III - Federation Navy Testing Facilities, EssenceThe Time: Yulai Convention 26.12.102
Drevek had been standing stiffly to attention in full uniform for nearly two hours but he had been trained to endure such discomfort and the ease in his face showed it. They’d been running the good cop, bad cop routine on him for some time now. He had seen it in so many of Boss Man’s movies he knew how to read it and how to play it. Right now it was good cop’s turn. Bad cop was pacing at the back of the room as if he begrudged this backseat position and ached to get back in and shout at this soldier some more.
“Come on Corporal. We know you helped him get off the planet. It’s not too late yet. Tell us what you know and maybe you could still qualify for that reward. Two hundred million!”, the last three words said slowly for effect.
They didn’t know anything. If they did he would already be busted and in a military prison in some out of the way system. They only guessed and that was all he had on his side. He had considered the money for a few seconds but knew no amount would be enough to compensate the debt on his conscience.
“Listen Drevek.” Ooh first names now! “The top brass are all over this. They need heads to roll. They’re highly embarrassed at being duped into letting an Amarrian slaver into the Navy in the first place, not too mention letting him get away. Right now your head is the only one they have. Believe me, they will finish you if you don’t start cooperating. I’m your only friend here, let me help you. Start helping me.”
Drevek stuck to his story that he had not seen Baston for over two years and good cop’s assertion that he would be finished turned out to be true. Two days later the military police had knocked down his door in the early hours of the morning and arrested him on various charges ranging from fraud, deception and impersonation through money laundering, theft and misappropriation of Navy assets to assault, illegal imprisonment and even torture. His defence that every single charge, whilst true, related to operations he had undertaken as a special forces operative for the Navy went unheard. He was informed that no records of those operations existed.
Kira had been there on every day of the three week long trial, sitting silently at the back of the public gallery and her eyes had never left him once. She had been the only wholesome and decent thing in his often dark and violent life. He’d only ever asked her once what she saw in him. She had thought for a second then replied with her cheeky grin “Well, of all the rocks that I bend to my will, you are my greatest triumph.” He hadn’t really known what to make of that but she’d kissed him and he forgot all about it. She was a geologist and not in the armed forces like most of the girlfriends and wives of the men that he’d worked with. He had stumbled across her whilst uncharacteristically lost on a hiking expedition. He’d asked her for directions but instead she had flashed him that smile, nodded at a pot bubbling over a fire and asked him if he was hungry.
On the final day of the trial, when the foreman of the jury read out the unanimous guilty verdict, she had cried openly amid the cheers and jubilation. That evening in his holding cell, awaiting transfer to his new “home” for the next six years, the guards had kindly brought him a copy of that evening’s newspaper. The front page announced triumphantly that the good name of the Federation Navy had been cleared of the atrocious accusations levelled at it by this heinous monster. The public could not believe he had committed those acts on behalf of their government. In their eyes democracy and justice had been well served.
Two months into his sentence he learned that the investigation into the fraud charges had resulted in another guilty verdict and not only had all his assets been seized but he now owed a hefty sum in fines and compensation payments for his “victims”. So much for Gallentean democracy and justice.
Every single morning for six years he woke up in that dingy prison cell hoping, praying, that that day would be the day when Kira would come to visit him – but she never did.
*****
The Place: Just outside Propadio, Tannakan I, The Bleak LandsThe Time: Yulai Convention 12.06.110 - EST 21:46
It was dark by the time Drevek neared the outermost buildings of the spaceport. His mind was becoming foggy with exhaustion and he knew he had to find a damn good place to hide, rest and dry his clothes. It was only his continued movement that was keeping hypothermia at bay, driven on by the training imbedded into his sub-conscious. There were few floodlights out this far from port’s centre and he managed stay in shadow right up to the wall of a warehouse still some way from the bustle of the main port area. A voice from around the corner only a few metres away broke through his hazy mind and he listened intently for any useful information.
“Ah Jutta, just the man! Fancy a few games of poker?” Then the added enticement “I’ve got an unopened bottle of Hekian whiskey!”
“Nah man, can’t. Kort called in sick again so I gotta pull a double shift. Just here to grab my bag.”
“Shite, so I’m here all night on my own again.” Drevek’s hopes lifted at this news.
“Sorry man, I need the cash. Loose women don’t come cheap ya know!”
A laugh then the reply “Yeah, no worries mate. Next time.”
A door opened spreading light onto the concrete. Shadows of a man moving around played in the light and barely a few seconds later the door closed again ending the lightshow. The hum of a personnel buggy started and headlights brought a new splash of light into view.
Jutta’s voice came again raised over the hum, “That tobacca will kill ya ya know?”
“Not before the wife does mate.”
The two men’s laughter was muted by the motor’s hum rising to a whine and the headlights moved off taking the sound of the buggy with them.
Back inside Karag cracked opened the bottle anyway and shuffled the cards for the first of many games of patience. Hearing the door open again behind him he said without turning “Whadja forget this time?”
Not hearing any response Karag looked over his shoulder just in time to see a dirty, bedraggled man he did not recognise and a hand sweeping down before blackness enveloped him.
Drevek paused for a few seconds listening carefully for any sounds in the building while he quickly took in his surroundings. The coffee machine and cooking facilities showed this to be some kind of rest area for the port workers. A corridor leading off revealed a line of four doors, the first three of which were numbered but the last one had a sign announcing “Shower Room”. Not hearing anything he quietly opened each door and checked inside. The first three rooms each contained a bed, a side table with a lamp and a wardrobe and the last was indeed a shower room. All were empty as promised.
Scarcely believing his luck he dragged the card player’s limp body into the only room that had any personal belongings in it. Stuffing the corpse unceremoniously into the wardrobe he took the man’s wallet and ID badge before leaning on the door to shut it. He heard the cracking of bones before he realised the man’s fingers had slipped over the edge of the base, stopping the door from closing. Bending down to poke them back through he dropped the wallet, which fell open revealing a picture of a plain but not unpleasant looking woman with her arms round two smartly dressed and smiling children.
Drevek felt remorse for the first time in so long he spent a few seconds trying to recall when the last time was. Not coming up with any definitive answer he had to satisfy himself with the rather general “before my life fell apart.” Despite his self-pity, perhaps in spite of it, he opened the wardrobe door again and arranged the body into a sitting position, crossed arms cradling the picture against the man’s still chest. “Sorry…”, he read the name on the badge, “…Karag Harpmon. Nothing personal. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
He quickly collected the cards and whiskey bottle, resisting the temptation to take a swig, and, sitting on the bed, rummaged through the man’s holdall. Finding a clean set of overalls and a wash-kit he went to the shower room, stripped off his still damp clothes revealing a body covered in dark bruises and deep cuts. He paused for a second with his hand on the tap then went back for the bottle.
A few minutes later the last of the liquor found it’s way around the glass shards of the broken bottle to the drain, driven on by the water cascading off Drevek’s body slumped in the corner. Only random twitches and short ragged breaths giving away the fact that he was still alive.
*****
Over-riding the safety systems on the transport’s door release mechanism would have been a simple matter had it not been for the pressurised high-altitude suit and the added weight of all his equipment plus the breathing apparatus. “Should have allowed for that Drevek”, he thought to himself. Not only was his precisely timed schedule now behind but he would touch ground on the wrong side of the complex. Circling round would alert the security teams below and he would most likely miss his opportunity if he orbited the planet again so he hit the final key in the sequence and let the pressure change suck his body out through the open door.
He let himself enjoy hurtling head first towards the ground at over fifty meters per second. It was one of the few experiences that still exhilarated him, despite the number of times he had done it before, but kept his composure enough to watch the altimeter. He levelled his body, spread out his arms and legs opening the air brakes built into the suit before finally opening the chute, touching down gently just a few seconds later.
High up in the planet’s atmosphere the transport’s door had closed, as it had been programmed to, and the ship continued on a preset flight pattern to make it look like just any other going about it’s daily business, waiting for the signal from the ground to land and collect it’s pilot.
*****
Drevek cursed the one stupid error of not accounting for the difficulty of typing in the suit. He’d had to ditch the plan and wing it the whole way and now he was surrounded by a ring of high-powered energy weapons. The man in front of him motioned with the barrel of his blaster rifle for Drevek to raise his arms and he had no realistic choice but to comply. He sensed movement from behind and felt an impact on the back of his head a split second before blacking out.
*****
He knew he was dreaming. Partly because, even though the woman straddled over his naked body didn’t look anything like Kira, he knew it was her nonetheless, and partly because Kira had been far too nice and innocent even to have gone on top in a brightly lit room let alone tie him to the bed and slap him in the face. But the more he tried to cling on to sleep and keep this memory going the more he came round to consciousness.
The disappointment of reality was crushing. He was indeed naked and tied down but on a cold bare metal table in a shadowy, damp, windowless room and the weight on his crotch was some kind of restraint and not Kira’s heavenly naked body. A single bulb flickered high above him, it’s feeble output failing to illuminate anything around him. Not that he could move his head to look around as it was strapped down firmly across his forehead and chin, as were his arms, legs, chest and hips completely immobilising him save for the tiniest of movements. He was aware he was not alone and strained his eye sockets trying to locate any shapes in the shadows about him.
Then suddenly there was light, very close and incredibly bright, shining right on his face and even closing his eyes failed to stop the pain it caused. “So”, began the voice, “We know who you are and why you are here. What you will tell us now is who hired you.”
“Well maybe you can help me then because, actually, I’m wondering why I’m here.”
A heavy blow to his left kidney sent pain shooting through his chest and Drevek decided quickly to quit with the sarcasm. Not that silence brought him any better treatment and it wasn’t long before he fell back in unconsciousness again.
*****
He couldn’t decide which was worse, the beatings or “the tank”. The tank was a solid metal box with a hatch at the top just big enough to allow a person through. It was completely dark inside and filled with filthy water just high enough that he had to stand on tiptoe to keep his mouth above the waterline. The ceiling was too low to let him tread water and the walls too close to lie flat on the water’s surface. The rhythmic thumping on the outside of the tank was beginning to drive him crazy and there was a constant ringing in his ears from the echo. Somehow they knew when he finally fainted from exhaustion as he would come round strapped to the table again. The one time he had tried to fake it, going limp and sinking to the bottom, had brought an electric charge to the water, which really did make him black out. The pain had been short but incredible, which was why he had only tried it once.
*****
Drevek had discovered that he could fool them for short periods after coming back round, giving him a brief respite from the torture. He gave no reaction as he heard the door open and footsteps, unmistakably in high heels, entered the room.
“Has he given you a name yet?” He recognised the new voice immediately from the holo-reels he had studied. It was his mark, the woman he had been sent to kill.
“No. He’s a tough one. I’m not sure we’ll break him before we kill him.”
“Well I want that name so don’t let him die before you get it or you’ll be following him to hell in a handcart.”
Pausing in the doorway the woman added “Actually, I want to be the one to deal the final blow so don’t kill him at all.” before closing the door behind her.
After a few seconds came the sarcastic “Yes Ma’am!”, then quite some more seconds later the barely audible “Fucking bitch.”
Drevek would have taken a great deal of pleasure in his tormentor’s discomfort if he had not recognised the phrase “to hell in a handcart” from one of Boss Man’s movies, but he now saw a way to get out of this and maybe even still complete the mission and collect his fee.
*****
He was back in the tank again. Clearly that conservation had brought a shift in the torture methods from mostly physical to mostly psychological. The rhythmic thumping on a single wall of the tank was replaced with heavier and rapid banging on all four walls interspersed with repeated shouted phrases.
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM. “I WILL BREAK YOU.”
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM. “I WILL BREAK YOU.”
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM. “I WILL BREAK YOU.”
Bang-bang-bang-bang. “I’ll break the door down.”
The sudden change confused the hell out of him until he realised he was on the cold, hard floor of the shower room, the water still cascading over his head.
Bang-bang-bang-bang. “Karag! Are you alright? What are you doing in there?”
End of part one.
Drevek was still trying very hard to unravel this confusing mess and thought back to the day he had taken this damned job on.
His own words echoed through his head for the hundredth time. “If it is such a simple task then why is there such a high reward?”
The laugh had been too perfectly timed, too well rehearsed. “Well I guess I should have said simple for a man of your calibre.” The best holo-reel touch-up artists could have painted the accompanying wry smile on.
The question had clearly been expected and the response carefully prepared. Hell the whole conversation had been scripted before he’d even walked through the door. Why had he fallen for it so easily? Because he had needed the money of course. He should have smelt the rat but the smell of the money was stronger.
But in any case that was history and right now he had more immediate concerns. The harsh bark of a hound and muffled voices forced him to ignore his aching limbs. He crawled from his hiding place in a thicket of Asdeth bushes, stirring the sweet, sickly smell of their pollen, which he had hoped would hide his own scent. Striking a compromise between speed and stealth he headed back along the track for a few hundred meters, branched off in the direction of the port then doubled back once again making a crossroads of scent trails in an attempt to confuse the hounds.
Arcing round in a wide semi-circle to head back toward the port he decided to go as fast as he could, hoping to reach the river before the guard caught him up. Slaver hounds were well known for their incredible sense of smell but even they couldn’t track a scent across moving water. The guard were making plenty of noise themselves so he could risk making a bit of his own.
As he reached the river he heard the hounds and the voices of their handlers far too clearly behind him and it became obvious his attempts to confuse had not been as successful as he had hoped. Slipping into the icy water he stifled a gasp as it enveloped his groin and pushed away from the bank into the strong flow. He let it carry him downstream for a while expending energy only to keep afloat and stop his limbs from going numb.
He could see the tall buildings and smokestacks of Propadio spaceport only a couple of kilometres away, so near yet so far. Spotting movement in the trees ahead he realised the guard were downstream of him as well as upstream. Hope began to slip away as fast as his body temperature but the voice of his navy academy trainer, Flight Sergeant Baston, came back into his head “It ain’t over till the fat lady sings.”
“Get out of my head traitor!”
But “Boss Man” Baston would not leave “I’m not going anywhere without my towel sonny boy.” His often bizarre phrases came from his beloved collection of movies, allegedly made millennia before holo-reels were invented, which he’d delighted in revealing to his star pupil. Drevek had never even known such things existed and he had never encountered them since.
Recalling a scene from one of these funny old 2D movies featuring a derring-do hero by the name of James Bond, the name of which escaped him at that point, he gently broke a reed and sinking beneath the surface of the water used it as a breathing pipe.
Boss Man’s voice came back into his head again, “Someday, somehow I’ll make this up to you Drevek.”
“I never imagined this is what you had in mind.”
The movement of the water refracted the shapes of the two men and the hound standing at the riverbank above him peering straight down at Drevek. He knew the distortion would be worse from above the water and the guards were shielding their eyes from the light of the setting sun bouncing off the water’s surface so he stayed as still as he could. He couldn’t quite work out what they were saying but he knew they had seen or heard something and the hound was sniffing and foraging eagerly at the riverbank. He set his mind for a fight but knew he couldn’t win with such a beast there.
Suddenly something splashed into the water right above his head snapping his makeshift snorkel and he fought hard to contain his surprise and hold his breath. The water was now too turbulent to see anything but he could hear the hound barking excitedly above him. He was readying to spring from the water when the view cleared revealing a water rat swimming frantically, making it’s break for freedom.
Satisfied that what they had spotted moving was just local wildlife the men moved off upstream, the pair of them having to drag the hound who clearly wanted to chase after the rat. He lifted his head above the water and sucked in air as quietly as he could. Knowing he had to make more progress he crossed the river and made straight for the port, but he couldn’t stop himself from trying to work out what Baston was up to and his mind wandered back to when it had all started to go wrong.
*****
The Place: A bar in the suburbs of Dionyus City, Oursulaert III, EssenceThe Time: Yulai Convention 24.12.102
Drevek Tesnar stared at the breaking news story showing on the holo projection in disbelief. The only one in the bar paying any attention to it he had to listen hard over the din of laughter and raised voices.
“Maroslak Baston became the first, and so far only, Amarrian ever to be on the staff of the Federation Navy fifteen years ago after docking at the Navy station in Oursulaert in a freighter full of thousands of slaves he had liberated in a daring raid on a secret Amarrian slave camp in Tirbam, Tash-Murkon.”
The newsreader continued, “One of those slaves was the then fifteen year old daughter of now retired Federation Navy General Enterek Poposki. We can now go live to our reporter on Luminaire, Kerr Horot, who is with General Poposki.”
The scene changed to show two men standing outside a grand building, possibly the General’s house. “Firstly, thank you for giving us some of your time General. Could you give us your reaction to the announcement by the authorities on Dammalin VII that they have issued a warrant for the arrest of Maroslak Baston?”
“Well Kerr, frankly I am finding it very hard to accept. Maroslak Baston not only saved my daughter’s life but he was one of the finest men I ever had the privilege of working with. He clearly demonstrated his opinion on slavery when he docked in that freighter and then with five years of exemplary service for the Navy. I just cannot comprehend the accusation that he had a secret hideaway full of young slave girls. This makes no sense to me.”
“Thank you General. Back to the news desk.”
“Thank you Kerr. The Criminal Investigation Board on Dammalin VII have clearly stated that the evidence they have is overwhelming. They have passed on their findings to both the Gallente and Minmatar governments asking for their help with bringing Baston to justice and are offering a reward of two hundred million isk for information leading to his arrest.”
The report ended with a holo image of Baston rotating behind the word “WANTED” in large flashing letters.
“In other news….”
Drevek stood up and left the bar, leaving his drink half finished. His apartment block was just a short walk away. He was still struggling to take all this in when he opened his front door. Closing it behind him he heard a voice say “Don’t turn the light on Drevek.”
By the pale light of the moon filtering through the closed but thin curtains he could see the shape of his old trainer, his old friend, sitting in the corner. After a pause Drevek said, “I would ask you how you got in but of course you trained me how to do that a long time ago.”
“I assume you’ve seen the news?”
“I’m just trying to decide whether I should ask you if it’s true or not.”
There was silence for a few seconds, then “So, are you going to?”
“No.”
“I really need your help Drevek. There’s nobody else I can trust.”
Drevek opened a cabinet, took a bottle and two glasses and sat down. He poured the drinks and taking one of the glasses, drained it in one gulp. “What do you need?”
“An exit off this rock to a station with a shuttle. And…err…”, Baston’s voice failed and he had to cough to clear his throat, “…a new identity.”
If the situation had not been so serious Drevek would have roared with laughter. “Well, I think you know that I can, and will, do the first for you….but a new ID?”
“I know it’s a big thing to ask but you’re the only one I can turn to.”
“What makes you think I know anyone who can get such a thing?”
“Because I trained you to know such things.”
“NO.” Drevek became angry but managed to bring his voice under control, “You did not. You trained me to know how to get ships, weapons, hacking computers, stuff like that.”
He picked up the second untouched glass and drained that too before continuing, “I haven’t seen or heard from you in…what? Two years? Yet you let yourself into my apartment, a fugitive, and ask me to get you a new identity? That’s something altogether different. Only the government can do that.”
“And you work for the government.”
“I work for the Navy!”
“Same thing sonny boy.”
“DON’T CALL ME THAT…not right now…I’m not in the mood.”
Baston got up and shuffled despondently towards the door. His head hung low and he mumbled “I’m sorry Drevek, I shouldn’t have put this on you. Forget I asked.”
“Wait…maybe there is someone I can talk to. But you’ll have to get out of this apartment. I doubt it will be long before they come to visit me.”
The old man slumped to his knees fighting back the tears. “Someday, somehow I’ll make this up to you Drevek.”
*****
The Place: An interview room in the Navy office at Oursulaert III - Federation Navy Testing Facilities, EssenceThe Time: Yulai Convention 26.12.102
Drevek had been standing stiffly to attention in full uniform for nearly two hours but he had been trained to endure such discomfort and the ease in his face showed it. They’d been running the good cop, bad cop routine on him for some time now. He had seen it in so many of Boss Man’s movies he knew how to read it and how to play it. Right now it was good cop’s turn. Bad cop was pacing at the back of the room as if he begrudged this backseat position and ached to get back in and shout at this soldier some more.
“Come on Corporal. We know you helped him get off the planet. It’s not too late yet. Tell us what you know and maybe you could still qualify for that reward. Two hundred million!”, the last three words said slowly for effect.
They didn’t know anything. If they did he would already be busted and in a military prison in some out of the way system. They only guessed and that was all he had on his side. He had considered the money for a few seconds but knew no amount would be enough to compensate the debt on his conscience.
“Listen Drevek.” Ooh first names now! “The top brass are all over this. They need heads to roll. They’re highly embarrassed at being duped into letting an Amarrian slaver into the Navy in the first place, not too mention letting him get away. Right now your head is the only one they have. Believe me, they will finish you if you don’t start cooperating. I’m your only friend here, let me help you. Start helping me.”
Drevek stuck to his story that he had not seen Baston for over two years and good cop’s assertion that he would be finished turned out to be true. Two days later the military police had knocked down his door in the early hours of the morning and arrested him on various charges ranging from fraud, deception and impersonation through money laundering, theft and misappropriation of Navy assets to assault, illegal imprisonment and even torture. His defence that every single charge, whilst true, related to operations he had undertaken as a special forces operative for the Navy went unheard. He was informed that no records of those operations existed.
Kira had been there on every day of the three week long trial, sitting silently at the back of the public gallery and her eyes had never left him once. She had been the only wholesome and decent thing in his often dark and violent life. He’d only ever asked her once what she saw in him. She had thought for a second then replied with her cheeky grin “Well, of all the rocks that I bend to my will, you are my greatest triumph.” He hadn’t really known what to make of that but she’d kissed him and he forgot all about it. She was a geologist and not in the armed forces like most of the girlfriends and wives of the men that he’d worked with. He had stumbled across her whilst uncharacteristically lost on a hiking expedition. He’d asked her for directions but instead she had flashed him that smile, nodded at a pot bubbling over a fire and asked him if he was hungry.
On the final day of the trial, when the foreman of the jury read out the unanimous guilty verdict, she had cried openly amid the cheers and jubilation. That evening in his holding cell, awaiting transfer to his new “home” for the next six years, the guards had kindly brought him a copy of that evening’s newspaper. The front page announced triumphantly that the good name of the Federation Navy had been cleared of the atrocious accusations levelled at it by this heinous monster. The public could not believe he had committed those acts on behalf of their government. In their eyes democracy and justice had been well served.
Two months into his sentence he learned that the investigation into the fraud charges had resulted in another guilty verdict and not only had all his assets been seized but he now owed a hefty sum in fines and compensation payments for his “victims”. So much for Gallentean democracy and justice.
Every single morning for six years he woke up in that dingy prison cell hoping, praying, that that day would be the day when Kira would come to visit him – but she never did.
*****
The Place: Just outside Propadio, Tannakan I, The Bleak LandsThe Time: Yulai Convention 12.06.110 - EST 21:46
It was dark by the time Drevek neared the outermost buildings of the spaceport. His mind was becoming foggy with exhaustion and he knew he had to find a damn good place to hide, rest and dry his clothes. It was only his continued movement that was keeping hypothermia at bay, driven on by the training imbedded into his sub-conscious. There were few floodlights out this far from port’s centre and he managed stay in shadow right up to the wall of a warehouse still some way from the bustle of the main port area. A voice from around the corner only a few metres away broke through his hazy mind and he listened intently for any useful information.
“Ah Jutta, just the man! Fancy a few games of poker?” Then the added enticement “I’ve got an unopened bottle of Hekian whiskey!”
“Nah man, can’t. Kort called in sick again so I gotta pull a double shift. Just here to grab my bag.”
“Shite, so I’m here all night on my own again.” Drevek’s hopes lifted at this news.
“Sorry man, I need the cash. Loose women don’t come cheap ya know!”
A laugh then the reply “Yeah, no worries mate. Next time.”
A door opened spreading light onto the concrete. Shadows of a man moving around played in the light and barely a few seconds later the door closed again ending the lightshow. The hum of a personnel buggy started and headlights brought a new splash of light into view.
Jutta’s voice came again raised over the hum, “That tobacca will kill ya ya know?”
“Not before the wife does mate.”
The two men’s laughter was muted by the motor’s hum rising to a whine and the headlights moved off taking the sound of the buggy with them.
Back inside Karag cracked opened the bottle anyway and shuffled the cards for the first of many games of patience. Hearing the door open again behind him he said without turning “Whadja forget this time?”
Not hearing any response Karag looked over his shoulder just in time to see a dirty, bedraggled man he did not recognise and a hand sweeping down before blackness enveloped him.
Drevek paused for a few seconds listening carefully for any sounds in the building while he quickly took in his surroundings. The coffee machine and cooking facilities showed this to be some kind of rest area for the port workers. A corridor leading off revealed a line of four doors, the first three of which were numbered but the last one had a sign announcing “Shower Room”. Not hearing anything he quietly opened each door and checked inside. The first three rooms each contained a bed, a side table with a lamp and a wardrobe and the last was indeed a shower room. All were empty as promised.
Scarcely believing his luck he dragged the card player’s limp body into the only room that had any personal belongings in it. Stuffing the corpse unceremoniously into the wardrobe he took the man’s wallet and ID badge before leaning on the door to shut it. He heard the cracking of bones before he realised the man’s fingers had slipped over the edge of the base, stopping the door from closing. Bending down to poke them back through he dropped the wallet, which fell open revealing a picture of a plain but not unpleasant looking woman with her arms round two smartly dressed and smiling children.
Drevek felt remorse for the first time in so long he spent a few seconds trying to recall when the last time was. Not coming up with any definitive answer he had to satisfy himself with the rather general “before my life fell apart.” Despite his self-pity, perhaps in spite of it, he opened the wardrobe door again and arranged the body into a sitting position, crossed arms cradling the picture against the man’s still chest. “Sorry…”, he read the name on the badge, “…Karag Harpmon. Nothing personal. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
He quickly collected the cards and whiskey bottle, resisting the temptation to take a swig, and, sitting on the bed, rummaged through the man’s holdall. Finding a clean set of overalls and a wash-kit he went to the shower room, stripped off his still damp clothes revealing a body covered in dark bruises and deep cuts. He paused for a second with his hand on the tap then went back for the bottle.
A few minutes later the last of the liquor found it’s way around the glass shards of the broken bottle to the drain, driven on by the water cascading off Drevek’s body slumped in the corner. Only random twitches and short ragged breaths giving away the fact that he was still alive.
*****
Over-riding the safety systems on the transport’s door release mechanism would have been a simple matter had it not been for the pressurised high-altitude suit and the added weight of all his equipment plus the breathing apparatus. “Should have allowed for that Drevek”, he thought to himself. Not only was his precisely timed schedule now behind but he would touch ground on the wrong side of the complex. Circling round would alert the security teams below and he would most likely miss his opportunity if he orbited the planet again so he hit the final key in the sequence and let the pressure change suck his body out through the open door.
He let himself enjoy hurtling head first towards the ground at over fifty meters per second. It was one of the few experiences that still exhilarated him, despite the number of times he had done it before, but kept his composure enough to watch the altimeter. He levelled his body, spread out his arms and legs opening the air brakes built into the suit before finally opening the chute, touching down gently just a few seconds later.
High up in the planet’s atmosphere the transport’s door had closed, as it had been programmed to, and the ship continued on a preset flight pattern to make it look like just any other going about it’s daily business, waiting for the signal from the ground to land and collect it’s pilot.
*****
Drevek cursed the one stupid error of not accounting for the difficulty of typing in the suit. He’d had to ditch the plan and wing it the whole way and now he was surrounded by a ring of high-powered energy weapons. The man in front of him motioned with the barrel of his blaster rifle for Drevek to raise his arms and he had no realistic choice but to comply. He sensed movement from behind and felt an impact on the back of his head a split second before blacking out.
*****
He knew he was dreaming. Partly because, even though the woman straddled over his naked body didn’t look anything like Kira, he knew it was her nonetheless, and partly because Kira had been far too nice and innocent even to have gone on top in a brightly lit room let alone tie him to the bed and slap him in the face. But the more he tried to cling on to sleep and keep this memory going the more he came round to consciousness.
The disappointment of reality was crushing. He was indeed naked and tied down but on a cold bare metal table in a shadowy, damp, windowless room and the weight on his crotch was some kind of restraint and not Kira’s heavenly naked body. A single bulb flickered high above him, it’s feeble output failing to illuminate anything around him. Not that he could move his head to look around as it was strapped down firmly across his forehead and chin, as were his arms, legs, chest and hips completely immobilising him save for the tiniest of movements. He was aware he was not alone and strained his eye sockets trying to locate any shapes in the shadows about him.
Then suddenly there was light, very close and incredibly bright, shining right on his face and even closing his eyes failed to stop the pain it caused. “So”, began the voice, “We know who you are and why you are here. What you will tell us now is who hired you.”
“Well maybe you can help me then because, actually, I’m wondering why I’m here.”
A heavy blow to his left kidney sent pain shooting through his chest and Drevek decided quickly to quit with the sarcasm. Not that silence brought him any better treatment and it wasn’t long before he fell back in unconsciousness again.
*****
He couldn’t decide which was worse, the beatings or “the tank”. The tank was a solid metal box with a hatch at the top just big enough to allow a person through. It was completely dark inside and filled with filthy water just high enough that he had to stand on tiptoe to keep his mouth above the waterline. The ceiling was too low to let him tread water and the walls too close to lie flat on the water’s surface. The rhythmic thumping on the outside of the tank was beginning to drive him crazy and there was a constant ringing in his ears from the echo. Somehow they knew when he finally fainted from exhaustion as he would come round strapped to the table again. The one time he had tried to fake it, going limp and sinking to the bottom, had brought an electric charge to the water, which really did make him black out. The pain had been short but incredible, which was why he had only tried it once.
*****
Drevek had discovered that he could fool them for short periods after coming back round, giving him a brief respite from the torture. He gave no reaction as he heard the door open and footsteps, unmistakably in high heels, entered the room.
“Has he given you a name yet?” He recognised the new voice immediately from the holo-reels he had studied. It was his mark, the woman he had been sent to kill.
“No. He’s a tough one. I’m not sure we’ll break him before we kill him.”
“Well I want that name so don’t let him die before you get it or you’ll be following him to hell in a handcart.”
Pausing in the doorway the woman added “Actually, I want to be the one to deal the final blow so don’t kill him at all.” before closing the door behind her.
After a few seconds came the sarcastic “Yes Ma’am!”, then quite some more seconds later the barely audible “Fucking bitch.”
Drevek would have taken a great deal of pleasure in his tormentor’s discomfort if he had not recognised the phrase “to hell in a handcart” from one of Boss Man’s movies, but he now saw a way to get out of this and maybe even still complete the mission and collect his fee.
*****
He was back in the tank again. Clearly that conservation had brought a shift in the torture methods from mostly physical to mostly psychological. The rhythmic thumping on a single wall of the tank was replaced with heavier and rapid banging on all four walls interspersed with repeated shouted phrases.
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM. “I WILL BREAK YOU.”
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM. “I WILL BREAK YOU.”
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM. “I WILL BREAK YOU.”
Bang-bang-bang-bang. “I’ll break the door down.”
The sudden change confused the hell out of him until he realised he was on the cold, hard floor of the shower room, the water still cascading over his head.
Bang-bang-bang-bang. “Karag! Are you alright? What are you doing in there?”
End of part one.
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