It's been said that breaking a mind takes a special touch. To do it well, you must know how to drive your victim to the brink of insanity, then bring them back slowly to lucidity, all the time indoctrinating them with the purpose of your cause. Extreme mental anguish was of the most effective ways to do this, but it was a time consuming form of torture which was an entirely different issue altogether...
Anderi knelt down as entered the security key into the mag-sealed container. Thankfully, this was the last pod he had to open, inspect, unload then reload, as he was nearing the end of his shift at the cargo facility. Things had been nice and quiet today, a nice change from the last week when he had opened a container and found it full of Black Market Munitions. The paperwork and subsequent interview with the Corporate Security had lasted well into the next shift. Diogo Island wasn't always a great place to be stationed, and being always under the scrutiny of OS&C Inspectors was a pain at times, but it kept him employed between other, more lucrative jobs.
The cargo pod opened with a thump and a hiss. The overpowering odor of LP Gas poured out the now open container like the waves of an invisible tsunami. He shook his head as he entered, and after a few minutes of checking off the items on his datapad the smell no longer bothered him too much. “What in the name of Pine's hairy... Bah, not going back to quarters on time tonight either...” Nestled near the rear of the container among other smaller crates was a restraint capsule with a stylized sun and orbiting planet logo just below the inspection port. Looking through transparisteel opening he could see the face of a red-haired woman's who's face had been scratched and bruised. “Hmm... doesn't look like she went in there easy, I wonder who she is...” he thought to himself while looking for a marker placard or other form of identification on the capsule. It didn't appear she was cryogenicly frozen or in some other suspended animation, but rather she was deep in some sort of induced coma. There were a series of electrodes placed around her head which looked like a technological halo which in turn came together over the shoulder and were wired to a device attached to her belt. As he watched, her face twisted up and she mouth opened to let out a soundless scream.
He quickly pulled his lock breaker from it's pouch on his belt and connected it to the container's mechanism, he whispered, “Someone went through a lot of trouble to have this done to you, but no one deserves that kind of suffering...” As he waited for the breaker to cycle, he heard footsteps approaching outside.
“You there...” On another world, or perhaps in a different time, the Customs Inspector might have been considered handsome in appearance, but his churlish manners, ill-fitting, poorly tailored and stained uniform downplayed any natural charisma he may have had. The voice of the officer was everything unpleasant all wrapped up in a not-so-nice package, it's sound was grating, condescending in tone and still completely soulless all at once.
As Anderi stepped outside the container and faced the Inspector. He smiled and tilted his head just a bit. “So... your lordship deems me worthy to be noticed. What can I do to you?” Long ago, someone had told him this particular facial expression was especially unsettling due to the way the scars contorted his face. The fact that the he was considerably taller and very possibly stronger than the Inspector and his escorts that had approached was not lost on any of them.
“By all means...” Anderi bowed as he moved out of the Inspectors way, “Might be a leaking valve on a capsule of LP near the back somewhere. Hope it doesn't get any worse or there could be an explosion that would make this bay unusable for years...” As he looked at the two escorts and he grinned again, they in turn clutched at their carbines as if they were talismans that would keep the large man at bay.
“Paugh, it reeks in there!” The Inspector gagged and backed out of the container as quickly as he had entered it. “I'm placing this container on quarantine until you find the the source of the leak and get it taken care of. I'll finish the inspection and clear the container for unloading once that's done. See to it... quickly.”
As the Inspector and his escorts hurried away, Anderi mocked a salute, “Yes sir, thank you sir, may I have some more, sir... bah, your mother has all the graces of a love-struck Nomad!” He turned and re-entered the container, and once again moved through the cargo pods to the restraint capsule, seeing by the lock breaker's indicators that it had done it's job. “Open, sez me.” He snicked at his own joke as he keyed the capsules latching mechanism. As it opened, the encased woman tensed up and let loose with another painful looking, yet silent scream.
He flicked his knife from it's wrist sheath and studied the device on her belt. The wire from electrodes around the woman's head entered the side of the device and there was a small digital readout with a series of blinking indicators on it's front. He figured the power supply was probably accessed through the back side and as he unclipped it from her belt, and briefly wondered about any sort of anti-tampering protection it might have. If there was, there was a good chance it would kill whoever it was attached to, but at least she was would be free of the object of her torture. He looked over the apparatus in his hand one more time, then jammed the knife into what he hoped was the battery pack of the unit. As it sparked and hissed in protest, the woman went into a seizure, only stopping once the light from the indicators faded. As it sparked one last time, she let out a small sigh followed by a low moan.
As he waited to see if the erst-while captive to recover and hopefully regain consciousness, Anderi looked her over. She was dressed in black with trousers tucked into her boots, and a short white camisole peeked out from behind a hide flight jacket. She opened her eyes, then shrank back into her prison as looked up at the large man and coughed, “If I'm going to die in this hole, you'd think it would be more tolerable in here...”
“There, there miss. No one here is out to kill you... yet.” He knelt down and gave the woman a small smile, “Names Anderi, looks like you got yourself in a bit of a bind. Who'd you end up on the wrong side of?”
She groggily sat up in the capsule and rubbed the back of her neck, “I remember a bunch of thugs jumping me as I was talking with an... acquaintance... where the flying heck am I and what am I doing in this crate?”
“I suppose we can trade a few questions. We're on Diogo Island, a resort of sorts on Curacao in the Cortez system. The good news is this supply station is not run by the military, bad news is it's run by Orbital Spa & Cruise.” Anderi grabbed her wrists and snapped on a pair of binders.
“Hey! What's that for?” Fully awake now, the woman struggled, trying to free herself from being re-imprisoned.
“Just a little insurance.” After the binders locked, he reached around and picked up his datapad, flipped it open, then began to tap some keys. “Now my question, who are you? Obviously, you are or were someone who needed to be taken out of circulation but still kept alive. Otherwise, whom ever put you in that restraining capsule wouldn't have taken the time to attach a neural nightmare device... nasty things, you know...”
The woman thought for a moment, “I can't remember exactly... but I seem to remember going by the name of Moleigh d... Moleigh Miltara.” She struggled against the binders again. “Now does this mean you'll let me out of these?”
“Umm...no, that's not going to happen, for now.” Anderi scowled at the datapad's readout. “I knew that logo looked familiar...” he mumbled. “So Moleigh, what's your connection to the Confederation of Unaligned Worlds? I thought they were wiped out in one of those edge worlds power struggles criminals seem to have every few years.”
Moleigh looked at the large man pleadingly, “It's like looking at myself through a fog... at times I can see myself talking to others I remember clearly, then the memory clouds over. I think I may have been part of the CoUW as a pilot... I do know I flew a Marauder class fighter before I was waylaid.”
“Well, we need some time to figure out exactly what you did and to whom, and why you were about to be shipped around the galaxy in a freight container.” He stood, and added, “Now you going to come quietly, or do I have to carry you?”
“Where you taking me?
Anderi was starting to loose his patience, “All you need to know is I have some friends that might be able to help. It will go better for you if you walk in under your own power than dumped on the floor like a sack of fertilizer.”
“And if I resist going?” Moleigh stared back at him attempting to get a read on him.
“Then I give you a shot of something to make you more compliant. So it's your choice... walking or drugged and dumped?”
“Fine... help me up.” She put on her best pout held up her bound wrists helplessly.
“You think I was born yesterday?” Anderi stepped back and flexed his hands in irritation. “Get up yourself, and be quick about it, the Inspectors will be back soon, and I want to be out of here.”
Moleigh struggled but after a few tries was able to get to her knees, then to her feet. “To your friends, then...”
Karen sat nervously in the waiting room next to the landing pad, her earpiece tuned to the Diogo tower frequency. She gazed out of the window at the night sky, it was usually awash with stars but a sea mist had rolled over the island obscuring the view.
“Diogo Tower this is Peter Simpson requesting landing clearance for Pad Six”
“Peter Simpson, clearance granted, please be advised there is reduced visibility due to mist. Landing vectors sent”
Karen stepped outside and arched her head to the sky, by the sound of the craft’s engines it was clear Peter had no intention of heeding the controllers warning and in his youthful exuberance he was coming in hot. The first visible sign of the Talon was its landing lights penetrating the mist as it approached in a nose down position. A little later than usual Peter threw the nose of the craft up, engaged full power on the landing thrusters and lowered the gear. The heat of the thrusters cleared the mist below the craft and doused the area in an orange glow. He touched down firmly on the dead centre of the pad. Karen disapproved of the show boating but could not help give a slight nod of her head at the landing.
As the engines of the Talon winded down the canopy opened and Peter aided Lorleii out of the jumpseat and down onto the pad, though Karen was quite sure she did not need the assistance. As they wondered over from the craft Peter had a skip in his stride and was re-enacting the landing with his hands, it was quite clear that Lorleii was a little less excitable about the landing. As the pair neared Lorleii hesitated and allowed Peter to greet Karen first.
“Yo K whats you think about that then” Peter boasted whilst flicking his head towards the craft
“Well I’m just glad you got here in one piece, you know that kind of thing might get you injured one day”
“Well not today hay K, anyhows it’s good to see you again… so you going to tell me what this is all about?”
“And you Pete, I will once I know myself what’s going on, I don’t want to get you too involved in anything, you’ve helped enough getting Lorleii here so fast”
Peter leaned in and lowered his voice…
“It’s no problem and she’s quite a looker so I don’t mind” he said giving Karen a slight elbow and a wink.
“That’s enough of that young man, you better get back to base I’ve heard your back on duty soon”
“Yeah they’ve finally decided I’m mentally fit to fly” Peter stated in a sarcastic fashion rolling his eyes
“Till next time K”
Peter gave Karen a hug and turned away towards Lorleii and his craft, Peter went in for another hug but she offered him her hand instead, the moment was slightly awkward to watch but made Karen smile.
Karen attempted to keep the smile as Lorleii came over and tried to get into a more professional mind-set but found the sight of Lorleii walking over distracting. She was wearing black leather trousers and flight jacket, the zipper lowered slightly, allowing the top her cleavage to be visible, Karen only glanced and hoped the look was not noticed, as she averted her gaze Karen could not help notice the gun holster on Lorleii’s thigh. “She’s clearly prepared for trouble” Karen thought to herself.
“Nice to finally meet you” Lorleii smiled as she offered her hand. It was a firm handshake, Karen noted her skin, though not rough, was courser than her own, a result of her years spent as an OS&C pen pusher.
“And you, I’m sorry we had to meet under such circumstances but be assured we at OSC are committed to finding your mother and I have a feeling that this lead will give us some answers”
“I hope so, the lack of contact or signs of where she might be is very concerning… I just hope …” Lorleii began to trail off “she’s okay”
“Well tomorrow we’ll be travelling with the science crew to the location of the sound contact, they don’t exactly know why I’m interested but they seem happy with us coming along… I think it might have been a while since they last had female company” Karen gave a wry smile.
“They might be barking up the wrong tree, but I’m genuinely nervous to find out more about what is going on”
Karen was slightly taken aback from the comment but decided not to make question Lorleii on it.
“Until then we will get you settled in and talk over any questions you and I might have for each other”
“Sounds like a plan, I’m pretty tired after that flight, Peters not the smoothest flier! I think I’ll need a shower and a good night’s sleep”
“Oh on that matter I will apologise now for the accommodation, unfortunately OS&C don’t seem to deem it necessary to provide the same level of comfort for the staff as for the customers, I could have arranged a more comfortable room for you but I thought it best not to attract any unwanted attention”
“Ah don’t worry about it, sounds like a good idea to me and I’ll bet you I’ve stayed in worse places in my time”
Karen believed her, Lorleii’s attitude and demeanour was not that of someone too concerned about trivial things like heated floors and fine cotton sheets. Karen took the lead and showed Lorleii to the small room she had been allocated.
“There’s room in that locker for your stuff, the shower and bath room are through that door, I’ll give you some fresh sheets for the bed… hope you don’t mind sharing the room”
“He he, Oh its cosy!” Lorleii joked “and where are you sleeping?”
“Ill take the floor” Karen pointed at the roll matt and sleeping bag sitting in the corner
“Don’t be silly there is plenty of space in the bed, unless you would really rather sleep on the hard floor… I don’t bite you know”
Karen was not sure what to say and a hot flush suddenly welled over her. She was unsure on her feelings towards Lorleii but gave into the tingling sensation of excitement.
“Well if you’re sure, I’ve never been one to pass up an opportunity of a warm bed” she smiled, feeling confident and secure in herself for the first time in what seemed like an age.
“Now that’s agreed I’m off to get freshened up and changed”
Lorleii picked up her stuff and vacated to the bathroom, soon the sound of the shower running and Lorleii humming emanated from behind the door. Karen lay on the bed relaxing to the soothing sounds, as she waited her turn for the shower she booked an automated taxi for the morning to take them to the marina where the science vessel was moored. The shower stopped and shortly after Lorleii appeared, covered in nothing but a short towel wrapped around her body, Karen could not help but look at her long smooth legs.
“Oh that’s better, so nice to be out of that flight gear! Your turn K”
After Karen had showered and changed the pair climbed in to bed, though she felt a little uncomfortable at first she soon settled. They lay in the dark and discussed the investigation, the various theories they had and the prospects for the next day. They also talked about their pasts, Karen was particularly interested in how Lorleii had become the owner of her own company, something she had always wanted to do.
Karen slowly drifted in to a deep and very relaxed sleep it was nice to have company again…
Karen woke early the next morning and became suddenly aware of Lorleii’s arm draped across her chest and her leg entwined with her own. She took a short intake of breath and felt her heartbeat begin to race as she started to embrace the feelings she had for Lorleii. Karen had always struggled with her sexuality, throughout her 20’s she had had a number of male partners but nothing lasted long, partly due to her work always keeping her on the move, but it was mainly because she felt something was missing, something was not right. Her father had always like Daniel and had encouraged her to “settle down”, it would have been a smart move and the pair were close, at times, but it was nothing more than a good friendship, with occasional benefits. Now lying in bed with this women Karen felt right.
Karen stirred slightly, accidently waking Lorleii whom quickly withdrew her arm once she realised the position she was in.
“oh … sorry I must have… moved during the night…hope I didn’t give you a shock”
“No don’t worry, its fine … I was kinda enjoying the contact if I’m honest” Karen said as she shifted on to her side and wriggled in to Lorleii’s body.
“Is this okay for you?”
“It is for me K” Lorleii responded as she slide her arm around Karen’s body and drew her closer.
The pair spooned for a while. Karen enjoyed the warmth of her chest pressing against her back and was sure she could feel a heartbeat, the sound of Lorleii slow and steady breathing was comforting, she once again started to drift in to sleep…
BEEP BEEP BEEP … BEEP BEEP BEEP
Almost in sync both Karen and Lorleii released an exasperated sigh…. The alarm signifying the end to the relaxing embrace they were currently enjoying, a situation which was in stark contrast to the reality of the events that had led them to meet. Karen suddenly felt a pang of guilt, she was falling for the women she had been assigned to help, and she felt compelled to address the issue but was unsure on what to say… She rolled out of bed and turned to Lorleii, but could not quite face meeting her gaze…
“Look I can’t umm I’m sorry” she turned away and began to get changed and packed for the day ahead.
They readied themselves, awkwardly avoiding each other, a difficult task in the small box room, once both had changed and packed Lorleii broke the silence.
“Look I don’t want this to make things odd between us, I’m sorry if I came on a little strong, there’s just so much going on at the moment, I’m not sure even of my own feelings. I understand if you’re not comfortable with it and I know it conflicts with your work… I don’t want to cause you any problems, let’s just forget about it and move on… how about it K?”
Karen looked at Lorleii, she had been the picture of a calm, strong and confidant women, but now she saw in her a degree of uncertainty, the same uncertainty that had plagued herself for so many years. Karen took Lorleii’s hold of Lorleii’s hands
“It’s not that, it’s just a lot for me to handle and I think we need to concentrate on the case at hand, shame we met like this, and I agree let’s just see what today brings hay”
They waiting on the landing pad for the automated taxi, it arrived exactly on time. The craft was designed for short low altitude flights and was mainly constructed out of reinforced hardened glass. It provided OS&C guests with easy transport between locations on any given resort and offered great views on the way. After Karen had imputed the desired destination in to the navigation system the craft took off and joined the myriad of other vessels zipping across the pale blue morning sky. Lorleii spent most of the short trip with her face pressed against the glass.
“This place is beautiful… hard to imagine my mother may have come to harm here, it’s so peaceful looking… must be amazing working on this planet…” she mumbled, thinking aloud.
The taxi landed at the marina a short time later, it was located in the lee of the headland which the bar was constructed below. It gave good protection from the very occasional storm which sometimes grew from the combination of the warm climate and the shallow seas surrounding the island. Karen and Lorleii made their way along the main pontoon, moored at the far end was the OSC|Inquistor, she stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the luxury speed boats and yachts, unlike their sweeping lines and clean hulls, she was bulky and streaked with rust. A trio of OS&C scientists were busying themselves loading various boxes on-board.
Karen turned to Lorleii “I think it’s time we find out what the hell is going on, let’s hope we find something out there”
A lifetime ago, the OSC Inquisitor might have been classified as a deep sea trawler, not an exploration vessel. And if you looked at it just right, you could still see some of the utilitarian functionality in the way the wheelhouse was placed on the main deck and the large mast that rode atop it. The stack was just atop a second structure that had vents and hatches visible, and both Lorleii and Karen could both hear the intake fans for the main turbine softly whining as the boat was being loaded for it's upcoming deployment.
However, with the modifications that had been made, it no longer looked the part of a fishing boat. Many of the surface sensor antennas appeared to have been welded onto the mast where ever it was convenient, and a pair of elector-magnetic sensor suite receivers stood guard against the stack port and starboard. The most noticeable addition was the variable depth towed sonar array with it's over-sized winch and other associated control equipment on the fantail.
As the two women approached, one of the scientist waved to them, walked down the gangplank and met them on the main pontoon. “Good morning ladies we've been expecting you.”, he said as he gave them a nod, “I'm Doctor Artur Helferich, Head of Oceanography and Aquatic Anomaly Research here on Curacao.”
“I'm Karen Banks, OS&C Public Relations, and this is Lorleii Darksaint. It's her mother's missing fighter that we're hoping that you've found.”
“Well as I told you when we spoke earlier, we've found something that seems to be the right size not too far off the coast of Diogo.” The Doctor pointed to the two others that were still busy on deck bringing small containers from the brow to the wheelhouse, “Anyways, that's my Dive Master Terry Mac Mahnas, and our Sonar Technician, Rachel Reicks. Once we have our equipment stowed the Captain says will be ready to cast off once you stow your gear.”
“Thank you for your help, Doctor.” Lorleii said earnestly, “If we can find out where my mother's ship went down and why, perhaps it will lend more light to her disappearance.” She turned and headed up the gangplank, stopping half way up, “Oh, almost forgot, permission to come aboard...”
It had already been a busy morning, the Inquisitor had cruised over the anomaly area twice, first dropping a number of high frequency side beam sono-bouys then on the subsequent pass had deployed it's variable depth towed array. After reviewing the holo-projections of the newly gathered data, the science team had confirmed that it was indeed a fighter that was on the ocean floor.
Now Karen sat and listened quietly as Rachel, Lorleii, Terry and Dr. Helferich conferred next to the three-dimensional image of the wrecked fighter and the surrounding ocean floor was being displayed.
“Rachel, bring up the gain from the side-beam transducers a little.” The doctor looked at the image with a look of concern, “It appears that some sort of camouflage netting has been placed over the craft, more than likely just after the recovery of the pilot. I would say that as the cockpit is still closed, this was a voluntary touchdown, not the result of an accident or combat damage.”
“Well, we know that my mother made it back to the island... I've seen the CCTV footage showing her at the resort five days ago.” Lorleii leaned in to give the image a closer look, “Can we go down to get a better look?”
“M 'fraid na, Miss.”, Terry pointed at the depth reading on the display, 'See her, forty meters? Witout being s'perienced, I canna take ya down that deep. We'd af to raise it, f'ya wanna closer look.”
Lorleii turned to the Dive Master, “How long would that take?”
“We af da recovery 'bots on board, think enough to do da job.” Terry's brogue got deeper as he explained further, “Depends on ow much buoyancy is left in da ship. 'Ard part is r'movin da netting, witout gett'n tangled. E'f we cun do tat, were gold'n.”
Karen spoke up, “You think your mother left something behind, Lor?”
“I think so, K. If she thought there was going to be trouble, I'd eventually come looking if I didn't hear from her.” Lorleii thought for a moment, “Might not be anything too obvious either, but we won't know for sure until we get a look inside the ship. So what do you think, can we raise it?”
“I'll probably catch hell from accounting when I submit my expense report for this.” Karen said as she grinned mischievously, “Maybe even Pines as well, but he did say to concentrate solely on this. Besides, it will give the bean counters something to worry about...” She stood, looked at the members of the OS&C science team and her new friend, “Bring it up.”
The next few hours were spent by the Inquisitor's crew preparing the aquatic recovery bots and deploying them overboard. After their decent, there were still a few tense moments while the still unexplained camouflage netting was removed, and the air bladders were attached to the wreck, but now all was ready to raise the fighter from the ocean floor.
The Dive Master looked up from the console where he was coordination the tasks from the ocean floor via video feed, “K , alls ready ta go, Doc.”
“Right, bring the ship up easy, Terry.”, Doctor Helferich replied softly.
“Aye...” The minutes slowly ticked by as the fighter made it's slow, controlled ascent then broke to the surface a short distance from the Inquisitor. The Marauder was in very good shape, considering that it had spend the better part of a fortnight at the bottom of the ocean.
As the ship maneuvered closer to the fighter riding the swells nearby, Lorleii wondered if it was indeed her mother's craft and what she and Karen would find any clues once they searched the cockpit. Her thoughts were disturbed by the gentle bump of the two craft easing next to each other, side by side.
“Looks promising.” Karen said quietly as she walked up and stood next to Lorleii. “Shall we go over and take a look?” Lorleii nodded her assent, then followed as they went over to where a rope ladder had been dropped from the research ship to the fighter's port wing.
The two women climbed down the ladder working their way across the fuselage, each ending up on either side of the cockpit. After finding and activating the exterior canopy release, they both peered in looking for anything that obviously did not belong.
Lorleii sighed, “Well, I can't see anything from up here, I'm going to slide into the seat to get a different view.”, she said as she began to worm her way into the pilot's seat.
“Alright, but don't think of taking off anywhere, I'm not buckled in.”, Karen said with a grin then added, “So... you see anything amiss?”
“Not yet, give me a minute... hmm... what's this?” Lorleii said as she fished around under the console. Here...” she said as she handed Karen a small flattened cylinder inscribed with a sun and orbiting planet logo. On the end was what appeared to be a connection so it could be plugged into a comm tablet. “Looks like some sort of data drive, it was jammed up on top of the control yoke. Let's get back aboard the Inquisitor, get it plugged in and see what we've got here.”
After securing the canopy and climbing back aboard the research vessel, Lorleii went to where her kit had been stowed, took her datapad out and powered it up, then plugged in the data drive. After a few minutes her mother's face appeared on the screen.
“Lor my dear, if you are viewing this, things have gone terribly wrong.” she began.”My associates from the Confederation of Unaligned Worlds have located me, and have promised to do terrible things to you and destroy your new shipping business if I don't cooperate with their demands.“
She took a deep breath, “I'm on my way to meet with Steven Jones on Diogo... your half-brother Danny arranged this meeting so we could discuss my going to ground and to keep you safe.” Her image looked out at Lorleii, a tear running down her cheek.”I wish I could have told you about him prior to the incident in Pennsylvania, you two would have made an unstoppable team... I'm... I'm sorry.”
“If something goes wrong, the plan is that I meet you in the cargo hanger in a few days after things cool off a bit...” Moleigh looked off screen as if watching someone close by, “Gotta run... with any luck I'll see you again.”
Karen, whom had been resting her arm on Lorleii’s shoulder as the video played, took a step back and raised a hand over her mouth. The noise of the Inquisitor’s engines and the loud discussions taking place just outside faded away and Karen became acutely aware of her own heartbeat and breathing, fast and shallow...Daniel was Moleigh’s son.
Lorleii slowly swivelled around on the chair and looked Karen directly in the eyes, her own had begun to well and a single tear had rolled down her left cheek, leaving a slight streak of mascara.
“I …I hav...had a brother, a half-brother and … and it was Daniel… your…Frie…” Lorleii’s voice broke and stammered as she struggled to hold back tears.
She had no word of comfort that would help but Karen knelt down and took Lorleii’s hands and clutched them between her own. After a few moments the pair stood and embraced in a long hug, Karen held her tight as she quietly cried. She had already had time to morn Daniel and although the shock of the news had caused memories to resurface she managed to keep them in check. She needed to be strong for Lorleii and this was no time to replay the past.
A number of minutes passed and Lorleii's tears turned into sniffs and short intakes of breath, the pair separated and Karen softly rubbed the streaks off Lorleii’s cheeks and brushed back the hair covering her face.
“Why had she not told me… there was a lot of things about her past she never talked about, but this… how could she keep this from me?” Lorleii looked towards the ceiling as she spoke, the question was clearly rhetorical but Karen felt the need to reassure her.
“You can ask her when we find her, look we know where to start looking, the cargo hanger on Diogo and this guy Steven Jones”
“The name rings a bell” Karen added but quickly shook her head
“Let’s concentrate on the hanger… she might still be there”
Lorleii looked again at Karen and gathered herself, taking long deep breaths.
“Your right, it’s just a lot to take in”
“I know, we’ll get to the bottom of this, for the both of us” She gave Lorleii a reassuring rub on her arm.
“Do you mind?” Karen asked gesturing towards the data pad on the table.
“Go ahead”
Karen took the datapad and busily scrolled through various messages, they were mostly correspondences about Saint Logistics, but a few were biometrically locked.
“Well at least she wanted you to see this, she knew you would come looking. There’s also a few interesting looking messages but we will either need your mother to open them or we could hand this over to someone who can decrypt this kind of security”
“We’ll make that decision when we need to, let’s get back to Diogo K, there’s still a chance"
“Your right, time to get this lump of rust turned around, I’ll have a word with the captain”
Karen left the room and headed towards the bridge, a new sense of purpose swelled through her, she had almost lost hope, but now not only did they have something to work with she also felt closer to Lorleii. They had shared an unknown bond, a tenuous bond, but in this almost borderless universe even tenuous bonds should be cherished.
Lorleii spent the return trip to Diogo Island avoiding the other crew members, keeping to herself, deep in thought. Too much was happening at once, her emotions were like the waves cresting, then crashing to the bottom, and it was getting the best of her.
First and foremost, her mother's disappearance had been quite a strain, and now that they had some sort of definite direction of where to search and who might have seen here last, gave her more hope than she had felt since her mother had vanished.
But then there was the news that not only did she have a half-brother, but she had been at the scene of his heroic sacrifice and had been one of the last people to hear Daniel's voice. Lorleii felt hurt about not knowing about him as well as not having the chance to get to know him as a person, but also mad and even a little betrayed. How the flying blue blazes did her mother think that keeping a secret of that magnitude was something that shouldn't or even couldn't be shared?
There was also something new to worry about, who or what was this Confederation of Unaligned Worlds, and what kind organization was it? Obviously, they had some sort of damning information from Moleigh's past, were they looking to reel her mother back into their grasp, forcing her to start smuggling again? If they were trying to bring her mother back into their fold, why would they feel it necessary to threaten her and Saint Logistics?
And then there was Karen... perhaps the only positive influence Lorleii had felt in a long time. She thought back to the morning when she woke up holding her close, on that tiny bed with barely a sheet between them. It had seemed only a little awkward at first, but the close, intimate contact while spooning had been comforting, much nicer than anything she had felt with anyone else in a very long time. Falling to sleep with Karen in her arms was something that she could imagine doing again, once things settled down. For now though, just having her close was a comfort and having a friend... no... a good, close friend there for emotional support was enough. There would be time enough to talk about getting to know each other better, later.
Lastly, there was that smart-alec kid who had flown her over from Winward II to first meet with Karen, Pete Simpson. Lorleii had noticed him eyeing her over at the pad as she was settling into the jump seat of his Raven's Talon. Now that she knew her relationship to him... holy cats, that meant he was her nephew? If things were different, she might have had a little fun with the situation, but now... maybe not, but then again...
The Inquisitor's whistle brought Lorleii back to the reality of watching the ship pull into the it's berth where they had started the morning. They had towed in her mother's Marauder and as she watched, was in the process of being lifted out of the water and returned to dry-land.
Karen was standing near her, but there was enough distance between the two women to ensure a little privacy. As she noticed Lorleii starting to pay attention to the activity on the pier, she quietly spoke, “Alot to take in at once. I was thinking that if things had turned out different, maybe we would have met under much happier circumstances.”
Lorleii turned, took two steps over to Karen and picked up her hands tenderly, “You liked him quite a bit, didn't you? Once were done here and everything is settled, I would like to hear more about him, warts and all.” She smiled, drew in close and looked deep into Karen's eyes, “But for now, we need to stay focused... his.. my... our mother is still out there and more than likely needs our help. It might get dangerous, and I have no idea what kind of people we are dealing with.” She added in a quiet whisper, “I don't want to lose you too...”
Karen sank warmly into her gaze and even with the events that were unfolding she felt safe and …loved. She clasped Lorleii’s hand a little tighter.
“You won’t and yeah I did… in many ways, he’s … he was a good man and it would be my pleasure to tell you all I know, I’m sure you have lots of questions. But your right, that’s for another time, we have more pressing matters to attend to”
Karen released her grip and picked up her belongings.
“yeah we need to get her ship somewhere safe... and umm... somehow get to the cargo hanger… where the hell even is it?...” Lorleii paced a few steps, tapping at her datapad.
“Lor…LOR”
Lorleii looked up and stopped her frantic button pressing “yeah?”
“It’s all sorted, don’t worry, whilst you were taking some time to yourself on the way back, I organised some things. Your mother’s ship is being taken to an OSC Security Wing depot, I’ve contacted Peter, he’ll make sure it’s looked after”
“Peter, as in my …nephew Peter?”
“Yep, who saw that coming? Though I did not break the news to him, I think that’s a conversation you two should have…I think he might have some umm hormonal feelings for you” Karen smirked and struggled to stop a little giggle from surfacing.
“Oh great, I’ll add it to the list of awkward conversations I need to have, thanks K!”
The conversation was interrupted by the hum of a landing AutoTaxi touching down on the marina landing pad.
“Ah that will be for us, I also had time to book one in to take us to the cargo hanger, it’s on the other side of the island and this is the quickest way to get there… come on grab your stuff”
Karen gestured at Lorleii’s bags as she turned and took off at a slight jog towards the landing pad. By the time Lorleii had reached the AutoTaxi Karen was already inside and beginning the destination confirmation sequence. She climbed aboard and joined her.
“One last thing K before we go, have you ever used a gun? … In anger so to say”
Karen looked up from the screen, a little shocked to see Lorleii holding out a pistol and holster towards her. “Have I ever used a gun? Christ I’ve never held one!” Karen thought to herself, but not wanting to seem prudish she attempted to hide her shock.
“I’ve um never had to shoot anyone, if that’s what you’re asking?”
Lorleii tightened her lips, frowned and nodded slightly evidently deciding on what to do.
“Well I want you to take this just in case” She placed the pistol next to Karen’s side but rested her hand on it.
“You were being serious about this being dangerous weren’t you?” Karen’s voice betrayed her inner feelings of fear and doubt. She looked down at Lorleii’s hand and the pistol beneath.
“I’m not sure what to expect, I just don’t want to put you in harm’s way, you’ve done so much for me already and I just... want you to be safe … if you don’t want to come I would understand, truly I would”
Karen took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, without saying a word she completed the confirmation. The doors hissed shut and the craft whirred into life, as it took off into the evening sky Karen placed her hand on top of Lorleii’s. She did not have to say anything for Lorleii to know that this was more than just an assignment for Karen now, this meant something.
Anderi led Moleigh silently through a maze of passageways, often times seeming to double back and retrace their path through the maze of corridors, eventually ending up in a section of the base that did not see regular human traffic. He stopped before an ancient set of blast doors, fished around in one of the pockets on his belt, pulled out a key card, then inserting into the slot in the security terminal on the wall next to the door. With a slow resonating grind, the doors parted, revealing a passageway that led further into the bowels of the base.
As the doors ground shut, he stopped and turned to face Moleigh, “We're safe enough here we can talk without being overheard. There's something going on in the base above us and we think someone in Orbital's leadership is involved, or is at least turning a blind eye to it. Guests have been disappearing... mind you, no one who's disappearance would be cause for a full blown investigation... but it's happening.”
“So how does this concern me? Wait, that didn't come out right. Where do I come in? I mean besides the fact that I was in a container headed off wor... ohh...” She stopped mid sentence, pausing, as she realized that it had almost happened to her as well but had been prevented by a major stroke of luck, sunk in. In a somewhat less than confident voice she said, “So your friends aren't working for Spa and Cruise?”
A new voice from behind her spoke, “Not exactly, Donna Darksaint. Go ahead, take those binders off her Anderi, I've got this. I'll vouchsafe for her.”
As Moleigh turned to the face the speaker and saw who was speaking, the shroud of her amnesia drifted away, clearing like a morning fog once the sun shines on it. “Romer... been a long time.” she said while rubbing her wrists as a person stepped out from the shadows. The man was tall and blonde, but his facial scaring made him look older than he was. “Still looking handsome as ever. I would have thought that some lawdog would have caught up with you by now... still running the same rackets?”
“No, not anymore. Like many of our old friends, I've found that working against those that took our place was much more... rewarding.” He smiled, showing his missing teeth. “When Anderi informed us that he had found something interesting on the cargo dock, I never dreamed it would be something, or someone that could aid us in our cause.”
“Hey, I'm not signing up with whatever scam you're running, yet.” Moleigh looked around Romer then down the passageway, “So where's that big ape of a friend our yours, Scar? He's never too far when you're conducting business.”
“Scar is the reason I got involved with this group. Shortly after we landed here on Curacao and came to Diogo, he vanished. At first that he had found himself a card game, another woman or had gone on a bender, but as more time passed and I didn't hear from him, I grew concerned. When I contacted Orbital's Public Relations, his room had been checked back in as being vacant shortly after we arrived. However, there was no official record of him actually leaving the island.” Romer took a breath and continued, “So I made a few inquiries and started doing a bit of checking around myself with no luck. After a few days I was contacted by a member of the group of people I work with now.”
“Who, they gotta name?”
“Yeah, I'm getting to that... anyways, we're loosely associated with the Bounty Hunter's Guild.” He looked at Moleigh for any sort of reaction, then added, “We're not on any official staff roster here on Diogo and only a few select members of Orbital's management even know how to contact us. This way we can take care of the dirty work involved when the official security leaders decide that the good company name shouldn't be associated with the investigation's final outcome.” As he finished, his datapad beeped. He checked it, then looked back at Moleigh, “You've been processed as being clean, we've been cleared to continue on to Control. Anderi take her on up, I''ll be along shortly.”
As the AirTaxi lifted, Lorleii felt Karen's hand slip into hers, and she gave it a slight squeeze to steady her nerves. While she was used to going into potentially dangerous situations by herself, she felt nervous taking someone she had grown to care about so deeply into the same.
Come to think about it, who would have imagined that in a few short days she would have found anyone to care about? Definitely not her old manager, Dabber. His idea of showing he cared about anything usually involved a lot of yelling with more than an occasional slap, then leaving her by herself, alone and crying in her room. He then would disappear and get drunk, who knew where. The only thing that he was ever able to accomplish was a pretty steady string of work with the newest patron picking up the travel expenses to the next gig.
The constant abuse and isolation had left Lorleii, cold and distant, unable or unwilling to give herself to anyone. There had been men over the years... god yes had there been men and more than one woman as well, but they rarely stuck around for longer than a single evenings pleasure.
It all came to a head that last night on Erie, Dabber was on his usual rant about her not having enough talent to break out of the local entertainment circuit, and how she was holding his career back keeping him from making it big. But this time, when he lifted his had to hit her, something inside her snapped... all her frustrations, pain and suffering boiled to the surface and she fought back tooth and nail. The last that she saw him, he was backing away bloody and bruised with fear in his eyes.
After that, Lorleii threw her re-discovered passion into starting up her business. And between the long hours spent traveling the trade lanes and working on her ship, she hadn't been able to find the time for any sort of relationship.
She turned slightly in her seat to look at Karen's profile in the fading light of the oncoming evening. While they had just met less than a day ago, they had made it past the wary awkwardness of being complete strangers, into the easiness of being really close friends.
As she smiled, Karen noticed Lorleii looking at her, “You're thinking about something.”
“Yeah, thinking about the past and how so many things have changed for me.”
“And your mother?”
“Her too... hopefully, we'll find something that will give us some clue as to where to go next.” She gripped Karen's had a little tighter as she continued, “I can't spend too much time away from the things, and I've got good people working for me, but business goes on that I have to attend to.”
“Don't worry, I'm sure we'll find something.” Karen brightened and smiled back, “Once we get things cleared up here, maybe I can arrange for you to spend a couple of days at the resort so you can relax before you have to go back.”
Lorleii was thinking about the offer when the arrival beacon went off and the AutoTaxi began it's descent. “Now remember, keep your eyes open. We don't want any surprises.” The craft set down gently on the cargo landing pad and the doors opened, “Show time...”
As two women walked through the warehouse they stopped and stood quietly near an OS&C Inspector and his escort as he asked loudly, “What the heck is this open container and where is that beast that was working checking in and unloading this cargo pod?”
Karen cleared her throat. “Ahem...”
He turned with a start, “And just who are you? Guests do not belong here... I'll have my escort guide you out.”
Karen showed her ID, then offered her hand for a handshake, “Karen Blanks OS&C Public Relations, and this is Lorleii Darksaint we're investigating the report of a missing person.”
The Inspector looked at her hand as if it was covered in Toxic Waste and ignored it, “Sorry ladies, the only person that is missing right now is the slouch that was unloading this pod.”
Lorleii knelt down next to the open container, “Karen, look at this, it's the logo for the CoUW... looks like it was set up to transport...”
“...a person!” Karen looked at her friend in shock, “You don't think your mother got taken by slavers?”
“Mother? Who are you, anyways?” The Inspector narrowed his eyes, then looked at his escort, “Take them to the office, I need to question so I know what's going on here.”
Lorleii launched herself at the Inspector, grabbing him by the throat, “I don't think so, sunshine.”, she snarled. As she tightened her grip she added, “As I see it, we're going to be the ones doing the asking... got it?”
“**erk**” He gasped.
Karen looked on in shock, Lorleii had turned from a quiet and well spoken and friendly companion to a feral predator in an instant.
“That's what I thought.” She looked at the escort, “Try anything funny and you'll be looking for a new boss to guard.” She renewed her attention on the Inspector, “What or who was in this container?”
“I... I don't know, ma'am.” A patch of wetness began to grow on the front of the Inspector's pants as his bladder let loose. “I really don't know... Anderi was working over here... don't hurt me!”
She nodded, and said, “Karen, do you have any record of an 'Anderi' working here?”
Karen took out her datapad and started scrolling through the Diogo Island personnel listings. “Yeah, got it here, he's day labor, probably a dry-docked spacer.”
Lorleii gave the Inspector another squeeze on his throat, then kissed him on the lips, and in a very pleasant voice says, “Thank you for your cooperation, that wasn't so hard, was it? Have a nice day...” As she sets him loose, she looks at Karen, “Ok, let's go find Anderi.”
Once Lorleii’s grip had loosened the inspector cleared his throat, straightened his uniform and made a hasty retreat, mumbling under his breath as he went…
“bloody women…I’m not paid enough for this malarkey! God damn …”
Karen stood motionless, having not registered Lorleii’s last comment, instead she watched the inspector until he had left the room and was out of ear shot. She turned to Lorleii, her mouth slightly ajar and shock her head with small but clear movements. Karen was shocked by the abrupt aggression her new friend had just demonstrated, maybe she had misjudged Lorleii’s nature or underestimated the stress she was under, either was Karen was not going to let what just happened slip unchallenged. Lorleii began to gesture with her hands in a “let’s get moving fashion” and was about to speak, but Karen stood defiantly still.
“What the hell was that Lor!? “ she firmly asked before Lorleii could speak
“He is an Inspector for OSC!… my employer I might add, what if this gets back to Pines, I’ll be taken off the case in a jiffy and I doubt he would be very cooperative after that!”
As she spoke she pointed her finger towards the door where the inspector had left, at herself and then at Lorleii. After letting the finger linger a while she slowly let her hand come back down to her side as she took a deep breath in and waited for Lorleii’s response.
Karen was not used to confrontation and felt a sudden pang of regret at her own outburst but could not help also feeling slightly excited about her new found confidence.