Art:Space Pirates/Jackson's Story

= Jackson's Story = by Ariastess

Stars whizzed past the windows as The Stella moved gracefully between them. I couldn’t help but grin as the ship eased out of hyperspace. Avoiding those ITF ships had been easy, but all the same, it had been a close call. As the many colored lights of Calliope Space Station came into view, I leaned back idly in the cockpit and sighed. It was the last place in the universe I wanted to be, and the one place I seemed never to be able to get away from.

A robotic voice buzzed in over the ship’s intercom. “Welcome to Calliope Space Station! Name and tracking numbers please.”

“Jackson Devonjer, Captain of The Stella, tracking number Delta 793.”

“Personal Cargo Ship number Delta 793. Devonjer, Jackson. You are cleared to land at port 9. Thank you, and Welcome to Calliope!”

I steered the ship for the north side of the station. Although it was stringently patrolled by the ITF, Port 9 was commonly referred to as Smuggler’s Bay, since nearly every delta-class personal cargo ship was owned by smugglers, or had been at one time. Turning on the auto-land, I made a quick tour of the ship to ensure that all cargo was secured, including the special compartment beneath the passenger seating that held a large shipment of colored Daorian diamonds. I placed a few of the larger ones, including a glittering pinkish diamond in a small leather pouch and secured it to my belt. I flipped the patch over my right eye and surveyed the ship with my bionic eye, making sure that no traces of the diamonds or their location was left behind.

I leapt nimbly down from the cockpit and found myself face-to-face with a familiar and not altogether unexpected face. “Well well, Jackson Devonjer. What a surprise to see you here.”

“And yet, Edny, I’m not in the least bit surprised to see your shining face.” I said lightly. “Miss me that much?”

Edny Pachenga’s pudgy face flushed with rage. Knowing how much I infuriated the stiff-minded ITF agent who had made it his sad little life’s goal to catch me in action, I made it a point to push his buttons whenever possible. “Ha ha, Devonjer. Very amusing. Declare your cargo, and you’d better be thorough.”

“Ah, cutting the foreplay this time, are we?” Pachenga glared. “Very well, there isn’t much, just a few cases of black sand from the Troo Moons, three bolts of Yucan leather, and two cases of Daorian wine, special gift for a friend of mine here. Say, since I know you’re gonna search the hold anyway, mind delivering it for me? It goes to the “Bacchus and Stars” on Level 4.”

“Oh I know all about your little friend Iolana. You and her are quite chummy, aren’t you?”

“If you know Ratri at all, you know she doesn’t get “chummy” with anyone, Edny. Jealous are we? I didn’t know Saffir were your type.” I grinned as Pachenga’s bald spot began to redden, the sign that he had reached a breaking point. “Oh, nevermind. I’ll deliver them later. I’ve business to deal with first.”

“Don’t think I don’t know why you were really in Daor, Devonjer. I will find them.”

I pretended not to hear, but turned his head just enough so that his bionic eye could get an unhindered view of the ship and gave it one last glance. Wary but satisfied, I strolled into Calliope. I hated it here. Every sight, every sound reminded me of her. I tried not to remember the days we spent walking about the station, hand in hand, watching the stars. Ten years ago she had left, leaving me alone with the ship – her ship, the ship I named and built for her. Shaking my head against the flood of memories, I strode the familiar hallways, but as I headed for the elevators I was pulled aside into a narrow hallway by a strange dark figure.

“What the – let go of me!”

The figure spun around and I realized it was a young woman. She was dark-skinned, with long black hair that hung in clusters of braids. Her clothes were tan and made of fine linen, and she had gold earrings and a gold band across her arm.

“Where are they?”

“Where are who?”

“Not who, what. The diamonds. Where are they!” Her accent was rich, and reminded me of exotic planets with bright suns.

“I have no idea what you are talking about,” I replied, instantly wary.

“Don’t be a fool, I know where you have come from and your cargo. I need the pink diamond, now!” It was at this moment I realized that she was holding a small but very dangerous looking blaster aimed straight at my heart.

“Look Miss…”

“Afya.”

“Look, Afya, I don’t have any diamonds, much less pink ones. I’m just delivering a gift to a friend of mine and then I’m on my way. Ok?”

“Why should I believe you?”

“Would I lie to the most renowned arms dealer in the galaxy, when she’s pointing one of her specially modified blasters straight at me?”

The fact that I knew her seemed to please her slightly, but she did not loosen her grip on the blaster. “You would, because you are a smuggler and a criminal. But in that, I suppose we are alike. Now, I am prepared to offer you a very great price for the diamond, but I need it, and quickly. We may already be too late.”

“My ship!” I said suddenly, and forgetting the beautiful women pointing a deadly weapon at me, dashed out of the corridor and back up the causeway. As soon as I entered Port 9, blaster fire erupted from all directions. I dodged them and dived into The Stella, only vaguely aware that it had obviously been ransacked and searched. Within moments she was soaring out of the station. Two ships were fast enough to follow, but I out-maneuvered them, and was in hyperspace before they had time to catch me.

“Well, that was some pretty fancy flying there, Devonjer.”

I spun around in my chair, blaster ready to fire, and found myself looking at Afya again, who was strapped neatly into one of the passenger seats that hadn’t been overturned.

“How in the stars…”

“I followed you, idiot. I was right behind you the whole time. I’m not leaving until I get the diamond.”

I growled and lowered my weapon. “Well you’re too late. Look around you. They tore her apart, they found everything. There were three cases of diamonds under those seats.” I fumed at the thought of the smug look on Edny Pachenga’s face as he found the secret compartments he had searched for so long. But my anger vanished when I suddenly realized just how worried Afya looked. “What?”

“This is bad. I assumed you would have it, not leave it here on the ship – oh, if they have the diamond, this is very bad indeed.”

“Why?”

Afya sighed. “I build weapons, as you know. A few years ago a brilliant scientist came to me with plans for the most powerful weapon I had ever seen, a laser with the ability to fire at targets thousands of light years away. It had the capacity to destroy ships, small planets, even some stars.”

“You didn’t actually build it, did you?”

“Nearly. All it needed was a power source.”

“The diamond.”

“Exactly. That diamond is the only one of it’s kind, hidden on Daor for centuries. It’s the last piece of the weapon. And though most think that the ITF and the Navy can be trusted, you and I both know well enough that there are plenty men who would do anything for wealth and power. But I lost the weapon. Well, I lost my ship, at least. Flint managed to escape with the prototype of the weapon on the ship, but I have no idea where he went, and if they find him first, and they have the diamond…”

But they didn’t have the diamond. The small pouch dug into my side. I debated telling Afya I had it, but I still wasn’t sure she could be trusted, beautiful though she was. Beautiful women were often known to cause the most harm. I should know.

“So exactly what do you want me to do about this? Keep in mind that I just lost a great deal of profit because of you.”

Afya sighed, and looked at me with irritation. “I’ll make you a deal. Help me find my ship and Flint, and I’ll make sure you are set for life. Anything your little smuggler’s heart could desire.”

“Anything?” I grinned. She glared, and turned around and pretended to be interested in the monitors. Suddenly I felt very odd. Afya was attractive and dangerous, the exact same qualities I loved most in my ship. I chided myself inwardly, “You swore off women ten years ago, Devonjer, don’t go getting soft now.”

With some reluctance, I agreed to help Afya find her ship. Seeing as I was could hardly show up at any populated port in the galaxy, I needed her protection to get supplies, and she needed my knowledge of the star systems to find Flint. By talking to the right people at each port we learned that Flint had stopped at several different nearby stations trying to find safety, but each time the story was the same. The Apathy had ported, and within a few hours had been assaulted by a small vessel bearing the Navy flags.

I found myself watching Afya out of the corner of his eyes whenever we were on board The Stella. She was very smart, and almost as skilled at piloting a ship as I was. She was unlike any woman I had ever known, at times very passionate and emotional, but able to become as cold and hard as stone whenever I asked too many questions. She infuriated and intrigued me, but I couldn’t get enough of it.

Afya knew that as a last resort Flint would hide in his father’s old house on Earth. We found his home empty, but there were signs that he was still nearby, and it was as we flew low over a section of mountains that we noticed The Apathy hidden among a grove of trees. I was uneasy, and kept searching the skies with my bionic eye, I was sure we had been followed, but Afya was insistent that we land.

A wiry, middle-aged man came running out to greet us, but no sooner had Flint grabbed Afya’s hand there was a loud noise, and a small but powerful Navy vessel landed in front of us, and we were suddenly surrounded by at least a dozen armed men.

A tall, thin man with dark hair and eyes came striding confidently out of the ship. I knew this man too well, and he was the only man I was afraid of. Edny might have been an ITF official, but he was a coward. Not this man. Nicholas Worthington professed to be on the side of the law, but I knew that Worthington served only himself, and given the right price, he would turn at any opportunity. Worthington wanted the weapon and the diamond, but I wasn’t going to let that happen.

“I knew if we followed you, you would lead us to the weapon, Afya. And you have made my job all the more easy by bringing this smuggler with you.” Worthington said in his cold, calm voice. “Now, hand over the diamond, Devonjer, and you may just get to live.”

I could feel Afya’s stare burning into the back of his head. “What diamond?” I tried to sound nonchalant.

“Don’t be a fool. You are already under the penalty of death for crimes of smuggling and attacking ITF and Navy vessels. If you cooperate, they might just give you a lesser sentence.”

“And these two?”

“Their fate does not concern you.”

Something in his statement made me bristle with anger. Before the last few days, had this choice been put before me I would have gladly saved my own life without care or concern for anyone else. But something had changed, and I did care. I did not want to see Afya imprisoned, nor would I let the diamond or the weapon fall into Worthington’s hands. Thinking as quickly as possible, I realized there was only one thing I could do to get them out alive, but it was possibly the hardest thing I had ever done.

“Very well,” I reached for the pouch and exactly what I had hoped for began to happen. Afya darted forward and began to rage madly.

“You liar, you smuggler! You dirty, selfish, no-good - ” She called me a great deal of curses I had never heard before, swinging her fists at me. I tried to dodge her without bringing attention to what my hands were actually doing, and finally two men were able to restrain her. Her cold and hateful stare stabbed at me, but I ignored it.

“There,” I said lightly, tossing the pouch to Worthington. “As promised. The diamond, and some others too, for your profit. The weapon is on The Stella.” Afya gasped, and might have ruined it, but I recovered quickly. “Oh don’t act surprised. Worthington paid me to get it from you and the diamond too. And now, if you all don’t mind.” Before Worthington could protest, I pressed a small button on a detonator I always kept hidden at the back of my belt. A tremendous explosion rendered the air from the direction of my beloved ship, and chaos broke loose.

The other naval officers believed themselves betrayed, and descended on Worthington. By the time they discovered what had actually happened, we would be long gone. I grabbed Afya by the arm, and gestured to Flint, and we raced unseen towards The Apathy. Afya dived into the cockpit and started the ship immediately, taking off with expert precision. I was mildly impressed.

I looked down as we sped away, watching sadly as smoke rose from the burning wreckage that was all that was left of The Stella. “She’s gone.” I sighed, as Afya put a hand on my shoulder.

“Thank you, Jax. You sacrificed a lot to do that. I’m surprised.”

“Are you? I am too.” I smiled at her. “But maybe now I can move on.”

She smiled at me, a very different smile than usual. Abandoning all pride and pretense, I leaned forward and kissed her. To my surprise, she kissed back. As I pulled away, I slipped the diamond into her pocket, and she laughed.

“Hey, what about our deal? You promised me anything my little smuggler’s heart could desire.”

“I did. And what does your heart want then?”

“I already have it.” She smiled micheviously and kissed me again. “Although a new ship would be nice, too.”

= Cast of Characters = Jackson Devonjer

Edny Pachenga

Ratri Iolana

Afya

Tamar Flint

Nicholas Worthington