Mars Daybreak Fan Fiction ❯ Haunting Past ❯ Chapter 9

Haunting Past

 

By: A-Z Mark II

 

Disclaimer: I think that Sony Computer Ent. and Bandai own Mars Daybreak - maybe.

 

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Chapter 9

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“You're saying that no matter how this plays out, we can't win?!” sputtered Anna Grace. Across her desk, Captain Doolittle frowned.

“No, no,” he dismissed her concern, “I didn't say we couldn't win, Miss Grace; I said we couldn't manage independence from Earth,” clarified the Mars Defense Force officer. Anna glowered at him.

“Like I said, you are saying we can't win!” she repeated. Doolittle sighed.

“Miss Grace, you have a singular focus,” he said blandly. Anna Grace's eyebrows beetled at that.

“What does that mean, exactly?” she asked suspiciously. It almost sounds like a compliment, but that tone and wording make me wonder, she thought to herself.

“Why, I mean you are dedicated to the goal we share,” Doolittle fenced back. “However,” he went on a moment later, “the lofty notion of complete independence from Earth is simply not realistic, in view of the nearly static population due to low birth rates, limited resources, and the resulting limited economic viability.”

“So, you're saying that we should just give up?” hissed Anna. Doolittle shook his head.

“Not at all, Administrator Grace,” he denied. “I am saying that rather than complete independence, we should seek to change our relationship with Earth to that of equal partner, rather than the current colony status,” he explained. “While this will not be the perfect answer, it will address the majority of our problems, as well as give us a means to achieve complete independence at a later date,” he pitched.

“Why just ask for equal status, when we will still have to fight Earth Forces to even begin negotiations? Why not demand autonomy?” asked Anna petulantly. Damn it, I am losing my standing with the citizens of Mars by having to make nice with Earth policy toward us! she silently cursed.

“Because, to gain complete autonomy would be the end of us,” said Doolittle bluntly. “Unless and until the economic and population problems are addressed, we need Earth,” he continued remorselessly. Anna slumped in her seat.

“You are full of good news, aren't you, Captain Doolittle?” she asked him sarcastically. “What other good news do you have to share with me?” she asked rhetorically. Before she could go on, her terminal chimed, signaling a message. Touching the pad, she connected the call. Seeing a familiar face staring back at her, she grimaced. “Oh, if it isn't mister Poe!” she gritted out.

“We have a problem, Miss Grace,” he got right to the point, skipping the formalities. “Liberty city-ship was just bombed,” he said gravely. Anna Grace's eyes widened as she glanced at Doolittle, who showed little reaction. Anna had been working with Doolittle long enough to know that his lack of expression was a sure sign that he was caught off guard. “How bad is the damage?” asked Anna.

“Minor, but the fallout is the problem. It appears to have been a terrorist-style bombing; a package was left at a kiosk in the market area, which detonated shortly after, killing several pirates, the kiosk owner and his son, and wounding about thirty others. No structural damage to the city-ship, but you can understand that the pirate crews are up in flames over this. Most of them are blaming the Earth Forces and MDF for the attack, a few are blaming other pirates, but they are all looking to put a hurt on someone,” he warned her. Sighing, he looked at his main political enemy. “I hate to say it, Anna,” he said gravely, “but you are likely right up there in the cross-hairs,” he said.

“Just what I need,” muttered the woman. A thought crossed her mind. “Any word on the Ship of Aurora?” she asked. Poe glanced to the side for a moment, then back at the camera.

“Strange thing about that,” he said. “My information shows that the Aurora was at the city-ship when it happened, but left without a word to anyone. Destination unknown. Some of the smaller ships were talking about the Aurora being involved, but none of them are stupid enough to go up against that ship,” he smiled humorlessly.

“And pirate vessel zero zero four?” she asked, recalling the other pirate craft that could be crucial to her plans.

“Kuberness? Haven't heard anything about or from him in weeks,” reported Poe. “I'm going to see if I can defuse the situation some, but I think it would be in your best interest to be very careful about where you go and what you do for the next while,” said the leader of the Martian Independence Front.

“Thank you for your concern, mister Poe,” said Anna, distracted by her own thoughts. “Good evening,” she added before killing the link. Looking at Doolittle, she found the man staring off into space. “Well?” she asked him, exasperated.

“Huh? Oh! I think I should be getting back to base, Administrator Grace,” he said, rising. “Since you are likely to be the focus of some pirate attention, I think I should strengthen the patrols around Ardena,” he added, glancing at Anna. When Doolittle didn't immediately leave, Anna wordlessly spread her hands in a questioning gesture. “I was wondering if you might have some time free soon, maybe come by to look in on the base, maybe,” he hinted vaguely. “Maybe see some training of the Mars Defense Force troops,” he hinted. Anna wasn't following his lead.

“What?” she asked bluntly.

“Oh, I was just thinking that you would sleep better if you knew more about how well-trained your defenders are,” he said, saluting her. “I'll be off then,” he said, moving toward the door. “Say, tomorrow evening about nine?” he added quietly.

-

Gram carefully unwrapped the bandage on his thigh, being careful not to disturb the bio-film that closed the puncture. He was in the men's shower block on the Aurora, which was currently moving toward the frontier on a curving course. What lay ahead for the ship was likely to prove tedious in the extreme, but it was a necessary step to prove or disprove their working theory about what was happening on Mars. Checking the wound, he saw that it was already beginning to knit itself closed, the line where the two sides met was already darkening, looking like a thread on his leg.

“Gram,” came Yagami's voice from behind him. Turning his head, he saw the legendary RB ace entering the shower area. “How's the leg?” he asked. Gram shrugged.

“Healing,” said the young man. Yagami gave it a brief look.

“At least it is a clean wound,” he offered. Gram nodded, starting the shower and stepping in. Yagami saw Gram take the bar of soap and begin to carefully wash himself off. “You know, if Sala hears about this, she'll give you a lecture about not saturating the bio-film bandage,” he noted, his tone humorous. Gram shrugged.

“Won't be the first time,” he dismissed. Yagami took the shower next to his.

“I honestly didn't expect to come back to this ship, let alone run into you back on this ship,” he said a few minutes later. Gram nodded.

“I promised Vess that I would give up being a pirate, and we did,” he replied. “It's just that sometimes, the past won't stay in the past, you know?” he offered the other diver. Yagami thought of his own past, knowing what Gram meant.

“Yeah, Gram,” he replied, “I know what you mean,” he said. The two heard the hatch cycle, and Aki and Junior came in. Seeing Gram in the shower, they immediately started in.

“Should you be doing that?” asked Aki.

“Is your leg healing, Gram?” wondered Junior.

“Yes to both,” chuckled Gram. “Making that roast was hot work,” he explained. “Vess and I needed a shower,” he shrugged. At the mention of the shapely blonde, Aki's eyes lit up.

“You mean, Vess is in the women's shower right now?” he asked eagerly. Gram nodded.

“She and Enora were talking, so they will probably be in there a while,” he said, ducking under the spray to wash off. I think that Ester was going to head there, too, he recalled vaguely. Girls and going to the bathroom in groups, he dismissed the thought. With the last of the soap off him, he checked the leg wound one more time before shutting off the shower and stepping out, grabbing his towel and carefully drying off the wound before moving on to the rest of his body. “Later,” he said once he was dressed again.

Aki was frantically washing himself off. Yagami cast a curious glance at the young man. “What's the rush, Aki?” he asked.

“Just remembered something I need to do,” said the young man. Yagami opened his mouth to tell Aki not to do anything stupid, but closed it without speaking. Telling him not to do anything stupid is like telling Junior not to boast: it just won't make a difference, he thought to himself. Besides, he's been crew here long enough to know that trying to peek on the women's showers is suicide, he quieted his conscious. Once Aki has rushed out the door, he shut off his shower and reached for his towel. It'll do him some good to be reminded of the rules, he smiled to himself.

Aki, meanwhile, was wiggling through a tight access passage deep in the bulkheads of the ship. Even though the passage was tight and awkward, it was clean - thanks to Grandpa and the BALLS - and he judged that the trip was worth the hassle. Thank god for Neli's tendency to talk endless about the mechanical condition of the ship, he thought absently. The chief engineer and Grandpa had been reviewing a maintenance report about the mechanical trunks in this section. He had happened to hear the two discuss a loose auxiliary ventilation duct in need of repair. Since it wasn't a critical system, they had left it alone.

Aki had recognized the block and deck designation, and a little digging had told him all he needed to know. The auxiliary vent was in the women's shower room, near the back corner. Aki smiled to himself, careful not to crush the gear in his pocket as he snaked his way through the access passage. Man, that should give me a perfect view of them, he thought giddily. Especially with this little baby! he gloated, caressing his pocket. And best of all, no one will know I'm there! he crowed to himself. A sudden image flickered through his head, causing him to frown. “Except for Megumi,” he whispered to himself. The youngest crewmember and psychic was demonstrating an ever-growing control over her gifts, and he knew that his thoughts could betray him to her, if he wasn't careful.

As near as the crew could figure, Megumi tuned them out by and large; probably like they tuned out mechanical sounds or normal operating sounds. Megumi had said that before, she had stayed locked in her cabin because there were too many voices in her head when she was around people. If one accepted that that was the case, then she must have learned how to filter out the background thoughts, as it were, since she now loved to be around the crew. She did, however, seem to have a tendency to `listen' to crew when they were talking to her or about her. So, if she has no reason to think I might be there, she should tune me out, he told himself with as much confidence as he could. Up ahead, he saw the sliver of light from the loose ventilation duct.

Reaching it, he worked his way upright, finding that the conduits, pipes, lines and tubes made for an almost comfortable resting spot right at eye level with the flange. Ok, let's just see who's there, he told himself as calmly as he could, pulling out the piece of gear from his pocket. Ever so carefully, he worked the drinking-straw-thick probe between the loose vent and the bulkhead. Once it was secure, he silently attached the base unit to the bulkhead behind some conduit. From his other pocket, he pulled out the receiving unit and switched it on. After making some focus adjustments, he found himself looking at the shower stalls in the women's shower room.

Swiftly, he adjusted the zoom so the only thing in-frame was the four shower stalls. Looking at the occupants, he leered to himself, feeling his dick harden. Well, well! he though happily. No Megumi, and Vess, Enora and Ester in all their glory, he thought happily. His remote camera was not built with sound capability, but who needed sound when you have high-definition video of naked, wet woman? Seeing Vess rinsing off soap suds, he found his pants too tight on him. A dream come true, he thought happily, trying to get his dick settled more comfortably. He was vaguely uneasy knowing that Ester was in there. His jaw still ached whenever he got too close to her.

Focusing on Vess, he pushed the memories of the ass-kicking he had gotten from Ester a year ago from his mind. The blonde was certainly eye-catching. Slim and shapely, her body was well balanced. Aki swallowed with some difficulty as he watched her relax under the spray of the shower. The carpet matches the drapes, that's for sure! he thought, feeling his dick throb. Damn it, I need to get out of here and somewhere more comfortable, he told himself. Making sure that the image was being stored for later download, Aki began to withdraw from the cramped mechanical trunk area.

In the shower, Vess leaned her head back forward, the warm water sheeting over her freshly-washed hair as she stretched her arms. On either side of her, Ester and Enora were finishing up their own showers. “Man, Vess,” came Enora's voice, “you got pounded pretty good,” noted the girl, seeing Vess's arms, stomach, ribs and legs marked with darkened bruises of varying shades. Vess shrugged.

“Hand to hand was never my favorite activity,” she dismissed it. Seems to be healing pretty good, though, she left unsaid. “Honestly, I'm more worried about Gram's stab wound,” she said. Glancing over, she found Enora eyeing her naked body.

“It was a clean wound, and Sala is probably one of the best doctors on Mars,” interjected Ester. The smaller Naval Witch snuck a peek at Vess's bruises over her abdomen. “Are you still feeling fine?” she asked the blonde. Vess nodded.

“Yes, I'm fine,” she said. “Why are you worried about me?” she wondered. Ester brushed her wet bangs back from her forehead.

“The bruising on your stomach indicated that the blows had a lot of power behind them, and it is easy to get hurt badly by such blows,” she explained. Leaning around the semi-transparent partition, she carefully brushed her fingertips over Vess's dark-blue bruises. “They have swollen slightly, but the color is good, and the lines are clear,” she murmured to herself.

“Other than being sore, I am fine, Ester,” Vess repeated, shutting off her shower and stepping out, snagging her towel as she did so. Drying off, she was unaware of Enora's watchful eyes. The younger woman found herself watching Vess with more than a touch of jealousy. Seeing the shapely breasts and rich pink nipples of the older woman, she bit back a sigh, glancing down at her own breasts. Her nipples were a light brown shade, and a little puffier than Vess's, though her breasts were smaller than both Vess's and Ester's breasts. Perky and firm, they were nevertheless less imposing than the charms of what she considered her main rivals for Gram's attention.

Looking further down, she saw that Vess's darker blonde patch was neatly trimmed and tended, leaving her actual labia clean and bare. Glancing down, she saw that her own pubic hair was still not fully developed, though it was developed enough to need occasional touch-up with a razor. I need to start trimming it back, and I need to make sure that I keep it above my pussy, she made mental notes. Glancing at Ester as the first officer stepped out, she saw that the woman had less hair at her groin than she did, but it was a tightly-defined triangle of fine, rich, deep-purple hair, like on her head. Looking closer, she noticed that there was no sign that Ester shaved her lower hair. It occurred to Enora that she might not, since she was a Naval Witch.

Looking down at her own body as she shut off her shower, she recalled Gram's words from the outdoor bath. With a shiver running down her spine, she smiled. Well, Gram said he enjoyed it, so maybe… she blinked as a towel dropped over her shoulder. Looking up, she found herself looking Vess in the eyes, the taller woman's towel over her shoulders, her arm still extended from where she had draped Enora's towel over the teenager's shoulders. “Uh, thanks, Vess,” she said, taking her towel and beginning to dry off. As she worked the soft, fluffy towel down her legs, she saw Vess dig out a small tube from her bath basket before setting her towel aside. “What's that, Vess?” asked Enora.

“Skin lotion,” replied Vess. “With the desiccate used to keep the humidity under control, your skin gets dry very quickly,” she explained. “So, I use this lotion to keep my skin from getting dried out as quickly.”

“Really?” came Enora's interested voice. “Is that why your skin is so soft?” she asked. She had noticed that her skin got dried and rough when she had first come to Mars, but had never really thought about why that happened. Recently, she had noticed that Vess's skin was soft and supple even when her own was drying out.

“Partially,” said Vess, squirting some onto her palm before beginning to rub it into her face. In short order, Vess was working past her waist with the lotion. Looking at Vess's skin before and after the lotion, Enora could see a difference.

“Vess, could I use some of that?” she asked the blonde. Vess glanced at her.

“Sure, Enora,” said the blonde calmly, moving down her thighs. “Use it sparingly, though - it's all I have with me,” she cautioned the girl.

“Ok,” confirmed Enora, taking the tube and glancing at the label. It wasn't an Earth product, but she made note of the name so she could pick some up when she was able to go into a city-ship again. Carefully squirting some of the viscous gel onto her palm, she wondered how much was too much. “Um, Vess?” she asked.

“That should do your face, neck and most of your chest,” replied Vess with barely a glance, her attention mostly on her feet. “It spreads out real well,” she added, straightening. Enora set the tube aside and delicately dipped her fingertips into the cool, lipid puddle on her palm. Starting at her hairline, she found that as she spread the lotion on her skin, it stopped feeling tight and dry. In short order, she had her face and neck done and was happily working her way south.

“Are you going to try some of this?” asked Enora of Ester. Ester shook her head.

“No, thanks,” she declined. “My skin doesn't dry out like yours and Vess's does,” she explained. “Different chemistry, I guess,” she added, shrugging. “Do you want me to do your back, Vess?” she asked the blonde. Vess smiled at Ester.

“If you would, please,” she replied. “Usually, Gram does that, but since he isn't here at the moment,” she shrugged. Ester held out her hand, and Enora dutifully squirted a small puddle onto her palm. Ester efficiently spread it over Vess's back.

“You have some bruising on your back as well, Vess,” advised the woman. Vess hummed a response.

“Not surprising,” she dismissed the topic. Ester finished up.

“Done,” said the Naval Witch, glancing at her hand, which still had some lotion on them. “Enora?” she offered. The teenager nodded. Ester crossed to the teen, who was working her way past her knees and began to work on her back as well. For several minutes, the shower block was silent as the girls finished up. Each of them was thinking of the same guy, though they didn't know it.

Another guy was panting as he hunched over the small monitoring screen for the camera. Holy shit, that was hot! he thought to himself, absently grabbing some tissue. He had never expected the three to lotion each other up, and by chance, his camera had caught them at just the right angle. As he cleaned up his mess, he realized that having a camera in the shower room could just be the best thing that ever happened to him. Checking once more to make sure that the feed was being properly recorded, he let his mind turn to the possible uses for the footage; other than the one he had just demonstrated, of course.

-

“I knew it!” exclaimed the Doctor, rubbing his hand together excitedly. “I am a genius!” The six dozen BALLS robots didn't remark on his sudden outburst, being busy with their tasks. Looking over the mostly-stripped engine bay framing of the Ship of Hope, the mechanically-gifted former pirate reviewed his plans. Oh, I am most definitely going to win Elizabeth back, he gloated. On his notebook terminal, he crafted his plan, transferring the tasks to the BALLS laboring over the wounded ship.

“Hey, boss!” came the voice of his foreman from a window that popped up on his terminal.

“Gah! Don't do that!” complained the manager of the city-ship. “What do you want?” he asked petulantly.

“There's a shipment of Chatlerham armor plate here, but no work order for it. What am I supposed to do with it?” wondered the man.

“I'll figure it out later, Dogan,” said the Doctor, hiding his smile. “Stick it in the spare parts room until I get to it,” he directed his assistant.

“Spare parts?” echoed the man. “Doc, Chatlerham armor is Earth Forces-only! If we don't have a work order, we can't have it!” protested the man.

“I told you, I'll figure it out!” repeated Doctor. “It's probably for some ship on its way here after messing with Kuberness or the Aurora, and we just haven't gotten the work order in yet,” he dismissed the extra armor. “While we're talking,” he turned the topic away from the armor, “have you seen that Lanmarine Interceptor cooling system recently?” he asked his underling. “You know, the one that we were keeping around in case a ship fitted with one came in?” he prodded. Dogan scratched his chin.

“I think it was over in warehouse six, Doc,” he replied. “But, that thing is only able to be used in a four-coil set-up, and no ship on Mars uses a four-coil Lanmarine engine configuration!”

“Of course not,” replied the Doctor reasonably. “I just wondered where it was, since I might have found a buyer for it,” he hinted. Dogan shrugged.

“Whatever, boss,” he dismissed. “Oh, yeah,” he added just as Doctor was about to shut off his window, “got another discrepancy for you to work on,” he relayed, glancing at his manifest screen on his terminal. “A freighter ship showed up with some tractor parts and some kitchen utensils - about fifty tons worth, between them. Any ideas?” he asked, his eyes and tone curious.

“Stick them in the spare parts room with the armor,” Doctor waved dismissively. “They're probably just a mis-shipped order for one of the other city-ships. From the sounds of it, probably Gate,” he shrugged.

“You're the boss, boss,” said Dogan, closing the window. Doctor glanced at the time display, calculated how long it would take to get the items stowed, then entered a new order for a fresh set of BALLS to begin bringing the material from the spare parts room. Smiling broadly, the man keyed up his re-worked blueprint for the changes to the SHIELD ship of Gram River and his woman.

“You will hardly recognize the old girl,” he chuckled in anticipation. Entering data on his list, he saw more of the computerized model of the ship go from shadow line to solid, indicating that the material and build instructions were in place. Looking at how much of the ship and supplies were still shadowed, he shook his head. “Only for you, Elizabeth,” he muttered as he got up and moved toward the triple-locked and secured hatch that led to the rest of the city-ship. And now, for some paperwork, he thought, focusing his mind on that matter.

-

“Gram,” came Enora's voice from the hatch to Ester's cabin, “you awake?” she asked, opening the hatch. Sleepily, Gram blinked, lolling his head around to see Enora standing in the passage of the Aurora. Focusing on the soft glow of the clock, he realized that it was the dead of night. Glancing at the bed, he found that Vess was sleeping soundly beside him, Ester missing - probably standing watch.

“Yeah, Enora,” he said softly, shifting a little, but being careful not to disturb Vess. “What's wrong?” he wondered. Enora stepped into the cabin, the hatch closing behind her. Gram saw she was wearing a loose shirt, her hair slightly mussed.

“Um, nothing, really,” said Enora, stopping next to the bed. Seeing the blonde mane of Vess next to Gram, she compressed her lips before carefully sitting on the edge of the bed near Gram. “I just couldn't sleep,” she explained. “I was hoping we could talk for a bit,” she added. Gram nodded.

“Sure, Enora,” he said softly. “But let's try not to wake Vess,” he cautioned. Enora nodded, silently lying down next to Gram.

“It's been five weeks since we started searching the frontier, and we still haven't found anything,” noted Enora. “Do you really think that those fake pirates are really out here?” she wondered. Gram gave her a single-shoulder shrug.

“It's the best theory we have going for us, Enora,” he explained. “We are also trying to find the pattern to the city-ship sinkings,” he reminded her. “Bored?” he guessed, giving her an unseen smile.

“Well, a little,” she admitted. “I'd rather be here than anywhere else, but after my last time onboard the Aurora, I was hoping for a bit more action,” she added. Gram could understand that.

“Mostly, this is what a pirate's life is like, though,” he explained. “Long periods of boredom, punctuated by short periods of adrenalin rush.” Enora considered that.

“Is that what draws you and Vess to this lifestyle, Gram?” she asked quietly. “Is it the rush?” she wondered. “I mean, you both pilot RBs, and seeing how you two live, it's clear you feed off the excitement,” Enora said. Gram considered that.

“You know, Enora, we gave up pirating after the battle of Olympus Mons,” he said. “We had planned to live out the rest of our lives aboard our ship without having to constantly look over our shoulders. It was only the incident at Taklen that pushed us down this path again,” he said. “The battle at Morgan Drift almost cost Shie her life, and our ship was almost sunk out from under us. I won't say that Vess and I tend to live dangerously, but it isn't that we chose to come back, so much as we had no other choice,” he explained. Enora silently absorbed that.

“I can't wait to see your ship, Gram,” she said quietly.

“I think you'll like it, Enora,” Gram replied, feeling Vess shift against his side. Did we wake her? he wondered. “Though, I'm not sure when it will be repaired,” he admitted.

“That boyfriend of Captain Elizabeth is doing the work, right?” wondered Enora. “I'm surprised that you were ok leaving your ship in his city-ship, though,” she admitted.

“Why's that?” asked Gram, feeling Vess's arm slid up his chest.

“Well, everyone on board was sure that he had sold Captain Elizabeth out,” began Enora.

“I never thought he had, Enora,” reminded Gram. “I know what it is like, being in his situation, so I figured that he had just had to make some hard choices, that's all.”

“Hmm?” came Vess's sleep-fogged voice, the blonde's head rising from his shoulder briefly. “Who?” wondered the girl, rubbing her eyes.

“Doctor, over on Harras city-ship,” said Gram re-situating the arm that cradled his lover to his side. “We were talking about trusting him,” he elaborated.

“Enora,” said Vess, focusing past Gram in the dim light. “Do you know what time it is, Enora?” she asked, catching sight of the glowing clock display.

“Sorry, Vess, if we woke you,” replied Enora honestly. “I just couldn't sleep, so I came to see if Gram was awake,” she finished. Vess hid a yawn.

“So, what are we talking about?” she wondered, shifting to a more comfortable half-sitting position. The sheet slipped off her shoulder and landed at her hips, but she ignored it.

“I was wondering what the attraction was for you and Gram to be pirates,” Enora backed off the initial topic. Vess frowned at that.

“We aren't pirates any more, Enora,” Vess said levelly. “We just happen to be in the middle a situation at the moment,” she explained. Glancing at Gram, she changed topics. “Besides, I doubt that pirates will survive much longer on Mars, anyway,” she said. Enora blinked.

“Really?” wondered the girl. “Why is that?” Vess gathered her thoughts before responding.

“Because Mars is changing,” she said, framing her thoughts. “Since the battle at Olympus Mons, there has been a shift in political and social perception of piracy, as well as an economic shift. Like the age of piracy on Earth, the conditions have changed too much for pirates to be a factor for much longer,” she explained.

“I thought that the pirates on Earth had a long run,” frowned Enora, trying to recall the ancient tales from the Age of Sail. Vess hummed.

“A little better than a century and a quarter, actually,” confirmed Vess. “However, if you look at the rise and fall of the Spanish Main, you see that what did in pirates was the coordination of local and colonial policy, the rise of wealthy merchants and the resulting shift in the trade economy of the colonies. Since Mount Olympus, and the release of the God Stone organism, there has been a major shift in all three factors on Mars,” Vess paused. “I figure that within ten years, piracy will be nothing more than a fast way to die,” she said analytically.

Enora absorbed that pronouncement. “If so, then what is the crew of the Aurora going to do?” she murmured, mostly to herself. Gram chuckled.

“Well, we had decided when we went to get the God Stone that each of us had other ambitions and goals than piracy,” he reminded Enora. “Sala wanted to own and manage a hospital on a city-ship, Megumi wanted to see if she could use her talents to help people, Aki wanted a bunch of pretty women to keep him company,” Both Enora and Vess snorted at that remark.

“Oh, like that dork will ever get a girl!” scoffed Enora.

“Neli wants to buy the best equipment and tools and material she can find and create new RBs and equipment in her own workshop,” Gram doggedly pushed past the interruption from the girls, “Milhe wants to retire to a quiet house on a surface city-ship, Clara wants to lay around and not work, eating fish whenever she wants, while Ester said she wanted to go back into space and do exploration and survey,” he paused, thinking of the Naval Witch whose room they shared.

“And Captain Elizabeth?” wondered Enora.

“I don't know,” admitted Gram. “But, I think she was giving some thought to settling down - maybe with Doctor,” he suggested. Of course, she took that incident hard, so she might not have any plans at the moment, he mused silently.

“I think she still loves him,” said Enora quietly. I can relate to that, after all, she thought guiltily. “She just needs to let herself forgive him,” she added. For several heartbeats, the cabin was silent. Then, Enora spoke again. “What are you going to do after this is done?” she wondered.

“Well, we have our ship,” said Gram slowly.

“And the house in Ligaoga,” chimed in Vess, her tone also contemplative.

It dawned on Enora. “You have no idea, do you?!” she accused them. The two exchanged glances.

“I guess not,” said Gram ruefully. Enora began to laugh.

“I should have known!” she chortled. Vess ended her mirth.

“And you?” she asked calmly. “What are you going to do? Go back to Earth?” she suggested. Enora's laughter fell silent.

“No,” said Enora softly. “I'm staying on Mars,” she said quietly.

“Mars? Why?” wondered Gram. Enora turned to lock gazes with Gram in the dim light.

“Because Mars is where what I want is,” she said cryptically.

-

“Sensor track,” came MAKI's voice, the ship's alarm sounding battle stations. “Intermitted acoustic contact and odor print, bearing zero five one degrees relative,” expanded MAKI as Captain Elizabeth leapt off her command couch, Ester handing the ship's wheel over to the large woman before jumping in to her station. “Range estimated at thirty seven nautical miles,” MAKI reported.

“Odor print indicates that the track is likely several hours old, Captain,” called out Ester.

“These are some odd readings, Captain,” called out Milhe. “It sounds like we're getting an echo off the canyon walls, so I can't promise torpedo lock on this target,” he cautioned the captain.

“Captain, we're ready to go,” called in Yagami from his Buckler.

“Wait for orders, you two!” yelled back Captain Elizabeth. “We don't know if this is one of the target ships, or an innocent ship out for a stroll,” she cautioned. “MAKI, are we still undetected?” she asked the AI.

“Affirmative,” confirmed MAKI.

“Excellent,” Captain Elizabeth hissed softly. “Reduce to one third, trim down to bottom,” she directed, spinning the wheel. Snatching the microphone up, she continued directing the action. “All hands, we are going to try and follow this target. As of now, we are running silent,” she directed. “Remain at battle stations, and be ready to deploy at a moment's notice,” she concluded.

“Aye, Captain,” came the reply from her bridge crew. Gram and Vess entered the bridge. Glancing over at them, the tall woman at the wheel grinned at them.

“Six and a half weeks, and we have our first contact,” she said. Gram and Vess nodded.

“Finally,” Vess breathed. Gram knew that she was itching to have her RB available, but it wasn't, so she would just have be content to watch. Her eyes flickered over the navigational display. “We are well off the lanes, and too far from any city-ship for this to be a random encounter,” she mused.

“I don't know, Vess,” came Gram's sanguine reply. “We've taken some long detours on our travels, you know,” he reminded her. Vess's lips peeled back from her teeth at that observation.

“If this is what it was like from the other side, then that ship is going to get to play us,” she replied callously. “For their sake, they better have a good ship's system, a skilled captain and an advanced RB unit,” she said mercilessly.

“It helps when the RB pilot is a maniac,” teased Gram, smilingly fondly at his lover. Vess rolled her eyes.

“Says the man who turned our ship into a torpedo spread,” she countered. Gram shrugged.

“Let's hope that they aren't as good as you two,” interrupted Elizabeth. “We need to learn what is going on here, after all,” she reminded them. Vess glanced at the older woman, her bright green eyes flashing dangerously.

“Once we know, though,” she left the rest unsaid. Elizabeth considered the girl who was Gram's partner and lover. She is certainly bloodthirsty when crossed, she made a mental note. Ester surprised Captain Elizabeth by weighing in on the issue.

“Once we know, we can send them all to the bottom,” she seconded Vess's unspoken promise. The rest of the crew could easily recall what had happened when Ester had thought that Yagami had seized the ship from Captain Elizabeth. It had put Yagami, Aki, Junior and Poipoider in sickbay for four days, and cemented Ester's position as the most feared crewman on the ship.

For the next six hours, the ship silently ghosted after the distant contact. As the target moved into a range of small hills and twisted valleys, they closed in a little, but conscientiously maintained as much distance as they could and still not lose the target. Gram suggested that they send Yagami out to get closer, since his RB was cordless and could get closer without being detected. Junior wanted to go with Yagami, but Yagami shot that idea down, reminding Junior that he didn't have the experience yet to do this kind of thing.

Aki got his corded units prepped and ready, just in case they got jumped. Megumi said that she could catch snippets of subdued voices from time to time, but couldn't get a solid read on them. Junior pouted about being stuck on standby, causing Neli to tease him relentlessly. Ester kept a close eye on the trail as the battleship maneuvered through the underwater terrain.

Suddenly, Yagami's RB shot around the corner, and signaled for a communication line. Ester shot one out, and he grabbed it. “Captain, you aren't going to believe this,” he said tensely. “I need Aki to send his units out to maximum cable range, and I need a communication cable booster pack, Neli,” he said.

“What did you find, Yagami?” asked Ester directly.

“It's easier to show you all,” he brushed off the direct question. “Put the ship on the bottom, Captain,” he added. “We can't risk them detecting the engine signatures,” he explained. Captain Elizabeth nodded, the Aurora sinking silently to the bottom, the engines going to stand-by. Neli sent out a communication booster unit, and Yagami grabbed it, dumping his communication cable and leading Aki's unit off down the canyon floor, low and quiet. Eight minutes passed before a window popped up with Yagami's face on the screen. “In position,” he said, the view shifting to his external monitor view. Behind the RB's tactical overlays, they got a view of something they had not expected to see.

“Oh my god,” breathed Captain Elizabeth.

-

Abbott jogged along side Anna Grace as the woman strode through the halls of her Mars Administration building. “Administrator Grace,” he whined, “you have to decide which appointment you are going to keep!”

“I told you, Joseph,” snapped Anna irritably, “whichever one is more important is the one I'm going to keep!” she repeated herself. Executive assistant Joseph Abbot blinked at her.

“But Miss Grace,” he began. Anna snarled and whirled to grab his jacket lapels. Shaking him twice, she made sure he was paying attention.

“The way that you determine which is more important is by finding out which group is able to do the most for us,” she bit out. “Which two is it again?” asked the Administrator.

“Um, the Earth-Mars Trade Consortium, and the Citizens for Fair Economic Development Coalition,” he replied, checking the planner. Mentally, Anna reviewed the two group's standings and alliances. The trade group can leverage the economy by uniting on trade concerns, but the development coalition has the broadest support of Martian citizens; especially here in Ardena, mused the woman. In the last three years, she had had close calls with major riots five times. Maybe it's time to call that man on his promises, she thought to herself.

“I'll have to get a substitute for the Development Coalition,” she said. “Now, what meeting am I late for?” she asked.

“Actually, we should have just enough time to meet with the Tourism Commission Council at the Ardena Plaza conference hall,” he said, checking the planner. Anna sighed.

“Well, then,” she said unenthusiastically, “let's get to it,” she decreed. Leading her foundering assistant along, Anna headed down to her private parking garage, where her modest sedan waited for her. Getting in, the Martian Administrator settled in the back while her assistant took the wheel. Pulling out of the locked parking garage, the two made their way along the streets of Uppertown. As was her habit, Anna was scheming and planning and plotting as they drove. It wasn't until the car jerked to a stop that she was shaken from her thoughts. “Joseph, what the…?!” she began, only to see that the road was blocked ahead of them.

“Accident, miss,” replied her assistant. “There's a detour marked,” he noted. Anna growled.

“Well, take it!” she snapped. Abbott dutifully turned onto the side street, following the signs. Anna frowned as the car made its way into the backstreets of the industrial section of Uppercity. “Abbot, where is this detour going?” she wondered.

“I'm following the signs, miss Grace,” he defended himself habitually.

“Of course you are,” began Anna. Signs? she suddenly thought. Detour signs for an accident? The words of Captain Doolittle and Niall Poe came back to her. “Abbott! Get us out of here and back onto the main street!” she yelled, lunging forward to grab his shoulder.

“Wha…?” he began to ask.

“Now, Joseph!” she screamed in his ear. Her assistant flinched at the yell, his foot instinctively coming down on the accelerator, the car jumping forward.

The sudden acceleration saved his life, since the bullet that would have taken his head off tore the headrest away instead, nicking Anna as it ripped through the opposite side of the car. Screaming incoherently, Abbot twisted the wheel, blindly trying to escape. As with most instinctive reactions, it was the wrong thing to do, the car slamming into the wall and grinding along the edge of the building.

After the initial shot, there had been a split second pause in the gunfire, but now, more rounds were pouring in, shredding the car's bodywork. Twisting her torso around, Anna grabbed the wheel and jerked it hard, tearing it from Abbott's grasp, bringing the car away from the wall. Her terrified assistant, having lost steering control, made another wrong choice: he stood on the brakes, stopping the car. “You idiot!” screamed Anna, red-faced. “Go! Go! Go!” she yelled, a bullet creasing her upper arm before perforating Joseph's suit jacket.

Abbott, however, was frozen in terror. After pounding on him with her fist, Anna realized that he wasn't going to take his foot off the brake. “Damn it!” she yelled, slapping the car into park before writhing her way free of the front seats. Snatching her purse up, she fumbled for a moment as she opened the back door on the driver's side. Another round shattered the back glass, slicing her face and neck with shards of safety glass.

Tumbling out of the car and onto the worn street surface, Anna popped her head up, seeing a figure moving out of an abandoned building, a rifle in their hands. “Motherfucker,” she hissed, grabbing the handle to the driver's door and snatching it open. “Move over, Abbott!” she snarled, shoving the frozen man as hard as she could. Abbott blinked, looking at her with unseeing eyes.

“Miss Grace?” he wondered. Past his shoulder, she saw the approaching figure raise the rifle. Shoving her arm through the shattered window, Anna tried to recall what Captain Doolittle had told her. Her first shot was wide, but it made the person dive to the ground. Anna next five shots were more a distraction than a threat, since she wasn't even trying to aim.

“God damn you, MOVE!!” she roared, leaning back and kicking Abbott out of the driver's seat before clumsily wedging herself in. Slamming her hand down on the transmission interface, Anna stood on the pedal, the car jumping forward as the electric engines run up to full. Behind her, she heard more shots, some odd twock! sounds, and then her instrument panel exploded in her face. The car didn't stop, though, so Anna wiped the back of her hand across her eyes to clear them and fought to keep the car more or less on the street, though she sideswiped some buildings as she went. Spotting a break in the buildings, she twisted the steering wheel, caroming the car straight at a fence.

With little effort, the car ripped through the fence, emerging into the light afternoon traffic of Uppercity - and promptly T-boning a car. The impact slammed Anna into the steering wheel, but that wasn't as bad as the second impact as another car quartered the tail of her shot-up sedan, forcibly ejecting Anna onto the roadway. “Oomph!” she grunted, feeling the air being driven from her lungs. After catching her breath, she staggered back to the car, looking for the small gun that Doolittle had `suggested' she carry.

The silence began to seep into her awareness. No more shots, she realized. Looking around, she saw a bunch of tourists and some locals gawking at the scene of the accident. Frantically looking around, she tried to see if there were any more gunmen loose, but she kept having to wipe her eyes. Finally, she came to the conclusion that the attack was over. Sighing in relief, she turned to Abbott. “Well, we made it, Joseph,” she said. When he didn't respond, she once more wiped her eyes and looked at him. “Joseph?” she prompted. Joseph was staring at her, wide-eyed, his hands pressed to his chest. From under his hands, a red stain was spreading.

Anna Grace, Mars Administrator, was still staring blankly at her assistant when responding police and medical units began to try and stop the heavy bleeding from a scalp wound that was blinding the woman. Moments later, Anna and Joseph were in an ambulance, being rushed to the hospital - one for emergency surgery, the other for a thorough examination and a lot of stitches.

-

The Ship of Aurora slid silently beneath the surface of the Martian seas, perhaps even cautiously. Naturally, this was not common to one of the most feared pirate ships on Mars. Of course, it wasn't every day that they saw something like what they had seen the afternoon before. Rigged for silent running, the battleship maintained battle stations, all weapons primed and the RB units on ready-launch standby. On the bridge, four of the key players were having a meeting.

“I can't believe that no one noticed that thing!” huffed Captain Elizabeth.

“It's in the middle of nowhere, Captain,” interjected Ester from the ship's wheel. “Also, they have been doing a hell of a job of misdirection with the fake ships and the sudden increase in pressure on us pirates. Who would have thought to look for something like that, and if they had, who would have thought to find it out in the uncharted wastes of Mars?” she countered the Captain's question.

“Apparently, no one,” muttered the Captain.

“Had they not mistaken Gram's ship for a private vessel, no one would have thought twice about what is happening,” Ester noted.

“But they did attack our ship,” interjected Vess from where she sat next to Gram, unaware that her hand had sought out his long ago. “And we kicked their asses, which meant that if they had an ounce of intelligence, they should have scrapped the mission,” she finished.

“It's obvious that they didn't scrap it, though,” observed Gram contemplatively. “In fact, from the look of things, they have shifted it into high gear,” he said. “And none of this is making any sense as far as which city-ships have been targeted and destroyed,” he fretted.

“Does it really matter, Gram?” asked Elizabeth grimly. “We need to get word to the other pirates - maybe even the MDF - and come back here to sink them!” she insisted. The `sink, pillage and burn' theme had been very popular with the crew, but Gram and Vess were lukewarm on the idea.

“That's a bad idea, Captain Elizabeth,” the young man said. “We don't know how far this goes, and honestly, most of the pirates will be of no use against this base, if they are what we suspect they are,” he argued.

“Kuberness is the only one I would feel comfortable telling, as far as pirates are concerned,” concurred Vess. Seeing the look on the older woman's face, she shored up her argument. “Whatever bad blood there is between you is immaterial to this problem, Captain,” she asserted. “Can you honestly name even one pirate ship that you can trust at your back once you tell them what we are planning to do, other than Kuberness?” challenged the blonde.

Silence followed that challenge. “Kuberness might side with them,” said Ester evenly. “He had never had any sense of group identity nor shown the slightest tendency toward cooperation with anyone,” she noted.

Vess smiled. “Kuberness is a lone wolf type, no question,” she agreed with the assessment of the Naval Witch. “Any yet, I would say that I know him better than anyone else here, except maybe Gram,” she allowed, sending her lover a soft smile. “And I can tell you with absolute certainty that he would never side with the enemy; not with what they are doing and what their goals are,” she qualified. Much as Elizabeth hated to admit it, Vess was right - Kuberness was the only one both skilled and crazy enough to want in on this mess. And Kuberness would never work against his own interests by siding with the faction trying to destroy the pirates, she concluded.

“So, if we can't unite the pirates, we are left with the MDF,” she sighed.

“I don't think that we should approach them; at least, not yet,” Vess disagreed. “Of them all, I think it fair to say that only Captain Doolittle might be willing to hear us out.” the girl said. “In fact, most of the upper command of MDF are looking for a way into Earth Forces, and what better way than to deliver the Aurora and the Hope to them, all neatly wrapped up?” No one on the ship liked that possibility.

“Could we by-pass the command and go strait to Mars Administrator Grace with this?” wondered Ester. In silence, the four considered that.

“We burned her pretty badly last time,” said Gram slowly. “And except for Enora, none of us know her well enough to figure out which side she might end up on, so I would be hesitant to trust her; at least, not yet,” he added.

“Speaking of Enora,” said Vess, “we have no idea what their political goal might be,” pointed out the woman. “Enora has been suggesting an influence gambit to put Lauren in the presidency, but that would be the effect on Earth. I think we might want to try and identify the enemy's political goals here on Mars,” she said. “Knowing what your opponent is trying to accomplish makes formulating a counter-strategy easier; and more effective as well,” she added.

“They teach that in Earth Forces?” asked Ester, curious. Vess nodded.

“Advanced strategy and battle planning,” she said. “Required course for Elites, as well as off-planet postings,” Vess paused. “I was the top scorer in the course,” she added, grinning at Gram. He smiled back. “You can understand my frustration with your constantly eluding us,” she said to Elizabeth and Ester.

“In all honesty,” said Ester, “most of that eluding was Gram's doing.” Captain Elizabeth's full, hearty laugh filled the bridge.

“But in the end, it looks like he wasn't able to elude her,” she teased Gram fondly. The two lovers felt their cheeks warm at that.

“Back to what we were discussing,” said Vess quickly, “I think that for the moment, we need to lay low somewhere and try and determine their goals.”

“But, what about that base?” complained Captain Elizabeth.

“It's not going anywhere,” countered Vess. “And besides, we already decided that a single-ship attack on the base would be suicide, did we not?” she asked. Ester nodded. “So, there should be no rush to take it on,” concluded Vess.

“You seem to be sure that it isn't going anywhere,” noted Elizabeth. “What can you tell us about it?” she wondered.

“Not a lot, but those kind of bases were covered in training, back on Earth,” said Vess. “Basically, they are a low-intensity warfare forward operational underwater base,” she explained. “They are typically anchored to the bottom with permanent anchors to provide a stationary staging base for operations. Since we know that Special Forces are operating on Mars, it would be most logical that they would be the ones operating that facility,” she continued. “Now, if it is Special Forces in there, then there will be three layers of defenses in place at all times. First, there will be the scattered remote sensors,” Vess began her explanation.

“The sensors are small, about the size of a pack of cigarettes, and they track by pressure, acoustic profile, odor or proximity. Standard procedure is to lay them in five concentric, interlocking rings, with the overlap points at the best approaches. If tripped, they can be configured to target autonomous weapons response, alert the base, or mark the target for tracking by support elements.”

“So, that's why you wanted us to clear out fast and quiet once we had the video,” murmured Ester. “And that is also why you had Aki and Neli run a full check on Yagami's RB as soon as it dock,” she added, impressed.

“Correct, Ester,” confirmed Vess. “I am reasonably sure that we managed to avoid the sensor nets, but better safe than sorry, right?” she glanced at Elizabeth, who nodded. “After the sensors are the roving patrols,” she returned to her brief. “You saw them in the recon: four pairs of H-class frames and two sea horses. Usually, the patrols are random course and time, to prevent patterning or ambush of sentries. It looked like they had a two-layer patrol pattern going, where one patrol is far enough out that if it is attacked, it will give the base time to go to full alert, so we will have to figure out a way to neutralize that when the time comes,” she finished her details on the second layer of defenses.

“Last, is the base perimeter itself,” she said, frowning cutely as she dredged up the details from her training back on Earth. “To prevent the base from being taken over or used against Earth Forces, there is a fail-safe system built into the base that scuttled the whole thing via high explosive tied into the perimeter sensor net. In the event of a large enough breach of the perimeter or multiple breaches, the self-destruct is initiated. Default setting is two minutes, but more than a few of the Special Forces units use a thirty-second timer. If we have any chance of retrieving any data from the site, it will have to be fast; so fast, in fact, that we won't have time to put anyone aboard the base.”

Silently, the others absorbed the briefing on the base they had discovered. “I hate to say it,” said Captain Elizabeth at last, “but it sounds like all we can do is lay low and try to figure out what we need to be doing.”

“And to that ends, Captain,” said Ester crisply, “destination?”

-

“Administrator Grace?”

Anna slowly struggled toward waking. After a few moments, she opened her eyes. Blinking once, she found herself in a brightly-lit room, looking at two men in white scrubs, one man in Earth Forces uniform, and the portly form of Mars Defense Force Captain Doolittle. “What…where…is Abbott ok?” she asked, her mind clearing.

“You assistant is fine, Administrator Grace,” assured the doctor. “Nine hours on the table, but he will make a full recovery. The round perforated his right lung, broke a rib, bounced off his liver and lodged in his colon, but we were able to clean it all up, stitch him up and stabilize him,” the doctor reported. “He should be able to return to work within a few weeks,” he assured her. Anna sighed in relief.

“As for yourself,” the second doctor began, tapping the screen of his electronic patient chart, “you actually faired a bit worse than he, having sustained significant lacerations of the face, throat and arm, three broken fingers, two cracked ribs, a puncture to your side, a puncture to your arm, a severely-sprained right ankle, a hyper-extension of the lower spine, lacerations to the arch of your right foot, a crushed big toe and a hairline crack of your left femur,” he cataloged the injuries. “Setting aside the bruising, you are going to be our guest for about a week, and you would do well to rest for another three to five weeks before resuming your normal work habits,” he said. “Now then, we had to put in…”

“I don't care!” snapped Anna, wincing as her head felt like someone had scrubbed it with steel wool. “Ow,” she gritted out.

“As I was saying,” said the doctor, a bit of self-satisfied smugness in his tone, “you have more than two hundred stitches in your head, face, neck, hands and feet,” he said. “You are also almost two pints of blood low, though you wouldn't know it by that outburst,” he said sardonically. “With the bone damage and hyper-extension of your spine, we have worked out a medicine dosage chart that should make you comfortable enough while you're here,” he tapped his screen again. “Since you are awake and coherent, we might as well start the dosing,” he decided.

“No!” spat Anna, gritting her teeth against the pain. “Just give me some generic pain tablets and leave me alone,” she said. The doctor frowned at her.

“Administrator Grace,” he began, “standard pain medication will not…”

“Unless you want your budget cut by several zeros,” snarled the woman, glaring at the doctor, “you'll leave the rest of that sentence unsaid, get me my damned tablets, and get out!” she yelled, spots appearing before her eyes from the pain that reverberated through her from her outburst.

Huffing in professional disapproval, the doctors left the room. Looking at Doolittle and the Earth Forces Admiral still in the room, she glowered at the Admiral. “What is it, Admiral?” she asked him, schooling her voice to somewhat civil standard.

“I just came to check on your condition, Administrator Grace,” he replied, not quite smiling. Anna noticed that the man's eyes were bright with glee as he surveyed her heavily-bandaged form. “Since you are feeling so well, I thought it a good time to debrief you on your attack,” he said. Anna bristled.

“How kind of you, Admiral,” she said falsely. “But, this is a matter for the Mars Self Defense Force, not Earth Forces,” she said. “Besides, just before my unfortunate run-in with pirate sympathizers, I heard that pirate vessel zero zero four was sighted not too far from Gate city-ship,” she went on, giving him no opening. “I understand that Kuberness has sunk numerous ships of yours in the last few months, including that Kraken­-class frigate, so I understand that you are all too happy to allow Mars Defense Force to see to this small internal matter, while you pursue that dangerous lunatic,” she smiled.

“How kind of you, Administrator Grace,” the admiral replied. “but with the current state of alert, Earth Forces has priority command over local forces when piracy is involved,” he said, his lips twitching like he wanted to sneer at her.

“Pirates?” asked Anna innocently, eyes wide, “who said anything about pirates, Admiral?” Looking to Doolittle, she asked him about it. “Why, Captain Doolittle, did anyone say pirates attacked me?” she asked him.

“No, ma'am!” he replied like a boot private. “You said it was probably disgruntled vagrants who sympathize with pirates,” he said.

“Which would make it a police matter, would it not?” she asked innocently. Doolittle nodded.

“Strictly an internal matter, Administrator,” he confirmed. Anna smiled at the admiral.

“Well, I'll be eagerly looking forward to your report on your search for that pirate Kuberness,” she said, dismissing him. “I do so hope that he won't sink your flagship out from under you,” she purred.

“Very well, then, Administrator Grace,” the man gritted out. Jaw clenched so hard Anna could hear his teeth grind, the man marched - ram-rod stiff - out of her room. Once he was gone, Anna lay back in her hospital bed.

“You shouldn't antagonize him needlessly,” murmured Doolittle quietly, pulling his hand out of his pocket, a small device in it. Activating the device, he set it on the tray by her bed, music coming from it. Anna closed her eyes as sharp needles of pain ricocheted around in her head.

“Would you rather have him butting in?” she asked. Doolittle sighed.

“What really happened, Miss Grace?” he asked. Anna opened her eyes and looked at him.

“I don't know, really,” she said. “But I can tell you that it wasn't pirates,” she added. Doolittle nodded.

“Can you walk me through the ambush?” he asked her. Anna told him what she could of the incident, Doolittle occasionally asking her questions. He did not, she noticed, take any notes. When she was done, he carefully evaluated the information.

“Any ideas, Doolittle?” she asked him.

“A few come to mind, but I hesitate to say them right now,” he hedged. “I recovered that little trinket you dropped, by the way,” he murmured, pulling a dark metallic item from his other pocket and slipping it under her pillow. “I recharged it; just so you know,” he said obliquely. Anna nodded.

“Thank you; it was a life-saver,” she said. Doolittle shrugged.

“Just doing my part,” he said. “You said you only saw one shooter, right?” he said. Anna nodded. “Any idea if the shooter was a man or a woman?” he asked her. Anna shook her head.

“They were wearing a one-piece suit and a helmet, like I said. I couldn't see any features, and they weren't close enough to judge how tall they were,” she said.

“Any closer, and that rifle would have finished the job,” he said. Anna started to shrug, but froze as pain wracked her body.

“What's our next move?” she asked him. Doolittle considered that.

“For now, I think you'll be safer here,” he said. “I have made a few calls, and there will be a guard by your door all the time,” he said. Seeing Anna frown, Doolittle reassured her. “Don't worry,” he said, “it's someone I can trust.”

“That's good, but what about our other little project?” she asked him carefully.

“Don't worry about that right now,” said the Captain. “I've got a couple of ideas that I am looking into, and I'll let the other party know about what happened, so just concentrate on getting better,” he said. “After all, it's getting close to election time on Earth,” he added as he reached the door.

“Is that supposed to be good news, or bad news?” wondered Anna. Doolittle gave her an unreadable look.

“I'll have to get back with you on that, Administrator Grace,” he deflected before closing the door behind him.

-

“Shie, I'm home!” yelled Bon as he came through the door to the house where he and Shie were staying. His kid sister looked up from where she had been sitting with Granny Garma, working on homework from her elementary school.

“Bon!” she exclaimed, feeling the older sibling pat her head. “Work good today?” she asked. Bon nodded.

“Pretty good,” he replied, dropping his gloves and hard hat off. “It's nice to have steady work,” he said, mostly to himself. Shie giggled.

“School is fun!” she exclaimed. Bon looked at her, feeling her enthusiasm fill the room. “Big brother Bon going to school?” she wondered. Neither she nor Bon had had any schooling other than what Gram and Vess could teach them while they lived on Ardena, but now, Shie was attending school full time, and it was clear that she loved it.

“Not right now, Shie,” he began to say.

“That reminds me!” cackled Granny Garma, smiling at him maniacally, “I ran into my great niece today in town,” she began. Bon groaned. Sometimes, it seemed that there wasn't anyone in town that Granny didn't know. “We did some talking, and when I told him about you, Bon, he said he wanted to meet you,” she shared, her smile getting crazier and crazier. “He thinks you'll make a good civic engineer, and wants to give you a try,” she continued. “So, now that you're back, let's go see him!” she directed, easily jumping to her feet. Shorter than even Bon, the old woman nevertheless didn't act like the old crone she was.

“But, I just go back from work, Granny!” complained Bon. “I'm hungry and tired, and…!”

“And nothing, boy!” barked the woman, helping Shie up. “Are you a man or a little girl?!” she challenged him. Bon grimaced at that.

“At least let me eat,” he grumbled.

“We can eat later, boy!” exclaimed Granny, taking Shie's hand in her own. “Let's get a move on!”

And with that, Bon found himself enrolled in evening courses at the local trade school, much to Granny Garma's and Shie's approval. Ever since Gram and Vess had left, Granny Garma had stepped in, all but running their lives for them. Not that Bon was necessarily complaining; after all, he had a steady job, Shie was in school, they had a house to live in - even if it was Gram and Vess's house - and the food was consistent; over all, it was a vast improvement over their living standard in Ardena.

Coming back from their visit to Granny's extended family, Bon and Shie got ready for bed. After a quick shower, Bon crawled into bed beside Shie. Getting settled, he heard Shie humming to herself. “Hey, Shie,” he said to his sister, “something you're looking forward to?” he guessed.

“School tomorrow,” she said. “Are Gram and Vess all right?” she wondered. Bon thought about that for a moment.

“Of course they are, Shie,” he assured her. “No one can get those two,” he promised her.

“They went on the pirate ship again, didn't they?” asked the girl. Bon nodded.

“Yes, with their friends,” he said. Shie was silent. “Did you want to go on the ship with them, too?” he asked her. No answer. “Shie?” he asked.

“No,” she said quietly. Bon considered that answer. Well, she got quite a scare at Morgan Drift, he reminded himself.

“Well, don't worry, Shie,” he assured her, “when the Hope is fixed, we'll go back to sailing around Mars together.”

“No!” whined Shie, shivering as she clutched Bon tighter. “I want to stay here!” she said. The older brother was shocked.

“You mean you don't want to go with Gram and Vess on our ship when it's fixed?” he gaped.

“No,” said Shie quietly. Bon had no idea what to say to that.

“Well,” he said slowly, “I'm sure that they won't make you go with them, but why don't you want to go on the ship with them, Shie?” he wondered.

“I like it here,” said the girl. “It's safer here,” she added. Bon knew that he couldn't logically argue that. For the first time since the day that he met them, Bon was faced with making a difficult choice about the two who had taken him and Shie under their wings.

“Then,” he said quietly some minutes later, “we'll stay here, Shie,” he promised her. Getting no answer, he realized that Shie had fallen asleep against his side.