Chapter Twelve: Intersection — Part 7

Shadow examined them both quite closely, more or less as if she were inspecting them during a criminal line up. Didi had obviously never seen combat. Her glasses were battle spec, her armor more than just for show, but it lacked the wear one would normally associate with daily use. Shadow tried to imagine her as a bodyguard, figured that, with the proper training, she could be quite dangerous. There must be something special about her training, given the subtle way Didi moved while talking. If the scrawny waif were to be effective at anything but typing memos, she would have to be able to move fast, and be highly observant.

So far, however, Didi seemed to be a natural airhead, the typical flightiness of youth superimposed on a well-trained soldier in a war so complex that only a small handful, like Shadow, understood the full depth of its cruelty. Maybe it was a brilliant mind, or her age, maybe a combination of both, that had kept her in such a dangerous position as bodyguard. Maybe it was the only way that she could be kept safe, rather than the other way around.

Xeti, being unreadable, would be even more complex a person to decipher. Having been paid so well to take them off planet, Shadow put her concerns about both soldiers aside for later, especially since she had one more passenger to acquire. Shadow opened the hatch, letting the k-loader flit out and snag their gear. The little droid could lift one metric ton per run, and seemed slightly offended by its rank reduction to luggage caddy. Didi’s mind drifted for the moment, then she smiled and turned her sights on Shadow. Shadow stepped aboard ship, reaching past Didi. She turned around and headed for the Hangar’s Cargo Lift.

“Where are you off to?” Didi asked.

Shadow noticed her perky little nose and thick lips and was instantly annoyed. She pulled her hat tighter over her head, covering her scarred face and burn-scarred scalp.

“Going into the city.” As she spoke, Shadow reached inside the ship’s door and pulled back a supply log from its cabinet set to the left of the entry hatch.

“I’ll go with you.” Didi offered.

Shadow considered it for a moment. “Yeah, you will. But you can’t go dressed like that. Xeti will be staying here to give the ship its preflight inspection.” Shadow turned to Xeti. “Get that battle armor aboard, store it in section 1A, left of the cargo door.”

“You’re awful trusting, considering the fact that you hardly know me.” Xeti said, humbled.

“Of course I trust you.” Shadow shooed Xeti off to his work, then took Didi’s hand and led her to a corner of the hangar. “You got more than one set of clothes, right?” she asked Xeti suddenly, forcing him to stop.

“Yes Ma’am.” Xeti said quickly, returning to his tasks.

Shadow’s attention was suddenly on Didi. “You need to strip down to your bodysuit.” Shadow said. “Where we’re going, troopers are killed out of habit, and I don’t have time to be dodging bullets and plasma blasts.”

“I’m not wearing anything under my armor. And I only have my field service uniforms.” Didi said, sounding uncomfortable.

“Then strip down and we’ll visit my tailor.” Shadow said, looking away as if oblivious. “Keep your boots on, though.” Shadow added, more as an afterthought.

Didi started taking her armor off, setting it on the k-loader, knowing full well that she wouldn’t be the only person in the city who would be going clothesless. Grumbling in computer gibberish, the k-loader tossed her armor into the cargo pit next to Xeti’s field unit and moved away so it wouldn’t be used for such a mundane task again. The loader let out a static hardened growl, then settled back in to get some rest.

“I hope you know what you’re doing.” Didi said.

“The Hub’s a clothing optional city. You’ll fit right in, I’m sure.”

“I know it’s a clothing optional city, but . . . ”

Shadow grabbed Didi’s hand and led her abruptly out of the cargo hold, and straight out of the cargo bay door, not giving Didi time to second-guess Shadow’s logic. By the time Didi had a chance to feel embarrassed, she was three blocks from the Skimmer with no hopes of finding her way back on her own. Didi let out a discontented moan, and Shadow giggled sadistically. The girl, she decided, might just make a good crewmember after all.

* * *

Xeti looked quickly to the front and the back of the cargo bay, familiarizing himself with the Smuggler’s ship. Though the design was basically military, Shadow had taken advantage of every nook and cranny, and of every piece of advanced technology she could find, to make her ship one of the most volume efficient and dangerous cargo ships Xeti had ever seen. Also, Shadow ran a tight ship. Every panel was freshly polished, the thin carpet on the floor was well tended, and even the patches were well trimmed and precise. Every light on the ship worked, every hinge Xeti came across was well tended, and all the surfaces were corrosion free. Every tool was in place, and the positioning of such tools quite strategic.

To the rear was the hatch to the power core. To the front was the door to the cockpit. The deflector coils were in a room directly opposite the entrance to the ship. The room was otherwise perfectly clean, and Xeti walked on quiet toes, almost afraid that the noise of his presence might pollute his environment. A spherical drone hovered quietly behind him as he walked past rows of medical supplies, and into to the control room. Xeti checked out the control room, noting that even the switches, though worn with use and age, were kept serviceable and shiny. A close inspection of the ship’s databanks showed that Shadow’s organization did not end with the physical world. He found the computer’s data files and ship records well ordered, and was about to format and restore the core matrix when the entire terminal came alive. He had not noticed the drone before, but now the vicious security robot hovered around to make its presence known. He froze in place. It was loaded with lethal spikes and one shaft that was probably a laser.

“Do not attempt to initiate core erasure.” The voice was harsh, asexual, unemotional, and with such horrible arsenal defending it, it had quite a bit of authority.

Xeti turned, carefully explaining his intentions. “I’m performing a preflight inspection for Captain Storm. It is standard procedure to wipe the core to protect the ship from computer viruses.”

A second voice came on line, this one from the computer itself. “Oh, don’t do that on Shadow’s ship, or she’ll kill you. The computer is stand alone from the transmitter and navigation systems, so you can go ahead and do your preflight without messing with the computer. As a matter of fact, stay away from the computer entirely — or else I’ll have the service drone, his name is Spike, by the way, ram a rod straight up your ass. Even if you like that sort of thing, you won’t like the way he does it.”

Realizing that the AI program Shadow used to control her ship’s computers must be one of the most complex versions he had ever spoken with, Xeti stepped back from the manual interface, totally in shock. He took several minutes to familiarize himself with the cockpit. Along with the drone, the k-loader hovered by the control room hatch, and he could see several weapons on the k-loader as well. The ship had weapons built into its walls, and several observation points, from which other weapons, pointed at him, ensured that he stayed away from the computer. He stood up, ready to go about his duties, but the motions of the drones made him nervous. The drone followed him, with its weapons charged and extended, the k-loader providing back up, and Xeti realized that he might be in serious trouble, since Shadow was not present to correct the misunderstanding between himself and the AI running the ship. Because he could find no better way to protect himself, Xeti turned completely invisible, and the Ship, confused, raised its defenses to an even higher level.

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