Smuggler's Return Page 5

  ###

  Lucien looked out the forward windscreen and saw the Pacific Ocean. The spaceport was on a small peninsula jutting out into the South Pacific Ocean. "Storm brewing," he said. "Aerith, Torren, welcome to your mother's home world. Maybe we can visit Ireland when we're finished here."

  "Meh," Jewel said. "You've seen one ocean, you've seen them all."

  "So young, yet so jaded," Lucien said.

  "Thanks. What's the plan?" Jewel asked as she spun her chair around to face her family.

  "Find answers. We have to find Marta and the weapons system. She's the only person who can activate the system, so it stands to reason she's with it aboard one of those trucks. We just need to find out where they're going."

  "And how do we do that?" Aerith asked.

  "We ask," Harm said while digging around in one of the cases they'd grabbed from his den. "Thank God," he said as he pulled out a black Outback hat and put it on. "I thought I'd lost it."

  "OMG, the Smuggler Elf has returned!" Jewel exclaimed.

  "Naw, that one was butterfly. This is cow. How do I look?"

  "Crikey, you're flamin’ handsome," Jewel said as she grabbed a similar hat, though hers was cloth. Like Lucien's it had cutouts for her elongated ears. She put it on, then threw hats to her niece and nephew.

  "You know Australian slang?" Aerith asked.

  "As much as your father does."

  "Right," Aerith said, "Dad, where do we go for information around here?"

  "Why Lachlan's Tavern at the south edge of the port."

  "Lachlan's Tavern?" Torren said.

  "Yeah, lovely little place run by an Alturan by the name of Chik. The place has fine beer and great steaks."

  "Cool," Jewel said. "I could go for a nice, thick, juicy steak, barely dead and flame kissed."

  "Ewww," both Torren and Aerith said.

  "They're vegetarians," Lucien noted.

  "They're loss. Come on, I'm hungry," Jewel said as she headed to the hatch. Harm shrugged and followed her with his children close behind.

  ###

  Lachlan's was a typical port bar with seedy interior and a shady clientele. "Ah, my kind of establishment," Lucien said as he stepped inside.

  "Ooooh, baby," Jewel said as she sat down at a table which had seen better days. She motioned for the others to join her.

  "Have a seat while I get us some drinks," Lucien said.

  He walked to the bar and pounded on it. "Where the hell is that lazy git of a barkeep!"

  Three eyestalks shot up from behind the bar and swiveled around to stare at Lucien with eyebrows raised. "What pointy-eared hobgoblin is asking?”

  "Chik!"

  "Harmon!" the very large Alturan said as he slid around the bar to give the elf a hug with several tentacles.

  "Damn, buddy, it's been a while!"

  "Too long, old friend. Way too long. What brings you to Earth?"

  "Got someplace private like?"

  "This way. What about your friends?"

  "The one with the glowing eyes is my sister, the other two are my son and daughter. They're in need of sustenance."

  Chik waved at a waitress then pointed to the three. Seeing them taken care of, Chik led Lucien to a private room in back. Once inside, a waitress joined them. "Iced tea, please."

  "Harm, you never change. Make that two."

  Once they were served, and the waitress gone, Chik pressed a button, cloaking the room in a privacy field. "It's safe to speak, old friend."

  Harm nodded and briefed the keep on what had happened over the last two days.

  "And you think this device and your wife are here, in Australia?"

  "Yes, the Southern Cross offloaded its cargo into three road trains heading south into the outback. I've got traces on all three. Due to the nature of the cargo, I think Marta has to be with them."

  "Harmon, as your friend, I have to point out the grim possibility that Marta may already be dead. What is the nature of this cargo?"

  Lucien looked at the Alturan. "Hold up a tentacle."

  "Why?"

  "Humor me."

  Chik raised a tentacle.

  "Now, repeat after me..." He then recited the Ventosian Oath of Fealty which Chik repeated. "Good, you are now a citizen of Ventos Prime and bound by her laws. What I am about to tell you is top secret and to reveal it to anyone is an act of treason."

  "How can you make me a citizen of Ventos Prime? Only the Queen or the Prince can do that."

  "Yep," he said while pulling a Ventosian gold sovereign from his coat. Handing it to Chik, he turned his head and gave his best royal look.

  Chik looked back and forth between coin and Lucien. "Crikey! You're the bloomin’ Prince of the Elves!"

  "Lucien Irithyl at your service," Lucien said before launching into an explanation.

  "Dammit! I knew there was something wrong when those elves came in here all dressed up in those jumpsuits you bipeds love to wear. Two of them were real lookers."

  Lucien showed the barkeep a picture of Marta.

  "That's one of them ladies for sure. She was a little spacey. Who is she?"

  "My wife, General Marta McMurphy, EMEF, retired. Did any of them say anything like where they were going?"

  "All I know is they were heading south to somewhere in the Simpson desert. Wait a minute..." he tapped the top of the table, and a keyboard and monitor appeared. He typed in some commands. "Yeah, one of them arranged for a food delivery to these coordinates. Oh, I forgot, your wife asked to use the bathroom."

  Lucien entered the coordinates into his commlink. "That's almost 2600 miles away."

  "We pride ourselves in delivering anywhere on the continent. The beauty of drones."

  "OK. Can you show me the bathroom Marta used?"

  "Sure, this way." Chik killed the field and took Lucien to a bank of bathrooms. After first checking for an occupant, Lucien went inside and checked around. A short time later, he reappeared, holding something in the palm of his hand.

  "What is that?"

  "An elf stone earing, one of a pair I bought her. She was here. I have to go. Thank you, Chik. Your help has been invaluable and will not be forgotten."

  "Good luck, my friend," the Alturan said to Lucien's retreating back.

  Lucien didn't get far. When he entered the main dining room, he found several heavily armed members of Earth Security standing around his family. "Kids, Sister, did you make new friends?"

  "Prince Lucien?" A tall human male with a square jaw and spiky blond hair asked from behind a pair of very expensive sunglasses.

  "Yes, I'm Prince Lucien. Who the hell are you?"

  "EarthSec Colonel John Reese. May I speak with you outside?"

  "Of course, but could your agents leave my family to eat in peace. My sister gets grumpy when she's hungry."

  Reese motioned for his troops to stand off and give them room.

  "Thank ya, lad," Jewel said with a wink toward the Colonel while she bit into a two inch thick piece of steak. "Maybe you and I could step outside when you two are finished jawin’."

  Reese frowned as Lucien followed him outside.

  "Colonel, don't worry about Jewel. She's just expressing her interest in you. Now, what's this about?"

  "Interest in me? Sir! I have been asked to give this to you by Her Majesty Queen Losira. They've been trying to contact you." He handed Lucien an 'Eyes Only' folder.

  "Thanks." Lucien opened the folder and read the contents "My God. Colonel, could you and your men stick around for a minute?"

  "Yes, sir."

  "Good. Get some food and drink on House Irithyl. Just tell the keep you're my guests."

  "Yes, sir. Thank you, sir."

  The Ambassador walked back into the tavern and sat down next to Jewel. "The colonel is cute, isn't he?" she asked rhetorically.

  Lucien looked over at the colonel. "If you're into tall, rugged guys with a square jawline so powerful it could hammer nails, then yeah, he's OK."

  Jewel cuffed him
. "Don't say it! You're a wuss."

  Lucien just rubbed his arm. "OK, Losi sent us a packet and things are not good." He passed it to Jewel, who speed-read it before handing it off to Aerith, who read it before handing it to Torren.

  "Twenty-five waiters and the maître d'hôtel dead. They think someone was listening in on this Jericho's interview and pulled the plug when Agent Grendel arrested him," Torren said, shaking his head in disbelief.

  "At least mom's off the hook."

  "Thank God the techs were able to hack into the security vid recordings," Lucien said. "They show him doctoring her drink before the four lead her outside. OffSec, R-Sec, and EarthSec are treating this as a kidnapping of a royal personage."

  "Who the hell creates a piss-poor drug like that?" Torren asked.

  "See here?" Aerith said while pointing to a passage in the report. "The cooker said the batch was flawed."

  "So, the perps may not know this?"

  Lucien nodded. "It's supposed to last a lifetime. If she comes out from under and realizes what happened, she may start hurting people and get killed in the process, or they may find they have no further need for her. I have to find her."

  "And you think she's out there on one of those trucks?" Jewel asked.

  "I'm positive. Call it a sixth sense. I have to save her."

  "Dad, you almost died the last few times you saved her," Aerith pointed out.

  "I would do the same for you, Jewel, or any member of the family. I couldn't live with myself knowing she died when I could have done something to save her."

  Colonel Reese took this moment to walk up and hand Lucien a piece of paper. He glanced over at Jewel and saw her give him an approving look. Once more, he frowned.

  "What's wrong? Aren't my eyes pretty enough?" Jewel asked.

  Reese started to sweat, and it wasn't due to the heat outside.

  "What is it, Dad?" Torren asked.

  "We've been invited to meet with the President of Earth at Earth Command immediately."

  "Dad, we can't just leave Mom here alone..." Aerith said.

  "Would you prefer to stay here?"

  She nodded.

  "Torren?"

  He, too, nodded.

  "OK. You two stay and keep me posted. Promise me you won't do anything ill-advised."

  "What would you consider to be ill-advised?" Torren asked.

  "Anything I would have done in my youth."

  They both nodded. "We agree," they said.

  "Sorry, Jewel, but I need your flying skills."

  Jewel wiped her mouth in a napkin, then stood up, giving Reese a long, appreciative look. "I'll be back."

  Reese swallowed hard as Jewel and Lucien headed out the door.

  Chapter 9 - Space Command

  The new Space Command headquarters was a hollowed out asteroid in orbit around a white dwarf sun. It had berths and docks for over a hundred ships of the line and facilities for several thousand personnel. Its defensive systems could hold off a fleet of invaders. In a word, the SCH was a power unto itself.

  The Battle Shuttle Lenora carrying EMEF Team Eight flew toward its berth while its occupants stared out the forward windows. "Damn, sir. That is one big station," Major Hardy, the team's Sokuhl second in command, exclaimed.

  Royce nodded. "A team comprised of ex-pirates and engineers from Pirate's Cove spent two years tunneling through that rock, then installing the internal systems. It's designed to survive a nuclear exchange."

  The control panel beeped. Captain Letain, the team’s elf pilot, tapped his earpiece. "You are go for Lenora... Yes, sir... Lenora out."

  "Report, Captain," Royce ordered.

  "Sir! We have been cleared for landing. Supreme Commander McTiernan has requested your presence in Main Briefing Room One."

  "Copy that. Take us in. Marines! Once we are down, I want you all to hit the bricks and gather intel from all your sources. Scuttlebutt, rumor, hell, I'd even go for a good conspiracy theory."

  "What are we looking for, sir?" Major Hardy asked.

  "The destination of the package and General McMurphy, the target planet, and information on who the hell is behind this. I need answers. No one, but no one plarks with our planet or my family. Understand?"

  "Yes, sir!" they replied as one.

  "Outstanding!" he said as the shuttle passed into the landing bay through a large pressure door. Once they landed, Royce headed off to his meeting while his team headed out to find answers.

  ###

  Royce walked into pandemonium as he entered the conference room. Military leaders from most of the League planets stood and sat around the massive conference room table discussing the missing weapons system. Royce walked over to where Supreme Commander McTiernan stood discussing something with a rather irritated Goranthi.

  “Supreme Commander McTiernan, General Royce Aymar, EMEF reporting as ordered, sir!” Royce said while snapping a sharp salute.

  “Excuse me,” McTiernan said as he turned and returned the salute. “Royce! Thank God you’re here.”

  “Mac! Losira sends her love and her apologies for this fiasco. We’re working the problem from two ends and hope to meet in the middle.”

  "Copy that. Everyone! General Aymar is here to brief us, so quiet down!" Mac ordered.

  The room went quiet as Royce made his way to the podium. He pulled a datapad from his pocket and made sure it was interfaced with the HQ's network before activating the viewscreen and bringing up a diagram of the weapons system. "This is the Can Crusher. It is comprised of three sub-systems: orbital laser drill, delivery system, and the weapon itself. The drill bores a hole through a planet's crust into the mantel from low orbit. Once it's finished, the delivery system takes the package to the core where it generates a large Erdexi orb. This orb transports a significant chunk of the core out into space. This causes a massive instability in the internal structure of the planet, which then leads to its destruction."

  "What kind of time frame are we talking about here, Royce?" Mac asked.

  "Start to finish, about an hour, depending on the thickness of the crust of course."

  A low murmur filled the room.

  "Dammit, Royce, who comes up with this shit?" Earth Forces General Weber asked.

  "It was a small company that was trying to get into the Ventosian weapons procurement chain. We analyzed their proposal and nearly shit our pants. Then come to find out they had already built a prototype. We did the only thing we could do. We bought the damn thing, intending to send it to the Cube for disposal." He then explained about the system's theft and Marta's kidnapping.

  "How's the Prince taking it?" Mac asked.

  "He's heading to Earth to find his wife. He's convinced her and the system are heading there."

  "Is Earth the target?"

  "Unknown. In his last communication, Prince Lucien had tracked the ship carrying Marta and the system to the Darwin spaceport. He is meeting with government and civilian authorities to figure out the next move."

  "What's your gut feeling, Royce?"

  "Sir, the perps who stole the system kidnapped Marta to get the go-codes from her. This tells us they plan to use it or sell it to someone who plans to use it in a short time frame. I think it's only prudent to assume their target could be any planet in the League."

  "Well, evacuation is impossible," Mac said. "Even the smallest member planet has a population of over a billion. We don't have nearly enough ships to evacuate it, let alone over forty of them."

  "Where would we put the populations even if we found a way to move them off-world?" Royce added.

  "We need to find the people who stole the system and kidnapped Marta, then neutralize them," Mac said.

  "That is what Prince Lucien is attempting to do while Losira and her people are working the other end," Royce said.

  "Which is?"

  "Discover who did this and shut down their operations. Once Losi is finished, the perps will have nowhere to go and no money with which to get them there. Sir, I request
that an EMEF team be assigned to any probable target. We volunteer to be at the forefront of any move against the perps."

  Mac looked at the big elf. "You understand that no one is blaming Ventos for this."

  "Yes, sir, except for the Ventosian government. We take full responsibility for this and want to fix it."

  "Where's Team One?"

  "Heading to Earth to back up Lucien and his team."

  "What can one elf do?"

  "One elf, his two hyper intelligent children, and his neoLogash sister. Those four could persuade a mountain to move out of their way. They will soon be joined by the finest Marine expeditionary team my planet has ever produced. Add to that the elite forces of Earth Security. I might as well go home and raise butterflies."

  Mac snorted. "I've seen your damn butterflies. Fine, we find the perps and an EMEF Team will lead the charge."

  "Thank you, sir."

  "As for the rest of you. Contact your people and prepare for the worst. Any questions?"

  No one said a word.

  "Then get to it, people. Dismissed!"

  The room quickly emptied.

  ###

  Royce walked into the lounge and saw Major Hardy sitting at the bar, several seats to the left and right of her standing empty. As he headed toward her, one of the patrons, a rather large human, stepped in front of him, saluted, then whispered, "Sir, you really don't want to go near her."

  "Why, Lieutenant?"

  "She's taken out the last four soldiers who tried to sit next to her. I think they were rude, sir."

  "Son, do I look rude?" Royce asked while looking down at the much smaller human."

  "No, sir. Sorry, sir."

  "You're concern is noted, el-tee. As you were."

  He walked over and sat down next to his second in command. "Nayla," he said as he waved the keep over.

  "Yes, sir," the Alturan said as he wiped down three glasses and the bar at the same time.

  "Unicorn Fart and make it stinky."

  Everyone, including the keep, cringed, especially the major. "Sir, if I may ask, how do you drink those things?" she inquired. "Don't they use them to polish adamantine?"

  "I find them soothing," he replied as the keep served him the obnoxious brew using a device normally reserved for handling nuclear fuel rods. Smacking his lips, he drank half the crucible before slamming it down on the bar and loudly proclaiming, "Damn, that is an elf's drink!"