Gray Panthers Captain Short Blade (5 page)

Guns and Jimmy asked Short Blade how he knew the president.

“I’ve never met him before. I knew he would be at the wedding, so I planned to try speak with him. I just made a deal that will help my ranch tremendously. I’ll explain it to you on our trip home. We’ll leave in the morning.”

Short Blade was so excited, he wanted to load the AIs and head for home right away, but he remembered that Guns and Jimmy had trained him to hold his cards close to his chest.

The president excused himself from the group he was with and sought out one of his most trusted officers.

“I want thirty-three of the AIs we salvaged from the Gray Panthers shuttles brought here tonight after the party. They have to be in good shape. I don’t want any uniforms or government transports to be seen near the Jacka’s shuttle. When he returns to Dixie in the future, Captain Short Blade is to be given every courtesy. He’s also to be watched carefully. He knows things he shouldn’t. He also can get things we need. Colonel Carson, you will be his coordinator. Anything you need from off world, let him know and set a price with him.”

The party grew quiet and guests pointed to the bedroom window as the sounds of copulation became louder. Everyone laughed and grabbed the strings of firecrackers, lighting them to cover up the sounds Sam and Scotty were making. It was part of the tradition of the wedding party.

The noise of the firecrackers was soon overpowered by a loud noise from the south. In the dimming light of nightfall, four ugly black fighters could be seen heading for the plantation. The ground shook and glasses fell over as the fighters suddenly climbed in altitude and another group of four fighters flew over, barely above the trees.

“Push it up! Push it up!” Guns and Jimmy chanted as Short Blade let out a huge roar of his own, startling those who were closest to him. Samantha popped her head out the window to see what was happening. A second later, Scotty also popped his head out the window as the two continued to gyrate together.

“Damn! They made it after all! That’s the rest of my flight!” Scotty shouted. Sam shoved at him with her butt to back away from the window. He fell to the carpet and she climbed on top of him, forgetting all about the fighters.

Davis joined in the cheer and laughter when he was told the fighters were Gray Panthers from Scotty’s old unit. The fighters continued to fly overhead for a few minutes more before departing, but the rest of the guests knew the evening ahead of them would be a long one.

Culpepper Plantation, Dixie

12 April 2129

Short Blade was feeling little pain as he watched the transport back up to his shuttle. In the distance the party was quiet, though there was still much activity in the shadows. As the transport driver and his assistant popped out of the transport, Short Blade noticed they were dressed in civilian clothing. Both were wearing side arms and had carbines slung over their left shoulder. They nodded to Short Blade, and he directed them to where he wanted the boxes.

Ten minutes later, the boxes were stowed in the Phoenix’s secondary cargo hold. Again, the men nodded and took the ninety-nine units of Flem juice.

“Phoenix, can we test the AIs to ensure they work before we leave?” Short Blade inquired, realizing he could have been cheated.

“I am recognizing thirty-three units. I have the image that was installed on all Fire ships. I can install each one as both a test and as preparation. These units were not made by the Dixians. They came from Gray Panthers shuttles that were shot down on Dixie.”

“Will that be a problem?”

“It will make things easier, as the specifications are identical to those already delivered to the Jacka.” Short Blade let out a sigh of relief. He wanted to depart while everything was looking good. He then groaned when he realized his crew was still out partying.

“Phoenix, do you have locations for Guns and Jimmy?”

“Guns is with Patricia Culpepper in the orange tree orchard across from the plantation. Jimmy is with Gabriella Culpepper beside the plantation house on top of a picnic table. Do you want me to contact them?”

“No, let them have their fun. I don’t know when they’ll be around human females again. When they’re no longer occupied, let them both know that a transport will be at their hotel to pick up their belongings at 0500 and the shuttle will depart at 0630.”

“Sir, a vehicle is coming toward us. It is a standard sedan type, with only a driver.”

“It may be the officer President Davis spoke of.” Short Blade watched as a tiny woman got out of the vehicle and walk toward the shuttle.
She’s the same height as me, at best,
he thought.

“Hello, … in the shuttle … hello?” Carson was both nervous and alert as she looked around in the dark, waiting for a reply.

Short Blade poked his head out. “Come on inside. It’s a little cold out there for you, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is a little cool out here,” Carson replied.

“Come follow me.” Short Blade led her to the shuttle mess and ordered two hot chocolates. “Here, take this,” he said, handing the colonel the mug and gesturing for her to have a seat at the table.

“Captain Short Blade, I was ordered to give you a list of things we need. At this time, the only thing I can think of is transfer gel. We can make it ourselves, but the product made by the Republic is of higher quality and cheaper to buy than it is for us to produce.”

Short Blade decided to give the Dixian a little test.

“I don’t think that will be a problem. If I could get a down payment of, say, one thousand bottles of the marriage wine, that would be very helpful.”

The colonel was confused at first, but then she realized that Short Blade was testing her. It occurred to her that she could contact a distant cousin of hers who lived in a monastery that produced the ceremonial wine.

“When will you be departing, Captain?” she asked.

“We depart at 0630. I have deliveries I must make.”

“I will see what I can do, Captain. Only a little of the wine is produced at a time, since there’s so little call for it, so I might not be able to get all that you need.”

“I guess we’ll have to see how it plays out then, Colonel Carson.” Short Blade walked her to the hatch and turned to her with a smile. “I would say goodnight, but I see it’s already 0330. So, good morning, then.”

The colonel smiled nervously and made her way out, waving back at Short Blade as she rushed for the sedan.

“Damn, damn, damn. Dixie command, this is Colonel Carson, logistics. I need a shuttle immediately, priority 02. I also need two strong backs. I’m a half hour out of the city—just track my phone. Make sure there’s maximum space in the shuttle for an emergency cargo. This is a classified mission. Carson, out.”

Calling the monastery wasn’t an option, as they refused to have any modern communication with the outside world. She hoped it wouldn’t get ugly if they refused to sell the wine to the government.

She hadn’t driven far when she came upon an area where the trees on both sides of the road grew farther back away from the road. It seemed like an ideal place for a shuttle to land. She got out of the sedan and lit a cigar to pass the time while she waited. The cigar was one from Earth, and she preferred it to any she could get on Dixie. She’d traded one of her cigars with a Gray Panther for it. Perhaps she could work a deal with the little Jacka to get some more.

The sound of the shuttle coming in forced her back to the present. She put out the cigar and placed it back in a special sleeve in her purse. She ran toward the shuttle before it fully landed, and the force of the downdraft almost knocked her over..

“Get me to the Red Sky Monastery on the west coast, ASAP!” Carson instructed as she clambered on board. She felt the shuttle lifting off before she was even strapped into her seat. Once she was situated,  she looked around and noticed a couple of big military security troops watching her.

“Okay, I’m Colonel Carson. Don’t bother to remember that because when this mission is over, it never happened. We need to get a thousand bottles of ceremonial wine to a foreign government’s shuttle before it takes off at 0630. The monastery is not expecting us, and there’s a chance it could get ugly.”

At the monastery, Brother Stahl was getting ready for his morning chores when he saw the shuttle coming in to land. He knew in his heart it was bound to happen, given the illegal sales of the ceremonial wines. As he walked to the huge front gate, a woman and two soldiers approached from the other side. The woman began speaking before he could even open the gate.

“I’m Colonel Carson. I don’t have time to explain, but we need a thousand bottles of the ceremonial wine, immediately. The government will pay you for it as soon as you remit an invoice.”

Brother Stahl almost fainted in relief. He rang the emergency bell, and with a quick explanation to the other monks, who also were immensely relieved, they sprang into action. Using two forklifts, they transported pallets of the wine to the shuttle, two hundred bottles at a time. Colonel Carson watched with amazement as they completed her request in less than half an hour.

“I’m surprised you had such quantity on hand, Brother. I thought it was rarely produced?”

“The good Lord provides. We have many other wines, as well, if you have any other needs.”

The colonel just shook her head. She preferred to avoid talking about religion and wasn’t interested in listening to the monk’s attempts to sell her wine.

Brother Stahl smiled to himself as he turned to walk back inside. It was always so easy to manipulate the outsiders. He hadn’t even had to suggest a donation to the monastery to get the woman to leave. On top of that, he’d gotten rid of a vintage that had both a poor taste and too high of an aphrodisiac stimulant. His prayers had been answered once again.

“Get us moving, pilot,” Colonel Carson ordered. “Do you happen to know where the Culpepper Plantation is?”

“I can get us there, ma’am.”

Colonel Carson stood next to the two unneeded security troops, all of them holding straps from the ceiling as the shuttle took off. The wine filled the entire bay, and the way the pallets were rocking made her nervous. The last thing she needed was for any of them to fall over.

Back at Culpepper, Guns woke up with his ear vibrating. He looked around for his wrist computer but didn’t see it anywhere. He was lying naked under an orange tree, with an equally naked red-haired woman cuddled up next to him. He started piecing together what had happened the night before and then remembered that he had to get moving. His partner moaned as he untangled himself from her, but she refused to wake up. He found all of his clothing except his underwear and one sock. Looking down on the most beautiful woman he ever remembered sleeping with, he covered her with her clothes and forced himself to leave.

Jimmy woke up sore, his ear vibrating. He’d slept on a picnic table. A woman was sitting on the bench, asleep, her head and an abundance of red hair covering his abdomen. He found when he tried to move her head that they were stuck together, so he had to wake her. She smiled at their predicament and carefully managed to free herself. After giving Jimmy a kiss, she walked back to the plantation, naked, as he took in a last view. Rushing to get dressed, his back ached with every movement. He got to the front of the plantation in time to see a cab pull up, just as Guns walked out of the orange grove.

“Nice party, wasn’t it?” Guns asked, none too loudly.

Jimmy smiled at the question as he tried desperately to remember the party, and the woman.

“Would have been better if I could remember it. How was the orange grove?” he said with a snicker.

“I think we should stay on this planet,” Guns replied, his grin speaking volumes.

They got into the cab and Jimmy told the driver to hurry, but neither of them could remember the name of the hotel. They began describing the hotel, hoping the driver might recognize it, and then Guns found the keycard to his room in his pocket. After the driver assured them that he knew where he was going, both men proceeded to go to sleep.

The driver wasn’t happy about having a pair of drunks sleeping in the back of his cab, but he recognized their uniforms and decided to not throw them out, especially since they’d come from the Culpepper Plantation. He knew you didn’t mess with that family—or their friends.

“Wake up, gentlemen. You’re at your hotel,” the driver announced a short time later.

Jimmy came to life and handed the driver his credit card, instructing him to add a twenty percent tip. Guns was already making a beeline for the front door of the hotel. The men hustled to their rooms and grabbed their bags without taking the time to freshen up.

The front desk clerk frowned at them when they walked up to check out. Both men reeked of sex and alcohol. He sent them on their way as quickly as possible, though he did tell them to help themselves to the complimentary coffee on the way out.

The driver was still there when they walked outside, and he was happy to take them wherever they wanted to go now that he knew they were good tippers. Tipping was an Earth custom not typically followed on Dixie. The men rode in silence, the night’s activities fading from memory by the minute.

Colonel Carson could feel the shuttle descending. She looked at her timepiece and saw that it was 0600. Things were working out better than she had expected. The shuttle pilot announced that they would soon be landing as he maneuvered to get as close as he could to the other shuttle without putting them at risk.

Short Blade heard the other shuttle descending and did one last check of the cargo hold, wondering if he would have a crew. He watched as the shuttle landed closer than he liked. A pair of identical red-haired women sat in a grassy area off to the side of the parking area, watching him in silence.

The other shuttle’s hatch rose at the same time he heard a ground transport coming from the direction of the city. Short Blade peered into the shuttle and saw the colonel ordering two troops to move the wine.

“Here, Colonel Carson. This should help,” he said, pushing a grav sled in her direction. She thanked him and told the troops to get moving.

Short Blade was feeling good. He had his cargo. He had a crew of close comrades. Everything was fine—until the guys got out of the cab and the two women ran to them and began hugging and kissing them. His mood turned black as he watched his men. They took for granted what he wanted most, and most likely would never have.

“Colonel, it looks like we’re done here,” Short Blade said when the wine had been loaded into the cargo hold. “I’ll return as soon as I can with as much transfer gel as I can get or fit into my shuttle.”

He looked over at the guys and thought they were going to start mating with the women right there. After the smaller shuttle departed, he decided to walk over and prompt them to get a move on.

“Good morning, guys. Ready to launch?”

The women looked at Short Blade with unveiled hatred. He wasn’t sure if it was because he was a Jacka, or because he was going to take their men. Jimmy saw the look they gave his buddy, and immediately his mood changed.

“Girls, this is Short Blade, our captain. We met during the war. Not only is he our captain, he’s also a very dear friend.”

Gabriella stiffened her grip on Jimmy for a second, then looked at Short Blade. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Short Blade. Please excuse our manners. Scotty has told us a lot about you. Please consider the plantation your home when you’re here on Dixie.”

Relief swept over Short Blade as the men said their goodbyes and picked up their bags to follow him to the shuttle. He had a crew and a profitable trip ahead of him.

After they entered the shuttle, Short Blade ordered the Phoenix to contact Dixie Control and declare their departure. He showed Guns and Jimmy where their bunks were and then ordered the shuttle to launch. There was no sensation of movement as the shuttle rose, thanks to the inertial dampeners.