Running With Argentine (25 page)

In
Orbit at Trinity

The Pelican was
not an incredibly large ship, as ships go.

Therefore, even though the shuttle Bay was pressurized, it
wasn't much larger than the shuttle itself.

And because the Pelican didn't carry a large crew, the
shuttle wasn't designed to either.

That's probably why the professor practically fell out of
the shuttle when the chief opened the hatch.

Between the lieutenant, the professor, Rory, and the six
members of the Petulengro rescue party… and some woman that Argentine had never
seen before… Well, they’d been crammed in there pretty tight.

And then, of course, there was Gossip…

"Take us to your medical bay," was the first thing
the unknown woman said as she emerged from the shuttle.

Since the others were already carrying Gossip in that
direction, he motioned for her to follow. When they got there she stopped dead
in her tracks…

"This isn’t a medical bay. This is a first aid… alcove!
You told me you had a real ship! Not an antique garbage scow!"

Oh, Lords of the Universe…
Argentine thought to
himself.
Not another one…

ΔΔΔ

As the
lieutenant laid Gossip down on the medical table, the wounded man's eyes
opened.

He had to be in a lot of pain and it took him a few moments
to recognize where he was. He locked eyes with the lieutenant and held his
gaze.

Lieutenant Stark nodded once and then gave way to the doctor
as she started attending to her patient again.

"You!" she said while pointing a finger at Rory.
"Bring me that medical bag." She took a moment to look around as if
searching for something else but then returned her attention to setting up new
IVs and the like.

The lieutenant walked over to Argentine who, like a lot of
others, had gathered in the corridor.

"When did that happen?" he asked while nodding to
Gossip.

"He got hit while we were commandeering the
flitter."

"And her?"

"It was a package deal; keep him alive and bring her
along."

They both stood silent for a moment watching her work.

"I'm assuming she's a doctor?"

"I think so; at least that's what everyone called her.
She seems to know her stuff… But other than that I don't know anything about
her."

"Did she offer to save his life before you promised her
a ride?"

"Yeah, she did. That's the only reason I thought it
might be worth the risk."

"Well, Gossip's gamble certainly paid off for
him."

"No, it didn't work that way. He was already out of it
before we ever met the doctor."

"That's not what I meant," Argentine said.
"When you first offered him a job, he didn't know anything about
you…"

Lieutenant Stark didn't say anything and Argentine turned
and walked toward the bridge.

ΔΔΔ

When the
lieutenant turned back around the doctor was standing in front of him.

"Where's my other bag?" she asked harshly.

"I don't have any idea what you're talking about,"
he responded.

"My other bag. I brought two bags with me. One was the
medical supplies and the other was my personal things. The medical bag is here,
but Rory says it was the only bag on the shuttle…

"Where. Is. My. Other. Bag?"

The Lieutenant had watched many people over his career
respond to stressful situations. Some freaked out and lost control; turning the
mildest of inconveniences into catastrophes in their mind.

He was either witnessing this now, or… There was another
very self-disciplined personality type that only let their control slightly
slip right before their entire universe came crashing down…

"I really don't know," he said softly. "It
must've gotten left behind."

He now knew which type he was dealing with; she could barely
hide the horror behind her eyes.

In
Dreamspace

Argentine,
Lieutenant Stark, and the chief were in his day cabin discussing their
situation.

"We can't keep bringing new people on board!" the chief
insisted.

"You were the one saying we needed more people to run
the ship," Argentine reminded him.

"We did! And we still do… We just need different people
than the ones we've got."

Argentine was frustrated.

"Since we last had this conversation, we've picked up a
pilot, added a security guard, and brought aboard someone that actually
processed some ore… Mandi definitely knows her way around an IT station, and we
brought you a family to help with the everyday maintenance. We even found a
doctor…

"And we’re even about to collect on our first long-haul
contract," he said with some irritation. "What more do you
want?"

Not to be outdone, the chief replied just as strongly…

"Our security guard is near death, the professor gets
off at the next stop, and I hope Mandi does the same – I don't trust her as far
as I can toss a heatsink core.

"And the unskilled labor we brought on board, well…
They all have the wrong kind of skills as far as I'm concerned."

"The Petulengro family? What have you got against them?"
Argentine asked, honestly curious.

After a moment of grumbling the chief said, "Nothing
specific. They more or less do what I ask them to do. The problem is that they
do a lot
more
than what I ask them to do. They're into everything and it
wouldn't surprise me if they turn out to be a big bunch of thieves. When they
do finally leave the ship I expect to find half my tools missing along with
anything else they can haul off."

"Have they actually stolen anything?" the
lieutenant asked, finally speaking up.

"That depends on your definition," he said
adamantly. "When I need something and I can't find it, I know it will be
with their stuff. Granted, it won’t be hidden away or anything, and they’ll be
quick to give it back saying they were only borrowing the tool for some ship's
maintenance or other… But, dang it, I don't trust them...

"And I don't like the way their daughters are hanging
around Rory!"

"Chief? Is there something else bothering you?"
the lieutenant asked.

"Yes, you better believe there is! It's our food
supply! With the extra time we spent in deep space and all the extra mouths
we’re feeding we’re going to be running dry by the time we hit orbit…

"By my calculations, a good part of our profit this
trip is going to be needed to resupply… Maybe all of it if we don't leave a
bunch of people at Paladin III.”

Argentine suddenly realized that the chief was as frustrated
as he was; he was just letting off steam.

Everything he’d said was accurate, but it was really a
miracle they'd come this far, this fast.

He almost let out an inappropriate laugh.

This was really the first time he'd ever been totally in
command; he'd never really considered this side of it before.

He'd had plenty of examples in the People's Republic of
Chezden of bad leadership. But up until now, he'd always thought bad leadership
to be made up of stupid tactical decisions, selfish political games, or just
plain lazy behavior.

The People's Republic, as far as he knew, had never taught
the emotional side of leadership. The concept that loyalty was given, not
commanded, was antithetical to them.

For a while now he’d thought the chief to be his best
friend. And in many ways, he was. It wasn't based on a brotherly love, but
rather a mutual respect. They had both carved out their individual fiefdoms on
the Pelican (as small as they were). They'd more or less left each other alone
and shared a few stories and a few cognacs, laughing about the ineptitude on
constant display around them.

Argentine wasn't sure what it said about him that his best
friendship had derived simply out of a matter of convenience, but he valued the
friendship and realized that the chief had already opened up his small circle
of trust about as wide as he could take it – at least for the time being.

Just then, his intercom beeped.

"Captain?” Sami said. “Mandi and I would like to talk
to you…"

ΔΔΔ

Once again the
five of them were seated in the cramped day cabin.

Together, Sami and Mandi had just finished sharing the story
of the T.L.S. Roosevelt.

"So you knew that the Trinity Lords were into genetic
slavery and you didn't say anything?" Argentine said to Sami.

Before she could answer, Mandi said, "Oh, leave the
girl alone. I told her it wouldn't be a problem; we were just going to go in
and get out and no one would be the wiser. There wasn't any reason for her to
think it was important."

Argentine quietly fumed.

Sami's eyes were downcast and Mandi appeared only a little
embarrassed as she refused to make eye contact.

"Anyway, it turns out that we might be in a good
position to track down that ship."

"And just how would we do that?" Argentine asked…
curious despite himself... "When no one else has been able to find it for
two hundred years?"

"Because we know the ship's vector when it last broke
orbit from Paladin III," she said confidently.

"We do?"

"Well, kind of… We know the person that knows the
vector," she said with a smile.

"And how would this person know the vector?" asked
the chief.

"Because she's a survivor from the original crew,
silly."

"I thought you said this all happened over two hundred
years ago?"

"Yes, that's right. Amazing, isn't it?"

"And why hasn't she told anyone else? For that matter,
why hasn't anyone forced her to talk?"

"Because no one knows who she is; she's been in hiding
since before I was born."

"But you know her and she's willing to give you the
vector?"

"That's right."

"Why?"

"Because she trusts me."

"Ha!" exclaimed the chief.

Mandi glared at him with a thin smile.

Argentine found himself rubbing his eyes again…

He said, "If you want us to believe you, and only the
gods know why we would, you're going to have to give us more than that."

After a moment of thinking about it, Mandi sighed. She then
proceeded to tell them a story about befriending a woman that was already old
when her father first introduced them all those many years ago.

They had a special bond, but Mandi claimed to be just as
surprised as they were when, just a few months ago, the woman had confided to
her about her true past.

"Why would you believe such a fairytale?" the
chief demanded.

"I… have my reasons."

"But you do believe her?" Argentine asked, looking
her in the eye.

Holding her head up and his gaze steady, "Yes. I
absolutely do."

The chief seemed disgusted and the lieutenant just shrugged
when Argentine glanced at him.

"Look, this isn't even an option," the chief
proclaimed. "We don't have enough credit to buy sufficient provisions for
an extended search with this crew. And if we offload a bunch of crew on Paladin
III, we'll be too undermanned to conduct the search.”

"What if I could get you the provisions?" Mandi
asked.

The chief frowned…

"Well, that's all well and good. But we might not even
have enough to go pick up this elderly friend of yours."

"Oh, that won't be a problem. She's on Paladin
III."

"What a coincidence," the lieutenant said dryly.

Argentine felt the beginnings of a new headache.

"Why are you so bent on making this happen?"
Argentine said calmly. "You've obviously manipulated this whole
situation.”

Mandi remained silent so he continued…

"You manipulated the police and customs on Asperia, the
Lords of Trinity, one University, and at least one Open Society… Am I leaving
anyone out?

"Why is this so important?"

"If you can't understand why finding the most
technologically advanced ship in this entire sector of space is important… then
I don't know what to tell you, Captain," she said with a sarcastic laugh.

"Oh, come off it! Yeah, it's a big deal if I want to be
famous… But how is finding that ship going to help us? You think I'm so stupid
as to think anyone is going to allow us to keep it?"

The chief and lieutenant glanced at each other and then back
at Argentine, only slowly realizing what he was getting at…

"I don't care how advanced or powerful that ship is;
it's still two hundred years old and probably doesn't come with an instruction
manual. Every government in the sector is going to want to take it away from us
and we're not going to be able to stop them.

"You've obviously thought this through… You've
manipulated everyone else and now you're trying to manipulate us! So cut the
crap and tell us why it's so important for you to find that ship?"

"Captain, I'm sure they’ll give you an incredible finder’s
fee," she scrambled to respond.

When Argentine's piercing glare did not waiver, she finally
yielded…

"Because she's dying… Paula Silva wants to die in her
own bed on her own ship and I promised I would do everything I could to make
that happen," she said with suddenly misty eyes.

She then held her head high and continued…

"So just what, exactly, is wrong with that?"

ΔΔΔ

"You can't
really be serious!" exclaimed the chief. "You're going to trust her?
Again?"

Argentine glanced over at the lieutenant, who didn’t
respond.

"You're no help…"

"I told you, I'm just along for the ride; all these
high-level decisions are really not my style," he said. "But I
suppose I could point out the obvious…

"Assuming we collect on the professor's contract, and
assuming that Mandi can get us provisioned on Paladin III without cost, the
whole venture just seems like picking up another contract to me.

"I'm guessing she could be right about us negotiating a
finder’s fee… If we don’t die first, we might be able to more or less name our
own price. At any rate, I don't see it as being much more risky than breaking
an embargo and getting into a firefight with an Asperian military vessel…

“The best case scenario, is that we each come out of this
with a decent sized nest egg, and then we can finally go our own ways – because
at the rate we’re going now, it's going to take forever to save enough to do
that by just hauling freight."

"So you think the ship is really out there?"
Argentine asked.

Lieutenant Stark shrugged again…

"I don't know; I just don't see the downside in
looking."

Argentine looked over at the chief…

"Chief? What’s it going to be?"

"You're asking me? What is this, a vote?"

"Maybe… If we do this I've got a feeling we’re going to
need to have each other's backs. I'd prefer that we all agree up front. As a
matter of fact, if you do agree the next thing we'll do is put it to the
crew…"

"What? You mean the Petulengro family? You're calling
them crew now?"

"We’re going to need them, chief…"

"Okay, okay… I'm in. But damn you, Argentine. If you
get us killed I'm going to be pissed…"