Et tu, Brute?
07 Jun 2020Tharik Otoli
The Adventures of Prince Tharik Otoli: Space PirateFollow this link for the full anthology!
OCAIRI
INTRA-SYSTEM SHIPPING LANES
Ocairi B 1, a non-descript Imperial world with less than a billion souls inhabiting the planet. The natives had not even bothered to give this small world a proper name, instead, they preferred to call their planet itself Ocairi and referred to the system's two suns as simply A and B. An agricultural world, it constituted one of many worlds that could be said to be the Emperor's breadbox. Foodstuffs were exported all over the Empire and chiefly to high-population core worlds such as Achenar and Cemiess. Much of the planet was covered by efficient, industrialized farming operations, however, there were a number of spaceports and small cities where commerce occurred.
Sven Holgersson was the son of a farmer, born and raised on Ocairi. Naturally, he was expected to continue the family business but Sven's heart was always among the stars. From a young age, he gazed into the night sky and dreamed of space battles between the Empire and the Federation. On many occasions, he imagined himself a rugged buccaneer among the Kumo crew, and certainly, he dreamed of piloting a Diamondback Explorer to the very edge of the Galaxy. Though, as dreams often go, his did not turn out quite as he had planned. For the past several years Sven had been hauling various provisions back and forth between Ocairi and many of the Imperial worlds whose population outstrips the planet's ability to sustain. Certainly, there were other more profitable ventures to be made by a man with his own Keelback - Allura's Hope, named for his wife - mining, for instance, could make one very rich in short order. However, pirates could also make one very dead, and Sven had two children back on Metcalf Station.
This most recent job was paying as much as he would normally earn in 6 months, and it was a simple intra-system transport mission. As far as Sven knew, a very rich man and his entire family had died in a horrible accident of some kind at Schroter Beacon. Items from the man's estate were to be auctioned off on Ocairi. As a precaution, the auction house had insisted upon an escort, one Imperial Eagle, and - much to Sven's dismay - in case of any boarders, a very gruff and humorless man named Gordon Freeman joined Sven aboard Allura's Hope. They were nearly at the end of their short trip when disaster struck.
"...What? It can't be," shouted Gordan as he witnessed the singular escort burst into a fireball.
Sven frantically slammed the thrust forward and crushed the boost control with his thumb. He had never been in any kind of combat before and Allura's Hope was certainly no match for the Krait MkII bearing down on them. In only a few seconds, the besieged Keelback's shields came down, and an instant later she was tumbling through space, her engines mangled and useless.
The comms crackled to life, "Greetings Commander, allow me to introduce myself, I am Imperial Corsair Captain Commander Prince Tharik Otoli, at your service. I must insist that you power down and prepare to be boarded. Please do not resist, I do not wish to free you from your mortal coil."
All the color suddenly left Sven's face but then, a glimmer of hope formed in his mind as he realized exactly the circumstances he found himself in. He activated the comms and replied, "Aye, we will not resist. Powering down."
Gordan unbuckled his harness and stood, "Right then, they'll have their guard down." He reached over to a nearby compartment and retrieved his laser assault rifle, inserted a fresh heatsink, and set the weapon to full power.
Sven's eyes went wide, "No! What are you doing? Stand down! Do you know who that is?"
Gordan cooly responded while releasing the safety from his weapon, "Should I?"
Sven fumbled with his harness, "The Bane of Maia? The Scourge of Borann? The Spice Smugglers? Does any of these words mean anything to you? Don't be a fool! He will not kill us if we give up without a fight!"
Gordan shrugged and replied, "I've never failed a job and I am not about to start now," as he walked toward the rear door of the cockpit.
Sven's harness finally came undone and he quickly stood. He glanced down at a small holo-picture of his family adorning the cockpit and felt his heart leaping from his chest.
The automatic door slid open as Gordan stepped forward and suddenly a shot rang out. He clutched his chest and fell to the floor. Behind him, Sven held a small pistol, smoke wafting from its barrel.