Out of my comfort zone.
14 Dec 2015Desert Fox CXVII
So there I sat, a glass of whiskey in my hand, dreading the call I was about to make. It's not that I didn't want to talk to the man; he was an old friend, and he did owe me a favor. No, what I was really dreading was the face he'd make when I told him what I needed and why. Especially the why. Christ.
"Computer?"
"Yes, Commander?"
Ugh. "Call Mathew Lehman."
"Call who, Commander?"
Goddamnit. "Call. Mathew. Lehman," I enunciate, my words coming out slow and deliberate.
"Yes Commander; Calling- Mathew Lehman. Standby."
I grit my teeth and down the last of my whiskey. While the phone rings, I pour myself another glass, tapping my foot against the port yaw pedal. No answer.
"Computer, repeat last command."
"Yes Commander; Calling- Mathew Lehman."
I called six more times, with no joy, but on the seventh the line opens; his chest is bare, hair disheveled, and he's out of breath. There is an exasperated look on his face; evidently I'd interrupted something. "Cassius, what do you want? I'm a little busy right now." In the background, I can hear a woman's voice, calling indistinguishably from another room.
With a heavy sigh, I speak. "Lehman, I need your help. It's important."
His face changes from annoyed to intrigued with remarkable rapidity. "The great Cassius Fox needs my help? What could I possibly do that your Legion couldn't accomplish?"
I grind my teeth and force myself not to cut the call. After a taking a deep breath, I lay the whole sordid tale out for him from start to finish. Everything from meeting the woman to waking up and discovering that Lisa was missing. Throughout the whole story, Lehman's grin grew in size until he resembled something akin to the Cheshire cat. Obviously my misfortune amused him to no end.
"And if I bring this up to the Legion or the Inquisition, I'll end up enslaved, or worse." I pinch the bridge of my nose, avoiding eye contact with him. "I need to track her, and I know you know people in the underworld. I was hoping you could do me a favor."
Lehman sits quietly for a moment, soaking in the moment. After an unbearable few seconds, he responds. "Sure, I can help you, if you don't mind getting those nice shoes of yours dirty. I'm sending you some co-ordinates. Meet me there as soon as you can."
My console dings as the message comes through. "Are you out of your mind? You can't really expect me to fly THAT far into Fed space in a Gutayama boat."
He waves his hand in a dismissive gesture. "It's an anarchy system. Fed's can't control the population so they leave it alone. As long as you don't loiter in any hi-sec systems for too long, you'll be fine."
I scoff, but nod. "I hope you're right."
He nods back, that shit eating grin still plastered over his face. "I'll be waiting."
As I go to sever the call, he turns around and shouts down the hall behind him. "Hey, Kyndi, you hear what happened to Cassius? You wont belie-"
I cut the connection, a sour expression coming over my face.
"Computer, Prep the ship for departure."
"Yes, Commander."
Far aft and below, the engines whir to life and my navigation panel blinks on. After a brief moment of hesitation, I input the Co-ordinates Lehman had sent me. In for a penny, I suppose. The journey would take the better part of the day, but all in all, it was better than I could have hoped.
"All systems nominal. You have the helm."
I grunt and key up the tower. "Tower 42, this is Night Witch, request clearance for takeoff."
"Night Witch, tower 42, clearance granted. Stay safe out there, Commander."
No promises... The pad jolts forward and starts for the surface. I settle into my chair, and rest my hands on the throttle and stick.
The pad grinds to a halt, and with the flick of a switch, my landing gear is retracted; I ease onto the throttle and the dull roar of the trusters fills my ears.
I'm away.
Once I'm clear of the mail slot, I align the prow of Night Witch with my destination and throttle to full. Taking my hands of the controls for a moment, I light a cigarette and take a long drag. This was going to be one long fu-
"Warning: Carbon monoxide contamination detected."
"Shut the fuck up!"
"Error. Command: 'Shut the fuck up,' not recognized.