A Little Accounting
16 Dec 2017MMMMMalcolm
15 DEC 3303 was the day Kay went home for Christmas. She promised me she would jump at least forty light years away from Demona before resuming her born identity and finding a ride back to Sol. Even though she was a hired crew member, she snuck off Warm Embrace the same way she got on, by blending in with our disembarking passengers. Neither of us wanted to involve her family in this so we took every precaution we could think of. News of station attacks in nearby systems, though troubling, turned out to be a blessing in disguise; workers, officials, and panicked civilians were scurrying all over the dock. I’m certain no one tracked her.I hustled back to HIP 118321. During our “mini vacation” I came across an interesting Galnet article. It seems HIP 8758 is on the verge of a Boom state. That alone is not very remarkable I know. But a minor faction, Ahaut Front, is aligned with the Empire and has a presence in a system less than ten light years away. Those two facts combined equal more opportunities for higher Imperial Naval ranks in a shorter amount of time. I made a point to check the system out while Kay was away.
Back at Herzog Gateway, I stored Warm Embrace and picked up an Eagle. Initially, I was impressed. The speed and maneuverability was like night and day compared to the Anaconda. Then I started reading the owner’s manual more closely. I was shocked to find that the default specs of the Eagle were not much higher than the Sidewinder. I jumped on the ship’s computer and searched for another nearby shipyard. I found what I was looking for in the Kausan system. I contacted the yard at the Lyulka Ring and they notified me they had a brand new ship that just fell out of closing. Seems the lackey that had the important task of ordering a new ship for his master’s promotion ceremony hit the wrong button on the shipyard data pad. Ordered a Courier instead of a Clipper. I told them, if they could kit it with two Class 2 beam lasers, a Class 2 seeker missile rack, and three D rated shield boosters, I would pick it up that day. The salesman said it was no problem; he would have it cleaned, fueled, and ready to go by the time I arrived. I also asked him to have a crew ready to strip this bucket of an Eagle I would be arriving in and transfer the parts to my new ship.
I couldn’t sign the paperwork fast enough. I named her “High Horse”. It just seemed to fit. Plus, I figured if I’m going to work in Imperial space, it was about time I looked the part. After a large credit transfer, that included a hefty tip, I left in an unengineered, fully armed, A-rated Courier, with a near twenty light year jump range.
I’ll say one thing about the Empire; they really know how to construct a ship. Compared to the Eagle all you can say they have in common is a single seat. And that’s not saying much if you consider the level of detail the Empire puts into making a seat. The Courier was faster, had three times the shield strength, twice the armor, and nearly half the weight. Plus the three medium hard points do way more damage than the three small. I was satisfied.
It didn’t take me long to reach HIP 8758. I hopped on Firsoff Orbital’s mission board and tested the rumors I heard. Sure enough the board was loaded with missions requiring pilots to deliver boom data. I took all the missions the factions loyal to the Empire posted. After one trip, my rank percentage as a Knight rose from forty five percent to fifty seven. Again I was satisfied. I stored High Horse in the hangar and headed downtown.
“Take a walk with me Mr. Abaez,” a familiar voice asked; more like demanded, but his tone was so polite the command was not evident to the casual listener. I nearly jumped off the tram when I heard it. Kay may have noticed my reflexes increasing, but my environmental awareness needed a lot of work. I tried to lighten the situation while I lowered my heart rate.
“I was just on my way to a nice steak dinner. Care to join me?” I knew the reply, but it wasn’t important. I needed a sec to get my wits about me.
“Unfortunately, I have more important business to attend to. But thanks for asking.”
His cheerfulness was unnerving. I felt like I was talking to a kindergarten teacher holding a butcher knife behind his back.
“This will do well enough. After you.”
He opened the door to a nearby bar and waited for me to go inside. I scanned around for another exit. At the back was a door; probably led to the bathroom. But since I was guessing, I didn’t count it as a viable escape route.
The place was small; took maybe thirty paces to reach a booth near that backdoor. But it was nice. The booth was well padded and covered in, if not brand new, well cared for leather. The table was a solid wood. I’m unsure of the type. What little light there was bounced off its highly polished surface. The oil of the leather and the lacquer of the wood blended together to counter any unwanted odors in the air. I shouldn’t be surprised. It’s an Imperial bar, on an Imperial station, in Imperial space. The Empire never does anything half way. The bar was empty though. It was still early, just past 1800 hours. Not good for me. If anything happened, there wouldn’t be many witnesses.
A short waif of a waitress approached us. Her pale skin seemed to glow in the dim light. She wore a sheer white silk blouse accented by a black bow tie, a pair of creased black slacks, and some spotless black pumps. Her blonde hair was tied in a neat ponytail behind her head.
“Welcome gentlemen. How may I help you today?”
“Good evening Miss. If you have any Lavian Brandy, I’ll take a glass please.”
“And for you sir?” she asked, turning toward me.
“Just a glass of water thanks. Where’s your restroom?”
“Through that door on your left. You can’t miss it.” She left to get our drinks.
I guessed right; the door led to a short hall that housed the restrooms. Men on the right, women on the left. Just pass the men’s restroom was a stairwell that led upstairs. The good news was there was an option. The bad news was that option was only viable for a bird. Climbing things while running away was a bad idea for someone who couldn’t fly. No other doors, no windows, no other way out.
The waitress had come and gone by the time I returned.
“An accounting error has come to my attention recently,” he started not waiting for me to sit down. “Do you have an explanation for it?” He casually sipped his drink while he waited for my answer.
Oh no! Has he discovered the secret stash I built from half of my allotted living expenses?
“What accounting error?” I prayed I wasn’t sweating like the glass of ice water in front of me. “I itemize every credit coming and going every week. I haven’t missed a report.”
“No you haven’t; kudos for you.” I prayed he didn’t notice me grinding my teeth. “It’s just that the past few weeks you have been giving our resources to a Commander Crystal Cross. Who is she?”
He knew who she was, or at least who I said she was. It was in the report.
“I put it in the report the week I hired her. She is a crew member I hired as a co-pilot and fighter pilot for the Anaconda. She has been a great help getting passengers boarded and fighting off interdictors so they arrive safely at their destinations. I negotiated a fair wage contract for the competent pilot. I don’t understand where you are finding an error.”
“The error, my dear boy, is in your judgement.” His tone took on a harder edge despite his politeness. “You are an employee. I’m the manager. I don’t remember hiring any other employees for your department. Her expenses will be added to your debt and then multiplied as interest. Now the next…”
“Wait a minute, what?!” I started cutting him off. That was all I got out. From there my mouth moved but nothing came out. The shot to my ribs was so hard and fast, I noticed my lack of oxygen long before I noticed the pain. All those crunches I’ve been doing lately have reduced the fat in my midsection. If the growing muscle protected the bone from fracture, I wouldn’t have known it without an x-ray. At the very least I had a bad bruise. Kay lied. My reflexes were terrible. I didn’t see it and I was sitting right next to the guy. No way the bartender, the waitress, or the three other patrons saw anything.
“It’s not polite to interrupt people while they are talking. This is not up for debate.” He took another sip of his drink before continuing. “The next question I have is why you are here?”
It took a minute for me to answer. While I waited for air to refill my lungs, I massaged my right side.
“I saw… an article… on Galnet… about this system. It looked… like a good… opportunity… to make… Imperial Navy… rank.” I tried a sip of water. I almost drowned. I put the glass down. At least now my gasping for air had an apparent excuse.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk,” he replied. “Aren’t you the stubborn one? We discussed this. It doesn’t matter how long it takes you. We can wait. What matters is that you don’t draw attention to yourself so you aren’t missed when we assign you elsewhere. You become missed, people start looking around. People start looking around, maybe they find something they shouldn't.”
My breathing started to stabilize.
“Have you looked a Galnet recently? It’s pandemonium out there. Everyone is freaking out about Thargoid attacks. You can’t wait much longer. The ships you tasked me to get aren’t cheap. So, I figured I needed to move on to more lucrative endeavors fast. Then there’s the fact that, despite sixteen years of impeccable service, my debt continues to increase instead of decrease. I had to do something.”
The second hit to my rib was as bad as the first. I didn’t hear a crack. Did I hear a crack? No it’s not broken. Not that I’m a doctor or anything. I slowly lowered my head to the table, grateful it didn’t smell like vomit.
“Malcolm,” I hated when he used my real name. “I get the feeling you don’t like working for me. If you are unhappy with my management style, you have every right to lodge a formal complaint with Human Resources. I simply request you discuss your concerns with me first.
And as far as the Thargoids are concerned, you let us worry about that.”
Lodge a complaint? I just wanted to shoot the guy in the face. Just as soon as my eyes stopped watering. I didn’t care. I’d do the time. I lived in alleys as a kid, how much worse could a cell be. At least I would have a roof over my head.
“This is the last time I’m going to say this so nicely. Stop worrying about everything else and focus on what I tell you to do. You are still a young man. Straighten up and you will live to be an old man. This is not a job you seek early retirement from.”
“Is your friend ok?” The voice of the waitress was like the sound of an angel compared to this jerk.
“Oh he’s alright. Tried a swallow of my brandy and reminded himself why he doesn’t drink. Some people have to learn things the hard way.”
I am so going to shoot him in the face.
“Can I bring you anything else?”
“Just the check please. I’ll make sure he gets home safe.”
He paid the tab and escorted me (no carried me) back to my ship; dropping me on the bed of my quarters.
“I don’t care where you make the rank to gain access to the Imperial ships. Just do it quietly. My next visit won’t be so pleasant.”
I lay curled in my bed, grateful he was gone. He was right about one thing; his next visit won’t be pleasant at all. I was going to make sure of it.