Chapter 5, pirates

{Year 3505 of the Leron calender. Despair. I have no other words to describe the feeling gripping our planet. It's been a year since the unknown object entered our solar system. I write this journal knowing the death of my home is a near certainty as the light of our star is dimming. Projections show the star's output decreasing at nearly one percent every four months, a rate that seems to be increasing. We rush to evacuate, but it's a daunting task to evacuate twenty billion people to our nearest colony world. Not enough ships, food, water, room to carry all the people.} author Vergil Tesar.

(Callie)

Keeping a safe distance away, Shimmer turned to Callie, her face plate hissing softly and folding away from her snout. The soft suit slid along Shimmer's fur, folding into a seam at her neck, revealing shimmers nervous expression. Shimmer had a long thin snout, large fluffy ears with white fur and slitted yellow eyes like a cat. Shimmer really did look like an old image of the now extinct arctic fox, if an artic fox was as tall as Callie's chest.

The soft suit fit the Tallax perfectly, molding to her like a second skin. It lacked much of the rigid toughness of the empire's armour, but it made up for that in flexibility and advanced interfacing capabilities.

If she was being honest, Callie was excited to test out the suits. The soft suits looked like a thin navy flight suit, with a sealed helmet and clear visor. The suits were designed by the Tallax to allow much greater control over their ships, mechanical bots and other tech that could be controlled through implants.

The Tallax lacked apposable thumbs, but that didn't mean they were clumsy with delicate tasks. The clever foxes had implants that allowed them to control most of their tech without touching it. That didn't mean the foxes were helpless without their tech. Her studies affirmed over and over that they were very capable without apposable thumbs.

Callie smirked, shaking her head. It was hard to imagine the massive Tallax doing something like sewing, but they were more than capable of such delicate things. Shimmer cleared her throat, bringing Callie back from her musing. "Is there something wrong?" Shimmer asked, wearily.

Callie shook her head, deciding to probe the captain later in private. "It's nothing. I was merely curious about the soft suit you are wearing."Callie said, waving a hand dismissively. It was just too bad that a lowly pirate captain wouldn't have the secrets behind making the implants. Shimmer flicked her fluffy white tail, giving Callie a sideways glance.

"What is it, captain? Is there something on my face?" Callie asked, reaching up to run a callused hand over her smooth right cheek. "There is blood on the tip of your nose."Shimmer said helpfully.

Callie opened her mouth, ready to make a joke of it. She pushed that part of her down. She was pretending to be the new hard ass commander. They needed to see her as stern and ruthless not as a joking young woman. On second thought, maybe joking around after killing two people would add to their fear of her? And as a bonus, she didn't have to pretend to be someone else.

"Nice I lucked out. Blood on my skin is easy to get off with a shower, unlike blood on the finely woven fabric of these shirts."Callie said, wiping the blood away with the back of her hand as though it was nothing. Shimmer grimaced at her casual dismissal of the blood, glancing at her dismembered crew.

"Commander, I have a question for you?" Shimmer asked hesitantly. Shimmers knees were bent, and her tail was lowered submissively as though she was afraid the question might insult Callie. Disgusted with herself, Callie tried to ease the captain's concerns. Sure, she was trying to act like a ruthless commander, but she hated that look of terror in Shimmer's eyes.

"Ask away and do not worry, captain. I will not be offended and lash out without good reason. I'm not one of those stuck up Zrixians." Callie said calmly.

Shimmers' lips turned up slightly, exposing her fangs in what was meant to be a smile, but appeared menacing. Callie had to subtilty slip her freshly drawn dagger back up her sleeve, reminding herself that it was a friendly gesture.

" I was curious. Did you plan to ambush my ship?" Shimmer asked hesitantly.

Callie shrugged." Not at all. Do you suspect members of your crew leaking information about your ship?" Callie asked, scratching her chin for effect.

Shimmer nodded, bracing herself for reprisal. "Did you attack my ship on the pay of one of my rivals? Half of my crew are out of the fight, and the other half won't stand a chance if a larger group of pirates attacks us at the shipyard." Shimmer said sourly.

Callie waved a hand dismissively. "I wish to alleviate that concern. For now, your crew is small, but you will hire more members. As for the other groups of pirates. Once we dock, you will tell me where I can find the other factions."Callie said, calmly, as though approaching a pirate captain and their crew was so simple.

Shimmer swallowed, glancing from Callie to the corpses yet again. "With the payoff we gained today, I am confident we can hire another ten members to fully staff the crew. We will need to take another few weeks to train them adequately." Shimmer stated. There was a soft whirring, and the ship shutter slightly, the display showing one of the cargo bays opening.

Callie widen her stance, bending her knees to keep herself steady.

"About that... Your crew's skills are lacking. What kind of training do you have them doing?" Callie asked. Shimmer shrugged, her fluffy shoulders twitching from the motion.

" We are pirates, not soldiers. People who decide to be pirates aren't exactly the most skilled or talented individuals. Otherwise they wouldn't be so desperate and become pirates."Shimmer said helplessly.

"We are going to need to change that. After all the supplies are loaded and we depart, we will talk more. For now, oversee the recovery and disposal of the bodies. I am going to tend to the injured crew."Callie said, her gaze boring into Shimmers bright yellow eyes.

The young assassin could see the captain's shame over losing control of her ship in those eyes. She knew Shimmer was too terrified to act right now, but that didn't mean she wouldn't later. From a narrow corridor, Lenny came trotting out holding a large duffel bag by the straps in his jaws. He looked like an overly tall dog carrying a stick back to its master, which made her smile.

Shimmer broached a subject with a weary tone, turning to face Callie. " We should separate from the cargo ship as soon as we are loaded. We don't want to be hanging around if a war ship comes by and sees the Cargo ship's distress call." said Shimmer.

Callie nodded, picking up the too light bag from where Lenny placed it down. The straps were damp with his saliva, and the bag was light with supplies, like she feared.

"Lenny, show me to a suitable place I can use as a medical bay. Shimmer direct all the injured to me. Once we have all the crew and supplies back on the ship, let's retreat to a safe distance from the star lanes."Callie ordered.

"Of course commander, I know just the place to hide while we lick our wounds."Shimmer said, turning to her task. Lenny led the way, turning down a narrow corridor. The hull plating beneath them was well worn, the marking practically gone from the foot traffic.

With his face plate retracted to his shoulders, Lenny looked far younger than she first thought. He had bright yellow eyes, a narrow muzzle, and had his brown fur cut only a few inches from his skin.

"So, what do I call you, commander?" Lenny asked, his gait tentative yet graceful. She strode after him with long strides, matching his pace. The odd question caught her a little off guard. What name should she give them? She would find it incredibly tiresome to use a fake name, but that didn't exclude a pirate name.

Or at least that is what happened in pirate novels. The hero of the story would give their name to the crew, proclaiming they were someone cool, like Davy jones, or Jack sparrow. Callie's personal favorite from ancient history was the sly, unkillable captain Barbosa and his insufferable pet crab. Or was it a monkey? The stories were unclear on that.

This was the part where the main character in the novel would give their undercover name. She snorted. What would Dustin say if she started calling herself something like Nightstalker? She smiled. Taniya would think she was being overly dramatic, and Dustin would roll his eyes.

The truth was, she wasn't even a hero. In fact, she was worse than these pirates. As least they had honour of a sort. After what she did to her friends, she couldn't say she was anything other than untrustworthy and a terrible friend.

Deciding to stall, Callie replied.

"I don't care what you call me, if you are struggling to find a name, commander is fine."Callie said cautiously. Lenny chuckled, clearly amused by something.

"At least you didn't choose some ridiculous name. You should hear the names some pirates give themselves. It is out of hand."Lenny said, amused. "Really? Can I have some examples?" Callie asked curiously.

"Get this. Last time we were at the shipyard for repairs, there were two humans of another crew that had the flattering names, oblivion, and black hole!!" Lenny said theatrically. Callie's hard ass persona cracked, and she laughed.

"That's big talk coming from a fox named Lenny. Did you choose that personally? Or did the crew choose it to poke fun at you?" Callie drawled. Lenny let out a growling laugh, his fluffy brown ears twitching in amusement.

"I think the captain dies a little inside whenever a human laughs at my name."Lenny said, grinning, exposing his fangs.

"Why would captain Shimmer care?" Callie asked curiously. "Well, that's because the captain is my mother."Lenny said.

Callie paused in the hallway, noting Lenny's half smirk. She facepalmed, shaking her head and chuckling.

"Well, it's a good thing I scared the shit out of the captain before insulting her son. Otherwise I may be in trouble."Callie said, amused. Lenny gave Callie a knowing look.

"I don't think there is anyone who wouldn't be terrified of you after watching that execution."Lenny said bluntly. Callie raised an eyebrow. "And yet, despite that, you are joking freely with me like we are long-time friends?" Callie said in an even tone.

"The captain always tells me I am far too reckless. I think she just doesn't want me to make friends."Lenny grumbled.

They exited the cramped hallway into an open storage bay that could easily fit thirty people. It was perfect with two exits in case she needed to escape. For now, she was blind to the ongoing functioning of the ship. She just needed some time so she could hack into the ship's systems and get control over all the cameras and sensors of the ship.

The young Tallax walking next to her gesture with his snout towards two pirates entering the room behind them. The two human pirates placed an unconscious woman, none too gently, on the hard floor plating. The woman was still in her soft suit, but her helmet was missing and her head struck the floor as they set her down..

If her head was any sign, the helmet must be extremely damaged, and was likely the only reason she was alive.

The woman's auburn hair was matted to her head with blood from where she struck a bulkhead. Callie glared at the two loitering men until they fled out of the storage bay. Medical bag in hand, she strode over to her first patient. While she dug through the medical bag, Callie cocked her head at Lenny.

"And you thought a stranger who killed or injured half your crew might be friend material?" Callie asked, replying to his mumbled statement.

"Well, when you put it like that, it sounds like I'm being idiotic. I don't know commander, maybe I'm just naïve, but you seem alright, for a human."Lenny replied. Callie raised an eyebrow. "If you think I'm alright for a human, then I shudder to think of the other humans you have met."Callie said.

She rummaged inside the bag, finding a battered tablet like item. The screen was scratched and the thin card like black plastic frame was cracked. Lenny snorted. "You killed some of the crew. No offence, commander, but we are pirates. We go through crewmates like a brothel goes through pent up customers."Lenny said seriously.

Callie held the device in her hands up to the light overhead. She shook it, plugging her comm into the device to give it power. "Is it really that bad? I thought pirates dying horribly by a magic net would shock even veteran pirates?" Callie asked.

Crossing her fingers and praying to whatever god was listening, Callie hit the power button of the device. The uncaring god in question must have been listening, or at least decided not to interfere, because the device activated.

Lenny replied after several long seconds, watching what she was doing curiously. "I have seen dozens of people die. But watching you kill Gervan and Ular is going to make me have nightmares." With that unhappy thought in her mind, the young assassin turned medic set to work.

Deftly pressing commands on the screen, she cycled through settings, taking a minute to figure out how the device was set up. The thing didn't have a manual, and it was in Tallaxian script, so she had to make some guesses on how it was configured.

Callie knelt over her patient, eying the scanner and Lenny. She scanned the skull of her patient carefully. She was looking for a skull fracture, bruising or bleeding in the brain. She examined the woman's skull for several minutes, looking for abnormalities.

The scan took twice as long as it should, as she was not an expert doctor by any means. There was also the fact that pirates were delivering more patients, and Lenny was standing too close for comfort. Also, some of the new patients were awake, and watching her wearily.

After about five minutes, she was nearly one hundred percent certain the woman would be fine. There was some dark bruising on the woman brain, the hallmark of a concussion, but no internal bleeding. The unconscious pirate would experience a headache like no other and would need stitches, but that was the worst of it.

She would need to check on the woman periodically over the next three days to ensure her brain wasn't bleeding, but that shouldn't be too bad. Unless her brain was bleeding, then the woman would die suddenly, with no warning.

Taking a pair of scissors from the bag, she trimmed the woman's hair in a small area around the bleeding cut. She used a clean, wet cloth to soak up the blood and then stitched the wound shut. Her hands shook, but she pushed on, sealing the wound, one stitch at a time. The stitching wasn't beautiful, but it would do.

With the unpleasant task of holding a needle finished for now, she turned to covering the long gash. Callie sighed, digging through the bag, looking for something more advanced to use. Where was that energy gel? With it, she could reduce the chances of the woman dying, and the wound would heal in days, not weeks.

Shimmer was exaggerating when she said they had some medical supplies. The only thing of any value left in the bag was the scanner, and that was probably only there because it was cracked.

Callie scowled at the bag, taking out some long strips of fabric. At the bottom, she found the promised tubes of energy gel. Relief filled her, a smile crossing her face. She checked the label, weary of it being expired.

What she got wasn't expired at all, nor was it energy gel. Callie facepalmed, throwing the first tube to clatter noisily across the room in disgust. Her mood soured as she checked the other five tubes of healing ointment.

"What's the matter?" Lenny asked, weary to draw her ire. Callie held up one of the tubes. They looked remarkably similar to the energy gel, but their labels said otherwise. "Oh shit, that is kale sludge."Lenny said helpfully.

"Some sneaky pirate exchanged the real thing for these sludges and laughed all the way to the bank. Now I'm wondering if there will be anything of value on the ship."Callie asked, giving Lenny a weary look.

Lenny winced at that look, his expression telling her it was worse than she feared. "Lenny, did your crew attack the Cargo ship with stun rounds because someone sold all of your real ammunition?" Callie asked casually. His ears flatten as he lowered his tail meekly, but he stayed quiet..

"Tell me, so I can get a better picture of what's going on!" Callie order sternly.

"The captain sold all of our live ammo, as well as most of our missiles, to buy fuel for the ship."Lenny mumbled softly, glancing around nervously. Callie took in a deep breath of filtered air, smelling something odd. It smelled like the stink of desperate pirates.

Callie took in a deep, calming breath, her heart racing as she tried not to get upset. This must be the universe getting back at her? She put her lot in with a bunch of pirates that were so desperate they were selling their missiles to keep the ship running?

She sighed, she could always get off the ship at the nearest shipyard? Callie wondered if it would be worth all the time and effort required to make the crew useful? Perhaps, with some effort, she could make them useful. She decided to play it cautiously for now, and see if they were willing to learn.

Unwrapping the strips of fabric, she elevated her patient's head and wrapped the unconscious woman's stitched wound. The woman would need to heal the good old-fashioned way, with lots of time and rest.

Callie most certainly would not drain her reservoir amidst bloodthirsty pirates. "Lenny, could you make sure this woman is taken to her room?" Callie asked. Lenny nodded, gesturing to a human still in his soft suit. The human looked just a little to exited to fulfill his task, eying the unconscious woman hungrily.

Anger filled her. She gave the man a look with murder in her eyes.

"If any of the pirates aboard my ship attempt to get into her quarters while she is unconscious, I will personally throw them out an airlock."Callie said sternly, her voice carrying across the cargo bay. She met each of their eyes, lingering on the man picking the unconscious woman up. The man swallowed hard, looking fearful of her glare.

With the crew threatened and one patient finished, she turned to the others, eying one who was glaring at her. He cradled a clearly broken arm to his side, his face pale. The armour of his soft suit's left arm was torn, but there wasn't any blood.

Callie smiled sweetly at him, tossing him a tube with a cap at the end. The anesthetic clatter next to his feet, bouncing off the floor plating. "I know you're probably cranky at me, but I need you to inject yourself in the left shoulder with that needle."Callie ordered.

The man glared daggers at her, hatred filling his eyes. " And why should I?" he asked through gritted teeth.

Her smile changed from friendly to a frosty glare. "Its simple. I have no need of personnel that don't follow orders." She said dispassionately. She said it loud enough that everyone in the room could hear. The other three wounded were still being brought in, but there were still some healthy pirates in the bay with them.

The pirates loitering hastily left the room with their tails between their legs. Well, one with its tail literally between its legs, the other three more figuratively speaking, as they were human.

Her human patient stagger as he bent down but steadied himself grasping the tube. His soft suit was mangled on his left side, and the inner workings of the suit were revealed where his arm was broken.

The suit, smarter than most people, peeled itself away from its wearer, falling to the floor softly. Pulling the cap off with his teeth, the man stabbed it into his now exposed left shoulder, depressing the plunger.

"Name?" She asked.

"Mike." He replied tursley, glaring at her from under thick brows, his steely eyes intense. His red hair was matted to his head with sweat, framing his pale face.

His face was still white with shock, her patient giving her a hateful glare. Callie ignored the man, using her scanner to examine the break in his left arm. It wasn't all that bad, with only one of the two bones in his forearm being broken and the other fractured.

In the medical bag, there were several braces that were like clear plastic forearm sleeves. She took one, sliding it up that mans arm, the sleeve covering from his wrist to his elbow.

Both bones hadn't separated, so this was a simple fix. The forearm sleeve molded, tightening around the man's arm. She used her comm to interface with the sleeve and it rippled, shaping to fit him at her prodding. The brace restricted any use of his elbow or his left wrist, but that was necessary for the bone to heal properly.

She stepped back from the man and smiled genuinely.

"Now mike, don't take that off for at least six weeks. You are on light duty until it's properly healed."Callie ordered. "That sounds like a long wait to use my arm?" Mike asked. Callie shrugged. "It wasn't me who sold the energy gel in the medical kit." The man scowled and took the sling she offered him.

She turned to another of the pirates, and paused, noting they were both looking not too bad. Well, by that she meant one was looking like they wanted to fight instead of letting her help them and the second a human looked like he was ready to leap in to stop the angered Tallax. "Where is the last of the injured?" Callie asked.

One of the two took a step forward, her ears flat as she bared her teeth. "She died. You broke her neck when you slammed her into the ceiling."The Tallax pirate growled angrily. Callie rested her hand on her hip, not even bothering to reach for either her pistol or monomolecular edged knife.

"You were attacking my ship."Callie said dryly. The Tallaxian pirate grimaced, shrinking back. The human to her right stepped forwards placing a comforting hand on his comrade's shoulder. "Please give Jemina a pass. She is distressed at the loss of Oren." the other wounded pirate said with a bow of his head.

"I am sorry for your loss. I didn't intent to kill your friend. It may be little consolation, but I can stitch you both up."Callie said, showing some humility.

It took her ten minutes of uncomfortable silence as she stitched one cut on the Tallax. Jemina lay down as Callie stitched up a long gash on her shoulder. The human Dusal was much less grouchy, but he didn't crack jokes with her. She disliked every second of it, hating holding the needle, and hating their looks of outrage at her.

Once done, she was happy to flee the impromptu medical bay, to go find the captain. Being disliked and feared by the entire crew was going to draining..