The Pilots and the Frontier
By
UCSBdad
Disclaimer: After all this time, you know what this means, right? Rating: K Time: About three years after my story the Pilots and the Passengers.
"You're dressing differently." Moecious said, examining his cousins' sartorial splendor.
"We's gotta look da part. Youse is lookin' at da owners of da Vorlag Brudders Ice Cream Parlor, da finest on all o' Paradiso."
"You've got ice cream all the way to the Spican Marches?" Rick asked. "Must be difficult."
Buggsy shrugged.
"We knows a guy."
Rick frowned.
"That's odd. That phrase is familiar to me for some reason."
"Anyways, come on inside an' we'll have some grub. We bin teachin' Lily ta make ice cream sundaes. Da dessoit is from her."
Everyone was glad to see Marie and Gina, but understandably Rick and Kate concentrated on Lily.
"Do we have to leave her again?" Kate asked, after dinner.
"I'm afraid so, but I'll see if I can talk them into leaving you behind. That way one parent will be with her."
"That would be worse. At least with Lily being taken care of by our friends, I don't have to worry about her that much. But, if you're off someplace, without me, I'll worry myself sick."
"Looks like we're stuck with each other. Maybe the mission won't take that long."
They were disabused of that notion at the briefing next day by Captain Montgomery.
"This is Chupallo Far Trader." He said introducing an unfamiliar looking alien. He was a bit taller than Rick, but appeared to weigh more than Spotty. His baggy grey skin and very protuberant nose reminded Rick of an elephant, but he had no tusks and his ears were small. He wore his grey hair in three pigtails that came to his waist. He was dressed in a very expensive looking robe, embroidered with geometric patterns set with unfamiliar looking jewels.
"Greetings, Imperial beings."
"Chupallo is a trader from outside of the Empire. He comes from a place called the Confederacy of Hobbinnette. "He glanced at Chupallo . "Although I suppose I should let him tell his own story.
"We should sit." Chupallo said, heading for a couch.
"Beginning several hundred years ago, we had sporadic contact with the Commonwealth. We are some three hundred and fifty light years from what are now the borders of the Empire. We already had some very crude faster than light ships, just experimental models, really. However, we did learn from our contacts with the Commonwealth, although by that time they were starting what you call the Collapse. Shortly before the Empire was founded, we were visited by a large, former Commonwealth fleet. There were several hundred warships and about a thousand other ships of one sort or another, all fleeing the chaos of the Collapse. They wished to get as far from the Commonwealth as they could."
Chupallo stopped and looked at Montgomery.
"Would it be possible to get some cold alcohol? I'm a bit parched."
Montgomery arranged for non-alcoholic drinks for all but Chupallo.
"They left us and established a colony some four or five hundred light years from us. We had little contact with them as they were too busy establishing themselves. But, they left behind several ships as payment for the help we had given them. My personal ship, called in Anglic, Itchy Feet, is based on a Commonwealth heavy cruiser that was left behind. "Chupallo sighed. "Although my ship is new, it's not nearly as fast or as powerful as the old Commonwealth cruiser, nor your Imperial ships."
"But to the present. I deal in Imperial luxury goods. High value, low bulk goods that don't take up too much space on what is basically a warship. However, until this voyage, I've had no direct contact with the Empire. I've had to deal with middlemen who charge outrageous prices and put all manner of obstacles in the way of someone trying to trade directly with the Empire. The obstacles include piracy."
"Excuse me," Rick said, "but I thought the Spican Marches were a warzone."
"Things have changed a bit while you were in transit." Montgomery said. "We've managed to start a series of wars between the various barbarian powers in the Spican Marches, and as the wars go on, more and more planets seem to get involved. And, we crushed one of the main Zenetian Pirate fleets and are going after the rest. But, the wars in the Spican Marches is why Chupallo was able to make his way to the Empire."
Castle nodded.
"This is all very interesting, but…"
"What does it have to do with you?" Captain Montgomery finished for him. "I'll let Chupallo continue."
Chupallo took a long drink before speaking again
"We have very sporadic, indirect contact with the refugees from the Commonwealth I spoke of earlier. As I mentioned, they are quite far from us. However, they have thrived. They have set up a new Commonwealth, mostly non-human planets that includes over two thousand inhabited worlds. I have never traveled there myself, but my father visited them many years ago and compiled a very complete file, not only showing their location, but a great deal about their culture, government and such. That file I have transmitted to the Empire."
Castle was expecting what was coming next so he wasn't surprised by what Montgomery said next.
"We want you and Pika-Don to go through the Spican Marches, out past the border, visit the Confederacy of Hobbinnette, which is a grouping of about fifty or so planets, and check out the new human Commonwealth."
Castle was the first one to react to this proposal.
"Sir, shouldn't this be done by the Imperial Ministry of Foreign Affairs? We're hardly experts in first contacts, even if the contacts are humans."
Montgomery waved his objections away.
"You're not on a first contact mission. Considering all of the dangerous barbarian planets between here and there," he nodded to Chupallo, "excepting the Confederacy of Hobbinnette, of course, it'll be a long time before we have any kind of diplomatic relationships with even Hobbinnette. Plus, we have enough problems much closer to home." Montgomery smiled. "But, the damage done to the Zenetian Pirates and the Pannonians, gives us a breathing space. We can divert some resources to more long-term goals."
"But why us, sir?"
"You have the fastest ship in known space which has the best sensors, plus the most experienced crew. Your job will be to scout the best route to this Commonwealth and try to find out what you can about them. "
"And come back alive, I hope." Rick said softly.
Montgomery ignored the comment and went on.
"We've provided Chupallo with some very enticing Imperial luxury goods at no cost to him. We've also done some work upgrading his sensors, engines and armament. In return, he'll take you to the far edge of the Confederacy and perhaps beyond. You can pick up food, water and air on the way, so we'll be packing your ship with as many spare parts as we can fit in. Any questions, Captain Castle?"
The only question Rick could think of was how can I get out of this mess, but he didn't say anything.
"One other thing," Montgomery said, "I know your daughter is here, so you can be with her while were finishing with the upgrading of the Itchy Feet, and fine-tuning Pika-Don.
Rick and Kate exchanged glances, then Rick spoke.
"Thank you, sir, but we know Pika-Don better than anyone. Kate and I will want to be on hand when anything is done to our ship."
"I'll need to be there as well." Spotty said, quickly.
Moecious, Simone, Jane, Andine and Lindane also agreed to work on the ship.
"We can do a lot, Rick, "Moecious said, "so you and Kate can spend some time with Lily."
When they left, Spotty had a question for Rick.
"Um, Skipper, I'm not sure I understand the problems with the Spican Marches."
"Think of it as a sort of a guerilla war. On a planet, the government will hold the main cities while the guerillas can roam through the countryside at will. The government can push the guerillas out of any part of the countryside at any time, but don't have enough troops to garrison everything permanently. In the case of the Spican Marches, the Empire controls the wealthiest and most populous planets, but there are lots of planets that are poor, distant, have a history of opposing the Empire, or anyone, for that matter. They become bases for raiders of all kinds. The Empire doesn't have enough ships or troops to garrison the whole of the Spican Marches, so there's an endless low level war going on constantly. Moving more ships and troops in would deplete Imperial forces in more important parts of the Empire."
They all did as much as they could so that Rick and Kate could spend as much time as possible with Lily, but it was a sad day when they had to leave in the Pika-Don.
"I don't know how I managed to keep from crying when we left Lily." Kate said.
"You did better than I did." Moecious answered. "I cried like a little cub."
"We all felt bad. Did you know I'm Uncle Spotty now?"
"Just one big happy family." Rick said. "But now we have to be a crew and get under way. Navigation, are we set?"
"All set." Simone said. The rest of the crew were equally ready.
Once they passed the ill-defined borders of the Empire, the first seventy-five light years were no problem. Several small warships appeared on Pika-Don's sensors, but veered of when they saw a large warship.
Then they passed one hundred light years.
"Three ships ahead." Lindane said from the sensor station. "I make them to be small destroyers and they're on an intercept course."
"Kate, notify Itchy Feet. Their sensors won't pick them up for a long while."
It took several hours for the three unknown ships to make contact. They were called by a being of unknown origin who looked somewhat like a seal.
"I am Captain Abalars, the Destroyer of Worlds. Surrender and hand over one third of your cargo and I'll spare your miserable lives. Do it now!"
Chupallo replied with a laugh.
"Surrender to your three puny ships? I have a heavy cruiser. You're lucky I don't want to waste my missiles on something as useless as your fleet."
Abalars snarled back.
"I have a much larger ship joining me soon. Surrender now or be blown to bits later. Your choice."
"I suspect we'd have a very long wait for your other ship to show up. We'll be on our way. And if you do come within range of my missiles, I just might destroy you."
Abalars cut communications and the ships headed away.
Chupallo called the Pika-Don.
"Captain Castle, this complicates things a bit. My ship is rather well known for carrying very expensive cargo, but also for being very well armed, for a ship in this part of space, at least. Abalars will doubtlessly tell everyone where we are. There are a few ships, a very few ships, in this area who can overpower my ship. Others may hang around us out of weapons range hoping for some sort of an accident, or perhaps some more powerful ship taking us on. But they won't bother us."
They were more than halfway to the Confederacy of Hobbinnette when Chupallo announced they'd be stopping at a planet.
"Du Laric is a very peaceful planet, Captain Castle. They have a multi-layered defensive system based on fast attack craft, missile systems, both in space and on the planet and its moon, as well as monster blaster cannons. The planetside police are very competent and ruthless. If you break the law, expect to be punished. The reason for this is that many of the people who come here regularly break the law elsewhere. They like a place where they can relax and enjoy themselves, without worrying about their security. We'll only be here a few days, but I'd suggest all of you remain on your ship. They are aware of the Empire, even this far out, and do not welcome any of the Empire's representatives."
A day later, Chupallo had a different idea.
"Captain, I've been in contact with an old customer of mine. He's quite elderly and now retired. He's a human who was born in what was the old Commonwealth sometime around the rise of the Empire. He says he'd like to talk to you and impart some information to you. Oh, and you might wish to bring some of the young ladies around. As he says, he's old, not dead."
TBC