I don't own these characters and I don't make any money off of them.
Pirate's lair
By, Clayton Overstreet
Gene and the others stepped through the security ship's air lock. When they did two guards stood on either side of them. "Please follow us."
As they walked through the ship Gene elbowed Jim and said, "Hey look at that. They did a good job patching this place up after that pirate attack."
Jim nodded. "Yeah. I wouldn't mind having these guys help us fix up the Outlaw Star. They do very good work."
Melfina walked close behind Gene. "Are you sure this is all right Gene? The last time we were here they weren't exactly kind to us."
Gene smiled and squeezed her hand. "Don't worry Mel. They called us remember?" Melfina nodded and held his hand as they walked.
Suzuka smiled at Melfina and put her hand on her sword. "Don't worry Melfina. If they try anything this time Aisha and I won't be as complacent."
Aisha nodded. "Yeah. And don't forget I'm the strongest woman in the galaxy. They'd have to be crazy to mess with me. Oof!" She said the last when Jim elbowed her in the ribs.
Melfina giggled and said. "Thank you both. I feel a lot better."
Gene noticed that both of the guards had started looking at Aisha and Suzuka and had moved their fingers to the triggers. "Hey aren't you the two who were watching us the last time?"
They nodded, then stopped outside a door and stood on either side. The door opened and they stepped through. Inside Dooz and Valeria were sitting on one of the couches.
"Ah, so you finally made it." Dooz said. Gene had never quite gotten used to the saurian and was clenching the side of his face where Dooz had hit him.
"Well when you tell us you've found the treasure of the Kae pirates how could we refuse? But what I want to know is why you wanted us."
Valeria smiled. "We need a grappler ship to get in. The pirates have magic guarding the place so that lasers and missiles don't work. We have been watching them when they come buy to check and they literally pull the doors open and shut manually. And you are the only person we know with a grappler ship that we can trust."
Gene frowned. "I would think the space forces would have their own grappler ships."
Dooz nodded. "They do, but to get them we would first have to report this... which is what I wanted to do in the first place."
Valeria smiled. "But I convinced him that if we first checked it out we'd get the pick of some of the better items."
Gene smiled and crossed his arms. "I see, but has it occurred to either of you that inside there are probably even more traps inside?"
Dooz nodded. "Yes, but we are confident that we can handle whatever they throw at us."
Gene looked at the others. "What do you think?"
Suzuka smiled. "I told you if it hurts the Kae pirates I'm in. But if the rest of you don't go I won't either."
Aisha smiled and extended her claws. "I'm a Ctarl-Ctarl we don't run from something just because it might be dangerous. The pirates have stolen too much from the empire and I intend to get it back."
Melfina smiled up at him. "I go where you go Gene, you know that."
Jim smirked. "Hey, if there is half of what there should be in there I'm not about to back out."
Gene smiled and turned to Dooz and Valeria. "I guess we're in."
Valeria smiled and stood up. "Excellent. I knew we could count on you Gene."
Dooz grunted slightly. "Hold on Valeria. We haven't discussed his payment yet."
Gene smiled. "I'm glad one of you remembered."
Valeria smiled and looked at them. "Will dragonite suffice?"
Gene nodded. "To take the job yes. But once we get in there we get our choice of whatever is there."
Valeria gritted her teeth, then said. "Fine."
Aisha peeked around Gene, "Now that that is done, can we get something to eat? I'm starving."
Valeria smiled. "That we can do. Follow me to the galley."
When they got there Valeria had the cook bring out the food. Gene was impressed. "That looks like enough for twenty people."
Valeria shook her head. "Actually that's enough to feed just us. Dooz eats about twenty pounds at a sitting and as I recall Ctarl-Ctarl eat about the same."
Aisha laughed and looked at Dooz. "Please. I could eat more than him any day of the week."
Dooz smiled at her, "Is that a challenge?"
Aisha stepped up and looked him in the eyes. "You bet."
Gene and the others had already sat down and began eating. While they did Dooz and Aisha sat across from each other and began grabbing huge bites of food. Melfina smiled at Valeria. "I don't think he's going to win."
Valeria raised an eyebrow. "And why is that?"
Melfina smiled and twirled her fork through her food. "Well I do a lot of the cooking and Aisha eats a bit more than twenty pounds at a time."
Valeria laughed. "Well we'll see."
Gene smiled at Melfina. "You know if you ever get tired of cooking I could do it some times."
Jim and Suzuka said. "Me too"
Aisha glanced at them swallowing a mouth full of food and said, "Me too!" Then reached out and grabbed a roll before Dooz got it.
Everyone shuddered at the thought of Aisha's cooking then Melfina said, "That's all right. I like cooking."
Dooz looked up at Aisha. "Do you know how to make Itchigagi stew?"
Aisha nodded, stuffing a lump of meat into her mouth. "Yeah, but humans never seem to appreciate it."
Dooz nodded, "Tell me about it."
Finally everyone had finished, mostly because by the time they were ready for seconds Dooz and Aisha had finished off the rest of the food.
Gene looked at Valeria. "So what at the coordinates to this place?"
Valeria smiled. "We'll tell you when we get there."
Gene tried not to smile. "What, you don't trust us? I'm hurt."
Dooz shook his head. "We will arrive there shortly."
Suzuka stepped forward. "In the mean time why don't you tell us exactly how it is you found this place. I would think that the pirates would guard it closer than you seem to be describing."
Valeria nodded. "We captured a Tao master and Dooz got the information out of him."
They glanced at Dooz who was picking some meat from between his teeth. "It wasn't easy. You have to totally break them before allowing them to talk; otherwise they might use magic. But in the end I got him to tell me everything. The pirates don't guard the place well because it would draw attention from large groups, which could cause problems. The few people who do find it are usually killed by the automated defense systems, hunted down by the pirates, or can only get away with a small enough portion that it doesn't matter."
Gene nodded. "I don't suppose this guy knows about any of the traps?"
Dooz shook his head, "No, the pirates are identified by the AI once they get inside and are let through. They have never set off any of the traps."
Gene rubbed his chin. "How does the computer identify the ships?"
Dooz waved a claw. "By it's type and model number."
Jim looked up at him. "What are you thinking Gene?"
Gene looked at Valeria and then at Dooz. "Can I get you two to keep a secret if it can get us in and out of there without setting off any traps."
Dooz looked at Valeria, who nodded. Dooz nodded back then Valeria said. "We can promise that whatever you say next will go no farther than this room."
Gene glanced at Jim who nodded and reached into his pocket. He withdrew something that looked like a pen. He twisted the top and a light flashed. Suddenly there was an electrical surge in three places around the room and at the front of Valeria and Dooz's uniforms. Dooz smiled, "A jammer. Very cleaver."
Gene looked around the room. "All right, do you remember when you asked me if we knew anything about the XGP?"
Valeria nodded. "Well that's our ship."
Dooz grinned and punched his hand. "I knew it!"
Gene nodded. "Now the people who made it were Gwen Khan and Hazanko. Since Hilda stole the ship from the pirates I am guessing that they may have put it into their computers."
Suzuka nodded. "I see. Since nobody knew exactly what the galactic ley line is they had to assume that whatever they got there would be some enormous treasure."
Gene nodded. "And since this is where they keep their treasure I'll just bet it would let us in."
Dooz looked at him suspiciously. "What about us? How do we get our share if you are the only one that can go in."
Gene looked at Jim. Jim thought about it. "Well I see two choices. We can either make several trips with the Outlaw Star, or Melfina and I can try to reprogram the computer. It could be dangerous though. I don't know what kind of protection programs the pirates may have. And just touching it wrong could set off the traps."
Gene shook his head. "Then I don't think we should do that. I won't put Melfina in danger like that."
Dooz nodded. "All right, then we'll do it your way. But both Valeria and I will ride with you."
Gene looked him over. "All right, but when you are on my ship you are just passengers, got it?"
"Understood Gene." Valerian said.
Two hours later they arrived outside of a huge asteroid field and stopped. Gene led the way back to the Outlaw Star.
"Hello Gene, welcome back." Gilliam said.
"Hey Gilliam. We're going to have a couple passengers with us. Jim will give you the details." Gene replied.
The Gilliam drone nodded. "Certainly Gene." It turned to Dooz and Valeria. "If you will follow me we can seat you in the cargo hold."
Dooz looked at Gene. "The cargo hold? Don't you have someplace better?"
Gene grinned. "Sorry but this place isn't as big as your command carrier. Don't worry, there are seats down there."
Dooz growled but Valeria stepped forward. "That will do fine Gene."
They turned and followed the robot as it led them through the ship.
Suzuka whispered to Gene. "I can't help but notice that they are looking at the ship extremely close."
Gene shrugged. "So what if they do? It's not our business if they want to copy the ship. Besides why do you think I had Gilliam take them to the cargo hold instead of the kitchen or one of our rooms?"
Suzuka nodded. "Ah, I see. Keep them away from the important areas."
Jim smirked. "Pretty smart Gene. Not like you at all."
Gene looked at him. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Jim looked up at him. "What do you think it means loser?"
Melfina giggled and covered her mouth while watching them. Gene and Jim smiled at her then looked at each other. Finally they all turned and headed towards the bridge. Gene hopped into the pilot's seat while the others took their positions. "Gilliam are we clear to launch?"
"Everything shows green Gene. Oh I rhymed." Gilliam responded.
Gene smirked. "Yeah you did, just don't make a habit of it Gilliam."
The computer flashed. "Understood Gene."
As they approached the huge asteroid Gene and the others kept careful eyes on the surrounding area. Gene had Gilliam call Dooz and Valeria up to join them. When the two of them arrived Gene turned to face them. "All right, so where do we go from here?"
Dooz pointed towards a large asteroid, "The entrance is on the other side. Once we get there use your grappler arms to open it."
Gene nodded and followed the directions. When they arrived at the other side of the asteroid there were two enormous steel doors with handles on each. Gene used the grappler arms and opened them. The doors slid open quickly and without any resistance.
"Hey this is easy," Gene said.
Jim turned to look at him. "Don't get cocky Gene. Remember these are pirates we are dealing with."
Gene nodded. "You're right Jim. We'd better take it slow."
The ship slowly edged through the opening and went into the asteroid. The walls inside were lined with lights.
"Gilliam, can you sense anything?" Gene asked.
"Yes Gene, there appears to be a docking station up ahead." Gilliam responded.
When they arrived at the docking station Gilliam beeped for a minute, then said, "The computer for this place is asking for the make and model number of the ship. Should I give it to them Gene?"
Gene nodded. "Yes, but don't give them the name. Just the part about the XGP."
Gilliam was quiet for a moment. "Access granted. Gene, I have a link to the computer. They are informing us that we can only come here one time a year. It seems our plan to make return trips will not work."
Gene cursed under his breath, then turned to Valeria and Dooz. "Seems we need to renegotiate our contract. I say we each take turns picking out items and load them onto the ship."
Valeria looked at Dooz who nodded. She turned back and said, "All right Gene."
Gene looked at the others. "All right, we'll go in now. But nobody touches anything until Jim has had a chance to look it over. We don't know what kind of traps they might have."
Everyone nodded and prepared to depart the ship. Gene and Jim were the last ones off. Jim whispered to Gene. "I don't like this. It's still too easy."
Gene nodded. "I know what you mean. But even if we can only make one trip I think it should be worth it."
They all stopped at the entrance and stared around amazed. The walls were covered in everything from weapons to gold. Piles of dragonite shot up at random all over and works of art were everywhere. Gene whistled slightly in appreciation.
"All right, everyone find something you like the looks of, then we'll meet back here and have Jim look it over with his computer all right?" Gene said. Everyone nodded, then walked off to different parts of the room.
Gene looked around, then noticed a pile of wooden crates. He walked over and looked at the labels. One was a crate of monopoles. He smiled and rubbed his hands together. Gwen Khan had said that those things were worth more than Dragonite.
Gene smiled and looked around. He saw Suzuka looking over a shelf of wooden weapons and Aisha was admiring a golden Ctarl-Ctarl statue. His eyes caught on Melfina who was looking at some expensive looking clothes in the corner. He smiled and walked up behind her. "See anything you like?"
Melfina smiled and nodded. "A few things."
Jim smiled and was about to put his arms around her when Jim called out. "Hey Gene! Melfina! Get over here quick!"
Gene and Melfina ran over to him. "What is it Jim?"
Jim pointed to a crate. "This stuff is marked for the XGP. According to the label it's some weapons they hadn't loaded on yet and a modem they made using information from the Dragon's Grave. It looks like it can access any computer from anywhere in the universe. Also it says here that they have all the information of the XGP's bioandroid navigator."
Melfina looked at the crates. "Does that mean me?"
Jim nodded. "Definitely."
Gene smiled at Jim. "Good work Jim. Is it safe to take?" Jim nodded. "Then let's get it to the ship now. After that I found some things I want you to take a look at."
To hours later there was a huge pile of pirate goods filling the cargo hold of the Outlaw Star. Jim had vetoed several items because they were booby trapped, but aside from that it was a pretty good haul. Melfina had been able to get several dresses, and some other clothes that had caught her eyes. Suzuka had packed her portion full of weapons and dragonite.
Aisha had found her own dragonite and a box full of Ctarl-Ctarl jewelry. Suzuka looked it over, then asked Aisha, "I've been wondering, what is the point of that large bell you always wear?"
Aisha smiled. "It's for training. The trick is to make sure every move you make is so controlled that it doesn't ring. If it does, even when you are falling, then you have to spend a week in five times normal gravity."
Suzuka nodded. "I see. I may have to try that myself."
Dooz and Valeria had gotten mostly weapons, but had also gotten some dragonite and some artwork. Jim had computer parts and upgrades. Gene had gotten his monopoles, some artwork Melfina had been looking at but left behind because she didn't want to be a bother, and two crates of caster shells.
Melfina came up behind him as he was going through the shells and checking the numbers. "Are those the ones that steal your life?"
Gene nodded. "Some of them."
Melfina put a hand on his arm. "Gene, please don't keep them... We don't have the lay line to bring you back any more."
Gene bit his lip and took Melfina's hand. "But if we don't have them when we need them I may not be able to protect you."
Melfina shook her head. "It doesn't matter Gene. I wouldn't want to live without you. And besides, I don't think they would work any more either."
Gene looked at her. "What do you mean Mel?"
Melfina looked at him. "When we were at the ley line our wish was that we be together forever. You were already dead though. The ley line had to sift through the afterlife and find your soul, then give you a new body. But to make it live it had to tie your life force to someone else's..."
Gene stood up and looked at her. "Yours you mean. As long as you live I live, is that it?"
Melfina nodded, then stepped forward and pressed against him. "So you don't have any life for the shells to take."
Gene ran his fingers through Melfina's hair. "But you do. If I fired them they would probably drain away your life." Gene turned and picked up the crate that had the life draining shells in it. Turning to the hatch he threw it out the door.
Melfina smiled. "I'm sorry Gene."
Gene turned back and shook his head. "It's no problem Mel. I still have the others. Anyway anything that would hurt you like that isn't worth it."
Melfina smiled and kisses his cheek. "Let's go join the others all right?"
As they began closing the hatch Aisha came running up. "Hey, don't leave me here!" She jumped into the ship just as it closed.
Gene looked at her. "Aisha? What do you think you're doing?"
Aisha stood up and straightened her clothes. "I just wanted to grab one last thing before we left. Don't worry about it."
Suddenly an alarm began to ring. Gilliam's voice came through the intercom. "Gene it appears that there has been a trap set off."
Gene turned to Aisha again. "You set off a trap Aisha!"
Aisha held up a small ring. "What? I just took this one little ring."
Gene growled and grabbed Aisha and Melfina's hands. "Come on we have to get out of here!"
When they got to the cockpit Jim turned to him. "Gene what happened?"
Gene pointed to Aisha. "Cat-girl over there set off a trap."
Jim turned and frowned at Aisha who was sulking in her seat. Gilliam's voice said, "Gene the compute has informed me that they are sealing the vault and awaiting the arrival of the guards who patrol a half hour jump away from here. Unless we can give him the proper code then we will be stuck here until they arrive and destroy us."
Jim was working at him computer. "From what I can tell the only way out of here would be to break into the computer. And I'd need Melfina's help."
Gene looked at him. "But didn't you say they could have viruses? Can't we blast our way out?"
Jim shook his head. "This place is sealed with magic Gene. Even a caster couldn't dent it."
Gene thought about it for a minute when he felt Melfina's hand on his shoulder. "It's all right Gene. I'll do it."
He turned to look at her. "Are you sure Melfina? I mean what if..."
Melfina shook her head. "It's all right Gene. If I don't do this we'll all die. Don't worry, I'm sure I will be fine."
Gene nodded. "All right, but the second anything happens I want you out of there, all right?"
She nodded, then turned to get into her tube. As she did Dooz and Valeria watched with interest. "So that's how it works..." Valeria whispered.
Dooz nodded. "I was under the impression that this kind of technology was beyond our reach for at least another century."
Suzuka smiled and nodded. "It is. Melfina's design was based upon information from the Dragon's Grave, the same people who created the galactic lay line."
Jim nodded. "Yeah, and if what the stuff we got from here says is right Melfina even has a soul."
Dooz glanced at Melfina in the blue tube. "I see."
Jim turned back to the computer and got to work while Gene and the others looked over his shoulder.
Melfina drifted through the pirate's computer system. It seemed simple enough, not nearly as advanced as Gilliam. But there were things lurking in several of the files. "Jim, can you hear me?"
Jim's voice drifted to her. "Yes Melfina. The release should be in the file marked: Doomsday. According to the schematics I can see if you aren't careful this thing could wipe your memory."
Melfina nodded and floated towards the file. Slowly opening it she saw two buttons. "Jim, there are two files in here."
Jim looked it over. "Mel, I don't know which to pick. You'll have to decide."
She shook her head. "Ask Gene which one I should pick."
She waited for a minute, then Jim responded. "He says push them both at the same time."
Melfina bit her lip, then nodded. That sounded right, just like the bomb they had gotten caught in. Melfina reached out and put her fingers over both buttons. She pushed them both down and there was a bright flash of white light.
The Outlaw Star pried the door open and flew out quickly. Just as they did two huge ships came out of ether mode. Melfina looked up and said, "Now entering grappler combat mode."
Gene turned back to Suzuka and Aisha. "You two ready?"
Both of them nodded. Aisha looked at Gene a little sheepishly. "I'm sorry I set off the trap."
Gene smiled and waved it off. "Let's make a deal. If we live this and you never do it again you're forgiven, all right?"
Aisha grinned and nodded. "Thanks Gene."
"Gene, the carriers have launched over thirty small fighters and had begun locking in on us with it's own weapon systems." Gilliam said.
"What are our chanced of running away?" Gene asked.
"They would be on us before we got there and we wouldn't be able to defend ourselves."
Gene frowned, "Then it looks like we'll have to fight them. Jim, has Gilliam finished installing those weapon systems we found?"
Jim nodded. "Yeah but I'm not sure how most of them work. One looks like a caster and the others are systems I have never seen before. I'm not even sure if they are weapons."
Gene looked back at Valeria and Dooz. "Think you can call in the cavalry?"
Valeria nodded and tugged on her left earring. "They should be here in five minutes."
Gene nodded. "All right, so we hold them off for five minutes. Sounds easy enough."
Jim groaned and the ship shot forward. The pirate ships began firing at them. Aisha and Suzuka shot out with the grappler arms trying to grab as many as possible. "Jim, fire the missiles!"
Ahead of them most of the ships managed to dodge. Five however were caught in the missiles and blasted to pieces. Gene fired the new gun and the ship jerked to the side. "Whoa I guess they are casters."
The caster shell blasted into one of the carriers, taking out its missiles and blasting half of it away. Three other fighters were taken out with it.
The ship shook slightly as a shot grazed them. "Minor damage to the left hull Gene." Gilliam reported.
Suddenly from out of the corner of his eyes Gene saw Dooz and Valeria's ship appear. "All right, the back up is here."
the military ship took out the other carrier and began firing on the smaller ships as well. Meanwhile Gene was firing on the last thirteen fighters, which had tried to run. He got most of them, but three managed to slip away. "Aw crap."
Jim looked at him. "What's wrong Gene? We got away and we still have the stuff we got from them."
Gene nodded gritting his teeth. "Yeah, but now they will know who did it. That means we may have to take an extended vacation, especially after Dooz and Valeria finally tell their superiors about the vault."
Jim nodded. "I see what you mean. We just effectively took away everything they've stolen for years. The Kae pirates are not going to be very happy with us."
Gene nodded and turned the ship towards the military vessel.
Once they were on board Dooz and Valeria unloaded their own cargo, while Gene and the others watched them closely. Once that was done Valeria offered them dinner. After Aisha and Dooz began running towards the kitchen Gene smiled. "I guess we should before those two eat it all. Do you think while we eat you could fix the damage to our ship and maybe refuel and rearm us?"
Valeria grinned. "That would cost money."
Gene smiled. "Suppose when we leave I have Jim give you the blueprints to our engines?"
Valeria smiled. "All right, that should cover it."
She turned and walked down the hall while Gene stood there with Melfina, Jim, and Suzuka. Once she was around the corner he reached up to his ear. "Gilliam, the space forces people will be working on you for a while. Don't let them inside and make sure that the cargo hold is locked tight."
"Understood Gene." Came the reply.
Suzuka smiled, "I take it you don't trust our new friend."
Gene smiled. "About as far as I could throw Dooz. Now come on you guys, let's go eat."
He led the way to the galley, arriving in time to see Aisha and Dooz gulping down huge amounts of food.
After they sat down everyone began to talk about the things they had left behind in the pirate's vault. Melfina smiled and said, "There was this gorgeous outfit that looked like it was made out of solid gold."
Valeria nodded. "I saw that too. I'm just glad I got that painting."
Aisha smiled and looked over at them, showing the ring. "Well this is a very rare item. It's actually a ceremonial ring from the fifth Ctarl-Ctarl emperor's second wife."
Suzuka smiled. "Well the thing I'm sorry I had to leave behind was a book on martial arts by one of the great masters. It was trapped though so I had to leave it there."
Jim smiled. "Well I got what I wanted. That modem is a dream come true."
Valeria and Dooz looked at him with interest and simultaneously asked, "What modem?"
Jim smiled and took a bite of his food. "Oh, nothing."
Gene smiled. "Well while you all were stuffing dragonite into there I found something really valuable." Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a monopole and lay it on the table.
Valeria and Dooz looked at it greedily. "Where did you find that?"
Gene smiled and put it back in his pocket. "That's my secret."
Valeria let out a sigh. "Now our superiors will seize the asteroid and sell whatever is left over there."
Aisha pulled her face out of a bowl of food. "What are you complaining about? They'll use the money they make off of it to pay your salaries and since you two were the ones who found it you'll probably get a raise too."
Dooz looked up. "She makes a good point Valeria. We have a few prize pieces and we still get paid. Pretty smart for a Ctarl-Ctarl."
Aisha blushed and took another big bite of food. "Thank you."
Jim watched the exchange and took another bite of food, chewing in a piece of meat for a long time. The others kept talking about the fabulous things they had seen.
Melfina looked over at Gene. "Gene, could you tell me something?"
Gene looked at her. "Sure Mel, what do you want to know?"
"That information on me... is it true what Jim said about me having a soul?"
Gene smiled. "Of course it is Melfina. I never doubted that you did."
Melfina smiled at him. "Thank you Gene."
Gene smiled. "In fact I was thinking we might find some way to get rid of those shut down commands that Gwen Khan and Hazanko used."
Melfina smiled. "That sounds great."
After the meal Valeria offered to let them spend the night. Gene and the others agreed. As they left the dinning room Aisha grabbed Jim's shoulder and held him back. "Are you all right Jim? You got awfully quiet after dinner."
"I'm fine Aisha." He responded sullenly.
She looked at him and frowned. "You aren't still mad because I set off that trap are you?"
Jim shook his head and turned away, "It's not that at all Aisha."
She stepped around in front of him. "Then what is it? Come on you can tell me."
Jim sighed and sat back onto a chair. Finally he looked up at her. "What do you think of that Dooz guy?"
Aisha smiled. "You aren't jealous are you?"
Jim sniffed and turned his head. "Can you blame me? I mean he likes your cooking and eats the same as you. You two have been getting on really well and even blushed earlier. Plus he's closer to your age."
Aisha giggled and sat down in front of him. "Jim, you have nothing to worry about. So you don't like my cooking, I don't exactly get that computer stuff you do." She reached out and rubbed his head. "Anyway age doesn't really make that much of a difference. I'm immortal remember."
Jim frowned and looked down. "Yeah I remember. That's something else too. I'm not."
Aisha put a claw under his chin and lifted his face. "Look, if worse comes to worse we could always get you a bioandroid body. Don't worry about it. We'll deal with everything when they time comes all right?"
Jim smiled and nodded. "All right Aisha, thanks for cheering me up."
Aisha smiled and kissed him quickly on the lips and turned to walk down the hallway. As she passed her tail swung around and rubbed the tuft of hair at the end under Jim's chin tickling him and causing a shiver to go down his spine. She stopped at the doorway and looked back. "So are you coming or not?"
Jim smiled and got up, following behind her. "Try to stop me."
That night as Gene and Melfina lay in the room Valeria had lent them his ear began to beep. Yawning he reached up and touched his earring. "What is it Gilliam?"
"Gene it appears that we are being scanned. I have managed to keep them from scanning the computer and it's systems but as you know I can not control the part of the ship that involves flight or the grappler arms."
Gene smiled and shook his head. "It figures. Don't worry about it Gilliam, just make a record of what they scan and keep them from getting to deep."
"Understood." Gilliam responded, then cut off.
Melfina's eyes fluttered open and she looked at him sleepily. "What's wrong Gene?"
Gene shook his head. "Nothing Mel. Let's just get some sleep all right?"
Melfina nodded weakly and lies back down on Gene's chest. Putting his arm around her Gene smiled and closed his eyes too. Tomorrow was going to be a big day.
Gene and the others stood outside the Outlaw Star's air lock. "Suzuka, Aisha, since you two aren't actually known to work with us you could go back. You don't have to come with us. But Jim, Melfina, and I are taking the ship into the Tai pirate's territory."
Suzuka and Aisha looked at him surprised. "That's at the other end of the galaxy. Even the Ctarl-Ctarl never goes there. It's totally controlled by humans." Aisha said.
Gene nodded. "That's because it's where Earth is located. But you two don't have to come if you don't want to. We have to because after the Kae pirates hear what we've done they'll be hunting us."
Aisha smiled and her tail wrapped around Jim's leg. "If you think just because you are going somewhere I've never been that I'll leave now you can forget it. Besides do you think I would let you leave with those pirate goodies sitting in the Outlaw Star?"
Suzuka nodded and grinned slightly. "I've never been that far into human occupied space. I think it might be nice to see a new area. I'm in."
Gene nodded and Melfina said, "I'm so glad. If you had decided to stay we all would have missed you."
Jim nodded and pet Aisha's tail. "I agree with Melfina." "Though I think having your share of the treasure would have gone to fill the void left in our lives." Jim and Melfina elbowed Gene's ribs. "Oof! Just kidding."
Valeria stepped forward. "Gene, just how do you plan to make it to Tai space? Even at full tanks those engines of yours use up a lot of fuel."
Gene smiled at her. "I'm glad you asked that Valeria, because you are going to provide us with the fuel reserves we need, food and extra ammunition."
Dooz looked at him suspiciously. "And what makes you think we'll do that?"
Gene smiled and handed Valeria a list. "Because the worth of the information you gathered on my ship when you scanned it last night would be enough to fill the remainder of the cargo hold, and the crew quarters with dragonite. So I figure that my requests should be sufficient to even things out. After all this is the only ship of it's kind in the universe and since we liberated what the pirates had on it you are the only other people with this knowledge."
Valeia looked at the list. Everything that they had scanned was listed down to the last screw. She sighed and looked at Dooz. "They're right. Order the supplies they asked for to be loaded onto the ship."
Dooz nodded and left to get it done. Valeria smiled and looked Gene over. "I underestimated you."
Gene shook his head. "I doubt that. You just thought it as worth the chance, and I think that you still think it was."
Valeria nodded, then glanced at Melfina. "How much would it cost to get the design specks for her and your computer system?"
Gene shook his head. "She's not for sale and you couldn't afford the rest." He looked at Valeria's eyes. "Melfina is a living, caring person and I won't let anyone who would use her like the pirates did make another. Do you understand what I mean?"
Valeria nodded and smiled at Melfina. "Yes, I do. But I had to ask Gene." She looked at him. "I hope where ever it is you end up you keep going on your treasure hunts. It's always nice to meet someone who has a dream."
Gene smiled and stepped back. "Don't worry Valeria, I will."
Gene lead the others back to the Outlaw Star where they waited for the supplies to be loaded. Finally Dooz's face appeared on the screen. "Everything is loaded. You are clear to go."
Gene nodded. "Thanks Dooz. We'll see you sometime later."
Dooz nodded and mumbled. "Um... good luck."
Gene smiled and nodded, then cut off the transmission. "All right, if everyone's ready I guess we're out of here. Let's go."
Gilliam said, "We are totally clear and green to go Gene."
Gene nodded. "All right, then let's get going."
TO BE CONTINUED...
Hey, it's me Gene. We're running for our lives to the farthest corner of the known universe. The Kae pirates want us dead, we can't call on our old contacts like Fred, and the supplies we got from the space forces and treasure we stole from the pirates won't last forever. Plus the Kae pirates have placed a bounty on us that the Tai pirates would be only too happy to collect. But not to worry, Jim and I both have our girls and Suzuka... well she seems happy enough. Hey I know it's callous since she's got a thing for me, but what can I do? Is it my fault I'm a babe magnet? Anyway join us for the next Clayton Overstreet fan fic 'Starting over'.
Author's note
All right, my second Outlaw Star fan fic. Hope you liked it. This is pretty fun. If you want to tell me what you think or want to know where to get more of my stories email me at clayton_n@hotmail.com
Pirate's lair
By, Clayton Overstreet
Gene and the others stepped through the security ship's air lock. When they did two guards stood on either side of them. "Please follow us."
As they walked through the ship Gene elbowed Jim and said, "Hey look at that. They did a good job patching this place up after that pirate attack."
Jim nodded. "Yeah. I wouldn't mind having these guys help us fix up the Outlaw Star. They do very good work."
Melfina walked close behind Gene. "Are you sure this is all right Gene? The last time we were here they weren't exactly kind to us."
Gene smiled and squeezed her hand. "Don't worry Mel. They called us remember?" Melfina nodded and held his hand as they walked.
Suzuka smiled at Melfina and put her hand on her sword. "Don't worry Melfina. If they try anything this time Aisha and I won't be as complacent."
Aisha nodded. "Yeah. And don't forget I'm the strongest woman in the galaxy. They'd have to be crazy to mess with me. Oof!" She said the last when Jim elbowed her in the ribs.
Melfina giggled and said. "Thank you both. I feel a lot better."
Gene noticed that both of the guards had started looking at Aisha and Suzuka and had moved their fingers to the triggers. "Hey aren't you the two who were watching us the last time?"
They nodded, then stopped outside a door and stood on either side. The door opened and they stepped through. Inside Dooz and Valeria were sitting on one of the couches.
"Ah, so you finally made it." Dooz said. Gene had never quite gotten used to the saurian and was clenching the side of his face where Dooz had hit him.
"Well when you tell us you've found the treasure of the Kae pirates how could we refuse? But what I want to know is why you wanted us."
Valeria smiled. "We need a grappler ship to get in. The pirates have magic guarding the place so that lasers and missiles don't work. We have been watching them when they come buy to check and they literally pull the doors open and shut manually. And you are the only person we know with a grappler ship that we can trust."
Gene frowned. "I would think the space forces would have their own grappler ships."
Dooz nodded. "They do, but to get them we would first have to report this... which is what I wanted to do in the first place."
Valeria smiled. "But I convinced him that if we first checked it out we'd get the pick of some of the better items."
Gene smiled and crossed his arms. "I see, but has it occurred to either of you that inside there are probably even more traps inside?"
Dooz nodded. "Yes, but we are confident that we can handle whatever they throw at us."
Gene looked at the others. "What do you think?"
Suzuka smiled. "I told you if it hurts the Kae pirates I'm in. But if the rest of you don't go I won't either."
Aisha smiled and extended her claws. "I'm a Ctarl-Ctarl we don't run from something just because it might be dangerous. The pirates have stolen too much from the empire and I intend to get it back."
Melfina smiled up at him. "I go where you go Gene, you know that."
Jim smirked. "Hey, if there is half of what there should be in there I'm not about to back out."
Gene smiled and turned to Dooz and Valeria. "I guess we're in."
Valeria smiled and stood up. "Excellent. I knew we could count on you Gene."
Dooz grunted slightly. "Hold on Valeria. We haven't discussed his payment yet."
Gene smiled. "I'm glad one of you remembered."
Valeria smiled and looked at them. "Will dragonite suffice?"
Gene nodded. "To take the job yes. But once we get in there we get our choice of whatever is there."
Valeria gritted her teeth, then said. "Fine."
Aisha peeked around Gene, "Now that that is done, can we get something to eat? I'm starving."
Valeria smiled. "That we can do. Follow me to the galley."
When they got there Valeria had the cook bring out the food. Gene was impressed. "That looks like enough for twenty people."
Valeria shook her head. "Actually that's enough to feed just us. Dooz eats about twenty pounds at a sitting and as I recall Ctarl-Ctarl eat about the same."
Aisha laughed and looked at Dooz. "Please. I could eat more than him any day of the week."
Dooz smiled at her, "Is that a challenge?"
Aisha stepped up and looked him in the eyes. "You bet."
Gene and the others had already sat down and began eating. While they did Dooz and Aisha sat across from each other and began grabbing huge bites of food. Melfina smiled at Valeria. "I don't think he's going to win."
Valeria raised an eyebrow. "And why is that?"
Melfina smiled and twirled her fork through her food. "Well I do a lot of the cooking and Aisha eats a bit more than twenty pounds at a time."
Valeria laughed. "Well we'll see."
Gene smiled at Melfina. "You know if you ever get tired of cooking I could do it some times."
Jim and Suzuka said. "Me too"
Aisha glanced at them swallowing a mouth full of food and said, "Me too!" Then reached out and grabbed a roll before Dooz got it.
Everyone shuddered at the thought of Aisha's cooking then Melfina said, "That's all right. I like cooking."
Dooz looked up at Aisha. "Do you know how to make Itchigagi stew?"
Aisha nodded, stuffing a lump of meat into her mouth. "Yeah, but humans never seem to appreciate it."
Dooz nodded, "Tell me about it."
Finally everyone had finished, mostly because by the time they were ready for seconds Dooz and Aisha had finished off the rest of the food.
Gene looked at Valeria. "So what at the coordinates to this place?"
Valeria smiled. "We'll tell you when we get there."
Gene tried not to smile. "What, you don't trust us? I'm hurt."
Dooz shook his head. "We will arrive there shortly."
Suzuka stepped forward. "In the mean time why don't you tell us exactly how it is you found this place. I would think that the pirates would guard it closer than you seem to be describing."
Valeria nodded. "We captured a Tao master and Dooz got the information out of him."
They glanced at Dooz who was picking some meat from between his teeth. "It wasn't easy. You have to totally break them before allowing them to talk; otherwise they might use magic. But in the end I got him to tell me everything. The pirates don't guard the place well because it would draw attention from large groups, which could cause problems. The few people who do find it are usually killed by the automated defense systems, hunted down by the pirates, or can only get away with a small enough portion that it doesn't matter."
Gene nodded. "I don't suppose this guy knows about any of the traps?"
Dooz shook his head, "No, the pirates are identified by the AI once they get inside and are let through. They have never set off any of the traps."
Gene rubbed his chin. "How does the computer identify the ships?"
Dooz waved a claw. "By it's type and model number."
Jim looked up at him. "What are you thinking Gene?"
Gene looked at Valeria and then at Dooz. "Can I get you two to keep a secret if it can get us in and out of there without setting off any traps."
Dooz looked at Valeria, who nodded. Dooz nodded back then Valeria said. "We can promise that whatever you say next will go no farther than this room."
Gene glanced at Jim who nodded and reached into his pocket. He withdrew something that looked like a pen. He twisted the top and a light flashed. Suddenly there was an electrical surge in three places around the room and at the front of Valeria and Dooz's uniforms. Dooz smiled, "A jammer. Very cleaver."
Gene looked around the room. "All right, do you remember when you asked me if we knew anything about the XGP?"
Valeria nodded. "Well that's our ship."
Dooz grinned and punched his hand. "I knew it!"
Gene nodded. "Now the people who made it were Gwen Khan and Hazanko. Since Hilda stole the ship from the pirates I am guessing that they may have put it into their computers."
Suzuka nodded. "I see. Since nobody knew exactly what the galactic ley line is they had to assume that whatever they got there would be some enormous treasure."
Gene nodded. "And since this is where they keep their treasure I'll just bet it would let us in."
Dooz looked at him suspiciously. "What about us? How do we get our share if you are the only one that can go in."
Gene looked at Jim. Jim thought about it. "Well I see two choices. We can either make several trips with the Outlaw Star, or Melfina and I can try to reprogram the computer. It could be dangerous though. I don't know what kind of protection programs the pirates may have. And just touching it wrong could set off the traps."
Gene shook his head. "Then I don't think we should do that. I won't put Melfina in danger like that."
Dooz nodded. "All right, then we'll do it your way. But both Valeria and I will ride with you."
Gene looked him over. "All right, but when you are on my ship you are just passengers, got it?"
"Understood Gene." Valerian said.
Two hours later they arrived outside of a huge asteroid field and stopped. Gene led the way back to the Outlaw Star.
"Hello Gene, welcome back." Gilliam said.
"Hey Gilliam. We're going to have a couple passengers with us. Jim will give you the details." Gene replied.
The Gilliam drone nodded. "Certainly Gene." It turned to Dooz and Valeria. "If you will follow me we can seat you in the cargo hold."
Dooz looked at Gene. "The cargo hold? Don't you have someplace better?"
Gene grinned. "Sorry but this place isn't as big as your command carrier. Don't worry, there are seats down there."
Dooz growled but Valeria stepped forward. "That will do fine Gene."
They turned and followed the robot as it led them through the ship.
Suzuka whispered to Gene. "I can't help but notice that they are looking at the ship extremely close."
Gene shrugged. "So what if they do? It's not our business if they want to copy the ship. Besides why do you think I had Gilliam take them to the cargo hold instead of the kitchen or one of our rooms?"
Suzuka nodded. "Ah, I see. Keep them away from the important areas."
Jim smirked. "Pretty smart Gene. Not like you at all."
Gene looked at him. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Jim looked up at him. "What do you think it means loser?"
Melfina giggled and covered her mouth while watching them. Gene and Jim smiled at her then looked at each other. Finally they all turned and headed towards the bridge. Gene hopped into the pilot's seat while the others took their positions. "Gilliam are we clear to launch?"
"Everything shows green Gene. Oh I rhymed." Gilliam responded.
Gene smirked. "Yeah you did, just don't make a habit of it Gilliam."
The computer flashed. "Understood Gene."
As they approached the huge asteroid Gene and the others kept careful eyes on the surrounding area. Gene had Gilliam call Dooz and Valeria up to join them. When the two of them arrived Gene turned to face them. "All right, so where do we go from here?"
Dooz pointed towards a large asteroid, "The entrance is on the other side. Once we get there use your grappler arms to open it."
Gene nodded and followed the directions. When they arrived at the other side of the asteroid there were two enormous steel doors with handles on each. Gene used the grappler arms and opened them. The doors slid open quickly and without any resistance.
"Hey this is easy," Gene said.
Jim turned to look at him. "Don't get cocky Gene. Remember these are pirates we are dealing with."
Gene nodded. "You're right Jim. We'd better take it slow."
The ship slowly edged through the opening and went into the asteroid. The walls inside were lined with lights.
"Gilliam, can you sense anything?" Gene asked.
"Yes Gene, there appears to be a docking station up ahead." Gilliam responded.
When they arrived at the docking station Gilliam beeped for a minute, then said, "The computer for this place is asking for the make and model number of the ship. Should I give it to them Gene?"
Gene nodded. "Yes, but don't give them the name. Just the part about the XGP."
Gilliam was quiet for a moment. "Access granted. Gene, I have a link to the computer. They are informing us that we can only come here one time a year. It seems our plan to make return trips will not work."
Gene cursed under his breath, then turned to Valeria and Dooz. "Seems we need to renegotiate our contract. I say we each take turns picking out items and load them onto the ship."
Valeria looked at Dooz who nodded. She turned back and said, "All right Gene."
Gene looked at the others. "All right, we'll go in now. But nobody touches anything until Jim has had a chance to look it over. We don't know what kind of traps they might have."
Everyone nodded and prepared to depart the ship. Gene and Jim were the last ones off. Jim whispered to Gene. "I don't like this. It's still too easy."
Gene nodded. "I know what you mean. But even if we can only make one trip I think it should be worth it."
They all stopped at the entrance and stared around amazed. The walls were covered in everything from weapons to gold. Piles of dragonite shot up at random all over and works of art were everywhere. Gene whistled slightly in appreciation.
"All right, everyone find something you like the looks of, then we'll meet back here and have Jim look it over with his computer all right?" Gene said. Everyone nodded, then walked off to different parts of the room.
Gene looked around, then noticed a pile of wooden crates. He walked over and looked at the labels. One was a crate of monopoles. He smiled and rubbed his hands together. Gwen Khan had said that those things were worth more than Dragonite.
Gene smiled and looked around. He saw Suzuka looking over a shelf of wooden weapons and Aisha was admiring a golden Ctarl-Ctarl statue. His eyes caught on Melfina who was looking at some expensive looking clothes in the corner. He smiled and walked up behind her. "See anything you like?"
Melfina smiled and nodded. "A few things."
Jim smiled and was about to put his arms around her when Jim called out. "Hey Gene! Melfina! Get over here quick!"
Gene and Melfina ran over to him. "What is it Jim?"
Jim pointed to a crate. "This stuff is marked for the XGP. According to the label it's some weapons they hadn't loaded on yet and a modem they made using information from the Dragon's Grave. It looks like it can access any computer from anywhere in the universe. Also it says here that they have all the information of the XGP's bioandroid navigator."
Melfina looked at the crates. "Does that mean me?"
Jim nodded. "Definitely."
Gene smiled at Jim. "Good work Jim. Is it safe to take?" Jim nodded. "Then let's get it to the ship now. After that I found some things I want you to take a look at."
To hours later there was a huge pile of pirate goods filling the cargo hold of the Outlaw Star. Jim had vetoed several items because they were booby trapped, but aside from that it was a pretty good haul. Melfina had been able to get several dresses, and some other clothes that had caught her eyes. Suzuka had packed her portion full of weapons and dragonite.
Aisha had found her own dragonite and a box full of Ctarl-Ctarl jewelry. Suzuka looked it over, then asked Aisha, "I've been wondering, what is the point of that large bell you always wear?"
Aisha smiled. "It's for training. The trick is to make sure every move you make is so controlled that it doesn't ring. If it does, even when you are falling, then you have to spend a week in five times normal gravity."
Suzuka nodded. "I see. I may have to try that myself."
Dooz and Valeria had gotten mostly weapons, but had also gotten some dragonite and some artwork. Jim had computer parts and upgrades. Gene had gotten his monopoles, some artwork Melfina had been looking at but left behind because she didn't want to be a bother, and two crates of caster shells.
Melfina came up behind him as he was going through the shells and checking the numbers. "Are those the ones that steal your life?"
Gene nodded. "Some of them."
Melfina put a hand on his arm. "Gene, please don't keep them... We don't have the lay line to bring you back any more."
Gene bit his lip and took Melfina's hand. "But if we don't have them when we need them I may not be able to protect you."
Melfina shook her head. "It doesn't matter Gene. I wouldn't want to live without you. And besides, I don't think they would work any more either."
Gene looked at her. "What do you mean Mel?"
Melfina looked at him. "When we were at the ley line our wish was that we be together forever. You were already dead though. The ley line had to sift through the afterlife and find your soul, then give you a new body. But to make it live it had to tie your life force to someone else's..."
Gene stood up and looked at her. "Yours you mean. As long as you live I live, is that it?"
Melfina nodded, then stepped forward and pressed against him. "So you don't have any life for the shells to take."
Gene ran his fingers through Melfina's hair. "But you do. If I fired them they would probably drain away your life." Gene turned and picked up the crate that had the life draining shells in it. Turning to the hatch he threw it out the door.
Melfina smiled. "I'm sorry Gene."
Gene turned back and shook his head. "It's no problem Mel. I still have the others. Anyway anything that would hurt you like that isn't worth it."
Melfina smiled and kisses his cheek. "Let's go join the others all right?"
As they began closing the hatch Aisha came running up. "Hey, don't leave me here!" She jumped into the ship just as it closed.
Gene looked at her. "Aisha? What do you think you're doing?"
Aisha stood up and straightened her clothes. "I just wanted to grab one last thing before we left. Don't worry about it."
Suddenly an alarm began to ring. Gilliam's voice came through the intercom. "Gene it appears that there has been a trap set off."
Gene turned to Aisha again. "You set off a trap Aisha!"
Aisha held up a small ring. "What? I just took this one little ring."
Gene growled and grabbed Aisha and Melfina's hands. "Come on we have to get out of here!"
When they got to the cockpit Jim turned to him. "Gene what happened?"
Gene pointed to Aisha. "Cat-girl over there set off a trap."
Jim turned and frowned at Aisha who was sulking in her seat. Gilliam's voice said, "Gene the compute has informed me that they are sealing the vault and awaiting the arrival of the guards who patrol a half hour jump away from here. Unless we can give him the proper code then we will be stuck here until they arrive and destroy us."
Jim was working at him computer. "From what I can tell the only way out of here would be to break into the computer. And I'd need Melfina's help."
Gene looked at him. "But didn't you say they could have viruses? Can't we blast our way out?"
Jim shook his head. "This place is sealed with magic Gene. Even a caster couldn't dent it."
Gene thought about it for a minute when he felt Melfina's hand on his shoulder. "It's all right Gene. I'll do it."
He turned to look at her. "Are you sure Melfina? I mean what if..."
Melfina shook her head. "It's all right Gene. If I don't do this we'll all die. Don't worry, I'm sure I will be fine."
Gene nodded. "All right, but the second anything happens I want you out of there, all right?"
She nodded, then turned to get into her tube. As she did Dooz and Valeria watched with interest. "So that's how it works..." Valeria whispered.
Dooz nodded. "I was under the impression that this kind of technology was beyond our reach for at least another century."
Suzuka smiled and nodded. "It is. Melfina's design was based upon information from the Dragon's Grave, the same people who created the galactic lay line."
Jim nodded. "Yeah, and if what the stuff we got from here says is right Melfina even has a soul."
Dooz glanced at Melfina in the blue tube. "I see."
Jim turned back to the computer and got to work while Gene and the others looked over his shoulder.
Melfina drifted through the pirate's computer system. It seemed simple enough, not nearly as advanced as Gilliam. But there were things lurking in several of the files. "Jim, can you hear me?"
Jim's voice drifted to her. "Yes Melfina. The release should be in the file marked: Doomsday. According to the schematics I can see if you aren't careful this thing could wipe your memory."
Melfina nodded and floated towards the file. Slowly opening it she saw two buttons. "Jim, there are two files in here."
Jim looked it over. "Mel, I don't know which to pick. You'll have to decide."
She shook her head. "Ask Gene which one I should pick."
She waited for a minute, then Jim responded. "He says push them both at the same time."
Melfina bit her lip, then nodded. That sounded right, just like the bomb they had gotten caught in. Melfina reached out and put her fingers over both buttons. She pushed them both down and there was a bright flash of white light.
The Outlaw Star pried the door open and flew out quickly. Just as they did two huge ships came out of ether mode. Melfina looked up and said, "Now entering grappler combat mode."
Gene turned back to Suzuka and Aisha. "You two ready?"
Both of them nodded. Aisha looked at Gene a little sheepishly. "I'm sorry I set off the trap."
Gene smiled and waved it off. "Let's make a deal. If we live this and you never do it again you're forgiven, all right?"
Aisha grinned and nodded. "Thanks Gene."
"Gene, the carriers have launched over thirty small fighters and had begun locking in on us with it's own weapon systems." Gilliam said.
"What are our chanced of running away?" Gene asked.
"They would be on us before we got there and we wouldn't be able to defend ourselves."
Gene frowned, "Then it looks like we'll have to fight them. Jim, has Gilliam finished installing those weapon systems we found?"
Jim nodded. "Yeah but I'm not sure how most of them work. One looks like a caster and the others are systems I have never seen before. I'm not even sure if they are weapons."
Gene looked back at Valeria and Dooz. "Think you can call in the cavalry?"
Valeria nodded and tugged on her left earring. "They should be here in five minutes."
Gene nodded. "All right, so we hold them off for five minutes. Sounds easy enough."
Jim groaned and the ship shot forward. The pirate ships began firing at them. Aisha and Suzuka shot out with the grappler arms trying to grab as many as possible. "Jim, fire the missiles!"
Ahead of them most of the ships managed to dodge. Five however were caught in the missiles and blasted to pieces. Gene fired the new gun and the ship jerked to the side. "Whoa I guess they are casters."
The caster shell blasted into one of the carriers, taking out its missiles and blasting half of it away. Three other fighters were taken out with it.
The ship shook slightly as a shot grazed them. "Minor damage to the left hull Gene." Gilliam reported.
Suddenly from out of the corner of his eyes Gene saw Dooz and Valeria's ship appear. "All right, the back up is here."
the military ship took out the other carrier and began firing on the smaller ships as well. Meanwhile Gene was firing on the last thirteen fighters, which had tried to run. He got most of them, but three managed to slip away. "Aw crap."
Jim looked at him. "What's wrong Gene? We got away and we still have the stuff we got from them."
Gene nodded gritting his teeth. "Yeah, but now they will know who did it. That means we may have to take an extended vacation, especially after Dooz and Valeria finally tell their superiors about the vault."
Jim nodded. "I see what you mean. We just effectively took away everything they've stolen for years. The Kae pirates are not going to be very happy with us."
Gene nodded and turned the ship towards the military vessel.
Once they were on board Dooz and Valeria unloaded their own cargo, while Gene and the others watched them closely. Once that was done Valeria offered them dinner. After Aisha and Dooz began running towards the kitchen Gene smiled. "I guess we should before those two eat it all. Do you think while we eat you could fix the damage to our ship and maybe refuel and rearm us?"
Valeria grinned. "That would cost money."
Gene smiled. "Suppose when we leave I have Jim give you the blueprints to our engines?"
Valeria smiled. "All right, that should cover it."
She turned and walked down the hall while Gene stood there with Melfina, Jim, and Suzuka. Once she was around the corner he reached up to his ear. "Gilliam, the space forces people will be working on you for a while. Don't let them inside and make sure that the cargo hold is locked tight."
"Understood Gene." Came the reply.
Suzuka smiled, "I take it you don't trust our new friend."
Gene smiled. "About as far as I could throw Dooz. Now come on you guys, let's go eat."
He led the way to the galley, arriving in time to see Aisha and Dooz gulping down huge amounts of food.
After they sat down everyone began to talk about the things they had left behind in the pirate's vault. Melfina smiled and said, "There was this gorgeous outfit that looked like it was made out of solid gold."
Valeria nodded. "I saw that too. I'm just glad I got that painting."
Aisha smiled and looked over at them, showing the ring. "Well this is a very rare item. It's actually a ceremonial ring from the fifth Ctarl-Ctarl emperor's second wife."
Suzuka smiled. "Well the thing I'm sorry I had to leave behind was a book on martial arts by one of the great masters. It was trapped though so I had to leave it there."
Jim smiled. "Well I got what I wanted. That modem is a dream come true."
Valeria and Dooz looked at him with interest and simultaneously asked, "What modem?"
Jim smiled and took a bite of his food. "Oh, nothing."
Gene smiled. "Well while you all were stuffing dragonite into there I found something really valuable." Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a monopole and lay it on the table.
Valeria and Dooz looked at it greedily. "Where did you find that?"
Gene smiled and put it back in his pocket. "That's my secret."
Valeria let out a sigh. "Now our superiors will seize the asteroid and sell whatever is left over there."
Aisha pulled her face out of a bowl of food. "What are you complaining about? They'll use the money they make off of it to pay your salaries and since you two were the ones who found it you'll probably get a raise too."
Dooz looked up. "She makes a good point Valeria. We have a few prize pieces and we still get paid. Pretty smart for a Ctarl-Ctarl."
Aisha blushed and took another big bite of food. "Thank you."
Jim watched the exchange and took another bite of food, chewing in a piece of meat for a long time. The others kept talking about the fabulous things they had seen.
Melfina looked over at Gene. "Gene, could you tell me something?"
Gene looked at her. "Sure Mel, what do you want to know?"
"That information on me... is it true what Jim said about me having a soul?"
Gene smiled. "Of course it is Melfina. I never doubted that you did."
Melfina smiled at him. "Thank you Gene."
Gene smiled. "In fact I was thinking we might find some way to get rid of those shut down commands that Gwen Khan and Hazanko used."
Melfina smiled. "That sounds great."
After the meal Valeria offered to let them spend the night. Gene and the others agreed. As they left the dinning room Aisha grabbed Jim's shoulder and held him back. "Are you all right Jim? You got awfully quiet after dinner."
"I'm fine Aisha." He responded sullenly.
She looked at him and frowned. "You aren't still mad because I set off that trap are you?"
Jim shook his head and turned away, "It's not that at all Aisha."
She stepped around in front of him. "Then what is it? Come on you can tell me."
Jim sighed and sat back onto a chair. Finally he looked up at her. "What do you think of that Dooz guy?"
Aisha smiled. "You aren't jealous are you?"
Jim sniffed and turned his head. "Can you blame me? I mean he likes your cooking and eats the same as you. You two have been getting on really well and even blushed earlier. Plus he's closer to your age."
Aisha giggled and sat down in front of him. "Jim, you have nothing to worry about. So you don't like my cooking, I don't exactly get that computer stuff you do." She reached out and rubbed his head. "Anyway age doesn't really make that much of a difference. I'm immortal remember."
Jim frowned and looked down. "Yeah I remember. That's something else too. I'm not."
Aisha put a claw under his chin and lifted his face. "Look, if worse comes to worse we could always get you a bioandroid body. Don't worry about it. We'll deal with everything when they time comes all right?"
Jim smiled and nodded. "All right Aisha, thanks for cheering me up."
Aisha smiled and kissed him quickly on the lips and turned to walk down the hallway. As she passed her tail swung around and rubbed the tuft of hair at the end under Jim's chin tickling him and causing a shiver to go down his spine. She stopped at the doorway and looked back. "So are you coming or not?"
Jim smiled and got up, following behind her. "Try to stop me."
That night as Gene and Melfina lay in the room Valeria had lent them his ear began to beep. Yawning he reached up and touched his earring. "What is it Gilliam?"
"Gene it appears that we are being scanned. I have managed to keep them from scanning the computer and it's systems but as you know I can not control the part of the ship that involves flight or the grappler arms."
Gene smiled and shook his head. "It figures. Don't worry about it Gilliam, just make a record of what they scan and keep them from getting to deep."
"Understood." Gilliam responded, then cut off.
Melfina's eyes fluttered open and she looked at him sleepily. "What's wrong Gene?"
Gene shook his head. "Nothing Mel. Let's just get some sleep all right?"
Melfina nodded weakly and lies back down on Gene's chest. Putting his arm around her Gene smiled and closed his eyes too. Tomorrow was going to be a big day.
Gene and the others stood outside the Outlaw Star's air lock. "Suzuka, Aisha, since you two aren't actually known to work with us you could go back. You don't have to come with us. But Jim, Melfina, and I are taking the ship into the Tai pirate's territory."
Suzuka and Aisha looked at him surprised. "That's at the other end of the galaxy. Even the Ctarl-Ctarl never goes there. It's totally controlled by humans." Aisha said.
Gene nodded. "That's because it's where Earth is located. But you two don't have to come if you don't want to. We have to because after the Kae pirates hear what we've done they'll be hunting us."
Aisha smiled and her tail wrapped around Jim's leg. "If you think just because you are going somewhere I've never been that I'll leave now you can forget it. Besides do you think I would let you leave with those pirate goodies sitting in the Outlaw Star?"
Suzuka nodded and grinned slightly. "I've never been that far into human occupied space. I think it might be nice to see a new area. I'm in."
Gene nodded and Melfina said, "I'm so glad. If you had decided to stay we all would have missed you."
Jim nodded and pet Aisha's tail. "I agree with Melfina." "Though I think having your share of the treasure would have gone to fill the void left in our lives." Jim and Melfina elbowed Gene's ribs. "Oof! Just kidding."
Valeria stepped forward. "Gene, just how do you plan to make it to Tai space? Even at full tanks those engines of yours use up a lot of fuel."
Gene smiled at her. "I'm glad you asked that Valeria, because you are going to provide us with the fuel reserves we need, food and extra ammunition."
Dooz looked at him suspiciously. "And what makes you think we'll do that?"
Gene smiled and handed Valeria a list. "Because the worth of the information you gathered on my ship when you scanned it last night would be enough to fill the remainder of the cargo hold, and the crew quarters with dragonite. So I figure that my requests should be sufficient to even things out. After all this is the only ship of it's kind in the universe and since we liberated what the pirates had on it you are the only other people with this knowledge."
Valeia looked at the list. Everything that they had scanned was listed down to the last screw. She sighed and looked at Dooz. "They're right. Order the supplies they asked for to be loaded onto the ship."
Dooz nodded and left to get it done. Valeria smiled and looked Gene over. "I underestimated you."
Gene shook his head. "I doubt that. You just thought it as worth the chance, and I think that you still think it was."
Valeria nodded, then glanced at Melfina. "How much would it cost to get the design specks for her and your computer system?"
Gene shook his head. "She's not for sale and you couldn't afford the rest." He looked at Valeria's eyes. "Melfina is a living, caring person and I won't let anyone who would use her like the pirates did make another. Do you understand what I mean?"
Valeria nodded and smiled at Melfina. "Yes, I do. But I had to ask Gene." She looked at him. "I hope where ever it is you end up you keep going on your treasure hunts. It's always nice to meet someone who has a dream."
Gene smiled and stepped back. "Don't worry Valeria, I will."
Gene lead the others back to the Outlaw Star where they waited for the supplies to be loaded. Finally Dooz's face appeared on the screen. "Everything is loaded. You are clear to go."
Gene nodded. "Thanks Dooz. We'll see you sometime later."
Dooz nodded and mumbled. "Um... good luck."
Gene smiled and nodded, then cut off the transmission. "All right, if everyone's ready I guess we're out of here. Let's go."
Gilliam said, "We are totally clear and green to go Gene."
Gene nodded. "All right, then let's get going."
TO BE CONTINUED...
Hey, it's me Gene. We're running for our lives to the farthest corner of the known universe. The Kae pirates want us dead, we can't call on our old contacts like Fred, and the supplies we got from the space forces and treasure we stole from the pirates won't last forever. Plus the Kae pirates have placed a bounty on us that the Tai pirates would be only too happy to collect. But not to worry, Jim and I both have our girls and Suzuka... well she seems happy enough. Hey I know it's callous since she's got a thing for me, but what can I do? Is it my fault I'm a babe magnet? Anyway join us for the next Clayton Overstreet fan fic 'Starting over'.
Author's note
All right, my second Outlaw Star fan fic. Hope you liked it. This is pretty fun. If you want to tell me what you think or want to know where to get more of my stories email me at clayton_n@hotmail.com