A/N: Weee! Another chapter. A warning though, don't expect past this week
for updates to be regular at all. They may cease for a few months due to my
job. But until the end of the week, I shall try to update all my stories
AOAP.
Oh, and a correction from the last chapter. At the end, I said his beer was cooling. It was actually warming, it started out cold.
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Chapter 2: Yankee Doodle
"Harper? You here?" Beka slid down the last few rungs of the ladder, her boots hitting the deck with a solid thump. "Harper?" she called again, before shaking her head.
"If you found yet another drifter girl and make us late..." Her threat trailed off as she headed forward to the cockpit, beginning startup procedures. Once she had the Maru warming up, she left the cockpit to wait for the wayward engineer in the small common area. Dumping her new flexis on the counter, she almost knocked over the bottle of warm Weisbrau sitting on the edge.
"Argh, how many times have I told him..." Her muttered rant trailed off as she realized that the bottle was two-thirds full. That's not right, he never leaves his beer to warm. Not his Weisbrau.
Still holding the bottle, she looked around once more, as if Harper would appear at a thought summons. He didn't. "Harper?"
She put the bottle back on the counter and headed back up into the cargo pod. She grabbed the list from her pocket and checked everything on there. Yes, he had gotten everything they needed. So that ruled out theory one.
Beka decided to check the rest of the ship. He could just be sleeping, and hadn't heard her. Ignoring her gut laughing at the idea of Harper sleeping deeply, she searched the rest of the ship, top to bottom, with no success.
Back in the common area, she decided to check ship records before she panicked. It was possible he went out again and lost track of time. Again ignoring her instinct's derisive chuckle, she played back the last few hours of the Maru's surveillance cameras.
"Harper coming, Harper leaving, Beka coming and leaving, Harper coming and leaving, Harper coming... But not leaving." Frowning, Beka continued to play the footage. "A nightsider knocking, Harper coming out, Harper... crap!"
Seeing the Nietzcheans taking her engineer away, Beka checked the timestamp. Two hours ago.
"Dammit! I should've come right back... damn!" Beka grabbed a gun, a forcelance and some spare ammo from the weapon's locker, hoping, however unlikely, that the Nietzcheans hadn't yet left the drift. If they had...
Beka swore again, running back out into the no longer comforting bustle of Gestrin Drift.
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"Dylan, we have a problem. Harper is gone, taken by a small group of Nietzcheans, to where I don't know. I can't tell you what pride, or even what they want with him. I do know that they knew who he was, and where to find him. And that as soon as they had him they disappeared. My guess is they left the drift once they finished their business, because I've looked everywhere and there is no sign of them. I'm heading to the rendezvous point now, hopefully I may have more information by the time I get there. Beka out."
Hitting the send button, Beka sat back to think. She had some favours she could call in; they might give her some leads if the Nietzcheans were at all known. They might have even been bounty hunters, but that seemed highly unlikely.
"First things first." Beka piloted the ship deftly through the traffic around Gestrin, setting a course for an old partner who was nearby. Finding the slip-point, she engaged the drive and settled back, trying to think of what to say to Reco. Other than 'surprise!'.
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A sharp blow to the head woke Harper this time. He lifted his head and shook it, trying to clear the fog, but instead only succeeded in spinning the room. He dropped his head, only to receive another blow.
"Ow, man, could you stop that? Unless you want me to pass out again." His words were directed to the large, brutish uber in front of him, though his gaze was directed blearily at the metal grating floor.
He was on his knees, arms above his head, tied to the ceiling. Everything hurt, and he couldn't think at all clearly, probably after effects of whatever drug they pumped into him to knock him out in the first place.
"So, here is the infamous Seamus Zelazny Harper." A cold voice from behind Harper spoke. "Earth scum, Dylan Hunt's resident mudfoot, and chief engineer aboard the Andromeda Ascendant. Right so far?"
"Nah, you got me completely mixed up with someone else. My name is Yankee Doodle, and I ain't never heard of anything called the Andromeda. I'm a tailor, see, and I was just minding my own business, waiting for my next client, when uber jerk over there nabbed me. Now, I don't know what you want with any Seamus Harper, but he isn't me, so I would appreciate it if you could just return me to where you found me, and pronto. People don't like it when they have to go around naked cause they haven't got any clothes."
The cold voice just chuckled, and suddenly fire raced across Harper's back. He bit back a scream, fury and hate burning through him.
"You know, I have always found the simplest ways are the most effective. Take this, for example. A cat'o'nine tails. Ancient idea, yes, but still so applicable. Now, what were you saying?"
Harper still couldn't see his uber tormentor, but he didn't care. There was still the jerk in front of him, clearly enjoying the show, and Harper refused to give him even the least bit of satisfaction. Not if he could help it.
"I see," the voice sighed, "you want to play it that way. You know, it would be much easier if you simply cooperated."
"I already told you," Harper bit out, "I'm a tailor. I don't know anything about machines, and I don't know this Harper you're talking about."
Again fire lanced through him, and Harper wondered what it would feel like once his shirt was shredded to bits.
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A/N: That's it for now, R&R cause I love the reviews. And they encourage me.
Oh, and a correction from the last chapter. At the end, I said his beer was cooling. It was actually warming, it started out cold.
-------------
Chapter 2: Yankee Doodle
"Harper? You here?" Beka slid down the last few rungs of the ladder, her boots hitting the deck with a solid thump. "Harper?" she called again, before shaking her head.
"If you found yet another drifter girl and make us late..." Her threat trailed off as she headed forward to the cockpit, beginning startup procedures. Once she had the Maru warming up, she left the cockpit to wait for the wayward engineer in the small common area. Dumping her new flexis on the counter, she almost knocked over the bottle of warm Weisbrau sitting on the edge.
"Argh, how many times have I told him..." Her muttered rant trailed off as she realized that the bottle was two-thirds full. That's not right, he never leaves his beer to warm. Not his Weisbrau.
Still holding the bottle, she looked around once more, as if Harper would appear at a thought summons. He didn't. "Harper?"
She put the bottle back on the counter and headed back up into the cargo pod. She grabbed the list from her pocket and checked everything on there. Yes, he had gotten everything they needed. So that ruled out theory one.
Beka decided to check the rest of the ship. He could just be sleeping, and hadn't heard her. Ignoring her gut laughing at the idea of Harper sleeping deeply, she searched the rest of the ship, top to bottom, with no success.
Back in the common area, she decided to check ship records before she panicked. It was possible he went out again and lost track of time. Again ignoring her instinct's derisive chuckle, she played back the last few hours of the Maru's surveillance cameras.
"Harper coming, Harper leaving, Beka coming and leaving, Harper coming and leaving, Harper coming... But not leaving." Frowning, Beka continued to play the footage. "A nightsider knocking, Harper coming out, Harper... crap!"
Seeing the Nietzcheans taking her engineer away, Beka checked the timestamp. Two hours ago.
"Dammit! I should've come right back... damn!" Beka grabbed a gun, a forcelance and some spare ammo from the weapon's locker, hoping, however unlikely, that the Nietzcheans hadn't yet left the drift. If they had...
Beka swore again, running back out into the no longer comforting bustle of Gestrin Drift.
-------------
"Dylan, we have a problem. Harper is gone, taken by a small group of Nietzcheans, to where I don't know. I can't tell you what pride, or even what they want with him. I do know that they knew who he was, and where to find him. And that as soon as they had him they disappeared. My guess is they left the drift once they finished their business, because I've looked everywhere and there is no sign of them. I'm heading to the rendezvous point now, hopefully I may have more information by the time I get there. Beka out."
Hitting the send button, Beka sat back to think. She had some favours she could call in; they might give her some leads if the Nietzcheans were at all known. They might have even been bounty hunters, but that seemed highly unlikely.
"First things first." Beka piloted the ship deftly through the traffic around Gestrin, setting a course for an old partner who was nearby. Finding the slip-point, she engaged the drive and settled back, trying to think of what to say to Reco. Other than 'surprise!'.
-------------
A sharp blow to the head woke Harper this time. He lifted his head and shook it, trying to clear the fog, but instead only succeeded in spinning the room. He dropped his head, only to receive another blow.
"Ow, man, could you stop that? Unless you want me to pass out again." His words were directed to the large, brutish uber in front of him, though his gaze was directed blearily at the metal grating floor.
He was on his knees, arms above his head, tied to the ceiling. Everything hurt, and he couldn't think at all clearly, probably after effects of whatever drug they pumped into him to knock him out in the first place.
"So, here is the infamous Seamus Zelazny Harper." A cold voice from behind Harper spoke. "Earth scum, Dylan Hunt's resident mudfoot, and chief engineer aboard the Andromeda Ascendant. Right so far?"
"Nah, you got me completely mixed up with someone else. My name is Yankee Doodle, and I ain't never heard of anything called the Andromeda. I'm a tailor, see, and I was just minding my own business, waiting for my next client, when uber jerk over there nabbed me. Now, I don't know what you want with any Seamus Harper, but he isn't me, so I would appreciate it if you could just return me to where you found me, and pronto. People don't like it when they have to go around naked cause they haven't got any clothes."
The cold voice just chuckled, and suddenly fire raced across Harper's back. He bit back a scream, fury and hate burning through him.
"You know, I have always found the simplest ways are the most effective. Take this, for example. A cat'o'nine tails. Ancient idea, yes, but still so applicable. Now, what were you saying?"
Harper still couldn't see his uber tormentor, but he didn't care. There was still the jerk in front of him, clearly enjoying the show, and Harper refused to give him even the least bit of satisfaction. Not if he could help it.
"I see," the voice sighed, "you want to play it that way. You know, it would be much easier if you simply cooperated."
"I already told you," Harper bit out, "I'm a tailor. I don't know anything about machines, and I don't know this Harper you're talking about."
Again fire lanced through him, and Harper wondered what it would feel like once his shirt was shredded to bits.
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A/N: That's it for now, R&R cause I love the reviews. And they encourage me.