CHAPTER 7

Planet Sonja, Code LV-117

Location: Crash Site

35 Miles Northwest of the Ark

Rainer ducked inside the cargo bay and instantly assessed the dilemma. At the far end a man held a pistol against Blare's temple. He was yelling loudly, Rainer could barely make out a word he was saying; Krigs demanding that he "put the weapon down!" wasn't helping the situation.

The unknown man was well-built, arms made of solid muscle. His forehead seemed to protrude like some unworldly beast. His enraged smile showing lots of teeth. Much of the man's face had long scars running across it. Rainer thought he resembled an ape from the animal shows he'd seen as a child.

"Come on now, put down the weapon." Krigs said, his gun pointing toward the man.

"Go fuck yourself," The man grinned, "How about you put down your weapons or I blow your little girlfriend's brains out? Huh, girlfriend?" He pushed the gun against Blare's head. "Doesn't that sound nice?"

Rainer grew worried. He shouldn't have sent Blare into the ship alone. It had proved to be a costly mistake. He knew that now.

"This isn't getting you anywhere," Rainer barked, "Now put down your damn weapon or we'll be forced to shoot!"

"You see this?" The man pushed the barrel of his pistol into the side of Blare's head, his teeth showing fiercely. "This is me not giving a shit what your little cock-sucking ass thinks. In fact, I can feel my trigger finger starting to slip!"

Rainer weighed his options; they weren't looking very good. He could open fire and kill the man, possibly hitting Blare in the process. It might be worth the risk. On the other hand, McKay did want the survivors brought back alive…but didn't he say 'Especially the women.'

Rainer couldn't remember. All he knew was that he had to do something. He lifted his rifle and took aim at one of the man's knee caps. He eased a finger on the trigger and prepared to shoot.

Something nudged his back.

"I don't thick that's such a good idea," came a woman's voice. It was strong and assertive.

Rainer didn't know what she had pushed against his lower vertebrae, but could take a few guesses. He lowered his rifle. Fuck! I shouldn't have left Mason to cover our backs.

"Now that's a good boy."

The man holding the pistol seemed to ease up a bit, making damn sure, however, to keep his aim at Blare's head. "Christ, man! 'Bout time you showed up. I thought one of these pretty mother-fuckers was going to get trigger happy and pop a round in my ass!"

Krigs just stood there, unsure of what he should do.

"Tell your men to put their weapons down," the woman said.

Rainer hesitated, thinking maybe he could shoot his way out. He looked around at his men for a sign, anything that would indicate that they were thinking the same. Polarized stares looked back at him; emotionless.

Rainer nodded his head slowly, signaling for them to put down their arms. Blare dropped the pulse rifle to the floor. Krigs undid the belt around his waist supporting the smart gun, it landed on the grating with a harsh thud. Rainer reluctantly did the same.

"What's your name?"

Rainer contemplated not answering, felt her push the rifle into his back and decided otherwise. "Lieutenant Rainer, Knight of the Ark."

"Your mission?"

Rainer didn't answer.

"Your mission?" she said, this time with more authority.

"Rescue downed personnel of crashed freighter and return them safely to the Ark."

The ape-like man goggled in disbelief, the veins in his neck sticking out. "Rescue? How 'bout you explain why you shot us down? This don't look like no rescue mission." Blare moved slightly and just as quickly, the muscled man had switched back his attention. "Hey, I didn't say you could move."

The woman ignored the remarks and asked Rainer another question. "That bird of yours flying around outside, mind if we borrow it?"

"The what?"

"I have very little patients and a gun."

Rainer gritted his teeth. "The APC? You can't, it's DNA encoded. Only the pilot can fly it."

"Call," the woman shouted. "Can you get around that?"

Through a open side-hatch inside the cargo hold came a pair of black boots. Standing there was a pale-skinned dark-haired woman wearing a blue jumpsuit. She looked as if she'd never been out in the sun in her entire life. Her hair was cut short, eyes dark and piercing.

"I don't know; we'd have to get on board to find out. Wouldn't it be easier to force the pilot to fly?"

The ape man smiled. "Oh, little Call, you just hate pluggin' in, don't you?"

"Fuck you, Johner! I'd like to see how you feel having your brain shoved through a worm hole."

"Hey, I'd love to shove my worm in your hole."

"Uh! You have the maturity of a child."

"Enough!" the woman shouted, inadvertently shoving the barrel of her gun against Rainer's back. "Everyone, out."

Forced to walk, Rainer was able to catch a glimpse of the woman who held him at gun point. She must have gotten Mason's smart gun somehow; making it unlikely he was still alive. The woman was tall, possibly six foot, wearing a buckled mess of brown straps. Her lips were thin, her cheekbones prominent, her hair long and greasy. Rainer had the uncommon thought her eyes seemed soulless, like a synthetic; dark and detached.

The strangers forced them in front as they left the ship; Rainer looked out toward the school, briefly hoping maybe the greenhorn had gotten away, and was just lying in wait for the right moment to jump out and save them. That was wishful thinking.

The Knights stood there in the mud, arms held high. The ape man named Johner kept his pistol trained on them, waiting for any excuse to put a bullet in one of their heads.

There was a sudden whirr of machinery and Rainer added a fourth to the list of survivors; he hadn't thought to see someone come wheeling out in a mechanized chair, the six wheels kicking up black sludge.

"Careful, man!" the burly man said as the chair skidded and jerked its way past him.

"Ah, go to hell, inbred." The small twisted-looking man replied.

Rainer almost would have laughed had the circumstances been different.

The muscle of the group turned his head to the woman with the gun. "You hearing this shit, Ripley?"

So the woman has a name after all, Rainer thought to himself.

Ripley stood there for a moment, almost like she was trying to find the proper word usage. She tilted her head. "Be careful, Vriess."

"Yeah, you hear that, cripple?"

"Fuck you, Johner!"

Johner seemed to get some satisfaction out of pissing him off. He smiled, and then turned his pistol back toward the prisoners. "So what we gonna do with these guys? I could take them out back, maybe put them down."

"You're really sick, you know that?" said the pale-skinned Call.

"We need them." Ripley said, stepping out in front of the Knights to look them over. "Call down your APC."

"Negative. I will not call down the APC so that you can kill its pilot and get off this rock." Rainer answered quickly and without hesitation. He had no fear of these people. Whatever they had planned, he was sure they were going to carry it out anyway.

"Whoever said we wanted off?"

"My mission is to return you to the Ark safely. Any chance that I am unable to achieve that mission, I'd sooner die here and now."

Johner looked toward Ripley, his anger evident, his grin psychotic. "Well, you heard the man. Wouldn't want to disappoint."

"That's just like you," came Call. "Kill everything you see without ever asking a question and with no remorse."

"As if you even knew what that was, toaster-oven."

Rainer caught a glance of the frail woman. That would explain the pale skin, he though.

"Sir—" Krigs tried to speak.

"Hey, I never said you could talk, goddamn it!"

"I'm growing tired of your bullshit, Johner," Ripley barked back.

"Sir—" again Krigs tried to speak to his lieutenant.

"Hey, am I the only one here who sees these little pukes as a threat? Is it just me?"

Vriess finally spoke up, leaning forward in his chair. "Johner, you sonofabitch," his thick accent making it difficult to understand everything he was trying to say. "would you shut the fuck up for a second, you ape shit!"

"SIR!" Krigs yelled. Everyone fell silent. "Sir, we have a bit of a situation."

Rainer looked toward his corporal. "What is it?"

Krigs didn't say a thing, he just pointed down toward his belt at the motion tracker. It beeped.