Chapter 12 – Old Enemies
Twelve and a Half years ago
The next morning the crew got about their business like nothing else had changed. Matthew Boyle tried to keep things as light as possible their group of five were outnumbered by the other crew. He stayed in the hanger bay ready to play his part when it came to it. He'd already been doing "maintenance" on the other Hunter which would reduce the ship's maximum engine performance to docking thrusters if the engines were not primed in a very particular way. Like the work that they were planning on the freighter it was nothing critical but would slow them down. He also had a sidearm which he hoped he wouldn't have to use.
Elsewhere on the ship Amelia Brand and Anthony Chara had walked around the ship twice they had pretended to check various systems of the ship and noticed that Wilkes had plenty of extra personnel in the corridors. "He thinks something is up" Chara said quietly.
"Something is up" Brand replied quietly
"We won't be able to open a junction box with this many people around" Chara said as they kept walking "especially not the one we need."
"Agreed" Brand agreed as she walked "which is why I borrowed a more effective key just in case" she said raising four fingers.
"You cannot be serious the damage…" Chara to say but stopped as someone else began to walk past.
"Matt, will get over it" Brand replied immediately "if he cannot get over the damage then maybe we shouldn't be together."
"Seriously?"
"It may be the only way" Brand said neither of them were talking about Brand and Boyle's relationship instead they were talking about the explosive she had. The four was for a "G-4" detonator it would be more than enough to destroy the junction box unfortunately it would also likely cripple the ship for a far longer period than they had planned.
"I hope you know what you are doing" Chara said looking down at her as they turned onto the corridor with Box 42.
"Aim to wound" she said walking ahead of him as he drew a sub-machine gun from the small of his back, she looked at him impressed she hadn't realised he was so well armed. Chara crouched in the middle of the corridor scanning one way and another as Brand placed the explosive on the outer doors of the junction box. A military vessel would have a reinforced frame and probably a couple of guards but not a civilian freighter the explosive would be plenty to blow through the metal casing.
As Brand worked Chara squeezed of a couple of rounds cutting down one of the crew both shots struck the man in the chest knocking him down dead. Brand looked down the corridor and then at Chara who hadn't stopped for a moment and was now looking down the corridor the other way. Instead of questioning him she continued to work on the detonator setting the timer. Behind her Chara fired again as someone else appeared moments later alarms sounded and Brand knew that more crew would know about it.
In the hanger bay Nick Holden and Victoria Kryvych had arrived at the Hunter with Matt Boyle and had joined him in waiting. They'd made a show of removing one of the ship's guns and cleaning it making a show of maintaining it and returning it to the vessel. Suddenly an explosion rocked the vessel "what the frak?" Boyle asked out loud drawing his weapon glancing at the other two neither of them appeared to know anything. "Get on board Victoria warm her up, Nick man the aft gun, we might need to defend ourselves." Outside the hanger there was sound of automatic weapons fire and Boyle took up a defensive position aiming his sidearm at the door.
Running into the hanger came first Brand and then Chara who backed into the room firing his weapon. As he did Brand sealed the door behind them turning to see Boyle raise from his position. "Amy, what the frak is going on?"
"Wilkes is onto us" she said catching her breath as there was a banging on the hanger door "more guards on" she said glancing at Chara "we had to improvise and wound a couple of them."
"With that?" He said glancing at Chara's weapon "you mean kill?"
"It was them or us, Matthew, we need to go." The big man said "Wilkes will kill us for what we have done."
"He might still the doors are sealed" Boyle said "if we'd simply knocked out the power, we could have manually opened them, now there's an alert the doors are locked down."
"We've got weapons" Brand said looking at Boyle "Wilkes wants to keep his ship, he'll let us go." She glanced from Boyle to Chara "get on board."
All three of them entered the Hunter sealing the hatch behind them "Anthony take the port gun, Victoria the starboard" Brand ordered "you're with me" she said looking at Boyle heading into the cockpit when there she indicated to him to get into the pilot's seat while she took the co-pilot's position grabbing a communication headset. "Brand to Wilkes let us go and you have no more problems."
"No more problems, what the frak are you on about Brand you and that damned giant took out eighteen of our crew and a junction box who the frak do you think you are?"
"We've had enough of your life Wilkes we need a new path, one of our own."
"You and Boyle? He'll never put up with your actions. He's too good a person."
"He's sitting beside me at the moment" she said glancing at Boyle who had already brought the ship off the deck and orientated it towards the doors.
"He won't stay with you and you know it Amy" Wilkes taunted her Boyle didn't speak instead he concentrated on the job.
"We've got an alternate option, we blast our way out of here" Brand suggested "we'll take half your ship with us." She said as the hanger doors opened Nick opened fire with rear Kinetic Energy Weapon turret cutting into the ship's hull intentionally missing Wilkes crew punching holes in the floor. "Wilkes, don't make us do this!" She snapped
"End this now!" Wilkes screamed into the intercom, "we'll let you leave at the next port."
"Negative, you'll kill us!" Boyle responded "Wilkes, it's Boyle, you're right I don't agree with the unnecessary killing that has occurred today." He said "but I also don't agree with your strategy, the birds we have left cannot compete with Colonial Vipers." He said as more KEW fire struck the hanger floor "release the ship now, before our fire rips through the ship and exit's the hull."
The doors to the hanger behind the ship closed and below the two Hunters the main doors opened slowly as Wilkes released the lock. "Thank you" Boyle said diving his ship out of the freighter's hanger door.
"I'll find you both and I'll make sure that you pay for it." Wilkes warned them as their Hunter dived away from the ship the freighter didn't fire at them either because it couldn't or because Wilkes had decided not to try and eliminate them now.
Three days later
The journey on the small cramped Hunter was a long and uncomfortable one even the short trip to the moon of Iris. Matthew Boyle only left the cockpit to go to the head taking to even eating his ration in the cockpit while Amy Brand had spent much time in the rear of the ship speaking with the other three mutineers from Wilkes crew.
As they approached Iris Boyle was joined in cockpit by Brand "I'll cut to the chase, I'm leaving when we land. I've spoken to the others and they agree that they'd rather stay with you than take their chances out there with me." She said staring at the moon ahead of them leaving unsaid that she was not just leaving the crew but leaving him.
"Where will you go?"
"Oh, I'll find my way" she said "just put me on the ground and I'll disappear" she said glancing at him Boyle was now the one facing the moon below "you'll never have to see me again."
"Good luck" Boyle said deciding enough damage had been done. Later that afternoon the landed at one of Iris spaceports and without speaking another word to Matthew she left the Hunter heading into the port. Once the ship was refuelled Boyle took the Hunter off moon before someone linked it to raids, they had made in the area instead heading for Virgon, intent on buying the ship that Matthew had seen when they were there before.
