Death and Redemption
Chapter 2
Hi everybody. I'm back with the next installment of the story, hope you like it!
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"Shuttle Alpha 31-402, you are cleared to land in bay 17. Security detail is standing by as requested."
"Copy that Control, shuttle out."
In the shuttle's cargo hold Fox and Krystal couldn't do much more than wait. Their guards were taking no chances and had shackled their wrists, then shoved them into a large steel crate with steel bars, firmly locking them in. And there they'd been, pressed against eachother in the cramped space for the past three hours.
"I'm pretty sure they're taking us to Sargasso."
Fox's voice was tense but quiet. If they kept their voices down the noise of the shuttle's engines would drown out most of their talk and give them a measure of privacy. The guards were watching them though, two alligators with red visors and unreadable expressions, armed with carbines. So they had to be careful.
Head tilted to the side, Krystal asked "Why's that?"
"You felt the course changes, Krys. The only place where a ship has to zig and zag that often is the Meteo asteroid belt. And if we're headed through Meteo, that means we're being taken to Sargasso. And THAT means..." The vulpine's voice trailed off on a worried note. Krystal finished his sentence.
"Wolf."
Fox turned in the small cramped space, moving to face her, bodies pressed together, almost nose to nose. She could feel the waves of worry coming off of him and had noticed the sharp spike when she mentioned Wolf's name. Truth be told she wasn't doing much better, their situation was very, very dire and she feared for their future.
"Krys, listen to me." She gazed into Fox's emerald eyes. He put his hands on her shoulders, expression deadly serious."If we get ANY chance at escape, take it. No matter how slim, take it, you got that?" and as she gave a small nod he continued ".. hell, I don't just mean us, but I mean you too. If you see an opportunity to escape, go for it Krys! Run and don't look back, do you understand?"
His words hit her hard. What was he saying, that she should leave him behind if she got the chance, that she should abandon him? Escape on her own? She felt tears well in her eyes. Tears of sadness, of frustration, and anger. And then she pulled it all together and set her jaw, expression hardening. "Fox, I'm not going without you. And that's that." She took a breath. "We'll find a way. You'll see, don't lose faith."
Fox didn't seem to hear and gave her a small shake, voice rising "Krystal, this is -Wolf- we're talking about! He'll.. he'll.."
She saw the despair in his eyes, felt it in his mind. She'd been with Fox for more almost two years now and knew he could be high-strung and sometimes even emotional. But that was part of what she loved about him, his ability to care, to feel. And his willingness to put others' welfare before his own. Fox was a genuine hero and wouldn't hesitate to put himself in harm's way for the greater good. That was his strength, and also his weakness.
She'd seen him determined, resolute, take-charge... and she'd seen his vulnerable side, his pain when things went wrong... and his tentative behaviour when he was around her, his shyness when it came to matters of the heart.
She thought she knew him well. But this was new.
He was tense and anxious and from what she could pick up from his mind and from his expression, mostly concerned about what would happen to -her-. That wasn't new, she thought with a small inner grimace. Underneath it though she picked up a deeper emotion, a dark feeling, one of utter dread. It took her a few moments to identify what it exactly was and when she did, her blood ran cold.
Fox was afraid.
The realisation was like a slap to the face. Fox, her Fox, afraid?
Digging deeper she found its origin. Of course.
Now that she'd pieced it together she could see it in Fox' eyes. Her tears welled again and threatened to spill over. Fox must really believe that their chances of survival were low. He was losing hope and seeing that in his candid green eyes was tragic, nothing should ever defeat Fox's optimism, nothing should ever weaken his unshakable belief that Good would always triumph over Evil! But she saw it ebbing away, could feel his conviction evaporating... and it tore at her heart. No, no, not her Fox. Not him.
She aimed a silent snarl at Wolf. Bastard.
"Oh Fox..."
Something in Krystal's tone of voice snapped Fox out of his funk. He saw the hurt and concern on the vixen's face and, even though he didn't fully understand the underlying reason for her sudden emotional state, her tone bypassed his brain and reached straight into his heart.
Their muzzles were only inches apart. Closing the distance was so easy.. and part of his mind wondered why it had been so difficult before. It seemed so silly now. This was the most natural thing ever.
Leaning forward he pressed a soft kiss to the vixen's lips. And was rewarded with a warm kiss back, arms slipping around him and pulling him close into a tight, warm embrace.
They stayed that way until the shuttle's landing at Sargasso, finding solace in eachothers' arms.
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Sargasso. Corneria's wiki labels it as the Sargasso Space Zone and describes it as an illegal space colony within the rocky Meteo asteroid belt, used mainly as a staging area for Andross' space armada. The wiki file goes on to elaborate that the space station is home to gangs of thugs and criminals under the authority of Wolf O'Donnell.
The reality that Fox and Krystal were confronted with was somewhat different. They were hustled at gunpoint into a small wheeled assault carrier, doors slammed shut and the driver accelerated into a small tunnel, swiftly leaving the hangar area behind them. They passed airlocks and blast doors, finally emerging into a more open area of the station and slowing down. The bare gray metal military feel of the landing bay immediately disappeared and made way for a surprisingly colourful collection of shops and people, most dressed in civilian garb and going about their business as if this were some urban marketplace on Zoness or even Corneria itself.
Sure there were soldiers in view and stylized propaganda posters of Andross' face plastered here and there, but the dread red uniforms were a stark minority and the posters were mostly drowned out by other signs and banners, offering all sorts of wares and services. As the vehicle had to slow to pass through the masses, the captive vulpines had time to stare out of the one-way mirrored plasteel and take in the sights. Of course there were bars, weapons' shops and the occasional brothel that fit the image they had of a thieves' hideout, but what surprised them were the utterly mundane shops, a grocery store, a hairdresser, an apothecary. Even a dentist. It was all so ordinary.
And the people. Most looked like a very rough crowd indeed, sure, but there were even -families-! They saw a few small children with their parents and even spotted a school and a daycare center in passing. Everything was small and cramped, space coming at a premium in a station like this, but still. The place was -alive- in a way they hadn't expected.
"Fox... did you see that?"
"What, the burger joint?" His tummy rumbled and he shot Krystal an apologetic look.
"No Fox. The children, there are children here!" The vixen had her muzzle and both hands pressed to the glass, an expression of wonder on her face. Fox, leaning in next to her, was simply confused.
"Yeah that's damn weird. Maybe Wolf has a slave trade set up and they're..."
The words died in his mouth as he caught a withering stare from Krystal.
"Uh. Sorry. They um, look pretty happy."
Her eyes narrowed, not falling for his cheesy smile. " And that's my point, Fox. What's going on here?"
"Ehhh.." he faltered, searching for words. "Lots of people. Getting together. They're bound to.. eh, y'know, so there will be kids, right?"
Krystal grimaced to herself, Fox was missing the point, as usual. His blush was cute though.
"Yes Fox, of course." She eyed the guards sitting across from them in the small enclosed cabin, silently watching. The two alligators had dissappeared, replaced by two apes who, unless she was mistaken, had been among the four who had originally captured them on Fichina.
She cleared her throat.
"Excuse me. We're curious and umm, this might be the last time we have a chance to ask, so.. why are there children on a military space station?"
The two apes briefly looked at eachother until one shrugged and the other replied.
"Guess it can't hurt. Lord O'Donnell has seen fit to open the place up."
"Open up? What do you mean by that..?" Fox kept his mouth shut, Krystal was turning on the charm and it seemed to be working. Not surprisingly, he thought. When Krystal wanted something, she got it.
The lead ape grimaced, scratching his cheek "It's stupid if you ask me. And no idea what emperor Andross thinks of it. But Wol- er, Lord O'Donnell seems to be getting away with it."
Not getting the answers she wanted, Krystal pressed the point. "Yes, I understand but.. WHAT exactly is he getting away with..?"
"Oh. Trader clans. Place is full of em, he's turned Sargasso into one big trading station, has even kicked most pirates out. Us military have been crowded into the northwest quadrant and all the rest is, well, y'see? Like -this-." he waved a hairy hand "Fucking civilians."
Krystal cut a glance at Fox. "Um, why would he do that?"
The ape barked a laugh. "Oh haw! That one's easy. Filling his pockets, he is! Lord O'Donnell takes a big cut off've every shady deal that gets done here, the guy must be swimming in gold lylats by now!"
The other guard nudged his partner. "And tail!" at which they both burst out laughing. From there it went downhill, the guards' talk turning to topics common to soldiers everywhere. Krystal's ears burned with a deep crimson blush and she crossed her arms over her chest, leaning back into her seat, eyes closed. Fox wisely kept his muzzle shut.
"Hahahah! Yeah, and did you hear the one about the Cornerian and the hot dog bun?"
Howls of laughter. Krystal groaned.
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Arnis K'thar was one of those people that liked to think of themselves as indispensable to the smooth workings of any operation. He wasn't a man of action like his employer but that didn't bother him a bit. He was fully aware that he filled an important niche in Sargasso's infrastructure and that without his skills things would not be able to run even half as smoothly as they did. He was the oil in the machine. He knew his worth, he knew exactly what his strengths were. And so did Wolf O'Donnell.
"Arnis!"
The otter immediately raised his gaze from his screens and stood up from behind the desk he occupied in an alcove adjacent to his employer's office. With decisive, brisk movements he walked the few paces separating himself from the lupine's desk, back straight, all business.
His suit, as always, was impeccable, made of expensive dark fabric, subtly striped, its deep chocolate hue chosen to complement his natural auburn-and-cream fur colouring. Clean crisp white shirt for contrast, offset by a bold-coloured tie and a silver pin. In the crook of his left arm he cradled a datapad that never left his side, a stylus in his right hand, poised to make notes or tap commands. An executive headset completed his office-warrior's attire, the small black bar attached to his left ear. His voice, when he spoke, was clipped and precise.
"Yes sir?"
The wolf didn't look up from his own large datapad. It was a few hours before noon, Sargasso time, and he was savouring his second cup of black-as-sin coffee, leaned back in his chair, combat boots on the desk.
"Has the report on the pump and dump scam arrived yet?" he growled.
Over time, Arnis had developed a grudging respect for his employer. For all that he was a rough mercenary and more used to solving issues with a blaster rather than with a computer or a datapad, Wolf had proven himself a sharp businessman and a strong leader of the Sargasso community. He'd built both up from nothing, transforming the space station from a military and pirate outpost into something much more worthwhile. He knew how to manage a diverse group of rogues with very different interests and morals, knew how to make them cooperate and compromise, understood trade dynamics and the underlying powerplay of the main trade families, the mercenary groups and, of course, Andross. He balanced them all against eachother and it worked. It actually worked.
If there was one thing he'd learned, it was that Wolf O'Donnell was not to be underestimated.
Take this latest example. They had both been pouring through trade data as they did every week. They'd been looking at a large spreadsheet listing small-trade transactions when Wolf had frowned and had pointed at a series of data. "That doesn't feel right. Supply and demand shouldn't fluctuate that much for this kinda stuff, and fuck, look at the latest price, that's just ridiculous!". Arnis had looked and, sure enough, there was quite a variation. But wasn't that just the way market forces worked?
Wolf was adamant though. "This smells. Get somebody to check it out."
And he had.
The report's conclusions were clear. Somebody had indeed been manipulating trade information to hype a certain type of product and artificially 'pump' the price up. The scam had worked and a few major trade families had bought into the lie, snapping up the goods that the scammer conveniently 'dumped' against the inflated prices, thinking to make a profit. But instead it was the scammer who profited from the deal.
"Yes sir. I was just now going over the report's conclusions. You were correct. Our investigator found clear signs of manipulation."
Wolf growled. "Who?"
Arnis consulted his datapad. "Captain Aloysius Hammins sir."
"Hammins again huh? That idiot." Wolf sat up and slammed a fist on his desk. "Dammit! We want fair trade here, none of that sneaky bullshit. Doesn't Hammins understand that once the families catch on, his blood will be staining the streets?"
Wolf stood up and started pacing, expression stormy, gray tail lashing in agitation.
"Arrange a meeting with Hammins. Tell him I'm fucking unhappy with him and that he'd better have an offer that will make me happy again. Meanwhile, fine his ass for unethical trading practises and publish my decision on the trade-feeds, as usual. See how he fucking likes THAT."
"Yes sir, at once."
"Also, inform the families involved that I'm handling the matter. And that they will be compensated for their losses."
"Yes sir."
Wolf silently snarled. Hammins was going to bleed for this.
Arnis, meanwhile, quietly thought to himself that Wolf had probably just saved Hammins' life. The financial penalties and the damage to the captain's trader reputation would hurt, for sure, but not nearly as much as the knife in the back he would have gotten when the families found out that they had been swindled.
As he turned away to see to Wolf's orders, a priority message flashed onto his datapad, clamoring for his attention. Pausing in mid-step he read its contents and froze. He almost lost his composure but managed to hold it together. Then quickly tapped a command, sending the message to Wolf's tablet.
Turning back, his voice held only a businesslike urgency.
"Sir, priority message. You will want to read this, immediately."
Arching a brow, Wolf walked back to his desk and snapped up his datapad. "Oh really?" and tapped the red-flagged message.
He blinked, once.
"You have got to be fucking kidding me."