The Unexpected
The leader of the intruders paces back and forth, the crew deck's cool toned lights casting a sheen on his sleek black space suit. He shoulders a rifle as he draws out his victory speech, unconcerned with further resistance, voice oozing with smug superiority.
"Yes, we are space pirates. Lowercase s, lowercase p, just so we're clear. The proper kind. So, the way I currently see it, we have your ship," he says, dangling the detonator in his hand. "We have one of your crew," he points to Kaia with his rifle. "And we have your android," he finishes, pointing the rifle at Adam's glassy-eyed, unmoving body. "As long as you cooperate, no harm will come to any of these things. However! Should you put up a fight, disobey our orders, or even think about any kind of grandstanding heroics, we will happily change that stance!"
Samus doesn't lower her cannon. Pure, unfiltered disgust radiates through her visor, directed right at this worm of a man. If there's anything almost as hateful as the Space Pirates she knows, it's the common kind.
He motions to her, again shaking the detonator. "Now now! Let's start our relationship off on a good foot, shall we? Why don't you take that armor off, nice and slow? And call off your pet lizard, while you're at it."
She glances at Chowa. They train one eye on her, awaiting her order. Samus knows if she says to fight, they'll fight. But she's not stupid. She could survive getting sucked out into space. Her crew won't. "Stand down, Chowa."
With vitriol-laced restraint, she lowers her cannon and wills away her power suit. The pirate captain lets out a low whistle. "That's a neat trick. Didn't know you could do that. And if you don't mind me saying, what's underneath is also quite-"
"Are you taking my ship, or are you here to bore me to death?"
"Ha! Alright, fine then. Gentlemen, take the bridge and bring her in, and find the controls for these rooms. Lock the doors and cut their power. As for you and your crew, Miss Aran, I'd like each of you in your own room. We'll be keeping an eye on miss..?" He gestures to Kaia, awaiting an answer. She doesn't give one, soaking him with a good dose of affronted side-eye as she stands with measured composure. He rolls his eyes under his reflective visor. "The old woman, then."
The pirates get up and move toward each crew member, weapons drawn. Chowa gives a low growl, but ducks into their room, regardless. Samus holds in her doorway, despite the blaster pointed in her face. "Adrian. Go to your quarters."
Adrian looks from her captain to the invading one. He shakes the detonator again, underscoring the situation. She moves up the stairs to her room, closest to the bridge on the port side. One pirate intercepts her, holding forth a demanding hand. She's hesitant to part with her father's gift, but when the pirate levels their rifle at her, she relents, slowly drawing her pistol and handing it over. The door closes behind her, and she hears its lock click. A few seconds later, the lights go out.
She stares in slack-armed, abject despondence at the dull steel walls of her room-turned-prison.
This is all her fault.
000
This is all her fault.
If Samus had just told Adrian where Arrande was going, she never would have fallen for this trick. It took her a moment to realize how it happened; these pirates probably followed the Crosshair at a distance for a while, hiding their engine signature and outgoing signals. They witnessed Arrande take the gunship and saw an opportunity; they cloned the ship code and used that to sneak up on the Crosshair. As long as their ship put out that cloned code, it wouldn't set off any alarms.
She sits watching the door, leaning forward, elbows balanced on her knees. She's been like this for hours now. A moment ago, she felt the familiar rock of the Crosshair breaching atmosphere. They were in the Revali system when she went to sleep… there's one planet that's survivable here. GB-89. A decrepit grey blah of a planet no one would ever take any interest in.
The perfect place to abandon a crew whose ship you've stolen. If she doesn't figure out a plan soon, they're all going to die here. Either that, or she'll have to risk Kaia's life to keep the ship.
The lights in her room suddenly raise, and shortly after, there's a chime from her door. The vid-com lights up, and she can see a pirate helmet on screen. "Hellooo… Miss Aran?"
It's their captain. Samus glowers and stands up, moving over to the vid-com. "What do you want?"
"Oh, just here to make sure we're on the same page regarding the script here. I'm sure you've realized we'll be landing shortly. Just wanted to make sure you knew, I have a man posted at every door of your ship. And also on Dr. Jha."
Shit. He learned her name somehow.
"Now then, I'm not a monster. I have no intention of demanding unsavory things of you or your crew, or taking your ship. I will leave it for you, along with an unharmed doctor, once we've relieved you of anything worth taking. However, if you, or any member of your crew, try to be a hero, well…"
"I understand. Can I at least let them know?"
He shakes his head. "No, I'm afraid not. You're just going to have to trust that they won't do something stupid."
Not hard. Arrande isn't here. "Fine. Just get it over with."
He chuckles a disgustingly smarmy chortle. "Hmhmhm… thank you for your compliance, Miss Aran. Though I have to wonder, why is it that a woman of your reputation travels with such a strange crew? An old woman, an android, an alien? It hardly seems like you're properly staffed for such a dangerous line of work."
Samus' lip curls. He's treating this like an interview. "You don't actually care about that."
"No, I suppose I don't." He looks like he's about to leave the conversation.
"Wait!" she demands. There's something he has to know. "Listen to me. If you're just taking our cargo and leaving, there is one item on this ship you don't want. The stock inside the bio-locked red crate will bring you nothing but trouble. Leave it where it is."
That piques his interest. He leans into the camera, cocking his head. "Oooh? And what would that be?"
Samus bites her tongue. She can't tell him it's norium, he'll only see it as a big-ticket item. From there, spread throughout the black market, it will be impossible to track down before something happens. She has to hope he'll believe her warning. So, she tries to sell the idea as best she can. "Just leave it alone! The thing inside that crate will kill you all."
The reflective surface of the captain's visor leaves his response nebulous and uncertain. "Very well then, Miss Aran. I'll take those words to heart." He turns away, then stops, looking back into the camera. "And, oh, one more thing. I'm a big fan." He calls out into the ship. "You can cut the power to Miss Aran's room now!"
The lights cut off once more. Samus gnashes her teeth. She can't know what he'll do with that crate, or her crew. What she wouldn't give to just go out there and-
No. Stay calm. The smartest thing she can do right now is wait and listen to what's going on out there.
But Vareeya's wrath on any of them that hurt her crew.
000
The captain moves onto the bridge, assessing what they can strip from the controls. One of his men sits in the captain's chair, spinning lethargically. "She sound like she's on board, captain?"
"Quite so! If we get this done quick, we shouldn't have any problem with her. See if there's anything worth pulling from their computers." He turns to leave, but the next words out of his subordinate's mouth stop him.
"Okay Captain, when do we kill them?" the pirate asks.
The captain turns back around and tilts his head. "Excuse me?"
"You know… so we can take the ship."
The captain pauses, then sighs. He unlatches his helmet with a hiss and pulls it off, revealing youthful features; slick brown hair, smooth complexion, a scar just above his left brow, and a handsome, curled moustache. "… I'm pulling my helmet off so you can see my expression as I say what comes next… do you know why I'm the captain?" he asks with a cocked eyebrow.
"Sir?"
The captain takes a deep breath and wets his lips. "I'm the captain… because I am smart. Because when we board an unknown vessel and it has Samus goddamn Aran on it, I think on my feet and threaten to destroy the entire ship with an unsequenced detonator. Because I can convincingly bluff hardened bounty hunters who would just as soon see us dead as hear us out."
He takes slow strides up to the captain's perch. His subordinate shrinks back in his seat.
"Right now, the only reason we are still alive is because they are all locked up. We can't take the ship with them in it, for obvious reasons. We can't dump them outside because then they'll know we're abandoning them, and they'll fight back. So, the only solution remaining is simple. First, we empty the ship of valuables. Then we leave them in their rooms, leave the ship here, and do what we can to make sure they don't follow us." He claps a commiserate hand on the pirate's shoulder.
"B-but shouldn't we at least take a hostage?" the pirate stammers. "You know, to discourage them."
The captain leans in close, his breath fogging up the other pirate's helmet. "I know you're on the younger side, but that is Samus Aran. If she steps through that door… if she puts on that armor… we die. So the smartest thing we can do is not. Give her. A reason."
000
Adrian carefully works the socket bit, trying to stay as quiet as possible. Her eyes have adjusted to the darkness, but it's still difficult to manage the tiny bit without the advantage of a wrench. She was plain lucky she slipped it in her pocket during engine maintenance. It's taken quite a while to get this far, but if she can get this third bolt undone…
There! She grabs the panel and carefully rotates it down, exposing the door's locking mechanism.
Anyone could mess around with the clearly marked mechanical parts, but then she'd have to manually open the door, which would be both slow and loud. She'd get noticed in an instant. So instead, she draws from her security knowledge. The electronic elements of the door are tucked just above the mechanism, out of sight. Several cables plug into a routing box, allowing a switch to direct power into the room from the ship's generator, or in this case, take it away. With a few adjustments, she could bypass that switch and immediately open the door.
She reaches into the slim space. Without the benefit of sight, she has to assume which cables are which based on texture and size. The main power line is easy to distinguish, but the others…
There's still time to figure that out. Besides, until she knows where they're keeping Dr. Jha, trying to mount a rescue is pointless. She'll have to bide her time and hope that when the right moment comes, she'll know it.
000
Kaia can hear the jumble of movement on the deck above her. Calls from the intruders echo down the stairs, bleeding into the lounge. She sits in the center of the U-seat behind the mess table, staring with a particular brand of stare only disappointed mothers can muster. The pirate assigned as her keeper stares back, occasionally taking a bite of a folian apple he pulled from the fabricator.
He's on the older side of young, clean shaven, with wavy blonde hair that frames his face in long curtains. Kaia doesn't like that he's revealed his face to her; that's not a good sign for his intentions. His helmet, resting on the kitchen island, points her way; a decapitated, featureless face constantly watching her, reflecting her every movement.
He breaks the silence, spitting apple bits across the kitchen island with callous disregard for the ship. "So, the lizard I get, Vorminians are big and strong and all that. And that one girl on the bridge, she popped off a shot or two, so hey, maybe she's not useless. Even the android makes sense. But why are you here? Bounty hunting is no place for an old lady."
She nods. "I joined the crew to provide emotional support and guidance. Yet I fear this situation succinctly proves your point. Perhaps it's time I returned to a terrestrial life after this."
The faintest twitch of a smirk reveals his thoughts to her. He doesn't think she'll get the chance.
Dr. Jha coughs softly, then clears her throat slightly louder. "I'm sorry dear, would it be too much trouble to ask for a glass of water?"
He stops mid-chew, eying her warily.
Dr. Jha changes her approach, giving him a wide, warm smile. "Certainly you have nothing to worry about from an old lady like myself. Please, it would be much appreciated."
He puts his apple down on the island and presses a shortcut function on the fabricator, generating a crystal clear glass of water. Dr. Jha's eyes briefly dart to the blinking radio indicator light on the neck seal of his suit.
He brings the glass over, keeping his rifle pointed her way as he hands it to her. Dr. Jha's hands shake as she takes the water with a thankful nod. She keeps her eyes on his, avoiding the urge to glance at his weapon.
"Thank you, young man. Quite polite of you to humor this old woman." She makes a point to take a long sip and sigh contentedly.
He returns to his station across the kitchen island and leans back against the countertop. Her wizened eyes subtly narrow, distinguishing the relaxed change in his demeanor.
She holds the glass with both hands, supporting its bottom in her palm, and takes another sip. "Acquiescing to the humble request of a prisoner. You seem to be a decent young man. What brings someone like you, with so much potential, to a life of piracy?"
He shrugs, picking up his apple to take another bite. He answers with his mouth full. "Born outside federation space to a momma who didn't want me. Gotta take what comes your way."
She frowns and her eyebrows bunch together in concern, exaggerating the wrinkles on her face. "That sounds like a rather difficult life. I'm sorry to hear that. Have you considered a change of profession?" Dr. Jha absentmindedly lowers her glass to the table, the remaining water trembling as she does so. The glass slips from her hands and spills everywhere. "Oh, damn it-!"
Her captor sighs and puts his apple down again. He makes her a fresh glass and brings it over, taking her previous one and sweeping the scattered liquid onto the floor with his arm. Dr. Jha takes the new drink with a wide smile. "I apologize. Such is the affliction of old age. Thank you for bringing me another."
He rolls his eyes and gives her a curt nod, taking languid, striding steps back to his post. He snatches up his apple as he goes and crunches into it.
"So what's your job, anyway?" he asks, crossing his legs and leaning back on the counter again. "You the cook? Cleaning lady?"
"I am the crew doctor, actually," she replies, placing the full glass flat on the table with care. A convenient half-truth.
He barks a singular shotgun laugh, spraying apple bits across the kitchen. "The crew doctor?! An old lady like you? What the hell do they do when you get sick? Or take a nasty fall? Or put the medical supplies in the kitchen cabinet?!" He laughs harder now, dropping a full chunk of the apple onto the floor.
Dr. Jha politely titters at his insensitive joke. He smirks again. The more she sees it, the more repulsive she finds it, but she controls her response, smiling back.
"Name's Rugall, by the way," the pirate says, still smirking.
She gives him a gentle, eyes-closed nod. "My name is Kaia, Rugall. It's a pleasure to know you."
But knowing him is a problem. He's given her his name and shown her his face.
He's planning to kill her.
000
The pirate captain stands with his hands on his hips, contentedly watching as his men offload the crates from the cargo bay. They transfer them over the surface of GB-89 to their own ship, the Black Concord, waiting just outside.
The chunkier, squarish ship is built for discretion, not conflict. It's smaller than the Crosshair, and much less armed; in a head-on fight, they'd get torn to shreds. All the better that his plan to tail the vessel and wait for just the right moment worked so well. Of course it did! He's a master strategist, after all!
Despite the initial gamble, despite the unexpected surprises, this prize is well worth every risk taken. Not to mention he's going to be the captain of the crew that stole from Samus Aran! His name will garner respect and admiration among his peers. No pirate will stand above Captain Galabrad Poog after today! He'll get the best tips, he'll have first pick of the most succulent prizes!
And just look at all these goodies! They haven't taken stock of what's in the crates, but the guns, armor, and equipment alone are worth taking! Then there's the android; once they wipe its systems, it'll probably be the most expensive part of the haul. Everything else in these boxes is just icing.
Ah yes, the crates. His attention draws to the scarlet crate lying untouched amidst the cargo. It lurks there, hidden in the shadows of the larger crates, tucked away as if to remove it from the crew's minds.
The security crate is perfect, unblemished, standing out amidst the scraped and worn older containers. A blue light on its surface blinks, a beacon drawing his eye, seducing his curiosities. The crate whispers a promise of a bright, daring future into his mind. A future he could hold in his own hands, if he's willing to take it.
He smirks. Damn Samus' threats to hell. She's just trying to scare him and keep the best loot for herself. That, or it's something she needs to get out of this situation. Either way, he's not leaving it behind. Whatever it is, for her to be so resistant about it?
It must be world shattering.
The captain's quartermaster comes up to him just as another pirate picks the crate up with a mag-lift and carts it away. "Captain, we're just about done loading up."
"Good!" he says, craning his neck to peer at the engine catwalks above them. "How's it going up there? Everything rigged up?"
He sees a hand reach over the edge of the catwalk and give a thumbs-up. "Good to go! It's not much, but it should be enough."
He presses the radio button on the side of his helmet seal. "Captain to bridge. Have you pulled apart their comms array?"
His subordinate's voice comes through. "Yes sir. I'll be bringing their emergency beacon along shortly."
Perfect. Now he just needs Rugall to bring the old woman outside, just so they have something to point a gun at if Samus decides to mount a last-minute resistance.
"Captain to lounge, we'll be taking off shortly. Please escort our elderly guest outside. Once that's done, everyone else come on out."
000
Rugall presses the button for his radio. "You got it, captain." He takes one last large bite of his apple and tosses the core onto the kitchen island, then points his rifle at Dr. Jha. "Come on. Time to go."
She's been listening, though. She knows how many people are on the Crosshair at this very moment. One at each occupied room, one on the bridge. While she can't know what the captain plans for her, this one's intentions are crystal clear.
"Ah, I see. I am to be a hostage then. Well, I promise not to make any sudden movements. I wouldn't want to startle you." She leans forward as though ready to extract herself from the U-booth seat, slipping her hands into her wide sleeves.
He scoffs, but doesn't lower his gun. "I'm not really worried about it."
Kaia pauses mid-move, then leans back into her seat. "Ah. I see. I am just an old woman, after all. Kind. Matronly. You have made it clear you know my nature quite well." She pauses, pursing her lips in a saccharine smile and holding firm eye contact. "You know, people's perception of old women tends to fall one of two ways. They're either cranky old bats disillusioned with the loss of their youth and beauty, or they're kindly grandmothers who offer unconditional support and love."
His arm relaxes slightly as he listens to her, unaware of the barrel wandering away from its target. "Well, if it fits. I'd say you're more the latter."
Her smile widens slightly, squinting her eyes, causing the crow's feet at their corners to deepen as the smile grows. "Yes, I do suppose you'd think that. Like I said, you know my personality quite well. But do you know where that warmth and kindness comes from?"
He chuckles, playing along with the conversation. "Where?"
"Years of understanding and experience. Seeing a galaxy full of violence and uncaring sociopaths. Witnessing, personally, the sheer amount of brutality and cruelty life offers, and deciding that the world does not need more suffering. Choosing to be a ray of hope for the scarred and hopeless. That is why I choose to help the wounded, why I specifically choose to heal veterans of combat. I know from experience they have seen the worst of the galaxy."
He rolls his eyes and shakes his head. "You talk like you're a veteran."
There. That should be enough time for the cargo bay to clear. "Not quite. Though, when it comes to Federation races-"
A shot blasts through the dining table in front of Kaia, straight between her would-be assailant's eyes. His head jerks backward, causing his body to follow, and he collapses against the kitchen counter.
Kaia slowly extracts her hand from underneath the table, drawing out a ballistic handgun with a smoking barrel. "I would hazard a guess that I have the highest body count of any member of this crew." She lifts her glass of water to her lips, taking a dainty sip. "I would warn you not to mistake kindness for weakness, but, well…"
000
That was a gunshot! Adrian jumps up from her cot and races over to the door, almost running straight into it. She feels for the cord she found earlier, counting them out from one side… there. She unplugs it and replaces it in another port.
Her door shunts open.
000
That's it. She can't sit back anymore.
Samus summons her armor and cycles through her visors until she can make out the door's lock panel. She fires a missile into it, yanks off the dented panel, and detaches the shutting mechanism.
The door opens just a crack, and she digs her fingers between it, yanking it open.
The crew deck descends into chaos.
Adrian is already mid-grapple with one of them, having pulled him into a headlock, cornering herself and using him as a living shield. Another charges Samus from her left to rifle-butt her, and she responds mercilessly, unleashing a missile directly into his chest.
The one atop the high catwalk switches targets from Adrian and opens fire on Samus. Two shots ring out from the lower stairwell, one for the pirate's head, the other for his heart. It's a remarkably accurate sequence of shots. Samus glances at their source; Dr. Jha gracefully extracts herself from the center stairwell, taking cautious glances down each side of the walkway. She gestures toward the bridge with her head. "Samus dear, incoming."
Another steps out from the bridge, panicking and drawing his weapon. Samus is already in the air, chambered back, and carries her momentum into his helmet, cracking his visor with her cannon as she lands. He crumples to the ground like wet cardboard.
Adrian still struggles with her pirate. She's dragged him to the ground, but he still fights to get free, scrambling against her grip. Kaia joins Samus on the main walkway, appraising the sight and holding her sidearm beside her head with a raised pinky. "Adrian, sweetheart. Despite what impression you might get from holodives, it is quite difficult to chokehold someone into unconsciousness. Release him please."
"What?" Adrian gasps, wincing as the pirate elbows her in the ribs. Kaia makes a swirling motion with her hand, indicating to get on with it. Adrian stares at her, huffing and bewildered by her calm demeanor, then lets go.
The pirate immediately flips on a hand and knee, raising his rifle at her. Kaia's expression maintains its unimpressed frown as she levels her pistol and perfectly places single shots in his chest and head.
Samus and Adrian glance at each other in silent shock, then back to their therapist. She looks between them both and shrugs with her hands in the air. "What? We only need one of them alive," she says, gesturing to the one Samus knocked out.
The sound of an engine reverberates up the central hall of the ship. Samus dashes for the cargo bay. "Free Chowa!" she calls behind her as she runs.
She makes it to the edge of the cargo ramp just in time to see the pirate vessel lifting off. All that gunfire gave them the warning they needed.
Samus charges her beam, taking aim at the fleeing vessel. At that moment, an explosion detonates within the Crosshair.
00000
Questions:
1. What are your thoughts about Kaia after this chapter?
2. Does the pirate's plan to contain the crew feel effective, or is there an obvious opening the crew doesn't take advantage of?