Black Dawn (28 page)

The BlackFleet remained guarding the destroyer and the debris
for several days while waiting for the Katsu government to send their
team. In that time the engineering staff worked double shifts trying to
piece the puzzle back together. Starting with the trajectories of the
shrapnel and working backwards they attempted to put the colony ship
back together – at least a virtual image of it in the computer. From
there they tried to locate the point of the blast that had devastated the
ship and the lives on it.

Despite the fact that no one in the crew had ever done anything
like this before, they plugged on determinedly and true to BlackFleet
tradition, succeeded.

A weary but triumphant Bon called from engineering for Lamont, Butler, Vennefron and Conrad-Kurita to meet him there. In answer to the questions on their faces, he pointed to a tiny blob of melted
metal fused to a piece of hull.

“
All right,” Ken said, “I’ll bite. What the hell is it?”
“Accurately put.” Bon walked over and picked up the specimen. “I consider it right out of hell anyway.” He handed it to Coy. “It’s
the single most powerful explosive I’ve ever seen in my life. And
most of it seems to have totally disintegrated once it hit space.”
“So where did you find some intact?” Venn asked, poking experimentally at the blob with his finger.
“On the destroyer.”
“What?!” the Katsu lieutenant yelped, involuntarily taking a
step back away from the sample. “I knew we had to get off that thing!”
“Actually, it was only on your ship because it was still attached to the piece of the other ship that landed in yours. We’ve gone
over every inch of the destroyer once we knew what we were looking
for and this is about all we found.” He paused dramatically. “However
it probably wouldn’t take a whole lot more than this, in its original
state, to make a really big hole. And if it were attached to say the
power core in one of the reactors…”
Coy pondered that one for a moment. “What did it look like in
its original state?”
Bon shook his head. “Wish I knew. Maybe not a lot different
than it does now. That would make it pretty hard to notice. A molecular scan would pick it up, if you knew to do one, but that’s about all.”
“So there’s no doubt it was a deliberate bomb,” Butler said.
“No doubt.”
“Murder. He’s murdered over 200 people this time,” Coy’s
eyes narrowed in fury. “The stakes have raised.”
“He?” Conrad-Kurita asked in puzzlement.
The BlackFleet officers looked at each other for a moment before answering. How paranoid would their self proclaimed mission
sound to an outsider, anyway? One way to find out.
“We believe we have evidence tying a lot of the pirate activity
in the Region together,” Lamont told him carefully. “The ‘he’ is just
our way of identifying that we believe this to be part of the pattern.”
“You think someone murdered all of those people on purpose?” The lieutenant seemed to have trouble grasping the fact.
“Murder would imply purpose, yes. But I don’t think it was
those particular people that –someone- had as a target. I think it was
simply part of the big picture.”
“So what is the target?”
Coy grimaced. “We’re still working on that one.”
When everyone else had departed Engineering for their own
responsibilities, Coy stayed behind to grab a word with Bon. “Raeph,
how extensive are the damages to the destroyer?”
He thought for a moment, pretty sure what the commodore
was thinking. “You mean can it carry these people back home safely?
Or will we end up ferrying them all the way back to Katsu?”
“Something like that,” Lamont said evasively.
Bon blew out a breath. “It will definitely take some clean-up.
The outside looks like Swiss cheese, but that’s all hull damage. Not
too
many internal systems were hit. I mean it’s certainly worth the time
and trouble to fix….But it’s not going to be able to carry people until
then. Sorry.”
“Hmm,” Coy rubbed its chin and thought for a moment more
before acknowledging the last remark. “No, that’s alright. I was just
thinking about…” it smiled, but didn’t finish the thought. “Good work
on the investigation. We’ll download everything to the Katsu ships
enroute here. You get some rest.”
“Aye, aye sir. No argument.”

Coy was a bit surprised by the diplomatic contingent that came
with the rescue team. The Katsu ambassador was welcomed aboard
the
Raven
with all due ceremony and escorted to Lamont’s quarters.
He and
his staff of four looked around the ship and the quarters with interest,
but not, Coy noted, surprise.

“
And what may I do for you gentlemen?” it asked as they, Butler and Asch seated themselves comfortably around the long table.
“Well, actually, Commodore, we were prepared to ask that
question ourselves, given what we had heard about you and your
fleet.”
Coy and Ken exchanged a puzzled glance at each other.
“Oh, and what is that?”
The ambassador smiled. Let me explain. Our government
happens to be on quite good terms with the Royal House of Tenetia.
We have all heard of your dramatic rescue of the King and his entourage first hand. As well as the terms of payment you requested.”
“I see.”
“Therefore, I have been sent with the authority to grant you
your, ‘Favor’, I believe it is termed.”
“Have you really?” Coy returned the man’s smile, but paused
for just a moment before continuing. “And you do realize that this Favor can be called in at any time. For anything I request?”
“Yes, yes. I even have it in writing.”
Coy took the document disk, inserted it into its scanner and
read the contents, nodding all the while.”Ambassador Ryuuzaki, I believe I would appreciate working with you and your government- if we
were to have any future association.”
Everyone in the room, including the BlackFleet personnel present, blinked and looked at one another in surprise.
“If, Commodore? I don’t understand…”
“Well, you see, in point of fact, I already have my Favor decided.”
“You do?” Ryuuzaki asked.
“You do?” Butler asked, a little quieter. He looked to Asch,
but even he only shrugged.
“Yes, I do. I want the destroyer.”
No one said anything for a few moments. Then Ryuuzaki
cleared his throat. “You want the destroyer.”
“Yes.”
“Our destroyer?”
“Yes.”
“The one floating outside right now. The one full of holes.”
“Yes, Ambassador. That’s the one.” Coy could tell by the
man’s unenthusiastic tone that he was not at all happy with this request, and was trying to make the ship as unattractive as possible.
Butler made a little hand waving motion. “Ah, Skipper, could I
talk to you for just a second?”
Lamont continued to address the ambassador. “I believe your
document entitles you to sign it over to me,” it told Ryuuzaki. “I am
asking you to do so.”
The ambassador spoke to his staff in a quiet tone before turning back to Lamont. “Our forces are not overly large, Commodore.
Are you willing to negotiate this?”
Coy shook its head.
“No, Ambassador. I sympathize with
your need for ships to defend your people. I happen to have the same
need myself. This is the Favor I am asking for.”
“Very well.” Still hesitant, the ambassador took the document
back and added his virtual signature and seal to complete the transaction.
“There is your ship.” He stood, therefore everyone else at the
table did likewise. “I believe I will return to mine and co-ordinate the
settling of the survivors. The Colonel that accompanied this trip will
take care of emptying the computers.”
“Thank you,” Coy put out a hand.
After a beat, the ambassador put on his best diplomatic smile
as he shook Coy’s hand. “You are welcome, Commodore. And good
luck with your acquisition.”
Ken barely waited until Asch had escorted them out before
pouncing on Lamont. “What in the universe are we going to do with a
junked ship?”
“Fix it up. Find a crew. Put it to work. Same as usual. I have
Bon’s assurance it’s worth repairing.”
“Usual? When exactly have we ever acquired a ship that was
more holes than space worthy metal?”
Coy wore a perfectly serious expression, “I thought you wanted a bigger fleet, Captain Butler. I get you a destroyer and 90 recruits
and all you do is complain!”
“A destroy
ed
ship and 90
farmers
. Forgive me for forgetting to
thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Now, grab a space suit and let’s take a tour
of the
Karasu
.”
“The
Kar
…” Ken began, then made a surrendering motion,
“Let me guess what it means.”
Coy nodded to the door. “Are you coming?”

By the time the BlackFleet had made a detailed inspection of
their “new” vessel, the Colonel had dumped any data their government
thought sensitive and the Katsu ships were ready to transfer the refugee
colonists for the trip “home”. That is until the colonists gave Ryuuzaki
an even bigger surprise.

“
They say they want to stay with you,” the ambassador told
Coy over the vidcom. He shook his head in dismay. “I don’t know
what gave them the idea that was an option.”

“
Actually, I did.”
“You….?” Now the ambassador frowned. “First our ship,
now our people. If I were a paranoid man I would wonder about all of
this.”
Coy took a breath, wondering itself about how much to try to
explain. “The BlackFleet is made up entirely of people who have lost
their lives fighting the good fight, so to speak. They want to right
some wrongs so that the same things don’t happen to others. A tall
order, I am aware, but that is our mission. These colonists have quite
literally, lost everything. I offered them the chance to belong somewhere where they could do some good for others the same way we
tried to help them. If some of them want to stay they are more than
welcome.”
Ryuuzaki still didn’t understand. “These are colonists, not
soldiers. What would you have them do?”
“These people are accountants, and cooks, and agriculturalists,
and experts in repairing obscure equipment. You don’t have people
doing those jobs on your military vessels?” Before he could answer,
Coy continued. “They gave up their old life just to have their new one
stolen from them. If they have the courage to start another one, why
would ,or should, you or I stop them?”
The Katsu ambassador started to argue more, then gave up
with a small shake of his head.
“The next time I think I am well
briefed on whom I will be dealing with, I think I will not believe it.
Very well, Commodore Lamont. Your “recruits” can stay right where
they are. There are some, at least, who have come to their senses and
wish to return home. Can you transport them, or shall we send our
shuttles back?”
Coy smiled best diplomatic smile and made the arrangements for the transfer. Then it went to meet the newest members of the
BlackFleet. Oh, and to inform Captain Butler to add 39 names to the
roster.
The scene was very much different than any former BlackFleet
interviews. Due to the number of people involved, the meeting was
held in the crew mess. The group was directed to divide themselves up
by specialty and go to areas around the room manned by Butler, Bon,
Ceal Byars, Schiff and Asch. Asch had the largest group and Schiff
the smallest, which surprised no one. What did surprise everyone was
not only the generous number speaking to Byars, but the gentleman
who walked up to Coy with pilot tattoos proudly displayed.
He was an older man, in fact older than most pilots still employed. His story, therefore, was understandable. He had been ready
to be dismissed by his sponsoring company due to age. He had requested the job of piloting the colonists as a last effort to escape or at
least put off retirement. There was no one else around that would take
a chance on him now. Except perhaps, the BlackFleet?
With the understanding that a shuttle would be the most he
piloted, at least for now, Jump Pilot Heyob happily went to collect his
uniform.
In all they ended up with eight medically trained personnel,
eight horticulturalists (which meant that they could at last bring their
hydroponics section on line and eat actual fresh food now and then),
five cooks (to cook the aforementioned fresh food) 2 more accountants
besides Kaneta, 15 that were – or could be engineers, 4 civil servants
that Coy had yet to permanently place and one certified Jump Pilot.
Not bad for a work.

The colonists had all been in good physical shape in expectation of the work involved in setting up a community on their new
world. But despite what Coy had told Ryuuzaki about the civilian type
jobs most of them would be doing, they still needed Fleet training.

At the very least Coy meant to see that they could all shoot
straight, knew basic self defense and first aid, and could tell the light
switches from the self destruct in engineering and on the emergency
bridge. And for the ones who looked like they were going to complain,
a viewing of the events during the battle for the
Raven
quieted them
right down. In the end, they astonished all the senior staff by not only
sticking it out down to the last man, but doing it well. But perhaps that
wasn’t so surprising considering these were people who had given up
everything they had ever known to help build a new world. No cowards here.

While the recruits were training, the
Karasu
was towed back to
Triton. And for the first time in BlackFleet history, Coy actually had
to pay cash for getting a job done. The renovations to the
Raven
and
Rook
had taken all the Favors that could be stretched to include ship
repair. Months before, Coy had let Asch loose to do some innovative
financing
with its personal monies and properties gained in the same card game
as the
Raven
. It was now extremely glad it had done so. When all was
said and done, the repairs were paid for and Coy was still left with one
piece of property on Servati – which was one more than it ever expected to use.

It took longer than Coy had hoped to do the repairs, renovations and obligatory black paint job on the
Karasu
. During the interim, Coy decided to take a few short term, low risk ‘contracts’. They
received a call
on the dedicated drop spot from the government on Tai Han. It seemed
they needed to transport some rather important people to Kabale and
wanted a little backup. Would the BlackFleet be interested in escort
duty?