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Author of 8 Stories |
Updated as of Feb. 27, 2007
Dedication:To Guardian-381, my fan fiction kindred spirit, and to whatever fans I have.
Disclaimer:This story contains material of a mildly sexual nature between members of the same gender. If such content offends you or makes you uncomfortable, please refrain from reading.
Readers are also advised that while this story is based upon the game Escape Velocty: Nova created by Ambrosia Software and ATMOS, certain parts, in terms of continuity and detail, may not strictly adhere to those elements in said game. Thus, please guard an open mind regarding such continuity or detail issues while reading, and/or when reviewing.
NOVA
Chapter 1 - The Kane Band
The shuttle chugged off, edging away at sub-light speeds to put a safe distance between itself and the artificial gravity of the station. It couldn't enter hyperspace yet. Try and create a stable hyperspace field too close to the a planet or a spaceport, and it'll collapse right away. Any good pilot knew that.
Hell, everybody knew that.
But for the young man sitting in the makeshift passenger compartment of the old Sigma Shipyards A128 freighter, the novelty of space flight procedure had long since worn off. He'd traveled too many times to be impressed by routine. He sat in a corner of the large cargo bay atop a smooth, metal container carrying who-knew-what to who-knew-where. The boy didn't really care.
He brushed a lock of long, wavy brown hair off his forehead. Every so often he'd glance out the porthole, but there was nothing to see but endless space, the dead black punctuated by dots of white and yellow. From the ship's point of view, the massive Port Kane was now just a wink in the distance, identified only by the odd Terrapin freighter or Federation patrol ship passing through.
They'd be hitting the hyperspace engines soon. The boy stood, stretching his legs, rubbing a scratch on his arm tenderly. He'd have some lasting memories of Port Kane. Bad ones. He didn't look forward to the dreams he'd be having tonight.
He flipped his hair back out of his dark green eyes, a look of disgust passing momentarily across his face when he noticed how greasy his hair had gotten. When was the last time he washed it? How long had it been since he'd been able to take a shower?
He wiped his nose, glancing again out the porthole. They still hadn't gone to hyperspace. Good thing, too, he thought. On a little freighter this old, he didn't trust the inertial dampeners to stop him from being tossed all over the bay.
He wearily wandered to the back of the cargo bay and sat down, leaning against the wall and holding onto the strap of a nearby container. He may as well be ready, if this thing ever went to hyperspace. He sighed. He couldn't wait to be out of Kania. Stupid place. But then, nowadays, the Kane Band wasn't such a desirable spot, either.
The back of his head touched the cold metal wall behind him as he thought about it. Earth. The beating heart of the Federation. He pictured the white clouds covering the blue oceans and greenish-brown landscapes. He pictured the dull metal ring around the planet, and the support posts that kept it attached to the surface. The boy had seen pictures – no holo-images, but some really ancient satellite shots – of what the Earth had looked like without the Kane Band. It had looked like a regular planet. A normal planet. And now... it looked too damn important to be normal.
The youth felt a sudden surge behind him, from the engines, and he braced himself. The little craft was finally making the jump. About time, too. He glanced at the porthole, at the stars beginning to streak by as their speed increased. He closed his eyes, feeling the acceleration, knowing it would only be a few more seconds before they were in transit.
There was a flash, and the muffled sound of a sonic boom as the little ship crossed the barrier into hyperspace. The ship vibrated for a few seconds, and some of the cargo containers in the bay threatened to fall upon him, but thankfully they remained where they were. Soon the shaking stopped, the inertial dampeners finally kicked in, and the young man decided it was safe enough to stand.
He walked to the porthole, sighed. They'd be in transit to the Tichel system for a day or so, refuel on Viking, and then make another jump to the Sol system... and Earth. He snorted. He remembered when the ship's captain had discussed the itinerary. There were only a few ships still in service that could only do one jump at a time. Usually, those ships didn't bother going anywhere. They were sold for scrap metal.
Not this one, though.
He sighed. According to the shuttle's specifications, it should have been able to make three consecutive jumps without having to refuel. Then again, this one was so old and decrepit that the boy found himself thanking his lucky stars that they'd made it into hyperspace at all.
There was a sound behind him, but he didn't bother to look. He just stared out the porthole as the rusty metal door opened, and the captain entered. He wasn't really old, but he definitely wasn't young. Probably around forty-five, the boy thought. The man's hair, was mostly grey and wispy, though there were a few strands that still held their original black colour. He'd been drinking too much beer during his time on Port Kane; the boy could smell the alcohol on his breath from across the room. He hadn't shaved in a while, and his clothes were stained and worn.
The man took a few paces toward him. "We're in hyperspace now," he said gruffly. "We got a day 'til we get to Viking. Hope you're bloody happy."
The youth chuckled half-heartedly. "Thanks."
"Don't you be thankin' me yet, ya runt. The trip's only just started." He crossed his arms. "Hey, what'd you say your name was?"
The seventeen-year-old finally turned to look at the captain, fixing him with an icy stare. "I didn't."
"Well, out with it, then. Not polite to mooch a ride and not give your name."
The young man sighed. "Nova."
The captain smiled sarcastically, showing off a set of teeth that had long since been deprived of brushing. "There, now, that's better, ain't it?"
Nova turned back to the porthole. He pretended to be interested in the way the stars stretched out in long lines of light as the shuttle trudged through hyperspace. He remembered the name of the vessel now: the Lucky Anchor. That fit, he thought.
The captain cleared his throat audibly, and Nova looked at him again, as much as he disliked doing so. He'd been hoping to delay this part of the voyage as long as possible... perhaps indefinitely. Yeah, right,he thought. There's a joke.
"Now, what about our agreement?" said the old man, hooking his thumbs into his belt loops. "You're not getting this ride for nothing, you know."
Nova knew. He didn't have a single credit within reach, which was why he'd been wandering around the docks on Port Kane aimlessly for the last three days. Without any money, it's hard to hitchhike. Today he'd found this man, who agreed to offer his services as a pilot in exchange for Nova's own as a member of a different trade.
A nastier trade, sometimes, he thought.
Nova closed his eyes momentarily, visualizing anything he could other than what he was about to do. Desperate times call for desperate measures, he reminded himself.
Already the man's hand was on his zipper. "Hop to it, boy. It's a long ride."
Don't remind me, Nova thought, as he walked over and sank to his knees.
"Pleasure doing business with you," he had said before Nova disembarked. "A real... pleasure." He'd winked as Nova started down the ramp. He'd even grabbed the boy's rear as he started to descend. Now, he heard the boarding ramp begin to close, and he started away from the landing zone as quickly as possible. The old bastard would be refueling here before he left for the Alphara system, and Nova didn't want to run the risk of seeing him again.
Once he'd put enough space between him and the cursed ship, which would undoubtedly provide him with more nightmares, he glanced around again, heading in the direction of the bar. The Kane Band was a place he knew very well, and despite the fact he couldn't see the place behind all the crowds and their ships, he knew exactly where to go.
He shivered again. "Fuck," he said aloud. He hoped that some of his friends would be in the bar today. Well, not so much friends as colleagues, he admitted. They were all in the sex trade, and all worked for the same man, Dorgan Cosmo. Sometimes, the work paid well. Other times, you could barely afford to eat, if at all. And other times, Nova thought with a grimace, you could end up stuck for a month in Kania after being the wager in a bet.
He felt dubiously safer on the Kane Band, knowing that his colleagues wouldn't be far away. Cosmo always kept five or six around the spaceport, some in the darker corners and others checking the arriving ships for tourists. Tourists were always easy marks. And there were many foreigners, some of them from as far as Dunroamin, who'd heard about Cosmo's set-up on the Kane Band and wanted in.
He had to face facts: Cosmo and his boys were famous. Even the disgusting old captain of the Lucky Anchor had heard of them, which was how the teenager managed to secure a ride in the first place.
Sometimes Nova was amazed that the Feds hadn't been tipped off yet. Or maybe they had, and they just didn't care. That sounded like the Feds to him. They were too occupied with things on the Auroran border to worry about little problems like teenage prostitution.
And that suited Nova just fine.
He glanced again around the spaceport. It was busier than usual today. There were the usual masses of trading ships: Terrapins, Pegasus freighters, the odd Star Liner and even a Leviathan. There were some Starbridge fighters, a Thunderhead, and an old Asteroid Miner. Nova gazed longingly at a Starbridge. Sleek shape, high speed, tough and durable. He dreamed of one day saving up enough money to buy one.
But that'd be a long time from now.
Nova finally spotted the bar, Kane's Lubritorium, almost completely hidden behind an illegally parked Viper. He didn't mind. That meant less people in the bar. Nova didn't like crowds. He rounded the vehicle and pushed open the familiar swinging door, entering the musty atmosphere of one of the most notorious joints on the Kane Band.
Just as he'd thought, the place wasn't busy. Two Fed officials were talking to a man sitting on a stool at the counter. The owner of the Viper out front, he suspected. There was a stunning blonde woman in a booth in the corner looking disgustedly at a drunk who'd decided to try and win her heart. Good luck, thought Nova. He'd seen her before, and he'd also seen what happened when someone tried to flirt with her.
He finally spotted some of Cosmo's boys sitting at a small booth near the door. There were three of them, of which Nova only recognized two, which was odd; he'd thought he had known every face in the bunch. But then again, he had been gone for a month.
He walked over and sat down, getting waves from the two boys he knew and a narrow-eyed analysis from the one he didn't. Sitting beside him, to his right, was a short, dark boy named Jared. He was a popular one among Cosmo's customers, and it was obvious why. He was very well built, boasting sizeable muscles for a fifteen-year-old, but still maintained a cute, young look.
The other boy that Nova knew, sitting across from him, was an eighteen-year-old named Sven. Originally from Sirius Prime, if he remembered correctly. He had a disorganized mop of dark red hair and a scar above his left eye that Nova didn't remember him having. He was wearing a sleeveless vest with no shirt underneath, showing off his chest.
The other boy, as Nova had thought, was new, and he looked very young. He sat in the corner of the booth, opposite Jared, and sipped nervously from his glass of Band Brand cola. His blond hair was cut very short, except for his bangs, which hung down in front of his brown eyes. He wore a tight-fitting t-shirt and a timid frown.
"So," said Jared, taking a drink from his beer, "how was Port Kane?"
"Ah, fuck," said Nova, putting his forehead in his palm. "Don't ask me about Port Kane."
Jared chuckled. "The way you talk, sounds like you been to hell and back. What took you so long, anyway? You were supposed to be back two days ago. Dorgan was flipping out. Said he wanted you at the Office, soon as you got back."
"Yeah, well, Dorgan can shove it. Next time he wants to gamble on the fucking Viper races, he can use someone else's ass." He waved at the bartender, who nodded and began to prepare a drink.
"Shit, Nova," said Sven. "When they can get yours, nobody wants our asses."
"Dorgan can still shove it." He sighed. "If you really want to know, the cheap old bastard on Port Kane tossed me out after the month was up. Had to hitchhike to get back here. And that wasn't pleasant, neither."
The bartender presently appeared with Nova's drink, flat and warm as usual. "We ain't seen you much around here, lately," he said to the boy. "What you been doing?"
"Cosmo lost a bet," he replied, taking a sip of his beer. "Been out in Kania for a month."
The man sighed. "Damn. Well, I hear Cosmo got some guy out here a couple of days ago, askin' your price. He was offerin' quite a bit, as I hear. He might still be around, if you're interested."
Nova scratched his head. "What does 'quite a bit' mean in numbers?"
"Somethin' to the tune of 50,000 credits. Not sure, really."
The other boys goggled. "Shit, man!" said Jared. "You'd be crazy to pass that up!"
"Yeah..." Nova had to admit that much. The last time a customer paid that much for anyof Cosmo's boys, it was before he'd even hired on. And he needed the money, too. He sniffed, clearing his nose. "We'll see. I'm too damn tired right now. I'll talk to Cosmo tomorrow."
"All right," said the bartender. "That drink's on me. Looks like you could use it."
"Thanks."
Once the man had returned to his counter, Nova glanced over at the new face. "Who's this? A new recruit?"
Sven nodded. "Yeah, his name's Minnik. He doesn't talk much yet."
"How long he been on?"
He shrugged. "A week, maybe a little more." He turned to Minnik, brushing a stray lock of red hair from his face. "How long's it been now?"
The young boy looked up. "Week and a half."
"How old are you?" asked Nova.
"Twelve."
"Jesus!" Nova slumped back. "Cosmo's out of his mind! He'll be taking on ten-year-olds next!" He shot a look at Minnik. "No offense."
The blond boy shook his head. "None taken. I got nowhere else to go, is all. I just do what I know how to do."
The other three nodded. "Yeah, that's how it works with us," said Jared. "And damned if anyone cares if we live or die."
"Cosmo cares," said Sven. "He'd be in the poor house without us."
"Symbiotes," said Nova. "He needs us and we need him."
The other boys nodded solemnly. Then Nova glanced around. "Is Iris on duty? I need to talk to him."
Jared shook his head. "He had a booking on Europa yesterday, but nothing today. He's probably back at the Office."
Nova nodded. The Office was the affectionate term for the dingy old place from which Cosmo ran his business. There were shared living quarters for all the boys, but a typical employee would spend less than half the year there. The other half, he'd be on duty in another system, or somewhere in hyperspace coming or going.
He gulped the last drops of his drink, and stood. "I guess I'm heading back there now, then. I may as well talk to Dorgan, too. Anyone else coming?"
Jared shook his head. "I've got a booking in an hour, and Sven heads out on a Star Liner in three."
Nova whistled. "A Star Liner, huh? Some dude on a pleasure cruise?"
Sven nodded, grinning. "I'm gonna be spending the next week in the lap of luxury, and get paid for it! Sometimes I love this line of work."
Nova rolled his eyes, and glanced at Minnik. "What about him?"
"I'm taking him to my booking," said Jared. "Showing him the ropes. He ain't doing solo yet."
Nova nodded, remembering his first days. For the first few weeks, the newcomers only went on threesome runs; it was easier to train them that way.
"Good luck," he said to Minnik, and headed for the exit, waving goodbye to the bartender on his way out. As he headed for the transport drop-off, he wondered how many new guys had hired on since he left. He hated being out of touch. And he'd been with Cosmo the longest, since he was thirteen. It wasn't right for him to be out of touch. He was the one that was supposed to know everything. He made a mental note to check the roster as soon as he got back to the Office.
Several minutes later, he found the Kane Band transport loading passengers. The transport was a modified Cargo Drone, whose small bay had been changed to a passenger compartment. There were three that launched from this spaceport. One traveled west along the Kane Band, one traveled east, and the third took passengers to the surface of the planet, where they could catch other transports to get them where they needed to go.
One of the only reliable things about the Kane Band, Nova thought.
He filed into the line for the transport going east, and soon found himself sitting in the cramped and overstuffed passenger section of the modified Cargo Drone. He sighed. These rides always seemed to take longer than they actually did.
He felt the drone lift off from the landing pad, and he settled himself in for the hour-long ride to the Entertainment District.
Here in the E.D., Cosmo kept at least a dozen to fifteen boys nearby, ready to either seduce a sexually deprived-looking tourist or grant the requests of a knowing customer. Since the few Feds that served in the E.D. never actually paid attention to the goings-on within, men generally felt at ease visiting the Office, and there were even some regulars who always chose the same young man time after time.
Nova had debated for a long time whether any of these facts were good or bad. He had temporarily settled on good; after all, he earned his money through Cosmo's business. He had quite a bit saved up, too. Unfortunately, as it turned out, Port Kane hadn't had a branch of his bank from which he could withdraw enough credits to return to Earth. Oh, well, he thought, I got here anyway.
At any rate, he was intent on saving up enough money for his own ship and finding his way out of the sex trade once and for all. So far, he'd only managed to store 200,000 credits, nowhere near enough for a decent ship. But one day, he resolved, that Starbridge would be his.
It was a fairly long walk from the drop-off to the Office, but he rarely noticed. Part of his mind would instinctively be looking for easy marks. The innocent-looking men that wandered around in the dark alleys, or the important-looking ones, the businessmen, that would otherwise have no reason to be in the E.D. at all. With Nova's trained eye, he was able to spot several between the transport and the Office, some of which were heading in the same direction he was.
It wasn't long before he reached the place, eyeing it with mixed distaste and fondness. It was tucked away in an alley, sandwiched between a restaurant and a cheap motel. At first glance, the Office looked like a privately owned home, which was exactly how Cosmo wanted it to look. There was nothing to indicate its presence besides the small door set in the metal wall of the alley, so that essentially one wouldn't find the Office unless one knew where it was.
Nova pushed open the swinging door and cast a gaze around the familiar place. After a month, it looked as dirty and downtrodden as ever. He was amazed that a place that seemed so disreputable could have such a good reputation.
He couldn't help wondering if he'd helped that reputation along somewhat.
But he pushed that thought out of his mind for the moment, searching the dim entrance hall for any sign of the boy named Iris. One of the few close friends that Nova had, Iris had originally come from the surface of the planet Earth, a small desert village in Egypt. He'd ventured up to the Kane Band searching for a better life, and instead came face-to-face with poverty and near-starvation. It was Dorgan Cosmo that found him wandering the alleys of the E.D. and took him in, only two months after Nova had hired on.
Nova glanced around the small room, but didn't see his friend anywhere. The doors leading to Cosmo's office and to the boys' living areas were closed, and the only person in the room was the receptionist, Frank Almone. Frank had once been a boy on the "Hot List," the list of the most popular boys, of which Nova was currently at the top. When Frank outgrew the business, he begged Cosmo to give him a job, any job. Cosmo had given in, providing him with the receptionist work and his own living quarters. Privately, Nova thought that Frank was insane, never wanting to leave. For his own part, he couldn't wait to get out of the Office.
Nova headed for the boys' bunks, pausing only to check the roster of employees currently serving the business. He breathed out a sigh of relief when he saw that Minnik was the only new addition since he'd left. Nova didn't like uncertainty. He pushed open the door to the bunks, noticing that Frank hadn't even noticed he'd come and gone. Some receptionist, he thought.
As he walked into the bunkroom, he glanced around, looking for an unoccupied bed. Since Cosmo's boys came and went so often, it was pointless to try and claim a permanent bunk. Instead, whenever they were going to be staying at the Office for an extended period of time, they'd just find the nearest empty bed and toss their belongings at the foot. He saw plenty of backpacks and duffels, but the room was otherwise empty.
It was then that Nova realized that he didn't have his belongings with him. He mentally cursed, remembering that he'd given them to Cosmo to hold on to for the duration of his month's stay in Kania. Looks like I've got to talk to him after all, he thought.
He glanced again around the large room, and then finally spotted Iris at the far end. He was sitting on his bed, his back to the door. He hadn't heard Nova enter; he was hunched over something, absorbed in his task.
Nova grinned, and then tiptoed across the room, between the beds, until he eventually stood directly behind Iris. He could see what he was doing now. He had a small pile of credit chips in his lap, and was counting the total. Nova suddenly put his hands over the other boy's eyes, and said: "guess who?"
He heard Iris laugh, and he took his hands away as the sixteen-year-old stood up, hopped over the bed, and gave him a friendly hug. Nova then flopped back on the bed behind him, noting that it was unoccupied. He sighed, feeling the rubbery mattress and scratchy blankets beneath him.
"Hey, man!" said Iris. "Where were you? You were supposed to be back two days ago!"
Nova shook his head. "Long story."
"Well, let's hear it. I'm off duty until tomorrow, so we can catch up all we want."
A sigh, and then Nova explained the grim details of his stay on Port Kane, outlined the three days he spent wandering the station's spaceport, and finally told of the nasty old captain of the Lucky Anchor. "He even grabbed my ass as I headed down the ramp," he said. "Dirty old son of a..."
Iris's dark face and eyes showed a look of mixed disgust and humour. "Sounds like you had a hell of a month. Mine was boring, you know, same as usual. Got a 20,000 credit booking last week, though."
Nova grinned. "Sweet deal! How much you got now?"
The younger boy shook his head. "Only 90,000. Shit, I'm gonna be here forever..." A dreamy look passed across Iris's face. "You know, I was in the shipyard off the spaceport the other day, and they had an awesome looking Valkyrie in there. Only 500,000 credits..."
Nova laughed. "A Porsche! You mean to tell me you're planning on getting a Porsche?"
"Hey," said Iris, "why not? They're stylish!"
"Hah," said Nova, picturing the old Porsche Valkyrie. A big blue cylinder, pretty much, with a couple of wings attached to the rear and three classic-style combustion engines. Not exactly his dream vehicle.
Iris shook his head. "Whatever. The boss said he wanted you to go see him when you got back, eh? He was pulling his hair out a couple days ago. Some guy was in here with a hell of an offer, from what I hear."
Nova nodded. "I heard he put up a 50,000 credit deal."
Iris whistled. "Now there's a booking! You think you blew it?"
The older boy scoffed. "How? I wasn't here to blow anything. Cosmo wants to blame anyone, he can blame that cheap friend of his." He stretched. "I need to see him today, anyway. He's got all my stuff."
"Go now, then. He's here for the rest of the day."
"Later," said Nova, leaning forward, "but I was thinking. You and me both want to get out of here, right?"
"Right," said Iris curiously.
"And we want to leave in our very own ships, right?"
"Right."
Nova looked at his clasped hands. "That's why I was thinking... I mean, a Starbridge needs a two-person crew, right? And together, we've already got nearly 300,000 credits..."
"Wait," said Iris. "You want to pool our funds and buy a Starbridge? For us?"
He nodded. "I mean... well, you're really the only friend I've got, one I can trust, anyway. And we both want the same things. It makes sense."
Iris sighed. "I don't know, man... you think we can do it? We still need double of what we got."
"And enough for modifications," Nova added, "but I think we can do it. We saved up this much, didn't we? And what if this 50,000-credit gig is for real? That'd help a lot."
The younger boy scratched his chin, grinning. "You really want to do this, huh?"
Nova nodded. "And I want you to be there with me when I take off from this shit-hole forever."
Iris put his hand forward, and Nova shook it. "Brother, you've got yourself a deal. But go see Cosmo now. If you can still get that 50,000, I say go for it."
"Here's hoping," said Nova, and promptly stood and headed out of the bunkroom.
No sooner was he in the reception area than Frank's dry voice floated at him from behind the counter. "Well, well, well. Look what the cunjo dragged in."
Nova sighed. "Nice to see you, too, Frank."
"Sure," he replied. "Whatever you say. I was hoping I'd seen the last of you when you left for Port Kane. I heard the guy you were off to see was into extreme S&M."
He was, thought Nova, grimacing as he remembered how painful most of the month had been. But he kept it to himself. "You should go and see him sometime. You'd probably have enjoyed it, you sick bastard."
Frank snorted derisively. "You really do think you're all that, don't you? Don't forget, you're sitting pretty in my spot on the Hot List, Nova, and if I were still in the business, you'd be struggling to catch up."
Nova rolled his eyes and pushed open the door to Dorgan Cosmo's office. The office in the Office. He shook his head. That line was beyond old at this point.
Cosmo was there, as predicted, and as soon as he saw who it was walking through the door, he stood, his face a mixture of reds and purples. Cosmo was a tall, thin man, and tended to wear clothes that didn't suit his image. Sure, he was rich enough to buy the expensive, flowing garments that he enjoyed wearing, but underneath them was a rough, temperamental personality. His black hair was tousled about on his head, and he hadn't shaved in several days. Because of me, Nova thought.
"Where have you been?" said Cosmo, rounding his desk and moving so close to Nova that he could smell the beer on the man's breath. "I've been looking all over for you! Think you're pretty funny, bouncing around this place like you're on vacation?"
Nova was taken aback. He hadn't even been on the planet for the last three days, and Cosmo didn't realize it. "For your information," he said, "the fucker you sent me to live with didn't even spot me a lift back. I had to thumb it."
"What?!" Cosmo threw his hands in the air and leaned on his desk. "Wait till I get my hands on him..." He shot a look a Nova. "Where'd you get the credits to hike back, anyway?"
"Didn't. Had to give the guy the full service. Free of charge."
Cosmo's head slumped forward, and he sighed. "Shit. So when did you get back?"
"An hour ago," Nova replied. "Stopped in at the Lubritorium for a few minutes, came back here. I heard something about a good offer."
Cosmo, head in his hand, scoffed. "'Good offer.' Yeah, you could say that. Guy stopped in here a couple days ago, some dude by the name of Harrison. Shot me up with a fucking unbelievable deal. He owned some casino or something, over on Viking. Tichel system, you know the place. Said he was looking for someone to 'entertain' his son. Birthday present." Nova looked at him strangely, but he waved his hand. "Fuck, I didn't want to ask. Anyway, he wanted you specifically. Wouldn't take anyone else."
Nova shuddered involuntarily. Viking. Even during the short time he'd been there in the Lucky Anchor, he'd been uneasy. Viking was the most blatant proprietor of pirated and illegal goods and ships in Fed space. Only one hyperspace jump away from Earth, which proved the Feds weren't paying attention. But Viking was dangerous, too. Lots of criminal activity there.
"So," said Nova, resolving to wait before making up his mind, "how much was this unbelievable deal? I heard something to the tune of fifty thousand."
Cosmo looked Nova squarely in the eyes. "Try something to the tune of five hundred thousand."
Nova nearly fell over. Five hundred thousand credits. Iris could have bought his Valkyrie with that much. It was a while before the boy felt his voice return to him. "You're pulling my leg. You're fucking leading me on."
"Yeah, that's what I said," Cosmo replied. "He was dead serious."
"But..." said Nova, unsure of what he wanted to say. "But why? Why would he offer that much? He either wants to get rid of his life savings, or... well, maybe there's something he's not telling us. And how much of it do I get, anyway?"
"That's just it," he said. "He only named your share. You do this, you get 500,000 big ones to yourself."
Nova had to sit down. "Five hundred thousand... Which means your share must be..."
"Substantial," said Cosmo. "That's why I wanted to run this one so badly. I don't know if he's still in the system now. Said he had to head home in time for his son's birthday, which is tomorrow. If he wanted to make it, he'd have to have left by now."
Nova sighed. His one chance to make it off the Band in a single sweep, and he'd missed it. He was about to ask more when there was a knock. Seconds later, Frank's head appeared in the doorway.
"Sorry to interrupt," he said in his typical, annoyingly flirtatious manner, "but there's a client here to see you, Mr. Cosmo."
The old entrepreneur sighed. "Fine. I'll be with him in a few minutes. Nova, you're free for now. I'll see if I haven't got anything lined up for you tomorrow."
Nodding, and still slightly in shock over what had happened with this Mr. Harrison, Nova headed out of Cosmo's office, stepping out of the way to allow the client to pass by on his way in. This client was eyeing him with interest, but Nova wasn't paying attention. He was thinking. The one question still on his mind was why? Why in the name of Kel'ar Iy had this man offered up half a million for this job? Why was it so important to him? Or was he just rich?
Nova then stopped, closed his eyes, and sighed in annoyance. He'd forgotten to ask Cosmo for his belongings. He looked back to the door, wondering if he should interrupt. Cosmo had apparently not been expecting this client, so it couldn't be too important. He decided to head back and ask the question.
He heard Cosmo's voice as he walked into the office. "I'm just glad you hadn't left yet. Why, if you did, we'd never be able to provide for your son, now would we? I'll be happy to go and get him now, if you're in a hurry."
"That'd probably be best," said the client, a large man with a thick beard. "This isn't the first time our vessel has had engine trouble."
Nova took the opportunity to clear his throat audibly, and Cosmo looked up. Then he smiled broadly. "Ah, and here's the slippery rascal, now." He stood up and put his arm around the teenager, who was now both confused and nauseated. "Nova, my boy. Let me introduce you to Mr. Harrison." He emphasized the man's name pointedly. "How would you like to go with Mr. Harrison on a trip down to Viking?"
It took Nova a split second to understand what was going on, and he extended his hand to Mr. Harrison, suppressing a grin. "It's nice to meet you," he said. "I'm sorry I missed you the last time you came to call."
The big man shook his head. "No worries. My ship broke down, so I was stranded in the spaceport for a while. I saw you boarding the transport, so I decided to come back here. Lucky thing, huh?"
Nova nodded, thinking better of asking the man how he'd known what he looked like. "Very lucky. I'd be happy to be your son's birthday present." Understatement of the year, he thought to himself. Five hundred thousand credits for a booking with a young guy. This is my day!
Mr. Harrison sighed. "Sixteen years old tomorrow," he said. "I'll tell you more about him on the way to Viking."
Nova nodded again. "Sure. I'm ready to go. I just need to run and finish something first."
At a nod from Cosmo, who was looking as if he'd won the lottery, he dashed out the door, and leaned heavily against the wall, breathing hard, but nearly in tears. He'd done it. He'd gotten the booking. He didn't blow it after all.
He tried to sort out all the implications, doing the math in his head. He had 200,000 credits saved up already, and Iris had 90,000. Put that together with the earnings he'd get from this booking... His smile widened. Nearly 800,000 credits. They could do it. They could be off this iron rock forever. And he decided he couldn't hold the news back any longer.
He bolted into the bunkroom, calling his friend's name. "Iris! Iris!!"
Iris turned away from his credit chips and looked at Nova curiously. "What? What is it? What's going on?"
Nova replied by giving him a hug that lifted him off his feet and left him short of breath. "You'll never believe this! You're never going to believe this!" he was saying. Over and over again he repeated himself, too delirious with joy to stop.
He finally let the younger boy go and sat down on the bed, trying to calm himself down. But he was far too excited, and started pacing instead. "You remember that deal we were talking about?" he said.
"Yeah, yeah. I do. What's up?"
The seventeen-year-old grinned broadly. "Listen to me, Iris. If I pull this gig off, I come back here with five hundred grand! I could come back here with enough to get us off this rock for good!!"
Iris shouted with glee, and presently leapt up and wrapped Nova in his own tight hug. "I can't believe it! This is awesome! Tell me more!"
They broke apart, and Nova grasped Iris' shoulders. "I can't explain it all now, I've got to go soon. But I swear, when I come back, we'll leave, we'll get out of here permanently, and we'll do it in our very own ship. Just you and me, Iris. And we'll never come back!"
"Never!" the sixteen-year-old agreed. "Not on your life."
Nova nodded. "I need to go now... you be good, all right? Don't get into any trouble. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."
"Of course not." Iris clapped his hand on his friend's shoulder. "I'll be waiting, Nova. Come back rich."
"I will," he said. "Just wait and see." And with that, Nova turned and strode confidently out of the bunkroom. Iris watched him go, and sighed deeply as his friend vanished through the swinging door. Soon, he thought, they'd be on their way to starting new lives. And they'd never have to lift another finger for Dorgan Cosmo again.
Iris fell back on his bed, tears of joy beginning to form in his eyes. He'd never before felt this much hope, this much promise. Just thinking that soon, he and Nova would be taking off from the Kane Band spaceport for the very last time... He could barely contain brushed his hand across his pile of credit chips, and sighed again. This was the end of Dorgan, the end of the bookings, the end of all the uncertainty and fear. Iris' old life, Nova's old life... they were both over, and waiting to start anew.
And there was a whole universe out there waiting for them.
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