Earth Afire (The First Formic War) Read online

  “By taking my crew?”

  “Borrowing them,” said Arjuna. “I doubt any of them wants to starve to death.”

  “You’ve made your offer,” said Magashi. “We’re not interested.”

  “The wreckage is a gold mine. You have a problem. I have a solution.”

  “The wreckage is a battlefield. Will you pilfer from the dead?”

  “The dead have no use for their ships. I do.”

  “Why not use your own crew?” asked Magashi.

  “I will use my crew. But with more men I can double our efforts and salvage more before others arrive.”

  “Other vultures, you mean?”

  A flash of anger came to Arjuna’s eyes. “We are not vultures, madam. We are crows. Ours is an honest trade. There are buzzards and vultures in the Black, but my crew and I follow none of their ways. We harm no one and we abhor those who poison our industry. Ask any tradesman or salvage dealer. Arjuna is a man of his word. His methods are as gentle as a lamb.”

  “Even lambs bite,” said Magashi.

  “Yes, but we bite only to chew the food we have earned by the sweat of our labors.”

  “We’re not interested,” Magashi repeated.

  “And what of the men who hold those weapons?” asked Arjuna. “Does the woman speak for them? Would they like not five thousand credits and a job that pays better than the ones they have?”

  The men glanced at each other, curious how the others would respond. After a moment, when no one responded, Arjuna said, “Very well. Then I will ask you to return my money stick.”

  Magashi pushed it back to him. He caught it, slid it in his pocket, and bowed. “May your shelves never empty and your bellies never hunger.” He pushed off the floor and launched back toward the airlock.

  “Wait!” The word was out of Rena’s mouth before she could stop herself.

  Arjuna caught a handhold at the airlock and turned back. Rena flew to him and landed beside him. “You say men, but will you take women? Free-miner women?”

  “I would take one free-miner woman over four corporate men. Free-miners are skilled and hard laborers. Are you from a clan?”

  “Not a clan. A single ship. El Cavador. Or rather, that was our ship. It was destroyed in the Kuiper Belt by those you call the Pembunuh.”

  “Then you have my condolences. But if your ship was destroyed, how is it that you are alive?”

  “It’s a long story. But there are many of us here, and we are wearing out our welcome. If you can promise us protection from your crew and transportation to a depot, I can give you skilled laborers.” She had no idea why she trusted this man, but she did.

  Arjuna smiled. “You need not worry about my crew, Lady of El Cavador. What I have spoken is true. We are a family of crows, not vultures.”

  Family. The word reassured her. But only for a moment. Who was this man? Was she ready to put the women and children in his hands? He could be a murderer, for all she knew.

  No, there was kindness in those moon eyes.

  “As for taking you to a depot,” he said, “I give you my word on that as well. Once we salvage, we will make for a depot to trade. Should we part ways there, you are doing me a favor as well. I wouldn’t have to fly you all the way back here. Where are you headed?”

  “I don’t know,” she said. “But wherever home is, it’s not here.”

  “What is your name, Lady of El Cavador?”

  “Rena Delgado.”

  “And do you speak for your crew?”

  “I speak for no one but myself, but I believe my crew will come if I ask them to.”

  “Then you are not a woman to be trifled with if you have such sway and influence.” He gave her a measuring look. “Tell me how to safely remove an oxygen processor.”

  He was testing her. But the question was simple enough. There were four steps and three precautions to be mindful of. She recited them all, throwing in a few secrets that Segundo had taught that she doubted Arjuna knew about.

  The crow tried to hide that he was impressed. After a moment, as if considering her further, he said, “If you have twenty men and women as sharp as you, I will take them.”

  “We have more than twenty people,” said Rena. “And you will not get a single one of us unless you agree to take us all.”

  “How many?”

  “There are fifty-six of us.”

  Arjuna scoffed. “My shuttle isn’t that big, Rena of El Cavador.”

  “Then you can make two shuttle trips.”

  “And are all these people skilled laborers, or can I expect children and invalids among them?”

  “No invalids. But thirty-seven of them are children, yes. Some of them infants.”

  He scoffed again. “And what am I to do with thirty-seven more children on my ship? I have enough little mouths to feed already.”

  She was glad to hear that he had children on board. That was further evidence of family. Pirates didn’t carry children.

  “Our children work, sir. Not outside the ship, but many of them clean and wash and cook as well as any man or woman in your crew. They’ll earn their food.”

  “I need salvagers, not dishwashers.”

  “And you’ll get salvagers. Nineteen of them.”

  “How many of them are men?”

  “None,” said Rena. “We lost all our men.”

  She saw a hint of pity in his eyes. “Yours is a tale of sorrow, I see,” he said. He folded his arms and considered a moment. “Nineteen women and thirty-seven children. Most captains would laugh at such an offer.”

  “Most might. But you know better. By your own math, nineteen free-miner women are equal to seventy-six corporate men.”

  He threw back his head and laughed at that. A big booming laugh that surprised her. She didn’t think he had any humor in him, but there it was. “You use my own words against me, Rena of El Cavador. Very well. Come. Bring your nineteen women and thirty-seven children. If you salvage as quickly as you do calculations, I have need of you among my crew.”

  * * *

  “Are you out of your mind?” said Julexi.

  Rena was floating outside the storage room in the corridor with most of the women. A few others were inside the room, feeding and tending the children. “Keep your voice down,” said Rena. “You’ll frighten the children.”

  “I’ll frighten the children? I’ll frighten them? A ship of murdering vultures is what will frighten them, Rena.”

  “They’re not vultures,” said Rena. “They’re crows.”

  Julexi threw her hands up. “Vultures, crows, seagulls. What’s the difference? They’re all the same. They’re parasites. They feed off the dead and they kill whoever they fancy. We used to run from these ships in the K Belt, Rena. And now you want to join one of them? Have you lost your senses? We know nothing about this man. He could take us back to his ship and have his way with us.”

  “He has a family. They’re a lot like us.”

  “How would you know?” asked Abbi. “He’ll tell you anything to get us on his ship.”

  “I know because I met his family,” said Rena.

  The women stared at her. “What do you mean you met them?”

  “I made him take me back to his ship on his shuttle. I insisted on inspecting the vessel and meeting his family.”

  “You went on his ship?” said Julexi. “Alone?”

  “I wasn’t going to rush us all over there without knowing what we’d be getting ourselves into. They’ll put us in the cargo bay. It’s slightly bigger than the storage room here. I saw it. It’s clean. There are hammocks in there. And there’s food as well. I saw their supplies. There’s enough for all of us. If we work hard, we’ll be fine.”

  “There’s food here,” said Abbi. “We’re safer here.”

  “I don’t think we are,” said Rena. “Sooner or later we will make all the needed repairs. It’s only a matter of time before they ask us to leave. I’ve heard things.”

  “Gossip and the whispering
s of a handful of people,” said Julexi. “Magashi likes us. We do more work than most of her crew.”

  “Magashi may not have the say for much longer,” said Rena. “This is more than idle chatter I’m hearing. It’s not safe. I worry for the children.”

  “And throwing them to a flock of vultures doesn’t worry you?” said Abbi.

  “They’re not your children anyway,” said Julexi. “They’re ours.”

  Yes, thought Rena. They’re not mine. I gave up my only child. I sent Victor to Luna to warn the world. I have lost him just as I have lost Segundo.

  Aloud she said, “Somos familia. We are family. These children may not have come from my womb, but I love them like my own. Arjuna’s family is like that as well. I could sense it. They’re familia.”

  “You expect us to trust these people with our lives after one visit?” said Abbi.

  “We’ve been putting our lives in other people’s hands from the moment we left El Cavador,” said Rena.

  “That’s different,” said Julexi. “That was WU-HU. These are scavengers.”

  “He has offered to give any one of you a tour of his ship to meet his family. But we need to move quickly if we’re going to do that. He grows impatient.”

  “Impatient?” said Julexi. “And what other emotions of his should we fear? His rage? His lust?”

  “Will you shut up?” said Edimar. The fifteen-year-old popped out of the shadows. Rena hadn’t even noticed that Edimar had been listening. “I am so sick of you cutting everyone down. Everyone’s wrong but you. Everyone’s to blame. Well you know what? If you actually said something positive every once in a while, you might not be so miserable and people might actually find you tolerable.”

  Lola, Edimar’s mother, looked aghast. “Edimar! You will apologize to Julexi this instant!”

  “No,” said Edimar. “I won’t. Because every one of you knows it’s true, and you’re all too polite to say so. Well I’m not. If you want to stay here and wait for the Chinese to kick us out, Julexi, fine, but I’m going with Rena.”

  Julexi narrowed her eyes. “You spoiled little child. You’re worse than your dogging sister.”

  Lola slapped Julexi so fast and so hard, that it spun Julexi into the wall. Several women gasped. Julexi steadied herself, a hand to her cheek, shocked.

  Edimar’s sister had been Alejandra, whom the family had sent away when they feared that Alejandra and Victor might fall in love. Dogging, or marrying within the clan, was taboo, and even though Alejandra and Victor had done nothing wrong, the family had taken precautions. To accuse Alejandra of any impropriety was cruel and heartless. Rena was tempted to slap Julexi too.

  Lola’s voice was like ice. “You will never speak of my daughter again. Do you understand me? If you had a drop of Alejandra’s goodness and decency, it would be double what you have now.”

  Edimar stared, mouth agape. Rena was no less shocked. Lola was always so mild-mannered. She had never lashed out at anyone.

  Lola turned to Rena. “Edimar and I will do whatever the council decides. I trust your judgment. If you think it’s best to leave with this crow, if this is how we can get back on our feet, then I will salvage a hundred ships at your side.” She pushed off the wall toward the storage room door. “Come, Edimar. We’ve said our peace. Let the other women say theirs.”

  Edimar was still too stunned to move, staring at her mother as if seeing her for the first time. Then after a moment she came to herself and followed Lola inside.

  When they were gone Julexi said, “Did you see that? Did you see her slap me? She’s trying to divide us.”

  The hypocrisy of that statement almost made Rena laugh. But it would have been a sad and tired laugh had she done so. The sense of family was fading, she realized; the thread that stitched them together was unraveling and fraying at the edges. She couldn’t allow that. Segundo had asked her to keep them together, to keep everyone alive.

  “I’ll tell you what I want,” Rena said, realizing it was true as the words came to her. “I want us on a ship again. Not a crow’s ship or a corporate ship, but our ship. Just as El Cavador was and always will be. That is where we belong. We’re not going to get there by staying here. Here we have no future. Our work and welcome are drying up. Arjuna can help us move in the right direction. If you disagree speak up now.”

  They discussed it and then voted. A handful dug in their heels, but the majority—though nervous of the idea—was for going. Anything to get them closer to their own ship, they said. And in the end, even those who were against leaving came along. Staying with the group seemed safer than staying alone with WU-HU.

  Later, as the second group boarded the shuttle for Arjuna’s ship, Julexi stepped to the airlock with her bag and faced Rena. “If they rape us and kill our children, I hope God has mercy on you.”

  “I hope God has mercy on us anyway,” said Rena. “We need all the help we can get.”

  CHAPTER 8

  Beacon

  The blueprints on the wall in the engineering room looked nothing like what Lem had imagined in his head.

  “It’s still your idea, Lem,” said Benyawe. “Trust me. The design may look different from what you initially envisioned, but the principle is the same.” She was floating in front of him at the wall, stylus in hand.

  “I don’t care if it’s my idea,” said Lem. “Throw out my idea if it’s rubbish. Don’t feel handcuffed to anything I suggested. I only care that it works. I’m not conceited enough to think I have a better grasp of this than you do, Benyawe. Do whatever you think is best.”

  In truth it stung him slightly that she had changed the design a bit, even though he had fully expected her to do so. He wasn’t an engineer after all, and he only understood the science on the most fundamental level. Of course she was going to change it.

  He had commissioned her months ago to develop a replacement for the glaser, and at the time he had given her a suggestion for its design, fully expecting her to dismiss his idea outright, pat him on his little head, and tell him to stop playing in her sandbox. Instead, she had thought the idea worth pursuing and assembled a team of engineers to make it work. Now that nugget of an idea had grown into schematics and actual plans.

  “We call them ‘shatter boxes,’” said Benyawe. “As you know, the problem with the current glaser is that the gravity field spreads outward too quickly and too wide.”

  Lem hardly needed reminding of that. It had almost meant his life. Back in the Kuiper Belt, when they had fired the glaser at a large asteroid, the gravity field had grown so quickly and stretched outward so far that it had nearly consumed the ship and turned them all to space dust. Lem’s quick thinking was all that had saved them.

  Benyawe pointed to some crude drawings on the wall that looked like two cubes connected to each other by a long, coiling string. “Your initial idea was a device like a bola, with two small glasers on both ends that attach themselves to opposite poles of an asteroid.” She wiped the crude drawing away with a flick of her stylus, and floated over to the detailed schematics. “The shatter boxes operate the same way.”

  The cubes were now thick discs, and one of them was disassembled in the air, as if the whole thing had been photographed a microsecond after it exploded apart, revealing each of the individual pieces inside. “When they’re fired from the mining ship, they spin through space like a bola, which as it turns out, is a brilliant mechanism if we detach the cable from each glaser at just the right instant. The spinning motion and additional guidance from us will sling them to opposite sides of the asteroid, where these anchor braces will dig into the rock.” She indicated the teethlike claws on the sides of the shatter boxes. “All that’s left is pushing the button and letting the glasers rip the rock to shreds. The two gravity fields will interact, counter each other, and keep the destructive reach of the fields to a minimum.”

  “So it works,” said Lem.

  “In the computer models, yes. It’s much safer than the current design.”
/>   “Then why aren’t you clicking your heels in glee?” said Lem. “Or am I missing something?”

  “There is a problem, yes,” said Benyawe.

  “Which is?”

  “Money. The original glaser isn’t destroyed every time we use it. The shatter boxes are. They’re consumed in the gravity field along with everything else. That’s enormously expensive and would offset most of the profit we’d reap from mining the asteroid. It’s not cost effective.”

  “Then make it cost effective,” said Lem. “Use cheaper components and materials, shrink the size of the shatter boxes, remove anything that’s not absolutely essential. Do whatever it takes.”

  She was quiet a moment then asked, “Are you sure this is how we should be spending our time, Lem?”

  “How else would you be spending it?”

  “Finding a way to fight the Formics.”

  “My dear sweet Dr. Benyawe, what do you think you’ve been doing?”

  She seemed confused. “You want to fire these at the Formic ship?”

  “I want to use them however we can. If they can safely destroy asteroids, maybe they can safely destroy the ship or whatever happens to be inside it.”

  “We’ll never catch it before it reaches Earth. And if it enters Earth’s atmosphere, it’s beyond our reach. Plus it will take months to build these once we arrive at Luna.”

  “We’ll need to move this through production much faster than that,” said Lem. “We may not have months.”

  Lem’s wrist pad vibrated, signaling a message from the helm. He tapped it. “Go ahead.”

  Chubs’s voice said, “Long-range sensors have detected an emergency beacon.”

  “From where?”

  “We can’t determine its point of origin. Considering its trajectory however, it appears to have come from the Battle of the Belt.”

  Lem glanced at Benyawe and saw that her interest was piqued as well. The Battle of the Belt was the name the crew had given to the massive line of wreckage the sensors had found since flying closer to the Formics’ trajectory. The Massacre of the Belt would have been a more fitting name in Lem’s opinion, considering how one-sided the outcome had been. It was impossible to say what had happened exactly, but the amount of wreckage suggested that anywhere between fifty to one hundred mining ships had attacked the Formics in a coordinated assault. Sensors couldn’t identify the ships at this distance, but they were likely free miners and corporates alike, allied for once against a common enemy.