Simone walked with me into the new ship. “She's going to change the terms on the business.”
“She thinks she is.” I said with a smile.
“But... Hunter, she...”
“Yeah, I know she can hack it.” I said. “She can alter as much of it as she wants and it's not going to make a lick of difference, because it will only affect things that happen after the changes.”
“What if she changes the registry date on the document?”
“It doesn't matter. There are reasons why there is galactic backup. It keeps everyone honest.”
“Even bounty hunters?” Simone asked with a smile.
“Especially bounty hunters.” I said. “Who better to appeal to about fraud than a faceless entity that enforces corporate contracts?”
Simone didn't have an answer for that.
“I've got to spend some quality time with Hailey, so I'll see you later.” I said and opened my room door.
“Quality time?” Simone asked.
“Bath time!” Hailey responded excitedly and Simone smiled as the door shut.
The next four days passed by and both ships arrived at the next jump point, where the pilots switched places. Gleas became the co-pilot and Deborah took over on the Udelis, while Jelly came back over to the new ship to co-pilot and Beatrice became the main pilot. It really bothered me that we had to do it this way; but, there was nothing else that could be done.
We did the next jump and the next, played musical chairs with the pilots and co-pilots, and by the time we arrived at the Dizahl System, all the pilots wholeheartedly agreed with me that flying the ships like that was difficult and was hard on their morale. None of them wanted to add new people, though. They were comfortable with their coworkers and didn't want to try to integrate someone new at this late stage in the salvage operation.
When we docked the ships together next to the shipping containers, it was time to deal with Rhubin. I tried to leave Hailey on the new ship and she wasn't going to let me.
“I'll just follow you if you don't take me with you.” Hailey said, as if it was a matter of fact.
I couldn't argue against it, mainly because she had been such a big help the last time I had confronted him, so I picked her up and carried her with me. She was getting a bit too big to do that, now that she was into her growth spurt; but, neither she nor I cared. I just had to be a little more careful when walking through the smaller doorways. The others gathered together and followed us as we went into the Udelis.
I stopped by Rhubin's old room and used Presence Hands as I picked up both Kalina's things and his, then carried everything down the hallway to the cell. I could hear Rhubin's thoughts and he was angry that I had left him locked inside the entire time and he was very angry that Kalina had to suffer the indignity with him.
“It's time.” I said and Rhubin stood up and glared at me through the door. “Do not attack me. I will knock you unconscious if you try.”
“What if I'm just thinking it?” Rhubin asked through clenched teeth.
“I won't consider it aggressive until you actually move to try.” I said. “Do I have your word?”
“What does that matter?” Rhubin asked. “You won't trust what I say, anyway.”
“That's because I can tell when you lie.”
Rhubin huffed and didn't give his word, so I 'looked' at him and through his pockets to find a few small electronic devices.
I probably should have checked him before locking him up. I thought and popped the charge on the devices. Whatever they were, they shouldn't work without power. As a precaution, I covered them in a thin layer of Presence and made it solid, that way he couldn't push a button or flip a switch or anything. I hit the button and the security door on the cell opened.
Rhubin didn't say anything and led Kalina out of the room and into the hallway.
“I see Luxea gave you changes of clothes.” I said.
“If you're going to keep prisoners, you should see to their needs.” Rhubin said and tried to keep his anger in check.
“You had access to a shower, food, and a bed. You didn't need to change your clothes.” I said.
“We would have been wearing the same clothes for over a month!” Rhubin said, angrily.
“You weren't going anywhere until today, so what did it matter what you wore?” I asked. When he couldn't refute my logic, I continued. “We're by the shipping containers, so we're going to have to take the shuttle to bring you to the station.”
“You're really kicking me off.” Rhubin said, disbelief in his voice.
“You brought this on yourself.” I said. “I asked you... I even pleaded with you... to leave her alone.”
“You had no right to say those things to me.” Rhubin said as he unobtrusively reached into a pocket.
“That just proves you never considered me a friend.” I said, clearly seeing that move, and he didn't say anything. “I thought about asking you in what system you wanted to get dropped off after the cargo is unloaded: but, I think I'll just leave you at the station.”
“You're a real piece of work.” Rhubin said.
“I think you just described yourself.”
“I thought you would come to your senses and forget about this.” Rhubin said and his hand jerked as he tried to push a button on one of the things in his pocket. When nothing happened, he frowned. “You're throwing away all of the things we accomplished over a petty squabble.”
“Really?” I asked. “Did you really think, for one second, that I didn't realize the moment I left you unsupervised on my ship, that you would try to take off with it?” I used Presence to pull his hand out of his pocket, then made his hand open. “Oh? What's this?” I asked and took it. “Luxea? You wouldn't happen to know what this is, do you?”
Luxea's face went slightly red and she didn't answer, nor did she move her head.
“How did trying to change the business registry and its conditions work for you?” I asked her as I covered Rhubin in a thin layer of Presence and made it solid, so he couldn't move, and Luxea's face went completely red as everyone else gasped or caught their breath. “That well, huh?”
“Hunter, I... I was just...”
“Trying to cheat me, I know.” I said.
“You're the one cheating us!” Luxea said. “Udelis! Lock all computer controls!”
“Command confirmed. Removing all access to primary and secondary systems.” A computerized male voice said from the intercom.
“Wow, this is a surprise.” I said and Hailey giggled, because she knew that Luxea's actions weren't what I was referencing. “Udelis, when did you get a voice synthesizer and a translation unit?”
“Command confirmed. Three days ago.”
“Udelis, I'm sorry I never thought of that.” I said.
“Command confirmed. You didn't know it was possible.”
“Udelis! Transfer all commands and functions to Rhubin and myself.” Luxea said, triumph in her voice.
“Command confirmed. Broadcasting SOS. Local authorities have been notified that Rhubin Tromazz and Luxea Pectrolia are committing piracy. Authorities confirm SOS. Responding in thirty seconds.”
“WHAT?!?” Luxea yelled. “Udelis! Cancel previous command!”
“Command confirmed. Unable to comply. All primary and secondary systems are currently locked.”
“NO!” Luxea tried to run to the cockpit. She hit an invisible Presence Wall and fell to the floor.
“I'm sorry; but, you are not stealing my ship.” I said and used Presence to hit the controls on the new ship and opened the shuttle bay doors. “Udelis, contact the approaching patrol ship and tell them there's a shuttle bay opening to accept them. I don't want them cutting into your hull or blowing a hatch or something.”
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“Command confirmed. Message sent. Patrol ship sees the bay doors and is sending a shuttle.”
“Thank you.” I said. “Well, that didn't go how I thought it was going to.”
Everyone was too shocked to say anything, except Hailey.
“I can't wait until we grow our hair out.” Hailey said, completely unbothered by the situation.
“I miss using shampoo, too.” I said and kissed her cheek.
Simone let out a nervous bark of laughter and that seemed to break the tension and made almost everyone relax. In the next moment, a squad of space suited military people came down the hallway at a trot with their laser rifles at the ready. The 'trunch trunch' sounds of their coordinated boots was kind of soothing, then they came to a stop beside Luxea and I absorbed the Presence Wall around her while at the same time, disabling all of the little electronic devices she had stashed in her pockets. She was quickly cuffed and two of the men led her away.
Two of the remaining six came forward and took custody of Rhubin. He didn't even have the guts to look at me as they passed by with him and then he was gone from my sight as well. He was still within my detection range, so I started to rifle through his head. I had never erased memories before, so all I could really do was muddle the ones he had about the business, the ships, and our projects. I felt guilty that I had to do that to him; but, I didn't want him letting anyone else know what my plans were.
“Thanks for responding so quickly.” I said as I walked over to the remaining troops, reached by one of them, and held a hand out to the person in back. “I wasn't sure how I was going to handle that peacefully.”
The surprised woman took my hand and shook it. “I'm... glad we were close by.”
“Do you need to take our depositions or...”
“We already have all of the relevant visual and audio recordings.” She interrupted me and let my hand go and she was surprised to find the little device Rhubin had tried to use was on her palm. “Although, you won't be allowed to leave the system for several weeks while we deal with the criminals and the charges they face.”
“I'm perfectly fine with that.” I said and absorbed the Presence around the device. “We have tons of cargo to transfer into the storage containers and I need to hire some engineers to work on retrofitting a medical bay. I also...”
The woman snorted a laugh. “I get it. You're staying for a while.”
I nodded. “We'll be here if you need us for anything.” I said and then whispered. “Check his pockets for other things like this, and you should check Luxea, too. Just in case.”
“I know how to do my job.” She said with a smile and waved her hand in a circle. “Move out.”
The three troops around her turned around and walked away.
“By the way, how did you know I was in command?” She asked me.
I was tempted to lie, then glanced at Hailey on my hip. “They were protecting you in a huddle and not in an actual formation, then the two in the back took Luxea, while the two in the front took Rhubin. You were peeling away your protection.”
She opened her mouth to say that wasn't enough proof and I couldn't have known just from that.
“I also heard your commands.” I said and tapped my pointed ears. I didn't say that I also used Presence. She nodded and turned, looked at each person there in the hallway with an extra long look at Kalina, then she walked away. I turned to look at Kalina myself and saw that she looked to be on the verge of tears and was fighting hard not to start.
“Hunter, please...”
“You have a choice now.” I said. “Unlike both Rhubin and Luxea, who were caught trying to actively steal my ship, I can drop you off in any system along our route.”
“Hunter, I've never been outside the Fogaris System.” Kalina said. “I don't know the first thing about living anywhere else.”
“It's the same as living anywhere. The circumstances may change; but, we all need food, shelter, and people to care about us.” I said. “Then again, you had a hard time finding work in an out-of-the-way system. I'm sure you won't have any trouble finding piloting work around the main shipping lanes.”
“C-can I check?” Kalina asked. I'm sure if I report what he's done, someone will step in and...
“No.” I said. “I have to update your work history first.”
“No!” Kalina exclaimed. “I made a mistake! Please don't smear my reputation because of that!”
“You made more than just one mistake and you keep making them, over and over.”
“Please, don't punish me like this.” Kalina said in a defeated tone.
I chuckled. “What would you have me do? Give you a glowing recommendation? For what? The work you did before you quit and contributed to wrecking everything I've built?”
Kalina couldn't answer those questions, so she stayed quiet.
“We're staying here for several weeks, so you have until then to decide if you want to stay here, get dropped off somewhere else, or go back to the Fogaris System.” I said and waved at the cell.
Kalina turned around and entered the room and I put her things and Rhubin's inside and closed the door. I made sure to disable every electronic device, just in case.
I walked away and the others followed me to the cockpit. “Hailey, I have to put you down for a few minutes.”
“Kay.” Hailey said.
I put her down and she opened one of the jump seats at the back of the cockpit and sat down. I sat down on the pilot seat and started typing commands and checked a few things. I stopped myself from shaking my head at all of the modifications Luxea had done to the Udelis AI.
“Udelis, how far back do the extensive changes go that Luxea made to you?”
“Command confirmed. Five days for major modifications to my AI. Two months, three days, seven hours, twenty-three minutes for minor modifications and backdoor access.”
“Which was right around the time of our fight.” I said. “She's been planning this for a while.”
“No wonder she didn't want you touching her.” Simone said. “I didn't pick up on any of this and I've been trying my best to find out what was going on with her.”
“That reminds me.” I said and closed my eyes and 'looked' at the patrol ship. Their shuttle had docked already and Luxea was being patted down and a lot of things were taken from her, including several credit chips. “Goddammit! She emptied the credit computer.”
I took out one of the chip readers and checked, and there was nothing left. I used the communications console and called the patrol ship to let them know the chips she had were filled with my personal money and not from the business account. I was told, in no uncertain terms, that they were evidence in the piracy case and would be returned to me when it was time and not before.
“Thanks for your help.” I said through gritted teeth and ended the call.
Everyone started talking at once and I held a hand up to stop them.
“I need a few minutes of quiet.” I said as I closed my eyes again and concentrated as I entered a very special meditative state. I found Luxea and she was happy that she had gotten away with 'her' money. I took a deep breathe as I broke my promise to her and dove deep into her mind.
*
Luxea tried not to laugh at the guards as they checked her for weapons. She had never needed any weapons, besides her electronic toolkit. Her eyes fell on the several credit chips that they had taken from her pocket and they were added to the sealed container with her toolkit. She smiled, because it was for personal items and she would get them back when they released her.
She didn't fight or resist in any way as they put her into a cell and closed the door. She hadn't seen that her personal storage container was then taken and put into an evidence bag and sent to the captain. Just as Luxea sat down on the bench to wait to be brought to the station, she felt a huge weight on her mind and her entire body shook at its immense pressure.
Luxea had thought she had a strong mind, and yet, she couldn't fight the pressure at all as whatever it was scoured through her mind and took everything that it wanted. It rifled through her memories and plucked everything that she had done to the Udelis' computer system, then she knew what was going on.
“Hunter.” Luxea whispered and her mind withered at the strength of his. The pressure became too much for her and her eyes rolled up into her head and she fell unconscious. She flopped down onto the bench and then slid to the floor. Two guards came in and tended to her, then called a medical technician to check her over.
“She just fainted.” The man said. “Lay her down on the bench. The least we can do is keep her off of the floor, even though pirates don't deserve to even be on the floor.”
“I miss the days when we could just space them without a trial.” One of the guards said.
The other guard chuckled. “How much do you want to bet that the captain is saying the same thing?”
The two guards and the med tech laughed and left the cell.
*
It took me a little while to get everything that I needed from Luxea. Luckily, the patrol ship didn't move off as soon as they had the prisoners. I was tempted to look at the captain to see how much longer I had, then decided that all I could do was the best I could do with whatever time I had available. No one spoke as I worked and pilfered Luxea's memories. I got everything she did to the Udelis AI and how to undo it, then decided that I didn't need to stop there.
My mind remembered my conversation with Simone about taking people's experiences and trying to assimilate them and I told her that it wouldn't work, because the mind couldn't adjust to the difference between the two different bodies using those skills. Programming, though? It's mostly just mental skills. I had to be careful and not take anything that would mess up my own experiences, though. I only took the technical memorization and none of the physical programming she did, that way I only gained the knowledge and not the memories of using that knowledge.
I know that sounds like a bunch of gibberish; but, it was true and it worked. The only thing that mattered at the moment was that the patrol ship stayed right there next to us for nearly half an hour before it signalled that it was moving off. I floated up and out of my meditative state, because I had gotten all that I could from Luxea and muddled her thoughts of me doing it as well, then hit the respond button.
“I look forward to the trial footage and getting my credits back.” I said.
There wasn't a response and I hadn't really expected one. I turned around to face the women behind me and Gleas, Beatrice, and Deborah had their hands out. Each of them had several unspent credit chips resting on their palms.
“What's this?” I asked.
“One month loans, with a five percent interest rate.” Gleas said. “You need capital for operating costs over the next few weeks, including hiring a crew to renovate the medical bay.”
“Gleas...” I started to refuse the offer.
“Before you refuse, this isn't all that we have.” Deborah said and they opened their other hands and had several more chips there. “We've saved pretty much everything we've made so far, except for the splurges on our days off.”
“Deborah... Beatrice...”
“Don't say anything.” Sandy said. “Just take it and pay it back when you can.”
“You don't have to do this.” I said. “I've got a few preliminary sales and...”
“How long to accept them and make the deliveries before you get the money for them?” Gleas asked.
I sighed. “A few days. Maybe a week or more.”
“Then shut up and take my money.” Gleas said. “We need to get to work and move all of this cargo to the containers.”
I couldn't refuse their generous offer, so I stood up and took two chips from each of their hands to make six weeks of pay. “This should be enough for the work crew to get everything set up, with a rush priority, and we can also stock up on supplies.”
They visibly relaxed and I raised my eyebrows at them.
“We thought you were going to be even more stubborn and might actually refuse.” Gleas said.
I opened my mouth to respond, then changed my mind and stepped forward and gave her a hug. “Thank you.”
“Y-you're w-welcome.” Gleas said and hugged me back.
Deborah smiled at me when I let Gleas go and opened her arms. “Bring it!”
I chuckled and gave her a hug, too. “Thank you.” I let her go and looked at Beatrice, who blushed and glanced at Sandy.
“Group hug!” Sandy said happily and she put one arm around Beatrice and they each held an arm out to me. I stepped into their open arms and put an arm around each of them. They rested their heads on my shoulders and gave me a double hug. They held it for a few moments, then let me go at the same time as if they had practised the move.
“Now I feel left out.” Jelly joked and I turned to her. “Hey, I was joking.”
“Only because you didn't have anything to offer.” I said and took her into a hug. “You would have if you had it.”
“Are you going to say something corny like it's the thought that counts?” Jelly asked.
I let her go and stepped back to see her slightly red face. “Hey, you said it. Not me.”
Jelly chuckled and then Simone didn't say anything as she stepped over to me and hugged me as well.