Privateer's Commission 2 -ch 14-

Chapter 14

Ralph sat down into his seat.

He felt pretty great.

It’d been brief.

Quick.

Lacking in the time he and Marionette normally took with one another.

But it was a reconnection between them.

Short as it was, it was filled with kissing, grabbing, moaning, and gasping.

A physical linkage that’d felt broken until he finished inside of Marionette while staring into her wide eyes and blazing smile. She’d clearly felt the same.

“How’re we looking, Xas? Winnie? Janey?” he asked as he looked to the screen.

“No change,” Winnie murmured, her mechanical ears wedged into her helmet.

Janey only grunted and said nothing.

“Rio’s sensors and Del’s drones have reported nothing but that’s not surprising,” Xas answered. “If the escort has gone dark, we might not notice them coming through the lane. Until they run into the drone’s strapped with heavy missiles, haha. Then we’ll know they’re there!”

“Hard to miss an explosion,” Winnie agreed with a chuckle. “Hey, Xas, you didn’t have any debts when we started, did you? How much money have you made?”

“None,” Xas admitted, then laughed. “I bought stuff! Spent it all. It’s fine. Always making more and it’s not like Ralph can fire me. He’s stuck with me. I’m basically stuck to his ship for all time and… unless he wants to get rid of the Toll, I’m not going anywhere.”

“Oh. Good point. Well. I don’t plan on leaving,” Winnie countered. “If ever. Ralph has given me everything and technically my contract ties him as deeply to me, as I’m tied to him.”

Wait.

I’m tied—?

Hm.

I guess she’s right.

There weren’t any escape clauses in that contract that that bastard forced on me. He more or less wrote it as her being a slave to me, but in the same breath, I can’t remember any ‘removal’ clauses.

“I’ve got some strange readings. I’m only using passives but I’m-I’m getting sensor responses that are odd,” Marionette reported through the intercom.

“Last time you told me that kind of thing, Marionette my lady, we had an enemy floating off our nose,” Ralph answered with a chuckle. His helmet made his voice sound odd, but after the last time he was exposed to space, he wouldn’t go without it. “Is this something similar? You don’t need to explain it, just tell me what you think.”

“They’re receiving passive information and not transmitting, but they’re close to each other. Really closer. Some of that passive stuff is reflecting here and there,” Marionette said. “They’re in the lane. They’re here.”

“Got it,” Ralph said and thought about that. After a few seconds of thinking on that, it felt right to him. “They’re military vessels. They’re not meant for stealth. It’s Confed military type vessels. Heavy guns. Heavy armor. Heavy footprint.

“They’ll spend more on plating than they will on dampening for those plates. They’re rushing out here thinking it’s going to be a stand up fight. Which we could do, but we won’t. We’ll bleed them before they even know it.”

“I miss Eun. But I don’t miss Eun,” Winnie said to the unspoken part of Ralph’s statement.

That without Eun, they could act like proper privateers.

Pirates with a license to ply their trade legally, while also without the need to worry over their contractors moral beliefs.

“I liked Eun, but she also felt like an outsider while being on the crew,” Marionette offered up from weapons bay. “She also didn’t like to do maintenance with Winnie, Del, and me.

“That and she always asked weird… weird… the shadows are atop the drones.”

“Anyone got anything?” Ralph asked, leaning back in his co-pilot seat. He didn’t doubt Marionette for a second. If she was telling him things were close, then it’d likely show up shortly.

“Nothing on visuals but that’s not a surprise,” Delilah answered. “No one goes about in space with lights on or not having their ships painted in light-absorbing black.”

Ralph nodded his head.

Unless it was something meant to be in a single location, lights weren’t a thing.

“With what Rio said though, it’ll be any second now,” Delilah finished.

The ship went silent.

Winnie was head down, staring at the weapons plots she’d made and any response that might come out of the sensor systems. Ready and waiting.

Janey on the other hand was staring at Ralph. He could see her out of the corner of his eye, her helmet facing forward, but her face toward him. Eying him in that flat determined way she often held.

“They just hit five of the drones,” Delilah reported.

“Boom, haha,” Xas said at the exact same time.

“I’ve got comms flying wildly around from multiple ships,” Marionette reported. “I’ve got three ships throwing out comms and it’s bouncing off the others. I’ve got… nine. Nine ships.”

“Standard escort,” Ralph stated. “Any idea on damage? You intercepting things, Rio, Xas?”

“It’s somewhat wild,” Xas answered. “The lead ship ate two of the drones and one of the heavy rockets—”

Ralph’s screen went off with a flurry of warnings, sensor blips, and enough data that even he could tell one of the ships experienced an explosion of some sort. That something blew up on a ship, or the ship itself blew up.

“That’s a mayday,” Xas stated. “Not sure what blew up, but something did. It wasn’t much of a fireball, so whatever it was, wasn’t a flamable material that ignited on it’s own. Might of been something going up with a pressurized area, going off with the oxygen, then snuffed with a vacuum.

“Or maybe—nevermind, it’s a full mayday. They just called for an evacuation of the ship. Something happened and it got deep enough into it’s guts to cut it’s environmental. A portion of their oxygen just blew out completely.”

“Yeah, I think if Ralph got nice and deep into my guts, he’d take my breath away. I empathize,” Winnie said, her fingers moving along her screen.

“Kinetic release at your discretion, Lady Armory,” Ralph said for Winnie’s benefit. “For my Ladies.”

“I ran out the flag from one of the shadow drones,” Delilah stated.

“Launched a full barrage, multiple targets selected amongst the eight still in the fight,” declared Winnie. “Thanks for the mark-outs, Rio. Those were perfect.”

“Of course! I also listed what I think their damage levels are based on their comms!” Marionette added. “I’ve got launches and ballistic fire. They’re attacking the drone that gave them the request for the Toll!

“Marked out all the launches, launchers, and trajectories.”

“Rio, you’re my best friend, I love you, I wish we were bisexual or lesbians,” Winnie got out even as she gnawed at her tongue between her front teeth. “Adjusted courses for the next. Janey, could you—”

“The Lady Shadow has already done as you need, Lady Armory,” Janey remarked in a smooth and ready sounding voice. She sounded invested and eager.

As everything had been going on, Janey’s hands had barely touched the piloting screen. Not much, but clearly enough that she’d changed some things.

Now, Ralph could see there were a series of changes input and just waiting for Winnie to use them as she needed. Pre-programmed and set to the weapon’s officer’s needs.

Ralph raised his eyebrows as he watched the sensors and data. He could indeed see what Marionette had been talking about. All eight ships were marked, labeled, and had assumed damage reports on them.

“Lady Shadow… I officially am inviting you to do maintenance with the other Ladies,” Winnie stated. “Because this is perfect. This is perfect and—”

All of Ralph’s displays lit up once again. This time it seemed even larger, however.

“That’s not a mayday, haha, that’s a full on explosion,” Xas reported. “One of the gunboats jsut went up spectacularly. No idea why, or the how, but it’s just… shrapnel. They might get some sensor data on us as it washes over us. Might stick, too.

“Thirty seconds or so for an impact. No large pieces coming our way, we’re mostly shielded from the explosion by the other ships, but some of the smaller bits I imagine will reach us eventually.”

Clicking his tongue, Ralph could only nod his head. The enemy would most certainly get some minimal data on them and it was quite likely that it might stick in the hull. It was far more likely to give off readings than the hull would itself.

“Rio, use the other shadow drone and flood the area with sensor data when we get exposed,” Ralph ordered. “Flash-bang them and keep them blind for a time.

“Speaking of drones, how’s those others you’ve got Delilah?”

“All used. They’ve made hits throughout,” reported Delilah.

“Two more maydays. That explosion rocked everyone,” said Xas. “One KIA, three mayday. Five remain. Two corvette’s and three gunboats. They’re all killing their systems and acting like they’re dead. They don’t want anymore heat.”

“Flooding the sensors,” Marionette warned.

Several warning flickered to life, indicating impacts on the hull, immediately followed by all of his sensors going maximum on their readings. An actual flood of data that more or less blinded them.

“Woo, Rio, is this what it’s like when you drop your clothes for Ralphy? Haha,” Xas asked as the sensors began to slowly go back to a flat and normal state. “Shadow drone destroyed. They put more fire on that then a log at a cookout.”

“Yeah they did, sucks to be them though,” Winnie growled her fingers stabbing, poking, and flicking across her screen. “Lady Shadow, any chance you can give me a push at three feet per second starboard?”

“Of course, of course, Lady Armory,” Janey replied, her fingers tapping at the screen.

Minor shifts in direction wouldn’t show up as long as they kept their engines away from the escort. With their pre-planning, that was a given.

“Isn’t it all starboard?” Marionette asked in a teasing voice.

With a grin, Ralph took up the controls on the laser-weaponry on the Toll. Using the passive systems, he got the outlines and silhouettes of the five remaining ships.

He was particularly interested in the two corvettes and their sensor array and comms system. If he could knock them out, they were far more likely to be willing to commit to a surrender and be done with the whole thing.

“Starboard, planetboard, whatever board, just board me,” Winnie complained in a whine. “I’m so hot, I’m so sexy, I’m so fit, and sober. Ralph, captain, board your Lady Armory and sword her?

“Cause for an armory, my weapon’s bay is real empty. It’d be a real shame if I had a bunch of sea-men rampage around inside that empty bay of mine.”

“Swear to hell, Lady Armory,” Ralph got out with a chuckle as he pinpointed both corvette’s comms systems. “Lady Siren, did they destroy that drone of yours?”

“Partially,” she answered quickly.

“Blind them again in three seconds,” Ralph ordered as he plugged in a simple firing plot. He wanted to smash out the comms and sensors of both corvettes. If they were suddenly blind and mute, it was likely that everyone would just go dark.

“Of course!” Marionette chirped happily.

Ralph waited, his fingers hovering over the firing solution.

“Activating!” she warned him.

Ralph saw the first flutter of his sensors going blind and he fired. His fingers tapping at both of the points he wanted to take out.

He didn’t even realize it, but he was using his left hand.

It flexed, bent, and tapped at the screen as cleanly as if it were his right hand.

Can’t tell a damn difference anymore unless I’m paying attention.

I owe the Doc again.

The only reason it’s this good a prosthetic is her early surgeries on me.

There was nothing to see or read as the sensors were flooded with junk data. A pounding pinging shadow that blared out in every direction with a cacophany of false signals.

Given the fight, and the mad sensor readings thrown out, there was no way they could remain in this lane afterward. They’d have to launch their prizes to Bertson or Mirkil and move to a new lane.

Remaining here was just asking for someone to come looking for them.

Or we could remain here and wait for that force that we’re expecting? That’d be rather amusing.

They’d likely send ships to inspect the point where the escort was lost.

Wouldn’t they?

Or would they write the lane off as a loss and just be done with it.

That’s quite possible.

“They took out the drone,” Marionette reported with a huff. “But that was a great first run of using it like that! It feels like—”

“Incoming!” Delilah called through the system. “Multiple inbound. Non-seeking. Must be a silent kinetic launch.”

Janey leapt forward in her seat and began to rapidly touch, tap, and push at the screen. Then jerked at the manual controls that were part of the system but not used often.

She wrenched them to the side and pushed forward at the same time.

Her entire face had become a mask of anger and fury. The normal placid and somewhat pretty face transformed completely.

“It’s a tenth ship,” she hissed. “They were trailing behind the others. It has to be.”

“Both corvette’s have gone dark and are attempting to surrender. The two remaining gunboats are struggling to move out of the area but given the damage I don’t think they’ll be doing much,” Xas reported.

“Confirmed, tenth ship,” Marionette called out over the top of Xas. “It was trailing behind, hidden, or something else I don’t know. But it’s there. Marked, Lady Armory.

“It didn’t reflect signals like a ship so I wrote it off as echoes. There’s a lot of them right now. I’m sorry!”

Realizing that the enemy ship already had a good read on them, Ralph swung the lasers around to the point that’d just appeared on the sensor plots.

“There’s literally forty-three echoes, Marionette, even I wrote it off as one,” Xas countered

Not waiting, or giving Winnie a chance to fire rockets, Ralph laid into this ship with the laser cannons.

All of them.

This wasn’t a brief jolt to knock out sensors and comms, this was the full bore of the Turlan’s Toll energy weaponry. Each weapon being fired into the same exact position.

Ralph wasn’t looking for an immediate knock out punch. What he was attempting to do was get a heat reading on his opponent.

With this much laser discharge whatever got hit was giong to warm up quickly.

That heat would spread out in an attempt to radiate into space or through the rest of the ship.

Either way, it’d give him a better target.

“Corvette,” declared Delilah as the energy weapons pounded into the new enemy. “It’s a strange class of ship though given what I can tell from it.”

Multiple warning lights came to life on his display. Heat indicators, energy weapons, and multiple sensor pings of incoming ballistic weapons. Rockets, missiles, or cannons, he didn’t know, but it was inbound.

“Converted? Old?” Ralph asked as he began walking the energy weapons in line with the way the ship seemed to be moving. As well as right over the top of the energy laser weapons and where their weapons bay was likely to be given the heat signatures and what he knew of Corvette designs.

“I think it’s an older model,” Xas answered. “Maybe pulled out of mothballs and thrown in? More crew available than ships?”

The ship shuddered and a warning light on Ralph’s display told him that one of the panels had been struck by something traveling at a high rate of speed. Followed immediately by multiple warnings that the ship had been vented.

“Locking down the cockpit area,” Xas stated. “Minor puncture of the hull. No uncontrolled decompression or despressurization.”

And that’s why we suit up and drain atmosphere from the ship ahead of a fight.

Because of puncture shots like that.

That was probably something meant to cause a vent.

Definitely an older ship if they have a weapon like that.

Standard procedure now adays is to suit and drain oxygen before combat starts.

Or… or is it not a corvette at all?

Is this some type of converted cargo ship?

Or a privately commissioned captain?

Not quite a privateer but not actual military either?

That’d make sense.

A lot of actual pirates and raiders are probably working right now and trying to earn a privateer’s letter of marque. Since I already have one most places are willing to give me another.

It changes nothing.

“Responding to repair. I’ll request a light atmosphere once on scene so the location can be determined,” requested Liseth. “Call out if you have an injury.”

“Just my pride,” growled Delilah. “I got lazy because they seemed to be exactly what we were expecting.”

Ralph hadn’t been inactive during this time. He’d been sweeping the lasers across the enemy this entire time.

They’d attempted to roll their ship to the side to mitigate the damage, but Ralph had achieved most of his goal. Their silhouette was perfectly marked by heat, he’d caused them to flinch, and even now they were scrambling to respond.

Janey hadn’t shifted their weapons away from the fight in her manuevering and kept Winnie and Ralph in the fight. Because even as Ralph had hosed the enemy down in energy weapons, Winnie had been active.

Several missiles with active sensors had been launched with actual combustion engines.

He could see them even now screaming across black-space toward the enemy. Actively pinging and adjusting to match the ship in it’s attempts to break away.

Glancing at the trajectory, and where the missiles should likely impact, Ralph shifted his fire. Winnie had put four of the missiles in a line to impact the same point.

Checking to make sure he wouldn’t cross connect with the missiles on his own trajectory, Ralph lined up the energy weapons and fired. All of them now highly concentrated into a single focal point.

The same impact point Winnie had designated.

“Ralph, you sweet terrifying man, you gonna board me and sword me properly?” Winnie demanded, her voice sounding husky. “Because I’ll be real with you, this has got me all fired up in a different way than what I’m laying down here.”

He had no idea if it was because he was attempting to assist with his laser-work, or something else, but Winnie sounded deeply aroused in a way he’d never heard from her before.

Or all that therapy and being sober for as long as she has, finally rewired her head.

Every missile impacted at the same spot  and the corvette had a strange detonation. It wasn’t a fireball, but something most certainly explosively decompressed.

“They’re bleeding atmosphere,” Marionette reported. “Those heavy armaments you requisitioned are… effective, Ralph.”

“Getting a mayday from the tenth contact. As well as… they’re attempting to abandon and asking for immediate evaucation as well,” Xas stated, sounding rather confused. “Except, there’s a lot of static and—”

The sensors gave off a startling and sudden response.

“Another detonation on the corvette. Part of the hull is gone now,” Xas finished. “They’re no longer transmitting. Boards clear, all hostiles are mayday or KIA.”

“Hooray for us!” cheered Marionette over the comms. “That went so well! That was even better than it often went with Eun! I’m really enjoying being a proper pirate! Just run out the guns and space’em into the black without much of a warning! Mmm!”

Grinning, Ralph only shook his head.

“Rio, finger and toe painting to celebrate?” Winnie.

“Oh! Yes, yes. Doc dosed me up and she said I’d be feeling a bit better for about eighteen hours. That’d be great!” Marionette answered quickly. “Doc, Del, fingers and toes? Oh… uhm… Janey, do… you want to join us?”

Janey was staring at the console.

It was a flat dead stare as if she wasn’t quite sure what was going on around her.

“Okay,” she said finally, still not looking away from the instrument panel.

“Yay! I’m so excited. Xas, I expect you to be there as well,” Marionette crooned happily. “I have some wonderful pinks and reds I picked up I want to try on you Del.”

So very not a pirate.

Though when she started doing these after victory celebrations it felt weird, now it almost makes sense.

A celebration of life and success, even if it’s a bit of a whiplash.

“I can’t wait to go through those ships and take everything I want,” Marionette finished with even more enthusiasm.

Or… well… whatever.

Maybe it isn’t a whiplash after all.

Just Rio.