Chapter Ten

Nebs sat at the ship’s door as the Damn You Gravity drifted away from the Wrath. She sat there until the Wrath became indistinguishable from the distant stars. After that, she got to her hooves and began taking stock of her situation. The ship was only slightly larger than the Mercy, and had the same basic layout. However, Everything was much nicer. The ship’s interior had an old-fashioned diner feel to it, with checkerboard tiling, and a large amount of chrome. Adorning the walls were a number of vintage rock posters, Most older than her.

On one wall next to the door to the bridge, a sign read: Speed is just a question of money - How fast can you go?

She walked past the sign into the bridge, and sat in the swiveling chair in the center. The bridge was an oblong room at the front of the ship. A large window wrapped around the front of the room and several smaller windows were placed at blind spots in the floor and ceiling.

Nebs idly spun around in the chair, still processing what happened. She stopped and glanced at a small monitor on the ship’s console.

“SAREN, how long ‘till we get to Eridani?”

“At maximum velocity, a little over a month.”

Nebs nodded. Equestrian ships were capable of warping space to move faster than light, she didn’t understand the exact physics involved, but it still took months to move between stars for civilian ships.

“I guess it’s just you and me again,” she said,

“It would appear that way, yes.”

“Miss Nebs,” SAREN spoke, “I’m terribly sorry to wake you, but we are being hailed.”

Nebs groaned then opened her eyes with a yawn. It had been two weeks since she left the Wrath, and this was the first thing out of the ordinary that happened.

“Put them on-screen,” she said, failing to stifle a yawn.

“Yes Ma’am.”

A holographic display materialized over the console. A silhouette of a pony’s face appeared on the screen

“Nebula! It’s Ganymede, he’s behind it all. The insurrection, ONI, the Consortium, all of it!” an almost familiar female voice spoke, interrupted by bursts of static, “I have to stop them!”

More static.

“I’m sorry, but I have to. There’s no other way. I-I wish I hadn’t left you. Goodbye Nebs.”

“What was that?” Nebs said

“Unknown,” SAREN replied, “we aren’t picking up anything anywhere.”

Nebs shuddered. Stories of strange transmissions told by old spacers rarely ended well. Especially when they said your name. She knew they where just made up, right? It was just an equipment malfunction, a glitch. Still it unnerved her.

“SAREN, I’m... I’m scared.”

“Miss Nebs,”

Nebs rolled over with a groan. She hadn’t slept well that night, well what passed for night in space. Not that she had slept well since the anomaly left the Mercy dead.

“Miss Nebs, we are being hailed,”

Nebs sat upright, fully awake.

“Another anomaly?”

“No Ma’am,” SAREN replied “I am picking up a ship,”

Nebs got out of her bed and quickly climbed into a jumpsuit. She then walked to the bridge, and stopped at the doorway. Outside the window there was a large boxy freighter, crudely painted in garish colors. Purple, yellow, a sickly pale green, striped the dull grey plating, but Nebs eyes were drawn to the pony skulls painted along the hull. And the weapon turrets welded to it.

“I do not believe this is a social visit.”

Nebs shook her head

“SAREN, get us out of here, now!”

“They have disabled our engines,”

“Dammit!” Nebs said, striking the door frame with her hoof, “Do we have any weapons?”

SAREN was silent for a second

“Asteroid grade point defense cannons.”

She sighed, “Put them on-screen.”

“Ma’ am, you do realize these are most likely pirates.”

“I don’t see much choice”

The screen flashed to life and on it was a sickly beige stallion, greasy black hair falling past his shoulders. A savage grin appeared on his face, a yellowed grin that showed exactly what he wanted to do to her.

“What’s a nice girl like you doing in a nasty place like this?” he spoke in a thick greasy accent

Nebs shuddered, she wanted a shower all of a sudden. She knew what pirates did to lone travelers, especially mares.

“Why don’t you dock with us? Huh? Gimme a chance to dock with you.” He laughed.

“Daff!” a sharp female voice shot from off-screen “This is the last bloody time!”

Daff turned and grimaced, hatred flashing in his eyes.

“You know what, captain?” He said, his voice colder than the space outside the ship, “You had your fun. It’s time someone with some balls took over.”

The mare chuckled.

“A bloody mutiny, how adorable.”

Nebs nearly jumped at the gunshot, as blood splattered the screen.

“Anypony else wanna be a drongo?” the captain asked, after a short pause she continued, ”Good.”

A light purple mare with a wild striped mane the same colors as her ship, appeared, as she wiped the blood from the camera. She was a unicorn, her horn broken, and the left side of her face poked and scarred.

“Really sorry about that unpleasantness, love.” She said around the stub of a cigarette stuck in her lips, “Never really liked that bludger much,”

“So, Sheila, let’s get down to business.” she continued, after a pause, “You’ve got a bloody nice ship, I want it.”

“It’s not for sale,” Nebs shot.

The captain grinned. very few had the gall to talk to her like that.

“I ain’t exactly buyin’, love,” She said, her tone still amicable, “Not really a piratey thing to do, ya know.”

“And what about me?” Nebs asked, “Are you just gonna dump me out an airlock?”

Of course that’s what they’d do.

The captain chuckled.

“We was gonna make you walk the plank, but I guess and airlock’ll do,” Her grin broadened, “I’m bloody kidding of course. We’ll drop you off at the nearest neutral station. We ain’t complete barbarians, love.”

“I’ll have to get my things together.” Nebs said with a resigned sigh

“Take your time, it ain’t like you’re going anywhere.”

The screen turned black.

Nebs sighed, weighing her options. She had a job to do, a mission. She wasn’t about to give up on that, but how was she going to escape? She doubted these pirates would let her keep much else than her clothes, and neutral stations were notorious hives of scum and villainy.

“SAREN, can you get the engines working?” She asked

“Negative,”

“What would the PD cannons do to that ship?”

“That would depend on whether it is shielded or not.”

“Well, is it?”

SAREN paused to process

“This ship does not have the requisite sensors”

“Shields cause magnetic disruptions, right?”

“Correct.”

“Can you see those?”

He paused.

“The ship is unshielded.”

She sighed, this was a terrible idea. Crazy. But what else could she do? She checked the database to identify what kind of ship the pirates were using, A TengCorp C-250. She transferred the schematics to SAREN.

“SAREN, when I give the word, fire at the reactor, then put everything but life support into the shields!”

“Yes, Ma’ am.”

Nebs shook her head, and sighed. This was crazy.

“Now!”

Twin thuds shook the hull as the cannons fired metal slugs toward the pirate ship, then the lights went out. She saw two dents appeared in the other ship’s hull as the slugs bounced ineffectually. less than a second later, a large hole appeared in one of the dents, a cloud of metal fragments growing behind the ship. It’s outer lights flickered and died as it began to turn. Two more holes appeared in the hull and several explosions rocked the ship as critical systems failed. Nebs thought she saw a small ship fly away from the pirate freighter.

“Miss Nebs, we are being hailed,” after a pause, he added, “Again.”

Author's Note

Well, after much writers block, procrastination, and life in general, I've finally got another chapter up. Sorry about the wait.