Pax Galactica - A Space Opera

Chapter 27 - Down To Business

Aranarth and Decker found the Sic Semper Tyrannis exactly where the expected to. The relatively tiny Overdog returned to the embrace of its mothership.

Aranarth brought the ion rifle directly to one of the ship's labs for analysis.

"It's not based on any A.R.C. designs," the engineering drone explained, after giving the weapon a full spectrum scan. "Definitely human though. Based on the point of technological divergence and the level of sophistication there's only one known entity that could have produced it."

"Who is that?" Aranarth asked.

"Saturn Starlifting," said the drone.

Aranarth sighed. He was definitely going to need Usagi now.

* * *

The Sic Semper Tyrannis had much more up-to-date data about A.R.C. ship movements, and so Aranarth was able to get in touch with The Ship With The Unnecessarily Long Name That All Kinds Of People Are Going To Be Inconvenienced By this time.

The mess of disorganized, seemingly random symbols that made up the ship's heraldry appeared on the screen of the fatline terminal. Aranarth was pretty sure the ship changed them and moved them around sometimes.

"This is the A.R.C.S. The Ship With The Unnecessarily Long Name That All Kinds Of People Are Going To Be Inconvenienced By," came a playful voice. "Staytcha biz."

"This is Ranger Aranarth. I want to speak with Ranger Helios."

"She's not here," said the ship.

"I know that," replied Aranarth. "Can you patch me through to her on the planet through her ship?"

"I mean I could..."

"Will you?"

"I guess."

There was a beat of silence.

"Go ahead," said the ship.

Wobbley noises sounded as the system began to translate mental communication into spoken words. The voice that same out was a computer approximation of Usagis, just short of perfect.

"This had better be good, Dane," said the voice. "What if I was in a firefight?"

"This is good," insisted Aranarth. "You're going to like this."

"I already hate it."

"I just got back from Xalax-"

"What were you doing on Xalax?"

"I'm explaining that. I've been trying to find evidence of Old One involvement in these attacks."

"Did you?" asked Helios.

"No," admitted Aranarth, "but I found out where I can get that kind of evidence. The gug-gug-gug ion weapons are being produced by Saturn Starlifting. Obviously they're doing this at the instruction of the Old Ones. If we can get access to their internal computer network we can get copies of the records of this deal. That would be proof of Old One involvement."

"Oh is that all?"

"So I figure you and I could infiltrate Synergy Station and, you know, save the day."

"We're kind of busy down here, Dane," said Helios. "There's a war going on."

"So you're saying you don't want to put on a costume and help me kick Saturn Starlifting in the jubes a couple hundred times? That's the position you're taking? Who are you and what have you done with Usagi?"

"I can't just drop what I'm doing."

"If we pull this off we don't have to sneak around anymore. We'll be able to openly attack the gug-gug-gugs. We'll wrap up both wars in less than a standard week. What are you doing down there that is so important you can't blow it off to help end the entire conflict? I thought you jesters were supposed to be the flexible ones."