Hunter (2 page)

Nova held out
her hand and Cal dropped an electric charger into her slippery
grasp. She attached it to the racer's engine.

"Maybe, but
there's no reason for it to be. Think about it, what harm does it
do? It's just another case of the Human Confederacy putting their
noses where they don't belong."

"Even if that
were the case," Cal replied, his tone terse. "I'm sure that won't
make a good defence when you're caught and thrown into jail for two
years."

"Cal, I
promise not to implicate you if I get caught," Nova said, smiling.
Her voice was muffled due to the wrench held between her
teeth.

"I should
hope not. Robots don't get the option of a nice prison. Recycling,
that's where I'd end up."

"You have
nothing to worry about," Nova said.

"I don't
understand how a bunch of yahoos flying around space in tiny ships
is even a sport," Cal said. "Artificial intelligence chess; there's
a sport you can really appreciate."

Nova snorted
as she pulled herself out from under the vehicle. She stood and
smiled at the racer that looked like a metal seed pod. She'd bought
it three years ago from a wrecker and did it up herself. In her
first bounty hunter space-race the engine had died just after the
starting line. The second year she'd finished in the top ten and,
more importantly, beat Kero. This year she was going to
win.

"Looking
sharp," Tanguin said as she stepped into Crusader's loading
bay.

Nova always
kept the racing craft safe inside Crusader, away from prying eyes
and hands.

"Yep, this
year is it," Nova said, rubbing her hands together. "This baby can
fly in and out of atmosphere, has a shield strong enough to take on
an asteroid and is faster than anything the Confederacy has put out
in years."

"Have you
taken her out for a test run yet?" Tanguin asked.

"I was just
about to. You keen for a ride?"

"You know
it." Tanguin grinned as she grabbed hold of the side door and swung
up into the passenger's seat.

Nova walked
around to the other side, wiping tiny specs of dirt off the sides
of the ship as she went. When she'd first bought it, the craft was
rusted to a dull brown, but with a few sharp deals she'd managed to
score some bright red paint. Now the racer's finish was something
to be proud of.

"Starting
engines," Nova announced, flicking a series of switches. The engine
at the back of the craft rumbled and the clear shield came up over
their heads, encasing them in a bubble and blocking all noise from
the outside.

"Alright
Tanguin, you're on commentary."

"Ladies and
Gentlemen," Tanguin said in a comically deep voice. "Today it is my
pleasure to introduce Nova No-Brakes!"

Nova chuckled
and continued to flick switches and check the dials. The
temperature remained steady and the engine's power increased. She'd
already stocked up on solarium fuel for the race; it was expensive
but worth it for the extra boosts.

"Ready," Nova
said.

"The racers
are at the starting line. Engines ready, get set, go!" Tanguin
yelled.

In response
Nova shoved the throttle forward and grabbed hold of the steering
wheel. The engine revved under their seats, roaring to be
free.

"Ahh!"
Tanguin screamed, staring between the door and Nova with panicked
eyes.

Nova grinned,
pressed a button above her head, and slammed the racer into gear.
Crusader's back door dropped open and they shot out into space.
Crusader's shield held the air inside as the racer burst
out.

"Nova that
wasn't funny!" Tanguin said, her chest heaving up and
down.

"I disagree,"
Nova chuckled.

A practice
course had been set up around The Jagged Maw bounty hunter guild.
It was a simple set up with a few fake asteroids and obstacles;
nothing compared to the real track.

Nova pushed
forward and the ship gained speed. They rocketed through the open
space and in an instant Crusader and The Jagged Maw were just a
speck in the rear-view mirror.

"Come on
commentator," Nova said, nudging Tanguin with her elbow.

"Commentator
nearly died of fright," Tanguin said, before resuming her deep
voice. "They're coming up to the first bend. It's a killer ladies
and gentlemen, in fact we've already had three deaths in this race
thanks to this particular corner."

Nova shook
her head. At the last bounty hunter race they really had lost three
people to the first corner. The asteroid field was always a major
hazard to newer riders.

The imitation
course at The Jagged Maw was nothing in comparison. It was just a
couple of fake rocks held together by a thick chain.

Nova gripped
onto the steering wheel as she approached and when she was level
she pulled hard to the right.

The spaceship
made an instantaneous right hand turn and cruised off in the
opposite direction.

Nova pressed
the red button by her knee and released the first solar blast. The
fire spurted out from behind her ship and they reached a new level
of speed.

"No-Brakes
Nova is living up to her name as she annihilates the first corner.
On the straight, she has no match and has already passed the rest
of the field. The crowd is going wild!"

Tanguin held
her hand over her mouth and imitated a cheering crowd.

Nova couldn't
help but laugh.

They raced
the rest of the way around the course in much the same fashion.
Nova pushed the ship to its very limits and it came through every
time. They arrived back at The Jagged Maw in record time. Nova
slowed the craft and landed inside Crusader's storage
bay.

"Nova that
was incredible! What have you done to this thing?" Tanguin asked,
her cheeks glowing.

"Just a few
personal tweaks." Nova grinned.

"With a ship
like this there's no way anyone will beat you."

"That's the
plan. But don't give the game away, okay? As far as everyone else
knows I'm using the exact same ship as last year."

"Nova, you
know everyone's got cameras set up on this course. They are
probably watching you right now and panicking."

"Do you
remember about a week ago I asked you to edit some video feeds for
me?"

"Yes."

"Well let's
just say they won't have seen anything. So now you just have to say
nothing and I'm set to win."

"You can
count on me," Tanguin said, climbing out of the racer as soon as
the shield lowered. "But you know, with your special abilities you
could just play with time and make yourself win the
race."

Tanguin's
eyes twinkled as she turned to face Nova.

"Shh!" Nova
frowned and looked around. "I don't want to even think about that,
let alone play with it!"

A hot flush
crept up Nova's cheeks. She'd done her best not to think about the
Ancients or the haunting ability they'd given her. As far as she
was concerned, if she ignored the problem it would eventually go
away, and she wouldn't have to worry about falling through time
ever again. Tanguin was the only person she'd told about it and
even then she'd left out the terrifying details.

"Just a
suggestion," Tanguin said, holding up her hands.

"A terrible
suggestion," Nova said, tapping Tanguin's shoulder with her fist.
"Come on, I'm starving."

***

Nova and
Tanguin sat in the eating hall of The Jagged Maw with Aart, Orion,
and Gus.

"So, I'm
chasing this guy and we have a shootout in a brothel. I chase him
through a church the size of this place while he's got a bullet
wound in his arm. The idiot dives through a glass window and breaks
his leg so I tackle him. He's got the thing stuffed down his shirt
and a fake travel pass, plus all those injuries. You know what he
says?" Aart's face glowed as he recounted the story. His hands
waved across the table to illustrate each detail.

"Dude, get
off me?" Orion said.

The others
chuckled.

"Nope, he
said 'it wasn't me' just like that. Face as serious as you can
imagine," Aart said with a chuckle.

"I had one
the other week who swore he had been set up. Frame job, you know?"
Orion said. "Of course I didn't believe him and sent him straight
to the lockup. But turns out, a week later, that his wife did it!
Caught him cheating and wanted a bit of payback! Well, he got out
of prison, but I don't think he'll be saving his marriage. He said
something about setting fire to a house… or her arse… I can't
remember which. He compared them so frequently that I lost
track!"

The bounty
hunters sniggered.

"Are you guys
entering this year's bounty cup?" Nova asked.

"Of course,"
Aart said. "You?"

"I don't know
why you two would bother." A big man leant over from the adjacent
table. He had greasy black hair and a smirk on his face.

"Interesting," Nova said, her hands clenching into fists. "I
don't remember asking you, Kero."

"I just
thought I'd warn you now; save you some embarrassment," Kero
said.

"What is
that?" Tanguin's face was a mask of horror. Her mouth hung open as
she pointed a shaking finger at Kero's neck. Dangling from a crude
necklace made of string was a shrivelled ear. It was black and
green with flecks of dried blood.

Nova's
stomach churned. She could smell the rot coming of the blackened
hunk of flesh as Kero leant closer.

"Trophy," he
said. His mouth twisted into a wicked grin. He grabbed the ear and
held it out towards Tanguin. "Do you like it?"

Tanguin
pulled back, her mouth working.

"Where did
you get that?" Nova said through gritted teeth.

"Class five
planet," Kero said with a shrug. "Me and the boys went down there
for some fun."

"Class five
planets are forbidden!" Nova said through gritted teeth.

"Like you can
talk," Kero scoffed. "You've visited them."

"Yes, but I
didn't kill anyone and dismember them!"

Kero shrugged
again. He laid his hands on their table so that his face was only
inches from Nova's. The ear dangled between them.

"Do you have
any idea what it's like to be so powerful?" he whispered, running
his tongue over his lips. "They cowered before me like I was a god.
I could have crushed them all."

His eyes were
dilated and his voice dripped pleasure.

Nova leant as
far away from Kero as her chair allowed. "You're
disgusting."

"I was
merciful!" Kero yelled, slamming his fist on the table, the room
echoing with the sound. "I let some of them live; a few
children."

"You're a
monster."

"I'm a
hunter.
"

Nova's hands
clenched into fists on the table. If she killed him now she'd be
doing the universe a favour.

"Oi, Kero!
I've told you before!" Tim, one of the owners of The Jagged Maw,
glared at Kero from across the hall.

Kero smiled
at Nova and walked out of the mess hall without turning
around.

"He's sick."
Tanguin stared after him, her face even whiter than
usual.

"I hope he
crashes his racer and burns," Nova said.

"I just love
our conversations with him," Aart said drily. "Does that mean
you're entering the race?"

Nova took
three deep breaths. There was nothing she could do about Kero right
now. Unfortunately most of The Jagged Maw thought he was a big-time
hero. He only showed his true self to Nova and her companions.
She'd find a way to take him down and unmask him; then he wouldn't
be able to hurt anyone anymore. She forced her mind away from Kero
and back to the race and Aart's words.

"Yeah,
thought I'd kick your arse again," she said, holding up her
glass.

Her
companions chuckled and clinked their glasses against
hers.

"Oh come on,
last year was a fluke. I could easily have beaten you," Aart
said.

"As I seem to
remember, you crashed on the first lap and had to be taken to the
med-ship," Nova said with mock concern. That garnered an even
bigger laugh from the hunters.

"Oh ha-ha,
hilarious. I was distracted."

"Yes," said
Orion. "I'm sure if you'd just paid more attention to where you
were going instead of looking at the Happy Hunter's cheer team you
would have been fine."

"Doesn't that
speak volumes," Nova said with a smirk.

"What a
ridiculous name anyway," Aart mumbled. "Sounds like a group of
fluffles or something."

"I don't get
the point of those things," Gus said. "You have to feed them, walk
them, and clean up after them. What a nightmare!"