The Ripple in Space-Time: Free City Book 1 (The Free City Series) (3 page)

6. A call to action
Lev peeked into the clamorous
Student Union meeting room.

Dozens of garishly dressed
Enlightenment Crusaders roamed about the overfilled hall. Many haphazardly
flitted between small clusters engaged in trivial conversations about recent
shenanigans or solemn flocks conducting weighty discourses regarding lofty
future goals.

More than a few of his
self-indulgent companions were undoubtedly under the influence of herbal
stimulants or mild hallucinogens, Lev mirthfully noted.

He
’
d vacillated for
several days as to whether or not he should attend the much-publicized meeting;
past gatherings of the Crusaders had lapsed into contentious shouting matches
or medicinally induced mass debauchery.

Lev grinned at the hand drawn
multicolored sign that someone had proudly posted at the door:
Crusade
Brainstorm Today! Help us conceptualize the future of the Movement!

The disjointed group certainly
needed some direction, he reluctantly concluded.

He slipped into the noisy room.

“
Lev!
”
a chubby teenage girl
draggle-tailed up and hugged him. The elaborate rainbow beadwork on her loose
fitting halter top rustled softly.

Although he vaguely recognized the
overly affectionate youngster, he could not recall her name. Lev kissed the top
of her grimy head,
“
Hey, how have you been?
”

“
Good, good!
”
She stared up at him with an
unnerving sense of utter idolization.
“
Are you going to help us put
together some virtuous goals for the future?
”

Lev absently studied her jiggling
breasts as she spoke;
“
I don
’
t know about virtuous,
”
he dryly added,
“
maybe just laudable and noteworthy.
”

The girl nodded with absurd
sincerity at his quip.
“
Come join us!
”
She tugged him towards a loitering group of a dozen or so giggly teens.

She was Desiree
’
s little sister, Lev realized belatedly; the plump teen was called Sadie
or Sabra, something like that, she had almost certainly visited the house when
Des lived with him.

The public address system
screeched painfully.
“
OK, we
’
d like to begin,
”
a willowy redheaded woman said
hopefully to the boisterous throng.
“
I know there aren
’
t any chairs...but could everyone please sit down on the floor?
”

Gradually the gathering of
idiosyncratic individuals complied with the request.

Lev slipped away from his girlish
admirer and found his way to an strangely mismatched flock of cheery wide-eyed
street people, eccentric self-obsessed dilettantes and forward-thinking
academics like himself.

“
Thank you,
”
the MC finally said with
visible relief.

“
Before we begin, I must remind everyone that University
policy strictly forbids the use of unprescribed medications and herbal
treatments in any of the school facilities.
”

Scattered boos echoed through the
hall.

“
For the first half of the morning session, we are most
fortunate to have as a guest speaker Professor Malcolm Evans from the School of
Biology.
”

During the tremendous applause
that followed, the jaunty fortyish Professor waved wholeheartedly to the
gathering.

“
Good morning everyone!
”

The applause began anew.

When the adoring group finally quieted,
he continued,
“
Several years ago when the Enlightenment Crusade first
coalesced in the School of Biology, it was just a group of five very
imaginative students who wanted to change the way that things were done.
”

Loud cheering interrupted the speech.

“
Those five innovators had no idea at the time that
eventually the Crusade would have tens of thousands of enthusiasts in Free City
and the seven fiefdoms.
”

Lev nodded along with many others
at the recounting of the organization's rapid growth.

“
However, I sometimes fear that the movement has lost its
way; that the simple ideals of enlightenment, social justice and equality have
been forgotten and replaced by less noble distractions.
”

The Professor pointed accusingly
at the uneasily stirring audience.

“
If we are to move forward, let
’
s remember that self-indulgent thrill-seeking is not the same as
experimentation to discover a greater enlightenment, that grumbling about the
benign status quo is not the same as crying out for social justice, and that
the commonplace advantages of the most fortunate must be equally shared with
the underprivileged.
”

“
YEAH!
”
a shaggy fellow yelled from the
left side of the hall,
“
That
’
s what it
’
s all about people!
”

The speaker smiled at the
enthusiastic firebrand.

“
There
’
s a great deal of untapped
energy in this room. Energy that could easily be squandered on a thousand
trivial and uncoordinated projects or carefully focused on achieving a greater
good for all.
”

Slowly the enthusiasm of the
marshaled idealists built up.

A deafening fugue of inharmonious
cheering filled the venue.

“
EN...LIGHT...EN...MENT!
”
The approving
roar of the crowd gradually evolved into a thunderous synchronized chat,
“
Enlightenment! Enlightenment!
”

Nearly everyone was standing.

For several minutes the Professor
beamed at the wholehearted demonstration.

“
I would be most proud,
”
he finally continued,
“
to discover in the near future that a great modern day crusade of the
concerned had left the safety and opulence of our fair city and ventured out
into the cruel injustice and servitude of the wider world to struggle for the
freedom and dignity that all people deserve.”

In a wide sweeping arc, the
speaker pointed to everyone in the crowded hall,
“
YOU ARE THOSE
PEOPLE!
”

As Lev chanted along with the
booming and euphoric multitude, he pleaded to himself that he would somehow be
instrumental in improving the lives of all humankind.

7. The
Butin Belle

Jana Fesai pensively studied the
stars through the small porthole of her dreary little compartment.

The vessel would soon cross the
orbit of Mars and now seemed destined for the rocky chaos of the Asteroid Belt;
the perfect place to hide a ship load of hostages and a great deal of stolen
materials.

She pushed off from the wall and
drifted slowly across the tiny cell. Her captors apparently considered her a
valuable commodity, while the other victims were locked away together
elsewhere, Jana for some reason was the given the
“
privilege
”
of solitary confinement.

The isolation was closing in on
her.

She
’
d been striving
mightily for days to avoid the looming insanity that would be brought about by
the prolonged solitude. Often she had wistfully daydreamed about Lev far away
in the comfort and relative safety of Free City. Sometimes she had methodically
reviewed every possible characteristic of each of the 92 natural elements on
the Periodic Table or slowly recited Shakespeare
’
s
A Midsummer
Night's Dream
which she
’
d memorized as a high school
Junior in Buenos Aires thirty-six years earlier.

But she could still feel the slow
creeping tendrils of madness entwining her psyche.

Jana writhed suddenly in defiance
of the desolation; somehow she would force herself to persevere.

She had no reasonable way of
knowing how long it had been since she and the others had been snatched from
the Ultra Energy Lab on the Moon.

Jana had struggled to find
anything that seemed to occur with predictable regularity. She
’
d given up on trying to discern some sort of pattern from the sporadic
mechanical sounds that pervaded the ship. Jana had tallied the dreadful rations
that were delivered haphazardly by a vacant and begrimed black-haired boy; the
count was now seven, of which she
’
d been willing to eat only two.

If they were feeding her twice a
day, Jana reasoned, then she
’
d been taken prisoner about
three days ago.

Her stomach growled in
disagreement. Perhaps her meals were served only once a day, in which case
she’d been locked in this tiny room for a week.

Reluctantly, Jana concluded, that
seemed the more likely scenario.

• • •

“
Try it again, you bonehead,
”
Captain Olin
Gristle wearily told his First Mate.

“
Fine!
”
Bosco Kremerling slammed the
metal cover shut on the back of the communication console,
“
But I
’
m not talking to the bastard if we do manage to fix it.
”

Olin rolled his eyes, Bosco was
particularly short tempered even for a pirate.

Perhaps reason would work with his
testy subordinate,
“
Look Boz, we
’
re never gonna get paid off for
this little crime spree unless we finish things up the way that he wants them.
”

Bosco adjusted the output controls
and reset the frequency.
“
You talk to him then,
”
the belligerent second in command of the recently expropriated
Butin
Belle
balled his fists in displeasure,
“
Given the
chance, I
’
m likely to slit his throat or ram this ship into his
friggin' living room.”

“
Alright, I
’
ll talk to him.
”

It had been over a week since the
band of seven pirates had snuck into the Moon base and made off with five
prisoners and much more loot than they had expected. Their employer had asked
for only one particular man and woman who were locked up separately in two of
the ship
’
s cargo holds and about five kilos of the weird antimatter
iron that they made at the lab. He and Boz planned to ransom the others and
sell off the rest of the valuable stolen materials.

And of course the device, Olin
grinned. The heavy little sphere that they had nabbed from the Lab was the
center piece of the whole scheme.

They were supposed to contact
their employer three days ago, but the communication system was on the fritz.
The Captain bit his lip and began his much-delayed message,
“
This is bluebird calling big boy. We have your birthday presents and the
guests of honor. We
’
re awaiting your invitation to the party.
”
He pressed the send button.

Due to the huge distance that the
message would travel, they wouldn
’
t receive a reply for at least
two hours.

The First Mate had a sour look of
contempt as he watched the Captain send off the cryptic dispatch.

“
I
’
m gonna look in on our precious
passengers,
”
Bosco finally muttered as he drifted out of the control
room.

• • •

“
Indium, Atomic Number 49. A very soft silvery-white
post-transition metal,
”
Jana whispered to herself,
“
Symbol: In. Atomic Weight: 114.818. Eighty-six known isotopes, two of
which are stable.
”

She grinned waggishly,
“
One of the
‘
stable
’
isotopes is mildly radioactive.
”

“
Tin, Atomic Number 50....
”

A distant clatter interrupted her
solitary discourse.

Jana stiffened in dread, someone
was coming.

The cover over the small
rectangular window on the door slid open, two disquieting dark eyes scrutinized
her for nearly a minute. Finally the bolt of the heavy hatch disengaged and the
thick metal door opened.

It was one of her capturers, Jana
surmised uneasily.

A glowering and scraggily brute
propelled himself into the chamber. His forward momentum slammed them both
against the cold outer wall. The intruder clamped his big hands around her
waist.

Jana stared at him in terror. His
odor was hideous, like a sickening combination of carrion and rubbish bins.

The hoodlum growled,
“
I would have porked you days ago.
”

He drew out a long, thin and very
sharp dagger from a well-worn sheath dangling from his hip.

The thug’s rough hand tightened
around the knurled black handle as he brought it slowly and menacingly towards
Jana
’
s neck.

“
You
’
re too damn old and ugly to sell
off to the Sex Slavers,
”
he snarled.

The point of the grimy blade
traced the line of her jaw bone.

Jana could feel her skin part
under the tip. The warm wetness of fresh blood trickled out.

She clinched her eyes closed in
horror.

Surely he meant to kill her.

The beast cackled at her
squeamishness.

He finally shoved her away in
disgust,
“
Luckily for you, the Captain says that you
’
re most valuable to us in unmolested condition.
”

Jana opened her eyes.

He returned the now blood-streaked
dagger to the sheath and sneered lasciviously at her,
“
Our employer requires your services as a forced laborer.
”

She stared at him in disbelief,
“
Forced labor for what?
”

Jana wasn
’
t entirely sure that she wanted to hear the answer.

The big man twisted Jana’s wrists
painfully behind her back and dragged her out of the cell,
“
Something to do with strange stuff that you made on the Moon.
”

• • •

Olin Gristle listened to the
scathing message from his employer. He realized with some remorse that their
current predicament was largely due to his First Mate
’
s propensity for destruction.

He could hear Boz rattling down
the passageway now. The big man was the only one of the seven pirates on board
the
Butin Belle
that didn
’
t traverse the ship in cat-like
silence. Even the clumsy and dull-witted cabin boy could carry out his
activities without making a sound.

Bosco blustered into the control
room dragging one of their indispensable hostages.

The Captain scowled,
“
What the hell are you doing with her?
”

The First Mate grinned
contemptuously,
“
Just taking the bitch around for a little tour of our
splendid ship.
”

The woman seemed to be horrified
and, except for a thin bloody gash on her jaw, unharmed.

“
Stop fooling around,
”
Olin glared at him,
“
we got a reply from the boss.
”

He played the message again,
“
You idiots! You busted up the candy store when you
collected the guests and presents. Now the shop owner
’
s on the prowl with the watchdog. The party has been moved to the winter
house. Get the package ready for Air Mail delivery. DON
’
T drive off the road again, you morons!
”

“
Well, he seems a little pissed off,
”
Boz smirked,
“
I guess my work is done.
”

Olin frowned,
“
I
’
m still trying to figure out the message.
”
He doodled on a scrap of grimy paper,
“
I know where the
winter house is and I
’
ve adjusted our course to get us
there.
”

He stared at the prisoner for
several seconds before smiling,
“
I don
’
t believe that we
’
ve been properly introduced; I
am Captain Olin Gristle, currently the Master of the
Butin Belle.
”

He bowed with an absurdly overdone
flourish.

“
And you are..?
”

“
Dr. Jana Fesai,
”
she forced an uneasy smile.

Olin continued,
“
So nice to meet you, Dr. Fesai. Since I was tending to matters on board
the ship at the time, I was unable to visit the Ultra Energy Lab when my First
Mate and the rest of the crew arranged for you to join us.
”

She realized that the man was
apparently fishing around for something.

“
I understand that the Laboratory was quite impressive. Who
paid the bills for all of the fine work that went on over there?
”
he tipped his head expectantly.

“
The lab is run by Free City University, but the Warlord
Syndicate funds the research.
”

The Captain winced,
“
I was afraid of that. So the Syndicate and probably the Free City
Inquisitor's Office are poking around.
”

Good, Jana thought vindictively,
now these marauders were feeling a little pain.

“
Boz, I told you that the explosion was too big! We were
only supposed to cover our tracks, not destroy the entire complex.
”

“
The Lab is gone?
”
Jana stared at the Captain in
horror.

“
Yes, I afraid so,
”
Olin frowned at his First Mate,
“
Mr. Kremerling decided to detonate two kilos of antimatter,
not the ten grams that I gave him for the job.
”

“
Hey, I love fireworks,
”
Boz shrugged.

Jana quivered at the revelation;
the nearly three hundred people who worked at the lab had certainly been killed
by the brazen stupidity of these criminals and their still unknown overseer.

The two pirates argued amongst
themselves.

Although she too was likely
doomed, Jana resolved to somehow resist the efforts of the thugs that now
surrounded her. Just as her ancient ancestors had done in Poland during World
War II, she would secretly and subtly sabotage her captors
’
ambitions.