Chapter 31: Hostage

Governor Strump breathed in deep through his nose and exhaled between thinly parted lips. His gaze flicked across the screens on the wall of his quarters aboard Aristeia. Between them he had live video from the orbital station, the hotel in Capitol City, and several satellites which tracked Starhawk's ships above the city.

Capitol City police, along with a smattering of privateers and local militia, had the Midtown Hotel surrounded. Above the city Starhawk's remaining warships circled beyond reach of attack, yet kept close enough to prevent being targeted by the planet's orbital guns.

Strump's phone buzzed on a desk nearby. An incoming video call from Surface, unregistered. He swallowed and picked it up.

"This is the Governor," he answered.

"This is the Starhawk."

A frigid fist closed in the Governor's gut. "How—"

"Yes, Strump, I know exactly where you are. I want a manual off-grid shuttle outside that hotel in one hour or my grubs crush your hero's skull," Starhawk said. "I'll agree to a ceasefire in exchange for his life as long as we've got a guarantee we can leave Surface now untouched. Let them out of the city and you'll never see us again."

"You killed my fellow citizens. You bombed my home. You're not going anywhere." Governor Strump struggled to infuse his words with a tone of barely contained simmering rage, conscious that Aristeia's main computer had no doubt notified the Captain of the intrusion and recorded the conversation.

"And you killed most of my men," Starhawk said. "We've both taken losses, Strump. Let's not spill any more blood. A ceasefire in exchange for one manual off-grid shuttle and safe passage off planet or your hometown hero dies."

"Absolutely not. You know we don't negotiate with pirates."

"Life is negotiation. If you don't let us go we'll broadcast his execution over the public airwaves. We've got no reason to play nice. What'll it be? You want to see him die?" Hargrove's face popped onscreen in graphic detail, mottled bruises under streaks of fresh blood.

"Don't kill him!" Strump yelled. "Don't kill him. We'll—we'll consider your demands."

The Governor sagged with relief when the phone's screen blacked out. He'd swapped it for a new one before he left Surface—how could it...? His hands trembled as he ran them through his hair. The real threat wasn't killing the hostage, it was exposing Strump's involvement with the pirates, the Core Fleet excursion, everything. He'd fallen right into the pirate's trap, unable to refuse his demands without giving up everything he'd spent his life working for.

At least the hostage gave him a decent argument. The thought gave him hope but Strump cursed himself for his weakness. A stronger leader, a nobler leader, would refuse even in the face of complete personal ruin. But he would never have made it to the Governor's office if he was a different man.

It should have worked. And it did, for a while. He won reelection after the drastic reduction of pirate raids following the Core Fleet's excursion led to an economic boom which promised years of safety and prosperity for the Core. Of course he suspected there would be hidden costs, but he never imagined—!

"Captain Nguyen has requested you speak with Admiral Perry on the bridge, Governor," said Gim from near the door.

Strump flinched. He'd forgotten the fabricant. "Yes, of course."

Everything hinged on this conversation. They wanted it all on Record. Governor Strump straightened his back and smoothed his hair against his scalp before accompanying Gim to the bridge. No one suspected his involvement with Starhawk—that he knew of—so he at least had that assurance as he marched through the halls of Aristeia. If he wanted to keep it that way he'd have to let the pirates go. Starhawk would expose him if he felt his back against the wall.

After the destruction the pirates brought it would not be a popular proposition among the brass of the Core Fleet. But Starhawk's high-value hostage changed the rules. A broadcast of the man's execution would cause massive public outcry and shake Core citizens' faith in their government. The whole excursion into the belt was a mistake, left their defenses weak. Heads would roll if they didn't contain the chaos.

Yes, that sounded convincing. Best to appeal to fear, make them think about their own skins instead of directing blame. Strump organized the argument in his head, talking through the points he'd have to highlight. Planning made him feel solid even when everything seemed to be in free fall.

#

"What's your involvement?" Gruce shouted.

"You bombed my hotel," gasped Hargrove.

"And you killed Jensen Lee! How do you explain that? You a privateer too?"

One eye swollen shut, blood leaking from torn skin, Hargrove wheezed and let out a laugh which turned to coughing. "Idiot left the door open."

Pluck chimed in on Gruce's channel. "Got us surrounded. Troopers, militia, police. They'll send a team in soon."

"Boss is working on our exit," said Gruce, projecting confidence he didn't feel. "We'll get out."

Pluck whined his displeasure at being trapped before dropping from the channel. Gruce crouched and squeezed the laser wound in Hargrove's leg, drawing howls of pain as charred scabs cracked open and seeped bloody pus. "Tell me what you know about the map."

Hissing between clenched teeth, Hargrove again shook his head. "You're after Buttercup. I'm not telling you a damned thing."

"Suit yourself," said Gruce as he let go. Hargrove groaned and sagged with relief. "You'll talk eventually. Once we get out of here you'll talk to Starhawk. You'll tell him everything. They always talk to him."

"They won't just let you leave."

"You just wait and see." Gruce opened the channel to Starhawk. "Tough bastard. He won't say anything. What we got from the fabricant is as much as we know."

"Fine," he said. "Keep your guard up."

#

Governor Strump found it helpful sometimes to look at the forehead instead of directly into a superior's eyes while under reprimand. Admiral Perry, commander of Surface's lone orbital space station, glared with such crushing force between his eyebrows that they quaked and strained against each other as they vied for dominance. Strump dropped his gaze to the floor of the bridge as the seasoned war veteran berated him.

"I have been insistent from the beginning that the Core Fleet remain a defensive measure," Admiral Perry said. "Their involvement in this fiasco is a stain on my reputation as much as yours—and indeed, on the Fleet itself. Not in the Core's entire history has there ever been an undetected sustained assault like this. By all the damned stars, Strump, they're sieging the city! And they're beating us! We were completely unprepared for this and I expect a full investigation of this incident on your return, Governor. This is a highly irregular breach of protocol. All contact should be handled in the light of the Record."

"Of course I agree, Admiral," said Strump, deferring with a bow of the head. "We must find out where the blind spots in our defenses are to prevent another attack. The phone was somehow infected before I left Surface."

Perry continued his offensive but shifted targets. "We're just lucky we haven't lost more civilians. These kinds of mistakes are disgraceful—and thus far have not been isolated incidents. Captain Nguyen, how could you allow a compromised device past your security?"

The black-and-blue clad Core Fleet captain stood ramrod straight beside Strump, mortified at being admonished in front of his crew. "Apologies, sir. In our hurry to return to Surface we did not adhere to standard inspection protocols. It won't happen again."

"A foolish mistake like that should never happen. As for the conversation you had with Starhawk, Governor, it should be obvious we can't let them leave. We have no guarantee that he would keep his word after we let him go. One man's life is not worth allowing an injustice like this attack to go unanswered."

"Myself and the rest of the Core Fleet are still ten hours from Surface space. We can't just throw a man's life away, especially not a man willing to go to such lengths to protect his fellow citizens. He's a hero, sir, and the only positive outcome we've seen from this situation. The people love him. If the pirates are offering to leave without killing anyone else I propose we at least consider the option. They've got the upper hand here—Starhawk circling the city with warships, two carriers in low planetary orbit above, and if we hit them with the orbital guns the wreckage will likely do more damage to the city. Meanwhile the station has exhausted nearly all of its drones and long-range ammunition, correct? This is grim news, Admiral."

"That filth won't set foot on this station," Perry said with a snarl.

"No, I don't expect so. But this ordeal will crush the people's faith in its leaders if we don't put a stop to the bloodshed. As you said, the Core Fleet's excursion became a horrible mistake—let's not compound that with further blunders. Any attempt to destroy the pirates at this point will only serve Starhawk because it will bring more death, more emotional scarring on the people. Spare them. Spare our people the horror."

The Admiral's brow softened as the Governor's words took root.

#

"Boss, they just parked a shuttle out front," said Gruce. "Is that it? We good?"

"All yours," Starhawk said. "Just don't let 'em pop you on the way out."

Two-Gut's heart skipped a beat before hammering with excitement. They would live after all! Gruce shoved Hargrove in front of him and forced him out of the room to the hallway. "Pluck, let's go. Shuttle's outside."

"Coming, dearest."

Pluck met up with Gruce as he and his hostage made their way to the hotel's front entrance. The boxy cobalt shuttle rested on the pavement just outside the doors. Gruce and Pluck took cover at each side of the door with Hargrove standing in the open, each pirate with a laser rifle trained on him.

"Boss," said Gruce. "You sure this isn't a trap?"

"Nope," came Starhawk's nonchalant reply. "That is entirely possible."

The old pirate grimaced. It was all up to chance. Served him well enough so far. Gruce exchanged glances with Pluck and shrugged. "Time to go."

He opened the door and shuffled forward into the sunlight behind Hargrove, the barrel of his rifle snug against the back of the man's head.

#

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