Dragon's Run Read online

  Dragon’s Run

  A Space Opera Adventure Story

  Richard Parry

  Contents

  Meet Grace Gushiken

  Running Forever

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  About the Author

  Also by Richard Parry

  Glossary

  EXCERPT: GANYMEDE PLUNDER

  Shooting Stars

  DRAGON’S RUN copyright © 2019 Richard Parry.

  Cover design copyright © 2019 Mondegreen.

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN-13 ebook: 978-0-473-46897-2

  First edition.

  No parts of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any form without permission. Piracy, much as it sounds like a cool thing done at sea with a lot of, “Me hearties!” commentary, is a dick move. It gives nothing back to the people who made this book, so don’t do it. Support original works: purchase only authorized editions.

  While we’re here, what you’re holding is a work of fiction created by a professional liar. It is not done in an edgy documentary style with recovered footage. Pretty much everything in here was made up by the author so you could enjoy a story about the world being saved through action scenes and clever dialog. No people were used as templates, serial numbers filed off for anonymity: let’s be honest, October Kohl couldn’t be based on anyone real. Any resemblance to humans you know (alive) or have known (dead) is coincidental.

  Want updates from Richard Parry? Sign-up and get a welcome bundle at https://www.mondegreen.co/get-on-the-list/.

  Find out more about Richard Parry at mondegreen.co

  Published by Mondegreen, New Zealand.

  For those who long to sail the stars.

  Meet Grace Gushiken

  Our story starts on Starfire Station, a remote trading outpost orbiting a star without planets.

  Grace Gushiken will bring down a corrupt regime, defeat alien foes, and save the crew of an ex-war heavy lifter from the might of the Republic. She’ll do this from the shadows, because she’s feared as an esper. No one trusts those who can read your thoughts. Grace never mastered it; she can only read emotions.

  At fifteen, she’s recently escaped her father’s estate in Japan. He trained her as an assassin and spy, wanting her to murder the Emperor, but she made it out and stole his sword. He’s hunting her among the stars, using wealth and power to find her. Grace moves like a gymnast, and hunts like a tigress. She’s never learned to trust.

  Starfire Station’s home to vagabonds and merchants, soldiers and strays. New to the starfaring life, Grace relies on her training and her wits to stay hidden. She feels like the Empire’s hounds are closing in.

  A runaway might be able to change the fate of the universe, but she’d have to find a place to call home first.

  Running Forever

  This is the third time Father’s come for me.

  Grace stood, head bowed so hair fell over her face. She jostled for position in a line of desperate, dirty people trying to enter Starfire Station. They smelled of despair and coming off them were waves of doubt/sadness/endless journey. Grace didn’t know what to make of so many people with so little hope, but she knew what to make of the Empire troops waiting beyond border control. The station’s air cyclers were working hard, but still couldn’t keep the heat from rising from the press of so many bodies.

  Her lane held four families ahead in the queue. Grace came here on the Immortal, a starship so old it might live up to its name. Captain Topham hired her as a deckhand, his thoughts reeking of gullible/cheat/lie/steal as he’d looked down at her fifteen-year-old face. It was his intent to rob her of hard-earned wages that led her to break into his quarters, stealing two fistfuls of good Empire coin before slipping from the Immortal.

  The rest of the crew, a surly uncommunicative lot, were in a different immigration lane. Last time Father sent people for her, they’d boarded her starship before it docked. She’d blown an escape pod for cover, then hid on the boarding party’s ship, escaping with her own hunters. This time, they laid a trap onboard a station. Empire soldiers already swarmed the Immortal behind her. There was no escape that way, and besides, it would be hard to explain to Captain Topham why she had so many of his coins.

  A family made it through the screening gate ahead, the holo above blinking NEXT PLEASE. Three families to go. Only a handful of minutes to come up with another plan.

  Beyond the screening point, Grace saw a group pulled aside. A girl roughly Grace’s age was separated from a wailing mother and an angry father. An Empire soldier shoved the girl against a wall, blaster muzzle to her head, ignoring her cries while another trooper scanned her. Grace hunched her shoulders, trying to ignore the panic/run/run/run from the girl, and the hate/desperation/fear from her father, and the please/no/help/someone help from her mother. Their emotions made Grace’s heart quicken in response, the thud-thud-thud loud in her ears.

  Grace’s father never felt like that about her. She looked down, ashamed.

  A commotion from two lanes to the right drew her eye. One of the Immortal’s crew was receiving similar attention from Empire soldiers. Leslie Casque had crewed with Grace these last three weeks. He was dirty, skinny, and so full of hate for all things in the universe she wondered how he could bear it. The reason Empire soldiers held him against a wall, weapons and voices raised in equal measure, was because Leslie Casque had stolen Grace’s sword.

  She’d known it was him from the lingering smell in her cabin. Aboard the Immortal, she had no options to recover it. A young woman shouldn’t have a sword hundreds of years old. She shouldn’t have a sword at all. Grace planned to convince Leslie to give her sword back once on Starfire.

  The soldiers took the sword, and as an afterthought, Leslie. Grace watched her weapon taken away, feeling her own rising hopelessness. She might have borrowed some from the people around her, but Grace felt she’d earned it this time. She’d gotten the feeling honestly, without the guile she used to survive on the run from the Emperor’s right-hand man.

  Father will never give up.

  Grace felt a nudge on her shoulder, giving a glare in return. She took in the sad eyes and fatigue/tired of an old man wearing a ship suit well past its use-by date. Its elbows were patched many times over. He nodded past her. “It’s your turn.”

  Sure enough, the three families ahead of her passed into the belly of Starfire Station while she ogled a desperate family and an angry young man. Grace was out of options. Beyond this gate were the hungry claws of her father’s soldiers. She felt trapped but had no way out. Run now, and she’d be caught.

  Be calm. Be the deep blue ocean. Feel its weight and comfort. Grace nodded her thanks to the old man. He hadn’t earned her glare, but she was frightened, and alone, and shouldn’t have to fear her father. Squaring her shoulders, Grace stepped into the screening station. Behind armored glass, a slightly pudgy man waited. He looked bored, eyes not meeting hers, and the slight stubble on his face said I’ve been in this damned box interviewing migrants for at least ten hours, so be kind.

  Grace reached deep, below the sadness and the desperation, and into the cool of the ocean. She could be strong, and she could be kind. Grace walked to the armored glass, resting her elbows on the sill beneath a speaker. “Hi.”

  “Name?”

  “Ayako Tanaka.” Grace Gushiken was a name known throughout the Empire. Ayako Tanaka was a tourist Grace encountered on Europa. Ayako’s stolen ident cards rested in Grace’s pocket.

  “Tanaka, huh?” The man leaned forward, tired yet interested at the same time. His uniform was an unflattering gray, yellow banding around his shoulders reminding Grace of an anemic wasp. His uniform’s holo badge
said Redwood, C, before the letters were replaced with Have a pleasant day. “First time on Starfire?”

  “Yes,” gushed Grace, bouncing on her feet. “I’ve heard so much about it.”

  “Uh huh,” said Redwood, C. He glanced at the Empire soldiers waiting to take Grace away to a home full of terror, or to mine salt for the rest of her life. “You don’t look like a Tanaka. You want to know why?”

  Grace felt careful/cunning/opportunity from the man, but nothing suggesting he would throw her to the wolves. “I don’t know why, Mr. Redwood, sir.”

  He gave a short laugh. “It’s Cameron. My friends call me Cam.”

  “Are we friends?” Grace leaned forward, mouth dry. She felt nervous, like the jaws of a trap were closing in on her.

  Cam offered a lopsided smile, like even his lips were weary after talking to people at border control all day. “We could be. The reason why you don’t look like a Tanaka is because she reported her ident cards stolen three weeks back. A little less, but whatever.” He waved a casual hand, the gesture at odds with the panicked pounding of Grace’s heart. “And while you’re in the departure lane for the starship Elena, a merchant liner from Leigh Station, the Immortal docked not a half hour back. She’s been at sea since then. Seems about the length of time you’d need to be out of the world to miss hearing the ident cards you stole reported missing.”

  “Ah.” Grace had a lie prepared for this. “I reported my ident cards missing but found them later.”

  “Right.” Cam nodded. “Ayako Tanaka is also not an expert in kendo, but not two minutes past a sword was taken from one of the crew aboard the Immortal. We believe Grace Gushiken, who is a master of kendo, to be aboard the Immortal. You see where this is going?”

  Still nothing but careful/cunning from Cam. “I think it’s going toward a bargain.”

  “It is. I can get you the sword back. I can also get you through border control.”

  “It’s not my sword,” said Grace. “Why would I want it back? I’m Ayako Tanaka, tourist extraordinaire.”

  “You’re a fugitive from the Empire, an assassin, and a thief,” corrected Cam. “It just so happens, I could use a good thief.”

  Grace caught a hint of Cam’s own sadness/caution. Borrowing the emotion, it made her think twice. Trusting people was foolish, but if they had a common purpose, trust became business. “I’m listening.”

  A massive armored man in Empire power armor rapped knuckles on the security door. Grace startled, then faked a laugh. Cam pressed a button on his console, opening a channel to the guard. “Can I help you?” While Cam spoke with the soldier, Grace feigned disinterest, looking back the way she’d come. Disinterest was a good cover, but she didn’t want her face seen. While she hoped Cam would cover for her, her face would be known to Empire troops.

  “Is this the fugitive Grace Gushiken?”

  Cam blinked. “Hell, did I forget to tell you?”

  “Yes. Is it her?” The massive armored guard sounded excited.

  “No. The reason I didn’t tell you it’s Grace Gushiken is because this is Ayako Tanaka, just in on the merchant liner Elena.” He beamed. “She’s checking into a coffin at Best Universe.”

  “I am?” Grace risked a glance at Cam but avoided turning her face to the soldier. “I mean, I am.”

  “She is.” Cam offered a glare to the guard. It was the kind of well-practiced look one government official offered to another getting in their way. “Maybe you could let me do my job while you go back to terrorizing innocent civilians and costing Starfire Station a lot of money.”

  “I’ll do that,” promised the hulking brute.

  “Excellent.” Cam snapped off the comm, turning back to Grace. “Ms. Tanaka, enjoy your stay on Starfire.”

  “I will.” Grace waited until the Empire soldier walked away, then left the immigration bay. Grace needed her sword. She needed a plan.

  Likely both could be found at Best Universe. And, if the winds were fair, maybe a friend too.

  Chapter One

  Grace found an auto taxi, putting one of Captain Topham’s coins into the slot and leaning back so her face was out of view. The journey took her through throngs of people. Merchants, selling wares. Ship captains, haggling for cargo, or shilling berths. The odd waif or stray, half-hidden in doorways and the alleys between fabricated buildings. If they could stay, maybe Grace could too.

  She’d done well so far to avoid detection. Starfire was a free station. It flew no Empire flag, harbored Marines, and no Navy ships called this their home port. But when the Empire knocked, you opened, which meant Starfire personnel would cooperate with the soldiers seeking Grace. Her face would be known to officials, which meant keeping a low profile. She almost laughed. It’s not like she was planning on getting drunk, getting into fights, or burning down buildings. Besides, fire on a space station was a terrible idea.

  The auto taxi coasted to a stop outside a gleaming edifice that stretched up the inner core of Starfire. Shiny metal and mirrored glass coated the exterior, giving privacy to those within. Best Universe was a massive hotel, and Grace gave silent thanks to Cam. He’d pointed her to a place likely to be swarming with thousands of other travelers. It’d be easy to get lost in the noise.

  She stepped from the taxi, light on her feet, eyes everywhere for trouble. No soldiers or other official-looking guards here, which meant no one was suspicious. Yet.

  Inside, Best Universe was a cylinder of floors within one atop another, looking to Grace like it went up at least half of the station’s five-klick length. Two kilometers of hotel is a lot of people to get lost among. Grace ducked around a family of five looking lost. An angry man shoved her aside with a watch it, kid as he stormed out, which made her feel zero guilt about stealing his wallet. Grace tossed the IDs, keeping the few coins inside, and charted a course for the check-in kiosks.

  Her Ayako ID served fine for booking a room. Best Universe didn’t have a hook-up to official systems. All they cared about was a name to put on the room service menu. Grace slotted coins into the kiosk, the happy chink making her feel more comfortable.

  A glass express elevator took her to her room. Cam suggested coffin, but Grace chose a proper suite. After being on the ship for so long she wanted room to stretch her arms. Her room was comfortable but not showy, complete with a dispenser and console with a glowing holo above it. Grace settled at the console, bringing up the hotel’s directory.

  Ayako was a little older than Grace, which meant the hotel suggested the bar for her. She ignored it. What Grace wanted couldn’t be found at the bottom of a bottle. Besides, drink clouded the mind. She needed a clear head. Grace punched in an order for more clothes, waiting ten minutes for the fabricators to make what she wanted and deliver them.

  At a chime from the door, Grace opened it, finding a small package of clothes. She dumped her ship suit, tossing it in the recycler. The package contained finer clothes for later, but her hands found supple synthetics first. Grace drew on the form-fitting attire, then left her room.

  Near the base of the hotel she found her haven. The Best Universe’s gymnasium, a huge vaulted room with almost no one at all inside. A few brave souls swam in the giant pool, but the wide-open training mat was empty, as were the weight machines.

  Three weeks on a starship and you haven’t stretched your muscles. For most of Grace’s life, every day had been full of training. Routines, drills, and exercises. Her body craved release. She bounded across the empty space, sparred with shadow opponents, and jumped and sprang as if people fired blasters at her.

  People shot at her before and would again.

  After a half hour of practice, she slipped into a room with hanging bags. Plain printed floors made to look like wood gleamed beneath her. She paired off against a heavy bag, giving it a tiny mock-bow before starting. Grace danced around the bag, punching and kicking it. She let her mind go, her body free.

  Father hunts me. Slam, slam, slam. Her fists were used to this, and she felt no pai
n, just the steady rhythm of practice.

  Cam will betray me. She breathed harder and faster, hitting the bag.

  The universe wants me dead. Grace launched a spinning kick at the bag, following with a volley of punches.

  You’re alone, and always will be. She snarled, slamming a kick into the bag. The chain holding it snapped, the heavy bag falling to the floor like a dead man.

  Grace panted, sweat running. Calm. Be the ocean. Be the heart of the storm. She closed her eyes, trying to find calm, but instead discovering doubt waiting for her. Grace didn’t know much about the universe outside her father’s grounds, but one thing she’d found was people didn’t do anything for free.

  She left the broken bag on the floor of the gym. Time to find Cam.

  Grace took the time to slip into the other clothes she’d ordered. The cut was local to Starfire, blacks with a hint of white running inside. A close-fitting-but-not-constricting jacket topped loose pants. Boots that looked like real Earther leather completed the ensemble. All Grace needed now was a sword at her back.

  Cam wasn’t hard to find. He waited for her in the Best Universe’s lobby with two paper bags. Despite the milling throngs of people, he was easy to spot. His gray-yellow uniform looked official, which triggered instinctual avoid/avoid from guests. No one wanted trouble on their holiday or business trip.

  His eyes brightened as he saw her. Now she wasn’t facing threat of immediate capture, she noticed his eyes were gray-blue, bright enough after a day at border control. He is no fool. Be wary. He offered her a bag. It smelled like the rainfall of heaven. Grace eyed him. “What is it?”