“Ugh,” Zoe said, tilting her head back. “Don’t call him that. Conjures up a totally different, and somewhat scatological, picture in my mind.”
“Very well,” said the AI. “What would you have me call him? Fake Kotov?”
Zoe cursed. “That’s even worse. You tryin’ to piss me off?”
“Far from it, my irrepressible Amazonian. I just thought it might be appropriate to apply a nomenclature that would designate the alternate versions of people from this dimension as inferior to the ones we know from ours.”
Zoe gave a small, sad smile. “I get where you’re going with this, Mal. Don’t think I don’t appreciate the sentiment. But the Rosie we’re on our way to meet is just as real and deserving of our respect as our own. No need to assign her, or anyone else, derogatory nicknames.”
“As you wish. I shall henceforth refrain from doing so.”
A mellow chime sounded and two gray dots materialized as Grady watched. “What are these, Mal?”
“One is designated as a corporately owned remote communications hub that does not exist in our reality.”
Grady scarcely heard the AI’s explanation as he bent to examine the second dot. “I knew it.”
Zoe also got to her feet. “Is that?”
“Cavalier outpost,” Grady said, turning to face her. He looked at the ceiling. “Mal, what’s its status?”
“Checking,” said the AI. “Ah, yes. The IC lists the outpost as abandoned. It declared for the rebellion early on, but suffered an attack. It was deemed too remote and vulnerable to be sustained and was given up by the IC. Evidently Earth Galactic also believes it is not a strategic asset and has not claimed nor attempted to garrison it.”
“If memory serves, Cavalier has a decent medical facility, including at least one regen tank.”
“It does in our universe, Captain. However, the data I received only lists a medbay, without providing any specific details regarding its capabilities.”
“How long to reach the outpost, at max sublight towing speed?”
“A little over six hours. However, I should point out that it is in the opposite direction from the rally point with the rest of our ragtag convoy.”
“You’re not thinking of detouring there, are you, Boss?” Zoe said. “The convoy needs our protection.”
Grady flopped back into his seat. “And they’ll receive it. But first, we have a medical emergency to deal with.”
“We don’t even know if Cavalier’s medical facility survived the attack by Earth Galactic,” Tara pointed out. “We could lose half a day, or more, total travel time, for nothing.”
Grady motioned with his hand to encompass both women. “I understand your concerns, I really do. And you’re not wrong. We’ll send a comm drone to notify the convoy—we can’t chance an open broadcast, encrypted or not, in case it gives away our position to anyone monitoring this sector. I’ll order them to make for the next designated waypoint and wait for us there for a pre-determined period. That way, they’ll be one hop closer to New Heb if they have to jump away again without us.”
“I hope you know what you’re doing,” Tara said. “This could all be a wasted side journey.”
“I’m willing to risk it,” Grady said, tapping the pilot’s holo. “If we don’t, the freighter’s chief engineer and the other two severely injured crew members—perhaps the fighter pilot, too—are doomed to die a painful, hopeless death. And I’m not minded to let that happen if there’s even a slim chance we can prevent it. We’re heading to Cavalier outpost. It’s the best hope the four injured have of surviving.”
Cosmic materials—a hodgepodge of hydrogen, helium, space dust, and other more exotic elements—swirled and eddied across the vast, multicolored surface of the nebula looming thousands of kilometers at Adventurer’s rear. The variegated whorls were a wonder to behold if anyone cared to look in that direction. No one did.
Minuscule ripples disturbed the nebula’s insubstantial rim, as something emerged from the gaseous formations and moved to follow the pair of slow-moving vessels, all the while maintaining a safe distance to avoid detection.
19
Chill fingers of déjà vu crawled up Grady’s spine as he gazed at the image of an enormous asteroid on the wraparound viewscreen. The last time he looked upon Cavalier outpost—its gray and black exterior giving the impression of having been extruded by the ancient mass of rock against which it huddled—the base showed scars from a devastating surprise attack by slavers. One of the habitation domes had been breached, bodies floating forlorn in vacuum, debris drifting above the maimed facility.
“This place can’t seem to cut a break,” Zoe remarked. “Whether in our reality or the alternate one in which we now find ourselves.”
“Indeed, my sagacious Amazonian,” said the AI in his rolling, unhurried butleresque tones. “Even so, the damage is less severe than the assault that occurred in our dimension, at least at first appearances. However, I am having difficulty scanning the portions of the base located below the asteroid’s surface, perhaps because of interference from minerals in the rocks.”
Zoe leaned over the arm of her chair to peer at the magnified view depicted on the large screen. “I still don’t get it. Now we’re here, the outpost is more-or-less intact. So why walk away? I’d have thought the rebellion needs every base it can get its hands on in this sector.”
“True, but remember, the IC doesn’t have the resources it does in our reality,” Grady said before Mal could reply. “Cavalier is remote. Resupplying and defending it would have strained the rebellion’s limited capabilities. So they chose to cut their losses after the attack and pulled out.”
“Fair enough, I guess,” Zoe said. “Let’s hope they didn’t gut the medical center before they left. Or any of the other essential systems. Especially the galley. I’m hungry. I wonder if they left any ice cream behind?” She licked her lips and cupped her hand around her ear. “What’s that?” she murmured in a dreamy voice. “Mint chocolate, are you calling to me? I’m comin’.”
Grady hiked his eyebrow. “Someone needs to get out more.”
Zoe slid him a mischievous grin. “Is that a promise of long overdue shore leave, Boss?” She squinted at the primary display. “On second thoughts, this isn’t the fun place I’d want to hang out. Just us and the dust bunnies. Doesn’t sound like a grand ol’ time waitin’ to be had.”
“You infantry grunts, always on the lookout for a party. And to fill your face.”
“This girl’s gotta grab her kicks—and calories—whenever she can. Besides, mint choc ice cream is to die for.”
“Can’t imagine you’ll find many cows grazing on the airless surface. Or in the bowels of the outpost, for that matter.”
“Nah, proper synth-ice cream will do just fine,” Zoe said with a sweep of her hand. “So long as it’s the good stuff and not some cheap, chemical laced knockoff.”
“I’m glad to see you still have some standards.” Grady tapped on the pilot’s holo and then shifted his attention to the ceiling. “Mal, any contacts in the area?”
“None, Captain. Unlike in our dimension, with Cavalier abandoned, there is no reason for other vessels to venture into this sector. It is, as you stated, an isolated location.”
