Chapter 5
Arrest and Hydromel
"Captain, how long until you make the transition for Havint?" Brusjin asked.
"Our engines aren't as well tuned as a military grade engine; so I'm thinking three hours."
"Good, that should work just fine. Can you send a message on this particular frequency?" Brusjin showed the Captain something on his datapad.
"That's an unusual frequency, but I think we can do it. Who do you want to talk to?"
"An old friend who owes me a favor. We may not be your guests as long as you think."
The Captain set up the comm channel and turned to Brusjin with a questioning look on his face.
"This is Singapore Six calling New Jersey Prime. Are you receiving?"
I looked at my husband in astonishment. I'd never heard him use anything even resembling code before. What in the hell was Singapore Six and New Jersey Prime? He simply mouthed, "Later," to me and continued to listen for a reply. He repeated the call a couple of times, about a minute apart, before there was a response.
"Singapore Six, this is New Jersey Prime. Is that you Brusjin you old abolitionist?"
"Mack! Yes, it's me."
"So what brings you back to the service? I thought you'd quit for good?"
"I'm not back. I need to call in a favor."
"I should've known. I assume you need to stay in system?"
"Right first time. I've got some vital information for the government and the delay caused by diverting to Havint will mean lives, potentially millions of them."
"I see. You still traveling with one of those little morsels you always had to ease business?"
Brus looked at me with a questioning look. I nodded and smiled. Apparently he'd been using the old sex slave as a bribe ploy for many years before he bought me. Ralint was well worth the price.
"Yes and no. I have a wonderful morsel, as you put it, but she's a free woman."
"This I've got to hear. I've pinpointed your location already. Expect a ship to pick you up in one hour. Fair warning, I'll have to have you arrested."
"I kind of expected that. Just don't lose us; that would be very bad."
"I've never lost a friend or a prisoner, so you're doubly safe. I'll see you in three hours."
The communication cut off, allowing me to express my concerns. "Arrested? Brusjin Valenshenko, have you lost your mind? Why in the name of all that's holy are we being arrested?"
"Susan, it's the only way to stay here and get the information to the correct authorities in time. The only people who can stay in system during an Amber alert are those already on the planet and those who are arrested trying to stay. Either we're arrested or Ralint suffers."
He was right of course. I just hoped that this Mack person was someone we could trust. There wasn't much to do while we waited. The plan was to have just Brusjin and I arrested while the ship's crew was allowed to follow the evacuation orders. Mack would take custody, as it were, of us, once we reached the planet's surface. I was still worried about the time in between.
If you haven't traveled in space much, you're probably not aware of just how different Federation laws can be. On my home planet of Valcrue, for example, there is a strong tradition of individual rights. Thus, slavery is illegal there and foreign slaves are restricted to the maximum extent that Federation synchronicity laws allow. There are very few Federation laws per se. Federation law only applies in space or when the laws of the various members and protectorates conflict. The largest realm of Federation law was military law. Individual planets don't have armies or navies (beyond merchant marines).
That's where my concern lay. We were being arrested under Federation law, not those of Pascal's World. Because of the concern over Federation security, Federation space law operated under the assumptions of guilty until proven innocent. Brusjin and I would be treated as dangerous people, potentially saboteurs, until Mack picked us up or we were found innocent in court. Since we were at Amber alert, we could, though it was unlikely, be summarily executed. We'd have no rights whatsoever until we were cleared in some way. If you're wondering how such a state came into being, that's a longer tale that I have time for now. Most people never encountered this aspect of Federation law, since there was so little that one could be arrested for. Only the desperate would ignore the relocation order. It's not like Dolman drives took much energy.
The docking maneuver was text book. We soon found ourselves looking at Federation marines. Rumor has it that they have no sense of humor at all. From what I could see, they didn't. Brusjin and I were soon restrained in magnetic cuffs, similar to the ones I wore as a slave. We were marched off the freighter and onto an assault shuttle. Clearly the marines were not in on the plan as they treated us quite roughly; stripping both Brusjin and I and subjecting us to a thorough search.
Neck shackles held us in place on the shuttle as it shoved off and flew back to whatever ship it came from. I couldn't see where we were going since the rear compartment had no view ports or screens. I was being ogled, however. Most of the marines, of all sexes, were eying me; and those whose expressions I could read were showing quite a bit of lust. I would find out later that marine regulations prohibited any form of sex between soldiers. That meant that Brusjin and I were potentially the first potential sex partners for the marines in who knows how long. Since we had no rights as of now, extracting sex from us was a possibility that had no repercussions.
It wasn't as bad as it seemed. While we could be raped without any legal repercussions to the soldiers; it was highly unlikely that we would be. The laws on Valcrue were the norm among the members of the Federation. Even most slave planets treated non-slave prisoners with some level of dignity. Most of those leering at me wouldn't take action on their desires (unless it was invited) and those that were so inclined would be held in check by the others.
The trip on the shuttle lasted just under an hour. Once we were docked, they drug us to holding cells. Brusjin and I were separated. The cuffs were removed and I was left alone. Military ships have excellent initial compensators, making it impossible for me to tell even if we were under power, let alone how fast we were going. Three hours later, a Kelvin entered my cell.
His uniform indicated that he was a commander in the navy. His compound eyes scrutinized me for a few seconds. I was surprised when he pulled a small device out of his pocket and turned it on. The device was a security leech. It broadcast a signal that most security systems would accept as their normal feed. Whatever was about to happen was
not
being seen by ship's security. This could not be good.
"Susan, how nice of you to put yourself in our hands. We've been trying to track you down for over a year."
Oh shit! The commander was somehow affiliated with the Hellfire group. I was naked with an agent of my worst enemy. This could not end well.
"Felpur got your tongue? How did you do it, Susan? How did you break free of your Voratex crystal?"
At least it seemed he didn't know that Crystal was still alive. I kept quiet. The less I said, the better.
