Jack's Wage Slavery Pt. 01

Before they stepped through Nann began to laugh. Ash looked at her. "What?"

"I just got it! Its name, Jerrican! Jerry Can!" the redhead chuckled.

"Yes, the Tik have an odd obsession with asking Humans to give them names when they go into service shortly after their Instantiation. I am not sure when that practice began but it has resulted in some odd and sometimes less than flattering designations." Gee sighed.

The group stepped through and found themselves in a large and noisy space, a far cry from the cool efficiency of the LA Terminal. They made their way to the customs desk and faced the Rehm clerk. Generally short, they had round bodies with two long arms, two short ones and strong but short legs. Their skin was a dull grey green. Otherwise unremarkable, the Rehm were good at their jobs.

"Names and purpose of your visit," it said barely looking up from its terminal which was busy scanning them.

"Gee and Bal, Altarian Security. Searching for our Ambassador. Hired a crew for heavy lifting." Gee said blandly.

"Reward?" the clerk said brightening up.

"Not my department. We're just the transport."

The clerk's expression dulled once more. "One day pass for six?"

"Yes." Gee answered.

"6000 credits."

The Major jolted at the expense but Gee just tapped her comm on the pay pad and the clerk's eyes lit up when it saw the included gratuity.

"Information?" Gee asked.

The smile froze then a subtle nod.

"Growth enzyme shipment some hours ago. Destination?" Gee asked casually.

The clerk placed it's comm on the surface of its desk near the edge. It scanned its records then looked towards the exit. "Hot box. Yes. Third sector, tenth zone, grid four. Closest approximation... the Cowled Ones." Meaning that was the recorded destination which still covered a large area. The last bit was the most important information. Confirmation of the enemy.

"Good Business," Gee said tapping her comm against the other's before putting it back in her gown.

"Good Business," it responded with a broad smile as it read his intake of credits. The group made their way out of the terminal through the exit.

"We will need to hire a transport as the destination is not achievable on foot in the time we have." Bal remarked. Gee nodded and looked around. A delivery wagon was parked across the lot and the driver was eating a lunch that was putting up a fight.

"For hire?" Gee asked it as she approached.

It crunched down on the flailing creature it was eating and looked at the group standing before it. It swallowed and took a gulp of the liquid from a bulb at its side.

"For six? Where?"

"Third sector, tenth zone... third grid."

Eyes lit up. "Rough zone. Hazard pay."

Gee nodded. "There and back."

The driver's excitement dimmed a little. "How long in the zone?"

"Two hours max. We'll camo the vehicle while you are there."

It relaxed as the danger to it and its truck would be reduced significantly by the camouflage. "10,000 credits. Each way."

Gee turned to walk away.

"6000 credits each way!" it yelped before it lost her business.

Gee turned back and the driver quickly tidied up its meal and climbed into the truck. The team stepped through the cab to take seats on the benches in the back. Bal stepped into the back and gave the Major and Nann their weapons. She returned to the cab and Gee delivered Leo and Maxim's weapons to them. The men grinned in delight to have their weapons back and ran a quick inspection on them.

As Gee returned to the cab the driver looked nervously in the back. "Double hazard pay."

The Altarians scowled at the Rehm driver and it squirmed. It was very bad business to change the deal once agreed upon.

"Already paying hazard though none to you. IF such a hazard does occur, THEN bonus on existing hazard." Gee growled and the Rehm meekly nodded. Gee paid it for the outbound trip and it got them underway with no further delay.

"What's our ETA?" the Major called out.

"Seventy five minutes." Gee remarked as Bal moved to set up sentry at the back door, watching out the back window.

The commandos nodded and all proceeded to close their eyes. The Altarians were on watch.

There really wasn't much to see along the way. Countless rows of similar grey five story buildings and slightly taller warehouses. Only the changing location identifiers at the intersections showed they were getting closer to their destination. It was a little mind numbing but Gee and Bal maintained their vigilance through intense discipline.

"Entering third sector, tenth zone, third grid." the driver said.

"Take us to the far side of the grid and turn right at the intersection before the fourth grid." Gee instructed and got a nod in return.

Finally they turned and Bal came forward again. She'd woken the team as she passed.

"Pull into this alley and pull up against that wall." The driver took them into the spot and shut off the engine.

"Two hours begins now. Camo truck," it blurted as it looked out the window nervously at the deserted lane. Not much traffic in this neighborhood at all. Traffic had been much heavier nearer the Gate Terminal and the public transit didn't even seem to come out this far.

Gee and Bal stepped outside and placed small metal pucks against the surface of the truck at either end. With a buzz the truck disappeared... mostly. For a casual glance the space appeared empty.

The commandos stepped out and looked back in surprise. The driver followed and smiled.

"Stay inside the truck. Within two hours we will be back." Gee barked.

It nodded and stepped back inside, disappearing from view.

They moved out.

"What guarantee do we have that it won't just drive away?" the Major asked.

"The vehicle won't start while the camo is engaged and only we can turn the camo off." Bal stated.

Nann shared a grin with Leo and Maxim who were looking at the Altarian's with new respect.

"We are going to move up to the edge of grid four and begin a sensor sweep. This is likely to generate some interest as the scan is detectable. We will move fast and if you see Allsa Komanae don't hesitate to shoot as you won't be given a second chance. The Rehm's confirmation means Altaria is at war with Allsa Komanae as of this moment. Our mission has become top secret and no longer exists officially. The Queen must be given this information and will make the statement of intent."

Eyebrows went up and the hair on the back of their necks stood on end. They were involved in, no, they were making history but few would ever know.

The team's eyes scanned for enemies as Gee and Bal prepared their scanners. They angled the devices outwards away from each other to cover a roughly spherical zone. With a nod they set off at a trot with the commandos in pursuit. Twenty minutes later they had covered thirty percent of grid four without picking up anything. The occasional Rehm office worker ignored them as did the Rehm warehouse techs.

They were moving into the older, less used part of grid four when Bal's device flashed a green light. It picked up human DNA ahead. They heard an odd warbling and Gee gestured for everyone to scatter. Nann was the first to disappear from view as she darted into a side alley. The men split and moved to flanking positions. Gee and Bal tucked away the sensors and pulled out their pistols.

The Major looked at their compact weapons and wondered at their firepower. She felt comforted by the solidity of her assault rifle.

"Major, we will take center. If you could cover our retreat that would be helpful." Gee said.

An Allsa Komanae tumbled from the rooftop just behind them. Then two more on roof tops ahead of them. The warbling ahead got louder then cut short with a squeal.

Major Ash smiled to herself. That would be Nann.

They glanced around a corner to see a wide courtyard next to an old warehouse. Three dead Allsa Komanae lay next to the shipping container they were looking for.

The space acted like an acoustic amplifier. They heard the distant chuff sounds of Leo and Maxim's assault rifles firing and the lighter snap of Nann sniping from a rooftop somewhere.

"I need one of the Allsa Komanae for questioning," Gee said quietly to the Major. She relayed that to Nann.

Six Allsa Komanae suddenly burst from the warehouse doorway with guns blazing. Gee and Bal each snapped off three shots painting the hoods of their targets as tiny missiles launched from their guns. The Altarians dove for cover pulling the Major behind a building's corner as their rounds reached Mach one racing towards each target. The ground shook as the six missiles detonated within the six cloaks.

"Apologies, we did not have time to calibrate the output on the rounds for personnel," Gee explained to the Major than the Altarians helped her up. They peered around the corner and a trench had been blasted into the ground in front of the warehouse which no longer had any glass in its windows. A single Allsa Komanae stumbled out of the building and paused in front of the trench.

Bal tapped her weapon's controls quickly and fired on the stunned enemy. This time the round went off with a smaller concussive blast six feet before the remaining Allsa Komanae tossing it back against the wall of the building to fall slumped in a pile. Nodding to each other the Altarians bolted from cover and raced across the open space to leap over the trench and grab the robes of the downed enemy. They dragged it inside and covered the room with their weapons.

The Major ran across the space after the surprisingly fleet Altarians and glanced down to either end of the courtyard. Maxim and Leo guarded their flanks and a glance up and behind caught Nann's wave as she indicated she was watching from above.

"Clear?" Ash called out.

"All clear." Gee's voice called in return.

The Major stepped inside and saw Bal leaning over and speaking quietly to a whimpering Allsa Komanae which was lying on the floor. She followed Gee into the next room and the stench made her gag. There was a body on the floor being dissolved from the feet upwards. The goo had only reached the stomach so they saw the face clearly. Human. Male. Older Caucasian with a rough unkempt beard. Look of horror and pain frozen on his face.

A second body was off to one side. A Sinosian, in an advanced state of rot.

Gee touched a device to the man's neck. She looked back at the Major. "I recognize this man. Director Goodson of Earth's Trade Commission. He was a wanted criminal, responsible for a previous abduction. He obviously still has deep connections to have pulled off such an operation but he had no experience with dealing with the Allsa Komanae. We were lucky to have gotten here when we did. The clean-up team didn't have time to finish so we must be close."

The agent scanned the metal rack and picked up traces of Jack's genetic material where he'd gripped and scraped his fingers against the rough edges of the metal. Jack had been here and he'd been alive.

"Major! We have incoming! A large number of Allsa Komanae. I slowed them down a little by taking out their drivers from a distance but they are all on foot now making their way to your location. You need to make tracks." Nann said over the comm.

Gee and Ash rushed back into the outer room to see Bal backing away from the moaning Allsa Komanae. She gestured for them to be quiet and led them out. Then all three raced for the other side of the courtyard. Leo and Maxim were double timing back to their location as well.

Nann was already on the ground and they ran as quickly as they could. A minute later there was an enormous thump and the ground heaved under their feet causing them to stumble.

The Major and Gee looked at Bal who was smiling. "They found my present."

"How much did you use?" Gee asked.

"All of it." Bal grinned. An enormous fireball was climbing into the sky behind them. Leo and Maxim grinned widely as well.

They picked up their pace once more and managed to get back to the alley in a quarter of the time they'd taken to get to the warehouse. As they rushed up to the spot where the truck should have been the Major felt a knot of dread forming in her stomach. Gee tapped her comm and the truck was suddenly there. She and Bal pulled their camo devices from the truck's sides and they all piled in as the Rehm screamed at them for disabling the truck.

"How did you know it was disabled unless you attempted to leave prior to the arranged two hour window?" Gee growled and the Rehm instantly shut up.

"Make haste as we likely have a large group of very angry Allsa Komanae following us." Bal mentioned.

The Rehm screeched and got the truck back out on the main thoroughfare. It pushed its speed up just a little higher than the limit and cursed under its breath.

"Take the next main left." Bal called out from the back window.

The Rehm's curses turned to whimpers but it slowed and turned as directed.

"Take the next right." They went right. This route was far less traveled but moments later a large armored personnel carrier swung into position behind them and began to accelerate.

"We have a tail. We can't outrun them and they are in an armored vehicle. Suggestions?" Bal asked.

"Do you have any more of that stuff you used back at the warehouse?" the Major asked Bal.

"No but Gee does."

"How is it triggered and how much would we need to take out the windshield?" Ash asked.

"Exposure to air causes the reaction and only three seeds."

"Seeds. Geezus, it's organic?" she gasped then looked at her sniper. "Nann, I need you to hit the windshield with a payload round. Guys, you know what to do once the windshield is down."

Leo and Maxim grinned widely and prepared their guns.

"Give me the round." Gee said and Nann placed it in her hand. The tip was soft and would collapse letting the payload chamber break open on impact. Gee saw the payload chamber was filled with a gel. This would support and isolate the seeds but not for long. She looked at the sniper. "From the time I hand it to you, you will only have ten seconds to fire the round before it begins to react... explosively."

Nann nodded with an intense smile on her face.

Leo and Maxim stood by the rear windows. They could see the carrier getting closer and an Allsa Komanae popped up in the gunner's position on top. Leo looked at Maxim. "Bonus target."

Gee turned her back on the others and carefully injected the gel with four seeds, one extra just in case, and sealed the round. She handed it to Nann who chambered it in the rifle and nodded. The men knocked the windows out and immediately leaned away. Nann aimed and pulled the trigger before the carrier driver recognized that the window panes had popped out of the back doors. Nann's bullet hit the window dead center and the gel flashed away as it was designed to do. The seeds were burning their way into the reinforced polymer when they went critical and blew the entire windshield into the cabin. The shockwave shoved the delivery truck forward and everyone grabbed a support.

Leo and Maxim leaned back in and fired two grenades into the carriers open window to turn the injured bodies into giblets. Maxim beat Leo to punching a hole in the gunner on top. The carrier continued to accelerate towards them.

"Hard right!" Bal yelled and the truck took the next turn at speed. It bounced off the wall of a building then got back on track. Their tail continued in a straight line continuing to accelerate.

"Hard left at the intersection and push the speed to maximum." Bal called out.

The Rehm was moaning constantly now. Gee leaned in close. "Double hazard pay and we'll replace the truck." That stiffened the lip of the driver and the accelerator went to max.

Gee's comm pinged with an incoming message. The Customs agent was informing her that the terminal was blockaded by Allsa Komanae vehicles. Gee sent the agent credits for the information.

"We have a problem ahead. The terminal is surrounded by Allsa Komanae vehicles."

"Hard left!" Bal called out and the truck screeched around the corner and bounced off the building once more. "Hard right!"

They swung out onto the road they'd been on previously but now they were behind the runaway carrier which was crushing through everything in its path. Gee caught on to her partner's idea immediately.

"Stay behind it but not too far back," she said to the driver. It just nodded as it glanced at the carnage of twisted metal on the sides of the road.

Gee heard the chuff of the assault weapons being fired in the back and looked to Bal.

"Nothing to worry about." Bal reported.

They continued on with Leo and Maxim gleefully picking off the reckless few who took up the chase. Then suddenly no one was following.

"They're falling back as the rest are all gathering at the Commercial Gate Terminal," the Major surmised.

Gee shared a look with Bal then tapped out a message. The response came back momentarily and she sent off more credits. It might work.

Chapter 15

The Allsa Komanae techs had been trying to remotely connect to the controls of the carrier but it was too badly damaged. They pulled the vehicles back from the street it would exit from. Even with its armor it couldn't breech the wall surrounding the Gate Terminal. Their runaway would be destroyed against the impenetrable wall and in the chaos the cursed Altarians and the savage Humans would attempt to breach their line to get back into the Terminal and through their gate.

The Field Leader surveyed the Secondaries prepared to fight and smiled. Their numbers were just too great and they had their second carrier parked before the entrance to the Terminal. There would be no escape. The Field Leader had gambled highly when it brought through so many Secondaries to deal with this loose end. So many had already been lost!

It passed a command down the line. Any who allowed their target to get past would lose their current standing. It felt the tension ripple through the ranks and smiled.

Moments later they heard the rumble of the runaway carrier approaching. The noise got louder and louder until the vehicle burst out from between the buildings. It was pushing a small fuel transport!

The carrier struck the wall and crushed the fuel pod against it. As it was designed to do the wall held and deflected the blast wave down its surface in all directions. The Secondaries closest to the blast were torn apart. Further back they were tossed like leaves in the wind to break against the parked vehicles, the wall, the ground, and each other.

Standing atop the carrier the Field Leader was able to brace against the shockwave. It looked for the truck but... it wasn't there! Just as it began to issue orders the truck shot out of the roadway and drove straight into the hellish mess of the destroyed carrier. The wall continued to hold as the truck exploded far more violently than is should have. A second, larger blastwave ripped through the nearby Secondaries and the death count increased dramatically.

The remaining Secondaries hesitantly moved forward to seek out their targets but they must have died in the crash. How incredibly useless!

Chapter 16

"Names and Destination."

"Gee and Bal. Travelling with four hired hands to Earth."

The clerk at the Passenger Gate Terminal frowned as it looked at its screen. "I don't see your ingress record." Its personal comm beeped with an incoming message from the Commercial Gate clerk. "Oh."

It placed the comm on the edge of its desk and Gee tapped it with hers giving a tip for services.

"Gate 3" the clerk smiled.

"Good Business." Gee said calmly as she slipped her comm away. They walked down the hall towards the gate.

Major Ash felt every hair on her body standing on end as did Nann, Leo, and Maxim. Weaponless they followed the Altarians down the hall. The Major was stunned by how simple their escape had been. They'd stopped the truck to get out and Gee slaved it to chase the carrier. Off it went struggling to catch up. Bal had left a surprise in the back.