First Principles: Samair in Argos: Book 3 by MICHAEL KOTCHER Read Free Book Online Page A

can’t leave them.”
                  “I have no intention of leaving them,” Vincent told her.  “I’m just wondering what we can do.  This ship certainly can’t stand up to the battlecruiser, with what few weapons we even have.”
                  Stella shook her head.  “No way.  I swore I wouldn’t go riding against death ever again.  Once was enough.”
                  “You can say that again.  I’m a freighter captain, a businessman,” he said, leaning back in his chair.  “We’ve been making a living, such as it is, for years, plying the spacelanes.  We’ve dealt with the odd scrap or two, but the Argos Cluster has gotten far more dangerous, hell just in the last year.  And look where we are now.  A supposedly safe star system being attacked by the locals because they don’t like how I do business.”  He laced his fingers behind his head and looked up at the overhead.  He pursed his lips.  “Where’s Quesh, or Ka’Xarian?”
                  Stella blinked.  “Quesh is in Main Engineering,” she reported.  “He’s on shift right now.  Xar is down in Cargo bay eight, working on the fighters.”
                  He sat up, pulling out his communicator and flipping it open.  “Xar, it’s the Captain.”
                  A moment’s pause.  “What can I do for you, Captain?  We’re busting our humps getting the new fighters done.  And may I say, they are beautiful.”
                  He chuckled.  “I’m sure they are, Xar, but that’s not why I’m calling.”
                  The captain could hear the zheen moving away from some loud noises.  “I’ll be right back.  Yeah, Captain’s on the line.  Just keep your comments to yourself.  I told you I’ll be right back!”  He was yelling to someone in the background that Vincent couldn’t hear.  “Sorry about that Captain,” Ka’Xarian said, as the ambient noise level in the background dropped dramatically.  “Moved out into the corridor.  So what can I help you with?”
                  “Well, I’d love to get those fighters finished up and launched, but as Stella pointed out, even if they were ready to fly, we don’t have any pilots for them.”
                  The zheen buzzed.  “No, Captain, we don’t.”
                  “But apparently the battle is coming our way and Tamara and her forces might not be able to stop it.  We need to do something to help.”
                  A pause.  “Well, Grania Estelle can’t fight the Leytonstone.  They’ll wipe the floor with us without even slowing down.”
                  “That’s what I was thinking,” Vincent concurred.  “But we need something.  Even something small.”
                  “Well…” the zheen said slowly.  “What about the shuttles?”
                  “What about them?”
                  “Give me a few minutes.  Cap, can you come down to the boat bay?”
                  “Sure,” he said.  “I have some time before the Leytonstone gets here.”
                  “See you there.”
                  The comm clicked off.  Vincent met Stella’s gaze.  “Any idea what he’s up to?” he asked, getting up from the table.
                  She smiled.  “Knowing him, it’ll be inventive and you won’t like it, but it might just work.”
                  He chuckled, heading for the hatch.  “You’re right, I probably won’t like it.  But if it works, I’ll forgo the vicious tongue lashing he’ll probably deserve.”
     
                  When Vincent arrived in the boat bay, Ka’Xarian was already there, steering a hover pallet that contained a one hundred liter drum of helium 3 and a squat, boxy device.  He looked up from what he was doing as the