Page 1 of Written in the Stars

1

DRASK

Humans—ridiculous creatures, yes, but they’ll surprise you every time.

LAST CONTACT: A DIPLOMAT’S LIFE

TheCry of Battlesettled on Talbrek Station’s landing pad with a groan of fatigued metal and a clatter as something dropped to the deck. The engines, strained well past their limits, wound down with a grinding noise.

I took a deep breath before looking at the damage control console, half of which glowed red with warning lights. The hyperdrive had burned out on the last jump, and Void alone knew what had fallen off during landing, but I’d made it. That was a surprise, the first pleasant one I’d had in a while. After the disaster at Holgrave, I doubted one in ten of my comrades had reached safety, even the dubious safety of Talbrek, a backwater mining station on the edge of charted space. Officially abandoned decades ago, when the asteroid mines ran dry, smugglers and thieves had moved in. I’d find a mechanic here to repair my ship, or if I had to, I’d buy a used one. My journey wouldn’t end here.

Stepping out of the airlock, I looked back at my ship and swore under my breath. The hull was a mess of blaster scars, two heat sinks had holes through them, and the shield projector was simply gone. Great. Even getting her flying again would cost a lot of money, and I had precious little to spare.

To cap it off, the ventral turret had fallen off. I snarled at it, trying to guess at the cost of repairs and despairing.

“Give you twenty thousand credits-imperial for that,” someone said in a squeaky voice. I looked around and saw a white-furred person half my size, wearing heavy goggles and tough overalls, his face a long muzzle tipped with a twitching nose. Small, bright eyes peered up at me, expectant.

“The engine alone is worth twice that,” I protested automatically. The rodent’s nose twitched, and he raised an eyebrow at the battle-scarred drive unit with its holed heat sinks.

I had to admit, he had a point. But if he was buying, he must have a use for her. Maybe he could help restore her instead.

“Okay, fine. If you’ve got the parts to get her flying again, I’ll buy them off you for a fair price.”

He looked up at me as though I were mad. “Fly again? Is trash, wreckage to strip for parts. Might be something worthwhile inside, but it’s cheaper to buy another than repair this one. No, no, you sell and buy something that works. Twenty-three thousand? Best offer I can make.”

My only answer was to snarl at him and turn on my heel, heading into the station. It wasn’t fair to the man, but my anger boiled hot, and he was in the blast radius. Maybe I’d apologize to him if we met again when I was in a better mood.

* * *

Gang tags were everywhereon the station, many of them painted over each other. Ongoing contests for territory made sense, but this looked like chaos. With no group strong enough to hold their ground, the fighting would continue indefinitely.

Maybe if I found out more, I could earn enough money to get theCry of Battle’shyperdrive replaced and be on my way? It was a hope to hang onto.

I headed into the nearest market. If I was to work with the local gangs, I’d need to learn about them, and a market would be a good place for gossip. Beyond that, I needed food, a place to sleep, and a drink.

The market was a maze of crisscrossing corridors meeting at confusing angles. Some shops were simple stalls, set up in the open. Others were in rooms off the corridors, but most of those were closed and shuttered. The station had clearly seen better days.

Competing tags were common here, marking this as a contested area between two gangs. The crowned star was the most common, but I saw a lot of black circles challenging them. That made me hopeful—one gang or the other would need my help.

Wandering aimlessly, getting the lay of the land, I looked at the kind of shops the market offered. The most common sold ‘reclaimed and restored’ parts. I shook my head at the pointless euphemism for stolen goods. This was a pirate station, no need to be coy about the source.

There were exceptions. Lilse’s Medical offered healing treatments, staffed by a Vusild female in white medic’s robes. On the outskirts of the market, I passed a general store. And beyond that, in a dead-end corridor that burrowed directly into the asteroid rock, I found a surprise. Cheap territory, bad location, and the product was unique on Talbrek.

* * *

WRITTEN IN THE STARS

Books of all Kinds

Bought and Sold

* * *

A bookshop?In a station filled with pirates, thieves, and smugglers? What idiot would try something like that?

2

MEGAN

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