open, threatening to stick or disobey altogether.
“How much does a propellant
injector cost?” Craze asked. It’d be worth the investment if he could afford
it. “How long to get it installed?”
“Lepsi ‘n I could get the injector
put in quick enough. It’s only a two-hour job. The cheapest one is ten thousand
chips. It’s been hard used. Will get us out to the Edge ‘n landed once. Then
we’ll need to find another to go anywhere else.”
Ouch. That would spend most of
Craze’s startup fund, maybe leaving him enough for a coat and some basic
supplies if he found a frugal shop.
“This one would be better.” Talos
pointed at another injector. “It’s almost eleven thousand. Older, but not used
as much ‘n would last longer than the other. Probably has a hundred jumps ‘n
stops left in it.”
A much wiser buy, but shit, barely
enough left for a meal unless Craze bumped into a desperate wholesaler. He’d
have to take the risk. Once he got his hands on the chocolate, he wouldn’t have
to worry about a budget ever again. “I think we could work somethin ’
out.”
“Really?” Talos hopped from foot to
foot, rubbing the pin his mother had given him. “Carry On.”
“You about to get it good, Federoy ,” Lepsi said to his tab, his bother’s image
summoned to the screen. He started to sing. “A ship for chips. Give me your
chips. Pretty, sheeny chips.”
“Let’s go talk about it.” Craze
shrugged a shoulder at an empty corner of the tarmac. “Away from ears ‘n eyes
not ours.”
They climbed over treads and
massive tires, ducked under hull frames and ship plates, then trudged over
rubble and weeds until out in the open and alone.
“I fell into some business. So, I
offer to finance the injector you need, if you can give me what I need,” Craze
said.
Talos took a step back, his eyes
narrowing. “What is it you need from us, mate?”
“To get that vessel in workin ’ order by tonight ‘n to keep tabs on me. When you
get my signal, you come in ‘n take up the cargo.” Craze crossed his toes, hoping
he’d judged the aviars as hungry as he was.
Talos chewed on his lower lip.
“What kind of cargo?”
Just as he’d suspected some
interest sparked there. Craze fed the aviarman a little more. “One that will
afford you an armada. Your own transport line.”
Talos stepped closer. “What?”
Craze whispered in Talos’s ear,
then Lepsi’s. “Chocolate.”
The aviarmen’s eyes popped. Talos’s tongue flicked at his lips several times, his fingers
clutched over his prized pin.
“How’d you bump into that?” Talos
asked
The hook sank in like a docking
clamp on the aviars, holding tight to the lure of great wealth and a less
difficult life. Craze breathed easier. “I met a Jix—“
“A Jix? Oh, shit. You can’t trust a
Jix, mate. Did you see the chocolate or did the Jix just say?”
“I saw it.” Craze crossed his arms
and squared his jaw, annoyed at the aviarman and afraid he’d made a big mistake
teaming up with Gattar.
Talos chewed on his lower lip. “A
plus, but still, a Jix is a Jix.”
Craze needed all the information he
could get. “You know about that race then?”
“Anyone who does any extensive
traveling on the Edge or lives out there knows of the Jixes. They thugs who go
about taking what they want from worlds that can’t defend themselves ‘n their
assets.”
Users. No better than pirates. Craze
had thought so. “How many Jixes is there?” He had to know exactly what he was
messing with.
Talos shrugged. “No one ever sees
more than a few at a time. They have their own ships though. The implication is
a whole population of them. Like in the old days before the war.”
Craze would have to be extra
careful then. Being hunted by the Verkinn was more than he could take. He
didn’t need other races ostracizing him, too, telling him where else he wasn’t
allowed to be.
“Ever hear of one named Gattar? She
presented herself as a
“How much does a propellant
injector cost?” Craze asked. It’d be worth the investment if he could afford
it. “How long to get it installed?”
“Lepsi ‘n I could get the injector
put in quick enough. It’s only a two-hour job. The cheapest one is ten thousand
chips. It’s been hard used. Will get us out to the Edge ‘n landed once. Then
we’ll need to find another to go anywhere else.”
Ouch. That would spend most of
Craze’s startup fund, maybe leaving him enough for a coat and some basic
supplies if he found a frugal shop.
“This one would be better.” Talos
pointed at another injector. “It’s almost eleven thousand. Older, but not used
as much ‘n would last longer than the other. Probably has a hundred jumps ‘n
stops left in it.”
A much wiser buy, but shit, barely
enough left for a meal unless Craze bumped into a desperate wholesaler. He’d
have to take the risk. Once he got his hands on the chocolate, he wouldn’t have
to worry about a budget ever again. “I think we could work somethin ’
out.”
“Really?” Talos hopped from foot to
foot, rubbing the pin his mother had given him. “Carry On.”
“You about to get it good, Federoy ,” Lepsi said to his tab, his bother’s image
summoned to the screen. He started to sing. “A ship for chips. Give me your
chips. Pretty, sheeny chips.”
“Let’s go talk about it.” Craze
shrugged a shoulder at an empty corner of the tarmac. “Away from ears ‘n eyes
not ours.”
They climbed over treads and
massive tires, ducked under hull frames and ship plates, then trudged over
rubble and weeds until out in the open and alone.
“I fell into some business. So, I
offer to finance the injector you need, if you can give me what I need,” Craze
said.
Talos took a step back, his eyes
narrowing. “What is it you need from us, mate?”
“To get that vessel in workin ’ order by tonight ‘n to keep tabs on me. When you
get my signal, you come in ‘n take up the cargo.” Craze crossed his toes, hoping
he’d judged the aviars as hungry as he was.
Talos chewed on his lower lip.
“What kind of cargo?”
Just as he’d suspected some
interest sparked there. Craze fed the aviarman a little more. “One that will
afford you an armada. Your own transport line.”
Talos stepped closer. “What?”
Craze whispered in Talos’s ear,
then Lepsi’s. “Chocolate.”
The aviarmen’s eyes popped. Talos’s tongue flicked at his lips several times, his fingers
clutched over his prized pin.
“How’d you bump into that?” Talos
asked
The hook sank in like a docking
clamp on the aviars, holding tight to the lure of great wealth and a less
difficult life. Craze breathed easier. “I met a Jix—“
“A Jix? Oh, shit. You can’t trust a
Jix, mate. Did you see the chocolate or did the Jix just say?”
“I saw it.” Craze crossed his arms
and squared his jaw, annoyed at the aviarman and afraid he’d made a big mistake
teaming up with Gattar.
Talos chewed on his lower lip. “A
plus, but still, a Jix is a Jix.”
Craze needed all the information he
could get. “You know about that race then?”
“Anyone who does any extensive
traveling on the Edge or lives out there knows of the Jixes. They thugs who go
about taking what they want from worlds that can’t defend themselves ‘n their
assets.”
Users. No better than pirates. Craze
had thought so. “How many Jixes is there?” He had to know exactly what he was
messing with.
Talos shrugged. “No one ever sees
more than a few at a time. They have their own ships though. The implication is
a whole population of them. Like in the old days before the war.”
Craze would have to be extra
careful then. Being hunted by the Verkinn was more than he could take. He
didn’t need other races ostracizing him, too, telling him where else he wasn’t
allowed to be.
“Ever hear of one named Gattar? She
presented herself as a
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