A Starship Called Starsong

Chapter 30

I entered the Bridge, and those present were all alert at their consoles as the big displays on the walls posted any information they had collected. It was only because Starsong's scanners were so powerful that we could even pick them up. Any other ship would have been clueless about the lurking shadow.

The Weapons Officer updated me on the situation. "One small craft currently hiding behind a large planet beside our path of travel. The planet is uninhabitable, but they set up a few scanners on the surface, so they have a much better reading on us than we have on them. Small ship though, possibly a skipper or a jumper. Nothing suitable for long-term space travel."

I slowly took a seat in my chair as I looked at the displays. I wasn't sure what some of the data was saying, but parts of it were close enough to my Analyzer readings that I was picking some information out of it. "How many are likely on board?"

"A ship that size is unable to maintain life support for more than a dozen people."

I glanced at the Shields Officer. "I assume our shields are ready?"

He nodded. "Even the ones we use just in case we hit a small asteroid should stop anything a ship that size normally carries. The heavier shields will automatically generate and stop anything that breaches the precautionary traveling shields."

I examined the displays once more. "So, they either realized that we are too big to tangle with and are hiding, or they are desperate enough to set up a suicidal ambush."

I pulled out my Guide and tapped into the data they had already collected, looking for something specific. They had posted what they thought was the most relevant information, but I was after the detailed analytical files that were similar to what Analyzers were able to generate. Most Captains wouldn't have the training to read them, but I had plenty of practice.

'Starsong, is this correct?'

"Yes. I am surprised the spacecraft is even working."

I considered the few details that our scans had caught of the hull before the ship had retreated. It was in such terrible condition that it belonged in a junkyard. The weapons and shielding on it were equally pathetic and had likely been scavenged from piles of refuse.

The life of a pirate was not the life of glamor and riches that some books made it out to be. Death lurked around every corner, and Space Enforcement loved to have random patrollers disguised as small trade ships. Those who tried to ambush them often did not survive the encounter.

There were generally two types of pirates. Those who detested the law and were drawn to death, battle, and such. Then there were those who were pirates simply because they had hit a spot of really bad luck and had run out of options.

Life wasn't always fair, and someone would have to be really desperate to even get on a ship like that one. 'What kind of policies did the original spaceship founders have in place for this?'

Starsong preferred to be traditional, often referring to the original mandates. Even a tiny shot from our smallest weapon would collapse their rickety shields and probably decimate their hull. A warning shot would be a death blow.

"The original mandates were to help humanity prosper. Society was supposed to help such people locate various avenues to get meaningful employment as well as provide training to get employment. If they had no interest in such and were menaces to society, then law enforcement was to step in. If no law enforcement was present, then punishment within the law parameters could be administered by any."

There was no law enforcement in this empty section of space, so an attack would be met with a counter-attack, which would be fatal for this group. 'Sooo... What sort of options does someone in their position have?'

"The government coalition of five nearby planets actually has a new integration program in place to retrain people who have had no success in getting a job. This group is likely not even aware of it."

'Hmmm... An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure?'

"I agree."

I addressed the Communications Officer. "Pull up all the documentation you can find on the local Integration Program offered by the coalition government and dump it on their bandwidth as a drop message. Hopefully, that will distract them sufficiently. If nothing else, they will know that we are fully aware of their position, which should deter a surprise attack."

The Communications Officer started rapidly tapping on his display as he found what I had requested on the local Spaceweb. He glanced up. "I have it organized. Shall I transmit it now or when we are closer?"

"Now. It will take them a few moments to realize what it is, and I want them to be focused on it, not us, when we pass by. We slowed down to avoid the turbulence earlier, but throw a bit more power to the engines. Let them see that they don't have a chance of catching us in that floating boat."

"I think that may have just been an insult to boats..."

Either Starsong had an unanticipated sense of humor, or he had been hanging around in my head for too long and was slowly picking up on sarcasm.

The Navigations Officer - not Tanya, her shift wasn't until later in the day -  commented, "We are picking up speed. We are not at our regular traveling velocity, but they shouldn't be able to catch us. There may be a bit of turbulence if we hit some solar wind, but I don't see any on the sensors at the moment."

"Keep an eye out for it. We can streamline and strengthen the shields if need be."

I didn't change our heading, and no one suggested it. We all knew the pirates might think they had a chance if we changed our heading. It wasn't as if they could take us on anyway.

"I added a tracing tag into the message so I can monitor it. They have opened it and are rapidly scrolling through it."

We all watched the displays as we drew closer. We were not passing close to the planet, but we were approaching the shortest distance between us and them. We passed it without seeing any movement.

"Someone is still scrolling through the message, more slowly now. Your distraction has likely worked."

'We were not exactly the best target to start with, and we gave them something that they could do.'

We were putting more distance between us, and there was no chance they could intercept or catch us now. The Navigations Officer broke the silence. "With our current speed, few ships could keep up, let alone catch up. I do not believe that they are a concern any longer."

I agreed with his perspective. "I think so, but let's play it safe for a while. There may be other pirates lingering in the area."

'It looks like my first brush with pirates wasn't too bad.'

"Not all will be as poorly equipped or ill-prepared."

I had to fight to keep from laughing. 'Could they have been any less prepared?'

"There are possibilities, but I understand your point."

I started browsing the list of work tickets to see if anything odd stood out. The others kept a close eye on their console screens and the displays.