Parador (Juggernaut #2)

Fifty Eight

The sun kissed the horizon farewell. A pink disk escaped the night and turned pale blue to gold as it rippled over the east.

The weak morning light made little headway against the wispy clouds, but the early breeze snatched the heat from Jayce's cruiser when he opened the door, and the day held the promise of rain. At least, it did for those left planet side.

Corporate logos decorated the white skin of the hangar before them. They were symbols Tila had come to hate.

Jayce made a call and a small door opened in the hangar. A figure in white overalls acknowledged Jayce with a wave, then the small door closed and the main hangar doors opened.

'You're gonna love these,' he promised.

Ever suspicious, Tila asked, 'Why are they in the hangar? Didn't they just arrive?'

'I thought it would be best if they were kept under cover, that's all.'

'Away from prying eyes, you mean? Jayce, if these ships are going to attract any more unwanted attention...'

'Hey, trust me. Everything's fine. Anyway, that last heat was your fault, right?'

'Well...' said Malachi.

'Hey look, the door is open,' said Jayce, and he glided the cruiser forward.

It was a small hangar by commercial standards, a simple rectangle with a sloped roof. The walls nine metres tall by twenty-five wide and sixty deep, but perfect for small yachts and other pleasure craft. Anything bigger would need the facilities of a commercial spaceport for storage and maintenance. Anything bigger than that was likely to be uneconomical if not impossible to land in an atmosphere, and would most likely dock at one of the orbiting shipyards. There, smaller tenders would handle the routine duties of shuttling passengers to the surface.

The bright lights of the interior spilled out when the doors opened, bathing them and the cruiser in a diffuse white glow. Orange perimeter lights on the door frames cast dancing shadows on the three covered ships in the middle.

On the left side of the hangar, hooked up to a cables and pipes, was a private yacht undergoing routine maintenance. The sleek personal cruiser whispered luxury with every line and curve, but the effect was offset by the support scaffold braced against its starboard hull, and the exposed water tanks lining the sides of the ship.

But it was the ships in the centre of the hangar that called to them. Tarpaulins of military grey covered each one and hinted at dagger-like shapes beneath.

'Wait until you see these bad boys!' Jayce said excitedly. Then added to Ellie, 'I hope you like them.'

'But you still haven't told us what they are,' she said.

'Help me with this and you'll see,' said Jayce. He stepped up to the first sheet. Malachi stretched out an arm to help but pain pulled him up short.

'Still painful?' Tila asked him.

Malachi shook his head. 'Getting better, but still hurts.'

'Here, let me.' Tila took two big handfuls of the tarp and pulled. As the cloth passed over the tail of the ship gravity took over. The tarp gathered momentum and the fabric slid forward and to one side, rippling to the floor like dirty cream.

Ellie gasped.

'Whoa,' said Malachi.

Tila looked at Jayce, eyes wide, questioning, demanding, unsure. Suspicious.

Jayce winked at her. 'Do you trust me now?'

Tila blinked at the sight before her. 'Maybe.'

Jayce shrugged. 'Close enough.'