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  It was hours later and just as always he had snuck off at four in the morning from her bed to venture back to his own quarters just down the hall. He might have a bit of hell on his hands for that later depending on her mood but he was having a restless night himself. This time he could tell her he left for his own quarters so he didn't keep her awake. She still might not believe him, again, depending on her mood, but even if she wanted to have yet another serious talk about it, she was worth it, of that he was absolutely certain.

  “Lucky man, I am,” he muttered to himself as he stretched out on the futon. There was a perfectly good bed just in the next room but it was too big to sleep in alone. “Feels like a great big soft floor, that does.”

  His command and control unit vibrated mildly and he looked down at it absently. Price was leaving him a message. “Couldn't be more awake,” he grumbled as he accessed it for review.

  Frost: I was reviewing the personnel files so I could have a clearer understanding of the maintenance crew when I came across someone who has exactly the same DNA as you do. His file looks like an altered copy. I've also sent a notice to Stephanie. My duty report to Alice and the Captain will mention it as well. I suggest you come to the main security office so your identification can be re-coded before the beginning of your shift.

  “I think I'll perform my own little investigation first.” He called up the ship security holodisplay and punched in his identification code. As he expected there were two illuminated paths indicating where on the ship he and his imposter had been throughout the last day. One path led from his quarters to the security office, then the gunnery deck, there was a swirl indicating he had spent his day moving around that space. His night had led him to Stephanie's quarters, the lower observation bay for a couple hours then back up to her quarters.

  The other, blue line was telling a different story. It started in the aft berth with the engineering crew and led to the engineering main office for a morning briefing, then into various sections of the ship where there were short reports on memory wipes and software reinstallations being performed on over a dozen cleaning and servicing robots. He'd heard that they were being stripped of any AI's and reset back down to their base programming, he just wasn't aware of where it was being done. “Whoever's usin' my ident's a real busy body.” He muttered as he scrolled through the servicing logs from the day before. “Almost worth just leavin' him alone.”

  The blue path showed a clear U shape as the person it represented moved up one side of the robot maintenance bay and down the other through the day then out, to a portside observation lounge he'd never visited. It had been remarked as the Oota Galoona. “Must be a new pub or somethin' opened up. Surprised Steph dinna want to drop in.” The blue marker indicated that whoever had copied and modified his identity was still there.

  “Looks like I've got some early mornin' clubbin' ta do,” Frost said as he took to his feet and grabbed his gun belt. He was still strapping it on as he stepped out the door.

  The express car let out just around the corner from Oota Galoona. Between the dimly lit hall and the name he could only assume that the observation lounge had been renamed by an issyrian. Frost took his time, resting his palm on the pommel of his sidearm, surveying the hall as he came around the corner.

  Things had quieted down, the observation lounges, quickly becoming clubs and old fashioned bars despite intoxicant rationing, were always quietest the hour or two before the end of a shift. The graveyard watch would be ending in less than two hours and he couldn't imagine why the impostor would be there over six hours after his shift had ended or how he could keep drinking for so long with rationing in place.

  Double doors with the name of the establishment lettered across the front in rainbow luminescent paint marked the entrance to the main port observation lounge. He stepped in just close enough to activate them and stepped to the right so he could see inside while peeking around the corner. It didn't help.

  His eye met Burke's right away. The other man had been watching the door, sitting with his back to the transparent wall so he could see anyone coming in from the right side of the entrance.

  Instead of ducking for cover or bringing up security on his communicator, Frost grinned and walked straight for Burke's small booth table. “Long time! Good ta see a familiar face!” he exclaimed jovially.

  The other man's panic was so utter he was struck still, his hands griped his tall dark brown glass as his jaw fell agape and his eyes nearly bulged out of his head.

  “Morning, Chief.” Frost heard someone say from a seat by the door. It was one of his early night watch crew, the only nafalli on his staff.

  “Morning Hunsler,” he acknowledged over his shoulder loud enough to be heard despite the loud, obnoxiously upbeat music playing throughout the large half circular space. It was dimly lit like the hallway outside, with three tiers leading up to the bar against one of the transparent sections of hull. Whoever had taken responsibility for reopening the lounge had chosen prime space, it was as large as the main forward observation area, able to seat at least three hundred, had a couple dozen booths for privacy and one entire wall was transparent, providing a generous view of deep space and distant stars.

  Each tier had booths at the end and it was the lowest of them that Burke had chosen to nurse a drink. From the looks of him it wasn't the first. “Frost! I didn't think you'd catch up with me so soon! You got my message!”

  Frost sat down and waved off a civilian servant walking towards him with a tray. His hand never left his sidearm and as he settled into the booth across from Burke he pressed down on the hilt so the end pointed directly at the other man's middle. “Now what message would that be lad?”

  “Using your ident code, exempting you from the rationing. I was hoping you'd notice and help me off the ship. Shamus, you've gotta help me. I'll give you my half of your accounts, anything.”

  For a long moment a grin and a raised eyebrow was Frost's only response. “Yer tellin' me ye couldn't get off the ship an' you thought hackin' into ship ident an' borrowin' me was just a flare for me ta track.” He reached out, took the other man's drink, sniffed it and put it back on the table. “That's ale you're drinkin', so unless someone put somethin' in it while you weren't lookin', you're stupid at least, drunk and stupid at most.”

  “I tried to get off so I could fix things up from a safe distance, ship most of your money back over wireless, but Captain's got this boat bottled up more n' the Samson, I swear. Sure, looks loose an' busy, but everything that lifts off the deck's got someone he knows by name, everything with an engine's got someone's eye on it. Tried pryin' into a fighter and that little bitch Paula calls me out with half the deck crew behind her, didn't need help with a mouth like that; she's worse than any alarm I've heard.”

  Shamus laughed and shook his head. “Paula caught you goin' down to steal a fighter? That's one for the album. Surprised she didn't get you to security.”

  “Didn't come to that. Can you help me?”

  “Where's Silver?”

  “Don't know, we split after you got taken by Nan.”

  “Taken? Ye think Nan took me?” Frost deactivated the safety on his sidearm, set the disintegration charge to maximum and made sure his firing line was at least a few centimetres away from his knee.

  Even over the loud music Burke heard the unmistakable high pitched whine coming from the weapon as it greedily drew power into its capacitors. “F-Frost, I-”

  Shamus pressed his finger to his lips for a moment, silencing the other man. “We don't want anyone here knowin' what you owe me, aye? Now we're goin' somewhere private to talk all about where I might find Silver, and to make a little funds transfer.”

  The panic was rising up in his old friend, his eyes rolled to the door, back to Frost, out into the club and back again. “We can do it all here S-Shamus. I've got all the access I need, and I know Silver was headed coreward. That's all I know,” he begged.

  “You're right, we could do it all here. I
could blast you in half an' Captain would chalk it up ta old business. I don't care what any of these bastards think of me, we're no Princes, that's no mystery. Difference is here I have ta cut you apart, 'cause if someone finds out we sat down at the same table after you stole all my savings an' ran off then you walked away with nary a scratch, well, then I've lost face. 'Sides, you still hafta tell me all about how you got aboard.”

  Burke squeezed his eyes shut and knitted his fingers together, white knuckled. “I'll tell you everything if we just stay here. We ran together for eight years, that's gotta count for somethin'.”

  “Thought it did, then you got off an' left me hangin' by the heels with no scratch. I had to go to Nan's crew, you know what woulda happened if Captain didn't turn back an' pay for me?”

  “You woulda had to work it off, that's all.”

  “My arse! She'd have me strapped down and put out for chow for those damned cannibals she uses for pit fightin'! I was worth less than nothin' if Captain wouldn't agree ta a sit down.”

  “I didn't… how could I know?”

  “How'd ya not? We both had a record for breakin' inta ships in that system, you did those jobs with me! I couldn't even sleep in an underpass, police woulda snatched me up on a warrant no doubt, you left me there to get done in, to get done and gone! Don't even try ta pass any o' this mess onto Silver, he doesn't have the chops or stones to get into my accounts an' drain 'em.”

  Burke tilted his command and control unit so Frost could see it and showed him a list of accounts. “I'll do it now, pay you back right now.”

  Frost watched as he selected all his accounts and sent the funds his way. It was almost as much as had gone missing after he left the Samson. “That's a start,” he said with a tight lipped smile. When the transfer was finished he looked Burke in the eyes, they were red and watering, nervous and desperate. “Now take yer C and C off lad.”

  “W-wha, I-”

  “Do it.”

  He followed instructions and glanced at a young man with a tray as he walked by. The young fellow's brow furrowed and interpreted the glance as a desperate summons.

  Frost picked up the half arm length command and control unit off the table and dropped it on the server's tray. “Now we can get started, boyo,” he said eagerly to Burke.

  “Is there a problem here?” asked the server as Burke put his head down on the table and covered it with his hands.

  “My friend and I were just leavin'. Give that ta the next security man you see. It has ta go to the Security Chief herself, be sure he knows that.”

  Burke rolled his head to the side and looked to the server. “Don't let him take me,” he said through brimming tears.

  “Sir, I think I should call security,” the server said.

  “I outrank ye by five stripes boy,” Frost said coldly. “I've a traitor right here, an' I'm takin' him in,” he stood and grabbed Burke's collar in his fist.

  Burke whimpered loudly as he was pulled out of the booth and hauled to his feet. Frost jammed the barrel of his sidearm against the hinge of his jaw so hard his molars ground together.

  “Sir, I really think-” the server started to insist.

  “Ye shut yer hole or I'll drag yer ass to the mast room before mornin' shift starts an' the Captain's first duty o' the day will be to come up with a punishment for your subordination. He's not a mornin' person.”

  “Yes sir,” relented the server quietly.

  “All brains and no backbone, some things never change,” Frost grunted as he led the much thinner man towards the door, pushing and lifting.

  “Everything all right boss?” asked Hunsler as he and two other gunnery crew members just off early evening watch stood up at their table.

  “Will be soon, puttin' this traitor off ship tonight. I'll be back for the next round.”

  “You sure sir?” asked another gunnery crew member.

  “Does it look like this pup can turn his luck around? Eyes on yer drink lad!”

  As the gunnery crew members sat back down and watched Frost leave with his prisoner, Burke tried to grab for one side of the door only to have his grip forced loose as he was pressed through.

  The trip down the hallway to a darkened crew cabin was quieter than Frost had expected. Burke's breathing was heavy but Frost could tell the man was steeling himself for whatever was coming next.

  Once they arrived Frost tossed him into the middle of the room, where he stumbled over a low coffee table. Frost had his sidearm aimed squarely at him, there was nowhere to go, at least not fast enough to dodge a full on blast from a highly charged disintegration weapon. The vacsuits might take one shot from such a weapon, but certainly not a second. “On your knees, Burke,” Frost instructed quietly.

  He hesitated; “please, there's history and-”

  “Your knees, you git!” Shamus exploded.

  Burke obliged, his eyes flinching from his old friend to the floor; “You and I've b-been through some tight spots, s-seen some good times and…”

  “You must've thought I was the most daft man aboard, that's the only reason why you'd borrow my ident. Dinna think I'd figure it out.”

  “N-no, I don't know, you j-just don't check the little things…”

  “Well we've got proper folk goin' through that kinda thing, we're watchin' each other's backs. You'd probably stifle here, feel smothered, but you're lucky. If it weren't for all the good folk here I woulda slagged you by now.”

  “You're right, I shouldn't be here, I don't d-deserve…”

  “There's truth to that, aye.” Frost backed up to the door and locked it without taking his eye off Burke for more than a second, punching in his personal security code. “Now take off that suit.”

  Burke looked at him for a moment, confused.

  “Take it off!”

  He did as he instructed, signalling the suit to slit all the way down the front by dragging his index finger across it while pressing the button under his collar.

  “Give it here.”

  He pushed the suit towards Frost.

  Shamus drew it the rest of the way to him with his foot and manipulated the room's controls for a moment. “You remember Sigma Aconis? That crew we found all frozen to death when their hauler sprung a leak they couldn't get to?”

  “D-don't, please, not that.”

  The air in the room shifted as Frost finished setting the environmental controls to slowly depressurize the compartment and cool the air. His own vacuum suit head piece sealed. “Now there's somethin' botherin' me. How in blazes did you get on this ship?”

  Burke's eyes looked in every direction, searching for some kind of solution, any way out of his current predicament. “Came aboard by mistake, didn't know Captain was running the show until I was all hired on.”

  “Ye really do think I'm the dullest soul,” Frost took three quick strides forward and pistol whipped the other man with every ounce of strength he had. “You have less than a minute before there's real damage done, then not long after 'till you're dead! The truth, you whoreson!”

  Burke started trying to pick himself up off the carpeted deck and gave up, fighting for breath and wincing at the two teeth Frost had just broken. “Captain'll have me done in-”

  “What? Who d'you think you crossed here? I'll have ye dead with no answer an' sleep just as sound as if ye gave me one and lived to tell about it. Speak up, might be that the Captain'll give ye a kind of mercy I won't.”

  “Wheeler! As soon as I got planetside I caught a call from the Stellarnet for anyone just off the Samson. I sent a message, got one back from Wheeler, said he'd give me a place on his ship an' a fair share of the bounty from Jake. We knew if we left you there with no means you'd have to call on him for help, and I gave Wheeler the transmitter codes for the Samson. I swear that's how it was!” Burke answered hurriedly as he felt the air grow much colder, thinner.

  “Well that answers how he tracked the Samson so quick. D'you know you almost got all of us killed? That bastard was capturin
' Ash an' a couple others for himself an' killin' everyone else.”

  Burke shook his head emphatically; “I didn't know. Thought he was takin' Captain on the ground.

  Frost just shook his head and let the point rest. “What the hell kept you aboard Triton when Captain took over?”

  “It's like I said! Tried a few times durin' recruiting runs, even tried to leave with those Aucharian military types, but they stopped me, said I wasn't in their database. There's eyes on every important spot on the ship!”

  “You coulda taken a pod.”

  “Even you know Captain woulda caught me an' we'd be right back here or worse!”

  Frost adjusted the controls by the door so the compartment wouldn't continue to depressurize, but went on to set another control. “Should be interestin' to see this.”

  “What are you doing?”

  “Wonderin' if the security team will get here before the temp in here drops to minus ninety. If they do, you'll make it to the brig, if not, well, I'll send a farewell to yer sister for ye.”

  “I've told you everything!”

  “Where's Silver?”

  “I have no idea! He wouldn't turn on Captain! Went his own way!” he was already shivering, wrapping his arms around himself.

  “You know we've no ship doc on board yet? Imagine, a ship this size with no doc.”

  “Eight years! I only crossed you the one time! I'll make it up to ya somehow!”

  “How're you gonna do that? What do you have that I want?”

  “Name it! I'll do everything I can to make it happen!”

  Frost laughed and shook his head. “Your edge is gone lad, maybe you can crack inta pretty hard info systems, but I wouldna have you on my crew, no matter what you've got for trade.”