Chapter 1
The Iarta was a very special ship, one of a kind in so many ways and her crew did love and trust her. She was their home and their safe haven and never had she let them down in any manner. She was no longer new, her hull carried the pox marks of radiation burns, of micro meteorites and collisions with both smaller vehicles and large ones but she carried on. Her mighty ionic engines capable of bringing her to speeds no other vehicle of her class could even dream of and she was famous for her ability to navigate even dangerous stretches of space.
The Iarta wasn’t some war ship, she wasn’t a frigate or a destroyer or anything like that. She wasn’t even a research vessel, no, she was a transport. The workhorse of the alliance, its backbone. As the number of new planets did increase so did the need for such ships and her captain was smart. Adding new technology was something very few did bother with, they stuck to the old and familiar methods but not the captain of the Iarta. If some new species had tech which could benefit this old girl, then it would be implemented and by now she was a tapestry of technology. But it did work, and it worked surprisingly well since the crew did consist of people from these different planets, all familiar with what they had brought with them into the mix.
The Iarta had become one of the most popular transports and she hardly ever spent time in dock, she had missions piling up simply due to her speed. She could bring goods which were perishable faster than any other ship her size and her owners did make good profit even if she wasn’t a cheap ship to run by any means. This did also mean that she from time to time had to transport dangerous stuff and the captain was extremely careful when it came to accepting shipments. It was her call in the end, the owners could negotiate the shipment but the captain had the last word. It was as it had to be. She was in charge of the Iarta, she knew her ship and her crew and she knew what it was capable of doing.
The Iarta had been going back and forth between the systems for almost fifty standard years when a new race did join the alliance. At first everybody did almost ignore them for they were so young, so fresh. What could they possibly know of the vastness of space, of its infinite depths? Then the word spread, these strange two legged beings, seemingly frail and weak came from a world so terrifying it sent many of the races into shock just reading about it. Surely it had to be a mistake? No intelligent species could evolve on a world this dangerous? This treacherous?
The humans as they called themselves were a strange bunch, they were friendly and eager to learn and they did prove themselves to be very intelligent indeed but nobody did really believe that they were tougher than others. They were too small, too weak looking. Their hide so thin and frail and their limbs didn’t seem to be able to handle anything dangerous at all. It was a miracle that they had survived long enough to become a space faring race.
Five years after first contact Iarta got her first human crew members, it was a female and a male, both rather young and they became very bonded with the ship and the other crew members rather fast. They were willing to work hard and tried so very hard go be friendly to everybody and it was quite impossible to dislike them. The crew had seven races there now in all and it did create some challenges but the Iarta was made to fit just about any possible race you could imagine.
The captain of the Iarta was a female of the species known as the Cabidians, they did have a vague resemblance to the animals the humans referred to as canids back on their home world and her name was Shune. She had been the captain there for forty years, it was a long time but her race was long lived and she had many hundreds of good years left in her. Shune was both fair and strict, she did reward those who did their job well and if you didn’t? well, cleaning the lavatories was a punishment she did favour a lot.
This particular run was a long one, they had left the third planet of the Yushra system a week earlier and were heading for a system near the core of the fourth quadrant. It was a difficult route since it took them rather close to some unstable stars but Shune had faith in her crew and her ship. It would take them more than a month to reach their target though, even if they did use their hyper drives whenever they could. A hyper jump this long was dangerous since the stars did disrupt the gravitational fields and could pull a ship out of course. So they took the journey in many shorter jumps and it did put a strain on the ship and the engines but it was worth it in the end. The cargo this time was large, there was a new colony on the planet they were heading for and they needed pretty much everything they could get their hands on of goods, including medicine and weapons. The cargo holds were filled to their brink and she did even tow a few smaller container ships behind her, empty of crew but stuffed with cargo. They had done that many times before and the Iarta was more than strong enough for the job.
Later nobody was really sure exactly when the problem started but the logs claimed that the first alarm was heard just after they re-entered normal space after their seventh jump of the journey. It was a rather uneventful trip so far and the captain had in fact been resting when the sound of the alarm sent her flying out of the bunk. As a species with six limbs the Cabidians were rather large and yet very elegant and flexible and she ran down to the control room. What she saw made her stop in shock for a few seconds, then she grasped for the mask hanging above the captain’s station. It had a different air supply than the others and this was to ensure that the captain would stay conscious, no matter what. The rest of the crew was unconscious and a few did look very sick, almost dying.
Shune tried to think fast, whatever it was, it was in the air. The crew had managed to set off the alarm but nothing else. The living quarters had their own air supply, that was why she hadn’t succumbed to it, whatever it was. She almost screamed in shock as the two humans ran into the room, wide eyed and obviously confused. “Captain, what is happening?”
Shune did throw two masks over to them. “Quick, put these on. There is something in the air!”
They did obey and the captain felt a need to shake her crew members, to see if they would come to but she knew it was no good. Whatever the problem was, they had to solve it first. “The detectors, activate them. We have to find out what this is!”
The female ran over to the detectors and activated them and the male did haul the smaller of the crew members over to some low bunks actually meant to be used if there was a chance of a collision. They had anti G built into them to soften a blow. Shune was terrified but she couldn’t show it, she had to stray strong and her race was infamous for never revealing what they truly felt. Some minutes went by, the crew wasn’t getting better but they wasn’t getting worse either and that was at least a good thing. Shune had never lost a crew member in her entire career and she didn’t want to start now. The woman let out a yell. “Here, the detectors within the first cargo compartment has picked up something”
Shune ran over, her two front limbs had long and agile hands on them with six tentacle like fingers and her race was famous for being nimble and able to work fast. She did stare at the screen and her stomach did drop. It couldn’t be…. She knew there was only one way to find out, her species had evolved on a planet where dangers were a part of everyday life and they had very acute senses, including the sense of smell. They were almost as good at using their noses as a dog were. She removed the mask for a few seconds, took a deep whiff of the air. She moaned and put the mask on, very fast. The humans did stare at her with trust and she didn’t really know how to tell them this. “It is the cargo, or rather, a part of the cargo.”
Shune couldn’t hold it inn. “Dreksh’t take it all!”
The humans knew that their captain was swearing and the male tilted his head. “What is it?”
Shune shook herself and her fur was standing up along her spine. “There were Swerburs in the cargo, must have been one of the crates.”
The humans stared at each other. “Swerbur what?”
Shune groaned. “They are a pest, a terrible plague. We check all cargo for any trace of them but one crate must have slipped by, or someone forgot to check it.”
The female stared at the unconscious crew members. “These swerburs did this?”
Shune nodded. “Yes, they do excrete a very strong pheromone, it makes almost all living organisms pass out. Then they can suck their juices out undisturbed. They are an unwanted species, capable of wreaking havoc upon all sorts of eco systems. The air system, it has to have pulled in air from the cargo hold into the control room. It could be that there is damage to the fan system, normally that would never happen. The goddamn beast must have caused a short or something.”
The male did snap his finger. “Oh, we have had species like that on earth too, but pheromones? What do they look like?”
Shune grasped a console and brought up an image of one of the critters. It was an insect like being with ten legs and a narrow head, with a sort of stinger in front. The male grunted. “Looks as if somebody has mixed a mosquito, a tick and a wood louse, how large is it?”
Shune showed using her front limbs and the female did grunt. “Not larger? I have seen tarantulas way bigger than that? Are they very solid? I see that they have shells?”
Shune was doing her version of a frown. “Solid? What are you talking about? The pheromone? Nobody has ever gotten close enough to kill them without masks on, and you are just two? You will be killed! They are wicked fast.”
The two humans stared at each other, then they did grin. Shune felt a cold shiver running down her spine, some said that humans in fact were extremely dangerous beings but she hadn’t seen anything even suggesting aggression, until now that was. “Know what? Let us try something, how long does it take before someone passes out when they get into contact with that pheromone?”
Shune was getting nervous, what was this? “A minute, nothing more?”
The male grinned even wider. “Great, let me try”
He did remove the mask and Shune made an involuntary gasp. He stood there and nothing happened, he just sniffed a bit and made a grimace. “They smell like shite don’t they? So, what can we do? You are afraid they will spread throughout the ship right?”
Shune couldn’t believe it, she had never encountered a species immune to the pheromone? She nodded. “Yes, if they have managed to get out of the crate they will find the food stored in the containers and eat it all and breed and…we won’t be able to dock anywhere, they cannot be allowed to spread.”
The female bared her teeth “We get it, bet they breed like mad too ha?”
Shune had to confirm that too, these beasts did produce an awful lot of offspring and she knew of ships which had gotten infected before, and simply having been evacuated and sent off into a star. The female stretched her front limbs and bared her teeth at the male. “Right, I know what we have to do then, it is time to do some extermination”
Shune gaped. “What are you talking about? They are fast! If they bite they will…They have poison damn it!”
The two humans just grinned again. “Don’t worry, listen, here is what we need you to do. Turn off the fire system within that part of the cargo hold”
Shune didn’t understand. “Ha?!”
The female was laughing. “It is a fine time for some barbeque don’t you think? Those suckers may be fast but we have something they won’t see coming”
Shune frowned. “What? You didn’t bring any weapons for by the high council, that is strictly forbidden and…”
The male shook his head. “Heck no, but we do have baseball bats, and Jen here brought her hair spray”
Shune was still confused. “Hair spray?”
The male ran off. “I will be right back, I will bring the bats, the spray and our magnetic shoes”
Jen just smiled and looked as if she was looking forwards to something, a lot. He did return with the bats which as Shune had understood were part of a ball game humans enjoyed. The female did grasp a sort of spray bottle and put on the magnetic shoes. “Right, turn off the fire extinguisher, and the artificial gravity, we are to go hunting pests”
Shune was sweating. “I cannot allow you to endanger yourselves this way? They are vicious! Dangerous! Everybody fears them”
The humans just stared at her. “Do not worry I say, we can handle this. The rest of the crew are out cold and what are you gonna do then? Dump the entire cargo?”
Shune shuddered, it would make the owners fire her, even if it would save the ship. Her reputation would be in ruins and the procedure needed to dump a part of the cargo hold would in fact damage the ship. “Are you sure you can do this?”
The two humans nodded vigorously. “Yes, use the cameras, you can watch from here”
There were cameras in all the sections of the hold and she switched them on, with shaking fingers. The two humans did exit the control room and Shune felt a need to curl up on the floor. She was sure she had just allowed two of her crew members to commit a very nasty form of suicide.
The cameras did show the hold, and there were swerburs all over the floor, a crate had falled from one of the shelves and cracked and it had to be the source of the infestation. There could have been eggs on the contents and they had hatched during the flight, swerbur eggs can hatch in just a couple of standard days and grow to adults in less than five if there is food present. The cargo hold was cool and not very damp but there was some heat and moisture there and that was all that was needed. She saw that the two humans stopped in front of the entrance and they had put on some rather tight and dense suits but no helmets. The male stared up at the camera in the entrance and showed her his thumb. Shune knew it was a sign humans used to show that things were good. She took a deep breath, she could get in so much trouble for this but there were no other way. Not if she didn’t want to lose the cargo, and maybe even the ship itself.
She turned off the gravity and the fire extinguisher system, then she could only braid her fingers together and pray that this wasn’t a stupid deed.
Shune saw that humans enter, with the magnet shoes they did stay on the floor and the swarm of swerburs did notice them. The animals came forth like a dark rushing wave and the sight was terrifying, they were so fast. But the female had that spray bottle in her hand and she had attached something to it with tape and it was a….lighter?
Suddenly she let loose a burst of flames, and Shune could see how the swerbur closest to the two humans nearly exploded from the sudden heat. And the male did swing into action. He swung that bat and since the gravity was off the beasts did fly off, and the female did torch them the moment they were airborne. The humans did jump, and stomp, and burn and when the spray was out the female used her own bat too. They squashed the beasts as if there weren’t anything more entertaining to do in the entire universe. Shune stared with huge eyes, it was a ballet, an elegant dance of sheer destruction and she realized a truth about the humans nobody else had been able to see. They were predators. These seemingly frail and elegant looking beings were killers, it was in their blood, in their core and suddenly they were so much more frightening than the Swerbur could ever be. The swarm was decimated swiftly, the lack of gravity meant that they were unable to cling onto anything there and they were squashed, one by one. The humans kicked them into the walls so they broke in half, landed on them, used everything they could lay their hands on as a weapon and one which did work. The swerbur never managed to sting them, if they were fast the humans were faster, and more brutal and determined. They watched eachothers backs, never let any of the pests get too close and after just half an hour it was over.
The humans did check the entire room, went over it with sensors and detectors and there weren’t a single Swerbur left alive. Shune had been silent the entire time, the pheromone was dissipating, it had followed the air vents from the cargo hold and the two humans did close them off now. The crew would awaken soon.
Shune was shaking slightly as the two humans returned to the control room, they were grinning still, not even sweaty and Shune got a feeling that this had been fun to them, just a walk in the park really. Jen dropped the bat, it was covered with goo. “I would suggest that you fill that cargo hold with dry ice for a couple of days. If there are any eggs left it will kill them for sure”
The male nodded and Shune swallowed hard, her fur was still standing up. “I…”
The male laughed and Jen giggled. “I and Dave here have done this before you know, back on earth. We grew up on a farm, we used to chase voles that way. Kick them and stomp them and burn them”
Shune was feeling faint. “Voles?”
Dave nodded. “Small rodents, hairy rascals, can devastate a harvest pretty bad.”
They were casual about it, they had in reality saved the ship and it was just another day on the job. Suddenly Shune was very glad that the humans were friendly. A species capable of such violence and such an attitude towards it was a species you didn’t want as an enemy.
The rest of the crew did wake up, at first they refused to believe what the captain told them but then they saw the recordings from the cargo hold and fell silent. What they saw was incredible. Shune did what she was told, they released dry ice from the cooling systems into that hold and it did kill of any eggs which may have been laid. As the ship approached the destination she sent the footage forth to the station where they were supposed to dock and the reaction was a shocked silence. Then everybody started asking questions and Dave and Jen were suddenly seen as experts when it came to getting rid of such pests. They explained what humans did in such cases and it made many of the people present cringe, one Abadian did pass out and spray the entire area around him with the viscous blue liquid the species did excrete when extremely disturbed.
When Shune did return to the home base at Galdiar alpha the word had spread, the seemingly harmless curious and sweet race had a dark side, but a dark side which could be useful too. Jen and Dave did stay on the Iarta and the crew didn’t love them any less for having saved them and the ship but the attitude had changed. From now on they were no longer the crew’s beloved pets, they had become the crews beloved, respected and slightly feared guardians and Shune knew that the Iarta had become an even better ship than before. With humans on board they were safe from any new incidents like this one.
