A Break in the Sunlight

5. High and Dry

Firedown was a tiny planet with a very thin atmosphere. But unlike most Low-At planets Jaren had been on, even small ones, it didn't have bio-domes. There was enough oxygen present in the thin air for the planet's inhabitants to breathe. The locals had long ago adapted biologically to the oxygen deprivation, or gradually weaned themselves over a period of years. As such, only off-worlders really needed the precious gas. For a visitor with oxygen-rich blood, a few minutes on Firedown's surface without an oxygen unit would mean dizziness, disorientation, bleeding from the ears––then maybe coma or even death. Not a particularly inviting planet.

It was the beginning of Jaren and Kaski's third week on Firedown, and the money was starting to run low. The locals, knowing that they had off-worlders by the short hairs, charged incredibly high prices for oxygen, and Indigo's tanks had been low to begin with. Food was also expensive, and as for water, well, they might as well have been drinking Terran wine.

And they had another four weeks here at least. The mechanic at the Spaceport had simply shaken his head at the Indigo's transverter. They needed a whole new unit, he told them, and he'd have to order it special from Pennel. They didn't keep parts on hand for these sporty little leisure shuttles. He'd pushed back his leather cap and scratched at a hairy ear. What in the heck were they doing out here on Firedown anyhow?

Jaren wished she knew. Firedown wasn't exactly her idea of a good time. Of all the planets to be stranded on, this had to be one of the worst. Dry and hot, there was no sky to speak of. The sun shone directly on them out of the dark sky, and walking outside during the day was like spending time under a huge heat lamp. The population was sparse and didn't much welcome outsiders. They stared at her clothes and Kaski's nose ring. Jaren had even stopped tattooing henna around her eyes after a minor run-in with a group of locals who'd suspected her of being a Ganger.

People spent most of their time working or indoors, here. The spaceport was the local social spot. It had one of only two bars in the colony, the only hotel and most of the stores. The streets were quiet and had no land vehicles because of the thick white dust that lay everywhere, which would swirl in the air for hours after being disturbed, like looming ghosts disturbed in the darkness.

Apparently the place had once been completely covered in water, and the planet itself was made almost entirely of lime. Lime deserts covered most of it now, blowing into your eyes if the wind blew, and you weren't careful. And lime was the prime export. The only export to speak of. It left the planet daily in powders, pebbles and slabs. Lime freighters took off from the spaceport at all hours, their rumbling often waking Jaren from sleep.

For her part, Jaren spent her time drinking in the spaceport bar or on the Indigo surfing the local net, which was nearly as boring as the planet. Kaski didn't seem to mind the place as much. She'd gone back to turning tricks, and her exotic looks had gotten her a fair degree of attention in the lonely mining colony. Her dance card was almost always filled.

Jaren still hadn't quite worked out what had happened to make Kaski kiss her when they'd arrived. Or how she even felt about it. The fact was, having Kaski touch her like that had sent her senses pretty much reeling. But she wasn't going to waste time thinking too much about it. What was the point?

She was on her way back from the bar. She'd gone there with Kaski to get some dinner, but after they'd eaten Kaski had been pulled away, laughing, by two GRC lieutenants in uniform. Jaren had hung around for a while after that, drinking the local ale, which could pass for buffalo-piss, watching a three month old holo-hockey game on the local vid and fending off would-be admirers with a prickly stare. Eventually she'd decided to head back to the Indigo.

She entered the ship, which they'd cleaned up a little since their arrival, out of boredom if for no other reason, and powered on the auxiliaries. Her jacket landed on the lounge unit and gloves on the table as she passed through to the cockpit. She had jacked into the comm before she realized she was still wearing the OU. The pouch was digging into her back. She pulled the small plugs from her nostrils, rubbing the soreness there, and undid the waistbelt, pulling it from behind her and tossing it onto the console.

She went to her cred account first. Not much had changed. It was still looming dangerously low. Christ. How had the money disappeared so quickly? She paged back through the debits. Dilossia, Tl'Aeda Prime, Pennel, Chickiguar, HgDeu, Nine, Attavita, Arden. Liquor, fuel, oxygen, repairs, food, drugs. The debits scrolled and scrolled through the money. Jaren hadn't realized how easily it had been flowing until she'd paid the Firedown mechanic with a direct transfer, and been shocked at the remaining balance. This was all they had to live on until they could get to Sona. There she had a contact from the Arden Net who had promised to set her up with a net job. Goron had friends, he'd told Jaren, who could use someone with her dexterous mind, and, perhaps more importantly, her expensive Neuro-Gen hardware.

The docking bays at the Spaceport were over 300 creds a week, and the way Jaren figured it they could last another three weeks before they would be in trouble, allowing for fuel and supplies to get them to Sona. Kaski was bringing in some money, but not enough. Maybe they could just buy what they needed here to get them to the next system, where hopefully oxygen and water wouldn't be so dear? But even so, the parts weren't scheduled to come for four weeks.

Shit. Jaren unjacked. Damn. They *had* to get to Sona. She was damned if she would wire her mother for money. She wasn't even sure if Ellie would give it to her, at this point. More likely she'd just send Lotus to bring Jaren home to Arden. And she needed Sona. Goron had said he could hook her up with real runners. This was her chance to stop spectating and get in the game. She wasn't going to blow it because of one stupid ion converter. She needed more money, and fast.

But there was only one way she could think of to get the extra creds. Kaski's way.