Higgs & Soap: Galaxy Delivery

Chapter 12

The docking doors closed shut and the air pumps started filling the bay with oxygen as the chunky red and white transport craft powered down. Inside, the four Grey Dragons sat motionless, scanning for messages on their HUDs.

As the glasses Dragon rolled his shoulder and tried to get used to the weight of his cybernetic arm, a replacement for the one left trapped under the truck on the freeway, he sent a message via his HUD: "Arrived Morley Station. Target ship here. Card will be ours shortly."

The reply was almost instant: "Secure the card or Charcoal will leave your body to the cyber-scavengers next time."

The Dragon didn't reply, instead he made a fist with his metal hand before unbuckling himself and notifying his men to follow him.

***

"So... you're now saying you knew there was someone else on board and you know who they were?"

"Yes."

"OK, and the reason I'm not arresting you for trafficking right now is...?"

"Because you'll need my help catching him."

Higgs sat opposite Barty in a tiny metal cubicle on the Arrivals level. A small square table was bolted to the floor in the centre of it. The two men sat in chairs so uncomfortable they had to shift position every few minutes.

Soap said she had spotted an offer at the Flim & Thinsy store that could be useful, so Higgs left her on the shopping level while he went and asked at the Arrivals security desk to speak with Barty privately. He said he had information on the stowaway on his ship.

When Barty heard, he thought it was his lucky day. Several hundred credits in fees and a criminal confession into the bargain? Looked like he would get that "Acting" part of his job title removed yet.

"So you're saying you want me..."

"Us," interrupted Higgs.

Barty raised an eyebrow, "...us, to go after this man you knew was on board and may not even be on this station now?"

"Oh, he's still on the station. I know this for a fact. But we didn't know he was on board at the time, it was only when you helpfully alerted us on disembarkation that we became aware of our target's presence. So we thank you for your cooperation."

"Target?" thought Barty. That's an odd choice of words.

This was Barty's sixth year on Morley Station. Another two and he would automatically get that promotion all his requests had so far denied. It had taken him some time to learn that persistence always paid off, one way or the other. Which made him determined not to rock the boat, not at this stage in his career. The last thing you wanted was to stand out from the crowd for the wrong reasons. And since standing out from the crowd for the right reasons had so far eluded him, he didn't want any attempt to stand out to be misinterpreted the wrong way. So his dreams of murdering outer rim bandits and going on secret missions to break up gangs of smugglers would have to wait a little longer while he kept things nice and quiet and tidy right here.

"And exactly why should I help you find this man Mr Dittum?"

Higgs put his elbows on the table and leaned forwards. "Because this man is an extraordinary thief, a highly sophisticated criminal and is incredibly dangerous."

Barty kept his eyebrow raised. Higgs spotted his moment.

"Our unit has been tracking his movements for many cycles, trying to pin his location, but it looks like he has been onto us the whole time. It seems he tracked us down first, boarded our vessel at Clarissa, stole operational data and is now trying to escape with it. If he gets away with that data he could severely compromise our organisation and..." Higgs covered his mouth with his hands, eyes wide open, and sat back slowly. He watched as Barty's eyebrow dropped then was squeezed together with the other in a troubled frown. He had him.

Barty's mind was racing overtime. "Your... organisation?" He checked his notes. "H&S Galaxy Delivery? What kind of 'operational data' could be so important that..."

"People's lives could be at stake. I can't... I won't let that happen. Can I trust you Barty? I really need to be able to trust you."

Nobody had ever asked Barty to trust them before, and something about this guy was pinging his warning sensors: "This guy isn't who he says he is. He let something slip. Only because I was pushing him. I have to know who he is."

"Of course you can trust me. I'm Acting Head of Security at Morley Station. But... how can I trust you Mr Dittum, when I'm not one hundred percent sure that's your real name!" He slapped his hand down on the table.

Higgs winced theatrically. "Damn!" he said, shaking his head.

As Barty congratulated himself on his interrogation techniques, Higgs slowly stood up and straightened out his jacket.

"Barty McClough, Assistant Head of Security at Morley Station, I am not Higgs Dittum."

"I knew it!"

"Operational parameters forbid me from divulging my real identity, even to someone of your seniority. That would require Alpha clearance."

Growing up, Barty had watched enough episodes of "Space Unit Alpha" to know that "Alpha Clearance" was a term used only by the Federation Secret Services units. Meanwhile Higgs had seen enough of Barty's public U-Net page to know he was a huge fan of the show. Pictures, videos, memorabilia and a surprisingly large collection of short fiction detailing the adventures of Barty Planestalker, scourge of the outer colony traffickers.

"However," continued Higgs, "you may call me Turpentine Moss. And what I can tell you is that my mission is critical." He leaned on the table and eyeballed Barty. "The data that man has stolen contains the real names and aliases for dozens of operatives, such as myself, not to mention ongoing operations covering this entire quadrant of the galaxy."

He stood up and walked to the corner of the room. He had intended to look confident and cool as he strode across the floor, but the space in the cubicle was so small his nose was inches from the wall within two steps. Unable to take a step back without looking like a fool, he stood his ground. He put his hands on his hips, banging his elbows off the walls.

"We underestimated him," he said to the wall, "No... I underestimated him. And in doing so, I have jeopardised our whole organisation. I have put lives at risk. Lives of good, Federation serving men and women!"

Higgs spun round, battering his elbow off both walls. He clutched at it in pain until he noticed Barty staring at him. He stood up straight and patted his elbow, smiling.

"Good Federation serving men and women... like you, Barty McClough. Men... like you. Not women. You're not a women. Woman. Man. You." He pointed at him.

Barty's blood pressure had been slowly rising over the last few minutes, but this sent his face red. He had worked it out. This man in front of him was a Federation Operative. And he had seen through his cover! Not only that, he was now being asked to help him in a secret operation. This was it! Forget his two year wait for promotion. If he helped out an operative, helped secure this data, saved lives, he would be out of here! If he could impress the Federation, he could get a job at the outer rim, taking out bandits and people smugglers. This could be his dream come true!

"Right, if what you're saying is true, and I decide to help you track this thief down..."

"...the Federation will be eternally grateful for your assistance. And if I'm telling a lie, you have me for trafficking, using a false identity, lying to a security official and anything else you care to slap on me."

To Barty, it sounded like a done deal. "OK. You have my assistance Mr Moss."

Higgs finally relaxed. Even he would admit this one had been a bit of a gamble, but if they couldn't finish this delivery, he wasn't sure how much longer he could fob off his creditors.

"Please call me Higgs in public. To maintain cover." Higgs tapped the side of his nose.

Barty smiled. "Absolutely Sir! So, what can I do to help?"