Unicorn Riders - Pinch (English)

Chapter 22: Never without a reward

They flew back to the academy.

Vera was coming along with the first shuttle while her father steered the second one with the prisoner on board. This was a task he was glad to relieve his daughter of, especially since there wasn't any time anyway to talk in private. She didn't mind. The other mercenaries did their best to behave as professionally as possible, but "Pinch" felt an atmosphere of awe filling out the shuttle, and all those mercenaries looked at her with newly found respect. Barely anyone of them spoke a word, but they all showed their thoughts on the success of the youngest mercenary at the academy.

There were other issues, though, that "Pinch" needed to take care of. She sat down in the copilot's chair and used the communicator to contact the academy. "This is Pinch" she transmitted. "Returning to base now. I need a status report."

It was Jackson who responded on the other end. He sounded relieved without measure, but also a little sour because she had gone under his nose. "Base here. Hello Pinch! Nice to hear from you."

"Hello Jackson." "Pinch" allowed herself a little smile. "We have accomplished the mission. Johnson is in custody. I think he needs a medic as soon as we arrive."

"Copy that, I notify the medics" Jackson replied. "What about you? Are you injured in any way?"

"Pinch" shrugged. "I will live" she answered breezily. She didn't exactly feel like the embodiment of vitality after all what had happened in the past few hours, but she didn't waste any more thoughts on that. It was over. Jackson on the other end however didn't share this opinion.

"I'll send a medic to you, too, so he can check you up thoroughly" he answered, and he sounded like we wouldn't take No for an answer. "They just patched you up in the medical centre. Not that you gonna drop as soon as you get out of the shuttle..."

"First things first!" "Pinch" interrupted him. "I need a status report. Did Strike Squad apprehend the other criminals?"

"We'll talk about this when you're back" Jackson refused vigorously.

But "Pinch" wouldn't just take this sitting down. "Jackson..."

"No way!" it snapped back from the communicator. "Do you have any idea how upset you made all of us? You did not just vanish in thin air, but you also broke into the armory, stole academy property - including the horse - and engaged in combat with criminals without any authorization. If I had any say in this, they would put you in the slammer for the next three years."

Or at least they would try... "Pinch" grinned inside in a flash of confidence. "And none of that would have been necessary if only one of you morons would have listened to me for once, instead of taking my story for a bad dream" she responded. "By the way, what happened to this Lieutenant Garrett?"

"Garrett?" This question caught Jackson by surprise. "Ehm... he was found stunned and chained up in the communications room. and someone had left an audio recording with him in which he ordered someone to put the children out of the picture. But how..."

"How could I know about that?" "Pinch" rolled her eyes in annoyment. "Because I am not completely stupid, that's how. So you got him?"

"Planetary security got him" Jackson explained. "Seargeant Hammnond was pretty shocked when he learned about this. He will see to it that Garrett will be tried properly. Assessory and incitement to child murder is already one of the most serious crimes on this planet, but since he will also face charges of corruption, I don't expect us to see him ever again." He uttered that last sentence with a certain satisfaction.

"Pinch" could really feel him there. "I hope he won't get off too easily" she mumbled.

Jackson comforted her: "Hammond will take care of that. That man has two children of his own and doesn't take those things lightly." For a brief moment the connection was cut off as he muted the channel, then his voice was hearable again: "Strike Squad are on their way home. When you get back, Hank is eager to see you. Then you can get your status report."