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Imperial Observation Outpost Titan
Sol System, Sector Seventeen
First Rotation, Third Shift

Rixie was getting sick of patrol. It was about the tenth hour into her shift and already her feet were sore. It didn’t matter how comfortable Supply tried to make their combat boots, nothing could make ten hours on your feet comfortable.

“Is it time for shift change yet?” Her partner, Kir, grumbled wiping sweat from his forehead. She turned and regarded the stout older man. He was slightly shorter than she was, but his shoulders were broad and his chest barrel shaped. His receding hairline might hint at age, but she had seen him knock out a full grown tusola warrior with a single hit. He was nowhere near ready to retire, and she was glad to have him watching her back.

“No. Just like it wasn’t five minutes ago.” She flashed him a sardonic, but tolerant smile, and brushed her dark curls behind her ear.

Kir sighed melodramatically. “I still can’t believe we got shipped off to this backwater rock. Who’d you make mad to get us sent here anyway?”

“It wasn’t me and you know it!”

Kir snorted derisively, even though he knew she was right. “Why do they call this place Titan Base anyway, isn’t that a little… redundant?”

Rixie smiled, delighting in the fact that she knew something her partner didn’t. “Actually, the moon we’re on is named Titan, and we didn’t name it the uh… locals did.”

Kir shot her a confused look. “They did? After us?”

Rixie’s smile widened. “Well… sort of, you see in the mythology of one of the local cultures ‘Titans’ were a race of gigantic beings with godlike power.”

Kir snorted, an amused smile on his lips. “Well, godlike compared to a bunch of primitives maybe.”

Rixie chuckled, and then her look turned serious as she spotted something that made her insides knot. “Don’t look now, but we might have a bit of trouble over there.” She indicated a location across the station’s bazaar where a couple of hexapedal aliens looked like the might be conducting some shady business. With a groan, she realized she recognized one of them. “Looks like Kzz’thix’n is up to xir old tricks again. Come on.” Hoisting their weapon slings the two peacekeepers crossed to where the waist-high insectoids were attempting to conclude their business and beat a hasty retreat.

“Greetings, Sentients. I don’t suppose you’d mind terribly if we ask what brings the two of you out to the bazaar this cycle?” Rixie asked in the most authoritative voice she could muster. The two aliens shuffled back on their six legs. After a brief hesitation a series of buzzing sounds issued from their antennae, which the chip implanted in Rixie’s skull translated into words she could understand.

“We were just conducting a little private business, Peacekeeper. Absolutely nothing that needs to concern the two of you fine officers.”

“Well, then I don’t suppose you’d mind if we have a look into your satchel then do you?” Kir smiled winningly as he hefted the bag without waiting for a response. The two insect beings buzzed irritatingly in protest but were ignored.

After looking inside, Kir let out a low whistle. “Just as I thought. Take a look Rixie.” He tossed her the bag which she caught and then peeked inside of.

In the bag were at least twenty metal and glass containers. Each one was a cylinder, about as wide as two of Rixie’s fingers, and as long as her palm. They were completely metal except for a small viewing window on the side. Inside each container- frozen, as if asleep- was a figure that was uncannily similar to a Titan, only much, much, smaller. Each being was no taller than her longest finger.

“Humans.” She shot the smugglers a look of disgust, because she knew that had she and her partner not intervened, each of those tiny lives would have been destined to end in the digestive sac of an alien predator.

“It’s not what you think Peacekeeper!” Kzz’thix’n buzzed frantically trying to save xir own shell, while the purchaser tried to make xirself inconspicuous.

“Save it buggy.” Kir snapped angrily. “Humans are a class two sentient species, their world is an Imperial territory, and that makes them non-exportable outside of Titan space. This one’s going to send you and your little pal here away for a long time.”

The glint of metal was her only warning, with a shout Rixie pushed her partner out of the way of the criminal’s weapon discharge. A bolt of silver energy whizzed past their heads, leaving behind a smell of ozone. In the ensuing chaos, both insectoids scuttled frantically away.

The two of them dashed after the fugitive aliens. The Titans’ longer stride was proving a match for the comparative power afforded their quarry by their additional four appendages. At a T intersection the criminals split up, forcing the Peacekeepers to do the same. “I’ll take left, you go right.” Rixie shouted to her partner.

After taking the turn, Rixie reached into her belt holster and withdrew her standard issue Taser. With a flick of a few switches she set the projectile to the longest prong and maximum voltage setting. She would need that in order to punch through the tough exoskeleton of the perpetrator. Putting on a final burst of speed, Rixie drew even with the alien. Sensing the Peacekeeper’s presence, Xe let out a feral scream and turned to pounce on Rixie.

The soldier cried out in shock as she absorbed the blow, landing hard on the metal deck-plate, with the alien renegade on top of her. She lost her grip on the Taser and the force of the fall caused the bag of contraband to fall from her hip, scattering the palm sized cryogenic units across the corridor.

Rixie couldn’t worry about that at the moment; she was far too busy trying to keep the insectoid’s mandibles from savaging her face. She held the alien away from her face with her left hand and used her right hand to rain blows on the creature’s skull.

A lucky blow landed in one of the bulging compound eyes, the creature let out a scream of pain and rage, and Rixie was able to use the distraction to reach out and grab her Taser from where it had fallen to the deck. With a flick of her thumb she primed the weapon and jabbed it into a chink in the creature’s armor where the cranial plate met the primary shoulder plate.

The alien criminal twitched and flailed wildly, then fell inert. The massive voltage driven through a tender area caused the creature to pass, finally, into unconsciousness. With a groan of fatigue (and maybe a little relief) she shoved the unconscious body away from her. It took every pair of restraining cuffs she had to further immobilize her quarry, and then she set about collecting the glass and metal tubes that started the whole mess.

She rubbed away the condensation on the glass of the first container she picked up and, against her better judgment, peered in to look at the creature inside.

It was a male, with slightly tanned skin and short-cropped brown hair. He was clothed only on his legs and his chest was bare. He had a good physique from what she could see. He was well muscled, with an athletic body it looked like he kept in regular shape.

Rixie bit her lip contemplatively, she knew she probably shouldn’t do what she was considering, but there was no one else around and the temptation was very strong. A second glance at the sleeping little creature made up her mind, and while taking a quick look around to make sure nobody was watching, slipped the containment unit into her uniform pocket. Then, as if nothing had happened, she resumed packing the rest back into the bag.
As soon as she had the bag repacked, the comm unit in her ear buzzed. “Unit Leader, do you copy?” Kir sounded a bit winded, but otherwise unhurt.

“I copy. What’s your status Kir?”

“Fugitive all packaged and ready for delivery.”

“Mine too.” Rixie replied with a grin.

“What’s your location? I’ll arrange a pickup.” Rixie replied with the notation for the corridor she was standing in the middle off. Kir notified her that transportation for her prisoner would be on its way soon. In moments one of the low-slung six wheeled vehicles the crew used for transportation around the station appeared. Kir jumped out the passenger seat and walked briskly over to his partner.

“You okay kid?” he asked in a low voice.

“‘Kid?’ I outrank you!” Rixie couldn’t help but smile at her partner, despite her mild annoyance. “And yes, I’m fine. Help me get the bug loaded.” The two of them hefted the unconscious alien into the transportation container of the vehicle, where xe was left to lay next to xis similarly bound, but still conscious, partner.

Rixie sighed as she clipped the bag with the cryogenically preserved humans onto her belt. “You think you can escort these two to the holding cells in Alpha section? I’m going to take their contraband down to Central and let them decide if it’s safer to return the specimens to the planet or have them adopted out.”

“You go ahead. I got these two covered.”

Rixie nodded and turned to head towards the nearest lift. Once inside and on her way to the command deck at the center of the station, she reached back into her pocket and took out the unit she had decided to keep. Holding it the palm of her left hand, she peered in at the tiny sleeping form of her new pet and a grin spread across her face.

“We’re going to have a lot of fun, my new little toy. Just you wait.” She planted a kiss on the window and slipped the cylinder back into her pocket. She would have to be careful if she intended to keep the little creature (which she did) because such pets were forbidden to active duty military personnel. Fortunately, since she was just high enough in rank to have her own quarters, (although not high enough to avoid patrol duty.) She wouldn’t have to worry about hiding him from bunkmates.

A moment later, the lift doors opened and she stepped into the Command deck. Crossing the floor to the station of the Watch Officer she saluted and stood at attention before him.

“Report, Peacekeeper.” As quickly as she could she repeated the events that had transpired, finishing by showing him the confiscated humans in stasis.

“What do you recommend we do with them, Sir?” She asked as she gathered them back into the bag. The watch officer sighed and massaged the bridge of his nose.

“There’s a store on the fourth level of the bazaar. They normally deal only in non-sentient species from Earth, but they’re probably the best bet of finding good homes for the creatures. I don’t think it wise to attempt to return them to the planet.”

“Yes sir. I’ll go there now if there is nothing else.”

“No, that will be all. You’re dismissed.”

Another short ride in the lift brought Rixie to the fourth level of the bazaar, after which it was a short walk to the business establishment she’d been seeking. She had a quick word with the woman who was the owner, and explained the situation. The owner seemed enthusiastic about the prospect of being able to sell the humans and promised Rixie she’d make sure that they all went to good homes, and stayed out of non-Titan hands. Or mandibles as the case might be.

With a sigh Rixie left the store, glad both to be done with the whole ordeal and strangely worried about the fate of the sleeping creatures that even now had no idea how far from home they were. She silently wished them luck and headed to the lift to find her partner and hopefully they could finish their shift in peace.

 

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