"You two, get over here," a loud voice interrupted their conversation.
Kinson looked over, and saw Tarken glaring at them once more. It seemed he had resolved whatever conflict there was over Celeste, and beckoned them towards the ship's lowered ramp.
"Here we go," Kinson muttered, then walked slowly towards the ship.
Tarken waited for them at the ramp, but tapped his foot impatiently at their pace. "Hurry it up," he growled without a hint of the poise he had struggled to maintain.
The ship fired up as they reached the ramp. It wasn't particularly loud, but the noise was restricted within the room and echoed around till it reached a near deafening point. Kinson covered his ears, but the hangar doors soon opened above him. They were still fairly deep underground, so the doors were placed on the ceiling. As they spiraled open, a blue web of energy kept the atmosphere within the building, a feature Kinson knew was common around Titan's buildings. Although it preserved the livable conditions, a ship could pass right through it as though it wasn't there.
At Tarken's urging, they boarded the ship. The inside was just as sleek as the outside. There wasn't lots of room for passengers, and most of the ship's interior was taken up by the cockpit and engines. The ramp directly led to a cargo space, which was filled with wooden crates marked "Return to the factory." Kinson didn't doubt they were some form of contraband. Beyond that, they had to use a small elevator to enter the crew's quarters. It consisted of several beds, a few pieces of furniture, and a door to the cockpit. The furnishings were all bolted to the floor, of course. What interested Kinson the most were the windows that looked out into the hangar. They covered both sides of the exterior walls, which allowed a dynamic view of the surroundings.
"You'll remain here," Tarken instructed coldly. "Don't leave, and don't cause trouble."
The pirate captain left for the cockpit, but left Brinkoff and his two friends to keep them company. Kinson thought about striking up a conversation with them, but decided against it. He wasn't some spy that could get them confessign their whole plan or something. Strangely enough, it was Celeste who spoke first, although she solely addressed him.
"If we make it through this…" she said wistfully, "I bet no one even believes us."
"It wouldn't matter if they do. We would know, after all," he replied confidently. That seemed to be the life of the deathdreamer, anyway. To experience things lost to everyone else. To live other's untold stories as their own.
"I can't believe we're actually going to leave. I've never been offworld before, and I never imagined my first trip would be like this. Hah. Kidnapped by pirates. What a cliche," she muttered ironically.
Kinson nodded in agreement. He glanced out the window, but found nothing had changed. After a few minutes, the pirates around the ship scattered as it began to rumble.
"It's starting," he murmured, and felt a bit disappointed. He hadn't come, after all.
A soft hum filled the cabin, and a glow came from beneath the wings. With a tremor, the ship rose into the air. Kinson and Celeste grabbed the nearby seats, belting themselves in to avoid tumbling around. He grabbed the armrest with white knuckles, unsure of what to expect next.
Fortunately, the rest of the take-off was rather tame, and the ship smoothly rose towards the ceiling doors. Moments later, they began the journey through almost a hundred feet of rock and steel in the passage to the surface. The tunnel was dark, illuminated by only the ship's lights and thrusters. Then, however, the ceiling above them cracked open, and a new set of doors opened to reveal the surface.
The ship rose into the sky, overlooking the surrounding terrain. About a mile away, the stubs of the tops of Colony's structures pierced the rough and rocky ground. The horizon was filled with jagged mountains, the dead landscape devoid of any plant life.
Suddenly, a bright spot appeared between them and the city. It looked like a firefly but quickly began to approach them. The ship stopped its ascension a moment later and rotated to face the incoming light. Suddenly, a loud crack shook their ears as its weapons discharged, sending cometlike projectiles streaming toward the light.
Celeste almost screamed in shock at the sudden event, but her hand clapped over her mouth. Kinson felt a small bead of hope rise within him.
The energy weapons struck the light and directly exploded. Shockwaves visibly rolled off the collision and shook the ship. When the raging energy cleared, the light seemed unaffected and continued to hurtle toward them. When it reached within 500 feet of the ship, the psionic weapons fired again. This time, the impact was near instantaneous and knocked Kinson off his chair. Before he had recovered, an impact struck the top of the ship, jarring him once more.
He struggled to his feet and grabbed Celeste, who had fallen beside him. He helped her to one of the beds, where they both held on in expectation. Brinkhoff and the two guards were in similar straits but quickly found a better hold.
Tarken burst out of the cockpit with an insane look in his eye. The man had found a gun somewhere and waved it between Kinson and Celeste wildly. Kinson jumped in front of Celeste and shielded her with his body. "Which one of you alerted them? I'll personally kill you myself!" the pirate cried furiously.
"None of us! You were with us the whole time!" he said defensively, and inwardly, a thrill of fear crossed him. It wasn't for himself, though, but for Celeste, who shook behind him.
"Pease, don't hurt us," she cried.
Tarken opened his mouth to curse, but a loud clang rang from the exit. Screams echoed from the cargo bay, but soon went silent. Then, the elevator started to rise, coming from the cargo bay.
"Get ready," Kinson whispered when Tarken turned his attention away.
The quickly rushed towards them, his gun trained on Kinson's head. Kinson flinched when the pirate stopped beside them and placed the pistol against his head.
The three guards got ready, unbuttoning their suits and surrounding the elevator entrance. A red glow began to rise from the open shoot, accompanied by the crackle of electricity. Kinson was dumbfounded. Did they light the ship on fire? Who would be crazy enough to do that?
Kinson nervously took a shallow breath, and waited for the elevator. Finally, it rose up, the moments passed each took an eternity. A figure appeared, enshrouded by flame and lightning.
"Release them, pirate scum," a familiar voice rang out coldly.
"Griffon!" Kinson called excitedly. "You came!"
"Don't come closer. Not even you could stop a bullet at that range," Tarken threatened cooly. "One wrong move and you've only one hostage to rescue."
Kinson felt the barrel of the gun press against his head painfully. He looked at Griffon nervously, but full of trust. What would he do?