Free ebook, "Legends and Liars," Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

Inside The Shaft bar, music blared.  Drinking and gambling were the only forms of entertainment, so the bar was always filled with off-shift miners. 

Today, angry miners, most of them Earth descendants, but a few humanoid-like aliens, still dirty from their near escape from the asteroid Vesta, shouted down Vestacorp supervisor, David Picchetti, as he stood on a table. He held up his hands and shouted as he tried to regain control of the meeting.

“Okay, okay, I know how you feel—” Picchetti said, trying to calm the angry mob.

“Like hell you do!” one shouted.

“You’re a staff puke!  You still got a job!” another challenged.

“And so will you,” Picchetti said.

“We don’t have no stock options!  We don’t work, we don’t get paid!”

“I promise you, men, as soon as the Department of Mines clears one of the new sites, you’ll all have jobs,” Picchetti tried to assure the miners.

“That could be months.  I got a family back on Mars and they can’t eat promises,” a big miner shouted.

“It can’t be helped,” Picchetti said.  “We’re terraforming three new asteroids and we’ll be getting the Vesta site back online as fast as possible.”

“What about the back pay we’re owed?” Jake asked.

An old timer, October Bruner, standing next to Jake quipped, “You can kiss that good-bye.”

“Well, you see…” Picchetti started to say.

“Here it comes,” October said.

“What?” Jake said.

“The big lie,” October added.

“...there’s a problem at corporate—” Picchetti continued.

A wiry, slightly crazed looking miner, Howard C. Tibbs, threw a beer mug that shattered against a hanging lamp near Picchetti’s head. “We don’t want no excuses,” Tibbs challenged.  “We want our pay.”

October whispered to Jake, “Nothing like the direct approach.”

Picchetti knew he was in danger. “The company has had a few setbacks and now with this Vesta disaster—”

“You want to get out of here with your skin, you better come up with something, Picchetti,” Tibbs threatened.

Picchetti nervously took out his com-device and hurriedly tapped in some numbers.  He didn’t like what he saw on the screen as he faced down the angry miners.

“I can pay you out of my personal account,” he said.  “That’s the best I can offer.  It’ll clean me out, but I can give you ten cents on the dollar—”

“Ten cents on the dollar!” Tibbs bellowed.

Others complained loudly.

“I haven’t been paid myself in three months,” Picchetti said.

“I ain’t buying it,” one miner shouted.  “The brass watches out for its own and to hell with the crews.”

“You men knew the risks going in,” Picchetti said. “Equal shares on processed ore delivered to Earth.  Vesta is shut down...probably for good if the company thinks it will be too costly to bring it back on line.”

“What about the ore already shipped?” Jake said.  “I haven’t seen any credits posted to my account.  Why is that?”

Tibbs added his two bits mockingly, “Yeah, Mr. Company man, why is that?”

“I’ll pay you what I can.  Take it or leave it,” Picchetti said.

The miners grumbled, but knew there was little they could do. Picchetti punched a couple buttons on his com-device. “Good,” he said.  “You should see the credits in your accounts in a couple of minutes.”

“I want hard currency,” Tibbs demanded.

“Anyone else?” Picchetti asked.

A couple of the aliens raised their hands. “We want the official exchange rate of our own system,” one demanded.

Picchetti went over to the bar to a cash exchanger, pointed com-device at it and pushed a couple buttons. A few coins dropped. “Tibbs,” he said, offering him the coins.

Tibbs grabbed the coins and counted them suspiciously.  He glared at Picchetti and snarled at the bartender, “Whiskey,” he ordered.

Picchetti touched a button on the cash machine, and then his com-device. Cubed coins dropped into the slot.  He nodded to the two alien miners and they scooped up their pay. “If anyone’s interested the Department of Mines is accepting applications for wildcatter franchises on Ceres,” he said.

No one seemed to care. 

Picchetti shrugged. “I’ve got the contract, so if anyone is interested, you know where to find me.” He left the bar and the miners returned to their drinking and complaining.

Jake checked his com-device and saw that the credit had been placed in his account.  He noticed an empty chair at a table of miners who were in the middle of a card game. October was dealing.

“You mind?” Jake asked, motioning to an empty chair.

“Nope,” October said.

Jake sat next to one of the alien miners.

“You got coins?” October asked Jake.

Jake dug into his pant pocket and tossed a couple of coins on the table. October grinned and dealt him in and looked up as Tibbs approached the last empty seat.  October nodded and Tibbs slid in, spilling some of his drink on the alien, who glared at him.

“You got something on your mind?” Tibbs slurred.  “If you got one, that is.”

The alien wiped the liquid off his sleeve and picked up his cards.

“Didn’t think so,” Tibbs said.  “They let anybody in here these days, don’t they.”

October eyed Tibbs and dealt the cards. “Any you boys thought on wildcattin’ Ceres?” October asked.

“What’s it to you?” Tibbs said irritably.

“Nothing,” October said.  “Just trying to have a little conversation is all.”

Jake offered his hand to October. “The name’s Jake Lane,” he said.

October shook Jake’s hand.  They talked while they played through several hands.

“October Bruener,” the old miner said in way of introduction.

“That’s a dumb name,” Tibbs snarled.

“Only one I got.  It suits me.”

“You ever wildcatted?” Jake asked.

“Pretty near all my life.  Started when I was just a kid on Earth.  Gold.  Silver, Uranium.”

“You must not have been too good at it or you wouldn’t be stuck out here, broke like the rest of us,” Tibbs said.

“Not so, not so.  Made my fortune several times over.”

“What happen?” Jake said.

“Spent it.  Wine, women and song, like the saying goes.  Mostly women.  Had me a few.”

“Sure you have,” Tibbs said skeptically.

“Wasn’t always old, you know,” October said.  “Had my way with the ladies on three planets and some of the outer colonies.”

Jake grinned. “Kids?”

“You bet.  Last count, I think it was ten or eleven.”

“You ought to learn to keep it in your pants, old man,” Tibbs interrupted.

“I’ve got a son,” Jake said.  “He’s with his mother.  They’re visiting her folks on Earth.”

October looked at Jake curiously.  He knew something. “Bet you miss them,” he said.

Jake looked at his hand and tossed in two cards.  October dealt him two.

“I was counting on this job to get home—”

“No family for me,” Tibbs said.  “All they want is for you to buy them stuff and they bitch all the time when things don’t go right.  No, I watch out for myself.  Better that way all around.”

“Kinda lonely way to live, don’t you think?” October asked.

“Naw.  I want a woman, I can get one whenever.  Don’t want any brats calling me daddy.”

“I’ve seen you down on Vesta,” Jake said to October.

“Looking for partners.”

“You mean a handout,” Tibbs said.

October ignored Tibbs. “I’m considering going on over to Ceres and try my luck,” he said.  “I got a nose for finding ore.”

“Then you have to sell out to one of the corporations, so what’s the use?” Tibbs said.

“I made a half million on my last find.”

This got their attention.

“And it’s all gone?” Tibbs asked.

“I still got enough if I can find a couple partners to go in with, we can bid on wildcat rights on Ceres.” 

“How much would one of these partners need?” Jake asked.

“I thought you wanted to go home,” Tibbs said.

Jake gave Tibbs a look. Tibbs ignored him.

“How much?” Jake asked.

“Couple hundred’s all,” October said.  “Department of Mines will match whatever a wildcatter has to grubstake them.”

“You think there’s anything worth finding on Ceres?” Tibbs said.

“Pretty likely,” October said.  “That was a good strike on Vesta.”

“So,” Tibbs said.

“There are thousands of asteroids in the belt,” October said.  “It’s a good bet they’re all from one planet that exploded.  If that’s so, what you find on one, you mostly likely will find on the others. 

“There are sixteen about the size of Vesta, which is a couple hundred miles across.  All but two have been mined out.  But Ceres, she’s twice as big as the others, so I figure there’s twice as much a chance of finding ore there.”

“If that's the case, why hasn’t it already been mined?” Jack asked.

“Someone else got there first.” October looked over at the alien miner.

“My people,” the alien miner said.

“Your people ain’t people,” Tibbs said.  “You’re, you’re a—”

“What?” the alien miner said, glaring.

“Well, you sure ain’t human people.”

“Humans have pretty much mucked up their own planet and now they’ve come out here to do the same. Thank god I am not human.”

“What god would that be?  It sure ain’t mine.”

“Okay, boys,” October said, trying to calm things down a bit.  “We playing cards or what?”

Tibbs lost the hand to the alien, who grinned as he raked in his winnings. “Thank you, gentlemen,” he said as he got up to leave.

Tibbs grabbed his arm. “Where you think you’re going with my money?”

“It is no longer your money, human,” the miner said, as if it were a racial slur. He eased back his coat to reveal a long, curved knife.  Tibbs sulked and tossed his cards across the table to Jake and nodded to him and October. “October.  Perhaps we’ll meet again...on Ceres.” He left.

Tibbs and October picked up their cards.

“What’s he mean by that?” Tibbs growled at October.

“Nothing.  I just know him from when I was on Ceres before,” October said.

Tibbs watched suspiciously as the alien miner left the bar.  He lost another hand to Jake.  Two other men tossed in their hands and went over to the bar, leaving only the three.

“You’ve been to Ceres.  What’s it like?” Jake asked.

“Nicest place this side of the galaxy,” October reflected.  “The Terantus set it up as a penal colony—”

“You mean those slime freaks,” Tibbs said.

“If you should ever find yourself on Ceres, I would be careful of what I say, if I were you,” October said with a hint of anger.

Tibbs’ upper lip twitched slightly as he attempted a smile.

“Is it still a penal colony?” Jake asked.

“There’s a couple of gypsy outposts; a religious sect set up a township,” October said as he tossed his cards down. “From what I hear, the prison is pretty much shut down.  There’s just a few real bad characters left.” He reflected a moment. “Real bad characters.”

“Is that where they put Amasunto?”

“The flesh eater?” Tibbs interjected.

“Yeah.  He’s there,” October said.

“Did he really eat all those people?”

“And a few of his own kind.”

Tibbs shrugged, as if to say no loss there. He looked at his last coin. “A few less Terantus.”

“Maybe you should save that to buy something to eat,” Jake suggested.

Tibbs grinned and watched a waitress pass. “A man can always find food,” he said.  “Just deal, will ya.”

October leaned back in his chair. “I remember one time on Enceladus,” he pontificated.  “It was one of the early expeditions.  Prettiest moon in the universe, if you ask me.  I never been so cold in my life.  Nearly froze to the bone. 

“We set up the first water exchanger there.  Anyway, the supply ship was broke down somewhere east of hell and we about starved.  Took three weeks to get to us.” He chuckled at the memory. “I tell you, much longer and it would have been a toss-up who would’ve ended up on the griddle.”

“You a professional liar or do you have to work at it?” Tibbs chided.

“My second wife said I was a natural born liar, but you know, sometimes the truth and a lie share the same bed,” October said. “All depends on who’s doing the telling.”

Tibbs stared over his cards.  

“You ever done any wildcattin’?” October asked Jake.

“I’ve done my time in the mines,” Jake said.

“In the mines, you can count on others to help you in case of trouble.  A wildcatter out on his own’s got no one but his’self.  Mining company feeds you.  You get medical care.  All that nifty equipment don’t cost you nothing. 

“At the end of the day you can come back here for a shower and a shave, and a clean rack to sleep in.  None of that for a wildcatter.  You’re on your own.  No one knows where you are, or cares.  You get sick, heal yourself.  Hungry?  You pack it in, cause there sure ain’t any game to worth killing on no asteroid I ever been on.  And you pay for and haul ever damn piece of equipment on your back if you can't afford a mule.”

“Why you do it, then?”

“I owe no one and no one owns me.  ­I go where I want, when I want.  I’ve found and spent three fortunes.”

“How come I never heard of you if you struck it rich so many times?” Tibbs said skeptically.

“Ain’t something you broadcast out loud,” October said.  “Wouldn’t live too long that way.  Always someone ready to take it from you.  Many a wildcatter just disappeared on some lonely rock in space.  If you gonna make it out there, you got to be tough and mean.”

“You don’t look so tough...or mean,” Tibbs said.

“Oh, I don’t know, Tibbs,” Jake said.  “Not many men out here his age.” He grinned at October. “Gotta be pretty tough to be around that long.”

“Not so tough these days, though,” October said, eyeing the two men. “I got the nose to find ore, but I need a couple strong, young lads to help keep it long enough to cash it in.”

“You’re nuts if you think anyone would go out there with you,” Tibbs growled.

“I would,” Jake said.

October smiled at Jake. 

“Then you’re as crazy as him,” Tibbs challenged Jake.

“Why don’t you?” October asked, ignoring Tibbs.

“I’m tapped out,” Jake said.  “As it is, I’m going to have to find some kind of work here on the ship.”

“The company will cover your expenses until another mine opens up,” Tibbs said.

“Then take it all out of your first paycheck before you can send any home.  No thanks.”

October grinned as he won another hand and pulled in the last of the money. “Something to be said for being a free man,” he said.