A Business Cruise

The sun beamed down on the small boat, floating heavily just out of sight of the Los Diablos coastline. The engine was running, but just enough to keep the boat mostly stationary against the wind and the current. On the deck, the cargo lay covered by a tarp, and the grew consisted of two plus a trusted captain. All was quiet, apart from the screaming seagulls who circled the boat, hoping for a meal. Among the gulls a pigeon soared, before diving towards the boat as some of the larger gulls took an interest in the strange visitor. The pigeon dove with practiced ease, landing on the boat while the gulls broke off. A moment later, the pigeon shivered like a mirage, turning itself inside out until a young woman sat hunched where it had landed, shaking out her hair.

Ben covered his mouth with his hand, fighting down a surge of nausea. He shouldn't have looked, but just like being on top of a tall building made the edge impossible to ignore, he had found himself transfixed.

"I hate it when you do that," he muttered, swallowing down saliva until the nausea settled. Couldn't do for the famous Sky-Raider to be caught throwing up. He didn't get airsick, or seasick, but whatever it was that happened as Dove changed shapes threw him for a loop.

"Don't be so sensitive." Dove's voice sounded rough, as if she had just got over a cold. "It's like you've never seen a woman change before."

"I resent that accusation," Ben sighed, wondering if the argument was futile. Not that he needed to, it was, and yet he kept at it. "It makes me nauseaus, you know. Like I want to throw up."

"Rude." Dove shook her arms, as if she was reconnecting to limbs rather than wings. "You're lucky I'm confident not to take that as a dig at my looks."

"It's not..." Ben sighed again, wishing he could retreat into his armor. Not yet. They were ahead of schedule for once. "It's not that I get nausea from looking at you naked—" shit "—that was not how I meant it to sound. I don't even think you're naked honestly."

"I'm not." Dove sounded amused. "Not sure why you think I would be."

"There were these shows back when we were deployed in Asia, these magical girls who transformed and—" he gestured vaguely with his hand.

"And they were naked?" Dove gave him a look of judgment and amusement. "I don't want to hear about your porn habits."

"It's not—" Ben broke off and shook his head. "Never mind. It's not important. What did you find?"

"A fat load of nothing." Dove cracked her neck with a sound that made him wince. "But I guess we're early."

"We are," Ben agreed. How did it feel to change shape like that? Did her flesh stretch and bones reform? Is that why she was always so twitchy after returning to her real form? He had always wanted to ask, but it felt rude somehow. Like asking a lady about her age, or worse, weight. Boosts were touchy, and he'd rather not have to wipe bird shit from his armor. He'd seen her command flocks of pigeons against people who annoyed her for less. "Guess we'll have to wait."

"Nothing I'm not used to." Dove clambered up the tarp-covered Sky-Raider armor to get a better view. "You think she's keeping track of us?"

"Probably." Benjamin looked out over the waves, the breeze was not strong, but the rolling motion was still significant. The boat was not large, just enough to haul his armor out here. Small enough to pretend to be a fishing boat, or a smuggler's vessel. "Mrs Broucek is a careful lady."

"Should I be nervous?"

"Nah," he assured. "She's gonna love you." Dove peered down, the wind tearing at her hair. She didn't look nauseous, but Ben assumed that being a flier meant having a better stomach for these things. "You turn into a bird."

"She's fond of fish tho." Dove kept scanning the surface. "Isn't that why she keeps everyone out of here?"

"I think that's mostly the dolphins." Ben rubbed his jaw, looking over the sea. There was no trace of fins, which was a relief. He had met the pod once or twice, and they scared the living hell out of him. Alien and intelligent in a way that felt at odds with his own existence. Like they tolerated him out of necessity, but would turn on him at any moment.

"Oh they aren't working for her?"

"Hell no!" Ben laughed. "But I think they're aligned most of the time. She's... as intense as them. Almost. Doesn't care much about humans."

"You're human," she pointed out.

"Yeah, well, what is it they say..." he looked to the blue skies "We still live in a society. She's got a soft spot because I used to work for her husband." The shrug was nonchalant, he didn't want to give her anything she could dig into. "Besides I'm not the first merc she's had on the payroll."

"The Crack, right?" She smiled as she said the name, nearly breaking into a laugh. "The one with the big gun and the silly name?"

"Yeah. Revenge is an expensive business. She pays well."

"Which is why I am here." She dropped her voice, giving Ben a more serious look. "Is her base really underwater?"

"Yeah. You got a problem with that?"

"No," she lied, the shiver betraying her. "Just never been deep down before. Not really a swimmer."

"It's fine," Ben assured. Sometimes he forgot that she wasn't made of sharp retorts and observations. "My armor's fitted for underwater use as well, at least down to the depth we need to access the entrance. You just shift into a bird and ride in the cockpit with me. Your bioload will be small enough not to make a difference. We're just waiting for an escort to get us past the defensive systems."

"I didn't know it went underwater." She looked down at the tarp underneath her. "With the name Sky-Raider and all."

"Why do you think they never catch me?" Ben laughed, it was always a delight to surprise people with what his baby could do. "It's a modified Armstice V-27X, you think the tentacles was the only thing added? The entire hull is remodeled from the ground up. They think they're chasing an aerial unit, nothing like a dip to make them look elsewhere. Can't maneuver for shit down there though, so I try to avoid it. And I lost a fair bit of top speed with the added weight. Not to mention the fuel efficiency." He sighed, that was his biggest regret. Couldn't stay airborn as long as he wanted anymore. Though hit and run was a safer tactic.

"That makes sense. Hide in plain sight." She looked out over the ocean. "Or out of sight I suppose."

"You're doing the same with your pigeons," he pointed out. "They're everywhere, nobody will ever find you."

"I wish that was true." Dove slid down from the armor, walking over to him at the railing. "I'm not as... discreet as I wish I had been. Too many people know who I am at this point. Or at least where I live. They might not be able to get to me, but everyone else..."

"Soft targets." Ben looked over at her, she looked so small right now. Mostly bones, hair and attitude. "Is that why you agreed to this job?"

"I need someone in my corner," she admitted. "Even if said someone is a psychopathic nutjob who want to re-wild the entire coastline. I do good work, might be able to work up some brownie points."

"Don't let her hear you call her that," Ben cautioned. "She doesn't have a sense of humor."

"Noted." She fell silent for a while, the lapping of the wave against the sides of the boat the only sound apart from distant seagulls. "You have any idea what she needs me for?"

"Probably to steal something I can't get alone." That was his usual role. Procurement. Half the time he had no idea what for. Only that the jobs were getting bigger and more complicated. "Last time she had me hijack a military transport, that was touch and go. Hopefully your involvement means it will be a quieter thing."

"Never broken into a military facility." Dove laughed. "There's a first time for everything I suppose, though I'd rather not have to deal with them. There's grades of risk depending on what wanted lists you end up on."

"Don't I know it." Technically he wasn't a deserter, just stole some equipment, but part of him still felt like one. Like he was supposed to be better, which was absurd. The things he had done while in the military had been worse. Far worse. "I'm glad they can't operate freely here thanks to the lease, not sure what's gonna happen when that ends."

"If we're lucky the cities will manage to renegotiate it. I'd think the companies wouldn't want to give up this little goldmine they have running." There was a tension to Dove's voice though. She had as much skin in this game as anybody. "If not? Not sure what's gonna happen. There's enough people here that won't take oversight lying down that things will get ugly fast."

"Yeah." Ben sighed. He wasn't a boost, and technically he could stow away the armor and go legit. But with the control of boosts and mods, and the martial law still in effect in the US, he suspected he'd be seen as a risk even as just a veteran with active implants. "I think that's what our employer is preparing for. Don't tell her I said that. Been stealing a lot of military equipment lately, it feels like she's preparing for a war. Well, unless she's found out who is keeping her husband." The joke caught in his throat, because if it was the wrong party it might as well be war.

"Psychopathor? He's been missing for a while now, you figure he's still alive?" Dove sounded surprised.

"He's a hard man to kill. And if they took him alive, too useful was well."

"Oh please don't tell me that I'm here to help break someone out from military prison or something." She sighed. "Not saying that I can't, just that the payment has to be good."

"I doubt it. That's not her style." Breaking someone out sounded so benign, no, Tina Broucek would raze whoever had dared to do this to the ground. Regardless of collateral damage. "But now that you mention it, she might need you to scout the place. Guess we'll see. I still think she wants us to steal something."

"Wanna bet?" Dove turned to look up at him. "I put twenty on affairs of the heart. You want to bet on greed?"

"That's..." Ben pondered the odds. Could she have found her husband? If so she had kept it under wraps. "You're on." A faint swaying of the boat, out of rhythm with the waves caught his attention.

"Visitors?" She tensed.

"Probably our escort. Keep a straight face." Ben gestured to the captain, who did his best to hold the boat steady as the submersible rose to the surface.

They had warranted two of them, cigar-shaped tubes with circular pressure vessels at the center. The globes were clear, but the riders were unknown to him. The design was not, and he waved his arm in a greeting, as one of the men returned the gesture.

"You have permission to enter Her borders." The speakers turned the voice mechanical, but the reverence was still obvious. "We will escort you to the Aperture."

"You heard the man." Ben turned to Dove. "You change and I'll get in the armor. Time for a swim."

"Ugh." She shivered. "The things I do for money." She reached up to cover her face with her hand, and Ben quickly looked away before she changed. It was somehow worse in reverse.

"Just please try not to make a mess of the cockpit," he said as he pulled the tarp off. That was even harder to clean than the outside.

Oh well, he could always bill her for the cleaning.