Sunrunners (Finale)

Chapter 5
“. . . finally resolving the political ambiguity of Lunar Base . . . ”
        excerpt: “Manned Space: A Study of Sociological Development, Introduction”

      We hurried to the main airlock just in time to meet the soldiers.  Thankfully, my limp was mostly gone.  The inner door gimbaled open, and a young lieutenant stepped out of the airlock first, his armored spacesuit jarringly out of place.  We stood blocking the way, and he had to stop halfway out.  The rest of his squad stood at ease behind him.
      “Excuse me,” he snapped.
      “Certainly,” I said, “but sorry to see you go so soon.”
      He raised his eyebrows at that.  After a moment of thought and a deep breath, he tried again.
      “Excuse me, sir, but I need to see the Administrator.”
      “Ah, I see.  I can arrange for you to see prisoners.”  I watched his eyebrows climb another notch.
      “Prisoners?”
      “Prisoners.  Most of the former administration is being held on various charges, including attempted murder.  We’re hoping to convene a proper court next sunset.”  I’d been surprised how easy it had been to just walk in and kidnap the bosses at gunpoint.  Two more of Alan’s thugs had surrendered, too.  It was becoming clear most of company management had not been involved with Alan’s operations.  Then again, they were all slavers in my eyes.
      “Well, who is running Lunar Base, then?”  The poor officer seemed bemused.
      “Let me make introductions.  This is Frans Gould, Luna City mayor; I’m Sheriff Lagger, and this is Deputy Sheriff Lagger.”  I stuck my hand out.  “You are . . . ?”
      “Lieutenant Shaw, sir.”  He shook my hand out of reflex, but he was looking at Patty.
      “G’day, Ron,” she said, “been keepin’ up your Jiu Jitsu practice?”  He shook her hand with a small bow.
      “Yes ma’am, but I doubt I could take you yet.”  He released her hand and turned back to me.  “You got a good deputy there, sir.”
      “She’s some kinda wife, too.”
      “You married Patty the Python?  Congratulations.”  Several of the soldiers snickered.
      “Uhm.  I guess so.  Anyway, to what do we owe the pleasure of your visit, Ron?”  I rolled my eyes at the Python.  She appeared very innocent.
      He straightened himself up, trying to regain his sense of purpose.  “Sir, I have been ordered to ascertain why Lunar Base Corporation has stopped supplying Glenn Space Facility, and to restart those supplies ASAP.”  Sounded like they’d finally named the space station.  The first thing we’d done after our coup was shut down the big rail launcher.  We had been ignoring daily calls from the space station since then.
      I shook my head.  “Well, there’s your problem, right there.  This is Luna City now.  Lunar Base Corporation is out of business.”  That set him back a step.  He turned to his communications man.  They tried fruitlessly to contact the space station for several minutes.  Finally, Lieutenant Shaw turned back to me.
      “Sir, I need to use your Com Room, please?”
      “Sure, no problem.  Just hand over your firearms. We don’t allow guns in the city limits.”
      “Oh, for Chrissake,” blurted out one of the soldiers.  Shaw spun on his heel and stared at the offending soldier.  The soldier looked down, and Shaw turned back to us.
      “What’s to keep us from just marching down there?”  He let anger harshen his voice.
      “Me and the Python, that’s our job.  You may want to reconsider that, though.”  I smiled.
      “Why?”
      I turned to Frans.  “I’ll let Mayor Gould explain that.  Sir?”
      Frans stepped up and shook Shaw’s hand.  “Son, I’m sorry you’re in the middle of this.  Will you give an old man two minutes to try and straighten this out?”
      “Sure, Mayor.  Go ahead.”  Shaw glanced back at his squad.  “Peeps, record this.”  The young soldier bearing the com set adjusted some controls.
      “Yes sir, recording.”
      “Great.  Good thinking, son.  Let me get right to it. Lunar Base is no longer owned by Lunar Base Corporation and hasn’t been associated with any Earth government for quite a while, which raises the question: under whose jurisdiction do we fall?  Are we now our own country, or are we territory of one of the original coalition countries?  If you step through that door with your guns, you are setting an irrevocable precedent.  Either you will be a military force illegally invading a free and independent country, or you will be willfully breaking the laws of the municipality of Luna City.  Either you start a war here, or you go to jail here.”  The same loudmouthed soldier guffawed.  Lieutenant Shaw winced, but stood firm, silently pondering what Frans had said.  We all waited.
      “Uh, sir?  Are we still recording?”
      Shaw closed his eyes for a long moment.  “Did I order you to stop recording, Peeps?”
      “No, sir!”
      “I didn’t think so.”  Shaw turned to his men.  “Sergeant.  Form the men up.”
      “Yessir.”  The men exchanged salutes.  Shaw turned back to us.
      “Excuse us.”  He stepped back and closed the airlock.
      As soon as the door closed, Frans laughed and turned to face us.
      “I do believe Lieutenant Shaw is destined for great things.”
      “Ronnie’s a bright cookie,” agreed Patty.  “We’re lucky it was him they sent down.”
      “Patty the Python?”  She shrugged at me.  I had to kiss her to wipe the smirk off her face.   I saw some heads stick around the corner of the corridor; people couldn’t resist the urge to peek.  I flashed them an ‘OK’ and waved them back.  It was less than two minutes before the airlock door reopened.  Finals were over, time to see our grades.
      Lieutenant Shaw stepped through the door, seeming a little older now.  One of his men closed and locked it behind him.  The exit cycle immediately started.  Shaw cleared his throat.
      “Mr. Gould, I’ve sent my men back to the lander.  I’m sure you understand that I can’t authorize the surrender of their weapons.”
      “A good decision, Lieutenant Shaw.  What about yourself?”  Frans pointed at Shaw’s sidearm.
      “Sir, this pistol is a part of my uniform, as an officer and a gentleman.  It is also a symbol of my military authority, much as Sheriff, uh, Lagger’s sidearm is a symbol of his civil authority.  I hope you will recognize and accept this?”
      “Well said, son. No.”  Frans crossed his arms.  Shaw didn’t seem surprised at the refusal.  “Son, when do you wear your sidearm?”
      “Sir?”
      “Do you wear your sidearm when you are off duty, lieutenant?  When you are performing your normal duties on your base?  Or do you only wear it when invading your neighbors?”
      Shaw looked over at Patty.
      “Is the Mayor here some kin to you, too?”
      “My grandfather,” she said with pride.
      “I knew it.  Mr. Gould, if I surrender my sidearm to you, will you let me contact my superiors with your communications equipment?”
      “Certainly.  Peter?”  Frans turned to nod at me, barely controlling a grin.
      I pulled a receipt book from my shirt pocket, flipped to the right page, and handed it to Shaw.
      “Just sign at the bottom.  The pink copy is yours.  Come by my office anytime to pick it up.”  He carefully filled out the receipt, removed his copy, and handed me the book, followed by his pistol.
      “Mr. Gould, will you come with me?”  Shaw gave a crooked smile.  “I’m sure there will be some questions I can’t answer without your help.”
      “Glad to, my boy.  Will you still need Pete to arrange the visitation with the prisoners?”
      “No, sir.  I’d rather not get involved with that.  Speaking my own opinion, I’m sure they are just where they belong.”  He winked at me and Patty.  “After you, sir.”  They walked away from us, already deep in conversation.  I grabbed Patty’s hand and we watched until they turned out of sight.  It seemed important.

Epilogue
      “Patty is pregnant again, and the doctors think the new dietary supplements will prevent another miscarriage.  We have every hope you’ll be grandparents by Christmas.  Yes, Mom, I'm still working on my thesis; I figure when time comes to retire and settle down somewhere it would be nice to be called Doctor Lagger rather than 'that old Looney.'   Dad, the boom is well and truly started.  There are a few working sites now that are quite similar to this one, the original that Frans Gould and Ray Davis discovered.  We named it Daviston, after Ray.  Politics seems to agree with Frans; we just celebrated his sixty-ninth birthday.  Then, of course, he had to race off to an important meeting with the U.N. team.  Alan’s appeals are just about gone, and we are pushing for extradition.  The moon’s first murderer should have to pay on the moon.  The rotten thing is that the people who ordered Alan may get away.”
      “The new transceivers and satellites let me talk straight to ham operators on earth and I'm not wasting time watching the furnaces.  Dad, a Chinese boy named Liu downloaded his design for an asteroid belt 'rover' to me, and I'm searching the markets for components.  If I can put it together, I’ll need you to sponsor him to Luna City.  If he can cut it up here, then we may try Out There . . .”
        excerpt: “VoiceLetter to Parents, August 8, 2039”

        The End