Blakes 7: 01 - New Patterns and Old Friends

Chapter Two

A signal alarm went off. "It wasn't me, " was Vila Restal's automatic response. He had been working on a tricky double-locking, laser-secured wall safe when they heard the sirens.

Uh oh.

"Give me a lock, any lock, and I'll have it cracked before Bozo here can count to ten, " he had boasted to them. Villa, you've done it now.

His companions, the ring-leader with a military-bearing and a smart-looking blond young woman carrying a satchel, looked towards a tall, thin man posted by the door. They had broken into the Prime Minister's office on Biliar Prime in Sector Four. The safe had been hidden behind the portrait of the first Biliaran Prime Minister, a distinguished looking character who looked a lot like the current head of state; not the most original hiding place for a safe.

Vila only knew that the leader's name was Argus. He wasn't even sure if it was a last name or a first name, or whether it was his real name at all. One thing he did know, that military bearing was not a fake, nor was his leadership ability. Some people were leaders by training, others were natural-born leaders; Argus definitely fell into the latter category.

"It's still clear, " the look-out told them.

They all wore the two-tone brown and black dress uniforms of the Biliaran House Guard and carried modified hand blasters, ones which made no noise. Vila had refused to carry one when they offered it to him. "I don't like weapons. They have a nasty tendency to go off."

The overcomm system announced, "Attention. All guards to assigned stations. The Federation President is approaching the landing terminal."

Whew, the alarm wasn't his fault.

Wait a minute. The Federation President? That means Servalan!

He had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Keep going," Argus urged him. "We don't have much time. We have to get out before they discover we've been here."

"You're telling me. You didn't tell me Servalan was coming, " Vila said accusingly.

"Would you have come if we had told you?" the ring-leader asked.

"Not in a million years, " the thief replied. I'd be running the other way, very fast.

The sinking feeling in his stomach was telling him that he had joined another bunch with a political agenda and not just plain greed as their motivation. The only thing that ever got anyone was lots of dying. He was very allergic to dying; he had had enough of that onboard the Liberator with Blake's crew. It was a good thing this bunch only knew him by his alias, Gan Lason.

I need a drink. That strong green alcohol on the Liberator. He never found out what it was exactly but what he wouldn't give to have a glass of it now, mixed with some of that good soma.

The leader told him, "Then the sooner you get it open the sooner we can all leave."

"Alright, alright you don't have to tell me twice." Vila turned to the wall safe again. Fear always sharpened his senses and he had it open in short order. The ring-leader pulled him out of the way and began rifling through the safe; pulling out various items and handing selected ones to his blond partner who was ready with a recorder device pulled from her satchel.

The items he removed from the safe were recorder crystals. No valuable stones, no gold; they were after recorder crystals.

I should have known, thought Vila.

If Argus hadn't been so persuasive Vila would never have joined them on this dangerous little venture. The ring-leader had told him just enough to whet his greed, and flattered him just enough to overcome his natural aversion to putting himself in harm's way; though Vila preferred to think of it more as his sixth sense.