Read Online DJ's Mission by A. E. McCullough - Free Book Online

up
against the far wall where he could watch the coming and goings of everyone.
This would also allow him to pull out at any time and not be blocked in by the
other waiting taxis.
    DJ glanced back at the rows of taxis. They were
dirtier and bore the mark of heavy use. The cabbies barely spoke to the
passengers other than to get a destination and whoosh, they were off. These
were the drivers of the establishment; easily tracked by Titan Avionics and the
Saturn Sheriffs.
     Looking back to the lone red taxi, he spied the
driver leaning against the nearby wall smoking seemingly unaware of his
surroundings. But DJ knew that to be a lie. The driver’s eyes darted to and
fro, watching everything and everyone. The sensors in his CSA suit confirmed
that he was smoking a marijuana cigarette, which wasn’t at all unusual or
illegal. What DJ found unusual was the alertness of the driver while under the
influence of the cannabis drug. Typically believed to be a hallucinogen, he
knew it exhibited properties similar to some stimulants and depressants with a
unique blending of properties. Even though completely legal throughout the
Terran system, it was still considered a taboo drug.
    Having made his decision, DJ moved away from the
crowd and headed towards the red taxi.
    The ebony skinned driver immediately tapped out
his blunt and moved to the driver’s door. Even though DJ could see his pearly
white smile, his body language was far from relaxed. As a matter of fact, he
thought the driver would flee before he crossed the thirty yards separating
them. Of course he was in the Red Falcon armor and must look rather
intimidating, especially when compared to the civilians nearby.
    Slowing his approach, DJ scanned the cabbie and
tried to figure out how to calm him down without having to remove his armor.
That’s when he noticed a green beret tucked into the driver’s jacket pocket
which bore a small black and silver emblem. It was a crest with a sword
pointing upwards with two crossed arrows over the blade and a worn motto
written underneath.
    “De Oppresso Libre.” DJ spoke the words aloud like
an ancient charm.
    Immediately, the cabbie seemed to relax. He nodded
slightly and his big smile faded but was replaced by a small self-satisfying
grin. “We Liberate the Oppressed; the motto of the Green Berets, my old unit. I
haven’t heard anyone speak those words in many a year.”
    “We chewed up some of the same ground during those
days. Semper Fi.”
    The cabbie threw his hands into the air and turned
completely around. “A freakin’ Marine! Bless my soul. A freakin’ Marine needs a
ride.” The ebony skinned cabbie turned to his red taxi and began to talk to it.
“Lucille…did you hear that? A damn Marine needs a ride.”
    DJ half expected the taxi to talk back in this day
and age of artificial intelligence but if ‘Lucille’ could talk, only the cabbie
heard her responses.
    “I don’t know where he’s going yet. He’s just got
here. Now, hush!”
    When the cabbie pulled off his toboggan and
exposed his bald head, DJ noticed that he was more than bald. He was hairless.
No whiskers. No eyebrows. No five o’clock shadow. No hair at all. Additionally,
his dark eyes showed a slight yellowing on the edges, evidence of jaundice. DJ
immediately coupled those two symptoms together with the smoking of marijuana
and he realized that this veteran was fighting liver cancer.
    The cabbie moved to the back door and opened it
wide with one hand while polishing Lucille with the other. “Tony’s the name and
shuttlin’ the game.”
    “Rote Faulken.”
    Tony cocked his head to the side and had that
‘deer in the headlights’ look of confusion.
    “Just call me Red Falcon.” DJ saw the lights come
back on in Tony’s eyes. “I need transportation around Titan.”
    With a grin as large as the Cheshire Cat, Tony
hopped in the front of his taxi. “Get in, get in.”
    Before DJ entered the cab, he turned to UR-L8 and
said, “Get back to