Crankie Williams Does Penance

By Franz Ludick

Crankie was taken to the penal planet Walmer, to the top security penitentiary Hellcatrazz, where he was sentenced to stay for life. He met with the Director of the penitentiary as well as some important inmates. Crankie began planning on how to make Hellkatrazz and the whole planet Walmer into a thriving and financially viable business, and after meeting with the Galactic Council, he was permitted to put his plans into place. Crankie set out on a daring escapade to make his plans succeed and called in the help of Marood Hubool from the planet Xanatanka. After many devious plans and much wrangling, his plans were put into action. Crankie finally made contact with his friends from Earth, who were managing his businesses during his absence. Together they came up with some weird ideas, and some of those led to battles throughout the Milky Way, and Hesny galaxies. Crankie finally identified the rogues who preyed on space miners and, using his super fast ship, the Solar Plexus, he destroyed the killers in a gruesome way. Crankie made deals with the Pleasure Lords of Barcator, and after many confrontations, he managed to unite the Heshny galaxy. A grand plan by the Valgonarians to invade the Heshny galaxy was uncovered, and a spy nest within the galaxy was eventually destroyed. What Crankie and the whole Galactic Council were unaware of, was that the Dark Force had awoken and was setting its plans into motion, influencing the rebellious galaxies to prepare for full-scale war. The Emperor of the Milky Way became aware of the Dark Force’s schemes and he in turn communicated with Crankie. Dark days lay ahead for the united galaxies.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Franz Ludick
• Release date: Jan 17, 2018
• ISBN: 9781370724437

Franz Ludick

The author resides on a farm near the small town of Montagu at the edge of the Little Karoo, in the Province of the Western Cape, South Africa and although he is still active in the property market, he is also active with his favourite hobby of woodwork and is totally involved with bee keeping, producing natural raw honey and other bee products.Having spent most of his adult life as a property appraiser, Franz has written countless reports and finally decided to put his writing skills to use by writing light and entertaining science fiction stories.

Book preview

CRANKIE WILLIAMS DOES PENANCE

Who Dares, Wins

Franz Ludick

Copyright 2018 Franz Ludick

Other Crankie Williams books

Book 1 - Crankie Williams Goes Ballistic

Book 2 - Crankie Williams Goes Pirate

Book 4 - Crankie Williams Goes to War

Also

Oh Hell, Joe!

The Sentinel Awakens

Disclaimer

The names of characters portrayed in this story are purely fictional and in no way related to any real person, dead or alive, nor any real place or institution. Any similarity of names to any person, place, or institution is purely coincidental and in no way intentional.

ISBN 978 0 620 61435 1

CONTENTS

Survival

Welcome to Walmer

Welcome to Hellkatraz

Day One

Jeramia Le Gard

Renzläger

The Pit

The Black Hole

Redemption

The Way of the Spirit

Hellkatraz Reborn

Walmer Awakens

Special Delivery

Reunited

Xanatanka

Rogues

Lord Valma

Interlude

Unification

The Universe Calls

Prelude to the Storm

Epilogue

Bibliography – Milky Way

Bibliography – Heshny

Orientation List – Milky Way

Orientation List – Heshny

Orientation List – Andromeda

About the Author

SURVIVAL

Crankie Williams had been riding the wave of success with meaning, which led him to be proclaimed as the Galactic Hero, but then the rug had been pulled from under him and he had fallen into the dark depths of thuggery and worst of all, piracy! This ultimately led him to attempt a mission of such daring that in the process he lost his best friend Martin West. When Martin’s ship was destroyed by a fleet heavy cruiser, Crankie understandably blamed himself for his friend’s death and, although he tried many times to pull himself together, he finally realized he was quickly unravelling. This led him to make the momentous decision that he had only one option left. He decided to surrender to the galactic security forces and accept whatever his fate turned out to be.

The legal system was ready to crucify him with lengthy public court hearings, but the Emperor stepped in and decreed that, as Crankie had already been found guilty in abstentia, on many counts of piracy, hijacking, and other criminal acts, he did not need to be re-tried in court again. He ordered that Crankie be sent to the ultra-high security prison Hellkatraz, on the planet Walmer. He was to be incarcerated at Hellkatraz for the rest of his life, with no hope of pardon or release.

While he was awaiting transfer to wherever the authorities were going to send him, he realized that for the first time in months he felt at peace with himself. Suddenly his mind cleared and he could concentrate on what was happening around him, without the heavyweight of guilt pressing him down. The first thing he did as soon as he was left alone in his holding cell was to tune his mind in and make mental contact with Martin in the ‘other' dimension. This time Martin came through so clear, it was as if he was right there in the cell with him.

‘So, my friend, I see you’ve decided to take the big leap!’ Martin said. ‘I’ve been wondering when you were going to decide, one way or the other, what to do with your life. The way I saw it, if you decided to carry on the way you have been in the past few months, you would have soon spiralled downhill until you eventually hit rock bottom. I know it must have been a hell of a decision to hand yourself over to the authorities as you did, but I’m sure in the long run it will be to your benefit.’

‘Yes Martin, it was a very difficult decision, but when I look back on the way my mind was being taken over by depression, dragging me down day by day, I don’t think there was any other option left open to me! Anyway, I’m locked up in a cell now, waiting to find out what they’re going to do with me.’ Crankie said through his thoughts.

‘I’ll keep a close eye on you my man, and if I’m able to influence anyone to make your life any easier, I’ll certainly do so.’ With that Martin was gone.

He now tuned in to Chief Running Water on New Maka and the chief came through immediately, saying, ‘Greetings Lone Wolf, your sensory powers are now a lot stronger and clearer than the last few times we spoke. You were going through a period of extreme stress, and I also sensed a powerful Dark Force at work in the background trying to take over your life force. Now as I speak to you I can sense this power is absent, so you must have proven too strong for easy defeat. I would be constantly on my guard though if I was you, I sense this Dark Force will come back at you with renewed vigour!’’

‘Greetings chief, yes, after I decided to hand myself over and did so, I suddenly felt all the heaviness and depression lifting off me! I think it’s time for me to make a fresh start, but I know the authorities are going to put me through the wringer and make me suffer for all the embarrassment and loss of face I caused them. Anyway, we’ll see what the future holds, but I feel confident this is going to make me stronger than ever.’

‘I have every faith in you, my boy. Your son is growing fast, so you had better get your life sorted out. Before you know it, it will be time for you to take him under your wing and teach him the ways of the civilized galaxy. Golden Fawn also is doing well, she misses you.’

Crankie mentally smiled, ‘Thanks chief, send her my love. If there is anything you guys need over there on New Maka, just let me know. I’m now waiting to find out where they’re going to send me, but I’m sure wherever it is, it’s not going to be pleasant.’

The chief chuckled, ‘We all pay for our actions Lone Wolf, but as long as we’re able to learn the lessons spirit teaches us, we come out the other side wiser and stronger. The great rolling plains and the blue mountains are waiting for you to ride over them, so do what is necessary and come back to us.’ With that they broke the connection and Crankie lay back on the bunk, not thinking about what might lay in store for him, but thinking about all the projects that were on the go, as well as other projects he had in mind.

WELCOME_TO_WALMER

Walmer, situated at the outer edge of the Milky Way galaxy is a relatively small planet about the size of the Solar System’s Mars and the only inhabitable planet in its system. It was flagged on all charts as a ‘no-go’ zone to general space traffic and any intruder daring to approach too close was soon challenged by fleet frigates attached to the penal planet’s security system. It was known that the occasional drunken ‘space cowboy’ who decided to challenge the system, simply disappeared and was never seen or heard of again!

It had long since been decided by galactic authorities that what happens on Walmer is strictly Walmer’s business! The authorities governing Walmer were answerable to no one in the galaxy, which made them a law unto themselves, except of course for the emperor himself. If one was unfortunate enough to end up on Walmer, one was lost to the galaxy forever! Information regarding conditions and activities on Walmer was so scarce that if by chance any tit-bit of information did manage to leak out, it was snapped up by the general galactic press to be hashed and rehashed over and over again until it died a natural death. Needless to say, many a rumour was started about the happenings on Walmer and it was generally accepted that many of these rumours had factual bases, citing the old saying that ‘there was no smoke without fire.’

Walmer itself, as a planet, was pleasant enough for human occupation, although not ideal. The planet had the odd nasty quirk of occasionally bellyaching, when the whole plant would begin trembling and shaking, resulting in dormant volcanic actions all over the place. These volcanic activities were scarce and never lasted very long, but as they all became active at more or less the same time the effect of ash and soot spewing out into the atmosphere practically enveloped the whole planet, which made life on the surface unbearable! At these times it was wise for any citizens of Walmer to stay indoors until the following planet-wide gale-force winds gradually blew the air clear to become breathable again.

Because it was situated so far from the main galactic civilizations and trade routes, Walmer was generally ignored, especially after the mining companies had done their surveys and found nothing worth their effort, and the huge costs of long-haul transport as well. For many years Walmer was merely a number on galactic charts until it was decided by the galactic senate that an out-of-the-way planet had to be found to accommodate the ever-growing long-term prison populations. The computer did its calculations and analyses and came up with the most ideal new home for non-returnable human flotsam.

The planet and its surrounding heavenly bodies were studied and analysed for a few months, to determine its characteristics and potential, after which the galactic civil service got involved and construction got underway for the necessary infrastructure on the planet. Only two cities of single-floor bungalows were built, together with the necessary infrastructures. One city, to be occupied by males only, was on one side of the continent and the other on the other side, for females, which was already punishment enough for some inmates.

From the outset, all unauthorized space traffic was prohibited from approaching the planet, and other than official aircraft, no other air traffic would ever be allowed to operate near the planet. The ocean which was teeming with abundant edible fish was demarcated into permissible fishing grounds and other sectors restricted ‘no-go’ zones. These restricted zones were patrolled and the fishing grounds were also scanned by satellite. The whole project was based on subsistence farming by the population. Except for essential supplies, no other trade or deliveries would be accommodated. Security personnel had their own deliveries of essential and exotic supplies as and when needed, brought in every month by a fleet supply freighter.

Unfortunately for the inhabitants, the planet’s volcanic activities resulted in at least twenty percent of the one large continent being contaminated. This contamination resulted in parts of the landmass having no vegetation at all, and the irregular gale force winds didn’t help to make the planet very pleasant either. As the volcanic activity happened for millions of years, large parts of the planet were buried under a deep old volcanic rock which had by now turned into rich workable soil, which could be used for subsistence farming. The rest of it consisted of endless undulating hills of green-brown soil with sparse vegetation.

It was realized by the authorities that these conditions would make it viable for the inhabitants to eke out survivable crops and it was felt that as these were the worst criminals in the galaxy, they would just have to work hard to survive. The situation they would find themselves in would by necessity force them to interact with each other, and as there would be no money to bargain with, the inhabitants would have to learn the art of bartering amongst each other for the exchange of produce. Either that or go hungry and die!

Once the cities and amenities were completed, the authorities began shipping in the future inhabitants from all over the galaxy. These people were simply dropped off at the edge of the city, where a welcoming committee of guards awaited them, informing each group that it was every man for himself and that they could march into town and select wherever they wanted to spend the rest of their natural days on the planet. Once the crops were harvested, the only provisions the authorities were prepared to supply would be the various seeds with which they could continue their new occupations as subsistence farmers and the manual implements with which to work the land.

Rowing boats and rudimentary fishing gear was made available to those who saw themselves as fishermen and women. It was normal for many new arrivals to opt for this activity, rather than working the soil. To go out to sea and fish all day seemed to be a lot less strenuous than having to labour in the fields all day, was their reasoning, until most of them found that rowing out to the fishing areas and sitting in a little boat all day, hoping to be in the right place at the right time was no fun at all! Many of these budding fishermen and women soon became raving lunatics, and they subsequently didn’t last long. It was soon learned that it took a very special type of person to become a successful fisherman and the rest had to resign themselves to working the soil for a living.

From the very first arrivals, there were always those few individuals who were so set in their scheming ways, that they decided they could manipulate the others into doing the hard work for them while they spent their time devising ways and means of getting their hands on the food produced. Unfortunately, these individuals soon learned that the crops won from the soil would only be enough to keep the inmates themselves alive, with very little excess food to share or barter with. It didn’t take long for everyone to realize that they were finding themselves in a living hell! If you slacked and didn’t work, you would die of hunger, end of story!

These criminals who were unfortunate enough to land on Walmer were made to understand that they were there for the rest of their lives. At no time and under no circumstances would they be allowed to send any communication to anyone in the galaxy. Once they arrived on Walmer they ceased to exist for the rest of the galaxy. But, as mysterious as these things are wont to happen, without anyone able to explain how it happened, the rumours of life on the planet did filter through into and through the galaxy. Rumours began circulating about the conditions on the planet and the hardships the inhabitants constantly suffered. Many a hardened criminal began looking at his own way of life and wondered if it was all worth it! It would however be difficult to say how many of them turned their lives around to go on the straight and narrow.

Although both large cities soon filled up, they never quite reached their full capacity. As the years passed, with more inhabitants being shipped in regularly, the existing inhabitants were dying off just as regularly. First to succumb were those who either refused to work the land for themselves or who were just too plain lazy to do a full day’s honest work. Then of course there were the folks who just became too old to work and as the planet had no infrastructure to take care of the aged, they could only depend on their fellow men and women to support them, which didn’t happen very often as these people were conditioned to taking care of themselves only, without regard to the hardships of their fellow men or women. That was the way they lived while they carried on with their criminal activities in the galactic civilization, and that was the way they died on Walmer.

The commissioner of the facilities on Walmer, through his personnel and security staff, kept a wary eye on the activities of the inmates, both those working the lands and those fishing in the ocean. Although they didn’t interact with the inhabitants nor interfered when things got out of hand, preferring to let these criminals sort themselves out, they kept an eagle eye open for any signs of conspiracies or organized mutinies against the administration. Any transgression of such a serious nature was dealt with harshly by the culprits being subjected to long periods of solitary confinement. While they were in confinement their cronies were allowed to bring them food and sustenance. Failure by their acquaintances to take care of them would inevitably result in them being released in a frail and starving condition, generally leading to an early death.

After a few years, it was decided to construct the high-security prison which would house the most dangerous and unrepentant criminals on a large island, far from the continent, and there again, the inmates had to live a subsistence style of life, growing their food and fishing within the demarcated zones. But, unlike the city inhabitants, all produce went into the facility’s communal larders. The only difference was that all inmates had to be back indoors by a certain time, with heavy penalties for those who failed to do so. Cell doors, as well as main facility doors, would be unlocked only with the head warden’s permission, and if the inmates were unruly or didn’t behave themselves properly or peacefully, they would have to remain locked up in their cells for as long as it took to bring them back into line again.

After much deliberation, this facility was named Hellkatraz, and if the inhabitants of the cities were under the impression their life was miserable, living in this prison was pure hell, to say the least! Many an inmate had attempted, out of desperation, to escape from the island, but the satellite scanners and constant patrols made this impossible. Any wannabee escapee, when caught, was given the mandatory six months of solitary confinement with reduced rations.

Daily supervision, as well as the patrol boat personnel, was handled by highly sophisticated but hugely capable robots! These robots only interacted with the inmates as and when it was called for, such as when fights broke out or an inmate lost his mind and went berserk! Needless to say, there was no reasoning with the robots, nor did they pay any attention to pleas of innocence during disturbances. They acted, and they acted ruthlessly! Many a tough guy criminal soon learned that he was a mere nothing in the robot's eyes, and was invariably soon reduced to a snivelling slob.

The human wardens of Hellkatraz who were all hand-picked for their physical capabilities and aptitude for the demanding job were headed by a giant of a man named Zorghan. Zorghan was specially recruited from the ranks of the mercenaries of Buron and he took no nonsense from anyone! He answered only to the Governor of Hellkatraz, Werner Heidrich who he admitted grudgingly to be the most ruthless man he had ever known. Zorghan, having been brought up to be a fighting man of war, available to anyone willing to pay his fees, knew when to show respect to another man who, although he couldn’t out-fight him, could certainly out-think him! He ruled the facility under Heidrich’s guidance with an iron fist, and where the robots left off he took up the hounding and persecution of the inmates with gusto!

Between them, Heidrich and Zorghan shared a total loathing of criminals. Not to crime as such mind you, just of the criminals stupid enough to get caught! To them, criminals who ended up on their island weren’t considered to be human at all, but the lowest scum in the galaxy and they treated them as such. When the prison became over-crowded at times, Zorghan would tighten up on security and instruct his men as well as the robots to be extra vigilant and to detain anyone for whatever infringement was committed. The solitary cells would soon be fully occupied and as expected, the death toll would soon rise dramatically after the enfeebled inmates were released to go back to their cells. Zorghan certainly knew how to make space when a communication was received from the fleet, informing them that a fresh consignment of inmates would be delivered soon. He would call his men into his office and inform them when to expect the new arrivals, rubbing his huge hands together and happily telling them to get ready to educate the unsuspecting victims. Zorghan loved this job!

Through necessity, the facility of Hellkatraz was divided into two sections. One section was for male inmates and the other for females. Both received equal treatment from the wardens and robots. There were no female wardens at Hellkatraz and Zorghan and his men played havoc amongst the women! They considered the women criminals with the same aversion as they did the men. The facility was so designed that if the women's section had available space when the male section was over-crowded, a few simple sliding walls were maneuvered into place to reduce the women’s facility, adding additional cells for the male inmates.

The island was also divided into two sections, with huge stone walls, smoothly fused on both sides and with strips of ‘no-man’s-land’ on either side of the wall, seeded with anti-personnel mines and monitored by ever vigilant, never sleeping robots. Even the fishing grounds were separated from each other, with the males on one side of the island and the females on the other. Boats were constantly monitored on both sides, and most inmates, males and females alike were so afraid of transgressing the rules, they generally tended to stay within their boundaries. There was, however, at times, the odd male who gave in to the urge to cross the line, never mind the consequences. Inevitably, they were never seen or heard of again!

***

Zorghan was in his office, preparing the usual list of supplies required to be delivered with the next government freighter when he received a call from Heidrich to come to his office.

Zorghan, my man, we have a most unusual situation developing here. I’ve just had a personal call from no other than the emperor himself! It seems that we can expect a very special guest or inmate, or whatever you want to call him, shortly. You might have heard of him, his name is Clarence Alain Williams, or maybe known to you no other than the infamous or famous, depends on which way you want to look at it, Crankie Williams. His father is the minister of trade for the Solar System, and the emperor has instructed us to treat this guy as a special case. The governor was actually out of breath by the time he had finished talking, and Zorghan could see he was a worried man.

Zorghan wasn’t the type of man to be phased by anything, but he looked astonished and in a pensive voice said. It’s not every day we get an instruction directly and personally from the emperor chief, I wonder what he meant by ‘special case’. How does he wish us to treat this Crankie Williams, with special kid gloves or with bare knuckles? I remember not all that long ago this guy was proclaimed the hero of the galaxy! And then again, not long after that, after the destruction of that planet Ribald, he was demoted to the ‘most wanted criminal in the galaxy! It was all a bit confusing to me at the time.

Werner Heidrich looked pensive and eventually said, I think we should play this one safe until we know more about the guy. He’ll be coming in a fleet cruiser of all things! Imagine that, a cruiser transporting one new inmate to us! No, I think we should just treat him as a normal new arrival without any special privileges, but without leaning on him too heavily. Let’s check out the situation for a while first.

Zorghan went back to his office to complete his requisition list, all the while thinking about the new expected arrival. He was in two minds about this guy, not being able to decide one way or the other. Was he a criminal, or was he a hero? It certainly left him feeling a bit confused.

Much to their detriment, many people underestimated Zorghan, and generally also the huge mercenary soldiers of Buron. Due to the heavier gravity on Buron, the Burons developed huge bone and muscle structures, and they were naturally tall as well. They were giants amongst men. Now, being on a planet with gravity comfortable to normal humans, Zorghan found himself to be as agile and light on his feet as a ballerina. As an individual, he was a most intelligent man and usually got the better of many clever people who were under the impression that he was merely a run-of-the-mill hulk of a soldier. It was not surprising that