“I’m not sure whether to ignore him or tell him to go to back to hell.” she replied.
“I suggest you do neither. Now get ready to go and see him.”
“Why? What does he want?”
“I don’t know why he wants to meet you, the message didn’t say, but it will be to your benefit.”
Sah Lee sighed. “If you say so. But I don’t want anything from that thing.”
“Don’t be so quick to spurn his assistance. He will help you meet your objectives.”
“Why?”
“Because he believes you will contribute to keeping peace in the galaxy. And because he likes you.”
“Even though I tried to kill him?”
“I think that helped. You showed spirit.”
“Only Satan could think like that. Are you sure he’s not a demon?”
“He is flesh and blood and a force for good.”
“Yes,” she said, voice dripping with sarcasm, “and that’s why he didn’t stop the slaughter of my race and the destruction of my planets biosphere.”
“That is a cause of sadness to him.”
“So, he wants to help me because he feels guilty?”
“I don’t believe the People are capable of feeling guilt.”
“Hah! I knew it! He is Satan!”
“He is not Satan Sah Lee. He is a good person. He is doing a great deal for the Aarnth.”
“Too little, too late. Anyway, I’ll get ready. Let’s get it over with. Can you call Touren and ask her to take me there?”
“You do not need Touren to take you, Ker Din Ser Forn has granted you limited access to the internal transport.”
“What’s the internal transport?”
“It’s what takes you around the craft. It is People’s technology. Nobody else has anything like it.”
“How does it work?”
“I do not have that information. You could ask Ker Din Ser Forn.”
Sah Lee showered and dressed quickly. “What do I do now?” she asked her AI.
“I will request the craft’s main AI to transport us when you are ready.”
“I’m ready.” Sah Lee said. She blinked, and they were in the room where she last met Ker Din Ser Forn. He was standing by a gray oval table.
“Welcome Sah Lee. Thank you for coming. Please take a seat. Can I get you something to drink?”
Sah Lee scowled at him. “I’ll stand.” she replied. “What do you want?”
“Touren told me you are almost ready to leave. You realize that you can’t just turn up at an independent mercenary army and demand to join?”
“No, I hadn’t given it any thought.” Sah Lee said, uncertainly.
“I have spoken to the commanding officer of the Galactic Savior Army. There is a place there for you.”
“I don’t want your help.” She spat out.
“Nevertheless, you will get it. Touren and Bekkreshan have both served there, the army will welcome them back. The army has a pretentious name and are not perfect, but they are a professional army and as good as any. It will be a good place to start your military career.”
“Why should you care?”
“I have heard of your experience on Aarn. You are a hunter, a trained killer. You attacked and killed some pirates, or outcasts, despite the fact they were armed and armored and had the advantage of sensory equipment. I also heard how you dealt decisively with your adversary Sor Tan. And of course, your eagerness to attack me at your first opportunity. You are also intelligent and a natural leader. If you can stay alive, I believe you could become a great military leader and play an important part in keeping peace in the galaxy. That is important to me.”
“Again, I ask, why should you care? I am told you can’t be hurt, so what does it matter to you what happens to people in the galaxy? You didn’t intervene to protect Aarn!”
Ker Din Ser Forn looked down. “I am not free to do anything I want Sah Lee. I have constraints on me as a member of the People. I agree with those constraints. You are right in thinking that I have the technology to resolve all these conflicts, any of these problems, but if I did, if the People did, what would we become? We do not want to control the galaxy, it must follow its own destiny. We do not want to be like gods. We are as flawed as any other life form and we fear what we would become if we used our technology to impose order on the people of the galaxy. We also fear what we would become if we stood by and did nothing. It is a difficult line to tread and I realize that sometimes we are seen as being uncaring and callous, but we are not Sah Lee. We are a peaceful species and armed conflict causes us great distress. The feeling of helplessness as we see civilization after civilization slaughter each other over the millennia takes its toll and is too much for some of the People, leading them to end their lives. Please do not think that we do not care.”
“Well, you stood by while my family, my friends, my city, my way of life, my entire world was destroyed. I will always hold you responsible for that. Are we done now?”
“Yes Sah Lee.” He looked up at her and held her gaze. “I do not ask or need your forgiveness. I have done nothing to forgive. You will need help sometimes in your career. I have given your AI permission to contact me using the People’s communications network. You can contact me instantaneously from anywhere in the galaxy. If you need anything from me, tell me. If it is in my power, I will give you any aid you need. We are finished now. You may leave.”
Sah Lee blinked and found herself back in her quarters. Touren and Bekkreshan were sitting at the table each cradling a drink in their hands.
“How did your meeting go?” Touren asked.
“Fine!” Sah Lee snapped. “When can we leave?”
“We can leave any time now. We notified the Galactic Saviors that we wanted to join up again, so they are expecting us, but they said not to bring you as they didn’t want any raw recruits. I believe Ker Din Ser Forn has fixed that.”
Sah Lee grunted and got herself a drink from the synthesizer. “How do we get there?”
“Ker Din Ser Forn will take us. They are based a long way from here and there is no wormhole gateway in this solar system yet.”
“Are you sure there’s no way I can kill him?” Sah Lee asked.
Bekkreshan smiled, Touren sighed. “We’ll spend today going over military discipline. I’ll ask Ker Din Ser Forn to take us tomorrow morning. This will be the last day of living in luxury. It will be the last day you’ll have your own washroom too, so you’ll have to stop drinking out of the toilet.”
Sah Lee scowled at her. She hadn’t realized that Touren knew she was still drinking from the toilet bowl.
Chapter Thirty Five
The Galactic Savior Army
Sah Lee, Touren and Bekkreshan assembled in the main room of their quarters.
“Have you showered?” Touren asked Sah Lee.
“Yes, though I don’t see what it’s got to do with you.” she answered.
“Remember the military discipline we went through, over and over again yesterday?”
“What about it?”
“Bekkreshan and I will join as corporals. You will be the lowest of the low, an untrained and unwanted rookie private. We will do our best to protect you, but you will do what we say, when we say it without question. If you answer back to any other officer you are likely to be kicked straight out of the army, and with that behind you, no other independent army in the galaxy will take you on, so the stakes are high. Do you understand?”
“Yes.” mumbled Sah Lee.
Touren bellowed “Speak up soldier! Yes what? And stand to attention when you speak to me!”
Startled, Sah Lee stood straight. “Yes Sir!”
“Better.” Touren said. “Remember to respond like that when you’re on duty. When you’re off duty with us, you can carry on being your normal obnoxious self. Are you ready to go?”
“Yes Sir!” Sah Lee replied.
"Relax Sah Lee, we’re not on duty now. But don’t question anything we tell
you until we are alone again and off duty. We will sign on together and then they’ll probably split us up for the day. I asked Ker Din Ser Forn to request for us to be quartered together, so we should see you every day, but it is up to the army to decide who trains you and how. Have you got your hunting knife and harness?”
“Yes, will I be able to keep them?”
“As long as it is concealed. It’s considered to be bad form to go around with weapons on show, but if nobody can see it you’re OK. Everybody will know you’ve got it of course, but don’t ever think of pulling it out on anyone in the army. They will all be better at close combat fighting and you are likely to end up with the sharp end sticking in you.”
“What if someone pisses me off or attacks me?”
“If they piss you off, learn to smile and ignore it. If they attack you, defend yourself and hope someone comes to rescue you while you are still alive. With your lack of charm, I don’t suppose it will be long before someone attacks you.”
“Don’t you like me?” Sah Lee asked.
Bekkreshan stepped to her side and gave her a bone-crushing hug. “We love you Sah Lee, but I’m damned if I know why.”
Touren said “I’ve messaged Ker Din Ser Forn that we are ready, so we should be there now. I’ll use the internal transport to take us to the landing bay.”
A moment later they were standing at the foot of a ramp that led into a lander. “Ker Din Ser Forn offered us his personal lander, but it has the reputation of being uncomfortable, so we’re using this one.”
“I thought the army would send one for us.” Sah Lee said.
“They would, but we’ve just arrived near their command habitat and they haven’t had time to get one organized. Ker Din Ser Forn has this one, so we’ll use it. Come on, let’s get on board.”
The journey to the command habitat was uneventful. Sah Lee watched through the forward viewing port as they approached and found the sight of the command habitat hanging unsupported above a mottled brown and red globe in the blackness quite unsettling. When she turned to look back at Ker Din Ser Forn’s ship, or craft as he prefers to call it, all she could see was a great black wall that blocked everything else out. As they got closer to the habitat, and it grew in size and Ker Din Ser Forn’s craft continued to block everything out she began to get an appreciation for just how big it was. While she was looking at the blackness of the craft it vanished. One moment it was there, the next moment it wasn't. She shut her eyes and shook her head, then turned to look at the habitat as they approached. It was roughly cubic, but with odd projections and bits attached to it. The color was a very pale gray, almost white, but with slashes and lines of red and black. It wasn't clear whether these were planned or just the result of upgrades and repairs. It was not esthetically pleasing.
As they drew closer to the habitat a black square became visible. They continued straight towards it until they entered the body of the habitat and settled on the floor of the landing bay.
“Welcome to Betzel Base. The planet below us is called Betzel. Don’t worry about the landing bay door closing Sah Lee,” Touren said, “there is a field holding the atmosphere in, we can breathe out there.”
The door opened, and the landing ramp extended out to the floor.
“Can’t we just blink to wherever we’re going to?” asked Sah Lee.
“No, I told you. That’s People’s technology. You walk or run everywhere here. Follow me.”
The three of them walked to a door marked by a pale blue band of light round its frame. As they approached, it slid open and they walked into a large room with four armed guards. Bekkreshan stepped forward, “Bekkreshan an Errett, Touren Ud Sen and new recruit Sah Lee reporting for duty Sir!”
The senior guard replied “At ease corporal. You and Touren Ud Sen are welcome back to the army. That is the new recruit?” he nodded at Sah Lee.
“Yes Sir. She stays with us.”
“Yeah. I’ve had my orders.” He turned to Sah Lee and glared at her. “We prefer to choose our own recruits. No one likes being told what to do by the People. If it gets too tough, you can leave any time you want. That would suit us all. In the meantime, keep your mouth shut and do as you’re told. Got it?”
Sah Lee stepped forward “Yes Sir!”
The guard looked at Bekkreshan. “Cocky little bastard. We’ll soon knock that out of her. Get her out of here.”
“Yes Sir” Bekkreshan answered and walked toward the exit. Touren shoved Sah Lee in the back to send her on her way behind Bekkreshan.
As soon as they were out of earshot of the guards, Sah Lee said angrily “I didn’t want that thing to interfere with getting me here. The bastard.”
“If Ker Din Ser Forn hadn’t requested that you be accepted into the army, you wouldn’t be here. And it won’t make much difference to how you get treated, all raw recruits get treated like shit. You’ll have to prove yourself before you start getting treated better, but we’ll do our best to protect you. You’ve already started training with us, so you’ll be fine.”
“I’ll kick his ass if I see him in training!” Sah Lee said.
“You were going to do the same to me when you started.” Touren said. “Remember how that turned out? These soldiers are highly trained and experienced. If there’s any ass kicking to be done, you’ll be on the receiving end until you’ve had a lot more training.”
Sah Lee scowled and grunted and looked down as she followed Bekkreshan. They walked in silence for some time, taking several turns then stopped at a wide sliding door.
“OK Sah Lee,” Touren said, “we need to go to a different level. This is how we travel between levels. You don’t have to do anything, your AI will control it, but it can be unnerving the first time you use it. We are going up thirty two levels. We step through the doors and there is no floor…”
“We step into a hole? You are kidding, aren’t you?” Sah Lee said.
“Let me finish. We step inside, but you won’t fall. For a moment we will just stay there, then we’ll start moving upwards. We’ll go faster for a bit, then we’ll slow down and stop. When we have stopped, there still won’t be a floor but we will be able to walk out, and we’ll be on the level we want. OK?”
“You want me to walk into a hole and expect magic to take me upwards? You must be mad!”
“It’s not magic Sah Lee, it’s pretty simple technology. We’ll be with you. I said it can be unsettling first time, but you’ll soon get used to it.”
“I came here to fight, not to learn how to fly. Let’s go a different way.”
“You’re not going to learn how to fly,” Touren explained patiently, “you’re going to learn how to use a gravity tube. Or do you want to leave and go back to Ker Din Ser Forn’s ship? He’ll welcome you back.”
Sah Lee scowled again. She seemed to be doing a lot of scowling lately. “I’m not going back. You’re both coming with me?”
“Of course we are. We need to get you checked in. Hold our hands.”
Sah Lee grasped Touren and Bekkreshan’s hands and they stepped into the void together.
Chapter Thirty Six
Check In
Sah Lee looked down and saw a large empty tube, lined with pale green vertical lights beneath her feet disappearing into a distant dot, with nothing holding them up. She felt her bladder sphincter weaken.
“See, we’re fine.” Touren said. “Do you think you could retract your claws a bit? You’re making me bleed.”
Sah Lee looked at Bekkreshan and Touren’s hands. Beads of bright red blood were welling up where her claws had sunk in to their flesh.
“If it’s all the same to you, I’d rather stay like this.” she replied.
“OK. It will heal. Eventually.” Bekkreshan said.
Sah Lee felt them start to move upwards, rapidly gathering speed. “Can we go somewhere I can change when we stop, please?”
“It’s that scary is it?” Bekkreshan said. “We’ll make a stop in Medical before we check you in. They ca
n fix our hands and get you some dry breeches.”
The journey only lasted a few moments but Sah Lee was relieved when they stopped. The door slid open and Sah Lee staggered out into the corridor with Touren and Bekkreshan right behind her. A small group of soldiers, all wearing black one-piece jumpsuits were walking past and turned to see what the commotion was. When they saw the dark stain on Sah Lee’s tan colored breeches, they burst out laughing. One of them called out: “You must be the pre-emergent recruit. If the gravity tube makes you piss yourself, you’ll shit yourself when you start training!” This caused another burst of laughter as they walked away.
“Bastard males! I hate them” Sah Lee said full of anger and shame.
“That was a female. Over half the soldiers are female. And don’t worry about it. We’ve all got things we’d rather forget. Let’s get to Medical, it’s just down the corridor.”
Sah Lee found the medical staff sympathetic and friendly. They got her in a shower and explained that they would get her a black jump suit to wear, it was the basic uniform of the army. Washed, dried and dressed, she joined Bekkreshan and Touren, who had also changed into black jumpsuits. Both had almost invisible dressings on their hands where Sah Lee’s claws had dug into them.
They walked one hundred meters along the corridor and entered a room with a dozen desks in it, only one was occupied. A slender insect sat at the desk. It had large black eyes set at either side at the top of its elongated green head and two long antennae sprouting just above them.
It spoke as they approached. “Welcome back Bekkreshan and Touren, and you must be the new recruit, Sah Lee.”
“You’re still here Keerank? I thought you would have got bored with this years ago!” Touren said.
Keerank made a clicking noise. “Laughter.” Sah Lee’s AI told her.
Hunter, Warrior, Commander Page 14
