by L H Whitlock
“Well…did you get him?” Gloria whispered.
Brock looked at Lily with a stifled grin, his eyebrow cocked up. “Yeah, El, did you get him?”
“What do you mean did I get him? I always get them.”
“Oh…Okay…I just didn’t hear him die so I wasn’t sure.” Gloria stood up.
Lily tackled her by the legs, sending the taller girl toppling to the ground.
“Have you lost your mind? Stay down.” Lily peered over the side of the column, her eyes locked on the block the Liklin had been hiding behind. She scanned with her RAB but no signals were picked up.
“Hey,” Lily yelled, “did I get you?”
There was a moment of silence.
“Fuck you, you crazy bitch!”
Lily tilted her head while reloading her gun. “Well….I’ll be dammed, I didn’t get him.” She walked over to the fallen Liklin. He lay across a pile of rubble, holding his blood-coated arm. The sticky liquid made his orange scaly skin shine under the sun, reflecting an array of colors, like a glistening rainbow. His face was rounder than the other Liklin’s, making him appear more humanoid. Bright, blue eyes contrasted with his pale orange scales. His exposed face and arms were darkening to a blood-orange in the harsh sun.
The Liklin groaned as he looked up at Lily.
“Oh, don’t be so dramatic.” She knelt next to him and gently touched his wounded arm, surprised to find that his scales were incredibly smooth and not coarse like she imagined. “You will be fine, this should heal.”
The reptile squirmed and bit back a cry.
“I will make you a deal…you get us into the prison and we will free your people from Golan’s control.”
“You are mad! Golan will kill my entire family.” The reptile tried to grab his weapon but Lily snatched it.
“Where is your family?” Lily pulled a med-pad out from her cargo pants and used it to apply pressure to the orange man’s arm.
“They’re back in the camp on the other side of the planet. My parents and siblings live in a hut there.”
“We can take your family to a refugee camp. That is, as long as you get us into the fortress.” Lily wrapped a bandage around his arm.
“Why should I trust you?” The Liklin groaned in pain.
“We risk our lives every day evacuating natives before Golan’s forces can Harvest the planet. That includes those who are forced into service. That scar,” she said pointing at his cheek bone, “is an entry wound from a tracking beacon. You were forced into combat. You say Golan has your family hostage in a camp. I’m guessing they barely provide you with enough rations to survive. Give me your word and we will evacuate your people and provide a safe home.”
The Liklin stared at her for a long moment then briskly nodded. “We have heard many stories of the Renegade and how they fight against Golan. We never thought you would come for us.”
“All right.” Lily fidgeted. “Let’s get out of here.” She helped the Liklin to his feet. “What is your name?”
“Zeth.”
“Nice to meet you Zeth,” Brock greeted as he and Gloria came out from behind the fallen column to join Lily and Zeth.
“Give Brock the location of the village and we will have the rest of our team evacuate them tonight.”
Zeth spoke with Brock, who gave the coordinates to the technicians back on Base. Another team would transport the Liklins to a refugee settlement until they could be relocated.
Golan relied heavily on threats and slavery to increase his ranks. The Renegade often caught wind of rebellions forming in hostage villages and would assist in evacuating them.
The team would have to stay in the deserted city over night to allow time for the Renegade to complete the evacuation of Zeth’s camp. If they broke into the prison before evacuating the camp, Golan would destroy them, assuming they assisted the Renegade. She wouldn’t risk getting Zeth’s family and friends killed.
“They’re on it, they’ll go tonight,” Brock said as he ended his call.
“We will make sure your people are safe before we enter the fortress,” Lily reassured Zeth.
“Thank you.”
“We need to take out that tracking chip before we move to our resting place.” Lily pulled out her pocket knife. “Would you like me to do it or do you want to do it yourself.”
The Liklin cringed. “If you would do it I would be grateful.” Zeth sat on a rock so Lily could examine the scar. It sat high on his cheekbone beneath his right eye. Lily gently sliced it open and Brock handed her a pair of tweezers. She pulled out the chip then crushed it beneath her boot. Gloria handed her a canister of Wounsalbe.
“This will heal the wound and keep it from getting infected. It will also prevent scarring. Let me see your arm, it will help that as well until you can get to a proper doctor.” Lily dipped her finger in the ointment then gently smeared it over the wound. It instantly closed up. It would take a few more applications before the swelling would go down, but Zeth was well on his way to recovery. Zeth tilted, allowing Lily to look at his bullet wound. He would need proper care when he got to Base, but for now the cream would keep the wound sealed. She slathered it over the bullet wound and twisted the cap back on.
“All right we will take cover in that building over there.” Lily pointed toward a lone tower at the edge of the city. “That will give us shelter for the night and allow us to keep an eye on the prison. We need to hurry, the Varlies will come out soon.” Lily wiped her blade on her pants, folded it shut then shoved it into her pocket. Pulling out her gun, she made her way over the debris. The trip was slow on the uneven, rubble covered surface and they had to slow down several times to go around large fallen objects. Lily gazed along the horizon, looking for any signs of trouble. It didn’t seem that they were being followed, but she couldn’t be too safe. The others followed, their E-guns still out, ready to be in use at any moment. Gloria seemed to have picked up a few things and was successfully ducking behind rubble and crouching low, a little too often than necessary.
The second sun was beginning to set when they reached the building.
“Why two suns?” Gloria complained as she stared at her two, elongated shadows.
“They used this location for the prison for that reason. The extreme heat during the day keeps the prisoners comatose and the dramatic temperature drop at night immobilizes them. Combine that with the Varlie and there is no escape,” Brock responded.
Lily gripped the front door’s twisted handle, the metal singed her skin and she yanked her hand away. “Dammit,” she hissed, then kicked open the door. After they stepped through, Brock wedged it shut with a long steel rod.
They walked through the lobby. The granite flooring was cracked and dusty. Furniture lay on its side and piles of forgotten bags littered the once shiny floor. Brock kicked open the door to a stairwell and they climbed in silence until they reached the top floor.
Brock took the lead and tapped open a wooden door leading into the living room of a small, single bedroom apartment. Dust covered the once sky blue carpet, and stained floral wallpaper covered the walls with large tears curling toward the floor. A large, glassless window dominated the wall, letting a chilly breeze into the room. On the left side of the room sat a small bathroom with no door, the sinks and toilet rusted with age. Down a small hallway was a bedroom with a broken bedframe and a worn, yellowed mattress.
Brock immediately headed into the kitchen, its white cabinets were crusted and tacky with cooking oil and rotting food. Brock scavenged through the cabinets, laughing triumphantly when he found a can of what he supposed was food. He wacked open the top, took a big whiff and gagged.
Brock chucked the can out the window, muttering a curse when the can shattered what glass was left. Gloria jumped and glared at Brock, shushing him as she held one hand over her heart.
Lily shook her head as she made her way to the bedroom. She held a hand over her nose as she opened the closet and recovered a pile of sheets and a roll of what appeared to be a type of
tack. One side of the roll was sticky, the other a smooth, plastic substance. It may be a primitive type of tape, but it would do, she needed to cover the window, not only to keep the chilly night air out, but also to keep the light in so they didn’t give away their location.
She smacked one of the sheets open, coughing as dust filled the air. The second sun was dropping quickly, and so was the temperature. Lily shivered involuntarily as she secured the blanket over the window.
Zeth came back into the room holding a pile of blankets he retrieved from another apartment. The cold-blooded man was already shivering.
Gloria laid blankets on the floor, created a makeshift bed and waved Zeth over. Zeth sat next to her on the pile of sheets, a boy-like grin spreading across his face as Gloria wrapped a heavy comforter around the two of them. Zeth laughed as Gloria traced a finger over his scaly hand, her eyes glowing with awe.
“I will take first watch,” Lily said, grabbing a blanket and ducking beneath the tattered sheet. “Get some rest.” She wrapped the blanket around her shoulders. The musty smell from the old, patterned quilt tickled her nose. She stared out past the rubble to the towering fortress of steel. Lily cupped her hands and breathed hot air on them, creating a cloud in the cool night air.
For some reason the ancient rubble reminded her of Hilia. It was harvested so there was nothing left to compare it to, but pictures of her native world looked much how she imagined this city looked before it was destroyed.
The Hilian council had been about to make the decision to switch from neutral and join the Renegade. This would have meant the inevitable downfall of Golan and his army. Hilians were an ancient race specializing in the art of war. They were bigger, stronger, could harness their bio-energy into a weapon without using a converting device, and lived for hundreds of planetary cycles.
The Hilians had just ended a long war against an adversary who were kidnapping their woman and children and forcing them into slavery. Most of their forces were on their way back to Hilia and they suffered a huge loss. With the combination of weakened military forces, and the Council having left the planet to meet with the Renegade, Golan, with the help of several traitorous Hilians, attacked overnight, devastating the planet. After Golan harvested the planet, he put a bounty on all Hilians with instructions to kill on sight. There were not many left, and those that remained were constantly on the run.
Lily rubbed her arms, tracing her fingers over the intricate Hilian markings. Ever since she was a child her caretakers had forced her to hide them, making the prideful markings seem shameful. She worked hard to prove herself to the Renegade and advance within their ranks. But not everyone trusted her and she still received threats, insults, and letters. Rowan had personally penalized anyone he found that had insulted or threatened her, but it was a never-ending battle. Lily only knew of a few other Hilians who had survived, one was her deceased ‘father’, the other was Ulrick.
It was believed that Ulrick himself betrayed the Renegade and led the attack on Hilia. Even at the young age of one hundred planetary cycles, he was an advanced warrior and already in charge of several stations. Ulrick’s strength, even in those days, was rumored to be prodigious, above anything that was imaginable. It was even believed that he had been touched by the Hilian god of war, Jek’Ura, and had been gifted divine strength.
Just thinking about his betrayal made her sick. It was believed that if Ulrick had remained faithful to the Renegade, Golan would have been destroyed. Lily wondered with growing curiosity what Golan had offered to make a man like Ulrick aid him in the destruction of Hilia. Was it to protect a family, or a wife? She rolled her eyes as a spat of jealousy rose in her chest. I must be getting all sensitive with my twentieth Reldora approaching.
“Hey, baby girl.” Brock scooted under the curtain. He tilted his head as he drank from an old metal flask. “Ahh.” He smacked his lips and handed the flask to Lily.
Lily shook her head. “Where did you even get that? And don’t drink too much.”
“Found it in the kitchen, it’s just water. I have to stay on my toes to keep Gloria alive. Vincent will kick our ass if anyone lays a finger on her pretty little face.”
“Do not drag me into this, I did not make any promises,” Lily said glancing out the window. “She is doing well. I think I may even recruit her.”
“What? Shit, baby girl, you’ve lost your mind.”
“I am serious. She may be a little soft around the edges but she tries hard and her shield is getting better every day. She also doesn’t need a converting device to use her energy. A few hand to hand combat lessons and she could be top notch.”
Brock shook his head. “Whatever you want, but I’m sure Vincent will have something to say about that.”
“It’s not his fault he’s a sexist bastard. Women are nothing more than property on his home world. I think he’s going to be surprised when he gets back and finds that Gloria has grown some balls.”
Brock took a large swig from his flask. “Damn, I wish this was rabid juice.” He shook his head and pulled out a small box from his pocket. “Happy Reldora.”
Lily took the box from him. “My Reldora is not for a few rotations.”
“Yeah, but we could be locked up in prison by then, so I decided to celebrate early.”
Lily opened the small box and squinted to examine the bright ruby coin inside. “Where did you get this?”
“I found it on the black market when we were in the asteroid belt.”
“Aw, you stole from space pirates for me? I knew you were just a large stuffed children’s toy.”
Brock raised his brow. “If you mean one of those stuffed creatures that Sara collects then I’m going to have to punish you,” he said with a wink. “And what do you mean steal? I could have bought that fair and square.” Brock’s voice cracked, failing to hide his laughter.
Lily jumped up and smacked a hand over Brock’s mouth. “Shut it! The Varlies will hear you! I would like to relax for the night, not be hunted.”
Brock’s eyes darkened, he grabbed Lily’s arm and pulled. She lost her balance and fell into his lap. Brock captured her lips with his and ran a hand down the curve of her body before coming to rest on the waistband of her pants.
Lily broke the kiss. “Not now, Brock, the others will wake up,” she said, scrambling for an excuse.
Brock slid his humanoid hand up her shirt, seeking her breasts. “We’ll be quiet.” He leaned close, his breath brushing over her neck.
“I said not now.” She pushed his seeking hand away. “We have to keep watch.”
Brock paused for a moment before removing his hand. “All right,” he grumbled. “Wake me in a few hours and I’ll take over.”
Lily watched him leave, guilt settling in her stomach. What the hell is wrong with me? We would be great together. But no matter how hard she tried she couldn’t seem to pull her thoughts away from a certain bronzed Hilian.
She forced her attention to the coin. Engraved in the ancient gem was a picture of the Hilian God of war, Jek’Ura, with six arms, a blade in each hand, and a helmet with horns. Sighing, she gazed back out the window and imagined that the city wasn’t rubble, but a replica of Hilia’s Capitol Mor’Gara, and that the coin was not an ancient relic, but actual currency.
She stared at the coin for another moment before tucking it safely in her pocket. In three rotations it would be twenty years since her childhood refugee camp was destroyed, and one hundred and fifty years since the destruction of Hilia.
Her RAB dinged with a message from the Renegade technicians. The Liklin village had been successfully evacuated. Well, at least one thing has gone right.
16
“Rise and shine sleepy head.” Brock leaned over Lily, a grin plastered across his bearded face.
Stretching her arms over her head, Lily groaned and lifted her stiff body off the ground. Her head was still foggy from a rather interesting dream and her face heated as she remembered the large shadowed figure.
&nbs
p; Gloria stepped out of the bathroom, her hair falling in perfect spirals, and her makeup as pristine as ever. Lily entered the bathroom and stared at her image in the mirror, her baggy eyes and frazzled hair giving away her exhaustion. She splashed cool water on her face, thankful that Brock had collected it last night, and brushed wet fingers through her tangled hair before giving up and spiraling it into a tight bun.
“All right you guys, let’s get moving,” Brock said.
Lily stepped out of the bathroom and crossed her arms over her chest. The team looked up at her, waiting for direction. “Okay, here is the plan. Brock and I will go to the prison and use Zeth’s codes to get inside.” She turned to address Gloria. “You and Zeth will go back to the heli-shuttle and await our call.”
Brock stepped forward, spinning metal electro-cuffs around his finger. “Zeth, hope ya understand, but we gotta cuff you.”
Zeth’s gaze dropped to his feet but he held out his hands, palms up, without any arguments.
After Brock locked the metal rings around his wrists, Zeth pulled out an info chip from his pocket and handed it to Lily. “Here, this has the access codes and maps for the prison. You should be able to get anywhere you want. Be careful.” Zeth’s purple tongue darted out to lick his eye. “There’s a banquet tonight with several highly appointed generals. The chip also has the schedule of events. It should be the most updated version. I can go with you, it’s the least I can do.”
Lily plugged the chip into her RAB and shook her head. “No, it is hard to protect people in a place like that. No offense, but you will only get in the way.”
Zeth’s gaze dropped and he gave a solemn nod. Lily offered him an apologetic smile before turning to address Brock. “We will enter through the west corridor using these security codes. There should only be a few guards around the perimeter. The west side will be mostly clear,” Lily said, scanning through the maps the info chip provided. “I will create a distraction during the banquet and Brock will get Vincent from the holding cell. Look…” She held out her RAB for Brock to see. He leaned over, his eyes squinting as he read the diagrams. “We can use the vents for travel. You can pose as a guard. It will be as easy as reconfiguring a flight algorithm.”
