by Skyler Grant
"And you don't remember that?"
"Far as I remember I just had my twentieth birthday two months ago."
"Odd. If you were cloned it usually means you had money, power, or both. Did this voice tell you anything about what you'd been doing those five centuries?" Alexa asked.
The voice had made it pretty clear he should keep this sort of thing a secret. Van wanted to be honest with Alexa. He had already risked his life for her, and that gave them some kind of connection. A lot more of a connection than he had with an anonymous voice.
"It called me the Red Death, the Gun Sage," Van said.
"Ah," Alexa said, and she studied him awhile longer before returning to making the fire. Sparks flew as she lit the tinder.
"Couldn't you just use a fireball to do that?" Van asked.
"Could, rather not. You don't want to know what just the one took out of me. The vat drained me very nearly dry. The few scraps of power I managed to stash away didn't last very long. I've heard of the Gun Sage. Never met him," Alexa said.
"What have you heard?"
"Not much good. Sneaky, duplicitous, always taking down a target in one dishonorable way or another. Also a sage, which is rare, and from the Empire, which makes it even more surprising."
"Weird. I think I proved I don't do sneaky very well."
Alexa laughed and flashed him a grin."Oh, I don't know, you rescued the princess. Literally, sort of. I'm a clone of Princess Yui, daughter of Empress Xia."
No wonder she acted like a noble.
"They weren't exactly giving you the royal treatment back there," Van said.
"The situation is ... complicated. Yui feeds on the essence of others, it is her path. The easiest and most empowering meals are ... herself. Make clones, have them grow in power and then she drains them dry."
Van made a face.
Alexa gave a wry shrug. "It is supposed to be quite an honor. It is quite the honor. We were clothed in the finest of attire, given the best tutors, the best foods. Encouraged to live the best lives we can until the day we're called upon to serve."
"And you ran," Van said.
"Quite rare, I understand. I'm not the first, but it is rare. So now you know my secret, or at least one of them, as I know yours," Alexa said.
"It help you to make up your mind?" Van asked.
"You were hunting Migo. Why?"
"To trade him for Guild membership and passage to Ceno to meet whoever it is that brought me back."
Alexa shook her head. "No. If you want to do that, you can, but if we stick together that plan won't work. I don't trust whoever brought you back, and I don't think you should either. The powerful are bastards, each and every one of them."
"So what do you recommend?" Van asked.
"I'm not as powerful as my Prime, nowhere close, but I'm more powerful than you are. I can help you take your first steps and you'll help me in turn. When we next meet our makers we'll be strong enough to put them back a step."
Van thought that Alexa was being too paranoid. With the equipment he'd been given Van didn't actually think the voice was out to hurt him. All of its advice had seemed sound. Alexa's advice also made sense. If she wasn't willing to negotiate on the point then really it was just a choice of if he preferred taking his chances with her or alone.
"Deal," Van said, sticking out a hand.
11
The Bounty Hunter Guild was formed out of the remains of the Territorial Marshalls, a once official police force meant to span the outer rim. When they were eventually replaced by the Sheriffs they went private.
Nights in the desert got cold and Van wound up grateful for the fire, although it scarcely did enough. In the morning they were back on the horse, Alexa once again giving instructions.
"This still isn't taking us back towards town. Where are we going?" Van asked.
"We need a way off-world. People know where we are and that's going to get us killed. I don't like doing what your mysterious voice recommended. However, if this bounty really will deliver, we do it," Alexa said.
"So we're heading to find Migo?"
"Maybe. We're heading towards the biggest collection of criminals on this continent and hoping we can get a lead."
"Thought you knew where he was?"
"If I'd needed to find out back in town, I'd have put the word out I was looking and the girls would have squeezed an answer out of someone in no time flat. We're just going to have to look for our own answers," Alexa said.
They were taking things easier than the day before. They had found some grazing for their horse and been able to provide some water. Even so they didn't want to overtax it.
They weren't completely alone in the desert. They passed close to a working mine, and they saw several campsites that looked recent.
There was something of a trail they were following, although not marked with any signs.
Alexa said, "Before we get there, we need to talk. If I'm going to teach you, one of the first lessons you need to learn—and it has nothing to do with channeling essence—is deportment."
Van glanced behind him. "You really are a princess if you think that's the most important thing on our plate."
Alexa punched him in the arm and even through his armor it stung.
"I'm serious, and believe it or not this is a matter of life and death. You talked about your upbringing some last night. A serf surrounded by nobles. You're used to bowing and scraping. That's a good thing to stay alive as a serf, but a bad thing as the man you need to become," Alexa said.
Van turned his gaze back to the trail ahead. "I'm listening."
"Polite is good. I love polite, polite is the sign of a real badass. Those uncertain of their power throw what little they have about because they're scared."
"So don't be too nice, but be nice. I'm getting some mixed signals here," Van said.
"Be polite to anyone truly more powerful than you. Unfailingly so, it will keep you alive. But where we're going? There are going to be people your equals, and some of those are going to try throwing their strength at you. To make you afraid and them less afraid," Alexa said.
"And that is when I stop being polite."
"That is when you put them on the ground, and if they don't get polite real fast you put them under it."
"You're awfully quick with the murder."
"Van, if you are intending to get involved in the world you are intending to get involved in, you are going to have to be too. You don't need to be a brute—you turn into a brute, I'm gone. Just know that your life is going to mean nothing to a lot of people," Alexa said.
That struck Van as more reasonable than he'd like. The only violence he'd been prepared for in life was the possibility of war. It seemed that here, for now and in the foreseeable future, violence might be a way of life.
Perhaps there were ways around that, but maybe not for him. Whoever his "Prime" had been—the original version of himself—he must have had enemies. The fact Van couldn't remember them didn't mean they wouldn't still want him dead.
"This isn't a casual conversation," Van said.
"We're going into a den of criminals. I'm pretty, and their ideas of courting don't involve flowers. I can defend myself, but I go too flashy with my powers and word might get back to those hunting us," Alexa said.
That left the displays of violence up to him.
"Understood. They put a hand on you, they get politely told to remove it. They don't do as they're told and things get violent."
"You probably won't have to kill anyone. You do look every inch the badass. You make it clear you aren't afraid to throw down anyone, and then anybody with sense is going to back down."
There was a settlement coming into sight on the horizon. It wasn't long before they started seeing advertisements along the side of the road.
"Mama Cates brothel. Infinite possibilities, reasonable rates", "The Tipsy Cow. Best barfights in town", "Dirks Firearms. Overwhelming firepower for the baddest of men."
"Aren
't being subtle about it are they?" Van said.
"No law here. The Dawson syndicate has a suit of Empire battle armor, but they only break it out if they have to. The energy requirements are cheap. No high-grade essence-users that I'm aware of, although there may be a few first evolutions," Alexa said.
"You ever going to start explaining to me what all that means?"
"When you and I start training, which isn't going to be until our business here is done. Right now I don't need you focusing on your breathing. I need you watching your sides and ready to go for your guns if I say the word."
They started to meet a little bit of traffic as they neared town. Nobody greeted them, and most people were giving others a wide birth too.
Poles on the edge of town had three dessicated bodies on them, signs on the corpses saying 'Card Cheats'.
"That is what they get upset about locally?" Van asked.
"If you're a gambling hall they'll ruin your business. Must be one in town. We'll have to find it. I'm a really good cheat and our funds are limited," Alexa said.
That was reassuring, what could go wrong?
12
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They checked their horse in at the local stables, and for a few extra coins they'd return it to the town where Van had rented it from. It wasn't ideal, but at least he wasn't a horse thief—even if that fact might have made him blend in with the locals.
The people here were a rough lot. Van didn't see nearly as many women on the streets, and those that he did either were in the company of a well-armed man or carried themselves with a lot of confidence in their own right.
They headed for the Tipsy Cow. A bar was going to be the best place to get information, and Alexa might even be able to find herself a card game.
They didn't quite make it.
"Hands on guns," Alexa whispered quietly.
Van's hands were already moving. A group of coarse-looking men were coming from a nearby alley and about to surround them.
A young man dressed better than the others shot them an exaggerated smile. "Welcome to Drywater. Saw you riding into town. We're what you might call the local welcoming committee."
"Howdy," Van said, not adding a hat tip. His hands were busy hovering near his guns.
"Now see? That is the proper way to give a greeting. So many round these parts, they just don't get it. Unfriendly sorts, you see," said the youth.
"Hard men," said one of his companions.
"Folks like yourselves could get taken advantage of. Especially the lady. But us? We can show you around town, all the good spots, make sure you're protected. See that nothing uncivilized happens."
Van said, taking a step forward, "I thank you for the offer, but we'll just be on our way. A good day to you gents."
None of the youths moved.
Their leader said, "Now I really don't think that is a very good idea. If you don't have coin, you can empty your pockets, or us and the lady will work something out in trade."
"Got a name?" Van asked.
"You can call me Lima. We're the Bean Boys, kind of our thing," Lima said.
That had to be one of the worst inspirations for naming a gang Van had ever heard. It was impressively bad.
"Well then, Lima, I and the lady are just going to be on our way. We aren't in need of your protection. Look at me and ask yourself if you want to make this harder on yourselves than it has to be," Van said.
Lima shrugged. "Oh, you've got a nice set of armor, but a real dangerous sort would own their own horse. You might have fooled the girl, but you aren't fooling us."
The circle started to close in. Van had his guns out in an instant even as Lima was moving in close and throwing a punch.
Van had expected it, he'd already stepped back so he could press the barrel of a pistol to the youth's forehead while the other aimed at the head of one of his companions.
Alexa said, "Now, maybe you're wondering if my partner will shoot you dead or not. He will, but maybe you can come out of this alive and with some coin, if the whole guide thing wasn't just a thinly veiled shakedown."
Lima paused for a moment and gave that wide grin, shifting back and spreading his arms. "Back off, Kidney, Navy. We know this town inside and out. Looking for a little entertainment? Booze? Drugs?"
"Migo Dantoyo," Alexa said.
Lima chuckled. "That right bastard? Yeah, we know him and his crew. Bounty hunters? Stupid man to rob the Post."
That detail meant Lima wasn't just spinning another line. Migo's name was familiar and maybe Lima knew a place to begin looking. It didn't mean that Van stopped pointing a gun at his head. Lima had already made a move once and a deal hadn't been struck yet.
"That's the man. Point us his way and I'll throw a five-piece your way. Help out in the fight and I'll make it a twenty," Alexa said.
"We'll take the twenty if you make sure his crew is dead. We want the cargo they haven't sold yet. Has to be something good in it," Lima said.
"You want the cargo, you don't get the twenty and we get the first two picks through to keep for ourselves," Alexa said.
"You get the first two picks, we want the twenty," Lima said.
Alexa tilted her head for a moment. "Deal."
Van lowered his hands and holstered his pistols. A few of the Bean Boys had drawn knives and were putting them away as well.
"You'll want to wait for night. They don't hang out in town. Too scared with the score they're sitting on," Lima said.
"We'll find some way to entertain ourselves. You want the haul, you have yourselves a wagon. We'll meet you at the north exit of town at sunset," Alexa said.
"Ma'am," Lima said, tipping his hat as the Bean Boys retreated back down the alley.
"Think they're planning to sell us out to Migo?" Van asked.
"Fifty-fifty. If so I'll go full-powered and we'll find our corpse in the piles of bodies," Alexa said.
"If you haven't set fire to them."
"Not really a fire girl. That fireball was just because of the fuel. Path of the Blood River. I manipulate and draw essence from blood and water."
"You picked a really lousy place to hide out," Van said.
"Thought a brothel on a desert world was just about the last place they'd look for me. Given I had over a year here, I was right. Let's go. We need to find a game and then buy some supplies."
"Just don't get us put up on any poles," Van said.
"If they can detect what I can do, I'll know about it. Trust me," Alexa said.
Van did, he only hoped she was worth it.
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Alexa proved to be the quite the gambler. If she was cheating Van couldn't tell how, which he supposed was what made her so very good at it. She didn't win consistently, or win too much from any one person, although after a few hours she'd tripled their funds. Then she took them shopping.
Dirk's was one of the most solid-looking buildings in town, a pair of well-armed guards in armor flanking the doorway. Inside, a wide array of guns were laid out in display cases.
A clerk took one look at them and disappeared out back. After a moment a man with slick black hair and a suit came out to greet them.
"I'm Dirk and this is my establishment. Start trouble and it's your grave, but if you're looking for something special I'm the man to ask."
"Nice selection," Van said.
Dirk looked around the showroom and shrugged. "Most of the special items are in back. We can bring them to a viewing room, if there is something particu
lar you're looking for."
"Helmet, essence-woven preferably and with good peripheral visibility. Have anything?" Alexa asked.
Dirk looked Van up and down thoughtfully. "No, we do have a small assortment of Dynasty goods. A few essence-woven blades, essence capsules, an air-spirit."
"I might have an interest in a few of the capsules," Alexa said.
"I do have an Empire tactical helmet and visor. It's been through a crash and the targeting is spotty," Dirk said.
"He'll try it on. While he does, I'd like to check out those essence capsules."
They were led to a showroom and Van tried on the helmet. It hadn't just been through a crash, there were a few dents that looked cleared by helmets. It was surprisingly comfortable to wear, and had a visor that was dark from the outside but allowed him clear vision except for a targeting reticule that drifted aimlessly around the room.
Alexa meanwhile was loudly declaring the capsules to be rubbish, although she wound up keeping three of them. It took almost all their remaining coin to manage the purchase after some fierce haggling.
Then it was just a matter of waiting for sunset.
"This thing smells weird. I'm pretty sure somebody died in this thing," Van said.
"Not from a headshot they didn't. You were vulnerable. This is going to be violent and there will be a lot of lead flying. Fully armored up, that isn't going to be killing you. You'll need to keep watch though for surprises. Essence-charged rounds, explosives, piercer rounds," Alexa said.
"You seem to know an awful lot about combat for a princess."
"I was destined to be a princess's lunch, remember? You get stronger by struggle, combat, challenge. I was well-treated, but I saw a lot of fighting. Call it adding flavor to the meat," Alexa said.
"Your life is really messed up."
"I promise you. If you are truly the clone of a sage, yours will be just as troubled. Nobody achieves that much power without crossing some lines. Look at the bright side, at least you aren't named after a bean."
