by Scott Baron
Demelza looked at the slumbering ruffian with disgust. “That was no magic. Do you see the spots on his skin beneath his hair? This man is an Ohkran, and their people possess a vulnerable nerve bundle at the base of their neck. Fortuitous, as it negated the need for any real violence.”
Bud looked at Laskar, then back at Demelza. He then started to laugh. And not a little chuckle. A full-on belly laugh, tears welling in his eyes. “Oh, the looks on their faces. They all thought you were some deadly visla come to kill them all.”
“Tempting as it may be, no, Bud.”
“But you’re a Ghalian. Why would you blow your cover like that when we’re stalking someone?”
“Because I have it on good authority that our prey has already fled this world.”
“Oh? What have you heard?”
“That Tikoo did indeed make his contract with the order from here, but when Aargun was slain, and Master Prombatz managed to escape, he got spooked and skipped out of here, heading off as far away as he could.”
“We heard pretty much the same thing,” Bud said. “But where does that leave us? We haven’t the faintest idea where he ran to.”
“Kraam,” a voice said from a dark corner of the bar.
“When did you get here?” Bud asked as Hozark stepped into the light.
“Some time ago, actually. You really must take care not to activate your skree like that, Bud. Next time, someone else might take notice.”
“Wait, you were watching all this time? And you let us almost get into a fight?”
“I was curious to see how Demelza would defuse the situation. And while it was not exactly how I would have done it, her method was nonetheless effective in its swift efficiency.” He turned to Demelza. “Help me get Bud back to the ship and sobered up. We have a long flight ahead of us.”
“I can fly,” Laskar offered. “I only had one drink.”
Hozark studied him a long moment. Uzabud’s copilot did indeed appear sober, to his pleasant surprise.
“Very well,” he finally said. “You will start the jumps that take us to Kraam. We will then begin preparations.”
“Preparations for what?”
Hozark smiled, darkly. It was a grin devoid of true happiness. “We prepare for a far more challenging hunt.”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Where Obahn had perhaps been an odd-smelling and somewhat damp world, it was also a hub of travel, trade, and culture. The cities were clean, for the most part, and the air free of the reek of factories and pollution. And as for the rougher parts of the populace, they tended to stick to their own neighborhoods, tussling and brawling well away from the more well-heeled of their fellow citizens.
Kraam, however, was something completely different. Something that was going to make tracking down Tikoo quite a bit more of an ordeal. For Kraam was a smuggler’s paradise, tucked away in a tumultuous solar system with an unstable blue giant at its center. And even in the main city, searching could prove quite an ordeal.
The magic from the sun was benign, but its flares could wreak havoc on a person’s skin and eyes if they weren’t paying attention to the magical warning tabs mounted to every building and carried by most people.
They would give enough notice to head for cover, but every so often one would find themselves stuck outside during a solar event. They weren’t fatal, but a particularly strong one could lead to some time out of commission, and with substantial coin spent on a healer.
The cloudy regions were largely protected from the effects of the flares, the particular composition of the mists managing to break up and disperse the harmful rays.
The same could be said about the undersea communities. They were fewer in number, but the underwater caverns were protected by not only the waters above, but also the thick stone and minerals that formed the vast spaces.
A few hidden tunnels would typically connect them to the surface, but for the most part, access was made by water. Underwater, that is. And underwater travel for more than a minute or two required a particular type of magic that very few possessed.
The robust communities in the open-air surface cities and farmlands were the ones that typically felt the brunt of the sun’s impact. It was there that Demelza would be conducting her survey of the main towns, flaunting her zaftig, bronze-skinned tavern worker persona to coax information from the lips of those who dwelled in that area.
Given the relative safety of the elevated, cloudy region looming above the main city below, Hozark had felt Uzabud and Laskar would at least be less likely to suffer from any adverse damage should a random solar event pass through.
Undersea would be the safest, in that regard, but also by far the deadliest. That was why Hozark had taken that network of townships beneath the main city’s coastline for himself.
The toughest of the tough would be found down there, and if things got hairy, it could quite possibly require all of his considerable skills to complete the task and apprehend the man. Should he even find Tikoo, that is.
“How is it that you knew where to go before we even told you?” Laskar had asked as they departed Obahn and made the first jump toward their new destination. “I know Bud didn’t transmit that bit over the skree.”
“No, he did not,” Hozark replied. “But I acquired some intelligence from a worker in Tikoo’s residence tower. With that helping direct my further digging, I was able to piece together our quarry’s flight from that world, and his eventual destination. Kraam.”
“And I also acquired a similar bit of information in my search,” Demelza said. “Though the name of the world he had fled to had not yet been revealed to me. Only that he had departed, and in some haste, I might add.”
“Yes, after Master Prombatz escaped the trap that had been set for him, it seems our friend Tikoo wisely deduced someone might come looking for the man who had arranged that contract.”
It had been a fluke that an additional Wampeh Ghalian had been present on the contract with Master Prombatz. And an even more surprising twist was that it was the younger, weaker assassin who was attempting to complete the contract.
Blind luck, bad timing, whatever you’d call it, having Aargun completing his final test had been the unforeseen variable that had allowed the master Ghalian to escape. And even then, only barely. But the repercussions would undoubtedly be great.
“Seems like we were all pretty successful with that information gathering, if you ask me,” Laskar said when they dropped out of the jump.
“I would agree with that assessment,” Hozark noted.
The copilot looked at the star charts and confirmed their location while Uzabud slept off his buzz, then began plotting the next jump.
“I mean, sure, Hozark, you were the one who learned the actual name of the place first. But I think we were all on track to find out soon enough.”
“Again, I would agree. But that is neither here nor there. What matters is that we have a location and whereabouts of our target. I know if he is still on this world he is within the main linked cities of the capital of Kraam, but it is still a spread-out area. Fortunately for us, Fakarians are not a common sight, though on a somewhat wet world such as Kraam, it is possible we might come across others.”
“Or similar races,” Demelza noted.
“We’ll kill ‘em all!” Bud slurred, lurching into the command room.
“Oh, my friend. We need to get that out of your system,” Hozark said. “And I am afraid it will not be pleasant.”
He rose to help the drunken man back to his quarters, where he would use a rather uncomfortable bit of magic to rid his body of the toxic fluids.
“So, all killing talk aside, we split up and somehow track this guy down. That’s the deal?” Laskar asked. “Seems a bit tough in a place that big.”
“It will be, but I have faith in you all,” Hozark said, pausing in the doorway, supporting Bud’s semi-conscious bulk. “But whatever happens, remember, this is an interrogation mission, not an assassination. We ne
ed Tikoo alive.”
“It’s not him being hurt that I’m worried about,” Laskar said as he dialed the last coordinates of the jump into the Drookonus. “All right, hang on. We’re jumping,” he said, then uttered the little spell that engaged the device and once again set them in motion.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
“Remember, this is a capture and interrogation mission,” Hozark reminded his crew as they strapped on all manner of weapons, both magical and conventional.
Going after Tikoo, and on the rough world of Kraam, no less, was not going to be easy. Not by a long shot.
“Give it a rest, Hozark, we’ve got it,” Bud grumbled, still feeling the effects of the abrupt voiding of alcohol from his system.
It had sucked. Even more than he remembered from the last time Hozark had done it to him, though on that occasion he had nearly wed the most comely daughter of a Bazarian warlord of sizable holdings seeking to expand his territories.
Bud had thought it a good idea in his drunken stupor. The girl was nice enough, he supposed. And it was true, she did possess huge tracts of land––something more than one suitor had taken note of.
What Bud had neglected to realize in his drunken zeal was the price from his side of the bargain. Namely, he would become a communal brother-husband to the other members of the family, helping keep the bloodline fresh and strong.
When he had been forcefully sobered up and saw what he had very nearly signed up for, Bud nearly vomited again, and not from the effects of any alcohol or food poisoning.
“So, you feeling like yourself again?” Laskar asked. “You got a bit carried away back there.”
“I was fine. It just hit me harder because I had an empty stomach, is all.”
The other three looked at one another but let his lie slide.
“All right, then. Let us load into my shimmer ship and depart for the main city. Uzabud’s mothership will be safe where it is. There is no likelihood of any suspicion being drawn with it parked this many islands away.”
Laskar had set them down expertly, right on target in a quiet and remote landing area on a small farming island. He had stepped off the craft and paid a local youth to keep an eye on it while he and his friends supposedly descended to the underwater city nearby.
The mothership was too large to have fit in the small undersea tunnel leading to the alleged destination, so that part of their ruse was solid. And the boy was young enough to not run with the truly dangerous types who frequented that particular locale.
He might talk to locals up top, but no one with direct contact with them would be around to identify either their presence or absence in the cavern. This left them free to take off in the invisible ship when the coast was clear, then make the quick hop over the few islands to their true destination.
Hozark set down a few minutes later and tucked his ship carefully atop a small rocky crag surrounded by an animal refuse dumping site. No one was around for quite some distance.
“This is so disgusting,” Laskar moaned when the stench hit his nose the instant the door opened. “Why here, of all places?”
“Because no one ever lurks around an open sewer,” Demelza said.
“Exactly,” Hozark agreed. “The ship is invisible, but that does not mean people might not bump into it on a bustling island such as this.”
“Do not worry, Laskar. The air in the higher altitude region you will be investigating is fresh and clear. You’ll have the smell cleared from your sinuses in no time,” she added.
“Come on, man. Stop jabbering and start moving. The quicker we get out of this muck swamp, the sooner I can scrub this nasty from my nose,” Bud said, quickly hopping across the rocky patches that led to dry, non-fecal land.
“I’m going as fast as I can without falling in!” he shot back.
It was a perfect place to hide the ship, and this just confirmed it for Hozark.
“We will rendezvous in two days. Keep your skrees on silent alert at all times. And, Bud, please do take care not to activate yours so carelessly this time.”
“Yeah, yeah,” he replied, then set off on foot toward the base of the small volcanic mountain at the center of the island that rose above them into the mists.
The rest of the trio quickly followed suit and separated, each heading off toward their respective areas of operation.
The path toward the main city center was clearly marked and would prove an easy, and quick, trek for Demelza. She wasted no time donning her disguise. One never could tell whom they might encounter on the road, and if she could begin gathering information while hitching a ride to town, all the better.
Hozark’s journey would require a bit more planning, as well as an expenditure of both coin and power as he found the best way to reach the underwater cavern city most likely to contain his prey. He had a faint sense of the man’s proclivities from a quick scan of his personal rooms back on Obahn, but finding the man himself would be another matter altogether.
He pulled his hood over his head and picked up the pace toward the coastline. Soon enough he would be in the company of some very rough men. Shortly thereafter, if all went according to plan, he would have the Fakarian in sight and get his interrogation underway.
Or things could go completely sideways on him yet again, as had seemed to be happening with alarming frequency of late.
Bud and Laskar were making the hike to the mountain together. It had been decided they should definitely stick with one another as a team for this mission. Hozark had said it was because they were a mean and efficient fighting force when together, but the reality was he needed each to look out for the other.
Both were somewhat impulsive men, though Bud’s recent lack of restraint had been something of a surprising break in his normally rock-solid character. The strain of the job seemed to be getting to him a bit. After this task, Hozark would see to it he had some proper R&R time to recharge himself and restore his spirits.
“Stupid fog,” Uzabud said as he stubbed his toe on an unseen rock on the path thanks to the difficult visibility.
“Come on, Bud, I think it should clear up a bit not much farther ahead,” Laskar urged, falling in next to his friend.
And sure enough, just a minute later the damp mists seemed to push back from the men. Not by much, and surely not enough to grant them any semblance of good visibility, but enough to make the trek at least somewhat more comfortable.
“Looks like fortune is smiling on us,” Bud said, his mood lightening slightly. “Finally.”
“Yeah, finally,” Laskar agreed, glad that Bud hadn’t noticed him casting the tiny spell to keep the mists at bay.
It wasn’t a great expenditure of magic, but Laskar had found that sometimes the smallest creature comforts made all the difference in the world. And right about now, his friend seemed to really need something to go right.
“Hey, what’s that?” Laskar wondered when a faint blue light became visible in the mist.
A moment later another did, then several more. A whuffing breath could be heard as the glows began to resolve in shape from the swirling fog.
“Malooki?” Bud marveled. “There are Malooki down here?”
“Yes, friend! Magnificent beasts to carry you to the top of Mount Flagaris,” a man wearing a rather ridiculous hat said, his form materializing out of the mists. “I do assume you are traveling to the summit, yes?”
“Aye, that we are,” Bud replied, slipping back into his pirate ways.
“Then these can save you quite a lot of walking. For just a pittance, you can each ride one of these beautiful creatures to the top, where my associate will be waiting to take charge of them from you upon your arrival.”
“One-way rentals?” Laskar asked. “No extra charges?”
“Nary a one,” the man replied.
“How much?”
A price was given, which Bud haggled down to where both he and the Malooki keeper knew it would arrive. But haggling was as much a social thing as a business one, and
goodwill had been established by the time the price had been paid and the Malooki saddled.
“Remember, their hair changes color depending on their mood. Blues, greens, purples, even yellows are all good. If you see them turning orange or red, though, that signifies agitation. In that case, be ready to jump clear in case they bolt.”
“Sound like wonderful beasts,” Laskar joked.
“Oh, but they are, friend. Marvelous creatures who wear their thoughts on their sleeves. Or, their hair, as it may so be.”
Uzabud let out a low chuckle. “If only wedding bands were made of such a material. It would help spouses across the known systems avoid a great many arguments.”
“Believe me, friend, you are not the first to have this idea,” the Malooki master replied with a grin. “Now, they are well familiar with the path, so just let them do what they know and deliver you up top. You should be there in no time.”
“Thank you,” Bud said as the animal began its trot up the trail. “We’ll see you on the way down.”
“I look forward to it,” the man replied.
If things went well, Bud hoped so. But if things went awry, their return trip might be much faster, and much more violent than desired. Only time would tell. But for now, they rode.
Chapter Forty
The dampness in the air would undoubtedly be comfortable for the amphibian man they were pursuing, Uzabud thought as they climbed through the mists higher and higher atop the backs of the great, gentle beasts.
The Malooki were making good time, plodding along with the men seemingly such an insignificant weight to their powerful flanks that they moved as if entirely unburdened.
The fog had not let up for moment as the trek went on. The mists that hugged the volcanic mountain seemed drawn to it like a moth to a flame. There was actually something to that observation, for the winds gently blowing in from the shoreline pushed the moist air up against the warm hills, causing an up-flow of the rapidly cooling vapors.
