by S. W. Gunn
Both Jarron and Feligrin nodded simultaneously. Hain turned and then started to march off eastward. Jarron began walking behind him. After a few minutes they made it to their destination, a stout building with an elaborately carved statue of a massive Kalan male in mid-swing with a two handed hammer. The statue’s carved clothing appeared to be some sort of plated chain armor, with no sleeves. The carved figure’s beard was set as a complex series of braids that met together at one point near its belly and was held together by a beard clip shaped in the form of a small hammer.
Hain noticed him staring at the statues and said, “Lad that’s a statue carving of one of our greatest heroes, Nichan Truehammer.”
He nodded at Hain, he had always found Kalan history to be interesting but he just never had the time to learn about it properly. As they entered the pub he could see the sign of the establishment, it said in bold Kalan script ‘The Golden Anvil Pub’. It took a few years but Hain had taught Jarron most of the Kalan language. Raucous laughter and the smell of pipe smoke overwhelmed his senses as they got into the main area of the pub. Jarron could see dozens of Kalan men and woman moving around, seemingly all having a grand time. That was first thing Jarron learned about the Kalan, they worked hard and they celebrated harder. Hain quickly guided them from the entryway to a nearby empty booth. As soon as they took a seat, a waitress approached and asked for their orders.
Hain solemnly glanced at the waitress and said, “Three ales lass.”
She nodded and left immediately.
“How long do you think we’ll be waiting?” Jarron asked.
Giving a shrug Hain answered, “Well… I’ve got no idea, but I’d wager it won’t be too long since people tend to want their things.”
The waitress returned and placed a drink in front of each one of them. Hain greedily snatched up his ale and started drinking.
Peering up from his mug Feligrin asked, “So what are we gonna do after this delivery?”
“I suppose we’ll look for another shipment to make some more gold. Maybe take in the scenes here while waiting until we find it.” Jarron replied.
Feligrin nodded and asked, “What will we do if our contact doesn’t show?”
“He’ll show. They always show for pickup.” Hain stated firmly.
After several hours and even more drinks, well at least for Hain, the crowd began to slowly whittle down. Since the standard lunch time had ended, it was no surprise that people began to leave. Finally, after another half-hour, the doors of the pub opened and a large group of humans entered. The leader of the group, who was dressed in a thick brown hooded robe, scanned the crowd before settling his eyes on them. Slowly he maneuvered his group around the patrons of the bar and towards their booth. In a matter of seconds he was at their booth and then took the empty seat sitting across from Hain and next to Feligrin. His men stood nearby waiting. Jarron did not meet him when they contracted the shipment so he took a good look at the man. He looked like he was in his mid-forties. He had shortly cropped black hair, light skin, a clean shaven face, dark brown eyes and a very hawkish angular face. As soon as he sat Jarron noticed that the man took extra time examining him, as if taking a measure of him.
Turning to Hain he asked, “Are you gentlemen the crew for the transport ship the Keg?”
Hain responded by asking, “Aye, are you the owner of the goods we brought?”
“Yes, however you may dispose of it as you see fit. It was merely part of a test to see how skilled you were at your profession. I will pay you for your efforts. I have another shipment that will require not only your finest skills, but also the highest level of secrecy. I believe that the payment was 500 gold for that shipment. If you can deliver this next package, both safely and with maximum secrecy, I will pay you 5000 gold.”
Hain’s eyes seemed to light up and a wide grin crossed his face. Jarron could tell that Feligrin became quite nervous because he shifted several times in his seat. Jarron was very excited about the prospect of earning so much money. He struggled to hold a stern countenance as the man spoke.
The man continued speaking, “However, I will have several stipulations, you will stand by as my men both load and unload the cargo, and you will not open the cargo. Now with this, ummm shall we say less than legal cargo, you will be expected to totally avoid GDF ships and the major space ways.”
Jarron interrupted, “When you say less than legal, do you mean destroy the ship on sight, possess the ship and crew, or simply confiscate the cargo less than legal?”
The man chuckled at the question before responding, “Well. I will not say, which should be enough for you to figure it out.”
Jarron was starting to become slightly uncomfortable about whatever this man’s plans were. It seemed very off to him.
Hain interrupted by firmly declaring, “We do not ship slaves, weapons, or drugs.”
The man nodded and replied, “As your messaging had stated before, I can tell you that this cargo is none of those things.”
That seemed to satisfy Hain, who nodded solemnly. Jarron’s fears were not so easily swayed.
After a moment’s pause Hain said, “I think we’ll need a down payment to ensure that we’re on the right path.”
“Agreed, however we will make the down payment of 500 gold after your ship is loaded.” The man replied.
Quickly Jarron blurted out, “We need at least 1000 gold down.”
The man seemed to think for a moment before declaring, “I like a man who knows what he is worth. Very well, 1000 gold after your ship is loaded. When can you be ready to load?”
Hain stated, “Give us an hour to offload the current cargo an refuel. After all that we’ll be ready to go.”
The man said, “Agreed” before standing up and leaving.
After the man was gone Hain stood up and said, “Well I guess we’ve a lot to do. This shipment will make us rich for some time.”
Feligrin grumbled before saying, “I don’t trust that man, with all the required security why wouldn’t he just rent a ship and fly it himself.”
Jarron had wondered that as well, it did seem like the man was paying a large amount that he could save by transporting the shipment himself.
Hain then answered after a long moment of silence, “Either he didna want to risk rentals, or he just didna have a pilot o’ Jarron’s skill.”
Giving a chuckle Jarron asked, “Don’t you mean my luck?”
“You do seem to have a knack for always knowing the right moment to do the right thing while you’re flying.” Feligrin commented.
Hain stood and grumbled before declaring, “Well, I guess we should git goin’”
Feligrin and Jarron rose from their seats and followed him as they exited the pub.
Once they stepped out into the main pathway Hain instructed, “We need to increase our security for dis one. I wanna be extra careful while those lads are loadin’ their cargo into the ship. The last thing that we need is havin’ ‘em try somethin’ crazy on my ship.”
Jarron nodded in agreement at him. In a matter of a few minutes they arrived at the ship and began to prepare for lift off. He started the warm-up countdown and then turned on the ship’s comm, just in case. Hain and Feligrin cleaned out the old cargo and began double checking the ship’s systems. At the end of the hour several conveyances arrived. Most of them were small personal conveyances but one was a transport conveyance. They were all anti-grav conveyances which were designed to hover above the ground. The man who hired them exited the transport conveyance and began instructing his men. After instructing his men he then spoke with Hain. Jarron watched from the cockpit closely as they spoke. The man’s people opened the transport conveyance and brought out one item. It was a large coffin-sized crate that had several strange electronic attachments on it. As it was loaded the man continued to talk with Hain. Finally the crate, along with a bunch of securing devices, was fully loaded into the Keg. From the moment that the crate was loaded onto the ship Jarron was overwhelmed by an odd feeling tha
t seemed to tickle the back of his head. He was unsure what it was but something just was not right. The man finished his conversation with Hain before giving him a small container. Hain opened the container and then smiled broadly. The two exchanged a few final words before the man gave Hain a data-disk. He ordered his men into the conveyances before reentering the transport conveyance that he came out of. Jarron watched as they drove away slowly. In a matter of a few more minutes the cargo loading ramp was closed and Hain returned to the cockpit with Feligrin.
“What the heck was that thing?” Jarron asked out of curiosity.
Hain shrugged and then responded, “No idea lad, but the man said that he didna want it opened. He said if’n we open it den the contract was voided an we’d owe him for the cost of shippin’ plus the value of the item, so we ain’t messin’ with it.”
“We wouldn’t wanna jeopardize our retirement funds.” Jarron stated sarcastically.
Hain grunted in agreement.
As soon as Feligrin settled in his seat he told them, “Lemme see that data-disk so I can the nav computer ready.”
Hain passed the disk to him.
Jarron announced, “Once Feligrin is done then we’re out of here.”
A few minutes later Feligrin completed his work on the terminal and then said solemnly, “Hain this way point is deep in Grokmal space.”
Hain grunted loudly become complaining, “It figures. On top o’ that, we only have one day to git there.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem,” Jarron said, “So long as we leave now.”
Hain ordered, “Well then, let’s get goin’ lad.”
Twisting a few dials Jarron began the liftoff procedures. Hain stood and left the cockpit. It did not take long to request a takeoff, guide the ship from the landing pad, and into the air. After a brief moment they were back in space.
“Jarron what will we do with all of that gold?” Feligrin asked.
“Well,” Jarron responded, “I’m not entirely sure but it sure will be fun to spend it.”
Feligrin chuckled at his response.
Hain ambled back into the cockpit and said, “The cargo is firmly secured an ready. Go ahead an take us through the fold.”
After Hain sat back in his seat Jarron announced, “Once we clear the planet’s gravity field we’ll be ready to go. The fold will take about four hours to get there.”
Hain nodded. The nav computer emitted a beep, indicating that the fold engines were ready. Everyone latched in their seat belts and Jarron reached over to pull the lever for the fold engine to activate.
Chapter 2
As soon as the ship lurched forward into the fold Hain unbuckled and stood up.
He declared. “I’m gonna go an work on the shield generators. I ain’t too happy with how they worked durin’ the last incident.”
Both Jarron and Feligrin nodded at the same time. Hain turned and then exited the cockpit, stomping his feet grumpily as he left.
Feligrin spun his chair towards Jarron and said, “I really do appreciate you guys letting me join your crew. Being stuck on that space station sure wasn’t much fun.”
“Not a problem. Hain and I really needed the help, especially in our line of work. We have found ourselves needing an extra pair of hands so we’re just as happy to have you here as you are to be here.” Jarron told him.
He grinned widely at Feligrin, who smiled back. Feligrin had joined them from a middle of nowhere space station a few weeks ago and this was his first proper delivery with them.
Jarron suddenly frowned before saying, “Especially with shipments like this. I don’t trust our employer, or whatever he is shipping. From the moment that crate got aboard I’ve had a very funny feeling.”
“Especially since he basically said it was very illegal.”
Jarron chuckled before responding, “True, but the legalities of shipments are not an issue for me or Hain, so long as they aren’t guns, drugs, or slaves. Generally those things tend to more trouble at some point than the gold we’d get delivering them. Especially guns, after all we’re just trying to make some gold and have some fun.”
It was a rule that Hain and Jarron agreed on early in their relationship. They had delivered guns for a faraway planet trying to start a revolution and both barely got off that planet alive.
Feligrin nodded and said, “Works for me.”
“I think Hain is getting tired of the constant planet hopping. Probably he’s ready to go home and start a family. I don’t know what we’ll do but I’m thinking that this shipment is gonna be his last, that is, after we get paid. I think that I’ll try and buy the Keg from him so I can own my own ship.”
Feligrin stated, “Well I’d very much like to keep going with you then, I don’t plan to retire any time soon. There is a lot I still wanna see out there.”
“Like what?” Jarron asked.
“Well,” He answered, “I have always wanted to see the Epislotar Nebula, the Zilton Maw, and oddly enough I’ve always wanted to meet an Eal’tain.”
Jarron chuckled. Feligrin was truly a Brumkin, always curious. One thing Brumkin loved more than exploration was their regular meals and a good ale. Feligrin had lost more than a few pounds working with Jarron and Hain. During lean times what gold they had was focused on primary ship systems which would cause them to skip a meal once in a while.
Giving a quick grin Jarron stated, “Last year I actually saw an Eal’tain. It was a total shock too. They are very quiet but also very elegant and graceful looking.”
Feligrin said excitedly, “Wow! I heard that almost all Eal’tain have the Gift.”
“I don’t know about that. I haven’t even seen anyone with the Gift.” Jarron replied while giving a shrug.
“I have. We had an old lady named Milicent Tumblebarrow back in Brumbar who could heal people.”
“That’s bunk!” Jarron exclaimed.
Feligrin shook his head as he insisted, “No really, I saw it myself. My friend Terraby was hurt falling out of a tree when she passed by. She stopped and knelt down next to him, placing her hands on his broken leg. In a few seconds she passed out and he got up completely healed!”
Jarron’s jaw dropped, he could not believe that all the mumbo jumbo that he heard about the Gift was actually real. It all seemed too fanciful to actually be real.
After he recovered from his shock he said, “Hard to believe it but if you actually saw it then it must be true.”
“Yep, I heard all sorts of wacky stories about it but Milicent couldn’t say much about it. She said that much of what they do is just a feeling and hard to control.”
“Weird,” Jarron said, “But to be around people with the Gift seems to be like a warrant for unwanted attention.”
Feligrin replied, “No doubt. Milicent was constantly harassed by people wanting to be healed.”
Jarron nodded sullenly. After a moment of silence Hain entered the cockpit and took a seat.
“Hain,” Jarron said quickly, “Feligrin has actually seen someone using the Gift.”
Hain replied, “Ya don’t say? Honestly I’d just as soon never meet someone who has the Gift. I think one o’ my cousin’s nieces has it but I stay far away from her cause I’d just soon not meet someone who has the Gift, can’t trust folks who are doin’ weird things.”
Jarron chuckled. Hain was so old in his traditions and beliefs, so much so that it was difficult to get him to do anything that he did not want to do. Jarron knew from first-hand experience. Hain was stubborn as a mule. Heck, he was probably more stubborn than a mule. Really the only times Jarron succeeded in convincing him of anything is when it was more practical than whatever the plan was.
Feligrin spoke up, “I suppose so but she healed my friend without expecting anything in return and she was very sweet.”
Suddenly the nav computer beeped loudly. Jarron glanced down at it and saw that the indicator light was signifying there was a malfunction. He perused the report from it.
“Oh Great!�
�� He exclaimed, “The fracking nav computer is saying there is something wrong with the course.”
Hain grumbled and said, “Hrmmm, lemme play with it a bit, probably just a glitch.”
“I’ll take the ship outta the fold so we can fix it safety.” Jarron announced.
He made some quick calculations and set the computer to drop upon deactivation in an empty space between star systems. He reached for the fold engine lever and deactivated it. The ship dropped out of the fold and into normal space.
Hain announced, “We better move quickly lad, we donna wanna be sitting too long in Grokmal space, even more so since we’re on a deadline. We’ll have to completely reset the nav computer course to recalculate an get the fold workin’ again.”
Jarron replied, “Okay.”
They worked feverishly to reset the nav computer. Midway through reprogramming the nav computer, the ship’s radar event alert went off.
“Great!” Hain grumbled as he looked at it, “Ten Grokmal ships are closin’ in fast.”
Jarron asked, “Feligrin please get my musiphone.”
“Oh no, I hate that thing.” Hain complained loudly.
“If you wanna make it out of this Hain, I’m gonna need my music.”
Jarron knew Hain hated it but something about music from the late 20th century just helped him clearly focus when flying.
He moved away from the nav computer and said, “Hain, finish with reprogramming the nav computer while I turn us away from these goons.”
“What about the weapons lad?” Hain asked.
Jarron shook his head before saying, “Forget them til we get the nav computer ready to program for a fold back on track.”
Feligrin returned with the musiphone.
Jarron instructed, “Set it up and start with Michael Jackson, I need something with a beat.”
Hain mumbled something under his breath.
Feligrin said, “Just be glad he isn’t playing on his gatar.”
Hain groaned louder at that idea.
“Guitar,” Jarron corrected him, “And I am quite good at playing it thank you.”
