Smuggler's Luck

by S. W. Gunn

  “Elyse braided it for me.” Jarron answered.

  “I like it, very much how a proper Kalan would wear it.” Hain stated with what Jarron recognized with a grunt of approval.

  Dalain and the two other Kalan nodded in agreement at his words. Jarron was happy that they approved, especially since it would lessen the constant embarrassment they seemed to want to inflict on him over Elyse. He had to admit that if one of his crew mates were in the same position, he would work tirelessly to harass them as well. In the end, they loved each other as any family member. As soon as they sat in the chairs several servants brought them each a plate with breakfast on it. This time it was steak and eggs. The Kalan almost always included a heavy meat with every meal. Jarron never complained because the selections were usually real good. He glanced over at Elyse and saw that she had already started eating. Jarron was curious if her unique heritage had inflicted anything special or different in her diet but he had not seen any clues yet to make he believe that anything was different from her diet than his own.

  After they finished eating breakfast Dalain spoke, “Now that we’re all here an well fed, let’s get down to business. My initial feelers on your robed man havena pulled much information. However I did manage to get some useful information about the planet that sheds some light on his group. Apparently the planet used to be a hotbed o’ pirate activity. Used by pirates an smugglers for many years, not that there be anythin’ wrong with smugglin.’”

  He said the last part with a little wink towards Jarron before continuing, “All that stopped a year or so ago when they were chased off the planet by a strong military force o’ unknown origin. They cleared out the planet an built up a massive complex around the only spaceport on the planet; we believe it serves as the group’s new base. After some further research we were able to find out the name o’ the group an its leader.”

  He stopped speaking and pulled out a data pad.

  After rereading it he said, “Oh yes, the name of the group is ‘Light of the Golden Sun’ an the leader’s name is Tiberius James. We looked into the name an believe it to be a fake name as no information on the name came up. Any information that I could find on the group led me to believe that it’s some sort o’ new wave religious type group. Information was very thin though. We found rumors rangin’ from a normal religion all the way to a death cult. The most reasonable information we found suggests that they are a religious group tryin’ to find their god through scientific experimentation. Another thing we found out, the lass here isna the only person with the Gift that has up an disappeared. I couldna find proof o’ who did it but I wager it was the same lads who ya tangled with.”

  Hain nodded thoughtfully and then said, “It done sounds like we got our work cut out for us.”

  “Aye cousin, I doubt you’ll get those guys to leave ya alone very easily.”

  “Somethin’ tells me that they want members o’ my crew, not gold. I ain’t givin’ up members o’ my crew without a fight.” Hain declared before giving a firm grunt.

  Jarron grinned widely at his comments. Hain may not have been the happiest Kalan about the whole situation, especially involving Elyse, but he was the most loyal being Jarron had ever met.

  Feligrin asked, “How long should we stay here? I wonder if these fanatics would even waste their time hunting for us.”

  Dalain interrupted, “Actually a group that has the firepower to chase off large numbers o’ pirates an smugglers is one that I suspect would do just that. I’d wager they ain’t done with the lass an Jarron here. The reaction ya described when they opened that crate leads me to think they had a hard time findin’ the pairin’. No doubt they’re part o’ some bigger plan.”

  Feligrin looked extremely unhappy about Dalain’s comments. Jarron knew that the danger they might be in could be too much for him to handle. Jarron was also very concerned. Dealing with people who had sinister motivations and a lot of power were not the type of people that he wished to tangle with. Elyse had sat quietly the whole time.

  She finally spoke up, “I wish I could tell you their plans. Before I met you I’d have considered them criminally insane but now that I can see more clearly what they want, especially when Jarron and I are together.”

  One of the two Kalan sitting at the table spoke up, “What about dese two humans is so special?”

  The table looked back at Elyse.

  She grinned evilly and said, “Let’s go outside and I’ll show you in a grand way.”

  Chapter 6

  Jarron grew slightly concerned. He was utterly fascinated by her but he still did not know enough about her to know where she was headed with this display that she had planned. Plus he was equally concerned about her mental condition since he still remembered that dream and now he had no doubt that she had somehow projected it to him. She stood up and the entire table followed her lead as she headed out the main doors and to the landing pad where the Keg was at. Once they made it out into the open Elyse strolled confidently until she was standing directly in front of the Keg.

  She ordered, “Jarron stand next to me please.”

  He walked over to her and stood by her side. Struggling to guess what she had planned, nothing came to mind. She reached out and grabbed his hand.

  “Hain, go into the Keg and fire the lasers at me.” She instructed.

  Jarron was shocked. Was she planning suicide? Her mind could not have been right.

  Loudly he called out, “What?”

  She turned to him and said softly, “Trust me.”

  He was very upset about this. She squeezed his hand. Feligrin paled in disbelief at her command.

  “Lass ya musta spent too much time in that box. It’s drove ya batty.” Hain stated.

  “No,” She said firmly, “I know what I’m doing. Please fire the Keg’s weapons at me.”

  Hain grunted and entered the Keg. Jarron felt an overwhelming amount of nervousness welling up within him. He knew it was his own emotions and not hers.

  “Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”

  She leaned towards him and gave him a soft kiss. As soon as she moved away from him a very massive wave of pulsing energy began throbbing through him. The weapons of the Keg turned and aimed directly at her. The barrels kicked out rounds of laser fire and halfway through their trajectory they seemed to almost bounce away from her and into the air. Jarron could not see any of the people behind him to see their reaction, but he heard Dalain grunt, which seemed to be in shock and Feligrin cheer loudly. Jarron was extremely impressed by her ability and deeply relieved that she was unharmed since he found himself extremely attached to her. That emotional attachment had also concerned him quite a bit because he usually had nothing more than a brief casual affair with women that he had relationships with. Normally he was never interested in anything else, until she came into his life. She turned to him and smiled proudly. Just at that moment Jarron was released from the grip that her powers had over him. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly.

  She whispered in his ear, “Told you I’d be fine.”

  One of the Kalan males who Jarron did not know said, “What the heck just happened?”

  Dalain answered the Kalan’s question, “This lass seems to have the ability to move objects with her mind an reflect heavy laser fire as well.”

  The Kalan said angrily, “What kind of demonry is dis!”

  Jarron told him, “It isn’t demonry, she just has the Gift.”

  “Dalain’s cousin has the Gift an all she can do is heal.” The Kalan replied.

  Jarron nodded at him and said, “And so can Elyse, but for some reason when I’m close to her she can do some amazing things.”

  The Kalan seemed very upset.

  Dalain spoke up, “Worry not Burdal, she’s a friend o’ dis house.”

  His words seemed to calm the Kalan that he called Burdal. Hain exited the Keg and joined them.

  “Lass that’s one impressive ability ya have there. I can see why see
why someone would want ya. In the control o’ the wrong hands ya could cause some trouble.” Hain stated.

  She nodded at his words.

  “I guess we need to make sure she doesn’t end up in the wrong hands.” Jarron said.

  Feligrin cackled and then interjected, “No doubt he wants to keep her in the pair of hands that she’s already in.”

  Jarron felt himself blushing again so in order to deflect the conversation he asked, “What should we do about these goons who are after Elyse?”

  Hain cut in, “Lad those guys also want you. I heard the leader o’ that group say to capture you as well. Her fate is now yours.”

  “Are you sure?” Jarron asked.

  He nodded solemnly which made Jarron was quite upset. This was the last thing that he needed in right now. Elyse lifted his right arm and wrapped it around her shoulders before leaning into his side.

  Hain muttered to himself before saying, “Well lass I suppose I should let ya join my crew eh?”

  “Ya!” Feligrin chirped out happily.

  Elyse grinned at Feligrin. Jarron thought that she must have appreciated his enthusiasm as much as he always had.

  She told them, “I really need to go home soon and at least make sure Father Lapella is okay but I very much want to stay with your crew Hain.”

  Hain said, “Once we finish business here we’ll be headin’ off to your home planet for a visit lass. Since ya will be stayin’ with us we’ll have to clean out our extra room aboard the Keg.”

  “I really could use some clothing and other accessories.” She informed them.

  Faking mock personal insult Jarron asked, “What my clothes aren’t good enough for you?”

  She pinched his side.

  Feligrin interjected, “It sounds like Jarron volunteered to take the lady shopping. Hain let’s give Jarron some of his share of the thousand gold we did get so he can buy her some clothing.”

  Hain said, “Aye that sounds like a plan to me, so long as it comes from his share.”

  “It would be my honor to dress the lady.” Jarron stated.

  Feligrin mischievously grinned at Jarron as he added, “And probably undress her too.”

  The Kalan around them all laughed. Hain gave Feligrin a pat on his shoulder. Elyse reached out and gave him a hard pinch, which made him squeal.

  “Joke all you want about Jarron, but not me!” She exclaimed.

  Feligrin promptly saluted her as he responded, “Yes ma’am.”

  With a chuckle Jarron said, “Thanks for defending me!”

  Elyse laughed at his comment.

  Hain dug into his coin purse and pulled out several gold coins before saying, “Lad, here’s one hundred gold weight coins, which should be more than enough.”

  After taking the coins Jarron gave him a nod.

  Dalain announced, “Hain an I have business to attend to. Burdal an Larmai will be assigned as personal guard for you. They’ll follow ya everywhere. You both have fun, ermm shoppin’. Make sure ya return before supper.”

  Jarron said, “Okay Dalain.”

  Dalain glanced to Hain and then they both walked over to a nearby conveyance and boarded. A few seconds later the conveyance left.

  Feligrin asked, “Can I go shopping with you guys?”

  Jarron answered, “Of course bud.”

  Thinking about taking Elyse shopping, Jarron was pretty confident that the nearby city would probably have at least one shop that sold clothing that would fit Elyse.

  Turning to Burdal Jarron asked, “Burdal could you show us someplace that has human sized clothing?”

  Burdal nodded. He turned to the left and walked over a nearby conveyance. Larmai immediate followed him. Realizing that was the clue for them to follow, Jarron guided Elyse to the door. As soon as they sat down in the passenger chairs, Burdal started the conveyance and activated the automated doors, which caused the doors to close. Burdal slowly pulled the conveyance away and activated the skimmer mode, which it responded to by slightly lifting off above the ground. They all sat quietly as the conveyance began to move away from the mansion. Soon the mansion was out of sight and nothing but woods surrounded them. Elyse softly leaned her head into Jarron’s shoulder. Feligrin sat in his seat looking quietly out the window.

  “Elyse,” Jarron said, “I was thinking that we could practice something later on.”

  She looked up at him and asked, “What is that?”

  “Well I would like to be able to actually move while you’re using the Gift, so I was thinking later you could use it while I practice trying to move. I could swear that I almost moved when you lifted the cup and with some practice I might be able to do so.”

  “That sounds like a great idea.” She stated.

  He smiled at her, which she immediately returned. It took about ten minutes for them to leave the wooded area and then enter a small city. The conveyance drastically decreased speed by lowering back down to the ground. They now hovered maybe a bit under a meter over the ground as they continued along. Jarron could see dozens of male and female Kalan walking on the nearby sidewalks. He loved the Kalan because they were an honorable and hard-working people. One time when he was a child he had read some of the old children’s stories of Terra’s past and he remembered reading that Dwarves, who greatly resemble the Kalan, had women with beards. This was not the case for the Kalan. Their face was as hair-free any human woman. He even dated one because Hain arranged a date and Jarron could not think of a polite way to decline. Her name was Pimi. She was sweet enough to him but he found that she was a little more voracious and too rough for his liking. She tried many times to bed him. Jarron even let her one time but his broken arm midway through brought that to a sudden end, along with any future dates with her. He knew from that point on it was human women for him, although now he found himself convinced that perhaps that rule was going to the wayside as he found that it was going to be Elyse only for him. Initially that had caused him great concern because he had always considered himself to be a bit of a lady’s man. Being with one woman exclusively was going to be a very new experience for him. He knew that it was not going to change since even leaving the room Elyse was in left him with an overwhelming urge to be around her. He wondered if that is what love felt like.

  “Its very pretty here.” Elyse stated.

  “Aye.” Larmai said.

  The conveyance moved through the city and finally came to a stop. The doors clicked open. Burdal and Larmai exited, which Jarron and his friends quickly followed behind them. The conveyance was sitting in a parking area, which was virtually empty. He realized that perhaps this shop was not one of the more popular ones in the city, which made sense since Kalan would not need too many human goods. Burdal and Larmai began walking away from the conveyance and towards the nearby shop. The buildings in the city were of a very simple design, mostly built of stone with shaped metallic emblems embedded into the center of each stone brick. Jarron thought it was an interesting design as it made the bricks appear less ordinary and gave each building an overall distinct look to it, especially since each building had its own emblem design. The Kalan within the city dressed very plainly, which was common among all Kalan. The colors of their clothing ranged from simple browns, blues, and grays. Burdal stopped at the front entrance of the shop. It was a refreshing change of pace from normal Kalan shops; the door was remodeled to meet the height of a human. There was a large sign on the front of the store written in common English, the language of Terra. The sign said, ‘Goods of Terra’.

  Burdal announced, “Stay here with Larmai for a moment.”

  He walked into the shop and approached the clerk standing near the door. They spoke for a moment before Burdal passed him several gold coins.

  He walked back out to them and then said, “Okay, I’ll stand guard here. Larmai will stand just inside the shop. The shop is all yours for some time.”

  Jarron nodded at his words, took Elyse’s hand, and then guided her through the door. Feligrin follow
ing closely behind. The shop was in the typical style of Kalan buildings, stone and metal in basic but highly efficient designs. Various human paintings hung from the walls, most of which were scenery of Terra before the asteroid struck it. The items for sale ranged from simple jewelry to very expensive clothing. Elyse immediately released his hand and moved to one of the nearest clothing racks. Jarron had to admit to himself that he had no idea what he should be doing since he had never gone shopping with a woman before. Feligrin gave him a little nudge, followed by one of his trademark mischievous grins. He suspected that Feligrin quite enjoyed adding Jarron his list of people who he could torment. Jarron shrugged at him and then casually strolled over to Elyse. She was examining several blouses, obviously trying to decide which ones to select.

  As soon as he got close enough she turned and asked, “Which one of these do you like with this gray skirt?”

  She lifted up two blouses, a plain looking red one and a gray one with an elaborate red swirling pattern that moved from the sides of the blouse and then up through the short sleeves. Jarron was unsure which one to select so he pointed at the one with red swirls on it because it appeared as though it would be much more form fitting and would allow him an easier viewing of her graceful form. They continued this process of review and selection for at least two or three hours. Time was becoming a blur as she shopped. Elyse had moved through every rack that had woman’s clothing on it. Jarron had lost count of the numbers of blouses, skirts, undergarments, and dresses that she had selected. He had no doubt that he would probably need some more gold. Luckily he always kept a few coins of his own stashed away in a pouch in his vest. One of the few traits he learned from his father that he liked was being judicious with his gold. Well that, and the many shortfalls of gold that he experienced after moving out taught that lesson as well. She did not select any jewelry, which he found odd, but she bought almost every pair of shoes or boots in the shop that would fit her feet properly. After she had finished shopping and Jarron paid, which took all of the gold that Hain gave him plus some of his own, she took some of the clothing into the nearby dressing room to change.