Return to the Traveler (Free Trader Series Book 9)

by Craig Martelle

  “Manufacture is underway. It’ll come in three parts and those will screw together. It will be in the room to your left, the dining facility where there is a fabricator.”

  “There’s a dining facility, and I’m eating these nasty bars you gave me on Vii?”

  Jocelyn’s question was greeted with silence.

  “Uh huh.” She went to the next room, waved her bracelet to open the door, and hurried inside. The filth and decay almost overwhelmed her. She was surprised that she hadn’t been able to smell the room from the corridor. Jocelyn backed out as quickly as she had entered. “Pik, the fabricators are on the far wall. You’re on your own to get the trident.”

  Two ‘cats went into the room. Jocelyn held the door open, covering her face with an arm while she waited.

  The gentle ding was muffled, but Pik knew the sound from his time with the humans. He shuffled through and removed the three pieces from the fabricator. He studied each piece before screwing the three together. He hoisted it carefully before jabbing at the sky.

  ‘This is a nice weapon, worthy of a Pik. We can go now.’

  “Treetis, round up the ‘cats. It’s time to go,” Jocelyn shouted as she made her way to the elevator. She activated the door and held it for the Wolfoids and the Lizard Man. Two Hillcats entered. “Treetis?”

  ‘Cats trickled in. When the count reached a dozen, two bolted out of the elevator and ran down the corridor. “Treetis, you have one minute to get yourself and the ‘cats here or we will leave without you.”

  Treetis bellowed over the mindlink before screaming out loud. A body slammed into something that fell. Claws scrabbled against the hard deck. Treetis appeared, taking a swipe at a ‘cat that looked into a side room.

  He was the last into the elevator. ‘All present,’ he reported. ‘For the moment anyway.’ Treetis slapped a smaller ‘cat on the forehead to keep it from escaping.

  “Take us down, Holly!” Jocelyn ordered. “We’re supposed to meet Braden and Micah at the ramp in the middle of the Rainforest Level.”

  ‘There is a village on the ramp. That location is not advisable.’

  “Then where do you suggest, and we need the alternate soon, to be sure that Holly can get the information to Braden, Micah, and the others. And you!” Jocelyn shook a finger at the Hillcats. “Don’t be running wherever you want. We can’t be looking for lost ‘cats.”

  ‘There will be lost ‘cats,’ Treetis replied.

  “Then they’ll be cold, wet, hungry, and left behind. I’m not even going to take a headcount. We have a job to do, and we’ll do it. You knuckleheads aren’t going to hold us back.”

  Bounder and Strider started to chuckle. ‘It smells like ‘cat in here,’ Strider suggested. The Wolfoids laughed even harder.

  “Pik, tell me that you can identify the cloned Lizard Men from the real ones,” Jocelyn pleaded.

  Lizard Men didn’t change their expressions, but Pik pointed to himself. ‘Don’t you know?’

  “Know what?”

  ‘I’m a clone,’ Pik replied.

  Jocelyn held her head in both hands.

  “The bad ones. We only need to find bad ones, Pik. Can you do that?”

  ‘No. I can talk with those who live there and ask them about new additions to the rainforest. We will find the new ones and then it will be up to us to determine if they are good or bad.’

  “Any ideas on how we do that?” Jocelyn asked. No one answered. “I guess we’ll figure it out.”

  The elevator arrived and the group entered a clean, empty corridor. They headed for the aft core. Once there, Bounder activated the door. It opened and they walked into the brightness of an artificial day. Monkeys started to chitter at them.

  ‘Go away!’ Treetis ordered. A splat on the wall beside them signaled that the fight for dominance was on.

  Bounder aimed his lightning spear and fired. The branch beside the monkey exploded and the creature tore away, disappearing into the branches with the rest of the agile creatures.

  “You missed,” Jocelyn said.

  ‘I hit exactly what I was aiming at,’ Bounder replied. ‘Killing monkeys is bad. It upsets them to a degree you cannot fathom. That was what got Braden a broken head. We’ll settle for chasing them away since we’re not going to be here for long.’

  “What did it throw?” she asked.

  ‘You don’t want to know,’ Strider answered.

  ‘This way,’ Pik interjected and started shuffling toward a gap between two great trees.

  Half the Hillcats had already ventured into the rainforest.

  ‘Come on,’ Treetis told anyone who would listen. The Wolfoids fell in behind the Lizard Man, and Jocelyn brought up the rear. She pulled her blaster from its holster and tried to remember to keep it pointed away from anything she didn’t intend to shoot. After stumbling in the swampy footing, she put the blaster back and concentrated on walking.

  The Lizard Men

  Braden and Micah waited at the doorway. Aadi floated peacefully nearby, studying a tree before slowly reaching out and biting a bug from a branch. He chewed briefly before swallowing.

  “What if that bug was critical for the natural balance of this level?” Braden asked.

  ‘Then a new balance will be established, because that bug is no more. I wish I could find some others just like it.’ Aadi swam back and forth along the branch looking for additions to his meal.

  “Come on, G, Ess! Let’s get going.” Braden started to pace. He dug the recharger out of his back pack and hooked up Micah’s blaster. It popped to three percent almost immediately. “Since we’re going to be here for who knows how long.”

  Micah pulled out her sword and started honing the edge. There was a small trickle of a stream nearby, barely wider than her foot, but the water was crystal clear. She dipped her whetstone and dragged it at an angle across the edge.

  “Does that need sharpening?” Braden sat down next to her. “This is a nice place, surprising since every other deck maintained a certain level of hostility to outsiders.”

  “Hostility?” Micah snickered. She checked the edge against the sky and wet her stone for a second pass. “You mean they were trying to kill us. I think most of that was the Androids’ doing and all the rest was survival of the fittest.”

  “We made some good friends here,” Braden replied.

  “We make friends wherever we go.” Micah thumbed the sharpened blade, declared it acceptable, and put her equipment away. She cupped a hand and drank from the water. “It’s a mini paradise, but not so small. It’s much bigger than New Sanctuary. I wonder.”

  “Nothing to wonder about. Our home is down there, but maybe when we, the sentient species, have a colony on the Traveler, those people can vacation here, camp, relax, hunt, if we can determine that we won’t upset the balance that this deck has attained. We don’t want anything to interfere with how it is.” Braden stopped and squinted into the shadows. “There they are.”

  The Golden Warrior and Fealona strolled casually toward Braden and Micah. Skirill and Zyena appeared in the sky above.

  “Nothing happens without G’s approval, and then everything happens.”

  ‘And don’t you forget it,’ the ‘cat added.

  Braden checked the blaster. “Fifteen percent!”

  “I guess we can start a war.” Micah retrieved her blaster and holstered it. “Fifteen percent. Let’s hope we return to Vii with that same fifteen percent.”

  “We can always hope.” The Hawkoids landed on Braden’s shoulders. He grunted with the weight. “What did you guys eat?”

  Braden walked up the stairs to the landing, waved his bracelet past the pad, and the door opened. The tram was waiting.

  “Next stop, wet Wolfoids.” The tram door shut.

  ‘That is a smell I can do without,’ G-War replied. Fea agreed.

  “At least we’ll know when they’re coming,” Braden joked. “I’m glad they are all okay. Old Tech to the rescue, eh? We’ll start looking for volunte
ers to come up here the second we get back. I think most of the scientists from Cygnus VI will come.”

  “They were never at home on Vii.”

  “Who better to train the next spacefaring generation? I think it will be a great thing for all of Vii to rally around.”

  ‘As long as the ‘cats remain in charge, we’ll approve your plan.’

  “Did you hear that Treetis has a small army of newly-born, full-size Hillcats following him around?”

  ‘I expected as much. He takes after me.’ G-War sat on the floor of the tram, his tail curled around his front paws.

  ‘Would you consider allowing my son to move up here?’ Aadi asked.

  “Only one, Master Aadi?”

  ‘Daksha can think of nothing but the stars. He should be in New Sanctuary when we return.’

  “I think a Tortoid will be a key member of every space crew.”

  ‘That is a very kind thing to say,’ Aadi replied.

  The tram slowed as it approached the station. The light talk stopped and the companions focused on what was coming. “Holly doesn’t want us going to the ramp because of that village, so he’s taking us to an alternate location. We are in the heart of Lizard Man territory, which means there shouldn’t be any monkeys, but there will be a lot of Lizard Men. You all know how they hide in plain sight. We’re counting on you, Aadi, to point them out to us. Everyone else, be alert.”

  Braden checked the enhanced claws on both of the Hawkoids. “Stay sharp, you two. I don’t want any luckily thrown rocks hurting you.”

  ‘We will stay as high as possible and together, we will avoid any monkey missiles.’

  Braden smiled and ruffled their head feathers. Micah joined him. “We appreciate you being here for us.”

  “Wait!” Braden called when he saw G-War standing on his legs and trying to activate the door. Braden pulled Aadi by his shell as he rushed across the platform just in time for the door to open. G and Fea ran out, and the Hawkoids jumped into the air as soon as Braden stepped onto the catwalk. Micah was last out.

  ‘I see Lizard Men,’ Aadi said.

  Below, a group of ten had stopped and were looking at the companions standing on the catwalk.

  “No kidding?” Braden said out the side of his mouth, before smiling broadly and waving. “Hi!” The other hand rested on his blaster.

  Aadi swam over the railing and floated downward. As one, the Lizard Men pointed their spears at him. Into the tense silence came the sound of an Old Tech sword sliding free of its scabbard.

  ***

  Pik held up his fist. Stop.

  ‘Cats swarmed around him and up the nearby trees. Treetis started to hiss. Pik Ha’ar leveled his trident at a nearby tree trunk. A Lizard Man materialized before it as he stepped away. Jocelyn’s jaw dropped when she saw what she hadn’t been able to see. She started to shake with fear as her eyes darted from one tree to the next.

  ‘We are following a group of Lizard Men who are new to the Rainforest. They may not even speak our language. Have you seen such creatures, and if so, where are they now?’

  ‘I will ask the questions,’ the Lizard Man said. ‘Where do you come from? Another Deck?’

  ‘Right here, but I have been away, traveled far beyond the walls of our home. I am back on an urgent mission to save all of our people from the intruders.’

  ‘How can a Lizard Man be an intruder? They are welcome here as there is nowhere but here for our people. Caretakers and intruders come from beyond,’ the Lizard Man countered. His face didn’t change expression, but his hands gripped his spear tightly. Pik remained balanced throughout, but his trident was positioned to protect him. He had fought this fight before and knew all the moves.

  ‘Treetis, can you project an image of the Amazon into the mind of my new friend?’

  The ‘cat backed away, still hunched and glaring at the Lizard Man guard.

  ‘I see,’ the Lizard Man said after a few moments. ‘I don’t know what trickery you employ to create such images, but I don’t believe them and won’t believe them.’

  ‘It’s good that you are straight up with us,’ Bounder replied. ‘Helps us to best understand where you are coming from. If that place doesn’t exist, where do you think we came from, or them?’

  Bounder pointed to himself and Strider and then to the Hillcats and finally to Jocelyn.

  ‘There is a vast world out there, but it starts in here. We are merely travelers, trying to get to a better place. The new Lizard Men are not your people and not your friends. They will do what they can to keep you from being more than you know.’

  ‘You’re starting to sound like Aadi,’ Strider told her mate. ‘I like it.’

  ‘Well? Where do you think they came from since you know they didn’t come from here?’ Pik pressed.

  The Lizard Man held his tongue. ‘I will take you to my Pik.’

  ‘You’ll see the wisdom in your actions, Tup, and in that, you will see a way to rising to the rank of Pik yourself.’ Pik Ha’ar used the ranks that the Lizard Men on the Rainforest Level employed—Tup as a soldier’s rank and Pik as a leader’s rank. In the time that Pik had been gone, none of that had changed, judging by the Lizard Man’s response.

  ‘Yes, Pik,’ he replied.

  ‘Follow us,’ Pik Ha’ar told the others. Some ‘cats appeared and others disappeared. It was constant change. All of them were wet, and none of them were happy. The Wolfoids tried to shake out their coats, but wearing their armored clothing, it accomplished nothing.

  Jocelyn watched it all, unsure of her role. Pik, Bounder, Strider, and Treetis seemed to have everything well in hand. She understood the difference between a warrior and someone who was armed like one. She looked at her blaster, ashamed that she had gotten herself on the team.

  ‘Don’t be,’ Treetis said directly into her mind. ‘You were there when we needed you, after those three warriors were injured. Without you, we would not be here right now. Every time and place has one who will rise above the rest, to do what needs to be done. You will get your chance again. You shine the brightest of us all, and I will protect you until you will protect me.’

  The orange ‘cat ran to catch up with Pik Ha’ar and then up a tree to follow them while staying out of the muck of the rainforest floor.

  Jocelyn watched the small army of Hillcats join Treetis as if playing tag.

  Pik let the Lizard Man walk in front. Pik Ha’ar kept two hands on his trident at all times. Trust no one.

  ***

  ‘My good fellows! I am happy to see you. My name is Aadi, First Master of the Tortoise Consortium, and I seek your assistance in finding newcomers to the rainforest. We look for Lizard Men who are fully grown, but new to you. We need to talk with them.’

  ‘I am Pik Atla, and I know of no newcomers. I only see what my eyes show me and that’s you. You do not belong here.’

  ‘And we will happily go on our way, but we need to talk with the newcomers. They belong here less than we do.’

  ‘I don’t think you belong at all.’ Pik Atla looked at his group. Two of the warriors threw their spears. One hit the railing with a clank and fell to the ground. The other hit Braden in the chest. He grunted as his armor kept the sharp points from penetrating. He grabbed the shaft and dropped the spear on the catwalk to keep the Lizard Man from re-arming.

  Braden aimed his blaster over the railing. “I don’t want to kill you, but that is the next thing that will happen if you don’t stand down.”

  ‘Stand down where?’ Atla asked. The Lizard Men cocked their arms back and prepared to throw. Micah and the ‘cats crouched behind the railing. Braden bent low to limit his exposure. Aadi was still hovering not far from the Lizard Men.

  ‘Surely there’s no need for this? You see that your weapons have no effect, and it would be best if you talked with us. Do not summon the violence that you will later regret.’

  Pik Atla took a spear from one of his people, hefted it to check the balance, and threw it at Aadi. The Tortoid twis
ted and the weapon scraped off the bottom of his shell and embedded in his back leg. Aadi screamed in pain.

  Braden fired, and Pik Atla died. Micah fired, and the next Lizard Man died. Five more passed the great beyond before the others ran. Braden ran down the stairs and shot one of those fleeing. He hit where he was aiming—the leg. They needed to talk with one of them. Braden pulled Aadi down to where he could look at the weapon.

  “This is going to hurt, but afterwards, we’ll take the pain away.” Micah hurried down the stairs and stood watch. The ‘cats raced after the Lizard Men.

  “Come back!” Micah called after them, but they were already gone.

  Braden twisted the spear to release the barb and then pulled it free. Aadi bucked and his breath became ragged. Braden quickly packed numbweed into the wound to stop it from bleeding.

  “I have a great disdain for Lizard Men,” Braden said. Aadi’s heart continued to pound, making a vein throb in his long neck.

  “Thank goodness,” Micah said as G-War and Fealona returned to the wounded soldier. G-War tore into his arm as the Lizard Man tried to recover his spear. The Hillcat stared into his face as he dug deep into the Lizard Man’s mind.

  ‘They are here,’ the Golden Warrior shared. ‘They have taken over the village on the ramp.’

  “That makes sense since they are not from here. They need a place from which they can escape, but they are not Androids. Hang on.”

  Braden accessed his neural implant. ‘Change of plan, Holly. The clones have taken over the village on the ramp. Can you lock it out so they can’t escape? And where are the others?’

  ‘Master Braden, so good to hear from you. The others are heading deeper into this level. The Golden Warrior should be able to talk with them using his mindlink. I am restricting access to the ramp right now. Whoever is on this level will not be able to leave that way.’

  ‘Thanks, Holly. We’ll take care of it from here.’

  Braden turned to the ‘cats, taking care as he pulled Aadi along. “You should be able to talk with the others, G. Tell them to meet us at the ramp. Can you fly top cover, Ess, Zee?”

  ‘We will,’ Skirill replied. ‘I cannot see them, but I know where they are. They are not far and may reach the ramp before you.’