The Shadow Order - Books 1 - 8 + 120 Seconds (The complete series): A Space Opera

by Michael Robertson

  “And?”

  He fixed Seb with a yellow glare. “What that means is it comes from a lab. Therefore, it’s much harder to trace who both made and then, subsequently, who bought it. It could have come from one of many farms that create that kind of crap. On top of that, I have to find a way to get access to their confidential files on who purchased it. When they sell a species to someone, they don’t want that thing being tracked back to them or the purchasers. Their clients could be using the creatures for organic weapons.”

  “Which nine times out of ten, they probably are,” Seb said. “So you won’t be able to trace it?”

  “I didn’t say that. Just that I need longer.” Buster pulled open one of his desk drawers and fished out a satellite phone. “Here,” he said as he held it in Seb’s direction.

  Seb took the large device and looked at it for a few seconds. So large he couldn’t wrap his hand all the way around it. It looked old, like most of Buster’s equipment. “I’ve seen bricks smaller than this.”

  A raised eyebrow, Buster said, “I’ll call you when I have more information. Just keep your head down so Moses doesn’t find you.”

  “What do you know about Moses?”

  “This is Aloo. Moses runs the place. I know he’s just put out the word that he wants you. Dead or alive. I’m not sure it’s public knowledge yet, but it will be soon. I know he’s not someone to be crossed. I know he’ll shut me down, wrap me in chains, and throw me into the sea if he hears I’m helping you.”

  “Yet you still want to help me?”

  Another shrug, Buster stared at his nails again, faking nonchalance. “I know what Moses is like. If you have reason to believe someone has wiped out a colony with the parasite and that he’s gaining from it, I’m inclined to believe you. From what I’ve seen, the world would be a better place with that shark gone.”

  “So how long do I have to lie low for?”

  “Three to five days. Maybe a week.”

  “A week? I won’t last a week on Aloo.”

  “The information isn’t going to be easy to find.”

  Although Seb wanted to argue, what could he say? Buster had gone well beyond the favour he owed Owsk. “Where do you suggest I go?”

  “Not my problem.”

  “I’m not saying it is. I was just looking for some advice.”

  “The sewers are always a good place to hide.”

  The suggestion deflated Seb. No way could he spend three days down there. And if it took a week … “Okay,” he finally said. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. I’ll be waiting for your call.”

  Buster had stared at his nails for most of the conversation. When he looked up, the slightest crack of compassion lifted his stony face. “Good luck, Seb. Stay safe and stay hidden.”

  Seb nodded and walked out of his office. Remaining safe and remaining hidden were easier said than done for a human on Aloo. Especially a human wanted by Moses.

  Chapter 19

  No better existence than a rat, Seb sat in the darkness of Aloo’s sewers, hunched over and motionless save for his slow breaths. The festering stink around him had permeated his psyche and had delved deep into his aching joints. He hadn’t moved for hours and didn’t plan on it any time soon.

  At least three days. Three days to a week according to Buster. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. Who was Seb kidding? It would be awful. But could he tolerate it?

  Once he’d climbed down into the sewers, Seb had found an underground plaza like the ones used by the slavers. That was where he chose to wait, sitting on the cold and damp ground. He hadn’t moved since. The muggy air had left a layer of moisture on his face. Unlike the blood mist, he didn’t bother to wipe it off.

  With one liberated laser sword in his pocket and his blaster stuffed down the back of his trousers, Seb held onto the brick of a phone Buster had given him. For at least two of the three hours he’d been down there for, he stared at the device, willing it to ring.

  Seb had zero desire to move. A good job, because he might not have heard the sound otherwise. Even without his own motion, the roar of rushing water and loud drips from leaky pipes almost hid it. Almost. But when he heard the tock of a foot against one of the many ladder rungs, he gasped. The sound of his surprise rushed away from him into the darkness. Had he just given up his advantage?

  When Seb stood up, he wanted to groan from the effort, but he kept it in this time. His muscles already hurt before he’d climbed down into the damp underworld. Too much action and not enough rest. Thanks to his time in the sewers, his joints now ached too. The heavy, chilly air ran into the cartilage in his hips, his elbows, his knees …

  Seb did his best to tune out the sound of the rushing river of shit. The loudest noise down there by far. He strained his ears and heard it again. Tock. It hadn’t been his imagination. Foot against metal. Something was coming down into the sewers, and they were close.

  In his present location in the relative open of the sewers, Seb would be found straight away. More appealing than the dark walkways in the tunnels, but an awful place if he wanted to remain unseen. They’d take him back to Moses and he’d never learn where the parasites came from.

  After Seb had pushed himself to his feet and taken a few laboured steps, he loosened up a little and found his stride. The width of the rivers of shit were consistently large. Too large to leap across except for in the open spaces like the one he was currently in. In each corner, the gap tightened, so he ran for one, jumped over to the walkway on the other side, and vanished around a dark corner in the opposite direction from the sound.

  As much as Seb would have liked to make a stealthy escape, the slap of his feet against the damp ground called through the underground network of tunnels. Another noise for his stalker to follow.

  Because he’d relinquished his chance to be quiet, Seb gave up the pretence and sped up.

  Seb heard his pursuer do the same, the slap of feet chasing after him.

  A faceless foe—fast and closing down on him—threatened to rob Seb of his resolve. In his mind, he saw a monster with a large mouth and sharp fangs. A minotaur in Aloo’s labyrinthine underground tunnels.

  The weak lights did little to show Seb the way. He saw the right-angled left turn too late. Although he tried to take it, the damp ground didn’t give him the grip he needed. His feet slipped from beneath him. His world shifted into slow motion as he slammed down on the wet concrete. The impact jabbed a hot poker into his left hip. It balled in his stomach as a need to vomit.

  Unable to control his pain, Seb rolled on the ground, cradling where he’d hurt himself. His legs hung out over the river, but not far enough for there to be a chance of him falling in.

  The light pad of feet on Seb’s tail pulled him from his agony. He pressed his hand against the cold and damp wall to make it easier to stand up. The pain in his hip ratcheted up when he put pressure on it, but he had to keep going. A clenched jaw and heavy breaths, he pushed through it and took off again into the darkness. No way would he be beaten down here. Moses didn’t deserve the satisfaction.

  More alert after his fall, Seb saw the next bend this time and sailed around it. He moved with a limp, and the steps behind him were clearly getting closer. Then he found a ladder.

  The same damp and rusty rungs he’d seen on every other ladder, Seb grabbed on and pulled himself up.

  The sound of his own feet against the metal paled in comparison to the running footsteps closing in on him. To climb hurt his hip more than running. His heart hammered. His lungs tightened. Sweat turned his palms damp. But he kept going.

  At the top of the ladder—the footsteps closer than ever—Seb reached up and shoved the manhole cover aside. Metal scraped over concrete, ringing out for his pursuer to hear.

  Despite it being the middle of the day, the tight alleyway was dark with shadow, although not as dark as the sewers. Seb dragged himself out of the hole and fell onto the hard concrete ground. He then twisted around and slid the manhole cover
back across, panting and shaking with exhaustion.

  Not only had the manhole cover been made from steel, but a metal ring had been implanted in the ground so it fitted back in perfectly. Seb clenched his fist as he stared at it, got up onto his knees, and yelled as he drove a punch against the edge of the hole. It bent the steel ring surrounding the cover, pushing it slightly over the protective disc. Another punch on the opposite side yielded the same result. Two more punches left it with a distortion on each compass point.

  When Seb tried to pull the manhole cover free, he couldn’t. It would slow his pursuer down at the very least.

  Seb groaned again as he moved off. His body didn’t feel ready for it, but he needed to get out of there. He might have bought himself some time, but he didn’t know how much.

  The alleyways were quiet, but not abandoned. As Seb ran away from the manhole cover, he passed the watchful glare of an old female tisk. She stared at him through cataract eyes. And why wouldn’t she? Being human on Aloo was enough of a curse. A human with a wicked limp, ragged breaths, gushing sweat, and no doubt stinking of excrement was a veritable beacon. It wouldn’t be long before Moses found him. He couldn’t last on Aloo for three days, let alone a week. He had to get out of there and find somewhere safe to wait for the phone call. The next time he came back would be to find out about the part Moses had played in killing Wilson’s family. Then he’d gladly let himself be taken to the shark-faced crook.

  Chapter 20

  Far enough away from the sewers and no sign of his pursuer, Seb rested against a wall as he caught his breath. Not yet in the spaceport, he watched the occasional creature pass him and they stared back. Whether they’d heard about the bounty or not, he still couldn’t tell.

  You need to look after yourself.

  “Who’s that?” Two ape-like creatures looked over at his outburst. He glared at them and replied in his head. Who are you?

  Just look after yourself, Seb. You need to get off Aloo.

  I know that, Seb replied. But where shall I go?

  The voice didn’t respond. It didn’t need to. He knew where he had to go. He’d known it all along. And now he’d run out of options, he couldn’t ignore it any longer.

  Chapter 21

  As a human on Aloo, Seb might as well have worn a flashing target on his back. Every time he sneezed, the entire planet turned to stare at him. Hell, every time he breathed, something seemed to be displeased with his presence. Or so it felt. But even as he moved into the more populated areas of the cursed planet, he’d still not seen any sign that the creatures around him wanted to claim the bounty Moses had put on his capture. Maybe it still hadn’t become common knowledge.

  On his way back to the spaceport, Seb came to a row of four shops, all of them as ramshackle and disorganised as the next. He paced up and down outside them a couple of times, looking at the shopkeepers through their cluttered windows. For no other reason than the beast behind the counter looked the least hostile—on account of being the smallest of the lot—he shrugged and walked in to the left one of the four.

  A bell above the door let out a weary ring when Seb opened it, and the shopkeeper looked up at him as he entered. What had been close to a hospitable expression on the small orange creature’s face darkened and turned into open displeasure. “Oh,” it said.

  If the small beast had that reaction to him, what would the larger ones have been like had he chosen their shops? Before Seb had time to think on it any further, the strange little thing—no larger than a domestic cat and nowhere near as pleasing to the eye—produced a cannon of a blaster. Three times larger than its wielder at least, the barrel of the gun looked big enough to slide Sparks into. The weapon looked capable of turning a freighter to dust.

  “Easy now,” Seb said, his hands raised defensively. “I’m not here to make trouble.”

  “What are you here for, then?” the small orange being barked.

  Seb looked around the cluttered space. Shelves everywhere, mostly laden with tat, he couldn’t see what he wanted. “A cloak?”

  “And what if I don’t have one?”

  Hard not to look at the large weapon trained on him, Seb swallowed against his rapidly drying throat. The dust in the air then ran up his nostrils and he scrunched his nose against the tickle of it. He’d still not spoken because his mouth had gotten him into too much trouble in the past. He needed to keep his head. “If you don’t have one,” he finally said, “I’ll say thank you for your time and go next door.”

  Only slightly, but the end of the creature’s blaster sagged in reaction to Seb’s comment. It didn’t reply.

  Unsure what to do with the silence, Seb shrugged and tried to keep his agitation from his tone. “Should I go?”

  A dark scowl, the beast said, “What kind of cloak?”

  “One that hides my face.”

  “Not surprised.”

  Indignation snapped Seb tense. “I’ll be going next door, then, shall I? I came in here because you looked like the least aggressive of all the shopkeepers.”

  “Bad choice.” A shake of its head, the creature sneered. “Hate humans.”

  It almost made Seb laugh. At least it spoke its mind. He shrugged. “You and everything else on this stinking planet.”

  “Especially ones that have upset Moses.”

  A cold rock of dread plummeted through Seb and he pulled in another deep breath. The sides of his vision blurred as his gift threatened to kick in. A tense situation, it had suddenly turned potentially volatile. To stop his sass spilling out of him, he thought about every word before he spoke them. “Look, can you give me a cloak or not? I’ve not come here to discuss your prejudices. In fact, I couldn’t care less about them.”

  “And Moses?” the creature said.

  Seb stared at it. What little ground he’d made with it lowering its blaster, he lost as the vicious little beast raised its weapon again. Step one, get a cloak. Deal with that first.

  After another few seconds of staring at one another, Seb said, “I’m going to leave now. I’ve not got all day.”

  “Wait,” the creature said, the anger in its voice losing out to desperation. It needed credits and Seb needed a cloak.

  The creature put its gun down on the counter. “Got cloak. Would fit you. Finest fur. Shame to use it on human. Such a waste. But you can have it.”

  “A human’s credits still work, you know? I’ll give you one hundred for it.”

  “Two hundred.”

  Seb laughed. “One fifty, and you forget you ever saw me, okay?”

  The beast glowered at Seb for a few more seconds before it accepted his offer with a nod of resignation. “Moses is offering a lot more, you know.”

  For the first time since he’d walked in, Seb shot a reactive response back at him. “You and I both know you don’t want the fight.”

  The creature stared at him for a moment as if it would challenge him. It looked down at its blaster. The silence seemed to last forever before it nodded. “You’re right. I hate humans, but I don’t think much of that shark either.”

  After the transaction, Seb threw the cloak over himself. It wasn’t made from fur like the scheming little beast had suggested. It felt more like a cheap sack woven from coarse brown string. “A cloak fit for a monk,” he said. It did, however, hide his face and masked the smell of the sewers. It also had pockets he could put his blaster, laser sword, and satellite phone in. Maybe dressing as humbly as he could would see him in good stead. The less attention on him, the better.

  Step one complete, Seb looked at the vulgar little creature. In a flash, he pulled the beast’s cannon out of its reach and said, “If Moses finds out I’ve been here, I’m going to come into your shop while you’re sleeping and burn it to the ground with you in it. You got that?”

  What had been a seriously bad attitude yielded to fear. The creature’s hard frown softened and it looked at Seb for a few seconds. “I told you I don’t like him.”

  “Have you got that?” S
eb repeated, raising the cannon.

  A reluctant nod, but a nod nonetheless.

  Seb slid the gun back across the counter to it. “Good.” He then spun on his heel and left the shop. Not easy to trust the creature, but it didn’t change anything. He had to find a ship and get off Aloo as soon as he possibly could. The sooner the better, so when Moses did find out, which he inevitably would, he’d be long gone.

  Chapter 22

  Whether the shopkeeper had ratted him out or not, Seb didn’t have long left on Aloo. If the shopkeeper didn’t tell Moses, enough creatures had seen him that one of them would. If Moses wanted him as much as he expected he did, the Shadow Order shark would shut the port down if he got a confirmation of him still being there.

  A check of his reflection as he passed a window, Seb saw that the cloak completely covered his face. The brown, ratty fabric restricted his view, but the limited visibility was a small price to pay to remain hidden.

  Now he’d made the decision to leave Aloo, he had to get to the square. Although it would be busy with hostiles—like the spaceport—it had to be better than asking every cargo bay guard on every ship where they were heading.

  As he walked in the direction of the square, Seb looked over at the fighting pit. The first time he’d seen it since he’d escaped the Shadow Order’s base, he felt nothing. No giddiness, no pull towards it. Not only because Moses would find him in seconds if he entered there, but also because fighting for a pittance seemed like a lifetime ago. Maybe because he had enough violence in his life now—too much, in fact. Every few hours seemed to feature a fight with something. A snort of a laugh, he shook his head to himself. How had he ended up here?

  A narrow alleyway led into the square. To look through it at the jostling space beyond sent Seb’s heart racing. If they uncovered him in a place where he was so heavily outnumbered, it could be curtains. But he had to try. He had to do something other than run around the sewers being chased by Moses’ bounty hunters.