by T. R. Harris
Yet once again, Riyad had studied his opponent before making the challenge so the outcome was never in doubt.
On the day of the challenge, a crowd of several hundred pirates gathered in a field near the K’ly city of Calaa. A stage had been built where they would fight; it was all a festive and jubilant occasion.
Kymore began the event by loudly proclaiming his superiority with a series of loud grunts and howls, while prancing around the stage showing off his size and quickness. Riyad just stood off to the side and let the lizard do his thing.
And then the fight began.
As the alien attacked, Riyad easily slipped around each of the creature’s initial thrusts, and then after a minute or so of dancing around the stage, he placed a swift kick to the Rigorian’s side. The kick knocked most of the air out of Kymore’s lungs and brought a look of startled confusion to his yellow eyes. Riyad then slipped in quickly behind the pirate and placed a solid blow to the back of the lizard’s head. Kymore fell forward onto the stage, but he quickly rolled over and regained his footing.
There was an even greater look of concern now on the Rigorian’s face, and for the next few seconds, Riyad pummeled the pirate leader with lightning-fast rights and lefts, causing prodigious amounts of blood to flow from the creature’s mouth. And then – simply as a display of his superior strength – Riyad stepped in and hoisted the seven-foot tall alien above his head and threw him into the front row of stunned pirates, all in perfect Hulk Hogan fashion.
A dozen pirates fell into a heap below the Rigorian, but they soon recovered and forced the panicked pirate captain back onto the stage.
During his time with the pirates, Riyad had heard where other challenges for the pirate leadership had ended simply with the demotion of the current leader and not his death. This didn’t make sense to Riyad; after assuming his new position, he did not want any lingering loyalties for his predecessor or grumblings for his return.
So for the finale, Riyad grasped the massive jaws of the lizard and pulled them open wide. He continued to spread them apart until he felt the bottom jaw of the Rigorian break. The creature let out a piercing, blood-curding scream and fell to his knees, his bottom jaw dangling limply from his head. The crowd was stunned into silence.
Riyad then moved ceremoniously behind Kymore; he took a brief moment to survey the silent crowd … and then drove his right fist all the way down into the lizard’s skull, killing him instantly – while also assuring there would no challenges to Riyad’s leadership for a very long time, at least until memories faded.
That should get their attention, Riyad thought, as he looked out at the silent mass of pirates before him. He knew pirates were like a pack of wolves, subservient to the alpha male, and at that moment the alpha male of The Fringe Pirates was the Human Riyad Tarazi.
He was now the Pirate General.
********
As Riyad paced his quarters, recalling his ascension to the leadership of The Fringe Pirates, he nodded his approval for the actions taken by the mysterious aliens aboard the transport ship. Yes, they had been wise to assassinate the Humans rather than have them fall into the hands of the pirates. After all, they couldn’t afford to have dozens of super Humans out wandering the galaxy, causing all kinds of havoc, now could they?
Chapter 9
Over the 24-hour transit to Nimor, Adam and the two aliens had very little contact. Jym had dropped off some bland tasting food – yes, it tasted like chicken – and then left without saying a word.
During this time Adam was able to get some rest – however fitful – and he even managed to find a shower in the ship’s only restroom. He dressed in the blue tunic and then waited in his room for the next hammer to fall. He didn’t know what form this new shock to his system would take, but he was about to make landfall on an alien world where it had been decided Kaylor and Jym would turn him over to other group of aliens – and from there, who knew? Even though he’d only been aboard their ship for a few hours, Adam did feel a strange familiarity with them and his surroundings. What this new alien world held in store for him would be just one more shock to his already frazzled system.
Kaylor allowed Adam to join them in the pilothouse as he released the alien spaceship into an orbit above the planet Nimor. Another alien – short, hairy and husky – came aboard with an entourage of assistants and Kaylor led them through a quick inspection of his ship. Apparently satisfied, the burly alien had Kaylor sign some paperwork and then he left, indicating that his crew was now going aboard the big disk-shaped ship to start the salvage inventory. The completed survey would be transmitted to the Ministry in about three hours Kaylor were told.
Jym opened the exterior shield to the pilothouse viewport, allowing Adam to gaze out at the vast and brilliant alien world below them. It looked very similar to Earth, with shimmering blue seas and ruddy brown land masses, all with patchy white clouds casting dark shadows on the surface below. This world didn’t appear to have as much landmass as Earth, just a modest-sized continent to the north and a large island to the south. He didn’t know if there was more land on the other side because they didn’t seem to be moving around the planet while in orbit – they call it geo-synchronous, he believed.
Jym asked Adam to strap himself into a seat next to him and Kaylor began the decent to the planet’s surface.
Adam was struck by the fact that he felt no sensation of falling – or any movement at all as a matter of fact. He simply watched as the features on the ground began grew larger until he could make out the cris-crossed pattern of a city below. As they got closer, the ship slid over toward a large open area dotted with various craft of different shapes and sizes. As they descended, Adam was amazed at how large the area was, and how massive some of the ships actually were close up.
His view was suddenly obscured by dense clouds of dust that streamed upwards past the viewport. And then he felt a slight bump.
“Prepare yourselves, I’m dissolving the well.” Kaylor announced to the room. Instantly, Adam felt lightheaded and a good portion of his bodyweight seemed to melt away.
Jym noticed Adam’s reaction. “This planet’s gravity is about three-quarters that of standard. I’m guessing that would make it a little more than half the gravity of your homeworld. You should get along fine here … if you don’t stay too long.”
“We’ll see,” was all he could muster.
The three of them left the pilothouse. Kaylor informed Adam that Jym would be staying on the ship while the two of them went into the Nimorian city of Gildemont and to the Ministry Compound to register the salvage. Adam was surprised to see Kaylor was wearing his weapon around his waist.
“So what’s this place like?” he asked.
“It is not the roughest place in the Fringe, but close. They’ve only been members of the Expansion for about twenty years, so they still have a lot of tribal factions who go by their own rules. The Ministry is more of a suggestion here rather than any real planetary authority. They have a compound not too far into the city. All I want to do is get the salvage officially registered and then we can leave. It will take a couple of months before any resolution is decided.”
“What does that mean?”
“Simply bringing in a derelict ship doesn’t convey ownership rights. The ship will have to be matched against any missing vessel reports, and then if the rightful owners come forward we’ll get a salvage reward of ten-percent of the ship’s value. If the owners cannot pay, or no one comes forward to claim ownership, then we will be awarded full ownership. All of that takes time, but once we file the salvage, our rights will be protected.”
“That makes sense.” Adam said. “So this is a pretty big deal for you?”
“It could definitely be worth the effort … eventually.”
They now were standing before a door set in an outer wall of the cargo hold; Kaylor pushed a button on a small control panel and the door slid open. Warm, dry air rushed in, smelling sweet and fresh. Adam hadn’t realized just
how stale the air in the ship had been. This was refreshing. They stepped down a metal ramp that that had projected from the ship, and soon Adam Cain set foot on an alien world.
“That’s one small step for man…” he said softly.
“What did you say?”
“Oh nothing … at least nothing that’s important anymore.”
It was a pretty good hike through the forest of alien spaceships parked in what Kaylor told him was a modest-sized, yet apparently rundown spaceport. Even so, Adam found it to be fascinating. All around them there was a menagerie of exotic creatures; tall ones, short ones, disgusting looking things and even some that were kind of pretty. They all went about their business not giving Adam or Kaylor a second glance, and eventually the pair passed through a gate with a bored-looking blob of a creature manning a rusting metal booth who seemed to not even notice their passing.
The sun was warm on Adam’s skin and it helped to loosen the tense muscles in his neck, muscles that had been knotted up a lot more than he realized. The humidity was low and it actually felt a lot like the climate of his native Southern California. A slight breeze stirred brown dust, adding a musty smell to the landscape as they proceeded down the side of a dirt road toward the city proper. Adam found it all incongruous; starships and dirt roads, high tech combined with low tech.
Adam was also very aware of the light gravity of this world. On Earth he weighed in at around 190 pounds, so here he was just over a hundred.
So can I jump twice as high or run twice as fast? He certainly felt as if he could. The feeling was exhilarating.
So he thought he’d experiment. Falling back slightly behind Kaylor as they walked, Adam crouched down on his haunches and then sprung upwards with all the effort his leg muscles could muster. Up he went, easily soaring as high as Kaylor was tall, which was close to Adam’s height of six-foot-one. Kaylor was startled by the sudden movement, and he jumped back, placing his hand on the grip of his weapon.
“What did you do that for?” Kaylor yelled, a look of concern plastered on his alien face.
“I just wanted to see if I could.”
“A word of advice: Don’t go showing off around here,” Kaylor said, leaning in close to Adam’s smiling face. “Most of the inhabitants are barely out of the trees and they will take most actions as a challenge.”
Adam continued to smile. Yes, it might be better to keep any special abilities he may have close to the vest for now. First he had to size up the locals; he had done this on numerous occasions before during his Navy career. Just be cool until you learn the local customs.
They were soon in the town and walking on a wooden sidewalk past storefronts with glass windows. It was so Old West that Adam had trouble remembering he was on an alien planet. However, all it took was for a hairy, rodent-looking creature to walk out of a doorway on its two hind legs and Adam was suddenly shocked back into reality.
Looking around, Adam was disappointed to see numerous wheeled vehicles moving along the road – no hovercraft or anti-gravity machines. The vehicles he did see were very similar to small SUV’s, and they even appeared to be obeying traffic rules rather than running around all helter-skelter. So much for his first impressions of an alien civilization….
Regarding the Ministry complex, Kaylor wasn’t kidding when he’d called it a Compound. The official government headquarters for this entire planet was nothing more than a sprawling arrangement of buildings all sequestered behind a massive four-meter-tall stone wall, with one large opening guarded by four gruff-looking creatures a little shorter than Adam. Each of the alien guards were covered with a black coat of hair or fur and wearing leather-like vests and pants, and were of the same species as those who had come aboard Kaylor’s ship earlier. They carried long-barrel weapons, along with sidearms like the one Kaylor wore.
Kaylor informed one of the guards that he was there to register a derelict salvage and was directed to Building Five without so much as a second glance by the other guards. So far, everything Adam had seen on the surface of Nimor was of this same nonchalant – even uncaring – manner. No one seemed too concerned with security or protocol.
Building Five was built of red brick and stood four stories tall, as were all the buildings within the compound. Adam and Kaylor entered through double glass doors and were directed to the second floor, Room 12. Inside the office was another black-haired creature – obviously the natives to this world – who directed them to take seats on the other side of his wide, metal desk.
“I am Fredic Dess,” the hairy creature stated in a deeper-than-expected voice. Adam still wasn’t accustomed to the unsynchronized movement of lips-to-voice, but after a moment of conversation he tended to ignore it quite well. “You are the ones who have brought in the Class-5 salvage?”
“That’s right. I am Kaylor Linn Todd and this is Adam Cain. He was cargo aboard the ship and the only survivor.”
Dess turned his attention to Adam. “Are you a slave?”
“Hell no!” Adam protested, caught off guard by the question.
Kaylor placed a hand on Adam’s arm. “There were eighty of his species aboard. You’ll see in the survey that they were being transported in sophisticated hiberpods and in good condition, so definitely not as slaves.”
Dess regarded them both for a moment, and then just grunted. He wrote something on a form in front of him. “How did you come upon the derelict?” he asked without looking up.
“We picked up a strong gravity wave in The Void and went to investigate. There were three pirate ships surrounding the derelict and they left the area as we came on the scene.”
Dess looked up. “They just left? You pilot a cargo-hauler, don’t you?”
“That’s right, yet we, ah, made ourselves out to be more than just a cargo-hauler using some surplus satellite drones we had aboard. We didn’t want to leave the ship to the mercy of the pirates. In The Void, all peaceful transports have to look out for one another. It just seemed like the right thing to do.”
Again Dess grunted. “And you had nothing to do with the attack that disabled the ship and killed the inhabitants?”
“Correct; this being here will testify to that.”
Dess looked at Adam. “Is this your testimony?”
“All I know is that the ship I was on was attacked, and then after a battle onboard, the attackers left in a hurry. After that Kaylor showed up, by himself.” Then Adam looked over at Kaylor. “And he saved my life.”
“How is that?”
“I was the only one left alive on the ship. If Kaylor had not chased off the pirates, they would have eventually found me and I’d probably be dead by now, just like everyone else. And if not that, then the power would have failed and I would have died from the cold or lack of atmosphere. Yeah, I guess he really did save my life.”
Dess turned his attention back to Kaylor. “What were you doing that far out in The Void?”
“We were transporting a string of smokesticks to Rigor.”
Dess nodded, and Adam got the distinct impression that he and Kaylor had just shared an unstated moment. Then the bureaucrat asked: “Have you removed anything from the subject vessel prior to registering the salvage with this authority?” It sounded like an official question.
“Nothing has been removed; I know the law.”
Dess scribbled some more on the form and then punched a button on his desk. A keyboard rotated out of the top and he began to transcribe the information from his paper form into the computer. It took several minutes to enter the data, during which time he didn’t say a word or acknowledge Adam and Kaylor’s existence. Adam followed Kaylor’s lead and sat patiently waiting for Dess to finish his typing.
Finally: “The survey will be completed in about an hour. Return here at Day4 and I will give you a copy and the registration documentation.”
And that was it, the interview was over.
But Adam wasn’t done.
“Wait a minute, what about me? I need someone to take me b
ack to Earth.”
The bureaucrat stared back at Adam with a blank stare.
“Kaylor said you could get me back to my home, to my planet—”
“I said he might be able to.” Kaylor interjected.
“Where are you from?” Dess asked.
“Earth, I’m from the planet Earth.”
“Dirt? What kind of name is that for a planet?”
“Yeah, we’ve been through this before. Can you get me there or not?”
Dess tapped a few keys on his keypad. “This planet Earth is rumored to be in the Far Arm,” he said after scanning the screen for a moment. “I will stop right there; there is no one, official or otherwise, who can return you to a world located in the Far Arm.”
Adam felt as if an elephant had just sat on his chest. He broke out into a cold sweat and turned to Kaylor, pleading. “You said—”
“I’m sorry Adam. I told you the Far Arm is mostly unexplored territory. The computer doesn’t even have a location for your homeworld. It would be impossible to find it without specific coordinates.”
“What would it take to get me to the Far Arm?”
“First of all, you would need a long-range starship, Class-4 or better, and then probably several million credits.” Kaylor answered. “But you would need to know where you’re going first, otherwise you’d spend a thousand years jumping from system to system until you found the right one. What is the lifespan of your species?”
Adam didn’t like Kaylor’s tone. He stood up, hovering over Kaylor. “It’s a lot longer than yours … if you keep feeding me bullshit!”
“What was I supposed to tell you … that you’re probably stuck here for the rest of your life with no chance of getting home? Would that have made you feel better?”
