by James McEwan
Thad laughed, “Idiot.” He powered the car up and hit the accelerator. In a few seconds they were coming up on the Crow. He was on Eve’s side of the car and when they were almost on top of him Thad said, “Eve.”
She knew what he had in mind, “On it,” she replied and then threw open the armored door. The door smashed into the Crow knocking him down as well as the wind out of him. Both began laughing as Thad circled around.
Chapter 5
Freya and Fiona were allowed to stay together, more to be kept and sold as a set then out of some act of kindness. However, they were kept in a cage since Fiona has proven she was far too dangerous to be allowed to roam free. It had been two days sense she had killed the human slave master, and because the cage was small and cramped, her body hurt from constantly sitting or lying on the metal mesh that made up the bottom of the cage. But, she had no regrets about ending the life of such a horrible monster.
Having been born in space and spending most of their lives on starships, they could tell, just from the way the ship moved and sounded, that they had made it to their final destination. They were in planet fall and it wouldn’t be long now before they were sold off as slaves, forced to bread with some unknown man. Even though in the back of her mind Fiona new that Thad would never stop looking for them, she was worried for the first time that she may never see him again. Never again to feel his skin on hers or to be in his arms was a thought she couldn’t bear. Tears began to well up in her eyes.
Freya noticed a single tear roll down her sister’s face, “Don’t worry sis, he will come and I have a feeling that he will be bringing hell with him. There will be a reckoning and a lot of people are going to pay before this is over.” She reached over and hugged her twin sister. Her faith in Thad never wavered, not even for a second.
Fiona hugged her back, “I know, but I can’t help but to think about what happens if he never finds us,” she said.
“You put thoughts out of your head right this second Fiona May Hammer!” Freya said using her sister’s middle name. “Thad will find us. And I will tell you right now, that when he is done repaying them with blood, I’m going to kick his ass for taking so long!”
Fiona laughed at the thought, but she knew as soon as Freya gets the chance she would do more kissing that kicking. “Thanks sis, I needed a good laugh.”
Freya held her sister’s head near her chest and stroked her hair, “No problem, that’s what I’m here for.”
The ship landed and two Ralnai with disruptor rifles entered the cargo area where their cage was being kept. Two human slaves followed them. They attached four anti-gravity pods one to each of the corners of the cage that hummed a bit as they were switched on. The cage floated a few feet from the ground and the two slaves pushed it toward the loading ramp.
The cargo doors opened and their first taste of fresh non recycled air should have been sweet, but it wasn’t. It was laced with foul orders, many of which they couldn’t identify other than being of Ralnai origin. Freya took a deep whiff of the air and seemed to almost turn a little green. “You know what the worst thing about the Ralnai is?”
“The smell,” they said in unison.
One of the Ralnai slammed the cage with his rifle, “No talking!”
Fiona and Freya hated to do as they were told, especially by Ralnai. However, given their current predicament, they chose to keep their thoughts to themselves.
The cage was floated down the ramp and through the space docks. It was pushed for a great distance before arriving at the markets. They knew they had reached it when they saw large cages full of mostly humans as well as a few other races. They also saw what they suspected was an auction block. It was a raised stage in the center of the market with a podium on one side. At the podium was a human slave. He had no collar and was clearly an adherent. He had a microphone attached to his head and he was taking bids on the slaves. They watched as men and women were brought to the stage and stripped naked. Other slaves, or sometime Ralnai, would come up and inspect the “stock”. They would measure the size of the women’s hips, feel up her breast, and check her teeth and eyes.
Once all the interested parties were done inspecting the lot the bidding would start. They watched for hours as the process was repeated over and over, so many that they lost count. Freya wondered when it would be their turn to be the meat on display. “Hey you,” she pointed at on the Ralnai guards. “Yeah you, Mr. Grumpy face.” This was a bit of a misnomer as all Ralnai seemed perpetually grumpy.
The Ralnai looked at her and give her what she could only interpret as his “what do you want look.”
“Hey do you know when it is our turn to be paraded before all you nasty little lizards?”
At first thought Fiona was worried about what Freya had just said, but then she remembered how much they were worth and she knew that this Ralnai wouldn’t dare harm them just before auction time. The Ralnai guard grumbled and the translator box spat out, “You are special premium stock, you get sold in a special auction later tonight or maybe tomorrow. Now be quiet.”
The hours dragged on and with nothing but the auctions to watch, both of them fell asleep. It was better than having to watch the endless stream of people be sold as if they were cattle. It was sometime late in the evening when their turn came. They were awoken by a banging of the cage. “Wake up my beauties. It is time for my retirement. Come now and no trouble,” said the Ralnai who had been their captor for the last two months.
It felt good to get out of that cage and finally stretch out. The cage was too small to stand in, even for them. After several days of confinement, they were more than ready to get out even if it meant they had to be paraded around naked. Not that either of them was shy, or had a problem with nudity, it was the fact of being forced to be nude that pissed them off.
They were led down to the platform and as they climbed the steps they held each other’s hand hoping that Thad would show up and save them from this fate. They were led to their spots on the stage. They were stripped of everything except for the collar, the one thing they wished they had removed.
There were a few Ralnai with their human slaves who were doing the choosing. They could tell that these must be among the elite of the Ralnai clans by the jeweled adornments that they wore. If they knew more about the Ralnai clan structure they would have known that these Ralnai were among some of the most powerful in the Ralnai Empire. They didn’t know it, but luck was on their side as these Ralnai were famous for their kind treatment of their slaves.
Fiona and Freya stood as tall and with as much defiance as they could. They both refused to cower and hold their heads low. If they were to be exposed for all to see then they were going to do it with anger and bile in their bellies. Fiona stood their wondering just how many of these monsters were going to die once Thad came. While Freya, on the other hand, was too busy trying to bit off the finger of one of the men who was checking her teeth. She waited until he used his fingers to open her lips.
She struck like a viper. Her teeth bit deep into his flesh. The man screamed and tried to pull his hand away, but Freya had too good a grip on his digit. The Ralnai thought it was funny and they laughed in their deep guttural way that they do. She would have bitten it off if it wasn’t for the zap of pain she received through the collar. Freya had to let him go as she took a deep breath in as she tried to deal with the pain. Fiona grabbed her arm in an effort to help her sister, but she too received a shock for efforts.
“As you can see the fire from these two will bring your breeders much joy and many good slaves! Let’s start the bidding at one million.” the human auctioneer said.
The bidding was fast and furious as the human slaves would look to their masters, who would nod to agree to the bid, before they placed it. After a couple of fast minutes the bidding had been whittled down to just two Ralnai. The price had hit twenty million Ralnai credits, “Twenty million going once, going twice,” But just before the auctioneer could say sold one of the Ralnai master
s who had not placed a bid at all spoke.
“Twenty five!” he said from the back.
All the buyers turned to see to the new bidder, and once they saw who was doing the bidding they all bowed. It was not just any Ralnai. It was Tor Tran-kor, hatchling of the late great Tor Tarokk-kor. He once had been forced to flee in disgrace after his father lost the war to the humans. However, he was cunning and ruthless and had spent the last twenty years killing off his father’s enemies and restoring his name to greatness.
Tor Tran-kor had become the grand chieftain by beheading the last one as is the custom among the Ralnai. Power was taken and held by strength and brutal force. He had only had been grand chieftain for two years, two long bloody years. No one dared oppose him as those who did usually ended up becoming Thog food.
“Thirty!” the bid came from one of the two Ralnai who had been bidding before Tor Tran-kor entered the bidding. The human auctioneer was no sure what do, looked at Tor Tran-kor for direction, however it wasn’t needed as Tor Tran-kor walked up to the Ralnai who was a good four inches shorter than him.
“Kar Kar-krack, isn’t it?” Tor Tran-kor asked.
“Yes, and I know who you are and you don’t frighten me,” Kar Kar-krack answered back.
No one there could believe how fast Tor Tran-kor moved. He produced a laser sword, activated it and swung it in a flash. Kar Kar’s head rolled to the side and fell to the floor. “Funny, that is what your father said just before I cut of his head too,” Tor Tran-kor said as he deactivated the laser sword.
The auctioneer spoke with a shaky voice, “Sold to Tor Tran-kor for 25 million.” Tor Tran-kor looked at the auctioneer and nodded. Then he turned and walked off leaving the dead for the others to clean up.
Fiona and Freya was not sure what they had just witnessed was a good or a bad thing. “Hey Fie that doesn’t look like it bodes well for us,” Freya whispered.
“At least we are together,” Fiona whispered back.
“For now,” Freya responded.
“No talking,” A human slave barked at them and gave them both a small shock to remind them of who was in charge.
They were led off the stage and through the streets of the market to small non-descript building. The human slave took them through the door and down a dark hallway. At the end of the hallway was an armored door. The slave banged on the door three times. A red light on a camera lens flashed on for a couple of seconds before the magnetic lock clicked open. Behind the door was yet another hallway, this one was much shorter and well lit. It ended at an indoor garden that had a large water feature in the middle, with lots of plants that were natives of the Ralnai home world. Sitting in the middle of the bubbling green water was their new master, Tor Tran-kor.
Chapter 6
The Imperial palace of the Terran Empire was built on the same site that the Olympic Stadium once stood. Like most of the world’s cities, Rio de Janeiro was mostly reduced to rubble during the days of Empire Wars. It was the last world war fought on Earth. Originally the Earth had been governed by a few superpowers, but after they had lost interest in the Earth and moved out into space, the people that had been left behind fought for control. The technology that enabled the leap into space and the Galactic community almost destroyed the Earth and all that were left living on it.
However, once the war was over and one government was established, the Terran Empire was born and it would be become one of the most powerful governments in the galaxy. Rio De Janeiro had been chosen as the new capital of the world due to the fact that most of North America and Europe were so badly contaminated after the war, South America was one of the only places left that could support that many people.
But that was over three hundred years ago. Now that the Earth had been cleaned up, many of the old cities were rebuilt and repopulated, Rio remained the seat of power and once again it was the birthplace of a new government.
Sitting in the conference room in the west wing of the palace were the senior members of the young Emperors closest circle, the inner circle if you will. Supreme Commander Amanda Hayes, Commandant Jim Grunt, the newly commissioned Major Dominic St. Claire, and a few others, were sitting in high backed fine leather chairs awaiting the Emperor’s arrival. They were engaging in small talk when the double doors flew open and banged against their stoppers.
Emperor Conall Barros stormed in cursing, “Those stubborn jackasses! They know the threat we are facing and all they can do bitch, whine and fight over who has what power and who gets what resources. I swear I am of half a mind to throw them all into a deep dark room until they are ready to get this treaty signed.”
“Problems?” Amanda asked.
“No, no problems at all! Other than trying to get a dozen government leaders to agree on anything, other than the need to agree on course of action. I swear, so far the only thing they have gotten done is agree that our new government shall be called the Terrain Alliance. But beyond that not much else.” Conall said as he dropped into his chair.
“All things considered, I think that is pretty good work for the first day after they voted to form a new government,” Amanda said. Conall shot her a dirty look. Amanda didn’t react but instead she responded in an almost mothering tone, “You can’t expect them to pound out all the details in one day, it will take some time.”
“I know that. What I don’t know is how much time we have left,” Conall said with a heavy brow. The events of the last year were already starting to take its toll on the young Emperor.
Amanda noted the sad and heavy look in his eyes and he looked tired. A far cry from the young energetic man she had first met when he was made Emperor two years ago. Although she attributed some of the look of fatigue to being a new father, she could see that the mantel of responsible was weighing heavy on his shoulders.
“So, what is news of Thad and the twins?” Conall asked.
“No direct news of or contact from Thad yet,” St. Claire stated.
“I seem to be sensing a ‘but’ in there somewhere,” Conall said picking up on St. Claire’s tone and body langue.
“But,” St. Claire paused for effect as he often liked to do that kind of thing. “There has been a lot of chatter about a man in black killing his way through the Ralnai Empire. Apparently, this man in black has been chasing down information about the slave markets and he has racked up quiet the body count, as well as a large bounty.”
“And we think this is Thad?” Conall asked.
“Yes Sir. In some of the descriptions he is said to be with a small woman with incredible strength. We do believe it is Thad and Eve,” Grunt jumped in.
“At last report, he dropped some poor knucklehead off an extremely high building. That is kind of how he plays the game.” St. Claire added.
“Well I’m glad to hear he is alive and doing well, not to mention pissing off the Ralnai. I hope he finds them soon. I know we all want them back safe and sound. Besides I could really use him right now,” Conall said.
Amanda and Grunt gave reports as to the status the military and their fleet.
The Marines had started the process of training and absorbing the other government’s military units as part of the effort to make one government. The Fleet was in good shape. All of the surviving ships from the former Starguard had been accounted. The ships damaged from the battle of Isis had been refitted and repaired. The Terran fleet had lost a few ships to traitorous Captains, but in all the fleet was shipshape and ready for duty. The ship yards had been in overdrive for a while and the first of the large battle cruisers was being launched soon. It had been Amanda’s idea to christen it the Daniel Wesson.
“That is at least so good news, and Dominic how is going with professor McEwan?” Conall asked.
“Good Sir. The professor and Mortlock are like two peas in the same strange little pod. They have, with the help of Kára, been pouring over every bit of surviving information about the Eli’s war against the Nephilim. They are looking for anything that can help us,” St.
Claire answered.
“Any good info yet?” Conall asked.
“Nothing of note to report yet Sir,” St. Claire stated.
“Humm, well if there is nothing else I have a lunch date with my wife and child,” Conall said as he got up from his chair.
The meeting broke up, and as people were leaving, Amanda grabbed St. Claire by the arm, “I need to talk to you. Meet me in my office after lunch.”
One bacon cheese burger, one ice-cold beer and one hour later, St. Claire was sitting in a chair in front of his new boss. Amanda had just finished a salad herself when St. Claire came into her office. “So what’s up boss?”
“I have another mission for you and your Commandos,” Amanda said as she slid a tablet over the desk to him.
St. Claire picked up the tablet, entered his passcode and waited for the decryption to take place. He read over the mission specs. “Any questions?” she asked him.
“Just one, who is this asshole anyway and why do you want him in custody?” he asked.
“That is two questions really,” Amanda pointed out, which earned her an eye roll and an audible huff. Anyone else who would have dared to do what St. Claire had just done would have found themselves pulling duty on a far off com-relay station or something equally as mundane. But this was St. Claire. He always seemed to have a way with people that allowed him to get away with those types of things.
“Agreed, but they still stand,” he replied to her comment.
“The man in the file is Yiska Yanisin. He is the leader of a rather extreme radical religious sect that has been responsible for a lot of bloodshed over the years. I have been after this guy for years, yet somehow he seems to slip right through my fingers every time we get close. I suspect that he was working with, or for, Drake as many of his operations, when looked at from a new prospective, were all to support the formation of the New Galactic Empire,” Amanda said with fire in her eyes.
